My Back Story

I married just over 25 years ago.  We started a family later that year.  With little money saved and a small single income, we had few hopes for our share of the American dream--owning our own home.   It only took a few months for us to realize that buying a house on our income would take hard work, ingenuity and discipline.  Now, I'm not going to tell you that we did it all the right way the first time around.  This whole frugal life thing was and continues to be a learning process.

One of the things I learned was cutting spending so dramatically had a tiring effect on me.  Turning the frugal life into the fabulous life became my challenge.   I tapped into the many free resources to learn new skills.   I read any and all books from the library on how to save money around the house.  I picked up magazines that had articles promising huge grocery savings.  I used my own creative juices to find cheaper and easier ways to make and do all sorts of things.  We ate out less and gardened more.  I did the very homemake-y things, such as knitting, baking bread, and reupholstering furniture.   Sometimes my efforts were frustrating, but in the end, learning all these new skills was very satisfying.  Once I mastered something, I could do it over and over, multiplying my savings, while building the fabulous life.

We now own our house free and clear, and continue to use our talents (both learned and God-given) to improve our home and family life.  My hope with this blog is to share what I know with you, and get your ideas so that I can continue learning how to do everything cheaper, lovelier, and, overall, better.  I welcome your comments and corrections.  I'm here to learn too.

~Lili Mounce