FT Working Mom Turning into a PT Working Mom & Areas to save Money

There are 3 grocery stores w/in 5 miles of one another. Every weekend, I go through the flyers and decide which store has the best savings and plan meals...
There are certain foods I eat organic, so, I go to Whole Foods for those items. When the items are on sale, I double up.

I do laundry and run the dishwasher after 8 pm to save on electricity.

I need at least 2 or 3 pairs of pjs for the winter. I will buy them after Christmas when they are 60 percent off. I'll wear them from mid-January through the end of April. It usually doesn't get warm until May !

I buy toilet paper in bulk when it's on sale. I use vinegar and water to clean.

I buy a box of B-Day cards for 3.99. The box contains 12 cards. I by white gift bags in bulk. I get a dozen bags for 4.99 and I buy tissue paper when it's on sale.

I use towels a few days...I hang them up on a wide hanger and spread them out so they dry well.

I do not use a microwave to cook, but, when a sponge needs a cleaning, I rinse it out in hot soapy water (squeeze it out well), then, I microwave it for 1 minute.

My favorite coat was from a consignment shop. It was new w/ tags. I paid $16.50 for it !

When I make soup, I boil 2 pounds of rice noodles. I put 1/2 of the soup veggies aside. I use one pound of noodles for the soup. I use the other pound of noodles for a large veggie/pasta salad w/ an organic salad dressing mixed in.

First and foremost, do a budget and figure out where the money is being spent.
Do a weekly menu, use your grocers ads for meal ideas (seasonal produce, sale items)
Look into community offerings for inexpensive or free entertainment.
Buy bulk where it makes sense (you will use 48 rolls of toilet paper, but not a dozen cantaloupes).
Learn the difference between luxury and necessity, it's different for everyone.

Cutting Cable TV : $70 - $200 a month depending on your plan
Cutting smartphone service: ~ $100 a month (get a prepaid phone for emergencies instead)
Cook at home (we would save about $200 a month if we never ate out) and learn to cook from unprocessed ingredients, this includes using dry legumes and baking your own bread. The ingredients for these thing that we usually buy processed are only a fraction of the cost. Find a store in your neighborhood that has a good bulk food section.

Look at any memberships you may have that cost money. A lot of people never review their memberships (whether it be the gym or subscription services) and if it comes directly out of your account or credit card it's easy to "forget" you are spending the money.

Depending on where you live consider if you can get by using one car.

Your first step is to pull a few months worth of account statements and look at what you are spending money on. Then you can decide which of these things you really feel necessary and which ones you feel comfortable cutting.
Good luck.

Look around at what you use and when and how you use it. I am not a big couponer, but I do things like load my bonus card with personal discounts (Safeway will let you have a permanent "coupon" for $.50 off milk). I compare price per quantity. I buy a few extra when the sale is good (like $1 for spaghetti sauce when it's usually $3) and the item will store. Shop with a list and stick to that list. Don't shop hungry.

You can also consider turning off the cable TV and using Hulu or Netflix. Many blue ray players have wifi and can stream.

I don't have the time to shop sales at all the stores, but start to compare and see which store overall suits your needs.

When looking for kid clothes, look in the sale racks first. Buy a size up at the end of the season for next year. I got winter boots for DD for 75% off because they were clearance in June. I guessed at her winter size and if she needs an extra pair of socks, no big deal. Last summer I got two sets of winter pjs for DD for $2.50 per set. Four pairs of pjs for $5 at Target. Sign up for texts from companies to get coupons that you can use online as well as in the store. If your thrift store has a sale day or member card, use them. Ask others about their resources. My mom can get thrifted clothes for a lot less than I can so I tell her what DD needs and pay her back. Bonus, Nana loves shoppping. I also know about how much thrift store items cost so I can decide if that $2.75 shirt in Kohl's is a better bargain (it is, locally).

Freecycle, both to get rid of things and to get things. We got a bike for DD recently by posting a wanted on Freecycle.

I also agree on taking snacks and eating at home. The time it takes to get the food and eat out is often not worth it when I have food at home and we are only 15 minutes from home.

Buy gifts year round and if there's a good deal on generic items, stock a few. Then when the kids need something for a friend, have them go into your "gift box". Same with greeting cards. Or make them. My DD loves to make cards.

ETA: When something breaks, I agree with the other poster to try to fix it. Example, our crock pot. Sure, a new one would "only" be $24 (for a small one) but for $5 I found a new knob for our crock pot and continue to use the one that works for our family size. There are a lot of aftermarket retailers out there. I also repaired our microwave instead of replacing it by buying an inexpensive wave plate. If you google the symptom (like "sparking microwave") you may find easy solutions.

if you have any credit cards, call each and ask for an extesion on your available credit limit. This won't change your balance, but will change your overall debt to credit ratio and possibly make you eligible for better rates as you pay them down.

take a look at webpages such as moneysavingmom for tips on how to do the "drug store game" that is where you pair up drug store incentives, sales and coupons to get stuff for free or better. (extreme couponing style).

consider making your own household cleaners. most things can be cleaned with a bit of vinegar, some dish soap, some baking soda, some elbow grease.

consider getting rid of your paper goods. use rags instead of paper towels, cloth napkins, and actual cups, plates and dishes.

learn how to bulk out your food, and make the most of your left overs.

look for cheap entertainment in your area using things like mommy poppins, the library and the parks department.

best to you and yours,
F. B.

We got ride of cable, and don't miss it at all. Any show I want to watch (including HBO and Showtime shows) can be easily found online to watch for free, and all my kids favorites are on net flick for $8 a month.

Well the first posting would be your answer. Just sign onto that website (advertised every single day by a spammer that signs up with a different account every single day) and you'll earn thousands just by sitting in front of your computer. Why knew?!?!?

Seriously I had 4 kids and stayed home with them while my hubby worked as a contractor. It wasn't until our health insurance skyrocketed that required me to get a job with health insurance.

When I stayed home we had 1 income with a family of 6. All clothes were purchased from the consignment shop or from tag sales. Same with most toys, bikes, and sports equipment. We kept cable (because in our location we couldn't get any tv reception). We ate all meals at home and while my children could have gotten free lunch at school I packed their lunch because I didn't like the quality of food in the hot lunch. Shoes were the only thing always purchased new so I watched for sales and shopped clearance.

Menus were planned around what was on sale. Staples were bought in bulk when on sale. Very little processed food since cooking for scratch is cheaper.

I'd say your first step is to write down how much you spend on things and then figure out where you can make cuts. Things that may not be important to someone else may be very important to you or your husband (like my cable tv). Look at getting quotes for home owners and auto insurance because a lot of time we tend to renew with the same company without looking around and that can end up costing additional money every single year.

Shop thrift stores for clothes and toys. Have at home birthday parties. Make friends with other thrifty moms ( a close friend of mine is a shopaholic, she's not food for my pocketbook), cook rather than eating out. Cut the cable tv. Rent DVDs at the library. Consolidate shopping trips. Have a yard sale every 6 months. Good luck.

Don't window shop. It leads to unnecessary purchases. When you need something go to the clearence rack first. If you need to paint, look at the oops paint at the big box stores. Try to keep things fixed instead of buying new. Find free ways of having fun. Never order anything but water at a restaurant. It's better for you and cost nothing.

Look for ways to cook once, eat twice. With your hours you will use the crockpot quite a bit. You can cook on Sundays for the week like Rachel Ray's week in a day. Anything to keep you eating at home.

Combine errands to save gas. Look for local yard sales.

Say no to fundraisers. You have different priorities.

There are tons of ways to save small amounts and at the end of the month they all add up. Here's a few ideas -

- plan meals around what's on sale
- stock up on groceries when they're on sale
- go to more than one grocery store each week (if they are close by) and take advantage of sales
- if you're not already a member, look into joining BJ's or Costco, you can go into the store and look around, write down prices of items that use a lot of and compare to what you're paying now to see if the membership is worth it for you
- no school lunches, make your own, much healthy and less expensive
- to save on gas, make sure your tires are properly inflated, combine errands so you're not driving all around town
- always bring a water bottle and snacks with you, that way you won't be tempted to stop at a convenience store or a drive thru
- drink water - take a look at what you spend on milk, juice, soda etc, these items really add up
- hang laundry out to dry, the dryer uses a lot of electricity, with the cold weather starting, I hang items in the bathroom
- use a credit card, it's free money, cards offer discounts and rebates, at Target you save 5%, our BJ's credit card gives us 2%, Kohl's 15%, with online bill pay from your bank, you can make the purchase and then within a few days pay it off so you never have to worry about late payments or interest.
- buy clothes and toys at consignment shops and yard sales

Sharing bath water is bad?? That would not cross my mind as bad, honestly, unless there was like, baby poo or something in it. Our family uses the same towel. Why not, it's clean since we use it after a bath. No need to keep washing it. We wash it each week. So many wasteful things I used to do..I tried to stop.

I think getting rid of electronics is #1. Most people have more than they need.