# 52 week money challenge



## Rocktown Gal

This was on FB this morning...and looks like a good idea to save money. So thought I would post it here in case it might help someone who is having a hard time saving...it does add up. Do this every year and the money starts adding up to your emergency fund. I'm taking the challenge!


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## Horsefly

I'm all for it! Just made out an envlope with 52 week challenge on it. Maybe hubby will get on board too.


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## Rivmage

Thanks for the idea! The girlfiend and I are on board.

Scott


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## Ohio dreamer

Wow, never did the math....amazing how fast it adds up. Have to show DH...


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## wes917

Very nice, I will do this. A friend and myself also are ordering three one oz silver bars each month this year. One for each son of my two sons and one for the wife and I, he is doing same for himself and his boys. Figure why put money into an account and lose value and purchasing power along with paying tons of taxes on it when redeemed


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## Billie in MO

Thanks for the idea.....had not seen this one. Think I will give it a try along with the one I am doing now.

Right now I am doing the $5 challenge. Any time I get a 5 dollar bill in change I tuck it away. Have got one of my sis-in-law's doing it. She has no savings, lives paycheck to paycheck (sometimes not even that) doesn't prep or anything. Even made her a cute little fabric pouch to put the money in.


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## unregistered65598

Neat idea, I'm gonna give it a try to.


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## notbutanapron

Haha this reminds me when we were kids, our teacher asked us to ask our parents for one penny one night, two pennies the next night, four the next etc and to keep doubling it as long as we could to see how much we got. I forgot but I think you have something like a million dollars in a month. It really does add up quickly when you add on to previously saved smaller amounts.

Anyway, I couldn't even get the penny out of my mother.


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## beaglebiz

I might try to do it backward...I have more money this time of year than in the fall


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## Homesteader

This is interesting but wow, that last about 3/4's of the right hand column is tough. I mean, if you have enough money left over to be able to put that much money away every week, you should already have savings.

I can't imagine having 30, 40, 50 bucks a week to put away for those who need savings.

Is it just me? I'm not trying to say that starting this is in any way a bad thing, so please don't get upset with me but wow, that's a lot of money per week once you get to those later weeks.


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## MO_cows

Surprising how much it adds up to! I will show that to some people I know who "can't afford to save any". ( insert eye roll here)


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## Rocktown Gal

If you do the same amount every week it comes out to $26.50 a week ...if my math is right.

Maybe do .50 then double it from there. At the end you will have $689. The whole point is to try to to save something.

Maybe one week you will have more then a couple of dollars...add it all to the pot. 

I think for those who have no savings...that at least give it a try. Or at the end of the year...do a pantry refill.

It can be done...even if the amounts are different.


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## belladulcinea

What Rocktown Girl said! Just start it and see where it grows to!


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## City Bound

you have to start somewhere. It is not the numbers that count it is the mentality that matters most. Rome was not built in a day.

Maybe, if you can do it for one year then you can double the money you put in next year so that you end up with roughly $2, 700 at the end of year two. Then maybe tripple it in the third year. After three years you will have about 8 grand saved.


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## Billie in MO

Homesteader said:


> This is interesting but wow, that last about 3/4's of the right hand column is tough. I mean, if you have enough money left over to be able to put that much money away every week, you should already have savings.
> 
> I can't imagine having 30, 40, 50 bucks a week to put away for those who need savings.
> 
> Is it just me? I'm not trying to say that starting this is in any way a bad thing, so please don't get upset with me but wow, that's a lot of money per week once you get to those later weeks.


Yeah, those last weeks may be tough but as Rocktown Gal said: The whole point is to save something.

My sis-in-law that is doing the $5 challenge with me would not be able to do this one. No way, no how. I know what she makes and what her expenses are. But I had to start somewhere with her as a savings account in the bank is a foreign concept to her. She has never had any money to put in to one. Everyone is raised differently and unfortunately, not everyone understands the concept of saving money or prepping, for that matter.

I have another sis-in-law who I will NOT help. In fact, we don't even speak anymore. She has no concept of money, a budget, and spends money they do not have. She will not even try to save or understand and will come up with more excuses than Carter has pills!!


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## Homesteader

I like the idea of cutting the numbers in half or more to be able to customize it a bit. But it's so true, any savings is better than none and it gets one started!


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## Sawmill Jim

wes917 said:


> Very nice, I will do this. A friend and myself also are ordering three one oz silver bars each month this year. One for each son of my two sons and one for the wife and I, he is doing same for himself and his boys. Figure why put money into an account and lose value and purchasing power along with paying tons of taxes on it when redeemed


Much better getting old silver dollars or 99 fine silver rounds . Lot of places won't trust bars without a core sample . Just my 2 cents :cowboy:


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## wes917

Sawmill Jim said:


> Much better getting old silver dollars or 99 fine silver rounds . Lot of places won't trust bars without a core sample . Just my 2 cents :cowboy:


Serial numbered bars from JM? Their world known, I won't buy any other types, unless larger and come with a certificate from a reputable manufacturer.

ETA: I do have some old junk silver, used to think it was bad when I was buying it at $7 oz lol. Bars seemed better than the savings bonds I was buying my boys now that you purchase at face value.


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## Terri in WV

That's a good idea! I'll have to start that.

A couple of the little things that I do-

I never spend my change. I don't dig through the change for even a penny. At the end of every month I gather it up and put it into a jar. It amounts to $20-$30 a month.

When I write a check, I round up to the next whole number.


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## Studhauler

Homesteader, Part of the idea of starting small and saving more each week, is to find new ways to save more each week. As the year goes by make savings a bigger priority. For some people it is a simple as giving up the $5 cup up gourmet coffee on the way to work each day. I also realize that some people cannot cut any more to save more. I wish you well in you savings effort.


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## Sawmill Jim

wes917 said:


> Serial numbered bars from JM? Their world known, I won't buy any other types, unless larger and come with a certificate from a reputable manufacturer.
> 
> ETA: I do have some old junk silver, used to think it was bad when I was buying it at $7 oz lol. Bars seemed better than the savings bonds I was buying my boys now that you purchase at face value.


Another thing should the economy go down hill later on not many dealers to get rid of bars papers or not . Should our Gov. start a silver recall no thinks give me common coins . But each to his own :cowboy:

Anything i have for sale today i'll take a common form of silver coin for insted of frn's .eep:


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## dancingfatcat

Terri in WV said:


> That's a good idea! I'll have to start that.
> 
> A couple of the little things that I do-
> 
> I never spend my change. I don't dig through the change for even a penny. At the end of every month I gather it up and put it into a jar. It amounts to $20-$30 a month.
> 
> When I write a check, I round up to the next whole number.



I do the same thing. Tho, I roll the change and keep it hidden till I get 100.00 then deposit it in a no fee savings account. You'd be surprised how fast it adds up. NEVER put your change into one of those quickstar change counting machines. they get over 10% of your money!!!


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## Pack Rat

Look back to the hoarding money thread (I'll give it a bump). Andy posted some interesting thoughts. I suspect that putting any extra cash into something of real value would be a better "savings" (meant in more than one way), than piles of paper that is evaporating value, perhaps frightfully so when the other shoe drops.


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## City Bound

Studhauler said:


> Homesteader, Part of the idea of starting small and saving more each week, is to find new ways to save more each week. As the year goes by make savings a bigger priority. For some people it is a simple as giving up the $5 cup up gourmet coffee on the way to work each day. I also realize that some people cannot cut any more to save more. I wish you well in you savings effort.


 
True. Giving up a five dollar coffee everyday on the way to work will save you $25 a week, $100 a month, and $1,200 a year. If you instead buy your own coffee, make at home, and then take it to work in a thermus (you can get a good thermus at a flea market for about $2) you can save about $1,080 a year after you deduct the cost of the store bought coffee. Brown bag your lunch and you can save yourself $10 a day, $50 a week, $200 a month, $2,400 a year. Buying the food may cost you $200 for the year so you save $2,200. Being homesteaders your food bills will be less then that though. So, by drinking your own coffee and bringing your own lunch a person can save $3,280 a year and a working couple can save $6,560 a year. If a couple saves that money for a decade they will have saved $65,600. That is just from drinking your own coffee and brown bagging it. Toss is other reductions in spending like getting rid of cable tv (why do you need it when you can watch almost anything you want on the internet, netflix and amazon prime), getting a cheaper cell phone package or better yet get a prepaid cell phone, and cutting down on take out. Just getting rid of cable tv and an expensive cell phone package will save you 20 grand after a ten year period. So, your savings as a couple will shoot up to $85,600 after ten years.


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## Rainy

i am going to do this challenge, think it will be fun... i am another one who saves change and I am currently doing a dollar bill challenge also... everytime you get a dollar bill you put it away.. think i started this last summer, and i have enough now so that when my son has his band trip to Colorado in April, his food money and spending allowance are now all taken care of... a little bit at a time adds up..


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## City Bound

Rainy, I like the idea of starting a Dollar piggy bank. Thank you.


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## Rocktown Gal

I do the dollar bill thing also. Whenever we get a dollar bill I keep until I have $10 then I roll up with a rubber band and stick them away (in my secret place ) and then when I need them...I iron them and use them...lol by then they are so rolled up you have to iron them.

There are many ways to save money either for emergency, food pantry, whatever!


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## Wendy

I am going to start putting my paycheck away in savings each week. It's $47, but I'll make it $50. I want to get used to not having it so I can quit my job eventually. I only clean 1 day a week, but I still would rather not.


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## whodunit

I thought about doing a similar thing with fast food purchases. Every time I get a hankerin' for some McD's (which normally occurs right after work and on the commute home), to bite my lip, get out of town, and when I get home immediately electronically transfer what I would have spent to savings. I would have a huge savings in no time!


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## hoggie

This is a great thread - and one I really need !!! 

I am goign to try the 52 week thing - I don't think I will get all the way but, the way I see it, if I get a few months in and then have to "stick at a certain amount each week, I'll know that I am saving the maximum I possibly can. But by starting low and working up, there isn't that sense of failing if you can't save a large amount?

I have another saving box where I put any cash that is left at the end of the week and start afresh the following week.


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## sdnapier

wes917 said:


> Very nice, I will do this. A friend and myself also are ordering three one oz silver bars each month this year. One for each son of my two sons and one for the wife and I, he is doing same for himself and his boys. Figure why put money into an account and lose value and purchasing power along with paying tons of taxes on it when redeemed


I am totally clueless as to how to order a silver bar. Can you share please?

I am also down for the 52 week challenge!


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## sdnapier

Sawmill Jim said:


> Another thing should the economy go down hill later on not many dealers to get rid of bars papers or not . Should our Gov. start a silver recall no thinks give me common coins . But each to his own :cowboy:
> 
> Anything i have for sale today i'll take a common form of silver coin for insted of frn's .eep:


OK, so how do you go about buying old silver coins?


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## Annsni

dancingfatcat said:


> I do the same thing. Tho, I roll the change and keep it hidden till I get 100.00 then deposit it in a no fee savings account. You'd be surprised how fast it adds up. NEVER put your change into one of those quickstar change counting machines. they get over 10% of your money!!!


Actually, I believe that you can get full value gift cards from them now where they don't take any cut (I'm guessing they get a cut from the stores who's gift cards you get). 


Another idea that my daughter and I are doing is a "sealed jar challenge". We both have sealed canning jars (large ones) that we completely covered so we can't see what's in it and we sealed the top with duct tape except a slot opening. We put in any small bills we have whenever we can and we'll see how it goes!

I'm also stocking away singles and fives for emergency money since after Sandy, many smaller stores wanted exact change and it would be easy if I had a stack of ones and fives.


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## hillbillygal

We're on board for the 52 week challenge  

I also like the idea of covering up the change jar so you're not so tempted to get some out.


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## wes917

sdnapier said:


> I am totally clueless as to how to order a silver bar. Can you share please?
> 
> I am also down for the 52 week challenge!


You can buy online at a reputable dealer of your choosing, just make sure their reputable, you can pm and I can tell you the two I use, I don't want to spam forums. You can usually purchase junk silver from them also. 
Most local coin dealers here also sell bars and coins, though their mark ups over spot tend to be higher. I also qouldnt buy gold without certificates or large silver bars.






sdnapier said:


> OK, so how do you go about buying old silver coins?


Coins, I've only ever purchased "junk silver" a lot of collector coins sell above spot and I'm not really a coin collector so I can't comment on grading scales etc.


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## lmrose

I too will try this challenge. I have for years saved pennies and even they add up. But starting now Canada has stopped making pennies and prices will be rounded up. Now someone is suggesting no more nickels. Then prices would be rounded up again. In the meantime my penny jar will become a nickel and dime jar. Saving is necessary however works for you.


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## AverageJo

When DD was born, we gave her all our coins so she could 'feed' her horse banks. When they were full, we took it to the bank and put in her savings account. It was amazing how quickly that built up! 

It's a great place to start. Save any and all coins you get (especially any silver coins). Always use a bill. Then step it up from there. Always use a $5 or more and then save any change you get from there. Bump it again to using only $10's and above.... etc.


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## Danaus29

A 52 week challenge would be next to impossible for me. I don't get a regular paycheck. But I was considering putting some of each pay into a savings account. Just wasn't sure if I want to do $100 or $50 a pay. Sometimes I get paid for only 2 days or less. I used to put that back but I really want to save more. I admittedly spend way more than I should.

Dh already has $100 a week put back but that's for property taxes, homeowners ins and emergencies. He's thinking about raising that to $125 a week this year.


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## laurafergie

beaglebiz said:


> I might try to do it backward...I have more money this time of year than in the fall


That's what I've been doing the last few weeks. Last year I did the loose change and ones and ended up with $435 when we went on vacation in December. So this year I'm doing both.


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## unregistered65598

Tommorow is 3 bucks I am really going to try and keep up with this. So far so good.


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## kaitala

Hmmm, I'm thinking about reversing the chart. As it gets toward the holidays, the amounts increase. Since we choose not to use credit to do xmas presents, we don't have big bills now, but would LOVE to have that end figure for xmas presents. And if in a savings account, even earning the junk interest they're paying now, the bigger investments initially would earn interest more quickly. AND we haven't spent all our xmas gift cash yet. Now would be the time for us to do the larger deposits, and work toward smaller. I mean, by Thanksgiving, if this is the xmas fund, it's no big deal if you don't put in the last 6 weeks ($21), but the last $300 would matter.


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## 7thswan

Billie in MO said:


> Thanks for the idea.....had not seen this one. Think I will give it a try along with the one I am doing now.
> 
> Right now I am doing the $5 challenge. Any time I get a 5 dollar bill in change I tuck it away. Have got one of my sis-in-law's doing it. She has no savings, lives paycheck to paycheck (sometimes not even that) doesn't prep or anything. Even made her a cute little fabric pouch to put the money in.


I did this with Tips, anytime I got one over $5 it went into an envelope for a friends Church. It must have been Divine Intervention ,because those $5 dollar tips sure went up. But yours is a good idea,for saving for emergencys.


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## Groene Pionier

wonderful thought. I would invest in the first months in food storage and the rest of the months I could save as much as in the list. What I did a couple of month back, was an amount I thought that I am going to need within 3 years. I calculated I have to save 42 usd each week. 
I even managed to save already more then I calculated for! I will continue to save just in case


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## Work horse

I also saw this on facebook and i thought it was incredibly silly. Sure seems it would be a lot easier to put the $26 per week aside, instead of trying to scrape together almost $200 per month for the last couple of months before Christmas...


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## Rainy

I put my money in my envelope this morning... very proud of myself..


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## terri9630

I take the change at the end of the week and put it in my $10 walmart change separator/roller and just took $345 in rolled change to the bank. Brought home the bills and added them to the 'stash'. It doesn't take long for it to add up. I never pay with change, just bills so I will have the "extra" to save. Had enough before Christmas to buy my dairy goats.


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## wogglebug

Just something to think about: even apart from deliberate outright dishonesty, money that's just lying around, apparently abandoned, unused and uncared-for, can be an irrestible temptation to some people, including but not limited to children. They never even get to the stage of thinking about honesty or stealing, or that it's been dedicated to some purpose: their attitude is more like that it's "found money" which they just pick up and put to use.

It may be worthwhile to put some basic security measures into place. If you're saving cash rather than banking money, then have a locked cash-box, cupboard or desk drawer with an uncommon key, keep things out of sight and in a place which is unlikely to be casually discovered, know what you have and check it frequently (which can also give you positive reinforcement as the savings grow), that sort of thing.


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## countryfied2011

City Bound said:


> True. Giving up a five dollar coffee everyday on the way to work will save you $25 a week, $100 a month, and $1,200 a year. If you instead buy your own coffee, make at home, and then take it to work in a thermus (you can get a good thermus at a flea market for about $2) you can save about $1,080 a year after you deduct the cost of the store bought coffee. Brown bag your lunch and you can save yourself $10 a day, $50 a week, $200 a month, $2,400 a year. Buying the food may cost you $200 for the year so you save $2,200. Being homesteaders your food bills will be less then that though. So, by drinking your own coffee and bringing your own lunch a person can save $3,280 a year and a working couple can save $6,560 a year. If a couple saves that money for a decade they will have saved $65,600. That is just from drinking your own coffee and brown bagging it. Toss is other reductions in spending like getting rid of cable tv (why do you need it when you can watch almost anything you want on the internet, netflix and amazon prime), getting a cheaper cell phone package or better yet get a prepaid cell phone, and cutting down on take out. Just getting rid of cable tv and an expensive cell phone package will save you 20 grand after a ten year period. So, your savings as a couple will shoot up to $85,600 after ten years.


I was thinking the same thing....I wonder how many are there that say they don't have enough to save each payday but can afford Starbucks or MCD's. :shrug:

We have an empty plastic water cooler container that DH found somewhere....we put all of our loose change in there and have for a couple of yrs, last summer it was 3/4 of the way full and decided to roll it all up.....we ended up with $900.00 and some odd change. Took us a couple of months to roll it...lol I wish we had checked it for junk silver though...never crossed our minds..oh well, we check it now though!

We have started the bottle over again and have a 1/4 of it full.


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## Rocktown Gal

Work horse said:


> I also saw this on facebook and i thought it was incredibly silly. Sure seems it would be a lot easier to put the $26 per week aside, instead of trying to scrape together almost $200 per month for the last couple of months before Christmas...


I don't think it is silly at all. Sometimes starting out slow and building up is easier for some people instead of I have to have $26. Along the way they find ways to save the money they need to put in the kitty. I sometimes spend money on stuff that I may not need and I can put it in the kitty instead...I have to remember if it is a need or a want.


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## unregistered65598

I also like the idea of starting out slow, I may add extra as I go along to take a bit of the bite out off the last few weeks, but today I added my 3 dollars.


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## terri9630

Aside from the weekly rolling of change I also take any money left in my wallet the night before payday and add it to my stash. Sometimes its only $1 but it goes in anyway.


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## City Bound

countryfied2011 said:


> I was thinking the same thing....I wonder how many are there that say they don't have enough to save each payday but can afford Starbucks or MCD's. :shrug:
> 
> We have an empty plastic water cooler container that DH found somewhere....we put all of our loose change in there and have for a couple of yrs, last summer it was 3/4 of the way full and decided to roll it all up.....we ended up with $900.00 and some odd change. Took us a couple of months to roll it...lol I wish we had checked it for junk silver though...never crossed our minds..oh well, we check it now though!
> 
> We have started the bottle over again and have a 1/4 of it full.


Exactly. Sometimes those very same people think that they are helpless victims. All they have to do is say no, and stop buying stupid stuff that they do not really need.


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## unregistered65598

Well I took out 10.00 today so I would have the 3 to add, added the three and buy the end of today, I decided I really didn't need that extra 7.00 in my pocket and added it to the stash YAY! ME!


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## Danaus29

$26 a week would total $104 for this month. Might be doable. Have to see how the bills run.


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## Pack Rat

I told a friend about this, and the reply went like this:


> L-O-L
> If I had an extra 10 cents a week, it would go toward the debts the gov saddles me with. I can support my self, but have a hard time supporting the ever increasing do-nothings that pettition my public servants for bigger handouts on my ever declining income.


This is a person that lives very simply, works hard for very little, and has given generously to others in need when there was spare change. 

On another note, I would not invest in silver bars, because their value is not easily discernable, unlike a common (old) coin.


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## Christine81

For those of you rolling change - check with your bank and see if they have a coin sorter and whether they'll charge you to use it. I used to be a bank teller. The bank I worked for would sort and count change for free for customers with deposit accounts. We used a centrifugal sorter that would spin the coins and sort them into bins by weight that way, and keep count as it went. When customers brought in rolled change we had to unroll it and use the sorter to count it. :sob: All we needed was clean change (no debris, knickknacks, major dirt, etc.), preferably in a wide mouth container that was not glass (broken glass is hard to pick out of change.)


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## shawnlee

countryfied2011 said:


> I was thinking the same thing....I wonder how many are there that say they don't have enough to save each payday but can afford Starbucks or MCD's. :shrug:
> 
> We have an empty plastic water cooler container that DH found somewhere....we put all of our loose change in there and have for a couple of yrs, last summer it was 3/4 of the way full and decided to roll it all up.....we ended up with $900.00 and some odd change. Took us a couple of months to roll it...lol I wish we had checked it for junk silver though...never crossed our minds..oh well, we check it now though!
> 
> We have started the bottle over again and have a 1/4 of it full.


I love my plastic 5 gallon water jug...never use a glass one as it will not hold and break.

I add all change to it and all 1 dollars bills to it every night.......it will hold a ton of money.......had 3 or 4 grand in it at one time.......

Change collection has slowed since starting to use my debit card all the time.......


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## terri9630

Annsni said:


> Actually, I believe that you can get full value gift cards from them now where they don't take any cut (I'm guessing they get a cut from the stores who's gift cards you get).
> 
> 
> Another idea that my daughter and I are doing is a "sealed jar challenge". We both have sealed canning jars (large ones) that we completely covered so we can't see what's in it and we sealed the top with duct tape except a slot opening. We put in any small bills we have whenever we can and we'll see how it goes!
> 
> I'm also stocking away singles and fives for emergency money since after Sandy, many smaller stores wanted exact change and it would be easy if I had a stack of ones and fives.



The one here takes $.10 of ever dollar. I spent $10 on a change counter/roller at WM.


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## Spinner

Homesteader said:


> This is interesting but wow, that last about 3/4's of the right hand column is tough. I mean, if you have enough money left over to be able to put that much money away every week, you should already have savings.
> 
> I can't imagine having 30, 40, 50 bucks a week to put away for those who need savings.
> 
> Is it just me? I'm not trying to say that starting this is in any way a bad thing, so please don't get upset with me but wow, that's a lot of money per week once you get to those later weeks.


Yes, it's impossible for some of us. I only make $50 a week so those last 2 weeks I'd have to save every penny plus borrow to get to the savings amount! 

When I was working, I used to put my change in a jar and take it to the bank once a month. It would usually be around $30, but sometimes was much more. That was how I used to save for Christmas, but today, it would be impossible for me to do.


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## SadieG

I'm already a saver, but I do like a challenge. I think this is a great idea and I'm on board! For those who don't feel they can keep with it toward the end, just add what you can. You still will have saved and you will be proud of your accomplishment!


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## Danaus29

Looks like I'm out. I usually work nearly daily the first 3 months of the year (I was going to try the $26/week and put as much toward it as I could those 3 months) but this year it looks like I won't be working near as much. Now I'm wondering if I'll even earn enough to get my soc sec credits for this year.


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## Ann-NWIowa

I think it would be more sensible to put in $26.50 per week all year. For me anyway I'd be more likely to remember if it was the same amount each week.


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## unregistered65598

Danaus29 said:


> Looks like I'm out. I usually work nearly daily the first 3 months of the year (I was going to try the $26/week and put as much toward it as I could those 3 months) but this year it looks like I won't be working near as much. Now I'm wondering if I'll even earn enough to get my soc sec credits for this year.


 
Sorry your work is cutting back, but I don't think you have to be out. Just put what ya can every week and by the end of the year you will have more then you have now. I think the whole point is just to get started saving and start some where.


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## Wendy

I have been putting $50 in the bank every week since the first week in January. A couple of weeks was kind of hard as hubby didn't have 40 hours.


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## Danaus29

Merks, cutting back means 1 or 2 paychecks a month. I usually only have weekly work Jan thru April. Next week there will be no paycheck. 
I did put $105 in savings today. Yes it hurt, had some other stuff I wanted to buy. But like I've said before, I don't need to spend it all.
Dh's work is cutting back on overtime too. Looks like the tax refund money will be used to pay on our 2nd mortgage instead of buying a couple "wants".


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## Rainy

mine is done for the week... also added a couple of dollars to my "keep the dollar's fund"... and think a couple of quarters and nickle's to the change fund... not alot but it all add's up...


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## larryfoster

Danaus, because it sounds like you make all your money early and the larger savings is late.

Why not do it backwards?
Week 1 $52
Week 2 $51 etc

That way as you have less money you don't need as much to put back

Just a thought.

BTW, I'm late to this party.
Just talked to the wife and she made up the envelope.

Will put the 1st 3 weeks in now and go from there


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## Danaus29

larry foster, due to previous obligations and the fact that this is seed and plant buying season I really don't have the other $100 to spare. I am trying very hard to do the weekly amount but can pay it only on a monthly basis. I don't usually buy many plants/seeds the last few months of the year and even though I work less, I can more easily afford the weekly averaged amount.

Who knows, I might even make a little from plant and produce sales this year. If so I plan on trying to save that money too.


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## larryfoster

I understand, Danaus29.
Just trying to think out of the box


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## lonelyfarmgirl

I think this is a good idea to get people in the mindset. One thing I do is never spend a quarter. I have a quarter only bank that was a gift from a friend. Only quarters fit in the slot. I was happy the first time I filled it. It held 225 dollars I think.


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## MO_cows

I am trying this in addition to our regular savings. I showed it to a couple friends who are the "I can't afford to save" types and they said they are gonna try it, too. Doubt if they will be able to keep up when it gets to the higher amounts per week, but if they save anything they will be better off than they are now.

Just presenting a plan to follow will get some people jump-started. The graph lets them see how it adds up when you save regularly.


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## Danaus29

There's quite a few times during the year when my paycheck will be for less than 2 days. I saved all those paychecks one year. Ended up spending it all on a new front door. The door had needed to be replaced for years, just never had that kind of spare money laying around. 

I'm going to still try and save those small paychecks in addition to the monthly amount for the 52 week challenge.


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## Tommyice

Another thing to try is to go as far you can. If you can only go to week 16, then on week 17 start over. Go until you can't. Then start over again! The point is to get into a rhythm of putting something aside.


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## Rocktown Gal

We're at the 6 week mark are you still with us? Money going in my envelope today!


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## hillbillygal

I'm still in there. Don't think I'll be able to keep putting the scheduled amounts in but I'll keep putting something in.


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## Rocktown Gal

Yes, like another poster said...go as far as you can and then start back over at week one. Anything is better then nothing! Great Job.


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## hoggie

Yep - I'm playing along with this one and am still in. Money goes in tomorrow


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## unregistered65598

I'm still in, money will go in today.


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## Saffron

I saw this on a blog somewhere and decided to do it with a twist. I had considered going backwards, but then knew that I wouldn't always have money
I don't have a job, but I've been selling some handmade jewelry and crafts for money to pay some bills. 
I took a notecard and on the lined side wrote down all the amounts, the back side is to write down "deposit" amounts and dates.
What I do is when I do a fair or sell a commission piece, I pay whatever bill I need to address, then the extra goes into my saving fund. Whatever amount I have I mark off the correct amounts on the card. For instance, if I had $60 to save, I could mark off the $52 and the $8; or I could mark of the $31 and the $29. Whichever combination adds up to my amount that I want to mark off. I try to mark off the higher numbers first if I have enough so that it is easier to come up with the smaller amounts later. This way, I am still doing it, and if one deposit covers two or three weeks, it is okay if I can't make a deposit the next week. However, I always try to put in $1 every week no matter what (which means I will have an extra $52 at the end).
My goal is to achieve the amount I should have at the end of the year, or more.


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## Tommyice

Since I get paid every other week, I've "prepaying" on payday. Tomorrow I'll be putting in for week 7 and 8.


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## Billie in MO

I've been pre-paying, also. I'm good thru week 12. I added an extra column to my chart, a check column so I could check the weeks off and not get confused as to what week I was on. Plus if I had more money I could check off the corresponding week with the amount of money I had. And I added an extra $22 at the end to make it an even $1400.


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## Rainy

Yep still doing the challenge... i like the prepaying idea too..


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## Danaus29

Waiting to see what tomorrows paycheck looks like. They installed a new time clock and several of us lost time one week. It was made up later but still caused problems. I'm just thankful I didn't need it to pay bills, just groceries and gas.


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## HilltopDaisy

I'm still in, in fact, this morning I tossed in an extra $4 I found in my pocket. It feels good to put something away every week.


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## bama

I am doing much like Saffron above. i have a list of 1-52, and a list of 1-26 twice (depending on how finances go). i am quite proud - i started a few weeks into the year, but still have over $150 (finally rolled my small box of change)!


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## Danaus29

Put my averaged weekly amount in savings today. Probably should have invested heavily in the lead and brass market but alas, supplies were depleted by the time I got paid.


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## Danaus29

Anybody still saving?

I had a small setback and had to borrow my money (but at least it was MY money) which I am trying to pay back so I don't know if I can set the money aside this month. And Miller Nursery is having their annual sale which includes several items on my want list. Those are investments though. Asparagus and apple trees are good to have!


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## Billie in MO

Still saving here. I am ahead by 2-3 weeks. I toss in extra ones and fives to help for later. I want to try and start going backwards in the next few weeks if at all possible.


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## CottageLife

I completely forgot! What week are we on? Anyone know?


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## Tommyice

I got off track in week 11. Oh well, I'll just start over.


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## Terri in WV

Should be at week 14 or 15, depending on when you started.


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## Wendy

I have been putting $50 a week in. I missed one week so far.


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## Rocktown Gal

Week 16 is what I have. I may be head a little though.


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## HilltopDaisy

I've been very good about putting $$ away every week. Couple of times I had to grab a few bucks out of the jar but I made up for it on payday. I have direct deposit and rarely have any cash on me, so this forces me to go to the bank and take out money (some for the jar and some for my wallet).


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## Annsni

I'm not doing this challenge but I am putting away any singles and 5s I get into an envelope. After Sandy, many stores actually could use credit cards but those that couldn't were really struggling for small bills and I happened to have $15 in singles when I went to buy ice and you'd think I was the king! LOL I paid $12 all in singles and they loved me. So now I'm trying to rack up a hundred in singles and about another hundred in 5s.


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## Rainy

i am still trying to hang in there with this... putting in $20 a week...


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