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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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Friday Night at the Movies – The Queen

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Another week, another Helen Mirren movie {can there be too many?}. The week The Queen is on the menu. Helen Mirren plays The Queen, and is said to be amazing as the movie follows the moment that rocked the house of Windsor: the week that followed the sudden death of Princess Diana in 1997. I’m interested to see this one because I remember all the sadness and madness surrounding Princess Diana’s death.

the queen

Let me know what you think if you decide to watch it–or if you have already seen it.

Peace out Girl Scouts & have yourself a great weekend,

~Mavis

PicMonkey Collage

Looking for more movies?

Check out the full list of my Friday Night at the Movies Selections or click on over & look at all the movies on Amazon Instant Video. There are a ton of videos to choose from that will cost you absolutely nothing {nada, zilch, free-o} with Amazon Prime; like thousands of regular movies & TV shows & hundreds of documentaries {Wahoo!}. Get all the details HERE!

 

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.

My Goals for This Year – Week 36 of 52

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pens1. Get Organized. 

I think there is something wrong with me because I feel like my entire house is totally organized. Weird, huh?

half marathon mavis butterfield2. Run, walk or crawl a Marathon, half marathon, 10k, and 5k race this year.

I still haven’t signed up yet for a marathon or a 10k but I do have my eye on a few different races. And, {not that this is a valid excuse, but I need to order a new pair or running shoes}.

3. Remodel our Master Bathroom, Master Closet and Monkey Boy’s Bathroom. Done!

4. Finish Every Room in Our House.

I think I found a round table that might work in the dining room. {Fingers crossed}

5. Turn Spare Bedroom into a Cozy Home Office Space for myself. Done!

lucy the puggle dog6. Create a Vegetable Garden.  Done!

7. Build a Path into the Hillside for Easy Access to the Upper Garden. Done!

We decided to invest in a fence instead. {Best decision ever!}

wool

8. Limit my personal spending to $100 a month.

I scored big at the Goodwill this week when I bought 3 yards of this grey plaid wool for just $4.99 +tax. Normally I pay between $20-$24 a yard for the wool I use in my hooked rug. I can’t wait to dye this up.

So far in September I’ve spent $8.12

In August I Spent $27.29
In July I spent $50.82
In June I spent $6.00.
In May I spent $26.50.
In April I Spent $18.46.
In March I Spent $42.44.
In February I Spent $32.52
In January I Spent $84.33

Thrift store donation9. Purge… Weekly. Find 10 things each week to donate to the thrift store. Done.

Mission accomplished. Not only was I able to donate a boatload of stuff to the thrift store, but I also made $473 at our yard sale selling my old stuff too.

a fall of marigolds

10. Read 1 book a week. – My goal is to read 52 books this year.

I just started reading A Fall of Marigolds by Susan Meissner last night and so far I really like it. I am always looking for book suggestions so if you’ve read something good lately, I’d love to know about it. 

primitive hooked pumpkin rug11. Slow Down.

Yep. I’m still on my rug hooking binge. So far I have made 34 mini hooked rugs. My goal is to make 100 of them and then sell them on ebay or etsy. I’m having fun, and that’s what’s important, right? Also, I made it to season 8 of Everybody loves Raymond and JUST HAD TO STOP WATCHING. I just couldn’t’ handle the whining anymore.

crock pot tomato sauce12. Canning

The temps have been in the 80’s this week {gag} so instead of canning more tomato sauce, I’m cooking it in the crock pot this week and filling up quart sized freezer bags with it. Next week it’s suppose to cool down and I’ll be back to canning sauce for the winter months again.

Did you set any goals for this year? If so, how are they coming along?

~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.

Ask Mavis: Grape Recipes, Galvanized Watering Cans, College Care Packages and More

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ask mavisIt’s that time again. You ask, and I pretend to know things and answer your burning questions. It really is so much fun to open my inbox and see the wide variety of questions you guys have. Reminds me that my readers are so diverse and pretty dang awesome. So keep those questions coming and I’ll keep racking my brain for answers.

watering cansI love your galvanized watering can collection and you have so many! I am so curious how much you pay for them in your neck of the woods. They are pricey to me where I live {in the Midwest}. I just was so curious where you find them and what you consider a good price. Thanks!

~Jamie

I always keep my eyes open for them when I go antiquing or during yard sale season. I normally spend around $10-$20 at antique stores and yard sales. I’ve never had much luck finding them at thrift stores, but they might be more prevalent there in other parts of the country.

freezer-meal-partyHi Mavis, after seeing your get together of mothers cooking meals for freezing I decided to so the same thing with two of my friends! What a great idea!! We had a blast and I used your recipes for freezer meatballs, manicotti, and the sloppy joes! We are planning another one in October!! I would like to send you a picture of our group but I’m not sure how to do that on this type of communication.

~Ireen

I’m so glad you had a freezer meal party and glad to hear it turned out well. We had such a blast making 100 Freezer Meals in 5 Hours and we’re still eating on those meals! I’d love to see a picture of your get together. You can email it over to me at onehundreddollarsamonth {at} gmail {dot} com.

How to Use Weck Canning JarsHi Mavis, Are the weck rubber rings reusable? Do you know if they (the rings) fit the old Ball and Kerr ‘bail-type jars? I have many of those jars but no rubber rings to use for them.

~Teresa

Another week, another question about Weck canning jars! Not that I mind one bit because I love them so much. Good news and bad. I reuse my rubber rings and have never ever had an issue with them. It’s one of the things I love most about them. Bad news is they are not for ball type canning jars, just Weck jars. You can also read up on How to Use Weck Canning Jars for a few more tips.

red and green grapesHi Mavis, I was wondering if you have any recipes for concord grapes. I have a boat load that just came in and I don’t want to make only jam. I want to make grape pie, (a New York state thing,) and some juice, but if you have any other ideas that would be great!

~Barb

You are in luck. I might not have any grape recipe around here, but my friend Jane just happens to have a few amazing recipes up her sleeve. Check out her grape juice recipe and her grape pie recipe. The thing about Jane’s recipes that you need to know is that they are always always amazing. Enjoy!

Care Packages for College Students Sick Day BasketI’m looking for a post you did about care packages for college kids. I’m sending my oldest off to college and I’m a wreck just thinking about it. I want to have a package waiting for her. So can you help me find that post and can you tell me I’m going to survive this?

~Michelle

You might not believe this but you are going to be fine. And she’s going to be fine. And she’s going to grow and love it and come back to you with a thousand stories to tell. So I can’t help the missing her part, but I can help you with a bunch of College Care Package Ideas. Hope they help and good luck! Be strong!

Have a question for me? Submit them HERE and I’ll try to answer them.
~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.

Free Kindle Books, Free Candy, TOMS, Pancake Mix, Boot & Scarf Deal, Coupons and More

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demagogueWord of the Day: Demagogue Definition: Rabble rouser, popular leader Used in a sentence: He turned out to be a demagogue rather than an inspiration.

lucy the puggle dog

Gladys Kravitz has nothing on this dog. If only Lucy could talk….

Have a great weekend everyone,

♥ Mavis

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

panasonic razor

Amazon Gold Box Deal of the Day – Up to 60% off off Panasonic Razors

Electrolux Ergorapido Plus Brushroll Clean

Amazon Bonus Deal of the Day – Electrolux Ergorapido Plus Brushroll Clean, 12V Cordless 2-in-1 Stick and Handheld Vacuum $69.99 shipped.

free 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! 🙂

audible

Right now Amazon Prime members can get a 3-month FREE trial for Audible!!! {I like to listen to audiobooks while I garden.} With over 150,000 titles to choose from you’d be CRAZY to pass up this freebie. Listen with the FREE Audible app on your smartphone or tablet.

amazon subscribe and save deals

Amazon Subscribe and Save

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

Melting-Chocolate-in-a-Crock-PotEasiest way to melt chocolate EVER: Melting Chocolate in a Crock Pot. Find more cool tips on my Canning 101 Pinterest Board.

Hyundai Heavy Duty Gasoline Portable Generator

The Home Depot Deal Special Buy of the Day – UP TO 43% OFF SELECT GENERATORS

you are my sunshine pillow

I’ve seen similar pillows at Home Goods for $20. For $15 less, we can stuff it ourselves!

the best mattress cover

Amazon Bedding Deals

saucony rxc running flats

If your kids run X-Country or you are just looking for a low profile sneaker, 6pm has the Saucony Kilkenny XC5 Flat on sale for $19.99- $22.99 shipped! I LOVE this brand of shoes. More Saucony Deals:

toms sale

Save up to 40% off TOMS SHOES today on Zulily!!! New to Zulily? Sign up HERE then go HERE to get see all the TOMS deals.

cents of styleCents of Style has a Boot & Scarf Combo deal for $32.95 shipped. Here’s how to get the deal:

1. Add boot to your cart
2. As soon as the boot is added, a pop up will appear and offer to add the scarf for $4.00
3. Proceed to checkout
4. Apply “BOOTSCOMBO” coupon code and it will drop the price of the boot and scarf to $32.95 + Free shipping

Shop Boot & Scarf Deal

Easy-Crock-Pot-Recipes-Fully-Loaded-Baked-Potato-SoupThis Fully Loaded Baked Potato Soup is also fully loaded with flavor. Get the recipe HERE or Pin it for Later. Find more soup recipes on my Soups Pinterest Board.

Helly Hansen Paramount Soft-Shell Jacket

REI Outlet Deal of the Day – Men’s Helly Hansen Paramount Soft-Shell Jacket $59.73 shipped {was $150}. Available in Blue or Black.

440

Also available:

See More Hoka One One Shoe Deals

childrens kindle books

Amazon has 30 Kids eBooks on sale for $1.00 each. Go HERE to see the titles available.

kid kraft doll house

Amazon Toy Deals

Trolli-Extreme-Sour-Bites

Attention Fred Meyer and Kroger Shoppers: Today only you can download an eCoupon to your Fred Meyer/Kroger card valid for a FREE Trolli Extreme Sour Bites 4oz or Trolli Sour Watermelon Sharks. Simply load the ecoupon to your Fred Meyer/Kroger shopper card and claim your candy by 9/27/15.
 progresso soup 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.

Mavis Butterfield Etsy