I know there are lots of blogs out there with tips on how to save money. It seems like whenever I read their advice, it either isn't going to fit our life style or they author -in my opinion- still doesn't have a clue. Americans today have a scewed perception on what is a need and what is a want. So I thought I would blog about my families adventures in saving money. And although we still have room for improvement, it might strike some ideas for yourself that you never thought of before-hey anything that can help save money. (I realize this may not work for all households) Our household is a single income home with currently one child and one pet. We started this budget to save for a new car, Ryan and I sat down to look at our finances on Quicken-how we balance our check book- to see where we could afford to cut back and save. With Quicken you are able to categorize your spending habits and print out a monthly record. We saw that we were spending $900-$1200/month at Wal Mart, $300-$500/month on fuel and up to $300 on eating out/month. Needless to say we needed a quick fix, we made some major adjustments and now have a "Wal Mart budget"=$75 a week, a "Fuel budget"=$60 a week and a "Dining and Entertainment Budget" $50 a month, all that fits our needs and lifestyle.
Of coarse none of this was done without sacrifice...Ryan-who was driving his truck to work...now had to drive the car, using the car twice as much as the truck would cut our fuel money in half! I was shopping at Wal Mart anytime I felt like making a new kind of dinner or baking something fun...tried the newest makeup or shampoo...bought expensive cleaning products...no more! Now we shop together ONCE a week with a list and a budget, now we spend a 1/4 of what we did before. Lastly the dining out- simply we don't go out to eat...it doesn't make sense. 2-3 times a month we get a red box movie for $1 and a little ceasar pizza for $5. If we are on the road and I know we will need to eat, I simple pack a lunch for everyone, it's healthier and cheaper!
In this blog I am going to focus on the grocery aspect of our budget. It makes the biggest impact on our pocket and is the easiest to control. There are simple rules to this challenge and they are as follows:
Rule #1 Plan for Meals-make a menu of 4-5 meals (expect leftovers) make the meals as simple as possible (you don't really need fresh parsley) For example
1. Chili-beans-salsa-ground beef
2. Pizza-crust packet-sauce-cheese-meat
3. Tuna Casserole-noodles-cheese-tuna-cream of mushroom
4. Spaghetti-noddles-sauce-meat
In our family, I know chili, spaghetti and tuna casserole will last for 2 meals
Rule#2 Make a list and stick to it. Take the list to the store and cross off as you go, stay focused and don't shop when your hungry or thirsty! (or pregnant!)
Rule #3 Shop with your spouse. If your spouse can't come, make it a date to sit down and go over the list together and then go over the receipt of the items you bought when you get home. This will give you accountability so you don't get tempted to buy a box of $5 cookies you don't need! (Guilty!)
Rule #4 Tally it up! Compute your groceries as they get put in the cart, yes this makes the experience a little longer, but it's worth not being surprised at check out! It also forces you to look at labels or the price per unit. Like Cottonelle TP is a better value than Charmine Ultra
Rule #5: No Snacks and No Bulk- For our household, the more food we have the more we eat...so even though all the experts say buy in bulk...I say no! I could spend $8 on a econo size jar of peanut butter and have it gone in 2 weeks or spend $2 on a normal jar that will last one week. Not only do we not buy food in bulk, we don't buy junk food. Which means no chips, cookies, pop or candy. Those items ruin your budget and your waistline. Instead I buy nutra grain bars, raisins, popcorn cheese sticks...snacks that are yummy but not too yummy that you want to eat the whole bag!
Every week I will post our menu and our grocery receipt-proof that this can be done. If you are willing to try this Wal Mart Challenge...you will find it will make a HUGE difference in your finances. It take a little effort, but goes a long way!
