What motivates you to be frugal?
@happythoughts (4109)
United States
August 30, 2012 6:11pm CST
What motivates you to be frugal? What is it that gets you through when it gets hard?
For me it is my dream of a better future for my kids and how fast time is going by. I want to raise my kids on a farm. Not a hige farm but something where we can grow our own food for us and sell the excess to help pay the bills. I want to have the space to run and play and not have to worry about what the neighbors are thinkng about it. I want to camp in my own yard, I want to live and thrive with out worrying about GMOs or how my food was treated before it got to me.
It seems like a simple dream but its a costly one to get the land to do it. I am doing all I can to save the pennies up and make a few extras where I can. It gets hard at times and I just want to give up. Its hope for a better tomorrow that keeps me going.
2 people like this
11 responses
@GreenMoo (11834)
•
31 Aug 12
With the lifestyle that I've chosen for myself and my family, I have no choice but to live frugally. I could change my lifestyle, move house and get a well paid job if I wanted, but I'd rather live as I do and live frugally.
I guess I'm just a little further along the path that you are embarking on. Best of luck, it's not easy but I wouldn't want it any other way.
1 person likes this
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
I have been a stay at home mom for 12 years now. I cant believe how many people have treated my like I have caused our family to be poor because I am selfish. We dont have a lot of money, this is true. We do pay our bills and have necessities though. I chose to stay home for a variety of reasons but it was the right thing for us. I could be out getting more money but my kids dont want my money, they want my time and love. I completly understand your statement that you could change your lifestyle but you would rather keep it as it is. Thank you.
@cutepenguin (6431)
• Canada
31 Aug 12
For me it is the fact that in order to have anything more than what I have, I have to be very frugal with what I have. We are trying to increase our income as well, but by cutting down our expenses, we can save for things like vacations, a house, emergencies, and retirement. Obviously each thing we do is small, but it will add up.
1 person likes this
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
When I was a kid I never understood all it took to get by in this world. I never cared when I flipped a light switch of the money that was going out to pay for this power. Now as Im paying my bills and planning my life out I see how all those little choices add up. All those little choices that could make or break my future when they are all added together.
@Fishmomma (11377)
• United States
31 Aug 12
I grew up on a farm and we grew fruits, vegetables and raised animals for meals. We didn't go to the grocery store, as the first time I went in a store I was a teenager. It was quite a shock to see so much in one place! I think its great to grow your own fruit and vegetables and am growing some of it now. Picked grapes and tomatoes earlier today and had a nice meal with them.
1 person likes this
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
I love the miracle of watching a seed become a plant and watching that plant give me food that has more seeds. Its really a miracle that we dont often stop to appreciate. I want my kids to know where their food comes from. Its not just a bin in the store. Its not just magic that puts it there. A farmer has cared and raised that plant that gave us it and we dont see any of that anymore.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
31 Aug 12
The reason that I try to live a frugal lifestyle is because of the struggles that I've seen my mother go through in her life because of financial mistakes that she has made in her life. I want to make sure that my children are able to go to college and complete their college education. I also want to be able to make sure that my children always have everything that they need.
When the going gets tough, I just think about all of the people that are now without a home because of the excessive choices that they've made in their lives and I know that I don't want to be one of those people.
1 person likes this
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
Its easier to be greatful for my closet sized home when I look at people that are with out a home at all. My parents have enough money to go around so they dont understand why I do all the things I do to make ends meet. We have a bit of extra money here and there that we could waste but we are working so hard for our future.
@seriousnuts (508)
• Philippines
31 Aug 12
I have always been frugal since I was little. I was taught early to be like that since I grew up being poor. I am always future-oriented and I think that's what makes me frugal. I just want to be financially secured by the time I get too old to work. I think it's kind of fun to save money, especially when you are able to get the same products/services at a lower price. I hope you'll be able to achieve your dreams.
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
Its funny how fast I am getting old and how soon to old to work will come. I think I want to retire before Im to old to enjoy it all. Id like to travel with my Husband and see some of this great world before I am to old to enjoy it. There is a lo of life in between here and there but it speeds by so fast I dont want to miss it all.
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
Every penny counts. I try to save up any extra pennies I get. We have savings accounts and we let our change build up there but it ever seems to build up very far. We try not to touch it but it only takes one small emergency to wipe it all out. Good luck in university.
@KrauseHome (36448)
• United States
8 Sep 12
This is a good dream for anyone to have in life no matter what your age, and personally one I would love to see you achieve. Too often there are people out there that never know what they want or expect so it would be nice to have more people out there like this. No new ever said it would be easy but it is worth it when it happens.
@marguicha (215635)
• Chile
8 Sep 12
When I was young and the kids were little, my husband and I wanted the best for them and we saved what we could for that. Later on, he got ill but we could manage because we knew how to be frugal. Now I have been a widow and I have a small income but stretch it to fill my needs. And I work online to have money for vacations
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
50 years from now its all going to sag anyway. My Mom has had a bit of surgery and regrets it. She is upset about the scars and the tiny details. I think the trick is to see the good things and not focus on the things that you dont think are the best. Your heart is what matters the most and there is no surgery out there that can help you get a kind and loving heart.
I hope that you are happy in your life and that the choices you make will take you to a happy path. Please just remember that we are all beautiful in out own ways and that we are all unique individuals. Life woudl be so dull if we were all magazine perfect, there wouldnt be magazine perfect anymore.
1 person likes this
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
I hope it really does. Im not against you getting it, I just want you to get it because you love you and not because you want to make yourself better for what someone else may think.
@ilann1 (372)
• Israel
31 Aug 12
I wish it was as simple as you describe it. But some people have such low self esteem and image that there is just no other way around but to take it to the extreme. Maybe I'll regret it one day, maybe I won't. For now, I'm certain it will make me a happier person.
@ReViewMeMedia (3785)
• United States
31 Aug 12
I try to be frugal because I'm trying to save up for things, it doesn't always work out that way, but I do try to save money for things I want to buy.
1 person likes this
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
Even just trying to save money here and there is a big change from how we are told we should be. The world tells us that we need everything right now. We dont really but it seems so hard to wait. My grandma would tell me all the time about how her family ate the same three meals all the time. I feel very spoiled when we dont want to eat our dinner bur want take out instead.
@jenny1015 (13366)
• Philippines
30 Aug 12
I think every mother would be thinking the way you do. For us mothers, what matters most is being able to provide the needs of our children until they are old enough to stand on their own.
@happythoughts (4109)
• United States
31 Aug 12
Kids are only kids for a short while and I want them to be able to have a great childhood. I know that I can provide a great childhood no matter where we live but I think they could spread their wings and soar more in a wide open space. I would also love a yard for my dog to run in and my kids to play with him. I should really focus on what I have instead of what I dont.
