By: Debbie Hegeman
I am a stay at home mom. I always have been. My husband and I have 9
children ranging in ages from 2-21. I will explain how we get food,
clothes, cars and have fun.
Almost from the start of our marriage I always tried to eat healthy
which has saved us on doctor bills. We belong to food coop and eat fresh
fruit and vegetables as much as possible. We buy food in bulk and make
almost all our food from scratch. Beside being healthier it tastes
better. We have a garden and can tomatoes, pickles and freeze corn and
asparagus. Since the kids have been in 4-H we have grown our own
chicken, beef and pork. . We seldom go out to eat, but we like eating
out on our deck or our beautiful hill in our back yard. My kids eat
outside as soon as it is about 50 degrees outside until late in the
fall. Eating at home is much cheaper and more relaxing for the parents.
Our new neighbors that moved in this summer have a connection with
second Harvest and they share their abundance with us. The last couple
of months we have been getting free day old bread. Good bread--- whole
wheat, 12 grain, 7 grain, bagels etc. She, also, gets fresh fruits and
vegetables.
For clothes I buy underwear, socks, shoes, Christmas and Easter outfits
new. ---Everything else is from Goodwill, Thrift shops, hand me downs
and my oldest daughter is a beautiful seamstress. She made 17 dresses
one summer out of scraps and denim material. My neighbor stopped me one
day out in the yard and was very surprised that we could afford designer
clothes. She was very surprised to learn that the dresses were made out
of scrap material. At Goodwill, rummage sales etc. we have found many
new clothes with the store tags still on them.
For our cars we do not buy new. We usually watch the paper for cars that
we like. Also, our last van we bought at a state car auction. All state
vehicles are auctioned off when they get their new fleets. The cars are
usually in good shape. We got a 15 passenger van that was previously
owned by a state college. We keep fixing cars and my husband does
basic maintenance himself and is teaching our teenage boys to do the
same.
Here are some ways to have fun on a budget. Having picnic’s in your yard
with family and friends. Why not make it a potluck?. Back yard baseball
or whatever your favorite sport is. Go for walks at a state park. Cost
is a sticker for your vehicle for the season. Going to smaller local
museums are usually fairly cheap some are free and you can learn the
history of your area. Bowling and skating are fun things for the family
to do. We get videos and dvds from the local library. A big thing at our
house in the winter is board games, and jigsaw puzzles, building snowmen
and sledding.
The other thing that I have noticed with having a big family is the
children entertain each other and don’t need or care for many toys.
Actually, my kids like to build their own toys and then have fun playing
with them. They get sick of store bought toys quickly and beg me to let
them take apart to see how they are made.
I would say the biggest cost of having a big family is having to feed
teenage boys, but if you follow the steps above it isn’t too bad So if
you want a big family go for it, you do not have to live on government
assistance to have one.
Article by:
Debbie Hegeman is the wife of Dan for 22 years and mother of 9. She
homeschools and is a work at home mom. She is an independent contractor
for Plantmakers growing system. She likes growing plants and so do her
kids.
