Sweet Frugal Life

Being Frugal Doesn't Make Life Any Less Sweet

Honest Review of eMeals

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

Is eMeals worth the money and if it is right for you.

Are you looking for an honest review of eMeals?  I’m excited to share my experience with this amazing meal subscription service with you today.

A few weeks ago I decided to try out eMeals when I ran into a major meal planning rut (have you ever had one of those???).  My meal plan was feeling stale, and I felt as if I made the exact same dinners over, and over again.  I was feeling tired of cooking, tired of trying to come up with fresh cooking ideas. 

For years I have been hearing about a meal subscription service called eMeals.  I finally decided to try it out.  My hope was that eMeals would give me some fresh ideas and help me get out of my meal planning rut.

I am a member of online affiliate programs.  I will be compensated for purchases made through links in this post.

What Is eMeals?

If haven’t heard about eMeals, I’ll give you a quick run down!  eMeals is a meal subscription service that will send you fresh, new meal plans and dinner recipes each week.  

These meal plans are catered to your family size, needs, diets, and food preferences.  The goal is to save you time, money and to make it easier for you to get dinner on the table each night.

In addition to the meal plans and recipes, eMeals will also send you a shopping list for the meals you choose to make that week, which is so awesome!  Plus!  If you enjoy shopping for groceries online (hello, Walmart Grocery Pickup, my BFF) eMeals gives you the option to send your grocery list straight to your preferred store (Walmart, Amazon, Kroger, Instacart or Shipt), making online grocery shopping even easier than it already was!

How Does eMeals Work?

Signing up for eMeals is so easy!  First, just head over to their website and make an account.

During this process you will be asked to choose your family size between two options:

  • 1-2 servings
  • 3-6 servings

And you will choose the food style your family prefers.  The current options are:

  • 30 Minute Meals
  • Budget Friendly
  • Clean Eating
  • Diabetic
  • Gluten Free
  • Heart Healthy
  • Keto
  • Kid Friendly
  • Low Calorie
  • Low Carb
  • Mediterranean
  • Paleo
  • Quick and Healthy
  • Slow Cooker
  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian

I chose the Budget Friendly option for my family (no surprise there, amiright????).

After you have your account you will then have access to the current recipes eMeals offers.  When a new plan comes available each week you will be alerted through e-mail.

I loved using the eMeals app to browse the recipes and make my shopping list.  It was so user friendly and easy to use!

When you have picked the recipes you want to make for the week just click “Add to List.”  The ingredients you will need for that recipe will be added to your shopping list, easy peasy!

Take this list with you to the store to do your grocery shopping.  Or!  If you prefer to use an online grocery system, just send that list right over to one of eMeals grocery partners (Walmart, Amazon, Kroger, Instacart or Shipt) and done!

Now all that’s left to do is cook and enjoy the delicious eMeals recipes at home.

What Type Of Recipes Does eMeals Provide?

Honestly, one of my biggest surprises when using eMeals was the huge variety of recipes available.  There really is something for everyone, and I wasn’t expecting that.

You can choose the meal plan that works best for you and then you will be given 7 dinner recipes each week, including side dish ideas for each recipe, which I LOVED!

But, you do not have to stick to the same meal plan that you originally choose!  I switched my meal plan category a couple of times, and it was SO easy to do!  All you have to do is go into your Account, and where your Dinner Plan is listed, just click “Change”.  You can then easily select the new plan you want.  I started with Budget Friendly, and then switched to Clean Eating, and then to 30 Minute Meals.

Each of the plans I tried provided my family with delicious and easy to fix recipes.

We definitely tried a few recipes that we didn’t enjoy, but most of them have become new family favorites and will be going into my regular meal planning routine.

How Much Does eMeals Cost?

There is a price to using eMeals, but good news, you can try eMeals out for FREE for 14 days when signing up through this link.  This is a great way to become familiar with the app, try out a few recipes, and help you decide if this is the right meal subscription plan for you or not.

If you decide to keep using eMeals you can get a 12 month subscription for just $4.99/month or a 3 month subscription for only $9.99/month.


 

My Honest Opinion

Now, that I have shared all of the eMeals details with you it’s time to give you my honest opinion.

Truthfully, my expectations were low when I first signed up for eMeals….but I ended up enjoying eMeals much more than I thought I would.  I was worried that the recipes would require a lot of expensive ingredients and a lot of effort, but they really didn’t.

The meals I chose were all simple, basic, and quick to fix.  Plus, I had most of the ingredients already in my pantry, which made these recipes great for my wallet.

Who Is eMeals For?

Although I think eMeals is a great service, it is not for everyone, but I do think it can be beneficial for many people.  eMeals might be for your if:

  • You struggle finding time to Meal Plan.
  • You want to cook at home, but aren’t sure where to start.
  • You are looking for an easy way to try new recipes.

Who Is eMeals Not For?

I don’t recommend eMeals for you if:

  • You feel confident meal planning.
  • You have time to research new recipes to try.
  • Your budget is to tight to add an extra subscription plan to.

I enjoyed trying eMeals and the new recipes I received.  However, I have decided that I will not be continuing using eMeals.  I am very comfortable with meal planning and cooking, so I don’t think this is something worth spending my money on.

However, if you have been struggling cooking at home and making your meal plans, I do suggest trying this subscription service to see if it helps you or not.

In Conclusion

I really enjoyed trying this program and was so happy to find it not only useful and helpful, but a great resource for those looking for fresh meal ideas.  My favorite part of the service is that it caters to your family specific needs and eating preferences, and it really did make meal planning a lot easier!

Let me know if you try eMeals.  I would love to hear your thoughts about it in the comments!

Want New Recipes?

Are you looking for some fresh new recipes to add to your collection?

Make sure to check out my Mel’s Home Cooking Recipe eBook.  These tried and true recipes are easy to make, cheap to fix, and delicious to eat!

Grab your copy here!

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How To Save Money On Kids Clothes

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

Easy tips to spend less on children’s clothing.

One of the sure things about kids is that they keep growing (and growing, and growing and growing).  It feels like my kids ALWAYS need a new pair of shoes, or a new shirt, etc.  Any other mamas out there relate????  Constantly buying new clothes for your kids can get expensive fast!  Fortunately, there are some secrets to spending less on children’s clothing.  Here are a few tips to help you learn how to save money on kids clothes.

kids clothes on a budget - budget friendly tips for parents (1)

How To Save Money On Kids Clothes

I know how tempting it is to buy all of the cute, fresh, trendy kids clothing you can find at the mall, but I promise, with a little work and practice you can find JUST as cute clothing, for a fraction of the price.  Here’s how!

1.  Buy Gently Used Clothing

Gone are the days where the only place to get gently used clothing is from your Great Aunt Lucy’s attic.  Now, we are so lucky to have many, many options to purchase used kids clothing.

Here are a few of my favorite places to shop for preowned kids clothing:

Garage Sales

Garage sales are one of my favorite places to buy used clothing for my kids.  They seem to always have the lowest prices, I can easily walk away with a huge bag of kids clothing for less than $10.

Here are a few tips for buying kids clothing at garage sales:

  • Search Facebook Marketplace the night before you want to visit the yard sales (usually Thursday night or Friday night) to find a few listings that are advertising kids clothing.  Only stop at the houses that have said they have kids clothes for sale.
  • Make a plan and map out which sales you want to go to first, and in which order.
  • Leave first thing in the morning to start yard sale shopping.  A good rule of thumb is to get to your first stop 5-10 minutes BEFORE it was advertised to open.  This gives you first pick of the clothing, which will also be the best quality!
  • Clothing at yard sales are negotiable.  Never be afraid to offer a lower price than marked.  The worst thing that can happen is they will say, “No”, but they almost always say “yes”.

Thrift Stores

Another great place to purchase preowned children’s clothing is at kids thrift stores.  These stores are picky about what items they purchase, meaning that you can feel confident you will be buying high quality clothing for a fraction of the price.

My favorite children’s thrift stores are Kid To Kid and Once Upon A Child.  Bonus!  You can sell your used kids clothing to these stores to earn money!

In addition to the kids thrift stores you can find some great deals at multi-purpose thrift stores such as, GoodWill, Deseret Industries, and Savers.

Facebook Marketplace

You can also find some great deals on used clothing on Facebook Marketplace.  It’s so easy to search for the exact size and gender you are looking for on Facebook Marketplace with their search and filter options.  If you don’t find what you are looking for when you first check, make sure to set up a notification so you can be alerted when it is listed.

2.  Shop Clearance Racks

Get into the habit of going straight to the clearance racks at every store you go to.  These racks are usually hidden in the back of the store or department, so make sure to look thoroughly for those wonderful yellow clearance stickers.

Clothing almost always goes on sale at the end of a season.  This is a great time to stock up for the next year for a fraction of the price.  For example, when my kids were wearing a 2T size, I would buy winter clothing for them in 3T size on the clearance racks in the spring.  Their new winter clothing would be stored at the top of their bedroom shelf to bring out the next year.

clearance rack

3.  Shop At Discount Retailers

Discount retailers is another great spot for budget friendly kids clothing.  These stores sell name brand, high quality clothes for a huge discount.

My favorite discount retailers are Ross and TJ Maxx.  I’ve found that Ross is a little bit cheaper than TJ Maxx, but they are both a frugal options for clothing.

4.  Host A Kids Clothing Swap

Most moms are looking for a cheaper option for kids clothing.  Find a group of moms, such as in your community, school, church, neighborhood, etc. and organize a Kids Clothing Swap together.  This way everybody wins!

I’ve participated in a few of these before and love the concept so much!

Here’s how it works:

  • Invite moms to join you for a Kids Clothing Swap.
  • Plan a day and time that will work for most people.
  • Everyone brings any used kids clothing that they want to swap.
  • Organize the clothing by sizes and gender.
  • Let everyone pick a few new-to-them pieces of clothing to take home.

Everyone gets to clean out their closets of clothes they no longer need, and bring home new clothing for their kids….without paying any money!

5.  Accept Hand Me Downs

Alright, I am going to be real honest here…..

When I was expecting my first baby my husbands very kind cousin offered me boxes and boxes of hand me downs from her kids.

But, I refused them all!  In my stubborn, naïve, new mom attitude I thought that I wanted only new clothing.  (I regret this decision!)

Years down the road (and way to much money spent on kids clothing) I realized my mistake.  Ever since I have happily accepted hand me down clothing (and wish I could go shake my pre-mom self for a minute).

7.  Repurpose Clothing

Another tip for how to save money on kids clothes is to make your kids clothing last longer by repurposing them.  Here are a few things you might want to do with clothing, instead of throwing it away:

  • Cut jeans with holes in the knee and turn them into shorts.
  • Let the hem out of a dress that is getting to short.
  • Add a patch to cover a stained shirt or pants.
  • Cut the feet off of footie pajamas that have grown to short.

Remember to be creative.  If you can’t think of a way to extend the life of the clothing, repurpose the clothing into something completely new.  Such as a toy, quilt, or rags.

8.  Never Pay Full Price

Make a habit of only buying clothing if it’s on sale or discounted.  Here are a few tips for shopping clothing sales:

Sign Up For Store Emails

Sign up for store emails so that you will be the first one alerted to the current sales.  I am very picky about who I hand my email out to.  But, I have signed up for emails at just a few of my favorite kids clothing stores (Target, Children’s Place, Old Navy) because their sale emails have been so helpful in knowing when the sales are happening.

Shop Off Season

Like I mentioned earlier, shopping off season is a great way to get brand new clothing for a fraction of the price.  In spring, buy winter clothing for your kids to wear the next year and in the fall buy summer clothing.

Use Store Reward Programs/Cards

Many stores will offer points on purchases made through their store reward programs.  My favorite store reward programs are:

  • Target:  Sign up for their red card and get 5% off of each purchase made.  This makes for an even greater deal when you use the card on clearance items!
  • Kohls:  When you make purchases using your Kohls card you will be given 5% in rewards.  These rewards will then be turned into Kohls Cash to spend at the store.  You can use your Kohls cash with clearance items and coupons!
  • Children’s Place:  Another great store rewards program is Children’s Place.  When you sign up for the program you will begin receiving points each time you make a purchase.  These points can be redeemed for cash rewards that you can spend at the store.  Plus, they send out a birthday coupon each year!

Shop Online Deal Sites

You can find great deals on kids clothing when you shop at online deal websites.  A couple of my favorite sites for cute clothes and good discounts are Jane, Zulily, and Burkes Outlet.

9.  Take Care Of The Clothes

One of the most overlooked tips when learning how to save money on kids clothes is to take good care of the clothes you do buy.  The longer you can keep your kids wearing the same clothing, the less you will have to buy, which means more money saved!

Here are a few ways to take good care of your children’s clothing:

  • Air dry clothes after laundering.
  • Wash clothing less often.  I know this one is hard with kids (they can get dirty so quickly), but if an outfit looks clean after one wear, hang it up to wear again.
  • Treat stains as soon as possible.
  • Sort and wash clothes by color.
  • Wash clothing in cold water.

10.  Earn Cashback

If you shop for kids clothing online, make sure to do it through the Rakuten website to earn some extra cash while shopping!  It’s so easy too! 

  • Just log into the Rakuten website (or app!).
  • Search for the store you want to shop at.
  • Click on the store name, you will then be redirected to the website.
  • Shop as you normally do, including check out.
  • You will then be given a percentage of cash back from your purchase.
  • Rakuten mails cash back checks every 4 months (and it’s my favorite piece of mail ever!).

You can then use this cashback to purchase clothing for your children to wear!  This is such a fun way to get more bang for your buck!

In Conclusion

I hope this article gave you some helpful tips to figuring out how to save money on kids clothes.  There are many different options available to us as parents, sometimes the secret is just knowing where to look!  Let me know if you have any other questions or tips that I might have missed!

 

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At Home Preschool Activities

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

How to entertain preschoolers at home.

Preschoolers are one of my favorite ages!  They are full of so much curiosity and innocence.  I honestly miss having my little ones home with me (they all grew up!).  One thing about preschoolers is that they are a bundle of energy, always wanting to be kept busy and entertained.  Fortunately, there are many cheap at home preschool activities to keep their busy bodies active and engaged.  Here are a few of our favorites!

At Home Preschool Activities

Here are a few of my easy at home preschool activities.  I hope your kids love them as much as my kids did!

1.  Build A Fort

A fort can be a fun place for preschoolers to hide out, read books, and play.

You can easily build a fort by putting a few blankets over the kitchen table.  Or, push some chairs together and drape them with blankets.

Don’t forget to fill the fort with pillows, stuffed animals and a few books for reading.  Enjoy snuggling together inside your newly built fort!

2.  Make White Dirt

My son loved making “white dirt” when he was a preschooler.  This was a simple activity that kept him entertained for hours.

To make white dirt just mix together four cups of flour, 1 cup of brown sugar, and 1 cup of rice together in a 9X13 inch baking pan.

This white dirt is perfect for your preschooler to use for digging and playing with their small toy tractors.

3.  Play In Bubbles

Fill your sink up with water and dish soap to form a bubbly sink.  Let your preschooler play in the sink with plastic cups, spoons, and bowls.

This might make a bit of a watery mess, but it’s so fun for the little ones and a great at home preschool activity.

4.  Make Playdough

It’s so easy to make homemade playdough.  All you need is a few ingredients, and preschoolers can be the best helpers!  I’ve tried many (seriously, MANY) playdough recipes over the years.  This playdough recipe is the very best out there!

5.  Have A Teddy Bear Picnic

Preschoolers love teddy bear picnics!  To host a teddy bear picnic just lay a blanket on the floor and gather all of the teddy bears and stuffed animals in the house to set on the blanket.

Next, prepare a few simple treats or snacks to bring to the picnic.  

Now, all you have to do is enjoy a picnic with your preschooler and favorite teddys.

6.  Play Hide And Seek

Preschoolers love to play hide and seek, and it requires zero materials or planning, which makes it a quick and easy activity for a parent to throw together.

To play hide and seek, one person will close their eyes and count to twenty.  While counting the hiders must quickly try to conceal themselves in a hiding place.

Once the seeker reaches twenty they will search and to try to find the hiders.  It’s so fun to see where kids decide to hide.  Let everyone have a turn being the “seeker” and “hider”.

7.  Paper Bag Puppets

Another fun at home preschool activity is to make paper bag puppets.  Turn a brown paper bag into a puppet by coloring a face on the flap.  Make a few different puppets and then put on a puppet show with your preschooler!

8.  Magic Toothpick Science Experiment

This magic toothpick science experiment is another easy at home preschool activity.  All you need is a few ingredients and 5 minutes to prepare this experiment.  Your preschooler will love watching the pretty colors form!

9.  Caterpillar Soup

Mix up some caterpillar soup with your kiddo by pouring some water into a bowl and then letting your preschooler shake in a few spices.  I try to pick spices with different colors to help give the “soup” some variety and color.

Give the soup a few stirs with the spoon and then set it outside for the “caterpillars” to enjoy.  My kids always figured out this wasn’t really for caterpillars, but they still enjoyed pretending!

10.  Have A Dance Party

Turn on some fun Disney tunes and have a dance party.  Kids love showing off their newest moves!

11.  Form A Marching Band

Form a marching band as a family using items around the house.  Someone can shake spices, another bang two pot lids together, and someone else could use a pot and spoon as a drum.

Use your “instruments” to march around the house like a marching band.  (pro tip:  you might want to wear ear plugs for this activity!  😉 )

12.  Make A Road Out Of Tape

Use painters tape to form a road over the carpet, stairs, couches, everywhere you want!  Let your preschooler drive their matchbox cars over the road.

You can even add a town to your roads by using the tape to make a few houses, supermarket, school, church, etc.

13.  Make Ice Cream

Make homemade ice cream in a bag.  It only takes a few ingredients and Preschoolers love helping to shake the bag and of course try the ice cream!  We love this ice cream in a bag recipe.

14. Indoor Scavenger Hunt

Set up an indoor scavenger hunt for your preschooler to enjoy.  Make a list (don’t forget to include pictures) of items for your preschooler to find around the house.

Give them the list and let them find each item.  Give a snack or small price to them once the list has been completed.

15.  Peanut Butter Play Dough

A fun twist on the the original play dough is this easy peanut butter play dough recipe.  My kids love helping me make it, probably because they love getting to eat some of it!

This is a great activity for teaching the 5 senses to preschoolers.  They can taste, touch, smell, see, and even hear the play dough being squished.

16.  Play Library

Have fun pretending to have a library at home.  Set up a few books around the house and let your preschooler pick out a few to “check out”.  Pretend to be the librarian and let your child come to you to check out each book.

Then, switch places!  Allow your preschooler a chance to be the librarian while you check out books.

17.  Finger Paint

Mix up some finger paint for your child to paint with.  Give them some white papers and let them create a masterpiece!  Don’t forget to hang the painting on the fridge once it’s done!

18.  Send Letters

Teach your child to serve and send love to others by making a few cards or letters for grandparents or other loved ones.

Your preschooler can draw a cute picture inside and then sign their name if they are able to.  Not only is this a fun at home preschool activity, it’s also a great way to put a smile on someone’s face.

19.  Make Cereal Necklaces

Help your preschooler develop their fine motor skills by making cereal necklaces together.

Use some yarn or string and thread it with cheerios or fruit loop cereal until the necklace is the right size.

20.  Cut Up Magazines

Get out a few magazines for your preschooler to look through.  Let them cup out their favorite pictures.  After you have a pile of pictures use them to tell each other stories.

This is a great activity for developing fine motor skills and imagination!

21.  Play Dress Up

Let your preschooler pretend to be someone else for a day by playing dress up.  I always kept a big box of fun dress up clothes for the kids to play with.  These were usually items I collected from the thrift store, like pirate, princess, or super hero costumes.

If you don’t have a dress up box you could lend some of your clothes to your child to dress in for the day.  They would have so much fun pretending to be mom or dad for a few hours!

22.  Cosmic Kids Yoga

My preschoolers all loved Cosmic Kids Yoga.  Its a fun YouTube channel that teaches kids how to do yoga, by telling a story.  There are many different stories and videos to choose from.  This is a great way to keep your kids active and their bodies moving.

23.  Build An Obstacle Course

Another fun activity to keep your kids moving is to make an obstacle course for them to go through.  This can be done in your backyard or wherever you happen to have some large space to run.

Here is an example of what your obstacle course might look like:

  • Do 5 jumping jacks.
  • Kick a ball.
  • Crawl under the trampoline.
  • Walk backyards 20 feet.
  • Swing for 1 minute.
  • Hop on one foot.
  • Carry a ball to another part of the yard.

After you make up the obstacle course for your child, let them then make up a course for you to complete!

24.  Have A Pillow Fight

Grab a few pillows and have an old fashioned pillow fight!  It’s always fun to let loose with your kids!  A pillow fight is sure to bring a lot of laughter and giggles.

25.  Art Hub For Kids

Try the fun YouTube channel Art Hub for Kids for some fun drawing lessons.  This is a great resource for making drawing easy and FUN for kids.  They even have an entire series of drawings for preschoolers.

26.  Bake Cookies

I’ve never met a preschooler who didn’t love baking cookies!  Let them choose their favorite kind (chocolate chip is always a first choice at our house) and then spend an hour baking together, and of course eating!

  • Make sure to grab my recipe ebook for a few of our favorite recipes!

27.  Play Simon Says

My preschoolers always loved to play Simon Says.

Choose one person to stand on one side of the room, this person is “Simon.”  Have everyone else stand on the other side of the room. 

Simon will then instruct the other players to do an activity by using the phrase, “Simon Says.”  For example:  “Charly, Simon says to hop up and down three times.”

The person who was instructed to do the activity then must do what was instructed of them.

If Simon does not use the phrase, “Simon Says” before giving the command, then the player should not complete the activity.  If they do the activity without the phrase “Simon Says” used then that player is then out of the game.

Make sure to give everyone a chance to be Simon, kids love that job!

28.  Make Ooblek

Ooblek is a fun, slimy activity for preschoolers.  It only takes two cheap ingredients and can entertain your little one for hours.

To make ooblek just mix 2 cups of cornstarch and 1 cup of water together in a bowl.

That’s it!  Now, just let them squish and play with the ooblek.

29.  Color Hot Rocks

Collect a few rocks from outside for this fun Hot Rocks activity.  This is a fun twist on the typical painting rocks activity that you and your child are sure to love!

30.  Play Store

Another fun pretend play for at home preschool activity is to play store.  We like to play this activity by setting out a few toys and other objects around the room, this is our “store.”

Next, get out some play money (or make some with paper) and put it in one section of the room for the cash register.  Make sure to give some money to the shopper too!

Now, let your little one “shop” at the store, including checking out with the play money at the cash register.

This is a fun activity to let them get some practice at being a grown up.

31.  Make a Sun Catcher

Crafts always make for fun at home preschool activities.  You will need a few supplies for these easy sun catchers, but if you happen to have them around the house it is a great craft projects for little ones!

32.  Play Balloon Volleyball

Blow up a few balloons and play balloon volleyball with your preschooler.  There aren’t any rules to this volleyball game!  Just enjoy tossing the balloons to each other and having fun with your kids.

33.  Play Red Light, Green Light

Red Light, Green Light is another fun game to play with preschoolers.  To play this game have one person stand on one end of the room, this will be the “caller”, and the other players stand in a line at the other end of the room.

The caller will then start calling out commands.  Commands for this game will be “Red Light” or “Green Light.”  When “Green Light” is called the players can walk as quickly as they can towards the caller.  But, when “Red Light” is called the players must stop moving.

The point of this game is to be the first person to reach the caller.

34.  Matchbox Car Wash

Preschoolers love playing in water.  One fun activity is to set up a Matchbox Car Wash.

Get out a few matchbox cars, a cake pan, bowl of water, and a pastry brush.

One at a time put a matchbox car in the cake pan and wash it using the pastry brush.  This activity is so simple, but kids love it!

35.  Make Hand Shadows

Find a dark place in your house and use a flashlight to light up one wall.  Use your hands to make shadows on the wall.  It’s so fun to see what shadows each of you can come up with.

If you are needing some hand shadow inspiration, check out this fun YouTube video!

36.  Play Will It Float

Will It Float is a fun, easy activity for preschoolers to help learn about what items float and what items sink.

To play this game let your preschooler gather a few small objects around the house, make sure to only let them choose items that are water proof.

Then fill up the sink with water.

Have your preschooler guess which items they think will sink in the water and which ones will float.  Last, drop each of the objects into the sink of water one by one.  It’s so fun to see which items float!

37.  Make a Paper Quilt

Cut up small squares of paper and let your preschooler glue them onto a large piece of paper.  They have then made their very own paper quilt!  It’s so fun to let them choose their colors and patterns and use some creativity.

In Conclusion

There are so many cheap at home preschool activities.  I hope you and your little ones enjoy some of these activities on my list. 

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The Best Deals At Costco

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

The best items to buy at Costco to save money!

Years ago I signed up for my very first Costco Membership.  I had heard all about the best deals at Costco and how it could help save me money.  The first time I walked into the store I was so excited to start saving money.

I spent an hour walking through aisle after aisle in the store filling my shopping cart with all of my new fun finds and couldn’t wait to see how much money I was saving.  The beautiful organic produce, the cute kids clothing, and all those snacks!  Oh, was it fun!

And then, I went to checkout. 

My jaw about dropped to the floor when the cashier announced that I owed $300.  “What about all those good deals I grabbed.  I thought shopping in bulk would save me money!” were the thoughts that swirled in my head as I shakily swiped my credit card and the spending guilt set in.

After repeating this process for a few months I realized that my grocery budget was suffering, big time, and Costco was NOT saving me money.  I cancelled my membership and never looked back.

Fast forward ten years, and a bunch of new frugal lessons learned, I decided I wanted to try out Costco again.  But this time, I was going to be using my card with a new, better approach.

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The Wrong Way To Shop Costco

Here’s the thing, there is a wrong way and a right way to shop at Costco.  If you want to spend less money at Costco, it’s so important for you to understand the differences.

Here are a few of the wrong ways to shop at Costco:

Shopping when hungry.

Don’t ever shop at Costco with an empty stomach (I learned this the hard way!).  You will be much more tempted to grab more food than you really need.

Assuming that buying in bulk is cheaper.

The truth is buying your food in bulk CAN be cheaper, but not always.  Always check the price per unit to help you decide which is the better deal.

Buying more food than you can eat before it spoils.

Before you buy anything at Costco, I recommend you think long and hard about how quickly you can eat the item you are buying.  If you buy a huge pack of spinach, but your family can’t eat it before it goes bad, then unfortunately that spinach gets thrown away, meaning your hard earned money goes to waste.

Shopping without a plan.

Going into Costco without a plan is a quick way to break your budget.  Aimlessly wandering aisle after aisle is a huge temptation to many of us (ME!) and should be avoided as much as possible.

Assuming that the sales are a good price.

I LOVE most of Costco’s monthly sale items (hello cheap Premier Protein shakes), but I have learned that just because something is on sale, does not make it a great price.

Like I mentioned earlier, it’s necessary to always check the price per unit before buying something.  I like to compare Costco prices to Walmart Grocery Pickup prices using their phone app.  This helps me know if I can find the same item cheaper somewhere else.

The Right Way To Shop Costco

Alrighty, now let’s talk about the RIGHT way to shop at Costco.  Following these tips will help you get the most out of your Costco membership and not have to leave the store with a mountain of guilt.

Set a budget.

If you don’t already make a regular budget, I suggest you start one now.  A budget gives you permission to spend, without the guilt; but it also decreases the chance of impulse buying.

Give yourself a budget for how much you can spend at Costco each month.  My personal budget is $100/month.

Feel free to grab my free budget cheat sheets below to help you learn exactly how to start budgeting.

Always shop with a list.

Make a list of items you want to purchase at Costco BEFORE going into the store.  If you shop with a list in hand you will be much more likely to stick to it and avoid any impulse shopping. 

Research the current deals, and what you need at that time.  A good rule of thumb is to plan about $10/item.  Of course this number varies based on what you buy, but it gives me a good goal to work towards.

Use a calculator.

Yes!  I am totally *that* person walking around Costco with my calculator, adding up everything before putting it into my cart.  And honestly, it has saved me from overspending so many times!

Add up everything as you put it into your cart to make sure you stay in budget and there won’t be any surprises when checking out.

Know what is a good deal or not.

Like I mentioned earlier, it’s important to check the price per unit of items before you buy them.  I recommend grabbing my free Stock Up Price Guide here to help you learn the best deals of popular food items.

Take a picture of the price guide so that you always have it with you while shopping.  Check it often to help you compare food items before buying them.

The Best Deals At Costco

Here is my list of my favorite deals at Costco.  Most of these items I buy every single time I go to Costco.  Other items I have just noticed that the price is great!

1.  Rotisserie Chicken

I am so in love with Costco’s Rotisserie Chicken.  It’s moist, delicious and a great deal for only $4.99.  This rotisserie chicken is always at the top of my Costco shopping list.

  • Rotisserie Chicken at Costco:  10 cents/oz.
  • Rotisserie Chicken at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  15 cents/oz.

2.  Gasoline

I always make a habit of filling my car up with gasoline every time I am at Costco, even if my tank is 3/4 full.  It’s by far the cheapest gas in my town and I never want to miss out on it.

  • Current Gasoline Price at Costco:  $1.92/gallon
  • Current Gasoline Price at Maverick:  $2.14/gallon

3.  Butter

Another one of the best deals at Costco is their butter.  I always buy this 4 lb. pack of butter.  I store 1 lb. in my fridge and the other 3 lbs. are kept in my freezer until I needed.  Today my local Costco has their 4 lb. butter for $6.95, making it only $1.78/lb.  Walmart Grocery Pickup Butter is priced at $2.98/lb.  

We go through about 4 lbs. of butter a month, making it perfect timing for my next Costco trip!

  • Kirkland Sweet Cream Butter at Costco:  11 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Sweet Cream Butter at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  18.6 cents/oz.

4.  Yeast

One of the very best deals that I have found at Costco is the Red Star Yeast.  If you do any baking, make sure to buy your yeast at Costco.

  • Red Star Yeast at Costco:  14 cents/oz.
  • Red Star Yeast at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  $1.16/oz.

*Frugal Tip:  Keep your yeast in the freezer to help it stay fresh longer.

5.  Cashews

The Kirkland brand cashews at Costco yet another fantastic deal.  You can get 2.5 lbs. of cashews for only $13.99, which is much cheaper than at Walmart Grocery Pickup.

  • Kirkland Whole Cashews at Costco:  35 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Deluxe Whole Cashews at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  43 cents/oz.

6.  Craisins

My kids love Craisins, but I haven’t bought them a lot in the past because they can be so expensive.  I was so excited to find these Craisins at Costco for a great price!

  • Ocean Spray Craisins at Costco:  14 cents/oz.
  • Ocean Spray Craisins at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  24 cents/oz.

7.  Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Another great buy at Costco is the organic extra virgin olive oil.  You can buy a 2 liter bottle (which will last a very long time!) for only $9.45.  If organic, extra virgin olive oil isn’t a priority to you, and you are happy with classic olive oil than buying it at Walmart Grocery Pickup will be the better deal.

  • Kirkland Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil at Costco:  14 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  19 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Classic Olive Oil at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  13.6 cents/oz.

8.  Buttermilk Kodiak Cake Mix

I may or may not have a *slight* obsession with Kodiak Cakes (ok, fine I totally am obsessed!).  It makes me so happy to be able to buy it at Costco for a much better deal than I use to buy it.  For only $11.49 you can get 4.5 lbs. of buttermilk Kodiak cake mix, which is much cheaper than at Walmart Grocery Pickup.

  • Buttermilk Kodiak Cake Mix at Costco:  16 cents/oz.
  • Buttermilk Kodiak Cake Mix at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  23 cents/oz.

9.  Spices

Many of Costco bulk spices are much cheaper than you will find at most grocery stores.  One of my favorites is this this 20 oz. chili powder from Costco for only $5.49.

  • Chili Powder at Costco:  27 cents/oz.
  • Chili Powder at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  32 cents/oz.

10.  Nutella

We absolutely love Nutella at our house.  I don’t buy it very often though because of the price.  I was so excited to find it at Costco for a stealer deal.

These two huge (33.5 oz. each) containers of Nutella are only $12.39!  If you buy Nutella regularly, I suggest buying it at Costco.

However!  If you don’t mind buying off brands, the Great Value brand of Nutella at Walmart IS even cheaper!

  • Nutella at Costco:  19 cents/oz.
  • Nutella at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  22 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Hazelnut Spread at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  15 cents/oz.

Related Article:  15 Products You Should Always Buy Generic

11.  Cheese

I buy one 2 lb. cheese loaf every time I go to Costco.  It’s almost half the price of the cheese I use to buy at Walmart Grocery Pickup and lasts weeks at our house!

  • Mild Cheddar Cheese at Costco:  $2.49/lb.
  • Mild Cheddar Cheese at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  $4.22/lb.

12.  1% Low-fat Milk

I personally do not buy milk at Costco, but it can be a good deal for many people.  My family are not huge milk drinkers, so we wouldn’t be able to drink the two gallons before it spoiled.  If you go through a lot of milk and like 1% milk, than this is a good deal for you.

  • Kirkland 1% Low-fat Milk at Costco:  $2.19/gallon
  • Great Value 1% Lowfat Milk at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  $2.28/gallon
  • Great Value Fat Free Milk at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  $2.19/gallon

13.  Frozen Fruit

Another one of the best deals at Costco is the frozen fruit.  I love buying a few packs of these to use in our smoothies.  These organic frozen Mango Chunks are just one example of the great prices Costco has on frozen fruit.

  • Frozen Mango Chunks at Costco:  11 cents/oz.
  • Frozen Mango Chunks at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  13 cents/oz.

14.  Organic Kirkland Creamy Peanut Butter

If you buy organic peanut butter, I suggest doing it at Costco.  You can buy 2-28 oz. jars of organic peanut butter for less than $10!  Which is a steal!  However, non organic peanut butter will be cheaper at Walmart Grocery Pickup.

  • Kirkland Organic Creamy Peanut Butter at Costco:  18 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Organic Creamy Peanut Butter at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  22 cents/oz.
  • Great Value Creamy Peanut Butter at Walmart Grocery Pickup:  9 cents/oz.

Shop Smart At Costco

It is possible to shop at Costco while on a budget!  I am so glad I have learned the tricks to shopping at Costco.  It has helped our family stock up our pantry and save money on groceries.  I hope these tips for the best deals at Costco will help your family too!

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What other items do you think are the best deals at Costco?

How To Budget With An Inconsistent Income

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

How to budget when you have an irregular income.

Have you been trying to budget with an inconsistent income and keep falling short?  Do not worry!  You are not alone!  This is a very common problem that people with irregular incomes experience.  When incomes changes from month to month it can be very hard to know how to budget.  I mean, if you don’t know how much money you’ll be earning each month, how do you decide how much to spend?  I get it, and I am here to help!  There are a few tricks you can use to make budgeting with an irregular income not only easier, but possible.  Today I’m excited to share my tips to help you learn how to budget with an inconsistent income.

First Things First

Before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s first do a quick run through and how to make a budget.  When it comes to budgeting, I recommend making a zero based budget. 

Zero based budgeting is really just a fancy term that means that when making your budget your expenses will equal your income.  Every dollar you will be earning will have a job, a category it will be put in.  This doesn’t mean you will be spending every dollar, just that you will find a category for every dollar in your budget.

This form of budgeting has helped my husband and I find so much financial success and limit our impulse spending.  If it’s not in the budget, we can’t buy it!

If you are new to zero based budgeting, or budgeting in general, make sure to grab my free Budget Cheat Sheets below to help you get started!

How To Budget With An Inconsistent Income

There are a few different tricks you can do when learning how to budget with an inconsistent income.  I suggest trying a few of these methods out until you find what works best for you and your income.

1.  Make your budget based on your lowest expected income.

My first tip to budgeting with a variable income is to make your budget based off of your lowest expected income for that month.  It’s always better to have to much money, instead of not enough, right?  Right.

When you budget off of your lowest expected income you can be confident in knowing you have budgeted enough money for your monthly expenses.  And, if your income ends up being higher, well, than that’s just icing on the cake!

To find your lowest expected income you will first need to review your income statements from the previous year.  Compare each month until you find the lowest amount you earned last year.

Use that amount of money as your base income for your budget.  

If throughout the month you earn more money than you your lowest expected, you can use that money to:

2.  Budget off of the previous months income.

Instead of living off of the amount of money you will be earning this month, live off of your income from the previous month.

For Example:

Let’s say that you earn $5,000 in January, $3,200 in February, and $5,500 in March.

In February you will not budget or spend any of the $3,200 you will be earning.  Instead, you will be budgeting and spending the $5,000 you earned in January, and set aside your February earnings.  Then in March you will budget the $3,200 from February and save your March earnings until the next month.

Make sense?

Budgeting off of the previous months income can take some practice and self control, but it is a great way to ensure you have the money before you budget for the month.

If you find yourself constantly tempted to spend your monthly income, instead of the previous months, you might want to set up a separate bank account to store that money in until it’s time to use it.

3.  Create a Hill and Valley Fund.

A Hill and Valley Fund is one of the most effective ways to budget with an inconsistent income.

The Hill and Valley Fund is based off of the “Hills” and “Valleys” many people with irregular incomes experience.  Some months your income will be big, like a Hill; and other months it might be a lot smaller, like a Valley.

Creating a Hill and Valley Fund is a way for you to help even out these variable income months.  A Hill and Valley Fund is similar to a sinking fund.

*A sinking fund is a fund you save into regularly, but only use when needed.

The best way to grow this fund is to save some of your excess money during a “Hill” month into this fund, which isn’t always easy, but so important.   Then, on the months when your income is low, a “Valley” month, you can use some of the money you have saved.

You can track your Hill and Valley Fund, similar to a sinking fund, within your budgeting programs.  Or, set up a separate banking account to keep this savings in.  Whichever works best for you!

Stay Consistent

It can be stressful when trying to learn how to budget with an inconsistent income.  One of the most important things to remember is to not let that stress deter you from budgeting.  Keep working your budget, trying different methods, and using your Hill and Valley fund and you will see success.

Try these three steps when making your next budget, and remember to stay consistent.  Consistency is key to living within a budget, no matter how much money you earn.  You can do it!  I believe in you!

 

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15 Easy Pantry Dinner Ideas

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

Check out these kid friendly easy cheap dinner ideas!

This month I have been participating in a January Pantry Challenge.  My goal has been to save some extra money by eating the food I already have at home and spending less at the store.  This is not always an easy task, but I love the challenge and pushing myself out of my comfort zone!  As I’ve been trying to cut my grocery expenses I’ve found a few pantry dinner ideas that I am so excited to share with you!

How To Stock A Frugal Pantry

I love having my pantry, freezer, and cupboards stocked with a few of our every day staples.  Having a well stocked pantry makes it much easier to throw together a few easy pantry dinner ideas, without having to go to the store.

The best way to stock up your pantry is to buy a few extra of the items you would normally be buying anyways.  For example, when I need ketchup, I’ll buy 3 bottles of ketchup, rather than just 1.  This gives me the extra food on hand, that I know I buy and use regularly.

When stocking your frugal pantry, try to focus on buying frugal friendly food items.  A few of my favorites are:

  • Flour
  • Sugar
  • Pasta
  • Oatmeal
  • Vinegar
  • Beans
  • Eggs
  • Potatoes
  • Popcorn

Related:  Cheap Foods to Buy For a Well Stocked Pantry

pantry dinner ideas - easy dinner ideas for picky eaters

Easy Pantry Dinner Ideas

Alright!  Let’s get to it!  Here are a few of my easy pantry dinner ideas.  I hope they will inspire you to use food that you already have at home to put together a few easy dinner ideas.

Most of these dinner ideas are kid friendly and easy to customize and change to your personal eating preference.

1.  Taco Soup

Taco soup is the perfect pantry dinner to throw together using ingredients you already have at home.  It’s really easy to throw together whatever you happen to have in your fridge to make this soup.

Use chicken, beef, or beans (or a combination of all three!) as the base for your soup.  Then, add in onions, tomatoes, corn, taco seasoning, and whatever else sounds good to you for a nice, warm, and hearty taco soup.

*My favorite taco soup recipe is included in my Mel’s Home Cooking recipe ebook!

2.  Pasta Bake

Looking for an incredibly easy-impossible to fail-quick to fix pantry dinner idea????  This easy pasta bake is just what you need!  You only need 4 ingredients to throw it together, and one of them is water (seriously.)!  You can find this easy Pasta Bake Recipe here!

3.  Chili With Cornbread Waffles

Have a can of chili sitting in a cupboard and some cornmeal?  Make chili with cornbread waffles!  This is my kids favorite cheap and easy dinner!

To make chili with cornbread waffles, you will first need to heat up a can of chili over the stove on medium-high heat.

While the chili is warming up, make your cornbread waffles using the recipe below.

 

Cornbread Waffles

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 1/3 cup oil
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1 cup buttermilk if you do not have buttermilk just mix 1 Tbsp vinegar into 1 cup milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Instructions
 

  • In large mixer cream together the sugar and oil.
  • Add eggs and milk and mix well.
  • In separate bowl stir together the baking soda, flour, cornmeal, and salt.
  • Add all at once to egg mixture and mix until smooth.
  • Pour batter onto waffle iron and cook until lightly golden brown.
  • Serve with chili and cheese on top.

Serve the chili on top of the cornbread waffles and sprinkle with cheese.  You will now be your kids favorite person, seriously.

4.  Spaghetti With Garlic Toast

Spaghetti is one of the easiest pantry dinners around!  Have a box of spaghetti noodles and a jar of spaghetti sauce???  All it takes is a few minutes to warm them up on the stove and, boom dinner is ready!

I like to serve spaghetti with a side of garlic toast, which is so easy to make!  Get out a few bread slices from a loaf of bread and spread butter on top and then sprinkle it with garlic salt.  Cook the bread slices on a cookie sheet, under the broiler for 3-5 minutes until brown and toasty.  That’s it!  Garlic toast is a great side for a family friendly dinner.

5.  Burrito Bowl

Burrito bowls are a perfect way to use up ingredients you have sitting in your fridge and pantry.  Layer your burrito bowl with rice on the bottom, and layering with beans, cheese, seasonings.  Top your burrito bowl with your favorite toppings.

A few topping suggestions are:  tomato’s, salsa, sour cream, tortilla chips, lettuce, corn, avocado, cilantro, ranch dressing, and anything else that sounds good to you!

6.  Sloppy Joes

Another great pantry dinner idea is to make sloppy joes.  Sloppy joes can easily be made with some ground beef and a few other pantry staples.  This is a very freezer friendly meal, so I will double the recipe and then freeze half for another day.

These are best served on hamburger buns, but we have used a regular loaf of bread when in a pinch.  All about pantry friendly here!

*My favorite Sloppy Joes recipe is available in the Mel’s Home Cooking ebook.

7.  Tomato Soup With Cheese Toast

We always keep a can of tomato soup stocked in our pantry for nights when I’m to tired, or busy, to make a big dinner.  It only takes a few minutes (and hardly any effort!) to heat up some tomato soup over the stove

I love to serve tomato soup with a side of cheese toast.  Make cheese toast by placing some cheese onto slices of bread and then cooking them on a cookie sheet under the broiler for 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

8.  Tacos

Tacos is another quick and easy dinner you can throw together using pantry ingredients.  Make your tacos using any meat you happen to have at home, such as chicken, pork, or beef.

To make tacos just cook your meat over the stove.  Once cooked add 1/2 cup water and a packet of taco seasoning.

If you don’t have a packet of taco seasoning in your pantry, that’s ok!  You can make it yourself!  Check out my favorite taco seasoning recipe below!

Easy Taco Seasoning Mix

Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Instructions
 

  • In small bowl mix all ingredients together.
  • Use 2 Tbsp taco seasoning mix in replace of 1 packet of taco seasoning.
  • Store seasoning in a tupperware container or jar in your pantry.

 

Cook and stir your meat with taco seasoning and water until the water has cooked off, about 5 minutes.

Serve in tortillas with your favorite toppings.  We love cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro, salsa, sour cream and guacamole.

9.   Homemade Pizza

We love homemade pizza at our house!  Use this homemade pizza dough recipe to make the crust, and then top it with your favorite toppings, or whatever you have in your pantry.  

Get creative!  You can use barbecue sauce, marinara sauce, alfredo sauce, or even Thai sauce.  For toppings try different kinds of cheeses, vegetables and meats. 

If you don’t feel like making homemade pizza dough, you can even use French bread, biscuits or tortillas to make your pizzas.  Find out how here:  Easy Pizza Alternatives.

10.  Bean Burritos

Another great pantry dinner idea is to make bean burritos!  This is a very quick and easy meal to prepare, and they are freezer friendly!  (yay, I love freezer friendly!) 

To make bean burritos just mix beans (we use black or pinto beans), cheese, rice, and taco seasoning together.  Place mixture on tortillas and gently roll up.

Heat your burrito in the microwave or oven and serve!  Easy peasy!

11.  Stir Fry

Stir fry is another dinner staple at our house!  It’s the perfect meal to make on busy days.  The three steps to a good stir fry are vegetables, protein, and sauce.

Choose whichever protein and vegetables you have in your home already.  A few protein suggestions are:  chicken, beef and shrimp.  There are so many vegetables that make a great stir fry, such as:  peppers, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, mushrooms and peas.

Sauté your protein in a large frying pan.  Add vegetables and continue to sauté until cooked.  Next, add sauce and stir together.  Cook and stir for a few more minutes until sauce has thickened.

Serve your stir fry over rice or noodles, whichever is in your pantry.

My favorite stir fry sauce is included in my Mel’s Home Cooking eCookbook, but I also really like this 3 ingredient stir fry sauce.

12.  Stroganoff

Stroganoff is another simple and pantry friendly dinner.  You can whip up some stroganoff with ground beef, sour cream, cream of chicken soup mix and some seasonings.  Serve it over noodles or eat it Idaho style, served over a baked potato!  Yum!

13.  Breakfast for Dinner

My kids love when I make breakfast for dinner.  It’s such an easy, fun dinner to make when your pantry is feeling bare.  We love to make waffles, pancakes, eggs and a smoothie for Saturday night dinners once or twice a month.

14.  Twice Baked Potatoes

I grew up on an Idaho potato farm, so potatoes are always a staple at my house.  They are so cheap, easy and filling!

Twice baked potatoes are a great way to make a filling meal out of ingredients you probably already have at home.  I love this recipe from Ree Drummond.

15.  Quesadillas

Have some tortillas and cheese???  Make quesadillas for dinner!  You can customize your quesadilla in whichever way you want!  We use salsa, beans, chicken, onions, peppers and green chilis.

A fun way to serve quesadillas is to set out all of the ingredients you have to make them for a quesadilla bar.  Let everyone fill, and customize their own tortilla and cook on the griddle.

Save Money and Cook At Home

I hope these pantry meal ideas gave you some inspiration for cooking without having to go to the store.  Cooking dinner using your pantry ingredients is a great way to save extra money on groceries. 

Remember, to try to use the foods that you already have at home.  If a recipe calls for something you don’t already have, be creative and find a good substitute, do not run to the grocery store!  Because we all know if we go to the grocery store for “just one thing” we always leave with more (is that just me????).

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How To Save Money On Preschool

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

Frugal preschool hacks.

The Preschool age of raising kids is just one of my very favorite ages!  It is so much fun!  I love the sweet innocence, and the fact that their cute personalities are starting to show.  The only negative to these years is that paying for preschool tuition can get expensive!  Preschool is optional for many families, but for those of us who want our kids in school before elementary school I am sharing a few ways to save money on preschool!

Why Is Preschool Important?

I understand that not everyone feels the need to have their children in preschool, and that’s OK!  My belief is that there are a million different ways to be an EXCELLENT parent and that there is NOT a one size fits all when it comes to raising kids.

We decided to enroll each of my three kids in preschool for a variety of reasons, I’ll share a few of them below:

  • Learn important social skills.  I really wanted my kids to get practice interacting with kids their age, so they could learn how to share, say sorry, and be a good friend.
  • Practice being in a structured learning environment.  Another important part of preschool for me is giving the kids practice sitting still, following directions and listening to a teacher.
  • Give them a head start on kindergarten and reading readiness.  I really love that preschool gave my kids a head start on reading and math skills.  It helped me feel more confident when sending them to kindergarten.

money saving tips for preschool - budget friendly preschool ideas

How To Save Money On Preschool

Alright, now let’s get to the nitty gritty!  Here are a few ways you can cut costs on preschool tuition!

1.  Compare Prices

An important step to saving money on preschool costs is to shop around.  Make sure you spend time, research, and effort to compare prices of multiple preschools in your area.

I recommend asking for preschool recommendations on Facebook Marketplace and from a few good friends.  Once you have a list of possible preschools call each of them to find out more information.

As you are shopping around make a list of each preschool including their tuition price, preschool times, and pros and cons of each one.  This will help you when making the decision of which school is best for your child.

I’ve found that the preschools done out of the home tend to be the most budget friendly.

2.  Try A Public Preschool

Most preschools are private, but there are also many public preschools available if you look for them.  These public preschools are usually made available to low income families or kids with developmental delays, but they will sometimes accept others who don’t qualify….so make sure you ask!

The best way to find public preschools in your area is to spend some time googling local public preschools to see if you can find some.  I also recommend calling your local school district to see if they offer any public preschools.

3.  Offer To Volunteer

Many years ago, when my oldest was in preschool and money was tight, I asked her preschool teacher if there was anything I could do to help in the classroom in exchange for a discount on preschool tuition.

She was so nice and excited about my request!  It was truly a good situation for both of us.  Immediately I was put to work copying papers and cutting out shapes for craft projects.  In return she gave me a 25% discount.  Yay!  She’s the best!

In the years since then I have heard from other friends of preschool teachers offering similar discounts in exchange for help in the classroom.  Remember that not every teacher will agree to this request, but it never ever hurts to ask!

4.  Form A Preschool Co-op

Instead of paying for preschool, form a co-op with a few other moms and teach preschool yourself!  A preschool co-op not only saves money, it is also fun! 

Here’s how it works:

  • Find 4 other moms who have children the same age as your preschool child.
  • Host a meeting with the other moms where you can discuss curriculum, routines, and expectations for the preschool.
  • Assign each mom one week every month to teach the preschool kids at her home.

I’ve found it works best when everyone is following the same routine and curriculum to help the preschoolers get use to the structure of a classroom, which is why the meeting is so important to have.

I did a preschool co-op with a few friends for my youngest child and I loved it!  It was such a fun way to interact with my son and his friends.  Plus, it was free!

Our preschool co-op schedule looked something like this:

  1. Review the calendar and date.
  2. Discuss the weather.
  3. Lesson focused on a color, number, or letter.  The lessons were pre-assigned to each mom before the year started.
  4. Free play time.
  5. Snack time.
  6. Story time.

Each mom was also asked to choose and host one field trip during the year.  My field trip was in the fall, so we toured my dad’s potato cellar and talked about potato harvest!  It included a ride in a tractor, so the kids were all in heaven!

5.  Homeschool Preschool

If a preschool co-op isn’t your thing, you might want to consider teaching your child preschool lessons at home yourself.  This is what I did for my middle child, and we both loved it!  We still talk about our time together spent doing preschool.

A homeschool preschool often works best when you set a specific day and time to do school.  This really helps to keep you and your child on schedule. Next you should spend some time planning out your daily curriculum.  It might help to look up kindergarten readiness tips to help you decide what to focus on while you teach.

There are also many free printables offered on pinterest that you can use for your homeschool preschool.  It really is possible to teach preschool at home!

In Conclusion

Raising kids is expensive, but there are steps we as parents can take to help alleviate some of those huge costs.  If you are wanting a way to prepare your child for kindergarten, without breaking the bank, try a few of these suggestions!

I have done most of them and saw first hand how helpful they can be in decreasing the high cost of preschool tuition.  If I can save money on preschool, then you can too!

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19 Foods You Didn’t Know You Could Freeze

By: Sweet Frugal Lifecomment

Foods you can freeze to save money.

Have you ever wondered what foods you can freeze??  There are many common freezable foods, but today I want to share about a few food items you probably didn’t know you could freeze!  These are all food items that freeze well, but aren’t talked about as much as the other common freezable foods.

Sweet Frugal Life is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.  As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Supplies Needed to Freeze Food

There are a few supplies you will need to help you freeze food.  The initial investment is worth the amount of money you will save!

I use each of these products when freezing food, and they all work great!  A vacuum sealer does the best job of getting all air out of the bag, which is important!  So if you will be doing a lot of freezing, I do recommend getting the vacuum sealer.  But, each of these products will work.

Benefits of Freezing Food

You might be wondering why it’s important to know how and what foods to freeze.  Freezing food is a great way to save money on groceries.

Here are three of the most common times I freeze food to save money:

1.  Freezing Leftovers

Have you ever had to throw out food from your fridge or pantry because it had past it’s expired date before you could use it?!?!?

This happens to me All.The.Time!

The trick????  I’ve learned to freeze my leftovers, rather than storing them in the refrigerator.  This one simple change has saved me so much money and has prevented a lot of waste in the kitchen.  Win, win!

You can easily freeze leftovers by putting them into a freezer ziplock bag or container and tossing them into the freezer!  Most leftovers will stay good in the freezer for 3 months.  These frozen leftovers are perfect for a quick meal on busy days.

2.  Freezing Sale Items

Another reason to freeze food items to stock up on sale prices.  When I find a great sale on perishable foods, I stock up on a few and freeze most of it to use for later.  I just really love not having to pay full price for groceries (or really for anything!).

To find grocery items on sale in your area I recommend downloading the free Flipp app.  This awesome app scans all of the local grocery sale ads so you can easily see what’s on sale each week.

When you find a good deal, stock up and freeze the excess!  

3.  Freezing Foods Before They Expire

If you have items in your pantry that are close to reaching their expiration date, you might want to stick these items in the freezer!  The freezer will prolong their shelf date and give you more time to using it, preventing you from having to throw it away.

Foods You Didn’t Know You Can Freeze

Alright, now let’s get to the fun part!  Most people know that you can freeze strawberries, onions, chicken, etc.  Today’s article is all about foods you probably didn’t know that you can freeze.

1.  Butter

Butter is a great item to buy on sale and freeze for later use.

How To Freeze:

To keep butter fresh for a few months you can easily freeze it in it’s original packaging.  If you are wanting to store it in the freezer for longer, I would put the butter in a freezer bag.

Use the butter within 4 months for best results.

How To Defrost:

You can defrost butter in the refrigerator overnight, or set it on the countertop to let it thaw at room temperature.

2.  Flour

Another great item to buy on sale and freeze for later is flour.

How To Freeze:

To freeze flour put it in an airtight container, like a freezer bag, or one of these storage containers.  Fill the container as full as possible, the less air the better!  

You can keep flour in the freezer for 6-12 months.

How To Defrost:

Let flour thaw at room temperature before using.

3.  Eggs

Most people are shocked when I tell them that eggs are freezable!  But, it’s true!!!  You can freeze eggs.

How To Freeze:

To freeze eggs, just crack them into a bowl and whisk together with a fork.  Next, you will pour the eggs into a freezer bag or container, get out as much air from the bag as possible and put them in your freezer.  So easy, right?!?!

Eggs will stay good in the freezer for 6-12 months.

How To Defrost:

Thaw eggs in the refrigerator and then use them to make scrambled eggs, omelets, or in baking.

4.  Avocados

Another great food to freeze is avocados!  Frozen avocados can be used in dips, baking, or I like to put ours in smoothies.

How To Freeze:

You can freeze avocados by chopping them into small pieces and placing the pieces into a freezer bag or freezer container, and then putting the bag into the freezer.

Use your frozen avocados sometime between 3-6 months.

How To Defrost:

Let the frozen avocados sit in the refrigerator overnight to defrost.

5.  Cream

Many recipes call for a small amount of cream, which is great except for it leaves us with a large container of leftover cream.  Save this excess in the freezer to use at a different date.

How To Freeze:

I love to freeze cream using an ice cube tray.  It makes it easy to pull out a few tablespoons for recipes!  Learn exactly how to freeze cream using an ice cube tray here.

Frozen cream cubes will stay fresh for 3-6 months.

How To Defrost:

You can pull your cream cubes straight from the freezer and directly into your soups or recipes.  They can also be defrosted by placing them in the refrigerator overnight.

6.  Bread

Buy bread when it is on sale, and then freeze it to use later!

How To Freeze:

Bread is one of the easiest thing to freeze!  All you have to do is put it in the freezer, and done!

The packaging the bread comes in from the store is enough to keep the bread fresh for a few months!  See how easy?!?! 

Bread can stay in the freezer for 3 months before using.

How To Defrost:

Your bread will taste best if you defrost it in the oven.  Just warm your oven to 325 degrees, remove bread from packaging, and let it sit in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

7.  Grated Cheese

Cheese is a great item to buy on sale, or in bulk and then grate to freeze for later.  Cheese can turn a little crumbly when frozen, so it works best to grate it first and then freeze.

How To Freeze:

After grating your cheese, simply put it in a freezer bag, remove all of the air, and place in the freezer.

You can keep frozen cheese in the freezer for 6-9 months with best results.

How To Defrost:

Let the cheese defrost in the refrigerator overnight before using.

8.  Milk

Yes!  You can freeze milk!  Shocked???  I was too!

How To Freeze:

You shouldn’t freeze a milk carton that’s full.  So, use about 3/4 of a cup from the carton before freezing.  This allows room for expansion.

Once you have a small amount of milk out of the carton, you can stick it in the freezer.  That’s it!

Milk will stay good in the freezer for 6 months.

How To Defrost:

Defrost milk in the refrigerator overnight before using.

9.  Chips

Found a deal on chips?  Buy a few and throw them into your freezer to save for your next party (or midnight snacking if you’re like me….).

How To Freeze:

Chips can be frozen in the sealed bag they came in.  All you have to do is toss them into the freezer, bag and all!

Make sure to use your frozen chips within three months of freezing. 

How To Defrost:

To use, just thaw them at room temperature!  Easy peasy!

10.  Pizza Dough

When I make our Friday Night Pizza Dough I always double the recipe and freeze half for the next Friday.  This gives me something easy to pull out and use for a quick dinner (and it totally looks like I spent all day making it….when I really just got it from the freezer, win!).

How To Freeze:

To freeze pizza dough you need to put it in a freezer bag, get all of the air out, seal tightly, and freeze.

Use your frozen dough within 3-6 months.

How To Defrost:

When you are ready to use your frozen pizza dough, let it defrost in the refrigerator overnight.  

11.  Cooked Pasta

Freezing cooked pasta is a great way to preserve any pasta leftovers you might have from dinner.  You can freeze spaghetti, rotini, fetuccini noodles, and more!  As long as they don’t have the sauce on top, they can be frozen.

How To Freeze:

To freeze cooked pasta, you will first need to let it cool completely and then lightly toss the pasta with olive oil.

Next, lay the pasta in a single layer on a cookie sheet.  This doesn’t need to be perfect, but flash freezing does help prevent the pasta from clumping together in the freezer.

Stick the cookie sheet in the freeze and let the pasta freeze for about 1-2 hours (this is called flash freezing).

Once frozen, scoop the pasta off of the cookie sheet and put it in a freezer bag or a freezer container.

Place in the freezer and use within 3 months. 

How To Defrost:

You can reheat your frozen pasta in the microwave or by boiling it in hot water.

12.  Sauce

While freezing pasta, you might as well freeze some sauces too!  Right???  Right!

You can freeze almost any sauce, including:  spaghetti sauce, enchilada sauce, tomato sauce, pizza sauce, and more!

How To Freeze:

To freeze sauce just put it into a freezer bag or container, get all of the air out, and seal tightly.

Use your frozen sauces within 3-6 months.

How To Defrost:

Defrost sauces by placing them in the refrigerator overnight.

13.  Herbs

Herbs are definitely freezable!  If you enjoy gardening (like I do!) freezing your home grown herbs is a great way to save money!

How To Freeze:

I love to freeze my garden herbs in an ice cube tray.  This gives me quick access to them when I need them.

To do this you will need to fill an ice cube tray cube with herbs to about 3/4 full, next add olive oil until the cube is full and freeze.

Once frozen, take the individual cubes out of the tray and place them into a freezer bag.  

For best results use frozen herbs within 3-6 months.

How To Defrost:

You can put the frozen herb cubes straight from the bag into soups and stews.

14.  Pancakes

Pancakes are my busy mom hack to less stressful mornings!

How To Freeze:

Check out this article for all the details on freezing pancakes.

How To Defrost:

You can defrost your pancakes using the microwave, which is great because the kids can do it themselves if they need to!

15.  Sandwiches

I first heard about freezing sandwiches from Fun Cheap or Free!  This is a great way to save your kids uneaten sandwiches, or to prepare for an upcoming busy day.

Be sure to check out their freezing sandwiches article here for all of the details!

16.  Grapes

Frozen grapes are one of our very favorite snacks.  They are juicy and delicious!  My kids claim (and I have to agree!) that frozen grapes taste just like a grape snow cone!  You must try this!  When you find grapes on sale, buy a few extra bags to freeze. 

How To Freeze:

The first step to freezing grapes is to wash them and then let them dry thoroughly.  Once the grapes are dry place them into a freezer bag, take out all air, seal tightly and then place in the freezer.

Use within 3 months.

How To Defrost:

Don’t defrost your frozen grapes!  Eat the grapes straight out of the bag for a delicious snack!

17.  Nuts

To keep your nuts fresh for longer, freeze them! 

How To Freeze:

Nuts are easy to freeze!  Just put them into a freezer bag, get out all air, and seal tightly.

Frozen nuts should be used within 6 months. 

How To Defrost:

Let your frozen nuts sit in the refrigerator overnight to defrost and then use.

18.  Mashed Potatoes

I grew up on an Idaho potato farm, so I am alllll about the potatoes!  My husband loves to make mashed potatoes at our house, but he always tends to make more than we eat (eyes bigger than the stomach thing…..).

Instead of throwing these extra potatoes away, we freeze them to use for another day!

How To Freeze:

Freeze your mashed potatoes in a freezer bag or freezer container.  Remove as much air as possible, seal tight and put into the freezer.

How To Defrost:

To use frozen mashed potatoes, let them thaw in the refrigerator and then reheat in a small pot over the stove.  While heating on stove add a couple of tablespoons of sour cream.  This will give them a yummy and creamy consistency.

19.  Frosting

Yep!  You can freeze frosting!  And it’s very easy to do!

How To Freeze:

Just scoop the frosting into a freezer bag, get all of the air out and seal tightly.   Done and done!

The bag can then be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.  

How To Defrost:

To thaw frosting, let it sit in the refrigerator over night and then it’s ready to use!

In Conclusion

These are just a few suggestions of the many, many foods available to freeze.  I encourage you to start trying to focus on buying sales, and freezing for later, and freezing foods before throwing them away.

You will begin to see a huge savings in the amount of money you are spending on food if you start using your freezer more!

You Might Enjoy These Related Articles:

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Don’t Forget To Pin For Future Reference:

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I hope this helped you learn what foods you can freeze!

Valentine Gift Ideas For Her Under $10

By: Sweet Frugal Life6 Comments

Budget friendly Valentine Gifts to give.

Are you looking for the best Valentine Gift ideas for her??  I have you covered! There is no need to spend a fortune on gifts.  I believe you can show your loved one that you care about her, without spending a lot of money.

Here are 10 Valentine Gift Ideas, all under $10 you can give to the woman in your life.  If you are looking for some budget friendly valentine gifts for him check out this article.

budget friendly valentine gift ideas - gift ideas for her under $10

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10 Valentine Gift Ideas For Her ALL Under $10!

1.  Facial Sponge

I have been wanting to try this Facial Sponge with Activated Bamboo Charcoal for a while now.  It is all natural and the reviews sound amazing and claim it is really beneficial at clearing up skin.  I also really love that it is guaranteed, if you don’t like it you can return it for a full refund. 

This would make a great valentine gift!  Plus, it’s only $6.74!

2.  Lavender Essential Oil

Another great gift idea for your special lady is this Lavender Essential Oil.  The smell is perfect for a relaxing bath or to diffuse in the evenings.  If you are shopping for someone you enjoys essential oil, this is a great buy!

3.  Perfume 

I love receiving perfume for gifts.  It’s a luxury I rarely buy for myself, but absolutely love when someone gifts me some.  You might consider buying this Versace perfume to gift to someone this year.  It smells great and costs less than $8!

4.  Book

If you are shopping for someone who loves to read, consider buying them a new book.  The War That Saved My Life is a wonderful feel good book.  You can get the paperback version for $8.39, which is a steal! 

 

5.  Phone Case

Another great Valentine Gift idea for her is to buy her a new phone case.  I personally have this clear phone case and love it.  Browse Amazon for a while until you find the right look for your special lady.

6.  Gloves

It’s always nice to get a pair of new gloves during the cold months.  These cute winter gloves are less than $10 and include touch screen fingers, so you can still use your touch screens while wearing the gloves.  Yay!

7.  Body Cream

 What better way to pamper your loved one than with this Cocoa Butter Body Cream.  It smells great and is the perfect consistency of soft and creamy!  It is currently a great price at only $5.49!

 

8.  Farmhouse Decor

Farmhouse decor is all the rage right now, and something many women would love to receive more of.  This little blue lantern is really cute and only $4.99.  You can buy two of them!

9.  Notebook

 Are you shopping for someone who enjoys journaling?  Maybe you could buy her a new notebook for journaling.  This floral journal is so pretty and only $8.51.

 10.  Manicure Kit

A manicure kit is a great valentines day gift!  This one is perfect with 10 stainless steel pieces for all of her grooming needs.  It’s perfect to bring when traveling.  Plus, it’s currently on sale for just $9.99!

 

In Conclusion

I hope this list helped you to find the perfect gift to give to someone you love this year.  Finding great buys for a good price is my favorite type of shopping!

Remember, it’s not the price that matters, it’s the thought that counts.  And, I truly mean this!

 

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5 Times You Should Always Ask For a Discount

By: Sweet Frugal Life2 Comments

How to negotiate for a lower price when shopping.

While out shopping do you ever haggle for a lower price??  Because it is totally possible, acceptable and common to do in many situations.  This is one of my favorite ways to help me save a few dollars.  I know that bartering can feel a little intimidating, so today I thought I would share a few tips to help you know when and how to ask for a discount.

Why Ask For a Discount

I love asking for discounts because it is a great way to save money on items I was going to be buying anyways!  If you had the option to pay full price for something, or get it for a cheaper price….wouldn’t you always choose the cheaper price???  I would!

Asking for a discount is a lot more common than many people realize, especially in a few specific industries.  I always tell myself the worst thing that could happen is they will say, “No”, so I might as well just ask!

How To Ask For a Discount

Asking for a discount is really fairly simple.  It takes a little bit of courage, a lot of kindness, and being willing to speak up!  Here are a few other tricks I have found when trying to decide how to ask for a discount when shopping.

It Never Hurts To Ask

My rule of thumb is that it never hurts to ask.  The worst thing that can happen is you’ll be told “no”, which really isn’t that bad of a thing to happen, right?!?!  So, just ask!

I know that this can feel scary, but I promise it gets easier the more you try!  So, the next time you start to wonder if you could get the price for cheaper….ask and find out!

Be Polite

My general rule in this world is to just be kind to everyone, and asking for a discount is no different.  Kindness can go a long way when you are trying to negotiate a price. 

Remember to never be condescending or pushy to a salesman.  This will only turn them off and make them not want to work with you.

The best way to ensure you get that coveted discount is to smile, use the words “please” and “thank you” and look them in the eye.  Try to be their friend and understanding to their position and job.

Ask For a Manager

Many times the sales person you are talking to is not authorized to give you a discount, which is totally fine!  If you are told that they are unable to discount your item just politely ask to speak to a manager.

Most managers are able to give discounts, if they feel it is appropriate to do so.

Walk Away

If you are not given the discount you have asked for, be willing to walk away.  Many times when they see that you aren’t willing to back down, they will come back and give you the discount.

Most stores would rather see the item sold for a discount than not sold at all.

When To Ask For A Discount

I honestly believe if you ever want a discount, to ask for one!  But, there are some situations when you should ALWAYS ask for a lower price and I’m excited to share those times with you!

when to ask for a discount - how to ask for discounts when shopping

Ask For A Discount On Furniture

When you are shopping for new furniture keep in mind that the sales person is paid on commission.  The more money you spend, the more money they will earn.  Because of this commission furniture prices are greatly marked up.  Which is actually great for everyone involved. 

The marked up prices gives the sales person a lot of room when negotiating.  I recommend to never pay sticker price on any piece of furniture you are buying.  And yes!  You can even negotiate the delivery costs!

Ask For A Discount On Vehicles

Another time you should always ask for a discount is whenever you buy a vehicle.  It doesn’t matter if you are buying a used or new vehicles, both are negotiable!

One of the most important things when it comes to car negotiating is to be prepared and do your homework before coming to the car lot.  The best way to prepare yourself is by researching online vehicle information, especially finding what a fair price point is for the vehicle you want.  I love to use Kelly Blue Book to help me research any potential vehicles value.

Car salesman want you to make a purchase sooner rather than later, and this can work in your favor.  If your suggested sales price isn’t well received let them know that you are willing to walk away and shop at other car lots.  This will usually alert them to meeting you somewhere in the middle.

You do not need to be pushy during these negotiations.  Simply ask them to cut some money off the sticker price, and wait to hear their offer.  Sometimes less talking makes much more of a difference than more talking.

Ask For A Discount On Medical And Dental Bills

Did you know that the price you are quoted for your medical or dental work is not what you always have to pay?  Because, it’s true!  These are negotiable!

When negotiating your medical bills I suggest simply asking if there are any discounts available to bring down the cost.  Many billers will work with you in finding a few things to cut out or a discount to apply.

One of my favorite ways to knock some money off the price of a medical or dental bill is to pay with cash instead of using insurance.  This obviously can’t be done for all procedures, but if there are some you are having done that aren’t to expensive and you have the cash to pay for it, let the doctors office know!  Every single time I have paid cash for a medical or dental procedure I have received a big discount.

Also, there are often mistakes on medical bills.  Make sure to look through each bill closely to ensure you are paying the correct price.  If you ever see any billing mistakes make sure to call the billing office to get them corrected.

Ask For A Discount On Damaged Items

I absolutely love finding damaged items at stores.  Why???  Because it means I can buy it for a fraction of the price!  Here are a few things I have bought for super cheap because they were damaged:

  • This cute sign from Hobby Lobby had a black smudge on the bottom.  So, I asked if I could get a discount and they gave me 90% off!  And then I use some white paint to hide the smudge!

  • Another item I got from Hobby Lobby was this white planter.  It has a small chip in it, so again I asked if I could get some money knocked off the price.  They gave it to me for 90% off!  And no one ever notices the chip!

  • Lastly, I bought this dress from a local clothing boutique.  It had some foundation on the front, so I asked the sales lady if I could get it for cheaper and she immediately agreed!  I was able to get 75% off the dress and easily washed the foundation off before wearing it.

 

Like I mentioned earlier, it is often much cheaper and easier for stores to sell these items at a discount, rather than having to fix it themselves.

Asking For A Discount On Monthly Bills

Another great place you should always ask for discounts is on your monthly bills.  Everything from internet, insurance, and credit card interest are negotiable.

All you need to do to ask for this discount is to call your service provider and request a lower rate.  Most providers will be willing to work with you, especially if you have been a loyal customer for a few years.

Be sure to check out my article, 5 Bills To Negotiate, for more tips to scoring that discount on your monthly bills.

You Got This

The next time you are wondering when, if or how to ask for a discount, remember these 5 situations.  They are all moments when I have asked for a lower price and have been successful, and I know that you can too!

Remember to brave, confident, and that it never (ever!) hurts to ask for a discount.

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