December is a month of spending for a majority of families that prepare for Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa. The average household spends so much on food and gifts for visiting relatives during the holiday season and all of those costs add up, so come January when the bills and bank statements come in, millions feel broke enough to cut out luxuries like movies and eating out as well as the grocery items they buy, and the kids are stuck suffering through an endless plight of Top Ramen until February.
Going from juices and chips to what resembles a prison meal makes for some cranky kids when they’re stuck with store brand cereal that tastes like tree bark instead of their usual Cheerios or Frosted Flakes. Switching to all generic brands and cutting costs on all snacks is one way to save money to pay mounting bills but there are other ways to do so as well that are less taxing and better tasting.
Wholesale vendors are excellent ways to save money on yearly grocery costs. When consumers shop at places like Sam’s Club and Costco, they are paying a much lower unit and overall cost. With a small annual fee, shoppers get bulk prices to buy more at once and save on trips to the grocery store and the expense of buying here and there. Everyday items like cheese, eggs, bread, cereal, and meats are much cheaper for most families at these stores. For instance, a 2 lb. block of cheese at a grocery store will cost about $9 while Costco has the same brand of cheese for $6 at 2 ½ pounds per block. 
Sam’s Club and Costco have great deals on diapers and training pants too. A pack of Pampers Baby Dry size 3 diapers will cost $38.98 for 204 count while Wal-Mart will sell a 112 count of the same item for almost the same price. Wholesale stores give a lot more for less money or more for the same price at other retailers so even at the same price, a mom will still get the most for the buck.
Everyday grocery stores such as Albertsons and Vons have free club cards that help save on items and run special sales just for cardholders. They often run sales that will save $2-3 off a single item or buy one get one free specials on things like Breyer’s ice cream flavors that the whole family will love. Look through the sales that appeal to your family then coordinate the week’s meals around them to save cash and take advantage of store specials. Of course buying the store brands will also help consumers save money on cereal, bread, soup, etc.
Gas prices are down right stupid these days. Most cities are now well over $3 per gallon so planning your errand route ahead of time can help save gas. Plan the stops that need to be made and what needs to be purchased where, then plan a sensible route that won’t have you guzzling gas all over town and wasting time. In addition to carpooling, route planning, once again the wholesale markets help save on gas expenses too. These places not only help save a lot of gas money from running around and constantly going to the store, but their one-stop-shop approach also includes filling up the tank because they offer gas at discount prices over the normal pumps so Mom can save time, thousands of dollars a year, and stress by doing as much as she can in one place then heading back home to be with the family. For time-crunched mothers running out of hours to go to the store, visit Costco.com and Samsclub.com to shop also.
Kids always need clothes and infants and toddlers are consistently in need as they grow out of outfits every week. To the rescue are Ebay, Craig’s List, and Freecycle.
Lot of boys' toys
These fantastic websites sell children’s clothes and toys, often for less than 50¢ per item! A recent post on Ebay.com has this lot of clothes for a big bargain of gently used items that were grown out of. Lots of toys like these are sold at www.craigslist.org. At www.freecycle.org, mothers can find absolutely free offers of dozens of other moms looking to clear out
Lot of toys for sale
clutter.
Everyday families move and clean house and instead of just tossing their baby’s old clothes into the dump or fiddling with Ebay, they offer them on Freecycle to anyone in need of clothes that is on a very small budget or not looking for brand new items.
Just go to these websites and search your surrounding areas to connect with other parents getting rid of old clothes, toys, bikes, beds, television sets, and just about anything else you can imagine for no charge, ever.
