Not an easy task! There are so many sparkly and shiny things in the stores. I could suggest that you avoid stores and shopping altogether and advise you to make all your gifts however, unless you’re very crafty, it’s not a realistic suggestion.   Here are some ideas: Write down your holiday giving budget number […]

November is flying by but there are two weeks left to earn an ‘A’ in Financial Literacy. How do I do that you may ask? Definitions of literate include ‘to be knowledgeable’ or ‘to be well-read on a topic’. I don’t have a whole lot of time to read these days but thanks to the […]

I can thank my parents for teaching me and my brother valuable first lessons when it comes to finances. Save for what you want before you buy it Always pay the full balance owing on your credit card by the due date Save for retirement Spend wisely – if it’s something you really, really like, […]

It gets back to the old question of needs versus wants. Layer on the ease of obtaining credit and the complexity of today’s world, and we collide with this simple question. We are often able to buy the things we want such as cars, homes and furniture on credit without saving for them first. Which […]

For many of us back to school marks a fresh start milestone – similar to the New Year. There’s a flurry of organization in terms of new routines, registrations and shopping. I feel a bit like a squirrel with all the effort going into restocking our cupboards, fridge and freezer after a summer of coming […]

It’s a year away and going to be a big one so best we start saving our money now. How much to save? And how to save?    We are planning a trip to the UK to visit family and see the sights over 3 to 4 weeks. The biggest expenses will be transportation and […]

Ok – here we go. Let’s look at the numbers.     $2,800 Flights $245 Hotel $344 Rental Vehicle + Gas $360 Gifts $100 Tourist Stuff $325 Amusement Park $500 Food, Drinks, Miscellaneous   A Grand Total of $4,674!   Ironically, my ball park estimate was the closest at $5,000 and funds saved and set […]

We just got back from a two week to visit family in Ontario and the numbers are in! Did we do a good job budgeting and saving for our trip? The key is to plan well for a big vacation because once the flight has left the airport we are committed to the majority of […]

Okay, after a small discussion and a little bit of negotiation I think we have a plan. We did it in 3 steps: Understand fixed expenses or savings that we can’t or don’t want to change. Review previous year expenses to understand where we’ve ignored our budget and seek out opportunities to cut spending. Set […]

My husband is proposing radical budget cuts and I do mean radical! He read an article about a couple that didn’t spend any money for 1 year other than rent, utilities and food. Their estimated spend avoidance was $36,000. A very tidy sum. You’d think being a financial blogger that I would happily jump on […]