Thursday, December 01, 2011

Best way to make financial goals for 2012


The New Year is here  and if you're struggling to make ends meet or if you want to set a goal to take a vacation in 2012 you may need to consider doing to frugal living in order for it to happen.  
Goals

Setting frugal goals is a wonderful way to spend less and have more and the New Year is the perfect time to make that happen. There are a number of things you can do to make it happen, but it's best to start now so you'll know exactly what to do to make it happen. Here are a few suggestions to help you set the frugal goals for 2012.


I would say the area you'll see the most savings when it comes to living frugally has to be at the grocery store. An easy way to save at the store is to purchase generic items whenever possible. Now you make find that's not always possible or you may not like the generic item and if that's the case you'll need to purchase name brand, but if you can't taste the difference, you should do it. For example, we don't like generic cheese, but we don't have a problem with generic soup when it's used in a meal and not a stand alone item.


Another way to save money at the store is to use coupons. Now you must be careful on this because there may be times when you have a coupon for the name brand product, but if the price isn't lower with the coupon and you don't mind a generic, you need to go that route. You'll need to pay close attention to the prices and quantities or you'll end up spending more than what is necessary.


One last technique that will help you save money at the store is to use price matching. If your store offers this, you should take the time to write down the price of items you need at other stores and then ask the cashier to match it if it's higher at the store you're at. This is a practice that not all stores follow, so it's important to check before you take the time to do it.


Another way to save money in the New Year comes with the things you do daily. An example of this would be if you work outside the home. If you work outside the home you can save money in two ways. The first way is with your meals. If you don't have the time or the ability to go home, you need to bring your lunch with you instead of going out or purchasing lunch from the convenience store or vending machine. It costs less to bring food from home than it does to go out.


Another way to save money if you work outside the home is to stay at work for lunch instead of wasting the gas to go home. You'd be amazed at the gas you'll save if you don't go home five days a week. Depending on the vehicle you drive you may save enough to purchase a weeks worth of groceries or pay double on a bill you have.


Setting frugal goals for the New Year is a good way to save money and prevent yourself from living pay check to pay check or having more bills than income during the month. These two steps are just the beginning when it comes to saving money. Take a little time and think about all the things you spend money on in a month and then see what you can remove to add more money to your wallet.


Corrie Petersen runs a successful Virtual Assistant business. She has learned to set frugal goals to help save her family money. If you're looking for ways to save money, click here to purchase her "Taking it to the Extreme: A Guide to Couponing" ebook. She'll show you how to save money at the grocery store when you use coupons & price matching.


Wednesday, November 30, 2011

How to fix your credit

Fix Your Credit Easily By Following A Few Steps

Having a good credit score can help you get a lower interest rate when you go to buy a car or a house, but not everyone has a good credit score. If your credit score is not as good as you would like it to be, then check out these tips to help you repair your credit. Keep track of who you authorize to put an inquiry of your credit report. Inquires do have a negative effect on your report. Review your credit report and dispute any inquiries that you have not authorized. Keeping track of small items like this, can have a large cumulative effect on your credit report. If you are constantly forgetting to pay your bills, leading to bad credit, set up automatic bill payments with your bank. You can set it to be the minimum for your credit card and a full payment for other items like cable television or your cell phone and you'll never forget it again. Ordering one's free credit report from the three major credit recording companies is absolutely vital to the credit repair process. The report will enumerate every debt and unpaid bill that is hurting one's credit. Often a free credit report will point the way to debts and problems one was not even aware of. Whether these are errors or legitimate issues, they must be addressed to heal one's credit score. Limit phone calls from debt collectors. Limit the time you spend talking to debt collectors on the phone, and be careful of what information you share with them, as they may not be legitimate. Don't be strong-armed into sending anyone money until you have something in writing. Once you receive a collection notice in the mail, you can then demand documentation that they have the legal right to collect money from you. This information must be mailed to you within 30 days of the original debt collection notice. If they can't provide this documentation, they have to cease debt collection efforts immediately. An important tip to consider when working to repair your credit, is to only apply for a loan when you are almost certain that you will be approved. This is important because you may lessen the chances of getting approved in the future if you are rejected. One of the main reasons why people have poor credit is they do not pay their bills on time. What you should do is talk to your bank and set up automatic and recurring payments for your bills. As long as you have money in your account, you won't have to worry about not paying on time. As you can see from these tips, there are many ways to help you repair your credit and raise your credit score. Educating yourself about the proper way to build credit will help you out in the long run. If you would like to repair your credit, you can apply the advice from this article and start repairing your credit right away.

Sunday, October 09, 2011

Sunday, September 04, 2011

Ziploc money saving tips

If you sign up for Ziploc right at home newsletter you will get money saving tips, great recipes and special offers. Here are a highlight of some tips shared on their forums Storing leftover pizza Use a Ziploc® Brand Big Bag for storing leftover pizza. It’s the perfect size! Ready-to-make pancakes Prep pancakes the night before and store the batter in a Ziploc® Brand Twist 'n Loc® Container. Then all you have to do in the morning is get the griddle hot! Creating 100-calorie snack packs To help with portion control, use Ziploc® Brand Containers to make several 100-calorie snack packs at one time. Keep these snack packs in the pantry or fridge so they're easily accessible.

Thursday, September 01, 2011

September grocery coupons

Here are grocery coupons available for the month of  September 
Pillsbury
Cereal
Yogurt
Pizza/Snacks
Misc Food & Household
Health & Beauty
Games

Monday, August 22, 2011

Frugal Meal Dinner planning Aug 21st

Here is what we are having for dinner this week:

Sun Steak, sweet potato fries, green beans

Mon Easy Mexican Lasagna with Tortillas


Tues Chicken, broccoli and pasta

Wed Mexican Lasagna

Thurs Leftover chicken and pasta

Fri Turkey burger melts, french fries, veggie

Sat Homemade pizza

Wednesday, August 03, 2011

Get Kellog's coupons

Kellogg is offering some coupons if you sign up for their email program. Signup to get Access to $5.00-$10.00 in coupons plus Enjoy your favorite Kellogg brands for less with money-saving coupons Get special offers and promotions Be the first to know about new products and the latest innovations at Kellogg. You will also receive the tastiest Kellogg recipes from their food.

Tuesday, August 02, 2011

Grocery store food printable coupons for August

Here are some great new coupons for the month of August that will help you lower your food bill.  Combine them with some saving at your local supermarket.


Food Coupons
Personal Care Products

Friday, July 29, 2011

New Dental teeth printable coupons

Check out these great new coupons that will save you money on dental health
 

Easy frugal cooking tips for leftovers

As a busy mom of 3 boys I  try to make sure I am not wasting food.  I have in my menu plan using leftovers and it helps keeping my food budget down. 


The fridge

One of the problems with leftovers, is that we tend to serve them day after day until they are gone.. Say you prepare a giant roast beef for Sunday dinner - there are plenty of leftovers, but the family will get tired if you keep serving slices of roast beef over and over for the rest of the week. You will have to get creative with your meal planning to keep dishes on the table that your family will actually eat.



You can start by chopping that roast up into bite size pieces. Add in some frozen vegetables, and some instant rice. Cook in a large frying pan or a wok, add in soy sauce and a beaten egg and you have a frugal meal of beef fried rice.



That's just one way that a leftover roast can be re-used. Don't forget beef stroganoff, a classic that's simple to make - just add some cream of mushroom soup, sour cream and egg noodles and you have a classic comfort food dish.

Another option would be to make a fritteria added the chop up roast (actually any leftover meat), added 2 cups of frozen brocolli, milk, 4 eggs, cheese and simply bake.  I will usually add some chop up roasted potatos as a side.


Don't let leftover meatloaf go to waste  - just take them and break them apart - they can become the basis for a traditional spaghetti meat sauce or you can add some taco seasoning and create a meal of tacos or burritos that is sure to be a family crowd pleaser. If doing the spagehtti and beef, I usually throw it in the crockpot to left the sauce and meat soak together,



Using a little creative thinking can turn any bunch of leftovers into frugal meals that last the whole week. Just take a moment to plan your main "big" meal and then brainstorm 2 or 3 other meals that can be made with it and make sure you have all the ingredients on hand in your pantry.

You'll be more likely to re-use leftovers if you don't have to hit the grocery store for last minute items. If you have enough leftover leftovers, you can even freeze this meal and pull it out of the freezer on another night.



By strategically using leftovers you will save time and money. Just watch your grocery bill go down and your free-time increase. You can even use the savings to order in one night - don't worry - we won't tell.


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Monday, July 11, 2011

Frugal back to school tips

Depending on where you live you may only have a few more weeks left of summer vacation. 
As frugal SAHM (stay at home moms), getting ready to send our kids back to school for another school year, there are a few tips that I recommend that can make the transition smoother, while saving money and even teaching your kids a thing or two about tightwad living.

1. Stock Up on Supplies
Late July and the month of August are the best times for a SAHM to get school supplies for literally pennies on the dollar. Most SAHMs get what is on their child's supply list and are happy with their savings. But then, most moms also run out of sharp crayons, filler paper, notebooks and scissors (anyone here actually remember where their scissors are?) by mid-year. Be a frugal SAHM and spend a little extra money now to stock up on supplies to last you through the entire school year.

2. Color Coordinate
In our house, each child has his or her own color. It makes life so much easier! The red backpack, lunch box, pencil box, folders and notebooks belong to one child, while the blue belong to another. Now when someone leaves their notebook in the middle of the floor after school, I don't have to dig around to try to figure out whose it is!

3. Butter Up the Teacher
Remember all those cheap school supplies you got? Well, with the economy as it currently is, more and more parents are not able to provide what their children need to be successful in school. Usually, it is the teachers that end up picking up the slack, at a great expense to their already tight funds. Consider donating extra supplies to your child's teacher directly.

4. School Food
In our frugal SAHM house, we pack our lunches and snacks instead of purchasing them from school. Sunday is our preparedness day. We bake cookies and other treats to last the week (well, sometimes they get gobbled up early; we've learned to hide things from Daddy!) We also prewash, peel, and cut up veggies and put them into sandwich baggies for the week, such as carrots and celery. Juice boxes are stored in the freezer to keep lunch (and juice) cool until lunchtime everyday.

5. Money Management for Teens
The frugal SAHM tips above work great for elementary-aged kids, but what about teenagers? There is a whole different set of rules when it comes to teens! First, they should be given control over some of their own finances.
Offer to give your teen the same amount of money you would pay each month for school lunches. Your teen has the option of buying school lunch or using the cash to buy food at the grocery store to take a sack lunch, and pocket the difference. The rule here is that lunch must be eaten. Your teen will surprise you!

Hopefully these SAHM back to school tips will get you off to a great school year!
Rayven Perkins is an expert at saving money. She has spent more than 10 years finding and implementing unique cost-cutting strategies that allow her family to live comfortably off one income in a two-income society. Visit her site to learn how to stretch your dollar, easiest ways to save money and supplement income in order to stay a stay at home mom.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Frugal Tips for Washington DC

We are heading to DC in few weeks! We got our hotel Holiday Inn near the Capital as well as taking the Armtrak to Union Station.
Although hotels are costly and parking a challenge, the nation's capital is full of free attractions and things to do.


The White House  and the Capitol Building


Entrance to President's Park is free and gives the frugal traveler great views of the White House. The visitors center has some very nice permanent exhibits. Tours of the White House can be arranged by your congressman . However applications have to be received at least six months in advance.

We spent a whole day exploring the library of congress which is in the same building as the capitol!


Tours are also available of the Pentagon. These also have to be arranged well ahead of time.



Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Washington Monument



The National Mall And Memorial Parks contain some of the U.S.'s most important monuments. These include The Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, and the Washington Monument within walking distances of each other. The Mall itself is a great place to picnic and people watch. Entrance is free.  Don't bother with taking any of the bus tours. Those are expensive.  We did one whole day walking the from one side to another! It was fantastic.



Smithsonian Museums

. Entrance as with all of the 17 Smithsonian buildings and the National Zoo is free. There are also free tours available. The buildings them  itself are  beautiful. Some of our favorite museums were

A Washington DC Landscape
National Museum of Natural History


The National Museum Of Natural History is a favorite with kids. They have tarantula feedings, dinosaurs, and preserved animals. As with all the Smithsonian Museums, the National Museum Of Natural History is free.



National Museum Of American History



Another free Smithsonian Museum, the National Museum Of American History showcases American culture and history. From Dorothy's ruby red slippers to full sized locomotives, think of an American icon and you can likely find it in this museum.  You need atleast a 1/2 day to see everything.   Pack a lunch and sit inside their cafe or on the national mall which is right there.



Washington D.C. is full of free tourist attractions with American politics, history, and culture as the focus. The Smithsonian Museums alone, a great rainy day alternative, can take weeks to explore. The city is a must see for both American visitors and residents.



You can use Restaurant.com andgroupon to get some good deals on restuatants