I have found that planning my weekly meals has definitely saved me a lot of money over the years because I waste a lot less food, and I don't buy things I don't need as often. (Oreos still make it into the cart more often than I care to admit! ;)

One of the most cost effective things to buy once or twice a month for my weekly meal rotation is a rotisserie chicken. For a small family like mine (my husband, me, and one toddler) a $7 rotisserie chicken will provide the protein for 2 meals AND create a chicken broth to use as a base for a soup. (Which A. will make your soup tastes better and B. saves you $1 to $2 when you don't have to buy a box of chicken stock!)


Here are a few easy ideas of how to use your rotisserie chicken up before making your stock!

1. Put over a salad.
2. As is with a vegetable side or mashed potatoes.
3. Sheet pan nachos! (Cover a pan with chips then rotisserie chicken, black beans, corn, jalapenos, and cheese! Bake until everything is melty and warm!)
4. Chicken Alfredo. (Make your favorite noodles, THIS alfredo sauce, and then throw in some chicken and frozen broccoli if you want!)
5. Chicken Salad sandwiches. (Shredded chicken, mayo/miracle whip, granny smith apple, celery, grapes etc. Serve over bread or crackers!)
6. Chicken noodle soup - yum.

Once your done with the chicken, throw the carcass into a pot with water and boil into a stock. Then use that stock in soups or sauces that call for it. My favorite is this carrot and ginger soup!

xoxo, Love.Haight

Well it's the last day of January! Time for my final accountability check in.

Eating out: 1 Silver Fox, 1 Wyoming Hot Wings, 1 Mcdonalds, and 2 Wendys trips. 5 weeks, 5 times out. Goal accomplished!
Spending Money: Today I bought both my kids a piece of clothes from the clearance rack at Target. Did they need them? No. Is that a fail. Yep. But let me tell you, I hemmed and hawed over the prices and what they would wear them for. That is not something I've always done in the past. So overall the purpose of the no spend was pretty successful, and my whim purchases were WAY down. But I definitely failed this week between those pieces of clothes and the one pair of shorts I purchased for myself- I have no defense on those- just a pair of designer shorts I wanted for 1/3 the price.
So to recap, this whole month I bought a planner, the 2 kids items today, the shorts, and a few cheap thrift store items/books. I spent under $100 and while maybe that's normal for other people it was a win for me!

Things that helped me:
-Unsubscribing from emails!! Wow I didn't realize the temptations they posed until they weren't there anymore.
-Accountability on my blog and Facebook page. And maybe it's sort of backwards, but when I didn't care that someone would judge me for breaking my "no spend" then I knew it was a purchase I loved enough to be worth it!!
-Staying busy (especially with my January Jumpstart tasks) aka not online browsing
-Setting financial goals. I have real plans for 2020, and those things cost money. Stay tuned.

January Jumpstart:
I look around my house and I have to admit it was successful. While it is nowhere near perfect I go to bed with a clean kitchen every night, and I absolutely LOVE it. I dealt with mail, paper clutter, hospital bills, my messiest room, and came out on top with routines. I decluttered and downsized where I could. The next thing I'm working on is USING UP PRODUCTS. I have a lot of great hair, body, makeup, and bath products that I love and chose to keep, but now I'm focusing on using up stuff so I can have a more manageable amount. I typically tend to cherry pick around my products so everything is like half gone, but now I'm being a lot more intentional about what I use so I can use it up! :)

PS be on the lookout for a fun February Challenge tomorrow if you enjoyed this one! :D

xoxo, Love.Haight

I have had so many competing interests over the last few months. I constantly try and remind myself to just be still, hang out with my kids, and relax. And yet I still find myself all over the board.
One of the goals of my "No Spend Month" was to keep myself from feeling like I need to make money so I can spend it. Don't get me wrong, my husband is an excellent provider, but my shopping addiction could probably make anyone broke. So I have used my side hustles to make my fun money. It works, but it takes away from my kids. So, here I am, attempting to cut back in an effort to give myself the peace of mind to spend my days relaxing and raising my babes.

So far I have been to Big Lots and only bought pantry staples, and ordered Marlin's first photo book. I was feeling really behind on his memories so I figured it was a good purchase because while it isn't "necessary" in the typical sense of the word, it is necessary for the type of mother I want to be, the kind that celebrates her babies and their milestones, the kind that creates memory books that they can look back on and see how loved they were. Checking off these sorts of "to-dos" is part of my January Jumpstart so I'm good with it.

I have unsubscribed from emails, resisted great deals from some of my favorite brands, and denied those little purchases I typically wouldn't think twice about.

We ate out only once in the first  days (as I prescribed in my goals) and I have ingredients ready for more home cooked meals this week.

Savings Goals to Keep in Mind: pay Marlin's and my hospital bills, save for my 30th Birthday Trip!

xoxo, Love.Haight

It's finally here; the end of my no spend month.


Confession: My husband and I bought something expensive this week. Normally I would feel sad that I failed, but  because of the circumstances I don't even care. If you knew what I went through this week, you wouldn't blame me. Can you guess what happened in my home based on what we bought here?

My biggest goal was to not to shop for frivolous things on myself: basically, Target runs, ASOS orders, Pick you Plum purchases etc. In that respect- I passed with flying colors. I didn't spend any money on clothes or makeup (I had a giftcard for the Sephora VIB sale though. More on that from week 3)

Eating out was definitely more touch and go. I think we did Arby's twice, Wendys twice, and Applebees once. I'll give myself a free pass from that weekend of volleyball (my body always hurts so bad!) but other than that- FAIL.

Now that it's over, here are some things I have my eye on for May:
These cute shoes
Summer top
More jeans from my new favorite brand

What I learned:

-Saying "no" to yourself gets a lot easier. I think spending is a habit, but so is saving!

-I definitely do buy things I don't need. There were a couple things on my "to-buy after" list (more on that from my preparation post) that I'm wondering why I even wanted.

-Doing both a no spend on items and eating out together was kind of hard. Last April we successfully managed to not eat out at all (See that post HERE) but with everything together, it was kind of difficult. Add in no soda for Lent and it was a pretty deprived month! ha

-Give yourself grace when you spend something. Remember you're not breaking the law! ha! But you are breaking a promise you made to yourself. Look at each case individually and decide if it was a necessary purchase and then stand by it, if need be.

-Sometimes you just have to TRY! Don't be afraid- you're bound to fail occasionally, but overall it will be a success.

Recaps here:
Preparing
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3

Hello again!

Welcome to the 4th No Spend post of my no-spend April challenge. Here are the others if you missed them:
Preparing for a No Spend Month
Week 1
Week 2

So... you are the judge and jury this week. I want to know from you guys if I failed no-spend week 3. Here's the evidence. (heehee)

Things were pretty good until Wednesday. We'd been cooking at home, and then my husband wanted to go to Wendy's. I said no twice, and then I was worn down. I can't lie; it sounded good. We both got a 4 for $4 deal.

Thursday the Sephora sale started. And if you know anything about Sephora, you know they rarely have sales. I had a gift card from my birthday to use, so I didn't actually spend my own money. So I'm not sure if it counts. I got this because I've had my eye on it for weeks on end! Then I got two of these to hit the free shipping mark! I still have a little of the gift card left, so I'm not feeling completely horrible! ;)

Then Saturday/Sunday we played in a weekend volleyball tournament. We paid the 100 dollar entrance fee, but usually teammates pitch in as well. So the total there should be a bit less than 40.

Because of the exhausting all day tourney, we were tired and hungry: no one was cooking. We went out to an actual restaurant and between the two of us spent at least 30 bucks.

So the total damage was probably about 125 dollars in food, fun, and makeup. I have excuses like the bi-annual Sephora sale+ gift card and just being too tired to move after the vball tourney, but the question for you is... did I fail?

Let a girl know in the comments! :)

If you read this post last week, you know that I'm trying a no spend month in April. I thought some of you might be interested in how it's going. So without further ado- week 1 recap.

How I did:
Good! I didn't buy anything, but I ate fast food at Arby's one day. I spent about 4 dollars- so overall, I wasn't too worried about the expense. It was more or less the lame as if I had eaten a meal at home.

Shopping temptation:
 I would have to say I didn't really have much temptation to shop at all. But for the sake of honesty, I need to explain why. For one, many of my March purchases came in the mail- so I was certainly still "getting" new things. (Including those cute socks up there from Happy Socks!) Secondly, I had a couple blogger collaborations where I was able to pick out a thing or two, so I was able to shop for free- which I know is not realistic for most people. Hopefully next week will be more normal, with more normal struggles.

Food/Entertainment temptation:
Like I said- I did eat out the one time. But when I plan ahead properly the temptation to eat out is extremely lessened. I'm planning on writing a blog post on my meal prep routine here soon!
As for entertainment- I'm using what I already have at home: Netflix and movies. A film comes out in a couple weeks that I want to see, but I'm just planning to go the first of May ;)


Strategies that are working:
-meal planning and meal prep
-unsubscribing from emails and deleting the ones that come through
-writing a list of any desired purchases (I explained why in my first post)

I have a serious love of online shopping. I get a huge rush from buying things, and a rush waiting for them to arrive, and another rush from trying all my new things on when they arrive. It's so addicting and I always come back for more. But affording it is a whole other thing. So... how do I do it?

Well for starters, it seems only fair to tell you that truthfully I probably don't afford it. I could be saving up for important life events or traveling to exotic places. But honestly? I like to shop, and so I do.

Rule #1
The most important thing to remember is a 4 letter word... SALE. Unless you can get an item on sale, you don't buy it. Simple enough. It's not hard to find sale prices on items, or to get a sale price using a promo code. Using sites like RetailMeNot are great ways to find deals, but I like to use Ebates (see below) because the promo codes and cash back are all in once place. Which brings us to Rule #2

Rule#2
Get "cash back" on your online purchases. Using Ebates is an amazing way to get money back on purchases. I've been using it for nearly a year and have already gotten over 100 dollars back. Use this link to get a 10 dollar bonus on your first purchase!! :)

If you're still curious about how it works, here is a look at some of my quarterly "paychecks" From Sephora, to Eastbay, Nordstrom, Old Navy and more- this is a great way to save even more on your deals.



Rule #3
Be willing to let things go. Many times I afford to buy new things by selling old things. I like to sell old shoes, handbags, and jewelry on eBay. Name brand things do really well for with resale value. Last spring I bought a new blush bag by selling one of my Michael Kors crossbody bags I wasn't using a lot.
This is an example of what I'm selling right now. Justin boots, NARS, Kendra Scott, and Lia Sophia. (Not pictured- a rare print of Lularoe leggings)
Take lots of photos, write a good description, and maintain high ratings, and the sales will come! :)

Specific Money Saving Examples:

1. I saw a pair of pink Nike shoes on Instagram, and decided I wanted a pair. So the hunt was on. I found that there were a couple of retailers selling them online. Using Ebates, I found that one of those retailers had a 15 percent off coupon, free shipping, AND 7% cash back through Ebates.

Original Price: $85.00
- Discount using code from eBates: 12.75
-Cash Back through eBates: $5.25
Final Price: $67.00
Total Savings: 21%

2. Kate Spade bag
Original Price: $378
Sale Price: $190
25% Discount code: $142
-Cash Back from Ebates: $4.99
Final Price: $138
Total Savings: 63% 

3. Last spring I was able to afford a couple Kendra Scott Jewelry pieces because KS had a deal going for a pair of free earrings for every 100 dollars spent. I bought 3 things and got 2 pieces for free, so I sold a few of the pieces and was able to pay off most of the rest of my purchase. eBay was awesome for this!


What are some things you do to save money while shopping?

If you're a little bit of a gambler, this blog post is for you. I rarely, IF EVER, pay full price for anything. I'm either finding sales, promo codes, using Ebates (if you do not know what that is, click that link NOW. I promise you will not regret it!)
I really wanted some rose gold aviators from Ray-Ban but I didn't want to shell out full price. I found a couple options for a little bit cheaper!

#1 : Overstock 

Overstock is a great option, because they are a well known company, and accept returns if you aren't happy with your purchase, as long as they aren't marked final sale. Overstock is also 6 percent cashback on Ebates! (Don't have Ebates? Click the above link!) I like this mirrored pink pair and this brown/pink gradient pair that are similar to mine.

#2 : Ebay

This is the less safe, more gambly option. However, this was the option I chose! However, you want to be careful and get a real pair.
Tips:
Don't choose a pair that is incredibly cheap:
If you're thinking the price is too good to be true, it probably is, and those glasses can't possibly be real

Check the seller's Feedback:
I chose this buyer and he has pretty great feedback, his only negative within the last year is pretty self explanatory if you look it up. When I got my glasses they came with the box, the case, and the cleaning cloth.

If it is a large/business seller, choose one who allows returns

Check out this website for indicators if your pair is real:
http://www.stepbystep.com/how-to-spot-a-fake-ray-ban-aviator-2566/
I found it to be very helpful!

#3 : Department Stores

1. When you didn't download Ebates

2. When you said “no” to the movie theater rewards card

3. When you failed to check promo code sites before you purchased online

4. When you didn’t submit your Walmart receipt to savings catcher

5. When you threw your stuff away instead of selling it on eBay

6. When you didn’t download the Ibotta or Checkout 51 app

7. When you threw away your fast food receipt

Chick-Fil-A often gives you a survey to fill out for a free sandwich, and so many people don’t take the 3 minutes to fill it out for the coupon code. Wendy’s, McDonalds, and other fast food restaurants also have similar surveys for money off coupons or buy one get one coupons. It might take a couple minutes, but the money saving is definitely worth it. It might only be 2 dollars off, but when you throw that receipt out, you just said no to free money.

8. When you didn’t use your credit card cash-back programs

Credit cards can be a little bit tricky if you don’t know how to use them properly. They get a lot of people into financial trouble. However, if you are using them smartly, you can definitely make a good chunk of change doing it. (Here is a more in-depth post I wrote on this) Many credit cards have quarterly cash back programs for 5 percent cash back on groceries, gasoline, online shopping, etc. Then they also have programs with online retailers to offer usually 5-20 percent cash back on online purchases. (Discover Card is amazing for this.) I know some others like to use their points for airline tickets too. No matter what you use your points for, you can definitely make money using a credit card over cash. Tip: Using your points on gift cards usually increases the amount you get back. For instance, on Discover card, I can get 100 dollar gift cards for 80 dollars of my cash back bonus!

9. When you didn’t download the Shopkick app

10. When you didn’t become a resturant VIP

Things I Expected to Happen

1. I thought we would save money

This is an obvious one, and one that we were most curious about. One day I hope to stay home with our future babies, and when that time comes I would be doing more cooking at home. We were wondering how much money that would save us.

2. I thought I would lose weight 

Everyone always talks about the amount of calories we all eat when we go out- especially mindlessly: the rolls, the unlimited chips and salsa, etc. I figured there was no way my cooking would be as unhealthy.

3. I thought I would miss eating out

I looooove eating out. I really thought I would crave it a lot and end up cheating. Initially we set a once a week cheat meal. 

4. I thought I would struggle with time management making meals

I am getting my master's and had classes Tuesday and Thursday night for 3 hours each, plus homework, plus my full time job, plus this blog. Where would I find the time to cook and meal plan?

5. I thought our love life might be negatively impacted without date night

Date nights our important way for me to spend time with my husband. I love asking him silly questions and making him open up about things when we go out to eat. I didn't want to lose that time.

The Results

1. We saved money

It's a bit strange sharing our credit card spending online, and I'm sure some people are going to be judgey about it, but if people are really going to see the difference, they'll have to see the trends. This is all the statements for 2016. The last one, is 95 percent of April, and the amount is a staggering amount lower. Even though we spent more on groceries, those trips to the store didn't add up to the amount we ever spent at restaurants. 

 

 

My husband said that another reason we spent less was because since we weren't going out to eat, we also weren't going out doing other things that would cost us money. To be fair, we also didn't travel or make any large purchases or do house renovations. 

2. I did not lose weight

I was so surprised that my weight stayed steady. I really thought I would drop 3-5 pounds by not eating out all month because of the amount that we did eat out. This taught me that perhaps my portions are the problem and the snacking- not the meals. However, I will say that I think I "looked better" even though my weight hadn't changed.

3. I did not really miss eating out!

I totally thought I would crave all my favorites! But the truth is, I rarely craved it, and even now that it's over I'm not craving. Perhaps it really is an addiction and I've somewhat broken it. I wrote this post May 12th and I've only gone out once since this "ended." We do have plans to eat out this weekend though for my hubby's birthday!

4. Time management got much easier.

I learned how to plan ahead, and my grocery list making became much more important. I threw away/wasted less food, which is really great! My husband got into cooking too- he made dinner Tuesday nights when I had class from 4-7. That was a shock!

5. My husband and I actually got closer

Making dinner together and spending time together actually made me feel closer to my husband. We made grocery lists together and grocery shopped together. I loved it. When he helped out and made dinners on Tuesdays I just loved him even more!

Overall, I'm thrilled with the results of our no eat out month. I think we learned skills that will help us in the future with saving money and managing our household! 

I hope this post encourages you in some way, or was helpful to you deciding whether you should give your household this same challenge! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Grocery-

If you've read Dave Ramsey, you must know that he preaches cutting up every credit card you have and putting them in the trash. While I like a lot of his ideas - I could never part with my credit card. Besides the normal things, like ease of use, and a feeling of safety (sure, steal the card, I'll call and turn it off) my credit card is one of my biggest tricks to save money when I shop.

Bear in mind that I am an online shopper. I believe that because of that, I've saved money. Shipping is usually free, and in some cases, so is the return shipping. (Take advantage of that when you are on the fence about something. You can always send it back!) Often, we find it easier to take advantage of coupon savings and offers. (Check out retailmenot.com for codes!)
However, my Discover Card is what has really given me discounts that I don't think people utilize enough. (For the record, Discover is NOT paying me to say any of this, nor did they ask me to.) However, I think it is super importan to have the right credit card if you are a shopoholic like me. If someone refers you, you can get a 50 dollar cash back bonus! (Let me know if you need an invitaiton email! ;)

This cashback is what sets Discover apart for me. Sure, it gives a lousy percentage back on regular purchases (I usually prefer my Chase Visa for regular spending) but on online shopping you can rake in the discounts.

Take Sephora for instance, who never seems to offer discounts on their products. They have sales about twice a year. However, I have gotten 10 percent off my order EVERY time I have ever purchased something. (Plus, you get to pick out all these samples, and read all the reviews. Online rocks!) Once, I bought a 60 dollar product, used a 50 dollar giftcard and used Discover for the last 10 dollars, and Discover awarded me 6 dollars in cashback (The full amount) even though I only "paid" for 10!

So basically, this discount is because if you go through the Discover site, you can use their Discover Deals to get cashback. This cashback is added to your account every month, and you can decide how to spend it, whether that is by putting it in the bank, putting it towards your balance, or even cashing some of it in for an ever larger value gift card - therefore getting EVEN MORE for your money. In the past, I have spend 80 of my cashback to recieve a 100 dollar gift card. Now that is smart shopping.

Here is a list of stores that you may be interested in and their cashback percentages
10% cashback at Nordstroms
10% cashback at Macys
10% cashback at Old Navy
15% cashback at Saks Fifth Ave
5% cashback at Victoria's Secret
5% cashback at Express
5% cashback at J. Crew and J. Crew outlet
5% cashback at Anthropology
10% cashback on Orbitz hotels
10% casback on a Norwegian cruise (love them!!)

The list goes on, but you get the idea!!!

It doesn't stop there. If you sign up for the quarterly 5% cashback rewards program, every 3 months Discover will give you 5% back on different categories like movies, restaurants, gasoline, home improvement, online shopping etc. In the winter, my online shopping 5% has compounded onto my other cashback bonuses as well.

Discover also offers random bonus programs if they don't feel like you are using the card enough. I once got a large 500 dollar cashback for spending 1,500 a month for 6 months. Easiest thing in the world for someone like me!

Overall, the idea here is simple. Make the credit card work for you. Don't let it control you. A good rule of thumb (that really, you HAVE to follow) is to pay your credit card off in full each month. Don't spend to the point that you can't pay it off... that isn't responsible, and your credit will suffer. After having my card for over 5 years, and always paying the balance, my husband and I were able to use my great credit to get a mortgage to buy a home. Be smart with your money.
You can do it.
:)

Let me know if you have any questions. I'd be happy to help.
Happy shopping!

The cool new thing is painting in groups with an instructor helping you make your canvas beautiful (very helpful to people like me who aren't overly artistically gifted.) Add the availability of wine and I'm there. However, it's kind of expensive. The local place was 35 a person. And the boy and I couldn't agree on a painting to go and do. Furthermore, then we have 2 of the same painting more or less. The solution? DIY of course.

You know how people restrict their calories the day after a binge eat? Well I'm doing that, but with money, after a ridiculous shopoholic January. We are saving up for a house this fall, so this needs to be done now before it's too late. I need to remind myself now to live frugally again.

These aren't groundbreaking, but we all need a reminder!