Upper middle class yet somehow tight, ideas to cut expenses

33055

Sun, Dec 18 2016, 10:16 pm

yksraya wrote:

The grocery I use sends me fresh stuff always, never had a problem with it.
If the specials are what you would normally take, it's one thing, but usually the shopping for specials leads to buying stuff you really don't need.
And if it's something you do have on your list, rather get the one not on sale, than to go down, take the sale one, but end up buying tons of things you see and can't resist.

That is great that you have mazol. I see the store ladies packing the orders and they just grab rather than examine produce. Also, when I get my orders produce is squashed at the bottom. Food sometime sits in the truck for hours, and I get half melted frozen goods.

ITA going to a supermarket is tempting. I have an app on my phone. When I run out, I immediately put it in for refill. DH goes to the store for perishables. He knows how to pick out produce and pack it. He also agrees with your theory.

The other advantage of going to the supermarket is that I can get certain cuts of meat from the butcher in person. These aren't usually put on the shelves. The butchers hold these back.

funmother

Sun, Dec 18 2016, 10:23 pm

Cut down on dry cleaning & buy more washable clothes. Buy childrens clothing to last more than one season. Cut your own fruits instead of ready made melons. make your own dips & buy less dips for shabbos. Shop store brands instead of name brands
If you live near a shoprite you can save $ shopping front pg sale in the weekly circular and their own brand products are just as good as name brands.

staten islander

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 9:12 am

We are also in the same boat. Tuition/camp is the biggest expense,non negotiable. Our mortgage is under 400k, and we do pay extra toward it every month. I have full time help,which is obviously expensive and we do one big vacation every 3 to 4 years and a local one every year. These are all things that are very important to us-my husband works 14 to 16 hour days. I do not buy extravagant clothes or convenience foods except challah and chicken nuggets. I would love to make challah but I have not figured out how to do it without a mixer and I don't want to get one just for that purpose. Chicken nuggets-my kids love them and eat them once a week,so its not a big expense.
We also support a family member financially- that's a big expense. I shop mostly in costco and trader Joe's, and fill in from Jewish stores on as needed basis.I don't make fancy suppers and we eat meat on Shabbos and one other time a week. I buy snacks in prepackaged small bags because I find that less gets wasted that way.Kids clothes come from H&M,forever 21,zara if its a big occasion.Most of mine are from express,h&M and WHBM.
I come from a very poor background and my husband does too.I thank Hashem every day for the blessing of parnassa and I hope the same blessing is bestowed on everyone.

farm

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 11:09 am

Bread machine for about $30 from Walmart = 2 nice sized challos without much scrubbing and scraping doughy dirty mixers. It's just the actual rectangular shaped bread machine metal tub thingy and the little mixer/blade (2 pieces total). 2 batches (4 challos) takes us easily through each Shabbos and since I often use 3 instead of 4 (or even just 2 and a roll if no company), I freeze the extras and only need 1 batch the next week. Takes <5 minutes to dump in the ingredients and turn on, 5 minutes to braid 2 challos when the dough is ready. Dump in the sink to soak and maybe 2 minutes to wash. Best investment!

sky

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 11:44 am

I bought a bread machine over 6 years and make 3 challos every week - enough for a family of 6. I bough silicone challah pans and when the dough is done in the bread machine I dump it in the pans. It takes almost no time.
I bought a 2 1/2 lb machine, which was more money, but I can make a larger batch of challah.
Each silicone challah pans was paid for in a week of not buying challah. But overall I've saved tons not buying challah. I imagine I've saved a few hundred dollars each year not buying challah.

amother

Saddlebrown

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 12:34 pm

Staten Islander, you sound like me except a bit less spoiled 😬 I actively try to make sure myself and my kids aren't entitled, which I think is different from spoiled, but it seems I buy little convenience items more than you do and spend a bit more on clothes as well. I too, though, feel very blessed and at the same time sometimes scared at the luxuries (like full time help!) I've become accustomed to.

Bread machine sounds interesting but I know myself, I won't use it. Challah will always be something I buy, I'm not a huge cooking/baking person. I always say, I really only make easy things. If it's simple to make and tastes good, give me the recipe. Too complicated? Keep it.

SixOfWands

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 12:52 pm

staten islander wrote:

Not that its a huge savings, but challah without a mixer --

Warm up water so its warm, not hot. Pour 1/2 cup into glass/pyrex or metal bowl. Add 2 packets yeast, 1 Tbsp sugar. Allow yeast to activate.

After about 5 minutes, add another 1/2 cup warm water, 1/2 cup canola oil, 2 eggs, 2 tsp salt and 1/2 cup sugar (you can use less). Mix with wooden spoon. Add 5 cups bread flour. Knead by hand. It shouldn't take long. Just knead until no longer sticky. Take out ball of dough, wipe bowl, oil bowl, replace dough, and cover.

Wait 2 hours.

Punch down dough, divide into 3, shape as desired.

Wait 2 hours to overnight, then use egg wash and bake at 325 for about 40 minutes.

(via "easy challah recipe" on food.com)

cozyblanket

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 2:30 pm

here is how to not buy challah but also not use a mixer or a bread machine or make it from scratch---

1. buy frozen rodes dough balls - or the generic brand
make it the last thing you buy before you pay and the first thing you put in your freezer when you get home bc defrosting and refreezing harms the yeast.

2. take out frozen dough balls and place 9 in a big circle pan - 8 around and 1 in the middle (bag is 36balls so a bag will make 4 challahs). spray the pan b4 you put them in and then spray the dough balls in the pan too. Cover with seran wrap. Leave in the fridge (basement fridge!!) for a day and a half - or on the counter for several hrs til they defrost and rise. They are ready to bake when the pan is full of dough...
note: you didn't make the dough so you don't have to take challah from this.
It is pas yisroel though bc you bake it.

3. remove plastic wrap. bake per instructions on the bag.

4. walla - pull apart challah for about $1.25!

LMK if you try it!

staten islander

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 3:22 pm

Not to hijack the thread,but I have a somewhat related question. We are doing chanukah food shopping for a family in need. I am supposed to be buying extras. I asked the person in charge,and she said that means things the family doesn't normally buy. How can I do that,I dont know what they do or dont buy.They have kids from 6 to 14,what do you think is "extra". And the posters above,thank you for the challah advice

cozyblanket

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 5:29 pm

cozyblanket wrote:

If I wasn't clear in #4, that is -- you now have "pull-apart" challah for about $1.25 each!

Amarante

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 5:51 pm

staten islander wrote:

As cozyblanket posted, assume that extras are the nice stuff that someone in a bare bones budget wouldn't buy.

I wouldn't worry too much though because as long as it is not perishable, I am sure it would be welcome.

As to what it is, how much do you want to spend?

Nice fruit, a chicken maybe, chocoalatr, nice dessert, frozen pizzas. What would you get for a Chanukah party.

And I think getting gifts for the children is a great idea. Doesn't have to be expensive.

Bagels. Flavored cream cheese.

Last edited by Amarante on Mon, Dec 19 2016, 5:53 pm; edited 1 time in total

cozyblanket

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 5:51 pm

try a month of only drinking water -no juice or anything else. Get milk for breakfast etc too.
See how much you save on just drinks. This will motivate you to cut down in the future even if you don't do only water.

definately less chicken and meat! beans, tuna.... great protein sources! much cheaper!

Cut an hour or two of cleaning help a week. You can manage with a bit less.

All my kids clothes are from 2nd hand stores. They have great stuff. You will save a ton.

I am a fan of cheap kids shoes... who cares about getting quality shoes that won't fall apart when the season will change or they will grow out of it anyway? Most of the time, you save by getting cheap shoes. Yes, a few times I had to buy another shoe in the same size, but that was the exception by far!! Adult shoes - that is a whole new story!! Our feet don't grow, so we can get good quality shoes!

Entertainment -- see what you can cut... entertain the kids with free things... game night/parks/etc.

OP, report back in the future which things you did and what impact it had!

The only real way to do this is to make a budget on everydollar.com so you can SEE what you spend. If you can SEE what you spend, you will know where to cut. Right now, you are trying to drive blind. You can't see what's happening... how will you know what to do if you can't see?

amother

Saddlebrown

Mon, Dec 19 2016, 7:29 pm

Staten islander, to me extras sound like treats you wouldn't normally get - donuts, pez candy, chocolate coins

Cozyblanket, we already drink water only! I know I need to track every dollar to get 100% accurate picture. Since I pay most things on cc, I'm actively trying to buy less clothes, extras/impulse purchases, and takeout. Then I will compare last months cc with this one and see if I made a dent. I'm hoping that meal planning and conscious spending only (not picking up a pretty vase or necklace at target for no reason) will get some results. If not, I will look into the budget tools you all mentioned here. I will report back iyh!!

mo5

Tue, Dec 20 2016, 8:45 am

staten islander wrote:

Extras can also mean snacks like nuts and dried fruit (healthy treats), nice chocolate, good quality olive oil and other condiments.

33055

Tue, Dec 20 2016, 9:18 am

You can also cut down on your monthly utility bill by being careful with lights, etc. Run the dishwasher at night when rates are lower.

By investing money, you can save money. You can replace the bulbs. Seal leaks. Spray foam insulation, etc. Use energy efficient appliances. Use ceiling fans. Consult an energy expert. We got a tax credit when we did it a few years ago.

My utility bill is less than $400 a month when in a less efficient house in a similar type as mine the bill would be $600 -$700 a month. That's $4000 a year.

amother

Saddlebrown

Tue, Dec 20 2016, 9:55 am

Running the dishwasher at night costs less??? Really? So interesting. Oh well I usually run it at night anyway. My house is pretty up to date, spray foam, led's etc because of our renovations but I should be a little more careful with lights. Raise your hand, how many of the kids leave their bedroom lights on every morning????? 🙄 My son also takes the loooongest showers, that can't be cheap. Maybe I should make those shorter as well. Okay!!

Also, I planned all meals this week and so far feels amazing! Hope I can last a month with all this to see if it made a dent. Self control is not my strong suit. I also realized that I rationalize a lot of my extra spending because I work and am constantly busy with my business.... this is like free therapy for me, people! Lots of eureka moments lol, keep the ideas coming!

33055

Tue, Dec 20 2016, 10:07 am

amother wrote:

My dishwasher is programmable and quiet. Rates go down after peak hours. At first I found these measures from DH annoying, but the savings are substantial.

Energy efficient ceiling fans also cut down tremendously on utilities. We don't need AC except for the hottest days, and I like a cool house.

Amarante

Tue, Dec 20 2016, 10:26 am

At least in California, electrical bill differences can be striking because we are charged more per kilowatt hour when we go above certain usage and we are also charged more at different times as squishy pointed out.

I would not comment on the length of anyone's shower. My GF had a prodigiously cheap father who commented on use of toilet paper and other items relating to personal hygiene and she was scarred for life. Went in the other direction.

Am I the only one whose father would snarkily ask whether I owned shares in ConEd when I left lights on when I left a room. :-)