31 days ... Day Five!

Blogging challenges don't count on weekends, right?

I'm working to get caught up today/tomorrow, as well as schedule plenty of posts to last through this upcoming weekend since I'm off for fall break.

One of my friends shared this on Facebook, and I thought it was so appropriate. Darn that Dave Ramsey for stealing some of my ideas :)

Because today, I'm going to talk about credit cards. And how they aren't all evil and can help you save/make money!

I've had a credit card since I went to college. My parents taught me to pay it off every month and I always have. When I went to college, I had a GM card, which takes 5 percent of your purchases and it accumulates as "points" = dollars off if you buy a brand new GM vehicle.

A couple years after I got out of college, I realized this wasn't the best perk system for me, so I decided to explore my options. I now use a Chase card, where I get 1% back and can use however I wish. I use the cash back option, and get a check for $150-$200 per year. Typically, I only put gas or large purchases on the card. The really great thing about Chase is that they have revolving "bonus" categories and you get 5% cash back on those that quarter. So say I spend $200 a month on gas and that's one of the special categories - over a three month time, I end up with an extra $30! I like to let mine accumulate and cash out in November/December to use for Christmas and all of those pesky end-of-the year bills.

I will say, you have to be smart when using a credit card and I still feel like I sometimes get in "trouble" by spending more than I should in a month. But it's a great way to earn some extra dollars, as well as you can stay disciplined.


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