Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Two Frugal Things I Do

Frugality is a mindset. It is not just chasing down the greatest deals with a coupon. It is a way of living.

When I decided to be a stay at home mom, and go from two household incomes down to one, we had to find some major wiggle room in our budget. And that brings me to the first frugal thing I do.
  1. We have a BUDGET. Honestly, we always thought we had a budget. But just recently, with the help of Dave Ramsey's books, we have a serious budget that tells us where every single dollar that comes in should go. My husband and I did this together and came up with our goals together. We are both on the same page and not just one person in charge of the finances. This is a large part of how we became debt free last year.
  2. We Don't have Cable or Satellite. This is just one of those things that we have never had in our married life. But, when you are looking for wiggle room in your budget and you are trying to get down to the bare minimum in order to meet some goals, this becomes a luxury item. One that we have been willing to do without.

To be continued...

Please Be Patient....This Blogger is Getting Her Priorities Straight

Change is soon to come to Frugality. A slighty new approach to my frugal presentation. In the meantime, please visit my friend Leah at Metroplex Savers. She was mentioned on NBC this week!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Thanks to a heads up from Leah at Metroplex Savers, I found out about this great money maker at CVS. Basically these $1.97 CVS brand crackers are producing a $1 ECB. There is a $3 off CVS brand printable coupon that makes them free. To learn more go HERE and to print the coupon. I bought 2 today, and still haven't reached my limit. Act quick, the coupon expires 1/17!

Monday, January 12, 2009

Albertsons = Cheap Milk!

A quick heads up! Albertson's has their half gallons of Schepp's milk on sale again for $.99, the best price I've seen. Combine that with the coupon in yesterday's paper for $1.00 off 3 Schepp's and they become $.67 a half gallon. And you can freeze those babies! This advertised sale ends Tuesday (tomorrow).

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Recipe with Pumpkin Substitution

The last few weeks I have picked up some cheap cans of 100% pumpkin on clearance. I've been poking around on the internet trying to find some new ways to use this vitamin rich stuff. I had heard rumors of using this as a substitute for oil and eggs in baking. Well, guess what?! This is absolutely true. And with 0 grams of fat, 50 calories and 3 grams of fiber per 1/2 cup, you can really get creative. Try pancakes, muffins, brownies etc. Here is an awesome recipe I tried out tonight and you CANNOT taste the pumpkin, but they were so moist and yummy!

YUM YUM Brownie Muffins
1 15oz can pure pumpkin
1 devil's food cake mix
Simply mix these two ingredients together. Batter will be thick. Bake as directed minus about 5 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.
With the mix and pumpkin I used, I calculated per muffin to be 175 calories, 2.5g of fat, and 2grams of fiber and lots of vitamin A!
Cost: Pumpkin $.25, cake mix .69, so less than $1 for 12
Anybody have any other ideas?

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Gas Stations Give Free Stuff

Sign up with QT and RaceTrac with your email address to receive coupons for free stuff. They frequently give away free drinks, hot dogs, etc. I'm all about free stuff!