Savvy savers are well-skilled at calculating the numbers for maximum savings at the checkout stand. However, it’s equally important to know the numbers when it comes to monitoring your health.
And there’s no better place to take care of both sets of numbers than at Walmart, thanks to the big box retailer’s Walmart Wellness Day.
Photo: Walmart
Walmart is inviting all communities across the country to get healthy at Walmart Wellness Day on March 18, 2024.
The event takes place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. (local time) at participating Walmart pharmacies. Nearly 4,600 locations nationally will be participating in the one-day event.
Benefit from the following services at Walmart Wellness Day:
FREE health screenings, including glucose, cholesterol, blood pressure, body mass index and (at select locations) vision screenings.
Affordable immunizations, including COVID, measles, mumps, pneumonia, tetanus, HPV, rubella (MMR), varicella (chicken pox/shingles), whooping cough (TDAP), Hepatitis A & B and more.
Wellness resources and the opportunity to talk with pharmacists.
Additionally, in-store giveaways and demos of wellness products will be available at select locations.
The collection includes four all-new doughnuts that “have a lil’ somethin’ sweet for everyone”. They even come in a limited-edition custom Dolly Parton dozens box!
Here’ what’s included in the “Dolly Parton Southern Sweets Doughnut Collection”:
Dolly Dazzler Doughnut – An Original Glazed Doughnut dipped in strawberry icing, with gold, pink and white glitter sprinkles and a signature chocolate Dolly butterfly piece.
Peachy Keen Cobbler Doughnut – An unglazed doughnut filled with real peach filling, dipped in brown sugar icing and crunchy cobbler topping.
Banana Puddin’ Pie – An unglazed doughnut filled with banana pudding made with wafers and banana pudding KREME, dipped in yellow icing, with white icing swirls and a wafer cookie.
Chocolate Crème Pie – An Original Glazed doughnut topped with a swirl of chocolate brownie cream and vanilla whipped topping, sprinkled with chocolate cookie crumble.
The Dolly Parton Southern Sweets Doughnut Collection is available for a limited time.
Each batch of southern sweetness includes two Dolly Dazzler doughnuts, two Chocolate Crème Pie doughnuts, two Peachy Keen Cobbler doughnuts, two Banana Puddin’ Pie doughnuts and four Original Glazed doughnuts.
Order a specialty dozen in a limited-edition Dolly Parton signature box today before they’re gone!
How To Get FREE Doughnut
To celebrate the introduction of the “Dolly Southern Sweets Doughnut Collection”, Krispy Kreme is inviting everyone to get “Dolly’d Up” and visit a participating shop on May 18, 2024.
Anyone “Dolly’d Up” – from being totally Dolly decked out to wearing a Dolly Parton wig or their favorite Dolly merch – will receive a FREE Original Glazed Doughnut.
Fans not Dolly’d Up can receive a FREE Original Glazed Doughnut by singing a favorite Dolly song.
If you have taken a pay cut, lost a job or gotten hit with high bills, you’re probably looking for ways to save money ASAP. From your cellphone to your grocery bill, here are five strategies for tightening your belt right now.
Negotiate with your service providers
You don’t want to drop your internet or cellphone plan, but you may be able to lower your bill if you ask. Try these strategies to see if you can get a better deal.
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Think about the other services you pay for monthly and see where you can cut back or renegotiate. If your trash is picked up by a private company, ask their competitor to offer you a better deal. Can you switch to a more basic cable or satellite TV plan, or might you save more by cutting the cable cord completely? Perhaps it’s time to cancel your gardening service and mow the lawn yourself, or say goodbye to your gym and start an at-home fitness routine instead.
Mind your subscriptions
You never want to pay for subscriptions you’re not using, especially when money is tight. Many people sign up for a free 30-day trial to a streaming service or other app and forget to unsubscribe before getting hit with the next month’s fee. Stay on top of these subscriptions to avoid paying for something you’re not using or that you could get elsewhere for free.
Services like Trim can help you find your subscriptions and cancel the ones you don’t want. You can also do this yourself by combing through old statements or putting calendar reminders in your phone to cancel before you get charged.
Take advantage of the many free digital services instead of signing up for a subscription service. If your local library has the Libby app or other online resources, you can ditch your Audible subscription and check out ebooks and audiobooks for free. Look for free workout or meditation videos on YouTube instead of paying the annual fee for an app.
Use cashback portals
If you like to shop online, make sure you’re using a shopping portal such as TopCashback or Rakuten to earn cash back on those purchases. For instance, as of this writing, TopCashback was offering up to 8% back at Amazon, 9% cash back at Expedia and 4% cash back at Lowe’s.
If you have a rewards credit card, the cash you earn from a portal is in addition to any miles, points or cash you can get from your credit card. Airlines and hotels also have shopping portals, but it may be more valuable to you right now to get cash back than airline miles or hotel points.
However, if you need to save money right now, you’d be better off cutting out all frivolous shopping and sticking to purchasing only necessities. Jumpstart your good savings habits with a no-spend month, and challenge yourself to spend as little as possible in the next month.
Find mobile coupons
When you head out to the grocery store, check for savings on mobile couponing apps like Ibotta or Checkout 51 before you go.Stores including Target and Walgreens have their own shopping apps where you can add mobile coupons, and these offers are typically stackable with offers from other apps.
While some mobile coupon offers require you to purchase a specific brand, Checkout 51 and Ibotta occasionally offer any-brand rebates on staples like eggs, bread and bananas. It’s not a huge rebate, but every bit helps.
Shop your cupboards first
Before you buy more food, get creative and use what you already have in your fridge or pantry. SuperCook allows you to enter the ingredients you have on hand and find recipes that match those ingredients. If you have extra time on your hands, it’s often cheaper to bake your own bread or slice up your own veggies versus buying prepared foods.
Similarly, before you buy more games or art supplies to keep the kids entertained, see if you can repurpose what you already have. Challenge kids to cut up brown paper bags to use as a canvas for art projects or make paper chains. Cut up old magazines for collages or show them how to regrow produce from table scraps. The latter doubles as a kid-friendly activity and an inexpensive food source, saving you money on two fronts.
I was never one to dream of a big, traditional wedding with all of the trimmings when I was a little girl. When my now-husband and I got engaged, we talked about exactly what we wanted for our wedding and reception, instead of what we were “supposed” to do.
We didn’t realize it right away, but by thinking outside the box, we were able to save thousands on our wedding — and didn’t go into debt.
Neither of us was interested in a traditional church wedding. We preferred to have a small, intimate ceremony and a separate reception. We already had planned to take a vacation to Hawaii to attend a friend’s wedding, so when we got engaged, we decided we would go to a different island and get married ourselves.
Photo: Deposit Photos
We informally invited our close friends and family and ended up having 11 people join us for our day. We made it clear that everyone was responsible for booking and paying for their own travel and accommodations.
We explained to our guests that this trip was our vacation, wedding and honeymoon rolled into one, and we wouldn’t be spending a lot of group time together. The only day we had planned with the group was our actual wedding day, which was very simple.
We were married on an isolated stretch of a public beach before sunset, so no decorations were needed. I purchased leis for the wedding guests at a Costco store on the island (much cheaper than buying them through a florist) and bought some assorted tropical flowers that my mom arranged into a small bouquet for me to carry.
We didn’t have musicians; the ocean waves were enough. Guests stood in a semicircle around us for the short ceremony, and my parents walked me down an “aisle” path onto the beach.
Our officiant and photographer worked as a team and obtained the beach event permit for us. We paid them a total of $499, which included the ceremony, an hour of photography and printing rights to the CD of fully edited photos. After the ceremony, our group went to dinner at a nice restaurant.
A week after we returned from our wedding/honeymoon, we had a cocktail reception party with about 100 guests. Since we weren’t hosting a full day of events, we set it for a Friday night, so we wouldn’t cut into people’s work schedules.
We hired a caterer to do heavy hors d’oeuvres (pulled pork sliders, a mashed potato bar, flatbread pizzas, meatballs, hummus and lots of other options), and served cupcakes instead of a wedding cake. We had an open bar, a DJ, a photo booth and asked a family member to take photographs. Our reception was exactly as we hoped it would be — if only it could have lasted longer!
Photo: Deposit Photos
We spent way less than we would have if we had gone with a traditional wedding reception by using the following tips:
The big picture
Make a list of priorities. Good food (we specifically wanted appetizers as we don’t normally enjoy reception meals), a photo booth, music and a fully stocked bar were all important to us. Since we already had our gorgeous wedding photos from Hawaii, we weren’t concerned with spending a bundle on a photographer, and we knew the photo booth would provide tons of fun photos of our guests.
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Consider eloping (or having a very small wedding). You can always host a less-formal reception on another day, for more people, like we did.
Schedule your reception for a day other than a Saturday. We had our event on a Friday evening because it’s not typically a day for weddings. This made it cheaper and easier to book the few vendors that we used.
Photo: Deposit Photos
People
Consider your guest list carefully. Our rule of thumb for friends was that if we’d never invited someone to our house, or they’d never invited us to theirs, they weren’t on the list. We don’t have large extended families, so that part of the guest list was reasonable, and we invited all relatives that our immediate families wanted there. Children (except for family members, who all happened to be over age 8) were excluded: A cocktail party isn’t an appropriate setting for kids, anyway.
Email save-the-date notices or use postcards. I made photo postcards on my regular printer. They turned out great and were much cheaper than professionally printed invitations. By using postcards, we saved approximately 25 percent on postage costs, since postcard stamps are cheaper than regular envelope stamps.
Go for simple invitations. We used seal-and-send invites with an all-in-one design on which you can print your invitation. The format we chose included a response card on a perforated lower section. Just fold, seal and mail — no envelopes needed! Since the RSVP card was a tear-off postcard, we saved on postage again.
Limit attendants. We didn’t have bridesmaids or groomsmen since we had such a small ceremony. This saved us from buying attendant gifts and having a rehearsal dinner. It also saved our friends and family from having to buy specific dresses or pay to rent suits.
If you have a rehearsal dinner, host it at home or a park. Enlist a few friends and family members to help you make food. Choose a meal that’s easy to serve a crowd, like pulled pork and other picnic favorites.
Photo: Deposit Photos
Attire
Instead of a traditional bridal gown, consider buying a bridesmaid’s dress in white or ivory. Most dresses can be ordered in those colors. You can also choose an evening dress that isn’t specifically made for a wedding. I opted for a beachy wedding dress for the ceremony and a Grecian-style bridesmaid’s dress in ivory for the reception and paid well under $1,000 total. Check out 5 ways to save on a wedding dress for more ideas.
Don’t buy white shoes. Go with something you’ll wear again. Or, spring for a pop of color, like silver, blue, purple or gold.
Don’t rent a tux for the groom. A new suit and dress shoes can cost about the same amount as a rental tuxedo. Look for good deals, and choose something he can wear again.
If you have bridesmaids, let them choose their dresses. If you want them to coordinate with each other, tell them the dress must be a particular color. Each bridesmaid will be able to choose a dress that flatters their figure, fits their budget — and maybe they can wear it again.
Groomsmen can buy or rent suits that complement the groom’s choice. Or, you can make it easier on them and ask them to wear a black or gray suit they already own.
Photo: Deposit Photos
Venue and catering
If your wedding and reception are on the same day, try to have both in one location. You won’t have to provide transportation for yourselves or your wedding party between the venues.
Consider nontraditional venues. City-run spaces, public gardens, art venues and restaurants can be great locations for weddings and receptions. Our reception was at a private racquet and swim club in an upscale community, but it was incredibly affordable. Since the venue didn’t have its own catering department, we were able to choose our own caterer and provide our own bar instead of paying per person or per hour for bar service and drinks. This saved us well over $1,000.
Budget for costly nonfood items. Consider what your venue or caterer includes as part of their service packages before making any decisions. Our venue provided tables and chairs, and our caterer provided china, glassware, tablecloths, servers, a bartender and a party coordinator in its package deal. The caterer also handled the rental, delivery and return of cocktail tables we wanted placed around the venue. That saved us money over having to rent tables, linens and decorations separately.
Have a cocktail party instead of a full reception. You can still have all of the trappings of a reception without the standard sit-down or buffet meal. Our guests loved the food at our reception, and since they didn’t have to sit down to eat, the evening kept the social vibe that we wanted.
If you plan to have an open bar, keep costs in check by offering beer, wine and a signature cocktail. We chose to have specific spirits (vodka, flavored vodka, bourbon, gin and rum) available based on our guests’ preferences. But our bartender was under strict orders to not pour shots, mostly because we didn’t want our guests to get out of control, which is more likely to happen with shots than cocktails.
You don’t need champagne for a toast. Most people are just as happy toasting with whatever they are already drinking. If you want a sparkly option, have prosecco or cava available at the bar. These Italian and Spanish sparkling wines can taste just as good as champagne and cost much less.
Choose a small wedding cake. Cut it for photos, but serve a less expensive sheet cake or cupcakes to guests. The benefit of cupcakes is that you serve a variety of flavors. You can also skip the cake and serve your favorite desserts such as pie, brownies, lemon bars, etc.
Photo: Deposit Photos
Decorations
Keep bouquets simple. Carry a simple bouquet and give bridesmaids a few stems of a specific flower to hold. Boutonnieres can be the bud of the same flower. Limit other fresh flower decorations. No one will care if you don’t have flowers lining the aisles or in vases around your venue.
Get flowers at a grocery or big-box store. Choosing seasonal or local flowers will lower your cost even more. Ask friends or family to help you make simple arrangements for the reception. Buy vases at craft stores using coupons or buy them used. Here are some other ideas to save money on wedding flowers.
Get creative with decorations. Pinterest has unlimited ideas for decorating with items like mason jars, wine bottles and other inexpensive objects. Choose decorations that can be easily arranged at the venue the day before or the day of your event. There are lots of ideas for inexpensive centerpieces.
Photo: Deposit Photos
The small details
If photography isn’t a priority, consider hiring a photography student through your local art school. Check out potential photographers’ portfolios so you can ensure their style matches what you want. Limit the time you need the photographer present by skipping the “getting ready” photos and having friends and family take candid shots for the second half of the reception when it’s just people dancing and drinking.
Make wedding favors, or skip them. You can provide a cookie or candy table with small boxes or bags for a reasonable price. For our reception, photo-booth pictures served as favors and I bargained with the vendor to do two copies of each photo so one of each could be included in our memory book.
Do your own hair, nails and makeup. If you’re not great at it, ask a friend or family member to help. I know so many people who didn’t love their hair or makeup on their wedding day even though they spent a ton of money at the salon. My sister did my hair and it looked better than any salon updo I’ve had.
If you’re determined to have a band, limit the time it plays. Create an iPod playlist to be played during dinner, and have a friend make any announcements. The less time the band plays, the less money you have to pay.
Register on Amazon. If you have decided to create a gift registry, Amazon has a great one. Not only do they offer free shipping (guests can order online and have the item shipped directly to you, if needed) they also often have lower prices than other stores. Plus, they have a 10% completion discount on items you registered for but didn’t receive.
By focusing on what is important to you for your wedding and being flexible with the details that are less important to you, you can have a wedding you’ve always dreamed of for less money.
If your spending has gotten out of control or you want to cut down on unnecessary expenses, it might be time to embark on a no-spend challenge. Going an entire month without spending beyond necessities can be an eye-opening experience. We think any budget-minded individual should try a no-spend month at least once.
What does it mean to go 30 days without spending money and how should you start? There is some room for interpretation and a bit of flexibility depending on your financial goals, but a no-spend challenge is actually simple to set up. Here, we’ll outline some no-spend month rules, so you can move past the intimidation of starting a no-spend-month challenge and get to work trimming the fat from your budget.
Photo: Deposit Photos
What is a no-spend challenge?
A no-spend challenge is simply a set period of time in which you commit to not spending money on anything beyond necessities. Barring any emergencies, the only variables in your budget will be your food costs — though you should set a weekly budget for that and be sure to stick to it.
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Most people commit to a no-spend month, but you can choose any amount of time that makes sense. A month is generally long enough to give you a solid view on where you’re spending unnecessarily.
What can I spend money on during a no-spend month?
During your no-spend challenge, it’s OK to spend on housing payments, car payments and other monthly bills for your cellphone, gas, healthcare, childcare, etc. In other words, just the essentials. You can either buy food in advance and not spend any money on either groceries or restaurant meals, or you can set a strict budget to only pay for essential groceries.
What are the no-spend month rules?
The main rule of a no-spend challenge is to eliminate all non-essential purchases. You should avoid dining out or ordering takeout, visiting a salon or spa, paying for Ubers or taxis if you have safer and cheaper transportation options, or spending on entertainment (movies, concerts, tickets to attractions). You should not purchase new clothes, Starbucks, alcohol, gifts, décor, furniture or anything else you don’t absolutely need right now.
Beyond those no-spend month rules, the only other rule is that you commit to doing the No-Spend Challenge for a particular amount of time.
How to get ready for a No-Spend Challenge
There are several things to do before a no-spend month to get you ready to stop spending money for 30 days (or more).
List your expenses. The very first thing you’ll want to do is decide what your essential expenses are, including recurring bills (utilities, mortgage), and set a strict food budget. Write down this list or save it on your phone, so you can easily access the list to help you decide whether a certain purchase is allowed or not. (When in doubt, it’s probably not.)
Photo: Debby Hudson on Unsplash
Set your challenge dates. Decide how long your no-spend challenge will last and set a start date and an end date. We recommend a no-spend month. A no-spend day is too short to give you much information, and three months might be too long to maintain.
Take charge of your no-spend month food needs. Some people like get ready for a no-spend challenge by stocking their pantry or freezer, so they’re not tempted to eat out or make impulse snack purchases. However, you can overspend by buying unnecessary snacks before your challenge, which defeats the ultimate purpose.
Instead, inventory your pantry staples and freezer, and plan your no-spend month menus around using up the items you’ve already purchased. We recommend writing out your meals for each week of the no-spend challenge, focusing on ingredients you have at home and supplementing with fresh fruits and vegetables, low-cost meat and cheap-yet-healthy pantry items, such as beans or pasta.
Plan for free fun. Make a list of free things for you and your family to do during your no-spend month. Life can admittedly get a little boring when you can’t spend money on entertainment, so be sure to start your no-spend month armed with a list of no-cost activities and outings. Look for local hiking trails and free local events, download free e-books, and plan some household projects or crafts you can do with materials you already have on hand.
Set a motivating goal. Decide in advance what you’ll do with the money you’ll save. Having a goal and working toward it can be a huge motivator and give you incentive to stick to the no-spending plan. Perhaps you’re saving to buy that new mattress you’ve needed for two years or to pay off the credit card balance that’s been hanging over your head.
If it helps, write down your goal and stick it on your fridge or post pictures of the item you need to buy around the house to motivate you.
Tips for how to succeed
If you’re going to stop spending money for 30 days, here are some tips to get you through the month.
Photo: Hanson Lu on Unsplash
Avoid months that are typically spendy. Starting your no-spend challenge in December when you have to shop for the holidays isn’t a good idea. Nor is any month in which your kids have a break from school or you have several family birthdays. Pick a month that’s usually low-key for you and your family.
Track your spending.Keep track of the bills you pay and the expenses you incur during your no-spend month so you can evaluate your spending at the end. Take notes in a regular old notebook or find a cute “no-spend month” tracker free printable online.
Track what you don’t buy. It’s also a good idea to write down everything you think about buying but don’t because it’s not allowed during the no-spend month. That could be anything from a mocha Frappuccino to a cute blouse, fast-food burger, online movie rental or that stuffed animal your child begs you to buy. By doing this, at the end of the month, you’ll have a list of your typical impulse buys that will help you understand how your unnecessary spending happens.
Tell your family and friends. It’s way too easy to slip up with your no-spend challenge when no one knows you’re doing it. Tell your partner, your best friends, your kids and anyone else who can help keep you accountable during the challenge. It will also take the pressure off because coworkers will know not to invite you for lunch and friends won’t plan a group night out during your no-spend month.
Log your successes. Try using a habit tracking app like Habitshare or Habitbull to mark off each successful day of your no-spend challenge. For some people, the simple act of checking something off can be motivating and encouraging.
What will I get out of a no-spend month?
At a bare minimum, completing a no-spend challenge will leave you with some extra money in your pocket at the end of the month. Even more importantly, going a month without spending any money will help you understand your finances better and help you prioritize how you spend your money, figure out where you can be saving and understand what steps you need to take to meet your financial goals.
It’s also beneficial if you’re on a fixed income but want to save for something special or important like a vacation, a new big-ticket appliance, paying off revolving debt or even to help you start saving for a bigger goal like buying a house or car or moving out of state.
Are you ready to take on the no-spend challenge? On your marks, get set…save!
