One of the big things I’ve had to be careful about with our limited income right now is grocery shopping. It’s one of those expenses I have some control over.

Grocery stores can be tricky, though. They’re full of temptations for the hungry shopper.

1. Bakery and deli smells.

Stores in my area have the bakery and deli right up front. Not only are these foods really, really tempting, they smell delightful as they bake. And then there’s the announcement over the intercom when a fresh bake of bread is ready and you can smell the loaves… mmm!

2. Temptations abound throughout.

Especially if you bring your kids shopping. I try hard to not bring them. It makes shopping more pleasant and I don’t have to say no to the candy and other treats strategically placed throughout the store and at the cash registers.

These first two are, of course, why you should never shop hungry.

3. Sales that make only a minimal difference.

Some sale items really are great prices. Other times I catch stores offering just a couple cents off and calling it a sale price. If you keep track of the prices you pay, you know if a sale is something that means it’s time to stock up or if they’re just trying to get your attention.

4. Mixes that save little or no time.

Not every mix is worth buying. You can find all kinds of recipes online to make just about anything from scratch, and especially when it comes to things like cake and pancake mixes, the time difference isn’t much, but you’ll save a lot by doing it yourself. It’s rather more challenging, of course, but good results really stand out.

You can also read the ingredient lists on those premixed spice packages and come up with your own for a lot less. Some are amazingly simple. This also gives you more control over how much salt and sugar you have in your recipes.

5. Notice product placement.

The more expensive products are most often at eye level. Cheaper is generally up high or down low. There are some exceptions to this rule, but it’s pretty easy to check out the entire section rather than just one shelf if you’re serious about finding good deals.

6. Notice the price per unit.

This can be tricky, as some stores will use different units to describe the price for different sizes of the same product. However, sometimes you can see that the smaller item is offered at a lower price per unit than the larger one… especially if you have coupons! If you can’t approximate in your head, bring a calculator and know how to use it.

7. Know if “2-for”, “3-for” and such deals really require that you buy that quantity.

There’s a store in my area that loves to do “10 for $10″ sales. Fortunately, not only do they allow mix and match, they don’t really care how many items you buy. You get the $1 per unit price anyhow.

Not all stores run these sales that way, so keep any eye on how your store does it.

One of my biggest challenges right now in working at home is dealing with my 3 year old son. He’s in a massively clingy phase right now.

Not just out in public, although that makes it worse. All day long, even at home.

He can be distracted for a time, sure. Turn the TV on and he’s happy. But I can’t let him do that all day. I have to get more creative if I’m going to satisfy myself that I’m still working at home for the right reasons.

Let Him Cling

One of the simplest ways to get him to not cling is to let him. I let him show me what it is he wants from me. I play with him. I give him some of the time that he wants from me in the hopes that he will give me some quiet time later.

Plus it means I can help to tire him out so he’ll take a good nap later. If he’s asleep he’s not clinging, after all.

Tell Husband to Help

When my husband is home (a lot right now since his layoff), I make sure he gets involved. It doesn’t matter that my son tries to insist that only Mommy is good enough. We insist that he learn to accept help and do fun things with either of us.

You’d be amazed at how much he (my son) can resist this idea. But I think it’s important.

Get Some Time Out of the House

With gas prices the way they are right now, this doesn’t happen much unless I’m running errands. Most times my errands are a kid-free time for me. It’s a nice semi-break. Can’t call it a real one since I’m still doing something for my family. But it does help to ease the stress of always being on call.

Send Him Outside

The one thing that holds my son’s attention better than the television is the outdoors. He will cheerfully spend an hour collecting pill bugs and ladybugs. Without me around most of the time. I can just check on him out my office window.

With summer coming I do have to make sure he wears his sunscreen and that he doesn’t stay out too long if the day is particularly warm. Young children aren’t always going to be aware of what their bodies need.

Work Around His Schedule

I do a lot of work late, late at night. That way both of my kids are asleep, and once again there’s no clingy issue, aside from occasionally with my husband. Not saying that’s all bad, of course!

It takes some extra effort to not be completely exhausted at the end of the day when you work around a clingy child, but it can be done. Spend some time figuring out what routines work for you. And share tips if you have them!

As a work at home parent, one of the things I find most challenging is deciding what my time is worth. I don’t do freelance work often, but when I do it is very easy for me to ask for too little. It’s a part of why I don’t like to work for others.

There’s a very popular article on the Wall Street Journal site about stay at home moms who used to be executives being available for temp work. Only trouble is, they too value their work too little. I mean sometimes a tenth or less of what they earned as full time executives.

I love that so many opportunities are opening up to stay at home moms to maintain their careers, but I wish more would demand what they are worth.

There was a news story in my area a couple months back about companies that specialize in finding temp work for at home moms. I didn’t catch the name then, but there are a couple of options out there. MomCorps is the one I’ve been hearing about since then.

It’s a common problem for many women. They don’t value their skills enough, especially if they’re working from home for just a little extra income or to keep up with their industry. Yet the value provided is typically equal to what someone more traditionally employed might offer.

What Should You Do?

It’s hard to not undervalue yourself, especially if you start from the point of “I’m just a stay at home mom”.

Odds are you’re more than that.

Employers may have the expectation right now that at home moms will accept less, and so it may take time to change that, but don’t go for bottom of the barrel pay. If your work was worth more before you started staying at home, it’s probably worth more now.

Keep in mind that many people get better clients when they ask for better pay. The perceived value of what you’re offering is higher. If you don’t ask for what you’re worth, many potential clients will wonder why.

If you think you haven’t been asking for enough, challenge yourself. Start asking for more. You may get some pleasant surprises.

I love being able to be at home with my family. It’s tough having one person earning the bulk of the income but it can be done. Here are some tips I’ve found that really help.

1. Remember what you’re saving.

Two incomes are not always significantly better than one. Depending on the number of children who would need to be in childcare, the cost of commuting, meals out, wardrobe, taxes and so forth, the second income may be more easily replaced than you expect. Some families even discover that having both parents work means they have less money. It doesn’t always happen that way, but it is quite worthwhile to figure out what the actual amount being brought in is.

2. Think about which parent stays at home.

It’s not always the mother who is most suited, either in personality or in earning potential. Both should be considerations. The person who will do best as a stay at home parent will generally do better with all the things that need to be done to keep a single income household running. Just make sure that the emotional support is there for both parents.

3. Check your housing expenses.

Housing is by far most families’ largest monthly expense. If it’s going to be tight going to a single income, look at ways to cut that expense. If you’re renting, consider a smaller place or one that is in a more affordable place… so long as you’re comfortable living in the area. You should not sacrifice your peace of mind.

If you own, look at what it’s costing you. If your current home is stretching your budget too hard, think about if it would be worthwhile to move. Sometimes the expenses of selling and moving are worth it, other times definitely not!

4. Look at your other monthly bills.

Telephone, electricity, gas, water, cable, internet… they all add up. Often times they can be controlled.

You can decide to simplify the plans you have on your phones. Cell phones are extremely common now, and some people choose to drop their land line telephone in favor of just using cell phones. Others simply drop features from the land line, such as caller ID, call waiting and any excessive long distance calling plans.

And of course you should be working on cutting down your water use, turning off excess lights, resetting the thermostat so you use less power, things like that. You can adapt and be comfortable with these.

You will have to decide for yourself what level, if any, of cable and internet services you need. These days the internet is used quite a bit by students, of course, and for quite a bit of regular communication through email for many people. But you can consider which speed of service you really need to pay for.

5. Pay down your debts.

Most especially pay down credit card debts. If you’re going to be earning less money as a family, you need fewer worries about your finances. Any debts you can get rid of or pay way down first will save you a lot of worry later on and provide you with greater financial flexibility.

6. Pay your bills on time.

Paying a late fee is a sign of not paying enough attention to when bills are due. They’re utterly unnecessary, especially since these days you can have many bills paid automatically. Just be sure any accounts you use for automatic payments always have enough money in them.

7. Make a budget - and stick to it.

Living on a budget isn’t fun. However it’s one of the most practical ways to be sure that you can afford to have one parent stay at home. Stick to it as best you can.

8. Have an emergency fund.

Stuff happens. A car breaks down. Someone gets sick. Have some money set aside so these problems aren’t added to with a financial crisis.

9. Use coupons and follow sales.

The more attention you pay to the many ways you can get lower prices, the less you’re going to pay in all your shopping. You can often get coupons for your favorite products by contacting the manufacturer. Plan your meals around what’s on sale and know which stores it makes sense to go to.

10. Learn about local free entertainment for your family.

There are a lot of things you can do for free in most areas. Museums may have free days. There are parks to play in. Play games at home.

11. Plan for holiday and birthday expenses.

You know when these are coming. If you plan ahead they won’t be a big drain on your budget.

12. See if the parent working outside the home can use public transportation or carpool.

As gas prices rise, either of these becomes a better and better idea. The practicality depends on your area, but when it works you can save a significant amount each month. There’s some loss of convenience, of course, but if the car is needed on a particular day that can be arranged.

You may be able to cut down to one vehicle for your family, a huge savings! My family has done this, and while it’s hard at times it is quite doable.

13. Get books and movies from the library.

Sure it’s not the same selection as if you’re buying them, and you may have to wait a while. But you can’t beat the price.

14. Get to know the other parents in your area.

Perhaps especially the other stay at home parents with kids around the ages of your own. They’re great for support, for the children’s playtime, for trading babysitting.

15. Consider whether working at home is an option.

It is very possible for the at home parent to earn anywhere from a very little to a lot of money from home. Do some research on the possibilities and decide if this will work for your family. It can make the difference when things get rough.

While many stay at home moms do already work at home, others don’t. The reason is pretty simple: It’s hard to commit yourself fully to your family if you have to work all the time. And if your family doesn’t need the money, why use up all that time?

But things can change, and working from home may be a more pleasant option than giving up on the stay at home dream altogether. Good thing it may be manageable if you plan ahead and be realistic about your own capabilities.

So when should you start trying to work at home?

If Your Family is Carrying a Heavy Debt Load

For this, I generally mean beyond a mortgage. Most people carry a mortgage on their home for quite a number of years, and that’s not a bad thing so long as it is manageable. But credit card debt, student loan debts and so forth are more of a problem.

Working at home is a way to get some of that debt paid down a little more quickly.

If Your Family is Living Month to Month

Just look at all the reports of how the economy is going right now. We can argue about recession versus stagflation going on, but things are pretty rough out there for a lot of families. And in many cases that’s because they didn’t have any sort of cushion for their family in case of a lost job.

Jobs can be lost for so many reasons. Layoffs and medical issues come immediately to mind.

If you don’t have several months’ worth of income saved up for such a crisis, your family can be in deep trouble if the only wage earner suddenly isn’t bringing in much money, or is bringing in significantly less.

If you start working at home you can bring that cushion up. It can be protection for your family in case of difficulties. Much better than living month to month.

Just Because You WANT to

Sometimes you just want more from your life than taking care of home and family. Especially as children get older there’s only so much you can do, after all. Working at home gives you the chance to still be there while pursuing one of your own interests.

We have a huge advantage over mothers who worked at home in the past. There are a lot more options. We can go beyond the traditional options of daycare and network marketing, and follow still more of our own interests.

For that matter, network marketing has expanded beyond the most established companies. You have many more options available to you, and so can enjoy working in this industry with more options for what you’re selling.

You can start a website. You can be a remote worker for all kinds of companies, doing customer service, data entry, transcription or many other jobs. You can hire yourself out as a freelance writer, programmer, designer, whatever suits your skills.

So What’s the Catch?

The catch, of course, is that not everyone will succeed in working at home. It does take from your day. It takes effort. It’s flat out difficult for many people to find opportunities that aren’t scams. And yes, if you start a home business you may even lose money. It’s not risk free.

If you decide you want to work at home, don’t be in a rush about it. Don’t allow hype to catch your attention, or worse yet, your wallet. Take your time and do your research. Ask other people about it. The work at home community is generally very willing to help new members figure out what is legitimate. While you can’t trust everyone you meet online, getting more eyes on what you think will be good can help you to spot potential problems before you’re paying for them.