How to Save $$$

Today I am home sick. :( I have a stomach virus that is, ahem, causing me to run to the bathroom every couple of hours. I tried to make it through teaching yesterday but was miserable as I had to keep running out of the room! I left early and this morning woke up to the same pleasant experience again.... so called in sick.

My OB/GYN knows about it and has said he thinks it is a stomach virus, to stay hydrated, eat bland food, get lots of rest... so that is what I am doing. In the meantime, I need something to distract myself from thinking about my poor tummy, so I am trying Show Us Your Life from Kelly's Korner.

Money Saving Tips

I must admit, this is one are where I am still learning myself, just wrapping up my first year of teaching and adjusting to a new budget... about to adjust all over again with the birth of our little one. :)

BUT...

A few ways I have learned to save money are....

* Shop the SALE racks - you may have to dig, but I get a lot of my shirts/accessories this way. I am willing to pay full price for pants/skirts/dresses, because you can wear those all year, mix and match them, etc, but as far as shirts and the little things, they are so seasonal that you don't want to pay too much for them.

* Don't be afraid to ACCEPT offers, and what I mean by that - if a friend offers me some of her maternity clothes, I take 'em! If my parents are getting rid of furniture, I take it! I have some furniture my parents gave me that we painted and now looks brand new - painting it was a lot cheaper than buying new stuff!

* As far as big purchases, we plan them out at least a month in advance and only make one at a time, usually one a month (only twice if we needed two big things in one month...) We have been going down our list this year with that... couch/furniture/car, next is bed, than nursery furniture, etc. Planning it out really helps us know what's coming up next and makes us likely to impulse buy other things.

* Couponing - this is a new one for me and I am still learning quite a bit about it, but I've used coupons (only for things I need - I don't just buy based on which coupons I have) three different grocery trips, and each time saved AT LEAST $10.00!

* As for grocery shopping, budgeting is KEY for us. We spend $50 minimum to $75 maximum a week on groceries. I also menu plan, ALWAYS have a grocery list, and as I put an item in the cart - add up the total on a sheet of paper so I know where I'm at budget wise. When we didn't write it down, didn't have a list, didn't menu plan, etc, we would just grab what looked good and would easily spend a $100 a week!

Like I said, we are still learning. I love reading tips from other bloggers. Hopefully mine helped someone out there.