Today I'm having a lot of luck on the Superpoints lucky button. I hit 25 twice, 5 once, and 2 points 3 times, for a total of 66 points. I only get 30 tries a day, since I don't have any referrals.
If you aren't a member of Superpoints, I would suggest signing up. It's a fairly slow earner if you don't have referrals, but it's super easy. You just click the lucky button and see if you win anything. I do it while I'm doing other stuff online, so it doesn't take up much time at all. They offer all kinds of gift cards, and they start at a $5 giftcard for 600 points. Even basic members can now cash out at 1000 points or more, while platinum can cash out at 500 points.
Basic members (no referrals, or only 1) get 30 clicks a day, while gold (2-4 referrals) get 50 clicks and platinum (5+ friends) get 100 clicks a day.
I actually have two 25 point invites that I got today, if you are interested. Just click the link, sign up, and validate your email address and you will get 25 points!
http://superpoints.com/bonus/2js8cy
superpoints.com/bonus/ozo06w
Friday, September 7, 2012
Clearance School Supplies
School has been back in session here for about 2.5 weeks. That means that a lot of back to school stuff is on clearance. We bought most of Elliott's supplies before school started, but waited until the clearance sales to buy the stuff we just wanted, but didn't have to have.
Some of the best deals we've found were lunchboxes at 50% off (he takes his lunch everyday, so we got 2 new ones to add to the rotation of the ones he used in kindergarten, since he leaves them at school sometimes), and crayons at $.25 each. The cheapest we found Crayola crayons before school started was $.40, so when we were able to get them for $.25 each, we grabbed a few boxes. We choose names from the Christmas tree at Walmart or KMart every year, and always include a box of crayons and a coloring book or two if we choose children the right age. :) Elliott often gets crayons for Christmas, too.
We also picked up a few more notebooks for $.16-25 each to use at home. Elliott needed 2 for school this year, and that will probably last all year, or at least most of it, since he's only in first grade.
We also found some Lego school supplies on clearance. Elliott is REALLY into Legos right now, so he actually used his own money to buy the pencil sharpener and pencils. They were on clearance for a decent price, so I feel like he used his money wisely.
Some of the best deals we've found were lunchboxes at 50% off (he takes his lunch everyday, so we got 2 new ones to add to the rotation of the ones he used in kindergarten, since he leaves them at school sometimes), and crayons at $.25 each. The cheapest we found Crayola crayons before school started was $.40, so when we were able to get them for $.25 each, we grabbed a few boxes. We choose names from the Christmas tree at Walmart or KMart every year, and always include a box of crayons and a coloring book or two if we choose children the right age. :) Elliott often gets crayons for Christmas, too.
We also picked up a few more notebooks for $.16-25 each to use at home. Elliott needed 2 for school this year, and that will probably last all year, or at least most of it, since he's only in first grade.
We also found some Lego school supplies on clearance. Elliott is REALLY into Legos right now, so he actually used his own money to buy the pencil sharpener and pencils. They were on clearance for a decent price, so I feel like he used his money wisely.
Friday, August 3, 2012
Saving Money on Vacation
My family took two vacations this summer. And we paid for both with cash. Our first vacation was to Missouri, where we are both from. We stayed with my parents, so that saved us a bunch of money . Our second vacation was to Washington state, though, where we know no one. We were still able to save a bunch of money.
Travel by car if it's cheaper.
We travel by car when we travel because we often take our two dogs. We also live in the Minot, ND area, where it costs around $500 per person to fly anywhere. It's MUCH cheaper to drive where we need to go, even counting stays in a hotel. We also like the freedom to stop in various places.
Travel with others.
Even though we are only a family of three we own a minivan. That means that we are often able to invite others on vacation with us. In addition to having more fun with extended family, they can also help pay for gas and even hotel stays so we save money that way. My sister lives with us now and was able to get off work to travel with us to Missouri. When we went to Washington in July, we invited one of my other sisters and my aunt, and met my sister in law there. We were able to rent a larger suite and saved a lot of money over paying for just a hotel room. We stayed in a 2 bedroom suite in one area and a 4 bedroom beach house in the other.
Pack your own snacks and meals.
Another way we save money while traveling is to pack a cooler. My family isn't necessarily big into sandwiches, but we also pack fresh fruits and easy to eat veggies, along with beef jerky, sunflower seeds, and trail mix. Throw in some juice boxes, soda, and bottled water, and we are set! We limit our eating out to once a day or less, and maybe one additional drink from a gas station (if they are cheap, like they often are in the summer), while we are on the road. When we are at our destination we try to stick to the same limits on eating out, but if we are busy, we sometimes have to eat out twice in one day. That works on a budget if you plan carefully.
Look for good deals.
Another way we saved money was to look on groupon and livingsocial for the area we knew we would be traveling. We ended up getting vouchers for 2 different area restaurants this time, but there were other options as well, just none that we wanted to do this time.
Plan Ahead.
I always start planning for a vacation several months in advance. In fact, we are already laying the groundwork for our family vacation next summer! By planning ahead you can often find a great deal on lodging. We ended up paying $125 a night for a 4 bedroom cottage just a few minutes from a beach on the Washington coast. Just outside of Seattle, we got a 2 bedroom suite (with a pull out couch in the living room) in a decent hotel for just over $100 per night, by booking early and using an additional discount. They even upgraded us for free! If you are traveling with others, this can really save you money. We had full kitchens in both units, so that made eating in much cheaper and more appealing.
Plan to relax.
We did a lot of things in Washington, but we made sure to leave some free time, to just sit on the beach and relax, or play games in our room. That helped us recharge our batteries, and helped us save money.
Travel by car if it's cheaper.
We travel by car when we travel because we often take our two dogs. We also live in the Minot, ND area, where it costs around $500 per person to fly anywhere. It's MUCH cheaper to drive where we need to go, even counting stays in a hotel. We also like the freedom to stop in various places.
Travel with others.
Even though we are only a family of three we own a minivan. That means that we are often able to invite others on vacation with us. In addition to having more fun with extended family, they can also help pay for gas and even hotel stays so we save money that way. My sister lives with us now and was able to get off work to travel with us to Missouri. When we went to Washington in July, we invited one of my other sisters and my aunt, and met my sister in law there. We were able to rent a larger suite and saved a lot of money over paying for just a hotel room. We stayed in a 2 bedroom suite in one area and a 4 bedroom beach house in the other.
Pack your own snacks and meals.
Another way we save money while traveling is to pack a cooler. My family isn't necessarily big into sandwiches, but we also pack fresh fruits and easy to eat veggies, along with beef jerky, sunflower seeds, and trail mix. Throw in some juice boxes, soda, and bottled water, and we are set! We limit our eating out to once a day or less, and maybe one additional drink from a gas station (if they are cheap, like they often are in the summer), while we are on the road. When we are at our destination we try to stick to the same limits on eating out, but if we are busy, we sometimes have to eat out twice in one day. That works on a budget if you plan carefully.
Look for good deals.
Another way we saved money was to look on groupon and livingsocial for the area we knew we would be traveling. We ended up getting vouchers for 2 different area restaurants this time, but there were other options as well, just none that we wanted to do this time.
Plan Ahead.
I always start planning for a vacation several months in advance. In fact, we are already laying the groundwork for our family vacation next summer! By planning ahead you can often find a great deal on lodging. We ended up paying $125 a night for a 4 bedroom cottage just a few minutes from a beach on the Washington coast. Just outside of Seattle, we got a 2 bedroom suite (with a pull out couch in the living room) in a decent hotel for just over $100 per night, by booking early and using an additional discount. They even upgraded us for free! If you are traveling with others, this can really save you money. We had full kitchens in both units, so that made eating in much cheaper and more appealing.
Plan to relax.
We did a lot of things in Washington, but we made sure to leave some free time, to just sit on the beach and relax, or play games in our room. That helped us recharge our batteries, and helped us save money.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
How Do Moms With Big Families Do It?
I only have one son, who is six. We have still been so busy this summer that I rarely have more than a few minutes a day to get online, so blogging has been nearly impossible. I really admire Moms (especially who have more children!) who can make time for stuff online every day, or at least a few times a week without neglecting their children.
Summer is definitely my favorite time of year now that my son is in school. I love all the fun stuff we get to do together, and I love being around him all the time. This summer we have gone on two vacations, spent a day at the state fair, gone to the playground multiple times, and spent a lot of time just playing at home. We're hoping for a weekend trip to Bismarck weekend after next to go to the zoo, since we didn't have time in Missouri and our zoo in Minot isn't open this year (because of the flooding last year).
School starts in just three short weeks here. I'm not sure if I'll find more time online or not. I plan on driving Elliott to and from school again this year, and that takes quite a while every day.
We're planning on finishing up our school shopping tomorrow. I hope everyone is finding great deals! If you are shopping for school clothes don't forget to look online for coupons and the best prices.
Summer is definitely my favorite time of year now that my son is in school. I love all the fun stuff we get to do together, and I love being around him all the time. This summer we have gone on two vacations, spent a day at the state fair, gone to the playground multiple times, and spent a lot of time just playing at home. We're hoping for a weekend trip to Bismarck weekend after next to go to the zoo, since we didn't have time in Missouri and our zoo in Minot isn't open this year (because of the flooding last year).
School starts in just three short weeks here. I'm not sure if I'll find more time online or not. I plan on driving Elliott to and from school again this year, and that takes quite a while every day.
We're planning on finishing up our school shopping tomorrow. I hope everyone is finding great deals! If you are shopping for school clothes don't forget to look online for coupons and the best prices.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Happy Independence Day!
My husband is off work today and tomorrow, so we are planning on spending a lot of time together as a family. We're planning on going to see an air show and possibly the Amazing Spider-Man today, plus some fireworks tonight. If we don't see Spider-Man today, it will definitely be in the plans for tomorrow. Elliott has been counting down the days since they released the date. He's been quick to inform me all week this week that we were missing it the first day it was in theaters because of Daddy's work. Haha.
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys today and gets to celebrate America's Birthday!
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys today and gets to celebrate America's Birthday!
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
One Busy Summer!
I'm not sure how so many bloggers manage to post everyday. I know part of it is because I don't treat blogging like a real job, but I seem to have a terrible time finding the time necessary to blog.
We just got home from our first summer vacation over the weekend. We went "home" to Missouri to celebrate my dad's 65th birthday. Darla was able to get the time off to go with us, and we were there for about 2 weeks. Since we stay with my parents, it was a pretty frugal vacation. We did end up doing some shopping (although the fact that there were 3 adults, a child, and 2 dogs traveling together in a minivan meant we had to really watch what we bought so we would have room). But overall we stuck to our budget pretty well.
It's always amazing going home and seeing how much things have changed in the area. The growth in SW MO isn't nearly as fast as it is here, but since it had been almost a year since we had been there, there was still plenty of new stuff. We didn't get to check out nearly as much of it as we had hoped, but that seems to always be the case. We had planned on going to Kansas City, or at least Branson, but didn't have a chance. The only touristy thing we really did was a trip to the Bass Pro Shop in Springfield. Haha. It was actually the first time we had ever even taken Elliott there even though we had been meaning to for years. He loved it there, and wants to go back every summer now. :)
Assuming my husband gets the leave he requested, we are only going to be home for about 2 more weeks before taking another vacation. My husband just switched work centers, though, so we still aren't sure on his leave. If it goes through, we leave for Washington in just over 2 weeks. We will be spending some time in Spokane, Seattle, and right on the beach.
We just got home from our first summer vacation over the weekend. We went "home" to Missouri to celebrate my dad's 65th birthday. Darla was able to get the time off to go with us, and we were there for about 2 weeks. Since we stay with my parents, it was a pretty frugal vacation. We did end up doing some shopping (although the fact that there were 3 adults, a child, and 2 dogs traveling together in a minivan meant we had to really watch what we bought so we would have room). But overall we stuck to our budget pretty well.
It's always amazing going home and seeing how much things have changed in the area. The growth in SW MO isn't nearly as fast as it is here, but since it had been almost a year since we had been there, there was still plenty of new stuff. We didn't get to check out nearly as much of it as we had hoped, but that seems to always be the case. We had planned on going to Kansas City, or at least Branson, but didn't have a chance. The only touristy thing we really did was a trip to the Bass Pro Shop in Springfield. Haha. It was actually the first time we had ever even taken Elliott there even though we had been meaning to for years. He loved it there, and wants to go back every summer now. :)
Assuming my husband gets the leave he requested, we are only going to be home for about 2 more weeks before taking another vacation. My husband just switched work centers, though, so we still aren't sure on his leave. If it goes through, we leave for Washington in just over 2 weeks. We will be spending some time in Spokane, Seattle, and right on the beach.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Kindergarten is Over!
My son is at school right now for his last day of kindergarten. His graduation was yesterday, and he got to go home from that with us, so it was a really short day. Monday was their field trip, so their last day of regular school with school work and everything was last week. I can not believe that he's already done with kindergarten. It seems like it just started!
In order to celebrate his graduation yesterday, we went out to eat and did a little shopping. The Secret World of Arrietty was released on Blu-ray/DVD this week, so my son was really excited to get that. Before it was in theaters, we saw the trailer several times, and he was so excited to see it in the movie theater. Our theater even had posters up. Then when opening weekend came, it never showed up. My husband told him then that we would buy it as soon as it came out on Blu-ray, so we did just that.
We went to Hobby Lobby yesterday and got some scrapbooking stuff. All of the scrapbooking paper is on sale for 50% off this week, along with the stickers by the Paper Studios. We mainly only needed plain paper for Cricut cutting, but ended up choosing another pad of paper as well. And Elliott chose some stickers for his kindergarten scrapbook. It's no wonder my husband will only go there when I have a giftcard. Haha.
I think summer vacation will be good for our budget. Obviously the actual vacation part where we leave the state will cost us quite a bit, but we are less than $300 from our savings goal for that. Being out of school means we will spend a lot less on gas, since I drive Elliott back and forth to school, for a total of about 350 miles a week. Elliott and I will make a lot more trips to do fun things than we do during the school year, but there's a playground within walking distance, and we have a decent size pool in our backyard, so those trips will be limited. Our zoo isn't open this year (because of the flood last year) that limits what we will end up doing even more.
In order to celebrate his graduation yesterday, we went out to eat and did a little shopping. The Secret World of Arrietty was released on Blu-ray/DVD this week, so my son was really excited to get that. Before it was in theaters, we saw the trailer several times, and he was so excited to see it in the movie theater. Our theater even had posters up. Then when opening weekend came, it never showed up. My husband told him then that we would buy it as soon as it came out on Blu-ray, so we did just that.
We went to Hobby Lobby yesterday and got some scrapbooking stuff. All of the scrapbooking paper is on sale for 50% off this week, along with the stickers by the Paper Studios. We mainly only needed plain paper for Cricut cutting, but ended up choosing another pad of paper as well. And Elliott chose some stickers for his kindergarten scrapbook. It's no wonder my husband will only go there when I have a giftcard. Haha.
I think summer vacation will be good for our budget. Obviously the actual vacation part where we leave the state will cost us quite a bit, but we are less than $300 from our savings goal for that. Being out of school means we will spend a lot less on gas, since I drive Elliott back and forth to school, for a total of about 350 miles a week. Elliott and I will make a lot more trips to do fun things than we do during the school year, but there's a playground within walking distance, and we have a decent size pool in our backyard, so those trips will be limited. Our zoo isn't open this year (because of the flood last year) that limits what we will end up doing even more.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Summer Vacations
I know I haven't been around much this year. We've made a few changes recently, and we are still adjusting. We're just now getting fully adjusted to my sister living here, and she's been here since the end of January. We're also doing a fair amount of remodeling and rearranging to make everyone more comfortable.
I can't believe it's already May. My son has less than 3 weeks left of kindergarten! Our summer is going to be really busy, too. We're going "home" to Missouri next month for a big birthday party for my dad (he turned 65 yesterday, but since we live so far away, we decided to wait until June, when everyone can come). I think we will be there about 2 weeks. Then in July we're taking another vacation, to Washington state. My little sister is going with us to Missouri, but she'll be staying here to take care of the pets in July. One of my older sisters and one of my aunts are driving up here in July, and then going to Washington with us, though, so that should be a lot of fun. My sister in law will also be flying into Seattle and spending a long weekend with us. We're renting a beach side cottage, and getting a great deal on it, so the vacation will be pretty frugal.
We had originally planned on skipping a family vacation this year, but ultimately decided to go ahead and do it for a variety of reasons. My husband hasn't seen his sister for at least 2 years, and possibly even longer. She was planning on coming up here, but with the remodel and everything, I was trying to figure out some way to make it work better and more comfortably for everyone. It turns out that flying into Seattle, and then helping us pay for a few nights on the beach actually saves money over flying into North Dakota. So it works out better for her. Plus we've been wanting to visit Washington, and neither of us have ever been. When I said something to my sister she said she wanted to go to Washington, too, so we invited her along. And then invited my aunt as well. We've already managed to save over half the money we need for vacation, either from online earnings, credit card cash back, or just money we didn't spend on certain areas of our budget. We should be able to save the rest of it pretty easily between now and July without dipping into the money that is supposed to go toward debt every month.
I can't believe it's already May. My son has less than 3 weeks left of kindergarten! Our summer is going to be really busy, too. We're going "home" to Missouri next month for a big birthday party for my dad (he turned 65 yesterday, but since we live so far away, we decided to wait until June, when everyone can come). I think we will be there about 2 weeks. Then in July we're taking another vacation, to Washington state. My little sister is going with us to Missouri, but she'll be staying here to take care of the pets in July. One of my older sisters and one of my aunts are driving up here in July, and then going to Washington with us, though, so that should be a lot of fun. My sister in law will also be flying into Seattle and spending a long weekend with us. We're renting a beach side cottage, and getting a great deal on it, so the vacation will be pretty frugal.
We had originally planned on skipping a family vacation this year, but ultimately decided to go ahead and do it for a variety of reasons. My husband hasn't seen his sister for at least 2 years, and possibly even longer. She was planning on coming up here, but with the remodel and everything, I was trying to figure out some way to make it work better and more comfortably for everyone. It turns out that flying into Seattle, and then helping us pay for a few nights on the beach actually saves money over flying into North Dakota. So it works out better for her. Plus we've been wanting to visit Washington, and neither of us have ever been. When I said something to my sister she said she wanted to go to Washington, too, so we invited her along. And then invited my aunt as well. We've already managed to save over half the money we need for vacation, either from online earnings, credit card cash back, or just money we didn't spend on certain areas of our budget. We should be able to save the rest of it pretty easily between now and July without dipping into the money that is supposed to go toward debt every month.
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Sickness Strikes Again
Elliott has been home sick from school for the last two days. He woke up yesterday morning around 630, complaining that his throat hurt. When I felt it, I realized he had a fever. I took his temperature and it got up to 99.5 before he sneezed and dropped the thermometer. I decided I didn't need to know the exact temperature, since that was enough to keep him home from school. He started feeling better later in the day, and I thought he would end up back in school today, but today when my husband woke him up, he was running a fever and had a very whiny quality in his voice. He's acting fine right now, and REALLY wants to go back to school tomorrow, so hopefully he still feels well enough tomorrow! I'm also hoping no one else in the family gets sick. Elliott has next Thursday and Friday off school and my sister has the day off Thursday as well, so the three of us are planning on going to Bismarck.
I've managed to do a surprising number of things at home over the last two days, even with Elliott home. I worked out for over an hour yesterday, and just about 90 minutes today, while Elliott was snuggling the dogs and watching TV in my room. I straightened up the living room and my bedroom today, and might tackle Elliott's later.
My sister has the day off today, and is grocery shopping right now. Having her here has really helped us stick to our budget. She works in Minot, so she usually has no problem running errands for us. Since I'm not with her, I can't impulse shop, and it works. :) We're under budget for this half of the month right now, so I should have some extra spending money when we go to Bismarck, plus have extra to put toward debt. :) I have done a little more online shopping lately than usual, but it hasn't amounted to what I normally spend in stores.
I've managed to do a surprising number of things at home over the last two days, even with Elliott home. I worked out for over an hour yesterday, and just about 90 minutes today, while Elliott was snuggling the dogs and watching TV in my room. I straightened up the living room and my bedroom today, and might tackle Elliott's later.
My sister has the day off today, and is grocery shopping right now. Having her here has really helped us stick to our budget. She works in Minot, so she usually has no problem running errands for us. Since I'm not with her, I can't impulse shop, and it works. :) We're under budget for this half of the month right now, so I should have some extra spending money when we go to Bismarck, plus have extra to put toward debt. :) I have done a little more online shopping lately than usual, but it hasn't amounted to what I normally spend in stores.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Adapting and Finding My Perfect Day
So my husband found out on Friday that he's on swings this week, and possibly all month. I really hope it's not all month, but we'll deal with it if is. He's worked an off shift (3-11pm usually, but sometimes a random 12 hour shift instead) well over half of the school year already. So he only sees Elliott for a few minutes in the morning and for a while on weekends, but it seems like there is ALWAYS something going on every weekend when he's on second shift. When I say he sees Elliott for a few minutes, I mean that quite literally. He rolls out of bed about 5 minutes before it's time for Elliott to go to school, and if he feels awake and alert enough takes him to school, otherwise those 5 minutes are it for the day.
I keep reminding myself that at least he gets those few minutes a day. He's been home from a deployment for almost 16 months now, so will be eligible again in the very near future. It just feels like he's missing so much, considering he IS here. Elliott's in kindergarten this year, and hadn't had any formal education before this year, and had hardly even been away from me. He's doing REALLY well and has grown a lot, especially in maturity. I am so proud of him!
Having my evenings alone has it's advantages, though. Like today I picked Elliott up from school and we came home and built a snowman. After I got tired of playing outside we came inside, put away laundry, and decided what to have for dinner. Elliott helped me with dinner, and then after his bath we got to snuggle in bed. My husband called on his dinner break to say prayers with Elliott, and to tell him how much he loves him. Then we snuggled some more while we read 6 or 7 books, before he went and got into his own bed, and I went to workout in the living room.
I just feel like there's so much more freedom when it's just Elliott and me at home. We aren't usually in a hurry to get stuff done, and as long as we get a bath, teeth brushing, and prayers in by 730, the day is a success. It's not that my husband is a bad dad or anything, he just doesn't like to do things like play outside very often, and he's asleep within minutes if Elliott tries to snuggle him in bed. I definitely like it better when my husband's on days for a variety of reason, but it's nice to remember there is a silver lining in perfect days like today.
I keep reminding myself that at least he gets those few minutes a day. He's been home from a deployment for almost 16 months now, so will be eligible again in the very near future. It just feels like he's missing so much, considering he IS here. Elliott's in kindergarten this year, and hadn't had any formal education before this year, and had hardly even been away from me. He's doing REALLY well and has grown a lot, especially in maturity. I am so proud of him!
Having my evenings alone has it's advantages, though. Like today I picked Elliott up from school and we came home and built a snowman. After I got tired of playing outside we came inside, put away laundry, and decided what to have for dinner. Elliott helped me with dinner, and then after his bath we got to snuggle in bed. My husband called on his dinner break to say prayers with Elliott, and to tell him how much he loves him. Then we snuggled some more while we read 6 or 7 books, before he went and got into his own bed, and I went to workout in the living room.
I just feel like there's so much more freedom when it's just Elliott and me at home. We aren't usually in a hurry to get stuff done, and as long as we get a bath, teeth brushing, and prayers in by 730, the day is a success. It's not that my husband is a bad dad or anything, he just doesn't like to do things like play outside very often, and he's asleep within minutes if Elliott tries to snuggle him in bed. I definitely like it better when my husband's on days for a variety of reason, but it's nice to remember there is a silver lining in perfect days like today.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Financial Goals
Almost a year ago my family took a vacation to Disney World. Everyone was excited about the vacation, so my husband and son helped me save money for the last few months before the vacation. We paid close attention to what we spent money on, used lots of coupons, and enjoyed watching our vacation savings grow. After the vacation, we tried to get back onto that track in an effort to get out of debt faster, but we just never made it stick. My husband and I were talking about it, and decided that getting out of debt, just to be out of debt wasn't concrete enough for us, and especially not for Elliott.
So we've made new financial goals, that will hopefully help us to get out of debt faster, and enjoy a vacation along the way! We are going to Missouri in early June anyway, to celebrate my dad's 65th birthday. My husband's sister is supposed to fly out and see us while we are there, and my husband would really like to spend at least one day in a nearby theme park with her. There's also a Legoland Discover Center that will be open in Kansas City by then, and since Elliott is really into legos right now, we thought we might try to do that as well. Since it won't have been open very long, we'll have backup plans in place, but hopefully the Discovery Center will work out.
In order to do the fun things we want to do, we have to get rid of a set dollar amount of debt, and save in our vacation fund for the fun things. We were going to take money out of our tax return to pay for the vacation, but I think it will work better if I work hard at paying off a specific debt, and then saving for the vacation, before moving on to focus heavily on the next debt.
We've actually already started planning for our next big vacation, too. We're really hoping to do it next summer, but before we do that, we have to be debt free other than our mortgage, plus of course have the cash available for the vacation. I think having set goals (including a set amount we need for the vacation) will help us stick to the budget much more closely than just saying "We want to be out of debt by next April."
So we've made new financial goals, that will hopefully help us to get out of debt faster, and enjoy a vacation along the way! We are going to Missouri in early June anyway, to celebrate my dad's 65th birthday. My husband's sister is supposed to fly out and see us while we are there, and my husband would really like to spend at least one day in a nearby theme park with her. There's also a Legoland Discover Center that will be open in Kansas City by then, and since Elliott is really into legos right now, we thought we might try to do that as well. Since it won't have been open very long, we'll have backup plans in place, but hopefully the Discovery Center will work out.
In order to do the fun things we want to do, we have to get rid of a set dollar amount of debt, and save in our vacation fund for the fun things. We were going to take money out of our tax return to pay for the vacation, but I think it will work better if I work hard at paying off a specific debt, and then saving for the vacation, before moving on to focus heavily on the next debt.
We've actually already started planning for our next big vacation, too. We're really hoping to do it next summer, but before we do that, we have to be debt free other than our mortgage, plus of course have the cash available for the vacation. I think having set goals (including a set amount we need for the vacation) will help us stick to the budget much more closely than just saying "We want to be out of debt by next April."
Monday, February 27, 2012
Making the Routine Work
I got up with my husband this morning at 415. He had squadron PT on base at 6, so I stayed home instead of going to the gym. I prepared his lunch and pulled out some of the stuff I needed for my son's lunch as well. Then I did a few things online that I needed to get done, and even found time to do some daily clicks on sites that I hadn't done much lately, all while my husband was getting ready for work.
After my husband went to work, I worked out for about 40 minutes, before hitting the shower. I then started a load of laundry, and started Elliott's breakfast. After I got him up, I packed his lunch, helped him pack his backpack and fed him breakfast before hitting the door for school.
When I arrived home from dropping Elliott off at school, I sorted the clothes that someone left in the dryer yesterday (I think it was my husband, but it might have been my sister), and started a second load. I pulled out everything I need for dinner tonight, and came back upstairs. It's only 1015, and I've already finished everything online that was on my goal sheet today, except this blog post. I also straightened up the kitchen, and will be cleaning my bathrooms as soon as I finish this up.
I am REALLY tired, and think I need a nap (I was up until well past midnight last night). I'm excited that I can take one guilt free, since I got so much done already. I don't especially like mornings, but I really think I must be better at managing my time in the mornings, because I always seem to get more done if I get up early.
My goals for the rest of the school day include a nap, vacuuming, and working on my grocery list and gathering and sorting coupons. After school it will be time to relax with Elliott until his dad gets home, and then it's dinner, baths, stories, etc. I'll get my husband to bring up the laundry from the basement and put away ours tonight, too, and Elliott's tomorrow. I'm hoping to make it into bed by 10 pm tonight, so I don't want to have too much to do after Elliott goes to bed.
After my husband went to work, I worked out for about 40 minutes, before hitting the shower. I then started a load of laundry, and started Elliott's breakfast. After I got him up, I packed his lunch, helped him pack his backpack and fed him breakfast before hitting the door for school.
When I arrived home from dropping Elliott off at school, I sorted the clothes that someone left in the dryer yesterday (I think it was my husband, but it might have been my sister), and started a second load. I pulled out everything I need for dinner tonight, and came back upstairs. It's only 1015, and I've already finished everything online that was on my goal sheet today, except this blog post. I also straightened up the kitchen, and will be cleaning my bathrooms as soon as I finish this up.
I am REALLY tired, and think I need a nap (I was up until well past midnight last night). I'm excited that I can take one guilt free, since I got so much done already. I don't especially like mornings, but I really think I must be better at managing my time in the mornings, because I always seem to get more done if I get up early.
My goals for the rest of the school day include a nap, vacuuming, and working on my grocery list and gathering and sorting coupons. After school it will be time to relax with Elliott until his dad gets home, and then it's dinner, baths, stories, etc. I'll get my husband to bring up the laundry from the basement and put away ours tonight, too, and Elliott's tomorrow. I'm hoping to make it into bed by 10 pm tonight, so I don't want to have too much to do after Elliott goes to bed.
Friday, February 24, 2012
Finding an Exercise Routine
My husband has recently set a goal to lose 40 lbs. He would like to lose at least 25 lbs in the next 3 months. That's good news for me and my weight loss journey, because it means it will be easier to eat healthy if it's something that everyone wants anyway (we're lucky and Elliott loves fruit and most veggies). It also means that we can work on motivating each other to work out, stay on top of healthy eating, etc. My sister would also like to lose some weight, but her motivation isn't as strong right now, but she's willing to go along with the healthy eating and everything.
So now that my sister lives with us and works an evening shift, I'll be heading out early in the morning to go to the gym with my husband twice a week. We need to be on base by 545, so that I can work out for almost an hour and still get home in time to get Elliott ready for school. That means I'll have to be up and out the door almost 2 hours earlier than I usually get up, so I'll have to get in bed earlier. I think I can make that work, though. My son is in bed by 730 every night, and most nights my husband is in bed by 930. My sister doesn't get off work until 10, and I've been hanging out with her until after midnight, but I'm sure she'll be ok if I go to bed earlier (so I can be up by 445).
In fact, I think that what will probably work the best for my exercise routine is if I go ahead and get up with my husband EVERY morning and work out at home after he heads out to do his exercise class twice a week. Then I'll get 4-5 work outs in every week, and won't have to worry about when to squeeze them in. It will also give me some time to get some stuff done online in the morning. Even though I don't really consider myself to be a morning person, I have to admit that I'm usually more productive in the morning. Hopefully I'll even find more time to blog this way. :)
So now that my sister lives with us and works an evening shift, I'll be heading out early in the morning to go to the gym with my husband twice a week. We need to be on base by 545, so that I can work out for almost an hour and still get home in time to get Elliott ready for school. That means I'll have to be up and out the door almost 2 hours earlier than I usually get up, so I'll have to get in bed earlier. I think I can make that work, though. My son is in bed by 730 every night, and most nights my husband is in bed by 930. My sister doesn't get off work until 10, and I've been hanging out with her until after midnight, but I'm sure she'll be ok if I go to bed earlier (so I can be up by 445).
In fact, I think that what will probably work the best for my exercise routine is if I go ahead and get up with my husband EVERY morning and work out at home after he heads out to do his exercise class twice a week. Then I'll get 4-5 work outs in every week, and won't have to worry about when to squeeze them in. It will also give me some time to get some stuff done online in the morning. Even though I don't really consider myself to be a morning person, I have to admit that I'm usually more productive in the morning. Hopefully I'll even find more time to blog this way. :)
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
February Goals Update
I've kind of fallen off of the healthy eating wagon since my sister got here. It's always harder for me during the winter anyway. I'm really trying to get back into it this week. I don't plan on giving up ALL the not so healthy choices I can have (I'm gluten free, so that limits several choices right there). But I'm hoping to do better about moderation. Yesterday was a disaster. We had burgers and doritos last night. I didn't portion the doritos for everyone, so we ended up eating an entire bag! There was some finger pointing on who was to blame, but the bottom line is that bag should have lasted an entire two weeks and was all gone in ONE sitting. From now on, I'll portion stuff into individual bags or bowls before it leaves the kitchen and everyone else will have to deal with it, whether they like it or not. :)
Financially things are in decent order. We didn't make quite as much progress as I would like toward debt this month, but anything is better than nothing. My husband and I had a rare kid free date night, and we took Elliott to see Journey 2, but otherwise didn't spend too much extra. Our budget includes entertainment money that was enough to cover those things.
Me time is much easier to find when I'm home alone (or at least the only one awake). My sister is going to be working an evening shift a lot, so I hope I'll still be able to find some time for me. I've done some crafting this month, as well as reading 3 books. I've also managed to find more time to work out than I thought I would.
Financially things are in decent order. We didn't make quite as much progress as I would like toward debt this month, but anything is better than nothing. My husband and I had a rare kid free date night, and we took Elliott to see Journey 2, but otherwise didn't spend too much extra. Our budget includes entertainment money that was enough to cover those things.
Me time is much easier to find when I'm home alone (or at least the only one awake). My sister is going to be working an evening shift a lot, so I hope I'll still be able to find some time for me. I've done some crafting this month, as well as reading 3 books. I've also managed to find more time to work out than I thought I would.
Time Flies and I am Terrible at Blogging!
I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last blogged here. Things have been incredibly hectic. I really need to stop waiting until the last minute to do things!
My sister moved in with us at the very end of January. We moved a bunch of stuff into the dinning room so she would have a place to put her stuff. We planned on going through the stuff in the dining room right away and getting rid of some, and storing the rest. It's mostly seasonal stuff and stuff that Elliott has outgrown. Anyway, we still can't eat in the dining room. We even bought a new dining room table, and haven't been able to use it yet.
My son turned 6 this month! He invited 22 kids to his party, but it snowed that day, so only 6 showed up. It was still fun, though, and much easier to handle. :) My husband ended up having to go to work before the party was over, so I'm kind of glad that we didn't have a bunch of kids. It was a great group, though, and gave us time to play all the games I had planned, without getting bored waiting for a turn, etc. Elliott was a little bit bummed that one of his best friends didn't show up, but he was out with an ear infection on Thursday and Friday (Elliott's party was Saturday), so we weren't really expecting him on Saturday anyway.
My sister had no trouble at all finding a job. Both places she applied offered her a job, but she took the one with a less fixed schedule. Like this week she works 9am-5pm today, and 2-10 pm the rest of the week. She's been there a week, though, and likes it so far. The pay is much better than her last job (but her last job was in southern MO where the cost of living is incredibly low). She's suffering from sticker shock when she goes shopping, but otherwise seems to like living out in the middle of nowhere. :)
My sister moved in with us at the very end of January. We moved a bunch of stuff into the dinning room so she would have a place to put her stuff. We planned on going through the stuff in the dining room right away and getting rid of some, and storing the rest. It's mostly seasonal stuff and stuff that Elliott has outgrown. Anyway, we still can't eat in the dining room. We even bought a new dining room table, and haven't been able to use it yet.
My son turned 6 this month! He invited 22 kids to his party, but it snowed that day, so only 6 showed up. It was still fun, though, and much easier to handle. :) My husband ended up having to go to work before the party was over, so I'm kind of glad that we didn't have a bunch of kids. It was a great group, though, and gave us time to play all the games I had planned, without getting bored waiting for a turn, etc. Elliott was a little bit bummed that one of his best friends didn't show up, but he was out with an ear infection on Thursday and Friday (Elliott's party was Saturday), so we weren't really expecting him on Saturday anyway.
My sister had no trouble at all finding a job. Both places she applied offered her a job, but she took the one with a less fixed schedule. Like this week she works 9am-5pm today, and 2-10 pm the rest of the week. She's been there a week, though, and likes it so far. The pay is much better than her last job (but her last job was in southern MO where the cost of living is incredibly low). She's suffering from sticker shock when she goes shopping, but otherwise seems to like living out in the middle of nowhere. :)
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Goal Update
My family has been sick for the last two weeks. Elliott was home sick from school three days last week, and my husband should have been home from work just about every day, but he was too stubborn to go to the doctor until late in the week (and the doctor DID tell him he should have been there sooner and shouldn't have been at work, so I was right). This week I'm the only one holding on to the sickness, but I think I'm about to finally kick it.
One positive about being sick over the weekend? We didn't go shopping. We live in a pretty rural area, so shopping isn't something I regularly do on a whim. I see people whine about having to drive "across town" and it takes "at least 20 minutes" to get there, and it makes me smile. If I want to go anywhere to shop, it takes me more than 20 minutes to get there. I can get to the BX and the commissary (grocery store) in about 25-30 minutes, and it's another 15 or more to Walmart, Target, KMart, the mall, etc. It's one of the tradeoffs of living in a small town with a great school, affordable housing, and friendly neighbors I guess.
So reporting on my goals for the last two weeks...I've done great financially. We haven't even cashed my husband's check from his part time job, and we still have over $80 in cash left, plus over $200 in the bank (aside from the minimum we keep in there for emergencies). I probably will go get groceries this weekend, but I don't anticipate doing much more shopping than that, so I should be able to keep it pretty low. I think we will need gas in both cars one more time this month. That should be it for shopping for this month. Which still leaves me with more than enough to go out for Elliott's birthday, and buy all the stuff we still need to get for his birthday party. We should still be able to make an extra payment toward debt, even though we're probably going to go slightly overboard on Elliott's party.
Health wise I've been too sick to do much exercising, but I've done a little bit. I've lost weight, but there's a good chance I'll gain it back now that I'm not sick anymore, so I'm not going to count it.
Doing stuff I enjoy has been fun. I made all of Elliott's birthday party invitations on the Cricut. We are doing a Toy Story party and we invited 22 kids. The picture of Woody that Elliott chose had 7 or 8 layers, so it took quite a while to put all the invitations together, but it was fun. We're also doing picture frames with the kids (with a picture of each child with Elliott in the frame), and I'm using the Cricut for that as well. We're doing another game or two that I'm using the Cricut to create pieces, and I'm doing some decorations as well, so that's kept me pretty busy. I'm really enjoying getting to use my Cricut, though, and learning more about it. Elliott's party is in less than two weeks, so as soon as I finish up the stuff for the party, I'll be working on Thank You cards on the Cricut as well. That means I haven't had time to do any scrapbook layouts, but all the party stuff has been tons of fun as well. :)
One positive about being sick over the weekend? We didn't go shopping. We live in a pretty rural area, so shopping isn't something I regularly do on a whim. I see people whine about having to drive "across town" and it takes "at least 20 minutes" to get there, and it makes me smile. If I want to go anywhere to shop, it takes me more than 20 minutes to get there. I can get to the BX and the commissary (grocery store) in about 25-30 minutes, and it's another 15 or more to Walmart, Target, KMart, the mall, etc. It's one of the tradeoffs of living in a small town with a great school, affordable housing, and friendly neighbors I guess.
So reporting on my goals for the last two weeks...I've done great financially. We haven't even cashed my husband's check from his part time job, and we still have over $80 in cash left, plus over $200 in the bank (aside from the minimum we keep in there for emergencies). I probably will go get groceries this weekend, but I don't anticipate doing much more shopping than that, so I should be able to keep it pretty low. I think we will need gas in both cars one more time this month. That should be it for shopping for this month. Which still leaves me with more than enough to go out for Elliott's birthday, and buy all the stuff we still need to get for his birthday party. We should still be able to make an extra payment toward debt, even though we're probably going to go slightly overboard on Elliott's party.
Health wise I've been too sick to do much exercising, but I've done a little bit. I've lost weight, but there's a good chance I'll gain it back now that I'm not sick anymore, so I'm not going to count it.
Doing stuff I enjoy has been fun. I made all of Elliott's birthday party invitations on the Cricut. We are doing a Toy Story party and we invited 22 kids. The picture of Woody that Elliott chose had 7 or 8 layers, so it took quite a while to put all the invitations together, but it was fun. We're also doing picture frames with the kids (with a picture of each child with Elliott in the frame), and I'm using the Cricut for that as well. We're doing another game or two that I'm using the Cricut to create pieces, and I'm doing some decorations as well, so that's kept me pretty busy. I'm really enjoying getting to use my Cricut, though, and learning more about it. Elliott's party is in less than two weeks, so as soon as I finish up the stuff for the party, I'll be working on Thank You cards on the Cricut as well. That means I haven't had time to do any scrapbook layouts, but all the party stuff has been tons of fun as well. :)
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
New Year, New Goals
I don't normally make a lot of New Year's Resolutions, but do take some time to look at my goal list and tweak it a little bit. I do more of that in August, when my birthday rolls around and school starts. So a lot of the goals I'm working on are from then.
Here's a list of the things I'm currently working on:
Focusing on my health. I have had several relatively minor health issues for a while, but a lot of minor issues can create some problems. I've been on a gluten free diet for just over a month, and it seems to be helping some. I do plan on doing some other things for my health now, too, though. The big one being actually sleeping more, and realizing that I don't really NEED to be busy doing something for 18-20 hours a day. :)
Getting rid of debt. My husband got a huge increase in his BAH this year, plus a regular raise because he's been in the Air Force for 8 years now. That gives us a pretty big chunk of extra money each month to put toward debt.
Saving for a basement remodel. My little sister is moving in with us next month. We are all very happy about that, but it means some rearranging and decluttering. This spring/summer we are going to remodel our basement and put a big bedroom down there for us, along with an office. That will give my sister my current bedroom, and make things more comfortable for everyone I'm sure. :)
Spending more time doing the things I like to do. My husband gave me a Cricut for Christmas, and Elliott and I have been having so much fun with it! We haven't actually used it yet for scrapbooking, but we have made a chore chart, thank you cards, and some fun stuff that Elliott just wanted. I also just started working on Elliott's birthday party invitations on the Cricut, and we love the way they look. :) I can't wait to use it on some scrapbook layouts.
Lose some more weight. This one goes along with the first goal of getting my health under control. Due to a couple of the issues I do have, losing weight is hard. I'm working on it, though.
Spend lots of time doing fun stuff with Elliott. I've had a lot more trouble adjusting to kindergarten than Elliott has. I really enjoy our time together in the evenings and on weekends. We already do a lot of fun stuff together during those times, but I've noticed that some days it just seems like I have too many other things to get done. We only have 3.5 hours from the time he gets home to the time he gets in bed (and that has to include, dinner, bath, prayers and stories, etc), so I'm working on ignoring anything that he isn't helping me with during that time.
So those are my main goals for this year. Only one of them has a real deadline (the money for the basement remodel needs to all be saved by summer so we can work on it then). I'm hoping to make progress on all of them, though! :)
Here's a list of the things I'm currently working on:
Focusing on my health. I have had several relatively minor health issues for a while, but a lot of minor issues can create some problems. I've been on a gluten free diet for just over a month, and it seems to be helping some. I do plan on doing some other things for my health now, too, though. The big one being actually sleeping more, and realizing that I don't really NEED to be busy doing something for 18-20 hours a day. :)
Getting rid of debt. My husband got a huge increase in his BAH this year, plus a regular raise because he's been in the Air Force for 8 years now. That gives us a pretty big chunk of extra money each month to put toward debt.
Saving for a basement remodel. My little sister is moving in with us next month. We are all very happy about that, but it means some rearranging and decluttering. This spring/summer we are going to remodel our basement and put a big bedroom down there for us, along with an office. That will give my sister my current bedroom, and make things more comfortable for everyone I'm sure. :)
Spending more time doing the things I like to do. My husband gave me a Cricut for Christmas, and Elliott and I have been having so much fun with it! We haven't actually used it yet for scrapbooking, but we have made a chore chart, thank you cards, and some fun stuff that Elliott just wanted. I also just started working on Elliott's birthday party invitations on the Cricut, and we love the way they look. :) I can't wait to use it on some scrapbook layouts.
Lose some more weight. This one goes along with the first goal of getting my health under control. Due to a couple of the issues I do have, losing weight is hard. I'm working on it, though.
Spend lots of time doing fun stuff with Elliott. I've had a lot more trouble adjusting to kindergarten than Elliott has. I really enjoy our time together in the evenings and on weekends. We already do a lot of fun stuff together during those times, but I've noticed that some days it just seems like I have too many other things to get done. We only have 3.5 hours from the time he gets home to the time he gets in bed (and that has to include, dinner, bath, prayers and stories, etc), so I'm working on ignoring anything that he isn't helping me with during that time.
So those are my main goals for this year. Only one of them has a real deadline (the money for the basement remodel needs to all be saved by summer so we can work on it then). I'm hoping to make progress on all of them, though! :)
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Old Navy Clearance Deals
Yesterday my guys and I decided to go do some after Christmas shopping. We got a $100 Banana Republic gift card in the mail just yesterday morning from mypoints.com, so we decided that Old Navy was definitely on our list of places to hit. In case you didn't know, you can use any Gap family giftcards at any of the Gap family stores and online. Banana Republic and Gap are both usually better deals than Old Navy on sites like mypoints, so I always order accordingly.
Because I haven't spent much time at all online since Elliott's Christmas vacation began last Tuesday, I didn't even realize that Old Navy was running a Super Cash promotion right now. if you aren't familiar with the promotion, it's pretty basic. You spend $20, you get a $10 off a $20 purchase to use during a specific week or two a few weeks out. You can get up to a $30 coupon off of a $60 purchase by buying more than $60 in one transaction. The current promotion runs through January 22, and the coupons can be used January 27-February 8.
I started out in Old Navy by myself, because my husband said he didn't need anything. He wanted to go to the Radio Shack nearby, and took Elliott with him. It didn't take long for me to find enough stuff for Elliott that I wanted him to come check it out and make sure he liked everything, so I called Carl to tell them to come on over. They finished up their shopping and came on in.
We quickly had a cart full of stuff that was mostly 75% off. Other than a shirt that was clearanced to $2.99, a pair of shorts clearanced to $.47, and a pair of jeans for $10, everything we bought was 75% off.
We ended up splitting our shopping into 2 transactions to take advantage of the Super cash promotion, and so we could use all three giftcards we had.
I ended up buying a coat for myself for $19.98
a pair of jeans for Elliott for $10
a coat for Elliott for $12.48
a fleece pull over for Elliott for $3.73
a glove, hat and scarf set for myself for $2.50
3 waffle shirts for Elliott for $3.23 each
a belt for myself for $3.73
and a short sleeve football shirt for Elliott for $2.99
With tax my total was $69.66, and according to my receipt I saved $165.97, but that didn't include the savings on the shirt that was $2.99.
I used a gift card that had $11.20 left on it, that I had cashed in my cash back from my credit card for. Then I used $58.46 of the $100 giftcard from mypoints to pay for the rest of it. I got a $30 super cash coupon to use on a $60 purchase, too.
My husband went through and bought
a coat for $19.98
a pair of shorts for Elliott for $.47
a pair of fleece pants for $6.23
2 thermal shirts for $4.98 each
and a fleece pullover for $6.23
All of the stuff he bought was for himself, except the shorts. With tax he spent $45.87, and paid using $5.03 on a giftcard that we got through our savings account for Christmas shopping, and the rest of the $100 giftcard from mypoints. It had $.70 left on it, so he got that back in change. According to his receipt he saved $127.30, but once again, that didn't include any savings for the shorts that were only $.47. He got back a $20 Super cash coupon off a $40 purchase as well.
We had planned on using most of the $100 giftcard on school clothes for Elliott for this spring and next winter, but we are still very pleased with our purchases. We had put back money for coats for ourselves anyway (we usually buy every other year or so in January), and ended up spending less than we had saved. We can use that money with the super cash coupons and stretch it to more than $100 anyway for school clothes. :) I also put it into our savings account, and will cash it out on Gap giftcards to get 10% cash back as soon as it clears, to save us even more money.
Because I haven't spent much time at all online since Elliott's Christmas vacation began last Tuesday, I didn't even realize that Old Navy was running a Super Cash promotion right now. if you aren't familiar with the promotion, it's pretty basic. You spend $20, you get a $10 off a $20 purchase to use during a specific week or two a few weeks out. You can get up to a $30 coupon off of a $60 purchase by buying more than $60 in one transaction. The current promotion runs through January 22, and the coupons can be used January 27-February 8.
I started out in Old Navy by myself, because my husband said he didn't need anything. He wanted to go to the Radio Shack nearby, and took Elliott with him. It didn't take long for me to find enough stuff for Elliott that I wanted him to come check it out and make sure he liked everything, so I called Carl to tell them to come on over. They finished up their shopping and came on in.
We quickly had a cart full of stuff that was mostly 75% off. Other than a shirt that was clearanced to $2.99, a pair of shorts clearanced to $.47, and a pair of jeans for $10, everything we bought was 75% off.
We ended up splitting our shopping into 2 transactions to take advantage of the Super cash promotion, and so we could use all three giftcards we had.
I ended up buying a coat for myself for $19.98
a pair of jeans for Elliott for $10
a coat for Elliott for $12.48
a fleece pull over for Elliott for $3.73
a glove, hat and scarf set for myself for $2.50
3 waffle shirts for Elliott for $3.23 each
a belt for myself for $3.73
and a short sleeve football shirt for Elliott for $2.99
With tax my total was $69.66, and according to my receipt I saved $165.97, but that didn't include the savings on the shirt that was $2.99.
I used a gift card that had $11.20 left on it, that I had cashed in my cash back from my credit card for. Then I used $58.46 of the $100 giftcard from mypoints to pay for the rest of it. I got a $30 super cash coupon to use on a $60 purchase, too.
My husband went through and bought
a coat for $19.98
a pair of shorts for Elliott for $.47
a pair of fleece pants for $6.23
2 thermal shirts for $4.98 each
and a fleece pullover for $6.23
All of the stuff he bought was for himself, except the shorts. With tax he spent $45.87, and paid using $5.03 on a giftcard that we got through our savings account for Christmas shopping, and the rest of the $100 giftcard from mypoints. It had $.70 left on it, so he got that back in change. According to his receipt he saved $127.30, but once again, that didn't include any savings for the shorts that were only $.47. He got back a $20 Super cash coupon off a $40 purchase as well.
We had planned on using most of the $100 giftcard on school clothes for Elliott for this spring and next winter, but we are still very pleased with our purchases. We had put back money for coats for ourselves anyway (we usually buy every other year or so in January), and ended up spending less than we had saved. We can use that money with the super cash coupons and stretch it to more than $100 anyway for school clothes. :) I also put it into our savings account, and will cash it out on Gap giftcards to get 10% cash back as soon as it clears, to save us even more money.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Saving for Christmas
My family tends to go way overboard at Christmas time. I'm not sure if I should admit this, but our Christmas presents take up a over half the floor space in our living room on Christmas morning. While they are still wrapped and stacked. We only have one child, and yes, all the presents on Christmas morning are his, my husband's mine, or the three little (furry) girls' who live here. My living room is small, but still...
Monday, November 28, 2011
Cyber Monday: Is It Worth It?
I've seen a lot of posts today and received a lot of emails about cyber Monday deals. In my opinion, most of them haven't been that great. I've seen several "deals" that are actually not good at all, from companies that offer better discounts on a fairly regular basis anyway. So even though I've been to several different websites today, I haven't ordered a single thing, although there are still a few things I'm looking for to finish up my Christmas shopping.
To get the best deals, you have to do your research all year long, or consult someone who has. For instance, a store offering 30% off everything available online might seem like a good deal until you realize that several times a year they offer 40% off everything. A movie for 50% off retail price might look like a good deal, until you realize that most stores sell it for about that price anyway, and run their own sales on it sometimes making it even cheaper. That same rule applies to a lot of things that have a suggested retail price that is often much higher than what you would pay somewhere like Target, Walmart or KMart.
Do a quick search before you buy, especially if you aren't 100% sure this is a bottom price. One of the big craft store websites has their Cricut cartridges on sale for Cyber Monday. Since my husband just bought the Cricut Expression for me for Christmas on Friday, I'm not really familiar with what is considered to be good sale prices. I saw one that I liked priced at $39.99 (retail price $89.99) and thought that might be a good deal. A quick search on Amazon let me know I could get the exact same one for just under $25, and shipping would be free with a $25 purchase.
To get the best deals, you have to do your research all year long, or consult someone who has. For instance, a store offering 30% off everything available online might seem like a good deal until you realize that several times a year they offer 40% off everything. A movie for 50% off retail price might look like a good deal, until you realize that most stores sell it for about that price anyway, and run their own sales on it sometimes making it even cheaper. That same rule applies to a lot of things that have a suggested retail price that is often much higher than what you would pay somewhere like Target, Walmart or KMart.
Do a quick search before you buy, especially if you aren't 100% sure this is a bottom price. One of the big craft store websites has their Cricut cartridges on sale for Cyber Monday. Since my husband just bought the Cricut Expression for me for Christmas on Friday, I'm not really familiar with what is considered to be good sale prices. I saw one that I liked priced at $39.99 (retail price $89.99) and thought that might be a good deal. A quick search on Amazon let me know I could get the exact same one for just under $25, and shipping would be free with a $25 purchase.
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