Humble Beginnings

Ways we save $$$

I've been thinking of ways that we've reduced our spending and I thought I would share with y'all.

• Make our own deodorant (see recipe from a few weeks ago)
• Bake our own bread, muffins, cookies, cakes, etc.
• Hunt for our meat (i.e. deer) in the fall - provided meat throughout the winter
• Hang our laundry on the line instead of drying in the dryer
• Turn off lights when we leave a room
• Make our own baby wipes (we still use these for many things, like in the car, etc.)
• Grow our food in the summer through our garden (God-willing it will be a great garden this year)
• Try to run errands all in one day to save on gas
• Make our own sauces from scratch (i.e. spaghetti sauce) instead of buying packaged sauces
• Actually, all of my cooking is from scratch.  I don't buy "boxed" meals.

These are just a few ways we try to save $$.  I know there are others but I can't think of them right now.

I had been making our own laundry detergent but it wasn't very cost effective for us as I had to order the Fels Naptha soap and it cost more to have it shipped to us than buying Arm & Hammer detergent.  Actually, last month our local grocery store had a $1.00 off coupon for Arm & Hammer detergent.  I think I ended up paying $2.50 or $2.99 for each jug of detergent.  Over the month I stocked up on the Arm & Hammer while it was on sale.  I think I have enough for 6-8 months, maybe more.  One thing I do for laundry, though is use only half the recommended amount.  That doubles the amount of detergent I have.

As for clothing, we've started buying the kids clothes at garage sales.  I've come away with some really good deals for them.  We also had a co-workers of my husband gave us tons of clothes that'll fit James for the next few years (Praise the Lord!!).  I also buy my clothes from garage sales and actually look forward to saving $$.  I went to Kohl's yesterday but could not make myself buy a new pair of jeans for $27.  It's just too much $$.

Also, the temp job my husband has right now pays for the lunches and dinners (if they're there that long).  So, that saves on lunches & dinners for us right now (which is really awesome).

We've just paid off 3 medical bills for James (when he jumped off the porch last fall and hurt his foot) + a small credit card that we had left.  So, with all that debt gone, I'm becoming even more frugal and looking for ways to cut back on our spending.  I want more $$ in the bank and I'm looking for deals as much as I can.  It just makes sense to me right now.

Anyway, if anyone has any other ideas, please let me know.  I'd appreciate it!

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{ 10:03 , Tuesday, March 4, 2008 } { Posted by gabbie427 }

Some great ideas in this post. We are still looking for ways to cut our grocery bill (as always! LOL) and electrical and heating bills.

Thanks for sharing!!

God's Blessings,
Amy Jo

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{ 10:35 , Tuesday, March 4, 2008 } { Posted by catsnmore }

Hi, how do you make your deoderant? I missed that post. Thank you in advance, Blessings, Elizabeth

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{ 11:11 , Tuesday, March 4, 2008 } { Posted by seventhheaven }

Great ideas. I think we should all continually look for better ways to be good stewards with Gods money.