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The Coupon Crate
Tips and Tricks
- Avoid shopping at the peak times such as right after work (5-7 PM) and weekends. Shopping during slow times will allow for you to look for the best deals and getting the best prices without becoming the object of basket-rage. This will also relieve the pressure of hearing everyone grunt and sigh when you pull out those coupons. You absolutely should use your couponing expertise, but why make it harder on yourself?
- If you are only running in for a couple items, forget the cart. I was always so guilty of this one. For some reason, empty carts beg to be filled. But usually this causes your filled wallet to empty.
- Eat before you go grocery shopping. When you're shopping hungry... do I really need to go on? I'm certain everyone at some point has come home with bags and bags of snacks and ingredients for things you can make NOW. And don't think that the store offering hot to-go items is unintentional. Being hungry and smelling food increase impulse shopping!
read more... on The Coupon Crate
Cutting Grocery Costs without Cutting Nutrition
Simple, healthy, and affordable ways to weather the rising price of food
by Karen Collins, R.D., American Institute of Cancer Research
Grocery prices are projected to increase again in 2008 – that’s following 2007’s highest annual increase in 17 years. But surviving these tough economic times doesn’t have to mean sacrificing good nutrition. Some simple strategies can help you cut food costs and eat more healthfully, too.
To get started, look over several weeks worth of grocery receipts and see where you spend the most money. Changes here will likely offer the most savings. Meat is often one of the largest grocery expenses. Save money by adding a couple of bean-based, meatless meals each week. It’s easy:
read more...
Listing of Top Online Schools
How to Save on Your Grocery Bill
A full cart doesn’t have to leave you with an empty wallet
by Kati Neville
Don’t buy non grocery items at the supermarket. Health and beauty goods are usually cheaper at mass-market retailers, like Target. And you’ll find the best deals on paper products at warehouse clubs.
Purchase oranges, onions, and potatoes in bags rather than individually. You’ll pay roughly half the price.
read more...
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Resources for basic needs and food programs, health care and drug assistance programs, organizations supporting women facing crisis of an unplanned pregnancy.
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School Meals
National School Lunch Program
Provides nutritious lunches and the opportunity to practice skills learned in classroom nutrition education.
• Afterschool Snacks
• Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
• Seamless Summer
School Breakfast Program
Provides nutritious breakfasts to promote learning readiness and healthy eating behaviors.
Special Milk Program
Offers milk to children who do not have access to other meal programs.
read more...
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Valuable Help for Mothers and Children in Need
USDA sponsored Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC).
WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk.
read more...
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Modest Needs
Modest Needs exists:
• To prevent otherwise financially self-sufficient individuals and families from entering the cycle of poverty, when this might be avoided with a small amount of well-timed financial assistance;
• To restore the financial self-sufficiency of individuals who are willing to work but are temporarily unable to do so because they do not have the means to remit payment for a work-related expense;
• To empower permanently disadvantaged individuals who otherwise live within their limited means to continue to live independently, despite a temporary, unexpected financial set-back; and
• To strengthen small non-profit organizations by providing a forum whereby such organizations can apply directly to the general public for the help they need to complete the relatively inexpensive projects that will allow them to better serve their clients and the communities they exist to serve.
read more...
Catholic Charities USA
Catholic Charities agencies serve people of all faiths. They provide a wide range of services, including services for single moms and children: housing, emergency services, health care, child care, adoption, counseling, financial assistance, food pantries, and other critical services.
Select your state from the drop down box, and find the services you need.
Some Charities have their own websites:
Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice - FL
Catholic Charities Oklahoma
Catholic Charities of Los Angeles - CA
Catholic Charities Health and Human Services - OH
Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Denver - CO, from the left side drop down menu select services.
read more...
Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC)
For nearly 35 years, Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) has been creating, finding and supporting programs that directly improve the health and well being of nearly 3.7 million children worldwide every year.
Since 1998, RMHC has supported life-changing surgeries for more than 15,000 children through our grants to Interplast.
Ronald McDonald House
Ronald McDonald Houses around the world offer families a way to stay together, in proximity to the treatment hospital, and be comfortable and cared for during their stay. Families are stronger when they are together, which helps in the healing process. By staying at a Ronald McDonald House, parents can also can better communicate with their child’s medical team and keep up with complicated treatment plans when needed.
At every House, families can enjoy: Home-cooked meals, Private bedrooms, Playrooms for children. Depending on the House, these services may also be available: Special suites for children with suppressed immune systems, Accredited education programs, Recreational activities, Non-clinical support services, Sibling support services.
Ronald McDonald Family Room
When families walk into a Ronald McDonald Family Room, we want them to forget they’re in a hospital. Often steps away from a pediatric or intensive care unit, Ronald McDonald Family Rooms offer a place of refuge to families in the hospital where their child is staying because of illness or injury.
Services may vary from one Ronald McDonald Family Room to the next, but families will often find: A kitchen area that includes a stove or microwave, Shower facilities, Sleeping rooms, Laundry facilities, Internet access, Reference books, A seating area with a television, A quiet room.
Ronald McDonald Care Mobile
A fleet of Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles travel to communities the world over to bridge the gap between hospitals and these underserved children - and to eliminate statistics like these.
Depending on community needs, Ronald McDonald Care Mobile services may include: Primary care, well-child visits and developmental screening, Immunizations, Diagnostic, preventive and restorative dental care, Oral hygiene education, Asthma treatment and self-management education, Pulmonary function testing, Vision, hearing and lead screening, School and sports physicals, Prenatal care for pregnant teens, Childhood health promotion and injury prevention education, Nutrition counseling, Pediatric specialty care, such as oncology, cardiology and otolaryngology, Ophthalmology, Mental health assessment and referral, Blood collection, Social service resource referral, Health education, Care for special needs children.
All Ronald McDonald Care Mobile services are provided in a 40-foot long, 8-foot wide, state-of-the-art vehicle built specifically for delivering pediatric health care services. Each vehicle includes two patient examination rooms, a laboratory and reception and medical records areas.
Staffed with pediatric specialist volunteers, each Ronald McDonald Care Mobile provides cost-effective, high-quality medical, dental and health education services to underserved children in rural and urban areas around the world. Within the United States, volunteers also help eligible families enroll in federally assisted health insurance initiatives such as "Insure Kids Now."
Camp Ronald McDonald at Eagle Lake, Northern California
A residential summer camp for children who are at risk, Camp Ronald McDonald at Eagle Lake gives hundreds of kids each summer access to a host of activities they wouldn’t be able to do otherwise.
While the campers typically have special challenges that would normally hinder their ability to experience the fun of camp and nature, the Camp does its best to ensure all the barriers – physical and mental – are removed. Instead, the focus is confidence-building experiences designed to support each campers’ individuality in an outdoor group living environment.
RMHC U.S. Scholarships
Many hard working students can’t afford to get the education of their dreams. RMHC want these students to reach their full potential. To help them accomplish this, the RMHC network offers scholarships to students in financial need who have demonstrated academic achievement and community involvement.
Find RMHC Chapters, Ronald McDonald Houses, Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles or Ronald McDonald Family Roomschapter in your area.
Partnership for Prescription Assistance Program
Phone: 1-888-4PPA-NOW (1-888-477-2669).
Partnership for Prescription Assistance brings together America's pharmaceutical companies, doctors, other health care providers, patient advocacy organizations and community groups to help qualifying patients who lack prescription coverage get the medicines they need through the public or private program that's right for them. Many will get them free or nearly free.
Programs:
• Help for Those in Need: Many people have difficulty affording health care, including prescription medicines. A number of patient assistance programs provide help to patients who lack prescription drug coverage and earn less than 200% of the federal poverty level (approximately $19,000 for an individual or $32,000 for a family of three).(Qualifications vary by programs. Income levels vary by state.)
• Access to the Medicines They Need: Patients will be directed to the public or private programs most likely to meet their needs. The Partnership for Prescription Assistance helps qualifying patients without prescription coverage.
Enroll in more than 475 patient assistance programs, Access more than 2,500 medicines, Learn how to contact government programs for which they may qualify, such as Medicaid, Medicare, or the State Children's Health Insurance Program.
read more...
RxAssist
Patient assistance programs are run by pharmaceutical companies to provide free medications to people who cannot afford to buy their medicine.
read more...
• Join the SingleMom.com forums. Share your tips, resources and experience with other single moms
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9 Cash-Saving Tips That Pay Big Bucks
complaintsboard.com
The expression "a penny saved is a penny earned" doesn't cut it these days. But saving a few dollars here and there can add up...
read
more...
Try out these Thanksgiving recipes from tasteofhome
You May Have Too Much Debt But You Also Have Options
How Life Works
If you feel like you're in over your head with personal debt, you're not alone. Millions of Americans have become overextended, many as a result of easy credit and the recessions. Credit cards, medical bills, personal loans and raising interest rates do not make a good financial mix.
read more...
Suze Orman's Recession Rescue Plan - helps you survive in times of financial crisis
OPRAH.com
Do you know what your family would do if you lost your job - or worse, your home? Financial expert Suze Orman is ready to help you
devise a recession rescue plan to survive - and possibly thrive - during this deepening financial crisis...
read more...
Could fat babies mean fat toddlers?
A new study from Harvard Medical School found that babies who gained weight quickly had a sharply higher risk of obesity. The study
followed close to 600 babies and found those in the top quarter of weight for their length at 6 months had a 40 percent higher risk of
obesity by age 3 than smaller babies.
read
more...
The 10-Ingredient Shopping Trip
By Tara Parker-Pope and Mark Bittman
... In his latest “How to Cook Everything” segment on the Today Show, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman makes it
surprisingly easy to cook a week’s worth of dinners with just a 10-ingredient shopping trip.
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more...
Finding last-minute tuition money
There's still time to find funds for this semester's college tuition. But you'll have to move quickly.
By Gerri Willis
It's only a couple of weeks or even days until school begins. And if you don't think you'll be able to get a handle on your college
tuition bill, here with your guide to last minute money.
read more...
Short-term Payday Loans
econ4u.org
...Which are more expensive, late fees or short-term loans?...
A short-term payday loan can be a better option than overdraft fees, reconnect fees, late payment fees or a damaged credit rating when
the loan is repaid promptly. However, these loans are not suited for longer repayment periods...
Being realistic about budgeting can help avoid the need for short-term borrowing.
read more...
Your Just-in-Case Emergency Plan
by RealSimple
Who do you call if you can't make it home in time to meet the kids' bus? Who do
you trust to take in your mail when you're on vacation? Who do you trust with
the extra set of keys to your house?
read
more...
How to save $10,000 in 2009
By Liz Pulliam Weston
If you were hoping for a list of small tweaks you could make in your spending to save $10,000 a year, sorry. The reality is that
$10,000 is a lot of money. And saving big money usually means making big changes in the areas where we spend the most, such as:
Housing, Transportation, Food.
read
more...
The Super, Sexy, Single Mom on a Budget
by Renee Rayles
A quick reference guide designed for the busy, single mom who has
little time to read while running the mom taxi, cooking dinner, helping with homework, and trying to fit in a date night every now and
then.
32 and Counting? Finding Your Happily Ever After Today
by Gi Gi
The author talks about the struggles a single mom goes through and the discovery that you can have HEAT (Happily Ever After Today) just
as you are, being single, taking care of your kids...
read more...
Single Mothers &
Male Role-Models / Mentors
Single mothers carry an enormous load of responsibility, especially those having sole and/or primary custody of minor children. They
nourish, they nurture, they teach, they discipline, they shelter, they protect, and they provide… all without the assistance of another
equally-invested adult.
read more...
Your 5-minute guide to protecting your identity
20 steps to protect yourself from identity theft, and seven ways to clean up things if you become a victim.
read more...
TheOnlineMom.com offers parents and consumers a guide to the top-rated, age-appropriate, kid-tested and parent-approved tech toys and gifts.
read more...
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw
by Jeff Kinney
For those wondering why tween boys don’t read very much, the answer is that more books aren’t like this...
read more...
Stressed mothers may raise fat children
Youngsters seek escape from family problems in unhealthy food
Millions of poor children in the United States may be getting fat before
age 10 because their mothers are stressed out and the youngsters seek
escape in unhealthy comfort food...
read more...
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