Your Retirement Investments - Don't Be Chicken Little!

Your Retirement Investments - Don't Be Chicken Little!

Jennifer Gniadecki (@JennyDecki on twitter) shares her nasty paperwork tips with Mom It Forward readers today. She blogs at Beyond Mom, pays the bills as a freelance corporate writer, and is a fanatical budget junkie.

Finances are a popular topic these days (since everyone's seem to be in the toilet) but talking about financial security and the road to a frugal life is like being given a map - when the map doesn't have a handy You Are Here marker. You have to know where you are to plan where you are going - if you want to get there.

If you have an IRA, Roth IRA, or 401(k) that you have been avoiding because you are afraid to see how much money you've lost, now is the time to put on your big-girl panties and take a look. Take a look in your files (or in that one drawer where you stuff things if you're like Becky Bloomberg from the book Confessions of a Shopaholic) and get out your family's retirement investment statements.

How Much Do You Have - How Much Did You Lose?

First thing, check how much money has been invested into your plan. Write it down. Now write down how much is in there today. Do a little fancy math and turn that scary dollar amount into a percentage. We're going to use this number in the next section to see if you need to move your investment or stay put!

Where Is Your Money - How Is That Working Out For You?

• Write down the names of the mutual funds you are invested in through your 401(k) or IRA. Call the 800 number on your forms and ask customer service to send out a Prospectus for each mutual fund you are in. That Prospectus is going to give you information on the mutual fund, but more importantly, it will give you return values over time. That means if your fund has been around 25 years, you can see how it has fared since 1983, and will be a much more reliable indicator of how well it's going to do over the next ten years. In most cases, this will be a really comforting number, because you can see that over 25 years your investment won't be in the crapper anymore.
• If you have a 401(k) you may be able to get the Prospectus directly from your HR department. If not, ask HR how to get a copy of the Prospectus for your mutual fund or stock holdings.
• If the overall return is not good for the last 25+ years, consider moving to another mutual fund. That means going through a few more Prospectuses. Also, you can track most investment statement type plans for free on mint.com. Your HR department or customer service might act a little put out, but to heck with them, this is your money, your future, and your retirement. Do it.

Does Your Employer Offer Matching - Take Advantage of It!

If you have a 401(k) and have not been putting deposits in up to the point your employer will match - now is the time to change that. The economy is a cycle, and we're at a low point. That means it's going to go up eventually and you want to buy low and sell high. Now is the buying low portion of the program!

Chicken Little Was A Chicken - Your Brain Is Ten Times Bigger!

That is my super-upbeat-tough-love way of saying, "Stop thinking the sky is falling! It's not!" Don't think I'm sugar-coating here. My husband was laid off in December and we're in the same boat as millions of Americans (heck, millions of humans all over the world - it's not just bad here) - but because we have a budget and know what's going on in our investment portfolio (because if you have an IRA or 401(k) you have an investment portfolio) we know to the penny how much money we need to make in a month to survive, and the excess goes into savings.

When you don't pay attention, it does feel like the sky is falling.
Take control, and everything will be a lot less scary!

Note: This coming Tuesday will be the First
MomItForward's #GNO "Gab & Give" on Twitter!
What does that mean? Details Tomorrow!!

Menu Plan—Save Time & Money

Andrea Deckard is a stay-at-home mommy with an amazing husband and three energetic boys. In her *spare* time she loves to shop with coupons and make files to track her savings and organize her home. Stop by Mommy Snacks for zero-calorie Snacks to Save, Earn, Live and Learn.

It's 5 o'clock. You are exhausted. The last thing you want to figure out is what you are going to eat. And, oh yeah, you have to make it too! So, in an effort to maintain the energy you have left, you opt for take-out.

Does this sound like you?

I've been there more than I care to admit! For me, to avoid the overspending of either take-out or grocery shopping at the last minute, I started Menu Planning. Menu Planning is simply creating a menu for your family meals. Here's what it will do for you.

1. Prevent headaches
2. Save money
3. Save time

Here are a few tips to help you if you are interested in Menu Planning:

What does your family eat?
What they *actually* eat. I have a Menu Planning Recipe Box that includes the meals my family eats the most. This is a great resource to utilize as you are creating the meal ideas for your family and will be helpful as you plan too.

What is on sale?
With the list of your family favorites, look at the grocery ads to find ingredients you can prepare on the cheap. You will probably have items in your pantry or freezer that you can use as well (stockpiling items at low, low prices is a good thing to consider). Your menu plan will help to prevent last minute trips to the store.

How often will you Menu Plan?
I personally plan my menu by the week, but some plan by the month. Just pick a frequency that works for you and start! With your list of meal ideas and grocery list of menu ingredients, creating your actual menu plan will be an easy step.

Creating your Menu Plan

Keeping a written/printed menu plan is the easiest thing to do. Each Sunday, I print off our Menu Plan for the upcoming week and pull or print required recipes. I then clip all recipes together and hang on the fridge so I know where they are when I'm ready to cook. This step helps to execute your plan. I can quickly look at the menu plan and get meat thawing in the fridge or bring items up from our stockpile. So, when it's time to cook, the prep is done and I just prepare our feast!

Menu Planning helps tremendously, but sometimes life gets in the way and I don't prepare each meal as planned. But, at least I have a plan in place so I don't overspend trying to pull something together on the fly. I feel better about what I do accomplish because at least I took the time to prepare a plan. And, knowing I saved time, money and a few headaches makes it worth it for me! * Photo Credits: Cocobucket29, autumlovr

Note: This coming Tuesday will be the First
MomItForward's "#GNO Gab & Give" on Twitter!
What does that mean? STAY TUNED!!

Wall Art Without The Funds

Article written by Kimba at A Soft Place To Land. She writes her creative frugal ideas and shares fabulous links, while she makes a soft place to land for her children.

Probably like most of you, our family is cutting way back these days. Sadly for me, the first part of the budget to get slashed is the decorating/TJMaxx/flea market/goodwill part. I suppose this makes sense since the kids need food and shoes more than new decorative mirrors and throw pillows.

So what's a compulsive decorator to do when the money gets tight? I'm fairly thrifty by nature (hence the money in the budget for goodwill and thrift shops) so I'm trying to look at these times a challenge.

I’d been on the hunt for artwork to fill a large open wall behind the sofa in my family room. I really wanted beautiful botanical prints like these from Ballard Designs. But at $400 for the set, it’s not happening. So I got creative…
(picture from www.ballarddesigns.com)

Free clip art, scrapbook paper and clearanced frames from my beloved Target and I have a set of beautiful botanical prints for less than $30. The best part is that I won’t feel remotely guilty when I change them out come summer.

For more details on this project click here.

How about something with a bit of color? I needed a little something for the freshly painted walls of my powder room.

Solution? Scrapbook paper! I’m not a scrapbooker, but I’ve amassed quite a collection of beautiful papers because they can be used for so many things.

In this case, empty frames I spray painted black and filled with pretty paper. Doesn't it pop against the new green walls?

To see the whole messy room transformation, click here.

• Do you create your own wall art? How?
• Do you have any other creative, yet money saving decorating ideas?
  
• Please share them! If you have a post about it, sent it to us and we'll link to it here!

Today’s Economy—New Beginning

Barb Likos shares her frugal living tips with Mom It Forward readers today. She is the owner of The Cupon Cupboard where she moderates a terrific forum of frugality and simplicity!

A new year, a move toward frugal living, an unstable economy, and yet a hopeful feeling of change at the same time—although these phrases seem to oppose one other, upon closer examination you'll see they blend together perfectly. I am convinced that 2009 holds an awakening of gratitude, family bonding, teamwork, and a sorting out of what is truly important.

I believe we should return to simplicity and give it a warm welcome. (photo by hotair)

Simple living gives us more family time and less stress over providing frivolous material possessions that don’t have anything to do with making memories or developing family relationships.

Yes, we still need to pamper ourselves occasionally, but with some suggestions, budgeting will become a fun and adventurous experience:

• Pack a lunch. Fast food is a waste of money and extremely unhealthy. Pack fruit, soup, and other healthy alternatives.
  
  
• Stop credit card spending. Try to find larger items used. By using Craigslist or an email blast to family and friends, you’d be surprised at what you can find! When my flat screen computer monitor burned out, I placed an ad on Craigslist under the “things wanted” category. Two hours later I was hooking up my new 19” monitor, purchased for $20. The same one retails for $150.
  
  
• Use coupons when grocery shopping and always make a list. It only takes an extra hour per week to do this and if you shave $40 off of your bill, that hour you spent was the equivalent of earning $40 an hour. Think of it as a freelance side job! You can find printable coupons and learn more about saving on groceries and gas at The Coupon Cupboard (http://thecouponcupboard.com).
  
  
• Find free entertainment at your local parks, bike riding and trips to the public library.
  
  
• Birthday parties. There are plenty of ideas that can cut the costs but not the fun. One family took their three year old to a local parade that happened to fall on her birthday. At three years old, the little princess thought the parade was all about her birthday! What a fun memory and story to tell for years to come. Even with older children, spending time together means more than an expensive gift. Have a picnic party, take the family fishing, or plan free games to play together. It’s all about the memories.

This is truly a time of change and transition for all of us. It's also an opportunity to greatly enrich our lives and the lives of those around us.

GNO Gets Financially Fit

Inauguration day is Tuesday. With the economy the worst it's been in a long time, Mom It Forward's #GNO is talking budgeting, frugal living, coupon tips, and ways to save while still keeping the treats you love!

Join your favorite #gno gals along with guest tweet Barb from The Coupon Cupboard and on twitter @Chaotic_Barb on Tuesday, January 20 from 6-10 p.m. PST (9 p.m. to 1 a.m. Eastern).

Here are some mini-topics she'll be covering!

• Cutting grocery budgets. Why pay more than you have to?
  
• Saving on gas.
• Eating in not out!
• Children's birthday parties, get more with less!
• Where to find great coupons.
• Stockpiling and what to do with extra stockpiles.
• Online shopping with coupon codes.

Here's a little teaser straight from Barb...

You CAN treat yourself and stay within your budget. For example (If you love expensive coffee you can buy Starbucks cards at Costco. They are $79.99 for $100 worth, you register them and get all your toppings and some refills for free.)

RSVP and follow other #gno gals. Leave your Twitter ID and then Your Twitter URL. (ex. http://twitter.com/carissa_MomIF)

Any Questions? Please leave them in the comments!
For More #GNO Info, Click Here.