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Becoming a One-Income Family

© Kari Lomanno

Three years ago, I was an award-winning journalist with a promising career at the largest newspaper company in the region. I had a decent salary, excellent benefits, a flexible schedule, and fabulous co-workers.

Then I had a baby.

I knew right away I wanted to stay home and home school my daughter, but it wasn't until my son was born two years later that I was finally able to move forward with my dream. I had no idea how we would ever make it happen financially. My husband's job didn't even cover half of our bills. We would have to do some creative financing to make it work.

It took us about six months to really figure out our finances and come up with some new money-making ideas. But between my husband's day job, his extra money from band gigs on the weekends, and my freelance writing jobs, we were finally able to make it work. My daughter is now 2 ½, and I've recently started with some fun preschool activities with her. While we are far from rich, we do manage to make ends meet, at least most months. Here are my tips to help you along the road to becoming a one-income family:

Make the commitment:This may seem obvious, but without a team effort from you, your partner and your kids, home schooling on a budget simply will not work. You need to come to terms with the fact that there will be sacrifices. Nothing great ever came easily. But also keep in mind that home schooling is well worth the effort.

Assess your financial situation: Put it all on paper, and be realistic. This is not the time to "pad the books," so to speak. Put every dollar on paper that will be coming in each month, and then write down every single expense you will be responsible for. If the expenses are greater than the income, your budget will simply not work.

Plan the budget: Get a logbook and keep track of all your expenses, from utilities to groceries to car repairs to birthday gifts. The more detailed the books, the better you can plan your finances. After you have a strong handle on how much money you will need to live on and how much you are bringing in, you can start to plan your spending accordingly. If you are spending $100 a week eating out, for instance, you may need to get a good cookbook from the library and start experimenting with low-cost meals. If you are used to buying new clothes every month, you may have to start heading for the clearance rack or even thrift stores to get your shopping "fix."

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