Too early to become battle weary

Well, it is the middle of January and we are doing pretty well managing the budget maze...I would be lying if I said that we have been to the penny with our budget, but I can say that I took my lunch all week, we cooked dinner at home every night (except for Friday, but that was within our "eating out" budget), and paid all of the bills. Old habits were hard to avoid though- I was so tempted to rob Peter to pay Paul and leave a few bills unpaid like I have in the past in order to make our lives a little more comfortable, but we didn't. A pastor from when I was in college use to say "It's tight, but it's right"- he was referring to his message, but in this case, it is my budget... man is it ever tight- but I like being able to sleep at night.

About a year ago, we didn't have health insurance, my hubby was laid off two-weeks before Christmas (ironically, it was at the same time that we had decided that we were secure enough for me to quit my job and look for one with better hours and better pay)... so there we were, both job-less and without health insurance, with two kids- at Christmas...it really stunk. One night I woke up with serious chest pain, it lasted for about 24 hours before I decided to go to the ER- when we went in, of course they rushed me in, treated me really well- even though I told them I had no money or insurance- fortunately, I was only having an ANXIETY attack but and I was not admitted to the hospital, but the bill was still well over $2000! Long story short, I have put that bill off as long as I could and even though I can only pay a small amount each month, I am glad to be getting it done and that feels pretty darn good.

Each time I pay off a bit of the bill, I feel like I am actually paying a little bit toward our future... debt free (I feel like if we keep on this path ALL debts will be gone within 18 months) and working toward what ever our post debt goals are... We don't have credit cards, but between school loans, personal loans and medical bills- we have a lot in front of us. I know that we can do it if we just keep plugging away.

On the subject of fruit & haircuts

A friend of mine recently said, "knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is knowing that it doesn't go in a fruit salad." I couldn't agree more.

As I was tempted to cut my own bangs yesterday... I stepped away from the ledge (of no return)and realized that I was being CHEAP. In my head, I know that I can save money by cutting my own hair- but that is not wisdom, actually it is a really bad idea. I will never forget some of my hair-cuts from the 80's that were self-imposed.

It is said that "knowledge is power", while I agree with that, perhaps, "wisdom is power" would be a better adage. There is such a difference between being cheap and frugal, in effort to stay focused, I think that it is really easy to become cheap (envision someone separating 2-ply toilet paper here). Here are some of the wisdom nuggets that I have received from the last few days.

**A gallon of white vinegar (is worth a pound of cure), my friend Becky, uses it for cooking, cleaning and laundry. What a great way to stretch a dollar and stay healthy-no chemicals.

**My friend Angie told me that it is proven that one can save up to 30% off of their grocery bill by paying with cash! Imagine.

**When I talked to the electric company a few days ago, they said that they have an interactive energy quiz that I can take. Once complete, it will give me an idea of areas in my home where I can save on the bill. I am also going to budget billing each month so that I won't get hit so hard next winter- $400 this month was a lot.

**My new favorites are Free-cycle.org and Craigslist.com. Both sites have the option of posting items that one wants to get rid of and also look for items that they might need. My friend Erica received a brand-new microwave oven for FREE from free-cycle and my friend C.J. was able to get fly-fishing reels for very little on craigslist.

**I know that there are a lot of people out there that are coupon clippers and comparison shoppers & I know that I can save a lot at the check out that way, too. There was a lady on the Today show, last week, who bought over $100 worth of groceries for a QUARTER (!) by using coupons. There is only one grocery store where I live, so that would take a lot more planning on my part since I would have to leave town in order to comparison shop- but it may be an idea for those who live in a less rural community.




**Finally, another one of my friends reminded me of the "great value" that can take place when purchasing the off brand or store brand in your favorite stores. They are very often the very same product, just labeled differently. Seriously, how different are Del Monte Peas & Great Value Peas...

Be like Nike...

just do it...


After watching my hubby spend an entire day opening mail and shredding I am convinced that good, bad or ugly- I am opening and shredding mail everyday. I would much rather just know what I am up against than ignore the ugly truth.Eventually, I would like to be in a situation where I can just open a bill and pay it the same day. That is not an option right now. However, I have set up automatic bill pay with my bank account. I realize this has been around a long time, but I was always too afraid that I would go on a huge check bouncing spree every month if I did that. It was such a relief to go online and plan out how our money would be spent and really see our budget in action. I don't have the money to pay off all the bills that I have, but it sure is a relief to see when they will be paid and how much will be going out each month.


(Steve making homemade tortillas- about .25 serving)

We don't have checks. We have just been using our debit cards and paying bills electronically- I honestly don't miss checks, I could never keep track and it was always a stressful experience for me. The natural next step is this, don't use the debit cards- except in an emergency. Part of our frugal experiment will be to pay cash for all expenses that are not bills. I was watching on the Today Show how much more likely one is to stay on track/budget in the grocery store when using cash. It is so much easier to put items back that are frivolous when you don't have the money in your pocket to buy it.





It occur ed to me tonight that I am probably not telling anyone anything new about being frugal. Lord knows, I am not an expert, in fact whatever that is below novice- that is what I am. I have been very hard headed about managing my finances, having to learn everything the hard way, many times. I realize that it is too stressful, I can't do it anymore.


Tips on saving money - TODAY Technology & Money

Boy, it is cold in this house!

Tucumcari weather is so strange, it was a beautiful day, in the low 50's- but the wind here never stops! I have not turned the heater on because our house is all electric and last month our bill was hugungous (that is a word according to my kid #2). I think I am going to have to break down though, the kids are home from school.

Yesterday, I did an unofficial poll of my FB friends. I wanted to know how many of them hung their clothes out to dry on the line. Many do, and the more that I think about it, the better of an idea it is. However, here even though we have all of this beautiful sunshine, we have a lot of sand and a lot of wind- so maybe there should be a balance. My husband wants to put a clothes line indoors in the hallway of our house--- I am still on the fence about that one, but he seems to think that the wet clothes will combat the dry air in the house. I am sure that an indoor clothesline will make me crazy.

I did find some interesting websites on the topic of line drying clothes.

No Excuses! Hang Your Laundry - Frugal - Families.com



AND


Project Laundry List promotes clotheslines, drying racks and green laundry

Dinner for under $10.00

tonights dinner: (we are 3 days from pay day & the kitchen is pretty bare)

Marinated Chicken legs ($6 for the chicken $1 for the marinade)
Peas (bag was .89, but I only used half a bag)
Stuffing ($1)
Mac & cheese ($2)
Corn bread (.89)

Total $9.35- about $2 per serving YUM.


There is enough left over for tomorrows lunch! Oh, and we have enough stickers for our card to get a FREE gallon of milk!


Click on this link below to find some more meals on a budget!

cookbook of main dishes

Re-purposing

I have been on vacation since December 19 and have one more week to go. I have officially sat around as much as I possibly can...so it is time to get to work. During my off time, I have been pining for that dream house on HGTV as well as watching my fair share of home improvement shows. There are a few things that really really bug me... such as, Where in the H- E - double hockey sticks do first time buyers get in upwards of $500 K to spend on their first home? Then, where do they get an additional liquid $25K to "renovate"... these shows are so sureal! ... but I digress because this is a blog about being frugal.

Today we rearranged the furniture in our house in order to de-clutter and freshen it up. Our budget, zero- so we spent...zero,sometimes when you need a household 'pick me up' it isn't so necessary to spend 'x' amount of dollars to create a more homey feel. All of our furniture is second hand (except for our beds);
there are times that I feel really bad about this like I have broken a cosmic law that states all furniture must come from Laura Ashley or IKEA or Pier 1. Only to break yet another cosmic law and put said second-hand furniture in our ***gasp*** rental house. But then, I say, cosmic laws be damned- for now this is our reality!!

Back to the re-arranging... we put my favorite chair in our bedroom with a nice table, I am looking forward to cuddling up with a good book, from the library, and closing out the teenagers who also reside in my house. The point being, that up grades to your home are what you make them. my mom and I were discussing this very topic the other night, when is 'enough', 'enough'? If we stick to our budget, this time next year, we will be able to purchase a NEW furniture item- or maybe two slightly used furniture items to replace what we have now. But for now, I will be satisfied with what I have.

How to Tell if You Can Really Afford to Buy: Money Matters - Yahoo! Finance

How to Tell if You Can Really Afford to Buy: Money Matters - Yahoo! Finance: "How to Tell if You Can Really Afford to Buy
A Suze Orman exclusive
Even if you take the time"