What is Personal Finance?

Alot of what we write about on our site is personal finance.

So what is personal finance? Personal finance looks at how your money and future is managed. Often individuals will seek advice from financial planners, and the using of software is also an option. Personal finance can include monitoring your spending, budgeting for an emergency fund, and paying down debt.

It helps to track your expenses, set home budget goals, and to help you better to cut costs and see where your money is going.

I love exploring the personal finance section of any book store when I go. Usually when in the city I will pick up a book to read for the trip home.( As we live 4-6 hours from the nearest city,it's nice to have reading material if one isn't driving.) Yes, I will admit I will occassionally pick up a new book. I have read so many personal finance books that I can no longer find one I've read before, in the used book stores,but will usually resell on Amazon once I'm finished with them.

Good money management is important in our home as by being careful in all areas,it allows us to have some freed up money to save towards such things as our trip fund,our emergency or home renovation fund or even savings for next Christmas.

With good money management skills, you can create a plan to reduce your debt.You can see where you have areas where you can save, and be more aware of where money may be slipping through the cracks.

Review and Giveaway: Popcorners

When I recieved my box of Popcorners today, I must admit that the box it came in, was the first thing that caught my eye. As you can see, I had to take a picture of the box as well.It is so cute!An older man with a remote,and a bowl of popcorn- and on the side of the box in big letters it says: "It's Time To Change the Popcorn!"

And now, on to the product... All natural POPCORNERS™ are the NEW shape of popcorn! PopCorners™ are a delicious snack with the snap of a chip and the same wholesome goodness as popcorn. They are popped with real corn and the finest all natural ingredients.

Popcorners taste alot like rice cakes we all thought..and eating them didn't make us feel like we were eating anything bad,like that feeling you get after you eat a greasy bag of potato chips.They are flavorful and come in 5 different flavors, including:butter, sea salt,white cheddar, kettle and cheesy jalapeno.

We weren't too excited with the kettle flavor, but that's just us and our taste buds, and the older daughter will be reviewing the cheesy jalapeno, as she loves all those "hot and spicy" snacks, but the rest we're keeping for ourselves!

Interested in some recipes using Popcorners? They are always looking for your recipe ideas.


JetBlue is now offering POPCORNERS on all of its flights as well!

Hope I got you interested in wanting to try them. Now where can you get them? Search for local retailers near you, or purchase online.


Popcorners would love to offer one lucky winner from Canada or the USA, the chance to win their own novelty sample box.

A random draw will be held by Random.org on January 16,2011.


To Enter:Tell me what your favorite flavor would be of theirs.

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Good Luck to All!

Home Buying in Minnesota?

Are you looking at moving to Minnesota anytime soon?

Just browsing the internet I found some really nice looking Plymouth new homes and Woodbury new homes .


There's homes for multi families and single family homes, and these are nice looking new homes.The homes I found for anyone moving to these areas are affordable, move-up and retirement homes in communities that cater to almost any lifestyle – such as urban, golf course, active adults or suburban communities.

Home buying is a big step in anyone's life and you want to make the right choices, and buy what is affordable to you and your family. You want to be happy with your choice.

Some tips on buying your new home should include:

-choosing a home that will fit with your lifestyle
-make sure the home you are looking at is what you can afford
-research your builder and ask for testimonials
-find out what is included and what isn't included in the warranty

Have fun house hunting!

Do You Need Marriage Counselling?

If your having some marriage problems, marriage counseling may be an option you may want to consider.Problems in any marriage can cause a disruption within the whole family.I know- I've been there.I can't remember how long I've been divorced.I think it's been at least 5 years, but I know it was hard on the girls when we split. Especially Erika, as she was closest with her dad.

I know we were never soul mates like Gerry and I are.I was 17 when I got married.I never went to marriage counselling.

If your already having problems, don't wait any longer to seek out help if you want your relationship to be saved.At the very least, marriage counseling can help with learning how to handle disagreements.All couples have conflict from time to time in their marriages, it's learning how to deal with those disagreements that's imporant.

If your having problems it's imporant that both sides see that the marriage is in trouble. One of the big problems with marriage breakdown is lack of communication.Another problem is blaming one another.Acknowledge your problems, then work on resolving them.Life's too short to be unhappy in your marriage/relationship.Although some marriages are worth trying to save, don't put up with any behaviour you feel is unacceptable to you. Talk to someone now.

Emergency Food Storage and Preparation

Do you plan for emergencies by having a food storage system in place? If in higher risk areas which have been known to have been hit with earthquakes, floods, tornados and hurricanes, are you prepared ? You don't want to be stuck for days with no food or clean water. An emergency can happen anytime.

Food storage is a process that may take time to build for some, but can be done with some preparation.

Along with emergency food and water storage,you should also have an emergency kit.

We have one but have it stored in the trunk of my car for any emergency we may have if on the road.It has absolutely everything in it.With your emergency kit, some things it should contain is items for first aid,food, water tablets,items for making a shelter, and other valuable tools, such as lights, hand tools,etc..There's a piece of mind that comes with owing one of these kits.

No one wants to think something bad can happen, but isn't it good to be prepared?

Engagement and Wedding Rings and What They Symbolize

I love looking at rings online, especially since I have a wedding to plan this year.

Engagement rings are symbols of the love, devotion, and fidelity a couple shares and with both engagement and wedding rings the circle of a ring represents undying love and the continually renewed vows of the married couple. As a circle cannot be broken, neither can their bond.

Engagement rings mean the woman wears the ring to show the world that she intends to be married soon and is unavailable to others.
Diamonds are most often the gemstone of choice for engagement rings because of their unique ability to reflect white light, and look most brilliant.
Wedding rings make two souls one, and are a symbol of marriage.

Nowadays I read that even some men are getting engagement rings as well, as more and more women are "popping the question."

With Valentine's Day coming up next month, this is another time of year when more women will get engaged and be getting engagement rings.As well, February 14th is also a day of the year when many couples choose to get married as well.However, if choosing this date, plan well enough in advance as this day is very popular for being romantic!

Valentines' Day Gift Guide Suggestion: Review and Giveaway: Just Paper Roses

In our Valentine's Day Gift Suggestion Guide this year, is Just Paper Roses.
They offer a variety of cute gifts for the loved one in your life.

Their I Love You From Top To Bottom Toliet Paper is perfect for putting that smile on their face when they see this. Makes a cute, unique novelty item.

Or more on the serious side are the Kiss couple figurine:
Hand carved from suar wood, this romantic figurine stands 8 inches tall and is an everlasting symbol of love! I thought this was such an artistic piece of work, and is also available in aluminum as well.
This piece says " I love you" all over it.

Just Paper Roses would like to offer a $50 gift certificate for one lucky winner from Canada or the USA. A random draw will be made by Random.org on February 04,2011.

To Enter:

Become their Facebook fan

Extra Entries:

Add my button to your blog hop
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Good Luck To All!

Offermatic-Changing the Way Consumers Save Money

Offermatic today introduced an expanded and improved automatic rebate platform with new deals and more merchants, building on its new model for deals and offers that launched to the public last month.

Offermatic now offers deals from 150 merchants, up 100% from 75 merchants at launch.

Offermatic members can now get more valuable offers by progressing through different “levels” within the Offermatic platform, unlocking better offers by using their points. Members earn points for adding more debit or credit cards to Offermatic, for transactions made using those cards, for inviting others to use Offermatic, and by sharing offers on Twitter and Facebook. Signing up is easy, secure, and free at Offermatic.com

Offermatic provides a simple and powerful way to save money automatically with your existing credit or debit card – without the need for coupons, codes, and vouchers. By signing up for the free service online and linking one or more cards, Offermatic anonymously and securely reviews purchase history and identifies highly targeted and relevant money saving offers from merchants,letting you keep more of your hard earned money.

Save Money By Buying Direct

Shopping for toners,scanners and all other printing needs direct from the manufacturer can save you more money. Often with buying toners from the supplier online, you can find "buy 1 get x amount off the second one" type offers and other great discounts such as free shipping. Add to that an online discount code and you can have some great savings on your order.

We own an HP printer and love the quality of the printing we get with their toners.

We used to buy the refillable cartridges just to save money but the color was never the same as what was in the manufacturers toners, so we stopped doing that. By buying toner from the manufacturer we avoid:
• Messy leaks
• Early cartridge failure
• Unexpected cartridge replacements

We used to have a 3 in 1 scanner/printer/copier too but with a daughter in college,she needed it and took it with her.With a home office or with children and school,scanners, and printers are always useful items to have, but they don't have to be costly to operate with some smart shopping.

Thinking of Going Back to School?

Have you been thinking of going back to school to upgrade your skills, but need something that is more flexible for you and your family? Online universities are quite popular for those that want to upgrade their skills, and have families or other obligations that prevent them from taking normal classes.

I have used online schooling a few times.I have my basic councelling and my early childhood development. Both I did at home at my own pace, and helped me to get into a higher paying field when I was working temporary for a home visitor agency last year. Of course, I am no longer in the outside work force due to health issues but it did help me get paid more.I really liked it for the fact that I got to stay home and do my studies and my school work, and got to work at my own pace.

It is even possible to get an online masters degree, where you can take classes at your own pace. From taking a few classes at a time if you are already working, or taking more to get the degree faster, the scheduling is what works for you.Getting your online masters degree is an opportunity to advance in your career and make more money for you and your family.By taking your degree online you won't have to put your job you already have on hold or leave your family.

It's a great option when thinking about going back to school.