Get a Gorgeous Spring Lawn without the Expense
Do you have a yard? Do you find yourself struggling to keep your lawn looking great without spending a lot of money? Well, I have some tips for you to follow that will enable you to keep your lawn looking great without spending a fortune, or a lot of time on it.
Follow these tips and you will be able to maintain a beautiful lawn that you can be proud of year round!
- Eliminate and Prevent Weeds. What kind of weeds do you find yourself dealing with? If you deal with broadleaf weeds (dandelions, white-flowering clover and big-leaf plantain), you can eliminate them, but either removing them by hand or by using a granular weed control product on them. Or you can prevent them from growing in the first place by using a pre-emergent herbicide in the early spring (check out your local home improvement stores for this).
- Mow more often. Mowing your lawn more often, helps stimulate your lawn to grow lush and green. As a general rule of thumb, be sure to not cut off more than ⅓ of the length of the grass. Mowing your grass shorter may seem to save you time, in reality it stimulates the growth of weeds, which makes you work more often. Additionally, make sure to keep your mower blades sharp, by either sharpening or replacing them once per lawn care season.
- Water in the A.M. Watering your yard in the evening results in soaked grass, which can increase your chances of diseases in the grass. When you water early in the morning, the grass will dry with the warming sun.
- Spot Train Spot. I know that you just love your canine kid, but did you know that he is ruining your lawn? Make sure to spot train your dog to “go” in a specific spot. You might consider creating a mulch or gravel spot to take him to urinate as dog urine contains nitrogen which causes yellow grass and dead spots throughout your yard.
What is your favorite way to frugally beautify your yard?
6 Ways to Save Money on Kids Clothes
Do you have kids? Do you find yourself spending a lot of money buying lots of clothes for them? Yes, you want your kids to be well clothed, and yes you want them to get what they want, but does that mean that you need to spend a lot of money? The answer to that is no. You do not need to overextend yourself just to dress your kids because there are some awesome (and sometimes creative) ways to save money on kids clothes.
These tips that I am about to tell you can actually be used for both kids and parents, so make sure that you implement them when shopping for yourself to help save money.
Here are six ways to save money on kids clothes:
- Shop Amazon of course. I know I mention it often, but Amazon is a great place to shop. I recently bought my daughter a Columbia Fleece Jacket for $10 at Amazon!! The same jacket was $26 at the OUTLET Store (not even the regular store!). Amazon offers low prices, plus extra discounts on occasion as well as sales and promos.
- Thrift Shops. No need to be squeamish about it, thrift shops are a great place to shop for clothes for kids. Kids grow so quickly that it is sometimes pointless to spend big money on clothes that they are just going to wear or 6 months. Consider buying the clothes that another kid has already worn and grown out of.
- Hand Me Downs. Do you have more than one child? Definitely use the opportunity to use hand me downs for their clothing. You know how the clothes have been worn and stored. Plus, how cute is it when your kids wear the same things?!
- Spend More. I know, I know, it makes no sense to spend more money when we are talking about spending less, but it really does. I always try to avoid buying my children’s clothes at discount stores such as Walmart and Kmart because they just never last. The clothes that you buy there are just not made with the same quality as higher end brands.
- Swap with Friends. If you have friends with kids that are a different age than yours, consider swapping with them so that you can both save money!
- Facebook for Sale Groups. Are you a member of any for sale groups on Facebook? Definitely scroll through those to find deals on clothes. I am a member of several of those and I often see complete lots of kids clothes for $30-$50. That is a huge savings over buying brand new individual pieces.
What is your favorite way to save money on kids clothes?
6 Ways to Save Money on Books!
Did you know that March is National Reading Month? That means that it is time to get yourself a new book and time to work on getting your kids into reading! I absolutely love that my kids love to read. I also love it when they ask me for new books (instead of toys or candy), but books are not cheap these days, so I cringe a little when they ask me in store. I much prefer they ask me at home so that I have time to research the best deals that I can get them for. If you are the same way and don’t like paying those exorbitant costs for new release books, check out these 6 ways to save money on books that I follow each and every time I shop for new reading materials. 
Here are six ways to save money on books:
- Shop Amazon of course. I heard today that 70% of all books are sold on Amazon. That leaves two reason that you’re going to find your best bet for good deals there. Was that much of a selection competitive pricing is going to be much more serious. Be sure to always check under the “Other Sellers” tab on the product page to find the best deals.
- Check out Costco or other membership clubs. We have a Costco membership and almost always find great books there for much lower price than you will find at the new stand. They typically have best sellers, new releases, and lots of kids books.
- Yard sales. Many, many people who are big readers only read their book once and then they want to get rid of it. During the Summer months, stroll through yard sales to find awesome deals on books! I regularly find them for $0.25 each shopping this way.
- Thrift Shops. Most thrift shops have hundreds, if not thousands of books on hand. I love shopping thrift shops for books because you can find them year round (as opposed to just Summertime for yard sales, plus, most are in great shape because they are read and then donated by most book owners.
- Kindle books. Okay, so this is kind of a part 2 to our Amazon suggestion, but you will often find much cheaper deals on Kindle versions than paperback or hardcover.
- Library. The library will always be a great option for those of us wanting to read a new book. Checking out a book from the library is free after all and you have several weeks before it is due again. This, of course, isn’t ideal if you are really wanting to own the book, but it is a great option if you are short on funds.
Are you a bookworm? How do you prefer to buy your books?
Tips for Throwing Together a Quick Dinner Party
Have you been all of the sudden put into the position of having to host a dinner party? Maybe some event has happened and you have volunteered to cook for everyone. Or maybe a celebration is in order?? Whatever the reason, you can have a kick butt dinner party on short notice no problem!
Follow these tips for throwing together a quick dinner party and have fun!
Buy precooked food. Grab a couple pre-cooked chickens from your local grocery store or a Calzone from your local take and bake pizza place. These are yummy foods that don’t scream, store bought. Throw together a salad and voila you have a great meal, quick! This takes the main part of your meal planning down to just sides and maybe dessert (if you choose to serve dessert that is). When the main dish is covered, your stress will ease!
Serve simple, yet pretty drinks. Okay, if you are serving alcohol then make it easy and just grab some wine or beer. If you are going nonalcoholic, be sure and stock up on soda, tea (store bought is fine) or juice. Slice up several large lemons and garnish your drinks with them for a bright touch. And always be prepared with a pot of coffee prepared for your guests.
Serve easy appetizers. Don’t go crazy with your appetizers. Set out plates of olives, crackers, baby carrots and other finger foods that are easy to eat and take minimal effort. A great dinner party doesn’t have to mean a formal meal, finger foods are fine.
Buy high quality disposable dishware. If you are short on time, don’t fear disposable drinkware. You can easily find nice plastic glasses that are great for serving drinks of all kinds which is nice because you just never know how many drinks your guests will have. It will save you tons of time on dishes!
The truth is, a dinner party can be great no matter how much time you have to prepare. It doesn’t matter what you serve or what dishes you serve it in. Just be sure that you don’t stress it!
100 Cheap Date Night Ideas
Valentine’s Day is coming up and there’s no better time to think about how to add a little romance into your marriage or relationship. It doesn’t need to cost a lot of money to have a night where you are laughing, learning, and growing closer to one another. Here are 100 awesome ideas that won’t break the bank and provide that time you need to strengthen your relationships.
- Cooking class
- Start a journal together and leave love notes
- Play favorite board games
- Camp in the living room
- Drive to a new location and have a picnic
- Visit a new museum
- Watch the sun set from a new location
- Visit an elderly family member
- Go to dinner with another couple
- Find a new recipe and cook it together
- Play chess in a park
- Attend a free outdoor concert
- Go stargazing
- Couples massage (Look for a deal on Groupon)
- Camping in the mountains
- Bowling
- Go fishing
- Find homes near by that have Open Houses and walk through
- Midnight bike ride
- Fly kites
- Drive in movie
- Play 1-on-1 Basketball
- Selfie time! – Go around town taking selfies in random/unique spots
- Go to the local library and research a country you both want to visit
- Show & Tell- go through your school year books
- Take public transportation to a city near you and go to dinner
- Paint a portrait of each other
- Go geocaching
- Find a new bookstore and browse
- Watch a new documentary
- Find historical landmarks in your town
- Miniature golf
- Sing at a karaoke bar
- Learn how to sew something together
- Attend a high school sporting event or play
- Put together a puzzle
- Play Frisbee or Frisbee golf
- Go bird watching
- Attend a matinee movie
- Get some 1/2 off late night appetizers
- Listen to a new podcast
- Watch planes land and take off near an airport
- Favorite TV Show marathon
- Find a local flea market or sidewalk sale
- Read a loud a classic book
- Talk about each of your favorite top 10 moments/vacations with each other
- Feed ducks at a pond
- Play “Would you rather”
- Dance party in living room
- Go on a double date with your parents
- Swimming in a near by pool/lake/ocean
- Go on a new hike
- Play Tennis
- Bake a new dessert
- Go to the local zoo
- Climb a tree
- Walk your dog or a neighbors dog
- Take a dance class (check your local community classes- they are a lot cheaper!)
- Pretend you are a tourist and head to the city. Grab brochures and learn all about your city.
- Exercise together- start training for a race
- Attend a comedy or improve show
- Video game night competition
- BBQ in the backyard
- Play truth or dare
- Browse a second hand store
- Go to a U-pick garden
- Clean up your streets by picking up litter
- Tackle a house project that you’ve been putting off
- Build a snowman or a sand castle
- Go on an evening walk together
- Make a personalized pizza at home
- Walk through your college campus
- Make homemade ice cream
- Make a campfire and roast marshmallows
- Serenade each other with instruments that you each know how to play
- Sign up for a mud run or color run
- Play a childhood game
- Fondue night
- Attend a local Opera
- Host a dinner party
- Write a poem for each other
- Walk to dinner
- Camp at a state park
- Learn a magic trick together
- Volunteer at a local school
- Progressive dinner (start at a restaurant, then a friends, then your home)
- Go to a gun range
- Lay in a hammock together
- Play monopoly
- Taste test a variety of chocolate (blind fold and see if you know!)
- Go to a local pet store
- Wash your cars
- At-home spa night
- Have a cook off (each of you create a new dish and enjoy each others masterpieces)
- Enjoy favorite drinks on the patio or deck
- Make a relationship time capsule
- Test drive your dream car
- Dress up and make your own photo shoot
- Make sushi together
100. Exchange a scalp and back massage
What other date night ideas do you have to add to this list?
Time Management Tips For Working Moms!
I’ve been a work at home Mom for a little less than 5 years and we’ve had our ups and downs along the way but I’ve learned a lot about time management. So whither you’re working at home, at the office or just trying to manage your kids schedules I hope these tips can help you balance it all and make life more enjoyable and easier.
Choose a good planner
So I’ve gone through a few different planners and for the last 3 years I’ve found the perfect one for me! First off I tried the apps and calendars on my phone and well, I’m a paper girl. So having this planner to write down my grocery list, kids schedules, husband’s and my own work schedule and everything in between has been amazing. I like that I can see everything for the month as well as plan out my weeks one at a time.
Routine
I live for routines and so do my kids. They know what’s expected of them in the morning before school and I can get my little toddler ready while they’re getting ready. They also know when I work and what they can do during those times. So we have a good routine going where everyone knows what’s happening each day and what’s expected of them. Yes our routine gets out of wack when someone is sick, we’re going on vacation, etc but for most days, we’ve got it down. I recommend getting something set that works for you. If that’s getting up earlier than the kids so you can get a few things done, set it.
15 Minute Speed Cleaning
I’ve sure you’ve heard of this but now it’s time to implement it. it’s truly amazing what my kids can get done when they’re racing the timer. I’ve found it best to do this while I’m getting dishes done after dinner. That way I’m cleaning too and they’re helping out as well. I’ll set the timer and say “ready, set, go” and off we’ll go until the timer goes off. This is usually enough time to get the dishes in the dishwasher and the clean ones put away while the kids clean up the toys that were pulled out in the family room and the socks they took off when they got home.
Balance
This one takes practice and something I’m still working on but my best advise, know your limits and learn to say no. Don’t feel like you need to say no all the time but remember your family needs you first and being a working mom takes up a lot of your time. So finding a balance between work, taking care of the home and spending time with your kids is a necessity. Once you know your limits it will be a lot easier to know what tasks you can take on and what you need to say no to.
Don’t get overwhelmed or discouraged by being a working mom. It’s possible and hopefully you can find help when you need it. There are times when it’s important to ask for help and that’s ok. You’ve got this, and you’re doing a great job!
5 Ways to Save Money on Flowers
As we discussed yesterday, Valentine’s Day is just days away. Do you have your gift options planned? You already know that a big gift is not required to show your love, but you probably want to get your loved one something. Maybe a box of chocolates or a card or maybe you want to surprise your love with some flowers.
But aren’t flowers expensive? Well, yes, they can be very expensive, but they don’t have to be. There are quite a few ways that you can cut back on the price of the flowers, but not sacrifice the quality of the flowers that you buy.
- Pick Wildflowers. If they are in season, don’t be afraid to pick wildflowers. These are my favorite flowers to get as I know they have come from the heart and you had to do more than swipe your credit card for them. Really though, who doesn’t love wildflowers?
- Groupon. Okay, so maybe wildflowers aren’t in season, maybe you live in the city away from any wildflower fields or maybe your significant others is one of those that simply don’t like wildflowers. If any of these are fitting to you, you should check out Groupon for awesome deals. I have seen deals from 1-800-Flowers and FTD quite often and you often end up saving 50% or more when you buy these deals!
- Check out Walmart. Walmart, for flowers? Yep. Walmart has some super cute bouquets for flowers for very reasonable prices. You will find roses, daisies, carnations, wildflowers, just about anything you are looking for will be there.
- Buy smaller bouquets. I don’t know about you, but I appreciate one rose just as much as I appreciate 12. I think the fact that your loved one is thinking about you is what is important. Besides, flowers don’t live for too long so why spend a lot of money on it?
- Use coupons. Most smaller, local florists often offer coupons. Be sure to check out your local newspapers and their FB pages too (of course).
Do you like to get flowers? What are your tips for getting flowers in the most budget friendly way possible?
5 Tips for Knowing How to do Valentine’s Day on the Cheap
Valentine’s Day is just days away….how are you going to celebrate? You know, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to make the day of love special, you just have to be creative and it can be the best Valentine’s Day ever!
- Get over the idea that material things equal money. Haven’t you ever heard the song “Can’t Buy Me Love?” It’s true. You can’t. Showing your love does not mean having expensive stuff or buying roses or fancy restaurant reservations. Love is about spending time with those that you care about and finding ways to spend time together that is about just that, spending time together. No need to spend money and be stressed out about it.
- Create a coupon book. These coupon books are talked about often and that’s for a reason. Because they are awesome! Seriously, it’s like a gift that keeps giving all year long! Create coupons like “One 30 Minute Massage”, “One week of sole remote control” (my hubby will love that one). There are countless ideas that can create awesome Valentine’s Day worthy coupons.
- Buy smaller gifts. Just because you don’t want to go overboard with gifts, doesn’t mean that you can’t buy a nice, albeit, small gift. Why buy 5 pounds of chocolate, when you can buy a small box of your love’s favorite chocolate? Why buy a giant teddy bear (seriously why? You can’t wash them and no one has room to store those things!) when you can get a smaller stuffed toy that can be easier displayed on a desk or dresser and enjoyed.
- Get a babysitter and have a night in. Okay, so yes, you will have to pay for the sitter, but the time alone will be well worth the small expense. Order in a cheap pizza, make dinner together or have a sandwich picnic in bed, it doesn’t matter, just spend time together. And put down your phone!
- Make an I Love You Because list….I absolutely love these lists. Just create a one sheet list of reasons why you love your significant other and present them with the list on Valentine’s day. I bet you might see a tear or two of happiness.
Super Easy Banana Bread Recipe
My kids absolutely love banana bread. I even put it in their school lunches to switch up the sandwich ritual I seem to have going on. It seems like I am always buying bananas and sometimes we don’t go through them as quickly as I like. So they turn brown and then what do I do with them? I either put them in the freezer or make a batch of this bread. This recipe is super easy and yummy. So the next time you have bananas that are turning a little brown, try this out!
Ingredients
1/2 Cup Shortening or Butter
1 Cup Sugar
2 Beaten Eggs
3 Ripe Bananas
2 1/2 Cup Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
Pinch of Salt
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Cup Water
Directions
1. Cream together shortening and sugar
2. Add in beaten eggs and ripe bananas then beat with beater
3. Add flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and water
4. Mix all together really well
5. Grease and flour 2 bread pans- divide mixture and put into pans
6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 50-60 minutes.
**Test if it’s done by sticking a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean it’s done.**
Top 10 Fitness Trends for 2017
Have you made a 2017 goal involving fitness? If so, you’re definitely not alone. Eating healthy and losing weight are goals that most of us have when starting out a new year. You may have started an exercise routine but quickly find yourself becoming bored with it. If you need a change, these trends could help you out. Each year there are new ways to help us get motivated to exercise and become fit. So what are the fitness trends for 2017? A few of these might surprise you.
- Wearable Technology- You’ll notice friends and family buying fitness trackers to help out with fitness and eating habits. This could also be a motivational help. Plus, fitness tracker sales are going up. We are buying them.
- Body Weight Training– No equipment needed. Doing the basic training of push ups, squats, sit ups and more.
- Dance Cardio- Dancing and moving to popular music is a great way to exercise. Classes are popping up around the nation with this fun option.
- HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)– Short bursts or exercise at maximum heart rate. This will help you burn off those calories in a shorter amount of time.
- Strength Training– Science backs up strengthening your muscles will help with back pain and more.
- Live Stream Classes- Fitness studios are starting to do live stream classes that you can do in the comforts of your own home. Have you tried this yet? Cycling, yoga and toning are a few classes you will be able to find live stream.
- Group Training– Grab friends and family and start training together. This helps build accountability and often times helps you continue exercising for a longer time.
- Exercise Apps- There’s an app for that…right? There are plenty of apps to help document your running or eating habits. More and more apps will become available and they definitely won’t be going away.
- Yoga– It’s not for the old anymore. Tune your mind to your body and increase flexibility.
- Exercise & Weight Lose– You need to back up all your exercising with good nutrition. If you are missing one or the other, you won’t see your goals reached as easily.
Are you doing any of these trends already? If not, it’s a great time to give one of these a try.
It’s National Chocolate Cake Day Tomorrow – January 27th!
You better plan your cheat day for tomorrow because it’s National Chocolate Cake Day and that’s definitely something to celebrate! Here’s a little science about why you’re probably a chocolate lover – chocolate triggers the release of serotonin and endorphins, which are neurotransmitters for happiness and pleasure. It also contains phenylethylamine, which elevates our mood when we feel happiness or love. So why not eat more chocolate cake right 
or maybe at least eat more tomorrow!
There are some great ways to incorporate this fun holiday into your meals all day long! Why not first start with some chocolate cake batter pancakes covered in chocolate syrup and whipped cream. This is sure to be a fun surprise for the kids to enjoy before they run off to school.
Then you can use that batter to make some delicious cupcakes with a fun surprise in the middle (like a nice slice of strawberry). Create the perfect chocolate frosting to go on top and share with your co-workers at work!
And for dessert after dinner – grab some Chocolate Cake at your favorite bakery! Because with dessert you need to go all out and everyone is sure to enjoy the outing! My personal favorite – Chili’s Molten Chocolate Cake that has melted chocolate center topped with vanilla ice cream and a thin chocolate shell!
Don’t want to go out for a delicious Molten Chocolate Cake, create your own with this heavenly recipe by Jenny Steffens. She lays it all out for you making it easy. You can pull it all together while everyone is at school/work or out playing and then serve it up after you’ve eaten dinner.
So how do you plan to celebrate this fun National Chocolate Cake holiday? Change things up and have a fun chocolate lovers day with the family.
5 Tips that Will save You Time When Cleaning
If you are anything like me, you occasionally (or always) feel like every bit of your free time is spent cleaning. No one has time for that. Life gets busy. Who wants to spend it with a duster or washcloth in their hand? No one. That’s who.
So how can you be sure that you are spending less time cleaning and more time with your family and doing the things that you love? Well, here are some tips for you that will help save you time when cleaning.
Recruit Your Team
You are not the only one in the family, therefore you shouldn’t be the only one to be cleaning. Recruit your kids (and spouse) to help with household chores. For the kids, it works great to set up a chore chart for specific household chores to be done on specific days. This takes a huge weight off of your shoulders when you don’t have to do it all alone.
Relax
Yep, you read that right. Just relax. I can guarantee you that the queen isn’t coming over for a visit, your housework doesn’t have to be perfect. So what you didn’t get a chance to dust your light fixtures or you didn’t wash each window. It can be done next time. Just relax.
Clean Spills When They Happen
This is one of the best tips in regards to housework. The amount of time and energy you save yourself when you clean up messes as they happen is significant. It prevents stains and stuck on messes, which take a lot of time to clean up after they have set in.
Convenience Cleaning Products
Cleaning wipes and other convenience products such as magic erasers really are great for helping you save time. Of course it is quicker to have wipes right on hand to just do a quick cleanup, but you are also dropping the amount of laundry you are having to do later by avoiding using a washcloth.
What tips do you have for cutting back on time that you spend doing housework? Have you found any great products or awesome tricks that you would like to share with us?
Extend the Life of Your Smartphone Battery with these Tips
Do you feel like you are always searching for the nearest charger to make sure your phone doesn’t die? Modern technology and all of the fun, handy stuff we can do with our phones is great, the problem is, all of those great things kill our batteries fast! Gone are the days when our flip phone could stay charged for days or weeks on end.
If you are looking for a great ways to extend the life of your smartphone battery (that doesn’t include buying a new battery) check out these tips:
Use the Auto Brightness Setting. This is a no brainer considering the have a setting for it!! Either turn the brightness on your screen down or use the auto brightness setting to use a lower level of brightness and therefore a lower level of battery! (I mean c’mon…admit it, you are checking your phone every few minutes anyway…make sure you those message checks aren’t killing your charge). Kind of along the same line, you can cut the screen cutout time as well. If your screen stays on for 3 seconds after you are done with it, you will use far less batteries than if it stays on for 20 seconds.
Turn it off. I know you are thinking..ha ha, not gonna happen, right? Well, if you are going to be busy for a couple of hours anyway or you are sleeping for example, you will extend the life of your smartphone battery by simply turning your phone off.
Bad Vibrations. Okay, my silly play on words notwithstanding, using the vibrate mode for notifications takes up far more battery power than a ringtone or other sound notification. Listen, I get it, my phone goes off all day long. Between phone calls, text messages, emails and other notifications, I would never get a break from the noise. I decided to leave the ringtone on for the phone calls only and everything else is set to silent. My phone (and most other smartphones I believe) has a light that blinks a certain color for notifications (blue for email and FB, green for messages and yellow for Snapchat), I glance at my phone every little bit and if I see those lights I’ll check them, otherwise I’m good.
Turn off your GPS. Did you know that many of us have a GPS or “location services” running in our phone’s background almost all the time? This is a huge battery drain. Make it a habit to turn this off when it’s not needed and your battery life with thank you for it.
Amazon to Create 100,000 New, Full-time, Full-benefit Jobs Across the U.S. over the Next 18 Months!
Amazon is one of the country’s biggest employers. Now they have announced they will be adding 100,000 full time, full benefit jobs across the U.S. over the next 18 months! This means they will grow their workforce of 180,000 in 2016 to over 280,000 by mid-2018. What does this mean for you?
These new jobs are for people all over the country and with all types of experience, education and skills. They will have engineers, entry level positions, on-the-job training as well as software developers and many more options. This just might be the job you have been looking for.
Many of the jobs are in the new fulfillment centers that have been announced and are currently under construction in Texas, California, Florida, New Jersey and many other states across the country. “Innovation is one of our guiding principles at Amazon, and it’s created hundreds of thousands of American jobs. These jobs are not just in our Seattle headquarters or in Silicon Valley—they’re in our customer service network, fulfillment centers and other facilities in local communities throughout the country,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon Founder and CEO. “We plan to add another 100,000 new Amazonians across the company over the next 18 months as we open new fulfillment centers, and continue to invent in areas like cloud technology, machine learning, and advanced logistics.”
Amazon is highly competitive in their pay, health insurance, disability insurance, retirement savings plans and company stock. They also offer up to 20 weeks of paid leave and innovative benefits such as Leave Share and Ramp Back. One cool thing about their health insurance is that they are the same benefits for everyone- same for customer service employees up to their senior executives.
To learn more about working at Amazon, you can check out their site here. More and more jobs will be added as they continue to grow around the country.
Prepare Your Budget And Take Control of Your Finances This Year!
Want to take control of your finances? Maybe this is one of your New Year resolutions. No matter if it is or not you need to start with a good budget. So here are some things you can do and think about when you’re preparing your budget this year.
List out your debts and bills. We did this by looking through our last month’s statements. I made a list (in excel) with the due date, what the expense is and the minimum payment. This gave us an idea of exactly what bills had to be paid and when.
Cut down your expenses. Now that you know what bills you have, are there any you can cut out? What about the cable? Cell phone bill? Look through your bills and try to reduce as much as you can. This will help you save more if you’re in debt and trying to get out.
Figure out the best way to record your income and spending. We needed to go simple with this because honestly this one is difficult for me if I start to make it too complicated. So I pulled up excel and created a chart I could use. Now you can do this but there are also great programs out there you could use as well. So do a little research and find the one that best fits your needs.
Create your budget. You want your budget to be realistic and now that you know what your bills are it’s easier to see what’s left and what you can afford to spend on things like food, gas and household items. This is where you also need to think about your savings plans (long term and short term).
Speaking of savings, start an emergency savings. Mine is set up at a completely different bank and we only use it for emergencies (like the water heater that went out last year). Dave Ramsey (financial guru) recommends saving $1000 in this account which we found to be a great amount.
Remember your yearly expenses. When you’re going over your budget you need to remember your yearly expenses. That’s things like car registrations, Christmas/Birthday money, etc. You don’t want to find yourself set back and with nothing when that time of year comes.
I hope this helps you guys get started with your budget. Don’t be afraid of it, I know once you have it all set up it will go smoothly and you’ll be on the right path and taking control of your finances! And remember, you’ll probably need to look back over your budget and tweak a few things here and there – that’s ok!