I’ve been a coupon user for more than 15 years. I’ve used coupons at the grocery store, the convenience store, and pharmacies. I’ve taken advantage of Target’s store coupons matched with brand coupons. I’ve used coupons for food, clothes, and restaurants. I’ve enjoyed every minute of the huge discounts and often landed free groceries just […]
{The New Home Ec} Fix It or Trash It? When to Throw Away or Keep Your Stuff
We’ve become a throwaway society: something isn’t working right, and our first instinct is to replace it altogether. But, there are a lot of things around the house that could
{The New Home Ec} 24 Awesome Ways to Reuse Baby Wipes Containers
I still have baby wipe containers all over the house, even though we haven’t had a baby in diapers for more than 3 years. They make such great storage containers — the toy room has stacks of containers filled with cars, puzzles, and more ti…
12 DIY Projects for Your Next Birthday Party
Around here, we’re in the minority with our at-home birthday parties. We just can’t budget the expensive parties at bounce houses, playlands, and other fancy-schmancy party spots. So, I work
{The New Home Ec} 10 Inexpensive Updates for Your Kitchen
I spend a lot of time in my kitchen — breakfast, lunch, dinner, supervising numerous snacks — so it doesn’t take long for the look to get stale. Unfortunately, everything in there is just so big that I’m kinda stuck with it. We don̵…
{The New Home Ec} Creative Uses for Free Business Cards, Labels, and More
One of my favorite online freebies are custom printable products. Tote bags, photo books, labels, business cards — they’re all available from VistaPrint for FREE on any given day. You can also find amazing deals on albums through photo prin…
{The New Home Ec} 3 Ways Your Vacation Budget Is Closer Than You Think
Two years ago, we had set aside $1000 for a simple, budget beach vacation. Then, I found out we didn’t get the condo we wanted, and everything else was $200-300 out of our range. We were left trying to figure out how to quickly add to our vacatio…
{The New Home Ec} Tax Day Freebies and Deals
It’s Tax Day!. You’ve had an extra two days to file, thanks to an obscure rule that delays the tax deadline for Washington, D.C. holidays. After you’ve spent the weekend
{The New Home Ec} 10 Smart Ways to Use Your Tax Refund
With Tax Day looming, Americans are scrambling to finish paperwork, searching for last minute deductions, and anticipating their refunds. When that money arrives, the tendency is to treat it as
{The New Home Ec} How to Get Out of Debt: One Blogger’s Inspiring Story
For several years, I have watched in awe as my friend Cherie tackled her family’s monstrous debt with determination, grace, and a healthy dose of extreme frugality. She was the inspiration behind my post on debt free bloggers. I watched, with tea…