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Here's What's New 
Every week in 2013, I'll be sharing a different way you can save $100 this year. If you do all of these things, you'll be able to save over $5,000 this year alone! Many of these things will likely be things you're already doing, but hopefully all of you will pick up at least a few new ideas or some inspiration from this series.
10 years ago, I stepped foot into Aldi for the first time in my life — and I was pretty much instantly sold. Since then, we've saved thousands of dollars by regularly shopping at Aldi. In fact, I estimate that we save at least $15-$20 per trip every time we shop at Aldi. That adds up to around $780 to $1,040 in savings per year — or at least $9,000 in 10 years. That's certainly not something to sneeze at! Here are three reasons I think everyone should consider shopping at Aldi: 1. They Have Regular Low Prices One of the best reasons to shop at Aldi is that their regular prices are almost always lower than you're going to find at most any other grocery store. I love that I can count on these low prices. Without ever looking at a sales flier or clipping a coupon, I can see significant savings on my grocery bill. 2. They Have Amazing Produce Sales Seriously, the Aldi produce sales can be incredible, sometimes even bordering on crazy low! I typically buy the most of whatever produce they have on special buys. If possible, I'll buy extras to freeze, too. As they rotate their rock-bottom produce sales every week or two weeks, we can eat a variety of fruits and vegetables — all at a fraction of the cost. If you find that your Aldi consistently has a poor selection of produce, you can also price-match the produce sales at Walmart. This allows you to still benefit from the amazing sales, while almost guaranteeing that the produce selection will be in stock and high quality. 3. They Don't Offer a Lot of Variety At first glance, this might seem like a negative not a positive. But hear me out. I love the fact that I don't have to choose between 57 different varieties of cereal when I go to Aldi. There are just a few choices and they are pretty much all completely different. There aren't different brands, sizes, or choices that can make your head spin. Instead, what you see is what you get. For me, this is incredibly freeing as it simplifies shopping. I can run in and run out of Aldi in nothing flat because I don't have to compare ingredients or cost per ounce. I just pop the one kind they carry into my cart and move onto the next item on my list. Recommended Resources Need more convincing? Check out this Aldi 101 post. If you've not read Slash Your Budget and Eat a Whole Foods Diet With Aldi, I'd recommend it. I especially loved Carrie’s one-month of Aldi menu ideas in the ebook. For more Aldi menu ideas, check out The Aldi Queen. Also, I’d suggest checking out eMeals. They offer budget-friendly Aldi menu plans. Best of all, all the work is done for you — you just print the grocery list, shop, and cook! Find an EMeals coupon code here to make it even more affordable! Be Strategic: Stick With Staples If you want to successfully save money by shopping at Aldi, you've got to stick with buying staples. I know that pop-tarts and chicken nuggets might be less expensive than their regular grocery store counterparts, but they are a lot more expensive than it is if you just buy chicken breasts or ingredients to make muffins. So skip the pre-packaged stuff and fill your cart with staples. Not only will you probably be eating a more wholesome diet, but your pocketbook will also benefit a lot. Try Things at Least Once If you're leery of shopping at Aldi, don't be. Just be courageous and go check out your local Aldi store. I bet you'll be pleasantly surprised! You can see a list of some of my readers’ favorite things to buy at Aldi here. (Tip: If you have multiple Aldi locations in your area, visit each of them to check them out. Sometimes, the cleanliness and product availability can vary widely from store to store.) Not every single item will be something your family loves, but commit to trying things at least once. After all, you can't knock something until you've tried it! Are you a fan of Aldi? Why or why not? I'd love to hear!    Related Stories 
At the end of July, I had the privilege of getting to spend a few days with Sarah Mae and Sally Clarkson. We talked, ate delicious food, and drank tea. It was a blessing and I came home feeling so filled up. Much of the time was spent listening to and learning from Sally. She’s a wealth of wisdom and experience and it was good to just sit and soak up all she had to share. 
But I really wished more of you could have been there. I felt almost a little guilty that I couldn’t be sharing the opportunity with you, too. So that’s why I was so happy to see that Sarah Mae and Sally are doing a Discipleship Webinar next week. As soon as I read the description, I knew I wanted to listen in!
Day One: Laying a Foundation of Love - Sally Clarkson Tuesday, September 10th, 9-10pm EST Observing God as a parent gives us a pattern to follow as we seek the best for our own children. God extends His love, training, and instruction throughout the Bible for the benefit of His children that He loves. In this session we will cover Biblical principles and practical ideas of how to build a winning relationship with your own children so that their heart will be turned towards you as a parent. Understanding Jesus' motivation with his own disciples lays a foundation for reaching our own children's hearts. Day Two: Loving the Wild One - Sarah Mae Wednesday, September 11th, 9-10pm EST If there is one thing that I get the most emails and comments on it is my precious Caroline, the former "wild one". I say former because over the last year she has matured into the most delightful little girl. But it took work and time and intention, and in this webinar I will share with you the journey, the ups and downs, and what things have made the biggest impact on my Caroline becoming a genuine delight. If you have a wild one, I'll show you how to hang in there with grace, nurture change, and genuinely enjoy your child. 
Day Three: Dealing with Our Junk So We Can Parent with Clarity - Sarah Mae Thursday, September 12th, 9-10pm EST I believe that respecting our children, relating with them, being honest, and treating them as we would like to be treated is foundational for building loving and trusting relationships. However, in order to be able to parent this way, we first need to deal with our junk. In this webinar, I will talk about what hinders our ability to parent in freedom and what steps we can take to become true and whole so we can parent with clarity. Day Four: Heartfelt Discipline + Your Parenting Questions Answered - Sally Clarkson Friday, September 13th, 9-10pm EST Viewing your child from a Biblical perspective will determine how you view the role of discipline in your children's lives. In this talk, the goals of discipline will be laid out, and practical advice will be given for the different stages of a child's life. Learning to see each child for the unique design God gave them will free you, as a parent to understand how to reach their heart and motivate them to learn to listen to your instruction and to obey your training. The second half of this Webinar will be dedicated to answering your parenting questions. 
What You Will Get - Four days of teaching & conversation with Sally Clarkson and Sarah Mae via live Webinar
- Five daily emails with inspiration, key readings and other resources
- The opportunity to ask Sally your parenting questions
- My 24 Family Ways PDF Packet
- The UnWired Mom eBook
- Core Lies eBook
- On-demand access after the live Webinar is completed (so you can watch anytime)
Topics We Will Cover - How to Raise a "Wild One"
- How to Instill Excellence in Your Child
- How to Have a Quiet Time When There's No Quiet
- How to Deal with Over-Emotinal Children
- How to Find a Mentor
- How to Build a Winning Relationship With Your Child
- How to Motivate Your Children to Listen to Your Instruction and Obey Your Training
- How to Deal With Your Lies So You Can Parent in Freedom Instead of Fear
- How to Get Through the Desperate Days
- How to Find and Nurture Friendships with Other Moms
Interested? You can read more and sign up for the Discipleship Webinar here. Also, I’m excited to be giving away 10 free passes to the Discipleship Webinar! To enter to win, just click on the graphic below and type in your name and email address. This giveaway is only open for 24 hours and will close on Friday evening. Winners will be announced on Monday.
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Although spring is over, fall is a great time to clean and organize before the holidays. Today’s ebook bundle will walk you through decluttering, cleaning, and organizing your home! Get all 5 ebooks for just $7.40 (a savings of more than 75%)! 31 Days to Clean by Sarah Mae Part cleaning handbook, part devotional, this ebook is not just about the how of cleaning, but about the why. In 31 Days to Clean, Sarah Mae provides you with two challenges each day — a Mary challenge to encourage and engage your heart and a Martha challenge with a specific cleaning task. At the end of 31 days, your house will be clean, and you'll have a new perspective on housekeeping as well! Simple Living by Lorilee Lippincott Deal with tangible and intangible clutter in just 30 days with Simple Living, which will help you have a simpler and cleaner home…and keep it that way. Tackle thirty different clutter areas in under an hour a day and create drastic and permanent changes. A Simply Homemade Clean by Lisa Barthuly Rid your home of commercial, toxic products without the high price of all natural, organic products that line the shelf. Learn to make everything from your own laundry soap, to homemade dryer sheets, antibacterial spray cleaners, potpourri blends and fabric softeners! Project Organize Your Entire Life by Stephanie Morgan With a simple and customizable approach, Project Organize Your Entire Life helps you walk through your daily habits and weekly routines to conquer some of the biggest obstacles to living the simplified life you're yearning for: decluttering, cleaning, organizing, meal planning and more. Pulling Yourself Together by Becky of Clean Mama In Pulling Yourself Together, Becky provides you with the tools to declutter and organize your home in the midst of a busy life, implement a cleaning routine that really works and strategies to continue with the perfected plan! 
The “Spring” Cleaning ebook bundle is available today only! Get yours today by clicking here.
(Note: The link in this post is my referral link. Read my disclosure policy here.)  Related Stories 
Get an 8×8 Photo Book for FREE from Shutterfly through September 11, 2013 when you use coupon code SUMMERBOOK at checkout. You’ll still have to pay shipping, which is around $8. This offer is valid on an 8×8 Photo Book (up to 20 pages) and is good through September 11, 2013. Thanks, My Frugal Adventures!  Related Stories 
Text LUNCHBAG to 827438 and receive a long list of mobile Target coupons, including the following: - $1.00 off any fresh fruit purchase of $1.00 or more
- $1.00 off any fresh meat purchase of $1.00 or more
- $1.00 off any fresh vegetable purchase of $1.00 or more
You can use these coupons to get free or almost-free fresh fruit and veggies. Thanks, Our Coupon Adventures!  Related Stories 
SmarterBucks is a revolutionary rewards program created to help its members crush their student debt! Our program lets users earn rewards on the money they’re already spending. Those rewards then become extra student loan payments–automatically!–that pay down any student loan, whether private or federal. Shop online or in-store with your favorite retailers, take surveys, and get family and friends in on the action to earn SmarterBucks. Then watch as you get debt-free faster and for less. Sign up (for free)! Enter to win $250! Want to win $250 from SmarterBucks to use toward your student loans? Click on the graphic below and type in your name and email address. One random winner will be chosen. Payment will be made through the SmarterBucks rewards program. This giveaway ends Friday, September 6, at 11:59 pm, CST.
 Related Stories  Here are the best deals at Walmart right now with thanks to Heather from Passion for Savings for her help in compiling them. The prices below are based on Northwest Arkansas region. Please keep in mind that Walmart deals vary by region so the prices listed here will not be valid at all stores.
Kool-Aid Envelopes – $0.20
Buy 13 and use Buy 10 Get 3 Free printable
$0.15 each after coupon Uncle Ben’s Brand Rice – $1
Buy 4 and use $1/4 printable
$0.75 each after coupon Ivory 3 ct. – $0.97
Use $0.50/1 coupon from the 9/1 P&G insert
$0.47 after coupon Downy 10 oz. – $1.97
Buy 3 and use $3/3 coupon from the 9/1 P&G insert
Or buy 2 3 and use $1.50/2 coupon from the 9/1 P&G insert
As low as $0.97 each after coupon Bounce 40 ct. – $1.97
Use $0.50/1 coupon from the 9/1 P&G insert
Or buy 3 and use $3/3 coupon from the 9/1 P&G insert
As low as $0.97 each after coupon Purina ONE Brand Wet Cat Food – $0.76
Buy 3 and use Buy 2 Get 1 Free printable
$0.51 each after coupon Betty Crocker Cake Mix – $1.34
Buy 2 and use $0.75/2 printable
$0.96 each after coupon See the full list of Walmart deals here.
 Did you find a great deal at Walmart? Just post about it on your blog and leave your link below. To make it easy for everyone to navigate quickly through the links, your link must link directly to your Walmart deals post. Links going to the homepage of your blog or any other part of your blog besides the direct link to your Walmart deals post will be deleted.
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Dillons 1 Lays Kettle Chips – $1.98, used $1/1 printable - $0.98 after coupon 1/2 gallon Milk – $2.12 Kroger Chips – $1 (These are for company we are having for lunch one day this week.) 1 Turkey Hill Ice Cream – $3.50, used $1/1 printable - $2.50 after coupon 2 Kroger Shredded Cheese – $1.67 each 2 Ramen Noodles – $0.20 each 1 Nature’s Harvest Bread – $2.49, used $0.55/1 printable - $1.94 after coupon 1 Kroger Cleaner – $0.79 1 Kroger Butter – $1.77 (We didn’t need butter, but I couldn’t pass up this price!) 10 Horizon Chocolate Milk – $0.50 each, used $2/10 e-coupon - $0.30 each after coupon 2.58 lbs Bananas @ $0.52/lb – $1.34 4 Chapstick – $1 each, used 2 $1/2 coupon from the 8/25 RedPlum insert – $0.50 each after coupons 2 Tyson Frozen, Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts (3 lbs each) – $5.97, used 2 $2.50/1 printable (no longer available) – $3.47 after coupons (I was THRILLED to find these on sale at this price. I printed this coupon several weeks ago and have been waiting for a sale. This is an amazing price!) 1 French Bread – $1.79 2 Ball Park Franks – $1, used 2 $1/1 printable (no longer available) – Free after coupon (We don’t eat hot dogs, but my husband will use these for fishing bait.) 4 Navel Oranges – $0.69 each Total before coupons and sales: $79.21 Total after coupons and sales: $37.05 Menu Plan for this Week Breakfasts Toast, Cereal, Fruit, Lemon Pull-Apart Bread Lunches Cheese Quesadillas, Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches, Scrambled Eggs, Cheese & Fruit, Chicken Salad Sandwiches Dinners Spaghetti, Biscuits, Tossed Salad BBQ Meatballs, French Bread, Green Beans Hashbrown Casserole (from the freezer), Fruit Salad, Steamed Broccoli Pizza, Breadsticks, Tossed Salad Pancakes, Eggs Date Night Dinner at my parents  Related Stories  A testimony from Abbygail
Seven years ago, when my husband and I bought our house, we knew we would need to replace the roof (it had 4 layers including the original cedar shakes from the 1870′s). We didn’t think too much of it, figuring when the time came, we would get a loan or use a credit card. That was before we heard about Dave Ramsey and our financial world flipped upside down. In the last four years, we have paid off almost $60,000 in debt, paid cash for two older cars, become a single (small) income family, and had two beautiful daughters. We knew we didn’t want to add anymore debt, so last December we set a goal of saving $10,000 for our new roof by the end of May. Some of the money was from our tax return, and our church also gave us a portion; but the majority came by hard work and prayer. We really didn’t do much differently than we had been doing since we began our debt-free journey, we just refocused where we were putting our money (saving rather than applying it to the debt.) My husband worked as much over-time as he could, and picked up a few yard mowing jobs and other odd jobs once the weather warmed up. When I became a stay-at-home mom two years ago, I began babysitting to help pay extra on our debt. So during those 6 months, all that income got put in a jar in our bedroom to serve as motivation. God has been so good at providing opportunities for us. We have been so blessed. By May, we had the money saved and started getting quotes. We bought the materials ourselves (to take advantage of sale prices) and chose a contractor. They did excellent work and finished in a week. (We are usually DIYers, but this would have taken us months of doing it a weekend at a time.) After returning unused material and getting the final bill from the contractor, we were $2,000 under budget! God is so good! 
We gave the contractors a little bonus, gave some back to our church, and went ahead and paid cash for four windows that we hadn’t yet replaced. We also took a mini-vacation for the first time since the start of our debt-free journey (our 4-year-old was SO excited to stay in a hotel/waterpark!) It is truly amazing what can be accomplished when you are a little frugal and a lot faithful! Abbygail is a stay-at-home turned work-at-home wife to Robb and mama of two beautiful girls Melea, 4, and Graciela, 1. She does in-home childcare where she not only gets to love on and tell about God to her own babies, but to several other children and families. She loves rural, simple living, walking through the grass barefoot, baking, and above all, serving God. Have you saved up and paid cash for something — large or small? Submit your story for possible publication here.
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