My Frugal Year

Oh folks, deliciousness awaits!! MyBlogSpark and Betty Crocker teamed up for this fabulous promotion highlighting a fun new dessert. Fun and full of yummyness! Betty Crocker provided me a terrific prize pack through MyBlogSpark so that I could try the new Mississippi Mud Supreme Bars and tell y’all about them. The pack included a box of the mix and a great 8 x 8 metal pan to bake them in.

Well, let me tell you…you have GOT to try them. Now I am a fan of your basic brownie so I was a little hesitant on this one. I am so glad I tried them and we will absolutely be making them again! They were quick and easy to make and our whole family just loved them – especially my soon-to-be teenage son. He helped me make them. It starts out with a crumbled cookie crust on the bottom, then the chocolate center with mini-marshmallows and sprinkled cookie crumbs on top. When they came out of the oven they smelled SO good, it was hard to wait for them to cool. FINALLY it was time to try them. I cut into it and the crust stayed together nicely and didn’t crumble. The taste was fabulous and the the bars didn’t last 24 hours in our house. Not even close!

So – the great news is that Betty Crocker through MyBlog Spark is allowing me to give away a special prize pack to one of you lucky folks! If you want to try these bits of chocolate heaven, here’s what you have to do:

Leave a comment on this post telling me what your favorite quick and easy dessert is. How easy is THAT??

The winner will be selected by random drawing from all entries on July 28

You can also get up to four additional entries by doing any or all of the the following:

Tweet about this giveaway with a link to this blog post, then leave a comment on this post that you’ve done so.

Follow me on Twitter @EclecticWAHM, then leave a comment on this post that you’ve done so.

Blog about this giveaway with a link to this post and leave a link to your blog on a comment on this post that you’ve done so.

“Like” my new Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/EclecticWAHM/101535743232800 and leave a comment on this post that you’ve done so.

Thanks for reading and enjoy those Mississippi Mud Bars!!

There just hasn’t been much shopping to be saving these days, which is good. This means my stocking up has been working. We haven’t had to do a lot of those annoying little trips that add up.

Since my last update, I’ve spent $132.36 at the grocery store and saved $35.62. Not the greatest savings ratio, but not the worst either.

We’ve been to the museum once more time since getting our membership. That was such a good idea. A year’s worth of entertainment for the family for $80. Love that. We’ll be going back again soon – they have some new exhibits coming in.

Another fabulous frugal thing is free theater tickets. Through my job I occasionally get great tickets to shows. My husband and I had a date this week and we got to see the touring company of Phantom of the Opera for FREE. That saved over $140 right there. Not that we would have spend that had we not gotten the complimentary tickets, but still – great deal.

So…, where are we? Let’s see, since last update:

Spent $132.46
Saved $35.62
Transferred to savings $35.62

Year to date savings $238.40.

And for your deal of the day – don’t forget about GoDaddy’s great deals on domain names and hosting. They have some specials going right now. Check it out:

Have a frugal day!!

We enjoy lots of cultural activities that are available here in town, but the expense can add up. Something to consider is memberships to certain organizations which allow you free or discounted admission throughout the year. We were going on an outing to the Museum of Nature and Science this weekend. In planning the trip, I noticed online that by purchasing a family membership, if we only visit the museum twice in a year, it more than pays for itself. I see that as $80 well spent. Now, for the next year, we can visit the museum any time for nothing. They always have something new to check out, so it’s a great deal.

Lots of museums, zoos etc. have those kind of membership deals. Check out what’s available in your town. You may discover some great savings there!

Freebie of the day:
Free subscription to Woman’s Day

I love free stuff. Free is my favorite four letter word So today is the day you can go to your local department store and take advantage of the latest cosmetics settlement. If you have one of these stores near you, you can go get one free product.
Bergdorf Goodman, Bergner’s, Bloomingdale’s, Boston Store, Carson Pirie Scott, Dillard’s, Gottschalks, Herberger’s, Macy’s, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Parisian, Saks Fifth Avenue or Younkers. Go to the official settlement website to see what the deal is and find the list of available products. I just got back from Macy’s with my “My Insolence Eau de Toilette.” It’s quite delightful…and did I mention free? Go NOW…today, before they run out!

Didn’t spend anything today, so didn’t save anything technically. But not spending is saving in a way. Today’s focus is on the making of the money. I went to work and am working on updating some of my websites. I do have a lot of surveys in my inbox to do, so I’m sure I’ll earn a few dollars there. Currently I’m waiting on checks from a few survey companies. It’s sure great extra cash. Just spend the time you normally would messing around on the internet and do a few surveys. Next thing you know you have checks coming in and money being put in your PayPal account.

It’s a frugal dinner tonight, and one of my favorites – BREAKFAST! Fried egg sandwiches with bacon and cheese and hashbrowns. Yummmmmy!

And how can I let today pass without acknowledging the really important thing that happened today. We have a brand new President. It’s time to for the country to come together to support our new President in the fixing on what’s wrong with this country. We may not all agree on the best ways to do this, but I do believe we can all come together in prayer with good thoughts for President Obama and our great country. It’s an exciting day and I am looking forward to seeing how the growth of this country unfolds. God bless America!

Today, January 14, you can get a coupon for a free bottle of Suave! Now Suave at the regular price is what I’d consider a frugal brand, but free is even better. It’s a “while supplies last” kind of thing so go grab yours now!

Hello there! It’s day ten. No spending besides parking for work. But what a happy surprise. My husband just got home from work. He was in the right place at the right time, and he’s a nice guy to clients so he came home with this for me:

It’s a $65 piece of cookware – absolutely FREE!! Woo hoo! That just made my day! Now I’m off to work till about midnight.