A Tour of Cheapville

It never hurts to save a dollar and when you have a family of many, every cent saved is for the better. I have to admit it, I’m cheap. Yes, there’s no shame in the name for me. I love shopping at the dollar stores and yes, Wal-mart is my mall. We call it Le Wal de Mart in my parts. I love saving my aluminum foil to reuse on another item just as my grandma had done in the past. I use baking soda for my toothpaste and I hate throwing anything away when there could be so many other uses that I can find for it. No, I’m definitely not a pack rat because I can’t stand clutter but I love to do a little recycling of my own.

We are a family of seven and believe it or not, the largest family in my church. I get many responses to our family’s size in regards to how we “make it” or survive. I know about larger families who do the same but I guess we are weirdos. Well, I thought I’d share some of what I do when I do what it is that I do. Ha! Many are common sense things that my Mom had passed down to me which also came from my dearest Grandma, rest her soul.

1. Never use plastic plates. If you tallied up the cost of plastic or paper plates in a year, you would be amazed! We always use our dishes for meals. It’s easier to simply wash them if you have to wash pots and pans anyway.

Also, use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins or paper towels. You can pop the napkins into the washer and dryer to use again.

2. Do your own recycling. Wash your aluminum foil. I know this is crazy but it saves. Ha! Don’t throw that aluminum foil away. If you can wash, dry then fold it away for later use, do it.

We also reuse old school paper or printing paper as scrap paper for math lessons.
I also save old plastic containers after rinsing them out. Yes, I know. I’m a little grandma but it saves.

I use old cloth diapers for dusting the furniture and cleaning the windows. You can also use fabric softener sheets for dusting also but old diapers are cheaper.

3. Menu Plan. This is a wonderful cost saving idea since it keeps me from making unnecessary trips to the store and wasting more money on gas and food. I create menu plans for all of our meals and shop by the week although you could do it biweekly or even monthly. My brain just can’t think that far in advance so I prefer to shop weekly. It’s really not too much. I plan out breakfast, lunch and dinner. I have a common list of stables that I have to have on hand in my pantry in order to make our favorite meals then if a recipe calls for something else, I just add it to the printed list. I buy all store brand items when I shop. I also make some household cleaners.

4. Turn off the lights! I don’t have the new cost saving bulbs as yet. You know, those little curly fluorescent thing-a-ma-jigs? However, I plan on getting some. I have to admit, they aren’t the cutest things and they are a little costly but they do save on energy so it actually balances out in the end. One of our home rules is that everyone helps Mom and Dad to save money and one great way to do that is by turning the lights off if you are not in that particular room and turning off the electricity if you are not using a certain appliance. You may not think about it but as long as an item is plugged into an outlet, it uses energy. So we unplug everything even the electric pencil sharpener if we aren’t using it. We do leave the TV and major appliances plugged except if we are going on vacation.

Now, don’t laugh but we have five children. I bathe my toddler but the boys are old enough to handle their own baths. Thank the Lord! This may be TMI (too much info) but I don’t allow my sons to run the bath water more than 6 or 7 inches in height. They had the tendency of filling the tub until it reached the point of overflowing so now they have a handy yard stick nearby to guide them. My oldest is a shower guy but with three younger sons behind him who were completely filling the bath tub, the costs were getting outrageous. I could have gone deep sea diving in there!

As for laundry, I have a motto when it comes to doing the laundry, “If it doesn’t smell and the dirt doesn’t tell, you are wearing it again, Bud”! Of course, this saves on the utilities and keeps the clothes from wear and tear a little longer. When my children get to the point of their clothes really reaking and the church members begin to stare with red watery eyes, we then know it’s time to do the laundry.

5. Buy used. I drive a 1999 used van. In 2002, we purchased our van from a car dealership with only 30,000 miles on it at the time which wasn ‘t too bad for a two year old vehicle. I have prayed over that vehicle many times along with my hubby’s used truck and the Lord has kept them running over 6 years. So if you see a woman on the side of the road laying hands on her vehicle, don’t worry. It’s just me! Just keep driving or stop and agree in prayer with me.

Don’t forget about yard sales, consignment and thrift stores. I love them. I have purchased some really neat finds from yards sales and thrift stores. If you decide to try yard sales, just check your weekly newspaper to see what’s happening on the weekend. Most yard sales are Fridays and Saturdays. Map out your routes according to the sale locations. Start early. I usually get up at 5am and start the shopping at 6am to find the really great deals. The earlier, the better. You can find me somewhere convincing a seller to drop a price down from a nickel to a penny. Hey, every little bit helps.

If you don’t donate your clothes, you can sell them in consignment stores also. It’s a great way to earn a little cash if you’re not up for hosting a yard sale yourself. I mostly pass our used clothes along to family members before donating. Save A Life is my favorite organization for donating items.

Used curriculum falls into this category as well. By all means, if you can buy used, go for it! I also try to purchase curriculum that allows me to teach my children as a group while covering multiple subjects at the same time. Unit studies are great for this if you have many little ones. This saves cost and time. You don’t have to purchase every new or latest curriculum or book on the market. Shop around and get what your family needs not what you want. That’s my shopping motto. Always ask yourself while shopping for anything whether the item is a need or a want and if you’re like me, it’s more than likely a need so just put it in the basket and don’t look back.

yle=”font-weight:bold;”>6. Cut the green. No, I don’t mean the lawn. We don’t use credit cards. We have in past but came into a little financial trouble due to mismanagement so we decided as future reference to just say NO. If we can’t pay cash, we just don’t get it. If it’s something that we really want then we save for it. Gas cards are fine but I believe less is best. We have been trying to allot our money to our bank accounts which are Checking, Savings, and Emergency Money. Emergency Money is for things unaccounted for such as unexpected bills as result of job loss, emergency room visits, or emergency car repairs, Aunt LuLu coming to town with all of her kids and crashing at your place,etc. You know, the unexpected things. One area that I must admit that we haven’t been as faithful in but will start after this article. Uh hum…. is our retirement and college fund accounts. I don’t really know why we haven’t been as faithful. In the back of my mind, I’m thinking that if I homeschool my children to the point of their brains are bursting with knowledge then they can get full college scholarships and take care of my hubby and I in our old age. Don’t wake me up! Let me enjoy my dream already! A girl can dream, can’t she?

Don’t forget to pay those tithes! “I, I , I , I pay my tithes, pay my tithes. I, I , I , I pay my tithes, pay my tithes. Pay my tiiiiii-iiiiii-iiiii-iiiithes.” (song to the tune of “Staying Alive”) The Bible says that if you pay your tithes, God will open the doors of Heaven and pour out a blessing that you will not have room enough to receive. Can you imagine that? Tithes go towards the up building of the Kingdom so don’t miss out on your blessing.

Gas is so high today. Every time I blink my eyes, a little guy is on a ladder changing those gas prices. Somebody needs to steal that ladder. I can see it now. Mom caught stealing gas station’s ladder. Live at 5 on Action News 9. Well, another cost saving measure is getting as many errands into one trip as you can. Keep gas in your vehicle. Don’t imitate me by driving around on the last drop of gas til the point of fumes then stopping only to purchase enough gas to get that little gas light to go off. Car Pools are nice if your children have many activities also. Don’t forget to collect gas money from every child. I don’t care if little Susy is sobbing. If she can’t pay the fee, she is hitting the street. She should have thought of it before she left home. It’s really not your problem. If you live in a large city, you may have access to public transportation which saves on cost as well. As a last resort, you could always knock the bottom of your car out and have your family run their little feet off just like Fred Flintstone.

7. Entertainment. We just play shadow puppets on the family room wall and sometimes we count the lint from hubby’s belly button. So much fun! Actually, we love movie matinees. Cheap! However, we mostly rent movies. We have Fun Family Fridays around here so we play games, rent movies, then make a fun meal and sweet dish to enjoy as a family. But there are other fun cheap activities that we enjoy such as trips to the park, bike riding, swimming, boating, bowling, barbecues and skate boarding. No, you will not ever see me on a skate board unless you are into Extreme games because it would definitely be Extreme pain. But if my van stops running, you may get your wish. I love water play and games right here at home. Museums and the zoo are other places that we love. You can call around to check which facilities have free days. There are certain days or times that some places have free admittance. We have visited quite a few museums for free. Just for your information, when you arrive during the free hours, don’t ask the patron “How much do we need to pay to get in this thing?”

As for dining, we do the same. Check around for family specials such as Kids Eat Free Nights. We love those because it saves a ton. I have a schedule for each week day for Italian, Mexican, American, and even Chinese restaurants in which we can get children discounts. It comes in handy when we dine out but we actually dine out only once or twice a month because the best way to cut cost is to cook a meal at home. I know some folks enjoy buffets and allow their little ones to enjoy a meal from their plates. I, the GermX queen, can’t really DO buffets. It’s the thought of all of those little hands on the serving handles that scares me every since I got a nasty stomach bug from a buffet style restaurant. I shall not reveal names. Actually, I would but I forgot how to spell the name of the place.

Don’t throw out the left overs the next day. We use our left-overs for lunch. You can also freeze them for next week’s dinner then mark that meal off your next menu plan. My husband believes in left-overs. He will eat a week old pizza.. I believe his stomach is made of cast iron. Maybe that’s why he rarely gets sick! He’s eating homemade penicillin. Yum!

I almost forgot special events! We have birthday parties for our children every other year. When my oldest was younger, he would have a birthday party every year. By the time he reached pre-teen, our twins were four and the annual birthday parties for three children were getting costly so bi-yearly parties work out very well plus it allows us time to really plan and save for them. During the years without parties, we have a set budget on birthday spending. We will usually view a movie of choice, dinner at a favorite restaurant and do a little shopping. When the other children were younger, they would always get a kick out of getting a Happy Birthday pat on the back and a shiny new quarter! Oh, they were so easy to please back then. As for parties, you can go “pot luck” and have others bring dishes or you could serve finger foods and punch. There are many tricks to the party trade.You can google many cost saving ideas for parties also.

I always say that our budget is even on a strict budget around here. My hubby manages our finances. I did it long ago but totally messed things up so I turned the reigns over to him. We would often have a home filled with groceries yet having to eat dinner in the dark because I’d forget to pay the light bill. It was so romantic. I just loved how the candlelight reflected and shimmered against my husband’s face but hubby didn’t appreciate the romantic moods that I kept setting. My hubby has a mind for business and he is so much better at it than I am so he currently handles our budget. He sets a budget for grocery, clothes, school, etc. and I just purchase what we need. I can manage and organize the household things quite well but I have no desire to handle the bills. However, I applaud moms who do their house hold finances. You are very talented mommies!

I hope you have enjoyed your tour of Cheapville. I know that some of you have heard these tips before so just use this as a friendly reminder to continue your ever so cheap efforts and please feel free to share your cheap mama tricks with us. For those who are new to this little land, you are now official citizens of Cheapville.

Kysha is the wife of a paramedic/businessman and homeschool mom of five beautiful children from ages 2 to 18. She enjoys blogging, fishing, reading, working in children’s ministry, and snuggling with her hubby while watching sunsets or romantic comedies. You can find her at Love’s School.

Tags: Frugal living, Home Management

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