You see it everywhere now: that slick, easy option at checkout promising to "pay in 4 easy installments." It looks small, manageable, and yes—some might even say it looks cute.
But don't be fooled. This the "Cute Debt Trap."
How to Invest Your First $100 (Beginner’s Guide)
Ready to start investing but overwhelmed by where to begin? This beginner-friendly guide walks you through how to invest your first $100—perfect for moms and anyone new to the world of investing. Learn how to choose a trusted brokerage like Fidelity, Schwab, or Vanguard (with $0 account minimums), what simple investments to start with, and the real secret to building long-term wealth.
How to Pay Off Credit Card Debt: A Step-by-Step Guide
Struggling with credit card debt? Learn how to take control of your finances with this step-by-step guide to paying off debt quickly and effectively. This post covers 11 actionable strategies, including listing and prioritizing your debts, negotiating lower interest rates, redeeming rewards, cutting unnecessary expenses, and adopting a debt repayment plan like the snowball or avalanche method. Discover tips to stop accumulating debt, boost your income, and make smarter financial decisions. Start your journey to becoming debt-free today and reclaim your financial freedom!
Spousal IRA: How Stay-At-Home Moms Can Save For Retirement
Staying at home to care for children (and older parents in the future) has normally been part of the woman’s Caretaker role. In our current economy, caretaking is low-income work or unpaid. This means that when a woman takes on the Caretaker role full-time, she misses out on potential earnings, skill development, and networking opportunities. A lack of earnings means lower Social Security benefit accumulation and a decrease in savings and investments. A double whammy!
12 Money Challenges for 2024
You can’t spell challenge without change.
The challenges in this list aren’t your typical save $1 on Day 1 and $2 on Day 2, although, those can be pretty helpful. These challenges are to help you see that money is an integral part of our lives, but it’s not the primary goal. You’ll learn that after doing these challenges, money and time are both important, living frugally doesn’t have to mean deprivation, you don’t always have to spend money to have a good time and that getting a community together can help with your money goals.
4 Books To Read Before Baby Comes
“Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future.” - Maria Montessori
With our little girl turning 1, I thought I would share some of the books that helped us in the first year. There is no shortage of books for new parents so this isn’t the most comprehensive list. It’s funny how many become parents without formal guidance or education. Many think that parental instincts kick in when the baby is home, but sometimes that’s far from the truth. It helps to be prepared by reading a book or two from people you’ve been there and done that.
Top Negotiation Books for Parents: Unlocking Effective Results
Negotiation skills are crucial in various aspects of life, including parenting. Whether you're trying to convince your toddler to eat their vegetables or discussing important decisions in the workplace, effective negotiation can make a significant difference in getting effective results. In this blog post, we will explore the importance of good negotiation skills for parents and highlight the top five negotiation books to help you become a master negotiator. Additionally, we'll provide you with valuable tips for negotiating with both toddlers and business counterparts.
14 Best Books for Teach Kids About Money
Talking about money can be hard. These books can help you teach money to your toddlers and teens.
Book Review and Summary: Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
“Negotiation is not an act of battle, but a process of discovery.”
This month’s book is all about negotiations. It’s called “Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if your life depended on it” by Chris Voss. Chris Voss is a former FBI kidnapping negotiator. He shares nine key strategies hat he and his colleagues learned and use to help people in very risky situations. Here are the chapters in the book which correspond to the nine tested strategies.
Product Review: Minimal Mommy Makeup with Iris & Romeo
I’ve never really been a makeup person. My skin during pregnancy was amazing, but post-partum, I now see hyperpigmentation. I started looking into simple, clean makeup and found Iris & Romeo's Best Skin Days to fit what I wanted/needed: Makeup + Skincare + SPF 30 all-in-one.
Product Review: Legacybox for Digitizing Home Movies and Photos
As the oldest in my family and as a mom, one of my roles now is Family Record Keeper. While almost everything we handle today is in some digital form, I still remember a time when it wasn’t and I need to preserve some of those things for future generations. This is where Legacybox has helped me save our memories.
10 Sustainable Swaps to Save You Money
As it is Earth Month, I'm sharing some of my tried and true sustainable swaps. My journey to sustainability continues to this day and the biggest thing I've learned is that it is a journey, one that never ends, as we challenge ourselves to do better each day, learn more, and teach others. Sustainability comes in so many forms that we all have to do the best we can, given our resources. I've also learned that when you are kind to the planet, you also become kinder to the wallet.
5 Ways Journaling Can Help Improve Your Finances
Journaling is a simple practice, yet it can be a powerful tool to help you process everything that's going on in your life. 15 minutes, a pen and paper, and a few prompts are all you need to start a journaling practice. And it is a practice. It takes time to build a habit of writing and reflecting.
When it comes to your finances, journaling about your money fears, money habits, and money opportunities can help you become more aware of the impact of money on your life.
Laid Off? Here are 13 action items you must take
“The world is full of challenges, but with those come opportunity, and I'm an opportunist.”
Getting laid off is not easy and there will be a whole range of emotions you'll go through, but it's important to keep in mind that some of these things are out of your control so don't get too hung up on figuring out who to blame. Here are tips to help you.
Planner Productivity: How to Make Sure You Actually Use Your Fancy Planner
It’s a new year and you’ve been inspired to start anew again. You stopped by your local Target and got a pretty 2023 planner. You scribbled a few due dates in, maybe a few resolutions, but now what? The blank pages before you seem overwhelming or you simply don’t have the willpower to continue going back to them. It can be difficult to plan productivity and that’s why many of us fail at it.
Here are some tips on how to get the most out of your planner in 2021!
College is Expensive: Stop Skipping Classes
The cost of skipping class goes beyond that of “Oh I missed the lesson for today, I’ll catch up eventually”. It’s a financial cost. Every time you skip a class, you waste money.
Each class has an individual cost and when you don’t show up you are wasting your money. If you are taking out loans, you’ve basically taken out a very expensive loan to sleep in or play video games. There’s a trade-off to everything so think about your future self and what they’ll have to pay off when you skip class and not take advantage of the learning and networking opportunities before you.
22 Money Saving Tips for Fall
"How beautifully leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days."
As the weather cools down and Instagram is flooded with all things autumn, it’s easy to want to do all the fun things too. Fall is beautiful and a lot of fun, but with all the fall festivities going on, it’s a great time to re-evaluate and think about ways to save some money this time of year. Here are 22 tips on saving money this fall.
The Motherhood Penalty, Women's Finances and the Future
“When moms first come back to work they need someone to tell them, ‘You are going to feel crazy. It’s ok to feel crazy. You won’t always feel crazy.’”
With Mother’s Day coming up this week, I wanted to write a post specifically about how motherhood affects the financials of women. This article comes from my perspective as a new mom, but I know there are other people out there (dads, aunties, grandparents, etc.) playing the role of mom so this article goes out to you as well.
The Motherhood Penalty is defined by AAUW as the “phenomenon by which women’s pay decreases once they become mothers”. This is a contributing factor to the current gender pay gap.
There continues to be economic and social benefits to having children, but women should stop being penalized for having children.
What To Do With Your 401K From Your Old Employer
There are 4 options when it comes to your 401K from your old employer. We will go through each option in depth below.
Cash Out
Leave it where it is (at your old employer’s plan if it allows)
Roll it over to your new employer’s plan (if it allows)
Roll it over to an IRA