Who has the money to date when we're in a recession? 

I’m not the only one who has noticed prices going up: gas, milk — even postage.

I love eating out — with a glass of wine, too — just as much as you do. But my most memorable dates haven’t been expensive. As you know, I love to hike in the woods, on the trail. Picnics make me happy, too.

If you need some dating-on-a-budget ideas, here’s an article I wrote for MSN.com all about it.

For some single moms right now, dating is the last thing on their minds. Recently, a woman named Monique contacted me about a financial support network she created, “Making Ends Meet,” to assist “single moms who find themselves suddenly single or have been for sometime.”

Monique says, “My mother always told me to have a separate bank account and always stash a little away.”

She, too, had believed in the fairytale that “til’ death do we part.” In hindsight, however, she suggests that all single moms show our daughters the importance of having a safety fund. I’ve been telling Mae for a while now that that she needs her very own savings account, in her name. It’s time. (If any of you have taken your kids to the bank to set up their own savings accounts, I want to hear from you!)

Making Ends Meet has some great financially savvy articles for single moms on everything from raising a “money smart” child to buying your first home.

In the meantime, if you’re feeling stressed to the max right now, read this little piece from one of my new favorite blogs, Work It Mom. Co-founder Nataly has something to say about her “secret envy of working single moms.” Love it!

Tell me, single parents: Are you pinching pennies right now, like me?

Are you taking public transportation — or walking and biking — instead of driving?

Are you cutting back on take-out coffee, or forgoing it altogether?

If you have any dating-on-budget ideas, do share!