I want to be debt-free so bad, still examining budget....

**dinah** · 10-26-2011, 12:26 PM

Originally Posted by Anna43

Why nickel and dime the rest of your budget while ignoring the $140 elephant.

i agree. at least cut it down to $100. smoke less if you can't quit.

**marjorie** · 10-26-2011, 05:31 PM

As far as the pets, I often buy large quantities of very good pet food when it's on sale. I cut what they are currently eating and add in 10% of the new stuff. We make the conversion slowly, and sometimes have several high quality foods mixed in together.
This has resulted in a serious cost savings for us. We also keep it in a "vittle vault" a purchase that seemed spendy at the time, but has keep their food very fresh and facilitated the food mixing.

**ladybug96** · 11-11-2011, 10:03 PM

Have you also looked into any assistance programs the school may have to help reduce lunches? My best friend was struggling with her two boys and she called to see if she could set up payment plans and they told her that our particular state has an assistance program that provides for reduced lunches for folks on a sliding scale.

I also second what a lot of the folks have said here - most of us grew up having to make and bring our lunches and there are several fun, low cost options. I realize they don't have access to a microwave but if you make things like turkey, chicken, or ham the night before, they could make some very tasty sandwhiches!

**Sumacaroni** · 11-13-2011, 12:44 PM

Originally Posted by ladybug96

Have you also looked into any assistance programs the school may have to help reduce lunches? My best friend was struggling with her two boys and she called to see if she could set up payment plans and they told her that our particular state has an assistance program that provides for reduced lunches for folks on a sliding scale.

I also second what a lot of the folks have said here - most of us grew up having to make and bring our lunches and there are several fun, low cost options. I realize they don't have access to a microwave but if you make things like turkey, chicken, or ham the night before, they could make some very tasty sandwhiches!

Thanks for the idea, but I don't need to reduce it due to a struggle with providing them lunch. Even when I was not working we were outside of the free lunch range. Maybe if I have 5 more children we might qualify..... LOL!

In any case, they are doing well with making their lunches 4 days/week and that definitely reduces the overall costs.

Generally, the budget is doing better than previously. Thanks for all the ideas and suggestions, very helpful!!

**khaski** · 11-19-2011, 08:41 PM

Not sure how many/what type of pets you have, but you might want to look into feeding 'raw' (BARF diet) for dogs or cats. With a little research, some freezer space and a good meat grinder you might be able to really shave down that food bill for them.

**Wendy99** · 11-19-2011, 09:20 PM

Pets can be expensive, but so worth it. I was shocked when we started working on our budget to find out that our pets are costing us about $120 a month!! One pet is on hypo allergenic vet food (she's 16 and we can't change that - even on that she has some issues), another pet is on a good quality food (although not top of the line), our youngest is just on purina for now. But once you combine the food with the vetting etc and voila just over $100 a month for the 3. Honestly did not think it was that much. They are so worth it, but because of that we have decided not to add any more to the picture for now.

**miss_cas** · 12-05-2011, 08:40 PM

School lunches:
Check with younger child but some kids are welcome to work in school lunchroom for minimum wage and get to eat free. You also get out of an hour of class. That's kinda cool to the kids who are too young to legally work. It saves you $54 a month and kid earns $300. Can't beat that!

Smoking: Check with the pharmacy on the price of the nicotene patch with your insurance or your insurance company web site. Think you can tough it out 6-8 wks then have $140 a month more for debt snowball.

Internet:
Can you try AT&T for $20 a month or one of the little guys? Threaten your current company with AT&T price to see if you can get discount.

Car Insurance:
Can 19-year-old take school bus for the next 4 months or get a job to pay for own insurance, gasoline, cell and his expenses.

Extra Money: For younger kid or husband or yourself, look around neighborhood for older folks, shut-ins, snowbirds, etc who need gutters cleaned, leaves cleaned up, dogs walked, poop scooped, yard/flower beds worked on, house cleaned, meals cooked, errands ran, snow removed. In more expensive neighborhoods, the seniors are usually able to pay for these tasks and relieved to have a trustworthy person handle it all.