Frugal Wife Scares Husband

When I read this post about a husband's reaction to his wife's new found frugal ways, I had to laugh. It reminded me so much of my dear hubby. At first he thought "this will be a great way to save some money" then he realized there was a lot more to it than that. One thing my husband has not been able to grasp is stockpiling. Just yesterday he said "Do we really need 20 bottles of italian salad dressing?" Well, when you get it FREE how can you turn it down? Seriously, if anyone needs some let me know or my extra will be going to the food bank to get my husband off my back. He does however love how little we spend on groceries but he draws the line at going with me to the grocery store. Which is fine with me because he is always sneaking snack food in the cart that we don't have a coupon to get FREE and ruining my frugal streek.

$.15 Well Spent at Safeway

This week our grocery budget has been super tight due to some unforeseen medical bills. We budgeted $10 for food for the week and would you believe we came in under budget?? I am amazed at how God continually provides for us. When we used to have a tight week we would just use our credit card to fill in the gap, always thinking of course we will pay it off next month, which we weren't always able to do and hence the debt we accumulated. Now that we don't use debt for anything except to buy a house I am amazed at how God always provides for us. Whether it be someone giving us some hand-me-down clothes or finding some great coupons. Today I went to Safeway and got all this for $.15! And yes, that is steak and shrimp for FREE! The check out kid has gotten to know me and my super saving ways and he had a good laugh when he told me I only owed $.15 and told me he had never seen anyone shop like I always do to which I replied "thanks"!

Christmas In August???

Yes, now is the perfect time to be preparing for Christmas, especially if you are on a tight budget. Actually, January is the perfect time to start thinking about Christmas so if you haven't already-you are behind! =) You don't need to spend a lot of money to show your family and friends that you care about them. In fact, I think homemade, personal gifts are often times more meaningful than something you can buy at a store.

Some Christmas Gifts we have made in the past are:
Homemade wine & Beer
Knitted scarves and hats
Handmade Cards
Candy & Cookies
Homemade Jam

With the exception of the candy and cookies, all the other ones are gifts you want to start making months in advance. All the wild berries right now are perfect for making jam, so I have been picking berries like a crazy woman. The Man and I had fun last night bottling our wine and it is nice to know that is already done.

I have this thing about always being done shopping and having all my gifts wrapped by the first of December so that I can take the month of December to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. Since we are on a very tight budget this year a lot of people on our Christmas list will be getting homemade gifts so it is imperative that I start planning for Christmas months in advance.

If your budget allows you may also want to start setting aside money each month for Christmas. We used to go all out and just put our Christmas gifts on our credit cards (and still be paying them off by Easter!) but now we are done with debit! We don't buy things on credit so that is not an option for us. Last year was the first year we did this and you know what? We had a wonderful Christmas! Not to mention we paid for it with CASH so we didn't have to worry about getting the bill. This year I encourage you to PLAN AHEAD and do not use credit to have a Merry Christmas. I promise it will be much happier.

What are you planning to have a debt free Christmas?

Wild Berry Picking

One of my favorite things about summer in the Pacific Northwest is all the wild blackberries. They are delicious and FREE! I've already picked about 10 lbs of them and plan to pick a lot more. I will freeze them for smoothies (that I make my kids everyday), make jam and blackberry cobbler. Blackberries are usually about $3lb. so I am saving a ton of money picking them myself plus we will be enjoying berries all throughout the winter months.

Frugal Fad?

I was reading an article the other day saying how frugality is a popular fad right now, apparently frugal is the new black. The author was saying that as soon as the economy starts looking up people will be back to their old ways.
First I thought, what the heck are they talking about? I don't see people really becoming frugal. The people who were frugal before are still and the people out using credit to buy things they can't afford are still at their old ways (with a few exceptions).
Then I thought about my own life. First off, I have only been an extreme shopper (that is what the media is calling people who shop like I do) for about 6 months. We used to buy things on credit but I thought we were doing fine, after all we could always make the payments. Then we took a Dave Ramsey class and it changed our lives. We got so sick of being in debt and realized how stupid it was. My whole outlook on money has changed. I am frugal so I can save more and give more. It has nothing to do with the economy being down.
I don't think I'll ever go back to my old ways. There may be times when I don't coupon with such intensity or times we spurge on something (always with cash, of course) but on a whole I love our new financial life. We have such freedom. I don't feel deprived, I feel in control of our money. I have peace about or future (since we are saving for it now). I don't worry about how we will pay the mortgage next month. I don't wonder where the money went. We tell our money where to go, based on what we value in life.
So what about you? Do you live frugally? What has caused you to? Do you think you will stick with these habits?

100 Thing Challenge

Does anyone else just feel overwhelmed with clutter? I loath clutter but yet I feel that it is the ever present monster waiting to over take me. Sometimes I will get in this mood where I go through the house and load stuff up in my Goodwill donation bag as fast as I can grab it. I get so focused that I fear if one of my kids inadvertently leaps in front of me, they may get dumped. My husband has nicknamed the bee in my butt Busy. He will warn anyone in my way "watch out for Busy!"
Junk is just wrong on so many levels. First there is the the financial aspect-you spend money on this crap. Not to mention if you can't find what you need you spend MORE money to buy a replacement. There is also the moral delimna. Why do I have so much and waste so much when others have nothing?
Now a lot of times in this blog I tell you how to get things very cheap. That may seem counter intuitive. However, if you notice I talk about food most of the time, something we all NEED. It is sometimes hard to differentiate between a need and a want. Like right now I have been struggling with my NEED for a new pair of Danskos. I have had the same ones for 3 years. I wear them every day to work. They are faded. I NEED a new pair. No, I don't. I WANT a new pair. They are in great condition so I am not getting a new pair right now.
Have you heard of the 100 Things Challenge? Basically this guy lives with only 100 things. Sounds impossible to me. I'm not ready to do that yet but I am taking a real hard look at things before I buy them. Do I really need it? Can I afford it? Am I out of debt and going to pay CASH for it? Most of the time I realize I don't need it. I'm not saying you should never buy anything. I like nice things but I am trying to really think before I buy things now. I realize I don't need much to be happy. In fact not buying some things has made me a lot happier.

Frugal but Great Meals For Your Family

One of the best ways to drastically cut your grocery bill is by planning your menu around what you have been able to get for cheap or FREE using your coupons and what is on sale. Sometimes I get in a rut and want to try new recipes. I just found this great website called recipematcher. You type in the ingredients you have and it brings up recipes you can make. I'm definitely going to try some new recipes using canned tomatoes since I have about 50 cans I need to use! Plus it has a whole section using my favorite kitchen appliance-the crockpot.

What to do with all the cheap school supplies?

A little while ago I talked about buying cheap school supplies for charity. Well, what is up with these stores just giving this stuff away?? I have come up with some other ideas for these supplies as well.
1. Stock pile it. I filled a drawer full of art supplies for my preschoolers to last all year.
2. Give as gifts or party favors to young children.
3. Buy now to put in your Christmas Shoe Boxes.
4. Get creative! I'm a leader at my local moms group and I think some of these items (pencils, highlighters, ect) will be a great gift to give the ladies in my group as a gift on the first day back in the fall.

Frugal Party

Okay everyone, would you believe I threw a baby shower for under $3 tonight (including the gift)? For everyone that thinks you have to spend a lot of money on parties this post is for you. I totally forgot to take any pictures though so you'll have to use your imagination. I knew I was going to throw this shower for the last couple months so I planned ahead using my coupons. That is a huge secret to saving money. You MUST plan ahead. If you have to buy something when you NEED it, then you'll probably have to pay full price. Here is the break down.

Diaper Cake: Diapers: FREE (using coupons at Walgreens) Ribbon: left over from Christmas last year. The diaper cake was the gift for my friend.

Planters Nuts: FREE using coupon

M&M's: FREE with coupon

Cupcakes: $.20 using coupon for mix, Frosting $.50 using coupon, topped with leftover blueberries

Sparkling Grape Juice: $1.50 stocked up when on sale

This was a little bit of a test for me. I wanted to see how frugally I could throw this party. I LOVE throwing parties but in the past it has been a big expense. This party has really motivated me to try to throw parties more frugally. I don't think anyone knew how little I spent on this party, I think it still had a classy feel to it. Without using coupons I think the exact same party, using the exact same products could have easily cost me $50!

Here are some frugal party ideas:
1. If your budget is really tight consider throwing the party at a non-meal time. That way you can just serve appetizers or dessert.
2. Use real serving wear. I like to use my china-I think it makes the event feel special. This is a win-win idea-it is FREE, and it is good for the earth (no paper plates sitting in landfills for hundreds of years).
3. Use what you have. I bought a huge thing of blueberries so we had a lot that I didn't want to go to waste and they worked great on dressing up the cupcakes.
4. PLAN AHEAD using your coupons and sales.

What frugal party throwing tips do you all have?

Inexpensive Home Improvement Ideas

Some of you had some great Inexpensive Home Improvement Ideas so I wanted to post them. I'll definitely be doing some of these in the future!

"Love that idea! I don't care for my gold house number's either. One of my fav curb appeal ideas are flowers. Every April our local high school horticulture programs hold large plant sales. They sell annuals, veggies, house plants, and a few perennials. Their prices are 50 - 75% off retail and they are gorgeous plants! Another place I like to go is Fred Meyer for annuals. You can get 4 four inch pots of annuals for $5.00. The plants are beautiful and they have a decent variety. As long as you water them and give them some occasional plant food, annuals will typically double to quadruple in size! Simple and inexpensive. I also find that caring for plants and watching them grow is kind of therapeutic. This is soooo easy to do!" - Heather

"We bought mis-tint paint to paint our house...and then painted it ourselves (with a lot of help from The Man!). We painted the whole house, including trim and tools, for under $100!" Kelley

"Recently I was growing tired of the windows in the living room ( yes, after only 3 months of living there! ) and decided they needed an update. This isn't a 'house' update, since I live in an apartment, but it made a huge difference in the way the living room 'shows'. Instead of buying pricy new curtains I went to IKEA and purchased twin sized flat bedsheets that were on clearance for $5 each. They already have the pocket at the hem so they are a 'no sew' project too! Sometimes finding multi-use items can be a cheap and easy solution for updating the interior or exterior of your house." ~Katie

Quick and Cheap House Update

Our house is for sale and everyone knows how important curb appeal is. It can also be pretty expensive though. Our house numbers were the ugly, dated gold. We took them down and spray painted them black. We also did the same with the gold trim around our fireplace. The before and after pictures don't really do it justice-it looks so much better. What inexpensive tricks do you have for updating your house?

School Supplies

Right now is a GREAT time to stock up on school supplies. Office Max and Walgreens (get the coupon at the front of the store) all have $.05 school supplies. I know Walmart also has some very cheap supplies right now also. I went yesterday and got a big bag of stuff. My kids aren't in school yet but in a couple weeks my church is having a school supply drive for needy kids so all the stuff I gather will go to that. Sometimes when you get to the store they will be out of something-just get a rain check and you can use it when they restock the item.

Frugal Gift Giving Ideas

This is a blog inspired by Heather's suggestion. Let me first say I am so not the person who should write this. Gift giving is not something that I think I do well. It is not my love language and I don't put a lot of value on it. I LOVE giving a gift to someone when I know it is something they want. Usually, though I find I have no idea what they would want so I buy them something for Christmas/birthdays just to give them something which I really hate doing. I usually feel like I am just wasting money on something they probably don't really want/need.
Lest you all think I am just a cold hearted jerk let me explain. Growing up my family was pretty poor. We didn't receive a lot of gifts and most of the ones we did recieve came from the church or the food bank. There wasn't ever much emphasis put on gifts. We became very creative with gifts. So many of these ideas may seem way too frugal for you but hopefully you will understand where I am coming from.
1. Be CREATIVE-Last year one of my husband's favorite Christmas gifts was a jar of Peanut Butter that my mom gave him. The Man loves Jiffy but I only buy Adams since it is so much better for you (no hydrogenated oils) so my mom bought him a jar since she knows he never gets it.
2. Don't spend money-For about 5 years my sister and I have not bought eachother birthday gifts. Instead we have a journal that we pass back and forth with letters to eachother. These letters are much more meaningful to me than anything she could ever buy me.
3. Be Humorous- My husband and brother in law have been passing back and forth this hideously ugly wooden wall plaque as a gag gift for years.
4. Give of your time- I got to say, having small children, that free babysitting so my husband and I could have some quiet time would be just about the best gift ever! You could also make gift certificates for lawn maintance, house sitting, ect..
5. Use your creativitity- Last year in an effort to save money for Christmas I made all the women in my family greeting cards. We also have made some homemade wine to give to our friends. I think homemade gifts are the most special.
6. Last but not least do something RADICAL. This is not a frugal idea but I think it is the best, give a life saving gift in someone's name. Click here to find out how you can give a gift to change a life. You can feed a hungry baby for a week for only $9, buy a goat for $70 to provide a whole family with milk, provide someone with medication to cure them on TB for $15!
For me, I really struggle with the consumerism in America and I am trying to break away from it. What do I NEED?? Not much, yet I have so much when others have nothing. What I really want is just to know that my friends and family thought of me.
I would love to hear any ideas from you all so please leave your comments!