Making the best of it

I am nearly a month into the new schedule with the children in daycare. It has been a challenge. I have tried to be creative with food because I am reduced to $30 a week for food. When I say that, I mean food. There is no way I can do that with diapers, wipes and clothing. Having said that, I have relied on hand-me-downs from some of my friends and sales in which I found clothing for $3 a piece. I also changed my car insurance to save $77 a month. I am looking to change my homeowner's insurance too, but need to find out what my fire rating is. If I can get my fire rating down (related to the fire department's rating) I can also save $300 a year on homeowners.

But above all other ways to cut spending, I seriously shop around sales and with coupons. Unless I do not have a choice, if it is not on sale and I don't have a coupon, then I do not get it. Of course having to buy gluten free makes things a little more challenging and I still buy produce, but I really try to hold the line on those items. Diapers and wipes are the ones that can be sneaky; I have had to buy diapers without a coupon, but recently bought diapers but got a $7 Catalina, so it was like having a coupon.

For those who know me, I am known as a bit of a spendthrift. I used to fill some emotional voids in my life by buying things. For the most part, I was not even buying for me but buying for others. I liked to be the one who bought the best gift; I still do, but now I am trying to be more selective. Buying gifts now are not about biggest and best, but personal and more thoughtful. For example, I made blueberry jam this summer and I gave it to others as a gift. This holiday season I plan to make gift jars for teas, coffees and snacks. Each item is not expensive by itself, but is time consuming to create and I believe that those who receive them like them and appreciate the gift. Or, they are being kind and like collecting mason jars!

I am a list maker. I have seen lists for 100 things to do rather than drugs or eating while on a diet or any number of things. I thought I would create a list of things to do rather than go shopping.

1. clip coupons, because even you break down and go shopping, you at least have coupons now
2. clean your bathroom. If you have a husband or other males living in your house, you understand why this could be laborious and sap your desire to go shopping after it is completed
3.bake, sometimes the reason I would want to shop was because I was hungry for something I did not have in the house
4. weed around the garden. I need to be active, so weeding takes the focus from my mind and puts it into a more physical activity
5. organize something. I still need to organize my office, so I have told myself that until that room gets cleaned, there is no shopping. Of course, even if I organize it, I still will not go shopping but in the past I rewarded myself by going shopping, now I will change it to another thing to organize. This way my house will get organized and I will not have added anything new to further disorganize it!

I hope that by living this year more frugally I will cure myself of wasteful spending and be a more thoughtful person.