not the jet set

Auntie Em's Holiday GiveAway

2009-11-22T09:13:00.006-05:00

I, Mrs. Not the Jet Set, am actually Auntie Em. Yes, I know, I didn't come out and tell you yet, I also really didn't hide it either. I have never really wanted to make a big deal out of my Etsy shop because that is not the point of this blog. However, I did want to offer our lovely blog readers an opportunity to win a gift certificate for my shop as well as offer free shipping to all our loyal readers as well.

Here are some of the wonderful items that are in my shop this Christmas season. I also do custom orders so feel free to ask!

What can you win? A $20 gift certificate to my shop! Even if you don't win the gift certificate you are all still winners in my book. Everyone can use the code:NTJS to receive free shipping between now and December 6th.

The Rules:
There are several ways to enter to win the giveaway. Make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry. You can enter six ways, but use each method once per giveaway. So you can have up to a total of six entries per giveaway.

Tell me what your favorite item is in Auntie Em's House.
Heart the Etsy shop.
Add us to your blogroll and let us know in the comments.
Follow us on Twitter, RSS feed, or email subscriber.
Blog about the giveaway with a link back to the giveaway post in the comments.
Link to one of your posts in the Two Cent Tuesday MckLinky.

This contest ends on November 30th at 5:00pm EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced on Tuesday December 1st. An email will be sent to the winner. They will have 48 hours to provide a valid mailing address.

Thanks for checking out our giveaway!

This giveaway was sponsored by Auntie Em's House. If you would like to sponsor a giveaway we are open to sponsors. Please email us for details.

Bagnesia Winner

2009-11-21T11:48:00.001-05:00

We have a winner! Comment number six by Brandilynn was the winner of the Bagnesia reminder kit.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the giveaway. Stay tuned for another giveaway starting very, very soon!

The Creative Family

2009-11-18T00:46:00.000-05:00

Have you heard of Amanda Blake Soule? I had never heard of her until about three months ago. That was when I had read a book review for her last book on another blog. Which led me to Amanda's blog (Soule Mama). The more I read it the more I want to read her books her two books.

The Creative Family-
The Creative Family is her first book which was published in 2008. I was able to obtain it through the library's inter-library loan program. I'm so glad that I took the extra effort to request this book. I love it!

I have learned more from this mom then I could have expected. Yes, I did find a some great project ideas that I would like to try, but it was more then that. As actually read the book, I learned that the book was more then projects. It was about fostering an environment of creativity in your home while maintaining a simple home. Not letting the clutter of a creative family take over.

My favorite take away from this book was the idea of a collaborative craft show. The idea is really three fold. One, you remove the clutter of your child's art work from your home. Two, you build their confidence by having others look at their art. Three, your child (and the other kids) have the chance to give their own earned money to a good cause. I'm sure that we will be pulling this together with other families soon.

This book is so good that I'm actually going to save up my pennies to buy my own copy! That says a lot about a book.

Have you read this book? What did you think?

Two Cent Tuesday

2009-11-17T01:04:00.001-05:00

Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mrs.

"Christmas is right around the corner. Revisit last years Thrifty Christmas series for some great ideas on celebrating the holiday on a budget "

Now it's your turn!

You can link to posts that are related to living on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. This could be anything from ideas to save money around the house or garden, DIY home repair, using cash envelopes, to planning your low cost vacation. We do ask that you refrain from linking to posts about weekly store deals, contests, paid ads and the like.

I look forward to reading everyone's ideas on ways to live on a "Not the Jet Set" budget. Please take the time to view other blogger's posts as well as add our button or link back to this post.

Your Two Cents:

Make sure to also use this as a giveaway entry in our current giveaway!

Simple Times

2009-11-16T00:49:00.000-05:00

Do you sometimes wish for a simpler time? A time when life was not full of distractions? No cell phones constantly ringing, tons of emails to check, TV, 24 hour news, tons of school activities.

I know I do! Sometimes I just wish I could go back to a time when life was centered around a self sufficiency and survival. Just raising my family on a small family farm. The kids would only go to school a few months of the year during the winter when they were not needed in the field. Most of our time was spent together with none of the distractions.

Recently I got a taste of what that would be like.

My grandmother has an old fashion glass butter churn. It was handed down to my 82 year old grandmother by her uncle. She was not sure how old it was but thought that he might have been given it used himself. She used it for many years when they had their own dairy cows after WWII. We asked her if we would bring a half gallon of fresh raw cream if she would let us use it. Of course she agreed.

When we got to her house she had it all cleaned up and ready to go. It was amazing that after setting for 40 years it worked so well. We all had a blast sitting around the kitchen table visiting, listening to old family stories, and taking turns churning the butter. Grandma said she never remembered it being this much fun back when she "had" to do the butter chore, but that day with her grand kids and great grand kids she enjoyed it. There was no distractions of life that day, no tv, no cell phones work on the farm, no running to do.

It was all so simple that day.

Holy Simplicity

2009-11-13T08:45:00.001-05:00

I just finished reading the book Holy Simplicity this week. I thought that this 86 page book on Simplicity would be an easy and fast read. Boy was I wrong! I don't think that it has ever taken me so long to read a book honestly.

Now don't get me wrong, I learned a lot from the book, but it is not a simple read. To truly get the most out of the book I felt like I could only read a few lines and then reflect and study those lines. I do feel like I learned more about spiritual simplicity from this book so it was a worth while read.

Here are some of the many interesting things that I learned from this book.

The simple soul has one goal. That is to please God.
The only motivating force you should have is to love.
"A soul of holiness does not strive for that holiness. It strives to love, to love wholeheartedly; there lies the difference."

There was so much more that I learned. I think that in maybe a year I'll pick this book back up and read it again. I'm sure I'll learn even more the second time around. This book focuses on learning holy simplicity from the Saints and Scripture. However, even if you are not Catholic (or even Christian), you can still learn a lot about how to simplify our complex inter-souls. It never hurts to work on bringing internal peace to our bodies.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book Reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Holy Simplicity.

Bagnesia Product Review/ Giveaway

2009-11-11T00:45:00.006-05:00

How often do you forget your reuseable bags in the car when you go to the store? We have talked about this topic before. It is frustrating and not the easiest thing to remember in our busy fast paced lives.

I was lucky enough to get the chance to try out the Bagnesia Reusable Bag Reminder Kit. I have to admit that I was a little skeptical about it's effectiveness going into the "trial". Would I really notice the reminders or would they get tuned out after a couple days? Three weeks later I can tell you that they really did work! I still notice the door tag and the steering wheel wrap. If you or your loved one has problems remembering your bags this product might just be your cure for Bagnesia!

The Bagnesia Reminder Kit contains simple, effective products that work together so
you always remember to take your reusable bags into the store. The kit includes an eye-
catching door hanger imprinted with the words “grab your bags” reminding you to put your bags in the car. They have developed a neoprene wrap that attaches to your steering wheel at eye level labeled with the words “grab your bags”
prompting you to take your bags with you as you exit your car. Bagnesia’s stylish compact bag unrolls from the size of a cell phone and expands to hold the equivalent of 3 plastic bags
worth of groceries. It is both durable and washable. A convenient clip included in the kit
allows the user to slip the bag onto a key chain or belt loop or clip several bags together. All of
the products included in the kit are packaged inside a reusable drawstring pouch that can
double as a handy place to corral several compact bags, keys, coupons or a cell phone.

What a deal for only $14.99! And they offer international shipping too. This makes a great gift for your earth friendly friends.

Would you like to win a free reminder kit? If so then check out the rules below.

The Rules:
There are several ways to enter to win the giveaway. Make sure to leave a separate comment for each entry. You can enter six ways, but use each method once per giveaway. So you can have up to a total of six entries per giveaway.

Tell us something new you learned from Bagnesia's website.
Stumble two of our posts, then comment saying which posts, and your stumble username.
Add us to your blogroll and let us know in the comments.
Follow us on Twitter, RSS feed, or email subscriber.
Blog about the giveaway with a link back to the giveaway post in the comments.
Link to one of your posts in the Two Cent Tuesday MckLinky.

This contest ends on November 20th at 5:00pm EST. The randomly selected winner will be announced on Monday November 23rd. An email will be sent to the winner. They will have 48 hours to provide a valid mailing address. Bagnesia does offer international shipping so everyone is welcome to enter.

Thanks for checking out our giveaway!

This giveaway was sponsored by Bagnesia. If you would like to sponsor a giveaway we are open to sponsors. Please email us for details.

Two Cent Tuesday

2009-11-10T05:12:00.003-05:00

Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mrs.

"When trying to save money don't always think big. Think small, everyday small. It's the little things in life that add up to large savings. "

Now it's your turn!

Your Two Cents:

An extra bonus! If you add your link this week and/or next week you will earn extra entries into the new giveaway starting tomorrow. Make sure to come back tomorrow to enter the contest.

Craft Show Results

2009-11-09T01:30:00.005-05:00

I spent weeks working on projects and days fretting about the success or failure of my first craft show. Did the hours of table display prep work pay off?

Financially, no, educationally speaking yes. There was three other large sized art and craft shows going on that same day in our town. So there was lots of competition and the fair I was in was most peoples last stop. I had lots of people come through who talked about what great ideas I have. But didn't buy. Some of them I could tell were shopping for ideas while others were looking for steals. I also didn't think that it helped that a little old grandma was set up across from me who was basically giving her sewing projects away for free. She had prices like one dollar for a burp cloth, 3 dollars for crayon roll and $10 for a good sized flannel quilt. I'm not even sure how she could make money even though she was selling a lot.

All this info helped me to decide that my time is more valuable then what people are willing to pay at craft shows. I'm not going to spend $12 on materials and charge a total of $15 making my three hours of work worth nothing after paying for slot, business cards, price tags and other associated business expenses. I don't think that I'll try it again. Instead I'll stick to my Etsy shop and making gifts for friends. Even though everyone says I should sell my stuff, no one is really willing to pay for it (at least in this economy).

Hopefully the items will sell in the Etsy shop. Keep an eye our for a lot of new fun listings soon!

Have you tried an art and craft show this year? How did it go for you? I'd love to hear!

Don't forget that tomorrow is Two Cent Tuesday! Please join us by linking back to one of your posts from the past week or two.

The Missing Mrs.

2009-11-05T12:39:00.002-05:00

It feels like I have been missing for two months but it really has only been two weeks. Things will get back to (our) normal after this Saturday's craft show. It has been a very busy couple weeks finishing projects for the show, working on potty training, an have kids at home because of school closers due to flu outbreaks. Anything but normal!

Starting next week you can look forward to some great posts, reviews and giveaways! I don't want to give to much info away but I think that you will enjoy having me back.

Until then have a great weekend!

Two Cents Tuesday

2009-11-03T10:10:00.002-05:00

Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mr.

"There's lots of ways to save as winter draws near. For example, the Mrs. just finished putting up apples for the year. She's also done strawberries, blueberries, peaches, peppers, tomatoes, pumpkin, and butternut squash! We're ready for a long winter."

Now it's your turn!

Your Two Cents:

Guest Post at Debt Free Adventure

2009-11-03T06:45:00.003-05:00

Be sure to tune in later for our Two Cents Tuesday post (and leave your two cents, too!), but first I want to direct your attention to a guest post we wrote for Matt at Debt Free Adventure on Tithing Our Time. It's a new concept that we've been considering and finally pulled together.

So head on over to Matt's site and and give it a read. Be sure to leave a comment, as we'd love to hear your thoughts. While you're there check out some of Matt's posts and don't forget to subscribe.

Here are some posts not to miss at DFA:

Health Insurance: Open Enrollement Time

2009-10-31T07:53:00.001-04:00

It's open enrollment time at my employ, and while the Mrs and I are decided and done, it seems that most folks have hardly logged on. Since we're going through the second major plan overhaul in 3 years, people have TONS of questions and no clue as to which one to choose.

The Providers and their vague presentations and explanations have come and gone and folks are still sitting around at lunch saying, "I don't know what to pick." Now, I don't intend to demean these folks. Modern health care is quite complicated and an incredible amount of responsibility is in the lap of the consumer. This is a difficult and important decision - more now than ever.

My response, usually starts with, "Here's how we decided..."

First, a little backstory:
We have two options for employer sponsored health insurance. One plan is like a PPO, but they have added some hoops to jump through. The other is an HSA. To make this decision, you really need to know three things about the plans:

The Deductible (the amount you are responsible for before the insurance actually kicks in)
The Premium (the amount that you kick - monthly, yearly, whenever)
The Out-of-Pocket limit (the co-insurance amount you are responsible for above the deductible)

Here are the numbers for our plans (these are for employee and family):

PPO		HSA
$1,000	Deductable (per yr)	$4,000
$X + $70	Premium (per mo.)	$X
$4,000	Out-of-Pocket Limit (per yr)	$4,000

For this example, you can assume that most other details are equal. As you can see, the PPO has higher premiums ($840 per year), but the deductible is $3,000 less than the HSA. The out-of-pocket limits are the same, making that part irrelevant. So what does all this mean? "Well, here's how we decided..."

For two years running, we've hit our out-of-pocket limit in April or May. Lately, we've been what they refer to as 'heavy users of insurance'. We don't have chronic ailments, but we did have a baby last year. And this year, we had 3 ER trips. the net result of 2 busy kids and 2 active parents. We're healthy people, but lately we've been quite accident prone.

Really, each employee has to make a gamble. either we choose the PPO and plan on using up the low deductible, or we choose the HSA and hope hardly see the doctor all year (thus taking advantage of putting in less per month). While we like the idea of rolling over unused HSA funds to the next year, so far that hasn't been a reality.

We chose the PPO.

Is it right for everyone? Definitely not. A greater difference in the premiums would make the HSA more attractive. This is especially true with a fully-funded emergency fund. We could use it to cover $4k in medical expenses, but that also means that the EF would be depleted and not able to be use for other emergencies.

What has your experience been? Does the HSA work for you or your family?

Vacation Or Bust Update

2009-10-28T08:15:00.001-04:00

Our challenge is to raise $1300 before Christmas vacation. For more details checkout our original post. We know that it's a lofty goal to reach that fast without adding any salaried income to the mix, but we also live on a tight budget. A vacation is a luxury not a necessity.

Here is the breakdown of what we have done so far this month:

Garage Sale- We decided to have an impromptu garage sale with a friend who lives on a busy road in a really nice part of town. It worked out great! We sold most of our stuff and made $427 to put towards our vacation fund.
Survey- Ironically the week we started the challenge the Mr. got a call from a magazine he subscribes to asking him to take part in a large web-based survey the following week. His reward was a check for $150.
Blog- We made $71 in blog revenue this month after paypal fees and other costs.

So far this month we have made a grand total of $648! Not bad for just under 4 weeks. We are only two dollars shy of the halfway mark. The garage sale was our biggest money maker planned. It did give us a great boost in the right direction but we are running out of stuff to sell for money.

The plan for the next couple weeks is to sell of a few odd ends and I'm going to try selling some of my handmade items at a local craft fair in two weeks. I'm hoping to make about $20-30 each on the odd end. I have no clue what I'll make at the craft fair. It's the first time I've tried something like that so it's all an unknown. Hopefully it will raise some cash instead of just being just a learning experience.

Do you have any ideas for us to raise some fast cash? How have you raised vacation funds in the past?

Still here...

2009-10-27T12:43:00.005-04:00

Posting has been a little light lately - Ok, it's been 6 days. Fret not -we're still here.

Life has just had us feeling a tad under water lately, and that's ok, it happens from time to time.

The Mrs. is up to her knees in apples as she spends her days making and preserving applesauce for the year. It's a ton of work, but she will survive it and be back soon with more inspiring posts.

I've been laboring in the garden every non-rainy chance I get, trying to finish the fence and grape arbors for the garden makeover. 300 feet of fence takes time when you do it from scratch. I've also been trying to wrap up other fall yard work before all the nice days get away from us.

But not all of our time has been spent away from the computer.
Here are some things we have been working on that you can look forward to in the coming weeks:

Raw milk - how deliciously illegal is it?
The truth about debit cards - just the facts, ma'am.
Part 2 of our look at Roth IRA conversions
We're prepping several guest posts for other blogs
And tomorrow.... an update on Vacation or Bust 2009!

photo from Flickr

Going Once, Going Twice, Sold to Mrs. Not the Jet Set!

2009-10-21T01:36:00.000-04:00

I have to admit that I LOVE auctions. I'm picky about which ones I go to and I do have favorite auctioneers. Saying that I rarely walk away from an auction disappointed. This past weekend was no exception to the rule either.

A local plant nursery decided that to stay a float after a bad year they would auction off a large amount of their stock. It's heart breaking to know that a local person is on the brink of losing their business, but by spending the money at the auction you do have to look at it as a way to help them.

There was over an acre full of stock that they were getting rid of. Most of it was trees with the smallest being 6 ft tall and the largest ones needing to be moved by semi-trailers. I'm talking massive 20+ feet tall trees. My goal and budget was to accure a couple fruit trees for our open front yard. When the auction started I realized quickly that I was going to get lucky. The people bidding were all wholesalers or developers. No one had any interest in "edible" plants. Because of this stroke of luck I was able to walk away feeling like a million bucks. I bought 5 large seedless concord grape vines for $10 total. Five apple trees (Granny Smith and Empires) for $17.50 each along with 2 aprocots and 3 cherries for $12.50 each. These trees were each 9 feet tall and in 10 gallon containers! What a deal!!!

It will not take long for those large plants to start recouping my initial cost. It might even take the Mr.'s back longer to heal. Sorry for all the digging honey!

Two Cent Tuesday

2009-10-20T03:06:00.001-04:00

Welcome to Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mrs.

"When you realize you NEED something don't run to the store right away. Instead take the time to find a creative solution you already have in your home. I've found countless ways to use my extra mason jars. "

Now it's your turn!

Your Two Cents:

The Bible, Money and Marriage

2009-10-19T08:35:00.011-04:00

Before you read this post please read my disclaimer below:

I'm by no means a biblical scholar or a theology teacher. What I do know is that you have to read the bible, think about how it would apply to today's world, and look at what your specific faith teachings/ interpretations are for that specific bible verse, parable, or allegory. Please discuss this topic with your own Priest or Pastor if you want a clearer outlook from your faith's perspective.

Okay, On to the post.

Last week I posted about my view of Suze Orman's advice to married couples. I knew my stand would be controversial but most of the time following God's will is not the path of least resistance. Because of that I did get some feedback from readers that didn't see things my way and that is just fine. I don't expect everyone to see the world the way I do. If I did then life would be boring and I'd never learn anything new. However, one commenter did ask where in the bible God said that we should have joint accounts. I felt like answering that question in the comments would not give it the full justice that it deserves.

Here are some of the places in the bible that I feel address this topic of having unity in your financial lives as a married couple.

> Gen 2:24 "Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh" By one flesh it means that you have one set of hands, eyes, ears and so on. If you are to truly be one you would have to truly say what is mine is yours and yours is mine. We share everything we have, including money.

> Mark 10:9 "what therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder" If you are not let anything get between you that means more then a job or another woman. It means the kids, politics, and money too.

> 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." It's rare that both spouses are financially savvy. It's also rare that they both have enough free time on their hands to do double the work. God gave us each our own set of talents and as a married couple you are to share them as "one flesh" not withhold them from each other. My husband is good at hanging pictures, I'm not. He hangs all the pictures in the house even the ones I want hung. I'm good at sewing, he would probably sew his fingers together. I mend all the clothes in our house. We share our gifts for the common good of our marriage and family.

> Proverbs 15:22 "Without counsel plans go wrong, but with many advisers they succeed." Two heads are better then one. If my husband and I both look at all of our money together we can make better decisions together. As a parent I want to make sure to include my husband on issues of raising our kids. If we discuss and agree on a parenting method (like sleeping habits of the baby) then we are much more likely to succeed by working together vs. each trying our own method which would confuse the child. The same goes with our income. We put all of it together and decide together what to do with all of it.

> Proverbs 31:10 "An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil All the days of her life." Trust each other. Have faith in the other person. You are on the same team so act like it! If we as a married couple can trust each other we will have no lack of gain. If you spouse should be worth more then jewels and your heart is to trust your spouse, why then would you not trust them with joint accounts?

As a Christian the ultimate marriage to look up to is that of Christ and his bride, the Church. So I ask myself, "What would Jesus do?" Would he not fully share his money with his spouse?

Outside of the bible specifically most if not all Christian teachings do say that you should have shared everything. The most known Christian personal financial teachers all say it too. Including Dave Ramsey, Larry Burkett, and Phil Lenahan.

Another thing those same PF gurus will teach you is about communication in a marriage. Something most marriages need more of. Clearly, in the case of Jon and Kate Goslin, they needed more communication - not less. Separating your finances is simply a brick wall for communication - a place for spouses to hide their spending sins. Joint accounts takes your marriage in the opposite direction to a place called unity. My husband has full knowledge of the amount of money I spend on my garden and on sewing projects. I'm fully aware of how much he spends on his tools and other stuff. It's okay to spend money on things that only one person enjoys without feeling ashamed or the need to hide it from your spouse. It's just apart of having a mature and selfless relationship.

On a personal note, while we never had separate accounts, we were not always on the same page about our finances. I can assure you that this did not do us any favors in maintaining a healthy marriage. He spent and I got upset. I spent and he had no clue. Hurt feelings, confusion, blaming.... maybe you've been through this too? But since we got on the same page, since both of us agree on our spending before we do it, since both of us understand our common goals as well as our personal goals, we now have this incredible unity in our marriage. There's no ambiguity, and we love it. The more open and vulnerable we become to each other the stronger our marriage and finances become.

So how are the accounts arranged in your marriage? How does it correlate with your faith and it's teachings?

Feel free to join us tomorrow for Two Cent Tuesday!

Just a Reminder....

2009-10-16T07:58:00.000-04:00

There's been a lot of discussion lately on credit cards and debit cards (as if it ever really settles down). After several great discussions and debates, I ran across a string of posts from the Consumerist - one of the few consumer advocacy blogs. The articles were interesting individually, but more compelling as a body of work.

Hit the link below for a summary of this collection and a little reminder for those of us who have taken the plunge and gone credit card free.

From "Consumers Pay Down Credit Card Debt for 11th Straight Month":

The Federal Reserve has released data on consumer debt for August, and for the 11th month in a row we've paid down credit card debt and increased savings. Take that, rate-hiking credit card companies!

Great, right? For many millions of Americans, this theory of 'just pay off the balance each month' panned out to be little more than just a nice theory. The reality was credit card debt, and we also know that the leading causes of that credit card debt is due to a loss of income and/or medical expenses, not uncontrollable spending.
_____

From "Man Puts Deposit Down On Used Car, Backs Out, Can't Get Money Back":

Back in April, Nait put a $500 refundable deposit down on a used car, then decided he didn't want to buy it anymore when he found it needed $10,000 in repairs. Five months later, neither the dealership nor Capital One, will refund his money. He gives a blow-by blow here.

So much for credit cards being that magical line of defense between the consumer and a shady business.
_____

From "Ending The 0% Balance Transfer Era":

Ah, the glory days of American credit cards. When your credit card's interest rate went too high, you could find a different card with a deliciously low promo balance transfer rate, and revel in your low interest. At least, until you let the card sit idle too long or made a late payment, and then started the cycle over again. But no more.

The first comment here is also of note:

I've never found a balance transfer that would help my wife and I spend less and/or pay off quicker. Has anyone found a good way to do this that doesn't involve a balance transfer?

Right, and you never will. The balance transfer can only be effective as a temporary band-aid on the hemorrhaging that is your money. It may stop the bleeding, but yet hasn't solved anything. Want to spend less, and/or pay them off quicker? Close 'em, Shred 'em, and Forget 'em.
_____

From "BofA Pledges To Stop Raising Credit Card Interest Rates":

The AP reports Bank of America has promised to stop jacking up interest rates on credit cards with fixed interest rates. But that doesn't mean your rate won't jump.

Sounds a lot like previous promises to stop ~~beating their wives~~ abusing customers. No, no - I'm sure they mean it this time.
_____

From "Help! My Credit Card Is Adding An Annual Fee!"

Michael is in a situation that we anticipate will become very, very common in the coming months. His credit card company has imposed a $99 annual fee. He can accept the fee, or close his account. Not only is this his only credit card, but it's the oldest credit line he has, so closing it would hurt his credit score. What would you do?

You guys are just pitching them underhand.... that's an easy question - Close 'em, Shred 'em, and Forget 'em.

So those 5 recent posts, as I said, make for a compelling body of work. How so? Think about it this way:

If you have no credit cards, then none of this has any affect on you. Any of it.

The first is nice to hear, and even nicer not to be participating it - or even capable of participating in. Of the many things credit cards claim, simplicity is not one of them.

Just a reminder...

How to Ruin Your Marriage

2009-10-15T06:01:00.002-04:00

Step One: Listen to Suze Orman

Step Two: There is none needed after step one.

Does that seem a little harsh? I don't think that it does. It actually took me several days to calm down enough to write this post. Last Friday I was watching the Today show while folding laundry. It's the one time I actually watch TV. Anyways, on comes Suze looking like she just rolled out of bed with a hoodie on and her hair not done. I usually don't judge people by their looks but come on, your on national TV. Matt proceeded asked her about what couples should do with their money so that they don't end up like Jon and Kate (I guess Jon emptied their bank accounts before he moved out). What is her wise advise?

Don't trust your spouse from the beginning. The preacher didn't REALLY mean "and now you are one". And if you are a stay at home wife you must feel like a little child asking her daddy for her allowance. How in the world does any of this advise make for a strong marriage? I can tell you right now that if we didn't have joint accounts on everything along with 100% open communication about our finances I would not feel comfortable staying home with my kids. I also would never fully trust my spouse. How could I if he doesn't fully trust me?

On top of all of that depending on what state you live in your death could cause even more financial stress then the emotional stress of losing a spouse. Right now we are "walking" with a widow from our church who is suffering. She lost her husband last month unexpectedly. Because they had bought off on bad advise like Suze's she didn't know what type of financial stuff was going on in her husbands life. It turns out that he had a mountain of credit card debt that she didn't know about. She didn't even know he had the cards.

Right now you are probably thinking so what? She isn't liable for his debt. You are right, but his estate is. Their home as well as their paid for cars where all in his name since they could qualify for better rates that way. Now she is looking at losing everything they had work for. Along with the home they raised their 12 kids in.

If they had joint accounts she would have known what was going on. She would have said "No thanks honey, I don't NEED a new coat this winter." She would have made different decisions. He would have been held responsible for his actions as well. Living two seperate financial lives in marriage only caused their family extreme pain and suffering after his death. She lost her husband and her whole world. She is now faced with moving out of state to live with one of her children because she has no home.

If that is what you want your future to be then go ahead and take Suze's advise. Have separate accounts and just one "monthly shared bills" account. For me and my household... We will serve the Lord. We will be one in marriage. We will make all of our financial decisions together in an open and honest way. We will give, spend and save while keeping in mind that we are called to be good stewards of all God gave us. Because really, it's not ours to begin with! Why hide it from our spouses when we are called to do just the opposite?

And by the way, if you work for the Today Show I'd like for you to know that was the last time I will watch your morning show so long as she is a guest on your program. I'm sure that some of your competitors have better experts on their show. I mean really, can't you do better then a never been married lady in a hoodie, with bedhead giving out serious marriage financial advise?

You can view the follow up post based on the comments below at this link.

Two Cents Tuesday

2009-10-13T05:55:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the first edition of Two Cents Tuesday!

Two Cents from the Mrs.

"One of the ways we have been able to stretch our clothing budget in the fall is by making baby legs for the girls to wear with their summer tee shirts and skirts. "

Now it's your turn!

Your Two Cents:

French Memo Board Made Easy

2009-10-12T01:57:00.004-04:00

Maybe it's just me, but I always thought that those cool looking French memo boards like they would be hard to make. Then I actually took the time to think about it and realized just how easy it would be to make!

This project cost me nothing but about 15 minutes of my time. First I located a piece of scrap 1x4 pine in the garage scrap bin, some leftover batting and fabric in the sewing room. Then I located a package of coordinating rick rack that I had bought at a garage sale a couple summers ago.

I stretched the batting and fabric across the board and stapled it in the back like I would do when I recover dining room chair seats. Next I laid out the rick-rack in a X pattern. After I had it laid out the way I wanted it I pinned it into place. then I turned it over and stapled it into the back as well.

I thought I was done until I realized that I forgot about hanging it! The Mr. managed to wrestle up a two saw tooth hangers for me and we were back in business.

This was a really easy and fun project to do. I would even be willing to do it with my kids help if it was not a present for them. ;-)

Remember to join us tomorrow for the first Two Cent Tuesday!

For more great ideas visit us on:
Works for me Wednesday
Tackle it Tuesday
DIY Day
Make do Monday

Top Three Cookbooks

2009-10-09T09:15:00.001-04:00

Sometimes it's hard to find recipes that taste good and are healthy. That's when I take the time to be creative in the kitchen. However, I'll admit that instead of re-inventing the wheel I prefer to use my favorite cookbooks and save the creative juices for the sewing room and our budget.

I found it hard to narrow it down since I do have several cookbooks I use on a somewhat regular basis, but here are my top three favorite cookbooks.

America's Best Bread Machine Recipes - By Donna Washburn

I tried several different bread machine recipe books. This is the only one I use now. We love all the recipes. When I made the homemade pizza this was the book that I used for the pizza dough recipe.

Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook (1950's version)- By Betty Crocker Editors

Every kitchen needs the cookbook. It's filled to the gills with all the great basics that every cook needs to know. If I forget how long to bake a potato or how to cook a type of meat I know that Betty has me covered!

Deceptively Delicious -By Jessica Seinfeld

I'm sure I'm not the only mom who struggles to get their kids to eat veggies. This wonderful cookbook has helped me expand my thinking on the many ways to sneak veggie in. She also has wonderful information about teaching your kids about food choices and nutritional information for the fruits and vegetables she uses.

These are my top three must have cookbooks. What are your top three?

Two Cent Tuesdays- A New Series

2009-10-06T08:36:00.003-04:00

Have you ever wanted to tell someone YOUR two cents?

Well I want to hear your two cents! That is why we are starting a new series here at Not the Jet Set. Every Tuesday we would like for you to share (via linky or comment) your two cents on living on a not the jet set budget. We will start the series this coming Tuesday, Oct. 13th.

You can link to posts that are related to living on a tight budget. This could be anything from ideas to save money around the house or garden, DIY home repair, using cash envelopes, to planning your low cost vacation. We do ask that you refrain from linking to posts about weekly store deals, contests, paid ads and the like.

Get your keyboards warmed up every body because we want to hear your two cents!

Save Money - Raise Chickens!

2009-10-06T04:58:00.000-04:00

I caught this post the other day over at the Suburban Dollar via Bad Money Advice. Now we've gotten lots and lots of questions about our chickens, but no one had really quizzed us about the economics of our hens. After reading the doubtful post over at the Suburban Dollar, I thought to myself, "How do we come out on this deal?"

There is this stereotype that anything 'green' or 'organic' can't be frugal. The assumption is that you can't possibly come out even on the deal, let alone save money. We've always tried to challenge that here at Not the Jet Set. So, with some rough math, we hammered out some numbers. And I have to say, I was surprised at just how far we come out ahead on this.

Now first, I'll state what is commonly forgotten - the assumptions:

We made the decision long ago, that we would not compromise on milk and eggs - organic or all-natural for us. Locally, these run at least $3 per dozen.
A lot of the hard numbers at the Suburban Dollar was based on the amount of feed each chicken consumes and the cost of it. Our hens not only eat purchased feed, but also certain scraps from the table (we make them eat it outside). So while they may consume 1/3 lb. of food per day, ours 1/3 lb is comprised of feed, scraps, and bugs, and grass.
The working theory is that our breed of chickens produce 4-7 eggs per week. I say theory as all of them are not yet producing. In fact, 2 of the 4 are producing and seem to be producing 6-7 per week. We know that production will slow in the winter, so we tried to pick an average number that was fair.

Now the numbers.

For the most part I'm going to reference my comment over at SD. A comment that sadly got no response.

The set-up
We only have 4 hens as it is the most the township will allow. Yes, we live in town and our neighbors had no idea we had chickens until the saw me building the coop. Speaking of which, I was able to build our coop mostly out of scrap materials. Total cost was $110.

Counting our Chickens
The chickens them selves were purchased from a local feed store. Typically, when you buy the chicks, they are so young that they need to be kept in-doors for a month or so until they are mature enough to survive outside. These were already 'of age' and were ready to live outside. They were $2.50 each for a grand total of $10.

Feeding the Birds
Our hens eat a lot of mosquitoes and ticks, which is a nice side benefit, as they have free run of our fenced in back yard. We haven't found a tick on the dogs since we got the hens. As I previously mentioned, they also eat some table scraps - fruit, bread crusts, they LOVE oatmeal. We also feed the hens an organic feed (locally grown and milled, just not certified organic). It's $12 for a 50 lb sack. It lasts us about 2 months.

The Total Production
So lets do some math. Our four hens, when all are producing, will pop out about 18 eggs per week (conservative). Since we bought them young, lets say we get 3 years of production out of them. Over those 156 weeks, we'll get 2808 eggs, or 234 dozen. Times $3 per dozen, gives you $702 worth of eggs.

The Total Costs
We've got $110 in the coop. The chickens themselves cost $10 for the four of them. Feed over the 3 years should run $216. Putting the majority of our costs at $336.

So the math does actually work, at least the way we are doing it. In fact we're doubling our money. Our cost per dozen is $1.43 for organic, free-range eggs. Coming from chickens that eat a ton of bugs, produce great fuel for our compost, and are really quite fun to watch. Plus at that cost, we can easily sell what we can't use, and turn a profit.

But as I said at the start - we really hadn't looked at this as a way to save money. We were unhappy with the cost of organic eggs at the store. But really we were doing this more for the experience and connection with the food journey. We were hoping that we weren't going to end up paying through the nose for these eggs. Turns out to be quite the opposite.