It’s that time of year again where you start collecting the best deals on school supplies, scour the internet and scroll through Pinterest to find ways to get your family organized for the new school year. There is no doubt there are plenty out there. These are just a few back to school hacks that help my family.

3+ Back to School Hacks

Here are some Back to School Hacks that will make the transition a bit simpler.

1. Before/After School Schedule

Are schedules really necessary before and after school. I say yes, yes they are. I have three kids of my own and this past year I had the privileged of taking another child to school as well. We have about an hour before I round them up to get in the car to head to school. Morning time it is great to have some free time, that way when they get to school they are more attentive, they already had play time. So there isn’t a set schedule for morning with the exception of my kids. They have to do the usual before games/play time can begin: Shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, and chore. Each child has a chore that works for them. One empties the dishwasher and puts the dishes away, another collects all the clothes for laundry, while the other is still working on keeping  walk path in their room (she has so much! I need to de-clutter!!!). Those need to done before our friend comes over and before any electronics are turned on.

Having an After school schedule really helps eliminate the whining in our house. Let me be honest here, it doesn’t always help but over all it helps more than enough that no one kid of mine feels another is being treated differently. Each of kids are in different grades and their homework requirements are different. Our rule in our house. Everyone must be done with their homework before the TV or any electronic gets turned on. So if one child finishes 10 minutes before the others they have the option to go to their room and play quietly, they can read, they can finish their chore, etc.

Our After School Schedule is as follows:

• Use the Bathroom
• Grab a Snack
• Homework
• Free Time if Day/Time if permits
• Dinner
• Free Time

Some days we are quickly eating dinner as soon as we get home and then out the door so our after school schedule gets pushed to the side but that is only typically one day a week and every so often a second day during a school night. We don’t follow this schedule typically on Friday since there is not any homework. Sunday night we do have the kids make sure everything is packed in their bags for Monday.

You May Also Like:

2. Car Ride Schedule

Yes I’m sure you are aware of the endless arguments that happen between siblings when it comes to who gets to sit in shot gun and who has to sit in the middle of the back seat. I’ve learned, everyone wants to sit in the front and no one really wants to sit in the middle of the back. I had four children to work with and we came up with a car ride schedule. At the time I had two who could sit in the front seat and two who were still in boosters so it was tricky but we were able to figure out a way to rotate the two who could sit in the front as well as rotating each child who would sit in the middle back.

Here is our template you can download

FREE Car Ride Schedule Printable

3. After School/School Snack Organization

Yes I let my kids have a snack after school. I don’t have very much cabinets in my kitchen, so I have a buffet cabinet that we use for snacks. I’m rather short. My oldest is now taller than me by an inch or so! Anyway because of my height we have everything at a lower level so our snacks are low! In my buffet cabinet we have the cabinet door when open has three tray/drawers. The top is for our extra silverware and the bottom two are for snacks and drinks.

So here is the deal with me. My family we didn’t really have snacks at all in our house and I went to friends houses and saw a cabinet or basket of just snack items, I thought to myself how do my friends have self control and not eat all the snacks at once. I really never understood nor did I know if they had a rule like I created in our house. My kids know our rule is 1 snack per day after school. It took awhile but they don’t question it anymore. The answer is no if they ask for a second.

This also is our school snack hub! This makes it easier on me in the morning when we pack school lunches and snack bags. A few years ago my sister made each of my kids bags with their interest and their names embroidered on them. They were originally made for Halloween candy but we converted them to school snack bags. It’s great if they loose them at school and they end up in the lost in found. These bags are one of a kind so they easily get returned! I typically place one drink, one fruit snack and one cracker type snack (this includes pretzels, peanuts, cheese crackers, ritz crackers, club crackers).

4. Shower Schedule

Much like the car ride schedule, yes we had to create a

shower schedule as well! No one likes going first and everyone wants to go last. We shower and maybe once in awhile take baths for my kids! My kids sweat regardless of the temperature! Showers just work better for our family. We typically shower first thing in the morning. Having this schedule helps decrease the meltdowns and angry attitudes in the morning. No one person goes first than another and everyone gets a turn at being last at least once a week. Its a revolving schedule so we continue it during the entire year. We do have hiccups with my children having the privileged of being close to grand parents that they can spend the night, or when we are taking a trip away from home or the kids are at summer camps. It makes it easy to come back to the schedule. We have it posted in our command area.

5. Command Area

Please take some time and create your command area. Ours is in the kitchen since that is where my keys get hanged. I’m typically in the kitchen last before leaving so having our weekly menu there and all our schedules just makes sense for our family.

Topic: 3+ Back to School Hacks

It was exciting when the thought of having to replace our current car because it just hit 203K miles and has some cosmetic problems, transmission issues, needs new tires and so on.

We don’t want to put tons of money into it because the worth of the car is less than 1K and if the transmission goes out we are sunk.

We took a portion of our tax return to save and build on to put towards our new to us car. Here is what we are looking for:

– 2005 or newer

– 100K miles or less

– Sedan sits 5 person

– perferably a Mazda, Toyota or a Honda

Those are our criteria, because this car needs to last us at least two years because by then the hubby will be done with school or close to it. Our kids will be older and we will have friends to drive around! We will be in a better financial situation than we now. This car is needed to get us by but still be economically sound with minimal work and so on.

The excitement has worn off. We have visited several websites online including, craigslist, dealerships and so on. We have gone to dealerships and looked around. We have even had our friends look for us as well.

The first hurdle was waiting for the money to come and now its here. The temptation of it being spent is stressful so I am now to the point of just wanting to get it done and over with.

Its fun to go look at cars but not so much when you find something you like and then realize its out of the price range. It’s very disappointing and discouraging.

So what are we doing for now. Adding more to our envelope. I almost feel at this moment that we will have our entire budget in hand by the time we actually go to buy.

Well starting on a Monday we test drove a car we liked. Financing was an issue because we were 1500 shy of our original budget. Thankfully we were able to be financed by Friday and signed papers.

So what did we get a 2007 Hyundai Sonata with 115K miles on it. We are satisfied with our purchase. Great car but it took 4 weeks from start to finish with this ordeal of finding us a new car.

Our old car still drives, noisy! It has now reached 208K miles on it. We plan to keep it going till it really dies!

Update– Our Mazda got backed into but we did get the worth of our car and more. We are now back to being a 1 car family.

This changes everything. As I have been doing my research; visiting store and taking pictures of products I want to furnish our new place I had my second purchase all planned out between items from Wal-mart and Dollar Tree.

But then all of a sudden Dollar General sends me this incredible coupon for 50% off Housewares, etc.

I had to remap my entire purchase to maximize my savings. I’m sure you are thinking that Dollar General products are not always better and I agree so there are some items I will refrain from getting but remember I am looking for basic needs, I need the items to do the job and I know fully well that over time they will need to be replaced just like everything else.

Before our financial downfall we had Dollar Store and Wal-mart items and they lasted a pretty long time for us.

I am being frugal minded as well as realistic. The more I can save the more I can put towards our car or to our future place.

So with that I ended up getting on my second purchase using the Dollar General coupon. I ended up saving over $40 that I would have spent buying these items elsewhere even at their cheapest cost.

Serving Spoons $.50 each got 2

Spatulas $.50 each got 2

Serving Ladel $.50

Potato Peeler $.50

Wisk $.50

Masher $.50

Tongs $.50

Spray Bottle $.50

Cups 3ct for $.50 got 2 sets

Large Spoons 3ct for $.50 got 2 sets

Toaster $5

Can Opener $5

Coffee Maker 12 Cup $6.25

Pillows 2ct $3

Mixing Bowls $3 for 4ct

Utencil Drawer Holder $1.50

Broom & Dustpan $3.25

Garbage Can $8.50

Storage Tubs 4ct for $12

Kitchen Trash Can $4.33

Kitchen Towels 6ct $5

Iron $4.50

Pitcher $1.50

Swiffer Mop $5

Wash clothes $10

Total $84.88 plus Tax  – $89.12

I saved $84.88 using the 50% off Housewares Dollar General Coupon

Dollar Tree Purchases

Bowls 6ct $2

Salt & Pepper Shaker $1

Sponges 3ct $1

Steak Knives 4ct $1

Pots and Pans Brush $1

Shelf liner $1

Can Opener $1

Bucket $1

Total $9.45

Grand Total = $98.57

I did make a purchase of Toilet Paper of $9.60 and a Shovel of $9.97 because of the projected snow storm we will be getting soon.

I left you last week with checking off products as you get them. Isn’t it exciting to start collecting your basic needs to start a home. Soon you will be excited to put everything in place. Now is the time to get the rest of the family on board and excited.

1. Get everyone on Board. Get the kids involved and help them get exited for their bedroom and how they want it to look.

Remember you are starting over and you can choose your theme and still be frugal. You can find alternatives inexpensively. I mentioned that I found pink kitchenware at Wal-mart from their back to school College section. I found them on clearance so I was very excited. I even have gone to Dollar Tree and found that they have pink Zebra print pots and pan scrub, Kitchen Towels and placemats. I asked the hubby would he mind. He said “no” so I guess he is ok with my zebra addiction. I love Zebra print and I like the pink as an accent. So exciting. So you see you can create your dream kitchen or any other room and still be frugal and not spend tons of money. I am excited. It feel great to start over and get what I want. Before when we first got married we went with blue and white so kind of generic colors and everything did match but very bland. I have a friend who is giving me some dishes similar to the ones we use to have and I am very grateful for them. There isn’t enough for all five so I still plan on getting black or pink dishes. Black are more likely and easy to find at a low cost. I also found black oven mitts and pot holders at Dollar Tree.

As the weeks have gone by we have looked at clearance and sales. My daughter just like pink so my mother in-law found her a light pink and blue comforter which will work great for a Hello Kitty theme room so we will look for some Hello Kitty Accessories to match her room. Now that we have a point of reference we can look for some great deals. This is so exciting for her that she can pick out items she really likes.

topic: Getting everyone on board

Have you had to start over whether it be by choice or by circumstances. I have. Once from when I moved from Idaho all the way to Virginia to start college and then again after I have been married 10 years.

Because of financial circumstances and a whole lot of other STUFF, my husband and I had to make the call, it was not by choice but because of circumstances that we gave just about everything away and moved in with family.

We are very grateful we had the ability to do so. We have struggled over the course of the year to find jobs, change jobs, get the kids in school, relying on family to watch the kids, make new friends, find our place in a new church, make car repairs, keep Moms Saving Money, LLC going. It has been a tough road.

They (whoever They are) say kids are resilient and make a move and changes easier than adults, I don’t know, I never moved as a child. My children seem to be doing fine and we often have to remind them why we are living with family and don’t have a place of our own.

It hurts when one will ask if they can save their money to buy a home so we can live in. One day we will get there but not by using the money our children have manage to save.

Enough back story,  lets talk about moving forward and starting over. The idea consuming me for the past week and half. Why? Because now that the hubby and I both have jobs and he is going back to school, it is time we look forward to starting over. We still have a long ways to go before we move out on our own, but in the meantime we need to start preparing.

Have you thought about it? What it would take to start all over. When you are young and you move from your parents to go to college or move out on your own or even when you first get married you think of these things. What you will need and want. Isn’t it fun to add items to your registry? Well this is very similar. You see the last time I even thought about what items I would need to start a home was when I was planning my wedding and that was 11 and 1/2 years ago.

So what does starting all over look like? Well think for a moment on all the items you will need to acquire moving into your new place.

If you have no furniture you will need to find ways to get the furniture you need. So here is the first obstacle. Since we have no furniture we also have no room to store it while we collect our foundation of items.

First I have to be realistic and look at the basic needs we have to get a sense about what is needed and the amount of money I can expect to spend.

Here’s my list. I have 3 kids so that means I need furniture for a minimum of 3 bedrooms. My boys will be sharing a room. Remember we are trying to only acquire the bare minimum.

Bedroom #1 – Boys

– Beds (frames and mattress), Bedding Sets, Curtain(s), Trash can, Dresser, Bookshelf

Bedroom #2 – Daughter

– Bed (frame and mattress), Bedding, Curtain(s), Trash can, Dresser, Bookshelf

Bedroom #3 – Our room

– Bed (frame and mattress), Bedding, Curtain(s), Trash Can, Bookshelf

I then had to realistically look at other rooms we need to get basic furniture items.

Kitchen

– Table and Chairs (5)

Living Room

– 1 Couch, TV Shelf/Entertainment Center, Lamp(s), End Table(s)

I then realized I need to get items that are necessities but because it will take awhile to get in the routine of being on our own. I don’t want to get so tight again that I would like to have a buffer of health and beauty products, cleaning supplies, and Kitchen items.

The household items include Tissue paper, trash bags (I can start collecting plastic grocery bags for the smaller trash cans in the room), Feminine products, Shampoo, Conditioner, Lotion, Toothpaste, Razors, Toothbrushes, Deodorant, Laundry Detergent, Dish Detergent, and so on.

I know the above items seem small but we have been there when we were not able to afford a $1 to get shampoo because we needed to put it towards gas for our car. I don’t have to worry for a couple of months, so therefore between moving on our own and now, I will coupon and take advantage at getting the best deals to acquire enough for a years worth. Yes I am paranoid, I do not want the same situation or similar to repeat and I want to be able to be prepared and give an example for my kids on how to plan ahead.

So each paycheck until we move out I will be buying 1 furniture item and 1 of each household item for example a pack of toilet paper. Do you ever sit down to think about how much you use in a year? For our family keep in mind my kids are small and they tend to use more than they really need, so toilet paper goes fast with us. So before we moved in with family we used a 12 pack of double rolls in a month between 2 bathrooms. So with that in mind I want to have 12 packs of 12ct double rolls before we move on our own. So the average cost is around $7 for 12ct. So I know I need to save $84 for 1 year supply. This is a game to me so I want to see how much I can save while I still get the 12 packs I want to acquire before moving out.

I will update this post I get to my goal and how much I actually paid.

Because something always comes up and you have to be flexible check out my Frugal Fresh Start Week 1 – Follow our family journey on how we will start over with a Frugal mind.

Does your church need social media? Yes if you want to engage the 30 somethings and their families. Social Media is an effective tool for churches to easily get information out, advertise, encourage and connect.

1. Make sure your Church is connected by Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and even Pinterest, yes Printerest!

2. DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT post every few minutes, have a 20 minute interval at least. If you post several times within minutes you might as well close your account. No one likes being overwhelmed with TOO MUCH Information at a time. Let people breathe. Allow your News Feed to be taken in strides.

3. DO NOT go a couple of days without posting, Posting infrequently loses your audience and loses your place in Social Media.

4. Be Intentional and provide relevant information for events such as time, place and if child care is provided.

5. Post only facts. Do not post your opinion. Just like a Pastor cannot tell you from a pulpit who to vote for, you SHOULD NOT use Social Media to do so either. Use common sense.

6. DO NOT assume your fans know where your church is or what time an even typically happens. Treat them like a visitor and give them all the necessary information they will need to come to your event or help or whatever the case may be.

7. DO NOT disable your comments. Use Social Media as a way to connect and let your audience talk to you and ask questions. If an unappropriate question is asked or posted be honest and let everyone know that they can call the church and set up a meeting or phone call to address their concern. DO NOT answer the question on Social Media.

8. DO NOT use Social Media to sugar coat God’s Truth. Let His Truth stand on its own. Let it be a tool and allow people to find you.

Topic: Social Media 101 For Churches

Hate foggy windshields?

Buy a chalkboard eraser and keep it in the glove box of your car. When the windows fog, rub with the eraser! Works better than a cloth!

Topic: How to deal with a Foggy Windshield

By Rebecca Autry January 12, 2014 September 24, 2015 How to Make Super Mario & Luigi Hats

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

FacebookTwitterGoogle PlusCustom Social

Looking for something cheesy and yummy? How about something you can make in one pan? That’s right, this is an easy One Pan Meal. Use less dishes to cook so you have less to clean up. My kids didn’t even argue that there is broccoli in it! In fact they are beginning to enjoy broccoli more and more these days. There is no argument from me!

SEE ALSO

• Ham, Cheese and Green Bean Casserole Recipe
• How to make Marshmallow Fondant

Ingredients

• 3 large Chicken Breast
• Broccoli Florets
• 1 1/2 Cup of Rice
• 1 Can Cream of Chicken
• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• Handful of finely chopped onion
• Minced Garlic

How to Make:

1. Add 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil to a pan and heat on medium high.
2. Add a handful of finely chopped onion and brown.
3. Dice 3 large Chicken Breast into bite size.
4. Add to the onion and season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Sprinkle minced Garlic over chicken.
6. Move chicken to one side of pan.
7. Add a little bit of olive oil to opposite side and add rice and slightly brown
8. Add 1 can of cream of chicken to pan.
9. Add 1/2 cup of water to pan mixture and mix all ingredients.
10. Let simmer for 7-10 minutes.
11. Add bite size broccoli florets and a handful of Shredded Cheddar cheese.
12. Mix all ingredients and cook until rice and broccoli are softened.

That is it! Enjoy!

Topic: Cheesy Chicken Broccoli and Rice Recipe

Do you have a problem with ants in your home? Well this might help you without the high cost of a pest control.

Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it ‘home,’ can’t digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works and you don’t have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

Did you know that cornmeal is a great resource or that this will work with ants?

No More Mosquitos

Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.

Topic: No More Mosquitos

How to get rid of Weeds

1. Start putting in your plants, work the nutrients in your soil.

2. Wet newspapers

3. Put layers around the plants overlapping as you go.

4. Cover with mulch and forget about weeds.

5. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic they will not get through wet newspapers.

Topic: How to get rid of Weeds

Say Goodbye to Fruit Flies

Those little annoying fruit flies can be gotten rid of with this simple tip below. So lets say goodbye to fruit flies.

Frugal tip – To get rid of pesky fruit flies, take a small glass, fill it 1/2′ with Apple Cider Vinegar and 2 drops of dish washing liquid; mix well.

You will find those flies drawn to the cup and gone forever!

If you have any frugal tips to share we would love to hear them. You can submit to moms saving 1 (@) (gmail) dot com

Frugal Tips Check out more HERE

Topic: Say Goodby to Fruit Flies