Bonus Friday Favorite: Recipe

While we are on the subject of Hallee the Homemaker, I wanted to share one of her awesome recipes. This recipe is for white chicken chili. I'm not a big chili fan, but I loved this chili. It had just the right amount of spice for me. It's not really chili season right now, but soon enough it will be!

Photo Credit: Hallee the Homemaker

She has a ton of great recipes especially for homemade (healthy!) breads. If you haven't checked out her site, it really is worth it!

Friday Favorites- Website!

I recently discovered this wonderful website called Parenting. Illustrated with Crappy Pictures. I find t to be a really entertaining look at parenting. The writer illustrates common parenting moments through funny stories and pictures that could easily been drawn on MS paint. For parents out there, it will make you feel like you are not alone in the weird things you go through.

This is one of my personal favorites.

If anything, the site will give you a good laugh. Enjoy!

Friday Favorites- This One is for Girls Only!

One of the best things I ever did as a woman is start tracking my fertility. What does that mean exactly? Well for one it is keeping track of when your period happens, but it can be sooo much more than that. If you are trying to conceive, there are tons of things you could be looking for to improve your chances. Also, tracking can help you to realize if something is wrong with your menstrual cycle.

I've found the best online tracker for me is fertilityfriend.com. I track pretty much everything, and it keeps it all in one neat place for me. I have the VIP version, as I need some of the more advanced stuff due to some infertility issues, but the basic is suitable for someone just trying to know more about how their body works. They also have courses for you to learn how to chart. Once you do it for a little bit, it becomes really simple. Honestly I was surprised by how much our body tells us, and how it tells us.

I really found it all empowering, and I hope you do too.

On a side note, if anyone would like me to send them an email invite for the website, it would be helpful. Each invite accepted gets me a few days of vip service added on to my account, and for each person who purchases the vip I get 30 days, as do you. :-)

Friday Favorites- Freecyle



Freecycle is an idea that you can recycle your unwanted goods to someone who might want them. They have a national website, where you can find your local chapter. It's usually run through yahoo groups. 

How it works:

1. A person lists an item they don't want anymore (examples might be a bike with a flat tire, tvs, newspapers, coupons, etc.)
2. You want it so you contact them via the email they registered with.
3. If your first, or the person they pick, they'll let you know and you can arrange pick-up.
4. If you don't get it first, the person will either email you back or list it as "Taken"

You can also list wanted, but this is discouraged.

What freecycle is not:

A place to get everything you need for free. Yes occasionally really nice things come through, but you shouldn't be posting "wanted Nintendo Wii" or anything like that.

What is it's purpose:

It's really meant for things that would otherwise end up in a landfill. So it may be items that are fixable (like the bike with a flat tire) or are just random like empty wine bottles, but the point is that one man's junk is another's treasure. People also post things that they could donate. Sometimes people just post "bag of clothes this size, one person takes all." You may not want everything in the bag, but that's ok, you can freecycle what you don't want. Sometimes it's a box of misc. homewares. You just never know. Nicer things go quicker, so you'll have to respond right away.

And it's all free. No fee to join, no fee to get anything. So get to freecycling.

Friday Favorites- Bzz Agent

A couple months ago I came upon a site called BzzAgent. They have campaigns where you get to try free stuff and the only catch is you have to share your thoughts with others.

This past month I got a fun pack from SC Johnson for Spring Cleaning. It came with Pledge, a Glade Candle, Scrubbing Bubbles Shower Spray, Scrubbing Bubbles toilet gel and a refill for a plugin oil warmer. It also came with tons of coupons. I was excited. I really love the smell of the Sparkle of Spring candle. I've been a fan of the toilet gel in the past, and was excited to see it in there too. I like how it extends the time between deep cleanings.
I encourage you to check out the Spring collection by Glade because they smell really great, and also check-out (and sign-up for) BzzAgent for your own opportunities for free stuff.

Friday Favorites- Website!

A friend on facebook posted this website the other day, and it has given me a bunch of good laughs. It is called {Bleep} My Kids Ruined. It's so funny because if you have kids you've been there, and sometimes you just sit there and go "if I didn't see this with my own eyes, I wouldn't believe it." So go check it out and have a laugh. I also enjoy their sister site {Bleep} My Pets Ruined. *Warning* There are times that there may be questionable material on these sites, as they are user submitted. Also, while they bleep out the name on the website, the address contains a less than favorable word. Just a word of caution because I always like a warning.

In other news, you might have noticed the lack of posts this week. It's been pretty hectic here. I promise next week will be better. :-)

Friday Favorites- My Faith

As I've mentioned before, my faith is an important part of me, and an important reason for my blog. Unfortunately, my faith is also one that isn't understood very well by many, and often the target of rumors and sometimes even persecution. My church has recently rolled out a new program allowing everyday people of our church to create profiles about who they are, and why they follow this faith. I hope you will check it out, and check out some others while you are there. (Sorry for any grammar issues, it takes a few days between updating something and it being published that way on the website.)

Friday Favorites- Website.

With the price of gas the way it is, one of the best ways to save money is to plan your errands. The best thing is to do as many as you can in one stretch, and plan the most effective route. That way you aren't driving to one side of town and back, or to home and back out several times.

So here is a handy website to plan your route.

Of course you can always use websites like google maps and add multiple stops as well.

Friday Favorites- Website

The internet is full of information, fun, and everything in between. That's why today I've decided to share one of my favorite fun websites: Cake Wrecks.

Cake Wrecks is a blog about what it says wrecks of cake. It can be pretty entertaining to spend some time on, whether it's unfortunate misspellings, funny grammar mishaps, or just a wreck of a design, I'm sure you'll find something to laugh at.

I will say, sometimes the content is not family friendly. By that I mean occasionally there is foul language or sexual innuendos, and occasionally an unfortunate design that looks sexual. Those are fairly rare though, but I figured I would share, so no one is offended.

So go and have a good laugh!

Frugality- Saving Money for College While You Shop

For more frugal tips, click here.

If you have kids (or even if you don't) you should sign-up for Upromise. Upromise is a great program that helps you save for college by doing something you already do, shop!

What is Upromise?
Upromise is a rewards program that's purpose is to help save money for college by rewarding you for making purchases of participating products and through participating retailers.

What are participating products and retailers? 
Too many to name! Pretty much every online retailer you can think of (Target, Home Depot, Lowe's, JC Penney, etc.) as well as a lot of products you buy at stores like Beech Nut Baby Food. You can search their site for more info.

How will they know I made a purchase of a qualifying product or through a qualifying retailer?
There are several ways. If you install their handy tool bar, you will automatically be redirected through the upromise link to receive your savings for purchasing from an online retailer, or you can choose to go through the upromise site to link to retailer if you do not wish to install the toolbar. You can register your credit card with upromise so purchases at qualifying stores can be rewarded. For those wary about entering credit card information online, you can also choose to apply for a upromise credit card and it will automatically track your purchases. For stores and grocery stores, you can enter your store rewards card online to receive credit for purchasing eligible products. *For Publix you will need to go to customer service to ask for a Upromise card, since they do not have a store card. They will give you a card/ key fob for you to scan when you purchase groceries.

What can you do with the money you earn?
There are a few options. You can do nothing and leave it there until you decide, you can transfer it to a 529 plan, you can use it to pay off a Sallie Mae loan, or they can send you a check to pay for college expenses.

What if I don't have kids?
That's fine! You can set yourself as the beneficiary, and if you have kids change it later, or if you don't have kids later, you can use it toward your past or future education plans.

What do I need to do to sign-up?

1. Click Here
2. Enter in all your info
3. Add a store card or credit card now, so you can start saving!
4. Download their toolbar for even more ways to save!

My favorite part:
Their e-coupons!  They don't count as money off your purchase, but you can earn some money for a lot of common grocery items. Sometimes the item may be completely free when you purchase it and then you make $1 in Upromise rewards. You can also check out different retailers on their site for promotional codes to reduce your online shopping totals or get free shipping.

They are also running a sweepstakes right now, so you could even win $10,000 for signing up! So click below to sign-up and don't forget to add your cards so you can start saving now. It's free money, so don't wait, start earning now!

Frugality- Mail in Rebates

Click here for more in this series.

Mail in rebates are probably one of my most favorite things about being frugal. If I'm going to buy something anyway, why not make some money from it.

Where to find them: a lot of the deal match-up sites list them on their site. But rebates can come just about anywhere a coupon can be found. They can be in Sunday inserts, found in product boxes, found as peelies or tearpads, mailed to you in a home-mailer, or they can just simply be found on the products website.

How to best use them: The best time to use a MIR is when you are buying something at the lowest it will go. However don't rule out using them when you already have to buy the product. On the other hand, you probably shouldn't buy something just because there is a rebate, the only exception to this rule is if you will make money on the deal (after including postage into the equation). You can then donate the item.

Receipts: You will more than likely have to surrender your receipt to the rebate, so you have a couple options. You can ring up your items separately or you can ask your cashier for a duplicate receipt (I know they can do this at Publix). At Publix, it will say "duplicate receipt" at the top. This may conflict with the advice in the next  paragraph, so send in the original, however I have sent in the duplicate one several times to several different companies and never had a problem. So basically do so at your own risk, but send the original if at all possible.

Pay attention to the fine print: Read the entire rebate form. Some want UPC's, some want purchase prices circled, some want purchase date circled, some want the store name circled, some have minimum purchase requirements, so always read the whole form.

Make a copy: It is wise to make a copy of everything you send in for a rebate because sometimes things happen, and this is the only way to prove you did things right. I just scan them into my computer.

Keep Records: You should keep a list of MIR's you've submitted, complete with the date sent in. This way you know what you should be expecting, and which rebates to check up on. If you made a copy of the rebate form it may include a way to check the status of your rebate.

Follow Up: Follow up on your rebates. Check their status often so you can catch any problems early. 

How long does it take to get the rebate? That depends entirely on the company. Many rebate forms give you an idea of what to expect.

What will you get? Rebates rewards are pretty varied. You may get a check, a generic gift card, a gift card to a specific store, or coupon book full of high value coupons.

What items have rebates? Just about everything! I've done rebates for cleaning supplies, cheese, diapers, personal care items, paint, and many other things. I've seen them for milk, medicine, movies, and everything else you can imagine.

My favorite website: My favorite website for rebate match-ups is Friend Family Savings. She does a weekly rebate round-up that matches current rebates with current sales to maximize your rebate efforts. She also has a master list of rebates (so does iheartpublix for that matter). For future reference, there is a link to her blog in my "favorite links" tab.

Why I LOVE it: Because I have since March (prior to March everything was in storage as we relocated and bought a house), received $115 in checks, a $10 Publix Gift Card, and one P&G high value coupon book. I'm awaiting on another $38.99 in rebates to come in the next few weeks.  Most of these things were complete money makers or close to it, and were often items I was buying anyway (like diapers!). A few were just things I was buying anyway, like paint for our house, that there was a rebate for. I used my rebates to buy a black and white laser jet printer a couple of weeks ago, so that I can spend less money printing all those coupons I use.



Once you get good at saving with matching coupons to sales, I hope you will add some MIR's to the mix. Join me next week for even more frugal tips!

Shopping list for 7/8

Blue- Manufacturer's Coupon

Green- Publix Coupon

Red- Competitor Coupon

This is going to be real short because I don't feel like there is much that I need this week, so I may just run in for a few things.

(1) Publix Diapers @ $15.99
   -$5/1 Publix Baby Club Coupon

I'm also considering some items that I have a free item coupon for....Other than that I may just grab some staples. 
 You can check out the full-ad with match-ups at iheartpublix or southernsavers.


But I did want to tell you I added a new tab called "Favorite Websites" at the top. There you will find links to some of the websites I've mentioned (and some I haven't mentioned yet) that you may find useful. So go check it out, and let me know of any sites you like so I can check them out because I love finding great sites!
  

A fun website I found.

So I was reading Real Simple magazine (my favorite magazine) the other day, and they had a review of a pretty awesome website. It's called Quizzle and it is by the makers of Quicken Loans.
So why do I like it?

• Free credit report every 6 months from Experian
• Free credit score every 6 months
• Money Tools and calculators
• Did I mention it's free?

I looked into it, and the main reason it is free is because they have lots of little services you can pay for (credit monitoring, identity protection, credit boot camp, extra score reports, etc.), but you don't have to buy any of it. It's not a free trial, and you don't enter in your credit card information.

So go check it out!
*Remember you can always request your free annual report from each of the three major bureaus HERE.*

Frugality

Last week I shared my favorite deal matching sites. This week I will share sites where you can print coupons.

They are:
Coupons.com
Smartsource
Redplum
Target

For Kraft coupons (and some are even Publix coupons):
Cooking with Kraft

For SC Johnson coupons:
Right at Home

For a good database (say you need to buy something and it's not on sale, but would like to see if there is a coupon):
Coupon Mom

Other online sources of coupons:
The products website
The products facebook page
An e-newsletter for a product or company

A word of advice about online coupons, if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is. The reason I say this is there are a lot of illegal coupons out there. The sites I listed above are considered legitimate sites, and their coupons have security features. If you receive an email with coupons for free products or find a coupon you can print unlimited times, be very suspicious. Try a google search with the coupon and the word "scam." When we use coupons that aren't legit, we risk having the store not take internet printable coupons, so please take a few minutes to check out a coupon if you didn't print it from one of the above mentioned sites.

 Next week we will talk about different ways to organize all these coupons you will acquire, so they don't take over your house or your time.

Redbox

I love Redbox, and here is why. It costs $1 plus tax per day to rent a movie. If there is a movie just coming out you can go online and reserve it. And my favorite part is all the free codes they send out!
Head on over to Redbox and sign-up for their email, and they will send you a code for a free movie as well as occasional codes from now on*. Also, you can sign up for their monthly text, which you will get a code on the first Monday of the month.

On top of that here are two codes that should work for you, and you can use them once per a person. You will also need a credit card to rent a movie.

DVDONME

BREAKROOM

Also, as an added benefit many redbox locations are starting to sell their old dvds for around $7.

Happy Movie Watching!



*I would suggest creating an email account solely for signing up for various promotions/newsletters that way your personal email won't be swamped with offers.

The value of couponing

As I work on finishing my list before I head out to Publix, I wonder how I ever shopped without coupons and sales.

Let me show you a picture.

I got all of this for $36.72 (and this isn't even the best I've done)!





And the best part is, I want to share how to save a lot of money.

For today's couponing tip, I leave you my two favorite sites.

iheartpublix or her sister site iheartsavingmoney

southernsavers

Please go check them out (and hopefully they will have one of the stores near you), you'll be glad you did. I'm excited to share more tips and websites that will help you save tons on your groceries, so please stay tuned every Thursday for more!