Getting Ready for the First Day of Kindergarten

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First Day of Kindergarten

Starting kindergarten is something I’ve gone through twice already with my own kiddos, and there’s definitely some things you can do to help prepare your kiddo for kindergarten, aside from simply ensuring they’re ready for kindergarten.  Getting your child ready for the first day of kindergarten can help make the day, and your morning, go smoothly.  Here are my best practical tips for making the first day of kindergarten a success!

Getting Ready for the First Day of Kindergarten

[Read more…]

Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

Back to School Deals

**This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**



back to school deals

It almost seems sacreligious to start even muttering “back to school” in July, but the truth is, most of the metro Atlanta will be back in session before we know it!  So, whilst I sip on my ice cold sweet tea, and wipe the sweat from my brow, batting down the heat and humidity, I share with y’all my Back to School deals – and make sure you take heed of these back to school shopping tips, too.  Super-special thanks to Melissa from This Mommy Saves Money for sharing this list!

Back to School Deals: week of July 23, 2017, good through July 29

Office Max/Office Depot

  • 15¢ Office Depot brand
  • 25¢ Office Depot brand beveled erasers, 3-pk limit 3
  • 25¢ Office Depot Brand Composition Books Limit 3 
  • 50¢ Office Depot Brand Ballpoint Pens (10-pack) Limit 3
  • 75¢ Scholastic Crayons (24-pack)
  • $1 Paper Mate Sharpwriter Mechanical Pencils 6-pk, limit 3
  • $1 Office Depot presharpened wood pencils, 12-pk, limit 3
  • $3 Office Depot Brand 1” Poly Binders
  • 50% Off of All Kenneth Cole, Solo and Ful School Backpacks Selection varies by location.

Also, if you have the Office Depot app, there are additional coupons good through 7/31/17.  When you open the app, click “deals” and then “coupon center” for 30% off qualifying back-to-school items of $30 or more.  Also, there’s a 25% off coupon for qualifying purchase of regularly priced or clearance furniture or seating.

Staples

  • 25¢ Staples, 1 Subject Notebook, Wide Ruled, 8″ x 10-1/2 Limit 30
  • 50¢ Staples Cap Erasers, Pink, Dozen: $0.50 Limit 5
  • 50¢ Staples #2 Wood Pencils, Yellow, 12/pk Limit 5
  • 50¢ Staples ruled 3″ x 5″ white index cards, 100/pack
  • 50¢ Staples Composition Notebook, College Ruled, Black, 9-3/4″ x 7-1/2″ Limit 30
  • 50¢ Staples College Ruled Filler Paper, 8″ x 10-1/2″, 120/Pack Limit 5
  • 50¢ Staples School Glue, 4 oz
  • 50¢ Staples Manual Dual-Hole Pencil Sharpener Limit 5
  • 97¢ Paper Mate Sharpwriter Mechanical Pencils, 5 pk
  • $1 Sharpie permanent markers, 5 pk Limit 5
  • $1.92 Staples 1″ standard-view binder
  • $1 Staples Washable Glue Sticks, .26oz, 4/pk
  • $2 Staples Poly Cover Wirebound Notebook, College Ruled
  • $9.99 Texas Instruments TI-30Xa Scientific Calculator

To ease your kiddo in to the new school year, make sure you also check out these great books, geared toward the first day of school.back to school books

Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

Ways to Save for Back to School Shopping

**This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**



back to school shopping

Yes, back to school time is upon us already.  Most schools around the Atlanta area go back either the end of July or first of August, but back to school shopping begins much sooner.  I want to make sure y’all are prepared, and can find ways to stretch your dollars, as well as not scramble at the last minute for back to school shopping.

Ways to Save for Back to School Shopping: Start Early

I’ve noticed back to school starts immediately after the fireworks fizzle out on July 4th.  So start scoping out the sales now.  Most of the major chain stores will start discounting back to school items the week right after July 4th – this typically includes Target, Office Depot, Walmart, Staples, and more.  So check your weekly sales fliers either via the Sunday paper or online for the deals of the week.  Last year, you may recall, I saved HUGE shopping the Office Depot weekly deals, which had many penny, quarter, and dollar items.  There may be items for sale that you may not need right away, or you may need more of the sale items than the limited amount (I know Office Depot had a limit of 4 of each sale item, typically), but at these prices, go ahead and get the sale items.  Please note, these deals may involve you being part of  their store loyalty and rewards program.

Also, you may want to work as a team: find another parent friend to partner with for school shopping.  If there’s a sale on crayons, you can each go stock up on the maximum allowed amount, and if only one of you needs the crayons, then you’ve just doubled your supply for a fraction of the cost.  Then perhaps your friend may be in need of, say Expo markers, where you aren’t, you can again both get the maximum allowed amount, and your friend can walk away with double the supplies.  This can also work if you have a parent or sibling or neighbor friend close by who isn’t school shopping.  If they’re comfortable signing up for the store loyalty card, then you can team up and double what you need.  Maybe you can treat said family member or neighbor to lunch at Chick-fil-a in exchange for helping you!

Ways to Save for Back to School Shopping: Use Your Smartphone

In recent years, I’ve seen smartphone apps like Ibotta and Checkout 51 jump on board with back to school savings.  Starting in July and typically through Labor Day, they’ll have rebates for a selection of school supply items.  When those rebates coincide with a store deal -which is not uncommon during the back to school shopping season- that’s when you can really save.  Ibotta even lets you scan the item’s barcode to see if it matches a current rebate, so you can easily check in store.  Also, make sure you are utilizing your Target Cartwheel app to stack on savings at this time, too.  There should be a “school supplies” section within the Cartwheel app.   Sometimes you’ll be able to utilize a store coupon, manufacture coupon, Target cartwheel, AND an Ibotta rebate all at once!

I also want you to utilize your smartphone to price compare.  Since most major retailers have an app, this should be easy.  How on earth does this work?  Here’s an example:

  • Say you’re in Walmart, and want to see if that deal on a 12 pk of Expo markers really is a great deal.  Open up your Target app and scan the markers barcode.  That should tell you a few things: 1) if Target sells that exact item, and 2) what their price is.  Keep in mine, the app may list their online price, and not their in-store price.
  • You can check this with any number of stores: Target, Walmart, Costco, Sam’s, Office Depot, and Staples.  Keep in mind, there will be items that one store carries, that’s packaged just a little different for another store, which may make it slightly difficult to find by scanning the bar code.  This is when you simply use your search feature.  So, in this case, you’d search for “Expo 12 count” and see what results you get.  Also, since Sam’s and Costco are more bulk sales, you’ll may need to determine the unit price to price compare.
  • I also want you to check against Amazon prices, too.  You’ll do this the same way, scan the item with your Amazon app, and see what sort of prices you get. If you have Amazon Prime, this is a great way to do your back to school shopping. If not, then try Amazon Prime with a FREE 30-Day Trial.  And here’s a bonus offer if you’ve got a kid going off to college: join Prime Student FREE Two-Day shipping for college students to maximize your savings further.

Ways to Save for Back to School Shopping: Shop for the Long Run

When my daughter started kindergarten, we went to Toys R Us and took advantage of the “free lunch box when you buy a backpack” deal.  She picked out an Ariel backpack and an Ariel lunch box, and we ended up spending roughly $20-25 on these items.  Within a few months of being in kindergarten, she declared that Ariel and all Disney princesses were “baby-ish”, but she still begrudgingly carried her backpack and lunch box to school for the remainder of the year.  The backpack got pretty beat up over the year, while the lunch box was in decent shape.

The summer between kindergarten and 1st grade, I found a $5 backpack at Goodwill (while we were up in Wisconsin, of all places) that was brand new – it was a basic pink with gray polka dots, and it came with a matching lunchbox.  That thing has held up beautifully for two school years, and she very well may enter 3rd grade with it, too.

We’ve found a basic Star Wars very gently-used backpack at a garage sale for my son, spending one whole dollar.  So he will start kindergarten with a character back pack as well.  However, I’m not confident that backpack will stand the test of time, particularly for a little boy.  So I plan to invest in good backpacks for each of them this year.  Brands that tend to hold up well include Pottery Barn kids, Lands End, and L.L. Bean – yes, these brands will be an investment, but they have a reputation for holding up well for years.  I recommend getting a simple-patterned one (no characters), and let your child accessorize with things that can be swapped out like key chains or patches.

My point here is to invest in pieces your child will use for a long time, like a back pack and lunch box.  They’ll need those every school year, so invest in one that will last multiple years.  Also consider a good quality thermos/water bottle, too.  This is one of my favorites.  Other long-term investment pieces include scissors, locker shelves, a good zippered binder once they hit middle school, good quality pencil pouch, and even good quality sports bags and equipment.

Ways to Save for Back to School Shopping: My Final 2¢

When it comes to back to school shopping, my best advice is to KISS it!  Yes, Keep It Simple Student.  😉  Simply put, please please please don’t run all over town in an effort to save a few dollars.  If you can get the bulk of your school supplies and school clothes at one store, do it.  Even if they don’t have the lowest prices for all items on your list, save yourself the headache (and gas money) of lugging kids to another store just to save a few dollars on a few items.  Of course, if that other store is on your way, and you’re not making a special trip, then that’s fine.  But please don’t stress out over school supplies.

As a former public school teacher, I can tell you that yes, I had the bare minimum for supplies – I was begging for boxes of tissues so my 4th grade boys weren’t blowing their raw little noses on those scratchy brown paper towels.  I literally did a happy dance when one of the assistant principals handed me a box of 144 number 2 pencils.  Yes, your kids’ teacher is likely dipping in to their own pocket to pay for a chunk of what’s being used in their classroom.  So, when a parent comes in and offers me supplies, I’m not going to turn it down, nor am I going to turn it away because it’s not the proper count or the right brand.

Supply what you can for your child.  If you feel compelled and called to do so, donate more.  But, again, please don’t stress about that list of school supplies.  Sometimes buying those pre-packaged school supplies can be a good thing, even if it’s not the super-cheapest route.

COMING SOON: Ways to Save with Back to School CLOTHES Shopping

 

Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

Back to School Books – Grade by Grade

**This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**



back to school booksI can still remember the night before school would start each year, I’d have trouble falling asleep due to excited and nervous jitters about the impending school year to come.  I can honestly say, this was the case as both a student and a teacher.  😀

My daughter is going into the THIRD grade so we’re looking for books to help ease her in to this next grade.  And yes, third grade is a bit of a leap – it’s the year kids go from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.”  One book we want to check out is How to Be Cool in the Third Grade! She’s loving it and it’s a book we can enjoy reading together!

And did I mention my littlest guy is heading over to the big school with his sister, and starting kindergarten?  Yep.  My baby boy is spreading his wings, whether I’m ready for it or not.

Some of y’all have kids starting back next week, while others have already started.  In any case, here are some great back to school books to get your kids ready, from preschool all the way through 6th grade.  Please first look for these titles at your local library.  Then, if needed, see if you can order them online.  I’ve included links to Amazon for your convenience.

Super special thanks to Couponing with Rachel for sharing this extensive list!

My Big List of Back to School Books, Grade by Grade

Here are a few books that you may be interested in snagging for your own little ones.  You can find many of these titles at your local library, or snag them off Amazon.

Preschool:

The Night Before Preschool

Big Preschool Workbook [Read more…]

Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

Signs of Kindergarten Readiness

**This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**



Kindergarten Readiness

My daughter starts Kindergarten in less than a month.  While I am not ready to let my baby enter the big world of Kindergarten, I am confident I have paved the way for this milestone, and am certain she is ready.  …but what exactly does “kindergarten readiness” look like, really??

Whether you’re sending your first or fifth child into kindergarten, it’s never an easy time. You have a lot of pressure on your shoulders to make sure your child knows certain concepts before you send them off. There are some things you can start doing now to prep your child for Kindergarten in the fall.

Signs of Kindergarten Readiness

  1.  Letter Sounds – Every child entering kindergarten should have practice with their letter sounds. You’ll want to start teaching them their letter sounds by making sure they know the alphabet first. Knowing the alphabet plus their letter sounds is one way a kindergartner starts the reading process. You can help your child learn their letter sounds by repeating them on a daily basis, using flash cards, hands on activities, and even playing educational computer games.  I started each of my kids with a simple ABC puzzle, and as they placed the letters in the puzzle, I would help them identify the letter, and it’s sound.  “Oh, ‘t’ says /t/ like ‘turtle’.”
  2. Reading & Writing – Kindergarten is all about learning to read and write. There are so many activities your child will do in kindergarten to help them learn these skills. However, there are also several things you can do as a parent to help prep your child for learning these skills. The number one thing you can do is always read to your child at every chance you get. Secondly, let them explore with writing. Their words might not always make sense, but they will increase their knowledge of writing as well as get their writing form down.  My daughter loves writing messages right now, and I interfere as little as possible with spelling.  We go through each sound and she writes out her words sound-by-sound.
  3. Independence – If there’s one thing your child needs to learn for kindergarten it is about independence and self sufficiency. While it may be common for you to help them with things now, it’s important that you let them learn how to do things on their own. To help make your child a little more independent, let him or her do small things on their own. You get to decide what the independence factor is as it’s your child, but it is time to loosen the reigns just a little bit.
  4. Relationship Building – For one of the first times in your life, you will be sending your child off to make his or her own relationships. Your kindergartner will form a bond with their teacher and classmates. You can prep your student for this by allowing them to be in situations where they can make friends on their own. You won’t always be there to help them make friends, so it’s important to let them learn to create this bond on their own.

These four tips will help your child learn a few basics before heading off to kindergarten. Just remember that it’s not just about the academics, but the social and emotional growth as well. What tips would you add to this list?

 

You may also like:

Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

Save Money With DIY School Snacks

**This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**



As school days have become more hectic and crowded, our children now eat lunch just two hours after breakfast.  As a result, their teachers ask that they bring in a snack to help them get through the school day without being hungry.   Sometimes it can be tempting to purchase pre-packaged snacks, but is the time saved really worth the extra cost?  We pack our own snacks, check out these examples below:

DIY School Snacks - BIG money saver!

 

First up?  Cheezits.  You can buy the family size box or purchase the individual mini bags.

DIY School Snacks

21 ounces for $3.98

DIY School Snacks

15 ounces for $3.98

As you can see, both packages are $3.98.  However the family size box is 21 ounces, and the individual pack box is 15 ounces.  If you buy the large box and bag them up yourself, it’s only about $0.23 a serving, whereas the individual packs are $0.33 each.

Next up are Goldfish crackers.

DIY School Snacks

30 ounces for $6.98

DIY School Snacks

12 ounces for $4.48

DIY School Snacks

16 ounces for $2.38

Individual bags of Goldfish crackers cost $0.37 each.  If you buy the large box and bag them up yourself, it’s $0.23 a serving.  And if you take it a step further and purchase the off-brand Whales crackers, it’s only $0.15 a bag!

Another favorite in our home?  Yogurt covered raisins.

DIY School Snacks

$1.98 for an 8 ounce bag, or $2.98 for 8 boxes

An 8 ounce bag of yogurt covered raisins is enough for 8 snack bags, at only $0.25 each.  If you get the prepackaged boxes, the cost increases to over $0.37 per serving.

As you see from the pictures above, buying in bulk is always cheaper than buying individually packaged snacks.  Separating treats into snack bags only takes a few minutes, and can save several dollars each week.  My kids like to pack their own snacks, and it’s easy for them to do with a measuring cup.  It’s also a great way for them to build on their math skills!

DIY School Snacks

Packing snacks at home is simple!

For a quick review of the money we save by packing snacks ourselves, check out the numbers below:

For a week of prepackaged snacks:

Cheezits (x2): $0.33 x2 = $0.66

Goldfish: $0.37

Yogurt covered raisins (x2): $0.37 x 2 = $0.74

Total snacks for the week for our family: $1.77 per child x 6 = $10.62 ($382.32 for the year)

 

For a week of DIY snack bags:

Cheezits (x2): $0.23 x 2 = $0.46

Whales: $0.15

Yogurt covered raisins (x2): $0.25 x 2 = $0.50

Total snacks for the week for our family: $1.11 per child x 6 = $6.66 ($239.76 for the year)

While it may only seem like pennies each week, the savings really do add up.  Over the course of a school year, we save can save over $140 just by purchasing large packs of snacks and bagging them ourselves.  Of course, there is also the added cost of the snack bags themselves, but they cost about $0.02 each, which only adds up to another $20 over the span of the school year.  Reusable snack bags would drop that cost even lower.  If you REALLY want to save big, try making your own snack mixes and granola bars!

DIY School Snacks

Put snacks in a tub and let kids pick their own!

Could you use an extra $100 a year?  That’s enough to pay our gas bill, or 2 months of water, or 2 months of cell phone service.  Every little bit adds up, and counting pennies is a big part of staying within our budget.

Do you pack your child’s snacks at home?  Or do you feel like the convenience of prepacked snacks is worth the extra cost?

Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

Printer Paper AND Saving Your Printer’s Ink

**This post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**



Okay, so the following is no secret, at all, but here are some things I’ve been doing for YEARS to save printer paper and ink!  (Ink being rather expensive to purchase!!)


Printer Paper
You know all junk mail you get in snail mail?  Flip it over.  If it’s blank on the back, throw it in your printer’s paper tray!  I keep a box for one-sided 8.5″x11″ papers.  It’s filled with one-sided junk mail, as well as hundreds of miscellaneous other pieces of paper, only used once.  



Think about it: for whom are you most likely printing?  If the answer is yourself, or someone else in your household, then does it matter if there’s something unrelated on the back?  Most likely not.  You’ll have to play with your printer to see how to feed the paper in, as it may not work exactly the same as mine.  For me, I place the paper in blank side down, and it rolls up and prints on the blank side.


Ink & Ink Cartridges
Oh, how I wish I had heard Clark Howard’s podcast discussing the evils of printers, their ink cartridges, and his solution!!  Kodak printers: you pay more up front for the printer, but the cartridges are extremely inexpensive, compared to other brands…


I digress.  Like many of us, you, too, may have been suckered in to buying the “cheap” printer, only to discover how it guzzles those expensive ink cartridges; thus, making your deal quite a dud.  Did you know you can change the default settings on your printer, so that you use significantly less ink each time.  Here’s how:
Saving Your Printer's Ink

If you don’t wish to make these your printer’s default settings, you can elect to do “grayscale” and “fast draft” when you know you’re printing something that doesn’t need to be polished, if you will.  The steps are the same as above, except you select “printing preferences” from the main print command screen that will come up when you wish to print.  (Does that make a lick of sense???)
 
One more trick for saving your ink: smaller font size.  Yep.  You may have read about this as a tactic for universities to save thousands of dollars each year.  It’s true!  I’ve been doing this for years.  (And doing the opposite to stretch those papers in college, but that’s a blog for another day…)  The same is applicable for wider and longer margins: it’ll save you paper, particularly if you only have one or two lines on another page.  Try it!
 
Finally, along those same lines, if you’re printing from a website, try highlighting the text you wish to print, and when you go to print, look for the “selection” or “selected text only” option. 
 
P.S.  Once you have empty ink cartridges, consider recycling them.  There are tons of programs that offer incentives to recycle your empty cartridges;  Office Depot, for example, will give you $3 towards your rewards when you turn in your empties.
 
Readers: do you have additional tips and tricks to add to this collection?  I’d love to hear about them!  :o)
Keep on saving!  :o)
--Barbara

**Remember, y'all, this post may contain affiliate links. I receive a small amount of compensation when you purchase from my links, which I"ll totally blow on waffle fries and sweet tea, y'all!**

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