Free Milk with Purchase at Kroger

Are you lucky enough to have a Kroger nearby? (or Kroger affiliate- Ralphs, Dillons, Fry's)

If so, you can likely score a great deal on milk and cereal this week. Here's how:

Buy 3 participating Kellogg's Cereals or Cereal Bars @ 3 for $8.00

• Special K Red Berries, Corn Pops or Fruit Loops
• Special K Bars or Nutri-Grain bars

Get a free gallon of milk at check out!

Make this deal even sweeter by using 3 $1.00 Kellogg's coupons from the 12/14 RP insert.

So, pay only $5.00 after coupons for 3 boxes of cereal and 1 gallon of milk! Make sure you purchase everything in one transaction, using your loyalty card. Limit 2 offers per transaction.

Some ad dates may vary by location, so it's possible this promotion ran last week or will run the following week at your local store.

If you need ideas for all that extra cereal, The Kellogg's Cookbook has over 200 recipes using their products.

Some other deals of note this week at Kroger:

Kroger brand yogurt $0.39
Lean Cuisine Entrees $1.88
Large Navel Oranges 4/$1.00
Kroger bread $1.19
Kashi frozen food sale 25% off
Luvs Diapers Mega Pack $9.99
Eggo Healthy Waffles 2/$4

*prices may vary by region

Happy Shopping!

Upromise 10 Million Member Celebration

With over 10 million members, chances are you have heard of Upromise. This month, they have a special promotion for existing and new members.

If you join and activate your membership during January, you'll get a $10 Restaurant.com gift certificate, good at over 9,000 restaurants.

Existing members can also earn a free meal. Simply tell your friends about Upromise via their Tell-a-friend page. For each person that activates a Upromise account, both you and that friend will receive a $10 Restaurant.com certificate. Tell as many friends as you want!

This offer is good through January 31st, so don't delay! Be sure the new account gets activated to complete the process. The simplest way to activate a new account is by registering one or more credit/debit or grocery cards.

What's that? You don't know about Upromise? Well...

It's a free service that launched in 2001 (which is when I joined). Basically, Upromise is a simple way to save for college by harnessing the purchasing power of family and friends. Members direct their spending to Upromise partners- including more than 600 online stores, 8,000+ restaurants, and thousands of grocery and drugstore items.

Yes, even your CVS spending can earn savings in your Upromise account! Upromise also offers eCoupons for additional savings.

Sign up for Upromise here to create your free account, and enjoy that free meal!

When saving for college, every little bit helps. I continue to watch my children's accounts grow slowly over the years with no extra spending on my part. I wholeheartedly recommend it!

Mission: Comfortable Maternity Jeans

I guess I am your average stay-at-home work-at-home mom. My typical attire is comfy jeans and a T-shirt. This gets a little tricky while pregnant. Especially when you are frugal and pregnant.

I have made it a goal to spend as little as possible on maternity clothes this 3rd time around. I must admit I went a little overboard with the first 2. And since this baby was a "surprise" blessing, most of my maternity wardrobe had been passed on to friends long ago.

So I did what any frugal mom would do. I borrowed clothes right back from those friends and others! Thankfully, I ended up with a pretty decent collection. I purchased a few pieces here and there on clearance to round out the wardrobe, and decided to be done.

Then, I developed a little problem. A hernia in my belly-button. Now before you get all grossed out, this has nothing to do with intestines. It is just some tissue and fat that has protruded through the now separated abdominal wall. But, it is very. very. painful.

Therin lies the problem. The maternity jeans I had acquired hit me square in the belly-button. Ouch! I also tend to carry quite low, so the under-the-belly option is quite uncomfortable. I decided it was time for some new jeans.

The other day, I came across a very timely post by Audrey at Mom Generations. Audrey has begun a 365 day series on fashion advice for moms. Her very first topic? Mom jeans!

So I picked Audrey's brain..."where can I find some stylish, and most importantly, comfortable maternity jeans to get me through the next 3 months?"

She had the perfect solution. Motherhood. They carry a new line of "secret fit belly jeans". Coming from a mom of 4 boys 4 and under, I knew I could trust her.

I set out on my mission that very day. Success! I tried on exactly 3 pairs of jeans, and settled on a dark wash boot cut option. Thankfully, they were long enough for my tall frame. And let me just say they are oh. so. comfortable.

The super stretchy secret panel

Seriously, where were these jeans when I needed them in 2000 and 2005? The super stretchy panel feels almost non-existent against my tender belly. There is no line under my T-shirt, and nothing pinches. Best of all, they stay up!

See? No line!

Right now, Motherhood is having a big sale. There are secret fit styles available for as low as $12.99. My jeans cost $29.98, and well worth every penny.

Another nice Motherhood perk, which I had forgotten about: with your first purchase, you get a nifty little goody bag full of coupons, samples, and even a free Playtex bottle!

So, Audrey. Do you approve? Thanks for the great tip. I have a feeling you will see me wearing these jeans a lot!

Looking Back on 2008: Top Tens

Okay, I know this post is a few days late, but I have a good excuse. Well, not really, but I am not quite ready to start 2009. I am getting there, but there are a few loose ends I need to wrap up first.

For one thing, all of my Christmas decorations are still up because my step-son arrives on Wednesday. He lives in California, and visits often, but was not able to come over Christmas break. So, we are having a belated Christmas with him this week.

And also, I cannot officially start 2009 without thanking the wonderful people who made 2008 so great- my readers! I started this blog in March, and I amazed how far it has come in such a short time.

This would not be possible without the amazing support of many blogging friends and readers. Thank you for spreading the word about Keeping the Kingdom First!

Here are my Top 10 Referral Sources for 2008:

1. Money Saving Mom
2. Coupon Cravings
3. The "Cents"ible Sawyer
4. Deal Seeking Mom
5. Mommy Snacks
6. www.elevenmoms.com
7. Cafe Mom
8. Fiddledeedee
9. Twitter
10. BeCentsAble

Since I have so many new readers, I would like to highlight my Top 10 favorite posts from 2008:
(in no particular order)

1. Dear Target...I miss you!
2. Texafornian
3. Reflections on Mothers Day
4. July Financial Update: Big News!
5. 10 Ways to Be the Worst CVS Shopper Ever
6. A Frugal Litter Box
7. From California to Texas: Two Years Later
8. Frugal New Wheels
9. The Mystery Shampoo-Revealed!
10. Our Christmas Cookie Tradition

If you are new here, feel free to subscribe to my feed. I am looking forward to seeing what 2009 has in store, and I hope you will stick around!

Blessings,