10 Ways I save money

1. Don't have Cable: This actually is a good time-saver too because hours wasted watching television, because there is limited television to begin with.
2. Don't go out to movies: With Red Box or Netflix instant downloads, we only need to wait a couple months and watch a movie for $1-$2 as a couple instead of $20.
3. Make my own tea: Instead of picking up a cup of tea at Starbucks for $2 a pop, I buy the 25-pack of the same tea for $3.
   
4. Use online bill pay: The money comes out and pays the bills on the same day: pay day. This prevents over drafting funds and the bank charges that go along with that.
   
5. Use cash: While cash can burn a hole in your pocket, using ONLY cash does prevent over-drafting the bank account and the charges that go with that. A couple months of using cash squashed any itch to spend the cash in my pocket because I knew that there was nothing left when that was gone. Plus, the change at the end of the day goes in the piggy bank!
6. Bring a sack lunch. Lunch on the run can mean spending $3-$10 if I am careful, and even if I only have a few meals out during the week, that is $20-$40 a week.
7. Unplug: Unplugging lamps, appliances, and electronics even when they were turned off brought our electric bill down by 15%.
   
8. Make a list: Before I go shopping for groceries, clothes, or anything. Then, I stick to the list. If I need one pair of jeans, then I write that down and it helps me not pick up a couple shirts and some cute sandals because they aren't on the list.
9. Don't buy bottled water: We love our Brita water filter, so we just fill our pitcher from the tap. Then, we use reusable water bottles and refill them as needed.
10. Skip the salon: pedicures, massages, waxing, haircuts...they all add up fast! I have opted for the Great Clips around the corner for hair cuts and save the pedicures for the summer months, but I'm going to try to do my own toenails this year.

Go Big or Go Home?

My husband and I love our home that is so often described of as "cozy," "cute," or a "cottage." It's our 1000 square feet tucked in a quiet neighborhood in the middle of Tucson. It definitely allows us the discipline of limiting our acquiring of "stuff" because, frankly, there is no room. It is quiet, relaxed, and right next to a great walking, running, cycling path on the mighty Rillito River (or as in Arizona, we know rivers as a big dusty ditch).

And then there is the option to buy a bigger house, over double the size of our house, smack dab in the middle of the Foothills, becoming more available to ministry. Needs a lot of updating, but it is geographically central to the direct ministry that I do, which means that there is a high likelihood that Ashley and I will never be in want of company.

So what's a girl to do?
Go BIG or go home?