What have you done lately to cut back on expenses and to be frugal

There are sites that have coupons that you can print right there. I look for "brand name" groceries, for example breakfast cereals to be on sale and then look for those coupons. Bulk stores like BJs accept those coupons too. The other thing to cut your grocery bill is to make a list for shopping. I remember when I had my first son, we were so poor. I saved every drop of left over veges, pasta, and rice in a container in the freezer. I used to buy the cheapest chicken I could find. I would take a piece or two of chicken and boil it, pick the meat, add it back to broth, and then add the container of frozen stuff. It made a decent sized pot of chicken soup, or stew depending on how much starch there was, that fed us for a few days.

At my house money is quite tight at the moment... and I try and be frugal as possible. Tonight I went through all of my sons clothing that would be appropriate for school to see what is going to fit and what looks like its not going to fit. Tomorrow the huge thrift store on the other side of town is half of everything in the store, and between 7 and 9pm there is an additional 50% off tagged items so guess where my sons back to school wardrobe is coming from. Also in my area we are really lucky we have something known as the good food box where I go and pay ten dollars on the fifth of the month at the community health center and with all the money they get from the community they go down to the food terminals in Toronto and buy fruits and vegetables in bulk and around the twentieth of the month I go pick up my box full of fruits and veggies and it helps out a lot when you are raising young ones and are trying to eat properly and with the price of fresh produce at the market I am very grateful to have that!

I have tried to have only essentials in my fridge, and try to finish things before I buy new, I found I was buying things and because i had so much in my fridge i would forget about some things so not any more...and i am trying to go out less to save on petrol, Mylot helps me to do that....

I have also done what a lot of posters mentioned, espeically watching what I buy if I already have some at home. I like to stockup when I see a sale, but those extras often make their way to the back of the cupboard never to be seen from again. I have also started using coupons more and also finding them online (not just in the paper). I also buy the newspaper on Friday, as my local paper has the same coupon inserts in it, but costs $1.25 less than the Sunday newspaper.

I feel like we have been trying everything possible to cut pennies here and there. Money is getting so tight. We are planning left overs a lot more. We cut the serving size down on the meals we have and try to fill it with water. We are opeining windows and using blankets instead of using the heater and air conditioner. I have been overwhelmed by it all. I dont know what more we can do, we were poor before all of this and now we are at a point where we dont know if we can survive what happens next.

In my house, we have cut back on a lot of junk food. I try to make sure when everyone goes to bed, I cut off the lights in the house as I live with my parents. My mom tells me how much it costs for running the electricity in the house. When it is cold outside, especially here in Chicago during the winter, I make sure to place enough blankets on my bed so the heater will not have to run throughout the night. When comes to buying toiletries, I will compare prices and check sales at Family Dollar and Walgreens. Sometimes I find stuff I need or like at Dollar Tree. I wanted fun fur yarn but didn't want to pay almost 4 bucks for a ball and found that Dollar Tree had some for a $1 each! I even found some of my favorite drinks on sale that way too. When it comes to the feminine products, I try to get it in bulk so I will not have worry next month about it. I am a avid book reader and when I want a new book to read, I will check books a million or half price books. I will even check to see if they have a book in podcast form.

we had totally stocked up on meat and are finally eating all the stuff in our freezer and only doing grocery shopping when we absolutely have to. this way we save a lot of money. fortunately for clothing, we get lots of hand me downs and if we do need anything, we shop at a thrift store first (lots of times you can get brand new stuff there!)

Well I am working now. And pay day is every 15th and 30th of the month. I love books, so I buy books when it is on sale and if it is really cheap. Well they are old stocks from the bookstore and it's okay for me, rather than buying new ones. The price is way bigger. Also, instead of buying foods for lunch at fast foods, I eat at the office canteen. I save about 25 to 30% of money. I want to bring food for lunch but I have a morning shift and I dont have time to make some, because I have 2hours of travelling. So I buy foods that are cheaper. And next week, I'll be bringing my own water bottle. That will save money and be more healthy, because I love sodas. And bringing water bottles, could save me a lot. Clothes - I found out that there is a mall here that is on sale every weekends, up to 50% to 75% off and it is branded. I cant find clothes from thrift shops that fit me, so I always have to get the branded ones. And with the weekend sale, I am saving a lot. Transportation - going to work is really expensive, so I try to find cheaper ways. I dont have a car so travelling will get me to work. Also the bus stop is a bit far, but I just walk to get to work from the bus stop, it is healthier and cheaper.

I stopped throwing away all the coupons that come in the mail...those have helped me out a lot...plus I started cooking more instead of eating out all the time...I've also started signing up with restaurants and clothing stores to receive mail and email offers because they are always sending big discounts or free items...like Victotia's Secret sends a card for a free pair of panties at least twice a month!...I get coupons for free sandwiches, beverages, meals, etc just from signing up to be a club member with lot of the places I frequent.