21 Ways to Have Fun for Free!

In response to my post from yesterday, I got a comment from Steve that said, “Dude, you forgot #8, cut out all the fun!” While I don’t agree with Steve that those 7 ideas are cutting out all of the fun from your life in order to save money, I think this is a great opportunity to list 21 ways you can have tons o’ fun without spending a dime!

Saving money doesn’t have to be a chore.  You shouldn’t have to hate your life because you are trying to be frugal.  Just get a little creative.

Use your imagination!

When you were a kid, you didn’t have any money to spend but you had fun all day long!  What did you do then?  Why not now?  Don’t underestimate the amount of fun you can have by just acting like a kid again.

So here they are:

1. Build a bonfire

2. Go camping

3. Grab some friends and play freeze tag (you know you want to!)

4. Have a picnic

5. Go kayaking

6. Read a good book

7. Build a fort

8.  Play beer pong

9. All night board games

10.  Go do karaoke

11. Start a blog

12. Blast your favorite cd

13. Take a ton of funny pictures

14. Go swimming

15. Create your own holiday and celebrate it

16. Go see Shakespeare in the park

17. Make someone a mixed cd

18. Watch funny movies

19. Play with your kids

20.  Go to the dog park

21. Explore downtown

Extra tip: Watch the Big Lebowski as many times in a row as possible!

See, saving money and having fun don’t have to compete, you can do them both at the same time!  Do you have any ideas to add to the list?  Let us know in the comments section!

Be Grateful!

Be grateful.  If you have the ability to read, you have an amazing gift.  If you have a computer, an internet connection, freedom, you are blessed more than you can imagine.  Be grateful for what you have.

I have been spending a lot of time on what I don’t have lately.  As I start to find my purpose in life and pursue my goals and dreams, I am constantly thinking about all the things that I wish I had that would make my pursuits easier or more financially rewarding.

I’ve realized that if I spend my time dwelling on my shortcomings, and all the things I don’t have, I tend to simply get more of that in my life.  And those thoughts breed more thoughts just like it and soon enough I’m stuck. Riding this never ending wave of self doubt and envy.

But if you think about it, if you are grateful for what you have, and you spend time consciously focusing on the abundance in your life right now; there is no room for self doubt or envy.  If you are intensely focused on how grateful and blessed you are to have the car that you drive, it is impossible to be jealous of your neighbor’s car at the same time.

When you appreciate the things in your life for what they are, and you are truly happy that you have them you can eliminate all of the negative thoughts that keep you from the life that you desire, the life you deserve.

“You simply will not be the same person two months from now after consciously giving thanks each day for the abundance that exists in your life. And you will have set in motion an ancient spiritual law: the more you have and are grateful for, the more will be given you.”
~ Sarah Ban Breathnach ~

Here are 4 ways to include thankfulness in to your life:

1.)    Gratitude journal -

I am a HUGE Patrick Combs fan, and one of the very first things I learned from Patrick is to have a gratitude journal.   Every night before you go to sleep, open up your journal and write down every possible thing you can think of to be grateful for.   Then when you wake up, read back through it, realize all the great things you have in your life.  You will attract more wonderful things in to your life this way.  And in a year or two, you can look back through this journal and just smile.  You’ve had so much your whole life and you didn’t even realize it!

2.)    Picture wall –

Take pictures of all the things you are grateful for.  If you can’t take a picture of it, take a picture of something that reminds you of it.  Then create a big collage of all the things you are thankful for.  I hope you have a big wall to use because you will see it start to grow very quickly.  Make this something you see every single day.  Gazing at this wall can bring an amazing feeling of peace.

3.)    Write a thank you –

Don’t be greedy with all that gratitude you have.  Spread it around.  Write a nice handwritten thank you as often as possible.  It means so much more when you write it yourself too, although an email can be nice as well.  Do this as often as you can, the person who receives it will appreciate it more than you know.

4.)    Thankful Post-It Notes –

Carry some post-it notes around with you wherever you go.  Be aware of your thoughts.  When a thought of jealousy pops up, acknowledge it, and then pull out your post-its and write something you are thankful for on it.  Then stick it right in front of you.  This is a very easy way to break that cycle of wanting and then feeling bad about not having it.  When you appreciate what you have, you will attract more good things your way.

Having an attitude of gratitude will change your life.  It is something that is so simple, yet will make a difference almost immediately.  Take one of these 4 ideas and give it a shot, try it for a few weeks or a month and see what a difference it makes.

I hope if any of you out there have any ideas on how to develop a more thankful attitude you would visit the comment section and let us know.  There are so many different ways to be thankful every day, so let’s hear some more ideas.

Listen!

Life is short.  It moves quickly.  During the course of our daily lives we are running around so much that there is so much that we miss.  I can go days going through the daily routine of work, exercise, bills, eat, work…and pretty soon I get to the end of the week and have no idea what happened.  How much am I missing?  You need to stop and look around once and awhile.  Listen to what’s going on around you.  If you do you might just hear something.

 Just recently I really started thinking about this.  Most of us were blessed with 6 senses at our disposal.  While we are constantly using them, we are not constantly aware of what those senses are telling us. 

 I have been focused on listening lately.  And not just listening to other people.

 Listen to what’s happening around you

 On a typical day, I go to work in the morning and count down the time until lunch.  At lunch, I get in the car, turn up the radio, and speed home to let my dog out and grab something to eat.  It typically takes me about 15 minutes to get to or from work.  I usually don’t really think about it.  I just go.  I listen to the music and just hurry along to follow my routine.

 Last week however, I was thinking about what could possibly be happening while I was going through my routine.  So at first I just turned off the radio and put the windows down and just listened.  I listened hard! 

 It was amazing!

 All these days have gone by and I had no idea all of the things that were happening in my world.  When I really tried I could hear everything!

 I heard children playing.  I heard birds chirping.  I heard traffic stopping and starting and stopping.  I heard construction workers yelling instructions to each other.  It was too much!  I had to pull over.  Little did I know there was a park right down the street from my office.

 So I got out and sat on a bench.  It was beautiful.  I heard kids playing in the fountain, and dogs chasing each other, having the time of their lives.  And all of this was happening, every day, while I was speeding by on my way to lunch.  Sitting there I realized that this is all a gift.  What a blessing just to be able to hear all of these things.

What do you hear? 

Take a break once in a while.  Listen to what’s going on around you.  You’ll be shocked at what you’ll hear.  Listen to the wind playing with the leaves.  Listen to the rain hitting the roof.  These are the things that are beautiful in the world.  The things we miss in the hustle and bustle of our everyday lives. 

 When life gets complicated, pull off to the side of the road.  Go for a walk and just listen.  Let life slow down.  Experience every moment.  Once they are gone, they are gone forever.

5 of My Favorite Places in Nature

~”5 of My Favorite Beautiful Nature  Scenes”  is a guest post by my beautiful fiance Shannon! Enjoy! ~

 

I have been lucky enough to travel to many places and experience many different cultures. But, there is something to be said for the natural beauty that exists here, in the United States. Now, I completely understand that there are many people who will have other opinions on their top 5 favorite places to visit in the continental United States. But, these are the places that have truly touched my soul, almost haunting in the beauty that stayed with me long after I left the physical place. So, here they are in no particular order!

1. Ecola State Park: Oregon is hands down one of my absolute favorite places to exist on this planet. The beauty that is this entire state is as stunning and it is surprising. Just a small trip down the road to the market hosts gorgeous views, from plush valleys of green to soaring cliffs. Since my childhood, the place that makes me almost giddy to go visit is Ecola State Park. Long before he was my fiancé, I was asked by the man that I love where I would go if I could be anywhere. And I chose this point you can hike to at Ecola. When you get out to the point, you are high up on a cliff face, surrounded on three sides by ocean. When I am there, in that place, I remember how much more world exists outside of myself, and it truly brings into perspective that my problems aren’t nearly as big as I think they are… and there are many more people in existence that deserve our thoughts and help.

2. Yosemite National Park: Located in California, Yosemite has almost everything you might want to see, and all within easy exploring distance! It is certainly well know for its waterfalls that cascade down beautiful granite faces. But here you will also find valleys complimented by the huge, awe-inspiring granite cliffs. Vast meadows and giant sequoias, some large enough to drive a car through, are all there for exploration. It is wilderness in every sense of the word. And only in this kind of wilderness have I ever truly experienced tranquility.

3. Sedona, Arizona- Red Rock Country… a place that looks like no other. Most people would list the Grand Canyon as the place to see in Arizona and I would never imagine diminishing the greatness of this natural wonder. But, I have sat in silence at both sunrise and sunset in this beautiful, unique place and watched the rocks change from deep, blood red and burning orange before becoming the deep russet red they are in total sunlight. I have watched the clouds turn purple and teal over the natural rock formations, and I have known that I was witnessing something not even the most talented of artists could imagine. Visit here, and enjoy the many entertainments that Sedona has to offer during daylight hours. But, be sure to hike out and find a gorgeous view just in time for the sun to come up. It will literally leave you breathless.

4. Shenendoah National Park: Aw, the Blue Ridge Mountains! This gorgeous park in Virginia has been visited by my hiking shoes too many times to count. The park itself shows the beauty of Virginia perfectly. Rolling crests of mountains as far as the eye can see, dotted by deep valleys and meadows, and gorgeous rivers and waterfalls make every hike magnificent. Rest beneath the shade of the oak trees and listen to the water trickle by, discover the history of the land (it is rich in history, to be sure!) and relax in a shockingly peaceful, striking setting considering it is only a short 75 miles away from our nation’s capital!

5. Carlsbad Caverns: I remember being absolutely blown away by Carlsbad Caverns when I visited at a very young age! But, this place is not for the faint of heart!! Not only will you be hiking into caves that are home to large bat populations (which you can watch fly out of the cave’s natural entrance by the hundreds every night at sunset) but you are hiking into miles and miles of twisting corridors, hosting immense stalactites and stalagmites, some that have been forming for so long (hundreds of years), that they are grown together. The caverns also boast the second largest underground room in the world and the Bottomless Pit, an area of space that’s depth is still not completely known. Despite the beauty of this natural wonder, the chasms in the rocks and fallen boulders remind you the violence that was the formation of the caves, and will certainly get you respecting geology!

If ever you find yourselves in one of these amazing places located in our very own United States, I hope that they will affect you and stay with you in the same way they did me. I promise you, no matter where you go; you will find remarkable beauty and harmony.ihb2dmevw5

10 Ways to Relax Now

 You have got to calm down!

 Often times it is extremely easy to do if you have some techniques in your repertoire that you can pull out and go to work.  When done with positive intentions and with hope of actually calming down and centering yourself these techniques work very well. 

 So give some of these a shot and let me know if any of them work for you!

1. Laugh – Rent a funny movie or get online and read some jokes. When you start laughing the tension will just melt away.  If you have any funny friends or coworkers, now would be a good time to give them a call or pay them a visit!

2.  Get the blood flowing – Start dancing, go for a walk, do jumping jacks.  Whatever you can do to get the blood flowing and the endorphins pumping will help to calm you down.  I like to take a walk.  I find that getting out in to nature really does bring back to rational.

3. Deep breathing – This is a personal favorite.  Deep breathing is amazing and I’ll talk more about it when I get to meditation on this site.  But take a few minutes to close your eyes and take some deep breaths.  Inhale for 5 seconds, hold for 5, exhale for 10.  This will no doubt relax you!

4. Listen to relaxation cds – So yeah this one is obvious.  They are created to help you relax – and they really do work.  Might want to combine this one with number 3 and you will be relaxed in no time!

5. Drink green tea – It is said that green tea has the opposite affect of coffee so instead of stimulating it calms.  The calming factor is in an amino acid it contains called Theanine.  Sit down and concentrate on drinking the tea and nothing else.

6. Get a massage – What better way is there to relieve tension then for someone to light some candles put on the relaxation cds from number 4 and go to work on the knots you have in your shoulders.  Go often, even if you aren’t stressed at the moment get yourself regular massages, the benefits last much longer then you may realize.

7. Play with a pet – Although my retriever Lana can be just as aggravating as she can be soothing, when I’m stressing she is great to talk to.  We could go out back and play catch with the football or play tug of war with the rope and I start to forget what I am stressed about.  There is something reassuring about a pet’s unconditional love and devotion.  And feels good to see them sooooo happy!

8. Take a long shower or bath – I wish I had a hot tub and I’m way too tall for the bathtub so I rely on the shower.  Normally I’m rushing and am in and out of the shower during the week.  So if I am really on edge at night or on the weekend, I love to take a nice long hot shower.  This is so relaxing!  I love it!

9. Take a nap – Not everyone has this luxury but if you have the time and your anxious or stressed out, try and take a power nap.  You only need 20 or 30 minutes and you should walk up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated!

10. Write it down – I hope to speak about the power of journaling in a future job post but this can really help here.  Take the anxious or stressed thoughts and write them down.  Acknowledge them.  Then let them go.  Let them pass away and come back to the here and now.  Come back to what’s really important.

 I hope this helps you relax when you need to. These are a few of the ways that I like to calm myself down when life is just kicking my butt.  If you have any additional ideas, I’d love to hear them.  Just leave them in the comments!