Jenae from I Can Teach My Child has a post on a great gift idea — a Science Kit for Kids.
She has free printables you can use and she shows how she got everything needed for the kit for less than $20 at Walmart!
Summer Bucket List
Classic View
Grid View
Our wonderful June Sponsors
You might recognize Angela from a guest post back in March entitled Going Vegan on a Budget. Based out of the greater Seattle area, blogger Angela Russell is committed to reporting on quality deals and having money-saving tips on her blog, The Coupon Project.
Follow her site for gardening posts,unexpected ideas for saving money, good-for-you recipes and savings, free monthly live webcasts, and an occasional dose of coupon humor.
Lauren from IAmThatLady.com wants everyone to succeed at couponing by her honest and realistic approach to shopping. Lauren and her husband, along with her three children have recently become debt-free after being in over $40,000 worth of debt.
She has a variety of Video Tutorials; from meal planning to couponing, and videos sharing how she budgeted to get out of debt. Lauren also focuses on grocery stores in New York and teaches money-saving seminars across the state of New York.
Motherhood on a Dime is a frugal living blog composed of three sections: Kids, Deals, and Living. As a former teacher turned homeschooling mom, Stacie is always on the look-out for simple activities and ideas for kids.
She recently started a new series called 101 Days of Summer Fun for Kids where she is spotlighting an easy (and frugal) activity each day for the rest of the summer. Besides activities for kids, Motherhood on a Dime is also a place to find deals, coupons, bargains, and posts on faith, food, fitness, and fun. Be sure to enter to win a $50 Amazon Gift Card during June!
Carrie at Coupon Closet shows you how to clip and organize your coupons in only a few minutes each week. Her tips and tricks will keep you ready for every deal you need to snag. Not only will you learn how to use your coupons to maximize your savings, but also how to manage the crazy world of couponing in your everyday life.
Our little shop is full of happy fabrics, practical boutique-style sewing patterns, and fun handcrafted apparel (skirts, aprons, and more). Be sure to browse our $6-a-yard section for great deals on designer fabrics.
Also, check out our brand new rosa lea dress pattern – available for pre-order now! We’d love for you to stop by and say hi on our blog… xox! the Long ladies
YouSaveHere.ca is Canada’s newest cityguide to savings. Their online directory listings represents the trusted and respected local business owners in your community and their daily deals site goes live in a month with savings on products you buy everyday.
They are committed to connecting citizens to local business owners. Stop by and check it out.
Shared Jun 6, 2012
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Reader Tip: How we saved over $150 by just looking over our insurance information
Reader Tip: How we saved over $150 by just looking over our insurance information
Jenni emailed in the following tip:
My husband recently asked me if we were going to renew our AAA roadside assistance membership. I remembered that several of your readers had mentioned looking into whether or not auto insurance would offer that, so I looked up ours online and noticed that we did have it!
I called a customer service representative just to make sure the service was the same as what AAA offered, and found out that it was actually even more comprehensive than AAA. While I was looking at my policy and talking with the representative, I noticed that the coverage also included repair to windshield damage. We had a couple of chips that needed to be repaired, and even though they had occurred awhile ago, it was still covered.
We saved $80 by not renewing our AAA membership this year, and $75 for the windshield repair, so we saved over $150 in about 15 minutes (the time it took to review our policy and make a phone call). -Jenni
Ask the Readers: How can we find a renter quickly?
Today’s question is from Martha:
When I met my husband in 2007 he owned a house and I owned a condo. With the economy going down at the time and no way to sell the condo, we decided to rent it out. For the last four months we’ve been paying two mortgages because we can’t find a renter. Our savings is draining and we’re losing hope.
Any suggestions for finding a renter quickly? We don’t want to lose the place. -Martha
Do you have a question you’d like to ask Money Saving Mom® readers? Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
Jealousy is when…
How We Are Saving Over $2600 Per Year By Not Eating Out
Testimony from Crystal of Serving Joyfully
The average American family eats out several times per week — which is something people tend to underestimate until they really examine the numbers.
This is embarrassing, but I’ll confess it — eating out for my family was completely out of hand. We tried to cut back, but there was always justification.
- We “needed” to eat out for our weekly date.
- We “needed” to eat out on Sundays after church.
- We “needed” to eat out Wednesday nights since there was no time to cook.
- The kids and I “needed” to eat out on Fridays after story time at the library.
The list goes on.
My husband and I live on a meager budget and are trying to get out of debt. We can’t afford all the meals out (we were spending our entire “spending money” budget, plus “borrowing” from other areas to fund it!)
So this year for Lent, we did something drastic — we stopped eating out.
While there are ways to save money when eating out, a meal out for a family of four will typically cost at least $10 for fast food, and $30 for most sit down restaurants. If you are like us, or like the typical American family, just cutting one meal out per week can save you $520-$1560 per year!
Here are some things that have helped us to significantly lower our eating out budget:
1. Plan a Menu.
If you eat out for convenience, you can easily cut out one meal out per week by planning your meals. If you have a roast cooking at home in the crock-pot, it’s easy to skip the fast food on the way home.
I make sure to plan quick meals or leftovers for busy days. Sometimes, just knowing you have a plan gives you the will you need to skip eating out.
2. Don’t Run Errands Right Around Mealtime.
When possible, I plan errands so we’ll be home for mealtimes. I keep snacks in my van so that if we get hungry while out, we can have a healthy snack rather than fast food.
3. Pack a Picnic.
If we can’t be home at mealtimes, we pack a picnic. Now, instead of eating out after story time, we enjoy a picnic at the park. This even allowed me to reach out to some of the other moms and start a weekly playgroup after story time.
4. Have Creative Date Nights.
One of our biggest problem areas was date night. Eating out became our date each week, usually at a sit-down restaurant costing $30+ after taxes and tip. Now, our dates are more creative: we’ll have a movie night at home or do something like a $5 Little Caesar’s Hot & Ready Pizza.
For the occasional splurge, we participate in rewards programs like MyPoints or Swagbucks to earn dining gift cards. By doing this, we are able to limit ourselves to spending no more than $5-$10 per week on eating out, which is within our monthly spending budget.
With these changes, we have nearly eliminated eating out from our budget, saving us around $50 per week, or $2600 in a year!
Do you eat out? If so, what are your tips and and suggestions for saving money on eating out?
Crystal Brothers is a daughter of the King, wife to a forest ranger, and full-time mommy to two rambunctious little boys. She blogs at Serving Joyfully — a blog dedicated to encouraging and equipping women to serve God and their families with a joyful spirit.
Amy takes the Cash-Only Challenge
My friend, Amy, a non-spender who is wise with her finances but pretty much has always only used her credit card, is taking the three-month Cash-Only Challenge I outlined in my book, The Money Saving Mom®’s Budget.
She posted about her observations and feelings after one month on her blog today. Whether you love or loathe credit cards, I think you’ll find her post interesting and insightful.
Have you tried a cash-only challenge? If so, I’d love to hear what you learned from the experience.
9 Ideas for Planning a Fun Summer Vacation
Playing at the beach – free
Guest post from Tiffany of Don’t Waste the Crumbs
Summer is here!
We moms tend to dread those three words since planning activities for ten straight weeks can be overwhelming and seem expensive. But don’t let a budget ruin your family fun.
Here are some suggestions to help make your budget-friendly summer a little more fun:
1. Make going to the park a challenge.
Are the kids tired of the same swings and slides? Create a list of local parks and make it a point to visit one for each week that the kids will be off. Include state parks, beaches, playgrounds, hiking trails, and skate/bike parks for the kids that are beyond swings.
Create a chart to put on the fridge with simple graphics and let them rate the park with thumbs up or thumbs down. Maybe you’ll have a new favorite park when the summer is over!
2. Pretend to be a tourist.
Use a search engine and look up the “10 best things to do” in your city. If your list is relatively short, make it a point to do or visit everything! If your list is long, ask your kids to pick one or two activities that sound interesting to them.
Kids are much more likely to have more fun when they have a choice in the matter. You can even stretch “their” event into “their day” and let the child that chose the activity choose what to have for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
Visiting Parks in San Francisco – free
3. Do a little legwork.
Call the event locations, ask your neighbors, email your local chamber of commerce and/or visit your library to see if discounted or free tickets are available for locals. Our local library offers free passes to the aquarium on the first of every month (to locals with a valid ID).
4. Borrow season or “with a friend” passes.
If your friend’s family enjoyed an attraction so much that they bought season passes, there’s a chance your family will enjoy the attraction, too. If your kids have a good time and want to go again, see if your budget will allow the price of season passes.
Most season passes pay for themselves in less than two visits and will last beyond the summer time frame. You can also team up with another family and be their “friend” on a take-a-friend day, or “suggest” season passes to family members as a birthday gift to the kids.
Season Passes to Local Amusement Park – passes were a family Christmas gift and free admittance for kids under 3
5. Don’t be afraid to ask for discounts.
As a local, I know I can park for free if I’m willing to walk a few blocks. I also know that walking a few blocks with a car full of kids and gear can be tiring. Ask the parking attendants if locals get discounted parking, or if parking can be validated with certain establishments.
6. Set a budget for each event and have fun.
You’d be willing to splurge a little if you were truly on vacation, so loosen the reigns just a little bit. Save by packing a lunch or eating at home beforehand, but have fun with an ice cream treat afterward.
7. Mix it up for a day at home.
Take board games outside on a blanket or picnic table, spend the day “camping” in the backyard or create a scavenger hunt outside with their favorite toys. Allow the kids to get messy with chalk or finger paint. Dress them in their swimsuits and turn on the sprinkler! Go for a nature walk and create a picture list of things to “find” along the way.
Watching the airplanes take off and land – free
8. Check local movie theaters.
Local theaters often run a summer special where kids movies will play at the same time, the same day of the week. Tickets are usually inexpensive and this could be a great for rainy days, or when you need a break from the sun.
9. Send your kids to someone’s house for a day.
Team up with other moms and take turns planning a home activity each week that involves all the kids. This would give you a day off and the kids are still having fun while being supervised.
Don’t take on planning the whole summer at once. Start small by planning for one or two days each week. For example, make every Monday a park day and every Friday a field trip. Visit a new park each Monday and a new “event” each Friday and see where the fun leads you!
Tiffany is a full-time mom navigating the bumpy road of food, money and motherhood, while trying not to waste (or lose) crumbs along the way. She blogs about her experiences at Don’t Waste the Crumbs.
Shared Jun 5, 2012
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Reader Tip: Free access to an online foreign language program from the library
Reader Tip: Free access to an online foreign language program from the library
Want to learn a foreign language? Michele from Saving Money In Real Life emailed in this tip:
I recently learned that my public library has an online foreign language program that I can access for free. There are dozens of foreign languages available that I can learn!
Many public libraries across the country have the same free program. It’s called Mango Languages. If you check their website, you can find out if your local library participates. You can find out if your library participates here.
I thought your readers might enjoy this program especially those who homeschool. My son and I just discovered it last week, and we’ve been having a lot of fun with it! -Michele from Saving Money In Real Life
Have a quick money-saving tip to share? Email it in through our deal submission form and if we end up publishing it, we’ll link to your blog.
Do-It-Yourself: Invigorating Coffee Sugar Scrub
PenniesAndBlessings.com shows you how to make an invigorating coffee sugar scrub.
Do you have a fun and frugal DIY idea to share? I’d love to hear about it! Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
OVER-SPENDING EVERY SINGLE MONTH?Grab these FREE Budgeting Sheets!
Click here to download!
6 Goals for This Week
We’re heading to Virginia early, early on Wednesday morning and will be there through Sunday. I’ll be speaking five times at the Virginia Homeschool Conference and we’ll be running a booth in the vendor hall, as well.
So, needless to say, I’m keeping my goals simple this week. That way, I don’t set myself up for automatic failure. 🙂
Last week’s goals:
Family/Mothering Goals
1. Finish reading Quest for Truth:Taken (reading to everyone), Winnie the Pooh (reading to Kathrynne), and The Courage of Sarah Noble (reading to Kaitlynn).
2. Attend our local homeschool convention and buy our curriculum and other things for next school year.
3. Write a love note to Jesse.Personal Goals
4. Finish readingRadical.
5. Run at least five times. {Only managed to run three times.}
6. Listen to 2 hours of The One-Minute Entrepreneur.
7. Sleep for at least 7.5 hours every night.Home Management
8. Follow my Freezer Cooking plan and blog about it.Business Goals
9. Finish writing one article for another site. {I spent all of five minutes on this. Yep, it got shoved to the back burner last week.}
10. Prepare for speaking/having a booth at the Virginia Homeschool Conference next week.
And this week’s six goals:
Family/Mothering Goals
1. Pick out new books to start reading aloud to the girls individually, as well as to everyone.
2. Write a love note to Jesse.
Personal Goals
3. Finish reading The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market Itself
4. Sleep for at least 7.5 hours every night.
Business Goals
5. Finish tweaking workshops and powerpoints for Virginia Homeschool Conference.
6. Travel to Virginia Homeschool Conference with Jesse and Kathrynne for speaking engagement.
How did you do on last week’s goals? What are your goals for this week? I’d love to have you share your progress on last week’s goals and your goals for this coming week in the comments. Of, if you’ve blogged about it, leave your direct link below. Let’s cheer each other on to live purposeful and productive lives!
You can download a free customizable weekly goal-planning sheet here.
Shared Jun 4, 2012
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6 Reasons People Argue Against Using Cash Envelopes — And Why I Don’t Buy Them
6 Reasons People Argue Against Using Cash Envelopes — And Why I Don’t Buy Them
Guest post by Kristen from Getting More God
After following MoneySavingMom.com for a while and reading about the Cash Envelope System, my husband and I decided to take the plunge about a year ago. Our bank account was slowly dwindling, even though we had a budget that we tracked each dollar in. We figured being “cash only” was the best way to keep track of where these dollars were disappearing to.
I thought it would be painful, but it has actually been beautiful. We will never, ever go back!
Many of my friends and family think we are crazy for using envelopes and offer up the same concerns I had before taking the envelope plunge. I figured it would be quick and easy to get them all in one place and provide the answers I’ve found since beginning our “Life with Envelopes.”
Argument #1: “I don’t want to have all those restrictions! I want to enjoy my life!”
You determine the restrictions. You look at your income versus your bills and decide exactly how much money goes to each category.
If you love to shop and want to spend $100 per month on clothes, so be it! That just means a little less is going to go to the other envelopes. It all depends on your decisions for where your money goes based on what your family needs and can afford.
Envelopes actually free you. You know things are covered and you no longer have such regret over purchases you weren’t prepared for!
Argument #2 – “I don’t know how much money to put into each envelope or what envelopes I even need!”
There are many great resources available with guides on just how to do this.
Argument #3 – “I do not want to go into the gas station every single week to pay cash for my gas. Headache!”
There are still things that we use our card for, and gas is definitely one of those. I would never ask you (or require myself!) to go inside and pay for gas every time. You’re right, it’s a headache!
Argument #4 – “I don’t want to have to tell my friends I can’t hang out because I just spent my last dollar in my envelope. I’m not an 8-year-old with an allowance!”
No, you’re not. But you could be a 35-year-old living at home with your parents if you don’t learn to manage your money well! So, my advice is to look at your month when it starts. Knowing how much money you have for eating out, entertainment, etc. and then decide which weekends you will use it.
If your friends ask to hang out on a certain weekend where you know you’ll be strapped for cash, recommend another weekend or ask if you can hang out at a certain venue you know you can afford. You initiate the invites and then things are much more within your control. And if you find that you are constantly restricted by your envelope, you may need to adjust amounts.
Argument #5 – “That seems annoying to have to actually go into the bank and get cash out every month. I don’t have time for that.”
I say this when it comes to exercise, too… You have the same 24 hours in your day that everyone else has. You make time for the things that matter to you.
Look at what you spend your time doing. You can’t deny that those are the things that matter to you, or else you wouldn’t occupy yourself with them. So decide to make your financial health matter to you and get to the bank once a month! It’ll take 10 minutes! Financial responsibility requires some dedication and maturity.
Argument #6 – “I don’t want to use cash because I use and pay off my credit card each month. I get points/rewards for my purchases and I love that!”
If you are able to keep your finances 100% in check and not have money slipping through your fingers with that system, then more power to you! I’m not saying everyone must do the envelope system, or else you don’t care about stewarding your money well.
I’m simply asking that everyone consider it. Handing someone cold, hard cash is so much more difficult and meaningful than swiping a card and “giving” them this imaginary-feeling money. It doesn’t leave an impression at all. You can easily spend without even thinking about it.
You think twice — or even three times — when you hand someone your hard-earned cash. That’s the benefit. But if your “cushion” isn’t dwindling slowly and you are fine with your system, no need to change!
Ultimately, do what works for your family. Using cash envelopes has completely changed our family (for the better!). They might not work for you, but you’ll never know until you try. Thank you to Money Saving Mom® for introducing this to us.
Kristen is 27-year-old mother of one happy toddler and wife of one great man. She has many earthly passions which she attempts to use to stir her affections for Christ on her blog, GettingMoreGod.blogspot.com. She hopes to see His hand in all of the passions He’s given her here on Earth. She wants everything to point back to Him. That’s the challenge, and she writes about the process of discovering it!
2012 Goals: May Update
How are you doing on your goals for 2012? I’m excited about the progress I made in May…
Personal
Read through the Bible in a year. {I’ve been keeping up with this faithfully.}
Read through the 24 books on my 2012 booklist. {I’m almost finished with May’s books and have read quite a few other books!}
Listen to 12 audiobooks. {I just finished May’s audiobook and am starting on June’s!}
Run in at least one 5K race. {Finished the Couch to 5K program and am now working on getting my time down. Hoping to sign up for a race soon.}
Complete the Couch to 10K program.
Tackle 12 Do-It-Yourself Projects. {I made English Muffin Bread last week — I’ll blog about it next week!}
Focus on one habit per month. {We made some good headway with consistent bedtimes in May — yay! On to getting places on time — one of the areas I really struggle with!}
Learn to use my new DSLR camera (huge surprise Christmas present from Jesse!!) & improve my photography skills. {I’m excited to be seeing some improvement and progress with this! And I’m also excited that I’m beginning to feel more and more comfortable using my camera!}
Take at least one photo a day and put together a page every week for my Project Life album. {I’m behind on putting my album together, but I’ve been doing good about taking lots of pictures!}
Memorize Colossians using the plan and free download here. {I’m almost caught up with this.}Marriage
Go on the Love Like You Mean It Cruise. {Done–read my recap here.}
Go on two Marriage Retreats (Went to Cincinnati together in April).
Have monthly date nights. {We had one date in May.}
Read four books together. {We’ve done two books so far this year.}
Read at least 3 books on marriage. {I’ve read two so far this year.}Children/Homeschooling
Continue regular dates/outings with each of the children individually. {I went on at least one outing with each child individually in April.}
Continue Grace and Truth memory book. {The children memorized three verses plus one verse of a hymn in May.}
Ice-skating lessons for all three children. {The children finished up their second round of classes and we enrolled them in a third round since they are enjoying it so much!}
Swimming lessons for all three children. {We’re hoping to get all three signed up for this within the next two weeks.}
Finish second grade, begin third grade with Kathrynne. {Kathrynne finished second grade in May — woohoo!}
Finish kindergarten, begin first grade with Kaitlynn. {Kaitlynn finished Kindergarten in May and is excited about beginning first grade soon. I’m excited because her reading and spelling have taken off in the last month — she’s quite self-motivated which helps tremendously!}
Start preschool with Silas. {Started this in April.}
Go on at least one field trip every month. {We went on one field trip in May.}
Go on at least one family vacation. {We have one planned for July.}
Finish at least 15 read-aloud books. {We’ve finished 14 read-alouds so far this year.}Ministry/Friendships/Extended Family
Write at least two handwritten notes every month to encourage someone. {I wrote & mailed five handwritten notes this month.}
Continue being involved in our local church, homeschool group, young couple’s group, and blogging accountability group. {Ongoing}
Continue with weekly get-togethers with both sides of our extended family. {Ongoing}Business/Blogging
Continue to take Sundays off from blogging/business work. {Ongoing}
Continue keeping strict Office Hours for the business/blogging time each day. {Still plugging away on this!}
Switch to a paperless planning system. {This is the one goal I think I’ve officially decided to drop this year as it just wasn’t working for me. Back to the paper.}
Follow my weekly blogging plan. {I stuck with my blogging plan all but three days in May, if I’m remembering correctly — woot!}
Plan blog posts out at least a month in advance. {I made some great progress in this area in May!}
Write and schedule blog posts at least a week in advance. {Making some headway with this, though I’m far from where I want to be!}Financial
Continue to tithe 10% of our income. {Ongoing}
Give generously to needs in our community and around the world, as God prompts us. {Ongoing}
Pay cash for a new-to-us vehicle to replace our family’s van. {We’re still looking and haven’t found anything we love in our price range yet!}
Finish saving for and purchase a rental property with cash. {We’re in the process of investigating our options in our price range right now and deciding if we want to go ahead and purchase something or continue saving.}
How Are You Doing on Your Goals for 2012?
If you’ve posted goals for 2012, I’d love for you to post an update on how things are going and share your link in the comments. If you don’t have a blog, feel free to just leave your update as a comment. Let’s encourage one another to live lives of intention and purpose!
Target Shopping Trip: Spent $10.05
I stopped by Target earlier this week and here’s what I picked up:
2 2-liters of Sierra Mist — on sale for $1.33, used $1/1 coupons = $0.33 each after coupons
4 bags of frozen vegetables — priced at $0.99 each, used $1/4 coupon = $0.74 each after coupons
1 International Delight Coffee Creamer — priced at $3.14, used free coupon = free after coupon
1 gallon milk — $2.99
1 Up & Up Ibuprofen — priced at $0.99, used $1/1 coupon = free after coupon
3 Revlon nail files — priced at $1.69, used $2/1 coupon = free after coupon
1 Up & Up Baby Shampoo — priced at $1.52, used $1/1 coupon = $0.52 after coupon
1 Up & Up Baby Wash — priced at $1.52, used $1/1 coupon = $0.52 after coupon
1 6-pack of Dannon Pure — priced at $1.99, used $0.75/1 Target coupon = $1.24 after coupon
1 Up & Up Liquid soap — priced at $0.99, used $0.50/1 coupon = $0.49 after coupon
Total with tax: $10.05
Learning to Save Money and Give It Away
Guest post from Sarah
My husband and I are debt-free except for our house and live within our means. Until last year that was enough for us.
Then I stumbled upon Money Saving Mom®. One year later I can’t claim to be an expert, but there are a few things I’ve learned along the way.
Saving money takes time.
Time to learn the lingo. Time to know a good deal when you see it. Time to find a system for coupons. It even takes time to make some mistakes and learn from them.
Don’t expect to be a pro in a few months. Start slowly so you don’t burn out. You can’t change everything about your household expenditures in a month.
Be leery of spending money to save money.
At least when you’re starting out. At first I thought we absolutely had to buy a deep freeze if we wanted to save money on groceries.
We delayed this purchase, and for us that was a great decision. We’ve made our side-by-side refrigerator/freezer work. Sure, it’s a challenge to stack and shove it all in, and sometimes I’ve had to ask family members if I can store a little in their freezers.
That may not be an option for you, but try being creative before you dive in to an investment designed to save you money.
Do what works for you.
I don’t play the drugstore game. Am I missing out on some great deals? Probably, but I’m doing what works for me.
I shop with my kids, and the stress of handing over coupons in a specific order and making complicated shopping scenarios seems like more than I can handle with them in the cart. Although, it is an adventure I’m excited to tackle sometime down the road!
Draw a line, and don’t feel bad about it.
Sure, you can save money by making things from scratch, and I do more of that than I did 12 months ago. But like Crystal says in her homemade tortilla post, some things aren’t worth the effort.
You have to put a price on your sanity and quality time with your family. Don’t waste those precious gifts on saving only a few pennies.
Keep things in perspective.
You have a life beyond saving money. At times I’m making a grocery list or printing coupons and my sons need a snack or help washing their hands.
This can seem like a major interruption. Can’t an 18-month old realize I’m printing coupons?
My kids are my job. Looking for deals is something I need to do as I can and not let it consume me.
Give back.
A year ago we were content with our level of giving. We wanted to give big, but it was something to do later. After I return to work. After college funds are fully funded. After the house is paid off.
Crystal has challenged those thoughts. We’ve been able to increase our giving over the last year, and I’m excited to see where God leads us in this area in the future.
Sarah is a writer turned stay-at-home mom with two boys, ages 5 and almost 2. In an effort to stay in the writing game, she’s dabbling as a freelancer between loads of laundry, potty training, playing super heroes and saving money.