Welcome to Pinching Your Pennies in AZ!

Pinching Your Pennies in AZ is being started in part to some enthusiastic comments to a post that I made on Facebook after announcing that I saved 66-percent (saving over $80) on my grocery bill for one particular shopping expedition.

The other 'reason' that I'm starting this blog is to share everything I've learned about saving money over the years in order to be a SAHM (stay-at-home-mom) on a very meager salary.

A history of my knowledge:

I spent most of my summers and after school time with a wonderful neighbor who lived across the street from me growing up. She herself was a SAHM and at the time had three small children and of course had to work diligently to stay within budget. I remember going through all the grocery ads with her every Wednesday morning on the floor of her living room, writing down the items on sale and then referencing any coupons she may have for that item. To many the exercise of coupons and finding sale items is a chore, but to me (and my mentor) it was fun and a challenge that we enjoyed. It's been over fifteen years since I last sat on her living room floor, but I still go through the process every Wednesday at my own kitchen table or computer desk.

Then of course there's the experience of both my husband and I being laid off at the same time back in 2002. Up til the lay off we had both been putting close to 50-percent of our paychecks into savings, which we lived off of for over a year before we had to go to our families for assistance. Knowing you have only a certain amount of money in your pocket and wanting to make it last as long as possible makes you either panic or look at it as a challenge to see how long it can last without drastic measures like going hungry or not having electricity.

After a year and a half of very part time work and unemployment my husband found a job and we got back on our feet. I had just finished up my AA-degree, something that I had wanted to do for a few years and took the opportunity to do so while unemployed, when we found out that we were expecting our first child. As you fellow parents know once that baby comes forget about having any money at all! I learned how to juggle our everyday expenses and our new baby expenses and still keep our bank books in the black - for the most part.

Now I didn't share with you with all these stories just to bore you. In today's economy and social structures individuals and families are dealing with many similar (or worse) scenarios. I know people who make a very good wage yet are frustrated by not having two pennies to rub together at the end of the month. I also know people who've been out of work for over 2-years and are having to make very difficult decisions. It's unfortunate that we find ourselves in this economic situation, but today you've got to adapt quickly just to stay afloat.

In my next post I'll explain how I did in fact save 66-percent on my grocery bill and how, with a little work, you can too!