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One of my biggest challenges as a Stay at Home Mom is saving money. I have been a SAHM for 3 years now and this is still an everyday challenge for me. Over the years I have gotten better, but I’m still not where I want to be…but I am learning the small changes have a big impact.
Being a SAHM I am usually responsible for many of the errands for the family. Although we operate as a team, I handle some of our everyday items, and honestly, I love it. However there are a few places that my husband and I compromise on. Any business with our cars, is usually my husbands job, he handles the auto parts store, picking up a car part or anything else that pertains to our cars.
Since there are a few places that I loathe going to (auto parts store, post office, bank or phone store) when handling family business, I have learned to pass them off to my husband. In passing these places off to my husband I realize that we make better overall decisions for our family!
Here are 4 ways that I save money as a Stay At Home Mom…
Check Online Deals
You should always check online for additional deals or exclusive online deals that aren’t run in the store. Many stores have discounts for first time online shoppers, or sales on those items that don’t fall into your everyday items category. Another reason to check online deals is because sometimes there are sales online whereas the items are regular price in the store….this is the stores effort to get you to buy online rather than in the store.
As I stated earlier one of our compromises is automotive items are usually left to my husband to take care of, however, Walmart.com has the option to purchase your products online and have them shipped to the store or shipped directly to your home. When my husband needed oil for our truck, he ordered it the night before online and shipped directly to the store, when I came in to shop the next day the oil was ready for me.
I picked up Pennzoil Platinum (synthetic motor oil) – Best cleanliness and protection in the Pennzoil line-up. With PurePlus™ Technology, the Platinum® motor oil is proven to keep pistons up to 40% cleaner than the toughest industry standard. PurePlus™ Technology is a revolutionary process that converts natural gas into a 99.5% pure base oil.
By shopping online there is less chance for error…especially when it comes to automotive items. When I purchased the Pennzoil at Walmart.com there was a special ONLINE-ONLY offer!
Learn more about Pennzoil…
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pennzoil
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Pennzoil/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pennzoil/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/pennzoil
Walmart.com has many of your day to day needs as well as niche items that you can only find online! I love shopping online during the holidays because I am able to avoid the crowds and busyness of the store. And its always a bonus that I can have the items shipped directly to my house or pick it up at the Customer Service desk in the store.
Find Coupons
Coupons are EVERYWHERE you just have to take some time to search for them. Get your local papers when they have the coupon circulators in them. Some stores take double coupons on certain days, make sure you are prepared to shop on those particular days. There are also stores that accept their own store coupons, as well as accept manufactured coupons.
Also there are many websites that you can go to and print out coupons. I have a special email for our family, that we send all coupon mailings to. This helps me to stay organized with my coupons rather than having them in my regular inbox.
Prepare in Advance
Write a list before going to the store, this way you only purchase what you need and you stay within the budget that you came to the store with. Prep your coupons in advance, the last thing you want to do is have to search through coupons while you are shopping, you are bound to miss something.
I keep personalized notes in my planner, this helps with making list for anything. Having pretty notebooks or notepads helps to keep you motivated to make lists! Also, if you have children with you while shopping, your mind will be on EVERYTHING but the items you need to pick up, so make a list so when your child runs off you don’t forget what you need to pick up from the store! Lists are also a great aid in making sure your trip as short as possible, so its better to be prepared with everything you need so you can make your trip short and sweet.
On my trip to buy Pennzoil, I realized when I looked in the oil aisle that there were a ton of different oils to choose from. I had a list of the kind of oil to buy but I am so glad that we were able to order it online and have it shipped to the store…because I was totally overwhelmed when I got to the aisle with the oil!
Buy in Bulk
Having children has renewed my sense of buying things in bulk. Im not sure about you but I don’t like going to the store weekly to buy the same items when I can buy it in bulk and not have to buy it again for a few weeks or even a couple of months. I also realized many times I am getting more “bang for my buck” as well. Online there was a special offer on the larger bottle of oil, which was actually a better buy than smaller bottle.
