Sometimes, life gets hectic. On those hectic days, I will (with open arms and a full heart) welcome when the hubbs wants to order pizza or pick up burgers.
Even if it isn't in the budget.
I know....shameful. To proclaim "Budgets are the BEST" from the mountain tops and then do something outside of the budget. I'm only human!!!
But when we do order or pick up take out, I still try to be smart.
Papa John's is just 3 minutes from our house. Annnnnnnd they're my favorite. So I went to order from them and had in the cart a large pizza for $11 and cheesebread for $5. I went to RetailMeNot.com (of course) to see if they had a code to use and they did. 25% off.
But only on regular priced items. My large pizza was a special.
So I put the same pizza in my cart without the sale price, put the next size of cheesebread in my cart ($7) and used the coupon. Same price, bigger cheesebread.
I love it!!!
I always try and keep any coupons for restaurants in my car. If we're out and it gets too late to make it home and make dinner, I whip those bad boys out. I try and keep our eating out to less than $20 each time.
Until my kids become teenagers. Heaven help me!
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Bulk Cooking
The Hubby (J) is on an eating plan that is high protein and slow carbs.
*crickets chirping*
Yep. My reaction. That means beans, lean protein and vegetables. Egg whites, tuna, chicken, chicken, chicken...
To me that means lots of cooking for his special eating. He told me he wanted to keep it simple with the same meals during the day for the entire week. Chicken and beans. Well, I can do that! So on Sunday I cooked a whole chicken, a pot of pinto beans and put the leftovers in containers for him to take to work. Monday morning, I cooked enough eggs for the next 5 mornings of breakfast for him.
It has helped immensely! I'm no longer rushing to cook 2 batches of eggs. I'm not flustered looking for enough protein and beans for him to take to work. And he doesn't have to worry about it either.
A win win in my book.
Eating plans are not easy. Especially when they are specific. But in a family setting, you still can do it! Find a meal or two that work and eat that every day. Cook it all in one day for the week and then don't worry about it! Eventually J will go back to more normal eating, but while he's on this program I'll do my best to help him.
Unlike he does for me when I'm training for a half marathon and wanting to drop a couple of pounds of fat and he brings me home 2 cookies that are probably 20 grams of fat each but they are my absolute favorite and he knows I can't resist them. But that's for another post.
*crickets chirping*
Yep. My reaction. That means beans, lean protein and vegetables. Egg whites, tuna, chicken, chicken, chicken...
To me that means lots of cooking for his special eating. He told me he wanted to keep it simple with the same meals during the day for the entire week. Chicken and beans. Well, I can do that! So on Sunday I cooked a whole chicken, a pot of pinto beans and put the leftovers in containers for him to take to work. Monday morning, I cooked enough eggs for the next 5 mornings of breakfast for him.
It has helped immensely! I'm no longer rushing to cook 2 batches of eggs. I'm not flustered looking for enough protein and beans for him to take to work. And he doesn't have to worry about it either.
A win win in my book.
Eating plans are not easy. Especially when they are specific. But in a family setting, you still can do it! Find a meal or two that work and eat that every day. Cook it all in one day for the week and then don't worry about it! Eventually J will go back to more normal eating, but while he's on this program I'll do my best to help him.
Unlike he does for me when I'm training for a half marathon and wanting to drop a couple of pounds of fat and he brings me home 2 cookies that are probably 20 grams of fat each but they are my absolute favorite and he knows I can't resist them. But that's for another post.
Friday, January 13, 2012
My Faith Restored
If you read my last post, then you know how disappointed I was in New Balance's shopping site. Well, I tweeted my post (as I always do), tagging New Balance, and they noticed!!!
Here's the e-mail I received:
Dear Carmen,
I apologize for the confusion and all the trouble you have encountered in receiving your shoes. I work in Boston at our Corporate Office and I have been in contact with ShopNewbalance and they did mail you out a new pair yesterday that should be arriving this afternoon. It looks like there has been an issue with the original shipment due to USPS and for that we sincerely apologize. Total customer satisfaction is very important to us and its clear in this case we have let you down as a customer. If there is anything additional we can do for you please let me know. Please contact me directly if you do not receive your shoes today. We thank you for your patience and dedication to our brand.
I apologize for the confusion and all the trouble you have encountered in receiving your shoes. I work in Boston at our Corporate Office and I have been in contact with ShopNewbalance and they did mail you out a new pair yesterday that should be arriving this afternoon. It looks like there has been an issue with the original shipment due to USPS and for that we sincerely apologize. Total customer satisfaction is very important to us and its clear in this case we have let you down as a customer. If there is anything additional we can do for you please let me know. Please contact me directly if you do not receive your shoes today. We thank you for your patience and dedication to our brand.
Wow! Unexpected! That has completely restored my faith in my favorite brand of running shoes. Seriously. So a huge thanks for my pair of amazing running shoes that arrived last night. I am looking forward to taking them on a test run today.
In my experience, companies most often want to make you happy. I think companies are always started to fulfill a need. To serve. But somewhere along the line, through the chain to the employee that views it as just a job, that service is lost. Not always, but sometimes. So I think you just have to find the right person to help you.
Like Maureen who got me my shoes.
Or the lady (whom I still regard as an angel) at Bank of America that 'forgave' 4 of my 6 overdraft fees at a time when we barely made ends meet.
God bless the people that still help other people.
In my experience, companies most often want to make you happy. I think companies are always started to fulfill a need. To serve. But somewhere along the line, through the chain to the employee that views it as just a job, that service is lost. Not always, but sometimes. So I think you just have to find the right person to help you.
Like Maureen who got me my shoes.
Or the lady (whom I still regard as an angel) at Bank of America that 'forgave' 4 of my 6 overdraft fees at a time when we barely made ends meet.
God bless the people that still help other people.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Grrr...
My last post (almost 2 weeks ago, eek!) was all about the beauty of getting my new running shoes on a budget. Super yay for the price!!!
Here's the ugly side of that. They are still not here.
When I used the code and it gave me free shipping, there was only a $2 difference between that and the next level up of shipping. However, I may not have gotten the value of the free basic shipping taken off the next option. So I opted to stay in budget.
My shoes were said to be delivering yesterday by USPS. They came, went and no shoes. So I emailed ShopNewBalance.com's customer service. They told me "it will arrive on the correct date with no delay". Which made me think they'd be delivered by a separate USPS truck. Nope.
Then this morning I let them know it didn't arrive yesterday and they told me "because you chose to go with our Basic option so our delivery times are estimates since there might be a day of overlap from the transfer. If you choose to go with the Standard Ground it will have a tracking number with it the entire way and it should not have any delays."
To which I replied:
"That would have been nice to know up front. I would have paid the $2 extra to have it 2 days or more earlier. USPS has already come today and still no shoes.
This has left me with an extremely poor opinion of the company. When I'm planning on it being here by a certain date and things are arranged around that, it's very frustrating to get a 'well you chose basic so it may be a few days late' answer."
Again, I apologize for the delay and if you need anything else, please let me know!"
Here's the ugly side of that. They are still not here.
When I used the code and it gave me free shipping, there was only a $2 difference between that and the next level up of shipping. However, I may not have gotten the value of the free basic shipping taken off the next option. So I opted to stay in budget.
My shoes were said to be delivering yesterday by USPS. They came, went and no shoes. So I emailed ShopNewBalance.com's customer service. They told me "it will arrive on the correct date with no delay". Which made me think they'd be delivered by a separate USPS truck. Nope.
Then this morning I let them know it didn't arrive yesterday and they told me "because you chose to go with our Basic option so our delivery times are estimates since there might be a day of overlap from the transfer. If you choose to go with the Standard Ground it will have a tracking number with it the entire way and it should not have any delays."
To which I replied:
"That would have been nice to know up front. I would have paid the $2 extra to have it 2 days or more earlier. USPS has already come today and still no shoes.
This has left me with an extremely poor opinion of the company. When I'm planning on it being here by a certain date and things are arranged around that, it's very frustrating to get a 'well you chose basic so it may be a few days late' answer."
To which they reply:
"I understand, Carmen and I apologize but again, since you chose the basic option (free) on our site and it clearly states that Basic shipping may take 2-7 Business days, the delivery date is an estimation since we cannot guarantee what the USPS does in terms of delivery. Thursday, January 12th will be the seventh business day and according to our estimations, they should be delivered before then.
Again, I apologize for the delay and if you need anything else, please let me know!"
Maybe they're in a different country, because it's the 11th here. USPS has come and gone with no shoes. So there's no way they can deliver them before tomorrow. Unless (again) they have a separate delivery truck. Which I doubt since USPS is nearly bankrupt.
So....lessons learned.
Lesson #1- ShopNewBalance.com's estimations stink
Lesson #2- ShopNewBalance.com has very slow shipping
Lesson #3- ShopNewBalance.com does not value individual customers.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Retail Me Not Strikes Again!
I ran my first half marathon in November. It was brutal but AMAZING!!!! I absolutely loved the entire experience and plan on doing another one in May.
The downside to running so much is that my shoes wear out quickly. Logging 20+ miles a week will do that! I don't like to pay a whole lot for shoes, so I try to wait until they are on sale. I look for a long time and then pounce when I find what I want in the price range I want.
Two days ago I received an email from ShopNewBalance.com (I love NB shoes) about their clearance sale. I went to see what they have in my size and Ta-da *angels sing*! They had a pair of 1224's for $54.99. Regularly priced they are $139.99. That, is the kind of deal I love.
Fast forward to today. I go to check again (because I have my spending money now) and they are still available. I put them in my cart, begin checkout and think to myself "I'll just check RetailMeNot to see what they have. Maybe there's a coupon code I can use." I found one! 10% off plus free shipping.
$139.99 Regular Price
$54.99 Sale Price
-$5.50 (10%)
+$4.13 Tax
Free Shipping
$53.62 Total
Awesomeness!!! Take a minute or two before you check out to see if you can save some dollars. It is completely worth your time.
The downside to running so much is that my shoes wear out quickly. Logging 20+ miles a week will do that! I don't like to pay a whole lot for shoes, so I try to wait until they are on sale. I look for a long time and then pounce when I find what I want in the price range I want.
Two days ago I received an email from ShopNewBalance.com (I love NB shoes) about their clearance sale. I went to see what they have in my size and Ta-da *angels sing*! They had a pair of 1224's for $54.99. Regularly priced they are $139.99. That, is the kind of deal I love.
Fast forward to today. I go to check again (because I have my spending money now) and they are still available. I put them in my cart, begin checkout and think to myself "I'll just check RetailMeNot to see what they have. Maybe there's a coupon code I can use." I found one! 10% off plus free shipping.
$139.99 Regular Price
$54.99 Sale Price
-$5.50 (10%)
+$4.13 Tax
Free Shipping
$53.62 Total
Awesomeness!!! Take a minute or two before you check out to see if you can save some dollars. It is completely worth your time.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Good Things Come...
I know you've heard the adage 'Good things come to those who wait'. In this house, we firmly believe and practice that. Although ours is always 'Good deals always come around again'. Maybe not as proverbial sounding, but the same truth nonetheless.
My good thing finally came!!!!
For three Christmases, I have kept my eye on the KitchenAid Stand Mixer. You know...THE mixer. I've been watching, getting an idea for what the lowest price seemed to be and what I could get it for used. I wanted the 600 Professional at first, but then thought maybe it was a bit too big. So I watched the 5 quart at the same time.
This year, my amazing hubby bought the mixer of my dreams for my Christmas present!!!!
My good thing finally came!!!!
For three Christmases, I have kept my eye on the KitchenAid Stand Mixer. You know...THE mixer. I've been watching, getting an idea for what the lowest price seemed to be and what I could get it for used. I wanted the 600 Professional at first, but then thought maybe it was a bit too big. So I watched the 5 quart at the same time.
This year, my amazing hubby bought the mixer of my dreams for my Christmas present!!!!
I am a little weird, in that it's hard for me to appreciate a gift if I feel like it was too expensive. I'm wired different. But Jon, knowing this, was listening to all my scenarios and scored big time!
Kohl's will price match with Amazon.com, so we took a print out of Amazon's 6qt mixer at $279.99 to Customer Service. They promptly price matched it, used my 30% off code (for having a Kohl's account) which brought the price down to $196.00. Out came the rebate receipt for $50 back and on the bottom it tells how the complimentary magazine subscription value can be reimbursed to you as well. After the $74 in rebates, it will be $122!!! Plus I earned $30 in Kohl's cash which will NOT be hard for me spend.
***Happy Dance Happy Dance***
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Merry Christmas!!!
May your day be filled with joy and cheer. May you celebrate the love that God gave us through the birth of His Son on earth. And may your hearts be warmed with the love of your family and friends.
Merry Christmas from the Cavanaughs!
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