Hey y’all, It’s starting to warm up outside and I LOVE it. Is it warming up for you too? I just wanted to put up a quickie post to let you know that I’ve started doing some guest writing over at Babble! I’m super excited about it and hope you can come over to check out some of the posts I’m writing over there. There is a link in the sidebar there that goes straight to my posts but here are some I think you might like:
Also! Since Google Reader is shutting down on July 1st I’d love if you would consider following ATWS over on BlogLovin’. I like how it keeps the sites lookin’ pretty;)
This is a guest post by Chelsea who is documenting her Spending Fast here on ATWS…
After paying over $1,200 towards my $25,000 debt in the first month, I knew the following months of my Spending Fast would be tough. Initially I felt empowered and excited to pay that much towards my debt, but then doubt set in. What if I can’t even come close to that amount in the following months? What if I run out of things to sell on eBay? What if I hit a Spending Fast plateau?
I’m three weeks into my second month and while I don’t know specifics yet, I think I’ve paid around $100 this month on my debt. HOW TERRIBLE! Wait, that’s not terrible! I have a constant battle in my head that goes from one extreme to the other. I needed to find a way to calm my thoughts while remaining motivated.
It was time for a monthly payment goal! Not only are goals great motivators, they’re also awesome at putting self-doubt at bay. Originally my goal was to put $1,000 towards my debt each month. This is an excellent goal but not very realistic. Goals need to be motivational, not discouraging. At $12.25 an hour, dropping a Grand each month is unlikely. I have set my new goal at paying $500 monthly. I feel that $500 is something that’s attainable and if I get awesome and exceed it then, well, that rocks! If there has been one thing I’ve learned these past few weeks, it’s that keeping things positive is a requirement for my Spending Fast journey.
So instead of being discouraged, I’m now excited. I still have a week to earn more money and meet my goal. Last Friday, I cruised over to Craigslist and saw that someone was hiring someone to address envelopes. I met this Craigslist gentleman and was handed a bag with over 600 envelopes and a list of addresses. He also gave me over 3,400 Post-It notes to write on, if I happen to finish the envelopes.
Let’s just say this past weekend was an unusual one. I am receiving ten cents per envelope (and Post-It) I complete. While ten cents isn’t much money, ten cents times 4,000 is a good amount. Completing this project isn’t glamorous or going to make me rich, but it is going to help me achieve my monthly goal.
If you are on a Spending Fast along with me, I encourage you to make goals. After you make them, really think about if they are attainable. There is nothing worse than setting yourself up for failure. I am on this Spending Fast because I know I can create my own future. Establishing a goal and getting creative in order to meet it is going to help me get there.
Next week I will be reporting back with my Month Two totals. I hope you stay tuned!
Chelsea Overton is in the midst of her Spending Fast® and writes about it from North Carolina with her bulldog, Xena, and boyfriend by her side.
That little pup up there is going to be you after you sell all your junk!;)
If you’ve ever seen an episode of Hoarders, you may be inclined to sit through the broadcast telling the people involved exactly what to do. But when it comes to our own stuff stored in the basement, the attic, and every closet in our home, it may not be as easy to see the solution to your clutter and your financial issues.
When living on a budget, luxurious spa treatments aren’t really your first priority. But what if I told you that you can get your whole skin care regime for free just by using food that you would otherwise throw away?
Today, a lot of good food is going to waste. The specific numbers in studies can vary greatly, but one thing is clear: we throw away way too much food. By utilizing leftovers and buying consciously, a family can save up to $1,000 every year. But eating food scraps isn’t the only way to use leftovers – a lot of food is also great for using in skin and hair care. In addition to this, there are a lot of non-edible food scraps, such as peels and seeds, that can be put to use in your beauty regime.
Many food ingredients such as fruits and vegetables contain the same components as store-bought skin care products, for instance vitamins, minerals and AHA-acids. So why not use the natural source of the vitamins, instead of buying products that cost a lot of money, and where the vitamins are produced synthetically? By using natural ingredients that you have at home, you’re saving a ton money and doing the environment a favour, and at the same time you don’t have to worry about using products with ingredients linked to cancer, skin irritation and hormonal imbalance.
Here are 6 of my favorite beauty treatments that will literally cost you nothing, as they utilize ingredients you would normally throw away.
If you are like me, at some point you start to dread the weekends a little bit. It’s always the same. You want to get out of the house. You want to go do something fun. I mean, it is your weekend we are talking about. You are always looking for ideas for family activities. The problem with that is that any weekend activity that is enjoyable is also expensive. That is where I come in. Currently my little family is in it’s 7th year of living off of a college student’s income. It has been little money for a long time. We don’t have the money to go out to the movies or dinner every week. So, we get creative. So creative, in fact, that sometimes it is more fun to not spend money than it is to spend.
So, this weekend when you are dragging your feet over how to entertain yourselves, I dare you to go have a free rainbow scavenger hunt for the evening. What is a rainbow scavenger hunt? Well, first – head over to your local paint supply store and pick out as many pretty paint swatches as you want. The more you get, the longer your hunt will be. Next, combine all those lovely little colors together and staple into a book. This completes your scavenger list.
You play the game by heading over to your favorite spot. Such as downtown, the local park, a nice beach, or even your own house. Pull out your freshly minted color swatch book and get to work. Start at the first color and, as quickly as you can, find an item in your surrounding area that matches the color. Once you have found the first color, you can move on to the second. Keep looking until you have matched up every color in your booklet!
This game is incredibly fun as a family activity, but would also double as a great group date night. It is great to see what colors really get you stumped. I swear mint green should be easier to find in this world, hopefully you’ll have more luck. Have fun color hunting!
Do you think you’ll try a Rainbow Scavenger Hunt? Is this an activity your family would enjoy?
Sara Schmutz loves to plan parties, lovely DIYs, and attend tea parties with her two daughters. She adores pretty color palettes and confetti. She blogs at Confetti Sunshine.
Over in the Community there is always buzz about what the heck to do about that massive cell phone bill. We’re all so addicted to our phones that it’s usually the last thing we want to cut out. So, how do we wrangle our monthly expenses and how do we manage that bill that is usually $100+ per month? Do you get rid of the phone all together? Just get rid of the data part of the plan? Keep lowering your monthly minutes until you can’t get any lower and then start accidentally dipping into the crazy expensive overage fees? Get a pre-paid monthly phone?
It doesn’t seem like there has been a good answer to the problem until now.
Here’s why Ting is cool: they make sense, they make it easy, they only charge you for what you use, there are no contracts, and best of all they’re anti-BS.
Hey, I like any company that is against BS!
So, how is Ting different from those other mobile companies?
No contracts or ETFs: Truly and completely contract-free; no early termination fees or other BS.
No bundling or ride-along services: Choose from XS through XXL service levels for voice minutes, text messages and megabytes of data, all billed separately.
No overage charges or penalties: If you use more than you thought you would, just pay for what you used.
Credits on unused service: If you use less than you thought you would, Ting drops you down to the level you hit and credits the difference you on your next bill.
No add-on charges: Voicemail, caller ID, tethering, hotspot, three-way calling, call forwarding and other features are all part of service; no add-on charges.
No mysterious line items on your bill: Ting charges for what you used plus whatever taxes we’re legally required to collect. No hidden charges, recovery fees or other BS.
Unlimited devices on one plan: Have as many devices as you want on one plan sharing pooled minutes, messages and megabytes. Each device on a plan costs a flat $6 per month.
A powerful online account control panel: Take control of your account, your usage and bills in the powerful online control panel.
No-hold customer support: Call us at 1-855-TING-FTW anytime between 8am and 8pm EST and a real person will pick up the phone.
Excellent online support: http://help.ting.com. They have active customer forums, a simple and powerful help ticketing system, video tutorials, video Start Up Guides and much more.
In addition to all the above goodness they are also giving away a phone, seriously. It’s a Samsung Transform Ultra! Yep, that phone right there! To enter the giveaway simply enter through the Rafflecopter giveway form below. The Giveaway will end next Wednesday, March 20th and the random winner will be announced in the post and will be contacted directly. Ting is also giving And Then We Saved readers $25 that can be used either towards a device or towards a service credit! You don’t have to win anything to take advantage of that credit, just follow this link to get hooked up through their website!
Best of luck on the contest and this is a super exciting company to know about!
Hi, I'm Anna! I paid off close to 24k in debt in only 15 months & it completely changed my life! I want you to have a debt-free life too so here you'll be able to read all about: How to do a Spending Fast®, saving & making more money, DIY's, & a lot about living awesomely with less. Let's do this!
