Friday Favs: My Rewards Keychain

A while ago I was faced with a dilemma. I wanted to keep all of my rewards cards to different stores in my purse, but didn't want the bulk from the cards in my wallet, or the clutter on my keychain. After brainstorming for a little while, I came up with this:

I took all of the cards that I had a key card for, and put them all together on a clearanced keychain from NY&Co. I keep the keychain, separate from the rest of my keys, in a zippered pocket in my purse, which means that I always have them available at the right store. 

I love the reduced bulk, and the increased savings that comes from always having the rewards card nearby! 

Friday Favs: My Rewards Keychain

A while ago I was faced with a dilemma. I wanted to keep all of my rewards cards to different stores in my purse, but didn't want the bulk from the cards in my wallet, or the clutter on my keychain. After brainstorming for a little while, I came up with this:

I took all of the cards that I had a key card for, and put them all together on a clearanced keychain from NY&Co. I keep the keychain, separate from the rest of my keys, in a zippered pocket in my purse, which means that I always have them available at the right store. 

I love the reduced bulk, and the increased savings that comes from always having the rewards card nearby! 

Thrifty Finds

Been busy lately planning a baby shower and a going away party, as well as taking a few days off with my lover. It hasn't left much time for blogging, but now I've got a whole bunch of content for blog posts.

I've been hitting up the thrift stores in our area looking specifically for onesies for the baby shower, but also because I love thrift store shopping! Here are my finds this week:

I found this great candleholder that is tall enough to be interesting on our mantel. It's a little over a foot tall, and the capiz leaves and bronze stems are subtly reminiscent of the metalwork we have over the couch. When I lit a candle in it last night I loved the pattern it threw on the wall, and the way each little leaf glows. Best part... $3.99!

This little milk glass dish is destined for my office/craft room. I can't start renovating this room yet, so I am focusing on finding the accessories and furniture necessary for this room. It helps me bide my time till we're ready to start on that room, and it means that it will all come together that much sooner because I'll (hopefully) already have most of the stuff. I'm thinking the dish can hold paper clips, notes, beads, or change... :-)

My other finds were a steering wheel cover (with Pooh Bear on it!) for $1.99, another addition to my creamware obsession, this little skinny vase, a martini glass for a secret project I am working on, and a fun red and yellow bangle bracelet.

All told I spent about ten dollars, which means that not only did I find some great stuff, I did it with thrifty and frugal flair!

Thrifty Finds

Been busy lately planning a baby shower and a going away party, as well as taking a few days off with my lover. It hasn't left much time for blogging, but now I've got a whole bunch of content for blog posts.

I've been hitting up the thrift stores in our area looking specifically for onesies for the baby shower, but also because I love thrift store shopping! Here are my finds this week:

I found this great candleholder that is tall enough to be interesting on our mantel. It's a little over a foot tall, and the capiz leaves and bronze stems are subtly reminiscent of the metalwork we have over the couch. When I lit a candle in it last night I loved the pattern it threw on the wall, and the way each little leaf glows. Best part... $3.99!

This little milk glass dish is destined for my office/craft room. I can't start renovating this room yet, so I am focusing on finding the accessories and furniture necessary for this room. It helps me bide my time till we're ready to start on that room, and it means that it will all come together that much sooner because I'll (hopefully) already have most of the stuff. I'm thinking the dish can hold paper clips, notes, beads, or change... :-) 

My other finds were a steering wheel cover (with Pooh Bear on it!) for $1.99, another addition to my creamware obsession, this little skinny vase, a martini glass for a secret project I am working on, and a fun red and yellow bangle bracelet.

All told I spent about ten dollars, which means that not only did I find some great stuff, I did it with thrifty and frugal flair!

2009 Goals in Progress

I've set up my google calendar to remind me to check my goals for 2009 once a month. This forces me to actually make an effort to accomplish them this year. :-) Here are the ones we've made progress in so far. (and on a side note, don't you just love google? they sure do make my life a lot easier)

• Increase emergency savings by $500. We've saved just over half of this so far
• Increase car fund by $1K. We've done this too, but Luke's car needs some work so... it might be a wash. :-(
• Have money saved for garage saleing season. I have $10. That counts right?
• Have a stocked food supply. We have a month's worth of meat in the basement freezer, and we're working on stocking the non-perishables.
• Finish painting rooms in house. I've painted the living room, dining room, master bedroom and hallway, as well the ceilings in all of those. All we have left is the stairwell. Of course, those are just the rooms we've been working on. There's always more!
• Get together with family once a week. We've pretty much done this with Luke's family, and we've seen my brothers about every two weeks. It's been Great!
• More people coming to Bible Study We've had four new people come this year, and we're hoping they stick around! Yay!
• Continue goal of getting in better shape. I've lost eight pounds so far, and am still losing. On a side note, how it is possible that Luke only weighs six pounds more than I do? That's motivation for ya!
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2009 Goals in Progress

I've set up my google calendar to remind me to check my goals for 2009 once a month. This forces me to actually make an effort to accomplish them this year. :-) Here are the ones we've made progress in so far. (and on a side note, don't you just love google? they sure do make my life a lot easier)

• Increase emergency savings by $500. We've saved just over half of this so far
• Increase car fund by $1K. We've done this too, but Luke's car needs some work so... it might be a wash. :-(
• Have money saved for garage saleing season. I have $10. That counts right?
• Have a stocked food supply. We have a month's worth of meat in the basement freezer, and we're working on stocking the non-perishables.
• Finish painting rooms in house. I've painted the living room, dining room, master bedroom and hallway, as well the ceilings in all of those. All we have left is the stairwell. Of course, those are just the rooms we've been working on. There's always more!
• Get together with family once a week. We've pretty much done this with Luke's family, and we've seen my brothers about every two weeks. It's been Great!
• More people coming to Bible Study We've had four new people come this year, and we're hoping they stick around! Yay!
• Continue goal of getting in better shape. I've lost eight pounds so far, and am still losing. On a side note, how it is possible that Luke only weighs six pounds more than I do? That's motivation for ya!
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$$ Financial Freedom $$

With February quickly drawing to a close I have been reviewing our 2009 goals, specifically our financial goals. This has lead me to think about the things we do to experience our own financial freedom. Here are some of the things I came up with:

• Our budget, when we spend the allotted amount in each category, is less than our take-home pay. This seems like a simple concept, but it's harder to actually do than to type.
  
• We have a mortgage that we have set up to repay in 15 years. The increased amount is automatically taken out with the actual mortgage payment, so it just seems like our payment is higher. We don't miss the money, and the benefit will be completely owning our home in 14 more years.
• We have an emergency fund, set aside where we don't see it everyday, which gives great peace of mind.
• We have no other debt besides our mortgage and a small student loan. We took out the loan my last semester of college to boost our credit score. Not having credit card debt, a car payment or any financing means that we are in control of more of our own money and don't have to worry about making payments.

Other things we do to experience financial freedom:

• Having a car fund that would allow us to go out and buy a car for Luke tomorrow if needed. This is very important because if Luke does not have a car, he cannot do his job.
• Health insurance and 401(k) contributions come out before we get the paycheck deposited. We don't miss the money, and these two very important items are taken care of almost unconciously.
• We have about a month's worth of meat in the freezer, and a well stocked pantry. If Luke did lose his job, we could live off of the food in the house for quite a while, further reducing our expenses.

Each thing on its own is not enough to experience financial peace of mind. But together, they mean that we spend less time stressing about money, and more time enjoying what we do have.

$$ Financial Freedom $$

With February quickly drawing to a close I have been reviewing our 2009 goals, specifically our financial goals. This has lead me to think about the things we do to experience our own financial freedom. Here are some of the things I came up with:

• Our budget, when we spend the allotted amount in each category, is less than our take-home pay. This seems like a simple concept, but it's harder to actually do than to type.
  
• We have a mortgage that we have set up to repay in 15 years. The increased amount is automatically taken out with the actual mortgage payment, so it just seems like our payment is higher. We don't miss the money, and the benefit will be completely owning our home in 14 more years.
• We have an emergency fund, set aside where we don't see it everyday, which gives great peace of mind.
• We have no other debt besides our mortgage and a small student loan. We took out the loan my last semester of college to boost our credit score. Not having credit card debt, a car payment or any financing means that we are in control of more of our own money and don't have to worry about making payments.

Other things we do to experience financial freedom:

• Having a car fund that would allow us to go out and buy a car for Luke tomorrow if needed. This is very important because if Luke does not have a car, he cannot do his job.
• Health insurance and 401(k) contributions come out before we get the paycheck deposited. We don't miss the money, and these two very important items are taken care of almost unconciously.
• We have about a month's worth of meat in the freezer, and a well stocked pantry. If Luke did lose his job, we could live off of the food in the house for quite a while, further reducing our expenses.

Each thing on its own is not enough to experience financial peace of mind. But together, they mean that we spend less time stressing about money, and more time enjoying what we do have.

$$$ Accomplishments in 2008

I thought it would be encouraging to post the financial accomplishments we had in 2008. It's not a long list, but there are some big goals that we met and we are pretty happy about it!

• Bought a house... Wendhurst Castle (but you knew that already, didn't you?)
• Saved $3,000 for a new car. The way Luke has to drive for work, we may need this in 2009.
• Got a 16% Raise... good job lover!
• Quit my job/stayed home all year.  Oh yeah, this is the life.
• Started retirement savings with a 10% contribution.
• Didn't touch our emeergency fund at all this year. Yay!

$$$ Accomplishments in 2008

I thought it would be encouraging to post the financial accomplishments we had in 2008. It's not a long list, but there are some big goals that we met and we are pretty happy about it!

• Bought a house... Wendhurst Castle (but you knew that already, didn't you?)
• Saved $3,000 for a new car. The way Luke has to drive for work, we may need this in 2009.
• Got a 16% Raise... good job lover!
• Quit my job/stayed home all year.  Oh yeah, this is the life.
• Started retirement savings with a 10% contribution.
• Didn't touch our emeergency fund at all this year. Yay!