With the economy tanking and Baby #2 on the way, I have been forced to look for ways to save my family money. To be honest, I was really forced to change my spending habits about two years ago, when I quit my job to become a stay-at-home-mom. The past few months have just made me even more determined to save.
Here are the top 5 ways I save money. Not all of them are terribly original, but they have worked for us.
1) Avoid The Stores
I quit Target. Literally, I quit going to Target for a couple of months. I examined my credit card statements and waskind of disturbed to find that I was going to Target at least once, sometimes two or three times, a week. I don't know what is about that store, but I swear, I would run in to buy a loaf of bread and leave with three candles, two throw pillows and matching Halloween costumes for my dogs. I have returned to Target.... I missed her so.... I just am much more careful about what I buy and I don't go nearly as often. What is your store to avoid? Sometimes, it' as simple as just not going.
2) Shop More Often
In light of my previous example, this one probably seems a little counterintuitive. But I have written a post on how grocery shopping more frequently has actually helped my stay on my grocery budget more often than not. Of course, it won't work for everyone, but it is really working well for me. You can read more about it here, but the general idea is that I make 2-3 quick trips a week to the grocery store, I always use a list, and I only buy what I KNOW for certain we will be eating over the next couple of days. I rarely throw anything out anymore and like I said before, I am sticking to our grocery budget most months.
3) Frugal Websites
I found two great websites that have helped save me a tremendous amount of money. I don't know how I got by before I found Stretching a Buck and Money Saving Mom.
4) Wait Longer Between Haircuts
When I was working I had my hair cut and highlighted every six weeks, regardless of whether or not it really needed it. I now go about every 10-11 weeks. It's saved me a good bit of money, and I think my hair looks about the same. Maybe even a little healthier, since it's not exposed to so many chemicals.
5) Use Your Freezer
We freeze lots of food now and it really adds up. I have a chicken cassserole recipe my husband and I both love, but we can't eat it all at once. So we eat half of it and freeze the other half. Not only do we save a little money, but that's one night I know we'll have a good dinner and I don't have to anything but thaw a casserole and pop it in the oven. When I see meats and frozen veggies on sale, I buy them and freeze them, which also helps lower our grocery bill.
6) Use a Written Budget
We finally did this and while I do admit to going over more often than not, it has become much easier to keep track of our spending and saving habits. I have noticed, too, that the longer we have used the budget, the better we are sticking to it.
