Thanksgiving recap

Hopefully everyone had a good holiday and weekend.

Matt and I had an uneventful holiday. I had to work the day after thanksgiving but Matt did pick me up a slow cooker. I have some big plans to make apple butter the next time applesauce goes on sale.

I've also spent some time this weekend thinking about the Wal-Mart incident on Black Friday. You can read the full article Here. I just find it so sad that a person lost their life so someone could save a few dollars. How will Christmas morning be for these shoppers? Knowing they killed someone for that digital camera. It really speaks volumes about human nature and the mass commercialism of our society.

We did earn a little money this week as well. In an effort to get a jump start on one of our 2009 goals (reducing our stuff) I listed a few of our gaming systems on craigslist. They were quickly snatched up and the success has made me excited to get even more items out of the house. The best part, craigslist is 100% free.

CVS - 11/27 - 3 Day Sale

Have I mentioned how much I LOVE the new CVS I've been going to? I have, well let me just say it one more time. I LOVE this CVS. I got a late start to shopping today and figured they'd be out of a few products I needed. Much to my surprise not only were the sales labeled but they had everything I needed except the Cover Girl make up. Shopping was a breeze.

I didn't want to spend a ton out of pocket so I didn't get everything we could have, but I'm still very happy with it.

I got all of these things for nothing out of pocket and made $30.95 in Ecbs for a profit of $14.91 - I love getting paid to shop.



2 Bic Soleil Single Razors: @ 5.99 ($11.98)
~ (2) $3 off Bic Coupon
1 Playtex Gentle Glide $3.99
~ $1. off Playtex coupon (from recent sample)
1 Colgate Toothpaste $2.99
~ $1.50 off Colgate coupon
1 L’Oreal Colour Juice Sheer Lip Gloss $6.99
~ $1 off L'Oreal coupon
1 Garnier Nutritioniste Cleansing Toilettes $5.99
~ $1 off Garnier Moisturizer
2 Schick disposable razors @ .99 ($1.98)

~ $1 off any Cover Girl product

Used a $5/30 coupon

Total Before Coupons: $33.92
Coupons Used: $18.50
Total After coupons: $15.42
Paid with $18.98 in ecbs (total paid is higher than total because of return - below)

ECB's Received: $30.95 (5.99 Garnier, 2.99 Colgate, 11.98 Bic, 6.99 L'Oreal, 3 Playtex)

Total Profit $14.91

I also purchased a Cover Girl powder which was the wrong brand and returned it for a $10.59 gift card. This also allowed me to still use the Cover Girl coupon, kind of confusing I know.

Jewelry Frame

Another great project from Joys Of Home. I decided to make some paper bead earrings and needed a way to display them when we attend craft fairs. I found this great tutorial and decided to make my own frame. Its kind of hard to see the earrings in the picture, sorry we were outside quickly taking pics.


Here's what I started with. The frame from Goodwill (already missing the glass and back) was 99 cents, sand paper $1.98 (5 pieces), 2 cans of black spray paint $.99 each at Wal-mart, and mesh from my Grandpa (Not pictured). I spray painted the frame, distressed it, and Matt stapled down the mesh.

Quite possibly one of the easiest crafts ever and it looks great for a display. I might make some smaller ones to sell if I ever see a few cheap frames for sale.
.

Sweeps for the week 11/24

Sweeps for the Week

Here are some of the sweeps for the week. Most of them can be entered daily so make sure to keep checking back for the chance to win more great prices.

Instant Wins
~ Pledge Photo Hunt Instant Win Play once per day until 11/30
~ General Mills Fuel up Free Instant Win Play once per day until 11/30 Obtain a free code from their website
~ Oreo Double Stuff until 12/1
~ Madagascar Movie Sweeps Once per day until 12/11
~ Win a Wii a day Once per day until 12/14
~ Soft Scrub Instant Win
Play until 12/15 (use SOFTSCRUB as free code)and receive a $.50 off coupon
~ Fancast Instant Win Once per day until 12/19
~ Chiquita Instant Win Play until 12/26 (Free code: 4322-2342-1342-4323)
~ Chrysler Drive to go Green
Play once a day until 12/31. You do not need a code
~ Tinker Bell Sweepstakes once per day until 1/31
~ Blue Man Group Instant Win Once per day until 1/31

Just Plain Sweeps
~ Circuit City - Ongoing
~ Woman’s Day Magazine. - Many Ongoing
~ Home Magazine - Many Ongoing
~Enter the Redbook get everything you want Until 1/15. More here


One Time Entry
Wrangler Little Big Town Sweepstakes Ends 11/24/08 ~ More HERE

Free DR.Pepper

Don't forget today is the day to get your free Dr.Pepper.

You can register on the site and sign up HERE or if you have problems online (lots of lag) you can call 1-800-696-5891 and request your coupon that way as well.

Friday Find - Keyka Lou Patterns

I love this week's Friday Find. It is an amazing tutorial from Keyka Lou Patterns for a wrist pin cushion.


I know so many crafters who would love something like this, if only I'd have time to make some before Christmas, sadly these will have to wait till next year.

You need to check out her site Keyka Lou Patterns and the Pincushion Cuff Tutorial.

Other great things you can find on her site include:

Money bag Tutorial
Recycled Dog Collar
Journal Cover

and make sure to stop by her Etsy shop where she's having a great holiday sale 2 patterns for $10.

Water Heater Savings

Last week Matt and I took another step to decreasing our heating bills this winter; we installed a water heater blanket. I purchased the blanket on sale for less than $10 and Matt installed it in less than ten minutes. You can even make your own blanket if you’re up for it, all you need is a roll of duct tape and some faced fiberglass insulation. By adding insulation you can reduce your heat loss by 25% - 45% which saves about 4%-9% in water heating cost.

The steps to installing a water heater blanket are pretty basic:
~ Wrap the insulation horizontally around the unit using duct tape to seal the seams
~ Make sure to leave cutouts for the thermostat, controls and drain faucets
~ Tape any remaining joints and seams where air can escape
~ If your water heater is electric make sure to cut a cap of insulation to fit the top as well and provide slits for the water inlet and outlet piping.
~ If your heater is gas, do not cover the burner access of the flue collar.

Make sure and read any extra instructions included with your blanket.
Not sure if your water heater needs additional insulation, finding out is easy. Just touch it, if the tank is warm it needs insulation.

To find out more about insulating your water heater visit the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy website (EERE)

And if you want to save even more money; try turning down the thermostat on your water heater. For every 10º F you reduce your temperature you could save anywhere from 3% to 5% in energy cost. You can safely reduce your water temperature to 120º F while still killing germs and bacteria.

There are also other benefits to reducing your water temperature to 120º F. The EERE states a reduced temperature of 120º F will slow mineral buildup and corrosion within your water heater and the pipes. This obviously will make your heater last longer and operate with a better efficiency. If you’re planning on being gone for more than three days turn the thermostat down to the lowest setting or turn it off completely for some short term savings.

Matt and I reduced our water temperature this summer and felt no difference what so ever. Now that it’s gotten a little colder we have had to turn it up a few notches, but it’s still lower than it was originally.

Check out the EERE website to learn more about lowering your thermostat.

Total cost for energy updates: > $10
Possible energy savings: 31% to 55%

Great web finds for the day

Does writing a post saying I have no post for the day count as a post?

I hope so.

Currently I'm working on some great post including;
~ How to reduce your water heating bill
~ A great Friday Find post
~ Christmas savings
~ And our 2009 budget and goals for the year

if only work would stop getting in the way.

Until then there are some great articles on other blogs you should check out

~ A new sweep from Gain - find out more at Freebies 4 Mom
~ Learn how to save lots of money on eating out at I will teach you to be rich
~ Why cash is better than layaway at Northern Cheapskate

Two great givaways
~ Jane 4 Girls is giving away a Yoplait Kids pack (3 winners)
~ Win a $50 Walmart gift card from Coupon Cravings

You can also get some more free food from Kroger this week

Green Giant Steamers 10/$10
Use the coupon in a recent insert for $1 or $.50 off (doubled)
and a $.50 off from shortcuts.com

Cottonelle toilet paper 4 pack $.99
use $.25 or $.50 off coupon from insert (doubled)
and a $.50 off shortcut.com coupon

Cheap Christmas Bows

Here's a great way to save a few dollars this holiday season.

Remember these bows I made earlier?

I've put a new spin on them to use as Christmas bows!



The picture isn't great but hopefully you can see some of the detail. I created these bows from left over wrapping paper Sunday night. Each one cost me about three cents to make since all I pay for is the brad.

Much cheaper and at least in my opinion better looking than store purchased bows. The best part is if you don't want to spend the money on brads you can use tape or glue to achieve the same results, making the bows 100% FREE. I plan to use these on our own Christmas gifts and hope to sell some at our last craft fair of the year this Thursday/Friday.

Want to learn how to make your own? I link to a great tutorial in this post.

sweeps for the week 11/17

Sweeps for the Week

Here are some of the sweeps for the week. Most of them can be entered daily so make sure to keep checking back for the chance to win more great prices.

Instant Wins
~ Sears Instant Win Play once per day until 11/21
~ Pledge Photo Hunt Instant Win Play once per day until 11/30
~ General Mills Fuel up Free Instant Win Play once per day until 11/30 Obtain a free code from their website
~ Oreo Double Stuff until 12/1
~ Madagascar Movie Sweeps Once per day until 12/11
~ Win a Wii a day Once per day until 12/14
~ Soft Scrub Instant Win
Play until 12/15 (use SOFTSCRUB as free code)and receive a $.50 off coupon
~ Fancast Instant Win Once per day until 12/19
~ Chiquita Instant Win Play until 12/26 (Free code: 4322-2342-1342-4323)
~ Chrysler Drive to go Green
Play once a day until 12/31. You do not need a code
~ Tinker Bell Sweepstakes once per day until 1/31
~ Blue Man Group Instant Win Once per day until 1/31

Just Plain Sweeps
~ Circuit City - Ongoing
~ Woman’s Day Magazine. - Many Ongoing
~ Home Magazine - Many Ongoing
~Enter the Redbook get everything you want Until 1/15. More here

One Time Entry
Wrangler Little Big Town Sweepstakes Ends 11/24/08 ~ More HERE

CVS 11/16

I went to a different CVS today and was amazed, shelves had stock on them!

My transaction ended up slightly different than I planned - minor in store bumps, but for the first time in over a month I was able to find everything I needed and complete a scenario (using a $5/$30).

\
Anywho, here's what it looks like.

4 Glade Glass Scents @ 2.50 ($10) - Completes Buy $10 get $5
4 Glade Glass Candles @ 2.50 ($10) - Completes buy $10 get $5
1 Soft and Dry $2.99
2 Crest Pro Health @ 3.49 ($6.98)
2 Revlon Nail Polishes @ 4.99 ($4.99 B1G1)
1 Sunday Paper $1.75

Total Before coupons: $ 34.96 + .80 Tax

::Coupons Used::
1 CVS $5/30
1 $.55 off Soft and Dry
(2) $2 off Revlon
(2) B1G1 Glade Scents
(2) $1 off Pro Health
(2) $1.50 Glade Scents

Total after Coupons: $15.41
ECB's Used: $14.59 (10, 3, 1.59)
OOP: $.82
Earned: $18.98 ($6.98 (2) Crest Pro Health, $2 Soft & Dry, $10 Glade Deals)

$3.57 Money Maker

Year to date Savings: $476.81

Barbie Bucks Done

Just finished my Barbie Bucks Mail in Rebate, I'll pop it in the mail on Monday and get ready for my $50 Gift Card.

Also on Monday I'll be putting 5 plastic Target bags in the mail to receive my coupon for a free reusable.

Have you completed your holiday offers yet?
I'm trying to get all these little things done before the holiday season begins and I forget about them.

To see prices and scenarios on the barbie bucks program see THIS POST and visit the Barbie Bucks site. I spent $101.89 on four products for a 49% savings after I receive my gift card.

To find out more about how you can receive a FREE Target reusable check out THIS POST. Remember you need to mail your bags in November 30th.

Kroger Mega Event

Let me start this post by declaring… I LOVE Kroger.
Especially when they have their Mega Item events (buy ten items get $5 off). This deal has been going on for two weeks now but with all the excitement around here I hadn’t had a chance to shop yet. I was really nervous that by waiting till the second Friday of the deal most of their items would be out of stock but they had everything I was looking for, it was great. And such a change compared to what CVS has been like for me lately.

We ended up getting all of these items for $22.70 that’s $.63 an item for a total savings of 75%!



Now for the break down

::Purchased::
Buy 10 get $5 – used 3 times

1 Breyer’s Ice Cream
~ $.50 off (Doubled)
2 Duncan Hines Cream Cheese Frosting
~ $.75/2 coupon
2 Betty Crocker Cookie Mixes
~ $.75 off Cookie Mix ~ $.40 off Cookie Mix (doubled)
1 Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal
~ $.55 off
1 Betty Crocker Boxed Potatoes
~ $.35 off (doubled)
~ $.35 off (from shortcuts.com)
6 Carnation Evaporated Milk
~ (3) $.50/2 coupon (doubled)
2 Tylenol PM
~ (2) $2 off Tylenol PM coupon
1 Tylenol Rapid Release
~ $2 off Tylenol Rapid Release
1 Fritos
1 Ice Mountain 3 liter water bottle
~ $.25 off (doubled)
1 Scotch-Brite lint roller
~ $1 off any lint roller
5 Scotch-Brite Nail Savers & Regular Sponges
~ (2) $1/2 Nail Saver
~ $1 off any Scotch-Brite Nail Saver
3 Tony’s Pizzas
1 Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate
2 Old El Paso Meals
~ $.50 off one (from shortcuts.com)

$15 coupon for Mega Event deal

Non buy $10 get $5 items
1 Bagel-fuls
~ $1 off Bagel-fuls
2 Cottonelle 4 packs
~ (2) $.25 off 4 pack (doubled) - $.12 a roll!
2 Progressive soups
~ (2) $1.10 off any
1 ½ Gallon Milk

Total Before Coupons: $88.89
Total After Coupons: $22.70

::Savings::
Manufacture Coupons: $34.60 (including $15 Mega Event)
Bonus Coupons (from doubling): $3.50
Store Coupons and card savings: $28.09
Total Savings: $66.19

$27 in coupons

Sign up below to get $27 in savings from Home Made Simple.

These booklets almost always have at least one free item coupon in them. I've supplied my Mom with enough Cascade to last her a year.

Click here to sign up for your coupon booklet


Thanks to Frugal in Virginia for the great deal

FREE $$ from Coin Star

Get an extra $10 from Coin Star when you cash in $40.



::Details::
Coinstar is offering a $10 Amazon gift card if you turn at least $40 in coins into an Amazon gift card.

There is no service fee when you opt for a gift card from Coinstar, they normally take 8% of whatever you change in if you pick the cash option.

This deal is only until December 7 at some locations and you do have to send away for the gift card after you exchange your $40. The coupon should print at the bottom of your receipt and then you mail it to receive the extra card. There is a limit of one gift card per household.

See the official page HERE

CVS 11/9

Very disappointing week at CVS. Not because the deals were lacking but because once again the THREE stores in my area were out of what I planned to purchase. I was only able to pick up three things this week. I tried on two different days and could not find any of the Listerine Mouth Wash and on Monday I was only able to purchase one bottle of St.Ives even though it was a higher limit.

Here's what I was able to walk away with



Not shown is the bottle of water


1 Garnier Shampoo $2.99
~ $1 off coupon
1 GL Smart Water $1.59
1 ST. Ives Body Wash $3.99
~ $2 off coupon

ECB used: $4
OOP: $1.57
ECB Earned: $6.59 ($1.59 water, $3 St. Ives, $2 Garnier)

In total I did get paid $1 to shop at CVS this week, but it could have been so much better.


For more CVS finds this week check out The "Cent"sible Sawyer

Just Say No....

To Spending!

Sometimes you have to let even a good deal go.
At Northern Cheapskate there is a post on how to get a Free Snapfish photo book, all you have to pay is $6.99 in shipping.

This is a great deal since the book is priced at $29.99, that's an 82% savings. It would make a great Christmas gift and if you have a use for it you should check out her link to find out how to get your own.

I however will not be taking part in this deal. Why you may ask?
I have plenty of pictures I need to do something with, but not necessarily anyone to give this as a gift to. This means the photo book would be sitting in our house. In the end we would spend $6.99 to have more stuff in our house, something that will not jive well with one of our new 2009 goals.

And speaking of 2009 goals we have some great stuff planned for the new year. Matt and I are currently working on our personal and financial goals for the new year. Once we get these solidified and work out a new budget I'll make sure to post about it.

Now I'm off to get coupon matches for the big Kroger sale this week (yes, I realize I'm very behind)

Rose bowl Instant Win

Stop by Freebies 4 Mom to learn how to enter the Rush to Rose Bowl Sweeps

And don't forget to keep checking the updated Sweeps listing on instant wins you can enter.

I just won a bamboo recipe box from the silk instant win. What have you won recently?

Merchant of Venice

Just finished the Merchant of Venice by who else, Shakespeare.

It’s a good read, I think it helped that we saw it on stage at Stratford last year, everything is better on stage and reading the book helped me remember the play again.

If you're looking for a something to read, a classic is always nice.

One more book down and only thirty six left to go

I need guest posters

I will be at a work conference the Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving and then have a long work day on Wednesday before beginning family celebrations. Because this week is going to be extremely busy for me I'm looking for a few guest posters to host at On Our Way.

If you or someone you know has a great frugal tip or craft project to share with my readers let me know. I would like to have all submissions in by the 17th so I can pick post early that week. Feel free to email me your post or idea at meg @ onourwayonline dot com.

Is that a sweater?

What is this you ask? That’s right, it's a big mess.

This my friends is my first attempt at salvaging an old sweater for new yarn. Lets just say it didn’t go so well. I didn’t get much yard at all from it before I gave up. I used the tutorial at Craft Leftovers. It's a great tutorial with lots of pictures, something I always find useful. None of my mistakes are because of the directions. The sweater I purchased was only 67% wool… bad. It was also thin yarn in two pieces… bad. I plan to try again with a 100% wool sweater. No more acrylic for me. never ever use anything that’s not 100% natural material. As you can see the rest of the sweater was cut up for filling on a few projects I have planned.

Lots of New Sweeps to Enter

Blue Man Group Instant Win
Enter Once per day until January 31st, 2009.

:Prizes Include:
10 Grand Prizes (sweepstakes prize): 1 46" Sharp LCD TV.
10 First Prizes: 1 Blue Man Group Mega star Tours DVD
134 Second Prizes: 1 Blue Man Group T-shirt
______________________________________________________

Madagascar Movie Sweeps
Once per day until December 11th, 2008.

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize (Sweepstakes): A Trip for four to LA.
10 First Prizes: 4 IMAX Movie Tickets
10 Second Prizes: The Art of Madagascar book
10 Third Prizes: Madagascar DVD
10 Fourth Prizes: Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa coloring/activity book
185 Fifth Prizes: Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa Movie poster

Limit of one instant win game prize per person

______________________________________________________

Win a Wii a day
Once per day until December 14th, 2008

:Prizes Include:
122 Grand Prizes: Nintendo Wii Game Console

Limit one prize per person
______________________________________________________

Chiquita Instant Win
Play until December 26th, 2008

To participate without purchasing specially-marked packages of Chiquita Fresh Bites, use "4322-2342-1342-4323" as your Code.

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize: Winner's choice of one of three trips
- California Family Adventure
- California Dream Prize Package
- Scream Across the USA Prize Package

4 First Prizes: Camcorder
6 Second Prizes: Portable DVD Player
25 Third Prizes: Kajeet M300 Phone and two months of service
176 Fourth Prizes: $50 Amex Fill it up Card
88 Fifth Prizes: $50 Amex Gift Card
200 Sixth Prizes: Soccer Mom DVD

One Instant Win Game Prize per person
______________________________________________________

Sears Instant Win
Play once per day until November 21st, 2008

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize (sweepstakes): A trip for 2 to New York, NY and Bristol, CT to tour the ESPN campus, attend a live taping of an ESPN studio show, and have lunch with ESPN Pro Football Analyst Mark Schlereth (

15 First Prizes: Sony KDL40V4100 40" LCD HDTV
15 Second Prizes: Samsung LN40A550 40" LCD HDTV
15 Third Prizes: Sony DAVHDX576WF 5-Disk DVD/CD Home Theater System
15 Fourth PRizes: Sony DVPNS350 Blu-ray Disc Player
14 Fifth Prizes: Samsung BDP1500 Blu-ray Disc Player
10 Sixth Prizes: Football autographed by Peyton Manning
25 Seventh Prizes: Magellan MRM1200 GPS
25 Eighth Prizes: Canon A590IS Camera
25 Ninth Prizes: Harmony 520 Remote Control
100 Tenth Prizes: Football autographed by Mark Schlereth
25 Eleventh Prizes: Sirius Satellite Radio and gift card for one month of service

Limit one instant win prize per person

______________________________________________________

Pledge Photo Hunt Instant Win
Play once per day until November 30th, 2008.

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize: $5,00
200 Second Prizes: $25 American Express Prepaid Card

Limit of one prize per person
______________________________________________________

General Mills Fuel up Free Instant Win
Play once per day until November 30th, 2008. Obtain a free code from their website

:Prizes Include:
1550 - $25 Gas Card

Limit One Prize Per Person
______________________________________________________

Chrysler Drive to go Green
Play once a day until 12/31. You do not need a code

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize: A trip for two to Ginn Reunion Resort in Reunion, Fl
2 First Prizes: Lifetime Fitness Membership awarded as $1,200 check
40 Second Prizes: Chrysler Branded iPod Nano
40 Third prizes: Greenandmore.com Gift certificate
5 Fourth Prizes: 2 Tickets to Six Flags
25 Fifth Prizes: A Hemp Grocery bag

Limit one prize per person
______________________________________________________

Fancast Instant Win
Once per day until 12/19

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize: Ultimate Hollywood Getaway valued at $12,800
30 First Prizes: iPod Touch
75 Second Prizes: Entertainment Prize Pack E! Merchandise
1,000 Third Prizes: 2 Fandango Tickets

Limit one prize per person
______________________________________________________

Soft Scrub Instant Win
Play until 12/15 (use SOFTSCRUB as free code)and receive a $.50 off coupon

:Prizes Include:
1 Grand Prize: Trip for 2 to LA
100 Second Prizes: Autographed Dancing with the Stars Merchandise ($50)
275 Third Prizes: Dancing with the Stars Merchandise ($15)
100 Fourth Prizes: A coupon for FREE Soft Scrub item (up to $3.99)
______________________________________________________

New Phone

Ok so I'm two weeks behind in blog post and have no shopping done but I did get something really cool this week.



Ok so maybe I'm the only one that finds it super exciting, but I love this new phone. It's a Scoop from Alltel and represents the most I've ever spent on a phone in my life! This puppy set us back a whopping $9.99 plus tax. It's the first time we didn't pick out the .99 phone when renewing our cell phone plan and I must say it was worth it.

Sweeps for the week 11/10

Here are some of the sweeps for the week. Most of them can be entered daily so make sure to keep checking back for the chance to win more great prices.

Instant Wins
~ Lysol "fact or Fiction?" Until 11/3
~ Ban - How I chill - until 11/15. More HERE
~ Oreo Double Stuff until 12/1
~ Tinker Bell Sweepstakes once per day until January 31st

Just Plain Sweeps
~ Circuit City - Ongoing
~ Woman’s Day Magazine. - Many Ongoing
~ Home Magazine - Many Ongoing
~Enter the Redbook get everything you want Until 1/15. More here


One Time Entry
Wrangler Little Big Town Sweepstakes Ends 11/24/08 ~ More HERE


Last week I won a free bottle of Pace salsa - just more proof playing sweeps can pay off.

Create a no spend day

For the next month on I will teach you to be rich Ramit is hosting a series on how to save $1,000 in 30 days. Guess what tip number seven is... "create a no spend day once a week"

I'm starting to wonder if he's been reading the blogs around here lately. Having no spend days, weeks(ends), or even months is starting to become a trend (but hopefully not just a fad).

Which this post reminds me, next weekend is our November No Spend Weekend. I'm so looking forward to a nice quiet weekend at home.

Anyone else planning a no spend something this November?

Ideas needed

It's been another one of those weeks here at On Our Way. You know how it is just when I thought we'd have some free time to clean the house, finish the bathroom (and the THREE other projects I started - b/c I'm crazy), craft a little, and catch up on blogging something much more important comes up. I try to keep extended family out of the blog but my younger sister was diagnosed with pneumonia and a kidney infection last night - sometime this morning. Since she is only 11 and has down syndrome it can make hospital stays extra interesting; therefore, Matt and I are taking turns staying with her so my Mom can get some rest. I do promise to return to a regular blogging schedule soon with hopefully a new header as well (finally).

Until then I'm looking for some ideas from you! I would like to put together a listing of some great holiday gifts, preferably homemade and even better if it's (up)recycled in some way. Have the perfect item in mind? Shoot me an email at meg@onourwayonline.com and your idea could be featured at On Our Way in the near future.

Great Kroger Deals?

Have you heard about the great deals going on at Kroger this week?

If not stop by Frugal in Virginia for more details. They are having a buy 10 items get $5 where you can grab lots of free items.

I plan to go this weekend - has anyone had the chance to shop their yet?

Get out and Vote

Mommy Making Money has the scoop on all the free deals you can get for voting today.

So get out there and vote!

Another web giveaway

Free cupcake maker up for grabs at Frugal Upstate

There are three ways to enter until this Friday. Make sure to stop by and view her vlog demonstrating the product as well.

Check out this post for even more giveaways happening this week. With so much free stuff circulating around the web there are sure to be some good Christmas gifts this year.

Expired Coupon Time

Just a reminder it's time to send our expired coupons to military families overseas.
This month I'm sending mine to :

RAF Alconbury
ATTN: Family Services
423 ABS/DPF
APO AE 09470
Alconbury, UK


Check the original post HERE to learn how to send your expired coupons to those in need.

Two great giveaways

There are some great giveaways happening all over the net this week.

My Precious Pennies is giving away a beautiful card wallet.


Skimbaco is giving away a flip camera from wal-mart in lime green or black (you choose).

and

Mom of 2 Dancers is giving away a Pillsbury Savorings give package.

Keep checking back for more updates.