Children are one of the most expensive things that you will ever invest in in your whole life. The whole cost of living, from birth until they move out (and beyond, let’s face it), is probably more than you will pay for your house, your car and your social life combined. You are funding another human, and that’s something that doesn’t come cheap. Although you may not notice the money going out on some occasions, there are others where it can feel like your purse has been completely drained. However, there are some things that you can do to cut back on spending and live a more frugal life with your kids.
Use Coupons
This isn’t just for the people on television who get through a $700 shop for a cent. Coupons and vouchers will help you save more than you realise, and if you get into the habit of looking online before you go out shopping, you could be coming home with more money than you realise. It’s a way of life for some and a method that needs serious adoption for others to comprehend. The fact that we have the internet readily available to give us whatever coupons and vouchers we desire is a blessing in itself – no longer do we have to sit and cut away at magazines all night!
Move Home
If you’re renting, there will always be somewhere that’s cheaper than where you’re living. If you have bought a house, you could go down a different path and look at mobile homes for sale or perhaps just move from where you’re living into a cheaper house – you could make quite a bit of profit on the place that you’re currently living.
Start Living Free
There are free activities around every corner for you to do, you just need to find out where they are and take advantage of them. National parks and forests, schools and libraries are the best places to go and keep your eyes peeled for free activities that may arise; your children may even have more fun doing something in one of these places rather than taking them out on a big trip to a theme park.
Do Nature Activities
Getting out into a place such as your garden and using this as your base for the day can be extremely rewarding – and extremely cheap. Have a look online for all of the garden activities that you can do: bark rubbing, leaf collection, and fairy-den making to name but a few. Utilising the space that you’ve got and making it into something amazing with the help of a bit of imagination can do wonders for your child’s creativity.
Reuse and Recycle
This is probably the most obvious way to live on a budget with children – reuse and recycle everything. If clothes aren’t dirty, don’t wash them – re-wear them! Keep any boxes and plastics for craft materials and if some dinner is leftover from the previous day but hasn’t been touched, reuse it the next day to avoid waste. It’s not being cheap – it’s being thrifty and frugal (which sounds so much cooler…)