The Nanny Financial Corner - How to have fun with a smaller budget!

The following article appeared in the March/April 2009 ADCAN Newsletter


The Nanny Financial Corner

by Alice Shaffer


How to have fun with a smaller budget! Having fun sometimes takes money, doesn't it? Well I have found 10 ways for you to have fun, look good, stay healthy and still save money. These cover areas from books, movies, exercising, dental care and sightseeing. Let us know what worked for you and what didn't.


1. Buying Books. Books are wonderful, but did you know that you can get them free at the library? Of course you probably do since you take your charges to story time and check out books. So why don't you check out books there instead of buying them at the store for $8-$25 each? You can easily save $100 dollars a month on books by checking them out at the library. Pull out your library card and make a visit today. Many times you can reserve the books online or get on a waiting list.

2. Trade books you’ve read for books you want to read! For the cost of postage, PaperbackSwap members receive credits for books they want by swapping books they’ve read. To get started you just need to fill out the registration form, submit 10 of your books you want to swap (using ISPN numbers) and you receive two credits free to get you started. You can use those credits immediately to get two books from someone else. Each book is worth one credit. Once someone requests a book from you, you mail them the requested book, and when they receive it - you get a credit. Then you can start requesting books you want, and others ship to you. All done through the PBS website, you print shipping labels and can even pay postage through their site. Drop in the mail or at the post office, and you’re on your way to reading some great books. You can also swap children’s books, and audio books. So start going through those shelves and boxes full of old books and make room for new ones. Easy as 1-2-3.

3.DVD purchases: You can go to www.dvdpricesearch.com/ and search for the DVD’s you want and where they are located for the lowest price. Also check out www.deepdiscount.com/, which has a large number of new and old DVD’s at discount rates. Checking out Amazon is a great idea too as they often have DVD sales (remember to shop through the ADCAN Amazon link). I recently purchased the entire Six Feet Under series for $60 and free shipping. At $12 a season, that is better than I could have found at any store. You can also swap DVD’s at SwapaDVD, a sister site to the above PaperbackSwap.

4. Movie Theaters: You can get a frequent movie goer card from AMC called MovieWatcher. You accumulate points each time you go to the movies. At certain levels you earn a free movie, free small popcorn, etc. Just remember it deducts points if you cash in for the free small popcorn instead of waiting for the free movie. Some theaters offer reduced rates before a certain time of the day. For instance, Tyson’s offers $6 movies before noon on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I have found myself going to a Saturday movie at 9:35 am and still have the entire day available. Other movie theaters may have similar programs.


5. Free DVD rental: Mondays are FREE DVD rentals at Redbox. They are normally one dollar for 24 hours. On Monday's they have a code to get one free. Make Mondays your movie night! You can look online for where the movie is available and reserve it. RedBox DVD rentals are available in many area grocery stores. Check their site for more information.

6. Dental plans: Do you need dental care but don't like paying full price? With Dentalplans.com You can pay around $135 a year and get up to 50% off services. This week I went to the dentist and had a panoramic x-ray done. They normally charge $120, but with the plan it was $62. For my three surface cavities I need filled, it will be $111 instead of $205. Right there I saved $150 dollars. I actually have two cavities so that will be a total savings of $242. That is almost the conference fee for INA. If you would like to look into the program go to Dentalplans.com and if you sign up please use my referral code of: 49S97A27. I will receive three free months for each person that signs up. You can also refer someone as well and start building free months too! How awesome is that! The coverage normally starts within three days. You can search to see if your dentist is on the list. If they are not, I can recommend a dentist in Mclean who is awesome and the new one I just visited in Bethesda.

7. Clothes buying: Never pay full price for any new clothes, make sure they are on sale. You can also look at thrift stores as many of them have new unused clothes. Someone I know bought a whole bunch of clothes off Craigslist for $30 and got at least four good outfits out of the purchase. Swap clothes with friends. If you have lost weight pass along your clothes to a friend or try to sell them in lots on Craigslist.


8. INA Conference: Take advantage of the early bird discount of 10%. Or write a 300 word essay on what it means to be a professional nanny for your chance of receiving a free conference fee. Get two or three roommates to cut down the cost of the hotel room. INA is offering a discount code for American Airlines to use for your flight as well. Go to INA for all the conference details.


9. Working out: Did you know that you could arrange with a few of your other friends to have group personal training sessions? A lot of personal trainers will do group sessions. So check this out in your area. This is a great way to work out and stay motivated.


10. Visit Washington DC for FREE entertainment. Did you know that there are 19 museums in the Smithsonian and they do NOT charge an entrance fee? Not many places in the US offer free museum entrance fees. Check out www.si.edu/museums/ to see what is available at your fingertips. You can take the metro to the center of DC to reach many of the museums. The monuments are also a great form of entertainment and history. You can sit on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and look out onto the Mall of the Smithsonian to watch the 1000s of people walking and visiting our wonderful Nation's capital. Visit www.nps.gov/state/dc/. This will give a listing of all the parks and monuments available in DC. Grab a picnic lunch and head outdoors.


Have other savings suggestions? We'd love to hear them.