June 12, 1997
Book Review - Miserly Moms
I decided to kick the Parenting Topic off by sharing a few books that I have recently read. This first selection may seem only tangentially related to parenting, but I found it an inspiration as I considered my own return to work after the birth of my second child.
Miserly Moms is Jonni's story of how her family transitioned from a two income to one income household so she could stay home with her children. This book offers much-needed encouragement to families who are tired of hearing society's endless whine about the impossibility of mothers staying at home to raise their own children. She shares ton's of tips and techniques. Her "Eleven Miserly Guidelines" are completely practical, and at the top of the list is the most important: "Don't confuse frugality with depriving yourself."
Jonni looked at her family's budget and began picking off the non fixed-expense items. Food was the largest item. This is why you will notice that most of the chapters deal with the grocery bill in some manner. Her goal with a family of four (in high cost Califonia) is to spend $40 to $50 a week for her household's groceries. She succeeds by investing about seven hours a week planning and shopping. The recipes that Jonni includes are well worth the price of the book alone.
Miserly Moms - Table of Contents
1. The Eleven Miserly Guidelines
2. Guideline One: Don't Confuse Frugality With Depriving Yourself
3. Guideline Two: Remove Little Wasters of Your Money
4. Guideline Three: Keep Track of Food Prices
5. Guideline Four: Don't Buy Everything at the Same Store
6. Guideline Five: Buy in Bulk Whenever Possible
7. Guideline Six: Make Your Own Whenever Possible
8. Guideline Seven: Eliminate Convenience Foods
9. Guideline Eight: Cut Back on Meats
10. Guideline Nine: Waste Nothing
11. Guideline Ten: Institue a Soup and Bread Night
12. Guideline Eleven: Cook Several Meals at Once and Freeze Them
13. Some Great Recipes
14. Be Wary of Warehouse Clubs
15. Stretch the Season
16. Dinner on Meeting Night
17. Birthdays, Holidays and Special Occasions
18. The Baby: (diapers, food, babysitting)
19. The Cost of Working
20. Help for Working Mom
21. The Husband
22. Ten Ways to Get Your Kids to Save
23. Miscellaneous Tips
24. Medical Expenses
25. Utilities
26. Special Needs
27. Crafts for Kids
28. Safer and Cheaper
Appendix A: MenuPlans
Appendix B: Substitutions, Equivalency Tables, Metric Conversions
Appendix C: Resources
Order Miserly Moms from Amazon.com.
Other "Miserly" Resources
- http://www.stretcher.com/
- Information on a free weekly e-mail newsletter.
- http://members.aol.com/DSimple/index.html
- A great one page reference!
- http://www.best.com/~piner/frugal.html
- Frugal Corner, home of the newsgroup misc.consumers.frugal-living
Future Topics
Look here for web site reviews, more book reviews and other resources. Also look for some fun stuff. Your suggestions are welcome.
Contact Information
angela's e-mail >> [email protected]
angela's homepage >> http://www.connellynet.com
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