How We Actually Afford the Life You See Online

Every Cabo trip you’ve seen Erik and me take has been booked through Cheap Caribbean Vacations. It’s a legitimate site, we’ve never had an issue, and we’ve enjoyed every trip we’ve booked through them. But that’s just one piece of how we make our budget work. Here’s a look at the habits behind the scenes.

A Steve Jobs Approach to Getting Dressed

If you’re not familiar, Steve Jobs wore a black turtleneck, jeans, and sneakers every single day. In his own words, “The reason I dress the same all the time is because I have too many other important decisions to make. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m wearing.” He invented the iPhone, so he was clearly onto something.

This is more of a personal preference for me, but it also saves us money. My uniform looks like this:

• A pair of $14 Amazon biker shorts I loved so much I bought four pairs. I wear them multiple times a week.
• A heavier, boxy, oversized tee from a 3-pack on Amazon. I now own about nine of the exact same shirt in four colors: black, grey, cream, and army green. It has a washed look to it.
• The same white high-ankle socks, paired with either chunky New Balance sneakers or Nikes.

We’ve Never Had Car Payments

When I turned 16, my parents got me a 2007 Ford Focus. I drove that until 2019, when Erik and I bought an old Lexus sports car from a friend for $5k cash. I drove that until I got my Kia Telluride in 2021, also purchased in cash.

Erik had a used, paid-off 4Runner when we met. He drove it until it died, then got a used Honda Pilot from his dad. He rotated between the Honda and my old Lexus until this past December, when we bought him a Toyota Tacoma in cash.

Not paying interest on a car adds up in a bigger way than most people realize. The average US household pays around $770 a month on a new car, or $530 a month on a used car with a loan. Based on recent data, the average American borrows about $44k for a new car, generally pays it off over 5 years and 9 months, and ends up paying around $53k total once interest is factored in. That’s $9k more than the car was originally worth.

On top of that, a car depreciates 20 to 30 percent within the first year alone, which means that $44k car is only worth about $33k after year one. When you consider that the average person goes through roughly 5 cars in a lifetime, skipping car payments entirely means Erik and I will have saved a few hundred thousand dollars by the time we’re gone.

Nespresso Pods Are a Christmas Gift, Not a Habit

I love my Nespresso coffee every morning, but the pods are pricey, coming out to about $1.40 per pod. Our K-cup pods from Sam’s Club run 47 cents per cup, which means Nespresso costs more than 3 times as much. I still buy them, but I don’t keep them regularly stocked. Instead, I ask for them as Christmas gifts.

Groceries and Everyday Purchases

A few of our everyday habits:

• We shop at Aldi and Sam’s Club for groceries.
• We don’t buy bottled water unless we’re hosting something at our house. I know that sounds like a small thing to cut, especially since a large case is usually under $5, but small habits like this add up over time.
• I don’t shop much overall and rarely buy new clothes for myself. If we have something like our Cabo trip coming up, or I’m getting the kids a few seasonal pieces, I might pick up something for myself too, but it’s not a regular habit.
• I go through our fridge, freezer, and pantry regularly so we’re not making unnecessary grocery purchases.
• We buy off-brand for the large majority of what we buy, and stick to name brands only for a short list of items.
• We bought inexpensive storage cubes from Amazon for our boys’ room, since it has no furniture beyond their beds.
• We bought their crib on Facebook Marketplace.
• Kids’ clothes come from Walmart, with about 3 to 4 seasonal pieces from the H&M outlet each year. No big hauls.

Paying Annually Instead of Monthly

We pay car insurance and life insurance annually instead of quarterly or monthly. We do the same with our gym membership, since paying yearly gets us 3 months free, essentially making it a 15 month membership that works out to less than $20 a month.

Skincare, Makeup, and Coffee Out

My skincare routine is simple: CeraVe or another basic face wash, followed by a daily moisturizer with SPF. That’s it, no extra steps.

Most of my makeup is drugstore brand, but there are a handful I splurge on because I think they’re worth it:

• Fenty contour stick
• Anastasia brow gel
• Charlotte Tilbury Pillow Talk lipstick
• Mac Velvet Teddy lipstick

I rarely buy Starbucks unless I have a gift card. If you see me out getting iced coffee on any kind of regular basis, it’s because I’m working through a stash of gift cards, usually leftover from Christmas.

No Regular Rhythm for Eating Out

We don’t have a set schedule for takeout or eating out. It happens on an as-needed basis, and “just because” meals out are rare. We eat at home often, though that doesn’t mean home-cooked every night. Just Bare chicken nuggets make a regular appearance in our house.

We also set a grocery budget and stick to it. We skip pre-packaged kids’ snacks except for Pirate’s Booty, applesauce packs, and cheese sticks. Instead, we buy items in bulk and portion them into ziplock bags as needed. Leftovers get eaten until they’re gone. I call Erik our garbage disposal because he’s willing to eat almost any combination of leftovers to make sure nothing goes to waste.

One more small win: Erik helps out with lunchroom duty at school, which means he gets a free lunch too.

None of this feels restrictive day to day. It’s just a collection of small, consistent choices that add up to a lot more room in our budget for the things that matter most to us, like that Cabo trip.

The Real Takeaway

None of these habits are exciting on their own. A wardrobe of the same few pieces, a paid-off used car, coffee pods saved for Christmas. Frugal living isn’t one big sacrifice, it’s a stack of small, boring decisions repeated often enough that they stop feeling like decisions at all. Skip the interest on a car, skip the daily impulse buys, and the money you’d otherwise lose to those things quietly turns into a trip to Cabo, a paid-off vehicle, or just a little more breathing room at the end of the month. You don’t need a dramatic overhaul to get there. You just need a few habits you’re willing to keep. If you’re interested in learning more, HERE is a link to a podcast Erik and I made about how we saved and paid for his Tacoma in cash.

Until next time, keep adding another penny to the jar.