Use a theme! Each person in our family has a designated holiday theme. Angels, snowmen, etc. This keeps the shopper in me in line, even when there are discounted decorations after the holidays. It used to be easy to get carried away, but now I have a rule that we can purchase one item in […]
Articles by Madison
2008 Financial Resolution
Posted by2007 is coming to a close and it is time to start making goals for 2008. New Years Resolutions are all over the place, but I think they are often forgotten by the time February rolls around. Luckily we have our finances planned out for the next nine years, making this task somewhat easier, and […]
As I flipped the calendar to December, I had a note that one of the intro rates on our credit cards expires this month. I have a balance of $58,980 on my IN:CHICAGO Card from American Express at 0%. I looked at the terms, which I store in an excel spreadsheet, and read the following: 0% through billing […]
Inexpensive Sports Equipment
Posted byThis weekend our local university hosted their annual ski and snowboard sale. It’s a great way to pick up new and used equipment at discounted prices. We will need to purchase skis for our kids soon and I want to make sure that we aren’t spending unnecessary money. As with all things kids, the equipment is quickly outgrown […]
Energy Savings Tips
Posted byI often end up on subscription lists for various newsletters. One I noticed in my mailbox today was from Little Grad. It’s the Little Insights Newsletter. It had some great tips on energy savings: College Saving Tip: Heating Water Energy Consider installing a drain water waste heat recovery system. A recent DOE (Dept Of Energy) […]
Roth 401k: What Is It?
Posted byIn Roth IRA Conversion Rules Highlighted Russ commented that his employer is starting a Roth 401k plan. The Roth 401k plans are relatively new and many people haven’t heard of them yet. Employers are slowly starting to offer them to employees. Let’s explore how the Roth 401k works, the benefits over the Roth IRA, and […]
Life Insurance on Children? No Way!
Posted byWe recently ordered the pictures taken at the hospital for our newborn. While ordering I was thrown a sales pitch on buying life insurance for my child. Last time I checked life insurance was to replace lost income. My children, while I love them dearly, are not really contributing to the bottom line of our […]
How Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
Posted byI received the following question from a reader: I recently got married, and have been wondering how my spouse and I can determine the amount of life insurance we need in order to be financially secure, in the event that something would happen to one of us. -Summer Great question Summer! Glad you are thinking […]
My Wishlist by American Express 2007
Posted byIt’s that time of year again… shopping, parties, presents, traveling, etc. One of my favorite promotions is My Wishlist by American Express. We have participated the last two years. It’s basically a sweepstakes, with a car as the top prize, but a really fun one! And the easy prizes, are what I’m always going for: […]
Closet, Reader Goal Update
Posted byLast week in Taxes, My Closet, and Reader Goal I created the goal of getting 150 readers per day. As incentive, if the average visitor count makes it over 150, I will donate that many items from my closet! How did we do? Results The average number of visitors for the week of November 15-21 […]