Pets

People love their pets and love to spoil them, but the essentials for pets do not cost a fortune if you know where to buy. I have cats so some of this may be geared toward cats, but much of it will apply to dogs and cats alike.

1. Food - We personally buy cat food from Costco. We get a 25 lb bag for $17.99 of dry food! I am not sure how much dog food runs, but I bet it is a great deal as well. My vet said Kirkland cat food is comparable to other top name brands, and my cats love it! For 30 lbs of cheap Meow Mix, you will pay  $21.78 at Walmart (or $18.15 for 25 lbs which is almost the same price as Kirkland but not as good of quality).

2. Cat litter - Cat litter at Costco is also a great value and great quality as well. It runs $8.79 for 35 lbs of litter! Compared to the price at stores like Walmart, that is great! At Walmart, you can get 38 lbs of Fresh Step for $15.97 (equivalent to $14.70 for 35 lbs) or 20 lbs of Tidy Cat for $6.98 (would run you $12.22 for 35 lbs).

3. Routine vaccinations - We have taken our cats to Texas Coalition for Animal Protection (TCAP) for affordable vaccinations. They do a great job, and you just can't beat the price. You do not need to be low income or a specific city resident to qualify. You will not have to pay for an office visit - just the price listed. For example, a rabies shot will cost $5 for a cat or a dog. If you do not live in Texas, I am sure you can find a similar organization nearby.

4. Spays and Neuters - I also recommend Texas Animal Coalition or a similar organization for this as well. It is VERY important to spay and neuter. :) I have provided the prices for spays and neuters below or you can click the link for more details. This procedure will probably run you $100-$200 at a regular animal clinic.

Cats: Female - $45; Male - $35
Dogs: Under 50 lbs. - $55; 50-80 lbs. - $65

5. Initial purchase of a pet - I can get a little passionate in this area, but I do not understand buying from breeders. I will not go into it much, but beyond the obvious financial standpoint, when you adopt, you save a life. My local animal shelter has an adoption fee of $55 for cats and $85 for dogs. This includes vaccinations, spay or neuter, and a microchip! I got one of my cats for $30 when they were running a summer special. ;)

These are just a few ways I save on regular items for my kitties. Of course I added some pictures of my cats for your enjoyment.

 Lily

 Pixie

Have a sale!

If you are looking for a way to save up some money, selling some of your stuff that you no longer use may help you get started on your savings. Even after being married for almost 2 years, I still have a ton of stuff sitting at my parents' house collecting dust. So recently I have started to go through it all and list some items for sale. I cannot currently do a garage sale so I list online.

I started by listing items on "online garage sales" on Facebook. These are great because you can find a group for your specific area and do not have to drive far to meet people. I have had success on these websites. A couple days ago, I found another place to list items called OfferUp. There is an app that is really simple to work, and I think the alerts the app sends are superior to Facebook. I have already sold a couple of items. :)

Cell Phone Bills

Everyone hates getting the cell phone bill each month because it always seems like so much money for what you get. I will share what type of plan we use because I believe it is a great value.

We have T-mobile with three lines and get unlimited talk and text and 1GB of data each - all for $115 after taxes and fees. Before my husband and I got married, I had AT&T with my parents. I was hesitant to switch to T-mobile because AT&T always seems to have great service, and I had not heard the same about T-mobile. I am happy to say that the service with T-mobile has been fantastic. So if you are thinking about switching, go for it. They will even pay your cancellation fee to your current provider.

Another way to cut your bills besides switching to a less expensive carrier is how you choose to purchase your device. It is cheaper to buy a cell phone off contract. Companies like to get you with the "get a new phone for $1!" scheme. Well, they build payments into your bill from then on and you are tied down with a contract. My husband and I personally use the Nexus 4 phone from Google. I got mine brand new for $200 and it is working great after a year.

Don't forget that many employers offer employee cell phone discounts. Check with your employer to see if you have anything like that with your company. Usually, this will provide a percentage off of your total bill - for example, 10% off.

Here are a few extra tips:

1. Don't purchase more data than you need. It costs more for more data. If you never use it all, consider reducing your data package.

2. To get a better deal on a phone off contract, buy it when a new version of the phone comes out. My husband bought his Nexus 4 in July 2013. a couple weeks later the Nexus 5 came out and the price dropped to $200. Great buy for us! Right now, you can grab the Nexus 5 for $349. Not bad for a high end cell phone. I am sure you can find something in your price range if you shop around. You can even try craigslist or some type of resale website.

I hope these ideas help!

Entertainment

This is an area that a lot of people do not want to cut out, which is understandable. My suggestion is that you decide the amount of money you want to spend on entertainment each month and stick to it. The bottom line is not spending more than you want to. For example, if you or you and your spouse decide that $100 is how much you want to spend on entertainment, then don't go over that amount. If you have already spent $90, you do not have enough to spend $20 to go out to a movie. Here is a list of ways we save:

1. Cable - We have opted not to buy a cable package. You might say, wow what would I do without cable? Well, instead of spending over $100 every month on a bunch of channels you never watch, how able spending less for a streaming service. We personally use Netflix and Amazon Instant Video. We always have plenty to watch, and you cannot beat the price. Amazon Prime also comes with eBooks (one a month), music streaming, and free 2-day shipping. Now you just can't get much better than that. You can get some candy and popcorn and pick a movie on Netflix to watch. Movie theatres usually charge around $12 a ticket so you can save a lot here. Redbox is also a great option to see newer movies.
2. Restaurants - Okay right now you should look at your spending over the last month and see how much money went to eating out. We limit our meals out and try to cook in most of the time. You can eat in for a lot cheaper than going to a restaurant- everyone knows that. It all just comes down to convenience.  A restaurant may seem faster or easier but staying in and cooking will pay off quickly if you are trying to save. You can cook a meal and have friends over as well.

I will add more later on this. ;)

About Me

Hi all. I am experimenting with blogging and thought I could offer some advice on how to save money. Currently, my husband and I are saving for our first home and live very frugally. I will share tips that we discover along the way and things we have already learned. I can offer ideas on where to cut corners with your spending. Thanks for visiting!