Homemade Yogurt in the Crock Pot

The Tired Chef recently sent me a link for a homemade crock pot yogurt recipe. We go through a lot of yogurt, so I figured I'd give it a try. Following the recipe, I threw some ingredients into the crock pot:



And 1/2 day later, voila:



From 1 cup of yogurt and 1/2 gallon of milk, we got 8 cups of yogurt (64 oz...or, twice as much as the large 32oz container I had originally bought from the store). I think I figured out that after the cost of the ingredients (about $2.50), it made $5 worth of yogurt. Not too shabby for just sitting around waiting for milk to spoil ;)

(I love that top pic, with little Sam in the background, eating the last of the store-bought yogurt as I work on making some new homemade stuff...)

NOTE: The yogurt came out great! Jake and Sam loved it, and the consistency was perfect - even had the liquidy whey on top! Yay :) And since I won't have to actually BUY yogurt to make yogurt any more, that brings all subsequent batches to the cost of just a half gallon of milk, or around $1.80. Even better!

Affiliates

You might have noticed that Hestermania! now has affiliate links. I wanted to highlight some cool companies that make products I either use myself or would love to use - and that I think most of you readers might like, too. Please take a moment to take a look at them...feel free to leave me your thoughts about the affiliates I've chosen, or to recommend others.

Here's who we have so far:

Udder Covers



Promo code for a FREE Udder Covers nursing cover! Use promo code "onefree" and it brings the price from $32 to $0! (plus shipping)

I recently purchased a nursing cover for myself from Udder Covers (still waiting for it to arrive!) and got it FREE - just paid shipping. Plus, after I completed my order, I received a code for a free sling from their sister company, SevenSlings.com - just paid shipping. My sling has arrived and I really like it a lot - and more importantly, so does Sam. I can't use it for too long without having to take her out (she's not the lightest baby), but it's been good in a pinch when I'm in the middle of something and she's demanding to be held. Can't gaurantee you'll get the free sling code, but even without it, it's a good deal.

Tummy Tankz



I don't have this specific belly cover, but I do have a different one a friend gave me when I was pregnant, and it was WONDERFUL for keeping my big belly completely covered under those not-quite-long-enough maternity shirts. And anyone pregnant in the winter knows how important it is to DODGE THE DRAFT. Now that I'm nursing, I find this useful for keeping my belly covered while I'm nursing in public -my nursing cover doesn't always stay put over my belly while Sam is swinging her arms around and kicking happily. And not only is my belly covered while nursing, it's also DODGING THE DRAFT.

Go Get Your Free Stuff

I thought people might not want to read another post about how to get free stuff, but then I thought, really? Who doesn't like free?!

Here are the best/easiest deals I've seen or done lately:

Mac'N'Cheese crackers:
http://www.nabiscoworld.com/macncheesecrackers/KMC_Crackers_Refund_Offer_Form.pdf
Free after rebate.

Pert for Men:
http://www.trypertplusfree.com/forms/pertplusmen_rebate.pdf
Though I haven't found this in a store yet... If anyone does, let me know.

Seattle's Best coffee:
http://www.seattlesbest.com/media/special/SBC_MBG-Refund_Offer_Form.pdf
I bought this at Shoprite last night. I cut it open to get the UPC off the bag, and it smelled SO GOOD. Too bad it was midnight and I was in no mood to caffeinate myself.

Juicy Juice sippy cup:
http://www.juicyjuice.com/Login/Register.aspx
Mine came in the mail today - I was just thinking yesterday how I really wanted to buy Jacob his own new sippy cup, instead of just using Lily's hand-me-downs!

Quaker True Delights bar:
https://smartsource.wufoo.com/forms/get-your-free-sample/
Fill out the form and it will get sent to you. I got mine in the mail last week and it was SO GOOD.
Milk Matters coloring book:
http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs_details.cfm?from=milk&pubs_id=5639
Got Lily's in the mail last week. We can always use new coloring books!

Glucerna cereal:
https://glucerna.com/offer/coupon.aspx?s=ruby
Fill this out and you'll get a coupon good for up to $5 a box of cereal. You can print it twice, and use it on two boxes. I bought two boxes for $4-something each at CVS, so they were both free.

Speaking of cereal...there is a strawberry SmartStart cereal or a blueberry MiniWheats cereal that you can try for free. Just go to your grocery store and find the box with the big, yellow, "Try it Free!" across the top, and fill out the rebate form inside the box.

Here's a nice money-maker at CVS this month:
http://thefreebieblogger.com/cvs-april-deals-natural-dentist-moneymaker/
You basically buy 2 of these mouth rinses to qualify for the $10 mail-in rebate, but you also get $4 extra bucks for each, so you earn about $8 in the end. Not too shabby.

Don't forget - you can still sign up at any Aerie for their A-List club, and get a free gift once a month. Last month was a cute floral tote bag, this month was body spray. Free is good.

Every day, it's like my birthday getting the mail. I never know what's going to be in there! Will it be a free product? (Today was the sippy cup.) Will it be a rebate? (Yesterday's was for peanut butter.)

OK, I have to stop stalling now. Both kids are sleeping and I have to finish cleaning the house before friends come over tonight. I'm SUCH a good staller...

Free Is Good

Here is Jacob stuffing has face on Free Pancake Day at Ihop last month:







And here are Ryan and Lily on Free Water Ice Day at Rita's Friday night:



(The face she makes when you say, "Smile!")





(The face she makes when something is very hot or - in this case - very cold.)

Pam and I hit up Ikea's Free Breakfast Saturday morning, but unfortunately, we were too busy speaking in hypotheticals to take pictures.

Freebies and Savings

Lori and I had quite the eventful trip to the mall today...with all four kids. The freebies were a'rollin'! We each got a free pair of undies at "Aerie" (American Eagle), I got a free tote at Victoria's Secret, I got my free weekly goodies at CVS, and we bought a coffee at Seattle's Best (in Borders) and got one free. Plus we snagged free Auntie Anne's pretzel samples (ehem...twice), free coffee and scone samples at Seattle's Best, and free chocolate samples at Godiva. So we left the mall with happy bellies and lots of bags, and only spent $2 each on coffee.

Pretty sweet.

I thought I'd mention some of the better freebies floating around online right now. My Bloglines account contains so many "thrift" and "coupon" and "savings" blogs that sometimes it can take a while sorting through legitimate, desireable savings verses offers that aren't really a good deal or that just aren't that interesting. Sure, the Melting Pot is offering free chocolate fondue, but you have to buy a meal for two to use it, and you KNOW how expensive that place is, so that doesn't really constitute "free" in my book.

And yes, I've had to give my junk e-mail address to LOTS of different companies, but hey - they send me coupons for free stuff, so keep the e-mails coming!

Here's what we did today:

Free Underwear from Aerie
(print coupon then bring to the store and sign up for their "A List" club)
What we really liked about joining this is that we get a free gift EVERY MONTH, plus one on your birthday! (Offer expires Wednesday, so hurry!)

Free Tote from Victoria's Secret
(fill out the form then bring the coupon to the store)

Buy One Get One Free Mocha or Latte from Seattle's Best (in Borders)
What a great coupon to print over and over and over again!

Here's some more free stuff floating around right now:

Free Sure Deodorant
(buy the deodorant listed and use this form for a full refund)

Free Sample of GoodNites Underpants

Just for Men Touch of Gray Hair Color
(buy the product and use this form for a full refund)

Free Gardener's Idea Book from Proven Winners
(when you join the "Winners Circle" e-mail list)

Some More Gardening Freebies

Free Diet Dr. Pepper

Free Breakfast at Ikea
(March 20th-22nd, 2009)

Free Italian Ice at Rita's
(March 20th - to celebrate the 1st day of Spring)

Free Diabetes Meter from One-Touch
(fill out a questionairre)
This reminds me: I am now selling the afore-mentioned blood glucose monitoring kit on eBay, since no one I knew wanted it for free.

Free Pretzel from Auntie Anne's
(when you buy one pretzel)
I know this doesn't really count as free according to my own rules, but come on...you know you were going to buy one anyway LORI so that really does make the extra one free ;)

There are more freebies showing up in my Bloglines regularly - I can't keep up with them all. Seems my printer can't, either - I'm just about out of ink. Yikes! Thank goodness the printer was free and so was the paper ;)

Rockin' CVS!

This Black Friday (actually, I shopped on Thursday), CVS had a gajillion things virtually for free. Here's what I got:



1 Aussie shampoo and 1 conditioner - Free w/ECBs
2 Colgate toothpastes - Free w/ECBs + $2.50 in overages from coupons
1 Sally Hanson nail polish - Free w/ECBs
1 25-pack Garnier make-up removing wipes - Free w/ECBs
KitKat and Hershey's info below...not free*
1 King-Size Reese's - Free w/ECBs
1 Bic Soleil w/ 2 cartridges - Free w/ECBs + $3 in overage from coupon
1 Johnson's dry skin lotion - Free w/ECBs + $1 in overage from coupon
2 L'Oreal lip glosses - Free w/ECBs + $1 in overage from coupon
1 L'Oreal anti-wrinkle serum - Free w/ raincheck
3 Gatorade G2s - Free w/ECBs

So all that was free PLUS I gained $7.50 in ECBs b/c of the coupons I used! Thanks, CVS, for paying me to take home more of your stuff. ;)

*I messed up and spent $1 on the KitKat b/c I didn't realize the Reese's was part of the same deal and I had already reached my limit of one. In another transaction, I bought the Hershey bar instead of losing $.60 in ECBs. Mmmm chocolate. (The wrapper is actually empty in the photo above because Ryan ate it already.) Then add up the tax on all the purchases and you figure I spent $3.50 out of pocket for everything - still less than the amount I gained in ECBs.

Hmm...$3.50 is about the same amount I would have spent on just the Gatorade (which I love). Pretty sweet!

This was my Black Friday shopping challenge. Some of these items are going in my Operation Christmas Child stash for next year - I figure if I start now, I'll have a TON of stuff to donate by next Thanksiving, and that has me VERY excited.

Operation Christmas Child

There is a special cause close to my heart that I would like to share. It is called Operation Christmas Child, and it is run by an organization called Samaritan's Purse (Billy Graham's son Franklin is the President/CEO). Each Christmas, they send shoe boxes full of toys and health care items to children in impoverished parts of the world.

From their Website:
"Operation Christmas Child brings joy and hope to children in desperate situations around the world through gift-filled shoe boxes and the Good News of God’s love. Since 1993, more than 61 million shoe boxes have been packed, shipped, and delivered across the globe. People of all ages can be involved in this simple, hands-on missions project while focusing on the true meaning of Christmas—Jesus Christ."

Last year, I had a lot of fun shopping for a 5-9 year old girl and picking out all sorts of goodies to send her way...toys and snacks she could share with her friends, stationery she could treasure as her own, health care products to make her life a little easier or safer. I really looked forward to doing it again this year. I found that it was such an easy, tangible way to give during Thanksgiving.


(Photo from the OCC Website.)

So it's National Collection Week now, and all boxes are due by November 24th. To get involved, first read the shopping/packing instructions, then enter your zip code to find the box drop-off location closest to you (you don't have to ship it to some faraway land yourself!). I would love for everyone to consider putting together at least one box for a kid who could really use an encouragement this Christmas. You might even have enough new things sitting around the house to donate...unopened Happy Meal toys, bars of soap or tubes of toothpaste, a full sheet of stickers. You could even include a bunch of things you got free at CVS using ECBs, like I'll be doing ;)

And while you're in the spirit of giving... (hehe)
Hello to everyone in the Northeast who shops at ShopRite, and a special "Congrats!" to those of you who have already qualified for your free Thanksgiving turkey. We, unfortunately, do not fit that category - the one irony in using so many coupons is that we haven't spent enough money!

SOOOO, to anyone who has already qualified, or to anyone who is not trying, please SPREAD THE LOVE and use our PricePlus number the next time you go shopping at ShopRite. Just leave a comment and I'll e-mail you back with our PricePlus number - cashiers can manually type it in and this is completely legitimate. Thanks in advance!

CVS ECBs Plus A Give-Away!

Here's a couponing/CVS update: I'm still at it. I decided to give it a month or two and see how it goes. Does it really save me money, or entice me to spend even more? The jury's still out.

CVS ECBs are Extra Care Bucks. These are like store credits that print out on the bottom of your receipt after you've bought qualifying items and scanned your CVS card. For instance, Crest Pro-Health Whitening toothpaste is now on sale for $3.49, with $3.49 back in ECBs when you buy it. So, I "purchased" it for $3.49, used a $1.00 off manufacturer coupon, paid the balance with $2.50 in ECBs I already had, and got another $3.49 ECB back on the bottom of my receipt. So basically, it was free PLUS $1 overage. So they paid me $1 to take their toothpaste. Only in America, right?

Today, I went back and took full advantage of the sweet Duracell deal they currently have. You spend $20 on batteries, you get $15 back in ECBs. So I gathered 4 packs of batteries totaling $21, used one $5 off 2 ($5/2) CVS coupon and two $1.50/1 manufacturer coupons, and two ECBs totaling $4.50, putting the batteries at $9+change after tax out of pocket (oop). PLUS I got $15 ECBs back. So there again, they paid me to take four packs of batteries off their hands. Gladly!



Guess how much all that stuff cost me? $2.25! I was thinking it would only be $.25, but I didn't realize the Garnier Fructis deal had a limit of one, and I bought two (oops), so I was out 2 bucks. BUT that is something I was actually excited to buy and try...anything to tame this frizzy mane of mine! So I did not return it and chalked it up to experience.

The Garnier stuff was on sale for $2.99 each with one $2.00 ECB per customer (oops). I had a coupon for $1/1 so that made one of them free and the other still $2.00. Or I guess it could be $1 each and that sounds a lot better ;) The Glacier water was $1.59 with $1.59 ECB, so that was also free. Sweet. I'll drink to that. (Haha, get it? Water?) The dish soap was $1.99 with a $1.00 ECB, and I used a $.50 coupon, so it basically cost me $.50. I can always use dish soap.

The Breeze glucose meter was on sale for $30, and there was a $30/1 coupon in the paper recently. So that was free. FREE. Crazy, right? You may be wondering what I need with a glucose meter, but that is where the Give-Away part of my post title comes in! I would LOVE to give this away to someone who needs it, especially someone with gestational diabetes since I know so many people who have had that. It is brand new and unopened, and I will even foot the bill for shipping (you're welcome to pay for insurance if you want it). All you have to do is leave a comment and tell me that you need it! I will have my hubs randomly pick a winner. And if only one person wants it? Well, congratulations! Please spread the word and tell your friends. I really want this to go to someone who can really use it.

Here are a couple sites that let me know about the current CVS deals and which coupons to combine then with:
Money Saving Mom
Sisterly Savings

And this chick somehow gets the best deals on everything - you should see her grocery bills! It's like they pay HER to shop!
Super Coupon Girl

With two little munchkins taking up most of my time at home, I don't think I could ever have her dedication, but I'm enjoying my own challenges so far - especially as I rack up those CVS ECBs ;)

Don't forget to comment and let me know who needs that glucose meter!

Economizing

Money has been our minds a lot lately. Not just because of the current state of the economy or the Monopoly game at McDonalds. We want to be good stewards of the money God has given us...we want to continue having me stay at home to raise the kids, we want to save money for retirement and childrens' college educations, we want to be able to give when we see a need, we want to pay our off mortgage as quickly as possible to get out of debt, and we want Corian countertops.

Oops. How did that one slip in there?

So one of the ways I've decided to economize is to start cutting coupons. I know this sounds like a waste of time (I mean, really - all that cutting just to save like $.50? Is it really worth the time and effort?), but there are serious "couponers" out there who take this very seriously. Like some Olympic sport. Just read some of their blogs and you'll see what I mean. They talk about their "stash" (of coupons), their CVS ECBs (huh?), and how they're able to get money back just for buying things they need anyway (come again?). I figured so long as it's something I'm able to do successfully in a short amount of time - because let's face it, with two little ones, time is at a major shortage around here - I would give it a try.

Ever the classic female multitasker, I'm always on the hunt for things to do while watching TV at night to maximize my time, like crocheting (I would love to learn how to make cute baby hats or pants or booties - anyone giving lessons? or patterns? or yarn?), planning the meals for the week, making Ryan's lunch for the next day, or fixing the hole in Lily's socks/sweater/tights/you-name-it...again. Cutting coupons takes no brainpower, and with all the new episodes of Chuck and Heroes and America's Next Top Model on now, I'm sure I'll have a "stash" built up in no time.

It seems one of the popular goals is to have a coupon for anything that is on sale so you can buy it at a store that doubles or triples coupons, and end up with an overage that puts money in your pocket.

Sounds easy, but the deals didn't really add up after one week's worth of coupons, no matter how many different grocery circulars I looked through. And the idea of buying a whole bunch of stuff I don't really need just because it's free or will put $.23 in my pocket sounds kind of silly, but there's probably good deals in the long-run, especially if you're pretty on-top of your family's regular grocery habits.

Note to self: Stay on top of family's regular grocery habits.

We'll see how it goes. Every little bit counts, right? I took my first trip to CVS today to rack up some ECBs (more on this phenomenon later), but Lily and Jacob decided this would be a good time to present a unified front of fussiness for all the world to see...and hear (and Mama forgot someone's pacifier, so I just kept giving the one I had to whomever was complaining the loudest...ahh yes, family germ sharing), so I couldn't really concentrate and figure out what I was doing. I ended up spending more money than I wanted to and having a whole bunch of ECBs that I couldn't spend on anything.

Oh well, at least I have them for next time...