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budget

Are You A Super Saver?

by Brad Chaffee on May 26, 2009

in Money Management

Are You Looking For Ways To Save Some Money?

We are!  Here recently we took a trip to a neighboring city just for that reason.  We jumped on the interstate, and headed about 30 miles west, to visit a store that has deeply discounted food.  My wife loves going here but I have been a little hesitant because of the fact that some of the food is past the expiration date.  I have always been a little finicky when it comes to this sort of thing, and that does include leftovers in the fridge past a few days old.  You can call it a fear if you like, but whatever it is, it causes me to worry about getting sick or just the simple fact that it feels gross to me, to eat “old” food.

I will throw out there right now that there are some things you will not get me to budge on, as my wife has found out.  Things like dairy products, or almost anything that isn’t frozen.  Actually you can rule me eating any dairy products past the expiration date out completely.  I am sure I am overly paranoid about this, and I am hoping that someone reading this blog can educate me on expiration dates dealing with food.  I am not saying you will change my mind, but at least I can ease my worries, and maybe even learn a little something too!

Not all of the food at this store is expired, but certain things are.  I think the food arrives here for a variety of reasons, like overstocked items, or items that were on sale that didn’t sell as well as expected, from other grocery locations.  Some of the items are deeply discounted, and aren’t expired which are my favorites!

Here’s what we got, and what we paid/would have paid @ Kroger

  1. 1 box of Act II Crunch & Munch Buttery Toffee Popcorn – $.50/$2.89
  2. 2 Country Crock Deluxe Loaded Mashed Potatoes – $1.98/$8.58
  3. 1 Smart Ones frozen pepperoni pizza – $.99/$2.99
  4. 2 Smart Ones Honey Dijon Chicken – $1.98/$4.14
  5. 12 boxes of Natures Valley bars mixed variety – $6.00/$44.28
  6. 4 boxes of Fiber One bars – $2.00/$14.76
  7. 1 box of Millville Kids Krunch cereal – $1.19/$2.00
  8. 1 12oz jar of Hampton Farm peanut butter – $.99/$1.29
  9. 2 Hickory Springs french toast and sausage – $1.98/$2.50
  10. 1 Mama Cozzi Meatball Pockets – $1.49/$2.33
  11. 2 Banquet Maple sausage links – $1.98/$2.00
  12. 2 cans Little Giant green beans – $.89/$1.70
  13. 2 bags of Bertolli Cheese Tortelloni – $3.98/$15.98
  14. 1 Gallon of 1% milk – $2.99/$3.99
  15. 1 Healthy Creations Cafe Steamers – $1.79/$2.48
  16. 2 Butterball Turkey Smoked Sausage – $2.78/$6.00
  17. 5 Healthy Creations Paninis – $4.95/$12.50
  18. 1 Generic Poptarts – $.99/$1.31
  19. 1 Jimmy Dean D-Lights turkey sausage croissant – $2.99/$6.99
  20. 4 Kids Cuisine Chicken Strips meal – $3.96/$8.00
  21. 1 Fiber One Muffin Mix – $.99/$3.39
  22. 2 rolls of cloth-like paper towels – $1.78/$2.98
  23. 1 can Kroger brand Canola Oil spray – $1.39/$1.99
  24. 1 bag homemade gummi bears – $1.69/$2.00
  25. 1 bag Nerds Chews – $.33/$.79

TOTAL ITEMS: 54
TOTAL COST:  $52.58 + tax
COST IF WE WENT TO KROGER:  $157.86 + tax
TOTAL SAVINGS:  $105.28 not counting taxes

Now I actually walked around Kroger to compare these prices.  A few items purchased were NOT found at Kroger, but I compared based on like products.  This shopping trip was motivated by last months budget busting $250 spent on going out to eat.  The things we tried to buy were things that we could have with us during the day to deter an impulse eating stop at Chick-fil-A or somewhere similar.  We also tried to find meals that we could make when time was against us, or we just didn’t feel like going all out and cooking something.  We are committed to sticking to our budget, and even though we realize that there will be times when we are weak, we decided to be proactive instead of allowing it to happen again without any effort to stop it.  Will this keep us from being weak in the future?  Nope, but it will help us in between the weak moments, and THAT will save us some money!

At a time when my wages have dropped a little, we have found that our debt snowball has been slowed.  I am currently looking for a full-time job, and plan to keep the job I have now part-time, so we can climb out of this last bit of debt remaining.  Until then, we have to manage what we are bringing in responsibly, and every little bit of savings will help us continue to move forward, even if it feels slow.  Progress is still progress, and we plan to continue our march forward.

Do You Coupon?

I will admit we are NOT good coupon shoppers but with things the way they are, we have thought about jumping on the coupon bandwagon regardless of all the preparation that seems to go with it.  I know some people who save a lot using coupons and one site they use is called grocerygame.com.  I consider Mindi from Moms Need To Know, the coupon queen, so go check her out as well!  Maybe it’s time for us to save even more of our dollars by couponing too!!

Do you have any super saving stories?  Are you a regular coupon shopper?  Whatever the case, please share your thoughts, tips, and strategies with us!  I would love to hear them, and I am sure others reading would too!

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Sometimes Just Knowing What To Do Isn’t Enough!

by Brad Chaffee on May 19, 2009

in Money Management

Broke Financial Gurus?  No Way!

It’s true!  You can be considered an expert, but that doesn’t mean you will not struggle with the process itself.  It doesn’t mean that discipline is automatic. and most of how you handle your money is behavior anyway.  We know exactly what it is that we need to do, and why, but even we still have problems when it comes to following through at times.

Why is that the case?  For starters, we are human which means we can mess up, and to me there really is no other explanation needed.  Whether it’s impulse spending, eating out, forgetting irregular bills, or spending our money on whatever our weakness happens to be, the truth is we will eventually have a weak moment.  For me, I love to buy books, and even though I budget for this category on a monthly basis, I still have trouble when finding out about the latest book that I must have!  Sometimes I am good and sometimes I am not!

Now my wife and I, have another issue that plagues us.  It’s called eating out, and sometimes depending on our schedule, it can get bad.  For instance, last month, we should of been able to pay off an additional $250 in debt.  That $250 was used to grab the quick and easy meals when time just seemed to be against us.  If you break that down, it is really only going out to eat about eight times if you include tip.  I work for tips, so for us to tip at least $5 is not unusual at all.  This does not include money from our grocery budget that we used on eating out, instead of buying groceries.  (We have NO excuses, we were bad last month!)

I am not telling you this because we are broke, because we’re not.  In fact, we have an Emergency Fund, and are killing our debt slowly but surely. (At least it feels slowly) Slow progress is still progress, right?  I am telling you this because sometimes you will fall off the wagon, but the key is to jump back on and start killing it again!  This blog isn’t just for you, it is also a reminder for me to stay focused.  Ultimately, I am just like you, and I have weaknesses, but together we can help each other.  “Hi, my name is Brad, and I am a recovering spend-a-holic!“

Things to avoid:

  1. Carrying your debit card everywhere you go – 9 times out of 10, if we did not have our debit card with us, we would have come home and cooked a meal instead of go out to eat.  If at all possible we try to use our debit card only for paying bills, but as you can see that does not always work. Try leaving your debit card at home! (You should assume that credit cards are a NO-NO as well, and for more reasons than what I talk about in this article!)
  2. Giving Up On Your Budget Once You Mess Up – It’s really easy to just throw in the towel when you feel you have failed, but it is important to regain control and fast.  The longer you go without balancing your budget to compensate, the quicker you will run into more problems.  Sometimes if we have messed up really bad, we will redo the entire budget for the rest of the month with our remaining income.  This helps A LOT!
  3. People That Say They NEVER Make A Mistake – To believe that someone has never had to adjust their budget because they made a mistake is absurd.  These kind of people will do nothing for your self esteem, so I suggest that if someone starts talking about how perfect they are with their finances, just walk away!  While some people may mess up less frequently, or have more discipline than others, no one is 100% perfect at anything.
  4. Window Shopping – Most often when I buy a book that wasn’t budgeted for, it is because I decided to go “look around.”  Avoid it!  You are more likely to impulse buy when you are in the moment, and the “I need it” part of you decides to take over.  If you find that you have given in and wake up the next day with a little buyers remorse, find the receipt, and take it back immediately!  You feel guilty for a reason!  We have returned many things because of this, and we always feel better when we do!

I wrote this blog to reassure those of you who wonder if anyone else is struggling with the same thing you are!  It’s not the first time and it won’t be the last!  As a matter of fact, I would like it if you could share something you struggle with from time to time when dealing with your finances.  What tips can you share with us that will help someone avoid, or better deal with their situation?

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Motivation 101 – YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

by Brad Chaffee on May 12, 2009

in Money Management

Table of contents for Motivation 101

  1. Motivation 101 – YOU CAN DO IT TOO!
  2. Motivation 101 – Saving To Buy, Instead Of Buying To Slave!
  3. Motivation 101 – What You Believe, Is What You Achieve!

Are You Motivated?

Chances are, you often feel overwhelmed with your financial situation, and like most, you want to do something about it.  There are many things that keep us from doing what we know we should do.  Time constraints, lack of energy, procrastination, depression, and even addictions to name a few.  One that people rarely consider is negativity from the people around them.  People will rain on your parade in a second once you start talking about quitting something they too are doing.  Whether it be shopping, smoking, going on a diet, exercising, or changing your financial habits, people usually try to give you some reason they think you should stick with them.  After all they have credit cards, a nice home, and a shiny new car in their driveway!

Chances are, they are BROKE! Dave Ramsey often says, “If you want to be rich, do what rich people do”!  Usually the person telling you that cutting up your credit cards is stupid, is the one with NO EMERGENCY FUND and tons of debt payments every month!!  Don’t listen to them!!

Go listen to those that are doing a plan that is working!  Go listen to the folks that have done it and are now proud to shout they are debt free!!  It’s emotional and even though it is someone else, you can’t help but feel a tiny bit of that excitement and motivation running through your veins.  It’s almost as if for one split second, you are them.  I feel that when I listen to debt free calls!  It’s because I know that once you eliminate your debt payments, you have more opportunities to save, build wealth, and GIVE! It’s why I HATE debt!!!

I Have Proof That Without Debt You Can Do More!

In The Wealth Building Benefits Of Being Debt Free, written by Stuart Laing in 2006, he makes the same case for becoming debt free as I make here on EOD.  Debt payments SUCK YOUR INCOME DRY! You can INVEST like crazy if you weren’t paying off that shiny new car that loses 70% of it’s value in just 4 years!!  You can INVEST like crazy if you didn’t have a house payment because you paid it off!!  Some people I know have to make at least $2200 a month just to pay their house and car payments.  Add credit card debt to that and you are in dangerous waters!

My buddy J, over at BudgetsAreSexy.com, has a ton of savings, and the only debt he carries is a mortgage.  He has paid off his 2 cars, pays extra on his mortgage when he can, and has NO credit card debt!  Go over and ask J how much being debt free but his house, helps him build his Net Worth.  He is on fire!!  Now we disagree on a few things, but it’s hard for me to tell him he is doing it wrong when his financial position is so strong.

Personally I would rather see J slow down on his savings for a second, so he can focus extremely hard on killing his mortgage once and for all.  This would mean that he would keep investing 15% of his monthly income for retirement (Roth’s), and then throw EVERYTHING EXTRA towards the mortgage ONLY.  With the money he would save on interest, plus the money saved from having no mortgage payment, he could build wealth incredibly fast!  The earlier he pays off his house, the more momentum the compound interest will have by the time he reaches retirement age.  (Approximately $9600 more each year could be earning interest, to put a number on it.)

Budgets Are Sexy Update: Paying Extra On Your Loans Now, Goes A Long Way Later! This is a GREAT post!

Need more incentive?  Do a budget with only necessities, and absolutely NO DEBT!  (No house payment, no credit card payment, no student loan, no medical bills…you get the point.)  I call it a dream budget!  How much money do you have to save, give and invest?  How free would you feel if you didn’t owe ANYONE a dime?

Conclusion

A growing number of people are staying motivated, and you can too!  Avoid the naysayers, and anyone who tells you that you will ALWAYS have a car payment, or that you can’t live in this world without a credit card.  They are misinformed!  We were skeptical too, because we bought into the lies about needing debt, just like you did!  NO MORE baby, we have had enough!  Start a budget today, stop borrowing more money, and get you an Emergency Fund of $1,000!  Once you do that you can focus intensely on paying off your debt as FAST as you can!  Others are doing it, and YOU CAN DO IT TOO!!!  Be the one at the top of the mountain, or at least the one climbing the mountain, instead of the one at the bottom saying, “it can’t be done”!!!

Watch this family scream “We’re Debt Free!”, and tell me what it would mean to you to be able to do the same thing.  Let me know if I have turned the only light on in a dark, dark room!  Share with a friend and get them to subscribe!

Now go make it happen!

Next in series

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Debt-ception – Why Do We Fall For The Lie?

by Brad Chaffee on April 7, 2009

in Money Management

Debt-ception Is Everywhere!

The use of debt is rampant and highly irresponsible.  Because we think the good outweighs the bad, we allow ourselves to justify its use.  We tell ourselves that it is okay because it is helping us, ignoring all of the signs of its destruction.  We have replaced good old fashioned savings for the servitude and hardship that debt brings us.  In my opinion we have done this because we have forgotten that no journey worth taking is easy.  We have lost hope in our lives and in ourselves, but I know how to get that back.  Learning how to become debt free is a great way to start!

What Debt IS in four telling words:

  1. Deceptive
  2. Exploitative
  3. Bondage
  4. Tragic

Deceptive
It fools us into believing that it is there to help us, while working behind the scenes to keep us from realizing our true capabilities.  It lures us in by convincing us that we can have more by increasing the quality of our life.  It builds our hopes by fooling us into believing that we can have anything we want without a hefty penalty.  I mean come on, what’s a little interest?  What happens next is anything but the happy, relaxing, dream come true that you were looking for!

Exploitative
All your credit cards, personal loans, car payments and other forms of debt are, are other people using your money to build wealth for themselves.  Often the poor and elderly are exploited the most!  Pay day Loans, Rent-To-Owns, and Reverse Mortgages to name a few.  One way to avoid becoming exploited is to plan for your retirement.  There’s a thought!

Bondage
Debt is nothing short of slavery.  It chains us down keeping us from being able to move freely without stress or severe pain.  The servant status obtained by using debt is unavoidable.  Once you sign the papers you are its slave.  It will eventually render you lifeless as it drains every ounce of hope out of your tired body.

Tragic
With debt comes death!  No not your death, but the death of your hopes and dreams.  The tragedy is that so many of us have forfeited our chances to use our income to truly better our lives and those around us. To have the same opportunity to build wealth as the next man, as proven in the Ben and Arthur Example, and NOT…is the very definition of tragedy! (A disastrous event, especially one involving distressing loss…)  The longer you ignore the problem the more you will lose along the way.

Why Do We Use Debt?

We use it because we always want more and we decide to overlook the deception taking place in order to get it.  We use it because we have been taught that debt is a part of life, and that it is the only way we are to achieve.  We use it to convey success and status.  We use it because we are too lazy to save for the things we want.  We used it to cause our current economic decline and some of us are still trying to figure out what happened.  Debt happened, that’s what!

Why You Should NOT Use Debt!

Debt creeps into your life by deceiving you.  Then it gets fat off of you, declares you as enslaved, and keeps you from ever experiencing the freedom you deserve.  That is a tragic!

STOP the DEBT-ception before it is too late!  When is it TOO LATE?  I don’t know so you should get started NOW!  Too late could be tomorrow!

Random Thought

I have often wondered why some people hate corporations so much.  They provide jobs, benefits,  & more affordable products for everyday life among other things.  It’s corporate greed that they hate right?  I hate corporate greed too, but I don’t really associate greed with every corporation.  People who love money so much that it causes them to steal from others are who you hate, not the company they fooled along the way.

Then I figured it out!  Debt has caused you to loathe corporations that are making gobs and gobs of money off of you in the form of interest.  Let me see if I understand this correctly.  You hate something that you obediently begged to participate in by signing your name.  I have the answer you have been looking for: DON’T BORROW MONEY!! Debt is enabling someone else to become VERY rich off of your sweat, tears, and labor!!

Instead use that same income to plan for your families future by saving, budgeting, and building wealth.  Use that wealth to combat the greedy scum by doing great deeds with your money.  It’s called a counter offensive strategy!  End the deceiving cycle that is debt by learning how to become and remain debt free!  It’s worth the effort and way less painful than the alternative!

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EOD Deluxe Budget 2.0

EOD Budget has finally been upgraded!!
(EOD Deluxe Budget Version 2.0)

If you have been wondering where I have been, here is your answer.  I have been working hard to upgrade the EOD Budget so that your budgeting experience will be easier, better, and faster!  I have added lots of new features including an Allocated Spending Plan [...]

6 comments Get Motivated!

Monkey See, Monkey Don’t!

MONKEY SEE, MONKEY DON’T

I have said before that Washington is in desperate need of a Total Money Makeover.  If you have been keeping up with current events in Washington then you probably are aware of the current spending proposal to “stimulate” the economy.  If not, then you should be, because your tax dollars are being [...]

0 comments Get Motivated!

Are You Waiting For Washington To Save The Day?

As it stands now this is not a political blog, and I want to keep it that way.  However, with the upcoming election, coupled with recent events (bailout, mortgage crisis) and the state of our economy, I feel it is important to address this issue.  It seems that so many people are putting all of [...]

0 comments Get Motivated!

To Be Bullied Or Not Be Bullied, That Is The Question

I think that dealing with creditors is probably one of the most emotional experiences one can have at a time when they are likely the most vulnerable.  Think about it.  When you owe someone money and they are constantly hounding you to pay what you already know you owe, it can break anyone down who [...]

4 comments Get Motivated!

If My Words Were A Hand, They’d Be Slapping Some Sense Into You!

STOP BORROWING MONEY!!!
Just to clear things up, the title isn’t to be taken literally. It’s just my way of grabbing your attention and telling you that if you are in debt, you need to hear this!! So LISTEN UP! This is perhaps the most important thing to learn after getting yourself [...]

5 comments Get Motivated!

The “B” Word!

Yeah I said it, the “B” word….Budget. My FPU class just finished Lesson Three called Cash Flow Planning, and when most of us think about a budget, all kinds of negative thoughts surface. First we think it will keep us from having fun. If you are like me then you may [...]

1 comment Get Motivated!

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