Econ-o-Mom

Hi Everyone,

So I have a few friends and family that I greatly admire that have found some great ways to to live fabulous and save money.

I want to share a few of the great ideas they have passed along to me:

1. Buy meat on sale and freeze for future meals.

2. Shop for Kids clothes at thrift stores - buy only brand new clothes and brand name clothes. Also, buy a few sizes ahead so you're not stuck buying expensive new clothes when your little one grows into the next size.

3. Live on just your husband's income before you quit your job to see if you can make it.

4. (This one is mine) Some restaurants are offering 50% off the entire menu on certain nights. We are going to a celeb hot spot this week and the savings will more than make up for the cost of our baby sitter.

5. Get books at the library. Not only does this save you money but when you get sick of a book you just take it back instead of cluttering up your house (this idea is mine too). Also, you can renew your books online to eliminate late fees and to keep the books that you like for a long time.

Please feel free to post some great money saving ideas that you have.

Healthcare and the Stay At Home Mom

Healthcare costs have become insane. When I was a single working women I never really paid attention because my employer covered most of the cost and I simply paid about $80 a month (tax free) out of my check. I never missed it. Once you have a family, as every mom knows, things change.

For example, for us to insure all three of us under my husband's HMO plan it's $701 per month. For just my husband and son it's $371 per month. Therefore, to add me would be an additional $330. However, my husband's plan does not cover chiropratic care so I would have to pay cash for that, which would be $120 per visit. I need to go at least once a month. So, that would add up to $491 per month minimum.

Another option is for me to go on Cobra under my former employer's plan - this costs $415 per month. However, under this plan my chiropractic visits are covered. So my total cost per month would be $415 versus $491 on my husband's plan.

So to insure 3 healthy people for one year is costing us $9,672. Plus, in addition to this we pay copays.

I really worry about all of the people who are now unemployed - how are they able to pay for Cobra? Do we need universal healthcare or what?

Happy Baby

Today was the 30th day on sleep training and I'm happy to report that Ethan is the happiest baby ever.