Budget Tips {Guest Post }

Three Tips To Save Money

Our family may not always have it together and there have been times that we struggled financially, but our home is filled with happiness and much more love than I could ever imagine. Last year, a medical emergency plagued our family that left my husband unable to work and shifted our financial income drastically.

Our new family income had no wiggle room, and like many other families, I considered us to be “just making it” from pay day to pay day. I was desperate for a change, and quickly learned that we need to make some changes to how we spent money.

Recently, I examined each and every bill that passes through our front door and tried to find a way to pay less. I quickly learned that small savings from many places can add up and can make a bigger difference.

These three small things may not save us much money right now, but we have a safe and happy home filled with love.

GROCERIES: I choose to shop at Wal-Mart due to their price-match guarantee and by shopping at one store it saves a lot of travel time from one store to the next. I browse all the flyers available on mobile apps to find the lowest prices for the food items and products that we need. When products are on sale and I know we use them a lot, I like to stock up on them for a low price. The most popular items we buy in large quantities are peanut butter, ketchup, juice/juice boxes, pop, BBQ sauce, pasta sauce, pasta noodles, toilet paper and laundry soap. Don’t go rogue, make a list of the items that you need and stick to it. I found that I was likely to spend twice as much on groceries when I shopped the shelves without a list

SECOND-HAND: I’m very fortunate that my children happen to enjoy the art of finding great steals at second-hand clothing stores. I have bought many great items at prices that my bank account loves. We have purchased bedroom furniture, including a desk and a dresser for $20, almost brand new sneakers for $7 and even a Lulu Lemon Hoody for $15 (this retails for almost $100 in store). Shopping second-hand can be hit or miss on any given day that’s why I browse items for next season as early possible. Oh, I almost forgot, we even scored my son’s Halloween costume for $7.00.

COOK AT HOME: Throw the meal-planning out the window. I know I suggested this a few months ago, I tried it and hated it. There are a lot of resources that praise meal-planning and while it works for some families, it was not working for ours. By not having a set-menu, I’m able to use what I have on hand in the fridge, freezer and pantry each meal. I have also stopped making enough food each meal to feed an entire village, left overs were often being tossed out and we were wasting money on food that was not being eaten. I also save money by bringing my lunch to work each day instead of buying one.

About The Author:

I am a full-time working, potty-mouthed and tempered, home-cooking, thrift-finding thirty-something mom on a budget.I blog to share our adventures in cooking, love, challenges, parenting and life.

Blog: www.busymomdiary.com

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