Cereal Boxes - As a mother of three children, I have been through the craze of cereal boxes. When a new cartoon or movie comes out, within weeks there are cereal boxes depicting the new craze. It is almost enough to make your head spin. What I’ve also noticed is how the cereal boxes are starting to cost so much more money these days. Some of them are nearing $4.00. In my opinion, that is absolutely way too much money to be spending. For me, if I let each one of my children pick out a box of cereal, I could be easily spending $10.00 a week for merely three boxes. I don’t think so.
It took me a while to figure out that it is not the cereal itself that costs so much money, it is the actual cereal boxes. Apparently cardboard and the coloring of ink and patterns on the cereal boxes is what is expensive. Some people save cereal boxes. I’m not one of those individuals but I suppose that if someone came out with a cereal box that I just had to save for future viewings, I would spend the money. But, that’s not something I find necessary to do.
What I found myself doing to save some money each week, was checking out the cereal that comes in bags. Sure, it is a generic brand and might not taste identical to the name brand cereal, but it is still cereal. My kids can’t tell the difference between generic Cheerios or name brand Cheerios. All that matters to them is that they can finish their bowls before their siblings do. They simply know that the cereal is no longer in the fancy cereal boxes. At first, my kids pouted and whined because they no longer got to choose their cereal boxes. But, after several weeks of realizing that I was not going to give in, they stopped asking.
I was able to save almost $6.00 each week. What I decided to do then is to continue saving money but letting my kids have a bit more of a choice. Each week, one of them would get to pick out a cereal box that they wanted. The next week, it was someone else’s turn. And so on. While I was still spending a tiny amount of extra money on the fancy cereal boxes, I was still saving some as well. By allowing my kids to take turns choosing their cereal boxes, they still had something to look forward to and learned to take turns. They would always try to influence each other’s choices, but the chosen child always held true to their own favorite cereal boxes. It has worked out wonderfully for us.
Previous Articles Highlighter:
Chocolate Covered Strawberries (1)
...wrapping themselves down the sides of the cake. Some of the guests were lucky enough to get a piece of cake that had at least one of the chocolate covered strawberries, but I claimed some of...
Coffee Machine (2)
...my mother the ultimate gift. I bought her a new and improved coffee machine. It’s not just a simple, standard drip pot that brews the stale grounds out of the can. It does something much...
Dunkin Donuts Coffee (3)
...Does that all sound about right to you Wow; that’s a lot of fat! Certainly more than anyone’s daily recommended allowance. We Americans really have to do something about all the...
Ice Cream Machine (4)
...settings, and a mellow atmosphere With a professional ice cream machine, you can make tons of profitable ice cream. Whether intended for home or business use, you are sure to find a...
Italian Cooking (5)
...I make Italian dishes, though we both know that I don’t really know anything about true Italian cooking. My sauce secret is not really a secret at all. If anything, my secret is how to...
Jobs For Cooks (6)
...chef to get a job in a fine restaurant. There are jobs for cooks that entail making the salads or perhaps doing prep work for the head chef. Cooks may find that this is a great way to learn...
Low Acid Coffee (7)
...am dependant on my morning brew but I also don’t want to have the acidity of the beverage wreck havoc on my digestive system. Nausea and a stress filled afternoon in the office don’t...
Books For Cooks (8)
...most popular pastimes around the world. Naturally, it follows that books for cooks are just as popular. Some cooks simply can’t have too many cook books. If you’re one of these cooks,...
Easy Dinner (9)
...find something that you can turn into an easy dinner. I want my kids to eat healthy and enjoy their dinners. A lot of the recipes that I’ve found sound absolutely delicious but require about...
Kitchen Scale (10)
...appear in your mind as a diet device for weighing portions of food. Yes, this is legitimate, but there’s a more practical and even romantic side to the kitchen scale. In America, a...
Low Fat Cooking (11)
...vegetables in butter and put lots of dressing on my salads. That obviously doesn’t help my waistline, so I have to make a concerted effort to change to low fat cooking methods. Once I do...
Simple Recipes (12)
...I got engaged. My closest friend and coworker knew about my cooking fears, and bought me a cookbook called ’the Four Ingredient Cookbook’. It was filled with simple recipes for any...
Electric Ice Cream Maker (13)
...work out, and you are left with a wet, slushy mix that does not resemble ice cream at all. The idea of getting an electric ice cream maker seemed like a revelation to me. We could have ice cream...
Kitchen Gadgets (14)
...maker. I can put the mixture in at bedtime and wake up to the wonderful smell of freshly baked bread. The only down side is that I put on weight because the bread is so tasty. The rice cooker...
Cake Decorating Magazine (15)
...are trying to get creative with your baking projects you may want to invest in a cake decorating magazine for inspiration. One of these publications can help you get motivated to start creating...
Chocolate Cake Recipe (16)
...as her signature. There are even those who will change the recipe a little here and there to make sure that the outcome isn’t identical. Another traditional approach is to consult...
Chocolate Chip Cookies (17)
...myself scrambling to find the best recipe for chocolate chip cookies. There are tons of options when it comes to baking these tasty treats and mixing things up is a great way to make the...
Healthy Dinner Recipes (18)
...at the fast food places, just because it’s more convenient and we don’t have any cleanup or we’re simply short on time. With a little planning and foresight, you can make balanced,...
Kitchen Equipment (19)
...a suburb, which will be an adjustment for them. They now live in a downtown area of a large city so they are used to picking up take out food or getting ingredients for a particular recipe. They...
Low Carb Cooking (20)
...to lose weight fast, then you can adopt low carb cooking that keeps carbohydrate intake at a minimum. This includes cutting out some vegetables like corn, peas and carrots. These vegetables...
Southern Living Cookbook (21)
...would need another cooking publication at all. The text is filled with a ton of useful hints and help and a plethora of great recipes. The recipes and tips are not the only thing about...
Baby Feeding (22)
...breast feed, so my daughter was on formula. My sister choose not to do so, so her baby was also on formula. Our methods of baby feeding were vastly different from each other...
Barbecue Sauce Recipe (23)
...barbecuing, grilling, roasting, smoking – anything that involves placing a good cut of meat over high heat and open flames. I have to confess that one of the things I like about this...
Barbeque Ribs (24)
...is even more in love with how I do the ribs. There is not huge secret to great barbeque ribs. You don’t even need a grill to make them if you don’t want to, though this is a...
Bbq Sauce (25)
...NY, which is near where I live. I had never tried it myself, but my husband claims it is the best stuff ever made. Once I realized my mistake, I emailed her with an apology. She told me that...
Beef Jerky Recipes (26)
...that way. Beef jerky recipes were a necessity, not a luxury. People would cook recipes beef jerky because it would help them survive. If they had a long way to travel in the wilderness, for example,...
Belgian Chocolate (27)
...the praline was invented in Belgium. The residents there have always been fond of exchanging chocolates as presents and they are very proud of the worldwide popularity of their export. The key to...
Birthday Cake (28)
...as well as bonding. It is our first experience of being a member of a group. My mother was wonderful at creating traditions. We had many within our family, some that were repeated every week and...
Birthday Candles (29)
...your age is something that required multi-packs of birthday candles. The most anticipated birthdays for most people are perhaps twelve, sixteen, and twenty-one. After that, who really cares...
Bottled Drinking Water (30)
...but I can’t see anyone being harmed from it. A lot of people have turned away from tap water for reasons of health. They want something more pure, something that is natural with...
Broiler Pan (31)
...each day. My children are involved in many activities but we all try to make an effort to avoid making plans over the dinner hour. My husband’s job is set hours with few exceptions so...
Burr Coffee Grinder (32)
...I might consider a lack of coffee even worse than a lack of food in that situation. I have learned a lot about how to make the freshest cup of coffee possible. One thing that I have heard is...
Cake Decorating Ideas (33)
...ideas. It started when my husband turned thirty and I wanted to celebrate the occasion by making him a fantastic cake right from our own kitchen. I sat down and thought about my cake...
Cake Decorating Supplies (34)
...local craft or kitchen store. Places like Michael’s Craft Store or Bed, Bath and Beyond both have a great selection of cake making and cake decorating supplies. You can find almost anything...
Cake Designs (35)
...cake designs by simply searching for photos of them online. You can search for wedding cake designs, or you can find birthday or other special occasions as well. If your child has a theme in...
Camping Cookware (36)
...that you need to take something with you, and you look through what you have in your own home. I had seen camping cookware in the store as we were preparing to go, but I saw no reason to spend...
Ceramic Coffee Mug (37)
...you will find that there is always a ceramic coffee mug within a few feet of me. I don’t know when it happened, but I turned into a coffee freak somewhere along the lines. My mother used...
Cereal Boxes (38)
...a box to share. Why my husband insists on trying to share each week boggles my mind, because I figure that by now, he should know what is coming. He seems to forget that each week this share tactic...
Chef Choice Knife Sharpener (39)
...it to be, and cooking will simply be a lot less fun to do. Of course, once you have good knives, you should keep them in good shape, or else what is the point. Before I got my chef choice...
Chef Hat (40)
...ever had to this day. I wanted to be just like them. My parents both wore chefs hats when I was around because I would always laugh when I saw them. In fact, one of my earliest memories...
Chicken Dinner (41)
...and a small portion of macaroni and cheese. My brother and I always asked for it the moment we came to Dad’s house, and many times he had already ordered it by the time we got there. He...
Chile Pepper Magazine (42)
...got it. The Chile Pepper magazine gives you the scoop on every use for every chile pepper. They’ll give you the lowdown on the Jalapeno, Chipotle (a smoked Jalapeno), Habanero,...
Chocolate Apples (43)
...to have one treat. My sister would always have cotton candy, but I would not waste my treat on such trivialities. I would always get a chocolate apple. One time I got a caramel apple instead,...
Chocolate Brownies (44)
...like for dessert, and he would tell me that he wants chocolate brownies. I know that many people love them, and some of them more than others. The great thing about chocolate brownies is that...
Chocolate Cake Recipe (45)
...or advanced mathematics. There is one thing, however, that she guards jealously. It is her greatest secret, and one that she has sworn she will carry to the grave. It is her chocolate cake...
Chocolate Chip Cookies (46)
...cookies became an immediate success, and the guests of the Toll House Inn couldn’t quit raving about this awesome new recipe. Soon Nestle heard about Wakefield’s combination and in...
Chocolate Covered Potato Chips (47)
...we had to gaze in awe upon the sweet treats. Most of the selection was standard variety stuff. You had your gummy worms, popcorn, Icees, turtles, chocolate peanuts and raisins, ect. Then I saw...
Chocolate Covered Strawberries (48)
...this specialty it speaks of their adoration for one another. It doesn’t need to be a part of a fantasy though; you can make this delightful treat at home to share with your partner....
Chocolate Factory (49)
...that she should never be able to watch my child again. She didn’t put my daughter in danger, but there are times when she just doesn’t use her head, and this was one of those times....
Chocolate Fondue Fountain (50)
...which literally flows with chocolate, makes a spectacular decoration of edible contents! You can rent or purchase a chocolate fondue fountain. Given that this device is rather pricey,...
Chocolate Peanut Butter (51)
...to cook chocolate recipes, and chocolate peanut butter cookies are my favorite. To me, however, they do not work if they use the processed peanut butter. You have to get the all-natural kind that...
Coffee Can (52)
...can of Wolfgang Puck gourmet latte is where you can get your hands on this new technology. Supposedly, it takes six minutes to heat the coffee and it will stay warm for thirty minutes after it...
Coffee Machine (53)
...couple. They liked to see the young people, and we called them Mama and Papa. It wasn’t quite Happy Days, but it was a home from home. Papa was very proud of his up to the minute Coffee...
Coffee Of The Month Clubs (54)
...do. It’s kind of like pizza in a way. Virtually everyone wants it and they prefer it on a regular basis. Many avid coffee drinkers will consume five or six cups a day. I was just reading...
Coffee Shop (55)
...and know what my regular drinks of choice are. I love the fact that they have a drive-thru for convenience. I don’t love the higher prices but I still find myself paying them. In my town,...
Cooking Courses (56)
...and aprons. Of course we all thought this was quite funny. We knew we had joined a serious class when the instructor threatened to separate us. Instead of being a fun activity where we could enjoy...
Cooking For 2 (57)
...how much two boys in their late teens eat. The first meal I put on the table for the two of us had enough leftovers for most of the week. Cooking for 2 is so less time consuming. That sounds...
Creme Brulee Torch (58)
...quit smoking cigarettes. I had no idea how much I would grow to love my crème brulee torch. The item is definitely commercial quality and the design is sleek and sophisticated....
Crock Pot Soup (59)
...answer for “what’s for dinner”. A crock pot soup is one of the simplest, most nutritious, effortless solutions, earning you a good cook’s reputation along with family...
Cuisinart Grind And Brew Coffee Maker (60)
...for me last year. My husband saw this innovative product and he knew that I would fall in love. And I did. The Cuisinart Grid and Brew coffee maker is the perfect machine for anybody who...
Custom Coffee Cup (61)
...difficult time to start coffee shops, because Starbucks was encroaching on everyone. We made a great cup of coffee, however, and we had a great logo. We printed it on every custom coffee...
Cutting Boards (62)
...in the dishwasher. This is something you should never do if you have woodcutting boards. You must scrub them by hand with an antibacterial detergent instead. These cutting boards are prone to harboring...
Dinner Party Ideas (63)
...means that it is time for gatherings that include friends, family and co-workers. In the past I have tried to hold one large party that would include people from all the categories of my life....
Dunkin Donuts Coffee (64)
...me up enough. I briefly had a love affair with McDonald’s Premium Blend but that didn’t last. It seems that the fast food place switched back to their old, crude beans without warning...
Easy Dinner (65)
...no need to gasp in shock. Trust me, even a beginning cook can turn out some pretty darn good dishes using this method. Recipes require lookup and perhaps a stop at the grocery to pick...
Food Containers (66)
...something up and get it into the bag that is fine, but that is not always something I can do. I also have a problem with the food containers you keep in your home for leftovers. I have one...
Food Poisoning (67)
...is overwhelmed with it, then out it comes. Whatever the case may be, there seems to be more and more reports of food poisoning in the news lately, and it’s not coming from under cooked...
Fresh Seafood (68)
...is how fresh can it really be You may be surprised to know that much of the perishable food that is sold online is actually fresher than what you’d find in your local supermarket....
Frying Pan (69)
...a good frying pan is not about the non-stick surface as I thought it was. It is more about how the heat is held and spread through the pan. I found the answer to my dilemma in the last...
Gaggia Coffee Machine (70)
...cup of coffee In my opinion, you can’t simply find one just anywhere. This is a process, no doubt. When ever I relocate to a new area, I have to check out all the local java house...
George Foreman Indoor Outdoor Grill (71)
...eaten anything that was grilled on it. I was anxious to hear my friend’s impression of the George Foreman Indoor Outdoor Grill and to find out whether or not she would recommend...
German Chocolate Cake (72)
...said it was German chocolate that it was made from it. I’ve discovered as of late that making my own desserts from scratch is much more rewarding. Cheesecake has proven to be a challenge...
Grocery Shopping (73)
...manage to have a headache by time I get home. There are many different places where I can go, however, I like to go where I can save the most money. This may be ending shortly however, because...
Healthy Breakfast (74)
...have with any healthy breakfast. The only time I can seem to eat in the morning is when I am traveling, and I usually love the buffet at the hotel. I get eggs, bacon, toast, and fruit, and that’s...
Healthy Dinner (75)
...not need to earn your contempt. As a matter of fact, a healthy dinner can be as tasty and nutritious a meal as you’ve ever enjoyed. Fresh ingredients are the key to a good meal you’ll...
Hot Chocolate Maker (76)
...made it like the Aztecs did – pepper and no sugar – and have even invented original chocolate recipes that no one else has ever thought of. We love mocha lattes, chocolate covered...
Hot Chocolate (77)
...person. I try to stay on a high protein, low sugar diet. To this end, I usually have a supply of protein shakes in the refrigerator for any time that I need a quick meal. Its getting cold outside...
Hot Pepper Plants (78)
...For me, it started purely by chance. I was at the Farmer’s market and found a stall that was selling hot pepper seed. I had always liked a little bit of spice, and I thought that it...
Hot Pepper Sauce (79)
...my favorite thing of all is the hot pepper sauce Festival. The hot pepper sauce Festival is kind of an underground phenomenon. It takes place in a different city every year, but it is always...
Hot Peppers (80)
...of her dishes had that extra kick to them that you can only get from the use of hot peppers. When my husband first joined the family he needed to adjust to the spicy flavors in mom’s...
How To Cook (81)
...today, but I still am not what one would call a really great cook. I grandmother spent a lot of time showing me how to cook, and the things she taught me have stayed with me. Those...
Ice Cream Franchises (82)
...coffee flavored ice cream right about now. There are a number of popular ice cream franchises now days. I can still remember when I would only see Dairy Queen everywhere. Now, don’t...
Ice Cream Machine (83)
...machine. I thought it was the neatest thing in the world – in retrospect I still do. His ice cream making machine was one of the old style. It was basically a bucket that you would fill...
Italian Cooking (84)
...with six other college students. Two of the other women were from Italian heritage. They taught me about the wonders of Italian cooking. When we all moved in together we agreed that on Sunday evenings...
Jalapeno Stuffed Olives (85)
...that this would become a new tradition in my home. I knew wrong. There was no way that I was going to work this recipe from scratch ever again. I don’t recommend anyone who is a...
Japanese Teapots (86)
...loved from your childhood Have you ever tried to replace an object that represents a special moment in time These items are of great value. They may not be the most expensive items on the market...
Jobs For Cooks (87)
...planet. When it comes to jobs for cooks, you can really go all over the map with this field. I mean think about how many different countries, cuisines and ways of cooking there are. Food...
Kitchen Table (88)
...or a bowl of cereal, and talk about their plans for the day. The kitchen table is also the center point for the evening dinner, where family members come together to discuss all that went right...
Kona Coffee (89)
...volcanic soil and alternating sunshine and rain forest conditions produces the flavor unique to this coffee. Kona coffee has a unique body, complex flavor, lightly acidic, with a rich, delicious...
Latte Coffee (90)
...It’s great because of their secret syrup. The espresso on the other hand is average at best. If I were craving just a simple latte coffee with vanilla or plain, I would avoid Starbuck’s....
Lemon Pepper (91)
...a bit on top of chicken makes it look like you really did something in the kitchen even though the truth says otherwise. Like a lot of girls these days, I learned to cook during my freshman...
Low Acid Coffee (92)
...people as tactics to help promote merchandise, boost prices and bring in sales. Don’t be one of those consumers who believe everything they read! A perfect example of good marketing...
Low Carb Bar (93)
...about what we consume. Currently the focus is on carbs. Or should I say lack there of The truth is people are striving to avoid heavy carbohydrates. We know that bad carbs lead to weight gain....
Low Carbohydrate Recipes (94)
...of the toughest things that you’ll ever do. Of course there are thousands of low carb recipes out there, so that is not the problem. The problem is that we are taught to crave carbohydrates...
Low Fat Cooking (95)
...and more important There are many simple ways you can enjoy low-fat cooking without compromising on taste. One of the best things you can do is to cook with a healthy oil. Though you may...