More on Being Frugal

Today marks the commencement of week four with no house boy. And, we are doing well! My big fear was that with David gone, all of his duties would fall to me. But, Michael has stepped up to the plate and is doing laundry and straightening. Very nice.

I'm very happy that we were able to save that money each month, but with the economic news getting worse and worse, I've been thinking about other things we can do to watch our budget. Here's the list I came up with:

• Make lunches for the adults every day.
  
  • Potential savings = $70/week, $3,640/year
• No more Starbucks in the morning. We have an espresso machine at home, so this is a no-brainer.
  • Potential savings = $25/week, $1300/year
• Meal planning to avoid last-minute take out or restaurant visits
  • Potential savings = $60/week, $3,120/year
• Occasionally choose BYOB restaurants on Saturday nights
  • Potential savings = If we do this twice a month, it could save us probably $100/month, so $1,200/year

What changes are you guys looking to make?