Living with my sister and trying to teach her how to budget her grocery bill. She buys her kids all of these “extras” because she allows them all of these items. Instead of saying NOTHING!! Stop getting all of it. I told her, pick one thing per kid per week. These week their extras were a box of fruit snacks and pop tarts. No ice cream or anything else. Maybe they will choose that next week. You don’t need it all constantly.

I think you cutting a live grocery shopping bill with someone right from their basket would be hilarious for a video! Keep it in mind!

I noticed at my daughters high school. They used “What is your next step after graduation”. Or “Let’s look at options for your next step”.

I encouraged my 14 year old daughter to get a part-time job. For the experience and for extra spending money. As a single parent I am not able to afford the starbucks, fast food, etc. I provide the essentials. She seems to understand the importance of making her own money.

Okay I seriously think you could have a whole TV show where you travel around and grocery shop with people. 😂

Whoa whoa whoa, where’s the backwards hat Dave!? I don’t know how serious I can take this advice. 😂😂

I left for college with $60 cash from my mom to get me started. I started working a restaurant job that night, and made sure I took enough credits each semester and intercession to graduate in 4 years with my teaching degree and license. I qualified for about 4k in grants and took 4k in loans each year, one year that entire loan went to a car when mine died. I graduated in 4 years in 2012 with 22k in loans entirely in my name. I’ve had times in my life I’ve paid double on the loans, and others I’ve paid the minimum. Im currently waiting to see if they will be forgiven, but if the panini hadn’t happened, they would be paid off by now. They’re right under 4k now. In that time I’ve paid off a Mazda 3 I bought off the lot, and traveled the country in an RV. I no longer teach, but I use that degree every day, and am glad I decided to go to a cheaper state school that allowed me to leave college with a manageable amount of debt. I didn’t have the most fun in college, I was serving the drunk kids sandwiches instead of being them most of the time. I ate a lot of egg noodles and fried potatoes. I drove a car older than I was that was given to me by a friend. I’m glad that right now I’m able to consider a down payment instead of being mired in loans, and I’m glad I paid for it myself. Life has to start at some point, I felt as prepared as I would ever be at 18!

Family planning is super important. My husband wanted 4 kids, but when we ran the numbers we realized 4 would make us struggle. So we had 3 and we spaced them out 5 years apart so we wouldn’t have 2 kids in daycare and diapers. It worked out. We have one in college now that we saved for and are also cashflowing, when she leaves college the next one will go. I’m glad we really planned things out.

Don't sell yourself short, Christine! Four little kids at home are a lot of kids, too! 😊

I had a coworker that asked family members to give money vs presents and let them know it would be in their college savings acct. The kids all knew the money went to college. The kids didn't need any additional toys or stuff so the money actually went to a good use and wasn't wasted on a toy that was thrown away later.

It is SO refreshing to find another couple that find value in a mother being home and raising her littles (and how hard it is)! I’m loving these budget videos. Great ideas 💕

Would love to see Christine help people grocery shop!

You going to the grocery store with people would be so hilarious!

I agree set the money aside now before looking for a new home or to add on to the existing home. 1. Food - Cut out treats that have no nutritional value. The kids are young and will not miss sugary treats. Instead, snacks such as nuts, cheese, fruit, crackers add necessary minerals and vitamins as well as protein and are less expensive. 2. Food- 2 nights a week meatless meals. Snacks of cheese, and nuts adds protein to the daily diet so doing meatless meals of beans will not limit the children's nutrition but will give them a good variety of diet while saving money. 3. Kids Expenses - Looking for free or inexpensive community activities to save on children's expenses. 4. Kids Expenses - hand me downs are great ways to save. Often jeans, overall alls, plain tees and shoes can be unisex so small kids can wear those items that once belonged to a sibling of the opposite sex. 5. Date Night- can even be an afternoon matinee, a picnic, flying kites, walk on the beach, wading in the ocean. All to save money. 6. Vacation- All 4th graders in the U.S. receive a FREE FAMILY PASS for National Parks for a year for their family. ALL CHILDREN UNDER 16 in the group have free entrance as well as up to three adults using this pass ! WOW 7. College- keep in mind kids can have jobs before college so they too can save money, they can also work while in school and during summers, scholarships, financial aid, grabts ♥ this series. I am contemplating sending in my budget

Here’s the statistic. In this country (US), we throw away enough food every day to fill an NFL stadium. That’s not even rotted food.

My son went to lineman school. He is 19 years old and works full-time with health insurance, pension, and a 457 retirement account.

😂 I love when you mentioned following people around the store! Lol I’d actually love for you to do that with me. I’m stuck in the 2 & 5 year old chicken nuggets and fish sticks phase for lunches. I recently stopped buying salad mixes and just buy a head of cabbage and romain lettuce and cut it all up in ziplock ready to assemble. Saved so much.

We have 8 kids. One married, one in college and 6 at home. We homeschool and have so many expenses for curriculum, sports, piano lessons, youth group, etc. Not to mention car insurance, clothing, and on and on. It's crazy and we are getting by but not building that emergency fund or having money for home repairs/upgrades or vacations. We are taking a big trip with the family this summer that we have saved for for 3 years. We are about 85% on track for retirement and hoping that as more kids age out 😂 we can improve on that. We have not paid for college except for $1000 when they graduate high school and we pay their car insurance while in school. They have done it with full time jobs in the summer, part time during school and then scholarships. And our 2 oldest only took out a $5500 loan freshman year. That's all they needed.

This family is doing great! I am impressed! As a mom of six kids I’ll add my 2 cents… Our grocery budget is also $1,200 and unless Christine can come help me I cannot get it down! We buckled down and paid our mortgage off in 6 1/2 years. It was not fun as Christine said, but it has allowed us to travel extensively with our kids - something we never could have done with a mortgage. We stopped contributing to 529s about a year ago when we finally had to admit that we couldn’t do it all! We prioritized and that came last. We can probably pay for 2 years per kid. That will have to be enough! Keep up the good work!

Challenge accepted!!! I'd love to have you shop with me in New England for my household of 8 (6 kids ages 7-19). I'm at $800 a month for my grocery/household/toiletries budget and can't seem to get it below that. And that's with cooking from scratch about 90% of the time. You could write it off as a business expense. ;) lol! Our oldest 3 kids (17, 18, 19) each have part time jobs. They pay for their own cell phones and car insurance. Our 14 yr old does side jobs - mowing grass, shoveling alpaca poo for a lady with 10 alpacas. He has to pay for church youth group and Boy Scout activities. We could pay for all of those things for them, but having to work for your money develops character in ways that an allowance never does. Just ask my 14 yr old if a McDonald's Big Mac meal (about $12 in our area) is worth an hour of shoveling alpaca poo and hay, he'll tell you "NO!" lol! But, he has no problem spending MY $12 on that meal. lol!

years back a grandmother told her daughter that her garbage disposal was the best fed in the neighborhood talk about food waste

Good afternoon - Loved that you mentioned utility bills. I really feel like that is an often overlooked aspect of buying bigger homes. Our home is larger, works for us five adults, but people would be floored with how much we pay for electricity. Really enjoying these podcasts.

I started following you because I was shocked and in awe when I found someone who shops for groceries the way I do. It's been exciting to watch your main channel grow so big and so fast as well! I truly hope people are learning from you and also join this channel as well. Yes, grocery costs are high and are continuing to rise, but you can still control your spending by paying attention to sales ads, stocking up when there are low prices, and definitely taking a closer look for clearance items. I love you guys.

I was raised with the same mindset by a single mom. I have budgeted my whole life and still do to this day. Yet watching the podcast I still learn things. So thank you. Growing up I was taught college was a necessity. I went to college myself and have loan debt. My older son at 18 told me he didn't want to go to college and took a few years off. I got on him because that is what I was taught. It took me a few years to accept it and realize we need trade workers and other jobs need to be filled in order for the world to function. Not every path goes to college and that's ok.

Come back and do more of these! They have been so helpful in looking at my big family's budget.

Life insurance policy for each person.

You and your husband have such a sweet dynamic with each other. Love watching the both of you! And LOVE your channel!

following people around the grocery store and cutting their budget - sounds like a great tv show!

Christine-I would love to see you shop with someone and help them to save!! You would rock that!!

I graduated in 2012 and I know their was pressure from teachers/ counselors pushing everyone to go to collage. But I now know so many people who either didn’t finish or are doing something different than what they went to collage for. The education system needs to open their horizons to having graduates focus on what they would like to be doing instead, and simply entering the workforce is MORE than ok. Not every 18 year old knows what they want to do yet…

We have girls and boys in their teens in our house, and something I’ve been saying for the past few years is that I don’t understand why there is no such thing as a junior’s section for the boys’ clothes when they are in between the kids and adult sizes.

Love the two of you and what you do. It is nice to see people on track together rather than fighting about spending. Agreement is the best way to do life, but definitely not because one is a doormat LOL! Even with expenses, it is wonderful to have thriving kids. You have raised very responsible kidlets!!!!

I want you to follow me around the store! 😂. If I could just stick to my list I'd save so much. I need to find a good discount store soon.

I think that many people just go to Wal-Mart where they buy everything (hosehold and pets). I would like to see budgets where the "GROCERY" budget is not just food.

I totally agree you could take anyone shopping and slash their bill. I'm loving this series. So interesting.

When I turned 16 I was expected to buy my own car, get a job to pay for gas for said car, and also pay for car insurance. It set me up to have great work ethic.

I've slowly been working my way through watching this series, and as a Canadian hearing "$100 per person per month for groceries" makes my heart hurt - I could only dream of that! Between each of your channels though, I've slowly been bringing my grocery budget down, so I really appreciate all the tips and recipes you share!

Awww I love you guys! I've listened to several of your podcast but this is my first one viewing! Keep up the awesome work on all the videos. Comment on a past pod....I ran my first, and only marathon for my 40th birthday, after that I did half's and 10 k's for another 20years. I also give kuddos to the amazing job y'all are doing raising your kids they seem so well rounded and special☺️.

I'm a success story. Went from an in debt couple to divorced carrying a $5000 debt load with a job earning approximately $20,000 gross, to retired home owner and debt free. I had help along the way but even with the help it wasn't easy. It was worth it in the long run though. I live close to my daughter and her family and I'm enjoying my life. It can be done, living proof.

This was such a helpful video hearing so many different options

We are having that same discussion, do we pay off the house or increase retirement? Interesting take that if the interest is less than 4% let that sit. Really appreciate your perspective.

We have several Walmart’s within quick driving distance. Several of them have signs that say things like, “We pay for college.” They also have flexible scheduling. I know most “real” jobs here have that as a benefit too. Get experience and tuition reimbursement.

I love this video! Great job breaking everything down.

I love these budget break downs

My husband was a diesel machine all our married life, except for the last 8 years he trained diesel mechanic for the Cummins engine co. We have been married 52.5 years.

I just came from Leaf like on a tree, but…I have seen you on your bread making.. totally love!! Also just subscribed!❤😊

One thought. What if the $780 that they allocated for savings was the same $780 which was leftover? Seems too coincidental for those amounts to be the same. Love these episodes! Keep em' coming!

this is really great!

Thank you for this. Motivated me to pay off the mortgage more aggressively!

Loved this!❤

That would be a fun show/episode on your frugal fit mom youtube channel.

Yes please come follow me around at the grocery store!! That would be amazing and so helpful!! And fun!!

I loved your expression when you told us the food budget. Priceless. 😂 I knew how much that number hurt. Maybe you can get one of your friends or family let you follow them in the store. Just no touching you Mom's Coke. You guys rock.

Would love to see you shop with families and help them make more economical choices. Nice review of this families budget. Maybe I missed it but did they include electricity anywhere? Utility costs are rising so it's important to track and budget for those as well.😊😊

Christine I didn’t know you are a DMB fan! Love the shirt!

Great job!!

Great video

Many states and colleges offer dual credit while the child is in high school. In Washington state where I live, my son graduated high school with his AA degree as well. Because dual credit in Washington is paid for by the state, I only paid $1000 for books and fees. This was not dependent on any income requirements. It's a great way to reduce the college bill! ~Lynnette

A know a kid who finished a Diesel mechanic program in high school. He graduated from high school and then was offered a job for $60K. Right out of high school!

Here is a video idea Christine. Do FaceTime grocery shopping with people to help them make better decisions on their grocery budgets. Helping people who are hands on

I love these videos.

We have a large family...my husband has his business...Is quite successful at it and and doesnt have a college 😂degree...I have a degree in business administration and help him with the decisions and billing.. We homeschool and encourage our children to be entrepreneurs..our eldest daughter has a part time job and sells her items she makes...Also her part time job does offer college money...if she wants to use it... My husband watches youtube videos and fixes our items that break before we have to replace with another good used one.. As a child he would take things apart to see how they work.😊

I am Canadian, so not sure if the store BlueNotes exists where you live but they sell 28w x 34leg jeans in slim and reg and straight leg cut in several different colors for $36/Canadian. They frequently go on sale for $25/Canadian. I have a 16yr old built the same way lol.

You can get girl scout doop cookies at aldis ♡♡♡ I get the "samoa" cookies they use to be 85 cents and now they are almost 2$s but still cheaper!

Girl, come to GA and shop with me...😂❤

There's so many ways to pay for college. At my job they have college reimbursement. I know several coworkers using that to pay for schooling. I unfortunately, didn't have that option when I got my degree, but now I know. My kiddos will know too.

I've accepted my boys will always wear high waters. Even ordering slims with adjustable waist they fall down but are inches too short. Skinny and long legged.

Our grocery budget is also out of control because I don’t cook and my husband is never hungry when we need to eat for our little one. We do 350 a week but that includes things like diapers, wipes, toiletries, cleaning supplies, pet food etc.

Not to be all “kids these days” but you have to leave the nest at some point. 18-20 is a perfect time to be a baby adult and make all your mistakes. I agree that ensuring your stability in retirement is a better gift to your kids than extending the support into college. Right now my partner and I are looking at 2/4 parents not having ANY plans for retirement, and that is a very stressful and emotion charged proposition to put us in. It is also something we talk about affecting our decision to have kids - if we have to house and support our parents it means less resources for our own hypothetical kids.

With the way things are right now I'm glad I have a job and no mortgage. I haven't had a mortgage since 2021. To help save more money I cut cable. I have a roku and have Netflix and a streaming service. I am trying to save as much money as I can between now and when I retire so I can move. I am also selling a farm so that will go into savings also

If they fit every other way cut them off for shorts

I enjoyed this. Curious about other types of insurance. I only see car insurance listed. It feels like our budget keeps getting more and more line items as we get into the weeds of where our $ is actually going.

Honestly, I would love for you to follow someone around the store and give advice on how to lower the food budget instead of the normal " this is what I get every week" I feel like it would help so much.

Work at UPS! 22 hours a week and they will cover up to 25k a year for school! Medical, dental and vision for free also!!

I am oldest of 6 and 41yo. College totally isn't for everyone. We knew when we were 10 that our parents weren't putting us through college. They couldn't, and they let us know. Our breakdown: 1. Me. College, profession in my field of study. 2. Trade school. 3. Marines, then college paid for, profession related to Marines but not related to field of study. 4. Left college, successful in field of *skill* 5. College, profession in field of study 6. Special needs, lives with parents at this time.

We use our tax return every year to add money to our kids’ college savings. We’ve done that since they were born. We are pretty sure it won’t cover all of it, but we are okay with not covering it all!

so thinking about sending in my budget to you guys-

Here in northern Houston, my kids' school district has a required class of college and career for 6th grade. They said they wanted the students to leave high school knowing what would be their degree.

Facetime shopping with frugalfitmom!

I would dearly love for you to follow me around a grocery store! I think I am pretty good at feeding 3.5 adult people (we have a teenage son every second weekend) for roughly 250/ week, in Canada (more expensive than the US generally),

You didn't say if any of the six kids are twins. I always tell my middle school students (grades 6-8 but it's never too early to start talking) that they do not need to go to college to get a great salary but they will need more training than high school provides. Almost all schools now have tech center for certification and dual enrollment for college. There are also workshops and camps for almost every type of career that are also available.

I was a girl scout cookie mom and I think I bought 7 or 8 cases of cookies just for my family. I'm keto now so no more cookies!

I think they should have a sinking fund for a future car. Otherwise, they may either need to get a loan or will use up their emergency fund. They could just reallocate some of their extra money to a car fund.

The Army National Guard will pay for 100% of state college and provide a monthly income for the student. Students learn teamwork, responsibility, leadership and how to manage their time.

I feel likethe trade school or other opportunities like that are not given to them as an option so they don't think about that kind of thing.

why not put the money you would put toward the paying your house off early into a High Div Low Volatility ETF? and then pay off the house in one lum sum when you have enough saved up? This way the money also acts as a large emergency fund - while hopefully earning more % each year than the interest you would be saving off the house payments.

So I am a working mom and I’m currently working 12 hour days and 6 on Saturday. I’m so guilty of buying frozen pancakes for my 7 year old 😂 even with no overtime I still occasionally buy them. 😂 Please don’t ban me 😂

I would challenge you to follow me around the grocery store and save me money. I shop extremely frugally based on the horrible discounts the stores around here give on close dated items. I actually post the best deals weekly on my Facebook page for five or six different stores in our area. I shop a discount outlet that's 40 minutes away and do as many Ibotta deals as make actual sense based on the time I have available. We are a family of three adults. I am currently working on filming some of the deals and meals that I do for a channel I am in the process of starting. Wish me luck 😁😁🤣🤣♥️

The kids aren't all going to college at once. I'd start saving for 2 now, add in 2 more in a year, and the last 2 later on if it was hard to do in one fell swoop.

Wow...this could be our family. We have 6 kids from 1-12. Homeschooling. But yikes pur mortgage is 3200.

Kids budget could include diapers.

💯

Is there clothing on that budget?

❤️❤️

Dave I admire your arms😊

Are we sure the 780 savings is monthly? Or is it a balance in the account? I'm the legitimate opposite of an expert but in my life experience I would guess the 780 is a savings total... if I'm wrong that's SWEET.

I know multiple diesel mechanics who make over 6 figures.

I can't even imagine what I would do with 3x what I make. Seems like a fairy tail

I don't know, maybe they could go on some better vacations, the ocean or national parks. Your kids are only young once..they seem to be doing great financially. It's a shame their young family memories will be..well remember when we paid off the house. Fun!

Could the savings of been their retirement like 401k? I also loved what you said too about working while in college. For someone like me I did not like school and if it were paid for by anyone other than me I would never take it seriously some people need to have a hand in the payment for it to matter. By the way FOLLOW ME my husband would be so thankful I am terrible at being frugal!! Help me Christine!