Clever Tricks from Readers for Greening Your Life

Recently I did a giveaway, and one of the entries was to share a green tip. I loved them so much I thought I would share with you some of the tips that were left.

• When you're waiting for the water to heat up, don't let the water go down the drain. We collect it and use it to water our garden. -Elizabeth
• Try to save all the food you would normally throw into the garbage! Instead, compost it and use it to feed your garden! This not only nourishes the garden, but helps send less to the landfill! -Lindsey
• Use cloth faux paper towels and napkins. Cuts on waste and we just throw them in the wash with our clothes. -Tristan
• Use canvas bags when shopping! Leave the plastic behind and if you do use them - recycle them at Publix or Walmart or wherever they have plastic bag recycle bins. -Mary
• I love my cloth diapers and I wash them in my high efficiency machine and then dry them on a drying rack so that I use less energy by not drying them AND the sun naturally bleaches out any stains! What a great bonus! -Samantha
• Clean with vinegar whenever possible, instead of a bunch of chemicals. You can use it to clean almost anything! -Kelli
• Re-usuable snack bags! We used to go through soo many ziploc bags! -Sarah
• My favorite "green" tip is use less and recycle more! -Bethany
• Your green tip here! Comment below and I will add it to the list.

Here's my green tip for today: Reuse things as much as possible, almost everything has a second life after it's first use. :-)

Meal Plan Monday

Monday- Burgers, Pasta, Veggie
Tuesday- Beef and Broccoli
Wednesday- Breakfast for Dinner
Thursday- Italian Chicken, Couscous, Veggie
Friday- Pizza
Saturday- Beef Stroganoff, Veggie
Sunday- Leftovers/DIY
What's your menu for the week?

Don't forget to link up or leave a comment with your meal plan or recipe below!

Friday Favorites- Harry Potter

I figured since the last movie premieres tonight, it would be appropriate to make Harry Potter my Friday Favorite for the week.

I must admit when the Harry Potter craze first started, I was very not interested. I had seen a couple of the movies, and they were good movies, but I hadn't read the books, or even cared. Then I took a religion class that covered 4 different series: Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, His Dark Materials, and you guessed it, Harry Potter. I had to read the series for the class, and I found myself unable to put them down. Luckily, by time I took the class all of the books were out, so there was no waiting a long time for the next one. I've seen all the movies, and I am eagerly awaiting seeing this last one. I don't know if I'll see it tonight, or in a few weeks, but I am excited.

Anyone else as excited as me?

(On a side note, I'm dying to go to the Harry Potter world at Universal Studios as well...)

Publix Trip 7/14/11

(Not Pictured: Publix Cat Food)

I spent $25.29 for $86.74 worth of groceries, saving $61.45 or 71%, but I also got a $5 giftcard to use next time!

Here's the match-ups:
(2) Frosted Mini Wheats with a Touch of Fruit BOGO $4.39
   -(1)BOGO Coupon from Vocalpoint

(4)President Feta Cheese BOGO $5.19
   -(2)$3/2 HERE

(2)Scotch Scissors BOGO $1.99
   -(2)$1/1 HERE

(2)Pantene Pro-V 2/$7
   -(1)$2/2 from a home mailer forever ago
   -(1)$1/2 from Target Beauty Bucks
   -Counts toward $5 giftcard wyb 3 participating products coupon

(1)Always $3.49
   -(1) Free Product Coupon
   -Counts toward $5 giftcard wyb 3 participating products coupon

(4)Papermate Pens 2/$1
   -(2)$1/1 HERE

(1) Publix OJ $2.99

(1)Blueberries 2/$5
   -(1)$1.50 off berries wyb 2 Kellogg's items Tearpad

(1)Strawberries 2/$5
   -(1) 50¢/1 Driscoll's Berries HERE

(1)Brocolli 2/$4

(1)Publix Cat Food $12.49

-$5/$25 purchase Save-A-Lot coupon

How did you do? Link-up or leave a comment below with your deals!

Frugality: Sometimes Items are Cheaper at a Warehouse Club

I've posted before about Warehouse Clubs, but I figured I'd revisit some things, and share some new stuff I've found out about BJ's specifically.

Why a Warehouse Club membership is worth it:

• I'd say 95% of the time, they have the cheapest gas in town. Sometimes by 5¢ or more. I use an App on my ipod to see which is cheapest in the area, and rarely is something else cheaper.
• Propane. At least at BJ's, the propane is significantly cheaper then anywhere else. We're talking like $10 cheaper.
• Seasonal/clothing/books/tvs/etc. Honestly you can find a lot of good deals on these items at warehouse clubs. Our most recent was 150 cubic feet marine cooler that we got for about $50ish for our fridge breaking. That was the price Target was charging for some 50-100 cubic feet ones. Now we have it, and it will be great should there be a power failure, or a need to evacuate, or even if we are taking a long trip and want to bring food to cook with (like camping!)
• Eggs, Milk, Butter. A simple price comparison (and I realize our prices are higher here then many areas): Milk at Publix: $3.85, Milk at BJ's: $3.29. Eggs at Publix $1.60ish, Eggs at BJ's $6ish for 5 dozen (so about $1.20/dz ). Butter is usually about $2.50 for 4 sticks at BJ's and that's generally a sale price at Publix.
• Meat. Here's one example from a sale a few weeks back. Publix Ground Turkey was on sale for $2.69/lb. Ground Turkey is regularly priced $2.29/lb at BJ's. This is similar across all meats. There are times where Publix (or Winn-Dixie) has a great sale on meat, but generally it's still cheaper at BJ's then the sale price at Publix. Of course if I can make a deal happen at Publix where I get $X off Meat wyb some item, I try to do that, but only if the item I have to buy is a good deal.
• Some produce. If I need a lot of some produce it's often cheaper to buy at BJ's. Like say I'm going to make stuffed peppers, it's about $5 for a 6 count bag (and these are good size red peppers). I often buy salad from there because I can get a large container of organic salad for $5ish. Considering the BOGO price for regular salad is generally $3.99 for two, and the amount in this container is about 4 of those bags and organic, I'd say it's a better deal.
• Bread Products. Sure occasionally good deals come with coupons at Publix, but a lot of times I can get it for the same price at BJ's. I consistently buy hamburger and hotdog buns from there, as it is always $1.99 for 16. The bread we like (Martins Wheat Potato bread) is consistently about $5 for 2 loaves when it is about $4 for one at Publix. Even regular bread is fairly cheap there.
• Pet items. If your dog or cat uses a typical brand pet food (like Dog Chow, Purina One), a lot of times the Warehouse club is the way to go. I've compared several stores on the price and a lot of time even with sales and coupons the warehouse club is cheaper.

I also have a great resource for those of you who live near BJ's. It is called MyBjsWholesale and it works a lot like iheartpublix. She lists the best deals she can find at BJ's using their coupon books, flyers, and policy for manufacturer's coupons. You'd be surprised what you can get for super cheap.

Emergency Prep: Don't Forget About Money

I've talked about emergency funds in a past segment here on Frugal and Provident, but they are just important to your emergency preperations as they are to your financial security. Here are some things to consider:

• When we prepare for disaster it should be for all kinds, including natural, manmade, and even economic. Having food, water, and money will help you weather just about anything.
• Emergency prep includes unexpected health problems and unexpected loss of income. You can't rely on credit cards to keep you afloat.
• Remember to have a supply of cash money on hand. Should there be a natural disaster are a number of reasons why you might need cash, and might not have access to atms or credit card machines.
• Every little bit counts when it comes to emergency funds. Ideally you want six months to a year of living expenses in the bank, but don't let that deter you from starting to save even if it is a small amount. While it's better not to have to go into debt at all, $500 of debt is better then $1000, $1000 is better then $2000, and so on. A little bit is just how much less you will have to pay back when you get back on your feet.
• The following things are not emergency funds: houses, cars, jewelry, belongings, credit cards, and retirement funds. A house is not a good source because as we've seen sometimes they're worth less then you owe, or are impossible to sell/ tap your equity in a bad market. Cars, jewelry, and other belongings aren't because there's no way to know if you'll be able to sell them or their worth when you need them. Credit cards just equal debt. Retirement funds are not meant to be emergency funds. Worst case scenario they are an option, but they come with a lot of risks when withdrawing early. Make sure you understand all penalties that may come from touching that money before you retire.

You'll feel so much more peaceful if you know you have some money put away.

Clever Tricks for Dealing with Weeds

The other day I saw this wonderful article on my homepage, and thought it would be great to share with you. Since it's warm out now, it's time to work on our lawns and gardens, and one of the most tricky things is dealing with weeds. Check-out the article for a list of 10 homemade ways to deal with weeds. I'm all for the natural ways to deal with things, as I just don't like the idea of using tons of chemicals in the places where my daughter plays. I also love the last idea about just living with it. Some weeds it's worth it to get rid of, but I see plenty of ground cover weeds that I actually think look pretty as they have pretty little flowers on them, and they seem to grow where our grass just does not want to.

Does anyone else have any tips for dealing with weeds or gardens in general? I'd love to hear them! Comment below and I may use them in a future post.

Meal Plan Monday

Our refridgerator is having issues, and the part they ordered won't be here until today or tomorrow, so the beginning of the week will be simpler meals since I had to transplant all of the inside freezer to our chest freezer and so I can't hardly get to anything. :-/

Monday- Pasta with Chicken Sausage, Tomatoes, and Broccoli
Tuesday- Unsure... (might just be DIY or burgers/hotdogs)
Wednesday- Grilled Chicken, Couscous, Veggie
Thursday- Pork Chops, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Veggie
Friday- Pizza
Saturday- Pretzel Chicken Nuggets, Mashed Potatoes, Veggie
Sunday- Leftovers/DIY
What's your menu for the week?

Don't forget to link up or leave a comment with your meal plan or recipe below!

And the Winner Is...

And the randomly selected winner of the Seventh Generation Giftpack provided by MyBlogSpark and Seventh Generation  is....

Lindsey!

Congratulations! Be looking for an email from me shortly.

Thanks again to everyone who entered!

Also, for those who didn't win, they let me know that they have another $2/1 coupon available, which you can find here. These are definitely some nice high value coupons for these diapers!

Meal Plan Monday

I have family in town this week, so as you can see it's a lot of simple meals.

Monday- Burgers, Corn, Potato Chips
Tuesday- Out for Cheesesteaks
Wednesday- Pizza
Thursday- Hotdogs, Mac and Cheese, Veggie
Friday- Chick-fil-a (It's Cow Appreciation Day!)
Saturday- Pasta with Meat Sauce, Veggie
Sunday- Leftovers/DIY
What's your menu for the week?
Don't forget to link up below!