Leader: The Tipping List
10 Tips for a Recession-Proof, Fabulous Summer!
Cutting costs doesn't mean cutting fun
-The Bettys
Everywhere you look these days, there's that word again... RECESSION!
Anxiety, embarrassment, pain - that's what many of us are feeling right now thanks to financial worries. Whether it's officially a "recession" or not, financial strain is causing women everywhere to stretch even further as primary caregivers. We're being forced to give up even more of ourselves as we struggle to afford the same things this summer as last summer, and to entertain kids home from school.
From camps to family vacations; pool memberships to summer childcare, this time of year really puts additional pressure on women to spend, spend, spend.
With the belief that a great summer doesn't have to mean an expensive summer, The Bettys put our home-highlighted, self-eyebrow-waxed heads together and came up with some sure-fire, super savvy ways to tighten those belts a little (sounds good to us!) and still have a fabulous summer.
First we consulted our Financial Columnist, Stacy Francis (mother of one in NYC) - who had some very smart, practical advice to start us off...
1. Create an emergency fund covering three to six months of your living expenses.
Save your money in a liquid account (one you can get your money out of without loss of your initial investment).
2. You can make your dollars go further by asking yourself the following questions:
1. Could I, for a short period of time, find a way to spend less money on that expense?
2. Could I do that activity less often?
3. Could I do that activity at a less expensive location?
4. Could I find a way to gain the same benefit but spend less money?
But the question is - HOW to find those places where we can cut back?
Here's how The Bettys (a fun-loving gang if ever there was one!) are getting through the summer in this time of recession...
From our Managing Editor, April Daniels Hussar (mother of one in New Jersey):
3. Kid Swap
Yes - sounds wacky - but it's not like wife swapping! Find like-minded families who want to take turns with you hosting the kids for the evening so you can step out without shelling out for a babysitter (which here on the East Coast costs a fortune!) For us to go out to a movie it costs AT LEAST $75-$80 - and that's if we skip dinner and/or snacks at the theater (no $4 Cokes! What?!) and come straight home - any extra time racks up more in babysitting money. Oh - and of course - there's another $15 or so for the pizza to feed the babysitter! But we're happy to stay home on a Friday night with our daughter and a friend of hers (so the friend's parents can go out), and then the next week WE can go out. Everyone's happy! Of course this is easier when you only have one child - but you can work it out with more. This is also a great tactic to use during the week if you stay-at-home, only work part-time or - like me - work from home.
4. Put Your Kids to Work!
Ok - I don't' mean digging ditches - but from about the age of five kids can start to learn about the value of working and saving. I STILL remember with great fondness (and not a little pride) the Snoopy Snow Cone Machine that I bought with my own, hard earned money at about age six. If there's a big-ticket item or activity your kid wants this summer... don't just shell out - put him to work! Depending on how much money he's trying to save, y0u can certainly help him out, but it's a life lesson truly worth learning. Yes, in the end you'll end up being the one "paying" him for most of the work he does, but it's better than coughing up cash all summer for every item that strikes his fancy.
5. Freeload!
I know - that sounds bad - but summer is a great time to find fun things to do for free. We probably won't join our town pool this summer (last year I calculated - since we went so infrequently - it cost us about $45 per trip - ouch!), but we have enough friends with pools that we won't be missing out on swimming (plus there's that pricey summer camp we can't NOT send our daughter to since I work full time). We'd never "use" a friend for his pool - but we're happy to go when invited, making sure to bring snacks to share and return the invitation to our place for a BBQ.
More free/low-cost activities:
- Picnics in the park -make it even more fun by packing real china and flatware. Yes it's a pain to clean up... but it really makes the picnic feel like a special event.
- Take advantage of your area's free activities (library readings, concerts in the park, free afternoons at museums, etc). Look through your local parenting or community publications and WRITE DOWN things that look like fun on YOUR calendar. That way you won't forget anything (circling items in the actual publication gets you nowhere - trust me)!
- Entertain Pot Luck style. We love having friends over, but it can really get expensive (that's right you boozers! Put that third glass of Merlot down!). We're going to bring back the art of the pot luck this summer... knowing our group of friends it will be entertaining at the very least!
- Don't be afraid to COUPON clip. Personally, I hate most coupons - it's not worth it to me to save 15 cents on a can of tuna or whatever... but bigger things like 2-for-1 admission to theme parks, special discounts to oft-frequented department stores, etc... now we're talking!
From Our Raising Kids Editor, Mary Beth Sammons (single mother of three teenagers in Chicago):
6. Pamper at Home... Not the Salon
This sounds pathetic... but with two daughters who are WAY into pampering, I told them they have to chill out on getting professional manicures, pedicures, and low- and highlights. I figure I could save hundreds of dollars a month - literally! We can have pampering parties at home - girls nights in with snacks, movies and polish. Isn't that what we used to do back in the olden days (about 10 years ago?!)
7. Play it Cool with the A/C
Our Nicor (gas company) bill was $500 a month this winter - no kidding... and with summer on its way, I went out and bought a bunch of fans and am having ceiling fans installed. All three of my teenage children will be home this summer - and we cannot mindlessly CRANK the air-conditioning, as they have been accustomed to doing.
8. Chill out on eating out.
My kids LOVE to eat out - or whip through drive-through food places. Every large COKE with ice and Noodles dinner adds up. While we won't cut treats out entirely, we are going to take turns making our favorite foods at home and not make fast food the fill-in way of life.
** Kids of all ages can participate in budgeting and planning meals - and older kids can be given free reign to cook whatever they want once a week. It could end in disaster - but you could be surprised!
From our Co-Founder: Deborah Perry Piscione (mother of twin boys and one new baby girl in California):
9. Look for DAMAGED Goods!
Look for that shirt that may be slightly "off" or that piece of furniture that may have a bit of a scratch, and ask for a discount. It could be a beach towel at Target, a dress at Nordstrom, or an open sunblock at Whole Foods, most retail stores are happy to accommodate a slight discount for damaged goods. When the sales associate offers only 10 or 15 percent, ask for the manager, and ask for more! Usually, they are happy to accommodate.
10. ASK for the TWIN Discount
Being the mother of twins, I have to buy TWO of everything. I used to only ask for the TWIN discount for school tuition, extra-curricular activities, and other expected discount providers. In these hard times, I now ask for the twin discount for EVERYTHING at EVERY PLACE - at the bike store, at restaurants, at clothing stores (no one is immune). While twin discounts only range from 10-20 percent, it all adds up! I now take my "twin discount" attitude and barter just about everywhere!
BONUS TIP!
From Editor-at-Large, Julie Ryan Evans (mother of one in Orlando):
Buy in Bulk! The Beauty of Costco:
I've discovered Costco! For years I had a membership only to EVER buy diapers and wipes-seriously. I'd walk in and get so overwhelmed I just couldn't think of what else I could possibly need THAT much. But with our old house sitting on the market (in another state!) with nary an offer for a year, I started to reconsider. Now I'm a Costco junkie. The have organic ground beef-way cheaper than Whole Foods, organic milk in a three pack-if you only open one half gallon at a time it keeps for weeks. The paper towels rock any others I've used, and they have a brand of olive tapenade that's actually quite good-especially if you put it on sliced French bread with goat cheese (both sold at Costco!) and broil it in the oven a little-yumm! And my huge stash means fewer trips to the grocery store, meaning less gas used. Oh, and speaking of gas, I fill up at COSTCO! They seem to usually beat the other stations by at least 10 cents a gallon.
(And no I don't work for COSTCO!)
