Laid off in August

**ddmartin** · 10-19-2010, 05:59 PM

It has been 2 months since I was laid off. About 3 weeks ago I finally started taking actions to deal with the finances. I have been sending out resumes, have signed up with 2 temp agencies, and have gone on 3 interviews. Nothing has happened yet but am hopeful.

I have decided to cut $400 from my monthly spending. So far, I have cut my cable bill from $86/month to $20/month. Was part of a package deal and my phone, internet, and cable will now be around $75, with taxes. This change will result in a $140 monthly savings.

I have put myself and, by extension, my family on a budget. Not sure what I spent before but I have cut the weekly spending to $300. This includes the following -
Groceries - $110
Clothing and Gifts - $28
Transportation - $50
Entertainment - $22
Other - $20
Road Money [husband is an over the road truck driver - up to $70

Emergency Fund -
I have 3 months of house payments in the bank but only $207.76 in the emergency fund.

Bills not including utilities, insurance, and mortgage -
CC - $10,291.72
Doctors -$1138.45

**nodmicks** · 10-19-2010, 08:54 PM

Great job cutting costs! I hope you hear back from one of the jobs soon! Does your dh take food? When my dh was otr he took all his food and just heated in in the truck. It saved a lot.

Hang in there!

**BlissMommy** · 10-19-2010, 11:25 PM

Hugs, sounds like a great plan!

**StanleyJohnson** · 10-20-2010, 02:53 PM

Good Luck. It sounds like you have things under control.

**HappyMama** · 10-20-2010, 02:55 PM

Hugs and blessings to you, great job cutting costs.

**ddmartin** · 10-20-2010, 06:09 PM

Nodmicks,
When DH takes food it does save us a lot. Unfortunately his truck is in the shop until Sunday, has been there for 5 days, and he is spending a lot more than normal The $70 is the top amount - a lot of the time he only needs $20 to keep the $70 in his pocket.

**ddmartin** · 10-25-2010, 03:04 PM

Had a job interview last week for a long term contract position - 2 years. The temp agency I went through told me the job was for something other than what they were hiring for. Had some experience in what they desired. Who knows how it will go!
Cut $10 from the weekly grocery budget - cutting it from $110 to $100. This means I have cut $180 from my monthly bills - goal is to cut $400 / month.

**ddmartin** · 11-11-2010, 10:59 AM

Haven't cut any more from the budget - but did get a '2nd interview' - the first one since August.

The price of food and gas is on the rise. I bought an Angel Food box that won't be delivered until November 20th. It is supposed to feed a family of 4 for a week - anybody had any experience with this? It looks like the only extra's I will need is fruit, cheese and milk. I'm not a fan of powdered Milk, which comes in the box, so I plan on using that in cooking.

**Nishu** · 11-11-2010, 11:32 AM

I mix the powdered milk, prepared, into our regular milk sometimes. My family didn't notice a difference. Good luck with the job!

**Sassyclass** · 11-11-2010, 11:32 AM

No experience with AF, but wanted to say congrats on the second interview and prayers coming your way. You are doing a great job.

Cat

**ddmartin** · 11-12-2010, 07:28 PM

Well - didn't get the job. But he did pass my resume on to another supervisor who also has an open position. So I'm hoping for a '1st interview'.

How much is everyone paying for sugar? One store in town had a coupon for 5 pounds for $1.99. It's been awhile since I bought any and was surprised by this 'special' price until I went to another grocery store and found the store brand selling for $1.98 w/o a coupon.

**Nishu** · 11-12-2010, 07:38 PM

I dunno about what sugar costs because I don't really watch it, but I do know that you can cut sugar by as much as a third in most recipes and it won't really affect the taste. Sometimes I cut it as far down as a half of what the recipe calls for depending on what I'm making. If lower your use of it by 25% it's kinda like getting that 25% free, right?

Sorry about the job. Hopefully the interview will lead to something though if the boss guy passed along your info.

**HappyMama** · 11-12-2010, 07:44 PM

Sorry to hear about that job, but an even better one will come along. Good luck with this next interview, sending blessings and good thoughts your way.

As for sugar agree with Nishu , as I cut the sugar in most recipes by 50%. But I buy organic Turbinado and cane sugar ( they seem stronger in taste), and use honey. The sugar I buy is in 50 pound bags and is 1.00 a pound.

**BlissMommy** · 11-12-2010, 07:52 PM

Great job!

**sjohnson3278** · 11-12-2010, 08:08 PM

Sorry to hear about the job, but hopefully this second lead will pan out for you. Sounds like you are doing everything you can to cut expenses. Kuddos to you!