Canadian Budget Binder

By: Canadian Budget Binder

Have you ever noticed once the winter sets in most people are comfy sitting inside with the family watching movies around the fire,eating popcorn or playing games. Well that gets old, although it’s a fairly cheap night in with the gang. Then suddenly our lawns turn from white to blah and from gremlins to warriors we battle our way to sun, sand,music,parties and the smell of barbeques! (beer in hand I might add)

Yes, it’s that time of year in Canada where we start to hear the lawn mowers running,the birds chirping and your neighbours spring cleaning their homes.

Then we have the  kids who are anticipating or better yet counting down the last days before summer vacation. We’ve hung up our snow gear to dust off the next seasons attire because it’s time to get out and get moving again.

Yes money can get you top-notch entertainment but not everything that is fun and educational costs money . Keep in mind not everyone has money to save for family getaways or short jaunts around the city. It also doesn’t make sense to pile debt on top of debt if you can’t afford it in the first place. The pleasure will be short-lived once the bill arrives… sort of like after Christmas if you didn’t budget the money you spent on gifts.

You can form a neighbourhood sports team and play sports once a week, go for long walks down the Nature trails or have a party in your back yard. We like to go check out Open Houses/ Homes for Sale in our city to see what others are doing to their homes and get ideas for our own home. This is free and fun because it’s something we like to do as a couple. Home Decor and landscaping are topics we both like to explore for free.

Geocaching is also an exciting fun outdoor event that has been getting lots of buzz around the world.

Geocaching is outdoor treasure hunting using a Smart Phone or your GPS device and planned coördinates.With Geocaching you attempt to find the treasure and it’s yours. You can even plant a geocache if you want and have people search for it. Yes you are out-of-pocket the cost of the device but it’s free sailing after you pay for it with that cash you saved!  It’s fun for the entire family and it’s free. There are currently 1,743,784 active geocaches around the world and 5 million geocachers.

Not convinced yet? Well start the budget if you like the excitement and sounds of the most familiar family tourist destinations  in Ontario. If you are a family who loves to go to Niagara Falls ,Marine Land or Canada’s Wonderland you know you better save your nickles. These types of trips are great when you plan them ahead of time and save money in the budget. This helps to offset the costs so you don’t have to dip into your Emergency Savings or see your credit line grow exponentially.

We don’t have any of our own children (yet) so in the summer we have exchange students at which time we need to be creative when it comes to outdoor fun.  Although the students already attend the big attractions in our area as listed above we still like to show them the surrounding area. One place we like to frequent is Webster’s Falls in Hamilton, Ontario.

We hike through the park and visit the falls and take loads of pictures and all costing us around $5.00 to park the vehicle plus gas. We make sure we bring plenty of beverages and snacks for us along the way and a lunch if it will be a picnic in the afternoon. You certainly don’t want to get caught having to pay tourist prices on food and drink so bring extras just in case. In any case eating in vs eating out even if it is a picnic still saves you about 50% of the costs of convenience. The kids simply love the time we spend at Webster’s Falls as it’s something they’ve never seen whilst exploring wildlife, plants, scenery and people.

We also like to visit local parks and beaches and again you mainly pay for parking and gas which is a fun frugal trip out. Keep an eye out for coupons, on-line tickets or in shops that might help drive the cost of your trips down and help save some money in your pocket. The list of free/frugal fun you can have with your family or as a couple is endless. Keep an open mind as there is fun to be had by all. Sometimes the simplest ideas are the best ideas!

If all else fails have that plan B in place for the big attractions ..Budget for family vacations=planning… so you don’t get stuck with a hefty bill.

• Talk to your friends and see what they do
• Research on-line, there’s a whole world waiting to be discovered
• Call your local City or Tourism Information Outlet ( if you have one) or visit as they have a multitude of magazines you can look through.

Below you can read what some of our Canadian Budget Binder Facebook Fans do with their family for a frugal yet fun outing!

What do you or your family do for fun that doesn’t break the bank?

Share your comments with us!