“Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, never let it fade away. Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket …save it for a rainy day.”

On the odd day when the dew prefers to condensate amidst clouds rather than blades of grass, trading your parasol for an umbrella can make you feel any number of things. Sleepy. Dreary. Melancholy. Cozy. Invigorated. Rejuvenated. It’s a matter of mood… which can be every bit as fickle as the weather at times.

Whether the current atmosphere of your heart coincides with the conditions outside, I believe there’s always a way to take pleasure in any rainy day!

So when you look out the window at rain droplets splashing against the panes before zig-zagging their way down, and hear those crisp splats colliding into every leaf, hard surface, and rippling puddle…

do you have a Rainy-Day Fund stashed away?

Whichever your mood and allowance dictates, something to bust indoor boredom (when darting between the raindrops sounds too harrowing), or having a worthwhile reason for going out when it’s wet outside (because it seems like an adventure) is a MUST.

I’ve found you only need three things to get started: 1. Your List, 2. Piggy Bank, and 3. Precipitation. (And, of course, don’t leave the house without your favorite umbrella.)

YOUR LIST.

If you feel inclined to avoid the rain and stay indoors, there’s an abundance of fun things to do which often end up costing less than venturing out. Dashing outside on a rainy day often means stopping into places, where you won’t usually get very far without at least a few dollars to spend. For this reason, it’s important that your list includes both in-home & out-and-about past times to choose from.

Here’s my list! Some of my home ideas include: hand-write letters, rearrange furniture, write a song or simply play an instrument, make soup from scratch (even creating my own recipe!), bake cookies, bubble bath, wine & poetry writing, or watch the thunderstorm from the porch. I love my home ideas, but I especially love my out-and-about list: leisurely shop the local book store, visit the library, greenhouse, coffee shop, early-morning breakfast or brunch at the local diner with a friend, visit the museum I’ve never gotten around to perusing, long drives on country roads listening to a little bit of Norah Jones/Coldplay/worship tunes, or antique shopping.

Any happy combination of these, a long sleepy nap instead of any of them, or something serendipitous not even featured on your list at all is just as well! In fact, you can create a number of lists… a list for you to enjoy by yourself, one to share with your partner/mom/best friend, and one to include the children in.

THE PIGGY BANK.

It doesn’t have to be “piggy,” but I think it ought to literally be a little bank. I’m talking tin canister with the coin slot on top, fitted with the rubber stopper at the bottom.  Or an envelope with RAIN FUND printed across it, and stuffed under the mattress or stowed away in the old hope chest (you know, the same way you stash your chocolate). Whatever it looks like, make it fun!

As for how to fill the bank? Just be like a kid again! A dollar here, a dollar there. The spare change jangling around the bottom of your purse. Any random money you discover in the pockets of your laundry. You could also purchase gift certificates specifically meant for rainy days to come, so that you won’t be as tempted to spend that extra money on other sunny-day things. You certainly can create a new budget category, but nothing feels happier than breaking into an actual piggy bank… sorting through random buttons mixed with coins… and deciding where you’ll go and what you’ll do based on what’s inside.

Take me back to the good old days of being a kid and how rewarding it felt to spend my “hard-earned” pennies on whatever I fancied that day. We’ll never be kids again, but we can play like one on a nostalgic, rainy day!

What about you? Let me know in the comments what are a couple of items you’d put on your list, and if you already have a rainy-day fund!