Since I homeschool, my kids don’t generally need much back-to-school wise, but we’ve made a tradition of taking an annual shopping day, anyway. Lasts Friday we went to town and visited the library, got the boys haircuts, ate lunch, made a stop at Goodwill and then each child was allowed to choose one new item/outfit (depending on price) from Walmart or Shopko. This is a real treat for them since we very rarely purchase new clothing.

We always make a point to stop at Goodwill first and  made out pretty well this time. My son got two pair of Nike’s in good condition and my daughter found several brand name (Hollister, American Eagle Outfitters, etc.) T-shirts for under $3 each. I even found a skirt and top that I really like.

In addition to the two pairs of tennies, my son found a pair of  “real” Crocs. I say “real” because earlier this summer he bought a knock-off pair at the Dollar Store. Sadly, the only color they had was bright red. In all honesty, I figured they would fall apart in short order, so let him go ahead and get them. Would you believe they are still going strong? And he LOVES them.

I had him try on this “real” pair at Goodwill and he admitted that they were, indeed, more comfortable than the pair he’d been wearing. But just take a guess as to what color they were. Go ahead, guess!

Yup! Bright orange. Figures.

Still, he loves his old pair and these were only $2.50 so I went ahead and bought them. Then, while we were at Walmart, I grabbed a can of Krylon Fusion spray paint, intended for use on plastics. In a nice dark, blue!

Back home I set to work. I first scrubbed the shoes down with a brush and then used a Magic Eraser on them before placing them in the sun to dry. I then sprayed them down with three coats of the Fusion paint.

The verdict? Not too bad at all! For a total investment of $7.50 my boy got a pair of Crocs that I actually won’t be embarassed to have him wear! lol

I’m hoping the paint job holds up well, but it seems pretty good so far. I’ll keep you updated.

Spray paint for plastic works for me! To see more Works for Me Wednesday tips visit We Are That Family.

This past week while making homemade oatmeal, I began to wonder if making it homemade was a better deal than buying the box of premade packs. Here is the cost comparison, and my recipe, for homemade vs. store bought oatmeal.

Homemade Oatmeal

Ingredients

1/2 cup of quick cooking oats (7 cents)

1 tbsp powdered milk  (2 cents)

1/8 teaspoon of salt (1 cent)

2 teaspoons of sugar  (1 cent)

1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon (1 cent)

1 tablespoon of brown sugar (5 cents)

1 cup of extremely hot water (free)

Directions

Combine all dry ingredients into your bowl. Add one cup of hot water and allow to sit for about five minutes. During that time mix ingredients together occasionally until desired thickness has been achieved.

Now here is my analysis:

The cost of make one serving of homemade oatmeal is 17 cents. Since there are usually 6 packets per box, the cost for one whole box of oatmeal would be: $1.02. However, if you have all the ingredients on hand from making the first batch, you can make several more packets of oatmeal for free. So it is like getting 6 or 7 boxes of oatmeal for the price of one.

Store bought oatmeal can vary in price depending on what brand you buy. Some generic boxes are only $1 where Quaker can be almost $3 a box.

In my honest opinion, homemade tastes SO much better and is better for you because YOU know the ingredients being used and there is nothing hidden in the mix–plus it is easy on your grocery budget as well!

Which do you like better? Homemade or store bought? Do you have any oatmeal recipes using fruit? I would love to hear them!

This week I have been reading a book by Anne Ortlund, Discplines of a Beautiful Woman. The chapter that I just finished talked about your looks. Now I must admit that I am not one to spend a lot of time on my clothing or my appearance.

What Anne shared was very thought provoking, so I thought I would share it with you!

~Her first tip was this: when you become conscious in the morning (meaning waking up fully), get decent. Before she has her devotions or spends time with God, she gets up and gets herself dressed and ready for the day.

She says

I look over the day’s calendar, warm up a little and then stair climb (the fastest way to get in exercise) shower, and put on my face while I talk to God. Hair next, then clothes. Now I am ready for breakfast, meeting God, and all the day’s agendas.

This little bit really struck me because I am one of those ladies who lounges around in her PJ’s until 10 (I do get everything done, but when I do this I tend to feel chaotic and out of sorts.)  I think I might start implementing her suggestion and see what happens.)

~The next thing  she talks about is the Proverbs 31 woman being a worthy woman. She stated that out of the 22 verses on the Proverbs 31 woman, only one of them is about how she looked. Anne had this to say:

Father, I want to give 1/22 of my time to making myself as outwardly beautiful as I can; and I want to give all the rest of my time, 21/22 of my life , to becoming wise, kind, godly, hard-working, and the rest.

~Anne then goes on to share about her clothing. This is what really got me to thinking, because I don’t do this and I honestly should, because I AM TIRED of standing in front of my closet thinking I have NOTHING to wear! She shared that most of her morning hour is spent doing the looks thing–exercising, showering, doing her face and hair. She only spends five minutes getting dressed. Seriously? Five minutes? This is why!

I have SO few clothes to choose from! I keep my closet stripped down to the following outfits: 4 dressy street length outfits, 4 long casual outfits, 6 day pants, 5 day dresses, 2 sandal dresses, 3 at-home outfits, 3 evening and party outfits.

There is NO way that I could use her clothing plan because I don’t even have those types of clothes. My problem is finding something that does not have a stain on it! EVERYTHING I own is stained, so I stand in the closet for twenty minutes trying to decided which item is less stained. I really need to work on getting my clothing updated–and perhaps an apron for the kitchen so my clothes will stop getting stained. Sounds like a trip to the thrift store is in order!

But her organization of her clothes AND her accessories is where I was truly drawn in. Listen to this:

Now when I buy a dress or an outfit, I don’t just buy that alone. I make sure at the time I have everything I need–shoes, bag, jewelry, underthings, scarf–whatever. I stand before a full length mirror when it is new and check the whole outfit. I jot that complete outfit in my notebook. Everything is listed to complete the ensemble. Then it’s ready to go. I never have to dawdle over, “Does this blouse go with this skirt?”, “What beads would look good with this neckline?” I know the whole outfit, and I can fall into it fast and get onto life’s more important considerations.

I guess this just really floored me because I have never considered utilizing a clothing notebook to help with organization in this area.

So what do you think? Would you consider trying this? If you already do this, how does it work for you? Is this just “over the top”?

This month my husband and I sat down and decided it was time to rebuild our emergency fund. This money is used for unexpected repairs, vet visits, and any other emergencies that come our way.

Another thing we are working on is getting our monthly bills paid up a few months in advance so that we can always stay ahead. For some, I know that this is not feasible, but my husband has some extra side work that he is doing, so we are putting this money to good use.

We have made a pact that we are not going out to eat at all for at least 30 days. The money that we would have normally paid for a nice dinner out for our family, we are going to take and put in either our emergency fund, or use it to pay a bill up ahead.

If you really think about it, there are many ways that we spend our money wastefully, when we could in reality save that for a rainy day. Here are just a couplethat I have come up with:

~Movie Rentals: This one was a big one for me. We had a membership at Netflix which was costing us around $18 a month. We also rented from the Redbox kisosks and every now and then we would hit the Blockbuster. Roughly we were spending about $30-$40 a month just in movie rentals. I have found that I can watch lots of movies online at Hulu, and sometimes Amazon Video on Demand has free movie rentals. You can also rent movies from the library. Another option is borrowing from a family member or a friend who is a movie buff.

~Snacks at the Grocery: This one was a biggie for us. Last month, we tallied up our grocery money and saw that we were spending about $25 a month in junk snack foods. We cut those out this month and are making homemade goodies now instead.

Just remember that there is always somewhere that we can cut our spending. I will keep you posted on how we are doing with not eating out and finding other places to cut out expenditures.

Thanks Money Saving Mom for this great coupon tip!

Heather from The Clearance Chick emailed in to say she found Men’s Polo Shirts on clearance at her Target store for only $3.74 each. She used the $3/1 Merona Men’s Shirt coupon to get these for $0.74 each.

I can’t guarantee that you’ll find the same clearance prices at your Target store, but I’d definitely encourage you to print the Target clothing coupons available and check the clearances available at your Target store. You may be able to get some items for free or less than $1 each!

I’m traveling and didn’t have the opportunity for any Weekend Wonders this week. However, I thought I’d initiate some discussion with this topic instead. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

I recently read this post from Ginger, a regular Molly reader (and commenter!) blogging at Clark Chatter and thought, “What a Great Idea for a Readers Helping Readers post”. Here are some financial decisions I would “do over” if I could.

-In my early years I ate out a LOT! Huge waste of money.

-I also used to buy clothing at Maurice’s and  Macy’s and such. Not necessarily on sale. Honestly, I don’t think I looked much better then than I do now.

-I would refuse “gifts that keep on taking”. We were once given a horse that ended up being a larger burden than we were ready to bear. That “free” puppy can easily cost you $500 in the first year when you consider neutering, shots, food, boarding when on vacation and potentially destroyed property.

And here are some financial decisions I feel that I did right the first time.

-Forgo the large wedding. An intimate gathering with friends and family holds the same meaning and doesn’t leave you starting out your future together in debt.

-Buy a fixer-upper. This is NOT for the faint-of-heart or impatient, but has proven to be a valuable investment for us. I repeat, patience is key if you go this route. (Do-it-yourself skills are helpful as well!)

-Live in a small town. Recreation and eating out is limited by the fact that there’s just nowhere to go! No ordering in a quick pizza, snagging a Starbucks on the way home or running to the movie. Yes, we can easily drive the 20 miles (and often do), but not nearly so much as when I lived in a larger town.

-Yard sales. I’ve saved a FORTUNE by visiting yard sales. No need to say more.

-Learn to determine the difference between “wants” and “needs”. This ties closely with learning to stay out of stores. If I don’t see it, I don’t want it.

-Use the library! You can find everything DVDs, novels, movies, cookbooks, craft books, educational texts and so much more!

-Develop like-minded friends. It’s easier to cultivate an attitude of contentment when you’re surrounded by people who share your values. Similarly, it’s easy to feel you “need” something that all of your friends have. Choose friends, both in real life and online, that will encourage you in your quest toward frugality and financial independence.

What about you? What do you wish you’d done differently and what do you think you did right? I’d love to hear!

During this time, there are TONS of great deals going on for school supplies. Here are a few that I know about lately:

Buy any backpack at Staples and get 100% back in a Staples gift card after Staples Easy Rebates.

This week when you buy any backpack, you’ll get 100% Back in Rewards on ALL Backpacks at OfficeMax.com Remember, MaxPerks Bonus Rewards is basically a loyalty program in which you get credits (that can be used like cash on future purchases) when you buy qualifying offers. You’ll definitely want to sign up with MaxPerks before you make your online purchase.  There is a limit of two free backpacks. Plus, when you spend over $50 at Office Max, shipping is free!

Walgreens has backpacks on sale this week as well.  Buy one at $9.99 and get a second one for FREE.

Here are the best back-to-school deals available at KMart this week:

$0.15 Deal

2 pocket, 3-prong folder

$0.25 Deals

RoseArt 24-count crayons
4-oz. Elmer’s school glue

$0.50 Deals

Paper Mate pens (Limit 4)
Pencil boxes
RoseArt 12-count colored pencils
Filler paper 150-count wide or college ruled (Limit 4)
Selected Fashion PR Licensed portfolios

$1 Deals

300-count index cards
Fine or ultra fine sharpie 2-count black
90-count Post-It notes

Here are the best back-to-school deals at Staples this week:

$0.01 Deal — available Sunday through Wednesday with a $5 purchase

Staples Bic Round Stic Ballpoint Pens, black (8-pack)

$0.04 Deal — available Sunday through Wednesday with a $5 purchase

Staples Multi-Purpose Paper, 96 bright (500-sheet ream) – $4.99, Get $4.96 Easy Rebate

WEEKLY DEALS

Buy any backpack, get a full rebate back on a Staples gift card (Limit 1)

Zebra Sarasa Retractable Gel Pens (5-pack) – $4.99, Get $4.74 Easy Rebate (Limit 1)

Staples Hype! pen-style assorted highlighters (6-pack) — $0.25 (Limit 2)

Really Useful Box, assorted (0.14 liter) — $0.25 (Limit 2)

$1 DEALS — with in-ad coupon (Limit 2)

Scotch Shipping Tape with Dispenser

Scotch Magic Invisible Tape (3/4″x 300″)

Ticonderoga #2 Pencils

$2 DEALS — with in-ad coupon (Limit 2)

Staples Jumbo Glue Stick (2-pack)

Double Sided Dry-Erase Board and Calendar (11″x14″)

Here are the best back-to-school deals available at Office Depot this coming week:

Office Depot Brand Acrylic Ruler — $0.05

Office Depot Brand Eraser Caps (12-count) — $0.10

Office Depot Brand Wire-Bound Notebooks (6-pack) — $0.50

HP Office Paper Ream — $0.95 (after $5.54 mail-in savings Visa card — Limit 2)

Go get yourself some cheap school supplies!

Molly reader, Kim, left the below post and I though it would make a great topic for Readers Helping Readers.

How do you all have time for this? I so want to be frugal and I’m stressed trying to keep up with it all. I do homeschool my children, like most of you, and I’m trying to do a pampered chef business, but thinking of quitting so i can focus more on my family, but we need the money i bring in. It’s so challenging, God helps me each day! Thanks for the sites, I’ll try to keep up with all you frugal moms, lol.

She has a good point. Bargain shopping and making frugal choices DOES take time. Here are a few of my thoughts on the matter.

• I view my “frugality” as a job. I consider my savings to be my hourly wage.  It may take me an extra two hours to plan out my grocery shopping, use coupons, etc. (It’s sometimes shocking how long it can take, isn’t it??!!) But I can easily cut my grocery bill in half when I do so. Even if I only save $50 a trip, that comes out to $25/hr. Not bad. So, if  I’m “too busy” to coupon, am I busy doing something that is going to make me $25/hr. Usually not.
• Alternatively, some frugal practices are NOT worth my time. The time you have to spend on frugal endeavors will be limited by the number of small children you have, whether or not you homeschool, whether you work for hire, outside commitments, etc. Before I worked from home and homeschooled, I would can fruits and vegetables every summer. Now, I just don’t have the time. When I calculate out the savings they just weren’t there to justify it. Now, if I had a garden or access to free foods, that might change. But for now, I make more at “work” than I save by canning.
• I enlist the children. As my kids get older I give them more responsibilities. Currently, they are capable of keeping the house relatively presentable. I am willing to pay one of my kids a dollar or two to cut my coupons and put them in my coupon binder. It saves me a good chunk of time and I know I’ll save much more by having them clipped, organized and available. When I was a child, my siblings and I were each responsible for making a batch of bread once each week. Making your children responsible for a small garden, even a container garden could be helpful. Keeping the budget on track is a family affair, not just Mom’s responsibility.
• Consider the learning curve. Sure, the first time you create a menu plan (join our newsletter for a free quide!) or try a new recipe, extend a mix, or make your own laundry soap, it may be a bit time consuming. But many of these tasks become second nature after a few tries and take considerably less time. As with most anything you’ll need to allow some time for education and practice on your road to becoming a practiced frugalite. Is it worth it? Absolutely!
• Don’t forget the real issue. Why are you doing what you do? Being thrifty isn’t about saving every little penny. It’s about being conscious of your spending and making deliberate choices about how you spend your money. If you choose to spend on a luxury or forgo a frugal practice, that’s fine. Just know that you are making the choice and why. The more ways you are aware of to save money, the more choices you have in what you choose to do or not do. Don’t feel you have to do everything!
• I recognize that I’m modeling stewardship and educating my family through my thriftiness. Saving money and being financially responsible isn’t about just the money itself. It is about using the resources we’ve been given in a responsible manner. Our children learn from what they see us do. I am confident that my children can get by with less income than the average young adult simply because they’ve grown up watching us make money-saving decisions. Whether they choose to use those skills or not is their decision, but the knowledge will make them that much stronger as they set out on their own. So I’m not only saving money, I’m teaching at the same time. Plus, most thrifty activities involve learning or practicing a variety of useful life skills.

Those are just a few of my thoughts regarding “finding the time” to be frugal. What about you? How do you find the time, in your busy schedules, to save money? I can’t wait to hear your comments!

Taking time to save money works for me! To see more Works for Me Wednesday tips visit We Are That Family.

I just finished watching Courtney’s new VLOG from Women Living Well. It’s on how to shop for clothes on a budget. Thought you might like to see it  as well.

Lately,  have you noticed the prices seem to be jumping up on some of the items at the grocery store? When my grocery bill rang up a little over a hundred dollars this past trip, I sat down and wrote out some ways that I can trim some funds off of our grocery budget. Here is the list I came up with:

1. Buy your vegetables from the local farmer’s market. You can get a better deal from a local farmer than you can at the grocery store. You might even be able to strike up a deal on something that is getting too ripe that needs to be used up right away.
2. Make your own bread. This can be a daunting task for a newbie bread maker. Our very first issue of Molly’s Money Saving Digest has a whole section on Breadmaking for Beginners.
3. Instead of buying store bought desserts, spend the money on flour, sugar, and the other ingredients and make some homemade desserts. From cakes, pies, and cookies–YOU can do it.
4. Use coupons. Many times you can get pantry staples for the half the cost by using coupons.
5. Grow your own vegetables. It may be too late in the season to that now, but you can plan for the future and raise your own plants from seedlings.
6. Join a dinner swap or start one with some friends. Take turns cooking meals (this has helped tremendously for a friend of mine)
7. Try freezer cooking. I am still working on this one. I know many ladies on the Internet though who do this and LOVE it and has shaved tons off their grocery bill.
8. Leave the kids with a neighbor while you shop this way you won’t be tempted to cave to their requests for items.
9. Make a list and stick to it!
10. Don’t go to the store hungry. I have noticed that when I go to the store hungry, I always wind up buying more than I want to.

So what ways do you know of to shave money off your grocery budget? Share and let us all know!