Envelope System: February Review...

We did it! Month two of our Dave Ramsey plan and the envelope system is finished! Just like last month, we were hit with some unexpected bills... the Camry needed new tires, which sucked our emergency fund nearly dry. But hey, that is what it is there for, right?! It felt so good knowing we had the cash on hand to pay for such a big expense. As soon as we used the money, we got right to work replenishing the cash we had used. This month we also made our first balloon payment toward our debt snowball. Yeah! It is so freeing knowing we are working toward a better future for ourselves, and knowing that at the end of the month, as long as we are diligent, we can be free and clear of credit card debts and an over-extended bank account.

This month was a bit harder I think for Popeye than for me to hang onto the strictness of the envelope system. Popeye is a gift giver... and I told him NO GIFTS... even though Valentine's Day and my birthday both fell in the middle of the month. I know it must have killed him to not lavish me in gifts as he has done in previous years (how did I get so lucky?!) but he stood by the rules (for the most part!). I did get a nice box of chocolates, a container of yummy ice cream, and an adorable pot holder for my kitchen. Of course this money came out of the gift envelope, so I was happy that we stayed in our budget and he was happy that he got to give me at least a little bit of something for those special days...

This month I really worked on strategizing ways to save money while grocery and house shopping... I am not an expert at this in any way, but here are a few of my ideas that you may find helpful if you are looking to save a bit of money yourselves!

Buy in Bulk: I can't even begin to add up all the savings that buying in bulk has provided our family. Costco is our best friend... and even after paying the $50 for a yearly membership, the savings in the end are still amazing. I buy anything I can at Costco... some of my regular purchases are diapers and wipes, cleaning supplies, meat, milk, cheese, yogurt, and other similar diary products, cereal, oatmeal, coffee, and soaps and shampoos.

One of my most recent super savings purchases at Costco was lint rollers. Popeye uses these daily for work, so we go through plenty. At Target, one pack of 70 sticky pads for the roller is $3.99. At Costco, a pack of 5 rollers with 80 sticky pads each is about $8.50. That means the Target rollers are 6 cents each, as opposed to the 2 cents each the ones from Costco come out to. This may not sound like much when you are talking pennies, but when you add up how many we go through in a year, the savings is about $16. And this is for only one item! Think about how much you would save if you purchased all your cleaning supplies and everything else you can at Costco! That is savings a-mundo!

Plan ahead: I try to never purchase more than a few cleaning supplies or certain grocery items a month. In fact, I only have to purchase certain items once a year. I hate to run out of things, and so I keep track of what I need by taking inventory at the end of each month to see what is about to run out. If nothing is about to run out, but I can tell that 3 or 4 items will run out at the same time, I try to pick up a couple of those items this month and a couple the next month. When I have extra money at the end of the month, I take what is left in that envelope and get as much stuff as I can (especially if that item is on special or has a coupon!). I have a large storage shelf in the garage and a cabinet in the laundry room where I store all my goods.

Note: I got this great idea from my mom... forget about expiration dates... instead, mark your goods with the date you purchased them... this will show you if you actually use this stuff, and how quickly you go through it. If it is November and I still haven't eaten these Poptarts, I will know not to purchase so many next time, no matter how great the deal is!

Check out coupons and sales: I try to plan my weekly menu based on what is on sale. For example, if tomatoes and avocados are on sale, our weekly menu will probably consist of tacos, BLT's, and hamburgers. If bell peppers are on sale, we will probably plan on eating shish kabobs, stir fry, and fajitas. Stock up on what is cheap, and make sure you use every piece of fruit, vegetable, or meat that you purchase. Last week, whole chickens were on sale at Fresh and Easy. I purchased a few, made sure they were sealed up nicely with my vacu-save, and stuck them in the freezer for future (cheap!) dinners. Poptarts were on special at Target, and since Popeye eats a packet almost every morning on the way to work, I grabbed several boxes... I got 5 for the prices of 3! Costco has amazing coupons each month. I actually go into the store at the end of each month and ask for a coupon book; even though they don't usually start until the 2nd week of the month, I use the packet to plan where and what I will spend my money on that month. One of the best coupons I've ever gotten there was for face lotion. I was purchasing it at Target for $15 a bottle. I then noticed that the exact same lotion in the exact same size bottle was 2 for $20 at Costco. I then got a coupon for $5 off... which meant I got TWO bottles for the price of ONE! What a deal! They always have great deals on diapers and wipes and cleaning supplies too!

When it is helpful, transfer your prescriptions: If you have to pay for prescriptions anyway, why don't you use the recent influx of store specials on transferring your prescriptions to a new pharmacy to help your budget along?! Last month I received two coupons in the mail that offered a $30 gift card to Vons when you transfer your prescriptions to their pharmacy. I also received two coupons for $10 off my purchase of $50 or more. That meant that I could potentially get two weeks worth of groceries (I spend about $50 a week at Vons...) for just $20. Add some store coupons and coupons from the Sunday paper, and my weekly groceries could actually be free.

$140 worth of groceries... after using lots of coupons and one of my $30 gift cards, I got it all for just $31 out of my pocket.  Those bottles of soda were even FREE.  That isn't what we drink on a normal bases, but HEY... free is free!

 

My Food Saver is pretty much my new BFF... I love to buy in bulk when sales are awesome... My freezer is happy when stocked with yummy goodness!

I hope a few of you can find at least one or two helpful tidbits in this post... and I want to encourage all of you who are working on the Dave Ramsey plan to keep at it!  Every month that goes by is another month towards "financial freedom."  And please!  Share your helpful hints with me too!  The more the merrier when it comes to saving money during these struggling times... :)