It's time for another transparent monthly budget update! I realized that this month's real numbers budget report marks 5 years of personal finance made public. FIVE YEARS! For five years I've been sharing the ins and outs of our family's finances with the world. How crazy is that?! Well, in the beginning it wasn't really the world. It was mostly crickets. I didn't tell my family or friends about Six Figures Under for a very long time. I had a significant readership established long ... read more
How we EARN money by saving electricity
Saving money by saving electricity is a no-brainer. Use less power, pay less. But EARNING money by saving electricity is taking it a step above and beyond. Of course your utility bill will be lower by using less electricity, but now you can also get actual cash, on top of the savings on your bill! When we moved into our northern California house a year and a half ago, we signed up for a free program called OhmConnect. I had heard about the program previously, but until we had our own ... read more
September Monthly Grocery Haul
Hi friends! I didn't die. And I didn't forget about you. Thanks for missing me. I missed you too! We started out the month with two funerals and company staying at our house. We loved seeing family and enjoyed catching up with everyone, so I won't apologize about being behind on blogging. But clearly I'm very behind. It's the last week of September and I'm finally going to show you my beginning-of-the-month grocery haul. And I haven't responded to comments in ages, though I read ... read more
Transparent Family Budget Update — August 2018
Hi friends! I'm back to talk monthly finances with you! I love sharing our real family budget with you each month. It gives me a good excuse to keep on the ball and take a look at how we did each month. You may have noticed that I've taken some time away from Six Figures Under this summer, especially in August. I have lots of plans for new content (and some posts are nearly finished), but I've been pretty busy with family things all summer. In addition to all of the normal day-to-day ... read more
Frugal Family Monthly Grocery Haul– August 2018 (and what happened in July)
July was a bit crazy. We were gone for a week and a half on two different trips, so we didn't do our normal grocery hauls and I didn't document it (well I started at the beginning of the month, but didn't keep it up when things got crazy). For the record, we spent $305 on food in July, which doesn't include food for a week long at a family reunion in Las Vegas. It does include a Sam's Club haul right after our trip. When we got back I had my husband go by Sam's Club on his way home from ... read more
Transparent Family Budget Update — July 2018
July was a whirlwind month for us. We packed in lots of swimming, camping, outdoor fun, time with family, and even a week-long family reunion in Las Vegas. Having saved money for our family reunion throughout the year, we were able to go on our trip without stressing over what things cost. I'm still frugal to the core and like to make sure I'm getting the best deal possible (not sure I'm ever going to grow out of that), but having the money earmarked specifically for our vacation made ... read more
What a $400 Grocery Budget Looks Like on a Plate
Many of you have asked to see what we buy and eat on a $400 grocery budget for our family of seven. This year I've been sharing everything we buy and how much it costs, both in YouTube videos and blog posts, which you've said is helpful. But there's one component missing. I've been listening, and today I'm sharing what we make and eat out of the groceries we buy! Nearly every time we sat down to dinner for a month, I took pictures of what we ate. I've stopped now, but my kids still ask ... read more
Does a Wholesale Club Membership (Sam’s Club, Costco, BJs) Really Save Money?
Is getting a Costco or Sam's Club membership worth it? Does a wholesale club membership really save money? It's not as cut and dry as you might think. For some people a wholesale club membership is a no-brainer, but for others it's a huge waste of money. How about for YOU? Is a Sam's Club, Costco or BJ's club membership worth it to you? Here are some ways to figure out for yourself if it will save you money or be a waste of money. Do the math It’s easy to get tricked into thinking ... read more
Transparent Family Budget Update — June 2018
This month I was reminded of one of the bonus benefits of living on last month's income. We made a mistake that could have been detrimental to our budget if we had not been a month ahead financially. In June, estimated quarterly taxes were due for business owners. For the first quarter we paid $2,000 to the IRS and $200 to California. When my husband texted me to ask how much to pay, I told him what we had paid the previous quarter and said to just do that again. Then, after thinking ... read more
We’re Over-Budget– June’s Mid-Month Grocery Shopping
If you've been following along for a while you know we're generally pretty good at sticking to our $400 grocery budget for our family of 7. Well, this month I made an exception and let us go almost $100 over budget! Let me show you what I got during the month and then I'll explain to you why I was totally cool with going over budget this month. If you missed my monthly grocery haul, you can check out the post and video to see what we got for about $300. That left us with $100 for the ... read more
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