Tips for SAHM frugal living

[Espressoicecream]

After 18 months of paying most of my wages on childcare, having a stressy job and a messy house, DH and I made the decision that I'd stop working and look after DD til she goes to school.

We can manage on his salary but we will have to be a bit frugal. What are your top tips?

(I'm cooking and freezing all the fruit dont worry!)

Get the Olio app. In my area the supermarkets give away such huge amounts of food every day, the volunteers who collect it struggle to give it all away. One of my neighbours told me she hasn’t paid for bread in the 2 years since she started using it!

Good for you OP!
I have been considering doing this too so will be following this thread!

I think a biggie is plan evening meals next day so you always take out freezer if necessary , make 1 week a month the ‘use up the freezer and cupboard stuff’ so you only do a decent shop 3 weeks a month - buy less clothes and shoes , use binged etc if you want a change - get a charity shop /Facebook market place habit for books and toys -

dont don’t do take aways and restrict yourself to coffee out 2 days a week so it’s treat rather than a habit

carry a few treat type bars or coated raisins etc in your bag for a child if out -

There are some really good ideas here.

But I will echo pp who said you MUST make sure there are continued (equal) payments into your pension (both state and private) during this period. I would say this is non-negotiable.

I was a sahm for 8 yrs and I loved every minute of it op.

My tip would be to join the library and make the library work for you. Find out what's due to come out from your fave authors and our a reservation in early. That way you feel current and also spend time reading instead of scrolling mumsnet (thank god mumsnet was laptop only and no smartphones when mine were little!)

I used to get through whole back catalogues of authors in the summer holidays and always read at lunchtime/when DC were sleeping.

Oh yes bus trips! We could walk to and from our shops, but sometimes on a Wednesday after story time at the library, we got the bus home from the bus station. My kids still remember it now age 17!

What financial protections have you in place? Is DH paying into savings and pensions for you? How will you ensure you can return to work in future? Will he cut his hours to do his share of childcare later on?

My tips for this are a bit different - in addition to all these great recs, I often find that what’s going on here is a subtle negative assumption associated with the new state. I totally understand.

Buut, if you can hack the psychology of the thing, you’ll be a lot better off.

My #1 step before anything else - always allocate a tiny bit of money to the ‘ultimate you’ first. What is the ultimate you? It’s you and what you love and like when you feel great and relaxed as though you have no worries. It’s really important to act this way to signal to your nervous system that it’s alriggghht.

So if it’s the nice family outings - plan that free or affordable day ASAP when the new lifestyle starts.

Or maybe it’s casual spending. I love to grab a nice pastry out without thinking too much about it. Or a cute accessory for the house we needed, or a toy for the boy. Allocate a little amount for these little luxuries each fortnight as a priority, because that’s what makes you feel normal. Then everything else is a lot easier.

And then finally get super into your new lifestyle. Get excited about the new recipes, or the organisation, the planning. You’ve got this!

Dh and I have discussed pensions and income, household chores and savings. Our funds are joint funds and he will still do household chores.
I also have an emergency fund /just in case/.