Great tips and ideas here, I'm glad I read through all 5 pages!!!
I've drastically reduced my power consumption by being aggressive with S/O and easy child about turning things OFF when not in use. I have power bars for electronics and they are well worth the investment. I click off the button on the bar when not using things plugged into it. Ghost power adds up. My bills have gone down so much that I'm amazed and a bit annoyed at myself for taking so long to become energy efficient. I also replaced a clunker window A/C unit this summer with a affordable (read CHEAP) energy efficient one I picked up for $100 at walmart. I bet I saved that in power consumption!
I have become very particular about food purchasing. I stock up when prices are super cheap. We use a LOT of cheese so I always have fresh bricks in the firdge. But I also stock up for the freezer when cheese is super cheap. It doesn't freeze well whole, but by shredding it first I have instant cheese for topping pasta, lasagna, mac n cheese, tacos, fajitas,pizza, topping for shepards pie etc.
I've begun notice a pattern on things like toilet tissue. They seem here to cycle the sales, some not really a great deal at all. I stockpile coupons for my favorite 2-3 brands. When a place has them on for a fantastic price, I usually have a few coupons, so I buy as many as I can at sale price and with coupons. I buy it that way even if we are well stocked. Sometimes it pays off for me to have tons extra because i end up waiting to build new coupons for the ones I like and it helps ensure I pay the least possible each time. Since its something we use daily (and easy child is a paper waster!!!) it is something I'm particular about.
I've taken time to compare laundry soap results on our clothing. I do buy a name brand "for blacks" detergent that I hoard for our really good black items. Otherwise I've discovered that my previous favorite which was over $9 when not on sale and about $6 when on sale, is no better than the new brand I've found that goes on sale at a local grocery store about every 5-6 weeks for $2 per bottle (same amount of loads).
We have dollar sales every so many months at one store locally. Some things are NOT as good a "deal" as one would think. But they do put on things that normally I won't buy (too pricey or a waste of money). I'll stock up on them for easy child for a treat or for lunches. Things like Captain Crunch cereal, family size bags of bits n bites (I repackage into small snack size bags with zippers, then put them into a bin in the pantry for school lunches). This particular sale usually has named brand shampoo and conditioner as well for a dollar, so I tend to stock up then for those things, same with 6 packs of Irish Spring soap. If I have coupons for those items, I save them to use during the dollar sale event.
Someone was posting about premium ice cream vs going out for ice cream. We do much the same thing. It is rare that I take easy child to get something at DQ or elsewhere. But I do keep a cheap generic vanilla ice cream (4L bucket for $3 on sale) in the freezer. I can add berries or bananas etc to make milkshakes or just do cones or bowls. When premium flavors come on, I'll usually by 4-5 (if they go down to $2 per carton only, anything higher I won't buy) but they are not for daily consumption. They are saved more for a special treat, for when easy child has a friend over, or for birthday parties to top cake etc.
I have stopped the madness of store bought birthday cakes. We now bake our own and frost it for under $2. That sale premium ice cream makes the cake a treat to serve with it. I can't believe the years spent spending $20-$30 for a cake from the grocery store bakery!!
I refuse to buy meat at anything but crazy low prices, even if we have none of some type or another in the freezer. But when they do put them down crazy cheap, I buy a TON of it. I grabbed 10 family size packages of lean ground beef a while back, each large pack was between $6-$7. I packaged them smaller for the freezer, usually getting 3-4 packages, each package was enough for a meal (with leftovers usually). Each meal then costs only about $2 (or less) for the meat portion. When I looked at the price for lean ground beef the other day while shopping, a smaller family size pack was priced at $14 and up. Yikes!
Usually if we buy enough of something at bargain prices, it holds us for that item until the next great priced sale.
easy child doesn't like lunch meat for school lunches. She does however LOVE turkey. So I wait until price is about $0.99 a pound for full turkeys and cook them. Normally we'll have a meal out of it, then I cut and freeze the rest. I put them in packages big enough for 2-3 sandwiches, sealed well, into a tub in the freezer. I can pull them out every few days and have fresh turkey for her sandwiches for school. I cant' believe I ever bought deli roasted turkey slices for her. They do NOT taste as good, have additives etc and the savings is HUGE.
I've taken to stalking the nearby grocery stores bakery section. They have started putting a half priced rack out for things a few days away from last day sale. When I see rolls for PCs lunch sandwiches, I buy as many as possible. These are fresh bakery rolls and I usually can get 12 for about $0.75. I freeze them and take them out the night before she needs one. I do the same with some treat things that freeze well. Half priced muffins, croissants, cookies, danishes, all freeze well. I have a bin in the freezer just for them all, they get sealed individually and popped into her lunch in the morning and it thaws by lunch. Also keeps other things in her lunch cold.
We've found a great thermos type stylish bottle for her lunches this year to avoid those nasty lunch boxes I've hated for years. She is often thirsty even after them (they are small). They are packed with so much sugar and dyes etc. The bottle was $15 but I have a year ahead of NO juice boxes. easy child can now take milk, juice made from concentrate at home, water (her favorite) and put a flavor pack (crystal lite or nestea) in alongside.
I had such a good time hosting a sugar free cookie exchange party last year that I'll host one again this year for sure. We had so much fun and I had baking for the entire holiday period and only had the work and expense of making one type of thing. It was a big hit and I know last years participants are coming back and more have asked to join this year.
In the spirit of the sugar free cookie exchange, I'm thinking of getting a few friends together to do a different type of exchange. Sort of a "heading into winter" cookfest. My cousin has a room in her building we book (free) for family events, it has a great kitchen and TONS of huge tables. It is fully equipped with all kitchen needs. I'm thinking of hosting a ladies cooking day. Where we all have a list of ingredients for some basic meals we all like (perogies, cabbage rolls, lasagnas, shepards pies, etc). We could all share the work in shopping for best prices for ingredients, then divide the total between us all to share the cost equally. Then spend the day drinking a glass of wine or pots of tea, and cooking together enough of each item that each family has several meals of each to take home. We can then package for freezer based on our own families size and needs. I think it would be fun and a great way to spend time with friends we don't see often. I figure we can bring crock pots and steamers from home etc to help with certain things and leave the oven open for other things. Even lasagna comes out great in the crock pot. Anybody ever done this??