Birthdays and gifts

I went to a birthday party last night and as the kids were opening their presents I was reflecting on what was happening as they opened their gifts. One of the moms was encouraging the child to open his gifts as fast as he could instead of allowing the child to open them at his leisure giving him time to enjoy and explore what he received. It seems we are training our children to keep looking for more stuff instead of allowing them to enjoy what they have. I have no doubt he would have opened them all eventually, but I couldn't help wondering what that would look like and what impact it might have for him to have been allowed to savor the moment of discovering a new toy, playing with it, and enjoying what he had before moving on to other things.

coupon finder

Wondering where to find your coupons? Heard of a great new website yesterday www.coupontom.com where you type in what you are looking for and it tells you where to find it. Awesome! Not only that lots of them are printable right from the internet. Wow! coupons are getting easier and easier.

Cut Rx costs

There is a great article in the october All You magazine on this. Here is the highlights.

1. Shop around. Try destinationrx.com or costco.com to check prices.
2. Get a free discount card. yourrxcard.com or familywize.org
3. Get generics
4. Buy online. Try vipps.info
5. Split pills. Get the doctor to order double the dose you need and cut the pills in half.
6. Get financial assistance. pparx.org or for kids try kids.pparx.org
7. Get coupons at optimizerx.com
8. Get a 90 day supply
9. Ask your provider for help/samples
10. Review your meds with your provider to see if you need all of them.

cash for clunker appliances

It's true that the government has approved a Cash for Clunkers on appliances. See the article here. Consumers will earn up to $200 toward the purchase of high-efficiency upgrades on refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, furnaces and air-conditioning system. I'm not sure when this officially starts, but it will be all over the news. Rumor says November. That gives everyone time to line up their ducks, because the $300 million allotted for this will go in a matter of days. Also, you won't have to turn in your old clunker appliance.

cut the cable bill

Sick of paying high cable bills? Did you know that you don’t have to pay for network television (plus many other channels) anymore? All you need is the right digital antenna for your home’s location. Learn what channels you can receive (20 or more is common) and which antenna you need at antennaweb If you keep cable, make sure you go over the bill regularly. They are constantly changing packages and it's smart to make sure you aren't being charged for stuff you didn't ask for. I just called the satellite company today on a charge I discovered that has been on my bill for the past 4 months! Thanks Eli, I really didn't want to pay to play games on the TV. Sigh.......

when couples clash on finances

Nice article on figuring out finances with your spouse when you are having problems. This has happened more times than I care to remember with Ken and I. It is rarely a money problem and almost always a communication problem for us. Click here for details.