One of the things about being a stay at home mom and subsequently having only one income to pay the bills and buy groceries, is trying to keep the finances straight every month. More like every day, but you get the point. We cut out certain things because we can't really afford them, we plan most of our purchases so we can see where our money is going and how far it will take us. It's almost a full time job in itself, most of the time, I have no problem doing it. I like it, I do our taxes and I keep a thorough record of our bills in a notebook. I refuse to buy any financial software like Quicken or Microsoft Money because I cannot stand it and because I am a perfectionist and I like to do things "my way" (which, btw, there is no "high way"). Usually this means that when we need groceries, we make a list, look at the ads to find the best deals and then we pay very close attention to every item that enters the cart. This is very tiresome after a while, most days I would just love to go and buy what I feel like without paying attention to the sales or price per ounce. Comparing products is a great way to get the best value but sometimes, I want to shout, "Screw value, give me the brand name because it tastes better!"
I know, I'm dramatic.
I never used to pay attention to the price of anything. I didn't bargain shop. I never compared products and prices. I just didn't do it because I never had to. Money was never an issue until I no longer had any.
Well not today. Today, I went to the store just for a few items. I went to the most expensive grocery store because it happens to be the closest and I paid no attention to prices or ounces or pounds or packaging or brand names. And guess what happened anyway? Nearly everything I bought was on sale!
Do you have any habits that are so engrained you couldn't stop even if you tried?
Comments (1)
haha, I know that feeling! Although for me, it has gotten to the point that I love to see what I can get to provide for us that costs the least amount of money. On the weeks that I do well enough, I go pick out something that I wouldnt normally otherwise buy. And it doesnt matter if it is full price or not. It is a good reward.