Hey guys! Long time no see!

marriedtomylobster · July 2014

It's been years since I was here! I know that a lot of the old girls moved on to ProBoards, but well I'm lazy and thought I'd come back here.

I'll start with an easy question...

What are the "little" things you do to save money every month?

uncreatedsnow · July 2014

Welcome back!

I was a huge lurker before but I totally remember your screen name!

My number one thing I do is save my "D Dollars" you know how one dollar bills have letters on them from where they were printed? Well I save all the D's that I find, no matter how many I get back in change I save them and put them away. They really add up too. I paid for a night at an AMAZING B&B last weekend with mine. Now my Mom saves all the letters for different reasons/people and my friend saves the L's so we are always trading when we see each other. It's dumb but a lot of fun.

CuriousKiddosMama · July 2014

HI! I don't remember you because I really only started being active on here in the past year. I found it after joining my BMB on the bump.

One of the ways we save is we save all our change. At the end of the month we roll it and take it to the bank to add to DS's college or savings fund. And since we use mainly cash it ends up adding up every month- I've had $30 to deposit for him one month!!

MommyLiberty5013 · July 2014

I cut my husband's hair and I do my own waxing and nails.

als1982 · July 2014

One thing is that we're just not really people who spend money on 'stuff.' Other than wedding gifts, we're still rocking the furniture and kitchen goods from my first post-college apartment, which includes a hand me down dinner table with garage sale chairs, and a coffee and side tables and a headboard made by my grandfather.

When we do but things, I never buy anything that isn't on sale or we can't get something extra from the purchase.

For example, if it's not on the front or back page of the weekly grocery store ad, it doesn't wind up in our fridge or pantry. I'm also lucky to have a nearby grocery store that doubles coupons.

For household goods other than food, I buy online (stocking up when items are sale) at drugstore.com, Walgreens online or soap.com through either Southwest or United Airlines points portal (whichever offer the better rate at the moment) to earn frequent flyer miles.

We like a travel a lot so we use the miles for airfare and then book hotel rooms through Priceline, hotels.com, Jetsetter or Hotel Tonight.

We also prepay whenever we can to save on things like insurance, the gym or utilities.

I'm also a hardcore use it 'till the last drop is gone person. I'm completely unashamed to admit I cut open the body wash and moisturizer bottles to get every last usable drop!!

A few months ago, we also got rid of cable in lieu of a Kindle Fire box and Amazon Prime.

Otherwise we are simply mindful to watch every dollar and think outside the box to find new deals and ways to save.

jessica490 · July 2014

Hello! I use coupons and consign clothing

brij2006 · July 2014

Welcome back!

My biggest thing that saves us money is cooking from scratch a lot. I make homemade soups in bulk out of items we have in the cupboards or overabundant vegetables from the garden, then portion it out and freeze it. I have a soup and salad for lunch almost every day. I also make a lot of homemade muffins, cinnamon rolls, and bread. Then freeze them in smaller portions to thaw as we need.

lifeonthehill · July 2014

Hello!

We are in a great situation where we have no household bills and the only bills we do have are Student loans, cell phone and car insurance. We save money by taking full advantage of our situation and eating in the dining hall for all meals they provide. Besides that there isn't a whole heck of a lot we can do to save besides keep being low maintenance people.

HoneyBee973 · July 2014

Welcome back!

Our biggest money saver is packing our lunch, and making coffee at home instead of stopping at DD or Starbucks in the morning.

Xstatic3333 · July 2014

Welcome back!

I'm with @brij2006‌, cooking from scratch is our biggest saver by far. We're also in the middle of a move that will give my H a longer commute than me for the first time in our relationship. We plan to "trade" cars for the work commute to save on gas since my gat gets 36 mpg and his is more around 25. I also skip a lot of the "girl" maintenance stuff like mani/pedis, frequent hair cuts, and elaborate makeup, though being in a more "casual" field of work allows that to be possible for me and I know many others don't have that option.

vlagrl29 · July 2014

als1982 said:

One thing is that we're just not really people who spend money on 'stuff.' Other than wedding gifts, we're still rocking the furniture and kitchen goods from my first post-college apartment, which includes a hand me down dinner table with garage sale chairs, and a coffee and side tables and a headboard made by my grandfather. When we do but things, I never buy anything that isn't on sale or we can't get something extra from the purchase. For example, if it's not on the front or back page of the weekly grocery store ad, it doesn't wind up in our fridge or pantry. I'm also lucky to have a nearby grocery store that doubles coupons. For household goods other than food, I buy online (stocking up when items are sale) at drugstore.com, Walgreens online or soap.com through either Southwest or United Airlines points portal (whichever offer the better rate at the moment) to earn frequent flyer miles. We like a travel a lot so we use the miles for airfare and then book hotel rooms through Priceline, hotels.com, Jetsetter or Hotel Tonight. We also prepay whenever we can to save on things like insurance, the gym or utilities. I'm also a hardcore use it 'till the last drop is gone person. I'm completely unashamed to admit I cut open the body wash and moisturizer bottles to get every last usable drop!! A few months ago, we also got rid of cable in lieu of a Kindle Fire box and Amazon Prime. Otherwise we are simply mindful to watch every dollar and think outside the box to find new deals and ways to save.

OMG I do this too! I'm glad I'm not the only one. I cut open my facial cleanser and body lotion when it get down to far to pump out. I also turn my shampoo bottles upside down to the the last drop. haha.

JoanE2012 · July 2014

DH and I brown bag our lunches. Lots of coworkers order out, but with tip, they're spending nearly $10 everyday. I can pack a lunch for well under $10 (and not only is it healthier, but it usually tastes better too!)

emily1004 · July 2014

Welcome back.

Totally random thoughts:

We eat at home most of the time. But we like pizza, and when we order it we always pick it up ourselves. Saves money on delivery and tip.

H downloaded the 7eleven app, where you get a freebie every day. Sometimes it's a Big Glup, sometimes it's a Slurpee, and sometimes it's a Snickers Ice Cream bar.

I love coffee from Starbucks, but I only go if I have a gift card.

When H was traveling he would always hoard and bring home shampoo, lotions, dental kits. He hasn't paid for body wash, shampoo or anything in a really long time.

The most important thing we do is stick to our budget.

jessica490 · July 2014

vlagrl29 said:

als1982 said:

One thing is that we're just not really people who spend money on 'stuff.' Other than wedding gifts, we're still rocking the furniture and kitchen goods from my first post-college apartment, which includes a hand me down dinner table with garage sale chairs, and a coffee and side tables and a headboard made by my grandfather. When we do but things, I never buy anything that isn't on sale or we can't get something extra from the purchase. For example, if it's not on the front or back page of the weekly grocery store ad, it doesn't wind up in our fridge or pantry. I'm also lucky to have a nearby grocery store that doubles coupons. For household goods other than food, I buy online (stocking up when items are sale) at drugstore.com, Walgreens online or soap.com through either Southwest or United Airlines points portal (whichever offer the better rate at the moment) to earn frequent flyer miles. We like a travel a lot so we use the miles for airfare and then book hotel rooms through Priceline, hotels.com, Jetsetter or Hotel Tonight. We also prepay whenever we can to save on things like insurance, the gym or utilities. I'm also a hardcore use it 'till the last drop is gone person. I'm completely unashamed to admit I cut open the body wash and moisturizer bottles to get every last usable drop!! A few months ago, we also got rid of cable in lieu of a Kindle Fire box and Amazon Prime. Otherwise we are simply mindful to watch every dollar and think outside the box to find new deals and ways to save.

OMG I do this too! I'm glad I'm not the only one. I cut open my facial cleanser and body lotion when it get down to far to pump out. I also turn my shampoo bottles upside down to the the last drop. haha.

Haha, I do the same thing and my husband makes fun of me! I always say "there's another week left in that tube"! LOL

jlaOK · July 2014

We eat at home for most meals and we use cash for everything except gas. It is just a mental challenge but we spend less when using cash instead of debit.

smbenevides1989 · July 2014

Hello, welcome back! I started within the last year also.

I do a few random things, and my H has started to do this also. He started working nights recently, so instead of him going out to eat during the week with his allowance, he saves it for other things for himself. I bag my lunch everyday and only hit the vending machine if I absolutely need to. I try to keep as much whole bills as possible (like the $5/$10/$20 increments) to avoid spending money.

I also make a lot of food by hand. I make H's breakfast sandwiches for his lunch at work. I only buy what I will need during the week. I shop at Walmart and Priceright to get my groceries, and I use everything until the last drop also.

I don't go out to DD until Friday, which I then use my DD Perks which can help me save money (I get a free medium ice coffee when I reach 200 points). We also try to only go out to eat on Friday afternoons as a family.

beetee123 · July 2014

We try to do a lot of little things on a daily basis to save here and there! -I'm usually the only one that spends cash, so when I use cash instead of a card I always take the change and put it into a jar. I never hand the cashier change, so it adds up quickly. -We use our rewards credit cards for a lot of purchases for the points back, but make sure to pay the amount off before we get hit with interest. Right now our Discover is doing 5% back on gas purchases. Every quarter it is something new. In September they are starting 5% back on all holiday related purchases, so that will be great for Christmas. Once we hit $50 we can use it to pay back on the card or have a gift card sent to us. -I use a few different shopping apps like Checkout 51, Cartwheel and Ibotta to earn cashback on groceries that I always purchase anyways. I coupon too, but sometimes CO51 and Ibotta have rebates on things that I never find coupons for such as any brand of milk or eggs. -When I shop for clothing I try to check Goodwill first. If I can't find what I want there I will go to a regular store, but I always try to buy quality items. My favorite store is Banana Republic. The other day I used my store card that gave me 10% off plus they were doing a $50 off $100 sale, so I got over $100 worth of items for less than $50.

hoffse · July 2014

Welcome!

H and I do several things to save, but the biggest is probably rewards credit cards. We don't carry balances on any of them, but we do get some legit cash back each year. I routinely use my Fidelity card (2% back on everything), Amazon visa (3% back at Amazon), Target (5% off plus free shipping), and costco gas card (4% back at gas stations all the time). Then I use Pottery Barn (10% back) and Kohl's (30% off coupons) now and then too.

I also shop through Ebates and use checkout51 to get extra cash back for purchases I'm making anyway. I think in total we earn/save around $1,000 each year in rewards.

Hey guys! Long time no see!

Re: Hey guys! Long time no see!

Choose Another Board

Search Boards