So what have you cut out of the budget to done to save recently???

[dancemommy]

I cut out all of my lunch time eating out. Instead I make a huge pot of soup at the beginning of the week and eat it everyday for lunch. I don't shop for kids clothes right now- if I step into a kid's clothing store I buy so I just don't go. My kids will need summer clothes, but we aren't there yet so I'm not worrying about it now. When I go to Walmart/Target I just get what I need- nothing extra. We've stayed really focused and don't buy much.

[brennasmom]

* Cleaning out my freezer... trying to make sure I use up what I can.
* Trying out some generics when cheaper
* Making sure we use up all leftovers
* Signed up for a produce basket this week, hope it is good.

[imagine]

Our biggest money saver was a switch in health insurance

saves us lots since we mainly went for preventative health care and the old insurance paid almost none of that.

Check ups use to cost us $150 to $200 dollars now Free after one time co pay $25 That co pay also is the only one we have to pay for check up lab work and mammograms that saved us $86 dollars that we would of had to pay the radiologist just for reading the mammogram. $$$$

dentist preventive saving us a bunch too we were paying $100 or so ever time someone went to the dentist which was 8 times a year.
$$$$

It should pay of the eye doc check ups too. $400 a year there.

So that was our biggest cut back.

Now we can pay debt we racked up when living expenses were just to much and we dug our head into the sand. At least one of us (me) did.

[Debbie-cat]

Lately have cut out all meat dinners...DH is a big meat eater and I told him it has to stop so now at least twice a week, no meat...hoping to increase that soon....baby steps.

Our AOL is being shut off. Don't need it.

Cancelled satelitte. Only using convertor box and computer...won't be signing up for Netflix either.

Using all homemade cleaners and slowly switching over to all homemade HB aids....learning how to make them slowly.

Making almost everything from scratch.

Heat has been set at 60-62 all winter. Company just has to suffer.

No buying anymore clothing until most clothes are used up. DH has a bad habit of never throwing anything out and I told him he will be wearing EVERYTHING until he has no clothes....he still has baby blue bell bottoms for crying out loud!

[jas]

I know most of you all are still running the heat so this may sound crazy to you, but here in Florida we have had a few days lately that have been in the 80ls and I am not going to turn the air on if I can help it. My ds and dd came home the other day complaining how hot it was in the house. Believe me it was not that hot. There was even a nice breeeze comming in. They belly ache all the time that we keep it too warm. We set it to come on at 79 that it fine for me and dh. Ds's finace's family keeps thier place way too cold. I can't wait for ds to have to start paying his own electic after he is married and if they keep the temp really cold. I bet that won't last too long.

I try to keep from turning the air on till at least the end of May or early June and don't like to run it past October, November at the latest. Unless of course it gets into the high 80's for some freaky reason. I think 82 is my limit to turn on the air.

[pollypurebred39]

-I started cutting my own hair using the Creaclip

-heats at 62'. Heat is turned off in all rooms except living room & kitchen. Using an electric radiator in the bedrooms at night where the heat is turned off. We just bundle up and use lots of blankets.

-Started making most meals with beans. Lots and lots of soup.

-Decided we can't afford 2 cars. We will be getting rid of the broken one in the driveway. Maybe we can get something for it.

-Filled an old pump bottle full of DS2's shampoo so he does not waste.

That's the newest in addition to the old stuff we've already been doing. Not sure how much further we can cut back, but I'm looking forward to other's ideas. I just might be able to use some of them. Crossing fingers.

[scooby8themall]

I have to get creative also I have had a back injury at work and have had to cut my hours back at both jobs so a major cut in pay
I'm not driving as much as I was trying now to do it all in one trip especially now gas is 3.51
Shopping more at the commissary and dollar stores
The commissary amazes me their prices are like some times 50 % lower then the other stores.
buying clothes at second hand stores.
using coupons today I got skin mate ( I think that's the name of it )shaving cream 1.29 a can at the commissary .29 a can after 1.00 off coupon.
Some great suggestions here thanks for sharing!!

[Palooka]

Buying cheaper hair products
Won't be going out and driving as much
cut monthly insurance on one of our cheaper cell phones
cut to liability on dh's mustang that sits in the garage(fixer upper)
cooking more from scratch
More beans, yes it's possible!
Heat way down when dh is gone
going back to hm laundry detergent if I can't buy it dirt cheap with sales and coupons
cut out snack food for the kids
shopping GW

[HoustonDave]

I know most of you all are still running the heat so this may sound crazy to you, but here in Florida we have had a few days lately that have been in the 80ls and I am not going to turn the air on if I can help it.

Ditto here in South Texas. We are trying to just keep the windows open. Nice breeze today.

We cut:

Extra cable package ($10 per month)
Extra DVR ($19 per month)
Extra cablecard ($1 per month)

Next is the expanded cable I think it's $20 per month and the second DVR it's $12 per month.

We bought a ROKU and have a UHF/VHF antenna coming. If we can manage it we'll cancel basic cable too. That will save another $50-60 per month, but they'll increase our internet by $20 per month so net savings not that great.

Also, we are beefing up the insulation in our attic to get our powerbills down, but it will take about 2 years to make our money back on that.

[piney]

I have quit buying different cleaning supplies trying use up those i have and use lots soda and vinegar haven't bought no frabric softener in a long time use vinegar, as of this week planning on cutting back on driving so much.Cook more desserts at home instead of buying them.Not planning on buying any more clothes even at gw until i wear what i have out or can't get in them.

[piney]

couple of other things i thought of that i have done to save was didn't renew subscription to the magazines and don't buy a lot of different drinks visitors have to drink tea coffee or water. There is more but can't think right now.I go to a beauty school for my hair cut but don't go every month like i once did.Don' get the paper for coupons for i didn't get enough that i used to pay for it,

[Dancing Lotus]

I already do nearly everything mentioned.
I was thinking about what I could do to cut back and I could shut off my cellphone or house-phone. We have a cheap pay as you go cellphone and I'm nerves about it being my only phone, I can't call my brother in Alaska with it but in truth I use it way more then the home phone. Really that's it. We already eat beans everyday.
The one thing I have done recently is gone back to more grocery gaming. I slacked off on hunting up those freebies but now I feel the need to collect again.

[greekislandgirl]

Here's our list:

- DH started shaving with a trimmer (the kind you plug in) and only is doing it once a month so he usually has a beard. Saves on razors and shaving cream.

- No more eating out at all, period.

- I got rid of my cell phone sort of. I still have the telephone itself and it will receive calls, but I can't make calls or send text messages. This saves a little bit of money. Having it be able to receive calls costs nothing except the cost of keeping the battery charged.

- No internet or landline at home. We never had cable/satellite TV to start with but if we had had that it would have been gone.

- No more buying books. This is the worst. My husband and I are both MAJOR bibliophiles. Before we started watching our budget, we bought books every week.

- Absolutely everything has to be the cheapest brand/version/size, this goes without saying, I suppose. We don't have any thing that we "have to have" in a particular brand with only ONE exception which is steel wool, because the off-brand steel wool scratches up stuff that belongs to my landlady and I don't want to have to pay damages.

- No more buying gasoline, thankfully we don't use it much.

- No more going to cafes, this doesn't bother me as the smoking in cafes really gets to me, but my husband misses it a lot. Sometimes he will go to one particular cafe that sells a small coffee for €1, about once every 2 weeks. That's our "fun" money.

- No renting DVDs or going to movies or anything of that sort. My husband's work sometimes shows movies in the evenings (free) and we go to those.

- No fabric softener or dryer sheets (we don't have washing machine or dryer anyway but I used to use liquid fabric softener and I stopped).

- Foam soap dispensers in the bathroom and kitchen. I want to buy a few more to start using with shampoo and body wash too. They have saved us TONS.

- I also only use a few cleaning products: general cleaning liquid which can be used in a spray bottle, on floors, etc., and bleach. Store brand bleach is really cheap. I used to have toilet cleaner, floor cleaner, kitchen cleaner, you name it.

- I soak my kitchen sponges in bleach overnight regularly instead of throwing them away. Most people put them in the dishwasher or washing machine but we don't have either of those. Soaking in bleach works well though. I make them last longer than I used to.

- We keep one kind of alcoholic beverage in the house for guests (we don't drink) and it's a kind that never goes bad and that is drunk in really small amounts.

- We don't get our hair cut professionally very often. I wish we could cut this out completely but my husband has to look put together for work and I have short hair (and I LOVE having short hair) so it needs some attention.

- No magazine or newspaper subscriptions or newsstand purchases anymore. We miss being able to buy newspapers or magazines so this may be something we try to add back in within the next 12 months.

- Gifts are now usually baked goods that I make. We don't buy gifts for each other either.

- Very very little meat/fish. We eat beans/lentils about 8-10 times/week; the rest of our meals are pasta, potatoes, rice, or something like that. We eat whatever vegetables are cheapest.

- One of the hardest: we stopped eating fruit. I want to start buying fruit again but it is not part of our actual meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) so it is sometimes hard to justify buying it.

[bumplett]

I'm with you daylily. I'm stumped at this point as to what else can be cut.

I've started my garden seedlings to get a headstart so hopefully our garden will be larger this year.

Water & Electricity can always be conserved more so - I will focus more on that area.

[bumplett]

Greek ~ I just wanted to mention that I have short hair also - I cut it myself the last few times

Yes, really.

Think about it this way, it's short, so it's kinda hard to make too big of a mistake - and even if you do, it'll grow back.

Ask your hubby if he'll help do the back -

I already cut both my kids hair, and my hubby shaves his head, so I was the only one paying for a haircut - tada! not any more!