Happy New Year!

(Ok, I'm a little late.) 

There is this wonderful blog called Couponing To Disney.  The author teaches you how to save money by shopping wisely and how to put that money aside for a trip to Disney (or whatever else you want to save up for).  She also gives you some great tips on Disney World trips.  Two years ago in 2009, I decided to have a garage sale in the summer and I also kept track of all the money I saved from bargain shopping, etc.  Last year in 2010 I decided to try to double my efforts and we were able to go on a short Disney trip (mainly because of a large refund from the gas company).

This year in 2011 my goal is to save 2 and a 1/2 times the amount I saved that first year.  What I do is tally any extra money that comes in- rebate checks, gift cards earned, prescription reimbursements, gifts received (money or gift cards), anything won, any money made selling things (garage sale, etc.), and any other unexpected money that shows up.  I do not count regular paychecks or any store rewards credits such as Extra Bucks, catalinas, etc.  I have been doing Swagbucks for a little while and I have earned a few Amazon gift cards, but I'm not that into it.

So, let the games begin! (Oh and maybe we'll plan another little vacation if everything goes well.)

Find a Farmer's Market near you

Use this website Local Harvest to find a farmer's market near you. Some farmer's markets we have visited this summer:

Munroe Falls Brust Park Rt 91 Tuesday 3pm-7pm
kind of small, found some good tomatoes here

Green YMCA Summa Health Parking Lot Tuesday 3pm-7pm
lots of Amish stuff, found good strawberries in June

Brimfield Town Center Rt 43 Wednesday 3pm-7pm
great eggs from Bowers farm

Twinsburg Rt 91 behind the Post Office Thursday 3pm-6pm
grass fed beef from Sirna Farms

Cuyahoga Falls 2nd Street next to City Hall Friday 3pm-7pm
kind of small, found some good corn here

Hudson Main Street Green Saturday 8am-12noon
kind of upscale- found good garlic here

Make your own daily shower cleaner

Homemade shower spray cleaner- I've made this before- it's pretty easy and it works ok (not spectacular but ok). Save an old spray bottle- rinse it out well.

1 c rubbing alcohol
1 c hydrogen peroxide
6 drops Dawn dish detergent
1 tsp Jet Dry
fill rest of bottle with water
you can also add a few drops of a scented oil- I like Tea Tree Oil
spray daily after each shower

More WFMW at We Are That Family.

$1 clearance girls clothes at Walmart

I got a bunch of cute girls back-to-school clothes at Walmart today reduced to $1 each! One hooded tunic top, one pair black pants, two dresses, one 3-piece outfit (top, skirt, pants) for $5 total (plus tax)!

$1.05 Target shopping trip

Got all this for only $1.05 out of pocket at Target. 1 Scrubbing Bubbles power spray at $6.99 (used $5 manufacturer coupon plus $3 Target coupon= $8 off), 1 bag of rice reduced to $0.91, one can of green beans reduced to $0.48, one can of tomato paste reduced to $0.41.

Super Savings Saturday

I forgot my grocery cash again! This week I bought some extra items I would not normally buy because I have to bring snacks next week for preschool- and I bought some baby items for my sister. I spend $69 OOP on $114 worth of stuff. Then I went back to customer service. One item rang up wrong so they gave me $2 back and I was supposed to get a $6 catalina for buying all the baby items- so they gave me a $6 gift card. (Shopping at Giant Eagle) See Money Saving Mom for more Super Savings Saturday.

Super Savings Saturday

I started my experiment of shopping with cash only this week and I went to Giant Eagle and promptly forgot my cash envelope. My budget was $60 for the week for groceries and I did charge it on Discover (cash back rewards baby!) but I still did pretty good. Got $96 worth of groceries- spent $64 after coupons and got back $15.50 in catalinas ($$ coupons off future purchases). Check out Money Saving Mom for more Super Savings Saturday!

Target Special K Cereal Deal

Get a $5 gift card when you buy 5 Special K products. Read about it HERE and HERE to get coupons to make this a really good deal!

If you need more milk, it's still $1.99/gal at Giant Eagle (growth hormone-free milk).

Deals of the Week

CVS- buy one get one free Purex laundry detergent. Use this BOGO Purex coupon to get both free.

Giant Eagle- buy 2 Muir Glenn products, get a free reusable grocery bag. Use this $1 off coupon for Muir Glen.

Marc's trip this week

Did I ever mention I love Arnold Bread? It is low calorie, high fiber and has no HFCS. The best price I found is at Marc's- loaf of Arnold bread is $1.88 and the Sandwich Thins (my favorite- only 100 calories!) are $2.28 at Marc's.

My deal of the week at Marc's was 2 packages of baby portobello mushrooms for $1. I love baby portobello mushrooms and I plan to make an egg and mushroom strata for Easter.

More Frugal Friday at Life as MOM.

Keeping your sink clean

I'm pretty good about keeping my kitchen sink clean by wiping it down after I do the dishes. I also heard Bar Keeper's Friend is a great product for shining your sink. But does anyone have a suggestion for cleaning the rubber flaps on the garbage disposal? My disposal always looks gunky (the part you can see). How about cleaning inside the garbage disposal itself? I put some baking soda and ice cubes down it occasionally. Any other ideas?


p.s. Here's some tips from the Fly Lady- enjoy!

Super Savings Saturday!

Today I did not go grocery shopping- I went to the Moms of Twins rummage sale! In addition to some cute clothes from Gap and Gymboree- I scored a Playskool doll house for $3- my daughter loves it! It just needed a little cleaning up with a Mr. Clean Eraser. More Super Savings Saturday at Moneysavingmom.

Frugal Friday: Re-purposing Items

I am a bit of a pack rat, so I often save containers and boxes and things thinking I will "re-purpose" them later. My favorite re-purposed item is a baby wipes box turned into a coupon organizer. Voila!

Got any great ideas for "re-purposed" items? Please share a comment! Get more Frugal Friday tips at Life As MOM.

Eating For a $1 a Day

There is a very interesting woman named Rebecca Currie who did an experiment on living on just $1 a day for food. She literally spent one dollar a day for 30 days. Here is a summary of what she ate. It's pretty eye-opening. I think Americans generally spend WAY too much on just about everything. By the way, she pretty much only bought and ate fresh unprocessed food and grains.

Shopping For Grocery Markdowns

One thing I have slowly learned over the last several months is how to shop for grocery markdowns. You have to get to know your stores and your store policies. The best time to shop for markdowns is usally the first thing in the morning. Here's a list of a few places I shop for markdowns. (I am in the NE Ohio area). Leave a comment if you have any other finds.

1. Giant Eagle. My local store usually has 2 or 3 grocery carts located near the health and beauty section. You can find anything from canned goods to organic products. Also if you check the meat case in the morning you can almost always find good deals on meat with that day's date. I have also heard you can get Deli markdowns around closing time but I don't shop that late. I occasionally find some markdown bananas or bagged salad but it's kind of rare.

2. Marc's. I usually try to stop at Marc's one morning a week when they first open to get score some $1 produce bags. You never know what the will have but I have gotten apples, zucchini, carrots, potatoes, etc. for $1 a bag.

3. Aldi's. The Aldi's store near us has a shelf for markdown items- not usually much to pick from though.

4. Krieger's. Krieger's Health Food Market is a local market. They usually have a reduced produce section- although I have found the produce to be pretty ripe!

5. Target (and/or Walmart). Check the endcaps of the non-main-aisle shelves for the red price stickers. You can find all kinds of things on clearance at Target. Ditto for Walmart.

6. Schwebel's bread outlet. I never pay full price for bread. You can save 70% or more on outlet bread.

More Frugal Friday ideas at Life As Mom.

Menu Plan Monday- Plan My Menu!

I was checking out the post at MoneySavingMom about using what you have in your pantry- and I decided to do an inventory of what I have on hand. Here's where YOU come in- plan my weekly dinner menu from the list of things I have on hand- good luck and thanks! (just leave a comment)

Freezer:
1 bag meatballs
2 bx Mrs. T's Quick Ones
frozen corn
frozen carrots
frozen broccoli
1 bx Texas Toast
1 lg Stouffer's lasagna
1 bx fish sticks
1 bx chicken nuggets
1 lb beef for stew
2 steaks
1 lb ground turkey
2 split turkey breasts
2 lbs chicken thighs
Pantry:
2 bx Kraft mac & cheese
1 bx Suddenly Salad
1 bx brown rice
1 bx mashed sweet potatoes
3 jar spag. sauce
2 bx spaghetti
1 box elbow mac.
can corn
can diced tomatoes
can evap. milk
can black olives
can kidney beans
can chicken broth
can green beans
can sauerkraut
2 cans cream mushroom soup
Parmesan cheese
BBQ sauce
red potatoes
yellow onions
Frig:
raw carrots
leftover egg noodles
sour cream
Grands biscuits
4 eggs
lettuce
apple sauce
limes
apples
milk

Check out more menu plans at I'm An Organizing Junkie.

Marc's March Madness

I got an incredible deal on reduced produce at Marc's today. One bag of 6 apples (Golden Delicious and Granny Smith) for $1, one bag of 6 zucchini for $1 and 2 bags of organic baby cut carrots for $1. $3 total for quite a haul. They also had a large bunch of cilantro for $1 but I didn't know how long it would keep. Making zucchini bread now!

Marc's deal of the week

Today I snagged a small bag of Braeburn apples for $1 at Marc's. There were a ton of people crowded around the discount produce cart so I didn't get anything else. I had my eye on a bag of $1 sweet potatoes but someone else grabbed them.

My Deal of the Week at Marc's

Today I checked the $1 produce bin at Marc's and got a 5lb bag of red potatoes for $1 and a 2lb bag of yellow onions for $1. Guess what I'll be making? Roast potatoes and onions with garlic and Parmesan cheese!

If you go to You Tube and search for Cooking With Clara- you will find some charming videos from a 90-year-old woman about Depression-era cooking. Lots of potatoes and onions!

Marc's Markdowns

I tend to stay away from Marc's because I feel like I go in there for one thing, and then spend $25 on a bunch of closeouts that I don't really need. Today I went in specifically to look for markdowns on produce and there it was: the $1 bag of produce shelf. At my store it's over by the pharmacy. Kind of an odd assortment of stuff but each bag is priced at only $1. A whole bag of navel oranges, a large bunch of green bananas, 3 large bell peppers- green, orange and yellow, clumps of vine tomatoes, and 3 lovely perfectly ripe avocados. I bought the avocados and a buck later I had a yummy bowl of guacamole!