Life is changing

It's almost time for me to start college. YIKES!!! I am not 100% sure what to think about that. I am so excited that it is a new chapter in my life. I have never been to college so I am not sure what to expect. Like will I have a ton of home work? Do I call my professor by his first name or last? Do I raise my hand to go to the bathroom? What if I need to miss a day, do I call in sick ? I know after the first day or two I will have an idea of what is expected.

The money part is scary as well. I will be unemployed. I need books, parking, childcare, travel to and from school, school supplies etc.

I have also NEVER been away from my kids on an ongoing basis, so that is scary. I will miss school events, lots of firsts for my 1 year old and special times with my family. Since my husbands days off usually fall during the work week, I will not see him very often.

On the brighter side in 6 months I will be done and ready to work ( I am praying)

Wow, I am nervous :S

10 Ways to save money

1. 1. Pack a lunch - the minute I leave the house my kids are hungry. So to eliminate this I try to always pack lots of healthy snacks and drinks. Don’t forget to pack something for mom and dad as well J

2. 2. Do not buy from a vending machine – the mark up on vending machine food is HUGE!

3. 3.Pay with cash- leave your credit cards and debits at home. You can’t over spend if you don’t have the money and you are unlikely to go back to the store for something you don’t actually need.

4. 4.Carry reusable shopping bags in your vehicle

5. 5. Shop second hand – I LOVE consignment stores. They usually only sell brand names and in excellent condition if not new. My favourite things to buy second hand are kids clothes, robeez, hockey equipment and toys

6. 6. Keep a couple birthday gifts stored away for future kid’s parties – I just bought $20.00 board games for $3 on sale. I bought a bunch and put them away. Now a birthday party will only cost me $3

7. 7. Shop liquidation- I shop at liquidation world a lot for things like gift bags ( which are $0.50 instead of $1.00 plus) party favours, holiday decorations, books etc

8. 8. Shop at end of Season- Every year I go shopping after Christmas when stuff is 75% off. That is the time that I buy the next years teachers and coaches gifts. Any needed decorations for the next year. Wrapping paper, tags and bows. I also try to find solid color gift bags and wrapping paper, I buy it to use for birthday presents during the year.

9. 9.Stockpile- I have a closet in my spare room that is full of shampoo, soap, tooth paste, cleaners, Ziplock bags, birthday gifts etc. I fill it with items I either get on sale or for FREE using my coupons. Then I never have to buy anything at full price.

10. 10.Use coupons- Check out THESE sites http://momsonthego1.blogspot.com/2009/10/canadian-coupon-websites.html

Week Number 2 Family Grocery Budget

Week	Spent	Bought	Notes	Other budget
1 Febuary 27th Found that we did not buy enough milk or pop we ran out part way through the week Plan is to shop every weekend during the weekend sales Ultimate goal is to spend $100/ wk for a family of 4	$174.40	Diapers, wipes, cleaners, shampoo, razors, 4 deoderants, 6 cling wraps, Epsom salts for mister, pop, 13 boxes of cereal, spaghetti sauce, hamburger meat, pizza meats, pizza mix, 3 bottles of Motrin, baby mum mums, 3 packs hot dogs, lettuce, Pringles, Doritos, shake n bake, mozza cheese,	Used $88.56 in coupons
2 March 6th This week I was very impressed that I only went $6.36 over my budget and managed to include the formula ($22.00) and some unexpected stuff This weeks goals are to use some of the food on the bottom of the freezer before it goes bad and to not shop between now and next weekend	$106.36	2- Bread, 100 paper plates, Baby formula, kinder surprise, Pork chops, steaks, 2 sour cream, 10 Mr. Noodle, 5 bathroom tissue, 3 glad wrap, 2 boxes kellogs bars, 2 packs paper towel, 6 – 6 packs pop, 4 L Milk, pine apple, chips, frozen veggies, carrots, potatoes, cucumber, block cheese, can tomatoes, egos, salsa, green pepper	Used 18.00 in coupons	$10.43 Shopped some sales and used a $10.00 off coupon Yahtzee, 2 games ( birthday presents)

FREE food always tastes better

Today I had to run into Red Deer to pick up some of my books for college ( start in 2 weeks ) so I decided to stop by London Drugs for a quick peak. Catelli Healthy Harvest Pasta with Omega 3 was on sale for $1.49 each regular price $2.69 each. Well I also had multiple coupons for Healthy Harvest Pasta so I ended up grabbing 5 boxes of pasta and my grand total was $0.00. Now that is what I call a sale :)

Today's Coupon Tip:

Don't be in a hurry to use your coupons. Coupons usually do not expire for a few months. The trick is to hold on to them till the product is already on a great sale then use your coupons.

My boy is changing by the second. He is now walking, eating like crazy, into everything and developing a little personality. Love him to pieces!

My families grocery budget

I am working hard at cutting down my families expenses. To start I am trying to keep track of what I am spending on groceries. Watching the fliers for sales, using coupons when ever possible, stocking up on items we use alot of when they are on sale. My ultimate goal would be to spend $100/ week on groceries and supplies for my family of 4 , not sure if it is possible, we will have to see.

Week	Spent	Bought	Notes
1 Febuary 27th	$174.40	Diapers, wipes, cleaners, shampoo, razors, 4 deoderants, 6 cling wraps, Epsom salts for mister, pop, 13 boxes of cereal, spaghetti sauce, hamburger meat, pizza meats, pizza mix, 3 bottles of Motrin, baby mum mums, 3 packs hot dogs, lettuce, Pringles, Doritos, shake n bake, mozza cheese,	Used $88.56 in coupons
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My Name is Jennifer and I am a Popaholic

Since I was a kid I have been completely addicted to Pepsi, I drink on average probably 6 cans a day. Which is horrible first off cause of the calories 150 calories a can so a total of approx 900 calories a day just on my pop. YIKES!!!! No wonder I have weight issues. And then there is the caffeine, which is probably the reason I have trouble sleeping. I come by it honestly, my mom and grandmother were both pop drinkers. My mom was a Diet Coke fan and never drank anything else, which meant there was always pop in the house.

With my kids I am completely against giving them pop. My oldest Dodge who is almost 6 thinks pop is the same as beer, bad for you and only for adults. I really encourage water and discourage pop. I hope he learns a love for water the way I learned the love for pop. ( fingers crossed)

So this week, I have switched to Sprite and Gingerale. Still not good for me, but no caffeine and still gives me the satisfaction of something sweet. I am hoping that once I get use to the no caffeine I will be able to switch again to something that is not pop.

What do you Hoard?

Lately I have been addicted to the show Hoarders. For those of you that have never seen it you really should check it out. It will make any frustrated mom feel really good about their homes. Basically it is about people "hoarders" that are unable to get rid of stuff because of emotional attachment etc. Some of their homes are piled to the ceiling with everything from empty pill bottles, old newspapers, and clothes to rotting food and dead cats.

View Show HERE

After watching many shows, I have come to the conclusion that I may be a bit of a hoarder. I usually always have one room in the house that is filled to the door with odd stuff. It stays that way for a few months until I do an compete purge and clean it out. I find that every 2-3 months I need to spend a week purging at least one room in the house. Just to note my house never looks like the homes in these pictures.

Recently I tackled my office and filled a van with a load of stuff for the dump as well as a box of garage sale stuff.

What types of things do I hoard?

• old magazines, catalogues, newspapers, fliers
• thousands of pieces of paper with one or two notes on them. Often a phone number or meeting time/ date
• empty boxes and old envelopes
• old tax papers
• clothes, shoes and coats
• shampoo bottles with hardly anything in it

Why do I hoard?

I am a big money saver person. I hate throwing out something that is still good, someone else can use or that I may need again. Seems like once you throw something out, you will need to buy it again.

However, I am not really a true hoarder since I also love to purge. Nothing feels better then cleaning out a room and filling the garbage bags. I love the high I get from getting rid of junk.

Check out Oprah's 12 Tips to Overcome Hoarding

Take Oprah's Hoarding Severity Scale

P.S

THESE PHOTOS ARE NOT OF MY HOUSE

I'm Back

Wow, it has been so long since I blogged last. I wish I could say I have been traveling around the globe or spending time with my family, but actually I have been sick. Extremely sick :(

But I have decided that maybe getting back into blogging will help me deal with some of my health issues. So I am going to try to my best to blog on a daily basis.

Well enough about that stuff. What is new ?

1. My youngest son is turning one next month. He is now standing, walking with a walking toy, and developing a new sense of humor.

2. My Oldest lost his first tooth this week.

3. I just celebrated my 26TH birthday

4. And the big news is I am going to college in March. I am taking Multimedia Web Design. So excited!!