Yes indeed, we\u2019ve welcomed a hobbit into our home. Mr. FW is a well-known lover of The<\/em> Lord of The Rings<\/em> books and the main reason he wanted to have children was to one day read the series with them. He\u2019s been working Kidwoods up to The Hobbit<\/em> by having her first read the Fern Hollow<\/em> books (by John Patience), next the Redwall<\/em> series (by Brian Jacques) and finally, last month, she began reading The Hobbit<\/em> to him. <\/span><\/p>\n To facilitate this love of literature, we purchased a gorgeous, illustrated, hard-cover copy of The Hobbit<\/em><\/a><\/strong><\/span>\u00a0(affiliate link<\/em>). Normally, we buy zero new books\u2013they all come from the library or a yard sale, but this was a special one Mr. FW wanted to gift to Kidwoods.<\/span><\/p>\n This is now their daily afternoon habit\u2013she sits in his lap and reads him books. It started out as an assignment from her fabulous 1st grade teacher at the beginning of this year and, wouldn\u2019t you know it, her reading has advanced quickly and dramatically. Having her read aloud to him enables us to track her progress and ensure she\u2019s nailing the pronunciations as well as internalizing the context and story line. She now delights in giving me the rundown on what the characters are up to each day!<\/span><\/p>\n I initially thought The Hobbit<\/em> might be too scary for a seven-year-old, but she LOVES it and it provides a lot of opportunities to discuss when characters aren\u2019t nice to each other. She can recognize bad behavior when it crops up in the story and is able to articulate why it\u2019s bad. All in all, an adorable routine is cemented in our home. The only downside is that Littlewoods is FURIOUS she can\u2019t read yet.<\/span><\/p>\n The other notable line items this month are my yard sale and thrift store scores since it\u2019s yard sale season here in Vermont! My yard sale buddy, RW, and I\u2019ve been hitting it hard early on Saturday mornings and have made some excellent hauls.<\/span><\/p>\n As longtime readers are well aware, I utilize yard sales and thrift stores to procure the following:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Birthday gifts for other kids!<\/strong> Anytime I find a new, unopened, tags-on, in-package toy\/book\/puzzle\/craft kit, I scoop it up for one of the many kid birthday parties we attend.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n I mean, honestly, why not? I\u2019ve written tomes on this in the past, and for my longwinded thoughts, check out:<\/span><\/p>\n Beyond the astronomical amounts of money I save by accepting hand-me-downs and thrifting it up, I\u2019ve discovered a slew of non-monetary benefits of the used market:<\/span><\/p>\n 1. Buying used = fewer decisions, which makes us humans happier.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Infinite choice is paralyzing\u2026 and exhausting to the human psyche. It leads us to set unreasonably high expectations, question our choices before we even make them and blame our failures entirely on ourselves\u2026 Too much choice undermines happiness (source: NPR<\/span><\/a>).<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n 2. Used stuff is more environmentally friendly<\/a><\/span>.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n 3. Buying used allows for the experience of kismet.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n 4. Buying used reduces the endowment effect.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Since so much of our stuff was purchased used at a deep discount, I\u2019m not super attached to any of it. This allows me the freedom to let it go so that it doesn\u2019t clutter up my life. This is also why I\u2019m in favor of the Plan Ahead, Buy Ahead approach<\/a>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n 5. Buying used is fun! So fun.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n 6. Buying used and handing stuff down creates community.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n 7. Buying used takes less time than buying new.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n \u2026on other things (such as restaurants and coffee shops!). From my perspective, if I can get perfectly good stuff used for cheap, why buy it new? I can\u2019t get perfectly good used lunches out with my husband, but I sure as heck can get fantastic used bikes for my kids. It\u2019s all about saving where it\u2019s easy to save so that you can spend in other areas.<\/span><\/p>\n Money is terrifying for a lot of people and many of us don\u2019t know where to start.<\/span><\/p>\n That\u2019s where I come in.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n I demystify personal finance and break it down into manageable steps. I explain where to start, where to go and how to confidently manage your money on your own.<\/span><\/p>\n My consultation sessions\u2013and resulting written financial plans\u2013are comprehensive, holistic, and all-encompassing of each person\u2019s finances. I look at income, debts, assets, mortgages, expenses, investments, retirement accounts, anticipated social security, credit card strategy and more. I run through every aspect of a person\u2019s financial life alongside their longterm goals and aspirations.<\/span><\/p>\n I help people figure out how to make their money enable them to live the life they want.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Need help with your money?<\/span><\/p>\n \u2192Not sure\u00a0which option<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>is right for you? Schedule\u00a0a free 15-minute chat with me\u00a0<\/a><\/span>to learn more. Refer a friend\u00a0to me here<\/a>.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n I use and recommend a free online service called\u00a0<\/span>Empower<\/a><\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>to organize our money. It tracks our spending, net worth, investments, retirement, everything. While the name is different, the free net worth tracking and money organization tools are the same!<\/span><\/p>\n Knowing where your money\u2019s at is one of the easiest ways to get a handle on your finances. You cannot make informed decisions about your money if you don\u2019t know how you\u2019re spending it or how much you have. If you\u2019d like to know more about how Empower works,\u00a0check out my full write-up<\/strong>.<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Without a holistic picture of your finances, there\u2019s no way to set savings, debt repayment or investment goals. It\u2019s a must, folks. Empower (which is free<\/strong><\/a><\/span>)\u00a0is a great way for me to systematize our financial overviews since it links all of our accounts together and provides a comprehensive picture of our net worth.<\/span><\/p>\n If you don\u2019t have a solid idea of where your money\u2019s at\u2013or how you\u2019re spending it\u2013consider\u00a0trying Empower\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/span>(note: the Empower links are affiliate links).\u00a0<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n We buy everything we can with credit cards because:<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s easier to track expenses.<\/strong>\u00a0No guesswork over where a random $20 bill went; it all shows up in our monthly expense report from\u00a0Empower<\/a><\/strong>.<\/span> I also spend less money because I KNOW I\u2019m going to see every expense listed at the end of the month.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/li>\n For more on my credit card strategy, and a list of the best rewards credit cards on the market now, check out:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/frugalwoods.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/MrFW_kid_chair_reading_house_hobbit_family-scaled.jpg\")
<\/a>Yard Sale & Thrift Store Scores<\/span><\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Why Buy Used?<\/span><\/h3>\n
More Than Money Saved: Other Benefits Of Buying Used<\/span><\/h3>\n
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I Still Spend Plenty Of Money<\/span><\/h3>\n
Want Help With Your Money? Book a Financial Consult With Me!<\/span><\/h3>\n
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I Love the Free Money Tracking Tools from Personal Capital\u2026 now called Empower!<\/span><\/h3>\n
Credits Cards: How We Buy Everything<\/span><\/h3>\n
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The Best Credit Cards (and Credit Card Rewards)!<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n