Free Budget Software

If you are like the majority of people these days, then you know that living within a budget is the only way to survive, especially in this economic downturn.  Many people use budget software to keep track of their finances.  Typically, these programs range from free to over $250.  But why pay for something when there are similar products for free?  If this is something you were thinking, then you are like most.  Free personal budget software is in most cases more than most families need to stay on track.  This article is to show the ways that free budget software may be able to help out your financial situation and maybe put a few more pennies back in your pocket…

Free Budget Software

Key Features
Most budgeting software comes with a variety of useful features. Here are 3 features which will help you pinch every last penny out of your hard earned dollars:

  • Multiple Account Tracker.  The majority of family budget software have features that allow you keep track of multiple accounts, at multiple financial institutions as well as your credit cards.  Having this information in one report can come in handy when preparing a budget because it keeps your information organized.  Also, this feature keeps you from getting late fees because you forgot to pay that pesky credit card payment last month.
  • Spending Categorizer.  Some types of home budget software offer a unique feature called a spending categorizer.  It imports your spending habits and magically creates a extremely helpful pie chart to show you which areas you can cut a little out of and which areas need a little more funding.
  • Monthly Cash Flow Projector.  A select few personal budget software makers have stepped up to the plate and added a super useful feature called a monthly cash flow projector or MCFP.  This MCFP is a line graph that tracks your spending versus incoming cash ratio on a day to day basis.  The benefit to this awesome feature is that you can save yourself from those dreaded overdraft fees by being able to see what is going in and coming out of you account throughout the month.

Here are a few of the full featured and most importantly, free budget software brands:

  • Mint (www.mint.com).  Intuit, the makers of the top family and business budget software series Quicken and Quickbooks has come out with a free online tool called Mint.
  • Money Strands (www.money.strands.com).  This is a free budget software that uses the approach of ease of use to attract it’s customers.
  • My Spending Plan (www.myspendingplan.com).  Recommended by the Wall Street Journal, My Spending Plan is a full featured option for all of your budget software needs.

Millions of families have saved hundreds if not thousands monthly because of these products.  Before, people didn’t want to spend the $30-$250 it cost to buy these programs but many are starting to realize that in the average household, these intuitive products pay for themselves many times over.  If you subtract the main reason that people didn’t want to buy these budget software brands by making them free how can you find a reason not to try one?  You never know, it may be worth it’s weight in gold.

A Guide to The Princess Bed

What one thing do all little girls have in common? They all dream of one day becoming a princess. Why brake their spirits at such a magical time in their lives? Make your own little princess’s dreams a reality by giving her an enchanted princess bed of her own.

A princess themed bed can seem a little overwhelming to achieve. This guide will help you choose the best princess theme to use for you child’s age group, the type of bed you can afford with the budget you are working with, and discuss the elements of a princess bed.

princess bed

How to Create a Princess Bed
There are two main elements to the princess themed bed; the furniture and the bedding. The bedding aspect of the princess bed is mainly the sheets, the comforter, and decorative pillows. Shopping for  the decorative pillows in shapes like crowns and castles can be an amazing way to spend quality time with your own little princess. While picking out the bedding can be exciting, choosing what furniture to put it on is one of the most important aspects of creating the theme. It can be something as simple as painting the bed you already have, to something as extravagant as getting a custom made cinderella carriage bed. The most common way to add a touch of royalty to a bed is by adding a canopy. Canopies come in many variations. You can get a canopy to match your bed, one decorated with Disney princesses, and more whimsical one with lace and ruffles.

The Right Theme for her Age
The princess themed room can work for girls of all ages. If your princess is a toddler, she will be growing rapidly and what better way to make her feel special than a wonderful princess bed that expands. Perhaps she is older than a toddler. There are even more beds for your little princess to choose from now that she does not need a conversion bed. There is a vast variety from wooden princess daybeds to princess castle bunk beds with slides. For a sound investment in your princess future dreams,  a lovely sleigh bed or a classic wrought iron bed can be enjoyed up through the teen years and beyond! Beds like these can be easily converted from a pink princess to a classy queen.

Price
Both the bedding and furniture a the princess themed bed vary in price. Bedding ranges from around $150 at stores like Macy’s to $22 for a similar bedding set at stores like Target. For the actual bed,  some of the best deals include buying directly from Disney or other companies such as Delta and KidsKraft.

When granting your princess’s dreams for an enchanting slumber it mainly comes down to personal taste. Nevertheless, it is still strongly encouraged that you keep in mind the two elements of the princess bed, the budget that you are working with, and the age of the princess whose wishes you are making come true.

Types of Wooden Gates

There are many different styles and types of wooden gates; in this article you will find information about many of the different types and styles. Using this information will help you to design, build or buy the correct wooden gates for your property.

Most wooden gates that are installed on a property are built to match the wooden fencing that is already up. As you are designing your wooden gate you should look at the needed functions of the gate to determine height, opening mechanism, and structure. You will want a gate that swings open in the proper direction for your home or driveway; you will also want to determine what latches or hardware you will want to use in order to open your gate. Many people also use gates in their garden. A garden gate serves a different purpose and is often decorative as well as functional.

  • Wooden Gates
    Gates can be built for the three most common types of wood fencing: Post & Rail Fencing, Semi-Private Fencing, along with Privacy fencing. The wooden gates used in privacy fencing can be built as Board on Batten, Stockade, or as Vertical Board. When building a gate for a semi-private fence planks are usually placed vertically on both sides of the rails allowing light and air to flow through the fence.

wooden gate

  • Wooden Driveway Gates
    Wooden driveway gates are often built for reasons of practicality, but also for elegance. A nice wooden driveway gate will enhance your home and its surroundings. There are many different styles of wooden driveway gates that will match or accent your current wooden fence.
  • Wooden Garden Gates
    Garden gates offer a way to help separate your garden from the rest of the busy world. They are often whimsical and peaceful in that they are bringing you into a garden and closer to nature and a peaceful calm way of life. You can choose a classic Z gate which offers one options with a simple gate. You can build this gate with open spaces between the planks, or you can build it to disguise the contents of the garden with close planks. Solid Arched garden gates are built with wood that has tongue and grooves allowing the gate to be put firmly together with no gaps; this is often used with privacy wood fences or stone walls. A third type of garden gate is a arbor gate which have a overhead canopy or trellis allowing plants to grow up over the gate greeting your guests. The Z Picketed gate is commonly used with an arbor gate.

As you are searching for your perfect wooden gate be sure to think about the type of fence you have, the style of gate you want, and the purpose it is going to serve.

Use Garden Hooks to Accessorize your Garden and Organize your Tools

A garden can be a special sanctuary, where one can relax, read a book, or simply take a short afternoon nap. Add to its aesthetics and beauty by accessorizing it with hanging plants, solar lights, candles, bird houses or wind chimes. This can be easily accomplished with wrought iron garden hooks. Hooks are usually pre-drilled so they can be easily installed on posts or attached to the trunks of trees. A wrought iron garden hook, for example, can withstand the elements admirably, especially if it has been finished with a coat of graphite. Therefore, if you want to add some interesting accents to your garden, you can definitely make use of decorative tools such as garden shepherd hooks.

Organize your Garden Tools
Of course, hooks can also be used to keep track of your garden tools too. Install garden tool hooks in your potting or garden shed to hold such garden necessities as weeders, baskets, pruners, loppers, grass shears, hoes and trowels. That way, you can keep track and manage your tools and enjoy your gardening activities all the more.

Some Nice Accouterments
It’s nice to accessorize your small oasis when you can make use of such items as a garden shepherd hook to attract birds for feeding, cause wind chimes to sing in the breeze or enjoy the beauty of a hanging plant in the garden that’s been pent up inside over the winter months. Such extra items serve to enhance the magical quality that a garden can provide.

Use Hooks for Hanging Bird Houses, Solar Lights or Candle Holders
As noted, hooks used in gardening are must-have tools for any gardener to utilize. How nice to add , for instance, a bird feeding station using a garden shepherds hook. Attract a host of birds to your garden paradise, including such species as cardinals, warblers, nuthatches, blue jays, quail, robins and sparrows. Outside hooks can also be used to hang solar lights as well as candles.

Organize Larger Gardening Tools
Hooks can also be used to hold garden necessities too like watering cans or hoses. Keep larger tools, such as spade and square shovels and rakes organized too.

Hanging Plants can Provide a Screen for Privacy
Include a bench in your garden. On either side of it, you might want to place hanging flowering plants or vines. What a nice screen and complement to flowers and plants, such as verbena, lavender, oregano and chamomile.

Colorize your Environment
You can develop a color theme in your garden as well. Add a blue-like hue with plants, such as forget-me-nots, love-in-the-mist, hydrangea, veronica and myrtle. Affix hooks to cedar posts for extending lanterns. Include a trellis for morning glory and snapdragon vines.

Wrought Iron – A Long-lasting Decorative Choice
You can manage your garden and make it a whimsical place when you have the needed hooks to accessorize and manage your tools and décor. Look online for hooks for your garden. The most durable kinds for outside use are made of wrought iron.

Plan before you Buy
Also, consider the items that you need to organize in your potting shed or hang in your garden before you place an order online. You can work out a plan as to where to place certain hanging plants or where to insert posts to display, say, candles, lanterns or solar-powered lighting. When you’ve made an assessment of where to use the hooks outdoors, you can see where and how many you’ll need for organizing your gardening tools inside. That’s the best way to make full use of the hooks you buy.