Here comes Nemo! If the nor-easter is heading your way, or you are stuck indoors due to snow or bad weather, you might want to take advantage of being stuck at home to catch up on your money-saving efforts. Turn an inconvenient situation into an asset!
Here is my part of Pennsylvania, we will be affected by Nemo, although we should be getting off lightly. The Snowpocalypse, as they are calling it, seems like it will be skirting right around us, leaving us with only 2-4 inches of snow, and winds up to 30 miles per hours, which in this neck of the woods is no big deal. Still, it does mean that we will probably be indoors for most if not all of the weekend. I’m going to be using some of that indoor time in the following ways to make progress toward my goals of building up our emergency fund.
De-cluttering and Organizing
While you are inside with the snow, take some time to go through items that you no longer need and set them aside for donation (tax credit) or resale (extra cash). I’ve found that limiting the de-cluttering to one specific area or item type at a time (kitchen appliances, one bookcase, the top of the closet), really encourages a lot of progress.
Freezer Cooking
Baking up muffins, putting together extra trays of lasagna, making a big batch of mashed potatoes and meat loaf, or whatever freezer cooking I can do serves two purposes when we are snowed in. The oven warms up the house, and I have a bunch of inexpensive meals that can be used later in the month. I give myself bonus points if I use up older items in the pantry.
Mending
Gather up anything that needs some mending. Anyone can sew on a button or do a basic repair to a tear in a sheet. Mending items extends their life and cuts down on the replacement cost, if you can make do.