Happy Healthy Families

As a mom, I find myself the person in charge of {trying} to save money. It is up to me to find ways to budget and scrimp wherever I can - without anyone else in the family noticing to much, of course!

So I started thinking of the 10 top things I really like to and need to save money on. The things that I find too expensive in general, yet have to buy anyway on a semi-regular basis. It was tougher than I thought to come up with this list, after all I want to save money on everything, but after much thought (and a few extra frown lines) I have complied my list of the top 10 things I like to save money on, or wish I could save money on:

1. Shoes for the kids. I find shoes to be an expensive purchase that I have to make too many times each year. Kids outgrow them ridiculously fast. And no matter how much I may spend on a pair of shoes, hoping that quality will match the pricier price tags, they never last long with my boys. So I put shoes down on my list. I would love to find some that are reasonably priced and stand up to the wear and tear of little boys.

2. Food. Of course food must be on my list. It is always a top priority to try and feed the family healthy meals while still managing to pay bills at the end of the month!

3. Jeans. Girl's Jeans. Teenage Girl's Jeans to be exact. My daughter and her need for new jeans is a never-ending thing. If you see me with a nervous twitch one day, you can safely assume my daughter has once again pleaded her case with me for new jeans. And once again, I am faced with the precarious choice of either taking her to the mall to buy the new jeans at a financial blow to our budget, or choosing to risk having my daughter "simply die." {Did I do this to my parents? I think not, but regardless, I survived in either case.)

4. Classes. Ballet classes, Cheer classes and of course, the requisite Gymnastics classes. Did I mention Karate classes.  Oh, and swim classes. I would love dearly to enroll all my children in each and every class they get the urge to take, I would enjoy watching them learn something new and exciting every other day. But seriously, the fees these classes charge are high. Higher than high even.  And with each new class comes new outfits and equipment. The expense spent on kid's sports, classes and activities is astounding.

5. Make-Up. Now who wouldn't love to save some money on stuff that makes us beautiful and younger-looking??

6. Starbucks. I love the feeling of dropping the kids off at school and driving my quiet car thru Starbucks to buy a morning coffee drink. Sadly, that just does not quite fit into our budget most days. But as a mom who has the car all to herself after a furiously hectic morning of yelling, shoe searching, crumpled homework papers and spilled oatmeal, I would love dearly to have Starbucks reward me with a lower priced Nonfat Mocha Latte.

7. School Supplies. After spending way more than should be necessary on back to school supplies for my kids last week, I really would like to save more money when it comes to back to school. Plus I know that these costs will be repeated frequently through the school year.

8. Veggies and Fruits. Yes, I put these on my list. I love when I can save money on these particular foods because they can be so expensive. When you go to the grocery store with a budgeted list in hand, some of the prices for fresh fruit and veggies can cause one to rethink their dinner menus, kwim? So I am particularly excited to save money when I can on some of these foods. (I am easy to please. Too easy I think sometimes.)

9. Toys. I am the kind of mom who actually doesn't get bothered by toys scattered around the house. I kind of like it actually just because I know one day I will miss my 'kid and toy filled house.' {Sniff.} And so it goes I am also the kind who likes to buy toys for the kids when I can. But I need to save money, so toys must be on sale for me to buy (unless it is a special occasion or a very special toy.)

10. Socks.  I think I buy socks more than anything else. Between the boys, the dogs and the hubby alone, socks are at a high risk of disappearing in our house. Not that they are the most expensive things I buy quite regularly, but hey, if I can buy a few large packages of them on sale, it can make my week! Alone it is not such a drain, but times those packages by 3 or 4 a couple of times a month.... the money spent can ding the old budget a bit!

So that is my list of ten things this mom likes and wants to save money on. There are many more, but these are probably my top ten for right now.

As a mom (or a dad,) what things do you want to save money on the most?