10 Money Saving Tips for New Stay-at-Home Moms

Thinking of becoming a stay-at-home mom or dad? It's much harder than giving your two weeks' notice.

Oh no! What have I done!

Two years ago, immediately after the birth of our first child, I quit a perfectly cushion-y, perfectly secure job. Even with so-so pay for the software field, I had excess dough for date nights, spa visits, and flights to see families.  

The yuppy lifestyle tasted as sweet as the 4-dollar lattes I frequently enjoyed. Then, all of a sudden, no more paychecks :O(

But still, no regrets. No regrets at all!

For three devastating years, I battled infertility. Needless to say, Jo's arrival was a true miracle. How could I, after so long of a wait, leave her with some stranger as a tiny infant who needed and deserved all my care and attention?

This was my thought: money is awesome. But I have an entire lifetime to make money, and only a few years with my daughter until she goes off to school. It was time to give up facials and lattes.

Commit. And let the savings begin.

Committing to a lifestyle -- and career -- change took a LOT of digging inside -- a lot more than I expected. However, once I committed, I felt more focused on making family no. 1, including helping us save money. And over time, the more I saved, the savvier I got.

So, thinking of becoming a stay-at-home mom or dad?

THINK HARD! And make sure you think of all the aspects of staying at home. Make sure you are ready to give up your career, life, free time, sanity, certainly people's respect, and of course the freedom to afford whatever you want. 

Sounds intimidating? Life as a stay-at-home parent is certainly a hard choice. But trust me, it's well worth the effort.

 

Now, onto the money saving tips:

1. Buy in bulk

A no brain-er. Your baby needs mounds of diapers, wipes, paper towels, etc. Buy in bulk, so you pay less. 

And don't worry about the judgemental snobs who look down on Sam's Club. Do what's best for your family.

If you have x amount of dollars and need y amount of items, make x/y as small of a number as possible.

2. Join Mom Groups

Local mom groups not only offer opportunities to meet new friends, but also offer used baby items for sale or for free. 

The exersaucer my daughter used for almost six months cost $60 at Target, and cost us NADA.

3. Improvise

If your baby's diaper leaks at night, don't automatically size up. She may not be ready. Instead, insert a maxi pad to add an extra layer of absorbent.

If you lose something, replace it with what works, instead of buying a new one. I lost the travel changing pad that came with our Diaper Dude, but replaced it with an old towel. Hey, it worked.

Creativity gets you through anything.

4. Use Premium Brands

Again, ignore the brand-concious snobs. Premium brands work just as well as name brands. I have been using Safeway brand stuff for a long time. They work well.

5. Share with Your Kids

Baby oil takes off eye makeup like magic. Baby wipes clean kitchen counters spotless. Cetaphil lotion, which our pediatrician recommended for toddlers, heals adults' cracked heels too. 

Products that children use work spendidly on parents. Share and save.

I wipe EVERYTHING with baby wipes.

Including makeup at night.

6. Cut Cable

If you are busy tending to a baby, you have less time for silly reality shows. Cut cable, and spend the money on activities with your child instead. Plus, do you really want your kid watching trash anyway?

For better entertainment, get Netflix or Amazon Instant Video. Same good shows, much better price.

$7.99 a month? Count me in.

 

7. Find Coupons Online

You wouldn't believe the amount of coupons and savings you can find online. eBay, for example, offers jaw-dropping deals. I've certainly bid on a few.

Also, there are great coupon sites, like http://diapercouponsite.com/, which offers fantastic deals on your favorite brands. Each day, Diapercouponsite.com finds and shares coupons for fellow moms on diapers, formula and such. Excellent way to save, if you ask me.

Thank God for the internet, right?

8. Buy Cost Conscious Clothes

Pass the pumps, go for the pumas. Why pay $100 for a pair of shoes you don't wear much? You are a mom now, and casual is key. But casual can be chic too. Think: skinny jeans, sweater dress, and riding boots. Not so bad, right?

These flats cost only $12. They are fashionable and comfortable. After two years, cost per wear is like...pennies.

 

9. Get Discount Occasion Clothes

Of course, you still need to dress up once in a while. For special occasions, go to discount stores. You can still find elegant clothes, but for much cheaper.  

No need to spend a lot on something you only wear occasionally. This cocktail dress was only $16.00.

     

10. Don't Babies R Us for Everything

Babies R Us is a fantastic store, but an expensive one. For various baby items, toys and clothes, try discount stores like Ross, Marshall's and T.J Maxx. I found a brand new changing pad for $5 at Ross once. It would have cost me $30 at Babies R Us.

   

Check out this super cute top for my girl.

And check out its awesome price too!

Stay-at-home moms and dads have tough jobs.

 

We work around the clock, and don't get paid.

 

But we sure have become savvy money savers.

 

Any other money saving tips you can offer?

   

Pregnancy Fashion - Pink for My Girlie Girls

Why is having a boy so important to Chinese people? 

I don't get it, and I don't really care to find out. But I do care about the disappointment and sympathy in my Chinese (and sometimes Asian) friends' expressions when I tell them -- excitedly -- that I am having a baby girl, and their rolling their eyes as if I should secretly hope for the latter. (I have feelings, you know.)

Why must a Chinese woman like myself -- American-grown and U.S.A by nationality -- be expected to want a boy, like every other Chinese?

I know a handful of well-educated and perfectly bright women who went to ridiculous lengths just to have a boy -- eating herbs that are NOT approved by the FDA DURING PREGNANCY (wow), wearing funky garments, procreating in certain positions, and making babies according to some ancient gender chart. 

Ladies, the Y chromosome comes from the male. Your baby's gender is determined during conception. If the "magical" herbs do work, make your husbands eat them -- and do it beforehand. (Or try to conceive closer to ovulation, as Y lasts shorter than X, if it even makes it there.)

Thank goodness my wonderful family never pressured for a boy, and provided much support during both pregnancies with baby girls. To my family, a baby is not boy or girl, but God's miracle.

So, for my last pregnancy fashion post, I am proudly wearing pink, and proud to mother two beautiful girlie girls.

 Boy or girl -- does gender matter that much?

Eat nutritious foods. Take vitamins. And leave those strange herbs alone.

Please care about the baby's health, and not the gender.

 

Hope all you expecting mamas out there have a beautiful, wonderful, healthy pregnancy!

Nesting for a Beauty Blogger

How are you STILL pregnant?

That's the reaction I have been getting lately. I know, I know. Seems like I've been carrying a child forever. Unfortunately, after Wednesday's disappointing amnio results, the much-anticipated c-section must delay for another day. Guess the little bun really likes her mama's oven :O)

I could kick. I could cry. But I decided to conduct extra nesting instead with the excess time.

What is nesting?

Nesting is an instinctual behavior all expecting mothers experience before their baby arrives. Cats, dogs, birds...they all nest in some way. 

For us human mamas-to-be, we nest by stocking the fridge, organizing our closets, or doing something similarly domestic. And for a beauty blogger (a.k.a collector of all makeup) like me, I somehow managed to organize the atrocity that was a massive product stash.

What's so special about a beauty blogger's nesting?

You must understand that organizing at all is a phenomenon to me. It always took weeks of nagging and at least one medium-sized dispute for my husband, the clean one, to motivate me into tidying up.

Cleaning just isn't in my genes! Organizing an overflowing makeup counter, therefore, can take more effort than climbing Rainier.

Like me, fellow beauty bloggers have a tendency to stock up on makeup and skincare. Before we realize it, we have just filled the umpteenth basket of gloss, and organizing suddenly feels like running a country.

If you also have a likelihood to stock up and clutter, then here's a no-fail system you can use to organize your own atrocity that was a massive makeup stash:

A Beauty Blogger's Nesting System

Step 1

Get proper storage bins.

An all-purpose basket like this one always helps store stuff.

For products that you don't use often, use a makeup bag.

Step 2

Dump everything out of old storage bins or drawers. Create a blank space.

This was where all my makeup sat. I dumped everything out, and cleaned it, giving myself a place to start fresh.

Step 3

Categorize.

Looks messy, but once you start categorizing into eyes, face, lips...they won't seem that bad.

By the way, if something is junk, part ways. You won't miss them, or the bacteria they carry.

Step 4

Clean bottles and wash tools.

Baby wipes proved useful for cleaning bottles too.

Just soak brushes in soap water to clean.

And leave them on a towel to dry.

Step 5

Regroup and separate your makeup into the categories you've just created.

Looks much more organized now.

Bet it'll be easier to find things too.

Step 6

Store older, non-everyday items for blogging purposes only.

You never know if you'll need one of these for a blog post soon. Stash them in a drawer for occasional use.

Hope this post helped someone.

 

But of course, you are probably much neater than I am.

 

Any other organizing or storage ideas for makeup?

  

  

Makeup Tutorial - Rusty Autumn Colors

Autumn has definitely arrived in Seattle: wacky Halloween decorations hanging on every door, bulky sweaters worn around the streets, and leaves aging into rusty colors. It's really quite a beautiful site.

To celebrate Seattle's gorgeous Autumn days, I'm wearing rusty colors too. Here's an easy makeup tutorial on how to wear shades of Autumn:

Step 1

Using a flat shadow brush and brown eyeshadow palette, like Hard Candy Baked Eyeshadow Duo in "Rush Hour" (below), apply darker shade to your lids.

Stop at your natural fold.

Step 2

Using the same color, line your bottom lash line with the same flat shadow brush.

Step 3

Using a blending brush, apply the lighter shadow to the rest of your eye lids, including your brow bone.

Step 4

Using a black or charcoal eyeliner, line bottom water line.

Step 5

Curl lashes. Apply mascara.

Step 6

Apply bronzer to your cheeks.

Step 7

Apply a rusty colored lipstick to your lips.

I am using Estee Lauder Long Lasting lipstick in "Sand Stone."

Done.

 

 

Easy, natural and perfect for fall.

How do you wear rusty Autumn colors?

Pregnancy Fashion - Long and Muted

Happy Sunday, girlies! How was everyone's weekend?

Just a quick pregnancy fashion post to showcase one of my favorite maternity wear: a long sleeveless top in muted color. 

Muted colors like gray flatter anyone's skin tone. The length of the top covers a bulging belly well. It's simple to wear too. Just top it over a pair of jeggings or leggings.

Thanks for reading.

What do you think of muted colors?

 

Skin Care Blog Post - Jennifer Aniston Beauty Secrets

Can you believe Jennifer Aniston is currently 43 years old? With such radiant skin, she could pass as a 20-something, making aging appear so easy.

For those of us who want to age as gracefully as Jennifer Aniston, we might be out of luck in affording A-list beauty team and expensive procedures. However, the low key actress has some down-to-earth beauty secrets that all of us non-A-list girlies can use.

 

Jennifer Aniston Beauty Secrets

1. Moisturize with Vaseline

Before bed time, Aniston applies just a dot of vaseline around her eye area to seal in moisture all night long.

 

2. Clean Deep by Steaming

For a deep cleaning, Aniston steams her face for 10 minutes each night to open pores, and then washes her face with a gentle cleanser. Doing so allows cleanser to get deep into her pores.

 

3. Wake Up with Ice Water

Aniston washes her face with a bowl of ice water every morning. Cold water not only jolts her awake, but also closes pores and refreshes skin.

See? You don't need expensive products or procedures to look like a movie star.

Do you have any beauty secrets to add?

Hard Candy Makeup at Wal-Mart

Did you know that Wal-Mart sells Hard Candy makeup now? Each item cost only $6. Amazing!

Here's a small Hard Candy haul from a recent Wal-Mart trip. 

Don't you just love a good deal?