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Right now I am very focused on my money. What is it doing, where is it going, how much do I have coming in? In just 2 weeks of being very focused I have discovered about an extra $200 this month. Right now it is just staying in the bank, instead of going to yard sales or Wal-Mart. If you want to save money stay out of Wal-Mart, the $1 store and all those other places.

I very much want to get a buffer of one month’s income in the bank as soon as possible. That will give me great peace of mind.

Our local grocery ads came out today, so I went over them and checked my list, cut out a couple of coupons, so everything is all ready for shopping on Friday.

So how’s your cottage economy this week? Are you on budget or do you need to work on one? Do you have a list of the things you need to buy? Shopping with a list and a firm amount of money that you will spend (& no more!) will help keep you from overspending. If you know that you should really only spend $50 on groceries, then make a list and write $50 in big red letters at the top. Keep at least a rough count of what you are putting in your cart.

Get the most nutrition for your $1 by buying wisely. Skip the prepackaged junk and make things from scratch at home.

Tonight at my house we had a homegrown/homemade dinner: Spaghetti made from home grown tomatoes and other veggies with home made Italian sausage and home made 100% whole wheat noodles.  I did buy the pork the sausage was made from, the flour the noodles were made from, some olive oil and the parmesan cheese grated over everything. Here’s hoping in a year or two the pork will be homegrown too.

Hello world!

Why have I started yet _another_ blog? Because I have more to say that doesn’t exactly fit into my other ones!

What will I write about here? Things relating to our good health, things relating to our finances, both of which come under the heading of Cottage Economy.

The idea of Cottage Economy comes from William Cobbet (1762-1835). In 1821 he published his book of the same name. In it he instructs the reader in practical self sufficiency. From baking and brewing, raising animals for meat, milk, eggs, hides and wool along with growing fruits and vegetables.

I will post on these topics as I can. I do many of these things myself. I have made it my goal to retire when I am 55. (which is only 4 years away) No I won’t be eligible for social security at that age, but I have a plan, which I will post more about later. For the moment it suffices to say that my plan requires I really pay attention to every penny that comes to my hand. Benjamin Franklin said “A penny saved is a penny earned”.

This blog will help keep me on my toes and keep me focused in the right direction. so I hope you follow along through my successes and failures as I try out my new plans and ideas.