September 24, 2006
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How LOW can you go?
I spent this afternoon going over our budget to see how much lower I could get our monthly bills. Just when I think we have cut back on every EXTRA I find one or more places where I can cut back just a little more.
Last month I went way over my food budget because I did not keep track of what I was spending each week. I’m trying to record what I’ve spent in Quick Books each week now that I’ve realized how easy things can add up. So, I cut this month’s food budget WAY back in order to balance out the two months. I’ve been trying a few new things in the kitchen this past month to cut down on my food bill.
* I check my veggie drawer each afternoon to see which veggies need to be used. I was wasting too many vegetables and decided that I needed to keep a closer eye on them. I also keep an eye on my leftovers and try to use them at the next meal. If I don’t use them then I immediately label and freeze them.
* I’m taking Laine’s (Laines Letters) advice and looking for recipes with less meat and more veggies. We eat low carb so I can’t stretch my meals with pasta so I’m looking for recipes with more veggies. I’m going to watch for chilies to go down in price and then I’ll make some chile rellenos (hubby’s favorite). I found a new recipe for beef broccoli and I hope to try that next month. Laine recommends cooking ethnic foods since they use less meat. Recipezaar.com has great recipes from family cooks. They have a search engine which I’ve used many, many times.
* My husband and I were eating out regularly at a little Mexican restaurant nearby. Since we are cutting back in every area we’ve had to stop this practice, too. We may splurge once a month, if able. Anyway, I found a recipe for his favorite mexican meal and I make that on Sunday’s. I think the best thing about eating out for me was not having to cook. So, I’ve been making it a practice to cook as much as possible on Saturday. That way I just have a few last minute things to cook on Sunday after church.
* Before we began cutting back on our expenses I was buying one or two Christian books a month. I think I miss buying books the most. I’m so blessed to know of a large Christian library in the town where my daughter lives. So, when I go to visit her I’ll stop by and pick up some good missionary stories to read and some Christian videos. What a blessing this has been!
* I shopped from my freezer this month. I tried to only purchase fruit, veggies and milk at the store. It’s amazing what you can find buried WAY back in your freezer! *Smile*
* Cindy’s Porch teaches to USE IT UP so that’s what I have been doing. I’ve had so many items on my shelves that I purchased and didn’t like. I’d turn around and buy something new. So, I’ve been using up all of those items instead of purchasing new ones. I had some powdered laundry detergent that I didn’t like because it caked on the clothes. I decided to fill up the washer with water and the detergent before I added the clothes and this is working just fine. I also had powdered dishwashing detergent that I was going to give away and decided to use it, instead. Using things up has really helped stretch things this month.
* I’m keeping the thermostat at 80-82 degrees. I keep a small fan in my kitchen cabinet and under my bathroom sink. Those seem to be two areas where I really get warm. I find that if I just pull out the fan and use it I can void turning down the air conditioner.
Well, that’s just a few of many changes we have been making the past few months. I’m planning on dropping an extra fax line and the long distance service on my phone bill along with making changes to our car insurance,too.
One more thing I need help with is how to cut cost on my webpage. I’m paying $80.00 a year for a domain website. I’m just not going to be able to pay it this year so I’m needing to find a free website. Ourchurch.com offers a free one but the space is limited to 50 MB. Do any of you ladies know of a better alternative that is free and easy to use with more space? Ourchurch.com offers a website building program so you don’t need to know html. I know a little html but not enough to build a website. I sure would appreciate any advice you gals could give.
Hugs and blessings!
Comments (20)
GoDaddy offers domain hosting for only $3.99 per month. Do you have any kind of software to upload your site, such as WS-FTP?
Enjoyed your site and reading your ideas for cutting back. Brought back a lot of memories of when my children were small and things were very tight. We ate a lot of bean things in those days. Also, I did a lot of bulk food purchasing and cooking. That ended up being good too, because I was homeschooling and I almost always had a preprepared meal in the freezer for those days when things got a little hectic. God always provided for the “extras” somehow…scholarships, an invitation to eat out at someone else’s expense or at their house, a gift of hand-me-downs, etc. It taught us how to be “receivers” and now that we are older and things are easier, we enjoy being “givers”.
Great tips! We have been “budgeting” this yr, trying to get some credit card debt paid off. The past few months tho we really havent’ sat down and worked on it. This week dh’s check was short, because he took half a day to go to the fair with us last week. So, we had to dip into savings to pay some bills. Made him feel bad and made me feel guilty becuase I asked him to and it caused a fuss when bill paying time came.
As for meat, becuase of LBS, I have to eat more protein. Beans are a great source of protein.
This week I didn’t buy any meats. I was going thru my freezer and found enough meat to last a month.
Well, anyway, thank you for the tips, God bless you in your efforts in cutting back.
I so enjoyed the practical advice in your entry today. Good stuff!
I don’t know anything about webpages, etc. I did read in a Christian magazine, once, and advertisement for free webpages. I came home, looked at it, bookmarked it, in case I ever needed to check it out later. It is http://www.phdservice.com/ . Like I said I have no idea what I’m looking at.
God bless ~E
Xanga costs you $80 a month? I pay $0.00 !!! What’s with that?
There are lots of good web hosts out there that cost less than $60 a year. Look around. Most have webpage templates that you might can use, too. Look up Churchfinderz.com, StartLogic.com, 1X Web Hosting.com, etc.
Good ideas for cutting back on the expenses. Thanks for sharing them.
way to go with the savings…. I loved hearing the details….
Your site is beautiful! I too need to try harder to save money…Hugs Mary
praying as you find the plain and simple ways to see you through ———yes, the picture is of me- it is the only picture I have had here- before I was just a blank square- LOL- huggles me
I enjoy reading about your plans and goals to save money.
Concerning your question: The doctors are not sure what is wrong with Elwood, the older man in my last post. Kristen was thinking stroke, but doctors have not confirmed anything.
It is a blessing to live on a budget. We lived on a very tight budget for many years to become debt free. We have not had any debt for about 10 or so years now, but still try to live frugally to have more to give to the Lord’s work. The Lord will bless your efforts.
Thanks for your prayers for Christa. I will be going to sit with her Thursday morning. She has such a sweet spirit in the Lord. Blessings
Great tips! About 3 yrs ago we had an ice storm and knocked our electricity out for 21 days. Stores, gas stations, etc… we’re shut down the first 2-3 days. We had to travel into the big city to get necessities. We we’re forced to go to the freezer and get creative with our meals. That and our food was thawing way too fast. Thank goodness for grilling!! We ate so well! Before we would have opened the freezer and said we didn’t have anything to eat, then head to the store to buy something. We get pretty spoiled at our home. Sometimes we need to make like we’ve had another ice storm and make due with what we have. I like the money management practice of Dave Ramsey.
You and your family are in my prayers.Your site is such a blessing to me. Thanks you for sharing as you do. I must make an apple pie for RL when he is home this weekend. Yours look wonderful and are a gentle reminder for me to do likewise for my hero.
Hey, no, didn’t make the stew yesterday, gettingit made todya.
I love homemade veggie soup. My mom used to clean out the freezer and put every kind of veggie in her-okra, blackeyed peas, peas, gr. beans, etc. So good with a hunk of corn bread.
Excellent ideas. I appreciate them especially at the moment as my husband and I are hoping that he can start working from home next spring. With the type of work he would be doing, income could fluctuate greatly and we are trying right now to save up enough money to pay for established expenses for the next year…just in case. I’m really needing to have a heart change regarding spending extra money on “wants” versus “needs”. Thank you for the ideas!
I love how reading how you firhure things through reminds me of the daily managment juggle I have here too….I really enjoyed your bolg! xo, QE
I really, really need to do some of the things you are doing for saving money! This is good encouragement for me, thanks for the tips!
As always, you inspire me to do better….thanks….
Budgeting is always a good thing to do. Living debt free makes for a great feeling. Your ideas sound great to me.
Have a blessed weekend & God keep ya’ll safe, healthy & happy. HUGS
It is encouraging to know that I am not the only one that has to cut back. I felt that we pretty much lived about as cheaply as possible. I did cut back on my groceries. Only thing is I mourn the loss of my healthy habits. No more splurging for whole grain, organic and no trans-fats. That one idol is not falling easily.
I sure don’t have any idea about websites. I have a friend that does web hosting, but I don’t think it is free.
Blessings!~Margie
Since I just “met” you, I’m not sure why you are cutting back on things, but I think it is good. Most Americans have no idea how much we have. We lived in Africa for 7 years, and as “poor” missionaries we were so much richer than the nationals that it was embarrasing. When we came back from Africa we had 2 more children, making 7, and my husband started his own business. I babysat to earn extra $, but didn’t work outside the home. Saving money has been a lifetime thing for me. I like bargains, and enjoy shopping at our local dented can store. When my grown kids run out of food, sometimes they come shopping at Mom’s pantry.