Tuesday, Why I like saving money games

 It has been over 1/2 a year of my money saving challenges and I would like to report they are still fun and I have felt that they are very useful.

I realize that not everyone has the income to save as many ways as I do, nor do they want the hassle, but these work for me and I find them inspiring.

I can find I can fritter money away pretty easily, so saving smaller amounts of money really helps me with the bigger picture.

At the beginning of the year I set up several money saving schemes.  Some I have done for several years, a few others were new to me.

For several years now I have saved all my spare change in a large piggy bank given to me by my daughter.  I always cash it in on Dec 6th and it is my Christmas mad money. I usually use it for extra food stuffs and stockings at Christmas.  It really depends on how much I travel and get out of town to save more money this way.  Some years it is up to several hundred dollars, but most years it is between $150.00-$200.00.   I have always kept spare change in the car, so when I get a soda I don't have to break a bill, but this year I decided that I would break a bill and save any change I had not just the extra from trips and groceries and things.  It has driven Hubs crazy but this is my challenge.  At least 5 days a week I have a few coins to add so I am hoping it is a bang up year for this bank.  It is getting very heavy.

The last two years I have saved all my $5.00 bills.   

 

Now realize that I deal in cash most of the time for trivial things, like sodas and some groceries and small purchases.  In 2019 I was able to pay off my house with the $2500.00 plus I had saved in 5's.  I do run a home business and am often paid in 5 dollar bills so this helps.  I often get aggravated as I will have a $20.00 for my coke and joke money for the week and I will get back 3- 5's in change for a $1.06 purchase.  Which means I have to put the 5's in savings.  This does cut down on my purchases some.  Hub's laughs when I go get a $20.00 bill out of my cash box intent on having it for my spending money for the week and I get 3-5's back in change. In 2020 when we were redoing our house to sell.  I used my $5.00 bills to cashflow many repairs and in the end was able to paint our large house with this savings.  Over $2000.00.

For the last couple of years I have also had a can that Slug found and Lil sis bought at a second hand store when we were together a few years ago.

 If you save a penny for every day of the year in a year you will have saved over $600.00.  I usually cash this out before Christmas, it makes Christmas so much easier. I actually total the pennies for the month and just put in the correct amount for the month.

This year I added two more challenges.  The first was saving a$1,$5,$10,$20 bill every week in an envelope.  After 52 weeks you will have $1872.00  That is a chunk of change!  You can do something with that! This has really not been hard at all. It is $36 dollars a week.  Could you find a way to squirrel $36 a week out of your budget to do this?

The second new challenge was to label 100 envelopes (from the dollar store) 1-100.  Every week you choose one or two and fill them.  If you do all of them you will have $5000.00!!!!! You can do this in a year if you fill 2 a week, or in two years with one a weeks.  Some weeks when money is tight you might just fill a smaller #.  If you have more you fill a large # envelope.  This is has probably been the toughest challenge for me, as I often don't have that much extra money.  But I have persevered and when extra comes in I fill an envelope.

I also do my saving chart to keeps track of money saved that comes into the house, through the shop, and savings in different categories in our budget.

Now what has this brought me so far? I took much of this money actually over $4000.00 to the bank about 6 weeks ago and I am due to take another 6 weeks worth of savings to the bank this week.  That $4000.00 allowed me to write a check for an Alaskan cruise we are taking with Slugs and her hubby in August.  I will also have enough money to stay in a hotel a few nights and go on excursions while in port.  It has paid for a luxury (to me) vacation that I would have only dreamed of going on a few years ago. I will not have to charge a vacation and then pay for it when I get back.  What a blessing.

Has this been hard?  Yes in some ways.  It does mean I can't run and just go shopping on a whim.  I have to really budget the bills to keep money in my household kitty.  But in the end I think it has been very worth it!

Do any of you have savings challenges?  What are they?

The littles are here today and hubs is off fishing.  He just got a txt through and he and his buddy had a flat tire out in the boonies and both of those old men cannot get the lug nuts off the flat so are waiting for a  tow truck or help of some  kind. I hope they have water, well I guess since they are fishing they do have access to keep cool and drink.  It is over 100 out and they were only going to fish the morning to avoid the heat.  HA!

I had better get in the shop I have a dress due out in a couple of hours.  Also have had 4 more wedding dresses come in for August-Oct.

JUST GOT THIS PICTURE FROM SLUGS and SISSIE I told them they are turds, that was the nicest thing I could call them.

 

Have a great and productive day staying positive while you are in the negative.

Kim