re: How to be frugal?

Quoting LolaMcKitten:" Great system - my mom has been using it for as long as I can remember. "

I used a similar system that saw me through graduating 4 degrees completely debt free while raising a child and saving enough money to buy a house.

Quoting ♥supermommy:" I stopped the toy buying a while ago, but the clothes are needed, she grows like a weed"

Have you tried going to Once Upon A Child or goodwill? Getting used clothes for a child that grows fast is probably a good idea since you are having to buy so many.
Or do you think you could get some hand me downs from friends/family?

Quoting ♥supermommy:" Do you have a car payment? I don't. I have a beater basically. I'm trying to make it last until I graduate though"

No,no car payment but we have to pay insurance for it and gas.

<blockquote><b>Quoting FroggysMommy:</b>" Coupon. Dont buy anything unless its on sale and you have a coupon for it. As for clothes.... buy the ... [snip!] ... If you have a Kohls near you they always have amazing clearance sales so if you must have clothes now their sales are awesome."</blockquote>


Couponing does help also. I personally only buy personal hygeine products from CVS when they are on sale/have a coupon out/you receive money back. There are many times ive gotten the $8 tide for $4, dawn detergent for $0.25, garnier fructis big bottles for $2, $0.50 toothpastes, etc... there are plenty of websites that will tell you the best deals the store has and where to find coupons so theres very little effort required.

Quoting Uncle Obama's Banana:" Have you tried going to Once Upon A Child or goodwill? Getting used clothes for a child that grows fast ... [snip!] ... a good idea since you are having to buy so many. Or do you think you could get some hand me downs from friends/family?"

The clothes aren't the biggest thing.
It's usually just random smurf that adds up,
like the other day I had a 50 dollar bill, go to the store and get a window scraper/brush for my car for $5, some paper towels, rock salt, deodorant, a gallon jug of tea, and a clearance $5 baby doll for LO and I spent $45,
then I get home and realize I need saran wrap, laundry soap and , my gas tank is on a quarter tank

Coupon, buy in bulk, buy clothes sizes up and when the seasons end like previously stated. Shop at thrift stores, pay bills ahead and know exactly when their due. Look at the different ads for the best deals on food, calculate how much you'll need for gas that week etc.

<blockquote><b>Quoting ♥supermommy:</b>" The clothes aren't the biggest thing. It's usually just random smurf that adds up, like the other ... [snip!] ... doll for LO and I spent $45, then I get home and realize I need saran wrap, laundry soap and , my gas tank is on a quarter tank"</blockquote>



You can also buy generic, make your own tea its cheaper. Have your stuff planned out ahead of time. How often do you go through paper towels, laundry detergent, dish soap etc. Because for a family of 5 I only buy toilet paper, paper towels, dish soap, laundry detergent etc maybe once a month.

This is how we cut corners.

We only buy what is absolutely needed in terms of clothes. We don't need 20+ outfits per child, we keep it around 10, at the most and then we only buy as needed and most of that is second hand or off the last chance clearance rack. No need to spend more than 10.00 on an outfit for a small child, you can get a hold of clothes for next to free if you really look around.

We coupon - especially on things like toilet paper and cleaning supplies. Cut or print ALL the coupons for cleaning products and toilet paper and match them up to whats on sale that week. Say you have 1.00 off coupon for Charmin, Charmin is on sale for 2.50 a 4/pack, that makes it 1.50 for toilet paper for a week. Same with dish soap and other cleaning supplies. We also stopped buying paper towels, they are SUCH a money suck, I cut my own cleaning rags. They are more absorbent and they last longer.

Meal plan! Going in with a set plan and set list will save you TONS. Write down 7 dinners (or 5, we usually have leftovers a couple days a week). write down the ingredients for each meal. Plan whats for breakfast and only buy enough for that week so none is wasted - a box of cereal, a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread and a dozen eggs does our entire family for a week for breakfast. (just an example). Plan cheap lunches such as sandwiches or salad. ONLY buy these things, we usually buy one or two snacks - a bag of oranges, a bunch of bananas, whole grain crackers to eat with BP.....things like snack cakes are expensive and unhealthy.

In terms of things like needing eyeliner....drugstore and coupons, again. A few months back they had 1.00/off one NYC product and they cost 1.00 at walmart for eyeliner, compacts...I got like 6 free items? There are always coupons and sales to match up.

Quoting speaktruth2powr:" I used a similar system that saw me through graduating 4 degrees completely debt free while raising a child and saving enough money to buy a house."

Exactly - it makes you realize how much money you have coming in and going out when you actually SEE it.

Quoting ღ.ღ.ღ:" <blockquote><b>Quoting ♥supermommy:</b>" The clothes aren't the biggest thing. ... [snip!] ... soap etc. Because for a family of 5 I only buy toilet paper, paper towels, dish soap, laundry detergent etc maybe once a month."

That's what I'm not getting.
We go through toilet paper a lot because I have the smallest bladder known to man but the rest of that smurf lasts at LEAST a month and we have 4 living in the house and always have family over.
Along with all of our bills we still have money left over at the end of the month.


But we don't buy all name brand smurf either.

OP I looked at your last post and saw the pic of your LOs room. It's adorable but she has PLENTY of toys, stop getting her things she doesn't need, and just try and cut back on the things you don't need, also try and cut back on how much you are using the things you DO need.
Maybe after you pay off all of your bills and have the rest you could put at least $150 or so in a savings account each month so that you can start saving it and it wont be so easy to spend.

Quoting ღ.ღ.ღ:" <blockquote><b>Quoting ♥supermommy:</b>" The clothes aren't the biggest thing. ... [snip!] ... soap etc. Because for a family of 5 I only buy toilet paper, paper towels, dish soap, laundry detergent etc maybe once a month."

Paper towels last forever usually, like a $13 pack last like 2-3 months
Toilet paper, usually buy 1-2x a month, so
like $6 x 2 so $12
Laundry soap is the bad one, I probably do at least a load a day, and I use more than I'm suppose to, so probably spending like $20 a month on it.
Shampoo & conditioner eats my money too, because my hair sucks and I'm always trying to find something new that might work to make my hair look better, lol, and then I end up with like 453434 half used bottles in my bathroom cabinet.
And LO has eczema and also always trying to find a product that works for her, or a different regimen that would work better than the last, so that wastes a lot.
Then I see different little things I like for my house, like new pillows, or a specific candle, a wax warmer or just something stupid I don't need. I've cut back A LOT & controlled the above mentioned problems a lot, but today I bought LO gloves, for $8 because we were going sled riding and I though insulated ones would be better than just her 234234 pairs of knitted ones, and I bought myself waterproofer for my boots for $7.
I wish I had a financial adviser to tell me what is really necessary for my to buy, and what's stupid.

<blockquote><b>Quoting Uncle Obama's Banana:</b>" That's what I'm not getting. We go through toilet paper a lot because I have the smallest bladder known ... [snip!] ... could put at least $150 or so in a savings account each month so that you can start saving it and it wont be so easy to spend. "</blockquote>

We've always been really good about not having to buy toilet paper more than one a month and the same for laundry detergent and I was almost every day multiple times a day. But its little things that you think you need that start to add up. A few months ago I started adding everything we needed down to the dollar and its gotten better, because before I was just spending too much on smurf we didn't need.

OP Also put like $50-100 away a week and DO NOT touch it, no matter what.because if you don't 'have' it to spend you can't spend it.

Quoting ♥supermommy:" Paper towels last forever usually, like a $13 pack last like 2-3 months Toilet paper, usually buy 1-2x ... [snip!] ... for my boots for $7. I wish I had a financial adviser to tell me what is really necessary for my to buy, and what's stupid."

What you are spending on paper products and laundry soap is ridiculous.

Make a list based on flyers from local stores and coupons you have. Shop once a week only. Don't buy anything not on the list.

Quoting ღ.ღ.ღ:" <blockquote><b>Quoting Uncle Obama's Banana:</b>" That's what I'm not getting. We ... [snip!] ... put like $50-100 away a week and DO NOT touch it, no matter what.because if you don't 'have' it to spend you can't spend it."

Yup SO and I have always been able to pay bills on time (accept when he lost his job earlier this year) but we never had any extra spending money so we started tracking everything we used and realized it was going to stupid smurf we didn't need like fast food just because we were out and didn't want to go home and cook   Or him running up to the gas station 5903485 times a day for a soda and chips.
So we cut that out and have a TON more money to spend and are healthier  

Since we go through toilet paper so fast SO started buying this cheap smurf that I would actually end up using more of because it was so thin, but one day he came home with Value Brand and I was pissed, I had been bitching about the cheap toilet paper for months. But I was pleasantly surprised to find it actually feels just like the double quilted Charmin or what ever and lasts for a long time too!   And it costs like 1/2 as much.
So it's little things like that, that we do to save money.

And like we both stated, I put $100 of each paycheck into my savings account every paycheck and so does SO, we are really starting to get a nice little amount in there now. And it's nice to know that it's there if we have an emergency.

Quoting ♥supermommy:" Paper towels last forever usually, like a $13 pack last like 2-3 months Toilet paper, usually buy 1-2x ... [snip!] ... for my boots for $7. I wish I had a financial adviser to tell me what is really necessary for my to buy, and what's stupid."

If you buy the biggest pack of toilet paper then you shouldn't be spending that much, i'm guessing for a 2 person household you should be buying toilet paper maybe close to ever 2 months. You can always go to a doctor to figure out what exactly your daughter needs, also lotion helps a lot, there is no reason you should be spending that much on new products to try, the same for your hair, unless you're out of shampoo then don't buy any, it's a waste. Stop using extra detergent because again that's just being wasteful. I have 5 people to wash for and a big bottle of tide can last me over a month and i wash almost every day multiple times a day. If your daughter had gloves then you didn't need to buy anymore even if they are insulated. Also when you go to the store only go to the aisles you need stuff from, don't venture around. Because if you don't have it to spend you don't need to spend it.