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Frugal Novice

Tips for Spring Cleaning Success!

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Spring is the perfect time to clean up the clutter and dust that accumulates over winter and set yourself up for a productive remainder of the year! Tackle your project with the following three-step formula from Laura Stack, aka The Productivity Pro.

1.       Get ready… Before you begin cleaning, be ready to tackle the clutter.

  • Prepare for a spring cleaning spree. Start by labeling five large boxes: Put Away, Give Away, Store Away, Shred, and Trash. Select an area, such as a drawer, desk, or room to organize first.
  • Use a timer. Don’t view spring cleaning as an all-day task. Take an hour here and there to get the job done over several weekends. When you’re ready to begin, set your timer for 50 minutes. When it buzzes, use the last ten minutes of your organization session to handle the boxes: put things away, place charity items in the car, put items in storage, shred and toss out the trash.
  • Focus. Concentrate on organizing one area at a time. If you don’t focus, you’ll end up with multiple “half-organized” areas.

Donations

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Did You Know? Q&A: Preservatives and Their Benefits

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I have always felt like I am pretty knowledgeable when it comes to food, but I recently learned about preservatives and discovered I’d been giving them an unfairly bad rap. I didn’t know what benefits they provide – but now I do, thanks to a Q&A from ConAgra.

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Lanie Friedman Director, Communications & External Relations at ConAgra Foods, Kelly Magurany, Principal Research Scientists- Toxicology – Food Protection and Regulatory Affairs at ConAgra Foods and Kristi Reimers, RD, PhD, Nutrition and Director of Nutrition in Research & Innovations at ConAgra Foods provided all sorts of information about all preservatives, and more specifically about antioxidants. And now I get to share all I learned with you! Here are some basic facts:

Why should we preserve our food? 

  • Taste
  • Freshness
  • Safety
  • Natural color preservation
  • Food waste reduction

How can we preserve our food? 

  • Methods like canning and freezing – even putting foods in the fridge helps preserve foods
  • Ingredients can be added to every day packaged foods to help preserve them

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DIY Dollar Tree Spring/Summer Centerpiece

Note: This is a partnered post with Dollar Tree. I hope you enjoy this DIY decor project – it is my concept, and all opinions in this post are mine as well.

Spring is in the air, and I’ve been having fun helping our home decor reflect the change in seasons. Our Easter decor is put away, and there aren’t any more holidays we’ll decorate for until the Fourth of July, so I was on the hunt for a table centerpiece that would work through spring and the first half of summer.

I don’t want to spend a ton on decor items, and it can be easy to spend upwards of $40 to end up with something cute, so I decided to shop Dollar Tree for some stylish and affordable options.

I knew I wanted something colorful, so a blue woven placemat jumped out at me as the perfect base for our centerpiece.

Next I looked at vases – they have a TON, which I knew because I’ve shopped their vases for an office party before. But I hadn’t seen these bud vases before, with a fun orange chevron print. The orange contrasts against the blue perfectly!

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Five Ways to Save Money on Your Groceries

I love finding savings in any shopping I do, which I’m sure comes as no surprise. Coupons set my heart aflutter, and I have been known to text my mom and let her know just how much money I’ve saved on a bargain. The Penny Hoarder is a blog that is very centered on saving money, and they’ve recently shared a way to save all sorts of money on groceries (and in some cases, even earn money). I thought I’d share it with you in case you’d be just as interested in this as I was! Click here to check out the tips!

Denny’s Denny’s = Win Win!

Note: This partnered post is brought to you as a part of my ambassadorship with Denny’s Diners. All opinions are honest and my own. Thanks to Mark Ryann for the great photos for this post!

I loved being a Denny’s Ambassador last year, and was pretty stinkin’ excited when I found out I get to continue that relationship throughout this year, too. I love all the forethought Denny’s puts into making their menus top-notch, and I love their creative and fun campaigns, like this one I get to share with you today!

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When you’re about to put the pedal to the metal for a big race, it’s important that you’re all fueled up – and no one knows that better than Denny Hamlin, NASCAR star driver. Of course, Denny’s Diners understand the value of fueling up, too – with good food! So it only makes sense that these namesakes have teamed up together for a really cool partnership. Denny Hamlin has introduced the world’s first – and ONLY – “Denny’s Denny’s,” a mobile unit which features an authentic Denny’s booth, Hamlin’s famous fork collection and syrup gas tanks.

If you’re a NASCAR fan you’ll want to be sure and stop by to check out the custom “Denny’s Denny’s” as it travels with Hamlin from track to track.

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Getting Ready for Summer: Test-Driving Dove Advanced Care Anti-Perspirant/Deodorant

I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Dove. I received a product sample and promotional item to thank me for my participation.

It’s basically already summer here in Texas, with temperatures regularly in the 80’s. My son is playing baseball and we’ve got lots of baseball practices and games in the near future, so I know I need to have a defense ready against sweat! I’m excited to try Dove Advanced Care Anti-Perspirant/Deodorant because I love regular Dove deodorant and I’m looking forward to getting even more protection against body odor – it provides 48-hour odor and wetness protection, and it goes beyond odor and wetness protection to offer softer, smoother underarms. Can’t beat that!

Keep an eye out for my upcoming post, where I’ll put it to the test and let you know all about it!

 

Spruce up for Spring with Carter’s!

“I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for Carter’s. I received a complimentary gift card to facilitate my review and thank me for my participation.”

Spring has sprung, and boy am I glad. Cold weather and I just aren’t the best of friends, and when spring temperatures arrive I’m a happy girl. It means bike rides with the kids, walks around the neighborhood, baseball practice and plenty of time in the back yard.

Spring also heralds the arrival of bright colors in clothes, and there’s just something cheery about shopping for spring wardrobes. This is especially the case for me in shopping for the kids, and Carter’s is always one of my very favorite places to find their new clothes.

Of course, Easter is right around the corner, and finding shirts for the boys (aged 5 & 7) was on my to-do list. Carter’s has a great Easter selection, and I had a hard time picking between solids and prints, polos and button-ups. So many cute options! I ended up getting a bright plaid for J and a chambray for C. I like that they’re not matchy-matchy, but they’ll coordinate really well.

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New Huggies Snug & Dry Ultra Diapers: Great Protection at a Great Value

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Huggies® for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

I’m sure most of you have experienced this: you’re out with your child, and you set her in your lap. Suddenly, your leg is wet and you realize that your child’s diaper has leaked. This has happened to us when we were out, which meant she also leaked in her car seat. And every parent knows washing a car seat cover is no easy task.

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Huggies® Snug & Dry Ultra Diapers (available only at Walmart) are a lifesaver when it comes to preventing leaks. There’s a snug fit around the waist, along the hips, and around each leg, adding up to a strong barrier against leaks.

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Moms, You Don’t Have to Drive a Minivan!

Confession: we’re that family. The ones who said we’d never drive a minivan. And the ones who now do drive a minivan to car around our three kids. It works well for us, and truthfully I like it more than I ever thought I would. That being said, I really wasn’t aware of all my options when we made the leap to minivan-ownership, so I’d like to provide a public service now and make you aware of some options beyond the minivan. These are cars we’re considering for our next trade-in, starting with:

1. Chevrolet Traverse. This is a mid-sized SUV that seats up to 8 and has a ton of cargo space (116.3 cubic feet). It has six airbags, including an industry-first front-center air bag, and available Forward Collision Alert and Lane Departure Warning. Both of those features are perfect for driving with kids (aka distractions) in the back of your car. The safety features abound, and it gets decent gas mileage, too: 17 mpg/city and 24 mpg/hwy.

For other great alternatives to a minivan (including one that gets 34 mpg on the freeway!) visit my guest post over at the Bob Pulte Chevrolet dealership blog!

A Mom’s View: Favorite Features of the Dodge Grand Caravan

My parents started driving a Dodge Grand Caravan when I was in middle school, probably anticipating the vast number of times they’d have to cart me and my friends around. I’m pretty sentimental about the Caravan because of many great memories made over the years, but now as a mom of three kids I can appreciate the new Grand Caravans and all they have to offer. I never thought I’d be a “minivan mom” but I’ve definitely come to appreciate how great they are for families. Here are my favorite features of the Dodge Grand Caravan, starting with:

1. Seating for Seven. There’s plenty of room in the caravan for my family of five, with three rows that allow for some separation among siblings when needed. And when it’s parked, the 60/40 split folding third-row bench seats can flip completely rearward – perfect for tailgating or hitting up the local drive-in theater.

The rest of my favorites can be found in my guest post over at the Marty Cancila Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram dealership blog. Go check it out, and see why you’ll love the Dodge Grand Caravan, too.

Tips for DIY Detailing

I love having my car detailed; I’ve only done it twice, but both times I left the car wash feeling like I was in a brand-new vehicle. I also detailed my car before I traded it in; I felt like I wanted to put my best foot forward before going to the dealership. No matter what your circumstance, detailing your vehicle is a way to pamper yourself – and your car. If you’re not willing, or able, to shell out the money for someone else to detail your car, don’t worry! Did you know you can easily do it yourself and save money? Here’s a great tip to get you started:

1. Use an air compressor. Borrow one, rent one, or invest in one – regardless of how you acquire one, you’ll be glad you did. An air compressor lets you get rid of all the dirt in all the tiny nooks and crevices of your car, and loosens dirt from the carpet and seats.

Find out what else you should do to end up with a well-detailed car by visiting my post at the Lebanon Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership blog!

Keeping Your Car Clean – Even with Kids!

I have three children, ages 7, 5, and 2. I feel like that statement right there probably gives you a good glimpse of the state of our car interior at most times: chaotic.

The car clutter snuck up on me gradually, so much so that I almost wasn’t even bothered by it for a while? until one day as we had our minivan’s side door open at day care pickup, I glanced into the back and saw it for the wreck it was: cereal crumbs, juice boxes, toys and all.

From that point onward it’s been a goal of mine to keep our car presentable; my standard is having it so we wouldn’t be embarrassed to offer someone a ride. Over time I’ve learned to manage the clutter and keep the car decent, and have a few tips that might help you, too. Here’s the first:

1. Package food well. I think most parents will agree it’s pretty ridiculous to suggest a no-eating rule in the car. I tried it for one week, and realized it made life harder, so I abandoned that pretty quickly. When we’re running late in the morning, it’s easier to let the kids eat breakfast on the drive to school, for instance. I’ve learned that we have to pick smart food – granola bars work well; cereal with lots of small pieces does not – and that we need to package food in the right way to help keep crumbs at bay.  When the children do bring cereal, we put it in a larger baggie, filling it only about ¼ of the way. You don’t want leftovers, because those will inevitably be spilled.

For the rest of these great tips, check out my guest post at the East Hills Chevrolet of Roslyn dealership blog!