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The Cotton Ball Diet is Dangerous

There have been many diets that sound a bit extreme – but that do involve actual food. The cotton ball diet, however, encourages people to eat a non-food item that their bodies cannot break down or gain nutrition from. The purpose of this diet, like all diets, is weight loss. It is important to know that the cotton ball diet is very dangerous! There are certain times of the year in which a lot of people suddenly decide to go on a diet. One is shortly before summer, when people decide they want to lose weight in order to look … Continue reading →

Frugal Ways to Entertain Your Kids this Summer

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Summer vacation is a time that most children excitedly look forward to. It is easy to see why. They get a whole lot of free time! Parents are going to need some frugal ideas for fun activities that will entertain their children. Here are a few ideas to try. Bubbles Little kids cannot get enough of bubbles! You can pick up small bottles of bubbles, complete with bubble wand, from a dollar store. Check the dollar racks at Target, too. Parents can sit down outdoors and blow bubbles that their toddlers will chase. Older kids can blow bubbles on their … Continue reading →

It’s That Time of Year Again

Doing taxes can be intimidating for anyone, but as a single parent it seems that they become much more complicated and the task much more daunting. Most divorced couples switch off every other year claiming the kids. This can get rather complicated if you’re unfamiliar with filing your taxes. They ask all kinds of questions about who the child lives with and who provides more than half of the child’s expenses. Entering in this information can be tedious, especially if you aren’t the one that gets to claim the kids that year. Just because they live with you and you … Continue reading →

Extra Expenses of Caring for an Elderly Parent in Your Home

If you will be caring for an elderly parent in your home, you may need to budget for some extra expenses. Even if your parent has his or her own income to pay for items such as prescription medication, you still may have additional costs that creep up and raise your bills at the end of the month. Make sure to put a little extra aside in the following categories of your budget. Electricity With an extra person in your home, you may see an increase in your electric bill. Many elderly people can’t get around and tend to watch … Continue reading →

The Power of Comfort Food

On Friday, when my children arrived home, safely, it was all that I could do to not to gather them all up and never let them go. After recent events, I know I am not the only parent out there that felt that way. We’ve all been shaken up. Anyone who has ever loved a child, a sister or a friend has had to face this harsh new reality. There was no way, that night, that I was going to deny my children most anything. It is a good thing that no one asked for a pony. Instead, they asked … Continue reading →

How to Use Freebies for Family Fun

It is possible to have a year full of family fun for free or nearly free. It is all in what you know and how you do your research. Take advantage of the following free family fun opportunities. Free Movies There are a number of ways that you and your family can enjoy free movies. The first is through free movie screenings. Movie studios like to test out an audience’s reaction before a film is released to the general public. To do this, they offer free movie screenings. Sometimes you will be asked for your opinion, usually by filling out … Continue reading →

Three Ways to Control Impulse Buying at Christmas

The shiny decorations, the pretty lights, the wonderful smells, the bustle of shoppers, the increase in commercials, and the demanding kids all combine at Christmas to raise the risk of impulse buying. Many debt services report that the number of phone calls they get for help really drops off in December, as people put aside the idea of debt and just go ahead and spend. Of course, the calls in January are another story. These agencies often see their highest traffic then, as people find themselves in debt crisis. Don’t let this happen to you. Control your impulse buying at … Continue reading →

Swallow the Turkey and Head to the Mall

This year, Black Friday ads indicate that it won’t be so much about getting up early to head to the stores for the Black Friday deals as rushing out the door as you are still chewing the last bit of turkey. Consider this year “dine and dash,” as many are calling it. Black Friday deals are starting as early as 8 pm on Thanksgiving. I’m not a big Black Friday shopper. I prefer to get most, if not all, of my shopping done before Thanksgiving. This way I can enjoy more time spent with the family, baking cookies, playing games, … Continue reading →

Are Extreme Cheapskates Dangerous?

The thought of spending precious hours going into restaurants with the sole intention of trying to sneakily place my hands between the cushions of a booth to fish out change and then repeat it, booth by booth and restaurant by restaurant, is almost enough to make me want to go out spend money to prove that I have nothing to do with this new face of frugality. If that wasn’t enough to do it, asking other diners for their leftovers is. There are some things that I can applaud on the Show Extreme Cheapskates, such as biking instead of using … Continue reading →

Frugal Advice: Reciprocating on a Small Budget

I received this question the other day: “We live in a modest home in an affluent neighborhood. My children are always being invited out to different events, such as concerts or amusement parks where the average ticket cost is $25-$50 a pop. There is no way that we can keep up with this or reciprocate by taking their kids to similar events. How can we handle this?” I can completely relate to this issue. You want your child to enjoy his or her friends and not become isolated simply because your family budget does not match the others. You may … Continue reading →