Do We Earn Things Anymore?

After stealing, errr.. borrowing, my husband's Men's Health, I came across this very interesting article about the fiscally fit man. The author had 5 areas for "debt weakness", but the one that struck me the most was perverting the American Dream.

Decades ago, the American Dream was pretty simple. If you could afford to buy expensive things, like a car or a house with a white picket fence, you were doing pretty well. Most of the time, you had to buy with cash or a large downpayment. People saved for years and years to buy big ticket items. They tightened their belts and budgeted down to every last penny. With the explosion of buying things on credit and having long-term loans, it seems most people have lost the concept of earning nice things. People max out their credit cards or take out multiple loans in order to get something they feel they deserve. Do you know the average American household has nearly $11,000 in credit card debt? I understand that times are still tough for a lot of folks, and credit cards are a necessity just to get by when you're in between jobs. But I would make a guess that not all people who carry a large balance on their cards are people who are out of work and trying to support a family.

I will acknowledge I'm part of this perversion. While my husband and I saved for 2 years for a house downpayment, it wasn't a traditional 20%. True, to save 20% to buy a house in the Seattle metro area likely means you would be saving for at least 10 years, and I know that's the case in many other parts of the country. And while we have paired down to be a one car family, we still have a loan for our car. We put down a chunk of money and got the shortest loan term we could, but we don't own either of our big ticket purchases free and clear.

On the bright side, we have ZERO credit card debt and have had it that way for nearly 3 years. And now we save for mostly everything else. Taking a vacation? We have a vacation fund...if we can't afford it, we wait until we can. How about a shiny, new appliance, like an energy efficient washing machine that I've been lusting after? We're saving up to hopefully buy one in the fall. We have a 6-9 month emergency fund that we spent a year to build in case something drastic happens. We don't have the desire (or ability, after becoming a one income family) to go out and spend a ton of money on non-essential items.

I understood the concept of earning better when I was 12 than I do now. If there wasn't enough money in my wallet, I couldn't get it. I could do more household chores or babysit more neighbors, but I didn't have the option of buying it now and paying for it later like so many of us do today.

The question still nags me - do we earn things anymore? Often, people feel they deserve luxury or expensive things because they work hard, or they're a good person, or insert other reasons here. And while I'm all for celebrating success and rewarding ourselves, does it come at too high a price? Keeping up with the Joneses is costing us big time.

What do you think? Do we earn things anymore? What was the last big ticket item you purchased? Did you charge it and pay it off little by little, or did you save for awhile and pay for it all up front? How did it feel?

Will You Ever Retire?

It's been well documented in this blog that I'm totally freaked out about retirement. Yes, it's still a good 35 years away, but expenses are also going to start creeping up with a baby (and another one in the future) - add to that a bigger house eventually, college funds times two...oh man. Why do all the good things in life have to cost so much money?

So I was reading this great article in Money Under 30 and felt a little sick to my stomach after I was done. According to blogger David Weliver (and others in the PF world), you should have anywhere from 1-2 years salary in your 401K or other retirement account by the time you reach 30. Uh, what? I mean, I thought I was doing okay in my retirement savings, but 1-2 years salary?

After my husband was laid off in 2009, we were completely focused on building up our emergency fund to last 6 months. When we found out we were pregnant, we started building a healthy savings account for medical and baby expenses. So instead of upping my retirement contributions (like I intended to do a year ago), my money was saved in other places. Did I make the right choice?

I'd love to hear from you all out there - does anyone have (or did you have if you're over 30) a year or two's worth of your salary in your retirement accounts? How did you do it?

Giving Up Cable

Okay, not quite. I love the heck out of TV, particularly cable. My DVR tapes over 10 shows a week. I have a sick obsession with multiple shows on Bravo - anything with Bethenny Frankel, or a show that starts with "The Real Housewives of..." I will most likely watch. And then they sucker me in with spinoffs and new shows that look AMAZING.

But I hate paying the piper for my addiction. Every month when the Comcast bill comes, I feel a little nauseous. It also includes our internet service, but $160 a month for reality shows and NBC sitcoms? I am so torn between my want to save money/feel like less of a couch potato and the sheer entertainment value of watching grown women throw wine at each other. And yes, I am that person that calls every few months to negotiate a lower rate by threatening to get a dish or cut my cable. But still, I wonder if even the reduced high cost of cable is worth it.

So when my good friends and fellow TV afficianados Kate and her fiance Joseph brought up giving up cable, I was shocked! They, too, love TV (and they watch better shows than I do) - how could they even consider? But their suggestions of watching streaming shows via Hulu/Netflix and paying 99 cents for others on iTunes really had me thinking...could I do this?

For one thing, it would help prioritize what I really want to watch. The ability for me to tape shows has caused me to delve deeper into the basement with bad TV. Another Kardashian show? Okay. What's this new cooking competition? Sure. Put it on my queue. If I didn't have access to DVR and cable and had to pay per individual show, 80% of what I watch currently probably wouldn't make the cut. Is this show worth 99 cents to watch? Sad that I'm watching shows that aren't even worth a buck.

Are there any other TV addicts out there that have cleaned up and given up cable? How is life on the other side?

Saving Some Bucks with Baby

While I'm a neophyte parent, I'm well aware of how expensive babies and children are. But in my very limited experience, I have learned strategies on my own or through my very smart parent friends on how to save money with a new family member in the picture.

*Go Gender Neutral - while it is SO tempting to get all those cute gender specific clothes or furniture, try to steer clear of getting everything in boy or girl styles, particularly if you're planning on having more than one child. I'm not going to sit here and say that my husband and I have nothing girly - we totally do. However, many of our big purchases (like the stroller, car seat, etc) are gender neutral. It doesn't seem to make a ton of sense to spend hundreds of dollars on equipment to last a few years to not be able to use it again if or when another baby is welcomed into your family.

*Have Multipurpose Furniture - who wants to spend a couple hundred bucks on furniture only to have it serve a few years? My husband and I were pretty savvy when it came to shopping for nursery furniture. We purchased a crib that converts into a toddler bed (you can even find some cribs that will convert into a full sized bed), and instead of a changing table, we got a dresser that a changing pad can be secured to and then removed. We wanted to get furniture that would grow with our daughter and viewed it as an investment as opposed to furniture for the baby stage in her life.

*Cloth Diaper - I know that this sounds completely crazy to most people. And it very well could be, as it is not yet something my husband and I have actually done yet. But if you can make the commitment to cloth diaper, it can save you beaucoup bucks (an estimated $1500-$2000 over the diapering process according to Consumer Reports). The value doubles if you can reuse your diapers for another child. And cloth diapers today are totally different than they were a generation ago - no pins, but velcro and snaps instead! Obviously, there might be an initial yuck factor to get over and the startup costs are more steep(anywhere from $12-$20 per diaper), but most likely, the diapers will pay for themselves within the first 6-8 months. Plus, it's good for the environment. Oh yeah, and they're super cute. What's not to like?

*DON'T Register for Clothes - most family and friends are excited to shower your new arrival in clothes - they're cute, easy to pick up and fun to shop for! You may even have some people who want to give you their old baby clothes for free. Save space on your registry for other things you may really need. If you don't get enough baby clothes, they are quite easy and cheap to pick up at places like Target, Babies R Us, or even Goodwill. Also with clothes, be careful of buying too many before baby's here. Your baby may not fit into newborn clothes. Or those cute seasonal clothes (fleece jackets and mittens, or summery clothes) may not fit when the weather's appropriate.

*DON'T Stock Up - I know, this seems counterintuitive. You want to be prepared and in control. But babies have personalities, and just like you, preferences. Maybe they won't like those pricey bottles you have 10 of. Maybe the swaddling blankets you bought 4 of will make baby uncomfortable. Start with getting one of a few different types and see what your baby prefers. It might seem a little wasteful at first, but not using one item sure beats not being able to use a dozen, don't you think?

*Know What to Get Second-Hand - there are plenty of things you can get at Goodwill, on Craig's List or handed down from friends and family. And it will save you a TON. But be careful - baby items are frequently recalled. Do your research and make sure the good deal is also in the best interest of your baby's health and safety. You can't put a price on that.

*Nurse - if you can, breastfeed. Not only have studies shown it's the best for your baby, but it's FREE! :) Of course, breastfeeding does come with expenses (pumps, clothing, accessories, etc), but compared to the costs of formula, you'll save a lot of money. Bonus - it's good for moms! You burn up to 600 calories a day AND it is linked to lower instances of breast cancer!

Hey moms and dads out there! Anything else you did to save money?

Think Small!

Bigger is better, right? Well, I'll take a bigger piece of cake, a bigger salary or a bigger blanket to avoid cold toes, but I don't think bigger is always better. For instance, take housing.

Since we've had baby on the brain for the last 9 months or so, people keep asking us what "stuff" we need. Baby stuff can be endless and take up a lot of space in your house. But my husband and I have been pretty good (in my opinion) of avoiding "stuff" for stuff's sake, primarily based on the fact we don't have room for it in our 1400 square foot house. It got me thinking that maybe having a small house is the way to go. How else can having a small house save you money?

*Energy costs - this is kind of a no-brainer, but the less space you have to heat or cool, the more money you save! Right on! Not only that, but if you have fewer rooms, you likely have fewer electrical appliances plugged in, meaning the "vampire draw" (or appliances that suck up energy without being used) will be less!

*Less space to fill - just like my husband and I refuse to get "stuff" for our baby because we don't have room for it, this can apply to just about every space in our house. We have a small kitchen, so our cabinets are full of things we use frequently instead of the random appliances that we'd use once a year. I can't be a crazy bag lady and have multiple half-used bottles of beauty products in the bathroom because we have 1 bathroom with 4 shelves of storage. If I don't have 7 rooms to fill with furniture, I'm saving thousands of dollars! It keeps us conscious of what we buy and helps us better identify when it's time to give other things a better home when we're not using it anymore (tax deductions or garage sales put money back in your pocket!).

*Less upkeep - whether you do it yourself or hire someone to do it for you, the less space you have means the less time and money you spend on cleaning, renovating or replacing. I can tell you I already hate spending half of my Saturday cleaning my 3 bedroom home (and I'm too cheap to pay someone to do it)...I would absolutely cringe spending my entire weekend cleaning a 5 bedroom and multiple bathroom home. Who wants to clean more than one shower? Not me.

*Healthier in a small home? - I could be reaching here, but I would argue you could be a healthier person if you live in a smaller home. Think about it - a smaller home is easier to keep clean, meaning there would be less germs and air pollution. Although I guess you could argue you might be in better cardiovascular shape if you had a bigger home (walking further, climbing more stairs, etc).

Image from MyBallard

Obviously, you have to have a space that works for you and your family. But if you can get by with a smaller home, it will benefit your bottom line in multiple ways.



Anyone else who loves living in a smaller place and saving money? Anyone who lives in a big space that feels it's worth it?

Lessons to Teach Kids About Money

As I'm weeks away from welcoming our little baby girl into our home, I am thinking about all the things my husband and I will have to teach her: sharing is caring, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all, treat others the way you'd like to be treated, subject-verb agreement...the list goes on and on. But one thing I don't think enough parents tend to tackle is the subject of money. Studies show that parents have a hard time talking with their kids about the big three: sex, drugs and rock and roll...er, money. But it's hurting our kids - by the time children start to manage their own finances, they have an average of $2100 of debt on 4 different credit cards! Schools can't be guaranteed to teach financial literacy - most states do not have mandatory financial literacy units. I know we're still a few years out from talking to Baby Claire about money, but this is where my husband and I are thinking about starting.

Allowance does not equal an entitlement. I do believe that kids have to have their own money in order to understand how to manage it. That said, I don't think kids should get $10 a week just for being them or doing their basic household responsibilities, like keeping their room clean or making their bed. No one pays me to clean the house! It's just what I have to do as a member of the family. When kids want to take on projects that fall outside their realm of responsibility, then they should be paid according to their age and the level of difficulty of the chore. It shows they have to earn money, they can't just sit and wait for it to fall into their lap.

The importance of being earnest. Money is very complex, and should be taken very seriously. Yes, you can have fun with your money and you should! But money is for more than just having fun. It's survival, both short and long term. It's saving for a goal. It's giving to something or someone who needs it more than you. I love the piggy bank below because it accounts for all the various ways kids should view money (in my opinion anyway). Of course, kids should be able to spend money just like adults. They can get that toy they've always wanted, or they can buy something impulsively, never play with it again, and it becomes a teachable moment. But kids should also understand the importance of philanthropy and giving back to others. I want my kids to feel like they can make a difference - whether that's at their school, in their community or in the world. Philanthropy and charitable giving is a great way to make kids feel like they did something good for someone else. Obviously saving is a great value to instill in children - they might be saving for a big purchase or event, but teaching them to save when they're young will help them be better savers when they're older. And I love that there's an "invest" slot in the piggy bank. When you're ready to talk to your kids about how to invest and what the stock market is, that is a great tool to help facilitate that lesson. For allowance and cash gifts kids receive, I like the 40-30-20-10 rule: 40% long term savings, 30% big ticket purchases savings, 20% immediate spending and 10% charitable giving.

Image from Money Savvy Generation

Everything costs money. Or as my husband likes to say "There's no such thing as a free lunch." I don't think kids should be sheltered from the costs of things. Obviously, there are more appropriate ages to bring up the costs of a mortgage versus the cost of a pack of gum, but kids should know that everything has a price. I think showing monthly bills

or grocery store receipts can go a long way in kids understanding how money works to keep a house going. In order to get things that we need and want, we have to work and pitch in to earn money. At least until the money tree we planted last year starts to grow...

Practice what you preach. While we all want to raise financially savvy children, it's hard to do that when you have mass amounts of credit card debt, live in a house you can't afford, and spend money like it's going out of style. You are your kids' best teachers, but actions speak louder than words. Getting conflicting messages about money will no doubt confuse kids, so make sure to be a good role model yourself.

Are you a parent already teaching your children about money? What do you do that has worked? Did your parents give you any words of wisdom you take with you to this day? What are you planning on doing with your children?

Ask and You Shall Receive

Hi everyone! I cannot believe it's been almost 2 months since I last posted! Wow! That's what happens when you're 34 weeks pregnant and you've got a few other things on your plate, I guess. :) I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, and that 2011 has started off on a great note!

Here in my household, we are fast and furiously preparing for our baby girl's arrival in mere weeks...and with that comes dropping some serious dough. Or does it? As you know, my husband and I purchased our first home early last year. While the house was in fantastic condition pretty much all the way around, we knew we were going to eventually replace the carpet. It was pretty heavily stained and while I'm not exactly a germaphobe, I know that carpet can get DISGUSTING. The sellers even apologized for the condition of the carpets. So now with baby on the way, we wanted a clean slate and started to price out how much it was going to cost to get new carpet in three bedrooms. First, Empire Today came to our home to give us an estimate - initially $2100! I had no idea how much installing carpet was, but I wasn't going to pay that much. I told the representative that it was much more than I had anticipated, and we were going to continue to look. Almost immediately, he dropped the price down to $1600. Did you hear that? Just by asking and refusing the first offer, I saved $500! After pricing around other companies and retailers and figuring cost of installation, haul away, etc, Empire Today did have the best deal.

Lesson: never accept your first offer. Always see if you can negotiate a better deal.

Part 2 of Preparing For Baby Without Dropping All Your Dollars: we have to make our small space work for us in more ways now. Our 3rd bedroom now has to serve a multifunctional purpose of guest room/office. To increase our space, we got rid of our full-sized bed and are replacing it with a sleeper sofa. We waited and waited for our dream sofa at West Elm to go on sale...and it did! Not only was it $400 cheaper than the original price, BUT if you ordered online, you saved an extra $200. Uh - guess who ordered via phone where the $200 off didn't come into play? But guess who realized that, called back, and talked to customer service to get that extra money back in Claire's college fund? And isn't the couch so pretty?!

Lesson: the squeaky wheel gets the grease. If you're not completely satisfied with your experience, speak up. More than likely, the customer service department will do whatever they can to keep your current and future business.

In one week and two shopping experiences, I saved our family over $700 by being proactive, doing some research, and not taking "no" for an answer. Don't be afraid to ask for a better price - in this economy, many people are willing to be flexible and are more responsive to customers' needs.

How about you? How have your negotiating skills benefitted you recently?

Emergency Fund = COMPLETED!

Happy Monday everyone!

I just had to give myself a little pat on the back - my husband and I saved and saved and saved the past few months - having a little one on the way will definitely do that to you! And within 6 months, we've saved up 6 months of living expenses! Our emergency fund is done! This is literally 6 months of exactly how we live right now; I think if we scaled back more on expenses, our fund could probably last for 8 months if we needed it to. We have it in ING's Orange Savings Account, so it's liquid, plus we're still earning 1.1% interest - it's not much, but every little bit helps!

Our saving journey is not over - we're putting money aside for our estimated hospital costs of labor and delivery, starting a college fund for the bambina, and putting aside other money for general kid expenses. And I know I've been saying this for almost a year, but we're going to start a Roth IRA before the year is over! What a way to start November!

How about you guys? Any goals you've achieved recently? Do you have enough in your emergency fund?

Hot (Deals) for Teacher!

Are you a teacher or do you know someone who is? First, please thank them. Not only are they in charge of educating our young minds, but they put out fires on a daily basis, they have to deal with under or over involved parents, the politics of schools...it's a tough job, that's for sure. Thanks teachers!

To make sure you know how much you're appreciated, I found some surprising deals you are eligible for just because you're a teacher - and some of them have nothing to do with education (unless, of course, you count dressing smart as a part of your curriculum).

1. J. Crew - I just found this out a few weeks ago! J. Crew offers a 15% in-store discount with a valid teacher's ID. College students are also eligible for this discount with a valid ID - but if you're a college student and you can afford J. Crew, you'll have a rude awakening when you join ranks in the Real World. Or maybe I'm just jealous.

2. Apple - in the market for a new computer? Apple offers up to $200 off a new computer purchase for students and teachers with a valid ID. I'm not sure if it's only valid in stores, but when my husband and I bought our new Mac, I definitely took advantage of shopping with my mother-in-law (high school Spanish teacher) AND purchased in Oregon (sales tax free). Booyeah!

3. Ann Taylor LOFT - sign up for LOFT Loves Teachers and you're eligible for an immediate 20% off introductory offer, plus 15% off every time you shop. And um, I may have also signed up for this (I'm not a teacher but I work with kids in schools) and it has yet to ask me for a valid teacher's identification. I may feel too guilty to use it, but just sayin'...

4. Bookstores - obviously this makes a lot of sense, but stores like Barnes and Noble and Borders offer at least 20% off purchases in store and online with their educator programs. If you like to frequent your small local bookstore, ask to see if they offer teacher discounts.

5. Office supply stores - this is another no brainer, but Staples, Office Max and Office Depot have special perks for educators. The reward programs can be 15% discounts, cash back on purchases, special times of the year to save more...check them out!

6. Home discounts - yep, I'm serious. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has a program called Good Neighbor Next Door. You can get up to 50% off the list price of a home if you are a teacher (or a law enforcement officer, a firefighter, or emergency medical technician). It sounds like there's potential for a lot of red tape (you have to purchase in a certain area, you have 5 days to purchase the home, etc), but check out the listings nonetheless. You could save a TON of money!

7. Cell phone companies - this isn't just good for teachers, but cell phone companies offer discounts for employees of many companies. Talk to a representative or go online at your specific carrier. Usually, you just put your work email address in and it will let you know if you're eligible for a discount. It's not much, but every little bit helps!

Keep in mind these discounts are good to teachers year-round! Some stores do other promotions during back-to-school time or Teacher Appreciation Week (the first week of May), so definitely keep your eyes open for other deals at certain parts of the year. Not only that, but feel free to ask your favorite retail store if they offer discounts for teachers - the worst they do is say no, but the best is you save some money! Just be prepared to have your school identification with you.

Any other cool teacher discounts you know of? Anyone thinking about a career change?

7 Baby Steps

As someone who's very interested in all things personal finance, I like to make sure to research different strategies and methods of looking at how to manage your moolah.

Dave Ramsey is someone I've talked about before - he coined a slogan I love that I talk about here. And a few days ago, Newlywed Next Door introduced me to his 7 Baby Steps. I gotta say - I like his style. I think for some people, taking a hard look at yourself and your spending habits can be overwhelming - how do I get out of debt? How will I save enough for retirement? Will I be able to afford college for my children? Ramsey breaks it down into 7 very simple, one sentence steps.

I'm somewhere in between Steps 2 and 5 - while I have no credit card debt, my husband and I each have a car loan, plus my husband has some student loans. We'll have 6 months of living expenses saved in our emergency fund by the end of October (thanks to Mint's helpful budgeting tool). Right now, I'm investing about 10% of my paycheck into my retirement account, which I should really up to 15% as Ramsey suggests.

Something interesting to note is that Ramsey (as do most financial experts) suggest contributing to children's college funds AFTER you have a really nice retirement cushion. As has been said before, there are loans for higher education, but there are no loans for retirement (although Ramsey doesn't think you should have loans for anything!).

What do you think of the 7 Baby Steps? Where do you fall? Does this inspire you to get financially prepared?

Reader Praise!

I wanted to give a special shout-out to one of our best readers: Newlywed Next Door! First off, she is a regular commentor, she has written a guest post, and she has definitely increased our readers by featuring us on her blog! Thanks!


I wanted people to know that she just finished a year of tracking and budgeting all on her own! She details her experience here, but I wanted to say CONGRATULATIONS! It takes a lot of hard work, patience and dedication to hawkishly track your budget for 12 months!


I wanted to see if any of our other followers had a financial success story they would like to be featured on Lean with Green! What made you realize you needed a change? What was the milestone you reached? Share in the comments or write us a note at leanwithgreen@gmail.com and if you'd like, we'll make you your own entry deserving of your success!

Leaking Money?

Hello friends! Happy Monday! I hope you all had a lovely weekend - sorry for the lack of posts recently. I think it's what's called "summer plans". :) Anyway, trying to be better and don't be too upset.

So leaking anything is never good (unless there's a chocolate fountain that's sprung a leak). Now that I'm a homeowner, the word "leak" sends chills down my spine, as does "hole", "repair" or "sinking foundation". How would you feel if I told you that you have a money leak? Well, chances are you probably have one! According to a recent study in SELF magazine, people cannot account for an average of $1100 a year! This comes mainly from incidental expenses that add up over time.

For me, I definitely leak money when I have cash. Since I rarely have it (I put everything on a credit card), when I do have a few bucks in my wallet, it's gone! I had $60 in cash this time last week, and now I have $13. I went to the farmers' market and spent $8.50 on berries, lemonade and the most amazing chocolate chip cookie, I spent $2 on parking at my doctor's office, $15 at the grocery store and the remaining $22, I have no idea. And this is someone who actually pays attention to where her money goes...or tries to, anyway. If I did that every week, I'd lose track of $1144 a year, just like the average person! Eek!

So what can I do to stop leaking money? Well, for one, I know cash doesn't work for me - I can't track it and it seems to disappear easier. Another thing is keeping in check those little things that seem to add up. There's nothing wrong with dinner and drinks with friends, a movie date with Junior Mints, or getting those shoes (on sale, hopefully). But it comes with a trade-off - you're further away from your savings goals. Every time you have a questionable purchase, ask yourself, "Do I really need this?". If the answer is yes, do it! If not, don't. It's that simple.

Do you leak money? How do you keep focused?

Monthly Meal Planning Update

Success! I'm happy to report that we survived our first week of the monthly meal plan and quite enjoyed it. We have shifted some meals around, but we have really curbed the urge to stop at fast food or casual dining for dinner. When you have a full freezer full of food looking back at you it's pretty hard to justify.

Also, once we get in the routine and mind set that we don't eat out unless is a planned or special occasion, eating at home has become more enjoyable. We've focused on meals that we both agree we like and are fairly easy to prepare. We also mix standards with a few new recipes which keeps it interesting.

This week we only spent $25 to pick up fresh produce, milk and bread. If we keep this up, we'll average about $65 per week total for groceries a month including our monthly big shop and weekly pick up. That's down from almost $125 per week, a lot of which we ended up throwing away because we chose not to eat at home.

Another plus side, we have almost an extra hour of our weekend back when we're not fighting other shoppers. It's a win-win.

What are some of your tricks for meal planning?

Money Saving Websites

I just got my April Real Simple this weekend - does anyone else subscribe or read that magazine? I relax just looking at the cover. The minimalist design, nice fonts...but this is not about how much I love that magazine.

It is however about how much I love what they wrote about - the 10 best money saving websites! We've talked about Restaurant.com and Gasbuddy.com on this site before, but here are some great suggestions!

*Freeshipping.org - free shipping codes for more than 2,000 stores

*Retailmenot.com - discount codes for 50,000 stores!

*Priceprotectr.com - register a new purchase at this website, and get an alerts if you're eligible for a refund if the price drops!

*Ecoupons.com - great site for online coupons, free samples and cashback opportunities

Definitely have to check those out! Other sites I love to save you money:

*Mint.com - okay, okay, I'm blue in the face from telling you about how much I love Mint. But not only does it track your budget (having a basic budget is step #1 in having a good relationship with your money) but it shows you other ways you could be saving money with credit cards, banking, insurance and more!

*Ebates.com - go through ebates.com to get cash back on purchases you make when shopping online! As if online shopping wasn't dangerous enough...

*Groupon.com - again, I have been talking about Groupon for 8 months now, but I still love it. It's a group purchasing site, meaning they have to sell a certain amount of groupons (say 75) and once they get 75 buyers, the deal is on! Among the muriad of things I've purchased from Groupon - a massage, two organic delivery service coupons, and a gift certificate for a restaurant. All for at least half off retail! Sign up for their daily emails!

Are there sites out there you frequent to save you some bucks? Leave a comment and let me know!

The Art of Happiness with Your Bank

Are you happy with your banking? Have you even asked yourself that question? I did recently, and I'm not. And I'm not alone. Among the consumers who bank at the Big 4 (Bank of America, Citigroup, JP Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo), most banks averaged around 70% customer satisfaction. Honestly, I was surprised it was that high! Between horrible customer service if you ever run into a problem to fees for everything to very low interest rates (although they aren't entirely to blame), I have a case of the bank blues.

As I was going through my mail the other day, I noticed a letter from ING Direct and decided to check them out. Their interest rates are double that of my current bank for a savings account! ING Direct is purely online - they don't have any branches - so depositing and transferring money is all done via the internet, phone or mail. But the good news is they pass what they don't spend on brick-and-mortar locations to you!

Although I ended up signing up for an account with them, I'm not saying you should. What I am saying is you should think about taking a few minutes to evaluate if your money is working as hard in your bank accounts as you think it should be. How do you know? Well, if you sign up for Mint.com, it automatically shows you how you could be saving money and exactly how much you'd save over the course of a year! If you aren't signed up with Mint, I'd suggest checking out your local credit union, smaller regional banks, or online banks, like ING Direct or Ally. What was the satisfaction with "other" banks (i.e. those I just listed)? Over 80 percent!

Are you happy with your banking situation? Have you recently moved your money?

Discussion: How Do You Handle Finances in Your Relationship?

Although I'm a little embarassed to admit it, The Real Housewives of Orange County is among one of my favorite shows. I'm just so intrigued by these women - how they raise their families, what kind of cars they drive, how they spend their money. I definitely don't agree with most things they do, but that makes for more entertaining TV, right?

Anyway, last week's episode was totally up my alley - personal finance! It had one of the housewives, Lynne, getting served an eviction notice because her husband had not paid a deposit on their new rental house (because they were having trouble in the house they owned...eeeekkk...). Basically, Lynne's husband was in charge of all the finances in the house, so Lynne had no idea that they had no money. Not only did he keep all of it from her so she "wouldn't worry", but he said there was no deposit when in fact it was a $10,000 deposit. Obviously, Lynne was furious and they went their seperate ways after an intense discussion. Oh, then she went to San Francisco and spent $1200 on a leather jacket. But I digress....

This is so interesting to me. Money is a HUGE source of conflict in most marriages, and because it's often such a hard subject to talk about, many couples would rather not until it's too late. People have such different ideas of how to spend - there are some who have a very hard time parting with money and save, save, save. Some people spend money all too easily - you can't take it with you, right? Some people fall in between. Ultimately, this indicates your values and how you want to spend your life, and the more you know about your own relationship to money and your partner's idea of how to spend, the better off you'll be in the long run.

So how does money play into your relationship? Here are some questions (feel free to answer any and all in the comment section below).

1) Do you and your partner have the same idea of what money means? If not, how do you find that balance to make both your relationship and your bank account work?

My husband and I have a pretty similar style - we fall somewhere closer to the "saving" side of the spectrum rather than the "spending" side. I would say that he used to be more interested in saving than I did, but now I really enjoy finding creative ways to save a few bucks here and there. And nothing makes me happier than seeing my saving account increase every other week.

2) Do you have a joint spending account for expenses like housing and groceries? Do you split things 50/50 or do you have another strategy that works for you?

Before we got married, we lived together for 4 years and thought it would be really convenient to set up a joint checking account. We each contributed the same amount, which really got to me because my husband was making significantly more money than I was. We agreed that it made more sense for us to contribute the same percentage of our salary for joint expenses. Now that we're married, most of our money is joint, but we each still think it's important to keep our own individual accounts.

3) Who pays the bills? Do each of you have a basic understanding of what goes in and what goes out of your accounts?

I pay all but 2 bills - cable and cell phone. Since I am the primary bill payer, I think I have a better idea of what's going in and coming out than my husband does, but he can easily log on to our accounts to see. We'll talk about it too, for instance, if we had a really expensive water bill, and how to lower our costs for next month.

4) How frequently do you and your partner talk about money? Can you talk about it without arguing?

I think my husband and I talk about money at least once a week. We don't talk much about the day-to-day spending, but more of future goals - how much are we going to spend on furniture in our new house? How much do we need to have saved for a baby? And we talk about priorities - do we want to go on a weekend vacation in May or would we rather save that for a bigger trip at the end of the summer? I wouldn't say we argue about money all that often. After he got laid off, I think it gave us a great perspective on our priorities and we just learned to make more with less. Now that he has a job and things are good, we still make more with less and just keep building that cushion in our savings and retirement accounts.

Overall, I think we have a pretty good grasp on our joint finances. How do you and your sweetie measure up?

Discussion - How Do You Manage Your Finances?

I loved this post by J. Money at Budgets are Sexy so much that I decided I wanted to hear from you guys about how you make your finances work. Here are 6 questions and I'd really love to hear from you!



1) How do you spend: cash, debit, or credit?


I am all about using credit cards RESPONSIBLY. This means paying off in full every month, and deciding what credit card suits your needs and lifestyle. I think credit cards are convenient, they help me track my finances better AND you get cash back or other rewards. Nice!



2) Do you bank online? Do you use a financial aggregator (Mint, Wesabe, etc)?


I am completely paperless when it comes to banking. I pay bills online with Chase, although I'm thinking about moving my money. I also have accounts set up with USAA (love them!). And you've definitely heard me rave about how much I heart Mint. It's so easy to track your spending and also figure out if there are better options for your banking needs.



3) What recurring bills do you set on autopay?


I only have my car payment, cell phone bill, and cable bill on autopay. Everything else fluctuates a little too much for me to have it on autopay and I think it keeps me more on top of my budget when I look at my bills every month. (Another plug for Mint - it reminds you of due dates!)



4) How are your finances automated?

The only automated part of my finances is funding my 403b. Other than that, I move money from one account to another as it's needed. I'm trying to keep just what we need with a tiny cushion in checking while putting the rest (and promising not to touch it) in savings.



5) Do you use checks? If so, how often?

Our joint checkbook is so old, it has our previous address on it...and we moved almost 4 years ago! My personal checkbook has my COLLEGE address on it. Wow. Needless to say, I'm not a big check person. Just rent. And scratch paper.



6) Where do you keep your short-term savings?

I keep short-term savings in a savings account; however, I am thinking about switching to a no-penalty CD, which have higher interest rates than most savings accounts.

There! As I mentioned, I would love to hear how you all keep it together - respond in the comments with your 6 answers!

Is Your Health Tied to Your Financial Wealth?

I don't know how many of you watch "The Biggest Loser" - I love that show and I'm excited for it to start up again TONIGHT! I am always impressed with how people completely change their lives and motivate those around them to do the same. But I never gave much thought about how being unhealthy and overweight can contribute to draining your bank accounts. Suze Orman was on an episode last season that still sticks with me months later, and she definitely had some food for thought:




- America spends $147 billion dollars annually on obesity-related illnesses compared to $90 billion on cancer.


- Obese employees earn $7,000 less every year than healthy employees - healthy people are up to 3 times more productive, less likely to get tired, spend less on health care and insurance, and they are less likely to miss work because of illnesses


- Obese people spend considerably more on life insurance ($500-$1,000 a year)

- Americans spend $4.4 billion dollars on gastric bypass surgeries (220,000 people a year get bypass surgery at a cost of approximately $20,000 per surgery)


- If you are at an ideal weight, you'll save approximately 1 MILLION DOLLARS over the course of 40 years.




These numbers were staggering, and some of them were, quite frankly, frightening to me. It does seem like staying healthy is expensive - healthy food, gym memberships, running shoes, fitness clothes... but compared to higher health care costs, lost wages, and more potential costs associated with obesity, it seems like an easy financial choice, not to mention a much healthier one.

The Millionaire To-Do List

Happy New Year, folks! Hope you had a great time ringing in 2010!

So one of my fave PF bloggers (J. Money over at Budgets are Sexy) is aiming to have a million in the bank before he retires. With his Millionaire Club, he inspired me to make some goals as well. And seeing as we're still in resolution territory, I thought it would help steer me in the right direction for the new decade and hopefully inspire a few of you out there!

How I'm Going to Retire and Live Like Diddy (or something...)

1) Open a Roth IRA this year and max out on contributions annually (that's 5K a year)

2) Establish an emergency fund (around 12K) and put it in a high-yield savings account or a no-penalty CD - I'm getting there...

3) Remain credit card debt-free

4) Up my 403b contributions to 10% of my take home pay

5) Put any additional income (raises, bonuses, lottery winnings - ha!) into savings/retirement

6) Continue to monitor my spending and my budgets

7) Continue to live within (or below) my means and not spend impulsively

8) Talk with my husband at least once a month about our money so we're both on the same page

9) Start a "vacation fund" so I can have fun and not feel guilty about it - it can't be all work and no play!

I don't know exactly when I'll get to the cool one-mil figure in my account, but I think if I have a plan, I'll get there eventually! Thanks, J. Money!

Anyone else want to make a Millionaire To Do List? I'd love to hear how you are planning on saving money!

100!

Lean with Green is now an old lady - we're officially at Post 100! Thanks for reading, for commenting and for telling your friends! We know you lead busy lives and we're glad you take a few minutes out of your day to read our little blog!


So in honor of Post 100, we're going to be doing 100 ways to save money! Since it'd probably take forever to read (and write), we'll start with 1-50!

Groceries

1. Clip coupons for things you regularly buy, but not for things you don't. It's not saving you any money if you buy those fruit snacks for 75 cents cheaper when you don't normally buy them.

2. Build your weekly menu around grocery store circulars and who has the best deals.

3. Compare unit pricing to see what is really the best deal. Is the bigger package the better bargain? Check the unit pricing.

4. Seasonal produce is cheaper - what's in season right now? Here's a list.

5. Buy seasonal produce at the farmers market if you can.

6. BYOB - bring your own bag. Some grocery stores still deduct a few cents for every bag you bring.

7. See if your grocery store has any specials on items creeping up on their "sell by" date. I spent $2 on 8 Yoplait yogurts (normally would have spent around $6) because they were supposed to be sold in three days. I also saved $3 on a premade salad - that's $7 saved in one trip!

8. Save more money on produce by buying some things canned or frozen.

9. Make a list and don't buy things that aren't on it.

10. If you are a compulsive grocery shopper (or shop when you're hungry), look into getting your groceries delivered. For a small fee, you save time and won't end up with a cupboard full of chocolate-covered pretzels (drooling...) or Easy Mac.

11. Think about joining a wholesale club. There are lots of deals to be had, but the yearly membership fee may not be worth your potential savings. I weighed the pros and cons about shopping wholesale in this post.

12. Don't fall for the pre-packaged snack packs. Buy a bigger bag and do it yourself.

13. Join your grocery store rewards club if you haven't yet. They're free and they save you money on food (and maybe gas!).

14. Buy generic, especially on staples like sugar, flour, and salt. I've never heard someone complain that the sugar tasted generic. Generic might even taste better, as our taste test proved.

15. Look for better bargains at the top and bottom of shelves. Most people want to buy things at eye level, so stores might place more expensive items where you're more likely to buy them.

16. Don't buy bottled water. Most likely, you have access to good, clean water and filling up your own water bottle is a lot better for the environment.

17. Check your pantry first. Try and use up what you have before you buy more. But...

18. Stock up when something is on sale. For instance, if you cook a lot of pasta and spaghetti is on sale, it will be nice to have on hand and you'll get a better deal on something you always buy.

19. Buy less expensive cuts of meat and make them delicious in a Crock-Pot!

20. Repurpose leftovers. Pack them for lunch or transform them in another dish - this will save you from buying more food to make more meals.

21. Get out quick! Studies have shown that for every minute over a half hour, customers spend 50 cents to $1 more!

22. Check your receipts - maybe the checker keyed in the apples that were $1.99/lb instead of the apples that were 88 cents/lb. Mistakes happen - don't pay extra for them though.

23. Check yourself - are you hungry? Tired? Mad? Your mood can play a role in what you buy and how much you spend.

24. Make sure your food won't go to waste quickly and check the expiration date. What's the point of getting a good deal on buying 2 gallons of milk if you're going to throw a half gallon away because it expired?

25. Beware of endcaps, the displays at the end of an aisle. You might think the items are on sale, but there are probably cheaper varieties elsewhere. Chips and salsa are frequently endcap items at my grocery store, but they are Tostitos brand. If I walked a few aisles down, I could pick up the grocery store salsa (which I prefer) and cheaper chips.

Entertainment

26. I cannot sing the praises of Groupon enough! If you haven't yet, check it out. It can save you beaucoup bucks on wine classes, pole dancing (yep, you read that right), restaurants, sports events, ballets...

27. Hit up happy hour at your favorite restaurant instead of a full-fledged dinner. Sure, it may be a little earlier or later than you'd normally go, but you can save lots of money in your dining budget!

28. Utilize your local library for free books, magazines, movies and internet access. Libraries also have book clubs and readings!

29. If you can't wait for movies, join Netflix or try RedBox.

30. Keep a lookout in your local papers for free concerts and events.

31. Matinees are great for movies and theater productions!

32. Check your local museums for discounts! Often, museums have days or times of day with free admission!

33. If your area has one, purchase an Entertainment book. The $20 you pay for the book more than pays for itself with coupons for restaurants, movie tickets, mini golf courses, ice skating and more.

34. Use your memberships! If you're a club member, a student, an alumni...these groups and more have special perks!

35. Host your own dinner party/Trivial Pursuit/"Mad Men" marathon night. Doing stuff at home is almost always cheaper than going out to a restaurant or bar. Invite some friends over and have a party. Better yet, have them come bearing food or drinks and you won't foot the bill yourself.

36. If you live to watch live sports, hit up minor league, college, or high school games. They're cheaper than professional games, and you may even be able to say you saw the next-big-thing when they were still an unknown.

37. Take another look at your cable bill. If you don't feel like you're getting your money's worth, get a cheaper plan. Or call your cable company to see if they can lower your bill.

38. Go to a state or national park for a day of hiking, seeing the sights and being out in nature.

39. Learn a new hobby, like snowshoeing or cross country skiing! I just found this great website (http://www.wintertrails.org/) that shows when FREE lessons and equipment rentals are available in your area. January is Winter Sports Month, so keep your eyes peeled for deals on snowshoeing, skiing, snowboarding and more.

40. Check for last minute deals on ballets or theater productions. There are usually deep discounts to be had the closer to showtime it is.

Transportation

41. Fill up on gas midweek - the price usually gets jacked up Friday-Monday to account for weekend travelers.

42. Make sure your tires are properly inflated (check the panel on the inside of your car door, not the manufacturer's suggestion on the tire). And remember, air contracts and expands, so you should check the pressure with changes in temperature.

43. Take unnecessary items out of your trunk - for every 250 lbs in your car, you lose 1 mile/gallon in fuel efficiency. Not that anyone is carrying around an anvil, but every little bit helps.

44. See if your employer offers any transit flex plans - use pre-tax money to pay for bus passes, possibly parking and get taxed on less at the end of the year.

45. Walk more - it'll cost you less and it's healthier for you!

46. Is it possible for you to work from home? Check with your boss about telecommuting once a week and save your money and the environment.

47. Carpool.

48. Evaluate your car insurance and talk to your provider about a plan that might be cheaper and better suited for you.

49. Remember to keep up your car maintenance - dealing with smaller, more routine things could help you avoid a costly repair.

50. If possible, look into getting your car repaired at a vocational school. Although the work is done by automotive students, they work closely with their teachers and it's far cheaper than a mechanic (usually only charging for parts and supplies).

WHEW! Come back tomorrow for the next 50!