Save 1500 A Year

Anybody that is financially savvy will tell you that to really save money, you have to employ creative strategies in all areas of your life.  My family and I definitely do just that; we use coupons, ad match, stock up when things go on sale, watch our thermostat settings, pack lunches, and conserve gasoline as much as possible, etc, etc.  However, one of our best and most fun money-saving tips is to “copycat.”  We might absolutely relish a dinner out once (with coupons, of course), but we take notes and the next time around (and a lot of times from then on out) we use copycat recipes.  Whether it be a guesstimate recipe of our own creation or those found online, we recreate the same meal at home… and SAVE LOTS OF MONEY!   For example, one of my family’s favorite places to go for dinner is Olive Garden.  Often, I will order salad, breadsticks, Minestrone soup, and perhaps even my favorite dish, Cappellini Pomodoro.  If you multiply this order (or something monetarily similar) by 5 for all my family members, the bill usually comes in somewhere around $50 or more with tax and tip (yikes!).   Alternatively, you can spend a few minutes on the internet and find websites, such as Copykat.com, which supply recipes for lots of Olive Garden’s (as well as many other restaurant’s) dishes, including the Minestrone soup, Cappellini Pomodoro, and even their salad dressing (I swear it tastes just like the real thing!).  Not only will you save 2/3 of the cost- usually more, but you can enjoy the benefits of fresh,healthy ingredients and quality time preparing the food with your family.   Now do the math.  If you can save even $30 per meal, once a week, that is $120 a month and nearly $1500 a year!  Can you say, “family vacation?!”