thrifty OS mum tips???

red_devil

make porridge for breakfast so filling and cheap.

LJM

oh yeah i love porridge it is a great warm filling brekkie especially with a bit of honey or jam on

MessyTessie

Check to see if you have a Clarks outlet shop near you, both my kids 9 and 5 get their shoes from there, usually last years style but properly fitted and about £10 off new price.

Get your family used to home baking, cakes and biscuits can be make so much cheaper than buying them and they can be baked when you are doing the rest of the dinner so no extra oven time.

Get a list of toddler groups and other activities in your area, our health visitors have a copy, excellent for cheap trips out so you're not going stir crazy in the house also find a local park. Find out what places do good value season tickets, we have a large soft play area close by with a farm, the annual ticket usually costs about 3 visits so if you go regularly during the year it's worth it.

The best advice I can give is to teach your children that it's a game, saving money on what we have to spend means more money for fun things, both my kids know that I buy whatever cereal is on special and that mummy loves them 'half price', in other words if there are treats in the cupboard it's because they were on special offer LOL

maman

lilmisskitkat wrote: »

Shoes i wont comprimise on, have to be Clarks/Startrite for their main pair, dont mind cheaper for wellies, slippers, party shoes which get worn for a few hours every once in a while. Try and see if there is a Clarks outlet near you, its a bit hit and miss but sometimes you can get lucky with the size and style you're after at the time, worth a look.

I'd totally agree with not compromising on quality shoes and having her feet measured regularly. Clarks Doodles (machine washable canvas shoes) are great for the summer too. Also some cheap slippers, wellies etc as lilmisskitkat said.

I think one problem can be that many mums change their 'retail therapy' habits when they have children. So instead of treating yourself you may be buying too many clothes and shoes for your little one. Children really don't need loads of shoes or clothes because they grow out of things so quickly. I'd say buy an absolute minimum to make sure she has outfits suitable for a range of weathers/occasions. Oh and don't forget that if grandparents and other relatives and friends ask what to buy her as gifts, make sure you ask for things she really needs that will help your budget like clothes, a few toys/books or nice things for her bedroom.

toffifee

At my local John Lewis the children's shoes department (they do Clarks, Start-Rite and others) always has a section of shoes that are on sale, sometimes at 50% off. It's a bit hit and miss as to whether they've got the type/size of shoe when you need it, but we've saved loads by checking it out when we're near there.

lilmisskitkat

maman wrote: »

I think one problem can be that many mums change their 'retail therapy' habits when they have children. So instead of treating yourself you may be buying too many clothes and shoes for your little one. Children really don't need loads of shoes or clothes because they grow out of things so quickly. I'd say buy an absolute minimum to make sure she has outfits suitable for a range of weathers/occasions. Oh and don't forget that if grandparents and other relatives and friends ask what to buy her as gifts, make sure you ask for things she really needs that will help your budget like clothes, a few toys/books or nice things for her bedroom.

Definitely agree with it being easy to over-buy for kids with regards to clothes and shoes, a friends DD (7) has 3 pairs of genuine ugg boots :eek: and she likes her to be her little 'mini-me'. And they have matching 'Juicy' tracksuits :rotfl:

My eldest is in school 5 days a week so wears school uniform mostly, she has some playing out clothes (older jeans, t shirt, hoody, trainers) weekend clothes (jeans/denim skirt/leggings, worn with long sleeved tops, a cardigan and a pair of Ugg style boots (from Next, not real!) and one outfit for best. She is getting to the age now where she is into clothes and what she wears and likes to get them as presents for xmas/birthdays.

DS (2) has more clothes, because he wears his 7 days a week and whereas DD's clothes can do for a couple of days sometimes he needs clean everyday because of the creams & ointments we have to apply for his ezcema.

Also another thing about Clarks, just discovered this afternoon that you can order shoes online to be delivered to your local store to go and be measured and try them on. I've just ordered 5 pairs which all have £10 off in the sale to be delivered to my local store for DS to go and try on, you can order up to 6 pairs and dont pay until you decide to buy them in the store :T

Kate xxx

fallen_angel09

I dont really have much to add to this thread, apart from meal planning is definatly the way forwards.

Ebay for kids is great as is buying the next size up in the sales.

Keeping track of what you spend (yes even that sneaky starbucks hot chocolate ) then looking at it after a few weeks can usually shock you into not spending to willy nilly!

Good luck x

freyasmum

Welcome to MSE :hello:

My littlie also has clarks shoes, bought mostly in the sale. Same with clothes, though obviously not from Clarks

As for food, don't waste what you buy. Leftover tortillas, for example (guess who had fajitas for dinner? ) can be turned into breakfast quesadillas :drool: Veg that's looking a bit sad will make a delicious soup - fridge soup, I believe some people call it. Maybe try a brand down for some products? You might be pleasantly surprised.

You can freeze bread, milk and cheese so that you don't need to nip into the shops for a carton of milk and come out £20 lighter. Not that I do that of course :whistle:

I buy meat from the local farm shop. The chicken breasts are HUGE and are £4/kilo compared to Tesco's £6.95 for the value chicken. It's cheaper still to buy a whole chicken, but I do like the breasts. They come with the fillets attached, so I remove and breadcrumb them and my daughter has them with wedges, for example.

Christmas as well (sorry! ), I buy things throughout the year as I see them. I got a jasper conran dressing gown (it's SO snuggly, I wish they did them in my size ) for £5, rather than the £18 it had been previously. Some barbie accessories for £5 rather than £15, little things like that. Keep an eye on the grabbit board as well. Though don't blame me if you end up skint buying bargains :rotfl:

I also buy things when on offer, e.g. washing powder - I'm not fussy on the brand (fairy is my absolute favourite, I adore the smell of it - especially on freshly washed bedding! - but I refuse to pay 25p a wash when I could use other powder for less than 10p/wash ). I buy enough to see me through to the next offer. Same with washing-up liquid, again Fairy is my favourite. You can sometimes get it for £1 a bottle (the big ones).

My biggest tip is find out what amount of product you're supposed to be using. E.g. my mum was using double the amount of washing powder and fabric conditioner :eek:

cooking-mama wrote: »

hello and welcome tink-04...im not realy sure what you mean by "mum things"...personaly i think shoes for my daughters,budgeting etc are both parents responsibilty,and these things work better with teamwork,

I don't want to speak for OP, but I'm guessing she means cos it's usually mums who take the children for shoes and do the shopping when dad's at work, etc?

quintwins

for shoes i go to clarks get measured then go and find bnib ones on ebay it might only save me £5 sometimes but rather that £5 in my pocket i also buy them in the clarkes sale (i have my wee boys next size up for £10) but you ahve to be careful with his aswell because my twins both went threw a growth spurt in the space of 2 months and both missed out a few sizes so i then had to ebay there shoes, ebay is also very good for clothes, just gumtree for toys and keep checking your local freecycle

for fruit i tend to buy in season fruit alot and we go threw alot of bananas, i head straight for the reduced section for meat aswell and look out for offers, and a chest freezer is a must for us

mummyjane

I second the BNIB shoes from ebay. It always amazes me how many people buy their children new shoes then forget they have bought them or the child decided they didn't like them - oh the luxury!