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Walk in Comfort All Summer with OTZshoes from The Shoe Girls-Giveaway

May 13, 2013 by Kathryn 129 Comments

I love great shoes of all kinds, but because I walk almost everywhere, comfortable, stylish walking shoes are one of my favourite types of footwear. I have a few different pairs of shoes perfect for a stroll through the streets of my small town, but I had never tried OTZshoes before. So when I got the chance to pick a pair of the Italian linen shoes to review, I was excited to see how they compared to the shoes I already own.

OTZshoes feature vibrant, fashion-forward colours, a unique stitched design that results in a minimal use of glue and a removable cork footbed. They are lightweight, have great grip and look very comfortable. The shoes tend to run a little small, so I ordered a 39 instead of my usual 38 to 38½ in the Maui Blue colour and the shoes fit perfectly.

otzshoes maui blue [Read more...]

Filed Under: Coupon Code, Giveaway, Reviews, Reviews and Giveaways Tagged With: coupon, girls shoe, linen, otz, otz shoes, otzshoes, save, shoe girls, shoes, spring, summer, the shoe girls, walk, walking, walking shoes

Outfitting Two Children for Summer at Walmart Canada #WalmartFrugalHeroes

May 2, 2013 by Kathryn 5 Comments

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Today Walmart Canada asked shoppers across the country to take part in a frugal shopping challenge and I was very excited when I was asked to be a part of it. What made this campaign so fun was that I got to choose from an assortment of challenges to find the one that best fit my family. I was very tempted to attempt to redecorate a room in my home for $100 since I’ve been doing a lot of spring cleaning lately, but with our trip to Disneyland just a few weeks away, I decided to undertake the challenge of outfitting two children for summer for $100.

I’ve mentioned before that when it comes to clothes, my boys are not the type of kids that will just wear whatever they have. They love clothes, recognize stylish clothes and like to be involved in the shopping experience whenever possible. So I took the two of them into the store so that they could help me choose their summer wardrobe.

boys summer wardrobe walmart [Read more...]

Filed Under: Reviews, Reviews and Giveaways Tagged With: cahallenge, frugal, frugal hero challenge, hero, heroes, money, save, saving, savings, summer, walmart, walmart frugal heroes, walmartfrugalheroes, wardrobe

Celebrate Earth Day with Eco-Friendly GE Lighting Bright from the Start CFL Bulbs

April 22, 2013 by Kathryn 8 Comments

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It’s Earth Day and there’s no better time of the year to make changes to your life and your household that will help protect the environment for future generations! This year, GE Lighting wants to help you “see the light” when it comes to making your household more eco-friendly. And the best part is that making earth-conscious choices for your household can often result in lower utility bills too!

GE Lighting Bright from the Start energy smart CFL bulbs are the perfect example of how a small change can make a big difference when it comes to minimizing your environmental impact. The bulbs contain a halogen capsule that provides instant brightness on 15 and 20 Watt bulbs and offer an incandescent-like light with CFL savings. In fact, one bulb can last up to 7.3 years, saving $39 in energy over the life of the bulb!

The best part is that the new GE Lighting Bright from the Start bulbs look like regular bulbs and are designed to give off a softer, more diffuse light than traditional CFL bulbs. Finally, you can see your home in its best light and still save money and energy! [Read more...]

Filed Under: Articles, Uncategorized Tagged With: bright, bright from the start, cfl, cfl bulbs, day, earth, earth day, eco-friendly, efficient, energy, energy efficient, ge energy smart, ge lighting, green, lightbulb, lighting, save, save money, smart, start

Anna’s Budget Tips-Beautiful on a Budget

April 2, 2013 by Kathryn Leave a Comment

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It’s only natural to want to look and feel your best. Beauty products and treatments tempt all of us at one time or another from the pages of magazines, websites, stores, salons and friends’ recommendations…and all too often come with seriously high price tags. Here are a few tips for cutting costs when it comes to your appearance so you can stay beautiful on a budget.

budget beauty tips [Read more...]

Filed Under: Articles, Guest Post, Money Tagged With: anna platz, beauty, beauty tips, budget, budget beauty, budget beauty tips, save, save money, savings

Anna’s Budget Tips-Spring Break on a Budget

March 1, 2013 by Kathryn Leave a Comment

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School-aged children around the country are eagerly anticipating the long awaited Spring Break or Spring Vacation. Most districts put school on pause for a week or even two some time in March or April giving students (and their teachers!) some much needed R&R. This time of year can also be a cause for concern among families on a budget – you know…those of us who can’t hop on a jet bound for the Maldives for a week of fun in the sun!

But don’t worry! It is entirely possible to create a fun-filled vacation without breaking the bank. Here are some tips and tricks to help, whether your plans involve being home with the little ones, some low cost travel or mom and dad working over the break.

tips for enjoying spring break on a budget [Read more...]

Filed Under: Anna's Budget Tips, Articles, Family, Features, Guest Post Tagged With: break, budget, home, money, money tips, save, save spring break, spring, spring break, spring break budget, spring break tips, tips, travel

Tax Tips for Busy Canadian Families from H&R Block-Giveaway

February 5, 2013 by Kathryn 44 Comments

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We can all agree that raising a family is one of the greatest experiences ever but it can also be quite expensive. With after school piano lessons or hockey on the weekend, extracurricular activities can start to add up. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce your tax bill this season and help with some child-related expenses. Cleo Hamel, senior tax analyst at H&R Block Canada, offers the following tax advice for Canadian families:

Anna’s Budget Tips-Low Cost Cleaning

February 1, 2013 by Kathryn 18 Comments

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I am a sucker for fancy cleaning products. I am easily drawn in by pretty packaging, intriguing scents, and claims such as “all natural,” “eco-friendly” and “non-toxic.” Of course it’s not necessary to drop big bucks just to get your home sparkling clean. In fact, some of the most natural and environmentally friendly products are also the least expensive. Here are a few tips to keep your cleaning costs way down:

Make Your Own Cleaning Products

To make your own All Purpose Spray, mix 1 cup of white vinegar with 2 cups of water in a spray bottle. If you’d rather not have the strong vinegar smell try adding a few drops of essential oil. You can find essential oils at most health food stores – choose peppermint, orange, tea tree, or lavender. Use this spray to clean just about anything including counter tops, sinks, kids’ toys, and windows.

Need a little extra scrubbing power to accompany your elbow grease? Make a gentle scrub out of baking soda mixed with a little water and use to clean soap residue and hard water stains, polish metal fixtures and clean stubborn messes on counter tops. As an added bonus, baking soda also deodorizes while it cleans.

Clean a cast iron pan with kosher salt and a non-abrasive sponge. The salt will clean off food residue without removing the pan’s prized seasoning.

Kosher salt can also report for cleaning duty for your wooden cutting boards. Rub the salt over the boards with a cut lemon and then rinse off the lemon juice/salt mixture. The acidity of the lemon juice will disinfect and the abrasive salt rub will get the surface nice and clean. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Anna's Budget Tips, Features, Guest Post Tagged With: budget, budget tips, chores, clean, cleaning, eco-friendly, eco-friendly cleaning, homemade cleaning, household, make cleaning supplies, money, reuse, save, save money, tips, tricks

Minimize Waste and Keep Food Fresh with the FoodSaver V3460 Vacuum Sealing System

December 13, 2012 by Kathryn

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As a stay-at-home mom, I’ve always kept a pretty close eye on the family budget. A little bit of planning can save a lot of money over time and I always have my eyes out for new ways to save money. Unfortunately, despite my best efforts, I still sometimes find that food goes bad before it is eaten. So when I got the chance to test out the FoodSaver Vacuum Sealing System V3460, I was thrilled.

This handy little countertop appliance features an upright design to save space and comes with one 11”x10” FoodSaver roll, three Quart-sized FoodSaver bags and two Gallon-sized FoodSaver bags so that I could start packaging food right away. It’s designed to prevent freezer burn in frozen foods, maximize freshness and make portioning and sealing bulk foods quick and easy. I’ve always wanted to try a FoodSaver, mainly because I buy in bulk whenever possible, so the next time I went grocery shopping, I made sure to pick up a package of whole chicken to separate and seal with the device.

The nice thing about the FoodSaver Vacuum System is that it is so versatile. While I quickly and easily packaged the chicken for the freezer, I found a wealth of information about other ways I could use my FoodSaver Vacuum Sealing System V3460 as well. I loved the idea of using the system to seal peeled ripe bananas in either the fridge or the freezer and I also liked the idea of packaging breakfast sandwiches so that they could be stored ready to heat in the fridge for busy mornings. I also appreciated tips about pre-freezing foods before sealing. By freezing fruits and vegetables on a tray before placing in a FoodSaver bag, for example, the produce stays separated and damage to delicate-skinned items is minimized. [Read more...]