<p>I cut down on food bills when I plan. There is nothing more expensive than throwing out food. If I jot down the meals I plan to make and shop accordingly, I really save. We are so lucky to have a farmers market on Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday. If I buy my produce each week, my bills are much lower. On the other hand, if I go to market without a plan - and I am tempted by the lush veggies, my savings literally go down the drain. </p>
<p>Since younger daughter has been in college, we do eat out more often or get take out. We enjoy Vietnamese and Thai food, so it is not very expensive, but certainly more than cooking at home.</p>
<p>We also save most by driving cars forever. The rule in our house is if the two cars total more than 300,000 miles - it is time to consider replacing one. We are currently at 180,000 for the Sienna and 40,000 for the Volvo, so we are set for a couple of years.</p>
<p>I don’t really have to plan meals because I have about 7 that I have been cooking for a long time now and I just sort of unconsciously cycle through them. I find it’s expensive when I get innovative and cook something really new and different. When I do that, I put it in the splurge (restaurant) category.</p>
<p>We drive cars forever too. Our cars are just babies right now. One has about 75k miles and the other has about 48k miles.</p>
<p>The one thing I’ve noticed is that I spend more on the kids than I do myself. I don’t see my kids all the time like I used to since one is working in another state and the other is at school in another state. When I do see them, all budgeting goes out the window.</p>
<p>Worknprogress, agreed about going to the store with a list. I plan menus for the week, and also think about lunches to pack for me as well. I usually look at the grocery store coupons before planning the menus (what is on sale?), but I only buy and cook things that are healthy; I will skip the sale and look in the freezer for whatever I stockpiled before if there is nothing healthy on sale.</p>
<p>I also cook close to from scratch. I rarely buy a “helper” or a frozen packet of whatever to turn meat into a meal (too expensive, and usually a lot of added salt). I often cook in bulk on weekends and freeze things (potstickers, stews, empanadas, ravioli sauce, etc.) for easy weekday dinners. That helps keep the cost down, and it tastes better anyway. And, of course, leftovers never go to waste in our house. There isn’t much on my recipe list that doesn’t make a good leftover for next night’s dinner or someone’s lunch or breakfast.</p>
<p>No coupons here; I’m just not that “planned.” I find my savings by shopping in more specialized stores. </p>
<p>I get a week’s worth of produce for around $25, (it was closer to $50 when I bought this in the regular grocery store.) There’s 2 of us and we each eat about 3 fruits and 2-3 veggies each day, plus there’s salads and veggies we use for flavor - like peppers and onions included in that. If we didn’t have these little produce stores, I hear the farmer’s market is just as good price-wise. </p>
<p>We also buy our meat direct from a butcher shop, which is a very small price difference. Sometimes, my dad will go to the chicken/turkey farm and gets like 10lbs of chicken breasts for $5 or whole turkey’s for $5-7 - unfortunately I don’t live close enough to make this a frequent option. For the things I do buy in the grocery store, I buy when on sale or always get the generic version. </p>
<p>Even having multiple stops, I feel like I can go to the produce store and butcher’s shop in less time, than a trip to the Genuardi’s or Acme or definitely faster, (and a lot less headache,) than a trip to Wal-Mart.</p>
<p>ETA:
I have a friend who grows a number of spices - cilantro, basil, sage, etc… So I usually get my fresh spices for free as long as they’re in season. He usually always ends up with more than he can use, so he doesn’t mind sharing. Keep a listen for what your friends grow in their gardens, most people will share or if you keep a garden too - you can kind of co-op and plan yours to complement each other.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>You’ve summed up our lifestyle in a most eloquent way. Thank you for putting it into words. At this stage of our lives, we have the peace of mind to know that we’d be alright if we both lost our jobs, thanks to remaining in our first home (which DH renovated from top to bottom with his own two hands) and to holding onto our cars for a dozen years each.</p>
<p>I’m planting tomatoes this year. And we joined a CSA…not exactly cheap but we’ll see. </p>
<p>One thing that really helps us from a budgetary perspective is that both H and I work primarily from home. So we usually eat leftovers or something else from the fridge for lunch. And no Starbucks. And no gas. And less wear and tear on the car (both of our cars are quite old). Plus less need for nice clothes. </p>
<p>One suggestion for the ladies on this thread who are trying to be frugal. Stay away from “Dressing Young” and “Dressing Young - Skin.” Very dangerous.</p>
<p>This book is a helpful place to start. Maybe obvious stuff for some but it covers a lot of good grounding/basics, like the latte factor and paying yourself first. </p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> The Automatic Millionaire: A Powerful One-Step Plan to Live and Finish Rich (9780767923828): David Bach: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Automatic-Millionaire-Powerful-One-Step-Finish/dp/0767923820/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1272926075&sr=8-7]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Automatic-Millionaire-Powerful-One-Step-Finish/dp/0767923820/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1272926075&sr=8-7)</p>
<p>Yep, we coupon. Have since my oldest was born and she is now 26. Was a teen mom so saved money wherever we could. Triple coupons, shop the weekly sales, our local farmer’s market and produce stands nearby. Buy reduced meat at different grocery stores and eat out if and when we have a coupon. Hotels on hotwire and priceline, linens, clothes, shoes at Ross, Marshall’s, TJ Maxx, HomeGoods, Big Lots (for bread on bread day) and Goodwill (we call it GW). Airlines Ding! from Southwest.</p>
<p>Furniture from garage sales, thrift stores, Craig’s List (textbooks also) and again GW. Stuff from 6pm.com when they used to price-match and refund 110% difference. REI twice-a-year outlet $.85 sale, Target’s 90% holiday sales (Christmas, 4th July, Valentine’s, Easter, Halloween and Harvest- great for presents all year long, wrap all year, and decorations 90% off target price) target’s 75% off toy sales (twice a year), home depot’s $.01 items, Oops paint, and buying our much older car’s at car auctions.</p>
<p>Walmart and Target both price-match and will then use coupons in addition + triples at other grocery stores. Magazines only if subscription is free and all books from the library. If our dollar store has some great children’s books I stock up and use for birthdays, baby showers and co-workers gifts-same with frames and their American Greeting cards are 2 for $1, same with helium balloons- 2 for $1, and gift bags ANY size 2 for $1.</p>
<p>The list is endless…</p>
<p>Kat
5 kiddos in 5 years makes for a cheap Mom!
Also moved 3000 miles from CA to NC for the lower in-state tuition for undergrad/grad/professional schools I knew my kiddos would be looking at plus lower cost of living 7 years ago. REALLY frugal!</p>
<p>Kat, thanks for your post. You made me realize I am pretty frugal, because I do much of what you do.</p>
<p>I always Priceline/ Hotwire, and almost my entire home was furnished on Craigslist.</p>
<p>I can’t remember the last time I bought an item of clothing that wasn’t on sale, same for shoes. I buy paperbacks at garage sales. Use restaurant.com coupons for eating out.</p>
<p>I insist that the kids give me their Christmas list a couple months ahead so I can score deals on most of what they want. </p>
<p>I put $25 a week into an old fashioned Christmas club so I have $1250 by November for Christmas gifts and travel.</p>
<p>Last year I also did E-Layaway for gift certificates to give at Christmas.</p>
<p>So… maybe I deserve a tiny pat on the back, but I still am spending way too much money on food for 2 people. I 'm determined to change that and eat healthier at the same time.</p>
<p>My question is, do you all bother with couponing and scouring the sales?</p>
<p>Not for food- it is generally packaged food. ( plus we don’t get a newspaper and the stuff that comes in the mail I generally toss)
But I do buy cereal occasionally- however if I am buying that- it is likely that one of the 5 types that I buy is on sale.
Sometimes I will buy stuff to put in the freezer- but more likely, i will change my menu to adapt to what looks good/is on special.</p>
<p>I grow my own herbs- all summer I barely have to go to the grocery store except for things like salsa before the peppers and tomatoes are ripe.</p>
<p>I don’t get a lot of food at costco, but for instance I bought two skorts and two tops yesterday for about $40.I also bought 4 jugs of dishwasher detergent for $8.</p>
<p>You have to really know your prices no matter where you shop, and I find it easier to do that- if I only buy what I know we will use and what we like.</p>
<p>The ways in which I’m frugal:</p>
<p>I use coupons if they are handy but only on stuff I was going to use/buy in anyway. Same for sales. I’m not obsessive about coupons but they can help. I won’t buy certain expensive food items unless they are sale. I’ll wait for months sometimes for a sale to come along.</p>
<p>Seldom buy news clothes and only the minimum when I do. I HATE shopping for clothes in the first place, so that really helps resist the temptation to spend on clothing. In fact it totally abolishes any temptation.</p>
<p>Pay cash for Japanese cars and drive them till they drop. A car with 100K miles is just getting warmed up. My current daily car has a quarter million miles.</p>
<p>Conserve on utilities. I’ve cut way down on water use over the years, and I’m constantly walking around turning off lights.</p>
<p>No hired help. We do all our own gardening and house cleaning (or not).</p>
<p>No divorce. You can save a lot by sticking with your starter home, but that’s nothing compared to what you can save by sticking with your starter spouse.</p>
<p>Ways in which I am extravagant:</p>
<p>I buy lunch each day at work instead of packing a brown bag. It’s my one big daily luxury. I try to steer toward the less costly lunches (around $5 - $7), but I know I could save a lot if I could force myself to pack and eat a lunch.</p>
<p>Home repair. Some guys love this stuff. Not me. I can do the basics or small jobs but for anything requiring real skill or that is a big job I hire somebody. For me one of the most depressing ways to spend a Saturday is making that second or third trip to Home Depot to buy additional parts or tools to try to complete some home improvement or repair project that isn’t going well.</p>
<p>College - paying for expensive private high-end colleges for my daughters.</p>
<p>No divorce. You can save a lot by sticking with your starter home, but that’s nothing compared to what you can save by sticking with your starter spouse.</p>
<p>lol
we thought we had a starter house- but then we decided to have the kids go to private school for at least a few years. Then we had three pets that we fed very expensively resulting in two of them ( so far) living into their 20’s.</p>
<p>But my H is very low maintenance . Drives a 1964 Ford pick up and a 1992 T-bird.
Wears levi 501’s every day of his life. ( practically) He doesn’t pay for hair cuts- ( neither do I- but I cut my own hair and he hardly ever lets me cut his).</p>
<p>We live by our “budget sheet”. After paying bills, we have a set amt. of money per week alloted for groceries, eating out/entertainment, incidentals (I had to buy a wedding gift this week), etc. This does not include gas. We post the "budget sheet on the frig. Any expenditure during the week is immediately deducted so we always know how much we have to work with. </p>
<p>We also have a clothing budget on the sheet. A set amt. is allocated monthly for shoes, clothes, socks, underwear…whatever for our whole family. When the money is gone, no more is spent no matter how cute those shoes are or what a great sale Kohl’s is having.</p>
<p>We have done this for twenty years. It really helps us stick to a budget when it’s right there on the frig. staring us in the face!</p>
<p>Also we have lived in the same house for 22 years(paid off). My car is 9 years old. DH’s truck is only 5 but he plans to keep it for 10 more years. Our commutes to work are short (6 miles for him, prob. 3-4 for me). I am a big Goodwill shopper. I do use coupons for things that I would normally buy. Also clip restaurant coupons so we can eat out on weekends. </p>
<p>Our nearby gro. store has started a Fuel Perks program. You use your store discount card on every shopping trip. For every $50 spent, you earn .5 off a gallon of gas at the BP station. You can accrue points for up to three months before spending.
When DH needed gas last week, we swiped my store card at the gas pump and saved $1.05/gallon of gas. DH got 20 gallons and saved $21.</p>
<p>One more frugality:</p>
<p>No mortgage. Refied once or twice to get better interest rates but didn’t get stuck in endless rounds of refinancing or trading up. We got a 15 year loan and paid it off.</p>
<p>Oye vey - you all put me to shame. I am a former “tightwadder Gazette” junky and frugal person. We used to make our own bread, drink powdered milk, and stock up on food goods on sale, etc… and we did it for years, happily. This enabled us to sell our starter home, buy a lot, and build our own home and reach a level of financial freedom that we now enjoy… Over the years, though, I have become lax, and now am likely to get take-out food, and buy whatever I want whenever I want it. The good news is that I don’t want a lot, so we are still doing fine.<br>
One (non)secret to success is that we don’t have debt, except for reasonable fixed mortgage that we hope to pay off in 5 more years, and we don’t have monthly costs, such as landscaping, house cleaner, dry cleaning, cable tv, etc. No car payment. We charge EVERYTHING, and pay it off every month, then happily pocket the $400 dollars or so that we earn in cashback from our two credit cards every year. I could go back to more frugal ways, but my attitude has gradually changed. If I stop to pick up restaurant food (from our local non-chain restaurants), I think “My money is helping pay for this guy’s job!” and then, instead of feeling guilty, I feel great knowing that I am supporting the local economy. ;)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>So, so true.</p>
<p>One thing about saving money on groceries - it’s important to pay enough to eat healthy: wild caught sea food, lean meats, good quality fruits and vegetables, good grains. Sometimes eating this way is more expensive than eating cheap but worth it in the long run in terms of health.</p>
<p>A cliche that is very tired but very true - “Want what you Have”</p>
<p>The longer I’m in my house the more I find I love it. For several years I wanted so very much to trade up but am so glad we didn’t do that and now I find much to cherish in every corner of this home. Sometimes you have to just ride out the fever and it will pass and you will find yourself cherishing something that has been with you a long time.</p>
<p>But I’d never give up the “Dressing Young” thread. Never.</p>
<p>*I feel great knowing that I am supporting the local economy. *</p>
<p>That’s the way to go.
I admit I do pay more for some things, because I go to the neighborhood shops at times instead of shopping the Macy’s sales & I can’t remember when the last time I went to a chain restaurant, but last night for example, I was too tired to cook or even go out, and I had H pick up some stuff from a new restaurant.
[Root</a> Table Restaurant](<a href=“roottablerestaurant.com”>http://www.roottablerestaurant.com/)
Yummy and cheaper than the Chinese delivery.
:)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Because we would all miss one another.</p>
<p>Funny thing about learning to ride out the house “fever.” </p>
<p>When DH and I married 25 years ago, we bought a small townhouse condo just for the time being. Yup, we are still here.</p>
<p>For at least ten years, I practically was licensed as a realtor because of all the time I spent in homes on the market. </p>
<p>Now, I would still move, but the fever is gone. Sure, it would be nice to have more space, but it is comfortable, private, and paid off. The construction is much better than some flashier places that were built in the '90’s and the trees and landscaping will never be duplicated. </p>
<p>It has allowed me to have my own small consulting business, rather than working fulltime for someone else and my husband to take a position with a non-profit that pays little but rewards richly.</p>
<p>courer’s tip will probably save the most money (paying off the mortgage in 15 years) hands down if you can do it. We could if we weren’t paying for college. Sigh.</p>
<p>I don’t use coupons because I’m not organized enough and besides, I never eat or use any of those things. I also don’t believe in big box stores because I don’t see how you save by buying everything in bulk. I think you just use more stuff-- the more stuff you have, the more you use, the more you need to keep buying stuff. Last month I decided to actually go through and use everything in our pantry, augmented by fresh fruit and vegetables, and I still haven’t gotten through it all! At last count, we still have tons of dried beans, several cans of salmon, pasta, grains of all sorts, and various assorted dried mushrooms. I really reduced our food bill though. It has made me realized that “stocking up” is really a money pit. </p>
<p>Also, we decided to not buy anymore useless junk for gifts. We are inundated by clutter (I have bags of things that I keep meaning to list on craigslist), and I am not going to add to anyone else’s, or the landfill either! Now, we give homemade food or condiments, or wine. Stuff that can be consumed. People love it.</p>