Marlo’s Money Advice

Valentine’s Day is all about love, right? Not anymore is seems. Valentine’s Day is also a great way for businesses to make money. If you are still paying off your bills from the December holidays, then why not be frugal this year?

Here are some ideas to spend frugally on Valentine’s Day, and still have a great time.

1. Make your own card – Why not use the graphics on the Internet?
   ♥ Go to http://www.google.com
   ♥ Then click “Images” in the upper left
   ♥ To save you favorite image, right-click, and “Save Image As”.
   ♥ Save the image to a place you remember on your computer.
   ♥ Print it out and hand write a card, or
   ♥ Open the image in Microsoft Word and make your card.
2. Surprise your partner with breakfast in bed – Need I say more? What a treat!
3. Make your partner a coupon book – Back massages, foot massages, or “Your assistant for a day”, are all good ideas.
4. Make dinner for your partner or friend – You can make a great pasta meal for less than $10. Why spend a lot of money at an expensive restaurant. Make sure you have a lit candle to help the mood.
5. Foot soak – This is such a relaxing experience. Surprise your partner with some relaxing music, a lit candle, and dim the lights.

• ♥ Have a large bowl, footbath, or pot (lobster pot works great) filled with hot water.
• ♥ Mix in some moisturizing oils or Epsom Salts.
• ♥ Add a few flower petals if you wish.
• ♥ Leave some hot water simmering on the stove, and be ready to warm the water - the hotter your partner can stand, the better.
• ♥ Afterwards, rinse their feet, dry and moisturize.
  • These foat soaks can cost up to $50 at a spa. These are my tips, Google “homemade foot soaks” for more ideas.

These are some ideas that do not cost too much, and are so meaningful. ♥ Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥

Digg This!

I know, it is so overwhelming to pay bills. I have a simple solution for this – grab all of your bills for a month and write them down by date order.

Most of your bills are monthly and recurring. So grab a piece of paper (or use Microsoft Excel), and write down all of your bills.

Example: (Click on image to enlarge)

Steps:

1. Make a Full Year Of Expense Sheets – One for each month (one for January, one for February, up to December).
2. Write Down the Bill Immediately - When ever a bill comes in the mail, if is emailed to you, or you check a bill on line … WRITE IT ON YOUR SHEET.
3. Consistency - Be consistent, and do this whenever a bill comes in. If you do not, you may loose track.
4. Write the Due Dates of Each Bill in Your Planner or Calendar – You need to write each bill on your monthly planner or calendar. This sheet will not do you any good, if you do not remember what the due dates are. Also, if the due dates are not written down on your monthly planning tool, you may forget a date. If you do not have a planner or calendar, you need to refer to this sheet everyday. However, you may check you sheet one day and realize the bill is due! You will be paying it that day and probably be late.
5. Pay your bills on time – If you online pay your bills online, schedule it will enough time to pay. If you write a check, send it in plenty of time so you are not late.

• (Once you are disciplined and use this approach, you will be able to breath easier. You will not pay late fees, and make sure to pay the bills on time.)

In my opinion, I do not recommend having the money taken directly out of your checking account. I would rather use online bill pay, or sent a check, and have control over my money. However, if you have a car payment and like the money taken out of your account every month (and you are not over withdrawing), by all means, use this approach.

You CAN afford to spend 15 minutes a week in your finances, and avoid late fees.

If you are paying $6/month in late fees –that equals $72 dollars a year ($6 x 12 months). What about these hefty credit cards late fees – some are upwards of $39/month!

By using my systematic approach to paying your bills hassle free … save yourself the stress, and money!

Digg This!

I am all about FREE samples or “freebies”. I came across this website, and have received tons of FREE product samples:

http://www.shop4freebies.com

I do not get any “referral” points for recommending this site, nor do I work for them. It is just so nice to have a free sample of toothpaste, free sample of shampoo, or coffee in the mail!

So far I have received:

• toothpaste
• shampoo
• coffee
• plastic envelope
• food samples
• a calendar

… and the list goes on!

Categories – Some of the categories for FREE stuff on the site are as follows:

• Freebie Samples
• Beauty Freebies
• Food Freebies
• House Freebies
• Health Freebies
• Kids Freebies
• Baby Freebies
• Pet Freebies

Some Samples Require Registration
Sometimes http://www.shop4freebies.com company freebie offers want you to register for a product, if that is too much work, then do not do it.

Some Samples DO NOT Require Registration
An example of company freebie offers that you do NOT have to register for is found on http://walmart.triaddigital.com/Free-Samples.aspx , which is linked from http://www.shop4freebies.com .

It is fun to get FREE stuff in your mailbox … brush your teeth for free on me.

(Well, with your free sample recommended by me – happy sampling!)

In recent months (maybe I am behind the times), I just discovered http://coupons.com - With this site, you can print out grocery store coupons, without cutting out Sunday paper grocery coupons.

You have to install their “coupon printing software” – it is safe (I have had no issues and have been using this site for a while now).

(1) Go to http://coupons.com

(2) Install their coupon printing software.

(3) Next time you go to http://coupons.com, you will be redirected to http://print.coupons.com

(4) Select the coupons you want.

(5) Hit “print”

It is time to start saving money on your grocery bill, if you:

1. Do not want the hassle of clipping coupons, or
2. Want to supplement your Sunday newspaper coupons with printable coupons as well.

If you can save $7.00 per month with coupons, that is $84 per year. Now, that is a free electricity bill!

I am fascinated how people do not know how to save money, how people do not know how they get into debt. A Real Estate agent (who specializes on foreclosures) once told me that they had to assist with evicting a homeowner on Christmas Eve. The interesting and sad part was that the kids in this family had more Christmas presents under the tree than the agent remembered having in his entire life!

If you have no debt and make great money, then by all means, treat yourself to “toys”. However, if you are the average person, ask yourself – do you really need that item?

I saw a news story this week that showed people rushing out to buy $1,000 televisions to watch the Superbowl. Then what? When the Superbowl is over, they are stuck with a HUGE credit card bill.

After traveling around the world and seeing less fortunate people, I realize that Americans are the richest people in the world. We should be grateful for the following:

• Living in this great country,
• having a roof over our heads,
• food on the table,
• the opportunity to travel to the 49 other states without a passport (counting the state live in as one), and
• having our freedom.

As I get older, I realize that it is important to live simply, happily, continue to be debt-free, and save for my future.

Why spend $1,000 on a new television, when the two older ones I have are perfectly fine … and I could use that money to invest in a Roth IRA?

My recommended book on financial freedom:

My goal of writing a blog is to teach people how to live frugally without sacrifice. You can save money everyday, and still live a great life. Let me clarify the difference between being “frugal” and being “cheap”. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a “frugal” person is “characterized by or reflecting economy in the use of resources”, whereas a “cheap” person is characterized by being “stingy”. You can conserve and save money, without being cheap.