I am, and always have been, a great fan of music, dance and cinema. These art forms provide such quality entertainment and can stimulate your mind, heart and soul. Unfortunately, a soirée enjoying some of them can be quite expensive, depending on the style and the venue you prefer. Luckily, cinema remains within the grasp of the everyman’s budget. It is a rare thing to experience laughter, tears, fear and a temporary escape from reality – all for under $10 nowadays (legally anyway).  Movies have that power.

In honour of my preferred form of entertainment, I will be settling in with some friends and family members to watch the Academy Awards this Sunday evening. We will enjoy snacks and drinks, while betting on the likely winners. You too can enjoy the award show with friends and create an environment for amicable competition thanks to this printable score card. Complete your selections beforehand and see who identifies the most winners.

If you feel like planning a larger affair surrounding The Oscars, have a pre-screening night of some of the nominated films, come dressed as your favourite nominated actor and set the stage for  interesting discussions surrounding subjects such as, your favourite movie of all time, on-screen characters you like or dislike, the story that taught you the most or which host you preferred over the years. Personally, I am a big fan of Billy Crystal as host and look forward to his sense of humour this Sunday.

It is such a fun and inexpensive way to spend a Sunday night. Why not take the opportunity to create new traditions?

Happy voting!

MM

ADVANTAGES

1.     Individualized care

Kids that attend daycares are often fighting for the attention of the teacher, and teachers can become spread thin dealing with so many kids at once. With a nanny your child will have his/her undivided attention all day every day.

2.     Smoother mornings

Dropping your child(ren) off at daycare every morning takes time out of your day and means you have to get up earlier and make sure you’re out the door on time. Since the nanny will come to your house you can rely on him/her to feed the kid(s) breakfast and you can leave later for work because you will not have to drop them off anywhere.

3.     Strong bonds

When you find a good nanny you can establish a strong relationship with them and so can your child(ren). There’s comfort in knowing that you’re leaving them in capable and committed hands and that you trust and know the person watching them.

4.     Flexibility

Daycares have set hours so it is imperative that you drop your child(ren) off and pick them up on time. Hiring a nanny gives you a more flexible schedule to work with so that you are not rushing around.

DISADVANTAGES

1.     Typically more expensive

Hiring a nanny is generally the most expensive form of childcare that you can choose, so it’s important to hire someone that you fully trust and that you feel is providing the highest quality care to your child (ren). If cost is an issue for you, consider sharing a nanny with another family to help alleviate the financial burden.

2.     It’s based on trust

Unless you work at home or install cameras in your house you are ultimately relying on the nanny’s word as to what goes on each day.

3.     Limited social interaction

With daycares your child is exposed to other children every day that they attend which will help foster their social communication skills. When they are with a nanny all day they lack that constant social interaction with children their age.

4.     Days off

It is inevitable that, at some point, you will be faced with your nanny calling in sick or wanting a day off and when that happens it is up to you to fill the void. If you cannot find anyone to watch your kid(s) then you will have to stay home. However, keep in mind that public daycares also close during certain times of the year, despite having staff to substitute for a sick employee.

Hiring a nanny is not a decision to be made lightly and is not necessarily for everyone. There are distinct advantages and disadvantages to hiring one, but when you find the right one it can render all the disadvantages moot.

Author Bio: Heather Smith is an ex-nanny. Passionate about thought leadership and writing, Heather regularly contributes to various career, social media, public relations, branding, and parenting blogs/websites. She also provides value to nanny service by giving advice on site design as well as the features and functionality to provide more and more value to nannies and families across the U.S. and Canada. She can be available at H.smith7295 [at] gmail.com.

This year, Father Miser and I will be celebrating over a delectable meal out. It may seem uncharacteristic for us to splurge on a product that will be digested within hours of having consumed it; however, we love food and we are willing to pay for the experience. Don’t get me wrong. We don’t eat out often. We prefer to make our own food and settle down to candlelight dinner at our kitchen table. But when we do decide to go out, we are willing to pay because it happens only once in a while and we have high expectations. There is nothing that irks me more than paying someone to serve me a meal I could have made myself.

There are five restaurants in Ottawa that have never disappointed us. Here they are listed in order of preference:

1. Allium, 87 Holland Avenue, 613.792.1313
2. Navarra, 93 Murray Street, 613.241.5500
3. Beckta, 226 Nepean Street, 613.238.7063
4. The Wellington Gastropub, 1325 Wellington Street West, 613.729.1315
5. Oree du Bois, 15 chemin Kingsmere, Chelsea (QC), 819.827.0332

The food in these restaurants are of high quality, the menus are seasonal, the choices are original and the service is impeccable. Why not book a table and enjoy an evening of tasteful indulgence to celebrate this year?

Of course, be sure the outing fits into your budget. The treat it not worth the after-stress of knowing you spent more than you should have on a single meal. If you simply cannot afford it this year, consult my tips from last year to make Valentine’s Day special.

How about you fellow Ottawa residents? What is your favourite restaurant?

MM

Understandably residents are frustrated by the increased costs which, although masked under the term ‘rate’, may as well be labelled a tax. However, all we can do is focus on the aspects we can control, meaning our water usage.

10 ways to reduce water usage:

1. Don’t run water while brushing your teeth, washing produce or scrubbing dishes;
2. Only run your dishwasher or clothes washer for full loads;
3. Take shorter showers and install water-saving shower heads;
4. Install dual-flush toilets. Otherwise, place a brick or a filled 1 litre bottle of water in the tank to effectively save 1 litre of water per flush;
5. Consider not flushing your toilet after every single use (urine only). *Not for the faint of heart;
6. Don’t use the toilet as an ashtray or waste-basket. Instead, use the garbage can and save water;
7. Check our toilets for leaks. How? Put a little food coloring in your toilet tank. If, without flushing, the color begins to appear in the bowl within 30 minutes, you have a leak that should be repaired immediately;
8. Insulate your water pipes. You’ll get hot water faster plus avoid wasting water while it heats up;
9. Don’t water your driveway. Use a broom to clear debris;
10. Set up rain barrels and use the water collected to water your garden, potted plants and wash your car.

These may seem like small changes but you will be surprised by the difference it will make over a year. Every bit counts.

MM

The truth is, none of these things will ever fill me with a sense of contentment. Nope, the level of satisfaction I am after can only be achieved from within. I must realize that I have all that I need. I have a warm home, a loving husband, two healthy and happy children, a great group of friends, a healthy body and beautiful dark brown hair.

I am among the lucky few who can enumerate these concrete fortunes and, while I certainly realize it rationally, I must learn to fully feel it on a deeper level. I must convince myself somehow that it is enough. I am enough.

The funny thing is that no matter what I accumulate, I keep searching. Is this human nature? I am certain that this insatiable need for the new and best is what keeps so many people in serious debt. It certainly is what feeds the marketing beast. Too many people let emotion overtake common sense when it comes to spending – in search for immediate gratification instead of long-term gain. It is exhausting to spend a life searching for something better. Instead, strive to feel satisfied with what you have.

Unfortunately, what often happens once you have purchased the next big thing is the satisfaction leached from such a purchase is short-lived and it is not too long before your new acquisition is shoved to the back of the closet or the bottom of your makeup kit to make way for the next cure for happiness.

I am by no means preaching because this is a lesson I myself struggle to master. I suppose the important piece here is that I continue to work towards finding happiness in the small things. Like most behaviours and thought-processes, it comes down to creating a habit.

A concrete trick I have learned and used over the years is that of keeping a journal. Ty it. Every time you catch yourself wanting something, write it down. Taking stock of these wants at the end of each day can help to make you aware of just how much you think you need. Grasp the chance for self-reflection in the quiet of the evening and ask yourself whether or not you actually need any of the things you yearned for that day. Would any of these items actually improve your life in any way?

It is important to realize that you are not your things. Who you are is so much more than what you look like, your career successes and material gains. Look within to get to know who you truly are at the core. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you find. And while you delve deep within, I will do the same.

I often review some of the advice dispensed in the article “Advice, Like Youth, Just Wasted on the Young” written by Chicago Tribune staff writer Mary Schmich back in 1997. It is most commonly known as the “Sunscreen Song.” It speaks to my own values and the self-satisfaction I strive for. Here is some of the advice she gave, which I like to remind myself of when thinking about what is important in life:

1. Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they’ve faded. But trust me, in 20 years, you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

2. Don’t worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.

3. Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts. Don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours.

4. Don’t waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind. The race is long and, in the end, it’s only with yourself.

5. Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll have children, maybe you won’t. Maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else’s.

6. Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don’t be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own.

7. Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

8. Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

MM

However, I figure that if you are consulting this blog, you are actually searching for ways to improve your financial management, grow your savings and one day (hopefully) enjoy financial freedom. At a minimum,  try to keep these 10 financial rules in mind if you cannot remember all of the tips you read:

1. Never spend more than you have;
2. Pay off the full balance of your credit cards each month;
3. Preventative maintenance on your house and car are not fun expenses but they will save you in the long-run, versus reactive repairs;
4. Avoid impulse buys; shop with a list.  If you want something that’s not on your list, wait a week to see if you really need it;
5. Save 5-10% of your gross income for retirement or a rainy day;
6. Spend your money on quality food, shoes and mattresses;
7. Buy used when you can;
8. Always make an annual budget based on your disposable income after all fixed expenses (house, car, food, insurance, investments, etc.);
9. Shop the sales, and fill up your car on cheaper days.  Buy toilet paper and other consumables in large quantities when on sale.  It has a long shelf life, and you’ll always need it;
10. Don’t save every single penny you ever earn at the expense of your happiness.

There, that’s it. At least try, if nothing else, to respect these ten rules.

MM

Forest Parks will make you rethink your grocery shopping as he reveals How Avoiding the Big Supermarkets in Canada Can Save Money in his guest post for Canadian Finance Blog.

Cents of a Country Girl guest posts over a Money Rabbit about To Take a Snow Day, or Not To Take a Snow Day, something we all battle with at one time or another here in Canada.

Squawkfox warns: Beware of shrinking products with increasing price tags, revealing how we are all paying much more for smaller-sized content.

The Minimalist Mom reminds us that You are not your stuff.

Finally, I was honoured to be featured as an Editor’s Pick in the Totally Money Blog Carnival over at Family Money Values.

Have a lovely weekend!

MM

As these things go, each girl grew up as an individual whose behaviours and habits did not necessarily fit the ideal picture that The Parents had imagined. For one, Sister A was not as financially savvy as Sister B and this constantly worried her parents. In fact, they worried that Sister A’s irresponsible ways with money would ultimately cause her instability, stress and unhappiness. Of course, they were right in their prediction of the potential problems, but not as accurate in identifying the solutions to these.

Sister A

Despite expectations set upon an older sibling, Sister A was less responsible – in all aspects of her life, including finances – and looked for immediate gratification above greater long-term rewards. Deep-seated low self-esteem affected many of her choices and she searched for ways to gratify her need for acceptance through over-indulgence, promiscuity and non-conformism. By the age of thirty she had underwent rehabilitation, dropped out of university, suffered through a nasty divorce and declared bankruptcy.

Sister B

Sister B was driven to succeed from a young age. She performed well in school, was considered athletic, enjoyed the company of many good friends and benefited from a strong sense of self-confidence. At the age of 13 she maintained many babysitting gigs and by 16 was managing her own bank account and had invested in mutual funds. Her personal wealth grew exponentially and by the age of 23 she had purchased a four-bedroom house on her own dime, that she later rented out and thereby benefited from a source of income.

She continued to invest and by age 30 she had been well-educated, boasted a wide portfolio of investments, an absence of debt (apart from a reasonably-sized mortgage), a high-level job in government, was happily married with children and was on her way to financial freedom.

The crux of the matter

The Parents wanted so badly for both of their children to have equal success that they failed to provide Sister A with the tools she needed to create her own wealth. Instead, they subsidized bad habits and enabled her financial demise. Sister B had ensured her own success, but all that mattered to The Parents were the end results – the comparables. You know how the saying goes: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.”

The Parents were always jumping in to save their irresponsible daughter from her mistakes. If she ran out of money after her allowance was spent, they gave her more so that she could keep up with her friends. They paid for her university and watched her spend all of her part-time earnings on alcohol and parties while she enjoyed free room and board at home. They bailed her out the few times that credit collectors came calling. They also handed her a hefty down payment towards her first house so that she would not feel left out, considering her younger sister already had a house that she was able to purchase on her own.

Upon reflection

The Parents should not be congratulated or berrated for the successes of one daughter and the blunders of another. Nonetheless, I would argue that they mishandled the teaching opportunity in relation with Sister A. Instead of providing tough love (after an initial leg up, of course) in order to teach Sister A how to handle her responsibilities, they adopted her problems as their own and directly enabled her to continue being self-destructive.

How much responsibility can be put upon a parent for how their child turns out is seriously debatable. I believe that people are born with their personality and their environment serves to nurture or prohibit their natural tendencies. Clearly, Sister B was born with  natural drive, whereas Sister A was more prone to self-doubt.

Could The Parents have helped to prevent the stressful outcome for Sister A? Perhaps. They could have reassured her and helped her to develop a sense of self-worth. They also could have allowed her to make mistakes without always jumping in to save her.

Ironically, Sister B was never rewarded by The Parents for her sense of responsibility. She was never handed a large sum of money to congratulate her for being savvy and self-reliant. Instead, those lump sums were saved to reward Sister A’s bad habits, while The Parents assumed that Sister B could manage on her own. Of course, she could but it would have been nice to recognize her success.

I don’t proclaim to be an expert on parenting because I am not. I have already made tons of mistakes and my children are still young. I am certain that I will make lots more. But hopefully I will manage to teach them to be resourceful and will allow them to discover (as heart-wrenching as I am sure it will be) that there are consequences to their actions.

How do you financially reward your child(ren)’s behaviours? 

MM

I had the pleasure of hosting the 49th edition of the Totally Money Blog Carnival this week, allowing me the chance to read through some very interesting articles. Each one has given me something to think about, has imparted useful knowledge or has taught me a valuable skill. I hope you enjoy them too.

Editor’s Picks

Watson Inc. argues 4 Reasons You Should Set Unrealistically High Goals, explaining that not all goals should necessarily have a strong basis in reality, including financial goals.

Thirty Six Months presents Women and Investing, an interesting look at the differences between men and women’s investing styles.

One Cent at a Time urges you to Donate Old Eye Glasses to Charities, Help Those Less Fortunate, offering advice on your own purchase of eye glasses and exposing the fact that more than a billion people cannot afford eye glasses.

Sabrina explains How to Get Your Kids to Stop Treating You Like an ATM over at Wallet Watcher .

You Have More Than You Think offers a controversial view of why small business owners should have access to cheap prison labour in Putting America Back to Work, One Prisoner at a Time.

Business

How Does Facebook Make Money? Funancials reveals the mystery of the industry giant’s marketing model.

Want to land that new job? Smart on Money tells you how to Dress for Success: Business Attire for Less.

Credit Cards

Saving Money Today presents The Dark Side of Compounding Interest, explaining that compounding interest can help your money grow exponentially but can also keep you up at night.

Free From Broke explains how to Pay off your credit card debt faster with the a 0% balance transfer credit card.

Debt Management

Investor Junkie asks What Makes Debt Socially Acceptable?

Do you feel like you’re falling into a pit of debt? Your Finances Simplified offers A 6 step plan to dominate your debt.

Boomer & Echo suggests that if In Debt, You Should Stop Donating.

Goal Setting

The Amateur Financier offers a guide to looking back at your resolutions from the past year, finding what went wrong, and improving your future in Learning From Unmet Resolutions.

Bucksome Boomer encourages you not to give up on your New Year’s resolutions and instead Make 2012 Your Best Year Ever.

Finance Fox reminds us that, whatever your life goal or dream, it is never too late to get started in From Homeless To Successful – The Story Of One Entrepreneur.

Green Living

My Personal Finance Journey highlights the importance of using green energy, and illustrates how going green saves you money in home energy costs: Green Energy Makes Green Money.

Living green is about consuming less and leading a simpler life. Lisa talks about Going Green in the Kitchen over at Thriftability.

101 Centavos talks about the “fuzzy logic and hard numbers” in Kitchen Gardening, the Accidental Side Gig.

Health

According to Free Money Wisdom, eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring and it doesn’t have to be expensive. See for yourself: Keeping the Doctor Away with Quality Foods.

Real Estate

Family Money Values explains Types of Real Estate Investments and how to structure the investment to meet your lifestyle and financial needs.

Saving

Step Away from the Mall presents tricks for three common culprits of slow steady money drains and suggests how to fix them in How I’m going to save $1,800 in 2012 by fixing only 3 money leaks.

Learn how to maintain the spending power of your savings by Getting a Real Return on Your Money, posted over at Help Me To Save.

Free Money Finance argues that An Impulse Buy Is Never A Good Buy.

Technology

How going against the electronic consumerism trend is practical. Barbara Friedberg explains Why I Don’t Want a Smart Phone, Tablet, or eReader.

Money Cone explores the variety of choices nowadays in light bulb types, shapes and sizes and breaks down how to save on your electricity bill in And Let There Be Light!

Vehicle

Learn 10 Ways to Save Money on Auto Insurance written by Squirrelers.

Hank presents Eight Ways To Save Money On Car Repairs posted at Money Q&A.

Be sure to visit Family Money Values to read next week’s carnival selection.