My Frugal Life: You Can Have It All

When I was about twelve I had a talk with my Dad about money. He looked at me and said. "You can have anything you want as long as you pay for it." Wow the possibilities! I was going away to nursing school, going to graduate and buy a fire engine red Jaguar and live in a cabin on a lake.

When the time came to go to school, my Dad said, "I can't send you to school, there's no money". So I got a loan, baby-sat, washed dishes, worked in a nursing home and sewed many of my own clothes. I got my degree and paid off my loans by pinching pennies. I drove an old Volkswagen and dreamed of that Jag. Then I got married and paid for most of my own wedding. I made my own gown.

My first apartment was full of hand-me-downs, homemade curtains and self made clothes. I sewed patches on top of patches on my husbands work clothes. When the kids came, I washed those diapers, made baby clothes, worked nights and slept very little. Yard sales supplied much of our belongings.

We bought an old run down house and fixed it up ourselves. We did lots of painting and scraping. When the kids were grown they went into the service, one is going to college with the GI bill the other has a great job after getting out. Neither child has asked us for a cent. I'm now sewing clothes for my grandchild.

I have a newer Volkswagen now. Our home is paid off. It's not on a lake but in a pleasant neighborhood. We saved and worked hard. My heart still skips a beat when I see a 60s Jag but I'm content. I have everything I worked for.

Pat from Stroudsburg, PA

Do you have a frugal story to share with the ThriftyFun community? Submit your essay here: http://www.thriftyfun.com/post_myfrugallife.ldml