Skip to main content

Frugal Friday- Cutting the Cord on Cable



I used to love watching cable, but the truth was that I only watched about three or four channels, along with the cartoons that my kids watched almost constantly. Seven months ago we cut the cord on cable and have not looked back since.  Here are some tips that made life easier for everyone while cutting the cord on cable.


1.) Internet
Though we cut the cord on cable, but didn't go completely "off grid". We discovered that with high speed WiFi there still are many options for entertainment if you are willing to be flexible.



Movies and TV**

 The obvious options for movies and TV shows online are Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.  All of these are paid subscriptions if watching recent shows is important to you. So far we have tried to stay away from a subscription and have opted for free services such as tubitv.com and YouTube. Tubitv.com is a website that hosts older TV shows, I was surprised to find a few shows that I used to watch on cable, and many more I had never heard of.  One benefit of YouTube is the variety of content available for a variety of ages.  My older girls really enjoy watching educational videos, cooking videos, and cartoons.  My son pretty much just watches cartoons. There are so many creative, fun, and educational videos available.  I have found many options for myself for personal improvement and entertainment.  My favorite type of  video right now are vlogs  about freezer cooking, canning, and preserving. I also enjoy videos about saving money, and home management.


News

 Two of the major cable news networks like CNN, and Fox News both have online talk radio, and sometimes rebroadcast some of their regular shows online, in addition to their regular programming. There are also many other sources for news  They also show a great many clips of their shows, on their websites.

2.) DVD'S- You may already have a good collection of DVD's for your family that everyone loves to watch.


3.) Digital converter box/ or digital antenna: I have not had the opportunity to try these options, but my parents have a digital converter box, and are able to pick up three or four local channels.



4.) Get  a library card- Your local library is  wonderful source of entertainment and information. In addition to their regular book collections, libraries often lend our DVD'S and audio books.

Cutting the cord on cable may take some getting used to, but there are plenty of options to provide entertainment for the entire family. So cutting the cord doesn't necessarily mean going dark in the digital entertainment arena. It actually gives you many options to choose from.

** Note there are many, many options to use if you want to cut the cord on cable. Except for the example of the digital converter box,  these are the options that we have tried and seem to work well for our family.

Have you cut the cord on cable TV? What do you do as an alternative?





Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Frugal Friday- Memory Lane

My grandparents farm When I was young, I never fully appreciated the lessons in frugality that my parents and grandparents practiced. My grandparents owned a dairy farm, always had  large garden, and had their own pigs and chickens.  Up until I was a teenager we ended up getting all of our meat, and milk from them.  I never thought of meat or milk as something that comes from  a grocery store. My mom, except for a short time when we were young was a stay at home mom. She baked everyday, and for  a few years even baked all of our bread. She taught me how to pinch pennies both directly and indirectly.  She allowed me to watch her put together a budget, pay bills, and grocery shop with her. There was six of us in our family and she had  forty dollar weekly grocery budget. This was super difficult even though this happened over twenty years ago. Yet she made it work. Twenty years later, I am the one with a family of six. My challenges are that I do not live close by to my
2 comments
Read more

Liebster Award and Nominees

I am so excited to announce that Home Sweet Home Team has been nominated for a Liebster Award.. The rules for the Liebster Blogging Award are as follows: * Thank the blog that nominated you and link back to them.. *Answer 11 questions from the blogger that nominated you.   *Tell readers 11 random facts about yourself... *Nominate up to 11 bloggers to receive the award next.. *Give your new nominees questions to answer about themselves. A Liebster Award is given by the blogging community to recognize and support new bloggers like ME!! I am so honored that Amy from  Third Shift Living nominated me.. Her blog is so awesome and I can sooo relate to many of her blog post.. As I read her articles, I can hear her "voice" just as if we are sitting in the same room together talking. One of my favorite posts of hers is " My New Daily Routine for Third Shift Workers ”.  I am not a third shift worker, but I
2 comments
Read more

Meal Plan Monday- ( Dinner and Snacks) Week of 2/29/6

Over the weekend I found great sale on chicken at Stop and Shop, $.88/lb.  I also managed to get a great deal on frozen turkey breast, $ .99/lb. It may sound strange, but I have never actually made roast chicken before. I usually just buy the frozen chicken breasts.  I hope it turns out well, and the family likes it. I’m keeping my fingers crossed. Here is my plan of action for dinner this week. I’m hoping to score some favorites this week.   Dinner Plan Monday- Roast Chicken and Vegetables Tuesday- Spaghetti and meatballs and salad Wednesday- Chicken quesadillas and corn Thursday- Sandwiches (made to order) Friday- Goulash Saturday-  Pizza -------------------- Goulash 1 pound ground beef 1 small onion chopped  1 can diced tomatoes drained 1lb box macaroni cooked Sauté onion, brown ground beef, combines with macaroni, and diced tomatoes.  Salt and pepper to taste. Yield 6-8 servings --------------------- After School
2 comments
Read more