This is a guest post from my friend Stacey of Layered Soul.
I believe I was born a natural tightwad. Years ago when Amy Dacyzyn published the “Tightwad Gazette” it quickly became my favorite book set. Of course this was long before the Internet exploded with websites on saving money.
But even though I love a good bargain, I have noticed in the last year I have become lazy with handling money.
Ok, not really lazy, but more too tired and overwhelmed to try.
Life has a way of being overwhelming really fast when raising children, schooling, and working a part-time job.
It can be tempting to make decisions on things that make life easier.
Really saving money doesn’t just happen by making easy choices. It requires planning and effort.
Currently I am faced with helping to get my first-born son to college, on-going medical bills, and needing a new car.
Time to take a hard look at my spending. Which means looking at what I am actually spending, real numbers…not guesses or estimates.
Sometimes in your mind you think you are really spending too much money on eating out when it’s those spur of the moment shopping trips to department stores that are breaking the budget.
After taking a look at spending, its time to decide on ways to save. Because even if you can make your own deodorant to save money will your family happily use it?
Over the summer I am going to start with some baby steps to changing our spending habits and hopefully keep from overwhelming myself.
· Track my spending and start a saving plan for a car.
· Making homemade dishwasher soap for the first time.
· Changing our Netflix account to one disc at a time, until school starts up in the fall.
· Using a wad of aluminum foil instead of dryer sheets.
· Getting some dates on the calendar for a group of my friends to go to yard sales together.
Untimely remind myself that I don’t want to endure a frugal lifestyle but enjoy it.
“The dieter fails as long as he hates low-calorie food. The would-be athlete will fail as long as he hates exertion. The tightwad wannabe will fail as long as he views frugality as a lifestyle he has to endure, or, was forced into by circumstance.” Amy Dacyzyn
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Instead of aluminum foil, I got a roll of wool yarn and wrapped it in balls & felted it. Now I use those – 5 balls for $10. Well worth it!