Hello 2015!

Hello again!  It's been awhile since I've blogged!  I am now living in central Ohio with my family, husband, two kids and three cats.  We just bought a house and made the move from DC to Ohio over the holiday season.  

So now I'm 'fru-girl' in Ohio.  It's going to be interesting exploring Ohio again after living in two of the more expensive cities in America.  Stay tuned for more posts about family, Ohio living, becoming home owners, cheap eats, Ohio finds, paying off debts and more.  

Whole Foods on the cheap!

First of all, did you know that you can go to the customer service counter and ask for a free snack for the children when you walk in?  Walter was delighted with his  animal crackers and organic apple juice and a sheet of stickers!  

Sorry for the blurry picture… I had Walter in the ergo carrier in front of me.  

Secondly, there are fantastic deals on special buys on Fridays. For example today September 20 they are having a sale on smoke salmon for 4.99 for 4 ounces.  In past deals, they have done great prices on grass fed beef, fresh fish, chicken wings and more!  These special buys at whole foods are usually my 'stock up' days.

Also, in the email that they send you about the special buys you can scan a barcode to get all the coupon savings in one scan. It saves time and you don't have to clip coupons!  

Also, go in with a list and stick to it in less something is on sale and you have a coupon. If you see something you want and it's not a list and not on sale… I have resorted to just take a picture of it and buy next time it's on sale.  Getting derailed in whole foods is very dangerous and can cost a lot of money!  Here are my "wants" for next time… Fresh Pierogies, crepes for lunchboxes and vegetable pot pies! Yum!

Can Organic be Frugal?

Yes, yes a resounding yes! And after all...health is priceless...and if you are what you eat, why would you want to be junk? Consider eating well and eating organic as part of your health care budget. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!

Steeper Discounts

Organic coupons are typically from smaller companies that really want to get you to try their product....and unlike their non-organic competitors, they offer steeper discounts (i.e: $1 off one item, $1.50 off one item)

I "Like" you on Facebook

"Liking" companies on Facebook can give you great coupons, vouchers and even free products! Don't be shy, tell them how you feel! :)

Stack Your Coupons at Whole Foods

If you have a Whole Foods near you....you are really in business! You can stack Whole Foods coupons found in their flyers or online (here) on top of Manufacturer coupons and get organic groceries for just a few cents or sometimes,.....free! Sign up for Whole Foods email notifications for special sales and free events. FYI: Other Organic favorite Trader Joe's also takes coupons.

Blogger Healthy Life Deals simplifies saving money for you and writes out the up to date deals for Whole Foods and provides links to each available online coupon!

Whole Foods keeps a stash of coupons on hand from their old flyers and from vendors at their customer service desk. Just yesterday I scored a handful of $1.00 off BearNaked Granola coupons and $1.00 off Coconut Milk from SoDelicious!

Ask for the coupons you want!

Email or call the organic companies and ask for coupons. There's always a 1-800 number on their package to call and request coupons.

Get Friendly with Vendors

Also if there's a vendor promoting an item you enjoy at Whole Foods or a festival, ask if they have coupons - they are always happy to get rid of extra coupons!

Start Drinking Free Water...

There's a site called "Find a Spring" where you can find fresh spring water year round somewhere near you. It's user-submitted and rates the quality and taste of the water....there are a couple great springs in Chicagoland.

Try Eating Raw...

It saves time cooking, cause you're not cooking and time is money! Check out site: Raw Under $10 a Day This blogger is frugal minded and health conscious!

Stock a Frugal Organic Pantry...

This may take a couple weeks, because you can buy throughout an entire sale cycle. When Organic Couscous is on sale, grab 3 weeks worth of those yummy little grains. Then, when Organic Chicken Broth is on sale (It was free with stacked coupons a couple weeks ago!) buy up as many that will last through the 'use by date' stamped on the package,...and so on! More helpful tips on stocking your pantry are found on the Whole Foods site.

I will continue to post on these topics....any thoughts, sharing ideas and comments are welcomed!

Frugal Finds at Garage Sales!

My cousin Kris and I decided to go around the North Shore area this past Saturday morning to see what we could find at garage sales! In our pictures, you can see our masses of loot we accumulated! We had a great time, spent about 4 hours shopping and scouting and had some great finds for a total combined amount of $19.25.

Our first find was a box of plates with artistically designed Chicago scenes. I saw a box that told they were from Marshall Fields, one particular design of a Christmas at Daley Plaza (my favorite time and place in Chicago - the Christkindlemarket). I was thinking about offers when the lady said, " You can take them all for ten dollars". Sold! I packed them up into a printer-paper box and set them aside. Right away, a little black camera caught my cousin's eye....as an aspiring photographer, the little Brownie Target 6-20 was a diamond in the rough...and it was hers for a mere $3! When we got home, we did some online research and found that the plates were worth about $10-30 a piece, and I had 9 of them! They were from annual releases of a Limited edition from Chicago-based artist Franklin McMahon. Score!

A cute little German-looking music-box caught my eye as we were leaving, and interested me even more when I turned it over and learned that it was made in West Germany and had Reuge Swiss movement, (a company that creates music boxes and still exists today). "How much for the little music box?" I asked. "3 dollars" she replied. I handed over three 1 dollar bills and it was mine!

A while later, we came across a woman selling the lot of her Antique Booth...I saw a broken 3 Tier serving tray (something I have been wanting ever since having High Tea at Harrod's in London this summer!). "How much for this thing?" I asked. "How about 1 dollar?". And I carted it away....knowing the fix would be easy for my handy husband and some JB Weld. When we got home, Jon fixed it up right away and it looked very elegant,...just like Harrod's in London! Now all I have to do is have a tea party! It even fit our white Crate & Barrel plates! (see below)

The last item was .25 cents at an Estate sale.....a 2-part Tube Cake Pan that my husband has been wanting for a couple years now. He "borrowed" his mother's Angel Food Cake Pan when he moved out to Chicago and never gave it back...now with my 25 cent purchase, he can finally have his own pan and return the original to his mom!

My last purchase was a game I had on my Christmas list last year and didn't receive. It was "Tangoes" a competitive Tangram game that retails for $9-20 on Amazon.com. I scored it brand new in mint condition, never played for $2!

All in all, Kris, Jon and I are going to hit up some more local sales to see what history and deals we can find in Chicago-land! We had a full day of fun and adventures for less than $20! Now, that's frugal!

Fixed 3-tier Tea Tray!

Frugal Grocery Shopping in Chicago

In Chicago, Jewel-Osco and Dominick's are everywhere! But, choosing between going to Jewel or Dominick's is not your only choice for all your groceries. You can save a lot of money by a little bit of adventure and a little bit of planning ahead.

Plan your week (quickly)

Now I realize not everyone may have the chance to plan their weekly meals, but it reduces stress throughout the week, and eventually saves time and money. So on Saturday or Sunday when I have an extra minute or so of free time, I jot down the week's evening dinnertime schedule (quickly determining if a family dinner is possible for each night, if I have time to cook, etc). It goes like this:

· Mon - - COOK

· Tues - - PACK/LEFTOVERS

· Wed - - COOK

· Thur - -EASY COOK (busy night)

· Fri - - -COOK

· Sat - - -Go out to dinner with friends

So for the week above, I need 3 regular cooking meals, 1 Easy Cook meal (something like boil pasta and add sauce, or a pre-made freezer meal) and 1 day where I pack my lunch and my family eats leftovers.

Scan the Ads

Then, I glance over the local adds (online) for meat that's on sale. This will probably be the main course of my 3 COOK meals. (looking for meat $2 or under)

For example....This week, I found boneless skinless fresh Chicken Tenders for $1.79/lb at Village Marketplace, my COOK meals reflect and are planned as such: Pineapple Chicken Lettuce Wraps, Chicken with Artichokes and Chicken Parmesan. Also Boston Lettuce is 2 Heads for $1.00...thus, Lettuce Wraps and side salads are planned with each meal.

Adventuring out to new places:

Discover your neighborhood - Do not be totally satisfied with your big chain supermarkets! Venture to places that attract immigrants or local ethnic groups; these smaller markets tend to have fresher and cheaper produce than Jewel and Dominick's. Shop fresh items (meat, produce, and even some cheeses) at these local Grocery stores and save the commercialized items and your coupons for Jewel.

Some of Chicago's cheaper alternatives: (for north side)

Food4Less, Main Street & McCormick (Takes coupons, Kroger store brand, great produce & Mexican food section)

Village Marketplace, two locations in Skokie and Carol Stream (amazing produce sales, best meat & deli counter with great prices, Kosher products, friendly staff that remembers you)

Marketplace on Oakton (fresh produce, more meat and fish selections)

Aldi - opening up all over Chicago! Great prices especially on dried goods, great food!

Strack & Van Til, on Elston/Bucktown, (has a devoted following for their meat and deli counter, has much better prices than Jewel & Dominick's).

Save your coupons for the "Super-Markets", Jewel & Dominick's! Always match sales, coupons and rebates together and use your customer cards to get "preferred savings". At the supermarket chains, only shop for the coupon/sale items that are the American "commercialized items", (Like freezer items, soda, cereals, crackers, and cookies). This will save you immense cash throughout the year!

$$ Tip: Buy your Sunday Paper at The Dollar Tree (for only $1) and clip coupons for your week from the coupon inserts! The paper coupons are usually the best during the first week of every month. Are you even more (maybe shamelessly) frugal? Pick up coupon inserts from Starbucks or any fancy coffee shop on Sunday morning; many coffee drinkers buy the Sunday paper to read and discard and toss aside the coupon inserts! Also don't forget to log on to Coupons.com, Smartsource.com, and redplum.com to select and print online coupons. Most sites will let you print 2 coupons per computer.

To Send or Not to Send....(Christmas Cards)

"You have such a pretty face, you should be on a Christmas card!" Yes, a quote from one of my favorite Christmas movies, Elf (as mentioned before!)

Well, why not put that lovely face of yours on a Christmas card? There are so many to choose from, especially online, so the real question is what is the best price and who's going to get them to you in time to send out before 2011?

With people being crunched on time + money this holiday season, many people are opting out of sending Christmas cards. But what if sending a Christmas card not only brought joy and smiles to your loved ones and kept you in touch with friends and family, but also helped get you your dream job? Check out this article from www.Glassdoor.com about "How Holiday Cards Can Help You Network".

The big ones in the "Christmas Card Industry" are Shutterfly, Snapfish and Hallmark,...all online of course! Let's take a deeper look at my favorites offered from Shutterfly....

My favorites tend to be the classic "Merry Christmas" cards such as this one, (and isn't that blonde family cute?) Maybe we'll send that one out + keep that picture! (my family will be like....um...who are these people?) My other favorite is this 5x7 card pictured here. Of course if you a celebrating another holiday other than Christmas, there many fun designs like "Starlight Joy" or this "Classic Monogram" card. If you're crunched for time, and time is money, Shutterfly can address + stamp and send out your Season's Greetings for you!

Think ahead: And looking forward to 2011, while you're ordering your Christmas cards, you might as well create a nice photo calendar. Check them out here! Currently you can save 30% on photo calendars. Deal!

Free Shipping: Don't forget to check for free shipping codes on my favorite coupon sites, or I can just save you the hassle, and the shipping code currently is SHIP50 for orders over $50. My other favorite section of Shutterfly is their "Special Offers" section....there are special deals here posted daily to help you buy some gifts for the family + friends!

So my Conclusion to sending out Christmas cards? Well, it's only once a year, there are plenty of cards and different costs to choose from. Secondly I always enjoy it sending and receiving cards, so I say to certainly send out your Season's Greetings! Keep in touch with loved ones and bring joy to your friends + family! Merry Christmas!