Save Big Money at Menards

Credit

I have to admit that I've learned something new about saving money this week that I didn't quite know existed! I wasn't sure that was possible, but alas a new rock has been turned. It's a fun little thing called mail in rebates from Menards. I know not everyone in the country has Menards so let me fill you in on these smart folks. Menards is kind of like Lowe's, but they also have the typical Walmart like sections with food, drinks, toiletries, and cleaning supplies. Every week, Menards has several items that will be free or just pennies after their mail in rebates. It gives you a store credit postcard to use just like $ at Menards. They also limit the amount that you can buy and receive a rebate for on each item (usually ranges from 3-20). You then take your postcard rebates and buy OTHER items that are free or almost free after rebate in order to roll your rebates just like ECBs or RRs at CVS or Walgreens. They also take coupons so it is definitely possible to get overages on your products. Yes it takes a little longer than a week to get your rebate, but you should ideally be able to do this once a month to get free items. You can even get free tools or building supplies as a part of this program!

My plan for this week will cost me about $20 to start, but will give me $27 in rebates back so I can buy other things later on this month or early August. I plan to use some of my rolling rebates to buy some school supplies for my classroom that I hope they will have on sale in the coming weeks :)

Have you discovered any new money saving tips lately? Even if you haven't, what are your tried and true tips to stretch your buck?

How Much Can I Save in a Year-April Update

Well my April update is a little late, but here goes nothing! I actually took the month off from a lot of shopping because I did an eat from the pantry challenge. I spent $10 a week and just got fresh foods or dairy products. I went over by $2.18 one week, but overall I did save money quite a bit by using up some of the pantry. I pretty much only bought extra things if I could get them for free or under $0.25 each. With as much working as I was doing after my actual job (reffing and coaching), I did find myself picking up dinner out a little more often which sucked so I am going to try to work at that a little better this month. So far, I have only been out to dinner twice in May and have cooked at home the other nights. It's my hope that I will be able to keep this up despite my busy schedule this month.


Here is what I got in April for free or less than $0.25!




6 pouches of Starkist Tuna-$1.00 each- (6) $.50 coupons (double)=6 free

Seventh Generation paper towels- $.89 on clearance-$1 coupon= FREE + .11 overage

Suave deodorant $1.06-.50 coupon (doubles)=$.06

2 tubes of Crest toothpaste-$1.00 each-(2) .50 coupons=2 FREE


2 Reach toothbrushes $1.00 each- $2/2 coupon=2 FREE

3 Reach floss-$1.00 each- (3) $1/1 coupons=3 FREE

Vasaline Sheer Infusion lotion-$1 on clearance-$1/1 coupon=FREE

Head and shoulders trial size shampoo $.97-$1/1 coupon=FREE


Degree deodorant $.97-$1/1 coupon=FREE

Heinz ketchup $1.99-$2/1 coupon=FREE

Grey Poupon $1.12 on clearance-$.50/1 coupon (doubles)=$.12



Well that's it for now. I promise I will get back to posting a lot more once school gets out in 10 days!

Ice Ice Baby

It has been an interesting week here in Indy! We are covered in ICE!!!! About 2-6 inches of ice has completely covered every surface in sight...which also means snow/ice days. We've been off school since Monday!! Although I am excited to have this unexpected vacation for my birthday, I am also starting to get stir crazy! I'm hoping to be able to go out tonight with my family for my birthday dinner at Ruby Tuesday's (SALAD BAR....HOLLA!!!!).

On to the real reason I am posting from inside my ice shelter...savings! I am one of the intelligent people who made the decision to go to the grocery store the weekend prior to what is being called Snowmagedon 2011...instead of the night before. I have weeks worth of food and a good most of it I got for free or under $1 thanks to some great sales at Kroger and coupons. I am linking up with Cait @theblessedlife to participate in her How much can I save in a year link up. I do not have the kind of planning or patience to be able to calculate how much I can save in a year....needless to say my response of "a lot" will suffice for the time being. I will however be participating every month by posting some of the best deals I've gotten for the month and a savings tip I find valuable. So here goes January!

All of these were part of the Mega Event Sale that gave you $5 off instantly when you bought 10 items (You must by in sets of 10....I bought 20)

(9) Honest Tea $.75 each- (9) $.50/1 coupons (my store doubles)=9 free +$2.25 overage

(2) Birdseye Steamfresh veggies -$1.49 each-$.50/2 coupon (doubled)=$.99 each

(1) Lean Pockets $1.60-$.50/1 coupon (doubles)=$.60 each

Silk Pure Almond Milk $1.99-$1/1 coupon=$.99

(3) Kraft 2% Milk Singles $1.49 each- (3) $1/1 coupons=$.49 each

Other sales

Wholey Guacamole $1.99-$1/1 coupon=$.99

(2) Helper products (chicken and hamburger) $1 each - (2) $.50/1 coupons (double)=2 FREE

(3) Tyson Anytizers $5.99 each -(3) $1/1 coupons=$4.99 each (Thats a $5 savings each off regular price!)

(9) Yoplait yogurts $.50 each -(2) $.50/4 coupons (double) and (1) Free cup coupon=about $.22 a cup

Plus: Free chocolate milk WYB Gallon of white milk

Ok now for a savings tip from the single girl. In order to maximize my budget at the grocery, I only buy marked down meat or poultry (or extremely good sales). In August, I found ground beef on markdown for about $.50/lb. What a great price! So I bought 20 lbs of it....$10. I came home and broke it up into 3 different size packages (1/2 lb, 3/4 lb, and 1 lb). I just finished my last package last week. I do the same with chicken and pork too. A few weeks ago I found boneless chicken thighs marked down to $.75/lb. I bought 5 packages for about $10. Just think of the stews, soups, and baked chicken dishes I can make with these. Yes I can't always predict what meat is going to be marked down, but I can plan all my meals around it. I might go a couple dollars over my grocery budget, but like the ground beef, I won't have to buy it again for several months. That kind of savings really adds up for me over the long run! It has allowed me to cut my grocery budget down to $10 or less some weeks. I am also planning on trying to spend $40 for the month of March by using stockpile stuff up and only buying fresh produce and dairy products. Hopefully I'll be able to do it!

Financial Peace household

Well today is the day I get to share my financial goals for 2011! I made some MAJOR strides this past year toward becoming the financially responsible woman I would like to be. I will review my goals for this past year and share the goals I have for this year. I have to date spent $24 so I am feeling AMAZING about my ability to control my spending even during the holidays.

2010 goals
1. Pay cash for a reliable car with under 50,000
2. Pay cash for a patio to replace the paver one
3. Pay cash for a fence to enclose my backyard
4. Save $250 per paycheck automatically
5. Start investing in my retirement plan
6. Save 6 months of living expenses
7. Build an emergency fund (Baby step #1---Thanks Dave Ramsey!)
8. Pay off all debt except my house and student loans (they are being forgiven bc of my teaching service so I am not paying anything on them currently)
9. Cut grocery budget to $20 weekly utilizing coupons

I actually achieved all of these goals without much extra effort! In July, I bought a new to me VW Jetta and traded in SuzieQ. Read about how I picked out the car here. In May, I added a new patio to the backyard and despite some lessons learned, it is wonderful after the repairs. In June, I added a fence to the backyard to make my lovely Sophie happy. The fence is literally the best thing I've done since moving into my house. Read about how I got great deals on both of these things here. I have also set my bank account to automatically save $250 per paycheck. Plus all of my extra money (from odd jobs, selling on eBay, and reffing) goes straight into my savings. Because of this, I have been able to save enough for 7 months of living expenses and have a $3,000 emergency fund. I love the idea from Dave Ramsey that there are no emergencies if you have a fund! I have also started investing 10% of my income for my retirement. My grocery budget is about $60-75 per month since I sometimes don't go to the store every week. I am proud to say I am completely debt free except for my mortgage and what is being forgiven on my student loans. I am a DEBT FREE 24 year old! THAT IS SO EXCITING FOR ME!!! What a year it has been!

My goals for 2011 will hopefully push me to feel a little more uncomfortable financially. I know I am capable of saving even more than I currently do and I know that this might mean some sacrifice, but I also know that I will continue to have fun despite this. I know it might be bad to use the word uncomfortable, but I think that is the best way to describe it. I think if I am more creative in the way I do things, I can cut corners even more. There is a quote in one of my favorite movies, "If you want big rewards, you've got to take big risks." How fitting is it that I am pushing myself outside of my comfort zone for the upcoming year? My goals are the following:

1. Cut my monthly budget by additional $100-150 each month to go directly into savings
2. Bump up my retirement savings to 15% of my income
3. Pay cash for a new dishwasher
4. Pay cash for a new flat screen TV
5. Pay cash for a new sliding glass door or french doors
6. Fully fund my college fund for my masters program (approx $2,000)
7. Continue to follow my monthly budget strictly
8. Save for annual vacation to Gatlinburg with friends
9. Double my emergency fund so I have 12 months of living expenses in savings
10. Save 10% of the cost for a new car via automatic withdraw from my paycheck

So as I said I have some LOFTY goals this year...all of which I think are more than capable of happening. I have used my referee money to pay for many of my "pay cash for..." goals in the past. I think this year will continue the same trend. I also will begin to save for another car because I plan to buy used cars with cash for the rest of my life! If I can save $1,000 this year for a new car, I'll be well on my way to replacing Jetta in about 8-9 years!

Hopefully you are taking the time to put your goals into writing and being intentional with your money this year. Thank you all for your inspiration and support during this last year of transformation in my life! I am truly blessed!

On the 11th day of Christmas

Today in the link up is thrifty Christmas ideas! This is the first year I've really reined it in on my Christmas spending. I've learned some major things this year so here are a few from my newly acquired thrifty side.

-Use your stockpile for gifts!
Hate to say this, but I am going to admit that I use some of my toiletry items from playing the drugstore game for gifts. My family does stocking stuffers of toiletry items so I stock up all year long. Bodywash, razors, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and contact solution are great fillers!

-Shop online and use coupon codes
This year I bought a number of things on the internet during Cyber Monday and found online coupon codes to make things even cheaper. I didn't have to make a trip to the store and had everything sent to me in great packaging for free.

-Don't just buy at Christmas time
Why not be on the lookout for closeouts or clearance items that will make great gifts all year long? My favorite places for clearance and closeouts are Target, Walmart, Marshalls, and Big Lots.

-Collect MyPoints giftcards for shopping
I mentioned in a prior post about Mypoints! I just LOVE LOVE LOVE them! You get points for reading emails and making online purchases. You can then redeem points for giftcards. Why not rack up the points all year long, order some giftcards, and purchase Christmas gifts with those? Interested in Mypoints? Send me a message with your email address and I will send you a referral link to help out my classroom fund!

-When in doubt, don't buy it!
Cait said it first, but I'll be reitterating it over and over. If you can't afford it, don't buy it. Your friends and family members will NOT care if it costs hundreds of $ or if you get it from the dollar store. It is the thought that counts.

Head over to theblessedlife to link up!

Proverbs 15:22: Budgets!

I am so excited to be linking up with Leigh Anne at The Newlywed Swarbricks for her new Proverbs 15:22 link up! The subject is budgets. I have this nifty little sheet that I use and I absolutely love it because it automatically figured everything for me. Here is the link for you to download it yourself.

I have to admit that I was never a budget girl before, but seeing as I am a teacher on a limited budget, I've become one as a result of necessity. Many a time, I've forgotten to pay a bill here or there. This even resulted in a rather embarrassing moment where my water was turned off while a friend was over for Final 4 basketball games! My way around this...automatic bill pay.


Every fixed monthly expense I have comes directly out of my account every month on a specific date. The only variables then become food, gas, entertainment, and other miscellaneous costs. I have a set cost of $200 a month that covers these 4 areas. If there is an emergency, I have a specific fund for that to be pulled out of so those situations, like my garage door breaking last week, are already accounted for. This helps me stick to my budget so much better because I know how much I can spend for my variable costs since I've already accounted for all of my fixed costs.

I know for some people this might not work because there may not be enough money at different points throughout the month to cover costs, but for me, this is the only way.


Here is your turn to chime in on all things budget related! Comment away and be sure to link up with The Newlywed Swarbricks for Proverbs 15:22: Seeking the counsel of the wise!!!