I started using cloth diapers about 8mo ago. My youngest daughter had diaper rashes so badly and nothing would help them! I went to visit my sister-in-law in PA and she was using CD's. I watched her for a few days and saw how easy it was and how it really wasn't as gross or messy as I thought it would be. She taught me how to take care of them and make the most of them. Cloth diapers today are nothing like they were years ago! There are so many options now, most of them look like regular disposable diapers but with cute little designs on them and colors. And the inside material is great and so when they have a BM it rolls right off into the toilet for easy clean up! For the more messy diapers you can actually purchase a small sprayer that attaches to your toilet and it sprays right off! Throw them in the wash with some vinegar to take out the odor and that's it!!
http://cutietooties.com/calc.php here you can find a calculator that will tell you (according to the type of CD's you want to buy) how much per year CDing will save you! I put in 6 diapers a day 30 diapers total at $6.00 ea. and I've saved over $700.00 per year x2 children! The price of diapers very depending on the type and if you buy them new or used. I buy all of mine used off www.diaperswappers.com. You can buy, trade, and sell diapers from the best condition to the worse! Most of the mommies have been pretty honest on there from my experience so far.
There are several benefits from CDing besides saving money a few of them are....
#1 Less diaper rashes because they allow the baby's sensitive skin to breathe
#2 No chemicals in the diapers some studies have linked disposable diapers to cancer
#3 Soft and comfortable for the baby
#4 Your baby is more likely to potty train quicker
You can get so much helpful information on www.diaperswappers.com if your new at this.
You can also learn to sew your own cloth diapers saving even more time and money. There are several mommies who go into business sewing cloth diapers and have their own online store! I haven't attempted sewing my own yet but I think I'm going to try it before the winter is over. Here is a website to help with sewing your own diapers http://www.diapersewing.com/
Happy Cloth Diapering!!
Friday, October 24, 2008
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Kroger Savings 10/18/08
Great deals at Kroger tonight, I got everything you see here (including paper towels) for a WHOPPING $94.79!!!! The total amount of everything without any savings should have been $152.60. If you notice most of my $100.00 went towards my stockpile this week, I really didn't have that many necessities because most of my meals I have already in my stockpile at home for the week.
Here is the break-down:
Necessities:
1-Grapes @ $5.32 -.89 KPS $4.43
1-Bananas @ $1.63
1-Hebrew Franks Hotdogs @ $5.49 -$1.50 KPS $3.99
2-1% milks @ $7.58 -$.80 KPS $6.78
2-Whole Milks @ $7.78 -$1.00 KPS $6.78
2- Kroger Vinegar @ $5.98
2-Bread Whole wheat @ $7.18 -$3.60 KPS $3.58
2-3-Musketeers Mini's @ $5.98 -$1.98 KPC -$1.00 Coupon $3.00
Total Amount if Paid full Price:$46.94
Total Amount of Coupons: $1.00
Total Amount of Doubled Coupons $0.00
Total Amount Kroger Plus Savings: 9.77
Total Amount Actually Paid: 36.17
TOTAL SAVINGS ON NECESSITIES: $10.77 a 33% Savings
Stockpile:
10-Goldfish @ $16.67 KPC: 10/$10.00 $10.00
2-Bertolli Olive Oil @ $18.58 KPC: $4.99 ea $9.98
1-Laughing Cow Cheese Spread $3.59 KPC: 2/$5 Coupon: -$.55 $1.44
1-International Delight Coffe Creamer $2.99 KPC: $1.99 Coupon-$.55 $1.44
8-Campbell's Condensed Cream Soup @ $11.36 KPC: 10/$10 Coupon: -$.30 x2 $7.40
6-Campbell's Condensed Soup @ $8.52 KPC: 10/$10 Coupon: -$.40 x2 $5.20
4-Campbell's Healthy Request Condensed Soup $5.68 KPC 10/$10 Coupon: -$.40 x2 $3.20
4-Campbell's 25% Less Sodium Condensed Soup $5.68 KPC: 10/$10 Coupon: -$.40 x2 $3.20
4-Glade Spray @ $6.36 KPC: 10/$10 Coupon: Buy 1 Get 1 Free x2 $2.00
2-Colgate toothbrush @ $4.74 KPC: $1.50 Coupon: -.75 $2.25
2-Total Advanced Toothpaste @ $5.50 KPC: $2.50 Coupon: -$1.00 x2 $3.00
1-8ct Viva Paper Towels @ $15.99 KPC: $6.99 Coupon -$.75 Total $6.25
Total Amount if Paid Full Price : $105.66
Total Amount of Coupons: -$11.98
Total Amount of Bonus Coupons: -$2.20
Total Amount Kroger Plus Savings: -$29.92
Total Amount Actually Paid: $61.56
Total Savings on Stockpile Items: $44.10 a 42% Savings!!
Total Amount on all Groceries if Paid Full Price: $152.60
Total Amount Actually Paid on all Groceries: $97.73
How to save on your electric bill.
So my biggest goal the last few months was learning how to save electricity. Two months ago we get our Electric bill after electric went up and it was $199.00!! That is a lot for us for the summer. Our average bill for the summer was usually $120.00-$130.00, so I started trying to tackle that bill!
#1 I went and got dryer balls for the dryer, they help drying time to be less.
#2 I started doing all my laundry the same day or two days in a row instead of a few loads each day, this way it takes less energy for the dryer to heat up.
#3 Started shutting off the air on cool days, opening the windows, and on days when it's cool but too cool to open the windows I just shut the air off and leave the windows closed.
#4 Vacuumed the back of the refrigerator coils this helps save energy
#5 Make sure to turn off all lights in the house when not in use, utilize the sunlight as much as possible (opening blinds, hanging clothes out to dry etc...)
#6 we changed all light bulbs to the energy saving light bulbs 14w.
#7 Keeping out thermostat at 76 degrees
This month I got the electric bill and it was a whopping $99.00!! Just doing these 7 things has cut down our electricity by over 50%!!
#1 I went and got dryer balls for the dryer, they help drying time to be less.
#2 I started doing all my laundry the same day or two days in a row instead of a few loads each day, this way it takes less energy for the dryer to heat up.
#3 Started shutting off the air on cool days, opening the windows, and on days when it's cool but too cool to open the windows I just shut the air off and leave the windows closed.
#4 Vacuumed the back of the refrigerator coils this helps save energy
#5 Make sure to turn off all lights in the house when not in use, utilize the sunlight as much as possible (opening blinds, hanging clothes out to dry etc...)
#6 we changed all light bulbs to the energy saving light bulbs 14w.
#7 Keeping out thermostat at 76 degrees
This month I got the electric bill and it was a whopping $99.00!! Just doing these 7 things has cut down our electricity by over 50%!!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
The 2009 Entertainment Book
This is worth the $$ You will save THOUSANDS!!! They have resturants, hotels, car rentals, Entertainment, retail shops and MORE!!! I only paid $25.00 for mine but I've also seen them on sale different places for $30.00 You can get more information by going to www.entertainment.com
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Stockpiling & The Grocery Game
Stockpiling is essential to saving money! The whole purpose is to stock up on things at the bottom dollar price so that when you run out of it you will have it and not have to go out and pay full price for that item!
I've started slowly on stockpiling because we are like any other family now days pretty tight on funds so having a lot of extra money laying around to just buy things we don't need immediately isn't an option most weeks. But getting a good stockpile going will be essential in saving money in the future. So here is what I do....
#1 Every Monday I sit at the kitchen table while the girls color and I go through my fridge and freezer and pantry and keep an inventory list of what I have. This list stays on the fridge and as we use things we cross them off the list then Monday's I update it. This is important and will save you money because sometimes we tend to buy things we already have wasting money. I also do this with my stockpile.
#2 In order to save money you must have a weekly budget you can use on groceries. Lets say you decide on $100.00 per week. In order to start your stockpile I would designate $10.00 of that grocery budget to stockpiling and the rest to necessities. As your stockpile grows your necessities that you buy weekly will decrease giving you more $ for stockpiling. I started with $10.00 and am now pretty much at $50.00 stockpiling and $50.00 in necessities and still working on getting the necessities down lower!
#3 Don't feel overwhelmed with trying to find all the "deals" sign up for The Grocery Game. When you sign up you get a 4 week trial for $1.00 then after the trial it's $10.00 for one store every 8 weeks and $5.00 for an additional store. Each Tuesday they come out with a list of specials for your chosen stores. All the items are color-coded and tell you the items to buy now, items to buy only if you need them, and items that will be free with coupons. They also tell you when to use the coupon for a certain item because just because it's on sale doesn't mean it's the rock bottom price. This saves me TONS of time weekly!!
#4 If your not going to sign up for The Grocery Game, you will need to get yourself a notebook. Sit down with the weekly ads and go through them one by one writing down each deal that looks good to you according to store. After making your list go back and figure out which ones are better and cross out the ones that you aren't going to keep. This will allow you to easily compare prices of same items at different stores.
#5 Subscribe or make sure to pick up the Sunday paper in order to clip coupons. Only clip the coupons you know you will use, and then keep your inserts in a folder up to 2-3mo just in case there is a deal. It will take you a while to really get a good stash of coupons, probably about 12 weeks to really get them established. Remember if there is an item on sale one week there is no rule you can't buy more than 1 paper to get more than 1 coupon.
I've started slowly on stockpiling because we are like any other family now days pretty tight on funds so having a lot of extra money laying around to just buy things we don't need immediately isn't an option most weeks. But getting a good stockpile going will be essential in saving money in the future. So here is what I do....
#1 Every Monday I sit at the kitchen table while the girls color and I go through my fridge and freezer and pantry and keep an inventory list of what I have. This list stays on the fridge and as we use things we cross them off the list then Monday's I update it. This is important and will save you money because sometimes we tend to buy things we already have wasting money. I also do this with my stockpile.
#2 In order to save money you must have a weekly budget you can use on groceries. Lets say you decide on $100.00 per week. In order to start your stockpile I would designate $10.00 of that grocery budget to stockpiling and the rest to necessities. As your stockpile grows your necessities that you buy weekly will decrease giving you more $ for stockpiling. I started with $10.00 and am now pretty much at $50.00 stockpiling and $50.00 in necessities and still working on getting the necessities down lower!
#3 Don't feel overwhelmed with trying to find all the "deals" sign up for The Grocery Game. When you sign up you get a 4 week trial for $1.00 then after the trial it's $10.00 for one store every 8 weeks and $5.00 for an additional store. Each Tuesday they come out with a list of specials for your chosen stores. All the items are color-coded and tell you the items to buy now, items to buy only if you need them, and items that will be free with coupons. They also tell you when to use the coupon for a certain item because just because it's on sale doesn't mean it's the rock bottom price. This saves me TONS of time weekly!!
#4 If your not going to sign up for The Grocery Game, you will need to get yourself a notebook. Sit down with the weekly ads and go through them one by one writing down each deal that looks good to you according to store. After making your list go back and figure out which ones are better and cross out the ones that you aren't going to keep. This will allow you to easily compare prices of same items at different stores.
#5 Subscribe or make sure to pick up the Sunday paper in order to clip coupons. Only clip the coupons you know you will use, and then keep your inserts in a folder up to 2-3mo just in case there is a deal. It will take you a while to really get a good stash of coupons, probably about 12 weeks to really get them established. Remember if there is an item on sale one week there is no rule you can't buy more than 1 paper to get more than 1 coupon.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
CVS & KMART Total Savings!
So tonight we all went out to Kmart & CVS and got some great deals!!
5 Juicy Juice 8packs Reg. $3.29ea Sale 5/$10.00 Double Coupons on -$1.00off
Colgate Tooth Paste Reg. $2.99 Sale 2/$4.00 Double Coupons on -$.75
Kit Cat single packaged Reg $2.99 Sale 2/$4.00 Double Coupons on -$1.00 off 3 Bags
Hershey single packaged Reg. $2.99
Reeses single package Reg. $2.79
Total Amount if Paid full Price: $28.21
Total Amount of Coupons: $4.75
Total Amount of Doubled Coupons $3.96
Total Amount Actually Paid: $8.86
TOTAL SAVINGS: $19.35
CVS was just as good if not better!!
6-Pringles Reg. $1.99 ea. Sale $.99ea
2-Ajax Dish Soap Reg. $1.99 Sale $.99
1-Dawn Dish Soap Reg. $1.99 Sale $.99 Coupon -$.25
2-Charmin Ultra soft 12 double rolls Reg. $10.99 Sale $6.99 Coupon -$.25
1- G Fusion Phantom Men's Razor Reg. $11.99 Sale $9.99 Coupon -$4.00
2-Febreze Reg. $5.99 Sale $3.99 Coupon Buy 1 Get 1 Free!
2-Febreze Air Reg. $3.29 Sale 2/$5.00
1-Carefree Panty Liners 120ct. Reg. $6.69 Sale$4.49 Coupon -$1.00
2 Folgers Coffee 13 oz Reg. $4.99 Sale $2.99 Coupon -.50 & -.25
*****Iron Man DVD Reg. 24.99 Sale Save $10.00 on Iron Man DVD when you buy $20.00 of select products!!! ************
Total Amount if Paid Full Price : $101.11
Total Amount of Coupons: -$10.24
Total Amount of ECB: $-6.00
Total Amount Actually Paid: $50.08
Total Amount of ECB Received +$12.00 for next purchase
Total Savings: 51.03 + $12.00 ECB= $63.03
So lets sum it up here....I bought $129.32 worth of items and only paid $46.94 including the $12.00 ECB I earned. That is a total Savings of $82.38 (including ECB). 64% worth of Savings! WOW!!!
5 Juicy Juice 8packs Reg. $3.29ea Sale 5/$10.00 Double Coupons on -$1.00off
Colgate Tooth Paste Reg. $2.99 Sale 2/$4.00 Double Coupons on -$.75
Kit Cat single packaged Reg $2.99 Sale 2/$4.00 Double Coupons on -$1.00 off 3 Bags
Hershey single packaged Reg. $2.99
Reeses single package Reg. $2.79
Total Amount if Paid full Price: $28.21
Total Amount of Coupons: $4.75
Total Amount of Doubled Coupons $3.96
Total Amount Actually Paid: $8.86
TOTAL SAVINGS: $19.35
CVS was just as good if not better!!
6-Pringles Reg. $1.99 ea. Sale $.99ea
2-Ajax Dish Soap Reg. $1.99 Sale $.99
1-Dawn Dish Soap Reg. $1.99 Sale $.99 Coupon -$.25
2-Charmin Ultra soft 12 double rolls Reg. $10.99 Sale $6.99 Coupon -$.25
1- G Fusion Phantom Men's Razor Reg. $11.99 Sale $9.99 Coupon -$4.00
2-Febreze Reg. $5.99 Sale $3.99 Coupon Buy 1 Get 1 Free!
2-Febreze Air Reg. $3.29 Sale 2/$5.00
1-Carefree Panty Liners 120ct. Reg. $6.69 Sale$4.49 Coupon -$1.00
2 Folgers Coffee 13 oz Reg. $4.99 Sale $2.99 Coupon -.50 & -.25
*****Iron Man DVD Reg. 24.99 Sale Save $10.00 on Iron Man DVD when you buy $20.00 of select products!!! ************
Total Amount if Paid Full Price : $101.11
Total Amount of Coupons: -$10.24
Total Amount of ECB: $-6.00
Total Amount Actually Paid: $50.08
Total Amount of ECB Received +$12.00 for next purchase
Total Savings: 51.03 + $12.00 ECB= $63.03
So lets sum it up here....I bought $129.32 worth of items and only paid $46.94 including the $12.00 ECB I earned. That is a total Savings of $82.38 (including ECB). 64% worth of Savings! WOW!!!
CVS Extra Care Bucks
Okay this is how it works. 1st you have to have a CVS Extra Care Card so if you don't have one get one, it will save you LOTS of money!! You earn ECB 3 Ways:
1- Quarterly (every 3mo) your card keeps track of your purchases you make at CVS and every three months it gives you 2% in ECB according to what you've spent at CVS.
2-Immediate: In the CVS weekly fliers they have specials for example for this week:Gillette Fusion Manual Or Power Razor 9.99 and then you get a $5.00 ECB that prints out on your receipt at the register to use with your next purchase.CVS Brand Boxed Supreme Diapers: You pay 14.99 and receive $2.00 ECB Bausch & Lomb Renu solution: you pay 6.99 and receive $2.00 ECB Colgate Toothpaste: You pay 2/$5.00 Receive $2.00 ECBCoke 12 back cans: You pay 4/$13.00 and receive $3.00 ECB
3-Prescriptions: You receive $1.00 every 2-Prescriptions filled in the store.
You can keep track of your ECB, and even print them out online at www.cvs.com and read up more on the rules etc of the EC program. In order to register you will need your CVS card#, zip code and last 3 letters of your last name.
1- Quarterly (every 3mo) your card keeps track of your purchases you make at CVS and every three months it gives you 2% in ECB according to what you've spent at CVS.
2-Immediate: In the CVS weekly fliers they have specials for example for this week:Gillette Fusion Manual Or Power Razor 9.99 and then you get a $5.00 ECB that prints out on your receipt at the register to use with your next purchase.CVS Brand Boxed Supreme Diapers: You pay 14.99 and receive $2.00 ECB Bausch & Lomb Renu solution: you pay 6.99 and receive $2.00 ECB Colgate Toothpaste: You pay 2/$5.00 Receive $2.00 ECBCoke 12 back cans: You pay 4/$13.00 and receive $3.00 ECB
3-Prescriptions: You receive $1.00 every 2-Prescriptions filled in the store.
You can keep track of your ECB, and even print them out online at www.cvs.com and read up more on the rules etc of the EC program. In order to register you will need your CVS card#, zip code and last 3 letters of your last name.
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