I'm on someone's payroll again! It feels lovely! Although I'm only working part-time, it is exciting to open up my bank email on the first and the fifteenth each month and see a little more money going into the account. It doesn't define me and we're not going to get rich by any means but it is exciting. I've been very mindful not to say, 'now that I'm working, we can now buy.....'. That's a quick way to undo all the frugality that I've established over the last year.
We've always been frugal, my husband and I. We're just not spenders. We've always lived below our means and that is just fine with me. I don't want to ever feel like I have to hold down a full-time job just so we can pay our bills. It doesn't hurt that I don't especially like to shop and don't have a ginoreous(not sure that's a word) closet. I look at my closet, it's full, I don't need anything new! Simple, isn't it!
A couple of years ago, I became absolutle certain that I could go the rest of my life and not buy any new clothes and die with clothes. Well, maybe I'd have to replace underwear because for some reason, those wear out quicker than other stuff. And maybe socks after a few years. But for the most part, I have way too many clothes. I decided that I'd only start replacing stuff when it was worn out. Seems to be working. I've only replaced a few tops and shoes in the last few years. Saves plenty of money!
I got paid today and instead of rushing out to eat out or buy something new, I think I'll just sit here and smile. Saving that money for a nice vacation this winter with the kids! Memories last a lot longer than a new pair of shoes!
A journal of recipes and ideas to help readers laugh a little at everyday things and realize just how blessed they are!
Showing posts with label saving money. Show all posts
Showing posts with label saving money. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Couponing
I get asked a lot about saving money by couponing. Most women ask me because they know I have couponed for years and almost never shop without a list and my coupons. Now that the internet is posting so many coupons, it is almost silly that more people don't use coupons as a viable way to save money.
Since I am currently a stay-home mom, I really jumped back into couponing and budgeting a few months ago. It wasn't that I was just throwing money around like I was rich or anything, I just had gotten out of the 'if we don't have a coupon, we don't need it' mantra that the kids so often hear me utter. I would buy cereal even when it wasn't on sale and I didn't have a coupon! Now that is something I never do!
It didn't take but just a few weeks to rebuild my coupons once I started looking at websites. You really don't even need to buy the sunday papers anymore to use coupons! I take the local paper just because I actually like to read the newspaper. I use a few rules for my couponing because I have known people who actually end up spending more money after they coupon.
1. I only purchase things my family will eat. It's not a good deal if no one in the family will eat the item and it ends up being thrown away. I will try new things one time if I think we may eat it but I'm pretty picky.
2. I keep a stockpile of certain things like cereal, coffee, soups, general pantry items that we eat very regularly. I have a set limit of how many of those items I will allow in the house. Most of us have a limited amount of storage space and a thousand rolls of toilet paper just doesn't fit into my storage closet no matter how cheap they were!
3. I don't buy prepared cookies and junk food (unless it's free with a coupon!) OK, I do have a few rules I break! I just got two free oreo's cookies because I had free coupons for them, normally, I wouldn't even buy them on sale!
4. I won't buy something with a coupon if the store brand I usually buy is still cheaper. There are some items, like canned tomatoes, that are still cheaper to buy without coupons most of the time.
With smart shopping, I can normally cut $30-$50 off my grocery bill every two weeks. If you do the math, that's almost $100 a month, off of things that we use and eat! That type of saving can really add up over the course of a year.
If you need motivation to start, begin charting how much you save when you shop. Set a goal, like dinner out or a family get-away when you save so much. It will suprise you how fast those coupons add up!
Since I am currently a stay-home mom, I really jumped back into couponing and budgeting a few months ago. It wasn't that I was just throwing money around like I was rich or anything, I just had gotten out of the 'if we don't have a coupon, we don't need it' mantra that the kids so often hear me utter. I would buy cereal even when it wasn't on sale and I didn't have a coupon! Now that is something I never do!
It didn't take but just a few weeks to rebuild my coupons once I started looking at websites. You really don't even need to buy the sunday papers anymore to use coupons! I take the local paper just because I actually like to read the newspaper. I use a few rules for my couponing because I have known people who actually end up spending more money after they coupon.
1. I only purchase things my family will eat. It's not a good deal if no one in the family will eat the item and it ends up being thrown away. I will try new things one time if I think we may eat it but I'm pretty picky.
2. I keep a stockpile of certain things like cereal, coffee, soups, general pantry items that we eat very regularly. I have a set limit of how many of those items I will allow in the house. Most of us have a limited amount of storage space and a thousand rolls of toilet paper just doesn't fit into my storage closet no matter how cheap they were!
3. I don't buy prepared cookies and junk food (unless it's free with a coupon!) OK, I do have a few rules I break! I just got two free oreo's cookies because I had free coupons for them, normally, I wouldn't even buy them on sale!
4. I won't buy something with a coupon if the store brand I usually buy is still cheaper. There are some items, like canned tomatoes, that are still cheaper to buy without coupons most of the time.
With smart shopping, I can normally cut $30-$50 off my grocery bill every two weeks. If you do the math, that's almost $100 a month, off of things that we use and eat! That type of saving can really add up over the course of a year.
If you need motivation to start, begin charting how much you save when you shop. Set a goal, like dinner out or a family get-away when you save so much. It will suprise you how fast those coupons add up!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Save money, plan your meals
I learned a long time ago that I don't make good quick decisions. I'm one of those people who end up wishing I could say,' uh, could I get back to you on that so I can think about it?'. I lay out my clothes the night before right down to my shoes and I don't allow myself to change my mind because if I do, it's a 20 minute ordeal in the closet! When I started working with two little kids, I realized that even though I thought I was organized, I was woefully wrong! I learned some techniques on organizing the hard way that I'm going to share over the course of the next year.
The first will be meal planning, how many of you end up overspending on eating out because at 5pm you don't know what you're eating for supper? I call the evening meal supper and the noon meal dinner, it's my southern upbringing. Drives my daughter seriously crazy! Anyway, the reason most of us end up going out is that we can't plan and we wait until the last minute to realize we are hungry. Hello! Around 6pm, you will be ready to eat a meal almost everyday!
My first piece of advice is to look in your pantry, freezer and fridge to see what you already have. Take stock so you'll know what you need. Always make sure that you have the basics; flour, sugar, etc. One of my biggest frustrations in life is when I start making something and realize I don't have an ingredient. I never realize this until I've already started...no I don't set out everything before I start, who do you think I am? Martha Stewart?
This leads me to the second piece of advice, a running grocery list. I buy my cards, paper and stuff like that from a company called Current. I have for years and years and they always sell helpful paper products like grocery lists and meal planner calendars that have magnets on the back that will stick on the fridge. You can find them at www.currentcatelog.com Or use the back of an old envelope from all those junk mailings but stick it on the fridge.
When you use the last of the ketchup, crackers, jelly...well you get my point, add it to the list. When I make one of my pantry staple meals, like the mc... deli soup from an earlier post, I add the ingredients to the grocery list. When it's time to visit the grocery store, you already have a list of needs and you just need to add the things that you need for the meals you've planned! Saves time and it ends up saving you money because you have a list and you won't go cruising down the aisles looking for good things to buy!
I have actually trained my children to list the things they use up on the list. Momma's mantra, 'if it isn't on the list, it doesn't get bought!' Another one is, 'if I don't have a coupon, it isn't getting bought!" I haven't moved my husband to do this yet and at this point, it ain't gonna happen! He just can't remember to do it.....
Try to start the new year off by taking charge of your kitchen. It will set the tone for your entire household! Getting organized in the kitchen will give you a chance to cook up healthy, quick and easy meals and end up saving a bunch of money. And remember, a home cooked meal is a way to bless those around you!
The first will be meal planning, how many of you end up overspending on eating out because at 5pm you don't know what you're eating for supper? I call the evening meal supper and the noon meal dinner, it's my southern upbringing. Drives my daughter seriously crazy! Anyway, the reason most of us end up going out is that we can't plan and we wait until the last minute to realize we are hungry. Hello! Around 6pm, you will be ready to eat a meal almost everyday!
My first piece of advice is to look in your pantry, freezer and fridge to see what you already have. Take stock so you'll know what you need. Always make sure that you have the basics; flour, sugar, etc. One of my biggest frustrations in life is when I start making something and realize I don't have an ingredient. I never realize this until I've already started...no I don't set out everything before I start, who do you think I am? Martha Stewart?
This leads me to the second piece of advice, a running grocery list. I buy my cards, paper and stuff like that from a company called Current. I have for years and years and they always sell helpful paper products like grocery lists and meal planner calendars that have magnets on the back that will stick on the fridge. You can find them at www.currentcatelog.com Or use the back of an old envelope from all those junk mailings but stick it on the fridge.
When you use the last of the ketchup, crackers, jelly...well you get my point, add it to the list. When I make one of my pantry staple meals, like the mc... deli soup from an earlier post, I add the ingredients to the grocery list. When it's time to visit the grocery store, you already have a list of needs and you just need to add the things that you need for the meals you've planned! Saves time and it ends up saving you money because you have a list and you won't go cruising down the aisles looking for good things to buy!
I have actually trained my children to list the things they use up on the list. Momma's mantra, 'if it isn't on the list, it doesn't get bought!' Another one is, 'if I don't have a coupon, it isn't getting bought!" I haven't moved my husband to do this yet and at this point, it ain't gonna happen! He just can't remember to do it.....
Try to start the new year off by taking charge of your kitchen. It will set the tone for your entire household! Getting organized in the kitchen will give you a chance to cook up healthy, quick and easy meals and end up saving a bunch of money. And remember, a home cooked meal is a way to bless those around you!
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