Blog Tour & Review: The Money Saving Mom's Budget by Crystal Paine

Title: The Money Saving Mom's Budget (audiobook)
Author: Crystal Paine
Publisher: Oasis Audio (February 2012)

Source: Received from publisher via LitFuse Publicity Group

Buy audiobook: here

About the Book:
Crystal Paine, who has helped busy women everywhere take control of their finances, presents her most effective strategies designed for families of all sizes and income levels

With hundreds of inspiring “why didn’t I think of that?” TIPS, plus WORKSHEETS, Paine breaks down your goals into easy, manageable steps so you can:

• Achieve a complete financial makeover

• Set up a realistic budget

• Never pay retail

• Slash your grocery bill

• Organize your time & your home

• Use coupons wisely

• Pay with cash only

• Live simply

• Become debt free

• Choose contentment

• Make every dollar count

Review:
It is hard to admit, but several years ago, I found myself buried underneath consumer debt without any real plans on how to get out. I was very much into retail therapy, especially when my boyfriend at the time (who is now my amazing husband) was away for two years in the Peace Corps. It was my way of coping with loneliness. Unfortunately, it led to a lot of bad habits with the ways I spent money. It wasn't until we were engaged and talking about merging our money together that I had to come face-to-face with the consequences of my poor financial habits.

I think there are many young adults that start their adult lives without much teaching on financial planning. I did not stick to a budget until my husband and I came up with one. My parents were sporadic with giving my siblings and I allowances between money was tight, so I never really had a cash flow until I was in college and taking out loan after loan to pay for school. I was lured into the temptation of credit cards and never really found my out until my husband and I made a debt snowball repayment plan. I wish someone along the way had taught me how to manage my money wisely and how to be a faithful steward with what God has given me. I wish that I had spent my twenties saving more instead of spending every penny (and more) of what little I earned. I wish I had read/listened to something like "The Money Saving Mom's Budget" many years ago!

Luckily, my husband and I have taken a financial course at our church called The Rock Financial Life (actually a few times now) and I am happy to report that the basic principles of "give, save, live on the rest" are very much embedded and central to way we run our family financially. We have successfully paid off all our of consumer debt, are chipping away at our student loans and saving to buy a home. We praise God that we are trying out best to be good stewards from the very beginning of our marriage and that we are starting our financial life together as man and wife on the right foot.

"The Money Saving Mom's Budget" was a great reminder on all the principles that we've learned before. I would recommend it to anyone that is looking to be more financial saavy. Paine was easy to listen to and gave lots of different ideas for ways women could better manage their money. The worksheets would be helpful starting points for newbies. I especially liked the chapter on coupons because that is a new area that I have been wanting to get more into.

What I didn't like about the audiobook was that it felt like topics jumped around a lot. I have only listened to less than a dozen audiobooks in recent years and I think I would have liked this audiobook better as a printed book because I wanted to make sense of the various tips that she was giving out. I found myself wanting to take notes to remember all the little tips. This might just be because I am not a very good auditory learner. I also wish there were more Biblical references because the Bible says SO much about money. It would nice to tie some of the principles into

Overall, I hope that all women, especially moms, will take the time and effort to become more financially literate. Paine's audiobook is a great way to be a better steward of all that God has blessed you with.

Rating:

4 stars

About the Author:

Crystal Paine is a wife and homeschooling mom to three young children who has been writing on topics related to frugality for the last five years—and living a frugal, simple, and debt-free life since she was born. Her blog, MoneySavingMom.com, is one of the top personal finance blogs on the web averaging over four million pageviews per month. Crystal has contributed to articles in Woman's Day magazine and All You magazine, as well as being mentioned on National Public Radio and CNN.com, in USA Weekend, and Real Simple magazine and numerous other local newspapers and radio and television stations. www.moneysavingmom.com.

"What I love about the audio edition of The Money Saving Mom'®s Budget is that I can listen to it on the go - on my run, in the car, or while I'm folding laundry. AND ... I love that it comes with the downloadable workshets. I am able to work through those while listeing to Crystal speak. So helpful. Perfect for my busy schedule." --Anne, blogger (and reformed budget breaker!)

Check out her videos here.



Celebrate with Crystal by entering her iPad2 Giveaway (a GREAT tool to keep track of your budget!) and RSVPing to the Live Webcast Event on 4/5!



One savvy winner will receive:

• A Brand new iPad2
• The Money Saving Mom's Budget by Cyrstal Paine, audio edition

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends 4/4/12. Winner will be announced at The Money Saving Mom's Live Webcast Event on 4/5. Crystal will be hosting an evening of chat, laughter and encouragement - bring your friends! She'll share tips and advicde and her husband will be joining her to share how the prinicples Crystal outlines in her book have dramatically impacted their family life. She'll also be giving away some GREAT prizes: gift certificates, books, and much more!

So grab your copy of The Money Saving Mom®'s Budget and join Crystal and friends on the evening of April 5th for an evening of fun of learning, sharing and encouragement.

Don't miss a moment of the fun. RSVP TODAY and tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 5th!

Want more info about the MSM?
Click here!

Please check out the other stops on the blog tour! Special thanks to Litfuse for inviting me to be a part of this blog tour.