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Practical Money-Saving & Money-Making Ideas for Living on One Income
If you are a mom trying to figure out how to stay home but are concerned about your family’s finances, I want to offer some practical help and suggestions. I used to be one of those women. But guess what? YOU CAN DO IT!
I believe three factors are involved in the process of converting to a one-income family:
- A renewed way of seeing your material life (including the determination to do whatever it takes)
- Saving money
- Earning extra money
An expectation makeover
I think a lot of women can’t see the possibility of slashing the family’s income, because they can’t imagine life any differently than the one they live, materially speaking. It is as certain as the sun rises: a family will spend what it earns. A $100,000 income family will usually spend all of that and a $30,000 income family will spend all of that. Both will say (because it’s true) that they “live paycheck to paycheck.”
If and when husband and wife decide it’s important for her to come home, and really believe it, they will do whatever it takes to make that happen. It may even mean moving to a lower cost-of-living state. Sounds drastic, but I’ve heard of it happening when the desire is strong enough. But…
