So, in my effort to budget cut in the wake of DH impending lack of employment....

[freddog]

today, I dropped our land lines and dropped to just basic cable. Only 13 channels and my kids think they're going to die without Nick and Disney Channel.

The end of their world is here!!

 

[marcyinPA]

I'm sorry to hear about your DH's impending lay-off. My DH was laid off at the beginning of February. It really stinks!

I don't know how much you are paying for basic cable, but we got the family package from the DISH network several years ago and are very pleased with it. We don't get a ton of channels, but we get every NICK channel known to mankind, plus DIY, FoodNetwork, Animal Planet, Discovery Kids. We pay $5 extra for the local channels, but still only pay $26 a month. Considering we can't go out and do much anymore for entertainment, this is a small price to pay for the kids to have SOME entertainment!

Good luck with everything!

 

[mtdevine615]

Don't blame you one bit. My last day is in two weeks and I'm going to do the same thing. Of course I can always tell them "when I was your age all we had was 3 channels on a good day".

 

[Sparx]

Sorry to hear about your husband's impending unemployment. I hope he finds a new opportunity soon.

Cable is SO expensive! I have a basic plan and pay 114.00 a month for cable and internet (and for about six months, I didn't even have the cable box to access half of my channels I was playing for, thanks comcast. )

 

[NHdisneylover]

I am sorry about the lay off That is such a stressful thing to cope with.

You can tell your kids you are the nice mom and you know a DISser who shut off ALL incomming TV "for the summer" and then enjoyed it being gone so much we left it off for almost four years. The only reason we have it now is that it is free (about 60 stations) but we are all so much out of the habit of watching it can still easily go a week at a time without being turned on

I'm sure your kids will survive the torture (it is our job to torture and embarrass them isn't it). In the meantime, I do wish your DH all the best in his job search.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

When we were in financial trouble I cut it all out, every extra. Of course the internet was not as we know it today, so it was not a big deal to shut off the dial up and we did not have any cell phones.

I will think good thoughts for you OP.

 

[hulagirl87]

we went down to basic cable last month in preparation for our new baby. we knew that we were not going to be watching much tv so it was s chance to save some money. we definitely don't miss it. I don't know the last time I sat down to watch a show!

 

[HelenePA]

today, I dropped our land lines and dropped to just basic cable. Only 13 channels and my kids think they're going to die without Nick and Disney Channel.

The end of their world is here!!

They can watch most of the shows on the net now..

to you and your family. I hope your husband is doing better

 

[PatsGirl]

Good for you. Cable is the first thing I'd cut. But I'm now addicted to the internet so it's easy for me to say I hope that your unemployed days end sooner rather than later and things get back to whatever your "normal" is. In the meantime, think of the lack of cable as a character-building exercise for the kids

 

[kimbac3]

I know your pain. My Dh has been laid off since Sept 30, 09'.
It sucks! But thankfully we paid off our vehicle and credit cards before it happened, so we are doing ok.

We still have cable but that is more of a sanity saver for me! I homeschool my kids and we are done in about 3-4 hours. Well after being so snowed in this past winter I am so thankful for cable!! LOL!

 

[minkydog]

We lived on one income for much of the time that my kids were young. the kids are teens now and we live one SSDI (read: not much at all) and my part-time salary (also not much). Our income is below the poverty line, so i hear you loud and clear. We never even had cable until about 6 years ago. I still plant a garden every summer and can the veggies from it for later. We eat about 1/4 of the meat that most families do and we have vegetarian meals quite often. Eggs are cheap and nutritious. I am a whiz with soups, beans and rice. I buy almost no pre-prepared meals, no frozen dinners, and very little food that is processed. Most of our fruits & veggies are in season.I don't buy junk food, soft drinks, or desserts except on specific occasions. My one bow to luxury is feta cheese. We're a Greek family and life is not worth living without feta cheese.

It will be very hard at first, but once you get into the swing of it you'll find your level. We don't go to the mall unless forced to. I rarely buy new clothes--actually, I can find a lot of good stuff at the thrift store. Why pay $60 for jeans when I can get them for less than $10? We do not accumulate "stuff." We don't take swanky vacations. We camp in our old paid-for camper. Both of our cars are old--we never buy new. We raised our insurance deductibles. We only give birthday or Christmas gifts to a select group of relatives.

It might sound like a bleak life, but really, once you start letting all that stuff go it frees you up for a different kind of life. We don't feel deprived at all. We learned to enjoy getting outside--sunsets are free. And campfires don't cost much either.

Together you'll get through this.

 

[indigodisney]

We lived on one income for much of the time that my kids were young. the kids are teens now and we live one SSDI (read: not much at all) and my part-time salary (also not much). Our income is below the poverty line, so i hear you loud and clear. We never even had cable until about 6 years ago. I still plant a garden every summer and can the veggies from it for later. We eat about 1/4 of the meat that most families do and we have vegetarian meals quite often. Eggs are cheap and nutritious. I am a whiz with soups, beans and rice. I buy almost no pre-prepared meals, no frozen dinners, and very little food that is processed. Most of our fruits & veggies are in season.I don't buy junk food, soft drinks, or desserts except on specific occasions. My one bow to luxury is feta cheese. We're a Greek family and life is not worth living without feta cheese.

It will be very hard at first, but once you get into the swing of it you'll find your level. We don't go to the mall unless forced to. I rarely buy new clothes--actually, I can find a lot of good stuff at the thrift store. Why pay $60 for jeans when I can get them for less than $10? We do not accumulate "stuff." We don't take swanky vacations. We camp in our old paid-for camper. Both of our cars are old--we never buy new. We raised our insurance deductibles. We only give birthday or Christmas gifts to a select group of relatives.

It might sound like a bleak life, but really, once you start letting all that stuff go it frees you up for a different kind of life. We don't feel deprived at all. We learned to enjoy getting outside--sunsets are free. And campfires don't cost much either.

Together you'll get through this.

Love this post - thanks for sharing!

 

[PatsGirl]

Minkydog: Great attitude and ITA! Less is more. I consider it fun and challenging to get the most for my $$ but vacations are my soft spot. I save tons of money elsewhere but then use it up going away

 

[Rora]

Good thoughts coming your way OP!

As far as the TV stations go- it's rough for kids to downgrade. Is there any chance their shows are online?

 

[ticktock]

today, I dropped our land lines and dropped to just basic cable. Only 13 channels and my kids think they're going to die without Nick and Disney Channel.

The end of their world is here!!

May I ask you how much the basic cable and internet cost and who they are through?

I would love to drop my land line but get my internet through it. I canceled cable months ago.

 

[SandrA9810]

Most companies will allow for DSL internet without having a landline now. And for cable internet, you don't need anything else.