Many of you will be hosting Thanksgiving dinner at your house this year. It doesn’t take long to figure out that this feast can break your food budget.  Here are some tips to help you to spend less and hang on to that money for upcoming Christmas expenses.

Prepare the foods yourself.  Don’t go out to the ham store and order a precooked ham or turkey.  I’ve heard of some people paying $30-40 for a precooked ham.  Yikes!
Shop the pre-Thanksgiving sales.  Some stores offer tremendous weekly specials to lure you in.  Look for buy 1 get 1 free specials on vegetables, …read more

Christmas is not only overly expensive but can be totally stressful too. In fact the issues usually go hand in hand. Really it’s time to end this stressful holiday nonsense and get back to holiday celebrations that actually matter and that are actually fun, don’t you think? Here are some ideas to cut your budget and your stress level this Christmas…

Stay put: Holiday travel is more expensive than traveling at other times of the year and bonus, it’s hyper stressful with long lines, crowds, and layovers due to nasty winter weather. Stay put. Call your family on the holidays to …read more

There are more than 200 known diseases that are transmitted through food. The CDC reports that in the U.S. alone that “Foodborne diseases have been estimated to cause 6 million to 81 million illnesses and up to 9,000 deaths each year.” Many illnesses caused by food are the result of poor food handling which is likely to happen around the holidays when people are cooking new dishes they’re unfamiliar with and especially because they’re cooking large turkeys.

Not only are foodborne illnesses serious from a medical standpoint, but they take time away from your family, and can create costly medical bills. …read more

No matter how you slice it, re-gifting is always a tricky topic. Some folks are super gung-ho to re-gift when necessary, others find it terribly tacky, and some people think it’s downright evil.
I however, do not think re-gifting is evil or even slightly bad. WHY hold onto something you’ll never, ever use? Why not give it to someone else who may like it. What’s evil is having all sorts of junk around your house just because you think you’ll hurt someone’s feelings or because you feel obligated to hold onto stuff. That said, one fun activity you can plan …read more

There’s no time like the present to start saving money on shipping costs for holiday gifts. I know it’s early, but planning and getting started ahead of time is one way to save.

As we all know shipping costs can be substantial if you wait until the last minute. Choose gifts now, plan on shipping before the holiday rush and save.
Look for free shipping. It’s lame to pay for shipping when so many online shops offer free shipping. Plenty of places regularly ship for free and many hold special holiday shipping deals.
Ship to one place when possible. If most of your …read more

For the first time ever, I have three kids this Halloween.  If you’re like me, you don’t have $30-50 per kid to spend on a costume.  I’ve been searching around the internet and have found some do-it-yourself ideas.  Hopefully there will something that you like.

 
Black Knight Costume
Pocahontas
Parents has some cute costume ideas.  You probably have many of the items needed already at home.

Scuba Diver – uses 2 liter soda bottles, tubing, and goggles
Beauty Queen
Basketball Player
Artist
Mad Scientist
Rock Star
Magician
Doctor
Chef
Zoo Keeper
Construction Worker

Handmade Costumes – Most of these costume ideas are for smaller children.

Little Lamb – This one is my favorite. It’s so adorable!
Dalmation …read more

While I’m sure mentioning this topic is going to bring some eye rolls and heavy sighs, we can’t deny that Christmas will be here soon.  So rather than avoiding the issue, let’s take it on and discuss some ways to plan and stay out of debt.  As Dave Ramsey says, “Children do what feels good.  Adults make a plan and follow it.”  I propose that we make a plan to stay out of debt this Christmas.

1)  Audit your spending.  See if there is anything that you’re willing to cut out.  I’m thinking things like lunch out with coworkers, movie rentals, …read more

Penny Saving Household Helper: Five Hundred Little Ways to Save Big by Rebecca DiLiberto, Chronicle Books (2009), will make a great tiny stocking stuffer this year for any pal or family member who needs some tips about saving and budgeting.

Penny Saving Household Helper: Five Hundred Little Ways to Save Big is just a tiny little hardcover book;  4-1/2 x 6 in (it’ll fit right in a stocking!) but is packed full with over 500 tips for saving money throughout the home and garden all year long. There are many nice tips for saving money when cooking, stocking the pantry, cleaning, …read more

Earlier this week, I posted about some ways to cut out some of your Christmas expenses.  One of the ways listed was to cut down your Christmas gift list.  It’s simply not necessary to buy for every aunt, uncle, and cousin.  That’s not what Christmas is about anyway. 

Tiffany from Stuff Parents Need commented with a great question.
Do you have any tips for how to tactfully remove people from your list? We have a few aunts and uncles that I’d like to stop buying presents for, not because I don’t love them, but because I think us continuing to exchange presents is …read more

Christmas is only three months away.  You may be thinking, ‘Please don’t say it! Don’t bring up that topic. I’m not ready yet!’.  We can’t shoo away the fact that Christmas will be here before we know it, but we can prepare.  For many, money is tight this year and alternative plans need to be made.  Here are some ways to cut back on your spending this year.

1) If you have young children, consider purchasing used toys and clothes for them or having a toy and clothing swap with friends.  Young children don’t know if the item is new or …read more