March 30, 2011

Good Afternoon

Hope everyone is having a good day .... I am trying to get better at this and it is slowly comming together ... I have had a long and weary week...

March 24, 2011

Frugal Page

http://www.budgetsavvydiva.com/

Here is some cool information ...

I got this link via L The Frugal Free Gal : http://thefrugalfreegal.com/

10 Ways to Slightly Increase Your Income
Everywhere you turn nowadays, you can be guaranteed to hear a laundry list worth of complaints about the economy and rising gas prices. It’s not just the pessimistic grumbling this time, times are really and truly legitimately tough. Even the most optimistic people I know are at least feeling the pain at the pump. Something about this economic crisis has me a bit perplexed though. Amidst all the complaints, I don’t hear many solutions or fixes being suggested. It seems we’ve accepted our fate and are content to ride out this blip (hopefully) on our radar with a few well targeted rants and facebook status updates.
The truth is, there are things that we can do to make our lives easier and to ease our newfound financial burdens. There are small, but significant and valid ways of increasing your income without working the graveyard shift at your local fast food joint.
Here are 10 ways to slightly increase your income and reduce your economic frustrations:
Make a budget-First and foremost, if you don’t have a budget, make one. I’d like to leave this out and assume that this is the first place that most people start when their wallet is feeling light. The truth is, some people don’t know how to budget. Or they don’t think having a budget will help them. It will! Write down where your money needs to go and follow it up by recording where your money truly goes.
Shop strategically-Learn to use coupons, make grocery lists and menu plans and you’ll significantly reduce a huge chunk of your budget in one quick swoop.
Take advantage of deals, freebies and coupon codes-We all have necessities. This doesn’t mean we need to pay top dollar for our clothing, toiletries or cleaning supplies. Learn how to spot a bargain, and when you see a freebie sign up for it! (I recommend using an alternate email address when signing up for freebies online. Not for any sinister reasons, simply so you don’t clog your personal inbox with the inevitable emails those companies will send out)
DIY-Learn to do things yourself. From scratch cooking to home repair, there are so many services and goods that we contract out every single year. Teach yourself how to do a few things on your own and not only have you immediately saved money, you’ve taught yourself a skill that will continue to be a money saver for the rest of your life!
Take those newfound talents and sell yourself-Okay, not in the literal sense obviously. However, you now have a marketable talent that can make a small side income. Don’t assume that just because you know how to do something, that everyone else does. Or that they even want to!
On the same token, look at what you do professionally/daily and see if you can translate that into a side income as well.-Are you a teacher? Tutor on the side. Are you a computer repairmen? Start a small computer repair business from home in your off hours. Stay home with your kids? Watch a few of your friends kids in your home.
Make money online-You can start small with surveys and getting paid for emails. You can start a money making blog. Write for Associated Content or Viewpoints, or one of the dozen other freelance writing sites.
Sell your stuff-This doesn’t have to be original works of art you’ve created. Sell your old textbooks, clothes, books, etc on Ebay, Craigslist or even Facebook (to your friends and family). We all have stuff laying around that might not be useful to us, but might be treasure to someone else!
Negotiate with everyone-Call all those people you pay every month and see if you can negotiate for better rates or cheaper packages. You might be surprised how many companies are willing to drop your monthly rates just because you picked up the phone!
Downgrade-If times are really hitting you hard, it might be time to take a serious look at your lifestyle and your budget and make some cuts. Downgrade down to 1 vehicle, cut your cable package, give up the expensive kids activities, etc.
We can be proactive in cutting our expenses and increasing our income even in the current economy. There are areas of improvement available for all of us. So while I might still grumble and complain, I know that there are things that I can do! I’m not helpless, there certainly is hope…with plenty to go around.
Heather loves to write about frugal living over on her blog Family Friendly Frugality. She is from good ol’ Texas and resides there with her husband and her two young children. Stop by and stay awhile!

Here are some goodies from today

http://www.shop4freebies.com/

March 9, 2011

Here is a HUGE list

**** Update *** Just letting you know out of the 20 I have emailed so far only 3 did not send coupons. I am going to give a complete update after I email them all adn I might add to the list. Happy Couponing !!

This is a list of sites you can email and ask for coupons.. the worst that will happen is they say o.. I emailed them all last year and 90% sent me coupons... others sent a thank you email ..
Here is a Generic Letter form also < you can add and make it your own > There are 154 Companies ..

I am emailing you to let you know I love < enter product here >. We yse this product in different recipes > and family meals > we have been using for a long time and just wanted you to know we appreciate all the work you do to bring this product to my table.
I was wondering if you could send some money saving coupons? In this day and age allot of stores are not fond of printed coupons.
Again thankyou for everything you do !!!

1. BirdsEye www.birdseye.com
2. Sensodyone www.sensodyne.com
3. Starkist Tuna www.starkist.com
4. Idahoan www.idahoan.com
5. Cole's Garlic Bread www.coles.com
6. Arm & Hammer www.armandhammer.com
7. Windex www.windex.com
8. Uncle Ben's www.unclebens.com
9. Whiskas www.whiskas.com
10. Lipton www.liptont.com
11. Zatarains www.zatarains.com
12. Mrs. T's Pierogies www.mrsts.com
13. 9 Lives www.9lives.com
14. Barber Foods www.barberfoods.com
15. Banquet www.banquet.com
16. Del Monte Veggies www.delmonte.com
17. Blue Diamond www.bluediamond.com
18. Florida's Natural www.floridasnatural.com
19. Campbell's www.campbellkitchen.com
20. Jose Ole www.joseole.com
21. Malt O Meal www.malt-o-meal.com
22. Haagen Dazs www.haagen-dazs.com
23. Tillamook www.tillamookcheese.com
24. Michelena's www.michelinas.com
25. Kotex www.kotex.com
26. Luigi's Italian Ice www.luigis.co
27. Thomas' www.thomas.gwbakeries.com
28. Hostess www.twinkies.com
29. Edy's www.edys.com
30. Tyson www.tyson.com
31. Hatfield www.hqm.com
32. Hillshire Farm www.hillshirefarm.com
33. Bic www.bicworld.com
34. Eucerin www.eucerin.com
35. Farm Rich www.farmrichfun.com
36. Kozy Shack www.kozyshack.com
37. Mt. Olive www.mtolivepickles.com
38. Pilgrim's Pride www.pilgrimspride.com
39. Healthy Balance www.healthybalance.com
40. Mrs. Smith's www.mrssmiths.com
41. Helluva Good www.helluvagood.com
42. Perdue www.perdue.com
43. Viva Paper Towel www.vivatowels.com
44. Edward's Pies www.edwardsbaking.com
45. Electrasol www.electrasol.com
46. Woolite woolite.com
47. Kashi www.kashi.com
48. Schick www.shaving.com
49. Smart Ones www.eatyourbest.com
50. Georgia Pacific www.gp.com
51. Ling Ling's www.ling-ling.com
52. Horizon www.horizonorganic.com
53. Land O Lakes www.landolakes.com
54. Sargento www.sargentocheese.com
55. Dannon www.dannon.com
56. Bolthouse Juice www.bolthouse.com
57. Hefty www.pactiv.com
58. Tribe Hummus www.tribehummus.com
59. 7 Up www.7up.com
60. Morningstar Farms www.morningstarfarms.com
61. Welch's www.welchs.com
62. McCain's Fries www.mccainusa.com
63. Vlasic www.vlasic.com
64. Stonyfield Farm www.stonyfield.com
65. Keebler www.keebler.com
66. Celestial Seasonings www.celestialseasonings.com
67. Boboli www.boboli.com
68. Entemman's www.entenmanns.com
69. Arnold Bread www.arnoldbread.com
70. Freihof's Bread www.freihofers.com
71. Tree Ripe OJ www.johannafoods.com/juice.htm
72. Wonder Bread www.wonderbread.com
73. Hebrew National www.hebrewnational.com
74. St. Ives www.stives.com
75. Ronzoni www.ronzoni.com
76. Tropicana www.tropicana.com
77. Ball Park Franks www.ballparkfranks.com
78. Clorox www.clorox.com
79. White Castle www.whitecastle.com
80. PictSweet www.pictsweet.com
81. Lean Cuisine www.leancuisine.com
82. Olivio customerservice@...
83. Tide www.tide.com
84. Oust www.oust.com
85. Chef Boyardee www.chefboyardee.com
86. Propel www.propelwater.com
87. Bagel Bites heinzconsumeraffairs@...
88. Snapple www.snapple.com
89. Clearasil http://www.clearasil.us/
90. Rumba Juice www.rumbaenergyjuice.com
91. Luna Bars www.lunabar.com
92. Mott's www.motts.com
93. White House Applesauce www.whitehousefoods.com
94. Natures Own Breads www.naturesownbread.com
95. Cascadian Farms www.cascadianfarm.com
96. Brach's Candy www.brachs.com
97. Fast Fixin's www.fastfixin.com
98. Carl Budding www.budding.com
99. Bar-S Hot Dogs http://www.bar-s.com/
100. Hawaiian Punch www.hawaiianpunch.com
101. Bigelow Tea www.bigelowtea.com
102. El Montery www.ruizfoods.com
103. Wylers Soups www.wylers.com
104. Nexcare www.nexcare.com
105. Sunny Delight www.sunnydelight.com
106. Freschetta www.freschetta.com
107. Dunkin Donuts www.dunkindonuts.com
108. Blistex www.blistex.com
109. Little Crow Foods www.littlecrowfoods.com
110. Promise www.promisehealthyheart.com
111. Pepperidge Farm www.pepperidgefarm.com
112. Greenies www.greenies.com
113. Crayola www.crayola.com
115.Gorton's Fish www.gortons.com
116. Hanes www.hanes.com
117. Marie Calendar www.mariepies.com
118. Pine-Sol www.pinesol.com
119. Foster Farms www.fosterfarms.com
120. General Mills www.generalmills.com
121. Rhodes Bread customersatisfaction@...
122. Breyers www.icecreamusa.com/breyers
123. Duncan Hines www.duncanhines.com
124. Sea Pak Shrimp www.seapak.com
125. Dole www.dole.com
126. Mama Mary's www.mamamarys.com
127. IBC Root Beer www.ibcrootbeer.com
128. Dial Soap www.dialcop.com
129. Bakers Joy www.bakersjoy.com
130. Jennie-O Turkey www.jennieo.com
131. Barbara's Bakery www.barbarasbakery.com
132. Ian's Natural www.iansnaturalfoods.com
133. Hansen's Beverage www.hansens.com
134. Alexia Foods www.alexiafoods.com
135. Brown Cow Yogurt www.browncowfarm.com
136. Ocean Spray www.oceanspray.com
137. Flat Out Bread feedback@...
138. Rudi's Organic www.rudisbakery.com
139. Mussleman's Applesauce www.knouse.com
140. Skinny Cow www.skinnycow.com
141. Baker's Inn Bread ravindernath@...
142. Lactaid www.lactaid.com
143. Silk Soy Milk www.silksoymilk.com
144. Shady Brook Farms www.shadybrookfarms.com
145. Mrs. Dash www.mrsdash.com
146. Rice Dream www.tastethedream.com
147.Blue Bunny www.bluebunny.com
148. Sobe www.sobebev.com
149. Michangelo's Frozen Entrees www.michaelangelos.com/efamily
150. Mission Tortillas www.missionfoods.com
151. State Fair Corn Dogs www.statefairbrand.com
152. Splenda www.splenda.com
153. Equal Exchange www.equalexchange.com
154. Odwalla www.odwalla.co

March 6, 2011

Found Another Cool Site

http://thefrugalfreegal.com/








Heads up

Walmart Coupon Policy : check the starred one .. interesting

http://walmartstores.com/7655.aspx


Walmart Coupon Policy

Walmart accepts the following types of coupons (see guidelines below):

Manufacturers' coupons
Print-at-home internet coupons
Must be legible, have "Manufacturer Coupon" printed on them, have a valid remit address for the manufacturer, valid expiration date, and have a scannable bar code.
Competitors' coupons that feature a specific item for a specified price
for example, $2.99
Soft drink container caps
Checkout coupons
(also called "Catalinas") that are printed at our competitors' registers, have "Manufacturer Coupon" with specific requirements printed on them, a valid remit address for the manufacturer, valid expiration date, and a scannable bar code.
Walmart does not accept the following coupons:

Print-at-home Internet coupons that require no purchase
Competitors' coupons for dollars/cents or percentage off, buy one get one free, and double- or triple-value coupons
The following are guidelines and limitations:

Only one coupon per item is permitted.
Coupons must have an expiration date and be redeemed prior to expiration.
******Coupons may exceed the price of the item. Change may be given or applied toward the cost of the basket purchase.**********
Walmart only accepts coupons for merchandise that we sell.
Coupons must be presented at the time of purchase.
We accept the following with Customer Service Supervisor/Management approval:
40 or more coupons
Any coupon over $20
$50 or more in coupons in one transaction

March 5, 2011

Good Morning

Just a quick HI ... Getting ready for work and then OFF tomorrow and blogging can be done .. as long as I have no interruptions...LOL.. with 6 dogs > 2 Teenagers > one DH there are going to be interruptions...LOL..
Oh well hope all is well with everyone !!
Hopefully soon my blog will be a bit more active..
Michelle

March 3, 2011

Good Morning

Hey stumbled on this site ....http://madamedeals.com/ --- There was a contest for coupons...lol

March 2, 2011

Update

I am so bad at this blog thing... Sorry everyone .. Very Long weeks... I finally have a new car and I will post a picture here soon.. Now i can get back to normal..My Finance and I have started the 2 week meal planning -- So far so good we have it planned and bought for under 200.00 > we are just starting out on this so it is a work in progress. We are also making a to do list everyday and getting thing done and organized again and back on track.
I am hoping you are all enjoying this blog please any feedback is appreciated !!
Michelle