Search Results for: blog two ways to save on entertainment

Don’t Eliminate the Entertainment Budget

Often, when times are economically tight, as they are now for most of us, the entertainment or fun budget is the first thing to go. Just because there is less money available, doesn’t mean that there has to be less fun. Do Put Something in the Budget for Entertainment Designate some amount for family fun, even if it is only limited to $20 a month or even less. Budgeting for entertainment sends the message that family fun is important, even when it isn’t expensive. If you create a zero-based family fun budget you may wind up indulging anyway, and blowing … Continue reading →

Ways to Save on a Six Flags Staycation

It’s never a good day when travelers are actually excited to see gas prices hovering near $4. Three dollars and 89 cents for a gallon of unleaded–SCORE!! While the cost of gas has fallen slightly in the last couple weeks, from its highest levels since July 2008, Americans are still paying nearly a dollar more per gallon than a year ago. As a result, families from coast-to-coast continue to restructure their summer vacation plans in order to preserve their household budgets, and still have fun in the sun. That goes double for clans living in and around Chicago. According to … Continue reading →

Two Ways To Save On Entertainment

When it comes to finding things to trim in the family budget, entertainment is an area where many people could probably make a few cuts. Unfortunately, the very idea of scrutinizing your family’s entertainment budget may be very unappealing when you consider the people in your household that may be very attached to their entertainment of choice, be it television, video games, or movie rentals. That said, there are a couple of options that you could consider if you are thinking about how to save money on television. The first option is the most obvious – go without television. No, … Continue reading →

How I Saved on Birthday Goodie Bags

My daughter’s birthday party is this coming weekend. Naturally, she asked for a Disney princess theme again. I recently spotted color wonder kits in a princess theme for only $5 a piece. This seemed like a great bargain for goodies to hand out to the party goers (the kits normally go for $7.99 to $9.99 elsewhere), but when I added up the number of kits who would be attending, I found that it would cost me $5 times 15 kids (plus 3 more if I wanted to give my own kids goodie bags) for a minimum of $75. Ouch. Yes, … Continue reading →

Ways to Save on Vacation Lodging

If you have had enough of the staycation and want to actually travel somewhere away from home, then lodging will be an expense that you will have to deal with one way or another. Fortunately, there are a lot of choices and opportunities, if you think a little bit out of the box. Here are some great frugal tips for saving money on your vacation stay. For the large family or group If you have more than four people traveling, then you are in for some issues. As part of a family of five, I know first hand. This is … Continue reading →

Three Ways to Get Free Entertainment

The money used for entertainment is most household seems to be growing year by year. Whereas previous generations listed food as their biggest expense (after housing), for modern families, entertainment costs can rival food expenses. Here are three different ways to get free entertainment. The Library If you haven’t visited your local library in a while then you are really missing out. Of course there are plenty of books to be had, saving you anywhere from $7 to $30 a read. There are also audio books, movies, music and even video games to check out. If you use the library’s … Continue reading →

Four Ways to Save Money on Birthday Cake

This week we are in the middle of trying to finalize plans for an upcoming birthday party for our two sons. Two boys with birthdays only a month apart means one party to save the relatives from traveling, but two separate cakes with different themes. All of that cake can add up in expense. Here are four different ways to save money on birthday cake. With these various options, you should be able to find your own great way to shave off some of the cost of the birthday cake. Buy a regular birthday cake but skip the special decorating. … Continue reading →

Save Money on Spring Break

Gone are the days, I think, when spring break meant a wild spending spree in some exotic location. Instead, many families are turning to money saving ideas to ensure that they have a great spring break without becoming destitute. There are plenty of ways to enjoy spring break that don’t cost much money at all. If you need a few ideas to get started, take a look below. Add your own in the comment section. Stay Local I bet that there are hundreds of free and low cost activities and attractions close to home. Just think, so many people may … Continue reading →

Ways to Save Money on Vacation

Settling on a vacation spot everyone in the family can agree upon is only half the battle. Once you know where you are going there is the challenge of budgeting for transportation, meals, souvenirs and other incidentals. The following tips are ones I have compiled from my own family’s cross-country adventures. Some may seem a bit obvious, but the fact is they are effective and have served us well over the years. Hopefully they can do the same for your family as well. COUPON BOOKS. Never underestimate the power of a coupon. I used to completely ignore those kiosks loaded … Continue reading →

Entertainment Books – Free Shipping

Every year, we buy an Entertainment Book. They’re full of discounts for your local area, most Buy One, Get One Free. Most of the book ends up unused, but we make more than our money back on just the Safeway coupons ($5 off per month). Buying them early makes good sense because they’re still good until the end of September 2008, so you’re getting an extra couple of months to use them. Plus, if you buy now, they’ll pick up the shipping cost. If you know you’ll be using the book soon (and every year), you can pick up one … Continue reading →