I certainly understand your challenges in spending below the budget. I would like to share a few suggestions and common practices that others in situation similar to yours do:

1) Combine multiple errands into one trip to save gas.

2) Keep up with the necessary periodic preventive maintenance on the car - oil change and tune up. These preventative measures will help your car run more efficiently and extend the car life longer so you don’t have to spend big dollars to get a new car. Also please ensure your cars’ tires are properly inflated to the recommended operating tire pressure to help get the best mileage possible.

3) Shop or get services done on days when discounts are offered to retirees/seniors. The definition of what age is considered a senior varies from shop to shop: some draws the line at 60, others at 62 or 65 years old. Typically, most Wednesdays are the slowest days for businesses. You will find discounts offered as below, just to list a few as an example:

- On Wednesdays seniors get $3 off from the $12 price of a regular haircut. On other days, senior haircut only gets $1 off from $12.

- Car dealerships offer a 10% discount on do-it-yourself parts and car services for seniors.

- Nurseries typically offer a 10-15% discount to seniors on Wednesdays.

- Restaurants frequently offer 10-15% discount off regular menu prices for seniors. Just read the menu to find out the discount amount, and then make sure you ask the waiter to apply the senior discount to your bill.

4) As for food costs, save money by looking at the market sales ads that get delivered to your mailbox. You can compare and plan to buy the items you need at sale prices to save money. Look for coupons in Sunday’s newspapers to help stretch your money further.

5) Also, if you have local farmer markets where you live, you can go shop produce at these Farmers Market for big savings while helping out the environment (reduce greenhouse gas since produce travel less than 150 miles when you buy from farmers directly) and supporting the local small farmers. Farmer Markets typically open from 9am – 1pm. The prices of produce vary significantly with the market hours. The trick about Farmers Market is that when you go near closing time, you can easily buy the same produce at half or one-third of the price. Example: Peaches selling for $1.50 per pound will sell around $1 from 11-12:30pm, and from ~12:40 pm it may drop to $0.75 per pound, and by 1pm, it is possible to buy at $0.50/pound.

Hope this helps. Happy Retirement!

Marilyn, I feel for you. I know what its like to live on a very tight budget.

Making a budget is easy. Following it is harder, especially if you don't have it with you when you're at the store.