You can do free Federal filing with these two sites, and it includes audit protection!
I might just have to do it myself this year!Thanks Kristin!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Can I afford it?
Can I afford it is a question that I think not a lot of us ask ourselves enough. The question is not do I have a high enough credit limit to cover the cost, or enough money in the bank today to cover the cost. The question is can I actually afford to spend this money, or does the money need to go towards bills or food shopping or better yet paying off debt?
The Can I afford it question does not and should not be limited to just big purchases. What about when going out to eat with friends should you go to the steakhouse or go somewhere cheaper or somewhere that you can use a coupon at. The question is which one can you afford not which one makes you look like you have money to blow whenever you want.
Friday, January 28, 2011
What can you get for $5?
75% off kids clothes
If you are in Target make sure to check out the kids clothes area for lots of 50-75% off items!
I saw kids Jeans for $2
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Free baby magazines
AAA card: not just a thing of the past
How many people still have a AAA card? I do and I love it!
I've used it once for a road problem (my car ran over some tool and it blew it out!)
I've also used it for Hotels in Canada and in anywhere else in the U.S. I travel- the discounts are sometimes huge!However, my favorite thing to do with the AAA card is go shopping with it! That's right SHOPPING! Did you know you can use your AAA card at:
New York and Company and get 15% off everyday? Yep!
The Gap or Banana Republic or Old Navy Outlet stores will give you can extra 10% off everyday?!
At T-mobile for 11% off your monthly cell phone bill! ( I've had this discount for months!)
Plus so many more places go here and type in your zip code to find local shopping and dining out locations that take AAA!
What can you get for $5
This is a new challenge I am giving myself. What can I buy for $5, I can of course use coupons or not it does not matter. The goal is just to get as many practical items that I need for under $5!
Today I am going to run to a few stores, I will let you know what I get :)
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Free bananas and corn bread at BJ's
If you are a member of BJ's (like me!) head on over here to print off 2 coupons, one for free 3lbs of bananas and one for a free thing of mini corn breads! Yum!
*Expires tomorrow!
Thanks Stanley Family!
Thanks Stanley Family!
Menu Planning
Many people plan a menu a week in advance, I can't do that because I never know when I will be home day to day work wise. so my plan is to think of the next days meal the night before. I have an on going list of things I would like to make so I always have ideas.
I am working 11 hours today but here is my menu plan anyways:
Breakfast: Coffee (its rare that I eat breakfast on work days)
Lunch: Left over pot roast and corn
Dinner: Home made potato skins (I use yukon gold potatoes they are so good!) And baby bok choy!
Dessert/snack: Lemon bars- amazing! Foodnetwork.com look up barefoot contessas ones!
* The picture is from disney in august, from the french cafe in epcot!
A guide to budgeting money: The all cash method
I think there are pro's and con's to this method so let's look at them:
Pro's:
You never go into debt because you are only using cash
You are more aware of your spending because you physically see less money
You live by the rule that once its gone it is gone
Con's:
Using credit cards correctly helps build credit allowing for lower interest rates on big purchases such as cars/homes. With this method you do not build your credit score.
You do not have any credit cards for emergencies, if you run out of cash you are stuck.
I see why people use this method, and I am proud of them for having so much self restraint. But for it to work you need a large emergency fund in liquid form. The emergency fund would have to be at least the amount of your credit card limit.
A guide to budgeting: Saving for a want!
I was recently watching Suzie Orman talk about how people today spend money they do not have to the tune of 10s of thousands of dollars. And she wondered why? Why do people spend more money than they have. Her rule was basically if you don't have it, you don't spend it.
I have been trying to live by this rule. It is easy to see a pair of shoes or go out to dinner and charge it to the credit card without a second thought. But then what happens when the credit card bill comes in and you can not afford to pay it off?
Now suddenly you are stuck with credit card debt on something so silly as a meal out or a new outfit.
What is wrong with saving up for something? I would love 2 new tv's for my house, I feel like the only one without a flat screen sometimes. But I am ok with it, my two tv's are not old and they work just fine. So for now I can save up for 2 really nice tv's in the future and pay cash for them.
I think if you can set a goal of something you want, you can find a way to pay for it. That is what saving money is all about, and I am here to teach you simple ways to save money without any extra work
I have been trying to live by this rule. It is easy to see a pair of shoes or go out to dinner and charge it to the credit card without a second thought. But then what happens when the credit card bill comes in and you can not afford to pay it off?
Now suddenly you are stuck with credit card debt on something so silly as a meal out or a new outfit.
What is wrong with saving up for something? I would love 2 new tv's for my house, I feel like the only one without a flat screen sometimes. But I am ok with it, my two tv's are not old and they work just fine. So for now I can save up for 2 really nice tv's in the future and pay cash for them.
I think if you can set a goal of something you want, you can find a way to pay for it. That is what saving money is all about, and I am here to teach you simple ways to save money without any extra work
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
A guide to budgeting part 2
This type of budget is the one I use. I will call it the
"Savings Budget"
Basically I have a list of every single bill and expense I have such as
Cable, electric, cell phone, rent, car payment, car insurance, gas, general shopping/misc,credit cards.
Then next to each I list the price I pay per month, if it is something like electric that changes slightly every month then I over average. Whenever any of the bills/expenses come in under my budget I move the saved money into my savings account. It could be $2 or it could be $40 doesn't matter, as long as it adds to my savings account.
I also have a set amount of money I need to make each week to cover all of my bills, if I make more than that amount the money goes straight into savings.
This type of budget works really well for me!
"Savings Budget"
Basically I have a list of every single bill and expense I have such as
Cable, electric, cell phone, rent, car payment, car insurance, gas, general shopping/misc,credit cards.
Then next to each I list the price I pay per month, if it is something like electric that changes slightly every month then I over average. Whenever any of the bills/expenses come in under my budget I move the saved money into my savings account. It could be $2 or it could be $40 doesn't matter, as long as it adds to my savings account.
I also have a set amount of money I need to make each week to cover all of my bills, if I make more than that amount the money goes straight into savings.
This type of budget works really well for me!
Monday, January 24, 2011
$2 off any seafood at Hannaford
Free Eggbeaters!
Head on over here to get the free Eggbeaters coupon ! I ordered mine last week- they are great for baking even if you are like me and hate eggs!
Thanks Kristin!
Thanks Kristin!
A guide to budgeting money
This is going to be a series of posts in which I explain different ways people use to budget their money.
The first way to budget your money so that you can stay on track and no over spend is to use the
"Envelope System"
This is pretty basic, and for a lot of people it works. What you do is one day per week, say Sunday, you take out a specific amount of cash. Lets use $200 as an example. You then split up the $200 into different envelopes which are labled with categories such as: Groceries, Clothing, Gas, Going out to eat. You could split up the money as:
Groceries: $100
Clothing: $20
Gas: $30
Going out to eat: $50
Then live by the rule that once the money is gone for the week it is gone. If you have left over money in any category you could then deposit that into a savings account or you could roll it over to the next week. Then possibly the following week the clothing category would have $30 in it.
The first way to budget your money so that you can stay on track and no over spend is to use the
"Envelope System"
This is pretty basic, and for a lot of people it works. What you do is one day per week, say Sunday, you take out a specific amount of cash. Lets use $200 as an example. You then split up the $200 into different envelopes which are labled with categories such as: Groceries, Clothing, Gas, Going out to eat. You could split up the money as:
Groceries: $100
Clothing: $20
Gas: $30
Going out to eat: $50
Then live by the rule that once the money is gone for the week it is gone. If you have left over money in any category you could then deposit that into a savings account or you could roll it over to the next week. Then possibly the following week the clothing category would have $30 in it.
Sunday, January 23, 2011
$4 off $20 purchase at Rite Aid
Make sure you had this one over before any manufacturer coupons!
More CVS deals
Thanks to MamaCheaps we have a few more awesome CVS deals:
.
Hershey’s, Mars, Wrigley’s, or Rustle Stover Easter Single Assorted – 1 to 2.25 oz $1/2
$1/2 Mars printable
= FREE
$1/2 Mars printable
= FREE
Free Rimmel Mascara!
Check out this deal at Target!
Rimmel Extra Super Lash Mascara $2.24 – $2.99
Use the $2/1 Target store coupon found here
Plus, stack with the $2/1 Facebook coupon found here or $1/1 coupon found here
Final cost FREE mascara!
I already printed my coupons! Remember if your mascara is older than 6months its time to replace it anyways!
Thanks Totally Target
Rimmel Extra Super Lash Mascara $2.24 – $2.99
Use the $2/1 Target store coupon found here
Plus, stack with the $2/1 Facebook coupon found here or $1/1 coupon found here
Final cost FREE mascara!
I already printed my coupons! Remember if your mascara is older than 6months its time to replace it anyways!
Thanks Totally Target
Reminder: Free Herbal Essences!
Thanks JessicasCoupons!
How to save on bills
Do you ever look at your cable bill and say ugh! Who doesn't really? It's part of the love-hate relationship with money, you love having cable and internet and a phone and the DVR of course! I'd die without my DVR ;) Did you know you can call and have them price match a competitor? It's true! A few months ago I call my cable company and told them that my cell phone company had a new internet plan that was $5 less a month than the cable company and it was faster too. They price matched for me and upgraded my internet connection to their fastest one-free. So I am now saving $60 a year.
The cable company was running a deal of 12months of DVR free with a new set up, I called and said I never got my DVR free and they gave me 6 months free, another savings of about $10 a month!
Also some cell phone companies offer discounts if you work for certain companies or if you are a AAA member, having AAA saves me 11% on my cell phone bill every month which is about $10!
The cable company was running a deal of 12months of DVR free with a new set up, I called and said I never got my DVR free and they gave me 6 months free, another savings of about $10 a month!
Rite Aid Deals for the week of 1/23
$1/1 Nivea Body Wash for Women, exp. 2-28-11 (RP 01/02/11)
$1/1 Nivea for Men Body Wash, exp. 2-28-11 (RP 01/02/11)
$2.99 after coupon
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