Budget Living

OK, I wouldn’t call these rules, necessarily. They’re more like guidelines.

But, they are important guidelines, nonetheless. It helps me to remember these when I’m paying the bills and the numbers don’t go in quite the direction I wish they would. It helps me to remember them when I see some cool kitchen gadget that I don’t really need, but it would be really cool to have. It helps me to remember them when I don’t feel like we’ve saved enough money each month.

See this? This is HALF the laundry that was generated in my household in the last week since the dryer broke. The washer and dryer were on their last legs and decided to die in my absence. Right on their heels went the radiator and thermostat in our van. And the cam sensor. Whatever THAT is. My…

Back in the old days, clothing and shoes were items that people wore for a long time. In fact, if an article of clothing became torn or worn, it was repaired, or even remade to present a freshened look. If they couldn’t make the adjustments themselves, women took their family’s clothing to seamstresses and tailors…

Car seats cramping your style — and your car? Thinking that another baby requires you to buy a bigger vehicle? If you have multiple young children, then you know what it can be like to pack several carseats into the backseat of a car or van. We upgraded from a car to a minivan when our…

When I was growing up, my parents were always very careful with money. Neither of their families had had a lot of money when they were children, and so they knew how to save. It took a long time for me to appreciate this. I remember scrunching down in the backseat of the car when…