While the year is just getting started, I can’t help but notice how much this feels like a time of reflection. It’s been a year since a spike protein upended our lives and changed our world. Personally, I’ve already noticed just how much our finances evolved this past year. Additionally, I spent some time reflecting … [Read more…]
We’re all pretty familiar with buyer’s remorse. In fact, most of us learn the concept the hard way. Maybe the truth didn’t even sink in until after the return period ended. The horror. But what about saver’s remorse? Is it even a thing? Not only would I contend that saver’s remorse is absolutely real, it … [Read more…]
No, I haven’t crossed over to the dark side. Yes, I still think there’s incredible value in being mortgage free. But for the past few months and into the foreseeable future, we pushed pause on our debt payoff plans. While I initially expected to feel a lot anxiety about this decision, I’m surprisingly resolute. Because … [Read more…]
Just about a year ago, scientists and money nerds alike started talking a lot about exponential growth a whole lot. Around that same time, I noticed a really unusual run on frozen pizza that had nothing to do with sporting events. Of course, as we know now, we were headed full throttle into a pandemic … [Read more…]
The weather hasn’t exactly been cooperative. Normally by this time, we’ve seen several snowfalls. This year? We’ve had one dusting that lasted maybe an hour before snowfall turned to rain and snow turned to slush. Layer on the pandemic and COVID restrictions, and it’s easy to see why any family would feel like they have … [Read more…]
The warm weather faded dramatically fast in typical Midwestern fall fashion. Overnight temperatures are already flirting with freezing, and the days aren’t nearly as warm as they were even a week ago. While there are many things I adore about the change in seasons, there’s no doubt that it’s easier to have free & frugal … [Read more…]
We’ve crested a lot of milestones in 2020. Not only do we have enough money set aside in savings to pay off our mortgage when we’re ready, we can also afford for my husband to take a short-term leave of absence from a work situation that no longer works for our family. Oh. And the … [Read more…]
Kids can be expensive, and clothes can certainly drive up the cost. When you’re prone to both impulse spending and emotional spending, you have to keep up your guard. (That’s my PSA to me from me.) Of course, clothing isn’t the number one reason kids are costly. But if we can cut costs, be eco-friendly, … [Read more…]
When it comes to getting ahead financially, you can spend less or earn more. You can also do both. Early on in our careers, we spent time scaling back. I got really good at saving–maybe a little too good. Over time, we’ve both climbed across our salary schedules and started other income streams. When we … [Read more…]
To say that this hasn’t been the spring we imagined is an understatement. Our usual free and frugal fun adventures are comprised of library visits, playground adventures, and children’s museum explorations. So when the pandemic and subsequent lockdown more or less shook the Etch-a-Sketch of options clean, we had to rethink what free and frugal … [Read more…]