About PigPennies

My husband would call me a penny pincher. His idea of saving for the future is putting away a big chunk of money when it becomes available - like say a bonus. Personally, I don't think any money really gets saved that way. It's easy to spend money when you have an unexpected windfall, or when you suddenly have more than you did. It's not so easy to worry about it and sock it away. I like to save regularly, whether it be putting a little bit away each month or every paycheck in a Roth IRA or 401K, or saving .25 cents at the grocery store on one brand over another. Every penny counts!

I haven't always been a penny pincher. When we first met, my husband was shocked by the amount I dropped on a pair of sunglasses without even thinking about it. When you're young and making money at your first real job it's easy to not think about your spending habits and live paycheck to paycheck. But I've gradually grown more responsible, and I'd like to think of myself as fairly frugal now...and still working on it.

I like to earn every penny I can, even outside of my regular paycheck. I've been using Ebates on any and every purchase I can for a couple of years now. It helps ease the pain of my Nordstrom habit (like I said, I'm working on it!) I also started using FusionCash and InBoxDollars to make a little extra money. And because a penny saved is a penny earned, I work hard at keeping our bills down, which means analyzing our usage, looking for better deals, and keeping a careful eye on our credit to make sure we pay the lowest rates possible on our loans. It also means my husband had to give up eating out every day and start taking my (delicious) sandwiches to work instead.

I've learned a lot and gotten great advise from a number of the blogs I read. I hope to share some of that knowledge here on PigPennies, and to keep learning every day. It feels great taking control of your financial future - way better than the way a pair of $300 sunglasses makes you feel :)