Vacation Meal Budget and the Broke Single Mom

Photo Credit Retroama

When you are on vacation, eating out can be a large chunk of your budget. If you figure 4 people eating out 3 meals a day for 5-7 days, you can easily spend upwards of $400.

But when you are on a shoestring budget of $500 for your entire trip you may feel as if there is no way to make this work.

Don't fret, it just takes a little research and planning.

What I like to do is deduct all of my fixed expenses from my budget. Those include, transportation, hotel and baggage fees. Then I take the remainder and guesstimate how much I will need for things like souvenirs and outings.

After all of these deductions I can see how much I have to work with for food. Don't panic if your numbers is low. You can do your best to work with it and if it's just not possible you can adjust another area to put more money into the food budget.

Let's use my friend's upcoming 5 night/6 day trip to Williamsburg.

Mother's Day and the Broke Single Mom

-Just saw that this was never published and was simply in draft mode :) I decided it's my blog so I did try to back date it but wanted to publish whether the back dating takes or not :)-

With Mother's Day upon us I wanted to write a post about inexpensive things to get and give for Mother's Day.

When you are a single mom on a tight budget it can stress you out thinking of your own mother's gift as well as sisters, cousins or best friends.

On the other side of that coin, you may not be able to give each of your kids $20 to go get you a gift. Or is my mom the only one that did that? Nah, she can't possibly be. I mean I did when I was flush with Cash.

Anywho, Mother's Day isn't, or shouldn't be about material gifts. It is about loving and honoring the mothers in our lives that mean so much to us.

If your kids want to gift you something besides what they've made in school you can give them a low cost suggestion list. This way they get to pick and choose and it will be a surprise since you won't know which to expect.

You can find plenty of things online but here are a few:

Coupons, This Coupon entitles you to a: Clean kitchen, foot rub, clean car etc.

Breakfast in bed: Self explanatory

Photo Puzzle: They'll need a large photo, glue and scissors

Movie Night: They can pull out your favorite movie, make some popcorn and curl up on the couch with you. ( I think this is my favorite sicne my teenagers haven;t watched a movie on thecouch with me for a couple of years)

As for gifts that you can give to the other moms in your life without breaking the bank or whipping out that credit card, how about?

 Baked Goods

The tried and true will work here, a plate of chocolate chip cookies or a cake. But you can try something a little different like a Cupcake Bouquet.









So be creative and Happy Momma's Day.

Mother's Day/Free Gift and the Broke Single Mom



Photo Credit Babble

As my Mother's Day present to you, I will gift one of my eBooks (your choice) if you email me at brokesinglemombooks (@) yahoo.com through midnight tomorrow May 13th,2012. Just put Mother's Day in the subject line.

Hello every one! I just wanted to wish you all a fabulous and wondrous Mother's Day tomorrow.

May your children shower you with love and attention and may your man do the same, with diamonds!

And if you don't have a man, then I wish for you to meet Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome :)

(But it is 2012 so make sure to vet him online before that first date)

Cheating Boyfriend and the Broke Single Mom

Photo Credit John Glenn Taylor

I wrote a 3,000 word article (or booklet) on the top 10 signs your boyfriend is cheating on you.  In it I give my story and the story of 2 close friends, I did this to illustrate what ignoring the signs can lead to.

Available at Barnes and Noble or Amazon
.99

Learning a New Language and the Broke Single Mom

Photo Credit Amore Blog

I have a confession to make. I have always wanted to learn how to speak Italian and French. I already speak Spanish, or Spanglish as my mom says, but I always believed that learning these languages would enhance my life somehow, hmmm.

I wanted to learn online and be able to work on it at my own pace because local classes meant having to keep to a schedule set by someone else, and money wise? I found out quickly that learning a new language can get pricey.

Since all of my "extra" cash goes to traveling as much as I possibly can, I knew I wasn't about to drop $179 and up to learn Italian. So I went on the hunt, you know the one, the "there has to be a cheaper way" bargain hunt!

And ta-da, there is, here are two for your consideration.

Making Extra Money and the Broke Single Mom

Photo Crdit Ginger Louise Clothing

I was thinking about how these days almost everyone I know could use some extra cash, especially single mothers. The trick is finding how to make some of that much needed extra income without having to take on a second job and being away from your kids any more than you have to.

There is a great article on Woman's Day and I think #2 and #7 are a good fit (if applicable) for a single Mother.

#2 Features a woman named Stefanie Stobel who uses fiverr.com and makes an extra $300 a month. And her Fiverr.com gig is super simple. She writes names and messages in the sand (she lives in california) and sends a photograph. The customer pays $5 of which she receives $4. If you have an idea for something similarly simple you can list your "gig" within a few minutes.

Road Trips and the Broke Single Mom



Photo Credit Ingles

Used to be back in the olden days (like in the 50's and 60's) that when people said they were going on vacation it almost always meant a road trip. However, lower airline fares and more transportation choices like trains and buses changed all that.

But when the economy tanked in 2008 staycations and road trips became the "it" thing once again.

Most people think of cramped quarters, long drives and cranky kids when they hear the words Road Trip. But with all of the new technology available these days and so many cool places to visit you should be open minded and give the old fashioned road trip a chance :)

When I think of a road trip I think of getting a chance to visit a great new place or revisit an awesome attraction that my kids and I already love. I also think of the fact that it means a super low cost getaway.

On our family road trips we pick a destination within a 10 hour drive (usually less), pack a nice lunch, grab our pillows, a few movies and the laptop. I make sure to have my favorite music and away we go.