The MomSpeak

With the economy tanking like it is, it’s no wonder that shoppers everywhere are tightening their purse strings and slashing their holiday budgets. But that doesn’t mean you can’t spread some Christmas cheer all around.  Here are some ways you can stretch your budget and still give unique, thoughtful presents to the people you care about most:

1) Know before you go.  Start your gift-giving season my making a list and checking it twice.  If you know exactly who you’re getting presents for and how much you want to spend, you’re less likely to succumb to panic buys or impulse buys. 

2) To clamp down on overspending, consider getting together with family members and setting some limits on the kinds of gifts you buy for each other:

* Set a dollar limit — $10, $20 
* Set a category limit — For example, declare 2008 to be the Year of the Book or the Great Cookie Exchange.
* Set an age limit — Give presents only to family members under 18.  
* Set a person limit — Take a cue from your office Secret Santa; each family member draws just 1 gift recipient from out of a hat.

Who knows, you could start a new family gift-giving tradition that saves you (and your entire family) some money every year.

Are your closets full of adorable outfits that your daughter only wore a few times?  How about those special occasion shoes that your son wore to a family event and then promptly outgrew before he could wear them again?  Or maybe you have Halloween costumes from years past stored away in the attic?  My guess is that your house is full of gently-used children’s items that you no longer need.  I am also willing to bet that many of your Mama friends find themselves in the same situation.

Why let these items gather dust when you can “swap” them with friends for things that your kids could actually use?  You may have heard of national services such as Freecycle where you can list and find gently-used items.  Why not use the same concept to swap children’s items right in your neighborhood? 

Here are a few simple tips for organizing a “swap” of children’s items with your friends.

Phew! My youngest son just turned four and the last few days have been a whirlwind of activity.  I feel a bit bad for him because he’s never had a birthday party before.  We just always felt he was too young. And, to be perfectly honest, his birthday is so close to the holiday season, money is always tight and a birthday party is the last expense we need!

But now he’s four.  He’s being invited to parties and he wanted one for his birthday.  So, we decided to throw a party, but did not want to spend a lot of money.  

I’m a bit believer in Birthday’s without Pressure.  I don’t feel the need to compete with other parties, to reciprocate invites or to invite everyone in my kids’ classes.  I set a limit on the number of invites (usually their age +1), then ask them who they want to invite.  Helps not only keep the chaos minimal, but it also keeps the cost down.

So, what can you do to make sure your kids have a fun party without going over the limit?

Children love to have friends over to play, but parties and playdates can be a little intimidating for parents.  High energy kids running amuck in your home or yard, refereeing squabbles over toys, and the potential for meltdowns or tears can deter even the bravest soul.  And the cost of these parties, big and small, can quickly escalate.  But it need not be so — hosting three, and even more kids at your house can actually be fun, worry-free, and inexpensive.  

Watching your little one develop friendships is undoubtedly one of the highlights of the preschool years, for you and your child.  And before you know if your child will be the one introducing you to new friends, little and big ones, that you may well keep for a lifetime.  So enjoy this amazing process.  Go ahead and invite over some friends.  These great ideas will make sure you all have a wonderful time and that you don’t go broke in the process.




Paper Bag Pinatas 
Activity for 3-6 year olds

Give your child a small brown paper bag and let them decorate it how they want. This can be elaborately, with sequins and glitter, or simply, with crayons. Put a few pieces of candy in the bag and close by folding over the top. Punch two holes at the top and run enough yarn through the holes to be able to hang it from a high place and still be at children’s height to swing at.

Materials Needed: Small brown paper bags, candy, yarn, crayons, decorative materials of parent’s choice

When was the last time you stopped and took some time to smell the roses? Your preschooler probably does it all the time. Give young children the opportunity and they will sniff every flower, turn over every rock, and inspect every leaf they can find. It can take them 15 minutes to traverse a single city block!

Children are extremely curious about their surroundings and genuinely excited about all things nature. And the park, your backyard, or a walk down the block are great ways to spend some time with your family without spending a lot of money. 

The next time you take a stroll outdoors, turn your trip into a little adventure. Gather some acorns or walnut shells, and when you get home, turn them into teeny boats that can actually float! Or if your child is more interested in an art project, collect leaves of different shapes and sizes on your walk. When you return home, you and your child can use those leaves to create a beautiful work of art.

There are many inexpensive ways to explore the great outdoors and bring back little treasures for your home. Here are some of Savvy’s very best:

I used to think babies were expensive, with all of their baby toys, exersaucers, developmental playthings, and of course the Baby Einstein DVDs. And then my oldest grew into a preschooler, and I realized the entertainment only gets more expensive as they grow older. The newest electronic toys, that Dora DVD, and let’s not forget her begging to go to the local children’s science museum or the zoo constantly. It all adds up. 

Here are a few ways to save on entertainment so your little one can be happily occupied without draining your bank account:

We have tried to develop a love of books in our daughters. Our three-year-old loves to pick out her favorites for nighttime reading and even “reads” them back to us. Our eleven-month-old likes to chew on the corners — you can’t win ‘em all. As a family we are always looking for new books to cycle through the collection. This can get expensive if we were to buy new every time. Instead, I have compiled a list of ways to obtain free or inexpensive copies of our favorite tales to share with our readers.

My little sister had her first baby a few months ago. I flew across the country to visit her recently, and did all the things you do with a new mom: showed her how to put whiskey on the pacifier, locked her in the garage while he “cried it out,” encouraged her to give up breastfeeding because it was so inconvenient.

And on the second day, we went to The Great Big Baby Supply Store and spent too much money buying baby clothes at the retail price.

If there’s one lesson I taught her, it was to never buy clothing or other children’s supplies at the retail price. There’s no need. Not with all those sales, end of season clearances, coupons, giveaways, and discount codes out there!

When it comes to dressing my preschoolers, I’m sort of a snob.  

The daughter wears smocked dresses like playclothes; the son sports the preppiest duds this side of Bermuda.

My secret?  95% of their wardrobes are secondhand. 

And why not, when you can buy Kitestrings for less than K-mart? 

Recycling clothing eliminates waste and teaches kids that expensive is not necessarily better.

Here are 4 places to score quality kids clothes for pennies on the dollar:

Consignment stores (like Kid-To-Kid and Once Upon A Child):

You can browse through their racks just like any boutique, but you’ll find tags from every store imaginable.  Most items are priced $8 or less, with clearance prices as low as $1 an item.  Store buyers check carefully for stains and flaws.

Sometimes, the only thing better than a really cheap activity is a totally free activity. We here at the Savvy Source have identified our favorite 27 items that are already in our houses that function as toys or games and narrowed it down to our 10 favorite most fun!

All but one of these items can be found in anyone’s home, so you can refer to this list when striving to entertain your child in a child-free home.

1. Cardboard box: really big or kinda small, can be used as a playhouse for the kid or for stuffed animals and dolls. Have fun decorating it with stickers and paint.
2. Paintbrush: use to paint sidewalk with water from hose or bucket.
3. Sheet + Table = readymade fort. May require more sheets and blankets than you remember from when you were little.
4. Electrical tape: use it to make a hopscotch board inside or to create race tracks for toy cars and the like. If you don’t want to commit your carpet to the plan, maybe you can dig up more cardboard.
5. Handbroom and dustpan: sweep up bits and bobs from under my dining room table. As long as I call it “doing work” then Holden is game. Bonus that it helps me out!