In His Presence

Frugality

I watch very limited television by my own choice. I am very picky to also what I watch. The little elderly woman that I help for a couple of hours throughout the day loves to watch the news in the evening. I have heard a great deal from the news about how bleak the economy is doing, about all the foreclosures and the price of gasoline and oil going up across the country. I don't need television to tell me that. We have all seen the prices of gasoline when we fill our cars with gas, and I know what our oil is (and we keep the house at a cool 60 degrees all day and night during the winter to conserve) and the price of food, my GOODNESS!! All this has gotten me thinking about how to manage. I wanted to share in a post for some time now on some very simple and practical ideas that I am sure that many of you already know and maybe even use yourself, but nonetheless, maybe there maybe an idea you overlooked.

The first big thing that comes to mind is finances. From experience, I know that credit cards ar bad. At one point in my life, I had 4 charge cards and they were ALL maxed out. I started of with the charge card with the least amount on it and while making the minimum payments on the other cards, I plugged away at that one until it was paid off. THat freed up a little money that I applied to the next card, and so on. Now I am down to my last card. But also, as I paid off each charge card, I cancelled it. For me personally, I would eventually like to have no charge cards and use a cash only was of living. If I need to purchase something off line, my debit card from the bank that I use has a Visa logo on it and it can be swiped as a debit or charge and it automatically comes from my checkings account anyway. The same principal can be applied to car loans and mortgages. Even if we put an extra $5-$10 in with the payment, that little extra goes directily towards the principal.

Gasoline. Are you able to carpool to either work or doing errands. Do you have a neighbor or relative or friend who you could doe this with? If you are going to the local food store, offer to see if they need anything while you are there. If they are going to the drug store, maybe they could pick up that cleaning solution that is on sale for a great deal for you. To combine errands and such save not only on how much gasoline you use, it also saves on wear and tear on your car.

The local grocery store. I had to laugh this week. The local grocery store had beautiful strawnerries on sale this week. A 2 pund container of strawberries is on sale for $2.99.  But you could also get  (2) 1 pound containers of strawberries for $5.00. I had to laugh that didn't they think that people would catch on that it is better to get the 2 pound container because you are saving $2.01 over getting the (2) 1 pound containers. We must watch our sales. Use coupons and rebates. Never overlook warehouse clubs and drug stores and places such as Target or Walmart. I get my pet supplies, cleaning supplies and I use to get laundry supplies at Target because they were cheaper priced for the same brands and same sized packages. Target, Wal Mart and the CVS all accept coupons. They may not double them, but they do accept them. And I found that with even not doubling the coupon, it still works out to be  a better bargain. Does your food store have a clearance rack like mine does? You may find something perfectly fine and even have a coupon for it.

As for warehouse, such as BJ's, Sam's Club and Costco's. If you decide to use these warehouses, maybe a friend, neighbor or relative would also like a membership. Spilt the cost and I know atleast Sam's Club gives a free second pass. Give them the extra pass. Even on your membership, you are allowed to bring a guest or so with you when you go. If there is something in a bulk quantity that you both would like, spil the cost of that item and equally divide the product. Big savings.

Farm markets. I just love these. There is a local farm market just down the road from me. All year, the food store charges 54 cents a pound for bananas. For some reason during the summer, bananas go up to 79cents to 99 cents per pound. Durin the summer months, I go to this farmers market and get bananas for 35 cents a pound! When fruit is in season, buy, buy, buy. It is not only healthy and good for your family but the prices are at there lowest. Better yet. If you have a little extra space in your yard, how about growing some fruits and vegetables. Strawberries, watermellon, lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, squash and zuccini. And if a friend, neighbor or family member has a little extra space in their yard, maybe they could plant some fruits and vegetables and both of you share and exchange. I know that I would be happy to trade some fresh starwberries and zuccini for some lettuce or fresh eggs if you happen to have chikens.

Yard sales. I can never say enough about yard sales. They are great all around. I have found and received many gifts from yard sales. I love to get second hand items. It is not only better for the environment to reuse and recylce, but the items usually come from a time when things were made better and something about the item just has charm and character.  The way children grow these days, it is a crime to pay all that money for store clothing. Yes, many times I have gone to a store and paid full price for clothing. But there is nothing wrong with yard sale clothing, or purchasing clothing from a consignment shop or off a clearance rack at a department store. Maybe you could even have a yard sale yourself. What a great way to declutter your home. Maybe you could organized with  your block to have a block yard sale or maybe if your town is like mine, in the spring and autumn, they have a town wide yard sale. You will get more people to your yard sale if you have more people having a yard sale.  Maybe that is a good idea for me to blog about : tips on how to have a good yard sale.

Another good idea is if you have chickens who give more eggs than you need and I am a good sewer, maybe in exchange for a dozen eggs  for x amount of weeks, I could make you a few new workshirts for your husband. Or how about exchanging services with friends and family members. Maybe your sister will watch the children for a couple of hours so you and your husband can have a date alone and you could do some gardening and weeding for her. Never pass up the possibilities of exchanging your talents with others.

These are just a few touches on how to be frugal without much effort or strain. One could go on for ever with all the endless possiblities. Maybe I will start a new section called "Frugal Fridays" here to give some tips and suggestions. Stay tuned..... And if you have some ideas and tips, please post them here. We are all learning from each other.