Since I outlined below the importance of having a budget, I thought I would share some of the things Hubby and I do to save money. I included the word "crazy" in the name of the post because once you start trying to live frugally, you will definitely be looked at like you are crazy by friends or family members for not following the status quo. It is okay not to follow the status quo, though, because to paraphrase Dave Ramsey, "If you try to keep up with the Joneses, you will soon realize that they are dead broke."
On to the list!
To save money on groceries:
1) Plan your meals. I was truly horrible at this when Hubby and I were first married. It is still a struggle for me but the payoffs are so worth it. You get to avoid that 4:00 "What the heck are we having for dinner" panic and a subsequent trip to a super-crowded grocery store with long lines. Try out recipes that aren't too complicated until you find a handful that you like, and then just rotate them. I tend to look to the internet for inspiration and often use Eating Well, Cooking Light, Real Simple, Budget Bytes, and All Recipes to search for ideas. Other good sites are Cozi (which has recipes, family organizing tips, and allows you to make grocery lists), Everyday with Rachael Ray (which has a daily menu suggestion), Raise Healthy Eaters (a blog by a dietitian who has both recipes and articles about feeding practices), and Weelicious (great kid and toddler food recipes, but also has plenty for adults to enjoy too!) There are SO MANY websites to help with this.
2) Eat your leftovers. If you get sick of them, you can package them and stick them in the freezer so that next time you don't feel like cooking, you have a tasty dish stashed away for backup.
3) Rethink breakfast foods. Boxed cereal is CRAZY expensive and is only getting more expensive as commodity costs (corn, wheat) are skyrocketing. Oatmeal, however, can be purchased in the bulk section and is incredibly cheap and also very healthy. If time is an issue, you can cook a large batch, store it in the fridge, and just warm up small portions in the morning. Leftover grains from last night's dinner such as brown rice and quinoa are actually delicious for breakfast with a little milk and brown sugar on top, warmed in the microwave. I make hardboiled eggs once a week and we eat one every day--very filling and inexpensive. I have seen some people on blogs who make breakfast sandwiches and waffles and freeze them, then warm them up in the morning. While this does require a bit of planning it saves money and is very healthful.
4) Embrace your local bulk section. It is unbelievable to me sometimes how much money you can save here, especially when you only need a small amount of something for a recipe. I buy all my spices here in small amounts to that way they stay fresh and I can use them up before they expire, and it is so much cheaper then buying a whole jar.
5) I am very selective with what I buy organic. I only purchase fruits and vegetables off of the "Dirty Dozen" organic and buy everything else conventional for the most part. I do purchase organic milk because I drink about three glasses a day and find that I break out from conventional milk, even when I get the stuff that is rBST free. I also forego organic versions of highly processed food such as pasta, crackers, and packaged snack foods as the act of processing (high heat, mechanical breakdown of nutrients) leave these items with a negligible nutritional benefit over their conventional counterparts.
6) Eat meat less often. As meat is often the most expensive part of a meal, eliminating or reducing it makes a huge impact to your overall grocery bill. I do think that when you eat it, though, it is worth investing in good meat. I tend to avoid "natural" and "free range" products as they are often misleading. To me, organic is not necessarily the highest good--I would rather purchase grass-fed beef from a local farmer. If you are lucky enough to get in on splitting a quarter or half a beef with a group of friends, sometimes known as a "cowpool," the per-pound cost of the beef ends up being pretty similar to the grocery store price of conventional beef.
7) Don't brush me off as a total crazy, but I make my own bread and yogurt. In my area, a loaf of really tasty artisan bread can be as much as $7 and even basic sandwich bread is usually over $4 a loaf. Also, since Hubby and I both eat yogurt pretty much every day it can add up quickly. I think the most important thing to consider when making your own food items is keeping it simple or the hassle or time involved will not be worth the cost savings. I use this website's recipe to make the yogurt with organic whole milk and the method from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day to make my bread.
8) A hint: it is usually cheapest to grocery shop on Wednesdays. That is when many stores release their weekly savings flyers and many items throughout the store will be discounted.
To save money on entertainment/dates:
1) Bust out that library card! Hubby and I go here first whenever there is a book or movie we want to watch. Even if an item has lots of holds on it, chances are they have a high number of copies and if you can stand waiting it usually comes faster then you would think. If it is a new release item and there is one in your area, Redbox and similar DVD vending machines allows you to rent DVDs for a dollar a day.
2) If you must see a movie in a theater, try a second run theater. There is one near us that shows movies for $3 after they are out of most traditional theaters.
3) Cook at home! Be creative and make it fun. Use candles, fancy plates, or eat in a different area of the house.
4) If you must go out to a restaurant, use collective-buying bargain websites like Groupon, LivingSocial, and Tippr. They seem to be popping up everywhere! A couple of caveats with these: first of all, we tend to limit our purchases to places we know we like going to anyway--you are more likely to use it if you have already been somewhere and know you like the food. If you have never been, Hubby and I like to check online review websites before we buy.
5) Keep an eye on community newspapers or websites for events like festivals, live music performances, etc. Free is a great price!
6) Be creative. Walks, trips to parks, and picnics are low-cost ways to have a good time.
To save money on gas:
1) Consider if you can practically be a one-car family. This worked for my husband and I for the first three years of our marriage. This not only saves on gas, but also on car insurance and maintenance expenses. It does not work for everyone but if you can swing it the savings are enormous.
2) If errands require you to go less than a mile away and the weather if favorable, consider walking. Not only will you save gas, but you will be getting great exercise!
3) If you must drive to do errands, look over the week and plan out your errands so that you only have to go out one time and drive in a way that avoids you criss-crossing all over town.
4) Consider biking, walking, carpooling, or busing to work. You don't have to make this an all-or-nothing endeavor. Carpooling just a few times a week makes a big difference. You can also combine methods like riding your bike in the morning and then busing home.
To save money on basic expenses:
1) Review your insurance policies annually to make sure they still fit your needs. For instance, an older car may not benefit from carrying a collision rider because the value of your car may be low.
2) Make sure you are not paying for more cell phone then you need. You may be able to scale down to a plan with less minutes, etc.
3) Hubby and I do not have cable. We watch shows on Hulu or on network websites.
To save money on baby expenses:
1) Consider cloth diapering. While it is a small initial investment you end up saving a LOT of money in the long run. This also does not have to be an all or nothing endeavor. Just adding in cloth diapers for a few disposables once in a while saves diapers and will reduce how much you spend in the long run.
2) Embrace second-hand goods, including clothing, toys, and baby gear. Always make sure the items are not recalled before using, this can be found online. I recommend buying car seats and cribs new because they are so important and when you buy these items second-hand it is hard to know what kind of use and abuse they have been put through and whether this will have negative impacts on their performance.
3) Make some of your own baby food. Contrary to what some might think, it is not very hard or time consuming to do this. There are fancy baby food making contraptions and while they are nice, they are not entirely necessary. Oftentimes you only need a fork or a whirl in the food processor or blender to do the trick. I pureed a banana today and it yielded four jar-serving equivalents. Pretty cool when a banana is only about 19 cents and jarred baby food can be almost $1.50 for conventional and close to $2.00 for organic. Freeze the food in an ice cube tray, then store the cubes in labeled Ziploc freezer bags. Again, this is not an all or nothing endeavor.
4) Trade babysitting with friends who have kids so you can go out on date nights--you watch their kids, then the next week they watch yours.
Other general advice:
1) Hubby and I try to be frugal, but we quality is very important. It is a wiser decision to pay a little more for a quality product that will last then buy cheap items that don't hold up. It is not always true that more expensive things are always better quality, but on the other hand there are situations where it is definitely the case. For instance, I feel like I am pretty average with how I handle my purses and there was a period of time where I went through about three in six months--the handle broke, zipper broke, etc. These purses were not dirt cheap either. Hubby bought me a designer handbag that is very discreet (it is not plastered with logos) and I have owned it for almost five years--despite a fair bit of abuse, it is in beautiful shape and still looks as good as new.
2) Borrow things from friends if you can, especially if it is something you only need to use a few times. Try to find things used rather then buying new.
3) Be frugal, but don't be a cheapskate. There is a difference in mindset when it comes to this. A cheapskate does not have a generous heart and values money above relationships or politeness.
4) Saving money is not a pursuit with an end goal of having a huge bank account to gloat selfishly over. It allows you to have more left over to use intentionally to meet your family's goals, such as paying off debt, investing for your future, or having more available to give away.
Photo credit: http://blog.barterquest.com/category/save-money-barter/page/4/
