This is in no way a DH bashing post, but does it seem like your family or your DH in particular, sabotage your attempts at saving money?

I was so excited the other day when I got an amazing deal on meat only to have DH come home with a brand new hardback book from Barnes & Noble, priced $23.00. He said he was going to lunch (he's in sales so he eats out everyday) and didn't have anything to read. Hello? What about a newspaper? A magazine? DH never questions me when I spend $$, but I can not imagine spending that much on a book.

So does anyone feel like it is one step forward, two steps back when it comes to getting your spouse or family on board to curb spending?

LOL! I guess I am happy being single now,lol. I don't have someone blowing my attempts at frugal living. I would SCREAM too much at someone buying a book for that much. That is what a library is for or like you said- a newspaper you could buy for 50 cents. My daughter and I are the only ones in our house so we don't have to worry about things like that, he he.

Sorry to hear that he did that though. I wouldn't have been too happy!

I hear ya and my purse feels your pain.

I understand completely! It seems like everytime I try to save money, DH goes out and gets something that he thinks he "needs". He's getting better, as we've recently had a wake up call with our money situation. He's done the B&N book buy, too. He loves going there and all of the books he buys are so $$$.

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Frugal is being wise with your money and resources and cheap is forcing everyone else to.

Sometimes yes. Dh doesn't spend a lot day to day. But when he decides to spend its to get a new $7,000 4 wheeler! That is almost as much as we paid for my car. Of course we were also supposed to get our old truck back from his sister and she would take over the payments on my car but that didn't happen so...

Plus any time we do get a good amount saved up something always comes up. Dh's family needs money for something or a friend is in a tight spot. I'm tempted to keep a savings acct that dh doesn't know about just because he's such a softie. Of course I'm all for helping people when we can but not the same people over and over.

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I trully understand your frustrations. Last week we made payments in one of our Credit Card and earlier this week DH decided to spent $79 for a pair of sunglasses using the same credit card We went to Walmart not even a month ago and we bought two pair of sunglasses for him since he's got really sensitive eyes. I asked him what's wrong with the one from walmart he said its not too dark. Then to add up the problem this man has a foot problem and keeps looking at a NEW Balance shoes online. I keep telling him to go to the clinic over here and figure out what's wrong with his foot first before he buys anymore shoes. He finally did it yesterday and it was ME who made an appointment. Believe it or not the doctor told him that if he still have a problem a month from now they are going to issue him a new insule and a shoe made for his foot for FREE.

Yes, I love my hubby, but he just doesn't have the frugalness I do. He came from a poor country so maybe he's trying to make up for his childhood? He eats out almost every day. I say I will pack him a lunch, then he leaves it in the fridge. When I ask him about it he says "Oh, I didn't feel like eating that." He just left 2 days ago for 6 weeks of military training and I have been hounding him for a month to sit down and go over the bills and budget with me. It never happened. He kept saying "Oh we'll do that later, I'm too tired now." then the night before he left I asked again and he said "Just keep your spending to a minimum and we should be fine" I already buy nothing but gas and groceries (although I shouldn't have to buy anything because of a friends food gift because they were moving). I take the kids to the library, free swimming pool and church. I dont even go to goodwill anymore unless I am looking for something specific. I stay home and cook, clean, go online, sew, play cards with my girls, read or play with my baby. He told me the day he left that we are living paycheck to paycheck again! We had paid off all but 1 cc, car & truck payments and mortgage. Now he has 3!!! cc, a laptop computer bill, full satelite for the t.v., plus who knows what else!

Why don't you take the book and return it to the book store. You can do it. In my oppionion your DH is spending too much already with eating out every day. I guess my immediate family is good and not spending however I hate it when the extended pop events on us that cost. Like this weekend we went out for DHs parents anniversary and my SIL picked a spendy restraunt even with ordering cheeper menu items it still cost $35.

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This just happened to us too on our vacation. We went with a bunch of extended family so the housing and food costs were pretty low but then we went out to eat at a seafood restaurant and whew, it was pricey. I thought it was going to be very casual but it ended up costing us about $50 (and I wasn't very happy with my meal). That kind of thing happened a couple other times that week.

The bad thing was we received an unexpected refund from my DDs birth (10 months old) the day before we left and we didn't end up saving much of it. Oh well, we're back on the wagon now.

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My DH has never been a problem to our budget, but his family has! His entire family (his grandma, her children and their children) expect us to buy all of them presents for their birthdays and Christmas!

His grandma buys presents for everyone and then asks us to reimburse her for it. It's usually about $50 for each person (Christmas and birthday) a year. I think that's A LOT!! Especially when it's about 10 people we spend money on.

I don't understand why I need to buy my uncle in law and my great aunt in law a birthday and Christmas present. I don't have a problem buying the kids presents, but seriously, why buy all the adults presents?

Then his mother TELLS us what to buy her for her birthday, Mother's Day and Christmas. She asks for expensive crap, last year it was an electric toothbrush for $150! My husband doesn't even buy ME a present for that much.

Ugh. What can I do? My husband agrees with me but says this is his family's tradition and they would be offended if we stopped the gift giving.

Granted we get a few gifts too, but it's stuff I don't want and don't need. It's usually gift cards to some restaurant I dislike and I would rather keep my money instead!


Sorry for the rant, it's just that I have been dealing with this for nearly 6 years now.

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