Article on finding free stuff

I was searching for free things on the internet and came across this site. SaveMoney.com has an article on how to get free things from companies in an effort to save money on commonly used products. The article also links to other sites that offer freebies and also things like contests and sweepstakes.

I also save money by requesting free samples from companies that offer food, health, home, and beauty products. Walmart offers a ton of free samples directly on their sites, in addition to coupons and free trials.

Also, don’t underestimate the power of doing a search for “free stuff” in your favorite search engine. You will have to weed through all of the spam and not so secure offers, but you can find a ton of wonderful free offers on the internet.

Freezer Cooking – A great way to save with savvy

What is freezer cooking? Basically, this is the practice of cooking more than you need for a meal and then freezing the rest for later meals. People use freezer cooking in various ways. Some just simply freeze the leftovers from the previous night’s meal. Other people go to extremes and cook an entire month’s worth of meals in one sitting and then freeze individual portions.

Freezer cooking, or once a month cooking, is a great way for busy people to prepare nutritious meals with little hassle. This way is much more cost effective than the prepackaged frozen meals, take out, or fast food. In fact, you can cook the same lasagna that you can buy in the frozen section with more nutrients, less salt, and for less than half the cost.

Think about how much extra money you will have lying around to help out with household bills, pay down loans, and bulk up the savings account.

Quit smoking now to save money!

We all know smoking is bad for your health, but smoking is now becoming increasingly bad for your wallet. On April 1^st, a federal tax increase on cigarettes of almost 62 cents was enacted. This means, that a carton of cigarettes in Denver, Colorado, that used to cost $49, now costs $58.

This article on CNN, talks about the benefits the tax increase will hold for government programs, as well as talks to some of the people who are affected by this tax increase…smokers. I am torn on the issue. I think that we should tax items like cigarettes in order to raise money for government programs, but I think we should also subsidize treatment for people who want to quit smoking as a result of the price increases. As of right now I don’t know of any government assistance to help people quit smoking. In fact, since most insurance do not cover prescription stop smoking aids like Chantix and there is no generic equivalent, the cost of paying for the medicine is more expensive than paying for the cigarettes for many smokers.

But, the fact of the matter is, if you want to save more money to pay down loans and other bills, you should quit smoking. That is a lot of money to burn!

Grocery store savings

The price of food is something that is uncontrollable. Prices will rise…it is inevitable. However, what you can control is how much you spend on groceries. Simple changes can yield a huge result in the amount of money you are able to keep in your bank account.

Here are a few of the things I do to cut back on the amount I spend:

• Plan out my meals and do all the shopping for them at once
• Eat vegetarian frequently. Meat is expensive. A can of beans is a much cheaper option.
• DO NOT go to the store hungry. I did this once and ended up spending twice as much as I intended.
• Shop around. Different stores have different deals depending on the day. Just don’t waste a lot of gas driving around.
• Don’t bring the kids or the spouse shopping. This eliminates any, “but I really want that!!!” arguments.
• Bring a list and stick to it. Avoid the impulse buys at all costs.