Works-For-Me Wendesday: Using the Coffee Maker With Ease

Good morning and welcome to this installment of Works-For-Me Wednesday. Once again, thanks to Shannon for her lovely idea and please visit her blog to view all the other great participants. Please swing by and visit last week's installment where I shared how you can make that old awful spice rack usable again!

Today I am going to talk a little bit about my single cup coffee maker. My husband purchased this gadget for me as a gift because I make horrible coffee. Not just horrible coffee, but HORRIBLE coffee. Make-you-grow-hair-on-your-chest-and-chew-the-coffee-for-days coffee. With this in mind, he decided to get me a coffee maker that is great for the novice at brewing coffee. Unfortunately, you can only fit short coffee mugs under this brewing machine and what I really want to do is pour this coffee directly into a thermos cup so I can take my coffee to go. I also had trouble stirring the ingredients once I poured the coffee into the thermos cup because it was too tall and my stirrer wasn't tall enough. This became a huge mess every morning and I ended up with more coffee on my counter (from the pouring and the stirring) then I ended up with in my cup.

I came up with the idea of pouring my coffee directly into a glass measuring cup. I pop the measuring cup in and have it brewed directly into that. Then I pour in my milk and sugar (the measuring cup helps to keep accurate measurements of how much milk I like in my coffee), stir it up, and easily pour it into the thermos mug. This idea could also be applied with regular coffee makers if you are brewing just one or two cups.

I also cover the measuring cup with plastic wrap and let it chill overnight for iced coffees in the morning. Squirt a little chocolate syrup, add some milk, add a little sugar and you have a delicious drink for those hot summer mornings.

If you are interested in more coffee talk, you can visit Coffee Geek & Single Serve Coffee for great forums on sharing on how to make that perfect cup.

Our Sisterwoman Circle

I don't know if you have had a chance to visit our circle of girlfriends yet, on Sisterwoman.com, but I just wanted to extend the invitation today. If you aren't familiar with Sisterwoman.com, it is the first online community to celebrate and nurture women's real-life "SisterCircles," while also fostering connections to new girlfriends from around the world. It allows women to easily share experiences, emotions, and advice, and to exchange information such as videos, photos, and social calendars. Sisterwoman.com gives girlfriends an easy way to stay in touch despite increasingly hectic lives. I hope you can get a chance to stop by today because it is a great way to interact, ask questions from other moms, and just give us an opportunity to connect with one other. Thanks to Sisterwoman.com for choosing us as one of their Sister Sites!

Visit the Traveling Shows

The Carnival of Debt Reduction (#37) is being hosted by Kirby on Finance. Our Thirteen Easy Ways to Save Money was featured in this carnival. The Debt Defier will be hosting next week's carnival. Thanks to Kirby on Finance for doing such a great job, particularly over a holiday weekend!

The Carnival of Personal Finance (#50) is being hosted by My Open Wallet. Our Simplifying Gift Giving made the cut for this carnival. Thanks to My Open Wallet for doing such a great job hosting. There are tons of great reads in this one and it is all color-coded for your viewing pleasure. Mapgirl's Fiscal Challenge will be hosting this carnival next week.

Finally, my favorite one of all, The Festival of Frugality (#25) is being hosted by Mighty Bargain Hunter. Our Making the Spice Rack Usable was the selection featured in this festival. Value Investing, & A Few Cigar Butts will be hosting the festival next week.

All of the traveling shows were great (as were the lovely hosts). These were my three picks for good reads this week:

Lesser Known Debit Card Fees is a great read. I don't have a debit card, but if I did, I would be reading this article. It was something that I certainly wasn't aware of!

How about a College Tuition Estimator Calculator? All I have to say is, I hope my kids can play ball and/or are smart because momma doesn't have that kind of money!

Frugal Fundraising for School is probably my most favorite. I hate being the cheap mom at school, but I am not buying forty dollar tins of candy so that the school can make five dollars. This article shares some great fundraising options that don't break the bank!

Monday WAHM Spotlight: Mom Execs

We would like to congratulate Liz Latham on being chosen as our Monday WAHM for MomAdvice.com. We wish her much success in her business and with her family.
If you are interested in being featured, we will be selecting a mom for each Monday of my blog. You can read more and apply. Email confirmations are sent to each mom if they are chosen.
Please remember to do your own research on these companies. If there are obvious red flags on BBB, I do not post them. Check my scam article to find out more about the potential dangers of work-at-home businesses.

Thank you to Liz and her WAHM business, Mom Execs, for taking the time to apply and be a part of my Monday feature! Liz is also advertises on our homepage and is a wonderful contributer to our forum.

Name: Liz Latham

City/State: LaPorte, Indiana

Name of Company: Mom Execs

Website Name: http://www.momexecs.com/cgi-bin/team.cgi?id=Li32264&action=show

Two or Three Sentences About Your Company:

Melaleuca, Inc. is a wellness company. We have products for our home and our bodies that are non-toxic and chemical free. We do not sell the products or host home parties.

Two Tips for Moms Trying to Work-At-Home (these tips can be how you stay organized, how to be successful, how to get started- anything that you feel would help someone just starting out):

1. I would like to advise WAHM's to stay organized by scheduling everything, right down to the day you clean the toilets.
2. Morning and evening routines are great time savers too, this will give you more time to work your business and spend time with your family.

Frugal Graduation Gifts

I discussed a few ways that we save money on gift-giving in my last blog entry and now I would like to share a few ideas that I use, in particular, for graduation gifts.

Here are just a few of my favorite gifts for the graduates in my life:

Food Kit: My food kit is all put together inside of a dish tub. Within the dish tub, I provide a set of four place settings (plastic forks, knifes, spoons, bowls, & plates) and a sponge & dish soap for doing their dishes. I also put in Ramen Noodles, Cup of Noodles, and any other food that I can find that can easily be prepared in their room. Just tie a bow on the outside and know that this is a gift that they will actually use.

Laundry Kit: This is one of my favorite gifts for a graduate. Just assemble everything in a laundry basket and tie a bow on the handles of the basket. Inside stick a roll of quarters, a mesh laundry bag, detergent, fabric softener sheets, a Downy Ball and you can put together a tutorial for them on how to treat stains and easy directions on how to do their laundry. Step-by-step instructions, for the newbie to doing laundry, (as many graduates are!) can be found here and ten tips for the perfect wash can also be given to them too. If you are even more ambitious than that, you can put these things in a binder for the graduate and include your own tips and recipes for getting stains out.

Coupon Queen: One of my favorite things to ever get in the mail, when I was in college, was a care package…from ANYONE! Giving the graduate coupons for care packages can be a very frugal gift and one that they can enjoy throughout their first year in college. Coupons can be assembled with a self-addressed stamped envelope. I like to provide a menu of choices and let them write on the coupon what they would specifically like. I include simple family favorites that can easily be packaged and enjoyed by them. Cookies can be shipped to them in empty Pringles containers or in Christmas tins. Bar cookies are very good choices for your menu options because they hold up well in the shipping process.

Gifts for a graduate who is not planning on attending college or who will be attending a community college can be a challenge. Many of the gifts, traditionally given to a graduate, are made for those who are going away to school. For these graduates an organizer or a journal can be a wonderful and thoughtful gift option. Address books, so that the graduate can record where all of their friends are going, are also nice for them.

The important thing, in my opinion, is to offer a gift that they can actually use. I can’t tell you how many books I got for my graduation- the infamous Dr. Suess book, Chicken Soup for the Soul books, and coffee table books. These are nice, but are usually read once and put away. I rarely reread them and they ended up collecting dust on my shelf. I am disappointed when gifts I give are not used because, to me, it is like money going down the drain. Don’t be afraid to ask your graduate what they are in need of so that your gift is actually used!

If you are the mother of a graduate, I wish you congratulations on making it this far with your child. You should be so proud of both of you!

Feel free to include ideas of your own for graduates and drop them in our comments box below!

Simplifying Gift Giving

It is that time of year again- weddings, babies, & graduation gifts all seem to happen during the summer. The summer is a time of stress for our family because it seems like everyone in our family has a summer birthday. With all of these obligations, we find ourselves buying presents left & right. It is hard to stay within a budget and be creative with gift-giving when we have four gifts to get in one month. Yes, I know that gifts are optional, but skipping out on gift-giving with my mother & father would be a little frugal (even for me) and I do want to show my appreciation even in my own small ways.

One of my solutions to gift-giving is to keep a shelf in our basement for gifts. If I run across something at the Dollar Tree or find something that has been clearanced out at Target, I just keep it on the shelf for those unexpected gifts or to beef up a less expensive gift that I have bought.

Another solution to help with buying gifts is to regift things. For example, my son, who is three, had a big birthday party and we asked for anything & everything dinosaur related. We ended up with a couple duplicates and are saving them for the birthday parties he attends. Obviously, you want to be aware of who gave you the gift. My solution is a post-it note stuck somewhere on the gift with the person's name who gave it to us. This really helps relieve the anxiety of regifting to the wrong person.

I also hoard bags, tissue paper, ribbons, boxes- basically anything that I can salvage for another person's gift. This cuts down on the cost of wrapping your gift and allows you to spend the extra two dollars on the gift itself.

I am not a big card person and really only send out cards to thank people, anniversaries, and when someone in our family is ill. In gifts though, I take the cheap route and skip the card. I like to purchase the scrapbooking squares and sheets of paper, stamp it with a cute little stamp, use my funky edged scissor-thingies, (can you tell I am NOT a scrapbooker?) punch a hole in one side and then ribbon it through to tie the gift up. I make all of my gift tags for Christmas and it adds a personal touch without a card (which most people end up throwing away anyway!).

Finally, don't think of yourself as cheap, but think of yourself as creative when it comes to gifts. Some of my most impressive gifts were ones that were inexpensively made, but had my personal touch on them. I am not crafty, I do not sew, and I can only draw stick figures (if that!) so you do not need to have skills like these to make a gift special.

The gifts that I remember are the ones that were made with love and personalized for me. Try and remember that gift-giving on a budget does not reflect that you don't care about someone just as much as the next person, but it means that you are a smart cookie and aren't going to be paying for those gifts for years to come.

Friday Freebie: Free Money

Last week I shared a simple way you can earn free Starbucks Coffee through MyPoints. This week I want to share another great way you can earn a little extra while doing your regular online shopping.

Just last week I ran across Ebates. I have absolutely no idea how I have not run across this site before. This has got to be one of the best deals out there for reward shopping that I have seen yet.

With Ebates they will pay you cash back whenever you shop online (up to 25%). They have tons of stores that I already shop at, including Barnes & Noble, the Gap, and Target. They actually have over 800 places you can shop, so there should be something for everyone in this rewards program.

They also list tons of great coupons, free shipping deals, and sales from these stores so you can stay on top of ways to save even more. You can check them out on Ebates.com or sign up for their weekly newsletter to have them alert you to any new deals.

The best part is they have a sign-up bonus that'll pay you $5 for joining (this is pending after you make one online purchase). After you sign up and buy something, they'll put the $5 in your account and include it in your next "Big Fat Check".

They send out their "Big Fat Check," every three months as long as you have earned over $5.01. You can receive this money in the form of a check or it can be moved right into your PayPal account. They also offer an opportunity for you to donate your "Big Fat Check" to charity where you can give back to deserving organizations.

The main thing that I really appreciate about this site is that they also have a download that can help alert you when you are shopping. They call him the Moe Money Maker and it just basically has a pop-up that lets you know if you are on a site that could reward you. It will pop up at the bottom of the screen and it gives you the opportunity to link through Ebates to help make sure you get every reward opportunity you can.

I love MyPoints, but the thing that always bums me out with them is that half the time I am shopping and just completely forget to even check there. They also add new stores and deals and I don't take advantage of them because I am not aware of them.

Take advantage of the free money and the great savings when doing your online shopping. This is not an excuse to shop..I repeat, this is NOT an excuse to shop...But if you need to shop for something- it is there!

Please stop by our poll and share your favorite summertime activity with the kids!

Thursday Thirteen: Easy Ways to Save Your Family Money

Welcome to the Thursday Thirteen! Here are just thirteen ideas for ways you can be saving your family money!

1. Compare, compare, compare. Don’t ever believe that you have the best rate on anything. Even your junk mail can really pay off if you read it thoroughly. I received a letter from an auto insurance company that I actually called on and saved us fifty bucks a month by switching my insurance. You can compare rates easily and effectively using Lower My Bills. It is worth your time and you can compare everything from cell phone rates, to internet rates, insurance, credit card rates, & mortgage rates all in one place. Best of all- it is free!

2. Entertainment Books can be a great way to save your family money on everything from trips to dinner to putt-putt golf. This handy little book has a lot of great two for one meals for the family. Maybe you are like me and you don’t eat out a lot? Well, these coupons are still great for all of those celebration dinners (birthdays, wedding anniversary, Valentines Day, etc..). Pick a place out of that book and save yourself enough cash that you can swing going to a movie into your budget. It only takes one coupon for this little baby to pay for itself.

3. Here is a novel idea…stay home. Yup, that will save your family a whole bunch of money. If you are not running around using up gas and shopping your little heart out, you will save yourself some easy cash.

4. Take advantage of free things in your neck of the woods. Summertime is full of fun outdoor concerts, park activities, and outdoor festivals. There are so many fun things to do in the summer that are free or cheap. Fill your time with activities like these rather than a trip to the mall!

5. ‘Tis the season for garage sale shopping! I have already got my start on shopping this past weekend and scored some serious deals. Be sure to start jotting down things that you would like to find so when you arrive at the sales, you will know just what to look for. Oh, and pack lots of snacks for the road so you aren’t suckered into two dollar sodas that the garage sale hostess is trying to get you to buy on a hot summer day. A small cooler can keep snacks in your car and limit your spending on trivial things at the sale.

6. Use your library! Use the library for the obvious (books, duh!), but also use it for the lesser known things that you can get from it. Want to pick up a few movies? How about the library? Want to learn a new skill? How about the library? Need some new art for your walls, but don’t want to make the investment? How about the library? Want to try out toys for your children, but not sure if you want to spend the money? Did you check the library? Our library has all sorts of valuable resources that we can take advantage of and it is all free! Don’t forget to take advantage of all of those summer book reading programs- your kids can score some great freebies for reading this summer!

7. Score some free reading material. You can read more here on some great ways to get free magazines. And when you are done with your free magazines, trade with your girlfriend, and when you are done with those, trade again. The free reads just keep on rolling and you don’t have stacks of magazines collecting dust in the corners of your room.

8. I am actually going to write a full article on this, but I will give you a sneak peek- how about doing a little organizing around your house? If you are organized you avoid buying repeat items, use the things you have, and it will save you some time in the process.

9. Learn how to make stuff. If there is something that you enjoy, whether it be something you eat or something that you use, find out how you can make it yourself. Just do an internet search and Google what you are looking for. Things that you don’t think you can make can be found because someone else was out there trying to figure the same exact thing out.

10. So you want to know how to save some money? Well, how about saving some money. Just put it into an ING Account and earn 4.15% interest on your savings. Create this fund and name what you want it to go towards- Christmas, Dream Car, or Safety Net is just a few ideas for your account name.

11. Ebay the stuff that you aren’t using around your house. Ebay is simple and relatively pain-free. I have just started selling things on Ebay and I get a rush when I am taking stuff out of our home and getting money for the items we don’t use. In the same regard, if you are looking for something- check Ebay before going to a retail store. There are tons of brand spankin’ new items that you can find for a really low price. Just be careful to not get too caught up in the bidding or you could end up spending more than what you bargained for.

12. Visit sites that help to inspire you to save your money. Hillbilly Housewife, Dollar Stretcher, and MomAdvice (just to name a few!)

13. Last, but not least…recognize that free does not always mean free. For example, if your family offers to take you out to dinner and both of your kids are screaming their heads off and throwing fits during dinner and you are frantically trying to entertain them and miss out on even eating your food…yeah, well, that dinner was NOT free. You will just have to trust me on this one!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Making Your Spice Rack Usable

Welcome to this edition of the Works-For-Me-Wednesday spot. Be sure to check out last week's ideas where I show you how to reinvent your closet space.

When my husband and I first got married, we purchased a very handy little spice rack. It was pre-loaded with all of the spices and all we had to do was dump them into the labeled jars and they were ready to use. Last year I realized though that all of the spices just sat there unused. I decided to dump them out and then thought to myself, "Why would I reload this spice rack with the same spices that I never used?" Instead, I decided to whip out my trusty label maker and redo the labels with things *I* would actually use. Things like that Pasta Magic Blend, Garlic Salt, Italian Seasoning Mix, Cinnamon, & Confectioners Sugar (for dusting on my French Toast), and Garlic Powder....Spices that were not available to me with my previous labels.

This option was cheaper than purchasing a new spice rack and now I have the spices handy that I actually do use!

That is this week's installment of Works-For-Me-Wednesday. Be sure to visit Shannon's Blog for a whole slew of lovely ladies who are participating each week!

MotherLoad Picks of the Week

Here are my picks for good reads this week...

Good Morning America is doing a series called, "$100 a Day in May." They show how you can find free money each day in May. Lots of great tips, but my favorite was May 18th when they sent two designers out to the Dollar General to find decorations for a party ($75 limit). They had some cute ideas that would be nice for a summer party or a child's birthday party. Check back each day to get more ideas for ways you can be maximizing your dollars.

A Food Year is a great blog where you can get a new dinner idea for each and every single day! Ken Sloan is on a quest to try a new dish each day, document his review, gives you the recipe, and provides a photograph of his masterpiece.

Getting Out of Debt has some great frugal gardening tips, that could help even the most experienced gardener. I do not garden. I make things die...a rapid death. I love those who garden though so that is why I am including that one!

Boston Gal's Open Wallet shares a great freebie that is worth looking into (if you are a contact wearer). Bausch & Lomb has created a Wear & Care program. If you sign-up they will send you a kit which includes 12 contact lens cases, wear & care CD, care and cleaning mirror stickers, free trial certificate for Bausch & Lomb PureVision contact lenses, information about Bausch & Lomb eye vitamins, and coupons for Bausch & Lomb ReNu MultiPlus solution.

Don't forget to take this week's poll on your favorite summertime activities!

Festival of Frugality #24

This is my absolute favorite day because I get to share the Festival of Frugality with all of you. The lovely librarian over at Tired But Happy is hosting this week and there are lots of goodies in store for everyone.

My top three picks for this week-

Young and Broke shares some really great tips on finding some super cheap wine. Her favorites just happen to be a few of our own favorites and are definitely worth taking a peek at. I just wish we could take advantage of the wine at Trader Joes, but unfortunately we don't have a store near us (hopefully someday!). To save more money, check your local warehouse stores for some sweet deals on wine. If you haven't read the book on warehouse shopping (I refer to it as a book now considering how big that article turned out), I would highly recommend it.

The Family CEO strikes again sharing her own savings site reviews. Lots of great information on how to take advantage of these sites and what they reward their customers with. Check my blog entry on MyPoints too for how I get my coffee for free.

Last but not least, Free Money Finance shares one simple way you can reduce your bills...drop your cable. He shares the savings and shows how the price consistently rises on cable television.

Monday WAHM Spotlight: Life By Design

We would like to congratulate Tonya Ramsey on being chosen as our Monday WAHM for MomAdvice.com. We wish her much success in her business and with her family.

If you are interested in being featured, we will be selecting a mom for each Monday of my blog. You can read more and apply. Email confirmations are sent to each mom if they are chosen.

Please remember to do your own research on these companies. If there are obvious red flags on BBB, I do not post them. Check my scam article to find out more about the potential dangers of work-at-home businesses.

Thank you to Tonya and her WAHM business, Life By Design, for taking the time to apply and be a part of my Monday feature!

Name: Tonya Ramsey

City/State: Beloit, WI

Name of Company: Life By Design

Website Name: www.lifebydesignsite.com

Two or Three Sentences About Your Company:

Life By Design is dedicated to helping working mothers learn how to balance their lives. Through coaching you will get the support you need to move forward by accomplishing your goals.

Two Tips for Moms Trying to Work-At-Home (these tips can be how you stay organized, how to be successful, how to get started- anything that you feel would help someone just starting out):

1. When starting out as a WAHM it may be frustrating because your time is unstructured. You might bounce back and forth between too much work time and not enough work time. Evaluate your day, decide what needs to be done both with work and with your regular family and home responsibilities. Then draw up a schedule, remember this is YOUR schedule you can be as flexible as you need to be as long as all your work and family to-do's are met each day.

2. Sometimes being a WAHM means empty bottles and stray toys on your desk. By decreasing clutter you will be more productive when it is work time. Have a workspace that is separate and use only for work. At the end of the day remove all stray items that don't belong. Stay organized by giving everything it's own place and doing a daily clean up to make sure that items get returned to their place.

Sunday Poll: Favorite Summertime Activity

What is your favorite summertime activity?
	Outdoor Concerts
	Fair
	Zoo
	Riding Bikes
	Beach
	Day Trips
	Gardening
	Parks
	Picnics
	Other
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Sunday Poll Results: Who Taught You To Save?

Thanks to everyone for taking our poll for the week. If you would like to review these results, you can view them here.

The results concluded that most of us have taught ourselves how to be frugal. We should all be so proud (*patting self on the back*) for learning how to save money.

I felt like I learned the most from a little book called, "The Tightwad Gazette." If you haven't gotten this book, I highly recommend it because it made such an impact on how I look at things in my home and how little I really need. Many of the ideas, to me, were very extreme and ones that I would not personally follow, but I am able to overlook that and look to the things that would truly benefit me & my family. Whenever I need a little frugal inspiration, I get my copy of this book out and start reading. Each time I come away with something new that I have learned (no matter how many times I have read it!)

I am also a self-taught frugal momma. I wanted to stay home with my son in the worst way and I was willing to do whatever it took to make that possible. I checked out books, read countless articles, visited websites, shared on forums and became a human sponge- absorbing everything & anything that I could get my hands on. We barely made ends meet for a long time and are just now experiencing a bit of breathing room in our finances. This "breathing room" is getting socked away for a rainy day so that we have this money if things should change unexpectedly.

Thank you all for taking the time to take our poll. Be sure to take our poll this week on your favorite summertime activities!

Taking a Personal Day

I am taking a day off from blogging today because it is our sixth wedding anniversary. My in-laws are watching the kiddos for us so that we can have an evening out together. It is not every day that you get an opportunity to have free babysitting AND a dinner out. I am just going to spend the day with the kids today, but feel a certain sense of obligation to let my "bosses" know where I am at. For all I know, I could be the only one reading this blog, but it never hurts to report to your superiors, right?

Just so you know, there has been quite a bit of activity on our forum recently so feel free to browse around there and share some of your own tips! We also have our one month of slow cooking article up so you can take a break from that hot kitchen and enjoy your days outside this summer.

Saturday is usually reserved for posting the latest sales so you can click here and here for the best bargains around this month.

I hope you guys have a great Saturday and I will be reporting for duty tomorrow!

Friday Freebie: Starbucks Coffee

If you have been reading my blog at all, you will know that I have an extremely bad coffee addiction. I can’t live without my coffee and my favorite coffee in the world is Starbucks. There is nothing better than their Peppermint Mochas and I swear that I could drink one of these every single day. It is unfortunate that these are over three dollars (for a small!) so I have to find a way to feed the addiction without breaking the bank.

I have been a part of MyPoints forever and last year they started offering Starbucks gift cards in exchange for the points that you earn. MyPoints is basically a website where you can earn points for shopping, taking surveys, and opening emails from their sponsors. These points can then be used towards a gift card of your choice. They offer gift cards to just about anywhere, and these can be used on yourself or can be given as a gift to a family member.

I don’t use the points as an excuse to shop, but I do shop where I can earn points. I do a lot of my holiday shopping through this site and find it neat to be able to shop while working towards a goal of free coffee. I try to aim for gifts that reward you with the most points.

Be sure to sign up to receive their emails because each one you open is worth five points! These points add up quickly and all you have to do is open your email box to receive the points.

I hope you can enjoy a coffee on MyPoints too- gotta love your Freebie Friday!

Tomorrow our poll will be closing- be sure to cast your vote!

Thursday Thirteen: Thirteen Frugal Momma Bath Tips

Welcome to the Thursday Thirteen over at the good old MotherLoad. I thought it might be fun to come up with a few ideas for saving money at bath time in your house and also share a few frugal recipes that you can use to make bath time special for your little ones. Please remember to take this week’s poll & click our comments box at the bottom of the post to share about you & your family. I love to hear from you and there really is nothing more exciting (well, maybe a FEW things!) than seeing that people have left comments on my posts.

Thirteen Frugal Momma Bath Tips

1. Here is a recipe for homemade bathtub crayons. These can also double as a great stocking stuffer for Christmas or another fun item in your child’s Easter Basket.

Bathtub Crayons

1 Cup grated Ivory soap
¼ cup warm water
Food Coloring Plastic cookie cutters or hard candy molds

Directions: Mix water, soap and food coloring together in bowl. Remove the mixture from bowl and knead it until it’s the consistency of thick dough. Spoon mixture into plastic cookie cutters or candy molds. Place the cookie cutters or molds in the freezer for 10 minutes or longer. Pop the crayons out of the cookie cutters and allow them to dry overnight.

2. Don't buy expensive bath toys. My favorite bath toys, as a child, were my mother’s Tupperware collection. The bath toys that she bought were not as much fun as pretending to cook or collecting water to dump.

3. When you wash your shower curtain liner you can just toss the bath toys in with the liner to be washed. This periodic washing will cut down on germs.

4. Use a child’s sand pail to put all of your bathing supplies in for your baby. When they get older, they can then use this as a toy. This will save you from running back and forth to get all of the items that you need for bath time.

5. Yet another recipe for fun in the tub…

Bubble Bath Finger Paints
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt,
Food coloring
Bubble bath (not the foamy type)
Water

Directions: Mix water with the flour until you get a paste. Add food coloring and bubble bath until you get the thickness you like. This works well in the bath tub. They can paint themselves or the walls and it washes right off. It may turn the water the color of the food coloring but it won't stain the child.

6. If you use the foamy hand soaps, save your pump and reuse it for your child’s bodywash. Simply refill the pump with a third of your child’s favorite bodywash and then top it off with water. Give it a little shake and you have fun foamy soap for a fraction of the price!

7. Make your own hair detangler by combining one part conditioner with ten parts water. Mix well and pour into a spray bottle.

8. Reuse an old mesh laundry bag for all storing all of your bath toys. The mesh will allow all of the water to drain from the toys and the bag can easily be hung from the string or handles.

9. Use the bubble bath finger paints as a teaching tool for your children. You can write letters and numbers for smaller children, and as they get older, work on addition and subtraction. It can make learning time fun without the investment of those foam letters and numbers.

10. Skip buying a baby tub (unless you receive one as a gift) and use your sink instead. We love bathing our little one in the sink and it is easier on my back because I am not leaning down into a tub. When they get bigger (but are still not big enough for a regular tub), use a plastic laundry basket to bathe them in.

11. Don’t buy special baby towels- these are a waste of money. You can just use the towels that you already have on hand to wrap baby in. If you really like the hood on the baby bath towels, you can easily make your own. Look here for these simple instructions.

12. Make a frugal bathtime gift for a family member. When I was in college, I made these as a Mother’s Day gift for the moms in my life. I purchased inexpensive bottles at Walmart and tied a bow at the top of the bottle. This is a very simple craft that you could do with your children and makes a lovely gift for any occasion. One warning- GO EASY on the food coloring. Don’t ask me why I know this, but just trust me! Grandma won’t think this is such a great gift if she is a dark shade of blue…

Homemade Bath Salts

1-4 lb. bag Epsom salt (this can be purchased at any drugstore)
Food Coloring or Powdered Cake coloring (Powdered Cake coloring can be purchased at a cake decorating store or craft store)
Perfume or soap safe scents

Directions: Take a 4 lb. bag of Epsom salt and dump pour it into a bowl. Then add your food coloring to the salts and mix gently with a large spoon. You can add any essential oil or perfume that you would like to the mixture (or leave this out if your family member has sensitive skin). Pour the salts into a pretty bottle or a jar and tie a ribbon at the top. For foaming bath salts, add two tablespoons of glycerin to the mixture and toss this in gently.

13. Last but not least, save yourself some water and double the kids up in the bathtub or take a bath with your baby. This will save yourself some time so that you can do a little something for yourself, and you cut down on water usage at the same time!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Works-For-Me Wednesday: Maximizing Space

I am new to the Works-For-Me Wednesday idea, but I absolutely love it and thought it was a great way to showcase some of those hidden organizational ideas that I have in this small head of mine. Thank you to Shannon and her wonderful blog (Rocks In My Dryer- how cute is that?) for letting us participate. Be sure to visit her blog for great homemaking & parenting ideas.

Our house is a good size home, but it is one of those lovely quad homes (don't ask me who came up with this stupid floor plan!) which means most of my space is very broken and choppy. Our lower level had an enormous closet in the living room that we originally used to store our various games and basically throw any clutter we had laying around the house into it. After some thoughtful brainstorming, I thought that it would be great to actually use the closet so that the kids had more playing room. We took down the closet doors, framed the closet with curtains, painted & floored the interior of our closet and moved the entertainment center into it. It gave us a lot more free space and took attention away from the monstrosity of an entertainment unit. Now the television is no longer the focal point and can easily disappear with a shut of the curtains.

This same idea can be applied into creating a little home office or a cute place to put your changing table and free some space up in your own home!

Festival of Frugality #23

The Festival of Frugality (23rd Edition) is now posted and ready for your viewing pleasure.

My Saving on Groceries blog entry got in (just in time!) for this week's festival.

This week's was *seriously* packed with good information. Not that it isn't every week, but this week it seemed like I got something out of every single entry. My favorites though were Trivial Untruth & Make It- Don't Waste It.

Trivial Untruth really resonated with me because I could really understand where she was coming from. How many times have I thought it was the cashier's fault if they don't ring up my purchases and blame them for my own dishonesty? Her point about what that teaches our children really struck home and I am going to try and be more conscious of that in my daily life. I am a Christian so you would think that this would be a no-brainer, but unfortunately it isn't. We know I have issues with The Man because I can't stand for The Man to take my money, but not when it is compromising my honesty & how I appear to my children. I am not going to beat myself up over it, but I am going to be more aware of it!

Make It- Don't Waste It....well, what's not to love? Finding new ways to reuse things in our homes is always a great thing with me. I have plenty of stuff to work with over here! I particularly loved her idea of saving the cookie crumbs for ice cream & pudding toppings.

Thanks to Boston Gal's Open Wallet for hosting another amazing festival. I hope you guys can check out the entries.

Don't forget to take our poll today too (if you haven't already). I am inquiring on who has helped influence you the most in your management of money.

Latest Frugal Momma News

Mothers could be drawn out of home by job market
Analysis says highly educated stay-at-home moms are a great match for booming job market…Read More

Tips for Reducing Shipping Costs When Selling Your Stuff
Shipping costs are increasing. As they are one of the key disciplines of being an profitable eBay seller, here are some tips to help you maximize profits…Read More

50-year Mortgage Hits the Market
Lenders have begun offering a half-century home loan as incentive in face of record-high home prices, rising interest rates, report says…Read More

Everything’s Negotiable- Buying a Car
Between financing and haggling over price, buying a new car can be a complicated and daunting process, but it doesn't have to be…Read More

Lending Kids a Financial Hand
Getting their financial footing can be tough for young adults when first starting out. It's OK for parents to offer their support -- but how much is appropriate? Read More

How to Sell Gymboree on Ebay- The Truth
This is an old post that I ran across on selling clothing on Ebay. I have always wondered how the world of Ebay works. This lovely lady is sharing her Gymboree selling secrets…for free. No e-book, no hidden fees…just the cold hard truth…Read More

Monday WAHM Spotlight

Please be sure to take this week's poll & read the results from our grocery budget poll.

We would like to congratulate Kassandra Bragg on being chosen as our Monday WAHM for MomAdvice.com. We wish her much success in her business and with her family.If you are interested in being featured, we will be selecting a mom for each Monday of my blog. You can read more and apply. Email confirmations are sent to each mom if they are chosen.

Please remember to do your own research on these companies. If there are obvious red flags on BBB, I do not post them. Check my scam article to find out more about the potential dangers of work-at-home businesses.

Thanks again to Kassandra for being a part of our WAHM Spotlight!

Name: Kassandra Bragg

City/State: Carrollton, TX

Name of Company: Symmetry International

Website Name: http://www.weeklypay123.com

Two or Three Sentences About Your Company:

We are a new division of a 10 year old corporation based in Austin Texas. Presently we are operating in 18 countries, both profitably and debt free and expanding every year. Our executive staff has over 100 years of combined experience both in the field as well as the corporate setting. Most of my team members are in profit within their first 72 hours with my training & coaching.

Two Tips for Moms Trying to Work-At-Home (these tips can be how you stay organized, how to be successful, how to get started- anything that you feel would help someone just starting out):

1. Have a set schedule! Clock in and out just as you would if you were working in a career outside the home. You are a professional! Do your hair and make up, put on some heels and nylons, just as you would outside the home. Doing this will DRAMATICALLY increase your results immediately!

2. Get professionally trained. Set specific goals! Thisis by design, not by default. Be specific, pray daily, tithe, and keep your priorities in order. God first, spouse, children, health, and work. When you take care of these things, GOD will take care of you!

Sunday Poll: Who Taught You To Save?

Who has taught you the most about saving money?
	Mother
	Father
	Husband
	Children
	Myself
	Another family member
	A Book (please specify in the comments section)
	A Website (please specify in the comments section)
	Other (please specify in the comments section)
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Saving On Groceries

I just want to thank everyone for taking our grocery budget poll this week. It was really neat to compare what we were all spending each week on groceries. It seems that the majority of folks have been spending $51-100 each week on their groceries. The poll results can be viewed here

Our family currently spends around fifty bucks each week on groceries. There is myself, my husband, son (who is three) and our daughter (who is about five months). We have been eating on fifty bucks a week for the past three years or so and I just assumed that everyone around me spent about the same amount of money. When I would talk grocery budgets with my girlfriends though, I found that the majority of my friends were spending $400 or more a week. This just blew my mind! I am frugal to the core though and knew that the best way to keep my rear end home was to cut back where I could. Budgeting, for me, started with our grocery allowance.

I will share a few of my secrets on how we save money. For those of you who are as frugal as me, you will just be shaking your head and saying you already know all of this stuff. But not so fast, folks! Maybe there is something in my little tip list that you can get something from. Here are just a few of my tips for reducing your grocery budget and helping you make your wallet just a little bit fatter.

1.Meal planning is key to staying on track. You cannot possibly stay within budget unless you go in with a game plan and follow through with it. Can’t think of a meal to eat? Well look here, and here, and here, and here and then tell me if you see a few things that might help you with your menu planning.

2. Along with menu planning, we stretch our bucks to the max by incorporating a few budget-friendly meals into the mix. One night a week we have a breakfast for dinner night. Waffles, pancakes, French toast, oh my! There are so many great breakfast choices to choose from and most of them are extremely budget friendly. Having one night a week dedicated to breakfast can help cut back the grocery bill. Other budget-friendly fares are pizzas (homemade), pasta, hot soups & sandwiches, and many vegetarian meals.

3. If the recipe calls for a pound of meat, try and make it half a pound and see if you can tell a difference. By stretching your meat, you can now make two meals out of one pound of meat versus just one meal for the family. There is also a great tool that I use on Cheap Cooking for figuring the cost per serving on meat. This can also help you when trying to stretch the meat portion of your budget.

4. I only take cash & a calculator with me to the supermarket. Carrying around cash helps to keep me on a budget. When you have your debit card, there just seems to be an endless budget and if you go a teensy bit over…well, so what? You have the money, right? Well, if you are carrying cash and no plastic you absolutely have to stay within your budget constraints. This forces you to not go over and can help you look at your grocery cart in a whole new light. Suddenly those Twinkies aren’t really necessary, if it means you have a little extra money to put towards things you really need.

5. Avoid paper products and it will free up even more of your grocery money. The only paper products I do buy are toilet paper (can’t skimp on that one, in my opinion!) and paper napkins. The paper napkins are used for lunches & for breakfast. I do try and do cloth napkins in the evenings for dinner though just because it helps to stretch the packages of napkins that I do buy. Could I just do all cloth napkins? Sure, but I can’t keep up with laundry as it is so I choose not to be a martyr and just enjoy the paper once in awhile. Paper towels have been replaced with microfiber cloths (which can be purchased inexpensively in the automotive section of Sam’s, Walmart, or Target), old newspaper is used to wipe down my windows, paper plates have been replaced with cheap plastic plates purchased from Walmart, and paper cups were replaced with inexpensive plastic glasses (also purchased at Walmart). In just one area alone, I shaved off ten bucks or so off of my grocery money.

6. Make your own cleaners or purchase them inexpensively at the Dollar Tree. I love Method cleaners, which are sold at Target, but find the price tag a bit too steep. I noticed now that our local dollar store is carrying an off-brand of these cleaners at just a buck a pop. I purchase all of my cleaners there and save tons of money by not buying the name brand varieties at the supermarket.

7. If you have a breadmaker- use it! This is one of those great little inventions that can be every mom’s best friend. You can use this to make delicious breads & pizza dough for a fraction of the price of the bakery section of your grocery store.

8. Don’t waste your precious grocery money on lunch meat. I purchase a turkey (once every two weeks) and roast one of these for our lunch meat. All I do is put the turkey in a roasting pan, sprinkle a little seasoning on it (salt, pepper, & poultry seasoning), dump a can of chicken broth in the bottom of the roasting pan, and cook as directed. We eat half of the meat one week, and the other half goes into the freezer for the following week. Just double bag the meat and put half of a can of chicken broth in with the meat (to keep it moist) and pop it in the freezer. Once you have a turkey sandwich like this, all of that processed lunch meat won’t taste as good and you will never go back. Trust me! I have got all of my girlfriends roasting turkeys now!

9. Learn to make things that you normally buy. Go on AllRecipes and look up your favorite foods and make them at home. Things that I used to buy (lunch meat, granola bars, waffles, etc..) are now made at home for a fraction of the cost.

10. Hit the wholesale clubs, but be wary…just because it is bigger doesn’t make it a better price. Make sure to read my article for the best deals on everything in these shops.

11. Learn how to make a price book and carry it with you. We offer a free sheet that you can print out and keep in your purse to keep the prices of items right at your fingertips. Knowledge is power when grocery shopping.

12. Shop at Aldi or Save a Lot for the best deals in grocery shopping. I shop at Aldi for almost everything! Even shopping for your everyday basics there will shave a considerable amount off of your grocery budget.

13. Walmart price matches on groceries. Bring fliers with you and ask them to match the prices. They will even match Aldi prices with their Walmart Great Value brand products. You can get some great deals by picking the loss leaders and shopping at just one store.

14. Go where they take double coupons or find out if stores offer double coupon days. Some stores offer special discounts on certain days where you can get double or triple on coupons.

15. Understand how to use your coupons and how you can combine them. For example, if you have a Target Coupon on Crest toothpaste, you can use that store coupon AND a Crest toothpaste coupon that you got in your paper. Another way you can use coupons is by putting them towards trial size items. For example, you have a coupon for $1.00 off of Ivory soap. Use your $1.00 Ivory coupon on a $0.80 bar of soap and put that $0.20 towards the rest of your groceries. Know where to print your coupons on the computer and use these too.

Thank you all for taking my poll and feel free to leave comments on ways you save your family money. I have realized that just when I *think* I know everything, I find that I have so much more to learn.

Happy Mother's Day

Pictured here are my two precious babies! I am so proud of them and of myself for being able to capture the two of them together.

I wanted to share with you all my Mother's Day story. I wrote this shortly after having our son and hope that you can enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it! I wish all of you a wonderful & joyful Mother's Day!

Blessings,
Amy


Happy Mother’s Day
By Amy Allen Clark

Isn’t it great that one day out of the year our role as mothers is being celebrated? I look around at all of the advertisements and displays offering special Mother’s Day cards, books, and of course the traditional heart locket and shake my head. It is amazing how a day to celebrate our motherhood has now been turned into a commercial venture instead of a true celebration.

So instead of sending all of my dear friends a card in the mail on this one special day, I salute mothers around the world for all that you do each and every day.

I salute those of you who are bone-tired from being up every night with a sleepless baby and yet still manage to have a smile on your face because you are filled with pride for your new child. I salute the mother who is bone-tired because she stayed up all night not with her child, but instead stayed up trying to get her chores done around the house because she was too busy playing with her child to notice. And I am honored to share the company with the mother who has been up all night with her child who is not wearing a smile on her face and wants to share her night of hell with me over a cup of coffee.

I recognize the mothers who go to work each and every day to help provide for their family as their hearts quietly break when they think of the time they cannot spend with their child. I salute the mother who gave up her career just to know that they will be the ultimate giver of care twenty-four hours a day while their heart silently breaks with longing for the career that they wish they had. And I salute the woman who is happy with her role and doesn’t look back, but straight ahead at the face of their child.

I stand amazed at the mothers with seemingly superhuman powers, conquering their bills, the family laundry, and dinner, all while balancing their beautiful babies on their hip. I bow to the woman who opens her home and heart to her family and friends even when the bill aren’t done, the family laundry is laying in a mountain on their floor, and they have chosen to eat take-out all while balancing their beautiful babies on their hip. And I acknowledge with grace the woman who decides she just can’t do it all and hires someone to help her so that she can get all of these things done while balancing beautiful babies on her hip.

I feel my heart swelling with pride when I see a woman walking in a store with six children in tow, never understanding how they have done it financially or emotionally. My heart fills with joy at the site of a mother with just one child holding hands with complete looks of contentment on each of their faces. And I rejoice when women achieve their much deserved pregnancies after going through numerous miscarriages and complications.

As I shout all of your praises, I look back upon my life before the birth of my child and realize how little I knew. You see, when I became a mother, I understood that I would have to make sacrifices for my child. I knew that I would love them unconditionally and that I would do anything for them…and yet I did not know. I remember as my mother touched my pregnant belly she had said, “You will finally understand how much I loved you,” and I had nodded my head…I did not know. I nodded my head, but I could not feel yet the power of motherhood.

I feel the power now as I am holding my son in my arms filled with a love that only a mother knows. And I know that someday when my son has his own child I will look to him and say, “Now you will know how much I loved you,” and see him nod too, but never really understand until he becomes a parent.

So in honor of each and every mother I praise you- not through a card or through gifts, but through this little crayon drawing that I am sketching for you that simply says, “I love you, mom!”

I raise my glass to mothers everywhere in honor of your motherhood, not on just this commercialized day, but every single day- cheers to us!


****This writing may not be used without the author's permission****

Saturday Sales & Chewy Granola Bars

Be sure to visit last week’s sales and it is the final day to take our Sunday Poll.

FoodSaver is having a spring sale that can’t be beat! Their Foodsaver Vac 1075 has been marked down from a whopping $129.99 to $69.99. That saves you 60 bucks!

1-800 Contacts has a sale going on how where they are offering $40-80 rebates on all of their top brands of contacts. $50 or over spent will land you free shipping too!

Entertainment Book free! If you reserve yourself a copy of the 2007 book, you can get the 2006 book for free. There are lots of great coupons for all of your dining, shopping, and travel needs. These make a wonderful gift too.

Saturday Snack: I make these every couple of weeks or so. It is a very versatile recipe because you can substitute the chocolate chips for anything you like (dried fruits, peanut butter chips, nuts, etc..). Recently I substituted one cup of the oatmeal for one cup of Rice Krispies and that made the perfect combination for our family. If you like a healthier granola bar, then stick with just the oats. If you are in a pinch, you can substitute the honey with lite corn syrup (equal amounts).


Chewy Granola Bars

4.50 cups oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter, melted
2/3 cup honey
¼ cup peanut butter (creamy)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease on 9x13” pan. In a large mixing bowl, mix together all of the ingredients (minus the chocolate chips). Stir in chocolate chips. Press into pan & bake for 18-22 minutes. Let cool for ten minutes, and then cut into bars.

More Baby Freebies

Friday Freebies!!

This is our second installment of baby goodies. Please be sure to visit the first round of freebies and take this week's poll on your grocery budget. The results will be discussed at the end of the week!

Pull Ups Success Guide
Fill out the form for a free Pull Ups Success Guide (allow 6-8 weeks for delivery)

Bright Beginnings baby Formula
When you become a member of the Bright Beginnings Customer Club, we will send you valuable Coupon Paks good for savings on our already sensibly-priced formulas and nutritionals.

Charmin Potty Training Kit
The potty training kit includes a storybook, poster, stickers, roll ruler, photo magnet, & potty training diploma. This is a really neat freebie and I highly recommend this if you are potty training. Even if you are not potty training, the stickers are great to keep little hands busy during church service!

Nursery Water
Click Magnet Offer & Coupon Offer to receive this freebie

Preemie Magazine
Free one year subscription to parent’s of preemies

Thursday Thirteen

I am jumping on the blog wagon and participating in a little thing called the Thursday Thirteen. Everyone blogs about thirteen things that they would like to share with their readers. This week, I am going to share thirteen things that you may (or may not) know about me & my family. Each week I will choose something different to share on so please visit us next week for another fun installment.

Thirteen Things You Don't Know About Amy

1. I married my high school sweetheart. We met when he was fifteen (just turning sixteen) and I was seventeen. We dated all through high school, college, and then decided to get hitched after that!
2. I didn't get my license until I was eighteen years old because I HATE driving. This has never changed and I get a little freaked about driving still. Don't ask me to back up too far, park anywhere difficult, or make me drive in high traffic areas because I will have a severe panic attack.
3. I have held jobs as a babysitter, cashier, waitress, administrative assistant, & insurance agent. I enjoyed all of them except the administrative assistant because I am not fond of being told what to do. Oh, and that hasn't changed either!
4. I did tons of theatre and when the kids get older, I plan to return to it. I returned to theatre after we got married, but after I had my first child, it just became too difficult to do. I did my final play when I was five months pregnant with Ethan. Luckily, it was, "The Christmas Carol" and all of the dresses were empire waist so it discreetly camouflaged my little baby bump.
5. I was not good in school...I have never been a scholar. I have poor concentration and don't like being told what to do (did I already mention that?) I was, however, a social butterfly and phrases like, "she doesn't listen, but she loves to talk!" always appeared in the comments section of my report card.
6. I have a sister (five years younger than me) and a brother (eight years younger than me). I am close to both of them and love them both to death!
7. I am a TiVo addict. We have a season pass to about eighty different shows and I try to keep up as much as I can. Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, American Idol, Nip/Tuck, & 8th & Ocean are my current favorites.
8. I like rap music- um, a lot! Unfortunately, my son is at the age now where he is repeating things so I can't really listen to it anymore, but I am a huge hip hop fan. I know it doesn't fit with my persona, but it is true!
9. I love board games especially Scrabble & Upwords. I can kick my husband's butt in those games! I am a poor loser though so I don't enjoy playing Monopoly with my husband because I have been known to cry because he is really mean with taking over the properties.
10. When I go to the library, I leave with more books than I will ever read. I leave with the books because I can't stand someone else having the book so I horde the book at my house so no one else can have it.
11. I love stupid smutty magazines like Star & OK Magazine. These have become my escape from the reality of my life.
12. I once sold Avon- and that didn't go so well! I was afraid to bother people and was worried that they would be mad that I left them catalogs. I would leave late at night and drop them off after it was dark so no one knew it was me. Then I was scared to take products to people because I wasn't sure what kind of people they would be. I discovered that I am not good at selling!
13. I love being a mom. I feel like that is exactly what God wanted for me! I may not be good at it all of the time, but I do love it!

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Festival of Frugality #22

I am not new to the world of frugality, but I am new to the Festival of Frugality, which is featured each week on a different blogger's site. The Festival of Frugality showcases the best blog entries of the week on how we all can learn to save even more money.

I found out about the festival and will get an opportunity to host it on August 22nd. I am looking forward to the opportunity to showcase all of these great blogs in such a fun & unique way.

Clutter2Cash is hosting this week's Festival of Frugality #22. There are tons of great entries, but my favorite is The Family CEO's and how she spent $5.26 to save $25. This is a good way to learn how to save even more money on common items that you buy all of the time.

Our Play It Again, Momma! was also featured in this week's festival. I shared some great ways you can land yourself some free magazines. Be sure to check that reading out too!

Just one more reminder to take our Grocery Budget Poll this week! If you can, please click the comment button and let us know how many people are in your family and the amount that you spend. I am looking forward to sharing on more ways you can save on your grocery budget.

I also wanted to let people know that my One Month of Slow Cooking article is UP!! It contains thirty great recipes (tried and trues only!) and the nutritional information for each of them. It also includes side dish ideas & ways to save more time & money in the kitchen. Slow cookers are a wonderful tool right now so you aren't stuck indoors cooking. This can be a nice alternative to grilling and you don't even have to turn your oven on! Be sure to print it out for your shopping this week.

Tuesday's Tips

Well, my very first tip is for the dude who stole our website design- pull the owner’s information out of your code before you post it, otherwise we will find you! I know, I know, imitation is the best kind of flattery, but do us a favor and don’t flatter us anymore. Does this design look familiar to any of you? My Turkish is a bit rough, but I think it says something about thanking the web designer of MomAdvice.com for all of their hard work in making such a lovely site for him…something, something about paying us and blah, blah, blah. Or it could say something about being frugal and not paying anyone just like I instruct everyone to do. Good Lord, people! Don’t take me so literally.

Moving on to our real tips:

Tuesday’s Tip:

This comes from one of our wonderful readers. She had a great recipe that she would like to share with all of you! Please free to keep your tips coming to me- these tips can be on organizing, saving money, recipes, or neat parenting ideas! Please include your name, city/state, and your url (only if you have one).

A simple recipe my kids love for your website:

Cheese-filled pizza breadsticks

1 can refrigerated canned breadstick dough
8 individual mozzarella string cheese sticks
1 jar of spaghetti or pizza sauce, for dipping

Preheat oven according to directions on breadstick dough can. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. Unroll breadstick dough, separate dough into 8sticks, and cut each stick in half, creating 16 sticks, each about 3 inches long. Cut each of the 8 pieces of string cheese in half, creating 16 sticks, each about 2.5 inches long. Wrap 1 piece of breadstick dough diagonally (like a candy-cane stripe) 1 each piece of string cheese, and then pat the dough together to thoroughly cover and enclose the cheese. Place on baking sheet. Repeat to create a total of 16 cheese-filled breadsticks. Bake per directions on breadstick dough can, watching carefully and removing early if necessary to avoid over browning. Breadsticks are done when the dough is golden brown on the outside. Serve with warm spaghetti or pizza sauce in individual dipping cups, to avoid any issues with "double dipping." Leftovers keep and even freeze well.

Reader: Patricia Coury
Taken From: The Dinner Doctor Book by Anne Byrn (this came HIGHLY recommended from her!)

Inspirational Reading Material: This website has an A-Z listing of household recipes, cleaners & detergents, pest removal, air fresheners, laundry stain removers, and much more. Everything you ever wanted to know how to make is contained in this article.

MomAdvice Reading Material: Everything you ever wanted to know about wholesale clubs is located in this article. The article covers all of the wholesale clubs and the pros & cons of each one.

Frugal Momma News

Here are this week's picks for the latest money news....

Stay At Home Mom Would Be a High Paying Job

A full-time stay-at-home mother would earn $134,121 a year if paid for all her work, an amount similar to a top U.S. ad executive, a marketing director or a judge, according to a study released on Wednesday…Read More

Gas Rebate Credit Cards- Do They Pay Off?

Some gas cards give five percent rebates ... but you have to spend a certain amount of money. Even with credit cards not tied to gas ... you might not be getting your full rebate…Read More

AOL's AIM Phoneline' Offers Free Local Phone Number

AOL is close to unveiling a voice-over-Internet service, based on its AIM instant messenger, that would give any AIM user a local phone number for free. Dubbed AIM Phoneline, the free number would only allow for incoming calls from any phone…Read More

Post office Wants 3-Cent Boost to Stamp Prices

Not just diamonds are forever. Add stamps to the list. The post office is planning a “forever” stamp for letters, good no matter how many times postal rates increase…Read More

Use Your Cell Phone to Comparison Shop

Imagine if you could go into a store and look at a product on the shelf and know whether you are getting the best deal. Now you can, thanks to new technology for your cell phone…Read More

Beat Price Shock at the Gas Pump This Summer

With summer driving season just around the corner, gas prices are climbing. According to the short-term energy outlook released this month by the Energy Information Administration, this summer consumers will pay an average $2.62 per gallon for regular gasoline, 25 cents more than last year…Read More

Monday WAHM Spotlight

We would like to congratulate Juli Hood on being chosen as our Monday WAHM for MomAdvice.com. We wish her much success in her business and with her family.

If you are interested in being featured, we will be selecting a mom for each Monday of my blog. You can read more and apply. Email confirmations are sent to each mom if they are chosen. Please remember to do your own research on these companies. If there are obvious red flags on BBB, I do not post them. Check my scam article to find out more about the potential dangers of work-at-home businesses.

Just a quick reminder to take this week's poll on Grocery Budgets. The results will be discussed at the end of the week!

Name: Juli Hood

City/State: Elkhart, IN

Name of Company: Discovery Toys, Inc..

Website Name: http://www.discoverytoyslink.com/jhood

Two or Three Sentences About Your Company:
Discovery Toys is an educational company that believes children learn through play. We encourage parents to play with their children so that they will learn and still have fun at the same time. Play is a child’s work…give them the correct tools to do the job. Finding time to have a home business and playing with your children can be hard- Discovery Toys gives you the luxury of both. I can have my business and play with my kids at the same time!

Two Tips for Moms Trying to Work-At-Home (these tips can be how you stay organized, how to be successful, how to get started- anything that you feel would help someone just starting out):

1. Utilize nap time (or quiet time as we call it). With your kids quiet you can get on the computer to place orders or get on the phone to make those much needed phone calls!

2. Don’t be afraid to ask! If you don’t know the person and they say no- well they probably won’t remember you, but if they say yes- Score a point for you!!

Sunday Poll: Grocery Budgets

What is your weekly grocery budget?
	$0-20
	$21-50
	$51-80
	$81-100
	$101-150
	$151 and up
	Budget? What is a budget?
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Poll Results

Our Sunday Poll this past week was about your feelings towards giving your child an allowance. The majority of you agreed that giving your child an allowance helps to teach them money management. You can view the actual results here.

My son is 3 years old and I am thinking of giving him an allowance. I have read so many different views on how to handle the allowance that it has left me throwing my hands up in the air. Some “experts” say that it is best not to link behavior with an allowance, others say to not link chores to an allowance, and some say that it is all about behavior & chores and that is how an allowance is earned.

After doing a lot of reading, I have decided to not link the allowance to behavior & chores. Chores are what one does in a family- it isn’t a pay by the hour gig. Lord knows that if it was an hourly gig, I would be a very rich woman right now. I have started incorporating chores into our son’s routine and bad behavior has always equaled losing privileges. This is how I plan to continue handling this situation.

We will be giving a weekly allowance of $3 to him. This figures that he will get one dollar per year of his age (until it gets too expensive or until he is of a working age).

I have read that it is also important to teach our children the art of money management. A mom in my life, whom I admire very much for her knack at parenting and being an amazing mother, shared with me that each of her children receive three envelopes of money. One envelope for spending, one envelope for saving, and then another for tithing. I thought that was such a good idea particularly because I think a lot of parent’s give their children money, but they never teach them how to manage it. When our children grow up and go out into the world they have absolutely no money management skills. I feel like this is why so many kid’s (myself included) get themselves into so much debt when they get into the real world and are out on their own.

I just wanted to discuss the results and thank everyone for their input. Please be sure to take our poll on Grocery Budgets this week.

Saturday Sales

Snapfish Deals: Use the following coupon codes for additional savings on your pictures…

5 Extra Prints Free
Code: MAYAFF59906
Valid from 5/4/06 through 07/01/06

20% Off All Memory Books For Mother's Day
Code: MAYAFF52006
Valid from 5/4/06 through 07/01/06

Apply a $.99 Shipping Credit to your Order
Code: MAYAFF59906
Valid from 5/4/06 through 07/01/06

$2 Off Order Over $10
Code: MAYAFF5206
Valid from 5/4/06 through 07/01/06

Free Shipping on 5 Prints
Code: MAYAFF59906
Valid from 5/4/06 through 07/01/06

CreateForLess is offering a full month’s sale in honor of National Scrapbooking Day. Save on all of your scrapbooking supplies this May.


Drugstore.com is currently running a Spring Into Summer sale. You can save up to 50% on summer essentials such as skin care, insect repellant, allergy care and more until June 2, 2006. They have some top brands in this sale, including Dove, Neutrogena, Pampers and philosophy. During the first week of the month, GNC Gold Card members receive 20% off their GNC purchases at drugstore.com.


Walmart.com is offering a great deal on roses for Mother’s Day (drop hints to your hubby now!) You can get two dozen long stem roses for $29.97- now that is a steal!

Baby Goodies

It is all about baby today! Make sure to sign up for these great freebies for you & your little one. Next Friday I will share even more freebies for that sweet baby in your life.

MomAdvice Diaper Bag Checklist
Never get caught without a wipe when out running errands again. This handy diaper bag checklist serves as the perfect reminder to make sure you have everything before venturing out.

Very Best Baby Magazine
Every free issue is tailored to your stage of pregnancy or to your baby’s age and packed with lively articles on topics of interest to moms-to-be and new moms. Plus, you’ll receive valuable checks for savings on infant nutrition products!

Welcome Addition Club from Enfamil
Become a Similac Welcome Addition Club member today! Membership is free and offers you up to $450* in offers and savings. Register now with our 3-easy-steps and you can start enjoying your benefits right away.

Growing Up Gerber Club
Become a member of Growing Up Gerber and get a personalized Web site, newsletters, free samples and coupons.

Heinz Baby
Choose the “Home Mailing” option. Our Mailings are delivered every couple of months starting when your baby is about four months old. Our Mailings include valuable coupons, detailed information about our wide variety of jarred foods and cereals, feeding suggestions and guides, and tips on what to expect as your little one gets older. Also, you'll receive samples and additional special offers right to your front door.

Huggies
Choose the option for you and then click “Sign Up” for coupons & free samples.

Pampers
This was my favorite club when we had our son. They had a great site that explains how your child is growing & their developments and sent me tons of diaper coupons. We are cloth diapering this one so I didn’t sign up this time, but if you are using disposable, this a great club!

Orajel
In order to help us provide the best Orajel products we can, please take a few minutes to complete the following survey. Your time is appreciated and we will thank you by sending you coupons for your favorite Orajel products. Please allow 4 weeks for processing.

American Baby
Get a free subscription to this great magazine! Every issue is loaded with vital parenting information from the experts

Beech-Nut bowl and coupon
Sign up for our monthly e-newsletters, and we'll send you information tailored to your baby's age, helpful tips, money-saving offers, plus this FREE bowl.

MomAdvice Reading Material:

Preparing for Your New Arrival

Diaper Bag Essentials

Finding a Mom’s Group

Last Chance- Sunday's Poll

Last chance to take that poll! I know more than nineteen of you must have some thoughts on giving your child an allowance. Results will be discussed tomorrow!

Getting Ready For Summer

.

Money Spent Today: $800. OMG! It is not a good financial day for us today. Our A/C was the original A/C to our house. Our house was built in 1967, so you can imagine the size of this beast and how “energy efficient” it has been running.

We had someone come out and give us a quote for a new heating & air system a few weeks ago. The quote was for OVER $4K. When the guy told us this, I avoided all eye-contact with my husband, for fear that he and I would both start cracking up. You know, that nervous laugh that you get when you are completely floored about something?? They did offer a wonderful finance plan where we could pay on it for ten years at around 14% interest rate….um, no freakin’ way! Another nervous laugh as we exited the kind salesman out the door…immediately followed by laughing until we are crying.

Fortunately, my dad works in heating & air so he was able to find us a dented model for around $760 (that includes tax). He is going to install it for us and we are going to buy him a gift card to take my mom out to dinner as repayment for all that he did for us. Considering he is saving us (at least) a grand, I think it is the least we could do.

We are still on the lookout for a new furnace, but a new A/C is much more important to us with those hot summer months just around the corner.

Luckily, we have been anticipating this little fiasco so we had the money set aside (*patting self on the back*). No surprises (other than that outrageous quote). Always good to be prepared for life’s little emergencies!

How-To Keep Your Kids Busy:

Here are a few things to keep on hand for your children this summer!

Balloons (regular, water)
Balls (play, rubber, super, tennis, Wiffle)
Beach Ball
Bubbles, fancy wands
Bucket, handheld hoe, rake, shovel
Bug catcher, bug keeper container
Cards (playing, Old Maid, Crazy Eights)
Chalk (colored, white)
Clay, cookie cutters, miniature rolling pin
Dominoes
Insects (plastic)
Jacks & ball
Jump rope
Kaleidoscope
Marbles
Kite
Paddle ball (with ball attached)
Pinwheel
Sailboats (plastic)
Sponges
Squirt Guns
Swimmies, raft
Telescope
Word Search Books

Inspirational Reading Material: This site is full of great information on how to plan your next playgroup. Online Playgroup covers everything from snacks to crafts and offers great theme ideas.

MomAdvice Reading Material: Summer Survival

On Our Dinner Table: I am making two Sticky Chickens for dinner. I am serving them with a baked potato & some homemade bread. One of the chickens will be for our dinner tonight and the other will be diced and made into chicken salad sandwiches for another night. These taste just like rotisserie chickens. I am doing them in the oven (because I prefer a crispy skin on my bird), but you can do them in the slow cooker if that doesn’t bother you.


Sticky Chicken
Serves Four

1 tbsp salt
2 tsp paprika
2 tsp dried oregano leaves
2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp garlic salt
3 lb roasting chicken
1 cup chopped onion

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except chicken and onion. Rub herb mixture inside and outside of chicken. Place in food storage bag; seal bag. Refrigerate overnight. Remove chicken from bag; stuff with onion. Place in crockpot on low 6-8 hours; high 2-4 hours. Chicken juices should run clear and chicken reaches 180*. Let stand 15 minutes before carving. *Can cook at 250 degrees for 4.5-5 hours.


Nutritional facts per serving (daily value):
Calories 421kcal
Protein 72g (145%)
Total Fat 11g (16%)
Sat. 3g (13%)
Chol. 235mg (78%)
Carb. 5g (2%)
Fiber 1g (5%)
Sugars 2g
Calcium 55mg (5%)
Iron 4mg (20%)

Today's Word: Debt

What a Frugal Momma Thinks Debt Means:
Debt is something you do not want to be in. Debt is everything that you are trying to avoid. Debt is a naughty word.

Example: Billy’s mom and dad seem to be having some money issues. They went out and bought themselves a car that they couldn’t afford and now they are really in some serious debt. Well, at least they will look like they have money when they are riding around in that giant SUV. I sure wouldn’t want to pay for the gas on that car.

What Your Kids Think Debt Means:
Debt means no.

Example: Man, my mom is so freakin lame. All I asked for was a hundred dollar pair of Abercrombie jeans and she said no. She gave me some crappy answer about not wanting to go into debt so that I could have one pair of jeans. Billy’s parents bought him a pair AND they got a new car- he’s so lucky!

Play it Again, Momma!

Maybe you have not been a loyal follower of my little blog? Maybe you are a newbie to saving money? Maybe you are bored and have absolutely nothing to do? Despair no longer! I am bringing back to you an article that I think you should read. Even though it is not Freebie Friday, I am offering to you another look at an oldie (but goodie!). Make sure to read this entry from March (2005) on how to score free magazines, frugal tips from Budget Living Magazine, & how I have overcome my drugstore obsession.

For you frugal folks out there, I have become increasingly disappointed with this magazine. The budgeting factor seems to be missing from it and their money advice is not for the frugal-minded anymore. Despite the magazine going down the tubes (in my humble, but true opinion), this old post is worth a second look!

Join me over at Budget Living Mag post!

Frugal Momma News

Here is the latest (and greatest) money news this week. Feel free to discuss, ya'll!

Student Loans- A Life Sentence
Forget about getting married and buying a home. This generation is thinking about next month's payment….Read More

Wal-Mart’s Next Conquest: Organics
It pounded supermarket chains by selling groceries cheaper than anyone else, now the discount leader wants the "naturals" niche….Read More

The Most Expensive Zip Codes
Forbes.com ranks the most expensive ZIP codes across the U.S….Read More

Investing Games for Kids
MsMoney.com suggests great websites to teach children money management & to help them learn the rules of the investing….Read More

7 Ways to Slash Commuting Costs
Changing how you get to your job can create more breathing room in your budget -- from gas savings to insurance reductions to reduced wear on the car. Read More….

How Do You Stay on a Budget?
Whether you’re a novice or a pro, these tips from readers will help to keep you on track in your budgeting. Read More….

Tuesday Tips: ATM Management & The Perfect Pasta

Yesterday was such a great day for our site and I really appreciate all the great feedback we received. We are still working out the kinks, but we did it! Whoohoo! Thanks to all of our friends & family who continue to support us and brag on us. We couldn’t do it without you.

Speaking of friends, I think they will really get a kick out of today’s picture because of my true obsession with vintage aprons. I absolutely love aprons particularly the ones that are throwbacks to the fifties. I know it is old-fashioned, but I don’t care! My two best girlfriends splurged and got me a super pretty one from Anthropologie for my birthday. No one could have been more excited than me about that purchase. If you are ever looking for a beautiful apron, this site is it! Great styles and just what a girl needs to make cooking more fun! I know the women libbers are really going to love me now, considering my popularity thus far. Oh well! You win some, you lose some. Now moving on to our Tuesday tip…..


Tuesday’s Tip:

Seasoning pasta is important to achieving a good pasta dish. Many people season too soon (causing pitting in their pots) or they forget to season altogether. One way to solve this problem is to add the salt to your opened box of pasta. One tablespoon of salt can be dumped into the opened box and when the water comes to a boil, just dump the salt covered pasta.



Money Spent Today: $121.06. Today was grocery day and boy, did we ever need groceries! It is so bad when you’re out of everything (including meat) thus, the reason I went over budget. I grocery shop once every two weeks so this amount of food should get us easily through the next two weeks. I took Ethan shopping with me and spent $1.06 at Target on a popcorn combo deal. Seriously, that is the best way to keep a child occupied in that store. For $1, you get a huge thing of popcorn & a medium soda. This kept him very busy while mommy tried to find all of her ingredients. Sometimes it pays to pay so momma can get her groceries.

One Way I Save Money: I only go to the ATM once a week unless I am going there to deposit money. Today was my withdrawing day. I pull $160 out for the next two weeks. $100 of this money goes into an envelope for our groceries, $20 goes in my hubby’s pocket for a lunch or two out, $20 goes into my pocket for playgroup expenses and the occasional lunch out, and $20 is family fun money (which usually ends up in my pocket since I have to pay for myself & Ethan). When the money is gone, it is gone. Withdrawing money usually helps me stay under my grocery budget. I had to go a bit over this time, but I will probably be under for next pay period so it’s all good!


Inspirational Reading Material: Organized Home is a great site for, well, um…getting your home organized. I guess that is pretty self-explanatory. The forum is wonderful for learning ways to manage your household tasks and the site is great for a little inspiration when the need to clean and organize strikes.

MomAdvice Reading Material: Going Without Health Insurance

On Our Dinner Table: I decided to invest into an online subscription to Cook’s Illustrated because I had heard so many good things about the site and their recipes. I have been having a blast looking through the picture tutorials and they have neat kitchen tips that really come in handy when you are cooking in the kitchen. We have started eating this dish about once every two weeks because it is so yummy and healthy. Even my picky eaters will eat it (they both eat around the spinach, but who’s looking?) This is easy to throw together with a slice of bread on the side.


Easy Skillet Penne and Sausage Supper
Serves Six

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion - chopped fine
3 cloves garlic - minced or pressed through garlic
-press
1 pound turkey sausage - Italian
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes - (oil-packed) , rinsed
-and chopped fine
1/2 pound penne
2 cups chicken broth - low-sodium
1 cup milk
1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
6 ounces baby spinach

1. Heat the oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and sausage and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 4 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the penne evenly over the sausage. Pour the broth and milk over the pasta. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender, about 10 minutes (it took mine around 15 minutes).

3. Stir in the spinach a handful at a time, and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan and sun dried tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: Italian pork sausage can be used here, however, you may need to spoon off some of the fat before adding the pasta. When you are adding the spinach, it may seem like a lot at first, but it wilts down substantially. Be sure to at least have a 12-inch wide skillet here-- this recipe fills it nearly to the rim.


Nutritional facts per serving (daily value):
Calories 391kcal
Protein 26g (51%)
Total Fat 14g (22%)
Sat. 5g (23%)
Chol. 72mg (24%)
Carb. 40g (13%)
Fiber 2g (9%)
Sugars 5g
Calcium 197mg (20%)
Iron 3mg (17%)

Vote for Pedro..um, or MomAdvice.com

We are up and ready for your vote on CSS Reboot. We are located on the first page and it just takes a second to give us your rating.

Momma's Got a Brand New Look!

Well, it’s official. The newly designed site is up and running. We are so proud! Seriously, it is like giving birth all over again (complete with sleepless nights and me crying!) I wanted to share with you a few words from our designer, just to explain to you what is technically happening & why we are so dang excited about our new look.

With great fanfare, we have launched a brand new design for MomAdvice! We listened to your feedback and now present something faster, cleaner, and hopefully, better. The old site was great and did a lot to get us on the map, however, we have higher aspirations and this is the first step. That said, you'll need to bear with us as we are in no way complete. Not all of the articles have been converted, some links may be broken, some things look weird, and chaos may ensue. However, do not fret. We have a sweatshop full of underage workers who can't eat until it's done.

We're participating in the May 1st CSS Reboot, which is basically an event where a bunch of sites are launching their new design using the latest web design techniques on the same day. You can show your support and rate our site (we will post that link when it is posted on their site). There's a lot of talent out there and we're proud to take part in this wonderful event. The technical details of what we did still boggle my mind and are meaningless to our normal audience here at MomAdvice. However for those "l33t" designers visiting from CSSReboot with mad skillz, here's some geek pr0n for you:

• Complete overhaul of layout from a tables-laden pile of crap to a beautiful CSS-based design.

• Converted from classic ASP to ASP.Net 2.0, coded with C#.

• sIFR headers. So very pretty. So very unruly.

• A few PNG images with alpha-blending for the pure challenge of it.

For those CSS standards-elitists who are checking if the site validates, the code is a work of art and we've avoided any hacks, don't bother. Stand next to us in awe the darn thing works. Over the next few months we'll be getting to all those things and more. So, why don't you sign up for our newsletter, browse the site, and read some articles. You don't have to be a mom or even female to enjoy our site. Everyone can use a little financial, organizational and cooking advice. We promise you won't get cooties.

Ryan

As you check the CSS Reboot site, be sure to note how many minutes we have before you can view and vote! And while you are waiting, take a look around, take our Sunday Poll, and check out our new WAHM Spotlight. We have so much more in store for you all and look forward to your feedback on the new direction we are taking. Share it with your friends, ya’ll!

Monday WAHM Spotlight

We would like to congratulate Debra Carter on being chosen as our first Monday WAHM for MomAdvice.com. We wish her much success in her business and with her family.

If you are interested in being featured, we will be selecting a mom for each Monday of my blog. You can read more and apply. Email confirmations are sent to each mom if they are chosen. Please remember to do your own research on these companies. If there are obvious red flags on BBB, I do not post them. Check my scam article to find out more about the potential dangers of work-at-home businesses.

Again, congratulations to Debra!



Name: Debra Carter

City/State: Oconto WI

Name of Company: Scent-Sations Inc.

Website Name: http://www.lovethiscandle.com

Two or Three Sentences About Your Company:

Quality Gourmet Candles and Soaps, Income Opportunity or Shop with us Online. Our candles burn cleaner, longer and we have over 95 scents to choose from. We also have a Free Candle Drawing and a Candle of the Month Club!

Two Tips for Moms Trying to Work-At-Home (these tips can be how you stay organized, how to be successful, how to get started- anything that you feel would help someone just starting out):

1. Read as much as you can on your products or business. You will also learn from experience, positive and negative. The more you learn the better your confidence and performance.

2. Don't spend more than you can afford on products, kits/supplies or advertising.