Today we’re going to stimulate the economy.

Car dealers are hurting, nearly bankrupt. If George Bush were still president he’d tell us to be Good Americans and go buy a car. It will help the banking, credit industry and the car industry.

Our van, our only car, died last week. DEAD. There’s no fixing it. It has 238,000 miles on it and needs a new engine, a new air conditioning system and a new electrical system.

I’ve written that having one car is not an emergency. I’ve been riding my bike around town for months. It’s fun. It’s good exercise. All that sunshine …read more

I want to introduce you to my Frugal Guru, Jen from Jlogged.com.
She recently redid her website to help people use their money wisely. If I want inspiration to stay on track with the family budget she’s my “go to.”
Jen’s one of the few people I can compare detailed notes with about income and out-go and saving and financing, etc.
She knows her business. Her business is living a larger life within her means.
And she lives a pretty good life, eats organically and reduces her carbon footprint, etc.
She’s doing Nablopamo and she’s writing about money for all 30 …read more

Unlike most of America – we have no car payments.

And we love it.

We keep an emergency fund of $1,000 for car repairs. And we use it. Lately we use it a lot.

Over the summer we drained it – more than once. Lately, we’ve been replacing batteries, alternators, air conditioning compressors, starters in our old 1990s wheels.

We accepted there will be no more air conditioning in our van and Thank the Good Lord winter is coming cause 103 East Texas heat and humidity is like unto hell.

Our second commuter car kept dying for no reason. We don’t know the reason and …read more

Hey Ya’ll – Don’t miss Suze Orman, author of Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny on Oprah today.
The way people have been handling their money has been a hot topic around Blog Fabulous since I got here.
The reason is because my family got in some hot water about 4-5 years ago now and it took a long time for us to dig ourselves out of the hole and learn about money and develop a healthy relationship with it.

Women MUST learn about money. Must. Must. Must.
Else you shall have no power in your …read more

Suze Orman sent me an email asking if I am striving for my own personal financial independence this July 4th.
When you joined the Save Yourself movement, you also made a declaration. You said to yourself: “I own the power to control my destiny.” Now I ask you: What action have you taken lately to fulfill your goals?* How close are you to paying off those
credit cards?
* Do you have an eight-month emergency fund?
* Have you opened a Roth IRA?
Use this Independence Day to recommit to your financial freedom.
Well, I did join the Save Yourself Movement by opening my own account.
But, …read more

I took a major action step to Save Myself. It wasn’t easy, there were a few fights and one angry letter to Suze Orman over my using $50, of our already very tight budget, to Save My Self by opening a TD Ameritrade Account.

Rewind: Suze Orman had a Save Yourself Plan in her book Women & Money. Women who signed up for a TD Ameritrade Investment Account before March 2008 and automatically save $50 a month for one year will be given a free $100.

So far I’ve saved $100. But, I don’t know what to do with it. The market …read more

Hurray – run, don’t walk – Suze Orman is giving away her book Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny over on Oprah.com.
People can download the book for free until 8 pm Feb. 14, 2008.
It’s a good book. I’ve read it, deconstructed it and followed some advice. Hurry up! Go now.
Women and Money articles:

Save Yourself With Savings
Orman and Ramsey Duke It Out (in my head)
Unearned Loyalty
Are You On Sale?
Blame and Shame
Virtual Book Club
Money & Happiness
Cleanliness
New Money
Who Are You?

P.S. There is a promo code included in the book that’s worth a free $100.
Like I said – run, don’t …read more

Okay, so we’re ready, or almost ready, to buy a house.
I’ve been hearing all about those amortized home loans. And I want to know how that effects my position. The media hype is that millions of people are on the verge of foreclosure. In Texas, they say there will be fewer than the rest of the country.
Still, the Center for Responsible Lending estimated that 17 percent of Dallas-area homeowners who assumed subprime mortgages in 2006 would lose their homes to foreclosure, the Dallas Morning News reported.
Pres. Bush is saying they should let a large number of these people refinance under …read more

  Suze Orman used to be Susie but she wanted be more powerfully herself. Tracee Sioux used to be Tracee Sue Jones and then Tracee Sue Simmons but didn’t want to change names with marital status.  Check out So Sioux Me if you’re curious how I resolved my child-bride/divorce naming delemma.
Do you say your chosen full name in a powerful way? In the last chapter of Women & Money Suze Orman challenges us to say our full names as if we are proud of who we are and what we do. Why should that take so much courage for women?
 Save Yourself …read more

The other day in a matter of minutes myself and my two kids were overcome with congestion. We were fine, and then all three of us weren’t. There was something in the air that we just didn’t respond well to.
In the same way I’ve noticed there is something in the air breeding discontent. By discontent, I mean dissatisfaction with the present situation. Nearly everyone I know is, all the sudden, dissatisfied.
You just can’t stand your living situations, homes, clothes, cars, budgets, hair style, etc. And it feels like an emergency. Like you can’t take the present situation one more freaking second.
You want a …read more