The Frugal Siblings

I recently gave birth to my second son. Like most birthing stories, he came on his own terms, completely different then his brother who was a planned c-section. Since he has came in the world things have been a little different. This time around, being our second son, we adjusted faster and better. Luckily, I have had little concern for finances though. I have not listened to my usual podcast or written my weekly blog post. It just has not been a priority of mine. I have thought a lot about my wishes for my sons and the type of parent I want to be. What do I want to be important in my household? Who do I want them to become? What can I do to be the best parent as possible? I am sure every parent would like to know the answer to all these questions because I sure would but in this time of sleepless nights and two year old filled days there are some things I do know. The first thing that comes to mind when dealing with my sons and our family finances is my ability to stay home with th...

My son and I love going to the library for story time. It is Monday- Friday for 45 min each morning at our local library. It also has open playtime for about 45 min after for socialization. My son enjoys interacting with all the other children. He is learning to sit and listen by mimicking the older children. He is learning songs and playing games. All for free. How could you ask for more? I have started to talk to other moms. I am naturally shy but seeing similar faces the past few months has made me more comfortable. So basically it’s a win, win for the both of us. We recently took a 8 hour road trip to Mimi’s house. The library has age appropriate learning iPads you can rent for 3 week! My son loved playing with it the car and I did not have to worry he as clicking on things he was not suppose to. Our library also has a recording studio you can book time in and plenty of various sized meeting rooms. I am sure there are even more things I myself don’t even know abou...

I have been wearing eyeglasses since I was in the 5th grade. I did a stint with contacts while in college but they were always uncomfortable for me. None the less a lot of money has gone into glasses. My brother, yes thee Bro, helped lighten the financial load. He showed me the website: Zennioptical.com This post is as simple as that! It’s a discount prescription eyeglass site. The glasses are good quality but if you dog eats them, it’s only a $6 dog treat not $500. I have been wearing these glasses for 10 years now and LOVE them. I can have 5 pairs to choose from and not feel guilty. Facts: -It can take around two weeks to receive the glasses. -They offer kids glasses as well! -Bro’s wife has got prescription sunglasses before, she was really happy with them. You just have to pay extra for the tinted lenses. You can also pay extra for anti-glare and various other extras. This is not a paid post or am I a representative. Just like the product.

It’s SUMMER time everyone! The sun is shining and people are starting to come out of their homes to enjoy the weather. There are so many events going on that are free and family friendly. One of my favorites is the farmers market on Sundays. We like to go after church when it's still early morning. We find its less hot and less crowded. We pack something light for a breakfast, and something to drink. This helps us not buy any of the yummy food at the multiple stands. My rule of thumb is if you want something, you have to wait till the next week to get it. We don’t go every week so if I really want something and have been thinking about it that long then I know its worth the purchase. I also like to support local merchants from time to time. There is also a local produce merchant that sells “fill the bag” for $10. It’s a great deal because you can sure fit a lot in one of those bags. The produce is fresh and local. The park is about a block away from the farmers market...

Thinking of your own mortality is never fun. What happens to my family if I go? What happens to my kids? Do they still have enough for college? Vacations? Groceries? Does my wife know my passwords? Does my wife know all of the places we keep our money? If I have passed away the last thing I want my wife to have to deal with is money. Due to this I have written her a letter to explain what to do with our money. Life is not about money but the last thing I want is for my wife to have to worry about money while trying to deal with my passing. My note to my wife is below (with some edits for privacy. I have replaced names and numbers with "xx" for privacy). It is not easy for me to plan for the possibility of me not being in your life but it must be done. In this note I will work on what you should do if I am not able to help you with the money. I will try to update it as our life changes. The big picture is to simply keep things as simple as possible. Do your best to make n...

“I believe that we will win, I believe that we will win” It had to be high school freshman basketball where me and 8 other 15 year old girls would shout that in the locker rooms before games. Next, there is the saying, seeing is believing, when you go to a magic show. Then there is that song my mom use to sing to us, picture us dancing with a high toned voice, I believe in thing called love, just listen to the rhythm of the heart”. Let just say there are a lot of things I believe in. I believe in life. I think life is meant to be lived. We are meant to be happy and we all have the ability to live a fulfilled life. Money can take away and add joy. It is a toll that one can use to reach that happiness but it is not the golden ticket. I have had to work really hard to make money not a monster or a king but a tool. In the end, no matter what current financial state you are in, it is your responsibility to regulate your joy and live a happy life. You have to believe that you will win!...

I believe in financial health. It is not necessary to save 50% of your income but it is important to have some form of an emergency fund, some investments for retirement, and an understanding of your financial picture. Taking this one step further it is important to help those who may not be as healthy. I have helped my grandma with her finances, got my sister started in investing, and I am in the process of helping my brother in law as well. I do not see my brother in law pursuing FIre but there is no reason why he cannot improve his finances. I believe in more than money. It is easy to over optimize ( as previously discussed ). If you hit the big ticket items then skipping the cup of coffee will get you to FIRE sooner but at some point it is just not worth the trade off. It has been discussed how a dollar saved now is worth lots more if invested and allowed to grow for 30 years. This is true ( and powerful) but at some point I just don't care. I believe in Ohana (family...