Ending the year... clean out your junk!

If you're anything like me, you are probably in the process of putting away Christmas stuff, and wondering... why do we have so much stuff???!!??  I try to keep our home simple - not too  much stuff so it doesn't take too long to clean up the mess, but somehow, in about the time that it takes me to BLINK we have too much stuff AGAIN AND AGAIN!

Over Christmas we had our hardwood floors in our upstairs restored (the came out BEAUTIFUL - will post on that later this week along with who did it!), and in order to have the floors done we had to move EVERY SINGLE THING out of our upstairs - no furniture, nothing in our closets, nothing on our walls, etc.  Our upstairs was completely blank - looked like no one lived there.  It was a TON of work, and now that we're in the process of moving things back in, we are trying to select what we put in the rooms with purpose... the process of moving everything out made us see every single thing we don't really need.  Do my kids need 4000 books?  No, need to donate some to their preschool & they can check out the ones they really want from the library.  Do they need 20 T-shirts?  No, they only wear the same 5 over and over again.  Does my husband need to pack his sock drawer so full that you can never put anything away?  NO, get rid of some socks. Is your closet full of clothes you don't love and just feel depressed about looking at day-after-day?  CLEAN THEM OUT - if you don't love it, don't keep it!  Do you hate emptying the dishwasher because every cupboard you open up is already full and there is no where to put those coffee cups?  GET RID of some COFFEE CUPS!  

I encourage you to spend a few hours today to PURGE.  We're in this process, and are committed to taking a load over to the Rescue Mission's Mission Mart Thrift Store or St. Martin's by the afternoon.  Get rid of some of the stuff you don't need - feel better going into the new year - and get a tax deductible donation receipt to put toward your 2011 taxes. 

Happy Purging!

25 FREE 4x6 Photos at Walgreens (thru 12/31)

Did you take as many pictures as I did this past week over the Christmas holiday?  :)

Right now at Walgreens if you order online and select pick-up in-store, you can get 25 FREE prints (thru 12/31).     Just enter the coupon code PRINTNOW at checkout and get your free photos.  

Have more than 25 prints from Christmas you want to print?  Additional prints are only $.09 each (coupon code GREAT9 thru 12/28).  

And, if you order online thru 12/28 and you have more than 25 photos you can get FREE shipping to your home, so you don't even have to go in-store to pick them up.  One less errand always sounds good to me - I am the queen of free shipping... just ask my husband. :)

GREAT Area Photographer - Renee Janofski Photography

Have you seen Renee Janofski's Photography yet?  She is a local photographer, a fellow mom, and is extremely talented and reasonably priced.  Need a family photo?  Photo of your kids?  CALL HER!  She recently took our family photo - it was a FREEZING DAY, and my kids were frozen & grumpy, and she still got beautiful pictures of them.  Even my husband, who is not a big fan of having pictures taken of us, liked the end result.  

http://www.facebook.com/reneejphotography
reneejphotography@gmail.com

Christmas BREAK

Hope you all are enjoying time with your friends & families.   I am, so I'll resume posting after Christmas.  :)

Merry Christmas!

Picnik.com - FREE Photoediting Website You'll LOVE!

My friend Jackie has turned me on to a really cool new photo editing website - www.picnik.com

If you like pictures, or are crafty, or even if you're not crafty - CHECK IT OUT!  My friend created her adorable, unique Christmas cards on this site for FREE, then was able to print regular $.08 4x6 prints with her creations, rather than paying for Christmas cards from a vendor who charged $.39 & up per card.

There are no downloads to install, and it is free.  They try to upsell you on their "premium" package, but their free tools are pretty cool themselves and you don't even need the premium package...when you have a few free minutes over the holidays, go to their site and check it out!

Saving for your kids' educations? Make your contribution BEFORE the end of 2011!

Last year I posted about the tax incentive for being involved in an Indiana 529 Plan for my kiddos.  If you haven't already opened an 529 College Savings Plan for your kids, DO IT TODAY!  A 529 Plan is a way to put money away for your kids' college education - it grows tax free, and they can use it for any accredited institution in the US when they go to school.  AND, in Indiana, and many states, if you contribute to a 529 Plan sponsored through your state, there is a tax benefit!  In Indiana, you get a 20% tax credit on your state taxes (up to $1000/year) for contributing to a plan in your state, meaning you're making 20% on the money you invest for your kids' education!  This is really a win-win folks!

Each state's plan is different, but if you sign up for Indiana's College Choice Direct 529 Plan you can contribute as little as $25/month, and OTHER folks (Grandparents, Aunt & Uncles, etc.) can also contribute toward the education plan.  My husband and I have committed to saving $50/month when we opened our boys' accounts, and when I started back to work last year we increased that amount to $100/month - it isn't much, but we feel good knowing that we're putting something away now, and praying compound interest does it's magic!  The $ we put away each month is automatically debited from our checking account, so we're committed to putting the money away so we don't have to even think about it/accidentally spend it on something else!  It was difficult at first with our budget, but now we don't even think about it and we're glad it is in place.  And, if we have any extra money (think Tax Refund), or if a Grandparent gives some money for birthday gift, you can make extra contributions throughout the year. 

Been thinking about doing this but haven't gotten around to it?  DO IT TODAY!  Make your contribution before the end of 2011 so you can get the tax benefit!!!!

For more info, see https://collegechoicedirect.s.upromise.com/content/home.html 
or if you're in a state outside Indiana, I suggest starting with Upromise.com (or just googling 529 Plans and your State's Name to find a qualified plan for your state). 

$5 for $10 Ben & Jerry's Gift Certificate - Saveology.com

SAVEOLOGY.com deal of the day today for new subscribers is $5 for a $10 Ben & Jerry's Gift Certificate.  Might be a good stocking stuffer?  CLICK HERE for deal.  (Saveology.com is another Groupon-type website, but only in limited markets)