Tuesday, July 6, 2010

I'm in Love!

Mike and I have been working very hard to get our bills down over the last couple of months. We have both read Dave Ramsey's book "Total Money Makeover" and are committed to getting ourselves out of debt before the kids even know what they were missing. We have cut cable and Netflix subscriptions, changed phone and cell service, raised the temperature in the house... you name it, we have done it! Or, if you can think of something we may not have tried, please shoot us a note and let us know about it!

Most recently, we have started full-force couponing. I have always clipped coupons to some extent, but I tended to forget that I had one for something I needed or I found that the store brands were just cheaper. I never thought I could make much of a dent in the grocery bill, especially since we now have 2 little mouths to feed!

Boy was I wrong! I took a class at work from a coworker's daughter who is the master and has been saving her family tons of money every month for several years. She says she typically spends about $50 a month on groceries! it sounds impossible, right? WRONG! With the right info and mindset, we have already saved over $500 in the last month!

Already, we have more food to snack on and more choices for dinner every night. We are stocking up on cheap or free stuff using sales and coupons and having fun in the process! I've even been able to share the spoils with friends and family and am looking forward to being able to do that regularly.

As a super side effect, Mike and I have been having a blast working together on this common goal/ hobby and have been having the most fun we've had in years! We're so into this that we're even guilty of stopping by drugstores for freebie trips on a couple of recent dates and giggling in various clearance sections! Who'd have ever thought that working to get our family in a better financial situation would result in us sharing a new hobby that we enjoy and bringing us closer together? I'm newly in love all over again... both with my husband AND our hobby, hehehehe!