Finances


Wow, has living a normal life ever become expensive. The inflation rate is flying past 5% and we are seeing the damage on our grocery bills and in our gas tanks. I live in one of the most expensive places in BC besides Vancouver so the cost of living is absolutely insane. 

 

I have been hard at work ensuring I find ways to save my hard-earned money so I can buy my first home in the near future and marry the man of my dreams. 

 

Here is an amazing list of some of my top money-saving articles and some extra tips at the bottom to help you get through these crazy times and hopefully obtain some disposable income or reach some savings goals you have: 


Sign up for Swagbucks and start earning right away by playing games, signing up for programs, and answering surveys! I have earned hundreds of dollars since I joined in 2013!


Sign up for Ampli and save on everyday purchases! Link your bank card and whenever you shop at any of the stores listed (there are lots) you earn cash back and the money gets deposited directly to your account when you choose to cash out! 


Save $90 on your orders of Hello Fresh and get fresh, healthy, ready to be cooked dinners delivered to your door!


Save $80 on Chefs Plate and get even more delicious ready to cook meals delivered to your home. 

 

Stop buying these disposables: Buy Reusable and save money

 

Staying Money-Savvy - How Coupons Can Benefit You and Your Wallet

 

Tips for Traveling the World at Little to No Cost

 

How Can I Make My Home Safer On A Budget?

 

3 Ways Stay at Home Moms Can Earn Money

 

How To Reach Savings Goals With A Family - Saying No Constantly Is Hard!

 

How To Achieve Financial Freedom As a Single Parent

 

Ways To Save Time and Money Before Summer Ends

 

Save Big Bucks On Back To School Shopping This Year

 

How To Achieve Financial Freedom As a Single Parent

 

5 Crucial Financial Tips for New Parents

 

3 Tips To Save Energy Around Your House This Summer

 

6 Tips To Budget For A Vacation When You're A Divorced Parent

 

Budget Templates For Newlyweds

 

5 Money-Saving Tips When Buying A House

 

6 Ways to Plan a Holiday on a Budget

 

Your Money Can Spark Joy! How to Marie Kondo Your Finances

 

6 Tips for Teaching Your Kids to Save Money

 

How to turn errands with your child into a budgeting lesson (and still keep your sanity)

 

Family Life Events That Can Be Costly And How You Can Prepare For Them

 

4 tips to saving money by using an online pet shop

 

Best sites to cash in on spring cleaning (hint: not eBay)

 

11 Things You Didn’t Think You Could Negotiate

 

3 Monetary Steps to Take if You're Facing Foreclosure

 

How to Buy a Used Phone Without Getting Ripped Off

 

5 Tools For a Budget Road Trip!

 

Great Money Management: 6 Best Working Capital Loans

 

Heating Bill Through The Roof? Frugal Tips To Save Some Cash

 

5 Smart Money-Saving Strategies For Spring Cleaning

 

List of the Best Cheap & Natural Cleaners

 

Save Money on Utilities

 

Learn How to Make Money Online

 

Save Money With These Green Tricks for Your Home

 

Expert Advice on Saving Money this Holiday Season

 

Cheap and Easy Ways to Winterize Your Garden

 

Cheap and Easy Ways to Stay Fit This Holiday Season

 

Clever Ways To Save On Your Next Family Camping Trip 

 

6 Ways Mums Can Make Extra Money at Home

 

3 Ways to Cut Your Water Bill

  

Go Green: Building Eco-friendly Home On A Budget

 

Affordable Ways To Make Your Home Look Luxurious

 

3 Smart Tips For An Affordable And Eco-Friendly Wedding

 

Should You Buy A Fixer-Upper? How To Assess The Real Cost

  

7 Smart Ways to Prepare Your Home for Winter

  

Balancing Buyer Budget With Your Biggest Needs

 

Frugal Ways Of Re-Building Your Credit Score

 

5 Ways to Cut Down on What You Owe

 

Cheap, Filling & Easy After School Snacks

 

Here’s How You Can Lower All Your Bills

 

Snagging That Dream Home, Whilst Remaining Frugal 

 

The Real Reason You're Drowning In Debt

 

Breaking That Month-To-Month Cycle

 

Putting The "Fun" In Saving Funds

 

Can’t Afford Your Veterinary Bills?

  

4 Ways To Save Mega Money With A Family 

 

Five Ways To Get Into The Frugal Frame Of Mind

 

Are You Financially Ready To Start A Family?

 

Driving Hacks For Taking A More Frugal Approach

 

Things You Can Do When A Budget Doesn't Last

  

Fun, Frugal or Free: Financial Tips For a Stay-at-Home Parent

 

Remodelling Hacks To Design Your Dream Home On A Budget

 

How To Throw An End Of Summer Party For Under $100

 

Study: ERs Systematically Price-Gouge Patients; Here Are 3 Ways To Save Money

 

Keep The Family Finances Afloat, Even In The Worst Storm

 

11 Cheap and Easy Remedies for Everyday Ailments

 

Why You Shouldn’t Give Up on Regaining Control of Your Finances

  

Expert Tips To Help Families Pack Healthy School Lunches For Less

 

Fast Finances: Taking The Time Out Of Money

 

Budget-Friendly Bathroom Updates

 

Saving Money on Life's Essentials

  

A Frugal Guide To Coping With Empty Nest Syndrome

  

How to Have Fun with Arts and Crafts on a Budget

 

Five Businesses Your Elementary School-Aged Child Can Start This Summer

 

Easy and Simple Energy Saving Tips for the Penny Pinching Mom

 

How To Look After Your Family's Finances When The Kids Have Cost A Fortune

 

5 Uniquely Simple Ways To Save This Month

 

Affording Your Next Move On The Property Ladder 

 

Making Your Family Home Appear Luxurious on a Budget

  

Get On Top Of These Money Matters Before Baby Arrives 

 

Affordable Activities For You To Enjoy With Your Kids This Summer

 

Health And Wealth: How To Eat Well On A Budget

  

Struggling With Debt? 3 Ways To Clear It Faster By Being Frugal 

 

Emergency Expenses: Save Money During a Home Disaster

 

Free Kids Craft Ideas For Summer

 

Fun Frugal Hobbies that Won’t Break the Bank

 

Using Frugality To Be Fantastic

  

Money-Saving Tips For Dealing With Compensation Payments

  

Can You Buy a House Frugally

 

Learn To Make The Right Financial Decisions For You and Your Family 

 

Save Money On The Little Luxuries That You Just Can’t Live Without 

 

How To Avoid Straining Your Wealth When Entertaining Yourself

 

Save More Cash By Reducing Food Waste With These Top Tips

 

Eight Steps to Squash Struggle Forever

  

More Month Than Money?

 

Living On A Fixed Income? These Super-Frugal Strategies Are For You!

 

An Injury At Work Doesn't Have To Be A Pain In The Wallet

 

Tips and Tricks to Save Energy in Your Home 

 

Surprising Ways To Save Money On Your Purchases

 

Entertain Yourself for Less 

 

Top Changes You Can Make To Ensure Your Family Is Not Left Out Of Pocket

 

How To Be A Funky Frugal Mommy

 

How To Apply For Child Care Subsidy in B.C. 

 

Couponing: A fun way to be frugal! 

 

A Hole In Your Wallet: How Much Is Your Home Really Costing You? 

 

Look to the Future and Save Money

 

When Christmas Ends, Payback Begins

 

Get Through College Without Going Broke

 

19 Ways You Can Spread Holiday Cheer This Year — For Free

 

Don't Be Hit With Huge Medical Costs: Save While Keeping Your Family Healthy

 

Common Reasons Why Families Get Into Debt During December (And Ways To Avoid It!)

 

10 Ways to Teach Your Children the Value of a Dollar

 

Finding the Money: Paying for Your Home Improvements

 

How to Save Money While Caring for Your Kids AND Your Aging Parents

 

Maintenance tips that will make sure you don’t waste money

  

Save every drop of bacon grease in a mason jar. That stuff is like liquid gold, you can use it to fry potatoes, eggs, sandwiches, onions, mushrooms, all while infusing your food with bacon flavor!

 

  • Open your blinds and curtains as soon as you wake up not only will you save cash by not using electricity turning on the lights but you will also let in any sunlight allowing the sun to naturally warm up your home. 


  •  Did you know some newer TV's have energy saver settings? Take a look around in your menu and see if you have one, it dims the brightness of the TV using less electricity.


  • Did you know sponges are machine washable? I rarely throw away a sponge unless it is falling apart in my hand. I also love having one of those scotch brite dish wands that you fill with dish soap, the heads that you can take off and replace are also machine washable!


  •  Trying to save money on your water bill? Wanna do your part for the environment? Try filling a 2L bottle with water and putting it in your toilet tank or you can use a large rock or big brick, you will use less water with every flush!



  • Buy items marked down for clearance, just because they say it is best before a certain date does not mean it is officially spoiled on that date. It is just an estimate. 


  • I have 3 kids so that means a lot of hot water at bath time, but it doesn't have to. I give my baby a bath first since he is the cleanest, then instead of draining and refilling the tub I just add more water and bubble bath for my other two. I save like 10 litres of hot water!


  • This is a pretty awesome money saver, if you have a Lysol No Touch Soap Dispenser and see how expensive the refills are, don't worry you can refill just one over and over again with your favorite hand soap. I just wedge a butter knife under one side of the lid and gently pull it up then put the knife on the other side and pop that side up as well.  Once you have the lid off use your favorite liquid hand soap to refill and pop the lid back on. It just takes a little push til it pops back in place! Now refills are no longer on your shopping list! Watch my Youtube tutorial here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL_KHnH0BJo&list=UUSofjHlmeSoph25680drB9g


  • Don't throw away your white ends of your green onions! Place them in a glass of water and they will grow back, this also works with celery! And yes it works I have done it! I have heard this works with lettuce as well but have not tried it.


  •  Grow your own! We have a nice big veggie garden here with animals that create terrific compost. Our garden supplies us with tomatoes, corn, potatoes, carrots, cucumber, peas, and so much more. We work very hard on it all spring and summer and then harvest eat and freeze whatever we can to save us a ton of money!


  • I'm sure we all hate paying for electricity right? Well I know you're always encouraged to unplug things but I can never remember to do this. So here is my tip. Invest in a few power bars with the nifty little on-off switch and put them where most of your largest groups of electronics and such are plugged in. Then whenever you leave the House flip the switch. No unplugging! 


  • In the summer when the kids use a kiddie pool and the time comes to refill with fresh water, don't just drain the water out on the lawn. My kids enjoy taking buckets full of dirty pool water to the garden and all the plants. Saves me from watering later.


  • When I buy laundry soap and get the 2x concentrate I do a few loads with a very little detergent until it reaches just over 1/2 way full then fill the remainder with water. It makes very little difference and you get way more soap!


  • If you have chickens, ducks, and other farm animals save as many organic fruits and veggie scraps as you can. Also, try digging up worms for them instead of buying them from pricey stores. Also if you like buying your animals fruits and veggies check out the discount bins or clearance rack for bruising or moldy fruit marked down.


  • Raising kids can be expensive if you let it. Your kids do not need every electronic or movie out there. Entertain your kids with books from the library, tag outside, hopscotch, coloring, etc.

  • Clothes shouldn't rule your wallet I get lots of clothes from friends and family, and if I desperately need something I buy used. Clothes are very unimportant to me, for my kids, I get lots of hand me downs, and ask people to include them in gift options for birthdays, Christmas, etc. 

  • Do not waste baby wipes on your everyday messes when you're at home. I know some people who buy baby wipes just to wash their kid's faces when they are done eating. Why waste that kind of money when you can just use a face cloth? I always keep one nearby so I'm not tempted to use my wipes!


  • Drink more water. Did you know if you drink a big glass of water before eating you won't eat as much and you will digest it easier? I drink at least 6 or 7  (refilled by the tap) bottles of water a day.

  • Do you hate wasting the little end pieces of bread off every loaf? No problem, take the pieces each time you have a loaf of bread and put them in a freezer bag marked bread ends, or another clever name, when you have enough of them, let them thaw and then you can slice into cubes toss in melted butter with your preferred seasonings and bake them at 300 degrees for 15 mins. Stir once or twice while baking. Then you have croutons or put them in a food processor or blender and pulse to make bread crumbs.


  • When I give my kids apple slices, bananas, or any other fruit but for some reason, they can't seem to finish I put them in my "smoothie" bag in the freezer. By this I mean to label a freezer bag smoothie and any left over fruit from snacks gets tossed in there and when we want a smoothie we have all kinds of frozen fruit ready to go! No more waste and another delicious snack!

  • If you run out of corn syrup in the middle of baking and don't have the time or money to go buy some here is a simple substitution for you. If a recipe calls for 1 cup corn syrup combine 1 cup granulated sugar and add 1/4 cup additional liquid used in the recipe. Mix separately and then add.

  • If you run out of chocolate or don't even have any but have a mad craving for brownies don't worry just use unsweetened cocoa powder, margarine or shortening, and sugar. Or if the recipe calls for unsweetened chocolate just don't add sugar. Easy as pie!

  • Save all your vegetable trimmings, onion peels, carrot peels, pea pods, celery tops, etc. You can keep them in a freezer bag just like your bread pieces and when you have enough you can make vegetable stock. You just put all your peels and scraps in a big pot and cover them with water. Let boil for 3-4 hours then strain. You can either freeze it or use it right away!

    • Did you know you can rent DVDs at your local library? That's right almost all libraries now have DVD rentals available. So not only can you learn through the power of books but get your entertainment fix through the library for free as well. 


Health care is expensive. Medication is expensive too, did you know you can save a little by asking your doctor for samples? Doctor's offices and clinics get samples of all kinds of medications, like Advil, Tylenol, Senakot, allergy meds, birth control, and a whole lot more. It never hurts to ask, if you don't use them they expire and get discarded.

No comments:

Post a Comment