CNA's Have to Be Thrifty......How Do You Stretch a Dollar?

I just live within my budget, it's something everyone should do. I plan out my expenses and hold to that. I also drive a used car. I drive a used BMW, and it is nicer than some newer GMs. If I don't have money, I don't spend it!

I like to shop a the .99 store when ever I can. I also try to stick to a budget. When I see something on sale I think is this a want or a need.

I am just a CNA student right now, but totally know about having to be thrifty. I plan out our meals for the month at the beg. of each month. I use the store ads to see what is on sale and plan the meals from that. We also get food from angel food ministry. We get food to feed my family of four for a week for $30. I only buy my childrens (3 YR and 2 YR old) clothes at second hand stores or off the clearance racks. They grow to fast to buy brand new clothes. Just some of my secrets.

I am the budgeting queen. I don't know about you guys, but I have a 2-year-old daughter, so my money is VEEEERY tight. we buy boxes of correl plates, (cheap and cute) LOTS of tubaware, and everything non-perishable comes in bulk. (ESPECIALLY diapers.) We're also big fans of energy saving light bulbs and extension cords, so that we can quickly unplug everything as we leave the house; by avoiding excess room in our apartment, (it's veeery small) we save tons and tons on our utility bills. I even had my dad come in and insulate everything for me; it was well worth it. Food wise, we try and buy non-perishables such as hamburger helper, pasta sides and rice to go alongside whatever we're eating that night. Once again, buying in bulk pays off; a jumbo pack of chicken or a few extra lbs of hamburger can always go in the freezer, so I try and take advantage of any deals my local grocery store has. almost everything else comes from the dollar store...soap, shampoo, toilet paper/paper towels, baby wipes, some clothes, etc....scrubs are another story for me though, because I'm 5'1 and 100 lbs. The extra smalls are even a little too long for me, and I have ZERO luck finding them at any place besides uniform outlets.

I can tell you some things I do to streeeeeetch the heck out of a dollar:

1. I eat sandwiches for about 80% of my meals. I put nutritious and tasty things on them, so they're healthy and not boring. When I pack lunch, I pack Sun Chips, sammich, low-fat yogurt, apples, vegetable juice, and a couple of diet cokes. Believe it or not, for the week my personal grocery bill comes to about $35. (see #2)

2. I buy off-brand stuff or use coupons for *everything*. Clothes, shoes, food, events, you name it.

3. I don't have cable TV - instead I watch movies and shows online if I can. Hulu is great! Apple's website has all the trailers for the upcoming movies, and they're always exciting to watch. Youtube provides a lot of entertainment of all kinds. I also have DVDs from some of my favorite shows, and a bunch of movies I've collected over the years, to watch on DVD.

4. Once a week, I indulge myself, I either eat out or fix myself a really great, tasty dinner once a week. How does this save money? It does because I'm less tempted to get tired of the same ol' at home, if I break the monotony and allow myself to indulge just a tiny bit.

5. I buy my clothes on sale... and I wash my unmentionables by hand in the sink with some Woolite.

6. I go as far as possible on the gas in the tank, and take a gamble that I can get it for 10 or 15 cents cheaper when it's time to fill up for the week. I also try to use a gas card, which gets me 3 cents off each gallon.

7. I do regular oil changes and tire rotation and fuel injector cleaner and wheel alignment and all that stuff. I save up in a piggy bank for this stuff, and I don't do it all at once (if I did, I'd be broke). I'm racking up big miles on the car with a 1 hr commute every day, so car care really counts. If you don't care for the car, your pocket book will take a hit when you least expect it, trust me!

8. Piggy banks! My piggy banks get fed with these rules: if there's change in my pocket at the end of the day, no matter if it's a $20 or .20 cents, it goes to the piggy; if I find money while I'm cleaning the house, or the car, it goes to the piggy. I made that agreement with myself years ago. You wouldn't believe how many times that piggy has saved me, because I made that agreement.

9. Library books! When you have a moment of quiet all to yourself, and nothing to do, grab a book from the library. It's cheap, and reading helps keep your sanity. I just recently checked out "Fried Green Tomatoes" (love that book & movie!) and "The Road" (will be my 2nd time to read).

10. Shop at the Dollar Tree as often as possible for stuff. For example, stuff I always get there: aluminum foil, zip-lock baggies, tupperware containers. Bandaids, aspirin, shampoo, soap, lotion. Also my first stop for Christmas wrapping paper.

Great thread and great responses!

I stretch my dollar by getting Angel Food as well. Awesome meals for a fraction of the cost!
I clip coupons and use them on triple coupon days.
I love the Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores.
I look through the newspaper for garage sales on the weekends to find things that we need, especially a big purchase like a washer or dryer. We got a great deal on a practically new GE washer and dryer set for $150!!
I love shopping for clothes at Goodwill and the local thrift store. They have designer jeans for $2 a pair.
I get my scrubs wherever I can find them on sale, be it online or in store.
I develop my own pictures on the computer.
I set a budget for each week for groceries.
I always put back 10% of my paycheck into savings for an emergency...that's been a real help many times over!

I have a 3 year old and a 1 year old. To help stretch a dollar in our household, we

1) Find free or really low cost family entertainment. Our local library has a summer reading extravaganza with arts & crafts or a free movie for little kids once per week. They also have storytime for toddlers and preschoolers every week with a different theme. My daughter loves it! The story lady is pretty funny too. We also have a childrens museum here that is interactive and on Sundays, it's 1/2 price ($3.00). We also check out what events Parks & Recreation have going on.

2) Aldi, Aldi, Aldi. Did I say ALDI!!! Love that store! My first stop is usually Aldi (if you shop there, you don't need coupons) followed by WalMart for food.

3) Dollar Tree for basic toiletries and household cleaning supplies (and little odds and ends, coloring books, etc for the kids)

4) Flowers bakery has fresh baked name brand bread that is waaay cheaper than any grocery store.

5) Farmer's Market for fresh fruits and veggies. Prices cannot be beat and the produce is locally grown.

6) Every now and then, I'll take $20 or so and blow it on used toys in the consignment shop for my kids. Doesn't make sense to spend a buttload of money on toys that they'll get bored with sooner than I'd like.

7) For their clothes, I go to WalMart, consignment or the Childrens Place when they have their clearance sales.

8) MYPOINTS.COM Love Love Love My points. You do surveys, read emails, or just shop online like you normally would and accumulate points which you can redeem for gas cards, restaurant cards, retail gift cards, etc. If anyone is interested in a referral, let me know...

9) BzzAgent.com You sign up to try products at no cost (or sometimes very little cost) to you and just spread the word to people giving your honest opinion. Some campaigns I've done and free stuff I've tried: Bic Soleil Bella razors, Palmolive pure+clear, Afrin Pure Sea Nasal rinse, cover girl lip stain, Gamewave family entertainment system (I accepted this offer and paid $29 for the game console, 6 remotes, and 4 games...system normally sells for upwards of $100) My cousin actually got on the Chili's guiltless grill campaign and received several Chili's meal vouchers. I'm still waiting to try a food campaign