In honor penny-pinching pioneers and frugal mamas everywhere, we proudly count down our 10 favorite thrifty '7th Heaven' (1996-2007)
Cheap chic: Yeah, okay, the Camdens lived rent-free in a pretty swell house owned by the church where papa Eric was the reverend. But still ... mom Annie fed, clothed and managed to provide more than just the basics for her brood, which consisted of seven (seven!) kids. On a preacher's salary. She even put her nifty thrifty skills (not to mention several college degrees and some serious handywoman talents) to use when the church was in need of funds for repairs. And, despite the harried sked she led raising seven kiddies, she started her own muffin baking biz to earn extra cash, inspiring the entrepreneurial spirit in daughter Ruthie in one memorable episode.
'Malcolm in the Middle' (2000-06)
Cheap chic: Dad Hal was a low-paid cubicle dweller and mom Lois was a cash register jockey at the Lucky Aide discount store. And that did not provide enough income to raise their five rambunctious boys in anything even remotely resembling luxury. Hal and Lois and the rest of the fam were lucky just to be able to pay the bills and keep the boys fed and clothed (though, as younger bro Dewey lamented, a steady stream of hand me downs meant he never owned a pair of pants without holes or stains or funny smells). Still, strict mama Lois assured Malcolm it would all be worth it in the end, as she explained in the series finale that the reason she ruined his chance for a well-paying job was because he was meant to struggle, go to Harvard and eventually become the first President of the United States who would truly empathize with working class citizens like his family.
'Roseanne' (1988-97)
Cheap chic: Dan and Roseanne Conner were frequently unemployed and even more frequently broke, but that didn't stop them from raising their family with a lot of love and laughter. Even in the face of illnesses, family squabbles, the failure of Dan's dream motorcycle shop and daughter Becky's dashed dreams of going to college, Roseanne found a way to keep her family going with a little bit of creativity. Roseanne "accidentally" mailed the wrong checks to the wrong payees to buy herself some time with the bills, gave up what she wanted so Becky would have a new dress for a school dance and, in an episode that included a guest appearance by future Oscar nominee Leonardo DiCaprio, spilled the secrets to saving money on meatloaf and breakfast cereal. Yes, Roseanne always proved to be one of the all-time great boob tube domestic doyennes.
'The Middle' (2009-present)
Cheap chic: Mike Heck is the manager of a local quarry ... and was temporarily laid off after discovering dinosaur bones on the grounds. Wife Frankie Heck is a car salesperson ... actually, the least successful car salesperson at Ehlert Motors. Needless to say, money is tight in Casa Heck, which leads to some creative thinking on Frankie's part. She's filled a car with jelly beans for a counting contest she hoped would generate sales (and which didn't go as planned), tried to turn a rug shopping trip into a romantic getaway with Mike (which was thwarted by a sick kid) and got the family to give up cable TV to save money (turned out she and Mike missed it just as much as the kids did). All that makes this sitcom the sweetest and most realistic view of a blue collar family since the Conners rode off into the TV sunset.
'Desperate Housewives' (2004-present)
Cheap chic: Wisteria Lane wife and mother of five Lynette Scavo defines the term "tough cookie." She's been a stay-at-home mom and a working woman (with a boss from hell) while hubby Tom played Mr. Mom. She's supported Tom's dream of opening a pizza joint and didn't divorce him when it turned out he'd fathered a child, Kayla -- and owed a slew of back child support -- before she married him. And then she continued to stretch her family's finances even further when Kayla's mom died and the Scavos took her into their home, just before Lynette was diagnosed with cancer and needed to borrow money for treatment. Need more? The Scavos also had hefty legal bills thanks to son Porter's dalliance with an older, married woman and had to sell the pizzeria to pay them off, which sent Lynette, once again, back to the workforce, where she had to hide the fact that she was preggers with twins because she feared losing her job. But through it all, Lynette managed to keep her kiddies fed and clothed and living in their swanky house in the 'hood. Like we said, tough cookie.
