Amiyrah Martin

Spend Less by Sticking to Your Grocery List

05/30/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

When you are on a budget, it’s essential to stay on task at the commissary. Whether it’s due to the kids, your cravings or that great sale on imported chocolate, we tend to buy impulsively. What can we do to alleviate this? Besides putting literal blinders on, there are a few tips that we can use to help us stick to the grocery list. Budgeting for groceries doesn’t have to be difficult, as long as you have a plan.

How to Spend Less at Your Military Commissary

Money-saving military spouses shop only the perimeter of their military commissary.

Learn the layout of your grocery store or military commissary.

This is one of the easiest ways to bypass grocery budget pitfalls. Money-saving moms shop the perimeter of a store. This is where you’ll find the items most needed in any home: produce, protein, dairy and discounted baked goods. Once you learn the layout of your store, you can create your grocery list to reflect it. If produce is the very first thing you see when entering the store, be sure to add the fruits and vegetables that are on sale to the top of your grocery list. Figure out which middle aisles are the ones that you visit once a week or twice a month. Be sure to only visit those aisles instead of perusing ones that you wouldn’t or shouldn’t visit (candy aisle, anyone?).

Bring your own snacks.

I’ve heard time and time again that you should eat before you venture to the grocery store, but most of the time that doesn’t work. Here’s a great tip: keep a granola bar, nut mix, or whatever healthy snack you enjoy in your purse or bag. When you walk in and smell freshly baked cinnamon rolls at your store, you’ll have your own snack ready and will be less likely to spend an extra 6 bucks on a treat you’ll regret later.

Create a shopping list that follows the layout of your military commissary.

Utilize your phone.

Our smart phones are our best friends, especially when grocery shopping. Use your phone to make your grocery list. You won’t have to worry about misunderstanding handwriting, even your own. If you’re a visual person, take pictures of the items you need from the store circular and use that as your list.

To keep you from spending hours in the store and getting distracted, set a timer for yourself. Do you allot an hour for shopping but end up spending 2 in the store? Set an alarm on your phone to alert you when your hour is up. Once that alarm goes off, select your last items and hit up the checkout lanes.

What tips do you have for sticking to your grocery list?

Is Your Car Road Trip Ready?

05/29/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

The summer road trip is a classic American vacation for many military families. Before hitting the open road, ask yourself: is my car road trip ready? Not sure. Review this checklist to ensure that your summer road trip will be a safe vacation without any side trips to a unfamiliar auto shop.

Schedule an oil change.

Checklist for Car Maintenance Before a Road Trip

Pack a roll of duct tape in your car emergency kit.

This may seem like the simplest way to ensure a safe road trip, but it is key. There are many different issues that can be aggravated if you don’t provide your vehicle with a change of oil. An engine needs proper lubrication to work well, especially in the summer heat. Secondary to the oil change, a tune-up would be great to add to your list, but first and foremost, give your car that new lubrication it needs.

Tip: If you’re planning on hauling extra weight behind you, like a teardrop trailer for camping, ask the mechanic about using a thicker oil. A car pulling more weight may need an oil that won’t thin out as quickly due to the extra work it will be doing during the road trip.

Create a car emergency kit.

In your trunk, place 2 quarts of the oil used in your oil change, coolant, expendable rags (good for wiping off oil or touching hot engines) and a roll of duct tape. Yes, duct tape is key! If there is a burst in a rubber hose or a spot under the hood where you would like a mechanic to check for a potential issue, duct tape can take care of it. Other tools to include would be a small screwdriver and a wrench. Also include a jug of water in your kit, to cool down your car system in a bind. Don’t forget to have flares and small safety cones in a car emergency kit.

Test your car jack. We always wait until the unfortunate time when we need to use the car jack to actually learn how to use it. A week before your trip, try yours out in the parking lot or driveway. Make sure you know how to use it quickly and easily, and that all of the parts are accessible.

Tip: If you’re not sure how to use your particular car jack, search YouTube for a video tutorial.

Get the radiator checked.

This is another add-on to your oil change but may be even more important. The radiator passes coolant through the engine, so on those hot summer road trip days, it’s much needed. Radiators can get clogged over time and since we don’t think about them until spring and summer when we plan summer vacations, they are neglected the rest of the year. Have your mechanic do a flow test on the car to make sure the right amount of fluids are passing through the hoses and tubes.

Don’t forget to ask for a military discount.

Tip: To save money, ask your mechanic to “bundle” your oil change, tune-up and radiator check. See if they offer a military discount on top of the bundle. You could yield some significant savings.

Make a “must-use” mechanics list.

Be proactive and find reputable mechanics within each state that you will be passing through. If you will be staying on or near a main road, like I-95, search for mechanics that are located nearby. If you plan to stick with automotive repair chains, like Pep Boys, map out locations along your road trip journey.

Tip: Look for reviews of mechanics and automotive chains on review sites like Yelp or ask your favorite hometown mechanic for recommendations. You’ll be surprised how many great mechanics they can recommend for each part of your journey.

Take time for car maintenance prior to hitting the open road.

How many miles will you travel this summer?

5 Ways to Keep Your Cat Healthy

05/13/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

Spend 5 minutes cuddling your cat daily.

Cats are well known for being the extra cushion on the couch. The sedentary lifestyle of a pet cat can be cute to look at, but not very good for their health. Cats need to be more active to attain a longer lifespan.

Here are 5 ways to keep your cat healthy in less than 15 minutes.

Reduce Stress

Even your cat can get stressed. For most felines, stress is created when there is a drastic change within the home, like moving, rearranging furniture, a new family member, or even losing a family member. When I deployed, my husband noticed a very big change in my cat’s behavior. His mom was missing for several months, and he had trouble eating, playing and keeping on weight. You can alleviate this by paying a little more attention to your pet. Set aside part of each day for cuddling and one-on-one time.

Exercise in the Evenings

Cats are nocturnal animals and thrive in the early evening, which is technically morning for them. Create a play routine for them: break out the cat toys after supper and play with your furry baby for at least 15 minutes. They will enjoy the attention and will essentially have their “morning workout” at the same time. Just like humans, an exercise routine will reap great benefits when it comes to the health of your pet.

What’s your cat’s play routine?

Room to Roam

While cats are great apartment pets, they still need ample room to sprint when the feeling hits them. Like felines in the savanna, the more room your cat has to roam, the better it will feel. Keep clutter to a minimum within the household, and keep your furniture as minimal as possible as well. If you would like to take it another step, place thick, reinforced shelves on walls near your windows. Cats love to climb and perch. What’s good for the cat is good for the owner; an uncluttered house will boost your health and demeanor.

Groom Daily

We take grooming for granted when it comes to cats. They seem to love to clean and groom themselves multiple times a day. But all of that grooming can produce hairballs, which can cause sickness, vomiting, and problems with their immune system. Give your cat a brush or combing session each day. Try to do this after dinner, but before playtime. A reluctant cat will associate grooming with play and will be more willing to let you brush him. Want to go the extra mile? Brush their teeth with kitty toothpaste as well. Dental hygiene is very important for cats of all ages.

Groom your cat daily to keep her healthy.

Pick the Right Food and Ration

This is the key to keeping your pet as healthy as possible. Invest in quality cat food, like Purina and be sure to read the ingredients list. Cats are predators and carnivores, so protein should be one of the top ingredients listed. Also, check the recommended serving size of the food for either dry or wet. Ration these servings to help your cat stay at a healthy weight. Always keep fresh water available for them to have at any time.

Are you a pet lover?

May is National Pet Month and Purina is giving away up to $100,000 in fun prizes to those of us with an affinity for our furry friends. For every person that plays their instant win game, Purina will donate $0.10 to Adopt-a-Pet.com. Check out Paw It Forward to win. Good luck!

7 Ways to Simplify Bill Paying

04/22/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

Paying bills is something that we never thought about as children when we wished to grow up. It goes along the line of dealing with taxes and cooking your own meals. The great part is that even though bills are a necessity for adult life, there are many ways that we can make this chore easier on ourselves.

Here are 7 ways to simplify bill paying within your home.

1. Make a Date with Your Bills

Whether you get paid weekly, biweekly or monthly, you need to have a set day and time that you will dedicate to paying your bills. Just like your significant other, bills deserve your undivided attention, but unlike your significant other, that time can be as little as 15 minutes. During this time, make sure you are in a quiet place where you can concentrate and won’t miss a bill payment.

Tip: Spend minimum time with maximum concentration on paying bills.

2. Automate It

In the world of technology, finances can easily be managed through an app, computer program, or simply through a note or two saved on your smartphone. Websites like mint.com are perfect for those of us that need to see our finances all in one place. These financial organizational tools make it easier to see which bills can be automated and the program reminds you when bills are due.

Lower bills, like debt payments around $100, can and should be automated. If a bill has been constant throughout the year, set up automated payments through your bank or credit union. For larger bills or bills that may have hidden fees or fluctuations (like cell phone and cable bills), I suggest getting your own eyes on that bill every month.

Tip: Set up automatic bill payment for bills that are less than $100.

3. Pay Everything Once

Yes, you can pay every bill at the same time, even if you are on a budget. While you have the option of automating small bills, you can also choose to pay them off once a year. Utility bills, membership fees, and insurance bills can all be paid on a yearly basis.

If you choose to go this route, make your payment when you get a bonus or extra money, like your tax refund. Be sure to ask if there are discounts for paying a bill up-front. Insurance companies often offer money back if you pay in advance, so take advantage.

Tip: Pay insurance and utility bills annually to save money.

4. Change Your Due Date

It is more difficult to stay on track with bill paying when your bills are due on different days during the month. The easiest way to remedy this is to call the companies and ask for your due dates to be changed. Try to switch them to days when you know you will have enough funds to pay the bills.

Tip: Pick 2 days each month and schedule your bills to be paid on those days.

5. Pay Yourself First

This is the most important bill that you pay each month. Why is this essential for the payment of all of your other bills? It gives you motivation to not only make more money, but to pay down bills and debt in order to pay yourself more. This bill should be paid first and put directly into a savings account, whether it’s for fun money or your emergency fund.

Tip: Designate money to be deposited into your savings account monthly.

What bill-paying system works for you?

6. Mark Your Bills as Paid

Just like paying yourself first works as a motivation, marking your bills as paid can cause you to keep your bill paying less stressful and as simple as possible. By marking these paid, whether it’s writing it in red marker on a paper bill or typing “paid” next to the bill on a computer program, you’ll ensure that you don’t pay a bill twice and that you are making progress in your efforts.

Tip: Use a red marker to write “PAID” on each bill.

7. Tailor Your Bill-Paying System

You can take all of the advice listed above, but you still have to tailored it to your own personality. Do you love lists? Are you into calendars? Do you do better when EVERYTHING is computer-based? Pick what you gravitate to and stick to it.

For our family, we are online and paper calendar people. We use Google calendar with alerts so that my husband and I both know when a bill is due. But we also use a paper calendar during our bill-paying “dates.” For us, it helps to see the date the bill is due and the paper bill, as well as on a computer screen.

Tip: Find a bill-paying system that works for you.

Which tip will you use to simplify your bill paying this month?

4 Ways to Reduce the Stress of Finances

04/21/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

For those of us looking to be more financially responsible, stress seems to be a big factor of how we handle our new spend-less, save-more lifestyle. Bills, debt, after-school activities for our kids, and even birthday presents can cause our hearts to race when we think about the amount of money each of them takes from our household. With a budget that’s based on the military pay scale, that stress can easily amplify.

Here are four great tips on how to handle the stress of finances.

Stop Thinking about Money

Yes, this may seem counter-intuitive, but thinking about your finances all the time can not only cause stress within yourself, but stress within your home. It’s fine to think about bills that may be due that month or groceries that have to be purchased, but never think of them in dollars. We have a mindset that cringes at the thought of losing money even to important things like food, so if we imagine “funds” being used instead of dollars, our demeanor changes.

Set a Financial Timer

Do you find yourself constantly checking your account balances a few times a week or even a few times a day? Set a timer where you allot 10 minutes to check your finances a day. 10 minutes. No more and no less. This tells your brain that you’ll have a set part of the day when you can review your checking account, stocks, mutual funds, or any other finances. After doing this for a few months, our family is now down to checking our account only once a week for 10 minutes. Conditioning your mind to put any financial stress on the back burner until your scheduled financial time will allow you to rest your brain and calm your nerves about paying bills.

Set Long-Term Goals

Living paycheck to paycheck causes us to forget the end result of why we are paying off debt or staying on top of bills. Make solid long-term goals for you and your family. Maybe it’s a vacation to Australia or owning your own home, but keep those goals in mind each week. If you are attracted to visual encouragement, place a picture of your goal as a screensaver on your computer or your cell phone. Have the family create a vision board and place it in a prominent area of your home. Assign something positive to finances and you’re more inclined to stress less about it all.

Celebrate the Positive

While you’re making long-term goals for your finances, keep in mind the positive outcomes that are currently in your life. Have you paid down a debt? Celebrate. Are you on track to having multiple thousands of dollars in savings? Rejoice. Whether it’s getting a 20% decrease in your cable bill or you found a new way to automate payments that causes less stress, you have to celebrate those small victories within your finances. If we wait to acknowledge an accomplishment when it’s something big, we may never feel like we are getting anywhere within our finances. Pat yourself on the back weekly, daily, or even hourly. You deserve it.

Want more tips on how to stick to your budget? Sign up for our newsletter.

Rainy Day Pinterest Activities

04/10/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

It’s time for April showers, which means we may be stuck inside during a few of our upcoming lazy weekends. There’s no reason to turn to couch surfing or playing video games to keep the kids occupied. When all else fails, turn to Pinterest. Below are some of the most interesting and creative rainy day Pinterest activities that we’ve added to the Military Shoppers Pinterest account.

Make an Indoor Spider Web

This pin is one of the most popular rainy day activities on pinterest. It’s really easy: use painter’s tape to make “webs” and have your kids throw lightweight, soft objects at it. I suggest crumbled up paper for the best results.

Microwave your Ivory Soap

Have you ever microwaved a bar of ivory soap? Well, you should! This activity not only shows you how to microwave the soap, but the blogger gives you a cool idea of what to do with the soap once the experiment is done. There’s also a video tutorial for visual learners.

Homemade Flubber

Do you have extra bottle of white glue hanging around? Have your kids make their own homemade flubber. This will provide hours of fun, and they can make many difference colors. I think some parents will be excited to do this craft as well.

Cup Racing

As if we needed another use for red solo cups, this cup racing pin provides a fast-paced activity for your energetic children. I love how this blogger changed up the usual “blow cup” activity and even provided an alternate game for the kids to play with this set-up.

Follow MilitaryShoppers’s board Rainy Day Activities on Pinterest.

Looking for even more activities? Check out our Rainy Day Activities Pinterest board. While you’re there, be sure to follow the Military Shoppers Pinterest account for even more cool and resourceful pins.

What are some of your family’s favorite rainy day activities?

5 Ways To Prepare For Commissary Closures

04/03/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

It’s been all over the news for months. Commissary closures have been the big discussion throughout the country, and military families have been feeling the stress and suffering already. With an average of 30% savings at the commissary, how can military families set themselves up to ease into this big change that may be on the horizon? Here are some tips that will help protect your family from feeling the effects of commissary closures and pay-cuts.

Create the ultra stockpile. While stockpiling can already help a family stretch their grocery budget, making a game plan to stock up on 6 months of your essential non-perishables will create a cushion to help you get used to the sales cycles of other stores. Items tend to go on deep discount every 6 to 8 weeks, so you’ll be able to see when your favorite pasta, brown rice or olive oil will be at it’s best price. Until then, take advantage of the commissary’s coupon deals, and the manufacturer coupons available in your local sunday paper to fill up the pantry.
Use alternative food sources. Now is a good time to find out if a small garden is allowed at your base housing. Planting just a few items like tomatoes, sweet peas and lettuce will help to offset your grocery budget. Also, search for CSAs in your area, or even local farms that may allow you to buy half a cow or other proteins. These memberships can be split with other military families, which will help the whole community save.
Contact your favorite brands. In the age of emails, texts and apps, we tend to forget how important a letter can be, especially when you are a loyal customer. Look for addresses for your favorite grocery brands and write them about our current situation. Most brands will send you coupons for free product, while others may mail you a small stockpile of actual product. The good news is that companies will send you coupons once every 6 months. All you have to do is ask.
Win your financial cushion. Did you know that at any given time, a blog or website will be giving away gift cards to your local grocery store, or even regular Visa or Amex gift cards? Why not win these to help stretch your budget? This is a bit unorthodox, but it has helped my family when we need a little extra funds to stock up on proteins and special dietary items. One easy way to keep up with these giveaways and contests is to create a Facebook group with a few fellow military families, and you’ll alert each other of any new contests you may come across. Make sure to follow all rules and regulations, which are usually very simple, and you’ll be surprised at how much you can win. Also, pay attention to the hashtag #giveaway and #contest on twitter for up to the minute giveaways.
Have a talk with the whole family. When times like these are given to families like ours, it’s time for a talk with all members. Explain to your kids how the closures will cause changes within your family, and ask them for their input on how you can handle it as a team. You’ll be surprised by the inventive and useful ideas they will come up with, mostly because they appreciate you including them in the game plan. Make this a monthly meeting, just in case a family member may have new ideas of how the grocery budget can be stretched even further.

Frugal Tips for Planning a Homecoming Trip

03/28/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

It’s a celebration! Your family member is home from deployment and all you want to do is make them as comfortable as possible. With all the sacrifices they had made, and the work you’ve done to keep things running at the home front, everyone needs a break. But, how to we plan a homecoming vacation without using up all of that hazard pay? Here are a few frugal tips for planning a homecoming trip that will be memorable and affordable.

Staycations are Key
One of the last things your service member will want to do is get on yet another plane and travel for half a day, or more. Look for local vacation gems to visit, preferably ones that your family hasn’t experienced in a while or at all. These could be driving distance or just a quick plane trip. The point is to make the experience as simple and memorable as possible, and staying nearby would ensure that you don’t pay an outrageous amount for plane tickets or gas.

Hit the Festival Circuit
One of the best ways to create a unique yet inexpensive homecoming vacation is to search for conventions, trade shows or festivals that may be coming to your area. Look for events that revolve around your hero’s favorite hobbies, or whatever new hobby they may have picked up while deployed. If the are big into fishing, look for the next fishing or boating expo in the surrounding area, and make a weekend out of visiting it. A car ride, booked expo tickets and a 2 night hotel stay nearby will yield big savings compared to a trip out of state.

Accommodations on the Cheap
One of the best amenities that we military families can take advantage of are military discounts at hotels. Hotel and resort accommodations can eat up a budget, but using that discount really helps us to allot more money to planning fun excursions during our trip, or extending our trip. Luxurious yet affordable hotels like La Quinta will provide you with a one-stop vacation destination within every location. Be sure to not only ask about military discounts when booking, but also mention that your service member is returning from deployment and it’s a celebration. They just may be able to provides some surprises once you check into your room.

Ways to Save in March

03/20/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

March marks the return of spring, preparations for the Easter Bunny, and warm weather! Well, the weather part hasn’t exactly been panning out for most of CONUS, but this month does mark new beginnings. Here are a few new ways you can actually save this month, whether it’s on clothing, home decorations or groceries.

Home

Air Conditioners – this is a great time to price check air conditioners for your home. While most thought that the dead of winter was the best time to find a deal, great clearance prices are released right before May. New models are displayed at the end of April, so the older models are put on clearance this month and during the beginning of April.

Garden Seeds – Spring IS on it’s way (I promise), so now is a great time to get those coveted seed packets that gardeners are looking to grab up. Some of the best deals on seed packets are found online and at you local dollar stores.

Clothing

Easter/Spring Outfits – These types of outfits actually started to go on sale back in January, so now is the time when you’ll get them at a clearance price before stores put out their second wave of Spring and Easter outfits. Here’s a tip: check online to see what styles are trending for spring(yes even for the kids), and search for those in the stores. These styles will be the ones that will be on clearance, since the fashion world has been wearing them since December.

St. Patrick’s themed clothing – Since the holiday is now officially over, you’ll be able to stock up on green clothing pieces, and those cute but funny t-shirts that everyone wears each year. For kids, be sure to grab shirts or clothing pieces that are at least 2 sizes bigger, as they tend to grow by 2 sizes each year.

Groceries

Frozen Foods – Clean out that freezer and take advantage of the many frozen food sales that are happening at your local grocery stores and the commissary. Frozen vegetables tend to last the longest in the freezer, as well as frozen dinners for those of us that have busy after school/work lives. Frozen breakfast items tend to yield good prices during this time as well. Don’t forget the ice cream! You can stock up on ice cream now for those ice cream socials in May.

Cleaning supplies – It’s the month of spring cleaning, so this is a great time to buy your favorite cleaning items while they are on sale. Take advantage of cleaner sales, which may also include paper products like paper towels, facial tissue and toilet tissue.

What items are you planning to stock up on this March? Let us know in the comments below.

Spring Cleaning Life Hacks on the Cheap

03/07/2014 By Amiyrah Martin

Before we know it, we’ll be hearing birds chirping, watching flowers bloom and catching the sunlight hit just right on the dust bunnies in the corner of our living rooms. That’s right, it’s time for spring cleaning. Every year, we see many people go overboard with how they’ll tackle this year’s must-cleans. They buy the newest cleaners on the market. They have to have to best storage bins to replace the ones they picked up years ago. But they forget the big secret: spring cleaning is all about the life hacks. When it comes to life hacks, the cheaper the better. Here are some spring cleaning life hacks for those of us that are on a budget.

Lemon and Salt for Cleaning

This dynamic duo creates one of the best, and cheapest, spring cleaning life hacks. While lemon on it’s own is responsible for getting rid of water stains in your bathroom and kitchen, the combination of lemon with kosher or coarse salt creates a scrub that can’t be rivaled by store bought scrub products. I love to use this to give our tub and shower walls a deep clean, and to get caked up grease off of our stove. Just cut the lemon in half, sprinkle salt on one of the halves, and go to town.

DIY Cleaning Solutions

Each and every year I make up a new batch of homemade cleaning solutions before I start my spring cleaning. The ingredients are always very simple and inexpensive: vinegar, baking soda, lemon juice, essential oils, and sometimes olive oil. I’ve used these ingredients to make disinfecting spray, glass cleaner, and furniture polish. If you are looking for great homemade cleaners, just do a google search for your favorite cleaner with the word “DIY” placed before it. There are tons of great recipes out there.

Alka Seltzer Tablets For a Bubbly Clean

This is one of my favorite secrets to spring cleaning a truly nasty toilet bowl. Antacid tablets are not only great for your tummy troubles, but they clean the heck out of a toilet bowl. I place 2 or 3 tablets in our bowl, and let them bubble away for about 5 minutes. Once I’m ready to clean, I’ll splash in some vinegar to use as a disinfectant, and scrub away with my toilet brush. You’ll be surprised how clean your bowl looks after this.

Cleaning Schedule: 15 Minute Time Limit

Now this may seem like a peculiar item to add as a money-saving spring cleaning life hack, but time IS money. By setting a 15 minute time limit to your cleaning tasks, you make sure that you’re taking care of the essential items that need your full attention. Plus, you won’t exhaust or overwhelm yourself. I only spend 1 hour a day for a week spring cleaning. That hour is broken down into four 15-minute increments. Less time cleaning like a mad person, and more time to clip coupons, make a homemade meal or spend with your family.

What are your favorite spring cleaning life hacks on the cheap? Please share in the comments below so we can give them a go! We will choose one tip at random to win a Starbucks or Amazon gift card! Winner will be chosen April 1st, 2014 so get going!

Also be sure to check out the commissary specials to see if any of your favorite cleaning items are on sale.

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