Wendy G. Neyland

My goodness we are in a bind these days! By "we," I mean many of us who live the United States of America. Many of us are living the American Dream: paying a car loan, house mortgage, credit card debt, and bills, bills, bills. None of us are exempt from all of this, but with careful money management, we can make ends meet.

I am no financial whiz, but it makes more sense to actually manage money than to not ever pay attention to where it is going. Most of us are faithful in writing down each transaction from your checking account or you pay cash for things, but some of us just let it go and have no idea how much money we have or spend. So Tip Number One in managing money is to keep a spending journal. You'd be surprised at how much you spend in certain areas. When we record what we spend, we can see where we need to make changes to save some money.

For the rest of this week's article, let's focus on managing food dollars. Always, always, always make a list when going to the grocery store. Read the weekly grocery circular to see what is on sale and plan accordingly. And while you are making that list at home, before you get in your car to go to the store, check your cabinets and refrigerator to see what you need. (Sounds simple, but how many actually do this?)

When you go shopping, try to shop once a week. The more you go to the store, the more you spend. I personally like to shop locally because when I do, I spend less money on gas. Its fun to go out of town every now and then, but doing so just for groceries adds up quickly. Don't go shopping when you are hungry and don't go down every aisle when you shop. And parents, do yourself a favor and go shopping without your kids if possible. Wade Neyland always manages to want (and sneak into the basket if I'm not careful) lots of food items that are not on my list.

Here is my favorite part of food management: buy produce that is in-season. Lots of people refer to this as "going green." It's not a new thing. This is also the only time where I will tell you to go without a list. Buy only what you can eat before it spoils and then plan your meals around it. I cannot wait for April when my cousin's strawberries are ready. I cannot wait for the summer when Cooper Farms peaches are here. Buy from your local farmers, or better yet, grow some produce yourself! It is economical and tasty. It is good for the local economy as well.

There are many ways to save money, but these are just a few things to think about. I challenge you all to make careful decisions and pay attention to what is out there. With careful planning, we can all be more financially responsible and help dig ourselves out of this economic mess.