Great tips! And “Another thing that saves us money is homeschooling.” is so true.

“I try to double or triple stuff I can throw in the freezer….like lasagna, chili, or some other freezer friendly food, so I can pull it out on nights where we’ve been running all day or busy, instead of feeling like we have to order in.”…

LOVE this trick and am purposing to do it more often. It also helps to have a ready dish to carry to a friend or neighbor in need of it.

One major way our family has been able to survive on one income is by turning to natural remedies instead of “modern medicine”. Some of my husband’s health issues cleared up just by increasing his water intake each day (he had been on prilosec for a few years before that).

Another thing that saves us money is homeschooling. While some people think they can’t afford to homeschool, I’m here to prove you wrong. We spend less money on books than we did in extra gas driving for special things at the school (they rode the bus most days), snacks, activities at the school, special school clothes, etc. In addition to saving money, we are a lot less stressed for time.

I feed my family of 10 on about $500 a month (varies slightly by month and includes toiletries and such) and we eat about 50% organic. We do this by buying in bulk, cooking from scratch, growing a garden and preserving, taking advantage of our apple trees and our neighbor’s pear trees (they don’t do anything with the pears!). We usually put 3 deer in the freezer each year (although we need to increase this!). We have a goat for our milk and her feed is included in the “food” budget as well. We’ve been blessed with someone who gives us 4-5 dozen eggs a week since one of our neighbors’ dogs killed our laying hens. Also, eating whole grains has reduced our food budget. While it might cost a “little” more to buy whole grains, you will find that you eat less because they actually fill you up.

As far as the meat debate goes, it is actually blood type that determines the amount of meat needed. O Blood types need more meat than A blood types (I’m not sure about AB or B since we don’t have anyone in the family with those). There are often times I will make the meat separate for those who need it and then just eat the side dishes for myself. We also need to remember that a serving of meat is the size of your palm (how many of us would eat a whole steak if it was set before us?!).

Some quick and frugal meals that I sometimes make are:

Hamburger gravy over potatoes, bread, pasta or rice.

Black Bean Soup–cook dry black beans in a crockpot. After they are soft, add one jar of salsa (that I never pay over $1 for), a splash of lemon juice, some salt and some parsley. Blend about 1/2 of it to make it smoother. Serve with sour cream and tortilla chips.

Stir-fry is always quick and frugal–you can use less meat and lots of veggies with brown rice for a very filling meal.

I absolutely love it when find good deals. My last two CVS trips resulted resulted in $25 for a $120 worth; and $5.50 for about $80 worth.

Thanks for this series.

If I want women who are trying to figure out how to come home to find my posts, it necessitates I use the words “living on one-income” in the title because that is the most likely words used in a search.

That’s what is driving me crazy about this silly side-trail. It’s not about how much money the family is making, people–it’s about helping mom to be home!!!

How is this really relevant to the topic? From what I remember reading from this blog – their family has been in dire financial straits before and I’m sure Kelly remembers it well (after all who amoung us has not?). It’s just a mean sidebar really and this is meant to inspire us to be more frugal.

Mrs. W technically if a child is < 14 years of age the income belongs to the parents – unless the IRS has completely changed their stance since I became a SAHM.

Another interesting thing you said:

“Kids income is different…as it is theirs…unless you live in certain households that I know of where the daughter is almost 30 and daddy locks up all the money she makes and only gives her an “allowance” from it.”

When an adult works for a company, that company “locks up all the money and gives an allowance”. It’s called a “paycheck”. Why do you make it out to be abusive if a father runs his home that way?

For all practical purposes, yongxiu began the argument stating that we are a “dual-career family”. And while technically we make multiple streams of income (and so should really be called a “multiple-income family”), the application of terms is an important one because of what comes to mind with said terms. I consider my “career” to be my home-making, since that is what I do the bulk of my day. But her term is misleading as the common picture associated with that term is working full-time outside the home.

A dual-income family is thought of by most as both spouses working outside the home AND answering to two different bosses. These posts are about specifically how a mom can stay at home and NOT be enslaved to another boss, not whether she earns money from home or not.

The term “how to live on one income” is necessary to achieve the message in the posts: how a working woman can come home. EARNING income from home simply adds to her husband’s income, it is not a separate one the way we think of dual-income.

The big hang up you and yongxiu have with this terminology is that you are not viewing the husband and wife as one, and thus their income as one. When the family is seen as one industry, then all the money is pooled, the “employees” receive compensation, and mom gets to be home.

Get over the wording and grasp the concept.