Free Coasters -- Hot Deal!

Need an idea for a frugal gift for an upcoming birthday or to think ahead for future holidays?

Snapfish has a super hot deal right now where you can score a totally free (including shipping) coaster set!  Visit Money Saving Mom for all the details on how to snag yours.

I'm giving mine out individually as part of mother's day gifts!

Free GeoTrax video

Fisher Price is offering a new GeoTrax dvd -- Samuel and Steamer Save the Day. You can request your free copy here. The dvd is about 45 minutes and contains four episodes.

My boys really enjoy these dvds. They do take quite a while to ship out, but don't worry, you will get them.

They make great small gifts or stocking stuffers! Not interested in the dvd? You can also watch the new episode online here.

$5 for 50 prints

Snapfish is currently running a deal where you can score 50 digital prints for just $5! What a deal right!?!

Here's the scoop, when you order your prints, you'll need to choose to pick your pictures up. Select a Walgreens near you to do so. At checkout, enter the code WAL505. This price is only good for orders of 50 prints or more. The code is valid through 29 March 09.

I'm thinking of printing off some of the newer spring pictures I've taken. Brag books make inexpensive gifts for Mother's Day, and the grandmas in our family always love them

20 Free Prints From Walgreens

Today only, February 20, Walgreens is offering 20 free 4x6 prints when you order through Walgreens.com. This will be a great way for me to print off some extra photos from my son's birthday party this past weekend. And of course, free is my friend!

You will need to create an account which is very easy and requires no credit card information. When you are ready to check out, be sure to enter the code ONEDAY to recieve your prints for free.

Your prints will be available for you to pick up at the store of your choice, for free, when you choose to do so.

Thanks to Crystal for the heads up on this great deal!

Gingersnaps

Gingersnaps

3/4 c shortening

1 c sugar

1 egg

1/4 c molasses

2 c flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground clove

1/4 tsp allspice

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease cookie sheet or line with parchment paper. Personally, I vote for the paper. You'll be able to bake quicker and have less to clean up! Cream together egg, sugar, and shortening until light and fluffy, about 5 min with an electric mixer. Stir in remaining ingredients with a spatula or wooden spoon. Using about 2 T of dough, shape in balls and roll in sugar. I cheat and use something similiar to this. Place on cookie sheet 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Cool on racks. Cookies will have a cracked appearance.

Pecan Pralines

These are fairly simple to make. I suggest suckering someone else into the stirring as the cool. You won't regret it. If you're feeling extra motivated, these would be wonderful coated in chocolate.

Pecan Pralines

1 c sugar

1 c brown sugar

1/2 c evaporated milk

4 TBSP frozen butter

1 TBSP vanilla extract

3/4 c chopped pecans

Combine sugars and milk in a large saucepan. The mixture will resemble sludge. Heat over medium high to 236F or soft ball stage. Remove pan from heat. Add in butter, vanilla, and pecans. Stir with a wooden spoon until shine leaves the mixture, about 10 minutes. Drop by tablespoon onto waxed paper. Cool to harden.

Free E-book!

Living on a Dime is currently offering their ebook, Gifts in a Jar for free. You can download your copy here. This is a great resource for not only jar recipes but for gift basket ideas as well. The recipes would make great inexpensive gifts for those left on your list or thoughtful hostess gifts for your upcoming Christmas gatherings.

They are also offering their e-course detailing Five Simple Steps To Save $500 A Month On Your Grocery Budget free as well when you sign up to recieve their newsletter here. Sounds like another great offer!

Puppy Chow

In my family we've always referred to this as puppy chow. It also runs under the alias of muddy buddies. I generally only make this recipe at Christmas because we have a tendency to over indulge on it. We're lucky if a 3 cup batch lasts more than 2 or 3 days. . . with only my husband and I eating it. We're hogs. We know.

Puppy Chow

6 cups Chex, Crispix or other variety corn or rice cereal

6 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips (1/2 bag)

1/4 c peanut butter

1 c powdered sugar

Place cereal in a large bowl. Set aside. Pour sugar into a 2 gallon ziploc bag or plastic grocery sack. Set aside. In another large bowl, microwave chocolate on high 1 minute. Add peanut butter and stir. Heat an additional 30 seconds or until chocolate is melted. Gently stir in cereal until well coated. Pour mixture into bag with powdered sugar. Seal. Toss gently to coat. Store in refrigerator. You may also use miniature pretzel twists in place of the cereal. This recipe also freezes well for later use. That is if it lasts long enough to make it to the freezer.

Chelsie's Caramel Corn Crunch

This recipe came from my friend Chelsie. I can't really tell you where she got it from, but at any rate, I think I like this name best. I was lucky enough to get to try some the other day, and boy was it yummy! I'm secretly hoping she'll make me a batch for Christmas **wink, wink** Baking the popcorn gives it a nice crunch. You can leave out the peanuts or substitute them if you prefer.

Chelsie's Carmel Corn Crunch

2 bags popped light popcorn or 20 c. popped corn

12 oz jar salted roasted peanuts

1 c. real butter

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. light corn syrup or honey

1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 250. Lightly spray two cookie sheets with non-stick spray. (If you spray over the sink or trash can, you won't fall down in the slick later) Set aside. Place your popped corn in a large bowl removing any unpopped kernels. Toss in peanuts. Set aside. In a large saucepan, combine butter, syrup, and sugar together. Stir until butter is fully melted and sugar dissolved. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Immediately stir in baking soda. The soda will cause the mixture to bubble. Pour over popped corn. Stir well to coat. Spread mixture out over cookie sheets in a single layer. Bake in oven for 45 minutes. Stir corn and rotate pans occasionally. Cool on racks for one hour. Break apart any large clusters once cool. Will store up to 2 weeks at room temperature in air tight containers. Mails well.

Enjoy! I sure did! Thanks Chels!

Frugal Holiday Treats

For anyone looking to save money on their holiday gift giving, making gifts is a wonderful option. Not only is this a more frugal option, but I feel that gifts made with love are a more thoughtful as well. Besides, who doesn't love the excuse to indulge in something delicious?

Over the next week and a half, I'll be sharing some of my favorite easy "treat" recipes to give you some ideas. In addition to being yumy gift ideas, these recipes are fun activities to do with family to make your holidays a little more fun.

This year, we are making Homemade Jelly to take to all of the relatives on Christmas. Stay tuned for more yummy ideas!

$10 sale at Dave Ramsey.com!

I was so sad to have missed out on this great deal a couple of weeks ago. The good news is that it's been extended! Yippee!

Now through December 18th, you can recieve many of Dave Ramsey's top financial planning guides and accessories for only $10. The Total Money Makeover system is a wonderful resource for anyone looking to live debt free.

These books would make great inexpensive gifts for anyone on your holiday list. You can browse the list here. Don't forget to browse around the site. There are areas for testimonials, resources, and other advice. Hurry this deal only lasts through the 18th!

Works For Me: Juice Jelly

I love to cook and make things. It can be a sickness sometimes. I've always wanted to try making jelly, but to be honest, it was more than a little terrifying.

Really, I had absolutely no desire to boil, mash, repeat, push pulp through a sieve, you get the picture. It just seemed like so much work! Yet, in my heart I longed for a solution. Grocery store jelly is good, but I've never been exactly impressed with the idea of feeding my kids a ton of high fructose corn syrup, etc. Despite the commercials trying to convince us otherwise, that stuff ain't natural.

Don't believe me? Come hang out with my kids after they've had a good dose or too. **Not recommended for the faint of heart. Don't say I didn't warn you!**

Then I stumbled across this post by Mary over at Owlhaven. I was intrigued (and slighty jealous of the old fashioned juicer). Jelly from juice. Who knew?

I couldn't find pectin packets in her measurement, but I did find a recipe with my pectin measure in my faithful Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook! I was still nervous, but I decided it was now or never.

The jelly was delicious! It turned out wonderfully and was incredibly easy to make, just like Mary promised. I've made more batches since and given jars away to friends. The jelly also made a great hostess gift tucked in beside a batch of homemade applesauce for a Halloween party we attended. I really like Old Orchard juice. I've used it with great success, and the juice combinations they offer are so fun! My latest batch was Blueberry Pomgranite. Mmmm!

Can you guess what my frugal holiday gifts are? =) Here's the recipe. It can be doubled with good results, but do not attempt to triple it unless your going for the syrup effect.

Homemade Juice Jelly

4 cups 100% juice

1/4 cup lemon juice

1.75 ounce box pectin

4 1/2 cups sugar

To prep: Wash jars, lids, and rings well. If you are using old jars, be sure your rings are free of rust and your lids are to new to ensure proper sealing. Fill your canning pot with water leaving space for the jars (your water will rise when you add them). Don't worry, you don't need a fancy pot. I just use a deep stainless steel pot with a lid I bought at Kmart. It works perfectly! Add a slosh of vinegar. It saves your jars and your pan from water spots and mineral build up. Lay out a towel at your work station to hold your clean jars and to use as a landing pad for the hot jars once they are processed. Dip your lids, rings, and jars in the hot water to sterilize them. Be sure you have all of your materials ready. It's best to have your sugar pre-measured, as you won't really have time once it gets going.

Jelly time: Pour fruit juice and lemon juice in a deep kettle or dutch oven. Sprinkle with pectin. Let stand for about 2 minutes. Stir to dissolve. Bring to a full rolling boil over medium high heat, stirring frequently. Add sugar. Return to a full boil. Boil hard 1 minute stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Quickly skim off any foam that may have formed with a spoon. Ladel into your hot jars (5 half pint size, about 8 jelly jars, or a dozen mini jars plus a half pint). Be sure to leave about a 1/2 inch headspace from top. Wipe off any jelly that may have spilled on the rim. Put on lids and rings. Tighten well--this is when your towel will come in handy. Gently place your jars into your canning pot. Process for 12 minutes. Begin your timer once your water returns to a boil. Remove jars and let cool until set. As they cool, you may be lucky enough to hear nice pingeing sounds. If you're like me, they'll pinge when you leave the room. =)

Some hints: Your jelly may take up to 2 weeks to fully set. That's okay.

Resist the urge to retighten your lids. You'll run the risk of breaking the seal and ruining all your hard work.

If your lids don't seal well, you can reprocess your jelly within 24 hours, or move it to the fridge or freezer.

If you decide to try the jelly, let me know! I'd love to hear how it works our for you. My kids love it, and my youngest son will only eat "mommy's jelly" now. Talk about a compiment! And as I said before, the homemade jelly makes a wonderful frugal gift!

For more Work For Me posts visit Rocks In My Dryer.

Frugal Friday -- Frugal Resource Roundup

Yea! What a busy week! I, for one, am very pleased Friday has arrived even though I have a long weekend of housework and homework ahead of me...

Don't forget to head over to Kmart this weekend for their double coupon event I told you about here. The sale runs through Sunday. They are doubling all coupons up to and including $2 off. Refer to the previous post for full details and a link to the list to see if your local store is participating.

Amy over at MomAdvice recently had a great post. She provided a list of tips to help you save money on your grocery bill. The list was full of great tips, some of which I'd never thought of before. You can check out the full list on her blog here.

Also, Crystal at Money Saving Mom has a great post on how to save money while adding more meaning to holiday gift giving. You can check it out here. Be sure to read the comments sections for a lot of great ideas from her readers too--I'm one of them! =)

I guess that's about it for the roundup for now. Have a great weekend!

Homemade Grape Jelly

I enjoy the idea of canning. It has always seemed like such a good idea, but I've never attempted to can anything more than salsa or spagetti sauce made using abundance from my mother's garden.

Personally, I don't have a garden yet, so I hadn't given the idea of canning anything this year much thought. This morning I came accross OwlHaven's post on how to make grape jelly. You don't need an abundance of grapes -- the recipe calls for grape juice, and you can use the store bought stuff! I can't wait to try this! See the full recipe here

I left her a message asking if the recipe will work with only grape juice or if you may use other varieties of juice. I'll leave the answer in the comments section when I find out.

This makes a great frugal gift idea as well!