Couponing in the OC

How you can easily stretch $100 at the grocery store.

Paying for groceries is something that I use to dread.  I looked at my cart filled with food and thought of all the shoes that I could have bought instead; however, CPS (so I’ve been told) frowns upon parents who don’t feed their children.  So with tears in my eyes, I would slide my debit card through the machine and leave with a few bags and about $100 less in my account.

Eventually I got a little bit smarter and started clipping coupons.  I thought coupon shopping would be a waste of time until I started to see how much I could save.  On a typical day (before coupons) I would walk into a grocery store and spend about $60 and leave with a few items for dinner and a couple miscellaneous items.  Now, I sit down for a few minutes and go over what’s on sale; from that list I make a meal plan (planning out your meals for the week helps save a LOT of money) and then I clip my coupons (there are many options on how to do this, if you are interested in my ideas then I can make a blog post about that on another day) and head out to the store.  On average it takes 30-60 minutes to prepare for the store and I do it all in the evening when the kids are in bed, then you can find me at the grocery store around 9-10pm maybe once or twice a week.   

To find the deals, I go on MANY different blogs.  I started in the beginning with a basic website called thegrocerygame.com where you pay a set amount (around $15 every couple of months) and they do almost all the work for.  But now that TLC has come out with their coupon show, it seems like every day a new blog starts with the same information for free.  One of my “Go To” websites for Orange County deals is OCDealMama.com.  It’s a great resource for finding regional deals.

So here is my most recent “score”.  This isn’t “Extreme Couponing” like you would see on television, but it’s a basic shopping trip. Most the items I purchased are to be stored for the upcoming school year (yes, I am admitting it on the internet for all to read… occasionally I will give my children a Pop Tart when we are running late to school.  This huge lot of Pop Tarts will last a very long time, so stop judging). 

The breakdown from my grocery store trip at Alberstons:

3-    Everyday Essential Fruit Snack
6-    Mott Applesauces (6 packs)
9-    Kellogg Cereals
3-    Olympic/Kellogg’s Cereal Bowls
4-    Honey Nut Cereals
9-    Frozen OJ
8-    Popsicles
3-    Tyson Chicken Strips
4-    Jennie O Lean Ground Turkey
12-  Pop Tarts
2-    Snackwell Cookies
4-    Gallons of Distilled Water
5-    Minute Maid fruit punch/lemonade
2-    Anthony’s Pasta
4-    Capri Suns
3-    Blue Bunny Ice Cream
2-    Jamba Juice (the frozen mix packs)
2 doz-    Large Eggs
3lbs-      Plums
2lbs-      Peaches

Total Spent:        $99.94
Total Saved:       $176.35

I love to save money.  I’m not the very best at it, but I try to save as much as I can on all purchases (big and small).  In upcoming blog posts I will share with you what works best in our home for saving money.  Now again, I’m not the best… but I’m still surviving staying-at-home in Orange County even with a freshly squeezed budget, so I can’t be that bad!

Are you a coupon shopper?  Do you use online websites?  If so, what websites do you like best?

Cheap baby food!

Did you see my post on Facebook?  If you "liked" us... then hurry up so you wont ever miss out on a deal!

I'm a mom who enjoys making her own baby food, however, Thing #3 is now a year old and still not doing that great with table food so it's becoming cheaper to buy some organic baby food; especially since he wants a huge variety of flavors.  But baby food is EXPENSIVE.  So as a mom on a freshly squeezed budget, I'm always looking for a deal.  And I stumbled upon one today:

Plum District has a certificate for $15 and you get a $30 credit for Ecomom.com.  They also have a 20% off discount code (Plum District)- GOBTS- so it comes to $12 for a $30 credit.  Ecomom.com is currently selling 6 packs of Plum Organics baby pouches for $7.43-10 (depending on flavor) and if you buy $50 worth of product it is free shipping.

So here is was I bought:
6- 6packs (36 total) of Plum Orgnaics food (different variety)
2- spoons (the ones that attach to your pouches)

$23 total (including tax & shipping) from Ecomom.com + $12 for the certificate=
$35 (cheaper than $1 a pouch)

Want in on the deal, check it out here:
http://www.plumdistrict.com/moms/discount/everywhere/baby-and-kids-deals/ecomom-com-15-for-30-worth-of-all-natural-organic-products-at-ecomom-com-gLcPmT

Make sure you get the deal today before the codes expire & the baby food sells out!

The OVERPRICED oc fair is in town!

So my Facebook feed has been swamped with people posting their pictures from the OC Fair.  Have you thrown the family in the car yet and driven to Costa Mesa for a day filled with overpriced rides, expensive deep friend chicken legs wrapped in 1 lb. of bacon, and indulged in the numerous carnival games that are almost impossible to win? 

Can you tell how I feel about the fair?  I feel bad, I really wished I loved it... but I don't.  I'm a mom with three kids on a VERY freshly squeezed budget and I'm honestly not nearly as patient as I wish I was.  I will confess: there have been times in my kids life where I have had to raise my voice; there have been times where I have had to raise my voice every other minute for every hour for every day for a week straight.  And the crowds at the fair, while keeping track of all of them, listening to them whine about what they want to eat or what ride they want to go on, while adding up the expense... will put me in a hospital!

So, I avoid the fair.  My nerves thank me.  My husband (the penny counter) thanks me.  And my oranges that have almost nothing left to squeeze... really thank me.

Your turn:
Are you going to skip the fair this year in an effort to avoid hospitalization fees?  Will you go and end up regretting it when you realize (after you come home) how much you spent?  Are is the fair the very best thing since New Kids on the Block and you think its a reasonable price?

Just remember-- that $100+ you spend could have been spent on a nice relaxing day at a spa WITHOUT your kids! ;)

Spruce up a boring hallway

We have a hallway.  Thats the end to that sentence since there is nothing else to explain about it.  It is a hallway; a long, boring, dark hallway.  So I decided to spruce it up a little.

I found a vinyl quote on clearance at Target.  Usually I'm not a fan of vinyl lettering on my walls, but once I read the quote ("I dream of painting and then I paint my dream- VanGough") I thought it would be perfect.  So I paid $3 and headed out to Home Depot.

After walking up and down a few aisles I finally found the eye hooks and picture frame wiring.  I grabbed the sizes that I wanted, paid for them (of course), and with extreme excitement I headed home to put it all on my wall.

So, here is the final outcome of my hallway renovation (I found the clips at Ikea, but you could probably find them at Target or any other superstore):

My kids art in my boring hallway... perfection.

My kids love to come home and fill it with their artwork and I love to walk past it (while headed to do laundry) and remind myself how awesome they are (even when they are in the background screaming or farting or burping or any other nasty body noise). 

Hope this project helps give you some ideas on how to fill a wasted space with... priceless art!

Homemade Uncrustables

My kids LOVE Smuckers Uncrustable Sandwiches.  I don’t know if it’s the fluffy white bread, all the junk inside, or the cute little round shape with the sides sealed together and the crust cut off.  I will even admit to enjoying them myself, however, I don’t enjoy the price.  Those puppies are expensive.  Another problem, they are filled with peanut butter.  Not a big deal, unless you have a child with food allergies or a school that prohibits any nuts (like ours). 

So I decided to do a little research and figure out a way that I could make them at home for a cheaper price and pick whatever I want to fill it with.  The first option that I stumbled upon was The Cut & Seal from Pampered Chef.  Everything about it sounded great, however, I would have to locate someone who sold Pampered Chef and deal with the continuous phone calls I would receive afterwards (no offense, love the stuff… just don’t always love the sales calls).  I also did some more research and found that it was not dishwasher safe; that right away made me cross it off my list. 

Then I came across the Krustbuster.  After reading a few reviews, I clicked the “purchase” key ($6 plus shipping) and patiently waited for it to arrive at my doorstep.  When it finally showed up (about a week later) I ripped it open and tested it out.  The result: I fell in love!

I was able to use wheat bread (sorry kids, mommy prefers wheat over white) and my own peanut butter & jelly.  I made my sandwich, put it inside the Krustbuster, pushed it down, opened it up, and pulled it out.  It was easy and my kids didn’t even realize that it wasn’t made by Smuckers.

I'm learning to not put the Peanut Butter & Jelly too close to the outside.  That way, once the crust is cut off I can put it in a ziplock bag and use it for breadcrumbs. Never one to let anything go to waste!

And of course the kid in me decided to play around, so I put some cheese in it, smashed it up, pulled it out, and then threw it on a pan.  Yes, I made grilled cheese uncrustables and they were good!  My plan during the school year is to make a bunch of these sandwiches using sunflower seed butter, freeze them, and pull them out in the morning for their lunches as we are running out the door.   

Purchase on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Krustbuster-Multi-Crust-Remover-Sealer/dp/B001W6Q53W/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342369432&sr=8-1&keywords=krustbuster

Check out their website with more information and ideas:
http://krustbuster.com/

My question for all of you:  Would you ever use this?  Would you like to see me give one away?!  Leave a comment letting me know, and maybe I can work out a little giveaway so that one of you can enjoy your own Homemade Uncrustables without having to pay for it!

Day 3- Bryce Canyon, Sister Wives, and Banana Boats

Our third day of the vacation ended up being my very favorite day.  I wasn’t expecting it to be, especially with my kids and their non-stop bickering; but their brotherly love couldn’t even ruin our day, we got to experience the amazing, beautiful, and incredibly breathtaking Bryce Canyon. 

The beginning of our morning started out great when Keri made us a Birds Nest for breakfast (recipe to follow blog post), which tasted great and was one of those “one pan meals” which was guys liked because they did the dishes afterwards.  We then packed up the boys (yes, no little girls between us… two families… six boys) and headed out. 

Stopping in a little town along our way I got my first glance of real life Sister Wife.  Unlike that show on TLC, this wife didn’t look like you and I.  She was dressed in a long dress (something you saw back in the day on Little House on the Prairie) with a bonnet, boots, and her long hair.  Sadly, I couldn’t look away.  I was in shock, even though we’ve all heard of polygamist it just seems weird to actually see one.  Then I felt bad, like I should grab her and smuggle her to California and hide her from the pervert old man she was forced to marry (again, reality is nothing like that TLC show).  But, my husband wouldn’t allow me to kidnap her (or the cowboy that also looked very tempting to take home) so we continued on.

When we pulled into Bryce Canyon it looked just like any other park; a few trees and some grass.  We sat in our car scratching our heads at why this would be considered a National Park and why there were so many people pulling in behind us.  Then we parked our car, got out, and walked over to the lookout.  This is what we saw:

Bryce Canyon

After our jaws dropped open and we finished taking a TON of photos, we threw the kids on our backs, shoved the water in our pockets, tightened our shoelaces, and headed down the very steep trail to the bottom.  The red sand was formed into these odd shapes called “hoodoos” which from a distance were impressive but from up close were magnificent.  I could try to come up with a few more adjectives to explain how I felt, but instead… here are some pictures, you tell me what you think:

Bryce Canyon

Random Tree growing in between the rock

The trail going down- filled with switchbacks

At the end of the trail, this was your view

Wonder what I looked like?  This is me, my patient husband, and Thing #3

After a long day hiking down the hoodoos, we headed back to camp.  The kids enjoyed a round of miniature golf while Keri cooked up some sausage & potatoes (another one pan recipe).  At the end of the night we made some yummy Banana Boats (thank you Pioneer Woman) and some Roasted Starbursts (yes, you actually put the starburst on the stick and cook them over the fire… try it).   

I forgot to take a picture of the roasted Starburst (bad blogger), this picture is borrowed from mommygoingcrazy.blogspot.com

Sadly, this was our last night camping.  It was bittersweet as we started to get our stuff organized for our departure the next morning.  But the little cherry on top of our three night stay was that evening taking $5 zip line adventure... in the dark!  It was an awesome experience and a reasonable price (done at the Ponderosa) which got us very excited to set off for our next stop… the Grand Canyon!

If you haven’t already “liked” us on Facebook, make sure you do!  I often post daily deals that don’t get posted on this blog and I ramble… which at times can be mildly entertaining! J  Also make sure to “follow” our blog so that you will be notified when there is a new blog post.  I would hate for you to miss any of our awesomeness!

Up next:  Day 4- The North Rim of the Grand Canyon

Birds Nest Recipe (AKA- Hen House)

Hash browns (one container of the dry Costco hash browns)
Eggs (we used about 6)
Sausage (one package of Jimmy Dean)
Onion (about half of a yellow onion)
Cheese (as much as your family enjoys)

Brown sausage in skillet.

Add hash browns when sausage is cooked & drained.

Leave a little grease in the pan- cook until almost done. Add onions, stir & cook. Add eggs to sausage mixture and cook.

When eggs are done add cheese and melt. Serve with toast and fruit.

Banana Boats (from The Pioneer Woman)-

We’ve made these at home also, just cooked in our oven.  The kids love them!

8 bananas

1 bag caramel bits or caramels cut into bits
1 bag chocolate chips
1 bag mini marshmallows
1 package original graham crackers, crushed into crumbs

Split the bananas lengthwise, but don't cut all the way through. The goal is to create a boat to hold the ingredients. Load the bananas 1/4 cup each of the caramel bits, chocolate chips and mini marshmallows. Crumble 1 whole graham cracker onto each loaded banana. Wrap individually in 8-by-10-inch squares of foil, and then place near the campfire to melt the candies. Open up and eat with a spoon.

Get your hair did... for free!

Getting your kids ready for school to begin is expensive.  No matter if you have to buy school uniforms, or every day clothes, or backpacks, or school supplies (which the list for supplies is OUT OF CONTROL)... it seems like you are constantly spending money in August. 

So, let me help you out a little, lets give your debit card a break (poor little plastic man, he gets really tired from being swiped all day long).  JCPenney is giving away free haircuts for kids (K-6th grade) in the month of August!  Seriously... they are free!  Here is more information:

To schedule an appoint, here is a store locator:
http://www.jcpenney.com/dotcom/jsp/storelocator/storeResults.jsp?sisearchengine=186&siproduct=AFFILIATE&cm_mmc=LinkShare-_-AFF-_-Mktg-_-Ad

So excited for this deal!  I'm crossing my fingers it works out.