need help with saving ideas-hubby laid off 2 yrs and unemp$ ran out!

[dclfun]

Thank you all for your tips!!! To give you a little more background on us...my dd is 15 but has a muscle disease and will never be able to drive or work and she was turned down for disability benefits becuase she is a minor and get this...we have too many assets...which means 2 cars and a house...go figure! We also got turned down for food stamps becuase I own a small reatail store. We make no money at the store but can't get out of our lease becuase we had to sign a personal guarantee. (I have a 5 yr lease) I feel that if you have lived your life the way you should and do things like you should like have life ins, 401k (which we have depleted paying for cobra which has now expired) that you are penalized and the government will NOT help!!!! I am in such dispair! I am a firm Christian and trusting God to see us thru each day but each day gets more difficult and I kinda just needed to vent...thanks everyone for listening!

Just FYI I have a neuromuscular disease and am in a power wheelchair and on a ventilator 24/7 and I work fulltime. If your daughter wants to work, please let her know that it IS possible. I also drive a van with a computer joystick. She's too young now, but if she wants to go to college or work, Voc Rehab will help her with the medical equipment, including driving equipment, college tuition and books, etc. Just want her to have some hope vs. thinking she will have to live off disability for the rest of her life.---Kathy

 

[worm761]

I don't know where you live but have you looked at grocery stores that are not in your immediate area? We have a four grocery stores within 5 miles of my house. Yet we drive 45 minutes away to another grocery store because it really is that much cheaper. We are a family of three adults, one teen boy and a baby girl. I am averaging about $75 a week on groceries. I make a lot from scratch. I haven't worked in almost three years now and can't get anyone to hire me. We had to learn to live without my income. Thankfully, Boyfriend makes a decent income so bills are covered.

Have you looked at work at home opportunities? When looking to cut bills when money go tight, I would not cut my internet. I work for ChaCha. It is not great money but it put food on the table more than once. We are now at a point that we are comfortable so are planning a Disney trip and ChaCha will pay for it. If you are interested in ChaCha, visit chacha.com and click on become a guide for more information. I am more than willing to help you through the process. There are no set hours and you pick when you feel like working. I literally answered three questions today. LOL...just not feeling it tonight. I also post my menus on my blog if you are interested. I do coupon but to be honest, I only do it a little bit. Once in a while I will see a good deal and grab it. But don't do coupons too much. It is a lot of time and effort and Boyfriend gets irritated with the stockpile of food we aren't using. I was a broke single mom trying to learn how to be a broke single mom when he came into my life. Some things just stay with you.
I do second the Hillbilly housewife. I love her. Her recipes are simple and cheap. Two of my favorite things!

 

[crazelion]

Just FYI I have a neuromuscular disease and am in a power wheelchair and on a ventilator 24/7 and I work fulltime. If your daughter wants to work, please let her know that it IS possible. I also drive a van with a computer joystick. She's too young now, but if she wants to go to college or work, Voc Rehab will help her with the medical equipment, including driving equipment, college tuition and books, etc. Just want her to have some hope vs. thinking she will have to live off disability for the rest of her life.---Kathy

I don't have a disease. But I do have Learning disability and second voc rehab give a full ride to college. It help get testing I need, books, tution. They would have paid for a dorm room too. I decide to stay go home town college because it was easier had support system in place already.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Could your DH do some handyman work for people? Such as mowing lawns, shoveling snow, cleaning gutters, ect.

 

[JoiseyMom]

Thank you all for your tips!!! To give you a little more background on us...my dd is 15 but has a muscle disease and will never be able to drive or work and she was turned down for disability benefits becuase she is a minor and get this...we have too many assets...which means 2 cars and a house...go figure! We also got turned down for food stamps becuase I own a small reatail store. We make no money at the store but can't get out of our lease becuase we had to sign a personal guarantee. (I have a 5 yr lease) I feel that if you have lived your life the way you should and do things like you should like have life ins, 401k (which we have depleted paying for cobra which has now expired) that you are penalized and the government will NOT help!!!! I am in such dispair! I am a firm Christian and trusting God to see us thru each day but each day gets more difficult and I kinda just needed to vent...thanks everyone for listening!

There has to be a way out of this. Just close the store and stop paying. I am not sure how much your monthly rent there is, but if it would put food on your table, the do it. See if you can sub-let the space. Declare bankruptsy if you have to, to get out of the lease. Tell the owner, you are broke and you have no money. What can he do? Let him sue you. You have no money to pay it! Get out of the store and then appy again for foodstamps and what other aid is out there.

Good luck.

 

[disney11fan]

ok guys- I need some help with how to save money on the basics. My hubby was laid off almost 2 years ago...things are REALLY bad in our area and he can't find anything but still searches everyday. We found out (this week) that his unemployment $ will run out in 2 wks and there is not more tp apply for (this was a shock as we thought the Pres had extended it but not for his time group. I am looking for anyway I can to save $. We normally grocery shop at Walmart and buy mostly walmart brands. Any help with cutting spending is GREATLY appreciated!!!!!!! We had so wanted to go to Disney this year as we have 4 huge celebrations in 2011....we celebrate 25 yr anniv. dd turns 16. ds turns 21 and dh turns 50...but now I am just trying to keep food on the table. Thanks for any and all comments!

right off the bat. get rid of your cell phones if you have them. prepaid cell phones are alot cheaper (tracphone is one of several choices). cut your cable bill down to the minimum, bare bones service can be as little as 11.00 a month. Make your own pizza instead of buying them. Not sure where you live but some of the telecommunications giants are hiring. good luck

 

[disney11fan]

if you shop at walmart for your groceries there are two websites that ilove!!

http://iheartthemart.com

http://www.couponingtodisney.com

http;//www.iheartcvs.com

thanks to these websites i have been able to buy $79 worth of groceries for $32. i usually save anywhere from 40% or more with coupons thanks to these sites. i also cvs as well! the iheartcvs is very helpful as i usually save a ton at cvs.

thanks to coupons i have enough stockpiled so that the next week or 2 i only have to get bread milk cold cuts and produce.

please check out these websites . they will be very helpful to you.

thanks for the great advice and links. eveyone loves to save money. have a great weekend.

 

[Bete]

Sell one of the cars; the used car market is pretty good. This would give you some immediate cash and your car insurance would go down. You can get another car when it gets better. You may have to double up on some trips, but it still would be cheaper with one car.

As far as your business goes try something new there. If what you are doing isn't working then try a new concept and open a different kind of store in the same location. You can always ask the landlord how he can help you, too. Maybe, he would let you out of your lease; you never know. Maybe, you can sublease it. Check out options. While your husband is looking for work get him to help at the store with whatever you decide to do there. As others have suggested if your skills are more marketable then maybe he needs to take over the house and business; so, you can get a full time job with benefits. Don't know where you live, but maybe he can shovel snow or do lawn cutting, etc. to bring in extra money. Take a part time job; my son in law has been doing this for a couple of years, now. He's a laid off engineer. He works part time for Federal Express.

Be frugal. Learn to use one room with everyone to cut down on lights and such. Use blankets instead of turning up the heat; learn to wear sweaters and such to keep warm around the house and turn that thermostat down. Share the TV and everyone gets a turn to watch their favorite program, but don't use multiple TVs. Learn to use the library for free entertainment. Ride bikes and use the community pool for fun activities. Go on picnics. Use cheap soap for cleaning. Dilute everything you can like buy 4% milk and use water to make it stretch. You can do this with all kinds of drinks; except, soda would not be any good this way. You don't need to wash clothes as often. We've learned to wear the same outfit more than once. Unless, you are doing something that gets you real filthy or stinky you can rewear your clothes. This holds true of towels, too; reuse them. Don't go out for meals. Learn to carry a lunch to your retail store. Eat cheap. This means stretching everything with rice or pasta. Do alot of soups and make them into stews by adding whatever to them. Beans are a good source of protein. Peanut butter sandwiches will have to become a staple. Eggs are cheap as a source of protein; we have omelettes for dinner. Bologna sandwiches will get you by for the meat taste and hot dogs will suffice. Buy everything on sale and stock up on items that you will use over and over again like toilet paper when it's a good price. Get away from name brands on everything. Go to garage sales to buy anything you need. Goodwill is another good place. Take hand me downs from relatives and such. Get away from buying anything prepared even a cup of coffee; make your own.

Maybe, your daughter can help more at home. I would think she could make peanut butter sandwiches for everyone. These little helps would give you more time to do other more important things. She may be slower doing it all, but everything will help. It will help her become an adult and be more self sufficient. If she can't do anything then I would get a lawyer to fight your disability issue with her. Maybe, you need a stronger statement from your doctor about it.

Relocating may be the only answer to find new work. Maybe, there's family in other parts of the country for hubby to look for work. Maybe, a family member can give you a positive lead. You may have to take less pay and you may have to do something new to get by. I would ask family for help; what do you have to lose?

There are no easy answers; I'm sorry.

 

[Lorix2]

Have you looked at work at home opportunities? When looking to cut bills when money go tight, I would not cut my internet. I work for ChaCha. It is not great money but it put food on the table more than once. !

Worm I just pm'd you for info, hope you don't mind as I am not the OP.

 

[Virgderon]

When you go to the grocery store, dig around the meat section to find the meat that is being marked down because it is a day or two ahead of the expiration date. I have never had a problem, and the savings are often substantial.

DH and I relocated from Chicago to Tampa for a job. I miss my parents, but I have no regrets. We are having a great time discovering a new city, enjoying the weather, and are happy to be employed. If you can relocate, I think after 2 years of looking for a job, this might be the right time to consider it.

 

[Nik's Mom]

Op,
We relocated because of a job opportunity for my dh and have been very happy with our decision. We travel back to our home state once a year to visit family. It really has been the best decision for our family.
I second the suggestion of looking for meat on clearance. My local Target does this a lot. They often have steak with $2 off coupons attached as well. Then I stock up and put some in the freezer for meals in the future.

 

[disneydreamersx4]

I second the idea of buying a large chicken and using it for multiple meals. But I would reverse the above process. Boiling the large bird will toughen the meat and remove most of the flavor. If you do this first, then you're eating a rubbery, tasteless bird when you roast the remains.

Try this recipe:
Combine:
4 tsp, salt
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Rub in the chicken cavity and all over the surface. Remove the skin from a small onion and cut in half. Place both halves in the cavity. Wrap chicken in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (at least 8 hours). Roast at 250 for 4-5 hours until internal temp reaches 180. Use pan drippings to make gravy.

Carve the bird up and serve the white meat with one meal. Reserve the skin and the carcass for soup. The seasoning that are still on the skin surface will season the soup. Save the thigh and leg meat for chicken salad but use the bones for the soup.

Three meals from one bird.

Marionette!! I made your roasted chicken recipe tonight and it is to die for so moist!! I used one of the Costco chickens that was about 5 lbs. for 4 of us. To watch our salt, I cut the salt to 2 tsp and I didn't have any cayenne, thyme or white pepper. Can't wait to make the soup and chicken salad too. Thank you so much for posting, this is how I'll be making my chickens from now on!

 

[Beckypooh1972]

I agree with a previous poster about cutting off cable, internet, etc. You can use your local library for internet. Keep a phone at the cheapest rate possible so prospective employers can call your husband. Use the library to check emails, send out resumes, etc. I haven't bought a book in years - my local library will even do an interlibrary loan from a regional library if they don't have the book I want. Let smart phones go dark - if you must have a cell phone use a model that doesn't require a data plan.
Your husband should inquire with some temp agencies - it could be a way for him to get his foot in the door of a new company.

Best of luck to you.