Nanny to Mommy

Is your new year resolution to learn how to manage your budget and lower your monthly bills as well? My husband and I worked really hard to get ourselves out of debt when we were making barely minimum wage and I am so proud of the progress we have made. It is hard working, but so rewarding. I have compiled a list of simple solutions to help you towards your money goals. 

Looking to learn HOW to lower your cable or satellite bill? Then this post is for YOU! With the inflation of our grocery bills and the crazy market, I thought I would update this post with EVEN MORE streaming options available for ways to save big!

We bought a new house back at the end of August 2016. We have a bigger home that comes with a larger mortgage payment. So we were going through our bills and thinking of what we could get rid of. We routinely do this anyway. We decided to not only drop our gym member ship (that we hadn't used in months) as well as drop satellite. So I know what you are thinking: You just made the switch to cable, but nope we completely pulled the plug and now we are saving more than $100 a month on television.

***This post was originally written in 2016, but I thought I would update it with what we are using now, new pricing, etc.***

We were criticized by our family when we first decided to do it. "How are you going to watch the Olympics?" "How are you going to watch 'A Christmas Story' all day on Christmas?" Serious questions, y'all. And at first, we hadn't worked out all the kinks yet. My husband did a lot of research and now I want to share all of our tips and tricks to help you save over $100 by breaking up with cable/satellite for good!

Whether you are struggling to pay all your bills, want more money for life’s little luxuries, or are determined to set up a rainy day fund, it is always a good idea to look for new ways to save money each month. 

Fortunately, if you have already tried all the usual suspects such as switching energy suppliers, canceling your gym membership, and creating a meal plan, you will be pleased to hear that there are other, more creative ways to cut back.

What’s more, there are so many great reasons to do this. From needing to send money to Peru to your family, to wanting to save for a big purchase like a car, it’s great if you can save some money to help you with these aims. And there are lots of ways to do that.

From changing the hours you socialize to getting your hair cuts for free, to switching from smoking to vaping, keep reading to discover five creative ways that you can save money each and every month that actually works.

You will be surprised at how quickly all the small savings add up!

If you’re a parent and you feel like you’re spending more money than you should be spending, it’s a good idea to take a fresh look at your approach to money management. There are so many ways to spend less and spend better so that you never end up short changing yourself.

As a parent, you’ll know how expensive life can be, so why make it even more so? We’re going to talk about some of the things you can start doing in order to spend less and manage your money better as a parent, so keep reading to learn more about that.

The festivities of Christmas 2019 may have just finished, however it is important to remember that looking already at Christmas 2020 could be a very profitable and sensible thing to do. If you have children, it can be very important to get ahead of the game and look at good sales and look at lots of other things that can be purchased in advance that can really cause a problem to your wallet. Undoubtedly Christmas is expensive. The average person spends around $650 per Christmas, which for some people is a monthly wage or half of their monthly wage. Having extra disposable money is not a privilege everyone has and so shopping thriftily, looking at sales, working out a plan for the coming year and getting ahead of the game can really be a game changer and take the pressure of the coming Christmas. If you have a lot of people to buy for, the pennies can easily add up; however, Christmas is not just the price of gifts and Christmas cards. It is also a multitude of other things, from Christmas clothes, Christmas decorations, Christmas tree, food and so much more. Although it is a time for giving and celebrating, the statistics for people getting into debt around Christmas time are shocking and racking up bills on your credit cards that you can’t afford to repay, will do nothing for your credit rating and your financial status.

Taking care of the environment is something that everyone needs to do. There is only one planet that people can live on, and it’s paramount that it is properly taken care of. This isn’t only for your sake, but for the benefit of future generations as well.

So, what can you do to live a more sustainable life and reduce your carbon footprint?

The steps you take to achieving this don’t need to turn your life upside down, and in fact, many of them are very easy habits you can adopt. It only makes sense that you should start with improving your home to be an eco-friendlier space.

Here is a detailed overview of how you can transform your home space into a sustainable environment for you and your loved ones.

This post is sponsored by ScriptSave® WellRx. All opinions are my own.

As a frugal mom, one of the questions that I get asked is how do you save on medical expenses. We all know that insurance can only take us so far and we are very fortunate to have a health savings account that helps us save for any type of medical expense, but if I can save money on prescriptions where I normally wouldn't get a discount then of course I am going to take it!

ScriptSave® WellRX is a great service that helps you do just that! All you have to do is take their free discount card or mobile app with you to your pharmacy and use it to get a discount when you fill your prescriptions!

This is a sponsored post with Dollar Tree where Everything's $1 and you can find Cheap Holiday Décor. This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.

I have always been a frugal person. I love to do it my self when I can, I like to save old stuff and re-purpose it, and one of my favorite places to shop for Cheap Holiday Decorations is definitely Dollar Tree. Besides having a variety of stuff to choose for only $1, they also have a ton of other great stuff like stocking stuffers, back to school products, etc. I have put together a great list of DIY Holiday décor that you can make with stuff you can easily find at Dollar Tree.

If you are anything like my family, then you are already planning you yearly trips. We take our annual Panama City Beach, FL trip during Fall Break, but by planning everything out at the beginning of the year we can save MORE while doing it.

I love checking out any and all offers I can to try and find a deal for our family traveling adventures. Last year, we headed to Chattanooga and saw Ruby Falls and Rock City during Spring Break with some deals we found. Every thing was planned so last minute, so we KNOW we could have saved more if we had just planned a little bit better.

ibotta can help with your traveling needs from rooms to suitcases right now from 1/15 to 1/21 on the app! New users can also earn a $10 bonus for trying out the app! Check out these great offers that will be available on the app starting tomorrow:

We weren't the kind of people that felt the need to go over board on gifts for our own child because she does have a lot of people in our family and close friends that will do that for us, but we also have quite a few nieces plus my own daughter and one of my nieces has a birthday in December. Plus with all the dinners we had to go to and bring a dish, little costs always seem to add up. But I have found little ways to save money that really helps in the long run whether you are saving for a special trip or a holiday.

This is a sponsored conversation for SheSpeaks on behalf of Prudential. All opinions are my own.

The number one thing I have noticed about becoming a parent - kids aren't cheap. Even before we started to plan our family, we considered the expenses. Would I be able to stay home? Would we have to pay for day care? How much debt did we need to pay off? Then they are babies and they need a lot of stuff! Diapers, bottles, blankets, cribs, pacifiers, and the list is a mile long. When they get a little older you think that the expenses will slow down, but you have to pay for school, extracurricular activities, and shoes every month because they just keep growing.

Financial Planning for a Family

Even if your child is like mine and goes to public school, there are expenses every week that you need to pay for. What about when they get older - a safe car, cell phone, college, weddings... I am all for making my children get a job and help with their own finances, but there is only so much that a minimum job can pay for.

I am always look to pay the lowest amount possible. I HATE paying retail! If I have to buy something online, I hate leaving that "Enter Coupon Code" spot blank. I recently was introduced to Dealspotr and now I can always make sure I will find the best deal or coupon code possible while earning Amazon gift cards too.

So let me explain. How Dealspotr works is consumers just like you and me post in-store, online, or even freebie deals for just about any store you can think of. Anyone can validate codes or deals. And how you do it is by sharing screenshots to make sure the deal is working properly. This ensures that the most valid and reliable deals are shared. The key is honesty, but with almost 30,000 users validating deals and coupons, Dealspotr has a unique system that ensures deals are valid and you can save the most money possible.

This post contains affiliate links.

I don't know about you, but I am all about some FREE stuff! Who doesn't like a good freebie, especially when it's something that you will use? I have put a little list together of all the sites where I have found some GREAT freebies that really take minimal effort on your part. So check them out:



I would like to note, the work bloggers do is just that "work". It has helped my family in amazing ways and I am so glad I started doing it, but it is a LOT of work. If you are interested in starting your own blog (because you are willing to put in the work), please let me know and I will get a post together to help you learn how.

Now on to the sites:

How to Get Coupons for FREE...WITHOUT Digging in Dumpsters was originally published on 5/24/13.

***I have been debating about posting this because I didn't want to come off as judgmental or leaping to conclusions. But after talking to several others about this, I am not the only one who thinks this way. So here we go. Please let me know your thoughts. ***

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.

I love saving money and hate paying retail. I have all my handy frugal apps right on my smart phone, so I never miss a deal. I know I have already mentioned how much I love the Groupon app. Groupon is a deal-of-the-day recommendation service saving you 40% to 60% off retail if you purchase that product or service.

Recently my husband and I have been obsessed with the Groupon Goods! We have bought so many things for our new house as well some pretty awesome birthday and Christmas presents.

My daughter was born just a few weeks before Christmas, so making sure she has a great birthday while not spending a lot is essential. Groupon lets me save on services like bouncy castles and goods which include electronics, jewelry, clothes, and more.

Some of my favorite gift ideas right now on Groupon include:

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.

I love saving money and hate paying retail. I have all my handy frugal apps right on my smart phone, so I never miss a deal. One of my favorite money saving apps is the Groupon app. You know about Groupon, right? Groupon is a deal-of-the-day recommendation service saving you 40% to 60% off retail if you purchase that product or service.

The new thing is Groupon Coupons which saves you money on more than just local restaurants and events, but also nationwide chains, like Bed Bath & Beyond! There are 84 available coupons for Bed Bath & Beyond right now. Savings from promo codes, sales, and in-store offers. So there are more ways to save than ever before.