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I haven't been adding anything to my savings account and frankly, it has close to nothing in it and that's scary. My plan is to put this years tax return in the savings for an emergency fund, so that should bring it to around $3,000 (I'm estimating). But, we should be doing this on a regular basis and I have been doing some serious thinking as to why we don't.
At the end of the month we are just breaking even, but that shouldn't be. I haven't used my credit card in a very long time, but I do carry a balance and I need to deal with that. I don't have a cell phone contract, I have a prepaid cell that I spend $15 per month on minutes just to have in case of emergencies. Honestly, I don't use it at all and it could go w/o being missed. We do have a satalight dish, but that is our only entertainment, we never go out, so $40 per month goes toward that. I have DSL, NO can't give that up, I am addicted! I would die and that's that.
Most of our extra money goes toward food. I mean a lot of money. I leave out $100 for food every week and every week I use my debit card for at least another $50 - $75!!!! I buy organic and only healthy foods and they are expensive. I don't know if I am willing to sacrifice in this area. I haven't been buying meat so my bill should be lower, but it has been higher than ever. I have to put some real thought into my meal plans and not browsing though the grocery store like a kid in a candy store. It has to be possible for me to bring my grocery bill down to $100 per week.
Another small area is going to be with my kids school lunches. I have been letting them buy lunches for $1.05 per day, times 2 kids. So that's approximately $42 per month for their lunches and they aren't even all that healthy. I think I can do better here by sending them food from home.
So my goal is to save:
$300 per month on my groceries ($75 per week)
$ 42 per month on school lunches
$342 per month I can put toward my credit card debt in addition to the $200 I pay now.
I should be able to pay the credit card debt off in less than a year and then start adding this money toward our savings. Along with this, my truck will be paid off in October of this year so another $301 can be saved and next year my dh's truck will be paid and that will be another $257 toward savings.
I think if I keep my eye on the goal, I just might be able to be free sooner than I ever thought I could!
Do you think I am being reasonable with myself with this plan?
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I'm not trying to bring you down, but that's a large cut on groceries, over 30%. If you can do it, it sounds awesome. You will need to buy more groceries to make lunches for your children. I'm not sure what you are doing presently. Have ever written down all your purchases to see where you can cut back? Have you thought about growing your own vegies? It would cut down on some of the higher priced organic foods you currently buy. How about one or two super cheap dinners? Breakfast for dinner can be quite inexpensive and nutritious. I would hate for you to set yourself up for failure, then be disappointed. On the positive side cutting out school lunches is great and your dh's truck payment ending in October will be huge. At least you are formulating a plan, just keep plugging away, you will get there! One of my favorite sayings is "It's a marathon, not a sprint". Good luck and sending positive thoughts your way!
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I won't cut out on organics, if feel that is important. I know that's a lot to cut out. I think I've been going to the grocery store and treating it like recreation. I walk around with no particular plan, browse each section and honestly, it's fun for me. That has to stop.
I'm going to start shopping at home first to see what we already have. Then make a meal plan and only buy the things we need rather than going and buying a bunch of cool stuff and seeing what I can make with it. I'm going to get a couple of good thermoses for my kids to take leftovers. My dh and I eat leftovers for lunch, so they can too and it will be healthier.
We have an enormous garden in the summer, bigger than some peoples yard. Last year, I canned over 90 jars of tomatoes (it was painful!) but this year we are expanding it again and I will can more as well as other veggies. My grocery bill in the summer is almost nothing. But since we do eat a lot of veggies, the winter kills us.
Food is my passion. I love to cook. We have fancy dinners with candlelight for entertainment, for goodness sake, I even garnish. I think I just need to tone it down a little. Though it's going to make me sad.
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Wow! I wish I could have a garden, with all the wildlife and my black thumb I don't know if I could do it. What is something easy and hearty to start with? Any advice would be appreciated. The left over idea for your children is great! If you make a menu, then a grocery list from that you should be able to achieve your goal. I love your idea about fancy candlelit dinners, I'm going to try it. I may find myself in the emergency room from my family fainting. Again, good luck.
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Gardening is easier than you think. Just plant the things that you like best. We way over plant tomatoes because we know we are going to can them, romas are best for this in my opinion, they are meatier and make great sauce. We also plant a few early tomatoes, some beef steak (they come late, but are yummy) and some grape tomatoes for salads (go sparingly, these produce huge amounts of those little things, you can't pick them all).
We have started planting only english cucumbers, they are less seedy. We live on zucchini so quite a few of those, but they make lots and we tend to have more than we know what to do with, the plants get very large, actually 3 plants would probably be sufficient. A cool thing, once the little zucchini starts, you can pick the big flower and stuff them with ricotta cheese and saute them...way good!
My dh plants hot & regular peppers and canned the hot ones last year in just water w/ salt. They are just like the ones you by in the store and it was easy to do. (we buy plants)
We tried egg plant last year from plants, they were great. They didn't work for us from seed.
We did corn last year for the first time. We planted a row, waited a week then another, etc so that it all wasn't ready to pick on the same day. Do this with lettuce too or you will be overwhelmed.
We learned that it is easiest to use black plastic on the ground instead of trying to keep up with the weeds, it also holds the moisture in so you don't have to water as much. You can buy it in small rolls at Walmart for about $15, but our garden is so large that we go to a larger farm supply type store and buy it on an enormous roll. It has over 1000 feet and is about $100 but lasts us for years.
herbs are really easy to grow too. We let the basil plants get big then pick the whole plant and hang it upside down to try, then pick and crush the leaves.
We garden organically so if we get aphids or bugs we spray them with dish soap and water. You have to do it more often than with chemicls but it's worth the effort for us.
We also have apple, pear, cherry and peach trees. And have started grape vines, and raspberries. We are going to replant our strawberries this year.
Spring is a lot of prep work, but it is so worth it when it starts producing.
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How do you keep wildlife away bunnies, deer etc.? Sorry to keep asking you all these questions, I know I'm way off topic, I am really considering this. We have 2 1/2 acres, mostly wooded, I know I could find an area. Is there a good website for beginners you are aware of? Thanks again.
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Treehugger, I was thinking about starting my own and first garden this year. I have an area in the back yard that Im going to get dh to fence in. I will never have enough room to plant as much as you have! When shoudl I get started? And what should a first timer plant?
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OMG! I can't believe you have such a big garden! I would LOVE a garden, but we live in a concrete jungle and don't have anywhere for one. Last year we got a baby pool from Walmart, filled it with soil and I let the kids grow some things... but they all died from the heat after about a month. We didn't actually get to eat anything. My kids have no concept that people COULD eat something they grew themselves! Isn't that sad??? That's why I want to move...buy a farm (or at least a couple acres somewhere) because we are so detached from nature. Wildlife??? I can't believe you all have wildlife! Here, if you see a cricket, that's wildlife. Or ants. Or if you see a lizard, holy moly get the camera!!! My baby sees birds and is ecstatic that there's something alive outside!
<<sigh>> one day we will move. Hopefully before my kids are grown....
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Treehugger your garden sounds wonderful. Maybe you could start a different thread to get all the enthusists started? I would love a garden too, but it seems the $$ needed to truck in soil etc. out weigh what I could produce.....
As per your original issue, it REALLY helped me to track every purchase,,,,and I mean EVERY purchase last month. DH was great at bringing home receipts and I actually itemized what was purchased. Ex: 1.58 bread, 4.99 milk etc. This allowed me to analyze at the end of the month where we spent the money. I know have a new plan for Feb. on areas to cut back even further.
Feb. isn't that old. Maybe you could start tracking now?
Answer:
Originally Posted by lvr4jbns
How do you keep wildlife away bunnies, deer etc.? Sorry to keep asking you all these questions, I know I'm way off topic, I am really considering this. We have 2 1/2 acres, mostly wooded, I know I could find an area. Is there a good website for beginners you are aware of? Thanks again.
We don't have a problem with wildlife really. I did see a mouse once out there, but naturally, I thought he was adorable...lol he was holding a cherry tomatoe, man I wish I had my camera.
There is an electric fence on the back side of our garden. It is the farmer's that has cows right next door. So the deer don't come near it. I have seen woodchucks and a rabbit too, but they really don't cause a problem, I'm not sure why. I have heard of some tricks. My mom is a hairdresser and people used to come and get the hair clippings from her shop. The animals can smell it and stay away. There are also things you can plant, I think marigolds and dill and I might have heard lavendar (I'll have to check that last one). I used to tie shinny ribbon on poles in my strawberries to keep the birds out. I'm not really sure that worked though, you have to wake up pretty early to beat a bird to the strawberry patch.
If your garden isn't that big, you could always use builders netting around it on poles. We just never really had to. I plant sunflowers along the edges of mine, but that's just because they are cute.