Parents with young children - ideas

george · Post by **george** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 9:12 pm

In our city we have a toy library, and now there are clothing swaps in schools.
The toy library has been going for years and works really well. Perhaps you have one in your city? Perhaps you could set one up?
The clothing swap is just starting, but is working well. The children bring clothes they have grown out of, they are cleaned, sized and given to children who have requested them.
And while I think of it, schools don't provide lunch here, and in some schools, children don't bring lunch to school. So in some areas local business, hare krishna etc have combined and provide a hot lunch once a week.

aussierogue · Post by **aussierogue** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 9:44 pm

Yep in Melbourne we have clothes swaps and toy libraries. Our kids take lunch to school everyday. School doesnt even have a canteen. We walk or ride bikes to work.

frugaljo · Post by **frugaljo** » Fri Nov 02, 2012 7:33 am

I am just reading the early retirement extreme while I am on maternity leave and I think one of the main reasons I was drawn to it was the senseless money spending over kids in my area.

There are libraries with singing-alongs for free. But most mothers in my area are spending $20+ on 40 minute activities for their 5 month year old. The libraries in sydney are great, before kids i would go to several a year.
We have freecycle (a yahoo user group) which you can post stuff to swap and have obtained kids clothes from and given things to people. And we do craft days with our three year old and he friends (normally involving painting toilet rolls). And teaching him to cook.

rube · Post by **rube** » Fri Nov 02, 2012 11:16 pm

We have every 6 months a small local community fair of 2nd hand kids clothes (and toys). Cheap and almost always very good.

Saves a lot compared to buying new.
When they become too small for our kids, we give them away again (if still okay) to other friends with smaller kids.

irukandjisting · Post by **irukandjisting** » Sat Nov 03, 2012 1:39 am

..when my kids were little, and still we are talking about 2000 plus - and there were music lessons, a mortgage and a car payment etc etc... simple things we did were to take some bread down the river and feed the pelicans, go to the beach or walk along the beach, go to the library, go to the park... buy some hot chippies and have lunch in the park with some bread and a bottle of soft drink, cut up fruit ... kids thought they were Kings and Queens lol - and buy a multi pack of chocolates for afters - so far that had cost me $5 for all five kids.
We had a bottle of soft drink on Friday nights lol and sometimes I cooked up 2 Home Brand cake mixes into a lovely big cake - and sprinkled that with Cinnamon Sugar - about $1 lol
Every second weekend I would hire 5 videos for $5 and grab a bottle of Coke, a large packet of Chippies and a Chocolate - heaven they thought - and would supplement it with home popped in the saucepan popcorn, and pikelets
Breakfast was cereal, toast and juice or milk - funny, none of them can walk out the door without breakfast now - Supper was cut up apples and bananas
We would go to McDs about 3 or 4 times a year - that was HUGE lol
We would go 'big shopping' about 3 or 4 times a year - I would give my kids $ 5 - 10 each to spend as they chose to - and they again thought they were Kings and Queens lol
They each banked $1 at the school bank each Monday - a rep from the bank would come to the school
They had 2 school uniforms each - and 1 pair of shoes - all took a school lunch from home and once a month purchased a 'pie n sauce' lol or similar, from the school Canteen
They all received pocket money each week
There were no grandparents nor aunties or uncles to help out - or babysit - had to think hard how to entertain the 'gang' lol
They all know the value of the $ now...