When's the last time you reviewed your auto insurance?

We just received our Auto Insurance renewal in the mail. For years we stayed with the same insurance company. We were happy with them. We had a good claims experience. The rate seemed OK.

But after I left my job to stay home with my kiddos, I started reevaluating our expenses- all of them. I was shocked to find out that when I called around and checked on-line, there was a huge disparity in the rates. We had been overpaying for our insurance but hadn't ever checked. Here I was, clipping coupons and saving a few bucks. I could have saved hundreds over the years by making some calls.

Here are some things to remember about auto insurance

• The insurance market is volatile. Rates go up and down. So just because GEICO was cheaper six months ago, does not mean that it will be now. They also vary greatly by location, even within the same city. So you can't always go by what your friends or family found to be the cheapest company.
• Make sure that you are comparing apples to apples. Have your declarations page in front of you. A policy may be cheaper but have a higher deductible or lower liability limits. It's important to know that the price you're being quoted is for the coverages that you need.
• It doesn't always pay to have all your insurance with the same company. You may save money by having multiple policies with the same company. Most companies offer a discount if you insure your home and vehicles with them. BUT you may not save any money at all. Our homeowners company offers a discount. However, even with the discount, I found cheaper insurance elsewhere.
• While you're calling around for rates, check your coverages to make sure that they fit your needs. I'll post in detail about this soon. It's important that you have enough insurance. But being overinsured can cost you money.

Consistently checking insurance rates at renewal time can save a lot of money.

A Visit to Kindergarten

OtterDad and I took C to Kindergarten visitation. Actually we didn't "take" her. The bus picked the three of us up, along with several other Kindergarten families. We attended a parents meeting while C met her teacher and classmates.

At the parents meeting there was a surprisingly long question and answer period addressing lunch. Not reading or math or music or art. Lunch. I couldn't get over all the various lunch questions. You would have thought we were dropping our kids off just for a meal.

The assistant principal seemed very competent and very approachable, a combination that I'm glad of because I think I may be approaching her soon. The welcome letter from C's new teacher states that they will not have snack time. This is an all day K program. And we're talking about 4, 5, and 6 year old kids. Are you kidding me?

I know that I'm a newbie Mom as far as school is concerned. The last thing that I want is to have my first interaction with the school to be a complaint about snacks of all things. I really believe that she needs a snack. Her schedule is such that there are only a couple hours at school prior to lunch. So the entire afternoon and bus ride (where no food is allowed) will be snack free. I have decided to ask some other parents to see if I'm being unreasonable. And I'm going to do some research. I at least want to sound somewhat coherent when speaking about it. And right now all I have is, "I know she needs a snack."

I guess that if our greatest concern about the school is snack, that's not too bad. C's teacher is very experienced. I have spoken with several parents with older kids and they rave about her. Academically this school does quite well. And C already loves her and can't wait to go back for her first day.

It's just hard to believe that my baby is old enough to go to school!

Cutting Back to Stay at Home

I am a Stay at Home Mom. I don't really like that title- it sounds odd to me. But I love being at home with my girls. Otter Dad and I have been married for 16 years and I worked outside the home for 13 of them.

I've always thought that it was important that children, especially very young children, be surrounded by family as much as possible. In fact during our marriage preparation classes, one of the exercises was a test that asked us the same questions so that we could compare our answers. We were on the same page in almost every area. But the True or False: It's important that one of the parents stay home with our children" got opposite responses.

Otter Dad is not one of those, "My wife must stay home with the kids" kind of guys. I've occasionally wished he was. But not really, because that's just not him. He does understand how important it is to me though. And is completely supportive of the decision. But, it was primarily my decision.

I worked when my oldest was a baby. ODad didn't have to leave for work until 2pm and I could pick C up around 5. I thought that three hours a day in a child care situation was not that bad. But after E was born, ODad's schedule changed and I really didn't want the kiddos away from home for so long.

This choice cost us financially. I made considerably more money than ODad. So this was not a case of losing some extra pocket money. This was a 60% family pay cut. I'll be blogging more in this series to tell you what we did to make this possible: what's worked for us and what hasn't. I'm hoping it will help others who are struggling to make this decision but think they can't afford it. I know that there are situations out there that really require both parents to work, and many single parent families who have little choice in the matter. But for people that really want to make it work, maybe some of our strategies will work for you.

Recycling

I'm a firm believer in recycling and reusing. I've tried to teach my girls the importance of this. At their ages (3,4, and 5), they understand more than I thought they might.

So in our family, we don't call clothes (or shoes or toys) hand me downs. Reusing clothes keeps them out of landfills. It also keeps money in your pockets.

There are a many ways to do this.

• Check out thrift shops. Really. You may be surprised at some of the finds there. And not just clothing. Some shops have better quality than others. Just step inside and check out a few in your community and see what you can find.
• Browse in consignment shops and second hand stores. The prices will be higher than a thrift shop and you're more likely to find brand name items. But you can get clothes at a significant discount over retail and many times the items look brand new.
• Stop at some yard sales. Some people do this all the time. I wait for community or neighborhood yard sales so I can hit a bunch of sales in a short period of time. This saves gas by avoiding driving all over and it saves time. I have gotten some great deals at yard sales. In fact I bought my daughter's soccer cleats at a yard sale this summer for $2. She's five and will play 8 soccer games and have 8 practices this year. I bought them from a Mom of another five year old who wore them "about fifteen times." Who wants to spend $20 or $30 (or more) for something that gets such little use?
• Let people know that you're open to hand me downs. I don't mean to go around and ask for things from every Mom at the playground. But you can certainly let your friends and family know that you appreciate them. I've had people say, "I hope you're not offended, but I wondered if you'd like..." Offended? I love hand me downs. I love to look at my girls in a beautiful outfit and think that their cousin wore that last year. I have a beautiful dress coat that was a hand me down gift from friends. Their daughter wore it, then all three of my girls and now their little cousin wears it. It always makes me smile.
• Freecycle. Been to www. freecycle.com ? You can often find children's clothing, furniture or other items at no cost. We happen to be near an Army base and it seems that when soldiers move around, some don't want to take much with them. There are always furniture, bikes and such looking for a home.
• Craig's List. I'm sure you've heard of this one. But if you haven't used it, go check it out.

I constantly get comments on how cutely dressed my girls are. I rarely buy anything retail for the kids. In fact, it's usually only if someone gives me a gift card for my birthday or Christmas (and then I'm usally checking out the clearance rack and buying for next year in bigger sizes). I have to admit that I find it much more challenging to find gently used adult clothing. But I'm working on it.

Of course, it's equally important to "share the love". I sort clothes into bags as my girls grow out of them. Some are for specific friends who share my love of recycled clothing. Others I drop off at a local thrift shop that supports the food pantry in our area. That way the clothes can bless another family.

It has begun

My blog, of course. This is my first post.

But what I really mean by "it" is the new year. I know it's not really New Year's Eve or anything. Not even Chinese New Year. Not R. But the school year is upon us. And since my oldest is heading off to kindergarten next week, (excuse me I need to get a tissue to wipe away my tears) it feels like the start of a new year.

I looked at the calendar today and saw soccer practice, dance registration, kindergarten visitation, and I knew. Summer is over. We'll try to get a little more out of it this week and we may even have some warm weather in September, but it's over. I can't believe how quickly it went by.

C announced that she's excited for school and she can't wait for dance and gymnastics and swimming. And I said "Whoa!" I know that some kids have after school activities every night of the week. But it's just too much. They need time to play and read and be with their families. We probably will sign her up for dance again this year. Her two younger sisters want to dance this year too. There's a cute preschool dance program that's 30 minutes once a week. But it's on a different night than C's class, so that will already be two nights with rushed meals. I think that's enough.

I find it really challenging to balance family time with activities outside the home. When I was young I didn't participate in any after school activities until I was in 7th grade. I really wish that I would have had the chance to pick an outside activity. So when C asked for dance the first time, I was all for it. But then she wanted swim lessons, gymnastics, soccer. I really want to encourage physical activities because of the health benefits and the opportunity to improve social skills. And it's hard to choose one activity when she's so young and hasn't had the chance to figure out what she's most interested in.

Soccer is nice because it's only a few weeks long. But dance is all year, as is gymnastics. I wish we lived near a facility that offered six or eight week classes. But as it is, we'll have to narrow it down. And soon. Because It Has Begun.