Since I just returned from the beach, I thought I would share some of my past tried and true tips about saving money on food while vacationing. Believe it or not, one new trick I did this year was to bring a […]
My No Spend Pantry Challenge & Meal Ideas
Sep18
The pantry door slid open and out fell two bags of tortilla chips with nothing more than crumbs sprinkled at the bottom. As I peered inside, I saw an additional open tortilla bag, alongside an open pretzel bag, potato chips […]
10 Minute Dinners: It’s a Good “enough” Thing
Oct23
Anyone who has been reading Balancing Beauty and Bedlam for awhile, has heard the phrase 10 Minute Dinners in numerous posts. In fact, I’ve used that phrase for years and have mentioned launching my new site for nearly as long. […]
Feeding the 5,000 (What are Your Choices?)
Jun5
Most people don’t plan spontaneous graduation parties, but if there’s one thing I’ve realized, often spontaneous is best when it comes to group gatherings. Such was the case for our get together Sunday evening. Whenever my extended family gathers, it’s […]
Grocery Guru Tip: Use Your “Eagle Eyes” to save Big $
May31
If there’s any one that knows how to save money in the kitchen, it’s me. I shared with my dad this weekend that it’s a little weird to referred to as a frugal living expert, since there are so many […]
DIY Homemade Microwave Popcorn (Why Did We Wait?)
Apr12
Our Stir Crazy Popcorn popper is a regular appliance on my counter top. We are a huge popcorn eating family. The yummy, homemade and oil kind of popcorn. The kind you just can’t get enough of, and people even ask […]
My Food Budget Update (and Free Meal Planning For Life)
Apr11
Ever since the Extreme Couponing show aired last year and our stores were flooded with new couponers desiring to learn the ropes of this age old jewel of saving money, I’ve reaccessed how I’ve shopped. Yes, all the tips I […]
Tasty Tuesday: Pantry Challenge Update
Jan30
It’s the last day of the month, which means my January Pantry Challenge has come to a close. We started out by understanding the need to get organized and I offered a simple Freezer Checklist that might help. Then we […]
Stockpiling Food and Being Prepared: When is Enough Enough?
Jan10
Last week, I received an email from a reader with the title, “Enough is Enough.” Here’s an excerpt, “So, I have been couponing and living the frugal lifestyle for over a year now…but am getting sick of how much stockpile […]
January’s Pantry and Freezer Challenge
Jan3
It’s that time of year when I officially ponder some of the changes that need to occur in our home in order to make it run more effectively. In the area of our food purchases and meal planning, January ushers […]
Grocery Guru: Extreme Savings without coupons?
Nov7
I’m smack dab in the middle of one of my Grocery Guru Super Doubles weeks at my local Harris Teeter grocer. I hit the store nearly every day, stock up on the best deals available using my twenty coupon limit, […]
Fail to Plan = $$: My Menu Plan Fail
Oct25
I’ve been focusing on grocery budgets all month long. From an honest discussion talking about Monthly Food Costs, to admitting, at least a little, that we need to track our food expenses (with a free printable monthly food tracker). I […]
How to Make Pumpkin Puree & Save Money
Oct19
Last week, I shared on my Balancing Beauty and Bedlam Facebook page about my love of all things fall, including my yummy and oh, so easy, Pumpkin Bar Recipe. A few statuses later, after I got everyone excited about quadrupling […]
Grocery Comparison Printable List
Oct18
(Click above for free printable comparison list) Every Tuesday, all month long, I have been talking grocery budgets. We started with an honest discussion talking about our Monthly Food Costs. Then I shared my free printable monthly food tracker, while […]
My #1 Piece of Advice for Newbies – Share Yours: Tasty Tuesday
Oct10
This month we’ve been dissecting all areas of savings and our budget, but for Tasty Tuesday’s, we’ve specifically been looking at our food budgets. We started with an honest discussion talking about our Monthly Food Costs. Last week, I shared […]
