Free Music

iTunes Store

Every week I check out what is free in the iTunes store. Just click the Free on iTunes link on the right hand side of the iTunes store.

There are featured songs for free each week. They vary – it could be any singer, genre or group. You will find top of the chart singers and incredible up and coming. iTunes is great because you preview the song before downloading it. I have fallen in love with so many songs I found for free on iTunes. I have discovered new artists and bands that I love. 

You can also find free TV shows, apps, books and more offered up each week.

How to Have a Child's Birthday on a Budget

So next week my daughter Leah will turn 3! I am very excited about this because Leah has been the definition of the terrible twos. I love her to death and she can be the sweetest little angel in the world. But five minutes later she can be biting her sister, throwing food all over the place or toys off the balcony. She is a red head and has the temper to go with it. So I guess I am hoping she will mellow out a bit once the big 3 hits. Probably just wishful thinking on my part. Leah is the middle child and she fights fiercely for attention. So I think we may have our hands full for years to come with little Miss Leah :)

Blueberry Muffins with Sweet Crumb Topping Recipe

 

I consider myself a muffin connoisseur. Basically…I really LOVE muffins. Blueberry being my absolute favorite. This recipe is to die for good. Of course you can make it without the sugary crumb topping – but why would you want to do that??

Muffins

1 ½ cups flour

¾ cup of sugar

2 teaspoons of baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup vegetable oil

Funnel Cake Recipe - So Easy and So Delicious

I never have to wait for the fair to come to town – or spend $5 bucks for a funnel cake. I can’t believe how easy it is to make them at home. And they taste as good if not better than the ones you get at the fair.

Ingredients

6 Cups Vegetable Shortening (For frying)

1 ½ Cups Milk

2 Eggs

2 Cups Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

MyPoints - A Few Clicks A Day and Your Points Start To Really Add Up

I actually did MyPoints years ago. I would get emails and could get points just for clicking the link enclosed in the email. 

MyPoints is pretty much the same as it was back then. You earn points for using the email links, but there are many other ways to earn as well. There are games, shopping and easy points to name a few ways.

Just this week I actually started doing MyPoints again. I only take advantage of the email feature. When I get an email from then, I click the link to confirm and get my points. 

Activity Ideas to Keep The Kids Busy

Too many times one of the girls will run up to me and say, "What are we going to do today?" And my mind goes blank and I can't think of one thing fun to do. Or anything I have the energy to do after a long day at work. And then there are the endless days of summer - and no matter how many squirt guns you buy or soccer balls...the kids are always looking for something else to entertain them.

So I started jotting down different activities and ideas - summer fun, indoor fun on those rainy days and places to go that are easy on the budget.

Spring/Summer Outdoor Fun

Pool Time (even if you don't have a pool in your community, I encourage you to buy a kiddie pool. The pool is just non-stop fun for the kids. Sometimes they are in it all day.)

Car Wash (The two older girls love to help me wash the car. We get wet and soapy and have fun spraying each other with the hose. A bonus is I get a sparkling clean car and I made a chore into a fun family event.)

Dinner Rolls Recipe

We are big bread eaters in my house. I personally grew up always having bread with dinner. And if you cut out your bread during the day – you can really enjoy it with dinner without worrying about carbs or calories.

For many years I purchased dinner rolls at about $3.00 a tube – popped them out and cooked them with dinner. They were good – but I never imagined how good homemade could be. Not to mention, I spend around $1 dollar making them from scratch.

On my baking day, I usually make about 3 batches of rolls. I shape the dough, individually quick freeze them and them bagged them and put them in our big freezer. This way, I have rolls all week if I need them. I just take them out of the freezer the night before, and they are ready to bake and enjoy with the dinner the following night.

CinnaBun Recipe - AMAZING

As I say with all my baking adventures – I don’t go by looks, I go by taste. I try to really do all my baking on Sunday and get everything prepared for the week. So it takes a lot of time and effort. I don’t end up with perfectly round pizzas or exact replicas of Hot Pockets. But I come pretty close – and the taste is amazing!

So I have tried a few different Cinnabun recipes. But this is my absolute favorite! Half were gone within 5 minutes when I made them ! I use my bread machine – which I have completely fallen in love with over the past 6 months. I wrote a whole post about it, because it saves me money and time with incredible results. Read here…

Let’s start with the recipe for the Cinnabuns