Reviews by Mommy

I have found myself in a situation many families are finding themselves to be in, a financial struggle. During these hard economic times, I’ve found ways to cut my family’s budget back. Cutting corners where they can be, without making too much of an impact on our quality of life.

The first steps to adjusting your budget is to make a list of all of your monthly expenses. Write down on the top of this list your monthly income AFTER taxes. Take into account what your bring home pay is from your job, any extra sources of income like child support, side jobs, etc. Here’s an example of what my monthly budget looks like:

Monthly Income $XXXX.XX

• Rent $950
• City bill for trash/water/sewer $65
• Cable/Internet/Phone $120 $90
• Car Insurance $70
• Electric bill $100
• Cell phone (Family plan) $150 $130.00
• Gym membership $40 $0

Total monthly expenses $1495.00 (Before I cut expenses)    

Total monthly expenses $1405.00 (After I cut expenses - Saving $90/mo.)

I can’t get rid of or reduce my monthly cost for rent, nor can we get rid of our necessities like electricity or water but I have stayed on top of my family to cut down on the length of their showers and keeping lights and t.v.’s off when it’s really not necessary. Due to the change in my income, I’ve also applied for reduced/free lunch at my children’s schools. I cut back on my cable bill by eliminating the cost of my DVR and went to basic cable, I cut off the internet service on my cell phone since it’s not a “necessity”, and I should add that I do know my cell phone also isn’t a necessity, but honestly who can give up their cell phone altogether?  I’ve cancelled my gym membership and eliminated that altogether too. I have thought of calling my car insurance company to increase my deductables in hopes of getting a bit lower monthly rate. I figured at this point, anything will help from month-to-month. I’m also watching the grocery store ads from week to week to make sure I save as much as I can on my weekly grocery expense. My family has also had to eliminate dining out and if we are going to get something out, we’ll go to a restaurant where kids eat free or use a buy one, get one free coupon, or visit Del Taco on Tuesday’s where you can get 3 tacos for just $.99. Our whole family eats on Tuesday’s for about 5 bucks!

Your family can do this too. You just have to put things into perspective and get a reality check and get rid of what you really can live without. You have to get a little creative too.

Snuggle has a new product called Snuggle Creme fabric softener. It comes in 2 scents, Sweet Almond and Jojoba Essence. Not only will your clothes smell wonderful but they’ll feel wonderfully soft too.

Snuggle would like to offer my readers a $2 off coupon to try this new product out. Just click on the widget below to retrieve the coupon to save $2 on your next purchase of Snuggle Creme fabric softener.

I stumbled across a site I’d never heard before last night as I was doing a search for scrapbooking ideas. The site is Smilebox.com. Smilebox.com allows you to create an online scrapbook or share pictures online with your friends and family. Smilebox also allows you to create free ecards, postcards, and slideshows.

This site is perfect for the on-the-go mom who doesn’t have time to create a scrapbook as all of us moms know how time consuming and expensive that can be. This is your solution. It’s free and very user-friendly. I tried it out last night and I thought the site was so cute and so easy to use, I thought I’d let the mom readership on this blog know all about Smilebox.com. It’s a must! Check it out now.

Here’s a nice meal that is quick and easy to prepare. A cheesy chicken crescent recipe.

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cooked (boiled) boneless chicken breasts.  
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
• 18 oz. can crescent rolls
• 1 can of cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup milk

Boil chicken, season with salt, pepper, garlic and/or any other seasonings for chicken. Take crescent rolls at wide side and put a slice of chicken and a little cheese. Roll up the crescent and put in an 8×8 in. baking dish. *To increase the the serving amount, slice each chicken breast into 2 pieces each. This will make 6 chicken crescent rolls if you use 3 chicken breasts.

Bake at 375 for about 10 mins. or until the rolls are golden brown. In medium saucepan, combine the mushroom soup, milk and 3/4 cup shredded cheese. Heat over medium heat until cheese melts. Remove rolls from oven and pour soup over baked rools and return to oven for approx. 7 mins. Sprinkle additional cheese on top and let cool/melt.

Being a stay at home mom is very rewarding. To be able to raise my children and be a part of their every day lives is exactly what I’ve always wanted to do, however I couldn’t just be a stay-at-home mom so I found a way to make a living and be present in the house with them while bringing home a paycheck.

I am fortunate enough to tele-commute for my corporate job. When I got pregnant, my employer didn’t want to lose me as I had discussed my options and one was to work from home since my work load permitted it. I didn’t necessarily have to be in the office to do  my job.

My company offers software to their employees who tele-commute and work directly from home that allows us to hold online meetings using web based training software. It’s truly a wonderful service for our company. We also have an office overseas and this allows our directors to hold meetings with the international office as well as the employees who work from home.

Our company saves on travel expenses by not having to fly international and book hotels to hold meetings and have those international employees travel to the states. It’s truly wonderful not to have to drive into the office for a 1 or 2 hour meeting. Our company is all about saving money and saving the employees valuable time and making everyone happy and keeping them happy. Things like online training to keep up to date as well as online meetings is just one way to keep the employees happy.

  It’s so important to keep water safety a focus year round, even in the winter months. We do focus mainly on water safety and swimming lessons in the summer months here in Arizona, however we should always watch our kids around the water and be safety conscious even in Arizona winter months.

My children take swimming lessons in Mesa at SWIMkids USA. They have experienced, dedicated, and professional instructors. SWIMkids USA has been providing swim lessons for infants and kids for more than 35 years! From the owner of SWIMkids USA all the way down to the staff at the front desk, I’m extremely pleased with the way the company is run and my kids just love the staff and instructors.

It’s so important for me to know that my kids will know how to swim and stay safe around water. I have older children who know how to swim but I also have a 3 year-old who I still worry about whether it be in the bathtub or around pools. I want her to know how to stay safe around water as well as know how to swim.

If you’re in the Phoenix-metro area and are looking for a reputable place that offers swimming lessons for kids, you should definitely give SWIMkids USA an opportunity to teach your kids. They offer infants and childrens swimming lessons.

It’s getting rave reviews and is selling out like crazy! We’re talking about the UBI changing table, a new and modern changing table.

It’s been featured on the Today Show as well as in all kinds of magazines like American Baby and Pregnancy and featured on a variety of websites too.

UBI came to light back in 2006 when creator Sue Wong was tired of the “old methods” of changing her child’s diapers. You can see a demonstration of how this modern changing table works by clicking on the link. It basically stores 8-10 diapers at a time, holds a baby up to 30 pounds, meets the U.S. safety standards and on top of it all, it’s hip and stylish for “the new mom”. It comes in a variety of cute and hip patterns and is a nice size that can store away or sit out in the nursery.

The UBI baby changing table comes with a 30 day satisfaction guarantee. Head over to the UBI website to check it out or visit a baby botique or store near you by clicking this link http://www.ubi-baby.com/wheretofind.html.

  Do you have family members or friends who you just don’t know what to get them for Christmas? I love to give magazine subscriptions as gifts. It’s a nice alternative to giving a gift card. It’s something they can enjoy all year long.

You can find plenty of cheap magazine subscription sites that run promotions on some of your favorite magazines.

When you’re ready to give the gift of a magazine subscription, you can go buy a magazine at your local store or news stand and wrap it up and let them know they should be receiving the subscription shortly!

Here’s just a few sites I found that offer discounted magazine subscriptions:

• http://www.bestdealmagazines.com/
• http://www.magsdirect.com/
• http://www.magazinesupermart.com/
• http://www.discountmagazines.com/

I can’t say I recommend one over another but you should definitely check these sites out to find great deals on magazine subscriptions.

 If you have a Chuck E. Cheese Pizza establishment in your area you will really appreciate the great deals you can take advantage of by signing up for their email list.

I have had several birthday parties at Chuck E. Cheese and the last one prompted me to join their email club. I receive coupons that offer great deals, better than the ones I receive in the mail.

If you frequent Chuck E. Cheese or are having a birthday party there, you should sign up today. The birthday child even gets free tokens. Visit this link today to register for the best coupons for Chuck E. Cheese: https://www.chuckecheese.com/.

  So every mom probably shops on Black Friday, usually beginning at the very wee hours in the morning. This year, stores are opening in the middle of the night, some opening their doors at midnight for die hard Black Friday shoppers!

Well, I’ve got just a few tips to make the most and get the best during Black Friday madness shopping hours:

• Look online at the Black Friday websites that get their hands on the ads before they come out in print in the Thanksgiving day paper. Some sites you can try are: http://blackfriday.gottadeal.com/, http://www.blackfriday.info/, http://bfads.net/, and http://www.theblackfriday.com/. Of course, you’ll find many more out there on the internet but this should give you a good jump start.
• Verify that the items haven’t changed or sale prices haven’t been modified by the retailers and check the ads in the Thanksgiving day paper.
• Make a list of stores you want to visit in order of importance. If you’re trying to get your hands on a popular game system like the Xbox 360 or a laptop computer for $299, you better plan on being in line at that store the day before and ready to pitch a tent in line.
• Bring your ads with you. Circle the items or post a sticky note on the front of the ad or on a list so you know exactly where you’re headed once the doors open.
• If it’s extremely popular, plan on only being able to grab 1 or 2 items on your list per store because they go FAST! Prioritize your list. Figure out which items at which store is most important.
• Check online to see if some of the items you want can also be purchased online. This will free up time for you to grab the items that you can’t get online, in-store. I found last year, a lot of stores are doing shop online and pick up in the store or free shipping.
• Clothes and “knick-knack” type stores typically have what you’re looking for later in the day for the low prices advertised in Black Friday ads. Hit the electronic stores and toy stores first. Unless it’s a very popular item, stores like Target and Wal-Mart tend to have quite a bit in stock too so save those stores for later in the morning or afternoon.
• Bring a 2nd person to shop with you so you can break up and have 1 stand in line or both of you running to get your hands on 2 popular items. Just a hint, Toys R Us is known for a very long and crazy check out process. It’s a good idea to have that 2nd person standing in line early on while you shop!

And finally a general common sense piece of advice, be safe. Remember, you’re shopping in the dark and there are people who will target shoppers caught up in the moment whether they’re after your money or the popular items you just waited in line for. Bring a cell phone and be cautious of your surroundings.