Busy Mommy Media » Frugal Mom

Can Frugal Living be Fun?

Rachel — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 02:05:56 +0000

If you ask a child what the best day of the year is, most of them are going to tell you Christmas Day, and they aren’t speaking from any religious convictions. Most of us grow up with the idea that “he who dies with the most toys wins”. So how can learning to live frugally ever be fun?

Turn Saving Money into a Game

When I first began to trim things from our family budget, I’ll admit, it was a chore. It was easy to convince myself that I needed everything we were paying for. The 500 TV channels were necessary even though I had never really watched TV before I was put on bedrest with my second son. The weekly pizza gave us a much needed break on Friday nights after a long week. All the things that were going to save money seemed to be taking something fun out of our lives.

I’ve never been a big spender but putting the time and effort into saving money on basics like groceries and new clothes for the kids sounded even less exciting than a trip to the dentist. It wasn’t until I started challenging myself by setting savings goals that I actually started to enjoy the process of cutting back. I started with my grocery bill since that was the most flexible bill in our budget. My first monthly grocery goal was just slightly lower than what I had been spending so that I wasn’t overwhelmed and I’ve gradually cut it back from there. I now feed a family of 5 for under $300 a month by combining sale prices with coupons (including long term food storage) and get far too excited when I find a high value coupon for a favorite product. Couponing has become a kind strange hobby for me but my kids, already used to me taking pictures of their dinner before they eat it have adjusted to my new habits beautifully.

Get More for Less

One of the main reasons my family has gotten so excited about our transition into a more frugal lifestyle is because they have discovered that making thrifty choices allows them to get more for less. We eat out more, have a bigger food storage, go to the movies more, and explore more local attractions than we did before we cut back on our family budget. That probably seems like a strange statement but it’s true. In our pre-frugal life, we would spend money we probably couldn’t afford on little extras just because we wanted to. Now, we spend a little bit of time each week researching deals and take advantages of sales, coupons, and local freebies. We spend less money but are able to do more.

Just recently, my children got free zoo tickets through our local summer reading program, I won a free toddler bedroom set and $30 in movie gift cards from entering a blog giveaway, saw The Last Airbender for free BEFORE it came out in the theatre, and I got $300 worth of groceries for $75. We do more, we get more, but we spend less. We have more fun as a family and spend less, which makes frugal living fun for everyone.

Teach Frugal Habits Early

I’m fairly certain that if my parents had asked me if I wanted to get one toy now or two toys later I would have gone for the single toy. I’m all about instant gratification. Fortunately my kids are learning to make wise choices early. My 7 year old son loves mangos and asks for one nearly every time we are at the grocery store. The other day when he asked for a mango they were nearly $1.50 each. There was no way I was going to pay that. I asked him to make a choice – buy 1 mango then or wait until they were cheaper and buy more. A few weeks later mangos went on sale at a local grocery store for 3/$1. We stocked up on more mangos than any of us could ever eat and filled our freezer with sliced fruit. My son was in heaven and smart enough to see that the bowls full of mango were a much better reward than the one, slightly shriveled mango that he almost settled for.

Learning to live a more frugal lifestyle does take some adjustment but it can improve more than just your family budget – it can improve your quality of life. How do you make frugal living fun?

Photo by Daniel Y. Go

Winning Wednesday – July 28, 2010

Jennifer — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 11:09:39 +0000

Busy moms are often pressed for time, but entering blog giveaways can help you score some great products for your family for free. With some perseverance and a little luck, you too can be a winner! Busy Mommy Media has scoured the internet and discovered some of the greatest blog giveaways for mom bloggers so you can spend your precious free time entering giveaways instead of searching for them.

Winning Ways

This week’s tip is to create a separate twitter account for entering giveaways. Many blog giveaways will give extra entries for following them on Twitter. This is a simple way to earn extra entries. However, if you use Twitter to stay in touch with family and friends, you may not want all the giveaway tweets cluttering up your page. If you use a Twitter account solely dedicated for entering giveaways, you won’t have this problem. It also makes it easier to check Twitter for new giveaways.

Featured Giveaways

Enter to win a Sun Mate (UV Ray Strength Indicator)@ Great Blog Giveaways (7/31, US and Canada)
Enter to win Pediped Washable Kids Shoes @ Busy Mommy Media (8/3, US only)
Enter to win a $70 CSN Stores Gift Certificate @ Great Blog Giveaways (8/7, US and Canada)
Enter to win a Crayola Color Wonder Prize Pack containing 5 great kits @ Great Blog Giveaways (8/9, US only)
Enter to win a Total Pillow @ Great Blog Giveaways (8/10, US 18+)
Enter to win your choice of Jewelry from Domaine Ltd. @ Great Blog Giveaways (8/10, US and Canada 18+)

Giveaways for Moms

Enter to win a $50 Gift Certificate for China Baroque Fine Sterling Jewelry @ Table 4 Four (8/12)
Enter to win a $500 Head-to-toe Beauty Prize Pack @ Beauty Junkies Unite (8/22, US only)
Enter to win your choice of any 2 eyeshadows from Everyday Minerals @ Blissful Bee Blogging (8/9, Worldwide)
Enter to win a pair of hypo-allergenic titanium hoop earrings from Etsy artist, funnyfuser @ Tsue ~ That’s What She Said (8/7, Worldwide 18+)
Enter to win TicklerTags @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/12)
Enter to win Dryel 3-in-1 Touch-Up Spray (3 Winners) @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/26)
Enter to win Dryel On The Go Stain Pen (3 Winners) @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/19)
Enter to win Snikiddy Snacks @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (7/31)
Enter to win Kerasal Dry Foot Moisturizer @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/10)
Enter to win the Rock ‘N Learn Phonics Vol. 1 DVD @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/18)
Enter to win a Dryel Starter Kit @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/12)
Enter to win a SafeTpet Personalized Pet Collar @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/20)
Enter to win Near East Couscous (2 Winners) @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/15)
Enter to win a Pocket Purifier and SunMate @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/5)
Enter to win an Evengrow Turntable for Potted Plants @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/3)
Enter to win a Covergirl $20 Giftcard @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (7/31)
Enter to win a copy of The Last to Die by Kate Brady (3 Winners) @ Busy Moms Who Love to Read (7/30)
Enter to win your Choice of Books (3 Winners) @ Busy Moms Who Love to Read (8/20)
Enter to win a copy of All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins @ Busy Moms Who Love to Read (8/14)

Giveaways for the Young or Young at Heart

Enter to win a $15 GC to Piggy Paint @ Momvstheboys (8/5, Worldwide)
Enter to win a Little Tikes Spray and Rescue Firetruck @ My Wee View (7/30)
Enter to win a Fisher Price Bubble Mower @ Mama Makes Money (8/1)
Enter to win The Penguins of Madagascar DVD @ The Frugal Bug (8/5)

Giveaways for Baby

Enter to win a 30 Ct. Boogie Wipes (2 winners) @ Short On Cents (8/10, US only)
Enter to win a Set of 10 Bummas Cloth Baby Wipes in winner’s choice of colors @ The Cheap and Choosy (8/15, US and Canada)
Enter to win Organic Kicky Pants Tee and Miyim Teether @ HSUper Parents (8/10, US only)
Enter to win a Tommee Tippee Truly Spill Proof Sippy Cup @ Pacifiers, Pumps and The World (8/10, US 18+)

Giveaways for the Foodie

Enter to win a Box of Truvia @ The Purple Lady (8/1, US 18+)
Enter to win Peter Rabbits Organic Snacks @ Diabetic Snacker (9/1, US only)
Enter to win 5 bags of Food Should Taste Good Chips (2 winners) @ Featured Product Reviews (8/10, US only)
Enter to win an Oregon Chai Prize Pack @ Ten Talents (8/2, US only)

Giveaways for House and Home

Enter to win a Safe Plant and Garden Bundle by Eso Smart @ Everyday Mom Ideas (7/31, Worldwide)
Enter to win a $60 CSN Stores gift certificate @ Deckside Thoughts (7/31, US, UK, Canada)
Enter to win a Seventh Generation Free and Clear Starter Kit (including 11 FULL SIZE products!) @ Takin’ Care of Twins Reviews (8/9, US only)
Enter to win a Zak Designs bowl set @ Stretching the One Income Dollar (8/3, US only)

Jen’s Giveaway Pick

Enter to win a $100 Igigi Plus Size Clothing gift certificate @ Extreme Personal Measures (8/3)

For more blog giveaways, visit Great Blog Giveaways. Remember, you can’t win if you don’t enter!

Until next time,

Jen

Playskool Musical Sit N Spin Deal

Rachel — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 04:04:52 +0000

The Playskool Sit n Spin is a classic. You’d be hard pressed to find too many people who don’t have at least a few memories of spinning around on the thing as a child. Amazon has the Playskool Musical Sit N Spin on sale for only $10.20 (you’ve got to love Amazon’s pricing) right now, which is a great deal. You may want to take advantage of this even if your kids are a bit older because it would make a fabulous and frugal birthday gift for someone.

Free Sample of Barlean’s Fish Oil

Rachel — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 17:06:20 +0000

I was frustrated with taking my fish oil supplements so I asked for recommendations on Twitter for fish oil supplements that were easier to take. I received a great recommendation for Barlean’s Omega Swirl. I was looking for something that didn’t make me gag, instead, I got something that tastes so good my kids beg to take more of it.

Barlean’s is offering a free sample of your choice of their fish oil supplements. I received my sample in the mail this week and it’s the perfect size to pack in an overnight bag so they’re handy to have around.

New Juicy Juice Coupons

Lorie — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 20:28:59 +0000

New Juicy Juice coupons have been released. My kids love the 100% Juicy Juice and I love when I find coupons for it ! Here they are!

1. $2.00 off four 64 oz Juicy Juice

2. $1.00 off 4 pack Sparkling Juicy Juice

3. $1.00 off Juicy Juice with DHA and Immunity

4. $1.00 off Juicy Juice 6-pack of the 10 oz bottles

Cookbook Review: The $5 Dinner Mom

Lorie — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 14:38:11 +0000

Do you think feeding your family well and staying on budget is even possible? Are you having a hard time coming up with ideas for dinners for your family? Well, I have found the cure for you, The $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook.

Creation of $5 Dinner Mom

The $5 Dinner Mom is Erin Chase. I have enjoyed reading her blog since its inception. The blog started when the country was going through a recession and the cost of food was at an all time high. My family was no different and we were also having problems finding enough money to buy food. I started reading Erin’s blog and found a wealth of information. Erin, like many other bloggers today, started putting her ideas down and wrote a cookbook known as The $5 Dinner Mom.

Inside The $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook

The $5 Dinner Mom has 200 recipes for quick, easy, healthy and budget friendly meal ideas that cost less than $5 a meal. The cookbook starts out with three whole chapters on Strategic Grocery Shopping, Strategic Couponing, and Strategic Meal Planning. Erin packs in all the information and tips that she has learned in her own experience of trying to feed her family healthy, budget friendly meals. I really enjoyed these chapters. It was like talking with a good friend who was sharing tips. The rest of the cookbook is broken down into several chapters of recipes for different food categories including; Pasta and Pizza, Chicken and Turkey, Beef, Pork, Soups and Stews, and Vegetarian. The last chapter is devoted to homemade recipes like dressings, sauces and breads. Many of these recipes are used in other recipes found in the cookbook. The recipes all contain price breakdowns by ingredients, which is very helpful for planning your own recipes. At the end of each recipe is a frugal fact that will help you and your family save money in the grocery store as well as time saving meal preparation tips. The really neat thing about the recipes is that they are an entire meal in one recipe and again all are $5 or less.

Testing $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook Recipes

I decided to review this cookbook so I really needed to test some of the recipes. The first recipe we tried was the Potato Pizza Pie on page 248. I think that the main reason I decided to try this recipe was because the picture in the book looked so yummy. I never really realized it was a recipe from the vegetarian chapter. This recipe was really interesting because it showed a different way to use potatoes. I had a lot on-hand that needed to be used so it made it a perfect choice for me. This recipe also uses the homemade pizza sauce found in the homemade chapter. Making your own sauces can really save you some money! According to the recipe, the total cost was $4.34. I had everything on-hand except the carrots, so this meal was pretty inexpensive to make. The Pizza Pie tasted a lot like pizza and was liked by the whole family. I also liked that her bread recipes included bread machine instructions.

$5 Dinner Mom Blog

You should check out Erin’s blog($5 Dinners), it is full of information on how to save money on healthy family meals, and she has lots of recipes. Most of the recipes in the cookbook are not listed on her blog so you need to buy the cookbook to get those recipes.

How Can I Get $5 Dinner Mom Cookbook?

I received a cookbook to review, but was not compensated for writing a review of the book by the author or publisher. If you are interested in buying a cookbook for yourself, you can find it on Amazon for $10.19, at the time of this writing. I have found the cookbook very helpful for my family and I hope each of you get the chance to check it out to help your family eat healthy, easy, budget friendly dinners.

Winning Wednesday – July 21, 2010

Jennifer — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 03:01:38 +0000

Winning Ways

This week’s tip is to start entering giveaways with the holidays in mind. While Christmas may be the furthest thing from your mind, right now is the best time to start entering for prizes that will make good gifts. I keep a list of people and gift ideas next to my computer. Blog giveaways are among the most winnable sweepstakes, so chances are you can make a dent in your gift list with a little persistence. It is a good idea to set aside some time each day to enter.

Featured Giveaways

Enter to win a $70 CSN Stores Gift Certificate @ Great Blog Giveaways (8/7, US and Canada)
Enter to win a Sun Mate (UV Ray Strength Indicator)@ Great Blog Giveaways (7/31, US and Canada)
Enter to win Pediped Washable Kids Shoes @ Busy Mommy Media (8/3, US only)

Giveaways for Moms

Enter to win a Multi-hued Black Freshwater Pearl necklace @ Salad For Breakfast (8/15, Worldwide)
Enter to win a pink flowered handbag by Cloverfields @ Fearlessly Infertile (7/25, Worldwide)
Enter to win a $50 Victoria’s Secret Gift Card @ Yacht Chick (7/31, Worldwide 18+)
Enter to win a Free Party Inspiration Board with Party Ideas @ Divine Party Concepts (7/23)
Enter to win a Pocket Purifier & SunMate @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/5)
Enter to win a Covergirl $20 Giftcard @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (7/31)
Enter to win The Life O’Reilly by Brian Cohen Signed Copy @ Busy Moms Who Love to Read (7/23)
Enter to win The Last to Die by Kate Brady (3 Winners) @ Busy Moms Who Love to Read (7/30)

Giveaways for the Young or Young at Heart

Enter to win a $50 Bombat Washers Gift Certificate @ Table 4 Four (7/30)
Enter to win an Adorable Avon Kids Hooded Shark Towel @ Fuzziest Bunny Slippers (7/28, US and Canada)
Enter to win Rock ‘N Learn Phonics Vol. 1 DVD @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/18)
Enter to win a Guidecraft Kids Workbench and Tools ($90 value) @ Moms Wear Your Tees (8/12, US 18+)

Giveaways for Baby

Enter to win a Gift Basket of Organic Baby Product(value $125) @ Text Message Baby (7/31, US and Canada 18+)
Enter to win an adorable Handmade Baby Bib @ HSUper Parents (8/17, US only)
Enter to win a Baby Bambu Organic Panda Onesie @ HSUper Parents (7/29, US only)

Giveaways for the Foodie

Enter to win a copy of the cookbook Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms @ Extreme Personal Measures (7/31)
Enter to win Near East Couscous (2 Winners) @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/15)
Enter to win a Wanchai Ferry Gift Set @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (7/22)
Enter to win Three free product coupons for Nature’s Own Bread @ Featured Reviews and Giveaways (7/21, US only)

Giveaways for House and Home

Enter to win Custom Wall Art from Even Endings @ Life in the Pitts (7/25, US only)
Enter to win a Dryel Starter Kit (3 Winner) @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/12)
Enter to win a SafeTpet Personalized Pet Collar @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/20)
Enter to win Personalized stationery from Pear Tree Greetings @ Oh, My Darling (7/22, US only)
Enter to win a Evengrow Turntable for Potted Plants @ The Busy Woman’s Guide to Surviving Motherhood (8/3)
Enter to win @ $10 Gift Card to Crate & Barrel @ Spend Less and Save More (7/30, 18+)

Jen’s Giveaway Pick

Enter to win a $30 Target Gift Card @ Anonymous8 (7/28, Worldwide 18+)

For more blog giveaways, visit Great Blog Giveaways. Remember, you can’t win if you don’t enter!

Until next time,

Jen

Machine Washable Kids Shoes from Pediped (Giveaway)

Rachel — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 21:55:58 +0000

My boys are talented. They can make a brand new pair of shoes look like something we pulled out of the dumpster in a matter of minutes. I once tried to salvage a pair by throwing it in the washing machine. It didn’t end well and my oldest son has never let me live it down. He lives in fear that I’m going to try and wash a pair of his favorite shoes again. Unfortunately, without washing, shoes don’t last long around our house.

Pediped has released a great new line of shoes that not only uses DRYZ technology to control moisture and limit odor, but they are machine washable too. My 4 year old, the most notorious of all shoe wearers in our house has been working his hardest to get a pair of Joel shoes dirty over the last few weeks. This style has been great for my son because even though it’s structured more like a tennis shoe, which makes it easy to run in, it lets a lot of air through and doesn’t require socks (perfect for the boy who can never find a matching pair).

Our Pediped Joel shoes have been to the county fair and walked through who knows what while learning how to brush a horse. They’ve been to the beach, both in and out of the water. They’ve ridden scooters and walked through amusement parks.

While I’d love to say they are filthy enough that only washing will save them – I can’t. The things still look brand new. All the dirt, and sand, and sticky food just seems to fall off them and there’s no noticeable smell thanks to the DRYZ technology.

But, I’m going to wash them anyway because I want to see if they’ll survive the process.

Are Pediped Shoes Machine Washable?

Here are the Joel shoes before washing. They are in pretty good shape, especially considering all the abuse they’ve taken. The rubber in the front is coming away every so slightly but that is because they’ve been dragged while riding a scooter. Few shoes can survive that intact.

After washing? They actually look pretty good. There’s no fraying along the edges like you typically see after washing shoes in the washing machine. The rubber on the front that my son scrapped a bit didn’t pull away any further like I was worried it would. The color of the rubber on the bottom is bright and looks just like new. Notice I did take the insoles out before washing according to Pediped’s instructions. I’m guessing I can wipe those down with a wet rag to clean them up a bit.

These are still drying but they look like they’ve come through the wash just fine.

Pediped doesn’t recommend washing them any more than necessary but it is a nice option when you need to refresh a pair of shoes.

Enter to Win

Enter to win a pair of Pediped Shoes (companies choice of style)

This giveaway is open to the U.S. only and will end on August 3, 2010.

Comment on this post to enter.

Please see our site’s Terms and Conditions for a complete list of our contest and giveaway rules.

In compliance with the new FTC Guildlines, please note that this is a sponsored post. I was given a pair of Pediped shoes to review free of charge, however, I was not paid for the review and the opinions are my own.

Additional Giveaway Entries

Earn additional giveaway entries by doing one or all of the following. Comment on this post each time your earn an additional entry.

Follow Busy Mommy Media on Twitter
Tweet this giveaway by clicking on the box in the upper right hand side of this post.
Get updates from Busy Mommy Media by signing up for the Busy Mommy Media Newsletter, subscribing to the Busy Mommy Media RSS feed, or Sign up to receive updates from Busy Mommy Media.
Start or respond to a conversation in our Blog Frog Community.
Blog about this giveaway and link back to the giveaway post.
Stumble this post.

$2.99 Quiznos Coupon!

Rachel — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 18:59:46 +0000

I love this coupon! Quiznos has some great sandwiches but they’re even better at a discounted price. This great coupon will give you any small sub, chips and a regular fountain drink at Quiznos for only $2.99. Hurry and print this coupon while it lasts because these always go fast.

Frugal Domino’s Pizza Deal!

Rachel — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 18:45:20 +0000

I never used to be a huge fan of Domino’s Pizza, but they recently changed their recipe and now I love it . There’s a great deal going on at selected Domino’s Pizza locations. You have to check with your local store to see if they take this coupon code but if they do it’s a steal.