a little of this and that...

We have another busy weekend ahead of us, so I thought I'd do a quick update now...probably won't have time to update until Sunday again. We are having the 4th annual P family garage sale at our house this weekend. So we've been busy making new, more durable signs to advertise with and purging stuff to make room for baby come October! We should have some big ticket items to get people in, so hopefully it's a success!

I haven't talked about it in a while but I'm still clipping coupons and loving all the savings...some weeks I've been really good about going through them before heading to the store...others have been just too busy (or wasn't feeling well and Joe did the shopping for me, you'll notice a dip in March/April which was when I had morning sickness/extreme fatigue)...but here is what we've saved for the first 5 months of the year:

This past weekend, Joe spent the weekend at his Dad's with his brother Mark. I headed to the neighborhood garage sales in Elk River with my SIL Melinda and niece Brandy. We had so much fun and seriously scored some awesome deals! I got practically brand new, name brand clothes (Gymboree, Carters, Gap) for next to nothing (everything was $1 or less). I plan to go each summer now and buy for the next year. It was a little tricky shopping and not knowing the gender...but I'm hoping to still find some sales in June once we know. On Sunday, I headed to Edina for lunch with some of my girls. We had a picnic at an indoor park and then headed to Southdale Mall for some retail therapy. We also found out one of us is expecting in early December. I was so excited to hear the news and to share some of my pregnancy with her! She thinks hers is a girl (I think mine is a boy)...so maybe they'll live happily ever after someday? Or if I'm wrong and pumpkin seed is a girl, then at least be LLL's like we are ;o)

We survived the heat wave this week...my car read 105 yesterday...I texted my family and asked if I had slept through June and July...it felt like a bad August on a vengeance. It guess it hasn't been that hot in MN since 1988. I've never been more thankful for air conditioning than I was the past few days.  I'm only between 5-6 months along now but still...I would have been one VERY crabby lady to be around if I didn't have it at both work and home. My car never really cooled down either, even with my 45 minute commute. About halfway home, I was finally able to grip the steering wheel without severe pain.

Otherwise, life has been good...our summer is already starting to fill up VERY fast...I have a feeling I'm going to blink and it will be September already, eeekk!

a steal of a deal...

So I made our first purchases and just had to share the deals I scored at Saturday's youth sale...everything has been washed and cleaned and ready for pumpkin seed's arrival.  I went to the sale with my sister in law Melinda and niece Brandy.  We had a great time!  And I spent a mere $16.50 for everything!! I can't wait to garage sale this summer :)

I got this classic toy that I think every child should have for $1.50 and a dishwasher holder for any small pieces of bottles and such for only $0.50.

I scored this fuzzy, brown 0-3 months snow suit for only $3!! It's so hard to find anything gender neutral and I don't feel like spending the $50+ for one when we do know the gender, so I picked this up...this should get us through the first few months of winter (for the few times we will venture out for the holidays and doctor appointments).

I also picked up this boppy for only $2 (sells new for $31). It's been washed and gone through 3 dryer cycles on hot, just to make sure there is nothing living in it...and it looks brand new now. There were no stains, it just needs a cover.  I saw they sell this exact brand at Target or I might have my mother-in-law help me sew a few covers too, probably in colors that match our nursery set.  She didn't think it would be too hard to do.

Lastly, I bought four maternity shirts...not sure if they fit yet (no place to try them on) but I'm not out that much money if they don't. They are either from Gap or Motherhood Maternity, so some nice stuff!

ETA: They all fit and will work out great! 

Yay for saving money!! :)

a date which will live in infamy...

The BIG day has finally arrived and I can't sit still....I've been cleaning like a mad woman today (which is what I do when I'm nervous or upset)....today it's nerves. Yet I'm so freaking excited...I can hardly stand it. So now that the house is mostly clean, I'm trying to keep busy so my nerves don't lead me to the kitchen...so I will blog for a while :)

I've recently really gotten into e-books. Joe bought me an iPad for Christmas and I can't put the thing down. The only downside is most of the best sellers are $9.99 and I just can't bring myself to pay that much for a book (yet I can walk into a B&N and drop $15 for a book and not think twice about it). I think I still struggle with not receiving anything tangible from the transaction. Thankfully iBooks has a $2.99 or less section that I've been buying from.  I also downloaded the Kindle app for free and they have way more books for $5 or less, which is fantastic!

I sometimes feel pathetic that these things make my week but I love it and will share anyways.  We went to Target yesterday and saved $15.75 in coupons and just under $6 from the 5% savings.  Granted, it was a larger than normal shopping trip.  It was a major stock up trip with detergent, toilet paper, toiletry items, etc (which have the largest coupon savings).  But it was $22 in my pocket and I'll take that any day!  Seriously, you all NEED to clip coupons...it's the best thing since sliced bread :)  I will continue to keep track and maybe bi-monthly I'll do a little update so you can see what you can save too.

I'm also putting this out here, so I have more motivation to see it through. My goal for February is to get to the gym at least 12 times to see if I can get the health insurance discount. It's more cost effective for us to have insurance through our own employers...and of course, my insurance doesn't have the option but Joe's does. Since we're on the same gym membership, they told me that sometimes the insurance companies will still reimburse for spouses, even though they might not be on their plan. I'm dying to find out, so February is the month I'm going know once and for all...no more excuses to not stop on the way home anymore! I've been there 2 times so far this week (I decided this a few days ago), so I'm well on my way to achieving my goal.

We had my work post-holiday party last night (post-poned due to the 12/10 blizzard) at the Marriott Hotel in DT Minneapolis.  The food was decent (a little too fancy for my liking) but we both had a really good time. It's always fun to hang out with your co-workers in a non-work setting for once and get to know their spouses. One of the entertainers was a magician that was actually pretty funny and did some amazing tricks. I think it's way more fun to see these shows in person vs the television...with the TV, you never know what "camera tricks" they are really doing. We both had a few "how the heck did he do that?!?" moments last night, he was good.  Joe had started to talking to the magician before the show (while I was in line for the bathroom).  We ended up talking to him for more than 20 minutes...so then I was super nervous he'd select me for the cutting a body part in half portion of the show...thankfully neither one of us was selected, whew!!

Anyways, hope you all had a great weekend and enjoy the game, it's going to be a good one :)

coupons and meal planning...

For those looking to save on your grocery or Target bills, read on :)

I've been clipping coupons for a few months now and decided to keep track of my savings, starting in 2011.  I make weekly trips to Super Target and we typically spend anywhere from $50-$100/week for our groceries, cleaning supplies and personal care items. Basically Target runs our household, we almost exclusively shop there (except for a great coupon deal at Cub or the few items we pick up from Costco). Along with clipping coupons, we save 5% on every bill because I use our Target Red Card, which I budget and pay off right away so there is never any incurred interest.  If you aren't interested in a credit card, they have one that links right to your checking account too.

In January alone, I saved $23 in coupons and $15 in the 5% savings from using my Red Card, for a total of $38!!!  And I don't buy, just to buy because I have a coupon.  I can throw coupons away if they are old, expired, or one I won't use anytime soon.  I also only buy what we will need and use in the next month or two because another coupon will come along (you will notice the coupons are cyclical).  I do however, if possible, plan our meals around what is on sale that week (or what we already have in the house) and what I have coupons for to maximize savings. I also watch for things like detergent and toothpaste to go on sale and use my coupons then, even though I might not need it for a few weeks.

We spend $60/year for the Sunday edition of the Star Tribune to get my coupons.  I also save the Target coupons you get each time you visit. So assuming January will be a typical month, we can potentially save over $450 this year (or $400 if you factor in the newspaper costs). The few $ you save each week might not seem like a lot but add that up over months and years, it's huge!

And seriously, I maybe spend 30 minutes a week clipping coupons and meal planning.  It's become part of my Sunday morning ritual, I actually look forward to seeing what they will have each week.  It is definitely worth the time.

Here's a great website I found with tips and ideas for starting out and organizing.  I use this plastic accordion organizer and keep it in my purse.  I choose to organize by type (food, medicine, household, personal care, etc).  I'm in love with this one from the Container Store (seriously the best place on earth!!) but I think it would be too long too keep in my purse.

Also, meal planning is fabulous!  I plan out our dinners each week...when I make things like spaghetti, I make enough so we have leftovers for either lunch or dinner another night.  For breakfasts and lunches, we typically just eat toast, cereal and sandwich/chip type meals, nothing too fancy for those.  We haven't really seen a significant decrease in the grocery bill since I started meal planning but I've seen a $50-$75/month savings in our eating out expenses. We still eat out but it's usually only 1-2 meals per week (when it was probably at least 4-5 times per week in the past, going out for lunch killed our checkbook).

Happy clipping!!