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Frugal is: Living in Your Van to Save College Costs

I hear about people living in their vehicles all the time, generally because they are down on their luck. Even famous people have been known to live in their cars during hard time,like Jewel and Tyler Perry, for example. Just two years ago Ken Ilgunas was called a crybaby for an article he wrote in the Buffalo News Opinion Column as he complained about being a college graduate and living at home. Here is an excerpt of the column he wrote: “Desperate times called for desperate measures, and I had no intention of living in a society that was as … Continue reading →

Is it Strange to be Frugal?

I did an interview this morning on Living without credit cards. It was on The Take Away, an early morning National Radio Show. Myself, a man in Los Angeles, and a financial expert Beth Kobliner were interviewed on life without credit cards and how we cope with them. During the radio interview and also during the pre-interview, I was introduced to the possibility that people look at the frugal, and especially those who live without credit cards as being a bit strange, and definitely off the mainstream. It never occurred to me that having good financial sense was odd. I … Continue reading →

Do you think homeschooling parents are strange

My husband and I don’t discuss homeschooling much. We just have an understanding about it. It is something we do, and we live our lives around it. It is good; and that is that. A recent rare discussion however enlightened me on some of the things people think about homeschooling that I hadn’t even realized. Apparently he discusses homeschooling often with co-workers and clients, and they say the darndest things to him. One thing that these corporate type people have said to my husband is that that homeschool parents are strange. Basically, they just find us creepy. The reason we … Continue reading →

Frugal Designer Touches for Your Home

I am so ready to toss off winter’s doldrums and brighten up the house. The problem with new decor, however, can be the cost. From designer fabrics to new accessories, even a little brightening can make an impact on the budget. Ah ha! frugal living to the rescue. I know that you have probably heard my mantra before: paint, paint, paint! It is a relatively inexpensive way to go, especially if you can get the paint for free. And although I think it is important to mention, let’s move on to accessories. Shop the discount bins and the fabric store … Continue reading →

The Strange Things I Found Around the House

Do you ever fell as though you might be in a Dali landscape? Picking up the house can be quite an adventure when you have a husband and three children. And while I have yet to find any melting watches around, I have found plenty of melting crayons. My home always looks the worse for wear after the weekend. This is because the weekend tend to be a time to relax, to play, to work on home projects and to dash out of the door without first cleaning up. This is really a nice way of saying that my family … Continue reading →

Frugal Month in Review: September 2008

Now that September is come and gone and the kiddies are settled back into school and regular routines, it is time to welcome the fall. Still, there is plenty of good stuff that went on in September, including a bunch of ways to save money. September 1st Frugal Living Week in Review: August 25th Through August 31st Food and back to school are the two things on my mind this week. I e-mailed my son’s teacher ahead of time to ask about additional supplies that she might need for the classroom. She said that she usually asks parents for antibacterial … Continue reading →

Frugal Living Week in Review: September 22nd Through September 28th

Here is the Frugal Living Blog week in review for September 22nd through September 28th. September 22nd Creating a Rich Environment for Kids Since we have moved to our new area, we run into families that are what I would consider affluent. The kids live in large, new homes and are surrounded with plenty of the latest toys, clothes, vacations and possessions. Each home has an expensive outdoor play systems, trampolines, pools, a number of current video game systems, etc. Frugal Living Week in Review: September 15th Through September 21st Here is the Frugal Living week in review for September … Continue reading →

Don’t Become Frugal Obsessed

When it comes to frugal living, some of us have a dirty little secret. Or perhaps it isn’t as secret as we might think. Sometimes people can become so obsessed by living a frugal life style that it completely takes over everything that we do. Sometimes we wind up missing out on life’s wonder because we are too stressed out about saving each little penny. Being good stewards of our money is one thing, but we also have to keep things in perspective. Frugal living, challenging ourselves to get great bargains and save as much money as we can, can … Continue reading →

Home Blog Month in Review: August

Did you have a good month? We seem to have packed an entire summer’s worth of activities in this past month. Now, it seems, it is back to school and time to get ready for autumn. Still, it is nice to look back toward warm sands and wearing shorts even as we will soon be crunching leaves and taking out the sweaters. August 1st Getting Out Grass Stains With summer in full swing, chances are that your family has been playing outdoors quite a bit. And with all of that outdoor play comes the grass stains, especially if you are … Continue reading →

Frugal Living Month in Review: August 2008

With August passed, it will be hard to hold on to summer, but fortunately, we have a lot of memories of the “dog days.” We also have lots of great articles about saving money, something that is pretty important these days. Take a look at what was posted in August. August 1st Frugal Living Month in Review: July 2008 July went by so quickly for us! There were so many fun and frugal activities and events for us to explore, from a science camp to free movies and sand sculpting. I hope your July was equally fun and frugal. Summer … Continue reading →