Arielle

New Year, Same Ol’ G

Reflecting on 2022 January through June My financial journey over the past two years has been a whirlwind. I’ve learned so much about money that when speaking to potential financial advisors, their only advice was that I knew enough to manage it all myself. 2020 was a year of becoming aware of just how muchContinue reading “New Year, Same Ol’ G”

Make Your Child a Millionaire with One Simple Tool

I had a conversation recently with a friend. It was so great I thought I had to share with the blogosphere. This post is about how you can open a Roth individual retirement account (IRA) for your child to launch them into the wealthy stratosphere. These accounts are referred to as custodial or minor RothContinue reading “Make Your Child a Millionaire with One Simple Tool”

Kwanzaa Was Lit…Kinda

Reflections From My First Kwanzaa Last week marked the conclusion of my family’s first time celebrating Kwanzaa. I’ve wanted to celebrate it for years, but my husband and I’s lack of familiarity with the holiday left me feeling intimidated and trepidatious. During the Christmas season of 2020, something felt off. It was our first ChristmasContinue reading “Kwanzaa Was Lit…Kinda”

Hey You! Adjust Your Retirement Contributions!

Adjust your 401k/457/403b Contributions in Time for the New Year The limit for employee contributions to 401k/403b/457 accounts has increased! In 2019 and 2020, the max an employee could contribute to the aforementioned tax-advantaged accounts was $19,500. For 2022, this amount will increase to $20,500! This amount does not include employer matching, so your employerContinue reading “Hey You! Adjust Your Retirement Contributions!”

We Travel Hacked our Way to a FREE Trip to Costa Rica (Flights + Luxury Resort)

We paid $195.90 for a $6,343.00 trip! My husband and I just booked a trip to Costa Rica for a week during spring break next year. For our resort, he paid $0. The same accommodations would cost us $1,603 out of pocket. How’d we accomplish such a feat? POINTS! He used some of the pointsContinue reading “We Travel Hacked our Way to a FREE Trip to Costa Rica (Flights + Luxury Resort)”

Lil’ Victory: Turning a Liability into an Asset with Turo

Gathering Dust, Gathering Rust We are a two car household. Since the COVID shutdown in March of 2020, my husband has been working remotely from home. Each weekday morning, I leave for the day in one car while the other sits in our driveway. This has been the case for over a year. Meanwhile, we’veContinue reading “Lil’ Victory: Turning a Liability into an Asset with Turo”

I Got A Promotion and I Feel… Sad

Mo’ Money Mo’ Problems The financial independence mindset has changed the way I see so many situations. Before this year, my goal was always to earn more money and move up on the organization chart. I wanted my job title to signify importance, I was all about climbing the ladder just to feel better aboutContinue reading “I Got A Promotion and I Feel… Sad”

I Made Money Upgrading My Car

“I’ve been gone for a minute now I’m back with the jumpoff” – Lil Kim We’ve have had so many little wins over the past few weeks, so before I get into the story of how I traded in my car for a better car and made a profit, here are some lil’ victories: IContinue reading “I Made Money Upgrading My Car”

Newbie Real Estate Investing Lesson #1: Shop Around for an Agent

I haven’t been blogging lately because I’ve been using all of my spare time learning about real estate. I’ve dipped into the waters before but I’ve always backed out after a couple weeks, jumping to the next shiny new thing. This time is different. The past two months have been dedicated to spending time exploringContinue reading “Newbie Real Estate Investing Lesson #1: Shop Around for an Agent”

No Matter Where You Go, There You Are

Every year, this saying pops into my head at least once or twice. Today, I was reminded of the sentiment as I drove into work. I was doing a thought experiment, thinking of how my life would really change if I quit my job today and worked for myself full-time. I would finally be livingContinue reading “No Matter Where You Go, There You Are”