Each year, Kiplinger.com highlights its favorite freebies. In this year's collection, it tells where to find free foreign language lessons
, a free wireless connection
while traveling, free e-books
and sheet music
, and not just one
but two
of the better free recipe collections.
Matt's View
I'm writing this from a peaceful room overlooking a river at one of my all-time favorite sources of free stuff - the public library. Our library has a great collection of books, audio books, DVDs, magazines, and more. If our library doesn't have what we're looking for, we can order it from dozens of other libraries. It's even a drop-off recycling site for cell phones, batteries, compact fluorescent light bulbs, and other items. Have you "checked out" all the offerings from your local library lately?
If there's a child in your life that you would like to teach about money, a recent MarketWatch.com article offered up some good resources. It mentioned a downloadable computer program from Kidnexions
. Priced at $29.95 and designed for kids ages 6 and up, the program helps kids keep track of their money, save toward a goal, learn about interest, and more. The article also highlighted the many money board games available from EducationalLearningGames.com
.
Matt's View
Our kids are still very young so they're in that nice, innocent phase of having little interest in brands or other appearance-oriented aspects of our consumer culture. Even our oldest child, who is four-and-a-half years old, doesn't know or care that my car is 15 years old; he thinks it's cool. While I like using books and games to help teach our kids about money, I believe that the way we deal with money in front of them--our financial choices, attitudes, and conversations about money and material things--will have a much greater long-term impact on how they use money.
Everyone knows that coupons can save you money when shopping for groceries. But not everyone thinks they have the time for all that sorting and clipping. Syndicated columnist Gregory Karp
highlighted some sites that make the job easier. CouponMom.com
, which is free but requires registration, enables you to easily scroll through a chain's weekly deals and then find the appropriate coupons from the insert in your local paper. After registering, go to "Grocery Deals by State" and look for the grocery store you use. If it isn't listed, you may find the "Grocery Coupon Database" helpful.
For those wanting to wade a bit deeper into the couponing waters, Karp recommends Hot Coupon World
, where serious couponers share their secrets in online forums.
Matt's View
All coupon systems require some investment of time. But think of it this way: if you were going to buy something that costs $7,000, maybe a used car, you'd probably do some research first. That's how much the average family of four spends on groceries, cleaning supplies, and personal care items. Spending the time to find coupons for some of the items on your shopping list before each trip could easily save you 10 to 15 percent, or $700 to $1,050 per year. Sounds like a good investment of time to me.
In the last issue of this eNewsletter, in an article about changes people are making in response to our tough economy, I asked what changes you've made that you believe will be permanent. Among those who wrote, Maria says she's been taking a bus to work instead of driving. She's saving money by doing so, and she's developing a greater appreciation for what she has. She explained that she's seeing parts of her city she had never seen before--some of which have made her thankful for her neighborhood. And, because she realizes that many others on the bus probably don't own a car, she has come to see owning a car as a privilege.
Sara has realized that discount clothing may not be the bargain it seems if it doesn't hold up very long. Durability has become a much more important factor in choosing what clothing she buys. She also looks for clothes that do not require dry cleaning.
Jane relayed her experience raising "two somewhat accident-prone boys." When one of them gets hurt, she has learned to go straight to a specialist. She used to go to their main pediatrician, but he would just have x-rays taken and then send them to a specialist. She's gone the emergency room route as well, but they typically just patch up the kids and then refer them to a specialist. Going straight to a specialist, which is allowed by her insurance, has saved her a lot of money and aggravation.
Don and his wife have learned how to combine errands, doing most of their shopping by driving in one big loop. They've also been expanding their use of store brands.
Matt's View
Thanks to everyone who wrote. An important key, of course, will be sticking to these changes once the economy picks up again.
