Worth Reading Round-Up

Just a few posts I've enjoyed this week:

::Amy shares ways to Find Big Money in Your Budget. Sometimes, the answer to our budget problems lies in getting creative!

::Is it possible to eat organic foods on a budget? Check out Alice's post for 12 ideas to incorporate organic foods into your grocery budget without breaking the bank.

::Lily of the Valley shares practical ways she's earned money from home over the last few years.

::Strapped for cash but wishing you could find ways to bless others? The Money Jar posted about 12 Small Ways to Give Big.

Worth Reading Round-up

A few links I've enjoyed this week:

::IndiMoney shares how to make Whole Wheat tortillas from scratch here. I've done this before and they are quite simple to make and delicious, too!

::Abbi is hosting a Handmade Christmas Carnival every Thursday in November and December. If you're looking for inexpensive and creative gift ideas, be sure to head over to her blog.

::Need some efficient meal-planning help and ideas? Check out Jen's posts here, here, and here.

::My friend, Lorrie, who blogs at Natural on a Budget, put together a list of 50 Beans and Rice recipes here if you need some frugal meal inspiration.

Worth Reading Round-up

Just a few links I've enjoyed this past week:

::Struggling to instill contentment in your children? The Happy Housewife has some great insight here.

::Life as Mom shares here how to cook one night and eat for three nights. Now that's my kind of deal!

::Wish you could come up with creative ideas to waste less food? Check out the plethora of ideas here from Planet Green.

::If you're wondering whether using coupons and shopping sales is worth the effort, check out Saving Your Cents post here on ten items you'll likely never pay for again if you use coupons.

::Heather wrote and said:

My boys drink yogurt smoothies every day, so we go through tons of yogurt in a week. We buy organic dairy, so you can guess how expensive that can be. Instead of buying $12 (are you cringing, yet?) of organic yogurt a week, I buy a gallon of organic milk at about $5.97 and use it to make yogurt in my slow cooker using this recipe. It makes about 13 cups of yogurt and supplies our family with yogurt for about 2 weeks. I do have to buy a "starter" quart of yogurt, but this lasts a long time. It is very easy to do and I was amazed with the results.

Worth Reading Round-Up

Just a few articles I've enjoyed over the past week:

::20 Different Ways to Make Crafts Pay--for those of you who are more skilled with your hands than me, this article has some creative ideas for earning money from craft-related ventures.

::Dear People with Grown Sons: PLEASE HELP--If you have sons with voracious appetites, you'll certainly be able to understand Shannon's plea. And you'll likely find some great tips and ideas in the comments section.

::Can Buying a Grain Mill Save You Money? Laura answers this question by doing the math and sharing how her initial investment in a grain mill has saved their family $552 in four years! (By the way, if you are looking for a grain mill which is a little less expensive than what Laura has, I have the BlendTec Grain and Flour Mill and really like it.)

Worth Reading Round-up

photo used with permission from Utah Deal Diva

::Do you have an abundance of apples? Utah Deal Diva shares a number of easy and creative ways to use and preserve them without canning them.

::If you think you can't find anything cute at thrift stores, guess again! Jenn over at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam shows you her latest thrift store finds in her Frugal Fashionista series.

::Want to save your family a little money by cutting your childrens' bangs? Check out Tiffany's video tutorial here.

::Clair at Mummy Deals is doing a 10-part vlog series on Slashing Your Grocery Bill. View the five vlogs she's done so far right over here. I can't get enough of her accent!

::Are you a pro at finding deals? Would you like to share your expertise with a larger audience? If so, you'll want to consider applying to be a DealPro with Savings.com. More details here.

Worth Reading Round-Up

Just a few good reads from the last few days:

::Amy is doing an excellent series on How To Save Money on Groceries Without Using Coupons. Check out her first installment here.

::I loved this piece on How to Save Money By Getting Almost Everything Free. I definitely concur. My philosophy is why pay money if you can find a creative way to get it free?

::Megan posted an excellent step-by-step tutorial here on making and canning your own applesauce. I'll admit that canning my own stuff terrifies me. I'm just sure I'll do something which will ruin the whole batch. But Megan's post almost makes think I could pull it off!

Worth Reading Round-Up

Here are just a few links I've found in the last few days which are worth reading:

::Can buying store brands save you money? JD over at Get Rich Slowly says it can in his well-written post here. I'd argue that by combining coupons with sales, you can often buy name brand for less than the store brand price. However, there are certain things which rarely have coupons available so I then choose to buy the store brand (or the cheapest brand). And if you don't have the time to use coupons, then it definitely would be cheaper to consider switching to buying mostly generic brands.

::If you're working on building a good stockpile of food, make sure you read The Prudent Homemaker's post on possible gaps in your stockpile here. She has many helpful ideas and reminders that she's learned from personal experience.

::Speaking of having a stockpile of food, Tiffany shares here how their stockpile allowed them to be prepared and bless others during Hurricane Ike.

::One simple way to save money on clothing and be more organized is to create a clothing inventory. Check out Tiffany's post on the subject here. I have found a very helpful thing to do is to match up my children's clothing by outfits and we keep it simple by having 6-8 outfits per person per season. Not only is this less expensive because we purchase fewer clothes, but it also makes it much less work for me in keeping their clothes organized.

::Mummy Deals has some frugal suggestions for your excess hot dog buns here.

Have you found an insightful article or blog post recently which you think I'd be interested in sharing? Be sure to email me with the link and I'll gladly consider it!

Worth Reading: Sam's Club, Free Boxes, and DIY Microwave Popcorn

::Is it worth it to pay the $40/year Sam's Club membership fee? Brandy shares why she thinks it is here. By the way, if you have a minute, be sure to poke around her site. I think you'll really enjoy her pages on a well-stocked pantry and how they have been eating from their pantry for months on end. (She has a helpful page with meal ideas for eating from the pantry here; I'm inspired!)

::Need some cardboard boxes for an upcoming move? Check out FreeCardboardBoxes.com. Jessica emailed me this link and I think it's a fantastic idea.

::Did you know you could make your own microwave popcorn? Head on over to Frugal Freebies and Deals to learn how.

Have a link to a money-saving idea or inspiring frugal post you'd like me to feature on my blog? Shoot me an email so I can consider including it in an upcoming "Worth Reading" post round-up.

A few posts worth reading

Just a few links of interest I found the last few days:

::Would you like to test products for free? Well go visit Dealicious Mom here because she put together an incredible round-up of links to places which offer free product testing opportunities.

::Speaking of free, did you know that you can email companies whose products you use and they'll often send you high-value coupons or even coupons for free products? Nicole's Nickels has the scoop on how to successfully do this.

::I never would have thought of turning a used milk jug into a sandwich box, but I'm very inspired to do it after reading this post.

::Did you know you can list five items for free on eBay every 30 days? I sure didn't. Read more details here.

Worth Reading: Stretching a Chicken and Sharing from Our Abundance

::Make and Takes has a great guest post up here on how to stretch one chicken into two delicious meals. However, reading it makes me somewhat feel like a rather lazy person as I never buy whole chickens. I know that this flies in the face of every frugal law, but after a few tries, I quickly found I'd much rather spend a little bit more money and buy chicken breasts then have to deal with de-boning a whole chicken, or worse, struggling over cutting up an entire frozen bird (Please tell me I'm not the only one with this philosophy!)

::Looking for some ideas to bless others with all the wonderful deals and freebies you're able to snag by shopping sales and using coupons? You'll love this inspiring post from Angie. If you have the time and energy at this season of your life, picking up extra freebies with coupons is a wonderful way to give to others on a limited budget.

Worth Reading: Food Waste and Market Research Opportunities

::Over at Small Notebook, Rachel has an excellent post up with 20 Tips to Waste Less Food. Definitely worth a read!

::Looking for a few things you can do to earn some extra income? Be sure to check out my regularly-updated page here and then visit Carrie over at MoneySavingMethods for a listing of the latest paid Market Research opportunities available. I've not had great success with these (I signed up for one years ago, did all the work, and was never paid my $75, in spite of their confirmation that I did complete all the necessary requirements to earn my check. Oh well!) but I know that many folks do make some great side income off of these so check out Carrie's post if you're interested.

Worth Reading: Yard Sales and Cloth Diapers

::Yard sale season is officially underway in most parts of the country. The Nester has an excellent post up here  with helpful hints and ideas for both the shopper and the seller.

::Thinking about cloth diapering? Simple Mom is hosting a cloth diaper themed week on her blog this week with everything you could possibly ever want to know on the subject.

A hodge-podge of links

I've been collecting some note-worthy links over the past few days which I wanted to share here for those interested:

::See this beautiful cookie platter here? My sister made those yummy-looking brownies yesterday at our house and, let me tell you, the recipe is quite a winner!

::Amy posted an excellent piece on Seven Tips For Leading a Balanced Blogger Life which every blogger out there should take the time to read. Excellent food for thought!

::Have you ever stopped to think about how much trash your family produces each year? This family committed to go a whole year without sending any garbage to the landfill. They ended up with a single bag of trash for the whole year. Quite inspiring!

::My friend, Amy, has a great post up on Grocery Stewardship which I highly recommend that everyone go read. It's so important to not get caught up in the comparison game. We are all in different situations in life with different needs.

I hope that our $40-$60 grocery trips/menus are an inspiration to you all, but I never want it to come across like this is the "gold standard" of grocery budgets. I know many people who have smaller budgets and much larger budgets and the budget number is not what matters; the fact that they are seeking to be a wise steward of the resources they have is what matters most. So be free to do what works for your family and don't feel the need to apologize!

::And finally, for the many of you who have asked, I wrote a post here on how our family is adjusting to life with three littles.

Worth Reading: A husband's perspective on coupon-shopping

If you are a bargain-shopper or couponer, you'll definitely not want to miss this fun read over at The Bargain Jargon. I got quite the chuckle over it and I think you probably will, too!

Worth Reading: Balancing Computer Time and Family Life

If you are a blogger or a work-at-home mom, or if you are considering becoming either of those things, may I strongly encourage you to head over to my other blog and read some of my thoughts on the importance of prioritization and balance when it comes to the computer and family life?

I rarely do interviews, but I recently agreed to do an interview on HomemakerBarbi.com on this very subject as it is something I am passionate about. I've struggled a lot with balance since my first days of blogging and working from home and I've learned a lot of hard lessons along the way.

As I said in the interview:

"If there is one thing I could encourage every mommy blogger or work-at-home mom out there to remember, it is this: anyone can be a pretty good blogger or pretty good business owner, but there is only person who is mommy to your children and wife to your husband. Don’t let all the good things out there take precedence over the best things. You only have one life to live–make it count!"

Go over here to read the three-part interview, I share some of my thoughts and tips for having your priorities in order when it comes to blogging and computer time and what measures I take to make sure my family and home and community are my first priorities.

Worth Reading: Clothing Exchange and Frugal Fashion

::I loved this post on HeavenlyHomemakers about hosting a Clothing Exchange. Our church does something similar and it's been such a fun way to share our extras, find things we need ourselves--without spending a dime!--and declutter our homes at the same time. I'd definitely recommend trying this out in your community, too!

::My friend, Jen, is doing a fabulous series on Frugal Fashion over on her blog. If you've ever thought that its impossible to look chic and put-together on a budget, you certainly need to check out her posts. The first two are here and here.

Worth Reading: Bread stores and bath towels

::Meredith's post here on buying bread from bread/bakery outlets was very helpful. I've done this myself many a time and found the prices to be almost unparalleled. Now if I could just find a bread outlet which was close to my usual shopping route so I could do this again!

::Marie walks you through a helpful tutorial here on how to make a hooded bath towel. If you're a little bit savvy with a sewing machine and are able to find a great deal on towels, this could make for a very inexpensive gift. We've been given one of these for each of our children and I personally just love them!

Worth Reading: Recession-Proofing and Saving Money on Children's Clothes

::Amy from The Finer Things in Life has a great guest post up at Homemaker Barbi on Recession-Proofing: It's Not About How Much You Make. I completely agree with Amy that you can thrive on a small income. Who says it takes lots of stuff and money to make one happy and fulfilled?

::I found Stephanie's post on "Clothing Your Children Without Breaking the Bank" to be timely and insightful. I'm still learning the art of planning ahead and clothing my girls on a budget so I found her post to be very helpful.

Worth Reading: The Happy Minimum and Plastic Costs More Than Cash

::I totally concur with Trent in his post The Happy Minimum: "You'd be shocked how much less you can use during the day without sacrificing any quality." Read the full post here.

::Meredith's post, Using Plastic Costs More Than Cash, was spot-on. We've certainly experienced the same thing: it's much easier for us to swipe a debit card than to part with cash. So by using cash-only for the majority of our purchases, we not only stick with our budget, we spend a lot less money.

A few great reads

::My friend, Jaycie, has put together a very creative challenge involving exercising and earning vacation money. Go here to read more about it.

::In the middle of morning sickness or another difficult season of life? You don't have to let your food budget fly totally out the window. Stephanie shares some practical tips and helpful ideas here. (By the way, I took a similar approach a few months back when I was in the throes of morning sickness. Read more about that here.)

Worth Reading: Queen of my Trailer and Freezer Cooking Co-op

::I stumbled across a fun blog last night titled, Queen of my Trailer. It doesn't appear the blog is updated very often, but there were some interesting and inspiring posts on making the most of a trailer living.

::Monica over at The Full Table is doing a series on hosting a successful freezer cooking co-op this week. I found myself motivated to see if I could do something like this in our area (anyone want to join me?). It sounds like such a great (and fun!) way to fill your freezer quickly and fairly inexpensively.

Worth Reading: Aldi vs. Wal-Mart and Frugal Fall Family Fun

::Shannon did an excellent post today comparing staple Aldi prices to Wal-Mart prices. For those who aren't convinced it's usually less-expensive to shop at Aldi, this will be a great resource to check out. I use Aldi prices as my target prices for items we regularly buy since they are almost always less-expensive than traditional store prices. If I can get an item we regularly buy for less than the Aldi price with a store sale and/or coupon, I stock up.

::I enjoyed Jamie's post on how their family is enjoying a frugal Fall family day tomorrow for less than $20. You'll be inspired at her creativity and ideas and maybe it will spark a few of your own!

Worth Reading: Menu-planning and KidVantage

::I enjoyed Trent's post on how menu-planning could save you a significant amount of money at the store each week. For those of you overwhelmed at the thought of clipping coupons but who want to shave off some excess from your grocery budget, here's a simple way to start.

::Have young children who are rough on their clothes? Ruth wrote about the Sear's KidVantage program and how to utilize it to save money on clothing. My mom always purchased my brothers' jeans at Sears in order to take advantage of this. They could go through at least a few pairs of them each Summer so it was well worth it to buy them at Sears in order to get free replacements for all the times they ripped up the knees!

Worth Reading: A mother's hope and breakfast inspiration

::I loved Shannon's post on what she hopes her children will learn from the current economic situation. Very good stuff.

::Catherine has an inspirational post up with ideas and recipes for making breakfast more interesting. As soon as I get back on my feet, I am so going to be trying some of these.

Worth Reading: Implementing an envelope system, saving money with a baby, and taking personal responsibility

A few links worth reading:

::Ever wondered how the envelope system works for a family in real-life? Check out Simple Mom's post. It's a good one.

::The Simple Dollar has a great visual guide up for saving money with a baby. His ideas are many that we used as well. Except I'm not sure how they manage to keep their soiled cloth diapers in a basket without it stinking up the house. We used a PUL bag instead--much better, in my opinion!

::Want to make a difference in Washington? Here are three things you can do.

::By the way, in case you're wondering about my thoughts on the bailout, I wrote a post late last year that pretty much sums it up: changes in Washington must begin with me. I don't expect everyone to agree with me 100%, but I hope we can all agree that the more personal responsibility we take for our own actions, the better.