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A few years ago now, my husband and I had one of those “a-ha” moments that lead to us paying off a boat load of debt…while we raised 5 kids on one income.

It was tough, but our #yearofno was so worth it!  (Even when it stretched to over two long years full of “no”s.

But no sooner had we paid off the last debt than we learned that I was expected baby #6!

And then we found out that our little 5 year old had a rare condition that would mean spine surgery.

Our family had already been going through a lot of changes, and these things added to the stress.  (We love babies, but boy am I bad at being pregnant!)

Well, after a year of chaos, it’s time for our family to adopt another big goal.  This time, we’re aiming to save money in an account to cover the cost of water.

Building Up Savings for a Goal

So many of you are trying to save money for an emergency, pay off debt, or build up a savings account so you can stop living paycheck to paycheck.

So I thought you might like to follow us on this journey!

I’d like to try to save $1,000 per month this summer.  Unfortunately, we have had to replace or repair things at a rapid rate.  Things that piled up while I was too sick or stressed to worry about them.

So instead, I’m aiming for $800 per month…and another $200 to cover those other expenses.

This is a big stretch goal for our family of 8! 

My blog now earns some money that should help us cover some of our goal amount.

The rest will be made up for in a few different ways.

For the most savings advice, be sure to join the email list! 

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Ways We’ll Save This Summer

Get Back to What Works!

Tracking our progress every week was always good for us. It’s a fun way to stay accountable and celebrate all the small ways we find to save throughout the week.

All of our tricks from the #yearofno are compiled into one simple book now.  So I’ll pull out my copy of 500 Ways to Save Money and see what we have let slip through the cracks.

Grab your own copy here and get back to saving with us!

Entertainment

There’s so much free or cheap entertainment in the summertime!  Just being outdoors on a beautiful day is refreshing for the soul.

So we’ll hit up some parks we haven’t visited before and indulge in some 50 cent Frostys on hot days.  (I’m hoping they have that deal all summer long!)

I’ll also be relying on this list of 101 Cheap or Free Things To Do With Your Family.

We don’t plan to have a big vacation this year, so we’ll probably do some staycation type activities instead.

Groceries

I’ve been relying on grocery pick up services and lots of convenience foods for the past year.

It’s time to get back to those tried and true methods for saving!  We’re talking meal planning and other frugal grocery shopping tips.

When the baby lets me, I’ll be cooking from scratch.  (And teaching the kids how to do some more baking and cooking, too!)

Nix the Fast Food

One of the worst habits that put us into debt was too much fast food.

And when life got crazy, what did we turn back to?  Well…more fast food!

So it’s time once again to put an end to that bad habit.  You can help curb this by keeping easy snacks and on the go foods around, and that’s just what we’ll do.

Ways We’ll Bring In Money This Summer

PIN ME!

Eggs

Our chickens have been laying like crazy!  I’d like to start selling the extra eggs we bring in.  (Or use up more of them and save on groceries by that much more!)

Sell Stuff

I have some homeschooling books that I have been meaning to list on Ebay for a while.

Our local Clothes Mentor will buy used clothes, and maternity clothing is always in demand!  So I’ll try to sell some of that. 

(I could probably get a little more by selling in a Facebook yard sale group, but finding the time for that seems unrealistic.)

Back to Blogging!

It’s been quiet around the blog while I’ve been busy with life.  This summer I’m hoping to get back to work, and plan to do the things that made this blog the fun hang out it used to be!

This savings goal will make our summer interesting!

Our main goal for 2019 is to install a new cistern and have better access to water in our rural home.  This money should help us borrow far less to make that happen!

Check out our updates to see how we’ve managed to save:

Update One

Update Two

What are your goals?  How do you hope to meet them?  For more support and accountability, join us in the Facebook group!

You can also find accountability right here on the blog!  Join in every Friday for a check in and let’s reach our wild savings goals together.  Start today by leaving a comment!