A special thanks to Giving Assistant for sponsoring today’s conversation.

As a stay at home mother of three I am always looking for ways to help save money on family expenses. I see articles all of the time on how families are spending more than they can afford when it comes to entertainment. The cost for going to the movie theater has nearly doubled since I was a kid and going out to eat isn’t cheap when you have three children. This doesn’t mean you must stay home in order to avoid those costs, it simply means that you need to budget and prepare for going out with the family. Here are a few helpful tips on saving money on family traveling expenses:

Do Your Research

Before heading to the museum for the day, make sure you take a look at their website and write down all of your expenses. Make sure to include a list that includes the price of parking and tickets and then set a budget for lunch and the gift shop. This way you know in advance how much you expect to spend that day, because how many times have we come home and thought “wow I spent way more than I had expected!” When we first moved to metro Atlanta, we brought our in-laws to the aquarium for the day, on a whim, and we were shocked to discover that parking was $20 a car (we brought two vehicles.) Had we done a little research that morning, we would have found that there was parking for half that cost in a different location. Come to find out we could have saved even more had we purchased our tickets online and we would have avoided lines. All of those extra expenses add up! So do your research and I promise you will have a more enjoyable trip without any costly surprises.

Save Your Change in a Jar

So i know this one seems kind of silly, but I promise you it will pay off in the end! You would not believe how convenient a jar of change is when you are traveling or visiting attractions. Waiting in the food lines at our local Six Flags during the summer is agonizing… but you know where there isn’t a line? The vending machine! If you are just looking to grab a few bottles of water or a quick snack, you will be thankful for that jar of quarters. I always fill a pocket in my diaper bag full of quarters, nickles and dimes before I go on to an attraction with the kids and i can’t begin to express to you how convenient that has been in our travels.

Look Online For Deals

I have discovered so many great places by looking for deals online! My website name comes from my amazing ability to save money on just about everything. One of my favorite places to seek out the greatest deals online is also a website that gives back to charity! The Giving Assistant mission is to save you more money, so you can better care for your loved ones and support charity. Giving Assistant is a free digital loyalty program with over 1,100 of the largest retailers and an average of 5.3% cash reward after each online purchase. Retailers pay them a commission for purchases originated from their website. For purchases originated by Giving Assistant members, they pay the entire commission as cash back directly and digitally to you! For non-member purchases they will retain the commission and make a small donation to Feed America to give one meal… how awesome it that? Members are also given the option to automatically donate any percent of their cash back to any charity of their choice.

One of my favorite website to shop at and score some great deals on things to do with the family is none other than Groupon! I have discovered so many great places by purchasing vouchers from the Groupon website. When shopping at Groupon through the Giving Assistant website, you will earn 12% cash back and this is paid to you within 72 hours! A website that pays you to shop, offers great deals and you get to help out a charity of your choice, how could you go wrong? If you are tired of surfing the web for unreliable online coupons, Giving Assistant is your solution, you will never find a coupon that doesn’t work when shopping with them, plus they donate a meal for every coupon you use!