If you’re not familiar with Crystal Paine, check out her blog MoneySavingMom.com.

You can also read my review of her book 7 Lessons from the Money Saving Mom’s Budget.

It’s a great book for those who want to start a budget, manage time better, declutter more efficiently, and be more frugal.

Are you ready for another giveaway? Here we go!

I’ve updated the ways to enter from when I originally posted to make it simpler.

4 Ways to Enter:

1. Leave a comment about how this book would help you. Make sure to leave your email in the email* field.

2. “Like” Living Richly on a Budget on Facebook and leave a comment below with your full name so I can find you on Facebook.

3. If you already “Like” us on Facebook (Thank You!), then just share this giveaway on Facebook http://www.livingrichlyonabudget.com/giveaway-the-money-saving-moms-budget-book and leave a comment below with your full name so I can find you on Facebook.

4. Follow me on Twitter and leave a comment with your Twitter username.

Please be sure to leave your email in the email* field so that I can contact you if you win!

Giveaway ends February 9, 2012 at midnight PST. Good luck!

We will use random.org to pick 2 winners. Must live in the U.S. and be 18 years or older to enter.

I was super excited to read it since I’m a big fan of her blog.

First, let’s touch on her background.

In the early years of her marriage, she and her husband survived on an income of $650 – $900 a month and without any debt, all the while her husband was in law school.

She stays at home and homeschools their 3 children and they managed to save up enough to buy their first house, in cash!

Crystal finds the best deals, menu plans, bakes extraordinary goodies from scratch, sets out goals and reaches them, and runs this amazing blog!

How can you reach your financial goals too?

7 Lessons from The Money Saving Mom’s Budget:

1. Organize your time better.

Moms around the world want to know how to get more things done in less time! We’re so overwhelmed that some days we wonder if we’ve gotten anything done. And we say yes to everything, don’t we?

One of the keys is to watch less TV and saying no to things and not feeling bad about it. I don’t have a TV so that helps a lot! I don’t waste my days mindlessly watching shows anymore.

Crystal also talks about a time budget and how to use it strategically.

2. De-clutter.

If you’re in a financial mess, chances are you are surrounded by clutter at home. Disorganization and debt go hand in hand.

If you don’t know where your bills are, you won’t pay them on time and then you’ll have to pay hefty late fees!

Since you’ve paid late fees, you’ve taken money away from something else so you end up overspending in other areas.

Crystal has a smart system to declutter without getting distracted. That’s the hard part about clearing things out.

We go through things then get stuck when we see something else that needs to get done. And she has a solution for this!

3. Set goals and reach them.

How many of you have goals you want to reach but have no idea when you’ll ever reach them? Crystal shows how to get started in her book.

There’s really no excuse not to reach your goals after you learn how to do it. Crystal does it and she homeschools 3 kids and runs a successful blog.

You have to have the right mind set, write your goals down, then break them up into doable chunks. I love this part of the book because she details how to succeed at reaching your goals, which is the most challenging part.

And you know that Crystal practices what she preaches because she posts her weekly goals on her blog and crosses out the ones she has completed.

4. Create a bare bones budget, then a full-fledged one.

Creating a budget for the first time may be overwhelming. That’s why Crystal recommends starting with a bare bones budget that includes the basic monthly expenses. Then move onto a more detailed one. There are also budget worksheets in the back of the book.

5. Learn multiple ways to save money.

She and her husband used to live on one small salary. They somehow made ends meet each month. From this experience, she has come up with creative ways to save money and ways to earn extra income.

6. Use cash.

This is probably the biggest lesson I’ve learned from The Money Saving Mom’s Budget. When I buy groceries, I use my card and sometimes I have no idea how much I’ve spent until I look at my Mint.com app on my iPhone. Sticking to a budget is harder if you can’t see the money leave your hands.

I’m definitely going to try using cash again for groceries. It might take more time to go to the ATM before buying groceries but seeing a lower credit card bill next month will be a motivator.

7. Choose contentment.

In order to move forward in life and get out of a bad situation, you really have to develop an attitude of gratitude, no matter how dire your circumstances are. And no matter what, there’s always something to be thankful for.

When I finished the book I was delighted to find some extras in the back – worksheets for goal setting, time budget, budgeting, and price book.

And all of the proceeds of the book go to the charity, Compassion International, a Christian child advocacy ministry.

The Money Saving Mom’s Budget is available on Amazon.com, Barnes and Nobles, and Books-a-Million.

Disclaimer: I was provided a copy of this book to review. This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting my site.

The older I get, the more interested I am in saving money for practical expenses, like contributing to my retirement savings account or investing in a quality piece of furniture.

Not so long ago, my interests in purchasing clothes and shoes became about comfort and durability instead of what was cute and probably only good for wearing to a dance club.

I find that I approach saving money around the home as a bit of a challenge – where can I cut back without negatively affecting my frugal-but-fun lifestyle?

The more research I do, the more ways I find to save money around my home.

Here are some tried-and-true suggestions I stick by:

1. Be your own repairperson

You don’t have to be professionally licensed to do small repairs in your home. Pull together a set of basic tools including a hammer, screwdriver, pliers, torque wrench and flashlight. Purchase or borrow a book about basic home repair (or search online for a DIY video), and see what you can do without a professional’s help.

2. Green clean

Making your own cleansers is a great way to save money that you would otherwise spend on store-bought products. You will also keep your indoor air less polluted and avoid releasing harmful chemicals into the environment. Ingredients like baking soda and vinegar are low-cost, widely-available, and can be used to clean even if children are in the room.

3. Adjust the thermostat

My mom always told me to put on a sweater if I was cold in the winter. Now that I pay the bills, I understand what she was talking about. Keeping the thermostat at 68 degrees or lower in the winter and 75 degrees or higher in the summer will keep your heating and cooling systems from running endlessly. You can always keep a spray bottle of water in the fridge and spritz yourself to cool down if you get too hot.

4. Cook

It may seem like a simple tip, but the cost of takeout adds up quickly. Cooking at home will save you money and give you a chance to experiment with recipes that you might have long ago clipped from a magazine. Be sure to hang on to “old” food, such as overripe bananas. They are perfect for making banana bread, just as leftover veggies can be made into a delicious soup you can eat all week long.

5. Ditch cable

I never thought I could live without cable until I gave it a try. To my surprise, I don’t miss it at all. I stay entertained with an $8/month subscription to Netflix.

Save even more money, and get DVDs from the public library. There may be a bit of a wait for new releases, but you can supplement with books from the same location. (Fanny’s note: Check out how to watch TV free.)

Simple, right? The tips don’t stop here either. Take a look around, and decide what money-saving tips you can employ. You might just be surprised at how quickly your pennies add up.

Maire blogs on behalf of Sears and other quality products she uses. She enjoys spending her free time hunting for bargains at thrift stores and is well known among her friends for being a “coupon queen.”

Photo Credit: sidewalk flying

There seems to be a sale every week or month.

When are the end of season clearance sales?

When are the big sales from major department stores?

I once read a magazine article detailing this many years ago.

It was so helpful to have on hand, that’s why I put this list together using Bankrate and my own research.

January

Biggest clearance sales on winter clothes – coats, scarves, gloves, hats, boots, holiday dresses

Victoria’s Secret Semi-Annual Sale

February

Valentine’s Day, President’s Day sales

Jewelry, lingerie

March

Gap Friends and Family

Windbreakers and raincoats

Spring clothes

April

Easter

Macy’s Friends and Family Discount

May

Memorial Day, Mother’s Day sales

Summer handbags and totes

Pre-season sales on swimsuits and sandals

Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale for Women and Kids

June

Father’s Day, Graduation sales

Clearance sales on summer clothes

Victoria’s Secret Semi-Annual Sale

Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale for Men

July

4th of July sales

Clearance sales on summer dresses, suits, shoes, tees, tanks, shorts, flip flops, and swimwear

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

August

Pre-season sales on fall fashions, Back to School sales

Swimsuit and other summer clothes sales

September

Labor Day and Back to School sales

October

First markdowns on winter clothes

November

Gap Friends and Family

Fall clothing sales, winter clothes markdowns

Pre-holiday specials

Friends and Family discounts

Black Friday sales

Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale for Women and Kids

December

Perfume, ties, sweaters, jewelry, and other popular gift items

Friends and Family discounts

Winter Clearance

Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale for Men

Is there anything else that should be added?

Photo Credit: nffcnnr

Plenty of people have struggled with budget creation.

This will be true from now until the end of time.

It’s difficult to pre-plan something as complex as finances and expect to stay on target consistently.

One reason people fail when creating budgets is that they have no idea how much they normally spend in a month.

We can take educated guesses, but if we’re off, our entire budget gets thrown. That becomes discouraging, and eventually leads to us abandoning it.

Thankfully, there is a way to get everything in order before you make your budget that will not only make it easier to create, but also help you adhere to it.

All it takes is two steps and one overarching theme.

Step 1: Take Inventory

If you don’t know how much you spend every month, you will struggle to create a realistic budget. In the past it was much easier to remain in touch with monthly spending habits.

We had to write down balances in checkbooks, and we had physical stores of cash that slowly dwindled. Today, though, we deal mostly with virtual currency. That creates a degree of separation between us and our money, which makes it difficult to get a hold of our spending habits.

There are ways to combat this, though, and we can use modern technology to our advantage. If you have a smartphone, the solution is easy.

There are plenty of smartphone apps that make it easy to record your expenses. If you don’t want to spend money on an app — and no frugal person would if there were a reasonable and free alternative — you can just use a notepad app.

If you don’t have a smartphone, no big deal. You can just carry around a small notebook or use these personal finance worksheets. The idea remains the same however you choose to approach it.

Here’s the challenge: For one full month, write down every expenditure you make. If you buy a pack of gum from the convenience store, write it down.

Fueling up? Write it down. No matter how large or small the expense, no matter how expected or unexpected, write it down.

Do this for a full month, and you’ll have a good data set that you can work with.

Writing down your expenditures will accomplish two goals.

First, it will give you a basis for your budget. You’ll actually have hard data on how much money left your hands, so you’ll know what’s reasonable and what’s not.

Second, it will make you think twice about spending. When you buy something, you’ll know that you have to face the notebook.

That expense has to get recorded. It might make you re-think some purchases before you make them.

Step 2: Create The Budget

Only after you have an idea of how much you spend can you start to create your budget. If you’re reading Living Richly On A Budget, chances are you’re familiar with how to create a budget.

But here are just a few pointers that will come in handy when you create yours — the one you stick with.

• Fixed and regular expenses first. There’s no reason to start with groceries or entertainment. Start with recurring expenses, such as mortgage/rent, cable, electricity, and other things you have to pay every month.
• Pay yourself. This is quite an under-looked aspect of budgeting. There is no way to get out of the fixed expenses, so they go first. But after that, it’s important to pay yourself. Maybe you can’t pay yourself much at first, but make sure that you’re siphoning money into a savings account every month. That money will come in handy down the road.
• Overbudget where possible. There are many regular, recurring costs that aren’t quite predictable. Transportation costs, for instance, will vary with the price of fuel and with your frequency of travel. It’s best to overshoot this by a little bit, just to be sure you don’t go over.
• Create an emergency fund. This is tough, especially if your budget is tight. But it’s necessary to create an emergency fund for items you don’t count on your budget (because you can’t foresee them). If necessary, use the funds you’d normally pay yourself to build up an emergency fund, at least at first.

In addition to these tips, another important point is to remember that a budget is a fluid thing. That is, by necessity you will go over some months and fall under some months.

In the cases where you go over, it’s important to not get frustrated. It happens. Just focus on coming in under budget the next month.

If you go over, don’t rush to spend that cash. Put it in the emergency fund.

That way, if you go over the next month you’ll still even out during the two-month period. That gives you a clean slate heading into the third month.

With all of these tips and suggestions in place, we move onto the overarching theme of any budget creation:

Remain Flexible

Planning is great. It gives us a greater degree of control over our lives. Yet at the same time, adhering to a strict plan, without bending, can become counterproductive.

Circumstances change constantly, and we need to be ready for when that happens to us. When you create your budget, keep in mind that it is a living document, and that it might need to change as the month moves along.

Remaining flexible means not being married to the same budget every month. Over time things do change, and you might need money in one area and not in another.

The analogy I like to use is smart grid energy. Power companies use smart grids to deliver power where it’s needed, when it’s needed. To do this, they draw power away from areas that don’t need it at the time.

Your budget should adhere to that principle. If you find that you’re consistently over-budgeting your fuel costs, but your work clothes are starting to look shabby, move some of those fuel funds to clothing.

You can also draw from other funds, at least temporarily, if necessary. It all works on a smart grid, with your budget flowing from one point of need to the next.

For years I struggled to get a hold of my finances. It led to some tight situations and some scary possibilities. It wasn’t until I created a deeper connection with my spending habits that I was able to set a realistic budget — and then stick with it.

Following this two-step method and remembering to always remain flexible has turned around my financial life. I can’t imagine going back to the old ways.

Joe Pawlikowski is the editor of BBGeeks, a site dedicated to helping BlackBerry users get the most out of their devices.

Photo Credit: Casey Serin

Featured in Totally Money Blog Carnival #52.

And while you’ve probably heard this before, have you actually done it?

We have to eat every day. So whether you like it or not, you’re probably menu planning already, but at the last minute, which is stressful.

That’s why you should start a weekly menu plan. Then you can look ahead, plan for busy days, and have something nutritious for your family to eat.

How do you create a menu plan and how often? What if you don’t have time? If you have time to coupon, you have time to do menu planning!

Benefits of Menu Planning:

Save money. When you have a plan you’ll be less likely to do takeout or grab fast food. And you’ll cut down on the multiple trips to the grocery store.

Fewer trips to the grocery store mean there will be less chances for impulse buying, thereby saving you money. Cooking from fresh ingredients is more economical too.

Save time. When your meals are planned out, you won’t have to waste time thinking of what’s for dinner.

Waste less food. Because you’ll buy only what you need, you won’t have wasted food.

Eat healthier. When you plan to cook your meals, you”re planing to eat healthier as well. You know what’s in your food when you cook it yourself, from fresh, whole ingredients.

When you go out to a restaurant, you don’t really know what’s in your food, what additives they used, how many times they’ve reused the cooking oil, if the food was cross contaminated, or even if they used expired ingredients.

And when you eat healthier, you will be healthier and get sick less often.

Clever ways to start menu planning:

1. Use technology tools

Simple Mom uses Google calendar to record her menus and bookmarks recipes using del.icio.us. She plans 2 weeks at a time, then repeats the 2 weeks for the remainder of the month. She plans her meals, then her grocery list.

2. Shop, then plan meals

Almost Frugal does the opposite. She does her grocery shopping first, depending on what’s on sale, then creates her menus.

3. Subscribe to a meal planning service

E-mealz  is a menu planning service endorsed by Dave Ramsey. You choose a favorite store like Kroger, Ralph’s, even Whole Foods, and you’ll receive a weekly shopping list and recipes to go along with it.

What’s brilliant about the plan is that the shopping list and meals are based on what’s on sale that week. And there are menu plan options for those who are on gluten-free, low-fat, low-carb, or vegetarian diets. E-mealz costs about $5 – $7/mo.

4. Get your kids involved.

Kids are more likely to eat dinner when they feel included in the meal planning process. Have them look for recipes of things they want to try. Then enlist their help with cooking prep or even setting up the table.

5. Follow a magazine.

If you’re looking for a free option for menu planning and are open to eating new things, check out a magazine. Woman’s Day features a monthly menu of easy dinner ideas. They also provide a shopping list to go along with each month.

6. Watch Rachael Ray’s “Week in a Day”.

Food Network favorite and talk show host, Rachael Ray, has a show on Cooking Channel about how to cook a week’s worth of dinners, all in one day! Check out her 20 make ahead meals.

7. Follow a pre-established theme. 

If you like routines, this is for you. Make it easy for yourself. Decide on a theme per day and follow it.

It makes planning dinner a lot simpler. Here is a sample theme from Simple Mom.

Mondays – pasta
Tuesdays – soup, salad, and/or sandwiches
Wednesdays – stir fry
Thursdays – crock pot
Fridays – pizza
Saturdays – something new
Sundays – something easy

Check out these menu planning sheets from Money Saving Mom.

How do you do menu planning? What are you tips?

Photo Credit: cooking channel

Featured in Carnival of Personal Finance #346

I wish I could take credit for it, but it was handmade by someone on Flickr.

I asked her how she did it and she gave me the link for the tutorial to share with you!

It’s a step-by-step guide withd photos that are easy to follow.

Are you excited?

Here you go: Coupon Organizer Tutorial.

It’s actually done with a file folder.

I guess you can add whatever designer paper you have to dress it up.

It’s a great way to sort out your coupons.

I’m going to guess that your coupons are scattered everywhere like mine.

I’m totally going to make one! Are you?

Enjoy!

There is a way, depending on how close you live to broadcast towers, to watch over-the-air TV for free. The number of channels you get depend on where you live.

Some people can get all of the local broadcast channels and more. While others are limited to a few off channels, channels you’ve probably never heard of.

I read about the Mohu Leaf antenna on Lazy Man and Money. It’s an HDTV antenna that helps you pick up over-the-air channels.

Before we go any further, check DTV.org to see what channels you might receive.

The channels highlighted in green are the ones you will most likely get. The ones in yellow are maybe’s. And the ones in orange brown are the channels that have the weakest signal. The ones in red are the channels you can’t receive.

What you need to get over-the-air TV:

• HD ready TV
• Digital converter box
• HDTV compatible antenna with a UHF loop or Mohu Leaf

If you have a TV with a built in HDTV tuner (newer TVs), then you won’t need the digital converter box.

Be sure to double check your connections to make sure that everything is compatible.

You can find a basic HDTV compatible antenna for about $10 while the Mohu Leaf is $35-$40. The difference is the Mohu Leaf is paper thin. It’s literally a laminated piece of cardboard with a S-video cable attached to it. One side is white while the other is black to match your decor.

Pros of the HDTV compatible antenna is that it’s cheaper but bulky. The Mohu Leaf is sleeker, takes less space, and can be taped to a wall or window. They both worked the same for me, getting more or less the same quality signal.

HDTV compatible antenna with UHF loop. Below it is the digital converter box.

Mohu Leaf

Instructions:

1. Connect converter box to TV.
2. Attach HDTV compatible antenna or Mohu Leaf to digital converter box.
3. Position antenna.
4. Set the TV to air mode.
5. Select channel 3.
6. Scan channels through the digital converter box. When it’s done, it will let you know how many channels you got.
7. If you’re not getting a lot of channels, reposition the antenna and re-scan the channels.

I have tried both the HDTV compatible antenna and the Mohu Leaf. I got similar results with both. Although I did like the Mohu Leaf better because it takes up less space.

I must admit, the anticipation of seeing what channels we could get was an unexpected thrill. I felt like I was on Wheel of Fortune, spinning the wheel to see how much money I could win. When we did the channel scan, I would chant “big money, big money”.

After the scan, we got 6 channels and 2 radio stations but none of the major broadcast stations. I guess we live too far from the towers. We did get this interesting cooking channel that features Ming Tsai’s show.

My dad who lives in within 5 – 10 miles from the broadcast stations, gets all of the broadcast channels plus some Chinese shows, which he primarily watches.

He’s actually the one who inspired me to try this and set me up with all of the equipment – HD ready TV, digital converter box, and HDTV compatible antenna.

Sadly, the converter box died so we’re back to just watching shows on Netflix and the Internet. I thought I would miss cable because I was such a TV junkie. But I’m ok, surprisingly.

Here’s another site with more info on what kind of antenna you need, depending on your location.

Do you watch TV free? How do you do it?

If you’re already an Amazon Mom member then you would have received it too.

There are major changes to the program that we all love.

Sadly, it was good while it lasted.

There won’t be a 30% discount anymore or free benefits up to a year.

And there’s a waiting list for new members.

Check this out:

• Starting on January 24, 2012, the maximum discount available on diapers and wipes subscriptions will be 20%. This includes a 5% Subscribe & Save discount plus an additional 15% exclusively for Amazon Mom members who are earning free shipping benefits or have an active Amazon Prime membership. (The program originally offered 30% discount on diapers and wipe subscriptions.)
• Customers who join Amazon Mom in 2012 will get three months of FREE Two-Day Shipping benefits.  (Original members could receive up to a year of Amazon Prime benefits.)

To continue receiving the Amazon Mom diapers and wipes discount once your free shipping benefits end, you can join Amazon Prime for $79/year. As a Prime member you’ll receive:

• 20% off diapers and wipes subscriptions with Amazon Mom and Subscribe & Save.
• FREE Two-Day Shipping on millions of items.
• Unlimited instant streaming of thousands of videos with a wide range of content for the whole family, including Sesame Street and Phineas and Ferb.
• A Kindle book to borrow for free each month from the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.
• Membership sharing benefits: invite up to four household members to share your shipping benefits for free.

If you’re already an Amazon Mom member, then you will continue receiving free 2-day shipping until your year is up, as long as you buy the minimum amount that was required to extend your membership up to a year.

Waiting List

I also saw a waiting list for Amazon Mom. Wow! I don’t know if they will open it up on Jan. 24 or not. We’ll see.

I love Amazon Mom and the free 2-day shipping. I might join Amazon Prime when my year is up. I was always curious about Amazon Prime, but now I see how much I use it.

I seem to buy things from Amazon every month and I love the convenience.

What do you think?

Facing foreclosure, now what? If you’re planning to let go of your home and your credit score is bad, how do you pass a credit check to rent?

It’s not the end of the world. But you do have to take action and make changes in the way you handle your finances in the future. You’ll have to change your mindset in order to survive.

I am not an expert in real estate law so I will refer to an expert, Suze Orman. She offers 5 Ways to Avoid Foreclosure.

Suze Orman’s Tips for Avoiding Foreclosure

1. Refinance - If you have an Adjustable Rate Mortgage try to refinance to a fixed rate mortgage.

2. Call your lender – As soon as you can’t make your mortgage payments, contact your lender to see if they can extend the foreclosure period.

3. Forbearance – If the lender allows you, you might be able to do a forbearance. This is an agreement between you and the lender to delay a foreclosure so that you can catch up with your mortgage payments during a certain period of time.

4. Loan modification – If you’re 30 – 120 days late in payment and have a good credit score and income, then this option may be for you. Call your lender to see if they will modify your loan, give you a lower interest rate, or extend your payment period.

5. Short sale - Suze says this is the last resort. When you owe more on your home than it’s worth, this may be your option. You have to talk to your lender to see if you can do this, which is sell the house for less than you owe them. But you may owe taxes on the difference. Do your own research to see if this applies to you.

Suze’s Orman’s Tips for Renting When Your Credit Score is Poor

Some people fight tooth and nail to keep their home. But sometimes, it’s time to let go and move on. You have to let go of your pride and do what you need to do.

Who cares what anyone else thinks? They’re not paying your mortgage. And there’s nothing wrong with renting.

If you plan to let go of your home, then what? I watched a Suze Orman show about a woman who wasn’t making mortgage payments. She asked if she should resume making payments even though she already missed several months.

Here’s Suze’s advice and strategy. She told the woman to not make anymore mortgage payments since she was so far behind on her payments and she hasn’t paid much of the principal amount.

Instead, she said to save the money she would use towards making mortgage payments to save up for renting an apartment. Since it may a few months to a year for the bank to foreclose on the house, the woman could save up enough for 6-12 months of rent.

Then when she goes apartment hunting and potential landlords look at her less than perfect credit, she could offer to pay 6 months or more of rent up front to make the landlord feel more at ease. Or she may pay a higher security deposit. Interesting strategy, huh?

Here’s similar advice that she offers to a couple who can no longer afford their home.

I can’t tell you exactly what to do in your particular situation. So please don’t take my word for it. These are just ideas to get your started.

Always do your research for yourself and talk to a professional before making such an important financial decision!

By the way, Suze Orman answers questions on Twitter. Pretty awesome!

Recently, there’s been some mud slinging at Suze on Twitter over her new pre-paid debit card. She apologized for her remarks. She’s human after all.

I still think her advice is great. It just shows that she really manages her own Twitter account.

Photo Credit: taberandrew