Operation $40K

Just a reminder -- There are 14 chances in it so far -- still plenty of time to up your chances for this $350+ package! You have to post ON MY BLOG about what you have done to earn chances, not on Facebook, Twitter or Email =) Here is a refresher on the details It's been a while, so here comes some fun! Everything you see pictured can be yours! Acrylic stamp sets, an ink pad, a coupon for FREE Oscar Meyer Hot Dogs, a coupon for a FREE Butterfinger candy bar, an Oscar Meyer frisbee, a travel voucher good for a FREE 2 night hotel stay at a TON of different cites like: Branson, Niagra Falls, Orlando, etc ($300 value!) The last day you can enter is 8/10 How can you enter? OK, here is how you get a chance to win, you can do any or all: - Become a follower (or tell me already that you are) - Share it on Facebook and then leave me a comment about it - Share it on YOUR blog and link back to me - Twitter it and then leave me a comment about it If we hit 50+ followers, I will add a $50 Tuppe...

I was reading Money Saving Mom and spotted the big Summer Warehouse sale for Barnes and Noble! While she was excited to see that Barnes and Noble has the Once-A-Month Cooking and Once-A-Month Cooking: Family Favorites cookbooks clearanced to $1.99 each as part of their Summer Warehouse Sale, I remember my first experience with them. I did the 30 day plan - once. It took two days: One day of shopping, chopping, slicing and dicing and one of assembling all the meals for the freezer. I never worked so hard making food in my life **keep in mind that I used to have a restaurant of my own! MINI sessions are the way to go -- work with the meal sales special of the week, buy 6-10 pounds of it and make a bunch of things for the freezer! Here are a few links to ideas from the past: Ground beef-> http://operation40k.blogspot.com/2010/04/ground-beef.html Chicken-> http://operation40k.blogspot.com/2010/04/tastes-like-chicken.html There are lots of other $1.99 titles in the Summer Warehouse S...

As back to school time draws nearer and nearer, it's time to talk about how you can save a lot of money, painlessly! This is my $1,000 lunch bag set. Sound impossible? It’s true-it can save your family $1,000 or more! Just think about it, if you work outside the home and you buy lunch out almost every day. If you only spend $6.00 a day on lunch and a soda, get two weeks of vacation a year, that is 50 weeks at $30 a week...for a grand total of $1,500 a year! If you were to bring your lunch from home, use up some leftovers and your own juice, you could easily save $1,000 or more a year. If you are married, that is times TWO! We haven’t even added in breaks or afternoon chocolate pick-me-ups…However, if you brown bag it and use plastic wrap, foil, zippy bags and so on, four of those items pus the brown bag is only about $.1.15 a day that you throw away,...that adds up to about $359 per person, ,per year in the trash! That is about $4,300 over 12 years of school - per kid! Just think...

a funny thing happened today: I stopped at a fast food place and grabbed lunch for myself and my daughter. (No, I didn't have any coupons). Now before you fall over in shock we did Wendy's and their $1 value menu - two bacon cheeseburgers for $2. No drinks were needed as we had our water bottles with us so $2 was it. When we pulled up to the window, I saw the promo for their Wendy's Frosty and Kid's foundation. For $1, customers at participating Wendy’s restaurants can purchase an all-access pass to five months of Jr. Frostys while supporting the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and its signature program, Wendy’s Wonderful Kids. Yes, I spent another $1 for a keytag. The money goes to the Foundation and through the end of the year, any time we swing by, we get a free Frosty with any purchase. I'm not proud of it, but I am fond of their baked potatoes and chili...yes, more things on the $1 menu -LOL! I DO see us occasionally going back there and taking advantage of...

There is no question that it is a special event when you have a munchkin - the birthday party! A theme, invitations, guest list, cake, games and more are certainly standard elements. One thing that I find disturbing: a lot of parents take the party "out". Chucky Cheese, Gymfinity, etc are not only pretty darned expensive per child, it takes a lot of the cool memories out of the mix! If your little one is like mine, they get a kick out of helping plan the event, right down to the goody bags. My sister gave me a couple of neat books: The Penny Whistle Party Planner by Meredith Brokaw & Annie Gilbar and Birthday Parties by Vicki Lansky. Both books are great - there are a lot of great DIY ideas in them for a fun event! Considering I have Sarah's next two birthday parties planned out, I have no urgent need to research them but I know you are curious as to what is up my sleeve: I keep my eyes open all year long for bargains and deals. When she turned 3 it was a "Fishy ...

If you are like me, you have a few things that need painting. When we moved in (over 15 years ago) the people before us had sponge painted the stairwell to the basement. Just one problem, they used a square kitchen sponge. When I tackle that paint job, you will see the before and after pictures, LOL! I just happened to notice that Menard's has a GREAT deal on their private label house paint - $8 Mail In Rebates on each gallon AND they are all $2 off per gallon right now too~! There are three styles to choose from: Interior Flat Paint $11.99 (Limit 5 gallons paint total) Spend $9.99, as $2 comes off in instant savings, get $8.00 store credit back via mail-in rebate Final price: $1.99 after store credit from mail-in rebate Satin Flat Paint $13.99 (Limit 5 gallons paint total) Spend $11.99, as $2 comes off in instant savings, get $8.00 store credit back via mail-in rebate Final price: $3.99 after store credit from mail-in rebate Semi-Gloss Flat Paint $14.99 (Limit 5 gallons paint to...