1. Kohls
I know I mention that I get random Kohls cash sent to me from time to time, but it is literally my favorite mail. This past week, they sent me $10 of Kohls cash to use on anything thing I wanted so I headed to Kohls and picked out some new towels to spruce up my collection. *I am good on towels for awhile:)
2. Hobby Lobby
I had ran into Hobby Lobby to pick up a charm to finish my daughter’s bracelet and was shocked to see that the employees were marking down all the Christmas decorations to 66% off. I thought it was a mistake but the lady said they try to sell as much as they can before the holidays instead of just slashing prices afterwards. I was happy to pick up a variety of miniature tree decorations to give as a gift for really great prices. **I think that I only spent around $10 for all of these decorations, which is crazy because it is not even Christmas yet! The moral of the story is that it pays to procrastinate.
3. Target
I was thrilled to see that Target had a Buy 1 Get 1 Free deal on Babybel cheeses. They are my son’s favorite snack and they never go on sale, so I snatched up two bags. Target also had 25% off all hair dryers and since I was buying one anyways, that was a nice surprise.
4. Favorite things box
For the past few years, I have made my children a “favorite things” box to open on Christmas morning. The contents of the boxes vary from year to year, but the kids love to see all the items I pack into their personalized boxes. This year for example, I filled the boxes with gum, Funyuns (my kids favorite chips that I rarely buy), Star Wars socks (that I found on clearance for $3), hair clips, Little Debbie Christmas trees (the best!), Nutella snack packs, Chapstick, and a small fleece blanket. I rarely spend more than $10 per box, but the kids seem to love it more than any of the more expensive gifts they receive….go figure.
5. Christmas meal prep
Some weeks (like this week) saving money is a breeze. Kroger had a great deal on Pillsbury products, shredded potatoes, green bean casserole ingredients, stuffing, sausage, and Lil Smokies. All of that sounds pretty random, but all of those items were exactly what I needed for our family’s Christmas meals. On Christmas Eve, we usually have breakfast for dinner, so we are going to have biscuits and gravy, eggs, hashbrown casserole, and fried apples for dinner. On Christmas morning we always have cinnamon rolls and pigs in a blanket. And then on Christmas, I plan on making stuffing and green bean casserole to bring to my family’s holiday dinner. So everything was extremely affordable…and will be delicious.
The Thrifty Educator 