Money Saving Monday

I can't believe it's April already! April is a busy (and expensive) month for us. Bean and Honey have birthdays at the beginning of the month. That means gifts and party supplies hit at the end of March. I wasn't very optimistic about the March Project wrap up. When I looked at my totals I was surprised! I made four trips to the Stuff Mart and spent $100 less than last years' average! Pretty good for a pre-birthday month!

I have other spending/saving habits I'm trying to improve. I started coupon at the beginning of February and jumped in with both feet! I did fall into the trap of "chasing the deal" a little. Some deals were worth chasing, some weren't. In March my couponing mellowed out and focused more on getting what we used for less. That's working much better.

Another goal I have is to grow our savings. I haven't felt like this was going very well, new glasses, contact, tires...Oh My! I gathered my courage, covered my eyes, crossed my fingers and peeked at my savings. Woo hoo! The piggy banks are gaining weight! Not very fast but the numbers are going up! Progress!

My project for April is to make laundry soap! My friend Laurie gave me the recipe. If it works that will free up grocery cash (still working on cutting that by 10%). The Simple Dollar made a very similar recipe and figured the cost at 2 1/4 cents per load! They also compared the homemade detergent to a name brand and were please with the results. I can't wait to see how well it works for us!

My little steps are starting to pay off. I'm energized to keep making my lists and clipping coupons! If you have any more money saving tips, I'd love to hear them!