Who doesn’t want to simplify these days? And what if simplifying your life could also save you money? It’s a win-win.
1.Stay home more– less shopping, less gas, less stuff (just make sure you don’t get an online shopping habit)
2.Run errands one, maybe two days a week– this doesn’t have to be hard and fast but get organized, make a list on Sunday night of the things you need to do for week and see if it can be done on one day.
3.Don’t over-schedule the kids– not only can kids activities be expensive they can make you frazzled if there are too many. Let your children pick their favorite activity and one that you choose (try to double them up if your kids are close in age and have similar likes). And with your newly found time start a family night at home at least once a week.
You can also check out our post with 17 at home, free or low cost activities for kids.
4.Get rid of the stuff that you don’t use. Pairing down clutter is freeing and even better if you can make a few dollars on Ebay or Craigslist.
5.Read the newspaper online. There is something that I like about feeling the book or paper I am reading- but if reading online doesn’t bother you- It is free and green.
6.Meal Planning. Break out the week’s ads and plan some meals around the best sales. Make sure to stock up on those great deals for other weeks too. Meal planning will make the mad rush between the kids getting home from school and parents getting home from work easier- not stressing over what’s going on your table. Better yet- use the crock pot and your meal is ready when you need it.
7.One car– This is a biggy and a hard one. This will not be realistic for many of us but it might be worth considering if your are able to ride a bike to a close store and don’t need to got a lot of places during the week.
8.No Cable– ooh, another hard one- flipping those channels is sooo.. fun. Ages ago we reduced our cable to the basic and sure I kind of miss all those channels- but I don’t miss sending off almost an extra $400 per year to the cable company. But you can check out my post on how we still get basic cable for free.
9.Quit smoking– no brainer- saves money in the short and long run (with your health)
10.Walk the kids to school– great in so many ways (unless your child is a tween or teenage, then I am sure they will have a problem with it- lol). Not only do you get exercise, save on gas, and get to spend some valuable time with your child- you get some amazing time alone on the way back. Take that time to listen to a book or bible study on CD.
That is 10 pretty easy ways to save a decent amount of money and maybe even save you some stress.
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