I love free stuff

I've been out of blogging commission for a few weeks due to lots of craziness around here. My oldest brother, Adam, just recently had open heart surgery. You can read about it on my sister-in-law's blog here and my mom's blog here.  Thankfully the surgery went well and he's recovering at home.

I've also started back at work after taking 8 weeks off.  I'm also doing a little more photography and hope to continue to do more as a business in the future.  Hopefully I can incorporate a photography element into the blog soon.

In addition to this, I'm also in charge of "creative activities" at our MOPS group at church.  I've had a fun time coming up with crafty projects for about 50 women, but it's been a little time consuming.  I plan to share what crafts we've done so far on the blog!

Enough with excuses, I just wanted to share about how I love getting free things. Here are 3 ways that I've been using the internet to score some great deals!!

Groupon
I know pretty much everyone knows about Groupon, but just in case you don't...check it out!!  You basically buy coupons which end up saving you lot's of money.  You can get a daily e-mail with a Groupon for the day for something in your area. There is usually a time limit on the coupon, so you have to act fast. I scored a very cheap Moby wrap (which I LOVE) at our local cloth diaper store using a Groupon.  We also got one for the Gap and got some cheap jeans for Reid. The other great thing about Groupon, is you can check out other cities. So, if you know you are going on a trip, you can check for Groupons for local restaurants and shops in that area. Pretty sweet!  Oh yeah, and if you refer friends, you get $10 when they purchase their first Groupon!

Ebates
 I have yet to use this website, but as soon as I need to buy something online, I will.  Basically, you get cash back when you shop online.  If you are wanting to buy something from a certain store, go to ebates and see if you can shop at that particular store through them.  Most stores are listed.  Then, buy what you need to buy and you will get a certain percentage cash back depending on where you shop! And yes, you also get perks for referring people.  So, when you shop online, why not go through Ebates and earn a little extra? Pretty cool.

 Swagbucks 
I know I've talked about Swagbucks before, but I've now earned $30 at Amazon.com for literally just searching the internet using Swagbucks instead of Google.  There is no catch, a potty chair and a pair of cute shoes for Lula are in the mail right now free because of Swagbucks. (The potty chair is for Reid. just kiddng.)  Maybe you already use Swagbucks but just don't seem to be earning enough to cash in for a giftcard. I will share my secrets.  Basically you get swagbucks randomly awarded for doing searches.  You can cash in those bucks for rewards, I like to spend them on giftcards. Usually Swagbucks rewards you within the first 5 searches for that day.  So, if I'm going to my gmail account, instead of just going to gmail...I go to swagbucks and do a search for gmail and then click on the link.  I do this for every website now, it's just a habit.  Also, make Swagbucks your homepage, then you will use it more.  Another way to earn more bucks, is to participate in their surveys. These take a little time, but you can earn some major swagbucks if you are serious about getting those free giftcards.  Lastly, refer people! You will earn the bucks that they earn, up to 1000. It's really pretty awesome if you like free things and want to save money on Christmas shopping this year!

Do you have any websites you love that help you earn free things? Please leave a comment and share!

Another Reason to Use Cloth Diapers

In about 3 months, I will have two children in cloth diapers. Although it's becoming more popular,  I'm sure there are people think I am absolutely crazy.  In fact, when I was pregnant with Lula, I did not choose to share the fact that we were doing cloth diapers with many people because I didn't want to constantly defend myself.  However, even 2 years later,  it is so much more common. I probably hang out with more of a "granola" crowd than most people, but I would say a good 30% of my friends who have children use cloth diapers. That is pretty good!

If you are not familiar with cloth diapering, you are probably wondering why anyone would choose them, especially for 2 kids. I can't get into all the reasons, but here are a few:

First off, I just found this new article that proves another reason to choose cloth. 

I was going to write a few huge paragraphs about why you should consider cloth diapers, but this article and this article pretty much say it all.

The basic reasons are:
1. It saves money.
2. It's healthier for your child. 
3. It's better for the environment.
4. They are really cute!!

Now, if I was a full time working mom, I would not do cloth diapers. I also never expect anyone else to change Lula's cloth diaper. She wears a disposable when someone else watches her. She also wears one at night. So I am not here to judge anyone who uses disposables on their child . It's not morally wrong. And I don't even think about it for a second when I see a kid in a disposable diaper.  To each their own! 

Which diapers do we use you might ask?

We have the Fuzzi Bunz perfect fit diapers and love them.  They work great for us. We bought set of size smalls and a set of size mediums. Lula is in the mediums and our size smalls are all set for baby #2.  We love them because they are slim, not terribly bulky like some other cloth diapers. Lula is really skinny, so this is a must for her! Also, we love that they have snaps as opposed to velcro which might not hold up as well and also snags easily.

We will be registering for some more size small diapers for the new baby because we only have 12, and would like to have about 6 more to make life a little easier.  And, I'm so excited that Fuzzi Bunz has come out with some new colors!! Woohooo!! Here are the new ones as well as the oldies

There are tons of other great diapers out there besides Fuzzi Bunz. Just to name a few:
BumGenius
Swaddlebees
Happy Heinys
Pre-Folds  (these are like the ones I wore as a baby and are the cheapest option!)
gDiaper (a hybrid between cloth and disposable)


I also use cloth wipes which is actually easier than doing disposable wipes.  Here is a little tutorial I posted a while back for making your own!

If you are from the KC area, here are two great local reasources for cloth diapers:

Teeny Greeny  My friend, Heather owns this business and I will be registering online here for more diapers for baby #2.
Happybottomus  A great cloth diaper store in Lee's Summit. It's so important to go and see all your diaper options in person before deciding on which one works for you!

Freezer Cooking Day Results

Lately I've been trying to cut down our grocery bill by combining coupons with store sales and stocking up on things when they are really cheap or free! I found some great deals on very cheap chicken breasts (bone-in, which I had never bought, but I figured it out), ground beef and FREE sausage! I also got inspired by this blog entry and decided to try a mini freezer cooking day.  Next time, I will try doing a full month's worth of meals, but I wasn't very well stocked and just wanted to see how it went before I try that commitment. I'm also hoping to get into the habit of doing this monthly to save on grocery bills and once the new baby arrives, I will be organized!

This is what I ended up with after cooking during Lula's nap. It really didn't take that long!

Homemade marinara sauce--(enough to use with spaghetti as well as pizza sauce for multiple meals)

Meatballs--(enough for 3 meals to go on spaghetti or sandwiches)

3 1/2 Lbs of shredded chicken to use on tacos and enchiladas. This will last for 3 meals. I will put the recipe below.

Homemade wheat thins (see yesterday's post for recipe)

Pizza dough--enough to make 2 pizzas. Yes, you can freeze homemade dough!

AND, I tried to make my homemade yogurt, but I was multi-tasking too much and it got too hot and curdled. Yuck. 

Here is how I made the shredded chicken.  Like I said earlier, I found really cheap chicken breasts, but they weren't boneless. I wasn't quite sure what to do with it. So, what I did was so easy and I think it will be delicious! I put the chicken breasts completely frozen in the crockpot along with one diced onion.  Then, I threw on some cumin, chili powder and maybe a cup of salsa--I didn't really measure. I then turned the crockpot on low and let it cook for about 8 hours. When it was done, the meat had completely fallen off the bones, so I just fished them out and shredded the meat with a fork. I divided it into 3 containers and now it's ready to go for tacos, enchiliadas, quesadillas or maybe even sandwiches! So easy!

Anyone else tried freezer cooking? I'd love to know what recipes work well!

Mega Swagbucks

I know I have mentioned in an earlier post about using Swagbucks.com instead of Google to do your searches. You can earn gift cards and it's totally legit! I just found out that Fridays are Mega Swabucks day which means you will get more bucks awarded and more often! I'm on my way to earning some money at Amazon.com!

Couponing

Lately I have been trying to be better at using coupons. I was a major "couponer" for a little while, but as life got busy, I got out of the habit. If you utilize coupons correctly, it can save you tons of money. It can be a little overwhelming at first, though. Here are some websites that I have found helpful:

www.moneysavingmom.com 

www.dealseekingmom.com 

www.afullcup.com

www.hotcouponworld.com 

I also have some tips on using coupons if you are interested:

Tip #1: You might be wondering "why go to the trouble of cutting coupons, if you can just buy the store brand for cheaper than a name brand even with a coupon"? Well, coupons are usually only a good deal if you combine them with a sale. So, you have to do a little research by looking up the deals of the week at your grocery store, Target, Walmart, etc and then find coupons that match up with those items that are on sale. The websites above usually match everything up for you, which saves lots of work!

Tip #2: Where do you find great coupons? My first resource is the newspaper. Buy a newspaper every Sunday, or even two. I buy one and my mom also gives me the coupons out of her newspaper, so I have two of every coupon. This is great when there are buy one, get one free deals. You can use coupons on items that are "free" at stores. 

Tip #3: Print coupons off online. www.coupons.com is a great place to start. Also, the websites I listed above will have online resources for coupons.

Tip #4: This is the most exciting one. Combine manufacturer coupons with store coupons. For instance: Target has coupons online that you can print off. You can also use a manufacturer coupons in addition to a target coupon. And then, if that item is on sale, you are in even more luck! So, if Target has a coupon for $.50 off bread, you have a manufacturer coupon for $.75 off bread and then that bread is on sale at Target for $1.50....you are getting some really really cheap bread. 

Tip #5: Shop at CVS. Again, the websites above can explain the beauty of CVS much better than I can, but if you take advantage of their extra care bucks program, you can get many items for free...or even more than free. It's pretty amazing, but it does take time and research.

Tip #6: Make a coupon binder. This helped me out tremendously while couponing. I have neglected my binder the past few months, but I am in the process of building it back up. For a little video tutorial on how to make your own coupon notebook, watch this . This is NOT ME by the way. I just found it on youtube. 

Tip #7: Don't buy something just because you have a coupon for it. I noticed that I started buying stuff that I never usually eat just because it was really cheap with a coupon. In doing this, I was filling our fridge and pantry with junky food that is not good. It's not worth eating poorly even if it's cheap. Even though the poptarts might be free with coupons, it's still not a smart idea to buy a ton of them and eat them. 

Tip #8: This might sound like it contradicts tip #7, but when cutting coupons, cut out almost all of them, even if it's something you have never eaten or used before.  A good rule of thumb is, if it was free, would you use/eat it? If so, cut out the coupon! There have been many times where a facial wash is on sale or even free at CVS with coupons, but I never clipped the coupons because I thought I'd never buy it. Now, like I said earlier, don't go buying tons of junky food just because it's free. :)

Hopefully those tips helped! I am excited to go grocery shopping next week to see how much I will save with coupons!

Homemade bread using the bread machine

For the past year or so, I've been trying to make all of our bread myself.  My mom gave me her old bread machine that she never used, and it is so easy and delicious! Lula loves eating peanut butter on fresh whole wheat bread and I know exactly what is in it...no high fructose corn syrup or other unhealthy ingredients. Plus, it's only pennies a loaf to make, so it saves money!  My bread machine has a timer on it, so I can put the ingredients in at night and set it so that the bread is finished baking just as we are waking up.

You can find a bread machine for very little money. I found one for a friend at a thrift store for $5, in perfect condition. I also have seen them on craigslist for as little as $10. Look for a used one first before you resort to spending lots of money on a new one!

Unfortunately, I haven't found a 100% whole wheat recipe that doesn't come out way too dense. So, instead I usually do about 1 part white flour and 2 parts whole wheat flour. I also add a dough enhancer that helps the loaf be a little more light and fluffy.

Here is the recipe that works for me:

Whole Wheat (almost) Bread

2 tsp yeast

1 cup white bread flour

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 Tbs dough enhancer (optional)

1 tsp salt

2 Tbs nonfat dry milk

1 Tbs oil

1/4 Cup honey

1 1/4 Cups warm water

Make sure you add the ingredients in the order recommended by your bread machine manufacturer.  Also, it's important that all ingredients are room temperature.

 I would highly recommend buying a bread machine if you are wanting to save money while eating a little healthier. My other favorite thing to  make with the bread machine is pizza dough! I will be sharing that one later!

Swagbucks!

A few months ago, I found out about this great search engine called Swag Bucks . It's pretty cool. You literally get "paid" in rewards to use this website instead of using Google. Basically, you use it just like you'd use Google and you will randomly be awarded "Swag Bucks". Sometimes you will get one, sometimes you will get five. You can then redeem your swag bucks for a ton of different prizes. I just got a $25 giftcard to restaurants.com. Totally free! Just for searching for stuff that I would normally do anyway!! The other cool thing is, if you refer people, you will earn their swag bucks in addition to yours!! So, if you want to get started, click on the link above. (I'm not gonna lie, it will help me earn more swag bucks if you do it.) :)

Homemade Hummus and Pita Chips

Lately I've been making a lot of fresh homemade hummus. We absolutely love hummus at our house. We eat it with fresh veggies, on bread and with homemade pita chips! We used to buy hummus at the store but quickly realized how expensive it is. I couldn't believe how cheap and easy it is to make! I have experimented with many different recipes and have developed my own concoction that works for me!

Homemade Hummus

1/4 cup water

1 cup drained canned chickpeas

1 tsp minced garlic

2 tbs lemon juice

5 tbs olive oil

1/4 cup peanut butter ( you can also use tahini, but it's harder to find and more expensive)

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (only if you like a little kick!)

Combine all ingredients in a food processor until smooth! Add more water or olive oil if the consistency is too thick.  If you refrigerate for an hour or so, it will thicken a bit!

Homemade Pita Chips

3-4 whole wheat tortillas OR pita bread

2 tbs olive oil

1 tsp garlic salt

Cut tortillas or pita bread into triangles or rectangles.  Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle garlic salt over pita pieces and toss until well covered. Bake on a cookie sheet at 425 for about 5-8 minutes (flip pieces over 1/2 way through). Keep an eye on it because they easily burn!

**Hummus is a great protein enriched food for toddlers. Lula rarely eats meat or eggs (because she refuses it), but she loves hummus spread on whole wheat bread.  I can take some comfort knowing that she is getting  protein from something!

 

Enjoy a healthy snack!!

Meatless Mondays (or Tuesdays, or Wednesdays, or Thursdays...)

In an effort to save money yet eat healthy, we've been trying "meatless mondays" here at the Kapple house. I have found many delicious meatless recipes that call for lentils as the main ingredients. Lentils are super cheap and healthy and very delicious as well! Here is our favorite lentil recipe so far!

Spicy Rice, Bean and Lentil Casserole(adapted from 500 Best Healthy Recipes)

2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp minced garlic
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
3 3/4 c vegetable stock
3/4 c brown rice
1/2 c green lentils
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp chili powder
1 can red kidney beans (you can substitute any type of bean that you like)
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup salsa

*Saute garlic, onions and green peppers in oil for about 3 minutes. Stir in stock, brown rice, lentils, basil and chili powder. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to medium-low and cook 30 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until rice and lentils are tender and liquid is absorbed.

* Stir in beans, corn, salsa; cover and cook 5 minutes or until heated through.

* We like to eat this topped with shredded cheese and sour cream with a green salad on the side. It's super delicious and very filling!!

I will post more meatless dishes in the future!

easy & frugal natural all purpose cleaner

In an effort to save money while using natural cleaning alternatives that are safer for Lula, I've started making my own cleaners. This is one of them that really works and is super cheap!

All Purpose Natural Cleaner

1 gal hot water
1 tbs baking soda
2 tbs liquid soap (I use Dr. Bronner's liquid soap, but Dawn liquid dish soap would also work)

Mix together in a spray bottle.

*all amounts are approximate. My spray bottle is clearly less than a gallon, but I still used the same amounts of baking soda and soap with less water, it's just a bit more concentrated!

make your own yogurt!

Lula eats a lot of plain whole milk yogurt, but it really starts to add up especially if we buy the organic kind! So, one day I tried making yogurt myself. It's really very simple and if you use organic whole milk, then it's just like the expensive stuff you can buy at Whole Foods but for a fraction of the cost!!

Here are some of the materials and ingredients you will need:

1 quart of milk (we use whole but 2% or skim would also work)

1/4 cup nonfat instant dry milk

2 Tbs plain yogurt (to use as a starter)

Candy thermometer (probably any type of food thermometer would work!)

Glass jars (just reuse those old salsa and mayo containers)

1. First, you need to scald the milk in order to kill any bad bacteria. Pour all of the milk into the glass jar(s) and microwave for about 3 minutes. Stop every minute or so to stir and check the milk's temperature. Your goal is for the milk to be at about 180-185˚ F.

2. Once the milk has reached the desired temperature, you now need to cool it down to about 112˚F. I just stick it in the fridge for about 45 minutes. Check the temperature after about 30 minutes just to make sure. You don't want it to go below 90˚!

3. Now you need to add 1/4 c nonfat dry milk as well as 2 Tbs room temperature plain yogurt. When you are getting to the end of your yogurt, save a few Tbs to use for your next batch!

4. Next, you need to incubate the yogurt to make the cultures grow. The goal is to keep the yogurt between 90˚-120˚F, but the closer you can stay to 112˚F the better. There are many ways to incubate. I have found the crockpot to be a great one! I turn the crockpot on low and fill it about 1/2 with water. I usually do this while the yogurt is cooling in the refrigerator. Then, I turn the crockpot off, and stick the jars in the water and put the lid on. I also wrap the crockpot in a towel to seal in the heat. Check every hour or so, and if the yogurt temperature is starting to get too low, turn the crockpot back onto low for 5 min or so to heat it up a bit.

The yogurt needs to incubate for at least 5-12 hours. The longer you incubate, the more tangy the yogurt will be. If you want a milder tasting yogurt, incubate for 5-6 hours.

There are many other ways to incubate your yogurt! I have tried putting hot water in a cooler along with the jars of milk. In the summer, I have set it outside in the sun. You could also turn your oven on low, then turn it off right

before you stick your yogurt in! As long as it stays at that 90˚-120˚F range, you are good to go!!

5. After your yogurt has incubated, refrigerate for a few hours to let it set up.

6. When you are all finished, you should have thick and creamy yogurt!!

Try mixing your plain yogurt with honey, fruit jam, granola, almonds, maple syrup for a delicious and nutritious snack or breakfast. We mix Lula's with wheat germ and flax seed. I'm sure it's not too tasty, but she loves it and is getting tons of protein, iron and calcium!

happy yogurt making!!

homemade laundry detergent

I have found that I go through laundry detergent much faster than I used to! I have started on the quest for a homemade all natural laundry detergent. Here is the recipe that I have been using. It is so easy and saves so much money!

Homemade Natural Laundry Detergent

1 cup borax (can be found on the laundry aisle at your local grocery store)

1 cup washing soda (looks like a big box of baking soda and will be near the borax)

1 bar of grated castile* soap (we love Dr. Bronner's soap in lavender scent but Ivory also works although it's technically not "all natural")

Just mix the the borax and washing soda in a reusable container. To make the soap much easier to grate, just leave it out for a few days (if you can do a few weeks, even better). This dries out the bar which will allow you to grate the soap into a powder. You can also try putting it in your freezer and then grating. I just use the finest side of my cheese grater to make the soap in tiny granules!

Add about 2 tbs of detergent to a medium load of laundry!

For a frugal and natural fabric softener, add a few tbs of white vinegar to the rinse cycle. Your clothes will smell fresh and not vinegary, I promise!

I'm currently on the lookout for a homemade liquid detergent, so stay tuned!!

*The only downside to homemade detergent is that it can't be used on Lula's cloth diapers. I have been using it on her diapers for a year but they have started to be less absorbent and produce an unpleasant odor. After a little research, I found that homemade detergents aren't the best for diapers because they contain natural oils that build up on the fabric. It's better to use something like Charlie's Soap or Soapnuts that don't contain any oils.