Chicken Crescent Bundles

This is a super yummy way to use crescent rolls - I got several of them with the recent Albertson's sale, so I'll be making these soon!

Chicken Crescent Bundles

2 tubes crescent rolls

1 pkg. stove top stuffing prepared according to package directions

1 8oz. pkg. cream cheese

1-2 c. cooked, cubed or shredded chicken

Mix together stuffing, cream cheese, and chicken to create the filling.

Unroll your crescent roll dough and pull out individual rolls. Lay all of them flat on a cookie sheet a few inches apart (you will probably have to use 2 cookie sheets). Add a generous scoop of filling
to the middle of the crescent triangle (I use the Pampered Chef large scoop). Wrap the points around the filling and tuck the longest, pointiest one under to hold it all together (do you like my technical terms!?).

Bake at 375 for 11-15 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 16 bundles.

These are super yummy on their own, but I also like to add a sauce. You can either make a cheese sauce or sour cream sauce.

Cheese Sauce

1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. butter

2 c. milk

1 c. cheese

Melt the butter over medium heat, add flour to make a paste. Stir until the mixture is smooth and bubbly. Add milk and stir constantly until thickened and boiling. Add cheese. You can add more milk and/or cheese to make this to your liking.

Sour Cream Sauce

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 c. sour cream

milk

Cook over medium heat until heated through. Add the amount of milk for the thickness that you want.

Check out the Grocery Cart Challenge for more great recipes this week!

Frugal Friday - Think Creatively

Everyone is frugal for a different reason - for fun/lifestyle, necessity, saving for a purpose (home, car, getting out of debt), or other reasons. Right now we are frugal out of necessity. Being frugal out of necessity can cause some people to feel like they are being deprived because they are comparing themselves with others their age, in their neighborhood, etc.

I don't feel deprived because I have to be frugal.

I feel empowered.

It is so empowering to figure out ways to do what you want without spending anything.

When I want something or I want to do something, I can't just go out and spend the money. I have to think creatively to get it or find a solution that will work. Sometimes the more I think about it I realize that I don't need what I thought I needed.

--A good example of this is entertainment - you can spend $100's of dollars to have fun, but you can also have a lot of fun for FREE. Check out some of my ideas for cheap dates here.

--Another example is food. I love to go out to eat, but of course that is a wallet drainer. I try to find inexpensive solutions that taste just as good - or sometimes better. My fellow blogger Deal Betty has some great copycat restaurant recipes. Check out her awesome recipes here.

--Another great example is decorating. I have seen my share of lavishly decorated homes. I find it funny that there are shows like "Design on a Dime" (I loved watching these when we lived in an apartment with FREE cable!) where they are redecorating a room for what they say is very little, but their budget is $1,000! Oh, the things I could do with a $1,000 budget!

There is another show I liked called "Decorating Cents." Their room budget was $500, still not a bargain in my book, but at the end of the show they did a feature where they would rearrange a room for someone for FREE. It was amazing what the person had that just got moved around.

That is a cool premise for a show - you have what you have because you like it in most cases, but are just sick of the same old, same old. Just rearranging things, moving a picture from one room to another, moving a chair from the bedroom to the living room, rearranging your plants really can make all the difference. If you don't know where to start, have a creative friend come over to help you!

There are tons of other ways to be creative, these are just a few. What are some ways that you practice creative frugality? Please leave a comment!

Favorite Blog/Site of the Week - Chef Doughty.com

My friend Angie shared this site with me and I can't get enough of it - Chef Doughty.com. Joyce Doughty is a local Boise, Idahoan who Angie used to work for when she owned Doughty's Bistro. The restaurant has since closed, but her inspiration lives on through her website.

She shares all sorts of cool tips:

++Vacuuming your kitchen drawers (such a great idea!)

++A great new way to make veggies.

++Reheating waffles

++Freezing fresh herbs

++What exactly can you freeze?

These are just a few of the many things I have found interesting on ChefDoughty.com. Go check it out here. I know you are going to love it!

Look what I got with my Swagbucks!

A few weeks ago I shared a post about Swagbucks, a search engine like Google and Ask.com. The cool thing about Swagbucks, though, is that you can earn Swagbucks for doing searches that you can cash in for gift cards and prizes. I earned 270 Swagbucks - enough to get $30.00 in gift cards from Amazon.com.


I looked on Amazon.com and was amazed to find grocery products, so I decided to use my Swagbucks to stretch my grocery budget.I got this CASE of Macaroni and Cheese for $29.16 - it was an item that qualified for FREE shipping, so my $30.00 in Amazon gift cards covered the whole cost! Who would have thought that searching the web (and sharing my link - thanks for those who signed up with my link!) would get me some FREE mac&cheese!?


Do you want to earn FREE stuff by searching the web and sharing your link with friends? Sign up for Swagbucks here on my link, then get your own link to share with friends! You won't be sorry - you may even get some FREE macaroni and cheese!

1/2 off Eyemasters coupon

Need some new glasses? Click here to print a coupon for 1/2 frames and lenses at EyeMasters!

Another shopping trip...

I was SUPER excited to get the mail today because I got a $15.00 gift card from an Olay deal I did forever ago. The best news...it was a Mastercard, so I could use it anywhere. I decided to maximize it by using it with my $10.00 catalina I had left over from this shopping trip.

I ran over to Albies and picked up a few items:

2 gallons Milk - $5.18

3 lbs butter - $5.00

1 18ct. eggs - $2.49

1 Albies ice cream - $3.00

Total before coupons: $16.61

Used $10.00 catalina

Used $6.61 on gift card

OOP ZERO!!!

This makes me sooooooooooo happy! I still have $8.39 left on the gift card. Walgreen's here I come!

Works for me Wednesdsay - Activity Box

Most days my kids spend most of their time playing with toys and watching a video or two. There are some days when that just isn't enough to keep them occupied. I started my activity box a few years ago...long before my kids would use it. Now that they are a bit older it has really come in handy. They aren't allowed to play with it every day, so when we pull it out, it is pretty special. I like that they look forward to playing with the activity box. Here is the inside - I know it looks like a big mess!



I have filled it with all sorts of things I have picked up very inexpensively at stores and yard sales. Here are some of the things I have in my activity box:


++Foam shapes

++Foam beads and shoelaces to make necklaces

++Sidewalk chalk

++Bubbles

++Stickers

++Coloring Books

++Crayons and markers

++Homemade playdoh

When I just can't take it anymore, or if the kids are getting super board - I pull out this box and let the kids have some fun. It works for me!

Check out We Are THAT Family for other great Works for me Wednesday ideas!

Powdered Milk

I always thought powdered milk was a frugal choice. I had a huge box of it and always used it when I ran out of milk, but I finally ran out of it. I decided to buy some this week. I bought it from the bulk foods section at Winco, which is usually the cheapest place to pick up a lot of things (like spices and cream of tartar!).

It was $3.39 per pound, so I got just over a pound and it was $4.17. Many times I can get a gallon of milk for between $2.00 and $2.75 so I thought if I could make 2 gallons of milk with the powdered milk I bought it would be comparable.

I just measured what I got and it was exactly six cups of powdered milk, which will make 18 cups, so just over a gallon. If I pay $2.75 for a gallon of milk it is about $.17 per cup. The powdered milk I just purchased was $.23 per cup!

Lesson learned, I will not purchase powdered milk unless I can get it for less than $2.50 per pound (which makes it about $.17 per cup).

That is my perspective - however I know that milk is more expensive in different parts of the country. I had a reader tell me their milk is close to $4.00 per gallon. Be sure to do the math to determine if powdered milk is a good deal for you!

FREE Stuff!!

Here are the FREEbies for the week! There are some good ones, so get yours before they are gone!

Get a FREE sample of Pantene hair care here.

Got dandruff?? Get a FREE sample of Selsun Blue shampoo here.

Get 2 FREE tacos from Jack in the Box tomorrow 2/24/09 only with this coupon.

Cute! Get a FREE baby blanket and stuffed animal from One Step here.

Hurry! The first 1,000 can get a FREE barrette from Goody here.

Read about how to get a coupon for a FREE Kashi frozen entree here.

FREE coupons still available - be sure to sign up for these if you haven't already:

Get $10.00 in FREE coupons from Eat Better America here.

Sign up here for $10.00 in FREE coupons from Dinner Made Easy.

Get $10.00 in FREE coupons from Betty Crocker by signing up here.

Get a coupon for $1.50 off Pampers here.

Don't forget about these awesome FREEbie sites:

Freefly's

A Full Cup

Cool Savings

My Savings

Shop 4 Freebies

Enjoy!

Weekly Shopping Trip

I am cursed. Actually, I just have no self-control and I am over budget again. Sigh. I did get some great stockpile items and I have been wanting to try some new recipes. That mixed with Albertson's great sales this week and it was a recipe for disaster in my budget! It is important to me to still stick with my annual budget of $2,600, so I will cut back next week.

I also have started doing my grocery shopping on Friday/Saturday instead of earlier in the week. We have been without a second car for about a month now and I can only go shopping when my husband is home, so the weekends have been working better. I will start posting early in the week (Monday or Tuesday) for what I purchased the prior week.

My first stop was Fred Meyer on Friday. I got all this:

2 lbs Asparagus - $1.99

2 whole chickens - $6.86 (these were $.79/lb)

2 1/2 gallons OJ - $2.00 (w/in ad coupon)

2 1/2 gallons chocolate milk - $2.00 (w/in ad coupon)

4 1/2 gallons milk - $4.00 (w/in ad coupon)

Net OOP: $17.86

Next stop Albertson's, I did two transactions:

First transaction:

10 cans of Progresso soup - $17.58 (this should have been $15.00, but I got two cans that weren't on sale or didn't ring up right - I didn't figure it out until later.) (- 2 $2.00 off 8 coupons, -1 $1.00 off 2 coupons I printed here.) = $12.58

Net OOP: $13.64 + received $10.00 catalina

Second Transaction:

2 Betty Crocker cookie mixes - $3.34 (- 2 $.40 off coupons) = $2.54

4 Betty Crocker brownie mixes - $8.00 (- 2 $.75 off 2 coupons) = $6.50

2 Grands Biscuits - $2.50 (- $.30 off 2 coupon) = $2.20

2 Pillsbury Crescent rolls - $4.00 (- 2 $.35 off coupons) = $3.30

1 packet Valentine's sprinkles - $.99

1 large heart shaped cookie cutter - $.87

1 50 pack Valentine's napkins - $.74 (I am going to use these for my daughter's birthday this summer!)

I also used my $10.00 catalina from Tran#1

Net OOP: $8.37 + received another $10.00 catalina

Finally I went to Winco. I needed to get some stuff for my eggroll recipe and Albertson's produce prices are so high! They had cabbage for $2.99/lb, it was $.48/lb at Winco!

Here is what I got:

2 loaves bread - $2.76

1.23 lbs bulk powdered milk - $4.17 (I'm trying to stretch my milk budget by cooking with powdered milk - we'll see if this pans out)

1 bunch green onions - $.48

2 Turkey Polish Sausages - $4.96 (- $1.00 off 2 Hillshire Farms coupon I got in my coupon train) = $3.96

1 bottle sesame oil - $4.47 (UGH!!!! I really need it for my broccoli beef recipe. I know I will make it again, though!)

1 bottle rice vinegar - $1.54

.2 lbs ginger root - $.40

2 2# bags carrots - $1.76

2 lbs broccoli - $1.86

egg roll wrappers - $2.28

1 head cabbage - $.94

Net OOP: $26.16

So, my grand total for the week is $71.13 (this includes the $.74 overage from last week and $4.36 I spent at Walgreen's). I will be cutting back next week because I only have $28.87 to spend, but I do still have a $10.00 catalina to spend at Albertson's.

Want to see more weekly shopping trips? Check out the Grocery Cart Challenge!

***UPDATE***I made one more trip and spent nothing OOP - check it out here!

***ANOTHER UPDATE***Check out my FREEbie Groceries from Amazon.com here!

Menu Plan Monday - Week of February 23-March 1

Another week, another menu plan. I did pretty well with my menu plan last week. It was nice to have a few new items and get out of my rut! This week I have decided, again, to try some new recipes. I'm pretty excited!

Monday: Ham, cheese, and broccoli bisquick pie, fruit salad

Tuesday: Hamburger Helper Cheeseburger Macaroni, green beans

Wednesday: Broccoli Beef, Pork Egg Rolls, rice

Thursday: Spaghetti, asparagus, garlic cheese biscuits (bisquick mix)

Friday: Homemade Pizza Night!

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Leftovers

Porcupine Meatballs

This recipe is a family favorite.


1 lb. ground beef

1/2 c. uncooked rice

1/2 c. water

1/3 c. chopped onion

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. celery salt

1/8 tsp. garlic powder

1/8 tsp. pepper

1 15oz can tomato sauce

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce


Mix meat, rice, water, onion, and spices. Roll into balls and place in ungreased 9x13 pan. Mix tomato sauce and Worcestershire sauce. Pour over meatballs. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes longer or until done.


Enjoy!


Check out the Grocery Cart Challenge's Recipe Swap for other yummy recipes!

Frugal Friday - 10 things you can do to save $10.00

One important aspect of frugality is that you cannot cut everything all at once. There is very little you can do to make a quick $100.00 - but there are things you can do to save yourself from spending it.


Here are 10 small (painless) things you can do to save yourself $10.00.


Do all of them and you will save yourself from spending $100 (or more)!


--Make your own pizza. This may even save more than $10.00. This used to be a little be scary to me. I was never a scratch baker and anything with yeast just seemed too complicated and time consuming. I found this recipe on Money Saving Mom's other blog and it was so easy, quick, and delicious. You can make it as thin as you want. We like the thin crust around here and this recipe fits nicely in a 15x10x1 cookie sheet! This is a 1/2 pepperoni 1/2 bbq chicken pizza I made recently.


--Shop yard sales. This may also save you more than $10.00. It is hard to say because a lot of the items I purchase at yard sales I would NEVER pay full price for! I love to buy kids books for $.25 each, inexpensive kids clothes, cookbooks, games, movies, etc. I would never have as much of these items as I have if I hadn't purchased them at yard sales. Just purchasing one outfit or toy for your kids would save $10.00 - so the savings here are limitless!


--Check out the library. Pun intended. We are movie buffs around our house and I love the library for movies. They don't always have the latest releases, or even movies I have heard of...but I have found some really fun movies I would not have seen otherwise. Get a library movie once a week for 10 weeks and you saved $10.00 in Redbox fees - but let's be real. It is way more than that because you always forget to return it by 9:00. You know it's true!

--Trade babysitting with friends. Paying a babysitter can be a huge expense, trading with friends who have kids is a perfect way to save a few bucks. You can save $10.00 in one night by trading with friends. Don't have kids? Trade other things babysit in exchange for ironing, cooking, haircuts, coupons etc., etc., etc.

--Make your own playdoh. Playdoh can be expensive, especially if you want multiple colors and accessories. Making your own is so much better. It smells better and you don't get stressed when it dries out, you can just make more. Check out my FAVORITE playdoh recipe here.

--Use coupons! Done correctly, coupons can save you HUNDREDS - not just $10.00. You can save $10.00 or more in one trip! If you don't use coupons now, read more about coupon shopping and why you should do it here.

--Take a walk. Again, this isn't exactly $10.00 that you would save here, but walking is good for you and it saves gas which = saving money. Over time, you can save a lot by walking. It depends on where you live, but I live within about 2 miles of anywhere I would want to go (besides family and friends homes!). For fun, the kids and I have walked the 1.5 miles to Walgreen's to pick up my deals and pushed them home in the double stroller.

--Turn off the lights! Since I started working part time and we have been cutting expenses, I have been careful about making sure the lights are off in rooms we aren't using and trying to be more energy conscious. My goal is that when they re-evaluate our level pay for the year it goes down instead of up. What is amazing is that last year in January we used almost exactly the same amount of power that we did this year in January. The reason this is amazing to me is that last year my husband and I were both working full time and we were never home. I also didn't cook much. Now I cook almost every day and I am now only outside the home at work two days a week. It shows that we have been using less energy, which is great!


--Make things last. I am also big on this. Read my post about my dish soap here and my toothpaste here. I also cut my dryer sheets in 1/2 to make them last twice as long. This doesn't save $10.00, but over time, it will. If I get a box of 50 dryer sheets for $2.00 and I use 10 per week, what would have lasted me 5 weeks now lasts 10 weeks. Just over a year and I will save $10.00!

--Haircuts. I, myself, am NOT a glamour girl by any means. I can go for months without a haircut and be fine. My husband on the other hand must go every six to eight weeks. I have made a few mistakes in the past on his hair, so I am not allowed to do it :). He goes to Great Clips for about $14.00 including the tip. If he goes every six weeks, this is at a cost of about $120.00 per year. If I make him wait until eight weeks (which I do), we spend about $91.00 per year, saving us about $29.00 per year! (every little bit...) I do cut my son's hair for free. He still lets me :).

There are so many more ways to save a few bucks here and there, these are just a few that I have had rattling around in my head. As you can see, though, in a lot of cases a few small changes can save quite a bit - make a few more and you just saved yourself $100.00 - now go put it in a credit union!

Favorite Blog/Site of the Week - Hulu

Okay, this post doesn't necessarily have anything to do with frugality, but I wanted to share what a cool site HULU is. I first heard about it from the Alec Baldwin SuperBowl commercial. Then some friends were talking about how cool it was, so I had to check it out. I'm glad I did!

Hulu is a site where you can go to watch movies or TV shows instantly on your computer legally for FREE!

Are you nostalgic for old TV shows like Bewitched and Facts of Life? Watch them on HULU!

Find out how cool it is for yourself - check it out here.

Walgreen's Rocks!

I decided to make a quick trip to Walgreen's and check out some of the Valentine clearance and grab a few items. I am so glad I did! On my first trip, I didn't bring my coupon binder, just some Lysol and Hershey's coupons. Then I found some rockin' clearance so I ran home and grabbed my binder. For all the stuff you are about to see I only spent $4.36 OOP! I'm still hyperventilating! It did put me over budget for the week, but I'll get over it. I just did. (It'll come out of next week's budget.)


My first trip I got:
4 rolls of paper towels - $2.07


2 Lysol wipes - $3.79 (these were B1G1 and I used 2 $1.00 off 1 coupons) = $1.79


2 bags of Hershey's candy - $1.24 (- $2.00 off 2 coupon) = $.76 overage!


1 mini Valentine's treat sacks - $.24


Paid $4.09 on a gift card, so ZERO OOP. The cashier said "409 - hey, you didn't get any 409!" trying to make a joke. So I was funny back and said "No, I didn't get any 409, but if I had, I would have used a coupon :)." He didn't laugh. I don't think he got it.


So I hurried home because they had all this deodorant on clearance and I KNEW I had some coupons I grabbed my coupon binder and ran back to Walgreen's. So the second trip yielded all this:

2 Disney kid plates - $.50

2 DeMet's Turtles - $4.98 (- 2 $1.50 off 1 coupon - I got these from my coupon train) = $1.98 (these were regularly $9.99 each!)

2 Mott's Apple Juice - $4.00

1 Walgreen's Multi-purpose solution - $1.99 (this is a FREE after rebate item)

1 2 pack Sure deodorant - $1.24 (on clearance) (-$1.00 off 1 coupon - again coupon train) = $.24

1 2 pack Secret deodorant - $1.24 (on clearance) (-.25 off coupon) = $.99

2 2 packs Old Spice deodorant $2.48 (on clearance) (-$1.00 off 2 coupon) = $1.48 (This isn't the exact brand that my husband likes, but he said he will use it! yay!)

My total after coupons and tax was $12.17, I put $7.81 on my gift card and paid $4.36 OOP! Can you tell I'm excited? Want to get even more excited? Check out the !Centsible Sawyer's Drugstore Divas

EBates Paid!

I first signed up for Ebates waaaayyy back in September when I first heard about it. I posted about it here. Basically, Ebates is a website where you can choose an online retailer like OldNavy.com, JCPenney.com, E-bay, or whatever. When you click on those retailers through the Ebates site and make a purchase, you receive a percentage of your purchase back in a rebate.

I figured if I was going to do some online shopping anyway, I would sign up and make my purchases through Ebates. I just got my first payout for $15.78 deposited into my Paypal account! Here is the breakdown of what made up my $15.78:

This came with very little effort because these were purchases I was going to make anyway and I am happy to collect my spoils!

Note that you must have at least $5.00 to get a payout. This $5.00 must be from actual purchases to count towards your payout (i.e. your signing bonus doesn't count). Deposits are made to your Paypal account each quarter if you have at least $5.00, if not it just accumulates until you do.

As a bonus, you also get $5.00 for each person who signs up for Ebates using your referral link. This is posted to your Ebates account after they make their first purchase. If you do ANY online shopping at all you should sign up for Ebates - what do you have to lose? Oh yeah, nothing! Sign up here using my link then get your own link and share it with all your friends!

Works for me Wednesday - Using Cooked Cubed Chicken

A few weeks ago, my Works for me Wednesday post was about how I cook and freeze chicken for quick meals. A reader left a comment wondering what I do with the cooked chicken...good question! I use it all the time.

Here are a few ideas:

Chicken Quesadillas

Poppy Seed Chicken Casserole or Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

Chicken Stroganoff - Heat 1 packet of cooked cubed chicken breast, 1 can cream of chicken soup, 1 packet of onion soup mix, and 1/2 c. sour cream until heated through. Serve over egg noodles or rice.

Chicken Helper

Tortilla Wraps - use cooked cubed chicken (warmed in the microwave) and a tortilla to make a variety of wraps. Cesar: Use lettuce, Parmesan, and Cesar dressing. Ranch: Use lettuce, tomato, and ranch dressing. Southwestern: Use cheese, lettuce, tomato, and salsa. These are fun to make and eat!

These are the ways we use our cooked cubed chicken most often - it is such a huge time saver and it works for me!

Check out Rocks in my Dryer for other great Works for me Wednesday ideas!

Weekly Shopping Trip

This week I went shopping on Saturday to get more of the good deals on milk and apples at Freddies. I ended up with some pretty good deals, especially on meat. Here's the scoop:


3 loaves Country Oven Bread - $4.00 (w/in ad coupon)

2 kippered snacks - $2.58

4 lbs apples - $2.79

2 lbs Kroger cheese - $5.49

2 Turkey Pepperoni - $4.00

1 FM eggs - $2.47

4 Roma tomatoes - $.79

2 packages round steak (marked down) - $5.54

1 lb ground pork (marked down) - $1.07 (I don't know what I am going to do with this - anyone have some great recipes?)

1 salad mix (marked down) - $1.69

2 gallons milk - $4.38

1 FM ice cream - $2.50

1 pkg donuts (marked down) - $.99

2.5 lbs bananas - $1.19

2 FM English muffins (marked down) - $.98

Net OOP: $42.89


Then Walmart - I was so happy they were stocked up on Johnson's buddies! I had several coupons. Here is what I ended up with there:
4 Johnson Buddies soap - $3.88 (- 4 $1.00 coupons) = $.12 overage!

1 Kotex - $1.00 (- $1.00 off coupon) = FREE!!

1 sugar free grape drink - $1.76

1 sour cream - $1.32

2 deodorant (my husband MUST have this type of deodorant, so I was happy there was a coupon recently!) - $4.36 (- $1.00 off 2 coupon) = $3.36

Net OOP: $8.06

Okay, I was over budget, but it was only $.74! I can live with that :)!

Check out The Grocery Cart Challenge for some other shopping trips this week!

Why People Don't Use Coupons...Part V

For the past several weeks, I have been talking about why people don't use coupons and sharing ways to help everyone understand how easy it really is. Check out my previous posts here.

The final excuse I would like to discuss is:

I don't want to shop that many stores.no that is not me in that picture. I wish :).

To that I say...I hear ya! I don't want to shop a lot of stores either, especially when I am hauling kids. I am not a big fan of shopping with kids! I do shop several stores each week. What is my solution?

++I rarely do ALL of my shopping at one time. I like to break it up. I usually will do one or two stores at a time.

++I live about two blocks away from a Hostess Bakery Thrift Store, so during the day I will walk there with my kids.

++I usually do my other shopping in the evening when my husband is home and take one child with me.

++There is a Walgreen's across the street from where I work, so I will usually run there on my lunch hour on the days I work. We also have a few prescriptions there so when it is time to refill I plan a shopping trip at the same time.

The main thing is, you have to do what is best for you. I am (finally) past the point where I have to get every great deal out there. I can pick and choose the deals that are important to me and I shop when it works for me.

The bottom line? You can be a couponer and save TONS of money! I promise!

FREE Stuff!!

Here are this weeks FREEbies - get yours before they are gone!

Click here to join A Full Cup and get access to their coupon database, money saving forums, and more!

Need a boost? Get your FREE seven day membership to Bally Total Fitness here if there is one in your area.

Click here to check out a FREEbie website I just found out about called Shop4Freebies. It gets updated every day!

Get a FREE sample of Pantene - just click here.

Get your FREE sample of Maybelline make up here.

Love Tide? Click here to get your FREE sample of Tide Total Care.

Get your coupon for a FREE Diet Dr. Pepper here you can choose a 2 liter or 20 oz bottle!

Get a FREE sample of Dove Shine Therapy here.

Underjams is offering a FREE sample of sleep pants here.

FUN! Get a FREE poster and CD from spacecamp.com here.

Whew! There are lots of FREEbies this week! Enjoy!

Menu Plan Monday - Week of February 16-21

I feel like my menu plan was so dang boring last week! I wasn't in the mood for the stuff I had planned and it was just a mess. I think I am in a rut! This week I want to break away from my rut and have some meals we haven't had it a while and try some new ones.

Monday: Round Steak w/Gravy (round steak, onion soup mix, and cream of mushroom in the crock pot) over mashed potatoes, green salad

Tuesday: Leftovers

Wednesday: Chicken Wraps (chicken, lettuce, tomato, red onion, ranch in a tortilla)

Thursday: Crockpot Scallopped Chicken, fruit salad

Friday: Pizza Night!!

Saturday: Leftovers

Sunday: Open faced English muffin sandwiches (like Tuna melts)

Happy Valentine's Day!

I found this cool picture here.

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone! As always, I will be checking out the clearance prices after Valentine's Day for paper plates, paper cups, candy, etc. There are some great ways to use these items for non-Valentine's Day things.

++A few years ago I got several packages of small dessert plates with hearts on them that were clearance to $.10 after Valentine's day. They were perfect for a bridal shower that I threw for a friend.

++I have used fun heart Valentine's bags to give favors at a baby shower where the mom to be was having a girl.

++Plates, cups, and goodie bags would also be great for a little girl's birthday party.

++I would use the paper plates to give a plate of treats to someone I love.

How about you? Any other great ways you have used Valentine's decor or items for other occasions?

Rite Aid Coupon

I read here about a $5.00 off a $20.00 purchase at Rite Aid good for today and tomorrow.

It seemed pretty good coupon. For some reason when I checked my e-mail, I had a coupon for $10.00 off a $30.00 purchase! This is a little bit bigger discount, I'm not sure why I got it. The e-mail said a "health related purchase" and the coupon doesn't specify what it includes, just the usual restrictions (no tobacco, gift cards, prescriptions, etc). Get your own $10.00 off $30.00 coupon here.