Catchup...

I'm not sure if you know this about me but I love a TON of tv shows! I honestly don't spend a ton of time watching tv and never actually watch shows when they're on tv- usually I have to find episodes online or watch them on the DVR.

You might think I'm ridiculous...but these are the shows I love to watch...

Once Upon a Time, Revenge, Kardashians, The Bachelor, Pretty Little Liars, The Lying Game, Hart of Dixie, Dance Moms,The Middle, Glee, Modern Family and Whitney.

Yeah... just a few. To be honest though I often get behind and end up watching a few weeks worth of a show on a day off. I miss a lot of episodes and only really watch one or two of the shows religiously.  How many tv shows do you watch? I know my amount is way more than a normal person- but one of my college roommates watched a TON of tv and got me hooked on several shows =)

Since I'm going on my 3rd week in cold city over here I've been doing a lot of tea-drinking and tv watching during my spare time. I cannot believe how much has happened this season so far in Pretty Little Liars. I am so glad that Spencer knows about Toby and that they are showing more about the A team now. In the Bachelor I am rooting for AshLee and Catherine to make it to the end- I really like both of them! I also liked Sarah and was definitely sorry to see her go!

I haven't been running lately =( mostly because I've been so sick- I've been relying on my work to keep me in shape- since I run dance and gymnastics classes I do exert quite a bit of energy during my day to day job- makes it hard to rest!

How is everyone else doing out there? Everyone getting sick like crazy?? Everyone I know is super sick or was super sick recently. Yuck, yuck, yuck! I just want to feel better!

Lots of tea, cough drops and medicine for sure! Stay well everybody!

A Ballet Workout!

As you all know by now, I love to dance! I have been dancing since age 3 and have dabbled in lots of different types of dance- ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, pointe, hip hop, modern... all very different but the same kind of workout- a good one!

When I danced every night of the week I didn't need to do other workouts- I was eating whatever I wanted and maintaining the same weight because the workout was just so awesome! I've decided to put together a ballet-inspired workout for all- it will include some other elements as well- but will be mostly based on ballet...here we go!

• Squats- Do 8 squats with your feet side by side, then 8 with your feet shoulder-width apart. Then repeat.
• Relives- Start on flat feet and lift up onto your toes, keeping your feet side by side (do this 8 times)- repeat with feet shoulder-width apart. Then repeat with one leg slightly in front of the other, then again switching which foot is in front.
• Leg lifts- a ballerina would call these a battema- while standing lift your right leg 8 times to the front, taking care that your upper body stays tight. Do this 8 times to the side and then 8 times to the back. Now repeat the whole process with your left leg.
• Jumps- also known as a sauté. Jumping from feet together to feet apart, making sure you turn out your toes and landing with bent knees. Doing 50 of these should make you feel nice and sweaty!
• Arabesques- bringing one foot into your ankle- lift that leg behind you into an arabesque position (45* angle) and then back down to your ankle, repeat 10 times and then switch to your other leg.
• Out Cross Cross- This is one of my favorite workouts in dance class. Laying on your back lift your legs up in the air and bring them apart as far as you can- then back in and cross one in front of the other and switch, then repeat. Do 8 in a set, then criss cross them back and forth down to the floor and then back up. Repeat this process 4 times and your abs and legs will be feeling goooooood!
• Back Stretch- with my little kids I call this the little mermaid stretch. Lay on your belly, squeeze your legs together and push up with straight strong arms. Hold for a few seconds then come down a rest. Repeat a few times and then curl up into a ball to round out your back!

You can repeat this process as many times as you feel necessary. This workout works all areas of your body- your legs, butt, and core especially. Remember that if you stretch before your workout AND after your workout you will see a big difference in your flexibility after a ballet or ballet-inspired workout. Doing extra crunches and ab work will only help you while doing ballet workouts because having a strong core and center of balance is what being a dancer is all about! 

Happy workout everybody!

Coupon Shopping Lists

Today, I'm going to be sharing with you how I organize my coupon shopping lists. It's not a terribly complicated process but I like to be organized about it so when I go into the store I know what I'm looking for and what particular items I need to pick up.

The first thing I do is visit thekrazycouponlady.com and see what their deals are listed under each store. I usually pay close attention to CVS, Rite Aid, Walmart, Staples and Stop and Shop since those are the stores I frequent most often. As I go through their lists of the best deals I am writing all of the best deals down in a notebook. If there are any direct links to printable coupons I open them at this time and print them out while I finish reading the rest of the deals.

After I have all of my deals written down, I sort through my coupon binder and find all the coupons that I will need. I clip any printable coupons and add them to my stack. Then I sort them out based on store I will be using them at.

 

I then separate all my piles into envelopes. I create an envelope for each store and write on the outside of the envelope my plan. An example of what I write on the envelope is:

Buy 8 Palmolive @ 99cents

use (4) $1/2 coupons

Buy 2 Renu @ $7.99

use (2) $2/1 coupons 

By writing this on the envelope I am able to not only see what plan is inside the store but I can keep track of what coupons I need to use as I buy items (or what coupons I don't need if the deal is not available).

That's it! Since I am an organizer I like to take an extremely organized approach to saving money. Yesterday the cashier in Rite Aid said that he recognized me as the organized coupon girl....and I'm going to take that as a compliment =)

Happy Couponing!

Organizing Your Kitchen...

I fully believe that the kitchen is the most important room in the house to keep organized and orderly. It is a room that you are in every single day and when it's unorganized things can get ugly really quickly! There are so many things that you can do to create an organized, efficient kitchen- but here are a few things that I've done or have seen and LOVE!

1. Go through EVERY SINGLE FOOD ITEM. I'm serious. Pull out every frozen dinner, soup can, and granola bar. Read all the labels and get rid of what is expired. You won't believe the number of items in your fridge, freezer and pantry that are expired. When I sorted through my parents pantry I found items that had been expired for years and just shoved in the back. Also, combine items that can be combined. I found tons of half empty boxes of pasta and combined them together to take up less space. For items that don't have an expiration date written on them like spices you can find out their expiration date by typing in a code from the label online. McCormick offers this on their website which is really neat and helpful!

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2. Once you have checked all of the labels and thrown away expired items, it's time to put everything back- NEATLY. I love pantries that look organized and have everything in order. you better believe that someday I will have a pantry like that too! Simply placing like items on the same shelf can give you a level of organization as well. If all your cereals are lined up, all your canned goods on the same shelf, and your spices corralled in a cupboard- you've got a pretty good system going! Keeping like items together not only is visually appealing but it allows you to see what you have and what you need. If you have eight boxes of cereal lined up and you live by yourself- you should probably make your way through a few boxes before you buy a ton at the next sale. You will also be able to pull together meals much easier if you know what you have and where it's located. No more searching for gravy or looking for that mix you know you have but can't find- everything is at your fingertips!

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3. One of my favorite ways to organize it with all food placed in clear containers and labeled. When everything gets dumped into clear container there's no more guesswork when you open your cupboard. You don't have to worry that the box you are reaching for contains just crumbs. Also, no more stale chips or crackers- everything is located in an airtight container! My favorite part about this system? The labels. You can get chalkboard labels or otherwise- they all look adorable and work great in any pantry!

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4. An area that drives me crazy when it is unorganized is the tupperware cupboard. I love to use tupperware to store leftovers and constantly have trouble locating a lid. Recently I went through our tupperware cupboard and found some containers that didn't even have lids that fit them! I don't know how that happened- but if it did here I'm sure some of you have tupperware cupboards that have lids or bottoms without matches inside. It's time to go through and match those babies up!

5. Put things where they make sense. There's no reason to store pots and pans on the other side of the kitchen when you only use them on the stove. Put items in designated areas- and if it doesn't work for you- switch things up! Mugs and tea cups near the coffee maker and cookie trays near the oven- if it is close to where you'll be working with it, you'll be more likely to not get annoyed during the process and more likely to love your kitchen!

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6. Declutter, declutter, declutter! I'm talking everything non-food related here. Do you really need 100 cups? What about the beer mugs you've accumulated from pint night at the local bar? How about a mug for every Disney character ever created? No, I didn't think so either. Keep only what you really need and use. If you're not a great cook- you might never use some of those fancy chef tools- and that's okay! Stick with what is necessary. Purge what you don't need- someone else will love to get it, and your kitchen cabinets and drawers will love to breathe a little. 

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7. Keep those countertops tidy! Don't let the mail or receipts or other items pile up on those pretty countertops. There's no reason to cover that space and it will only make you feel overwhelmed. The best way to handle this is to not leave piles just hanging around. Even if you're exhausted from work bringing in the mail- you should plan on sorting through it. Put those receipts away when you finish emptying your grocery bags. When you bring in things you bought or picked up away from the house, bring them into the room they belong- don't leave them hanging around the kitchen. 

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8. If you store your medicine in the kitchen like we do- make sure you frequently sort through it and make sure that nothing has expired. There's nothing worse then catching a cold and heading to the cupboard to get some medicine and discovering that it is all expired. I like to organize our medicine by what it is used for. Allergy medicine is grouped together on the bottom shelf, vitamins are grouped together and any medicine for the dog is placed on a separate shelf. The reason we store medicine in the kitchen is because it is a centrally located room and it is a well protected area- no extreme heat or cold in that part of the kitchen. It's also a high up location so any children in the house would be unable to get into the cupboard. 

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I hope that this post has inspired you to head into your kitchen and get everything organized! There are tons of ways to get and stay organized- just find out what works best for you and stick with it!

Happy Monday everyone, have a great week!

Happy Superbowl Sunday!

Just a quick post today- I'm still feeling pretty horrible from this cold. It has me completely run down and unable to keep up with my normal everyday activities!

I was so happy yesterday because my faith was restored in that little furry groundhog- I always complain when he predicts a longer winter because I just don't understand his system! If he can see his shadow then shouldn't it be a bright sunny day?! I don't understand it! Thank goodness he predicted an early spring- I don't know how much more of this winter weather I can take...

Also, Happy Superbowl Sunday everybody! I hope you are all enjoying a nice relaxing day- ready to watch the game with your friends and family. My team (the Patriots) didn't quite make it to the Superbowl but I'm ready to cheer on the 49ers because I don't hate them quite as much as I hate the Ravens....

I hope you have a great day everybody!

Ibotta

I just have to share one of my new favorite iPhone apps that saves you money so easily!

I recently downloaded Ibotta- and it is so simple to use. This app has a ton of different offers for products that you might have on your shopping list anyways. Each offer comes with different ways to earn money, whether it's learning a fact, taking a survey, writing something you love about the product, watching a video, or liking it on Facebook- once you complete a task you are rewarded with a cash offer.

Once you complete the offers you must buy the product in stores- there are a ton of stores listed so you have your choice of where to go! You can use coupons and do your transactions as you normally would (if the item is free with coupons- the app will still work!)

When you have finished your transaction, Ibotta will ask you to take a picture of your receipt- you have to take a picture of the ENTIRE thing- which might mean taking multiple pictures. Once you've snapped your picture(s) and pressed submit- it's a 24 hour or less waiting game. You'll receive a message from Ibotta letting you know that you've earned your money.

After you have completed multiple offers and earned a minimum of $5 you can transfer the money to your Paypal account!

Pretty sweet deal, for not a ton of work- especially if you are already buying these items!

Check it out if you have a phone that can download apps such as an iPhone or an Android... it's totally worth it!

Weekly Couponing Recap!

Hey guys- I'm back again with some great couponing deals!

I headed to CVS on Sunday morning to get some of the weeks best deals. When I go into CVS the first thing I always do is head straight to the red kiosk (also known as the Magic Coupon Machine) and scanned my card to get that days coupons. Did you know that you can scan it multiple times and get tons of coupons each time? I always scan mine until it tells me "No more coupons available today" usually I get at least 2 scans in before it tells me no more! One of the coupons was $2 off any 2 Tresemme products and immediately I knew I was heading to the travel section since those weren't excluded on the coupons!

 

Here's the breakdown of that shopping trip....

2 Maybelline lipsticks (on clearance 50% off) priced @ $3.99 and I used $1 coupons on both of them.

1 Thermacare Back Wrap (on sale for $4.99) and I used a $3 coupon. 

6 Hallmark cards @ $1.99, I used a B2 G1 free coupon, and a $3 off 3 hallmark cards coupons.

1 Physicians Formula Mascara @ $10.49

1 Dayquil @ $7.79

1 Halls Cough Drops @ $4.79 and used $1 off coupon

2 Tresemme travel size @ 99 cents each, used $2 off 2 coupon

I received $7 back in ECB from the Physicians Formula mascara making it $3.49. I also used $6 ECB from last week..

I ended up paying $34.33 for all of these items which isn't my best deal ever but since I needed the Dayquil and cough drops- it really wasn't too bad...

On Tuesday I headed back out on my way home from work and hit up Rite Aid and CVS for tissues and more deals.

...and one of the tissue boxes I bought was already in use and not in this picture. Tissue mountain anyone?

At CVS..

3 boxes of Puffs Tissues @ 99 cents each

2 Febreeze Set and Refresh @ $ 2.99 and $1.99 (one was on sale) I used a $1 coupon off 2.

1 Thermacare Patch @ $4.19. I used a $3 off coupon.

2 Tresemme Travel size conditioner (yes I got the same coupon again!) @ 99 cents each. Used $2 off 2 coupon.

I also had $7 ECB from my last transaction and walked out with an extra $2 ECB.

My total out of pocket for this order was $2.11! Sweeeet!

Then at Rite Aid...

2 Puffs Tissues (Big Boxes) @ $2.49 each

2 Glade Expressions @ $3.99 each, used 2 $1 coupons.

2 Dove Body Washes @ $6 each , used $1 off coupon, $2 off coupon, and a $3 off coupon! (2 manufacture coupons and 1 store coupon)

I had $4 Up Rewards from last week and my out of pocket total was $14.71.

And I received $7 Up Rewards to use on my next purchase!