Strollerderby

I have given up my Starbucks - only to be ordered on special occasions (every other week or so).  I make my coffee at home everyday vs the drive thru as I was doing frequently. I am not willing to give up ordering every gazillion picture I take of my daughter!

I never thought we were lucky to be in a tough financial spot before, but with my husband finally having a good, fairly secure job, it seems like we're the only people who aren't losing money right now. We won't be rich, but at least we're used to that. ;)

We've given up eating out and buying books, music, and dvds. The library has been good for us. MY daughter gets books as gifts, and then we can supplement with borrowed books.  It's hard for me because I have to wait forever for books sometimes. Popular ones are always checked out. I cannot bear to part with cable, Tivo, or NetFlix. The cost for Tivo and NetFlix is nominal and it's really our only form of entertainment since we don't go out. The cost for cable is higher, but I just can't let go. It's an addiction. To supplement our income, though, I have taken a second job (working part-time).

We're cutting down on eating out, and doing activities that require payment - more park than museum, these days.  We're being super-careful in terms of car use (we live in a city with great public transportation, so we can be very careful, but we used to Zipcar every now and then for a longer trip).  We're not renting movies and buying books anymore - we're in the library crowd. No new clothes unless the alternative is someone goes naked. We're not giving up on the cable box (I think I need my occasional dose of USA to preserve my sanity) - and, I haven't given up my once-a-week Starbucks habit.  (At least not yet). It gives me enough pleasure that I feel like I can still justify it - as long as I'm lucky enough to have a job!

We've parked the minivan for good and are carpooling whenever possible, resale shops for kids clothes (they barely wear them long enough to scuff 'em up anyway), we hit the dollar movies instead of full price, have board game nights with pals instead of dinner and drinks out and have turned the thermostat down about 8 degrees (brrr!)

What's a Starbucks? I think I vaguely remember that from 2007  ;)

We gave up buying meat. In six months we're healthier and losing weight as a side effect of have cheaper groceries.

We got rid of our cleaning service. It was a hard one to let go of, but I've actually enjoyed doing the cleaning myself.

We're giving up fast food and I'm limiting the starbuck's.  We're also cutting way back on the misc. household expenditures, clothes, etc.  I'm even thinking about making my own laundry soap ($3/gal sounds nice to me).  

I won't give up my communications and TV.  Unlimited long distance and internet has to stay!  

We're already library people and can even get ebooks through our library.

Kids activities would be hard for us to give up.  They are expensive, but we feel they are worth the cost.

I'm trying to limit my coffee buying (not nec at Starbucks - we're lucky enough to have multiple local coffeeshops in our neighborhood) - but finding it rather hard with a newborn in tow - Not only do I desperately need the caffeine, but just the act of going to a coffee shop is often the biggest activity of the day.

We have saved in other ways though. Planning out our meals for the week and sticking strictly to a grocery list have been a huge help. And, of course, consignment shopping - I've always loved a bargain.

Am I crazy, but it kinda gives me a warm fuzzy feeling to think about people saving money by spending less. Maybe we will, as a society, slow down and enjoy more simple pleasures becoming, ultimately, less materialistic overall in the process.

who knows...

Elendy: you hit the nail on the head! I think this could be a good thing for all of us. Having less money, for me, has meant that I'm forced to spend money on the things that matter the most to me. I used to buy new clothes every season, and now I really can't do that. It's forced us to get more creative...even with cooking and grocery shopping. We're going to more free events in the community and life actually feels fuller somehoe. The holidays are the only thing that worries me, though. Last Christmas I broke down and charged a bunch of stuff. This year I can't do that. I'm planning to try making presents and will opt for quality over quantity. I'd love to hear how the rest of you are approaching the holidays and gift-giving.