How are you going to be more frugal in 2009?

There are a few things that I'm going to do to save some money in 09. I will not eat out as much. I will take my lunch from home for 3 days and the other two days I will only spend about $4.00 on my lunch a day. I will however treat myself on payday to a restuarant for lunch. That will be twice a month. I will do my daughter hair at home instead of taking her to beauty saloon 4 times a month. I will also purchase a memebership from one of the chain stores that will allow you to purchase in bulk. I will contiune to pay my mortagage and other bills on time therefore avoiding a late fee

I am very agreeable with you. Times are hard. JUst 2 weeks ago i tried to have a junk yard sale. However, it was not very successful as i only made $27 out of it. I wonder if you all have any ideas? Also, i really like your idea of sewing your own clothes. What patterns do you normally sew? Maybe you can share with me?

I already do a lot of things to be frugal: I try to turn off lights as much as possible. I hang dry clothing I handwash instead of dry clean many items I pack our lunches so we don't buy them I try to buy food in bulk or on sale I am decluttering my house and trying not to add to the clutter - so I'm not buying new stuff I reuse wherever possible i drink tap water - water in our city is really clean, plus I usually boil it and then refrigerate it. I am knitting Christmas presents this year - If I do a little bit each month, I will have nice things for each person's gift. Then I might get some DVDs or something for people.

The biggest one for me is to really think over purchases. Can my kids use the hand me down clothes or can I lengthen them? Do we really, really need the item or is it just a want. I really try to cut the coupons and have cut back on sweets and chips. We don't have baked goods, ice cream or chips. And I am going to really try to budget. Sometimes, it is just better to pay for the item with cash versus putting it on a credit card. Credit cards cause me to overspend and they collect big interest if you don't pay it all on time. Never mail your credit card bill late. One day late and it can hurt so bad.

Our garden will be a lot bigger this year and more planned out. We are trying to get a garden large enough to live off of and save produce for the winter months as well. We are trying to eat healthier and save money all at once so this is the only way I can make it all work.

i have been pretty frugal to begin with. i shop at thrift stores most of the time. we grow our own veggies and we visit the library every other week (for both books and movies - instead of renting). i package my own snacks for our daughters lunches, that sort of thing. there are a lot of great websites that can help you.