Got cereal?

There are some great deals to be had this week- Idid this trip at Albertsons on Sunday, and the deals are still good thru the end of today (Tuesday)  See Coupon Connections for the details (can you tell she is my favorite coupon blogger?)  :)  I spent $19 out of pocket for everything pictured above (including 4 Sunday papers) and I still have $3 in catalinas and 2 coupons for free milk (1 gallon each). 

As you can see I stocked up on breakfast foods, because those were the best deals I could make happen.  However this made the dinner section of my pantry a little sad.  The last 2 nights I have made completely new dinner recipes , out of stuff we had.  The besy part?, I used up odds and ends that I had hanging around, that normally would continue to hang around until they expired and got tossed.  Because of our spending freeze I got creative and made some new things.  Sunday night I made "Creamy Chicken Mac Casserole", and Monday night it was "Tangy Ranch Pasta with Chicken and bell pepper" 
Let me know if you want details on either one and I will do a post on what I used. 

Spending Freeze recap
Day 1 - $0
Day 2 - $10 (drinks with the girls)
Day 3 - $133 ($12 McDonalds, $38 Thai food, $13 Target, $20 Hubs gas, $50 my gas)
Day 4 -  $0
Day 5 -$0
Day 6 - $0
Day 7 - $1.75 (hubby got a snack a work)
Day 8 - $17.20 ($3.20 for meds, $14 for lunch for the boys and I) 
Day 9 - $0
Day 10 - $29 ($20gas for hubby's car, $9 pizza after rough hospital visit)
Day 11 - $0
Day 12 - $19 (groceries)
Day 13 - $0

Savings money on prescriptions

Alternate title - I love Walgreens!
So funny fact about me:I live less than a mile from a Walgreens, I go there often for awesome drug store deals, but I don't get my prescriptions filled there.  Instead I drive over 10 miles away to Target.  Why?  Partly out of habit, and  due to some past 'issues' with a different  Walgreens location.  You see, I have a special needs son, and he has some crazy prescriptions (like I need a cart to take it out to the car).  Anyways, years ago I had trouble getting them filled correctly, I started going to Target and they got it right so I stayed....  fast forward a bunch of years, and I am still going there, despite moving to a different city.

Lately the service and competency at my trusty Target has been less than stellar.  Today I decided to give my local Walgreens a try.  (well to be honest, I tried them a few weeks ago with a new Rx for my son and they went out of their way to fill it in the most cost effective way and were very helpful)  I had them transfer one of my meds, and when I went to pick it up  I was surprised to find out it is $13 cheaper!  Whoo hoo! Almost pays for the lunch splurged on today!  Not to mention the savings in time and gas!

It certainly pays to shop around for better prescription prices, I am excited to see if I can save on some others as well!

To make things even better?  I scored on this deal on hair gel while I was there, 2 bottles for FREE baby!  (thanks Coupon Connections for the heads up)

Spending Freeze recap
Day 1 - $0
Day 2 - $10 (drinks with the girls)
Day 3 - $133 ($12 McDonalds, $38 Thai food, $13 Target, $20 Hubs gas, $50 my gas)
Day 4 -  $0
Day 5 -$0
Day 6 - $0
Day 7 - $1.75 (hubby got a snack a work)
Day 8 - $17.20 ($3.20 for meds, $14 for lunch for the boys and I)

One week down - Spending Freeze

You know the saying no news is good news? That is the case of the last few days... I was so taken back by how much that we had already spent, that I avoided the store at all costs the past few days.

And my all costs, I mean my more coffee, which is huge. 
You see, I ran out of hot cocoa, and I always have hot coca in my coffee.  For me, a mocha, if even a 'poor man mocha' is the only way to go. (home brewed coffee, hot cocoa and milk)  So today I had to get creative, I tried melting a hershey kiss in my coffee, but it was lacking.  Then I tried adding milk and ground cinnamon and sugar.  Yum! it was very tasty.  I just may make it a few more days without going to the store. 

to recap:

Day 1 - $0
Day 2 - $10 (drinks with the girls)
Day 3 - $133 ($12 McDonalds, $38 Thai food, $13 Target, $20 Hubs gas, $50 my gas)
Day 4 -  $0
Day 5 -$0
Day 6 - $0
Day 7 - $1.75 (hubby got a snack a work)

I tried to talk hubby out of the snack...  but he swore he was just too hungry.  Oh well :)

Spending freeze update- the first 4 days

The first two days we were off to a great start- we spent $10!!  Yeah us.  Then Friday came, and it was a spendy day. Yikes! 
I had a feeling it would be,we had to travel to the city for a doctor appointment at Children's Hospital.  It's a bit of a drive and we normally grab lunch on the way.  I tried to skip it, but not very hard, and we ended up all ordering a little less so we could enjoy but still be mindful of the budget.  The appointment was rough, I got stressed, traffic was bad on the way home..  blech.  Hubby to the rescue, offered Thai food to lift my spirits.  I just can't say no to Thai food!  Again, we ordered less,skipped the sodas and appetizers.  And in lieu of dessert  there we opted to get a little treat at Target.

We like to go to Target (it's near our favorite Thai place) to walk off dinner and browse.  Hubs had a gift card he has slowly been spending for months, so he got a video game.  I had $5 gift card from Shopkicks (I'll talk more about that in a different post) and I totally scored on the coffee.  It was on sale for $7.50 and had a coupon on it for $1.50 off as well. Oh and the cookie mix was on clearance for 98 cents.  All told, we spent $13 out of pocket there.

And we bought gas, both of our cars only had 1/4 of a tank at the beginning of the month, so both needed a fill up. 

So here is how the month has gone so far:

Day 1 - $0
Day 2 - $10 (drinks with the girls)
Day 3 - $133 ($12 McDonalds, $38 Thai food, $13 Target, $20   Hubs gas, $50 my gas)
Day 4 -  $0

Um yikes! lets not have anymore days like day 3 shall we?  Not good.  I do solemnly swear to be Way better! 
How have you done on your 1st week of the freeze?

It's time for the 2nd Annual February Spending Freeze

Time has flown, like money leaving my bank account, and it is time again for the February spending freeze.  This will be our 2nd year doing this, to read about how we did last year, go here.
Last year my goal was to spend $100 for anything that was not a monthly bill (gas, food, shopping etc)  We blew that number out of the water and ended up spending $257.16.
Some things we learned?
Gas is a gold digging girlfriend you can't get rid of, you hate her, you need her, she will take you for a ride and leave you.
Going out to eat is like getting drunk, feels great at the time, but it is expensive and leaves you feeling bad afterwords.

So with that knowledge in hand I have created our goal for this year (and I would love it if you would share your goals in the comments!)

Gas $115 ( we spent $93.40 last Feb, but hub was unemployed and I have one more kid in school this year)
Groceries $120 (we spent $104.26 last year, I upped the budget this year bc the boys are eating a TON lately..  can we say growth spurts?!)
Gifts or eating out $50 - I know we have at least 1 birthday this month, possible hospital time for my oldest, and we haven't been out to eat in over 3 weeks, so I am not sure I can make it the whole month w/o a night off.
so the total out of pocket budget this month is $285!

Just like last year, I will update every day or 2 where we are at, and where some of the great deals are.  I would LOVE LOVE love it if your would let me know if you plan on doing something similar!

Happy New Year! ok, maybe not but...

I have a love hate relationship with New Year resolutions...  like most, I set them, have the best of intentions and normally fail by this time.  So this year I took a different approach.  In part it was because my December was so crazy (rental house issues to the extreme, Christmas, illness, car fix-ups, you name it) and because this year i wanted to take time, think things thru and really, really set goals for myself.  So I gave myself January (aren't I generous!)  to think about what I want my life to look like, really think about what brings me joy and how I can make all the different interests I have come together.

Anyone that knows me, knows that I have too many interests to possibly succeed at them all, and can get lost in endless tangents (both in talking and in projects).  This had to several blogs, that I start, write a bunch and abandon.  Well no more my friends!  this is it, Mama Monkey is where all my randomness shall reside.  Not totally random, I have narrowed down my passions into 3 main categories. 
Saving Money
Making Money
and Making Stuff

So that is what i will share with you on this little piece of the web.  And soon I will work with my smart hubby and make category tabs so that you can easily find posts in the subject you are interested in.  in the meantime, bear with me and come along for the ride.

Day 42 and 43 - Upcycled pants

Do you live pants? I do. I wear pants, and I love to make them. Just not for myself, at least not yet.
But tiny pants? Heck yeah!
Yesterday I took an old pair of pants (let's not mention how many pant sizes ago) and made some baby girl pants. Size 6 months to be exact. I loved the pin tuck detail on the original pair so I cut out my pattern with that in mind.

Today I found a pair of my middle son's jeans that had been in my mending pile so long that they now fit my youngest. Since my youngest is my little hipster, I knew just regular random patches wouldn't do. I found a suede leather jacket sample from my fancy designing days and cut out some oversized rectangles.
However, I don't have a needle needed for sewing leather, so I used 'heat and bond' and my heat press ( read 'super power iron'). And there you have it. 2 'new' pairs of pants, $0.

Days 39-41 mostly Halloween

Today I made a tossle, just a fun quick project.
What I really want to show you all is what I worked on Friday and Saturday. It was one of those projects that came together in my head and worked out just as I planed.
My niece asked for my help with her Halloween costume, a spoof on Toddlers and Tiaras.
Friday I made the skirt, out of bits and pieces I had on hand. Saturday my niece and I put the top together, together. It was very fun to work with her. :)

Days 35-38 A Pumpkin a Day

I know, I am a total slacker, putting 4 days worth of crafts in 1 post.
You see, I joined a gym (ok, I didn't join, I won a free month) and I have gone the last 3 nights in a row. I took tonight off, because if I didn't go grocery shopping my kids would be eating frozen peas for breakfast.

Don't fret though, I have been crafting. These quick little pumpkins combined a few of my obsessions of late.. Pinterest ( where I got the idea) recycling (all but a tiny bit of fiber fill is left over scraps from other projects) and quickness ( they each took about 5-8 min to make.

Quick and dirty directions
Take a long rectangle, fold it to make a shorted rectangle, stitch the short end.
Baste stitch the bottom an gather.
Flip right side out.
Fill 3/4 with fabric scraps and the top 1/4 with poly fill.
Baste stitch and gather the top, pole you needle thru the pumpkin and tie off on the bottom.
Cut out a little rectangle of fleece or felt, roll into a stem and hot glue it on
Ta da!

Day 34 - A baby shirt Grows up

Today we had a Star Wars party. Everyone was getting in the spirit by wearing their Star Wars shirts, when I realized my 4 year old didn't have one. He used to have one when he was a baby, and I kept the onesie thinking I would do something with it one day. Today was that day. The project took about 5 minutes from start to finish.
I cut out the graphic from his Yoda onesie and sewed it on to a plain black t-shirt using a zig zag stitch. And Voila!

Days 31-33 Pants Pinterest and lightsabers

Day 31 I worked on some cute little pants for my baby niece.
Day 32 I used a tip I saw on Pinterest and hemmed my son's pants while preserving the original hem.
Day 33 (today) I made lightsabers for my middle son's birthday party. They are foam inside so beating your brothers is safe. Well, we will see how safe tomorrow when 9 kids are battling each other.

Day 30 - One month and no Cupcakes

Whoo hoo! I have been at this project 365 a full month! One down, eleven to go.
For today's project I made birthday treats for my son's kindergarden class. His class has a no food policy due to lost of kids with allergies. So in leu of edible treats I put together a little pack for each kid with a pencil and some cute little erasers.
Trouble is, if i would have bought treat bags to put them in, they would look small and not very special. So what is a crafty mama to do? Make some out of tracing paper left over from college of course. ( yes, college was a long time ago, and I still have my left over tracing paper... I might be a craft supply hoarder, maybe).
All I did was fold a sheet of tracing paper (freezer paper would work too) and sew lines. I had the birthday boy write his name on each one. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the explaining

Day 28 and 29 - mother of invention

Day 28 I made a monkey, one I promised to make a few days ago. He's the one on the right.

Today, or rather a few minutes ago I made something in about 3 minutes that I have been thinking of for months. You see, the day was coming to a close and I had yet to make something. So I went to my craft room intent on whipping anything up that would take 5 min or less.

So what do you get when you add an iPhone addiction, a sock and less than 5 min to make something? An iPhone holder for your arm of course.
(there was sewing involved, about 2 inches on the back side to keep the sock folded). Necessary for me because I must have my phone with me at all times. But sometimes I don't have a pocket. Up till now I have been so classy and just tucked it in my bra. This caused my husband to call me iBoob.

Not anymore my friends. Now he may call me robo arm or something... I'll let you know.

Day 26 and 27 - Repurpose

I must be in a 'green' mood because the last 2 say I have made projects out of cast off items, to give them a new life.
Yesterday's project was a repeat of on I did a week or so ago. The coupon insert container. Only this time I picked out sheets that were mostly blue for the warp and mostly green for the weft. (side note explanation: in weaving the warp is the vertical part and the weft is the horizontal).
Today's project could not have been easier! It was inspired by a cuff I saw on pintrest today. It uses the end of a necktie. The one I saw used the larger end and a button as a closure. Since I was making this one for my 4 year old, I oped to use the narrow end and used Velcro. I didn't take pictures of the process because it was so simple. Just measure your wrist, add about 2 inches for overlap whack off that much off the end of the tie. Hem the raw end, add your Velcro, and you're done!

Day 25 - Cozy pants and a blanket

Shhh, don't tell anyone but I didn't make a monkey today. Instead a sewed up a cuddly blanket for a customer and some cozy pants for my littlest niece.
The pants are a first run, to make sure the pattern I made was a go. Little Carleigh will be getting a few pairs of these with some fancying up of course.

Day 23 and 24 - Monkeys and medical Bills

Huge surprise, I am working on another monkey today. Not done yet, but since I am about to start a movie, u thought I would get my blog update done first.
I bet you're wondering about my title today. Just something one my mind today. I had an medical issue a month and a half ago and the bills are pouring in. The good news, we have insurance, the bad news, it blows.
Now if only I could pay the doctors in monkeys. :)
Enjoy this pic of today's monkey in progress, I hope to have it and it's sibling done for your viewing pleasure tomorrow.

Day 22 - Again with the monkeys

Meet Kate, she and her bro ( to be made tomorrow) are being sent off to some very special babies yet to be born. The whole time I worked on Kate I thought about those precious little lives. I can't wait to hear of their safe arrival into this world.

Day 21 - O Christmas tree

What to do with a couple of expired coupon books? Why make a Christmas tree of course.
I just folded each page twice. Each book made 1/2 a tree, I then hot glued them together.
I think this would also work well with smaller magazines like Reader Digest or Guide Post.

Day 19 and 20 - Monkeys and more Monkeys

Yesterday Bobby the third was born (made) for a customer. And today, I made a baby monkey, let's call her Pumpkin.

Day 18 - she turned the bag into a bowl

Ok, more accurately I turned expired coupon inserts into a container. Lest this become the 365 monkey project, I decided to shake things up a bit.

It started with a pile if expired coupon inserts. I made this project up as I went, not sure what the end result would be.

Step 1 - roll pages up using a pencil
Step 2 - flatten the strip
Step 3 - sew strips together on either end
Step 4 - weave strips
Step 5 - sew woven ends
Step 6 - sew bias tape around the perimeter
Step 7 - pinch corners and sew
Done!