If you are planning to decrease your spending in the new year, whether to help pay off debt or to save for the future, cutting out cable is a great way to save money. The money that you save on a monthly expense like cable adds up quickly. In addition to the huge chunk of […]
Accountability: A Debt Discussion
Welcome to another Wednesday Debt Discussion! If you’re new around here, you might want to take a peek at what we’ve been discussing lately. Now that we’ve decided to be open about debt, made sure we aren’t adding to our debt, set a debt-free date along with some smaller goals, budgeted and made sacrifices to help us achieve […]
Homemade Pumpkin Bread and Muffins
We had a great pumpkin harvest this past fall. Little by little we have been making our own pumpkin puree to use and freeze. Consequently, pumpkin is our not-so-secret ingredient in everything these days. We have really become pumpkin connoisseurs. We cooked up our second-to-last pumpkin last week. At 70+ lbs, it yielded around 4.5 […]
Homemade Powdered Laundry Detergent with Zote
During law school I learned to make my own laundry detergent. I always made the “liquid” kind. I use the word “liquid” loosely because it was somewhere between a solid and a liquid. If you’ve used the liquid version of Fels-Naptha, Borax, and Washing Soda, you know the gelatinous chunks of which I speak. I […]
Debt Tracking Tools: How do you keep track of your debt payoff?
Now that you’ve set a Debt-Free Date and made real sacrifices, how do you keep track of your progress? Do you have a spreadsheet that you update monthly? Do you rely on your loan statements? Do you have an app or program that you use? Up until recently we only used an Excel spreadsheet. We […]
Saving on Shaving
My husband has the gift of facial hair. He’s the kind who has a five o’clock shadow that some men can’t even grow after a week. There’s no need to be jealous though, it’s more of a curse. While laziness might lead him to let it grow, he shaves everyday (except Saturday) to maintain his […]
What are You Willing to Give Up to Get Out of Debt?
In our last Debt Discussion, we talked about Deciding on a Debt-Free Date. Now that you’ve nailed down a specific date or time-frame that you’d like to have everything paid off, let’s look a little closer at the “how” of reaching your goal. Assuming you aren’t still adding to your debt, paying it off is […]
How we paid off $36,000 of Debt in 2013
At the end of 2013, we reached an exciting milestone in our debt repayment adventure. We are now less than Six Figures Under. We have less than $100k of debt! We have paid off $40,000 of debt so far and $36,000 of it was in 2013. Those who are regulars around here have a good […]
December 2013– Debt Repayment Progress Report
Debt Repayment In December we put $852 toward debt. Definitely not stellar, but it’s just barely enough to drop us to less than Six Figures Under. Having debt of less than $100,000 is worth celebrating. Income Regular: $3,175 (after taxes) Etsy: $300— A little better than last month, but well-below average. All of the month’s orders came […]
We’re Not Six Figures Under Anymore!
Happy New Year! To celebrate the new year, I am excited to announce that… We’re not six figures under anymore! You’ll have to wait a few days for our official monthly debt repayment progress report for December with all the details of our earning and spending, but I thought the milestone of getting our student […]
Deciding on a Debt-Free Date
If you are currently working on paying off debt, have you set a “debt-free date” yet? I’m not talking about going out with your spouse without using a credit card. I’m talking about a date on the calendar when you plan to be completely out of debt. If you haven’t set a goal for when […]
6 Reasons to Get Kids Clothes Secondhand
More often than not, the clothes we buy for our kids are secondhand clothes. As long as they are in good condition, they fit well, and we think they are cute, we have no problem with used clothes. You can call them “pre-owned” or “pre-worn” if it makes you feel better. Here are six of […]
Is Santa Shooting You in the Foot?
Oh you better watch out… and I’m not talking about being naughty or nice. I’m talking about raising kids. Is Santa helping or hindering your parenting goals? Is Santa over-stepping his bounds? Is Santa shooting you in the foot? Ever since having kids I have wondered how to work the whole Santa thing. Here are […]
Dealing With Discouragement: A Debt Discussion
Dealing with debt is often a long road filled with ups and downs. Reaching a milestone, sticking to your budget, resisting temptation, or earning some extra income are all reasons to smile and celebrate. We also all have times when we feel discouraged and wonder if we will ever get out of our current situation. […]
Why We Decided Against a “Baby Emergency Fund” (and what we have instead)
If you’ve done any reading in personal finance, the idea of an emergency fund isn’t new to you. Having money set aside for a rainy day is not a new concept. Ever since we were first married and started budgeting, we had had an emergency fund. When an “emergency” came up, in most cases, […]
🍅Homemade Tomato Sauce from Tomato Puree 🍅
Now that you know how to increase your tomato harvest by ripening your green tomatoes indoors and you know the easiest way to can your tomatoes, I promised I would share what to do with your canned tomato puree. We use our home-canned tomato puree to make tomato sauce for spaghetti, for pizza, for lasagna, […]
Myths of the Minimum Payment– A Debt Discussion
Are you only making the minimum monthly payments toward your debt? Let’s look at a couple of the Myths of the Minimum Payment that might motivate you to do at least a little bit more! We’ll discuss in the comments below. Myth #1– You will never pay off your debt if you pay just […]
November 2013- Debt Repayment Progress Report
Our November numbers are not terribly impressive considering our goal. On the other hand, looking at the image above makes me excited that by this time next month we’ll no longer be six figures under, and we will have reached $40,000 in debt paydown. Debt Repayment In November we put $1200 toward debt. It’s a […]
Get Over $200 Without Leaving Home (Best Black Friday Deal for sure!)
UPDATE: The Black Friday promotion has ended, but you can STILL follow the link to get a $50 bonus on a checking account, $25 bonus on a savings account, and $25 bonus on kids accounts. I have had a Capital One 360 account for nearly a decade, since back when they were ING Direct. I […]
How’s Your Plumbing? A Discussion on Debt
Welcome to the weekly Wednesday Debt Discussion. In case you missed it, last week we talked about the pros and cons of disclosing debt. It was great to hear everyone’s take on making debt personal or public. Imagine you are sitting at the table having a nice conversation over dinner. All of the sudden you […]
5 Tips to Get the Best Bang for your Gift Card Bucks
Between Swagbucks, MyPoints and our credit card rewards programs, we have lots of opportunities to earn gift cards. While some people consider gift cards “free money,” around here we use gift cards just like we would hard-earned cash. We stretch them as far as they can go. Here are some tips to help you do the […]
Daring to Disclose Debt
Have you ever felt alone in your debt and wondered if you were the only one struggling mentally, emotionally, and financially under the weight of debt? Debt is discouraging, but keeping it discreet seems to be hurting everyone. Are you ready to disclose your debt? We are pretty open about the fact that we have […]
Stocking Up on Food: Why We Do It and How We Save Money
As I read frugal and financial blogs and discuss money-saving tactics with people, I have noticed two distinct frugal grocery styles. People tend to be either stocker-uppers or week-to-weekers. Both have well thought-out reasons for their thinking. I am definitely in the stocker-upper camp. Let me tell you why! Stocking Up is Responsible I have […]
🍅How to Store Green Tomatoes So They’ll Ripen 🍅
Did you know that you can store green tomatoes inside when it’s too cold for them outside and they will gradually ripen? You can eat homegrown tomatoes in the winter time and stretch your canning out to the months where you actually don’t mind heating your house up with the stove. Pick your green tomatoes […]
