Happy Valentines Day To Both Couples And The Singles Crowd

I realize Valentines Day is a day to celebrate love and remind that significant other how you feel about them. Unfortunately, those of us that are presently single often get left out of the equation. Personally, I think that we singles need to take this day and treat ourselves too.
In need of some ideas?
- Make yourself a great meal. This is the time of year when luxury foods go on sale like steak, lobster, seafood, champagne, etc. You don't have to go whole hog. Just spend a bit more time and enjoy the experience of cooking and savor the flavor.
- Go to the gym and do something good for yourself. Drop in on a class you haven't tried before.
- Throw in a movie, make a bowl of popcorn, and relax.
- Turn off the T.V., unplug the phone, and read a good book.
- Go grocery shopping. Research shows that's where the new pick up scene is.

Yeah! Its Friday!!

Some people look forward to the weekends. Others dread it. The perspective changes if you are up to your eyeballs in debt, counting the days until the next payday, and hoping to god that the check you wrote hasn't hit the bank yet. After a few weeks on the debt reduction trail it gets a little easier and hopefully you're not hiding from the creditors phone calls anymore.

Now is the time when it gets a bit more difficult, because it can be frustrating living on a really tight budget. Friends are going out, shopping, spending money without a care. You want to participate, but temptation is hard. I go through phases where I just want to throw the budget out the door and splurge. I want to go to that movie, have dinner out with friends, buy that cute shirt. Luckily, this frustration isn't a constant and I know if I can just ride it out, I'll be able to focus again. Budgets are like diets, if you are too strict, you are bound to splurge.

Now is the time to pull out that list of inexpensive entertainment options. Local attractions often have free days. Parks may sponsor plays or concerts. The local farmer's market is great for people watching and may also have a local chef giving a cooking lesson or band playing music. Try the library which is a great place for families and often host a story hour or craft time. Its also a great place to rent a movie for a lot less than your local movie rental store.

Today I received a reimbursement check from work for $38.64. That will go towards my emergency fund rather than debt reduction.

Donating Your Time

Today, I had the pleasure of helping my mom pick up donations from Trader Joe's and deliver them to a needy organization. It's such a wonderful feeling knowing that I can not only give something back to the community, but help to keep perfectly good food out of the landfill and get nutritious food to those that might not have it otherwise. Heading into December, the focus turns to giving. I've never had a lot of money to give, but I do make time. Its frugal and each volunteer hour saves the organization about $40.

Next weekend I'm volunteering at another organization to sort books. The organization gets donations of books from a local bookstore and we get to sort through them to pull out the children's books to send to classrooms. I admit there's a perk. I also get to pull out books that they can't use for other organizations. A small town library is in need of new books and the organization my mom works for teaches parenting skills to teen mothers. She gets any books for new moms.

At the end of the month I'm volunteering for a charity event that will feature a live and silent auction. You may ask why I do so much. Well, I have to admit I don't usually make this many committements in one month, but I find its a great way to spend an evening out and its really easy on the budget.

Dining Out on the Cheap

One of the first things to go when cutting expenses is dining out. It's expensive and is rarely a necessity. So what do you do when temptation strikes or you are meeting at a restaurant for a meeting? Plan and allow yourself a splurge every once in awhile.

While I was in college, I had a number of odd jobs, but the one I was at the longest was for a restaurant. Not only did it give me some great benefits like free soup and salads as well as 50% off any menu item, it also gave me a great education in food.

I learned about different wines and that the restaurant mark up is 100-200% on a bottle. Restaurants make the most profit off of wines by the glass. You can bring your own wine, but you will be charged a corkage fee so call ahead to find out how much. It can range from $10-$30 per bottle.

I also learned how to dine out on the cheap. I took full advantage of my discounts, but I also familiarized myself with all of the Happy Hour specials at the restaurants and bars around town. Sounds like a lot of bad bar food? Not at all. Many area restaurants offer a $1.95-$3.95 menus that include hamburgers, sushi, pasta, chicken Caesars, and hummus plates. The only requirement is buying a beverage for a minimum that is typically a soda pop or iced tea. (Free refills)

Another trick is to buy an appetizer instead of a main course. My friends and I have been known to make a meal of a side salad and split an appetizer. If we are feeling like treating ourselves, we may split a main course.

Finally, consider lunch instead of dinner. You can typically get the same menu but smaller portions for much better prices.

Doggie bags aren't just for the dogs. Ask for a box before you start your meal and take half of it home for another meal. Weight loss gurus have been recommending this for some time as a way to lose weight. It also is good for the budget. Restaurants justify increasing menu prices by giving you more food and larger plates. It gives the illusion of better value for the money. In fact, most people just waste the food by leaving it or they add to the growing weight problem by eating everything on their plate like we've been taught since childhood.

At the end of the day, don't deprive yourself a luxury now and then. Just plan wisely and make sure you enjoy every aspect of the experience.

A Fall Day At The Pumpkin Patch

This past weekend I had a marvelous Sunday. My favorite 6 year old invited me to join her, her mom, and her friend on a trip to the pumpkin patch. The day was warm, crisp, sunny, and beautiful. We found a family run pumpkin patch that had inflatable slides, a petting farm, and freshly made carmel apples. We wandered around the farm and checked out all of the animals making sure to pet whatever was friendly. Next came the time honored tradition of picking out just the right pumpkin. My little 6 year old buddy chose the one with a ladybug on it. Her friend found one with a ladybug as well. Mom found the one with a slug and that left the spider pumpkin for me. I also had to pick up a couple of miniature pumpkins for decorations. When we finished with important details, we rewarded ourselves for all of our hard work with 2 carmel apples. The moral of this story?

Cost of inflatable slide: $0
Cost of petting zoo: $3 for food
Cost of pumpkins: $10 for 5 pumpkins, 3 miniature pumpkins, and 5 gourds
Cost of carmel apples: $8 (little expensive, but they were huge!)

Day out in the country with your favorite 6 year old: Priceless - Okay, I know you saw that one coming... true cost $21 for a day out for 4 plus extra pumpkins for cooking as well as jack o' lanterns

Wow - What a Weekend!

I have been very bad about posting this weekend because I hit the ground running on Friday and am finally able to sit down and reflect. Friday after a stressful workday, I took a friend out for her birthday to see Body Worlds III and incredible combination of anatomy education and art. Not a cheap day, but an incredible experience.

Saturday, was almost a successful No Spend day. I started it out working on a huge philanthropic project where I, along with 1,800 other volunteers were distributed among 11 different sites around the city. My particular project had 100 volunteers that repainted all of the halls of an elementary school. It was incredible to see so many people come together to improve a school that hasn't had a fresh coat of paint for the last 10 years. Bonus - Outback Steakhouse provided the free lunch at the celebration afterwards. Later that evening, I attended a fundraising dinner for another organization. The ticket was paid for by my company and included dinner, drinks, and entertainment. I almost had a perfect No Spend day, but had an incredible opportunity to purchase a couple bottles of wine that will be Christmas presents.

Sunday, is another almost No Spend Day. I spent money to pick up supplies for a friend's birthday party. I was given the money to purchase most of it. I did spend an extra $8.00 + $3.00 for cat litter. The party was a success!

This weekend taught me some valuable lessons... Don't put off purchasing kitty litter if you are planning a no spend day. It only leads to unnecessary cleaning to deal with odors. Don't over schedule. It only leads to unnecessary spending. Don't take a checkbook to a fundraising event unless you have already planned on spending money. And finally, falling asleep on the couch from exhaustion leads to a sore neck.

To make up for unsuccessful No Spend days I will make Monday and Tuesday true No Spend days. I'd go for Wednesday too, but I will need gas.

Goal Progress

Today I made $4.00 selling back a DVD. That makes it a grand total of $6.50 so far this week. I did spend money today because a group of friends and I went out to dinner. Before you give me too hard of a time, I only spent $11.00 for the entire dinner and I took home leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Luckily, my friends are trying to save money as well. Tomorrow night the Food Bank has teamed up with Regal Cinemas for the "Cans Film Festival." For three cans of food you can support the food bank, get free admission to a movie and a free popcorn. Now that's a good deal!

Have you put together your list of free activities in your community yet?