After a 10 year hiatus, I started back to work a couple years ago. It has definitely has made things easier, but I was determined our spending would only increase nominally. We started budgeting and decided any cosmetic improvements to the house and vacations would come out of "extra" or overtime money. In addition, my dh gets to keep his OT money and I get to keep mine tho most of mine goes into savings. :) It's a motivator for both of us to work extra.
Other tips that have worked for us:
Max out contributions to 401ks before the end of the year, so you have larger paychecks over the holidays.
If possible, have the person who is retiring first with all the paycheck deductions for health insurance, flex spending, 401k (if you can only contribute to one). When my dh retires there won't be that much difference between his paycheck and SS.
