It’s no secret that I like to save money. I will comparison shop, and clip coupons, and look for discount codes until the cows come home! I’ve already started to do some comparison shopping on a Jem7v for Chuck’s birthday, and I have to say that I’m disappointed that the guitar is so expensive. I know it is a high-end guitar, and you get what you pay for, but even with a sale price that knocks about 25% off the price, the guitar is more expensive than I expected it to be! I’m going to have to have a chat with Chuck and see if he is willing to chip in some money towards it himself.
I’m still stuffed
Well this had to be one of the best Thanksgivings I can remember. The children were all here with me, we have a new family friend that joined us too, and the rest of the family all gathered at Ma-maw’s house through out the day. Some came for dinner and some just for desert. It was wonderful.
The kids stayed with Ma maw so I could hit the sales Friday. I really saved some money and got most of my shopping done too. I got one of my sons a remote controlled dragon fly. He’s going to love it. I got my oldest son a ‘boom box’ I guess they still call them but this one is remote controlled and he can plug his MP3 player into it and play it through it. Pretty cool I thought.
My daughter is in love with the movie Frozen so I got her several things related to that. I know she’ll be thrilled with them. I’m not finished shopping yet but I’m getting close.
Time to find a pumpkin
As I was getting everyone in the car, someone tapped me on my shoulder. It was the gentleman that had been near enough us to hear the children cry and me say “I just can’t afford $25 for a pumpkin.” There he stood with that pumpkin in his hands saying “Here, this pumpkin really needed to go home with your kids. It was crying when you left it so I had to get it for the kids so they all could be happy.” My children started hooting and hollering and each one gave the kind man a big hug and said thank you.
There I stood with tears in my eyes. This kind soul was my guardian angel at that moment and I could plainly see it in his eyes. I gave him a hug and told him that he had no idea how much I appreciated his selfless kindness. He told me his name was Charlie Benson, gave me his phone number and told me that if I needed anything to help with the children for Christmas, to please let him know. He didn’t have any family to spoil and would love to adopt my children as his grandchildren if that was okay. He then asked if he could call from time to time to just speak with them and hear how their day or week had been.
I’m a bit nervous about giving him my number and I hate to say it but I will check him out before I allow him to be much of a part of my children’s lives. You can’t be too careful in this day in time but my heart tells me he is what he appears to be, just a kind old man with no one who wants to help. I sure hope so because my children would love to have a ‘Grandpa’ to spoil them all.
Tax Free Shopping
Once a year, Tennessee and a couple other states give the families a break and declare the first weekend in August is Tax Free Shopping. That means all the clothes, shoes, computers and school supplies are able to be bought without having to pay the sales tax. That is a huge savings when you can put off buying those things until this particular weekend and then buy things you need. A lot of stores have extra sale prices, too. Even people who aren’t going back to school save money when they buy clothes and shoes during this weekend! Smart time to shop!
Help when it’s most needed
Credit Card Counseling is everywhere in these economic times but there are more options than getting with a company that focuses on debt consolidation. Most of those types of companies only help you with counseling or others only help you to find refinancing and still others get you into a service where you pay a certain amount per month and owe less in the end.
Well they are hard to find, but there really are companies that help you with all of the above and financial planning too. In all reality, financial planning is the best way to get out of debt and stay debt-free while you plan for your future at the same time. Getting debt-free won’t happen overnight; it may take years, and it takes a lot of discipline to spend your money wisely. I know that sounds impossible but financial planning really can help.
Happy 4th of July
Saving on groceries
There are better way to save money on food than they talk about. I buy a lot of chicken and hamburger but we still eat well. We have a little garden and Grandpa has a big garden so we home can and freeze a lot of vegetables so we don’t have to buy that many vegetables. Mom is great at making different things with the same old meats. You just have to find recipes that everyone likes and use your imagination a little. I’ve learned to be a pretty good cook from trial and error mostly, and a lot of help from Mom.
Using coupons helps a lot, too. I have a “coupon-swapping” friend, Joann, and we try to get together at least twice a month to trade coupons. I enjoy catching up with her, and we always find we save a lot of money by swapping off the coupons that we clip from the papers.
Fashion models walking the runways
It’s that time of year when the fashion models are walking the runways and showing off the newest lines from our favorite designers. It is also the time of year when we have that urge to shop till we drop and freshen up our own wardrobes. This is not at all surprising as the advertisements have boosted to catch our interest.
Before you go shopping there is an absolute must that you should do. Clean out your closet! Get rid of clothing that no longer fits or that is worse for the wear from being constantly worn. I know that it is your favorite blouse, but it is threadbare and should be pitched in the garbage. You will find a new one to take its place I assure you.
Find your local discount store that have the same fashions at cheaper prices that the high dollar stores do. There are a lot to choose from like, Marshalls, TJ Maxx and Ross just to name a few. Outlet stores are a great place to shop for good deals on clothing as well and they have a lot to choose from. Look up your local sales as well, especially towards the holidays. Everyone is having a sale during the holiday shopping season.
One of the best shopping tools is of course the internet. You can find lots of online coupon codes and such to help you save money as you buy those have to have items. You would be smart to shop at online stores that offer free shipping too. This saves you more money than you can imagine when it comes to shopping online. You can go for that Beyonce’ look, but make sure it fits your body style as well. You really want to shop for what looks good on you, not just for what you see the celebrities wear.
Take your time when shopping. You can’t find that perfect outfit, if you are constantly in a rush. Pick your day to shop, make sure that you have nothing else to do and nowhere else to be so that you can be totally relaxed and enjoy the experience. If you are rushing through it, you might not try on that dress only to get home and find out it doesn’t look as good as you thought it might. The changing rooms are in the stores for a reason so USE THEM! It also helps to take a friend with you who is totally honest when you ask how something looks. This will prevent you from buying something completely wrong that you will only have to return later.
Have fun and don’t forget to accessorize ! Belt’s, scarves, faux jewelry, shoes and bags are all part of the ensemble, and will really make that outfit pop even if you are buying clothes for work. You can still look amazing and be thrifty, while rocking really good outfits that are suitable for an office job. Never think that work clothes have to be dull and boring.
Gifts for loved ones
When it comes to buying gifts for my loved ones, I am always looking for sales on good gifts. Sure you can rely on online Black Friday deals, but they are only once a year. I much prefer finding my sales on a daily or weekly basis. I have a budget and I do my best to stay on it. Sales are the best way to save money when you have a family. My family budget is not static, but I do try to keep it within certain limits. The kids helps as much as children can, by conserving on that kiddie stuff, but it doesn’t always do the job.
As frustrating as it can be to create a budget and stick to it, we do our best. It always helps to have the children involved in the budgeting and saving. There are many ways to achieve this. Coupons are one of the best ways to save money. You can find coupons for just about any product out there. Weather you are buying diapers or formula, it doesn’t matter. If you work together on your budget you can actually have a better marriage. Money is the one thing that every couple argues over. It is actually the easiest thing to overcome.
Once you have decided on what kind of lifestyle you want to have, you can agree on how to save your money. There are green lifestyles, as well as the I am not involved kind of lifestyles. No matter what you are into, you can save money.
Running a crew
Well it seems that my honey is now running a hvac crew at work, but they haven’t as of yet, offered him more money for doing it. He is going to have to talk to them about that soon. If you run a crew, you get paid more money. That is how it works. Hopefully, they will offer it to him when he goes in, before he even has to ask them.
