If you have a job and kids, the issue of daycare is bound to come up. As my Nitty Gritty post showed, it is our biggest monthly expense. And I bet that is true for a lot of families. A few ways of dealing with this expense come to mind right away: Utilize daycare while both parents go to work. Work different shifts so one parent is always home with the little ones. Only have one parent work, so the other can stay home and raise the kids(full time job in itself). My wife & I had good intentions and [...]
Read MoreJuly 2008
This is a guest post by Miranda Marquit. You can read a little about her writing at the end of the post. One of the more controversial subjects being canvassed right now in the world of personal finances is the idea that maybe a financial plan based around a monthly budget isn’t the way to go. Indeed, the monthly budget mentality is about living paycheck to paycheck and managing your resources rather than growing them. The alternative to the monthly budget mentality is the net worth mentality. This is a long-term, big picture mentality that is about wealth building rather [...]
Read MoreA beautiful dose of motivation to get your finances in order. Photo Credit – Squiggle(Flickr)
Read MoreI haven’t shared some links from the community in a while, but I plan to add this back in as a regular series. It is great to be inspired by some of the other PF writers. Current Links : Taking a queue from Paid Twice I will change my language from debt reduction to debt elimination. Reduction is too cozy and comfortable, elimination is mean and ferocious, and that is what it takes. Nice Circles has the right idea by letting her dream of being a writer fuel her debt elimination. Frugal Dad shares an extensive list of places to [...]
Read MoreBefore I get too far on this journey to financial freedom, I figured it was time to come clean on just where I stand debt wise. As of today July 11th, 2008 my wife & I owe: $95,108.62 – Mortgage $11,843.96 – Car Loan $6,130.00 – Student Loan $1,226.92 – Credit Card Balance When I see it listed, it doesn’t seem so bad. The total of $114,000+ is scary to think about, but I feel it’s quite manageable. I now just have to figure a way to manage it. Here’s what I have to work with: Income: $3500 – monthly [...]
Read More“Cheaper Than Cheap” is a recurring tip series about frugality. The idea is to provide potentially helpful frugality tips that border on fanatical or fictitious to the point of becoming humorous. Love them or hate them, let’s hear what you think. Tip #6 was on Wash and Reuse Plastic Baggies. “Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise” -Benjamin Franklin This particular Ben Franklin personal finance gem still holds true to day. Simply put diurnal means: sleep when it is dark and be active when it is daylight. For those on the east coast [...]
Read MoreI was honored when Frank told me that I was chosen as the Happy Rock’s second writer. But as the days have passed, that feeling has gone away and a new feeling has begun to come over me. I call it the “How did this happen?” feeling. I bet a lot of you are familiar with this feeling. It has many variations (It’s not exclusive to personal finance matters by any means) and it usually sets in upon any sort of personal reflection. Some examples are: the “How did I get roped into a day of antique shopping?” feeling, the [...]
Read MoreI talked before about my tipping point for financial change and my tipping point for financial success, but it seems that the US as a nation has finally hit its tipping point at $4.00 a gallon. To recap, a tipping point is “the level at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.“[1] Historically, gas consumption patterns rarely changed despite price increases. It seems though that the general population has finally resigned themselves to the fact that high gas prices are here to stay. Things seem to be following the same pattern of the gas crisis in 1978-1980. The Wall Street [...]
Read MoreI wanted to introduce everyone to John. We will be augmenting The Happy Rock with his story and debt reduction journey. I wanted freshen up the writing here at The Happy Rock with a new writer who is in the midst of his debt reduction journey. Helping people get out of debt and freeing them to pursue their dreams is one of the main goals of this site. With me being out of debt except for a mortgage for a couple of years, I didn’t feel like the debt reduction topics and journey was getting enough attention. Hopefully, John and [...]
Read MoreThat is right, you can make your own freeze pops. Our 2 year old son absolutely loves this and we don’t mind giving him one or even two a day because we control the ingredients. The Rockette and I even enjoy the ice cold refreshment on a hot summer day. All you need is a popsicle container and some fruit juice. You can usually purchase a cheap version at the dollar store or you local super store, but I would recommend something like Tovolo Rocket Pops on Amazon. We are still using the cheap ones because they are smaller, but [...]
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