Anyone else ready to GET OUT OF DEBT? #2 [Archive]

Peppermint

05-28-2004, 08:54 PM

For groceries- I am always trying to lower that one expense, but it's hard, right now I am spending about $80 a week to feed the 4 of us (baby is only nursing :wink ) and afternoon snacks for the little boy I babysit after school.

One hard thing is that there are no coupons for whole foods, YK? Although- I have had great luck combining coupons (manufacturer and store) to get toilettries (sp?) and such for next to nothing- a few weeks ago the Eckerd ad had coupons and many were the same as the manufacturer's coupons so I got deoderant, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, etc. for less than 50 cents each, and some even ended up being free :D

I buy store brand for everything I can- although sometimes the national brand is cheaper due to bigger packages (bulk)- for example- American cheese (which is more expensive than "cheese food"- whatever that is :LOL), my grocery store had it on sale (the store brand) but the Kraft big package ended up being cheaper.

I make my own breads as much as I can, but still purchase the whole wheat for sandwiches. Some things I have recently noticed- bananas are by far the best value for fruits, lesser fat meat is less expensive in the big pack than higher fat meat :thumb.

I find not even going down certain aisles in the grocery store helps (ie- junk food and soda aisles).

OK- now- onto my accomplishment for tonight---I had to go shop for a wedding shower gift for dh's cousin (who by the way- has more than enough money to buy whatever they need :rolleyes), I went to AJ Wright and I saw soooo much stuff I wanted- one thing I even carried around with me, and I am soooo proud of myself for putting it back. It was a beautiful little windchime with little crystal and glass butterflys and flowers on it, and it was all silver - it was so pretty and my dd would have :love loved it. I realized that I want to be able to buy little ($4) things like that- but that---right now---I can't! This is important for me to remember- I want to get into a spot where I can do that on occasion- but I am so not there yet- and, you know what? My dd doesn't have a clue what she is missing (she wasn't with me). I am going to paypal $5 into her (education)account right now, THAT she will use :thumb.

Anywho- I had to pick up milk at the grocery store too, and I really wanted some malted milk balls I saw when standing in line- but- I used some self-control and didn't buy those either. I came home with the gift I found ($12) for the shower and the milk, and some pretty tissue paper that I am going to wrap the gift in. :)

I know over the course of getting us where we want to be financially- I will sometimes need to buy little things just b/c, being constantly deprived can't be good, YK? But, when I can deny buying something that we really don't need, and not feel totally deprived/hopeless, I am going to do it.

kerc

05-28-2004, 10:31 PM

:thumb patty.
i too struggle with trying to totally deprive myself ALL the time. It is important for me to have a little mad money every now and again. I went to the garden center today I have a thing for flowers...and came home with only 10 dollars in herb plants because i didn't NEED the flowers. I guess I don't NEED the plants either, but I do save money because that was 6 plants -- six different herb plants that is. It was fun just to go (special garden center about 20 minutes away).

Piglet68

05-29-2004, 09:51 PM

One thing I love about our grocery store (Giant Eagle) is that they carry a large selection of organic/natural foods, and they seem to have great sales very regularly! He just scored tons of stuff the other day, saved $15 off a $45 bill. Yay DH!

Okay, I forgot to report my "success" for the week. Called on of our debtors and arranged to get the thing paid off in two payments, one June 1 and one July 1. It's not a huge debt, but it's one I can scratch off the list.

This coming week I plan to tackle our "car" loan. As I mentioned in another thread, we had to pay off my car completely in order to import it into Canada when we moved back there last year. Mum lent us the money via a line of credit she had and wasn't using (ain't retirement with an empty nest grand?). We have been paying her what we were paying to the car financer before, but the balance is getting quite low now (less than $7k Cdn) and I'm thinking the minimum payment required by her bank each month has got to be less than what we are paying. So I'm going to ask her if we can lower the payment to her for the next four months until our other investment comes in and we can just pay the whole thing off. I'm hoping this will save us at least $100/month, maybe even more! Why didn't I think of this before? Oh yeah, 'cuz it's embarrassing, lol.

One more thing we did today: we went to the library and got cards! We are former Amazon junkies. It was always easier to just order online. But the library had almost all of my "wish list" and it is FREE! Plus, if I don't like the book, I"m not stuck with it, and I can save the ones I love to buy one day. It seems so simple, but it is really great to go to the library! :D

PS - I so hear you guys on the "treat yourself" thing. I have held off having my hair cut for almost 4 months now. I have been going to the same lady for years ever since i first came to Cleveland. I love her cuts and she is so sweet and will be thrilled to know I'm PG. I pay $25, plus a tip, but I decided I really want to do this, this month. I bought hair dye on sale, and went with a new brand even to save money. I do like the colour though, lol. So I deserve it, right? :)

georgia

05-30-2004, 12:14 AM

wakeupmama, hugs to you! Have you already checked out the previous thread? There's some great info there.

As was already mentioned, one great way I've found to cut down on food costs is to replace meat with alternatives. Lentils, beans....or serve meat as a side dish rather than the main course. Prepackaged stuff costs way more than buying in bulk---and never pay more for a name brand. I agree with the idea about whole foods! I make my own banana bread (bananas are inexpensive where I live), and this is our treat! In season, we do zucchini bread. A great value, IMO. I try and do lots of crock pot cooking, doubling up recipes, buying what's fresh, local and inexpensive.

Our family of four (and another one on the way :)) eats for under $100 a week. This is almost solely organic. I truly believe that we can pay a little more now or pay later with our health. So many times we hear how expensive organic is, but do we ever stop and think about why the "non-organic" is so cheap? At what cost? Ok, this is my splurge rationalization perhaps???

We eliminated all foods that had preservatives or colorings. I was amazed at how this has helped our health and our food costs! We shop at either our local co-op or the farmers market. I do way more baking and cooking now, but I find it rewarding now instead of a chore. Kind of spiritual when I see how it is nurturing our health. Perhaps that's a bit OT......

We splurged this weekend and picked up a pizza to go (no preservatives, spring water and whole wheat crust.....but we pay dearly for this!) It was $15, and I agonized. My dh reminded me if we deprive ourselves, we'll resent it and blow it down the road. So, pizza it was :).

I'm still a bit down about our finances, but I'm working through it. My biggest thing right now is trying hard to be positive about $$$. When food's been wasted, I've had a difficult time not getting upset. Issues, issues!

Well, I've rambled waaay too long. Sorry:innocent

Peppermint

05-30-2004, 08:23 AM

georgia-
I think it is great that you are so committed to healthy food, and absolutely think that is a worthwhile "investment" more than a "splurge". Luckily our grocery store sells a lot of organic too, but we have also decided to start going to the Farmer's market with the neighbors who go every week- can't believe I have been at MDC for well over a year and haven't thought to go to a Farmer's market :LOL.

Yesterday was our 5 year anniversary- we had saved Applebees gift cards that we got for Christmas for this occasion, so that covered dinner, though I still had to leave the tip. Then, we went to Home Depot and as our anniversary gift to each other, we bought a push broom :LOL -5 years is the "wooden" anniversary :D . And- my parents watched the kids- so no babysitter cost. :thumb. They (my parents) also gave us $200 for our gift from them (it has been around $50 in past years). My mom also sent me $200 in cash 2 weeks ago- and 2 weeks before that she put $200 in my car. So--hmmm... what to do? She does not expect us to pay her back at all- she knows we are in a tight spot b/c of the current outrageous health insurance we are paying. I think I am going to pay her back $400 (as soon as dh gets a new job with good health insurance) and let the $200 from yesterday be a gift.

I have to say- I am soooo fortunate- sure we are struggling with debt- but we will never be truly poor or go without to any real things we need, b/c my family is so great- between my parents and my siblings we will never "go without". I am very blessed.

The thing is, I should be able to be acting as that safety net for others. I read stories about women on here who need money to pay their electric bill, and I want to paypal them some cash to get them through. One of the major reasons I want to be out of debt (other then the extreme guilt of it) is so that I can use my money to help others, the way my family has helped us so many times.

OK, I am rambling now.....

kerc

05-30-2004, 02:46 PM

i went out to the mall today --- and did ok. I returned some items at target that had been kicking around +12.00. Then returned something at hancocks fabrics and bought what was on my list only spending 9.00, still +3 right? and then went to sears to buy a part for our drill, 3 bucks. So other than gas, i broke even.

Plus I am really pleased with myself. The whole way out there I was thinking "mmmm, coke." and almost stopped, but didn't pass a fast food joint. Then I got in the car at the end and thought "I can make it all the way home with no stop" and did. SO i guess that 1.50 not spent about covers the gas right?

Indigo73

05-31-2004, 01:28 PM

I have read through thread #1 and was impressed by the many sucess stories both big and little. I just took Your Money or Your LIfe and CHoosing Simplicity from the libaray. I hadn't started to read it until today but was impressed that quite a few of dh's and my decisions where there in black and white.

Here is my last LJ entry to, since it says what my short term goals are:

DH and I had another talk about homeschooling ds. He is very serious about it. I am glad. So we are going to sit down tomorrow and really go over our budget. The goal is to save all of dh's income over the next 2-3 years. 50% going to irradicating debt, his first and then mine and 50% into saving so that we finally have a buffer. I want to be back to the point where I have $2000+ in savings - ultimate goal $10,000.

It's going to be tough because we are both spontanious spenders but I think we can do it if we make a plan and stick with it - we know how to survive a week on $20 and now we just need to live like that when there is $$ in the bank. 2 years can bring a lot of change, hopefully a couple of raises and decent health insurance through my job or the state. Universal healthcare in my life time?

Short term goals to simplifying my life and house.

1. Selling 50% of my books on half.com
- a. Keep utilizing libraby
- b. Only buy cook/craft books that I know I will use & have read already
- c. Second hand - never new, I can be patient

2. Declutter attic and house - tag sale time

3. Back to the 15 minute cleaning blocks - 2 or 3 times a day.

4. Change eating habits
- a. No more fast food
- b. Learning more about freezer meals.
- c. Find ways to get dh to eat beans.
- d. Vegan/Vegetarian meals 2x a week
- e. Reduce eating out to twice a month or less

Now the major challenge will be to update my wardrobe without feeling guilty. Pay ourselves first and use personal saving on self, not house or ds.

ekblad9

05-31-2004, 01:42 PM

I'm glad I found the new thread! :)

I get my hair cut once/year, maybe. I cut the boys and dh's hair. The girls don't have much hair so it's not a problem yet.

We spend about $100/ week on groceries for 7 people and about $300/month through our food co op.

I made no strides this week and did poorly, actually. I'm slacking and I'm not proud of it. :(

newmainer

05-31-2004, 07:57 PM

Its been a few days since I've been on the boards- family visiting- so I actually have things to report!!

I want to say, that the more i read YMOYL, the more excited I get. Especially today as i read the chapter on work. It really has me thinking. So for those that haven't read it yet- check it out!! I think its super inspiring. And I want to repeat the -No Shame, No Blame- mantra for those who spent a bit and were feeling guilty. Just observe what you spent and dont' judge it, but keep it in mind for next time.

So, last night dh and I had our first of what will be weekly Sunday evening financial "chats" :) I wanted to call them Summits to give them some importance, but he said he felt intimidated. So, we went casual. I talked up the book and he agreed to read it. We agreed that while we are so happy that we have bought a house and are reaching some of those big "material" goals, we arent' happy with what it means in terms of dh working long, long hours and just getting by. So, we're starting down this path and made a couple of action items for the week:

1. Make our fridge into our financial tracking center so it is always visible and in our minds.

2. Post on the fridge: our monthly expenses/income graphs and detailed monthly tablulations.

baby steps.

Dh is going to change his cell phone plan and fax plan to reduce his monthly business expenses. I am going to make the fridge charts, continue to reduce our food bill by meal planning and doing sales, etc..., open a house savings account to stash money in every month for property taxes so they dont' nail us every 6 months. The account will *not* be linked online or via ATM to our checking acct so we can' t steal money out. I am going to contact the state Craftsman Association about getting into the upcoming craft fairs to sell my baby legwarmers. Must follow through!!

And my dad and stepmom and I went yardsaling on Saturday and I got some great buys on things we needed:

-wastebasket for our bathroom: .50
- jeans and overalls for dd: 1.00
- THIS IS SO EXCITING!! old school, steel Osterizer blender that works like a charm : $5.00!!
- glass pyrex pie plate to replace ours that broke in the move: 1.00

I did not impulse buy at all, though I had bought a reg. plastic blender before I found the Osterizer, so am going to sell at our yard sale at the end of the summer. Oh, that was another thing I decided. that instead of always sending boxes to Goodwill, I am going to try adn sell it first.

And in the vein of simplicity, Dh and I decided to tell our family members that we *strongly request* that for holidays and birthdays, they choose 1 or 2 gifts that they really want to give dd, and thats it. We fear the toy situation around here is ridiculous. and so much of it is from *their* impulses, and its junk!! i hate feeling like i have to have it hanging around for a month before I can give it away. Half the stuff she doesn't even bother with. While we are trying to live more simply and lightly on this earth, we need to have it start with her too. I am not against gifts, but I am against toy takeover and so many gifts they don't matter- kwim?? So, I told my mom tonight (dd's 1st birthday is in 2 weeks) and she took it well. We'll see how dh's mom does. She's a shopaholic.

So, that's our update. I am feeling good. Glad dh and I are on the same page and have started our journey- however long it may be!!

Piglet68

05-31-2004, 09:17 PM

Great stuff, ladies!

Well, I'm feeling very optimistic. I got paid on Friday (I get paid once a month) and with all our bills paid we are still ahead of where we were last month. We have over $100/wk to spend on gas (which we use little of anyways) and food and "play money". And that INCLUDES the extra amount going to paying off that one debt I mentioned. It feels GREAT to know that it is halfway there now.

I also spoke to Mum, who seems pretty sure that there IS no minimum on her LOC. The interest each month is about $40 Cdn (about $30 US). Man, must be nice to have a bank that BEGS you to let them loan you money at prime, lol. Anyways, she was fine with us paying a very token amount until our property sells in September, so that is going to save us over $100/month WHICH...in the spirit of the plan posted here in the other thread...we will apply to another debt to speed up the payoff.

So I'm feeling really good about things. I think we'll make it until September after all (then we are going to have a huge "out of debt" party, LOL).

newmainer

06-01-2004, 09:04 AM

right on piglet!!

Piglet68

06-01-2004, 10:24 AM

forgot to say, newmainer, FABULOUS score on that Osterizer!!

Piglet68

06-02-2004, 09:24 AM

Okay, new success stories to add, and a tip for all of you!!

DH phoned one of our credit card companies yesterday and explained that things were temporarily tight, etc....he got our payments cut down by over half for the next 3 months!! Yay, DH!! :banana

I never thought they would do that, but then collection agencies negotiate this sort of thing all the time, so I guess they figure they'd rather do it before it gets to that, kwim?

Now, this probably isn't something you would do if you are on "The Plan" posted here in that other thread - it's just going to delay everything. But if you are in a temporary bind, as we are, and know that things will be changing for the better in the near future, it might be to your advantage. This is going to allow us to make all our payments each month and not be in the red come next payday. Also, it allows us to get rid of that one smaller debt by increasing the payments so that it's paid off in two months. Having one less item on the debt list is really going to be a psychological plus!

I'm so grateful for this thread. It's really motivated me. Thanks for starting it Jess!

Peppermint

06-02-2004, 09:46 AM

*I* am so glad I started this. I really am doing well just getting the email updates for the thread, keeping this goal at the forefront of my mind.

Dh and I were watching Dr. Phil the other day :eyesroll and he had his "weight loss challenge" people on there. DH and I have never been overweight (to that extent) and we were suprised at the parallels between the weight loss and getting out of debt. In both scenarios the person is generally there through some combination of their own fault and circumstances beyond their control. You can try many times prior to "getting serious". It is a struggle with often very small rewards/accomplishments, but each little bit adds up. And---it takes a damn long time and a lot of committment, together with a support system---which is where we all come in to help each other :love .

DH and I are both doing pretty good with not spending extra money. We both miss our cable (Trading Spaces, HGTV :( ), and figure that getting cable back when we are finally out of debt, is sadly, one of our biggest motivators :LOL.

ekblad9

06-02-2004, 10:30 AM

I'm so proud of you all! I'm trying my best. Got declined for all the 0% interest CC. That's sad. :( Oh well, I'll just keep paying on my huge % card and hope for the best. I really don't know why we got declined. We only have one CC, no student loans, pay our bills on time :shrug Oh well.

Cheers to you all!

Piglet68

06-02-2004, 12:13 PM

that is strange, ekblad7.

apparently, if you are denied credit you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report. you should check on this and see what is holding you up. from the sounds of it, you should be eligible. might be a mistake on your report!

kerc

06-02-2004, 03:00 PM

declined credit ---> yes, get a *free* credit report. call the major companies and they have an option if you've recently been denied credit.

cable ---> i soooo miss HGTV. But its been 4 years and i'm still living.

high % cc -->ekbald7 ---> have you ttried calling the company and asking if they will lower the % for you?

i'm soooo looking forward to getting out of debt. I am finishing my phd (hopefully this year) and am using getting a job/not being in graduate school as motivator to finish the degree.

agree with whomever identified the parallel to weight loss. I think too often people are in both debt and weight trouble.

gotta :run I'm working on some lab samples today.

Heather Feather

06-02-2004, 11:51 PM

Ekblad, anytime you are declined for credit you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report. I'd suggest getting one and making sure there aren't any problems with it. Its your right to know why you are denied credit.

My success for the week is starting to clothes shop at consignment stores. I don't think I'll ever shop for new again. I actually enjoyed shopping. I got a pair of dockers for $3 and 3 casual dress shirts for a total of $15. All with designer labels I wouldn't normally afford.

There is an interesting movement "sweeping the nation" called freecycling. Search for freecycle on the internet and you'll find the sight. If there is a group in your area, its a good way to give and receive free items.

mommy2boys

06-03-2004, 11:49 AM

Ok i just read both threads. Dh and I are finally super serious about paying off all our debt. One of our CCs went over hte balance and they raised our interest rate from 7% to 25%. We can't get another card because of too much debt to income. So right now we are applying any extra money we can to the balance.
One of my biggest concerns is DH is going to school now and racking up student loans. I hope to be completely debt free by the time he finishes school so we can apply all the extra money to the student loans. Anyway just wanted to pop in and say hi and I think this is a great thread with some wonderful advice.

vegmom

06-03-2004, 12:55 PM

yeh! we had been fighting to get our property taxes reduced for about 6months now and still have been paying our normal rate. We got a notice in the mail that we have a $700 credit and wont have to pay property taxes till the end of september. And the yearly taxes have been reduced by $500. So all that extra money go to pay off our cc debt. We do have one problem. We need to purchase a new car bc I am expecting a new baby in mid-august and we can't fit the two carseats in my truck. We are expecting almost $2000 in tax return money and dh has been putting $150 per pay period away into a savings account so we can pay cash for a new car. We will have enough for half decent car. So I guess it is not that big of a problem. It would be nice though to take that extra money and invest it somewhere.

georgia

06-03-2004, 01:54 PM

ekblad, i'm not sure what the laws are in your state, but....i've read that if you've been turned down for any kind of credit, you're entitled to free copies of your credit reports from the credit bureaus. it might be helpful to see what's going on.

let's see, news from here---we traded in our huge car payment for a less expensive car payment (and less expensive car). we're saving $150 a month. not exactly a perfect solution, but it's working for us right now. i'd like to have no car payment, but baby steps :)

my mom came to visit, and bought lots of household staples. she gave me money for a haircut :banana and for new shoes for my littlest. yippeee! dh and i are working on ways to FIND FIFTY dollars a week. we've cut everything to the bone already, so basically, it will be selling off stuff we own.

we do *need* a few things though :( i wonder if we could start some sort of get-out-of-debtors swap on the TP? i'm going garage sale shopping tomorrow trying to find exactly what's on my need list!

uh oh, gotta run.

Indigo73

06-03-2004, 02:43 PM

I don't know if any of you gals have checked out the Voluntary Simplicity thread http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=134959

or the Frugal Moms thread http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=143446

Both are full of great ideas to cut corners.

Piglet68

06-03-2004, 03:58 PM

Way to go, ladies!!

mommy2boys, there is a great thread here (http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=150305) with a plan I thought sounded really "doable" for paying off debt. you might want to check it out.

i don't know how student loans work in the US, but in canada the interest you pay is tax deductible, and they are really good about allowing you six months off from payments if your financial situation gets tough. the interest rates are very low (i'm paying 5% on mine) and they are quite flexible with payments. It's the last debt we will pay off b/c of that.

vegmom: that is so great that you came up with that extra money. buying a car for cash is SUCH a huge accomplishment - really, you should be very proud that you are going to do that, even if it means not being able to apply that money to current debt. most people finance cars, so you deserve to feel proud!

georgia: that's awesome about your car. That is definitely one way to get some extra money. have YOU checked out that thread I linked to above? it might be a good way to put that extra $150/month to use. and aren't mothers grand?? my mum was here for two weeks and got me so many things I needed (a hairbrush, some maternity clothes, and lots of diaper money for my newborn stash!).

Jess: fearless leader!!! have you seen what someone did under your username? gee, wonder who it was??? :W

( :love )

Piglet68

06-03-2004, 04:04 PM

Forgot to post my own success of the day. Well, actually it was yesterday.

DH spoke to his other CC company and, don't ask me how, but he got us out of payments for the next two months. Well, he has been a customer of theirs for over 10 years, so I guess that helped.

So, of the three debts we had that were really burdening us right now, we have dealt with all of them now. One will be paid off early by July 1. The other two are reduced/on hold until July 31. This will get us through the next couple of months without having to dip into our new "credit reserve" account, which feels really good. That might come in handy, too, when we move in August, to have that extra cushion (you don't want to have no extra money when you are travelling across the country!).

So I"m feeling very good about things now. I cannot TELL you how much stress it has taken off me. It's not that things are "fixed", but we are addressing them, taking action, and we can breathe a bit. Phew!

Peppermint

06-03-2004, 04:34 PM

:blush Aww... thanks Piglet! I have never been DDDDC'ed before. I feel the love :love .

Off to go thank you at TAO so that I can also recruit more people to this thread! :D

Heather Feather

06-03-2004, 05:26 PM

I was really tired last night when I posted. Here is the link for freecycling.
http://www.freecycle.org

It is extremely likely that there is a local group near each of you. I'm on the e-mail list for both groups in my area. It is very likely that someone out there is willing to give you something that you need but that they don't want. Its also a good way to get rid of things that you might otherwise throw out. It keeps items out of the landfills and will allow you to save money. Everything under the sun is offered for free. I've seen all sorts of baby items, furniture, computers, building supplies etc. be offered and taken. Just this weekend I met a very nice man and his son who were in need of aquariums for the reptile rescue org. they had started. It just so happened I had a few that were just cluttering the basement.

mommy2boys

06-03-2004, 07:10 PM

THanks for that link piglet, I am going to go make my list now.
As for my success I just got back from the grocery store and only bought what was on my list. Really good for me since I am a big impulse buying (can we say krispy kreme :innocent ). Anyway. I like this thread so full of wonderful information.

LDSmomma6

06-03-2004, 10:20 PM

I'm $30,000 in debt. That's just 3 credit cards. I haven't paid anything towards them in almost 3 years. I'm embarressed. I've already called 1 company, and they said that they would reduce the amount, pay 10% down, and pay the rest off in monthly installments. I am glad about that. We did pull up our credit report, and amazingly it was rather good. Not great, but not bad. I was surprised. Besides the cards, I have never defaulted on house payments (rent or loan), car loans or any other monthly bills (phone, cable, utilites, etc...)

georgia

06-03-2004, 11:36 PM

LDSmomma, that's wonderful that you've always paid your secured debt payments---those are the really important ones! We're about in the same amount of CC debt, thanks to putting ourselves through college and buying this @#$%&! house.......it seems so overwhelming most days.

Thanks again to everyone who has shared such personal information. I feel so energized after I read these threads. I'm not alone! None of my RL friends are in any sort of financial straits---in fact, it's the opposite. It's hard when I'm the only one who can't go to the puppet show b/c of the admission costs :( My friends *try* to do free/inexpensive things, but then they forget......

I'm going to go check out freecycle---I just read about it in our local newspaper (mil gift subscription ;)) today. Kismet!

Oh, one more thing, in an earlier post, I wrote that we were trying to find fifty dollars a week----hahahaha, that would be funny. I meant month. :eyesroll

wednesday

06-04-2004, 10:12 AM

Can you just call the CC and ask to skip a payment or two? Our situation is that we cna just meet our rent, car insurance, groceries, etc., but there is not enough left over to pay the CCs. I wasn't sure what to do, other than not send a check. We have the money this month and maybe next, but after that if DH hasn't found work, I just don't know what to do. I don't want to have penalties on top of what we owe.

Peppermint

06-04-2004, 10:15 AM

call and see if they can lower your monthly payment to an extent where you could still pay each month (like use what's left over from this month to pay next month), but first ask if you can lower your interest rate or delay payment altogether for a couple months, it doesn't hurt to ask. Good luck- let us know how it goes.

newmainer

06-04-2004, 12:01 PM

I think that if you have a pretty good credit report- regardless of how much you owe- cc companies can actually be pretty reasonable. They dont want you to default because i think that ends up costing them money. allowing you to skip payments, lower the minimums and interest are just a couple of things they do to keep you around and out of the collection agency.

Also, my sister had *great* luck with consumer credit counseling. they consolidated all of her bills, she paid a flat rate every month and got it all paid off in a couple of years. She had had pretty bad credit too and that really helped. I think they're a non profit too.

Piglet68

06-04-2004, 02:51 PM

wakeupmama: that's exactly what my DH did...they really would rather you be up front with them, so they don't have to deal with collections, etc (where they usually end up negotiating a settlement).

I have to say, this thread has brought me such good karma. We had one debt that I called and managed to arrange to pay off over the next two months. Well, believe it or not I got a call today from them saying that the company we owed to has been bought out. The new company is offering "settlements" to any clients who can do so before the end of June. We were supposed to pay $190 on June 1 and $190 on July 1. So we just paid the first bit, then she tells me "if you can pay another $100 before the end of the month, they'll consider it done". So basically, for paying one day earlier, we saved $90.

I was stunned - they actually called to ask me if I'd like to pay them less??? :eek

But DH explained that when companies buy out others they like to get their financial statements looking lovely so they make deals like this. Un Real. :D

witch's mom

06-05-2004, 09:44 AM

Bump.

Sadly nothing illuminating to add, but I'm thrilled to see this thread because we've got to lower the grocery bill, lower the gas bill, lower the visa bill . . . and shore up the savings account!

kerc

06-05-2004, 01:50 PM

i need to see little victories along the way -- so if you get sick of me posting them LMK and i'll stop (and not take offense).

my little victory for yesterday -- NOT buying takeout food and whipping up a quick (if boring dinner) to take to a picnic. Pasta + sausage + can o tomatoes + cheese = much less than swinging through some take out place.

piglet -- i'm not sure I totally understand how it is that the company is willing to gift you the 100 bucks. but YAHOO! great news.

and i made a purchase today at a yard sale -- well call it yardsale weekend. yesterday 6 bucks bought me a bag full of gymboree clothes for my dd. i almost bought more to sell, but then figured it would take time and life energy i didn't have. Today -- flashlight for dd 75 cents. and the find of the weekend......

wooden table and 2 chairs made by kinderworks. retail 350 bucks. yard sale : 20 bucks. And it is heavy enough that the chairs don't tip over when dd tries to climb in.

Peppermint

06-05-2004, 03:02 PM

Kerc- :clap

I like the "little things" updates, after all that is how many of us got here, buying a little thing here and there that we didn't need, and so-- little steps will get us out of it! :thumb

ameliabedelia

06-06-2004, 12:26 PM

Jumping in here. We really want to get out of debt. We don't have too much, but we do have a car loan and DH has a student loan, and a mortage. The car loan will be paid off by Nov 2005 at latest, but I want to get it out of the way faster. Currently we aren't paying ANYTHING on the student loan, since we paid a lot at once, and are paid up through 2006, but in the meantime it is just accumulating interest, which I HATE. We do use one cc, but we pay it off in full each month, but I would like to not rely on it. As it is, we often have to use it go buy food and gas if we have no money and dh doens't get paid for a few days yet. Thankfully, it has a large grace period for payment within the dealine, so we never have to pay interest or fews, but I still don't like using it. Plus, we really need to beef up our savings. We don't have nearly enough saved up, and need to really work on that.

The hardest part is finding the extra money to make extra payments. I am not very good at giving up the "little things", so I really need inspriation from all you mamas. My biggest downfall is the grocery store, I spend way too much on food and other little things. I am not good on bargain shopping for food or clothes, (I really hate shopping) and despise going to different stores and looking for things we need, so I usually end up paying more for convenience. Plus, each week the grocery bill just seems so high (80-90$). I am working on lowering that, but it just seems sooooo hard.

ekblad9

06-06-2004, 01:23 PM

I think I'm going to get the "Tightwad Gazette" I've heard such good things about it. I really need some inspiration. I'm landsliding right now..... :bag:

Alkenny

06-06-2004, 03:25 PM

We spend about $50 a week for groceries for 4 of us (baby's not eating big people food yet! :p I know different areas of the country w/ be different, but it can be done! Soups and homemade breads, cooking in the crockpot, etc. and it will stretch. I coupon, but only combine with sales. (Just spent $119 the other day, but saved $92, that will last us about 3 weeks!)

I just became a sahm again, so we had to adjust to not having that income...though we'd have had to adjust anyways with the new baby and daycare costs on 3 kids...we made the right decision there. ;)

Helps that our home is paid in full. We do have 2 car payments, but I used my maternity pay to pay down the credit card and all of the extra bills and get used to living on the one income for 6 months (I was on medical leave for a couple of months on top of maternity leave, thankfully I had STD insurance!)

My problem now is keeping the credit card away from DH. I don't want to get rid of it completely as we don't have any savings built up and have had things pop up in the past (furnace went out 3 days before Christmas, busted pipes etc.) that the cc really comes in handy for, but DH has a problem with spending...too many years as a bachelor! UGH!

newmainer

06-06-2004, 08:10 PM

Update from me:

Dh and I just had our second weekly meeting. Even though he has a bunch of work to do and it would have been easier just to put it off to tomorrow, we decided that we can't slack. Especially since neither of us did everything on our action lists for the week. Dh did change his fax plan and managed to get 2 free months. I did nothing on my list (make expense/income graphs, open our property tax savings account), I did manage to get some things that we needed at yard sales for CHEAP!! :) Check out my scores below:

-awesome farmhouse style braided wool rug that will fill our whole livingroom: $15.

- antique telephone table and small chair: $45 (this is more than i normally would have paid, but it honestly is an antique and so damn cute, I couldn't pass up. will look even better when i'm financially independent and have the time to refinish it..lol!!)

- second highchair for my mom's house for when she watches dd: $5.

- new ball for dd and small black frame: 1.00

I should tell everyone that we recently moved across country and sold all of our furniture before we left, so we have very little. We've had a lot lent to us and I have radically changed what i think our needs are. I am so into yard sales right now, the thought of buying anything new is not even appealing.

I have been perusing the Simple Living boards and getting inspired from the folks there who are really living the steps and many who have already made it happen. I recommend checking them out... its cool to have some real live examples of success.

Oh, and we are going away for the month of July to visit Dh's family and our friends back in Cali. We decided today that rather than just have my mom take care of our animals, we will try and sublet our house and make some money. We are on teh coast of Maine, so there are a lot of tourists. But i think we are more going the sublet route, and might even be able to get our mortgage payment covered. We'll see! That would be awesome though.

I really enjoy reading everyone's contributions. I think this is the longest I have stuck with any thread!! :twothumbs

ekblad9

06-06-2004, 08:33 PM

I just picked up The Tightwad Gazette and YMOYL at the library. Planning to dive into them tonight after the baby is in bed. Dh gave him a late nap so who knows when bedtime will be. :eyesroll Anyway, I've been thinking so much more about this whole thing. I'm SO bad at budgeting. I make a budget and never look at it again. I don't work "with" dh on it because he freaks out about money but doesn't do anything to help conserve it so I know we would fight and I can't handle that right now. So, it's basically me budgeting. Thank goodness I pay all of the bills and do 90% of any kind of shopping. Dh's weakness is eating out and buying crap at the grocery store. That's not bad, I guess. It just adds up, ya know? Anyway......:wave

witch's mom

06-06-2004, 09:17 PM

I did not spend one cent today. Well, unless you count utilities--ran the dishwasher in off-peak hours and cooked spaghetti sauce. It's 100 degrees here and we aren't running the air conditioner. Downstairs, it's really comfortable. Upstairs, it's an oven. Last summer we ran the air constantly; this summer, we'll only run it at bedtime and then only if the breeze doesn't kick up at night.

We've got a houseful of food, although there are a few regular items that we're running low on. But we've made a family agreement that we will get by on what's in the house--even if it means getting creative--until we leave to go on our trip to Oregon next Sunday. One week without a trip to the grocery store.

If I can do this, I can do anything. I tend to stock up even when I don't need to, and can say without a doubt that I am a grocery store addict.

I also paid off the credit card with money from the savings, figuring the interest on $1400 was money we didn't need to spend.

Feeling good, very motivated. Hopefully this will carry me through this grocery-less week.

ekblad9

06-06-2004, 09:28 PM

My goal is to NOT run the A/C at all this year. I know most of you probably don't use it anyway but I did. I promised myself when we had a house with windows we could open I wouldn't use the A/C anymore. I hear my neighbor's go on and I think "I'm saving money" :) Anyway, that's one of my summer goals.

This Tightwad Gazette is so interesting. Unfortunately I'm already doing alot of the things that are suggested yet we're still broke, LOL.

mommy2boys

06-06-2004, 11:02 PM

This Tightwad Gazette is so interesting. Unfortunately I'm already doing alot of the things that are suggested yet we're still broke, LOL.
We have that problem too. I checked out a bunch of links and made a chart of what bills to pay off and how long it will take to pay them all off. Roughly it will take a year and a half without adding in the raise dh will hopefully get this fall or our tax return. (things we usually apply to our bills) I am also putting a small amount of money aside for a piano for my boys. So I'm slowly getting where i want at least I see an end in sight.

ekblad9

06-07-2004, 06:28 AM

I'm wondering about the line drying thing. She says in the Gazette that using the dryer 100% of the time adds $20 to your electric bill. Our dryer is gas. Plus, we live in a subdivision with little to no yard. I'm wondering if it would be worth it to me to buy one of those circular clothes line dryers or would the cost of that be more than I would save?

ameliabedelia

06-07-2004, 08:37 AM

It's 100 degrees here and we aren't running the air conditioner

I am in awe! We run the air conditioner all summer long, I try to keep it set at a really high temp (80-85 degrees), but we have it set on automatic. We hardly ever open the windows. I am by myself alone in the house a lot, and I just don't feel safe with the window's open, even during the day. We live in a really safe neighborhood and all, and have a dog which would bark at anyone, but I still dont' like to have them open. So, I guess we spend more in the air conditioner, that we need to.

I also don't have a clothes line. I don't really know anyone in this subdivison who does, and to tell you truth, I am not sure if they are allowed. I have been throwing our sheets and blankets over the back porch duirng the day to dry, so I guess that saves a little money (but mostly because they don't dry so well in the dryer, tend to get tangles up). Plus, DH doesn't want to get a clothes line. He is of the opinion that time is money, and that even though line drying saves money, it takes so much time, so unless you really enjoy it, it probably isn't worth it.

I think that is our biggest problem with saving money. DH espeically thinks "time if money" and won't do something to save money if it takes A LOT of time. So, we end up buying convenience foods and doing things like that.

Peppermint

06-07-2004, 08:52 AM

Well, air conditioning.... last year when dh was taking our a/c out of the window (I live in Central NY, so no need for central air really), he dropped it out the window :LOL, it was actually REALLY funny to watch. Anywho- can't afford one now- so- this summer we are going without! Tomorrow is supposed to be 90 degrees and VERY humid- so, that'll make me sweat and be proud of not going out to spend that- only $80 at walmart- for a new a/c.

So, I mentioned before cashing in a life insurance policy I had- it came to $2900 (not to worry I still have another policy). So, I am having a dead tree taken down (so I can sleep at night and not worry about it killing us by falling on the house)- $600. The rest I am keeping in savings for now, as dh still has his crappy job where we have to pay $650/month for health insurance. If/when he gets a new job, whatever is left of that money will go directly onto the CCs. I am also taking all money I make off of ebay and putting it on the CCs. Yesterday, instead of buying a new table for our deck (they were only $90 for a table, umbrella and 4 chairs at walmart :eyesroll - and a year ago, I would've bought it right up)- instead I bought a $3 can of rustoleum to paint the hand me down table we have, and we'll just use lawnchairs from the yard and porch when we want to eat on the deck :thumb.

We were talking to our neighbor/friends last night and they have some CC debt and are thinking of trying to get pregnant with their first soon, I told them "GET OUT OF DEBT NOW, WHILE YOU CAN!" and ranted and raved for a good 15 min. about it, I think I made an impression :D . (or maybe they just won't come out back when we are in our yard anymore :LOL)

kerc

06-07-2004, 09:03 AM

on line drying:
my goal is to hang one load a week. to save money, energy and because i like how it smells when it comes in. If it is a nice day and i'm out more, then i hang more.

on ac:
if you have central air and don't have a programable thermostat - get one. They are super easy to install yourself and reasonably priced. We have one for heat and we more than saved the $30 purchase cost in the first two months alone.

on TWG:
I have paged through it at the library, but honestly -- I find it so darn disorganized and not really a simple thing to do. Don't get me wrong, there are lots of good ideas in there -- I just *choose* to spend my time otherwise. I scan the grocery ads and shop at the store with the most savings for me for that week rather than go to each store. I also don't really stock up for erin ahead of time. The stuff I bought last spring for her just didn't fit in the right season.

My influential in my attitude has been this spring I was taking a grad class in natural resource policy -- my minor toward my phd is water resources science. Anyhow -- I did the paper on consumption. And read Affluenza (which apparently was also a pbs special. do a goggle search and you'll find an interesting website) and the overspent american. The second, by juliet schor, really struck me. Americans spend more time each week shopping than they do on average playing with their kids! And of course ymoyl has helped too.

and finally on budgeting:
i really think the thing that helps with this is being aware of how much $$ you throw away. And to do that you have to know how much you spend. Not how much you *should* spend, but how much you do spend. Then you can make a decision of "gee i really want to swing by and pick up take out" but then come to the conclusion of "but i don't *choose* to spend my money that way I want to ____"

ekblad9

06-07-2004, 09:29 AM

I guess I just feel so discouraged. I mean, we never, ever eat out. We have the most basic ($10/month) cable TV only to save $ on our internet. I kept track for a few months of what we were spending and while I spent probably about $40 at the coffee shops/Starbuck's that was about all the excess spending we (I) did. Dh almost always comes home for lunch but maybe twice/month will grab fast food. I guess I just feel like having five kids, one income, and a "normal" life is expensive. I mean, two of my kids take music lessons but both are very, very cheap. The boys despise any kind of organized sports or classes of any kind, really, so we don't have that expense. The girls are both in one dance class each but I pay it in full at the beginning of the year so it's not a monthly thing. I know having two cars is a problem but I really don't see a way around it right now. There are tons of free homeschooling events that we attend during the day and I'm just not willing to give those up. I guess I could drive dh to work but then he couldn't come home for lunch. He could pack a lunch, I suppose. I'll have to think about that one.

Thanks for letting me rant.

:hearts
Amy

Peppermint

06-07-2004, 09:38 AM

Amy-

It is discouraging and it is expensive! :nod

I think a goal for you might be just one less trip for coffee (just one less, not giving it up completely), and making sure not to aquire any new debt. You are going to be starting at gymboree soon, right? Where will that income go? Could that go directly to the debt, since you are getting by without it now?

Look for little things like what you'd like to buy but you don't buy- like my a/c, that makes me feel good, even though it's not taking away any of my debt, at least I am not making it worse, and there is definitely something to be said for that.

My goal for today- get to the library to get YMOYL :wink.

ekblad9

06-07-2004, 09:51 AM

You're so sweet! And yes, I started at Gymboree about a month ago. She pays me once/month and my paycheck is sitting up in the cupboard. Dh, ds3, and I are going to CA on a business trip for dh. His expenses are 100% covered (food, lodging, rental car, plane) so I got my parents to buy me a plane ticket for my birthday/Christmas gift and ds3 doesn't need a ticket so we're going. I'm saving all of my Gymboree money for that right now. After we get back from there it will for sure be going to the debt! I try to include the fact that my youngest two get free Gymboree classes in my "income" from there. Not that I would pay to send them, though, so....Anyway, I'm going to work two nights/week in the summer and then see about the fall. I may have to go down to 1 night depending on how the homeschooling is going. I really think we should get rid of dh's car. That would save us tons of money. Enough to buy him a cheap car with cash within 18 months or so. I suggested the idea to him so we'll see what he says. :)

kathsmom

06-07-2004, 11:11 AM

Hello, everyone!

I am pretty new here. I had posted to the previous "get out of debt" thread. I have been reading all of the posts in that thread and this one. Thank you all for sharing your stories.

We were doing pretty well a couple of years ago, then DH lost his job last year and was out of work for 2 months. We have had to have a lot of stuff done to our home or things replaced, so that has really eaten into our budget.

Currently, I am a SAHM. We had looked into me going back to work, but I could only get entry level jobs in my field (if they would even look at me, because I have been out of the work force for 6 years). By the time I pay for full-time daycare for DS and before/after school care for DD, most of my earnings will be eaten up. Not to mention the extra gas, convenience food/items, work clothes, etc. So, right now, I will continue to be a SAHM and I will work on getting debt paid off and living more frugally.

Sometimes I get the "I wants" and it is so hard to live frugally. I get frustrated, because I see all the material goods that people purchase. I try to keep in mind how hard DH works and that frivolous purchases will keep us from our goal of being debt free.

Thank you so much for sharing!

kerc

06-07-2004, 12:55 PM

hi kathsmom-- i read your posts on the other thread, really i did. and i think i might have even responded to them. I think when we start a new thread we should pm the moderator to ask her to lock the old thread so no one can continue to post there. too darn confusing.

anyhow Sometimes I get the "I wants" and it is so hard to live frugally. I get frustrated, because I see all the material goods that people purchase. I try to keep in mind how hard DH works and that frivolous purchases will keep us from our goal of being debt free.

this really struck me for a couple of things --brielfy because I;m a t work.
1. I too get the want-it syndrome. I have lessened it since I've begun to re-evaluate my purchasing choices. But I have a "I want" list. And sometimes it is enough to put it on the list, and not buy it.

2. It is essential for me to have some "mad money" -- to do things that are not essential but make me feel like I'm not totally denying myself of everything. It helps me keep from binge-shopping. Things I do with that extra cash: haircut for me, pedicure, buy a cheesecake for the family for dinner, get a new shirt, buy dd a new toy, etc. My dh has his too. He does whatever he wants with his. Yes, every red cent could be going to pay down our debt -- but this system is working well for us.

Piglet68

06-07-2004, 01:04 PM

Sometimes I get the "I wants" and it is so hard to live frugally. I get frustrated, because I see all the material goods that people purchase. I try to keep in mind how hard DH works and that frivolous purchases will keep us from our goal of being debt free.

I think the biggest "carrot" I hold up in front of me during these times is thinking about how much extra money we'll have when we are debt free.

It is very hard to deny yourself so many things in such a consumer-driven society. And let's face it, not all of those things are totally frivolous!

But I think if you look at it as a temporary situation, it helps alot. My situation is perhaps more temporary than most, but even 5 years is not forever. Five years is high school - think of how fast that all went by!! :)

And then, when your debts are paid off, you will have that extra money lying around and can make those extra purchases that you are denying yourself. And it will feel a THOUSAND times better to buy them b/c you know you aren't putting yourself in debt to do so, and you will have developed the skills by then to get a good deal, pay cash rather than finance, etc.

ekblad9

06-07-2004, 01:04 PM

I can lock the old thread if you want.

A&A

06-07-2004, 04:06 PM

Well, I'm teaching my dd to play the piano--so I figure I'm saving on piano lessons (since I'm not paying someone else to teach her.) Also we bought the piano used, and it is beautiful!

We also bought a used car, which saved us a ton of money vs. buying a new one.

I definitely spend too much money at the grocery store!!

kathsmom

06-08-2004, 10:13 AM

Kristin (kerc) and Piglet68,

Thank you so much for your replies and encouragement. I think that you both have given me some good suggestions. I do agree that DH and I both need some "mad money". It's just been so hard to have any extra for mad money because DS has been sick with asthma type stuff so much and DD has been having testing done for a learning disability. For some reason, when I spend money on myself, I feel guilty. I don't mind so much if DH spends money on things for himself (he does it so rarely) or if I spend it on the kids, but I get this guilty feeling even when I am buying something I really need (like new clothes or shoes).

Kristin, I think it's a great idea to make an "I want" list and just to be able to put it on there and think about it is a good idea. Of course, I have been pining for a Fleurville diaper bag, but I really cannot justify $150 for one right now!LOL!

Piglet68, I think that you are so right that I need to focus on what the outcome will be instead of any "deprivation" I feel now. DH and I are going to be setting up a budget and trying to squeeze everything extra that we can onto the home equity line of credit and the credit card. We are hoping to pay off our car in the next 1-1.5 years.

Thank you so much for your encouragement! I really do appreciate it so much. I look forward to participating with all of you on getting out of debt!

newmainer

06-08-2004, 10:16 AM

ugh, hit delete by accident so need to retype! here goes...

Hey Mamas! Not much to report here except that i went to the bank and opened a new and separate savigns acct that is not linked to our checking acct. in anyway- atm or online- so we can put our montly chunk toward property taxes there and can't dip into it. We are gettign better at planning ahead for those big occasional bills.

I wanted to respond to a few previous posts:

Amy, I agree, I think having a family and especially just one income *is* expensive. sounds like you are doing great. Sounds like by digging a bit though you are coming up with some ideas to free up some more money- like the car. Other things that come to my mind are public transportation and bikes. I don't know where you live, but biking is awesome in the warm weather. Tough with a baby, but I guess I was thinking more about if your dh could bike to work? And exercise to boot!! Anyway, you are my idol with 5 kids regardless. I think its hard with one!!

Oh, and you have probably gotten this already from YMOYL, but i love that it isn't about budgeting. I fail budgeting entirely. The whole approach of YMOYL to trackign spending is what has made me realize that this is a different program with different goals that your typical money management gig. With budgeting I always felt frustrated and jsut wanted to get to the stage when I could start spending money again. With this approach, I feel like I am just more aware, and even excited about finding ways to save money. Its just the beginning, but i feel like I am more in a long-term life change, rather than a short term just-until-i-have-more-money phase.

Kerc- I agree with you about TG. I have been thinking about getting it, but from the tips i get from others, it sounds too piece-meally to me. I know that probably the idea is that a little bit here and there compounds into a lot. And maybe once we are more entrenched in frugal ways we will be able to embrace it a bit more. I have been thinking about Affluenza. Think I will hit the library today!

And re the clothes line/dryer. I personally just love clothes lines. I was so excited that our new house had one all set up from the house to all the way across the lawn. So i can hang clothes from the deck, and it actually glides smoothly ( i hate ones you have to yank on). i dont' know. I love the look of clothes on the line and the smell. and i think on hot days, they dry faster.

well, that's my .02. Wait! No! I'm not giving anyone .02 ;) You can all have it for free...:)

A&A

06-08-2004, 10:24 AM

The philosophy of Tightwad Gazette is more helpful than the actual tips. One thing I remember her saying is that not spending money is usually very passive, whereas the media who interview her always want to make it active. They want to shoot pictures of her hanging clothes in the attic, and she wants them to shoot a picture of the whole family going past McDonalds......NOT spending money there.

kerc

06-08-2004, 10:28 AM

she wants them to shoot a picture of the whole family going past McDonalds......NOT spending money there.

that is great! don't you think it is this consumer driven society that makes it so hard to do-without?

mommy2boys

06-08-2004, 10:40 AM

that is great! don't you think it is this consumer driven society that makes it so hard to do-without?
I so agree with that. What we did is I wanted to disconnect cable but dh loves his sports so I unhooked cable in every room but the TV room (we have 3 tvs :bag: ) and we don't usually go in there. Dh just watches his sports in the evening in there. I think the commericals can really get to me quickly. Its helping me I know I tend to get the I-Wants the more tv I watch.
In dh's economics class they were talking about credit card debt and how the US has trillions in credit card debt. I keep thinking I don't want to be a part of that anymore.
Piglit thanks for reiterating about in the end you will have more money. It does seem to make it all worth while for us.

A&A

06-08-2004, 11:15 AM

I remembered some more of the TG philosophy that I found helpful: what she calls the "law of diminishing returns" or something like that. Spending twice as much for something doesn't mean that you will get twice as much use or pleasure out of it.

For example, if you remember your friend's birthday with a $5 present, she will be overjoyed that you remembered. But if you spent $10, she won't be doubly-overjoyed, she'll still just be overjoyed. So, the extra $5 wasn't worth it.

So ask yourself, "how low can I go?" to still get most of what you want, for less money.

Piglet68

06-08-2004, 11:47 AM

Another tip re: rewarding yourself...set your reward levels a bit lower.

I used to reward myself by buying some clothes, or something online, etc...now I've lowered my standards, lol. Last month my reward was hair dye (got it on sale for $6.99) and this month it was a haircut (a huge expense at $30!! - but I haven't had it cut since early February, and used to get it done every 6 weeks). Most of my rewards entail expensive grocery items nowadays. I have this passion for Peach Mango Salsa. It's made by a certain company and it is over $5 for a jar, which I can eat almost all of in one sitting. I also have a passion for veggie chips, over $4 per bag. I really cannot justify buying these things, so I save them for treats.

You wouldn't think you could find such small things rewarding, but I'm here to say it works! Turns out, as I've learned, that the warm fuzzy feelings you get when you allow yourself a treat, seem much more connected to the CONCEPT of "treat" rather than the dollar amount.

My daily success: on Sunday I took out $20 cash and have only just broken it today: I got some hot water from the coffee shop (forgot to bring my mug; but I have my own tea bags here at work) and a biscotti. Total was $1.25. That will be it for today's spending. I made a fabulous wild rice salad on Sunday that will last me three days of lunches. It's way better than anything I could buy in our cafeteria. And stretches my weekly cash budget by miles! :D

MelMel

06-08-2004, 11:49 AM

I tried to post a few times to this thread (like on page 1 of the first one :eyesroll ) but time and dd kept me from it. I have read just about all the posts, and am very excited and interested along with you all!

we have always been very frugal (since we bought our house, before that I guess we werent) we have always shopped thrift for everything, no cable, no cell phones, used cars..... etc etc etc

but we have a goal of selling our current home and moving to the 'country' that we have been working on for the last 6 months or so. we arent at the point to put our house up..it needs some work which my dh has been plugging away at (luckily its mostly painting and stuff, and he is a painter) the problem is with only his income, we wouldnt be able to even buy a house the same price as this one..we were approved for it when we both worked before we had dd. it is a double, so we would lose that rental income, so the mortgage would be twice as high for the same priced house, kwim?

we are both EXTREMELY anxoius to get a few acres and a dumpy house (even a trailer, who cares) and get away from the traffic, super stores, busy streets, go go go attitude..and get our dd and any future children to a place they can run around and be kids! tired of looking at little cement slabs.

we currently have alot of stuff to unload, so while cutting spending isnt really an option (we dont have TOO much of a problem with that...even with my thrift store trips a few times a week thats only 5-10 bucks, and thats all I shop, really)

we have alot of stuff from before we moved here, we lived with my inlaws and bought whatever we wanted with our 2 income and almost no expenses (they were 2 very very small incomes, though..still under $20-$25 grand a year total, so we arent talking big bucks, here :LOL)

and have some credit card debt from when we moved here, new roof, old comp...misc spending, I am not sure exactly how much, maybe $7-$8 grand. thats it. we have one well running car, and my dh has a crappy car that we have been sharing with my sister upstairs (they havent had a car for a few months) so he needs to get a used work van and then we can give them that car (which she needs, as she will be a single mom of 3 very soon :angry ) so that will be $6 or so thousand more in debt.

my dh has a budget and everything (he is excellent at saving and tracking and all that...always has been) and he says the cc debt should be gone in 1-2 years....sooner if we unload most of our stuff, and if i can sell the stuff I make a few times a month or so. the van payment should be covered by the extra side job he can get by using it (he is a private contractor, but works along side his pop, and they meet up and car pool the work van his dad has)

so we have goals and a plan, and I am all set to join in and track successes and set backs! (if I can keep up..this thread really moves)

we are gunna go to my aunts to house/pet sit for a week at the end of June-she has 4 acres and a pond/boat/fishing fancy house with a jacuzzi tub, like a private resort!!! its gunna be a great, expenses paid vacation. she lives in a town next to my inlaws, so dh can go to work everyday. she is also paying us $20 bucks a day to watch things and feed/love her 3 pets. we really lucked out getting this gig!

have a great week everyone!

witch's mom

06-08-2004, 12:15 PM

Two full days have passed since I stepped foot in the grocery store. The goal: No grocery shopping until Saturday, when we get ready to leave for Oregon, and then we'll only get some fruit and snacks for the car ride.

This takes planning. We're really low on some "staple" items, things my older DD (who's rather particular) eats regularly. She knows the plan, that we're "eating the house down" before our trip and that we're trying to control the grocery spending, and she actually has tried a couple of new things these past few days. I made banana bread out of some bananas that had gone nearly rotten, and she loved it. We're going to make our own sourdough bread on Wednesday night, after the starter is done. (I've never done this before.) So this is challenging, but fun at the same time.

Fortunately the weather has cooled down, so not running the A/C isn't killing us.

Feeling a little nervous about having paid off credit card with part of savings, but trying to feel confident that if we stay on track with this reduced spending, we can build the savings back up in the next few months. I'm going to look into setting up my direct deposit from work to siphon some of the money right into the savings account. As it is now, all of it goes to checking, and I always tell myself I'll transfer some to savings, but it somehow never happens.

Other things we've been doing to help reduce debt and plan for retirement:
*Paying extra $170 a month on mortgage principle (to make it a round number)
*Putting $200 a month into IRA
*DH puts $40 a week in our DDs' bank account. This has accumulated to be over $6,000 in the past few years.

So we're doing a few things right, and we make decent money. We've just really got to save!

I'm getting lots of motivation from this thread. The e-mail alerts alone are keeping me motivated. Thanks, everyone!

Peppermint

06-08-2004, 12:27 PM

Well, I went to the library yesterday to get YMOYL. My driver's license is gone :angry , lost and gone forever. So- not only do I have to spend $10 to get another- I also couldn't get any books out as I do not yet have a library card here, and can't get one without my license :eyesroll .

The good part of this is it keeps popping into my head "just go to half.com and buy a copy, you could get it for cheap...blah blah blah", but--- I push that out of my head, it is that nickle and diming $hit that got me where I am (in major debt). So- I REFUSE TO BUY THAT BOOK! I will get it out of the library when I can, but I WILL NOT BUY IT! :)

Dh and I tried to figure out where our debt went, like what did we spend all that money on- and you know what? We could only account for half of it- half- and considering the children's birth's were a good portion of that amount, it's not like we can sell anything to make the money back, YK? Selling kids is illegal and besides, I am pretty attached to them :LOL.

So- it's our 90 degree humid day here and Dh did great- fans in the windows over night- then closed the place up this morning (including keeping all the shades pulled), so it's pretty decent in here right now :D . We CAN do this!

MelMel

06-08-2004, 12:35 PM

OT: piglet, if you are coming on Friday, please please bring the recipe for that rice salad!!!

back on track.....

things i am doing this week: I just spent $160 on groceries that should last the 3 of us till June 18th. also, I am having a local WAHM/diaper party here this Friday (which people will bring snacks for, also) and a baby shower for a friend here on Saturday...and the food for those are included.

i am making batches of molasses cookies, a few loaves of vegan pumpkin bread (very cheap, the apple butter and canned pumpkin are the most expensive ingredients, they are only a dollar or so per loaf...the rest is just stuff on hand, and no milk or eggs or butter cuts the price even more) Wild Oats had large, beautiful heads of Romaine for $1.29, so i got a few and will cut the leaves and make little roll up tuna or chicken salad thingies with toothpicks. I got chicken at Marcs (locally owned discount store) they had hormone free all natural chicken breasts for $2.29 a pound.

I also got a few loaves of brownberry multigrain bread at Marcs for about $1.15 each, I can cut the crusts off of those, make 2 little sandwhiches per single slice (cream cheese and cucumber, maybe) and toast the crusts to make bread crumbs to dip cheese ravioli's (I saute them in olive oil, yummy!) I can also make some pizza crusts, let them rise, prebake them, and them top and toast them at the shower!. so the shower wont cost very much at all!

for the shower favors i got some chocolate (hersheys bags of chips 2 for $3 at Marcs) to melt down, and organic raisins $2.29 a pound at Wild Oats...i am just gunna make little choc covered raisin globs, and wrap them up and tuck them in folded infant prefolds (that reminds me, i have to walk to the dollar store and get a few packs of dipe pins to pin them closed) very cheap, and totally consumable! no little plastic things that are thrown away!

for the gift, i made the mom a sling (of course) luckily I was able to intercept 3 guests whom i found out were going in on a $50 maya wrap!!!! wacky.

so while its fun to entertain, it wont break us! did i save enough to hire a cleaner, though ;) ...I better get to work!

(btw, we always use re-usable napkins and plates, cups, etc, I have a chest of 'party supplies' I pull down and clean for parties)

thats whats going on this week in my personal 'plan'..not a set back as much as an opportunity!

bamboogrrrl

06-08-2004, 02:00 PM

Hey Jess - Bummer about your license! This might satisfy your jones for YMOYL before you can borrow it from your library. It's a synopsis of all the steps from their website: http://www.simpleliving.net/ymoyl/fom-about-summary.asp It's pretty in depth so you should groove on it.

I'm not sure if what I did today is a good thing or a bad thing, frugal-wise...but it was a joyful thing. I bought 7 butterfly bushes online (on sale!) to replace the ones that got killed by this past harsh winter. Some of the gonners were working on their fourth year, so they were doing okay, but three weeks of sub zero weather zapped 'em. I decided I would miss seeing all the butterflies in our yard, and the blossoms are gorgeous. Theoretically, we should enjoy them for years to come. They would add so much to our enjoyment of life and our yard. I think maybe that's what simple living is all about - gorgeous experiences, not closets full of landfill bound items.

On the plus side, $82 was deposited in my account yesterday for selling books on amazon.com so that goes into the "pay down the mortgage" fund. Dh had a nice job yesterday and "the check is in the mail." Short terms goals? Pay the rest toward dh's Roth IRA, make another double mortgage payment, fill up the oil tank for the house (ouch!) for next winter - not sure if I should wait and see if oil prices drop.

Rosetta

06-09-2004, 12:18 AM

kerc

06-09-2004, 08:54 AM

I was curious-has anyone found a cheap telephone plan? I've seen this several companies adver. on TV and wondered it if they were just as good. Right now we have Verizon for local and don't have long distance (we use phone cards)

i was just looking into this last night. we have qwest for our local land line and then pay about 40 bucks a month for a cell. We have unlimited nights/weekends on the cell with long distance (sprint pcs) -- so we make our LD calls there. We do have a few times a month when we make long distance calls from home (i.e. we both want to be on an extension or dh has the cell and i need to call) but we have a reasonable deal from qwest and it is easy. Not as cheap as a phone card, but we kept forgetting to use the card and paying through the nose.

bravo piglet and witch's mom. Well done.

I had an ok week so far. I realized on monday that i needed to hit the supermarket. trying to stretch two weeks meant I had nothing for lunch and then eneded up spending like 4-5 bucks on a lunch. Piglet -- will you post wild rice salad recipe in good eating? sounds yummy.

Our CSA produce begins next week. I am psyched. I already paid for it 100 bucks from now till october.

ekblad9

06-09-2004, 09:24 AM

I have been so good this week! Restisted purchases a million times. I shopped around and found some Skecher sandles for ds1 for $10! Normally I would have gone to REI and bought full price Tevas. I also went to Target with a friend who is a major shopaholic. She spent $100 on toys for her kids for the car (they're going on a trip). I was SO tempted to buy stuff. All I bought was paper for my printer and two tiny notebooks to record spending in for dh and I. I had a gift card so only spent $1.44 of my money. I was so proud of myself! It's the little things, eh? And something else that's huge is that Dh gets paid tomorrow and we actually have money leftover from the last paycheck! That rarely, if ever, happens! This thread, you ladies, and YMOYL as well as The Tightwad Gazette is making huge changes for me! :)

Peppermint

06-09-2004, 09:27 AM

Piglet68

06-09-2004, 10:51 AM

Mel - I will be there!! (and if I wasn't already planning on it, your baking list would have tempted me anyways, lol). I want to buy a sling for a collegue's upcoming baby shower.

I'm going to have to get the name of the rice mix. It's a mixture of various strains of brown rice (mahogany, brown, etc) and wild rice. I always find it in the health food section. The same company makes various mixtures of rice, they come in little bags. The one I use has a brown label. Anyways, I'll write it down tonight.

It's so easy: all I do is cook the rice. I toast some raisins and walnut slivers (pine nuts are good, too) in a little bit of butter and add that. I add corn (fresh from the cob is best) and I chopped up a red pepper and added that. I seasoned with salt and a bit of tarragon. Really, you can put whatever you want in it! Yum!

Well, DH and I were joking about having good $$ karma lately. He says it's b/c he's been giving money to some homeless people - you know, a buck here and there a few times, lol. But honestly, we must be doing something right.

My Dad had hired me to do a small consulting job for him (he's a lawyer and needed some expert advice). My "bill" was $250 (Cdn). When I checked my account he had put in $450! I have to call him today, but I know my Dad: he probably figured I was undercharging myself, lol. What a sweetie! So that takes care of a couple of bills for next month! :love

Forget the homeless people - it must be this great thread! :grouphug

PS - way to go, Amy! It is soooo hard for me not to buy things if my shopping companion is buying up the store, lol!

kerc

06-09-2004, 11:15 AM

we actually have money leftover from the last paycheck!

that deserves a :banana :carrot :guitar :snap :jammin party.

don't you love how the banana and carrot are grooving together?

bamboogrrrl

06-09-2004, 11:17 AM

I was listening to NPR this morning, and they interviewed the writer, commedian, actor, pundit guy Ben Stein about his new book "How to Ruin Your Financial Life." Not that we should run out and buy it but...

From amazon.com: "Written with the same tongue-in-cheek cheekiness as his bestselling How to Ruin Your Life, this book is a humorous road map showing you how to make something useful of the money that comes in and out of your life. Follow the rules—in reverse gear—and you’re bound to be a lot better off than you are now. Follow the rules as they’re written—and you’re highly likely to wind up in bankruptcy court—as millions do every decade.

Here are some of the rules, just to whet your appetite: Collect as Many Credit Cards as You Can and Use Them Frequently; Compete with Your Friends to See Who Can Own the Most Expensive and High-Status Possessions; Know in Your Gut That Only Suckers Work Hard for Money and That Smarties Like You Only Have to Find an Angle; Remember That Retirement Is a L-ooo-nnn-g Way Off, and Don’t Even Think about It Right Now; Bear in Mind That Only "Little People" Pay Their Bills or Taxes; Don’t Bother to Own Your Own Home Because Home Ownership Is a Hassle...and many more."

It made me smile this morning when he talked about how many times a day we are tempted to buy stuff, but how few times a day we are inspired to save our pennies. Our thread makes the "save money for financial independence" message a little louder in my life... Woo hoo!

sinsaratea

06-09-2004, 03:27 PM

So, I bit the bullet and went with CCCS. I know it looks bad on your credit, but I can't imagine that missing payments looks any better. Also, as I was crying and praying the other night, I knew that I OWED people this money and I had an abligation to pay this off, but we could not manaage even the minimums now with our paychecks. Is there anyone else out there who has taken this step, or who just has some words of encouragement?
Sara

georgia

06-09-2004, 04:04 PM

sara, that's awesome that you took that scary step----do you listen to clark howard on 750 wsb? he highly recommends working with a reputable credit counseling non-profit. for me, facing the problem was the hardest. it's important to stop shoveling once we're in over our heads. asking for help just might be a lifesaver!!

:love the ben stein thing!

Peppermint

06-09-2004, 06:35 PM

Sara-

I think you made a very wise step. It surely looks worse to be missing payments, and I think once you have gotten all of your debt paid this way, you will have to be looked at as someone who made it through, YK?

So, now do you just write one check to CCCS per month? Can you make extra payments? That would be a great way to motivate, to make some small "extra" payment each month. :thumb

This thread is giving me so much encouragement. Think you will all still be here in 2 years when I hope to be through this? :)

Thanks so much for the YMOYL link. Boy- it is overwhelming, but I like the ideas very much. Esp. having more time to volunteer, that is a big goal of mine and DH's. He loves building and so wants to get in with Habitat for Humanity, but right now is working so much, he doesn't have the time :(.

One other thing I have realized is that I need to keep my life priorities in shape. It is very important for me to be a SAHM and for dh to be here as much as possible, evenings and weekends. I also want to be "present" for my children when I am here. I am currently babysitting a 5 year old after school and will have him for the summer. I know I could do real day care, I have many other people who have said that they would like me to care for their children. However, I know my limit. I know that my children will only be this small once, and I know that my priority is to be here. Surely we could be out of debt much sooner if dh or I worked more (he talked of getting a p/t job on top of his f/t one), but I want us *here* as much as we can be, and I need to not sacrifice my time with my family to get out of debt quicker. If dh gets the job he's hoping for, I will go and substitute (I am a former teacher) a day a week to help out, but I don't want to leave the kids more than that, so I won't! :D

I will get out of debt, without sacrificing *my* ideal family situation.

disclaimer- no offense intended to WOHMs here, I respect and love you all :love , it is just not something that works well for *ME* :wink.

newmainer

06-10-2004, 07:16 AM

Hey everyone-

you all are doing so well! i feel like i'm flailing a bit. I did call to get the application to sign up for the craft fairs that I am going to sell things at this fall. Hopefully that will bring in some extra cash.

and so that i wasn't talking out of my a&^, i went and go the Tightwad Gazette from the library and :blush I really like it! A&A you are really right about the philosophy being more helpful than the actual tips, although it does get me thinking creatively about a lot of the things i can come up with on my own. Things like washing out plastic baggies and reusing aluminum foil i have always done, more from a saving waste/environmental standpoint than anything else. I can see how as DH and began to make more money, we just accepted buying more things because we could. When we made less money, we did put things on the cc, but there was a lot that we just did without, or waited on. Time to get back in the saddle with that.

Jess, have you done the calculations about you working? I have read in both YMOYL and TG that the benefits of the second parent working tend to be much,much less than people think when they factor in taxes, commute money, wear and tear on car, etc.. I won't count lunch out and special clothes, because as someone who is trying to be frugal, i know you wouldn't do either of those things! :) But reading about how a second job can actually cost more has made me feel more resolve about being home and trying to find ways to make money that won't be taxed etc.. ina raditional way (selling things, etc...) Just a thought. But if you do the calculations and it makes sense for you, that extra bit of income can make a huge difference!!

Ok, so the other day i bought a small notebook and some velcro with sticky back so we can mount the notebook in the car so we remember as soon as we buy something to write it down. We were just stuffing receipts in an envelope, but that wasn't mindful enough. Dh and I are not good at following through with things like that. Does anyone have a tracking system that works for them?

Thanks everyone. You truly are inspiring. I think I need to get my butt in gear a bit more.

Peppermint

06-10-2004, 07:35 AM

As far as me working, I haven't bothered to actually figure out how much I would make (and use in the process just by having a job) having a full-time teaching job, b/c I am just NOT doing it- and as far as the subbing one day a week, I won't make much, b/c I sub at Catholic schools, but even with paying for gas (I have enough clothes, no one makes any fashion statements at Catholic schools, and dh would be with the kids, so no day care) I would make like $50 a day (8am to 3pm). I know it's not a lot, but- I have more reason than simply making money. Being *in* the schools gives me a good view of what they are really like (every parent should spend a few days as a fly on the wall in the teacher's lounge at their school) to help me decide where to send my kids (my oldest will start school in Fall 2005). Bonus- I LOVE TEACHING! :)

Craft fairs- talk to me about that. (please :)). Right now I sell (handmade) things on ebay and often make gifts for family members etc. I think I could make enough stuff for a booth at a craft fair, but I wonder how much it costs to have a booth, etc.? The stuff we make is Irish themed and the city we live in has 2 "Irish" stores, we need to approach them to ask if they would sell any of our stuff (I have noticed that they do sell some homemade things). We also make "Firefighter" themed items, and there is actually a FF supply store in our hometown, dh knows the guy who runs it, and he has said that he would like to sell our stuff, I think we need to get in gear on that.

The little boy I babysit has a half day of school today- so I am picking him up 3 hours early, I wonder if I will get paid extra for that? I am so horrible with these things, I am not good at asking for more (even if it is really what is deserved, yk?). I sell myself short IRL and with friends. I am good at selling on ebay and such, b/c the price is there, and they buy it if they want it. But like, I just started Usborne books, I have a hard time selling to family and friends, I am uncomfortable with making money off of people I care about. Anywho- I am rambling- the parents of the boy I sit for are super nice, I assume (I know :eyesroll ) that they'll pay me extra, so I likely won't ask (then just complain to dh if they don't :eyesroll ). Not hard to see why I am in debt, huh? :innocent

sinsaratea

06-10-2004, 08:23 AM

Hey Georgia, Hey Jess and all my debt-ridden sisters!
Thanks for the words of encouragement! I will be making a once a month pymt to CCCS to the tune of about 500 smackeroos.... though much less than the payments would have been! And YES I LOVE clark howard... i actually met him at a Braves game one time. He is so nice!
I will be on here a lot this summer since I am a teacher and out for the season! I'm so glad that I have "met" you all!
Be blessed y'all,
Sara

Indigo73

06-10-2004, 08:36 AM

I haven't posted much here. We recently had a bit of a set back or maybe a wake up call. DH was laid off. So our plans are totally down the drain.

The good news is that he's already had a couple of good interviews... But things are very tight cuz we were going to use his next paycheck to get caught up and then start saving a progressively larger amount of each check until none of it was part of the household budget -- 50% to savings and 50% to debt repayment. The goal was to have everything paid off except for the mortgage by Winter 2007 when dh was going to stop working and be the stay at home & homeschooling parent while I worked since I have the much more flexible job and he is much more domestic.

So the next few weeks are going to be insane while we skrimp and pinch pennies. I hope we aren't set too far back. Thankfully we have a full freezer and will be able to get by on less that $50 bi-weekly for groceries for a few weeks.

Peppermint

06-10-2004, 08:44 AM

Aimee- Can your dh get unemployment? We have been through a few lay offs in our 5 year marriage, and I know it stinks :hug.

Indigo73

06-10-2004, 08:56 AM

Yes, he could probably get unemployment, but it takes weeks here. He had to set up a hearing date which is still 12 days away. And of course it's not retroactive.

He will proabably have a job before the hearing - he has paperwork for a gaming license at one of the local casinos, that paperwork will probably be approved first. Plus he's had a couple of other "good" interviews.

I remember the last time I had been on unemployment (over 6 years ago) it was just a matter of filling out a couple forms and automatic approval cuz I didn't quit or get fired for nasty reasons, not anymore. Make you jump through hoops these days. In the mean time my son does not have insurance and that is another kettle of fish.

Peppermint

06-10-2004, 09:02 AM

Yes, the hoops are just terrible, we were glad to have at least something though, it's good that your dh expects to have work again right away.

For insurance- does your state have anything to help? NY has Child Health Plus, we are not eligible so we are paying an insane amount right now to stay covered :eyesroll . But, maybe you could look into something like that?

Indigo73

06-10-2004, 09:17 AM

Yes, there is an insurance program in the state but my income puts us over the free limit and to get into the co-pay program takes weeks. I started the paperwork, but it can't go forward until dh is out of work for 30 days. Again he will probably have a job which we shoot us out of that bracket.... Grrr

kathsmom

06-10-2004, 10:46 AM

Aimee,

I am so sorry to hear about your DH being laid off. I hope that he gets a new job quickly and that things will work out for you all.

As far as our situation, we just seem to keep getting hit with bills that are not part of our regular expenses. DH had to have some tests done at the doctor's office and he had a stress test at the hospital. DS has been sick with asthma type stuff, so between the co-pays, prescriptions, and all the bills coming in that insurance won't pay (due to our increased deductible), our budget has been out of whack. We did set up a Medical Savings Account at DH's work, but since we weren't that sick last year, we only budgetd $600 for the year. Well, we have used it all up.

Then, DH ran over my beloved Mac Quest last night. The wheel assembly is broken, so I have to Maclaren to see how much they will charge to fix it. We only have this stroller and a jogging stroller that my FIL bought for us (which is not good for everday use).

Thanks, mamas, for sharing your strategies for getting out of debt!

Piglet68

06-10-2004, 11:25 AM

I have a question about CCCS (I'm assuming that stands for Consumer Credit Counselling Services)?

Why does it look bad on your credit? Is this true of all credit counselling services? What's the difference between profit and non-profit (other than one charges you and one doesn't) in terms of your credit and what they do to help you?

Also, did you do this after your debts were referred to collection agencies for collection? B/c it seems to me you can negotiate directly with them for reduced payments, payment plans, options, etc...why go through an agency?

Finally, I think it's really worth it to contact some of your debtors before it gets to the point of missed payments and just be up front with them. I think they would much rather arrange something with you ahead of time then wait until they have to refer you. We have done this with three of our creditors now, and it has helped immensely without (as far as we can tell thus far) affecting our credit rating.

We will thankfully not be needed a credit counselling service, but these are things I've often wondered about.

newmainer

06-10-2004, 12:32 PM

Being *in* the schools gives me a good view of what they are really like (every parent should spend a few days as a fly on the wall in the teacher's lounge at their school) to help me decide where to send my kids (my oldest will start school in Fall 2005). Bonus- I LOVE TEACHING! :)

Craft fairs- talk to me about that. (please :)).

I just started Usborne books, I have a hard time selling to family and friends, I am uncomfortable with making money off of people I care about. [/QUOTE]

I was a teacher before dd was born as well... so I hear you on this!!
:OT Though, while the teacher's lounges are educational, i definitley think its the classroom that matters. The TR is truly for blowing off steam. I vented a lot in there, but loved my students dearly. When you're in a classroom for house with 20-30 students, adult time is precious!

back to our regularly scheduled topic....
I searched for craft fairs in Maine on the web and just checked out all the sites I found until I found one that is a small group, non-juried (meaning you dont' have to submit examples for a group to decide if you are good enough or not), and its only $40 for the table and I have access to over 6 large fairs a year, mostly Sept.-Dec. I have 2 other mama friends who are may be splitting the table with me. I have to get a sales tax #from the state, but the woman who runs the organizations is sending me the forms- its really easy. You can also call the Chambers of Commerce in towns local to you- they can tell you about the fairs and how to get involved. I have tried to sell my thing on ebay and was discouraged- i only got $2.00 for it! I guess I need to just keep trying.

I have a new friend who just started Usborne. And actually, she was going to look at having a table at fairs too. you'd need to see if they would accept non-handmade items, but its a different venue than the typical party-style of selling and you'd reach a lot more people as well. I didnt' think it was too weird. I bought a couple books, but i really think they have some good stuff. I got some books for dd in spanish, which are hard to come by here in maine.

I think I might have saved dh and I almost $2,000. As I've mentioned, we have been renovating our home. We were intending on putting in a new washer and dryer. in fact, we have already purchased it. We bought it a long time ago (when we still had money from the bank), but couldn't have it delivered until the bathroom was tiled, which is where it is going. well, the tiling is being done as i speak and so dh started to look into installing the w/d and discovered that the dryer is not going to work w/o a gas conversion kit, which apparently us unavailable right now. Soooo, the dryer won't work. He wanted to look at getting a different set. I am convincing him that we should but a cheap, used set for about $200, and take the refund on the new set and use it to pay for the tiling. that would be HUGE!! Dh has a bunch of contracts coming in, but by the time we pay for the tiler and put aside living expenses for the next couple months, we'd have nothing left over. But, if we do this, then we can pay off the tiler and put the surplus toward our cc. It makes so much sense... buying the new system is totally in our old way of doing things that keeps us strapped for cash. Buying used is more economical... though we will pay more for water/electricity I think b/c it won't be conservative a system. But with the clothes line, i think we can make some of that up.

Sorry that was such a long story, but I feel its a victory as we start breaking old, destructive patterns of spending and start using our brains and creativity a bit more.

Off ot make a flyer to advertise our house for July!! ( I will not surf the rest of MDC until its done...I will not surf....will not....repeat)

witch's mom

06-10-2004, 01:16 PM

Day 5 without a trip to the grocery store. Last night made a great herb pesto from garden herbs (parsely, basil and chives) and put it over pasta with roasted peppers and leftover chicken. Got a clear plan for dinner tonight.

A couple setbacks: I threw out the sourdough starter because I suddenly became paranoid that it would make us all sick just in time for our trip to Oregon next week. (I've never done a starter before and am not all that confident in my kitchen microbiology skills.) Also, DH's tire went flat, which will require a repair job that'll cost $15. I also splurged on a copy of Siblings Without Rivalry at the used bookstore ($4.10 with tax) because now that school is out, if I don't get a handle on my DDs' squabbling, no amount of money is going to save my sanity!

Now the goal is to stop in at the grocery store tomorrow only to get snacks for Saturday's playdate and Sunday's long car ride. All other shopping will be done when we get back next week, and with a new goal of minimalism in mind. Another goal is to avoid requiring a stop at the gas station before we leave town. We've got a quarter tank of gas to last us til Sunday morning.

There's a certain aspect of this spend-less, accumulate-less, use-less lifestyle that appeals to my whole value system, and that's very satisfying.

Aimee, sorry to hear about DH's layoff. Those are always tough times.

Thanks again everyone, for posting. The motivation is tremendous.

kerc

06-11-2004, 12:24 PM

hey on the sourdough starter -- I am soooo with you on that one. I worry, I love sourdough, i worry, etc. You posting about it has made me rethink "maybe I should try it again."

I've been trying once a month grocery shopping. It doesn't work for us. So i made a detailed list last night and sent my dh out for groceries. He buys what's on the list and no crap. This might be the wave of the future.

proudmamanow

06-11-2004, 02:53 PM

This is SUCH a great idea for a thread--sign me up!

Dw and I just had a really good $ chat last night. We seem to constantly get in & out of debt on this 3-6 month cycle and are incredibly frustrated. I have a well-paid job, she has a part time job, and it should be more than enough. But b/c we can't seem to say no to ourselves, (and grow up in some ways!) and choose the life that our values would suggest, we keep ending up in debt! Most recently it was because we spent $ in the early weeks of my pg in excitement, and then to make ourselves feel better after my m/c. But we recognize that specific circumstances aside, we NEED to change the way we live. We are not happy!

It feels great to come to this pt. The next step of course is doing something about it :).

1st steps: trying to live on just my salary until mid-Aug., and putting all the extra money into repaying debt. Getting our personal & household spending under control.

We are highly motivated right now b/c dw is going back to school in Sept. and we will then have to live on just my salary, a big challenge for us. But it will be easier if we start out of debt!

I have also been reading this thread & recognize that small changes are probably better than huge ones (i.e. more sustainable). But we are in a bit of crunch that I hope will help motivate us to make changes that we've been wanting to make for a long time...changes that reflect our values...
and get us ready to pass on good habits to any kids we might have!

anyway thanks to all those who are still reading my stream of consciousness and I look forward to being part of this thread!

:)

Peppermint

06-11-2004, 03:21 PM

Jesse :wave Welcome! It sounds like you have a good plan for getting yourselves together with money. I am very sorry to hear of you suffering a miscarriage :hug.

I had an important realization today, I can't believe this hadn't fully dawned on me until now :eyesroll . Here is the crux of what got us into this mess. Suprisingly, we have always been *relatively* frugal, it's not like we ever charged "unnecessary" things- like a new comforter, or pizza hut, etc. However, when we had extra money in the account for whatever reason- we would treat ourselves to pizza hut, or I would buy that comforter I had been wanting for a year. Then, the dryer would brake, or we'd get a flat tire- and--guess what? that wasn't in the budget (plan) and we never had savings- so- onto the credit card it went. All of the CC debt we've got came from "necessary" things, we bought the "extras" with what we thought of as "extra" cash.

In our minds we weren't those people who got into debt by living past our means, we were "victims" of bad circumstance.

Well, you all know where the victim mindset got us.

This is a breakthrough for me, on the importance of savings and being prepared for crappy things that happen (like flat tires).

Ummm....HELLO! I never though of myself as an unintelligent person, but as I right this out I wonder where the heck my head was. :shake

No more "victim" status for me. :nono

Indigo73

06-11-2004, 04:25 PM

Patty,

Don't beat yourself up. Sometimes things just need to sift through the grey matter before they pop.

Ya gotta be able to treat yourself to a new comforter once in a while. Like Piglet (I think) said - keep the treats small, but budget them in too. Even if it's just an extra $5 a week into a jar - it does add up. Take it from me, our annual change jar purchase is always fun and at least $200.

witch's mom

06-11-2004, 05:21 PM

We were doing so well today, staying within our $25 budget for our minor grocery trip, finding a birthday gift for under $10, and making homemade bread. Then we came home from our errands and the gas stove was snapping away, trying to light itself. It does this every now and then, but it's been snappping and sparking nonstop for the last two hours, so I finally broke down and called the repair service. After reading the last post, I know I should just pay for this out of the checking account instead of putting it on the credit card (first impulse), but we're going to see how much it adds up to. Hate to say it, but I'm feeling a little victimized . . .

ameliabedelia

06-11-2004, 06:07 PM

One other thing I have realized is that I need to keep my life priorities in shape. It is very important for me to be a SAHM and for dh to be here as much as possible, evenings and weekends. I also want to be "present" for my children when I am here. I am currently babysitting a 5 year old after school and will have him for the summer. I know I could do real day care, I have many other people who have said that they would like me to care for their children. However, I know my limit. I know that my children will only be this small once, and I know that my priority is to be here.

This is what we believe as well. It is really important for me to be home, and with us having 2 kids in a few months, it will be doublely important. I have thought about doing childcare as well, but I just don't think I am cut out for it. For one thing, we don't have minivan, so I took in even one extra child, when the new baby gets here, we would be stuck at home all the time. That would drive me CRAZY (plus just the thought of driving around other people's kids makes me nervous). And, my sanity is more important than money.

I had an important realization today, I can't believe this hadn't fully dawned on me until now . Here is the crux of what got us into this mess. Suprisingly, we have always been *relatively* frugal, it's not like we ever charged "unnecessary" things- like a new comforter, or pizza hut, etc. However, when we had extra money in the account for whatever reason- we would treat ourselves to pizza hut, or I would buy that comforter I had been wanting for a year. Then, the dryer would brake, or we'd get a flat tire- and--guess what? that wasn't in the budget (plan) and we never had savings- so- onto the credit card it went. All of the CC debt we've got came from "necessary" things, we bought the "extras" with what we thought of as "extra" cash.

This is our biggest problem as well. We dont' have CC debt, but the same thing is what is keeping us from putting money into savings and paying off our car and student loans faster. Whenever we have extra money, we feel we can "treat" ourselves, so we usually go out to eat, or buy things which we "need", but don't REALLY "need" (For example we were at Wal-Mart the other day, and they had a clearance rack of toddler clothes. DH really wanted to buy DD a cute $2 shirt. It was nice, but she doesn't NEED anymore clothes, she has plenty of clothes for the summer. Then we decided we also needed to get her a cute little skorts ($2) to go along with it, she she has hardly any shorts (almost her entire summer wardrobe is dresses). But she didn't need THOSE THINGS. We are sooo used to saying, oh it is only $2 or $5 or $10, whatever. It is soo hard to change that mindset.

Also, any advice on getting DH's to be more frugal? DH is really great on most things, but the biggest thing is he has a tendency to spend lots of money on eating out, or convenice foods or soda and candy at the gas station, that type of thing. Not only is it terribly unhealthy, it is also costly. During the school year, when he was still teaching, it wasn't uncommon for him to stay after school late and finish papers and then stop at Wendy's or McDonald's and spend $5 or $6 on meal, instead of waiting the 30 mintues until he got home (he had about a 35 minute commute). Also, lots of times when he stops to get gas, he will spend $2 on a diet coke, a bag of m + m's and the newspaper. That isn't a lot of money, but when you do that several times a week, it adds up. The other problem, is it hard for me to keep our grocery budget down when DH really wants lots of convenince foods in the house (frozen pizza's, frozen burrito's, hot pockets,) that type of thing. He stays up later than I do, and he often gets hungry at night, so he will eat one of those. Plus, now that it is summer and he is home during the day, he eats those things for lunch as well. I guess I could cook lunch, but I kinda resent having to cook him lunch, since when it is just dd and I home, we eat very simply for lunch (pb sandwiches, leftovers, etc.) I cook dinner every night, and I really don't want to cook lunch as well. I guess also part of that is my upbringing. When we were growing up, my mom would make dinner for everyone, but after a certain age, we were responsible for our own lunches and breakfasts. Plus, the other problem, is DH doesn't really like my cooking very much. And, I will admit, I am not the world's greatest cook. I tend to take shortcuts, or get caught up in something else and let things burn (especially with a toddler around). We also tend to like really differnt foods. DH likes meat and burgers and fries, while I like pasta and casseroles and veggies. So, while I make dinner every night, he may not eat much of it, and wants one of his convenience foods later. I always read about the tips in the TG about eating oatmeal and whole foods (and it being lots heatheir too), but DH won't eat oatmeal, he will only eat store-bought cereals.

So, not that I have rambled on and totally bored anyone :(. That is our biggest struggle right now, any advice?

A&A

06-13-2004, 12:59 AM

A&A

06-13-2004, 01:07 AM

We spend too much on cable. But my kids REALLY like Animal Planet, and it's educational, kwim? It's really easy to justify everything we spend as "necessary."

We went to the amusement park this week and spent over $100. Ouch. But my dd really enjoyed it.

Sigh. Dh and I aren't so good at this "not spending" stuff.

kerc

06-13-2004, 02:54 PM

amelia ---- I am a TOTAL snacker - like your hubby. and when I crave food I crave fast food. It literally takes my every thought to make it home without driving thru a f. food restaurant when I need something to drink. I guess I'd focus on one problem -- either keeping household receipts down or stopping the quick stop habit. And likely the household ones will begin to follow the others...

I keep snacky food in the car. Meaning a bag of goldfish, in winter cookies (they'd melt in summer), trail mix, bottles of water (or pop). Then I tell myself I'll stop after I've already had a snack. Usually that cuts the urge right there. But it definitely means I spend less at a fast food stop if I have already snacked.

another idea would be to have him bring his own cup into the gas station to fill up with pop -- usually it is about half-price to do it that way.

A&A

06-14-2004, 07:03 PM

You know, I just realized that it took me a long time to see "frugal" as a trait worth aspiring toward. KWIM?

Peppermint

06-14-2004, 08:16 PM

Yeah- frugal can be seen by some as the negative, "cheap".

ekblad9

06-14-2004, 08:20 PM

:thumb We got approved for a 0% CC. I transferred the balance of the other one that was 22.9% :bag: Now I can really start paying it off! :)

Peppermint

06-14-2004, 08:22 PM

:clap

georgia

06-14-2004, 11:31 PM

Hi! Just wanted to check in :). I read a fabulous article in my co-op's newsletter about frugality/sustainability being akin to a type of spirituality. It got me thinking how it's all interconnected. Just like living simply, the consciousness of our actions and spending/saving habits can be viewed as mindfulness. How each action affects other actions. Who cares that we saved $2 on soap----me!!! because it's reflective of my goal of getting out of debt!!! When I CHOOSE to save our money or spend it, how does that affect my family's future?

I recently realized that I'd been repeating the spending habits of my parents (buy now, pay later), and the debt-ridden life is not what I want *my* children living. I'd like to have them learn by excellent example, starting NOW :D

Peppermint

06-15-2004, 07:07 AM

and the debt-ridden life is not what I want *my* children living. I'd like to have them learn by excellent example, starting NOW :D

Dh and I were talking about this the other night. How do we teach our kids? By example? My parents are GREAT with money, they always pay the cc off at the end of the month, they managed to put 4 kids completely through 4 years of college each on a cop and nurses salary (and she was a SAHM for many years). So, somehow their "example" was not enough for me. I think I am really going to make my kids (when they get a little older) an integral part of our family's budget making, finance planning.

I'd like to hear other's thoughts on this.

kerc

06-15-2004, 10:34 AM

Dh and I were talking about this the other night. How do we teach our kids? By example? My parents are GREAT with money, they always pay the cc off at the end of the month, they managed to put 4 kids completely through 4 years of college each on a cop and nurses salary (and she was a SAHM for many years). So, somehow their "example" was not enough for me. I think I am really going to make my kids (when they get a little older) an integral part of our family's budget making, finance planning.

I'd like to hear other's thoughts on this.

Like verything else you try to pass on to your kids, in addition to being a good role model, I think you need to actually talk to and involve your kids. Example: You want to go on vacation (ha! in my dreams, I know). Your kids are 7-8 or 9-10 ish. You are thinking you could do 3-4 days at disney (or insert other expensive park) or you could do 2 x 3-4 days locally (maybe a camping trip and a waterpark trip). You could hold a family meeting whereby you get to discuss this issue and as a family (i.e. not just mom and dad) decide where you go.

And I think get your kids more involved in meal planning and prep -- teaches them how to cook and it teaches them how to plan (i.e. when mom goes to the store on sunday if I don't tell her to buy hot dogs we can't have hot dogs on thursday when it is my turn to cook).

In addition I think kids need their own money to play around with. I could start a whole other thread on what people think about allowances, I'm not yet sure what I think about allowances. I have some time to decide. But I do think somehow kids need to deal with budgeting $$.

And of course, just talking about choices you are making and how you're budgeting.

Indigo73

06-15-2004, 11:44 AM

When I was 7, I had a paper route. The first thing my dad did was take me to the bank to open a checking account. By the time I was 12, my paper route and allowance had to purchase and clothes not purchased at back-to-school time. I knew how to balance a check book long before high school.

Piglet68

06-15-2004, 01:01 PM

Such good posts here. Congrats, ekblad7, on the 0% CC!

Amelia: my suggestion is to get him to keep all his receipts (if you trust him, lol) and add them up at the end of the month. Even though I was fully aware of how much money can go down the drain by paying for food and snacks, I was still shocked to see how much cash I was going through - even just having a muffin and tea at work each day. Until we started writing it all down, I kept justifying it as "not alot of money". So I think when your DH sees exactly how much is going to that...well, perhaps you can tell him he can take it out of his gas money, lol.

I did a bad thing this month: I bought a diaper for $23 and I haven't told DH. It was such a steal: a WIO plus two extra liners, so a total of three diaper changes for $23. But I am chicken to tell DH b/c I already had a haircut this month, and spent $25 on a baby shower gift (it's a sling!). I have a feeling we might end up a bit in the red this month; I'm trying to be really frugal now and not let that happen!!

angel04345

06-15-2004, 01:03 PM

I love this! My husband is TERRIABLE about saving money! I added up all monthly expenses lets say its 1000.00$. Then I divided it by four weeks (gets paid weekly with usual four weeks in month) Justin gives me 250.00 a wk (in this case) The rest of the money is his to play with save or purchase things he THINKS he needs! I babysit a little boy and a girl and purchase grocerys and gas with that weekly. I am taking on another little boy Monday and I will begin putting that into the savings account and pretending we don't have it all. Just think at 80.00$ a wk simply depositing it into savings that will add up nicely! Try forcing yourself to save money! Once its in a savings account it is not likely that you will feel good about spending it! Not to mention if you choose the right bank (a bank that lets you deposit by mail but isn't open weekends or late in eves) it will be hard to get to and hence won't get spent! Hope this helps someone out! Also try utilizing atleast half of your tax return for paying down debt! Keep a third for frivilous spending (have to do it now and then!) and then put the other third into each member of your familys savings (divide it by each member of the family and deposit equal shares!)
If you have any type of "welfare" health ins some states have a special phone plan for you. My daughter was on maine care and while she was are phone bill was ten dollars a month!!!! No extras of course!
Hope I have helped out some families! We will be 200$ a month less in debt with 2004 taxes! :)

georgia

06-15-2004, 03:35 PM

Here's a really great link about credit counseling. I think it was Piglet who was asking about the non-profit CC vs. the others---the non-profits aren't in it to get a cut of the money you paying off. I hope this site can be of help to someone!!!

jess, about the teaching thing----my parents paid for everything i ever needed/wanted for the most part. while i got a job at 15, it was purely for spending money. if i ever ran short, i went to mom and dad. they bought my car, the gas, insurance, etc. paid for college, my apartment, etc. i just didn't have the experience of having to do it on my own. i'm not saying i'm not completely grateful, but it didn't really help me understand about spending only what/less than one makes/has. i want my dc to see and be a part of making decisions about money. i'm thinking of not using my debit card anymore and going to cash only so that they can *see* that when there's no money---we don't get.

i'd love to discuss the whole learning about budgeting thing more! gotta run---

Frugally,

ekblad9

06-15-2004, 04:39 PM

I just saved $35 in my phone bill by signing up for Talk America! :) LMK if anyone wants to try it too! What a great deal! I had no idea!

kerc

06-15-2004, 05:32 PM

Here's a really great link about credit counseling.

did you forget the link?

georgia

06-15-2004, 06:22 PM

um, that would be yes :blush

http://www.nfcc.org/

angel04345

06-15-2004, 07:14 PM

You know when I was a teen I babysat making atleast 25$ a week. My parents went and bought me a car for 800.00$ Because I was only making a small amount my parents made me give them 15$ a week for the car ins and paying the car back. Plus I mowed the lawn for 20.00 as needed. I worked to pay it back and didn't have gas when I ran out of money so I learned how to manage money! With my sister my parents paid for her car for her and then set that same plan up but never followed through with it. She is constantly unable to manage her money! She also lost her son so maybe it is just her maturity level. (he was a premie and she never went to the hospital for visits to snuggle him! The nurses told my parents to take guardianship or he was going to foster care.) I on the other hand think that the arrangement I had with my mom allowed for me to set the ground work for healthy financial planning!

ekblad9

06-15-2004, 09:54 PM

OK, I've had a good day. Not only did I save all that money on the phone bill, I found car insurance for nearly $1000.00 less/year just by looking around. And, I think we found a used 12 passanger van (sorry, but we need it :) that we can buy for less than dh paid for his cheepo car! It's in great condition too! You ladies have really inspired me! Thank you! :hug

Peppermint

06-16-2004, 08:43 AM

:hide:

I signed up to bring one of the mamas in my Mom's Club some cinnamon buns this morning (she just had a baby). I make some very yummy cinnamon buns (not at all MDC kind :LOL- no wheat flour at all ;) ), anywho- I forgot to make the dough last night, and then slept in until 7:20 this morning. It takes about 3 hours (with breadmaker and rise time) to make them, which would hardly have provided this mama breakfast---so I ran to the grocery store and spent $6 buying pillsbury Grands to bake. I could've made them for like $2 at the most :eyesroll . I am a naughty mama in debt today- time to go list some dipes on the TP to make up for it! :)

Amy- what car insurance co. did you go with? I have Geico and I ASSume ;) I won't get any lower (progressive was higher)- are there other "low cost" companies I should check out?

Phone co.s- uggg.... my SIL sells phone service and she guilted us in to buying her service- first she claimed we'd save money- ummm... $20 higher bills- not a savings to me---ohh-- all I have to do is make all my friends and family switch to this phone service too? And then for them to save any money- they have to force their friends and family to sign up for it too :angry I am sorry but, I don't do that to my friends and family- guilt them so I can save money :angry . Her (my SIL) main reason that we needed to buy her service was to "help her become a SAHM". So, now I pay $20 extra per month, so that (in theory) she can SAH with her next child. Sorry- rant over!

So, what am I going to do that is productive today toward this goal- that's right -list dipes.

I am also going to apply for another 0% interest card to transfer to, one of mine is running out.

I SOOOOOO don't want my kids to end up in a situation like this- I have to teach them to handle money- thanks for the ideas so far on that :).

newmainer

06-16-2004, 01:00 PM

hey all.. I haven't been on for awhile because we are having work done on our house so i have been over at my moms. oh, and the past 2 days i've been sucked into the DaVinci Code. :)

But, i need some encouragement. Yesterday was bad. I was feeling so crappy about our situation. still am, tho not as heavy. unfortunately, on sunday (dd's 1st b-day no less) i sliced my finger (as in, a piece off!! :eek ) and so typing is quite difficult so i need to be brief.

basically, i feel so stupid that dh and i spent as much as we did remodeling our house. it happened so fast and we were so deep into it already. all the planning and tracking we ddi for months still ended up 15,000 short. now it is all on cc (plus our previous non house balance) and i am freaked. i just feel dumb. its keeping me from enjoying my house to the fullest extent (ok, ,this is a small 2 bed ranch, not a McMansion. but previous owners smoked for 30 years so we had to gut it). i almost wish we had just held out for a different house. We might have even paid off our other card entirely.

my only positive thing right now is that dh is with me 100% on really changing our lifestyle and committing to dealing with this. we continue to meet every week to evaluate and further set a plan in motion. it feels so far away- the end.

sigh.

thanks to all of you for keeping this thread alive. i need it. me too, off to post dipes.

-kelly

Peppermint

06-16-2004, 01:05 PM

It does stink that the road will be so long for some of us here, but we should be proud of ourselves for committing to it :thumb. Don't lose hope!

georgia

06-16-2004, 02:31 PM

This thread is becoming my touchstone because I often start to feel very overwhelmed with the enormity of my situation. To me, the saddest part is we were already living pretty simply----a huge step backwards for us has been buying this HOUSE. UGH! Never buy an old house thinking you won't throw all your money (and then some) into it. Did anyone ever see that old movie with Tom Hanks and Shelly Long from Cheers? It was called The Money Pit. That's what I call this house. My dh has agreed that as soon as our financial situation will allow, we're going to cut our losses and sell. While that's awesome on one hand, I grieve over the thousands upon thousands we've thrown into it getting it at least half way habitable. We'll probably even lose more money selling it. :(.

Anyway, I try and count my blessings that we HAVE a house, our health, love, etc. Money certainly doesn't buy happiness, but being in debt doesn't quite lend itself to joy many days. It's a long haul----thanks to everyone for continuing to contribute to my lifeline.

:love

kerc

06-16-2004, 08:06 PM

i was just balancing my checkbook and noted the 30 dollar withdrawal we have each month and realized I've not mentioned it here.

We are doing the xmas club at my credit union. We usually don't spend a ton on gifts for christmas, but between thanksgiving and christmas typically spend AT LEAST 250 bucks on travel to see family. So we begin each fiscal year in the hole. So back in March?/April? when we were at the credit union to finance our new used car, I set up an account. They take 30 bucks a month, which hurts a bit, and stuff it in a savings account. We either can get a check Nov 1 or they will directly deposit it into our regular savings account. We take dec. off and then pay again in january.

If only all the other bills would be that easy. Then I wouldn't need this thread!

ekblad9

06-16-2004, 09:03 PM

Great idea, Krisitin, I always "mean" to do that but never do. You've inspired me! :)

I went to Trader Joe's tonight with my co op books in hand. I wrote down the prices of the stuff I normally order through the co op. The organic milk at TJ's is a huge savings! So are a few other things. The rest of it is about the same price but I wouldn't have to buy a whole case. I'm excited about saving money on food AND being able to eat the brands we like!

:hug to everyone!

kerc

06-17-2004, 08:56 AM

Great idea, Krisitin, I always "mean" to do that but never do. You've inspired me!

i'm glad to inspire someone :) I guess my point in posting is that even if you can find just 10 bucks and start now, you'd still have 50 "extra" bucks by christmas.

witch's mom

06-17-2004, 09:33 AM

Back from our trip, now in a re-stocked house. I hit Costco, Trader Joe's and the grocery store yesterday (all right in town, so not too much driving) and actually came in close to budget if you ignore the fact that I had to buy a 48-pound bag of dog food. (I had budgeted $100 to restock the house after we ate it down to the barest minimum before our trip and I spent $131 yesterday.) Considering I was spending over $250 a week on groceries before, I'm going to consider this a success despite the $25 bag of dog food. (I know we could get it cheaper, but this is the only dog food that keeps our dog, uh, gas-free enough to be able to come in the house.)

BUT . . . today's my day to go to the Co-op for the bulk of the produce and poultry. I usually spend about $100 in that place, and today my goal is to get out of there for $40. No diverting from the list.

And I'll stay out of the grocery store until next Wednesday and Thursday. If at the end of the month we can put a few hundred bucks in the savings account (and LEAVE it there), I'll be thrilled.

So I have two goals for today: Keep the Co-op bill under $40 and talk to our payroll person at work about diverting some of my paycheck straight into my savings account starting in July.

Thanks to everyone who has posted. This thread is very inspiring and is really helping to keep me on track towards spending less, saving more, and paying the house off faster.

ChasingPeace

06-17-2004, 11:24 AM

:lurk: I really enjoy this thread! It's been very motivational!

Jess--I just wanted to note that when we lived in Northern Virginia, Geico was cheapest for car insurance, but when we moved to Michigan, Geico was astronomical so we switched to Progressive. Point being, depending on where you live, Geico is not always the cheapest, so it's good to shop around. When we bought our house we switched to Liberty Mutual--it was cheapest by far because it was the company with which we had our home owner's insurance. You might check with whatever company you have other insurance policies with--be it home owners, renters, health, life, whatever. Most have discounts for carrying more than one policy with them.

ekblad9

06-17-2004, 11:26 AM

:hug Good luck! Grocery shopping is the hardest for me! My 12 1/2 year old has suddenly started eating like a horse! It's hard to keep stocked on food these days! :)

witch's mom

06-17-2004, 10:56 PM

Well, not so good at the grocery store. $63 at the Co-op instead of $40, but $7 of that was magazines that I'll expense for work. And I forgot about Father's Day, so tomorrow the girls and I are going shopping for a new watch for DH. They're each kicking in $5 (they've been saving), but that'll still leave me about $30 to cover.

But I took the step today to have $100 out of each of my paychecks automatically funneled into savings (total of $200 a month), starting June 30. And DH is going to up his deposit to the girls' savings account by $10 a week (total $40 a month). The big challenge remains to be seen: Can we get by on $240 less a month in spendable money? On paper, yes, we can. But somehow, what works on paper hasn't been working IRL. Sigh.

Peppermint

06-18-2004, 07:21 AM

dotcommama

06-18-2004, 08:32 AM

I am jumping in really late on this thread, but dh and I are trying hard to get our finances under control. I've only gone through the first page so far, but there are a lot of good ideas and I look forward to getting through the rest of this thread.

Ok, so here is what we have done so far to reduce our debt. Cancelled cable tv, reduced cell phone to minimum so we still have it for emergencies, only rent movies free from the library no more blockbuster, only get books from library.

I think our biggest stumbling blocks are just impulse buys - stuff for the kids and house that are not 100% necessary.

I want to ask more about keeping your grocery bills down. We have a goal of $150 a week for our family of 5, but we almost always go over and if I try to buy organic - forget it we're well over $150. What am I doing wrong. Almost everything we buy is what's on sale for the week. We use generic everything. Is it because we eat meat that our bill is so high? What kind of meals are you eating for dinner? We usually eat meat, side dish (pasta, rice or potato) and some times salad. The rest of the day our meals are very simple. Cereal or toast for breakfast, coffee for dh, lunch is usually left overs or pb&j or grilled cheese. Snacks are simple. Yogurt, fruit, cheese, crackers, or something like veggie booty. Dh and I occasionally splurge and have ben & jerry's, but we never buy more than a pint a week. What am I doing wrong? How do I get my bill down?

I am going to contact the state Craftsman Association about getting into the upcoming craft fairs to sell my baby legwarmers. Must follow through!!

My dh makes jewelry and I've been pestering him to get into a local craft fair, but we have no idea how to do it. Can you tell me where you find information on your state craftsman association? Does every state have one?

Thank you ladies for any help you can give me!

Indigo73

06-18-2004, 08:34 AM

I think the good part for all of us to remember when we have little setbacks, is- just keep going on this jouney anyway- don't throw in the towel and spiral further into debt, we've all gotta keep plugging along! :) (and keep looking for new ways to cut back)

My mom was talking about something else, but she gave me an analogy about watching stocks. You can go insane watching them every day as they go up and down as things effect them. What matters is that they are steadily going upward over time.

I think these set backs are like that. We need to see the slow and steady progress not the little setbacks.

witch's mom

06-18-2004, 08:49 AM

Thanks for the boost about the little setbacks. I remain committed! And this morning I woke up early and have been online getting car insurance quotes. We've got State Farm and it's costing us over $2,000 a year to insure two 5-year-old cars that are driven by two boring married people with good driving records! I found quotes on comparisonmarket.com for identical insurance for $700 a year less--I'm hoping it's not too good to be true.

Next I'm going to tackle the homeowners insurance, and the cable/Internet connection. It's costing $95 a month for basic cable TV and high speed internet.

Dotcommama, the grocery thing is really tough. We, also, eat mostly organic. Although now I'm going to go back to those threads that say what's really necessary to buy organic, because it cost me $12 for a big bunch of grapes at the Co-op last night. And $3 for 8 crimini mushrooms. And $4 for bulk spinach that will cook down to about one cup! I won't dither on chicken or milk, but I need more info about some of the produce.

Making a crockpotful of organic pinto beans today. ($2 for two pounds bulk, compared to $3.50 for the same amount in the can at Trader Joe's. It seems minimal, but I guess stuff like this will add up at the end of the month.)

Let's keep this thread alive! Is it getting so long that we need a Ready to Get Out of Debt #3?

Peppermint

06-18-2004, 09:32 AM

Let's keep this thread alive! Is it getting so long that we need a Ready to Get Out of Debt #3?

Go ahead and make one :), just put a link at the end of this one, and a link to this one at the start of the new one :wink!

witch's mom

06-18-2004, 09:57 AM

I started a new thread because this one was getting long. Same name, but #3!

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?p=1615105

angel04345

06-18-2004, 10:09 AM

I want to give some info to you mommas about low cost internet, phones and cable tv! I can cut your bill in half!!!!!! Our cable is network tv. It is channels 2-23 (in maine) see if your state has a similiar offer. It costs us 16.92 with tax and everything every month. We are considering bunny ears though (good ones! LOL) The phone is basic telephone with caller id we pay around 20.00 a month for this. It is called lifeline. If your child or anyone in your home happens to have maine care or your states medical ins you are eligable it will cut your plan ten dollars a month. (no one in ours does anymore) Then theres the internet. We use netzero high speed. I don't think it is any better or worse then our old carrier. It is a fraction of the cost! It is dial up service. They offer unlimited regular for 9.95 a month and high speed for 14.95 a month. I think they have another package as well not sure! If you do sign up please use our email as your referal :) gusnbonn@netzero.com. We don't check this email though, sadly I don't even know the password to it!!! If you need a link let me know!!!! I will send it to you. Hope this helps some mommas out! All together I think one of you said you paid some where around 95???? this plan would be around 55$ a month!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!