8 Tips to Help You Stick to a Budget!

We're getting to the end of my husband's two week pay period. And since we use his paycheque to pay for groceries, things usually start getting pretty skimpy around here towards the end of the two weeks. It's a lot of searching the back of the pantry and the bottom of the freezer to use what we have. I find it kind of an exciting challenge! It's like the Food Network show "Chopped" - where they give the chefs a random basket of weird items like cotton candy, a rabbit's foot, rutabaga and coconut milk and they have to create a gourmet dish based on those ingredients. I tell ya, we've made some pretty interesting meals around here while we've been budgeting! If we needed to, we could take money from another area, but I hate messing up my system!

Here are 8 tips to help you stick to your budget.

1. Write it down

Every dollar should be accounted for and you should have each dollar spent on paper before you spend it for realz. You have a finite amount of money allocated to each area. Each dollar has a name. Each dollar has a purpose.

2. Step away from temptation

Are you a mall-aholic? A Starbucks fanatic? If these places throw you into a spending frenzy, just WALK AWAY. It's time to get serious with your budgeting and spending, so why tempt yourself unnecessarily?

3. Stick to your envelope system

If you want to find out how to use an cash envelope system, you can check out this post. By using cash for all your purchases, you really do have a lot more control over your spending, because if there isn't any money in the envelope for it, you shouldn't be buying it! At the beginning of each month, really think about the expenses you will have that month that may be different from previous months. Things like birthday parties, swimming lessons for the kids, Christmas, hockey equipment, etc. You get the picture. If you know there is an expense coming up in a few months, start budgeting now.

4. Only buy what's on your shopping list

This is not the time to try Kobe beef! Stick to the basics, make as much food from scratch as you can, and learn to shop using sales from flyers and coupons. And remember to take advantage of reward systems like PC Plus Points or Shopper's Drug Mart Optimum Points (in Canada).

5. Exercise at home

I discussed this in a previous post but last time I checked, you didn't need a gym membership to get healthy. Walking works, and you can get lots of FREE workouts on Youtube. Jillian Michael's has a bunch. This is my favourite one! Imagine how hot I'll be after doing this workout for a few years and paying off my debt? Rawr....

6. Visit the library

It's a free place to take your kids for a fun little outing, and you can go home with books, DVDs and audio books. And it doesn't cost anything. Plus reading is really good for your brain. It makes you way smarter than watching TV will. Blogs are great reading too ;)

7. Carpool

Have any people at work you can carpool with? I know sometimes we just want to rock out alone in our car to Iron Maiden but you can save so much money by splitting the cost of gas and parking fees. Just make sure you pick someone you actually like, and who has good hygiene.

8. Create a vision board

Some people think this is a little too much woo-woo for them but in my opinion, a vision board is a road map that everyone in the family can follow, and it helps remind them why they are making big sacrifices. Take a bunch of magazines and start pinning up the fun things you're family will be able to do once you've paid down debt, and have been able to save.


Have any great ideas to help us stick to a budget! Send me a comment. Please, oh please?

6 Money-Saving Strategies for the Holiday Season

There is no time of year I love more than the holiday season. I love the Christmas carols, the smells of cinnamon and pine, the time with family, the decorations - in my book, it's all awesome! But this is also the time of year where panic usually sets in because I know I have to budget for Christmas spending and figure out where the money is going to come from.

However, for the first time in many years, we are going into the holiday season with a real plan. Because we started The Total Money Makeover: Classic Edition: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitnessa few months ago, I've already been saving every week. It feels good to know that we will have enough money saved so we won't be strapped for cash or using credit to purchase gifts this year.

6 Money-Saving Strategies for the Holiday Season:

1. Save NOW
I am posting this on November 11th so that means you have over a month to start putting away a little money each pay period to build a bit of savings to get ready for your holiday shopping. This might mean you have a few less lattes, and sell a few items online, but save and make it happen. Ideally, if you can buy a little all year, it won't be such a tight crunch when Christmas rolls around.

2. Start a list
Sit down and figure out who you HAVE to buy for and determine a set amount for each person. Even if you think Timmy is going to look so adorable in that Rudolph sweater, avoid buying more than you budgeted for. I start gathering ideas for my kids as soon as they start spewing out ideas. I keep a list on my phone so it's handy when I need to add to it, and I can wait for deals when they come up.

3. Don't buy for every person you know
I know we tend to think that we need to buy for more people than we really need to. Is it necessary to buy for extended family, all your co-workers and the florist? Learn to draw the line! If these people ARE important to you, why not send them a beautiful card with a heart-felt note? That means so much more than some chocolates or cheese log anyway.

4. Think strategically
Keep your eyes peeled for sales. Buy online IF you can get great deals and free shipping. Cyber Monday can have some crazy cool deals  - this year it falls on December 1st. Mark your calendars. For online shopping, I love Zulily and Amazon.com! Use money-saving apps like Checkout 51 or Coupgon, and use your rewards points (see tip below).

*** This is a really awesome tip for those of you in Canada. While I was shopping at The Real Canadian Superstore a few months ago, I mentioned how much I love the PC Plus Program. The clerk said her mom saves all her points throughout the year so she can redeem them at Christmas time to purchase a majority of her gifts. I totally snagged the idea! I have almost $100 in points saved up (I started a few months ago). I highly recommend you get this app and card, especially if you're buying groceries there anyway. Most weeks they will give you an automatic 25,000 pts ($25) if you spend $250 on groceries. This is on top of the points you get from purchasing selected items!

5. Make homemade gifts
Even before I was a money-saving machine, I often made homemade gifts for neighbours, teachers, daycare workers, etc. because I feel like it means more. Last year we made this awesome, DYI Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix from Seeded at the Table. We packaged them in mason jars wrapped up all pretty-like, and gave them to our closest neighbours. The ingredients were fairly inexpensive and it made quite a large amount. We even made a batch to keep in our cupboards. It lasted a long time!


6. Do your research
If you want to make sure you're buying quality products, check out online reviews. You can also check out what stores are having deals from the convenience of your computer or smart phone. Most of your favourite retailers have emails you can sign up for which notify you when they have promotions.

Stick to your plan, start early, and don't forget what this time of the year is really all about. What are some of your money-saving strategies for Christmas?

5 Tips For Decorating on the Cheap

We just finished our basement - we had been in our house 7 years. It was time! My husband hired the trades we needed, and we did as much of it on our own as we could with the gifts we have. We basically did the electrical and painting. I guess we don't have that many gifts. :) Here are some tips I have for decorating your basement on a budget.

1. Who needs a designer when you have Pinterest

I'm not putting down interior designers - they rock at what they do, and I'm just a little jealous I wasn't one myself. But here's a secret: If you don't have oodles of money to spend on a decorator, you can actually learn tips, tricks and steal awesome ideas from Pinterest! It is a HUGE resource for everything you can think of. I got so many great ideas about arranging furniture, decorating, painting... you get the picture. One tip I love, is using old books stacked under objects to give them height and interest. In this picture I purchased these ADORABLE owls from Walmart and stacked them on some vintage books I bought at our local thrift store for 25 cents each.


2. Kijiji, Buy and Sell sites, Thrift stores... Are the best!
I'm always on these types of sites, especially when I know I need new furniture, appliances, winter clothes for my kids, anything that is perfectly good in used condition. Why buy new if you don't have to? Buying second hand is more economical and it's better for the environment. I knew I needed new couches for our basement (the 70s duo we inherited from my mother-in-law were not going to cut it for me). So for about three or four months, I looked tirelessly on various sites trying to find a good, clean, second-hand pair of couches. Let me tell you, patience was key! But alas, I waited for the perfect moment and then my couches appeared. They were $600 for the set but they were brand new. They had been used to stage a show home so they hadn't even been sat on. I was so excited! We barely got the couch down the stairs, and my cousin nearly broke his neck falling down the stairs as we brought it down, but they worked out so great. The cushions are from Walmart and some shams are from Ikea (covering old pillows). The old picture frame window was from Kijiji for $3! The lamp was from our local thrift store for $5.

3. Buy cheap and fix it up
I have repainted a lot of furniture in the last few years. I buy older pieces from thrift shops or Kijiji, then I paint and distress them to get that shabby chic look that I love. The shelf was purchased on our local Buy and Sell Facebook page for $35. I repainted it using Plaster Paint from a local store here called Real Deals on Home Decor. A great place for shabby chic looks at a fraction of the price. It's my favourite home decor store! My end table was purchased at a garage sale for $5. I repainted it as well. Another tip: we just bought a paint sprayer. A bit of an investment ($125) but it speeds up the painting process SOOOOO much. It took me ten minutes to paint the end table. That table was done with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. It's a bit more pricey than Plaster Paint but it goes on a little nicer in my opinion.

4. Buy new items when they are inexpensive but have big impact

I didn't buy a lot of new items for our basement renos but I did buy a few key items that didn't cost lots but had a big impact on the look of our house. I love these picture rails from Ikea for $14 each. We created a little gallery wall with pictures and art work. Most of the frames I purchased second hand and painted. My curtains are from Giant Tiger. I bought them for $10/panel. By using long curtains on a small basement window, it tricks the eye into thinking you are on a main level. Sneaky!

As I mentioned earlier, I love our Real Deals on Home Decor store in Winnipeg. It's got such cute furniture and decor at a pretty decent price. I purchased a few wall hangings from there. Can't remember the price exactly for the owl but I think it was about $30 or so. Also notice the green in the curtains, pillows and curtains - they all have the same circular patterns. Total fluke!












5. Patience and Time is Key
I know we all want it now, want it fast, want it done. But I promise you, if you give yourself a few minutes a day to check out websites like Kijiji, you will find amazing deals for fractions of what you would pay for new items. Like I said, it took about 4 months to find the perfect second-hand couches, but I found them. A great money saving tip too - I would only buy things for our basement with money I had earned by selling things we didn't use anymore. Out with the old, in with the slightly not as old but new to us! Save, plan and hunt. That's how you win this game!

I'd love to see some of your best thrifty finds or hear some of your tips. Please share them in my comments and share this post with your frugal friends!

Have a great day!

When life gives you a box of cheap apples, make cheap apple sauce

I am a big fan of getting a good deal, and when someone was selling a huge box of crab apples for $5, I was on it! Our local buy and sell page on Facebook is a real goldmine sometimes! So what was I going to do with this awesome score? (The box was full to the top. This picture was taken half way through.)

Because the apples were VERY tart, I figured apple sauce would be a safe bet since I could add sugar to balance out the tartness. I started by sorting the apples and rinsing them with cold water. Once I cleaned the apples, I threw them into a big pot filled with a few cups of water. I put on the lid and let them soften - peels and stems too. I knew I was going to strain them once they were mushy. Here are the pretty little crimson gems simmering in the pot.

Once the apples were soft enough, I mashed them by hand then passed them through a fine strainer. That beautiful sauce starting oozing from the strainer. But it was very tart still!

Once all the apple mush was strained, I poured the sauce back into the pot and let it simmer on the stove while I added a few cups of sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. I can't tell you what the exact amounts were because I made the sauce by taste. My kiddos were also part of the taste testing process!

Once the sauce was done simmering, I poured the sauce in sterilized jars and canned them in a water bath canner for 15 minutes. And then came the symphony of jars popping. Music to my ears!

The finished product was beautiful in its scarlet hue, and the taste was even better. The first night we had the sauce as an accompaniment to a delicious pork roast. What a great flavour combo!

I made a dozen jars of apple sauce and had extra apples left for freezing. All of that for the low price of $5.00. *pats herself on the back.

Tomorrow I'll be giving you my tips for furnishing and decorating your home using mostly second-hand finds!