How to do Project Life on a Budget
Have you ever felt frustrated with scrapbooking? Maybe you wanted to stick with it but it became too expensive or time-consuming, or you just weren't happy with how the layouts turned out. I used to feel that way. I'm not a creative person at all, and I was never...
Could a Career in Academia be the One for You?
There are many great questions that you may find yourself ready to ask in life. One of the very first will always involve your career. You'll be working for a long time, and you want to make sure that you choose the right path to embark on. But with so many options...
5 Reasons to Refinance Your Student Loans
Are you struggling with student loans? I know how difficult it can be. When my husband and I got married, we had a combined total of $117,000 of student loan debt. Being buried in six figure debt is overwhelming – I felt trapped and hopeless. *Disclosure: This post...
Scrapbooking, Cannoli, and Fur Babies: July/August Update
For those of you who are new readers, I post an update every few months that shows how we’re doing on our debt snowball and other life goals. A couple years ago, I shared a post called What to Do When You're Feeling Stuck. In this post, I discussed my three year...
The Top 10 Best Board Games for Adults
My hubby and I love to have board game nights with our friends. We’re currently on a three year spending ban while we pay off our massive student loan debt, so finding free things to do for fun is important for our sanity. In addition to being free, game nights are...
How to Stick With Clean Eating (When You’re Tempted to Give Up)
There are numerous reasons to start eating clean. Maybe you want to lose weight or perhaps you just want to be healthier. Whatever the reason, it can be difficult to stick with a whole food diet when you’re used to eating an unhealthy diet. I’ve been eating a vegan,...
Arizona Travel Guide: 10 Frugal Things to Do
Since my hubby and I are currently on a three year spending ban while we pay off $117,000 of student loan debt, we don’t generally travel. However, we went to Arizona last year because my step grandpa passed away and we were there for his funeral. It was a sad...
10 Things You Shouldn’t Buy When You’re Broke
Personal finance is about choices. Many frugal people continue to splurge on a couple of things that are truly important to them – because they’re frugal in most areas, they can afford to splurge on things that they value. Frugality doesn’t have to mean giving up...
Frugal Tip: Finish College in 4 Years (or Less)
Less than 20% of students at public universities finish college within four years. Some struggle with difficult courses, many spend more time partying than they do studying, and others change their majors multiple times. There was a time when taking six years to...
Retire Early? What FIRE is and What it Means For You
“I’m never going to retire. I don’t make enough money.” “Retire early? Good luck. Only rich people do that.” “I’m going to work until I’m 70. Only people who have a pension can retire comfortably.” These are just a handful of the depressing things that I’ve heard...