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Downsizing like a boss

6/16/2015

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Shane and I recently discoverd Mr. Money Mustache, and we have been so inspired reading his posts we are now changing our lives pretty quickly. He's one of those "let me tell you how to make a bazilion dollars" guys, but there's something very different about his method that we like. He seems to preach more about spending money on the things that truly make you happy and indefinitely spending less on the things that take away from the things that make you happy. Because the whole goal of becoming debt and financially free is ultimately the idea of acheiving happiness, right? So Shane and I have made a list of things that we enjoy and things we could care less about. We are re-thinking everything we think we need. Take iPhones for example. We use them and have considered them a neccessity for our lives. I've gone through 3 different iPhones in the last 6 years, and last week I dropped my latest one in the toilet! It's officially a gonner but surprisingly, I am not missing it. Shane and I do want to become debt free and in general, rely less on money. After making our lists, here are the things we are cutting back on or getting rid of...

1. Utilities

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As much as we'd love to forego utility bills and replace them for well water and solar panels, we just can't right now. However we are cutting our power and water usage as low as we possibly can because we would rather spend our money on vacations and experiences than let the tv, lights, and electronics suck all of our excess money toward the power bill. Here are 3 drastic changes we are making on our utility usage:
  1. We are keeping the dryer unplugged. Our dryer is on it's last leg and takes FOREVER to dry a load of laundry. 2 HOURS to dry towels! I can't imagine how much money I've been wasting by using that thing when line drying is so easy! I've been doing it for a week now and I actually find hanging clothes to be relaxing. It all dries pretty darn fast in the sun too! 
  2. We are unplugging from 1 - 7pm. Alabama Power charges 5 cents per killowatt hour used on weekends and weekday evenings and mornings. From 1 - 7 pm on weekdays they bump it up to 25 cents per killowatt hour! At 1 pm every day, I stick it to the man and unplug all of our electronics and crank the a/c up to 80 degrees (leaving the ceiling fans running). I also flipped my cooking; I cook meals for lunch most days, then we eat sandwiches or something quick in the evenings for dinner. Supposedly doing this is healthier too. I'm also going to try and get more meals prepped ahead of time during the weekends. 
  3. Less washing laundry and dishes, but when we do, washing in cold water. I'm not talking about becoming the smelly kids, but I am talking about being less wasteful. I tend to throw clothes in the hamper when they've only been worn for like 2 hours. So we're committing to only washing truly dirty laundry. I became so accustomed to washing everything (including my hands) in hot water, but it's not really neccessary. We're using cold water 90% of the time. 

2. Electronics

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There are 2 changes we are making to our fancy "keeping up with the cool crowd of nerds" electronics.
  1. Phones and Phone Service. We are getting rid of our iPhones, which is HUGE for us. Shane uses his a TON for work. Not just for texting and emails, but specifically for apps that better his lessons with students. However Shane has an iPad that carries all the apps he needs (and it's way easier to use with students in lessons). With the freedom of saying goodbye to our iPhones comes the opportunity to pay so SO much less for cell phone service. We researched it and have decided to switch to Republic Wireless. Their lowest plan is just $5 a month for unlimited talk/text/data. We currently pay $180 for our phones and data. We're going to save a CRAZY amount of money! I'll let you know how it goes when we switch over next month. 
  2. We are saying bye bye to Shane's Macbook. I have a $200 Chrome Book and I LOVE it. It does everything I need it to. Shane has the top of the line Macbook with all the memory and cool things. Shane is ALWAYS grabbing my Chromebook at home and he also steals the front desk Chromebook at the studio to use during lessons. He brings his Macbook back and forth from work, but he rarely turns it on. It turns out he doesn't really need his Macbook like he thought he would when we bought it. He actually likes the Chromebook more! We think we can sell his Macbook for $800, which will put $600 back in our pockets after he buys his own fancy schmancy budget friendly Chromebook! 

3. Furniture

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Ok this is the crazy one, but it is the one I am most excited about. Let me first go on a rabbit trail and tell you about about a book my aunt gave Josiah for his birthday called, "The Big Orange Splot." The story goes like this:

Mr. Beanpot and all of his neighbors have houses that look the same and are the same color, "and they like it that way." Then one day a bird is carrying a pail of orange paint and spills it on Mr. Beanpot's house. His neighbors say, "Too bad you have to paint your house!" and Mr. Beanpot says (in what I assume to be an Eeore attitude) "I suppose I do." Well Mr. Beanpot doesn't paint his house the same way it had always been, or in a way that the neighbors approve of. He paints it a trainwreck of rainbowness. Then he sits in a hammock in the front yard and drinks lemonade...with his pet crocodile. Like a boss. The neighbors get annoyed and think he's gone insane. Anyone who finds the courage to talk to him about the matter ends up going home and painting their house into some crazy messed up thing. In the end all the neighbors have crazy looking houses and say, "Our neighborhood is us aand we are it. It is all of our dreams and we like it that way." 
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I tell you that story because Shane and I have been inspired to forego the typical "have the same furniture as everyone else and set that furniture in the designated rooms" mindset. Because it's our house and we can do whatever we want! Well I don't like how our dogs sit on the top cushions of our couch and frankly, I don't find our couch to be very comforable. So we are selling it. And we are not replacing it. No couch.

Yeah, maybe we'll eventually get a rug and some floor cushions. We actually think we want to make our living room just a giant play room. We'll put some sweet things in for Josiah, and maybe a pool table for us at some point. We're talking about taking our small office and making it into a movie lounge area with our TV and some cushions on the floor. It's liberating to realize that our house doesn't have to look like every one else's and we can be children again and let our imaginations run wild with how we want our house to look and be set up!

The whole idea is this: we're going to strive to get rid of the unnessessary things that do not make us happy in order to make room for the things that do. We might be crazy, but I'm excited because we are not going to be suckered into paying for things we don't really want or need anymore! 

I'll keep you updated on the ensuing craziness and how it all unfolds. 
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Seven Must Have Ingredients for Every Kitchen                                      (I bet you already have some of them!)

6/11/2015

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There are 7 major ingredients I keep stocked in my kitchen at all times. If I have these 7 ingredients, I can make hundreds of different things, and my family would NEVER go hungry. Seriously! 

They are... 

1. Flour

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Cost: Around $3 for a 5 lb bag

Use: Breads, desserts,  and coating meats



This is the most important and most essential essential ingredient of all. I need it for breads, bakery treats, and even to coat meat for frying. 

Though it's probably not the most healthy ingredient, it doesn't have to be. I keep a 25 pound bag of flour of all purpose flour in my pantry, but I have a little 5 pound bag of whole wheat as well. If I want to make a bread or muffin healthier, I add half all purpose and half whole wheat.

2. Eggs

Cost: $1 - $2 per dozen

Use: EVERYTHING! Eat in the form of scrambled, boiled, fried, sunny side up, or in the form of an omelette or quiche. Also an important "binding" ingredient for baked goods 
Eggs are low calorie, high protein, vitamin enriched, and cheap enough to be in every non-vegan's home. I find myself cracking open at least one egg a day either to fry for breakfast, or use to bind ingredients in a baking recipe. 
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3. Butter

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Cost: about $2 for 4 sticks of sweet cream butter

Use: Spreading on breads, adding flavor, greasing pots and pans for cooking
This is another essential ingredient for any non-vegan home, if you want your food to taste better. I use the salted butter, and I always leave a stick out on counter in a covered container. It won't go bad, and it's so much easier to spread as a result! 

4. Sugar

Cost: about $5 for 4lbs

Use: A sweetener
Ok, so this one is not a NECESSITY but, if you like sweet treats and whatnot, it is needed in your home! I use mine for cookies, cakes, muffins, and I even add a couple of tablespoons in my spaghetti sauce recipe. 
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5. Leaveners (yeast, baking soda, and baking powder)

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Cost: CHEAP! $.75 for 3 packets of yeast, $1 for baking powder and baking soda

Use: Leavening. For breads, pizza dough, muffins, cakes, etc. 
Make sandwich bread, french bread, rolls, pizza dough, muffins, cookies, cakes, and and much more! This stuff is so cheap and so essential to any baked recipe, it just makes sense to have all 3 leaveners stocked in the pantry! 

5. Salt

Cost: $1

Use: seasoning and complimenting leavening in baked goods
We all have salt in our house already. Just an ordinary staple if you don't like bland food. 
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6. Fruits/ Vegetables

Cost: $1, more or less

Use: eat alone, or add for flavor and nutrients to meals and baked goods. 
If you want to be healthy and you only keep one food in your home, it is vital that you make it a fruit or vegetable. My personal vegetable staple is bell pepper because it tastes great in spaghetti or any pasta. For fruits, I always keep blueberries in the freezer for blueberry muffins and waffles.
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7. Milk

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Cost: $3 for a gallon

Use: Drink for nutrients, or for baking recipes
Just drinking a cup of milk gives you 30% of your daily calcium needs. It also adds that moisture needed to make delicious cakes, rolls, and more. 

If you have just these ingredients in your house, and nothing else, here are just a few recipe options:
  1. French Bread (takes an hour, and makes 3 loaves!)
  2. Wheat dinner rolls
  3. Sandwich bread (this one requires honey, but you can sub it for sugar... or grab a couple packets at starbucks for free!)
  4. Pancakes
  5. Waffles
  6. Biscuits
  7. Pizza Dough
  8. Cake
  9. Pasta
  10. Frying batter for meats (additional seasonings are optional)
  11. Pie Crust (sub butter for shortening)
  12. Quiches
  13. Sugar Cookies (sub butter for shortening)

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3 ways to save money when eating out

6/5/2015

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Saving money is like a competition for me. I like to see how close to free I can get, or how many times I can get free stuff. When I started couponing, I would search the web for restaurant coupons I could print last minute before hubs and I headed out to dinner. Then I discovered freebies with email sign ups. Then discount gift cards, etc, etc. Anyway, here are the top 3 ways I get the most food for my buck when eating out. 

1. Coupons

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It's easy to get coupons to most national chain restaurants, but you can also find some for your local favorites. Here are 3 places I find restaurant coupons:
  1. Online. We all tend to get on our phones while we wait to be seated at restaurants. While you're waisting time, quickly type into the Google search engine "coupons for _____." You’ll be surprised at how often you find something. I usually end up finding most of my favorite restaurant coupons on retailmenot. Restaurants and stores will now scan the coupon right on your phone so you don’t have to worry about printing coupons before heading out! You can also sign up for emailed coupons and deals from your favorite restaurant websites.

  2. By mail. Wherever you live, I'm sure you get "junk mail." Flyers from local businesses, local newsletters, etc. In my hometown, we get 3 different kinds of "junk mail" with coupon offers inside. Our city sends out a monthly newsletter announcing local news and upcoming events. I’ll usually find coupon offers from restaurants nearby when I quickly flip through on my way to chunk it in the trash. The second thing I often get is a flimsy newspaper thing with coupons for groceries, pizza restaurants, and fast food chains. The third thing is also delivered monthly; it's called "Valpak." You can also print Valpak coupons online. When my family last visited Destin, I snagged a couple of the city's local restaurant coupons this way!

  3. Coupon books. I buy the "Enjoy the city" (also known as, "Coupons for Classrooms") books" and keep them stored in my car in case of last minute food and entertainment decisions. They are $20 if you buy from a child selling them as a school fundraiser, but they more than pay for themselves. This book has coupons to restaurants, grocery stores, retail stores, car rentals, and local entertainment. There are even coupons for haircuts. Shane used ONE coupon this week to get his normal haircut and saved $12. That almost pays for the book with just one coupon!

2. Discount Gift Cards

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With coupons, you can only use one per person, or sometimes just one per table. The greatness of using discount gift cards is you can combine them with coupons to save even more! Or for me, I like to raise the stakes with the gift cards. Shane and I usually share a drink, or just get waters when eating out. If we eat at a sit down restaurant, we try to split a larger meal. If we're grabbing fast food, we hit up the dollar menus! Oh, and Sonic is my favorite: we will eat a late lunch there so we can snag their drinks during happy hour, and grab burgers and fries off their value menu!

Gift card companies buy unwanted gift cards from others and resell them for a discount. It's a win-win.

Here are the 3 websites I buy discounted gift cards from:

  1. Giftcardzen. This is my preferred site. They usually have the highest discounted gift cards, they are quick to mail or email them to you after purchasing, and they have the best customer service.
  2. Raise. I can find almost any gift card here. They are very trustworthy.
  3. ABCgiftcards. I have only purchased one gift card from this website, but I was extremely satisfied. It was a $100 Chipotle gift card discounted to $85. I bought it through paypal, and at the time paypal gave me an additional $15 off my purchase for using them. So I received a $100 Chipotle gift card for $70! That was like 4 free burritos!


Just like anything you buy online, there is a risk in buying discounted gift cards. Not only are you trusting the company to deliver the product you purchase, but also the stranger that sold the gift card to the company. In the last two years I have purchased dozens of cards and hundreds of dollars worth of gift cards from the 3 websites mentioned above.  3 of those cards ended up being no good. In all 3 situations, someone sold the card (2 of them were e-gift cards) to the company, received their checks, then returned the gift cards to the restaurants for a refund or used them. HOWEVER, in all 3 situations, I was quickly refunded for my purchase from the gift card companies, and the conmen received their punishment!

3. At Restaurants

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Restaurants like you to dine with them, so much so they will give you coupons and special offers to do so! 
Here are 3 ways restaurants will help you save:

  1. Loyalty offers. Sometimes restaurants will give you a punch card, making your last punched purchase a free meal or a dollar amount off. Or, Papa Johns for example, will give you points toward a free pizza if you register on their website. I have received many free pizzas over the years with Papa Johns, plus there is ALWAYS a special offer or coupon to take advantage of!

  2. Happy Hour. A lot of restaurants have discounted drinks and food between 2 and 4pm. Some of the fancier restaurants let you order off their lunch menu until 4 or 5 pm. Texas Roadhouse gives their more popular dishes out for less than $10 if you come in and order before 6 pm on weeknights. PF Changs and The Cheesecake Factory will let you order off their lunch menu until 4pm.

  3. Coupons tucked in the bag of food or offers printed on the bottom of receipts. Fast food restaurants will sometimes hide a coupon inside your bag of food, so check before you throw it away! The last few times I’ve eaten at California Pizza Kitchen, I found an offer for a free appetizer printed on my receipt.

  4. Offers via text message. Tropical Smoothie Cafe texts me offers for free smoothies. Sonic notifies me when it's 50 cent corndog day (yes, I eat a lot of Sonic).

  5. Customer Appreciation Offers. Chick Fil A gives out free chicken sandwiches one day a year if you dress like a cow. Dairy Queen has one day a year where EVERYTHING is half off! You just have to watch for them, but restaurants like to reward their faithful customers.                                               
  6. Birthday Offers. My birthday is coming up this month and I have already started receiving birthday offers from resteraunts and stores. Many of them will give you free entrees, appetizers, or desserts ON your birthday. But some of them send out a coupon that can be used at any time during your birthday month. Win!
I hope I have encouraged you or helped you think up ideas on how you can save money when dining out. If you like competition, challenge yourself to see how low you can make that fancy meal cost. You'll be grinning ear to ear and feel like you're "winning" when you walk out the door. Please remember to tip your hard working waiters and waitresses well with all that money you're saving!
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    Hi! I'm Shauna. 

    I'm just an average housewife and mom trying to shop smarter, make good food, and spend less on living well. 

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