Friday!!!!! One of the best days of the week.

School year. is. over.

And I MADE it!!!!  It was touch and go there for a while.  A lot of cookies were sacrificed for that to happen.  And I am grateful.  Cookies you are awesome.

Did she say school year?  Yes, yes I did.  I work at an online school as a high school advisor.  I love my job, but there are times...I'm sure you know, we all have those moments.  When I work on the computer all day it takes a lot of motivation to get back on in the evening and write.  So a little break {that turned into a big break. oops} from the good ol' blog and now I'm back.  I missed you all!  Maybe, you missed me too?  Just a little?  :)

Anyway, Happy FRIDAY!!!!!

Photo from The Keep Calm-O-Matic

These little signs are growing on me.  I think it's fun when there are other meanings behind them, little pop culture references.  Now that you are trying to figure out the other meaning behind the Friday sign, there isn't one....I don't think anyway.  

No, I'm referring to ones like this....

Photo from The Movie and TV Store

Chuckle chuckle.  Awesome right. 

This one confuses me though...do you know what it means?

Do these people really like those little onions so much? That can't be it.  Can it?

Next on the agenda.

Awesome news...my sister is going to have another baby!  So excited.  And we just found out what it is {so I no longer refer to it as baby squid}.  Both sides of the family went out to dinner and we each got a cake pop filled with the appropriate color for the baby.

Drum roll please....bbbrrrrrrruuummmm  {that is a drum, don't judge}

Ta-dah!!!!  It's pink!  Another girl!!!  This will be fun.  

I sat Cassie down for a little heart to heart about how she can be a good big sister.

 Which I felt went really well until she saw my sunglasses on the top of my head.

 

It just went downhill from there.

Isn't she just adorable.  Ok I'm biased.

So now that I'm back we have some MAJOR catching up to do. Monday some book reviews are coming your way!  Yeah!  I'll see you then!

Have a wonderful Friday full of adventure!

I Work Hard for the Money-- Part 2: Cutting food costs

Let's face the facts here.


Food prices are up, and I'm pretty sure they aren't going down anytime soon.  Eating is pretty essential, so what can we do to get the most beef for our buck? {I know that was pretty bad}

This is definitely an area that I am continually working on, and I have started using some of these tips. Some.

Hey, I'm trying here.  Isn't that the goal though...you try your best and see what happens.

Make a list. Those little impulse buys just sneak up on a person {especially me} and you can end up spending around 20% more.  When you stick to your list you are throwing less food away too!  There are a ton of templates on Pinterest that you can print off.  Here is a cool one....

Photo Credit: Simplified Mama

Make a menu. Sit down for 30 minutes and make a plan.  Look in the pantry and the fridge, see what you already have on hand that needs to be used up, and make your list from there.  Not much of a cook?  Check out Pinterest or favorite blogs for some recipes.  Another website that is a lifesaver is supercook.com.  You can click on what ingredients you have at your house and they'll pull recipes for you.  Magical!!!!!

Don't shop hungry! I know, I know tale as old as time....but it's TRUE!  Hungry=impulse buys=more money spent.  Just don't.  

 

Photo Credit: Advice Register blog

Check out those labels. Just because it's "on sale" doesn't mean it's the best buy.  It's time to do some math people!  That beautiful unit price box is wonderful.  This is a great tool to use to see if buying in bulk is actually a good deal. those stores are sneaky...for instance buying a block of cheese may be cheaper than buying shredded cheese.  Hey, those nickels and dimes add up!  To see some great examples of this check out this post on Advice Register.  

Ice Ice Baby.  So you bought some {ok, it was actually a lot} of cheese, or meat, or fruit because it was a great sale, now what.  Put it in smaller packages and freeze it for later use!  

Look for markdowns. These finds are my favorite.  Check out the meat department for "manager specials".  You can get some nice cuts of meat for a steal and a half, you just have to cook it right away.  At my local Kroger there is a section set aside for goods that are on special maybe because it is a discontinued product or the package has seen better days...it's still good, and now cheaper! 

These are all tips that will take you very little time and can save you quite a bit of money.  Shop smart. Good luck!