Family Savings

How to Keep Track of Daily Expenses - EASILY!

2008-09-12T18:49:00.001-07:00

I have used trial and error to keep track of my daily spending. I tried to use a computer spreadsheet and an accounting book. I have also tried cash only and in this day and age it doesn't seem practical for me anymore.

The problem is that I was trying to tackle the entire months worth of spending and I was getting overwhelmed. I finally honed in on my spending and figured out a VERY EASY way to keep track of daily spending habits and stay within budget.

Step # 1

Keep track of your money on a weekly basis instead of monthly. If you keep on budget during each week you will be on budget if not under at the end of the month.

First calculate your monthly budget and split it into 4 weeks or 5 in some months. What I have done to make this even easier is separate my bills from the budget because they are usually fixed expenses. I only keep track of my daily spending including groceries, gas, and other misc spending.

Step # 2

Create a Daily Spending Log: Once you know how much you can budget to spend for the week pull out a blank piece of paper and fold it in 8ths and open up. At the top of each folded square put the days of the weeks and the date. I always start with Monday and go through Sunday. On the last square you can put your budgeted amount for the week.

Step # 3

Your Daily Spending Log for the week can be easily folded up to put in the back of your pocket, your purse, or wallet. Probably easiest to put near your debit card or money. Each and every time you spend quickly jot it on your log for that day. At the end of the day subtract your budgeted amount for the daily spent and put the balance at the bottom of your daily square for that particular day. This will keep you on track and you will know EXACTLY how much you have for the rest of the week.

Step # 4

I did this for a month and realized that every week I usually spent the same amount on the same items. This will help you eliminate unnecessary spending. I noticed that I eat out every Thursday night because we're so tired from working during the week. So I started planning in advance and prepared a crock pot dinner on Thursday mornings. I just cut about $20.00 of unnecessary spending.

Step # 5

If you want at the end of the week you could set up a spreadsheet on the computer or paper and put your spending into categories so you can really see how much you are spending on each and think of ways to cut back that way.

Hope this helps you keep track of your daily spending easier!! Let me know where you figured out ways to cut back. Thanks for reading my blog!

Misti

Ways That we Tend to Overspend

2007-07-23T12:02:00.000-07:00

What triggers overspending? How do we avoid all these ways of spending more then we intended? I think the number one way is to plan ahead for situations you think you might overspend.

First, the number one way that people overspend is when they are bored. When you’re bored one option that comes to mind is shopping. “I’m bored; why not go buy something to take away my boredom.”

Plan ahead> Before you get bored think of alternatives to shopping. Keep a running list of things to do instead that are cheap or free that you enjoy doing.

Second, people overspend when they are around friends. No matter what the case may be when we’re around friends having a good time money is no longer an object. You just basically get swept up in the commotions and fun of things that you don’t even think twice about how much something costs. You just swipe your card or hand over a couple bills.

Plan ahead> When you know you're going to be around friends bring cash only. Leave your c.c. at home to avoid those temptations of "unconscious swiping." Also, before hanging out with friends plan ahead what you'll be doing. Think about cheaper alternatives then an expensive night out.

Third, we overspend on gift giving. When shopping for a gift it's hard to stay on a budgeted amount because what if you can’t think of anything in that price range? Most often then not we overspend because we found the perfect gift that just happens to be a little more. Plus, our friends and family are worth it. Birthdays and holidays only come once a year so why not splurge a little.

Plan ahead> Shop for gifts throughout the year. If not physically, do it on paper. Keep a list of friends and families birthdays and other occasions that you have coming up that you'll be buying a gift for. Write down ideas as you come across them. This way you are not stuck at the last minute trying to think of what to get and end up overspending.

Fourth, I’m starving and there is no food in sight. Take me to the nearest restaurant fast! Overspend.

Plan ahead> A real life saver can be to have snacks in your car. When you're running errands and doing other things that require a lot of hurried thinking you will get hungry fast. Always bring a snack even if you think you won't get hungry. You can also plan your route ahead of time to make it home around the times you get hungry.

Firth, we overspend when we don’t use cash. This has been said many of times that it’s harder to hand over your hard earn cash then to swipe a piece of plastic.

Plan ahead> Pretty self explanatory. Try to carry cash on you when you're buying something. You can also keep a list of things you need when going out so you stick to it.

Sixth, not planning ahead causes overspending as well. Just a small example: when you have to run out to the liquor store to buy milk after it runs out you'll probably pay a higher price because you didn't buy it at the grocery store.

Plan ahead> I think this one sums up a lot of our overspending. Most of the time try to plan ahead. I know that won't always be the case so be prepared for some days when you just didn't think ahead about the things you need.

There are probably thousands of more ways that we overspend. What ways do you overspend or see others overspending? How would you overcome that temptation?

Saving for a Down Payment on a Home

2007-07-19T10:17:00.000-07:00

For me it's been up and down over the years trying to save for a home. I'm sure it is for many people. Most families get into a house by either inheriting the money or the house. For those that have to save for the down payment on a home it can be quite trying. I've used our home savings as an emergency stash plenty of times. How does a family save for home on a small income?

I've had money automatically taken out of our paychecks every month and put into an ING savings account. It usually generates about a 4.5% interest rate. My biggest weakness is that it can take years and years before we can see real results in savings. I'm going to take this process a step further in order to save up this big chunk of money.

# 1 is to figure out a time frame in which you would like to have the money accumulated. Since I get distracted easily I’m shooting for 5 years, tops.

# 2 Get the entire family involved, even the kids. Sit down and motivate everyone about the idea of having your own home. What does each one want? Their own bedroom, backyard, dishwasher, garage, etc. Write down all the features that each one dreams of having.

# 3 Think about and discuss what area you want to live and the price ranges you are looking to get into.

# 4 Once the entire family has agreed on what they want in a home, the area, price range, and time frame write out a specific goal of that. For example: "We are going to save for a down payment on a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom single family home with a 2 car garage in the Los Angeles area by January 2012." Type it up nice and big and even draw a picture of the type of home. Post this goal on your fridge or any area that the family goes by everyday.

# 5 Think about how you are going to achieve this goal and start writing down ideas. Become frugal, always be thinking of ways to do things cheaper or even for free. Lower your living expenses as much as possible to save the maximum. When you get a raise or bonus put at least half if not all towards the house savings. Same goes with money gifts.

# 6 Set rewards for yourself along the way. When lowering your living expenses one of the first things to go can be expensive entertainment that kids where used to like amusement parks, Chuck E Cheese, and things like that. Each month when your savings goals are achieved award the whole family with cheaper entertainment. At the beginning of the month think about what your reward will be and shoot for it.

# 7 Families with children usually get a big tax return in January-March. Take half that money and put it into your house savings every year.

# 8 Every year you will be saving up your money by having it transferred into a savings account-try to find the highest interest paying account you can find, most of these will be online. Add this money up with your tax return and put it all into a one year CD earning more then 5% interest. Make sure the CD is started right when you receive your tax return so that it becomes mature at that time the next year. You will continue adding your savings from the year past and your tax return money and opening up a new CD.

# 9 Essentially you are creating your down payment with compound interest. The interest you earn will be doubling each year because you are adding such a big chunk of money to your CD each time. You will see the savings add up fast, which will in return motivate your family even more!

# 10 Share in the progress with the entire family along the way. Let everyone know you are 15% towards your goal and so on.

Free Organizing Ideas

2007-07-17T10:44:00.000-07:00

Organizing your household is a pretty big chore. It can also cost a lot of money! Most organizing of stuff takes "special" boxes, bins, containers etc. When I decided to become frugal I cleaned out my entire house and got rid of everything I no longer needed cluttering up my space.

The stuff I did keep, I wanted to organize but didn't want to spend any money doing it. I started looking around and realized there are hundreds of free possibilities for organizing. This is what I came up:

1. Bread tabs can be used for dividers in filing or use the tabs for marking electrical cords like VCR, DVD, TV to easily find which one to unplug
2. Boxes painted, with stickers, paper, etc. for organizing stuff
3. Glass jars for organizing small items (toys, hair ties)
4. Plastic containers from food (paint them)
5. Boxes from different food products
6. Plastic bags can be used for storing blankets or towels
7. Film canisters for little things like paper clips and tacks
8. 6 pack glass bottle boxes for pens, pencils, scissors, etc.
9. Toilet paper rolls for extension cords
10. Lay a mac n cheese box down and cut off one side, put in drawers for organizing office stuff or kitchen stuff.
11. Cut cereal boxes to make magazine holders
12. Cans for holding pens & pencils
13. Use a piece of cardboard for a bulletin board
14. Pill bottles for paper clips
15. Shoe boxes for socks, gloves, or anything else
16. Bubble wrap for delicate items. Put in the bottom of a box before putting stuff in.
17. Put grocery bags in a Kleenex box
18. Paper towel rolls: roll up table clothes or fabric on them.
19. Put bills and mail in a napkin holder
20. Use a clean dust pan to pick up toys like legos
21. Use a clean pizza box under the couch with coloring books
22. Egg cartons for organizing desk drawers
23. Coffee cans
24. Line 15 toilet paper rolls in a tissue box for organizing pens, markers, etc.
25. Berry baskets like the ones strawberries come in-put a suction cup on one and hang in the bathtub to hold soap.
26. Berry basket-hang and put screwdrivers through the holes
27. Berry basket-to hold seasoning mixes
28. Use the boxes that checks come in to hold things
29. Cut off the top of a 2 litter bottle to store tools, toys, or anything.
30. Use cat food or tuna cans stacked up with stuff inside them
31. Use any kind of can
32. Use the plastic mold that comes in cookies for organizing drawers
33. Pringle cans to hold large utensils like spatulas, soup spoons, etc.
34. Muffin pans to organize jewelry or even kids toys

8 Interesting Things About Myself

2007-07-13T14:01:00.000-07:00

I've been reading all the interesting things that others have posted about themselves and have now been tagged by Millionaire Mommy Next Door to do the same. This is a project going through the PF Blogs asking that we share 8 personal facts about ourselves.

The Rules:
1. Each player must post these rules first.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

8 Interesting things about myself or not so interesting ;-)

1. I type about 85 words per minute but make a lot of mistakes.

2. I usually only read half of every book I have because I get bored easily.

3. In 4th grade I got an award for the best posture in the class, what's that?

4. I have a hard time cleaning my own house but I clean my Mom's all the time.

5. I lived in Mesa, Arizona for about 10 years. I now live in California and plan to stay here!

6. I used to spend my money like it was going out of style and I had nothing to show for it. I now save 20% of my income every month.

7. I'm happier making less money and thinking of ways to save here and there by being frugal.

8. I love to eat ice cream cones!

The 8 bloggers that I tag are:

Journey 2 Retirement
Stop Spending and Start Saving
Stop Buying Crap
Saving Advice
Wise Bread
Binary Dollar
Frugalist
Blunt Money

If you have already been choosen you can ignore :)

Savings Tip # 4

2007-07-13T10:14:00.000-07:00

Save all your receipts. This will save you money big time. When we go shopping we tend to buy things we don't necessary need or end up not even using. When you get home from the store or even a few days after, go through the stuff that you bought and see if you have actually used it. If you haven't then why not take it back to get your money? I threw a party a couple months ago and in the end realized I had too many party supplies. I just took them right back to the store instead of throwing them in a box to collect dust.

Yet Another Way to Rent Movies-Cheaper

2007-07-13T09:45:00.000-07:00

I just rented from the new DVD kiosk we have at our local Von's store. It was one of the easiest ways to rent a movie!

I really enjoy watching movies. I used to go to the theater a lot. Then I started renting movies. I would rent from Hollywood Video every week. I knew I was saving money compared to movie theaters but the problem was I was still spending on average $20 each time I rented. I brought my son along and he would get some candy with the movie and I would end up getting a soda. We added two movies and probably a game rental each time. We were spending about $80 a month just to rent a couple movies.

Once I heard about Blockbuster Online I looked into the cost and figured it might be a better deal. I signed up and the first month I got tons of movies for a great price. I pay about $16 a month. What I get are two movies in the mail as well as free trade in. They just added this bonus as well, you can trade in a movie for a video game at a cheaper price for $4.99 instead of the regular $7.99. Plus you get a free movie or game rental coupon to use in-store. I average about 16 movies a month plus another free rental for $16 a month. That's pretty good at $1 a movie. I rent two movies online for the weekend and then trade them in on Sunday night to watch over the week. I noticed that we didn't really watch the ones over the weekdays as much so I changed our plan to one movie rental out at a time. That's still a great deal for only $11 a month and being able to trade them in store for free.

So today I tried yet another option movie renters now have which is a "movie kiosk." You can rent movies out of a machine! That's pretty cool and very convenient. I was taking my son over to my mom's today and thought it would be fun for him to watch movies while he's there. The video stores are not open and we only have a scary movie from Blockbuster so how easy would it be to stop at the machine on the way there?

I walked in, picked two movies and slid my ATM card. Done.

They stock the machines every Tuesday with the latest rentals. It costs $1.49 for each rental, per day. As long as you turn them in the day after before midnight you are getting a new released movie for $1.49. That's probably the best deal considering we might not always rent enough with Blockbuster.

These machines seem to be well stocked with movies. I'm sure most people turn them in right away considering their credit card is on file to be charged each and everyday. So check it out. They are popping up all over the place. The one I used is DVD Play. You can look up DVD Kiosks to find others too. Check it out, saves big on entertainment for the whole family!

Starbucks Coffee Drinks practically Free

2007-07-12T15:10:00.000-07:00

I love Starbucks. I used to go there all the time to get flavored drinks. But now that I'm trying to be financially responsible by not "blowing" my money on unnecessary things, I cut Starbucks completely out of my life. The horror! The agony! The pain! I have never been so deprived in all my life.

Luckily, I found out how to make my own Starbucks for free at home. For Christmas I always tell others that I want flavored coffee additives like caramel, vanilla, amaretto, and chocolate. They usually come in a nice Christmas package but you can probably find them throughout the year.

Cheap Starbucks Drinks

I just brew some coffee the night before and pour into a jar. (A free jar that I've saved from olives or something) They sell Starbucks coffee at the grocery store which I’m sure you can use but I just use my favorite coffee and it tastes fine. I put the jar of coffee into the fridge before I go to bed.

The next morning:

1. Pull out my jar, pour into a tall glass
2. Add the coffee flavor of my choice
3. If using chocolate syrup, squirt it around the sides of the cup before pouring liquids into cup-distributes easier.
4. Fill the rest with milk
5. Optional: To make it taste as sweet as Starbucks just add one packet of semi-sweet sugar

Why spend tons of money on Starbucks when you can make these sweet drinks at home for pennies? It's simple to turn them into blended drinks, all you have to do is add ice and put in a blender.

For Christmas we always have lots of mints lying around. I just add about three to the blender and have a seasonal drink. I would have spent about $5.00 on each of these drinks at Starbucks almost everyday of the Christmas Holiday. I absolutely love Blended Mocha Mint drinks!

Try experimenting and see what you can come up with. You will see how easy it is to save your money and still have Starbucks everyday!

Cheap Shopping Spree-Have Fun!

2007-07-11T13:30:00.000-07:00

When you start the frugal lifestyle and want to save more money it can get hard at times. Especially for those that love to shop. So the way I cure the lack of shopping is going on a shopping spree at the dollar store. I love the Dollar Tree. They have so many great products for $1. All you have to do is take about $20 and just buy whatever you feel like. Fill up that shopping cart if you feel like. Buy stuff you want but wouldn't normally buy. You deserve to have fun with your money once in awhile right? :) Take along the kids too and give them each $2-3. They will have so much fun too!

What would you buy on your shopping spree?

I would buy sunglasses, water toys, candles, notebooks, snacks, bubble bath, and lotions.

Pursuit of Happiness

2007-07-09T11:34:00.000-07:00

I know the movie, “Pursuit of Happiness” has been out for quite some time but I just recently watched it this weekend. I think it’s a must see for all those saving money and living a frugal lifestyle. This is a very touching and powerful movie. After watching, my husband and I looked around and said, “We truly are ‘rich’ with our living situation.”

We live in a very small apartment. Mostly by choice but also because we live in California. California sure is expensive and the cost of living just keeps going up while our income does not. Our apartment has one bedroom, one bath, small living room, kitchen, and out of nowhere a large walk-in closet. There are three of us in our family, myself, my husband and my 7 year old son. We all share the bedroom. It’s a very cozy living space.

One of our main goals is to see how little we can live off of to get by comfortably. Once seeing the Pursuit of Happiness, we realized that we are living really comfortable. The father in the movie struggles every day to provide for his son. Each and every morning he wakes up, he is not certain of what he will do for money or where the two will sleep that night. At one point he only has $22 to his name and no hope of income in sight.

It just makes me think of how much more we could do without to live simpler and cheaper. I would like to know that no matter what, our family can survive on a very small income and still be happy. I see big things for us in the future but being young I’d like our family to learn this valuable lesson.

I have taken huge advantage of spending money frivolously. There was a point in time when the three of us had to live at my parent’s house because I lost my job. I took full advantage of not having any bills. I spent my money on anything and everything I wanted. I didn’t save much except for just enough to get into another apartment. I can just imagine if I was smarter I would have saved so much more money at that time.

Pursuit of Happiness is also about following your dreams and making them come true no matter how hard the circumstances may be. I would really like to create goals and dreams that my family can follow in the next couple of years. # 1 being to save for a house.

I think there are so many ways to cut living expenses and save more. I'm going to spend this month trying to do just that. How little can a family live on? Well, in the movie the father and son did get by on $22 by utilizing free resources such as shelters. We are so blessed that we are able to take care of our son and make him feel safe in a nice comfortable environment.

Cheaper Alternatives

2007-07-06T10:41:00.000-07:00

I'm always trying to think of cheaper alternatives for the things we need or want. I really thought a lot about getting a DVR because we are busy and would rather watch shows at our leisure.

I called our cable company to look into the costs and it was extremely high. We couldn't just add a DVR for the monthly rate, we also had to upgrade our cable package. That would have been a ridiculous amount just to be able record a couple shows that we enjoy watching.

I began thinking of a cheaper alternative and it dawned on me that we still have a good 'ol VCR way up in the top of the closet. I brought it down and hooked it up. I programmed the VCR to record the shows we wanted. It was so easy and absolutely FREE! And the VCR tapes were donated to us because my parents didn't need them.

So, you really can have the things you want or think you need just by thinking of cheaper alternatives. We use the VCR all the time to record. The playback is not as crisp as a DVR but does that really matter? I'd rather save the money. :-)

Savings Tip # 3

2007-07-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

In these VERY hot months I'm sure we all have to use our air conditioners in our car. That eats up a lot of our gas money. I try so hard not to use mine and just roll down the windows but it's still way too hot. Another way to save on gas money is to run errands during the evening hours. It's cooler outside so you don't have to run the air and most businesses are opened later to accommodate full-time workers.

Falling Off the Frugal Wagon

2007-07-03T11:36:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you hit a point where you spend a lot of money out of nessesity or even out of fun and fall off the frugal wagon for a bit?

I live frugal almost everyday. I try cutting costs everywhere I can but there are just some days that I end up spending more money that I wish I would have. One of my biggest weaknesses is spending money on entertainment and just fun stuff that I like to have. It's hard to be disciplined all the time. But I always vow to get right back on track. The only way I've really learned to do that is by putting my debit card in a hiding space for a week. Then I make up my own savings challenge for the month. I try to beat how much I saved last month.

How do you get back on track to saving money? What helps you stay motivated and focused when there are so many things we could spend money on?

Savings Tip # 2

2007-06-29T08:53:00.001-07:00

Most grocery stores have a small recycling center in their parking lots. I bring a big bag of cans and bottles to recycle right before I do my grocery shopping. The machine gives me a print out of how much I got from the cans. After I'm done grocery shopping I give the receipt to the cashier to go towards my groceries. I probably save at least 2-5% off my grocery bill doing this.

Pay with Cash Only Really Works!

2007-06-27T10:13:00.000-07:00

I have heard so many times to use cash only when paying for things throughout the week. There was even a 7 Day Spending Challenge posted on Yahoo! about a month ago that says to try and only spend cash for the week. They say to calculate about how much you will need for the entire week and pull out that amount of cash and that's it.

I never really thought that this plan would actually work for me because whenever I have cash on hand I think, free money I can spend! :) So I always carried my debit card wherever I went. I would run into the store to get one thing like milk and come out with a bunch of stuff that was on sale and believed I needed.

Finally, I realized I was spending too much money here and there. It wasn't really a problem of spending $100 on one purchase. It was the little bit spent here, little bit spent there that added up to be a lot of wasted money. I calculated what I needed for the week and started withdrawing that amount on Sunday night. I would put my debit card away and not touch until the very end of the week.

This time I went into the store to buy milk and began looking around a little out of habit. When I thought about only having cash, I really didn't want to spend it. I wanted to hold on to it as long as I could. I bought only the milk and walked out counting my money happily. By the end of this week I had money left over and my debit card was still in it's safe spot not touched. There were things that I calculated into my weekly spending that I began thinking I didn't even need anymore.

So it really does work. This is such a great way to cut back on spending. I still buy groceries with my debit card because I tend to stay on budget with that but mostly everything else I buy with cash now. Try it just with a few areas that you are having the most trouble staying on budget with. For example, eating out or entertainment. It's so great to look at my bank statement and only see a few transactions compared to before. It's definitely saving me a lot of money!

Extra Paychecks this Month

2007-06-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

This month has 5 weeks in it. That means if you get paid every other week or even every week, you will get paid an extra pay check this month! Try to save at least half if not all of that paycheck.

You won't even know you're missing it. You could also use that extra money to take a fun weekend vacation or make an extra payment towards your credit cards, mortage, or other bills.

I'll be using mine to pay off a medical bill and the other half will be put into savings.

Savings Tip # 1

2007-06-26T11:10:00.000-07:00

To save on your electric bill make sure to turn your computer completely off every night. You will save an average of $250 a year!

Please share your tips for saving on the electric bill.

America's Cheapest Family Saving Money

2007-06-22T14:33:00.001-07:00

These are some great ways to stick to a budget. Check out their book, it's great!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKJTxuzvkXw

Money Saving Games

2007-06-22T09:42:00.001-07:00

I found the perfect website on how to save money in fun ways. It's called Money Saving Games Fun Games that help you save money. These are some wonderful ideas on how to save without even realizing it. I especially like the no spending for a day game. I try to do that as much as possible. Check them out and see which one you can play to save money!

Cheap or Free ways to have fun this Summer

2007-06-21T14:00:00.000-07:00

Summertime always seems to be expensive because kids are home from school and everyone just wants to get out in the sun and have some fun. I figured out lots of ways to have fun with my family for very little money if not free:

1. Take a trip to the beach, lake, or river. In order to keep this cheap bring everything you need or may think you need before hand. A lot times people get to the beach and decide they want a boogey board and end up spending $20 on one when they probably had one at home. Pack a bigger cooler full of food and drinks. Bring plently of towels, sunscreen, water, and snacks. Try to only bring $10 cash and see how far you can make it strech, maybe an icecream for everyone!

2. Camping, same rules apply to the above.

3. Take a bike ride with the kids on a bike path, bring a water bottle and snack. Maybe ride to the park.

4. The all too famous parks. I know going to the park doesn't sound like that much fun when you probably go to them all the time so here's a little extra excitement to this one. Go to parks outside your neighborhood and bring some food to BBQ. Explore parks that you have never been too. It will be fun for the kids and adults too!

5. Go swimming at the local public pool or a friends pool. Public pools cost about $1-3. Very cheap fun for the hot afternoon.

6. Take the family to the local farmers markers. They have lots of fresh food for cheap. You have fun as well as get some grocery shopping out of the way. :)

7. Ride the public bus or the subway to a far away place. Only costs about $2-3.

8. Take a road trip to your old neighborhoods you use to live in when you were a kid. Show your kids where you use to go to school and ride bikes.

9. Have a garage sale! I know it sounds like a lot of work but you could get the kids really involved. Have them go through their toys. Make some lemonade for them to sale and make some money while having fun.

10. What are your ideas to have fun with little or no money this summer?

The Grocery Game

2007-06-20T14:38:00.001-07:00

One of the best ways I have found to save money on groceries is using "The Grocery Game." It costs about $5 a month to sign up. They have an updated list posted every week with all the foods that are on sale and the coupons to use that will save you the most money each week.
What you do is clip all your coupons and orgainze them in a coupon book. Each week print the list on Sunday and match up the coupons with the list. You will not use all the coupons that week but keep them for the upcoming weeks. Pick and choose all the items off the list you want to get.
In just a few weeks my kitchen was stocked with everything I needed to last two months at VERY LOW prices. I've never paid more then 50 cents for a can of soup and most of all the toothpaste I have stocked was free!
After you have stocked up pretty good just buy the items that are very cheap and free on the list to re-stock your kitchen each week. You will notice that you will not have to run out to the store for anything anymore. Your kitchen will basically be a store of foods. It's so much fun and saves tons of money. If you want to try it out go to http://www.thegrocerygame.com/ and see if it's in your area. Make sure you let them know I referred you. My email address is misti_johnson@sbcglobal.net
Thanks so much, keep saving!

A little about me!

2007-06-20T14:23:00.000-07:00

I used to spends tons of money all the time. I never thought twice about swipping my ATM card everywhere I went. I would withdraw $100 there $300 here plus use my card on all kinds of purchases. I vowed never to use a credit card except for emergencies but I was always coming up short every month. I was in the negative and I didn't even have that many bills. My savings account had about $200 in it. I began thinking, I've been working since I was 16 years old. I am now 27 years old and all I have to show for it is $200?!

So for my new years resolution, 2007 I decided to be completely debt free and cut out all the unnessary purchases I make. I began by going through my entire bank statement line by line and seeing where all my money was going. One of my biggest weaknesses was Target. I banned that store immediately and have not gone there, except when I got a gift card for my birthday.

It's been 6 months! I paid off my credit card and lowered all my monthly bills. I carry only cash and only use it as needed. When it's gone, it's gone. I've decluttered my apartment and sell as much stuff as I can. I no longer buy stuff just because. I've joined the grocery game and cut my food expenses. I no longer go shopping, I go to garage sales. When I'm bored I sell on ebay. So far I've saved $4500 this year and I am always looking for new ways to save more. I will keep you posted every month on how I'm saving.

I have fallen off the frugal track a few times this past couple of months and am looking for motivation and reinforcement in myself by writting this blog. I hope you enjoy it and share your tips and success with me!

Tips to save on Parties

2007-06-18T14:47:00.000-07:00

When throwing big parties you always have to look for ways to save so that it doesn't get out of control, but at the same time still have fun with it. Here are some of the things I've done to save:

1. Make your own food instead of buying or catering. Huge sub sandwichs cost about $10 a foot. You can make your own for much less then that. Think about all the food you can save money on by making your own for the party. Or you could even have the guests bring a small dish for a pot-luck type party.

2. Make your own party signs instead of paying for them. If you want a huge sign that says "Congradulations" or "Happy Birthday", why not make your own. Ask around and I'm sure you have a big role of paper somewhere that you can write and decorate as you desire. Get the kids involved.

3. Don't waste money on invitations. Make them on the computer for free. It will cost a little bit to print but you could always email them out too.

4. When choosing a theme for the party think of the colors that go along with it. For instance I threw a Superman party for my son. Instead of buying Superman plates, napkins, etc. I bought red plates and blue napkins. Much cheaper! (Plus any left overs can be used for other parties very easily) Try to do everything in the colors of theme and only choose a few specific items like a big Superman poster to hang up.

5. Think of unique themes for parties that will save you money. For instance I threw a Coors Light party for my mom and Uncle (twins). Most of my decorations were free because I used Coors light boxes and cans. You can do this with sodas or other items you can find lots of that someone really likes. They will have no idea they always wanted a "Cherry Coke Party" :-)

6. For party favors, buy items in bulk that are generic and decorate them yourself. I bought a big pack of lighters on ebay for $6.00 and put Nascar bandaids on them for a party I threw. Very cheap party favor that everyone loved. Everyone thought I bought Nascar lighters. That would have been expensive!

7. One of the easiest and cheapest ways to decorate is with streamers. You can buy a huge roll for about 0.79. You can do practically anything with this stuff and it always looks neat.

8. If you have a swimming pool you could fill it up with balloons. That's a cheap decoration that will probably get the most use. Kids love swimming with balloons!

9. Buy party decorations at garage sales. At almost every garage sale I go to I see party decorations of some sort. Add it to your collection of party stuff at home and see what you can come up with.

10. Share some your ideas!

Thanks, keep saving. :-)

Try to make it Last

2007-06-15T11:45:00.000-07:00

Try to make things last as long as possible until you can find a cheap replacement. Most items that you need are probably right under your nose. Just let your friends and family know you need a refrigerator or something like that. If they don't have one they are getting rid of, I'm sure they know someone else that does. This networking for stuff is one of the biggest pay offs you can do. Imagine getting a refrigerator for free just because a friend or neighbor wants to get rid of theirs. You just saved yourself a big chunk of money.

You can also try finding free things you need on www.craigslist.com or www.freecycle.com

I really don't see why anyone would need to pay full price for a lot of stuff these days. Someone, somewhere, is always trying to get rid of something you want!

Money to Save and forget about....

2007-06-15T11:44:00.000-07:00

One of the easiest ways I've learned to save for some fun or something I want later on is to put money in books on your bookshelf. (I hope someone who knows me doesn't look in my books Whenever you have money just put a few dollar bills or even a twenty in a book on your shelf and forget about it. Yeah, it's not collecting interest but it's not your emergency savings; it's just some money you can stash for a rainy day when you're bored and broke. I've done this and after months I went through the books and realized I had $200 saved! That's really cool. But please and I mean please make sure you go through all your books before you sell them at a garage sale. My mom bought some books the other day and found two $20's in them the person selling them had left behind. Too bad for her we didn't remember where we got them to return the money. But if you're only saving $1 bills in books then it's not that big of a lost.
What are some fun ways you are saving and forgetting about it until a rainy day?

Save on Bills

2007-06-15T11:43:00.000-07:00

A very easy way to save on bills each month without doing much work is to just call them up. Talk to a customer service representative and ask if they have any specials or deals going on. If it's cheaper then what you are paying then let them know you would like to change your account to that deal. They will have no problem doing so. Even if you have to make a one time up front payment for the entire year such as a news paper subscribtion, you are still saving and that's what really counts. :)

Saving and Dreaming Like a Kid Again

2007-06-15T11:40:00.000-07:00

Why is that when I was a child a few dollars went a really long way, but today I can’t make A buck stretch a day? I’m not talking about paying for bills or necessities either. I’m talking about all the misc. stuff that I “think” I must have. Like when I was a kid I had $3 and was satisfied for about a week. Now days if I have $3 I’m satisfied for about three minutes. I know that everything has gone up in price but so has my need for materialistic junk. I used to be happy with just a stick of gum, now I’m lucky if I can go a hour with just one magazine.

So I’ve decided to think like I was when I was a kid with money. Give myself an allowance, save some for bigger things that I think I must have and spend a little at a time. When it’s gone, it’s gone. That’s the way it was when I was a kid and I sure didn’t think I needed more all the time back then. Yes, I had dreams and asked my parents for bigger things but we never ran out and got them like I do today. My parents would say, wait until your birthday and that was that. I didn’t say, but Mom I must have it right now! How about I borrow some money from you and pay you back with interest and if I’m late then I’ll pay you more? HA HA that would have been a laugh. But today I do that. I want it now and I pay with my credit card and pay back with the interest and other fees. So let’s challenge ourselves to spend and dream like a kid.