This post contains affiliate links. I will be compensated for purchases made through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

​I have a lot to save up for this year. I had some medical bills I needed to finish paying and I have 2 BIG vacations planned. At first I was a little worried about how I would be able to pull this off, but then I sat back, really examined my finances down to the last penny, and I got really creative with how I could save the extra money. Some of these seem extreme on paper, but when you are actually doing them and living them it just feels normal! So whether you are saving trying to pay off some debts or saving up for a vacation, here are 30 ways you can save $1000 this month.

• Revie​w your monthly subscriptions and cut what you don’t actually need. Are you actually using your gym membership? If not, do yourself a favor and cut that bad boy loose. You can always sign up again the future if you feel like you will use it. I got rid of my Nintendo online subscription and went to a lower tier on my gym membership because I just wasn’t getting enough use out of them to justify the cost.

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• Get with a group and share streaming services. In my family we have Amazon Prime, Netflix, Disney+, etc, but we are sharing our accounts so we aren’t each paying the full price every month. My sister pays for Prime, my parents for Netflix, and I signed up for Disney+ the day it was available. Most streaming services allow you to stream on multiple devices at once, so take advantage of that!

•  Get rid of cable. This goes along with the last one. If you have access to these streaming services,       then along with the basic antennae channels you can get for FREE, it doesn’t really make sense to     have cable as well. Get rid of the box.
•   Utilize cash back apps! There are so many and you can use all of them! Ibotta, Rakuten, Receipt         Hog, Checkout51, Fetch. Sign up for ALL of them and get cash back from each of them on all your       purchases. Rakuten is for online shopping, but for the rest all you will need is your receipt.
•   One of my favorite money saving apps is Instacart. It is primarily advertised as a grocery delivery service, but many stores on there also offer free pickup. Save the delivery fee and go this route instead! I like it because it’s easier for me to stick to my grocery list without all the distractions around. No impulse buys. It’s also very easy to switch between stores to compare prices. 

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• Take advantage of the sun. Don’t turn on your lights and use that electricity if you don’t need to! My apartment has great natural light so I’ve just started opening more blinds in the morning. I don’t typically turn on the lights until around sunset.
• To go along with that, use energy savings bulbs! This ensures that when you are using the lights, electricity still isn’t being wasted.
• Don’t touch the thermostat unless you have to. If you want your home to be cooler, open up some windows to allow air flow and keep a small fan on. If you are looking to get a little warmer, make sure all the cracks around your windows and doors are filled in, use some thicker curtains, and bundle up! And remember to turn it off every time you leave your house empty. That is a huge waste on energy that is just costing you money.

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• I cannot stress this one enough: take care of your appliances! Clean the filters, keep them clean, store them safely, and just keep them well taken care of! There are so many reasons for this. For our first example let’s look at my vacuum. I vacuum maybe once or twice a week. I clean the roller brush and make sure there is no blockage affecting the suction once a week (takes maybe 5 minutes) and once a month I remove the filters and clean them out. This keeps my vacuum working better in the long run and allows it to be more energy efficient in the short term. If it’s working really well, I spend less time vacuuming and going over the same spots which equals less energy used, which equals more money in the short and long run. If you are in an apartment, you also want to take good care of your appliances so you can get your deposit back in the end! My philosophy is clean as I go. Don’t wait for a mess to cake onto your stove. Clean it when it happens so your stove stays looking brand new.
• Invest in a water filter! Using filtered tap water is so much cheaper and more environmentally friendly than buying bottled water all the time. Yes it may make an increase on your water bill, but it’s pennies to the dollar if you are no longer buying water in the store.
• Do a spending freeze. A spending freeze is when you do not spend money on anything but the NECESSITIES for a predetermined amount of time. This can be anywhere from a week to a month long. My recommendation would be one week a month. And when I say necessities, I mean you are only paying bills and maybe for transportation. No grocery shopping- use what you already have at home! This is a great time to rotate food storage and make more room in your pantry and freezer.

• Buy second hand. I love buying things at the thrift store and I have a few tips for shopping and cleaning your items to make sure you are truly making the most of it (let us know if you want a post about that!). Not only are there physical thrift stores, but many online places to shop secondhand, such as eBay, Poshmark, thredUp, and Offer Up.
• This one amazed me when I learned about it, but buy an attachment for your shower heads that lower your water pressure. There is no huge difference in the quality of the shower and you will save on your water and energy bills.
• If you are not using something, turn it off and unplug it! Phantom energy is basically energy that runs through electronics even when they are turned off. It may not seem that big a deal… until you really think about how many unused appliances and electronics you have plugged in right now. Your toaster, coffee maker, lamps, even phone chargers. These are the real silent killers, people. Unplug them!

• If you don’t want to completely sacrifice your social life while saving money, a potluck is a great way to have a fun get-together. As the host, I would suggest serving one main entrée item and one dessert. Then ask each confirmed guest to bring something (side dish, another dessert, drinks, etc). Have some board games or a movie for entertainment and you have a fun night planned with friends and family! This allows you to host a large get together without paying for EVERYTHING.

• ​When you are doing laundry, air dry as much as you can. For the stuff that is in the dryer, use the lowest possible heat setting. Since there is less in there, the items will still get thoroughly dried for a fraction of the cost.
• I use one multipurpose cleaner for almost everything. I useLove Home and Planet Multipurpose Cleaner to clean big messes in the kitchen, windows and mirrors, dust, and clean the toilet and shower. It works great and I’m not spending a ton on different cleansers.
• Go through your cupboards and determine which single use items you can replace with reusable items. Use less paper towels and more cloth. Use a reusable cloth pad instead of buying more Swiffer  pads for you mop. Don’t use paper and plastic plates and utensils regularly (unless you reuse those, which I know some people do). This will help cut down on your household consumables budget each month.

• This one is controversial… but just. Use. Less. You don’t need 3 pumps of soap when you wash your hands. Half a pump is actually enough. You don’t need a full capful of laundry soap for your clothes. In fact, you can probably use half the recommended amount of soap and still get your clothes clean. The easiest way to judge is by smell. If your clothes smell musty and like mildew, use more soap. If they don’t, they are fine. If you use dryer sheets, rip them in half. You do not need a full sheet for even a larger load of laundry. My recommendation, however, is to make the switch to dryer balls. It’s a onetime purchase and they work just as well as dryer sheets. (We have a tutorial on how to make them here!) Use less dish soap by mixing ¾ dish soap and ¼ water in a spray bottle and use that when washing dishes in the sink. They get just as clean and you have so much more control over how much you are using.
• Save every penny. Literally. I thought this was an obvious one, but I have have so many friends who hate change and won’t take it. I have a jar in my room that I just use to save up change. When it is full, get it rolled and take it to the bank.
• Utilize YouTube and learn how to do some things yourself. Trim your own hair in between appointments, sew and mend your own clothes, do small repairs around your home yourself. I don’t recommend doing anything major on your own unless you are very well trained in that area because you can do more damage than help sometimes and the risk isn’t worth it to me. But small things like this can save you money!

• ​Learn to love those leftovers and use them right. Personally, I can eat leftovers as is. Take them for lunch to save on eating out during your lunch break. If you are one of those people who cannot stand to eat leftovers, use them to make something new. Are there veggies you can use in a scramble for breakfast or a salad at lunch? Can you disassemble the dish and use the ingredients to make a soup? Get creative with it and lower your food waste.
• Only drink water! Not only at home, but when you are out as well. I do not spend money on beverages when I eat out. Water is free. It’s good for you. Drink it and save the extra couple dollars you would have spent on a drink!
• How can you spend less on gas? Can you set up a carpool? Are you able to walk some places instead of drive? Are you able to get discounts on gas at your local supermarket? Gas is very expensive- any way you are able to cut back on that is a major win.
• Do not buy for convenience! Freezer meals, frozen fruits and veggies, precut fruits, etc are all nice to buy because they require no prep on our part. But they are typically more expensive than buying fresh because you have to pay the extra cost of having them prepared for you. Do your own meal prep and freeze your own fruits and veggies. Heck, if you have time make your own bread, soak your own beans, make your own oat milk. Most artisan breads are simple to make and can cost less than a dollar per loaf. That is a big savings.

• Utilize your local library. At the very least, it’s a free resource for entertainment and knowledge. But most public libraries offer more. They will have classes you can join, culture passes you can check out that give you free admission to places like the zoo or local museums, seed libraries where you can “borrow” seeds to get your garden growing. We’ve even seen libraries with sewing machines! Check out your local library and see what they have to offer you.
• Start your own garden. No matter your living situation, there are at least a couple things you can grow where you live. My parents have space in their backyard for a bigger garden. Living in an apartment, I don’t have that option. But I can grow herbs inside and smaller fruit and veggie plants out on the balcony.
• Reuse your water. There are a couple ways to do this. If you just made some pasta, use that water to water your lil garden we just talked about. Just boiled some potatoes? Throw in some other veggie scraps and create your own veggie broth. You can either can or freeze the excess broth you won’t be using within the next week or so. You can do the same with meat scraps and make a bone broth. Just don’t pour it down the drain!
• Lastly- take care of yourself. As I mentioned earlier, I had some medical bills to finish paying off. Avoid co-pays and bills and invest a little more in your physical and mental health. Take your vitamins, eat your veggies, get your exercise, and ask for help when you need it. Don’t overwork yourself trying to get extra money. A little overtime won’t kill you, but in excess it is not sustainable for your physical or mental health!

 
Now for those of you asking- yes I really did save an extra $1000 this month. And that is $1000 I thought I didn’t have. These are all really simple changes you can make in order to free up those extra dollars. Got any of your own ideas on how to save money? Share them with us! We would love to hear from you.

​Here are some past ideas shared that can help you make or save money:

This post contains affiliate links. I will be compensated for purchases made through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

When I wrote my last post on ways to read more in 2020, a common question/request I received was to share recommendations of what I read. I read ten books this month and started two more! My goal is to read two books a week and I feel blessed and happy to say I have exceeded my goal for January. I am especially excited to share the list of books I read with everyone.


The one catch is that some of my reads were Audible Originals. So you will have to have Audible to read them. I will separate those into their own list. And I do highly recommend Audible for many reasons, the originals are just part of that.

I won't rank the books In any particular order but I will write a short blurb for each of what I thought about them.

I think the reason I was able to read so much this month boils down to a few things;

1. Instead of watching YouTube or a TV show at night I opted to lay in bed and read.
2. I listened while cleaning and making dinner.
3. I read two books at a time. I always have one book I'm listening to and one book that I'm physically reading. Not simultaneously, but in the same day I will have two different books I'm reading.
4. Nine of my 'reads' were on Audible. Like I said in my previous post, reading more would be impossible without Audible.
5. I chose books of differing lengths. Some of the books I listened to were ten hours some were just two. My physical book was 239 pages and it took me about two weeks to read at night (but I didn't read every night).

I feel blessed to have more free time than most to read and listen to books, and I feel like that contributes to my being able to read so many books. But I feel these tips could be applied universally to anyone in order to fit in more reading. That's my hope in sharing at least.

• Wally Roux, Quantum Mechanic by Nick Carr- A coming of age story about a boy genius who fixes the quantum realm. Honestly, it's a very moving story of a thirteen year old boy who's on a journey to fix the irregularities in his Georgia town. And in doing so he finds some answers to other questions he's had about his life. It's a really short listen, but very good. But there is a LOT of swearing so be warned on that.
• My Lost Family by Danny Ben-Moshe and Dasha Lisitsina - This Is one of the CRAZIEST stories I've ever heard. It's amazing and heartbreaking at the same time. Basically this women has her two children taken from her when she is 19. Her husband takes the kids to the park and never brings them back! This was in 1957! So this is a story of her other child sho is trying to reunite the family for his mom basically. It's hard for me to explain, you just have to listen and bask in the wonders of this story​

• Now I Know: The revealing stories behind the world's most interesting facts. by Dan Lewis- This book was interesting, but also like reading a bunch of Wikipedia articles. Still, I found it a fascinating listen.
• Sleep Tight by Rachel Abbott- If you want a good mystery/thriller, this is the one for you. I will admit I figured out what happened pretty early on but there were still enough twists and turns to keep my interest until the end. A unique thing about this book is the story is told from about 5 different perspectives, including the bad guy's. But you still never really know what's the truth until the end. It has a very film noir type vibe.

So have you read any of these books? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!

5 Timeless Book Series for Tweens
​Friday Faves- Newbery Award Winners
16 Books for Your Reading List This Year

​Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, which means it’s about 11 months too late to make a reservation at a restaurant for your date night. That doesn’t mean you can’t put together a romantic evening for you and your other half that both of you will enjoy and remember. And just because it’s not planned in advance doesn’t mean it needs to be expensive. Here are five last minute date night ideas that won’t break the bank.

At Home Paint Night
Paint nights have become all the rage recently, but don’t shell out all that money for something you can easily do at home. Buy some cheap paints, a couple canvases, and a bottle of your favorite drink. There is an abundance of painting tutorials on YouTube that you can follow. Throw one up on the big screen and do your best to follow along. At the end, gift your new masterpieces to each other. Alicia gave ideas for a watercolor paint night on this post! 

Sunset Hike With a Picnic
There are few things in this world more beautiful and romantic than a sunset. Take advantage of this free spectacle and create your own version of dinner and a show. Pack up a simple dinner, bring along a blanket or two, and find an easy hike near you. At the top, set up for the evening and enjoy the view with a delicious meal and the person you love.

Movie Marathon
Movie nights are a pretty normal date night idea, but there are a couple ways you can jazz it up to make it more special. Create a theater size spread for you and your love to munch on while you watch (popcorns, your favorite candies, fries, pretzels, etc). Bring out all the blankets and pillows you can find so it feels like you’re sitting on a cloud while you watch you favorite flix. And finally, figure out what you want your marathon to be. In one evening you can probably fit about 3 movies, so keep that in mind!

Learn How to Cook a New Meal Together
Again, YouTube is a great resource for this and it’s a great, inexpensive alternative to a professional class. Find a few dishes you’re both interested in, make sure you have the ingredients, and then follow the tutorials together to create your own romantic dinner. Not only will you then have a delicious dinner to eat, but you will have the skills to make these recipes again in the future!

Window Shopping in Old Towne
Most cities have an “ole towne” area, filled with cute little shops, restaurants, and entertainment that is all locally owned. Grab a couple smoothies or ice cream and walk around looking at the sights, window shopping, and just having good conversation. This is a great date idea for if you don’t want to actually do anything and just want to spend time together. And, as long as you don’t actually buy anything in the shops, it’s very cheap!

​These five date night ideas are so inexpensive, but also so fun and provide great quality time. They are also simple to adjust to fit your needs and interests. Try them out and let us know which one is your favorite!

This post contains affiliate links. I will be compensated for purchases made through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support.

In case you've forgotten something about me, I've lived in France. A few times actually. The first time was as a law student. The second time was as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

After I got back from law school I searched for a recipe to make those delicious macaron cookies. I found this lovely blog. The author is French! So, obviously, when she wrote blog post tutorials on how to make the French macaron cookie, I'm going to believe everything she says because she is French.

​I don't know if you know this, but French people invented food.

Anyway, I've made macarons a few times using Tartelette's recipe and tips to ensure the best outcome. I'm not a pro, but I've gotten pretty good at it.

Well, a couple of weeks ago my mom told me she was going to make macaron cookies like Mike from Monsters Inc. for us to take on our trip to Disneyland. Did she consult me on the recipe? Or ask me to help? NO!

She used a Tasty video. Ugh. Let's be honest guys, you enjoy watching those videos, but nothing turns out like they say it's going to. They do weird things like bake a cookie for 40 minutes. Like, how does that sound good?

​Well, I got over being offended and decided to make some cookies for her. I made a batch of green ones and then a batch of pink. My daughter wanted red, but I didn't add enough food coloring to make it red so they're pink. We're going to decorate them with polka dots and make them Minnie Mouse macarons.

I am going to share with you here how I make these cookies. It is all based off of Tartelette's recipe.

A few tips to get you started.

1. Use a digital scale.

The recipe is in grams, because it is French. A scale will ensure that you get your measurements just right. French macarons can be finicky little cookies, so you want to make sure you have your measurements right.

2. Leave your egg whites sitting out for at least 24 hours.

I know that might gross you out, but I assure you, you will be fine. Just do it.

3. Do not overbeat your egg whites.

When adding the sugar you want to beat them until they have a glossy shine like shaving cream. They hold their shape, but if you over beat them then your cookies will be hollow and not as good.

4. Use the Simple Home Creations Silicon mat to make them (linked below.) Alicia's family got it for me for Christmas one year. It is so nice because it helps ensure that my cookies turn out all the same size.

5. Finally, Tartelette uses an Ateco tip to make her cookies. I use Wilton's #12 size tip. A #10 works too, but I like #12 the best.

Okay, are you ready to make some French macaron cookies?

French Macaron

These delicious little French cookies are fun to make and so tasty! Recipe adapted from Tartelette.com
Ingredients:90 gr   Egg whites
25-50 gr White Sugar
110 gr Almond Meal
200 gr Powdered Sugar
Directions:Allow your egg whites to age in a bowl on the counter, loosely covered for 24-48 hours.
In a large mixing bowl sift together almond meal and powdered sugar
In a stand mixer beat egg whites until they are a bubble bath consistency.
Slowly add in sugar while continuing to beat eggs until they become a shaving cream consistency.
Fold in almond meal/powdered sugar mixture with whichever food
 Coloring you want to add. It should only take you a maximum of 50 strokes to mix in the almond mixture.
Fill a piping bag fitted with a Wilton’s #12 tip with the batter.
On a silicon mat, pipe out your cookies to about an inch and a half in diameter.
Let cookies sit for 30 minutes to an hour white you preheat the oven to 280 degrees Fahrenheit.
Bake for 18-20 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool at least five minutes before removing them from the sheet.
After filling the cookies you can store them in the refrigerator. This will enhance their flavor.