Saying "NO" to Cable

Two years ago we thought we were making a huge sacrifice by giving up our cable. Football was on my husbands mind deterring him from saying yes. Frustration is the only thing that could describe my feelings every time the bill came in the mail. It was never the same price every month. I mean, lets face it, besides hgtv, football, and nickelodeon... We really only watch abc, NBC and CBS anyway. Finally, we just canceled it. We were paying about $60 a month. That is $624 a year!! We did sign up for Netflix! Which we love! Since the new switch, we still stream at $8 a month ($96 a year.) total savings: 528 dollars a year! I can honestly say I do not miss it! Netflix has also added a ton recently to streaming, including every episode of "Clean House." There is unlimited shows of Thomas, Veggie Tales, and Word World for our son.

Do you have cable? Have you ever considered putting an end to all those cable bills? Share your thoughts and comments...

You are looking a little SHAGGY!

When my husband and I were dating, he once asked me to cut his hair. Eeeek! Do what?!?! That is some trust! I gave it a shot as he walked me through step by step. Ten years later, I'm still cutting it and have to admit I have a knack for it! It takes me a little more time than your typical hairdresser, but I can honestly say I've never really screwed up. :) In the last year, I have started to cut my sons hair as well. For the cost of clippers (about 20 to 25 bucks) and good scissors (15 dollars,) I'm saving loads of money. For both my husband and son to get there hair cut, it costs $30, times that by twelve.... We save 360$ a year!!! :)

PUMPKINS EVERYWHERE

What to do with all those uncarved pumpkins laying around?!?! Well, with the supposive upcoming shortage in canned pumpkin, why not use it to your advantage? Talk about a lot cheaper too! Just a little elbow grease and now you can really call that pumpkin pie homemade!!!

Freeze for Pumpkin Pie/ Pumpkin Roll

Step by Step Instructions:
Cut the Pumpkin in half
Hollow out the inside seeds with a spoon (put these aside)
Cut off the Stem

Oven:
Lay both sides in a cake pan (or two if using larger pumpkins)
layer the bottom of the pan with water
place in oven at about 375 to 400 for at least twenty minutes.

Microwave:

Put in glass pyrex dish with about a half an inch of water

Cover with lid or plastic wrap

Set timer for 10 mins and check (all depends all size of your pumpkin.)

Once the pumpkin is soft, peel skin off of the pumpkin

Blend Pumpkin until smooth.

You can set aside and freeze the pumpkin in small plastic containers, or I prefer plastic bags because its a space saver.

Roasting Pumpkin Seeds

After cleaning out the pumpkin, clean the seeds

I put them in a strainer and clean.

Once clean, lay on a paper towel to dry.

Place a liner of wax paper on a cookie sheet
Spread pumpkin seeds on cookie sheet.
Spray with cooking spray
Sprinkle with desired about of cinnamon and sugar
Place in oven at 250 degrees for about 15 to 20 mins. Keep a close eye on them as you may want to shuffle them around for even roasting.

Then EAT! :)

Make sure you store in an air tight container!

Mama Knows Best

When I was little I can remember running through Phar Mor (or Par Mor if you knew my Grampy)  with a coupon in hand because they had triple coupons! That was the start of my coupon days. At first it was fun, then it was the "but moooommmmmmm." Over the years, I have always coupon shopped here and there. Before our son was born, I loaded up on Luvs diapers when they were on sale and I had coupons for 2$ a pack! I did not buy diapers until he was a year and a half old! I realized how valuable this time of clipping and running all over Phar Mor was when my husband lost his job in 2008. Once I started getting the hang of it and was loading up an entire grocery cart (including the under rack) for under fifty dollars, it became a high.

At first I started out using a small coupon organizer you would buy at the dollar store. Then, about two years ago as the coupons were piling up my desk and surrounding areas- I upgraded and made my own coupon binder. I use a regular binder and added baseball card holders and dividers. Then label them and organize them in a way you would walk around your favorite store. Categories: Dairy, Produce, Fruits/ Veggies, Breads, Dry Goods, Frozen Foods, Baby, Toiletries, etc.

I guess to fill that coupon binder, you will need to know where you can start clipping. There are many websites that you can print coupons and use them at your favorite stores:
Coupons
Smartsource
Red Plum
also note that if you search your favorite product sites, they also have coupons on their websites.

On Saturday, in our local area, the Pittsburgh Early Edition paper includes inserts. On Sundays, (excluding major holidays) there are coupon inserts in the newspaper. I typically buy two, sometimes more depending on the coupons.

Recently, magazines seem like a great way to get a hold of some great coupons. My favorite is All You. It is usually filled with over a hundred dollars worth of coupons. Before you get a susbscription keep an eye out for great deals. Amazon.com was offering a 6 month subscription for 6$!
Lastly, write to your favorite companys. Often, they will send you coupons when hearing that you love their products. One personal experience- I sent an email to Calbot because I LOVE their cheese. (imagine that for those who know me :) ) Their cheese is about $4 a block of 8 ounce. After receiving my email, they sent me 6 coupons in the mail!

KEEP Tuning In... The party has just began .

Welcome to LENZI FAMILY TIMES!

Welcome to my new blog! I miss my blogging community, therefore I want to return with open arms. My blog will focus on frugal family living, including: , frugal fun, couponing, natural living, crafts, etc.
A. Family- updates on my family and fun times
B. Couponing- There is a love- hate relationship sometimes, but I love to teach people how to coupon!
C. Crafts- Im trying to make more time for crafting and welcome you to join with me. Post your DIY crafts!
D. Natural Living- Since the birth of our daughter and recent medical problems that were discovered, we have been doing some organic shopping as well as making some of our own products to avoid all those chemicals. This is very new to us.
E. Great Deals! I love to find a great deal and share it.

Please feel free to comment and add your opinions. If you would like be a guest blogger, please email me your blog and I will post if feel appropriate. Thanks again!!!

~~ Rebecca