What We've Learned So Far About Saving

Natalie and I laugh that we have adopted somewhat of a pioneer-ish life-style over the last few months, but we have been having a lot of fun with it, and saving a lot of money. When we were invited to contribute to "The Provident PhD," we started thinking about things that we have been doing to help save money as a couple still trying to get through college with a new baby.   Following are several practices that have helped us save.

The first way we have been saving money is that we do not buy a ton of expensive furniture.  Let go of the need to impress and be okay with letting things be a bit tacky.  It doesn’t have to match itself or the caliber of your parents house.  When people offered us old furniture, we took it even if it didn’t match (and it definitely didn’t).  Our kitchen table is from the DI.  Our end table is a cheap basic one from IKEA.  The only thing that is very consistent about our apartment is that nothing matches, and guess what, we’re still happy!  And what about the latest flat screen?  Get this, we don’t have a TV.  There is so much more time in a day when you don’t have to stay up on a series.  We don’t buy movies.  We rent them for free from the library or even our parents houses and watch them on our laptop.  This has worked out just fine for us.

I know when you first hear this it may come as a shock that people still do this, but something that has helped us save a ton is switching over to cloth diapers for our little boy. We have heard several different estimates for how much a couple could end up spending on disposable diapers for one child, and most of them have been upwards of $1,000-$2,000. We talked to a friend recently who is a cloth diaper fanatic, and she recommended several different stores and websites to us that have been very helpful, like the Quilted Bear and Cotton Babies.com.  Over the last few weeks, we have ordered all the reusable diapers we will need for our little boy for less than $200, and these will probably last for many more children. Even when you add in the cost for detergent and laundry expenses for three years, you’re still getting a huge cost reduction by going cloth.

Another thing that has helped us save on costs is that we had our little boy through a midwife practice, instead of through a hospital. We loved our experience!  The midwives offered a comfortable atmosphere with a lot of  personal care, at a substantially lower cost.  In addition, we were able to have a lot more control over what was going on without having to abide by hospital protocol.  The midwives at the birthing center provided us with answers to all of our questions along the way and the books and resources we needed to get the knowledge that would prepare us for the experience.  This allowed us to have the birth experience we wanted and feel peaceful and ready.  This may sound like an old-fashioned way to have a baby, but the midwives are well-trained to handle whatever may come their way and, along with a handful of other perks, there are some definite cost benefits.

Walk, run, or ride your bike.  Old school, I know, but things like gas, car repairs and the money you spend buying bigger sizes of jeans every couple of years can add up.  The health benefits can be a big deal in-and-of themselves.  Your exercise can be your life, instead of needing to get a monthly renewal on your membership to Golds Gym.  Gotta love the sun-shine vitamin D of experiencing the outdoors too!

A couple other tips we’d add are to shop at the DI (Deseret Industries or equivalent used clothes store) and/or Craigs List.  Buying things used can save a lot of money.  This applies to cars too.  Further, buy generic brands instead of name-brands on food.  Buy in bulk when the price is low.  Eat less meat.  Meat is expensive and there are many health benefits to limiting your intake of meat as an added bonus.  Use soap refills instead of buying a new bottle every time.  Turn off your lights when you aren’t using them to save on electric bills (and replacement light bulbs).  Buy cheap plastic dish-ware.  It doesn’t break!  Freeze your bread so it doesn’t go bad.  Use coupons.  Be careful about impulse buying.  Sometimes it’s good to wait a day and see if it still seems like a good idea the next day.

Another thing that will help you a ton is to stay out of debt.  Loans cost a lot more money to pay back than it costs if you can pay the money up-front.  Be willing to save up for things, if possible, before resorting to loans.  It’s easy to think that you will have more money later.  I have found that most times, expenses rise as life goes on, so even if you will have more money later, it won’t necessarily mean that it will be easier to pay later.  It may be harder.  If you do have loans you are working to pay back, pay extra each month and work to pay it off as quickly as possible.  Interest builds quickly and you will save a lot of that cost if you can pay if off early.   

Some of these ideas may sound like we have gone crazy, but we are happy, healthy, and loving life.  Happy saving!

Natalie, Jeff, and Baby Brian Larsen