5 Rules to salvage your wallet on a Holiday Meal

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Now is the time! There is a LOT of food to buy (AGAIN) to get ready for the next holiday meal, and if you plan accordingly, you can rely save a lot of money!

Rule #1
Do NOT do all of your shopping the day before you start cooking. You will be forced to pay WHATEVER the items cost on that day. I don't like to be forced into things :)

A Laymans How To: Extreme Couponing

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I think by now, we've all heard about the TLC hit, "Extreme Couponing". The opinions are widespread, as some think it ruins it for the rest of us, some think it is too cool for school...(yeah I just said that...) and some just don't see HOW.




I by no means consider myself a pro couponer, but I do get the point, and with that, several freebies each week. I have no stock pile ROOM, but I have a shelf :)

I thought in light of the season premier TONIGHT, I would share how this is done, for the regular gal. (Guys, you are soooo welcome to join in!)

STEP 1:

• Buy at least 2 newspapers, and a binder to organize. (Baseball card inserts work great)You will quickly need this, even if you don't on week #1.
• Clip every single coupon in those papers. I don't care if you don't need those items, will never use them, bla bla bla. Clip them ALL.

STEP 2:

• Get the weekly ads for the following stores: CVS, Rite Aid, and Walgreens. (These are the easiest to do, and each offers rewards on certain items each week) AND check if they have a monthly coupon packet on display in the front of the store.

STEP 3:

• Match the coupons you have, to ads that offer rewards. Split up your transactions to use each reward toward your next purchase. For example, CVS:

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Transaction #1
Buy 2 Crest Pro Health Mouthwash ($4.50 each on sale)
Use 2 x $2/1 coupons
Total $5.00
Get $5.00 rewards to use next

Transaction #2
Buy 2 Colgate Max toothpaste ($2.79 each on sale)
Buy 1 Dawn dish soap (99 cent sale)
Buy Excedrin 8 count (99 cents sale)
Use 2 x $1/1 coupons for Colgate
Use 50 cents/1 Dawn
Use $5 reward from transaction #1
Total  $0.06
Get $4.99 rewards to use next

Transaction #3
Buy 2 Oral B Pulsars ($6 each on sale)
Use 2 x $2/1 coupons
Use $4.99 reward from transaction #1
Total $3.01
Get $6 rewards to use next

Transaction #4
Buy 2 John Frieda Full Repair Stylers ($5 each on sale)
Use 2 x $2/1 coupons
Use $6 reward from transaction #1
Total $FREE
Get $3 rewards to use next

Transaction #5
Buy 2 Garnier Fructis Shampoo/Conditioner (2/$5 on sale)
Use 2 x $1/1 coupons
Use $3 reward from transaction #1
Total $FREE

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No I absolutely didn't need 4 shampoos, 2 toothpastes, and 2 mouthwashes that week, (a few weeks ago) BUT imagine how my grocery bill shrinks exponentially with each trip like this?

So- to make your life easier, I will post my list for you each week. 1 for CVS, 1 for Rite Aid, and 1 for Walgreens. No, you won't get baskets and baskets for $5 like on the show, BUT you will get some freebies, and some cheapies!

Here is a little help getting started!

Designer brands, WalMart prices!

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If you haven't checked this one out yet...do!

This time of year, the Cute-E-Pie in me is SICK...
SICK ...SICK and TIRED of the cookie cutter mall stores. (Oh and you KNOW how I hate cookie cutter N-E-THANG!)

Maternity Fashion- 3 easy ways to do it for FREE!

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We don't all have her bankroll, (Wait I don't think ANYONE has her bankroll!), and there is nothing worse than spending good money, (well isn't it ALL good money?) on a piece of clothing that will be of NO use in a few short months! Here are some quick alterations that anyone can make, (regardless of your sewing skill level) to feel like a million, no matter how plump is your bump!

Immortalize your pregnancy on canvas for FREE

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Hurry over to the Canvas People to get your FREE 8 x 10! That's right, for a limited time, you can get your image on canvas for FREE!

Saving enough to pay for diapers!

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This post brought to you by Straight Talk. All opinions are 100% mine.

Unlike your mortgage, car payments, and household utilities, your cell phone bill is a flexible expense! Many people find themselves sitting comfortably in their contract for years, or worse still, waiting a contract out and simply renewing instead of taking the time to shop around. My husband is one of those people, and we spent too many years allowing this to happen, paying upwards of $83 per month!

How to get free baby stuff

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If you perform a Google search for free baby stuff, you will find a wealth of sources that offer links to contests, sweepstakes, and sign-up programs. RIGHT NOW, there are a few really great ones out there in the cyber world that you will want to get in on!

Pregnancy Weekly is offering a $2,500 grand prize, and thee best part is that registration for the contest is so simple! Just fill out your name, address and phone and your are entered to win!

Free School Clothes- 48 hours only

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I guess I didn't even know that this existed, but I have come across an awesome idea, and for the next 48 hours, you can get a box of school clothes, for free.

FREE SCHOOL CLOTHES!

Yes, free. I had to double and triple check to see that this was indeed valid, and I just ordered my free box of clothing and paid only $10.95 shipping!

Free Photo Calendar in time for School!

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HURRY to get a FREE photo calendar in time for Back to School!

Click Me

There are only 3 days left for this awesome deal from Vistaprint!

Choose from TONS of pretty designs!

 You can EVEN add your events! This will look much prettier on my wall than that school calendar they just sent me, and now I can input all of the school events!

HURRY over now!!! ~ FREE deal ends Friday 8/26!

Saving Series Part 4: Feed a family of 5 on $80/week

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I think you will agree, that the grocery bill is one of the most flexible expenses in the average family. When the budget goes over, the extra usually gets pulled from pocket money, and grocery money, and we get by! Taking this into account, here is a way to modify your grocery shopping habits to save a BUNDLE!

Change how you make grocery lists!

As with everything, it is all in the planning! First, you will need a collection of go-to recipes. We all have these meals, that we go to every week because they actually get eaten! You will additionally need a group of recipes for variety.

There are three key concepts in grocery saving

• Meal planning to allow rolling leftovers into new meals
• Stocking up on coupon items and BULK buying
• Home-made items sometimes cost less, sometimes NOT!

Keeping that in mind, my list process has three parts. 

• Inventory what we have
• List the weeks meals, then ingredients
• Separate the list into appropriate stores
  

Here is this weeks list, crossed out if we have that ingredient leftover!

Cable, internet and home phone- Maximize your mullah

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Saving Series Part 3

If you missed the first post, Save some cash, Preggo discusses the fact that a new babies first year costs $10,398.00....Whoa! Below is the series schedule, to help Momma find that extra $866 per month!

1. Saturday July 30- Cut your cell phone bill in half
2. Sunday August 7- Cable, internet and home phone- Maximize your mullah
3. Friday August 12- How to feed a family of 5 on $80/week
4. Thursday August 18- Dressed and back to school for under $50
5. Tuesday August 23- Managing your pocket

Cable, internet and home phone is a huge area of flexibility, although many people much like cell phone plans, get comfortable and don't like change. Take a look at what our family did to save XXXX per year!

Current Cable/ internet/ home phone bundle monthly bill: $189
     This includes HBO, Cinemax, Starz, Wi Fi, Home phone with unlimited everything, voice mail, and all sorts of channels.

Switches:
Home phone
We moved to MagicJack- From my experience, it was easy to use, (really you just plug it in) and for my home phone needs, I noticed no difference in the quality. I paid $59.99 for 5 years of service. (After a 30 day free trial) Which breaks down to $1.00 per month.

Cable
Instead of switching providers, we fine tuned our bill. Previously, each month we were spending around $11.00 on movies, $42 on premium channels, $9 on two random kid channels I don't remember adding...hmmm...Just cutting out movies, 2/3 premium channels, and randoms saves us $588 per year! Instead, we are using Redbox and still only spending around $4 per week!

Internet
Without much technical knowledge, other than how to USE computers, I was unaware of the options for going wireless. I simply had the local cable guy come install the modem... then it worked :) But then I heard of Tethering.

Tethering, in case you aren't familiar with the term, is using your Android phone like a wireless modem: You connect your phone to a computer, then harness its 3G or 4G connection to surf the Web on your PC. I found a tutorial HERE!

My NEW total Cable/Internet/Home Phone monthly bill? $74.79
TOTAL Savings: $114.00/ month
OR $1368/year

Check out YOUR options!

Save some cash, Preggo!

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Your babies first year will cost $10,398, which breaks down to a whopping $866.50 per month.

Don't worry kid! Mommy's GOT this!

This, is according to an awesome calculator that I found HERE on BabyCenter.com, which allows you to enter in the value of everything from diapers and wipes, to formula, to toys and clothing. You will begin with their estimate, and can customize the figures to your actual usage, or estimated usage if you are still preggers!
Well for my family at least, another child would require another week in the month of Daddy working! Since that is not going to happen, (and neither will another child for just that reason), I've decided to throw out some money saving tips that have helped us get through, and shrink that number significantly!

Step #1: Write down your budget
If you haven't done so already, it is necessary to see where your money is going each month! Determine which expenses you can change, and which you cannot. I found that approximately 80% of my budget is unchangeable. (Mortgage, utility, car payments, etc) BUT there are areas that we can adjust, and those are the ones you will need to play with!

Step #2: LEARN to coupon!
Not everyone has to be a crazy lady like the TLC show, Extreme Couponing. But I will tell you this- 3 months into couponing (I consider myself a newbie) and no longer have to purchase non food items.

I no longer have to purchase NON food items! It was like a revelation when I realized how it was done, and I will save you the research and learning.

• Get a binder and some baseball card inserts
• Buy two newspapers (each week) and clip all of the coupons. I do not care if you don't need those items. Clip them all, organize to your liking into the inserts.
• Go to the following websites, where they have prepared specific shopping lists and the coupons you will need to get your items nearly free. HONESTLY!
  1. Addicted to Saving
  2. Fabulous Deals and Steals
  3. Thrifty Texas Penny

Basically how it works, is you will purchase only sale items that you have a coupon for, whether you need it or not. Drug stores such as Rite Aid, Walgreens, and CVS will offer you reward 'bucks' on specific items. The correct combination in the right order, makes everything free, you just pay tax. Getting things that you don't need yet, for free before you need them, will build a lifetime supply of toothpaste, shampoo, and laundry detergent before you know it!

Step #3: Cut your expenses
My 'changeable' expenses are- Cable, internet, and home phone, cell phones, grocery, pocket money, clothing, and extra-curriculars. Momma's got a plan for all of these, prompting a special 'Saving' series. Each week I will detail how to cut each expense in half. YES in half! Here's the schedule, in case you had a particular area of concern ;-)

1. Saturday July 30- Cut your cell phone bill in half
2. Sunday August 7- Cable, internet and home phone- Maximize your mullah
3. Friday August 12- How to feed a family of 5 on $80/week
4. Thursday August 18- Dressed and back to school for under $50
5. Tuesday August 23- Managing your pocket

Satisfy your shopping needs, Preggo!

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Last summer, at the end of my pregnancy, not only was I feeling the heat, but I was feeling the retail urges. BADLY. Spending most of my time in my husbands XXL tee shirts, (and that's about it...), with maybe 2 on call outfits that were somewhat acceptable for my very rare outing, the Cute-E-Pie in me was hurting!

Sure, I would take the occasional trip to Target, with the then 7 and 3 year old in tow... needless to say that did NOT do the trick! Maternity clothing made me angry. Did I really want to spend $40 on that shirt that I would soon like to throw in the garbage? Up nearly 100 pounds from my usual weight, trying on clothing in the 'family' dressing room, and NEVER guessing the right size. My dresses became shirts, and leggings would wear through the inner thigh in a week. THAT SUCKED!

Call me a man for not thinking of this, but I found my needs INSTANTLY satisfied with purses, shoes, and accessories! (DUH...) So here are some of my most favorite things this summer, also so very preggo friendly!

Yummy Target! (That means photo credit: Target.com, and all of these items are currently available at Target.com!!!)

Wait....the shoes? I admit, I have a tendency to sacrifice comfort for pretty piggies. Even preggers.

Nice choice for a museum trip with all of this kiddies? LOL- Means photo credit- That guy at Sesame Street who felt sorry for the fat girl in the 4 inch heels!

Menu Friday

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Feeding a family of 5 on under $70 per week-
Check out my grocery lists and menus to make the food last!

Week 1

May 6-May 13, 2011

Dinner Menu

1. Chicken and Dumplings

2. Spaghetti and meatballs

3. Beef Wellington ala Cheap-o

4. Classic BUFFALO- Pizza and Hot boneless wings

5. Beef Strogonov

6. Chicken and Mushrooms

7. Leftover Extravaganza

Grocery List

Meat
2 pound bag Chicken tenders ($5.99)
2 pounds ground beef ($4.99)
1 pound stew meat ($3.49)
1 whole chicken ($3.49)

Dairy
16 oz sour creme ($2.29)
8 oz mozzerella ($2.29)
crescent rolls ($1.00)

Fresh Veggies

carrots ($1.00)

celery ($1.00)

16 oz button mushrooms($1.50)

ginger root ($0.50)

 4 Roma tomatoes ($2.50)

fresh basil ($1.29)

4 baking potatoes ($1.79)

Box/Can

Linguini ($1.00)

Spaghetti ($1.00)

soy sauce ($1.79)

egg noodles ($1.29)

tomato paste ($0.69)

2 packages brown gravy MIX ($1.29)

1 package yeast ($0.49)

Flour ($2.29)

GRAND TOTAL....$42.96

Please now feel free to splurge on drinks, breakfast, lunch and snack items!

3 soda's, 2 juices, 1 milk=$10

2 breads, lunchmeat, cheese=$10

eggs, cereal, snacks=$7

CHECK OUT OUR NEW PAGE FOR THIS WEEKS RECIPES!