The first post on a new blog is always a weird one.  Do you say "Hello" and introduce yourself?  Do you just start posting about everything and nothing?
Is there "net-iquette" for how you're supposed to do this?

Who knows?

Not me.  That's for sure.

Anyway, I started this blog because I have some goals in mind for the new year and I needed a place to organize my thoughts concerning these goals.  Thus, "The Thrifty Mrs." was born.  (If you can't tell from the "Mrs.", I'm married.  And I have the most adorable child on the planet.  For more of my attention whoring about my family, and to get to know me a bit better, visit my main blog, Hoping and Wishing.)

One of my goals for the new year is to be as thrifty as possible, for multiple reasons. 

1) have you watched CSPAN lately?  Okay, me neither, really, but from what I hear, the economy hasn't yet made a full rebound, despite the fact that a frenzy of Holiday shopping just occurred. 

2) we would like to have another child someday (not soon...just someday) and daycare for one child is expensive enough.  Daycare for two is ridiculous.  The alternative, me being a stay-at-home mom, is just as costly in the short term.

3) saving money is the smart thing to do. 


I feel like I need this challenge.  And I need to get the Mr. totally on board with it, too.  I want to be a more conscientious consumer.  I want to question whether I REEEAAALLY need those new pants from the Gap (chances are, no).  Or whether we REEEAAAALLLYYYY need to go out to eat (again, chances are, no). 

So, this is my plan:

1.  Set a weekly food budget for groceries.  This includes breakfast, lunch, and dinners.  And snacks.  Try to stay at or below this budget each week.

2.  Set a monthly budget for consumable items--paper towels, laundry detergent, bath/beauty supplies--again, try to stay at or below this budget each month.

3.  Set a monthly budget for entertainment.  This includes going out to eat as a family, which we're WAY too fond of doing.  And clothes shopping, which I'm WAY too fond of doing.

4.  Snowball our credit card debt.  This is where you assess your credit card debt (which will be a cold, hard, ugly assessment, I'm sure) and look at your interest rates on all of your cards.  Then, you choose a card to pay off, say, the one with the highest interest rate, or the one with the highest balance, or the one you know you'll pay off fastest.  Then, you pay the minimum balances on remaining cards and throw ALL of your extra money toward the card you're trying to pay off.  After that one is paid off, you take the extra money you were paying to that card AND the minimum balance payment of the card you just paid off and throw it at another card. 

5.  Get healthy.  Yes, I know, this resolution is on everyone's list, always, but I'm serious.  I've technically lost all of the baby weight and my clothes don't fit.  See item #3.  I cannot shop for new pants just because I want to.  I've got a closet full of pants.  I'm trying to be logical here.

So, that's the plan.  And I'm going to do this as thriftily as possible.  I'm hanging on to receipts, and I'm itemizing my coupons.  And I'm sharing that knowledge with you.  I'll also link you to the sites I find most helpful along the way. 

Wish me luck!