It is always important to give your family finances a closer look. Take the time to sit down and go over what you can afford to let go.

1. Be Realistic About What You Spend – Make a family budget. Write down everything that you and your family spend money on. Don’t forget the small stuff like your daily coffee and the kids’ lunch money. You can then have a good record of where your family can cut costs if necessary.
2. Cut The Cable, Keep The Internet – Give your family a TV break. Cut the cable for a couple of months (or longer). In the days of Netflix and Hulu, who needs to spend hundreds on the cable bill?
3. Eat Out Less – Once a week is a nice treat for everyone. Any more than that should be cut back. If you are planning an outing around a meal time remember to pack a snack to save on meals.
4. Analyze Extracurricular Activities – When signing up for extracurricular activities, always consider the total costs before committing. Is extra gear and clothing necessary? Also consider transportation costs for getting your child to and from said activity. Once you know everything that’s involved, you can decide if it is affordable.
5. Craigslist – Buy, sell, trade. It’s all there on Craigslist. If you are looking for a big ticket item or some baby gear, check out whether someone is selling it for less than full price. You can save big bucks.
6. Go To The Library – The books are free, and many carry movies, TV shows and music as well. It doesn’t get any better than that.
7. Reserve Paid Babysitters for Special Occasions – The overuse of hired help can get out of hand and very pricey. Try to use family and friends or even set up a babysitting co-op situation in your neighborhood to keep this expense down.
8. Keep The Electricity Costs Down – Turn off the lights when you leave a room. It sounds simple, but try getting a 10-year-old to comply. Try your best to get your family on board with saving electricity, ask them to make efforts to turn off TVs, shut down computers and air conditioners if they are not needed. It will save you hundreds on your monthly bill. Another way of saving on electricity is to cut out the dryer during the summer months and let your clothes dry outside.
9. Repurpose and Reuse – Weather it’s Mason Jars as desk top storage or saving your plastic bags to use again, it is always cost effective to reuse items that you have already bought. Before running to the store, consider what you may already have that can get the job done.
10. Look Closely At The Little Things – Take an hour one day and look over your bills and statements with a magnifying glass. You may be spending unnecessary money on little things. Late fees, yearly service charges, automatic payments that were never canceled, these things add up. Take the time to go over these expenses and save yourself the cash.