Football Frugal Family Fun

If you are hoping to watch alittle football this weekend – Tracy over at Having Fun Saving has a great snack idea and a way for the kiddos to have alittle fun on Sunday too!

Head over here to visit this week’s Frugal Family Football Fun!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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Are you using the FREE Budget Spreadsheet by EasternShoreMom.com?

Budgeting is always something that is intimidating to people. Writing down their expenses versus how much they are bringing in is a scary thought, but in reality it helps you know where your money is going and how you can reach a savings goal. Whether you are saving for a rainy day, a vacation, a house, a car, etc. you won’t get there unless you have a budget plan.

Of course it’s not that scary when Eastern Shore Mom is here to help! I have made a FREE downloadable version of the budget spreadsheet I use for our family’s finances! This has saved us lots of money just by me sitting down and typing out where our money is going and when.

Here is how this works:

Start by downloading the FREE EasternShoreMom.com Budget (download for Excel 1997-2003 EasternShoreMom.com Budget)

Step One: Fill in the month and dates of each weeks. You will see that I break down our budget weekly. This helps us plan on how much we are spending on what each week. So start with this month (I have already written “January” in) then go down the calendar and write the starting day of each week and the ending date of each week where is says “Dates of the Week”

Step Two: Fill in your weekly expenses. I have already made a category for Child Care, Gas, Groceries, Misc. & Bills. Note that the category of “BILLS” needs to be filled out below the highlighted lines where is says “List your bills here”. This form is made to calculate everything for you. So when you plug in your bills below, it is going to total them and bring them up to the top under “GAS” and the total will be next to “BILLS”.

Be sure to fill in each week’s expenses, so if your mortgage is due the first of the month, put it under the first week. If the cell bill is due at the end of the month, put it under the last week’s bills.

Step Three: Fill in your income. Underneath your TOTAL from your expenses is a place for you to fill in how much your bring in each week. Once you fill in the amount you bring in each week, the sheet will automatically calculate how much SAVINGS there is by subtracting the TOTAL amount from your expenses by your INCOME field. This is all done for you automatically inside the sheet, so don’t try to fill in the SAVINGS field yourself!

Step Four: Track your budget. If you need to stick the allotted money in envelopes each week to make sure what you have budgeted is what you are spending, do so. Be sure at the end of the week to check off what you have paid that week and make sure you didn’t go over budget. If so, be sure to change that category so your SAVINGS line updates with the new amount.

Final Step: DEPOSIT! At the end of the week, take the total amount under SAVINGS and make your deposit! If your budgeting went according to plan, that amount should be waiting to move over to the Savings Account and a new week begins!

Example:

Tips for the spreadsheet:

Save a BLANK one- Be sure to go ahead and save one that is blank. Open it, go to File, Save As, then name it “EasternShoreMom Budget Plan MASTER COPY”. Once you do that, open it again, go to File, Save As, then name it “January 2011″. Do this so you always have one that is not typed in because…

Don’t Delete the Formulas- I have inserted formulas in each HIGHLIGHTED cell (or little box). Be sure NOT TO DELETE (or backspace) inside these highlighted boxes, as it will delete the formulas I have inserted and the sheet won’t calculate correctly. If you do delete a formula, refer to the one you have saved blank (tip above) and select the cell (or little box) that you deleted and copy and paste over the correct formula.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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Frugal Family Fun – Enjoy The Winter!

This week for our Frugal Family post adventures – Tracy has gathered up some really FUN winter-themed experiments, crafts, and even a recipe!  And the recipe includes Grilled Cheese croutons – doesn’t that just sound amazing?!

Make sure you head here to see our Frugal Family Fun for the week!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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Beginners: How you “do” Coupons.com like a Pro

How do you do Coupons.com like a pro?

Coupons.com is a site we talk about A WHOLE LOT on EasternShoreMom.com. However, it can be very complicated to know how I find all these coupons, how to print again, where are the coupons I just printed, etc. Let me help you with a little Coupons.com 101:

Entering a Zip Code

When you are on Coupons.com, the coupons that come up are based on what zip code you enter. You can enter ANY ZIP CODE YOU WANT, there will be no indication on the coupon that it is only valid in the area you selected. What are some HOT zip codes?

• Try selecting “no zip code” (in my experience, this brings up EVERY coupon any of the zip codes bring up)
• 90210
• 30306
• 12345
• You can also go to USPS.com and use their zip code finder to find other zip codes. Usually big city zip codes have better coupon selections.

Printing the Coupons

You want to select “Clip this Coupon” to print. But as you know, you can print (most) coupons twice on Coupons.com! However, when you go back to the page that coupon was on it is no longer there. Where did it go and do I have to scroll through all 18 pages of these coupons to find it?

• Once you have printed a coupon once, when you go back to print again try the last few pages on coupons. Usually when you print a coupon they send it to the last page to hang out, letting you know you have either “reached your print limit” or you are almost there.

When do the Coupons Expire

Once you print a coupon from Coupons.com, the coupon should expire 30 days from the date on print.

When do the Print Limits Reset

So once you have printed a coupon twice, it gives you the “print limit reached” message. But when can you print it again? At the beginning of every month, Coupons.com will reset and allow you to print again. That is, if that coupon is still available. At the beginning of the month Coupons.com also reloads with new coupons and gets rid of some of the old coupons.

• Be sure on the last day of the month to scroll through and print ANY coupon you might want because tomorrow it might not be there anymore. If it is still there, you will be able to print it an additional 2 times, ending up with 4 of the same coupon!

When Should I Check Coupons.com for New Coupons?

Be sure to head over there once a day to check and see if there are new coupons to print! EasternShoreMom.com also puts of Catch of the Day posts to alert you of new coupons, but you never know what you may find! Download the FREE ESM Toolbar for a quick link to Coupons.com to remind you each day to check.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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FREE Weekend Fun

For this week’s Frugal Family Fun post Tracy has gotten together some free activities for us to do around town!  Head here to see what FREEbies there are this weekend :)

 

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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Thanks to Our Amazing Advertisers!

We *love* our fabulous advertisers that support EasternShoreMom.com. Without all of them we could not operate this site, so without them there would be no ESM! Every month that goes by that it may look like I can’t afford to operate EasternShoreMom.com, God blesses us with another amazing advertiser or opportunity that keeps this site running & paying for itself.

Please take a minute and scan over the businesses and services below, be sure to check them out there are some awesome products & deals!

 

Would you like to advertise on EasternShoreMom.com? We offer low cost advertising space perfect for any type of business or blog & would love for you to join our ESM family. If you are interested check out HERE for our advertising prices or email easternshoremoms (@) gmail.com.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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ESM’s New Year Resolution Solutions: Eating Right while Couponing + GIVEAWAY!

The most popular New year’s resolution is probably to lose weight & eat healthier. However, many people that coupon think that just isn’t possible. While a lot of the coupons are for snack foods, if you play your cards or coupons right you can find healthy ways to eat while still on a budget. Don’t have time to try and put healthy solutions together with the sale items for yourself?? Boy do I have a solution for you!

Here is one of my absolute favorite services we have EVER highlighted on EasternShoreMom.com: E-Mealz

E-Mealz is an online service that will manage your food budget and allow you to enjoy delicious dinner recipes at home. Their menu plans based on weekly grocery store sales, seasonal discounts or diet preferences. It’s as simple as this:

For all you Dave Ramsey fans, E-Mealz is also recommended by him!  The E-Mealz program provides a consistent and reliable approach to food budgeting by factoring the weekly cost of ingredients into each menu plan. Menus are created around a budget of $75 per week for families and $35 per week for couples.

Here are the meal plan options and examples:

E-Mealz is as low as $5 a month and THEY ARE OFFERING A SPECIAL DISCOUNT CODE FOR ESM READERS that sign up before January 15th! Use code 2012 and get 10% OFF of your E-Mealz subscription. So hurry & sign up for your subscription to E-Mealz and take the hassle of planning a well balanced meal on a budget out of your routine. 

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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ESM’s New Year Resolution Solutions: Make Extra Money in your Spare Time!

Throughout this week, ESM will be taking the most popular New Year resolutions and giving you our money saving solutions! From budgeting to weight loss to organization, you will want to stay tuned to this series and start your 2012 off ESM’s New Year resolution solutions!

Is your New Year’s resolution to bring in a some extra money each month to save for a special vacation, savings account, or item that you have been eyeing? We highlight on ESM throughout the year awesome at home survey companies & ways to make extra money from home. I have put together some of ESM’s favorites and reader favorites from last year & listed them below by category!

ESM Tip: Go ahead and create a special “survey” email address so that the email opportunities from these companies don’t overwhelm your personal inbox. 

Survey Companies We Love

Valued Opinions- So far this has been a reader favorite, with several of you scoring the $50 survey opportunities that they offer. They also hold a contest for a $500 Amazon gift card, how cool is that!?

Nielson National Consumer Panel- This one is on of the harder companies to be accepted into but it pays some of the highest rates of an at home survey company. Once accepted, they will send you a scanner for you to scan items that you buy when you shop, and you rack up points for all the items to score gift cards & other items.

Inbox Dollars- This is a reader favorite company because they accept everyone and also give you a $5 bonus when you sign up! You can also earn money for referring your friends, searching the internet, reading special emails, etc. There are many opportunities beyond the surveys that they offer to get money in your wallet!

“Score FREE Stuff” Programs We Love

Swagbucks- You will hear this word of ESM a lot! Swagbucks is super easy, you use their search engine and earn “Swagbucks” to buy gift cards and stuff from the “Swagstore”. This is where I got all of my Amazon.com gift cards to pay for our entire Christmas shopping last year. Swagbucks is awesome, just join & you will see!

ShopKicks- ShopKicks is an app for your phone that you earn points just by walking into stores like Best Buy and Target. You can earn extra points by scanning certain items inside the stores, but you don’t have to. Also, when you refer friends you can earn points which all can be redeemed for different gift cards like Target, Old Navy, Best Buy, Gas Cards, & more.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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ESM’s New Year Resolution Solutions: Budgeting your way through 2012!

Throughout this week, ESM will be taking the most popular New Year resolutions and giving you our money saving solutions! From budgeting to weight loss to organization, you will want to stay tuned to this series and start your 2012 off ESM’s New Year resolution solutions!

Budgeting is always something that is intimidating to people. Writing down their expenses versus how much they are bringing in is a scary thought, but in reality it helps you know where your money is going and how you can reach a savings goal. Whether you are saving for a rainy day, a vacation, a house, a car, etc. you won’t get there unless you have a budget plan.

Of course it’s not that scary when Eastern Shore Mom is here to help! I have made a FREE downloadable version of the budget spreadsheet I use for our family’s finances! This has saved us lots of money just by me sitting down and typing out where our money is going and when.

Here is how this works:

Start by downloading the FREE EasternShoreMom.com Budget (download for Excel 1997-2003EasternShoreMom.com Budget)

Step One: Fill in the month and dates of each weeks. You will see that I break down our budget weekly. This helps us plan on how much we are spending on what each week. So start with this month (I have already written “January” in) then go down the calendar and write the starting day of each week and the ending date of each week where is says “Dates of the Week”

Step Two: Fill in your weekly expenses. I have already made a category for Child Care, Gas, Groceries, Misc. & Bills. Note that the category of BILLS needs to be filled out below the highlighted lines where is says “List your bills here”. This form is made to calculate everything for you. So when you plug in your bills below, it is going to total them and bring them up to the top under “GAS” and the total will be next to “BILLS”.

Be sure to fill in each week’s expenses, so if your mortgage is due the first of the month, put it under the first week. If the cell bill is due at the end of the month, put it under the last week’s bills.

Step Three: Fill in your income. Underneath your TOTAL from your expenses is a place for you to fill in how much your bring in each week. Once you fill in the amount you bring in each week, the sheet will automatically calculate how much SAVINGS there is by subtracting the TOTAL amount from your expenses by your INCOME field. This is all done for you automatically inside the sheet, so don’t try to fill in the SAVINGS field yourself!

Step Four: Track your budget. If you need to stick the allotted money in envelopes each week to make sure what you have budgeted is what you are spending, do so. Be sure at the end of the week to check off what you have paid that week and make sure you didn’t go over budget. If so, be sure to change that category so your SAVINGS line updates with the new amount.

Final Step: DEPOSIT! At the end of the week, take the total amount under SAVINGS and make your deposit! If your budgeting went according to plan, that amount should be waiting to move over to the Savings Account and a new week begins!

Example:

Tips for the spreadsheet:

Save a BLANK one- Be sure to go ahead and save one that is blank. Open it, go to File, Save As, then name it “EasternShoreMom Budget Plan MASTER COPY”. Once you do that, open it again, go to File, Save As, then name it “January 2011″. Do this so you always have one that is not typed in because…

Don’t Delete the Formulas- I have inserted formulas in each HIGHLIGHTED cell (or little box). Be sure NOT TO DELETE (or backspace) inside these highlighted boxes, as it will delete the formulas I have inserted and the sheet won’t calculate correctly. If you do delete a formula, refer to the one you have saved blank (tip above) and select the cell (or little box) that you deleted and copy and paste over the correct formula.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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Craft: Easy, Fun Noise-Makers

This week for our Frugal Family Fun Adventure Tracy has a quick and easy craft to get the kids involved for your New Years Eve Celebrations!

Head here to see how to make your noise-makers!

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site. Thanks so much!

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