Pennywise Family is getting a makeover. (A BIG ONE!).

Pennywise Family is about to fully appear at www.thepennywisefamily.com. A real-live domain name. A real theme. All of it. Search options, everything. I’ll make a note here when the transition is complete, but for now things are fairly up-and-running over there–take a look around and let me know what you think.

I think the new site will be fully-functional at the beginning of September! If you have ideas that should be included, just let me know.

Also, once the “30 days of frugal August” is all put up, I’m going to be working on a post series of $1.00 dinners. (You heard it boys and girls, one buck!). Please send any ideas/recommendations on this way. I’ll consider them as I plan the menu. (I may employ my kids as food critics to make sure the food is decent–cheap isn’t always good!).

I look forward to hearing back from you about what we shoudl do more/less of to make Pennywise Family better!

Jessica (Pennywise Mom)

I have a good relationship with a little children’s consignment shop down the street—a great source for kids’ clothes/toys.

My all-time favorite sources are Craigs’ List and Freecycle (freecycle is an online group—find one in your local area—which allows people to post items available or items wanted/needed).

I keep a running list of items wanted/needed and then I just watch for things to come up. Here’s an example of what’s on my list right now.

Girl’s play shoes, women’s size 7
Girl’s t-shirts size 4T and 5T
Rubber rain boots (both kids)
Canning equipment
Dutch oven or similar large heavy, lidded-pan
Bread pans
Legal paper (I often see this come up via Craigs’ List and Freecycle)
Quilting Fabric
Piano music

This post is part of a series I’ve entitled “Frugal August” and is inspired by (though not copied from) the book The Complete Tightwad Gazetteby Amy Dacyczyn. My tips are meant to build on hers, but generally are not duplications.

Take a moment. Think about the past nine months and how the economic downturn has changed your life. What have you had to give up? What were the changes, the goodbyes and the endings?

A year ago Holly and Craig Hunter were loving life. They both had jobs, a roof over their heads, and two beautiful daughters, Casey (2 years) and Rowan (4 years). Life was good. When the economy started to go sour in the fall, Craig lost his job at Jiffy Lube. As with thousands of others in his same situation, finding employment elsewhere became difficult. Holly was able to keep the family above water as she had been employed with Washington Mutual for 4 years. Although the banking system was shaky, she still had an income. When Washington Mutual was taken over by Chase, financially things began to slide further for Holly and Craig. More hours worked…less income.

The economic pressures took a toll both emotionally and financially on the family. Holly knew a change needed to happen. With the limited time and finances they had Holly went back to school and began the training to become and Emergency Medical Technician. One July 9th she passed the National Registry Exam and became a certified EMT.

Holly and Craig had a plan, and although financially strapped they were beginning to move forward and pick themselves back up. It would take months, maybe even years to build up their nest egg but they were on the right track. Until the bottom of their world fell out.

Their youngest daughter, Casey, was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome in June. Nephrotic Syndrome is a condition that effects kidney function. They spent many hours this winter and spring in and out of doctors’ offices. Toward the end of July, Casey was admitted to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital with a kidney infection. Under special medical care and observation, Casey fought the infection and was cleared to go home. While getting Casey bathed and dressed to go home the family’s real nightmare began. Casey ‘coded’…her body went limp. A team of doctors and nurses descended on two-year-old Casey, but it was too late. Casey died. Cured of her kidney infection, and excited to go home to play with her big sister Rowan, Casey was dead. A pulmonary embolism, a blood clot in the lung, killed her. The condition is not even related to Nephrotic Syndrome.

Holly and Craig have had to make some hard choices this past week. Never could they imagine that with this economy and their lack of funds they would have to ‘bargain’ shop for a cemetery plot for their precious little angel. Never could Holly and Craig have imagined they would have to make a ‘financially responsible’ option between the cheaper cremation over a traditional burial with casket, although Holly’s heart has chosen the option for her. Holly could not choose cremation, she could not fathom that for her baby girl. Never could Holly and Craig imagine they would have to ask the question, “What can we afford?” when it came to the funeral plans of their youngest child. To make matters worse, when Chase Bank was approached to set up a special account for Casey’s family to offset the cost of funeral expenses, the family was denied on grounds of a “confilict of interest.”

A year ago Holly and Craig would never have imagined the nightmare they are facing today. The loss of an income or the downsizing of a position seems small in comparison to the nightmare of how to afford a proper good-bye for their sweet happy little girl.

CASEY CHRISTEEN HUNTER
8/24/2006 ~ 7/30/2009

Casey Christeen Hunter passed away Thursday, July 30, 2009 at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland, OR. She was born on August 24, 2006 in Vancouver, WA.

Even though she was only on this earth for a short time, she touched many people. She had a special way about her that made people smile. Casey enjoyed spending time with her family and friends, and trying to keep up with her big sister, Rowan. Casey was always such a happy little girl. She enjoyed being outdoors, and also really loved dogs especially her stuffed dog “Pepper.” Everyone who knew her appreciated how she was so “Casey.” She was very polite and continued to be her adorable, loving self, even during her recent hospital visits. Although diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome in June, Casey’s death was sudden and unexpected. She will be missed forever by all who knew and loved her.

She is survived at home by her parents, Holly (Gillespie) Hunter and Craig Hunter II; and her older sister, Rowan Hunter. Casey is also survived by her grandparents, Joy and Vern Earhart; grandfather, Craig Hunter; aunt, Kendall Freeman; aunt, Cristi (Rick) Dahlstrom; and cousins, Jordan, Jocelyn, Austin, Zach, and Brandon. She is also survived by her Papa and Nana, Al and Sundii Gillespie; uncle, Geoff Gillespie; uncle, Ryan J. Gillespie; as well as cousins, Elliott, Celia, Samantha, and Allie. Casey also is survived by her great-grandmother, Wilma Gillespie; as well as numerous other well loved family members and friends.

If you would like to provide additional support to the Hunter Family in their time of need, Casey’s parents have established an educational needs account for Casey’s sister, Rowan, at www.caseyhunter.com.

Take a moment. Think about the past nine months and how the economic downturn has changed your life. What have you had to give up? What have you had to say good-bye too?

This post was a guest post from writer and mommy-friend Julie Barclay. This darling little girl is almost the same age as my youngest daughter, and I was eager to allow Julie to spread the word–not just for the Hunter family, but also for a reminder to all readers to treasure what we hold dearest. I don’t doubt that the Hunter family would do anything to have even a few hours with Casey back–in your struggles with employment, money, debt or stress, please take a moment to put yourself in the Hunter’s shoes and ask if you’re prioritizing your stressors appropriately. If you are spending your time and energy within your values structure. Ultimately, you may also need to be asking if you are prepared. I’ll be posting soon as a semi-follow-up about economical and respectful funerals–as I’ve recently experienced a loss in my family, I’ve noticed a few stories and ideas in the news that might be of value to others.

Take a moment. Think about the past nine months and how the economic downturn has changed your life. What have you had to give up? What were the changes, the goodbyes and the endings?

A year ago Holly and Craig Hunter were loving life. They both had jobs, a roof over their heads, and two beautiful daughters, Casey (2 years) and Rowan (4 years). Life was good. When the economy started to go sour in the fall, Craig lost his job at Jiffy Lube. As with thousands of others in his same situation, finding employment elsewhere became difficult. Holly was able to keep the family above water as she had been employed with Washington Mutual for 4 years. Although the banking system was shaky, she still had an income. When Washington Mutual was taken over by Chase, financially things began to slide further for Holly and Craig. More hours worked…less income.

The economic pressures took a toll both emotionally and financially on the family. Holly knew a change needed to happen. With the limited time and finances they had Holly went back to school and began the training to become and Emergency Medical Technician. One July 9th she passed the National Registry Exam and became a certified EMT.

Holly and Craig had a plan, and although financially strapped they were beginning to move forward and pick themselves back up. It would take months, maybe even years to build up their nest egg but they were on the right track. Until the bottom of their world fell out.

Their youngest daughter, Casey, was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome in June. Nephrotic Syndrome is a condition that effects kidney function. They spent many hours this winter and spring in and out of doctors’ offices. Toward the end of July, Casey was admitted to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital with a kidney infection. Under special medical care and observation, Casey fought the infection and was cleared to go home. While getting Casey bathed and dressed to go home the family’s real nightmare began. Casey ‘coded’…her body went limp. A team of doctors and nurses descended on two-year-old Casey, but it was too late. Casey died. Cured of her kidney infection, and excited to go home to play with her big sister Rowan, Casey was dead. A pulmonary embolism, a blood clot in the lung, killed her. The condition is not even related to Nephrotic Syndrome.

Holly and Craig have had to make some hard choices this past week. Never could they imagine that with this economy and their lack of funds they would have to ‘bargain’ shop for a cemetery plot for their precious little angel. Never could Holly and Craig have imagined they would have to make a ‘financially responsible’ option between the cheaper cremation over a traditional burial with casket, although Holly’s heart has chosen the option for her. Holly could not choose cremation, she could not fathom that for her baby girl. Never could Holly and Craig imagine they would have to ask the question, “What can we afford?” when it came to the funeral plans of their youngest child. To make matters worse, when Chase Bank was approached to set up a special account for Casey’s family to offset the cost of funeral expenses, the family was denied on grounds of a “confilict of interest.”

A year ago Holly and Craig would never have imagined the nightmare they are facing today. The loss of an income or the downsizing of a position seems small in comparison to the nightmare of how to afford a proper good-bye for their sweet happy little girl.

CASEY CHRISTEEN HUNTER
8/24/2006 ~ 7/30/2009

Casey Christeen Hunter passed away Thursday, July 30, 2009 at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland, OR. She was born on August 24, 2006 in Vancouver, WA.

Even though she was only on this earth for a short time, she touched many people. She had a special way about her that made people smile. Casey enjoyed spending time with her family and friends, and trying to keep up with her big sister, Rowan. Casey was always such a happy little girl. She enjoyed being outdoors, and also really loved dogs especially her stuffed dog “Pepper.” Everyone who knew her appreciated how she was so “Casey.” She was very polite and continued to be her adorable, loving self, even during her recent hospital visits. Although diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome in June, Casey’s death was sudden and unexpected. She will be missed forever by all who knew and loved her.

She is survived at home by her parents, Holly (Gillespie) Hunter and Craig Hunter II; and her older sister, Rowan Hunter. Casey is also survived by her grandparents, Joy and Vern Earhart; grandfather, Craig Hunter; aunt, Kendall Freeman; aunt, Cristi (Rick) Dahlstrom; and cousins, Jordan, Jocelyn, Austin, Zach, and Brandon. She is also survived by her Papa and Nana, Al and Sundii Gillespie; uncle, Geoff Gillespie; uncle, Ryan J. Gillespie; as well as cousins, Elliott, Celia, Samantha, and Allie. Casey also is survived by her great-grandmother, Wilma Gillespie; as well as numerous other well loved family members and friends.

If you would like to provide additional support to the Hunter Family in their time of need, Casey’s parents have established an educational needs account for Casey’s sister, Rowan, at www.caseyhunter.com.

Take a moment. Think about the past nine months and how the economic downturn has changed your life. What have you had to give up? What have you had to say good-bye too?

This post was a guest post from writer and mommy-friend Julie Barclay. This darling little girl is almost the same age as my youngest daughter, and I was eager to allow Julie to spread the word–not just for the Hunter family, but also for a reminder to all readers to treasure what we hold dearest. I don’t doubt that the Hunter family would do anything to have even a few hours with Casey back–in your struggles with employment, money, debt or stress, please take a moment to put yourself in the Hunter’s shoes and ask if you’re prioritizing your stressors appropriately. If you are spending your time and energy within your values structure. Ultimately, you may also need to be asking if you are prepared. I’ll be posting soon as a semi-follow-up about economical and respectful funerals–as I’ve recently experienced a loss in my family, I’ve noticed a few stories and ideas in the news that might be of value to others.

I wish I could recall how I learned about this movie, but I heard it was a must-see indie film. Since my interest is in finance, and my family is following the “Total Money Makeover” plan to get out of debt and live life without it, I decided to take a look.

This independent documentary about the credit business knocked my socks off. It was amazing. I found it through the library, but it’s also available for purchase or via Netflix or Amazon video on Demand.

The film hit home in many ways–about how credit cards prey on people (in ways I’d never imagined) and about how people fall victim to various credit ploys. I’m not quite in the “all credit is evil” camp, because I choose to live without it, but certainly this painted some shocking pictures–including of one credit card company that was shredding checks upon receipt and then billing customers interest and late fees because their checks were lost in the mail.

It told the story of a woman who committed suicide after leading a double-life with a spending-addiction and of college students so maxed out on credit cards that they choose to end their lives over a $12,000 credit card balance.

After watching this film, I tracked down my high school civics teacher on Facebook and requested that he show this film to all of his students every year-I hope that he’ll consider if he hasn’t already. The stories of these college students, as told by their parents was heart-wrenching.

There’s a number of great guests on the documentary–from specialists in credit and bankruptcy statistics to Dave Ramsey himself, Jimmy Carter, and that guy from Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. Debt collectors and agents are also interviewed. All together it was a well-rounded and informative view of the industry. “Maxed Out” was passionate and informative and energetic and earns four stars from me.

If I were to offer any criticism at all, it would be my most common criticism of indie films–that the volume is inconsistent throughout the film, leaving me holding on to the remote for dear life to keep it somewhere between too loud and too quiet.

Motley Fool provides excellent communities and message boards, and some affordable financial literacy classes (at least they have, I’m not sure if they’re still available).

I learned about Mint.com from Motley Fool.

They also have excellent tax-planning resources!

The site is free with a free membership but there’s a premium membership as well. I’ve never explored this, as I’ve found everything I’ve needed in their free pages.

My only word of caution is “beware the ads.” Their advertising borders on oppressive. It also frequently has a doomsday or get-rich-quick tone that I tire of. There is email “why the oil boom is coming SOON” and the site is covered with ads. Sometimes it can be hard to tell the content from the ads.

They also have so many Fool-branded affiliate relationships that I can’t always tell what all they’re endorsing, or what is going to get me to sign up for some fund or stock newsletter. I find myself only reading the first 1/2 of all their pages and never the sidebars because of the advertisements.

That said, the message boards are excellent resources, as are their tip articles like “60 seconds to get out of debt.”

If you’re new to personal finance or trying to learn something new–check them out, but beware the ads–here there by dragons.