As we rush into Christmas

I am starting to feel a little uncomfortable

About the money I have spent

The gifts we have collected for the big day

And the amount of stuff my children have had already this year

My children have no concept of money

And I think it is about time that I started to try and make them understand

The age old saying that money does not grow on trees

Things do not just come to you for free

You have to work and earn and save for the things that you want

I also want them to know that ‘things’ are not that important really

It is time for a change in our family

For all of us

Apart from Daddy

Who is and always has been good with money

And has no desire whatsoever for material things

I thank God daily for having him in my life

And hope that my children will grow up to be much more like him than like me

But hoping is not enough

Education plays its part too

And education I can do

Changes I can make

To make next year a better year

A year where we value each other more

Enjoy presence rather than presents

And spend less money!

Next year

2015

I want to be more frugal

More thrifty

Spend less money on things and more time with people

Take on less reviews

And make use of all the wonderful things we have in our home already

And the awe inspiring environment around us

I want to make changes that will last

And make us all appreciate each other

And the world around us a little more

I hope that by making these changes

When the time comes for our children to be truly responsible for themselves

And their finances

They will have the sense, the savvy to do so

I hope they will be better people than me

Here are some of the changes I am going to make

Reduce the amount of money that we spend on food
At the moment I spend far too much money on food and am ashamed to say that I end up throwing far too much away. We compost our food and recycle packaging but I want to buy less and have less waste. I do all of our shopping online and we have fallen into a rut of eating the same few meals all the time and I eat a lot of unhealthy snacks. Combined with slimming down our budget I also want to slim down my waist line and eat less sugar to protect mine and the children’s teeth. We will also be weaning Bea quite early in the new year, another mouth to feed and someone that we can all aspire to be a good food role model for. I am hoping that Bea nibbling on veg may encourage Esther and William to do so too.

So how are these reductions going to be made?

I am going to start meal planning before I shop. That way I will only buy the ingredients that I need for each meal which will stop me buying too much excess food and will also mean that I will not be able to snack between meals.

I am going to look at where we shop and make some price comparisons to make sure that we are getting the best deals on the things that we buy.

I am also going to use my freezer more. We could do with a larger freezer actually as would help with wastage to store extra bread and milk in the freezer as well as meat and fish.

I am going to look in my fridge and cupboards each week before I shop so that I do not buy more of what we already have.

I am going to set a budget of £100 a week and I am not going to go over it. In fact I am going to challenge myself to shop under budget and save the extra money for something special such as a meal out with David or a trip to the zoo for the kids. I think I will enjoy the challenge as much as the rewards.

I am going to look at our portion sizes. We eat far too much at the moment so reducing the size of our meals will help us to save money and lose weight.

Writing this all down is making me more determined and quite excited about getting it done.

I think about the possibilities for us if I can pull this off.

David and I are very fortunate that we already own our own home. It is our home, our family home, but David’s house.

There are things that we want to do to the house as our family grows.

The main one being extend the ground floor to enable us to have a large kitchen/diner/family room with the breakfast bar I have always dreamed of and glass doors leading out to an outside dining area and on to the garden.

This is our forever house but we do not want to wait forever to make the changes we have planned.

As I do not earn any money I have no actual money to save but I can help us as a family make savings in the way that we live.

Food shopping and family eating habits are the most obvious and easy place to make a change.

The second area to scrutinise is toys, activities, sundries and clothes. The allowance I have from David and where it goes each month. There are definitely cuts to be made here if I budget properly.

The first thing I would really like to do is audit our playroom, take a stock check of our craft materials and make sure that we are using the things that we have.

I am going to make a weekly play planner based on the toys, games, activities and products that we already have.

I want to start making gifts and cards for people’s birthdays and other occasions. Since Tilda died we have given very few gifts and cards but I want to teach Esther, William and eventually Bea the joy of making for and giving to others. Homemade cards and gifts will also save us money.

I am going to research free things to do with the family at weekends. I want us to explore our local environment, adventure in our garden, enjoy the simple things, be by the sea. I know that David will be pleased to read this one. He is a man who likes to stay close to home!

I am going to sort through all our current clothes and accessories and think up new combinations. I have so many clothes in varying sizes in the loft. I need to get them all out and remind myself what I already have that fits. I really do not need to buy new clothes for me.

What I am going to invest in that I think will make a huge difference to me is a regular hair cut and eyebrow shape. I have not had my hair cut for as long as I can remember, certainly since I fell pregnant with Bea.

I am going to take Esther and William to join the library and start going to our local Sure Start Centre with Bea. I spend too much money on books and toys. A fortnightly visit to the library will get us all out of the house and we will be able to discover new books. Not that we really need to, I think we have almost 1000 children’s books at home. The classes at the Sure Start Centres will be good for Bea and me and either cost very little or are completely free.

When we do go out for days I am going to take everything we need from home, food, drinks, books and toys. Seeing my sister and her husband this past weekend with their flask of hot coffee has inspired me to do this from now on. Picnics, packed lunches and thermos flasks the way forward in 2015!

I am really looking forward to challenging myself in the new year

To be a much more responsible wife

A much more involved mummy

A much more confident and controlled person

And maybe just maybe make a decent contribution toward the breakfast bar I am dreaming of

If like us you are considering an extension

Or you are looking to buy your own home

You can get an idea of how much it might cost

By using this mortgage calculator from TSB

Budgeting for a busy life with a young family is not always easy

Making cuts and choosing priorities can be hard

But making long term dreams come true

Has to be worth the effort

Teaching children the value of money is vital

Showing them the gift of giving and sharing is good for the soul

Making small changes can help you achieve great things

And as well as saving money you are finding awe and wonder among the simplest things

Sounds like a winning situation to me

I hope you will follow our journey in 2015

And share some tips along the way

For living in a more thrifty and frugal manner

For making small children understand

The age old saying that money does not grow on trees

Things do not just come to you for free

You have to work and earn and save for the things that you want

Including the kitchen/diner/family room

Complete with breakfast bar!

This post was written in collaboration with TSB