- @ScottATaylor Thanks for following me. in reply to ScottATaylor #
- RT @ChristianPF: 5 Tips For Dealing With Your Medical Debt http://su.pr/2cxS1e #
- Dining Out vs Cooking In: http://su.pr/3JsGoG #
- RT: @BudgetsAreSexy: Be Proud of Your Emergency Fund! http://tinyurl.com/yhjo88l ($1,000 is better than $0.00) #
- [Read more…] about Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-12-12
Birthdays on the Cheap
Birthdays are expensive. Shoot, I’ve said that before. It’s usually true, but it doesn’t have to be. Here are five ways to cut birthday party costs. Note: If you’re trying to cut costs on an adult party, just replace the word “kid” with “guest of honor”.
1. Location, location, location. The amusement park/pizza place is nice if you like bad pizza, but it’s certainly not cheap. The inflatable playground may be the talk of the school for a day or two, but it’ll flex your debit card in ways it’s just not used to. Why? Kids, being kids, are capable of entertaining themselves. They’ve got imaginations that should make most adults weep with envy. If that fails, make them play a board game or in the worst case, some video games. Lock the wild young’ns in the basement and let ’em go nuts for a couple of hours. It’ll be a blast, I promise.
2. Why invite the world? How many friends does your kid actually have? I’m not talking about all of the kids in school he’s not fighting with or every kid on the block that hasn’t TP’d your house. I mean actual friendship. If they don’t play together regularly, nobody will be offended about missing an invitation. Invite the entire class? That’s just nuts. Thirty ankle-biters smearing cupcakes on the wall? No thank you. You kid will have more fun with 2-3 close friends than 20-30 acquaintances.
3. Toy flood. What was the last toy your kid played with? The last 10? How many toys have been completely neglected for months or years? How many stuffed animals are buried so deep in the pile in the corner that they are wishing for a fluffy Grim Reaper to come put them out of their misery? Don’t buy your kid clutter. It’s a hassle to clean up–and you will–and it trains them into bad habits for a lifetime. One or two things that they will treasure(or, better yet, wear!) will work our much better for everyone than a dozen things to forget in a toy box. Too many toys guarantees that the kid won’t get attached to any of them. Down with kid-clutter!
4. Designer Cake. Who needs a fancy cake? Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t you going to start a fire on the thing, then cut it up and give it to a dozen little runts to rub in their hair? If you can’t bake it yourself, a quarter sheet is cheap at the big box grocery stores and will guarantee leftovers. Nothing starts the week better than chocolate marble cake for breakfast on Monday.
5. Food. Don’t. That was easy. Scheduling is an important way to keep costs down. Don’t have the party at lunch time. For small children, 1:30 PM is about perfect. The parents won’t stick around once the kids are ready for a nap. For older kids, 4PM means they will need to be home for dinner. That cuts the menu down to kool-aid, light snack food, and cake. It also ensures that the party won’t drag on forever.
It’s possible to have a budget birthday party without being totally lame. Give it a shot. Your kids won’t mind.
This post is a blast from the past.
About
I am a husband, father of three, and a software engineer and I think I am going through a mid-life crisis*. I woke up one morning and took stock of my life. There are quite a few things I am not happy with in my life. It’s time to correct that.
We have too much debt. My wife and I have gone through a slow financial meltdown over the last ten years. We spent so much time living beyond our means that, now that we are earning a comfortable salary, we can’t afford to do the things we did on half this income. Our lives are upside down. This is going to change. As a start, I’ve been slashing expenses and selling my toys in an effort to get out of debt.
We have too much stuff. I’ve been downsizing and simplifying everything we own. I have thrown out truckloads of stuff we don’t need or can do without. We recently moved a close friend into our spare bedroom. Making room for him was a chore, due to our excess crap. It’s gotta go. If we don’t know what we have, we don’t need it.
I’m out of shape. I used to be in great shape. Ten years of surburbia and desk jobs has changed that. I’ve started running and will get back in shape. I intend to live long enough to be a happy burden to my children.
I don’t spend enough time with my wife. I’m still completely in love, but we need to be closer. I’m in this for the long haul. Fifty years of watching TV isn’t good enough. We need to be close.
Those are my problems and some hints towards my plans to correct my life. There is nothing I’ve earned that I regret, but definitely some things I want to improve. In short, I want to be the man my children think I am.
*If this is mid-life, I’ve made some very bad life choices.
Allowance
This article on the Simple Dollar discusses raising kids to be financially responsible.
My wife and I have a goal to raise our kids to be more financially responsible than we have ever been. We are currently digging out of a financial hole we dug ourselves, which is a situation we hope our children never see.
Introduction
I am a husband, father of three, and a software engineer and I think I am going through a mid-life crisis*. I woke up one morning and took stock of my life. There are quite a few things I am not happy with in my life. It’s time to correct that.
We have too much debt. My wife and I have gone through a slow financial meltdown over the last ten years. We spent so much time living beyond our means that, now that we are earning a comfortable salary, we can’t afford to do the things we did on half this income. Our lives are upside down. This is going to change. As a start, I’ve been slashing expenses and selling my toys in an effort to get out of debt.
We have too much stuff. I’ve been downsizing and simplifying everything we own. I have thrown out truckloads of stuff we don’t need or can do without. We recently moved a close friend into our spare bedroom. Making room for him was a chore, due to our excess crap. It’s gotta go. If we don’t know what we have, we don’t need it.
I’m out of shape. I used to be in great shape. Ten years of surburbia and desk jobs has changed that. I’ve started running and will get back in shape. I intend to live long enough to be a happy burden to my children.
I don’t spend enough time with my wife. I’m still completely in love, but we need to be closer. I’m in this for the long haul. Fifty years of watching TV isn’t good enough. We need to be close.
Those are my problems and some hints towards my plans to correct my life. There is nothing I’ve earned that I regret, but definitely some things I want to improve. In short, I want to be the man my children think I am. I have three wonderful children, and I want our lives to be as perfect as possible.
Please, join me for the ride, starting December first.
*If this is mid-life, I’ve made some very bad life choices.
Scamming Disaster Victims
As we leave flooding season here in Minnesota, it’s important to remember that there are low-lifes who don’t mind preying on people when they are at their weakest and most vulnerable. That’s true in many situations, but the one I’m talking about specifically is the post-disaster scam.
The most prevalent is probably the home-repair con. If you have damage to your home from a disaster, be prepared to have people knocking on your door offering to fix your house. We had a nasty hail storm a couple of years ago and were plagued with contractors for months. Most of these were not con-men, but it is a safe bet that some were. There are two basic home-repair cons after a disaster.
The first is to over-promise and under-deliver. These people may just be inexperienced, but if someone claims to be able to replace your roof, your siding, and your deck for half of what anyone else is offering, run. The solution is to get multiple quotes and to check licenses and references. Then, get a written estimate. No reputable company will complain about any of that. If it feels to good to be true, it probably is.
The second common home-repair scam is to take your money and run. Most big contracting companies want to deal with your insurance company directly. That’s because they know they can pad the labor costs and add a mark-up to materials. Some just want to get the insurance money and run. Either way, I insist on dealing with the insurance company myself, so I can pay the contractor when the work is finished to my satisfaction.
Another common scam is the advance-fee loan con. This is perpetrated by scum preying on those people unfortunate, unlucky, or unwise enough to not have insurance to cover disaster damage. They will promise below-market interest rates, fast closing, and no credit check. All you have to do is give them a large down payment to seal the deal and they will “guarantee” the loan. In my world, guarantee does not refer to the art of leaving the state with someone else’s money, but that’s how this scam ends. Once again, don’t fall for “dream deals”. Never give money to a company you haven’t verified is legitimate and never(ever, ever, ever) give money or personal information to a stranger over the phone. If you didn’t initiate the contact and verify the company, don’t do business with them.
The third major con attacks the generous nature of most people when faced with another’s hardship. The charity con. Donating money to help people in need is an honorably act. Please make sure that you are donating to an actual charity, not a scam artist with a credit-card machine. If you didn’t initiate the contact, hang up and verify the charity is legitimate, then call back and donate money on your own. You can verify a charity’s status by contacting your state government, usually the Attorney General’s office.
As always, you are in charge of your safety and security, both financial and otherwise. Don’t let yourself be scammed.
