Merrychristman's Personal Finance Blog

Gone, but Not Forgetting

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 15:15:25 PST

I've been gone from this blog for a while, but I'm still keeping track of my savings for the $20 challenge.

I haven't been too successful at reducing my caffeine intake, but I have saved some there. I also saved a small amount by buying powder instead of gel for the dishwasher...

Reducing Caffeine

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Wed, 23 May 2007 08:15:53 PST

I drink too much caffeinated soda; I'm starting to see the effects when I lie awake at bedtime. I'm going to try to cut back to one can a day (with some exceptions for "treats"), and whenever I resist the urge for another can, I'm rewarding myself by adding the money saved to my $20...

Challenging a Presupposition

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:22:21 PST

My daughter has cradle cap. We still had some of the shampoo the doctor recommended for my son, and I had been using it without seeing results. I remembered that the doctor had told us to use a kids' toothbrush with the shampoo to help get rid of the flakes, and I nearly bought one...

Second Quarter Goal Setting

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 12:57:06 PST

When I started the $20 challenge, I set the first quarter goals at two times the $20, and I thought I might try to double the initial amount each quarter. My current total is $65.35, which isn't far from $80 but is probably too much to continue to double each quarter, so I will set...

Using What's On Hand

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 12:52:12 PST

I like to use things I already have for new purposes if I can. When I planted chives inside, I had only one real pot that would fit on my windowsill, so I improvised. As you can see, the chives in the improvised containers are growing, but the ones in the real pot are not. Sometimes...

Adding Some Spice to the $20 Challenge

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 18:52:16 PST

We are scraping the bottom of our warehouse-club-sized container of chives, and our warehouse club no longer carries them. The grocery store charges about four times as much for chives, so today I bought a packet of chive seeds for $3.35 less than the small container of chives in...

Writing Online

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 09:12:05 PST

I used to work as a freelance writer (still do, in a sense -- I really only have one client now). I gave it up not because of the rejections, as most of my family assumed, but because I spent more time and money on marketing my work than I made. (Strangely enough, I received a surprise...

Hubby Must Be Right

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 13:10:04 PST

Well, the quilling didn't sell. My husband says that scrapbookers probably make their own embellishments. I may try selling some again, but for now, I've found another use for my new crafting hobby -- making my own cards. (I send quite a few.)

I invested in some card stock, and...

Going Once . . .

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 15:49:21 PST

I posted my first quilling projects on eBay today -- hope they sell!

Investing in a New Hobby

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 15:49:38 PST

Because I already met my (probably too modest) goal for the quarter, I took a small risk and invested $8.19 from my savings in starting a new hobby -- quilling. I bought the materials at a good discount, of course, and I hope to sell some of the things I make on eBay. (My husband...

Early Christmas Gifts

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 13:13:59 PST

I know it's a basic frugal concept to buy Christmas gifts in January, but I rarely do it, partly because my family is blessed enough to be able to afford what they want when they want it, so I'm always afraid they'll buy the gift for themselves before December rolls around.

However,...

My first act of saving

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 07:30:15 PST

Well, after I wrote my first entry, I had to do something. I'd been planning to buy a small plastic storage box to hold the craft supplies my son got for Christmas, but I decided to move some things out of another box instead. Unfortunately, I couldn't find the box I had in mind....

A first time for everything

smchristman@comcast.net (merrychristman) — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 06:46:02 PST

I've never written a blog before, though I have nearly 25 years of personal journaling experience (and I'm only in my early 30s!)

I subscribe to the Saving Advice newsletters, though, and the $20 challenge sounded intriguing enough to start my own blog. So here's my $20 to start....