My Tips for Saving Money

My tips for saving money as a parent:

• Do your own laundry less often
• Why worry about cleaning that bra after you've leaked all over it or your baby has spit up on you?  You know it's going to happen again tomorrow if not later today, so save yourself the money is costs to run the washer and dryer and just learn to live in your own filth.  You've heard me talk about "reekends," right?
• Do your baby's laundry less often
• Maybe I should clean 'Rad's clothes a little more frequently, maybe I'm fortunate to have enough clothes and bibs for him that I don't need to constantly wash them, or maybe it's because we use disposable diapers.  Regardless, that kid's clothes get washed maybe every two weeks and he still isn't the stinky kid at daycare.  Score.
• Make your own baby food
• So I can't be sure of the true financial gains of this one, but I baked up a sweet potato for 'Rad-a-dude the other night and that one potato made a ton of food for the little guy.  Bake it up, mash it up, freeze it, and you've got at least 3 meals'-worth of solid foods for a buck.  Double score.
• Find cheap entertainment (or get freebies from others)

• Holding on to the ottoman, bouncing on the couch out on the front porch (yes, we're those people with the porch couch that we told ourselves wouldn't be there more than one summer.  Three years later...), these are all free things that your kid will probably love.  Everything is new to them, so just change up the scenery - no fancy gadgets or gas required - and they'll likely dig it (this one feels like total b.s., but if nothing else, I enjoy the change of scenery)
• Tough talk your kid like he's a no-good dirty rat.  Or hold him like he is while telling him how rad he is

• If you know someone who had a kid, you know someone who is more than willing to get rid of all those little playthings and rattles clogging up their closets and basement storage.  Take people up on their offers of free baby stuff.  If you don't want to use it, give it to Goodwill.  At least you have the opportunity to benefit from giveaways
• Make the most of your dental hygiene accoutrement
• Floss, but quit pulling out 2 yards of floss for your 7 inches of teeth (I say to myself).  A smaller length will do just fine, and the fact that you're flossing at all after an exhausting day, well, kudos to you
• Squeeze that tube of toothpaste like it's a nasty hormonal whitehead that just needs to go away.  If you keep working at that tube of paste, you can make it last a week longer than you thought it would.  And that's if you get the chance to brush twice a day
• Always keep your eyes open for a sale
• Conventional wisdom will tell you to only buy things when you need them, but that's not when said things are on sale.  Instead, keep a lookout for things you know you'll need in the future - just like buying things off-season - because you're likely to find a good deal when you don't need something right away.  Case in point - I got 'Rad these sweet shoes (his first day in baby shoes!) when I was pregnant, before I knew the sex of the baby, and for $3 at Target:

How can you lose?