Book recycling

Do you have books sitting around on shelves that you've only read once and don't care to read again? I know I do. I'm still not sure why I bought a 500+ page novel at a 10 cent sale. This purchase clearly must have been during the summer and before having a baby when I actually had time for leisure reading. However, there are many books on my "to read list." Anyhow, there is a solution. I came across this site while reading on money saving mom's web page. There's a web site called paperbackswap.com . You can request books and swap out your used books. You just pay shipping. I have not tried it yet, but plan to soon. When I do, I will post about my experience. Read more on money saving mom's site. Let me know if you have used this site or a similar book swap site.

Meatless Menu

Back in November Luke and I decided to go meatless (at least when we're cooking at home). We still eat meat, we just don't buy it and cook it at home the majority of the time. Our reasoning was to cut down on our grocery bill and eat a little healthier at the same time. We've really liked this change. I've liked the challenge of finding good recipes to pack in the protein we typically would have had, and I definitely don't miss handling raw meat. People usually ask me, "If you don't cook meat for dinner, what do you eat?" So to answer your question, here's a look at our menu for this week.

Monday: Veggie and black bean tacos, rice, and fruit
Tuesday: Breakfast for dinner-eggs, pancakes, fruit (I might actually cook bacon too:)
Wednesday: Spaghetti, salad, garlic bread
Thursday: Date night- dinner out
Friday: macaroni and cheese , corn and peas, salad, and rolls
Saturday: Grilled veggie foccacia sandwiches
Sunday: Easter dinner with family

Today's steals and deals

After clipping coupons this afternoon, I went back for one more trip to Harris Teeter to take advantage of triple coupons. I walked away spending less than $20 ($19.73 to be exact) on $55 worth of groceries. They will be tripling until Tuesday in case you want to get in on it.

The battle of wills

Today while I was out doing a little browsing and shopping, I was lured in by the pretty spring colors, the cute handbags, and the feeling of "yes, having that would make my life better." Being thrifty is often a battle of wills within me. I know that being thrifty and practicing self-control is necessary for my family to become debt free, but the shopaholic within me often cries out and wants to be set loose and abandon all knowledge of smart shopping. Luckily, the thought of facing my husband after setting her free is enough to stop me :)

Coupon Notebook

I'm just diving into the coupon world, so I by no means have a perfect system. A couple people have asked me how I set up my coupon book so I thought it time to share. I used a simple three ring binder, divider tabs, and trading card pages. I set it up into categories such as dairy, snacks, canned goods, cereal, frozen, household items, etc. I then put one coupon or multiple coupons that are the same together in the card holders and put the pages in their appropriate category, and it's that simple. I also keep a section at the end for store specific coupons an any restaurant coupons. Right now I have a 2 in. binder, but I think I need to use only a 1 in. binder right now, so I may have to adjust.

I've seen others who group their coupons by grocery store isles. This could work well if there is one store you shop at most frequently.

Another option is the envelope system. Make an envelope for each category you want and group them that way. You can then check the sale ads before shopping and transfer the coupons you want to use into one envelope to take with you. For some this is more manageable.

Here's a good site that spotlights several different ways and how to implement them.

Most importantly is to find a system that fits your needs and is easy to use.

bTrendie

Here's a site that often has some good deals. When you sign up you get a $10 credit to shop with. I was able to score a good deal with it.
If you check in the pearhead event, you can find some cute frames in which you will only end up spending $4.94 for total. They do sell out of items though, so get them while they last! Click the link below to claim your $10.

b Trendie

Birthday Parties on a Budget

In the coming month I am planning a party for my little boy who will be turning one. I'll need food, paper products, location, favors, decorations, etc. Just looking at this list could break our budget! I of course want to have a memorable and fun party, but not at the expense of spending a bundle. Here's some practical tips I've put together for myself. Maybe you have some ideas too. Please share.

1. Have it at your home or the home of a relative. You could also choose a park. Renting a community center or reception hall is very pricey, so use your own resources.
2. Keep the decorations simple. Blow up some balloons yourself, make your own centerpieces, make a clothesline with decorative ribbon and pictures of your little one's first year.
3. Don't buy character/printed paper products. No one will remember or care if you had plates that said "Baby's first birthday." Go with solid plates, cups, and napkins. To be even more thrifty and green, use your own dinnerware.
4. Plan the party for in between meals like 1:00-3:00 or 6:30-8:00. This will keep you from having to serve a complete meal.
5. Make your own cake. If you are not a natural pastry chef like me, you could bake and frost cupcakes and serve them on a cute cupcake platter.
6. Accept help if people offer.
7. Keep it simple and enjoy the day.

Harris Teeter Triples!

With the help of my husband, Luke, I finally got my coupons organized by setting up a coupon notebook. I was thrilled to see those little coupons so neatly arranged and categorized. Maybe now I could make sense of it all and actually put them to good use. Much to my delight, Harris Teeter just happened to start triple coupons a few days later. It was like a small reward for the work put into organizing the notebook, and boy did it pay off! I went to Harris Teeter on day one of the triples and got some great deals. I especially loved knowing that I actually got some things for free! My total before coupons was $69 and after was $29. This resulted in a coupon high. I went back the next day to finish my shopping. I again saved $40 with coupons. It's amazing what a little organizing can do. If you are clipping coupons but haven't quite been able to maximize their use, like me, I highly recommend finding an organizing system that works for you. It's well worth it! I know there are others out there that are much better and more experienced at this than me. I would love to hear your tips. Feel free to post and share.