Archive for the ‘Frugal Living’ Category

A Thanksgiving Stuffed with Savings

Monday, November 16th, 2009 |

Hazy summer days are behind us and now we usher in autumn’s beauty and holiday madness. With Thanksgiving preparations in full swing, here are some tips for saving money for your Thanksgiving celebration without taking away any of the joy.
One of the most important steps is to predetermine a head count for who’s eating, prepare [...]

Love Them or Hate Them, Make the Most of Gift Cards this Holiday Season

Monday, November 9th, 2009 |

The holiday shopping season is upon us. Many consumers will be heading out stores soon to find the best deals on stuff they want or stuff they want to give others. “Stuff” has it’s place in this gift-giving season, but gift cards are actually one of my favorites items to give and to receive for [...]

Results of a Week Without Spending

Sunday, November 1st, 2009 |

The “Week Without Spending” officially ended on Friday eve. Today I’m sharing the results of our little experiment. In case you missed it, last Monday I shared that Mrs. PT and I were doing a week without spending (Sunday though Friday) to help us stay on track with our saving and help reduce some of [...]

A Money Experiment: A Week Without Spending

Monday, October 26th, 2009 |

Remember 7th grade and the science experiments? Ah, good times. Well, today I’m not going to make you dissect a frog. We’ll be looking at more of a monetary experiment.
Just a few more days till the end of the month, right? I’ll get paid and we’ll have a little more breathing room in the budget. [...]

15 Surprising Places You Can Trim Your Budget

Wednesday, October 14th, 2009 |

When it’s time to take a serious look at your budget and find places to save and downgrade, you probably already know that all the fun stuff like extra shopping, the good beer and wine, and dinners out are the first to get slashed. But when you’ve already cut back on entertainment and are looking [...]

New Ways to Avoid Bank Overdraft Fees

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009 |

No one likes paying overdraft fees. Banks charged these fees to customers who they’ve had to bail out for spending more money than they have in their accounts. Banks have also somewhat taken advantage of this relationship and piled on the fees once things go in the negative. It’s not pretty. But this ugliness can be avoided. [...]

How to Keep TV from Stealing Your Money and Your Life

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009 |

TV is costing us all a lot of time and money. Is it worth it?
I recently signed back up with cable TV service. As regular readers know, I’ve been without paid TV service for over a year now. I canceled my Dish Network last fall while competing in the FNBO Direct Pay Yourself First Challenge. [...]

How Does Your Spouse Help Financially?

Friday, September 11th, 2009 |

I’ve written recently about some of the smart financial moves my wife, Mrs. PT, has helped me make. I couldn’t help but be reminded of all the financial lessons I’ve learned from her and how she helps our financial situation, just by being her.
My wife really is a great compliment to my approach to money [...]