Memphis is blessed with many wonderful mommy bloggers. One of the best, especially for budget-conscious parents, is mymemphismommy.com.
In April, Dawn Curtis becomes the new owner of the domain name, as former owner Shana Moland relocates to Washington D.C. The website is one of 30 city-based bargain hunting sites located across the country, including St. Louis, Nashville, and Chicago.
When Moland and her family moved to Memphis from Connecticut several years ago, they went from two incomes and one mortgage payment to one income and two mortgages. The house in Connecticut took a while to sell so Moland became laser-focused on saving as much as possible through a strategy based on sale shopping and a masterful use of coupons.
Moland is not an “extreme couponer” as depicted on the popular (if slightly scary) show Extreme Couponing, where sleep-deprived bargain hunters dumpster-dive and devote entire rooms to coupons and storage of their bulk purchases.
But the experience has changed Moland’s life. She spends about two hours a week on couponing, which she says cuts her costs by 50 percent. The clever consumer says the key is waiting for items to go on sale and embarking on a comprehensive search for coupons that includes the local newspaper, Internet, Facebook, and coupon swaps with other shoppers.
“I’ll never pay full price again,” Moland said. “It’s not about being cheap. It’s about being savvy. We want people to be able to do this even if they work.”
Her website includes special sections on freebies, coupons, weekly ads, birthdays, and giveaways. By “liking” My Memphis Mommy, you receive regular updates on where to find great buys. Along with bargain tips, the website features stories on free family-oriented activities and frugal recipes. Visitors can also print coupons and the website receives a small payment from the company for each one printed. (Keep those profits local!)
One of my favorite features is the Sunday sale paper and coupon match-ups for stores such as Target, CVS, Walgreens, Kmart, Family Dollar, Dollar General, and Rite Aid — delivered straight to your Facebook page. Consumers get the most for their money when they pair coupons with sale items. Also, most stores will let shoppers use one store coupon and one manufacturer’s coupon to maximize savings. For more information on saving at individual stores, check out the site’s “101” tutorials on shopping at Kroger, Target, Whole Foods, CVS, Kmart, Rite Aid, Walgreens, and Wal-Mart.
East Memphis Moms
East Memphis Moms is another helpful and informative local blog. It has several features, but my favorite is reader recommendations on local service providers, much like nationally advertised Angie’s List. The big difference is EMM is free and local. Recently I chose a new dentist and a new pest control company based on information I found on EMM’s Facebook page.
Even though it says East Memphis, the site is helpful to parents across Shelby County as is evident from the wide variety of people who post comments. The Resources and Guides section contains recommendations and information about childcare, schools, doctor/ medical professionals, children’s activities, household services/repairs, and more.
Memphis Loves Kids
Yes, I have mentioned this website before because of its comprehensive content. Personally, I like the Kids Eat Free and Free Fun sections.
Memphis Loves Kids posts Kids Eat Free (or low-priced) by days of the week so it’s easy to navigate when and where you can save money. There’s never a reason to have nothing to do because the Free Fun section has a list of 36 places in and around Memphis that offer free admission at least one day a week. Along with hundreds of other moms, I am thankful for the hard work and initiative of these and other mommy bloggers. You have made life better — and more affordable — for all of us.