Tips To Make Life Easier for Busy Moms

Stretch Your Grocery Budget with These Tips

Everyone knows the cost of food is going up. Prices are going up and package sizes are getting smaller. Even where product prices have remained stable the package size has gone down. All of this means less food for the same food budget for today's families. Stretching the food budget can be a serious challenge but there are things you can do to get more for your dollar. Here are some ideas for you.

Cook From Scratch

Cooking from scratch is fast becoming a lost art. But when you learn to do it, or take the time to do it, it can really save you money. Packaged foods are costly and you are paying for the convenience. Buying a boxed ready-to-go meal costs way more per person than fixing a simple meal of chicken, green beans and potatoes. Plus when you cook for scratch you get the benefit of leftovers.

Shop in Bulk

When things you use all the time, like tuna fish, go on sale stock up. Tuna averages $.75 a can but for canned sales you can find it as low as 3/$1.00. That is the time to stock up big time. If you are limited on pantry space, slide boxes under beds and behind the couch. Also purchasing items like flour and sugar in larger bags can save you money. If you can find 25 packs of things like oatmeal and flour they are usually a lot cheaper than the smaller bags. If your family is too small to use that much consider going in with another family and splitting the cost.

Plan Ahead

Another way to save money on your grocery list is to plan ahead. Make up a monthly menu and make your grocery list from that. You can also stretch meals better doing this. For example, if you roast a chicken Monday night you can save the juice from the pan and the leftovers. Boil the leftover chicken, remove the meat, add the broth and make noodle soup. You can even cook a second chicken at the same time and make chicken salad or use in casseroles later in the week.

Shop the Seasonal Sales

Holiday time is the time to stock up on things like pumpkin and turkeys. If you have a freezer buy several turkeys when they sell for under $.50 a pound. If you don't have a freezer you can preserve the turkey by canning. Christmas time is a great time to stock up on baking supplies. Take advantage of these seasonal sales to stock your pantry.

When you take the time to shop carefully, cook from scratch and do some simple planning you can save money. You can feed your family well on a limited budget when you are willing to eat good, wholesome food and stay away from packaged processed foods.

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How to Save Money with Coupons

Many people think coupon clipping is a waste of time and energy but in today's economy you need to do everything you can to save money. And why pay more for groceries than you have to? Coupon clipping does take some time to do but in the long run it is worth the effort. So grab you scissors and coupon ad and start clipping those coupons.

Keep Your Coupons Organized

You need to keep your coupons organized if you are going to use the correctly. You can clip all the coupons you want but if you cannot find them when need them they won't do you much good. Create a system for organizing your coupons that makes sense to you. You may use a coupon holder, a small recipe box or envelopes. It really doesn't matter as long as you are comfortable with it. You want to design something that is portable and you can take with you even if you have a larger master box at home.

File Coupons Immediately

One important thing to do is file coupons as soon as you get them cut out. If you lay them aside to do later you may forget. They aren't any good on the table or if you find them two months later and they have expired. Have your coupon file set up in a system that works for you. Some people like to file them alphabetically and some like to set them up the way the shopping aisles are at their favorite grocery store.

Know the Grocery Store Coupon Policies

Make sure you know what each store policies for using coupons are before you shop. This will allow you to maximize savings and lesson check out hassles. Print the policy and keep it with you until you totally become familiar with it. Some stores even have their own brand coupons which you can use along with manufacturer's coupons. Certain stores will double or even triple coupons. Many do it every day but often there is a certain day of the week or special time for this; especially of they are tripling coupons. Their goal on these days is to get you in the store to buy other things so take your list and stick to it.

Check Out Stores Special Offers

Whenever a grocery store is having a big sale like a buy one get one free special this is the time the savings really kicks in. You can use coupons on the item you are paying for plus get one free. Stock up during these sales and you can really save some money. Often manufacturers offer a buy one get one free coupon and you can use another coupon along with it. For example, during the holiday's cake mixes are on sale for .99 a lot of times. If you have a $.40 coupon and you get it doubled that makes the cake mix basically $.20. Now think if you had another coupon that was BOGOF. You would get both boxes for $.10 a piece. Not a bad deal.

Saving money can be easy to do with coupon clipping. It only takes a little planning on your part.

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They say that money can't buy happiness. We all pretty much know this is true, and research has supported it as well.

The truth, is that money can't even buy you out of financial stress, if you don't spend less than you make it will create stress in your life.

Many people who make large amounts of money simply spend more than they make, and carry large amounts of debt, leading to feelings of stress rather than abundance. The key to avoiding this type of financial stress is simple, but not always easy: Live within your means.

This can be a difficult change at first, but one that will bring great rewards, and can significantly lower your stress levels if you're not living within your means already.

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BREAKFAST FRITTATA
Fast Easy and Delicious, the kids will love it too!

Prep and Cook Time:
20 min.

Ingredients:
½ medium onion, minced
4 medium cloves garlic, chopped
¼ lb ground lamb or turkey
2 + 1 TBS chicken broth
3 cups rinsed and finely chopped kale, (stems removed)
2 whole free range chicken eggs
3 egg whites
salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat broiler on low.
Heat 1 TBS broth in a 9-10 inch stainless steel skillet. Healthy Sauté onion over medium heat, for about 3 minutes, stirring often.
Add garlic, ground lamb or turkey, and cook for another 3 minutes on medium heat, breaking up clumps.
Add kale and 2 TBS broth. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook covered about 5 more minutes. Season with salt, pepper and mix.
Beat eggs, season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and pour on top of mixture evenly. Cook on low for another 2 minutes without stirring.
Put under broiler in middle of oven, about 7 inches from the heat source, on low, so it has time to cook without the top burning. When it gets firm it is done, about 2-3 minutes.

If you are a work at home mom, you probably became one so you could spend more time with your children. However, there will most likely be times in your business when you will need to arrange for childcare. The following are some creative solutions to your childcare dilemmas.

WAHMs in direct sales are very often faced with childcare predicaments. A main portion of their business is conducting sales presentations, usually held at someone else's home. If you are a party plan WAHM, the most obvious choice would be to schedule these presentations when your partner can watch the children, but what if your partner has an odd work schedule or you are a single parent? You can hire a local high school student to come to the party and be the "party nanny". Check with the hostess first, but she will probably love the idea (and so will the other guests - since they won't have to worry about getting a sitter for their children, they will be more likely to come to the party and the more guests you have, the bigger your profits!).

If you just need an occasional sitter, try setting up a "child care group" with your friends and neighbors. Each woman can designate a time frame on a certain day of the week or month to be "the sitter". Any of the Moms in your "child care group" who need a sitter that day can drop their kids of at the "designated sitter's" house. The children will get to play and interact with one another and each Mom can get free childcare on an "as needed basis".

Check with your place of worship as they may offer a "Mom's Day Out" type of program where you can drop your children off for a few hours per day, a couple times per week. This may be a free or low-cost service. Also, check with local library as they may have "story hours" where you can drop your children off and the librarians will read the children a book and after the book is read, the children can participate in a craft, game or activity.

If you just need some "quiet time" to do some work, you can hire a neighborhood teenager to come over and play with the kids while you are tucked away in your office. You will have some uninterrupted "work time", but will still be there in case 'something comes up'. If you have regular meetings that take you away from the house, check with friends and family to see if they can help out by watching the kids. Offer your product or service in exchange for their time. They may jump on the offer!

And don't feel guilty if you need to put your children in daycare part-time. Yes, you may have had every intention of working at home in order to spend time with your children, but, there may be times when your business will need your total focus. By taking that time and completing your business tasks, you will be able to focus 100% on your children during family time.

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Do you have piles of papers on your desk? Is there a stack of receipts shoved in your drawer? Do you ever find yourself looking for a phone number that you just know you wrote down somewhere? If you are suffering from a lack of organization, here are some suggestions on how to tackle it.

It is no secret that having a disorganized work area is counter productive. By getting organized - and staying organized, you will be able to get more work done in less time.

If you are computer-friendly, you may be familiar with the program Outlook. You can use Outlook to keep track of your emails, your daily schedule, your to-do list, client phone numbers and email addresses and more. You can even synchronize your MP3 player to Outlook and keep all of your info with you wherever you go!

For those that are not as technology advanced, you can still get organized by using old-fashioned paper products. If you do not have a planner, get one! There are many kinds of planners to choose from, in all kinds of shapes and sizes. Find one that fits your needs and use it to keep track of doctor appointments, school meetings, your work schedule, etc. Set up a client database to keep track of phone numbers, emails and other information. You can do this by getting some 4" x 6" index cards and a recipe box.

April 15 is a day that many Americans dread - it is the due date for your taxes! An easy way to keep track of recipes is to get a hanging file folder and 12 manila envelopes. Have one envelope for January, one for February and so on. During the month, throw all your receipts in the corresponding envelope. When the month is over, tally up your receipts and write it on the outside of the envelope. That way, when tax time comes, most of your work will already be done.

By taking some time each day to "take care of the little things" you will stay organized, feel less stressed, and get more work done!

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