Budget
Vacation & Travel: Family Time in Historic Savannah, Georgia
We recently went to Savannah, Georgia to celebrate my cousins graduation from SCAD (Savannah College of Arts and Design). It was great having a reason to travel to Savannah again. Our family enjoys all the history in the area and loves an opportunity to go to the beach. We arrived on Friday nights just in time to see Savannah’s first Friday Firework display downtown on River Street. Saturday was graduation day so we had a mix of sightseeing, graduation ceremony and celebrating with Laurel. The girls thought Laurel had a lot more in her class then they did in their kindergarten graduation earlier that week. My Mom was able to fly out from Kansas and spend a couple days with us and drive with us to Savannah. It was great spending some extra time with her and the girls loved having Grandma around.
Hilarious....Karlie fast asleep with her treat still in her mouth! The girls picked out a snack to munch on during the ride to Savannah. Karlie picked out a special treat, fruit by the foot. Obviously she was too tired to finish eating it because when I looked back this is what I saw…..her fast asleep with the last six inches of the fruit by the foot hanging out her mouth. All of us got a good laugh at this one such a classic road trip picture!
Brina opening her goodie bag from Aunt Mary Ann and Aunt Laurel! Aunt Mary Ann and Aunt Laurel put together a sweet goodie bag for each of the girls. They had a lot of fun playing with the toys, drinking through the silly straws and writing in their new notebooks.
Friday Night Fireworks on River Street in Savannah, GA The first Friday evening of every month (at least during the summer months) Savannah has fireworks. They start after sundown about 9 PM at night. The fireworks are set off over the river and are beautiful.
Brina, Daddy and Karlie exploring Savannah! Saturday morning we decided to explore Savannah on foot while it was still early and cool. The girls had a fun time walking and asking questions about the town. Love this picture of Jake walking hand in hand with the girls, if only you could hear the conversation going on…..so many questions and Daddy patiently answering each one. Such a great Daddy, love these three very much!
Brina showing off her new purple seashell necklace and watching the horse carriages driving by at the same time! 
Karlie showing off her new seashell necklace! When we were looking through the shops and picking out postcards we found two purple seashell necklaces on clearance for $0.99 so the girls got their first seashell necklaces to remember Savannah.
Relaxing before graduation! Karlie and Brina kept Laurel entertained as lunch was being made. The bed in Uncle Rick and Aunt Mary Ann’s room was a make shift couch throughout the weekend. Karlie and Brina had fun talking with Laurel. It was pretty funny listening to some of their “stories”!
The ladies in our group that went on the Trolley Tour - Renelle, Bridgette, Randy and Penny! Jake and I had been on the trolley tour before but wanted to go again. It was amazing the amount of different information we learned this time around. Every tour guide has a unique way of presenting the information. Renelle, Randy, and Mom had never been on the tour and enjoyed it as well. Even though it was pretty hot outside with the open trolley and breeze it was comfortable. Thanks babe for running to grab waters for everyone while we took this picture.
Beautiful Church in Savannah, GA Savannah has a lot of amazing history. This is one of several beautiful churches in the downtown area of Savannah.
Savannah has a lot of great squares with Monuments and historical information in each one. There are a lot of shaded squares in Savannah that you can walk through and read a bunch of history. Each square has some type of monument to view and benches for those wanted to rest or have a picnic. If you are wanting to get an overview of Savannah I recommend taking one of the trolley tours first then you can come back later and learn more about the sights that interest you. We chose the Oglethrope Trolley Tour because it was the best price and we didn’t have to pay for parking. Finding parking in downtown Savannah can be difficult and expensive. Plus the trolley would pick us up and drop us off at a number of locations throughout Savannah all day. You could explore a historical sight or go shopping and when you were done or wanted transportation to the next area of interest you would wait a few minutes or call them and they would come pick you up.
More Savannah Trip Pictures Coming soon!
CVS: Spent $1 and Got $7 ECB’s Back!
CVS Deals this week! CVS has a few good deals this week. I was happy to stock up on some items including tums and shampoo this week while utilizing a few of my coupons. Today I was able to get the items for $1.06 plus tax ($0.08) making my out of pocket cost $1.14 and received $7.00 ECB’s to use on my next CVS purchase. Here is what I purchased this week.
- 2 – Pantene Classic Touch Hairspray for $6.98 ($3.49 each)
- 1 – Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder for $1.19
- 1 – Lady Speed Stick Shower Fresh for $1.99
- 1 – Tums Extra Assorted Berry (96 count) for $3.99
- 1 – Colgate Total White for $2.87
- 1 – Ban Solid Deodorant Shower Fresh for $2.99 (used a rain check to get this one)
- 1 – CVS 12 Hour (10 Count) for $4.89
- 1 – Teddy Boom (4 Piece) Girl Baby Onesies and Bib Set for $2.50
- 1 – Teddy Boom (2 Piece) Girl Baby Onesie Package for $1.50
Here are the coupons I used on the items.
- Used $3.00 Pantene Manufacturer Coupon
- Used $1.00 Colgate Manufacturer Coupon
- Used $0.75 Ban Manufacturer Coupon
- Used $3.00 CVS Kiosk Coupon
- Used $1.00 CVS Kiosk Coupon
- Used $4.00 CVS Kiosk Coupon
- Used $15.49 ECB coupons from prior purchases
I received $7.00 ECB’s back today:
- $2.00 ECB’s for Ban Products
- $2.00 ECB’s for Pantene Products
- $1.00 ECB’s for Mennen Speed Stick Products
- $1.00 ECB’s for Colgate Products
- $1.00 ECB’s for Tums Products
Today I was able to save $37.34 at CVS by purchasing these items and using coupons.
When you shop the CVS sales regularly and have ECB’s that you can roll over toward future purchases the bonus ECB’s start adding up (Green Bag Tags and Beauty Club). As you can see from my shopping trip today you don’t have to purchase a lot to save money when shopping at CVS. Plus you can use the additional ECB’s you receive towards your next purchase. You can pick and chose what is best for your family.
I would love to hear your CVS shopping story for this week! For those of you who shop regularly at CVS please share how you were able to save this week! Although the weekly ad sales are similar every family and situation is different so you may have found items better suited to your household. In your comment please feel free to share a link to your blog article showing us how you were able to save shopping at CVS.
Mailbox Goodies: Free Laundry Soap, Dog Food, Wipes, GoodNites, Fiber Choice, Zone, Coupons, Magazines & More!
Mailbox Goodies One of the best parts about getting the mail is when the mailbox full of goodies, especially when they are free! We got some great coupons, free samples, magazines and more stuff in the mail. Some of these deals are still available so if you haven’t had a chance to sign up go ahead and do it now. I will try to keep you posted of some of the new ones coming up as well.
Here are some items we received in the mail:
- Free Tena Feminine Hygiene Samples and Coupon (4 pads) – TENA(still available)
- Free Rachael Ray Nutrish Dog Food and Coupon – Switch to Nutrish(still available)
- 2 – Free Purina Alpo Homestyle with Beef Prime Cuts Dog Food and Coupons –Walmart Samples
- Free Tire Kingdom Coupons – sign up at your local Tire Kingdom(still available)
- 2 – Free Hamrick’s 15% Off Entire Purchase Coupon – Hamricks, sign up at your local Hamricks store (still available) No picture because I used it this weekend to purchase Bingo Car Game for the kids.
- Free $100 Google Advertising Coupon
- Free Huggies Pull-Ups Flushable Moist Wipes Samples and Coupon – Walmart Samples
- Free Tide Stain Release Sample (10 Count) and Coupons – Tide Facebook Page
- Free Tide Laundry Sample – Tide Facebook Page
- Free Valpak Coupon Savings
- Free Garnier Fructis Anti-Dandruff Shampoo and Coupon – Garnier (still available) click on take the “48 Hour Challenge”
- Free Newsweek Magazine – Rewards Gold
- Free AV Technology Magazine – been getting this one for several years now
- Free Field & Stream Magazine – Value Magazines
- Free Four Wheeler Magazine – Freebiz Magazines
- Free SD Times “Software Development” – this one has been coming for a couple years now
- Free CIO Magazine – this one has been coming for several years
- Free Parents Magazine – Rewards Country
- Free Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade Magazine – Buy Sub
- Free GoodNites Underwear – GoodNites (still available)
- Free Laura’s Lean Beef Coupon
- Free Fiber Choice (10 Count) – Fiber Choice (still available)
- Free Sweet & Salty Zone Perfect Cashew Pretzel and Coupon
- Free Miracle Worker Sample – Philosophy
- Free $5 Toys R Us Coupon – sign up at your local Toys R Us Store
- And more free magazines and local coupons!
If you are like me it is nice when you get a mailbox with free coupons and samples in it. The bills will come as well but when you get a mailbox full of free items it helps make the day a little more enjoyable. Plus the coupons and samples are a great way to stretch your budget and share with others!
Living on a Budget: Groceries $40 for 4
Another week of doing Groceries $40 for 4. I was able to stock up on some items but overall it was a quiet grocery shopping week because a lot of unexpected activities came up. We are trying to eat up our perishables this week since we have a lot of produce already in the fridge and from the garden. A lot of the items we picked up will be great for the upcoming road trips we have this summer! I am hoping to get back on schedule soon with grocery shopping although I have a feeling the summer months may have a new type of shopping schedule with the kiddos along helping. Below are my grocery shopping adventures for the week!
Groceries from CVS and Walgreens! CVS Groceries:
- $1.46 at CVS for 1 Powerade Fruit Punch, 1 Powerade Mountain Blue, 1 Vitamin Water Energy Blast, 1 Fuze Refreshing Peach, 1 Fuze Strawberry Melon, 1 Chex Mix Cheddar, 1 Chex Mix Honey, 2 Chex Mix Turtle, and 1 Powerbar Energy Snack. I used coupons on the Chex Mix and a couple ECB’s to help with the savings. I received an $2.49 ECB for the Powerbar and $2.00 ECB for the drinks. These items will be great for our upcoming vacation road trip.
Walgreens Groceries:
- $2.01 at Walgreens for 4 cans of Mandarin Oranges, 2 boxes Strawberry Royal Gelatin, and 2 boxes of Raspberry Royal Gelatin.
Groceries from BiLo BiLo Groceries:
- $14.49 at BiLo for 1 gallon of Whole Milk, 1 gallon of Skim Milk, 1 container of Country Crock, 1 box of Oatmeal Cremes, 1 box Blue Bonnet, 1 box of Peanut Butter Bar, and 1 container fresh Mushroom. (I had three munchkins with me on this trip so I didn’t have a chance to match the sales and coupons). I probably spent a little more than expected but it was worth to have the extra time with the kids.
I am excited to be back doing our Groceries $40 for 4 budget again. This week I spent $17.96 on groceries. Even though I wasn’t even close to the budgeted amount for the week I was still able to stock up on several items. Thankfully I was able to keep the amount within reason although I would like to see a little extra left over for those weeks when I find a really good deal or go a little over. Plus I hope to have more time soon to do more regular grocery shopping. We were out of town for the weekend part of this grocery week so it a little different from our usual events, however, we brought the majority of our food with us to make meals or just did two meals a day with snacks in between.
It is my goal to give you regular updates on this budget section so you can celebrate the good weeks with me and thump me on the bad weeks! As always you are welcomed to join the journey with me. I would love to hear your story and how you are doing too. The purpose of our family doing this it to watch our grocery spending while allowing us to feed our family, enjoy life, share with others, and yet stay on track with our budget.
Living on a Budget is a series of ways our family uses a budget to help keep us accountable with our finances. Life doesn’t always go as planned. We have used some of the ideas I will be sharing for years while others are ones we are just starting to implement as we continue finding ways to be creative and have fun with what we have been given. Having a plan in place allows us the freedom to be smart with what we have been given, get more creative when it is a tight (week, month, year or a season) and when necessary live a much more simplified life. A budget helps us stay on track so we have more opportunities to enjoy the many blessings we have been given as well as share what we have with others. There is so much more to life than having all the stuff. We may not have the newest or greatest items in our house, we drive used cars, and wear hand-me-down clothing…..however, if our family is taken care of and have love for each other and others we have more than all the riches in the world.
Recipe: No Bake Cookies
I always loved it when my Mom made No Bake Cookies when I was a kid. It has been fun making these cookies with my girls now. I had some oatmeal and peanut butter I needed to use up recently so I made these cookies for one of our recent road trips and for a friend who had a baby. These cookies are delicious and inexpensive to make. The most important step of this entire recipe is making sure that once the first set ingredients is boiling to allow them to boil for 1 minute, if you do not let it boil for 1 minute the cookies will be runny and not set up well. These cookies are a perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter.No Bake Cookies:
- 2 cups Sugar
- 4 tablespoon Cocoa
- 1 stick Butter
- 1/2 cup Milk
- 1 cup Peanut Butter
- 1 tablespoon Vanilla
- 3 cups Oatmeal
In a heavy saucepan bring the sugar, cocoa, butter, and milk to a boil. Let them boil for 1 minute. Stir in peanut butter, vanilla, and oatmeal. Lay out the wax paper, drop mixture by the teaspoonful and the cookies have cooled. The cookies will harden as they cool.
Photo by alibree
Fresh & Healthy: Our Garden – Leafy Lettuce, Zucchini, Summer Squash, Purple Beans, Strawberries, Tomatoes, Green Beans, and Snow Peas!
We are loving the fresh vegetables from our garden! This week I did better at taking pictures of the items our family picked. We were traveling for a few day. Hopefully my brother who was watching the house was able to get a few items out of the garden to use for their family.
Here are some of the fresh veggies we were able to eat and share this week:
Fresh from the Garden - Leafy Lettuce, Zucchini, Summer Squash, Cherry and Roma Tomatoes, Strawberries, Green Beans, and Purple Beans. We got two more big bags of leafy lettuce before we had to pull the stocks because they were flowering. The zucchini and summer squash are starting to picking. We’ve been getting a few strawberries and a couple handfuls of cherry tomatoes more regularly now. We have both green and purple beans producing now in the garden.
Big Tomatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Purple Beans, Summer Squash, Leafy Green Lettuce, Snow Peas, Strawberry and Green Beans from the Garden The snow peas have been amazing and delicious to eat fresh for snacks and in baking, however, they are pretty much done producing. The lettuce is slowing down too but we hope to get a few more salads in before it completely wraps up for the season. On a more positive note the tomatoes, beans, and squash are still going pretty strong despite all the storms.
We were able to share some of the veggies this week with family, friends and people at our church. During the summer months our church does a “Corner Harvest” where people can share fresh produce from their garden. It is neat to see what other families are growing and share our produce.
What are you eating out of your garden this week?
Summer Activities: Fun Family Day at Home!
School’s out and the summer heat is here. We love spending time as a family outside, however, some of that time involves finding cool activities to do during the summer heat. There is always something fun to do during the girls summer vacation away from school. Below are some of the fun adventures we did on a recent Saturday together.
Swimming in the Pool
- Brina and Karlie Swimming in the Pool!
Eating Ice Cream
Daddy, Karlie, Brina and Skipper enjoying a bowl of ice cream on the front porch! Napping in the Hammock
Karlie snoozing in the shade on the hammock after a swim in the pool! Playing Under the Jungle Gym – Sand Fun
Brina "cleaning" the sand off the Jungle Gym after swimming in the pool! Science Experiments
Growing Rocks in a Rainbow of Colors! Since one of the girls is into "sharks" I choose a shark background for this experiment. 
Brina and Karlie watching the rocks grow! It was an interesting experiment over a couple days! Save A Lot: Deals for the week of June 22 – 28, 2011
The Save A Lot weekly ad deals are listed below for your convenience. There are a lot of great deals that are continued this week at Save A Lot for $1.00. Sign up for the Smart Shopper Club, by doing so you will get a $5.00 off of $25.00 coupon!
Meats and Seafood
Eckrich Hot Dogs or Bologna (16 oz) – $1.00
Carolina Ground Turkey (16 oz ) – $1.00
Butterball Turkey Bacon (6 oz) – $1.00
Use $0.65/1 coupon from insert 5/22 Smart Source (Expires 7/10/11)
$0.35 each after couponGwaltney Pork Sausage (12 oz) – $1.00
Center Cut Beef Spare Ribs – $2.49 per lb
Ground Beef (1 lb) – $2.49
Sugardale Bratwurst – $1.99
Smoked Sausage – $0.99
Chicken Breast Strips – $0.99
Meatballs (8 oz) – $0.99
Pick 5 for $19.99 promo on going: Pick any 5 specially marked packages of your favorite cuts of fresh, frozen or smoked meats and pay just $19.99 (about $2 per pound).
Fridge and Freezer
Oscar Mayer Lunchables – $1.00
Reser’s Assorted Salads & Coleslaw – $1.00
Use $1.00/1 printable coupon from Coupon Web
Free after each couponMinute Maid Lemonade or Fruit Punch – $1.00
Tony’s Crispy Crust Pizza – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 coupon from insert 5/22 Smart Source (Expires 7/31/11)
Use $1.00/5 coupon from insert 4/17 Smart Source (Expires 7/9/11)
Use $0.50/4 coupon from insert 5/22 Smart Source (Expires 8/13/11)
As low as $0.67 each after couponTotino’s Pizza Rolls – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 coupon from insert 5/22 Smart Source (Expires 7/31/11)
Use $0.50/4 coupon from insert 5/22 Smart Source (Expires 8/13/11)
As low as $0.66 each after couponBanquet Dinners – $1.00
Fisher Boy Fish Sticks – $1.00
$0.75/1 printable coupon Fisher Boy
$0.25 each after couponT. J. Farms Sweet Potato Fries – $1.00
Party Treats Ice Cream Sandwiches (4 count) – $1.00
World’s Fair Orange, Grape and Cherry Popsicles – $0.99
Lemonade – $1.99
Home Churned Squeeze Spread – $0.99
Bright & Early Beverage Drink – $0.99
Household
Poly Steel Sandwich Zipper Bags (50 count) – $1.00
Joy Dish Liquid – $1.00
Produce
Fresh Express Coleslaw (16 oz) – $1.00
Fresh Express Salad Mix (12 oz) – $1.00
Baby Carrots (16 oz) – $1.00
California Cherries – $1.99 per lb
Roma Tomatoes – $0.89 per lb
Red & White Grapes – $1.29 per lb
Grocery
Knorr Side Dishes – $1.00
Hamburger Helper Dinner – $1.00
Use $1.00/3 coupon from insert 5/22 Smart Source (Expires 7/16/11)
Use $1.00/3 coupon from insert 5/1 Smart Source (Expires 6/25/11)
Use $0.75/3 coupon from insert 5/1 Smart Source (Expires 6/25/11)
As low as $0.67 each after couponSave A Lot Apple Juice (64 oz) – $1.00
Sundia Fruit Cups (8 oz) – $1.00
Red Gold Ketchup (40 oz) – $1.00
Use $0.50/2 printable coupon from Red Gold
$0.75 each after couponWoeber’s Mustard (24 oz) – $1.00
Kurtz Sweet Relish – $1.00
Shasta Soda (4 pack) – $1.00
Deer Park Spring Water (3 liter) – $1.00
Crunch & Munch Butter Toffee – $1.00
Dippables – $1.00
Mantia’s Pasta Sauce – $1.00
Shelby’s Grove Sliced Peaches – $1.00
J Higgs Pretzels – $1.00
Chicken of the Sea Chunk White Tuna – $1.00
Allure Zero Calorie Sweetener – $1.00
Jade Dragon Soy Sauce – $1.00
Kraft BBQ Sauce – $0.88
Bugles – $0.79
Harvest Select Juice Cocktails – $0.99
On the Go Powder Drink Sticks – $1.00
Crisp Lemonade – $0.99
Swift Mac – $0.75
Toast Em Strawberry or Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop Ups – $0.99
Malt O Meal Cereal – $0.99
Remember you can use the $5/$25 printable coupon to sweeten these deals! Plus you can earn up to 5 additional $5 off $25 coupons for sharing the coupon with your friends.
For more information about Save A Lot’s coupon policies go here. If you find additional deals or savings please let me know and I will add them to the list.
CVS: Spent $0.99 and Got $6 ECB’s Back!
Hershey Bliss Deal at CVS this week! I had to run into CVS real quick to check on another item and picked up this deal. Today I was able to get the Hershey Bliss for $0.99 plus tax ($0.00) making my out of pocket cost $0.99 and received $6.99 ECB’s to use on my next CVS purchase. Here is what I purchased.
- 1 – Hershey Bliss Dark Chocolate for $5.99
Here are the coupons I used on the items.
- Used $1.00 Hershey Bliss Manufacturer Coupon
I received $6.99 ECB’s back today:
- $5.99 ECB’s for Hershey Bliss Products
- $1.00 ECB’s for Green Tag Reward (every 4th visit you use your Green Tag you get a $1 ECB)
Today I was able to save $5.00 at CVS by purchasing these items and using coupons.
When you shop the CVS sales regularly and have ECB’s that you can roll over toward future purchases the bonus ECB’s start adding up (Green Bag Tags and Beauty Club). As you can see from my shopping trip today you don’t have to purchase a lot to save money when shopping at CVS. Plus you can use the additional ECB’s you receive towards your next purchase. You can pick and chose what is best for your family.
I would love to hear your CVS shopping story for this week! For those of you who shop regularly at CVS please share how you were able to save this week! Although the weekly ad sales are similar every family and situation is different so you may have found items better suited to your household. In your comment please feel free to share a link to your blog article showing us how you were able to save shopping at CVS.
Fresh & Healthy: A Refreshing Twist to Ice Water
Summer Time Favorite Drink - Ice Water with Fresh Lemon Slices! One of our favorite inexpensive, easy, and refreshing summer drinks we like to serve at our house is Ice Water with Fresh Lemon Slices! Lemonade is delicious but can be a little too sweet at times. Many times on the hot summer days the kids just want ice water so to add a little more to their drinks we will buy lemons when they are on sale, slice them up and add them to the water pitcher. It is very refreshing!
Refreshing and delicious - Cool lemon water on a hot day! I need to look for some more lemons on clearance! The girls and I drink this a lot since we spend some time almost every day outside!
