$ Saving Money $
Ahh, it's that time of year again when taxes are on everyone's mind. I know that each household varies in their take on things. Some owe Uncle Sam $$. Some get back a bit of $$. Some get back a large sum of $$. Whatever your situation, I'm sure money is on your mind now, or will be in the next few months.
Today, I'm here to talk about SAVING MONEY today and what our family does specifically to save what we can, when we can. Ahh...there are times when I think about the good ol' days when the two of us were working full time jobs, we had no children and we could literally write checks for things that weren't necessarily necessities, but more wants and luxury items. I have to say, even though those were fun times and we had physical blessings, I wouldn't consider those times as when we were most blessed. I would consider NOW as the time when we're most blessed. Maybe not in dollar signs, but in the blessings that account for much more than that. Can I get an "amen!" from all the frugal readers out there? ;)
Here is a list of some of the things we try and do (or have done)
as a family to save money. If you are one of those families that does receive money back from the government, be praying about upfront costs that you can put forth to save money in the long run.
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I cut the entire family's hair. A hair kit at the store costs roughly $20.00 which is what maybe one haircut would cost in a salon/barber shop. Yes, I even cut my own hair. There are times when I love a "pick-me-up" and I'll use a coupon for a box of henna hair dye, but there are benefits to curly hair I guess. :) If I mess up, not too many will notice.
I cut the entire family's hair. A hair kit at the store costs roughly $20.00 which is what maybe one haircut would cost in a salon/barber shop. Yes, I even cut my own hair. There are times when I love a "pick-me-up" and I'll use a coupon for a box of henna hair dye, but there are benefits to curly hair I guess. :) If I mess up, not too many will notice.
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We make our own laundry detergent. Enough said! It costs me maybe $3.00 to make a 64 quart storage bin of it every 6 months or so. Sometimes I even splurge and buy essential oils to give it that extra touch. I've always been a big fan of adding a few drops of tea tree oil to each load though. Especially with wet towels.
We make our own laundry detergent. Enough said! It costs me maybe $3.00 to make a 64 quart storage bin of it every 6 months or so. Sometimes I even splurge and buy essential oils to give it that extra touch. I've always been a big fan of adding a few drops of tea tree oil to each load though. Especially with wet towels.
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We use cloth napkins. I know that they're not expensive to buy in the store, maybe $2.00 or something, but that $2.00 can add up in a year's time. I will never go back to using disposable napkins again. Especially with milk spills and young children, there's always a hefty napkin to do the job and I don't have to run to the linen closet for a towel to mop up a spill. HERE is a cute site where she makes her own napkins.
We use cloth napkins. I know that they're not expensive to buy in the store, maybe $2.00 or something, but that $2.00 can add up in a year's time. I will never go back to using disposable napkins again. Especially with milk spills and young children, there's always a hefty napkin to do the job and I don't have to run to the linen closet for a towel to mop up a spill. HERE is a cute site where she makes her own napkins.
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We don't use a lot of paper towels. I use a ton of kitchen towels and this way, it cuts down great. Paper towels are only for really dirty, germy messes in our house.
We don't use a lot of paper towels. I use a ton of kitchen towels and this way, it cuts down great. Paper towels are only for really dirty, germy messes in our house.
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I make our own cleaning supplies. Doesn't fog your brain as you're cleaning. They have a nice scent and I can re-use the bottles again and again.
I make our own cleaning supplies. Doesn't fog your brain as you're cleaning. They have a nice scent and I can re-use the bottles again and again.
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We feed our chickens, rabbits and dog people scraps. Nothing goes to waste. The dog will get leftovers that contain oil and or salt only because it's not healthy for our bunnies/chickens. They get the leftover veggie and fruit scraps. Sometimes, if I make a loaf of bread and I know it's going to go bad in the next day or so, they get that too.
We feed our chickens, rabbits and dog people scraps. Nothing goes to waste. The dog will get leftovers that contain oil and or salt only because it's not healthy for our bunnies/chickens. They get the leftover veggie and fruit scraps. Sometimes, if I make a loaf of bread and I know it's going to go bad in the next day or so, they get that too.
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We raise our own chickens for eggs. Our family goes through at least 2 dozen eggs a week! There is an upfront cost to having chickens (building a coop, buying the chicks), but we always used our tax return money for larger upfront cost things that we knew we would save money on later. Plus, our chickens lay up to 1 dozen eggs a day and so what we can't eat, we sell and break even. I was spending $32.00 a month on eggs before our chickens. Now I spend less than that in their grain AND we sell our eggs.
We raise our own chickens for eggs. Our family goes through at least 2 dozen eggs a week! There is an upfront cost to having chickens (building a coop, buying the chicks), but we always used our tax return money for larger upfront cost things that we knew we would save money on later. Plus, our chickens lay up to 1 dozen eggs a day and so what we can't eat, we sell and break even. I was spending $32.00 a month on eggs before our chickens. Now I spend less than that in their grain AND we sell our eggs.
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We bake and cook a lot of things from scratch. I find it so interesting to learn how to make things from scratch versus paying some big wig company for the processed version of it at the grocery store. You can save a ton here even if you're not an avid couponer.
We bake and cook a lot of things from scratch. I find it so interesting to learn how to make things from scratch versus paying some big wig company for the processed version of it at the grocery store. You can save a ton here even if you're not an avid couponer.
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We're not afraid to shop at 2nd hand stores for things, especially play clothes for the kids. I just got Lincoln a pair of Sketchers sneakers from our favorite 2nd hand store and paid $4.00 for them, practically brand new.
We're not afraid to shop at 2nd hand stores for things, especially play clothes for the kids. I just got Lincoln a pair of Sketchers sneakers from our favorite 2nd hand store and paid $4.00 for them, practically brand new.
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We homeschool, so although I'm not working as a teacher anymore and getting paid for it, I use my passion and spiritual gift to do it at home and we don't have daycare costs and/or pricey private school costs each month.
We homeschool, so although I'm not working as a teacher anymore and getting paid for it, I use my passion and spiritual gift to do it at home and we don't have daycare costs and/or pricey private school costs each month.
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We try to stay away from things that are disposable...diapers, vacuum bags, napkins, tissues (I have some super cute hankies!)...I'm really trying to think here, but truth be told I haven't used disposable things in so long that I can't quite remember what's out there.
We try to stay away from things that are disposable...diapers, vacuum bags, napkins, tissues (I have some super cute hankies!)...I'm really trying to think here, but truth be told I haven't used disposable things in so long that I can't quite remember what's out there.
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We don't have fancy things on our cell phones...Internet, etc. so our cost is much lower.
We don't have fancy things on our cell phones...Internet, etc. so our cost is much lower.
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We limit our going out to eat.
We limit our going out to eat.
- We don't pay for expensive fertilizers for our garden. It's compost and bunny/chicken manure that works best!
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We garden a lot of our veggies in our backyard. 1 pack of 50-100 seeds is around $2.00, the cost of ONE lettuce head.
We garden a lot of our veggies in our backyard. 1 pack of 50-100 seeds is around $2.00, the cost of ONE lettuce head.
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We have processed one of our own chickens before and have ordered more spring chicks for this purpose later. A fryer at the grocery store is approximately $7.00-$9.00. The cost of a chick is $2.80. You raise it for 8-12 weeks (yes, you have to factor in a bit of food) and you come in under cost. (Plus, it's just healthier.)
We have processed one of our own chickens before and have ordered more spring chicks for this purpose later. A fryer at the grocery store is approximately $7.00-$9.00. The cost of a chick is $2.80. You raise it for 8-12 weeks (yes, you have to factor in a bit of food) and you come in under cost. (Plus, it's just healthier.)
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The Dollar Store is a wonderful thing! Never underestimate what you can find there. :)
The Dollar Store is a wonderful thing! Never underestimate what you can find there. :)
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We don't spend oodles of money each year per kid on family photos. We paid good money for our camera and it takes great shots, so we use this instead.
We don't spend oodles of money each year per kid on family photos. We paid good money for our camera and it takes great shots, so we use this instead.
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My husband is an expert on finding great hotel deals if we want to take a family vacation.
My husband is an expert on finding great hotel deals if we want to take a family vacation.
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We try to feed our kids healthy, homecooked foods so that we don't have tons of doctor's visits or prescriptions of Amoxacillin. We didn't have to visit the doctor ONCE in 2010! Praise the Lord.
We try to feed our kids healthy, homecooked foods so that we don't have tons of doctor's visits or prescriptions of Amoxacillin. We didn't have to visit the doctor ONCE in 2010! Praise the Lord.
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We don't have a housekeeper! We work together as a family.
We don't have a housekeeper! We work together as a family.
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We don't have a lavish St. Augustine lawn that eats up our water bill. We did before we had children and not only was the water bill ridiculous, but we had chinch bugs every spring that killed big patches of it and we had to add so many chemicals. We love using Rye grass in the fall and winter months when most lawns are brown from the cold. The whole bag costs us $15.00 and we just wait for a day or two when it's going to rain to lay it. Wha-la! Instant green grass for 4 months for $15.00. The chickens and rabbits love being in the tractors and feasting off it as well. :)
We don't have a lavish St. Augustine lawn that eats up our water bill. We did before we had children and not only was the water bill ridiculous, but we had chinch bugs every spring that killed big patches of it and we had to add so many chemicals. We love using Rye grass in the fall and winter months when most lawns are brown from the cold. The whole bag costs us $15.00 and we just wait for a day or two when it's going to rain to lay it. Wha-la! Instant green grass for 4 months for $15.00. The chickens and rabbits love being in the tractors and feasting off it as well. :)
Okay, so these are just a few things that we love doing to save money. What are some things that you do to help save your family money?
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much."
Luke 16:10
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