Save some money on dog grooming

Maybe it's a cost you have in your budget that could be a lot less... Monthly dog grooming costs? Below is how I save money by not going to the groomers for my big hairy furball. 

This is all dependent on the size of your dog (dachshund or Bernese mountain dog?), habits of your dog (are they a digger? Outside only dog? Love rolling in dead animals dog?) and type of coat they have (curly and non-shedding? Smooth and long with undercoat? No coat?), so this is just my own personal opinion and preference for my dog(s). Consult other blogs and breeder tips for your own specific breed. 

So I have a golden retriever. Until recently I also had a whippet (my whippy passed away). These are two very different coat types, and bathing them both took different tips at certain points. I'll write this with both in mind. My golden retriever has long hair and an undercoat, she has very sensitive skin and allergies, and she's a big goof (her nickname is Dizzy). The whippet was a white short haired dog who did not like to get wet or have her toes trimmed (her nickname was Diva). 

If you take your dog to the groomer there are probably a few things they do there, charging per item, like:

- nail clipping, either clip or grinding

- bathing

- drying

- teeth scaling (might be moving to a vet-only thing now?) and/or brushing 

- ear cleaning

- general trim and cut, plus full brush out

- de-matting and detangling 

- anal gland popping (..ew..)

Personally, I do all of these things myself, minus the last one. For the most part, if your dog has never had their anal glands popped, they will probably never need to have them done. If they have once, they will always need to have them popped. It's one of those things I've been told is a "groomers gold", as they can do it once and have a client for life. My dog(s) have never had theirs done (thankfully, as it's annoying and kinda painful for a dog when they get "full", and is usually characterized by the boot-scooting on the carpet). 

At-home grooming for most breeds I would say is easy and a must. And.. It doesn't have to be expensive. 

I went to Petsmart and asked what a simple nail cut cost would be, $11 plus tax essentially (or $14+ for nail grinding). Years ago I invested in a dremel to do my own at home nail grinding. It goes super quick, makes it easy for me to get the nails short, plus I don't risk cutting my girls' toes off and making them bleed like with a traditional nail trimmer. It will depend on the dog if they will let you grind their nails, but if you start with them young, they learn. Then buy a nice pair of very sharp and rounded tip scissors in order to cut away toe fur (so your dog doesn't look like and act like they're wearing slippers). Your thick kitchen scissors are probably not pointy enough to get between the toes and flat to the pad of the paw, so you should probably have a separate pair. 

I do all my ear cleaning and teeth scaling at home too. I buy a big bottle of dog ear cleaner at the pet store (watch for sales) and some of those dollar store circle pad packages (meant for nail polish/makeup removal). Douse a circle pad in the ear cleaner and scrub in your pets ear with the swab. Do it a few times with new pads until the pad comes away clean. For teeth, you can buy pet scalers which look like the pokey dentist tool you get on your yearly visit. The scaler is meant to chip away at any built up plaque. You can also buy doggie toothbrushes and toothpaste, as well as stuff for their water to help reduce plaque buildup. Or, antlers and hard bones work great too (plus that's more fun!)

Invest in a couple brushes too. I have a couple types as my girl gets the clumps of fur dropping twice-three times a year, so I have a long comb, a big flat brush and a "slicker", or wire brush. I also bought the dyson vaccum which has this awesome pin brush attachment that sucks up the fur as I brush her (and she loves it because it pulls cold air through her coat!). Depending on your dog, you might want a shaver too. A pet Wahl clipper is a simple way to clean up your dog's belly in the middle of summer when they are hot. I shave my girl's belly in order to let her cool off faster on my kitchen floor!

DO NOT completely shave a dog with an undercoat though. All these shaved goldens break my heart as it totally screws up their fur growth and removes their protective undercoat. 

Shampoos and conditioners are really up to your personal preference for the most part. Different scents and stuff are readily available. But there are also colour-specific ones, like the "whitener" one I would buy for my white whippet, or a red enhancer one you could buy for a golden. There are also formula-specific ones like the sensitive skin hypoallergenic ones I go for for my allergy-prone girl, or tea tree oil ones for bad skin. It'll depend on your dogs coat, and it'll usually take some trial and error. I don't use a conditioner on my golden (extra time bathing I don't feel is needed on her) but I would on the whippet to make her feel extra super soft. A tip for shampoo buying if you can afford the space in a cupboard is to buy it by the gallon (once you find one you like). You pay more, but you get a ton more product that is usually concentrated (so you mix it in another smaller bottle anyways). Buy one gallon, buy a pump top and you have up to 30 bottles (some I think are maybe 60, can't remember) for maybe the cost of 4 bottles. Ren's Pets Depot is good for gallon buying (and monthly grooming sales too!)

Then, for the actual bathing part, this is up to you! Personally, I like using other people's water and electricity, plus clogging their drains with my dog hair instead of my own bathtub. How you ask? With some brilliant self-serve dog wash stations at a couple stores near me! I used to go to Rens Pets Depot in Guelph, and they have a wealth of shampoo options, toe and hair tools, towels and more to give your dog a good thorough clean.

Recently though, I've moved over to Pet Valu's dog wash station as it is closer to me and cheaper too! For the $11 Petsmart would charge me just to clip toenails, I get a half hour of water, drains and dryer, towels and some shampoo/conditioner. I love that I leave the mess there (I do clean up a little though!) and end with a lovely smelling and dry dog! 

The dryer is the best part! Long hair dogs can easily get "hot spots" if a patch of hair and skin is left wet for too long. These are painful, so it's important to get your dog as dry as possible quickly. In the middle of winter, this can be tough since you can't let them outside to "bake" in the sun like you can in summer. Buying a good $99 dryer/blower fixes this, and eliminates the "wet dog smell" from the house a little faster too haha!

If you decide to do at-home bathing, I would suggest a grooming table as it makes the blow drying part so much easier as you're not crouched on the ground. It allows you to clip whiskers, even out the hair lines and pretty up the toes without bent-over stress on your back. If you have a "busy" dog in the bath, buying a suction cup with collar combo is a great doo-dad to help too. 

Lots of other ideas, but every couple months I spend $11 for a Pet Valu self-serve bath, and once a year I buy some shampoo and ear cleaner. After my initial investment, and a learning curve, I now save myself the cost of a groomers trip :)

The cheap CAN come out expensive

I love watching Judge Milan, and she always says "the cheap comes out expensive"... And every "coupon queen" has had experience buying some great deal that turned out to be not so great. It's a lesson in research before buying that astounding deal.. Because if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. 

- I bought an awful-horrible-no-good vaccum from XS Cargo, which was like a liquidation store. It was on for a great slashed price deal from like $120 to $40 so I thought I was so smart. I read the box, read all the marketing jargon they had printed, and talked it out with my roommate while walking the store.. It came home. This so-called pet vaccuum, wouldn't pick up anything, including stuff from the tile floor. It was a pain to disassemble to empty and all around a bad decision. When I tried to take it back to XS they just pointed to the signs that say no refunds after opening (EVEN if it's defective, which I then started saying that I would take an exchange for the same model to see if it was just the one I got). I didn't buy anything from them after that, and my calls and emails to the company who made the vaccuum went unanswered. A year and a half later after being shelved in my garage I saw that some mice decided to start eating through the hose, so the whole vaccum ended up on the curb (and some poor soul took it a couple hours later). 

- around Christmas a few years ago, my dad got off work and was tired. He went to pick up some groceries and on his way back to the car ran into some guy selling genuine leather coats. He gave a sob story about wanting to get enough money to buy his daughter something, and was saying that he was on his way back from a trade show and had a whole bunch of leather coat samples he could sell. He asked dad if he had $500 to buy some nice coats. My dad made the mistake of saying "I only have $200 sorry" and the crook quickly said he could have these 5 leather coats for that. My tired dad got swindled. While pretty and brand new coats with tags, they were not leather and not worth $40 each. 

- never skimp on the cost of a Home Inspector. I did. I didn't the first time, on the first house I made an offer on. The first (expensive) guys provided me a huge detailed binder with a million pictures. They documented everything, they walked my dad and I through the house and talked to us like we were kids explaining what this and that meant (a little condescending for us but would be good for those who have no knowledge at all about house terms and such). They were super thorough and it was probably because of this inspection why I didn't buy that house. When I finally found the house I did want to buy, we wanted to go a little cheaper because we thought we knew everything. We went with a friend of my grandmas who was about to retire. Long story short, he caught nothing. He saw nothing wrong with the house and said it would be a good investment (it needed little things he said, nothing too major). He walked around the house first and then sat down at our table to write out everything (not as he went). We got one piece of paper from this guy (versus the entire binder and books and photos from the last guys). You get what you pay for as I ended up with the "house from hell" with every item needing replacement. Plus, since I got a home inspection, it waived me from going after the previous home owners for lack of full disclosure, and since he was a "family friend" it wasn't appropriate to sue him for not catching everything. 

- From a very expensive mistake to a cheap mistake... We have a liquidation store near my home which has hit-and-miss good deals. On one visit they had a ton of shoes on for like $2 each. Yay! I found some sparkly black and grey zebra slip ons and thought I was in heaven. I tried one on and it fit, picked up the pair and bought them. Went to wear them the next day and discovered one foot was 2 sizes bigger than the other. Whomp whomp. I tried stuffing it with Kleenex but it was just too lopsided to work. Out they went. 

The moral of the story.. 

1. Do your research. Get details on the item (cell phones and Google now do everything) and read about warranty and store policies. 

2. Try it on, open it up, try it out, BEFORE you buy it. 

3. Ask questions. The shady coat guy might have got nervous and abandoned swindling my dad if he had started asking too many questions. 

4. Ask for a second opinion. "Would you buy this?", or getting two home inspections. 

5. Don't impulse buy. Sure, walk around the store with the item in your cart, but make sure you dig a little bit into the product and ask yourself why something is so cheap

"Investing" in Your Retirement

I am not the be-all-end-all expert in investments. Not even remotely close. All I can do is advise that YOU should do your own research to what kind of investments to have, but that you SHOULD have some sort of interest-gathering account for your future.  

This is personal experience only. Every person's situation is different of course... BUT, start some kind of interest-gathering investment as early as you can in life, and seriously, DON'T touch it. Even just a little amount put away for retirement while you are young adds up to a lot over the years, and it's so much better than trying to scramble the last few years before retirement to build up your after-work income!

Personally, I have 3 different "investments"/savings:

-I have a tax free high interest savings account. I took advantage of a promotion at a brand new bank that opened near me, who have a 90-day GIC (guaranteed interest credit I think it stands for) at 3% interest (which is triple what anyone else seems to have) to kick start this account, but afterwards it's a locked away account that just gains as much interest as possible at 1.5%. I had this money in TD first but it was like 0.25% and equalled out to $2 a month interest. It's absolutely better than just sitting in your checking account or in a book under your mattress though, so this is probably the first place I would say to start with your little nest egg. It's also reliable (as reliable as it can be in a bank), and the money won't go down in value like it can in an "investments" setting

- I have a Mutual Fund RSP. I started it with a $400 check I got from a stock at Disney my mom bought when I was born for a penny (haha, 23 years later..), and I started this fund about 3 years ago. Fast forward to now, the fund is at $1445, with only a $25 investment every month and with $2-$5 a month on top of that reinvested (kinda like interest).

I'm not concerned about growing this overnight, and even if I just keep trucking on the way it's going (it's just in the safe investments bracket, not the crazy risk ones that can yield much higher returns), that's $300 a year more to get interest on that I don't notice. By retirement that's $12,000 minimum + any of the reinvested distribution. I'm sure when it gets close to $5000 though I'll throw it into that tax-free high interest account instead. 

- I have a work-organized retirement savings account. This one was a no brainer as my work will match whatever money (to a max) that I put into it. It's free money, so why wouldn't I! It'll just grow that much faster. I've put the max in that my work will match (and I just started this, so I'm excited to see how quickly it grows). 

On the reports it has this little thing about if I continue on at the same contribution rate I'm doing, what that would mean I would have at retirement. Kinda fun to see it. 

Something else I learned which I have to do some digging on is "Tax Free" accounts. At the new bank they put me under a protective tax-free umbrella, and then put both my GIC and my savings accounts under the umbrella. This means that any interest gained will not be taxable by the government as "income". This was news to me, as the bank lady explained that if I didn't put my GIC under the tax free umbrella I was going to have to pay $30 to the government for the 3% interest gained. Again, better in my pocket than theirs (seems to be a motto I use). 

Look into your options and ask around. If you're trying to save up a nest egg and a retirement fund, the above are all great starts to also make that money grow without any added effort on your part :)

Savings tips at Disney World

Okay so let me prelude this with a quick backstory summary. My family and I are Disney crazy. While I was growing up we went to Disney twice a year. I was probably the most Disney-versed kid. It made sense that when I got to university, we heard about the International College Program, where kids from around the world go and spend 3 months working at Disney... Talk about a dream come true for a nerd like me! It was an incredibly hard 3 months for basically no pay, but I strongly suggest it for everyone's kids if you can get them there. It is a great experience and a lesson in hard work. 

What we learned working there:

On top of this, I met my now husband there, as he did the same program and got put on the same ride as me (Jungle Cruise). 

So, I have a little bit of experience, but I wouldn't say I'm the world traveler. I'll try to cover what I can from my perspective on how to save at Disney (Florida) for my future trips.

When

-Travel during Disney's value season. This info is on the WDW website, but a basic summary can be seen in the attached picture for example (this was last year). This is when the park will be the quietest (still crazy busy though) and the cheapest. It's easier to get fast passes for the rides you want and bookings for dinner too. Plus no waiting half your day for one ride. 

-then, try to plan your vacation during the week. Stay from Monday to Friday, to avoid the weekend rates that spike at Disney. Flights through the week can also be cheaper than a Friday to Monday flight. 

Where

- this can be up for debate depending on circumstances, but for the most part, staying on Disney property is expensive. If you can stay off-property you can save a ton, enough to rent a car for the duration. Typically, I would suggest staying off property (but still close) and renting a car, which allows you to spend your money for meals at Walmart, buffets and cheap places instead of every meal sprinkled with Pixie Dust.

- The benefit to staying on Disney property is the transportation aspect - IF you are only going to be doing Disney. While in Florida you might want to see Universal Studios or SeaWorld or Clearwater beach. These shuttles aren't available from your front steps at the Grand Floridian! Again having a rental car helps in this aspect. 

- house rental. AirBNB or general websites allow you to rent a whole house for the duration of your stay instead of staying at a hotel. I've done this with the family and let me tell you how nice it is to have a kitchen! A little bit of research is needed here to find a place close to all the amenities you want, with the inclusions you want (like is there a community pool?). You'll have to rent a car again, but this is an awesome option if you have a large group or are planning to stay longer than a few days in Florida. 

- another cool option is camping at Disneys Fort Wilderness campground. I would suggest NOT doing a tent, since it's really hot and rainy in Florida, but you could rent a trailer/motor home and park it on a campsite for a little less than a hotel room. The campground has a lot of cool fun free stuff (like each hotel has), but biking/walking around is the most fun. Whenever my family stayed, we did up the whole front area with welcome signs (everyone does actually). 

- another where to consider is what kind of stay you'd like. Totally fancy? Try the Grand Floridian or the Swan and Dolphin. Cheap as possible? You'll look at the value resorts like Art of Animation or Pop Century. I personally like the idea of staying at any of the resorts that are right on the water across from Magic Kingdom as the monorail and boats can get you to and from major points of interest quickly (I'm not a big fan of busses due to car sickness). Plus, these resorts can get extra cool freebies I'll describe below. Our favourite new hotel has been Port Orleans.. Cheaper, really nice, walking distance to Downtown Disney and all the transportation busses

- When and where can also be dictated if you look into becoming a Disney Vacation Club (DVC) member, as they have priority rules and such plus must book before 1 year stipulations. This is similar to a timeshare option, where you buy and maintain points for stays at Disney World, Disney Adventures, not-too-Disney resorts and locations and more. It gives you discounts around Disney for food and shopping, but make sure you do your research and homework before jumping into this (especially with the US dollar the way it is) as it almost works out to a second mortgage

Tickets

- this is another one that will take a little bit of number crunching, depending on what you want. You can get a pass from a one day, one park admission up to an annual pass with unlimited ins and outs and free parking included. 

NOTES:  Watch expiry dates (so if you're coming back the same year do an annual, if you're not coming back for a couple years, do the park days and use them up or add the "no expiry" option). Magic Kingdom park tickets are more expensive than the other three parks' tickets. One park admission = literally one park, and if you wanted to do two parks in the same day then this would count as 2 days admissions. You can add a "park hopper" option to any park pass (a one days adds $160, a 10 day adds $470) which allows you to do as many parks in one day as you want, while only charging you one day admission. 

- basically, I would do the math before jumping into buying the ticket the morning of. There is a lot to do at every park, and Epcot in itself in my opinion could be counted as two parks (the World Showcase of countries can take a day to get around alone). It can be totally exhausting to try and do one full park in one day (you can't possibly meet every character or do every ride in each park in 1 day, plus what if day 1 everyone gets horribly sunburnt and you still have three full park days planned?). This is an easy decision if you are not going to be at Disney long (3-4 days), but if your math starts adding up to being close to $700 per person, I would suggest jumping to the annual pass for the added perks and options. 

- the annual pass also gets you discounts around Disney for meals and merchandise, kinda like a DVC member. You can save on rooms and excursions too by mentioning this. 

- I really like the annual pass for the freedom it allows - maybe you want to see the animals in the morning at Animal Kingdom, have lunch at Prime Time Cafe in Hollywood Studios, then catch the Wishes fireworks at the Magic Kingdom. Then maybe the next day you've booked a Segway Tour at Epcot, but would rather spend the day after at Magic Kingdom. An annual pass allows this freedom, while those two days could either count as 5 days admission or 2 park hoppers day admissions otherwise. 

Free Entertainment

Okay so you've finally picked the where and when and you are ready. Besides the have-tos in the parks, I'll try to let you know about free stuff outside of the parks

- the Electical Water Pagent. This is quick and cheesy but I like it. It happens out front of a few of the beach resorts around the Magic Kingdom area, just before the Wishes Fireworks go off. Try Polynesian Beach, Grand Floridian Beach, or Fort Wilderness Beach. We like the Polynesian Beach because we grab a couple of amazing Dole Whips to eat while watching the show. 

- beachside movies. A bunch of resorts will set up a screen and play Disney movies on it, sometimes around a campfire like at Fort Wilderness. Bring a blankie and watch for free! Polynesian, the Beach Club and Fort Wilderness do for sure, the others might too

- Fort Wilderness has horses!  Cinderellas ponies are all stabled here, and you can wander and see them (when allowed). The beautiful carriage horses are usually down by the dock too, and you can sometimes get someone to take your photo with these guys. 

- boat rides. I think everyone loves a little ferry ride, and I love watching little kids get excited over this freebie. You can take a long ferry ride around the Magic Kingdom area, which goes between the hotels and stops at a leisurely pace. When you take the full ride, you could also get a little mini tour from the captain who can point out wildlife and the old River Country water park as it passes. There is also a ferry ride over at Disney Springs (Downtown Disney) that goes between a few resorts. Make sure you hop on the ferry that takes you over the water bridge, while cars go underneath you!

- wildlife! This might be the tourist in me talking, but you can see wildlife all sorts of places. Beaches are the best, and egrets are quite interesting to watch, but I have a favorite place... Try a walk around Fort Wilderness, where we always see deer, armadillos, bunnies, once a gator and all types of birds. If you wanted a little more exotic, Animal Kingdom is worth a full day's adventures with all their hidden animal treks and shows. 

- aren't monorails cool? Seriously, ride this around and get a birds eye view of hotels and of Bay Lake. Challenge family members to memorize the announcers "pour favour.." line too. This also allows for Hotel jumping which is very cool to go and wander, as each hotel is themed differently

- maybe this doesn't count but you can ask for ice water or a cup of ice at vendors in the park for free

- pin trading! Buy a starter pack of the cheapest pins you can (usually 4 for $9.99) and then pin trade with anyone you see wearing a lanyard of pins. Even some stores will have a "pin trading" collection if you ask. Trade up and up for a great few souvenirs, and have some fun along the way

- Downtown Disney has a few shops that lets the kiddies (or the kiddies at heart) play. Try Lego building or Mr Potato Head creating

This last freebie is worth a separate bullet point all its own:

Hidden Mickeys

These refer to hidden secrets and gems all over Walt Disney World. Virtually every hotel and theme park will have a secret hidden item. A lot of the time they are actual Mickey heads, but sometimes they are hidden items like the wedding ring at Haunted Mansion or a mistake like the 5 legged goat at the Contemporary resort. Do buy one of the Hidden Mickey books (off property before you go on your trip) and after you've done some of the parks, look up what hidden Mickeys are to be found at the hotels and such 

The (boring) secret to being rich.. And how to fund a brilliant idea

It's not what you earn, it's what you spend. 

I came across this quick article, which led to a bunch of related videos and topics. http://time.com/money/4034098/get-rich-secret/?xid=time_socialflow_facebook 

..and it's true!  The bigger the gap between what you make and what you spend, defines whether you are rich or poor. Live below your means. Live within a budget that balances, that includes a large chunk for saving as well. 

Now, if you have a goal or an idea (like any of these people on Dragon's Den for example), by all means pursue it!.. Within your means. Don't be the person going hundreds of thousands in debt for an idea, keep working or work harder to be able to fund the goal. 

I'm a big fan of the crowdfunding ventures. I support a bunch of things on Kickstarter, which is a place for artists, designers, writers, videographers, inventors and more to get their brilliant ideas funded. They offer their product or item at an extreme discount, and in various packages, to the general public with an end goal in mind. People like you and me can then go on and browse all the ideas and contribute (or buy into, literally) someone's idea to help them reach their mark. You only get charged your pledged amount if they reach their goal. I'm a supporter of a few different people and ideas, and for the most part I do it not for the item but for the person or the goal. You can also help fund a person for $1 or $5, just to track the progress of the great idea/product through the campaign and to market. I've done this too if I have no need for the item but think it's a great idea that should get funded. 

One of my favourite buys from Kickstarter and I'm going to give them a shameless plug have been the Fire & Bone team, who digitally scan animal bones and create metal mini molds of them for jewellery. I've bought way too many at this point but I think they are so incredibly cool (my favorites are the Dire Wolf and the Lynx/Bobcat) 

My other shameless plug will be a project I have waited and watched for more than a couple years called PillowTalk, which is a bracelet and speaker that shares your heartbeat with someone that isn't near you. My long distance fiancé and I kinda can't wait for this little contraption!

Other crowdfunding outlets exist, like GoFundMe which is more the everyday person hoping to fund their next computer purchase or their aunts medical bills, and Teespring which are for awesome designs on tshirts. I've been on both these sites, and other than the high shipping costs for the item we chose on Teespring, they were easy to contribute/buy. 

The secret to being rich is simply put, living within your means without debt. This all circles back to how to save money everyday, how to save for retirement and an emergency, and being surrounded by (and able to care for) the things you love. 

Broke/Budget maxed out?

So you a stretched for cash, or used up all the money from your budget jars... But you still need to eat and have fun? Here are some thoughts and solutions I've done when my wallet was hurting:

- Dig deep in the freezer!  Wow, what a treasure trove!  Frozen veggies and some meat you got on sale one time are probably down in the abyss, under all the ice cream and frozen bananas. Easy, multi meals are just a defrost away. 

- dig around in the pantry. Cans of mixed veggies and beans can be a good start to a crock pot meal. Rice and pasta are usually stored in a corner and make large portions for cheap. If there's a craving for a dessert item, how about a box of cake mix and a can of pop (yes this works beautifully!), which saves the cost of cookies or doughnuts. 

- gift cards. I still have gift cards from like 2 Christmases ago. This might be cheating, but for my birthday and Christmas I just ask for gift cards. Mostly food, I can usually buy some large meal out to get a couple work lunches out of the deal too. Gift cards are great for entertainment too - use one for a good sale rack shopping trip in a store, or to buy a DVD for later. 

- parents or grandparents visit. Again, cheating probably, but maybe see if you can stop by for a visit to loved ones. I don't think I've ever made it out of their homes without a meal (either eaten there or sent with me in a doggie bag)! I've never had to do it, but if you needed a couple meals to tie you over for the month, your family is sure to help you out with either made or almost-made meals if you just ask. 

- discount sections of grocery stores. There are usually a couple racks of the "almost expired" food stuff that is great to cook up the same night. We usually buy our meat here and then freeze it. You can usually get bread, fruits, veggies, pies, buns, meats and others for nearly nothing. I've done this before with hot dogs (buns and weiners were on for half price) that we cooked up and had the same night. 

-coupon. Follow the Facebook groups and blogs in your area who post about the deals, and jump on a great deal if you can afford to. If you're in my area, I like the Savings Guru, who posts all sorts of deals. He does the work for you and you just go out and get the free butter, or the cheap eggs that are on that week. 

- use your points. You've been accumulating points on your various cards for years, spend them when you run out of cash! Gas, shoppers drug mart, PC groceries, air miles, etc. You can also sometimes buy gifts cards for other places with your points, just have a look through your wallet for all your points cards and see what is available.

- look up free event days. In my area, the local skating rink will have free skate hours, and sometimes museums will have a special free day. I haven't done a lot of research in this area but there are groups and blogs about this topic too I've seen, as parents are always looking for cheap things to do with the little ones.

- regrow table scraps. This could be for fun, or for continuous small bits of food. This one doesn't need a lot of explaining, and it actually works

- throw a party! This sounds a little backwards, but if you do it right it can both be entertainment and extra meals. Make it a BYO drinks, food and chairs, and advise you'll provide the bathroom, music/movies, plates and cutlery. Have a good time with friends, watch a movie marathon, and have a day of fun that doesn't cost people very much to participate it (just a bowl of chili and a case of pop each basically). 

- make crafts. There are so many great YouTube tutorials and Pinterest things about crafts you can make for nothing. Repurposing garbage items, making string from plastic bottles, using various items as stamps, origami of old chip bags, you imagine it and someone has made a craft around it. This is a good option for families with kids. Just pick an item and google it with the word craft. I did soda can crafts and holy cow, cooool!!

- sell stuff. You meet people, it can get you out of the house, and it'll get you a little extra cash quickly that you can go to that discount food section with. Try selling old clothes, an old kitchen item, shoes, books, kids toys, puzzles, etc. you could also try selling your newly made soda can crafts and who knows, maybe there's a business idea in here. 

- while on this topic, what about making a little mini business out of something easy? I recently found out that I am good at string art, and actually enjoy all the hammering (stress relief) and stringing (relaxing). It's a minimal investment (I have to buy $2 roll of string, a $2 box of nails and a few brackets to hold wood together at the back (about $1 each), plus find an old wooden pallet to break up). But.. I could sell it for upwards of $20 and offer custom options. (The ones below were for my mom for Christmas (which had a dog saying added to the blank area in sharpie) and the logo of a company that was visiting my work's head office)

There are tonnes of other ideas, but this post is long enough with all the pics. What other tips do you use? 

Making a Budget - pt 2: The Emergency Fund

Part of your budget needs to have a healthy chunk going towards an emergency fund. My parents have a couple names for this bucket including "Mad Money" (which must be a movie reference or something), I call it my "high interest account", but whatever you want to call it, this is money you never touch. It is the just-in-case money that pays for a new roof (and allowed me to pay for mine all by cheque at once and get a hefty discount), it is the money to pay for a sudden pet's illness, and it should be one of your first major focuses if you don't have one yet. 

Even if you have consumer debt with high interest you need to pay off, you STILL need to put money into this locked and no-touch account though. Money should go into this account and basically never come out, so allow for it in your budget at whatever amount you can actually afford. Before you cut the savings allowance in your new budget, cut the clothing budget or substitute two meals a week for canned soup from the back of the pantry!

If you have debt, hunkering down and holing up to spend every penny possible on this high interest oopsie is even more important. Still save, but instead spend 3 committed months to eat out of the freezer, watch Youtube tv shows instead of going to the movies, use those gift cards you got last Christmas for entertainment/food, and spend every penny getting rid of that useless and ever-growing debt. I read a great blog entry I should have saved which was basically a couple who "disappeared" for 3 months in order to pay down $8000 of debt - they didn't eat out, they sold whatever they could, they picked up odd jobs, and they actually paid off all that debt with just 3 months of being absent from the social world. 

I mentioned eBay moments and side hustles in my first budget blog, and above in that couples 3 month dedication... So you've made a budget that is based on your fixed income, what do you with all the extra money (hopefully!) that is above and beyond?Instead of taking any extra money and spending it on a home decor item or a dinner out to celebrate, put it towards your future (I know, I'm a killjoy). Boost the savings account that month or pay a little more on the credit card. You can never have enough savings!

Now there are a bunch of Pinterest "schemes" of how to save money without realizing it - such as the "every $5 bill you get you save away instead of spending", or the "week 1, put away $1, week 2 put away $2", and you can read a bunch of blogs and stuff with other examples to get the idea. These might work for some people, but to be honest, they are hard to maintain, remember, AND budget for. If you are just getting started with budgeting, start squirreling away a set amount each week and month for your savings account. You can plan around this far better, and if you set it up as an automatic transfer on payday you won't even notice (which is what I do and strongly suggest).  If you want to do one of these other saving schemes, feel free, but it should come out of your after-savings budget if that makes sense (so outside of that automatic transfer). I do this too with any change that is in my pocket by the end of the day, and at the end of like 6 months I have enough to get a great dinner out (at like East Side Marios where I can get 2-3 meals out of one order with their unlimited soup/salad and bread!), or enough to buy a souvenir at my next little mini vacation. It's not much, and I don't notice it daily, but since this is already after my $25 automatic transfer to my savings account, I feel like I can "splurge" a little with this "found money". 

The moral: Don't skimp on your savings. Make this a number you are proud of, and feel safe with, should anything go wrong. 

Making a Budget -part 1

"You're telling your money where to go, not wondering where it went" - BudgetGirl on YouTube

So my mom sent me links to watch this lady on YouTube, and I invite everyone to watch a few of her videos. She covers food grocery trips, meal plans, general spending and general questions. She has student loans and a tight budget (plus she's funny). Or.. Check out Youtube while you're there for millions of other budget videos and tips. 

Before watching her, I went to a new bank to take advantage of a 3% 90day GIC they have available for a limited time last week (since extra money is better in my pocket than my other banks), and the advisor I got was really impressed with how financially secure I was at my age. Both BudgetGirl and this bank interaction has led to this post. 

Make a budget. Everyone. Know where you have the money to spend, so you know when you shouldn't be spending any more. 

This topic came up with my best friend who wanted to get a car. His current budget didn't really allow for a car (it did, but basically only for the yearly insurance cost and nothing else). In order to afford a car, he needed to rework his budget and his numbers. Does he cancel his gym membership or his soccer team playing fees? Does he cut out eating out completely instead? Does he get a second job instead? All of these and more were things to consider. 

While I'm giving some back stories, let me say that I have no debt other than my mortgage. This for me is an accomplishment at only 26. I have a car, a house, a dog, completed renovations with a new roof+furnace+air conditioner+water heater+finished basement, a fiancé.. And I am able to eat, drive, work and play without debt. It is all thanks to budgeting (and couponing in part). 

My dummies guide to budgeting is a simple starting point. Read and Google all sorts of others, because having more to work with can never hurt. When I was getting started, I read everything I could and researched researched researched. 

Another good tool for me was Gail Vaz-Oxlade and her "life pie" I think it's called. This is a great guide for everyone, not just people who are in debt like her shows suggest. Her life pie tells you what percentage of your income should be going where at max.

 If your numbers in one area are out of whack, you need to adjust the other areas to balance. She's a huge promoter of the budget binder and the jars/envelopes method. She has a TON of resources on her website and she's a great first stop 

http://www.gailvazoxlade.com/resources/interactive_budget_worksheet.html

http://www.gailvazoxlade.com/resources.html

So, a budget? A budget is simply a way to manage your spending and not go into debt. It takes your income and divides it into quadrants of life to make sure that you can eat, drive, live and save, without spending money you don't have. 

Start with tracking your spending for 2-3 months. 1 month of spending might not get every bill you have for the house, or every expense like shampoo you don't need that month. Write everything down. Literally. Just write down what every single penny of your spending is going to. And don't just say "$2.00, gas station" write down what it was. There are a lot of apps that you can track this info in, but even just opening your notepad on your phone might be easiest. At the end of this time (or the end of each month), sit down with either an Excel spreadsheet or a big piece of paper, and start transcribing all of that info over into columns:   Food/drink,  fixed housing costs (you can't change them like the mortgage amount),  variable housing costs (like the electric bill),  transportation (from the CAA card to bus tickets),  entertainment (eating out tends to go here),  baby/child/pet costs, home decor/Reno,  savings (generic saving, retirement savings, automatic deductions),  and you can change these depending but I usually call them Bath & Body (like hair products, soap, shavers) and Home Essentials (toilet paper, cleaners, tin foil, etc). 

Total up your columns and then look at anything else you haven't figured yet....  For me I literally went through item by item what I would need. Like a car, in a year I would need wiper blades, oil changes, tire rotations, new tires every few years, new lightbulbs every few years, car cleanings, gas weekly, windshield washer fluid, CAA emergency roadside, insurance, license plate renewals and stickers, replacement parts/fixing/just in case fund. I googled the numbers for these items and wrote them in my budget. I did the same thing for the house, outdoor maintenance, the dog, myself, my health (what is and isn't covered by my work), gifts and birthdays, what I normally spend at Christmas, vacations, work-sponsored donation days, etc. 

Look at other website budgets too for anything you might have missed. A good starting point was this post. http://www.midgetmomma.com/2015/01/15/20-things-you-are-forgetting-to-put-in-your-budget/

Take your $ numbers and scale them up to show a year. If you buy gas weekly, x52 weeks. If you buy shampoo once every three months, x the number by 4. If you need tires every 3 years, take the cost and divide by 3. 

Once you have a final number in every category, divide it by 12. This will give the average cost of that column by month, and this is what you should be squirreling away each month to afford that item later. 

There is a TON of work that can be done here, so make sure you budget (hah, get it) a bunch of time to do it right. 

Then look at your income. Is it fixed? Variable? Different income types will call for different budgets in some cases, but I always suggest you have some sort of fixed income portion - maybe that's a paper route or a couple evenings burger flipping, but at least have some sort of predictable every month income budget amount. Write down the "take-home" pay, this is after the government takes their cut and the employer takes out the employee benefits information, and is what you actually have to work with. Maybe you have side jobs and eBay moments, great! But for the budget I would suggest sticking with some sort of concrete number you can bank on, so to speak. 

Add up all the columns in your tracking sheet, and compare that against your take home income. How far out are you? Look at Gails life pie and calculate the % numbers to see where you are spending too much money. She divides stuff into fixed expenses (things you can't change the payment amount of ) and variable expenses (everything else). If your fixed expenses are too high, then you have a hard decision to make of either generating more income or changing where you live/what you drive. Typically, everyone's variable expenses are way over budget too when you first make the budget. 

Work with the life pie idea and your income. How much should you be spending in each area? Work backwards if it's easier and then compare against your current spending. 

Then.. Cue the couponing aspect. If your variable transportation costs are too high, consider asking for CAA or wiper blades for your birthday. Think about carpooling options, buying gas in the middle of the week, home washing and cleaning. Where can you save money and eliminate it from your budget?

I know this was a long post so I'll leave it here for now. Get creative, do the research, ask for help. Especially if you have debt, you absolutely need to budget to be able to pay it off and avoid paying all those extra and unnecessary interest fees. Feel free to post any other good tips you have :)