For FUN!! What's the 1 "luxury" you find hard to give up when budgeting

[tinkermom23]

Coffee is something I will not skimp on. I have an overpriced coffee maker and grinder and buy good quality beans. I make myself a double shot latte every morning.

Dawn

I SOOO wish I could be your neighbor!

 

[Virgderon]

I agree - this is my one 'problem'. Though I have learned to cut back a little. I'm utilizing the liabrary more by checking out audio books and listening to them in the car back and forth to work rather than buying them.

I found a couple book vendors at the flea market that sell books for $2.00. My mom sends me her books,and I read them and then take them to the flea market where they will give me $1.00 in trade for them. So, books for a dollar!! Heaven!!!

 

[4HppyCamprs]

I am so glad my fellow coffee lovers are here!!!
We bought a second grinder so that we could leave a grinder in our camper and have fresh grounds there too LOL

Books...awwwww my beloved books...I gave up buying them because the per hourly rate for entertainment was getting high (ummm 6-20 dollars or more for 1 -6 hours of entertainment..I am a book fiend LOL) so I have been borrowing to my hearts content from our local library...they are awesome!

 

[SnowWhite607]

Cable
Internet
Tide. I know there are less expensive detergents out there and I have even come across sales and coupons for them but I cant seem to give up my Tide. It smells too yummy!!

 

[worm761]

This is going to sound really really bad. But I would be heart broken to give up our Friday night rum and cokes and a movie. DS is 14, has Asperger's and is homeschooled/virtual school combo. DD is 8 months. I am home all week, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with the kids. Friday is pizza and movie night. We rent movies from the Red Box (for a dollar each!). After the kids are in bed, we have a rum and coke and practically ignore the grown up movie we rented for us. We talk, giggle, found out he can juggle (was playing with DD's ball pit balls) and all sorts of other stuff. But mostly we connect. This is OUR time and is beyond special. It is what keeps me sane. Some people have wine with dinner. We have rum and coke with a movie. It works for us. Other than that we have cut out most of our extras. My cell phone is going in a couple of weeks and I will go to a prepaid. No house phone. Spend only about $350 a month on groceries for 3 adults, one teen, and the baby.

 

[DebMcDonald]

Mine was my cleaning lady, but unfortunately I had to let her go after my husbands lay-off last year and me going back to work, but oh boy do I miss her.

 

[Kika]

One thing I would really not want to give up (but would if I absolutely had to) would be cable & my DVR.

One thing I do give up a lot of the time, but that is difficult to give up, is eating out!

 

[pigletto]

Trips. Or rather planning a trip. I don't care if I put hundreds towards it or 10.00, I will find a way to sock away a little bit for as long as it takes. Our upcoming trip was 2 years in the making. Probably could have done it sooner, but I won't go on credit, and I love to watch the vacation account grow over time. So it doesn't matter if it's a long weekend or something 5 years away.. I like to plan to get away. I find it easier to give up other little things if I can put that 10 or 20 dollars away for a trip

 

[hambirg]

High speed internet. We've had cable internet forever now and I just could never go back to dial up or . . .gasp. . . .no internet. Oh the horror!

As for the poster that said rum and cokes and movies, don't feel bad. My second would be beer. Once a week I like to sit on my porch and kick back a few cold ones. It's my de-stressing me time. I can go with budget beer. . .but I think it would be hard to give up those few beers a week totally. I don't drink coffee, but I think it's kinda the same theory as those that like to sit on their porch, drink their coffee and just enjoy life. I get it.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I'm waaaay to used to having DVR! I could cut back to fewer channels, but I would reeeeeally miss the ability to pause and rewind, watch a whole series at the "wrong" time, and instantly set things to record.

 

[mster425]

DVR for us too!! It never seemed like we needed it until it came free with the cable package- now DH refuses to let me cancel it!

My personal one lately has been Janet Evanovich novels for my Kindle- luckily for me there are only 16!

 

[mickeymaker2003]

I would say my TiVo, but since it has lifetime service, it doesn't cost me anything to use it (we only have antenna TV, so that is free too). Giving it up wouldn't save any money and would make me very sad. Every show I like is not appropriate for my 3 year old so I have to wait to watch them until she goes to bed.

 

[wvdisneyfamily]

There are a lot if things I'm seeing peopl that are important. I have to go with coffee.

 

[apnep]

Internet is a necessity, can't live without it. I can't live with out my cable, but we don't get premium channels. Well, I take it back, we probably could live without it, but I don't want to.

 

[MandM-Mom]

The one thing I won't skimp on in our budget is my kids sneakers, I will buy clothes from any store where they are cute no matter the name as long as they are on sale or clearance or from the consignment shop or garage sales but when it comes to sneakers it is only name brand...no characters no big box stores sneakers, its the one thing I must purchase name brand and sparkly spanking new!!!

 

[sarah4770]

A bottle of wine once a week, some weeks it might be cheap stuff, some weeks it might be a good bottle, but once a week i like to make a nicer meal for the family and have a glass of wine with it.

 

[disneydreamersx4]

I would not like to be without high speed internet then TV next.

Some of you mentioned your redbox date nights, I think that's fabulous. I'm going to suggest to hubby that we do that too!

 

[mamo-4-wdw]

Charmin tp
Tide w/frebrezze
Cable tv w/hbo (big love) and Showtime (Dexter)
netflix
My Mom78 every Thursday Burger King Whopper Meal

 

[Beezle2]

I have to go with getting my hair done, even though I stretch the time between visits as far as possible. I'm not ready to be grey!! I've found out I can get a couple more weeks by doing an updo with scarf this summer.

And since I spend on my hair I have to have good product to protect the color so I stock up when Ulta does a buy 1 get 1 free. I have been adding water to the latest bottles like I heard here and it works! I haven't noticed a difference and it's lasting a lot longer.

 

[indimom]

I seem to fit the trends here:
1. Internet (The whole family would probably revolt over this one.)
2. Coffee (This could be rough on the entire family if DH and I had to give it up.)
3. Cable (I've done NO TV in the past and could again, but I don't want to.)