So just shortly after the big recession hit the news started playing stories about how people were cutting back spending. It didn't take me long to figure out that finally, finally I was cool. Cheap people have come into their own. OK - lets use a more flattering word - thrifty (and I'm not even Scottish).
Ideas of how to save money and how to reuse things are very cool now. Wes and I are so cool we can't even stand to be in the same room as ourselves - alright that didn't work, but you get my drift.
I have been planning on writing this blog for ages, and today I decided I would.
Here is my invitation: Comment and share ideas of how you save money. Particularly on the dreaded grocery bill.
A couple to start off (many of which I learned from my mother or friends).
- buy roasts. Do a nice roast dinner one night and use the left overs for other meals, like chicken pot pie, quiche, shepard's pie etc.
- buy a big ham (picnic cut is particularly cheap), best value for your dollar.
- clip a coupon or two (right Brandi).
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13 comments:
OK. This just made me laugh, Roberta. I love your sense of humor!!!
Here are a couple of things I do:
-Meal plan and grocery list. No matter what you're cooking, even if it's a more expensive meal, you always save money when you're not walking aimlessly through the grocery store.
-I make my kids wear the same clothes at least two days in a row (as long as they're not completely disgusting). This helps with two things- it helps cut down on laundry and in the long run saves on the water bill since I'm doing less laundry.
Can't wait to read other ideas!
Eeeeeeeee!!!!! I LOVE coupons! I almost peed a little when I saw you wrote that :)
Hmm, I don't do much else that makes a huge difference...a lot of stores are now charging to buy plastic bags, so I always carry re-usable ones, but it's more of a tree-hugger thing.
I don't do laundry unless it's a full load. I also have one of those funky fold out wire things that I air dry my clothes on, so I don't use the dryer so much...you don't know how lucky you are to have an outdoor contraption!
I agree with Erin on the grocery list...much better than having no plan of attack...unless you are weak like myself and are easily tempted by sugar-y goodies NOT on the list :\
Did I mention coupons are good?? ;)
Here is a couple of the slightly wonky things my Mom always does. She saves slightly or hardly used paper napkins and uses them to clean up spills and grease - rather than paper towel. Also, she takes the water glasses from the table and the left over water goes in a jug which she poors on her plants.
I'm admitting it here... with a toddler and a pregnant woman in the house, we practice the water saving motto: "if it's yellow, let it mellow; if it's brown, flush it down" philosophy. Of course, this is sidelined when we have guests. I'm sure I'm not the only one out there who does this...
Nicola
Nic, you are so not alone on this one.
ground turkey is cheaper and healthier than ground beef, and I pair it with home cooked beans- very cheap and not that hard to cook with a crock pot.
buy food in natural form- ie. the only potatoes I get are whole in a big bag, we cut them ourselves for fries- I buy little processed foods, SO much cheaper!
Use the library- I rarely buy books or rent movies.
I love this! Danny is always on my back about saving money, particularily in the food area. We seem to have the basic's here - buy in bulk, reuse leftovers..etc. Here are a few others things I do to save on our 'entertainment' budget. Did you know many Safeway's rent movies for $1.80!! Its at kiosk usually by the Customer Service desk. I also spoke with a dishwasher repair tech who said that in reality - all you need a tablespoon to get the same wash as running full. I put a tablespoon measure in the bucket to be sure we aren't going over. We turn humidifier up in the winter and down in the summer. Moist air feels warmer than dry. Dry air feels cooler in the summer. I'll post more when I think of them.
I love that I have so many "thrifty" friends!! Ha - Jolie - what are your ideas?
Good blogging idea.
I like to eat the kid’s food when they are not looking. They are small anyways and won't really miss it, plus they get breakfast. I also arrange play dates for the kids so that they visit their friends right at the lunch hour.
I also save my money by taking the money out of my wife’s wallet when she's not looking. She tends to buy more items and expensive things than I do. Mine is usually smaller like Star Bucks and Twinkies.
Another idea is to look for clothes that are on a clothes line and see if any of them fit. Sure it can be embarrassing if the black tights don't fit properly but I'm not the one who has to look when I'm bending over to get something; saves huge on laundry and cloths in general. I’m confused the “yellow” and “brown” statement- what do you guys flush? I thought that was the big kool-aid bowl! I put Kool-aid and suger in the back and try put my cup in the big bowl in time to get some- doesn’t always work! Interesting after visitors, something is always wrong with the dispenser!!
Another idea is to call 911 and get an ambulance and half way to the hospital tell them you are fine and see if they can drop you off at the office. Sometimes you meet the nicest people.
During hockey season I will watch repeats of last years hockey on you tube so I don't have to pay for cable TV. I have to try real hard not to learn who won this years cup so as not to spoil it though.
Those are some of the things I do.
Phin
I would like to thank you Jon for your commitment to saving money and for your effort in making this discussion so much wiser!
Ladies ignore him - I try to all the time. It just doesn't work for me!
I can't remember where I saw it, but I was totally blushing when I saw you nominated me as the President of our little club! ;)
I often buy clothes for the kids at garage sales, consignment stores or Value Village - especially themed things like Halloween/Stampede etc. But I like to shop, too, so that helps! And hand-me-downs are always awesome!
I agree with the buy and cook in bulk. I also think that turkeys are a great value, when you buy the utility ones for $.99/lb. Love leftovers for lunches too. I often make stirfries, scrambled egg/denver sandwiches, fried rice and 'clean-the-fridge' pasta sauces. Easy, quick and cheap meals!! I'm SUPER lucky to have kids that will eat anything!
Carwashes - get the kids a bucket and some scrubbies and they have a blast scrubbing the bugs off the front - go figure! I totally buy into child labour.
Check out kijiji, and especially the "Free Stuff" section of it! Good deals to be had everywhere! But you gotta be quick. I haven't used freecycle.org before, but I've heard it's good too.
As for general money strategies, we always have our payments come out automatically. This is our savings, RRSP, RESP and bills. Then it's done and we get to play with the leftovers.
We even have many of our bills come straight to our VISA where possible, so that we get the points on our card. We always pay it off, so what difference does it make, except it makes our VISA bills look scary! But we've flown MAAAANY times for nearly free!
I also find it a LOT easier to save if we have a goal in mind. If I know we're going on a big vacation, it's much easier to hold off on the $30 purchase 'til after the trip' and I'll probably forget anyway.
Regarding coupons, I usually don't have much patience. I always buy no-name stuff, which I find is usually cheaper than brand-name less the coupon anyway. BUT... I know that London Drugs does coupon stacking, which means they ignore where it says "cannot be combined with any other offer" and you can use a bunch of coupons on the same stuff and get WICKED deals! London Drugs is not on my usual shop route though.
And generally, I think I'm just easily pleased. We drove my old '94 car til almost two years ago, and until we had kids, it was our ONLY vehicle!! We don't spend much time or money working on our house. And while I do like to shop, planning for 'experiences' rather than 'things,' we find more fulfilling.
Anyway, I better finish my work and get home to bed. That's my bit for today.
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