Making Cents Of It All

Today I am thankful for my job. I work part time at a movie theater. I get free movie passes, drinks and popcorn. My youngest daughter met me there after school today and we went to see Fantastic Beasts 2 for free. We love watching movies but they are expensive. Thankfully I don't have to worry about that since I get free passes. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 25

Today I am thankful for getting 10 pounds of ground beef on sale for $1.99 a pound. I was going to go over my grocery budget but Hubby and I decided it was worth it to have it in our freezers. I am thankful that I had room in my freezers for it since I have 3 turkeys in there too. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 25

Today I am thankful for my paid for cars. All of them are over 10 years old but they are Hubby's and mine. We do not owe anyone anything for them. They all run well and are in good condition. I will never pay another car payment in my life time and I hope my kids don't either. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 23

I hope everyone in the US had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We did. OD and her boyfriend came home Tuesday night and stayed through Saturday. We splurged on buying them pizza. I did use a coupon and we did budget for it. Otherwise everything else was cooked at home. I had gotten our turkey on sale for 39¢ a pound. My family all brings food too. It was a very inexpensive holiday overall.  We pulled out lots of board games wile they were home. We have had some of these games for 15 years and still have fun playing them. We get to sit around and laugh and talk. That is all I want. We ate plenty of leftovers. I made a bowl of turkey noodle soup with some of them. On Sunday, Hubby made a pot of chili. Stop and Shop had ground beef on sale for $1.99. I froze 4 containers for future meals. We put up the Christmas tree while OD and BF were here. I spent a $1 on candy canes to decorate it. Everything else we had. We had to work around everyone's work schedules but we go...

Today I am thankful for amazing teachers. YD has 3 amazing teachers this year that always go above and beyond. They really love what they do and it shows. My kids have been very lucky because they have had some wonderful teachers in their lives. I thank God for them everyday. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 22

Today I am thankful for a good nights sleep. Since I wasn't feeling well the last week plus, sleep has been hard to come by. The coughing alone had me awake most of it. Last night I got 6 solid hours. It was wonderful. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 21

CVS does deals were you buy certain gift cards and you get back Extra Care Bucks. I did one of those deals this week. With Christmas coming, I can use the gift cards. I then put the ECB towards things I could use and that were on sale. The cranberry sauces were on sale for 99¢ each. With the ECB they were free. There was a 6th package of products but they didn't make in into the photo. They were buy 1 get the 2nd 50% off. I also had a $5 off coupon for CVS brand. With ECB, they were also free.      They toothpaste had a coupon print at the machine and then there was a coupon in the newspaper making it free. Tide pods were on sale at Stop & Shop this week. I had 2 manufacturer coupons and a digital coupon. They paid me 52¢ to take them home with me. I have great friends that send me food when I am not feeling well. I had Thanksgiving at my house. My family all brings food. They brought a clam casserole, cho...

Happy Thanksgiving! Today I am thankful for my sisters. 3 of them were able to come to my house this year. They all helped out and brought appetizers and desserts. It makes my day much easier. I am also thankful for my nephews. They are growing up so fast. We don't live in the same state, so I don't get to spend nearly as much together as I would like. They are both turning into amazing young men. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 20

Today I am thankful for board games and card games. With OD home, we have been hanging out around the table spending quality time together. There has been laughing and a little yelling but all in good fun. We will be interacting with each other, making memories and having a wonderful long weekend. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 19

Today I am thankful for my youngest daughter. She has always worked hard at school and she is very motivated for college next year. She has been working on scholarships for months. She is thriving at her job. She is loud and outspoken (just like her Mom). She is super organized and very caring. She is a huge animal lover. She is my baby girl always. She makes me proud every day. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 18

Today I am thankful for great holiday sales. I got 2 more turkeys at 39¢ a pound. I got coffee pods, 10 for $1.48 and bought 10 packs. I got 25 bags of candy marked 90% off from Halloween. Several bags will turn into holiday gifts. I got 10 hero rolls for $1.25. They were yesterday's rolls. They are perfect for bread pudding for Thanksgiving. I got 2 packs of Tide pods free. I got 5 pounds of sweet potatoes for 37¢ a pound.  My receipt said I saved $160.20. I only spent $54.60. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 17

I was not feeling great this week. I had a cold, cough and sore throat. My throat is all better but I now have no voice which my kids think is great. I didn't go to the doctor. I used OTC medicines that I have gotten on sale/with coupons. I used the organic honey (that I bartered) in hot water with some lemon to ease my throat. I only called out from work for 1 shift.  We have been eating some frozen meals from the freezer. Before I got sick, I had cooked a large package of chicken thighs. Hubby used some of the leftover ones to make a big patch of chicken noodle soup. He used chicken broth and celery from the freezer. He also surprised me and bought me a quart of egg drop soup (my favorite) one day. Before I was sick, I cooked another pumpkin. I have been mixing some in with Oreo's food. It is great for her coat and she loves it.  We had plans to eat at a friend's house. I insisted that Hubby still go. He had a great time and they sent home a bunch...

Today I am thankful for my library. I pay for it through my taxes and I use it as much as possible. I have gotten my moneys worth. I love the classes, DVDs, CDs, books, museum passes and all of the librarians.  What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 16

Today I am thankful for the warm and soft blanket that OD made Hubby and me for our anniversary. I have been under the weather the last few days. I have been snuggled under it on the couch. I am thankful for useful gifts that don't clutter my home more. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 15

We got to spend a few hours with our friends from Italy and they brought us some presents.  We ate at my sister's house for lunch with them. I brought dessert. We brought all of this home. We enjoyed all of the leftovers. With Christmas coming, I don't want to ruin any surprises. I will show you the coupons instead of the items. Kohl's sent me this. I spent 12¢ on a gift. DD had these coupons in last weeks papers. I worked Sunday so I grabbed them from the papers at work. My son enjoyed them this week. We very rarely get coffee out so it was a treat. My sister gave this to my son for those days that he is really busy and doesn't have time for a meal. She got it in a goody bag and won't eat it. My son brought home lots of goodies from work. He also had a meeting at work where they try out all of their new foods on the menu. He enjoyed that. YD had her first work meeting. It was geared towards the coming holiday sea...

Today I am thankful that all of my loved ones got home safely in the storm. There are lots of stories on the news about kids being stuck on buses in NYC until 3 am. I am thankful that my son's college professor posted everything online so commuting students didn't have to drive to the college or miss the class. Stay safe everyone.  What are you thankful for today?  Thankful Day 14

Today I am thankful for my son. I have not been feeling well and he has been helping out a ton. He washed dishes, ran the dishwasher and unloaded it, did the dish drain, ran a load of laundry and made me breakfast. He is a very sweet, caring, funny, sarcastic young man. He is one of my greatest joys in life. He brought me home a new type of pasty from work today. He even paid for it. He wanted me to feel better since I stayed home sick from work. He will always be my little boy even though he has been taller then me since he was 13. What are you thankful for today?  Thankful Day 13

Today I am thankful for good medical care and coverage. We are very lucky to have modern medicine. People 100 years ago had to deal with all types of diseases that we do not. Hubby had a meeting at work about our medical coverage for next year and everything is staying pretty much the same. We have money set aside to cover our deductible in case it is needed. We do have to pay weekly from Hubby's check but it is worth it. Unfortunately we have had medical issues so we always go with the best plan.  What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 12

Today I am thankful for leftovers. I had a very long busy day at work. I have several items that need to be eaten so we are having leftovers . I pulled some of YD GF mac n cheese out of the freezer so she is good too. I know there are people out there that do not enjoy leftovers. We are not those people. I am always very happy and thankful for them. What are you thankful for today?  Thankful Day 11

I worked 5 days this week. That is a lot for me. Perfect timing for Christmas shopping. 2 of the shifts were only 4 hours so I was still able to get a lot done. I have been cooking pumpkins. Since the oven was on, I threw in some sausage, the small pan on the bottom right. We had sausage and peppers on rice for dinner. YD volunteered for a bake sale at school. You guessed it , she made pumpkin muffins and they were a hit. They hold the bake sale on election day so that everyone that is coming to vote can purchase items from the school. The money goes to scholarships.  I also made a batch and sent some to work with Hubby. I got gas on Wednesday while I was running errands. I always try to fill up because 6¢ off a gallon works for me.  Our kitchen garbage bag this week was the 50 pound bag from potatoes. It sure holds a lot. It is only about 1/2 full.  Hubby did lots of yard work. He has been trying to stay on top of the leaves. He m...

Today I am thankful for my friends. Some live very close while others live very far away. Yesterday we were able to spend some time with our friends from Italy. We usually communicate by email or phone, so getting to see them in person was wonderful. My best girlfriends are truly worth their weight in gold to me. I know I can count on them for anything and they can count on me. We have been through sicknesses together, hard times, kids growing up and loss of a parent. They are there for me if I need to vent or if I just need a hug. We have laughed so hard that I have to run to the bathroom and cried on each others shoulders. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 10

Today I am thankful for my oldest daughter. She is truly one of the greatest parts of my life. When I found out at 18 that I was pregnant, I was scared to death. God really has a plan and I am so happy that he knew what he was doing. She has been my sunshine on many rainy days. She is an amazing person. If I wasn't her mom, I would want to be friends with her. I miss her everyday (she lives out of state) but I am so proud of all of her hard work. I love that she calls me almost every day and we can talk for hours on the phone. I cannot wait until I get to squish her at Thanksgiving. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 9

Today I am thankful for good neighbors. Our best neighbors are moving today. We will miss them so much. They were here when we moved in. They have become such good friends. We share equipment, help each other out and watch each other's homes. We will really miss having them across the street. Thankfully our neighbors right next door are also great. We plan on introducing ourselves to the new neighbor when she moves in. What are you thankful for today? Thankful Day 8

I have gotten several freebies in the mail this week. I love to get packages. First off, I had done an energy audit a while ago free through PSEG. We learned several places/ways that we can fix for low cost to us. When we signed up there was a promo to get some freebies. Well they came. I received 6 free LED light bulbs and surge protector. We will happily take them. I also got a free razor in the mail with coupons.  My sister got $15 rewards to staples and wasn't going to be able to use it so she gave it to me.  I was happy to use it. I got coffee for my son as a Christmas present and some wipes for the stock pile. I ended up paying 51¢ for both so technically the wipes weren't a freebie.  2 days later I got $10 off a $10 purchase from Staples. They had some slightly crushed boxes of coffee on clearance. So I got 2 boxes. There was no tax so it was exactly $10. YD brought a pumpkin home from school.  I picked this...