Frugal Friday: Frugality no matter the income level
I was wondering now that since your husband has a very good job & you have a bigger home and all, are you still planning to be quite as frugal compared to Jesse's schooling days? Not to be nosy, but I am asking because I often wonder for most people if more money/more costs means less frugality (if that makes sense). I can certainly understand where one would not have to struggle quite so much if one's circumstances changed for the better. I have not been in a position ever in my life that I have not had to be frugal (and that will probably never change). Also, since I have lived frugally for so long, if somehow my circumstances did change, I don't think I could stop being frugal - because I guess it's such a part of me now. I hope that's not too personal of a thing to ask. -LynLyn asked me the above question in a comment some weeks back and I'm finally getting around to addressing it. I saved it since I thought it would make a great Frugal Friday topic!
This is something we talked about extensively when Jesse moved up the salary rung a bit and became an attorney. Since we knew that our income was going to more-than-likely be increasing after law school, we discussed how we would wisely transition to a higher salary without changing our lifestyle or immediately becoming extravagant just because we had more money to spend.
Two of our financial goals since getting married have been to stay out of debt and to pay cash for a home as soon as we were able. The first three and half years we focused on the first goal: staying out of debt. With Jesse in law school and making quite a bit below average pay, we didn't have a lot of room for savings. Our focus was just on trusting God, taking one day at a time, and being as creative as we could to make the ends meet.
Once Jesse finished law school, we didn't have hardly anything in the bank, but we also didn't have any debt - so we could start afresh. Our goal is now to save as much as we possibly can to pay cash for a home as soon as we can. We're shooting to save enough in the next five-seven or so years to be able to buy something which would adequately meet our needs at that point in our life and for the next few years after that, while we continue to save as our family (Lord-willing) continues to expand. If God sees fit to give us many children, we want to be preparing now to be able to well-provide for them.
We made out our budget with Jesse's increased salary with as much savings as possible in mind. There were a few areas which were increased, such as home rental payments. But for the most part, the budget stayed the same. One thing which did change is that we are no longer relying upon the money I earn for any necessity. Much of it goes into savings and part of it goes into a separate budget which we've categorized by percentage for things which are extras - going out to eat, gifts, home decorations, crafts, etc. This allows us to be able to afford some of those things without tapping into Jesse's income. This has worked out well for us.
In one sense, I suppose you could say we are not as frugal as we were since we do have some of those extras now budgeted, like I mentioned above. However, I can never stop being frugal. It's in my blood. Why spend $70 at the grocery store every week when I know I can do it for $35? Why pay full-price for something if you can find it in good shaped used? I can't help but always look for the best deal, even if it is something small. And if I don't really need it or can easily live without it, why buy it at all? A penny saved is still a penny earned, even if it is a penny. The less we spend, the more we are able to save and to give to others.
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posted by Crystal Paine at 3:09 PM
18 Comments:
This is common sense to most: "Wait on the Lord". The coffeemaker finally called it quits and the search began. This item caught my interest(isn't it something how God does that?): DeLonghi DCM485, also noticed currently being offered at Starbucks.
Within a few hours of first learning of the model through online shopping, the Lord perfectly fitted us with one for $20, with a minor blemish on the back that no one can see when it is on the kitchen counter. It is new and makes superior coffee for less purchase cost of the one being replaced(that one had been purchased locally on clearance)...and stays hot longer in the caraffe than what has been read in feedback online.
Waiting on the Lord is a very good idea! :-)
What a great blog of advice for us young people to read! I have actually been struggling with this as a single young woman. Whenever I wasn't working and didn't have extra money, it was so much easier to be frugal, and now that the case is somewhat different (extra scholarhips, working, etc.), it is harder to stay that way. Thanks for writing and encouraging me!
Ashley
Hey! I just wanted to let you know how much of encouragement your site is to me! have a great week and be blessed! ~Brittney
We're more frugal when we need to be, but we're still always frugal. I agree that it's hard to pay full price when you get use to paying so much less. It's fun to try to find bargains.
Thanks for hosting this! I have gotten a ton of great ideas from Frugal Fridays already in just the past few months.
My tip this week was on cheap curtains and the treasures you can find while de-cluttering.
Hi Crystal,
I agree, I could never not be frugal. Even if we had a million dollars I would still be using coupons and shopping for discounts. It's just smart. :) I love taking the money I save from being frugal and depositing it into our savings account. Theres nothing quite like seeing the numbers grow and still having everything you need to live nicely.
Have a great day!
I really enjoyed this post thank you very much, what I love is that with the Lord we have order, and it seems like you have order in your finances, and I hope to be working myself in that direction! I pray I am!
Deana
This is us too. DH just got a teeeee-riffic raise at work, and aside from a small splurge to celebrate, we've decided to keep living the same frugal lifestyle. What's neat is that I re-crunched our numbers and we are now saving a huge percentage of our income, which reduces the timeframe for achieving our financial goals.
But I do wonder, if we'd had this income from the start, would we ever have learned the frugality skills to manage it wisely? It reminds me so much of the passage in Luke 16 that says he who can be trusted with little can also be trusted with much.
Just to throw in a divergent point of view ... :) My husband and were both raised frugal, and have been frugal for most of our "grown and married" life. However, we recently had some life changes that forced us to invest in some "luxuries" and re-think our frugalness. Summer before last, my Navy husband had 24 hours notice that he would be gone for 2 months. I was 7 months pregnant, and it was summer in Florida. We have always shared the yardwork, but we decided it was unwise for me to do it at this point. We chose to hire a man we knew who was supporting his family doing yardwork and odd jobs. It was EXPENSIVE - more than $150 a month. But even after DH returned, we realized that we were at a different point in our lives now - a point where we truly had plenty to live on, save, and give, and have some left over to support a fellow believer who was working very hard to scrape by. We realized we should be cautious that being frugal did not become our "god", but know that the money is God's, and He may have plans for it that are even better than our plans! Of course I read this blog because I love Crystal's frugal ways. :) But I have come to understand that not all "luxuries" are irresponsible, depending on the reason and motivation. An article I found interesting, in this same vein, can be found at: http://www.thirstytheologian.com/2006/08/14/133.php -Robyn K
Robyn: I very much agree with you and think that we shouldn't become so frugal that we never spend money on luxuries if we have the money to spend and need to spend it. There are times when "splurging" is completely okay, at least in my opinion. :)
For instance, when I was first pregnant with this pregnancy and so sick, I avoided the grocery store since I couldn't deal with the sight of food or the thought of trying to buy it. Jesse did all our shopping, we didn't use coupons, I didn't plan a menu for the week, I coudn't deal to even look online at the store flyers. We bought convenience foods some and we got take-home a lot. We had some extra money and could afford this and I didn't allow myself to feel one bit guilty. We were just trying to get by. Whatever it took to do that, even if it meant we spent a lot more money on food for a few months was completely okay.
Now we're back to a much stricter budget again that I'm able to plan, use coupons, shop, etc. I'm sure there will come a time again when I'll need to pull away from that for a season, or at least from deal-shopping and that will be completely okay.
Crystal,
Thanks for posting my question! What a nice surprise. Always love your Frugal Fridays.
Lyn
Robyn, again: I just read that article and completely agree. I'm all for supporting local businesses and Christian businesses, even if that means we spend a little bit more money to do so. Like you said, our heart motivation is what matters most. We can spend all our lives being as frugal as we can be, but it won't get us into heaven! I believe God would have us be good stewards of the resources He has given us, but that always means balance. Never becoming "consumed" with something so that we lose sight of Christ or neglect more important priorities.
Anyway, thanks for sharing!
Keeping the goal in your line of vision when things are going well can be a challenge. I often have to get myself back on track now that things are not as tight as they used to be. I find that setting new goals constantly helps me to keep me on track.
Many women out there don't think they can stay home on a limited income. It is VERY possible. I am at the point in my life that I need very little in material goods - I have the basics that I need in life. By reducing ALL expenditures (especially all those "bargains"), this helps me to be able to be home. Plus, I feel this is in line with God's word:
Luke 12:15 - Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions." I don't think it's wrong to have some extras in life sometimes, but I think we always have to be careful to have that balance. We can easily try to justify it otherwise. It is important to mirror our lives against the Bible and not just how we feel.
Meals out when you are ill can be very helpful of course! But things like clothing & even items like extras that we already have enough of at home - are we hoarding? There is a fine line.
Thanks for hosting this; I enjoy it so much every week!
peace of Christ to you,
Jessica
I love Frugal Fridays. Is there a way to make it permanent somewhere on the side? There were several that I didn't 'save as favorites' and I can't find them now. Maybe this has already been asked?
This is my first frugal Friday. What a wonderful bunch of ideas. Thanks for sharing and letting me share.
I enjoy Frugal Fridays-lots of useful and interesting ideas.
I wondered whether I could ask for ideas on this one (sorry it is Monday now).
Dh has to wear business suits for work. He also wears them to church so they are worn 6 days a week. He buys the cheapest acceptable suit for his job and buys two pairs of trousers for each jacket to increase the "life expectancy" of the suits. However, each suit costs a minimum of about £200 ie about $400 by the time he has had alterations done as he isn't a standard size. He only has two suits which seem to always need replacing at the same time. Any ideas on reducing this expense? How much would you pay for a reasonable suit in the US? If the prices were much better we could import although post would be high and we would have to pay 17.5% value added tax and 3.5% import duty plus a handling fee so the prices would have to be much better!
Similarly, how much would you pay for a shirt to go with a business suit with a double cuff? I aim to pay £25 incl postage for a shirt for dh as shirts come down to this price in sales. Any ideas on reducing this?
Sarah
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