We's Too Po' fer Cayble!
Apr 05 '01
The Bottom Line Be proud of your frugality. Get yourself on a budget that works for you, and never.... never... NEVER pay top dollar for something you can get dirt cheap!
I apologize if my title offends anyone, but this is an ongoing joke between my husband and I as we live out out shoestring budget.
Two weeks ago, we had the cable shut off - not because we couldn't afford it, but because we didn't need it. I need one channel : ABC. My soaps, my news, and my sitcoms are all on ABC. My husband rarely turns on the boob tube, and when he does, it's to pop in a movie for my daughter. So why bother spending the $45 a month for 76 channels of garbage which just take more time to surf through?
I understand for some people this is not a feasible option, however for us it was $45 a month in our pockets and being put toward a new refrigerator.
A family budget, to me, is about trade-offs and frugality. I don't believe in paying top dollar for anything if I can help it. I have to give a lot of credit to my mother - a single mother with a daughter with champagne tastes and not more than pennies in her pocket. My mother taught me to clip coupons, hunt for deals, and *gulp* swallow my pride.
Over the last eight years, I have succeeded in having my husband appreciate my frugality, to the point where even he searches for the occasional deal.
When we got married three years ago, we had very little money to live on - to the point where the bills got paid and we had $10 in our pocket for the rest of the week. This was a great learning experience for me, especially where finances are concerned... here is how we got through and still do.
1. Gather all your bills into a pile. Get them out from under the couch cushions, your coat pockets, out from behind your sun visor, and out from underneath the bed, from next to the phone, and wherever else you may stuff your bills. (Please refrain from removing them from the bill collector's behind, though!)
2. Put all your bills in order of priority for payment. For example, utilities and credit cards come before the record clubs, magazine subscriptions, etc. Next, put them in order according to the day of the month that they are due.
3. Write out a list of all your monthly bills and what day of the month they are due.
Here is where things get a little sticky until you get the hang of things...
4. Make up a weekly schedule by paydays on a sheet of paper, so that you have 4-6 weeks on a sheet of paper. Be sure to space them out enough to distribute the payments among the weeks. Next to each week, jot down how much of a paycheck you anticipate having that week.
5. Refer to your list of when payments are due, and start plugging the bills into the weeks. Be sure to allow at least 8 days prior to when a credit card bill is due, in order to avoid those horrific late charges. Also, be sure to include your weekly grocery and gasoline/travel expenses into each week, so you dont leave yourself short-changed.
6. Total every week on that sheet of paper and compare to your anticipated pay. Always underestimate your pay... better to have more money than be short. If your totals are higher than your pay projection, juggle things around to get it all to jive... be it a little less on one bill, or moving a bill to an earlier week where there are less bills to pay.
7. Refer to the sheet often to see what you have coming up, and within 6 weeks, you will be back on track, and may even have some money to spare for fun.
There are some other ways to live on a shoestring budget. With the little bit of extra money you may have, you might be tempted to go shopping for clothes or something for the kids. IF YOU CAN HELP IT, leave the kids home when you go to get THEM something. Trips to the mall are much cheaper that way. If YOU shop for THEIR clothes, you are likely to spend less since they won't be there coaxing you to buy those $78 pair of jeans that they will wear twice and throw into a heap on the floor after the first week of school. If they are 14 or older and start to complain that they dont want you buying their clothes then... guess what? Looks like its time for the sweetiekins to get a job.
I started working one night a week at a local restaurant when I was 14 years old... not because I wanted to... no 14-year-old really wants to work... but because I had to because my mother had informed me that she was no longer buying clothes for me. Got me moving pretty fast in the matter, but I thank her for it now.
In regards to grocery shopping... two words... CLIP COUPONS! Shop at stores that double coupons. Avoid name brand products if you can help it and never buy anything unless it is on sale, or unless it is a house staple like bread, milk, water, juice, or beer. (just kidding). Search for coupons online... there are tons out there, you just have to search for them. Again, if you can, leave the kids at home. Kids tend to break your concentration when it comes to searching for the coupon for Fruity Pebbles in the breakfast aisle.
On eating out: In today's busy crazy world with two working parents and little time to keep your head from spinning, Americans eat out more than double what they did 40 years ago. This is EXPENSIVE. And unless you budget for it in your weekly plans, this downfall will kill your budget.
On average, a family of four can eat at a major chain restaurant like Applebee's for about $35. Once a week adds up to over $1500 a year. Invest in a recipe book... like Campbell's Quick and Easy recipes, or another book of the sort. I can honestly say that from the Campbells book, I have never had to be in the kitchen for more than 1/2 hour for a full meal to be cooked. The average family of four can eat at home for under $15 for the entire meal... a savings of $1000 per year if you eat at home in place of going out to eat.
And think about this... in the time it may take you to slice up some veggies, some chicken and cook some noodles and toss it all with a sauce and put it on the table, you will have loaded the kids into the car, gotten to the restaurant, and looked over your menus. Where is the time saved?
Ok... one more thing I want to talk about is thrift shops. You heard me... THRIFT SHOPS. They can be your best friend. Although sometimes frustrating to sift through clothing to find something you like, when you find that $60 pair of Gap khaki's from 6 months ago on the consignment shop rack for $12, you can go home feeling good that you pocketed $48 and got your pants that looked amazing on you in the store.
I have even gone as far as shopping in *gulp* Goodwill stores for baby clothes. It is amazing what people put in these bins. Speaking of Gap khakis, I found a pair for my 1-year-old daughter at Goodwill for $1. Take a look sometime... you mind find something you like.
Which leads me to one last thing (I promise)... Go through your basement, storage areas, closets, etc. and make a pile of things you haven't worn, touched or thought about in the last two years. This summer, have a yard sale. Have a street sale. Its extra money in the pocket that you can use to get ahead.
Be proud of your frugality. Get yourself on a budget that works for you, and never.... never... NEVER pay top dollar for something you can get dirt cheap!
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Member: Julie
Location: Southeast Virginia
Reviews written: 88
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