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Strategies to Save Money:
4 Practical Tips for New Parents
In today's economy, it seems like everyone is searching for strategies to save money.
New parents are probably at the top of this list. Your new baby,
although an absolute joy, is a new expense!
Unless there's a modeling contract tucked in that diaper somewhere, your infant isn't going to be
contributing any cash to your bottom line.
There's hope! It really is possible to finanically adjust to care for this new person. You are not as close to the cliff's
edge as you may feel.
In fact, since our husbands seem particularly prone to "freaking out" about finances, (or is it just mine?)
perhaps you should read this article together.
These simple 4 steps will help you absorb your infant's needs into your current income.
That is why this section is included in The Essential Infant Resource (EiR). In order for this site to truly be essential, it must go beyond
standard "take-care-of-baby" articles and discuss those larger issues that affect your infant's long-term well being.
And so I bring you to Strategies to Save Money. After all, every penny saved is an education earned, right?
Strategies to Save Money: Practical Tip #1
Budget Like You Mean It
If you decide to ignore all the other strategies to save money listed here, don't ignore this one.
One of the strongest ways to secure your infant's wellbeing in the future is to create a budget, and then live within it. What mother really wants
her baby to grown up experiencing eviction after eviction?
What mom thinks that being super stressed-out and angry all the time is a great way to interact with a baby who's into everything? It's a breakdown and
a scream-fest waiting to happen. Save yourself,
your family, and your newborn and create a workable budget.
When Cameron and I were first married, we took Dave Ramsey's course, Financial Peace University. It was SOOO valuable in learning how
to manage our money. If you need help with budgeting, I'd encourage you to visit his site for help.
Once your budget is set up, put your bills on auto-pay. With a newborn ruling the roost for a while, paying bills is going to be the last thing
on your mind. Put them on auto-pay and avoid those late fees!
Strategies to Save Money: Practical Tip #2
Bye Bye Debt...Hello Bahamas!
Once you've set up (and are following) your monthly budget, take a look at how much you spend every month on debt.
Close your eyes for a moment. Imagine a world where all those monthly debt payments were floating into a savings account instead.
What would you do with all that extra income? A family vacation to Bahamas? A safer mini van? A larger home?
Let those dreams motivate you to work harder towards debt reduction.
To avoid being overwhelmed, I recommend splitting your debt into three categories.
- Your mortgage (and any home equity lines)
- Other loans for your car, boat, rich-Uncle Harry's loan, etc.
- Your credit card debt
Choose the category with the smallest debt and attack that first. Within that category, start with the lender or card with the lowest balance.
Once that is paid off, close it, and apply the amount you were paying
on that debt to the next lowest payment.
Strategies to Save Money: Practical Tip #3
Pick Your Own Pocket
Look through your budget - are there ways to trim the fat? Are there expenses that can be eliminated? During a particularly lean time in our marriage,
Cameron and I took drastic measures to lower our monthly bills.
We removed cable. Yes, we survived.
We switched to a pre-paid cell phone. We elminated a vehicle, and Cameron car-pooled to work.
Cutting budget costs is one of the time-proven strategies to save money most overlooked by new parents. Many times the question isn't what, but really Am I willing to....
Here are a few articles I've written that can help you start thinking of areas you can cut back.
Strategies to Save Money: Practical Tip #4
Need More? Make More!
Adding Another Income
Perhaps the most logical of the strategies to save money is to simply get more of it. If you just can't seem to make the numbers work, you and your spouse will simply have to make more. Easier said than done, I know. There was
a period of time where my husband Cameron took a second job delivering pizza to help cover the bills. It was hard at first, but humility pays off in the long-run.
That was before I started working from home. Now I'm a stay at home and a work at home mom. It's hard to live today on a single income.
This site is the answer we needed. I'm able to stay home and care for our precious offspring, but also contribute to our monthly income.
If you want to see how I got started, and went from doing email-only to this site, check out Site Build It. I was an Internet-imbecile. They gave me
everything (and I mean everything) I needed to learn how to do this - at a yearly price we could afford to "risk".
Their free ebook, The Affiliate Master's Course, changed my life (and I didn't even know what an "affiliate" was!).
{Photo by TW Collins} Are You Over-Insured?
Getting a second job isn't the only way to make more money. If you're young (below 40), you and your spouse are in the "productivity"
stage of life. Despite what you may want, you don't need a million dollars worth of coverage!
Figure out who's income will be missed the most, and then over-insure that person. For example, I work part time at home (on this site),
while my husband works full-time.
My insurance coverage is about half of his, because I bring in about half the income. This little trick "found"
us an additional $40 bucks a month. That's $480 a year.
Don't Make Interest-Free Loans to Uncle Sam
You can do the same thing with your tax deductions. If you're not taking any exemptions, you are loaning your money to the government, interest free.
The best way to determine if you're taking enough exemptions is to look at last year's return. Did you get a HUGE refund? Then you are not taking
enough exemptions.
You can let the government take extra money from you every paycheck, and then get a larger return, OR you can add some exemptions, get more monthly
income, but get a smaller return. This little trick provided Cameron and I with an additonal $100 a month in spending money and is one of the best
little-known strategies to save money out there. (And we still received a nice little return from Uncle Sam!)
A talk with your accountant or company's HR representative can help you decide how many exemptions you should take.
Implementing these simple strategies to save money can provide you extra cash as soon as the next pay-check. Did you know that the #1 reason couples
divorce is over money troubles?
Protect a happy home for your newborn by developing your financial IQ. When you live on a budget, and are working to reduce debt, it's amazing
how much brighter and happier the world appears!
Balancing Your New Baby and Your New Life ~ Helpful Articles
Strategies to Save Money: Getting Started
- Into the Minds of Frugal Moms: Their Secret Secrets
What does it take to be inducted into the wooden-spoon club of frugal moms? Is it thrift-shopping? Is it make-your-own-baby-wipes? Nope! (thank goodness!)
Their deepest-darkest, mother-of-all-secrets...the "Secret of Frugality" is...drum-roll please...
- Make Your Own Baby Food: Books that Make It Easy
Making baby food at home is actually incredibly easy. All you need is a food processor (or blender), a freezer tray, and
about 15 minutes. Save yourself tons of money and invest in one of these helpful baby food guides...
- Ideas that Spark
This online magazine provides polls, tips, articles, and other resources to provide creative ideas for difficult situations.
- Become a Family Meal Planning Professional: Simple Tips for Busy Moms
Does the idea of "family meal planning" overwhelm you? This important part of managing your home isn't reserved for Super Moms and Organizing
Queens. You can organize your meals in just a
few minutes a month. Find serenity in your kitchen through budget meal planning.
Strategies to Save Money: Shopping Smart
Strategies to Save Money: Reviews of Online Grocery Services
- Inspecting Peapod Delivery: Wonderful? or Worthless?
It's really tempting to sign up for Peapod delivery. With a new infant and little-sleep, I was desperate to see if the grocery-cloud
actually had a silver lining. Here are the results of my plunge into the
world of online grocery shopping...
- A Fresh Look at Genuardi's Grocery Service
Being able to order your groceries online and have them delivered to you (like you're some kind of A-lister) is pampering
of the 9th degree. The BEST part about this kind of pampering, though, is that you won't have to anticipate a spousal argument afterwards.
See how Genuardi's grocery delivery service measures up...
- Using Safeway Delivery: A Comprehensive Review
The mega-grocery-giant Safeway has launched a delivery service that will literally drop your groceries off straight into your kitchen. So is this
every mother's dream? or a disastrous disappointment?
Strategies to Save Money: Reviews of Meal Planning Software
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Need Help Balancing Home and Baby?
Browse through these helpful articles for answers.
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