A Frugal Wedding Adventure, Part 3: The Big Day and the Final Numbers
A few weeks ago, I got married in rural Wisconsin, in the backyard of the house in which my wife grew up. The following morning,
Frugality
The Soup Stockpile: An Easy Route to Having Tons of Convenient Freezer Soups
The past few weeks have been incredibly busy for our family. Not only has Sarah returned to teaching from her summer break, our children have
Seven Strategies for Efficient Hobby and Entertainment Spending
One of the core principles that guides my financial life is the idea of finding the best “bang for the buck” for every dollar I
The Souvenir Game: 17 Ways to Physically Remember a Moment Without Spending Extra Money
A while back, I had an experience in a gift shop that really stuck in my mind. I was sitting on a bench outside of
A Beginner’s Guide to Lifelong Learning at a Minimal Cost
This is part of an informal series of posts where I outline how I’ve applied money-saving strategies to many of my hobbies without sacrificing what
My 25 Favorite Money-Saving ‘Life Hacks’
My 11-year-old son loves “life hacks.” It’s become something of a hobby for him as he’s found lists of preteen-appropriate “life hacks” and has been
The Battle Between Stress and Frugality
As I often do when I write an article, I start by making a list of all of the major points I want to cover,
Score Back to School Deals With These Credit Cards
Attention, back to school shoppers: If you didn’t get to everything on your shopping list before the big sales ended, it might not be too
Remaining Frugal as Your Income Grows
Like many people, I spent my college years being extremely frugal. I did all kinds of things in college to save money. I ate absurd
What Is Living the #Vanlife Really Like?
I used to think anyone who lived in in their vehicle was facing a crisis. In some ways, I even thought of them as failures.
Frugal? Cheap? Financially Independent? Minimalist? What’s the Difference?
During a recent interview I did for an article at CBS MoneyWatch, the reporter took the conversation in an interesting and unexpected direction. She wanted
22 Frugal Things I Did Today
A couple of days ago, I decided to simply go through my day and make a list of everything that I did that was “frugal.”
Celebrating Life Events Frugally and Meaningfully
I recently celebrated my birthday with my family and a few friends. It was a decidedly low key affair. We went out to dinner together
Deal Alert: How to Get 50% Off Spotify
If you have the or the (or were thinking of applying soon), this offer will be music to your ears! Capital One® and Spotify have
Why Making Trade-Offs Is the Most Important Financial Lesson I Learned
As an ’80s baby born to an insurance salesman father and a stay-at-home mother, I grew up watching my parents scrimp and save. My mother
10 Smart Ways to Use Leftover Sweet Corn (Smart Staple Strategies #7)
This is the final entry in a short summer series covering smart strategies for using leftover staple foods – things like rice, beans, pasta, and
How to Learn a New Language with Minimal Expense
One common question that readers send into the Reader Mailbag revolves around learning a particular language without a lot of expense. Most of the well-known
12 Frugal Summer Vacation Strategies from Our Family’s National Park Vacation
A few months ago, I posted an article on how we plan frugal family vacations in national parks. During the first half of June, we
