Redbox

Though we used to spend $100+ a month just for entertainment (Cable and Internet), we decided to cancel cable when we moved and now only pay for internet. This has saved us over $80 a month, which really helped out since buying a house has unexpected expenses pop up all the time. We do get to watch TV through the internet (websites like Hulu and even the network websites often have the current season available the day after it airs). Aside from that we depend on Netflix for the bulk of our entertainment. If you sign up now, you can try it free for a month. If you decide you like it, they have plans that start at $7.99 for only instant viewing, we have the plan that sends 1 DVD in the mail and unlimited instant streaming through our Wii.

Even with these inexpensive options, there are times when we want to see movies that are more recent or are too impatient to wait for the mail to come. We use Redbox for times like that. We are able to pay only a dollar and rent a movie and have it instantly without having to pay higher rental prices.Redbox also texts a free rental code the first Tuesday of the month. That is a nice treat for us to just pick whatever sounds good at that moment and not have to pay for it. When the kids and I are home alone, I'll pick one for them and we have a "movie night" with popcorn. I get to feel like an awesome mom but I don't have to spend anything to do that. If you also watch Groupon, they have featured a "rent 3 for the price of 1" promotion for Redbox that makes this cheap service even less expensive! Also, if you sign up for Redbox now and reserve a movie online, you'll earn a free rental for your next visit.

How do you get entertainment for cheap? I feel like we were practically throwing $80 away each month, since we are just as happy now (on month 3) without cable service as we were then.