Simple meals

Last night for dinner, we had roasted chicken with lemon and herbs, braised kale with garlic and asparagus, with apple crisp for dessert.

The kale came from some plants the kids had put in a raised bed in our back yard. It's sweet and delicious and everyone loved it. Asparagus and apples came from our bi-weekly produce bin delivery and the chicken was from a huge buy at Safeway ($.99/lb so I stocked up and packaged in freezer bags).

Home cooking saves money and is better for your health. Keep it simple and you can have a meal on the table each night with just a bit of kitchen work.

Quick Walgreens Trip

Today is Saturday, the last day of the weekly Walgreens ad. I stopped in briefly with my older DD for a quick trip.

Transaction 1
Edge shaving gel for $2.99+tax. Paid with my Walgreens gift card (which was loaded up from rebates) Received a $3 Register Reward coupon which I used for...

Transaction 2
2 Red Baron pizzas (2/$5) I had a $1 off 2 manufacturer's coupon
2 Arm & Hammer deodorant ($.99 each with Walgreens in-ad coupon)
2 Mentos gum (on sale for 2/$2) I had 2 $1 off coupons

I used the $RR and paid $3.16 out of pocket. Total cost of the two transactions was $6.42. Not bad for all that I got!

Stocks up

Stocks are up based on news of some economic recovery and a rising housing market. Still a good time to buy, if you are looking at the long-term.

CD rates have been super low recently. I've been keeping an eye on BankRate.com's chart of CD rates.

Doing the Deals

Thanks to the tips from Money Saving Mom and the forums at A Full Cup, I got some great deals today from Target and Walgreens.

Target has Quaker products on sale and if you buy 5, you get a $5 Target Gift Card. I used coupons from the Sunday paper inserts and got 5 bars of various types of granola bars. Total out of pocket? $8.25, less than $2/box. And I have the gift card for my next trip to Target. Those will go in my kids' lunch boxes.

Time to start tax preparation

This is a good time to gather your materials for 2008 tax year returns. For those of certain income levels and return complexity, there are free filing options available online.

Free Finance Book from Suze Orman and Oprah

Suze Orman's latest book, 2009 Action Plan is available for free download for a limited time. In English or Spanish.

Thanks to Suze Orman and Oprah for making this resource available free.

Saving with Coupons

In today's local paper (may not be in all markets) was a coupon for a free Tazo Starbucks tea drink. I had mine today and it was yummy, even tastier for being free!

Lately, I've made many Walgreens trips. Two sales this week are especially good. Garnier hair care products are on sale for $2.99 and there's a $2 off coupon in the Walgreens Easy Saver coupon book (available in their stores, usually near the front door). Also on special (with a coupon from the weekly flyer) is Quaker instant oatmeal 10 count package. Couple it with a manufacturer's coupon and your total price is $.99 per box.