11. Buying 15 cases of Monster Energy Drinks (or Rip-Its) every week
12. Buying name brand items instead of Freedom’s Choice
13. Getting new Playstation games so your AD member can play war games on you couch even though they, you know, actually go to war
14. Buying a brand new, suped-up truck or muscle car post-deployment
15. Buying enough beer and liquor every weekend to host a college-style frat party
16. Not meal planning for the week
17. Getting a real-life babysitter that you have to pay instead of asking your friends who are always asking, “How can I help?” to actually help.
18. Spending combat pay like it’s “free money”
19. Holding a garage sale to sell your stuff, but then buying other people’s stuff when they PCS
20. Buying new dress uniforms (ok, we know they have to do this but why are they SO EXPENSIVE)
Military families are always trying to find ways to budget. Some of the things listed above may seem silly, but if you take a good, hard look at them you will see that truly they are ways that you might be spending errant amounts of money.
Simple things like meal planning, making a list before you head to the store, and eliminating big expensive unnecessary purchases can often help you tighten your belt a little more. Sometimes we have to take an honest look at our spending habits to see that we might be spending money in ways that are unnecessary or there may be more frugal options out there.
Do you have any ways that you save money? Tell us in the comments!
