Free Suze Orman Book

Until January 15th you can download a digital copy of Suze Orman’s new book Suze Orman’s 2009 Action Plan. I’ve had a chance to glance through it and she offers basic advice on savings, getting out of credit card debt, spending less and saving for retirement during this recession.

I have found a few good tidbits in this book but for the most part this is a very basic glance at personal finance. It’s a great book for those who are just getting into saving money but if you have already read some of Suze Orman’s, Dave Ramsey’s or other personal finance books this book offers few new ideas.

Still, it’s free and worth glancing through when you have a few minutes.

The Simple Life: The Story of the Shared Fork

When Tim and I were engaged we were invited over with a group of fellow college students to our local church leader’s home. When we drove into their neighborhood and saw the beautiful landscaping and large homes we knew this family did very well for themselves. They were in the prime of their lives, with three or four children still at home.

Towards the end of the evening we were able to talk to our leader and his wife and they shared some stories of when they were young and first married. The story that has stuck with me is the story of the shared fork.

During the first year of their marriage they were in school and had very little income. In fact times were so lean that they had only one fork in their household which they took turns eating from. They did this for nine months until they had the extra money (about a dime) to buy a fork. They were so determined to live within their means that they made the necessary sacrifices to achieve their goals.

As I heard them speak of their humble beginning in the walls of their beautiful home I knew they had learned the lessons of frugality to achieve financial goals over time. The greater lesson I learned was that this family looked back with fondness at the times when they relied on each other and used creativity and humor to make it through each month. Tim and I both received the feeling that although they were grateful for the security they now enjoyed, they would return back to those lean times in a heartbeat because of the simplicity and closeness those times brought.

This family learned how to be the master of their money, however little or great that was, in both action and attitude. This simple lesson has stayed with Tim and I through the early years of our marriage, as we remember that most successful people started where we did, in a little apartment just scraping by.

Tim and I have a similar story from the first month of our marriage. We were living in Utah, having just been married around Thanksgiving, and moved into Tim’s uncle’s basement. I was going to school and Tim was working until we would both go back to school in Idaho that January. Our wedding receptions were scheduled after Christmas when we had a break from school. So during this month we had very little household items, and little desire to use our meager income to purchase items until we knew what gifts we would receive at our receptions.

Somehow we ended up with only one plate between us. Remembering the story of the shared fork we resolved that we could live off of one plate until our wedding receptions. We did this for a few weeks, until one day I decided that we really could spare $1 for a plate and bought one at the dollar store. Tim was disappointed that I didn’t last the month, and looking back I am a little disappointed too.

Even though our experiment was prematurely ended the lesson of simplicity and frugality has stuck with us. There have been times in our marriage when we slept on an air mattress as a bed, didn’t have a microwave, and walked everywhere to save gas money. However lean the times though we never bought stuff on credit and we always made saving and staying out of consumer debt a priority.

Now I don’t know if we’ll ever live a house as nice as our church leader’s, and I don’t want to set my heart on that goal and lose focus on the most important things in life. But I do know that when we control our money in action and attitudes, our lives are simpler and our peace increases.

2009 Financial Goals

My husband and I sat together last weekend and after reviewing our expenses and finances from 2008 came up with a budget and goals for 2009.

Since we needed to use some of our savings to pay for a car we have a little less than one month in our emergency fund (which makes me nervous). But, we didn’t go in debt for a car and thanks to Tim’s parents now have a car which will last many years. Also, we should be able to be back up to 1 months savings this month and depending on our tax return back to two months of savings by April.

So our main priority this year is to save, save, save! In addition this is the year where we pay off our student loan. Here are our goals:

1. Pay off student loan by September

2. Have 3 months in our emergency savings by the end of December

3. Save at least $350/month (including FSA)

4. Put every extra penny into savings

5. Make both our websites profitable

6. Pay Tim’s parents at least $500 more for the car

Although these goals may seem easy, they will be stretching us this year as we prepare for large expenses in the summer.

We are also getting involved in some of the incentives Tim’s company offers like 401(k) and an FSA account which will benefit us in the long run but make cash flow a little short for a few months.

So this year we will concentrate even more on tightening our belt and finding small and large ways to save money. If your household hasn’t set up financial goals for the coming years I would strongly encourage you to do so. When you know where you want to be it’s much easier to get there.

Unwrap Your Soap for Savings

My sister just gave me this frugal tip. She said that she opens her bar soaps and stores them in the closet. Not only do they help the closet smell fresh and clean, the soap also lasts longer for her children’s baths.

I did some research and she’s not the only one to notice that unwrapped soap lasts longer than wrapped soap. Apparently unwrapped bars of soap dry in the open air and when stored for a few weeks/months they will last longer in the bath without compromising the suds factor. What an easy way to stretch your soap and your budget. Thanks Shaunda!

Swagbucks

Swagbucks is a site that rewards you with points for searching the web and shopping through their site. I stumbled upon Swagbucks a couple of weeks ago and have found it to be a fun way to potentially earn some great gift certificates and prizes. For more information and to register click here.

There are four main ways to earn money through Swagbucks.

1. Be rewarded for searching with Swagbucks
Everytime you search the web through Swagbucks you are entered to win from 1 to 100 swagbucks. I started using Swagbucks this week and with minimal searches have already won seven Swagbucks. Swagbucks uses Google and Ask.com to perform their searches so I also knew that I was getting quality results. To make searches easier you can set Swagbucks as your homepage or put them in your browser search bar. Here are directions.

2. Shop online through their affiliated stores
You will earn 1 Swagbuck for every $5 spent at a partner store such as iTunes, Disney, Walmart, eToys and dozens of others. So if you are already planning on doing some holiday shopping online, find the vendor in Swagbucks and earn points. Here are more details about the shopping program as well as a list of affiliated stores.

3. Refer friends and family and earn extra points
The greatest way to earn money through Swagbucks is to refer friends and family to the site. You can earn up to 100 matching points for every friend you refer to Swagbucks. You can go here to set up a banner ad on your blog or facebook account or go here to send out an e-mail to friends and family.

4. Go Green! Promotion
You can also earn Swagbucks by participating in their “Go Green!” promotion and recycling your old cellphone. Here is more information on their “Go Green!” promotion.

Here are some examples of how your searching and shopping can add up:

45 Swagbucks: $5 Amazon gift card
50 Swagbucks: $5 Starbucks gift card
115 Swagbucks: $10 Barnes & Noble gift card

You can also win big prizes such as an Apple iPhone and XBox which cost over 3500 Swagbucks each. Here is a link to their list of prizes.

I know that I won’t get rich through this promotion but I hope to win some gift cards in the next few months. Some people do very well by referring friends and family and shopping online with Swagbucks.

Cellfire

Cellfire is similar to Shortcuts, a savings program you can learn about here. Just like with Shortcuts, with Cellfire you can load coupons onto your Krogers card. Through Cellfire you can also load coupons onto your cellphone for other businesses like Hollywood Video, Sears and 1-800-Flowers.

You need a cellphone number to sign up and receive a verification text message. After the initial text message you can manage all your savings online, except for those businesses linked solely to your cellphone.

Just like Shortcuts, Cellfire coupons won’t double but they can be used in addition to manufacturers coupons. Some coupons that I have currently loaded on my Krogers card through Cellfire include Kroger’s bar cheese, Colgate, Cottonelle, Huggies and others.

I would recommend printing out a list of Cellfire coupons to take with you to the store so you don’t forget what coupons you have. When you check out at the store, the register will automatically take off your Cellfire coupons.

I have only started using Shortcuts and Cellfire in the past few months but I already enjoy the hassle-free extra savings they give to my grocery budget.

Target Diaper Catalina

The other day Tim got some apple juice at Target and received a $1 catalina (coupon that prints when you check out) good on $1 off Target brand wipes (216-ct or higher) or diapers. I used the catalina to purchase a box of diapers and another $1 catalina printed out good on our next box of diapers.

With the catalina I got 92 size 4 diapers for $12.69 or $0.14/diaper.

I’m not sure how long the promotion is running but my catalina doesn’t expire until January 31st. I have found Target diapers to be the best deal for daytime use between their quality and price so I was excited that this catalina made them even cheaper.

Shortcuts

Shortcuts is a program that loads coupons onto your Kroger (or Kroger affiliated store) card so you don’t have to worry about the hassle of bringing coupons with you. These coupons don’t double but you can use these coupons in addition to manufacturers coupons. This post shows how Shortcuts cut my Kroger bill earlier this month.

The signup is quick and easy. You just fill out some personal information and then your Kroger card number. Shortcuts allows you to store over 25 different coupons on your card. The coupons have an expiration date similar to paper coupons.

The biggest trick with Shortcuts is remembering what coupons I have loaded in my card. I find it easiest to print out a list of the coupons that I can take with me and look at for quick reference.

My favorite Shortcuts deal is their Cottonelle coupon, which they frequently carry. The coupon is $0.50 off a 4-pk Cottonelle toilet paper which typically is priced at $1.00. That means you get 4 rolls of quality t.p. for $0.50. That beats even the Wal-Mart generic price.

Here’s one example of a deal at Kroger’s this week using Shortcuts. Kroger’s salsa is on sale for $1.00, but there’s a Shortcuts coupon for $0.50 off 1 salsa making the salsa $0.50.

Shortcuts is just one of the way that I save money on my grocery bill, leaving me more money to pay off debt and save.

Vocalpoint

This week I will do a special series on websites and companies that can help save you money.

Vocalpoint is a marketing company that mails out samples and coupons to members who are then encouraged to try the products and recommend them to family and friends. In addition they have an interactive website that has surveys, a message board and other features for members.

I joined vocalpoint in March and I have received high-value coupons (including free item coupons) for Crest Cleaning Paste, Sunkist Tuna, Kashi cereal, Kashi bars, DelMonte Fruit Cups, Venus Breeze razor, Special K Cereal and other well-known brands and products.

In the last two weeks I have received a sample of Kashi cereal bars with a coupon for a free box of the bars and 5 “$2.00 off any box” coupons. In this time I have also received a coupon for a free tube of Crest cleaning paste.

Joining vocalpoint is easy. You just fill out a small survey with your mailing information and you will soon be receiving samples and coupons.

Our Anniversary on a Budget

Last week we celebrated our three-year anniversary. We made it a simple, yet wonderful affair and were able to spend the whole day together.

The Activity
The main event was cleaning and worshiping in the LDS Temple in Louisville. This event was very symbolic to us as it reminded us of the vows we made when we were married in the Denver Temple three years ago. Attending the temple was free and since Tim’s parents baby-sat our son, we only paid for the gas to drive to Louisville.

For those of a different faith, visiting the place you were married or shared your honeymoon or reviewing vows can have special significance without a hefty price.

The Food
We ate lunch at a cute Italian place we found reviews for online. Since we ate lunch instead of dinner the cost was much cheaper. We were able to get two entrees, a salad and bread for under $25 (including taxes and tip). We had budgeted $30 for eating so we split a blizzard at Dairy Queen later in the day for dessert.

The Gifts
Our gifts were simple and from the heart and altogether cost around $35 which fit well in our budget.

The Time
The best part of our anniversary was the amount of time we spent together, just the two of us. Since the drive to Louisville is over two hours we had ample time to talk and laugh together. We were able to look back on our lives and .

The Rewards
I believe that a happy marriage has unbeatable emotional, physical and financial benefits. Investing the time and money into keeping your relationship strong has unparalleled dividends. I know that many couples will go to a hotel room on their anniversary to get away and strengthen their relationship. I believe that is a great $50-$100 investment.

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