Kelly's Thrifty Tips

I thought it might be nice to do a little something about reusing an item or two.

If you are like me, you may have a wallet that is a little tight because of loyalty cards and membership cards. If you are also like me, it may be hard to find those cards when you need them. Here is an awesome tip. Take one of those Altoids mint tins and use it to hold your loyalty cards. This is a great place to keep them where the cards wont stretch out your wallet, and they will be easy to locate. These tins are also great to hold mini boo-boo kits. You can put in some bandages, aspirin, cough drops, Rolaids, and those little wet naps. They can also be used as mini play tins by adding some crayons and some folded up paper or even some Soduku sheets or crosswords and some golf pencils to keep you or the kids busy when waiting.

Mesh bags. I am always gathering up mesh bags from onions, nuts, and fruits. Here are a few ways to reuse them. You can use them as a scrubber for pots and pans, attach them to your gutter top to keep leaves out but water will still go in, you can also use them to hold small items that you are going to wash in the dishwasher like baby bottle nipples and caps, when you gather up all those itty bits and pieces of soap that kind of make the soap dish look creepy, pop them in a mesh bag and use that to wash extra dirty gardening hands or even scrub rough tootsies (doesn't that sound so much nicer than rough feet?) and if you want to offer the birds a little treat, you can place some suet in a mesh bag and easily hang it from a tree branch.

Ketchup bottles. Reuse cleaned ketchup bottles to make fun bath toys for the kids or make pancake or cupcake batter squeeze out without the mess.


Website Tips (A little website for the kids and one for you!) -

If you have a child who is planning on taking the ACT, SAT or GRE you might want to direct them to Number2.com. Number2.com is a free site for SAT, ACT and GRE prep. They also have a great vocabulary builder section. Considering that my son is 15 and a sophmore in high school, we are definitely going to keep this site in my computer's bookmarks.

LINK: Number2.com

Nowadays families are super busy. There are sports events to go to, lessons, work, parties and so many other things to keep track of, and Cozi has a way to keep track of it all for free. With Cozi you can keep your appointments on track, have the kids schedules set and even color coded, you can plan and print out your shopping lists, and lots more. And it is all for free! This is such an amazing tool! Truly keeping things organized can keep the stress down, finances up, and keep you at peace! Follow the link below to check it out.

LINK: Cozi Online Organizer for Families

FREEBIES

Target has free samples now! These are great samples too. Follow the link below to get a sample of Tide Original with Acti-Life laundry detergent and Glad Odor Shield trash bags. With six foster kittens in our home, the odor shield bags would be a great freebie!

LINK: Target Freebies

The first 10,000 to respond to Right At Home will get the Touch-Up & Go Pack. This pack includes a canister of Scrubbing Bubbles Antibacterial Bathroom Wipes, a pouch of Pledge Lemon Clean Wipes, a pouch of Pledge Multi Surface Wipes and a canister of Windex Original Glass Wipes. Sign up now for your chance.

LINK: Right At Home Touch-Up & Go Pack.

The first 500,000 registrants will receive a coupon for a free bottle of Advil. This is definitely going to go fast so head on over ASAP.

LINK: Advil

While supplies last you can get a sample of Ester-C Gummies. Now is definitely the time to take advantage of all the vitamins you can get. LINK: Ester-C Gummies


I have to bring this up again, because if you haven't signed up yet, you definitely want to take advantage of a free sample of Taster's Choice little coffee singles. This samples if for six varieties. These really come in handy when you want a coffee but you are on the go.

LINK: Taster's Choice Singles

Free CCM has a new download this week for 33Miles new song "What Grace Looks Like" from their new CD "Today." Great title! You can still take advantage of their other free downloads from Caedmon's Call, Bart Millard, Disciple, The Afters, Phil Wickham and Sara Groves.

LINK: Free CCM

iTickets.com has a free download of "You Belong To Me" from Michael W. Smith's CD "Wonder." This is good if you missed it on hear it first! You can also download "Your Will" by Ken Reynolds Featuring Darick Rutley from Gotta Have Gospel 8.

LINK: iTickets free music

And speaking of Hear It First. Really you must sign up. This week's download was Matthew West's My Own Little World. Just sign up for their news letter and get to download new music EVERY Tuesday! You can also listen to Matthew's new album "The Story of Your Life" AND enter to win a special Matthew West prize pack. Seriously...do you want to pass this up? PS I also got to download "Love Amazing" by Circleslide.

LINK: Hear It First

Here is another interesting treat. If you can't make it to the Make A Difference Tour or if you want to just enjoy the music in advance. Go to Hear It First today at 5 pm Pacific to watch the Make A Difference Tour. There is a suggested donation of $10.00.

LINK: Hear It First Live

PREREGISTER FOR THE EVENT HERE: Make A Difference Tour

Kelly's Thrifty Tips - School Planning

Has anyone else looked at the calendar recently and realized school is just around the corner? It is time to get prepared my friends! Seriously, it just creeps up on you! So let's start working on the back-to-school planning.

First step - Clothes

If you have one child you can do this in one day. If you have more than one, I suggest tackling this project in several days so you don't exhaust yourself and so that nothing gets missed. But focus on one child per day.

Go through everything. Check shoes for fit and wear and tear. Clean out the closets and dressers. Have your child try EVERYTHING on. My son hates this part, but in the long run it saves us money, and can I also add that we have found items we didn't even know we had? As your child is trying on clothes, make three piles.

PILE ONE - This is for everything that fits and is suitable for school. I am talking everything from shirts and bottoms to underclothes and socks.

PILE TWO - This is the pile for everything that fits that your child can wear outside of school. In other words play clothes.

PILE THREE - This is the pile for what simply does not fit. At a later date you can sort this pile and figure out what you can donate, pass along to a sibling or friend, or even sell at a yard sale or consignment shop.

Okay once you have your school pile set aside, go through everything and figure out what you need to buy to supplement this wardrobe. Do not just figure out just the amount of certain clothing items you have but how many outfits you can make out of these pieces.

Now you can make a list and pop that list in your wallet or pocketbook. Keep that list at the ready for those times you are shopping and those unexpected times when you are out and see a great deal. This way you don't have to rely on just memory and buy possibly more than necessary. Saving on back-to-school clothes now, means you can purchase during the extra discounts later.





FREE SAMPLES

Calm facial redness with Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Advanced Facial Serum. Sign up to get a free 1.5 ml sample.

LINK: Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief

Okay since I post these on Thursdays, I am giving you this one now which you should act on next Monday. You can send a friend a greeting (via facebook) which will come with a printable coupon for a Coke while supplies last (and fresh supplies are offered up after 3 pm EST on Mondays). So keep it in mind and send a friend a greeting with a soda treat. Maybe they'll be kind enough to send one back your way!

LINK: Ahh Giver

Okay this one is FREE with rebate. Purchase Neutrogena Clinical SPF 30 Night or Eye between 7/11/2010 and 7/18/2010, mail in the rebate form by 7/31/2010 and you can get the purchase price up to $40 back! So this kind of goes with free and rebates. Either way it is a bargain! Be sure to follow all the directions on your rebate form.

LINK: Neutrogena Rebate

This week's new download from Free CCM is "It is Well With My Soul." You also still have opportunity to download music from Laura Story, Jeremy Horn and Derek Webb.

LINK: Free CCM - Free Music Download

You might also like to join Hear It First. They send a different download to members each week. This week's free download was The Newsboys "One Shot" from the album Born Again. They email you these downloads in their newsletter. Also they have some GREAT contests.

LINK: Hear It First

Walmart.com has a free sample of Huggies Goodnights while supplies last.

LINK: Huggies Goodnights

Free Axe Body Spray Sample is available for Sam's Club members. Membership number is required.

LINK: Axe Body Spray Sample

Sign up for emails from Albertsons and enter the code FREEBREAD, and when you confirm your subscription, you will get a printable coupon for free bakery bread. PS - They ask for a customer number. My Albertsons doesn't use loyalty cards, and I didn't put anything there and still got the coupon.

LINK: Albertsons free Bakery Bread

Grace to You and John MacArthur have a wonderful free offer. You can choose "Cultivating a Godly Child," or "Saved Without a Doubt." Follow the link below for details.

LINK: "Cultivating a Godly Child" or "Saved Without a Doubt"

John Frieda samples of Root Awakening Shampoo and Conditioner. I just got this via email. Follow the link below.

LINK: John Frieda

Okay this is not a buy one get one free deal, but you can buy one Barnes and Noble Smoothie and get one free! Just look at the picture on the coupon, and I think you will be tempted. There are also some other great printable coupons at this link. The coupons expire on July 19th.

LINK: Barnes & Noble Coupon

Kelly's Thrify Tips

Saving on Energy:

First things first...I received a call from a wonderful lady who said that it is not a good idea to close vents in unused rooms as it can make your system work harder, and we definitely do not want that! I would say that I am going to follow the professional advice on this one (she works for a heating and cooling company). So I am going to follow her advice and keep to keeping our temps at 68 degrees in the winter. Lots of people do suggest closing vents so you may want to speak to someone in heating and cooling and get their advice. :)

Other ways to save on the energy...

-- Dress warmer during these chillier months.

-- Use heavy curtains in the winter months to keep drafts out.

-- Open up and let the sun shine in on those sunny days.

-- Drop some energy use during the week by having a TV less night. Read a book, play games with the whole family. This is a great way to save energy and do something positive for the whole family by spending that time together.

-- Turn that tap off when brushing your teeth. Most people know this, but how many people actually do this? I still have to remind myself. This is not the same as when you wash your hands though. Proper handwashing technique involves using RUNNING water which you can see here at this link from the Mayo Clinic: Hand Washing- An Easy Guide

-- Run dishwashers and washing machines on full loads.

-- Add steam to your air by using humidifiers, boiling some water on your stove (be sure to not have it where any children can get to it), open up the bathroom door after a shower to let the steamy air out. Humidity keeps the air warmer.

-- As I mentioned before use draft stoppers. Last week, I left a lot of links to how to make your own. Of course you can buy them too.

-- Wash clothes in cold water. Of course use hot for those things that really need to be sanitary like underthings and towels.

-- We use the miocrowave to heat up hot water. It takes up less energy than the stove.

Now how about doing something good for others?

I talked this morning about the Lunchables Lunch Note Promise campaign. This is the deal. You promise to put an encouraging note in your child's lunch box, and they will give a free meal to a child in need up to 100,000 promises and meals. They are up to 35,668 promises at the time I post this. I just checked out the Lunch Note Promise map. This tells you how many promises have been made in each state. So far, Arizona has 532 promises. Wouldn't it be cool to really bring that up? All YOU have to do is go to their website and make the promise. Think of how cool this will make your kids feel: Lunch Note Promise

Free Music:
I am a huge fan of iTickets.com. Not only do they list Chrisitian concerts and events in the area, but they have a free music download every week! This week they have TWO songs, Rolling Stone by Out of Eden and Alive Again by Matt Maher. You do have to register to do the download. Link: iTickets

How about TEN free songs? Go to the Creation Festival Tour website to download TEN songs free. This is via Itunes. They have downloads for Jars of Clay, Jonny Diaz, This Beautiful Republic, Thousand Foot Krutch, VOTA, B. Reith, Kathryn Scott, Blue Tree, Don Poythress and Brian Doerksen. That is a lot of songs. Link: Creation Fest

Are you interested in more free music? FreeCCM.com has music right now from MercyMe, Derek Webb, and VOTA. Their music changes a lot too so don't forget to keep checking back with them. Again, you do need to register. Link: FreeCCM

Still want more free music? Check out one of my favorite sites: Hear It First. They have amazing Christian music news, artist interviews, videos, CD previews, contests and free music every week! Membership is totally free and completely worth it. I get emails just about every week with free song downloads. I also thrive on the CD previews! Link: Hear It First
Ohhhh! I forgot to add that they are having an awesome CD giveaway right now too! You can win a CD a day for a year. Again, this is a site you will need to register with so keep that in mind.

Want an email for all these contests and special sites. You can get free email from Gmail. That way you will have a designated place for newsletters etc. :) Link: GMAIL

Now a quick loook at sales:

Fry's 49th Anniversary Truck Load Sale -
Fry's has so many amazing things on sale this week, you simply have to go check it out. Here is my top three.
-- A MUST for my house - Chunky Soup - Select varieties 99 cents each limit 24!
-- Fry's canned veggies- Select varieties as well 50 cents each
-- Healthy Choice or Marie Calendar Entrees - Part of the buy 10 deal - Just $1.67!
-- Fry's Broth- Select Varieties 50 cents (great time to stock up for your holiday meals)

Safeway -- COUPON REMINDER- Safeway has a huge coupon deal going on where coupons from 20 cents to 99 cents will become $1.00!!!!
-- Large Green asaparagus 99 cents a pound (GREAT DEAL)
-- Lucern 1 Gallon milk $1.37 (limit 2)
-- Rancher's Reserve Beef Bottom Round Roast $1.99 lb

Albertsons -- COUPON REMINDER - 50 cents (doubled), 33 cents (tripled), 25 cents(quadrupled)
-- 93% Lean Ground Beef $1.67 pound
-- Boneless Pork Sirloin Chops $3.99 lb buy 1 get 1 free!!!!
-- 5 for $5 Sale on items including Chunky soup (limit 5), Sargento Shredded Cheese (limit 5), Coffee Mate 16 oz (limit 5) and more items.

Coupon Deal - Check out The Real Meal Deal buy five of any of these frozen foods:
Van de Kamps Seafood
Lenders Bagels
Aunt Jemima Breakfast
Hungry Man Dinners
Duncan Hines Oven Ready Brownies
Mrs. Paul’s Seafood

Print out the form and send in your receipts for $5 in coupons!