my last dollar

This is how I spend our money. My mom is well....tight. Yes, mom you have gotten better, but you're still pretty much a tightwad. Love you, but you know you are.

From this, though, I have learned to question every penny I spend. Literally, I analyze every penny by looking at bills, receipts, you name it. I think I 'need' a soda some days and realize I just 'want' one. Then, I think about the kidney infection I may get from it and can usually talk myself out of it. I can talk myself out of just about any purchase when I want to. I don't, very often, hear myself say "oh, it's just .35 cents" or "oh that's just a $1 more". That's not in my vocabulary. It's more like "if I don't spend that .50 cents then I'll for sure and easily have the $3 to pay for my water club every month". Yeah, our water at work tastes horrible and hauling in everyday would be heavy since we walk over 3 blocks carrying all of my other items with me daily. A funny story from the other day. I bought some things at Wal-Mart, on clearance for $3, regular priced at $4. They rang up for $4 and I told the cashier they were on sale for $3. She credited them through and put in $3.50. I told her they weren't $3.50, they were $3 and there were two more. She actually asked if it was okay if I just paid $3.50. :) I told her no...she needed to reduce the price of the other two to make up for the one. Of course, I care about .50 cents.

When I go to meetings at work and there are lunch breaks I get my leftovers out and heat them up while others go out. I don't want to eat another $8. That's how I feel. This has kept me well in-check on our budget. I can't even fathom credit card debt. All I envision is buying groceries and years later, after I've eaten all that food, still paying for it. How crazy is that?

Sometimes it's just a psychological game. You gotta play if you want to win.

Obviously all this 'work', kind of lightly used since I'm so used to it now it's second nature, has paid for 3 adoptions and everything else we've needed in our lives. Three adoptions paid off and in the clear. It works...just try it.

Psych yourself out and save!

Lisa