Lately I have been exploring new ways for us to save money and still eat well and do the things we love. One of my big goals is to get some money into our savings account and stop feeling like we are just barely making it from paycheck to paycheck. We are very lucky that Klint’s job is stable and provides great benefits, along with allowing me to teach dance in the evenings. But let’s face it, civil servants don’t make nearly enough. And of course I make really great pay teaching dance, but it fluctuates with the holidays and seasons.
One big thing that I did was start shopping around at other grocery stores, not just the one that I knew and was familiar with. Trust me that it was a big leap. I am a closet grocery store snob but my budget just won’t allow me to shop at whatever store I like. So I made the leap and ventured into the deep discount grocery store… and was pleasantly surprised. Not only did the store offer organic produce but many of the familiar brands were there, at a fraction of the cost! Yay! Now Moira can have the Bert and Ernie juice she loves for about $2 less!
Another thing that I am really thinking about doing is using coupons. We don’t get the newspaper and since we are trying to cut back on the processed food I didn’t think that coupons could really do anything for me, however after taking a look through the Sunday inserts I saw many coupons that I could use for things like cat food, little, health and beauty items. I got a 10 week trial Sunday subscription to our local paper and am going to give it a go. (Blame watching Extreme Couponing for this as well!)
Ok, I am not prepared to spend hours upon hours cutting coupons or buying 200 cans of Spam… but still there is something to be said for buying what we use all the time on sale with coupons! =)
There are tons of money saving tips on Pinterest from simple things like getting your hair cut at the beauty school instead of an expensive salon to when it is best to buy bigger items like grills and sleds. We are trying to save up to for our first big family vacation next spring so I have some incentive to really buckle down and get things a bit cheaper than what I am used. Yay for money saving!
What are your best money and budget saving tips?
