Are you like me and hitting the stores for the best after Halloween sales this week? I know that I’m always excited to see what kinds of discounts and markdowns I can find on decorations, home decor, candy, costumes and more. In fact, the day after Halloween (aka All Saints Day) I went to two…
While I didn’t grow up celebrating Christmas, I love that grownups can can countdown to the holiday season with fun advent calendars for adults. So, if you thought that advent calendars were only for children, you may be pleasantly surprised to discover these very adult (but still PG rated) calendars with a gift each day….
What a difference a year makes. This article on Thanksgiving life hacks for this year is an update of a frugal Thanksgiving blog post I wrote a few years ago. Otherwise, I believe the advice in it is solid, to be sure. Therefore this is what I’ve done. I’ve answered some common questions about this…
I was so excited to learn about Ulta Beauty at Target. That is, you’ll now find Ulta stores, if you will, inside Target locations. Talk about combining two of my favorite places to shop. No offense, Nordstrom and Costco. I still love you two, too. Ulta Beauty at Target locations This Ulta Beauty store within…
After Trunk Club shut down, the Nordstrom Personal Shopper department reached out to let me know that they could set me up with a personal stylist near me. That is, since I was already an established customer at the Pittsburgh Nordstrom department store, I could work with one of their stylists at any time. Again,…
After writing my article about surprising things you can buy with HSA or FSA dollars, I wondered if there were surprising things you can buy with EBT. In case you didn’t know, EBT is shorthand for Electronic Benefits Transfer and is usually used in combination with SNAP — the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. That’s another…
When I think about the meaning of price match, I think about grocery stores. Usually, a supermarket will match a competitor’s pricing so you don’t shop there. Well, other kinds of retail stores offer price matching, too. This is usually true at many big box stores or national retailers. So how do you get a…
If you like to leave your holiday shopping to the last minute, then I’m confident you’re curious about Christmas Eve store hours. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve forgotten something at the last minute — be it a present or something I need for the meal we’re making the next day. And I’m…
When our daughters told us they would be living off campus, I was able to help them come up with some college apartment must-haves. Why? Because my senior year in college, I decided I’d rather live in an apartment than the dorm. This is a natural progression for many college and university students, especially if…
I’ll never forget the first time I became aware of the importance of cruelty free makeup. In college, I was a journalism major and was taking a class on photojournalism. One of our assignments was to photograph a protest happening near our campus. This one was about beauty brands that tested on animals and it…
You probably know some of the most common federal holidays. But, do you know why we celebrate them? Are you familiar with when these national holidays occur? And are you wondering if stores, businesses, banks and more are allowed to be open on federal holidays? Well, after writing my article on stores closed on national…
It is important to know and understand the return policy at a store before you shop there. This includes if you are shopping online and hoping for free shipping both ways. That is, when a store says “free returns,” it doesn’t always mean free return shipping. In fact, I’ve made an unofficial personal policy not…
Where do the wealthy shop to save the most money? The answers may surprise you. Hint: it involves trips to Target, Walmart, Costco and Home Depot!
I decided to write this Simplisafe Review because it has now been six years since our family started using the Simplisafe system. That is enough time to let people know if Simplisafe is worth it or not, and to answer the question, “Does Simplisafe work?” Long answer short? Yes, and yes. Simplisafe review We’d read…
You’ve probably noticed expirations dates on medicine you use. This is true for OTC or over the counter medications as well as prescription ones. In addition, there are products you might use for medicinal uses, such as lactase enzyme for those that are lactose intolerant. These, too, have expiration dates. Why medicine expiration dates matter…
When is National Wine Day? Well, believe it or not, it’s not so easy to answer that question. That’s because while there is a legit National Wine Day, there are also nearly a dozen other iterations of a wine holiday. So, let’s pour out a glass and get to know all of these wine-related holidays…
When I was pregnant with my daughters, the notion of a baby registry for essentials didn’t even exist. In fact, the same year that my first daughter was born, I published a book about newfangled bridal registry programs. Baby registries? Never heard of them and they never would have crossed my mind. My how times…
One year when we had to use up our flexible spending account, I was so surprised to learn that sunscreen was one of the FSA eligible items we could spend that money on to buy. What does FSA stand for? Flexible Spending Account. A flexible spending account is something your employer sets up for you,…