update: the Frugal Blogroll now has an official home. Go see it:
Frugal Blogs, home of the Frugal Blogroll

Can you believe it? Did Google and I just miss it or can it really be true that there is no such thing as a Frugal Blogroll?
Well, let's just do something about that!
If your blog focuses on frugal living, finding deals, spending less or getting more for your money, drop me an email at frugal mommy at gmail dot com (no spaces) and join the list!
The fine print:

1. Your blog must be clean and family-friendly.
   
2. Your blog does not need to be explicitly or exclusively about frugality, but must have an obvious bent in that direction. You know who you are, and it will show.
3. Add the following code to your sidebar and email me for approval. Once I've had a look at your blog I'll add you to the list.
   

Easy, right?
Here's the code. Just replace the brackets with carats. Did you find them all?

Frugal Blogroll

[div class="sideheader"]Frugal Blogroll[/div][br]
[a href="http://frugalblogs.blogspot.com/2007/05/join-here-get-code.html"]
**join here**
[/a]
[script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://rpc.blogrolling.com/display.php?r=ae7cadbf39b863c96fca9f4c21d0d51e"][/script]

I've taken the liberty of adding a few of my favorite frugal reads to get things rolling.

Labels: misc.

I just came across a new coupon for Christian Book Distributors: they are offering free shipping on all orders over $25 between now and Dec. 13!

CBD Coupon Code: 248600AN
Exp. 12-13

Don't forget about the 10% off coupon too - it should be good until December 10.

CBD Coupon Code: 219684BK
Exp. 12-10

To get the most out of these coupons:

• For orders under $50, use the free shipping code (248600AN) .
• From $50-100, shipping is a flat 10% so they will both give you the same discount.
• Over $100, shipping charges are only 8% so use the 10% off coupon for the greatest savings (219684BK).
  

In case you're wondering, you *can't* stack these coupons (can't use them together on the same order). You can, however, use either one in conjunction with a gift certificate.

Search: Title Author/Artist ISBN CBD Stock # Keywords Publisher

Labels: coupons/deals

I love to shop online and I hate to pay full price for anything, so here's my procedure for finding a discount on books.
If I'm looking for a common, relatively inexpensive book, I usually only check 2 sites: Ebay and Addall. Addall is a search engine that searches nearly every major bookseller on the internet and brings all the results to you in one neat table, sortable by price and several other factors, with shipping included. You can search new or used books.
I have tried Book Finder, but much prefer Addall's interface. Fast and beautifully simple, Addall saves me time and money.

Author:
Title:
Keyword:

If I find a good deal from a major online seller, I'll also do a quick google search for coupon codes: just type in the name of the seller (amazon, bookcloseouts.com, or CBD, for example) and the word coupon or coupon code.
If I'm looking for a textbook or other fairly expensive book, I also like to try a google search with the title of the book and some helpful words like used or homeschool. This causes google to find and search the myriad of small-to-medium sized message boards and other forums for selling used curricula. You'll be surprised at what you can dig up this way!
If I'm willing to wait for a copy of the book I want at a price I can live with, I will used Ebay's "favorite searches" function: Ebay will email me anytime my desired item appears in an auction.

Of course, it's also nice when you stumble across the Very Title You've Been Wanting in a thrift shop or at a yard sale, but how often does that happen?
How do you find discounts on the titles you want?

Labels: books, coupons/deals

You may have noticed the Spoofee link in my sidebar. This site is on the short list of Sites That I Check Every Day Without Fail. It has been on that list for years.
Spoofee is a great place to find deals on almost anything: the front page highlights sales, rebates and noteworthy freebies, with complete and easy instructions to help you take advantage of the offers. They often find opportunities to combine offers or "stackable" coupons that can be used together on the same purchase.
Deals may be on electronics, office supplies, clothes, nearly anything!
This, for example, is where I learned about 4-packs of dry erase markers for 99 cents with free shipping. How often do you see a deal like that? I bought 12 packs!
We also bought a very nice office chair and color printer for a total of $89. After selling the brand new chair, we have a nearly free printer.
The Spoofee Free Goods page is the Mail Fairy's primary supplier. Free samples galore!

Why am I telling you this? To spread the fun and joy...oh, and because Spoofee is currently giving away a free bungee rocket to anyone who blogs about the site.
Yes, I've been bought for a bungee. Those things look like fun!

Labels: coupons/deals, free stuff

Just buy them. Trust me.

How's that for a review?
Ok, here's a little more detail for you.
Mr. Sarris (whom we have seen perform live: don't miss it if you ever have the chance!) does dramatic recitals of a wide variety of Scripture passages. When he performs live, his only props are his voice, body language and a long scarf. On his CDs, there are a few carefully chosen sound effects.
Mr. Sarris is an old-fashioned master story-teller, bringing to life the dramatic and amazing account of God's miraculous works. He uses the KJV or NIV, word for word. By varying just the speed and inflections of his voice, he can suggest multiple characters - never a silly falsetto.
His voice communicates all the emotions of each situation, helping listeners visualize the action of narrative passages.
One small caveat: like the Bible, there are some sexual situations. You can hear the longing in the voice of Potipher's wife. You can almost hear Judah wiggling his eyebrows when unknowingly propositions his daughter-in-law. But honestly, do you doubt that it happened like that?
Keeping that in mind, I would recommend these CDs for the entire family: our 2yo loves to listen and with the help of Mr. Sarris's expressive voice she can grasp much of the meaning of the KJV. Our 5, 6 and 8yo listen to them constantly. The 9, 11 and 13yo enjoy them.
And since these are Scripture (not just Bible stories for children) they are wonderful for adults as well.

Each CD is about 1 hour long and costs only $7.95. Shipping in free if you buy all 5 (do it! do it!).
And just so you know, I gain nothing by telling you all this - at least, no cash or freebies. I gain only the knowledge that God's Word is being spread ever more.
Well, unless a whole bunch of readers buy a whole bunch of CDs and tell Mr. Sarris that they heard about them here, and Mr. Sarris is overcome with gratitude and sends me a big fat surprise check...nah...but buy them anyway. Really.

Labels: audio, Bible, homeschooling

NewLittleBlessing.com is having a Christmas in November sale!
From November 11-18th, you can save 15-25% on many popular mothering products. Jennifer also offers free shipping on many items - including the Ergo Baby Carrier - which comes with a free instructional DVD as well!

Here's what I think of my Ergo carrier.

Labels: coupons/deals

Just stumbled across this...

$5 off $35 or more:

coupon: ultimatecoupons-5
password: bookcloseouts.com

$10 off $60 or more:

coupon: ultimatecoupons-10
password: bookcloseouts.com

good through 1/31/07

BookCloseouts.com
Need help finding some good stuff? Take a look at the following searches:
Narnia
David McCullough
David Macaulay

Labels: coupons/deals

Crystal is having a 2 day sale: Free Shipping on everything in her store! The clock has already been ticking for a day, so get going!

Labels: books, coupons/deals

Just found this in the back of my new Homeschooling Enrichment magazine:
10% off any order of $35 or more from CBD.
coupon code: 219684BK
good through December 10, 2006

Enjoy!

Labels: coupons/deals

This activity demonstrates inertia in a fun, easy and incredibly dramatic way!
The only planning ahead you'll need to do is saving 3 empty toilet paper tubes.
To perform this trick you will need:

• 3 empty toilet paper tubes
• 3 drinking glasses of equal height
• 3 raw eggs
• metal pie pan
• broom
  

Setup is as follow:

1. Fill glasses with water, leaving at least 1" at the top.
2. Place them in a triangle right at the edge of a table.
3. Place a metal pie pan on top of the three glasses. Make it close enough to the edge that the pan hangs over the edge of the table.
4. Stand toilet paper tubes in the pie pan, each one centered directly over a glass.
5. Balance an egg on the top of each toilet paper tube.

Do you see where you're heading with this yet?

You're almost ready, but you'd better take a few practice swings first:
Stand your broom against the table. Now smash the bristles down flat onto the floor and step on the bristles to hold them in place. The pressure should hold the broom against the table.
Bend the broomstick away from the table and let it fly. If you are doing this right, it should smack the edge of the table.
Notice where it hits the table. Adjust your aim so that it will hit just where the pie pan is hanging over the edge. Make sure your broom has some snap to it when it hits the table.
Gulp.

This might be a good time to do a quick study on interia:

• What is inertia?
• How does it work?
• What will happen if we WHAP the edge of that pie pan with a flying broomstick?
• Was it really a good idea to set this up indoors?

You didn't chicken out and set this up outside, did you? If you're really brave, set it up with an audience on your first go 'round.

Now do your thing: Load your broomstick, and let it fly!
What happened?
If you try this, comment and let us know! We did this several times, and ours worked every time until we got overly confident and sloppy in our setup.

Labels: free stuff, homeschooling, misc.

We have tried several programs, but our math of choice for the lower grades is Spectrum.

Spectrum is colorful and varied, introducing and covering a broad range of topics. I think it makes an excellent intro to formal schooling for the younger set, with short lessons that can be started with minimal instruction and finished within the constraints of a young person's attention span.

I'm not a big fan of workbooks in most subjects, but I do make an exception for penmanship and the lower levels of math. For a very young child who still writes quite slowly, copying problems onto a separate sheet can be a daunting and discouraging task.

We have used Miquon and I really thought it made the concepts understandable to a child's concrete mind, but it took far more time on my part. In retrospect, it felt rather like teaching a 4yo to read: they can learn, and it's really cute...but is it worth the extra investment of time to teach them now? I have noticed no lasting benefits among those who spent their days with cuissenaire rods and Miquon, nor mathematical deficits in those who did not.
Saxon Math for the lower levels is a wonderful program but also very teacher-intensive.
With Spectrum, even a child who is not yet reading can often decode the instructions in the K book, and instruction time for the others is minimal. New concepts are broken down step by step and demonstrated as simply as possible, with very little text. This is a plus since most of our children have not become proficient readers before 7.
The one fault is a relative lack of drills in basic facts within the pages of daily lessons. These are easily supplemented with flashcards or 101 other ways. Spectrum does provide reproducible drills in each book as well, so even the unimaginative family is not left high and dry.
The clincher is the price: books are less than $10, and answers are in the back- perforated for easy removal if you have concerns. I'm sure there are other programs that do a fantastic job at the lower levels, but why pay more when you have an inexpensive option that does exactly what you want it to do?
We use the Kindergarten level to introduce our young ones to formal table time in school, and continue through the 3rd grade level for those who grasp math easily, and 4th grade for those who need a little more time. At this point, we move on to Saxon Math 54.

Labels: homeschooling