vancouver P.E.P for the Week of February 28 March 4/11 Spending Time With Family Edition

Tomorrow, my hubby and I are headed to Vancouver to visit my Grandfather and his wife. This trip is very important because I have not seen my grandfather in 10 years, a whole decade! I used to visit him every winter break in school but then some family dynamics got in the way. I don’t want to get into the details too much but lets just say my Dad and him had issues and there were some cultural/religious changes that I had made that caused some difficulties.

We lost touch for quite a few years. Then last year we got back in touch when I invited him to my wedding. It was a little awkward, I admit, but it was a huge step in the right direction. We were finally talking again. What made me feel so great was that it seemed like we didn’t skip a beat, even though it had been a few years since we spoke. We were able to laugh and visit just like the old days.

My grandfather wasn’t well enough to fly in for the wedding but he did send a gift in the mail along with his blessing. Since then we have tried to keep in touch via the phone every couple months and now my hubby and I are flying out for a visit. They are very excited to see me and meet my hubby. I think we are going to have  a really great time.

You see, family is number one for me in my life and I don’t do well with “big elephants” that get in the way of my relationships with them. I am so glad that things seem to be working themselves out and I can spend time with my family once again.

Now on to the PEP’s of the week. The PEP’s going forward will have a slightly different format. Each week I am going to pick an “editor’s pick”, one article for each category and explain why the article stuck with me. I am hoping to shed a bit more light into who I am as well as make the PEP’s a bit more feasible to read.

Managing Money

The Centsible Life shares with us 5 tips for managing the family finances. Her first tip is to make a money date. My hubby and I sit down and talk about our finances once a week. In fact it is scheduled in our calendar. At first I dreaded these because they often led to stress and fighting. However, since we have been doing these our money management has improved and instead of being stressed and feeling guilty we actually celebrate our success. I now get excited to look at our money stuff and see how much our net worth has increased the last week. She also reminds us to have fun. Just like Money Ning mentioned, we can splurge sometimes without it ruining our goals. It just requires balance. This weekend while we are in Vancouver, I am going to take my hubby out for a great dinner to thank him for all of his support with this family stuff. How do you manage your family finances? Any tips to share?

Saving

Free Money Finance shares with us why instant gratification is killing us. My hubby and I have been talking lately about some of our peers and how they seem to manage their finances so differently to us. We are on a  saving path, one that has us debt free and retiring early. Our friends seem to be all about the moment now. I don’t think any of our friends have any retirement money saved yet; some are even still in school. I wonder sometimes if we are old for our age and that we should let loose a bit more but then I read this article and I changed my mind. Instant gratification and a lack of saving is going to kill us financially. Feeling good for a moment is not worth feeling horrible for a lifetime. I guess what I need to do now is somehow get this same message to some of our friends. Wish me luck.

Going Frugal

Money Ning brought up the topic of sustainable frugality. This post hit home for me. You see, I am an all or nothing person. I don’t do “half way” very well. I guess it is because of my high levels of passion and energy. This article made me sit and think about my life and my frugality. Over the last year I have made a huge effort to really change how I live. I grow my own garden in the summer instead of buying produce at the store; I make my own cleaning products to save money and be green; I make my own personal care products; I cook at home every night to avoid going out in order to save money and keep my health in check; I walk to and from work so I don’t have to pay for gas, etc. I have made huge changes in my daily routine which have been for the better. However, I need to be reminded that it is ok to splurge sometimes. I find I am often saying “well maybe we shouldn’t get that” or “that money could pay for this”; that’s all good but sometimes it can go too far. Life is meant to be lived and enjoyed and if I try to restrict myself too much, I won’t enjoy it anymore. How about you? Have you found the balance of frugality?

Going Green

Simple Organic shares with us the benefits of steam cleaning. We have a steam cleaner and use it for numerous things. What I like about it the most is it doesn’t require anything but water; how green is that?! We use it to clean our glass surfaces, our floors, and even our tub once in a while. Being green is really important to us and so being able to kill germs by using boiling hot water instead of chemicals makes us feel great.

Getting Healthy

Squirrelers is giving up caffeine.  CONGRATULATIONS!! What a habit to break. I remember when I first got off my coffee habit; YIKES. I felt so dopey and I had really bad headaches for at least a week, but after that I felt good. I actually had more energy believe it or not. Now, I drink coffee or tea sometimes. I no longer depend on it every day which is better for my long term health. A good cup of coffee is now a treat that I can enjoy.

Reducing Debt

Financial Samurai lets us know that it is possible to make money from home and still support a family. I know so many people who can’t seem to get out of debt while raising a family. It seems no matter how hard they try, they can’t seem to afford their kids. One of the dreams I have had since I was a little girl is becoming a mom. I think that being a mom is something integral to my life’s existence; something that I couldn’t not do. Since we got married, my hubby and I have been putting together our finances so that we can afford to have a couple children. Let me tell you; it’s not easy figuring out what will work and it’s not easy to make big sacrifices. This post has provided a new opportunity that we can consider that may make having children debt free possible.

Investing Wisely

Canadian Couch Potato shares with us tips on how we can lower our rebalancing costs.  This post also hit home. Lately my hubby and I have been rearranging and rebalancing our investments. We have been getting out of some and getting into others. Most of our investments are in index funds but we do have a few individual stocks.  You see, I like individual stocks and here is why; I know that it is better to spread your wealth around but I am really passionate about investing in companies that I believe in. It goes against my grain to invest in companies I think are doing a disservice to this planet or to the people living in it. It’s hard to get around this with index funds. Companies are lumped together so even if there are good companies in the mix, you are also supporting bad companies. My hubby reminds me that investing in single stocks isn’t the best strategy and that index funds are better. Canadian Couch Potato’s tips are going to be very useful in our journey to rebalance our investments.

Caring for Yourself/Others

365 Days On A Budget tells us how we can become a master of our life. This post also really hit home. For years growing up I didn’t do to well at looking after myself. I spent my days looking after everyone else and being what I thought they all wanted me to be. It wasn’t until I hit adulthood and really did a self examination that my eyes opened up and I realized I wasn’t living the life I wanted. At that moment I decided to become a master of my own life. Since then, I have had nothing but happiness in my life; so many good opportunities have come my way that I never thought I would get. I am no longer afraid to try something or to take a risk. I don’t worry about being perfect at something, I just do my best. How about you? What have you mastered in your life?

That’s it for the round up but before you go make sure to check out the current giveaways for your chance to win. Cheers and have a great weekend.

Giveaways

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Narrow Bridge- Vuru Beta Invites

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P.E.P for the Week of February 28 March 4/11 Spending Time With Family Edition Miss T has written 579 articles on this blog.

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