Organization & Planning

National Parks Trips

What are your plans for 2026? For us, we always make travel plans. Here are a few things to know about traveling to a National Park in 2026:

Here are the 10 FREE days to help you plan for 2026:

February 21: President’s Day
May 30: Memorial Day
June 14: Flag Day (Trump’s birthday)
July 4: Independence Day weekend
August 25: 110th Birthday of the National Park Service
September 17: Constitution Day
October 27: Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday
November 11: Veteran’s Day

These days are different than in the past years, so mark your calendars, We have been to several with many more on our bucket list. Our most recent trip was to Mount Rushmore.

Oh No, The Holidays Are Coming!

The holidays are here, whether you are ready or not! Guard your budgets and hold onto your wallets. You might be thinking I’m crazy, but the retailers have positioned their holiday displays to disarm you of your cash, especially this year with more sales days – Vlack Friday (That started early). Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday, Giving / Travel Tuesday.

Can you make this year different? Can you stick to your list and not overspend? You can if you make a detailed plan. Write down exactly what you will be buying and the dollar amount you plan to spend.

Here are some suggestions that should help you with your holiday budget list.

Gifts

How much for immediate family?
How much for extended family?
How much for friends and co-workers?
How much for people whose services you use?

Entertaining

How much will it cost when you host a gathering?
How much will you spend on hostess gifts when you attend a party?

Travel

How much will it cost for local travel (gas, tolls, parking, etc)?
How much will it cost for long distance travel?
How much will it cost for vacation?

Traditions– this can be anything from an afternoon tea to a night on the town.

If you write it all down, you might realize you’re planning on spending $300-$500 on gifts for people who aren’t on your immediate family list. And hosting dinners can be expensive just because you want to put on a good appearance. Ever notice a big stain on the tablecloth and found yourself running to the store at the last minute to buy one full price?

Holiday fun can wreak havoc on your budget, but it doesn’t have to. Now is the time to get a jump start on planning, and to put away money for the details that are important to you. Think of it as your own layaway plan. Take money out of each check, and spread out your spending, that way you won’t have buyer’s regret in January.

Doing this now may make January 2026 less stressful and not stressing over the credit card bills in January.

Financial Literacy Month #19

Do you have old electronics that you don’t use lying around your house? We took these all to Staples to be recycled and got cash back in our account towards future purchases. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Financial Literacy Month #18

We are cleaning out our home and making money doing it. Back in the day when you went to an event and ended up with a paper ticket stub. What to do with your old ticket stubs. We found www.DaveBuysTicketStubs,com and sold him ours for cash. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Financial Literacy Month #9

Now what about retirement? Are you on track? It’s never too early to start to save for retirement as you have the power of time. On the other hand, it’s never too late to start either. Sign up for your company’s retirement plan. You don’t want to pass up free matching funds. If that is not available, open your own retirement account and automate your contributions. Start today. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Financial Literacy Month #6

Do you have an emergency fund? You never know what could happen in life. Experts say you should have 6 months to a year worth of income on hand for life’s what ifs. Yes, that can be overwhelming to go from minimal savings to this goal. Start by finding ways to save $5 a day to start. Automate your savings goals so that they happen. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Financial Literacy Month #5

As we get closer to Spring, are you ready to explore the outdoors? April 19 is one of the days that you can go to a National Park for free. Other days this year are June 19, August 4, September 27 and November 11. We have seen a few but have more to see. Last year we went to Mount Rushmore and Badlands. #JillRussoFoster #FinancialLiteracyMonth

Are you curious about when to start social security?

That’s a question on a lot of people’s minds. Should I take it early at 62 or at my full retirement age or wait until I am 70.

Well wouldn’t it be great if you had a crystal ball to get the right answer for you. Well, we don’t and you want to make the right decision for your situation.

Here is an article from the Motley Fool that could give you some information that may help you make a decision that’s right for you.

It’s Never Too Late

Welcome to 2022!

It’s time to think about your finances. What are your financial goals for the upcoming year? Are you looking to save for an emergency fund, retirement, a new home or home improvements, education, an emergency fund?

There is so much to accomplish and never enough money. Well, that is how I used to think. But not anymore.

I started by taking small steps to achieve my financial goals. My first goal was to create an emergency fund of $5,000. Sounds overwhelming, but I broke it down into small steps:

$5,000 in one year is $416.66 a month – $5,000 in one year is $96.15 a week – $5,000 in one year is $13.70 a day

Next, I needed to find this money in my budget. What could I cut back on or do without? It turns out it was multiple ideas to come up with this money. We spaced out haircuts, we stopped buying beverages for work (we bring our own), we trim our dog’s nails ourselves and more.

Lastly, we automated the savings. Each paycheck we save $100.00 into our emergency savings automatically. It’s set and done.

Now we have the emergency fund we need to be prepared for whatever happens in our life.

Please know that it’s never too late to start to save for your goal. Obviously, the earlier you start the better off you are. But not starting is a mistake. Make a plan and decide to start now. You too can achieve your financial goals this year.