Money Saving Tips

[swanson719]

I still think MomfromMissouri had the best suggestion yet - get an old sewing machine and make your own blinds, pajamas, pillows, blankets, etc. You can watch TV while you sew, and it's a big money saver.

I grew up in a rural part of the country, and we raised all our own food. Had a vegetable garden, some chickens, a few pigs, and some cattle. The only time we ever used the tractor was to bail hay or in the winter to plow the drive. Otherwise we would just yoke up the oxen and did all the logging with them for firewood, brought all the hay in from the field with them, plowed the fields, etc. It's work, but it sure saves money. I don't remember going to the grovery store except to buy things like mustard, ketchup, flour, and snack food. Always had a freezer full of meat from the farm or hunting, and sold eggs from the chickens.

We live in the city now, and instead of going to the store for meat a lot, which DW doesn't eat much to begin with, we go to the livestock auction out in the country once a year and buy a pig and a beefer and put them in the freezer. Substantially cheaper. That with whatever deer I get, we rarely have to buy meat at the grocery store.

[buildmybudget]

I implement many of these tactics around a carefully managed budget. I use a budget which always shows me where I'm headed so I can see when things are approaching(like car maintenance) and can further cut my spending to cover these periodic expenses.

[rob62521]

[QUOTE=mom-from-missouri;118486]I reuse gift bags, or make my own.
To make my own for larger items,

Also, I make my own out of paper grocery bags. I take the bag apart, turn the bags inside out, fold down the top and before folding it down the final time, I add handles (baling twin-used of course), glue them in. Re glue the bag. Let it dry, then use fabric cut outs to attach my "pretty" to the front. To make my "pretty" I trace an item from a coloring book onto fabric and glue it on. It may be an angle (using white scraps of fabric) or santa, or even cut outs from old greeting cards or magazines.
This really saves money at Christmas time.
QUOTE]

Excellent idea, however some of our grocery stores are getting away from paper bags, darn it.

[cschin4]

I am starting to implement more of these ideas. In the past, it seems we were so busy with young kids and work that I just didn't take the time to do some of those things. Now, we are trying to wind it down a bit and get off the fast track. I realize we have bought too much junk over the years, ate out too often, etc. I don't have any cc debt but can easily see how people get over their heads. I also try to think about what I am buying instead of the mindless spending. It is easy to blow alot of money on little things without even thinking about it.
For my grocery shopping, I am no longer buying more than I need. Buying in bulk doesn't pay off for us as I just don't use things up or we change brands, etc. So, now I try to buy what I am going to use that week and that's it. Whatever is on sale will be on sale again. This has cut down on the grocery bills. Also, I have cracked down on Picky Eating. They get their meal and if they don't like it, too darn bad! No more making multiple meals. I did get stuck in that mode however because my younger son has celiac's and we had to do a strict gluten free for him for quite awhile. I have been able to relax that a bit as he is doing well.

[Junebaby]

Meals for Kids

I never cooked just for the kids unless we were going out for dinner, or were having something a little costly that they didn't like. But don't force your kids to eat something they don't like.
I want warn you all that sometimes kids say they hate something because they are having an allergic reaction to it. My son did not like peanut butter, but sometimes he ate it to be polite, until the day he told me it made his tongue itch! Then we knew he should never eat peanuts in any form. He's been fine for years, but I'm so glad I listened to him!