I briefly considered buying my husband a cow for Valentine's Day. Being the practical man he is, I thought its multiple uses would appeal to him. It would keep our lawn short, it would provide us with milk and would be a regular alarm clock in the morning. I also thought about the money it would save us on milk. Eventually of course dear old Maisy, would go to a "farm" and shortly thereafter several months supply of meat would be delivered to us. Sort of a quid pro quo thing.

Sadly, my plans for Maisy were derailed when husband told me his preferred Valentine's gift would be something that I would make myself. Apparently this Febu Save initiative of mine has inspired him to sadism. So instead I'm frantically casting around to make him something both practical and romantic. So far, I've got a coat hanger, some knitting wool and left over coffee grinds. It's not looking good.

Do you have any suggestions about what I could make for my husband for Valentine's Day that won't a) cost much b) is cute and practical? Because I'll try and make it and it might make for an interesting blog post depending on what it is....

On a more serious note, you should know husband and I do have a budget, we've pretty much always had one. I have just chosen to ignore it. Not anymore. Now many of you had brilliant tips for saving money and so I've cut and pasted them below. If you have a blog link, I've included it as well. Thank you so much for these. I've bolded the ones I'm working on at present. Please note, I've simplified what was written in comments. If you feel it doesn't accurately represent your point, let me know.

MattandSarah: check your receipt straight after coming out of the shops.
Taryn: buy meat on special and freeze it.
lifeslightlyused: create a budget and stick to it and have a saving account to put any leftover money in.
Megan (also a FEBUsave blogger): buy a cow. Yes she was the inspiration for Maisie, but she means one that's already in the cattle shed in the sky. Get new quotes for insurance and direct debit money into mortgage.
Reality chicks: start a note jar, whenever you have a $5 note put it in the jar.
Noelle: keep your receipts and return anything you don't want or need.
Veronica: check receipts and any spare change should go in THE jar.
Zoey: shops at Aldi. We don't have Aldi. ANZ should get an Aldi built here. (She didn't say that btw) and she has a realistic budget.
Mattie: works from a specific financial plan AND makes her own soap. Maybe that's what I can give husband for Valentine's Day?
Digital: uses a drying rack, not a problem here in Oz at the moment and shops discriminately.
Amanda: clips coupons and bakes food I drool over.
Jill: she and her husband save 10% of their paycheck every month and they watch for rebates and use coupons when they can.
fromchaos2calm: could do febuSave for me. One of her great suggestions is meal planning for a fortnight. She has a site devoted to helping people get themselves organised.
nelbe: menu plan, don't buy takeway, shop at Aldi (oh I would if I could!) research where to buy products.
And finally, last week I promised to give away my soap cupcakes and hot chocolate making kits.
And the first winner is:
Here are your random numbers:
9


Zoey@goodgoog
And the second is:
Here are your random numbers:
3
Lifeslightlyused!
Congratulations! Drop me an email with your name and address and I'll get these off in the mail to you.