Everyone likes to save money. Just about every mom I know lives on a tight budget; many of them stay-at-home moms relying on one income, or part-time workers who still have trouble making ends meet with an income-and-a-half (including myself). All over the country, moms are struggling to feed their families healthy meals, buy toilet paper, toothpaste, and shampoo, and purchase shoes and clothes for their ever-growing children.
So I’ve put together 5 easy ways that you can save some money this weekend and hopefully give you some wiggle room in your budget. Working really hard just one weekend a month can produce a huge savings, so why not give it a try?
Save money this weekend:
1. Turn off all the power in your house for a few hours or an entire afternoon.
This includes unplugging appliances, turning off lights and fans, and even (gasp) the air conditioner. The best way to do this is probably to leave the house (or have fun with it and pretend like you’re camping). The weather is still warm in most of the country, so why not head to the park to play and have a picnic? Or, consider hanging out at a parent’s or friend’s house and then return the favor another weekend of the month so you’re both saving.
Here in Southern California, we even have “Power Saving Days,” where our electric company gives us a rebate on our bill based on how much power we save during specific hours. Check out if your electric company offers something similar; we’ve saved up to $30 on our bill thanks to this program.
2. Downgrade your coffee maker.
Are you a big coffee drinker? Because that stuff is expensive. My husband and I both work from home and are both avid coffee drinkers, which means we go through it like nobody’s business. The best thing we ever did was downgrading from a regular-sized pot to a 4-cup one (like the ones you see in hotel rooms). We used to make full pots and often didn’t drank the entire 8 cups before it was cold, which was a huge waste (I guess it was that “your eyes are bigger than your stomach” syndrome). Now we each get a cup or so from our 4-cup pot, and rarely have waste. Plus, sometimes we’re too lazy to make another pot, so we don’t go through the coffee quite as fast! If we do happen to have some left over in the pot, we pour it in a cup and refrigerate it to use as iced coffee later.
3. Cut your paper towels in half… literally.
This is a little tip I learned from the MoneySaving Mom. I’m not a huge fan of having paper products in the house as it is (I don’t buy paper plates or disposable cups or utensils), but sometimes disposable towels are awfully handy. Although I’ve considered making my own cloth towels, I haven’t made the jump just yet – but I have learned I can make my roll last twice as long by cutting it in half with a serrated knife. I noticed that I rarely used a whole paper towel to do whatever job I grabbed it for, and a towel half the size usually still gets the job done. I suppose this is the same concept as the rolls with precut half sheets, but those are more expensive than the cheap rolls I purchase and chop in half on my own.
4. Commit to eating in all weekend and sticking to a simple menu.
I know, I get it. The weekend is when you want to eat out. You’re exhausted from the week, enjoying spending time with your family, and just want someone to serve you a warm plate of food without exhausting any energy. But committing to eating in just one weekend of the month can save loads of money. Even better, commit to a simple meal plan with a roasted chicken (typically $5-8 at grocery stores; my favorite place to buy them is Costco because they are only $4.99 and bigger than most at the grocery stores). One roasted chicken can get you meals for both Saturday and Sunday if you plan strategically (both lunch and dinner).
If you have a small family, you can eat one half of the chicken for a meal with rice and veggies (a bag of rice and a bunch of broccoli can be as cheap at $2 – check the Dollar Tree for bags of rice and add a chicken bouillon cube to the water to make faux rice-a-roni!). Shred the other half of the chicken and use it for meal #2. If your family is bigger in size, make two meals using shredded chicken to make your whole chicken last longer. Consider making meals like chicken salad, chicken stir fry, buffalo chicken pizza, or one of these leftover chicken recipes.
5. Cancel your cable.
You know it’s time; it’s way more money than it’s worth. We cancelled ours years ago and have never looked back. With our set-up, we’re still able to watch shows we miss, our favorite sporting events, and movies. Find out how with {this post}
Implementing some of these tips might just save you a buck or two, and you’ll really see the savings add up over time. I’ve realized that committing to doing some of these things just one weekend a month makes it seem like less of a sacrifice and much more doable.
Have you got some more tips? I’d love to hear them!
