6 Fun Alternatives to Black Friday Shopping

Hey there!

Happy Thanksgiving week! (How is that possible already?!)

It’s been a whirlwind over here as we moved last week into our new house and IT IS AMAZING. All the anxiety I was having about moving melted away after a few days. The neighbors are friendly, the trails are awesome, we are close to everything and it’s SO NICE having more space for our family!

Unfortunately the offer on our old house fell through, which was a total bummer. It’s back on the market but we actually may have a short-term renter lined up for 4 months starting at the beginning of the year, which would be great. Then we could decide from there if a) we want to continue to keep it as a rental or b) we can throw it back on the market. In my last post I wrote about how we decided we didn’t want to be landlords, but I’m rewarming up to the idea (especially as I think we would hire a property manager to handle it!)

So anyway, that’s what’s new on the home front. We’ve been spending money like whoa between getting the old house ready to sell and moving into/furnishing this new home and I’ll be the first to admit I’ve been neglecting looking at our bank accounts. I did log in the other day and paid off all our credit cards, so at least I’m on top of that! I also recently setup a trial for YNAB (You Need a Budget) and am trying it out. Seems there is a bit of a learning curve so I’m just getting used to it. Mint was giving me some connection troubles and thus, I decided to check out my options. I’ll report back with how I like it soon!

OK on to today’s post. So obviously Black Friday is huge here in the U.S. (and I know it’s worldwide now too!) and most of us get sucked into the buying trap that starts tomorrow and goes through next week (I’ve been seeing all these early Black Friday deals too - what is the world coming to?! hah)

I’m not here to encourage you not to shop but I WILL encourage you to make a plan and stick to it. No buying crap just because it’s on sale and a “good deal” Doesn’t matter if it’s a good deal if it's something you don’t really want/need or takes away from your other financial priorities (like saving money for something you really want or paying down debt!) And if you want to have something to distract you other than spending money (or unplanned money on purchases!) check out these alternatives to Black Friday shopping:

6 Fun Alternatives to Black Friday Shopping:

1) Have your family or friends over for brunch

A lot of people have off work Black Friday so why not have a little celebration? You can turn those leftovers into a brunch (turkey and stuffing egg bake anyone?) and enjoy the extra vacation day together.

2) Opt outside

Obviously this was made popular by the retailer REI here in the U.S., but it’s a great idea and one I think everyone should consider. Spending time outdoors is not only FREE, it’s also good for the mind, body and soul. I encourage you to check out a State park (a lot of them are free on Friday!), bundle up the family and take a walk to a park, get a group together to play some outdoor touch football, or go hiking (or skiing if you have snow!)

3) Go to a movie

So obviously this is not a free activity, but it’s MUCH cheaper than browsing the internet or heading out to the stores and impulse buying a bunch of crap you don’t need. And if you have the day off, what a great excuse to see the matinee and save money!

4) Plan a staycation day

If you’re feeling lazy after eating all that turkey, plan a day to stay home with your family. You can play some good old fashioned games, watch movies, or even have a dance party in your living room. All of these things are free and sure to create memories that will last longer than whatever material possession that can be found in stores.

5) Head out to a tree farm

If you’re feeling in the holiday spirit, take your family to a tree farm to pick out your tree for the holidays. Yes of course this will cost money, but it will be a fun way to get outside, spend time with your family and create memories along the way. Then you can head home to trim the tree while playing some holiday music!

6) Volunteer

Before I had kids I would deliver hot chocolates and care packages (Costco is a great place to buy things in bulk for something like this!) to the homeless. I’d literally pack up my car and offer the hot beverage and Ziploc bag of toiletries and warm socks/mittens to those on the street corners or waiting in line outside the homeless shelter. It was by far the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done, ever. There are lots of opportunities to use the money you would have spent shopping brightening someone else’s day or serving those who are in actual need.

Alright, so these are just a few things you can do instead of Black Friday shopping. There are obviously tons of other alternatives to consider but the point is to do SOMETHING other than go Black Friday shopping. Most of us really do not need to buy anything, and oftentimes what starts as innocent scrolling online or browsing in stores turns into full blown budget blowup.

I’d love to hear - what do you do on Black Friday other than go shopping? Let us know in the comments below!

And until next time…

Cheers to your abundance!

Katie

2017 Newsolutions: What They Are and Why You Need Them

“A New Year’s resolution is a tradition, most common in the Western Hemisphere but also found in the Eastern Hemisphere, in which a person makes a promise to do an act of self-improvement or something slightly nice, such as opening doors for people beginning from New Year’s Day.”

— Wikipedia

It's almost that time. The time for us to decide on what our 2017 New Year Resolutions are going to be. Maybe you don't make resolutions, or maybe you're like the majority of us who make them, and then don't end of following through with them anyway. I challenge you to take a different approach this year.

What if instead of adding more things you are going to DO this year, you take things off of your list? Wouldn't that make your life a bit easier? Simpler? Less stressful? 

I'd like to refer to these as 'newsolutions'. Instead of adding more to our plate, we eliminate the things that don't make us happier or more financially free, or give us a greater sense of self or peace of mind. 

What do newsolutions look like? Below I'll share a few examples that I am going to use in 2017: 

1) No more coloring my hair. I made it through 2016 without this, and have decided I can continue on this trend. Not only is it a) healthier for my hair, it also b) saves me money. Not to mention, someone created hair color as a BUSINESS to make us feel inadequate with our own natural hair color, which is just a bit ridiculous (along with the rest of the beauty industry that we buy into!). 

2) No more manicures. Again, I didn't get a lot of these in 2016 (if any!), but manicures are another thing that are a) not natural b) make my fingernails look like crap after it's worn off (shellac I'm talking to you!) and c) another drain of money. I will still be keeping my roughly once annual pedicure, as I do like to splurge and have my feet nice and soft before going somewhere warm!

3) No more involving myself in more than one activity at a time. If I'm coaching soccer, no teaching yoga or being on the bowling league (pretty much impossible to do anything else anyway!). If I'm on the bowling league, no joining any other organizations or teaching yoga (or they at least can't both happen every week!). Between work, my friends, my husband, our dog, and just life, over-commitment and over-scheduling is a real issue for me, and something I'd like to work on in 2017. 

4) No more scheduling an event on both Friday and Saturday night. You know that feeling when you don't have a lot planned for the weekend? It's marvelous, isn't it? By not completely scheduling our weekend up in advance, my husband and I are able to have spur-of-the-moment adventures, either the two of us or with friends/family. Being able to do whatever we want (even if it is just to stay in, order Chinese food and watch a movie!) creates less stress and anxiety on the very few days we get off together. This is going to prove to be challenging at times, but I'm going to try and stick to it as much as possible! 

5) No more gyms. Again, I pretty much gave this up in 2016, but the urge to join has came up now and again and I need to make it a 2017 'newsolution' as well. Instead of going to the gym, I use the Skimble Workout Trainer app, and love it. I can do short workouts at home every morning, schedule my trainings ahead of time, and even buy a specific program if I'm lacking motivation (for A LOT less than a gym costs!). The time it takes to go to the gym, workout, shower, etc., is too much for me. I weigh about the same as I did when I stopped going to the gym, and am in roughly the same physical shape (despite the pregnancy that is!). And for my yoga fix, I have the Yogamazing app, and Chad the instructor is great. He makes short 10-30 minute episodes based off certain topics (yoga for anxiety? check. yoga for weightloss? check. yoga for back pain? check. you get the picture!). Between these two apps and walking the dog, I get a good amount of exercise. If you love going to the gym or won't exercise without it, then by all means this should not be a newsolution for you. However, I challenge you to find more ways to fit physical activity into your everyday life. If you're ready to give up that membership, check out my article on how to do so: http://www.simplesliceoflife.com/blog/2016/6/23/how-to-give-up-your-gym-membership-7-easy-steps

6) No more NOT having a game plan. I just recently finished the book 'How to Train Your Brain for Success' by Roger Seip. It was a game changer for me. I loved the part about why you should never go into a week (or even a day!) without a plan, and Roger's strategies have helped save me countless of wasted hours throughout a week. It's definitely worth checking out if you're looking for a way to be more efficient with your time. 

7) No more trying to accomplish more than 6 major things a day. This is from Roger's book, and I feel it's worth a mention. Roger states that you should never have more than 6 main objectives in a day that you want to accomplish. This keeps your mind focused, and prevents you from losing motivation by taking on too much. I've tried it for a few days now and love how it keeps me centered and energized, and not overwhelmed by the amount of tasks I feel I need to finish. 

That's it! Well, at least for now. ;) The great thing about Newsolutions is you can set them, evaluate to see if they're working or not, and tweak as needed. What Newsolutions are you going to create this year?

Wabi-sabi: 6 tips to embracing imperfection

“Wabi-sabi represents Japanese aesthetics and a Japanese world view centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete””

— Wikipedia

It's Sunday night, which means my mind is a mix of reflection + the did-I-get-enough-done guilt. As we are all fully aware, weekends often go by faster than we would like them too (even for someone like me who enjoys going to work Monday morning!). There's usually one more thing to get done before we turn in for the night, and start the week again.

If you're like me, you've got a mental list that keeps your life organized. Unfortunately, sometimes we give these lists more importance than they deserve. 

The Japanese have a lovely concept ('wabi-sabi') that reflects the beauty of imperfection. And let's be honest, even when it's perfect, it can still feel imperfect (am I not right?!). Read on for my 6 tips for embracing imperfection:

1) Let it go.

Pretty easy right? Wrong. Being in the present moment is quite possibly the hardest and most important lesson that us humans will ever face. Every moment is a new chance to be pulled into the past or the future. As I told my husband the other night, "be here now, it's the only place that actually exists." I've found that a trigger word or phrase helps when I'm thinking about what I could have done differently/better/more, etc. My saying is "stop, let it go". Repeat as much as needed. Soon enough, it will become second nature.

2) Focus on the good.

Had a goal to clean the house? Only got the dishwasher unloaded/loaded? Guess what? You cleaned (part of) the house. That's accomplishment. So what you didn't get it all done. You got something done. And that something deserves to be recognized. 

3) Prioritize.

"What in 5 years is going to matter?" That one question alone will change the way you look at your day. Yesterday when I could have been cleaning/cooking/getting stuff done, I volunteered to take my niece and nephew for a few hours. We played shopping (a piece of my husband's middle school artwork sold for a whopping $1 million), packed a picnic, and played at the park/beach. I will never remember how much I did/didn't get done that day, but I will remember the first time I used our picnic basket, and the memories that surround it.

4) Look at your life from an outside perspective.

Sometimes when I'm feeling like a failure at life I pretend I'm looking down on my life from above. Here's what I see: a badass girl who overcame an eating disorder, quit the job she hated, went to grad school, bought a house, married her best friend, found a career she enjoys, and is in charge of an entire high school soccer program. Even if all of those areas don't look perfect at any given time, when you take a step back, those are pretty neat accomplishments. 

5) Practice gratitude. 

We've all heard this one before, but it really is key. Every night before my husband and I fall asleep, we try to tell each other 3 things we are grateful for in that moment of time. Even when we've had a crappy day and can hardly think of anything, it forces us to come up with something, anything (wine and dark chocolate definitely count). And most importantly, it reminds us of how dang lucky we really are. 

6) Be kind to yourself.

Everyone is doing the best they can with what they know at the time, including yourself. You have to forgive yourself over and over and over again (I've heard that's the secret to a lasting marriage too!). Just last week I overate frozen pizza right before bedtime, didn't workout the morning I had planned on, and made one of my players feel bad accidentally. Instead of beating myself up about those three things, I tried remembering that I was doing my best based on the circumstances (i.e. rough night at soccer, sleepy from a rough night of soccer, and the inability to keep my mouth shut sometimes). And then, see #1. 

Those are my 6 tips to embracing imperfection. Got any of your own you want to share?