Money Matters - Make a List and stick to it.

Money is always a concern when you are in a relationship. However said two people can live as cheaply as one was crazy. My couples money tip today is for you to make a list before you go to the grocery store. Go through all you cabinets and cupboards and make a detailed list of things you are out of or want to pick up for upcoming meals. Be specific down to what sides you are going to have with what meat. Plan out the whole weeks worth of meals and snacks and complete you list. Now come the tough part, when you get to the store stick to the list only. The grocery stores are set up to attract your attention to buy things you didn't really want with flashy displays and placement of the products. You both have to be strong. Another tip is eat a meal right before you go to the store so that everything and anything doesn't look wonderful. With a little self control you will soon find yourselves saving a lot of money and using the things you purchased. Next time you are on a wonderful vacation thing about how you might not have been where you are if you bought $40-$50 dollars worth of junk at the store?

Smoothies, fun and enjoyable.

Kitchen chores such as cooking and cleaning are usually not much fun. However making smoothies with you partner can not only be fun but it can be health for you also. Plus the clean up is a breeze. First of all make sure you have a great blender for this adventure. If not you can pick one up on your next step, which is to get your butts to the store. Search the aisles for fruits and juices you enjoy. Things like bananas, pineapple, blueberries, orange juice, kiwi, the list goes on and on but these will be your ingredients for your smoothie. I personally like to make mine with milk or cream, but that is what I like. Now once you get home here is where the fun starts. Cut up your items that need to be downsides for the blender making sure to feed each other a piece from time to time. Now to make this smoothie a couples smoothie you have to take turns adding ingredients. Pick your base, it can be a juice base or my preference milk based. Next start adding the other ingredients one by one with both of you taking turns picking your favorite. Once all items are in the blender, blend away and then pour into some special glasses and enjoy your personal couples smoothie. Oh, I forgot about the easy clean up, open up the door of the dish washer and up in the blender and utensils used to downsize the ingredients and presto you are done.

Shop with planning, Love with passion

The holiday season can be pretty crazy at this time of year. Everyone is out trying to get their shopping done before the big day. This is the exact reason you have to have a shopping plan in place before you head out. Roaming around the store not knowing what you are going to get is like wandering lost in the jungle. The time is now to get your strategy planned out by first of all deciding or at least have an idea of what you are looking for in the store before you enter. Check the Internet to find the best presents, you can even find some web sites that will give you suggestions for that hard to buy for person in your life. If you can find a floor plan of the mall or store you will be shopping it get it and study the areas you will need to hit during your shopping trip, backtracking and roaming are only good for wasting time. Once you get to your shopping destination stay focused it is easy to get off track and start looking at things that you won't be buying. Follow your path and grab and go on your way around the store, then hit the cashier and exit the store. When you follow your plan this will free you up to spend more time with the people that you are shopping for. I would much rather spend time snuggling with my wife and watching Christmas Movies or even just our tree then running around a store frantically.

Get your Christmas Shopping on Now.

I was in our local discount store just two days ago and saw that they were putting up the Christmas decorations and supplies. My first reaction was, "Man it's not even Halloween, yet!" Then I thought about it a little longer, and what a great idea. One of my biggest complaints is that we spend all the weekends right before Christmas Shopping we don't get to spend these weekends at home enjoying the season. I would much rather be making cookies with my partner (and kids), listening to Christmas Carols and watching those famous Christmas Cartoons. However instead we are doing the hustle and bustle looking for those last minute things we need to pick up. I challenge all of you do get 90% of your Christmas shopping done by the end of November. I did this a couple of years in a row and man those were great years. It was easy to get the shopping done, my spouse and I didn't fight or dread doing the shopping. Sure their were some things that came out later the kids wanted but all I had to do was zip in and pick up that item only. Then the whole month of December was ours to enjoy.

Start making your list today, and get those hard to buy for people out of the way the only thing you should have to buy during the month of December should be for your kids or partner. Then on the weekends during the holidays spend them going caroling, or attending friends parties or even have your own Christmas party. Lastly just spend some quiet time with you partner sitting in a chair with the fire a blaze and the snow gently falling outside. While you sip your warm cocoa think of all the poor suckers out their running from store to store.