Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living, Author at Frugal Coupon Living

Mouthwatering Skewer Recipes

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June 6, 2021 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Recipe, Social Media

Get ready to hit the grill with these Grilled Skewer Recipes. Mouthwatering, Healthy Kabob Recipes including chicken, beef, pork, shrimp and veggies.

Skewer Recipes

Warm weather will be here soon, and when it arrives, we’ll be ready to fire up the grill! If you’re tired of the same ol’ hamburgers, hot dogs, and steaks, these skewer recipes for the grill will give you lots of flavor inspiration. Whether you’re into beef, chicken, pork, or shrimp, you’re going to find a scrumptious meal the whole family will love.

Skewers, kebabs, kabobs, or meat on a stick—whatever you call them, they’re just plain tasty. The secret to delicious meat on the grill is a marinade, and you’ll find some delicious options here, ranging from ranch to citrus to honey-based marinades.

How do you grill in an oven?

Want to take grilled recipes to the oven? Use the broiler! While a grill cooks from underneath, a broiler cooks from above. You can get beautiful browning without ever firing up a grill. The broiler and grill are a very similar cooking process, but you do need to monitor your meat closely when using an oven broiler to prevent scorching. You can read more about grilling in your oven on WikiHow.

What do you do with skewers before grilling?

Remember, if you’re using wooden skewers, soak them for at least 30 minutes before grilling to keep them from catching fire and burning.

You can use these metal skewers without a problem, just wear an oven mitt when rotating them as the edges can get hot. Another alternative is to use a grilling basket or grilling cage.

Veggie Skewers

These Grilled Vegetable Kabobs are the perfect side to accompany any of your spring and summer meals on the grill. You’re shown how to make them three different ways with three different marinades. You’ll never get bored with your veggies with all these options! | My Pure Plants

Chicken Skewer Recipes

One of our favorite recipes are these Chicken Pineapple Kabobs. So moist and a perfect combination of juicy pineapple and zesty peppers. | Frugal Coupon Living

These Grilled Honey Garlic Chicken Skewers are sweet, tangy, and will become a summertime favorite. They’re made with boneless, skinless chicken thighs, which are richer in flavor than chicken breasts, but you can sub breast meat if that’s what you have on hand. Marinate them at last two hours before grilling, but overnight is best. | Urban Bliss Life

Satay is a popular dish in Southeast Asia, and you can enjoy it right from your grill! This recipe is for Spicy Peanut Chicken Satay, but you can also choose beef, lamb, pork, or even fish as your meat. The spicy peanut sauce is what makes the dish. Pair it with a cucumber salad to cool off your tastebuds between bites. | Foodal

You’ll love the spicy, sweet flavor combo on these Lime Honey Sriracha Chicken Kebabs. Cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, and mushrooms all pair well with the chicken and this marinade, but choose your favorites. Serve them over rice or with a big green salad on the side. | Powered by Mom

Cook these Greek Chicken Souvlaki up in just 15 minutes. Talk about a quick weeknight meal! Enjoy the flavors of the Mediterranean with a simple marinade made with just five ingredients. Serve over rice, with a salad, or in a pita topped with tzatziki. | Flavor the Moments

Chicken thighs are marinated in a cider and mustard sauce and served with a delicious honey mustard dipping sauce in this recipe for Cider Honey Chicken Skewers. They make a delicious entree or appetizer for a backyard get-together. | Amy Casey Cooks

Meat eaters, rejoice! These Bacon Ranch Chicken Kabobs are stuffed with tender pieces of chicken and crispy bacon, all drenched in a ranch marinade. Everyone will love them, so they’re perfect for serving your family on a busy weeknight or for having friends over for a backyard barbecue. | Gimme Some Grilling

The yogurt-based marinade keeps the chicken for these Grilled Tandoori Chicken Kebabs tender and super flavorful. Pair the chicken with onions and bell peppers for a simple, flavorful entrée that’s a real crowd-pleaser. | Maple and Mango

The fresh herbs, lemon, and olive oil are the perfect flavor combination for these Triple Herb Chicken and Zucchini Skewers. The herbs—parsley, basil, and oregano—make ordinary chicken breasts taste extraordinary. The veggies and meat are skewered separately here to avoid over-cooking the chicken, but you can put them together if you’d like. | Zestful Kitchen

Beef Skewer Recipes

When it comes to beef, a hot dog might not be at the top of your list. However, if you want to pleasing the kids, whip up a couple of these hot dog beef kabobs – they will love it. | Frugal Coupon Living.

For an easy and delicious meal, try these Grilled Steak Kabobs with Homemade Teriyaki Sauce. Sirloin steak is skewered and grilled with poblano peppers, pineapple, and red onions. Feel free to add or swap out veggies according to your own preferences. Bell peppers and mushrooms go great with steak, too. | Brooklyn Active Mama

A good marinade is the secret to perfect kebabs. Marinating the meat adds to the flavor and tenderizes the meat—something you definitely don’t want to skip when you’re grilling beef. The marinade for these Citrus Marinated Beef Kebabs is made with orange juice, lime juice, and plenty of savory spices. | Foodal

Have you ever skewered ground beef? It may sound strange, but you won’t think so after trying these Ground Beef Kebabs. It’s kind of like eating meatloaf or a burger on a stick, which is just a lot of fun. Serve with potato salad, pasta salad, a green salad, rice, etc. They’re delicious with so many sides. | Delicious on a Dime

These healthy, hearty Grilled Steak Kabobs with Cilantro Chimichurri are the perfect patio meal for the summer. Juicy, tender bits of beef are smothered in a delicious cilantro chimichurri and skewered along with zucchini and red onions. | Lemons and Zest

You’d never know that these Asian Steak Kebabs with Asparagus and Mushrooms are Whole30 and keto-friendly. The tasty marinade is made with coconut aminos, lime, and a few other simple ingredients. The meat is ribeye steaks, but you could sub a more affordable option like sirloin or flat iron steak if you prefer. | Cook at Home Mom

Shrimp Skewer Recipes

You’ll love the big pop of sweet, smoky flavor in these Jerk Pineapple Shrimp Skewers. They’re marinated in a homemade Jamaican jerk marinade and cook up in under 10 minutes. | Flavor the Moments

These Pineapple Shrimp Skewers will feed a crowd and are perfect for your Fish Friday meals during Lent or any other time during the year. | Confetti and Bliss

These Greek-Style Grilled Shrimp are coated in garlic and feta cheese and can be on the table in under 30 minutes. Shrimp cooks on the grill very quickly! Serve with couscous, lettuce greens, and top with feta cheese, tomatoes, fresh lemon juice, and parsley. | Platter Talk

This recipe for Coconut Rum Grilled Shrimp screams summer. What could be more fitting than a coconut-rum marinade? And you’ll heat a bit of the marinade to make a delicious glaze to coat the shrimp after they’re done cooking, too. Yum! | Home Cooking Memories

Pork Skewer Recipes

If you’re looking for a great tailgating recipe, look no further. These Grilled Pork Loin Kabobs are soaked in a sweet and spicy marinade and cook up in about 6 minutes on the grill. Save some of the marinade to use as a dipping sauce, and serve with lime wedges. They’ll be a hit! | Confetti and Bliss

Have you ever had Pinchos? These Puerto Rican Grilled Pork Kebabs are so flavorful and are traditionally served with a piece of bread on top. You really must let these marinate at least 12 hours, but 24 hours is better for both flavor and tenderness. | Sense and Edibility

Not ready to fire up the grill just yet? Pin this list of skewer recipes for the grill to make later!

Take these other recipes to your grill too. Enjoy these Camping Recipes in your backyard or in the great outdoors. Pin to Pinterest.

WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, Holiday, Group, and more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next birthday party.

Gold Spray Paint Improvement – Upcycled Serving Tray

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March 23, 2021 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Facebook, Home Improvement, Instagram, Online Shopping, Pinterest, Social Media

Do you have five dollars? Do you have five minutes? Make a list of all the products in your home you don’t use because they are the wrong color! Take a look at my upcycled serving tray and gold spray paint improvement.

Since we moved, there are a lot of things that have come out of hiding. For about six years, after our move from Florida to Virginia, many of my glassware and china sat in boxes. Since we have found, what hopefully is, our forever home, I have begun the process of unpacking some of our breakable home décor. One of the pieces that came out of hiding was this glass and iron serving tray.

While this serving tray is beautiful, it was a gift and I never bought it with the intention have having the “perfect place.” Since often keys or drinks are place on this foyer console table, I decided to place it below our faux floral arrangement. It would protect the table but also give added detail to our cherry blossoms and chinoiserie vase.

It did it’s job. We were able to quickly lay items down but the black iron against the blue console table wasn’t working.

I began to research gold spray paint colors.

Best Gold Spray Paint

I used this chart to find the best gold spray paint color for our home.

Anika does a really good job of showing you close pictures of spray painted terracotta pots so you can compare the different hues of gold spray paint. From her gold spray paint review, I settled with the best gold spray paint color for the tray – Rust-Oleum Spray Paint in Metallic Gold for a rich, super glossy metallic finish.

Upcycled Serving Tray

On a Saturday morning, like I always do, I got up with the mission to finish this home décor project. My husband asked me, while I was walking down the stairs, if we could hold off on home projects until we ate breakfast. I bit my lip because I was really excited about this easy serving tray DIY project. I knew it would take me five minutes and the spray paint had been sitting on my kitchen counter for a few weeks.

This upcycled serving tray project was really easy. In my case there was a glass layer that had to be removed. I took out the glass and clear rubber bumpers (between the glass and metal.)

I recycled a cardboard box to become the barrier between the deck and my gold spray painting work. I sprayed one side of the tray and let it sit for about 3 hours in the sun.

I flipped the tray and did the back and also let it sit for a number of hours. Only one gold spray paint coat was necessary, but looking at the piece I wish I had done a second.

This is the finished Upcycled Serving Tray that I almost sent to Goodwill a number of times. Doesn’t it look so much better and best of all it was a low-cost home improvement projects, only $5!

Want to know more about my faux cherry blossoms? I ordered a few to decide the Best Cherry Blossoms Branches out there!

Spray Painting Tip: If you have a larger spray painting job, I recommend picking up this Spray Paint Comfort Grip. My job took under 5 minutes so I did not find it necessary to use on this project. I do have one for other projects I have done in the past.

Don’t forget our Older Home Hacks and Low-Cost DIY Renovations. I am slowly making my way down the list! Pin to Pinterest.

Also enjoy these Home Staging Hacks – for moving or sticking around! Pin to Pinterest.

Family Traditions To Start Now!

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February 10, 2022 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Facebook, Instagram, Parenting, Pinterest, Seasonal, Social Media

Family traditions are important for creating family memories and solidifying family bonds and relationships. Take a look at this list of unique and traditional Family Traditions to Start Now!

Family Traditions

I was not raised in a big family. Obviously, with five kids, I have a big family now. As my family has grown, the amount we can do with extended family has decreased (if that makes sense.) In a more direct explanation, it is hard to fly seven people. When are are able to travel, not everyone wants to house a large group of people for holiday. While big and small holidays have become more and more about our immediate family, it has caused me to create our own NEW family traditions.

Have you ever sat and read the Family Tradition Hank Williams Jr. lyrics? Don’t. PSA they are not family friendly. If you are looking for family tradition examples, I promise you they will be far from the family traditions Hank sings about in his well-known Family Traditions country song. I will however, commit to one lyric…

“I’m just carrying on an ole family tradition…”

What is a family tradition mean?

Family traditions are a set of activities you repeat within a family. They can be traditional family activities, cultural traditions or they can be unconventional and modern family activities. Family traditions make each family unique as they are experiences that not every family will have. When you combine family traditions, you create your own unique family blueprint.

Why are family traditions important?

Family traditions are important for creating family memories. Family memories are important for creating family bonds. When conducting research, I learned most family traditions are not very big. Rather it is the family activity that is done together that is important. It is in those family bonding moments, memories are formed.

Family traditions enrich your life together and contribute to your child’s well-being and security. They create long lasting family memories.

How do you make family memories?

If you think about the photographs of one’s life, how many can you pull to the forefront of your mind? Memories are created when something out of the ordinary happens. The same “ole” day to day activities, will not create a new synaptic gap (photograph) in your mind. They are routine and can easily be done with little thought. When new activities come in to play, new things are experienced and new things are seen. They are indexed as a nerve connection (new file) in our mind. These are the dots that are added to our road map of life.

Think of this example as a real road map. You drive down the road form city to city. The places you recall are the places you stop. A restaurant, a hotel, a theme park, a landmark and more. When you are on the road, everything appears the same and does not create a new dot on your road map. However, when you park the car, get out and visit an attraction, a dot is added on your journey.

Before you check out these family bonding ideas, I am sure you will also love…

Christmas Traditions for the Family

Christmas Eve Traditions

Family Reunion Ideas

Family Birthday Celebrations & Ideas

Family Birthday Traditions

Family Memorial Ideas for those who have passed

Examples of Family Traditions

I am sure you are asking yourself, What are some good family traditions? If you are looking to start your own family traditions and add memories to one’s childhood, take a look at these family traditions ideas. Let’s create some examples of family traditions to add dots on our road map of life.

Birthday Interview

We have a number of ways to celebrate Birthdays with Your Immediate Family. One easy tradition is this printable Birthday Interview. Ask your child the same questions every year and put them together in a time capsule (this does not have to be a box buried in the ground, keep it in a plastic bin in the closet!) You also can lead your kids on a Birthday Scavenger Hunt! | Frugal Coupon Living

Family Game Night

Turn one weekend night a month into a regular reoccurring Family Game Night. This is actually a funny family tradition for us, so many of our belly laughs and the laughs that make you cry come from a weekend game night. | Frugal Coupon Living

Take a look at our Family Game Night Bucket List. Set includes 45 Family Game Night games with instructions and supply list, 18 Minute to Win it Games, Charades & Scattergories Game Cards and Scavenger Hunt Template.

Family Game Night Bucket List Set

Family Bucket Lists

Start seasonal Family Bucket Lists. You can do a new bucket list every holiday or do fewer with one in winter, spring, summer, and fall or one the entire year. Keep this bucket list on the fridge and check off the activities as you go. Relieve your childhood with your own kids by using this Eighties Summer Bucket List too!| Frugal Coupon Living

Pray Together

An important family tradition is praying. It can be as simple as praying before bed. This has been an activity we have done every night for as long as we can remember. Try the ACTS Prayer Method (pray with 1.) adoration, confession, thanksgiving and close with supplication or requests.) Children thrive on routine and find security in deepening relationships. This gives them a glimpse into how you are feeling when you share your concerns and praise to the Lord. My husband and I have also created the tradition of listening to the Bible in a Year Podcast. This tradition has created deeper discussion among us has has been an excellent way to start the day.

Eat Dinner Together

Eating together is important for maintaining relationships. You can even have special dinner nights like Taco Tuesday, Meatless Monday or Sheet Pan Supper Wednesday. In order to stick to this dinner family tradition, start with just one night that is set apart. Perhaps give each member of the family a role in creating the complete recipe. One person can set the table, another create the prep, another serve the plates, etc.

Volunteer Together

Paying it forward is as much a gift for someone else as it is for you. Find a service project you can commit to for a season or once a month. There are many reasons to volunteer and instill the act of volunteering in our kids. Volunteering offers the chance to give something back to the community or make a difference to the people around us. It provides an opportunity to develop new skills or build on existing experience and knowledge. Plus, intrinsically, it gives to you just as much as it gives back to someone else!

Travel

Traveling is an example of doing something out of the norm. Take a cruise, go on a road trips, or even have a staycation week. Either way, make sure it is very different from your norm. If you are home, use a staycation to plan for future travel.

Dinner Questions for Conversation

Speaking of supper, download this set of nightly Dinner Conversation Starters. Dinner is the perfect occasion to communicate and often the opportunity is lost because of the distractions of the minutes. If dinner questions are not need, get to know your children and their day by every member sharing three good things about their day and one bad. This also provides an opportunity to focus on the “positive” yet still recognize the challenges a day can hold.

Not ready to buy? Get a sample of conversation starters. To get your sample dinner questions downloads, Subscribe and look for a link and password in your inbox. The password allows you to access and download all of our free printables. By downloading you are accepting the terms that this is for personal, non-commercial use. Please contact Frugal Coupon Living with any questions.

Cultural Family Traditions

Have you take a 23andme test? Did the results surprise you. Whether you are learning about a new culture or want to celebrate one you’ve already known, help your children celebrate their heritage by incorporating cultural family traditions. Visit a restaurant from your country, attend a cultural festival or cook a special meal on a certain day each year.

Annual Christmas Card

One family tradition you can keep (and you won’t regret this when the kids are out of the home) is taking an annual photo. It can be with a photographer or something information. Turn these yearly photos into annual Christmas Cards. One way to display your yearly Christmas cards is on a binder ring. Just add a hole punch to the corner. You can keep a binder ring for your family and a binder ring for the cards you get each year just like we see from Minted.

When writing your Christmas envelopes, make sure you take a look at these hand lettering tutorials and idea!

Pay It Forward Traditions

We have spoken many times about our family birthday idea. Take a look at this random act of kindness as a fun way to pay it forward on on your birthday at the Dollar Store or in the Dollar Spot at Target!

Valentine Family Tradition

This is one family tradition we do year after year and keep up for a long time. Add a sweet heart to your child’s do from February 1 to February 14th. The message is why they are a wonderful member of the family, a positive trait you see in them, etc. I even have my children each make a heart for each other once or twice during this period of time. It’s a great way to encourage your child.

Time Capsule Questions

Consider creating a time capsule or memory box for your child. This can include ticket stubs, baby teeth, photos from special events, special invitations, etc. Also add this Last Day of School Time Capsule. This set includes pre-K to 12th grade and is perfect for watching how your child has evolved.

Time Capsule Questions for Students Printable Set

Funny Family Traditions

They say laughter is the best medicine. Instead of following some of these traditional traditions for the family, try something unique only to your family. If you can incorporate humor, do it! For example, have a dress up night where you all eat hot dogs and Doritos on your best china. Play family board games including charades and Gestures (one of our favorites that always leads to belly laughs.) Take a look at these Weird Family Traditions from The Atlantic for some inspiration.

What are some of your favorite Family Traditions? I would love to hear from you so we can add to our list and share with others traditions for the family they might want to begin.

Also take a look at these Family Reunion Ideas for more extended family traditions for your bigger family. Pin to Pinterest.

For the holiday season, also look at these Christmas Traditions to start now! Pin to Pinterest.

Why Take Online Classes? Three Months of CreativeBug for $1

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March 17, 2021 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Crafts, DIY, Free, Online Shopping

Running out of things to do at home? Are hobby classes and extra curricular activities in your area still on hold or even on Zoom? Why pay top dollar when you can pay less with some of the top artists in the world by taking online classes!

Why Take Online Art Classes

There are amazing reasons to take online art classes but two things stand out. 1.) They are cheaper 2.) They have amazing instructors (having a teacher within your area doesn’t matter.)

Pay a monthly fee for unlimited classes
Save money on the class, invest in the supplies – woohoo!
Retake the class over and over (no need to raise your hand to have something repeated, just rewind!)
Take the classes on YOUR time (split classes up or take many at once.)
Try classes, if you don’t like them no money lost!
Create art taking classes at home – stay socially distanced in your PJs

While eating all the ice cream you want, in the germ-free comfort of your PJs…. you can do all of this with Creativebug!

Is Creativebug free?

Creativebug is not free but they do have an amazing offer close to free. Cheaper than a cup off coffee, get three months of a Creativebug membership for $1. Isn’t that a crazy offer? You might not even notice that $1 coming out of your bank account.

Creativebug vs Craftsy and other Online Art Glasses

There are many online art classes, sometimes you can even find free classes however you won’t get the same access you get with Creativebug… get unlimited access to 1000+ online art and craft video classes!

Creativebug Subscriber Benefits

Unlimited access to thousands of online art & craft video classes
New classes released every day from recognized creative experts
Downloadable patterns, templates and recipes
Access to Creativebug community galleries and forums

One notable difference about this and competitive online art classes (Craftsy, Skillshare, etc.) is you are working with top established art and craft teachers/artists. Not anyone can upload classes so you know you’ll always get quality classes with Creativebug.

You can view other’s profiles, as well, and see what they are doing and if you like them, follow them on social media.

***

Now for some of the frequently asked Creativebug questions.

How much does Creativebug cost?

Check out this amazing creative bug offer. In addition to getting a three month Creative Bug Membership for $1, new subscribers also get this amazing all access deal.

Drum roll…How much is Creativebug monthly? After a three month trail for $1, continue your Creative Bug all access membership at ~~$9.95~~ $4.95/month for the lifetime of your subscription. Plus you can cancel anytime! Isn’t that amazing?

How do I cancel my subscription to Creativebug?

If you decide not to keep your Creativebug membership after 3 months, it’s easy to cancel your subscription. You can find this under your account provide icon, then go to edit profile, then go to cancel under your billing info. Easy-peasy!

Enjoy!

Join Creative Bug Today! $1 for Three Months

Easiest Way to Update Discolored Recessed Lighting – Low Cost!

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April 4, 2022 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Facebook, Hacks, Home Improvement, Instagram, Pinterest, Social Media

The easiest and cheapest way to update discolored recessed lighting. Take your dust traps and spider apartments from looking dusty, yellowed and dingy, to appearing brand new for under $10. Learn how to clean recessed lights and how to update recessed lighting with one home improvement supply!

Update Discolored Recessed Lighting

Want to know something funny? I stare at our dining room recessed lights so much, that I invested in this easy, low-cost hack twice. It was on my to do list so long, I bought my solution and then bought it again months later! Either way, I took my recessed lights from looking discolored and dated for under $7! I can’t wait to show you how.

Raise your hand if you agree recessed lights catch the most cobwebs and dust. I swear every time I turn on the light, it is like adding a spot light to the ugly mess of dust and spider houses. At least it limits the mount of decorating I must do for Halloween, right?

Why do recessed lights turn yellow?

There are a number or reasons recessed lights turn yellow. First, older light bulbs can put off a lot of heat. Between the heat and gasses, over time small chemical reactions take place discoloring your lighting cans. This can also occur from age and exposure to dust and other elements in the air.

How do you clean recessed lights?

Good news! Depending on the height of your ceiling, weekly or monthly cleaning of recessed lights is not a challenge. Make sure your lights are off and cool to the touch. Placing a damp cloth or touching a hot light bulb can lead to the light bulb exploding.

For lighting cleaning of recessed lights, use a Swiffer Duster Super Extender Handle. It will expend up to 6 feet and the small yellow fibers will grab onto dust and cob webs. If you have cathedral ceilings, consider getting a telescoping pole for lights that will come with a light bulb changing kit as well as a tool for dusting.

For deep cleaning of recess lights, remove the light bulb and simply wipe the bulbs. Next, use a damp cloth on the inside of the canisters and dry thoroughly before putting your light bulb back in the can. You can keep up with a rotating home cleaning task using a cleaning checklist.

Unfortunately, no matter how much you clean, you never will be able to remove yellowed recessed lighting. The dingy shade of yellow is from oxidation and chemical reactions. To improve the discolored metal, you need to buy new or paint recessed lights.

How do you update recessed lighting?

There are a number of ways to update recessed lighting. If you have the budget, you can replace recessed lights to Newer LED Can Lights. This project will take a little bit of learning or you can hire an electrician.

Sometimes instead of replacing recessed lighting with flush mount lighting, you can save a lot of money by doing something cheaper – buying LED Lightbulbs. You can buy LED light bulbs in bulk at

If you are updating the yellowed trim on recessed lighting, I highly recommend moving over to LED lights. This will bring down the heat emitted by light bulbs why they are turned on saving you both on your electric bill and also prevented your recessed lights form discoloring again.

Moving? Lighting is so important for selling a home. If you are home staging, you do not want to invest in expensive LED lights. Another option is to take your existing can lights and update discolored recessed Lighting for under $10 by painting them. This makes your home look fresh and your electrical work look brand new.

Home Staging Checklist Printable PDF

Can recessed lights be painted?

Recessed light white trim yellowed? The cheapest and easiest way to updated yellowed recessed lighting is to paint it. Spray paint is a low-cost home improvement project that only takes five minutes. If you are home staging, it can increase the value of your home removing signs of age or dated yellow can lights.

We have older recessed lighting. There is always the issue of heat so I picked up Rust-Oleum High Heat Enamel Spray in White for a low cost. The high heat spray paint protected surfaces subject to heat up to 1000°F. I knew my recessed lights were not getting that hot, so I felt sure this was the right product for us.

Because of the height, I had my husband remove the lights bulbs and then the recess cans from the ceiling.

First I cleaned the canned lights with an all surface spray and a dusting cloth. I let them sit a bit to dry. After they dried, I numbered my light cans in order so I knew where t place them after I was done. While, I think the canned lights could fit in in of the holes in the celling, I find it best to keep them in their original spots.

I took an upcycled box and spread it out on my deck. Once try, I placed the metal cans on the cardboard and I lightly coated each recessed lighting can with the high heat paint. The white spray paint dried to the touch in 20 minutes.

Because our recess lights can tilt at different angles I sharply tilted the light and gave them a second coat. After everything was dry to the touch, I sharply tilted the lights in the opposite direction and gave the lights a final touch of white paint.

After three coats, we let them sit for up to 4 hours for good measure. The white paint for recessed lights had a pretty quick dry time, but I wanted to be sure they were dry before i started touching them to put them back in the ceiling.

I kept track of my numbered lights and placed them all back in the spot they came from.

Don’t they look amazing?! Well worth my $7 investment and they look like brand new lights!

Low-Cost Home Staging

Don’t forget these Older Home Hacks and Low-Cost DIY Renovations. I am slowly making my way down the list checking off so many projects on the weekend! Pin to Pinterest.

Also enjoy these Home Staging Hacks – for moving or sticking around! Incase the value of your home with just a few dollars, just like we did with these recess lighting home staging project! Pin to Pinterest.

End of the Year Activities and Last Day of School Traditions

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June 11, 2021 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Back To School, Facebook, Instagram, Party, Pinterest, Social Media

Fill the last day of school with memorable end of the year activities and form new last day of school tradition. End the year and start summer with a bang!

I am all about creating traditions with my family. This round-up was especially exciting for me because it brought together two side of me – the former 5th grade teacher and the mom of five. It was the perfect collision of creating memorable end of the year activities and last day of school transitions both for the classroom and for home. Get ready for summer with these end of the school year ideas.

If you are home schooling, in a traditional school or trying to come up with creative ideas during a forced stay-at-home period, these end of the year activities are perfect for all grade levels and ages.

Create traditions both with teachers, mom, and friends. Let us know what cherished memories you have turned into traditions!

End of the Year Activities

When you are teaching, the end of the year doesn’t just happen on the last day of school. Look at these end of the year activities; party ideas that make each day a small celebration.

Then & Now Photos Bulletin Board Idea

Then and Now Photos. One fun idea is to have a then and now bulletin board. Show pictures of the kids at the start and at the end of the year. | Poet Rocks

End of the Year Gifts for Students

See You Later Alligator Hand Clapper gift tags. Wouldn’t it be a really cute way to exit the classroom for the last time. Shaking hand clappers. Print these see you later alligator student gift ideas. We have more end of the gifts for kids too!

Character Rock Painting Superlatives

Character Rocks. Start this end of the year tradition by decoration rocks with superlatives. Find a word that describes each student and gift it to them as and end of the year gift idea. | We Heart Teaching

Balloon Bulletin Board Idea

End of the Year Balloon Countdown. Have an end of the year countdown the last 20 days of school. E Have a free or inexpensive activity that gets hidden in a balloon. Pop one balloon each day to create a cherished memory. | Picture from Miss5th on Instagram, Get a balloon pop countdown printable from Anna Brantley at Teachers Pay Teachers

Beach Ball Autographs

Beach Ball Autographs. Give the students a beach ball that they can use on the last day of school. Collect autographs from classmates on their end of the year student gift! | Source

Flashlight Fun School Day Idea

Host a Flashlight Day. Do everything with flashlights, both finger lights and regular sized flashlights. | The Sassy Apple

End of the Year Printables

You know how much we, at Frugal Coupon Living, love printables. End the school year with these last day printables and creative ideas. Also look at our other End of the School Year printables too!

Last Day of School Time Capsule

If you are a parent, enjoy year after year of last day of school time capsule printables. This set includes Pre-K to 12th grade and brings forth last day of school question. Create this cool tradition to see how your child has changed over the year. As a teacher, just print one for your grade only and send it home with parents to save! If you are a kindergarten teacher, how cool to send home all 12 years!

Last Day of School Time Capsule Printables

Graduation Party Games

Have a graduate? Downloads these 11 Graduation Party Games. Set comes with supply list, adult and teen party game directions, and graduation charades cards templates.

Graduation Party Games Printable PDF

Classroom Bulletin Board Newspaper

Host a Year in Review Circle. On the last day of school I had the kids go through and share their favorite memory from 5th grade (the grade I taught.) This writing activity can be done earlier in the year and you can hang these memorable events on a bulletin board. In your last day of school circle, they can read aloud this writing prompts printable and bring it home as a keepsake/memory.

End of the Year Banner – Welcome Summer

Welcome Summer Banner. Download this this free Welcome Summer banner printable. If you are really creative, make a run through banner and have the kids run through it when the last bell rings! | The Crafting Chicks

School Classroom Bingo Printable

End of the Year Bingo Game. Remember the ice breaker you might have done at the beginning of the year? Have kids grab something to write with and then pass out an End of the Year Bingo sheet to each student. | Play Dough to Plato

Keep In Touch Contact Card Printable

KIT Contact Cards. Share keep in touch contact cards for those that want to exchange numbers. On the back students can write letters to each other like a yearbook message. You could offer paper clips or an envelope so kids can keep their cards together in one place. | Eighteen 25

Last Day of School Photo & Banner

Last Day of School Finish Line. For another fun activity, print this finish line. Fun a fun way to end the last day of school at home or at school! | Just Add Confetti

Summer Bucket List Printable

Summer Bucket List. Print your summer bucket list and let the summer fun begin. | Summer Bucket List Printable and also see our Visual Summer Bucket List

Printable Memory Book

End of Year Memory Book. During the last weeks of school, during language arts have students create year memory books with this free printable. | Sara J Creations

Last Day of School Traditions

Schools out for summer. Enjoy these last day of school traditions. Warning: fun is required!

Last Day of School Silly String

Silly String Bus Welcome. That yellow school bus pulls up, your giddy and excited kid steps off for the last time this year. Are you ready? Grab the silly string and welcome them home with this fun activity. | Peanut Blossom

We did our own family tradition by bringing silly string to car pick up! This was classic. Make sure you place Alice Cooper School’s out for Summer or Beastie Boys Sabotage.

Last Day of School Tradition in the Car

Balloons and Streamers in the Car. Drive up to school and fill the van (car) with balloons and streamers! What a great time and memorable ride. | Oh Goodie Goodie

Hide & Seek Water Balloon Game

Hide and Seek with Water Balloons. Fill water balloons and let the sign say it all! “Hey guys, I am armed and hiding. I suggest you take off your backpacks and be prepared to get wet. Love Mom” | Yummy Mummy Club

Last Day of School Breakfast

Last Day of School Breakfast. Host a memorable last day of school breakfast. Add table decor and other summer decor to make the breakfast fun and memorable. | Source

Car Paint Last Day of School Tradition

Last Day of School Car Pickup: Decorate the car. When it’s time to get the kids from school, embarrass the kids by pulling up in the car line with a decked out car. Get car window markers. | Source

DIY Summer Bucket

Buckets of Fun. Make a summer gift bucket for summer buckets of fun. Fill up this Anti Boredom Bucket with Dollar Store ideas. | Dating Divas

See our End of the Year Gift Ideas for Students. Pin to Pinterest.

Hosting a Graduation? Take a look at our Graduation Ideas as well as our Graduation Party Games! Pin to Pinterest.

For me game based activities, we also love these End of the Year Kids Party Games. Get ready to get messy and have fun with fun ideas perfect for every great level. ! Pin to Pinterest.

Also look at our End of the School Year Printables. Pin to Pinterest.

Save these Memorable First Day of School Ideas & Traditions. Pin to Pinterest.

Best Audiobooks Free Trial – 3 Free Books

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March 16, 2021 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Free, Online Shopping

I did not begin my love of reading until the first Harry Potter book was released. If that dates me, it was in high school.

If you are looking for Harry Potter Audio Books, a classic book, or a New York Times best seller, take a look at this Best Audiobooks Free Trial. Currently it comes with three free books (which is the biggest number of books I have with a free audio books trial.)

Best Free Audio Books

With your free audio books trial, take a look at these details.

30-day Audiobooks.com free trial
Premium library of more than 200,000 books
8,000+ free audiobooks and access to 1.2 million podcasts

Listen Anywhere

Take audiobooks anywhere on your smartphone, tablet, or online with a laptop or computer
Switch seamlessly between devices without losing your place
Download audiobooks for offline listening or stream instantly over WIFI or 4G
Choice of wifi-only mode to save consumption on your data plan

Do I have to commit for any period of time?

No. Audiobooks free trial cancel anytime, no strings attached. All titles taken during trial and purchased with a credit are yours to keep forever.

Free Audio Books Library

I wanted to share with you a free book recommendations. The books below are obviously very popular right now and for all time.

Popular Audio Books

Where the Crawdads Sing Audiobook by Delia Owens
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Audiobook by J.K. Rowling
The Five Love Languages Audiobook by Gary Chapman
Jessica Simpson Open Book Audiobook by Jessica Simpson (I like this one because it was her talking!)

I also am including some books I have read and loved both recently and in the past. These are not found on your average book list, so they might be unique to me and my taste but all three of the books have been in my mind for a life time. I think of them often!

The Orphan Keeper Audiobook by Camron Wright

I really enjoyed this book because of my India Trip. An inspiring, true story about a boy adopted into the United States but unable to share (via his language barrier), he isn’t an orphan but rather kidnapped off the streets.

Seven-year-old Chellamuthu’s life – and his destiny – is forever changed when he is kidnapped from his village in Southern India and sold to the Lincoln Home for Homeless Children. His family is desperate to find him, and Chellamuthu anxiously tells the Indian orphanage that he is not an orphan, he has a mother who loves him. But he is told not to worry, he will soon be adopted by a loving family in America.

The Light Between Oceans Audiobook by M.L. Stedman

A complex situation. It basically shows the butterfly affect how one persons decision or actions can change the life of others for a lifetime. I liked the book a lot and think about it regularly.

A captivating, beautiful, and stunningly accomplished debut novel – the story of a lighthouse keeper and his wife who make one devastating choice that forever changes two worlds.

In 1918, after four harrowing years on the Western Front, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia to take a job as the lighthouse keeper on remote Janus Rock. To this isolated island, where the supply boat comes only four times a year and shore leaves are granted every other year at best, Tom brings a young, bold, and loving wife, Isabel. Three years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel is tending the grave of her newly lost infant when she hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up on shore carrying a dead man and a living baby. Tom, whose records as a lighthouse keeper are meticulous and whose moral principles have withstood a horrific war, wants to report the dead man and the infant immediately. But Isabel has taken the tiny baby to her breast. Against Tom’s judgment, they claim the child as their own and name her Lucy, but a rift begins to grow between them. When Lucy is two, Tom and Isabel return to the mainland and are reminded that there are other people in the world…and one of them is desperate to find her lost baby.

Pachinko Audiobook by Min Jin Lee

I really enjoyed this book. It really made me learn more about both Korean and Japanese culture through the eyes of three generations. The story continued to evolve so you never bore of just one character or story.

Profoundly moving and gracefully told, Pachinko follows one Korean family through the generations, beginning in early 1900s Korea with Sunja, the prized daughter of a poor yet proud family, whose unplanned pregnancy threatens to shame them. Betrayed by her wealthy lover, Sunja finds unexpected salvation when a young tubercular minister offers to marry her and bring her to Japan to start a new life.

I have shared before about an Audible free trial. I have seen them offer as much as two books per trial. Currently it looks like it is only one book in the Amazon Audio Book free trial.

How can I watch Paramount+ Network for free?

This post may contain affiliate links or ads. Read my privacy policy and disclosure policy here.

March 16, 2021 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living Filed Under: Free, Online Shopping

Have you heard of Paramount+ Network? Well unless you have been living under a rock (and trust me, many of us have for the past 365 days), Paramount+ is a new streaming network of many of your favorite movies, shows, documentaries and more.

Best of all you don’t have to commit today. Enjoy a, limited time*, Free Paramount+ Trial for 30 Days.

How can I watch Paramount Network for free?

While it’s hard to commit to a subscription service, you can watch Paramount Network for free with a 30-day trial. Enjoy video on-demand over-the-top streaming service for one month. After your trail, the plan starts at $5.99 per month or you can cancel anytime and never pay anything.

Get Paramount+ Network for Free

What will be on Paramount plus?

Quickly see what others are enjoying and see if the package is right for your family Enjoy thousands of episodes, live TV & exclusive originals–all in one place. Included with Paramount+ are Paramount Plus includes programs from CBS, BET, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, MTV, and The Smithsonian Channel. New and classic movies from Paramount, Miramax, and MGM are included with the streaming service, as well. The library also features Paramount Plus originals you won’t find anywhere else.

This might be an option to canceling cable TV!

Where can I watch Paramount plus?

The same places you enjoy Netflix, Hulu, YouTube and other streaming services are the same places you can enjoy Paramount plus. Using the paramount plus app, the following devices are places you can watch this on demand network.

Roku
Amazon Fire
Apple TV
Portal TV
Xfinity Flex
Smart TV including Samsung TV, Vizio TV, LG TV
Mobile devices
Gaming consoles including Xbox and PS4

Is Paramount Network on Hulu?

Paramount Network is separate from Hulu. Similar to Paramount, Hulu offers on demand streaming allowing you to watch shows and movies anytime, anywhere! From current episodes and original series, to kids shows and hit movies. Separate from Paramount, you can sign up Hulu here.

Make it through the last few months of staying home by trying something new. Give Paramount+ Network a Test Run and see if it’s an alternative to saving money and canceling cable television!

This limited time 30-day free trial offer ends 3/31/21.

WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, Holiday, Group, and more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next birthday party.