Earn, Save, and Live Joyfully.
I plan to complete my final round of Christmas shopping sometime between now and next Monday. I’ve purchased all of the primary gifts, but I have a handful of coupons I hope to use for stocking stuffers. Included in the list is a JCPenney coupon for $10 off a $10 purchase, a Victoria’s Secret coupon … Read more
I’ve found quite a few ways to stretch my Christmas dollars so far this year. My goal was to put as few purchases on my credit card as possible. So far, I’m doing pretty well, but I still have a few gifts left to go. Here’s how I’ve done it so far: I cashed in … Read more
I’m finding gift giving incredibly difficult this year. I’ve scoured the Internet, I’ve searched the mall and I still can’t figure out what to buy my loved ones. I wish Christmas was more like Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is such a perfect holiday. It’s an excuse to eat a lot of food, spend time with your loved … Read more
My family keeps asking me to create a Christmas list, but I’m struggling to come up with any ideas. I typically include experience related items like tickets to sporting events, cooking lessons and certificates for dinner, but this year I’m not sure if I should include the usual list of suspects. It seems like I … Read more
Just a few things for which I am deeply thankful: An amazing husband who shows his love and affection each and every day. (Even on those days when he is not particularly happy with me.) My parents whose love is so unconditional that I have never doubted it. My 88 year old grandmother who I’ve … Read more
I’m not sure how you supply Halloween candy to the adorable trick-or-treaters that knock on your door, but I hold the bowl out in front of the kids and let them choose the two pieces they really want. It’s funny to watch the kids decide which ones to take. Some shout out their favorite and … Read more
I spent valentine’s day by the warm fire in my North Carolina vacation home. While my husband worked out in the yard, I lounged on the couch with a book, sipped lemonade and simply enjoyed being. As the sun set I drove to the spa and enjoyed a fifty minute deep tissue massage. Now back … Read more
So far I haven’t written any resolutions or decided on any new goals for the new year. Instead I want to spend the last day of the decade focused on all of the wonderful things that have happened over the last ten years. While I experienced my fair share of bumps in the road the … Read more
This year my husband and I agreed to stick to a holiday budget. As the year came to a close we refinanced both of our properties and paid quite a bit in closing costs and other mortgage related fees. We also spent nearly $2,000 on two short trips that were long overdue. The members of … Read more
For the first time in many, many years I had very few unwanted gifts to return to the store. In fact, I had only two gifts for myself and one gift that I bought for my grandmother. Luckily my returns were a breeze. I had receipts for everything that didn’t work out and stood in … Read more