I found this great site that shows you how to make your own cleaning supplies. A majority of the items are commonly found in the home. Click HERE to check them out.
My good friend Bailey was telling me about how her mom has a great way to make your own dryer sheets. This is how its done:
In a container (plastic rubbermaid or old margarine container) put 1/4 cup of fabric softner and 1 cup of water, then place some fabric squares in to the container... When you put the load of laundry into the dryer you get one fabric square, kind of ring it out and throw it in with your clothes... then when you fold your clothes you just place the fabric square back into the container! Easy and resuable!!
NORWEX
(You can go to the site by clicking on the name) This company is one of my favorite for awesome cleaning supplies that work amazing and are great on the environment. They aren't DIY but they are products you only buy once and use a zillion times!
They have clothes that contain silver which is a bacteria killer. You can purchase a cloth and use it to clean your bathroom, including toilet, without using one cleaning agent. I LOVE THEM! They gaurentee that 99.9% of germs are killed. The only time I use any cleaner is when I have chicken on the counter, little bleach just to make sure.
They also have these amazing dryer balls. Dryer balls eliminate the entire need for dryer sheets. They even decrease the amount of time your laundry needs to dry and do they ever work great. DON'T buy them from the dollar store though. I know a few people who have purchased them from there and they said they didn't work at all.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
Anyone???
Does anyone even read this?? I know a few people do but a few people may not be enough for me to continue to function this blog. Please send this link out www.sexysavvysavingmom.blogspot.com to everyone you know who may want to learn some tricks and save some money!!!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Christmas.... Now??
Okay, you want to have money at Christmas and not be paying off credit cards till June..... SAVE and start saving now.
- Take out $25 a month, by Christmas you will have $250. And that's $250 more then you would have had. Decide on a base amount, then if you can add an extra $10 or $25 to that each month, your amount will obviously increase.
- The easiest way for me to do this is I do my banking online. On my online banking I set up a transfer that happens each month to an account that I titled, DON'T TOUCH! That way I don't need to worry about making sure the money is being put aside because its done each month automatically. And if you don't do online banking or are unable to do a transfer like this, just go into the bank and they will set it up for you.
- If you are going to do cash at home, decide on a good place to put it. In a jar that can't be opened or in a safe. You don't want to be dishing this money early!
- Another way is if you do the budget cash jar system, which I explain in"How To Start Saving", and are putting that $25 away into a jar for the kids already, plan on using that money for only Christmas presents for the kids or for their birthdays. I know we will use the money for our sons b-day in April and then put money in there each month to use it again for Dec for Christmas.
Utility Cost Cuts
PLEASE check out this site. It has tons of ideas on saving money on home utilities.
One that I would add is turn your heat down at night and put on an oil heater in your room and your kids rooms. You can purchase them for as low as $30 at many dept stores. Very safe, most now have things like if it falls over, it will turn off and such. They do get hot but I find they aren't hot enough to burn you unless you keep your hand on it for a while. I have one in my little guys room and ours, that way when I turn the heat down I don't need to worry about the rest of the family being cold.
One that I would add is turn your heat down at night and put on an oil heater in your room and your kids rooms. You can purchase them for as low as $30 at many dept stores. Very safe, most now have things like if it falls over, it will turn off and such. They do get hot but I find they aren't hot enough to burn you unless you keep your hand on it for a while. I have one in my little guys room and ours, that way when I turn the heat down I don't need to worry about the rest of the family being cold.
Week #4 for Eating on $350 a Month
Again, all breakfast and lunch ideas can be found here.
Groceries
Beef Tacos/ Taco Salad
Meal #2
Thai Chicken Fingers
Meal #3
Fall off the bone Ribs
Meal #4
Meatless Spaghetti
Meal #5
Fish & Chips
Meal #6
Waffles & Strawberries (Breakfast for Dinner)
Meal #7
Pulled Pork Sandwiches
Total for these meals comes to about $80 if you make your own chicken fingers and if you were following the meals for the previous weeks. Total comes to just over $350 for all 4 weeks but I allotted a lot for lunches and breakfasts. And this is if you ate at home every night.
I know in our house we have a budget for eating out and we eat out about 3 times a month, this includes coupon meals and $5 pizzas. Once a month we try and eat at a sit down restaurant but we only have one child so families with more then one kid that is older then 3 may consider not doing this due to cost. OR go out with your husband for a date night at LEAST once a month and make that night your sit down meal!!
Homemade Chicken Fingers
Thawed chicken breast cut into halves long ways. In a bowl add 2 cloves of garlic smashed, 1 bay leaf, 1/4 t of thyme, 1 cup of buttermilk, and some hot pepper if you like a kick. Place chicken in bowl and let marinade for an hour.
Grab some corn flakes, no name to save money, and crush. Take out marinaded meat and cover with crushed flakes, both sides. Bake at 400 for 15 mins.
For those of you who are new to buttermilk, it's a low fat milk that has a tangy taste. It lasts for a while in the fridge and is great for a lot of different sauces, recipes, and homemade cake mixes!
Groceries
- ground beef (cheap at Walmart, about $2.50 for 1lb in the sausage roll looking packets)
- taco kit (right now $2.99 at no frills, normal price $3.49)
- chicken fingers ($17.99 for a box at M&M or make your own with the recipe at the end)
- Thai sauce ($2.99 No Frills)
- Ribs (we get St. Louis Style, at Walmart for a large rack which feeds 2 people easy $8-$10)
- 3 romaine hearts or bag of lettuce ($2.54 at No Frills)
- Spaghetti box
- can of crushed tomatoes ($.88 at No Frills right now, stock up, or buy no name, same stuff!)
- garlic cloves
- can of pork and beans (or any kind of bean you want, I just like the additional of the sauce)
- a few large baking potatoes
- bag of fillet fish (on sale for $4 at No Frills right now!)
- bag of coleslaw
- coleslaw salad dressing (no name brand tastes just as good and is cheaper, or you could add mayo, vinegar, and pickle juice to make your own)
- carton of whipping cream (cheaper then buying the premade stuff)
- pancake mix (Costco $8 LARGE BAG you will just use from the pancake mix you bought in the beginning)
- tenderloin (you should have some left over from your Costco purchase)
- Kaiser buns (4 for $1 at Walmart in bins)
- BBQ sauce (preferably chicken and rib from Kraft, so good)
- onions
- sour cream (should have some left over from other week)
- cheese (should have some left over, just need it for tacos this week)
- rice
- carrots
- tomatoes (fresh)
- salsa
- frozen strawberries (earlier Costco purchase, LARGE bag, $9)
- 1 green pepper
- bean (big bag you have in the freezer still from Costco)
Beef Tacos/ Taco Salad
- 1-2lbs ground beef
- sour cream
- salsa
- cheese
- taco kit
- lettuce shredded
- tomato diced
- olives (optional)
Meal #2
Thai Chicken Fingers
- either bought fingers or homemade ones
- Thai sauce
- rice
- carrots
Meal #3
Fall off the bone Ribs
- ribs
- salad
- beans
- baby potatoes
- BBQ sauce
- Worcestershire sauce
- med onion cut into large pieces
- little olive oil, butter, and salt
Meal #4
Meatless Spaghetti
- can of crushed tomato
- dried basil
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1T of olive oil
- finely diced onion
- 1T of sugar
- can of pork & beans
- spaghetti
- salad
Meal #5
Fish & Chips
- pancake mix
- fish fillets
- large baking potatoes
- large skillet with 1.5 inches of veggie oil covering the bottom and up/ or deep fryer
- coleslaw
- coleslaw dressing
Meal #6
Waffles & Strawberries (Breakfast for Dinner)
- pancake batter (made from yesterday) or mix
- frozen strawberries thawed
- whipping cream carton (500mL works good at my house, we have leftovers usually)
- 1/3 cup sugar
Meal #7
Pulled Pork Sandwiches
- tenderloin
- BBQ sauce
- Worcestershire sauce
- ketchup
- mustard
- salt
- pulled pork crock pot sauce packet (if you don't want to make your own)
- onions diced
- green pepper diced
- Kaiser buns
- coleslaw
Total for these meals comes to about $80 if you make your own chicken fingers and if you were following the meals for the previous weeks. Total comes to just over $350 for all 4 weeks but I allotted a lot for lunches and breakfasts. And this is if you ate at home every night.
I know in our house we have a budget for eating out and we eat out about 3 times a month, this includes coupon meals and $5 pizzas. Once a month we try and eat at a sit down restaurant but we only have one child so families with more then one kid that is older then 3 may consider not doing this due to cost. OR go out with your husband for a date night at LEAST once a month and make that night your sit down meal!!
Homemade Chicken Fingers
Thawed chicken breast cut into halves long ways. In a bowl add 2 cloves of garlic smashed, 1 bay leaf, 1/4 t of thyme, 1 cup of buttermilk, and some hot pepper if you like a kick. Place chicken in bowl and let marinade for an hour.
Grab some corn flakes, no name to save money, and crush. Take out marinaded meat and cover with crushed flakes, both sides. Bake at 400 for 15 mins.
For those of you who are new to buttermilk, it's a low fat milk that has a tangy taste. It lasts for a while in the fridge and is great for a lot of different sauces, recipes, and homemade cake mixes!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Week #3 on $350
Here are meals for week #3. You can find breakfast and lunch ideas on Week #1's page here.
Groceries:
Meal #1
Chicken Casserole
Meal #2
Meatloaf
Meal #3
Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Meal #4
BBQ Sausage
Meal #5
Hamburgers
Meal #6
Perogies
Easy supper night, recipe found here.
Meal #7
Roast
This week you are looking at about $65 in groceries for suppers. If you factor in about $23 for lunches and breakfast your total for groceries this week should be $88.
Groceries:
- Chicken (If you bought the big breast box from Costco you will have enough)
- Cream of Chicken Soup ($1.29 at No Frills)
- Stuffing Box ($1.49 at No Frills, TIP buy extra after Thanksgiving when on sale and store them)
- Onion
- Cheese
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Rice
- Lettuce Head x2 (take first 5-7 large leaves off and use rest for salad, large leaves for wraps)
- Green &/or Red Peppers
- Perogies (still from week one as you bought a large bag)
- Sour Cream
- Bread Crumbs (made yourself)
- Hamburgers (Superstore sells burger steaks for $10 for 20 yellow no name box, surprisingly good).
- Hamburger Buns (no name $1.99 or 4 for a $1 at Walmart pick your own bins)
- Honey Garlic Dinner Sausage (pack of 9 for $11 at Costco)
- Zucchini
- Mini Potatoes (or buy the full potatoes and cube yourself for cheaper)
- Roast (between $8-$15)
- Garlic
- cumin/ honey/ Worcestershire sauce/ ketchup/ brown sugar (regular kitchen items)
- Half & Half
- grapes
- Yorkshire Pudding packet ($1.49 at No Frills)
- Avocado
- Pineapple Rings (Dollarama $1)
Meal #1
Chicken Casserole
- chicken either as breasts or cubed
- stuffing mix
- small onion diced
- 1 cup broccoli heads
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 1 can cream of chicken
- 1/4 cup of mayo
Meal #2
Meatloaf
- ground beef
- small onion diced finely
- garlic finely minced
- squart of mustard
- 1 large egg beaten
- T of Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 cup Half & Half
- 1/2 green pepper finely diced
- 1 cup diced finely bread
- 2 T brown sugar
- cumin/ honey/ Worcestershire sauce/ ketchup/ brown sugar
Meal #3
Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- chicken cooked and sliced or can of flaked chicken
- full lettuce leaves
- mayo/ sour cream enough to moisten batch
- grapes cut into halves or quarters
- green and or red peppers diced
- red onion diced finely
- cheese grated
- rice
- ranch
- carrots
Meal #4
BBQ Sausage
- honey garlic sausage
- BBQ sauce (we prefer Kraft Chicken n' Rib)
- rice
- green and or red peppers cut into large pieces
- onion cut into large pieces
- pineapple rings
- zucchini
Meal #5
Hamburgers
- hamburgers
- hamburger buns
- lettuce
- cheese
- onion
- pickle
- avocado
- dressings of choice
- salad
- large potatoes
Meal #6
Perogies
Easy supper night, recipe found here.
Meal #7
Roast
- CROCK POT
- roast
- potatoes cubed
- carrots cubed
- onion sliced
- onion soup mix
- splash of Worcestershire sauce
- t of salt
- salad
- Yorkshire pudding packet
This week you are looking at about $65 in groceries for suppers. If you factor in about $23 for lunches and breakfast your total for groceries this week should be $88.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Costco Premium Toilet Paper
Run quick to Costco, they have their Premium Toilet Paper 36 (500sheets/roll) individually wrapped 2-ply rolls on sale for $14.97!!! Save $4.00! One other tip. Buy ALL your toilet paper for a year at one time. Especially at this cost. This way in the future you aren't taking time out of your day to go and get more toilet paper, an essential that will always be used up anyways. I know we got 2 packages for $30, enough for a year for us!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Dollarama Groceries
That's what I said, Dollarama Groceries!!!! If you haven't been there for a while you might be surprised but it's true. They have a whole section of canned food and candy. Large apple sauce: unsweetened $1 (I know we go through a lot of apple sauce here with one kid, so I can't imagine with more!) They have French's mustard for a $1. Candy of all kinds for a $1. They have juice and hot sauce!! Canned veggies and jams. A majority of these things are $1, the highest is $2. Totally worth the stop.
They even have cleaning items like Palmolive and Vim which can cost up to $5 at some places. Take a look at their website: http://www.dollarama.com/ they only show 12 items but I use a lot of those items everyday and I love to save!
Birthday parties, stock up on stuff here, especially if your one that likes to go over the top. Easy prices on the eye and tons of fun stuff for the kids!
CHEAP BREAD: Thanks Kristi!
We all know how much of a burden bread can be, the prices just seem to raise more and more every year. I remember when you could buy bread for $.79 a loaf, and that says a lot because I still haven't hit my 25th bday! I remember as a child going to McGavin's Bread in Lethbridge when we moved from Ontario, and bread was so cheap. I didn't know they had a McGavin's Bread Basket running in Calgary..... Well, they sure do, they have 3!!
- 9250 Macleod Trail Southeast, Calgary -(403) 253-2284
(403) 248-9858
Thanks Kristi for the little tippers! Kristi says " 10 for $10 and thats english muffins and tortillas and bagels. anything close to expiring but if you freeze it, its still great!" I know we are gonna go and stock up. Why not save some money the easy way!!! Plus, if you have a family with 2-3 kids, your gonna go through bread quick anyways!
Thanks to Joanne, there is also another place for cheap bread:
- 9250 Macleod Trail Southeast, Calgary -
- 132-1830 52 Street Se, Calgary -
Thanks to Joanne, there is also another place for cheap bread:
Calgary Italian Bakery Ltd 5310 5 St SE, Calgary, AB T2H 1L2 Joanne was saying bread is $.50 a loaf, I'm certainly gonna check that out!!!!
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Food Smart
A few ideas on how to make the most out of your grocery shopping and your pantry!
- Buy multiples of items most used when on sale. For example, we eat a lot of beans in my house. Add them to almost anything to give that protein boost without always using meat (food smart tip #1). When beans are on sale, I buy 2-3 more cans to store and use later because I know I will!
- Use up your freezer and pantry food! I know I am bad for this, I add to my freezer more consistently then I do use it. Take an hour, pull everything out of your freezer and pantry, WRITE IT DOWN! Now, for the next month, incorporate the freezer and pantry food into your meals. Especially the food that's at the bottom of the freezer. The list you made, put it on your fridge so the next time you go grocery shopping you won't pick up multiples of something you need to use in the freezer or pantry!
- Use your leftovers in other foods. If you have leftover rice or chicken, make a different meal using those leftovers so your family EATS the leftovers!
- Don't buy more perishable foods then you eat. I find that buying frozen veggies and some fruits are cheaper in some ways, especially if your like what I use to be and when grocery day comes around you are throwing out half of what you are putting in it.
- Make a meal plan before heading out and buying groceries. That way all the food is called for!
Week #2 of Meals for $350
Here are some dinner ideas for another week. Lunch and breakfast ideas can be found on Week #1, found here. Hope you can use some of these meal ideas!
Groceries:
Pork Tenderloin (4 for $20 at Costco, HUGE!)
Corn (keep using from previous week)
Beans (keep using from previous week if purchased large bag from Costco)
Potatoes (bag for $5 at No Frills)
Califlower ($1.49 at No Frills)
Pillsbury Cresants (4 of them $1.29 each at No Frills)
Onions (bag for $2.49)
Cheese ($5.99-$9)
Can of Salsa
Rice (bag from previous week)
Green Onion ($1.29)
Red or Green Peppers ($2 at No Frills)
Chicken (box from Costco previous week)
Lemon Pix Filling ($2)
Delissio Pizza ($6 at No Frills)
Pasta ($2 at No Frills)
Turkey Sausage (10 for $2.99 at No Frills)
Ground Turkey (8lbs at Costco for $20 or $3-$6 for a pack)
Buns ($2 at Sobeys)
Black Beans ($.99 no name No Frills)
White Beans ($.99 no name No Frills)
Green Chilis ($2.79 at Sobeys)
Avacodo ($.98 each)
Bag of Salad (3 hearts for $2.98 at No Frills)
Bread Crumbs (can be made by breaking bread into clumbs, and putting into the oven at 400 for 15 mins)
Beef Gravy Pack ($1.50 No Frills)
Meal #1
Beef Wellington
I'm sure you have heard of these if you watch "Hell's Kitchen" so good!! This is my version.
Meal #2
Lemon Chicken
Meal #3
Delissio Pizza
Speaks for it's self!
Meal #4
Turkey Cassorole (HC)
Meal #5
Turkey Burgers
Meal #6
Cafe Rio
Meal #7
Chicken Pockets
This weeks total comes to about $75! A little more then last week but great food! When you add breakfast and lunch dinners, the total comes to $100. If you have any questions about any of the recipes please let me know!!
Groceries:
Pork Tenderloin (4 for $20 at Costco, HUGE!)
Corn (keep using from previous week)
Beans (keep using from previous week if purchased large bag from Costco)
Potatoes (bag for $5 at No Frills)
Califlower ($1.49 at No Frills)
Pillsbury Cresants (4 of them $1.29 each at No Frills)
Onions (bag for $2.49)
Cheese ($5.99-$9)
Can of Salsa
Rice (bag from previous week)
Green Onion ($1.29)
Red or Green Peppers ($2 at No Frills)
Chicken (box from Costco previous week)
Lemon Pix Filling ($2)
Delissio Pizza ($6 at No Frills)
Pasta ($2 at No Frills)
Turkey Sausage (10 for $2.99 at No Frills)
Ground Turkey (8lbs at Costco for $20 or $3-$6 for a pack)
Buns ($2 at Sobeys)
Black Beans ($.99 no name No Frills)
White Beans ($.99 no name No Frills)
Green Chilis ($2.79 at Sobeys)
Avacodo ($.98 each)
Bag of Salad (3 hearts for $2.98 at No Frills)
Bread Crumbs (can be made by breaking bread into clumbs, and putting into the oven at 400 for 15 mins)
Beef Gravy Pack ($1.50 No Frills)
Meal #1
Beef Wellington
I'm sure you have heard of these if you watch "Hell's Kitchen" so good!! This is my version.
- Onions
- Pork Tenderloin
- 2 Pillsbury
- Corn or Beans
- Flour
- Potatoes & Califlower
- Green Onion
- Beef Gravy
Meal #2
Lemon Chicken
- Chicken Breasts
- Lemon Pie Filling
- Rice
- Carrots
- Brown Sugar
- Honey
Meal #3
Delissio Pizza
Speaks for it's self!
Meal #4
Turkey Cassorole (HC)
- 1 cup pasta of your choice
- 5 pieces of turkey sausage
- cheese
- breadcrumbs (small small)
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- broccoli and califlower
- white beans
Meal #5
Turkey Burgers
- Ground turkey
- turkey sausage
- green chilis
- buns
- avacodo
- Burger toppings of choice
- mango salsa (recipe found here)
Meal #6
Cafe Rio
- Pork Tenderloin
- Salsa
- Brown Sugar
- Coke or Pepsi (optional)
- Rice
- Milk & Sugar
- Black Beans
- Salad of Choice (Ceaser at my house)
- Large taco wraps
- Sour Cream
- Cheese
Meal #7
Chicken Pockets
- Pillsbury Dough (we use 2- 8 packs at our house, makes 8)
- 2 canned chicken flakes
- green onion
- red pepper
- onion
- mayo
This weeks total comes to about $75! A little more then last week but great food! When you add breakfast and lunch dinners, the total comes to $100. If you have any questions about any of the recipes please let me know!!
Friday, February 4, 2011
Couponing #2
Zellers Old Spice Deal
I don't have a picture, but I sure did get a deal. I bought 4 Old Spice deodorant 65g, they were on sale for $2 each. I had 3 coupons from pg brandpower. 2 were $1 off any Old Spice product and the other was $3 off 2 Old Spice products.
4 Old Spice deodorants @ $2
Total Bill $8
Coupons $5
Total Bill $3
My total for the Old Spice was $3 for 4 of them. Now we won't have to buy deodorant for the hubby for a while!
I hope a lot of you have gone to my coupon sites (which will hopefully grow to more) and signed up for them so you also can gain from the coupons!
I don't have a picture, but I sure did get a deal. I bought 4 Old Spice deodorant 65g, they were on sale for $2 each. I had 3 coupons from pg brandpower. 2 were $1 off any Old Spice product and the other was $3 off 2 Old Spice products.
4 Old Spice deodorants @ $2
Total Bill $8
Coupons $5
Total Bill $3
My total for the Old Spice was $3 for 4 of them. Now we won't have to buy deodorant for the hubby for a while!
I hope a lot of you have gone to my coupon sites (which will hopefully grow to more) and signed up for them so you also can gain from the coupons!
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