Money Saving Tricks: 30 Days to a Better Life

More than any other question I get, people want to know how I was able to support my family so well as a single stay-at-home-mom on only $18k/year.

This post is all about the best of the best tips that I use and have found the most helpful in maintaining a great life on little.

I invite you to come along with me for the journey and pray it blesses you and your family as well. I feel like if I can stay home with my little ones as a single mom, anyone can! You just need the right tools and information, which this series will accomplish.

I’m super passionate about saving money. Completely self-taught over the years, I’ve successfully been able to go from living well on $18k/year while being in $30,000+ debt to being completely debt free, and yes, I’ve done it all as a single mom, so if you are married, that’s great, you  already have more than I do!

Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t have a great life on ANY income…because you can! I’m living proof!

Money Saving Tricks: 30 Days to a Better Life will not only motivate you, but give you practical steps to step up your money saving game!! 🙂

Money Saving Tricks: 30 Days to a Better Life

Day 1: Using Cash For Better Negotiations

When you have cash in the bank to make those major purchases, you will end up saving a lot of money, and I’m not even counting the interest from the loan. Recently I offered a company $600 cash out the door, free delivery on a washing machine that they were asking $900 for + $50 delivery fee. They approved it on the spot! This isn’t an isolated event either. It happens all the time. Money talks to a lot of people, and you can use that to your advantage to score some great deals. All you have to do is know exactly the most amount of money you are willing to pay. Decide exactly what you want, and don’t settle for less. SOMEONE will give it to you for that, as long as it’s reasonable.

Day 2: Drive Your Car Until It Dies

A friend of mine shared a story with me and it definitely inspired me in my own life.  She purchased a new car for $16,000, and drove it until it died.  14 years! Yes! 14 years! That’s about $1,200/year or $100 month.  BRILLIANT! So, I purchased a used car with very low miles on it at wholesale pricing.  I paid $5,500.  It lasted me 6 years.  The breakdown was $1,100/year or $92 a month. No loan so I saved quite a bit of interest.  I saved each month for the 6 years so I could pay cash again.  When it finally did die, I sold it on Craigslist to an auto mechanic for a few thousand dollars!  I purchased a nicer SUV and expect to get 5 years out of it for the same price$5,500! Driving your car is definitely the way to go!”

Day 3: Do-It-Yourself {DIY}

This time and age, we can fix basically anything by ourselves. With sites like YouTube or EHow, you’re sure to get the job done! These free sites are great tools to take advantage of and of course…save you money by doing it yourself!

A few months ago, my vacuum was making a super loud noise all of a sudden. I went on YouTube and began searching. Come to find out, it was the belt and spooler. So, I bought the parts needed on eBay. For less than $20 and 1 hour of my time, I was able to fix it and not have to take it to a shop.

What a sense of accomplishment!  I know my limits but this repair was something I could fix on my own. You can too! 

There are times when you might NOT be able to fix something, and that’s ok. You did your best, and that’s what really counts. The effort that you put in.  Many times, you will surprise yourself!

Day 4: Do-It-Right {DIR}

Don’t cut corners. Do it right the first time.

If you’re going to do those home repairs, fix things, maintenance, and such, do it right the first time. Trying to cut corners usually backfires. In my experience when I’ve tried to cut corners, I’ve always ended up spending even more time than if I would, had I just done it right in the first place. 

Also, if you’re doing the work yourself, buy quality parts.  It’ll save you hassle in the long run. Although there are some things you can get away with buying generic, for the most part, the general rule of thumb … skip generic.  You’ll be glad you did!

Day 5: Do Not Sign Contracts

Announcement one and all … over the loudspeaker even! Do NOT SIGN CONTRACTS!  I know they draw you in saying they will save you money but really they don’t!  You don’t know what will happen one day to the next. I have a friend that signed a contract for 2 years with Vivant home security.  The whole nine yards, motion detectors, doorbell camera, and of course the equipment leasing. Six months into it, life changed drastically.  She had to move out of the state suddenly. After contacting Vivant and explaining the situation, they had a list of documents she needed to provide before they would determine if she was still liable.  She even had to show proof of death to make she was not lying! It was literally 4 months process, with many phone calls, emails, etc. She still had to pay the monthly charges for 6 months and break the contract.  Some fees were waived but not all of them. Also, due to the sudden life change, her HughesNet account had to be canceled and yes it was on a 2-year contract as well. She owed over $300 for breaking the contract. Since she didn’t live in that state anymore, she had to find someone to be at the residence when HughesNet came to retrieve the equipment.

There are no guarantees in life, and it’s just a bad idea all the way around. Saving money is not always about the short term goal, but the long term.

Day 6: Groceries: Portion Controls No One Will Notice

One of the ways I like to routinely save money is by using portion control with our groceries.

It’s such a simple thing to do and my family doesn’t notice a difference at all.

Here is one example that I’ve done.  I take a 5-pound package of hamburger, cook it all in one batch, and then split it up in 10 zipper bags, cool it off, and freeze. Whereas I used to get 5 servings out of that 5-lb pack, now I’m getting 10, and no one misses the difference. This literally doubles my portion size.

So, if hamburger is $3.99/lb. and I buy 5 pounds, that’s $20 to contribute to 5 meals. But, if I split it, that’s $20 for 10 meals! I just saved myself $20 and my hamburger is ready to go when I am. 

You can be creative with your meal as hamburger meat can be used in so many recipes! Now that’s a WIN-WIN! 

Day 7: Let Go of Bad Habits

You don’t see too many rich people smoking a pack of cigarettes a day or partying all the time. Those types of activities drain your resources super quick. Cigarettes are up to what, $5 a carton now? A pack a day is $1,800/year! Okay, you don’t smoke but drink? Coffee that is. If a person is getting a coffee at a retailer every day, it’s the same scenario as the cigarettes, $1,800/year.   That is definitely one way to drain your bank account quickly. Make your own cup of java at home. There are plenty of items on the store shelves now that make the coffee taste just as yummy as the retailer.

Day 8: Develop Good Habits

By creating good habits, you can save money too!  Turn the lights off when you’re not in the room, don’t let the water run, avoiding using as many electrical items during peak hours, shut off electronics at night, pay your bills on time to avoid late fees and pay yourself first by putting money in your savings before anything else!  These good habits will allow you to save money before you know it!

Day 9: Bundle Up-It’s Not What You Think

I bet you I know what you’re thinking. Your thinking I’m going to say how we should bundle up our clothes and keep the heater down, but if I did, I’d be a hypocrite. You see, I keep my heater at 72. Yup. I know, it’s totally bad. I pay an extra $20/month to do this. Why am I telling you this? I want you to know that saving money isn’t about giving up your life or the things you truly care about. It’s not about living in a monastery or never having anything you want, never doing anything you want. What I really mean is to bundle your bills. Some companies offer a bundle service for cable, internet, and phone. Shop around. If it’s cheaper, join their program!

Just be mindful there are no strings attached. One company I know offers a $5 discount for each bill, so if you have 3 bills bundled with that one company, you automatically get a $10 savings each month on the bills you already have. This is $120/year in savings, and you have two fewer bills to worry about paying on time, etc.

Day 10: Shuffling Your Money

Shuffling your money is vitally important to make sure you are using every resource to its fullest extent.   

Have you ever received a gift card that you wouldn’t use?  You may not like that particular store. Well, I have a solution for you!  Go to the store that you have the gift card for, look for their gift card section (most stores have this), and pick out the gift card(s) you DO want. You can purchase those gift cards using the one the person gave you. Brilliant idea, right?  It’s not going to waste. You’re using it. This is a great way of shuffling your money around and using every bit of it! Claim it, own it, and use it.

Day 11: Double-Check Your Basket

Double-checking what I purchase?  What does that mean? Easy answer! By asking a few questions to yourself, before the cashier rings you up, can ultimately save you A LOT of money.

Honestly answer the following questions:

• Do I NEED this item?
• Will I use this item in a month?
• Do I want it because it’s pretty, or is it something that I REALLY want?
• If I buy this, what will I have to give up to have it?
• Can I find it cheaper online?

It’s always best to put it back if you have any doubts or hesitation. If you’re not fully convinced of a purchase, don’t purchase it.  Your thought process should be “what purpose does this item serve”. How will your purchases affect your lifestyle, your bills, and other things you want to purchase?

Day 12: The Wonderful World of Cash Back

It’s inevitable but we have to spend money, right?  How about getting rewarded for spending money on things we already buy? One of the easiest ways to save money is by getting cash back on the items you already buy.

I like to use Rakuten, formerly known as Ebates. Almost every purchase you make online is covered and earns you anywhere from 3% – 6% cashback. I’ve been with Rakuten (Ebates) for 8 years now and at the time I’m writing this, I have earned $10,039.12 with them! It is HIGHLY worth your time to utilize this option!

Some of the famous retailers that use Rakuten are:

• Staples
• Amazon (baby and clothing sections only)
• Barnes and Noble
• Home Depot
• Kohl’s
• Walgreens
• Kmart
• Sears
• Best Buy
• JCPenney  
• Lowe’s
• …and a ton more!

When you sign up for Rakuten, they will even send you a free $10 gift card, just for joining!

There’s absolutely nothing to lose.

Day 13: Shopping is Not Free Entertainment

One of the things that I really had to overcome in my spending habits was my love for ‘just browsing.’ But ‘just browsing’ was never just that. It was never free entertainment for me. I’d always see something I just HAD to have. With little self-control, I’d purchase, and feel guilty about it later.  I want to be obedient to God so I don’t want to put myself where I can tempt myself. That is ‘just browsing.”. What was my solution? The solution is not going shopping unless I needed something. I have to stick to my list and not wander off in the store, hanging out in my favorite temptation spots.

It takes time and patience and lots of prayers, but it is well worth it in the end. You’ll look back and be amazed at your accomplishment. You got this!

Day 14: Using Free Online Services to Save Money

We are in a time when information is right at our fingertips.  Literally, with the invention of the internet, there are now so many ways that we can save money in utilizing it.

Here are just a few Free Online Services to Save Money:

Read the newspaper and magazines online. It not only saves you money, but it saves trees, which are responsible for cleaning our oxygen. Super important to breathe, right? 

Use bill pay.  Pay your bills online instead of paying for postage and envelopes. 

Sell items online. Sell your items on Craigslist, instead of in the newspaper. Craigslist, or now they even have Facebook groups for your city and is a lot more effective for selling things than the newspaper. 

Day 15: Be Constantly Generous

When money is tight, we tend to want to cut corners where we can. We tend to start focusing on ourselves and in that storage mentality where we need to store and conserve every penny that comes our way, but having a closed hand like that is a two-way street. If your hand is not open toward giving, likewise, it’s not open toward receiving. I’m not saying there’s some hard and fast rule if you give, you receive. What I am saying is that a person, who lives a consistently generous life, will tend to have more 

Be creative. You don’t have to give all the money in the world. If all you have is $5, then give $5. If you have $1, give $1. The woman in the Bible gave less than a penny and Jesus said she gave more than all the others, because she gave from the heart, and it was a SACRIFICE for her to give that money. Are we sacrificing for our Lord? Are we maybe going without this want over here, so that we can be generous and give? It’s hard, I get it, but you’ll be greatly blessed when you study out that passage in its original context and apply it to your own life.

Day 16: Freebie Trading

One of my favorite things to do is to go around helping as many of my friends as I can. If there is a need, I’m trying to think if I can meet it or know someone who can. Like in the Bible where one person in the church had little, so the ones who had much, shared. Life is very much like that. It’s a shared experience. It’s not meant to go at it alone.

I love trading and getting things I would have otherwise paid for, for FREE.  You can take this a bit further. I have a friend that they will clean a house for someone to trade or do website designing. Anything that you’re good at, you can trade for the things you want. It is really amazing the things you can trade for.

Remember, getting what you want and still living on a budget, sometimes takes creativity.

Day 17: Pay Your Bills Online

The internet allows us to save time but also allows us the ability to save money. Most of the items I purchase for our home are purchased online with free shipping. The same is true when paying bills. If you have 10 bills a month, and the current cost of a stamp is 55¢ (postage just went up) that is $5.50/month. It may not seem like a lot but after a year, it will pay an entire month’s satellite bill.  Now add the cost of your checks, the envelopes. Then, the whole security issue. What if it lands in the wrong person’s mailbox? It also saves you some time in preparing all the bills for mailing. I’d say paying your bills online is a great idea!

Day 18: Avoid Unnecessary Fees

Paying unnecessary fees is one of the quickest ways to lose money and one of the biggest scams in the banking arena. Banks love it when you bounce. You could be charged up to $35 per transaction, even if the original amount was less than $5!!! Say you overdraft by 10 transactions, totaling $60 in debit card transactions that went through, your fees would be $350 (!!!!!) and each day that it’s in the negative, more fees are added. You don’t receive a phone call from the bank! You receive a letter in the mail, which takes several days to receive so more charges are added. Seriously, what a mess! Now you’re calling the bank and asking to waive the fees.  Sadly, most won’t. 

To prevent overdraft fees is by balancing your checkbook. Do not guestimate.  Balance to the penny. 

One of the other ways you can avoid paying unnecessary fees is by paying your bills on time. Most debtors (credit card companies, loan companies, banks, power bills, cable, utilities, even your rent) will charge you a late fee if you are not paying on time. Those fees here and there can really eat at your bottom line.

Third, check your bills for inaccuracies. I got a bill last month for my water/sewer/garbage, and it seemed a bit high to me. Now, I did move to a bigger house a few months back, so I get that it might look like I was being double-billed, but there were some numbers that were tripled. So, I gave them a call. So, after the customer service rep looked it up, apparently, they had me on the old tenant’s cycle and preferences and ‘forgot’ to remove it.  The customer service rep credited my bill from the old tenants. That call saved me hundreds if not caught!

If you want to hold onto your own money, you’ll have to fight for it. Fight in peace, don’t be rude, but be FIRM.

Day 19: Do Your Research

There was a super cute cell phone cover I have wanted for months.  I’ve been watching to see if the price drop. Unfortunately, the price hasn’t gone down but I was about to purchase it when I decided to read the reviews! Phew! So glad I did! In reading the reviews, I found a lot of people saying that the backing was coming off in about a week’s time; so the super cute part of the case was no longer there and that was the whole reason I had wanted the case in the first place.

One person even said, “I read the reviews, but thought, I’m much lighter on my cases, so I thought it would be fine. Boy was I wrong. Do not purchase.” So I did not purchase the case. Since it is from a trusted company, I wouldn’t have expected it to fall apart.  I would have lost my money! I love Amazon. It is a great place to find reviews on almost everything.

Now, I know it would be very difficult to check every single purchase you make, but making a habit of learning from others’ mistakes is always the best. Only when we make educated decisions, can we make wise decisions, and wise decisions always seem to lead to more money that stays in my pocket, where it belongs.

Day 20: Taking Care of Yourself to Avoid Unwanted Health Costs

Taking care of our bodies will prove to help prevent diseases, trips to the emergency room, doctor visits, surgery, etc. Even if you have the best insurance available, you are still paying co-pays and some out of pocket costs that quickly add up over the course of the year.

A few examples of how you can take care of your bodies are drinking plenty of water, eating right, exercising, getting the right amount of sleep and using essential oils.  For me, since using essential oils, I’ve been able to get off FOUR synthetic medicines a day, and have so much more energy and feel full of life. We have only one body, so taking care of it to be able to enjoy life is a MUST. 

Day 21: Rule #1 for No Guilt

I don’t know about you but I used to buy things, a lot of things, on spur of the moment. I wanted it so I bought it.  Simple as that. I’d get home and feel this overwhelming guilt for buying the item. It didn’t help my relationship with my husband either! One day, I found a text on his phone from another woman with the words “I love you” on it. I’ll never forget that moment. There was a piece of me died that day. My kids and I ended up in a women’s homeless shelter.  At that moment, I realized how MUCH things cost. I hadn’t worked in years so I literally didn’t have a penny to my name! It was then that God brought me to the end of myself, in order that, I may look up and see Him. I gave my life to the Lord, and as ironic as it would turn out, the very FIRST thing God would teach me is how to spend money wisely.

I committed to myself and to God to never take that for granted again. I wanted to be a godly steward of whatever He gave me, little or much. The biggest rule I placed upon myself that really changed things for me was my 24-hour rule. If it was over $30, I would not buy it. I forced myself to wait 24 hours. If it was still there the next day, great, I could get it. If not, my answer was no. I prayed a lot through those times. It wasn’t easy. In everything I did to try to learn to be a better steward, it was always in prayer. Walking with the Lord in prayer, daily prayer, and sometimes minute by minute prayer.

Try it out for yourself. Adopt your own 24-hour rule. I guarantee you; your life can be dramatically transformed if you do! 

Day 22: Teach Others to Save

What a great way to pass it forward, teach others how to save.  Share with them what you’ve learned and what works for you. Sharing your knowledge and life experiences with the world helps people. When teaching others you are held more accountable.  Therefore, your life becomes more and more like what you are teaching. Teaching someone something, you remember what you’re teaching and it becomes truth and a way of life.

Sharing is caring!

Day 23: Your Online Buying Guide

Buying online is probably one of the biggest ways our family saves money. I don’t pay for shipping, the item comes straight to my door (no gas), it saves me time, and also prevents that shopping is entertainment bug I seem to have.

Rule #1 – Always read reviews on what you want to purchase. You want to do your research. 

Rule #2 – After reading the reviews, ask yourself, is it worth the money? Searched prices and see what the best deal is.  It’s great to have your fingers do the walking! Saving money on gas and (for the time being) save money on sales tax when buying online! 

Rule #3 – Look for coupon codes. RetailMeNot is a great site for coupon codes for most sites. You can also just google the name of the store + “coupon code.”

Rule #4 – Lastly, get cashback. Rakuten (formerly Ebates), you get up to 3% cashback on many of your purchases online! If you have a Paypal debit card, you can get 1% cashback, which DOES double up with Rakuten, cashback, so you’re looking at 4%.

Great savings just shopping online!! 

Day 24: Don’t Waste Anything

I didn’t really realize how much I wasted, especially in the food department. A perfect example is that we like celery and carrots in our Beef Stew, but I’d only use half the stock of celery and a few carrots, and I’d just let the rest go to waste. Instead, plan your meals around what you already have in your pantry/fridge/freezer, and what you WILL have after you grocery shop. Instead of buying the kids a couple of Lunchables for snacks ($5 for 2 days-4 Lunchables), I could give celery sticks/peanut butter, carrots/ranch, and crackers. That one idea alone saved me $5 this week! Yes, $5 is not a lot, but let’s say that I just made that ONE change all year long with ONE food item (2 days a week ($5) X 52 weeks in a year…that’s a $260 savings! Now, if I do two times that amount, that’s $520/year, 10 items are $2,600/year. It adds up very quickly.

Have you ever printed something wrong and just threw it away!  STOP! Use it as scratch paper. 

The possibilities are endless. Think outside the box on everything you use,  ask yourself, how can I reuse it! Every item you use needs to be a multi-tasker.

Day 25: 6 Ways Planning Ahead Saves You Money

I know it’s not an ingenious idea, but in our culture, we are so busy-oriented, that barely staying afloat of our mountain of a to-do list seems impossible, much less planning ahead. If you’re in that situation, I can definitely relate on so many levels. Just try to plan ahead in the areas that you can.

Here are a few practical tips.

1. Know your weak spots. I love shopping at Tuesday Morning. I could spend hours in that store, just browsing, and finding things I absolutely “have to have.” I force myself not to go there. For if I do, I just know I’m going to spend money on things I really don’t need. What stores cause you to want to spend? How can you cut that store time down in your life? Maybe go once a month, instead of once a week. Maybe every few months instead of every month. Maybe you need to quit going there completely until you’re able to have better self-control? Whatever you can do to avoid that irresistible temptation, do it.
2. BYOL. Bring Your Own Lunch. There are so many things you can pack that are healthier AND cheaper. There are little coolers you can get if you wanted to keep something cool. I picked up a nice bag at a yard sale for $5. Don’t forget the drinks. Water is great to have in the car for emergencies anyway!
3. Prepare in advance when you might be stuck in a spot to have to pay more. Places like Disneyland, movie theaters, fairs, parks, carnivals. BYOL applies here too. 
4. Last-minute gifts. Have a small stock of things that you can give in a pinch. Always have a few cards on hand too. I’ll not only save you a trip to the store (gas), it’ll save you time and stress, and did I mention money?!?! 
5. Ways they try to get you. Did you know that DMV charges you 3% to run your debit card there instead of paying by check? Yep, it’s true. So, when I go to DMV, I make sure I stick my checkbook in my wallet. I am saving 3% of my transaction each time. May only be a few dollars, but if I am constantly looking for ways to save.
6. Planning your meals ahead will save you some nice cash as well. As it stands now, I go grocery shopping every week and am looking for a way to be able to go every 2 weeks. It would save me a lot of money! and time! and gas! 

This simple planning can save you money and avoid some unnecessary stress too!

Day 26: Ways to Score Free Stuff

Free: one of my favorite words in the dictionary. Adjective: to get.

We all like receiving free things, right? If you don’t have to pay for it, then technically, you’re saving money! There are so many things you can get for free and it’s never been easier to score them. Here are a few great tips to getting you started in the right direction.

Product Samples

Companies will send you samples for free so that you can try them. Most often, they send coupons with those free items for the full-size version. They want to earn your business, and you’re trying a product beforehand is a perfect way to get their foot in the door, so to speak. A great source for finding free samples is Free Stuff Finder.

Extreme Couponing

When your couponing, you will come across many full-size items for free. Let’s say the coupon is $1 off, but the product is only 99 cents. Some stores even add that difference (a penny in this scenario) as a CREDIT to your shopping bill! By doing this, you can roll right through the store and literally walk out with a bag full and nothing out of pocket. Trust me, I’ve done it.

Free After Rebate (FAR)

One of my favorite stores for FAR is Staples. I get so many office supplies free, it’s not even funny. I get all my printer/copy paper free this way. It saves me so much money. I just stockpile the paper up; give it to my local church, etc. Free eBooks on Amazon for Kindle.

Free Items on Craigslist, Freecycle, and Your Local Facebook Groups

Many towns now have Facebook groups with the sole intention of giving and getting things for free. Likewise, there are so many free deals to score on Craigslist “Curb Alerts” on Craigslist are a great place to start in the summers. Freecycle is likewise impressive. It’s pretty amazing what some people are giving away. Sometimes, you can score some pretty cool things!

Explore the world of free!

Day 27: Search High and Low

When you’re shopping in the stores, be sure to look high and low for the item you want to purchase.

Here’s how most stores stock their shelves. At eye level are all the products that are the most popular, not the most cost-effective. Above that, toward the top of the shelves are usually the higher-end products, things that are less popular to the masses. Likewise, at the bottom of the shelves are usually the lower-priced items. Things that are the most cost-effective.

As a tired mom, we usually grab what we want at eye level and off we go!   My challenge to you is, when you are shopping the next time, try looking all around the shelves for everything you purchase on that shopping trip and count how many items you saved on. If you want to go a step further, you can add up the prices of how much money you saved just on that one shopping trip. I’d be willing to bet, it’ll surprise you just how much you can save.

Day 28: Pay Cash Only

One of my favorite challenges I made for myself years ago, was to determine to pay cash only for the things I needed and wanted. If I don’t have the money to buy it, I don’t purchase it. It’s pretty simple. What I found is that if I really, really want something, I’ll tend to find a way to make it happen. The saying goes “where there’s a will, there’s a way.” It seems to be so true in this scenario. Many times, I will hold out on something out of sheer stubbornness. I just don’t want to overpay.  Waiting out can save you a ton of money. Now, waiting it out, might not work for everything. If it’s a true need, you have to provide, but just rather be in prayer about it, and seeking out the best for your family when you are able. It will be tempting to give in, believe me, but you can do it, and the more you do, the better you get at it. The better you seek out for the things you want for the price you want to pay and become reserved when money has to leave your hands.

Consider each purchase carefully, consistently, and you will save a lot of money.

Day 29: One Weird Trick Saves Me Lots of Moolah

As you know, I’m a quality girl. I’d much rather buy a quality item, even if it’s a little more in price upfront, rather then, to purchase something of lower quality that will just break down on me, or I’d have to replace it much sooner than expected.

Over the years, I can look back and see how much money I save by buying quality; how many frustrations, stress, and time it’s saved me over the years as well. I learned this lesson the hard way, unfortunately. Cheap doesn’t always mean better. Buy quality instead.

Day 30: Carry Change

When standing in line at the grocery store, or any store for that matter, you almost NEVER see anyone paying with cash.  Seriously! 

What if the store’s system is down and are unable to accept debit cards.  If you have the cash, you can get in and out. Yay!

It doesn’t matter if it is YOUR money or someone else’s, be wise with it. Think about others in everything you do. What if you saw someone who could really use that $2? You can pay it forward.  Plus, you wouldn’t want your debit card on their receipt. 

Every time you shop at Target and you do NOT bring in a re-usable bag, you are being charged 5 cents for using theirs. Now, not many realize these small costs and some may laugh at the amount, but I tell you truly, that over time, they do add up. How it works: If you bring in a re-usable bag to Target when you shop, you receive a 5 cent discount automatically. Use your Red Card debit card, and they give you an additional 5% off your entire purchase. My sales tax here is 6%, so for me, that’s like getting my tax almost waived. Not only that but if you shop online at Target.com, you receive free shipping by using your Red Cards as well as that nice 5% off. 

So keep that change in your purse or wallet and be prepared to be blessed or bless others.