Tag Archives: frugal

Family Friendly Ways to Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day

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There are many people who choose to celebrate St. Patricks’ Day by enjoying some alcoholic beverages. Families, however, can find plenty of family-friendly ways to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with their kids. Here’s a list of idea for parents who want to give their kids something fun to do this St. Patrick’s Day. Wear Green It has been said that a person must wear green on St. Patrick’s Day in order to avoid getting pinched. It might not be a great idea to introduce that part of the holiday to your kids. There are also a lot of people who … Continue reading →

Frugal Ways to Entertain Your Kids this Summer

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Summer vacation is a time that most children excitedly look forward to. It is easy to see why. They get a whole lot of free time! Parents are going to need some frugal ideas for fun activities that will entertain their children. Here are a few ideas to try. Bubbles Little kids cannot get enough of bubbles! You can pick up small bottles of bubbles, complete with bubble wand, from a dollar store. Check the dollar racks at Target, too. Parents can sit down outdoors and blow bubbles that their toddlers will chase. Older kids can blow bubbles on their … Continue reading →

Family Friendly Earth Day Activities – 2014

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How will your family be celebrating Earth Day? There will be many interesting events taking place. You should check local newspaper (or their website) to see what is going on near you. In addition to the local activities, here are several others that will be happening across the United States. Time and Google + want to see your best photo of Earth. This gives you the perfect excuse to bring your family outside to take some photos of our beautiful planet. Pick your best one, and post it on your Google + account with the hashtag #MyBeautifulEarth. Google + will … Continue reading →

5 Ways to Spend Less on Halloween

The cute costumes, the Martha Stewart decorations, the bags and bags of candy…the cost of it adds up. Just like the dark monster in the corner, you are afraid to take a good look at how much your are actually spending. Halloween has certainly become a big holiday. In fact, according to the National Retail Federation, Americans spent more than $8 billion last year celebrating. Eight billion! Seriously. It doesn’t have to be that way. Instead, brandish your own bag of tricks to spend less this Halloween. You’ll be able to make it a magical holiday and leave the bills … Continue reading →

How to Make Jeans Last Longer

You finally found that perfect pair of jeans, the ones that flatter you in all of the right places, the ones that you just love to wear. Maybe the jeans that are loved are not yours, but belong to one of your children who would probably wear them for two weeks straight if you let her. Either way, great jeans can be an investment, and keeping them in great condition can not only keep you happy but also save you money. Here are some strategies to use. How to Keep Jeans in Good Condition In the Wash To keep those … Continue reading →

Touring the City on Less: Hotel Accommodations

For a great summer travel experience, consider touring a city, whether near or far. Stay for a weekend or a week (or more) and explore all that your city has to offer. Of course, you will want to do it for less. So far in this series, we have offered ways to save on transportation within the city, and on great food experiences. If you missed those articles, you can find the links below. Touring the City on Less: Touring Busses Touring the City on Less:  Food Extravaganza Today, I am going to talk about hotel accommodations. My frugal self … Continue reading →

Frugal Attitudes Are Here to Stay

According to a Deloitte’s 2013 American Pantry Study, a whopping 94% of consumers are keeping their frugal attitude. The study said that, even if the economy improves, these consumers plan to remain cautious and keep their spending at current levels. It seems that many of us are taking the lessons that we have learned during the great recession and are developing a new relationship with our money and with our debt. Families who once didn’t blink twice about running up thousands or even hundreds of thousand dollars in debt are working hard to pay everything down, creating budgets and sticking with them. … Continue reading →

When I Am Feeling Entitled

Entitlement. It creeps up in almost every family. That feeling or thought that you have not only a right to all that you possess, but a right to more and more. Sometimes we all need a little perspective about that. In general, my kids are pretty good when it comes to appreciating our blessings and not asking for more. But, let us face it, they are kids. It can be a little difficult to feel blessed when friends around them seem to have so much more, or when a parent, like me, complains about what we have, such as the … Continue reading →

Joseph Had a Little Overcoat

One of my favorite books to share with my children is Simms Taback’s Joseph Had a Little Overcoat. The tale tells of Joseph who had, what else, but a favorite little overcoat. Eventually it gets “old and worn.” Instead of throwing it away, he makes it into a jacket. Once that also gets “old and worn,” the jacket becomes a scarf, and so on. Joseph continues to transform his garments as needed until he is down to just a button. Unfortunately, the button gets lost, but despite this development, Joseph still manages to make something out of it. The book … Continue reading →

Is The Free Resort Stay Worth It?

Lately, I have been getting a lot of mail offering me invitations to stay for free at one resort or another. The invitations promise that I could invite my spouse and any children that we have. In exchange for a night or two or three at a fabulous resort, all I have to do is to sit in on a meeting. Well, of course you may know what theses offers really are, attempts to sell vacation time shares. The meeting may last up to a half a day, and I could be subjected to many different sales techniques in order … Continue reading →