Operation $40K

...your gold jewelry. That is the question that seems to be on every one's mind as they are constantly bombarded by the infomercials and more right now! With gold prices reaching a high of $1,000 an ounce, this is certainly a good time to sell your gold IF you know what you are selling! Think of all those single earrings because you lost one of them, the broken bracelets, ruined chains, etc. Things that can't be fixed but are in your possession. THAT is what you want to look at taking out of your jewelry box, NOT your good stuff! Beware of the SCAMS out there! Late night TV infomercials that tell you to send it in...the home parties...the short term kiosks at the local mall. What you want to do is take it to a REAL jeweler, and get a REAL estimate before you hand it over. In fact, get three different estimates and go back to the person that gave you the best offer. My 7 lonely earrings, 1 broken chain and a small clump of gold (I had a ring made smaller once and asked for the g...

Cable rates have jumped and jumped over the years - we were actually surprised to see what basic cable actually runs right now! Almost $600 a year to see bad reality shows, poorly written (and short lived) sit coms as well as channels designated to nothing but cooking shows all day long that promote the latest book or gadget. That almost seems like a crime, LOL! We DO have an option. Digital TV for FREE. Get an attic antennae, set it up with your digi converter box and you now have 5-15 very viewable channels, 3 of them being full of really cool PBS shows for the kiddos. If you find that you no longer get that "must see" show that you ALWAYS watch, then check out hulu.com! They are adding more and more shows on there and you can watch for FREE! You don't need anything other than your computer - no dvd burner, no TiVo, no cable. Figure that a good antennae will run about $40 and take that out of your $600. You have SAVED about $560 in just the first year! You will also fin...

Ever wonder about watering your yard? When is too much? When is not enough? What time of day is best? HOW can I do it and save money at the same time? Let's face it, we all love a lush green yard but it can be expensive! Here is the big secret: get a rain gauge! For less than $10 you can put one in your yard and monitor it. If you get an inch of rain or more a week - you do NOT need to get out that hose! However, if you get less than an inch a week, your yard could use a boost of moisture. This can save you a LOT of money over the summer on your water bill!! Here are some tips: 1) Water in the morning, before the day gets so hot that half of what you are putting in the yard evaporates into the air. If you wait until night time, the cooler temperatures might keep the wrong things damp and you have potential mold issues with your plants. 2) See if you can find a traveling sprinkler. This little bugger will move through your yard slowly for you and save your time and energy. It also d...

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...