My Fall Spending Relapse

Ok, so I have to admit that I’ve had a minor spending relapse over the past couple weeks.  I woke up bored on Labor Day, so I decided to go shopping with my sister.  We ended up making it an all day event with a break for lunch.  I think we hit up about four [...]

September 16, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Credit Cards, My Progress, New Spending Habits, Want vs. Need  No Comments

I’m Officially Out of Debt

At last!  I just paid my credit card balance down and paid back the personal loan that I borrowed from a friend.  I started seriously attacking my debt back in June.  I managed to pay down $4,700 in debt within three months.  Needless to say, I’m a little giddy right now.
I thought that getting rid [...]

August 28, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: My Progress, New Spending Habits, Spending Zero Dollars, Want vs. Need  One Comment

Frugal Summer Reading

It seems that publishing has caught up with our view of the economy and spending habits.  Gone are the days of “Confessions of a Shopaholic” and “Sex and the City”.  Here is a list of new fiction for today’s frugal women:

Hedge Fund Wives by Tatiana Boncompagni
Social Lives by Wendy Walker
The Penny Pinchers Club by Sarah [...]

August 17, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Cheap Thrills, New Spending Habits  No Comments

Could You Save $1,000 in 30 Days?

I read this post over at I Will Teach You to Be Rich.  I’m already trying to save about this much money each month, but could you?  If you needed to, could you completely give up luxuries like cable, internet, and an air conditioned house?
It’s an interesting challenge because it pits our love of saving [...]

August 5, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Banking Accounts, Money News, Spending Zero Dollars, Want vs. Need  2 Comments

What If Something Bad Happens? Part Two

Yes, I worry.  My latest fear? Layoffs.
A lot of people in my company were recently laid off.  So this isn’t just some irrational fear that I have.  I’m about $1,500 away from being out of debt, but the coast isn’t clear just yet.  What if I was laid off tomorrow? I would receive my last [...]

July 28, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Money News, My Progress  No Comments

What If Something Bad Happens?

My friend recently had her house broken into and her car stolen.  Not only was this emotionally traumatic, it was also financially traumatic.  The cost to fix her (recovered) car alone was $1,000.  The cost to replace stolen items from her apartment?  Tens of thousands- she didn’t have any renter’s insurance.  Talk about painful.  Her [...]

July 28, 2009  Tags: , , , , , , , ,   Posted in: Banking Accounts, My Progress  No Comments

Restaurant Coupons from Slickdeals

I stumbled across this Slickdeal yesterday.  The deal is an extra 80% off restaurant coupons at Restaurant.com.  The website is cool because you can search by zip code to find coupons for restaurants right in your neighborhood.  I found a coupon worth $50 for only $20.  But that’s a normal coupon from this website.  The [...]

July 23, 2009  Tags: , , , , , ,   Posted in: A Night Out, Cheap Thrills, Coupons, Discounts, Food  No Comments

Spending Then and Now

Now that my yearly vacation is over, let’s compare my spending then and now.  I take the same vacation every year.  Same area, same people, same events, same cost?  Perhaps not.  This month, vacation included, I only spent $624, while last July I spent $2,477.  I’m kind of impressed with myself right now.  Check it [...]

July 21, 2009  Tags: , , , , ,   Posted in: Credit Cards, My Progress, New Spending Habits  No Comments