BUDGET

Every year, millions of Americans make resolutions to get back into shape.  The formula is usually the same: Improve diet and increase exercise to achieve better health.  Sounds easy enough, right?  If only it were as easy to do as it is to type.

Why is it so difficult to follow these simple steps?  The answer is simple, too: Choices.  Other things take priority over exercise and diet, so we choose to put fitness aside.  The more we ignore it, the harder it is to meet our goals and we’re back to making the same new year resolutions all over again.  It’s a vicious cycle.

By Jennifer Calonia

As Halloween rises from the crypt for another season, so does our zeal for nightmarish festivities. In a 2011 Halloween Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey conducted by the National Retail Federation (NRF,) 68.6 percent of Americans plan on celebrating Halloween this year.

However, with household budgets tightening up due to economic and employment pressures, saving money with creative corner-cutting can turn your Halloween finance horrors into a night of frugal fun.

Raising a child has become significantly more strenuous on a parent’s budget over the past decade, according to a new report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The government agency found that expenses for a child from birth to 18 years old–not including college–jumped 40 percent from 10 years ago.

Raising a Child Costs an Extra $60k

If you’re part of the rising trend of Americans who paid down debt and swore off credit cards in 2010, you probably have a smaller cash budget set for back to school shopping this year. However, that doesn’t mean that moms and dads are exactly prepared to splurge this school year.

“Americans feel better about their credit situation this year but worse about their cash budget for back-to-school shopping,” says Britt Beemer of findings in his annual Consumer Track Back-To-School Shopping Survey.

Every parent–well, most parents–want what’s best for their child, so they don’t mind forking over some cash when their kids are busy with career planning, goal setting and simply growing into adulthood. Yet at what point should a parent cut the financial cord? Some parents feel that 18 is the right age to do so, while others fund their kids into their 30s, hoping their life’s most precious investment finally pays off.

It’s difficult to determine the appropriate cut-off age across the board because every family has a different situation. Depending on what your budgeting and personal finance strategies are, maybe you can afford to support your children well into adulthood. Or, if you’re like most other people, you’re having a hard enough time worrying about your own bills.

There are few places more money-sucking than the airport. I mean, you’re pretty much held hostage once you pass though the security gates unless you relish standing in another long line and getting intimate with the friendly TSA agent yet again. If you don’t plan ahead, you can easily drop $100 at the various restaurants, gift shops and magazine kiosks. Here are just a few tips on how to minimize pre-plane costs so traveling this summer is more budget-friendly:

1. Bring an empty bottle. I just can’t abide by dropping $4 or $5 on a bottle of water. Most of it is repackaged from the tap anyway. But being thirsty isn’t a joy either. What to do? Just bring a canteen or thermos and fill it up at the drinking fountain.

There’s no better way to show Dad you care than by buying him stuff, and this June 19th it’s expected you do just that. Luckily, there are a few really good deals happening this weekend to make the special day a little easier on your budget, but even if you aren’t celebrating Father’s Day 2011, you can still take advantage of the following offers for yourself.

Free T-Mobile Data Plan for One Year

Being in a relationship can be tough enough without adding extra stressors to the equation. It happens all the time, though, especially when it comes to money. It’s no secret that financial stress is one of the leading causes of divorce. So when your significant other is financially irresponsible, it’s sometimes hard to make the relationship work.

If you find yourself in a position where your partner is maxing out the credit cards, going on wild shopping sprees and eating in restaurants every few days and it seems you’re the only one trying to keep money in the household, before packing your things and walking away, consider some tips for getting things back in order.

Like most people, you probably sit down and at least attempt to draw up a budget each month. As you do, excitement might build while you list your expenditures and plug in the numbers. With those figures, it sure looks like you can finally pay down that debt and begin setting cash aside.

But even carefully constructed plans often fail, because somehow more goes out than you think or want. You’d like to plug the leaks–if only you can locate them. Want a hint? Here are the top six expenses that could have derailed that master plan:

Turbulence across the globe is as prevalent as ever, which means the economy remains in a rocky state. Some areas of finance have been impacted positively, like climbing gold prices, while things like overly-cautious baby boomers stinting our economic recovery are not such great news. It’s enough to drive even the most savvy investor to drink, but he may want to think twice about grabbing a bottle of wine from Wal-Mart.

Gold Reaches Record High Thursday