Monday Meal Planning

Welcome back to Monday Meal Planning!

The main purpose of the “Meal Planning” posts is to show what we’re eating, give you guys ideas and…most importantly…to motivate you to make a meal plan for the week! I break down cost between my husband and I. My son isn’t a big dinner eater yet, but he might have a little bit of mine.

Monday: Roasted Cauliflower Soup

Why: We freeze cauliflower when we get it for later use in stir fries and to mix in with mashed potatoes. I’ve let quite a bit accumulate, and we’re looking for a new type of soup to try, so I thought this would be an interesting meal. Homemade wheat bread will accompany it.

Cost: $1.45, or $.73 per person.

Cauliflower: Received from my local produce co-op and probably cost me about $1/head (which is how much we’ll use for the recipe).

Milk: We’ll be using soy, which I bought on sale with a coupon for $1. The recipe takes about 1/4 of the container, or $.25.

Onion/garlic/spices: Dried onion, bought in bulk from Sam’s Club. I can’t imagine this combined with spices will cost more than $.05

Chicken broth: Free. I make it myself when I make chicken in the crockpot for soup/pulled chicken sandwiches.

Bread: ~$.30/loaf, maybe $.15 for this meal.

Tuesday: Beef Stew

Why: I’ve had a few $1/1 beef wine tags lately, and I bought quite a bit of stewing beef with them. Those packages tend to be smaller, and go to clearance since they aren’t very economical packages. So if they get marked down to $2 something during a super double coupon event…I get them nearly free. That’s economical for mmeeeeee! Also, I love to deck out my stew with LOTS of veggies…which is economical for me since I do the produce co-op and get certain free veggies from couponing. Will serve with leftover bread from Monday.

Cost: $2.15, or $1.08/person.

Beef: $.25 for this package after coupons

Veggies: Potatoes, carrots and spinach are  from the co-op. Peas are free from couponing. I’ve never used spinach in stew before, but it should work nicely. I’ll likely use about 3 potatoes and 2 carrots, so I’m going to put veggies down at a solid $1.50 for this recipe.

Spices/cornstarch: Let’s give this about $.25 this time. I’ll be using some vegetarian organic bouillon cubes I found on clearance, which knocks the price up. Cornstarch was free from couponing.

Bread: Leftover from Monday, $.15.

Wednesday: Falafel Pita Sandwiches

Why: I purchased some dried chickpeas beans up north at a bulk food store, and some Trader Joes pita bread awhile back, so I’m just dying to make use of some of them.

Cost: $2.50, or $1.25/person

Chickpeas: $1.50 for a cup. I could most definitely do better

Onion/Garlic: Dried, bulk purchased onions and a garlic clove from a bulb I picked up this week (we’re sick)- $.10

Spices/flour: $.10

Pitas: $1.99/pkg at TJ’s, will be using half, $1.

Lettuce/tomato: $.30

Thursday: Leftovers

Why: To make my life easier.

Cost: FREE (in essence)

Friday: Homemade Pizza

Why: Because that’s what we do every Friday night

Cost: Between $4-5, depending on toppings

Saturday: Pasta Primavera

Why: We have tons of free whole wheat pasta sitting around, so we try to have a pasta meal once a week. I am picking up a produce basket Friday, so I know there will be all kinds of yummy ones to choose from. Also, I noticed last week I have 1/2 a lb of italian sausage in the freezer, so that will go in here nicely.

Cost:$1.37, or $.69/person

Pasta: Free from couponing

Veggies: Produce Co-op, lets say $1

Italian sausage: $.50/lb from couponing, using 1/2 so $.25 for this meal.

Oil/spices: $.12

Valentines Day: Veal Parmesan over noodles with garlic bread and wine

Why: It’s Valentines day, and we want to have a special meal. But we’ll still do it my frugal way!

Cost: $4.81, or $2.40/person. Last year we did the same thing, but bought everything that day. We spent $35 on everything (including some pretty flowers for the table), so no matter what, it can be an inexpensive but classy date!

Veal: $8/lb, will be using (1) 1/2 pound cutlet cut into two pieces. It will be plenty for us, since a deck of cards is a serving size of meat. $4

Breadcrumbs: Free from couponing

Cheese: Kraft Mozz, 1/4 of package (purchased couponing for $.25), ~$.06. This will cover hubby’s garlic bread and veal.

Soy cheese: Will use about 1/4 of my block of cheese, which costs me $3.10 after coupons, so ~$.20

Noodles: Free from couponing

Garlic bread:  Italian loaf on discount for $.50, will add fresh garlic/oregano ($.05).

Pasta sauce: I have some organic Bertolli I found free couponing.

Wine: We were given some organic red wine for Christmas, and this will be a great occasion to use it.

So there you have it! What’s your meal plan for the week? You don’t need to break yours prices down for me! Doing it saves time and money enough. Feel free to leave your plan in the comment  feed or link to your blog if you’re joining us!

Here’s to living- Happier, healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~

Frugal Friends’ Friday!

Happy Frugal Friends’ Friday! Today I’d like to spend a little bit of time on just one tip  And remember…if you have a frugal tip to share, I’d love to hear it! You will very likely see it highlighted here on Frugal Friends’ Friday!! Just email the tip to me at frugalmegan@gmail.com. I can’t wait to hear how you are saving YOUR family money!

“If you reuse paper bags from most grocery stores, they will give you five cents back for each bag you reuse!“- Jessica, Xenia OH

YES! There are quite a few grocery stores that do this! Usually you can bring in any kind of tote bag, be it paper grocery bags, those reusable bags you can purchase in store, or any favorite large bag you have at home. Be sure to check around at the stores in your area to see who does this. This discount (where I shop) is often taken off after coupons, so many times it will apply to tax if that is all you are down to. Isn’t that cool!?

Now a little note on doing this in a “healthy” way- I would make sure if you are using paper bags, that you only reuse ones that are very clean. If they have carried fresh meat packages or other “dirty” things, be sure to simply toss or recycle them. You don’t want to contaminate your new food! And if you use reusable totes for your groceries, be sure to wash them on a regular basis. The one big pet peeve I have about these bags is…well…it can be SO unsanitary! If you’ve carried meat or fresh unwashed produce in them, please give them a wash after each use. If they’ve been used for canned goods, boxes and well packaged items, perhaps wash every 3-4 uses. It’s something to think about!

Here’s to living- Happier, healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~

Frugal Moment

I read something interesting today that made me think. It was from a box of Celestial Seasonings tea. Here’s what it said:

“Ever wonder why… no string and tag? (referring to their tea bags coming string/tag free) Our unique pillow-style tea bag is the result of our commitment to doing what’s best of the environment. Because these natural fiber tea bags don’t  need strings, tags, staples or individual wrappers, we’re able to save more than 3.5 million pounds of waste from entering landfills every year!”

3.5 MILLION pounds of waste from TEA BAG TAGS?

Now, before you go accusing me of being a tree hugging, Al Gore loving,  ”global warming” enthusiast let me switch gears a little- If tea bags sold from one company can have that much impact on waste, what about all those little things YOU do each day to save money for your family? Never underestimate the power of the “little” things!

Oh, and by the way…I do like to hug the occasional tree

I hope you enjoyed this little Frugal Moment.

~~FrugalMegan~~

Monday Meal Planning

Meal planning is an excellent way to save time and money. Since I do this weekly, I figured it would be pretty easy to transfer over to the blog and maybe help some of you out with planning your week. To kick off our new “weekly” blog post, I thought I’d share a few reasons meal planning is so great!

#1- It saves money! I do my best to use what I have on hand. This saves money because I’m able to plan around what’s in the pantry, and that way I don’t need so many last minute, expensive, fancy ingredients. I can also look through the sales ads for the week for what I don’t have on hand, and meal plan accordingly. So let’s say I have rice in the pantry and frozen chicken breasts in the freezer from the last “super sale”. Then I also notice that summer squash and zucchini are on sale at the store. My mind would go “DING! we can have stir fry”! That kind of thinking is much cheaper than realizing at 2pm that you don’t know what to make for dinner, and you end up ordering pizza or Chinese food.

#2- It reduces waste! The first thing I do when I meal plan is think of all the things in the  fridge that need to be eaten, and what boxed items in my pantry are approaching their expiration dates. Also, if I have a lot of one thing, I try to factor it into our meals as much as possible. For example, I have a TON of taco shells from couponing. I can usually get away with one taco night every 2-3 weeks, but occasionally as they get to their expiration, I know we’ll be having tacos once a week. Or if we get a bunch of something in the produce basket that won’t freeze and I need to use it up, I try to incorporate it into several of the week’s meals. Less waste= less $$ down the drain.

#3- It saves time! and frustration. I sit down once for about 20 minutes and make up my meal plan. Since I’m the main cook in the kitchen and I take regular kitchen Inventories, I don’t have to think hard about what we have on hand or what needs to be eaten. I enter what we will be eating each day in my gmail calendar, and set it to send me a reminder around noon each day. That way if I’m making homemade bread or a crockpot meal, I remember before it’s too late. Before I planned meals weekly, I would do my household duties and spend time with my son until about 4:30pm, and dinner was supposed to be at 5pm…AHHHHH! The rice is going to take longer than that to cook, I forgot to make bread, or (which happened most of the time) I couldn’t decide what to make and we’d end up eating cold sandwiches or WAY later than we should. Another great thing about planning ahead is I know what needs to be defrosted and can have things ready for cooking, instead of having to zap them in the microwave (which is good, because we don’t even own a microwave).

#4- It keeps us healthy! A well planned out week of meals can really help you see what you are eating, or what you need to eat more of. I try to plan a couple of Heart Healthy each week to keep cholesterol and saturated fats down, while increasing our whole grain and vegetable intake. If we’re eating something like steak, I try to plan in a side salad and a baked sweet potato.

For this first week, I’m going to post my plan for dinner each night, along with a short explanation of why and cost .

Monday: Italian wedding soup with homemade rye bread.

Why: We had leftover taco beef and an extra bag of spinach from the produce co-op. Pasta, carrots and chicken broth are all very inexpensive staples in our home.

Cost: The beef was purchased on sale with a coupon, so I spent probably $1/lb. This will use about 1/2 a pound, $.50 worth.

Spinach: Part of the produce co-op, so I paid *maybe* $1 for the bag. We’ll be using 1/4 of the bag, or $.25 worth.

Whole grain pasta: Free from couponing

Carrots: two carrots, frozen from a past produce co-op, maybe cost me $.12.

Chicken broth: Free- I made it from some $.19/lb chicken leg quarters I cooked for dinner last week.

Rye flour: purchased on clearance for $2.50, stored in the freezer. Used 1 cup, or $.30 worth.

Bread flour: 5lbs purchased for $.30 couponing. Used 2 cups, or $.05 worth.

The honey, yeast and spices for this meal are pretty negligable, but we’ll say all together they cost $.10.

Total cost of the meal: $1.32, or $.66 per person. WOW! And there will even be left over bread for tomorrow’s lunch.

Tuesday: We’re actually going out to eat with a work friend. We’ll be using buy one get one free entree coupons though, from our Citipass.

Wednesday: Tacos with a side salad

Why: Yes, we’re getting close to some expiration dates on the taco shells . We also have some ground beef to use up before our 1/8th of a grass fed cow arrives     later this month! We have quite a bit of spinach and some pepper and lettuce to use from the produce co-op, hence the side salad

Cost: Taco shells are around $.50/box with couponing, and we use 1/2 box, so $.25 worth

Beef: $1/lb, will use about 1/2 lb or $.50 worth

Cheese: paid $.25/bag for kraft 2% cheddar cheese, and will only use on Mitch’s tacos, so probably $.05 worth, if that.

Hot sauce: free from couponing

Tomatoes and lettuce: from produce co-op, maybe $.10 worth (one tomato tops, and a handful of lettuce).

Side salad: Lettuce, spinach, bell pepper, avocado from co-op: Honestly probably about $1.10 with the avocado.

Dressing: Free from couponing.

Total cost: $2, or $1 per person.

Thursday: Chicken Curry with rice and broccoli

Why: We have chicken, coconut milk, rice and broccoli all on hand! This is one of our favorite meals and it’s a treat.

Cost: chicken breast was on sale buy 1 get 2 free, so I just bought one at 1/3 the price and used a $1/1 coupon (which doubled) making the final cost about $.30/package. We’ll use the whole thing for the recipe, since we want leftovers for lunch Friday.

Coconut milk: Free from couponing

Curry: I paid about $2.50 for a container of red curry sauce, and will use about a tablespoon. We’re looking at about $.50 right there.

Rice: $.30 from couponing

Broccoli: Free from couponing, and frozen. Will use olive oil spray, garlic and salt, then broil- So maybe $.05 from those things.

Total cost: $1.05 or $.53 per person. I know…that’s really scary low. But I lucked out on the meat and coconut milk deals!

Friday: PIZZA NIGHT!

Why: Because that’s what we do every Friday night, Brain…eat pizza, have a beer and watch a movie

Cost: Dough. This consists of bread  flour, white wheat flour, water, salt and yeast, all either purchased in bulk or couponing- $.50c

Sauce: muir glen organic, free from couponing

Cheese: $.25 Kraft 20%, 1/2 a package, or $.13 worth for my hubby’s side of the pizza. PLUS, I use soy cheese on my half, which costs us around $1.50 for my half.

Toppings: pepperoni free from couponing, mushrooms and black olives about $.35 each, and one tomato from the produce co-op at about $.25.

Beer: $1.70 for both

Total cost: $4.78, or $2.39/person. More costly than the rest of the week, but it’s our treat! It keeps us from eating out as often.

Saturday: Stir-fry with a spring roll

Why: we need a meatless meal . We have rice, tofu, vegetables, soy sauce and spring rolls on hand.

Cost: Rice is free from couponing

Vegetables: some of these were free from couponing: broccoli, snap peas    and some were from the co-op and frozen: summer squash, cauliflower. We’ll say                                           $.25.

Tofu: $1.99 from trader joes. I had it on hand in case I needed to use it in place of eggs or milk in something, but now I just needs eaten . Will likely use about                                 half of it, so $1.

Spring rolls: $.25 per box couponing. Will eat 1/2 of the box, so $.13.

Sauce: garlic, ginger and soy sauce, bought in bulk for from the co-op. I’m gonna go with $.10 to be cautious.

Total cost: $1.48, or $.74 per person.

Sunday: We have church life group that night, and will be bringing some kind of side or dessert. I try to spend about $1 or less, depending on what we bring.

So there you have it! Feel free to link this to your blog if you’d like to join us during Monday Meal Planning!

Here’s to living- Happier, healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~

MOM: Conservation is Key

…to living frugally, of course

It’s been on “the Mind of Megan” that it can sometimes be the little things in life that add up and “cost” us- Whether it be emotionally, physically, spiritually for financially. Today, we shall talk about the financial side.

I have been thinking about conservation around the house since we’ve been doing the “No Lights Challenge” this January. I’ve noticed that there are all kinds of things around the house that I do as a habit, not because they are actually necessary- like how much toilet paper you use. Other things, I feel we have been influenced by the media to do. Imagine a toothpaste commercial….there stands a woman with glowing skin, nice thick hair billowing around her face and wait….how did you even notice those things with her shiny white teeth and toothbrush with that PERFECT glob of swirly toothpaste on it? You know what I’m talking about- the glob of toothpaste on there is bigger than the bristles!

The truth of the matter is, we probably all use too much of certain things around the house. Let’s look at these and a few other examples.

Toilet Paper: What single thing do we use around the house more than toilet paper? That’s a big one at our house! Now let’s say that you typically use 6 (or more) squares of toilet paper everytime you go to the bathroom. Try using about half of what you  usually do next time, and see if it’s not enough. My guess is, you’re over-using. If you used 3 squares as opposed to 6, you’d be using half as much paper- And buying half as many packs of toilet paper each year! Not to mention you’re saving the world from excess waste.

Toothpaste: Did you know the American Dental Association recommends you use only a pea sized amount of toothpaste? For children, they recommend an amount the same size as their little pinky nail. Brushing your teeth doesn’t take a ton of toothpaste! The real work comes from the brush and the operator. So cut down on toothpaste, and save a buck- Or if you’re like me and often get toothpaste free, save yourself a little deal finding .

Laundry Detergent: Read the instructions on your bottle of detergent. Many times a person will just fill up the measuring cup, not paying attention to the load size or how heavily soiled the clothes are. And if it were me…I’d see how my clothes do with even less detergent!

Dish Soap: When you wash dishes in the sink, did you know your main point of cleaning isn’t actually to kill all the germs on your dishes? Dish soap simply breaks surface tension so that all the yuckies can “slide off” of your dishes, right down the sink. This leaves your dishes germ free just because the soap captured the germs and the water washed them away. You really really don’t need much soap to achieve this…so try a bit less, until you need to add more.

Paper Towels: If I don’t have “select a size” paper towels, I simply fold the larger size in half longways and then tear it in half. I find that is all I typically need for a quick wipe down of the counters. You could use even less paper towels by cleaning surfaces and sticky fingers with a clean, damp dishcloth (with maybe a little soap on it). I use one dish cloth for sticky hands and one for counters, and then toss them in the laundry each evening. This saves me a ton of paper towels.

Dryer Sheets: Now, we actually no longer use these in our home, but when we did I would cut all the sheets in half. It was more than enough to de-static a large load of laundry.

Other things to try to use less of: Shampoo/Conditioner, body wash, hand soap, dishwasher liquid, fabric softener, commercial cleaners, mopping solution and make-up. Can you think of others? Leave them in the comment feed!

Here’s to living- Happier, healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~

The Frugal Map

Do you need help finding a frugal coupon blog that suits your needs? Well now you can find it, using Bargain Briana’s “The Frugal Map”! At it’s launch, the Frugal Map had 35 participants from all over the USA- And she’s filling it up quickly! Here are some of The Frugal Map’s unique features, as described on the website:

• Frugal Map Function: Allows users to find a blogger near their location in an interactive map format.
• Search Function: Allows users to search multiple blogs across the Frugal Map Network.
• Hottest Deal RSS Feed: Gives users the most recent hot deals from the bloggers in the Frugal Map Network.
• Specific Store Landing Pages: Allows users a one stop resource for for store deals including blogger store deal links, resources, and FAQ for the particular store.
• Specific Blogger Landing Pages: Allows users to read more about their favorite blogs and connect with them via Twitter, Facebook, RSS, and specific store deal links.
• Embeddable iFrame: Embed The Frugal Map on your blog as a resource for your readers.

Now, I don’t know if frugalmegan.com will ever be included on this map, since I don’t focus solely on coupons, but I think it will be a great resource for ALL of you!

Also, Go Here to enter for a chance to win one of FIVE subscriptions to All You Magazine

~~FrugalMegan~~

Lowes Food 1/22/10

There were some good deals this week at Lowes Food! I’m posting my finds since I did this during regular everyday couponing- And I’ll do my best to break everything down. Lowes Food offered double coupons with face values up to .99c every day. So a $.75 coupon is worth $1.50. Here is what I bought:

2 packs chicken leg quarters: $.19 per lbs: $.94 cents each (I am not sure if these are on sale or if they were discounted…looked like a sale but what in the discounted area with no sign. ??)

2 bags steamfresh veggies: on sale for $1- Used .50c/1 coupon from Sunday paper= FREE

Hormel Natural Lunchmeat: on sale for $1.99, used coupon from hormel.com for $.75/1= $.50 each

Silk soymilk: on sale $2.79, used $.55/1 coupon from Sunday paper = $1.69 (there are also Blinkies at food lion if you missed these in the paper for $.55/1)

2 small canisters of Quaker Oatmeal: on sale $1.50, used $1/1 coupon from their website= .50c each

Quaker minis: on sale for $1, used $.75/1 coupon from the Sunday paper= FREE (and for some reason I received $.25 overage on each…Sometimes at Lowes overage is “rolled” onto a similar item, so I’m suspicious that it “rolled” onto the oats and took off more? Who knows. All I know is, that rocks)

2 Morton Seasoned Salt: $1.17 regular price, used $.60 coupon from Coupons.com= FREE

Total: $4.53 (should have been $5, but like I said I got overage!), used $5 Lowes $$ (fresh rewards) from last month= .16c in taxes.

Me? HAPPY CAMPER! Doing a trip at Harris Teeter tomorrow too…I have (2) $5 on your next order coupons to use up, and there is a sweet General Mills deal going on- $5 instant coupon off of 15 GM items . Want to educate yourselves on it? Go Here.

Happy Couponing!

~~FrugalMegan~~

Frugal Friends’ Friday!

“Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without!“

Welcome to Frugal Friends’ Friday! Hope you enjoy this weeks tips from our readers

“Use the hole at the bottom of a small flower pot to spread salt on an icy sidewalk. There are probably a lot better ways to do it, but that’s my fun thing this winter.”  Aaron, Midvale UT

–Perfect tip. I don’t want to hear about any of my readers falling this winter! Receiving hospital bills isn’t very frugal

“When toothbrushes are buy one, get one free – BUY ONE! Next time someone in your house is sick, change the toothbrush so they don’t re-infect themselves! Saves the aggravation and cost of getting sick all over again!” – Sue, Springfield OH

–Good idea! I know hubby and I have had a few bugs this winter already…there are quite a few new ones going around I think.

Here’s to living- happier, healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~

For Women Only: The Diva Cup

This topic is for women’s eyes only! At least, I’m sure you’ll prefer it that way

Do you  ever get tired of paying for costly feminine products during “that time” of the month? TSK- I sure do! The coupons for those things STINK! And what about the health risks with tampons, “Toxic Shock Syndrome” and all?  Well, I just may have the perfect solution for you-

THE DIVA CUP

The Diva Cup is a menstrual cup that is used *kinda* like a tampon- Except it catches the flow, it doesn’t “absorb” it. You simply pop it in and empty it every few hours. On heavy days, I check it every 3-4 hours or so. On light days, you can leave it in for up to 12 hours- YES- 12 HOURS! That means more uninterrupted errands, running, volleyball, ice skating, yoga- You name it! Best of all, you can use it over and over and over, since it is made of quality silicone and is latex free. No danger of toxic shock syndrome here!

The Diva Cup comes in two sizes. Size 1 is for women under 30 who have not had a child. Size 2 are for women who have had a child or are over 30. Be sure to choose the right size for you.

I have found several sites that are helpful for learning insertion/folding methods: one from livejournal, and one from lunapads. Lunapads also did this neato video.

Here is my Diva Cup story:

I heard about the Diva Cup from my sister. She had discovered it one day while she was looking at a cloth diaper store online. She told me about it and I had a good laugh! How could that work? What a mess! But once I heard about it once it came up EVERYWHERE. The natural living forum on my local area mommies network. A friend of mine’s blog. It was in many online stores that I searched for natural toys and things for my son. So when my period returned after the birth of my son, I purchased my Diva Cup.  Since it was after my son was born, I of course purchased the size 2. It seemed like the perfect purchase for me- I love to save money and waste! And I don’t really like having to unclog the toilet!

So I got home, read the instructions and popped it in! Problem solved, right? No more pads, tampons and worries, right? Wrong! That thing fit funny…and it leaked. It didn’t feel funny, at least. While I certainly knew it was there, it is not nearly as annoying as a tampon. That was the very first thing I liked about it. I was using the “C” fold that the package directions describe.

So I tried it out that whole first time (about a week for me) and it leaked and leaked. Frustrating when you expect it not to, like so many sites say. Yet leak it did. Sometimes a lot. And sometimes, like, not at all. I wondered if I had folded it correctly, if I had it in the right position, if it had opened up all of the way. *Shrug* How could I know? So I just kept using it! It got easier, and it seemed to leak less. The first week I used the Diva Cup I used about 10 pads and no tampons (about one pad for each day and each night). And I have long periods. Not to shabby…

Round two and beyond. I had discovered there are more than one type of fold! Yay! (See, you’re starting out with more knowledge than me already!). I settled on the “punch down” method for my body type. It works wonders. I had a much more confident experience the second time around! I would say for round two I decreased it to about 4 pads (on my heaviest days/nights) and a few pantiliners at the end (just in case).  Since then I have worn it during the night on my heaviest day and not one drop leaked onto the pad. Yippeeee! Now, that is NOT to say I have this thing all figured out. I still deal with a bit of leaking the first three days when it is the heaviest. I have determined that perhaps because of the way Caspian made his entrance into this world, there is no menstrual cup that can stop every bit of leakage for me . But who knows, I’ve still only been using it now for 6 months. There may be more to learn.

The way I figure it, even if it leaks a little the first 2-3 days of my cycle, this thing has still brought all kinds of value and savings to my life. 4 pads for my whole period? A few pantiliners? That means a pack of pads will last me through 4 whole cycles. 4 months! WOW! And no tampons? C’mon. And I think there is much less trash, mess and other unpleasantness involved. I’m sold.

You can read more about the Diva Cup HERE or do a Swagbucks search on it for more information. I have found the best price on the Diva Cup HERE. Now, when purchasing a Diva Cup, it makes sense to purchase it from a reputable buyer…none of this “Never used” stuff on Ebay. What if they’re lying? :-/

Go ahead- Give it a try!

Here’s to living- happier, healthier more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~

“No Lights” Challenge- How’s it going?

I have been perhaps a bit too into this challenge…Heading into dark pantries to retrieve something (and I *think* I know where the item is!), using the bathroom in utter blackness . Luckily it has been a rather sunny week down here in North Carolina.

I wanted to make mention of a few things:

#1- It’s probably best to leave mini blinds and curtains closed if you won’t be in the room long, and to make sure you close them if you leave an area of the house for more than a few minutes. There is most certainly a balance here, as leaving too many open can have a negative effect on your heating bill- And I say this especially for all of our northern readers. Here in our home, we spend most of our time in the family room and kitchen, so those areas had the blinds open and lights off- The rest of the house had blinds closed and lights off. When hubby is home, the front room blinds are open as well. When I went upstairs for an hour of laundry, I opened those blinds but closed them when I left.

#2- I was reminded of an episode of “Mythbusters” I watched a few years back. They were trying to discover if it was beneficial to turn off a light every time you leave a room, or if you should leave it on, if you’d be back shortly…kinda the whole “it takes more energy to turn ON the light, so you’re saving money by leaving it on”. They found this was absolutely true if you could leave and come back to the room in less than .25 seconds. Even with fluorescent tube bulbs, you’d have to leave and come back in less than one second. HAHAHA, I loved that episode! Case in point: Turn off the light when you leave the room. Always. Unless you’re Superman…

#3- How gray and dark is it today? We had one very cloudy sad looking day last week, where there was barely and light coming in, and I could just feel the cold coming in the windows. This was NOT a good day to go “no lights”. So I closed up the windows and used the inside lights that day. I did however stick to only keeping lights on when I needed them and being sure to turn them off when I left the room.

That’s it! I’m looking forward to comparing our January electric bill to a few past ones!!

Oh, and just for my southern friends…Cut off the lights!

Here’s to living- happier, healthier, more FRUGAL lives!

~~FrugalMegan~~