For some people, realising their dreams involves having a sizable home, a well-kept garden, and two and a half children. For some people, it entails going cross-country in a recreational vehicle. Because travelling in an RV is going to be your primary mode of transportation throughout this trip, the first thing you need to do is find a good bargain on one. The second step is to make a plan. Bills, obligations, employment contracts, and rental contracts are all things that might keep us very linked to where we are currently located. Not everyone has the opportunity to begin travelling right awa ..read more

After Hours is now available at Disney’s Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios parks as well thanks to the company’s recent expansion! So it is no secret that I adore Disney, but I am aware that the expense of going there can be a burden for many families. As much as I enjoy the opportunity to cover these events, I always ask myself, “Okay, so what would the cost be?” and ask myself whether or not the special event ticket is worth the money. In most cases, the answer to questions like “Will you be attending the Very Merry or Not So Scary?” is a hearty “Yes,” but in this case, I was really appre ..read more

You should get started making preparations for the yearly summer vacation that you take with your family right away. Because you don’t usually travel such great distances, there won’t be any flights, trains, or boats involved in this excursion; instead, it will be the ideal road trip. The moment you start gathering your belongings into the car and fastening your seatbelts, your level of excitement begins to rise. There has never been a Christmas spent with the family that has failed to live up to everyone’s expectations. Because the location, the activities, and the ambiance have always been t ..read more

Did you know that 28.5% of your week is your weekend? Hard to believe, isn’t it? If you look at the total hours we work in a week, it comes to just 24% of the whole week! Of course, you spend another 33% sleeping. But do you really feel like your full time job is something that you spend less than quarter of your time on? Or less than a third of the hours you are awake? Yeah, I didn’t think so! Do you work for more than 40 hours a week? Until I started working, weekends used to mean time away from work. I did spend some time studying occasionally, but I didn’t do it very frequently. What happe ..read more

“Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!”  ― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Yes! The days count finally got to three digits! When I started this blog, I promised myself that I would continue for 2000 days no matter what. But as usual, there was one loophole I didn’t think of. I didn’t promise myself how frequently I would post something. And guess what, I thought of that in December, while I was posting thrice a week and barely managing to make it. I ..read more

Buy Nothing Challenge Update My first update on how the Buy Nothing Challenge has been going! I have decided not to buy anything for a whole year. It was hard. There have been times when I really wanted to buy something, but I have avoided temptations for the most part. I had to go to Michigan on work, and forgot to take any hats. It was cold (ok, I am used to the cold, but I usually have a hat when it is cold!) and I came really really close to buying one. If I had noticed a shop while I was busy shivering, I may have given in. But the key part is, I didn’t. A hat wasn’t the only thing I forg ..read more

“Sometimes it’s the mistakes that turn out to be the best parts of life,”  ― Carrie Ryan, The Dead-Tossed Waves Confession time! Every time I see a blog post or an article about someone who is in their 30s and already retired, I feel a pang of jealousy. I know, our case is not so bad. We will be done by 42. However, I still feel like we should have done better. We have always lived our life fairly frugally – Not as frugally as we could, but compared to our income. We have always been paid very well. Why did we have to work for so long? We should have retired already. It is not l ..read more

“For every choice you make, there is a consequence to face. Choose wisely!”  ― Kemi Sogunle, Being Single: A State For The Fragile Heart: A Guide to Self-Love, Finding You and Purposeful Living   Ideally, spend less and earn more! Suppose you have to pick one. Let us pick concrete numbers to look at, say $1000.  Which one do you think would have more impact on your life – earning $1000 more a year or spending $1000 less each year? Is one better than the other? Both of these will result in the same amount saved that year. So the magic of compounding is not going to help ..read more

“To reach a port we must set sail – Sail, not tie at anchor Sail, not drift.” ― Franklin D. Roosevelt We made the decision of paying off our mortgage before we retire. We make extra payments towards our mortgage to achieve this. But is this a good move? Strictly speaking, you are better off not paying anything more than you have to, towards your mortgage (or any other low interest loan). If you have the discipline to invest that money, that is! Mortgage rates are usually lower than what you would make on the stock market. When you also factor in inflation, buying power of the same amount would ..read more

“Elinor agreed to it all, for she did not think he deserved the compliment of rational opposition.”  ― Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility Mine doesn’t! Not completely, any way. If you and your spouse cannot agree on something, that is a great thing! It is your chance to iron out deficiencies in (maybe even your) understanding, and raise concerns. Let’s go back in time. December 2015. My office had shutdown for the holidays, and BusyDad was at work. Browsing aimlessly, I stumbled upon the site that changed my life. Mr Money Mustache’s blog. Until then, I had this vague idea that ..read more