tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-84752604246139285532024-03-13T16:04:31.449-04:00Love and PenniesUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-81986280112217075622012-07-17T09:07:00.001-04:002012-07-17T09:07:02.892-04:00Whew...It's been a busy month so far. A wedding, job searching, doing everything I can to make some money on the side. I did finally find a job (nothing exciting, just a call center, but a job is a job), but they won't be paying me until next month.
I kind of failed miserably at that $5/day meal plan thing. Really it was just because this month was so busy. I didn't have time to make everything from scratch like I would have to for $5/day to work. I am still going to try and put together a post detailing how I think it would work - recipes, grocery list, ect., for those interested.
I'm also planning on trying some cool things like homemade yogurt, apple sauce and fruit snacks as well as stocking my freezer with homemade microwave meals before I go back to school in September, so stay tuned for that. All four of those are things we spend way too much money on at the store.
Oh, and there might be a giveaway coming up if all goes well.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-35163965113497095752012-07-08T07:21:00.000-04:002012-07-08T07:22:52.230-04:00Xbox Kinect Bundle Giveaway<div style="text-align: center;">
<em>Have you heard? We are having a <strong>Techy Summer </strong>over at Mom to Bed by 8, the<strong> ‘<a href="http://iowa-mom.com/" target="_blank">Iowa Mom</a>‘</strong> and want to help you continue on with your sensational summer by offering you a chance to win an Xbox Kinect Bundle Pack (including Xbox 360 console, Kinect Sensor and Kinect Adventures Game). Retail value $299.</em></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<em>Special thanks to our lovely co-hosts TechyTribe, <a href="http://www.ilovetogossip.com/" target="_blank">I Love To Gossip</a>, <a href="http://giveawaybandit.com/" target="_blank">Giveaway Bandit</a>, <a href="http://www.asmomseesit.com/" target="_blank">As Mom Sees It</a> and <a href="http://couponing4you.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Couponing4you</a> for their support in bringing this gamer giveaway to life!</em></div>
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<a href="http://momtobedby8.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/xboxbundlebutton.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-9288" height="400" src="http://momtobedby8.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/xboxbundlebutton.jpg" title="xboxbundlebutton" width="400" /></a></div>
<strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003O6EE4U/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=mom0c-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B003O6EE4U" target="_blank">Xbox 360 4GB Console with Kinect</a></strong><br />
<strong>Product Description</strong><br />
The Xbox 360 4GB Console with Kinect. Kinect brings games and entertainment to life in extraordinary new ways – no controller required. Easy to use and instantly fun, Kinect gets everyone off the couch moving, laughing and cheering. See a ball? Kick it. Control an HD movie with a wave of the hand. Want to join a friend in the fun? Simply jump in. Wi-Fi is built-in for easier connection to the world of entertainment on Xbox LIVE, where HD movies and TV stream in an instant. Xbox 360 is more games, entertainment and fun.<br />
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<strong>Product Features</strong></div>
<strong>Kinect Sensor:</strong> With the Kinect sensor, you can experience gaming like never before. Easy to use and fun for everyone, the Kinect sensor utilizes revolutionary full-body tracking to put you in the center of the fun. This amazing new technology allows the sensor to recognize your body and mirror your movements in the game, making you the controller. With Kinect Xbox 360 now has the best controller ever made – YOU.<br />
<strong>Built-in Wi-Fi:</strong> The new Xbox 360 is the only console with 802.11n Wi-Fi built-in for a faster and easier connection to Xbox LIVE. Stream HD movies and TV or download games from Xbox LIVE in 1080p and 5.1 surround sound from anywhere in the house. Compatible with b/g/n networks.<br />
<strong>Xbox LIVE:</strong> Xbox LIVE brings a world of entertainment to you. Instantly watch movies and TV streaming from Netflix. In crystal-clear HD, or download game add-ons like new levels, characters, maps and songs. Easily jump right into online multiplayer fun and play along with friends around the world. Plus, get your favorite music from Last.fm, connect with friends on Facebook and post Tweets on Twitter. Xbox LIVE is your connection to more games, entertainment and fun.<br />
<strong>Xbox 360 Wireless Controller (black):</strong> This award-winning, high-performance wireless controller features a range of up to 30 feet and a battery life of up to 30 hours on two AA batteries.<br />
<strong>More ports:</strong> Connect more accessories and storage solutions with added USB ports. Now with a total of 5, (3 back/2 front) you’ll find more places to plug and play. Plus, in addition to the standard Ethernet port and HDMI output, we’ve added an integrated optical audio out port for an easier connection to the booming sound of your A/V receiver.<br />
<strong>Kinect Adventures game:</strong> Float in outer space. Experience the thrill of roaring rapids. Tackle mountaintop obstacle courses and dive into the deep to explore a leaky underwater observatory — all from your living room. With Kinect Adventures, you are the controller as you jump, dodge and kick your way through exciting adventures set in a variety of exotic locations. Rated “E” for Everyone.<br />
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<strong>What’s In The Box?</strong></div>
<ul>
<li>Xbox 360 4GB S Console</li>
<li>Kinect Sensor for Xbox 360</li>
<li>Kinect Adventures game - rated “E” for Everyone</li>
<li>Xbox 360 Black Wireless Controller</li>
<li>Xbox 360 Composite A/V cable (standard definition)</li>
<li>1 year limited warranty on console</li>
</ul>
<div>
<a href="http://momtobedby8.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/xbox.jpg"><img alt="" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-10929" height="276" src="http://momtobedby8.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/xbox.jpg" title="xbox" width="500" /></a></div>
<a name='more'></a><div style="text-align: center;">
Giveaway ends on July 22nd. Open Worldwide (winners located outside of the US/Canada area will receive cash equivalent), ages 18+.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Please use the rafflecopter form below to enter to win an Xbox Kinect Bundle Package sponsored by <a href="http://momtobedby8.com/" target="_blank">Mom to Bed by 8</a>. Good luck to all!</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<a id="rc-a21fd0293" class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/a21fd0293/" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
<script src="//d12vno17mo87cx.cloudfront.net/embed/rafl/cptr.js"></script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-89526179395597824982012-07-01T17:54:00.000-04:002012-07-01T17:54:14.623-04:00$5/day on food... is it possible?After that wedding we went to last month, money is still a little tight. So I set a goal for this month - $5 spent on food each day - and now it's time to see if that's even possible. Again, I want to remind my readers that I'm in Canada - and if this is possible up here (which is a big "if" at the moment), it's possible in the States. A lot of things are cheaper down there. Even if it is possible, I'm going to try and pick up some odd jobs, since my job search is still failing pretty miserably and extra cash wouldn't hurt right now.<br />
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The first thing I'm going to try is crock pot bread. So stay tuned for an update on that. Bread is costing us $3.69 a loaf right now and we easily go through 8 loaves a month. I've got all the ingredients for bread already at home, so if this works and we like it we'll be saving $29.52 right there. If only I had a cow in the back yard, we could save another $40!<br />
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Anyways, I've made a list of the meat in my freezer (basically, a chicken, a roast and tons of ground beef) as well as the stuff that's on sale at our grocery store. Right now I'm searching for recipes using those ingredients, since the only thing I know how to cook for less than $5 is pasta, and no matter how many variations of pasta I can make I don't plan on having that for both lunch and dinner every day. There will be lots of pancakes, muffins and french toast for breakfast this month, but I don't think anyone will complain.<br />
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So I'm off to start meal planning, and I'll be back to show you what I come up with.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-88933242221298790862012-06-26T08:45:00.000-04:002012-06-26T08:45:00.485-04:0010 Cheap wedding giftsMy husband and I just returned from our friends' wedding. Now, our budget is tight to begin with, and saving for this trip didn't work out as planned. After $500 bus tickets, there wasn't much left over for a gift or buying something new to wear or staying at a hotel... and we still had to survive the rest of the month after the wedding, too.<br />
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So the first thing we did is give in to our friends' offer to stay at their house. Originally we were going to get a hotel to have some time to ourselves since we were leaving our son with my in-laws, but there was no way we could afford it. We still ended up having one night to ourselves, though - they spent the night after their wedding in a hotel room and let us stay at their place on our own.</div>
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Next I ransacked my closet. The chances of me finding a dress we could afford at the mall were slim, and since our friends were the only ones we knew at this wedding and they've never seen me dressed up before (well, besides at my own wedding), no one would know the dress wasn't new. Luckily black is acceptable to wear to weddings these days. I would have preferred to wear something more colorful, but my choices were black or black and white unless I wanted to go with something less formal. I chose the black and white one so I would feel less like I was going to a funeral, paired it with the only black shoes I own and then I bought a $5 headband to tame the hair I haven't been able to afford to cut in a few months.</div>
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My husband went through his closet and finally found a shirt and some dress pants that fit properly. If he hadn't found one, I'm sure we could have borrowed from his dad or brother in law or uncle. I used to be embarrassed to ask to borrow things we couldn't afford, but now I just remind myself that they've all been where we are. They understand and are usually more than happy to help.</div>
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Then we got to the gift. We stressed about this for longer than we should have, especially since we both knew they weren't really expecting anything from us. Just being there and helping out was enough. They're amazing friends, though, and we couldn't bear the thought of giving them nothing... so we re-gifted. We had a $50 gift card from our wedding that we had never used, so we checked the balance (which hadn't changed) and made sure there was a store near them that they could use it at and then that became their wedding gift. It's not the amazing gift we would have liked to get them, but at least it's a gift.</div>
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Re-gifting isn't always the best option. Our friends didn't care - in fact, they were worried that we'd spent more money and relieved when we told them we hadn't. Plus they already have all the stuff you typically give at a wedding and I know the card will end up being used for something practical. However, some people would be really offended if they recognized the gift as something you had been given... and of course you don't want to gift someone a gift they gave you. So here are some more low-cost ideas:</div>
<div>
<ol>
<li>Make something. If you can sew or draw or paint or do woodwork or have any other talents, make something for them. You might even find something on their registry that you can make yourself.</li>
<li>Wedding services. If you can do anything they might need for the wedding - photography, cooking, bar tending, decorating, babysitting, ect... offer to do it for free. For something like bar tending, get them to pay for the alcohol, but charge nothing for your services - and give them your tips at the end of the night.</li>
<li>Future services. This could be a helping hand in the garden or fixing up their new house or babysitting - whatever your skills are. Get a card and write what you're offering in it. Be sure to put in the number of hours or amount of work you're offering, and make it something you wouldn't necessarily do for free normally. If you already watch their kid for free every weekend, it makes no sense to give them a voucher for free babysitting.</li>
<li>Bake. If you bake regularly, you likely already have most of the ingredients you need in your house. Go to the dollar store for a basket, some tissue paper, some baggies and some ribbon. Then bake up a bunch of your best cookies, candies and snacks, put them in the baggies, tie with ribbon and arrange them nicely in the tissue paper lined basket.</li>
<li>Themed DIY gift baskets. For example, a romantic dinner. Get a basket, a table cloth and some pretty candles from the dollar store. Buy a bag of pasta and some parmesan cheese and make or buy some pasta sauce. Add in whatever finishing touches you want (cheese grater, colander, serving spoon, recipe book) and arrange nicely in the basket. The possibilities are endless.</li>
<li>A magazine subscription.</li>
<li>A bottle of wine and a couple glasses or a box of chocolates. Ask the people at the liquor store to help you find a good bottle of wine within your budget.</li>
<li>Give to a charity - make sure it's one the couple cares about!</li>
<li>Sales! Most of the time you'll know about a wedding a year or more in advance. Keep an eye out during holiday sales to find expensive gifts at a huge discount.</li>
<li>Group up. Maybe you can't afford an expensive gift from the registry, but you and a few friends or family members can if you pool your money.</li>
</ol>
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-50893868853763741442012-06-25T13:04:00.000-04:002012-06-25T13:04:09.621-04:00Kindle Fire Giveaway<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://takingtimeformommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Literaryaddictskindlefire1.jpg" style="background-color: white;"><img alt="" class="aligncenter wp-image-3980" height="180" src="http://takingtimeformommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Literaryaddictskindlefire1.jpg" title="Literaryaddictskindlefire" width="180" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #3366ff;">Welcome to the Literary Addicts Kindle Fire Event where we have teamed up with 10 Amazing Authors and several awesome bloggers to celebrate the</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #3366ff;"> Grand Opening of <a href="http://literaryaddicts.com/"><span style="color: #3366ff;"><strong>Literary Addicts</strong> </span></a>a Community for Book Lovers!</span></div>
Please check out the Fantastic authors bringing the Kindle Fire Giveaway to you!
<em>Don't miss out on these great reads even if you don't have a kindle yet. You can download the kindle app for you phone, desktop, or ipad <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=ur2&docId=1000493771&camp=1789&creative=390957">HERE.</a> All of these books are less than a Starbucks Coffee!</em><br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008ACMJGI/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008ACMJGI" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft wp-image-399" height="180" src="http://www.promotionalbooktours.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/immortalvoyage-211x300.jpg" title="immortalvoyage" width="127" /></a>
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Before the time of the great pyramids, there was a place like none other, a city of glass and metal rising from the depths of the ocean. Shrouded in mist, the island of Hy-Brasil and its capital Atlantis lay hidden from the rest of the world by its people, a race of long lived, interstellar nomads.
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008ACMJGI/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008ACMJGI"><strong>Read more and purchase for only $2.99</strong></a>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005KHHZXS/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005KHHZXS" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft wp-image-3983" height="180" src="http://takingtimeformommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/gm4b-200x300.jpg" title="gm4b" width="127" /></a>
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<em>All she wanted was a vacation - but Dumnos offered a new life</em>.
Lilith Evergreen has always lived in the California desert, but when she receives an antique ring as a gift, she dreams of a castle by the sea, a magnificent tree at cliff's edge, and a mysterious woman who bids Lilith to come to Dumnos, a land of mist and rain.
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005KHHZXS/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005KHHZXS"><strong>Read more and purchase for only $3.99</strong></a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1468118358/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1468118358"><strong>Paperback</strong></a>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005CX3ZU2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005CX3ZU2" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1316871665l/12582441.jpg" title="Slow Boat" width="127" /></a>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005CX3ZU2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005CX3ZU2"><strong> Slow Boat to Purgatory (Slow Boat to Purgatory #1)</strong></a>
Gaspar De Rouse, an immortal Knight Templar, a man murdered by his brothers for the secret he possessed, resurrected and given a second chance at redemption. Dominicus Bureau, a renegade priest, torn between his vows and the secret he pursues, a secret protected by an immortal. Alex Donovan, a modern day warrior thrust into an ages old war, a war between good and evil, heaven and hell.<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005CX3ZU2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005CX3ZU2"><strong>Read more and purchase for only $2.99 </strong></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005CX3ZU2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005CX3ZU2"><strong>Paperback</strong></a>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0087GFJ9Q/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0087GFJ9Q" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1330152345l/13499365.jpg" title="Mark of the Witch" width="127" /></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0087GFJ9Q/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0087GFJ9Q" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Mark of the Witch (Boston Witches Book 1)</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
Magic flows through Jillian Proctor's veins as surely as blood, but so far her life outside Boston has been peaceful. William Morgan blows into Jilly's life like a hurricane, unleashing her magic and sending her out of control. Unknowingly, William brings an enemy who only wants to posses the power of the witch. Jilly must learn to harness her magic before she loses it - and everything in her life is destroyed. </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0087GFJ9Q/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0087GFJ9Q" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Purchase for only $2.99</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1475119836/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1475119836" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Paperback</strong> </a><span style="background-color: white;">
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007JNWCRA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007JNWCRA" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1332007700l/8727825.jpg" title="The Marriage Bargain" width="127" /></a><span style="background-color: white;"></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007JNWCRA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007JNWCRA" style="background-color: white;"><strong>The Marriage Bargain</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
Camille Chandler is a tabloid journalist whose career is right on track--until her boss sees a curious ad in the L.A. Trades.
Wanted: Single actress for an extended gig abroad.
France's mega-rich playboy Julian de Laurent is up to something and Camille's boss expects her to find out what. Who knew the eccentric gazillionaire was looking to hire a temporary wife?
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005IQL6EA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005IQL6EA" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1297526457l/10443756.jpg" title="Descended by blood" width="127" /></a><span style="background-color: white;"></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005IQL6EA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005IQL6EA" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Descended by Blood (Vampire Born #1)</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
Brooke Keller is a high school junior who has never spent much time living in one place. She is finally in a town long enough to almost snag the boy of her dreams, until her life is threatened after killing a fanged man in his attempt to kidnap her. Brooke begins a dangerous journey in an effort to find out who is after her and how to stop them. In a world with powerful and prejudiced vampires, </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005IQL6EA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B005IQL6EA" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Read more and purchase for only $2.99</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0983803714/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0983803714" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Paperback</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1461065712/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1461065712" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1313418154l/11297376.jpg" title="Dirty Blood" width="127" /></a><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004V08RS2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004V08RS2" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Dirty Blood</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
I killed a girl last night. I did it with my bare hands and an old piece of pipe I found lying next to the dumpster. But that’s not the part that got me. The part that scared me, the part I can’t seem to wrap my head around and still has me reeling, was that when she charged me, her body shifted – and then she was a wolf. All snapping teeth and extended claws. But by the time I stood over her lifeless body, she was a girl again. </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004V08RS2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004V08RS2" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Read more and purchase for only $2.99 </strong></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1461065712/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1461065712" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Paperback</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008BKT3UO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008BKT3UO" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1339009310l/13610206.jpg" title="Taming the Wolf" width="127" /></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008BKT3UO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008BKT3UO" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Taming the wolf (anna avery series, #1)</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
Attacked by a wolf while hiking in the mountains, Anna Avery's life just got a little hairier. Living in the Big Horn mountains in Wyoming, with a group of werewolves who are more animal than human, Anna must try to hold onto her human side. It's not easy when the alpha continues to persuade her into his bed, while another wolf is chomping at the bit to become her mate. To top it all off, dead bodies are showing up and ..</span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008BKT3UO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008BKT3UO" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Read more and purchase for only $2.99</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006KHWEKQ/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006KHWEKQ" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft" height="180" src="http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k153/oldcityreds/Fearless.jpg" title="Fearless" width="127" /></a><span style="background-color: white;"></span><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006KHWEKQ/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006KHWEKQ" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Fearless (Kings Series)</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
Tasmyn Vaughn didn't expect much when her dad’s job moved them to a small town in Florida; it was just another new school. But there is more to King than meets the eye, and soon Tasmyn’s ability to hear other’s thoughts is the least of her worries. Entangled in a web of first love, quirky and secretive townsfolk, magic and blood rituals, she discovers the town’s secrets aren’t just bizarre, they’re deadly.</span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006KHWEKQ/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006KHWEKQ" style="background-color: white;"><strong> Purchase for only $3.99</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1469958341/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1469958341" style="background-color: white;">Paperback</a><span style="background-color: white;">
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006ATBAFO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006ATBAFO" style="background-color: white; clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" class="alignleft size-full wp-image-3985" height="216" src="http://takingtimeformommy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/secrets.jpg" title="secrets" width="180" /></a><span style="background-color: white;"></span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006ATBAFO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006ATBAFO" style="background-color: white;"><strong>Secrets (Guardian Trilogy)</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
While Olivia Martin observed life through her camera, the Abyss gazed back at her. She discovers mysterious men follow her around, people close to her are dying, and her dreams are no longer her own as she falls head over heels for a perfect stranger. A chance encounter leads to an obsession that could destroy everything she has ever known or loved. Olivia is about to find out there is a lot she doesn't know and sometimes what you don't know can kill you.</span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006ATBAFO/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=taktimformom-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B006ATBAFO" style="background-color: white;"><strong> Read more and purchase for only $2.99</strong></a><span style="background-color: white;">
These fine authors are bringing you this Kindle Fire Event via </span><a href="http://promotionalbooktours.com/" style="background-color: white;">Promotional Book Tours</a><span style="background-color: white;"> and </span><a href="http://literaryaddicts.com/" style="background-color: white;">Literary Addicts</a><span style="background-color: white;"> This contest is open Internationally! Please fill out the form below to enter. </span><br />
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/" id="rc-9b80e9215">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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</script>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-18730105308235235112012-06-17T06:50:00.000-04:002012-06-17T06:50:54.577-04:00Calling all bloggers: Xbox Kindle giveawayThe Xbox Kinect Bundle Giveaway Event is a free blogger event. You will receive a single facebook link at no cost as a thank you for participating in this event.<br />
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Prize: Xbox 360 4GB Kinect Bundle includes the Xbox 360 console, Kinect Sensor and Kinect Adventures Game (retail value $299)<br />
Open to: Worldwide (note – if the winner is outside of the US are responsible for any duties, taxes,etc that is not covered by basic shipping cost).
The event dates: July 8 at 12:01 am to July 22 11:59pm
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Let them know you were referred by Love and Pennies, please.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-67897210447601982862012-06-13T09:16:00.000-04:002012-06-13T09:39:10.920-04:0043 ways to clean with vinegar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmRw4VTHbrxwo59-NvBRHlXLdzo3X-tnij_FQlmLrDWK5krqCCzruzjyzGABeqQkapfXayv0RffRUmUHUhLz6CJ5OlsZVE0iOkDbBfRZSs2LjnvVtlbhI8UpDX2kgGjgN3BLDLtCDXpqE/s1600/vinegar.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmRw4VTHbrxwo59-NvBRHlXLdzo3X-tnij_FQlmLrDWK5krqCCzruzjyzGABeqQkapfXayv0RffRUmUHUhLz6CJ5OlsZVE0iOkDbBfRZSs2LjnvVtlbhI8UpDX2kgGjgN3BLDLtCDXpqE/s320/vinegar.png" width="320" /></a></div>
You can clean almost everything with vinegar. If you can't clean it with vinegar by itself, you can probably clean it with vinegar and salt or vinegar and baking soda or vinegar and dish soap.<br />
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My house has very few cleaning products in it. I buy laundry detergent and dish soap (I plan on trying to make my own, I just haven't found time yet) but I use plain white vinegar for most other things. It's cheap, it often works better than other cleaning products, it disinfects, it's eco friendly and I don't have to worry about my son getting into it. Some people are worried about the smell, but it dissipates quickly and you can always add a few drops of essential oil or some lemon juice.<br />
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Here are some things I've done with vinegar:<br />
<ol>
<li>Cleaning dried-on food off of hardwood floors and wooden furniture... no matter how long it's been there. Just lay a towel over the area of floor or over the piece of furniture and pour hot vinegar (I just heat it in the microwave for a couple minutes) over the towel. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes, and then use the towel to clean up the mess. Most of it should come off really easily.</li>
<li>When something spills on the carpet, soak up as much of it as you can with a towel or paper towels and then spray with half water, half vinegar (you can buy spray bottles at the dollar store and have them filled and ready to go). Let it stand for a few minutes and then soak it up with a towel, repeat if necessary. If the stain isn't going away, try adding a bit of dish soap to the vinegar/water mixture.</li>
<li>Unclog your drain with equal parts baking soda and vinegar. Pour down the baking soda first, then pour in the vinegar. When it stops fizzing, rinse with warm water. Repeat if needed.</li>
<li>To clean your microwave, heat a bowl of vinegar for a couple minutes - the gunk will wipe off easily.</li>
<li>A mixture of vinegar and salt will remove tea and coffee stains from mugs.</li>
<li>Remove stickers from most surfaces. Use a cloth to wet the sticker with vinegar, wait 5-10 minutes and wipe it off (the sticker will not be re-usable).</li>
<li>Clean toilets with a spray bottle of vinegar and a toilet brush.</li>
<li>Use hot water and vinegar to mop the floor - about 1 cup vinegar per gallon of water.</li>
<li>Place a bowl of vinegar in a room to remove odors.</li>
<li>Use a spray bottle of vinegar as an all-purpose surface cleaner.</li>
<li>Soak shower heads in vinegar overnight to unclog them. You can do this without removing them, too, just fill a baggy with vinegar, cover the shower head with it and hold it on with a couple elastics.</li>
<li>Use a spray bottle of half vinegar and half water to clean windows.</li>
<li>Use a sponge or cloth soaked in vinegar to remove grease on pretty much anything.</li>
<li>Fill the reservoir of a coffee maker with vinegar and run it (without the coffee grinds) to clean the inside of the machine. Run it a few times with water after this so your next coffee doesn't taste like vinegar.</li>
<li>Use full-strength vinegar to clean and disinfect wooden cutting boards.</li>
<li>Add a cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle of baby clothes to get rid of any urine stains or smells.</li>
<li>If you ever die fabrics (or your kids bring tie-dye t-shirts home from camp), add a cup of water to the rinse cycle the first time you wash them. It will help stop the dye from coming out. So will putting them in the dryer, even if you normally hang-dry your clothes.</li>
<li>Rinse empty jars that you want to reuse (peanutbutter, jam, mayonnaise, ect) with vinegar after cleaning them to deodorize them.</li>
<li>Clean plastic with diluted vinegar - this also stops static-cling, which will make it attract less dust.</li>
<li>Use to disinfect baby toys.</li>
<li>Remove deodorant stains (and almost any other stain) from cotton with a sponge and vinegar.
</li>
<li>Remove stuck-on food from a pan by covering it in hot water and adding a few tablespoons of vinegar.</li>
<li>If your dishwasher has a space for a drying agent (like Jet-Dry), vinegar is a cheap alternative.</li>
<li>Soak glasses and vases in vinegar to remove the cloudy white build-up from hard water.</li>
</ol>
And some other things I've read about but haven't actually done yet (let me know if they worked for you!):<br />
<ol>
<li>Put a cup of vinegar in the bottom of your dishwasher and run it (empty) once a month to get rid of odors.</li>
<li>Spray vinegar on furniture, windowsills, counters, anywhere you don't want your pets going. Note: may stain some fabrics.</li>
<li>To clean your sink's garbage disposal, freeze vinegar in an ice cube tray. Put a few ice cubes down the disposal with it running, flush with cold water.</li>
<li>Soak paintbrushes in hot vinegar to remove dried-on paint. Clean with hot soapy water afterwards.</li>
<li>Wipe car windows with water and vinegar (3 parts vinegar, 1 part water) to stop them from frosting over the next morning.</li>
<li>Clean salt stains off of leather shoes with half water, half vinegar.</li>
<li>Wipe CDs/DVDs with vinegar too clean them - this will not work on badly damaged disks, but will get rid of dirt and help with minor scratches.</li>
<li>Add 2 cups of vinegar to the rinse cycle of blankets and towels (cotton and wool only) to make them soft again.</li>
<li>Soak rusted tools in vinegar overnight to remove rust.</li>
<li>Clean your washing machine by running a wash cycle (without the clothes) with a cup of vinegar.</li>
<li>Dissolve a teaspoon of salt in a cup of vinegar for cleaning metallic surfaces.</li>
<li>Clean eye glasses with a soft cloth moistened with vinegar.</li>
<li>Remove rings that glasses leave on wood surfaces with one part vinegar and one part olive oil. Rub with the grain.</li>
<li>Clean grout with vinegar and an old toothbrush.</li>
<li>Add a tablespoon or two of vinegar to the dishwater to cut grease.</li>
<li>Get rid of oven grease - you can pour vinegar directly on the door of your oven, let it sit a few minutes and then wipe it off. You can also use it to clean the rest of your oven, and it will discourage the grease from sticking for a while.</li>
<li>Boil vinegar in your kettle to get rid of lime deposits.</li>
<li>Clean can openers with an old toothbrush and vinegar.</li>
<li>If your house has an unpleasant smell (cigarettes, pets, bad food) try boiling a pot of water and vinegar (about 1/4 cup vinegar per cup of water) on the stove for half an hour or so. </li>
</ol>
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Do you know of any other uses? Feel free to comment!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-11718807244909187132012-06-10T11:54:00.000-04:002012-06-10T11:54:20.483-04:00A Good Camera for a Good Price<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6zpbDhVxpre2fywxGE2M3HRTzWlOWjA09sx9KOz_uWwuzRZwvC6KAjj4J-QUR5FeQ3SlRobHQbTpHsZ-shXml_WtiKXszT60xxN-CILIcdSeiSupeV9YVCyyX618RYZAU60b2b5raZw/s1600/10195788%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk6zpbDhVxpre2fywxGE2M3HRTzWlOWjA09sx9KOz_uWwuzRZwvC6KAjj4J-QUR5FeQ3SlRobHQbTpHsZ-shXml_WtiKXszT60xxN-CILIcdSeiSupeV9YVCyyX618RYZAU60b2b5raZw/s320/10195788%5B1%5D.jpg" width="320" /></a>I used to work at a camera store, so my friends and family often ask me about cameras. Someone contacted me yesterday. They broke their camera and wanted to know which one they should buy - something low in price that would give them good quality photos. I told them I'd write up a blog post and get back to them, because this is something that might help other people too. <br /><br />Please note that I'm just looking at compact cameras here. Some of this information applies to SLRs and hybrids too, but not all of it.<br />
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The first thing you need to do is figure out what features you want your new camera to have.<br />
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<ol>
<li>How many megapixels do you need? The media has trained us to think that more mp makes a better camera, but this isn't true. All the megapixels control is how big you can print... so how big do you normally print? Do you like printing posters, or do you just get hundreds of 4x6 photos? Some people don't even print these days, it just all goes on Facebook (in which case you don't need to worry much about megapixels).<br /><br />A 4mp camera will give you good 8x10 photos. If the photo is amazingly clear, you might get up to 11x14, but that's pushing it... but most people never print bigger than 8x10.<br /><br />So unless you're going to be printing really large photos, look for older models with lower megapixels (the lowest you'll probably find these days is 10mp, unless it's used) - it will save you a lot of money.<br /></li>
<li>What settings do you need? Do you always shoot on auto, or do you like using shutter and aperture priority? If you want full manual mode, you're looking at an SLR or a hybrid these days, unfortunately. If you find a compact with manual mode, let me know!<br /><br />For the average person, I recommend looking for a camera with at least 3 modes: auto, indoor and sports. Auto is usually the word "auto" or a green box, indoor normally looks like a party hat and sports is usually a person running. I used to say that if you like shooting on auto that's all you need (and I'm sure any camera salesman will try to tell you the same thing), but lately a lot of people I know have been having trouble taking good indoor photos with auto mode, so I've been showing them how to get to indoor mode.<br /><br />If you plan on using your camera to take close up photos (maybe for insurance purposes), you should also get a macro mode. This usually looks like a little flower, but on a lot of cameras it isn't a separate mode anymore, it just comes on automatically when you try to focus on something close.<br /></li>
<li>Does size matter? Do you always carry your camera in a separate case or do you need it to fit in your pocket or purse?<br /></li>
<li>How much abuse is it going to take? This is possibly the most important, because you don't want to be replacing your camera every month. If you think that you (or your kids) are likely to drop it or bash it against things, you do not want a telescoping lens. If you hit the lens while it's out, it will most likely get bent, and it's expensive to repair.<br /></li>
<li>Zoom. If you need zoom, you need optical zoom, not digital zoom, especially if you're buying a low megapixel camera. Have you ever zoomed in on a picture on the computer until it got all pixelated? That's what digital zoom does. A picture that could have been a clear print at 8x10 can suddenly only be printed at 4x6 if you use digital instead of optical zoom. You can usually disable the digital zoom in the settings so you don't accidentally use it.</li>
</ol>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtciCyAjdwpdKUevLRg3mmbTnfb2AV0D6KeS6B3UyRAR6EItVVJhW1Z5h9KpBZVM-_dgFS7pgcaFwgf4SFCIhU6pwy3Ruw2M7Cx0buhtrOihXr50AumwmSKQvsKQfR-XkI1SRUXa9DXzE/s1600/10197336_1%5B1%5D.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtciCyAjdwpdKUevLRg3mmbTnfb2AV0D6KeS6B3UyRAR6EItVVJhW1Z5h9KpBZVM-_dgFS7pgcaFwgf4SFCIhU6pwy3Ruw2M7Cx0buhtrOihXr50AumwmSKQvsKQfR-XkI1SRUXa9DXzE/s320/10197336_1%5B1%5D.jpg" width="320" /></a>Once you know what you need, you can take a trip to the store or look online and compare the available cameras with what you need. I usually stick with Canon (they have yet to let me down), but Nikon, Sony and Olympus are good brands too. Kodak, in my opinion, is better at printing than they are at making cameras. There are a lot of other brands out there, but these are the ones I'm most familiar with.<br /><br />Don't be fooled into buying a super-cheap camera from a company you've never heard of, especially if you're shopping at walmart or somewhere else where the sales associates don't necessarily know anything about cameras. I can't even tell you how many times someone came into the store complaining that they'd just bought a camera at some other store and couldn't figure out how to take decent photos with it. Often, we'd pass it around to all the associates who were working and end up recommending they return it.</div>
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No matter how low the price is, it's not worth it if the photos aren't good. Generally the lowest sale price you'll find for a decent camera is about $80, but even without a sale you can easily find one for under $150. The Canon (powershot A810 IS) shown in this post is currently selling for $90 and the waterproof Nikon (coolpix S30) is going for $120.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-81473414468321049642012-06-06T16:09:00.001-04:002012-06-06T16:09:29.630-04:00Giveaway Scoop<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.giveawayscoop.com/wp-content/themes/pezscoop/img/logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.giveawayscoop.com/wp-content/themes/pezscoop/img/logo.png" /></a></div>
I'm a giveaway addict. I admit, I don't often win... but so far when I have won, it's been something awesome that I wouldn't have been able to afford otherwise. Sometimes it's something for me or my family or a gift for a friend with a birthday coming up... and sometimes even when I don't win I come away with something - like the name of an awesome new company that sponsored the giveaway or an interesting blog I'd never heard of.<br />
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The problem is that tracking down all these giveaways can be time consuming, and after finding so many that us Canadians aren't eligible for I tend to lose interest, no matter how much I enjoy entering them.<br />
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However, a few days ago I found a new site called <a href="http://www.giveawayscoop.com/">GiveawayScoop</a>. It's a site where all the giveaway hosts can post their links for everyone else to find. The layout is nice and clean with a focus on pictures, much like Pinterest (another addiction of mine), so it's super easy to scroll through and find all the giveaways you might be interested. Best of all, you can click "United States", "Canada" or "International" to find giveaways that are more relevant to you.<br />
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Just FYI: I am in no way affiliated with <a href="http://www.giveawayscoop.com/">GiveawayScoop</a>. All the opinions stated here are my own and I am not receiving any monetary compensation... I am, however, getting 10 more entries into their awesome <a href="http://www.giveawayscoop.com/blog/giveaway-scoop-launches-today-plus-win-a-kindle-fire/">Kindle Fire giveaway</a>!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-56824169575584672512012-06-03T19:40:00.000-04:002012-06-03T19:40:18.558-04:00Mushroom BurgersHomemade burgers are a great family meal. They're fairly cheap (especially if you've already got a whole lot of ground beef in your freezer from a sale), really quick to put together, capable of feeding a crowd, and can be jazzed up to impress BBQ guests. They can also be frozen to use later, though if you plan on cooking them from frozen make sure you don't make them too thick.<br />
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Today I made mushroom burgers for lunch. There isn't really much to the "recipe", but I thought I'd share anyways.<br />
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First, chop up some green onions (as much as you want, it's all about personal preference here). If you're like me, you've got a bunch sitting on your windowsill. You can tell which ones I cut up today. The ones with new growth have only been there for 3 days - they grow fast!<br />
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Then cut up some mushrooms. Again, as much as you want. I normally use about half a container of sliced mushrooms for 2lbs of meat. Of course, it would be cheaper to buy them whole, but sometimes less prep work is worth a few cents more.<br />
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Fry the green onions and mushrooms in some butter. No cooking spray, no oil, just butter. Don't get me wrong, I love cooking spray and I use oil (especially olive oil) for most of my cooking, but with mushrooms it needs to be butter. I spent two years wondering why my fried mushrooms weren't as good as my mom's before figuring that out.<br />
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Let the fried mushrooms cool a bit. While you're waiting, put the ground beef in a bowl and kneed it with your hands a to make it easier to work with. I normally use 2lbs and make four 1/2lb burgers, but I think I'm going to have to start making 1/4lb ones now that our 2.5 year old is interested in eating them.<br />
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Add the fried green onions and mushrooms to the ground beef and kneed it again, making sure it's thoroughly mixed.<br />
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Now you just have to form the burgers and cook them. I make a ball out of the meat and then squish it between my palms. Then I put it on an indoor grill preheated to 400. You can also cook them in a frying pan or on the barbecue, but I can't help you much with temperatures. I don't have a barbecue and I prefer the indoor grill for cooking most meat.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz266TsuCDrMm1GILbAtInQsHnAdZ_fwlLotwu4vsUc9yAkst5N-MD_UGVyC3FNloNDD13UOXuW6-_yA2-aWyM3YAssnE5TBLnSnYHHT9fTefWZ-kIju0vY36IL1eKnIvLZXUnFGhwJJU/s1600/IMG_2145.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz266TsuCDrMm1GILbAtInQsHnAdZ_fwlLotwu4vsUc9yAkst5N-MD_UGVyC3FNloNDD13UOXuW6-_yA2-aWyM3YAssnE5TBLnSnYHHT9fTefWZ-kIju0vY36IL1eKnIvLZXUnFGhwJJU/s320/IMG_2145.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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While the burgers are cooking, you can broil the burgers if you like. I definitely prefer them toasted a little.</div>
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You only want to flip the burgers once. They dry out if you fiddle with them too much. If you like cheese on your burger, you can add some now so it will melt. Swiss goes really well with mushroom burgers. Unfortunately I thought of the cheese a little late - as you can see, it didn't quite melt.</div>
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Top with whatever you want (I usually just add a slice of tomato) and enjoy!</div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-61869330559583753692012-06-02T10:55:00.000-04:002012-06-02T10:55:00.124-04:00Kitchen tip: Freezing chicken (and other meat)In my previous post, I talked about saving money by getting things in larger quantities and stocking up when there's a good sale on something you use all the time. On my last shopping trip, there was a good sale on chicken breasts. I only really use chicken breasts for one recipe (chicken peanut butter pasta... I'll share the recipe at the end of this post), but I make that recipe <i>a lot</i>. It's really cheap, we all love it and I almost always have all the ingredients in the house. Even if we're out of other ingredients, we always have peanut butter and I'm pretty good at improvising.<br />
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Anyways. I wanted to stock up on the chicken breasts that were on sale, but unfortunately there was only one package left when I got there. Still, it was more chicken than I was going to use at once, so I froze it to use later.<br />
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If I'm going to freeze something, I want it to be convenient to get it out of the freezer and use it. Chicken peanut butter pasta calls for the chicken to be cut up into bite-sized pieces before cooking it. So I cut it up before I freeze it (just ignore the makeshift cutting board, my cutting boards are still in a box somewhere).<br />
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I put a ziploc bag over a cup so I could drop in the pieces of chicken without getting the outside all covered in chicken juice. Then I put in enough chicken for one meal.<br />
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Once there was enough in the bag, I closed it, squeezing out as much air as possible... and then squished it to flatten it out.<br />
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When all the chicken was cut up, I put the bags in a larger freezer bag because the sandwich bags aren't meant for the freezer... and now I have a bunch of chicken ready to go. I can thaw it in the fridge if I think of it in time, but if I don't I can put it in the sink under running water while I prep the rest of the meal and it will be thawed in no time because it's so thin. I've never done this with anything but chicken, but I'm sure it would work just as well for other meats.<br />
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Oh, and here's that recipe I promised, with some suggested alternative ingredients in case you're missing a few:<br />
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<u><b>Chicken Peanut Butter Pasta</b></u> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
1-2 lbs chicken, cut into 1/2" pieces<br />vegetable oil (or olive oil or vegetable shortening or margarine)<br />1 cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth or water)<br />2 tbsp honey (or corn syrup)<br />1tsp soy sauce (or teriyaki sauce or marinade or worchestershire sauce)<br />1/4 cup peanut butter (smooth or chunky)<br />1tbsp cornstarch (or flour, might need more and will change the taste)<br />1tsp ground ginger<br />1/2 tsp hot pepper flakes (or more... I normally at least double this)<br />2 green onions, sliced<br />2 garlic cloves, squished<br />veggies (whatever you want... or none, if you prefer)<br />Pasta (I prefer fettucini, but any pasta will work) </blockquote>
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1. Put on a pot to cook the pasta while you cook the chicken and make the sauce. Just make sure to keep stirring it and drain it when the pasta's done (I've forgotten about it a few times...)<br />2. Heat the oil in a frying pan. Toss in the chicken, garlic, green onions and veggies. Cook until the chicken's not pink anymore. Remove from the pan.<br />3. Mix all other ingredients together in a bowl. It's easier if the broth is hot.<br />4. Put the pan back on the stove over medium heat and pour in the sauce from the bowl. Cook, stirring constantly, until it thickens.<br />5. Add the chicken and veggies back into the pan and cook a few minutes longer.<br />6. Combine the sauce and pasta and serve.</blockquote>
If you put in as much hot pepper as I normally do, make sure there's milk handy! I'll try and remember to snap some pictures for you all next time I make it.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-49581697822609320272012-06-01T11:20:00.000-04:002012-06-01T11:22:33.572-04:00The Grocery ListGrocery lists are the key to saving money on groceries. They make you think about what you're buying, rather than just walking into the store and grabbing whatever catches your eye.<br />
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<b><span style="color: #38761d;">Just FYI: Everything here is in Canadian dollars, bought at a Canadian grocery store. If you're in the United States, you can probably find lower prices and spend less than my $400 a month!</span></b></blockquote>
I admit it, I have tried and failed to make a good grocery list multiple times. The problem was that in order to make a grocery list I needed a meal plan, and meal plans just weren't working for me. I'm not the type of person who plans out the meals for the week and eats what's scheduled for that day... I'm the type of person that comes home planning to cook a chicken and then suddenly decides to make pasta instead.<br />
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So this month I tried something different. Instead of a calendar, I made a chart. It has four columns: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and Snacks, and a row for every day of the month (the chart in the picture is cut off). Then I wrote in all the meals I normally make, repeating our favorites to fill in all the blanks. When I put two whole chickens in the "Dinner" column, I put two chicken sandwich days in the "lunch" column to use up the leftovers. I looked in our freezer and discovered a pile of ground beef, so I added pot stickers, lasagna, shepherd's pie and tacos to the list. I picked up my grocery store's flyer and discovered a 3/$5 sale on cookies, so they went in the "Snack" column.<br />
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When I was done I had breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks for every day of the month planned with no dates attached, so I could buy all the ingredients (or at least the ones that wouldn't go bad before I used them) and make whatever I felt like on any given day... then my husband gave me a reality check ("4 weeks of groceries in one day?") and I split the list in half.<br />
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Then all I had to do was make up a grocery list for everything we didn't already have in the house. I added notes about sales so I'd remember to look for them and made a note to buy the bigger package of certain things that will be needed again later. Unless there's an amazing sale, the bigger package will almost always give you more for your money, so if it's something that won't go bad or that can be frozen to use later, get the bigger package... and if you're lucky enough to find that amazing sale and the smaller package is cheaper, get more than one!<br />
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For example, today I got the biggest bag of flour they had. Not only will it last me for months, but I saved close to $10 by not buying multiple smaller packages. However, the sale on instant mac and cheese made the single boxes cheaper than the individual boxes in the 12 pack, so I got a lot of individual boxes instead of the 12 pack I normally buy.</blockquote>
Once you have a list, it's about getting the best deal for the items on that list. I don't have the will power to be a couponer (you know, with the research and coupon printing and clipping and organized binder...), but if I see a coupon for something we normally buy anyways, I'll grab it. I also don't drive around to multiple stores, it's a waste of time and gas. Pick one store and get all your groceries there. If you can get toilet paper, laundry detergent and other household essentials there too, do it. The more things you can get in one place for a decent price, the better. It may not be the best price in the city, but it's not worth another $2 in gas to drive across town for milk that's $0.50 cheaper.<br />
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What you <i>will</i> find me doing is standing in an aisle squinting at the teeny tiny writing on the price tags. They all have writing, usually in the bottom right corner, that tells you a unit price or a price per 100ml or another unit of measurement. Normally the same unit will be used on similar products, making it easy to compare and figure out which product will give you the most for your money.<br />
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I've found that this is a trick not many people know about, and it really does help save money. As I mentioned before, you'll find that most of the time the larger package saves you money in the long run (assuming it's something you'll actually use up). However, it doesn't work for things like laundry or dishwasher detergent.<br />
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For example, today I got a 1L bottle of laundry detergent for $4.99. Usually I get a 2L bottle for about $6. The tags showed price per 100ml, which would lead you to believe that the 2L bottle was the better deal... but that 2L bottle says it's good for 40 loads and the 1L one says 50 loads, making the smaller bottle the better deal.</blockquote>
Today we managed to do 2 weeks worth of groceries and basic household stuff (toilet paper, laundry detergent, ect.) for about $170, though some of the things we bought will last us longer than 2 weeks. By the end of the two weeks, that number will be up to about $200 because we'll have to buy some more milk, bread and eggs... but believe me, without the list that number would have been much bigger!<br />
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My next task will be to make a spreadsheet to record prices of items.That way when I make a grocery list I can price it, and when I see a sale in a flyer I can see how good a sale it is. If you go to more than one grocery store, you might want to make one to compare prices so you can decide where to shop on your next trip. I only go to one store (the others are too far away), so that doesn't matter to me, but I do want to record the prices.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-72180206403670323972012-05-30T07:30:00.000-04:002012-06-01T19:23:02.900-04:00Toddler Boy's Room Organized - without spending anything!One of my goals when we moved was to get our son's toys out of the living room and into his room - and organize them! The overflowing toy box wasn't working for me. His old room was tiny. We could fit a bed and a dresser in there, but not much else - not comfortably anyways. It was a perfect nursery, but when Steven got older there wasn't much space for all the stuff he was accumulating.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005TPN0FI/ref=as_li_tf_il?ie=UTF8&tag=thepinpac-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005TPN0FI" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ws.assoc-amazon.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&Format=_SL160_&ASIN=B005TPN0FI&MarketPlace=US&ID=AsinImage&WS=1&tag=thepinpac-20&ServiceVersion=20070822" /></a>He's always liked organizing and having everything in its place (he throws a fit if I put a toy where it doesn't normally go) but we didn't have enough places. He got one of those bucket organizers as a gift, but since it was never really organized (just toys thrown in random buckets) he preferred to throw the toys on the floor and play with the buckets... though that in itself was great imaginative play - they were trains, cars, shoes, hats, towers...<br />
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His new room is about twice the size, so moving his toys into there was no problem, but it still needed to be organized.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZCU41SkUxcaG-WFE04fz6_6Ea13NCGPm5ek0G7m_qQ_zBN9w8bFMhvIGxDVCWjeDLdVtDnE-3ohDWLo2n-tV5KOnCzi7tBzIf4dQGStnzwkvZB2OEFOn0JJmgwT-DcxriSMpLiNFQko/s1600/IMG_2070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZCU41SkUxcaG-WFE04fz6_6Ea13NCGPm5ek0G7m_qQ_zBN9w8bFMhvIGxDVCWjeDLdVtDnE-3ohDWLo2n-tV5KOnCzi7tBzIf4dQGStnzwkvZB2OEFOn0JJmgwT-DcxriSMpLiNFQko/s320/IMG_2070.JPG" width="320" /></a>Unfortunately, I didn't think to take "before" pictures. Spending the morning organizing wasn't really the original plan, it was still on the "to do" list. Then Steven picked up his "Bebe" (one of my old dolls) and insisted she was hungry. Then we discovered that all the play food was at the bottom of the overflowing toy box... and then there were toys everywhere. Luckily I already had a plan in my head, it just wasn't implemented yet.<br />
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I would have loved for his room to look like one of the gorgeous ones I've seen on Pinterest (which I am thoroughly addicted to)... but we have absolutely no money to put towards furniture. I was even entertaining the idea of building it ourselves at one point, we definitely have the skills to do so, but we can't afford the materials.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6p-KHrHxEJSv1of5rI1z9HsuB6vnbSOs7fSOHRYjBglD-cscp4X7Z15I-5Bn6BgQjaWjIV44tAapQCWLe9kzKEZAr8g-vXFTZutKktt8XldaEd1SKkEHy25LBEZHyyWOmFXeEdZx21aI/s1600/IMG_2083.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6p-KHrHxEJSv1of5rI1z9HsuB6vnbSOs7fSOHRYjBglD-cscp4X7Z15I-5Bn6BgQjaWjIV44tAapQCWLe9kzKEZAr8g-vXFTZutKktt8XldaEd1SKkEHy25LBEZHyyWOmFXeEdZx21aI/s320/IMG_2083.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a><br />
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So we worked with what we already had, which was my old bedroom set. It came with three dressers - a tall one, one with a hutch and one with a mirror. We've been using the tall one in his room since he was little. My husband and I are both tall, so we would have had to bend over a normal changing table, but this dresser was the perfect height. We added the one with the hutch so we had a place to put his books and now we're using the drawers for toys.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUVPiM6GF4duQlciMjpn2IJ4qQFSEcoJBJTFyWcXXwsT9lHAdR60T3RsTjkmo40PZuGFBsiFHgzNP6dPtCQ2e9PCnKEdtimYPpQ35B9wdGpQ1HucnUajYnOPDbmsaS_B6ZtHAX9fqc9rU/s1600/IMG_2066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="319" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUVPiM6GF4duQlciMjpn2IJ4qQFSEcoJBJTFyWcXXwsT9lHAdR60T3RsTjkmo40PZuGFBsiFHgzNP6dPtCQ2e9PCnKEdtimYPpQ35B9wdGpQ1HucnUajYnOPDbmsaS_B6ZtHAX9fqc9rU/s320/IMG_2066.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
I let Steven decide where all his toys were going to go - sometimes making suggestions when I knew that something wasn't going to fit where he wanted to put it. Then we drew pictures of what we put in each drawer or bin. The pictures got taped to the drawers and the inside of the bins (they get covered, but you can tell what goes there by what's already there)... and that big old toy box that prompted this whole thing got filled with stuffed animals. The stuffies were on one of those corner nets in his old room and were just piled in a corner here.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdX7RS4kv5YuAQE9TOyR4lpZDfVSGE5ZLS2vbVOiqe7EtfHOh_PuNsJd_TbOMEcbcFZYeXvKMH0lm38BkXMnh43aJdbOSWOO2skqP8H4uaBR9ywr9Tlg_8A-mqy3wZxjvD6bn33-0WlUg/s1600/IMG_2090.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdX7RS4kv5YuAQE9TOyR4lpZDfVSGE5ZLS2vbVOiqe7EtfHOh_PuNsJd_TbOMEcbcFZYeXvKMH0lm38BkXMnh43aJdbOSWOO2skqP8H4uaBR9ywr9Tlg_8A-mqy3wZxjvD6bn33-0WlUg/s320/IMG_2090.JPG" width="320" /></a>
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Of course, not everyone is going to have a dresser lying around to use - but the point is to use what you have on hand. An old book case, cardboard boxes (can be painted or covered in fabric), milk crates... if you don't have anything in storage and can spare a bit of cash, check out garage sales and thrift stores. It's amazing what you can get for under $20 (or even $5), and often all it needs to look brand new is a bit of sanding and a coat of paint.<br />
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So there's my little boy's room for $0. Obviously the labels could have been prettied up a bit, and I'm sure those dressers could use some new varnish, and I still haven't gotten around to asking our new landlord if we can do something about the chipped paint on the walls... but the point was to make it clean and practical, and I think we accomplished that. There are still a few things I want to do. I'm going to hang my old animal alphabet poster on the wall and make some bags out of old tank tops to hang on the wall for more storage. I think I'm also going to hang that stuffed animal net up again and use it for his blankets... but the hard part is done!<br />
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<b>Update:</b> so far this system is working perfectly. Steven knows where all the toys go, he takes out what he wants and he helps put it all away before nap or bed time. When he's overwhelmed by the mess (like when he has friends over and they dump all the drawers, all the bins and every book they can reach onto the floor), he doesn't want to help until I give him a specific task like picking up all the blocks. Then I end up doing most of the cleaning, but at least he's still helping.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8475260424613928553.post-76565852288981892552012-05-29T15:46:00.000-04:002012-05-31T13:59:13.434-04:00Love and PenniesHi! Welcome to my blog. Here I plan on talking about various ways a family can save money, everything from cheap recipes to saving money on furniture, as well as random helpful tips and tricks I find to make life cheaper and/or easier. There will probably also be the occasional post about general family life or things going on in the world that I care about, maybe even a few guest posts... but the main focus of this blog is making life cheaper and easier, because those two things will reduce stress and help make more time to spend with those you love.<br />
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I'm a wife and mother, my husband and I have a son who will be three in September. I'm a student and currently unemployed, though I have been searching for a part time job for a few months. My husband is a stay at home dad on disability support, which basically means he gets paid what anyone would make working a full time minimum wage job... and after rent and bills, we have about $400 for food and whatever else might come up in a month.<br />
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My goal for this summer (maybe writing it down will make it happen?) is to fill our freezer with meals that can easily be thrown in the oven, microwave or crock pot. You can be sure that I'll post each of the recipes and tips to get them put together faster. If I succeed, I'll save us a lot of money. I'll also have the peace of mind of knowing that my husband and son are eating something other than PB&J while I'm at school (he doesn't often cook) and my husband can heat something up so that dinner is on the table when I get home.</div>
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But first there's a lot of cleaning and unpacking to get done around here. We just moved - more rent and less space... but closer to school and (hopefully) work, which will save us money in the long run. So the next few posts will probably be about that... unless I get distracted... which happens a lot. I can at least say for sure that the next post will be about organizing our son's room, because that was today's project and all that's left to do is take pictures.<br />
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So that's all for now! I'll be back soon.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0