Frugal Living — Moms Need To Know ™

Sunday Coupon Insert Preview | May 20, 2012

By Mindi Cherry on May 19, 2012
in general

As a reminder, the value of the coupons that you find in your newspaper may vary from the value in the provided link! In addition, all of the stores in my area double coupons up to $.99 (so a $.75 coupon has a value of $1.50). If the stores in your area don’t double or your paper is more expensive, you may not find the coupons as valuable as I do!

Check out Sunday Coupon Preview for the complete listing of coupons. There should be 2 inserts this week: a SmartSource and a Redplum

Don’t understand the terms or abbreviations that I use? Be sure to read my Coupon Lingo post!

Coupons of Note

:: SmartSource Coupons

Bausch & Lomb coupons: you can usually use these coupons to get free eyecare solution at the CVS, Rite Aid or Walgreens about every 4-5 weeks

Coppertone coupons: there will be plenty of great deals on sunscreen in the upcoming weeks

Heinz $.25/1 tomato ketchup: the only time they ever put out coupons is pretty much May- August (when there will be good sales). Stock up on your ketchup on the cheap this summer

Kraft $1/2 dressings or sizzling salads dinner kits: the small bottles of dressing will go on sale for $1 to $1.25 in the next few weeks

Maruchan $.50/1 Yakisoba product: these sodium-laced “meals” go on sale for $1 all the time, making them FREE after doubled coupon

Schick B1G1 free disposable razor pack up to $10.50 excludes 2ct: we should be able to turn this coupon in the plenty of free razors at CVS, Rite Aid or Walgreens

Sweet Baby Ray’s $1/2 barbecue sauce: use this coupon to get it for $0.49 at Acme this week

:: RedPlum Coupons

some semi-decent Suave coupons and a nice Degree coupon, but other than that, not so great!

So how many copies of the paper would I buy?

If I were building a stockpile: 2-3
Now that I am in stockpile-maintenance mode: 2-3

It’s a boring week. I will probably only want 1 copy of the Redplum, and will get 2 copies of the paper that carries the “good Smartsource” (which is also the paper that doesn’t carry the Redplum)

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the 2012 Coupon Insert Schedule

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Happy Mother's Day!

By Mindi Cherry on May 13, 2012
in general

Happy Mother’s Day!

I hope that you have all of my mom-readers have a fabulous day full of laughter and love!

Don’t forget that if you are heading out to eat today, there are a number of Free For Mother’s Day offers available at a restaurant or store near you!

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Sunday Coupon Insert Preview | May 13, 2012

By Mindi Cherry on May 12, 2012
in general

Check out Sunday Coupon Preview for the complete listing of coupons. There should be 3 inserts this week: a SmartSource, a Redplum and a Proctor & Gamble insert.

Don’t understand the terms or abbreviations that I use? Be sure to read my Coupon Lingo post!

Coupons of Note

:: SmartSource Coupons

Banana Boat $1/1 Sun Care product 4oz+ excludes lip balm: the sunscreen deals are starting again, so this coupon should come in handy

Chock full o’Nuts $.75/1 package: this goes on sale Buy 1 Get 1 Free all the time. Hold on to this coupon for one of those sales to maximize your savings

FoodSaver appliance coupon: use this coupon to get a Foodsaver for less than $10 at Walmart

French’s $.30/1 Classic Yellow or Spicy Brown Mustard: we will start seeing all the $1 mustard sales soon and the small jars are priced at about $0.69 at most stores

Post Grape Nuts and Shredded Wheat coupons ($1/1 each): these are usually $1/2 coupons

Not in the “official list”, but in my SmartSource insert (may be regional): Target coupons for Tide and Gain (these can be stacked with manufacturers coupons to increase your savings), $1/1 Green’s Ice Cream coupon (goes on sale for $2-$2.50), coupons for Raid & Off products (along with sunscreen deals, deals on bug-control products are coming back)

:: RedPlum Coupons

Superpretzel $1/1 product: goes on sale for $2 or less

Turkey Hill $1/2 half-gallon+ drinks: I love me some Turkey Hill Diet Green Tea!

:: Proctor & Gamble Coupons

There is a $1/1 Tide coupon and a $3/2 Pantene coupon, but other than that, it is pretty boring

So how many copies of the paper would I buy?

If I were building a stockpile: 3-4 (as long as the SmartSource includes the “extra” coupons that I mentioned)

Now that I am in stockpile-maintenance mode: 2-4 (as long as the SmartSource includes the “extra” coupons that I mentioned)

Eh – I didn’t want to spend Mother’s Day clipping a bunch of coupons anyway……

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the 2012 Coupon Insert Schedule

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Taking the Business Approach to Personal Finances

By Mindi Cherry on May 11, 2012
in Frugal Living

The following is a guest post. Lean more about how you can submit a guest post to Moms Need To Know

Getting into better shape is a more realistic goal than most people imagine. Whether physically or financially, the steps are best understood as:

Identify long-term goals.
Identify short-term goals that will contribute to success with long-term ones.
Establish actions that will help in reaching short-term goals.

Everyone understands that someone new to exercise should not attempt to run a mile during the first week. However, there is the persisting belief that getting into financial shape requires making big changes immediately, such as completely eliminating high-interest credit debt and establishing a six-month emergency fund.

A desire to get the finances in order should begin with a focus on two areas: income and expenses. Every type of successful business uses the same formula of maximizing income while minimizing overhead, and application of the formula over the long term will make those larger changes more possible in the future.

:: Reducing Overhead

Addressing overhead begins with creating a budget. Besides identifying unnecessary expenditures and areas where changes will make the greatest impact, this will also be useful in tax season. Accurate records will make it much easier to claim reductions.

Once you have a budget and have assessed the amount of income being used in different areas, it is time to create a projected budget for the next month. It is best to begin with small reductions in spending, such as cutting back from five lattes a week to three. Success through small changes is a psychological ploy to ensure that you continue the effort.

Certain lifestyle changes can promote long-term savings. Regularly dining out is an enormous cost, and a few small appliances and a little research can make it easy to create meals at home or on the go at a fraction of the cost. Similarly, convenience foods at the grocery store are far more expensive than basic ingredients.

Pre-packaged oatmeal can be replaced with bulk oats and one-time purchase of a $20 coffee grinder. A quality rice steamer will make it convenient to prepare cheap, bulk rice and beans. A small investment in seeds, research, and labor can likewise replace the cost of a favorite vegetable or fruit for pennies on the dollar and yield healthier food.

:: Increasing Income

Efforts to increase income should begin with an honest assessment of workplace mobility and opportunities to expand skills. Have you received a raise in the last year? Does asking for a raise elicit anything other than negative responses? Is promotion a possibility with harder work? If the answers to these questions are all negative, it may be worthwhile to consider education opportunities and changing careers.

Inflation eats away at the value of your current income every year, which means you are actually making less without annual raises. It is a simple matter to compare the loss of income due to inflation with a percentage raise increase to determine whether the current job is keeping up with the overall economy.

The key to changing the overall financial picture lies in saving pennies. All savings and excess income can be used to increase savings in other ways, such as planting shade trees for the home or investing in a small solar unit to run a couple of appliances, or to help accomplish long-term goals. Financial burnout can be avoided by focusing on smaller changes to finance the larger ones.

Christine Lukes is a personal finances guru and freelance blogger for SavingsAccount.org a site she highly recommends as using a savings account properly is a great way to manage your income.

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Sunday Coupon Insert Preview | May 6, 2012

By Mindi Cherry on May 5, 2012
in general

Check out Sunday Coupon Preview for the complete listing of coupons. There should be 2 inserts this week: a SmartSource and a Redplum.

Don’t understand the terms or abbreviations that I use? Be sure to read my Coupon Lingo post!

Coupons of Note

:: SmartSource Coupons

Al fresco all natural Chicken Sausage $1.00/1: this product is awesome and there are rarely coupons for it

Buy one Bengay Zero Degrees or Bengay Cold Therapy product get One Precise by Tylenol Free up to $8.00: we should be able to work this in to a good deal at the drugstores

Joint Juice product $1.00/1: the single-serve bottles go on sale for $1 all the time, making it FREE after coupon

:: RedPlum Coupons

Nutella $1/1 13oz+ jar: we NEVER see coupons for this!

So how many copies of the paper would I buy?

If I were building a stockpile: 3-4
Now that I am in stockpile-maintenance mode: 2-3

It’s yet ANOTHER boring week

Don’t forget to check out the rest of the 2012 Coupon Insert Schedule

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This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

An Important Message To Email Subscribers

By Mindi Cherry on May 2, 2012
in general

If you subscribe to Moms Need To Know by email, please read:

The other day, I changed the service that I am using to deliver my daily emails to you. You probably received 2 emails yesterday….one was the “regular” email that you are used to seeing (with “Moms Need To Know” as the title of the email) and another one that had as the email title “Family Travel Tips | Plan Your Vacation”.

First, let me apologize to you for the “double email”.

I purposely didn’t turn off the old service immediately in order to catch problems such as what happened yesterday (my daily email went out with the email title being the most recent post, as opposed to “Moms Need To Know Daily Newsletter”). You will also be getting 2 emails today, but if all goes as I plan, this will be the last day that you get 2 emails from me and my “old service” will be shut down tonight.

If, by any chance, you clicked on the email that said “Family Travel Tips | Plan Your Vacation” yesterday and clicked on “unsubscribe” (or the Daily Newsletter that came today with the MNTK logo/header at the top), then as of later tonight, you will be completely removed from all Moms Need To Know emails.

To resubscribe, you can simply head here and resubscribe!

Thanks!

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5 Ways To Save Money on Children’s Clothing

By Mindi Cherry on May 2, 2012
in Frugal Living, general

With 3 children, clothing can get expensive. It wasn’t as bad when my boys were younger, because I could easily pass down clothing from one to the other. Now that my 11 year old is older and “playing harder”, his pants get holes in them, his shoes wear out sooner….and I find myself throwing clothes away when he outgrows them, rather than saving them for the 9 year old. Then there is my 6 year old daughter who is a total princess and wants the latest “sparkly shoes” and pretty dresses.

Here is how I save money on clothing:

:: Shop in Advance

Right now, it is May, which means that I am hitting the clearance racks for sweaters, long pants, flannel pajamas, etc. I just buy them at least a size larger than what they are wearing now…sometimes even 2 sizes larger (if the price is right). In late August and September, I am stocking up on shorts, sundresses, t-shirts and bathing suits. In a few weeks, I will be pulling out a bunch of name-brand shorts and t-shirts for my boys for which I paid $3 or less…and the same goes for my daughter with her “summer dresses”.

:: Check out Yard Sales

I’m not a huge fan of buying “everyday clothes” for my children at yard sales (unless the tags are still on them), but I have picked up some great deals on special occasion clothes and shoes for my boys at yard sales. They wear dress shoes about 2x per size (if that) and if I can pick those up at a yard sale for $3 instead of paying $20-$30 at the store, then I am pleased at punch!

:: Accept Hand-Me-Downs

When I had my daughter, my neighbor started giving me BAGS of clothing that her daughters had outgrown. My sister also gives me the clothes that her boys have outgrown. They were thrilled to get the clothing out of their house and I was thrilled to have the clothes. With my neighbor, the clothes were mostly name-brands like Gymboree, Children’s Place, Gap, and more. With the clothes from my sister, they have been all the things my boys loved (Spongebob, Toy Story, Skateboarding, etc)

Note: when receiving hand-me-downs, it is important to ask in advance if they are a gift or a loan and decide if you still want to accept them. Frankly, although I appreciate the generous offer, I don’t accept clothing “on loan”, because I don’t want to have to worry about making sure that I get everything back to them when my kids outgrow them!

:: Shop Consignment Shops

Consignment shops are usually pretty picky about what they will accept, so you can usually find great deals on name-brand clothing in great condition.

:: Shop at Outlet and Discount Stores

Stores like TJ Maxx, Marshall’s, etc can be a great resource for clothing on the cheap, especially when you can hit the clearance racks at those stores. If you have an outlet shopping center near you, make sure that you go when the stores are having their “Friends and family” or Sidewalk sales. Most outlet centers work hard to coordinate the stores so that they all have extra discounts and/or coupons!

:: Shop Online

Look for online coupon codes for your favorite sites. In most cases, the codes include clearance items on the site and you can really scoop up some great deals (especially when you are shopping in advance, as I mentioned above)

How do you save money on clothing for your children?

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Save The Date! Moms Need To Know Coupon Class On May 17, 2012

By Mindi Cherry on April 30, 2012
in Coupon Classes, general

As I mentioned last month, Moms Need To Know will start bringing Savings Nation coupon classes in the Philadelphia area!

The best part of all is that you won’t just learn how to use coupons….I will also teach you how to meal plan, how to save on healthy food choices, and how to make this truly work for YOU. This isn’t a “Learn how to fill your cart with free mustard” class. We are teaching SANE couponing!

Here’s a preview of what our Coupon Workshops will offer:

Learn how to save at least 50% on your groceries.
Learn how to beat the grocery stores at their own game.
Learn how to save money while still feeding your family healthy meals.
Get valuable tools to help you plan out your meals every week with your deals.
Connect with neighbors, make new friends and find savings buddies to help you in your mission to save.

You’ll also be receiving a complete Grocery Savings Workbook (pictured above)…something that is unique to Savings Nation classes!

The first class will be held on May 17, 2012 at the Staybridge Suites in Royersford, PA (off Route 422, right behind Outback Steakhouse) from 7:00pm to 9:00pm.

Registration will open tomorrow (May 1, 2012) afternoon and this workshop is limited to 36 people

Where else will you be having classes?

As I’m sure you know, Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs is a huge amount of area to cover. I want to be sure I’m booking locations that are close to you guys, so please fill out this quick survey so I know where to go!

What if I want to host a class?

If you have access to a meeting space (i.e. church, community center, or any other space) feel free to contact me directly or fill out the survey form!

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How to Encourage Healthy Eating: Involving Your Child in the Kitchen

By Mindi Cherry on April 30, 2012
in general, Life As A Mom

The following is a guest post. Lean more about how you can submit a guest post to Moms Need To Know

Children tend to enjoy eating foods that they helped create. Most kids go through a “picky eater” stage during which getting them to eat many foods , especially healthy ones, can be very challenging. During this phase, involving your child in creating their own fun and healthy snacks can make a major difference.

“Ants on a Log” is a fun snack idea that tastes great — plus it is extremely easy to make. Simply cut tender stalks of celery into sections about four inches long. Fill the hollow side with peanut butter, then have your kids place raisins in a line on top of the peanut butter. This is an easy snack for even very young children to make with a little help.

Kids can also help prepare a healthy lunch for themselves. There are many different possible variations of this recipe idea, and after you use it once or twice a few more ideas may pop into your head:

Using an English muffin or cut out rounds of toasted bread for a base, make mini pizzas by spreading marinara sauce on top. Allow your child to add shredded cheese and their choice of additional items such as small pieces of cooked chicken, turkey pepperoni, peppers or olives. Broil the mini pizzas in the oven for a minute or two to heat them up and melt the cheese, and you have a quick and healthy lunch for your kids to enjoy. You can use the same concept to create sweet treats by spreading cream cheese or peanut butter on the toasted bread or muffin, then helping your kids top them with their choice of fruit. Strawberries and blueberries work well, but virtually any type of fruit will work if you chop it up first.

The older your children are, the more complex the foods they can help you prepare. Pre-teens may enjoy helping you prepare food by measuring or mixing recipes under your supervision. This helps them learn skills they will need as an adult; at the same time, you can teach them how to choose healthy meals and ingredients that support good nutrition. Once they understand the basics of recipe preparation, you can allow them to prepare a simple recipe on their own. For example, boxed whole grain macaroni and cheese with reduced sodium is very easy to make and is actually quite healthy. Once they have prepared a few simple dishes successfully, you can guide them while they create more complicated recipes.

If you are a parent who works during the day, your child can help considerably with the evening meals. Older children can prepare fruit salads, vegetables and similar side dishes to go with the meal, for example. Not only is this a good experience for them, but it can be a significant time savings for you.

There are many potential advantages to allowing your child to prepare their own healthy snacks and to help with everyday food preparation. Perhaps the most important of these is guiding them in learning the basics of good nutrition and develop the ability to someday create delicious, healthy meals and snacks for themselves and their families.

Post contributed by Samantha Harvey, on behalf of Winkbingo.

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Sunday Coupon Insert Preview | April 29, 2012

By Mindi Cherry on April 28, 2012
in general

Check out Sunday Coupon Preview for the complete listing of coupons. There should be 3-4 inserts this week: a Proctor & Gamble, a SmartSource, a Redplum as well as as possibly a Pepsi Moments To Save insert (the Pepsi insert is regional).

Don’t understand the terms or abbreviations that I use? Be sure to read my Coupon Lingo post!

Coupons of Note

:: SmartSource Coupons

Colgate Powered Toothbrush Save $2/1: I haven’t seen a coupon for their power toothbrushes in a while

Egglands Best eggs Save $.35/1: I love this coupon because when they go on sale, you can use this coupon to get Eggland’s Best for less than the cost of store-brand eggs (after doubled coupon)

Planters Peanut Butter Save $1/2: peanut butter coupons are rare these days

Prego Sauce Save $.75/2: hold on to this coupon until they go on sale 3 for $5

:: RedPlum Coupons

Morton $.35/1 sea salt product excludes 4.4oz fine sea salt: they don’t put out many coupons, so grab them while you can!

Prell $1/1 shampoo: another rare coupon

Not on the official list, but some good coupons that were in my mailed copy of the insert that I received on Thursday:

Quaker Real Medleys $0.50/1: this is fairly new and goes on sale for about $1.50
Special K Cereal $1/3: not great, but any coupons for Special K are welcome
Furmano’s tomatoes cans $1/4: goes on sale for $1 or less
Listerine Coupons (5 different $1/1 coupons): these don’t expire until July 31, 2012 giving us plenty of time to match them with a good sale
Welch’s Juice coupon $1/2: goes on sale for $1.67