Ok so I am gonna do something I have never truly done before…I am going to do some “official” Spring Cleaning! I have always worked full time in the past…so Spring Cleaning was only a dream…I would do what I could on the weekends to get bedrooms re-organized and closets cleaned…but never “really” got to go deep and clean like I wanted to!

Now that I am a stay at home mom (kind of…LOL) I am planning on working my way through the whole house and getting it cleaned down deep!!! Starting with my kids bedrooms!!!

Anybody up to joining me in this task? I have a few goals with cleaning down deep (this is what I can gonna call it) that I would like to accomplish…

1. Sort toys…take toys out that are not currently being played with (my rule of thumb is…if I haven’t seen it played with for at least 2-3 weeks than it’s time to go to storage!) I will take those toys out and put them in plastic storage bins and put them either up high in the kids closets or in the garage…I will then look to see what we have in the garage/closets…and if there is anything that seems suitable for the kids current play needs…I will pull out those toys and add them to the toy bins.
   ***This creates a “new” toys effect….the kids feel like they just got a whole bunch of  NEW toys to play with while…and don’t care about the toys I am taking away….plus it eliminates unnecessary clutter!
2. Sort through kids clothes…I think I will start figuring out which clothes are too small and get those out of the drawers…also I want to start taking out some of the winter clothes that are maybe less desirable at this point and pull out some of the last years Spring clothes and see if anything still fits…this way we have clothing for both the sunny days and the cold days!
3. Finally I REALLY want to hang some of the pictures and decor on my kid’s walls…we have lived in Kansas for 1 year (this month) and have yet to hang ANYTHING on the walls in my kids’ rooms!
   ***This includes some of the hooks and racks that I have purchased on clearance over the past few months to help them better put away their backpacks and purses!

So I have shared with you my goals for the day/week! Who is in? Who would like to go do some Spring cleaning with me? Please feel free to share some before and after pictures either on FACEBOOK or email them to me at thebudgetbandit@gmail.com 

Also if you have any further suggestions for awesome organizational or designing tips for kids rooms PLEASE SHARE!!!

Few Organizational Tools I found and love!!! (I have learned in order to clean effectively you need the correct organizational tools!)

Tot Tutors Toy Organizer, Primary Colors, just $49.97 (reg $70.99) FREE 2 day shipping

Quartet Cork Tiles, 12 x 12 Inches, Brown, 8 Pack (108), $9.49 plus FREE 2 day shipping

Sourcing Solutions 2-Piece Folding Storage Bins Set, Blue with Open Handles (several colors available), $8.94 FREE 2 days shipping

ClosetMaid 9-Cube Laminate Organizer, Espresso, $45.00 plus FREE 2 day shipping

I have gotten several messages from readers wanting to know how I save money on produce. There are several methods I use for saving money on produce the first is my favorite…garden! A couple of years ago I started my own above ground planters with lettuce, beets, cucumber, squash, potatoes, onions, green beans and some other various veggies we love to eat.  I also use pots to grow tomatoes and jalapeno peppers…this is because they require FULL direct sunlight…but can also be a little temperamental, so I like to be able to move them around the yard if I need to.  Because we cook so much in our home I had always wanted an herb garden…so I tore out all of the shrubbery in front of our home and planted rosemary, thyme, basil, garlic, and oregano (I planted cilantro in pots). I have to tell you growing your own produce and especially herbs is a HUGE money saver. We also grow our own fruit…in Washington I had an apple tree, rhubarb bush, strawberry patch, raspberry bushes and several blueberries…all this reminiscing of my garden is making me anxious to build my new garden here in Kansas!!!

I know for some of you gardening is not an option…and for most of us gardening is only an option for a portion of the calendar year…so how do I save money on produce during the off season? Farmers markets is one way (I find it educational and fun for me and the kids), join a community garden, but still if these options only last so long…during the off season I try to buy my produce and meats with transferred prescription credits. I am not sure if you saw my episode on Extreme Couponing…but on the first season I was able to walk away with nearly $2700 in groceries (including produce, meats and organic milk) and got paid nearly $60 to do so!!! I did that by transferring prescriptions to my local grocery store when they were offering a $25 credit for every transferred prescription.

But still there are those of us who do not have monthly prescription needs, therefore that option is not great either…so here goes my most current solution that I have been using. Shop the sale cycles! Yes produce and meat have sale cycles, throughout the year produce and meat reach rock bottom prices depending on the season. I shop those sales and plan my meals around whatever is in season and CHEAP. For example, in the summer berries, peaches, lettuce, and bell peppers are usually at their lowest prices…I buy those items at their lowest price and design my meal plan around what I was able to pick up. I generally try not to spend more than $1/lb for produce or $2/lb for meat.

When fruit reaches those low prices I buy several pounds at a time and cut and freeze them so that we can have yummy fruit in the winter! I do the same with meat…when meat goes below $2/lb (depending on what it is) I try to pick up enough for several meals…and put it in my freezer stockpile…this way when there is a “bad” sale week and no “good” prices for meat I already have what I need in my freezer!

For instance last week I was able to pick up baby back rips for $1.99/lb!!!! Now we love us some BBQ ribs…much rather eat them at home than any restaurant J My hubby is King of the BBQ.  So I picked up 3 racks of ribs to put into my freezer…for only $5 a rack!!! Kinda wish I bought more but it wasn’t in my budget this week…so I had self control.

The most important thing to remember about saving money on produce and meat is that there are several ways to save money and stick to budget…you simply have to set your mind to saving, make your meals based on the sale cycles/seasons and try not to be too picky…LOL 

I hope this helps…good luck!!!

Here are a few website to check out for produce coupons:

• Earthbound Organic
• Fresh Express
• Driscoll’s  
• $0.35 off on any bag of Chiquita Fruit Chips
• also look for produce coupons on packaging (ie. Kraft, Dole and Del Monte products)

First thing to remember is IT TAKES TIME!!! It is not reasonable to expect to build it over night. You don’t need to think about how many items you buy at a time but more how often you may actually be buying that product.

If I find a great stock up price on a specific item that I know my family will like and use….I typically will buy 3-5 of that product (depending on how many are available at the store). If it is something that is not typically stocked well…I may actually only buy 1-2 and then go to another store in my area to get a couple more. I personally would rather drive to a couple of stores than take everything off the shelf at one store.

Rainchecks: You may run into a problem of not being able to get the product you were really excited to get because they are all sold out! Don’t get mad….it may be that you have other couponers in your area that beat you to it…but if you are shopping at a pharmacy the chances are they were not stocked up very well to begin with. So get a RAINCHECK. This way you can come back (before your coupons expire) and get the deal without fighting the crowds. Most stores Rainchecks do expire, however if you are shopping at Walgreens their Rainchecks never-ever expire!!!

High Value Coupons: Next thing to remember is that usually if there is a high value coupon that comes out (most likely for a new product) there will be many different stores and sales that will have that particular product for a stock-up price over the duration of the coupon expiration. The moral here…there is no need to buy any one store out…the chances are you will be able to get that deal again before the coupon expires.

Sale Cycles: Finally, remember that there are Sale Cycles. This means that there is a pretty regular and predictable cycle in which products go on sale. In general most products go on sale about every 3 months…so if you are trying build a stockpile of a particular item, when it reaches your stock-up price, you would want to buy enough for about 6 months…so that when it goes on sale again in 3 months you still have some left and only need to buy maybe another 3-6 months of the product. At this point you will mostly have enough product to last your family 9-12 months! Vuala Stockpile!!!

Couponing 101: The 10 Most Important Facts A Beginner Should Know

1. Be Patient.
Its important to remember that “mastering” couponing takes time. You will not do everything right the first or even the fifth time. You will make lots of mistakes, but you will get better with every shopping trip you go on.

2. There is a start up cost.
At the beginning you will spend some money out of pocket. You need to plan on spending money on your organizational system (binder, baseball card sleeves, envelopes, box…) as well as for 1-10 Sunday newspapers. There is also the cost of buying products that you will be getting Catalina’s from, which you will use later to roll your transactions to get future transactions for free! For example, if you were to go to Walgreens and buy a product that is on sale for $5.99 with a $5.99 Registered Reward…you will have to spend the $5.99 out of pocket…but then later will be able to use that Registered Reward to buy something else that you may not have a coupon to get for free or for another product that will print out a Registered Reward. Eventually you will be able to continue shopping and “rolling” your transactions and eliminating your out of pocket costs.

3. Its all about your attitude.
I feel like one of the most important things to remember is that successful couponing is all about your attitude. Your stores and cashiers do not have to except your coupons if you make their job difficult. If they don’t believe that the coupon you are using it legitimate, you have several options as to how to react. first, you can ask to speak to a manager. Sometimes all it takes it talking to the person in charge, calmly and rationally. Second, you can kindly say “ok well I guess I won’t get that product right now” and come back another time or go to another store and see if a different cashier feels better about the use of the coupon you are using. Finally, you can chose to just buy the product and not use the coupon that they are uncomfortable with or use a different less valuable coupon.

4. Know your coupon policies!
This is another super important one! It is so important that you know your stores coupon policies.  Not just one store, but all the stores you plan on shopping at. One trick I have up my sleeve is I like to print out a copy of all the stores coupon policies that I shop at and keep them in my binder. This way if there is ever a question of whether I am following coupon policy I can refer directly to the stores current policy. I would like to warn you however,  stores do change their policies often, so you will want to keep your binders coupon policy printouts current. 

5. Read EVERY coupon you plan on using.
I can’t tell you how many times I have followed a match up on a blog or forum and didn’t take the time to read the coupon myself, and found out when I got to the store and tried using the coupon, that the coupon wouldn’t work  Remember that no matter what blog or forum you are following they are run by people and everybody makes mistakes. I have also many times assumed that a coupon that seems to be exactly the same every month when it comes in the circular would be the same again. Then when I go to use the coupon it has a new exception to it and will no longer work for the deal I am trying to get.

6. Don’t try to build your stockpile over night.
I know it looks appealing to have a large stockpile….but realize that a stockpile takes time to build. The best way to build a stockpile is to buy enough of the product that you want to last you until the next sale cycle.  Stores and products have sale cycles, what this means is that about every three months products will go on sale again. However, you will also have remember there are sale seasons. For example, summer time is a great time to stock up on grill seasonings, salad dressings and condiments. During sale seasons you may want to stock up for closer to a years worth of those products, since they most likely won’t be as good of a deal for another year. Basically, buy things when they are on sale so that when you need or want them later you already have them in your stockpile and don’t have to blow your budget on just one or two items later.

7. Take advantage of special orders.
If you plan on buying several of one item to add to your stockpile, call the store ahead of time and ask if you can special order the product/s you want. Most grocery stores will let you special order and will appreciate you not clearing their shelves. Pharmacies however usually are not able to special order, so instead of clearing all of one product off the shelf, go to several different stores and buy just a couple from each store.

8. Rainchecks are your friend.
If the store is out of the item you want, ask for a raincheck. I love rainchecks, because they eliminate the stress of trying to get the item and striking out. I can get a raincheck and then come back at a later time after they have restocked and feel more comfortable buying maybe 5 of that item, instead of the 1-3 I would have bought during the sale week. Coming back later with a raincheck is a good way to build your stockpile without clearing shelves during the sale week when the shelf is already scarce. 

9. Stacking coupons.
Stacking coupons does not mean that you use two or more of the same coupon on an item. Stacking coupons is when you use a manufacture coupon along with a store coupon for the same product. For instance, Target has awesome printable store coupons on their website. Say they have a coupon for $3/1 Target coupon off of a package of Huggies diapers, and you also have a $3/1 manufacture coupon that you got in a weekly circular. Huggies diapers may be on sale for $8.99, you may use both the $3/1 Target coupon as well as the $3/1 manufacture coupon, making it $6 off the package of diapers. Making the total cost for diapers only $2.99 and I would call that a stock price!!!

10. Take advantage of rebates.
Rebates are a great way to turn an awesome deal into a moneymaking deal! For instance, say you bought $30 in Olay products for $5 after coupons. Well save your receipt because there may be a rebate for $10 back on a $30 Olay purchase. Rebates are usually applied to the pre-coupon total. So you can submit that receipt that you received from buying all those awesome products for only $5 and turn it into a $5 moneymaker!!!