Getting and Staying Out of Debt

Getting and Staying Out of Debt

As a college student, I’ve unfortunately accumulated a bit in student loans. I’ve tried to keep them to a minimum, but sometimes I just needed the extra to help pay for books or to cover whatever wasn’t covered by grants and scholarship money. I’ve also tried to keep my other spending habits in check and actually don’t have a credit card that isn’t attached to a debit card/bank account. Those are just two ways that I’m trying to avoid getting into debt, but how else can someone go about getting and staying out of debt? It’s one thing to get out of it, and it’s another to stay out of it. But, with both you’re hopefully setting yourself up for financial success. Debt can help…

5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Start a Budget

5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Start a Budget

We have talked about 8 steps to creating a family budget, but is a budget really necessary?  Sure, having a budget in place may help you manage your money smartly, but at the same time; it just might not be for you. Sometimes creating a budget will be the easy part, but actually sticking to that budget might be the struggle. Here are a few questions to ask before you start a budget. Sometimes, even with the best of intention, and even after creating what seems like the ideal budget; it just doesn’t work out. This could be for any number of reasons and if you fall into this category- don’t think of yourself as failing. You tried and that certainly should count for something….

Starting an Herb Garden

Starting an Herb Garden

With the weather starting to warm up a bit, I’m getting the itch to get going on our garden. As a child, my mom kept an herb garden indoors and she has an herb garden now. Starting an herb garden is something that I’ve always wanted to do because who wouldn’t want to cook with fresh herbs? The other appealing part of herb gardening for me was knowing that I could also grow my herbs indoors. I love using fresh ingredients when I can and the thought of being able to just tear off a piece of parsley or snip some oregano was always one I enjoyed and hope to make a reality. ent/uploads/2015/03/how-to-start-an-herb-garden-at-home.jpg” alt=”Starting an herb garden is easier than you think! Here are…

What to Do When Your Autistic Child Wanders
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What to Do When Your Autistic Child Wanders

As the parent of an autistic child, one of my worst nightmares unfolded– not once, but twice. And then nearly a third time when she was a teenager. Here’s what to do when your autistic child wanders or elopes from home. Imagine this: waking up on a Saturday morning, just as you would on any morning. But this morning something feels different. You can’t quite pinpoint what it is- but you just know that something isn’t quite right. With the nagging feeling in your stomach, you go downstairs and instead of seeing your autistic daughter sitting on the couch waiting for you; you see the front door slightly ajar. Almost instantly, you’re in panic mode. Frantically you search from room to room downstairs and take note of…

How to Make the Most of Your Tax Return

How to Make the Most of Your Tax Return

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser, Walmart Family Mobile. All opinions are mine alone. #YourTaxCash #CollectiveBias Have you filed your tax return yet? Sometimes, we start planning what we’re going to do with our tax return before we file. It helps us to realistically set a financial picture for the rest of the year. This year, I wanted to share my tips for how to make the most of your tax return and I’m also including the simple worksheets that we use. Don’t worry, this shouldn’t be headache inducing and while the bills portion might make you cringe; the rest should be fun! Now, whether you file your own taxes or have someone else do it for you- let’s…

6 Simple Tips for Flat Abs That Don’t Involve Crunches

6 Simple Tips for Flat Abs That Don’t Involve Crunches

Now, while I’m not after having a six pack? I would like a flatter tummy. So I’ve looked and looked for tips for flat abs and not the same old, same old. I don’t want to do crunches, or variations on crunches, for hours. They’ve never been my favorite thing. I recognize that they can be effective, but I need variety in my home workout. It’s why I incorporate yoga into my home workout. But what else can be done? How to Target Your Core While there are certainly core exercises that you can do at home, it goes beyond just doing exercise. Yes, exercise is important and it’s definitely a factor. But it’s not the ultimate key to getting flat abs. If you’ve tried…