hardships and frugality.

This week has been rough, to be honest. We found out on Tuesday that my husband is part of a reduction plan the company he works for is doing and will be losing his job next week. We never thought we would ever have to worry about this and all the stuff that goes with it. We've spent the last 2 days updating his resume, sending it out, looking for jobs online, contacting people we know who have contacts that they can send it to, looking into insurance, severance package stuff, unemployment, etc. There is a lot of information to deal with that I never knew about!

We spent a good deal of time on Tuesday in complete shock, then the realization kicked in that we were going to have to become even more frugal than we are now. A few weeks ago I found a blog via Pinterest that tells how their family does a "No Spend Month" and I thought it would be a fun challenge. We are starting our first No Spend Month today, not because we necessarily want to, but because we have to.

My husband's last full paycheck came in today. We went to the bank and took out $200 to live on for the month (excluding our mortgage, utility bills and any medical expenses that might come up). This will include anything we need for the house, cars, food, gas, toiletries, stuff for Luke (including formula, diapers, and wipes), clothes, etc. It's going to be a challenge for sure, but we know we can do it because it's temporary. At least that's what we're praying. And we can for sure feel the prayers of our friends and family! The peace God has given us is incredible.

Anyway, I will let you know how the month progresses!


P.S. I just want you to see how cute my little man is and how big he is getting!

Our family at a wedding last weekend.

Blowing raspberries while I was feeding him yogurt

Happiest in the morning

Life with a Baby

Well, my life has certainly changed a lot since I last posted!

We had a beautiful baby boy on August 23, 2011. Luke is 4 months old now and is developing a personality! We love, love, LOVE having him here.

It's been a whirlwind of a time since he was born. I am now a stay-at-home-mom, starting an Etsy business for custom graphic design and stained glass (www.etsy.com/shop/kbdesigned), trying to keep up with housework and caring for my little man. My husband is still working as a computer programmer, but has the ability to work from home. So, it's been really great for him to be able to see Luke (and me!) during the day and not miss any great moments.

Luke is just starting to eat cereal, learned to roll from back to belly, and is quite a chatterbox now. He never misses anything that's going on and loves being held in the sitting position so he can see everything. He is usually a very happy baby (except when he gets really tired or hungry) and has been sleeping through the night since he was about a month and a half old. Smiles and giggles are frequent occurences, but are hard to capture on camera because he gets curious when he sees the camera come out.

Here are some pictures of the last 4 months! HAPPY NEW YEAR!

First Coupon Trip

So today, I had enough time on my hands to go through ads and match up my coupons to good deals. It was my first big coupon shopping trip! I've been using coupons randomly as I need things, but today I started my "stockpile."

I went to Walgreens and Walmart. Walgreens was out of all the stuff I wanted, but I found a couple things I didn't have on my list! I got 2 packages of pantiliners for the cost of tax! That was one of the best deals I got today. I think they were 24 packs, originally $1.49 each and I had a $3/2 pack coupon, so I ended up paying $.21 for 48 liners! That is less than a penny per liner. WOO!

Here is everything I got today!

The other great deal I got was for the 2 packages of disposable razors. They were 10 packs with 2 bonus razors, so 12 per package for $1.97 each. I had a B1G1 free coupon! So each razor ended up being $.08!

Walgreens had select General Mills products on sale 2/$4, but were out of stock when I went there. Luckily, Walmart price matches with an ad! So, I got the box of Lucky Charms and Trix for that price, plus I had a coupon for $1/2 boxes. So, each box cost $1.50! These are usually around $3 each.

Also, FYI, Kraft salad dressings have coupons attached to them (at least at my Walmart) for $.75/1 bottle. Pretty good deal! 

Can you tell I'm excited?!? The total for my shopping trip was $47.92 and I only paid $25.95. That means I saved $21.97! THAT IS ALMOST HALF, PEOPLE!

Anyways, just wanted to share my trip..

P.S. The Krazy Coupon Lady has been a HUGE help in getting me started on couponing!