Savings Sunday

I really want to start blogging a little more regularly, so I'm going to start a new 'series'... we'll see how long I last, haha.

Anyway, as you can see, I want to start something called 'Savings Sunday'.  Basically, I will write about some tips I'm learning and attempting, or follow up on something that I've been trying as something new, that will save us money in the long run.  With a family of 5, and our income not going up, along with basic living costs on the rise, I think I'll need to find even more methods to save us money.

Over the last few years I've been attempting a few things to save our family money.  First thing I did was stop all the unnecessary spending so we could eliminate our debt.  The amount of money you save by eliminating debt can be huge!  Just $1000 in credit card debt will run you $240 in interest at 22% in one year.  Yes, it is more than the $220 because you pay interest on the interest on a monthly basis.  And that is only on $1000.  Here are a few other things I've done that have saved us a lot, and I'm hoping these tips could help you as well.

Use your credit card - Yes, you heard right.  Credit card companies don't charge monthly fees for using them like the banks do.  We've saved over $15-$20 per month just by using our credit card for almost all our purchases.  Not only that, but using your credit card will add value to it... by the points system it uses.  Using our credit card for most purchases allows us to gain about $200 a year (or more, depending on your spending amounts) in points that can be used for whatever you need it for!  (personally, I use it on groceries on months where I would otherwise be over budget).  Pretty handy, if I do say so myself.  Just make sure to track all your spending and pay it off every month so you don't get charged interest fees.  Making a budget and tracking your spending on a weekly basis can really help in that area... just to keep you and your family on track (I notice when I'm lax on keeping track, we spend much more than usual in short order).

Reuse and Recycle - Seriously, you'd be surprised at all the things you can use that would usually head into the trash.  For example, I got a bunch of organizing 'shoe boxes' for free by using the containers that package my organic greens instead!  At $1.50 a piece, that is pretty nice!  Especially since I buy most of my greens at 50% off and sale prices.  And who needs to spend good money on toys?  Why not make your own out of boxes?  My kids love to play pretend store with the old boxes for awhile.  Check out pinterest for other awesome ideas that cost nothing.  Example, who loves shrinkydink paper?  You could buy it a Michaels, or you could use the plastic packaging from food items (look for the recycling symbol 6, apparently this can be used similarly to shrinkydinks and I will be attempting this with the kids sometime soon).

Compost and Garden - something I'm NOT good at.  I am attempting some new things this year however to save on groceries.  There are pins all over pinterest that talk about using the groceries you buy to make your own garden (instead of paying good money on seeds).  I'm trying to grow celery and spegghetti squash this year.  Grabbed the seeds from the squash and will be attempting to grow them using tips I found on the web.  Used the base of my celery stalk and put them into a cup of water, which I will plant later (pics I've seen show the stub growing a new stalk in the water, and then they say to plant it outside).  Since my only attempt at a garden really bit the dust, I'm hoping to try this again, and maybe succeed a little better.

There are many other ways to save money as well!  I hope to go into saving money with a baby, things to reduce eating out costs, bringing down your grocery bill, etc.  But for now, it's time for me to head to bed. 

Have any tips to share?  Feel free to comment with them here!