I'm back!
I noticed that my last post was in October of 2010 (wow!) A TON has happened and we have added a sweet little boy to our family (he's 9months now!)
I hope to get back to posting more often, and showing you all some of my new and upcoming projects!

This is how we save $$ in the budget!

I did my shopping today! I'm kind of on a high cloud right now!
Here's the breakdown in photo order:
(meijer trip)
(2) Friskies treats FREE $1ea -2 $1 coupons
(2) Pepperoni FREE $1ea -2 $.55c doubled to $1ea
(2) Travel Deo FREE $1ea -2 $1 coupons
(2) Travel Tide FREE $1ea -2 $1 coupons
(2) Butter tubs FREE $1ea -2 $.50c doubled to $1ea
(4) Canning lids $.49c ea = $1.49 -4 $1 coupons
(4) Barilla pasta $.25c ea = $1ea-2 $1/2 coupons stacked with 1-$1 off 4 meijer coupon
(2) HV dressing $.31c ea = $2.81-2 $2 coupons stacked with 1 $1 off 2 meijer coupon
(1) Meijer brand coffee $2.89 (no coupon)
(1) 4.75lb of chicken $.75c = $3.75- 1 $3 off any chicken or beef purchase coupon (catalina printed from when I got all that taco seasoning last time! Which was also free by the way! So basically I got 6pk seasoning and 4.75lb of chicken for $.75 after coupons!)
TOTAL Out of pocket was $7.97 for everything in the picture!!! I saved $24.92 by using coupons!

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(Kroger Trip)
I wont do a break down of this trip because there was so much other stuff I didn't get on sale/with coupon, but some of the highlights are:
B1G1 free on the eggs, so I got 4doz for $2
Arm & Hammer laundry pwd was free with the coupon I got from the manafacturer, saved $6.29
Tasters Choice packets were $.09 after $1 coupon
Dawn Hand soap was $.47c each after using 2 $1 coupons
Right Guard deo was $1ea after using 2 $3 off 2 coupons
Edge shave gel was B1G1 free with coupon
(I'll tell you about the rest of the items in the next picture)
Total spent at Kroger was $39.95 but I saved $68.92 after sales and coupons!

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This is my favorite! All the free items combined from both stores! (forgot to picture the free Arm & Hammer detg powder)
2 Friskies Party Mix FREE! $1ea - 2 $1 coupons
2 Degree travel deo FREE $1ea - 2 $1 coupons
2 Tide detg travel FREE $1ea - 2 $1 coupons
10 Philli cream cheese FREE $.99ea- 2 $5/5 Kraft product coupons
5 Butter tubs FREE $1ea - 5 $.50c coupons doubled to $1
2 organic tomato paste FREE $.99ea - 2 $.75 coupons doubled to $1
2 pepperoni FREE $1ea - 2 $.55 coupons doubled to $1
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I know it's hard for some of ya'll to have the time to clip coupons, check sales and actually go get things, but it is sooooooo worth it! Creating a stockpile is such a big help in those down times when we won't have the money to get butter, pasta or cream cheese. I owe most (not all ! ;p) of these deals to www.moneysavingmom.com and www.happyhomemakercindy.com !

Today Is Mega Swagbucks Day!

Today is MEGA Swagbucks Day at Swagbucks.com!

Every Friday is Mega Swag Bucks Day (MSBD), which means better odds of winning our BIG Swag Bucks denominations! Simply search naturally, and with a little luck, you’ll be winning large bills starting at 20 Swag Bucks and up.

Mega swagbucks is only on Friday but you can still win $10 to $50 Swagbucks any other day!

Not a member of swagbucks? Join HERE (you get 30 swagbucks for registering)

**Remember you can get a $5 Amazon.com gift card with only 450 swagbucks! I've already gotten some and added them to my Amazon account! (letting them accumulate!) ***

Shopping Trip 10/4/10

It's been soooooo long since I posted a grocery trip! (probably because I haven't gotten the deals lately!)
Well today I was just plum tickled with everything I got at Meijer! Here is the breakdown:

1 loaf oat bread $2.50 - $.55 doubled to $1.00 = $1.50

Oreo double stuff $2.98 - $1.00 coupon = $1.98

4doz eggs $.99ea x4 = $3.96 - 2 B1G1 free coupons = $1.98 For 4 dozen!

4 Nivea lip care $.99ea x 4 =$3.96 - 2 $2.00 off 2 lip care coupons = all FREE!

Tide travel detg $.99 - $1.00 coupon = FREE!

6 Taco Seasoning $.75ea = $4.50 - 6 $.5o coupons doubled up to $.75 = all 6pks for FREE!

Total OOP= $5.46!
And since I bought 6 Old El Paso taco seasoning, I got a catalina coupon for $3.00 off my next beef or chicken purchase! (Which, paired with a sale, will make a great freezer burritos will all the taco seasoning I just got!)

I got some other items not pictured, these are just the ones I used coupons on, but I still only spent $15.06 on all the groceries I bought today!
My receipt shows a savings total of $31.42!
Coupon savings of $ 14.46 +$5.00 meijer coupon,
so I saved $19.46 by using coupons today!
Awesome!

WooHoo! It's Mega Swagbucks Friday!

Today is MEGA Swagbucks Day at Swagbucks.com!

Every Friday is Mega Swag Bucks Day (MSBD), which means better odds of winning our BIG Swag Bucks denominations! Simply search naturally, and with a little luck, you’ll be winning large bills starting at 20 Swag Bucks and up.

Mega swagbucks is only on Friday but you can still win $10 to $50 Swagbucks any other day!

Not a member of swagbucks? Join HERE (you get 30 swagbucks for registering)

**Remember you can get a $5 Amazon.com gift card with only 450 swagbucks! I'm 1/3 of the way to my KitchenAid grain mill attachment already! (I hope to get it before the end of the year!)***

Gloomy day snack

Today is such a gloomy day! 55degrees and raining.
I was going through the fridge around lunch and remembered I had this pkg of corn tortillas in the freezer! Naturally tortilla chips are on the menu for today. ;)
I'm not a big fan of corn torillas for tacos and such, but I had gotten these free (after using a coupon of course!) and thought about future experiments!

1. Cut into 1/8ths
2. Spread out on cookie sheet in single layer
3. Using a pastry brush, brush the pieces lightly with oil (or you can use a spray oil)
4. Sprinkle with salt and taco seasoning (you can use whatever seasoning you like!)
5. Bake at 350 for 10min, stir around, and continue baking and stirring (5min intervals) Until they reach golden brown!

Tada! Just as good as the mexican restaurant !

Cellar Space

This is a before picture in part of the cellar! The old shelf was there when we moved in, and my canning for this year was overflowing, and I needed another shelf! (the cardboard flats were disintegrating from the moisture & mold we had trouble with before we got a dehumidifier, thankfully we now have one!)

This is the other shelf my wonderful hubby
made fore me! He used leftover materials from a job to put it together and it's VERY sturdy!

(Sorry about the underlining, I can't figure out how to take it off!)

Here is everything afterwards! All organized and on the shelves, no cardboard or clutter!
We are working on the cellar one step at a time to make it look as nice as we can! Hope to paint the walls and floor, replace windows and put the ductwork up in the floor joists so we don't have to duck under them all the time!