money saving tips for families- saving for family days out

This is a collaborative post with Cash Lady.

saving money is always a topic of conversation within my circle of friends. Especially because we have  families and have so many things we want to do with them but there isn’t always the money to do it. Some people may turn to quick loans to help them out in difficult financial situations. This doesn’t always have to be the answer there are things you can do to save some money before it gets to that point.

My money-saving tips

Put down the plastic

It’s so easy now to pay for anything you want with just a swipe of your card. Making it really hard to keep a track of what your spending. What we have started to do is not use our cards. We make sure there is enough money in our banks for our bills each month then draw out the rest. This now means if you want to pay for anything you have to make sure that you have the cash on you. The amount of times I go into a shop and buy things for the sake of it. Now I don’t have cash on me unless I need it. I find myself wasting less money on things I don’t actually need. Leaving me with more money to put into savings at the end of the month.

 Track your spending’s

Every time you spend money on something keep the receipt or note it down on a piece of paper. At the end of the month check all the money that has gone out and see if there is anything you could cut out. Are you having lots of takeaways or going to the shops for a pint of milk and spending £20 instead. If you do this you will be able to see where exactly where your money is going and where you potentially could save money.

This is the same for any monthly direct debits, Are you still paying for a phone contract of a phone you no longer have. Or are you paying for something like now TV and also have a sky package. Looking at your outgoings could save you a lot of money leaving you with more money to use on family days out or holidays.

Online shopping

I am always one for a bargain and have been known to pick something up at the supermarkets because it’s on offer. The thing is do I really need that 6 pack of jam donuts. The answer is probably going to be no my waist line defiantly doesn’t need them. This is why we have started to do online shopping we know the things we want and we stick to them. Occasionally we might treat ourselves but we keep it to the minimum. After you have done one shop online it saves what you have chosen so the next time you do it it’s there ready.

Also you can use online shopping to save money on a lot of things. Make sure to shop around and get the best price for the things you need. I did this a lot before we had Ava and was able to get some really good deals and some of them were only online deals. So its worth taking a look around the internet before you jump straight into buying something.

Meal planning

This is a great way to save money and also stop arguments at meal times. Before we place an online shopping order we sit down and plan our meals for the month. This then means when we place our order we know exactly what we need.

Get yourself a piggy bank

Piggy banks are not just for the children they are a great way to save money. Any time we get change that’s under a 50p we put it in our money pots. Once they are full we cash them in , its mad how much you can actually save by just putting a few pennies away each day. You need to also make sure that the money stays in the pot once you put it in there . Those tins that you have to use a tin opener to get into are great for this as it stops the temptation of dipping in.

Childcare vouchers

If your little ones go to nursery then using childcare vouchers are a great way to pay for their nursery fees. Some parents have been known to save £930 a year per child on childcare just by using childcare vouchers. To know if you can get childcare vouchers to pay for nursery fees you will need to speak to your work place and see if they are part of a scheme. Most nurseries accept vouchers and if they don’t currently accept the voucher company that your work uses its simple and easy for them to sign up to them.

These are just a few of my money-saving tips which help us to have money for family days out and to save for our dream home.

How do you save money and what ways do you think work best ?