Reading these blogs has helped me very much! Watching everyone put money away and talk about how much they have built up for a financial cushion is inspiring to me.
We have three paychecks this January and I've taken $350 off the top to place into my ING account. I have a balance of $300 on my cc right now because I placed my semester's class on there, but the interest doesn't start accruing until the end of February and I'll be able to pay it off with the next two paychecks.
One of my goals for 2006 is to have $1,000 in CD's and Not To Touch It. At All. I know that the money should be there for emergencies, but in my case, that's what I have DH for (any emergencies). I laugh that I'm a partially "kept" woman, but the man can afford it. I swear he has Midas' touch sometimes.
I'll be stopping work the end of March so that I can get our house ready to sell, which means I have to save as much as possible in as short of period of time as possible. A girl needs her own nest egg and I have money in retirement plans and a cash value life insurance policy, but I wants funds and cash, too.

This is what I've been learning so that I can save:
- People don't need a ton of clothes. Keep a set mix-matchable wardrobe for work and take off the work clothes as soon as one gets home. Saves on cleaning, saves on the wear on the clothes, and a comfy pair of exercise pants and a T-shirt are so much more comfortable anyway!
- Go without the cable, the TV and anything else that might make a person want all that stuff that gets advertised. People don't Need it.
- Use Paula's beauty books to find cosmetics that don't cost an arm and a leg and work just as well as the high priced stuff.
- Cut your own hair in between shapings. My hubby trims my "do" at around the 5th or 6th week after a cut which means I can go another 5 or 6 weeks (and sometimes more) without having to spend the $25.
- Have one good pair of "heels", one good pair of "flats", running shoes for exercise, lace-up shoes that don't go outside for the FLYLADY and one pair of casual shoes for loafing around in khaki's. A person does not need a lot of shoes. They take up space, get in the way, and are completely unnecessary.
- Give kids an allowace. Let them be responsible for buying any toys, video games, and other clutter creators. DS knows that we'll buy him clothes twice a year, pay for his school activities and his food for the house. If he wants to eat out and we don't, then he gets to pay for it. He's definitely learning the value of a dollar and how easy it is to go from being able to afford something to not being able to afford it!
- Don't go out a lot. Invite friends over for potluck. Enjoy the conversation instead of needing to be "entertained".
- Rent DVD's from the library. No need to see a film right out of the box office.
- Don't drive a car. Or at least cut down on it. I drive possibly 2 or 3 days a week max. Take the bus, walk or ride my bike on other days. Good for me, good for the environment and great for my car. I never have to get the oil changed on the date.
- Air dry clothing (now that our basement doesn't stink, I can safely line dry again). lol
- I keep a coin pig. When it gets full, I take it to the bank. $40-$70 later, I'm that much richer in my savings account.

I'm sure there are probably other things I've been doing to save, but those are the big ones. I need to write down my goals for the next few months, though, so that I can see exactly where I'm going.
My parents are having an estate sale this weekend that I have some items in - hopefully I'll get some $$ for it!!!
A healthy bank account (and a healthy baby!) are very important to me this year.