Why an At-Home Mom Invented a List-Making iPhone App

January 5, 2012

This is a guest post by M.T., the creator of Cross It Off!, an iPhone app featured in my free-ads-to-readers program. (See the end of the post for the latest on the advertising program.)  There was a time in my life when I would go to the grocery store without a list.  How could I [...]

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See the New Frugal Mama Makeover Series on TLC.com!

December 7, 2011

I‘m thrilled to show you the brand-new Frugal Mama Makeover video series!   Thanks to generous support from Bank of America, our sponsor, the short videos look like mini-TV shows. Snapshot of the Production Process After choosing six participants who responded to a TLC casting call, we visited them in their homes (all in the [...]

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Rescue Your Photos: Fun and Inexpensive Poster Art

November 22, 2011

This is a guest post by Samantha Sand. Samantha is a frequent commenter at Frugal Mama, and she publishes a great blog about using technology to save time and money called Let’s Get Digital. She also runs her own business, Samantha Sand Solutions, where she helps small businesses get on the Web and grow their [...]

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Should We Use VoIP to Save Money on Phone Service?

July 7, 2011

Here is something I wrote for Parentables about how I decided on the kind of phone service to hook up in our new house. Should we use VoIP to save money on phone service? That was a question I was asking myself when I had the chance to start all over with our telecom choices. We’re [...]

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Shop Smarter: Why Finding the Best Price Has Never Been Easier

June 3, 2011

Don’t overload on information. In this article at Parentables, I tell you about the only site you need to comparison shop — online or in person. Do you like to get the lowest price? Then you’ll appreciate Google Product Search. Off the bat, I love Google’s shopping tool because the search results are not veiled ads by [...]

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How to Save a Bundle on Your Phone, Internet, and Cable

May 26, 2011

Things are changing fast — have you checked on your bundle lately? Here is a post I wrote at Parentables based on new findings from Consumer Reports. What would you do if you could start all over with your cable, Internet, or phone company? That’s a question I’m asking myself as we prepare to move three states [...]

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Why You Need to Know ISO and FS

May 24, 2011

No more Craigslist stalkers or African prince scams — here is one of my favorite ways to buy, sell, and share — see it at Parentables this week. Before having children, I used to think joining groups was, well, kind-of embarrassing. Now I think it’s essential. My sleep-deprived, drooled-upon sanity craves in-person gatherings like playgroups, [...]

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Who Won the $300 H&R Block Giveaway

February 22, 2011

Thank you to everyone entered the H&R Block tax prep giveaway.  I wish I could offer gift codes to everyone, but alas, I only have three. Here are the winners, chosen by random.org: #18  Debra F #6  Starr Rathburn #10  Sarah Hirsch If you couldn’t deal with reading the post on free tax prep, you [...]

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How to Get Free Help in Preparing Your Taxes

February 17, 2011

These days an accountant charges about $300 to prepare an itemized tax return, and a walk-in service averages about $200.  While I am so thankful these services are there for when things get complicated, I am equally grateful for the budget choices. (As I explained recently I started taking the route of tax prep websites and [...]

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Free and Low Cost Options for Filing Taxes

January 25, 2011

I love filling out forms. I remember playing secretary when I was little:  it was just so satisfying filling in those perfect little boxes with letters and numbers, marking papers with a decisive thud of the inked stamp, and filing away the data-heavy pages in tidy little slots.  If only life was so light and [...]

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3 Simple Ways to Get a Discount When Buying Gifts Online

November 15, 2010

I love a great hand-made or experience gift, but there are plenty of occasions that call for a tangible thing made by someone else.  (For example, this year my husband and I are getting each other winter coats, after ten years of trudging along in the same old outerwear.) But just like any other frugal [...]

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4 Free (or Super-Cheap) and Useful Computer Tools

October 25, 2010

In honor of the giant PHEW I breathed when my hard drive went kaput a month ago and everything I owned (intellectually) disappeared — and then magically reappeared — I wanted to share with you my four favorite computer programs that are free or so cheap and useful that you won’t care they’re not free. [...]

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10 Ways to Save Money Shopping Online

August 10, 2010

We are expecting a baby in late July and I’ll be taking some time off to welcome him to the world. I am grateful to friends and fellow bloggers who are helping out with guest posts.  This article is by Joanna Dreifus of MyMomShops. I am a self-proclaimed fanatic online shopper (I buy almost everything [...]

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Cut Your Cell Phone Bill without Reducing Service

May 11, 2010

This article appears in full at Buttoned Up, where I moonlight as their Savings Expert. You can read the short article here:  Cut Your Cell Phone Bill without Reducing Service. Probably the most dramatic way to slash your cell phone costs is to switch to a pay-as-you-go plan and use your mobile phone only for [...]

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Cell Phones for First Graders?

May 11, 2010

Today in their Voices section, Mamapedia featured my article, How Being Frugal Can Preserve Your Child’s Innocence. Mamapedia Voices “showcases useful and insightful posts by selected writers, from up-and-coming mom bloggers to well-known mom experts.” In case you missed this article about cell phones for young children the first time, you can catch it here [...]

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How to Save Time and Money on Everyday Household Goods with Alice.com

January 23, 2010

This is a guest post by Sarah Welch and Alicia Rockmore. Sarah and Alicia are the co-founders of Buttoned Up, Inc. (@getbuttonedup), a company dedicated to helping stretched and stressed women get themselves organized and co-authors of Everything (almost) In Its Place.   How many hours a month do you spend doing mundane chores, like [...]

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