HOMEMADE CHRISTMAS IDEA

Hubby bought me one of those Snuggies for my birthday and the kids really liked it and even wore it a few times.
I asked them if they wanted Santa to bring them one and they said yes!
Snuggies run about $30 for 2 of them so I got to thinking after looking at mine and thought they shouldn't be too hard to make!
I could go to the thrift store and find a blanket (maybe fleece at that) for cheap.
I even found some online directions to make one!
SNUGGLE

SNUGGIE BLANKET

SLANKET
(blanket with sleeves)

SNUGLET

Here's an idea that just hit me:
Why couldn't I make something like a poncho,
gosh I remember wearing those as a kid, lol.
I could take a blanket and cut a hole in the middle to put the head through.
Could probably even figure out how to put a hood on it.
Ya see Snuggies aren't too snuggy for your backside.
It's made for people sitting down to use.
They remind me of something you wear at the doctor's office
that has your backside sticking out.
So by making one this way everything gets warm!
Kids are simple minded. They don't want to mess with robes, buttons or belts.
This way all they had to do was put it over their heads and be done with it.

BREAKFAST 12-6-09

Not quite Sunday yet but figured I'd post tomorrow's breakfast anyway before I started my day of house cleaning and laundry.
I'm hoping to feel better tomorrow as I didn't get much done today.
Did some rearranging in my regular freezer today and came across a half bag of potatoes that needed used up so decided to have them for breakfast.
I always try to find different ways to use up leftover items.

I got the idea for this recipe out of a Pillsbury cook book
called Crescents, Biscuits and More!
that used sausage gravy with hash brown potatoes and went from there with what I had on hand.
You never have to follow recipes accordingly.
I usually browse through cook books to get ideas.
Sometimes I have the ingredients and sometimes I swap out some ingredients for something else I do have.
Usually I have sausage but this time I didn't and went with the chipped beef for something different for breakfast.

Have you ever wondered who decided what foods
should be eaten just for breakfast?
I have always wondered that.

Sometimes I like to make breakfast for supper for a change.
Just because it's pancakes, bacon, eggs and sausage links
doesn't mean you have to eat them just for breakfast!
We eat Pop Tarts and dry cereal for snacks sometimes!

Cream Dried Beef Over Biscuits with Eggs and Shredded Potatoes

Ingredients

• 5 cups milk (.66 c)
  
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (free)
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup butter (.18 c)
  
• 3 packages (6 ounces total) Kroger chipped beef ($1.50)
  
• 1 can of Kroger buttermilk biscuits (.37 c)
• 4 eggs (.32 c)
• 1/2 bag of Ore Ida shredded potatoes (.62 c)
• 1/2 cup Kroger Value shredded cheddar cheese (.30 c)
  

Directions

Place biscuits in oven and bake according to package directions.

Whisk the milk, flour, salt, and pepper together in a bowl until smooth.

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat.

Gradually stir in the milk mixture until thick.

Add cut up chipped beef;

cook and stir until heated through, about 5 minutes.

Fry shredded potatoes in skillet until golden brown.

Fry over hard eggs.

Arrange everything on plate and pour
creamed chipped beef over top.

Top with optional shredded cheddar cheese.


TOTAL COST FOR MEAL: $3.65
8 SERVINGS @ .46 cents per serving

SUPPER 12-5-09

TERIYAKI RICE & STIR FRY VEGETABLES
2 packages stir fry vegetables (.88c x's 2 is $1.76)
1/2 pack sliced mushrooms (.50c)
3 packs boil in bag rice (free)
1/2 bottle teriyaki sauce (.90c)
Shredded turkey leftovers

Boil vegetables and rice bags in a pot of water. In a skillet fry up turkey with a couple tablespoons of butter, mushrooms and teriyaki sauce. Salt and pepper to taste. Drain vegetables. Cut open bags of rice and add a lil butter. Spoon rice onto plates. Spoon turkey/mushrooms over rice. Then spoon stir fry vegetables on top. Add more teriyaki sauce and salt/pepper if desired. TOTAL COST FOR MEAL: $3.16 Serves about 8 @ .40 cents a serving.

DESSERT STRIPED DELIGHT PUDDING CHEESECAKE PIE
from Jello Celebrating 100 years cookbook

I made this recipe and it made enough for 2 pies!

So divide it among 2 crusts.

2 pre-made graham cracker crusts (.30c x's 2 is .60c)
1/4 cup sugar (free)
2 Tablespoons milk
1 tub Cool Whip (.50c)
1 - 8ounce package cream cheese (.50c)
3.5 cups cold milk (.30c)
2 four serving packages chocolate pudding (.50c)
(I used chocolate with caramel chips Jello pudding)

Beat cream cheese, sugar and 2 tablespoons milk in a large bowl until smooth. Gently stir in half tub of whipped topping. Spread into crust. In a large bowl (I just reused bowl from above) whisk together 3.5 cups milk and pudding mixes. Pour over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate 4 hours until set. Just before serving spread remaining cool whip topping over pudding.

It says it makes 12 servings but like I said I was able to make 2 pies from this so it was 24 servings for us.

TOTAL COST TO MAKE 2 PIES: $2.40 or $1.20 a pie divided by 24 servings is
.10 cents a serving.

RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND CHEAP OR FREE ITEMS

My wonderful friend Kendra gave us a bunch of Christmas decorations!
She gave us a HUGE blow up Santa and reindeer along with another blow up reindeer.
Then with that she gave us a laundry basket full of Christmas lights. There had to have been about 20 strands!!
Along with decorative bulbs and garland!
Now she calls and says she has $50 for us to put towards groceries!!

Here's a tip for those who need things:
Find friends, family or even coworkers that you can swap things with through out the year.
It can be food or other household items you no longer need.
Keep items out of the landfill and recycle them!!
I either give away the stuff we don't need to friends and family or take items to a drop box for the needy.
I hate to be wasteful when there are so many others out there in need of things.
And it helps me to clear clutter out of the house.

If you need something or have something to give away try
It's FREE!!
FREECYCLE.org

I also use Craigslist.com to buy things used and save so much money!
Sometimes I even use Ebay.com for certain things that are a little harder to find.

Sometime I would like to give
Angel Food Ministries a try.
There are no qualifications, minimums, income restrictions, or applications.
THIS IS NOT A FOOD BANK AS SOME MAY THINK!
It's discounted food that comes in a box that will last a family of 4 for a week!
IT COSTS $30 for a box!


For those interested in this here is what their web site says:

Angel Food is available in a quantity that can fit into a medium-sized box at $30 per unit. Each month's menu is different than the previous month and consists of both fresh and frozen items with an average retail value of approximately $60. Comparison shopping has been done across the country in various communities using a wide range of retail grocery stores and has resulted in the same food items costing from between $42 and $78.

Generally, one unit of food assists in feeding a family of four for about one week or a single senior citizen for almost a month. The food is all the same high quality one could purchase at a grocery store. There are no second-hand items, no damaged or out-dated goods, no dented cans without labels, no day-old breads and no produce that is almost too ripe.

Also offered are specialty boxes such as steaks, chicken and pork. Many participants in this bonus program appreciate the expanded choices. Additionally, there is no limit to the number of units or bonus foods an individual can receive, and there are no applications to complete or qualifications to which participants must adhere. Angel Food Ministries also participates in the U.S. Food Stamp program, using the Off-Line Food Stamp Voucher system.

It's both a Bargain and a Blessing!

Sample Menu:
(this month's menu can be viewed here)

• 4 lb. IQF Leg Quarters
• 4 oz. Beef Back Ribs
• 1 lb. 80/20 Lean Ground Beef
• 2 lb. Breaded Chicken Tenders
• 1.5 lb. Bone in Pork Chops (4 x 6oz.)
• 1 lb. Ground Turkey
• 18 oz. Stuffed Manicotti (Cheese)
• 12 oz. Smoked Sausage
• Betty Crocker Seasoned Potatoes
• 7 oz. Cheeseburger Dinner
• 16 oz. Green Beans
• 16 oz. Baby Carrots
• 2 lb. Onions
• 1 lb. Pinto Beans
• 1 lb. Rice
• 7 oz. Blueberry Muffin Mix
• 10 ct. Homestyle Waffles
• Dessert Item

OTHER BOXES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE.
And they do accept food stamps!
I think you can only order once at the beginning of each month
and can order more than one box to be stocked up til the following month.
So food for a family of 4 would cost about $120 a month.
They are located everywhere!
There's about 3 located within a mile of our house.

• 

SATURDAY MORNING 12-5-09 My Gripes for today.

Still feeling the affects of my cold. One day my nose has a mind of it's own and was turned on like a faucet. Then a couple days later it's like the Saharah Desert where everything is dried up and feels like someone squeezing my head and my mouth is so dry.
Now today everything has loosened up again. I wish it would make up it's mind as to what it wants to do so I could be done with it.
I've been trying to stay motivated but am behind with things.

I've got tons of coupons to cut, sort out and put into my coupon binder.

I need to round up receipts and get my rebates sent out before they expire and I miss out on those.

Then there is a tow receipt I have to send to the insurance company so I can get reimbursed for that.

Library books are due today and need to go back before I accrue fines.

Laundry and dishes are piling up.
Housework has been slow
since I have been slow moving.

Tony is on call this weekend and has already been paged out this morning.

Christmas shopping still needs done, ahhh!

Damien needs a ride to work at 9:30 pm.

I've got a couple bills that need to go out before those are past due.

I received a notice from WOW! that they are increasing their bill once again. This makes twice in a year and a half that we've had them. This is ridiculous!
For being a new customer with them I'm not liking them very well!
I saw on tv one time where you could call and complain to them and see if you could get your bill decreased.
I'm gonna try that when my head is clear and will let everyone know how it turns out.
At this point I am thinking about downsizing cable or finding someone else!

-Cable guide went up .70 cents so there's an extra $8.40 a year.
I need to get rid of this and use ones online or from the newspaper for free!!
-DVR used to be about $3 then it went to $8 and now they want $10.
So there's and extra $120 a year!!!!!
I like my DVR but damn in 10 years time that's $1200 to rent that sucker out!!
And lastly the modem rental was free and now they want to charge me $5.00 a month for it.
So there's an extra $60 a year.

Total those all up for a year off their increases and it's $188.40!!
And who knows if they will raise prices again in the near future.
They should give you some sort of discount for being their customer and staying with them, not trying to drive you away with their prices!

I need to go to basic cable, no dvr, no cable guide.

CRAZY CRAZY CRAZY!!!

What I don't like is when you call them to get rates they'll give you a flat rate of things. When you ask what the total bill with all their fees included is, they have no clue. So even though they tell you something like "Oh it's only $99 to bundle your cable, phone and internet" they fail to include all those other fees like:
(looking at bill now)
-sales tax
-franchise fee
-regulatory recovery fee
-federal universal service fund
-fcc phone fee
-ohio trs fee
-non-published listing fee

Those fees add up to $10.96, what the hell!

Then if you wow a friend you and that person is supposed to receive $25 each.
That's a joke as that never happened since I told them my mom referred me!!

I want my Time Warner back but those services aren't offered in the area I live.
My other choices are:
Insight or ATT
I can't stand ATT!!
They are as bad as WOW.
At least they were years ago. Maybe they changed since then.

Ok I'm done bitching for now. When you don't feel all that well anything and everything sets you off.

SUPPER 12-4-09

CHICKEN QUESADILLAS

5 chicken leg quarters ($1.92)
---it was a half package of Kroger chicken that was a manager special @ $3.84
1 two cup package shredded cheddar cheese ($1.20 Kroger Value)
1 can cream of chicken soup (.27 cents)
--found Campbell's in the scratch and dent bin marked down then had
coupons on top of that!
1/8 cup (2 Tablespoons) diced red, yellow, green peppers and onions (.10 cents)
---I buy assorted packages of bell peppers from Aldi's. Chop them up then blanch them and store them in ziploc baggies in the freezer. I only put this on the adults quesadillas.
1 package of 10 Kroger Tortilla Shells ($1.50)
Kroger ranch dressing (free)
--Had a free coupon that Kroger sent me snail mail for their dressing.

Put chicken in crock pot with some water on high for about 5 hours until tender. Shred chicken off bone. Gently stir a can of cream of mushroom soup into chicken, do not dilute. Salt and pepper.

Spray skillet with cooking spray. Place tortilla in warm skillet, add shredded chicken, cheese, bell peppers/onions. Drizzle ranch dressing on top. Fold tortilla over. Flip over after 1-2 minutes and golden brown other side.

TOTAL COST OF MEAL: $4.99
Makes 10 servings at .50 cents a serving

Most recipes I make are with stuff I have in the pantry. I don't make menus and then go grocery shopping. Instead I take what I have and get creative.

I have a sweet tooth today and might make fudge. This is also easy and cheap to make for those who need something to make as a Christmas gift.
And if you were watching there was coupons on these items recently.
This can make many combinations of fudge!

1 bag of any kind of chips (chocolate, butterscotch, peppermint, white, etc) (.99 cents)
1 tub of any kind of frosting (.50 cents)

Melt chips in microwave safe bowl stirring every 30 seconds until completely melted.
Stir whole container of frosting into chips.

Pour into a greased baking dish. Refrigerate until hardened. Cut and serve.

TOTAL COST TO MAKE FUDGE WITH COUPONS AND SALES: $1.49 !!!

You could also add things like nuts, raisins, coconut, marshmallows, dried fruit, chopped up candy bars, crumbled cookies and so on if you have on hand. Don't run out and make a special trip for extra items!! Find uses for any extra Halloween candy that you may have or found discounted!

Save your frosting or Pringles containers throughout the year. Glue or tape Christmas wrapping paper to sides and put fudge inside to give as gifts.

Here are some combinations of chips and frostings:

--Peanut butter chips with milk chocolate chips (like Reeses)
--Chocolate chips with chocolate fudge frosting (for chocolate lovers)
--mint chocolate chips with chocolate frosting (like an Ande's mint)
--Cherry Chips with chocolate frosting (like chocolate covered cherries)
--milk chocolate chips with coconut pecan frosting
--Vanilla chips with Funfetti frosting

FRIDAY 12-4-09 WALGREENS

Me and mom went to Walgreens to pick up her prescription.
I strolled around the store while she did some shopping.
I found in the clearance section a couple small gifts for Tony:
2 Jeff Gordon note cards with envelopes
(total of 6 in each package)
was $1.00 marked down to .50 cents each
1 LED white light key chain for $1.29.
When Tony goes on call he never has a flashlight.
This way he'll be able to have one right on his key chain
and it will always be with him. No having to hunt for one.
It's really bright!

Total spent at Walgreens was $2.29 for 3 gifts.

ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS
CHECK YOUR RECEIPTS!!

I always check my receipts before leaving the store.
Today I found that they charged me full price
on the Jeff Gordon note cards.
I took it back to the cashier and got $1.00 back.

It seems like every week I am being overcharged for something.
These mistakes add up and it only takes a couple minutes of your time to double check those receipts!!

One week I think I counted over $15.00 of overcharges from stores I had visited.
$15 x's 52 weeks is $780 a YEAR being thrown away if you're not careful!!

I don't care if it's at a grocery store, thrift store or fast food!
One thrift store punched in $5.00 accidentally for a .50 cent item.
I caught that mistake though.
Have a figure in your head when heading to the check out of what your items cost.
If your amount isn't around that figure you know something is wrong.

If you don't like a product then write the brand and tell them!
If you get bad service write corporate and tell them!
All this information is available online and so easy to access.
Sometimes I get free coupons for products and gift cards!
Other times I get an apology.
Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself!!
It's your money and if they want your business they will rectify the situation!

Then me and mom treated ourselves to Arbys for lunch. Had a coupon sent in the mail this week for 2 subs for $4.00!
Very filling!
BUT when I went to get a refill on my pop the machine was out of syrup and only dispensed carbonated water, YUCK!
And when visiting the potty there was no TP.
Paper towels were a little rough on the bottom!
So while lunch was good everything else sucked during our visit, lol.
I did tell the cashier about the TP being out.
Good thing they had paper towels
because if it was a blower I don't think I could have gotten my leg up that high!
ONLY KIDDING!