Turning the TV off (and the budgeting on)
The kids all sat there with their mouths hanging open. My husband and I had just dropped the news.
After months of looking at options, evaluating costs, weighing pros and cons, we had a made a decision.
We were cancelling cable.
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A very fat piggy bank
For years, our two older kids have been begging us to buy them a Nintendo DS.
My husband and I discussed it and decided that, as parents, we didn’t think they needed one. Well, clearly they don’t “need” one, so perhaps it’s better to say that with all of the other things that surround them – from books to art supplies to physical games and electronic game systems – we didn’t want to add one more thing that would vie for their attention.
Our eldest was particularly frustrated by this decision.
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Single salary
Two and a half years ago we made the leap. After a lot of consideration and planning, we decided it was the right time for my husband to leave his job as an employee of someone else and open his own business.
Exciting. Scary. Daunting. And expensive. Really, really expensive.
We knew at the outset that it would mean relying solely on my salary for at least two to three years. And I am not going to lie, that really stressed me out. Our expenses weren’t going to drop. If anything, as our kids grew (along with the needs of the business), our expenses would only increase.
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The best $6 I ever spent
You can only hear yourself say “Please clean up your toys” so many times before you either want to give them all away, throw them all out or, more often than not, just do it yourself.
I read an article a few years ago that explained how kids have a different perspective of what “cleaning up” means. While adults may see cleaning up as actually picking up items and putting them away, kids don’t see things that way. The direction to “clean up their rooms” is too big, too broad and, perhaps too overwhelming for them to process.
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Summertime hits your bank account
As a kid, I remember counting down the days until summer break. Summer was the end (albeit a temporary one) of responsibility, the beginning of sleeping in and the start to seemingly endless fun new adventures.
It wasn’t until I grew up and had kids of my own that it occurred to me that those summertime adventures cost money. Lots and lots of money.
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Kids and taxes
My kids approached me the other day asking for some money for their school’s book fair. My middle son reported that the book he wanted was $10, so that was all he needed. My eldest then reminded his brother that there would be tax. So, after quickly doing the math in his head, he suggested he bring another 76 cents. Which prompted my middle son to ask, “So who gets those 76 cents anyways? The president?”
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Casual Couponing
Shortly after we got married, my husband had to have surgery and was unable to work for about six weeks. So, there we were, fresh out of school, with student debt coming due and working to find a way to live on a single income while living in an expensive city.
Rather than dwell on it, I decided to force myself to look at our situation as a game. How many ways could I spend smarter and save more?
Getting kids involved
One of the obvious ways was couponing. I would clip and organize and spend thoughtfully.
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