Freezing and Canning Peaches…

I am no expert on freezing and canning.  I just go by what others who are experienced tell me and what I find online.  So join me on my adventure in freezing and canning peaches…

How does your garden grow…

I love fresh vegetables and I love having a garden.

We got ours in the ground a little late and are just now reaping a harvest.  Here is how my garden grows…Enjoy!

How to freeze bell peppers…

Over the weekend my brother gave me some beautiful bell peppers.  With the price of bell peppers it pays to freeze them when you get your hands on a good amount.  My favorite way to store them is to flash freeze them.  Not familiar with that method?  Here’s a tutorial for you-

Weed-Free Landscaping…

Spring is definitely in the air and you know what that means?  Time to mulch!!  And it’s even more exciting when the mulch is free.  Our local electric company cut down some tree limbs in my back yard and turned it into wonderful, free mulch!!  And when you combine that with newspapers you get weed-free landscaping.  This is a great, cheap and very earth friendly solution to being weed-free.  So grab some newspapers and lets get started…

Make Your Own Laundry Detergent Using Zote…

Looking for a way to save money on the high cost of laundry detergent?  Then MAKE YOUR OWN!  Sorry I didn’t mean to yell…but this is a no-brainer and really easy!  Does it work as well as the name brands?  Heck yeah it does!

Tools to help you in the New Year…

We all do it…make resolutions for the New Year.  They say “It’s a poor carpenter who blames his tools”…but I believe to make your resolutions stick you need to depend on your tools.  So I have a few tools to share with you to help you achieve your goals for 2011.  These are resources I use on a regular basis and have not any problems with any of them.

Why I LOVE Coupons…

Well, today is the last day for Super Doubles at Harris Teeter and I can’t wait for them to come back.  After totaling my receipts for the past week here are my savings.

Steals and Deals in North Carolina…

If you’re a regular reader then you know I LOVE a deal.  I clip coupons, I shop the discount racks and I love thrift stores.  I also love to eat at restaurants on the cheap too.  Here are some places I find my half off dining, spa and entertainment deals.  Got any places you go to online to get a great deal?  Let me know!!

Real Deals Now

Half Off Depot

Piedmont Triad Perks

Restaurant.com

Local Great Coupons

News and Record Bargain Blog

Triad Scene

Coupons 4 the Triad

Shopping with Coupons 101…

I LOVE using coupons, let me say that again- I LOVE USING COUPONS!!!  My obsession with couponing started for me when my husband and I lost our jobs at the same time.  We were both working for the same company and were only given 2 weeks notice of the closing.  We weren’t given a severance package or anything.  Just a “don’t let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya” package.  At least that’s how I took it.  Anyway, being cheap started that day. I started looking at websites that promoted thriftiness.  A few I learned from were the following: http://frugalliving.about.com/, http://www.thriftyfun.com/ and my favorite: http://www.afullcup.com/.  Things are better now but I still use coupons.

That long intro has been leading up to this.  Harris Teeter is having TRIPLE COUPONS this week.  For those of us lucky enough to live near one we are excited.  It means getting MORE for your money.  Now I’m good at using coupons and saving money but I’ve never been able to get $100 worth of groceries for $1.00 like you see some women do.  Although, if you look closely at what they got it doesn’t consist of a lot of food.  It’s usually 20 tubes of toothpaste or 30 bottles of deodorant.  While this is great…I don’t need that much deodorant.  So follow me while I take a trip to Harris Teeter and I show you how I save with coupons.  (It’s also good to know the coupon policy at any store you visit; each is different in the amount and types of coupons they will accept).

Step 1.

My couponing process starts on Sundays.  I usually buy 2 newspapers and cut out almost all of the coupons.  The only coupons I don’t cut out are the ones for babies.  My boys are along way from being babies!!   Here are a couple of good sources to find the coupon insert schedule:

Deal Seeking Mom and Southern Savers

Step 2.

I go through my coupon binder and purge any expired coupons.  Don’t throw those away though.  Families in the military can use them after they expire.  You can send them here: Overseas Coupon Program (www.ocpnet.org).

Step 3.

Next I go online to Harris Teeter.com and browse their ads.  I then try to match their sales to my coupons.  This takes some time. I still spend some extra time at the store because some of their specials aren’t advertise so I have to go through my binder while at the store and match them to my coupons.

Step 4.

I then venture to Harris Teeter.  I grab my cart and I’m off…

2 boxes GoGurt

1 pkg. Pepperidge Farm Deli Flats

1 box Capri-Sun

1 dozen eggs

1 Family Size pack Chimichangas

1 bottle Tobasco Sauce

1 brick of Folgers

1 pack Mentos Gum

1 jar JFG Mayo

2 bottles salsa

1 Tony’s Pizza

1 bag Green Giant Steamers

1 pack Mahatma rice

1 box foil

1 box Wylers drink mix

1 pack Kraft cheese melts

1 pack Sargento cheese

19 items for $18.42

Step 5.

And here’s the receipt…a savings of $ 37.50 !!!