Tag: saving

Frugal Family Travel Tips: How to Take a BIG Trip on a Little Budget

bigtriplittlebudgetfamilytravel

We recently returned from a 26 day road trip through the southeastern United States. We visited 11 states, drove over 3000 miles, and had an amazing time. We live on a tight budget on my husband’s teacher salary (plus the part time income from this blog and my part time job with Young Life). We live debt free and don’t use credit cards at all (thanks to Dave Ramsey‘s Total Money Makeover). So, how did we take such a big trip on a little budget? We got creative, kept it simple, and made a plan we could stick to. Read on to find out tips for taking big trips when your income is small.

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Tips for Taking a Baby to Disney World

 I love Disney and was blessed to go three times through my former job with Young Life.  Jed asked me to marry him in front of Cinderella’s Castle in 2008 and we were able to take the Bear with us on our last trip.  We are big fans.  I’m hoping and planning to go back when the kids are little bigger, but I want you to know it is possible to take a baby and enjoy it.  The Bear was 8 months old on our last trip, and still nursing.  We did some things right, learned from our mistakes, and had a fabulous time.
Five Tips for Taking  Baby to Disney World
1) Don’t try to do too much.
This was our biggest mistake.  We had a park hopper pass and tried to do 2 parks in one day.  It caused unnecessary stress and it would have been much better to spread the parks out.  Take time to relax and don’t skip out on nap and rest time for your little one.
2) Take your baby on some rides and ride swap on others.
It might sound crazy, but we took the Bear on some rides.  He LOVED It’s a Small World and the Haunted Mansion.  He had no idea the mansion was supposed to be scary and loved all the lights and the gently turning ride.  For more intense rides, ride swap is available.  One parent rides while the other waits with a cast member and the baby, then the parents switch out.
3) Plan ahead for meals. (for everyone)
This was our other big mistake.  We didn’t realize reservations were required months in advance and were laughed at by a haughty hostess at Epcot.  The walk up places are still fine, but we will get reservations next time.  We did bring baby food with us and planned our routes around when Bear would need to nurse.  There are baby care centers at all the parks and they are lovely.  I nursed Bear throughout the day in the baby centers and it was such a nice, quiet break for both of us.  They have everything you need there and the staff are amazing.  One of my favorite things about Disney Parks is how much each cast member seems to love their job.  These ladies were no exception.
4) Pack that stroller like you mean it.
Think through everything your baby might need and then double it.  Extra clothes all around, extra diapers, a blanket, a rain jacket for everyone, everything you might need.  The two best things we brought were a dark rain jacket to cover the stroller for naps and our iPhone with a sound machine app on it.  We turned on the white noise, covered the stroller, and the Bear napped three times and nearly slept through the fireworks.  I highly recommend bringing a sling or Ergo to carry your babe around in so they can have a change of scenery and get out of the stroller.
5) Know when to fold ’em.
You may have to go back to your resort in the middle of the day for a nap.  It is okay.  You may not get to see the fireworks every night of your trip.  Still okay.  Sometimes your baby can be pushed to stay up, nap in the stroller or in the carrier, and go with the flow.  Other times they will bend you to their will like a tiny tyrant.  Flexibility is the name of the game.  Relax and enjoy, but don’t stress out about missing out on the Dumbo ride because your sweet babe was done for the day.

Have you been to Disney World? What would your dream Disney vacation include?
Follow Becca’s board Family Travel on Pinterest.

Frugal Friday: Reusable Swim Diapers for Your Wee One

If you are anything like us, you are so over this whole winter thing and ready for summer.  Our new neighborhood has 5 community pools we can use for the whole summer for $60!  So excited…  For this week’s Frugal Friday edition I’m sharing one of my favorite summer money savers, the reusable swim diaper.  No, I’m not talking about reusing the Little Swimmers or Splashers.  That would be nasty and impossible.  I’m talking about using cloth swim diapers that are made to be worn all summer long.  We’ve actually used the same Bummis swim diaper the last two summers because of the wide weight range.  It will probably work again this year.  I also have 2 teeny tiny i-play swim diapers lined up for Mini Bear to wear.  Yay for water babies!  
How much can you really save by using cloth swim diapers? About 90%.  I did a little research, and the cheapest I could find disposable swim diapers for was $11.13 for an 18 count pack of diapers ($.62 each).  For the price of one pack of disposables (or less) you can buy a reusable swim diaper that will last all summer.  You can find a ton of sales right now on many great brands like Bummis, i play, Imse Vimse, My Swim Baby, and Apple Cheeks.  If you are at the pool or beach all summer going through one pack of disposables per week you could spend as much as $156 per kid on swim diapers.  Yikes.  
How do cloth swim diapers work?  Just like disposable swim diapers.  They hold in the poop and let out the pee.  Once they are soiled you just rinse them out (like you would a swim suit) after dumping the solids in the toilet, then hang them up to dry for tomorrow.  Easy.     
Why should I think about swim diapers right now?  They are on sale!!!  Buying off season is a fabulous way to save even more money on seasonal items.  

If you are interested in shopping for reusable swim diapers, I’d love for you to use my affiliate links below to find deals at Kelly’s Closet and Amazon. If not, check out your local cloth diaper shop where swim diapers are probably in the off season sale section right now.  Thanks!
– Swim Diapers from several brands starting at $9.95
Amazon links are below to my two favorite brands of swim diapers.

Do you use cloth or disposable swim diapers?  On a scale from one to “get me to a beach before I hurt someone”, how ready are you for summer?  I’m at a strong 8 right now.

Best of Bare Feet on the Dashboard: Frugal Living Edition

For folks who knew me back in my wild and crazy shopaholic days, the fact that I live my life debt free with no credit cards and write about frugal living probably comes as a shock.  It’s the real deal though, y’all.  My life changed completely when I came to the realization that if I kept digging holes for myself I would never have the life I wanted.  I was never a saver and always lost at Monopoly because I just had to have those hotels.  Now we live by the Dave Ramsey code of conduct and have a 6 month emergency fund.  Crazy! You can read about our financial story here, and I’m sharing some of my favorite frugal living posts from the last three years with you below in celebration of my three year blogging anniversary.  
Cash Money Honey
We use cash instead of credit cards.
Frugal Pregnancy Tips
Buying a Used Car with CASH
Creating an Emergency Fund
Grocery Shopping at Aldi
It will cut your grocery bill in half, seriously.
The Road to Financial Freedom
Financial Peace University Changed Our Lives
Budget Busting Temptation
How to Save 20% On Your Medical Bills
For real!
Mad Money
This explains how we budget our monthly spending money.
Are you debt free?  If so, how did you get there?  
Share your best frugal living tip in the comments below.