Money Saving Mom's Budget book

I did a search at the library and this book came up so I reserved it.  I figured if it was interesting I was all set and if it was boring, I could just return it.  I opened up the inside and saw that it was from the women who writes the blog moneysavingmom.com and I realized that I was going to have to read it.  As most could tell if they paid attention to the title, The Money Saving Mom's Budget: Slash Your Spending, Pay Down Your Debt, Streamline Your Life, and Save Thousands a Year by Crystal Paine is written by the Money Saving Mom.  The problem that I have with the books that require action is that I want to read the whole book and then do the "chores" that they recommend.  I should probably take notes on the homework assignments and power through.  I might have to go back and read the beginning to see what I have to do.

On page 59, the author lists ten drastic measures to lower your expenses by at least $600 or more per month.

1.  Downsize your home- not happening!  We bought a smaller fixer upper house and we have spent many years fixing it up so we are not moving and I don't think that we could find a place cheaper then here.

2.  Become a single car family- not happening.  We have two really old cars (okay, one is truck).  If we did have one car then my son and I would have to get up and going and take my husband to work in the morning when we needed to use the car which would cost lots more in gas.  It would be better to change the car insurance to be collision only and with my record and the way people drive in this area, we just haven't taken the plunge.

3.  Stop eating out- Done.  We only go when we have a gift card from someone else (Thanks Ann, we went to Panera last weekend when we went to the outlets to get my pots on super crazy sale with my gift card from Christmas).  My husband has had two lunches out both $5 in the past three months when travelling from one meeting to the next for a special treat.

4.  Get Rid of Cable-  Done.  We didn't get cable when we moved from our apartment to our house 9 years ago so we haven't had it in 9 years and really don't miss it.  We can hardly keep up with the normal channels.

5.  Cancel all subscriptions and membership- Done (ish).  My husband and I both have a magazine subscription that my parents give us for Christmas so there isn't any cost associated with it.  My husband does have one magazine (only $20 per year) but it is going to go for 3 years before it expires and it helps save money with projects around the house.  We don't have gym membership or Jazzercise membership anymore.

6.  Cut the bells and whistles on the phone- Done.  The home phone is already cut to barebones and had been for 9 years since we moved in.  We don't have local or long distance calling on it so we only use it for incoming calls and power failure situations.  I would like to cancel the home phone all together but my husband wants to make sure that we have a land line in case of emergency if cell phones aren't working like on 9-11.  My cell phone is at the lowest plan that we can since we have a family plan with both of my parents on it and they now pay half the bill.  I would cancel it but we use it to talk to family and they are all in network so we can talk to them as much as we want or need to.

7.  Eat more meatless meals- this is a tough one.  We did a spaghetti dish with zucchini that was meatless but only a few times.  We normally did spaghetti and meatball meal where there wasn't much meat but we really aren't a meatless family.  I guess we could try a few but I think that we normally get meat for so cheap and don't buy the expensive cuts over $2 per lb.  The way I have tried to get around this like they mention in the book Family Feasts for $75 per week, make meat a side dish.  I make a pizza that has meat on it but it is a little bit compared to a normal meat and potatoes meal.  I also make a taco rice where the main part is the rice and one pound of meat can be split to make taco rice and a pasta dish and one other item.  I follow the idea of the $5 Dinners to try to get everything for way under $5 per meal.  I am usually really successful in doing that so we don't have to have a lot of meatless meals.

8.  Quit using your dryer-  I think that this one sounds do-able.  I don't know if it will save as much as they think that it will be something that I can think about.  I would have to figure out where I can get a clothesline and where I would be able to hang it.  I think that I could find somewhere in the backyard to put it but it would take a little investment to get the clothespins and line.  The numbers that I have seen on this are saving $10-$15 per month.  I am not sure if it is worth the initial investment but I will look into with the warm summer months around the corner.

9. Adjust your thermostat- Done.  I have adjusted it down a few clicks and we have the programabler thermostat- Done.  I have adjusted it down a few clicks and we have the programable one so it changes throughout the day.  I spend most of my time under a blanket either way because I love snuggling in with my blanket and reading a book.  As long as there is no one else here, there is no one to mind the cold :)

10. Plan a menu and use coupons- Done.  This is obviously where I started!  I started using coupons 3 years ago and shortly after started planning a menu.  I have been working to use the items in the freezer while using the grocery money for the month to stock up on things for next month or perishables for the current month.  I think that I have done a great job getting all of the things that my husband and son consider essential items to have in the house like Cheese-Its, Cranberry Juice, Frozen Pancakes, Ham and Turkey lunchmeat while remaining under budget.  The main reason is because I try to save as much as I can on the other items so that I can fit in a few more luxury items like Cranberry Juice (don't know if you have seen the going rate for it recently but it is pushing $4).  I think that menu planning is a great thing and helps when shopping greatly because you know what you have and if you need anymore :)

The other part that is closely related to this topic for me is the budget (which she mentions in another section).  I found lots of great deals when I first started couponing and I didn't know when to stop.  If I had 5 coupons, then I was out buying 5 shavers.  Do I need that many shavers???  NOPE!!!  As evidenced if anyone has seen my under the bed boxes in the guest room.  I have one for shampoo and shower gels (with a little corner for my husbands toothpaste and deodorant).  I have one for all the small stuff like nail clippers, lip gloss, travel tide, toothbrushes, and this also includes air freshner, hand soap, and shave cream.  I have another one that has bars of soap, lotion, and shavers.  Lastly, I have one for feminine products shoved all the way to the back.  There is a logic in my head but I don't know what to tell you because it doesn't work for everyone plus there is also a weight limit to what I can actually pull out from under the bed and the one with the shampoos is super heavy!!!  Recently added a smaller box for medicine and things that shouldn't be mixed with soap like cough drop :)  Anyway, back on topic, I had to set a budget so that I didn't buy every deal out there.  After couponing for a year without a budget, I knew that I needed some financial boundaries or we would go broke with all the deals that I was getting (they all aren't free you know).  I started tracking my grocery expenses (including diapers, personal care items, and household products) in February 2011 which happens to be the same time that I quit my job to stay home.  See how that makes sense that I wasn't making an income so I had to make sure that we didn't have a huge outpouring of cash for the items we needed.  Obviously it would be nice to have steak and baked potatoes with asparagus but was that something we could afford.  Meal planning linked to budgeting helped me to decide :)

For those of you out there looking to get all the benefits from this book without picking it up, I gathered a list of websites that she suggested so that you could check them out.  I haven't checked them out yet but I am sure that there are a few winners in the bunch!!

myfridgefood.com- make meals out of items in the fridge
lifeasmom.com- freezer cooking
leftoverchef.com- recipes to use leftovers
momsbudget.com- homemade cleaners
crockpot365.blogspot.com- crockpot meals
vrbo.com- vacation rentals by owner
recipezaar.com- restaurant copycat recipes
beautyandbedlam.com- thrift store shopping

Best idea is to pick this up at your local library or bookstore and check it out for yourself.  It is a super fast read with lots of measurable hints on how to get better at tons of things and be grateful for what you have.  I hope that you enjoy it if you do pick it up to read :)  I know that I am glad that I stumbled upon it!!!