For those readers that still shop for books at brick and mortar stores, here is a nice little coupon for Border’s. 40% of one book. Click here to view the coupon. You need to be a member of their rewards program, but it is free to sign up in stores. This sale is only good through Wednesday the 30th of January. This deal was sent to The Happy Rock by Big Will over at Leesport Flea Market, a deal and eBay consignment site for the Reading, Pennsylvania area.
Read MoreJanuary 2008
With primaries and caucuses in full swing and a new president on the horizon, I thought it might be helpful to start some discussion on who will be the best for our finances. This isn’t about who you like the best, or even who you want to vote for, but who will be the best for your personal finances. This includes things like job availability, income rates, interest rates, mortgage rates, taxes, and other related issues. For me, I think the biggest issue affecting my personal finances is taxes. From 7% sales tax in NJ, to income tax, to having [...]
Read MoreThe average infant adoption in the US can vary from $5,000 to $30,000 and on average costs $15,000 – $20,000. Our two newborn infant adoptions cost us about $11,000(0 after credits) and an estimated $15,000($2,000 after credits). This article will not break down the different costs associated with adoptions, but it will list multiple ways that adoption expenses can be considerably lower than those numbers suggest. I am speaking from experience since the expenses of our first adoption were more than covered by the programs/tips below. First and foremost, the Federal Adoption Tax Credit that was signed into law by [...]
Read MoreThe Happy Rock Garden welcomed its fourth member on Friday night, a second adopted son Julian. I will dub him The Happy Pebble Jr. to go along with our first Happy Pebble. He was born on Wednesday the 16th and we brought him home on Friday night. It all happened quite fast and unexpectedly which just adds to the joy and excitement! Family and children are more amazing than I could have ever dreamed. Cheers! On a separate and unrelated side note, I will be taking requests for guest posters. I will be sleeping way too much that I won’t [...]
Read MoreFor those of us who have a mountain of debt or a small income, the journey to get out of debt is a long process. Along the way it is easy to become bored, sidetracked, depressed, or even to give up. Keeping on track is not easy, I know from experience. It took us 4 years to destroy our 70k in debt, but I learned a few tricks to help keep us on track. I wanted to share a list of tips that will help you deal with the down times during your debt destruction process. Find your motivation. I [...]
Read MoreThe obvious answer is…….Yes! The not so obvious answer is that it might cost me well over $300 dollars this year. First, the software can usually be purchased for next to nothing after rebates or through other programs. SlickDeals is a great way to scour the net for a deal on the software you want. The other factor to take into account is your time and stress in having to deal with taxes yourself. The time and stress will be extremely personal decisions that we each must measure for ourselves. The only thing I will say is that the software [...]
Read MoreThat’s right, the whole Happy Rock Garden is going vegetarian for the rest of January. I mentioned that I am not fond of resolutions, so here is an example of one way to spark change without resolutions. Experiment! I will track being vegetarian for the month and the associated costs. Updates when appropriate. I got the idea from Steve Pavlina’s 30 day raw food experiment. Even though his experiment is quite off the beaten path, I am finding his raw food chronicles extremely interesting. Like most things in life there is a path that has gotten me to the point [...]
Read MoreTime to clean house. I have been carrying this dirty laundry around, since August. In July I started an all cash experiment to test the Dave Ramsey argument that you can save 12-18% just by spending cash. View the cash only experiment details here and the benefits of spending cash here. Some readers have asked me for the results of the experiment while back, but I admit I have none to offer. It took a few months, but I am finally willing to admit that the experiment was a failure. I apologize. We didn’t fail to complete the actual experiment. [...]
Read MoreLike clockwork New Year’s comes and everyone fantasizes about some habit they want to kick or a good behavior they want to start. I was on the resolution train for years, only to realize I was lucky to make it to February. I am here to offer some reasons why New Year’s resolutions aren’t lasting recipe for change. Resolutions are so common place that everyone feels like they need to do them. They get created out of habit rather than conviction, motivation, or passion. Even if the desire is there, the planning and preparation are often half hearted or non [...]
Read MoreI finally had to return to work today after 11 glorious days off. The first half of my time off was spent with family celebrating the holidays, and the second half was spent with family on vacation in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. We stayed in a 7 bedroom cabin complete with hot tub, big TV, pool table, 3 floors, 7 bedrooms, and a view of the Sacandaga Lake. The trip was filled with lots of snow, hikes up mountains, great food, fun people, movies, wiiing, and more! I had a great time and feel rested. How did we [...]
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