Rebate Checks and frugal spending

If it isn't obvious yet, we are a group of women that are OBSESSED with getting good deals. I know that I personally love the rush of adrenaline that comes from seeing my original total at $200.00, then after coupons, swiping my grocery card etc I watch the total drop to $4.00. SCORE! Nothing can beat that!

I was recently reading MONEYSAVINGMOM.com and she had posted a really good article about getting bargains, but also learning how to live simply and not just accumulate "stuff" because it is "on sale" but being a wise steward with the resources that God has given us in our lives-including our pay checks.

Here is a small excerpt from her blog: "It's easy to get sucked into the bargain-shopping game and lose sight of the purpose for which you started; getting good deals can quickly turn into more of the accumulating of stuff and less of wise stewardship.Too much stuff--even if you got it free or only spent pennies on it--is still just that: too much stuff. It will clutter up your life, suck up your time, and result in a chaotic, unorganized home.Being a wise steward means learning that often, less is more."

I really liked this topic. I know that I have found myself buying another 10 boxes of cereal "just because they are only .50c each", even though I already have 80 boxes at home. I find myself saying, "Well, I can give it away..." or whatever other excuse I have just to get a deal. Why not keep that $5 and put it in your savings account EACH TIME and see how much money you quickly have in your account! It is amazing how quickly it adds up! So I guess I just want to caution everyone out there- bargain shopping is addicting. -now you can't say I haven't warned you! So much good can come from getting good deals. Building up our personal year supply as we have been asked to do so many dozens of times, always having extra to share with others in need and of course the fun of shopping. Just remember that the whole intention of "Bargain Shopping" is to save money, not spend! This is partly a reminder to myself, but I really liked this subject, especially as we are all about to get some hard earned cash back from Uncle Sam in the form of REBATES! (YAY!)

So how are you planning on spending your hard earned REBATES? After much contemplation and dreaming on our part of how we would spend our $1800.00, we have decided to put all of it towards our debt instead of wasting it on things we "WANT" now, but don't necessarily need. (boo-hoo) Because I am a BargainMom, I have decided to try and coax, persuade and admonish everyone to do the same. We have been asked to avoid unnecessary debt as interest shows no mercy and we often feel as though we are slaves to our debt.

Elder Joseph B. Worthlin gave a talk on this about 4 years ago and he said the following on this subject:

"Remember this: debt is a form of bondage. It is a financial termite. When we make purchases on credit, they give us only an illusion of prosperity. We think we own things, but the reality is, our things own us."
continue reading HERE

Isn't it so true! I am SO guilty of having charged something that I didn't NEED, but really WANTED at that moment. So it was on sale! Score! Two months later you have paid more in interest and minimums and have ended up paying 4 times more for that item that you ever would have. So from one BargainMom to the rest....be wise in your spending, but more importantly, be wise in your SAVING. Lets protect our families from possible financial storms that may come and not allow ourselves to become slaves to our earthly wants and keep site of the bigger picture! That was my soap box speech for the day.

So....how are you planning on spending your rebate check?!