New SAHM, what's your best advice?

[MacFam4]

Hi there! I have recently quit my job of 9 years due to several reasons, but it was a mutual decision between my husband and myself

I have lived frugally before, but will admit I have gotten out of the habit. However, it's been very EASY to slide right back in!

Just wondering what some of your best money saving advice is...I'm very interested in making homemade detergent and homemade household cleaners. We don't eat out very often anyway (prefer healthy eating to fastfood). Both of our vehicles are paid for. I'm talking about little day to day type stuff.

Also, I have a terrible Disney obsession and want to go back Nov 2011. How do you save for vacations AND live frugally?

 

[bettymae1121]

I save tons on cleaning suplies by doing the following:

I use a 50/50 mix of water and white vineger to clean everything just about everything, including my floors (I use the rubermaid spray mop, no $$$ refils on solution and the pads are washable/reusable). I also use wash cloths for cleaning rags rather than paper towels. I picked up 20 good quality wash cloths at Costco for about the same cost as a mega pack of Bounty, but they'll last for years rather than months. I only keep a few rolls of paper towels on hand for emergencies.

I also use the same wash cloths on my Swiffer sweeper to sweep/dust my floors. Picks up just as much dirt and hair, but I again I can reuse them rather than toss and spend $$$ to buy new Swiffer cloths.

For window/glass cleaning I use 100% vinager, no streaking at all! I also put vinager in my JetDry dispenser on my dishwasher, my dishes are streak free!

I don't make my own laundry soap yet as I'm using up my store bought first. But I add baking soda to each load, it helps the store bought detergent work better so I need less of it. I only use half the detergent called for and my clothes still come out clean. Again I buy the baking soda in bulk at Costco ($5 for a huge bag of it).

 

[descovy]

STAY BUSY! Now if you have babies/preschoolers... that's one thing. But kids in school with unstructured time is asking for trouble. I guess I still consider myself a SAHM, but I do work 15-20 hrs a week at Target while the kids are in school. Every school day I run into many moms, aimlessly wandering the aisles. Yes, some are just getting the necessities and getting errands done, but there's a familiar crew of ladies that wander in, almost daily, buy a smattering of stuff they don't really need, just cuz they're there.

Create a routine. I like to get all my shopping/errand running done on Wednesdays. Having free time to go to the store "whenever" can spell trouble for a frugal budget.

For vacationing, we set aside $100/week that is transfered into our online ING account. It adds up!

 

[lovebuzz]

I used to make my own laundry detergent now I buy the cheap stuff and use that on my towels and sheets. I use Tide for all our clothes.

I also shop CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid for all of our shampoo, toothpaste, deod, etc.... I end up with all of that stuff for free.

Some great websites are www.hip2save.com and www.southernsavers.com

 

[MacFam4]

I save tons on cleaning suplies by doing the following:

I use a 50/50 mix of water and white vineger to clean everything just about everything, including my floors (I use the rubermaid spray mop, no $$$ refils on solution and the pads are washable/reusable). I also use wash cloths for cleaning rags rather than paper towels. I picked up 20 good quality wash cloths at Costco for about the same cost as a mega pack of Bounty, but they'll last for years rather than months. I only keep a few rolls of paper towels on hand for emergencies.

I also use the same wash cloths on my Swiffer sweeper to sweep/dust my floors. Picks up just as much dirt and hair, but I again I can reuse them rather than toss and spend $$$ to buy new Swiffer cloths.

For window/glass cleaning I use 100% vinager, no streaking at all! I also put vinager in my JetDry dispenser on my dishwasher, my dishes are streak free!

I don't make my own laundry soap yet as I'm using up my store bought first. But I add baking soda to each load, it helps the store bought detergent work better so I need less of it. I only use half the detergent called for and my clothes still come out clean. Again I buy the baking soda in bulk at Costco ($5 for a huge bag of it).

Thanks for the info!! I'm used to buying for convenience, such as lots of paper towels, Clorox wipes, etc. Now I have the time so I need to buy vinegar and lots of rags I guess!! I saw a thread on here a while back about homemade laundry detergent, so I need to look that up.

 

[MacFam4]

STAY BUSY! Now if you have babies/preschoolers... that's one thing. But kids in school with unstructured time is asking for trouble. I guess I still consider myself a SAHM, but I do work 15-20 hrs a week at Target while the kids are in school. Every school day I run into many moms, aimlessly wandering the aisles. Yes, some are just getting the necessities and getting errands done, but there's a familiar crew of ladies that wander in, almost daily, buy a smattering of stuff they don't really need, just cuz they're there.

Create a routine. I like to get all my shopping/errand running done on Wednesdays. Having free time to go to the store "whenever" can spell trouble for a frugal budget.

For vacationing, we set aside $100/week that is transfered into our online ING account. It adds up!

My kids are in school during the day, but this doesn't sound like something i would do at all...I have TONS of stuff here to keep me busy For one thing, I have to get started on my scrapbook from our disney trip back in May! I have everything bought, just didn't have the time before! I know wheat you mean though...I used to have a neighbor who went to stores every single day because she was bored. I know she didn't always walk out of there empty handed. I live too far from town to drive in "just because".

I may look into and ING account. Thanks for the info!!

 

[MacFam4]

I used to make my own laundry detergent now I buy the cheap stuff and use that on my towels and sheets. I use Tide for all our clothes.

I also shop CVS, Walgreens and Rite Aid for all of our shampoo, toothpaste, deod, etc.... I end up with all of that stuff for free.

Some great websites are www.hip2save.com and www.southernsavers.com

Thanks for the sites, I'm checking them out right now!!

 

[mommyof3grlz]

I like couponingtodisney.com Also, enjoy your time at home. Time passes so fast!