Meet a Frugal Girl Reader | Battra92
This week, we're mixing it up and meeting a male Frugal Girl reader, one who has been reading since almost the very, very beginning.
1. Tell us a little about yourself
Hmm, let's see. I don't think I am all that interesting.
I'm not super comfortable in talking about myself (one reason I still use my embarrassingly old screen name from college to post instead of something more recent) but I will say that I am from New England and I am married, in my late 30s (that is hard to type!) and have one daughter as of right now.
2. How long have you been reading The Frugal Girl?
Oh jeez. I think pretty much since near the beginning. I think it was 2008 or so. I know it's been a long time.
3. How did you get interested in saving money?
Well, I grew up in a family that never had much money and we went through some really unstable times.
I had to do without a lot of the things that other kids around me had (never went on a big family vacation, didn't have a computer, video games etc.) and so I grew up knowing that money was finite and if you don't save it, you'll be in trouble.
To put it more in specifics, though, I did get a book as a preteen about saving money. I honestly cannot recall the name just that it was very much 1970s (earth tones and bell bottoms in the illustrations) which clearly laid out wants vs needs, saving to buy things etc.
As a kid who never had an allowance it was more academic than anything else but for some reason it stuck with me. When I started working I first blew all my money and decided quickly that I should learn how to make my money last.
4. What's the "why" behind your money-saving efforts?
This reminds me of something a high school teacher once told me, "You and your future spouse will fight over money and you will never fight that you have too much." He then went on to explain about budgeting, having a plan for every dollar, communication about money etc.
I can't claim my wife and I have never disagreed on things but I don't think we've ever really fought about money. Some times she does want me to let go and splurge once in a while but for the most part this has reduced my stress a lot (at least in regards to money)
I also graduated college just before the 2008 crash and I was seeing a lot of people I know out of work (some for well over a year or more) or underemployed. I felt that it could very well be me and I should be prepared.
5. What's your best frugal win?
I don't know if this counts because it was sheer dumb luck but I bought my house at the very bottom of the housing market using a 15 year mortgage and having 20% down.
Thanks to paying extra principle I will have my house paid off by the time I'm 40.
I've been told I could turn around and sell my house for significantly more and upgrade to a much bigger house but I think I'm okay for now.
6. What's a dumb money mistake you've made?
I've made a few over the years, I'm sure. One big one I can think of off the top of my head was instead of getting my first car repaired for $400, I sold it for $500 and bought (financed) myself a brand new car.
Granted, I ended up keeping it for ten years but it sure did add a lot of unnecessary expenses when I could've been more aggressively paying off my student loans and saving to move out of my parents' house.
I feel like it was an unnecessary albatross around my neck at the worst possible time.
7. What's one thing you splurge on?
I rarely splurge on anything, to be honest.
My wife and I each get an allowance every paycheck which we use to buy ourselves personal items. I'll buy a movie or TV show or book once in a while but I always wait for a low price and buy used when I can.
8. What's one thing you aren't remotely tempted to splurge on?
Expensive dinners at a restaurant. I'll be honest and say that no food is worth more than $20 a person and even that is a stretch for me.
Even when I travel (which was rare pre-Covid) I tend to eat out of grocery stores and cheaper food places.
9. If $1000 was dropped into your lap today, what would you do with it?
$1,000 is an odd amount because on the one hand you think it's a big number but when you really stop to think about it, it wouldn't change my life all that much.
I suppose most realistically I'd just throw it on my mortgage or replace a few doors in my house. I know that doesn't sound fun or anything but I guess I'm just not the type to be okay with dropping a huge amount of money on anything.
Maybe someday I'd like to travel again but who knows in this world?
10. Share a frugal tip with other Frugal Girl readers
Be okay with things not being like Pinterest or TV shows. Keeping up with the Joneses doesn't get you anywhere productive and just breeds discontentment.
If we're talking more tangible and less abstract it would be to cook at home or when ordering takeout make your sides at home.
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Thanks for sharing with us Battra! It was fun to get a peek into your life.
As I was editing this post, I noticed something funny; the thing Battra isn't tempted to splurge on (eating out) is the exact thing reader Sarah G does love to splurge on.
Splurging and saving preferences vary so much from person to person, and the important thing is to figure out what that is for you. That way you can cut costs on the stuff that doesn't matter to you and spend on the things that do matter to you.
I am so impressed with all those sewing repairs. Anyone who can use a sewing machine definitely has an advantage over those of us who can't. I honestly feel like should be a return to the old-style required home ec courses--but for both sexes--because I did not learn a lot of the things that were taught in those classes that would be so helpful now. Not just sewing, but budgeting, simple cooking (I mostly taught myself that), etc.
I agree. Most kids in my school took home ec... unless you were in band or chorus. Then you had fewer electives. Couldn't we have ditched a less practical elective? I mean, everybody needs to know how to run a home.
I also agree that old-fashioned home economics classes are beneficial. It struck me that you had a teacher who spoke to you about budgeting. I was on an intensive academic track in high school, immediately went away to college and went out into the real world without any practical skills.
Hi Battra,
Nice to meet you! Always enjoy your comments!
Bee: Me too. The kids in the less academically challenging classes took things like shop and home ec. Those of us in the college-prep courses were "too busy" with things like Advanced Chemistry. Which, honestly, benefited me not at all in my actual life. I would have been much better off with home ec and shop.
Those Home Ec classes were invaluable. I loved them and learned how to cook everything, sew all my clothes, balance a checkbook and even apply makeup. I have used the knowledge from those classes and excellent teachers my whole life.
My wife can use the sewing machine. I just hand stitch.
Home ec is a great class in concept but I can tell you as one who had personal finance in high school, most kids would just sleep through it or cruise by like a lot of my classmates did.
Battra, you've got serious mending skills; you even make the wounded clothes look hip. (Is that a word anymore?)
I agree so much about the contentment issue. I was sort of upset with myself last week when readers commented that I had it all together or that my life looked idyllic, etc. I realized just how a few pictures ( which I selected because they were the prettiest available or didn't include the son who won't let his picture be taken or didn't have a child having a tantrum or showed an unusual bumper crop) can cause an unintended and untrue idea. It really made me sympathize with Kristen and other bloggers who sincerely have the opposite goal of making people discontent.
I wasn't trying for hip as they are my "kick around the house or work outside" jeans but I did actually get a compliment on them once. They asked where I found them. "Found 'em? I made 'em!"
And yes I get it about the pictures. Kristen will sometimes talk about her laundry room being a mess. Well my pantry has a lot of "stuff" in there as well because we don't really have decent shelving. That's a spring cleaning project for us.
I am so glad to hear another frugal person confess to an imperfect pantry. Mine still has the 1952 paint job: tan oil enamel, anyone? I long to get in there and fix it up right, as it's the economic engine of the kitchen, but that has to wait until I have at least a week off work with my husband and ideally some free cabinets to cut down and install.
Your sewing is beautiful, by the way. My dad could also sew, so it's a skill I truly appreciate in guys.
Our pantry is so imperfect that it spills out of the pantry (in the basement). I let the kid organize it. It's a mess.
Yep, it's such a tough thing to deal with. How do you be respectful of the people in your life without also making your life seem perfect? It feels sort of impossible!
It's so nice to meet you Battra! I imagined you being much older but I guess that's because you're "wise beyond your years".
I've been told many times I was "born elderly." Most recently after referencing Fibber McGee and Molly during a meeting at work.
Haha.
So glad you’re featured this week!
Such a surprise to read the mention of Fibber McGee and Molly. Can’t imagine how you knew about that show, but it was one of my favorites when I was a kid.
The star on those jeans is remarkable and the mending with the crosses is so clever. I think you’ve mentioned before you had one pair of jeans with lots of visible mending. Now that I see what visible mending is, I imagine those jeans having a veritable rainbow of colors.
The short answer is that my parents were working a lot of weekends and/or taking my sisters to things like gymnastics and so my brother and I were left with our elderly grandmother. She loved old movies, old radio shows, old music etc. So I was kind of exposed to all of it.
You have to tell us if the large rubber mallet in the one picture is to put the lids back on your pantry storage!! It made me giggle a bit.
Yes. That mallet is just a cheap Harbor Freight special. I bought it for some other purpose but it lives in the pantry now.
The black hook thing is a bucket opening tool which I bought at Lowe's (it was right next to the food safe buckets!) Both are must haves if you store food that way.
By the way, if you can't get food safe buckets or you want to be extra careful, the Ziploc XL bags work well and that's what's inside of the Home Depot bucket in the picture.
Hi Battra! I love your mending and your bread - both are so beautiful. I've just started hand stitching and mending in the last couple of years. I find it so satisfying. If you're on Reddit, there's a great subreddit called r/Visible mending. You might enjoy seeing what others post.
For your bread, is that sourdough? Baked in a cloche or a closed pot? I make most of my family's bread, but it's not as beautiful as yours.
Visible Mending is a neat concept. I like the idea of showing off that it's been repaired.
The bread isn't true sourdough as I've never had the patience for dealing with a starter, although I tried to last year. It was Alton Brown's Knead Not Sourdough baked in a Dutch Oven.
https://altonbrown.com/recipes/knead-not-sourdough-bread/
Side note: I often credit Alton with teaching me how to cook. My grandmother taught me a few things but I learned more from Good Eats than from anywhere else.
Oh and thanks for the compliment on the bread. They don't always come out that nice.
Good Eats is so very informative! I don't know anyone outside of my home that has watched this show; kinda cool to "meet" someone else who has.
I haven't met anyone else who has watched "Good Eats" before. Such an informative show that has helped me with cooking as well.
We love good eats, including the kids. We’re happy that he’s back now with new material
I enjoy the show, although Alton Brown himself seems like a bit of a difficult person in real life from all I've heard. I don't know him, of course, and continue to enjoy the show but he's definitely turned into a bit of an edgelord since reaching middle age.
I’ve really enjoyed meeting all of you long-time readers so far. And I too am impressed with Battra’s mending skills! I agree with those who have commented that we need a return to some form of “real life skill” class(es) in our schools. I had home economics, but would have also benefited from a class that taught basic car skills, basic plumbing & electrical issues, general household repair & so on. My husband is now disabled & I’m the one who does the minor repair/fixing around the house.
In my driver's ed class there were a couple classes on checking your oil, putting in wiper fluid, jump starting a car etc. These are basic life skills but sadly in some schools "life skills" are taboo and "college prep" is where the time must be spent.
At least the good news is that I've picked up a lot of "basic repair" knowledge from YouTube and the like. I replaced a toilet with the video from Home Depot's website.
When my daughter is older and Covid isn't a concern, we've talked about going to some Home Depot Saturday kids' classes together. She wants to learn to make some things and fix things "like Daddy."
One of my adult daughters shared with me that after covid she would like to take up woodworking. She mentioned how much pleasure she had when she attended the weekend classes at Home Depot when she was in elementary school.
Hi, Battra!
I sometimes feel like we have some of the same ideas and attitudes, so nice to finally meet you! I was so impressed with the jeans zipper-to-button transformation when you first posted it. I use a machine to sew, but zippers and closings in general terrify me for some reason, I don't care if it's by hand or machine stitching, I dread them.
I'm also impressed that you started saving as early as you did, and the fact that your house will be paid off that early -- that is wonderful.
I'll bet your daughter is going to be quite knowledgeable about money and frugal practices as she grows up. That's a wonderful life skill to pass on!
That is seriously impressive that your house will be paid off by the time you're 40!
It's impressive that you embrace so many traditionally female chores. My husband does the same but has always taken a lot of flak from his buddies, although they love his baked goods. 😉
Being from NE, I thought maybe you'd mention Amy Dacyczyn, the original frugal maven, as an inspiration (but maybe you're too young!)
I like the idea of being a jack of many trades but a master of none. I guess I'm just a repairman at heart.
Love this! My husband and I also have a goal of paying off our mortgage by the time we are 40 (or 41-42 COVID has us more aggressively stockpiling our savings account right now), and the whole keeping up with the joneses is so accurate. I watch people in my life that are so worried about what others think of them and what they have, that they make financial decisions based off of other people. That's really no way to live.
Hi Battra92, I agree with another commenter your breads look so beautiful. You could sell those at a bread store.
My priorities are not in spending so much at a restaurant, in fact without knowing it I unconsciously put about a $20 dollar limit on restaurant meals. We have found 2 family restaurants and go back and forth between the 2 of them. The food is excellent and well priced.
I always appreciate your comments.
Not everyone who reads here is frugal. I try, but my natural tendency is to spend, spend, spend. I love spending, especially on antiques for my collection and gifts for my family. It's just the way I am. But my inner Ben Franklin insists that prudent thrift is the better way. So I try to rein in my natural tendency by reading frugal blogs. Reading about doing something is almost as good as actually doing it! Sigh. Well, at least I'm honest about my own failings, anyway!
Rose, would you like to fill out the interview form? It would be fun to hear from someone who is not so naturally frugal.
Let me know!
Sure, Kristen, send it along to my email.
You have been emailed. 🙂
Your comment is refreshing and encouraging! I’m not a naturally frugal person either, but enjoy being encouraged and soaking up wisdom from those that are. It’s true, iron sharpens iron!
Omgosh, I’m not near as frugal as anyone here but I also have a fascination with reading about it! I was inspired to save bread ends in the freezer for overnight French Toast and every time I see the bag in there (about half a loaf now) I think hmm, what is this? My food waste is, well, beyond redemption, I keep trying to course correct but I’m just not interested in planning a week of meals! I always skip the WISWWA weekly reviews I think I just love knowing that there are such good, kind and caring people such as all of you in this world! I’m grateful for y’all!
LOL. Our current family read aloud is Great Expectations, and just yesterday we read about Pip and Herbert getting their affairs in order by listing out all of their debts and making it look all organized. . . but then not actually paying any of them or curbing their spending 🙂
I agree I'd love to hear more from a non-frugal-natured person! Although I strive to practice a lifestyle of restraint for several reasons, it's not my nature. I really enjoy spending on things we enjoy. I was just thinking today about how it's okay that I have things I love obtaining (fun experiences with my kids that aren't free, lovely old things, the experience of eating a restaurant meal, etc.), as long as I stay mindful and self-controlled about it. My spending should be limited to what is useful or purposeful for us, never mindless spending just for the sake of spending, just like the way frugality should also be mindful and purposeful, rather than just saving to accumulate money for no purpose.
Yep-it's all about prioritizing your saving and spending to fit with what matters to you!
Battra, you took the zipper out of a pair of jeans and replaced it with a button fly? Damn, I'm impressed.
To be completely honest, I measured, cut, planned etc. but my wife did the actual stitching on the fabric.
Would I recommend anyone else do that? No, probably not. I just wanted to keep those jeans going for as long as I could.
It must have been tricky making button holes in such a tight area. I'm VERY impressed. My comments come from an avid home seamstress.
I join you in being impressed---I never would have thought of that!
I'm one of the few people left who will sing the praises of the button fly over the inferior zipper fly.
Love this!
And yeah - splurging is so personal.
My husband and I love eating really tasty food. We're both good cooks, so by the time we find food that's at least as good as what we can make at home, we're well above $20/person in most cases, even without drinks.
So we mostly cook at home, and then every now and then (anniversaries, etc.), we'll go out and splurge. On average, we spend less than $10/week on eating out, but it's more along the lines of dropping $200 once or twice a year on a really nice dinner. We set the money aside every paycheck, and it's kind of fun to pull all those $20s out when paying for our date night dinner 😉
(One of my pet peeves is people who go to a restaurant only focused on price point, and not on the why behind a higher-cost dinner (high-quality ingredients sourced from local farmers who treat their soil well and their animals humanely, living wages for everyone from the dishwasher to the front-of-house, etc.) I'd rather pay $30-$40 less often for a really good meal I can comfortably finish on site than $10-20 more often for something mediocre in a portion so large it's another dinner or lunch. That was the hardest thing about moving back to the Midwest - everyone is so much more focused on volume than on quality that some of my favorite restaurants struggle against bad reviews whose only real complaint is that they're not getting a platter of food large enough to feed 3 people.)
As a frugal person from the Midwest with 2 kids, I would way prefer eating out once per week (and thus not have to cook) and have leftovers for lunch than spend $200+ on a meal. The few times in my life I have spent that much, I decided it wasn’t worth it.
I've told this story before, but it felt like it just fit here. My husband went to college full time in his 30's and we already had 3 kids . We had $0 income for 4 years. They were grueling years, just having 3 kids ages 2 to 6 was exhausting, never mind making ends meet day in and day out. The one and only place we could afford to eat out was Denny's. The 5 of us ate for a total of $6. Always on a Tuesday when kids ate free. My husband and I each got an original grand slam (2 eggs, 2 pancakes, 2 bacon or sausage) at $2.99 each. We did this for 4 years. It was a glorious treat in some very hard times. I could have made it cheaper at home, but the going out, being served, no dishes, was absolutely worth it. We had great times and our kids remember and talk about it still (they are in their 20's now).
Eating out fills different needs for different people. Sometimes it's just a break for a weary mom 🙂
Battra - I am a regular reader but infrequent commenter. I'm happy that Kristen chose to highlight you - your posts are consistently & refreshingly transparent/authentic as well as insightful, belying your youthful age.
Ditto!!
It is refreshing to hear a male perspective!
Thanks. I don't really feel all that insightful. I do try to be transparent and honest, at least.
I echo this sentiment! I was really excited to see that Kristen highlighted you today! I enjoy reading your comments, have been encouraged by several of them.
I am also a regular reader but I think I have only commented once before. I want to first say that everyone has to make their own money decisions based on what is right and best for their own family.
That being said, when I hear of people trying to aggressively pay down their mortgages, I wonder if they have really considered all of their options. Assuming the interest rate is relatively low, paying extra principal might not always be the best choice. My husband and I used to pay extra on our mortgage with an interest rate of 3.025%. We also try to save as much as we can to our retirement accounts and mutual funds. A conservative return on our mutual fund is 8-10% annually (same for most mutual funds). If we put the extra principal towards that investment, we will earn far more than we have saved in interest. As we get closer to retirement, we can consider paying off the mortgage with our investment growth if we need to eliminate that regular payment from our budget.
My point is, if your debt payment is manageable and the interest rate is low, make sure you consider all your options. Frugality can also be about making sure you are using your money in the best way possible, which doesn't always mean only focusing on debt payments.
Andrea, that is an interesting idea. But it does not take into account risk or the freeing feeling of having a paid for house. Carrying that thought out further, does that mean you borrow as much on your house as you can (at a low interest rate) so you can invest it (at a higher interest rate)? Sounds risky to me. I'd rather have a paid for house! I invest money for retirement, but I also make pay as much extra on my mortgage as I can. (Of course, I am also very debt averse.)
I understand that some people are debt averse, and that is fine! Some people will want to prioritize their debt payments, and that is also fine! And some people want that freedom from debt no matter what - also fine! Some people aren't willing to take any risks and will continue using a bank savings account as their primary savings method - that's fine if it works for them!
Most mutual funds that are considered low-risk will have about at least an 8% return (there are a lot of reasons why, but I am not an expert in this). There are definitely funds and investments that can have a higher return but also do have a much higher risk. We work closely with a financial advisor with the goal of retiring in our mid 50's (we are 37 and 39 now). For us, paying off our mortgage early will not get us to that goal. Our advisor has several different prediction models available and is estimating that increasing our investment will leave us with at least 3 times more money than what we would have saved if we put that money towards our principal.
I just wanted to point out that there are other ways to approach being "frugal", and one of them is to consider using your current resources to maximize your money in the long run. For a lot of people, a few meetings with a financial advisor can be really helpful for budgeting and planning their future.
Andrea,
I enjoy hearing about how others save and invest so I too, am interested, have you maxed out your line of credit on your house to invest the money at a higher interest rate, or taken out a loan against it for this reason? I'm just curious because it seems like it would make sense and you would reach your retirement goal even faster.
I also like seeing how others handle money decisions. Which is one reason I follow this blog!
We made a 20% down payment to avoid paying PMI. We refinanced with a lower rate for the full remaining balance. While there are a lot of reasons that I think paying our mortgage on schedule is right for us, we are not interested in taking additional debt I order to invest that money.
I am not an "all eggs in one basket" type. I do have investments, retirement accounts, savings etc. but what I can say, without being too personal, is that there were a couple times in my life when my housing wasn't 100% stable. My parents do still own their own house but there were lean years when we thought we might end up having to sell it, and our stuff, and move somewhere else. It never happened but the threat was there.
Now as a parent myself, part of the reason I have paid off most of my mortgage is to have a stable home situation for my family. Yes I still have upkeep and taxes but I don't want that threat of having the house pulled away from us in my daughter's life like it was in my childhood. To me it's more of a "taking care of my family" situation, if that makes sense.
Sounds like you’ve considered your options and your values to make the best decision for your family. That’s great and what we should all be doing! Congrats to you for working to provide your family with some of the things you felt were lacking during your own childhood - that is not always easy to do!
As someone who had a house paid off by 40, I can say it was one of the best decisions we made. When I got a catastrophic illness and the bills the insurance company would not cover started rolling in, we had to pull out of investments to cover them but no matter how tight it got we had the security of having shelter no matter what else happened. (I could not work and my husband took care of me and only worked free lance sporadically, so we had no income. The doctor suggested a nursing home but he quit work instead.) If we had to, we could have gone to a food bank, and there are small grants available for things like electricity available in our town, but no one would have covered a mortgage payment. The peace of mind was priceless.
I have no read all the answers, so sorry if I'm repeating some. For myself, paying the mortgage was Top Priority. And I'm very happy and very proud to have gotten there at 39 (hubby 35)!! The peace of mind is unbelievable. It took us 10 years of agressive payments to get there. About 330 000$ (canadian). We do not have astronomical salaries. I've always worked part-time and had 2 maternity leaves in there, barely paid. Hubby is not even close to making 6 figures. Our frugal ways brought us where we wanted. I told my husband the house would be paid by the time I tuned 40, and we got there 3 months before my 40th. He laughed at me 10 years ago, said it was impossible, yet we made it. Maybe we could have put more money aside for retirement, but the fact is that we still contributed a little and now is the time to invest. We also both have pension plans (mine modest, his not bad). And we have money aside for the kids schooling. So it is possible to put money on the mortgage while investing in other things as well, and not on a million dollars salary.
Amen to this, Lindsey. That why it's so important that we pay our mortgage off early: we want the peace of mind of owning our home. By living quite frugally, we can do that and sock away money in investments for retirement at the same time.
We deliberately moved to an area where my husband could pursue his work but slightly farther out from the city so that the property taxes are half what they are only a few blocks away across the city limits. That and buying a stepless ranch house we can grow old in were two of our best decisions.
I’m not terribly frugal by nature, but have been forced to be frugal by necessity. Back in 06, I was a young, freshly divorced, single mom. I came to The Frugal Girl sometime in that general time vicinity by accident, looking for a recipe to make something with my little girl. I wanted to make something at home with her because I was too broke to go bring her to do anything! I was a horrible cook. Never learned. Had a mother who never cooked either. It was during these super lean times that I recalled my high school home ec teacher saying, “If you can read, you can cook.” I was an honors student that took home ec as a space filler and easy A. I’m glad I remembered what that teacher said though because it really changed everything for us. I took recipes from everywhere and just tried them. Some great, some fails. It was frugal because we had to eat and it was an activity that we enjoyed doing together. Then for a little while there was the Baking with Lisey day that was posted. My daughter LOVED those! Cooking saved my little 2 person family. And that’s my frugal girl story.
Oh, that is so lovely to hear! I forwarded your comment on to Lisey because I know it'll make her happy to hear how her little baking blog blessed you and your little girl.
That's a beautiful story, NolaSara.
🙂
I remember the Baking with Lisey days too. I recall some really yummy bars I made after reading one of the posts. I took them to a Christmas Eve gathering and they were a hit. 🙂
I love that you said you might buy a few new doors with the extras $1,000. That totally sounds like something my husband and I would do and be kind of excited about. Sounds fun to us!
Your comment about "eating out when traveling" conjoured up a memory of a fun stop we made for lunch in Oregon, while on our once in a lifetime x-country trip, at a small local food market and then we sat outside at the tables to eat.
Love this: “You and your future spouse will fight over money and you will never fight that you have too much.” So true! Isn't it funny how one sentence can completely transform your thought process? When my kids were little, maybe 1 and 3 years old, I was on the phone with a friend who was further down the road in her parenting. My kids were acting up and my friend could hear the frustration in my voice. She told me this was an "opportunity for learning" for my children (and, truthfully, me!) and that one phrase made me look at parenting in a very different light.
Thanks for sharing, Battra. I may have to try out your bread recipe. 🙂
Oh I understand this do well! My eldest son was strong-willed as a child and quite challenging. After a particularly difficult day, when I was in tears, my older sister gave me the best advice that I ever received as a parent. She told me that the positive side of being strong-willed is determination and this trait would take him far in life. She explained to me in no uncertain terms that it was my job to make sure that my son used this trait to his advantage. It totally reframed how I looked at our battle of the wills.
34 years later, he is an extremely successful andcwonderful person. And yes, he remains strong-willed.
Loved reading this. It gives me hope as I struggle daily with my strong willed 7 year old.
My mom called my daughter "Mary Mary Quite Contrary" when she was little. 😉 She is 15 now and while we have the occasional inevitable conflict, she is a mature young person who is not easily swayed by whatever questionable ideas come her way. Jennifer, I hope it gives you encouragement to know that the struggles you are going through now may pave the way for a teen who has the courage to make good decisions and not bend to what "everyone else" is doing.
Thanks for sharing - I’m astounded that you’ll be approaching paying off your mortgage in the next few years. Thanks for the tip about ordering take-out but making the sides at home, so simple and practical.
I'm quite envious of your imminent house payoff! I'm 40, husband is 43, and we'll be paying another 10 years. We have no other debt, but that house payment does feel burdensome. Good job; that's quite an accomplishment!
Enjoyed reading this!
No question. Just really enjoyed reading this article. Thanks! (And I love the flour/rice storage system.)
Thanks. It makes me feel like a prepper some times but boy did it save my hide last year!
I've found several of the comment threads below very thought provoking - thanks for sharing your perspective, Battra92, and for sparking conversation. I'm impressed that your home is close to being paid off! Do you keep smaller containers of rice, flour, etc in your kitchen or do you just go get a cup's worth or whatever you need from the big containers? I have a lot of smaller jars of things (nutritional yeast, cacao powder, chia seeds, hemp seeds, popcorn) that I refill as I go due to the spacing of my kitchen. I'm just wondering if I had a pantry if I could just skip all that and just keep it in a big ol' bin.
I have smaller containers for flour and rice. I keep rice in the pantry in some glass canisters I got from IKEA that they don't sell any more. My flour is stored in either some Rubbermaid containers or some Cambro containers I got from restaurant supply. I also keep popcorn and some other things in some snap top storage containers from Dollar Tree.
It's not as neat as I would like it to be but I get by.
I only buy flour and high-gluten flour in bulk. Rye flour I get from a co-op bulk bin so I don't keep as much around.
Hey Battra92, another long time FG fan here. (I've tweaked my name to make it different from a more recent commenter.) Some months ago you made some comments that made it sound as if you were not feeling great. It sounds like you have worked through whatever was bothering you. I sure hope so, as I've been sending multitudes of good thoughts and prayers your way. I still will, but I'll breathe a little easier now. Great post!
I'm ... okay. I'm still pretty angry/upset/frustrated about a lot of things but I'm working day by day what I can do. Thanks for thinking of me.
I am loving these meet the readers. I also love to splurge on eating out but seldom do!
What a great post! Thanks! I love these interviews and I read all the comments.
I’m chiming in as another Not-Very-Frugal reader! I love learning from and being inspired by all of you.
Love hearing about how others save money! Nothing beats the feeling of having zero debt and having your mortgage paid off. Such complete freedom. We were in our early 40s when that happened, and we then rented the house out for income (later we just let someone stay in it, basically a house sitter, to help her and us, but we could not have done that if we still had a house payment) and moved overseas to work in an international school. We have been able to save/invest a huge amount of our pay, and after 9 years here, we are moving back this summer, and it is so nice to be able to go back and have no payments at all and a house that is free and clear. So many of our colleagues go home to nothing because they had to sell their home when they came here (or they were only renting), and then they have to start over. Anyhow, I say all that to say, you will not regret it! Enjoy.
As someone who owns a home in a HCOLA for which we paid cash, I'd like to point out that there is no such thing as a "free and clear" house. There will always be taxes, utilities and maintenance. There are legions of Seniors who can't afford to maintain their homes. Many of them are forced to turn to reverse mortgages, which can be obscenely expensive. It is much more important to learn how to save and invest before pre-paying a low, fixed rate mortgage.
Battra92 is a great example of someone who saved/invested first, then worked on paying off his home. "First, kill ALL the debt" is actually sub-optimal advice. For anyone who wants to learn more, I strongly recommend JLCollins website (free) or his book, "The Simple Path to Wealth".
And for those of you who wish to tithe or otherwise give generously, learning how to save/invest in the optimum order will result in the ability to give more than you ever thought possible. Now, that's an incredible feeling that never gets old.
Sounds like you and I are of the same mindset when it comes to mortgages! I'd much rather grow my wealth than pay off a low interest mortgage just for the sake of having no debt.
This has sparked a little bit of interesting discussion that has been fun to read!
Hi Battra! Thanks for sharing your story. I find it inspiring that you are not tempted to splurge on eating out. My dining out budget is only under control because of COVID restrictions.
I find it funny how I spend my money. I have no problem buying my wife some fancy clothes or something but it's hard to spend the same amount on dinner out.
This is something I can relate too! While my husband and I were on our debt free journey, it was so hard for me to spend or what I felt was "waste" money on myself- but I also LOVED spending on him or my kids with the extra, that felt awesome...I think we both are just givers at heart. Really loved this piece...and have personally improved on allowing family & friends to gift me with things because I know it brings them the same joy, rather than feeling guilt. However I still prefer to spoil that family, its more fun!
My husband and I are much the same. We, (especially he), each do not spend money easily on ourselves, but are glad to spend it on other family members.
I could spend so much on my daughter but I know that wouldn't be good long term. But yeah, I love to spoil the ladies in my life.
The one thing I noticed is that Battra is a little self-deprecating about his choices. Man, you have it together far more than most and like Dave Ramsey says, you are changing your family tree!! If you and your wife are on the same page, keep doing you. House paid off at 40? Awesome!!
I think we discovered The Frugal Girl around the same time, Battra. Kristen is the one who gave me confidence to bake bread and rolls on a semi-regular basis. I've been reading your comments for more than a decade. It was great to learn a wee bit more about you. I hope you realize how much further ahead you are (financially speaking) than most of your peers--and certainly more than I was at your age.
I know in my immediate circle of people I graduated with, I was one of the first to buy a house. I wasn't the first to get married or have kid(s) but I think I would be pretty worried (just speaking for myself) if I still rented, wasn't married, no kids, no career etc. but many people I know are at that point.
Funny how people have such different life paths.
I wish I knew how long I’ve been reading this blog. It’s been a long time, I know that. I found it from a link on Pioneer Woman’s blog.
Enjoyed reading about you, Battra! I always enjoy your comments.
Battra, your frugal skills are amazing! I enjoyed meeting you.
This is a late comment but I wanted to say hi to Battra92. Hi! I was hoping that we would get to meet you. I always enjoy reading what you have to say. 🙂
Thanks. I'm glad people enjoy it.
Hello Battra,
So nice to 'meet' you. That mending is amazing. You would have been a terrific hippy back in the sixties and probably could have made a fortune in 'patching'.
Love the bread. It looks perfect.
I've been told I could sell them on Etsy but it would require a hippy to be just my size.
Nice to meet you and honestly, I don't think it is sheer dumb luck that you bought your house at the bottom and will have it paid off so soon -- that was smart -- congratulations!
Well to be fair to me, I had started saving for a down payment on a house once I got my first "career job." I believed that banks wouldn't even talk to people if they didn't have 20% down.
Right?! Kudos to you for making your own "luck!"
Post and comments — it has taken me parts of two days to peck away at reading all of it — fascinating. Thanks to Battra and to all the commenters.
I am always uplifted and inspired when I read these posts from the younger generations. We are moving in the right direction together, all of us, young and old. Thank you so very much for sharing your journey.
Always love your page, and it will vary how often I am over to check out the latest with a morning cup of coffee just based on life...however this morning popping over and finding this write up with a "behind the scenes" style with a fellow frugal friend was seriously AMAZING! Great idea and it was so nice to see all the personal photos supplied as well- great job to both of you! Thanks for the tips & tricks!
So glad you enjoyed it! I've been publishing a reader interview about once a week here, usually on Mondays, so be sure to check back fro more installments.
Lol I SO agree on no restaurant meal is worth $20 per person. When we started budgeting so we could get a house the first thing cut was eating out. We still eat out once a week to local places hoping some stay in business.
I'm so impressed that you'll have your house paid off by the time you're 40. Well done!! I really enjoyed your post. I've always found your comments to be valid and bring a unique perspective to Kristen's little corner of the internet. Thanks for sharing your beautiful mending and other frugal warrior skills!