Frugalistas, are we still talking? Have I missed these threads?

[mommyoffive]

Are we still doing these threads?   

[JustEm]

I'd love to still do them. Haven't seen a new one though. Shall we just turn this into this weeks one?

[mommyoffive]

I'd love to still do them. Haven't seen a new one though. Shall we just turn this into this weeks one?

 

 

Sure.  I don't want to step on any toes.

 

 

I don't remember what week we left off on.

 

 

I still haven't gotten the quote for my car.   It is on the to do list,which is long so..

 

 

We field our taxes, I need to see if we got our return or not.  

 

I need to pay for the rest of violin lessons.

 

I am thinking I need to shop at Aldi again.  Our grocery bill is staying at $200 a week which is odd.  Usually we have one of those a month. 

 

 

The kids are taking a break from a lot of things.  The only thing we are keeping right now are dance and violin.   It kind of stunk for awhile, but now I like not having to run. 

Swimming was eating up so much $ every month.  I am glad to take a break.  I don't even know IF we will go back.   

 

 

We bought tickets to Europe for the summer.  $0 of pocket, all paid with points with opening 2 credit cards.  We still have tons of points left.   We will be telling the kids in 2 weeks.  I can't wait.  Now I need to plan though.  A bit nervous about that.  I have looked into taking a cruise, but I am nervous I will be sick the whole time.  But do you think the waves are less around Italy or up North?  Less open water?  Is that nuts? 

[JustEm]

I want to go to Europe! I don't know about the waves.

 

Groceries are the second most annoying part of our budget. Eating out is number one. We rocked it this month with not eating out at all! It was also a good month grocery spending wise. Out of our $500 allotted for the month I only spent $400 so the extra $100 went into savings.

 

We got both our state and federal returns which we paid off a small credit card balance and put the rest into savings. With the returns and an additional $500 we are significantly closer to our $10,000 savings goal. It is currently at $6280.

 

I'll post my March budget in a different post since this is getting long.

[JustEm]

March is a 3 paycheck month which is always nice and will get us so much closer to our savings goal. Here's the budget..

 

Savings 0/1000

Groceries 0/500

Gas for car 0/150

Entertainment 0/100

My fun money 0/50

Dh's fun money 0/50

Gifts 0/100 (this goes into an account for whenever we need to buy gifts. We've got a few weddings in Spring so I'm adding more than usual in anticipation.)

 

Car Maintenance 0/100 ( this just goes into an account for when we need it)

 

Misc 0/150 ( this is for anything we may need that I haven't thought about)

[mommyoffive]

I want to go to Europe! I don't know about the waves.

 

Groceries are the second most annoying part of our budget. Eating out is number one. We rocked it this month with not eating out at all! It was also a good month grocery spending wise. Out of our $500 allotted for the month I only spent $400 so the extra $100 went into savings.

 

We got both our state and federal returns which we paid off a small credit card balance and put the rest into savings. With the returns and an additional $500 we are significantly closer to our $10,000 savings goal. It is currently at $6280.

 

I'll post my March budget in a different post since this is getting long.

 

 

Holly smokes you are rocking it girl.

 

Your grocery budget is amazing.   Where do you shop?  What do you guys eat?  Is that for all your paper stuff too? 

 

 

You almost to your savings goal for the year and it is March!!!!   Awesome.

ARe you saving for anything in particular? 

 

 

i haven't been to Europe since college. I am excited.   Dh has gone for work a lot.  

Edited March 2, 2017 by mommyoffive

[DawnM]

My paychecks this year (I started in Aug) are almost completely going to pay our HELOC and cars.  So far, we have paid off the one car, and paid $5000 towards the second.

 

We opted to use my pay and some savings and paid off all but 6500 of our HELOC.

 

We are putting a hold on paying debt (other than reg. amounts) while we figure out some things.  I need to go see my parents over Spring Break, and because it is a high travel season, it will be pricey, AND since I have such little time, I am opting to pay extra for a direct flight.  It may be $2000 by the time I get the ticket, get a hotel room, a rental car, etc.....but I need to go see my parents and check out some areas we may be moving to.

 

And we owe on taxes this year.  My job/working put us in a  higher tax bracket and although we know the higher amount is only paid on the XX amount, we still owe.

 

And, in case we are moving this summer, we are getting some house stuff done, window replacements, dry wall repair, porch repair, it all adds up.

 

It is just one thing after another.

[JustEm]

Holly smokes you are rocking it girl.

 

Your grocery budget is amazing. Where do you shop? What do you guys eat? Is that for all your paper stuff too?

 

 

You almost to your savings goal for the year and it is March!!!! Awesome.

ARe you saving for anything in particular?

 

 

i haven't been to Europe since college. I am excited. Dh has gone for work a lot.

I shop pretty much exclusively at ShopRite. We do not buy snack foods at all aside from 2 bags of tortilla chips and 2 bags of pretzels a month. Anything else like cookies, cake, pie, etc we bake from scratch if we want it. We also don't buy paper products except toilet paper, we use cloth for everything else. Our budget does include diapers, toilet paper, and dog food. The toilet paper is purchased in bulk once a year through Amazon when they have a stockpile price. We don't buy already prepared foods either like frozen lasagnas or pizzas.

 

We eat eggs, oatmeal, or from scratch pancakes for breakfast with toast, fruits, and veggies as sides.

 

We eat beans/lentils twice a week but the type varies greatly so we don't get bored. Most of our other dinners are chicken based with tons of veggies. Pork and beef occasionally. Basically I buy whatever meats are on deep sale in bulk and freeze them either as a meal or by themselves for later use. For fruits and veggies I buy what is on sale and a few regulars like I always buy kale and avocado no matter the cost.

 

The savings is this year's contribution to our down payment on our next house.

[JustEm]

My paychecks this year (I started in Aug) are almost completely going to pay our HELOC and cars. So far, we have paid off the one car, and paid $5000 towards the second.

 

We opted to use my pay and some savings and paid off all but 6500 of our HELOC.

 

We are putting a hold on paying debt (other than reg. amounts) while we figure out some things. I need to go see my parents over Spring Break, and because it is a high travel season, it will be pricey, AND since I have such little time, I am opting to pay extra for a direct flight. It may be $2000 by the time I get the ticket, get a hotel room, a rental car, etc.....but I need to go see my parents and check out some areas we may be moving to.

 

And we owe on taxes this year. My job/working put us in a higher tax bracket and although we know the higher amount is only paid on the XX amount, we still owe.

 

And, in case we are moving this summer, we are getting some house stuff done, window replacements, dry wall repair, porch repair, it all adds up.

 

It is just one thing after another.

Part of me wants to get a part-time job so we can sock a bit more money away and have extra for house repairs in anticipation of a move in the next few years. That must be nice being able to use that money to knock out car payments and such. But there really is always something that turns up needing attention. It seems never-ending.

[SmallTownGirl]

We bought tickets to Europe for the summer.  $0 of pocket, all paid with points with opening 2 credit cards.  We still have tons of points left.   We will be telling the kids in 2 weeks.  I can't wait.  Now I need to plan though.  A bit nervous about that.  I have looked into taking a cruise, but I am nervous I will be sick the whole time.  But do you think the waves are less around Italy or up North?  Less open water?  Is that nuts? 

This is great!  Can you tell me more about this?  Like which credit cards did you open?  Did you have to transfer balances from other credit cards?  We've never used credit cards with points before.

[DawnM]

Part of me wants to get a part-time job so we can sock a bit more money away and have extra for house repairs in anticipation of a move in the next few years. That must be nice being able to use that money to knock out car payments and such. But there really is always something that turns up needing attention. It seems never-ending.

 

 

Yup, and as soon as we knock out all the debt, we will be facing college expenses, which is one reason I went back to work in the first place.

[JustEm]

Yup, and as soon as we knock out all the debt, we will be facing college expenses, which is one reason I went back to work in the first place.

My hope for college expenses is that either dh or I work for our local university by the time the kids are in college assuming they still give free tuition to 2 family members pre semester. That is how my mom put 7 kids through college.

[DawnM]

My hope for college expenses is that either dh or I work for our local university by the time the kids are in college assuming they still give free tuition to 2 family members pre semester. That is how my mom put 7 kids through college.

 

Ok, hoping I can respond now.  For some reason, I typed out long responses and the site deleted them.

 

Every college seems to be different in how much assistance they give employees.  I was told my former alma mater (private Christian college) gives 90% remission for faculty.  I heard it was less for staff, but I have no idea what the amount was.

 

But if your college gives full tuition remission, that would be awesome.

Edited March 4, 2017 by DawnM

[SKL]

We've gotten better about eating the food in the cupboard / freezer rather than buying more.

 

I bought my kid some cloth panty liners.  Funny how we have come full circle:  when I was a kid, my mom told me how lucky I was that I had disposable pads instead of those awful cloth ones she had to use.  LOL.  But right now I'm only talking about liners, not full-on pads.  :P

 

I've been trying to litter train the guinea pig.  Of course this means buying stuff at first, but hopefully it will mean less expense and work in the long run.  Maybe.

 

I bought some decorative containers to improve organization.  Here's hoping.

 

I think it will soon be time to renew the educational sponsorships I started last year.

 

As for saving money, I have been super busy with work lately, so no time to spend much.  :)  Just looking at the bright side.  :)

 

 

[EMS83]

I paid about 75% of our credit card debt with our refund and we have $1000 in savings for the first time in over a year.   :hurray:   

BUT I just did our monthly review for February, and we've been incredibly unfrugal (fairly evenly so), so I may hang around and re-educate myself in the ways of penny pinching.

[Elizabeth 2]

Taxes are filed and return is back!

 

Let's just not talk about the eating out the last two days...

Funded Step One for Dave Ramsey.

Paid 1/3 of CC debt.

Using rest of taxes so we can budget on the previous months income like YNAB.

Then paying off another 1/3 of CC debt.

 

I went to Target. Paid $60, have $10 gift cards left, and saved $50. We have at least three months of household cleaners. And I have razors again! Yeti can be banaished for another month. I took DD3 with me. It turned out to be such a positive momma/daughter time.

 

I have two of the six Audible credits left. Suggestions welcome so I use them well before I have to cancel. Adjusted my Grove Colaborative subscription so they don't come as often. It'll be less of a temptation and we're pretty stocked at the moment.

 

Made the decision to delay finishing my BS until it can be completed debt free. Difficult, but since homeschooling seems to be our lifestyle now, it's not absolutely necessary. Plus, if I don't finish before the kids, it keeps some scholarships and grants open for them.

 

Looking at the possibility of leasing a vehicle. While DH can work on our vehicles, they are getting to the point of repairs costing more than a lease payment. When maintenance is considered, it could save us money.

[mommyoffive]

This is great!  Can you tell me more about this?  Like which credit cards did you open?  Did you have to transfer balances from other credit cards?  We've never used credit cards with points before.

 

 

I am a very novice hacker.  

 

I read travel blogs

 

million mile secrets

mommypoints

thepointsguy

 

 

 

This is the second time that we have gotten free airfare.  

The first time we opened 1 card.  A delta gold card.  Dh had 50 thousand miles from work travel.  With one opening of a card we met the min spend and got another 50k points.  It was enough to buy 6 tickets and have one lap child to Calgary.   Those tickets are usually 400-800.  

 

We do not carry a balance on cards.  Always pay them off.  We didn't use cc before.  WE had some but didn't use them.  I never wanted to make a mistake and get a late charge.

 

 

We haven't started doing hotel cards.  

There are so many cards out there.  I would recommend starting reading the blogs and start figuring out what you want to do and apply for cards.  I wouldn't do it if you don't pay your card in full every month.

 

This time we both opened Chase Reserve Cards

 

It has a $450 annual fee

 

But you get $300 travel credit every year

Priority pass lounge access

Money to pay for Pre check or Global entry

and meeting the min spend we both got 100k points

 

Plus lots more benefits. 

 

So we met both spends and had enough to buy tickets to Europe with nothing out of pocket and we have lots of points left.  You can transfer points to airlines or hotels.  But you can also use the points to pay for lots of different things on their site.  Or you could take the the $

 

 

My goal is to keep hacking so we can travel for less money.

 

The only hotel stuff we do is use hotels.com and get a free night for every 10 we book.  Plus cash back from ebates.com

[Elizabeth 2]

 

I bought my kid some cloth panty liners. Funny how we have come full circle: when I was a kid, my mom told me how lucky I was that I had disposable pads instead of those awful cloth ones she had to use. LOL. But right now I'm only talking about liners, not full-on pads. :P

:)

Would you mind sharing where you purchased them, if you got them online?

[mommyoffive]

We've gotten better about eating the food in the cupboard / freezer rather than buying more.

 

I bought my kid some cloth panty liners.  Funny how we have come full circle:  when I was a kid, my mom told me how lucky I was that I had disposable pads instead of those awful cloth ones she had to use.  LOL.  But right now I'm only talking about liners, not full-on pads.  :p

 

I've been trying to litter train the guinea pig.  Of course this means buying stuff at first, but hopefully it will mean less expense and work in the long run.  Maybe.

 

I bought some decorative containers to improve organization.  Here's hoping.

 

I think it will soon be time to renew the educational sponsorships I started last year.

 

As for saving money, I have been super busy with work lately, so no time to spend much.  :)  Just looking at the bright side.  :)

 

Had no idea you could litter train a guinea pig.  I had them as kids

 

 

yeah staying busy is an awesome way to not spend.

[mommyoffive]

I paid about 75% of our credit card debt with our refund and we have $1000 in savings for the first time in over a year.   :hurray:   

BUT I just did our monthly review for February, and we've been incredibly unfrugal (fairly evenly so), so I may hang around and re-educate myself in the ways of penny pinching.

 

 

Awesome on the knocking out the cc debt and adding savings!  so smart

[mommyoffive]

Taxes are filed and return is back!

 

Let's just not talk about the eating out the last two days...

Funded Step One for Dave Ramsey.

Paid 1/3 of CC debt.

Using rest of taxes so we can budget on the previous months income like YNAB.

Then paying off another 1/3 of CC debt.

 

I went to Target. Paid $60, have $10 gift cards left, and saved $50. We have at least three months of household cleaners. And I have razors again! Yeti can be banaished for another month. I took DD3 with me. It turned out to be such a positive momma/daughter time.

 

I have two of the six Audible credits left. Suggestions welcome so I use them well before I have to cancel. Adjusted my Grove Colaborative subscription so they don't come as often. It'll be less of a temptation and we're pretty stocked at the moment.

 

Made the decision to delay finishing my BS until it can be completed debt free. Difficult, but since homeschooling seems to be our lifestyle now, it's not absolutely necessary. Plus, if I don't finish before the kids, it keeps some scholarships and grants open for them.

 

Looking at the possibility of leasing a vehicle. While DH can work on our vehicles, they are getting to the point of repairs costing more than a lease payment. When maintenance is considered, it could save us money.

 

 

Great use of the tax return!!  Knocking out that debt has to feel awesome.

 

Great deals at Target.  I miss deal shopping.

 

 

It is always so hard figuring out when to replace a car for me.  

 

Trying to figure out schooling is hard.  It sounds like you have some good plans though.

[mommyoffive]

My paychecks this year (I started in Aug) are almost completely going to pay our HELOC and cars.  So far, we have paid off the one car, and paid $5000 towards the second.

 

We opted to use my pay and some savings and paid off all but 6500 of our HELOC.

 

We are putting a hold on paying debt (other than reg. amounts) while we figure out some things.  I need to go see my parents over Spring Break, and because it is a high travel season, it will be pricey, AND since I have such little time, I am opting to pay extra for a direct flight.  It may be $2000 by the time I get the ticket, get a hotel room, a rental car, etc.....but I need to go see my parents and check out some areas we may be moving to.

 

And we owe on taxes this year.  My job/working put us in a  higher tax bracket and although we know the higher amount is only paid on the XX amount, we still owe.

 

And, in case we are moving this summer, we are getting some house stuff done, window replacements, dry wall repair, porch repair, it all adds up.

 

It is just one thing after another.

 

 

I feel you.  it is always one thing after the other.  

 

you are doing awesome kicking out the debt.  

We need to start spending on the house in preparing to move too.  Ugh.

 

 I hope you can score some savings on the trip to see your parents.  

 

 

 

Just wondering about your job and how that made you owe on taxes.  I am thinking of starting some work and wondering how to make us not owe.

Did you claim 0 on your taxes?  I know it doesn't make sense, but I would rather not owe at tax time and have some refund.   We have never owed and that would stink to change to that I think.   

Edited March 3, 2017 by mommyoffive

[mommyoffive]

Part of me wants to get a part-time job so we can sock a bit more money away and have extra for house repairs in anticipation of a move in the next few years. That must be nice being able to use that money to knock out car payments and such. But there really is always something that turns up needing attention. It seems never-ending.

 

 

Me too.  I have been saying it for years, and in reality I should have done it. 

 

I really think I am going to do it this year.

[JustEm]

I am a very novice hacker.

 

I read travel blogs

 

million mile secrets

mommypoints

thepointsguy

 

 

 

This is the second time that we have gotten free airfare.

The first time we opened 1 card. A delta gold card. Dh had 50 thousand miles from work travel. With one opening of a card we met the min spend and got another 50k points. It was enough to buy 6 tickets and have one lap child to Calgary. Those tickets are usually 400-800.

 

We do not carry a balance on cards. Always pay them off. We didn't use cc before. WE had some but didn't use them. I never wanted to make a mistake and get a late charge.

 

 

We haven't started doing hotel cards.

There are so many cards out there. I would recommend starting reading the blogs and start figuring out what you want to do and apply for cards. I wouldn't do it if you don't pay your card in full every month.

 

This time we both opened Chase Reserve Cards

 

It has a $450 annual fee

 

But you get $300 travel credit every year

Priority pass lounge access

Money to pay for Pre check or Global entry

and meeting the min spend we both got 100k points

 

Plus lots more benefits.

 

So we met both spends and had enough to buy tickets to Europe with nothing out of pocket and we have lots of points left. You can transfer points to airlines or hotels. But you can also use the points to pay for lots of different things on their site. Or you could take the the $

 

 

My goal is to keep hacking so we can travel for less money.

 

The only hotel stuff we do is use hotels.com and get a free night for every 10 we book. Plus cash back from ebates.com

I gotta look into this. We'll be buying plane tickets for our ten year anniversary trip within the next few months. I'm always a fan of getting things cheap.

[mommyoffive]

I gotta look into this. We'll be buying plane tickets for our ten year anniversary trip within the next few months. I'm always a fan of getting things cheap.

 

Where are you going?

 

Yeah look into it. 

 

I had thought about for years and just didn't do it.  Always an excuse.  I am kicking myself so hard for not.  I should have.  

 

Start with those blogs.  Tons of information there. 

[JustEm]

Where are you going?

 

Yeah look into it.

 

I had thought about for years and just didn't do it. Always an excuse. I am kicking myself so hard for not. I should have.

 

Start with those blogs. Tons of information there.

We're traveling the west coast. Not positive what all we're doing but we've got a few ideas we've been throwing around.

[mommyoffive]

We're traveling the west coast. Not positive what all we're doing but we've got a few ideas we've been throwing around.

 

Fun to plan.  I love the west coast, so pretty. 

[SKL]

Would you mind sharing where you purchased them, if you got them online?

 

Amazon.com, this product.

 

Apparently it is now listed as unavailable.

 

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00R0TAS9M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[mommyoffive]

Amazon.com, this product.

 

Apparently it is now listed as unavailable.

 

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00R0TAS9M/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

 

 

Those are so cute.   Has anyone used this type of item before?   I feel like I have such issues with pads now.    Can you become allergic over time?

[JustEm]

Those are so cute. Has anyone used this type of item before? I feel like I have such issues with pads now. Can you become allergic over time?

I think you probably can. I can't use pads anymore without becoming irritated. My SIL uses cloth pads, no idea what brand, and loves them. I went the menstrual cup route and love that.

[mommyoffive]

I think you probably can. I can't use pads anymore without becoming irritated. My SIL uses cloth pads, no idea what brand, and loves them. I went the menstrual cup route and love that.

 

I am meaning to try that.  I heard about it a few years back and the keep meaning to do it.  But I kept getting pg and then nursing.   The next time I start my cycle I am going to give it a try. 

[SmallTownGirl]

There are so many cards out there.  I would recommend starting reading the blogs and start figuring out what you want to do and apply for cards.  I wouldn't do it if you don't pay your card in full every month.

 

Thank you for all the information!  We pay our balance every month too and I've never wanted a card with an annual fee so I never looked into them in detail.  I will look into the sources you provided.  Have fun in Europe!

[mommyoffive]

Thank you for all the information!  We pay our balance every month too and I've never wanted a card with an annual fee so I never looked into them in detail.  I will look into the sources you provided.  Have fun in Europe!

 

 

There are a lot of cards with no Annual fees or at least the first year free. 

 

You could do the hotel cards too or instead of.   It just all depends what you want to focus on first or at all.  

[Garga]

I shop pretty much exclusively at ShopRite. We do not buy snack foods at all aside from 2 bags of tortilla chips and 2 bags of pretzels a month. Anything else like cookies, cake, pie, etc we bake from scratch if we want it. We also don't buy paper products except toilet paper, we use cloth for everything else. Our budget does include diapers, toilet paper, and dog food. The toilet paper is purchased in bulk once a year through Amazon when they have a stockpile price. We don't buy already prepared foods either like frozen lasagnas or pizzas.

 

We eat eggs, oatmeal, or from scratch pancakes for breakfast with toast, fruits, and veggies as sides.

 

We eat beans/lentils twice a week but the type varies greatly so we don't get bored. Most of our other dinners are chicken based with tons of veggies. Pork and beef occasionally. Basically I buy whatever meats are on deep sale in bulk and freeze them either as a meal or by themselves for later use. For fruits and veggies I buy what is on sale and a few regulars like I always buy kale and avocado no matter the cost.

 

The savings is this year's contribution to our down payment on our next house.

 

When does Amazon have their TP stockpile price?

[Garga]

I am meaning to try that. I heard about it a few years back and the keep meaning to do it. But I kept getting pg and then nursing. The next time I start my cycle I am going to give it a try.

I got one last May. It took about a 3 or 4 month learning curve to feel that I knew what I was doing. I sort of hated it at first.

 

But now it's easy and effortless. I'm going to replace it with a slightly different version this coming May that I think I'll like even more. There are dozens of choices and you can't always know which exact one will work for you until you buy one. Now that I've had one, I think there's another style that will be a better fit (literally) for me.

 

So, don't give up on it at first.

 

 

ETA: I'm talking about a menstrual cup.

Edited March 3, 2017 by Garga

[JustEm]

When does Amazon have their TP stockpile price?

Time of year changes. I just always start looking when I know we 2 or 3 months worth of tp left

[mommyoffive]

When does Amazon have their TP stockpile price?

 

 

I would love to know this too.

[frugalmamatx]

Checking in. Finally got the $250 Wells Fargo bonus - easy as pie. Delay was on my end lol. 

 

Looking at possibly doing a $300 Chase account bonus if I can get a code. That one is a bit more complicated and you have to leave the account open for 6 months, so fees have to be factored in. But at slightly over $200 profit I'm willing to do it I think. 

 

 

[mommyoffive]

Time of year changes. I just always start looking when I know we 2 or 3 months worth of tp left

 

 

Let us know next time, please.

[mommyoffive]

Checking in. Finally got the $250 Wells Fargo bonus - easy as pie. Delay was on my end lol. 

 

Looking at possibly doing a $300 Chase account bonus if I can get a code. That one is a bit more complicated and you have to leave the account open for 6 months, so fees have to be factored in. But at slightly over $200 profit I'm willing to do it I think. 

 

 

So sweet.  I am thinking about dipping my toe into bank bonuses.  I know you will have to pay taxes on it, but still.   

 

Did you have your dh do the Wells Fargo or your kids? 

[frugalmamatx]

So sweet.  I am thinking about dipping my toe into bank bonuses.  I know you will have to pay taxes on it, but still.   

 

Did you have your dh do the Wells Fargo or your kids? 

 

Single mom here, so no DH to open one. 

 

Hadn't considered opening one for my daughter. IDK if it would work - she's 10. 

[mommyoffive]

Single mom here, so no DH to open one. 

 

Hadn't considered opening one for my daughter. IDK if it would work - she's 10. 

 

Sorry, for the assumption. 

 

Yeah I saw on SD that they thought it might work if they had an id.  

 

 

Let me know if you see or do other ones.  This is like the credit card offers, I have never done it before. 

[Baseball mom]

Love hearing about everyone's savings and ideas. 

 

Right now there is no savings going on.  I guess you could said I am being frugal since I am not going to store or online ordering.   Had to pay some crazy high bills to pay and now am flat broke.  But I am thankful I had a well stocked pantry & freezer and extra TP and hygiene products on hand.

 

[mommyoffive]

Love hearing about everyone's savings and ideas. 

 

Right now there is no savings going on.  I guess you could said I am being frugal since I am not going to store or online ordering.   Had to pay some crazy high bills to pay and now am flat broke.  But I am thankful I had a well stocked pantry & freezer and extra TP and hygiene products on hand.

 

 

Ugh.  I am sorry to hear about the high bills, that is no fun.  Hopefully it was a one time or once a year thing and now that you have paid them it is over. 

 

It is great that your pantry and freezer had backups.   You were smart to build the stockpile.

[Garga]

Time of year changes. I just always start looking when I know we 2 or 3 months worth of tp left

 

Is it a certain brand so I can start looking? Does the sale last for a day/week/month?

[JustEm]

Is it a certain brand so I can start looking? Does the sale last for a day/week/month?

Scott brand is the type I look for in the 80 roll case. But I'm sure others go on sale as well. I'll have to check a spreadsheet to let you know my price point.

[JustEm]

Sale usually cycles for a week. So it'll be cheap, then out of stock, then cheap again, etc. For a few days in a row.

[SKL]

Those are so cute.   Has anyone used this type of item before?   I feel like I have such issues with pads now.    Can you become allergic over time?

 

For me, cotton pads are the most comfortable and I wear them all the time (perimenopause = unpredictability).  Disposable pads irritate my skin if I use them more than several days in a row.

 

That is the main reason I got them for my daughter.  She has some minor issues that worry her.  She could use disposable panty liners, but I don't think it's a good idea for her to have them against her skin all the time.

[mommyoffive]

For me, cotton pads are the most comfortable and I wear them all the time (perimenopause = unpredictability).  Disposable pads irritate my skin if I use them more than several days in a row.

 

That is the main reason I got them for my daughter.  She has some minor issues that worry her.  She could use disposable panty liners, but I don't think it's a good idea for her to have them against her skin all the time.

 

I think that is happening to me too.  I am glad there are some more options now that I will try for myself and my girls.  

[DawnM]

I feel you.  it is always one thing after the other.  

 

you are doing awesome kicking out the debt.  

We need to start spending on the house in preparing to move too.  Ugh.

 

 I hope you can score some savings on the trip to see your parents.  

 

 

 

Just wondering about your job and how that made you owe on taxes.  I am thinking of starting some work and wondering how to make us not owe.

Did you claim 0 on your taxes?  I know it doesn't make sense, but I would rather not owe at tax time and have some refund.   We have never owed and that would stink to change to that I think.   

 

 

Full time job.  I claim 0.  

 

It just depends on your salary, your deductions, etc.....we still have deductions that are more than our standard deduction, but our mortgage is only 2.7%, so it isn't nearly what it was back in the 5% days.

 

https://taxfoundation.org/2017-tax-brackets/

 

It just depends on what your income will be.