How to Delete Pictures with Confidence

I'll admit, I take more pictures than the normal person.  My camera sees the light of day every day, sometimes various times each day, about 360 days a year.  And with the luxury of a digital camera, I keep snapping pictures upon pictures of the same thing, trying to get "the perfect shot." 

I have a feeling I'll get this question, so I'll be proactive in answering: Because I have so many pictures, I organize them by date.  I have a folder for each year {labeled "yyyy-mm (abr)" like "2011-03 (Mar)" so they stay sorted in date order}, then I label each picture with the date, so they stay organized in their appropriate folder.  Within each monthly folder, there might be sub-folders for events with more than 5-10 pictures, like Easter or a party or even a really eventful Family Day. 

I like knowing where I can find pictures after the fact, and keeping them in order is the best way for me to do that.

Moving on...

A few weeks ago, I took an amateur  Photoshop class from a wedding photographer. Her method of keeping pictures sounded too painful for me, but this week was the first time I put her suggestion into practice.  It was SO FREEING - I just have to share it with you.

Are you ready?

Let's take Easter, as an example.  We went to Mike's uncle's house, who has a huge acre + property with orange trees and neighbors with horses and space for the kids to roam.  It was a beautiful day and everyone was having a blast, so I just kept snapping pictures.  200 pictures in less than 4 hours, to be exact.

I started where I normally do, and made a folder for Easter titled, "04.24.11 - Easter".  I then followed this photographer's advice and made a sub-folder titled, "best" and began looking through the whole day's photos.  The ones that stood out to me immediately were dragged to the "best" folder: I tried to only keep 1 or 2 shots from each series.  One of Ryan picking oranges, one of Jason trying to climb the ladder, one of everyone playing volleyball...you get the idea.  I took about 10 per setting, but was brutal and only chose one favorite, two at the most.

I went through the rejects one last time and found a couple more to add to the "best" folder, then I went through the "best" pictures to make sure I really loved them all.

The last step was the freeing part.  It scared me to do this, but I highlighted all of the pictures outside of the "best" folder and I hit "DELETE." 

I have never done this before in my life.  Sure, I'll delete out of focus pictures or those where I caught someone mid-blink, but I always have that thought in the back of my mind that I need to keep every shot that's in focus and decent.

But this photographer insisted that if a certain picture doesn't catch her eye the first time she looks through the lot, she's confident that her clients won't love it. 

This picture was the final choice of the 10 pictures I took of my sweet Kaylin walking with her baby brother.  I love that she's looking at him.  I love that he's in mid-step.  I love that her hair is blowing in the breeze.  I love the color and I love the composition.  It's the perfect representation of the moment I was trying to capture.

What's funny is that as the above picture was uploading, I decided to go through this process with another picture-filled folder.  When I opened our vacation to San Francisco, I realized that I already had a "best" folder, but the rest of the pictures were still there because I must have been too chicken to hit "delete."  I just went through the best pictures, then the rejects, grabbed one of the rejects into the "best" folder and hit "delete" with no regrets.

Seriously, so freeing. 

The only time I'll keep more than 1-2 shots per setting is if I want to do a collage or storyboard of some kind for scrapbooking.  But other than that, DELETE.

Give it a try!  I can't wait to free up some space on my hard drive...

Homemade Clorox Cleanup

You all know that I try to be as chemical-free as possible, especially with my cleaners.  But there are just some areas of my house that don't seem clean without bleach.  (my toilet and kitchen sink, to name a couple)

I keep bleach in the house for pouring into toilet bowls and I keep Clorox Clean Up for our sink.  I feel like it kills more bacteria and germs than my standard all-purpose cleaner.  It's probably my imagination, but food-born junk freaks me out. 

After finding raw chicken juice all over a fridge shelf recently - AGAIN - I ran out of Clorox Clean Up while disinfecting the spill.  In my attempt to buy less groceries for March, I ended up looking up a recipe for homemade Clorox Clean Up.  Sure enough, you can make anything at home these days!

All you need is:
- 1/4 cup bleach
- 1 Tbsp. dishwashing liquid
- fill the squirt bottle with water

I ended up just mixing it in my empty Clorox Clean Up bottle.  It works just as well as the $4 bottle from the store!  I'm seriously shocked.  So, of course, I had to share. 

Happy cleaning!

Friday Favorites - Favorite Homemade Gifts to Give

These are in no particular order, mostly because I'm too lazy to rank them in my head...

1. Homemade scrapbooks - I mean DUH.  When I have time, I love throwing these together.  Now that time is tighter, I take advantage of free online photo books on sites like Snapfish, Shutterfly, Kodak and Winkflash.

2. A family picture in a nice frame - I'm always on the hunt for frames on sale.  I have a stash of them to hand out to aunts, cousins and grandparents on a whim.  This has become my standard "extended family" gift for Christmas.

3. Baked Goods - I love baking, so a morning bake-a-thon to whip up some neighbor gifts is more of a joy than a burden for me. My favorites are Martha Stewart's Chocolate Crackle Cookies, Chocolate Krispie Treats, Chocolate Oat Bars, Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies, Sugar Cookies and white or dark chocolate covered pretzels, which are sometimes sprinkled with peppermint pieces. And I've found the best Banana Bread, Zucchini Bread and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffin recipes on the planet, so they need to be shared with the masses!

4. Personalized Coupons - This could sound cheesy, but you don't have to make coupons like, "good for one free hug."  Who wouldn't want a coupon for an evening of free babysitting?  Or two hours of house cleaning or yard work for a new mom or elderly neighbor?  For your spouse, you can always do "good for one back rub" or a "get out of dishes free" coupon.  For the kids, you could come up with things like "dessert without finishing dinner" or "good for a $5 spending spree at Target."

5. Handmade stationary - I did this last year for my kids' teacher's gifts.  I realize teachers would far prefer gift cards to a bunch of cheap stuff like this, but last year, gift cards weren't in the budget.  Personalized stationary and homemade flower pens in a $.75 clearance vase...those were in the budget.

6. A collection of greeting cards - I know not everyone's crafty, so getting a stack of ready-to-give birthday cards, get well cards and thank you notes tied into a giant ribbon with a bow on top...this gift is always very well received.  In fact, I don't do it often enough. Making cards is as fun for me as scrapbooking, but much quicker and I get to use all of my leftover bits and pieces of paper, ribbon and embellishments. So this is cheap to give, the receiver saves money on greeting cards and they're fun to create! 

7. Gifts-in-a-Jar - We've all seen the cute cookie mixes, soup mixes and cocoa with marshmallows on top, but there are tons of recipes for random things like play doh, potpourri, even dog treats, bath oils and bath salts. I recently saw a jar  of "candy cane bath salts" that was layered with red and white stripes of bath salt and scented with peppermint.

8. Ornaments - When I was single, I bought a bunch of plain glass balls and painted them with snowmen, flower scenes, dots and swirls.  Some were personalized with a family name in glitter...I tried to get creative with it and give each person a variety of ornaments.  Again, I'm sure there are tons of ideas all over the internet for this one. Nowadays, my kids make the ornaments and annually, I give photo frame ornaments with each child's picture in them.

9. Month-by-Month Personalized Calendars - There are plenty of sites that offer templates to create calendars and they'll print them for you.  Traditionally, I've just printed them myself from home.  One year, I had less time and more money, so I put them together on Kinko's website and they turned out nice.  (Much nicer than homemade, but I'm sure they're getting thrown out annually, so I'm not sure that it matters!)

VistaPrint has a great new promotion going on, including a free photo wall calendar (shipping is $5.67), 250 free business cards (shipping is $5.67), 140 free return address labels (shipping is $3.07), a free tote bag (shipping is $5.67), 100 free holiday postcards or 10 free photo cards (shipping is $4.62 for each) and a free photo flip book or 10 free folded holiday cards (shipping is $6 for each).


10. Themed baskets - This could be a bunch of bath items, a kitchen-themed basket with a cute holiday accessory, a movie basket with a DVD, microwave popcorn, soda and theater candy, or a chunky coffee mug filled with homemade cocoa, a peppermint stick and a Starbuck's gift card. 

These are all of my go-to homemade gift items.  Anything amazing out there that I left out?  (For those who sew, your list will be twice as long!)

Teaching Financial Responsibility

Mike and I feel very strongly about teaching our kids to be responsible with their money early in life.  This is essential if you want your family values instilled, otherwise the media and their peer's opinions will have a greater influence over a child's spending decisions. 

There are a few schools of thought on allowance:

1. If the child does their daily/weekly chores, they receive an allowance.
2. The child gets paid per chore completed each day/week.
3. The child does chores as a contributing member of the household and is given a weekly allowance separately.
4. The child doesn't get an allowance, but is given money for specific items (movies, trip to the mall, etc) on an as-needed basis. Chores are usually completely separate issue in this case...or not at all.

We began paying Ryan an allowance of $1 per week on his 6th birthday.  After going back and forth, we decided that he will not get paid based on chores completed since he's expected to do what he's told, whether or not there is a privilege associated with the request.  It works for us so far.

I was also just introduced to a website called Allowance Manager.  It tracks each child's weekly allowance and is basically a virtual piggy bank.  Older kids can access their account and look at the balance of what they've earned, adding entries as money goes in and out of the "account."  Check it out...it's completely free!

We haven't yet figured out what to let the kids spend out of their piggy bank, but I'm sure that will come later.  The idea of "tithe 10%, save 10% and spend 10%" doesn't seem appropriate for kids! 

When I was eight years old, my mom had a unique way of teaching me to save: I got $25 for my birthday (from someone) and our bank had a minimum requirement of $50 to open a savings account.  She explained that I could spend the $25 on anything I wanted, but if I chose to open a savings account, she would double my money on the spot AND continue to match anything I put into savings from that point forward. 

Even at eight, I was smart enough to understand the concept of 100% interest!  She matched my deposits for several years, until I started babysitting a bunch and I began breaking her bank account...but by then I had saved hundreds of dollars in my account.  I hope to do something similar with my own kids in a few years!

What about you: any thoughts about how to encourage saving vs. spending at an early age?

Q&A Wednesday - Developing a Christmas Budget

Nat asked, "How do you determine your budget for Christmas? What did you eliminate? How many gifts do your kids get each from Santa?"

First of all, earlier in the comment that ended with this question, Nat shared, "I have a Christmas account that I put money in each paycheck. It is an ING Direct online account, and whatever balance is in that account is what I spend on christmas. I have the same thing for a vacation fund as well. I've started shopping a little, but I'm a Black Friday shopper, so I'll probably get about 75% of my shopping done that day (and mostly online lately)..."

I LOVE that. Saving a little money all year long is the best way to save for Christmas; it's not nearly as shocking to the system.

Because Mike and I are so stringent with our pennies, our budget has line-items for gifts that we buy each person for the entire year.  We also have vague categories, like "Baby Showers," "Friends," and "Generic Gifts."  I tend to stash good finds that I buy on sale, and these random gifts are slotted into those categories.  Otherwise, our parents, kids and even grandparents have a line item in the budget.

This helps me to be able to shop all year, lessening the burden of cash flow (a big deal to Mike) and shopping (time constraint for me) at the end of the year.

Traditionally, we've had pretty lean Christmases.  Back when we were DINKs (dual income, no kids), I think we spent a lot more on each immediate family member.  We also purchased gifts for my aunts and cousins and many of our friends back then. Once I stopped working, we chopped our Christmas list down to the bare bones.

Whatever is left in the gift budget for our parents and Mike's brother (after birthdays and Mother's/Father's Day), that's what we spend on them for Christmas.  Our annual budget for them isn't very high, since we're all at a point in our lives when we're trying to accumulate less "stuff." 

To come up with a Christmas budget, I recommend writing down everyone that will receive a gift from your family (think of absolutely everyone: each family member, close friends, neighbors, teachers and co-workers) then write a dollar amount next to each individual.  $20 for Grandma, $100 for your parents, $100 for your in laws, $30 for each sibling, you get the idea.  Also think about each child: $50 from you and $100 from Santa...or vice versa. Add up the total and if it's too high, scale everyone back.  Your dad won't miss the extra neck tie and your sister will appreciate a $20 gift just as much as a $30 gift.  Consider baking for neighbors and friends instead of buying them gifts from the mall. 

For our family, I do a lot of photo-related gifts (ornaments, calendars, photo books and frames) and homemade gifts from the kids. (I'll post about all of those ideas another time.)

For the kids, around this time each year, I ask Mike what my budget is for each child.  The year he got laid off, he gave me a $25 budget for Ryan and Kaylin.  Do you know HOW HARD it was to buy gifts  for two children from us AND from Santa for $50 total?  That year, I got creative and replenished jeans, socks and underwear, then took it out of the clothing budget, letting Santa give all of the fun gifts, which were mostly $5 Black Friday board games, craft supplies and learning toys.  Thank goodness they were 4 and 2 years old and barely noticed the lack of extravagance! 

I once heard a great line from a mom of four who was in a very low income bracket: "Jesus only got three gifts, so each of my kids only get three gifts."  We've tried to stick with that, without necessarily explaining that to the kids. 

This year, I have a dilemma because I went post-Halloween shopping with Kaylin in tow and she saw me sifting through the 75% off costumes.  I loaded UP.  My kids are so into dress up, that I couldn't pass up $3.75 cowgirl and police outfits.  I planned on wrapping them up for Christmas, but I bought each child three and now can't give them as Santa gifts because Kaylin will recognize them as soon as they're opened. (she was looking at toys most of the time, but I know she saw at least one of Ryan's costume gifts)

SO...I might have to bend the "three gifts" rule this year.  I need to talk to Mike about it...we'll see.

Typically, though, we do THREE gifts from us and the rest of the budget from Santa and their stocking stuffers.  I try to make it as even as possible as far as number of gifts to open, but it doesn't always work out that way. 

Hopefully that answered your question, Nat!  If anyone else has Christmas budgeting suggestions, please feel free to leave a comment!

Q&A Wednesday - Are Frequent Shopper Programs Worth It???

Kendra asked, "Just wondering if you do any of the frequent shopper reward thingy's at Walgreens or CVS. I've been meaning to try one or both of them but I honestly don't know much about either, especially if they'd be worth it. I'm thinking with 2 little girls it would be good to figure out how to lessen the expense of health/beauty products!"

Yes, I play the "CVS Game" and we save good money on diapers, groceries and tons of toiletries. I get most of the items I "buy" for free or really, really cheap. For instance, I haven't paid more than $3 for a package of diapers since I began shopping at CVS. If you play their "game," you can save big money. I also get paid $1 back after most toothpaste purchases. They basically pay me to leave their store with my toothpaste. And it's all legit.

However, I am not a fan of Walgreens because they have many more rules than CVS. For example, you can stack manufacturer and store coupons, but you can't use more coupons than you have items, so if you have 8 coupons and 7 items, you have to buy a pack of gum or something or their computer won't complete your transaction. Also, coupons can't exceed the amount of an item's price (even if the price is $.99 and the coupon is for $1 off) and my biggest frustration is that you can't use their Register Rewards to purchase an item that will give you more Register Rewards. Not to mention that their stock of sale items is pitiful. I leave there annoyed 100% of the time.

The first thing you need to do is head over to Money Saving Mom's blog and read up on her posts for CVS 101 and Walgreens 101. She lays it all out there and I couldn't explain it better if I tried. If you have both stores nearby, my suggestion is to start with CVS first.

Money Saving Mom and The Good Deal Gal are my go-to blogs to find out the deals at CVS every week. They tell me the best deals and often link up to printable coupons for items that are already on sale, giving the out of pocket cost and the potentially free or even free plus overage items.

The frequent shopper deals at CVS and Walgreens are not a scam, but they are absolutely a way to get you into their store to develop loyalty for their big money maker: prescriptions. It's a smart ploy, really, except for people like me who rarely, rarely have prescription needs. And when I do, both stores often have coupons that give you a $25 store credit for filling your prescription there. Not a bad deal if you have a co-pay insurance plan, but beware if you pay out of pocket, like I do. Costco, Target and Walmart have the same prescriptions for much less than CVS and Walgreens. Years ago, I was naive enough to think that they each priced their drugs similarly. Um, no. They don't.

Anyway, give CVS a try. I keep my Extra Care Bucks (ECBs) with my cash in my wallet so I never lose them. And I've only run into one CVS location that cares about the expiration date on ECBs; most gladly accept expired ECBs.

My biggest tip is to shop early for their deals. They don't restock their shelves as often as grocery stores, but they DO offer rain checks if they're out and they WILL give you the ECBs on your next visit when you make your purchase.

Expect to spend a little time scoping out the deals for a few weeks until you're good at the game. It didn't take long for it to become second nature for me. I don't shop there every week, and sometimes I'll go a few months without stepping foot inside CVS, but I'm a loyal fan of their system. I've saved a ton of money there.

Best of luck!!!

My Price List for Groceries

I've heard a frugal general rule of budgeting $25 per person per week for groceries. Our monthly grocery budget is $500, but I can usually keep it closer to $400, even with the higher cost of organic foods, formula and diapers.

When I ran across this blog post from a mother of three teens who spends $300/month on groceries, I was intrigued. One of her suggestions was to make a price list for the groceries that you purchase most often.



So I began putting together a price list. Some of these prices I've kept in my head, but now that I've switched to organic milk and grass fed beef, I've started losing my confidence that I am getting a good deal.

Instead of sticking one price to each item, I wrote down "good, better and best." The "best" price is produce in it's peak season, baking goods at Christmas, free condiments (after coupons) around BBQ time, things like that. The "better" price is the best price I can get using coupons during a sale in the off-peak time and the "good" price is a decent sale price without a coupon.

My price list includes all of my kitchen staples: what I keep on hand in my pantry, fridge and freezer. I'm not going to share my whole list, partly because it's huge and you might make fun of me, but mostly because prices vary so much from region to region. But I will share a few things:

My main staples include the following "best" prices:
- whole grain bread ($2/loaf through my co-op)
- organic milk ($2.50/half gallon)
- hormone-free eggs ($1.50/dozen)
- natural chicken ($1.97/lb)
- ground turkey ($3/lb)
- grass fed ground beef ($3.99/lb)
- grass fed steak ($4.99/lb)
- wild Alaskan salmon ($8.99/lb)
- natural peanut butter ($.13/oz)
- unbleached flour ($1/5lb bag)
- whole wheat flour ($2.50/5lb bag)
- white sugar ($1.50/5lb bag)
- brown and powdered sugar ($1/bag)
- Nestle chocolate chips ($1/bag)
- oats ($.50/lb)
- dried beans ($1/lb)
- apples ($1/lb)

Some of the things I don't pay for (because they're available for free after sales and coupons) are:
- pasta
- bottled salad dressing
- bottled marinades
- mustard
- frozen vegetables (specifically Steamers)
- liquid hand soap
- toothpaste
- deodorant
- paper towels
- most cereals (can usually get for less than $.50/box, Kashi for $1/box)
- fresh pineapple (in season, it goes on sale for $1 and Del Monte often has coupons)
- bagged lettuce (same as pineapple - Dole and Fresh Express coupons make them free)

For those of you who belong to Costco or another warehouse club, don't be tricked into believing that their bulk-price is the best you can find. Especially if you shop the sales and clip coupons.

A few items that I buy at Costco (because they are priced ridiculously low*) are:
- pure vanilla extract ($3.50/16 oz)
- yeast ($3.24/2 lbs)
- baby formula ($16.49/36oz)
- natural peanut butter ($7.59/56 oz)
- raw, whole almonds ($9.69/3 lbs)
- bottles of water ($3.45/30 bottles)
- trash bags ($12.49/200 tall kitchen bags)
- pesto ($7.79/24? oz)
- feta cheese (can't remember, but it's cheap)
- hummus ($6/32 oz.)
- deli turkey slices ($3.85/lb)
- bananas ($.33/lb)
*Keep in mind, prices vary by region.

What are some of the price points where you live?

Q&A Wednesday - Disneyland Tips

Jackie from New Zealand asked, "We are heading to Disneyland later in the year, will need to get around by taxi or bus. What do you think are good places to take 8 year old boy, 11 year old girl, Mum, Dad and Nan? We have Disneyland pass, Universal Studios tour, Medieval dinner and thats all so far. Thanks."

I'm no expert, Jackie, but I did just go to Disneyland last year. It was my first visit as an adult and I hope to return with our family when each child turns five.


I know you didn't ask for frugal tips, but since you're traveling half way across the world for this trip, I'd venture to guess that you'd like to save where you can.

The first thing I would suggest, before you enter Disneyland, is to stock up on some Disney souveniers outside the park. I'm not sure what you have available in New Zealand, but if you even wait until you get to the states, then hit a store like Target or Walmart to find Disney-themed shirts, bags, etc. If you buy them on site, you'll pay a fortune and if you buy a few things ahead of time, you'll be less tempted to go crazy when you arrive at Disneyland. Because seriously...their stuff is really, really, really tempting.

I'd also suggest going to the grocery store and buying bottles of water and snacks (granola bars, dried fruit, stuff that you can carry in your purse) while at the parks. The food inside is pricey and Disney doesn't mind if you bring your own.

As far as places to go, I'm a big fan of the character dining. I'm not sure if your kids are too old to think that's fun, but I did a character breakfast in college and still loved it. The characters come around to your table and give you one-on-one picture taking opportunities. We did Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel on a day that we weren't planning on going to Disneyland, but I later learned that for the places that are inside of the parks (Ariel's Grotto in California Adventure and Breakfast with Minnie and Friends in Disneyland) you can enter the park early and avoid the crowds to get in. Be sure to make reservations ahead of time (like now) because time slots fill up quickly.


Someplace that we also really enjoyed was Downtown Disney. It's across from Disneyland and is a great place to spend some time either during the day or at night. It's mostly a shopping area; no admission required. They have live entertainment outside and tons of Disney stores to walk through. The Rainforest Cafe is a fun, family place to eat and is at the entrance of Downtown Disney - your kids will love the atmosphere and the food is really good.

My last tip is the Fast Pass system for rides at Disneyland. Once in the park, ask about an employee about it. You can grab a ticket at certain rides and avoid waiting in lines later in the day. You can do twice as much in the same amount of time by avoiding the long lines.

Be sure to also check out my interview with the Good Deal Gal about how to do Disneyland on a budget. There are other tips on that post from both of us about ways to enjoy your Disney experience.

Anyone else have any tips for Jackie? Please leave a comment if you do!

Q&A Wednesday - Freezing Fresh Foods

After my post listing out my kitchen staples last week, Kendra asked, "This was helpful to see what you keep in the freezer. I need to be better about freezing things before we need to pitch it. Like the chicken broth in my frig right now! :-) A couple of questions: The chopped onion & celery in your freezer, is that what you've chopped from fresh and then frozen in little ziplocs? Also, how do you make your bread crumbs, just process the heels till crumbly? Thanks for sharing this! :-)"

I try to set aside about an hour a week to prepare food for the freezer. I freeze almost everything. Usually fresh foods that I don't think I'll use before they expire or things that I want to be ready-to-go for labor intensive recipes.

When I get lots of celery, onions and bell peppers at the produce co-op, I usually cut most of them up to freeze. I've noticed that if I fill up a whole zipper bag, they will be in a huge frozen lump when I need to use them. Instead, I've learned to leave a little room and freeze the bag flat so I can easily manipulate half of the onions out of the bag and return the rest to the freezer, if needed.

We often get "weird" stuff from the co-op; things that I know we won't eat like kale, artichokes, yams and eggplant. I'll cut those up, too, and freeze them to hide in pastas, quiches or soups. I even cut up and freeze the broccoli stems that I used to throw out.

I also tend to puree vegetables (spinach, kale, sweet potatoes, beets) to hide in casseroles and sauces. Cauliflower can be easily hidden in mashed potatoes and scrambled eggs.

For bread crumbs, I keep a zipper bag with the heels of our loaves of bread on the top shelf of the freezer. When I have time, I'll put the leftover bread in the food processer and make crumbs. Sometimes I bake them on a cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes to dry them out, sometimes I put them back in the freezer without baking. I use the baked bread crumbs for meatballs and things that are mixed INto a recipe and the non-baked bread crumbs on top of casseroles (because they'll get baked/dried out anyway).

I hope that was helpful. Any other questions about freezing???

Q&A Wednesday - Kitchen Staples {Food}

"What are the foods that you always keep stock of in your kitchen? I want to start cooking more and eating out less, but I never seem to have everything I need for any of my recipes."

I've mentioned before that we don't eat a lot of processed foods, so things are pretty simple in my kitchen.

A few years ago, when I finally gave in to enjoying cooking for my family, I came across the book, "Express Lane Meals: What to Keep on Hand, What to Buy Fresh for the Easiest-Ever 30-Minute Meals" by Rachael Ray.

In this cookbook was a list of staples that Rachael Ray suggested people keep on hand. Then in each recipe, she listed the staple items that would be needed and a few additional items that could be purchased in the Express Lane on your way home from work. It really transformed how I thought about cooking.

Now that I'm much more comfortable around the kitchen, I have my own mental list of things that I try to have on hand. When things from this list are on sale, I stock up, so I rarely buy staples at a premium and my grocery bill stays low.

The following items are things that I use regularly enough that they don't expire before I need to replace them.

What's always in my FRIDGE?
- organic milk (both skim and 1%)
- bread
- eggs
- butter (both spreadable and sticks for baking)
- condiments (peanut butter, jelly, mayo, ketchup, mustard, relish, salad dressing, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, pesto, salsa)
- plain yogurt
- seasonal whole fruit (always apples, plus whatever we get at the co-op, and bananas are usually on the counter)
- washed and cut up fruit (for easy snacking)
- unsweetened applesauce
- deli turkey
- sliced cheese
- shredded cheese
- feta cheese
- shredded parmesan cheese
- garlic
- onions
- seasonal vegetables (zucchini, broccoli, celery, corn on the cob, etc.)
- salad ingredients (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, carrots, etc.)
- flax seeds (I grind them up and put in oatmeal and smoothies)
- usually a couple of containers of leftovers

What's always in my FREEZER?
- minced garlic (from Trader Joe's, pictured)
- chopped onion
- chopped celery
- raw chicken breasts
- ground beef
- ground turkey
- salmon
- leftover grilled chicken, chopped
- cooked ground beef/turkey (sometimes a combo)
- cooked beans (black, white and kidney, stored separately)
- frozen vegetables (broccoli, green beans, corn and peas, plus leftovers from the co-op)
- frozen fruit for smoothies (strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, bananas)
- homemade chicken broth, portioned out
- homemade bread crumbs
- heels from bread in a zipper bag, waiting to be made into bread crumbs
- pureed vegetables to add to sauces and casseroles (things that my family doesn't normally eat: spinach, squash, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, kale, etc.)
- extra fresh items that I don't want to spoil (bread, butter, cheese, etc. - I freeze almost everything)

What's always in my PANTRY?
- baking items: unbleached flour, whole wheat flour, bread flour, sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, chocolate chips, corn meal, cocoa and yeast. Plus I always stock up on stuff like brownie mix, cake mix and frosting when they're on sale to bring to parties and pot lucks if I'm in a hurry.
- old fashioned oats
- dry cereal: Cheerios, Kashi Go Lean and whatever other low-sugar cereals are on sale
- nuts: raw almonds, chopped walnuts, pine nuts
- lentils and dried beans: black, white and kidney
- raisins and dried cranberries
- granola bars
- tuna
- a jar for desserts
- pretzels
- crackers (usually Triscuits)
- raw agave nectar and honey
- spaghetti sauce
- canned tomatoes
- canned tomatoes with green chiles
- canned green chiles (usually two cans, unless on sale)
- canned evaporated milk (usually one can, unless on sale)
- canned sweetened condensed milk (usually one can, unless on sale)
- pasta: penne, spaghetti, bow ties (all whole wheat)
- dry brown rice
- taco seasoning
- oils: olive, canola, sesame seed oil
- vinegars: balsamic, apple cider, white rice
- whey protein powder (for smoothies)

What's always in my SPICE CABINET?
- olive oil spray
- canola oil spray
- salt
- pepper
- red pepper flakes (to spice up Mike's individual plate)
- garlic powder
- cumin
- Italian seasoning
- dried parsley
- dried basil
- chili powder
- corn starch
- kosher salt
- cinnamon
- baking soda
- baking powder
- nutmeg
- pure vanilla extract

Most of my recipes can be made with the items I have on hand. My staples used to be things like Hamburger Helper, canned vegetables and Rice-a-Roni, but I've made a conscious decision to eat more whole foods and eliminate preservatives where I can.

Was this helpful???

Making Dried Beans in the Crock Pot

After posting my recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Stew the other day, Kendra said, "This looks wonderful. I love using my crock pot, especially in the summer. If you don't use the canned ingredients, what do you use? I'm assuming dried beans, but what is the conversion for that? Also, using dried beans kind of intimidates me, with the whole soaking thing. Any tips? :-)"

Yes - I do use dried beans. And YES - I have easy tips!

Dried beans are significantly cheaper and easier to store. I buy them in bulk and keep them in glass jars in my pantry along with other bulk items like lentils, raisins, cranberries, oats and wheat germ.

I started buying dry beans when Mike was out of work a while back, but hated soaking and cooking them, so we rarely ate them. Then I learned how to make them in the crock pot. They're so easy, Kendra, you're going to want to fly out here and hug me after you try it.

Are you ready for how easy this is going to be? This tip is for soaking any kind of dried beans, though I'd recommend doing one at a time because they cook at different rates. There might be some exact science to how long they need to cook, but I'll tell you the method that I use and I've never been disappointed.

Step 1: Before going to bed at night, put dried beans in your crock pot (if you're not measuring, 1/4-1/3 full is fine).
Step 2: Fill your crock pot with water (about 1 inch less than full to the top).
Step 3: Set crock pot to low.

That's it. Go to bed and you'll wake up to soaked, cooked beans. I usually turn off the crock pot when I wake up and remove the lid while I get through breakfast, then drain the water in a strainer and let them cool a bit before handling them.

Tip: I always make a bunch of one kind at a time, measure them out in 1- or 2-cup portions and stick them in the freezer. Then you can toss them into a recipe the same as a can of beans. (I pull them out and thaw them in the fridge overnight or on the counter when I know a recipe calls for beans the next day.)

I make my own kidney beans for my favorite Chili, black beans for Mexican dishes and white northern/cannellioni beans for soups and White Chicken Chili.

If you want to make exactly what you need, here are the conversions:
1/2 cup dry beans = 1.5 cups soaked beans
2/3 cup dry beans = 1 (15 oz) can of beans

I hope that's helpful, Kendra!

Getting Closer to #64 - Homemade Household Cleaners

I am on my way to replacing all of our store-bought cleaners with natural cleaners. My all-natural, cloth diapering friend in Michigan gave me some of these links and I am getting excited to do more with lemon, baking soda, club soda and white distilled vinegar.

Simple Mom's List of Household Cleaners

Making Homemade Cleaners Work Better - Small Notebook

25 Safe, Non-toxic, Home Cleaners

Easy Recipes for Natural Cleaners - Simple Organic

66 uses for Distilled White Vinegar

60 uses for Baking Soda

75 uses for Baking Soda

Homemade Dryer Balls (no more dryer sheets!)

I've also been tempted to start using homemade laundry detergent. Here are the ingredients and descriptions for where to get the ingredients...

Glass Cleaner
2 cups of water
1/4 cup of white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of liquid soap

Diva Detergent
1 55 oz. box Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1/2 cup Mule Team Borax
2 Cups Oxygen Cleaner
1/2 cup Simple Green
1/2 cup Water Softening Powder

Details about ingredients:
- Washing Soda – The Arm and Hammer is the only brand I’ve ever seen. Walmart and most grocery stores carry it. Strong enough to actually change organic compounds (pee & poo) and keeps them suspended in the water so they can easily be washed away. It is a naturally occurring compound free from enzymes, dyes, and perfumes, and is the main ingredient in most powdered laundry detergents.

- Borax – Found in the grocery aisle. Whitens and brightens without phosphates and enzymes. Borax is too harsh, both to fabric and sensitive skin to be used in large amounts, and tends to not rinse out well. Less is more with Borax in laundry. (makes and excellent household cleaner, though).

- Oxygen Cleaner – I use Sun Brand…it’s the cheapest and most pure….Oxyclean brand has additives and fillers. For Oxygen Cleaner…the cheaper the better. Stain remover and whitener. Oxygen cleaners do not react well with extremely hard water and will add to scum build up. If you have extremely hard water, as noted above, add additional water softener.

- Simple Green – A concentrated liquid cleaner…most grocery stores carry it….Walmart has it in the automotive section. If you can’t find Simple Green, you can use any concentrated multi-purpose cleaner (ie: Lysol 4 in 1). Provides the necessary surfactants-to lessen the water tension and allow the detergent to become a part of the water and actually get into the clothes

- Water Softening Powder – This is a key ingredient…and if you have hard water you will want to double it. White King makes a powder, but it can’t be found in all areas. If you can’t find a water softening powder, use ½ cup of liquid. You’ll need to use a 1 lb box of baking soda for each half cup liquid added to offset the additional liquids so you don’t end up with a solid mass of detergent in a couple of days. (I can’t find powder in my area, so I use Calgon Liquid + baking soda).
----------------------------------
- Put all dry ingredients in a large container – (bucket, dishpan) mix with your hands to combine.

- Put gloves on before adding liquid ingredients as there is a chemical reaction that makes it get rather warm…..and could burn your skin. Drizzle the wet ingredients over the top of the dry ingredients. Mix with your hands until well combined and all liquid is mixed in and there are no clumps. If it still seems too moist, you can add a box of baking soda**. Humidity levels in different parts of the country can make a difference here, as your dry ingredients might have a higher moisture content. Store in a sealed container. I have used Rubbermaid, Tupperware, coffee cans….whatever you have on hand.

- Use 1-2 1/8 cup scoops (the kind that came with the oxygen cleaner) per load. You’ll have to experiment a bit to find what works best with your water condition and washer size.

- It seems this detergent does not work as well in FL washing machines…..those that have had success in FL’s are dissolving it in water before adding it to the detergent dispenser…..there just isn’t enough water in a FL to effectively dissolve it on its own.

- Other effectiveness issues come from those with extremely hard water. I would suggest leaving the recipe as is and adding additional water softener to the washer. You may have to experiment to find the proper amount….the water should feel silky. Water softener should be added before clothes and detergent.….and definitely use vinegar in the rinse cycle.

**When you’re buying your ingredients, buy a box or two of baking soda….the store brand will do. It’s super cheap and if your detergent seems too moist and is clumping….you’ll have it on hand to add.

Q&A Wednesday - A Motivating Reward

Nat asked, "If you had a goal for yourself right now, what would your reward be? I'm teaching First Place at church right now, and I've made all my 'students' set goals and 'rewards' for the 12 week session. My goals are lose 10 lbs, meal plan, and track all food. I'm having the hardest time figuring out my reward...so I'm just curious what you would pick for a reward."

I am a big fan of pampering. Pedicures, massages, lunch out with a girlfriend, a day off to scrapbook, things like that.

But your reward could be (and maybe should be, to keep you motivated to continue) tied more closely with your goal. If the goal was to save $200 in a savings account for emergencies to keep out of debt, a massage might not be an appropriate reward. If your goal is to lose 10 lbs, your goal probably shouldn't be something like a huge dinner out with drinks and dessert. That might get you off the track of living a healthy lifestyle.

Given your situation, I would do something clothing related. Maybe give yourself a budget and go shopping. Get an amazing pair of jeans (my favorites are Lucky Big Star - not cheap, but they fit like a dream) or a great dress to wear on date nights. If you're going to continue on with the next 10 lbs or more, maybe your reward could be new shoes. (you don't want to spend too much money on your current size if you plan on losing even more weight) Think along those lines...something to make your feel good about your accomplishment. Tying the reward to the results of the goal might motivate you to keep that 10 lbs off!

That's what motivates me, but all of my ideas involve money. In this economy, that might not work for most people. Anyone else have a suggestion for a goal-achieving reward?

Q&A Wednesday - Being Flexible with Dinner

Julie asked, "Do you ever spontaneously go out to dinner, during the week? Even though you have meal planned and even half-prepped and then lost your taste and motivation?"

Ironically, just moments before receiving this question, I thought, "I'm kind of in the mood to go out tonight. I wonder if Mike would be up for that?" Then I changed my mind because the lasagna was all made and just needed to be popped into the oven.

I've found that our dining budget has been significantly lower since I began meal planning way back when. Before that, I called Mike at least once a week to see if we could eat out. Not when a meal was half-prepped, but usually because I couldn't figure out what to make and wasn't in the mood to be creative. Usually if I have a plan and have started making the meal and the end is in sight, I don't want to "waste" a valuable night out.

I will say this: every so often when Mike is in the mood to eat out and I have a dinner plan in mind, I will actually request that we stay home to eat. Partly because it screws up my master plan, but also because (again) I want to save our dining budget for a night that I'm too exhausted to cook.

Our monthly dining-out allowance is pretty lean, so when we do go out to eat, it's always with a coupon or on a "Kids Eat Free" night. We throw caution to the wind and spend full price on a dinner maybe 3-4 times a year. And that includes our anniversary and my birthday! I know - we're cheap.

Keep the questions coming! Leave a comment if you have something on your mind that I can answer next Wednesday.

Shopping the Post-Holiday Sales

With Easter behind us, now is the perfect time to shop for next year's Easter baskets, crafts and decorations. The only thing you shouldn't buy ahead is the candy. Stock up on things like Easter books, puzzles, plastic shrink wrap, egg-shaped sidewalk chalk, plastic eggs and grass. Many items are reusable from year to year - even games and toys if your kids are too little to remember what they got in their baskets last year.

I hit the 50% off sale today at Target and found a few good deals. Even the $1 bins were half off! Not to mention that I stumbled upon some clearance shoes on sale for the kids.

Don't save the post-holiday sales for Christmas...keep your eyes open after every holiday and shop ahead for next year!

My Weekend To-Do List

We got SO MUCH done this weekend. I am practically floating around my house, high from the huge sense of accomplishment. It's like a drug for me.

Last weekend, nothing was crossed off my "to do" list. We got some things done, but not the things I had planned. So the list carried over to this weekend and had several items added to it. And it was long. Very long. I'm shocked that we got all of it done and more.

Part of the reason we were able to accomplish so much was because Grandma Cindy took the big kids overnight on Friday after Ryan's football game. They didn't come home until 2:00 yesterday, so we were able to run around checking off errands all morning. Thanks mom! They returned home from hiking with a bouquet of wild flowers and package of chocolate chip cookies "for Mike" since I'm not allowed to have sugar yet. Soon...so very soon...

One of the things on the list was to put the laundry room back together. I flooded it on Thursday. AGAIN. How does one flood a laundry room twice? I blame the first time on serious sleep deprivation. This time, I have no excuse. I don't even remember leaving the water running into the plugged up sink and walking away. It's my "Oxy Clean sink" and I was preventing a poo-explosion stain on one of Jason's outfits. The outfit is now fine, but I wasted two hours and every towel in the house mopping up my mess. The water-filled drawer and cabinets below are squeaky clean...again. But this time the counter is warped so the drawer won't close properly. Lovely. I'm such an idiot!

Last night after church, Ryan and Kaylin played "cops" for almost an hour. Ryan "copped" (he later learned it was "cuffed") Mike and Kaylin together because they broke the speed limit. Don't mess with Officer Ryan.

Today we went to a Spring Training game with Mike's dad and brother. The weather was a. maze. ing. What a wonderful way to spend our Sunday!


Afterward, we came home and colored Easter eggs. I think the kids ate 4-5 each, so I didn't even bother making dinner.

Then while the kids played with a neighbor outside, I ran to Target to stock up on Easter basket treats. I saw this deal on Good Deal Gal's website and couldn't pass it up.

Leapster Games - on sale for $15.00 each.
Use a $5 off $30 Target printable coupon wyb 2 games PLUS
use 2- $5 off Leapster game coupons to get two games for just $15 total!

And because Jason didn't get any screen time today, here he is in all of his adorableness. He is getting so big, so fast. I just want to stop time and kiss him until his cheeks are raw. He is so stinkin' cute!!!

This is my POD from the other day. He pulls his pacifier out and tries desperately to put it back in his mouth. The looks he gives that pacifier crack me up. With his furrowed brow, you can almost see him thinking, "Wait a minute - how did that get there?"

Menu Planning Basics

More Friday re-runs! This post was originally published on January 9, 2009.

A couple years ago, I began pre-planning our weekly dinners and I've never looked back. It has saved me time and money, I've dramatically reduced our food waste and best of all...no more 5pm STRESS!

I fought the idea of meal planning for a long time, partially because it overwhelmed me but also because it took the spontaneity out of dinner. But here's the thing: before meal planning, the stressful moments FAR outweighed the spontaneous ones.

I'm sure many of you out there hesitate to try planning your menus. But hang with me as I break down the process to the basics so you can see how simple it really is.

* Start by making a list of meals that you enjoy and eat regularly. I categorize mine by type: chicken, fish, beef and meatless and also by cooking method: crock pot, stove top, grill and oven.

* Figure out what you already have that can be used to make a full meal. Start with fresh ingredients and produce then move to the freezer for meats and the pantry for dry items you have on hand. Jot down which meals from your list you can cook without going to the store for every ingredient.

* Other places I find meal ideas are my recipe binder (to see if there are new recipes I'm willing to try that week or that I have all of the ingredients for), Cooking Light for healthy meals and Super Cook, where you can type in ingedients and it will pull up recipes to use what you have. I like to try at least one new recipe each week so I don't get in a rut, but that's just me...I like to cook and experiment.

* Once you have about 5-10 meals written down, pull out your calendar (I used a small, checkbook-sized calendar that fit in my purse last year and it worked really well) and slot the meals into the days you'll cook them. (Tip: write in pencil! Plans change, schedules change, you'll end up with extra leftovers, you'll need some flexibility.) I like to plan easy meals on busy days, crock-pot meals on days when I have appointments in the afternoon and new recipes for slower days. I also reserve oven meals for the weekends because it heats up the whole house and we don't need the extra A/C costs when it's warm outside. In December and January we'll cook more in the oven, but I do my best to avoid it the rest of the year.

* Make your grocery list. Look through the recipes one more time and check to see what you need from the store. Remember to see how much you need of an item or if it may be needed for more than one recipe and if you have enough of it.

* One thing I have NOT been paying attention to is balancing fattening heavier meals with lighter meals within the same week. I think that's part of the reason my waist line has been expanding. Good food can still be high in calories, especially those with lots of cheese, butter or thick sauces. But who really wants soup every night for a week? Or chicken and rice four times? I need to look at the bigger picture and make sure I'm mixing it up.

* The other thing I'm going to start doing is varying the contents of the meals. We seem to eat a lot of chicken, but then I'll go on a beef kick and eat too much beef in a week (I'd prefer to keep it to once a week, max) and I really want to incorporate my 65th goal of making three vegetarian meals each week for a month. So far, I'm having trouble just doing TWO.

* I'm also going to start attempting to cook cheaper menus without completely sacrificing the quality of the meals. I recently found the $5 Dinners blog and will try to incorporate one or two of those each week, too. I've come to finally realize (I'm slow) that part of cooking cheap is shopping cheap and having food that you can use on-hand instead of buying it at a premium at the store. If you don't have much food stocked up, consider shopping from the sale ads and planning the following week's meals around those items. Read my recent post about how to save money at the store to learn how to reduce your grocery spending.

So who's with me? Are you willing to give meal planning a try? Unless you eat out every night, you ARE planning your meals, it's just a matter of doing it once a week instead of seven times a week. You can still be spontaneous at breakfast and lunch if you just start with dinners.

How to Save Money at the Store

This post was originally published on November 13, 2008.

Since I posted about my 78% savings and encouraged everyone to clip coupons last week, I've received a lot of questions from overwhelmed people about where to start and how to do it. So I'm breaking it down for you. This is my system and it might not work for you, but please feel free to steal borrow any of my methods and adjust them to fit your lifestyle. This might look like a lot of work, but I can honestly say that I only spend about an hour or two each week doing everything you're about to read below. That's it. It's not much time compared to the money I save on our bottom line.

The supplies (I always keep these items in my purse or in my car):

- a file-o-fax-type coupon organizer - I wrote in my own categories for separating my coupons - the ones that made sense to me fall in groups like: breakfast, baking, canned goods, seasonings and dry goods, frozen foods, dairy/meat, personal items, baby items, paper products and cleaning supplies.
- a little notebook to write the sales I want to take advantage of.

The process:

1. Clip coupons - If you don't get the paper, now's the time to start. You can order Sundays only for a discounted price or get one at the gas station on Sunday mornings; it's up to you. Just buy one. Or two or three if you want multiple coupons, but one works for me.

* Pull out the coupons and label each bunch of coupons with the date in a visible place on the front.

* Go through and cut out coupons for items that you normally buy. Personally, I'm no longer brand loyal on paper products or toiletries. With the ridiculous sales some of these stores run, you can often get those items for free, but I'm getting ahead of myself...

* Don't ignore teeny little coupons, like $.25 off. Stores go through promotions where they'll double and triple coupons up to $1. I just bought free butter because it was on sale for $1 and I had a $.35 coupon that I almost didn't clip. I have to remind myself of this point every week.

* DON'T throw away the coupons you didn't clip! Just trust me - I hate clutter as much as the next person, but if you keep them altogether in a file in your office (most recent first) you'll thank me later. Hanging onto old coupons has saved me big bucks in the last few weeks and I'm SO glad I finally started doing it. I'll explain why in a minute.


2. File your coupons - do this right away. Seriously - procrastinators, I'm talking to you, too. It takes 2 minutes and you won't be kicking yourself at the store next week wondering where that coupon is that you just KNOW you clipped this weekend.


3. Look through the grocery ads - each Wednesday, the new grocery ads in my area come out and are valid through the following Tuesday. I am no longer in a neighborhood where they send me the ads in the mail, so I have to look up the ads and deals online. The local stores I look at are: Fry's, Albertson's, Basha's and Safeway. I have their weekly ad website saved in my favorites on my computer. I FAR prefer to look through a tangible ad (especially when the store offers coupons in the ad) but for now, I don't have a choice in this.

* I take my little notebook and write down the store sales that I may want on a list. One store at a time, not too overwhelming.

* Sometimes the list for a particular store has 20 things on it, sometimes only 1.

* This IS NOT my grocery list, just a list summing up the good deals for the week.

* Don't assume that because it's in the ad, it's a good deal. The longer you look through ads, the more you'll recognize which are the TRUE deals. TIME SAVINGS TIP: the best deals are usually on the front page.

* If you've never done this before, start here!


4. Look at the drug store ads - These come out on Sundays and run Sunday thru Saturday. If you want to save some serious cash, consider playing the CVS and Walgreens game. It may seem a little complicated, but they want you to bring in your prescriptions BADLY (that's where they make all of their money) so they want to get you in their store. I have attached links that explain the "how tos" for each store: CVS 101 and Walgreens 101. Personally, I shop at CVS more than Walgreens, but just this week, I spent $3.76 at Walgreens for an 8x10 photo, 6 cans of Progresso Soup, 2 packages of pantyliners and 2 cans of pumpkin. My original bill was over $20 before coupons. Even the check out guy was impressed. I had a store coupon PLUS a manufacturer's coupon for each item I bought. Walgreens lets you "stack" those coupons for double savings. I'll talk about that at the end of this post.

5. Look at the blogs that summarize the best deals - Money Saving Mom and The Good Deal Gal do this for a variety of major grocery chains. Sometimes I look at their list before looking at the grocery ads, it just depends. Also, they list deals for Walmart and Target. They're rarely better than your local grocery store, but sometimes they have freebies, too. My last Walmart trip was $7 and I bought $22 worth of stuff!

* The reason you want to do BOTH is because these blogs link to printable coupons that you can use for sale items AND they explain which items you can get for super-cheap with the sale plus coupons. This is where your older, filed coupons will also come in handy. Both of these blogs tell you which week certain coupons were offered.

* So, for example, last week, I saw that Betty Crocker frosting was on sale for $1 at Albertson's. I always bypass those coupons because I prefer to make my frosting from scratch. (I think it's cheaper, tastes better and doesn't have all of the additives.) BUT there was a $.50 coupon available a few weeks back, and Albertson's was doubling coupons last week, so by taking a minute to go back and clip that coupon from my file, the frosting was FREE. She also had a printable coupon link. With birthdays coming up and holiday pot lucks and all, I stocked up on frosting. Because if you invite me to your house, I know you won't care that I made the frosting from scratch. Let's be honest.


6. Write out your shopping list, separating by store. Even if you think you're not going to go to multiple stores, please do this! I can't tell you how many times I've needed to stall for 20 minutes before getting Ryan from school and knew I needed just one thing for dinner tonight, so I ran into the closest grocery store. Looking at my handy list, I knew to also grab buy one, get one free strawberries and 2 boxes of Cheerios with my coupons.


7. Pull out the coupons you plan to use this week. This will save you time and frustration when you're in the store. Even when I go to the store alone and don't have the kids to distract me, it never fails - I run into someone I know and it throws me out of my money-saving, coupon-using, task oriented zone.


A few more tips:

* Look for ways to "stack" coupons - most stores allow you to use a manufacturer's coupon PLUS a store coupon on the same item. Find out your local store's policies because this saves big bucks and sometimes you even get money BACK. CVS paid me $1 to leave with a tube of toothpaste last week. Can't beat that!

* Some stores accept competitor's coupons - my local Albertson's has always done this, but lately, stores are so desperate for our business that many are running "temporary specials" where they take each other's coupons.

* Some stores match ads from other stores - all Super Walmarts ad-match and I know there are others out there that do, too. But I have to warn you: this isn't always as great of a deal as it sounds. Again, Walmart wants you to get in their store so you buy other items from them, usually impulsively. They don't double or triple coupons, which may not seem like a big deal, but it could add $5-10 to your total bill each time. I've spent the better part of the last year only shopping at Super Walmart and can honestly say that I've spent more money doing it that way. Even with ad matching. I still go there for non-sale items, though, because (as a general rule) their prices are usually cheapest.

* Stick to your list. Period. If it's not on the list, you likely don't need it right now. If you're trying to stick to a budget, shop from your list.

* Don't dawdle in the store - Get what you need and leave. I've heard it said that for every extra minute you spend wandering the aisles, you spend an extra $2.50. On a bad day (primarily when Kaylin was younger) I've been known to bring the kids to the Kids Club at my grocery store and slowly walk around with a cart, just to get some peace after a hard day of mothering. I wonder how much extra money I spent doing that?

* Meal plan - I know that seems like a lot of work, but by sitting down for 30 minutes every week and simply writing out what you want to make for dinner each night, you'll avoid the take-out trap (saving money on dining out), you'll save last minute trips to the store because you're out of buns or spaghetti sauce or rice AND you'll waste less food by throwing out things that go bad before you're able to consume them.

I hope these tips have been helpful! Please let me know if you have any questions, but more importantly, if you start doing these things and you save yourself some money. I got a call this weekend from my BFF whose first words on the phone were, "I'M A BELIEVER!" She finally started clipping coupons and saw the money that can be saved. You will be a believer, too, I promise!!!

83% Savings at Safeway

After taking three months off from my coupon saving ways...I'm ba-ack!!! Tonight, I saw this deal for some items at Safeway and decided to run out while Mike was reading stories to the kids. I ended up spending $18, saving $87, and walking out with a $2.50 cash coupon for my next Safeway shopping trip. (There were other store deals, but I rarely buy the garbage, even if it's cheap.)
PS - From what I understand, these deals also work for all Safeway affiliates (Vons, Ralph's, etc.)

* 8 boxes Cheerios ($1.49 each WYB 4, limit 20)
...used 6 $1/1 coupons here, here, and here (print twice at each site) and 1 $1/2 coupon here or here. You can also print a $.55/1 coupon here or here.
FINAL PRICE: $7.92 for 8 boxes

* 1 pkg Smithfield Premium Bacon ($1.99 with in ad coupon, limit 4) * 4 bags Nature Valley Nut Clusters 4/$6 (must buy 4)
{This was the deal that gave me the $2.50 "catalina" coupon back for my next purchase, which meant I ended up with a $.50 profit and 4 free bags of clusters for lunchbox snacks!}
...used $1/1 Nature Valley Nut Clusters here and here.
This deal is also good for Nature Valley Granola Bars which have coupons for $.40/1 here.
FINAL PRICE: $.50 overage!

* 5 boxes Triscuits ($2 each WYB 5)
...used 2 $2/2 coupons (print here for IE and here for Firefox) - printed each twice.
FINAL PRICE: $6 for 5 boxes

* 2 pkgs Kraft Singles ($1.49 with in ad coupon, limit 2)
...used $1/2 coupon (print here for IE and here for Firefox) - printed each twice.
FINAL PRICE: $.99 each

* 1 gallon milk ($.99 with in ad coupon, limit 1)

* 18 count large eggs ($.99 with in ad coupon, limit 1)

* 12 count eggs
...used free coupon here.

* Extra Value club pack of ground beef ($1.88/lb)
...used $3 off coupon here.

* Safeway brand pasta sauce
...used free coupon here.

* Safeway brand orzo pasta
...used free coupon here.

Total spent: $18.06, total saved: $87.14. WOO HOO!

Gymboree Affordability

My kids wear a lot of hand-me-downs. New clothes are usually bought on the clearance rack at the end of last year's season, but as a rule, I have no problem buying clothes off Craigslist, at consignment stores or paying friends for their kids old clothes. And my kids don't care whether their clothes are old or new...YET.
.
Last week, the temperatures got low enough here to send Ryan to school in a long sleeved shirt and I was hit with the realization that all of his shirts from last winter are WAY too short for my growing boy. I decided to bite the bullet and buy him some shirts from Target. $10 each shouldn't seem like much, but knowing they were full price about killed me as I approached the register. (yes, I realize I'm being dramatic...) I justified the purchase because I found a clearance rack and swiped up a bunch of $1.24 short sleeved shirts for him for the spring.
.
Dropping Kaylin off at school the next day, I noticed this one little girl in her class who always looks so cute and put together. Her hair is always perfect with identically matched hair bows. I mentioned something to her mom and she sheepishly said, "I'm kind of a Gymboree-aholic." I quickly decided that she must have money that I don't have to spend on her kids clothes and practically tuned her out. (yes, I just admitted to that...don't judge me, I'm extremely sleep deprived) She went on to say that she waits for their 30% off sale and that's when she stocks up. "Only 30% off?" I thought. "That's nothing! 30% off a $75 outfit is a joke!" I just kept nodding and smiling, wishing I had that kind of money to dress Kaylin and the boys. She said that the 30% off sale is going on right now and she can usually turn around and sell the outfits on eBay for most of what she paid for them.
.
That's where I snapped back into attention. (I obviously wasn't completely ignoring her if I got this far into the conversation, right???) I've had friends tell me that they buy their kids' clothes at Gymboree on clearance and resell them on eBay for around the same price, but I've always had a hard time believing that the math added up. I've even gone into the stores to look for deals and I always walk away unimpressed. I can't find the sizes I want or need and the tops never have matching bottoms so outfits are incomplete...I just didn't get how it worked out for people.
.
When I explained all of that, this other mom said that she shops online for that exact reason. I had nothing better to do for the next 2.5 hours, so I went home and peeked on Gymboree.com.
.
Sure enough, they have a 30% off sale going on, but it's not only on full priced items...it's also on their clearance stuff. Light bulb moment - I was starting to get it!
.
I looked through all of the sale items and added a bunch of winter clothes into my cart for Jason. Then I looked through Ryan's sizes and found cute (and inevitably more durable than Target) shirts for around $8 after the discount...cheaper than Target and better quality! I was so excited. The Target shirts still have tags on them, so they are going back for sure. I also found him some corduroy pants and a lightweight jacket. Ironically, I didn't like any of the girl clothes that were on sale. I'm not into panda bears or kitty cats or guitars and all of the cutest stuff wasn't cheap enough for my taste. But my boys will be well dressed!
.
Not only did I get the 30% off, but they have a "free shipping on items over $100" deal going on through Sunday AND for every $50 you spend, you get $25 in Gymbucks to spend during a designated time frame in January. (Can anyone say, "after Christmas sales" - ?)
.
When all was said and done, I got Jason 6 long sleeved onsies with 3 pair of coordinating pants and 2 pair of matching socks and I bought Ryan 3 long sleeved shirts, 2 pair of pants and a jacket all for $109, tax included. 16 items for $100!!! Things I can resell on eBay for much more than I'd get for Target resale clothes.
.
I am so excited for my package to come in the mail. And for the weather to cool back off enough to put my boys in their new duds! For those whose ears are perked and are on their way to Gymboree.com, HAPPY SHOPPING!!! And to Gymboree...you're welcome for the free advertising. Feel free to hook me up with a little appreciation gift, wouldja?