Becoming a SAHM

ZKLBM0618 · April 2013

My husband and I have been talking about once the baby is born what I am going to do about working. I have a job that is not conducive at all to having a family (travel, late hours etc.) and also I don't make so much that we can't live without my salary but then again my husband by no means makes a fortune but we just need to cut back on things in order for us to live. What do the other SAHM's cut back on in order to live with one salary?

daileym · April 2013

I didn't want to have a lot of debt or be stressed out over money so we made two big changes, the first being selling our dream home for a more practical house and we traded my car and his pickup in for a family vehicle that we share. We know both of these moves are temporary since I will go back to work once our youngest gets into all day school, and having "extravagant" things was trumped by being able to be a SAHM comfortably.

I also picked up couponing and since I have time I do a lot of bargain shopping and checking for great deals on sites like hip2save.com. It saves us a lot of money and it actually has turned into a hobby for me.

I love being a SAHM and wouldn't trade it for anything, but I also know I would enjoy it less if I was stressed over money all the time. Try to budget and cut things that you can live without. It's all about what priorities you have.

Kristinandcody · April 2013

I have a very detailed month to month budget. I'm very good at stretching a penny! I know how much money needs to go to bills and groceries along with gas. It makes it a lot easier to see how much you have every month. It works for my family. My DH is a spender not a saver which makes it difficult sometimes, but we make it work on his salary.

kimmykaye · April 2013

We don't eat out a lot. We don't go to expensive movies often. We're lucky to have one date night a month. Paying a babysitter, plus dinner and/or a movie, can get expensive. We get out by going to the park with our girls or going for walks as a family. It's an adjustment going from leaving the house for work to staying at home with the kiddos. It might take some time to get used to it, but it's definately worth it. When my oldest is in kindergarten, I'll get my 2nd BS or a MS degree, and by the time I graduate, my youngest will be close to starting school. I'll go back to work when all the kiddos are in school, or close to it.

kimmykaye · April 2013

Kristinandcody:
I have a very detailed month to month budget. I'm very good at stretching a penny! I know how much money needs to go to bills and groceries along with gas. It makes it a lot easier to see how much you have every month. It works for my family. My DH is a spender not a saver which makes it difficult sometimes, but we make it work on his salary.

ditto to this as well

ravenclaw1 · April 2013

We're making the same decision as you. We don't live a very extravagant lifestyle, and I make WAY less than my H. We know we'll have to make some changes, but are both ok with that. My advice would be to start making the cutbacks now. Things like not eating out, coupons, meal planning, etc. That way it's not a shock when the baby comes.

NNGnome · April 2013

I am a SAHM and here are a few things that I do to keep costs down, I would also recommend putting all your salary into savings from now on, then you can see if you can live off one salary, and you have some savings for the LO:

1, I cloth diaper, cloth wipe, unpaper towels, unpaper tissues (we are an almost paperless house), so I don't need to buy, diapers, wipes, paper towels or tissues.

2, I BF for 15 months..so no formula (although this one may be out of your hands)

3, All the classes I go to with DS are free at the early years center

4, All DSs clothes are from the second hand store

5, go to cheaper cable and phone packages (I struggled with this one, but it can save loads

6, Shopping with coupons for food and buying store brands (this is not as good in Canada, as we don't have as much competition, but it seems there are great deals in the US)

7, I don't wear makeup or get manicures, and get my hair done only twice a year

8, I use Diva cup, so don't need to buy "feminine products"

9, I make my own washing powder that lasts forever

10, I use Castille soap instead of body wash - I believe body wash is a big con, they basically water down soap, and put it in a container and charge 5 times as much for it! - My Castille soap costs $4 and lasts 7 months.

11. I epilate my legs rather than waxing etc.

12, I walk to whenever I can rather than taking the car

13, I eat in most of the time, we went from going out once a week to once a month.

That's all I can think of for now, I am sure there are more, there is also the SAHM board, and the EFF board that can help with ideas.

mamasheridan · April 2013

I coupon and negotiate price on every thing. I make all our bedding and towels. I cut everyones hair. we take hand me downs and garge sale/consignment shop. I make meal plans within my grocery budget and stick to them the best we can. I dont get my hair done or go tanning or get my nails done or buy fancy make up. my husband works 70 hrs a week and picks up odd jobs when we need more. oh I also grow tons of fruits and veggies and can them for the winter.
This might sound horrible or scareyto some people. but this wasnt how it was with just one or two kids. lol just some suggestions on things you can do.

ZKLBM0618 · April 2013

Wow! Thank you all for the wonderful suggestions! I am definitely going to have to look in to couponing but I'm just not sure how to do it! Also, by looking at all of your suggestions it makes me realize how much we can really cut out too...

Vkeo79 · April 2013

We are doing the exact same thing. When comparing how much it would cost for daycare and me working full time vs. being a SAHM it just itsn't worth it to go back to work after LO is here. We will have to make cutbacks as well and definitely will have to be careful with our spending but I think it will be worth it. We have already started cutting back where we can and we are stashing money away to help out if we need it down the road. We also almost stopped eating out completely and make our meals at home. That is saving us a ton. It's not going to be the easiest lifestyle but I think my family will be happier in the long run for it.

jeapplegate · April 2013

I work full time, but my H cut down to part time when M came. This allows us to skip daycare entirely. Things that we do to make up for the lost income.

1. No cable - we have an antenna and netflix

2. No smart phones, just dumb ones and no land line.

3. cloth diapers (cheap ones from alva, if you get expensive ones you won't save)

4. breast feeding

5. I don't buy expensive cleaning products, I make our laundry detergent and I use mainly vinegar and baking soda for cleaning. I will occasionally use watered down bleach as well.

6. I use almost no paper towels. We go through one roll/year. I keep a supply of cut up old towels.

7. one of our cars is old and people think we are ridiculous for not buying something nicer, but we use that one as our going to work car. If you are making two car payments or have one high one you should absolutely downgrade to get rid of one or cut the payment.

8. I make soap as a hobby. We use it for bathing, hand and hair washing. I don't buy conditioner. I also don't buy face wash. I do oil cleaning method instead (my skin has never been better!). With the oil cleansing I also don't need a moisturizer so t saves there too.

You have to remember to take into account the money you will save by not working. Gas, clothes etc, then balance that with cut backs.

Shanmarie1083 · April 2013

We cut back majorly on household expenses, the other ladies gave a ton of great suggestions.

The biggest advice I would give is to start living off one salary ASAP before you quit your job. This way you can put all of your salary away as an emergency fund and you can make sure that living off of one paycheck is in fact doable. Things can look great on paper but sudden expenses come up all the time that you didn't plan for. For example our AC unit just went kaput and we unexpectedly had to shell out 6K for a new one. Luckily we had the money in savings and it wasn't a huge financial blow.. it was painful writing out that check for sure but it didn't break us. Make sure when you are creating a budget to factor at least $200-300 additional a month for baby expenses that will undoubtedly come up.

MommyRutledge · April 2013

I'm dying to figure out a way I can be a SAHM! Sadly, we have 3 car payments because we pay for DF's mom's car too! Her husband passed and she barely makes enough to cover her house payment where she lives with her oldest daughter, who is a RN, and 2 nephews! Anyway, if I could cut out one of those, We would be ok! As it is, DF is taking a pt job he already works 50 hours per week at his day job, but makes salary! I've even considered working some nights to make ends meet after we get settled with baby! I'm just so overwhelmed trying to figure it out!

kdv77 · April 2013

We planned on me being a SAHM since we started talking marriage. We paid cash for our cars, bought a house we knew we could afford on one salary, and just lived off DHs salary while using mine for savings, paying down the mortgage, etc.

Other things we have done since: Cloth diapering, breastfeeding, cutting cable and buying an appletv with Hulu and Netflix (bonus: no crappy commercials), minimal eating out, shopping sales for clothes, etc. I also make a lot of my own stuff as its both healthier and cheaper: almond milk, deodorant, toothpaste, etc. We also buy very minimal prepackaged food items for cost and health.

EMLYNNLERETTE · April 2013

We cut back on everything. My DH makes just enough to get us by. We cut out half of our groceries, went down to one car, do not have cable or internet. It all adds up a ton. Car insurance alone took off a ton going to one car and we both have clean driving records and are close to 30. We hardly ever buy clothes for ourselves unless it is a need situation. Like socks, underwear, bras... We also cut out our gym memberships when we got married, before then we went to lifetime and that costs a fortune! We just recently joined the YMCA but for a family the benefits are awesome. I'm sure there are more things we cut, its been a long time, I have probably forgotten about those luxuries.

Edit. After reading PPs responses, I wanted to add in that we also CD which DOES save money especially if you make detergent which we don't but we do line dry everything when it is not freazing weather. We do not use paper towels but use dishcloths from walmart that I have literally only replaced once in four years. They hold up surprisingly well. We never buy paper plates or things like that, they are a huge waste in so many ways, if you don't have a dishwasher, buy one! You will save more that way. We are guilty of eating out, but if we didn't, that would save usa fortune. I also agree that a budget is a must.

RunningGal900 · April 2013

Well we had planned on it, so we lived off DH's salary for a couple of years, but I cloth diaper and breastfeed as two specific ways to save money with baby. In general, I think we save money with me staying home because we don't eat out at much and then obviously daycare costs. I think more than anything we just know our disposable income is a little lower so we don't vacation as much, buy as much clothing, etc.

olga1311 · April 2013

ZKLBM0618:
Wow! Thank you all for the wonderful suggestions! I am definitely going to have to look in to couponing but I'm just not sure how to do it! Also, by looking at all of your suggestions it makes me realize how much we can really cut out too...

Here is a great website that breaks down how to start couponing. It helped me a ton when I started. I am not SAHM but I got into couponing frenzy for a year and I saved a ton on Toiletries. I paid $20 total for shampoo (Pantene) that lasted me for a year https://www.livingwellspendingless.com/beginners-guide-to-coupons/

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