Learning how to save money for retirement or to help with college funds is important when raising a family. Learn how you can start saving money today to improve your living conditions.

Starting a family can be costly, but there are a number of ways you can save every month to help with expenses.

With three kids and two dogs, we manage to make things work for us every month by following a set of rules we’ve put into place.

From planners to phone reminders throughout the day, we’ve learned to be more organized with the important things.

It wasn’t always like this.

We all know how important it is to save money and build a savings account to help cover emergencies. Despite knowing the importance of such, many are living from one paycheck to the next.

It’s not easy to think of ideas to help with the bills when you’re getting calls from bill collectors all the time. However, if you plan ahead and think of solutions before problems arise, then you’ll be able to overcome some of the issues.

With a little creativity, you can find small ways to build your savings account without feeling a pinch in your already tight budget.

5 Key Ways To Save Money

Are you a fan of dining out? Maybe you have a habit of investing in things you won’t use this month? We’ve all been there.

Overspending can hurt your pockets when you’re raising a family. In fact, the best way to save with kids at home is by setting up a monthly budget.

Below are 5 ideas you can try to get you saving cash today.

1. Forget dining out.

Buying food while you’re out is considered overspending. Whether you plan to do this once a month or every other month, it’s something to consider when you’re hoping to put away money for an emergency.

Every trip to a fast food/quick-serve restaurant is about $10 to $30 worth of items. If you consider using that cash to pick up groceries instead, you’ll notice how much you save by choosing to shop for your food over dining out.

It’s one of the the best ways to save money quickly without hurting your savings. Simply take the money you’d normally spend to dine out and invest half on food you can use to create a meal at home.

2. Stash your change in a coffee can.

One of the best ways to put away cash is to start with your change. It’s easy to find throughout your home and can add up with time.

While this is a slow way to save up money, this method is effective. Most people will lose pennies, nickels, and dimes long before they can spend them.

Make it a habit to place your coins in a container when you get home every night. Be sure to include dollar bills as well. This will help speed up your savings.

3. Direct your money to a savings account.

Knowing your limits can help you understand whether a savings account is the best option. Choosing a savings account that isn’t connected to your checking account is a great idea.

This will decrease your chances of taking money out of your savings every month.

Look into Stash as an alternative to a savings account. It’s a great way to budget, invest, and put money away for retirement. We have friends who’ve invested in stocks for well-known companies and such. Currently, we’re using Stash to help save money for retirement and put some away into our savings.

You can start by setting up $5 a week or $10 a week to transfer over. It’s that simple!

4. Create a savings station at home.

Think about the amount of money you’d like to save each month and set up an area in your home where you can stash your cash. It’s always easier to have money put away in your home in case you ever need access to it.

5. Return or sell items you don’t need.

Sometimes you might make impulse purchases that seemed like a good idea until you reach your home and regret ever looking at the item. That’s okay! The first thing you want to do is put the receipt somewhere by the door to grab on your way out. You can also try selling the item to someone you know.

Easy Ways To Budget Money With Your Family

It’s no secret that having a family can be quite expensive. From multiple mouths to feed to clothing items for growing children, there has to be a way to get the most out of starting a family without hurting your pockets, right?

There is.

In fact, you can do a number of things to decrease your expenses when you have children. According to this post on the Discover website, frugal fun and simple birthdays are the way to go.

You can also limit or completely remove any home cleaning/organizing tasks that you’ve hired a company to do. The best way to replace any outsourcing you have pending is to have the kids help around the house.

You’re not only teaching your child the importance of budgeting, but you’re also helping them understand what it means to have responsibilities.

This could also help your kids earn money by paying them a small allowance.

Another way to help your family save money is to become a member of your local library. This is a great way to decrease the space used at home and book expenses.

There are a variety of resources available at the library that you and your family can make use as the best way to budget money.

Going back to frugal fun activities, you can make use of the outdoors with your family. Simply grab a ball or play hand games like Rock, Paper, Scissors to help pass the time with the kids.

Your kids will appreciate the memories you create together over the time you spend indoors. Also, hanging outside is a great way to control kids screen time.

Shopping at thrift stores is a good idea for budget-friendly shopping. You can get name brands (if that’s your thing) and quality items as well.

Do you have a plan to save money this year? Share in a comment below!