Six Money Saving Mama Tips from Rad Mom Cool Kid

Hey, I'm Briton from Rad Mom Cool Kid!  I'm excited to post at Fry Sauce and Grits today and I'm even more excited for Melanie and that darling bundle of babyliciousness in her arms! In celebration, I'm sharing my favorite money saving mama tips!

ONE: When my husband and I first found out we were expecting we were broke college students. Like we didn't take out student loans and were paying for everything up front kind of BROKE. Our grocery budget was $20 or less per week. Do you know how much a pregnancy test costs? Let's just say that we were able to buy ONE and it was the cheapest one at the grocery store. I think it cost $7. Do you feel stressed for 9 years ago me? What if it was wrong??!! A few years later we were a new kind of money-less. We were out of school but had just bought our first house!! I think we splurged and found a 2-pack pregnancy test for $12 when baby #2 was discovered. Then, I learned the best pregnancy test tip ever... Dollar Tree pregnancy tests are $1 and just as accurate as the ones at the pharmacy. With baby #3 I got a whole handful of them and they were all correct. Crazy right? Stop wasting $ on pricey tests! SAVINGS: about $6 per test

TWO: Target's store brand diapers are super cheap and super reliable. I have tried so many diapers over the years and these are the ones I always go back to. Also, I don't bother with fancy 'night-time' diapers or pull-up training diapers. I buy a size bigger for night-time if they get overnight leaks. With the pull-ups, I just don't see the point! I let my kids pee their pants, they feel how horrible it is, they stop doing it pretty quickly. I kind of feel like pull-ups drag the process on and on. SAVINGS: about $0.06 per diaper

THREE: Don't buy a high chair. They are big and hard to clean. My kids used a Bumbo- style chair with a tray attachment. They went straight from that to a booster with a tray. They are much easier to clean than a bulky high chair and you can take them on the road. SAVINGS: about $140

FOUR: Get the cheap baby monitor. $20 is all you need to get the monitor that will let you know if your kid is having a problem. I guess if you live in a mansion, you might need something stronger but, normal people- you don't need to watch your baby at all times and hear every single inhale and exhale. YOU NEED SLEEP so set up the basic monitor and close your eyes. SAVINGS: about $230 but the sleep is priceless

FIVE: Shop consignment and thrift stores for baby clothes. It doesn't work as well for older kid clothes because they get worn out before they're grown out of. Newborn-12 months is the perfect time to buy 2nd hand- you'll be surprised at how many items still have the original tags even! I always check our local kids consignment shop for tap and ballet shoes and leotards, holiday dresses, and winter gear- I keep the future in mind and buy bigger sizes and store them if they're high quality! SAVINGS: varies, but usually pretty dang great

SIX: Use Oxy Clean and Folex. Oxy Clean + water + stained baby/kid clothes + soaking overnight = brand new clothes. Do this when you unpack clothes for baby # 2 or when you get a bag of hand-me-downs. Even when you put clothes away squeaky clean, old stains will magically show up, but a good soak will fix everything! Folex is a carpet cleaner. It changed my life as a mother. A friend brought it over one morning after I facebook freaked out about hot pink lipstick all over my carpet and a certain white (white!) preschool stuffed animal that was visiting our home. It got it out! Hot pink waxy cheap lipstick out of fake white fur. I'll be a customer for the rest of my days after that. It costs under $10 and you can find it at home improvement stores and maybe Wal-Mart. The bottle will last a long time and you might want to worship me after you use it the first time. SAVINGS- depends on items being saved, but probably a whole bunch

What are your best steals and deals or tricks and tips when it comes to saving money with a baby? Thanks for hanging out with me today! Here are some of my favorite posts about life with little ones: travel with kids: 10 tips for survival becoming a 'yes' mom

5 DIY Christmas Gifts from Our Thrifty Ideas

Hey everyone. It's Vanessa from Our Thrifty Ideas. I'm excited to be stopping by today to share a really quick & cheap DIY project. This is a perfect project for the winter time, and you even have time to make a whole bunch for last minute neighbor gifts and give them out for Christmas!

 

Today I'm gonna share how to make a rice heat pad with washcloths. I found a 6 pack at Walmart on black Friday so I stocked up on a bunch. They are still there for like $1.98 so still an awesome price. And as always, buy the cheapest generic rice you can find. This particular project I think I used 2 1/4 lbs per heat pad, but that's only a few dollars.

 

Start by placing 2 of the washcloths together lining up each edge. Use a straight stitch with a very close stitch to sew all the way around all 4 edges, but leaving open about 2 inches in one corner. Make sure to back stitch at the beginning and then end.

 

Then create a funnel out of paper (or use a wide mouth funnel) and pour enough rice into the washcloth bag that will make it comfortable and formable. Don't pack it too tight!

 
Then take your open corner, tuck it into itself and using the same stitch, sew the opening closed. Make sure to overlap the other hems so that there's no open holes for the rice to fall out of.

 
My son recently woke up not feeling well, and all he wanted was to lay on the couch with his blanket and duck pillow, and watch cartoons. But the whole time he kept complaining that he was freezing. So I pulled out the heat pad and warmed it up in the microwave for him. He had one on his feet, one on his back and then laid his head on one! This is now one of his favorite things. I know he's tired when he requests the warm pack to snuggle with!

 
When you use them for kids, make sure to test the temperature of the pad before giving it to them. Depending on your microwave, you can heat them for 1-3 minutes. These also are great to stick in the freezer and use as an ice pack, or warm for your sore sore muscles.   Thanks so much for letting me stop by
the blog today.  Make sure to check out my blog where today I'm sharing another idea for these, toddler hand warmers!

 I also share other fun DIY projects as well as recipes and mommy tips and tricks! A few of my holiday favorites:

Cinnamon Roll Pull Aparts

    Winter Wonderland Mix

3 Ingredient Peanut Butter Fudge

How to Paint a Glazed Ceramic Lamp Tutorial

I bought this lamp at Target over a year ago for $10 on clearance. I liked the shape and color, but I didn't really know where in my house the deep plum color would work.  And my husband vetoed it in the bedroom because he doesn't like it.  So, it sat in a closet in the guest room.  It turns out you can spray paint over glazed ceramic, and it's pretty simple too.  You just have to follow these steps...

Nursery update and some pregnancy brain ramblings

It has been a few months since I posted anything about the nursery.  When it comes to decorating, I always have the ideas in my head.  Then when it comes to actually implementing them, it's harder then I thought it would be!  It's overwhelming to undertake a whole room of baby stuff.  We're starting from scratch here!  We don't have any family close to borrow things from, and at times I have been overwhelmed by how much we need to buy!  When you're doing things on a budget, you have to get creative!  See what I've been up to after the jump...

6 Best Budget Beauty Products for Dry Skin

Fall is here!  Fall is here and I love it!  I can see the leaves in the mountains change already!  Not to be a Debbie Downer, but one thing I don't love about the changing season is the havoc it does to my skin and hair.  Living in the high desert of Utah, it gets EXTREMELY dry during the fall and winter and this is brutal to my skin.  My skin starts feeling dry and tight, my acne starts up, my scalp gets flaky, and I pretty much feel like I'm falling apart!  I've found over the years that when the weather changes, I need to change my beauty regime to combat the dry desert air.