Good things going on in the Wallace household as we feel united right now about where we are & the fact that Ryan is and should be taking classes online through Moody. But these things all add up right? Didn't think tuition would be a line item in 2008, or 2009, or 2010.
In order to factor in new expenses, I have started, for the 3rd time, to use a FREE online budgeting tool called "MINT" to manage daily transactions, like $2 at the Peanut Store on Swedish Fish & those little extras that just sneak their way into my heart...I mean cart! The thing that I quickly noticed using Mint is that we spend WAY too much on a regular basis on eating out. Way too much.
So, in my efforts to get creative, this is what I have come up with. I will commit to making meals at home on a more regular basis, give it a real trial for a one month and see what difference it makes in our spending habits and overall lifestyle. And because arts & crafts make everything seem more fun and maybe a tiny bit less grown up, here is what I did:
Step 1:
Grocery shop with a list in hand & meals in mind.
Step 2:
Consult monthly planner to identify dinners at home & plan for fun date nights and dinner out with friends.
Step 3:
Create crafty calendar to disguise the regimented meal plan using groceries as purchased in Step 1.
I will keep you posted on how it goes! Ryan isn't so much as convinced yet, but I figure one month can't kill anybody...As long as I don't try to make a low-fat version of his mom's hamburg pie again. Yikes.
Anybody else have any little helpful savings tips they use on a regular basis?
Bekish....do I feel another Kelly's Korner in the making?? ha! I love it:) A savings tip that has worked for us is withdrawing cash for groceries/eating out each week...that way when we're out, we're out and we don't go over budget.
ReplyDeleteHey girl---we have started the same thing of planning out our meals and then going grocery shopping once/week. I also buy a loaf of bread and split the cost with a co-worker (I can't eat a whole loaf in 1 week), then bring in my lunch meat and cheese and leave it in the work fridge--then I don't have to worry about bringing lunch everyday and I'm not tempted to eat out. Hope all is well!
ReplyDeleteI love all the blogging as of late! I have a love/hate relationship with MINT. It is amazing how fast those little bars can go up! I am not the best person to offer advice on money saving because everything I have tried only lasts a week tops:)
ReplyDelete"One month can't kill anybody." I question this sentence my love.
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