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One Hundred Dollars a Month

I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.


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Companies Moving Away from Artificial Coloring

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Companies Moving Away from Artificial ColoringIt turns out the squeaky wheel really does get the grease.  Remember a couple of years ago when the use of artificial dyes and their effects on children were in the limelight?  Turns out, people have so significantly changed their buying patterns in order to avoid them, that companies really are seeking natural alternatives.  According to this NPR article, companies like Kraft, Panera, Nestle, and General Mills are all pledging to phase out artificial coloring and flavorings.

The original study indicating a negative correlation between artificial coloring and health came out in 2007–so while it took nearly 9 years of downward buying patterns, the change is coming.  I know this is just a first step, but how nice would it be to buy a pre-packaged food now and again, without worrying that it’s literally damaging your kid from the inside out?

homegrown organic beetsNew coloring will come from plants, fruits and veggies.  Food companies say that natural colorings will come with some variations, because the color of real plants, fruits and veggies vary significantly depending on the season and region they were grown.  I totally get humans like consistency, and maybe this is the gardener in me who already knows about natural variations, but I could totally get over varied colors in exchange for some of the crappity crap to be out of the food.

How about you, do you think this is a step in the right direction?

~Mavis

 

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Kindle Books, Druzy Necklaces, Sportsman Generator, Baking Mats and More

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teemWord of the Day: Teem Definition: Overflow, abound, swarm Used in a sentence: The pages of the book seemed to teem with new ideas.

box package

Lucy thinks every package that passes through our front door is for her. Seriously. Every package is intensely sniffed down before I can take it to the kitchen to open. Yesterday she was CONVINCED a package was for her and started eating the cardboard to get at what was inside. It was HILARIOUS. Even funnier was the fact the box was filled with doggie food and treats.

Dogs are the best! I can’t imagine life without her, she’s so much fun.

♥ Mavis

*This deal post will be updated throughout the morning so be sure and check back for deals. 

timex watches for menAmazon Deal of the Day – Up to 70% Off Timex Men’s Intelligent Quartz Watches

crocs

Amazon Deal of the Day – 50% Off Crocs Shoes

electric guitar sale

More Amazon Daily Deals

kindle books

Available Kindle Books I think are cool…

The prices on Kindle Books can change quickly, so grab them while you can. Don’t have a Kindle? Download the kindle app on your other devices. It’s easy! 🙂
grove square k cups

Subscribe and Save Deals

Subscribe and Save prices reflect a 15% discount for ordering 5 or more items in 1 month.

furniture pads for dogs

Zulily has Got You Covered Furniture coverings Charcoal Reversible Sofa Furniture Protector 

DIY Sewing Kit for College StudentsMy daughter used this cool DIY Sewing Kit for College Students so much more than she thought she would. It’s pretty handy to have around if you need quick sewing fix and mom’s not around anymore! Find more great tips for any student on my College Life Pinterest Board.

yankee-candle-coupon

Print a Buy two Yankee Candles, Get two FREE  Yankee Candle coupon. It is valid through November 11th! Yee-Haw! I LOVE their

unicorn and rabbit

Super Awesome Etsy Shop of the Day – DeLaRenaissance where you’ll find Art in a vibrant, colorful blend of realism and story book illustration with a dash of whimsy and a touch of magic. Want to have YOUR Etsy shop featured? Leave a comment HERE with the name of your shop.

druzy necklace

Today only 11/4/15 Cents of Style is offering Druzy Necklaces for just $6.95 & FREE SHIPPING w/code DRUZY15 at checkout.

cabelas gear bag

Cabela’s has their Cabela’s Catch-All Gear Bag  {Green or Black} or the Cabela’s Catch-All Camo Gear Bag for just $9.99 {reg. $24.99}.

peanut-butter-cookies-with-hersheys-kiss-recipe

Peanut Butter Blossoms are, hands down, the best way to eat peanut butter cookies.  Peanut butter and Hershey’s chocolate? Yes, please. Get the recipe HERE or Pin it for later.

zee best baking mats

Home and Kitchen Deals

deals on tights

Deals on Tights

REI Katun Fleece Jacket

REI Outlet Deal of the Day – Women’s REI Katun Fleece Jacket $31.73 {was $79.50}.

jewelry tree

Small Jewelry Gift Ideas

sportsman generator

Today Only The Home Depot is offering UP TO 35% OFF SELECT PRO EQUIPMENT & ACCESSORIES. There are some great deals on generators!

orange cord

Need a new power cord for your holiday lights? Amazon has the Prime Wire & Cable  50-Foot Extension Cord on sale for $11.97. This ships FREE with Amazon Prime. 

ravensburger puzzle

Toy Deals

shutterfly gift wrap

Shutterfly is offering FREE 6 Foot Roll of Personalized Gift Wrap when you use code WRAPPEDUP (reg $19.99). You do need to pay for shipping but holy cow man, personalized wrapping paper is sooo cool!

cheap magazine deals

Amazon has a sweet deal {$5 for a 1 year subscription through 11/5/15} on some pretty AWESOME MAGAZINES! Check out some of my favorites:

earth balance coupon

Check out these New Printable Coupons:

Find More Printable Coupons

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.

Ways to Use Up Leftover Halloween Candy

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Ways to Use Up Leftover Halloween CandyI love Halloween.  LOVE. IT.  It’s the days after that I am not a huge fan of.  There’s always tons of leftover candy, both from the kid’s loot and the stuff you didn’t peddle out.  Kids get so much sugar that it’s hard to just let them have at the candy with reckless abandon.  Sure, I always let the kids indulge a bit, but I never saw any reason to let them get to the bottom of that monster-sized collection bag.

So, here’s what I propose:  Dole some of that candy out to the critters and get clever with the rest.  Some for now, some for later, some for someone else.  Boom!  Just like that, the threat of a diabetic coma has been downgraded.

Numero uno:  contact local dentists.  They loathe the sugar game.  It means rotten teeth and broken braces.  Usually they participate in a candy exchange.  Your sweet bundle of energy brings in candy, it is weighed, and in exchange for said candy {which the dentist usually sends to the troops overseas}, your kid gets cash.

No dentist?  No problem.  Organize a neighborhood donation situation.  Make a care-package for one of your local troops that is currently overseas.  Split the shipping costs {usually a flat rate deal for military}, and you have yourself a do-good moment.

Hershey kissesSeparate out the good chocolate.  Like the special dark or plain milk chocolate.  Now, stash that somewhere for an adult night later down the road.  It’s wine, chocolate and games, and it’s on you…and the neighbors who sprung for the candy in the first place.

homemade pinatasSave it for Birthday Pinatas.  Listen, I get this is cheap, but seriously, it is totally unnecessary to buy more candy when you have perfectly good candy available.  Who cares that it is all in orange and black wrappers?!  I for one, do not.

Make trail mix.  Stir all of those M&M’s into a healthy trail mix.  Your kids don’t fill up entirely on candy, but they do get a little something, something sweet.  It’s the best of both world.

Freeze it to use in milkshakes, cakes, and baking throughout the year.  Come March, a snickers milkshake will sound delightful…and free.

decorating ideas for gingerbread housesSave it for the Gingerbread house decorating.  Come Christmas, you won’t have to buy an expensive kit, and you’ll have plenty of brightly colored candy for the kids to glue on with frosting.

How do you use up Halloween candy?

~Mavis

photo credit

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.

Brian and Roy from Les Schwab Tires Test Valley Food Storage Chili

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First off, this Grab and Go Emergency Food Supply Bucket is rad.  I may start carrying a bucket instead of a purse. It’s roomy.  Nothing gets smooshed.  And, being the fashion trendsetter that I am, I think it will catch on fairly quickly.  Second, is it an emergency if I decide to run a couple of extra errands over lunchtime and get hungry?  It feels like that is a totally justifiable reason to whip myself up a quick on-the-go pasta Alfredo, no?

valley food storage

In Today’s episode of the Grab and Go Emergency Food Supply Bucket Review, I decided to whip up some of the Chili and test it out on innocent, non-biased bystanders.  I had planned on stopping by Les Schwab Tire center to get my tires rotated–and thought, who better to try out dehydrated food than a couple of mechanics?

les schwab tire center

They were totally game to try it, or at least that’s what I think they were, because they said, “Um, sure…”  So, I whipped some up {I came prepared with the bucket AND my cookware.  I’m an urban Girl Scout, that’s just how I roll.}  Hey look, Mikey, they like it!

les schwab tires

Honestly, they were a little bit shocked that it tasted so good, and said they’d take it as game-day chili any day.  So, being the good sharer that I am, I sent them home with their own little pouch.  Valley Food Storage Chili 1, lunch time emergency 0.

Thanks boys for being the Guinea pigs…see you in 3000 miles.

~Mavis

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.

Mavis Butterfield Etsy