Expansions Difficulty/Complexity: Easy

This is a cash-free version of the game wherein all transactions are handled through personal checking accounts and recorded in individual check registers. Each player is responsible for his own account and must record all transactions – payment and receipt of rent, taxes, bribes, etc. in his check register.

Objective

To teach children (and some adults) how to accurately record transactions and balance a check register.

How to Play

• Download and print the Bank of Monopoly Personal Check Register (includes rules)
• Instead of distributing cash at the beginning of the game, players record the opening balance at the top of the check register (in the right-hand column under $ Balance). If playing the original Atlantic City Monopoly game with the distribution of 2 x $500, 2 x $100, 2 x $50, 6 x $20, 5 x $10, 5 x $5 , and 5 x $1 bills, the opening balance is $1,500.
• Instead of using cash, all transactions are recorded in the check register under Deposit (+) and Payment (-), and all money belonging to the player is totaled in the $ Balance column.

Click on the image to view a sample check register

How to Use the Check Register

• For each transaction, begin by recording the date and/or time. Since most games are played within one day, you may opt to record the time of each transaction instead of the date. We suggest placing a clock on the table in a spot easily visible by all players.
• Enter a brief description of the transaction. For example, “Luxury Tax,” “Rent – Board Walk,” “Passed Go.”
• When making a deposit record the amount in the Deposit (+) column, add it to the existing balance and record the new balance in the $ Balance column.
• When making a payment, record the amount in the Payment (-) column and subtract the amount from the existing balance and record the new balance in the $ Balance column.
  • Examples of transactions that belong under Deposit (+):
    Passing “Go,” collecting rent and utilities, Chance and Community Chest bonuses (bank error, dividends, income tax refund, etc.), mortgaging property, selling houses and hotels
  • Examples of transactions that belong under Payment (-):
    Paying rent, utilities, income tax, luxury tax, school tax, poor tax, hospital bill, etc., buying property, building houses and hotels, un-mortgaging property.

Transactions Between Players

When one player must pay another player – rent, Chance or Community Chest, etc. – he debits the amount from his account under Payment (-). The player receiving the funds adds the amount to his account under Deposit (+).

Optional Overdraft and Negative Balance

Instead of declaring bankruptcy and leaving the game when a player’s balance reaches $0, the player can be charged an Overdraft Fee of $25 per transaction that creates or maintains a negative balance. For each round that the balance remains negative (upon landing on or passing “Go”), the player is charged a 10% overdraft penalty. This is a good lesson in the snowball effect of debt.

Optional Personal Checks

To train youngsters how to properly make out checks, personal checks are also included (page 6) for practicing on game transactions.

Click on the image below to view a sample check

Visit OurFourpenceWorth.com/Monopoly for more Money Management and Investment Monopoly Expansions!

Related posts:

• Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Monopoly Game Expansion #5: Income Tax Edition
• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Monopoly Game Expansion #3: Certificate of Deposit

Originally posted 2008-06-20 06:30:05.

As kids, Madoline and I loved playing Monopoly. We enjoyed accumulating property, building hotels and watching the money roll in. We used to play to the extent of having to use calculators to keep track of our individual wealth after exhausting the bank’s supply of cash. When our cousin Mabel arrived in April for her 3-month sampling of the American life, we pulled our Monopoly game back out as part of her introduction to American culture.

Mabel seemed to have born with more than usual bad luck. Since childhood, she has been prone to little (and sometimes not so little) mishaps and accidents of all sorts as well as general ill fortune in all aspects of life – family, personal, professional, etc. Her ill luck also obviously carries over to pretend life, Monopoly included.

During our first Monopoly game with Mabel, Madoline got so tired of Mabel landing on her hotels and unable to afford rent that she devised a lottery system for the game in the hopes that Mabel would win a few jackpots and be able to pay her way. (We don’t like to end the game when someone runs out of money because otherwise it would end too soon.)

Lottopoly, as we call it, was an instant success – for Madoline and me that is. Despite purchasing 3 tickets per lottery that first day, Mabel didn’t win a single lottery. Madoline and I, on the other hand, grew richer and richer, and the Lottopoly became the highlight of the game.

We have since invented more expansions to add some spice to our Monopoly games. All of our expansions have to do with making, saving and investing money, and are a fun way to teach children, and even grown-ups, basic money management and investment principles. Players have to learn how to budget their cash and not over-invest or face penalties for early withdrawal of invested funds.

We have decided to begin publishing a series of Monopoly Expansions here at Our Fourpence Worth. Each game expansion comes with forms that you can download and print for free in PDF or JPG format and detailed instructions for playing with your friends and family. We will begin posting Monopoly Expansions for different money management principles, Certificates of Deposit (CDs), Foreign Currency Investments, Lottopoly and more starting this week.

Monopoly is a fun and fairly inexpensive way to teach kids basic money management skills. I would definitely recommend it to parents who are looking for frugal and beneficial diversions for keeping kids entertained during hot summer days.

Check back tomorrow for the first Monopoly Game Expansion!

Related posts:

• Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account
• Welcome MSN Money Central Smart Spending Readers!
• Monopoly Game Expansion #3: Certificate of Deposit
• Monopoly Game Expansion #5: Income Tax Edition
• Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account

Expansion Difficulty/Complexity: Medium-Hard

This is a credit card add-on for the game of Monopoly wherein players have both cash and credit and may opt to “charge” certain expenses in lieu of paying cash in order to keep the cash flow for investing in property and buildings. For being such a careful money saver in real life, I was surprised at how quickly my “credit card debt” snowballed.

I started out by charging all my expenses because the 10% interest seemed so insignificant, and before I knew it, I was overlimit and paying 20% interest and my debt became more and more unmanageable. I came in second in the end with a credit card debt of $3,600. Madoline won with over $5,000 in cash, and Mabel lost with over $10,000 in credit card debt. :O

Objective

To teach children (and some adults) about buying and owing on the credit system.

Overview

This version of the game uses a credit system wherein players may opt to put purchases and expenses on their credit account instead of paying cash – either because they do not have enough cash available or because they wish to keep their cash to invest in property.

How to Play

• Print out and distribute a copy of the Bank of Monopoly Personal Credit Card Statement (includes rules) to each player. The statement contains 20 tables (representing 20 months/circuits of the game board). If you need more than 20 tables, simply print extra copies of this document.
  Tip: Print 2-Sided to save paper
• Any time during the game, a player may opt to charge expenses such as rent, taxes and miscellaneous fees on his/her “credit card.” in order to save cash for investing in properties and building.
• Property and building purchases may not be charged on a credit card.

How to Use the Personal Credit Card Statement

• A player is allowed 12 credit transactions per month (circuit of the board).
• Each person has a credit limit of $2,000.

1. On the first round of the game, enter $0 under Balance Forward.
2. When making a charge, enter a brief description of the transaction under “Description of Transaction”
3. Enter the amount under “Amount Charged”
4. Total the current balance in the right-hand column under “Balance.”
5. When you pass or land on “Go,” total your balance next to “Total Charges”
6. Pay off your desired debt in cash to bank and enter the figure next to “Amount Paid @ “Go.”
   • You are required to make a minimum payment of 10% of the total charges.
   • If you are not able to make the 10% payment, your interest rate increases to 20% until you are able to make your minimum payment again.
   • You may pay your balance in full and accrue no finance charges, or pay at least the minimum or as much as you are able to or wish to.
7. Subtract the amount paid from the Total Charges and enter the amount next to “Balance Subtotal.”
   If the balance is greater than $0, multiply Balance Subtotal by 10% (n x .1) if you’ve made at least the minimum payment, or 20% (n x .2) if you were not able to make the minimum payment, and enter the figure next to “x 10% Finance Charges.”
8. Multiply Balance Subtotal by 10% (n x .1) and enter the figure next to “x 10% Finance Charges.”
9. Add the 10% Finance Charge to your Balance Subtotal and enter the figure next to “Balance Forward.”
10. This is your remaining debt.
11. Move to the next empty table and enter the “Balance Forward” amount at the top right-hand column
12. next to “Balance Forward.”
13. When entering your first charge of new circuit around the board, add the charge to the forwarded amount and repeat.

Click on the image below to view a sample statement

Transactions Between Players

On a transaction wherein a player is to receive money and the payer decides to charge the expense, the receiver withdraws the payment directly out of the bank.

Bank of Monopoly Credit Card Terms

Credit Limit: $2,000
Regular Interest Rate: 10%
Minimum Payment: 10% of balance
Minimum Finance Charge: $10
Insufficient Payment/Overlimit Interest Rate: 20%
Overlimit Fee: $50 per transaction

Note: In the interest of illustrating the snowball effect of debt, we have decided not to cap the game and charges at $2,000, but rather impose a per transaction overlimit fee of $50 and a higher interest rate.

Visit http://pecuniarities.com/Monopoly for more Money Management and Investment Monopoly Expansions!

The Monopoly game is copyrighted by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. All expansions are original creations by Our Fourpence Worth and shared for personal use only. Commercial use of these rules, forms and images is prohibited.

Related posts:

• Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account
• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account
• Monopoly Game Expansion #5: Income Tax Edition
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals

Originally posted 2008-06-30 06:00:22.

This is a fairly easy Monopoly game expansion to teach youngsters the principles of filing and paying income tax. It includes an income tax form on which players keep track of income and deductions, figure and pay their income tax at the end of each circuit of the board. Players may opt to hire themselves out as tax preparers and those who do not wish to file their own returns may hire and pay tax preparers to do so, the cost of which is tax deductible, of course.

Please note that this is not a representation of real-life tax preparation. It is a simplified simulation meant to educate children on the basic principles of income and taxes and should not be taken as a source for tax preparation information.

How to Play the Monopoly Income Tax Expansion

1. Download and print out a set of Personal Income Tax Form and Instructions (pdf format) for each player.
2. The game is played as usual, but players record all income, payments of taxes and applicable expenses.
3. When a player passes “Go,” he pauses to calculate and pay his income tax for the circuit just completed.
4. The only difference in this game is the Income Tax square. When a player lands on Income Tax, he will receive an Income Tax Refund of $200 instead of paying it.

Paid Tax Preparers

Players may hire themselves out as paid preparers and other players may hire tax preparers to calculate and prepare their tax returns on their behalf.

• Tax preparers can set their own rates for preparation.
• Players who hire paid preparers may deduct the preparer costs from their taxable income (on Line 3).

Monopoly Personal Income Tax Form Instructions

Click on the image below to view a sample form

• Lines 1a and 1b (1-15). Record income and deductible transactions as they occur.
  • Income counts as all money received (rent, bribes, free parking, dividends, investments, etc.) with the exception of income tax refunds.
  • Deductions are other taxes paid, such as Poor Tax, School Tax, Luxury Tax, street and housing repairs, etc.
• Line 2. Figure your taxable income.
  • 2a. Add up all income.
  • Line 2b. Add up all deductions.
  • Line 2c. Subtract 2b from 2a to figure your taxable income.
• Line 3. Enter the amount paid to the tax preparer, if any. Pay this amount to your tax preparer, if applicable.
• Line 4. Subtract the amount of Line 3 from Line 2c.
• Line 5. Figure the tax, which is 10% of taxable income; multiply .1 by the amount on Line 4.
• Line 6. Previous unpaid tax. Enter the amount of tax on Line 10 from your previous tax period, if any, that was not paid last period.
• Line 7. Total tax due. Add the amounts on Line 6 and Line 7. This is the amount you owe.
• Line 8. Total tax paid. The amount you wish to or can afford to pay at this time. Pay this amount to the bank.
• Line 9. Remaining unpaid tax. Subtract the amount on Line 8 from Line 7.
• Line 10. Balance to forward to next tax period. The amount on Line 9 plus 10% penalty (the amount on Line 9 multiplied by .1)

Visit OurFourpenceWorth.com/Monopoly for more Money Management and Investment Monopoly Expansions!

Related posts:

• Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals: Week of Unexpected Delays
• Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account
• Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account
• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals

Originally posted 2008-09-09 10:00:09.

Expansion Difficulty/Complexity: Medium-Easy

This Certificate of Deposit was the second expansion we created for the game (invented by Madoline) of Monopoly. After the Lottopoly (coming soon), I find this to be the most fun. The interest rates are rather high compared to real-life CD’s, but they help to illustrate the point that investing pays off, and it is so much fun watching the money add up.

Objective

To learn the system and benefits of saving and investing via Certificates of Deposit (CD’s).

How to Play

• Download and print the Bank of Monopoly Certificate of Deposit Form (includes rules).
• Banker
  Designate a player to be in charge of CD’s. This person will receive and deposit into the bank the money to be invested, fill out the CD form, keep track of players’ passing of “Go,” calculate interests and penalties, and pay out the earnings from the bank.
• Opening a CD
  Deposit the amount to be invested in the bank and fill in the player’s name, opening balance and term of deposit. The term is the number of “months” or circuits around the board. Deposits may only be made on the turn when a player passes or stops on “Go.” Once a deposit is made and the term is set, it may not be changed.
• Marking off the months
  When a player passes “Go,” the banker marks off a circuit under 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Months. This indicates the passage of time. If a player purchases a CD for 1 month, his account is considered mature after one full circuit of the board. 2 months require 2 full circuits, and 3 months require 3 full circuits.
  Note: Going to jail does not constitute a circuit as one does not pass “Go.”
• Payouts
  When a player passes “Go” for the last time, his/her earnings are calculated and the balance paid out.

Click on the image below to see a sample

Terms

• Interest Rates
  1 Month = 10%
  2 Months = 30%
  3 Months = 60%
• Penalty for early withdrawal
  $50 per month. If a player makes a deposit for 3 months but must withdraw it after only 1 month due to need for cash (to pay rent, taxes, etc.), he is charged a total of $100 dollars early withdrawal penalty and earns no interest.

Additional Notes

• There is no limitation as to the number of CD’s a player may have open at any time.
• CD’s may only be opened on the turn in which a player passes or lands on “Go.”
• A player may opt to immediately re-invest the closing balance of a CD by opening a new one.
• Early withdrawal requires complete withdrawal. If the player wishes to invest a smaller amount, he must wait until he passes “Go” and open a new CD.
• Tip: Use a different color pencil or pen for each player when players open multiple deposits.

Visit OurFourpenceWorth.com/Monopoly for more Money Management and Investment Monopoly Expansions!

The Monopoly game is copyrighted by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. All expansions are original creations by Our Fourpence Worth and shared for personal use only.
Commercial use of these rules, forms and images is prohibited.

Related posts:

• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account
• Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account
• Monopoly Game Expansion #5: Income Tax Edition

Originally posted 2008-06-25 06:00:16.

Madoline and I have decided that in light of the economy, we’re not going to get a Christmas tree or presents for each other this year. Since being on our own, we have passed many a Christmas without a tree and found that we can enjoy it just as much. Now that we’re grown up, we can feel Christmassy without having a tree, and not have to deal with taking it down and recycling, something we’ve always hated to do since we were kids, when the Holidays are over.

Our Reasons for Not Getting a Tree

• A Christmas Tree is a luxury, not a necessity.
• No friends or family coming over to visit because we live thousands of miles from everyone.
• We really don’t like taking the tree down after the Holidays (one year, we left it up until April.)
• We would rather spend the money on something that lasts longer.
• We can still make Christmas special in our own way.

How We’re Making Christmas Special Without a Tree and Presents

• We can still put ornaments and decorations up around the house to make it festive.
• We might use the money saved from buying a tree on some new DVDs that we can watch together on Christmas Day (movies are one of our passions).
• We’ll make presents (toys) and bake biscuits for our dogs.
• We’ll spend the whole day together – hanging out with our dogs, watching movies and playing games.
• We’ll listen to and sing Christmas music.
• We’ll call our grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins and talk to them on the phone.
• We’ll still have a special dinner – probably turkey or something else really good.

I do love having a Christmas tree in the house. I love the smell. I love turning the lights, mobile carousel ornaments and music on every morning. I love wrapping presents. I love sneaking them under the tree and making Madoline guess what they are. I love everything about Christmas.

But not having this every year will make other Christmases when we do have these things all the more special. And the peace of mind of having a little extra money in the bank in the coming months outweighs the few weeks of luxury of having a tree and presents. We’re grown up now and don’t need these things to make Christmas special. That’s not to say we won’t do it all the first year we feel the coast is clear.

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f this is your first time here, please have a look around and consider subscribing to our RSS feed. Be sure to also check out

Madoline and I have a fondness for history and all things old, so the theme for today’s carnival is “Old Money.” While credit cards, online banking and checks are great modern commodities, they just don’t have the charm of good, old fashioned money – in other words, cash. We hope you enjoy this tour through United States Treasury history and the art to be found in currencies of the past.

1934 $100,000 USD Bill (Woodrow Wilson)

Editor’s Picks

• PT presents 9 Tips For Going To One Income.
• Twenties Money Magazine presents My College Sold Me Out.
• Toni presents Happy with What We Don’t Have.
• The Investor presents How a boring broker will make you richer.
• Karen presents Spending money can save your money.

1918 $10,000 USD Bill (Salmon P. Chase)

Frugality & Saving Money

• FIRE Getters presents Top 5 Freebie Websites!
• Amy Hobbs presents How to turn three slices of turkey into brunch.
• Ryan Suenaga presents Can a GPS Pay for Itself?
• Wilfrid presents Air Leak Detection – Leak Testing – Leak Stopping.
• Grey presents Making the CFL Switch.

1918 $5,000 USD Bill (James Madison)

Shopping

• Pamela Grundy presents Best Buy Coupons, Promotions and Savings.
• mbhunter presents If you love Amazon, you’ll really love Amazon Prime.
• Amy L. presents Getting a Good Deal on Your Car Insurance.
• Tom Tessin presents The Secrets to Cheap Airline Tickets.
• Aryn presents New Strategies for Using Double Coupons.
• APFB presents Four Items to Buy Used.
• Madison presents Free Money From the U.S. Mint.

1928 $1,000 USD Bill (Grover Cleveland)

Money Management

• Ariel Ozick presents 3 Dumb Ways to Waste Your Money.
• Todd presents Budgeting Games (Finance Games #6).
• Curt presents Avoiding the Most Common Financial Mistakes.
• GBlogger presents My Personal Finance One Step, Two Step.
• Nickel presents A Peek Inside Our FNBO Direct Online Savings Account.

1928 $500 USD Bill (William McKinley)

Debt & Credit

• Silicon Valley Blogger presents Best Cash Back Credit Cards: Your Rewards For Spending.
• Mr Credit Card presents What to Do When Your Credit Card Debt Has Been Charged Off?
• Andy presents Too expensive to file for bankruptcy.
• CreditAddict presents No Fee 0% Balance Transfer Credit Card Offers.
• DMH presents 0% Balance Transfer Credit Card Offers.

1880 $100 USD Bill (Abraham Lincoln)

Economy

• Tejvan presents Why Boom and Busts are common in Housing Markets.
• Livingalmostlarge presents Perfection Guaranteed.
• RC presents Do Government Bailouts and Payouts Mean Higher Taxes in the Future?

1891 $50 USD Bill (Edward Everett)

Career

• Heather Johnson presents Guest Post: When Should You Quit Your Job?
• VH presents A$king and re¢eiving.
• Dorian Wales presents No Salvation from Productivity Improvements: The Failed 35 Hour Work Week Experiment and Work-Life Balance Examined.
• Kevin Surbaugh presents Making 401(k)’s Part of Your Job Hunt.

1905 $20 USD Bill (George Washington)

Investing

• Dividends4Life presents The MMA Rate Mystery Solved.
• Writers Coin presents Adding to the Mock Portfolio.
• Kevin presents Rebalanced My Roth 401k.
• Dividend Growth Investor presents Year-to-Date changes in Dividend Aristocrats’ annual payments to shareholders.
• The Financial Blogger presents Shifting Your Investments According To Your Tax Rate.
• RothIRA presents Roth IRA for Teenagers.
• Sandy Naidu presents Behavioral Finance – Investor Psychology – Behavioral Finance Stock Market Investment.
• FMF presents Using Your Health Savings Account as a “Super Roth” Investment Vehicle.
• Zach Scheidt presents MasterCard Incorporated (MA) – Growth Slowing.

1901 $10 USD Bill (Meriwether Lewis & William Clark)

Book Reviews

• Clare Kierans presents Money is What You Trade Your Life Energy For.
• Jim presents 547 Ways to be Fuel Smart by Roger Albright.

1886 $5 USD Bill (Ulysses S. Grant)

Other

• Steward presents A Frugal Shopping Tip That Leaves Everyone Smiling.
• J. Money presents 3 Things you should always keep in your wallet/purse/clip.
• Raymond presents How To Generate Valid Credit Card Numbers.
• Jamie presents Custom Wallet Giveaway from TheTrendySpot.com.
• Mr. Banker presents ABA Routing Codes to Link Online Accounts Together.

1862 First official $1 Bill of the United States (Salmon P. Chase)

This concludes the 26th Edition of the Money Hacks Carnival. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Money Hacks Carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: money hacks carnival, blog carnival.

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Expansion difficulty/complexity level: Easy

This is a basic savings account add-on for the Monopoly game to teach the principles of personal savings. The rules are few, with easy to calculate interest rates and a simple form to keep track of each player’s individual savings. While the interest rates are higher (for easy calculation) than they would be in a real-life savings account, this game can teach children the basics and benefits of saving money and how banking and savings accounts work.

Objective: Learning Basic Money Saving Techniques and Principles

• Develop a regular habit setting money aside for a rainy day or future investment.
• Watch your money add up a few dollars at a time.
• Experience the satisfaction of greater earnings and faster growth as interest rates increase with your balance.

To play the Monopoly Personal Savings Account Expansion

• Download and print out the Monopoly Personal Savings Account Statement (with rules)*
• The Personal Savings Account Statement contains a form for tracking:
  • Opening balance
  • Interest Rate which increases as balances grow
  • Interest Earned
  • Credits and Debits (Deposits and Withdrawals)
  • Closing Balance

Click on the image below to view a sample form

* The form comes in .pdf format and can be opened in Adobe Acrobat Reader or Foxit Reader, both of which can be downloaded for free at their respective sites.

Rules for Bank of Monopoly Personal Savings Account

These rules are included in the Personal Savings Account Statement download.

An account may be opened at any point during the game when a player lands on or passes “Go.”

• Minimum opening balance is $50
• Minimum account balance is $10
• Earning Period is 1 circuit of the board – “Go” to “Go.” Going to jail does not complete a circuit as you do not pass “Go.”
• Interest is credited at the end of the turn when the player lands on or passes “Go.”
• Interest Rates are tiered and increase with account balance:
  

  $10-$500	5% per period
  $501-$1,000	10% per period
  $1,001-$5,000	15% per period
  $5,001 and up	20% per period

• Deposits may be made after interest for the previous earning period has been credited.
• Withdrawals may be made at any time; however, interest is not earned on the withdrawn amount. An account is considered closed when all funds are withdrawn. A $50 minimum opening balance is required to re-open the account.
• Limit 1 savings account per player.

Next Monopoly Expansion: Bank of Monopoly Personal Checking Account.

Get more Monopoly Expansions at Our Fourpence Worth
http://pecuniarities.com/Monopoly

NOTE: The Monopoly game is copyrighted by Parker Brothers, a subsidiary of Hasbro. All expansions are original creations by Our Fourpence Worth and shared here for personal use only. Commercial use of these rules, forms and images is prohibited.

Related posts:

• Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account
• Monopoly Game Expansion #5: Income Tax Edition
• June 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Monopoly Game Expansion #3: Certificate of Deposit

A necessity is an item/service that you simply cannot do without in your everyday life and that is vital to your survival and situation.

A luxury is anything that is not a necessity.

A few examples of necessities (or necessary expenditures) would be:

• Food
• Rent/mortgage
• Auto insurance
• Home insurance
• Health insurance
• Gas
• Auto Maintenance
• Utilities: electricity, gas and phone

Of course these are not the only necessities in the world, and it’s different for everyone, but when you really think about it, true necessities are actually quite few in number, and many things that you think you need are in fact not that necessary.

A few common examples of luxuries would be:

• Entertainment – movies (at the theater, renting, or buying), music and/or books
• Cable or satellite
• Toys and games (video or non-video)
• More than one home phone line
• More than one computer (even one computer could be considered a luxury in dire circumstances)
• High speed internet service

Even in one of the main necessities, food, there are luxuries that aren’t necessary. Necessary foods are foods that are vital for your health and continued existence. These are usually basic foods and staples that fill out your food pyramid and keep you in good health. Any food that is not vital to your health and survival should be regarded as a luxury.

A few examples of luxury foods when grocery shopping would be:

• Chips and other junk food
• Cookies and other sweets
• Gourmet cheeses
• Alcoholic drinks
• Soda and other bottled beverages
• Bakery goods
• Specialty breads i.e. foccacia
• Seasonal and tropical fruits
• Fancy meats (i.e. steaks)
• Pre-prepared and packaged foods (sandwiches, salads, sushi, cut fruit, etc.)

I say “should be regarded as a luxury” because I think it is important to understand and appreciate the difference. I am not saying that your life should be completely stripped of all pleasures and comforts, but when you are purchasing a new DVD or CD, it is important to be aware that what you are purchasing is a luxury item.

So, the first step in trying to figure out how to cut your expenditures is to go through your regular purchases (including services) and distinguish all luxuries from necessities. Luxuries should not be regarded as “forbidden” because it could turn into an obsession (the desirability might be blown out of proportion), but be aware that by choosing not to purchase these items, you are gaining an advantage.

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Originally posted 2008-04-25 00:59:12.

I will be the first to admit that I LOVE television and movies. I have been an avid TV-watcher since I was a kid. To this day, I can still remember the schedule for my favorite show, a cartoon called Doraemon, when I was 6 years old and living in Japan – Friday nights at 7:00 on Channel 10. Despite being a pretty intelligent kid — I read a lot and got good grades — I loved television. Some of my favorite shows as a kid (now living in the States) were Flipper, Lassie, Saved By the Bell, Full House, Growing Pains, I Love Lucy, etc.

I haven’t changed a bit as far as this area of my personality is concerned (as a matter of fact, I have passed my love for video entertainment on to my dog), but can proudly say that I have survived since 2001 without cable. For some reason, our TV doesn’t work without paying for cable. We don’t get any local channels and antennae don’t work — don’t ask me why. But for almost 8 years, my appetite for video entertainment has been sated solely by DVDs. Luckily, I am one of those people who can watch the same movie over and over (even more than once in the same day) and still enjoy it, so we haven’t gone broke feeding my addiction.

Then last year, I learned about this marvelous site called Hulu, a network approved video hosting site for watching free TV shows and movies online, and I have to say, life has vastly improved — not that I wasn’t happy before, I’m just even happier. I was now able to watch shows that I’d only vaguely heard or read about such as House, and have discovered an array of new shows that I had never even heard of that have come on air since 2001.

Free and Legal Online Videos

Since then, I have learned a lot about where, when and how to watch TV shows online and thought I’d put together a list/guide of websites for those of you who are considering cutting off cable, because you can live without cable these days and still be able to watch all your favorite television shows and keep up with local, national and international news.

Pros of Online Video Viewing

• You can watch what you want when you want
  • New episodes are usually available for about a month
  • Some canceled shows make 1 or 2 seasons available for free online viewing
• You can catch up on episodes you missed from current and past seasons
• Commercial breaks are shorter than on television — most are 15 or 30 seconds
• You can pause, rewind or fast forward during play so you can visit the facilities or fetch more popcorn
• You can watch your favorite episodes again and again as long as it’s still online
• Most sites have a notification system where you can have alerts sent to your email when new episodes of your favorite shows are posted
• It’s free!

Cons of Online Video Viewing

I haven’t really come across any except that my computer screen isn’t as big as our TV. But you might be able to circumvent that by connecting your computer to your TV if you are technologically savvy.

Some shows don’t release new episodes until 8 days after the original TV broadcast, but you still get one new episode a week, just one week behind the TV watchers. But as long as you have a decent internet connection, you shouldn’t have many problems.

Websites for Watching Free TV Episodes and Movies

There are a couple of different types of websites that offer free video viewing. One is the Network sites, the official homepages of the television studios or channels. These sites have official pages for each of their shows with information and interactive material such as photo galleries, games and forums for their fans. The other is the online video service sites which host video content from various networks.

The official network sites seem to offer more HD videos (see Technical Requirements below) than the online video services, which mostly offer Standard-Res or HQ (360p or 480p) videos.

Online Video Service Sites

These sites have current and new episodes as well as offer more back episodes of previous seasons and canceled shows than the network sites do.

• Hulu
  • Hosts videos from over 100 content providers including FOX, NBC Universal, MGM, Sony Pictures Television, Warner Bros. and more.
  • Offers free full movies, full episodes, clips from films and TV shows, news, talk shows, and more.
  • Includes past episodes and seasons not available on the network sites.
  • Past seasons of current, older and canceled shows include: Arrested Development, New Amsterdam, The Journeyman, The Riches, Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, The O.C., One Tree Hill
  • My favorite shows on Hulu: House, Bones, Crusoe, Burn Notice, Battlestar Galactica, Life, Monk, Psych, The Office, 24
• TV.com
  • Many of the videos on this site are streamed from Hulu, but it also offers videos from CBS which aren’t available on Hulu.
  • The CBS site is sometimes a little slow, so I watch CBS shows here.
  • Offers quite a few shows in HD quality video.
  • What I watch on TV.com: NCIS
• Fancast
  • This site also streams a lot of videos from Hulu, but also has episodes not available on Hulu. For example, it has the pilot episode of Psych which isn’t on Hulu.
  • What I watch on Fancast: Friends
• Joost
  • Originally a download desktop player service, Joost recently launched an online viewing service; however I find the search function could be improved.
  • Content from from CBS, Showtime, HBO, TheWB.
• Sling
  • Still in beta, this site streams videos from Hulu as well as CBS and others.
• TidalTV
  • Still in beta, this site offers a large selection of TV channels including Animal Planet, National Geographic, Wall Street Journal, The Travel Channel,  and lots more.
  • Selection is vast, but video quality isn’t quite as high as other sites.

Official TV Network/Channel Sites

Entertainment

• FOX
  • Home of 24, Bones, House, Fringe
  • Offers HD quality video
• NBC
  • Home of The Office, Crusoe,  Life, My Own Worst Enemy, 30 Rock, Heroes and many more
  • Offers HD quality video
• USA
  • Home of Burn Notice, Monk, Psych and The Starter Wife
• CBS
  • Home of NCIS, CSI, Numb3rs, How I Met Your Mother
  • Offers HD quality video
• ABC
  • Home of Desperate Housewives, Lost (which I saw for the first time last night), Pushing Daisies, Grey’s Anatomy (which I’ve not yet seen but seems popular)
  • Offers HD quality video
• Sci Fi
  • Home of Battlestar Galactica, Eureka, Sanctuary
  • Includes enhanced episodes with commentary by the film makers
• FX
  • Home of Damages, Nip/Tuck (which I’ve not seen)
• TheWB
  • Show include Chuck, One Tree Hill, The O.C., Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Smallville, Gilmore Girls, Firefly and many more
  • I’ve watched 1st season episodes of Chuck here, which aren’t available on Hulu or other sites.
  • Still in beta
  • Has more commercials than the other sites
  • Cycles through seasons of shows so you can watch them in order
• The CW Network
  • A joint venture between Warner Bros. Entertainment and CBS with a target audience of women between age 18-34
  • Shows include 90210, Privileged, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, Superatural, Smallville and more
• ABC Family
  • Shows include 7th Heaven, Greek, Gilmore Girls and more
  • Also has a couple of full length movies
• TV Land
  • Classic TV such as The Andy Griffiths Show, The Beverly Hilbillies, etc.
  • This site seems to rotate available shows and episodes and advises bookmarking the above page and checking back frequently to see what’s on.

Educational

Shows and video clips on all things educational – history, animals, environment, science and more.

• The History Channel
  • A vast collection of full episodes and video clips on an array of historical subjects including American History, Military History, famous speeches
  • Shows include Ancient Discoveries, Cities of the Underworld, Moster Quest and more
• National Geographic
  • Videos on a variety of subjects: Animals, Environment, Science & Space, Travel & Culture, Specials and News
  • My dog especially enjoyed the clip on Arctic Hares
• The Discovery Channel
  • Full episodes of 2 shows and clips from scores of others on a variety of topics including animals, current events, environment, archaeology, technology and more
• Animal Planet
  • Full episodes of shows including Untamed and Uncut, Pet Planet and Living with the Wolfman
  • Scores of other videos on all things animal-related: wild and domestics, informational and political
• PBS
  • Current events, history, arts, cooking and more
  • Includes shows such as Frontline, NOVA, NerdTV, WIRED Science, Julia Child and more
• HGTV
  • Home and garden channel with shows on home decorating, improvement, buying and selling
• The Food Network
  • Including shows such as 30 Minute Meals, Ace of Cakes and more

News

Local, National and International News, Politics, Economy, Personal Finance, Technology, and more

• CNN
• MSNBC
• BBC
• C-SPAN
• Wall Street Journal

Technical Requirements

Video Quality

You need a decent internet connection (preferably DSL or Cable and faster). There are various video quality levels available and you have an option depending on your internet connection.

• Standard Resolution: 360p — 1,000Kbps or higher
• Hi-Res/High Quality (HQ): 480p — 1,500Kbps or higher
• High Definition (HD): 720p — 3,500Kbps or higher

Computer Requirements

• Internet Explorer 6.0 or above, Firefox 1.5 or above, or Safari 2.0 or above
• JavaScript and Cookies must also be enabled
• Adobe Flash Player 9.0 or above
• Microsoft Windows XP SP2, Microsoft Windows Vista, Macintosh OS X, or Linux

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Originally posted 2009-01-26 06:00:33.

Undoubtedly, the only thing worse than having a “cheap date” is being called one. But in the current economic atmosphere when one should be more concerned with prudence in spending habits, a frugal date, in my mind, is something to be lauded rather than repudiated.

After all, dating is all about finding the person you will share your life and finances with till something beginning with the letter “d” do you part. So this year, and perhaps for a few to come, remember this and cut yourself and/or your significant other a little slack and remember that there are more important things in life than extravagant dinners and presents.

Here we will offer some Valentine’s Day Gift and Date ideas that won’t cost a fortune and hopefully make this Valentine’s Day special and fun. I’ve divided this post into several sections with subsections such as “Gifts under $10,” etc. within each section.

Table of Contents

Click to go to each section, click your browser “back” button to return here.

• Valentine’s Day Budgeting Suggestions
• Gestures
• Date Ideas
• Romantic Foods and Treats
• Gift Ideas
• Gift + Date Ideas
• Valentine’s Date Movies

The artwork contained in this post is by Madoline and more can be seen and purchased on a variety of products from our CafePress store.

Valentine’s Day Budgeting Suggestions

Before we begin, a few suggestions on the finances of Valentine’s Day.

• Discuss a gift budget beforehand whether or not you are married or share finances.
• Set a spending range that is comfortable for both parties and stick to it. (If one person gives an expensive gift but the other a more economical one, awkwardness may ensue.)
• Consider combining your individual budgets if they are low. This way you might be able to afford something pricier that you can both enjoy.
• Consider a “useful” gift. Something more practical rather than romantic that can make your life together more pleasant (long term benefits vs. short term).
• Consider making both your gifts by hand and from scratch.
• Discuss your date budget and activities that you will both enjoy without spending too much.

It may seem unromantic to talk about the date or gift ahead of time, but lack of communication in financial matters (i.e. spending) is one of the main causes for marital strife, so it might be better for your relationship in the long run if you share in such decisions.

Gestures

for Her

• Let her sleep in. Make the kids breakfast and keep them occupied with cartoons or other activities.
• Breakfast in bed. As this year Valentine’s Day is on a Saturday.
• Help out around the house or yard. Is there something she’s been asking you to do for a while?
• Take the kids out for the morning or afternoon to give her some quiet time to relax and get ready for your date in the evening.

for Him

• Let him watch football (or whatever sport is on in February). Bring him popcorn, chips, beer or whatever he likes. If you need to speak to him (even about the game), wait until commercial break.
• Go with him to do his favorite sport or activity. Is there something he often asks you to do with him that you always say “no” to? Go with him, let him show off for you and compliment him on his prowess.

for Each Other

• Ask a friend or relative to take the kids for the day and just relax and enjoy each other’s company at home.
• A massage. Lower back for someone who does a lot of physical work (e.g. housework), neck and shoulders if he/she works at a desk or computer.

Date Ideas

• Tour of your romantic spots. Plan a route including some or all of the local places where significant points of your relationship took place. Pack a picnic to enjoy at one of your spots. Suggestions of places: where you met, where you  had your first date, where you first kissed, where you proposed/were proposed to, your first home together, etc.
• Assemble a scrap book of your relationship. This can be an annual activity done on each Valentine’s Day chronicling your life together in the past year. Save and assemble memorable items such as: pictures; notes you’ve written each other; ticket stubs from movies, shows and sporting events you attended together; receipts from romantic dates; and if married or planning marriage: engagement announcement, bridal shower invitation,  wedding invitation, baby showers, etc.
• Read a favorite childhood book together. Find a book that you both loved as kids, check it out from the library or buy it used and take turns reading it aloud.
• Plan your future. This might be a dreaded subject for the commitment-phobic, but if this is a serious and committed relationship, Valentine’s Day is a good time to plan your future life together. Take a scenic tour of neighborhoods and homes that you want to live in, think about the kind of home you want to own (if you don’t own one already) and start thinking about how you are gong to get there.
• Do anything together. Paint a room in the house, work in the garden, play games, watch a movie, or just anything you both enjoy.

Romantic Foods and Treats

• Pink and red food such as pink butter, cheese, milk, cereal, cake, salad dressing, pudding, rice, sauces. Naturally red and pink foods are beets, cranberry/mayo, frosting, jello, strawberries, jam, and various ice cream.
• Heart-shaped food and treats. With heart-shaped cookie cutters and bakeware, you can make heart-shaped cookies, brownies, cakes, sandwiches, fruit, eggs, toast, pasta (lasagne) or whatever your heart desires.To make heart shaped eggs or pancakes:
  1. Grease the inside of a metal cookie cutter
  2. place on oiled heated pan
  3. Firmly hold down while pouring a layer of egg or batter inside of cookie cutter (careful not to burn your hands)
  4. Lift cutter when shape is firm and flip pancake/eggs
• Give a heart shaped chocolate cake instead of a box of candies. Cake mix can be had for $1 or less on sale. Write your message in frosting on top and save the expense of a card.

Interesting  Fact: The Chinese customarily give gold jewelry as a sign of caring, because the recipient may sell it for money in times of need.

Gift Ideas

Some suggestions for frugal but nice gifts. If you are giving a small gift, check out Madoline’s Eggshell Gift Wrap post from December; this is a unique way to wrap a small gift (such as jewelry) in a way your recipient will never forget.

Price breakdown for specific product suggestions doesn’t include shipping as rates may vary and some items might be purchased locally.

Gifts Under $10

• The language of flowers. If you live in a area where wild flowers are available, pick your own bouquet of flowers for your date. Refer to the language of flowers for meanings for various kinds of flora, known as floriography.
• Plant a rosebush or her favorite flowers in the yard. Plant seeds or transplant a potted plant and mark the spot with a romantic sign.
• Hand-knitted or crocheted scarf, hat and/or mittens in his/her favorite color(s). Yarn in fairly inexpensive and the paper wrapped around the skeins often come with instructions for making something.
• A Digital Photo Keychain filled with pictures of the two of you that he/she can carry around and look at at any time.
• Print his/her favorite poem in the center of a sheet of paper. Frame and matting will make it an elegant art piece and a nice, thoughtful gesture.
• A paperback book with your greeting written inside the cover instead of spending money on greeting cards which might get thrown away.
• For a nature lover, assemble and paint a bird house in his/her favorite color(s)  – Bird House Kit.

Gifts Under $20

• A 365 page-a-day calendar and write in personal notes on the anniversaries of all your special dates – date you met, first date, first kiss, when you started “going steady,” when you first said the “L” word, birthday and other holiday wishes, etc. And if you’re really good at this, one note a day for every day of the year.
• A customized mug with your valentine message or a photo of the two of you printed on it (and date and year if desired).
• A personalized chair or piece of furniture. Go to thrift stores in your area and look for nice pieces of wood furniture. A good solid wooden chair or other small piece of furniture such as a small shelf can often be found for $5 or $10. Sand off the finish and paint it in your significant other’s favorite color. Don’t be afraid to be creative and use colors out of the norm. You will need: a pack of sandpaper, a paintbrush and some enamel paint, or a can of spray paint. All can be found for reasonable prices at Walmart and sand paper and brushes can be found at some dollar stores.

Gifts Under $30

• A nice set of feather pillows so he/she thinks of you before falling asleep each night.
• A set of fluffy new towels.
• For her: pastel colored hand weights to help her meet her fitness goals.

Gift + Date Ideas

As Valentine’s Day this year is on a Saturday, you might be able to spend the day together instead of just the evening. Here are some suggestions for activities for your Valentine’s date are also gifts.

• Make heart-shaped chocolate candy together – Chocolate Heart Making Kit.
• Make aromatic candles that can provide ambiance for a romantic dinner and evening in – Candle Making Kit.
• Personalize His & Hers chairs together. (Date version of the personalized chair idea above.)  Go to thrift stores together, pick out and paint chairs for each other.
• Make dinner together. Cook something neither of you have made before like an Indian curry or sushi – Sushi Kit with instructions.

Interesting  Fact: The word “Gift” in German, means “poison.”

Valentine’s Date Movies

A Valentine’s date doesn’t have to mean an expensive night out. In fact, a quiet night in watching movies together on the couch has more appeal to me. Here are a few suggestions and favorites of mine.

Under $10

• Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Audrey Hepburn)
• Notting Hill (Hugh Grant, Julia Roberts)
• You’ve Got Mail (Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks)
• Sleepless in Seattle (Meg Ryan, Tom Hanks)
• Sense & Sensibility (Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant)
• Pride & Prejudice (Keira Knightley, Matthew McFayden)
• Emma (Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeremy Northem)
• Bridget Jones’s Diary (Renee Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant)

Under $20

• Lady and the Tramp (Disney)
• North & South (Richard Armitage, Daniela Denby-Ashe)
• Sabrina (Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart)
• My Fair Lady (Audrey Hepburn, Harry Stradling Sr.)

Well, this wraps up our Valentine’s Gift and Date Suggestions. I hope you found at least a few helpful ideas here that will save you money but not get you called a “cheap date.” Just remember the purpose of the holiday is to honor the one you love, not compete for who gives the priciest gift.

The best gift would be to be considerate of him/her, everyday and not just on Valentine’s Day. Be creative, and be yourself.

Also check out our Frugal but Thoughtful Mother’s Day Gift Suggestions for more gift ideas.

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What does exercise and weight loss have to do with saving money?

Well, frugal living means living prudently, and preventing weight gain can save your health, and therefore potentially save you a lot of money, in the long run. Obesity is the leading cause of disease in this day and age, and disease costs money, even if you have health insurance. So while cliché, the saying that “prevention is the cheapest cure” really is true.

Tips for Burning Extra Calories in Your Day

These are suggestions of things you can do in the course of your day to help keep off excess weight. Some of these suggestions may not work for everyone – but there should be at least a few that can help you.

• Wear exercise shoes where and when you can
  I find wearing exercise shoes with proper foot support and air-cushioning encourages me to be more active in my daily activities (both at home and out). I tend to walk faster and with more energy. Needless to say, the more active you are in your movements, the more calories you will burn. If you don’t wear your outside shoes in your house, I would recommend having a pair of indoor exercise shoes for wearing at home.
• Stand instead of sit
  Whether you’re watching TV or playing games, standing instead of sitting can help you burn a few extra calories. While the number of calories might not be huge, standing after a meal can help aid in digestion.
• Park in the first space you find
  Not only does this save gas, but you can get a little exercise walking to and from your car.
• Fidget
  Our parents taught us when we were kids that it was rude to fidget, but the truth is that fidgeting can help you burn a lot more calories and separate fat from fit. But fidget with discernment; obviously there are times and places where fidgeting is not appropriate, but when watching TV or sitting in your office (where no one can see you and as long as it doesn’t affect your work), move around a little – wiggle your feet, shake your leg or bounce your knee once in a while.
• Drink tea
  Research has found that drinking tea before a workout helps increase calorie burn during the workout. Drinking tea during the day increase your metabolism by 4%. Also, green tea is full of antioxidants and has been found to help prevent a myriad of diseases such as stroke, heart disease and cancer.
• Exercise in shorter intervals
  Research has found that separating workout sessions into shorter intervals (like 20 minutes) helps to burn more calories than a long session. This is when a home gym can help you do this.
• Exercise while watching TV
  Pedal on an exercise bike, mini cycle or pedal exerciser (a much smaller device that you can easily move around the house), lift some hand weights or stretch while watching TV.
• Put down the remote control
  Get up to change the channel or volume on your TV set.
• Do yard work or garden
  Get rid of the yardman, save some money and get more exercise. Raking, mowing, digging, etc. can be very good exercise.
• Make exercise fun
  If you’re one of those who just can’t stand exercising purely for the sake of exercise, consider taking up a fun hobby or sport that you can enjoy doing while getting your necessary physical activity. Here are a few examples. Some may cost a little money, but if it’s not too much and in the interest of your health, it may be worth it. A few fun ways to get exercise are:
  • Ice skating
    Ice skating is a great low-impact, aerobic sport. Go skate a public session, and if you really enjoy it, consider signing up for lessons. Ice skating lessons may not be as expensive as you might think. Beginner lessons are often offered in groups and include skate rental.
  • Tennis
    Many community parks have tennis courts that are free to the public. You can pick up an inexpensive tennis racquet (around $20) and a can of tennis balls and go and bat it around a court. Even if you don’t play well, you will get a lot of exercise simply chasing the ball down (based on personal experience).
  • Basketball
    Pick up an inexpensive basketball (around $10) and go to the park and practice shooting. If you haven’t played for a while, it won’t be long before you start feeling the workout. If you can get a friend to go with you, you can play horseHorse to make it more fun, or one-on-one to get some cardio.
  • Martial Arts/Self-Defense
    Consider taking up a martial art such as karate, tae kwon do, tang soo do, etc. These classes usually include aerobic and strength building exercises, and you can learn a little self-defense, which can always be a good thing to know.
• Get a dog
  Of course, this is a major commitment and not for everyone. But if you have room in your life and live in a nice area with good places to walk and dog-friendly parks, having a dog to walk or play with regularly would help you get out of the house for some fresh air and exercise.

These are just a few examples of the ways you can get a little extra physical activity or calorie burn into your day. Be creative and have fun.

Diet and Habits

How and what you eat is up to you and depends on your preferred regime. However, keep these few simple things in mind that can make a huge difference in aiding in weight loss or preventing weight gain.

• Watch the sugary drinks
  Either skip the sugar altogether and use a no-calorie sweetener like Splenda (our preferred sweetener) or at least mix a little of both. If drinking juice, dilute it with water.
• Graze or eat smaller meals throughout the day
  Eating smaller portions spread throughout the day keeps the metabolism up, is easier on your stomach, and recommended for prevention of acid reflux and low blood sugar.
• Get enough sleep
  One of the many side effects of lack of sleep is weight gain.

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One of the regimes we tried when we were still living in Hawaii was getting up very early in the morning and riding our bikes (which we bought for this very purpose) to feed our horse who was stabled 3 miles away. We pedaled as fast as we could there and back before going to work in the morning. This worked great for about a week until one morning when we got caught in a rainstorm of biblical proportions, with winds that reduced our speed to a crawl, and I was sick for a week. We never did this again.

We also spent a few months, from December 2002 through April 2003, running 5 miles a night after work. We lost a lot of weight, but oftentimes it was extremely unpleasant as we did this at night and the Hawaiian winter weather was highly unpredictable (well Hawaiian weather all year round is) with high winds and sudden rain. After moving to California, we decided the best way to get our exercise would be to be able to do it at home any time of day or night, regardless of the weather, and also because the first neighborhood we lived in wasn’t somewhere we wanted to be walking or running outside.

Our Mini Home Gym

We went to Walmart and picked up an foldable motorized treadmill for $200. For a motorized treadmill, this machine is very small and easy to store. When we’re done working out, we just fold it up and push it into a corner. It also has adustable incline and speed, and progress display of distance and calories. Unfortunately, this kind of treadmill is no longer available for $200 as that was 5 1/2 years ago, but more advanced models of the same brand are now available for around $400 (Weslo Cadence C44 Treadmill), still a decent price for a treadmill. Manual folding treadmills (without motors) like the one pictured to the left are also available for a little over $100 these days.

The winter after buying our treadmill, we also bought one of these pedal exercisers for under $30 (nowadays around $36). As can be expected from the price, it was simply constructed but it had adjustable resistance and worked extremely well; I could feel a difference in my legs within hours. We took this pedal exerciser on a trip to visit relatives and our grandmother liked it so much that she asked us to leave it for her.

A couple of years later, we added a recumbent stationary bike with magnetic resistance which we bought for $100 (again from Walmart) to our home gym. We love this bike and have pedaled thousands of miles on it while watching movies at home. This bike has lasted amazingly long, considering it has worked days as long as 10-12 hours during our Horatio Hornblower movie marathon last Christmas. The belt finally broke a few weeks ago after years of hard service, but we can still pedal without resistance, which means very fast pedaling (something I have find more fun than pedaling slower with resistance). Nowadays, it looks like these can be had for around $160: Phoenix 99608 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike

We added this more advanced fitness mini cycle to our home gym this winter so that we can have resistance pedaling again, and we can both pedal when we don’t feel like getting on the treadmill. What we like most about this bike is that it doesn’t take up much room and we can easily move it where we want to so we can pedal while reading, watching TV or playing games at the table. This mini bike can also be set on a chair or table for working the arms. It comes with an LED monitor for counting calories, reps, time and distance, which is helpful.

For our anaerobic exercise, we have a few hand weights which we use while watching movies to work our biceps, triceps, deltoids, transverse abdominals and forearms.

Saving Money, Time and Gas

So, for an initial investment of a few hundred dollars, you can end up saving thousands from gym membership fees and get your exercise whenever you want without having to leave your house. If you drive to go to a gym, you can save gas as well. Watching movies is one of our hobbies, so we can feel justified in buying some new DVDs once in a while because they help to keep us entertained during our exercise sessions.

Getting More Exercise

Some may argue that exercising artificially on a machine and in front of the television isn’t as healthy or beneficial as doing so in the open air. This may be true if the open air isn’t near traffic and smog emissions. But it definitely is better than no exercise at all. I know that I get a lot more exercise with our home gym because having the equipment right here makes it so much easier to just jump on and work out. If it weren’t here, I’d probably be lying in bed reading or sitting at the computer all the time instead of just some of the time.

When you don’t feel like leaving the warmth of your house to go running, or to drive to the gym, consider investing in some modestly priced exercise equipment. Having exercise equipment conveniently at home will help you stay in shape because:

• it eliminates a step or two of preparation that you would have to take in order to workout outside of your home
• you can space out your workouts for maximum calorie burn without having to squeeze everything into one time slot, and
• you don’t have to worry about how you look while working out and can do so in your underwear if you so desire.

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• Free Printable Templates: Miniature Flower, Treat, Gift or Decorative Baskets
• Free Printable Templates: Holiday Snowflake Gift Tags, Treat and Mini Carrier Bags

The topic for this month’s PF Bloggers Group Writing Project is our Favorite Christmas Memories. My favorite memory is our first Christmas in our own house, which was 2006. We bought our house in November 2005, but we had to travel out of the country to attend a cousin’s wedding – actually we were bridesmaids for the wedding – so our first Christmas in our house was 2006.

On Black Friday 2006, we went to Walmart for some shopping, and because we take our dogs everywhere with us and they were in the car, Madoline and I took turns going in to shop. Madoline went second, and when she came out, she had an 8′ Douglas Fir in a shopping cart. Thus began our Christmas festivities. We moved the dogs to the front seat, put the backseat down and shoved the tree into the car and it fit just perfectly with the tip of the tree at the dashboard. We drove the 50-minute trip home with Madoline and the 2 dogs in the front passenger seat (one sitting on the floor and one in her lap), the tree at my elbow and the whole car smelling like Christmas.

Wrestling the tree out of the car, sawing off a bit of the bottom and putting it in the tree stand was a bit of an ordeal, but we finally got it standing almost completely straight in our music room (a dining room for most people). This was our dogs’ first Christmas (they would turn 1 on January 5) and while they had no idea what Christmas was, they could tell it was exciting and were all over the place as we got out the ornaments and decorated the tree.

Because this was their first Christmas, we made them Christmas clothes and dressed them up for pictures. After the hours we put into making the clothes, we had to make sure we got lots of good pictures because they would grow out of them in a matter of weeks. Here are some of our favorites.

 

Since this was our first official Christmas with the 2 of us and our new family, we decided to allow ourselves a budget of $100 to shop for each other. In previous years, since living on our own, we either skipped presents or had small budgets of $20 each. This year we went all out. We took a couple of shopping trips to the mall where we again took turns going into stores to buy each other presents, then had to make the other personal look the other way while we put them in and took the out of the trunk.

After we got home, we snuck our gifts to our rooms  and then rooted around the house for boxes to put them in, wrapped our presents and put them under the tree. (This is my favorite part.) We also did some shopping online and whenever the mail carrier rang the doorbell, we ran to the door to make sure the other person wouldn’t see anything. Madoline couldn’t decide what else to buy for me when she still had $40 left, so I ordered the Ticket to Ride German Map Ediition as a present for both of us.

On Christmas Eve, we each opened one present. I wanted to play the Ticket to Ride game so I chose that one as the one I wanted to open but made Madoline open it. We stayed up till 4 a.m. playing that game and whenever we play it now, I think about that Christmas. When we got up on Christmas Day, the first thing both of us wanted to do was to continue playing Ticket to Ride, which we call by it’s German name which is a lot more fun – Zug um Zug [tsoog-oom-tsoog]. So we played Zug um Zug and then each opened a present, then we’d play another game, open another present, one of which was Carcassonne (another of my favorite German strategy games), and so on.

Because our business is mostly seasonal and centered around major holidays, we decided to take a vacation after we shipped out our last Christmas orders (our Christmas rush started the beginning of November and ended around mid-December). We spent the couple of weeks after Christmas hanging out, watching movies, playing games, drinking Earl Grey tea and eating chocolate.

We had also gotten presents for our dogs – little stuffed animals toys that they could play with while we relaxed – and we got enough to give them each one for each of the 12 days of Christmas starting on Christmas Day and ending on Epiphany, their birthday. On their birthday, we baked them a carrot-oatmeal-peanut butter cake which they enjoyed and smeared all over my bed.

That was our first Christmas in our own house, and thus far, my favorite Christmas memory.

* * *

About the PF Bloggers Group Writing Project

The Personal Finance Bloggers Network is a group of personal finance and frugal living blogs. The Group Writing Project is a monthly project wherein each blog will write a post on a pre-determined topic and publish it on the same day of each month. Be sure to visit thePF Bloggers Group Writing Projectpage for the others!

Extended Group Writing Project Invitation

If you are a blogger, we would like to invite you to write your own post on this topic and submit it for listing with our entries on our Group Writing Project pages. Please visit the following page for details on how to participate in our Extended Group Writing Project

Related posts:

• Frugal Christmas: Skipping the Tree and Presents This Year
• Holiday Blog Carnivals
• Free Printable Templates: Christmas Candy Stripe and Plaid Carrier Gift Bags
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Free Printable Templates: Holiday Snowflake Gift Tags, Treat and Mini Carrier Bags

The practice of gift card giving for Christmas is highly debated, and from what I have seen in a lot of online forums, highly frowned upon as lacking in thought and effort. But I must confess, I am not one of those who frown upon gift cards for Christmas and actually like them. And I strongly believe that in the current economy, gift cards can be more of a blessing to many people than presents.

How Gift Cards Can Be a Blessing This Christmas

Many of us are worried about not having enough money for living expenses in the coming months and possibly years. A gift card to a useful store or a Visa or American Express gift card that can be used to purchase groceries and other necessities could be more helpful than say an Xbox or iPhone.

Multiple Gift Cards Into One Big Gift

Even in times without economic crisis, I don’t believe there is anything wrong with giving or receiving gift cards. Despite the common belief that gift cards are an easy way out and show a lack of thoughtfulness, I think that in a way, they can show thought.

For example, say a family wants or needs a new television (or computer or washing machine if you prefer the more practical) and their friends and relatives know about this. Instead of each person giving a gift, they could all give gift cards that can be pooled together and applied toward the purchase of the big item they really want or need.

This can be for things practical or non-practical. But the end result would be the recipient being better able to afford something more expensive they could otherwise afford on their own.

Why Not Just Give Cash?

While gift cards are almost the same as giving cash, they are a little more subtle and a step closer to the gift category. Giving cash for Christmas may feel a little blunt, and maybe even crude to some people. And while a gift card is just cash in another form, the name and implications are a little more gift-like. With a gift card, the recipient has a choice in regards to what their gift will be – be it food, clothes or a luxury.

Examples of Gift Cards That Can Be Helpful During Economic Crisis

• Visa or American Express Gift Cards

  These can be used to buy necessities such as groceries or household necessities anywhere Visa or Amex are accepted. They can be used in store, online and by phone, but be sure to include the accompanying instructions. I would recommend going with Visa as they are more widely accepted than Amex.

  If you wish to add a personal touch to your gift card, GiftCards.com lets you design your own cards with custom images.

  

• Amazon Gift Certificates or Cards

  Amazon.com has a huge selection of merchandise including dry groceries, personal care items, household supplies, clothing, furniture and home improvement. An Amazon.com Gift Card or Gift Certificate can be used to buy anything through the Amazon website including those from the Marketplace (fulfilled by merchants other than Amazon).
  

• Department Store Gift Cards

  Department Store Gift Cards such as the Target Candy Cane Zebra Gift Card pictured below could be helpful to families with children who need to buy things like school clothes and shoes, as well as things for the house.
  

Thoughtful Gift Cards

If you want to show that you do put thought and effort in the giving of a gift card, purchase one from a store or type of store that sells niche items for your recipient’s personal interests or hobbies. Many stores these days sell gift cards – it’s no longer just the big department stores:

• Toys and Games
• Books
• Music or iTunes
• Electronics
• Clothing
• Home improvement
• Restaurants
• Specialty and niche stores such as our own custom dog clothing and costume business. The recipient can select the item and have it customized to his/her pet.

Of course, if you’re just not comfortable with giving gift cards, there is nothing wrong with a traditional gift. After all, the Christmas tradition is one of luxury, and gifts should be luxuries. Only this year, and every year until the current economic crisis is past, I believe gift cards might be more well received than in previous years.

Related posts:

• Holiday Blog Carnivals
• Free Printable Templates: Christmas Candy Stripe and Plaid Carrier Gift Bags
• Free Printable Templates: Holiday Snowflake Gift Tags, Treat and Mini Carrier Bags
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Frugal Christmas: Skipping the Tree and Presents This Year

It has been a busy week for us here at Our Fourpence Worth. We partipated in another PF Bloggers Network Group Writing Project, the topic of which was our Personal Experiences with Loans. We wrote about the first time we purchased a car on our own and got in a little trouble by being clueless as to how the credit, loan and auto sales industries work. It was a once in a lifetime mistake that you can be sure we won’t ever be making again – Learning From Our Mistakes: Our First (Auto) Loan.

Check out the PF Bloggers Group Writing Projects page for more, and if you are a personal finance or frugal living blogger, you are invited to join in our Extended Group Writing Project. We also hosted the 16th Edition of the Finance Fiesta, the theme of which was “Devote Your Life to Money!” a cynical poem by David Kessel about the virtues of money.

A quick note before we begin with today’s roundup, we have been doing roundups once a month for the past few months, but plan to begin doing them twice a month. The reason we don’t do weekly roundups as many other bloggers do is simply because of our personal, work and blogging schedule. As you’ve probably noticed, we only manage to publish about 3 original posts a week so weekly roundups would not be a good balance of original and linking posts. OK, now on with the roundup.

PF Bloggers Network Members

• Wide Open Wallet shares her reasons for eating out. $400 a month is quite a lot, but if you enjoy it and can afford it, bon appetit!
• No Debt Plan talks about his “Thing”: Keeping a Bunch of Old Magazines. We have a similar “thing”. My Wall Street Journal pile, for instance, will soon be a WSJ mountain.
• Living Almost Large asks: is spending wrong? As with eating out, it really is all about what you can afford.
  
• Master Your Card gives a guide on How to Balance your Checkbook. In this electronic age, it probably is the norm to not know how to do this. Might I also suggest our Monopoly Game Expansion #2: Personal Checking Account for a fun way to practice this important skill.
• Girls Just Wanna Have Funds offers some car buying advice (something I was planning to do as well to follow up our experience with our car loan): Put On Your Lace Gloves: Get The Car You Want At A Price You Can Afford.

Elsewhere in the Personal Finance Blogosphere

• The Simple Dollar gives us Why Many “Alternative Income” Ideas Aren’t Worth Your Time – And What You Might Do With It Instead.
• I enjoyed Money Ning’s What Motivates You to Make Money? It is important to know and not lose sight of your true motives.
• Living Well on Less explains the beneifts of Life without a microwave. We did this for a while when our 12+ year old microwave died. It was a little inconvenient sometimes, but not at all impossible.
• Saving Advice gives us Ten Money-Saving Reasons to Get Out of Bed Early.
• Taxguy instructs on Items to Bring to Your Individual Tax Preparation Appointment.

Carnival Participation

Lately I’ve been really disorganized and have consistently forgotten to submit to blog carnivals, but I did manage to remember one. We’d like to thank The Personal Financier for including my post on Switching to Paperless Statements in the Carnival of Personal Finance #170 – Famous Last Sentences Edition. This edition features many [entertaining] statements, hopefully fictitious, that have not always resulted in a good end for the money manager or investor who said it. One of my favorites is #20: “It just can’t get any lower than this…”

Head on over for more personal finance reading recommendations.

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• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise

If this is your first time here, please have a look around and consider subscribing to our RSS feed, which can be delivered in various forms of web based readers as well as email.

Our Fourpence Worth is all about frugal living and making smart choices in personal finance. We write about things we have learned and are learning as we strive for financial freedom and we offer tips for saving money in various aspects of life: personal, home improvement and decoration, family, money management, pet care, frugal recipes and more, as well as our opinions on current affairs related to our subject.

To give you an idea of the kind of topics we write about, here are a few of our posts that have done quite well in the blogosphere:

• My Favorite Money and Time Saving Websites
• Simple Solutions to Staying Out of Debt
• Resisting the Urge to Splurge
• Monopoly Game Expansions for Learning Money Management and Investment Principles
• Frugal Travel Begins Before the Trip: Vacation Preparation Checklist
• Guide to Safe and Smart Traveling with Pets
• Fast & Frugal Recipe: Yakisoba (Japanese Chow Mein)

Check out the “Most Popular Posts” section on the sidebar to the right (below “Categories”) for more popular posts. To learn more about us and this blog, please visit About this Blog and More About Us.

Thanks for stopping by!

Penelope and Madoline

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It’s been a somewhat hectic and busy month what with 100+ degree weather just about everyday since the beginning of June, car trouble and my messed up sleep schedule. I know my posting has been rather irregular, and I apologize to my regular readers. Our cousins’ 3-month visit is winding to an end – she’ll be leaving on Tuesday July 7th – so we’ll be trying to spend as much time together as possible in the next few days. After that I hope to be able to get back to posting a little more regularly.

That said, the past month has gone quite well for Our Fourpence Worth. Our Money Management Monopoly Game Expansion series has met with pretty good reception in the financial blogosphere, 2 of them having been chosen as Editor’s Picks in recent blog carnivals and quite a few mentions at other blogs. This also means we’ve had to do a lot of test-playing of our expansions, which hasn’t exactly been torturous labor.

I’m also really excited to be slated to host the Festival of Frugality on August 19, 2008 and the Money Hacks Carnival on August 20, 2008. We’ve also received the honor of being included in the Personal Finance category at alltop.com.

OK, now on to our round-up for this month.

PF Bloggers

First of all, I would like to announce that the PF Bloggers network is starting a monthly group writing project wherein each member of our network will be writing about a pre-selected topic on the 15th of each month. Our first topic will be our personal/family financial history and basically what influenced or inspired us to live frugally and/or aspire to financial freedom.

• No Debt Plan gives us 2 reasons we should care about his toothpaste savings.
• Master Your Card posted some amusing things children said about credit cards.
• Future Millionaire shares her reasons for tipping generously.
• Wide Open Wallet tells us why she likes high gas prices.
• Pinching Copper contemplates whether a Costco or Sam’s Club membership is worth the money.

Elsewhere in the Personal Finance Blogosphere

• Frugal Dad asks Who is Responsible for Your Misery Index? Hint: The answer is under, over and behind your nose.
  
• The Simple Dollar posted A By-The-Numbers Look at Why Saving Is More Important Than Perfect Investment Choices. This is a relief, because I’ve been worrying that we were missing out on a lot by not having invested already.
• The Digirati Life gives us 7 Ways To Handle Unexpected Expenses and Financial Emergencies.
• While this isn’t strictly a personal finance blog, Zen Habits shares a great guide on succeeding at what you do: 9 Steps to Achieving Flow (and Happiness) in Your Work.

That’s it for today. Have a good one!

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise

As for actual gifts, we believe most mothers would appreciate something you made or put some thought and effort into. Below are some suggestions for Mother’s Day gifts. Ideally, you would do some of these things all year round, but Mother’s Day is a good time for them too. Not all of these ideas will suit everyone, but hopefully some of these will work for you and your mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, wife, or any other maternal figure in your life.

Note: Not all of these suggestions are really “frugal” as in “cheap”, but they are frugal in that they are ideas for prudent, useful and practical, but still meaningful gifts that show you’ve put thought and effort into it and, therefore less likely to go to waste as many commercial Mother’s Day gifts tend to.

Hobby Gift Baskets

A few suggestions for baskets you can assemble. You can often find nice baskets at dollar stores or at thrift stores for a very low price. Many of the items recommended in the following list (i.e. books and music) can be purchase used and still in good condition. Used items often clean up nicely with a bit of rubbing alcohol and a paper towel. And even purchased new, these items still make useful gifts with lasting benefits.

• For the Literary Mom
  If she likes to read, scour used books stores and library sales for books she would like (mysteries, vintage books, classics, etc. – paperbacks suggested) and assemble a book basket. You could even include a few snacks to enjoy while she reads (cookies, chocolates, cocoa, tea or coffee mix).
• For the Crafty Mom
  A basket of yarns, fabrics, sewing, knitting or crochet supplies. You could pick out a craft instructions book, find a project she might like and assemble the necessary supplies for that project.
• For the Musical Mom
  CD’s, sheet music, and music books. You might pick a particular theme such as Mozart, Beethoven, Debussy, romantic piano, or Italian opera or music from her youth. For older moms, you might have to include a CD player. For pianist moms make or buy a cushion for the piano bench (the unpadded ones are incredibly hard even for young bodies).
• For Moms with Pets
  Assemble inside a new litter box or pet bed: treats and necessities such as grooming supplies, pet vitamins, hair catching tools, odor control, collars and leashes, training equipment, hair bows, super odor suppressing cat litter, car restraints (seat belts), and/or an obedience class paid for by you.
• For the Gardening Mom
  An assortment of seed packets with flowers, spices, fruits, and vegetables. The frugal mom may save a lot of money growing her own produce. For areas with insect problems, herbs such as lavender may deter bugs from the home. You can also include a book on using herbs for health and beauty and include seeds for the plants described.
• For Culinary Moms
  Collect free recipes online to present on index cards or a handmade book. You might choose recipes based on a theme, such as appetizers, a certain ethnicity, a favorite ingredient, or health benefits. You might wish to include few kitchen gifts like a baking pans, knives, silverware bought on clearance (we got ours for under $5), cheese graters, rolling pins, seeds for herbs or young herb plants. Instead of a basket, you could give a blender filled with fruits and smoothie recipes.
• For the Scrapbooking Mom
  Scrapbook supplies and the promise to provide future memories for her to document. Look for creative scrapbook materials such as pretty paper salvages from greeting cards, gift wrapping paper, and nice packaging from things you buy. Ribbon, beads, lace, small toys, letters of the alphabet cut from magazines, cards, and used books. Doilies and decorative embellishments can be purchased at half price or less after a holiday. Glue and scissors might be useful too.

Home and Garden Help

• Clean her house for her (this is one of those that may not suit all personalities)
• Tidy her garden or yard for her
• Go through her house and look for things that need minor (or major) repairs and maintenance and fix them if you can, or arrange for professional assistance if necessary
• Clean all her windows, inside and out. This is a sure way to brighten a life.
• Check smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and replace batteries if needed. Install a carbon monoxide detector if she doesn’t have one.

Favors and Services

• Make a nice breakfast and clean up afterwards
• Wash her car, vacuum the interior, clean the upholstery and carpet, take it for a tune up and oil change, check and inflate the tires if needed, and preset her favorite radio stations.

Flowers

• Buy some flowers to plant for or with her (small plants and flowers are often available for under $1.00 at garden centers and even drugstores like Rite-Aid)
• Instead of cut flowers, which while nice, are not very frugal because they only last a few days, you could give her a vase for putting flowers from other flower gifters (this way she’ll think of you every time someone else gives her flowers)
• Give attractive artificial flowers that last all year round. You could even fashion them into curtain tiebacks or trim a hat with them (just use hot glue).

Health and Fitness

• If she doesn’t get enough exercise due to weather, time, environmental or other constraints, consider a Pedal Exerciser that she can use while sitting at home – i.e. on the couch while watching TV. (We bought one of these for ourselves when we lived in the Bay Area where it was cold in the winter, and our grandmother took it because she said it was perfect for her situation.)
• Dumbbells in a pretty color. For the non-athletic mom, you might get a pair of 2 lb. dumbbells.
• Make slipcovers for her stationary bike, treadmill, or other exercise equipment.
• Spend the day with your mom, watching DVDs and pedaling or doing some other aerobic exercise.

Pets

While pets are not considered a frugal gift for the giver or recipient, they can bring a host of other benefits that make the cost worthwhile. Pets are especially good for elderly people who live alone and can use the companionship and are capable – physically, mentally and financially – of caring for them. If your mother lives alone and is fond of animals, a nice gift would be to help her adopt a pet. There are thousands of cats and dogs in need of good homes, and studies have shown that pets bring many health benefits, both physical and mental, to their owners including:

• Lower blood pressure
• Lower cholesterol
• Lower stress and anxiety levels
• Fighting depression and loneliness
• Faster recovery after illness
• Overall better health and fewer doctor’s visits

However, don’t surprise her with a pet. Rather, discuss it with her ahead of time and if she likes the idea and is sure that it is a commitment she is capable of taking on, go to a local animal shelter, pet rescue or other pet re-homing organization together and spend some time choosing a suitable pet for her. Be sure the animal you choose is suitable for in various ways:

• Type of Pet
  While both dogs and cats provide companionship, dogs tend to be more interactive and require more attention and maintenance than cats. Cats and dogs are not the only types of pets to be had, however. Birds, mice, gerbils, hamsters, chinchillas and guinea pigs also provide a presence and can help fill the space and quiet of an empty apartment or house.
• Size and Weight
  Make sure the animal is a size and weight that she can handle. If it is a dog, it should be a weight that she can easily control when walking on a leash.
• Age of Pet
  For elderly persons, mature pets are often more suitable, as they do not require as much physical interaction and activity as young animals, and will have reached a more stable mental, social and emotional level.
• Home Environment
  Make sure the animal will be compatible with the living space. Size isn’t necessarily the only factor to consider, but disposition. A small but high energy dog may or may not be suitable for a small living space, and there are older and larger dogs that can live happily and comfortably in smaller living spaces.

There is no end to the benefits and happiness pets can bring people, especially elderly people who live alone, so if you think your mother might be a suitable candidate for pet ownership, here are a few links to websites with more information on pet ownership for the elderly:

• How Pets Help People
• Animals and Your Health: The Benefits of Pet Ownership
• Safe Dog Breeds for Elderly People
• The Pets for the Elderly Foundation
• The Importance of Pets for Elderly People

Again, remember that pet ownership, regardless of the size or type of pet, is a responsibility not to be taken lightly and sprung on your mother without prior research and consultation with her.

These are just a few suggestions. Whatever you choose to do, remember that what your mother will appreciate most of all is the thought and effort put into the gift and not the monetary value of it.

Happy Mother’s Day!

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Under the Weather – Recommended Reading
• Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth) 1 Year Anniversary
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Software

• Open Office
  The Open Office Suite is similar to the Microsoft Office Suite. There is a word processor (Writer), spreadsheet (Calc), drawing (Draw), database (Base), presentation (Impress). There’s even a math program for doing math calculations, but I don’t really understand or have much need for it. You have a choice of installing all the programs or just the ones that you need – i.e. we just use Writer, Calc and Draw. While Open Office is not quite as fancy and aesthetically pleasing as the Microsoft programs, they are more than capable of most everyday and business tasks. We use the Calc program for accounting and taxes, Draw for drafting patterns for our dog clothing designs, and Writer for letters, invoices, coupons, etc.
• Thunderbird
  For email, I recommend Thunderbird, which is a great alternative to the Microsoft Outlook email program. Like Outlook, it has filtering, junk mail control, etc. You can install the calendar add-on Lightning if you need/want it. The Sunbird calendar program is also available as a separate program if you don’t use Thunderbird or prefer not to use add-ons.
• Foxit
  Foxit is a pdf reader similar to Adobe Acrobat Reader with annotation features such as highlighting, drawing graphics and typing text, and conversion to plain text.
• Filezilla
  Filezilla is a nice and easy to use FTP program. I use it for working on my Zen Cart and Wordpress sites, which is much easier than uploading through my webhosting browser ftp.
• The GIMP
  The GIMP is a graphics program and a Photoshop alternative of sorts. This program isn’t as advanced as Photoshop, but is probably competent enough for the average casual user for basic photo touch-ups or graphics. (We use Adobe Photshop Elements for our business graphics and photos.)

Browsers

• Firefox
  I think this browser has surpassed Internet Explorer in popularity by now and you’ve probably either heard of it or already use it. We have been using Firefox for almost 4 years now and it is our primary browser. It is much faster than IE, and while I have found that it’s not as fast as SeaMonkey or Opera, the number of available add-ons enable you to customize it is so many ways that the convenience surpasses the downside of slightly slower (but still very decent) browsing speed.
  
• SeaMonkey (Mozilla)
  SeaMonkey is an all-in-one internet suite that comes with browser, HTML editor, mail and news client and chat applications, and other web development tools. As mentioned above, I have found the SeaMonkey browser to be faster than Firefox. The main reason I downloaded SeaMonkey was because I had need of a good WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) HTML editor, and the SeaMonkey one has worked very well for the occasional webpage design. I’ve also used the mail client in the past and found it quite decent.
• Opera
  I downloaded Opera mainly for webmastering purposes to make sure all my websites are displaying properly. A lot of people have said that Opera is the fastest browser, but I’ve found it to be about the same as, if not a little slower, than SeaMonkey. It’s a very nice-looking browser however, with a very convenient “speed-dial” page for quick access of your frequent online haunts.

Web Development

• WordPress
  This is the php program I use to manage this site. You can pretty much see for yourself what it does, but I will add that it is a wonderfully clever and very easy to use program. There are scores of plug-ins you can install to add additional functions and features. Download it for free at WordPress.org.
• Zen Cart
  I use the Zen Cart php shopping cart for our Franga Designs website where we sell pet clothing and costumes. As with WordPress, there are hundreds of modules you can install to add additional features to your store.
• OsCommerce
  OsCommerce is another php shopping cart script similar to Zen Cart. I personally like Zen Cart better and found it to be less buggy than osCommerce. However, there are many people who use osCommerce.

Operating Systems

• Ubuntu
  Ubuntu is a linux-based operating system that comes with pretty much anything you need: web browsers, office applications, instant messaging, games, media players and graphics applications. There are a myriad other applications that you can easily install through the control panel. To a non-linux user, it may look a little foreign at first and take some getting used to, but it works just as well as Windows and best of all it’s free. Just go to the Ubuntu website to download it or you can request a free CD to be sent to you completely free of charge.

For the most part, we still use Windows XP as it came free and pre-installed with our current computer, but we have an Ubuntu CD on hand for when Windows acts up, which inevitably happens once in a while, so we can still handle our business affairs.

A good place to start looking for free software is Softpedia where you can search for, download and try various types of programs (some are free, but some are not). I highly recommend that you always do a little research on the web to find out more about a program before downloading and installing it.

For more information on open source and free software:
GNU Operating System
Open Source Iniative

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