I recently reached a financial milestone in my journey to be debt free– I paid off one of my credit cards!
As excited as I was and as much as I wanted to celebrate my financial milestone, I wanted to make sure it was a frugal celebration so I wouldn?t be setting myself back in my progress.
Similar to how children?s birthday parties have become huge, over-the-top affairs, the way that people celebrate every milestone in their lives (financial or not) has gone over-board in my opinion.
Coming up with frugal ways to celebrate your financial milestones can be difficult, especially if you haven?t stopped to re-define your version of a celebration. Here are some ideas to help you celebrate your next financial milestone frugally.
Celebrate at Home
For me, it is especially tempting to celebrate my milestones by going out to eat, taking in a movie at the theatre, or treating myself to a pampering pedicure, but these options are not the most frugal. Instead, I?m trying to be better about celebrating my financial milestones at home, where it?s easier for me to control the costs of my celebration.
While I continue to work full-time and run my online freelance business on the side, my time is precious. So even taking an afternoon or evening off to watch a movie at home, enjoy a bubble bath, or spend some time playing with my dogs in the backyard is a rarity, and a good frugal treat.
If none of those options appeal to you, perhaps you can have a fun meal at home with friends and family, or simply spend some time on a hobby you?ve put on the back-burner lately.
One of my blogger friends, Cat, who is a business owner and a mom to 1-year-old twins typically choses to spend her celebration time locked away in the sanctuary of her bedroom, reading, listening to music, or simply enjoying the silence, whenever her hubby takes his turn with their twins.
Take Advantage of Specials
If you really want to celebrate your financial milestone out and about instead of at home, try to take advantage of specials, coupons, or other deals to make your celebration more frugal.
The last time I celebrated a financial milestone, I asked my family to celebrate with me at my favorite Mexican restaurant. To save money on eating out, I didn?t actually eat dinner. Instead, we opted to share an appetizer and ordered margaritas, a rare treat.
Another place you might be able to take advantage of a special to make your celebration more frugal is at the movie theatre. The community I lived in during college offered cheaper movies if the start time was before 6:00 p.m. during the week, and on Tuesdays a tub of popcorn and a soda were $1 each. That made for a pretty cheap (but not healthy) dinner and a movie once in a while as a treat.
No matter if you decide to celebrate your next financial milestone at home or out and about, there are lots of ways to make it frugal so you don?t have any setbacks in your progress. Celebrating your milestones is important, but that doesn?t mean it needs to be over-the-top.
How do you celebrate financial milestones? What are some simple things you like to do to celebrate something? Do you prefer having celebrations along the way of working on something or do you save it for the end?
Photo courtesy of:??Depositphotos.com/Sandralise
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Congrats! It is always such a morality booster when you pay off a bill and get one step closer to becoming debt free. I didn’t celebrate last time, but the next time I can see myself like you going out and getting something yummy to eat.
Petrish, I always try to find some small way to celebrate my successes. That small act makes me want to keep going and working toward my goals.
I am a BIG fan of celebrating at home. My hubby and I used to go out to eat to celebrate all the time and now we challenge ourselves to create some of our favorite restaurant meals from home at a lot less. It not only saves us money, but I get to enjoy a nice night in yoga pants which is always fun for me.
I do love yoga pants. 🙂
My wife and I live pretty frugally so even something as simple as ordering a pizza is a treat for us. We also will make ourselves a favorite meal as a treat too. When you live modestly even simple things can be considered a treat.
Great point Thomas!
I am excited and happy to have reached it but I don’t do anything to celebrate a milestone. I think going forward I will treat myself to something nice like sushi or a glass of wine.
That’s a great idea Sylvia! Everyone needs a little treat now and then for making great progress. 🙂
Congrats! Cheers! I agree that there are many frugal ways to celebrate. It doesn’t have to be expensive. Have fun!
Thanks Jayson!
Congrats on your progress, Kayla! Sometimes a celebration can be something ordinary with a little twist. My wife and I have celebration dinners where we make something special for dinner at home (cheaper than eating out but maybe with some higher-priced ingredients that we don’t normally purchase), use the good china and perhaps add a bottle of sangria. Then maybe we’ll settle in to watch a recent movie borrowed from our local library.
That sounds like a great way to celebrate Gary!