The End is in Sight Remember the scene from the Wizard of Oz when everyone cheered the death of the wicked witch of the west? Well except for the creepy munchkins our household is getting ready to have a similar celebration. We are just about to rejoice over the death of our student loans! When March began our loan balance was at $3,700, today it sits at $600. Even though our remaining $600 … [Read more...]
March 5, 2014 10 Comments
March 3, 2014 10 Comments
How to Retire Early
Retire early? That's crazy talk for an average Jane or Joe, right? We disagree. We would go as far as stating that if you're in your 20s right now, willing to work on building your retirement accounts, you can retire at 55. That's 10 years less than the average. Much like in our post about why you shouldn't use the average American as a guide, most retirement tools are geared for age 65 and … [Read more...]
March 2, 2014 6 Comments
Yakezie Carnival
THE TOP 5 YAKEZIE CARNIVAL POSTS: Mel @ brokeGIRLrich writes 114 Side Hustles: Ways to Make More Money - Check out this wide variety of ways to bring in more cash - if you've got knowledge, time, stuff, start up cash, are really organized or even just open to something strange - this could be the list for you. Jerry @ Repaid.org writes Could Debt Cause a Break-up? - In a recent NFCC survey, … [Read more...]
February 28, 2014 10 Comments
GRAND – Don’t Save Too Much Money
Generosity We talk about youth often, but one of the coolest things about Jon working with youth is that we get to see them go through the challenging process of deciding who they want to grow up to be and what type of experiences they think will shape them to be that future self. A common way students choose to gain life experience is traveling abroad. Jon and I have both travelled out of the … [Read more...]
February 26, 2014 1 Comment
Money Lessons From Arrested Development
And Now the Story of a Wealthy Family who Lost Everything There are few TV shows that I love, and by love I mean I could watch them through multiple times a month. In January of this year I watched all 6 seasons of The Big Bang Theory on DVD twice, BAZINGA! My short list of favorite TV shows includes Friends, Scrubs, Duck Dynasty and of course Arrested Development. For those who don't consider … [Read more...]
February 24, 2014 6 Comments
Why the ‘Average American’ Shouldn’t Be Your Guide
There are a lot of articles available with all the facts and figures related to what it costs to raise a child, plan a wedding, feed your family etc. in 2014 and beyond. Jon and I find these posts pretty entertaining, looking at what Americans spend in different categories is telling of the culture we live in. The most recent statistic on child-rearing suggest each child will cost around … [Read more...]
February 21, 2014 4 Comments
GRAND-Offer Acceptance Freely
Generosity This past weekend Krista and I got to be part of a really cool event, a middle school retreat that included a lip sync. There is just something so beautiful about a middle school lip sync happening in a safe and accepting community. The playlist was really eclectic including, what does the fox say, hakuna matata, and its raining men. It was cool to see these kids get caught up in and … [Read more...]
February 19, 2014 5 Comments
Deflate Financial Stress – Dream Dating
Jon and I've noticed a lot of couples don't really bring up the subject of money until they've had a conflict about it. They've suddenly realized they have different views of how to spend or save money, they can't agree on what accounts to use or they're aghast at the money management methods their spouse offers. We've written posts on how to talk to your spouse about money or how to solve … [Read more...]
February 17, 2014 Leave a Comment
Top 5 Renters & Home Insurance Mistakes
Another contribution from Jon's father, some of the top home or renters insurance mistakes. We've noticed a lot of our peers not taking the time to get renters insurance. Often an instigator is making an extremely big purchase (like an engagement ring) and realizing you'd be pretty upset if the amount you invested was lost in some home-related tragedy. In our experience renters insurance is really … [Read more...]
February 14, 2014 8 Comments
GRAND – Do You Brush Your Teeth?
Generosity Let's just say, we're generously sharing this peek into Jon's past. And really generosity and hospitality go hand in hand. And... well who wouldn't want to share this gem his former roommate just dug up? Random Income Week of February 8th to February 14th Amazon Credit: $0 Surveys: $18.50 Ebay: $8 Other: $20 Total: $46.50 We recently wrote about the best selling … [Read more...]
