| The Grit and Grace Project

Back to School Clothes: 10 Different Ways to Save Money

By Clare Marlow / Work & Money, Motherhood

It’s still summer, your days ripe with swimming and popsicles and vacations, and then you get it … a reminder. Whether it’s from your kids’ school about their uniform requirements or you randomly look at the calendar and realize the days are waning. Before the idea of school preparation ruins the rest of your lazy days and makes you start pinching pennies on summer fun, don’t panic. There are a number of options for saving whether it’s on school uniforms, and even on those designer jeans your teenager is clamoring for: • First clean the closet to find the clothing items that aren’t worn out. For the ones that still fit make a list of possible tops or bottoms to make a fresh […]

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Are You Chasing Paper? 10 Practical Ways to Save Money

By Dawn Seabolt / Work & Money

Our family has had to dramatically change the way that we spend, for several different reasons. I have been working on simplifying my life in many areas, and fortunately, that does end up saving a bit of money. I believe one of the best ways to save money is to be mindful of where your money goes. Write down your expenses, keep a budget, plan ahead. Nothing earth-shattering, but here are a few practical ways to start saving money: 1. Plan out meals for the week and stick to your grocery list. This takes about 15 minutes a week of planning per week for me. I also have a menu list of about 20 items, so when I don’t feel creative, I just check

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10 Family Outings That Are Cheap and Fun

By Whitney Hsu / Work & Money

You might be looking for some fun, inexpensive ways to keep your family entertained this season. There are probably some activities in your town, or nearby, that you haven’t thought to try before! Try out these family outings for some fun that won’t cost a fortune! 1. Go to a farmers market. We have several farmers markets within half an hour of our home, and we love visiting them! It’s a great reason to get out of the house, and you can decide how much money to spend. You can enjoy a nice walk around, checking out the goods, even if you don’t want to buy anything. But I’ve often found that I can get some of the groceries I need for a

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10 Ways to Make the Most of Your Staycation

By Geinene Carson / Work & Money

Traveling can take a lot out of you and can even leave you with the need for a vacation to recover from your vacation. It is easy to forget about all of the planning, preparation, and time it takes to get to and from somewhere, especially when everyone you know seems to be posting pictures of their dream vacations on social media. Not to mention that your wallet and energy levels are really the ones often determining your destinations. Contrary to what the exotic travel pictures imply, to achieve optimum refreshment some vacations may best be spent close to home. Consider an official staycation to explore things locally for a fraction of the cost and energy expended. Uncover some of the gems in your own

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Student Loans and How to Get Out From Under Them

By Darlene Brock / Work & Money

College has ended. You’ve donned the cap and gown, walked the aisle, and now have your degree in hand. You are ready to face the world, get that grown-up job, and build your future… Except for one, small—or oftentimes, very large—thing. You’re exiting that university with a big bill you have to pay: your student loans. You are not alone. According to the credit reporting service, Experian, 40 million people have at least one student loan with the average debt of $29,000.1 Joining the ranks of borrowing in order to get you through college may have seemed like a good idea at the time, but graduation day (or soon after) the debt you face looks daunting. Like any other financial challenge in life, your next

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How to Have a Beautiful Wedding on a Budget

By Catie Welvaert / Life & Culture, Work & Money

Did the new year bring you a new ring? Or, maybe your Valentine surprised you with a proposal for life-long love. No matter when or how it happened, congratulations! Engagement season can be full of anticipation and lots of growth, but for many couples, finances and the lack-there-of can be a heavy weight anchoring you down from head-in-the-clouds love and bliss. Unfortunately, that doesn’t always end after the “I do” either, sorry. But there can be freedom! Money does not have to be the dream crusher! Your wedding can be beautiful, even better than you imagined in your head, and still your best day ever while staying within your budget, I promise. Plus, wise budgeting for the wedding can prep you and your soon-to-be husband for conversations

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10 Tips for Cheap DIY Summer Fun

By Lynn Fleshman / Life & Culture

I’ll put my cards on the table and tell you all up front—I don’t love summer. I do love my birthday, which happens to be in the summertime! But I don’t love sweating and bug bites and not being able to start the dang weed-eater. However, I have made an effort the past couple of years to enjoy summer when it rolls around by making a list of fun things to do and referring to it throughout the season. And because I am a penny-pincher, you won’t have to sweat your bank account balance to pull off these ideas. All ten will only set you back $10 or less. (Side note: I make no apologies for the number of times ice cream is

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When a Staycation is the Perfect Family Choice

By Christi Anderson / Motherhood

It’s easy to get discouraged by all the Facebook and Instagram posts of the incredible vacations all of my friends get to take…Italy, Alaska, NYC, some private island in the Caribbean. Well, I’m a single mom on a budget. And by a budget, I mean I’m about 30 bucks short each month. Which also means no exotic travel, or travel at all. So, when my three kids and I took our vacation last summer we had a staycation. It could not have been more magical and amazing. On Monday morning as I sat on Zuma beach watching my kids play in the surf, I opened an email from my mom and she had bought us passes to Universal Studios Hollywood. Tuesday morning

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Creative Dating—No Money, No Problem

By Geinene Carson / Life & Culture, Work & Money

In our current season of raising young children, my husband and I have accepted that for the time being date nights may not look like they used to. Daily fatigue, along with the constraints of bedtimes, a tight budget and the availability of trusted sitters, are all factors to be overcome if we wish to successfully leave the house for a night on the town. Pursuing anything even vaguely resembling a date these days, calls for creativity and flexibility in how and when to make it happen. We like to think that we are perfecting the art of “dating in.” Though the location remains the same, after the children go to bed the time is ours to do with what we want.

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