How do I entertain the family on a budget? I think everyone has asked that question at least once. Spending quality time with the family is sometimes hard, and you don't want to spend all your hard earned money on one day trip. I have a few ideas that my family enjoys doing together, and they don't cost much.
Some free family entertainment is watching your local little league games. We are lucky enough to be within walking distance of two fields. These games are a lot of fun to watch and it is great support for our local teams. Another free idea is to take a walk or bike ride around the neighborhood. What a wonderful way to meet your neighbors and get some exercise. You can also pack a lunch and go to the park. On a nice day, this is also great exercise and a fun way to bond with the kids.
A favorite of my family is to have a family game night. We choose a game (usually Monopoly) have some snacks and just enjoy the fun, and each other. Another favorite of ours is movie night. We pick out a couple of movies, pop some popcorn and enjoy our favorite movies. You can all cook together. Make some fun of it. Pick a theme and pretend to be in a restaurant. Let the kids be the servers and the cooks. They can make a menu, take your order and serve the food.
Now, all those suggestions are things that you can do for free. Here are a few that can be low cost. Pick a local attraction in your area and visit it. Pretend to be a tourist. A lot of people live in an area and never get the chance to really explore where they live. Take a drive. I love getting in the car and taking an "adventure". We get in the car and drive. We don't have a particular destination, we just explore. Try a new restaurant. If you find some local coupons, use them. My family has found some great hidden gems, by using coupons at restaurants, that we probably wouldn't have gone to.
This last tip isn't very inexpensive up front, but throughout the year it is good to have. If you live near a museum, zoo or theme park, buy season or yearly passes. If your family has a day together, you take advantage of those passes and have an awesome family outing.
Mother's Day Gifts
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Labels: saving, tips
Sorry, I have been away for a few days. I had a little case of writer's block. I wasn't sure what to write about, so I made a list of topics, that I have been adding to. Now I have plenty of topics to choose from. Here is the first.
Mother's Day gifts. I always get questions on what to do for inexpensive gifts. Everyone wants to save money, but are out of ideas of what to do. These are some gift ideas for Mother's Day, but will also work other occasions.
My number one tip, is to make something. You are never too old to make your own gifts. Even if you are not very artistic, grab the crayons and paper and make your own card. As a mother, believe it or not, you never get tired of the homemade gifts. It means so much more that you took the time to create something special.
Another thing you can do is make a special meal. It could be breakfast, lunch or dinner. It doesn't matter. Let Mom have a day off from cooking without worrying about battling the crowds in a restaurant.
Plan a special day for Mom. Get her favorite movies and pop her some popcorn. Let her have a relaxing movie day. You can also treat her to a homemade spa day. Give her a mani/pedi, do her hair and make up. Just pamper her.
Some other wonderful things you can do is clean the house, wash her car, find that list of things that she needs done and do them. The most important thing is to make her feel special. She's your mom and this is her day, she deserves it.
I hope these have helped you and have sparked some ideas of your own. You don't have to spend a lot of money to make your mom feel like a queen.
Mother's Day gifts. I always get questions on what to do for inexpensive gifts. Everyone wants to save money, but are out of ideas of what to do. These are some gift ideas for Mother's Day, but will also work other occasions.
My number one tip, is to make something. You are never too old to make your own gifts. Even if you are not very artistic, grab the crayons and paper and make your own card. As a mother, believe it or not, you never get tired of the homemade gifts. It means so much more that you took the time to create something special.
Another thing you can do is make a special meal. It could be breakfast, lunch or dinner. It doesn't matter. Let Mom have a day off from cooking without worrying about battling the crowds in a restaurant.
Plan a special day for Mom. Get her favorite movies and pop her some popcorn. Let her have a relaxing movie day. You can also treat her to a homemade spa day. Give her a mani/pedi, do her hair and make up. Just pamper her.
Some other wonderful things you can do is clean the house, wash her car, find that list of things that she needs done and do them. The most important thing is to make her feel special. She's your mom and this is her day, she deserves it.
I hope these have helped you and have sparked some ideas of your own. You don't have to spend a lot of money to make your mom feel like a queen.
Silver Jewelry Club
Monday, April 27, 2009
Labels: deals
This is just a really quick post on one of my favorite places to buy jewelry. It is Silver Jewelry Club. This site is a sister site of Peora. Silver Jewelry Club has jewelry that they have for free, all you do is pay for shipping and handeling at $6.99. The regular price of these items are $45 - $60. They have rings, earrings and necklace pendants. They have beautiful pieces and are of great quality. And of course, my big thing, they make great inexpensive gifts.
Sunday Deals
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Labels: deals
Hello all, today I have some super great deals. All of these vary and they are available until gone. So hop on these.
1. Wonderbra Light Gel Push-Up Bra - $10.99
2. Quicksilver Tyla Jeans - $26.40
3. Old Navy Women's Henley Camis - $3.99 to $7.99
4. Hanes Youth Heavyweight 50/50 T-Shirt - $1.98
That is all I have for today.
1. Wonderbra Light Gel Push-Up Bra - $10.99
2. Quicksilver Tyla Jeans - $26.40
3. Old Navy Women's Henley Camis - $3.99 to $7.99
4. Hanes Youth Heavyweight 50/50 T-Shirt - $1.98
That is all I have for today.
Saving without coupons
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Labels: saving, tips
Check this out, two days in a row. Today, I have some tips on how to save at the store without coupons. I am a coupon shopper. I have been all my life. When I was younger, I use to clip coupons for my grandma and my mom and they both showed me how to shop with coupons. I use coupons for everything. At the grocery store, restaurants, clothes, shoes, make-up and services.
There are times, though that I don't have coupons, but still want a great deal on items. So here is what I do.
1. Grab those ads, go online and compare prices. Sunday Saver is a great site that has ads for almost every store that prints ads. If you are unable to get the ads from the newspaper or mail you can go here and look at them. They are all in one spot. It is also a nice green way to check the ads. No paper.
2. Check the sales racks and shelves. This is also a great way to find things that you can buy and save for gifts. I have found some really nice things, especially toys, for more than half off the retail price that I was able to give as gifts.
3. Shop at outlet type stores. I always joke that I love to "Dress for Less" at Ross. Ross is one of my favorite stores. I am able to get designer clothes (not that I am a designer label snob, I'm not, I love Walmart clothes), but I can purchase some very nice items for a fraction of the cost. These places are also a great for finding very inexpensive but nice gifts. They also have very nice household items. I usually buy my sheets at these stores. I can find very high thread count sheets for about $30. This, I am a snob about and I blame my mother in law. She introduced me to 400 and 500 thread count sheets and I won't buy anything less anymore. But, I also won't pay more than $35, a set for them either.
4. At the grocery store, browse the discounted meat. I haven't bought meat at retail price in years. If I don't use it the first few days, I put it in the freezer, so the meat is still good when I do decide to use it. I have gotten some very nice cuts of meat for half of the retail price. Also, I don't buy very much steak. Steak is a luxury in my house. I use ground beef, ground turkey or chicken for everything.
5. If there is something that you really want, but it is a little out of your price range, wait. Wait for it to go on sale or better yet clearance. This has worked to my advantage several times. I have found things that I wanted, but just couldn't bring myself to pay the full retail price, so I waited. I was able to get a few things on clearance, by doing this. Now, sometimes, this backfires and the store winds up selling out of it, but I just figure it was never meant to be.
So those are the tips that I have to save money without coupons. If you follow these tips and you have coupons, you will make out even better. So, what do you do to save money without coupons?
There are times, though that I don't have coupons, but still want a great deal on items. So here is what I do.
1. Grab those ads, go online and compare prices. Sunday Saver is a great site that has ads for almost every store that prints ads. If you are unable to get the ads from the newspaper or mail you can go here and look at them. They are all in one spot. It is also a nice green way to check the ads. No paper.
2. Check the sales racks and shelves. This is also a great way to find things that you can buy and save for gifts. I have found some really nice things, especially toys, for more than half off the retail price that I was able to give as gifts.
3. Shop at outlet type stores. I always joke that I love to "Dress for Less" at Ross. Ross is one of my favorite stores. I am able to get designer clothes (not that I am a designer label snob, I'm not, I love Walmart clothes), but I can purchase some very nice items for a fraction of the cost. These places are also a great for finding very inexpensive but nice gifts. They also have very nice household items. I usually buy my sheets at these stores. I can find very high thread count sheets for about $30. This, I am a snob about and I blame my mother in law. She introduced me to 400 and 500 thread count sheets and I won't buy anything less anymore. But, I also won't pay more than $35, a set for them either.
4. At the grocery store, browse the discounted meat. I haven't bought meat at retail price in years. If I don't use it the first few days, I put it in the freezer, so the meat is still good when I do decide to use it. I have gotten some very nice cuts of meat for half of the retail price. Also, I don't buy very much steak. Steak is a luxury in my house. I use ground beef, ground turkey or chicken for everything.
5. If there is something that you really want, but it is a little out of your price range, wait. Wait for it to go on sale or better yet clearance. This has worked to my advantage several times. I have found things that I wanted, but just couldn't bring myself to pay the full retail price, so I waited. I was able to get a few things on clearance, by doing this. Now, sometimes, this backfires and the store winds up selling out of it, but I just figure it was never meant to be.
So those are the tips that I have to save money without coupons. If you follow these tips and you have coupons, you will make out even better. So, what do you do to save money without coupons?
I'm back with a deal and a review.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Labels: deals, review, saving
So, I have been away for awhile. Almost three months. That is a long time, I know. Things have gotten crazy and life gets away from you and before you know it, it's almost May. I have taken a break from this blog, but haven't taken a break from saving money. I found this great deal yesterday thanks to Cashbaq. Deckers is having a sale that ends April 30th. You can go to Cashbaq and find Deckers click through and they are selling flip flops normally $40-$65, for $12. Cashbaq will give you a rebate and it make the shoes $10.80. What a great deal. The shoes are great shoes and really durable. I love flip flops, so this is an awesome deal for me.
So, while I was away, I decided to do a review on e.l.f. cosmetics. This Christmas I had bought some things for myself and my family. I absolutely fell in love with the make-up. Now, I don't wear make-up often, so I have a hard time paying a lot of money for cosmetics that I don't wear all the time. So e.l.f. is perfect for me. If you don't know about this company, they sell their cosmetics for $1 each. They have a mineral and a studio line, that cost $3. Not too bad of prices. I have used all three lines and love them. I will do separate reviews on products later, but overall, the make-up is excellent. It is worth more than the $1 to $3 that you pay. The studio line is their professional line and these are wonderful and professional products. The brushes are awesome. The mineral line is my all time favorite. I have used Bare Minerals for years and this is up there with that. Another thing that I love about e.l.f. is that they have deals all of the time. Some are Buy 1 Get 1 Free, half off, if you spend $20, you get a Restaurant.com gift certificate, and movie tickets. So, try them out and tell me what you think.
So, while I was away, I decided to do a review on e.l.f. cosmetics. This Christmas I had bought some things for myself and my family. I absolutely fell in love with the make-up. Now, I don't wear make-up often, so I have a hard time paying a lot of money for cosmetics that I don't wear all the time. So e.l.f. is perfect for me. If you don't know about this company, they sell their cosmetics for $1 each. They have a mineral and a studio line, that cost $3. Not too bad of prices. I have used all three lines and love them. I will do separate reviews on products later, but overall, the make-up is excellent. It is worth more than the $1 to $3 that you pay. The studio line is their professional line and these are wonderful and professional products. The brushes are awesome. The mineral line is my all time favorite. I have used Bare Minerals for years and this is up there with that. Another thing that I love about e.l.f. is that they have deals all of the time. Some are Buy 1 Get 1 Free, half off, if you spend $20, you get a Restaurant.com gift certificate, and movie tickets. So, try them out and tell me what you think.
Making Money While Shopping
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Labels: making money
First of all, I'm sorry I haven't been here posting any good deals. There hasn't been much and I have been very busy. I have probably missed a lot. I have some cool sites to share.
The first is called Cashbaq. If you shop through them they have coupons and you can earn money while you shop. I have been signed up with them for about a month and I have almost $18.00 so far.
The second is ZogoPoints. I just signed up with them, but you can earn points for cash and gifts. A lot of people are getting great goodies from them. It is a lot like MyPoints.
If you haven't signed up for MyPoints, you should do that. I have received great rewards from them, like much needed gas cards when gas had skyrocketed. That was helpful.
Well, until ext time.
The first is called Cashbaq. If you shop through them they have coupons and you can earn money while you shop. I have been signed up with them for about a month and I have almost $18.00 so far.
The second is ZogoPoints. I just signed up with them, but you can earn points for cash and gifts. A lot of people are getting great goodies from them. It is a lot like MyPoints.
If you haven't signed up for MyPoints, you should do that. I have received great rewards from them, like much needed gas cards when gas had skyrocketed. That was helpful.
Well, until ext time.
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