Sticking to a budget as a single mom has involved a combination of a few things that I do daily to keep my costs from increasing. They are sometimes a pain to get done, but nonetheless I do them because combined, the effectiveness of all of them in helping me save money is significant. A few of them I currently use I’ve mentioned in the following paragraphs, and I always have my eyes peeled for more ways to save money.
Driving a CNG Vehicle
One of the best decisions I’ve made as a driver in the current economic climate was to switch to a Compressed Natural Gas vehicle. The cost is half of what I paid as a driver of a car that runs on regular gasoline. There are a few glitches to consider with these vehicles though. You have to plan your tank fill ups. CNG isn’t at just any gas station like gasoline is. There are designated locations that you have to know ahead of time, so if you’re taking a trip or driving longer, be aware that this can factor into your driving plans.
Line Drying Clothes
I’m not sure when I last used my dryer. I either hang my clothing out on the outside line, or often on the inside line in my basement as well. This alone saves me between $60 to $80 dollars on my utility bill monthly because of the size of my large family. Doing this takes some time, but I’m willing to do the work to save that chunk of money every month. You just have to make sure to add fabric softener to the water when you wash for softer clothing.
Biking
Even though I drive a minivan that runs with more inexpensively priced compressed natural gas, taxi driving for a large family can become expensive. I’ve recently taken up biking as an alternative to driving whenever I can. My goal to keep my minivan parked, and there are many days I achieve that goal. This has resulted with a significant savings as I’ve found myself only filling up once a week rather than two or three times weekly.
Baking Bread
It’s another thing to add on the “to do list”, however, I have found that baking a loaf of bread for between 35 and 40 cents a loaf is a lot easier to manage than buying bread at $1.99 or more a loaf. Not only does it have less additives, but at the rate I go through bread at my house, I’m able to see the monetary savings that go along with practicing this.
I find that sticking to a budget as a single mom in these ways really helps keep the money pot from dwindling over time. I’ve become accustomed to doing them regularly as well so it’s really not as difficult to accomplish anymore.
Source: Personal Experience
