How to Have Fun While Keeping Expenses on a Tight Leash

For many who live on limited incomes, having fun often doesn't seem possible; life is a grind just to make ends meet sometimes. But it can be done by checking your community calendar, watching your local newspaper or researching online for ideas on free or economical things to do.

When weather permits there are many ways to enjoy the outdoors with no cost or at minimal expense. The following are some ideas:

- there are many places to go for walks and for the more adventurous, most communities have areas with hiking trails;
- go to a local lake or the ocean for a day of swimming, building sandcastles or flying a kite;
- go to a marina and watch sailboats race;
- go kayaking or canoeing;
- take a picnic to your local park, have a game of frisbee, throw a ball around or collect colorful fall leaves;
- explore your neighborhood and go biking at the same time;
- become a photographer and take pictures wherever you go;
- spend an afternoon picking strawberries, blueberries or blackberries and then go home and make jam or a pie;
- play badminton, bocci ball or croquet;
- go camping by a creek and fish for trout;
- get friends together and have a game of baseball or soccer;
- in the winter go to the mountains and toboggan;
- build a snowman, a fort or have a snowball fight;
- if you're fortunate enough to have lakes that freeze in the winter, go ice skating;
- at Christmas time, go on a tree hunting expedition and cut your own;
- go to the pumpkin patch or the corn maze in the fall;
- take the children to the petting zoo;
- go to a bird sanctuary when many of them are wintering;
- go for a walk and enjoy a sunset.

When the weather isn't quite so nice, there are still many things that can be done that are reasonably priced or free. The following are some:

- spend an afternoon visiting the library;
- get friends or family together for board games, cards or charades;
- have potluck parties with friends;
- browse through a bookstore or spend a pleasant afternoon reading;
- go to garage sales, flea markets or a craft fair;
- start a challenging puzzle;
- get friends and family together for an evening of watching videos or DVD's;
- start a new hobby;
- learn a new skill;
- look for free or economical exhibits, events or entertainment;
- look for coupons and use them;
- during holidays there are always attractions such as a visit to Santa, various parades, looking at Christmas light exhibits and the many other festivities there are at this time of the year;
- paint and decorate eggs at Easter time;
- do a craft project with your children.

If you know where to look and are open to suggestions and new ideas, there will always be something fun to do that will fit into even the tightest budget.