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Frugal fathers can save and care for their families

When I first began staying home to care for my children it was quite a shock. Spending my days worrying about diapers and child-rearing was not something that I was used to. I did adjust to it, however, and I also met other dads who were in my same situation. We soon formed a daycare group to help our kids, and ourselves, socialize and have fun.

According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the number of stay-at-home dads has increased over the past 10 years. The number increased by 62 percent between 2004 and 2006, up to about 159,000. The reason for this increase isn't known. It could be due to the recession or to shifting ideas about gender roles. What is clear, though, is that more and more fathers are deciding they want to devote themselves to caring for and raising their kids. 

Once our stay-at-home dad group began meeting regularly, we started talking about ways that we save and how we stretch our budgets. It was then we realized that we all used online coupons to do a majority of our shopping.

Whenever any of us mentions that we use coupons when we shop, the first thing that comes up is the TLC show "Extreme Couponing." That isn't exactly how we do it, though. For one thing, we do not spend anywhere near the same amount of time when we save. We rely much more on technology. If we are looking for coupons we visit sites such as onlinecoupons.net, couponcode.net and coupongirl.com. That way we are able to focus in on the products that we need the most and save the most money.

We found we all used coupons for kitchen and bathroom essentials, such as shampoo, diapers, soap, etc. And these overwhelmingly were the most popular products that we saved on. Some of the other things we bought with coupons included clothes, holiday presents and sports equipment. We all love to golf.

Since we always are looking for items for our kids, we discovered we can get even more educational games they enjoy and we surprisingly love, too. 

Because of all our money-saving activities, our daycare group has turned into a coupon-clipping — more like searching — machine. It makes for a funny sight to see all these fathers so absorbed in finding deals on coupons sites.

Finding more fathers who stay at home has made the experience and transition much easier. It is enjoyable to have people around who know the types of issues and problems that come up day-to-day. We've become a type of support group. The fact we've found ways to save money at the same time is just a bonus.

Brad Warner is a stay-at-home father who lives in Charleston with his wife and 6-year-old son.