Bake Your Own: For Health and Wealth

Do you love apple chips? They’re a great snack, especially in fall when it’s apple season! And they’re not the only healthy “chips” out there. We were wondering what could make these snacks even better, and then realized – making them ourselves! This way you’ll save money while knowing exactly what’s going into your food.

Picture (c) Well Plated

Erin at Well Plated has an excellent, simple recipe for apple chips. It’s super easy to make in your oven, and just has two ingredients! She gives great advice on what to do if you want crispier or softer chips, what else you can add these to, and more. Why not try out this tasty snack for yourself or your family, and make your home smell great in the process?

While you’re at it, slice up some other fruits and vegetables for a variety of delicious, healthy chips. Instead of buying veggie straws from the store, Julie at Table for Two makes zucchini chips. The thinner you slice them, the better! If they still turn out soggy instead of crispy, she’s got a bunch of ideas on what went wrong and how to fix it. Plus, they’re a paleo-friendly version of chips, with less carbs! These zucchini chips are clearly something we’ve got to make soon.

Picture (c) Table for Two

Ready for something a little bit harder? Try out banana chips from Erin at Naturally Ella. Unlike many store-bought versions, there’s no added sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. All you need are bananas and lemon juice! However, baking it can be a little more difficult since your oven temperature needs to be accurate. If you’re willing to attempt it, she’s got some yummy-sounding variations. We especially love the idea of a little maple syrup for flavoring.

The fun of making your own food + the savings + the health benefits = the perfect weekend activity for us. You could watch your favorite show or movie while you wait, and take breaks to check up on how your chips are doing, or read a new book, play a game with your family… the multitasking possibilities are as endless as what you can make chips out of. So which ones are you going to try? Or if you’ve tried baking any other fruit or veggie chips before, let us know how it went for you! If you have any tips or pictures, feel free to share with us here or on social media!

Saving Energy: Tips to Keep Cool and Keep Your Cash

It’s technically fall, but here in Arizona, the heat doesn’t seem to have gotten the message. By the end of September we hope to be getting cozy in sweaters while drinking our coffee or hot chocolate, but instead we’re turning up the A/C and still sweating wherever we go. Not only are we not getting the weather some hope for, we’re not getting a break on our electric bills, either. Here are some tips that should help you keep cool and save money as we head into October.

Temperature

Use a ceiling fan or plug-in fan in the room you’re in so that you can turn up the thermostat a few degrees and still feel comfortable. Just turning up the thermostat one degree can help save 2 or 3 percent on the cost –and most people we know don’t feel a difference! Leave the temperature up higher when no one will be at home. A lot of heat also enters houses through the windows – close the blinds or cover them some other way to block as much as you can. It might make your home feel a little cave-like, but whether or not you enjoy that, you’re sure to enjoy the money you save!

Lights

Switch your light bulbs from standard incandescent to LED lighting to save energy and money in the long run. While LED bulbs might cost a little more than the standard bulbs, they last over three times as long. Plus, they’re more environmentally friendly thanks to their energy efficiency and non-toxic chemicals! Reduce your bill even more by turning off any unnecessary lights or appliances when you’re not using them. Don’t forget, you want everyone you live with getting used to this too!

Other Areas

Your hot water heater can also take up a lot of energy. Turn its temperature lower, to around 120 degrees, and use a hot water heater timer to keep it cooler during times you’re not using it, such as when you’re sleeping. Find out the on-peak/off-peak usage hours of your energy plan and run major appliances like your washer and dryer during the off-peak hours. Speaking of which, you can wash your clothes in cold water and then dry them outside to save even more energy. Why not take advantage of that Arizona sun when you can?

You may not be able to act on all of these ideas, and some might take a bit of time to get in the habit of doing. But just think, these tips are sure to add up in your next energy bill. Start encouraging your family or roommates to work on all they can, and just wait and see how much money you’ll be saving!

Funding Baby: Financial Tips to Make Things Easier for New Parents

So you’re expecting a baby, or maybe you just had your first. Your bundle of joy is a wonderful addition to your family, but you might not realize just how much money new babies can cost. We want to help take some of that financial worry off your mind by offering some easy and useful tips that will make paying for baby significantly easier.

Create a pre- and post-baby budget
There are several new costs that pop up when you find out you or your partner is pregnant, as well as after baby comes, so creating budgets is going to be essential. Things to consider budgeting before the baby comes includes out-of-pocket medical expenses related to the pregnancy, car seat, crib, stroller, clothing, formula, and diapers. While some of these will drift into your new post-baby budget, you’ll want to have some on hand for the first days and weeks after baby arrives and certain normal activities go out the window. After baby arrives, make sure you factor in recurring expenses like diapers, food, child care, and more. You’ll also want to consider how much your budget will need to be adjusted for maternity and paternity leave.

Insurance
Before your baby arrives, or shortly thereafter, make sure you find a pediatrician in your health insurance network. Baby’s first doctor’s visit will come within a week of the birth, so having one already picked out will be helpful and make that first week a little less stressful. You’ll also want to make sure you add baby to your insurance policy within 30 days of birth to ensure that your little boy or girl is covered.

It might seem a little morbid to think about this after baby comes, so we recommend looking into life insurance policies before the big day. If you already have one, make sure you adjust it accordingly to reflect your new son or daughter. If you don’t have one, get one. You love your child, and can’t ever imagine not being with them, but sometimes the unexpected happens, and you’ll want to make sure that your child is protected and taken care of no matter what happens. Adjusting your will and beneficiaries goes hand-in-hand with this, so make sure you make those changes as well.

Emergency Fund
There is no way to predict what will happen in the future, so having an emergency fund set aside is always a smart way to go, whether you’re expecting a child or not. If you don’t already have an emergency fund, now is the time to start one. Whether you are the one who is injured, or your child, or something happens with your car or job, it’s a smart idea to have a rainy day fund set aside with at least three to six months’ worth of living expenses covered.

Plan for the Future
Setting up a college fund for your child is a bit of a given for many people, but many often to forget to plan for their own futures once a child comes into the picture. Don’t forget to keep funding your retirement as well as your child’s future. Their dreams and goals may become more important than yours in your ideas, but that doesn’t mean that your dreams should be neglected. Make sure you keep building your retirement fund so your kids won’t have to take care of you when you’re older—they’ll thank you for it, and you’ll be glad for it in the long run.

Babies are amazing, and we know that you’re excited to welcome this new addition to your household. Just make sure you follow these simple steps to make life with baby a little bit easier and a little more financially secure.

Raising Money-Smart Kids

Every summer, thousands of kids across the country set up stands on their front yards to sell lemonade, or beg their parents for chores to do in exchange for a little more allowance so they can buy that super awesome cool thing they saw in the store that all their friends have now. And while it might be cute that these little entrepreneurs are working hard to earn the things they want, are they really managing their money wisely? How often to do you talk to your kids about good financial habits? Here are a few important tips you can share with your kids to ensure that they know how to manage their money now and into the future.

Teach Key Terms
Making sure you kids know the basic terms of banking and money management is a great first step to making them money smart. Make sure they know terms like Credit, Debit, Checking and Savings. And making sure they understand that money comes from hard work and not from the bank or the magic tree in the backyard is key to their future success with money management. Telling them how ATMs work—and that the money isn’t infinite—will help them grasp these concepts better later in life.

Patience is Important
When kids see their parents shopping, it seems magical. All they have to do is swipe a piece of plastic into a machine and everything they want is theirs. But as grownups, we know this isn’t the case. Teaching children that sometimes you have to wait to buy something is another important concept for them to learn. Waiting until the money is in place, or for the item to go on sale so it is less expensive, are key ideas that children should learn. Try teaching your kids about saving and waiting by having them set a goal, and then save to achieve that goal. Whether it’s a toy or a trip to the movies, encourage your kids to try and save their money until they have enough to buy the item or activity on their own. Don’t make it too expensive so that it takes them months to save the money, but something that they will have to work towards, and they will start to understand how Mom and Dad have to wait to buy what they want until they have the money for it.

Sometimes Choices are Hard
Like the previous example, understanding that tough choices are often involved in money management is also very important. Kids should learn that money doesn’t actually grow on trees and that you may not have enough money to buy everything you want. This is another way to encourage your kids to set and achieve their goals. They might have enough money for a game right now, but if they choose to wait a little while longer and gain a little more money, they could afford the upgraded version. Also, taking your children shopping with you and explaining why you pick one product over another is another way to show your kids how this idea can be applied to life. Ask your kids which is a better deal, the generic item or the name brand, and then ask which one they should buy and why.

The Importance of Savings
As your kids get older, and possibly get their first jobs, encourage them to set up a checking and savings account so they can manage their money and see how their savings can accrue interest over time. As they see their money grow in their savings accounts, they will begin to understand the importance of adding to their savings. It’s like free money, right? Well, it might seem that way to your kids, and who doesn’t like free money?

Make a Budget, and Make it Work
Budgets are even hard for adults to handle, so teaching them to your kids at a young age could be extremely beneficial to their money management abilities in the future. Help them sketch out a basic budget that shows them how much money they make from chores, allowance, or a part time job, and show them where their money goes each month. Breaking things down into categories like Entertainment, Toys, or Gas can help your kids and teens better understand where they spend too much or not enough, and will help them become efficient money managers as they grow older.

It might seem like an awkward topic to discuss with your kids, but once they can start doing simple math, they are old enough to understand some of these important ideas. And trust us, there will be much more awkward topics you’ll need to discuss down the road.