Deal With It, Simply!

When I was a kid an emergency fund was called a rainy day fund. Saving money for someday when you really need it. Emergency funds are to help when unexpected crisis that arrive . Dave Ramsey talks about Murphy’s law which states “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong” Dave also speaks about when you have an emergency fund ….”what used to seem like an emergency isn’t such an emergency”. Dave Ramsey and the $1000 saved for emergency…..What do you do when you don’t think you have the extra to start an emergency fund?

My thinking anything is better than nothing. Start by putting away $10 or $20 here or there. Here are some ideas to come up with some extra to get started.

• Garage sale- the weather is getting better start marking items to sell now.
• Recycle- Cans, scrap metal the price is higher now
• Resale shops- We have many kids resale shops…. you don’t make a lot of money, but if they aren’t wearing it and it’s just hanging around it could be some extra cash.
• Extra work- Babysitting, baking, laundry, shopping- people are busy maybe you could pick up some of their slack and make some extra cash.

Evaluate what you can do without….

1. Maybe the newspaper….do you need daily maybe just Sunday for coupons
2. Cable- We did and got an antenna and are saving $68 a month
3. Look at your cell phone plan and see if there are ways to save.
4. Car insurance- we had the same insurance for years and never shopped around. You can really find some great rates if you just look.

Your emergency fund has to be for emergency only and you can’t touch it unless it is an emergency….I think that is the hardest thing to remember

Brr….It’s cold outside! How do you keep warm? Yesterday, we were without electricity for about 10 hours. I am grateful because many in our area are still without. Here are some things that keep us warm.

• Last year,  I bought some curtains at the dollar general….I liked the green color and thought they would look great in our living room. They are called blackout curtains. I have noticed they keep our room warmer. Close your curtains in the evening and open them when the sun is shining!
• I keep a small throw blanket on the back of each chair and the couch.  We just throw it over our shoulders.
• We have a Gas stove so we could light the burner and I boiled some water throughout the day to keep some heat in the room.Please be sure to not leave it unattended.  Moist heat feels warmer then dry heat.
• Shut the rooms up you aren’t using and shut closet doors….
• When the family needed to go outside they used the back door only…. so we could keep the living space warm.

I have to say it was nice playing games with my boys and we made the best of it. It is sad how addicted to electronics we have become. How do you stay warm?

God’s blessings, Candy

This afternoon I stopped home for lunch and turned on tv and watched a clip for Diva Exchange parties.

What’s the best way to save money on clothing? Swap with friends! The Diva Exchange is a way for everyone to dress like a diva — for less.

You can clean out your closet, gab with your girlfriends and give back at the same time. It’s called the Diva Exchange.

“Diva Exchange is where women come and bring clothes out of their closet or shoes and accessories that they are not wearing and we swap them,” says creator Marian Bell.

Here’s how to host your own:

• Invite all of your friends (and even their friends) to your house for cocktails and bites.
• Charge a small admission fee ($5 or so) that will be donated to the charity of your choice.
• Ask your guests to clean out their closets and bring any clothes that don’t fit or they’re tired of wearing.
• Invite friends with home businesses to set up shop at a table at you party.
• Have fun and swap clothes all night long!
• At the end of the party, donate any leftover clothes to a local charity or shelter.

Very frugal thinking! Have a great day, Candy

This is from the Ohio Dept of Insurance site:

How can I reduce my insurance premiums?

There are number of things you can do to reduce your insurance premium, such as:

1. Shop around!

2. Consider raising deductible.

3. Drive safely.

4. Make improvements to your home.

5. Add smoke detectors, alarm system, etc.

6. Live a healthy lifestyle.

7. Bundle policies. (for instance, you may receive discounts if you purchase your homeowners and auto insurance from the same company)

Insurance savings…. We decided to shop around for auto insurance. We have had the same company for 23 years and he has always been helpful but we thought maybe we could do better.. We have not had tickets or accidents. We had 2 daughters 21 and 18 on our insurance and with our oldest married we decided to shop around.

• Call your current insurance company and see if they can discount your rates at all.

• Ask if there are any discounts you may be qualified for like good student, multiple policies ( if you also have your home owners with them), If you pay monthly you also may find a discount.

• My husband called 3-4 different agencies he suggests having a pen and paper handy for all the information they give you. Then you can compare each one.

• When you find the best quote you can call your current agent and see if he can meet or beat the quote….ours could not so we switched and our saving over $1200.00 a year on car insurance and $500.00 a year on our home owners.

How do you save on Insurance?  Have a blessed day, Candy

Where to begin to keep more money in your household. I like to keep the heat at 64°-68° Here are a few of the things we do.

1. In the morning open your curtains and let the sunshine in….in the evening close them and keep the heat in.
2. When windows are locked they also keep your heat in.
3. Rugs on bear floors- bare floors are cold floors and rugs will warm the room
4. Run our humidifier on low. Moist air feels warmer than dry air.
5. When I was a kid my dad would say “what do you think I am heating the outdoors, Shut that door!”  Make sure to shut the doors when you enter or exit your home.
6. Draft dodgers for doors or windows click  here for directions. I have a rug in front of each door in our home at night before you go to bed you can put the rug lapping over door and floor to help with drafts.
7. Leaving the hot water of a bath of dishes keeps the heat in the room. Drain when the water cools
8. Pop the oven a little when done cooking to let the heat out until it cools. Same with the dishwasher.
9. Wear socks and a sweater
10. We keep a throw blanket on the back of each chair and if you are cold you cover up.
11. Close closet doors and keep rooms closed you are not using

How do you keep warm? I would love to hear, Candy