Tag Archives: saving money

Eliminating Food Waste: Leftovers for Lunch

Winter is a great time for converting your leftovers for lunch. While a cold sandwich or a salad might be fine for the summer, winter’s temperatures often bring appreciation for a warm and heartier meal. Plus, when you have leftovers for lunch, you are eliminating food waste. Eliminating food waste means eliminating the cost of additional food, as well. Many people turn their noses up at leftovers. It is okay. I used to be one of them. One way to solve this is to freeze any leftovers you have and then bring them back out on another day. Of course … Continue reading →

Saving Little By Little

As a single parent money is always tight. It’s hard to make ends meet with only one income these days. I’ve mentioned many times in previous blogs that I am currently a full time student. The university I attend is about a 40 minute drive from our home. I was putting 60 miles a day on my car and was driving back and forth five days a week. When I was teaching in the schools I was putting double the miles on my car. Needless to say, I was spending an insane amount of money on gas each week. With … Continue reading →

Slow Cooker Basics Part 2

If you want yummy, perfectly cooked slow cooker or crockpot recipes that cost pennies per serving, then keep reading. With a little knowledge, your slow cooker meals will help you reduce your food bill while keeping your family happy. This post is part two of Slow Cooker Basics. If you missed the first post, you can find it here: Slow Cooker Basics. Now, let us add to your knowledge about how to make delicious slow cooker or crockpot meals. Some Food Cooks Faster than Others Vegetables usually take longer to cook than meat does. Don’t worry, you can still cook … Continue reading →

Benefits Cut for Disney World Premium Annual Passes

The lobby of the Grand Floridian, one of Disney World’s most exclusive hotels Walt Disney World continues to aggravate its most loyal fans, as it announced in December that discounts for premium annual pass members will be cut.  The Orlando Sentinel has all the details. Since 2010 Disney World’s been pulling back a lot on the discounts it offers various pass holders.  This time, the target is premium annual passes, which already cost around $750 (Florida residents get a discount at around $600).  Now the shopping discounts premium annual pass holders receive have been cut in half. Let’s take a … Continue reading →

Don’t Pay For Convenience

As chaotic as most parents’ lives are, it’s no wonder products such as bagged salad, pre-cut cantaloupe and rotisserie chicken are in high demand. Unfortunately, convenience often comes with a hefty price tag.  Think about how much you spend on items that make your life easier.  Even if you purchase four cheap bags of salad each week for an entire year, you’re looking at paying at least a few hundreds dollars.  You could save money by purchasing a head of lettuce, whole carrots and some celery, and then chopping them up yourself, but how do you put a price tag … Continue reading →

Thrift Store Treasures

If you are a single mother, chances are money is pretty tight around this time of year, well let’s face it, money is tight all year round! With the holidays right around the corner you may be feeling the financial pressure weighing on your shoulders. It’s hard to provide Christmas for your children when you are already struggling to make it on your own. However, there are lots of things that can make this time a little less stressful for a single mother. Yesterday afternoon Logan and I went to a local thrift store with some friends of ours. We … Continue reading →

Grocery Savings without the Fuss

There are many different grocery savings tips out there, but most of the general advice involves spending a lot of time cutting coupons, driving from store to store, shopping at odd times, and creating a full-blown price book. For many of us, that is just too much fuss and a larger time commitment than we can handle right now. The good news is that you can still lower your grocery bill without all of the fuss by just following a few simple rules. 1. Find the right store and stick with it Without going crazy, compare prices on a few … Continue reading →

Smart Mama Shopping

You can please some of the people some of the time, all of the people some of the time, some of the people all of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time.  That goes double if you are a penny-pinching mom playing Santa Claus. I am all about retailers trying to make cash this holiday season.  I get that, but when you are living on a tight budget and you have kids who are expecting St. Nick to deliver a little more than just a few stale candy canes this Christmas, don’t … Continue reading →

School Pictures

Sometimes it seems like my child’s school is a money pit. From school clothes and supplies to pictures and field trips, there is always something that will dent your budget. I am always looking for ways to stretch my dollar just a little bit farther, living on one income can mean lots of sacrifices but you don’t have to sacrifice everything, you just have to get a little creative. Take school pictures, those packages are such a waste of money. You always wind up with more pictures than you need in sizes you don’t want, and to make matters worse, … Continue reading →

Back To School On A Budget

When I leave for work in the morning I can tell fall is on the way. A few short weeks ago it was light out at 5:45, now it’s dark, and there is a chill in the air that reminds me the seasons are changing. Although I don’t really need the weather or lack of morning light to tell me, all I have to do is walk in any store and be bombarded with the back to school displays. The first school year that I was divorced was so stressful, where was the money going to come from? Hailey was … Continue reading →