I write down (excel) all of our bills and when they are due. Then I decide what bills get paid with each paycheck and what's left over. Thats how we know how much is left for gas, groceries, savings, etc. That is how I have been paying off debt - if less bills are due that month I send a bigger payment to something.
We also try to be frugal. We don't go to sit-down restaurants. I can spend $5 on soda that will last a week at home (it's $2.50 a glass some places!) We cook or we get sandwiches or pizza. I check the Sunday ads and only buy stuff like paper towels when it's on sale. When you do it enough, you learn what good prices are. I don't pay $4 for a jar of salsa that is $2 somewhere else. I wait until I go to that store. Sometimes stores will try to say something is on sale for 1.79 when it's normally $1.85. When you start to pay attention to prices you will notice those things. I hate grocery coupons because I forget them when I need them or I carry them around forever to save a quarter. So unless it's $1 off, I skip it. This isn't just groceries either. I know if something is cheaper at Target or BB&B with a 20% coupon. You just learn these things.
We also don't usually just casually shop for clothes. I used to LOVE going shopping on the weekends and I stopped when we bought our house a few years ago. I buy fairly nice clothes that fit well and last and I carefully do my laundry (and often). I buy stuff when I literally have nothing appropriate to wear. If clothes don't fit or wear out I pitch them and replace them, but I try very, very hard not to buy things just because. Last year I bought a $50 dress (on sale) that I HAD to have. I have never worn it. I hung it in the middle of the closet so I see every day why I shouldn't spend $50 on a dress I will never wear. I could have gotten a really nice pair of pants that I could wear every week instead. So far it has worked. I also occasionally pull the old Old Navy & Target stuff out of my closet that never fits right and is junky and throw it away. That also reminds me that cheap isn't always a bargain when your $6 shirt lasts through 1 washing. I'd rather have the $25 shirt I can wear 25 times.
