The Memory Game - free!

We survived the trip to and from my parents' farm this week. The kids and I enjoyed four nights/five days of fun and relaxation with the our family. It's always so great to spend time with family (my kids adore playing with their cousins!) and, although I love living in the Twin Cities, it makes me a little sad that we don't live closer to them so we could see them more often.

But - now we are back in full swing. I got up extra early this morning to make sure that everything was unpacked and put away before the kids got up so we could hit the ground running and get back into our "at home" schedule, routine, chores and fun.

Part of our at-home fun is playing the game Memory. I loved this game as a kid. My daughter is three years old and will be starting preschool next month and this is the perfect game for her to start developing some of the matching and memory skills that this game provides. However, I didn't buy the game - I made one myself for free. All it took was a quick trip to your local home improvement store and collect some paint samples (I chose the Disney colors because they come shaped liked Mickey Mouse!) I chose two of a few primary colors and there you go - your very own "do it yourself" Memory game!



This is a great way for my kids to practice matching and color identification. Both my preschooler and toddler love this frugal, fun game.

This post is linked to Today's Housewife - check out their "31 Days to Build a Better Home" challenge - as well as Life As Mom Frugal Friday!

Things I Love Thursday - Dollar Tree "Fun Dough"

There's nothing too complex about this post of what I love this week. It's cheap, fun, and worth the 50 cents per can. It's Animal Soup "Fun Dough" (nope, can't call it "Play Doh"...) from Dollar Tree. It comes in different colors in two to a pack for $1.00.


I was skeptical, but bought two packs anyway. My kids LOVE this stuff and in this humble reviewer's opinion: it's better than the name-brand Play Doh. It's softer and doesn't dry out as quickly. After three solid days of my two toddlers tearing through this stuff, it's still in really good condition. Well worth the 50 cents per can and well deserving of this frugal mama's Fun Seal of Approval.

Check out more "Things I Love" at the Diaper Diaries!

My first big CVS trip

So my favorite hobby these days is scanning other mom's blogs and looking for great recipes and great ways to save money. My "research" showed that lots of moms shop at CVS, a place I had never shopped before. So, I decided to give CVS a try. I made three smaller trips in the past few weeks to get used to how Extra Care Bucks (“ECBs”) work and to determine if these trips to CVS were really worth it. But this week I decided to make myself an official “CVS’er" and made my first big trip to CVS. I took about 20 minutes to scan the Sunday circular ad, compile my coupons, and make my list.

I was pretty proud of myself that I only purchased one item that was not on my list: a box of Rice Krispie treats. But what can I say – I had the two kids with me, blood sugar was running low for all of us, and I forgot to pack snacks. I stocked up on 3 12-packs of Diet Coke (I know it’s terrible for me but I limit myself to 1 can per day. It’s my “get me through till naptime” vice.) My daughter still wears pullups to bed so I simply could not pass up this deal on Huggies Pull-ups. I also stocked up on some Covergirl makeup. (this mama's makeup bag is in need of an overhaul and I took advantage of this sale to stock up on a few much-needed items!)

After sales, coupons, a $3 ECB from a previous trip, and ECBs earned from this trip, here is what I got for $45.73: (assuming I did the math correctly!)



1 box Rice Krispies
1 box Corn Flakes
(2/$4 - $1.50 off 2 coupon = 1.25 each)

3 Diet Coke 12-packs
($3.33 each + 3 ECBs = 2.33/pk.)

2 Huggies Pull-ups, size 4T-5T
($8.99 each - $2 coupon - $2 coupon + 5 ECBs = 4.49/pk.)

1 box Rice Krispie treats
($1.67)

2 Colgate Total toothpaste
(2/$5 - $.75 coupon = 2.13 each)

2 Oral-B Advantage toothbrushes
($2.99 each + 2 ECBs – BOGO coupon = .50 each)

1 Palmolive dishsoap
($.97 - $.50 coupon = .47)

1 Swiffer refill 16-count
($3.99 - $.75 coupon = 3.24)

2 Softsoap body wash
($4.99 each - BOGO sale - 2.50 each)

1 CVS body wash
(free with email coupon)

1 Covergirl eyeshadow palette
($8.49 - $1.00 coupon)
1 Covergirl mascara
($8.99)
1 Covergirl concealor
($4.79)
- $2.50 coupon for buying two Covergirl cosmetics
+ 8 ECBs for buying $20 worth of Covergirl cosmetics
= $10.77 for all three items

Attention all other CVS'ers out there --- how did I do? It seems like all in all, I still spent a lot of money, but I really did come home with some "high ticket" items (like soda and pull-ups). Please let me know what you think in a comment and offer up any additional advice to save more at CVS. I know I can do better next time!

Things I Love Thursday - My Love Of Aldi

I'm sure many frugal homemakers trying to make ends meet have raved about their love of Aldi, the discount grocery store chain. Well, I am a very recent convert to the ways of Aldi and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that store!

I live in the Twin Cities and new Aldi stores seem to have been popping up (finally!) within a 10-mile radius of me, so I decided to give the store a try one day on one of my Sunday afternoon "mom day out by herself." I even researched the store a little online before I went and had my trusty quarter ready to go in my pocket for the shopping cart (although I forgot to bring my own shopping bags and ended up paying about 20 cents extra for the bags...lesson learned for this newbie!)

I am not an extremely brand-loyal shopper. When I'm at Target or Walmart, I almost always buy the store brand of most items, ranging from shaving cream to cereal. Because of this, Aldi is a good fit for me for most of my grocery shopping. Aldi's prices (and quality) on items like cereal, orange juice, cheese, and canned vegetables cannot be beat! I've also found some great deals on produce, too. Last weekend, I found a very yummy Dole pineapple for $1.69...$2 cheaper than at Target. And it was excellent quality! I also found a 5-lb. bag of Braeburn apples for $1.39 - again, a nearly unheard-of price at competing stores.

The downside is that Aldi carries very little, if any, organic produce. I am not one of those all-organic, all-the-time moms. I really don't care if my boxed cereal or honey is organic. However, when possible (although it is soooo expensive), I try to buy organic fruit and vegetables, which Aldi doesn't seem to carry at the stories I visit. (Although with great deals like the pineapple and apples last week, sometimes I throw my organic preference out the window and go for the cheap!).

I also will only buy milk that is hormone-free and organic, free range eggs. Again, Aldi doesn't seem to offer these options. At my local Aldi, the bread also all has corn syrup as an ingredient. Bummer. So I don't buy my bread, milk and egg staples at Aldi.

Despite that, however, I still manage to leave with a cart overflowing with groceries and the price has never been above $85. Unbeatable! While I am a coupon lover, I also love the fact that I don't have to mess around with coupons there. The prices are what they are - period. I don't visit Aldi every week - more like every month or so. I call this my big "stock up" trip for things like pasta (Aldi has the BEST whole wheat pasta!), canned goods, and cereal.

I know I'm about the millionth mom to rant and rave about Aldi, but I wanted to get my two cents in. I LOVE Aldi!

Please check out The Diaper Diaries for more "Things I Love Thursday"!

Things I Love Thursday - $1 L.A. Colors Eyeshadow

I discovered the Dollar Tree about a year ago. I've found it a great place to stock up on gift wrap and bags, greeting cards, and my personal fave - baskets and containers for organizing! But makeup?? Really? I was super skeptical. First, I have fairly sensitive skin and am pretty picky about what I put on my face, especially around the eye area. But on a whim (after all, it was only a buck...) I picked up an L.A. Colors eyeshadow pallet in brown hues. It contains 12 different colors -- and it is AWESOME! Great colors, great coverage, lasts a long time, non-irritating (to my eyes, anyway), and best of all...it comes out to only 8 cents per color!

Check out more "Things I Love" at the Diaper Diaries!

Great Deal on Kids' Clothes

The kids needed socks so we headed to the Mall of America yesterday. I had a coupon for 15% off my entire purchase at The Children's Place plus I heard they were having a fantastic sale. I walked out with a huge bag of clothes for $29.63! I do most of my shopping for the kids at either consignment shops or thrift stores, but this was even a better deal than consignment! There was a lot of little boy and girl clothes marked down to $2.50 or $2.99, so I stocked up for my little guy for next winter. (I have absolutely no idea what size my little girl will be next winter, so other than socks, she did not benefit much from this shopping trip.) In addition to 9 pairs of socks, I got two winter hats ($.83 each!!), two pairs of pants, and four shirts - all for under $30.00. Here's a picture of all my loot that I took in post-shopping-happiness:



If you have a guestimate of your little one's size for next winter, I suggest you swing by. What an awesome sale!