20 Feb 12 Enjoy a bigger Super Bowl party for your budget
Chances are good you’ll be watching the Super Bowl this Sunday. 173 million Americans are estimated to tune in to see the Giants and Patriots play, enjoy the half-time entertainment, and yes… marvel at all those costly commercials.
Super Bowl parties are looking to continue their upward trend in popularity. According to a recent survey done by the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, nearly 63.6 million (27.1 percent of Super Bowl viewers) are planning to attend a party. This is up from last year’s 61.2 million. An additional 35.9 million (15.3 percent) plan to throw a party, which is also up from the 34.9 million who said they would host a party in 2011.
Super Bowl parties can be great fun, but can also cost a bit of money. the RAMA survey also finds that the average game-watcher will spend $63.87 on related merchandise, apparel and snacks. (71% of that is food and snacks).
If you want to throw a fun, stress-free Super Bowl Party with great food and great fun, I’ve gathered my top ten tips to make the experience memorable while staying within your budget.
1. Avoid babysitters – which can add up when multiplied across many families. Instead, create an area just for kids in another part of the house which include football themed activities, games, fun foods for kids, etc… perhaps you could hire one teenager as a “child supervisor” rather than the multiple babysitters. with three kids of our own, creative babysitting solutions are always a welcome perk to a get together with friends.
2. Dollar stores for decorations – or get the kids involved in football themed crafts ahead of time. if you have any green-colored Christmas decorations (tablecloth, napkins, etc…), you might be able to work them in. (Green is a common football-themed color). Avoid the party stores and super bowl themed decorations at larger retailers. although decorations add a nice touch, I find it amazing how much money you can spend on paper and plastic if you pick them up while at the party, grocery or department store.
3. do you have any other party supplies left from Christmas? I’ve been picking up clearance items throughout January. Some are general party-related products (or small gifts for groups of kids) and can make an early entry this year at your bowl game gathering.
4. there are a ridiculous number of coupons available for party foods. Use them!! if you like brands like Ortega, ChiChi’s, Eckrich, Kraft, and other snack-related product lines, you’ll be like a kid in a candy store this week – particularly if you like all your candy at 60%-80% off. there are over 400 different items in our SavingsAngel list that you can get for over 50% off – if you’ve got the right coupons. Check out our deals below for some examples. the past few Sunday editions of the Grand Rapids Press have held a treasure trove of coupons for smart shoppers. Coupons are not just for families who are barely “scraping by.” They are for anyone who would rather pocket an extra $400 or more each month. Technology has made it a whole lot easier to find the matches of great coupons with great sales.
5. Take advantage of great snack food deals and stock up for the future. the checker thought that my 8 bags of blue corn tortilla chips was a bit excessive – but my family and I will eat them over the next several months – including at any get-togethers with friends. your freezer and pantry should include any foods you buy on a regular basis – even if that means snack foods. Just because you have it in your home doesn’t mean it needs to be eaten with any greater frequency. our goal is to eliminate impulse and need-based shopping. I will admit, this principle is easier said than done for me when guacamole is involved. (It’s my one true vice).
6. please re-read and take advantage of numbers 4 and 5. I really want to emphasize the great opportunities there are this week for people who follow my advice regularly. the past several weeks, I’ve been loading up on great party treats in the freezer. This week is probably the most exciting of all. as a result of these deals, we’re always ready to throw a party – even at a moment’s notice.
7. Stick to soda for the drink options and ask your guests to bring anything special they’d want to drink themselves. Trying to buy for every taste can get very pricey. I recommend buying several varieties of 2-liters and get them in ice nice and early. I never pay more than a dollar for any brand name 2-liter of soda. if your store wants to charge you $1.69 for a 2-liter of pop, look elsewhere! Cans and bottles are generally never as good a deal as 2-liters.
8. Paper or plastic plates and plastic utensils can be so much easier to deal with – but washing plates can save you a bit of money. There’s also a bit less environmental impact from washing your guests’ dishes – rather than loading up the trash cans. That being said, napkins plastic utensils, and party plates are among the deals I regularly get for 60%-70% when I successfully time a coupon
with a sale. Regardless of your decision, I hope you don’t pay full price for these products this week unless.
9. go with pizza. All the major chains are planning budget-friendly specials on Sunday. Papa John’s, in particular, is known for their attention grabbing Super Bowl promotions. This year, they are potentially giving away a one large one-topping pizza and a two-liter Pepsi Max to everyone who enrolls in Papa John’s Papa Rewards program. Visit freepapajohns.com to register.
10. Finally, if you are looking to buy a new high-definition television, before and after the Super Bowl are really good opportunities to get a great deal. This is especially true for open-box purchases next week. 5.1 million Americans are estimated to buy a tv in time for the event – and not all of them stick with their purchase.
The easiest way to cut your grocery bill in half is through using manufacturers coupons combined with the best sales at local West Michigan stores. normally, this takes a lot of work to create a winning shopping list for your family. Each week, SavingsAngel.com combines over 2,000 products on sale at local grocery and drug stores with their enormous database of manufacturer coupons – which are found in Sunday’s Grand Rapids Press and throughout the Internet. This combination results in access to over 300 products each week for 50% off or better. please look in Tuesday’s Grand Rapids Press each week for practical tips on how to save more of your own money.
Josh Elledge is the Chief Executive “Angel” of SavingsAngel, Inc. – launched from his Holland, Michigan home in January 2007. A husband and father of three, he now appears each week on television, in the Grand Rapids Press, and a number of radio stations across the country teaching families how to cut their grocery bill in half using the Internet. Elledge created the technology found on SavingsAngel.com through the need to save his own family’s money. Successfully able to cut his own grocery bill from $600 a month to less than $300 a month, his message has reached hundreds of thousands of families. SavingsAngel.com is now growing rapidly throughout the country. you can watch a short video at SavingsAngel.com that will explain more information about how to cut your own grocery bill in half with the help of SavingsAngel.com!
19 Feb 12 1st Choice Garden Sheds are Thick!!
If you are accused of being thick it is normally an insult, however, in the case of garden sheds the thicker the better. 1st Choice, with their 30 years of experience, know that the key to a shed which will last the test of time is to have a very thick framework (effectively the skeleton of the shed) this frame has to take the weight of the cladding, it also has to stand up again the strong winds and the weight of the snow during our more seasonal winters.
Many of the cheaper sheds think that 1″ x 1″ is strong enough, just take a look at a ruler and see how small that is. if you can get a piece of timber this small see how easy this bends and breaks. does this fill you with confidence? well it shouldn’t. you are spending a decent chunk of money, even for these cheap sheds, and you want your precious lawn mover, and garden tools etc to be protected from damage, so you need to do your homework.
On all 1st Choice Garden Sheds and workshops they utilise 2″ x 2″ (47 x47mm) as a minimum. this is four (4) times thicker, at least, over these cheap sheds. To a certain degree their sheds are over engineered, however, the important thing is that their sheds will last 25 – 30 years with a minimum of maintainence. the cheap sheds may do a job for 2-3 years. if this short time frame is OK for you then it may be worth considering but when you come to sell don’t expect it to have any value to your property.
If you want a shed to be proud of and KNOW it will last and add value to you property then only consider a shed with a sturdy frame. Use this Garden Sheds Buying Guide to ensure you are not short changed and so you know exactly what YOU are buying.
1st Choice’s background, a family business, in timber building manufacturing, which started in 1979, gives them the know how about the quality of materials which should be used. their Ethos is ‘Make to a Standard – NOT down to a price’.
18 Feb 12 Honingham grandfather offers Norfolk couples the chance to hire a Thai tuk tuk
Malcolm Joyce with his new Tuk Tuks that he will hire out from his Felthorpe business for weddings, proms and events. Photo by Simon Finlay
They are best known as a form of transportation in countries such as Thailand but now happy couples in Norfolk can hire out a tuk tuk to use on their special day.
Malcolm Joyce has just launched his new venture Tuk Tuk Joy Limo Hire to offer brides and grooms something different for their wedding.
The 54-year-old runs the business from Felthorpe industrial estate, near Ringland, and has two of the three wheeled vehicles, one pink and one white, which can be hired out for a range of events including weddings, proms, birthday parties and film and TV nights.
“I just wanted to do something different,” said mr Joyce, who lives in Honingham, near Easton. “Dare I say it, people will still spend money on weddings and funerals and when I saw this business up for sale, I thought I would go for it.”
Tuk tuks are used as taxis in Thailand. They are motorised rickshaws which have been nicknamed tuk tuks because of the sound of their engines.
Mr Joyce bought the company, which is just one of two in the country hiring out tuk tuks for special occasions, from a man in Lancashire who was moving abroad.
Together with his wife Diane, mr Joyce is one of three drivers in the company. it is the first time mr Joyce, who has ME, has run his own business.
One of the vehicles is a four seater while the other is a six seater.
Mr Joyce, a father of three and grandfather of two, with a third grandchild on the way, said: “Whenever we take them out for a drive, everyone stops and takes a look at them. It’s something a bit different for Norwich and Norfolk.”
For more about the company, go to tuk-tuk-joy.moonfruit.com or email .
The Eastern Daily Press, will be hosting its Wedding Show at the Norfolk Showground in Costessey on Saturday, February 25 and Sunday, February 26.
The biggest wedding event in the region promises to be something really special for those planning their big day, featuring more than 150 exhibitors and four daily fashion shows.
Tickets cost £6 each or two tickets for £10. Wedding party for four people £16.
To book tickets, call 01603 772175 and go to edp24.co.uk/weddings.
Are you launching an innovative business venture? call reporter Kate Scotter on 01603 772326 or email kate.scotter@archant.co.uk.
17 Feb 12 Leave a Comment!
This is time of year when many Canadians start to think about their RRSP. if you’re like me you’re also giving some thought to how much money you’re prepared to lose investing in Mutual Funds. I received an email this week from a financial planner at my bank reminding me that the deadline to contribute is February 29th. That was very thoughtful of him, and I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that he didn’t remind about how much I’ve lost in the last couple years. I guess they figure I should be happy because I’m only this far away (thumb and first finger about an inch apart) from breaking even. It’s gotten to the point today where breaking even is a reason to celebrate.
I came across some statistics today that I found stunning, and it should give tax payers and the Federal Government pause for concern. According to Statistics Canada, 93% of Canadians have the ability to make RRSP contributions. yet only 26% of those eligible made a contribution in 2010. in real dollars a total of $34 billion was contributed by those who made a contribution in 2010. yet there was room for $665 billion in total contributions. Ouch, that’s a wee bit of a gap. The reason this could be painful for all is that our society is aging. There is no way that Fed’s will be able to meet the financial burden required to provide retirees a pension which could translate into a decent standard of living. therefore, if the issue isn’t addressed today the Canadian tax payer will have to make even greater contributions then they do today.
The reason given for the unused contributions is that low income Canadians cannot afford to make contributions. According to a report in the Financial Post, “Someone earning under $40,000 or so annually would generally be better off saving through Tax Free Savings Accounts than RRSP’s to avoid losing various income-tested government benefits such as Guarantees Income Supplement, which is clawed back based on net income, including RSSP or RIFF withdrawals. TFSA withdrawals are not considered income and thus do not effect income tested benefits”. well that makes perfect sense…if I’m a freakin’ accountant. How on earth can lower income Canadians possibly understand what’s available to them when the tax code is written in a way that only graduates from M.I.T can understand? for those in the middle or upper income class, they hire an accountant to figure it out. yet those who need the council the most have no place to turn.
There’s really a bigger issue here – it’s financial literacy. I’m of the opinion that our education system has failed in this regard. Learning trigonometry is important but if kids don’t know what it means to balance a cheque book f(x) = aò + ? [(n=1) aÕ cos=n?? / ?] +Œ = FLAT BROKE. Financial literacy has to become a part of the curriculum. If we don’t want future generation to become a financial burden on society, we have to teach them to take care of themselves financially. As for my own RRSP contribution, if the financial planner at my bank can figure out a way to make the money I’m about to put under my mattress an RRSP contribution, he’ll get my business. if not, I like my chances of getting a better return under my mattress. At least I’ll break even, well, not when I factor in cost of living and inflation. but at least I’ll feel a little better.
Until next time,
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