Pollywogs Place Homeschool – Page 115

What is Financial Freedom And How Do You Achieve It?

Published on August 5, 2018August 1, 2018 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog1 Comment

Cover photo by Jayson Hinrichsen on Unsplash

**This post does contain affiliate links which help to support my blog and my family.

What is financial freedom?

That doesn’t seem like a trick question but it can mean so many different things to so many people. Financial freedom is a goal for so many of us. For a lot of people it may include things like:

not living paycheck to paycheck
not having to work overtime to make ends meet
being debt free
having a significant amount of money in savings
having money set aside for college
having money set aside for retirement

For others, including myself it not only includes the above but also things like:

having money to plan for future events
having money to help others
not having to worry about bills
not being afraid to check your bank account
not having to worry about unexpected financial emergencies

Sound almost impossible doesn’t it? Well, it’s not. I promise. I haven’t made it there yet but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. It does require a lot of work and some sacrifice on your end. Continue reading “What is Financial Freedom And How Do You Achieve It?” →

National Lighthouse Day

Published on August 4, 2018August 10, 2018 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place BlogLeave a comment

*This post contains affiliate links which help to support our blog and our family.

National Lighthouse Day honors those beacons of light that represent safety and security. Click here to learn more about this holiday. It is celebrated on August 7th. This would be a great day to take a tour of any local lighthouses.

Do you know a lighthouse collector? Here are some gift ideas for them.

Below are some of the activities I found to celebrate this day:

(Use at your own discretion.)

Also check out:

Homeschool: August on Pinterest

Lighthouses for kids on YouTube

Simplify Your Life: Step 7 Pay Off Those Debts and Bills

Published on August 4, 2018September 15, 2025 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place BlogLeave a comment

Pay Off Those Debts and Bills

Money is a big cause of stress in many people’s lives. So it would only make sense that getting rid of debts and bills can help us to simplify our lives and reduce stress. Credit cards and online shopping make it is so easy to buy things and accumulate debt without realizing it. We see something we want and we buy it and then we regret it when the bill comes in.

If we can learn to live a bit more frugally then we can learn to buy less, want less, be more eco friendly, simplify our budgets, and reach our financial goals of being debt free. We can’t do a lot about what has already been done but we can work towards simplify our lives to prevent the stress from these debts and bills.

One way we can do this is by setting up automatic deposits and payments. You can have your paychecks automatically deposited and you can also set your bills on auto pay. By doing this you can get those bills paid while preventing late payments. If you want to save a little bit more then you can even go paperless which will help to cut down on paper clutter and mail. All of this adds up to less stress and a simpler life as there are fewer things to worry about.

I have found that I can not only simplify some of my shopping but save time and money while helping the planet by using subscription services and the convenience of online ordering for some things like cleaning supplies, household supplies, groceries, essential oils, and other items. My favorite place to use are:

Google Express Get $10 off your first Google Express order and have one less errand to run! Use promo code: 5EK6F7555
Grove Collaborators Waiting for you is a FREE Mrs. Meyer’s 5-piece set
Sam’s Club Join using my referral link and you get a $20 e-gift card.
Simply Earth Use this link for a FREE $20.00 gift card right now.

Now if you have already overspent and just don’t have the money to cover the bills then that is another story. That can lead to a lot of stress. You can set a budget and work on learning to only buy what you need. You may also want to look into ways to bring a little extra income. Many of these places I listed above also offer affiliate or referral bonuses which can help out too.

I really like the simplicity of the Wealthy Affiliate program. It not only teaches you the ins and outs of affiliate marketing but helps you to set up your own website. With the company’s ‘pay it forward’ attitude there is a constant supply of support from other members who have been right where you are right now. Go ahead, check it out, and sign up for your FREE account right now.

Congratulations!

This was the last step of my Simplify your life series. I hope you found some of the information useful. If you implement these easy steps into your life you will find you have more FREE time for quality moments with your friends and family. Good luck!

Have you thought of starting your own blog to make a little extra money? Check out 3 Steps to Start that Blog You’ve Been Dreaming Of for some great ideas to get started.

Have You Grabbed This Amazon Count Down Deal Yet?

Published on August 3, 2018August 2, 2018 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog1 Comment

**This post does contain affiliate links that help to support my blog and my family.

Did you know that I have a couple of cook books on Amazon? Both of them are full of family favorite recipes that we enjoy eating again and again. I had planned on having another one out last year but with the move and the hurricane that just didn’t happen.

Starting today you can get 31+ Breakfast Ideas And Recipes ebook for just $0.99! (That’s a 67% savings!) Yes, less than a dollar and you can have some really great breakfast ideas on your tablet, phone, laptop, or other device. These will come in so handy when the back to school morning chaos hits!

It is available as a paperback as well, if you prefer to have a ‘hard copy’ at home. This deal only lasts until August 6, 2018 and then the price will increase to $1.99 and then back to regular price after August 10, 2018.

What are you waiting for? Grab yours today.

While on Amazon you can also check out my other cook book, Kirby’s Korner Blog: Top 40+ Family Favorite Recipes ebook or paperback, by clicking either of these links.

You can also get both of these books for FREE (and about 1 million others) if you have Kindle Unlimited. Try it FREE today!

Simplify Your Life: Step 6 Set Up Routines

Published on August 3, 2018July 30, 2018 by Susie @ Pollywog's Place Blog3 Comments

**This post may contain affiliate links which help to support our blog and our family.

This post is part of a multi-section post in honor of National Simplify Your Life week which is the first week of August. The original post wasn’t as short and simple as I had wanted it to be so I decided to break it down into a few shorter posts.

6. Set Up Routines

This goes without saying for us here and maybe I should have included it in Step 5 but I felt it deserved its own post. Simple routines for morning, afternoon, and evenings have been the key to making life so much easier and simpler for us. Everyone knows what to expect and what is expected of them and when.

We also have a routine for bill paying, laundry, and our homeschool. The important to remember is that you probably don’t need all of these. Focus on what you need to accomplish and set up a routine. Work on that one routine to simplify it and make it as efficient as possible. This make take a little time but it is so worth it.

Having a hard time getting everyone out the door in the morning? Maybe you should make a routine for the night before. It could include everyone placing their bookbags, briefcases, bags, and things they need at the door or other designated location. Many times our lives are stressful and chaotic because we don’t put a lot of thought into our plans but routines can change that.

Check out Make Over Your Mornings LIVE for some great ideas!

You can read more about all of our routines here. Remember that you need to base your routines around your life and not based on other’s. Routines have been proven to help make people more successful! Check out these books here and here for more ideas!

You can also check out Make Over Your Evenings for more tips on evening routines.

Meal Planning

Part of your routines can include Meal Planning.

This is an absolute necessity in our house. Meal planning is really not as difficult as it may seem and it can be done in so many different ways. There are several posts and article written about meal planning that you can find by searching with Google. There are services and courses you can sign up for too.

You can also check for books on the topic at your local library. A couple of my favorite books are ‘Complete 30 days meal plan: Meal planning ideas including weight loss resources and weight loss recipes‘ and ‘Meal Planning on a Budget: Save Money on Groceries, Master Meal Prep, & Reduce Food Waste to Reach Financial Freedom’. I also like this little meal planning pad I found on Amazon, it looks so simple!

Are you tired of spending too much on groceries? Check out Grocery University to learn everything you need to know about making the best of your grocery budget.

Not only can meal planning make your life simpler it can also save you money! You can read more about how we meal plan here and check out some of our previous meal plans here.

Click here to continue to Step 7.

Start your FREE account with the Wealthy Affiliate program.