when I was newly married and a farm wife, the county extension office had a class for new farmers. Our first assignment was to keep track of every penny (and I mean penny for the first month) and assign it to a category. There were many but the household ones were food for daily use, food for entertainment, paper supplies, cleaning supplies, medications, and then miscellaneous which we had to explain. We did that tedious process for about six months, and then it got reduced a little bit. Still a lot of categories so you cannot say everything is "groceries" I do not do it on paper any more but I do do it in my head. The lessons learned have stuck with me for 47yrs. I learned that everything you buy in the grocery store is not food to eat and everything you buy at the clothing store (do they have those anymore) is not something necessary to wear. We are now almost fifty years later and have a heck of a lot more discretionary money but the lessons have lived with me.

Ann (a product of a depression affected family and married to a depression affected man- why do you think I can quilt at ease today!!!!!)

What a great idea, FW!! Kids starting out, whether it's getting married, or just graduating high school will listen to a professional before they will hear what Mom and Dad tell them! Hopefully Mom and Dad have set a good example, but that doesn't mean they will follow suit!

Cash has been king in our house for a long time. While we do use our credit cards...we use them more as debit cards. Everything is paid off each month.
I don't understand folks who 'charge' their grocery bill. It is food....and one way to keep to a strict budget on food is by using cash. You certainly don't impulse buy using cash.

I think every young person who graduates from high school, college or is getting married needs a trip to a financial planner/counselor. It is the best gift for someone starting out. A financial design plan for the future. My gal pal is a financial planner she said the best engagement gift is a trip to the planner. At this point, everyone should know each others debt. She said she had a couple who came in...and the gal was $30,000 in the hole and she was only 25. She had $10,000 in school debt, another $10,000 on credit cards and then owed $10,000 on a car. Her intended had no idea and was not in any better shape. She still lived at home...had a job...no savings....and they wanted to buy a house. Plus they were planning a wedding to the tune of $75,000!! So my friend's advice in a nut shell...small wedding, rent and pay off your debt.

My only 'debt' is my house..and I only have four more years. Only one more year of college tuition to pay. My son is fortunate...he will graduate without debt...no loans.

Dave Ramsey does ROCK!! But frankly...it just common sense...don't live beyond your means...and plan for that 'rainy' day event.

FW

Well I have to agree with you ladies, debt free is the only way to go! Hubby and I are "cash only" people, if we can't buy it outright it doesn't come home with us!

I'm always amazed that folks will finance a sewing machine of all things. For hobby use! I spent many years of my life unable to afford much of anything, so I went without. There has to be some perks to a sagging body eh? More cash!

DAVE RAMSEY ROCKS!

FREEDOM!!!!!

Yes since 9/11 and then outsourcing, layoffs are a constant worry. There's another one in our office in January but I THINK I have enough seniority to make it through. I've made less this year with 6 months of medical leave than since I was a teenager (I've worked since age 13). But with not enough income to pay the bills coming in, I bought a new van, just discovered I had enough reward points to get the much longed for digital camera and today discovered I don't need to worry about hotel bills next week when I go to Alabama to see my mom in the nursing home because I had enough reward points for that too! I love these provisions out of seemingly nowhere (well WE know where or should I say WHO!) Anyway I'm a pay cash for cars person too and use credit cards sparingly and pay them off (I'm liking those reward points!)

We have found that if we use a credit or debit card, we spend more than if we spend cash--there's just something about letting the dollars go from our hand to the cashier :shock: that is way more painful than putting it on the plastic, LOL. So for us, using cash is much less expensive.

FREEDOM!

Pat in Rockport, TX

It's a wonderful place to be, isn't it Pat! DH and I have been married since 1967, and from day one, we've had a savings plan. You've got to Pay Yourself First, then take care of absolute necessities. If there is anything left you can play with it, and in the early years, there were months with nothing left to play with, but we kept up with the savings. We agreed that Credit cards are for emergencys ONLY and if you can't pay cash for something, YOU CAN'T AFFORD IT!
It's a philosophy that has served us well. We now use ONE credit card because it's easier than cash, but we keep track and never charge more than we can completely pay off at the end of the month so that we never pay service charges. In these days and times, we feel really blessed.

Pat, this is for YOU!!

F-R-E-E-D-O-M!!

There's a fellow that does a radio show and also appears on Fox business news channel. His name is Dave Ramsey. His premise is that we can all be debt-free. DH and I have been debt-free, including the house, for several years now, and it's a wonderful feeling. It's definitely not easy or pleasant, but once you get on a budget and have a good emergency fund so you can cut up all the credit cards, it's amazing how soon you can dig out of the hole. We put money aside each month for the stuff we know will be coming up, like gifts, insurance, toward a new car, etc. and live on what's left over. We no longer just go buy something--we have to decide which of the budget categories the money will come from. Unless it's an emergency (we call it a Murphy occasion) we save for it. We will never buy anything on credit again. He has a web site:

http://www.daveramsey.com


Pat in Rockport, TX

My DH is in the Navy and has extended his time in by two years. We were going to retire in 2010, but with how things are going, we now will retire with 30 years in 2012. Economy being a major part of the decision, and a son going to college next year. His last two years in will be 3 hours away from our home. that means weekend visits so our daughter can finish HS here and we won't have to try to sell our home when no one can afford it. We are lucky to have this option. Other friends and family not so lucky. Definately counting blessings. Cheryl

We're being careful at our house. I have only bought fabric that was project specific, but always a yard or so more than I need. Now I'm spending $3-5 every trip to walmart on the remnant bin in the fabric section. Good deals. DH and work at a casino and the revenues are taking a hit. In my department lay-offs are a serious possibility. That is always on my mind.

I have been really disciplining myself in the fabric area. I have plenty of it in my stash. The problem is that I have this insatiable love affair with fat quarters. My stash has an awful lot of smaller pieces and because I love everything I see, it has no theme. It's kind of hard to put together enough for a sizable quilt. On the positive side, I have found some buried treasures. I want to retire in 10 months but the economy and the stock market sure are making that goal look unreachable. At least when I'm sewing all the doom and gloom doesn't seem to matter so much. Gloria in snowy, wintery Wisconsin

I, too, am trying to use my stash. I did my Quilt Diva entirely from my stash and a kaleidescope that's not done yet as well.

I've also had a good time making smaller projects that can use up scraps of batting and fabric - pot holders, mitts, cloth books for babies, dog coats, etc.

I usually designate January and February as a time to wip up some Project Linus quilts from my stash. I like that these can be done very simply and it's fun to stretch the immagination a bit and use fabrics that I have.

I also have so many UFO's that if I work on those, I don't need to buy any fabric. I have a whole bin of backings purchased when my LQS closed and rolls of batting that I bought on sale.

Must remind myself that I don't need to buy more fabric!!! I seriously don't think I'll live long enough to use up everything that I already have!

Nancy in rainy western NY