Actually, I just looked up the definition of "cheap skate" and it says someone who is stingy and miserly. I may or may not fit that description, depending on the day.
Maybe I'm more of a penny pincher?
Maybe somewhere in-between?
Anyway, I confess. I want good deals, I don't want to waste things and I get a little crabby when this doesn't happen. Holy cow, I am a cheap skate.
Here's some examples:
1. I started using foam soap after my third child was potty trained. Tired of wasting SO MUCH soap.
2. I make my own laundry soap, window cleaner, and wood polish.
3. Although I love to support local grocery stores and usually purchase produce and meat there, I almost refuse to by items such as medicine, bags of candy or toiletries anywhere but Wal-Mart or Amazon.
4. Speaking of Amazon, I send a lot of energy getting the best deals on toilet paper and diapers.
5. I have a yearly budget spreadsheet, a monthly budget spreadsheet and Quicken (computer program that I use instead of a checkbook register). I enter each expense or income into each of these. (Note: This DOES NOT mean I keep my budget. It means that I know where every penny goes.) This insane way of keeping track of everything really does help me to know how much I need to put in savings or if we are going to be able to add a new bill or not long term.) Click HERE for a post on finances.
6. I wash my plastic baggies at least once so I can reuse them, with the exception of baggies that contained raw meat.
7. I print almost everything out on fast speed and gray scale.
8. I save almost EVERY piece of clothing from my older kids, even jeans with holes. This has helped me keep my clothing budget low as we have continued to have children.
9. I often shop at thrift stores, mostly for jeans for my kids. I love finding a name brand pair of jeans for $3 or $4!!
10. I purchase generic brands as a general rule. There are a few exceptions that I buy name brands like, corn syrup, hot dogs, bacon... and I'm sure there are a few more but I can't think of any.
OK, I'll finish this off. I could probably go on forever. Here's one more and I have paid a severe price because of this one.
11. Expired foods don't scare me. Lots of foods, especially canned items, can be consumed long after their printed expiration date. There is even a cool website with more realistic shelf life estimates (click HERE). BUT, recently this got the best of me.
Short version: We use a lot of sour cream, but for some reason we had a container that was expired. I had used it only a few days before after smelling it and looking for any sign that it had turned without a problem. Then one day I added it to a taco (luckily no one else in the house wanted any that night) and I had food poisoning within a few hours and was sicker than I have ever been. Not cool.
But will that scare me into throwing away food that is past it's date? No way!
I will, however, be more careful, especially with dairy products.
There you are. My confession and a glimpse into my strange way of thinking.
Please share anything you do that might be similar so I won't feel so alone. :)
