Nowadays alot of families have a hard time making it on two incomes and as a stay at home mom we needed to find ways to make it on just one. Our solution? Instead of trying to figure out ways to bring in more money we are taking steps to hold onto the money we have by reducing our living expenses.
Although I come from a large family with a very frugal mom I have not always been frugal by nature. My husband and I have had our share of credit card debt as well as overspending on trivial things such as eating out alot. These days the credit card debt is almost paid off and although we do enjoy an occasional meal out we have cut back. Day to day we try and watch our spending while still splurging occasionally on the things our family enjoys.
Here are just a few ways we have cut our expenses. Our solutions may not work for everyone but they have put us on the right path to debt free living.
When our furnace needed replacing we decided to go with a soapstone wood stove. Not only is it beautiful but it really does a nice job heating our home. Some people think we are crazy because we don't have a backup source of heat but it suits us fine. We are lucky that we can get most of our wood for free from a family member who lives in the country. We have been heating this way for five years now and my husband never complains about chopping wood, In fact it really helps him stay in shape. We are also unaffected by the rising cost of heating bills each year.
We invested in a freezer. If you have room in your home you can probably find a decent freezer for under $200.00. We purchased a small chest freezer at our local Sams Club and it is paying for itself rather quickly. I purchase big packs of meat and rewrap into smaller portions to freeze. I also look for sales on meat, frozen vegetables and other items and stock up.
We have just one vehicle which is paid for. It is inconvenient at times but when I think back to how it was when I was a child this was the norm for many families. This also works for us since I don't work outside the home but with our preschooler getting older we will be getting a second vehicle eventually. However, for now we are happy to go without a car payment.
We gave up the extra channels on television which brought our cable bill down from $50 per month to just $12.00 per month. This has been a sacrifice but we still get our basic channels to watch our favorite prime time shows as well a PBS for our son. Occasionally we rent a movie but for the most part we borrow movies for free at library. The selection at the library is usually limited but you can usually find some great children's movies (and lets face it, a four year old doesn't really care that Toy Story was released a decade ago since it is new to him).
