The Frugal Lifestyle

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Gemme

Did they call her the Coupon Mom? If so, that woman is AMAZING! She does that ALL THE TIME.

OMG! Kewl, I am going to find her on TV again!!!
WOW!!!! My new hero is The Coupon Mom!!!

Originally Posted by Braedon

Wow Atlast, thats truly amazing!

I was awestruck!!! Obviously she has to do some planning, but think of the $ you could save! Here, I thought I used coupons well. No way!

CHA-CHING!!!

[moxie]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

OMG! Kewl, I am going to find her on TV again!!!
WOW!!!! My new hero is The Coupon Mom!!!



I was awestruck!!! Obviously she has to do some planning, but think of the $ you could save! Here, I thought I used coupons well. No way!

CHA-CHING!!!

I don't think this is her, but you should try http://www.moneysavingmom.com

TONS of coupons and deals at stores. She also talks about how she shops with coupons and spends I think it is $40/week to feed a family of five. And she ALWAYS has money left and how she used the extra money to pay 100% down on a house.

Site is awesome.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by puregrrl

I don't think this is her, but you should try http://www.moneysavingmom.com

TONS of coupons and deals at stores. She also talks about how she shops with coupons and spends I think it is $40/week to feed a family of five. And she ALWAYS has money left and how she used the extra money to pay 100% down on a house.

Site is awesome.

Totally AWESOME!!! Thanks! I love saving money!!!

[Linus]

Welp. I get to update this. I may be able to wipe out another debt. I went to H&R Block, got my taxes done and found out I only need to pay about $200 to NYC for taxes (my company didn't realize that Queens is part of NYC until April 09). But my federal return will equal around $3K. On top of that, after talk with my rep (and will verify with my g/f father who's a tax accountant) I apparently set aside too much from the stocks I sold towards taxes I believed I would have to pay on selling them (since I won't have to pay taxes on those until next year and I'll be doing a cross-country move along with getting my 401K going even more, I set aside an amount for it in a high-interest account that I never access other than to put my Emergency Funds in). Between the tax return and the excess tax funds I had set aside, it will pay off another credit card (about another 10%) leaving me with one credit card and the line of credit to pay off.

w00t!

[Diva]

I found this really neat website......stumbled onto it, actually!

Lots of good information! Hope You find it useful as well!


http://www.stretcher.com/index.cfm

[Medusa]

Anyone bring their lunches to work?

I once added up the cost of a Starbucks every morning and an out-lunch every day and it was pretty embarrassing to spend that amount of money on food and beverage.

Jack and I went to the store last week and got all kinds of fancy lunchmeat, lettuce, fancy bread and cheese, and good sandwich spread so we can have lunches at work that we actually look forward to.
Yanno, it kinda sucks to eat a crappy peanut butter and jelly on cheap-ass bread.

Today, I found a Marie Callendar pot pie in the back of the freezer. Its a parmesean chicken one and so far is pretty good

Tell me your ideas on saving money on food and drink at work!

[Diva]

I'm on this quest now to see just how long I can go between visits to the grocery store. Today, I have to go as my daughter will be here tomorrow and so I have to break my streak, I guess!

But it made me realize just how much I DON'T really need. So when I run out of bread, I go to crackers. Tuna salad tastes just as good on a cracker as it does on whole wheat.

[SassyLeo]

I spend about $150 (sometimes up to $200) per month on groceries. I make most lunches and dinners at home and eat out maybe 1 time per week- Usually Sunday breakfast with Erin. I buy things that can make different kinds of meals.

For instance: I buy several boxes of Israeli Couscous (YUM) or a 5 grain mix that Trader Joe's sells, which I make with chicken broth. Sometimes I will use it for a side dish with chicken or pork chops... just add some veggies. Also I make a cold salad with it for lunches.

I never eat out for lunch at work. The rare occasion is a group/team lunch thing we do like 6 or 8 times per year.

And I rarely buy coffee at work. I either make it at home or drink tea.

Lunch would normally cost about $7-8 per day. Coffee around $3. So that comes to $140 for food and $60 for coffee. $200 on lunch alone!

Ask June ... I'm a thrifty shopper.

[Chancie]

Pete installed an under the counter coffee maker in my little kitchen, and I have basically stopped buying coffee on the way to work. Then I bought a very beautiful water bottle and I stopped buying bottled water.

Oh, if only I had room for a freezer.

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by Medusa

Anyone bring their lunches to work?

I once added up the cost of a Starbucks every morning and an out-lunch every day and it was pretty embarrassing to spend that amount of money on food and beverage.

Jack and I went to the store last week and got all kinds of fancy lunchmeat, lettuce, fancy bread and cheese, and good sandwich spread so we can have lunches at work that we actually look forward to.
Yanno, it kinda sucks to eat a crappy peanut butter and jelly on cheap-ass bread.

Today, I found a Marie Callendar pot pie in the back of the freezer. Its a parmesean chicken one and so far is pretty good

Tell me your ideas on saving money on food and drink at work!

Yup. I do bring my lunch/dinner/snack to work. Every once in a while I will give in and call a local pie place and get one of their medium sized $5 pizzas (that's $5 even, tax included). It always looks like I'm moving in because I'll bring a big recyclable bag (the kind you can reuse to shop in) full of things I could eat. I bring different options so I'm less likely to say "I don't want that, lemme call that Chinese place or whatever".

As far as TV dinners go, I wait until the Lean Cuisine Spa Entrees are on sale for $1.88 (the magic price) a piece and then I hit Albertson's with a stack of coupons and their store "double" off coupons (up to a dollar for each coupon), so I've been able to get about 15 of those suckers at a time for less than 80 cents a piece. Not only do they give me yummy dishes like Pumpkin Ravioli but (with the exception of a higher sodium content) are very healthy. I mix them with my homemade meals like navy bean and onion soup and the more 'lunchy' type foods (sandwiches) and the fruit I pick up at my food bank (I had my first apple pear from there!) and those 15 will last me a month.

[Nattih]

I want the savy-cents couponer wallet. It's a pretty patent leather wallet, that has the accordion file for coupons and space for your regular wallet needs. I wish it wasn't $30 all together because that's not being too frugal

[freyja]

i find it very easy to not eat out at lunch.
Thank goodness for the good skills my mother instilled in us kids.
i have a delightful purple lunch carrying case that goes with me to work and on weekends.
i make sure to pack it if i know i will be out past meal time (say Saturday morning errands that might run longer than expected).

i keep water, a drinkin box, homemade banana bread and sometimes cheese and crackers as stand by snacks to keep me okay til i get home to real food.
First, the thought of eating garbage at a drive thru place (pick any of them) does not do my health any good. Second, it's expensive!

i keep my coffee shop spending to a minimum, perhaps twice a week, sometimes not at all.

It's not hard at all once you get into the habit of it.

[Andrea]

I take my breakfast and lunch to work every day. I am just not ready to eat breakfast before I leave for work and if I eat too early, I am hungry before lunch.

I like non-breakfast type stuff for breakfast so during the colder months Rene will make me a pot of pinto beans and a pot of bulgar wheat, which I combine with a dollop of smart butter. In the warmer months, I take rice milk and fruit, and add cereal from the box I keep at work.

Lunch is usually leftovers from dinner then night before. I make up a bowl as I clean up the kitchen so it is all ready when I pack my lunchbox in the morning.

I also take snacks such as an apple, cut up celery or pita bread and hummus, almonds, yogurt, etc., so I don't hit the junk food machines.

There is an 8 pack of diet Pepsi in the office fridge. I actually sell more than I drink, but it pays for the soda.

I used to treat myself to designer coffees now and then but there isn't any place near the building I am working in now so Rene bought me a one cup coffee maker for my desk and I love it. The Brita water filter pitcher saves me from buying bottled water too.

I get all squeamish when I think about putting my food in the smelly office fridge so I carry an ice pack in an insulated lunchbox (the soda doesn't bother me).

Andrea

[Bit]

I make lunch for Gryph and pack it along with a couple of drinks in his backpack for work. He prefers his Gatorade watered down a little, and his tea boiled strong; also takes a cup of coffee to work with him. The Gatorade is $1.50 a day at work and I only pay at most $2 for a week's worth at the grocery store, so there's $5.50 a week right there.

Days when I just cannot get it together enough to cook in time, he spends anywhere from $5 to $8 on lunch, so I make a pretty big effort to cook ahead and make sure there's always something lunch-worthy in the fridge. I normally get three lunches out of $4 worth of ingredients, so a conservative estimate would be that we spend $8 a week and that saves us approximately $17 a week--or more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~

A very kind soul *kisses to you!* sent me a gift card to Dollar General and I got a ride over there today. Wow, I found Crest Prohealth in the big tube for a dollar less than the grocery store and it came with a freebie sample of the rinse. I also got Glucosamine Chondroiten--Gryph says it really does make a difference with his knees--for half price. Then I found some hair squinchies for me (mine have finally all given up the elastic ghost) and some eeensy rubber bands for his braids (he wears braids to honor his Native American heritage) for a dollar apiece!! It was great!
~~~~~~~~~~~~

So, Gryph and I splurged and had a fast food dinner the other evening. I would tell you it was our anniversary dinner, but lol!! We FORGOT!!! (can we count it in retrospect?) Ah well. Anyhow, I asked to go out because we needed to talk away from distractions, interruptions, and tension. It was kinda hard to get the conversation started... how strange to have an attack of shyness after being together for three years, eh? and over such a prosaic and mundane topic, too.

We needed to talk about money.

Gryph thought I was nuts. He said we do fine, that he's good with how I handle the budget. I think he was pretty concerned until he realized I just needed input. There were things we hadn't talked about, yanno? So we spent a couple hours talking about the priorities of life.

What sparked it might seem silly or even inconsequential to others. Two magazines are up for renewal. They're more expensive than most of our magazines--and they're Native American magazines. So instead of just deciding to let them go, I needed to know what kind of priority they have in his life, whether the content makes a difference (yep, it sure does!). That led us to a discussion about what's important and in which ways.

I discovered things which surprised me, like a museum membership would be a really bad birthday gift because he really doesn't care about museums (what threw me on that one was the one N.A. magazine, since it's from the National Museum of the American Indian)... but on the other hand, he wants to decorate That House to be respectful of the Craftsman era, so if I find copper Craftsman-style lamps or mailboxes or furniture that we can afford, I should get them. And while landscaping the yard is a low priority for him, making me happy is a high priority, so it's okay with him if I spend money on a food garden even when the budget is squeaking. (He wins, I bought a raspberry vine today!)

Anyhow it was an interesting discussion, as much for the things we forgot to talk about as for all the things we did talk about. We started with a given: That House must be repaired, and all the bills must be paid. After that we ranked things low, medium, and high priority in terms of spending money--there were a few things that are high priority in terms of time and energy that are medium or even low in terms of money--and while we talked about ways to improve our lives, we completely forgot to talk about things like a new computer or cell phone service.

Like I said, it was interesting! And now I have a much clearer idea where our money should go, and what is most important in our lives.

[Medusa]

You all inspired me to do a little math this morning

So Jack and I have some goals about things we want to do for the house.
We need a new roof and hot water heater but also want to put new flooring throughout our house, paint for most of the inside, and new fixtures and faucets. That's a nice chunk of dough.
It kinda made me think about all the impulse buying that we do (which, dont get me wrong is probably significantly less than a lot of folks) and I started thinking about the lunches out as "impulse buys".

So here's a math comparison:

We went to Wal-Mart the other day to get some good stuff for lunch:
2 loaves of very good honey-wheat bread = $5
2 packs of very good ham and roast beef = $7
2 packages of higher end swiss cheese = $8
Head of lettuce = $1
Nice big bottle of gourmet-style mustard = $2
Huge Bag of Sunchips = $3
2 Boxes of granola bars = $5
12-pack Diet Coke = $3
6-pack Mott's Applesauce = $2

Total= $36.

Combined with a few things we already have at the house like dry-roasted peanuts and banana chips as snacks and wheat-toast for breakfast, the list above will get us through almost 2 weeks of breakfasts and lunches at work FOR TWO.

That comes out to $18 each per week or about $3.50 a day.

The reason I talked specifically about "very good" ham and specific chips is because Jack and I both are such cheapasses that we have made the mistake before of buying really cheap, crappy stuff for lunch and then by the time it's lunchtime, that soggy-ass sandwich and off-brand BADLY-flavored chips are WAY less than appetizing. We finally figured out that if you actually ENJOY your lunch, you probably would be less prone to throwing it away and buying something...thus costing money for the lunch you threw away AND the lunch you bought.

If we were to have eaten out on the above model, here's the math:

Sack of crap for lunch for two = $12 per day
Coffee or sausage biscuit bullshit from McDonals for 2 = $6 per day

That would be $18 PER DAY, or $90 a week for two versus $36 for a MUCH healthier meal.
Savings would be about $54, or over $200 a month.

and dont even get me started on trying to ween myself off of my $5 a coffee habit at Starbucks

Needless to say, like Bit, we kinda talked about our priorities and how we could translate that into our budget.
We concluded that we would much rather have the extra $200 a month for paint or tile, new landscaping a bit at a time, or some yard furniture.

[christie]

'Dusa -

Sounds like you have really gotten off to a good start - I, too, once had a $5 Starbucks habit THREE times a DAY! The habit was brought to a screeching halt when I moved to VA and Jess informed me the nearest Starbucks was TWENTY THREE miles away from the house!

Even though now there is one about a half mile from my office, I only indulge about once a month.

In talking about frugality and home improvement, I'm not sure if you know about Habitat's ReStore. Its basically a thrift shop with home improvement items and the proceeds go to Habitat. Here is the link for the AR locations:
http://www.habitat.org/cd/env/restor....aspx?place=51

Its kinda like most thrift shops - hit and miss. The one closest to us now is in Mt. Airy and while they don't have the selection that Richmond's location does, we have managed to snag a couple of deals there. Bathroom sink - $20. The lovely cast iron/almond enamel kitchen sink was $50, but with a new faucet set from Lowe's and it looks perfectly fine.

I must admit that I am quite an impulsive shopper and that I have been looking lately at the retail therapy I do in replacement for eating therapy. It didn't stop me from the Wii and the Wii Fit last week, but I am becoming more aware of how I need to slow down and find a different habit - maybe it will be using the Wii Fit!

[Medusa]

Originally Posted by christie0918

'Dusa -

Sounds like you have really gotten off to a good start - I, too, once had a $5 Starbucks habit THREE times a DAY! The habit was brought to a screeching halt when I moved to VA and Jess informed me the nearest Starbucks was TWENTY THREE miles away from the house!

Even though now there is one about a half mile from my office, I only indulge about once a month.

In talking about frugality and home improvement, I'm not sure if you know about Habitat's ReStore. Its basically a thrift shop with home improvement items and the proceeds go to Habitat. Here is the link for the AR locations:
http://www.habitat.org/cd/env/restor....aspx?place=51

Its kinda like most thrift shops - hit and miss. The one closest to us now is in Mt. Airy and while they don't have the selection that Richmond's location does, we have managed to snag a couple of deals there. Bathroom sink - $20. The lovely cast iron/almond enamel kitchen sink was $50, but with a new faucet set from Lowe's and it looks perfectly fine.

I must admit that I am quite an impulsive shopper and that I have been looking lately at the retail therapy I do in replacement for eating therapy. It didn't stop me from the Wii and the Wii Fit last week, but I am becoming more aware of how I need to slow down and find a different habit - maybe it will be using the Wii Fit!

We LOVE Re-Store!!!!

When we were in California, we lived about 4 miles from one of the best Re-Stores I have ever been to. It was HUGE and had tons of older fixtures from craftsman homes and churches. Even had furniture and lottttttts of decorative stuff. We scored a bunch of good stuff there to fix up our old place and right before we left, we scored a brand new Neptune dryer still in the box for like $100.

We discovered a Re-Store not too far from where we lived and the Manager asked Jack to take on a Project Manager position for an all-female build that is coming up this summer (schedule permitting). The store itself is tiny and not very well-stocked but still, we check it when we can for caulk and nails and other bits.

I will say that Jack scored 2 huge boxes of nails that were normally in the $40 range for $3 each at the old store right before we moved. Between the cases of nails, the dryer, and all the canned "survival" food, our poor Penske was sitting on FLAT leaf-springs the whole way to Arkansas.
Ai. Yi. YI!

[Jess]

I used to get up and make the girl's lunch everyday. When we moved and she has to stay away from home part of the week I wasn't able to do this any longer and it actually makes me sad.

When we have a good weekend ( meaning no family chaos or projects haven't over taken all of our time), we do some shopping and I make her several lunch and dinner type things and pack them in a cooler for her to take with. I HATE that she has to rely so much on food cooked by other people.. grrrr... so I want to make it a priority to make sure to send her off with good healthy food that she likes and will eat.

This time of year is great for eating well cheaply. Gardening certainly supplements (and if I were further along it would replace need for the produce section), but there are quite a few good produce stands/ farmers markets to pick up fresh stuff from.

We have lots of home projects ahead of us also. I soooo feel you guys Medusa on the new roof. We need one and want to do the no maint. metal roof so we'll be getting estimates soon. There are no leaks, however we have lost a lot of shingles, so we are trying to knock out some other projects before that, as it is a pretty major expense. One of our fall projects will be insulating under the house. If possible we are going to run pipes under the house that will come off the water stove and create radiant heat, then insulate around it all. This old place is cold as heck downstairs in the winter, last winter surely taught us that insulation is truly the gift that keeps on giving!

Good thread folks! Love the couponmom!

[christie]

Originally Posted by Jess

I used to get up and make the girl's lunch everyday. When we moved and she has to stay away from home part of the week I wasn't able to do this any longer and it actually makes me sad.

When we have a good weekend ( meaning no family chaos or projects haven't over taken all of our time), we do some shopping and I make her several lunch and dinner type things and pack them in a cooler for her to take with. I HATE that she has to rely so much on food cooked by other people.. grrrr... so I want to make it a priority to make sure to send her off with good healthy food that she likes and will eat.

This time of year is great for eating well cheaply. Gardening certainly supplements (and if I were further along it would replace need for the produce section), but there are quite a few good produce stands/ farmers markets to pick up fresh stuff from.

We have lots of home projects ahead of us also. I soooo feel you guys Medusa on the new roof. We need one and want to do the no maint. metal roof so we'll be getting estimates soon. There are no leaks, however we have lost a lot of shingles, so we are trying to knock out some other projects before that, as it is a pretty major expense. One of our fall projects will be insulating under the house. If possible we are going to run pipes under the house that will come off the water stove and create radiant heat, then insulate around it all. This old place is cold as heck downstairs in the winter, last winter surely taught us that insulation is truly the gift that keeps on giving!

Good thread folks! Love the couponmom!

Wha??? You saying that WaWa can't cook??? LOL LOL

I MISS my lunches. I swear, you are the ONLY person I know that can make a salad and it weigh 10lbs!!

I can't WAIT for fried baloney sammiches with fresh 'maters!

[Sachita]

My adult son recently moved out for the third time. Times are tough, which is why he lived here 4 months and while he was here he complained about how much money going out to eat would cost. I told him to give 25.00 a week and I'd help him. I bought milk, cereal, stuff for sandwiches, pasta, etc. I didnt cook for him everyday but made stuff available to him and often made him leftovers, sandwiches, salads. I also told him to stop buying bottled water to save money and the planet. I have good water and a water filter.

Sunday we had dinner and we were talking. He said he was able to get ahead and save money. He estimated that just a few changes and eating home at least 4 days a week he saved 100.00 or more a week. It all adds up especially if you're dating. He sat down with his GF and together they came up with a system so they could both save money and be more frugal. I was happy to see him do so because being frugal makes you think and more conscious of everything around you. Now if I can just get him into gardening!