What to do with the money saved?... How do I even learn to budget it all.

Congrats for quitting! Just keep it up.

I lead a very simple life. Everything I don't spend, I put them in savings. And I don't use traditional banks (because their interest rate is too low). You can open online savings accounts and get over 5% interest rates and free money (some of them give you free bonus money just to open an account).

As for spending, I don't set up a definite budget. But before I buy anything, I always ask myself, "Is this necessary?" For example, chips and sodas are not necessary. So, simply don't buy them. Veggies and meats are necessary, so, buy them on sale (never pay full price). You don't really need a budget (i.e., only allow yourself to spend a set amount of money per week or per month etc), as long as you spend your money on the right things at the right price.

I will send you some information on the online banks that give you free money in your private message. I have been doing it since 1997. There's really no need to freak out about online banking.

First of all let me say congrats for quitting. One thing that I did when my hubby quit smoking (but has taken it back up again....argh) was take the money that he normally would have spent on cigarettes and put it the savings each week. Depending on how much you smoked you can save a bundle right there.

The next thing we do is have so much money per week taken out of his check and put directly into savings. What I don't see I can't spend right? We've come to save quite a bit in the past few months since we started this. :) Also any cash that we have left after the week is up, I throw into the savings account. It may only be $5 here and there but it will add up.

Another thing is learn how to coupon. There are several great websites that you can join where you can swap coupons with others. That way you can get what you need and they get what they need. Watch the sales ads thats for sure. I hardly ever pay full price for stuff unless I absolutely have to. The less trips the the grocery store you make per week will also help cut down on how much you spend on groceries, so plan your meals out. :)

Good Luck on your saving endeavour! Its hard but I know you can do it. If you have any other questions feel free to ask me. I will try to help you the best that I can.

I forgot to give you some website that you can use to help you. Again if you have any questions feel free to ask me. I'm new at learning how to save and budget but I'll help in any way that I can.

http://betterbudgeting.com/budgetformsfree.htm

http://www.thefrugalshopper.com/

http://www.frugalmom.net/cgi-bin/YABB2/YaBB.pl

http://www.realfood4realpeople.com/oamc.html

http://www.christysclipart.com/oamc2.html

What you need to do is set down and figure out your bills. Figure out how much goes out compared to what come in money wise. You want more money coming in than going out.

Buy what you need... Buy on sale or things that are marked down and on clearance.
Seems silly but once you get in the habit of this. You will may get addicted in seeing how much money you can save.

Now some people when setting say 100 bucks a week for food. And hit sales: Like meats one week. Can vegs the next. With stuff like the weekly bread and milk. Get what they need that have say 20 bucks left over. They tend to buy more food or spend it somewhere else. This is not saving money but spending money. What you need to do is put that 20 bucks in a savings account or somewhere to save it.

I also have a big container. Where I place all my change. Than once a year right before Christmas take it to the bank....This buys Christmas for my family. I have a family of five plus two more this year.

Don't forget to shop at outlet store and garage sales to buy name brand clothes at cheaper prices.

Cooking more from scratch will save you tons of money as well. So when it comes to buying those cakes and muffins you may love. Make your own and see how much moeny you save. Those you can always make a head of tim and freeze the rest til you need them. In the summer have yourself a veg. garden (If you can). You will see how much money you save growing your veggies.

Oh,don't forget to check out all the free samples and coupons you can get off the internet.....You can save tons using those two options.

Try and buy outright instead of using places like Rent a center. In the end you will pay double and sometimes even triple what the item or items you buy are worth.

Only buy items you know you are going to use or eat. Otherwise you are just wasting your money.

When a new product comes out and I want to try it. I will look for a free sample or coupon. Than wait for it to go on sale before I buy it. I really hate paying a high price for something my family may not like than we won't use. This way if we don't like it or use it. I don't feel bad.

Oh, and shop at the Dollar Store if you have one new you . For cheaper prices when it comes to buying name brand household cleaners.

Here's a tip, when you open a can of veggies. Instead of draining the juice and throwing it out. Pour it in your plants or compost pile. You save on use of water, your plants or compost pile take the nutrients in the juice and absorbs it.

If you have any questions just ask....I know tons of ways to save.

You have some great tips already posted here but I'd second the idea of an online account that takes a certain amount out for savings automatically-it has been my best savings plan! Look for sales and save your cig. money-literally put away the money you would have spent each day and use at least part of that for a treat!

Trish, one place I've found to be of GREAT help along the way is Budget101.com. There is also a yahoo group for them (which I also mod on, like the Tightwad site).

You need to balance what you spend with what you earn, which is better in theory than in practice, right? First and foremost you address your NEEDS, not your wants.

This means address food, shelter, heat, water, electricity, and (while not a NEED), transportation to and from work. Shelter is a bill that you might or might not have, depending on whether you have a mortgage or rent or house payments still.

What you want to do is buy a notebook. List your never changing bills, bills that remain the same price each month, or really similiar in price. Those are the easiest to budget for, because there are no surprises. Both gas and electric can be put on a budget plan. They take the past year's worth of bills, add them together, divide by 12, and the end amount is what they will charge you monthly for the next year. That means in the summer, you'll pay more on gas than you would have, but you'll likely be paying less in the winter. At the end of the year, if you paid in more than the actual bills came out to, you get either a refund or an account credit. If you paid in less, you'll get a readjusted monthly amount, and a bill for what is left over from the year.

Once you have a list of your monthly non-changing bills, list the due date, and any late fees. You want to avoid late fees, because even if it's only $2 here, $5 there, you are paying money you don't need to pay.

From there, list the changing bills. If you can, call the different companies and ask for a listing that shows what was DUE (not paid- these amounts sometimes differ!) monthly each month for the past 12 months. This will give you an idea on what you owe monthly. Again, list due dates and late fees. Your goal is, again, to avoid those.

Once you have your bills sorted, you look at food. What ways can you save on food? Shop cheap. Shop sales, and stock up if you find a really good price on something you know you'll use. Stocking up on 12 cans of peas won't do you any good if no one will eat them, right? Things you guys eat regularly are the items you want to stock up on, only. Use coupons, especially in cunjunction with sale prices.

Think they don't work? I walked out of Meijer's last Spring with 5 bags of groceries, and saved $46.00 off my bill. End total I paid out of pocket? $.19. Yep, not even a quarter. It does require work, but once you get into a good pattern of clipping, sorting, and scanning sales ad's, you can save hundreds of dollars a year buying the food you'd normally eat anyway. Sure, a single coupon might only be a quarter off. But at Ric's, Meijer's, & Kroger, any coupon up to $.50 doubles, so your quarter was just turned into fifty cents. Now, if you are looking at an item that is on sale down from $1.49 to $.99, you add that coupon, and take the item out the door for $.49.

Sandy mentions using internet coupons- I'll warn you now, no one in Mount Pleasant accepts them anymore. Meijer's even gives you a hard time using a coupon from the Meijer's website.

Once food, shelter, and bills are taken care of, address the wants- new clothing (unless it's absolutely, positivly NEEDED, like a coat, or a pair of pants when you ripped out your last ones), cable tv (or satelite), video games, going to the movies, eating out, ordering food in, buying things online or in a store, etc. Anything that is not essential to you living is a want.

Basically, what you want at the end of the pay period is to have money left over. If you are paying out less than you are earning, you are going to come out ahead.

If bills are not caught up yet, and you do have extra money, put it towards getting the bills paid off sooner, especially loans and credit cards. Let's say you have a credit card with a $500 balance, which is NOT over limit yet. Minimum payment is only $50. On a $500 balance, with a 19% interest rate, you will be adding $95 to the total each month, without spendning a dime. So, your $50 payment doesn't lower the limit. Your balance just rised by $45.

Now, let's say that you pay $100. That brings it down to $495. Not a big change, right? But, it's wittling away at it.

To figure out your interest, look at your rate and your bill. Simply use a calculator to add it= balance plus % = amount of interest incurred monthly.

Now, let's say that at $500, you are AT limit. Not over yet, but a single dollar will push it over, right? minimum monthly is still $50, interest is still 19%. You pay your $50, but interest is added, pushing it to $545. That means you are over limit, so a $30 over limit fee was just added. That means your card is now at $575, right? Yuck.

Again, paying the $100 keeps it under limit. This happens with smaller card amounts as well, but maybe not as quickly. So, you have a card with $200 balance, and a $200 limit. How quickly will it add up? At 19% interest, you'll be looking at $38 interest added monthly. The limit is lower, and the minimum monthly payments will also be lower, maybe only $20 a month. So you pay the $20, which brings the balance to $180 before interest. Then interest is tacked on, making it $218- yep, over limit. Add on another $30, and you'll be looking at $248.

Basically, with any and all credit cards, you want them as far under limit as you can get them, because it will cushion you in months when you might only be able to afford a minimum payment. If the card is $200 UNDER limit, getting hit with some interest won't hurt. Unless, of course, your interest rate and balance are high enough to incure that much interest monthly.

The bottom line is this- you have to WANT to change, and you have to WANT to make the changes in your life, AND lifestyle to make a budget work. No one budget works for everyone, you need to sort through the things you need, want, and can't live without, and make your own decisions on where you can cut things out, and cut prices.

When I mention coupons from the internet. I mean the ones you fill out forms for and then they send you in the mail. The are the same ones you recieve in your sunday flyer. Sorry aboiut that. I should of explained it better. Most companies all you have to do is call them up and ask for a coupon because you want to try there product.and they will send you one.

A) congrats!!
B) you can do it

I agree with Heather pay down the credit cards, it will pay you back in the long run.

Ya got to have a pretty decent iicome - . We do have 4 kids and 3 of them are in school. This year we also have a senior in the house with all her expenses... to be able to not only pay all the bills and put money in a savings account as well !!

The best way to save is to cut corners where ever you can. It won't be easy with 4 kids and a senior in the house but for starters, you can try cutting down on dining out and really clamping down on where your money goes. Try setting a realistic goal for yourself, such as "I'm going to save $1,000 a month", and stick to that plan for as long as you can. Of course, you can't help spending towards emergencies in life but setting a realistic goal is a good start.

Good luck!

start little when it comes to saving money.. When we were first married we had a "change jar" for pizza money and wouldnt' buy until the jar was full. I still have a jar I save dimes in throughout the year for Christmas card/box postage and you wouldn't believe how fast that builds up! ALso you can purchase one $10 gift card a month (or however much you spent on cigarettes) and put it in a small safe. Pull it out next Christmas and you will be able to see just how much you have SAVED and feel really good when you add it up! The cards can be to anywhere but the secret is NOT to use them before next Christmas...that way you will have a gift that you actually worked hard for! good luck!

Gift cards are a great idea.

Thank you everyone for all your advice.. we dont have credit cards thank god.. but we do have bad credit that eventually needs clearing and will happen in the long run.... im not so worried about the stuff on credit at this point.. im only worried about our basic needs.... and yes our vehicle and the insurance that comes with it is a necessity.. without it hubby cant work.... its a vicious circle.... he travels at least 20 min to his job and a cab is just out of the question and would cost more.. and there is no way to commute for him... He is a trucker...

so, here is my plan... i have written down all the bills that we want to be paying for on a monthly basis without being late anymore... i hate paying late fees... so I have added that up and we have to put say 550 in the bank... anything after that is for groceries, clothes (needed), school lunches (we get reduced.. and with 3 kids eating lunch it is cheaper in the long run.)... I buy food on saturday mornings at meijer due to the saturday deals... i need to start using coupons,.. i never got the hang of that one, but I know people do it... I just cant seem to get that organized... but that is my plan.. i also get money, but the money i get is going to be saved away.. and we are gonna live off hubby's checks only... that would give us about 20,000 a year in savings... i hate living week to week and would really like to have a house that the cats cant go from the heat vent in my room to the space under the tub... dont ask.. dont know... but there are other things yes that we want.. dont need... we want.. but saving would give them to us without going to rent a center.. which we dont really go to those places due to not liking to pay the extra amount...

I am the wrong one to ask about a budget as ours gets blown out of the water every darn month, but if you can list your bills, what the average bill runs, then total this up.
Next list all of your expenses, clothes, groceries, fuel for vehicles and write what you usually spend on these items on average.
Then take those occasional expense, Christmas, birthdays, graduation. If you save for say Christmas all year long and are paying for grad expenses every month write down those amounts.
Plus right down your extra expenses, eating out, movies, etc, then add that amount.
That total of all amounts should be your expenses per month.
Now out of the leftover money, you put xx amount on the side for savings.
Be sure to allow for the darn dr visits and meds when those kids get sick.

Just a little something to help when shopping for groceries. Go once a week, or once every two weeks. Once a month even (any of them can take some time to adjust to). But no more than ONE trip to the stores a week! And choose the same day each week to shop. I go on Fridays (payday). Sit down the night before. Do up a menu for the next week. Friday night to Thursday or Friday of the next week. Figure out what ingredients you need for each meal on each day. Buy in bulk, stock up on sale items. (I have 4 bottles of canola oil that will take me at least 3 months to go through, not to mention apple juice, canned goods, popcorn, ketchup, etc., etc.) Choose a day for leftovers. Sundays work best for our family. Maybe two nights, or eat leftovers for lunches. Cooking from scratch does save you money. Take cash when you shop, leave your card at home. And carry a calculator. Add up, add the tax before getting to the register, so you know you have enough money, and if you don't. Put something back. 3 kids, my hubby and I and I shop for groceries, paper goods and toiletries for $100/week. Usually I have money left over. I can use it for the next week if we need it, or I can save it, or possibly eat out as a treat occasionally.
Have fun and let us know how you are doing?