sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

since we're doing an 80/20 on our mortgage, things are going to be TIGHT financially.

in a situation like this, what have been the things you've given up knowing that what you'll get in return is so much greater??

we're giving up our cell phones. this will be $150 monthly savings.

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

I gave up my job, being near my family and friends, and living in my newly bought home in order to be with DH for his job- this means a lot for his career and in return $$$ for the future...it's a big sacrifice, but we are making it work

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

We gave up traveling whenever we wanted to (DH & I were both off from our jobs Nov-March before I got my new job so we traveled a lot in the winter), going out to dinner 4 out of 7 nights, buying new clothes whenever we had somewhere to go, etc. But everything we gave up has been worth it for our home that we have together and the memories that we already have in our house!!!!

Aside from those things that were easier to give up, these things we gave up from our everyday life that added up:

-DH stopped buying breakfast every morning and eating at home
-We both brown bag our lunch
-We eat home every night, except we do have one night a week that we call date night and we either go to the movies, to dinner, to a bar for a drink, etc
-I used to get my hair blown out every Mon, Wed, and Fri and now I do it myself (I know that probably makes me sound like a snob, but I love the way this lady blew my hair out and the stuff she used in my hair made it so healthy)
-We changed out cell phones to a family plan and we definitely do not use our cell phones as much as we used to
-We watch everything we spend and try not to spend money foolishly (that may sound easy but before we got married we both lived at home with our parents who did not charge us a penny, so we were used to spending money like it grew on trees, so it was a big adjustment but easy when we got used to it)
-We don't go to a supermarket without coupons now

Message edited 2/27/2007 3:25:58 PM.

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

i gave up an entire career, good money, and a comfortable life just to be able to follow my dream of going to law school.

this has COMPLETELY changed my life. if i had kept my job/career i could have possibly had a bigger/nicer wedding that we could have paid for ourselves, possibly had a nice house now, been able to enjoy my life and newleywed life more, and start planning for the future as far as kids, etc.

money is so tight so we can't go on vacation. although i loved our hm, we went away to rhode island for 4 days because we couldn't afford anything else and i don't think we'll be doing any sort of big hm.

RARE dinners out or drinks with friends, no more snowboarding, NO shopping period. BUT, i try to think that it'll all be worth it one day and that i am doing this because it's what i really want. dh is amazingly supportive.

i think that the emotional toll of being financially tight is much worse than the material toll of being financially tight. i just try to think of what the sacrifice means to me and what the payoff will be to keep me going.

eta - lots of cereal or pbj's for dinner helps. sounds sad, i know. lol.

Message edited 2/27/2007 4:00:46 PM.

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

We gave up eating out on the weekend's - we'd only do one restaurant a week, but still, it added up. So, we treat ourselves to pizza when we can.

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

After paying for our own wedding we got pretty used to living on the frugal side. And as of yesterday we're in contract on a home, so we know life financially will still be on a strict budget but so be it.

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

FH and I used to party and go out from Thursdays to Sundays, but a lot of clothes, shoes, sneakers we both lived at home and were not charged rent and earned a decent living. Now we not go out as much instead of going to the bars we buy bottles of liquor, make our drinks at home and have a great night and when we shop now its moreso for things for the home. To me its not a sacrifice but a shift of priorities and I enjoy every moment of it. We make our own memories now. As time goes on paying bills an a mortgage gets easier, you get used to it then you'll be able to start doing some of the things you used to do.

Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

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Posted by Audreygirl

i gave up an entire career, good money, and a comfortable life just to be able to follow my dream of going to law school.

RARE dinners out or drinks with friends, no more snowboarding, NO shopping period. BUT, i try to think that it'll all be worth it one day and that i am doing this because it's what i really want. dh is amazingly supportive.

i think that the emotional toll of being financially tight is much worse than the material toll of being financially tight. i just try to think of what the sacrifice means to me and what the payoff will be to keep me going.

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Re: sacrifices... what have you given up for a larger goal??

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Posted by JazzyT

To me its not a sacrifice but a shift of priorities and I enjoy every moment of it.

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