Beauty Products Can Be Costly

Here is a great tip for you ladies who are big fans of pore strips.  You know those strips you place across your nose to get all the dirt and grim out of your pores.  These strips are very costly and they can be a bit of a pain to use but I have found an awesome way to save a bit of money and do a great job of really get all that stuff out of your pores.

So what you will need is:
A clean face
A small microwave cup or container
A small brush for applying the mixture to your nose  (cheap clean brush)
1 tablespoon of milk from your frig.
1 tablespoon of unflavored gelatin like Knox brand but you can use any brand

Mix the milk and gelatin in the microwave safe cup or container.  It should look kind of chunky.
Then place in your microwave for only 10 seconds only and that's it.

Make sure you just test it on the back of your hand so you don't burn yourself and then apply all over the nose area and let it dry for about 10 minutes.  Then slowly peel it off and just look at all that gunk that comes off.  Risen any residue off.  Now is a good time to apply any facial products since the pores are clean and will absorb better.

Hope this helps save your a bit on money and helps you have a more healthy looking skin.

Happy Independence Day!!!

 "Happy Independence Day"

Let us celebrate on July 4th " Independence Day ", because that is the day when the Continental Congress adopted the final draft of the Declaration of Independence. 

It is a time to remember that independence is the spirit and the soul of this great nation. May the fireworks fly with the rockets red glare in celebration of Our Day of Deliverance and that liberation from captivity is what we honor and so often forget. 

And forever independent we will remain. If we continue to fight back.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Independence Day!

Savings Account at Emigrant Direct.Com

I love this site for stashing away some extra cash for that rainy day and so should you!   You can have money transferred directly from your own checking account which is very easy to do online.  So go ahead and check it out.

Start out small then set up an automatic draft for say 25.00 month or more and just watch it add up.  But remember this is your rainy day fund or perhaps you Christmas fund ...who knows.  I like knowing I have a little cash tucked away for those hiccups that come along once in awhile that can really throw you for a loop.  You will have to wait about 3 business days to get the money transferred back into your checking account but to me that is not a problem and again you never know you might just decided you really didn't need it after all.

Go ahead see what your current bank is offering in the way of interest and I bet it won't be as high as Emigrant Direct is offering.  Right now it is at  0.80%  APY and that's better than my bank Chase I am sure.
  
       High Interest Savings Account Highlights Emigrant Direct

• No Fees. No Minimums.
• Open your high interest savings account online. It's quick and easy.
• No need to change your checking account. Your AmericanDream SavingsAccount™ will be linked to your current checking account.
• Up late? Access your high yield savings account 24/7 at EmigrantDirect.com.
• Have a question? Visit our online banking FAQ page.

 In fact I couldn't even get Chase to tell me what the APY is ...oh wait I called back and they wanted my name full name...grrrr I didn't give it only my first name...what state I was in and if I had a checking account they wanted that too, I did not get them my checking account info I did give the State then she asked was it North Texas I said yes finally got an 0.50% APY .  That was like pulling teeth just to get that information and me trying to explode on this lady, in fact the second person I had to talk to just to get the freaking APY.  Can we say O.M.G.!!!

It almost makes me want to change banks because every time I call just to get a bit of information they give me the 3rd degree.  What happened to customer service and just answering a customers questions.  And if your going to ask me a bunch of what I think is unrelated questions then tell me why you need that information.  How will that benefit me in the long run.  It makes me think that if you see I have a small checking account you will give me a smaller APY?  What the heck.  Who knows why all the questions because know one told me how it would benefit me and that might have helped me be not so aggravated with the 3rd degree.

Anywho....just check Emigrant Direct out see if it's a good match for you.  Happy Savings to all.

Chocolate Chip Cookies.....yummmm

Well I had my grand kids at my house today and so we made Chocolate Chip Cookies.  Oh my goodness I had bought sometime late in December some Tom Thumb chocolate chips they are the Safeway brand because they were on sale for like 0.88 cents a bag and bought 4 of them thinking I would use them for Christmas and I didn't.

However I dragged those puppies out and decided to make a double batch.  That makes 10 dozen cookies.  I have some in my big cookie jar, some in the freezer and the last batch is cooling off now....opps I put a dozen in a tupperware container to take to work on Monday.  I have cookies coming out my ears.  This recipe is really quite good.  I am one of those people to doesn't really like hard or really soft cookies but these are just right.

Here is the recipe from the back on the package:

1/2 lb Butter  (2 sticks)  softened
1  cup Packed Brown sugar
1/2 cup Granulated sugar (white)
1 tsp salt
2 tsp Vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 tsp baking soda
2 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
12 oz bag Safeway Chocolate chips from Tom Thumb
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts (optional)

In a large mixing bowl with electric mixer, mix butter until creamy.  Mix in brown and white sugars, salt and vanilla until fluffy.  Mix in eggs and baking soda.  Add flour.  Mix on low until incorporated.  Mix in chocolate chips and nuts (optional).   Drop onto greased or sprayed baking sheets by rounded tablespoon about 1 1/2 inches apart.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes until tops are set when lightly pressed with fingertips and color is golden.  Let stand 2 minutes and remove to racks.  You can store air tight for several days or freeze them. Makes 5 dozen cookies depending on how much dough you drop for each cookie.

I estimated the cost of making a double batch of these to be about 0.06 cents a cookie. Try comparing that to store bought cookies and I think you will agree that making homemade cookies is cheaper.
And if you look at it this way I would call them free....lol since I already had the ingredients on hand!  I did not try to figure the cost of the electric stove use but I still feel homemade is better simply because I know what went into the cookies.  No additives except for what was in the Chocolate chips themselves and fresh ingredients!  Simply yummy.

Hope you try these out sometime this is now my favorite Chocolate Chip cookie recipe!

If your a Nestles Toll House cookie fan then go here for a .50 cent off coupon for their Chocolate chips and if your store doubles then that's even better. 
Here is the Nestles Toll House Chocolate Chip link for coupon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Coupons Are Just Like Cash.....Use Them!!!

Hi I am back again, sorry I don't post as often as I should but I will try to do better in the future.

So for all you new coupon user's out there here is a very good site that will list all the coupons that are likely to be in your Sunday Inserts.  So please bookmark it and you will know ahead of time if it's worth spending that extra $1-$3 bucks or more each Sunday.

http://www.sundaycouponpreview.com/ 

Coupons are just like cash so use them folks!  Especially with the cost of things rising every day.  Your food budget is among one of the largest bills you pay each month and it's also probably one of the only one's that you can make a big dent in by just learning to use coupons.  Why pay an arm and a leg for something when you just don't have too.  By knowing a few tricks about couponing,  you can take that big food bill each month from $600 down to possibly $300  or less each and every month if you learn how.

There are so many excellent websites for printing online coupons, finding great sales, learning the in's and outs of coupon clipping that will really help reduce you over all monthly budget.  Really all you have to do is google Coupon Savings and you have just hit the jackpot!

I have used coupons off and on but never really learned how I could save a fortune off my grocery bill each month until the beginning of 2011.  I have saved so far over $800 dollars easily.  I have also started my own little stockpile and now I don't spend nearly as much each month on groceries.

So go ahead and take that leap into the Awesome World of Coupons!  Men this is not just for women so grab a pair of scissors and get your behind in gear for some great savings and who knows you might be able to save enough for that awesome ___________ well you fill in the blanks.  Good luck and happy couponing.

Get Ready For Christmas Starting NOW!!!

I read something recently on I Heart The Mart and this has got to be a great idea for making sure your ready come this Christmas. If your a Walmart shopper or even a Target shopper and you buy groceries every week then why not pick up a refillable Gift Card and each week add an extra $5.00 or $10.00 bucks each time you stop by. Come Christmas time you should have a nice little chunk of change to buy those presents.

I don't care if you find something on sale you think you really need and decide to use that card your filling up for Christmas....."Don't Do It, back away from the card buckoo or you'll be sorry when Christmas time rolls around."

If your a Target shopper and you use the Target Credit Card or like I do I use the Target Debit Card (the Red Card) so no big credit card debt adding up....by using either card you always get an extra 5% off your bill each time you shop at Target. How great is that? And if you use coupons and then your 5% off well your just as smart a shopper as I am.

Also, don't forget Walmart Price Matches other competitors sale prices so if you have a local store and you see a couple of great sale items but don't want to make a special trip for one or two items why not try have it price matched at Walmart.

Saving for me has now become an addiction and what a great addiction to have. :))

Saving Money at Amazon with Subscribe & Save

I found a cool deal at Amazon. It's called Subscribe & Save. They have a list of items you use every day and you can set up to have your items delivered straight to you door and free to boot and you pick how often you wish to have the items sent. This deal was for of all things Apple Jacks Cereal which I love. 4 boxes for $5.88.

Here is an example only because this is particular deal is NO longer good.

Hurry and you can save 25% off Kellogg’s Cereals on Amazon when you use the Coupon Code: KELRTEC2 + Subscribe and Save. Apple Jack's are just $5.88 after the discounts.

Here's How:

• Choose Kellogg’s Apple Jack's Cereals
• Add to cart using Subscribe & Save for your additional 15% off + Free Shipping
• Plus use coupon code KELRTEC2 at checkout for an additional 10% off
• Final Price: $5.88 + Free Shipping! (ONLY $1.47/box)

Note: You can cancel Subscribe & Save any time after you receive your order without reason. Just log into your Amazon account settings and manage your subscriptions. It's very easy!

There are lots of products you can choose from and the prices are pretty good to. So check it out. Not sure how long the code is good for so better hurry.

Be sure to check back often on Amazon for some amazing deals in Subscribe & Save.

Food Prices Getting The Best of YOU?

I have started using coupons and stockpiling and it has paid off big time. If you use to use coupons and then just stopped because you just didn't think it made a big enough difference...then you might want think again.

You can save a lot of money if you know how to do it! Oh, I know you think it's a lot of trouble or time consuming. Well, it can be if you do it alone. So in my recent quest to save money I have found a site called SavingsAngel.com

This is a wonderful site that will walk you through everything you need to know. It has fabulous tutorials and videos to teach you what you need to know when it comes to saving money on food and other things your family needs and uses everyday. Once you see how easy it is you'll wonder why you hadn't found out about this sooner.

What if all you had to do was buy a Sunday paper for each person in your household....for me that's 4 papers with 4 sets of coupons inserts. Then all I have to do is go to my SavingsAngel.com and plug in the stores I shop at to see what's on sale and what I need and it tells me what Sunday paper insert a corresponding coupon is in for that sale item and I just go to my handy file and look for say Sunday 2/20/11 (RP, SS, P&G, GM, Unilever) that's RP (RedPlum) SS (SmartSource) P&G (Proctor&Gamble) GM (General Mills) and so forth and then cut out the coupons. Yep, I don't cut coupons until I am ready to make my list and go shopping. But that's not the only source for coupons. There are plenty of good online sources for printing off internet coupons to use at the grocery or pharmacy type stores and yes they will take them.

To get the most bang for your buck is when you use a manufacturer coupon with a store coupon and the item is on sale. Or manf. coupon, store coupon, sale item and with stores like Walgreens, CVS, RiteAid and a few other they have rewards on top of all everything else. And with the money you save you can use that for things like your produce, meat or dairy items that may not have coupons available.

My last trip was to Target recently. My total bill before coupons or anything else was $119.72 but I only paid $84.00 that's a savings of $35.72. I don't know about you but for a savings of $35.72 I will continue to use coupons. I have had other trips that were better but not all trips will save you like they show on TLC extreme couponing where a the person walks out only paying 1.02 for hundreds of dollars worth of groceries. Don't get me wrong it can be done but it's not an everyday occurrence but makes for good TV.




Always be sure and check out all the benefits a store may have to offer because you might miss out on something great like Kroger's .10 cents off a gallon promo or Target with their extra 5% off all purchases using their Target credit card or Target debit card. For that last trip to Target using my Target debit card good only at Target I get an extra $4.40 off my bill. I was excited about that and my trip before that to Kroger netted me the .10 cents off a gallon on my gas my bill was $305.10 and I only paid out of pocket $152.61 and I had two shopping carts for their big Dayton 500 sale and boy it was a good one!

So rethink the using of coupons and start saving money and yes stockpile a bit you don't have to go over board but with tough times it's time to saving cause honey the rainy days are here!

Be sure to check out SavingsAngel.com for wonderful tutorials and shopping lists they teach you everything you need to know about saving money on your groceries hands down the best site around. And you can even get your own subscription free just by referring others.

You can even get 30 days free please check it out and if not satisfied get your money back it's as simple as that. Be sure to use My Affiliate No.#: 37383

Click HERE to cut your grocery bill in HALF! 30 days FREE!

Happy Savings to all....

Saving Money and Knowing Sale Cycles

I found this great site called the Krazy Coupon Lady and they have an awesome article that can really help you stock up on the best deals and the right time of the year buy them. This year is my year of savings. I am learning to be a Krazy Coupon Lady myself and I am find it really is worth my time and effort to ......yes CLIP COUPONS!

I have started by going to Wally World on Sunday and getting 4 of the Sundays papers which mine have them 2/$5.00 and as a bonus for the Mc Donalds customers I simply pull out the plastic insert that holds all the sales flyers and I leave the Sunday papers for their customers to ready while eating there. And it saves me the trouble of tossing or recycling the paper when I get home.

So it's a win win for all.

So for the article CLICK HERE and happy savings! Oh and be sure to bookmark that site it has a wealth of information and coupon data base and it's all free. Be sure to check out their new book too "Pick another CHECK OUT LANE, honey!" I am ording mine today.


Live well, help others and you will prosper!
Dianne