Gift giving is one way of showing someone that you remembered a special occasion or event. It is special because of the thought, time and money spent in the gift. People may buy gifts that are expensive to emphasize how special that person is. However, it is not the cost that counts but the symbolic value that is attached to the gift that counts.

I went to Personal Creations and bought a unique gift that will surely be cherished by the recipient. It was a personalized mug with a dog design. My brother has a pet beagle and likes anything that has a dog design. I could have bought him something more expensive like a new designer wallet but what I selected for him was something personal. It did not have a designer logo on the mug but it was more valuable because it was his name on the mug. [Read more…]

There are lots of ways to save money on the foods we eat every day. One of them is to hunt down coupons for the things you’re already buying. Another is to make everything yourself. In this article we’ll talk about ways to combine these two ideas.

The fact is that coupons serve a valuable purpose to any family on a budget. Coupons give us the chance to save a few cents or (if we use them regularly) quite a few dollars on the things we use every day. They also give us the chance to try new brands that we’ve had our eyes on but have been unwilling to spend money on. Because, quite simply, why spend money on something we don’t already know for sure we’ll love?

The truth is that there are quite a few places to find the coupons.  For example, if you are planning a birthday on a budget, you can click here for great savings on birthday treats. These coupon codes can be used for other celebratory days as well. [Read more…]

As a new entrepreneur it’s natural that you would feel hesitant about your taxes. Business taxes always sound so complicated when other people talk about them. Here’s the good news, taxes do not have to be your downfall. Here are some tips to help you get out ahead of them and keep things on track so that you don’t have to worry about audits or angering the IRS.

Work with a Professional

Ideally you will have the money to hire an accountant to manage your taxes for you. That way you won’t have to worry about them at all. If you can’t afford an accountant to manage your finances throughout the year and at tax time, there are other resources available to you. For example, when you e file with liberty tax (or a similar service that’s available in your area), you simply answer questions that the software asks you and it calculates your tax rate and what you owe for you. These businesses also offer you audit protection so that if a mistake is made you can simply send the IRS to them instead of having to sort it out yourself.

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There is perhaps nothing as frustrating as having car problems.  You get up in the morning put the key into the ignition and nothing.  You try it again and nothing, just a growing level of frustration as you realize that your car’s not working and you’re going to be late.

As the tow truck leaves with your car in tow the realization that something has to be done strikes you and you start to think about the future.  It’s been a good car but the tow truck driver told you that it was not the battery, he wasn’t sure but he didn’t think it was the alternator either, it could be a computer problem and that just sounds expensive.  No one likes car problems, they are rarely, cheap and always somewhat complicated.

Trying to figure out what to do in a case like this brings up a few problems.  Do you fix the car or look for a new or used car?  If you fix it, do you keep it and wait until something else happens or do you try to trade it in as it is?  These are serious questions that don’t have to be answered by you; there are those with more experience to help.

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