New staff photo. Say Cheese!

Say cheese! Took a lovely new staff photo this morning in the bright fall sunshine! I blinded our staff...they are such good sports! They'll be seeing stars all day after smiling into the sun. Or are they just that excited about working at Hawthorne? :-)

First Time Home Owners - Don't Miss the Deadline

Are you lucky enough to be a first time home buyer right now? What a great time to be in that position. First time homebuyers can get an $8,000 tax credit when they purchase a home this year. I wish that my husband and I could take advantage of the great benefits that are being offered to first time home buyers right now. (P.S. this also includes anyone who has not owned a home in the past 3 years!)

The big mistake right now would be sitting back and thinking that you have all the time in the world. Don’t forget that there is a deadline to be eligible for the tax credit and there is no guarantee that, that deadline will be extended! This deadline requires that you close on your new home by November 30, 2009, click here for details.

Check our rates and sign up for a Mortgage Rate Alert email. Finance today quickly and easily with our fast 10-minute online loan application.

TIP: Stay close to home for entertainment

SAVINGS TIP: Chances are, you've got opportunities for great entertainment every weekend close to home. At your local theater you'll find free parking and no drive to Chicago. The talent is great and tickets run just $15-25. I saw a production of Studs Terkel's "Working" this weekend at the Steel Beam Theatre in Saint Charles. The performers were very talented and the tickets were only $25. Check out the Steel Beam Theater. This intimate 80-seat theater attracts very talented performers. They have a wonderful Children's theater program where they perform children's stories, currently the Adventures of Pinocchio is running. Children's theater is a great way to introduce kids to live theater. Live theater is a different, richer experience than seeing a movie!

New Credit Scoring System Could Give us a Break!

Finally, something that may actually help us! Have you ever made a little financial blunder that you did not think were very important, but your credit score was negatively impacted by that little mistake? I know that I have.

A long time ago, before cell phones, we used to use phone cards. I had one just in case of emergency. Well, my girl friend's parents did not like her boyfriend and she used to use my calling card to call him. There was a small balance left on the card and it impacted my credit score for years. Not sure why I didn't just pay it off. Young and stupid I guess!

Now those little mistakes may be forgiven. With the new math of FICO 08 credit scoring, those with small blemishes on their credit reports should benefit. With the updated scoring method, the credit scores of those with small miss payments, under $100, will not decline. For more information, click here.

Support Our Troops with Care Package Items!

We're playing Santa again this year to U.S. soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan during the holidays with our drive to collect care packages for Operation Support Our Troops of Illinois.

Starting today, September 11, we're collecting items to stuff into Christmas stocking care packages that will be sent to U.S. troops deployed in the Middle East. These care packages include a litany of items not readily available to troops in their deployed locations, such as hand sanitizer and shaving cream, as well as personal letters, cards and notes of support. For a list of items most requested by U.S. troops stationed overseas, visit http://www.osotil.org/christmasstockings.html.

You can bring your donations to our Naperville branch at 1519 N. Naper Boulevard or our Bolingbrook branch at 267 S. Weber Road before October 31. Since its inception in 2003, Operation Support Our Troops Illinois has sent more than 25,000 care packages to U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Last year, our employees and members collected 160 pounds of snacks and gifts, and $140 in cash, which was used to ship the packages to the troops. A Naperville Brownie Troop also wrote letters of encouragement to the troops. Our men and women in the military are working so hard for our country that we want to send items to brighten their day a bit!

TIP: Get better than interest on your checking account

I love my check card! I got $2.65 for using my Hawthorne Visa Check Card in August. All I had to do is sign for my purchases (I just chose "credit" at the retailers when asked the question "credit or debit?") I use my Check Card for everything - coffee, clothes, gas, groceries, eating out, prescriptions, toiletries, online shopping, etc.

As a result, that $2.65 equates to about 6.24% APY on an average monthly balance of about $500. That's better than what any financial institution is paying in interest right now! It's easy money. Really!

Saving Money at Your Kid's Next Birthday Party

I can’t believe that my son Zach is going to be 9 on Friday. He is growing up so fast and is getting very tall. I think that within the next couple of years he will be taller than me.

Last weekend we had Zach’s birthday party and I got lucky this year and saved $150 because I was not able to order and inflatable jumpy for the kids. I called six different inflatable rental companies and they were all sold out. Zach has always had a jumpy at his birthday parties, so I was concerned about what they would do this year.

I thought of waters balloons, but it was cold. I also thought of all of those things that we used to do at my birthday parties (a long time ago), kick the can, musical chairs & pin the tail on the donkey, but I did not think that Zach would be very excited about that. So, I end up doing nothing!

We had a lot of people, a lot of food and a very nice day to enjoy each others' company. The adults had a great time and the kids had a great time too, even without a jumpy (I did not hear one complaint!)

I will probably never rent an inflatable again. This made me start to think that sometimes the things we do to make our kids happy are expensive and unnecessary. Most of the time they are completely happy without all of the extras!

More Ways to Save Money on Groceries

Are you still trying to get the “coupon thing” down during this difficult financial time, when every penny counts? Or, are you still trying to decide if you have the energy or want to spend your time looking for a bargain or cutting coupons?

I recently read a blog By Laura T. Coffey who is a TODAYShow.com contributor, that said “There’s almost always a coupon out there.” During these difficult times it probably does make sense for us to take advantage of them.

Laura’s blog also consisted of 10 tips to be a better coupon sleuth, that might help you. My favorite tip is number 2. Please let us know if these tips help you. Good luck!

1. Remember those nice, old-fashioned coupons in your local paper. Granted, you’re reading this column online, which may mean you’re not a huge print newspaper reader at this stage of your life. But in spite of all the newfangled ways to access coupons and discount codes via the Internet, that doesn’t mean it’s a waste of time to check the coupons in your daily paper. It doesn’t take terribly long to find coupons you can use.

2. Use child labor if you just don’t feel like clipping. Here’s a deal you can cut with your kid: If he or she finds coupons for items you buy as a family and clips enough of them that you manage to save $10 on groceries, you can promise to share $5 of that savings with your child. Then your child can save up that coupon money and use it for something special — including back-to-school items that you may not view as essential but that he or she truly wants.

3. Remain alert for discount opportunities as you shop online. When making purchases, stay on the lookout for areas where you can enter a “promotional code,” “discount code” or “coupon.” If you spot such an option, that means a coupon code almost certainly exists that can help you save on the purchase you’re about to make.

4. Check reputable coupon-code sites. To find a coupon code, you can simply do a quick Internet search for the name of the retailer and the same catchphrase you saw on that retailer’s site. That can lead to frustration in many cases, though, because you’re likely to stumble upon codes that have expired. To hone your search, try CurrentCodes.com and DealHunting.com, where codes are regularly verified and updated.
Other sites that are worth checking include FatWallet.com, CouponChief.com, CouponMountain.com, Rather-Be-Shopping.com, RetailMeNot.com, Offers.com, CouponShack.com and Valpak.com. You’ll likely zero in on a favorite site or two or three that work best for you, depending on your shopping preferences.

5. Seek out free shipping. The best coupons in the world may not be able to offset onerous shipping charges. The sites mentioned in Tip No. 4 can direct you to free shipping deals in some cases. It never hurts to take a few minutes to search around for free shipping before confirming an online purchase.

6. Register with your favorite retailers — but check the privacy policy first. Another way to nab coupons that you’ll be likely to use is to become a returning customer on specific retailers’ Web sites. This typically involves sharing your personal information, and then some pretty good coupons and shipping deals will be e-mailed directly to you. Before signing up, though, check each retailer’s privacy policy first so you can see how your information will be used. Will it be sold to third parties? Will your spending habits be tracked and shared with third parties? If so, can you opt out of this process?

7. Don’t forget to check clearance and sale sections. Visit the Web sites of your favorite retailers and look for online-only sales. Click on any link that says “sale,” “new markdowns” or “final clearance.” It’s not uncommon to spot items that used to cost $100 or more lurking in final clearance sections for $19.99 or even $9.99.

8. Study that final check-out screen carefully. Especially if you’re using a coupon code, be sure the discount has been applied correctly before you commit to your purchase.

9. Look for coupon codes in unexpected places. All sorts of coupon codes may be arriving in your snail-mailbox on a regular basis. You can find them in the catalogs you receive, as well as in your credit card statements.

10. Seek out coupons for out-of-the-ordinary purchases. A number of coupon-code sites are offering discounts on tax services and software, car rentals, auction purchases on eBay.com, restaurant meals and other purchases that at first blush may not seem eligible for coupon codes. Open your mind to the possibilities and look for discounts on everything!