Would Frugal Living Allow Me to Stay Home?
If you are a mother with young children, you have probably wished there was a way that you could stay home with them. Do really want your children raised by the babysitter? One of the reasons why a family might consider living frugally could be to allow one of the parents to stay home. If your goal is for one of you to be at home, then the following steps might help you to go from two incomes to one by living frugally.
1. Start by cutting down your debt. You have probably always heard the saying “the more you make, the more you spend.” This statement is really true. If you want to live on one income, then the first thing that you need to do is to stop using the credit cards. If you are trying to cut back, then don’t be tempted to put something on the credit card because you will just get deeper in debt. Any extra money you have every month should be put toward paying off your credit card debt.
2. Decide on what is really necessary and stop paying for extra services that you don’t really need. For example look at your cable bill and decide if you need those extra features. Or drop your phone service and only use the cell phone.
3. Eat out less often and start cooking at home for a change. One of the best places to cut back every month is on food cost. Before going to the grocery store, plan a menu for the week and always write down a grocery list of the things that you need to buy. Check to see if any of the sale items can be used for that week’s menu. Cutting out coupons can also cut your grocery cost. Don’t buy something though just because it is on sale or you have a coupon unless you can use it on that week’s menu plan or future meals.
4. When there is only one person bringing in an income, it is also advised that you set up a budget that you can live with. This budget will help you to figure out if it is really possible for one of you to be at home.
4. Once there is only the one income, also be sure to set aside an emergency fund for those unexpected expenses such as car repairs or an illness. A cushion to your budget, such as an emergency fund of at least three months worth for expenses, can really save you a lot of stress in those types of situations.
5. While at home, think of ways that you can bring in some extra income such as selling crafts, babysitting, catering, work at home business, etc. If the budget is tight, any little extra money can help out. Think of things that you enjoy doing and then be creative.
