It’s been almost a two years since my son and I moved into our own home. I’m a homeowner. I’m a single mom doing it all on my own. I’m raising my special needs son all on my own, with no help and I’m a homeowner! I think that’s pretty awesome! I had no idea how much of a hardship it is to be a single mom. Are you struggling as a single mom? Let me remind you of why you are a strong woman. Here’s my life of a single mom.
Living on a budget
As a single mom, I am very aware of my budget. We live on a “fixed income” but I am very thankful that I can support my son and myself on my income.
I appreciate our home and the area we live in. It is safe, quiet, and convenient. I have everything I need really close by to where I can walk!
My son is a growing teen. He eats a lot. He’s constantly growing. I have to buy him new clothes in the Fall and Spring.
Summer weather
This past summer was our first summer in our new home. I kept our thermostat at about 77 degrees. I found 78 to be too warm and stuffy and 76 was too cold for me.
I also kept our windows open as long as possible and when it hit 80 to 81 degrees inside, I would then turn on the air conditioner. I also kept our windows open at night, depending on the temperatures outside.
I once visited a doctor’s office and they kept their thermostat at 71 degrees and it made me realize how cold I was. I was literally freezing. I am used to keeping our home at 77 degrees and I’m okay with that.
Fall and Winter Weather
This is second first Fall and Winter in our new home. It feels like our weather dropped overnight. I did buy more blankets and other bedding.
I wanted extra blankets to cover our couches. My son sleeps on the couch. I try to clean it once a month. Since he basically lives on our couch, I wanted blankets to cover our couch, so I can quickly and easily wash the blankets while keeping the couch a bit cleaner!
I also wanted more blankets for the both of us to utilize for the winter months. My son currently uses one big blanket on the couch. I want him to have another blanket to help keep him warm at night.
I am not quite sure where to keep our thermostat for the winter. I started at 68 degrees since it’s not that cold right now. I plan on lowering it a few degrees and see how low we can go. During the day, I keep the thermostat at about 62, especially when we are not at home. In an effort to be frugal, I plan on working to find our perfect temperature!
Winter Clothing
I am so glad I thought to look through my son’s wardrobe to make sure his pants, sweatshirts and fleece fit him. I recently bought him new pants, shirts, and a fleece and sweatshirt.
However, I may need to buy him another sweatshirt or fleece! I thought he could rotate between the two while one was in the wash.
Energy Use
I also try to be aware of our energy use. Our rates our higher between 5pm and 9pm, so I do our dishes and laundry in the morning and afternoon.
When it comes to washing our dishes, I don’t even use the heat to dry our dishes. Instead, I just open our dishwasher after it turns off to let our dishes air dry. I’ve been doing this for years and it works for us.
As for laundry, my machines are old. I do hope to upgrade this year. For now, I wash in cold water, in the gentle cycle. With our dryer being old as well, I use medium heat. I also hang dry most of my clothes.
How do you save money in your household?
You are so strong! Thank you for this helpful post. I am a mom myself, and like to stay on budget with my expenses.
I am a single mom also and understand the struggle all too well. I hope to be a homeowner myself one day, thanks for the encouraging post.
Thanks for sharing and all the great tips.
useful tips
Great tips! I find a LOT of very good kid’s clothes in thrift shops. Often I can find unused things that still have tags! They grow so fast, for a lot of items that are used only once or twice, I find that it’s a great way to save money.