It’s a little harder than it used to be to get a nice Christmas gift for $20 or less.
But that is a reasonable range for families on a budget, or gifts for people outside your immediate family (hostess or teacher gifts, for example). And the typical range for gift exchange parties in the Monroe, Mich., [...]

Sara Noel, hostess of Frugal Village, has some great tips on what to buy – and what to avoid – when shopping at the second hand stores.
A snippet from that column, which also appeared in Sunday’s edition of The Monroe Evening News:
You can find seasonal place mats, tablecloths, cloth napkins, bedding, throw rugs, vases, candles [...]

Thanksgiving is one of those occasions when one could feel like you have no alternative to spending money. If you’re going to travel, you’re traveling on an insanely busy weekend. If you’re hosting the dinner or overnight guests, you have to plan for a bigger grocery bill.
But do not spend more money than you need [...]

If you are a mom of a little one, you know that the Internet is full of mom-related networks and sites.
The ones I knew about from 10 years ago or so were bulletin boards for moms who were pregnant about the same time. Some of the newer parenting sites are geographic based. Much of the [...]

This post is for my readers in and near Newport, Mich.
The Yule Love It: A Frugal Christmas Program will be held at 6:30 p.m. Thursday Nov. 12 at Newport Branch Library, 8120 N. Dixie Hwy., Newport.
Learn to plan a Christmas you can afford. This program will include: family activity suggestions, gift ideas, gifts you can [...]

If you write a letter to, or get a visit from Santa Claus, telling him what you want for Christmas, that list probably focuses on fun and frivolous things.
My standing patter for the Santa visits is “I want a new Barbie doll.” Now, of course, everyone who knows me gets the joke. I really do [...]

Thanksgiving is one of those holidays where it’s a little hard to figure out how to cut back on expenses.
The traditional menu is not all that expensive to begin with. The bigger headaches for dinner hosts involve logistics (Who’s cooking what? Who’s sitting where? How do I time the bird in comparison to the side [...]

Kim at Frugal Finesse is the frugal blogger and reporter for the South Bend Tribune.
One of her recent posts was Take a peek inside our gift box.
What’s that all about? She’s snagging deals off-season that work for Christmas and birthday gifts!
A snippet:
During the past six months, our gift box has served us well.
When we [...]

The Money Help for Christians blog has 10 practical tips on how you can save money by creating a frugal community.
A snippet:
What I am suggesting is that groups of frugal friends can form money saving networks for mutual financial benefit. While not all of these ideas will apply, even a small group of five families [...]

Detroit News personal finance columnist Brian J. O’Connor is putting out The Grand Experiment.
He’s attempting to cut $1,000 a month from his family’s budget.
Here’s the news story.
Here’s his twitter feed.
This could be fun to watch.