Girls Just Wanna Have Funds Women's Personal Finance Blog

photo credit: foundphotoslj At this moment, I sit here listening to The Honorable Elijah Cummings give a speech at the Maryland Delegation Breakfast.  To say that his speech gives me anything short of chills is an understatement.  I remember asking my husband earlier this week, “who is he?“  I’m familiar with the name but really this week I get to put together faces with the names Ive heard within MD politics. After giving me an incredulous look, he explained who this man is, what he’s done and I understand more now through this speech why he is so honored and ... Read More »

This week will be a bit different and I hope you’ll bear with me.  I wanted to have posts lined up from my fellow personal finance bloggers but decided to go with the moment instead. Right now I’m packing for an early morning flight as we’re headed out for the Democratic National Convention held in Denver, CO.  Going to the DNC this year is HUGE for me as it is both historic and meaningful for various reasons.  I will be here with my husband and some other friends from a local listserv.  We are lined up for quite a few ... Read More »

Add this to the list of decisions that women are now criticized for with regards to their life decisions. If it isn’t the Mommy Wars between the stay at home and working moms, then before that it was the women who chose to get an education and work for a living instead of choosing to settle down and get married with children. Today we have Stay At Home Wives. Ahhh, let the games begin. I’ve read much about this “phenomenon” this week and still scratching my head, asking, “what’s the big deal?” Granted, I have not held a REAL full ... Read More »

Wisebread published an article this week which detailed in part the expenses incurred when taking on a second car: According to the American Public Transportation Association, replacing one car with a combination of walking and public transportation saves a household $8059 per year in reduced spending on fuel, maintenance, insurance, registration, depreciation, finance charges, etc. (Even after adding back in the cost of public transit.) I started to pat myself on the back for insisting we stick with having one car because we’re so used to coordinating our trips that we do it without really thinking about it. We also ... Read More »

Click the image to enlarge Let’s face it, school starts in a few days, the summer is coming to a close and you need to get back into a routine for the fall and winter months. Why not make it easier by getting started on your menu planning now? Here are some tips to get you started with some recipes from a previous post on saving money by utilizing your kitchen pantry staples. Start with the current year spreadsheet, just make sure that it has tabs for each month for easy navigation. Decide how often you want to cook dinner ... Read More »

photo credit: Harshadewa Choosing the right long term partner takes time, patience and a sincere interest in making sure you’ve chosen the right person.  After all you’ll be sharing your lives together quite possibly for the rest of your life.  So it makes sense that your choice in life partners can impact your finances.  But fear not, chances are, if you’re reading this blog, at least one of you has a sincere interest in improving your finances. Saving and Investing Consider your potential partner’s approach to saving money and investing for the long haul.  Do they pay themselves first or ... Read More »

Where else can you find an open bar, free goodies, good food and company?  At the Brazen Careerist DC Blogger meetup!  I was invited along with the other DC BC Bloggers for our first meetup where we shared good company and some good ole blogger networking.  This wasn’t my first time to a blogger event but this was probably the best one to date. Some of you are probably wondering what is Brazen Careerist?  It’s the career HQ for all things related to generation X/Y.  I first came across the site after this post by Ryan Healy and it validated ... Read More »

This month’s group writing project is about Rich People Gone Broke! Being that Girls Just Wanna Have Funds is themed by the obvious, Cyndi Lauper’s Girls Just Wanna Have FUN hit of the 80s, I thought her profile appropriate for this project. This 80s icon had it all: money, fame and a hit song which topped the charts, but Cyndi Lauper was actually forced into bankruptcy early in her career.  Her early years included a stint with a band called Blue Angels with bandmate John Turi.  The band released an album which soon flopped but to make matters worse, their ... Read More »

[ Aside: Feel free to skip this post as it isn't personal finance related so much as it is my ranting about the price differences between Dominican hair care in NY and DC] If  you’re a woman with textured hair then you know that Dominican Salons are the best thing when it comes to healthy, straight and shiny hair while on a budget.  This picture says it all: Need I say more? While in NYC this weekend I realized how much I miss this aspect of the city.  Being able to walk up the street and get a wash and ... Read More »

The Whole Foods gods must have been listening this week as we adjusted our food budget to only include organic foods.  This means only shopping at Whole Foods and after reading this article, it cinched the decision as the following statement blew us away because my husband and I really try to live a healthy lifestyle: The FDA estimates that 20 pounds of pesticides are used per person per year in the U.S., and at least 50 of these are classified as carcinogenic. This was a decision that took some thought given the rising grocery costs but we want to ... Read More »

Our parents had children in their teens and early twenties, now women are having children in their early thirties to late forties.  Some might ask what are the pros and cons of such a decision.  Why are women choosing to have children later on in life?  Isn’t this considered selfish?  Is it better off for the child to have an older parent vs. someone younger and perhaps closer in age? My reponse?  Do whatever works for you.  If you like it, I love it.  I’d love to hear your perspectives on this issue so read on. As women we often ... Read More »

I’ve blogged about Mint.com before and while I really do like their interface, I’ve found a new love, Yodlee. Yes, I said it and I am prepared to shout it into the blogosphere!  Not only do they log in seamlessly to each and every financial account I have, but they also have a great iPhone interface which lets me refresh from my iPhone on the go.  This has been a pet peeve of mine because I have been searching hi and low for a feature rich webware that will allow me to perform certain actions like bill pay, checking the ... Read More »

Short but sweet.  Here are 4 reasons why women should be paying attention in the area of personal finance when it comes to their financial health. Retirement Are you hoping that social security will be there for you when you finally retire?  I hoe so too but with the current uncertainties, it is best to put your finances in order to make sure you won’t be living off cat food when you’re 65. Life won’t end at 65 (hopefully) and you don’t want to be limited by your lack of planning now.  Talk with a financial advisor, get a plan, ... Read More »

This was an unusually busy weekend, but I don’t think we could have asked for a better one. Friday night, the Girls Just Wanna Have Funds Meetup had their first happy hour in DC at Zengos.  Unfortunately, it will our last trip there as the customer service was horrible and many members have vowed never to go back.  Still, we had a great time, I almost want to say we didn’t want to leave.  I like being able to connect with new people in DC who share the same goals and ideals.  We laughed through the nonsense going on with ... Read More »