cheapcharley

I bought the power fusion razor with a coupon.I also bought clearance lipstick. Cvs gave me my money back so add 12.99 to my challenge.I held a coupon club meeting for some of the moms.I explained how they could could spend 50.00 at cvs & get it all back plus 11.00 extra cvs bucks.They looked like deer in headlights, I hope I explained it properly.The next meeting Im going to attempt to explain walgreens.

So when ever we go back home we have a cabin we stay at. We dont have a washer dryer there so I take all our clothes to the laundry.I go to this one on a MAJOR road. It in between a Wachovia bank & a car dealership.The lady there owns the propery.Way In the back is a real nice garage.The laundrylady owns the property, the building etc.So I ask her why dont she sell & retire & she says then what would I do? Good point. Most of her machines no longer work & she has to hit them at certain places to get them to come on. Anyway I noticed everytime I go she has clothes dirty & clean out the whazo.She does laundry for people who dont want to do ther own. She charges .80 cents a pound.There are very few places that have this service & most charge 1.00-1.25 a pound. So were talking & I ask her whats the least amount of clothes you clean in aweek? She says the slowest week would be 1,000 pounds! 1,000 Pounds. Great goobly goo!
So shes pulling down at least 800.00 dollars aweek!can you believe it. Great business.By the way she said put a small amount of amonia in your wash & it wont fade your clothes but it will help get out stains.

So we went to fix up our rental.New paint, new carpet every 2-3 years.I picked out all white for the bedrooms & hall. An a neutral sagey green for the den . The kitchen & dr or wallpapered.
I have one bathroom that has ugly white with beige splashes on it.I wanted so bad to try the tile paint I saw them use on hgtv. but it takes 4 days to dry & I didnt have the time.We cleaned out all the windows & sills cleaned all the kitchen cabinets & built ins.We are paying someone to patch the drywall & paint. Its costing a thousand dollars.But hes painting 7 rooms, 1 hall & all trim & moulding.Also painting all doors.So I consider it a good deal.
The renters left a mess in the yard.Which my husband called & left them a ugly message--- so they came & cleaned up most of it. They left a boat on a trailer.Asmaller trailer full of junk. A meduim size empty trailer. a out of commisson air compressor. A old dryer, a old toilet, a head board, set of box springs & mattress, a computer desk. A trampoline, & lots of other weird things.
We took the kids fishing (teaching frugal skills)my youngest 6 caught ahuge fish, he was so happy.The kids worked really hard helping clean.They are getting good at measuring spaces.I also taught the girls how the cost is different in the state we were in because the taxes are higher were we live.

Hi so we figured out we could get the loan.But it would take a good deal of work because we were going out of town in five days and it had to be secured before we left.So I decided to let the house go.The location was the only thing that wasnt right.I assume they sold it since they only had two weeks.Someone got a good deal.We just got back in town today.

Ok so I find out we cant get a loan for 6 months because our credit says foreclosure paid in full.It didnt go into foreclosure but since it was sent to there dept it was put on our credit it was sold before the process started.
The house has to be sold by the 30th or 1st.So the bank guy says apply for a non conforming loan at 8% then reapply for a fha in a yearare so.The good thing about nonconforming loans is no PMI.Which I would have to have with FHA loan.So the loans would probably be the same. Ill run the numbers tonight still even if approved it will be hard to make the deadline.Assuming of course the house hasnt sold .Ive been to scared to look on the mls.Even if its on the mls it might be sold alot of realtors leave houses that have sold to get leeds.Normally I wouldnt go for a 8% loan but this house has so much built in equity I think it would be worth it.
It appraised a year ago for 295,000. & it wasnt even complete.However I have learned not to get emotional about it.
we'll see.

So yeaterday I do my whole routine & about 10:00 I always check mls system to see if any new homes were listed.The market here stinks its a buyers market but people are not listing so now inventory is getting low. So I cant get in touch with my realtor & I cant get anyone in his office to show me the property for him.I realized this house was a very unsual value and would not last long so I call the listing realtor & go see it.I hated it because my realtor is usually very good.But this house was a golden goose.Now people from high priced areas probably wont believe this but-- the house has 5600 sq ft.
built 4years ago, with 10 acres & a big heated & cooled workshop & a carpot & koi pond & a spring on property for 195,000. Yeap I swear.Not only that but alot of extra nice features, hardwood floors, marble entry ways, custom cabinets.They are being foreclosed upon so the house must sell in 2 weeks. I doubt we will beat an investor to it but Im going to try.Wish me luck. If its meant to be my blessing I will get it. If not someone else will be blessed.Just had to blog about it because its on my mind.

I just reread Rich Dad, Poor Dad.
It makes some interesting points.
Anybody like it or the advice?
My favorite books are the tightwad gazzetes.I also like frugal luxeries by tracy Mcbride.Its not really about saving money its more about living well.
I like to read it because it reminds me that beauty , kindness & memories do not have to cost money.I mean what can beat
sheets dried on the line in the sun.A picnic with the kids.A million little things we all take for granted when we concentrate to hard on spending are on saving.

Ok so we were renting a house & the landlord want fix the plumbing --it backs up. Needs major work---- handy man agrees.Landlord does nothing.So we have no choice but to move.Not very much here to move to but we finally find something.
We'll the landlord says--I was hoping you would buy the place & we said we would if we could agree on price & they owner financed it.They said they would for 10,000. down.Now we already told her we would be out Dec 1st. in writing which we were but and heres the tricky part-- None of us could close till Jan 1st.So we said we would buy the house under those terms.
If we could close in January & our payments start in Feb. So that was the
verbal agreement.Well we told them we wanted to get some prices from plumbers etc.. & since we were buying we kept the keys --They never asked for them back.
They call today & say they changed there minds ,They are going to move & need the money so they are going to sell the house outright.An they want Dec.& Jan. rent?! Now I did store items under the the carport & utilities have still been in my name. But from the amounts you can tell no one has lived there.Hubby says she backed outof the agreement so shes not entitled to any money because if we had gone through with everything she wouldnt have gotten rent for those months.An its true if we knew she was going to charge us we wouldnt have stored the items under the carport.We have lived in this place since before Dec 1st.The house was an excellent buy we could have kept it 4 or 5 years & made 50 or 60 thousand. But we would have had to redo the bathrooms to keep it rented.I cant believe they are going to try & sell it.This market is terrible & it will not sell. An one of them is in the realty business so they should no this.By the way they have no rental contract.They were suppose to pick it up a year ago & never did, go figure!

Hubby & I have 2 rental properties & a cabin.
A month ago my hubby went to pick up some windows he had stored at one of the houses.We rent this house to a preacher.
He & his congregation were going to build a church on some property they acquired but apparently ran into some problems.So its a Sunday & my hubby was surprised to see all the cars there.Well turns out there having church service in the pool house. Which is for suppose to take place in a commerical building.So after much debate (between us) we call our insurance co and they tell us no we are not covered for this & no we cant get additional cover because the property is being used incorrectly. Furthmore they will cancel our policies unless we evict said tenant.They will not take anyone word that the church services have ceased. So we tell the tenant & send a letter.Now he wont answer the phone. We let him no Dec 1st. he had untill Jan 30th.So not we will have to go back home Ga to see if he is moving.I hated to move him out because its the wrong time of the year to rent this property.April is the best time.
So to get top dollar it will have to set for 2 months, ouch! unless I can rent it for masters which Im going to try & do.
I like realestate and to be honest its really the only way we get any where. Hubby and I are not savers. We try to be money smart with what we have everybody has to work with there personality flaws.
We cant save so we buy realestate when we can.We have no credit cards (no we are not debt free) & we max out hubbys 401k because the co. matches money.Still
we need a emergency fund.

I talked to a principle of one of the private schools & talked to her about offering science labs for homeschool kids.I was thinking if she got 10 kids at 10.00 a kid thats hundred dollars for 1-1/2 hours.which I think is completely doable.I thought I would mention to many of you that homeschooling is really big now & can be lucrative.One of our moms is looking for a spanish teacher , another for sewing lessons etc..I am trying to find something to trade for piano lessons for my girls. So if you have a talent maybe you can bring in some extra money.There was a lady here last year who had a degree in art. She taught 3 classes twice monthly. About 15 kids in one class, 15x3=45, 45x14=630
So she made 630 dollars a month for 2 days work. The classes were 7.00 a class but you had to pay by month the class was 90 minutes. The children were responsible for there own art supplies.
I think this an excellent 2nd income.

Ok hubby & I have put off deciding what school to put ds2 in.We did this because of finances & we were not happy with our choices.Now its down to the wire.
My choices are public school, were chances are he will have to change schools when we purchase a house.
So this will be 3 schools in 2 years which is unexceptable.Are put him in the private school he was in last year.
We were not really happy with it.It is 350.00 a month & still has extra hidden cost.Im so bummed.Ds2 has to be in school he just thrives in a school setting.I hope one day he wants to be homeschooled.I miss him during the day.
Before we moved he had been in the same school for 4 years, all the same friends he loved it & it broke my heart to have to move him.

I joined for a while a groupon yahoo .It was sort of a callenge to see how long you can live off whats in your pantry.
I really joined to get an idea of what a good pantry might include. I get more excited about building a pantry.A wellstocked pantry can see you through some rough times.I remeber when I was 1st married & we went to the grocery store, by the time we got through buying mustard & ketchup -- misc condiments we had no money for meat.As I stated before we have not lived in the state we are in very long & I used down all my stockpile before we moved.I am now slowly rebuilding my pantry.Years ago there was a book called "The only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need" I think Andrew Tobias wrote it. One of the things it brought up was buying items in bulk & on sale therefore beating the price the item is now & buying in bulk to beat inflation.
True you cant do that with everything but it makes sense.
I stock up on cleaner when its free or when its just tax.But really doesnt count because you cant eat it & a gallon jug of vineagar & water will clean alot.
So Im working on buying 2-3 items a week out of my weekly grocery budget to spend on pantry items.This does not include free items that I get with coupons.I always stock up as much as possible on those items.Anybody want to share there top pantry items? One of mine is peanut butter --it is hard to get for less then 1.00 here.

I was laying down with DD2 tonight &she said she had something to tell me but I had to promisenot to tell.It was a secret her best friend from back home had told her.The little girl said I know you'll never tell anyone.Well I wouldnt promise because I was worried it might be a dangerous secret.But I told her I would try my level best not to tell.Then she said, Christina told me that her mommy & daddy are fighting alot because they bought alot of expensive things & now they cant pay for them.Her mother found someone to pay the bills & her daddy is really mad.Christina says it was probably because of the Very expensive lamp her mommy bought.
It broke my heart.I mentioned her mother previously, she always comes bearing gifts & it makes me uncomfortable because she overdose it.I had talked to her mother a few days ago, she had found someone to refinance the house & pay off the credit cards.I advised her against it because her hubby was still filing out credit card applications in her name.
An since not all the cards were tore up I was concerned they would pay them off & run them up again.She told her husband that she had applied for a refinance & someone was coming out for an appraisal.He refuses to sign the refinance papers.My friend is trying to cancel the appraiser but he says only the mortgage company can cancel his appt.
When he comes they will debit my friends account 300.00 She told me if he didnt sign she was filing for divorce.
How sad. You know money problems are seldom about money are they?She buys people things & her child must have the best stuff. Her husband trys to save his siblings by giving them money that never gets paid back.Of course his siblings have much nicer homes& cars then he does.So sad & there poor little girl thinks its about an expensive lamp.

I love going to open houses.But Im really tired of being in this small space.I always get great & cheap decorating ideas from open houses.
Last week someone had taken old flooring
and put it on the ceiling of there porch.
Another house the person had afixed bamboo blinds (are simmilar material) aound the porch, top & bottom. Except for the porch door.It made it feel like another room but it was still a porch.They had put regular furniture on it & made a tikki bar.It was real cute.
Last night I stayed up & made a list of house that have been on the market for at least a year. The list was 5 pages with 4-5 houses on apage. Im going to see alot of them & keep an eye to see if theres any price drops.I really feel for the people trying to sell now.But Ive been there to.It doesnt have anything to do with is the house worth it.It has to do with the market & location.
When I first moved here a realtor showed me a house & just from looking at the book I thought it was over priced.Well I let them know I thought it was over priced.Oh no they said & stated comps.
Well guess what a year later the price is dropped 50 thousand & its still not selling.I dont like people to treat me like Im stupid.These realtors here are nuts (sorry I mean all realtors except the ones reading this).That house thats still on the market in all that time they havent had one open house.Doesnt it ever occur to sellers to negotiate contracts? Like I want 3 open houses within this amount of time? If it doesnt sell within the first month I want a picture in the realestate section?
Anyway Im going to schedule to see some of the house soI can be ready if the price goes down.Some I need to ride past to view the area.
Another idea when buying a house always ride past the house at a different time from viewing the inside. The next day, a week before is good.The day of or day before really good.I road past a property I was going to view that evening
The neighbors across the street were terrible, beer cans , clothes everywhere.
Yuck! Yuck! Well that evening everything was cleaned up.So as were leaving I ask if the seller is related to the people across the street & she says yes there cousins.So I guess he got the cousins to clean up for our showing.Anybody have any advice for me on house hunting etc..?

I was thinking today what a bad parent
I am.Its very depressing.I dont think it would be so bad if all my kids were grown because then I could say well I really messed up.But only one is older & I keep wondering were I went wrong.
He's 21 lives at home.He left school last year.It was a special school for kids ith disabilities & he was lucky to get in.I was so upset he went & moved in with his dad.Now the only thing negative I have ever said about his dad is never & I mean NEVER sign a contract of any sort with him.I told him he could have his car when they showed me proof of insurance.We gave him a car when he was 16, a saturn.He says no he will get his own car him & his dad.So he signs a contract, finances everything even tax, tag & title for 6 yes --6 years.Its like a 2004 truck.His payments are 320.00 a month his insurance is 175.00 a month.
So of course he comes back home to live with this huge truck payment.
He went to work at kmart.He thought if he did a good job they would move him to full time.After he gets there he figures out no one gets full time.They keep scheduling him for 3 hours a day,which is not worth the gas.Somedays he gets 8 it varies.So he quits no 2 week notice no call just doesnt show up.
So he goes & gets a job at the local carwash.They work him everyday but Sundays.But if it gets slow they will send him home & when it rains they close.
I am so disappointed .What good did all the lessons do,the moral lessons.The work ethic? I taught him to be on time, not to badmouth an employer,to give a notice.An if he didnt hear are get any of those lessons how do I know these kids are getting any of them I had alot more time with the firat.

Im really bummed that there is no place to sell good used clothes around here.
Ive thought about selling on ebay so many times but mostly books & clothes.
I dont have a camera to put the pics up with & I would buy one if I thought I would do it regularly but I dont think I would use it enough to justify buying one.I wonder if you can sell items with just a description, I mean I know you can but do they really sell?

Today we went to the library which we do every Wednesday because of there summer
reading program. You keep a log & read at least 15 books.Every Wednesday they have a speaker to day was The fable friends they taught fables & rhymes.
I checked out books for the kids & read the paper.I bought two neighbor kids with us but they live on the same street so it didnt cost extra gas.I took sandwiches & we ate at the park but it was kind of warm.When my kids are withe the neighbor they always buy pizza or take them to mcdonalds.She is a single parent so I dont know how she does it.
It makes it awkward because I feel like I should send money with my kids but I wouldnt take my kids to mc'ds that often.
When we go its a treat not a everyday thing.
Tonight the kids went to Vacation Bible School.Its been really nice to have a break every evening.The kids have had a really nice time, the church went to alot of trouble I think I will visit
the church Sunday. We havent joined a church here yet, we try to visit a different one each Sunday.
I dont know where to start with my challenge.Because we saved money by picnicing but I would have done that anyway.It seems maybe you should only
count money that you saved by doing things you normally wouldnt do.

While hubby & I were out of town
we decided to go to garage sales.
My sis goes every weekend.It amazing to me the difference in area & sales, just like realestate.Boy did we rack up!
I got:
8 pairs of shorts for the girls .50 ea
10 shirts for girls .50 ea
5 pair of shorts for me 1.00 ea
3 shirts for me 1.00 ea
3 shirts for ds 2 .50 ea
2 pair jeans ds1 1.00 ea
battery charger .50
aquarium .50
2 giant floor puzzels .50 ea
quesida maker 1.50
I wanted to get one for my daughter for christmas but wouldnt pay the 19.99
I was surprised that they didnt clearance them after christmas.
a music machine for karaoke --5.00
(which the kids really needed for voice)
a hose reel in abox -- 5.00
Imaginext castle--- 3.00
4 complete halloween costumes .25 each
scooby doo suitcase .50
3 nice tennis rackets for free
floral arrangement .50
lillian vernon popcorn bowl .50
life jacket 5.00
A lamp,picture frame& doorstop
nautical for the cabin 2.00 total
4 movies in clamshell cases for .50
a computer 2 years old for 20.00
The deals were unreal

Well I went with hubby to look at some
wrecked cars-- thats his hobby.He's really good at it- sometimes he makes
in ayear about half what he makes at his full time job.He loves it But My problem is no matter how much you can make at what point do you realize that you need to have time for family etc.. He tries really hard to spend time with everyone but at the end of the day he only has 24 hours too.
Ok so he goes to see some automobliles & the one he went for is to time consuming so he ends up buying 3 others.So hes in the office making arrangements for delivery & then I saw a car my self.I have heard of the but never really looked at them. A chevy
equinox I hope I spelled that right.
It had leather seats & is not badly wrecked & it only had 700 miles.
So I go in to find out how much it is
& they wanted 5200. so I ask hubby to look at it (which I never do) & so we end up buying that one too.
So Im adding fuel to the fire.Then hubby bought a 2006 van online for 5,000
with leather seats & wood grain look dashboard.So he was really happy because he didnt expect to win the bid.
So now we have less money & more work.
UGH!

Well hubby bought a fancy pool table in tennesse so were going tommrow evening to move it into storage unit. Thats 60.00 amonth on top of the other 2 units we are renting.Wasted money.
I feel displaced here renting & sometimes I feel like we will never be settled again.

Update on pool table-- my sister is storing it at her house till we can get it.She had to make room.
It really was a nice table, its a brunswick. It also came with a high bench & 3 stools (all in poolball fabric)
a stand with cues and a poolball clock.

My main goals

1.to decide on a curriculm for my 2
girls ( this is much harder then it sound)

2.decide what stock I want to invest in
( this is much more boring then it sounds)

3.research cell phones/trac phones as I have not been paying attention & of course the deals keep changing.
I would like a prepay with no contract
that would work in different states
I dont care about fancy phones features--email ,text messaging are voice mail.
Anybody out there have advice?

4.Have christmas bought for the kids.

this is my totals from cvs

sunsilk shampoo 2.99
2 herbal essence shampoos 6.00
3 softsoap bodywash 1.99 = 5.97
1 dove cream 1.37
2 coppertone sunscreen stick 5.99 =11.98
1 VO5 shampoo .99
1 celery spice .74
1 onion spice .99
1 bayer 12 ct 1.99
------------------------
total 38.18
2 essence coupons 2.00
3 softsoap coupons 3.00
1 dove coupon 1.37
VO5 coupon .99
bayer coupon 1.99
cvs coupon 2.00 off 10.00
Total after coupons 24.84
return in CVs bucks
sunsilk 2.00
herbal essence 2.00
coppertone 10.00
total back 14.00

total spent 10.84
I could have done better if I would have had 2 coppertone coupons & a sunsilk coupon.that would have saved me another
3.00.


Walgreens

crayola markers 3.99
herbal essence hair spray 3.99
sunsilk shampoo 4.49
windex 3.79
fantastik 3.49
scrubbing bubbles 2.99
Total 22.74
Rebates 16.48
Total Spent 6.16 plus tax
Could have saved a ton more if I would have had coupons,I could have saved
4.00 more with coupons

The last place we lived the schools were considered excellent. Where I live now they are terrible.
My daughter had terrible allergies. Although she was under the care of an allergest once monthly and had medication she took every day.
She missed 22 days of school.there only allowed to miss 21 but her grades were very good.
They turned me over to defax to "talk to me"
That really urked me.
If I drop my child off at school for early care they dont mind.
My child can have breakfast there,lunch there, snack there.If I arrange for after school care & then have the daycare bus pick my kid up & watch them till 6:30 defax wont call me.
Because leaving your kid with someone
else from 6:30 till 6:30 is being a responsible adult.But because I want my child home when she sick Im irresponsible? Give me a break.
Its about money,the more they feed my kid the more money they get.
If to many children miss to many days they get put on a list (no child left behind) 3 years on the list & they can close a school or at least give everyone the option of attending another school.
They are determined to not leave any child behind they really are trying screw them all up together!
People need to think about were education started & were it is headed.
Remeber the one room school house?
My granfather helped build one & was very proud to give his kids that opportunity.Why is it when the government takes over something it gets so messsed up?

www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/fil/pages/listkindersu.html

www.midnightbeach.com

www.topsecretrecipes.com

www.justpeace.org/mixes.htm

www.mycoupons.com ( the shopping boards/forums is the part I frequent)

www.molliesformandcouponservice.com

Well I spent yesterday coming up with a meal plan.
Still went over my budget.
I am trying to keep my budget at
100.00 a week.Now I realize that may seem like alot.Before our move I had my grocery bill down to 75.00 a week.
But then we movrd & no pantry stock
and we are spending 150.00+ a week.
Now I would like to say were eating steak and lobster butnot even close.
I have already cut out the kids snacks etc.. and at the end of the week we are
wiped out.
But I am trying to focus on the positive.
We have a dent store here.Thats what I call them.They sell dented cans etc..
I found McCormick gravy, seasoning packets,taco seasoning, meatloaf, all different kinds for ten cents a pack.
So I was happy. They also had cereal
.99 a box, but they dont except coupons.
Heres my menu
monday- we had chef salad with fried chicken tenders
dessert bananna pudding
tuesday- hamburgers & hotdogs, corn on cob, french fries.
the hotdogs were only .50 with coupons
dessert- watermelon
wednesday- spaghetti & french bread
dessert- brownie & icecream
thursday- eggs & bacon with potatoes cut
& fried
No dessert-- let them suffer
friday- pork loin in gravy & garlic potatoes & brocoli in butter sauce
dessert- apple crisp
saturday-- chicken salad on hoagie bread&
deviled eggs
dessert canned fruit (yuck) & jello
Ok can you tell I cook alot?
Well hubby doesnt think so.
I cant spend anymore time in the kitchen unless I decide to sleep in the oven.
My grocery store has solo plates & cups
b1g1 which makes them 1.35 a piece
there was a .50 coupon in sundays paper
so doubled it makes them .35 cent which is pretty good.
My worst purchase was bananna pudding
It cost 4.50 --way to much
I had to pay .44 cent a pound for the bananas,way too much
The cheapest meal for the week is the eggs & bacon& potatoes
Eggs .68 cent for jumbo
bacon 1.79
potatoes .50
total 2.97 for meal for 6 people.
cheapest dessert brownie & icecream
Brownies .75 estimate- eggs 2- .12 cent
oil .25 cent
ice cream 2.00
total 3.12
Breakfast the kids will have
cereal or oatmeal or apples & peanut butteror cheese toast, orange juice to drink
Lunch
peanut butter & jelly sandwiches
tuna fish & crackers
chicken soup & grilled cheese
mini pizza's with a can of biscuits & leftover spaghetti.
fijtas with left over chicken & cheese

It just dawned on me why Im so upset about my grocery bill.
Look at this who goes to all this trouble?
Ok actually its not trouble to me I like to no where my money goes.
But you would think, someone who studies the ads-- 3 grocery stores,1 meat market,& 1 dent store.Who plans menus
Who cuts coupons. etc.. could do better then 130.00 a week.
I have friends who never look at a sale who could beat that total--its just shameful!!
Im trying to spend 10.00 a week on pantry items(stock pile)
this week was the mixes what a find.
Last week was i stock piled the dawn detergent for the car towel for DS2
I will pair it with something from the movie ( a car or other toy) for a christmas present.
Oh now Im going into my next entry which is christmas.

In alot of cities if you can call the newspaper (printing area) ask if they sell end roll newspaper.They change the rolls when they still have alot of paper on them( I guess they dont like to run out)They sell these by the pound,last time I paid like 10 cent a pound.These are great for picnic talbles ,crafts,under highchairs, banners etc... Even when I lived in a town that didnt sell them they told me to come by & they would give me a couple.