Natural Health Magazine: $3.73/year

Best Deal Magazines is offering a 1-year subscription to Natural Health Magazine for just $4.39.

You'll save 15% when you use code PXCJ1002, making your final price $3.73 for 1 year (8 issues).

We're Moving!

Dear Mindfully Frugal Mom Readers,


Tonight we will be making a very exciting move to a self-hosted Wordpress blogging platform.  I think this change will be a vehicle to improve the content I have to offer you through this blog.   
What do you have to do? Nothing. When you type in Mindfullyfrugalmom.blogspot.com, you will automatically be redirected to my new site: MindfullyFrugalMom.com.  What you may want to do is update your bookmarks.  This will make it easier and quicker for you to read your favorite articles and stories at Mindfully Frugal Mom.  
Thank you in advance for your patience this weekend as we work out the kinks and get the new, improved, MindfullyFrugalMom up and running!


See you on the other side!
Sarah

Frugal Friday: Four Unusual Ways to Use Applesauce

 I love living in a part of a country where we have 4 distinct seasons, and Autumn is my absolute favorite time of year in Upstate New York.  I love it so much, sometimes I go a little bananas picking apples. (Get it, bananas. . .apples. . .see, that’s cute? Oh, nevermind.)  

I’m not exaggerating when I say that every year I end up with bushels of apples in my kitchen, all ready to become yummy, cinnamon-y applesauce.  My kids would eat applesauce every day, at every meal, so I never have to worry about making too much. But if you are like me and have lots of applesauce to make, here are a few different things to do with your applesauce. (And I promise none of them involves pork chops!)

1. Homemade Apple Leather -- this is a healthy, easy, and delicious snack.

2. As a substitute for oil in baked goods -- in general, you can substitute applesauce for oil in a 1:1 ratio: that is, if a recipe calls for 1/2 cup oil, you can use 1/2 cup applesauce instead. If you are using sweetened applesauce, you may have to decrease the amount of sugar in the recipe.  Applesauce can also be a substitute for eggs, and even milk, but I only use it to substitute for the main fat (such as oil) --otherwise the final product might have a rubbery or tough texture. Applesauce works best in making sweet, fall-like baked goods such as pumpkin bread and oatmeal muffins.

3. Stirred into oatmeal -- Instead of sweetening with sugar or honey, add 1/4 cup of applesauce to your morning oatmeal. Applesauce is an all-natural sweetener and it helps cool down the oatmeal so you can eat it immediately. Add raisins for even more yumminess.

4. Slow Cooker Applesauce Chicken -- one of my favorite recipes, and the whole family loves it!

You’re next! I’d love to hear some more out-of-the-box uses for applesauce!

Free: Pumpkin eCookbook!

Download this free cookbook on all things pumpkin from Amazon.  You can, of course, download it to your Kindle, but also to almost any other device, including your Mac, PC, or iPhone. Click here to find out how.

Wegmans: Seafood Coupon and a Tip!

My family loves seafood, and I love the health benefits, but seafood has definitely become a splurge item in our household.  
I'm excited to see this week's Wegmans coupon for $1 off a $5 seafood purchase.

Speaking of seafood, did you know that frozen items, like shrimp and salmon, often are a better bet than the items in the "fresh" refrigerated case at the store?  That's because  they are frozen immediately, sometimes even at sea, while the "fresh" items are frozen first, then defrosted and set on ice.  So you don't need to feel guilty about purchasing frozen seafood. The most important thing is to purchase the highest quality fish you can afford; as a rule, wild-caught is usually the healthier choice versus farm-raised. 


I'd love to hear from readers: How do you incorporate seafood into your diet and budget?

FREE $2 MP3 Credit at Amazon

Can't wait to download those amazing West Side Story covers from Glee last night?  You can get a $2 MP3 credit at Amazon today when you use code FALLMP3s at checkout.


Oh, and you can use the credit for any genre you want. :) But now you know what I'll be downloading.


Amazon also has 100 downloadable albums for only $5 each -- I think you could apply the credit to one of these albums to make them only $3 each.


(Thanks, I am That Lady!)

Don't Try This At Home: My Take on Extreme Couponing

TLC's newest hit show comes back for a second season, and I'm sure we're in for even more gratuitous stockpile shots and nail-biting cash register scenes.  In terms of entertainment value, Extreme Couponing definitely has it. If it's reality we're talking about, though, the show comes up woefully short.


One of the best articles that summarizes the holes in the Extreme Couponing argument is this one from Hot Coupon World.  To summarize, one of the stars of season one admitted to using coupons fraudulently -- which is a felony. There are also rumors flying around that store managers relax the rules for this show because it brings so much publicity to their store. 


You might be thinking: It's "reality" TV. So what? How does this affect me?


Many retailers have changed their coupon policy as a result of this show, making the rules stricter for the responsible couponers. Target, CVS, and Kroger are examples of stores who have changed the rules, either by limiting the number of coupons in a transaction, or prohibiting doubling or stacking.


In my view, there is nothing mindful or frugal in breaking the law.  Check out my series on Extreme Couponing Lite. I'll teach you how to use coupons responsibly in a way that makes sense for you and your family.

Part I: Where to find coupons

Part II: How to Use Coupons

Part III: How to Organize your Coupons

Part IV: From Clipping to Checkout

Part V: Even More Places to Find Coupons!

Part VI: Finding Coupons You'll Actually Use

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