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Finance Is Not About The Money Your Family Makes: It Is About The Money It Saves

admin — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

With the uncertainty surrounding employment, the financial crises many countries face, and the volatility surrounding investments such as stocks, bonds, 401k and traditional pension plans, it is a good time for families to take another look at how the savings plans within their households are structured. The need to re-work household budgets, shopping patterns, college savings accounts and family vacation plans are becoming more important as our economy remains unstable.

The rule of thumb used to be that the family wage earners needed an emergency fund to account for three to six months worth of unemployment, unexpected medical catastrophe or any other event that would prevent income from continuing to stream into the household. Today, the average recommendation is to have about one year’s worth of a nest egg in case it is needed.

While savings rates have increased since the beginning of the 2008 recession, the rates were never very high to begin with. As demonstrated by the housing crisis, consumers were spending and borrowing way above their means. Expenses were accruing for families at faster rates than money was being made.

With government programs at risk for funding cuts, retirement and college financial aid are not going to be worth what they are today assuming that the programs are not completely insolvent in the near future.

The need to families to start living below, not within, their means is the current reality.

Gas Too Expensive? Ways To Camp For Free

admin — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Simply driving to work with today-s gas prices is enough to break the bank for many families. So while the thought of loading the family up for a road-trip or weekend getaway may sound like fun, it just may not be possible financially. But there are still ways to get away and have fun, without spending an arm and a leg on gas. Why not go camping?
Chances are that you have a campground, state park, or natural forest, in your area that allows camping for a very low price, if not free. While most vacations require hours in the car, camping can be a refreshing getaway while barely leaving your backyard. That-s another option, camping in your backyard.
While most vacations entail gas, a hotel, eating out, and entertainment costs, camping can be virtually free. You probably already own the equipment, if not you can borrow it from someone you know. You can take your own food. As for entertainment, get creative.
Whether you are taking the kids or just getting away with friends or your significant other, a weekend with Mother Nature is a great way to relax and enjoy the simple life. Start planning your camping trip now!

A Recipe A Weekend: Teach Those Around You How To Cook

admin — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0000

It’s always good to teach those around you how to cook. These people can include your family as well as your friends. There is always room to learn. The best thing that you can do is start with one recipe a week. This is because that week gives enough time for people to learn how to cook whatever dish is being taught. It may not take that long for most people to learn, but to become good at it, there are many strategies that can be taught. This is for people that are really serious in learning how to cook. A recipe every single week can teach you so much alone about cooking, that you will begin to pick up your very own ways of doing things. The best thing to do is to start with simple recipes and then advance to the more difficult ones. It just depends on how much the person being taught knows about cooking already. They may not always have to start out with something simple, but it is always better. It is always good to teach someone else what you know about cooking. Passing on information allows the next person to learn something unique.If you like what you see, keep going: I Never Learned to Cook

Get Moving!

admin — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Get off the couch and stop wasting your weekends watching Directtv! You’ve got a body to move! Everyone knows it’s key to keep in shape but did you know there are tons of ways to do that while avoiding the gym altogether? Get outside and move yourself with some of our fun suggestions
Get a Dog: Dog owners statistically walk significantly more than non-dog owners and for good reason. They’re more active because the dogs make them be so and all that walking leads to other health benefits down the line.
Join a League: Even if organized sports aren’t your thing, join a league of some sort to get outside and socialize. You can play singles tennis or even join a walking group and you’re bound to meet ore like-minded people.
Volunteer: Want to give back while working on your waistline? Get out and about in the volunteering community and try the hardest stuff: load bricks, paint buildings and work on lawncare. The people you help will be appreciative and you’ll get home feeling like you had the best workout of your life.

Love Your Pets: Rid Your Home Of Their Odor

admin — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Pets are cute, warm and cuddly creatures, but unfortunately they can leave behind unpleasant smells. Pet odors can make people not want to have guests in their home. It can even make people not want to stay in their own home. Fortunately, people can get rid of pet odors by cleaning their home and washing their pets. The cleaner the house is, the less likely is to smell. People who have pets living in their homes need to make sure that they clean their homes on a regular basis to prevent it from smelling. They should pay special attention to where the animal spends the most time at and make sure that all pet hair and fur is removed from those areas.

Spraying air-fresheners, such as febreze, also help reduce odor. People also need to make sure that they wash their pets at least once a week. This might seem like a given, but washing one’s pet can keep him or her from smelling. That can also keep one’s home from smelling. Pets are loveable, but one should not have to sacrifice his or her good-smelling home for one. Keeping the home and the animal clean will help prevent odors.

Turn House Chores Into A Casual Event: Make Your Own Laundry Soap

admin — Tue, 24 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Doing laundry is probably not the first activity you would choose to do in order to enjoy yourself, however it must be done. Why not find a way to make a boring activity into more fun? Making your own laundry soap is a fun, money saving activity that can take away some of the monotony that is laundry.

Laundry soap is quite easy to make using 1 cup washing soda, 3 gallons water and 1 bar soap. You essentially heat up a small amount of water and soap on the stove and stir it together making sure the soap is mixed in completely. Put the water, washing soda and soap mix into a large container to which you will let sit for 24 hours. The consistency of the mixture might look slimy, but that is okay. Even if their are small globs, the machine will break it up when it starts.

Making your own laundry soap can be a fun activity to break up those long days when you are at home on your own. This recipe can save money and trips to the store. Besides the money you will save, it will be exciting to see how well your homemade creation works!

Beat Stress: Learn Yoga In A Weekend

admin — Fri, 20 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The demands of modern life can be punishing. A million things to do, deadlines to meet, relationships to manage, work to be done, it can all be a bit much to the average person just trying to live a good life. Finding productive ways to manage stress can make this all a bit easier, and learning yoga can be a great way to relax and find a refreshed outlook on life.

Learning yoga sometimes sounds daunting to newcomers, in that there are so many foreign terms, foreign notions and foreign methods of dealing with stress and achieving goals. Yoga is over three thousand years old, and is an ancient Indian and Hindu means of relating to God through exercise. Yoga, though, is easy to learn for beginners of all ages, lifestyles and fitness levels. Finding good teachers and doing some easy reading will set anyone interesting in learning yoga on the right path.

Finding a good teacher makes all the difference when it comes to learning yoga. Having an experienced instructor to lead one through the basic rigors and positions of yoga, as well as guiding breathing and thought can make the learning process simple and enjoyable. “Hatha,” or “gentle yoga” can make the transition from stressed to yoga practitioner seamless, and requires none of the more rigorous flexibility, tensions or stresses on the body that come to mind when one thinks of yoga.The hits keep comin’: Yoga may benefit heart disease