One idea the husband came up with was to replace all of our light bulbs and light fixtures with energy-efficient LED bulbs. We have changed out the light bulbs in our bathrooms and in most of the lamps so far. The ceiling fan requires a light bulb with a candelabra base, and those are kind of hard to find. Other light fixtures in the house aren't rated for LED bulbs and will have to be switched out. The good news is we have wanted to change out several light fixtures anyway. We've already changed our kitchen florescent fixture over to an LED fixture, and next we're going to replace the lights in our entry way and hallway. Not to far behind those lights will be the office light and the playroom light.
We have been planning meals two weeks at a time and scheduling big grocery shopping trips to coincide with my husband's pay days (I only get paid once a month). We do still sometimes have to make small trips to pick up things we have run out of, or forgotten. To curb this problem, I made a "grocery inventory," which I laminated, attached magnets to, and stuck on the side of the fridge. A magnetic writing pad and a pen are here too for easy shopping list creation.
We are trying to make it an entire month without eating dinner out, except on Sundays. I am also attempting to eat breakfast at home. I was spending about $4 a day at McDonald's eating things that probably were not the best choices. Now I'm eating healthier and cheaper. I'm also eating a lunch from home instead of spending $20 a week on cafeteria food.
Another idea we are trying is one that I learned from a fellow blogger. Every other month, declare it a "spend free" month. Don't buy anything for the house, don't buy anything unnecessary for yourself, and in fact, don't buy anything that isn't essential to your everyday life. Oh, you can still do house projects, you will just have to use free materials or materials you already have on hand.
So far, we are noticing a little difference in our bank account. We will need to observe it after a longer period of time to see a huge difference, but as we know, every little bit helps.
