My rule is to not pay more than $1.99/pound for meat. Kroger frequently runs their pork loins and boneless skinless chicken breasts for $1.99/pound and when they do I stock up!

When I find meat that has been marked down, I also stock up! It is wonderful because it is often marked down less than $1.99/pound!

Monday I stopped by Kroger to pick up pork loin at $1.99/pound and split chicken breasts at $.99/pound and found several other items marked down!

Pork Loin 5.10 pounds @ $1.99/lb=$10.15

Ground Beef 5.36 pounds @ $1.59/lb=$8.52

Pork Steak 2.70 pounds @ $1.59/lb=$4.29

Split Chicken Breasts 3.09 pounds @$.99/lb=$3.06

Ground Pork 1.23 pounds @ $1.31/lb=$1.61

Oscar Meyer Bacon 3 pounds=$2.98

(@$2.99 each

$8.97 for 3-$2.99 (FREE coupon)-$1.oo off 2=$4.98

Received $2 off my next order for purchasing 3 Oscar Meyer Bacons

Total after coupons & $2 off coupon=$2.98 or $.99 each!)

20.48 pounds of meat for $30.61 (that averages out to about $1.49/lb, I’m really happy with that!!)

I divided the meat to put in the freezer and ended up dividing it into 27 different portions which will be 27 meals for John David and me!

I also picked up a few other items while I was in Kroger using coupons:

Pringles ($1.25-$.35 doubled)=$.55

Wesson Vegetable Oil ($2.80-$1.00)=$1.80

Orbit Mist ($1.00-$.50 doubled)=FREE

McCormick Taco Seasoning @$.89 each ($1.78-$.50 doubled)=$.78/$.39 each

Dawn Pure Essentials ($1.99-$.50 doubled)=$.99

Total spent at Kroger: $39.69 and I have $2 off my next order to use!!

Stocking up on meat when I find it on sale really helps me to stretch our dollars on our $160/month grocery budget!

Ingredients:

1 tsp vegetable oil

4 boneless, pork chops (I cut mine in half!)

1 can cream of mushroom

1/2 soup can milk

1/2 package ranch salad dressing mix

rice

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook until it’s browned.

Mix together soup, milk and 1/2 package of salad dressing. Pour into the skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low.

Cover and cook 10 minutes.

Serve over rice!

This is delicious and easy!! With the 8 (half) chops, we had this for dinner twice and leftover for lunch twice!!

Linked to: Tasty Tuesday and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

So, what is the solution? Bring your lunch!!

Saturday we attended Pod Camp Nashville 2010 in downtown Nashville! It was a free conference and we found a $5 parking lot a block away from the conference but we couldn’t justify spending $10 each on lunch at the conference!

Instead we packed our drinks (water & sweet tea) and stopped by Kroger on the way to Nashville!

Here’s what we purchased:

1 loaf of bread: $.78

Pimento Cheese spread: $2.50

Vinegar & Salt Chips: $1.79

Total (with tax): $5.46

Of course we only ate half of the pimento cheese spread and chips and less than half a loaf of bread so our lunch was only about $2.73 which saved us $17.27 (compared to purchasing lunch at the conference)!!

I realize it’s not a healthy lunch but it can’t be any worse than burgers and fries from a fast food place!

One of my favorite homemade on the go meals to make is a simple Chicken Salad! It’s so easy to make and pack for a frugal meal when we’re out! Serve it on homemade bread with an apple and you have a very frugal, healthy homemade lunch that saves you money!!

We’re definitely going to bring our lunch more often when we’re on the go. A little bit of planning can really save a lot of money which can make a big impact on your budget!

Do you bring your lunch with you when you are away from home? If so, what are some of your favorite meals to bring?

My meal plan is somewhat the same as last week’s because we didn’t get around to eating a few meals! We were blessed to go over to friends for dinner Friday night, Saturday we got home late and had cereal for dinner and last night we were again blessed when friends took us out for dinner!

Here is this week’s simple meal plan:

Breakfasts:

Country Ham & Cheese Biscuits, Cereal, Apples, Oranges

Lunches:

Leftovers

Dinners:

Monday- Fried Chicken Legs with Mashed Potatoes and Gravy and Broccoli

Tuesday-Cheeseburger Soup

Wednesday- Leftover Soup

Thursday- Traveling

Friday- Potato Soup

Saturday- Homemade Pizza

It’s definitely a frugal and simple meal plan this week! I’m keeping it simple because lately by dinner time I’m tired and don’t feel like cooking!!

We have had another successful month making strides towards accomplishing our 2010 Financial Goals!

Here’s what we accomplished in February:

1. Save $3,000 for new to  us vehicle. In February we saved $133 towards this goal! That means we have $2,715.50 to go! Achieving this goal may be a bit of a stretch but we still have 10 months to save!!

2. Add on a guest room in the basement without any debt. We saved an additional $112 in February towards this goal which brings our basement fund to $562.78! We initially planned on having this room completed before the baby came but we are not going to be able to get this finished by then. However, more time before we begin building means more time to save money so we can build without debt!!

3. Establish a college fund for Paxton. We have not established an official college savings account or even a savings account yet. We still aren’t sure what we are going to do as far as saving for college.

4. Make an extra principal payment each month. Our goal is to have our mortgage paid off in 15 years which means we need to make a payment of $215 each month! In February we made $350.95 in extra principal payments!! This is $135.95 over our monthly goal!! We made several Craigslist sales this month and $120 of the extra payments were from those sales!! (I love selling our unwanted stuff to help get our house paid off faster!!)

This was another significant age to me because I am now older than my mom was when I was born!! She was 22 and 1 month when I was born and I think it’s kind of neat because I will be 23 and 1 month when Paxton arrives! (I am one year behind her with significant life changes…she married at 18, I was 19!!)

We kept the birthday celebration pretty low key (which we always do!) John David was at a conference all day and brought home Taco Bell…yum! (I’ve probably had Taco Bell for over half of my birthday dinners, I just love it!) We also agreed to a small birthday budget for this year and he did wonderful, he gave me 3 beautiful red roses and a box of Fun Dip (which is another one of my favorite things, I will have to ration it because Paxton and I don’t need too much sugar!)

The “birthday” table!! All of my cards, roses and Fun Dip!

These are so beautiful!

And here’s my birthday cake! It’s far from beautiful but tastes very yummy….Strawberry Cake & Icing, it just doesn’t get any better than that!! (It did turn out much better than last year’s Strawberry Cake though!!)

After eating our dinner, we sat down on the couch and read “Our Love Story” which is a scrapbook I made  about us meeting and our 9 months of dating! We spent about an hour sitting together reading, reminiscing & being thankful that God brought us together!

Spending time with my love, enjoying some of my favorite foods, flowers and quality time is definitely a finer thing!!

Linked to: Finer Things Friday

We have 7 weeks left until our due date, wow!! He’s definitely growing and has become very active! These past 2 weeks he has been constantly moving, especially at night. It seems like as soon as I lay down to go to sleep he decides it’s time to play! Thankfully, I can fall asleep even when he’s moving everywhere!

Sleeping is my biggest struggle now. I’m sleeping okay, I wake up about 3, sometimes 4 times a night and then have a hard time getting back to sleep! Yesterday morning I woke up for the 4th time at 6 a.m. and I laid down trying to get a few more minutes of sleep before the alarm went off at 6:30 but after about 5 minutes of tossing I just went ahead and got up! John David has been letting me sleep in some mornings since I seem to only be able to get solid sleep between the hours of 7 and 10…go figure!!

Other than not sleeping soundly, I still feel amazing! I’m not uncomfortable, don’t waddle too much, can still put my socks on, sit in the floor and get back up without too much trouble and I painted my own toenails last week!! I’m hoping I will continue to feel wonderful during these next 7 weeks while waiting for our baby boy to arrive! (I do honestly believe a lot of it is my attitude about being pregnant…I’m sure I could very easily be “miserable” but I am choosing to think positive!!)

Late last week I began organizing his tiny baby clothes and blankets in his dresser! So much fun! Then Friday night, my sister-in-law came to visit and we looked at everything together, his clothes, diapers, shoes, toys, books, car seat, and on and on!!

Tuesday I spent several hours in the kitchen preparing dinners to freeze for those weeks after Paxton arrives! I put 7 meals in the freezer and I know they will definitely help our adjustment to life with a baby!

Tuesday evening we attended a Labor class at our hospital. We had an excellent instructor and we both feel much more educated about the labor process! We have no strong feelings regarding natural birth or an epidural. We’re planning on me laboring naturally as long as possible and if it becomes unbearable go ahead and have an epidural. Of course plans are subject to change especially regarding childbirth!

I have set my personal goal to have 365 things gone in 365 days! I think this is still a lofty goal…an item a day! And once I reach this goal I’ll continue decluttering…hopefully more than 365 things will leave my home!

My one rule is that hand-me-downs from others don’t count! How is counting someone else’s cast offs helping me reduce clutter? So, if I receive items and decide to pass them on or donate to Goodwill, they will not be on this list!

In January 56 items left my home!!

So how did I do in February?

Clothing: 7

Books: 12

Crafts: 8

Decor: 4

Kitchen: 4

Other: 5

Total: 40

Craigslist Sales

• Comforter $15
• Potrack $20
• Scrapbook Paper $10
• Mandolin $100
• Jacket $25

Grand Total: 45 items

Money Made: $170

Making $170 for our unwanted stuff is wonderful! We have less stuff and more money!!

Now I have 264 items left to reach my goal!

Are you thinking about decluttering in 2010? Here is a video post about getting rid of 30 Things in 30 Days! It is amazing how much you can get rid of if you just get rid of 1 unwanted item a day…easy decluttering!

Links:

Amy’s February Declutter Update

Declutter Challenge: January

Did you do any decluttering in February? Do you have any plans for attacking your clutter in March?

Once a month I spend a few hours in the kitchen and prepare foods to put in my freezer which make dinner, lunch and breakfasts easier! It is wonderful going to the freezer and pulling out a dinner on a night that I just don’t feel like cooking or when we’ve been away all day! Having meals in the freezer has saved me a lot of money!

Now that we’re anticipating the arrival of our son in 7 weeks, I’ve been focusing on building up a nice stash of meals for those exhausting evenings when I don’t want to cook! Having a freezer full of meals will allow me to focus more time on adjusting to being a new mommy and still eat good home cooked meals which are much healthier and less expensive than picking meals up!

Last month, I began my freezer stash for after the baby comes. Today was another baking day. I spent 4 hours in the kitchen (with several breaks to prevent tiredness!) After those 4 hours I had prepared 7 meals and 2 individual portions for my husband to take to work!

• Meatloaf x2 (All I need to do is mix up Sweet & Sour Sauce, heat and it’s ready to eat!)
• Lasagna x2
• Pizza Pockets (2-4 packs, 1-3 pack, 2-2 packs) (The 2 packs are perfect for my husband’s lunches!)

My post-baby dinner freezer stash now contains:

Dinners:

1- Sausage Pizza

3- 4 packs Pizza Pockets

1-3 pack Pizza Pockets

3- 10 packs Italian Meatballs

2- Lasagnas

2- Meatloaves

That’s 12 nights that we don’t have to worry about dinner. We’ll just pull something out, let it thaw, add a side and dinner will be ready!! I plan to have another freezer cooking day in a few weeks to add to these meals.

Here are some other easy freezer recipes to help build your stash of meals:

Brown Bag Burritos

Brown Sugar Biscuit Twists

Chicken Taco Bake

Cinnamon Rolls

Country Ham & Cheese Biscuits

Mexican Lasagna

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

More information about freezing foods:

Freezer Tips from Phoebe at Getting Freedom

Maximize Your Freezer’s Potential and Minimize Freezer Burn from Amy at The Finer Things in Life

Preparing for Motherhood Posts:

Introduction

Packing Your Hospital Bag

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Preheat a well greased 8-inch iron skillet (or 8×8 baking pan) at 425°.

Blend all ingredients, stirring until moistened.

Pour batter into preheated skillet.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove from pan and serve!

This is delicious and moist cornbread! Goes perfect with a country dinner and I love it leftover, reheated and drizzled with a little bit of maple syrup!!

Linked to: Tasty Tuesday and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

I know we look young! We are young! I’m 22 and he’s 23 but do we really look like children?

Well, apparently we do!

A few weeks ago we walked into the Wal-Mart garden center and the greeter (who was in her 70s) greeted us with a “hello children!” I was stunned, I mean I’m 7 months pregnant and definitely showing!! We managed to walk past her and make it into the store before laughing because it was pretty funny!

Well,  last Thursday it happened again! We walked into the funeral home and were greeted “hello children,” (this time by a man in his 60s!) Once again, we said hello, walked on by and had a little giggle!

I am beginning to develop a bit of a complex!! I’ve been told before that I look like I’m about 16 and my husband does too but there’s just something about us being together and me 7 months pregnant that makes me sensitive to people thinking we’re children!!

Well, I suppose when we’re in our 40s we’ll look like we’re in our 20s since we still look like children now!!

After last week without a structured meal plan, I did a little more planning for this week in hopes that I won’t be panicking around 2 or 3 every afternoon as to what I’m cooking for dinner!

Most of our meals are from food that we already have in the freezer/pantry but I do need to go to the grocery store to pick up a few missing ingredients! And while I’m there I’ll stock up on staples and items that are on sale! I just love the beginning of the month, I feel rich with $160 in my grocery budget!

Breakfasts:

Cereal, Oranges, Apples, Muffins

Lunches:

Leftovers

Dinners:

Monday-Baked Ribs with BBQ Sauce Glaze & Baked Potatoes

Tuesday-Creamy Ranch Pork Chops with Broccoli & Bread

Wednesday-Leftovers from Tuesday

Thursday-My 23rd birthday! Dinner out or in, but I’m not cooking!!

Friday- Cheeseburger Soup

Saturday-Leftovers from Friday

Sunday- Homemade Pizza

There was no major “fail” that really happened but all of the little things just added up to a week of failure!

The big thing that really threw me off was my lack of meal planning! I had a list of meals on my fridge but didn’t think about the things that were going on this week and then each day I’d wait until  2 or 3 to decide what we were eating, I hate that stress!

Plus I’ve been really tired lately! On Tuesday I slept until 10 a.m and this morning John David literally had to drag me out of bed (after telling me to get up for about an hour!) What can I say, I’m tired! My tiredness and sleeping late is equaling a neglected home!!

Here are some of the little failures:

Here’s a nice bag of trash, packing supplies and a box filled with larger baby clothes that have been sitting in my living room since Monday!! And I’ve just ignored it all!

And then there are my toiletry bags that have been sitting on my bathroom counter since Saturday…I want to wipe down the insides of the bags but, I’ve walked by them about 100 times and think, I’ll get to them later!

And then I’ve allowed my kitchen cabinets to get a little cluttered…none of these things belong here but I have just left them all!

So hopefully by sharing my housekeeping failures I’ll be motivated to get some things done today and turn my “Friday Fails” into my Friday Motivation!!

Linked to: Friday Fails

This was a really easy project I made for my dining room using an old picture frame, some blue gingham fabric, and “Be Thou My Vision” out of an old hymnbook!

I taped the fabric onto a piece of cardboard and then gently taped the hymn to the fabric and framed them! So easy and it cost me nothing!! It also is special because we sang “Be Thou My Vision” at our wedding!

My kitchen has blue countertops and black appliances. My plan is to tie in the blue and the black into the dining room! This framed hymn is the first step in pulling it all together, my next plan is to make chair pads out of old blue gingham curtains!

Linked to: Frugal Friday

Guest post by Kara from Notes from the Nest

What to pack in your hospital bag?  If you’re pregnant, you know exactly what I’m talking about – it’s the all-important bag you bring to the hospital when you’re having a baby. If you’re not pregnant, you probably know someone who could use this information – share the love!

I originally wrote about this topic on my blog, Notes from the Nest. Rather than compiling a comprehensive list* or relying on my own experience, I asked several new-mom friends for some out of the box ideas. Perhaps the most valuable thing they’d brought to the hospital, or what they wished they’d brought. Here’s what they said:

What to pack for Mom:

-A nursing pillow (Boppy, Breast Friend, Blessed Nest, whichever you choose) will be VERY helpful. I’d almost say it’s an essential, especially when you and baby are trying to figure out breastfeeding.

-A journal or laptop to record the amazing events. You think you’ll always remember, but a little sleep deprivation makes the clearest memories blur. Write it down!

-Comfy clothes – enough for up to four days, just in case you have a c-section. A robe or zip-up hoodie, so you’ll have easy access for nursing. Maybe in dark colors in case of leaks. You may also choose to wear the hospital gowns the whole time, that’s what I did, so they could do the laundry. But better to have the option of your own clothes if you want them.

What to pack for Baby:

-Not much! The hospital has diapers, wipes, toiletries, onesies, hats, and sleep sacks for your new baby to use.

-Going home outfit: You’ll need to wash it at home before-hand, so you might want something gender-neutral if you don’t already know the sex. Or just bring one blue and one pink outfit, and pass the unused one on to a friend. Strange as it sounds, consider a preemie size. My friend Melissa and I, both with 8-pound babies, found the newborn size to be too big. Bring along a newborn size, too, just in case your baby is 10 pounds!!

What to pack for Dad/Labor Partner:

-Pillows for sleeping – the hospital usually provides an uncomfortable couch-bed, but extra pillows help make it a little more tolerable.

-Lots of snacks and a 12-pack of pop or juice so that you’re not spending baby’s college fund at hospital vending machines.

General tips:

-There are 2 schools of thought on packing– either one ginormous suitcase that holds it all, or whatever bags(s) you want to pack plus one empty bag to hold gifts you receive while in the hospital.

-Keep a list of the things you want to throw in your bag at the last-minute.

-Don’t forget chargers for phones, camera, laptop, and the USB cord to connect your camera to a computer for downloading new-baby pics.

-Ideas to celebrate the birth with your visitors: Bring a birth-day cake or champagne/sparkling juice and glasses. Bring some sheets of scrapbook-style paper to imprint the baby’s footprint, then have guests sign it in the hospital or the first few days at home.

Now it’s your turn- what else should be packed  for the hospital? What can be left out?

*Lots of others have prepared very complete hospital packing lists. A few of my favorites are from Baby Center, Babyzone and The Bump.

Kara is a stay-at-home mom to 2-year-old Tate. Her blog Notes from the Nest is about her adventures as a first time mom!

Only 8 weeks until Paxton’s due date! That is so hard to believe but at the same time it seems like it should be closer because I am so big!!

I’m still feeling great, although I’m finding it necessary to sit down and rest throughout the day. Last night it took me a while to get motivated to cook dinner and once I started I hated ever minute of it (which is odd because I love to cook!) I’m planning on having a cooking day(s) to stock the freezer and I’m thinking the sooner the better for that so I’ll have motivation and energy!

Last night Paxton caused some discomfort for the very first time! I was sitting up in bed and all the sudden I had a dull ache in my ribs on the left side, it wasn’t horrible but I hope it doesn’t become common!

This morning before we got out of bed I was on my side and he was moving so much! He was rolling and poking his arms or feet up!! It was crazy but absolutely amazing at the same time! I told John David it seemed like he was trying to escape!! He has been very active all day today, constantly moving and changing the shape of my belly!

This has been a big week for us as far as preparations go! We had a baby shower in West Tennessee (where my family lives) and we were very blessed with things for Paxton!

Then Monday we began moving furniture into the nursery!! We moved in the crib, changing table, and rocking chair! We also put our bedding on the bed! Then last night we moved the dresser into the room, I have to paint the knobs and then I’ll be able to put the drawers in the dresser and begin organizing all of the sweet baby clothes!!

The nesting has now officially began!

Aunt Rachel, I know my hair bow makes me look very pretty and girly but I’m not so sure!

And off it goes!!

Linked to: Wordless Wednesday

This is what the room looked like on Monday morning!

Here is the room after we removed all of the furniture!

Then we brought the baby bed in!! Exciting!! It has been in our basement for 2 months so I cleaned it!

John David had the important task of assembling the bed!! (I’m so glad he is handy…I didn’t understand the directions at all!)

And of course we told each other over and over “I can’t believe we’re having a baby,” and “There will be a baby in this bed in less than 2 months!”

Working hard on the bed!!

Here is the crib with the bedding!! John David’s parents purchased our crib and my parents purchased the bedding! (The bedding is Kids Line Countryside, found at a baby thrift store for $20!!)

We also brought the changing table into the room:

Here I am cleaning the changing table! (It’s also been in the basement for 2 months!)

And here is what the changing table looks like now! See my stash of cloth diapers?? So exciting!! I plan to get baskets to go on the changing table to hold my cloth diapers and wipes as well as disposable diapers and wipes and baby powder!

We did bring the rocking chair in the room and plan to bring the dresser in soon (it’s an oak piece and I’m not allowed to help bring it up the stairs!) We still aren’t sure about furniture arrangement, we arranged it about 4 different times yesterday before finding a layout that we like!

Now I’ve got to work on decorating the room!! We’re going with a farm theme and I’m so excited!!

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup lard

2 eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1 1/4 cups milk

Combine flour, baking powder and salt.

In large mixing bowl cream sugar and lard until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating low after each addition.

Pour batter into two greased and floured round cake pans. Bake at 375° for 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool cakes in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes then remove cake from pans.

Delicious yellow cake, we ate it warm without any frosting!!

(I also halved this recipe since there are only two of us!)

Linked to: Tasty Tuesday and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

Congratulations to commenter number 10, Tina, who is the winner of the Skin MD Natural Lotion!

Rebekah and me (and baby Paxton) at our baby shower this past Saturday!

My mom and sister!

John David even stayed for the shower! He took pictures for me and helped me open one gift! (I plan for him to do more opening at the next showers!)

This sweet teddy bear sings “Jesus Loves Me”! It is so precious!

Sweet baby overalls!!

One of my friends, Ashley, who was in FFA with me in high school (and knows I love farm things) gave Paxton this horse! (And in the background is my Chicco car seat that Dad, Mom, Beka & Emerson gave us…the last of the big items we needed!)

All of Paxton’s gifts we were blessed with. We received diapers, baby toiletries, lots of books (I am so excited about reading to him) and clothes! Most the clothes we were given were 6 months and larger and we even received several 12 month items which was very exciting! (When my sister had Emerson it was the opposite, just about everything she was given was smaller than 6 months!)

Sweet baby gowns and sleepers!

Since we are cloth diapering, my mom coordinated the purchasing of cloth diapers! I received 7 cloth diapers from my grandma, aunts, great aunt and cousins (and my mom bought me the Charlie’s soap!) I was so excited to open the gifts that had cloth diapers in them!! I now have a nice diaper stash, I just need to purchase a few inserts for the Flip diapers!

And I had to include these sweet farm themed clothes! I love the Levi’s overalls so much and the John Deere sleepers are precious too!

He was a little disappointed (we could tell) that mom didn’t throw him a party since she gave him big 30th and 40th birthday parties! Little did he know the intricate plan my mom and sister devised for Friday!

My sister had school Friday morning so she went to school. Meanwhile, mom told dad we wanted to go to Germantown to go to Barnes and Noble, Penny’s and Babies R Us (where we found some amazing deals!) My dad asked if we were going to wait for Rebekah (isn’t he sweet) but mom told him she had a lot of studying to do! So we left for town!

Our mission for the afternoon was to keep dad from home until 6:45 and Rebekah spent the afternoon picking up the birthday cake, barbeque, coordinating parking and hiding cars!

The plan worked, he was surprised:

He walked in the door and turned on the light to family and friends and he was speechless for about a minute (which is very rare!!)

Love this expression!

The delicious birthday cake (chocolate with chocolate icing!!)

My daddy and 3 of his close friends from his childhood! All 3 were in his wedding!! I think it’s amazing that they’ve stayed friends all of these years!

He had a fun time opening gifts!! He was very excited to open his surprise gift from mom, a GPS for his boat!! He’s been wanting this for 2 years and he finally has it!!

We had a wonderful evening and my daddy was surprised and had a fun time with his good friends!!

Our first stop was J.C. Penney! My mom found this UT onesie marked down from $20 to $.97! With her coupon she paid $.41! It’s size 6-9 month (I have very few onesies in this size) and he’ll be able to wear it all during football season too! Go Vols!!

Then we headed to Babies R Us to look around and for me to use my $5 giftcard (for joining the Babies R Us Facebook group a few weeks ago!) The spoons were $6.49 and after a 15% off coupon and my $5 giftcard, I paid $1.03 for them!!

Then we stopped by Old Navy to check out the clearance there! My grandmother gave me a $50 gift card to Old Navy for Christmas so I had money to spend there!

Tonka Shirt (6-12 months) $1.73 (Paxton’s daddy loves this one!)

Red Long Sleeve Polo (6-12 months) $1.49

Blue & White Thermal Onesie (6-12 months) $1.49

Baby Blue Striped Thermal Onesie (18-24 months) $1.49

Truck Long Sleeve T-shirt (6-12 months) $.99

Total: $7.86

So I only spent $1.03 out of our budget for these baby things!

I know some may say it’s silly to purchase baby items the day before a baby shower but I have very few baby clothes bigger than 6 months. (My sister was given lots of newborn, 0-3 and 3-6 month clothing but very little larger items so I think picking up a few bargains here and there in larger sizes is wise!)

Linked to: Super Savings Saturday

Here’s Emerson this morning! She decided all her baby toys were overrated and went after her Uncle John David’s boots!

She used one as a pillow and played with the other one!!

I got to pick out her outfit! What fun!! Dressing a baby girl is so much fun! And I love the sweet headbands and hair bows!

She is so beautiful! I just love this baby girl and can’t imagine the love that I am going to have for my son!

We’ve kept extra bedding in our blanket chest and extra towels in the guest bathroom! However, with the baby coming we needed to move the extra towels out of the bathroom cabinet to make room for the baby bathtub, towels and toiletries!

We had a tiny little nook over our air return that John David turned into a small linen closet!

Before:

After:

He put two shelves in the closet for me! The best thing is this cost us $0 because we used leftover supplies from Paxton’s Closet Makeover! (It’s my scrapbook storage spot and my linen closet!)

Here is my “new” closet with my linens!

He put slats of wood on the walls to hold the shelves. The shelves are made of particleboard and covered with contact paper instead of painting! A very frugal and simple home improvement project!

Linked to: Frugal Fridays