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Tutorial for the "Envelope System"

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If it is your goal to get organized, specifically your coupons this year, check out this blog! Kelleigh has made the most beautiful envelops for her cash system and coupons. 


There are many different ways to organize your coupons. I personally use the binder method. But, many people use an envelope system. They pull out the coupons they need for a specific sale or store and keep them in an envelope in their car or purse. 


You know what’s so cool? Kelleigh isn’t selling her envelope system (though I really think she ought to!), instead she generously posted the complete tutorial and template here so you can create your own. (Thanks Money Saving Mom.)


Check back on Monday, I am going to break down my coupon binder for you. Show you what all my tabs are and list all the best, and cheapest places to find all the items you will need to make your own binder! Plus, I will be giving one away…
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Easy Easter Craft-Bunny

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I can’t remember where I first saw these but it was years ago. At least 15 because I have been making them that long. I love them because they are cheap and the kids can make them. You non-crafty types (me included) YOU can make these in under 23 seconds, thats the record!

Take a cheap hand towel, I like white. The cheaper and thinner the better. They have them in packs at Wal-Mart for like 10 for $6
Fold one corner up like you are making a bandana.
Keep folding…
When it is all rolled up, fold it in half.
Next, now this is the hardest part, take the open ends (the ears) and fold it back almost half way. This is making the bunny face and ears.
Take a rubber band and secure the little face of the bunny. I had to use a hair tie because I used a heavier wash cloth, the thinner clothes can be done with a rubber band. Twist it around a few times so it is tight. Now pull the ears up a bit, and your done!
Tie a ribbon around the rubber band so you can’t see it.
If I had all the supplies I usually give him some googly eyes, a little pompom nose and a little pompom tail. But I didn’t want to pull out the glue gun. I think he is cute as it!

I stick a plastic egg in the little hole behind his ears, it is a perfect spot to hold something. I am using these as name sign for Easter dinner. I am putting everyones names on the eggs and putting a bunny by every plate. 
They are cute and less than $1 each to make. Can you beat the 23 second record?? 
What traditions do you have for Easter?

Easy Halloween crafts!

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Thanks to Utah Deal Diva for these great Halloween ideas!
We go through a lot of milk, so when a holiday is approaching, I start saving the jugs and scouring the internet for some fun crafts. Here are a few I’ve found for Halloween:

Here’s a fun idea that uses a few milk jugs! We saw this Pirate at Thanksgiving Point last weekend. You could just leave the skeleton free of any costume and it would still be fun to display on the porch! Here are the instructions.

My friend Susan had started making these, I saw them at her house and they were soooo cute! They would be so cute lining a walk-way. Easy to make as well- go here to learn how.
This is a Tide bottle! Go here for details on making this little guy.
Want even more ideas? Family Fun magazine has a fantastic collection of crafts for young children. You can also go here
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Capri Sun Bag

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First let me say. I DID NOT MAKE THESE! But whoever did is pretty cool!
With school starting I am again almost solely supporting the company that makes Capri Suns. Do you ever feel that way? I pack 6 lunches a day, so we use almost 5 boxes a week.
I should be able to make all my children’s clothes out of these.
I LOVE this one, really nice.

This one is very fancy also.
Have you ever made these? I want to learn, anyone want to teach me?

Here is a nice tutorial on how to make one!
This gift bag is easy to make and durable. It makes good use of Kool-Jammer or Capri Sun pouches. It’s very similar to the lunch bag I published in the past but instead of a velcro enclosure, it uses eyelets and ribbon to make a gift bag handle. It’s a bit of work, but it makes an extra special gift bag that can be reused as a purse.

Supplies:

  • 14 Caprisun or Kool-aid Jammer juice pouches
  • X-acto knife
  • Eyelets and Eyelet pliers (can be found at your local craft store)
  • Sewing machine and thread
  • Scissors

Preparation:

After the juice has been drank use an x-acto knife to slit the bottom of the juice pouch.

Clean the inside of each pouch with hot soapy water and let dry.

Juice Pouch Gift Bag - Sewing the SidesThe Front and Back:

Take four juice pouches and sew them together 2 by 2.

Do the same with four more juice pouches, having two sets of four. These are the front and back of the bag.

The Sides:

Sew two juice pouches together, one above the other, two tall one wide.

Do the same to two more juice pouches, have two sets of two. These are the sides of the bag

The Bottom:

For the bottom of the bag you will need to determine how long it will need to be by taking two juice pouches and laying them next to shorter side of the set of four juice pouches. Instead of having one juice pouch full size and having a small part of another showing for the bottom I laid them on top of each other and sewed down the middle of them both to make it the appropriate length. Then I cut off the extra bit, leaving approximately and 1/2″, then sewed that end down flat.

Putting It All Together:

The next step is to sew the bottom to one of the sets of four.

Once you have done that sew the other set of four to the other side.

Juice Pouch Gift Bag - Sewing the Sides

Next sew one of the sets of two to the bottom, then the other.

Now sew all the ends together, the front to the sides and the back to the sides.

Juice Pouch Gift Bag - Sewing the SidesJuice Pouch Gift Bag - Sewing the Sides

Juice Pouch Gift Bag - Completed Bag

Finishing

Punch two holes slightly smaller than your eyelet about 3-4 inches apart on the front and the same on the back side of the bag, four total.

Place your eyelets and secure them with the pliers.

Find some yarn, string, ribbon or raffia to make the handles on your gift bag, be sure to make the knot big enough on each end so that the handles do not get pulled out through the eyelets.

Juice Pouch Gift Bag - Adding the Velcro

About The Author: Stella contributes craft ideas to ThriftyFun.com. If you have any craft ideas that you would like to share with Stella and ThriftyFun community, please submit them here.

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School Lunch Ideas!

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My good friend Mari wrote up School Lunch Ideas!
Here is her post!
School lunch ideas
So I said I’d give you information about soaping this time but I changed my mind. Since school is staring soon, I thought I’d pass on some information I received at a Healthy School Lunch class I attended at the YMCA.
First of all you should sit down with your child to find out their likes and dislikes, although many of us know them perfectly well already. Second, if your child is in elementary school you should make their lunches fun. Third, you need to go to www.mypyramid.gov/kids/ to check what the recommended dietary guidelines are for children and put their lunches together according to that. It’s a lot of work, I know, but well worth it!
Here are some examples the dietitian suggested for lunch entrees:
* Deli Sandwich with Boars head meat (why boars head? Because it’s less processed than the regular cheap stuff, i.e healthier option)
* Pitas
* Whole grain tortilla spread with peanut butter and jelly
* Burritos
* Fruit kebabs
* Tortellini and veggies tossed with olive oil and sprinkled with Parmesan cheese
* Homemade pasta salad
* Hard boiled egg with a side salad
* Home made whole grain pizza
* Mini bagels with low fat cream cheese
* Peanut butter and jelly sandwich on whole grain bread
* Quesadilla with whole grain tortilla, organic chicken strips and organic shredded cheese
Lunch sides:
* Fresh fruit
* Veggies
* Melons
* Fresh berries
Dairy:
* Yokids squeezers (yogurt in a tube)
* Organic milk in a 1 serving container
* Cheese sticks
Chips/Grains:
* Granola
* Trail mix
* Blue organic chips
* Pop corn (flavored with a sprinkle of sea salt/Himalayan crystal salt)
* Veggie chips (only occasionally because they are deep fried)
* Whole grain gold fish
* Whole wheat pretzels
Watch the portion sizes on the gold fish and pretzels, they need to be on the smaller side because of the calories.
*Desserts:
* Berry or apple sauce (no sugar added)
* Trail mix
* Newman’s Own Fig Newtons
* Deceptively Delicious Chocolate chip cookies (recipe can be found here)
* Fat free pudding
* Animal crackers
* FiberOne muffins or homemade healthy muffins
Drinks:
* Skim/2% milk
* 100% juice box
* Water
Read your labels when purchasing foods because you will want to avoid transfats, dyes, artificial sweeteners (Splenda, aspartame, acesulfame K, saccharin, sucralose, neotame and acesulfame potassium). One thing I’d like to point out is that your packaging may say 0% transfats but as you read the label, it may still contain some transfats. If that’s ok with you, then go ahead and make your purchase. I don’t purchase anything with transfats in it no matter how minute the amount because I have been able to find organic options that are not only healthier but often times much tastier than the original product. You may want to consider going organic anyway as it is the higher quality food for our bodies and especially for the little ones.
You are also going to want to avoid all products that have MSG or Monosodium Glutamate in them as MSG is a powerful toxin to our bodies. Why do they put it in food? Because it enhances the flavor they say. MSG can also be found under the labels of hydrolyzed vegetable proteins, autolyzed yeast, hydrolyzed yeast, yeast extract, soy extract, protein isolate, spices or natural flavoring. Any one of these labels are present in probably most of the foods we eat so how to avoid it? Buy organic! It costs more but is well worth the cost as you will keep your children healthier. You can also make breads, crackers, cookies, tortillas etc. at home so lets dust off the stove and get busy! I could write pages and pages on this subject because I feel strongly about this but I think enough said, let’s move on.
Now here are some options for nutritional upgrades. First I’m listing the typical lunch, then the upgrade and why it’s better.
*Beef bologna on white –> lean turkey on whole wheat –> Less fat and more fiber
* Mayonnaise –> lettuce and mustard –> less fat and fewer calories
* Potato chips –> Carrots and celery with light dressing –> Less fat and a serving of veggies
* Fruit cup in light syrup –> Fresh grapes –> Less sugar and fewer calories
* Chocolate sandwich cookies –> Homemade trail mix –> Less fat and more fiber
* Fruit punch drink –> Skim milk –> Fewer calories, less sugar, plus calcium
If your child eats the typical lunch starting with beef bologna and ending with fruit punch drink, (s)he will have eaten 980 calories, 48 g fat, 13.5 g saturated fat, 125 g carbohydrates and 59g sugar. YIKES!!!!
If your child eats the nutritional upgrade lunch, the tally is 725 calories, 13.5 g fat, 2.5 g saturated fat, 120 g carbohydrates and 52 g sugar. Much better!
We also talked about Lunchables in our class. You know, the already packaged crackers, cheese, meat, apple sauce and cookie package that many parents slip into their kid’s backpack for lunch. Not a good thing! There are several things wrong with Lunchables: too much sodium, highly processed meat & cheese, transfat filled cookies & crackers, and the apple sauce is laced sugar. Maybe occasionally if you are in a pinch but not regularly!
One last thing before I sign off is that reading labels today is a must! It may be tedious and you may need a magnifying glass but it is a must!! Things are hidden in today’s food that not even the critters outside will eat. An example: I made a cake from a box and frosted it with frosting from a can. My kids accidentally dropped a piece on the lawn and I didn’t bother to pick it up because I thought the critters will have a party. 2 weeks later the piece was still sitting there, untouched! The critters seem to be wiser than me when it comes to nutrition ;o)
Till later!
PS. If you need BPA free containers, go check out laptop lunches.
If you need recipes, go to Whole Foods.
If you want your child’s lunch containers to find their way back home, then you’ll need the waterproof stickers at Name Bubbles.
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Altered art clip board and notebook set ~ Mini Giveaway!

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I did the same for the back and front of the clip board. I used a coordinating paper for the backs of the clip boards.
Next, I glued the paper to the notebook covers.
For the front of the clipboard I made a template so I could cut around the clip part and fit the paper in nicely.
It was late and I thought I had modge podge (I spelled that wrong didn’t I?) but I was out. So I watered down white Elmer’s glue and it worked perfectly.

I coated the backside of the clipboard with a thin layer and placed the paper on top. When it was dry I did the front side. When that was dry I did a think layer over the top of the paper to help seal it down. It only takes about 20 minutes to dry.
While watching a movie with my husband, I trashed my living room floor with scrapbooking supplies to embellish the covers. We were watching Juno, I hadn’t seen it before, it was a cute movie.
This is one set when done! The little book in the left hand corner is a little post it note embelished book. I used velcro on the cover to hold it closed. It turned out really cute! The directions to make one are HERE.
This set has a smaller clipboard with buttons. I like the bigger clipboards better but I wanted other to have options, thats always fun isn’t it!

CLOSED!
The giveaway is for either set, obviously I will remove my name from the paisley set and put yours on! Leave a comment and tell me which one you want, the giveaway ends Friday night! I can’t mail them until after Sunday, we still need them for display signups!
What was the last crafty thing you made?

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Look how cool these turned out!

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As we were running out the door to church on Father’s Day I realized that I should probably be bringing a Father’s Day gift to all the men at church who are important to our family, Sunday school teacher’s, home teachers, Bishop, etc. 
So I grabbed a few things out my ‘stock pile’, put them in a bag and decided ribbon wasn’t going to cut it for men! Tucker had some leather left over from a scout project so I used that to tie them together. I thought they turned out really cool looking. 
Now this is the part where if your husband got one of these…. quit reading now! No really, come back tomorrow!
Hopefully it’s not too tacky to tell you they cost me almost nothing! Hey, the time it takes me to shop and cut coupons is worth something. The packet of marinade was free when my coupons doubled at Kroger, the grilling spice was free with a doubled coupon and the A-1 was .08 cents with the $2.00 off coupon that came out last week. The Lowry’s bottle was .79 cents with coupons combined with a  store sale. 
I am not sure how I feel about giving away things that I got for free as gifts, is it the thought that counts?? You should have seen the piles of makeup and body lotions I gave away at Christmas to neighbors, kids teachers, and coaches. They were really cool gifts but I was really unsure if it was tacky that I had gotten it all free because of coupons and sales…. I wouldn’t tell anyone that it was free, but I knew 🙂 So what do you think, is it o.k. to give away free stuff as gifts??

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* Today is the last day to sign up for the giveaway!

Free Kool-aid and Fun things to do with kids and kool-aid!

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KoolAidPackets240

Go here to print a coupon for $0.50/10 packets of Kool-Aid. These are on sale at most Kroger stores this week for $0.10 each so if your store doubles coupons, you’ll get these free after coupons. Plus, you can use your browser’s back button to print another coupon for a total of 20 packets free!

I must have about 100 packs of kool-aid in my food storage, and so far I have not paid for any of them. What am I going to do with all this kool-aid you ask???

1. Make Easy, Flavorful Kool-Aid Frosting  I discovered this unusual use for Kool-Aid powder when I had a can of vanilla frosting one day and a cherry chip cake to frost. I stirred in a package of cherry flavored Kool-Aid and the result was a delicious, creamy topping that everyone loved!  If you need to make a tasty frosting for a gelatin cake, all you need to do is fold in a pack of Kool-Aid into a container of thawed Cool Whip®. If the frosting tastes a little tart, add in sugar, a little at a time until it tastes good to you. 


2. Make Kool-Aid Brand Lip Gloss This is an unusual use the girls will love! All they need to do, to make a fruity lip gloss, is to place a small amount of petroleum jelly into a microwave-safe bowl. Stir some Kool-Aid soft drink powder into the jelly- enough to make it the color they desire. Stir in a little sugar, then, place the bowl in a microwave oven for about five or six seconds- just enough to soften the mixture up a bit. 


3. Make Sand Art With Kool-Aid Brand Soft Drink Mix Kool-Aid is perfect for the kids to make safe Sand Art with! All you need to do is provide them with plenty of paper and pencils. After they draw pictures on the paper, give them several different colors of dry Kool-Aid and Elmer’s® Glue. Then, instruct them to spread a thin layer of glue over one item in their picture. It’s better to start at the top of the pictures so they don’t get their arms in the wet mixture. They can then sprinkle Kool-Aid on that area and press it down gently. After the kids shake the excess soft drink powder off, they can continue onto the next section.  Once their pictures are done, let them set until the Elmer’s Glue dries completely.  


4. Temporarily Dye Your Hair With Kool-Aid If you’re going to a party, or, you just want a new look for a short period of time, use Kool-Aid! Choose the color you want to use and pour it into a glass container. Add a teaspoon of corn starch and just enough water to turn the ingredients into a paste. Apply the paste to your clean, dry hair and let it set for five minutes. Then, rinse the paste out. Your “new do” will last until you shampoo your hair once or twice.  


5. Make Eerie Party Decorations Another unusual use for Kool-Aid Brand Soft Drink Powder is to make an eerie Halloween decoration with it. Just place some dry ice- don’t touch it with your hands!- into a glass, and pour a packet of any flavor Kool-Aid into it. Kids will watch with fascination as the dry ice and Kool-Aid bubbles and mists. Make up several of these glasses and set them around for an eerie effect at your next party!  


6. Make Kool-Aid Clay for the Kids  You may already know how to make homemade clay for your kids to play with. But, did you know you can make clay using Kool-Aid brand soft drink powder as well? Mix together a cup of white flour, a fourth cup of salt, 2 tablespoons cream of tartar and a package of Kool-Aid in a pan. Stir in a cup of water and a tablespoon of vegetable oil and heat the pan over medium heat on your stovetop. After several minutes, the mixture should clump together in the pan. When it does, remove the pan from the stove and let it cool slightly until you can touch it. Knead the Kool-Aid clay with your hands until it’s not lumpy anymore. Place it in an airtight container and store it in the refrigerator until use. 

7. Heather, left a comment on another use! “Great ideas! You can also tie-dye 100% cotton with Kool-aid.”

3 Ideas to keep the kids busy!

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Blanket forts, remember these? Don’t forget about them! This beautiful fort in my playroom was worked on by 5 of my children. It kept them occupied for 6 hours, the best part? There was no fighting for 5 hours and 58 min of that! They worked so hard and drug so much stuff out, but it was worth it. They had a blast. At one point it was a restaurant, they were taking food orders. It was a movie theater and a bear cave. I forget to let them do this kind of stuff!
Ah, Chic-fil-A! I will not live anywhere there is not a Chic-fil-A I am completely addicted to their diet lemonade…. Last summer they had a special that if you dressed like a cow you got a free meal, including dessert and drink. I made this little deal last 2 days! I told the kids about it on Tuesday, we brainstormed ideas for the cheapest way to “dress like a cow, head to toe”. That whole day we worked on our costumes. They all dressed in black and white, we cut out ‘cow’ spots and taped them all over them. We printed off a Chic-fil-A signs and taped it to the front of them. Then we made paper plate masks for their faces. We worked on it all day and the kids had a blast, I also spent no money on it!

The next day was the free day at Chick-fil-A, oh yes, we really did eat all three meals there that day! We don’t eat out much so it was not going to kill anyone. They loved our costumes and the kids were in heaven eating fast food for three meals! Two days of free fun!
Drive in movies! Our drive in is almost 45min away, but worth it. We went last Saturday night and for $18 (for the 8 of us) saw two new releases, UP and Star Trek. We left at 6pm and got there about 7pm. The movie doesn’t start until dusk so we had time to eat the dinner I packed and play catch and run around. The movie started at about 8:30 the kids one was first. It was UP which was fantastic! Then a 30min. break. Most of the little kids were asleep by now and the ‘older’ movie started. By the time we got home it was 2am! But where else can you get 8 hours of entertainment for $18!
Any good summertime ideas?? 

Teacher's Gift Idea

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This might be a little late for some, but I thought I would share because I think it turned out really cute! 
 I painted about 1/3 of the classes hands and randomly placed them on the pot. Next, I took the rest of the class and did their thumbprints in yellow. I wrote their names next to their prints. When I got home I painted the yellow thumbprints into bumble bees and painted their names in black. I decorated the rim and painted, “Thank you Mrs. Varnum for helping us bloom and grow.” around the rim. 
Now, I glazed and fired mine in my kiln so it was all shiny and pretty so if you don’t have a kiln handy ( like in your back pocket!) you could use a terra cotta pot and regular paint, like tole paint. I think you would need to seal/poly it with something to protect it. 

Twelve hours later when it came out of the kiln, I planted a little herb garden with basil, rosemary and cilantro. 
I wish I would have made these for Mother’s Day for the Grandmother’s, they turned out really cute and are something a little useful. I obviously would have used my kids handprints, maybe the dog and cats if I could have held them down 🙂

I only did the herb garden for the classroom that I was room Mom. All the kids are taking chocolate to their own teachers and bus drivers. It is all getting a little out of control everyone that we have to give something to at the end of the year. With 4 kids in school I had 16 different end of the year thank you’s to hand out. 
Do you give out thank you’s at the end of the year? What do you usually give?

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