Snacks, Babies and Laundry

Free Sample Fiber One and $5 in coupons. Gotta love it!

2010-02-21T20:36:00.000-08:00

FREE samples of Fiber One^® Honey Clusters^® cereal & Fiber One^® Oats & Chocolate bar PLUS $5 in coupons.

Just click here!

2009-12-20T21:23:00.001-08:00

blocks

2009-09-13T18:01:00.000-07:00

I had put these blocks away a long time ago. But as it goes, take out something old and it's new all over again. The boys are 20 months here.

Science Camp Here We Come! Baby Pants and Longies made by me!

2009-09-10T10:40:00.000-07:00

Welcome to my pants and longies sale! Everything on this page is made by me and is being sold as a fundraiser! 100% of the money collected will be used to send Elizabeth to Science Camp! Please understand that I am NOT a professional seamstress. My seams are crooked on a good day. I just started making these for the twins when they were littler and thought I would put it to use here! Thanks for your support!

Pants
Pants are made from various sweaters of different materials. Some are a wool/acrylic blend, cotton or all acrylic. While they do not work as a diaper cover, they are super cozy!

Longies
Longies are pants that also work as a diaper cover for cloth diapers. The pants and longies on this page were made by me from recycled sweaters or 100% polyester fleece. Wool sweaters make great longies. All of my wool longies have been felted and lanolized for extra wetness protection.
100% polyester fleece also provides protection against wetness, especially when rinsed with liquid fabric softener.

All donation suggestions include shipping and delivery confirmation.

These are the 1st 3.

#1 Cream Colored 100% Wool Longies
Super warm and snugly. These will work very well as a nighttime diaper cover and provide warmth for baby's first trip to the snow. Size 12-18 months
$20 includes s&h

#2. Grey, Black and Red 100% Wool longies.
Ski pattern on thick wool. Big bottom on this pair so they are great for layering or fluffy cloth diaper bums. Size 6-12 months

$20 includes s&h

#3 Soft and cozy pants. Blue cotton poly blend. The pants are soooo soft. I almost kept the sweater for my self! Size 18M-2T $17 includes s&h

Thank you so much for your support! It means so much to Elizabeth to be able to attend science camp this year!

I can accept paypal and snail mail. My paypal address is jenneyfreeman@gmail.com. Send me an email and I will send you my address. Thanks!

Go Get Your Free Floss at Walmart

2009-06-18T20:33:00.000-07:00

At Walmart there are 2 types of Reach Floss. 55yd Reach floss is $1 and 110yd is $2. Here is how to get some for free or close to it.

First go here. If you are in my area, choose "no thank you" when it asks for your zip code or enter zip code 48201. The west coast often gets coupons of significantly less value. Print off the Listerine $2 coupon. After your coupon prints, hit your browser's back button. It may print one more. This usually only works once. You could have 2 coupons but you will have at least 1. This coupon specifically says it's only for 1 item. Use it on the 110yd Reach floss and get the 1 or 2 free!

Now go here and print the $1.50 off any 2 Reach items. Don't forget to hit your back button. This one we will use on the unflavored 55yd. They will be $.25 each!

Finally if you have the coupon insert from last Sunday (6/14/09) there is a $1 off Reach floss coupon. So that is 1 more free!

I went tonight with 2 $2 coupons, 2 $1.50 coupons and 1 $1 coupon from Sunday's insert. I got 7 packs of floss for $1!

Thanks to Money Saving Mom for the tip off!

What is Coupon Stacking?

2009-06-15T16:00:00.000-07:00

I just received a really great question about coupon stacking. So I thought I would explain here. Coupon stacking means combining your manufacture coupons with another discount such as a sale and/or a store coupon. Stores such as Target and Safeway have their own coupons for added savings. These are not the Catalina coupons that print out at the register. Those are manufacture coupons. Safeway has store coupons available in the adds and on their website. In my opinion the best place to get your Target coupons is right here. Here are couple of stacking scenarios you can do this week if you have the right coupons.

Target
Coupon+Coupon Stack
Hamburger, Chicken or Tuna HelperRegular Price $1.52 per box
Target Coupon $1 off 2 boxes
Manufacture coupon for $.80 off when you buy 3 available here.
$1.52 x 3= minus $1 TQ and $.80 MQ = $2.76 or $.92 a box!

Coupon Plus Store Special Stack
Kellogg's Raisin Bran Crunch, Cocoa Krispies & Apple Jacks - $2.75 each
Get a FREE gallon of milk with purchase of any 3 of these cereals
Use $1/1 Raisin Bran Crunch here
Use $1/1 Cocoa Krispies & Apple Jacks in 6/7 Red Plum insert
Final Price = $1.75/ea when you buy 3 plus a FREE Gallon of milk!

Remember to save the Red Plum and Smart Source inserts from your Sunday paper. The items you have coupons for this week will usually go on sale a few weeks later.

Morning Star Veggie Burgers 39 cents a box!

2009-06-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

I took the whole family including little girl's friend to Target and it went great. The girls are old enough to entertain themselves in the book section and Papa kept the babies busy strolling them around the toy department. I did stick to my list with only a few exceptions. I brought the coupon binder in with me and it was a good thing. You never know when a surprise sale or clearance item will pop up!

I had 2 transactions. I greeted my checker and told her right away "I have 2 transactions and a lot of coupons. Is that OK?" It is always good to let your checker know what's up.

The first was for a great deal on Softsoap Ensembles. I learned about this on Money Saving Mom. This was perfect timing because we needed hand soap. These are the new ones where you keep the pump top and buy the refill bottoms. Both the bottles and the refills are on sale right now at Target for $6 each. When you buy 2 you get a $5 Target gift card. There are manufacture coupons and target coupons you can stack to buy these.

Key: MQ=Manufacture coupon. TQ=Target coupon. IP=Internet Printable
First transaction:
Buy 2 Softsoap Ensemble Value Packs at $6 each
Use 2 $2/1 manufacturer's coupons here You will need a 2nd computer to get 2 of these.
Stack with 2 $2/1 Target coupons here
Spend $4 plus tax out of pocket, Get a $5 Target gift card.

Then the 2nd transaction:

3 Hamburger and Tuna Helper on sale for 3/$4.56 - $.75 MQ - $1TQ =$.93 each
2 Oscar deli melts on sale for $2.49 - $1MQ found in the deli fridge at Target = $1.49each
1 Kraft Mayo with Olive Oil ON sale for $1.99 - $1MQ IP - $1 TQ = FREE!
1 Kashi Frozen Entree on sale $2.99 - $2MQ found in booklet at Savemart = $.99
1 Chapstick $.99
2 boxes Ziploc 1 gallon storage bags. on sale $2.69 - $1/1 TQ(used 2 of these)-$1MQ received in the mail =$1.19 each
2 Cottonelle Wipes Travel size $.99-$1TQ from the Sunday paper=Free!
2 boxes of Morning Star Veggie Burgers $3.39 -$2/2TQ -$2 MQ found in freezer section of Savemart. (used 2 of these) = $.39 each!
2 Gerber Grads Dinners for $1.19 each because it was after dinner time and the babies were hungry!
Original total =$31.13+tax After coupons =$13.78 including tax Apply $5 gift card from soft soap Total $8.78!!

Target Trip - Great Kashi & Silk Deal

2009-06-04T22:54:00.000-07:00

Tonight's trip to target looked like this:
1 Pkg of Target Disposable Diapers $6.29
5 bars of Johnson and Johnson Buddies Soap $4.85 - $5 in coupons = FREE with $.15 overage!
1 box Honey Maid Grahm Crackers $2.54 - $1 coupon =$1.54
1 bottle Kraft BBQ Sauce $.99 -$1 coupon = FREE with $.01 overage!
2 Velveeta Mac and Cheese Cups $1.98-$1 coupon = $.98 for 2!
2 Boxes of Kashi Cereal on clearance $4.66-$1.50 coupon = $3.16 for 2 or $1.58 for each box!
1 half gallon Silk Soy Milk $2.59 - FREE with coupon found on the Kashi cereals!
1 birthday present for a friend $6.25 (on clearance originally $25)
1 Tube of Aquafresh with extra travel size tube $1.99 - $2 in coupons = FREE with $.01 overage!
2 boxes Morning Star Veggie Burgers $6.78 - $2/2 Target coupon and $2 manufacture coupons for each = $.78 for both or $.39 for each box!

Original total $40.62
After Coupons and tax : $20.44!!

When I subtract the cost of the diapers and the birthday gift I see that everything else cost me just over $7! WOOHOO!

Good night for a BBQ

2009-05-22T12:24:00.000-07:00

Great deal on Kingsford charcoal, KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce and pork.

HERE a great link for $6 off pork when you buy Kingsford charcoal and 1 participating product. Thanks to Moms By Heart!

Here is a scenario for you:
At Savemart today 18lb bags of Kingsford are on sale for $7.99. KC Masterpiece on sale for $1.99 is FREE when you buy the charcoal. Then use your $6 off pork coupon. I did and got 2 pork loin roasts for $3.00!

Savemart Sweep

2009-05-21T20:39:00.000-07:00

So I had a stellar trip to Savemart yesterday. I won't bore you with the whole list again. You can see a scan of my receipt below. But I can tell you that between sales and coupons I saved 61%. $19.58 in manufacture coupons plus I earned a $3 register reward. Also I had a $5 off $50 store coupon. My checker was nice enough to use that coupon BEFORE my manufacture coupons. LOVE HER!! So all told, $66.64 worth of groceries for $23.04 out of pocket. Cha Ching!

There is one deal that stands out that I must explain to you. It looked like this:

~Kraft BBQ sauce on sale 4 for $5. Not free, but this sale include bottles that have 55% more so a good deal if you unit price. 3 of these.
~Kraft salad dressing on sale for $1.99. 1 of these.
~Fresh Chicken leg quarters on sale for $.99lb. apx 4.5lbs
$3.75+$1.99+4.58=$10.32

Now the coupons:
$1 off Kraft BBQ sauce x3
$1.50 Kraft Salad Dressing x1
$2 off fresh meat when you buy 1 Kraft salad dressing and 2 other Kraft products!These were on display in the store. Savemart is a great place to find coupons.
$3+$1.5+$2=$6.50

4.5 lbs of chicken, 1 bottle of Kraft balsamic vinaigrette and 3 BIG bottles of Kraft BBQ sauce for $3.82! Cha Ching!

My checker had to get an override because my savings was more than 50% of my bill!!
I almost curtsied at the check stand.

Target Brag

2009-05-20T15:45:00.000-07:00

So the couponing has really been paying off this week. My daughter has encouraged me to write about it here, instead of constantly explaining it to her. So here goes,

Yesterday I went to Target. Using the information I got from Money Saving Mom I accomplished this.

1 12 pack Cottenelle Double Roll Toilet Paper
1 Box Huggies Wipes 72 count
1 Oral B Baby Stages Toothpaste
1 Can Skinmates shave gel
2 boxes of rosemary triscuits
1 box velveeta shells and cheese
1 container target brand sweet potato snacks
4 tubes travel size coppertone sunscreen
3 bottles of kraft blue cheese dressing
2 bottles kraft mayo with olive oil
1 travel size sponge bob colgate toothpaste
1 box kellogs frosted miniwheats
2 boxes rasin bran.

I have been hunting and I can't find my original receipt. I can tell you that the original total was close to $45.
After coupons $9.88!

Target is a fantastic place to use coupons. If you have never done it you should! Target accepts manufacture coupons from the Sunday paper as well authentic internet printable coupons. They also release their own coupons which you can combine or "stack" with a manufacture coupon. Line this up with a sale, and pow! Free stuff! I print my Target coupons at Hot Coupon World. Their generator allows me to print as many Target coupons as I want and groups them together on one sheet of paper.

Today I cleaned up at Savemart. I'll tell you how later!

3 presents each for Christmas.

2008-12-30T11:40:00.000-08:00

For many years my daughter was an only child. Christmas was an opportunity to spoil a great child. It is safe to say that she received too many gifts more than once. One year she even asked if she could take a break from opening gifts and come back to it later.
This year was a very different Christmas. She is not an only child any more and we are a one income family now. With 3 children to think of and almost no money to spend on gifts we had to seriously rethink our approach.
The twins are only 1, this is their first Christmas. While we wanted it to be special we didn't think they would care too much. My daughter wanted kind of a big ticket item, but that was not going to happen this year. So we decided on the rule of 3. Each child would receive 3 presents from us. No ifs, ands or buts. We informed the girl of our new rule and she was less than thrilled. When she looked at me and asked "Why?" in a surprised tone, I said "Because that's what Jesus got. If you complain, one of your gifts will be myrrh."
She ended up with a scrapbook kit, earrings and a book that she really wanted. Hardly Paris Hilton's Christmas but she was grateful. She even squealed when she opened the book.
Thanks to the generosity of some friends the boys had toys to open and could not have cared less. They wanted the wrapping paper.
I am hoping we are able to stick with this new rule of 3. Even down the road, when hopefully there will be a little more money to spend on gifts. I want Christmas to be about what we do as a family, not about what the kids get. I want their best Christmas memories to be of the time we spent together and for them to share those memories with each other and their children.

Life, love and laughter-what priceless gifts to give our children.
-Phylis Campbell Dryden

Hey Mamas! Chrunchy Christmas Giveaways!

2008-12-14T16:08:00.000-08:00

Head over to Super Mommy and check out the incredible giveaways she is having for the holidays. I just entered to win:

-A coupon for some cool hybrid cloth diapers

-A super soft mama cloth pantyliner (my new obsession)

-A treat basket full of fruit candy, truffles, cheese, crackers, NY cheesecake and other goodies

-2 crayon rolls

She says there is more to come, so check back often.
I am keeping my eye out for excellent giveaways for the holidays. I will add more as I find them

Homemade Laundry Soap

2008-12-09T14:23:00.000-08:00

As a stay at home Mom (SAHM) I try to take care of my family in the healthiest and cheapest way possible. If I can avoid unnecessary chemicals and fragrances and pinch a penny at the same time, I am a happy woman.
When the twins came along, I was faced with doing laundry for 5 people instead of 3, 2 of them being infants in cloth diapers.
I started looking for the right detergent to wash cloth diapers with. I was not interested in wasting the time or money (especially the money) or experimenting on my babies to find the right thing. After joining the cloth diapering forums on diaperswappers.com I learned quite a bit about the different ways parents wash their cloth diapers. I also earned that the wrong detergent can leave buildup on cloth diapers. Detergent buildup can lead to repelling of moisture, stinky diapers and worst of all, diaper rash.
So following the advice of other "Crunchy" Moms I decided to make my own detergent for our cloth diapers. As long as I was at it, I may as well make laundry soap for our clothes too. I needed to find something natural, non-irritating, effective and cheap.
There are lots of recipes out there and lots of different options. The primary difference in choice is whether you want to go liquid or powder. The liquid is much more cost effective. But it kind of seems like a PITA to make. So I stuck with powdered formulas.
People have very different results with these recipes depending on their water quality and the type of machine they have. I have a top loading machine and a water softener. The water softener allows me to use much less soap per load.

Powdered Laundry Soap
Use 1-2 Tbs for a small load 3-4Tbs for a large load.
1 batch lasts me about a month. I do 3 loads of laundry a day. (not including diapers)

Ingredients
2 Cups 20 Mule Team Borax
2 Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (NOT baking soda)
2 Bars of Ivory Soap

Put the ivory bars in a food processor and run for about a min. As the soap starts to break down I add 1 cup of either one of the powders. When the soap is completely broken down add the rest of your powders and process for another 30 seconds. Viola! Now add your laundry soap into an airtight container. I use plastic shoe boxes.

Cloth Diaper Detergent
2 cups of Oxygen Bleach product such as OxyClean
2 Cups 20 Mule Team Borax
2 Arm and Hammer Washing Soda (NOT baking soda)

I pour all the ingredients directly into a plastic shoe box. Snap the lid on tight and shake, shake, shake. After it is all mixed I sometimes sprinkle a yummy smelling essential oil on top then mix with a fork.
I use 2Tbs for 1 load of diapers. My pail is pretty small and I have soft water. So your experience may be different.

To soften our fabrics and help fight bacteria I add about 1/3 of a cup of plain white vinegar to the rinse cycle. Works like a charm and leaves no smell.

Win a Free Ergo Baby Carrier!

2008-11-30T21:24:00.000-08:00

What a great contest! Win a free Ergo baby carrier and a matching back pack and front pouch.

Click here to enter.

We Have a Winner!

2008-11-15T20:45:00.000-08:00

We have a winner for the Cloth Diaper Giveaway!

Here is the winner's post:

Alinga said...

My little one is due in April and I have decided to use cloth because after reading what is in sposies, I can't dare put them on my baby. Cloth is not only good for babies, but for the enviroment, my pockets(since I was recently laid off) and well... they look so darn cute! Please enter my little Easter Peep.

Congrats Alinga and thanks for entering!

Great Give Aways I found today

2008-11-06T09:20:00.000-08:00

Choo Choo!
I love wooden toys for our little ones.
Frugal Mommy of 2 Girls has an incredible giveaway here of some beautiful wooden trains from Santa's Wood Shop. Definitely worth entering!

Baby Shoes!
STL Mommy is holding a drawing for a free pair of shoes from See Kai Run. Check it here.
See Kai Run makes adorable shoes and has a great program called Share a Pair. For every pair of shoes sold in November and Decemeber, See Kai Run will donate a pair of shoes to a child in need.

Cloth Diaper Free for Shipping Lotto

2008-11-01T15:54:00.000-07:00

This is a starter package I put together for a family who wants to switch to cloth but needs help getting started or is already cloth diapering but in need of some help. There are 4 brand new still in the package Large Dappi Diaper covers and 4 premium bleached prefold diapers and a Snappi. The prefolds are not new, but they are in excellent condition.
To enter just leave a comment here and tell me why you like cloth diapers or why you are making the switch from disposables. The winner only has to cover the cost of shipping. I will use a random number generator to pick the winner on Saturday November 15th. Thanks for entering and thanks for cloth diapering!
I extended the date out a week on this because of slow response. Thanks! :)

Friends vs. Opportunity

2008-10-28T22:26:00.000-07:00

Another school?
We have been given a tough choice this week. My daughter has the option of switching to the local public school from the one she attends now. The one she attends now is fine, but the local one is great.
Originally, we registered her at our local school. We were surprised when they told us there was no room in the 5th grade for her there. Each of the schools only goes to the 5th grade. No matter where she ends up, she would be funneled into the same middle school. If she moves that will be 4 schools in 2 years.
We received the name of her new school and teacher the night before school started. Since we were disappointed already, we were dubious of this new school. Things have gone better than we thought they might. She is doing very well there. She has made friends and is excelling academically.
The concern is that she is not being challenged.Will she miss opportunities if we don't jump over to the 'better' school. If she switches, and there are benefits, will they outweigh the losses in the switching?
In an attempt to give her some sense of control in the situation I told her she could decide. I am regretting that now. I look at her and I see the stress from the weight of what should be an adult decision.
She is only 10 years old. I think this is too much pressure for her. When the subject comes up, her eyes well up. When I ask her why she says 'I don't know."
I will need to decide this for her. I am the Mother after all.
If it were me, I would move. I like new places and I am not a 10 year old girl trying to build friendships.
I truthfully just don't know what the right thing to do is.

Today's Snack: Popcorn.

2008-10-23T11:55:00.000-07:00

I am a popcorn fiend. It has been my favorite snack for as long as I can remember.
As a little kid, I remember watching my Mom make popcorn in an electric oil popper. She would plug it in and I would try and get my face as close the big yellow dome as I could to watch the action.
Sometimes we would get brave and try a Jiffy pop. Those were never as exciting as the commercial.
Later we got an air popper. It was loud as heck. The popcorn was different since there was no oil. It still tasted good, but it would squeak on my teeth like Styrofoam. I loved the little metal butter dish that slid into the side like an easy bake oven.
Then came microwave popcorn. I ate a lot of that. Ultimately though, I am not a fan. It's too salty and just doesn't taste real to me.
When I moved out on my own I decided to learn to make popcorn in the stove top. This is the only to make popcorn. It's so easy! Why doesn't everyone do it this way?
Homemade popcorn, with real butter and the topping of your choice. Throw on a movie and pour your favorite drink over ice. What a great way to spend an afternoon!
If you have a nice heavy pan with a good lid, some cooking oil and a bag of popcorn kernels you are ready to go! The only hard part is deciding what topping to use.
Always start with real butter. I have known some people to skip the butter for health reasons. I am not one of them.
Purists will say real melted butter with just a pinch of salt is the only way to go. During my time in Oregon I learned about nutritional yeast as a topping. I had never heard of it. It was great! Now I keep a shaker of it in my cabinet.
A friend of mine clued me in on her her secret topping. She uses real butter then sprinkles it with ranch dressing mix. Delicious!
What about you? Does your family make popcorn together? Do you wait until you have the place to yourself and make a big bowl that you don't have to share?
Share with me! What is your favorite way to eat popcorn? Post some recipes. :)