We are Natalie and Denice, two long-time friends (and moms) who went to college together, trained for 5Ks together, were pregnant together, and now are getting out of debt together.
Natalie lives in rural Maine, where the average women’s haircut is $35. Denice lives in suburban Northern Virginia, where that same haircut will run $50 or more! Our costs of living may be different but we have the same goal: getting out of debt.
Countless American families like ours are struggling to make ends meet. Many of us are deep in debt. It doesn’t matter how we got here, just that we dig ourselves out.
At Family Piggy Bank we believe in a common sense, realistic approach to family finance and cutting expenses—meaning that we’re probably not going to post an article about reusing paper towels. But you never know. Truth is, we’re open to any idea, from one end of the frugal spectrum to the other, so long as it works for our families and is feasible. We have children ages 1 to 7, so super-extreme cost-cutting measures—like living on $1 a day or getting rid of our cars—just aren’t realistic for us. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t experiment and find practical ways to save money and pay down our debts.
If we’ve learned anything so far it’s that getting out of debt takes stamina and resolve. There are times when we’re all fired up and living as frugally as possible, and other times when we feel like we will lose our minds if we eat one more dinner at home.
Family Piggy Bank’s philosophy is simple: We sacrifice where we can, without sacrificing our family’s quality of life. Saving money on heating bills is great, but not if the thermostat is set so low that our kids get frostbite!
Here, we’ll exchange ideas, tips and resources for saving money, getting out of debt, and having fun on the cheap—that work for real moms and families. We’ll also confess our money mistakes and celebrate successes and milestones.
We have faith that one day, many months from now, we’ll be debt free. And we hope that this blog, which we started to motivate ourselves through all the ups and downs, will be a source of motivation for other moms, too.
We can do it together! Let’s start today!