Frugal Is The New Sexy!

In an attempt to streamline my blog and focus on bringing you as many great daily, frugal tips as possible, I'm moving... I hope you'll join me at:

www.frugalisthenewsexy.blogspot.com

See you there!!

Bargain Hunting Tuesday

I stopped by Target today to see what kind of after Christmas deals they had. All of the Christmas merchandise is 50% off, but will most likely go to 75% off by the end of the week. I was able, though, to score a few great deals by combining Target's online printable coupons and a few manufacturer coupons. Here's the scoop:

I bought 4 boxes of Kellogg's cereal for $11.96 and used the following coupons:

$5/4 boxes Kellogg's cereals printed off of Target.com

2 $1/2 boxes Kellogg's cereals from my coupon arsenal

Total after coupons: $4.96 or $1.24 each

I also bought two bottles of Method hand soap for $2.99 each and used 2 printable coupons for $2/1 from MethodHome.com

Total after coupons: $1.98 or $.99 each

The kids ate lunch for just $1.21 each today, thanks to the printable Kid's Cuisine $1.50/3 coupon from Target.com and the $1/3 coupon from the arsenal. (Notice they're not pictured; they were pretty hungry by the time we got home. (=)

And, finally, I scored some Oscar Mayer Deli Fresh lunchmeat for $.79 after the $1/1 printable from Target.com and the $1/1 from the arsenal.

Not bad, huh?

Free 4x6 Photo Flip Book from Vista Print

Head over to vistaprint.com to order your FREE photo flip book. Thanks to shesaved.com for this fun freebie!

A Break from Couponing and A Darn Good Breakfast Casserole

When I began faithfully couponing several months back, I was disappointed to learn that coupons were rare or nonexistent on Holiday weekends. Happily, I've recovered from that trauma and learned to plan my grocery shopping and menu planning around the Holidays. I may have to drop by the store to pick up some milk and bread, but I've got plenty of "stock" to get us through at least the next week. I plan on taking some of the time that would have otherwise been spent searching grocery deals and doing the actual shopping to throw out my expired coupons, reorganize and plan my budget for the first few months of 2010.
I hope to also experiment this week with some of the new kitchen gadgets that I was given for Christmas! My mom loves that I've started cooking so much and gave me many fun things that I can't wait to use. My goal is to create some dishes without using a recipe. It won't be easy; I'm definitely a recipe kind of girl. But, I've found that I'm quite capable of throwing a few things together and coming up with some pretty successful combinations.
Take, for example, the breakfast casserole I put together early Christmas morning when we decided we were far too hungry to only eat cinnamon rolls. Here's the recipe. Give it a try and tell me what you think. We LOVED it!

Christmas Morning Breakfast Casserole

1 bag frozen cubed hash brown potatoes
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar, pepper jack or colby/jack blend cheese
8 frozen Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage patties, cooked and cut into bite size pieces
5 slices thick cut bacon, cooked, drained and crumbled
8 eggs, slightly beaten
3 cups milk
Salt, pepper and seasoning salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350.
Lightly grease 9 x 13 casserole dish.
Place potatoes in an even layer in bottom of dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper or seasoning salt.
Sprinkle with cheese.
Top cheese with sausage and bacon pieces.
Combine eggs and milk. Season with additional salt and pepper or seasoning salt and pour over other ingredients.
Bake, uncovered for 45 - 55 minutes, or until eggs are set and knife inserted in middle of casserole comes out clean.
Let sit for 5 minutes before slicing.
Serve with salsa and sour cream, if desired.

The Best Lasagna Ever... Only Better!

Those of you who know me know that I'm obsessed (not in a creepy way, of course) with The Pioneer Woman. If you enjoy cooking or want to learn, her blog is the one to visit. Her lasagna recipe is, by far, the best lasagna ever. And, she knows it... Take a look:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/the_best_lasagn/

We're getting ready to sit down and have some for dinner. I couldn't be happier! The kids are pretty excited too... I made a few very minor changes to her recipe to suit our family's tastes. You might enjoy them too...

Instead of canned whole tomatoes (too chunky for my picky eaters), I substituted Del Monte Petite Diced Tomatoes with Basil and Olive Oil... Yum.. And, instead of the Kraft can o' parm, I used refrigerated, shredded Italian blend by Sargento. I've never been the patient type, so I use no cook lasagna noodles that don't require boiling before they're layered in with the other ingredients. Subtle changes, but they made a big difference. If your family enjoys lasagna, try this recipe. You'll love it... I promise.

This Week's Grocery Game Success...

This week's grocery excursion took me to Albertsons, King Soopers and Safeway. I was able to purchase $278.69 worth of groceries for $123.53 by combining coupons and store sales. Here's a run down of some of my favorite bargains from this week:

Albertsons

Krusteaz Bakery Style Cookie Mix
Original Price: $3.59
Sale Price: $1.79
Coupon: $1.00 off
Price at Checkout: $0.79
Savings: 78%

Orville Redenbacher Microwave Popcorn
Original Price: $3.79
Sale Price: Buy One Get One Free
Coupon: $0.40 off (Doubled to $0.80 off)
Price at Checkout: $1.10 each PLUS coupon at checkout for FREE Redbox movie rental with purchase of 2 boxes of popcorn. Guess what my family is doing tonight?!
Savings: 65%

Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese (8 oz.)
Original Price: $2.99 each
Sale Price: 10 for $10
Coupon: $1.00 off 3
Price at Checkout: $0.67 each
Savings: 78%

King Soopers

Oroweat 100% Whole Wheat Soft Family Bread
Original Price: $1.99
Sale Price: $1.49
Coupon: $0.55 off (Doubled up to $1.00)
Price at Checkout: $0.49
Savings: 74%

Betty Crocker Pouch Potatoes
Original Price: $1.29
Sale Price: Four for $5.00
Coupons: $0.35 (Doubled to $0.70 off) AND Cellfire coupon $0.40 off
Price at Checkout: $0.15
Savings: 88%

Kraft Singles Cheese 12 oz.
Original Price: $2.49
Sale Price: Three for $5.00
Coupon: $0.50 (Doubled to $1.00 off)
Price at Checkout: $0.67
Savings: 73%

Safeway

Nivea Kiss of Moisture Lip Balm (Purchased 4)
Original Price: $3.05 each
Sale price: Buy One Get One Free
Coupon: Buy One Get One Free
Price at Checkout: $1.14 each
PLUS
Coupon: Buy 3 lip balms, get lotion free (up to $6.64)
Savings: 94%

If that's not exciting enough to ruffle your feathers, I can't begin to imagine what might do it for you...

Qdoba.... Yum...

Kids under 12 eat free this weekend at Qdoba... AND, they've expanded their kid's menu to include some items that kids actually like.

Enjoy!