New Look........same old me...........Sunday Reflection

The buzz word is FRUGAL, it's the "in" thing to do. There seem to be frugal blogs popping up left & right. How to save money! How to cut your grocery bill in half! How to save on gas! Suze Orman is everywhere. I always noticed she wears the same earrings, someone finally asked her why, she replied, "I bought these as a gift for myself, and they were expense, the only pair I own, I don't need any other ones, they go with everything & nobody ever notices I wear them everyday." She kinds has a point, I guess. (I don't wear jewelry so I wouldn't know)

The coupon mom was just on OPRAH. Go to her site for coupon deals. Oprah also had two families on that swapped furniture that they were tired of, to give there home new looks. Making your own cleaning products is hot right now & hosting parties where you make your own is even hotter.

Crafty people have always been turning junk into beauty, yarn into fabric for our clothing & homemade cookies instead of store bought have always been our thing. A lot of us are used to this. Sewing, baking, cooking & knitting just like some of our mothers did.
We have said YES! to aprons & no to fake nails, fake tans, hair extensions & overpriced jewelry! Natural is better, less is definitely more.................but I must admit I have expense taste for certain things. Yarn is a weakness. As are jeans, underwear & shoes. I spend money on a good haircut & buy $90 face cream, I wont' lie, I don't mind spending it on my skin. I like good tea, quality paper towels, quality toilet paper & quality laundry detergent. Some areas you just don't skimp but you do use coupons.

I like to pick & choose where I am frugal, I think we all decide where to spend & where to cut corners. That is why I clip coupons, always have, always will. My kids don't care that I didn't buy THE BEST cut of meat, they would rather I spent the money on a night at the movies with their friends or on their ZUNE subscription, which they pay off by doing chores.

I didn't grow up poor, but by today's standard's I did. My mom stayed at home after trying to get pregnant for 13 years. She came out of it with me & my sister, who is 3 years older. You bet your ass she stayed home after wanting babies for that long. My dad left school in the 9th grade to help support his family which consisted of my immigrant grandparents from Italy & his 6 brothers & sisters. He served his country in the Koren War then worked in the railroad supporting us for 42 years. We never wanted for anything but we never had an Atari either.
I married at 20 to my husband of 10 years, the father of Justin & Sabrina. He was a professional athlete & we lived very well & lived it in an 8000 square foot home on 7 acres, which was really hard to keep clean! *I'm so glad to be out of that place, it was like white-collar prison*

But my roots never escaped me. I still looked for deal, clipped coupons & got samples when I could. Now on my second marriage I have married beneath me.....not in that way....in years. Matt was just finishing college when I met him, he is 7 years younger than I. We budget, clip, & save, we do our own home repairs & remodeling when our expertise allows us. I just won't let him deal with gas lines & electricity. Though it wasn't always this way, he had to teach me to budget better & over time it has worked. He is only 7 years out of college & nowhere near retirement. Which we are both grateful for, a lot men & women that are taking that step towards retirement are losing it all. Probably having to work longer than they wanted to gain it all back, afraid they might get "let go" before retirement because someone younger can do their job cheaper. God bless them all.


I have been thrift store hunting lately & I have mixed thoughts on this. I go to these places & sometimes I buy stuff I really don't need but because Target sends their clearance to my Goodwill I will pick up brand new bath towels for $1.50...........but when I come home I take the same amount of old towels and turn them into rags.
*Tip: Look for Goodwill's in affluent areas around the city, that is where you find great stuff*

I got a great pair of Citizens For Humanity Jeans for my daughter, priced at $5.99 at Goodwill, $158 at Nordstom's. I also picked up a pair of Club Monaco Jeans for me & a sweet pair of JCrew jeans that fit me perfectly......$5.99 a piece.

I recently saw this sign on the side of the road. 10 CENTS! (they are 39 cents at pumpkin patches)I bought 14 pumpkins for $27.oo.----we are having a chili cook-off in 2 weeks & I am giving the neighborhood kids pumpkins to carve. I would of never bought that many pumpkins but at that price I did. If I would of bought 4 of those at a "commercial" pumpkin patch I would of paid around $10 a piece. I still saved money.

I found a copy on Salam Rushdie's Satanic Verses at Goodwill for $1.99. Knowing a little about books I looked at the copyright, it was a first edition!! Worth way more than what I paid. I bought it. I am not going to sell it, I'll hang on to it, I am sure it will only appreciate over time. That little teapot there I used this morning cost me 50 cents & that sweet little mug someone brought back from The Roman Baths of Bath, England, was a quarter. It is stoneware & keeps the tea nice & hot. Did I need any of these things, probably not. That is why I get conflicted about thriftiness. I buy stuff because it's a good deal. Not necessarily because I need it. Though I did get 300 Target brand sandwich bags for $1.00. (opened box)

So bring on the yarn swaps, spend a night at home with a good bottle of wine & the one you love. Rent a movie & watch it curled up on your outside deck with the family for the drive-in effect. Be frugal, be thrifty but most of all be happy. While the market tumbles take time to be thankful for the intangibles in life..............healthy kids, healthy spouse, a large stash of yarn to keep me busy and most of all a fixed rate mortgage.