Meet a Reader | Midwest Colleen
Hello everyone! Today we are meeting a reader who has a frugal fail in common with me. 🙂 Here's Colleen!
1. Tell us a little about yourself
I worked in a career for about 10 years that took me all over the world, which was an exciting way to start my professional life.
About 5 years ago I decided to change careers, settle into a growing Midwest city, and now I’m a married homeowner with a toddler and a baby on the way.
I work for a university and absolutely love being in a learning environment every day.
2. How long have you been reading The Frugal Girl?
I’ve been reading The Frugal Girl for a few years, ever since the Non-Consumer Advocate linked to Kristen’s blog.
3. How did you get interested in saving money?
My parents were both parochial schoolteachers when I was growing up, so we never had a lot of money. I remember getting my first job out of college and the salary was more than my mom had made after 30 years of teaching.
Despite that, we always had an open door policy for anyone that needed a place to stay or a meal to share. I grew up with a large extended family nearby (60 first cousins) so we lived in a very communal way that never made us feel like we went without.
4. What's the "why" behind your money-saving efforts?
A few years out of college I found myself in a relationship with someone that had very different spending habits and the relationship put me into credit card debt.
After leaving the relationship and spending a few years digging myself out of that financial hole, I vowed never again to let someone else have control my financial decisions.
Now, I think my interest in saving money is a combination of wanting to put my resources into areas that feel truly meaningful to me and my family and an appreciation that frugality and environmentalism often go hand in hand.
As a Midwesterner, I can also never pass up telling someone what a great deal I was able to get on something 😊.
5. What's your best frugal win?
When I started my job at the university I took advantage of education benefits and will graduate with my MBA this winter.
While I’ve had to pay some money toward the course fees, I essentially got a $90k degree for about $10k. I don’t expect the degree to pay off immediately, but I do think over my lifetime it will pay itself back many times over.
6. What's an embarrassing money mistake you've made?
Right about the time we were getting married, I read a story about the largest cat sanctuary in North America and decided it needed to be a stop on our honeymoon journey.
In retrospect, it was far away, costly to get there, and the cats were pretty dirty. While the rest of the honeymoon was outstanding, my insistence on seeing feral cats should have been avoided. It did make for some great photos though.
7. What's one thing you splurge on?
Quality food. I receive a CSA box weekly with produce from local farms.
It is a bit pricier than shopping at the grocery store, but I believe in supporting local agriculture and enjoy the new-to-me fruits and vegetables that encourage me to be creative in my cooking.
I love to cook and will always try to find quality ingredients. I especially love to try to recreate recipes from places I’ve traveled.
8. What's one thing you aren't remotely tempted to splurge on?
Purses, brand name clothing, pedicures, manicures, housewares (looking at you Homegoods), etc. I like to keep my wardrobe and housewares simple and meaningful.
9. If $1000 was dropped into your lap today, what would you do with it?
My husband and I currently pay more for daycare each month than we do for our mortgage. With our baby arriving this fall, these costs will double. An extra $1,000 would be very helpful for daycare expenses, although, unfortunately, would barely make a dent.
10. What's the easiest/hardest part of being frugal?
Easiest: As the parent of a toddler, we don’t go out to eat much these days, and we spend a lot of time at parks, splash pads and other free/cheap outdoor activities.
We also spend a lot of time at home and recently made some DIY upgrades to our backyard, like a new fire pit area.
Hardest: The hardest part of being frugal is having anything you want at your fingertips with Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc. It’s easier and faster to buy my daughter a new outfit with one click than to go through my local thrift or secondhand shops.
I have to intentionally carve out time, plan ahead, and be patient to find the things I need.
11. Is there anything unique about frugal living in your area?
We have fantastic library and metro parks systems and we’re known for our hundreds of summer festivals.
12. How has reading the Frugal Girl changed you?
I love the community Kristen has curated of people that appreciate frugality (whatever that means to them), gratitude, living simply, and being focused on finding the good in every day. When I see a new blog post come up it feels like a small delight in my day.
13. What frugal tips have you tried and abandoned?
Homemade deodorant and laundry soap have been the two biggest failures.
Both were underwhelming and time-consuming and the deodorant stained my clothing. At this point in my life, I carefully consider the time cost/benefit of frugal activities.
Maybe someday I will have more time to explore homemade items, but for now, I look for sustainable products that align with my environmental and budget goals.
14. What single action or decision has saved you the most money over your life?
Marrying my current husband. We have very similar financial goals and spending habits, which makes our money conversations easy.
While he also made early money mistakes (like $130,000 in graduate school debt), he has worked hard to get those debts forgiven and we’re clear-eyed about what money we have and what we can spend.
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Oh man, I feel you on the homemade laundry soap! I tried that too, many years ago, and it was an abject failure. My clothes all started to smell like stinky feet. I will never, ever try that again; inexpensive commercial laundry detergent is totally worth it to me.
The food pictures you sent in are so beautiful and inspiring! I'm impressed you find the time to do things like make homemade pasta with a toddler, a job, and being in school yourself.
Your little girl is so precious (her sweet little shoes in the library photo made me smile) and I loved your cat sanctuary photo. The cats are charming, and your dress is lovely!
The first time I got married, I would not have considered a cat sanctuary on a honeymoon, but if I got married again, I definitely would. How things change! 🙂
The cats make for an adorable picture though!
I also tried the homemade laundry soap and it is not worth it.
Thank you for sharing. Having such a large family is certainly a gift. I have few family members and have always wished for more.
Question: You obviously like cats. Do you have one as a pet?
@Bee, no pets at the moment. I suspect the next time a pet comes into our home will be when a child begs for one (or brings one in the door) 😉
Nice to meet you, Colleen! It looks like you work at the same school as my sister-in-law. It's also the same school my brother-in-law attends. There is a lot to do in that area.
Count me as one of the failed-homemade-laundry-detergent club members.
Now I want to try the khachapuri. That's a new-to-me food. Beautiful pictures.
I definitely think visiting a cat sanctuary is necessary! Nice to meet you, Colleen!
Hello, Colleen. Your food photos are making me hungry!
And, even if the cat sanctuary wasn't the best honeymoon choice, I think your two feral "friends" in the first photo are a handsome pair. They look like a cross between "lions in front of the library" and Egyptian cat god figurines.
The photo with the cats is just delightful!
I hear you on the daycare costs. When we first had our daughter in daycare, it was 2000 CAD (over 1400 USD) a month. It has come down over time due to a new national program, but it's still a major line item in our budget.
Hi Colleen! I was just thinking yesterday about how I've started buying most of our clothing new, which is a big change from when my kids were little. It's a combination of where I live (no thrift stores), clothes for older kids being much harder to find used than for younger kids, and also the fact that I feel like the stock just isn't there anymore on online consignment places like Thredup. Like I'll do a search for jeans in my kid's size and get literally four options. I don't know if you shop online for used clothing, but have you noticed this?
@kristin @ going country,
I think tweens and teens wear their stuff longer and wear them out, so there's less choice to begin with. And finding thrift store clothes for kids on the border between kid/adult is impossible. And girl stuff often is too risqué at the teen level for me to consider buying it.
At least if you buy an item for oldest son, you'll probably use it for twice more. That's cost effective.
@kristin @ going country, I do most of my thrifting in-person because we have so many options in my area. Once Upon A Child for little kids, Plato's Closet for teens, Clothes Mentor for adults, plus lots of Goodwill, Salvation Army, ThriftOhio, and other options. And plus I'm usually too frugal to pay shipping on items. I can understand people who don't have good local options looking online though, and do agree that ThredUp and the like have gone downhill in terms of quality and options. Like Kristen, I will occasionally find better quality specific items on eBay.
@Colleen,
Thanks for the reminder about Plato's Closet....my yeen son might be interested in looking there!
@Liz B.,
Teen, not yeen....sigh....
Hey, there! I have a question: does having 60 cousins mean gobs of handmedowns or does fierce competition lead to scarcity?
@WilliamB, some clothing hand-me-downs, but the greatest benefit is I have a lot of aunts, uncles and cousins who are into garage sales, antique and estate sales, auction houses, etc. I was looking for vintage coupe glasses for a Christmas champagne toast and all I had to do was text the cousin chat to keep a look out. Two weeks later a cousin found what I was looking for at a price I was willing to pay. While we've had some competition for items in the past, like family heirlooms, it's also good to know items will stay in the family and be treasured.
@Colleen, Impressive!
I also adore the dress you're wearing in your car sanctuary photo. It's lovely on you.
And, your food photos! Well done making (what appears to be) complicated dishes with a toddler at home.
I saw your OSU brochure & thought it was the same school my son will be attending in the fall, but he's going to the other OSU (Oregon State). That was a huge frugal savings for you 0n the graduate degree, and reading this today felt serendipitous, as I'm starting to apply to jobs that offer dependent tuition reimbursement. And, I have DS18 starting college this fall, and DS17 next fall.
@Hawaii Planner, Go Beavers! But the Ducks are our team. Lol. Still a great school.
My ex is the head of maintenance at OSU and my oldest granddaughter will live with him and his wife the next 2 years while she attends U of O for her Masters in Speech Language Pathology. It's a frugal win for her (and she was born frugal!) since it's free housing, and she'll qualify for grandpa's discounted tuition some time during her first year of school. She just bought a small commuter car (and paid cash) and still has enough saved for her first quarters and expenses, so despite the commute, its a win over all. She's a University of Washington grad so she says she'll be a Husky attending a Duck school. 🙂
@Hawaii Planner,
Go Beavs! I am 4th gen graduate of OSU, my daughter was 5th gen! Love Corvallis!
@Hawaii Planner,
A friend of mine works at Michigan State University (not as a professor), and gets 50% off tuition for her kids. Maybe for herself as well, should she decide to pursue a graduate degree, or maybe the benefit is different if it's for her - I'll have to ask her.
My point being, I would assume it varies from school to school - but ANY reduction is a worthwhile benefit. 🙂
Hello fellow Midwesterner! I love the Midwest “ good deal” mentality.
Very nice to meet you!
Tthanks so much for posting. great photos. When we were exploring day care there was
a huge waiting list and it cost the earth in New York City. We hired a nanny who wound up staying with us for two kids over ten years. Someone at synagogue told us about her. She came to my daughter's Bat Mitzvah and my son's Bar Mitzvah. It was so wonderful to see her.
Your food photos are very inspiring especially for someone who hates to cook dinner. Breakfast and lunch I can handle. Good luck to you and your expanding family.
Colleen, I think your little gardener and library patron is just cuter than cute! She's absolutely precious! Congrats to you and your DH on the upcoming new arrival, too. Love the dress you're wearing in the cat photo, and I'm envious that you live in a climate where you can enjoy a fire pit -- it's super hot here already, so rare is the evening we can comfortably sit outside. Meanwhile, you must be a master chef to make such attractive dishes and thank you for supporting local agriculture! (Jamie Oliver would be proud of you, IMO. ) And getting a $90 thousand education for only 10 grand is pure genius! Your kayaking adventures look fun; I also try to combine frugality with sustainability but not being an outdoorswoman, I don't have a lot of expertise in this area. (Does putting limbs and weeds in the yard waste bin, and air drying the laundry count?)
O-H! 🙂 While I may live in Michigan now, I grew up in Ohio, and the loyalty is STRONG.
I'm wondering, have you considered an au pair for your childcare needs? Depending on your housing and personality (e.g., if you have an extra bedroom and you can handle another person in your house), it could be a good option. The au pair program is cheaper than two full-time daycare payments... We are on our second au pair and will have a third arriving this September! I'm happy to answer questions about it if you have them!
@Emily U., we have not explored an au pair program but that's definitely interesting! Do you have a service you have found your au pair through?
@Colleen, we have used Cultural Care and been pretty happy with them. We also looked at Au Pair in America as well. Both agencies have good reputations.
Here is some info I've sent to other friends about it:
You *have* to go through an agency, per the government, as the au pair visa is a particular category of visa (J-1). The minimum weekly pay to the au pair and requirements about them having a separate room are all governmental regulations.
Basically, it’s sold to the US families as flexible, reasonably priced childcare with cultural exchange. It’s sold to the au pairs certainly as work, but also an opportunity to see real American life and travel.
You obviously have to be willing to have another adult in your house. They get a weekly stipend (on top of the program fee you pay up front or in installments to the au pair agency). The agency gives them health insurance, interviews them, etc. and provides support throughout the year.
They provide up to 45 hours of childcare per week - no more than 10 hours on any one day and they must get 1.5 consecutive days off per week and one weekend off per month. They also get 2 weeks (14 days) paid vacation over the year.
You also have to provide them with $500 for educational expenses - they have to take 6 credits while they’re in the USA.
It’s kind of like online dating in a way. You have to make a profile and the au pairs have profiles that you can look through.
Taking care of animals is high on my list and I send two checks to two different sanctuaries every month. Could you please give us the name of the sanctuary you visited?
@Anne, it was the Lanai Cat Sanctuary. They do incredible work, especially recently helping to rescue cats from the recent Maui wildfires. Here is their web address: https://lanaicatsanctuary.org/
@Colleen, I just got online and sponsored a senior special needs cat named Cody.
Colleen, I really enjoyed your post and photos. I, too, splurge on quality food and like to keep my belongings simple and meaningful. Thanks for giving us a glimpse into your life.
Hi Colleen,
Thanks for letting us peek into your interesting life. You sound so practical and adventuresome. I have comments and, as usual, questions: just ignore the ones that you don't want to answer.
1. What in the world did you do for 10 years that took you all over the world??
2. You were so brave to change locations and careers; what do you do now? I'm guessing you are a professor, but of course I am curious as to what subject.
3. The cat sanctuary is just a hoot! Over 700 cats?? I sure hope they have a solid spay/neuter program. . . and the fleas. . . it doesn't bear thinking about.
4. Your firepit looks so inviting.
5. Your front yard and neighborhood look so inviting.
6. May we have an explanation of the photo with the dinosaur thought?
7. SIXTY FIRST COUSINS!! That blows my mind. All those frugal folks helping you hunt for treasures makes me kind of envious.
8. $130,000 in grad school debt? That also blows my mind. It also causes me to wonder what that degree prepared your husband to do and if it is paying off.
Thanks again for sharing!
@Central Calif. Artist Jana, happy to answer your questions!
1. I worked in politics, at first on campaigns and then consulting. Interestingly, America has much more advanced campaign infrastructure, in large part because of unlimited spending limits, and many countries all over the world will hire American political operatives as consultants. When I started in politics, it was still a fairly polite and value-oriented place. As values left politics, so did I 🙂
2. I now work in governance for the university foundation, so not a professor, but it's amazing to be able to take classes and learn new things all the time.
6. My city has a festival called ComFest, which is the largest volunteer run festival in the country. Every year they feature a new reusable cup with a quote about the planet.
8. He does not currently work in a field related to the degree, nor does he want to, but like many young people, he felt aimless after his undergraduate degree so he just kept going, not thinking about the future financial ramifications. Definitely a lesson he will pass along to our children in the future!
@Colleen, I LOVE ComFest! I've lived in Georgia for nearly 20 years and never have found anything remotely like it. We were visiting friends last week and as we passed the park where it is usually held I thought "I wish we had managed to time the visit to be able to go to ComFest"!
Colleen,
Wishing you good health throughout your pregnancy and beyond! Love the food pics!! Truly helps to make meals at home. Agree on the laundry detergent, maybe the effort of grating bars of soap is not worth it, mixing Borax, etc. I just want my laundry to come out clean. Great deal on education!! Love the zoo but would rather not deal with pets. Second hand acquisitions can really help stretch the budget whether it be clothing, furniture or autos, glad you and your husband are making it work!!
Colleen, very nice to meet you. Thank you for sharing about yourself and your family with us.
Can I ask for more info about the picture of bread that looks like a beehive with a cross at the top? Is it a form of sourdough? Something else? It’s absolutely beautiful and looks so intriguing! I’d love to hear more about it.
Thank you.
Your cat sanctuary honeymoon visit story is hilarious, thank you so much for sharing your story.
I am also freshly inspired by your frugal living.
I think many of us have tried the homemade _____. While I admit I was/am not that interested to try homemade deodorants after reading so many negatives, I'm sticking with my cheap Suave. Though I have had luck with natural (store bought) laundry soap & wool dryer balls (with cute patterns/designs).
Love the fact that your family is so supportive & your getting your family outside doing free/low cost activities. Living in the midwest offers so many things to do. I've always wanted to try paddleboarding, it looks like fun.
Thanks for sharing some of your life with us.
Stay cool this week during the heat wave.
Nice to meet you, Colleen! I love your college, I visited there during wrestling tourneys when my hubby was in college. Congrats on your mba, that is a wonderful perk and kudos for utilizing the benefit! A friend did the same thing, started her family while working at a local university, paid for her mba and her kids got a wonderful education benefit as well.
I too, failed at homemade laundry soap!
The photo of the khachapuri brought back nice memories for me! Did you visit Georgia? I lived there for a year and thought the country was so beautiful (and wonderful food as well!).
Your family sounds like my mom's side re: her first cousins though dad's isn't far behind. I'm more comfortable with 13 (that I know of) combined for me.
Sounds like you're a couple states over from me (I have narrow definition of the midwest). And yes, sad that parochial teachers make squat for money.
I'd not turn down an opportunity to visit cats however.
I love their Metro Parks. When we lived there we took our little ones to the nature center classes. So much fun, plus I met many lifelong friends. I miss it there.
I also agree that their library system is top notch. Baby lap time through adult. They try to meet everyone's needs.
Festivals and fireworks were so plentiful through the summer. I remember multiple time driving through an area and a small carnival had set up. Once we stopped and the local grocery store was having a celebration. The carnival was free. We got a hot dog, chips and a drink for free. The kids got to play a few games and ride a pony...all for free.
Thank you for sharing. It was a nice memory.
Love CSAs!
Getting ground cherries in our CSA a few years ago helped me recognize them growing wild in our landscaping, and instead of pulling them thinking they were weeds, I’ve been cultivating them. 🙂
Once you get them established in the Midwest, they THRIVE, even in our clay-heavy soil. They self-seed year after year, so I have yet to pay for a single plant or pint of ground cherries since discovering them!
(Just don’t eat them green, and watch out for kids/pets eating foliage - anything but the ripe fruits can make you sick, though the dosage does matter - small amounts of green cherries generally won’t harm you.)
I also had the homemade laundry detergent fail! The stains never came out of anything and nothing ever felt truly clean. You can pry Tide free and clear from my cold dead fingers!
Hi Colleen, I love your parents' open-door policy despite having limited financial resources. I hope that such generosity is a character quality that my children and grandchildren will see in me. The photo of the mug makes me laugh. My goodness, daycare is shockingly expensive. Years ago, when my children were in daycare, I remember having to remind myself to think long term - it's not an expense for that many years. I too struggle with the ease of online purchases. I stay off amazon for months and then somehow go crazy - just an hour ago I placed my third order in a week. None of the things I ordered are easy to find in a local store I tell myself, but I didn't even try.
Nice to meet you, Colleen and it's very exciting for you to be having another baby! I have to weigh in on the laundry soap because I love my homemade laundry soap and it works great on stains too. I stick 3 bars of soap in the fridge to make them cold and easier to grate. Then I run them through the fine grater attachment that came with my kitchen Aid Mixer. This takes just minutes. I add 3 c. Borax, 3 c. Washing soda and 1.5 c. Oxiclean. Just stir up, store in leftover containers (like large yogurt tubs or glass quart jars). I use 2 T. per large laundry load. I especially like this for keeping my whites really white.