Thursday, September 06, 2012

Advice Needed!

Well, here we are at week one of being a full time stay at home mom.  I LOVE all the free time I have.  Used to, I'd have to hurry and put Graham down for a nap so I could get a little work in each day.  Now, I get to do whatever I want...it's so awesome.  The stomach bug did hit our house this week so that hasn't made the first official week that great, but we've dealt with it and hopefully are on the up swing.
 
So, now that we've cut our income in half (deep breath, Kat), I need other stay at home mom advice.  How do you cut corners financially now?  What are things you save on and spend on?  What are some things that you are able to let go of if any?  We're adjusting our budget, and I'd like to get your advice on how you save your money...if that's not too personal!  What are your best thrifty ideas...where are diapers the cheapest...where do you get the best deals etc.  Any advice is appreciated!  But remember...I live in a town with just Wal-Mart, so don't tell me to buy things at HEB, Kroger or Target...not happening!
 
And just because people love pictures of cute babies....here are a few of mine.  We're two weeks away from the big birthday!
 I've told you G loves looking at pictures of himself, right?  Here's proof....I don't blame him...I'd look at myself all day too if I were as cute as he is!
 My two sweet boys reading before bedtime.  LOVE them.

3 comments:

Kelli said...

The biggest thing that has helped us is menu/meal planning. I never used to plan our meals before I shopped, so we ended up wasting a lot of food. That has improved a ton! I have enjoyed looking at recipes and trying new ones, etc. It has made cooking more fun! Also, once Graham is on 100% table food, that will help a lot too. Baby food, formula, and baby snacks are so expensive!

Also, we save a lot of money just with me eating at home for lunch. I meet people for lunch about twice a week, but the other times I have a sandwich or leftovers here at home. It's a lot less expensive (and healthier) than all the Lean Cuisines I ate when I was working. :) Joe Dan will sometimes come home for lunch, too, which also saves us money.

I sometimes use coupons. There is a site called Coupon Mom that has all the coupons for the week. Something I have learned is that coupons aren't always store-specific coupons, there are brand coupons too.

I have friends who swear that diapers/formula off Amazon Mom are cheapest. We use Huggies, but I also really like the Target store brand (sorry, I know that doesn't help you much). We use the store brand wipes too (the sensitive ones).

We save a lot on gas, since I'm not driving to/from work every day. I do a lot less shopping now, too. But if I do buy something, I always buy on sale, especially if it's for Parker Ann. It makes me mad to pay full price for something she will only wear a few months.

I think the main thing is just to be conscious of spending. It's embarrassing how much money I used to spend without even thinking about it!

I hope some of this is helpful. I am so excited for you to stay home! There are definitely sacrifices, but the blessings outweigh them, for sure. :)

Kelli said...

Wow. that is the longest comment ever, and now I'm embarrassed. Sorry! :)

Ashley said...

So...I'm really behind on commenting on blog, I'm so bad about that! I'm excited for you that you are getting to stay home with your cute little guy! It is an adjustment going from two incomes to one, and has taken some trial & error on our part figuring out what works best.
One big money saver for us has been DVR/Cable. We got rid of both & now only have nexflix & hulu & honestly I don't know if we will go back. It's been a great change for us in a lot of ways.
Yes, meal planning helps & eating out has become much more of treat.
And sadly, shopping for new clothes for me happens after my birthday or Christmas or super cheap clearance racks! :)
Good luck & have fun loving on that sweet boy!