Free Sample -- Flexitol!

Flexitol brand creams is offering a free sample right now!

Click this picture to sign up!

All you have to do is fill out the request form on their website on the right hand side of their page - just your name, email, and address and they'll send you your choice of samples (when I signed up the choices were hand cream or foot repair cream).
There's nothing to lose!
(You can always unsubscribe from their emails at a later date)

Enjoy your freebie!

Shabbat Menu

This week has been a minimal shopping week, for a variety of reasons - among them an overly full freezer! - so we've been eating what's here in the house and I had to fill in a few things like milk, and altogether I've spent 105 shekels on food purchases this week. I got some eggplant and purple cabbages for 2 shekels /kg and some butternut squash for 3 shekels/kg, so they will play starring roles in our menu!

Not bad, but 105 shekels was a bit more than I'd planned to spend this week - I think that's because I was hungry when I was at the store and I got tempted by a sale! Oops.

So this Shabbat is a mostly use-up-what's in the house Shabbat menu.
I still have to go through the freezer a bit better to take a real inventory, but here's what I think we'll be eating:

Challah from the freezer
Butternut Squash Soup for Friday Night
Crock Pot Split Pea Soup for Lunch
Chicken Wings two ways - some roasted with Garlic and Herbs, and some baked in Honey-Ginger Garlic Sauce
Tofu in Honey-Ginger-Garlic Sauce for the vegetarian son
Rice with Roasted Garlic
Purple Cabbage Salad
Eggplant with Techina
Any fresh vegetables that are left
Dessert: Melon, Wheat-free chocolate chip squares

We'll also pop some popcorn, as usual, and we have some oranges for snacks too. Now that we've changed the clocks, it gets difficult to have a "real" seudah shlishit, so I'm not yet sure what we'll do about that.

What's doing at your place for Shabbat this week?

Israeli Survey Site - Panel4All

Back in the old country, as some of you may know, I used to answer online surveys, and I'd be paid pocket change ($3-$5 per survey) via PayPal. Obviously, I am no longer eligible to answer US based surveys, but that doesn't mean I can't still get some extra cash here, as there are survey sites here as well.

Click to go to Panel4All!

 I signed up for Panel4All a while back, and so can you. This site works differently than what I had gotten used to before I made aliyah - they don't pay in cash. Instead, participants earn points that can be cashed out for gift cards. Depending on your demographics, you'll be invited to answer different surveys. I usually get several emails a week about surveys and when I have 5 minutes, I answer them. Sometimes the surveys close out before I get around to answering though, so don't be surprised if that happens from time to time.

Interested?
Click here to sign up! (The site is all in Hebrew, fair warning. But really not so hard to figure out)

Israeli Cashback site!

You all know I like Ebates for getting cashback when I'm shopping online, right?

Well, thanks to my friend Janice (hi!), I just found out about a new Cashback site that pays out in shekels - Cashback.co.il .  And if you sign up now using my link, you'll get an 10 shekel bonus in your account!

Some of the stores they offer rebates for are Next (5%), WallaShops (1.5%), GadgetShop (5%),  Golf (8%), and more

I'm going to have to compare carefully, as some of the sites they offer cashback for are the same as Ebates, so the percentages are going to determine which one I use!

Hope this helps you get some change back in your pocket!

Shabbat Menu

We're still in super-simple food mode, as my hand is still recuperating from that burn. It's much improved, but I'm not quite ready for doing things like making challah, yet. Soon, I hope!

So here's the plan for Shabbat:



Store-bought challah
Vegetable Soup
Super Simple Spicy Roast chicken with Rice
(Plain Rice for the vegetarian)
Roasted Veggies - whatever we have around (Kishuim, Various Root vegetables, not sure what else is here)
Apple Crisp
Cabbage Salad
Cucumbers and Tomatoes
Black Bean Cholent for Lunch
Melon and other fruit for dessert

For seudah shlishit, we'll have challah, egg salad and some vegetables (or leftover vegetables/salad from lunch)

Mostly this means cutting up some vegetables (my kids can help) and cleaning a chicken. Everything after those stages just gets thrown together, either in the oven or in a pot on the stove!

What's doing for Shabbat at your house?

Some shopping thoughts

When someone offers to bring something from the USA for me, I have to think VERY carefully before making requests. Luggage space has become so precious that I really don't want to waste the opportunity on something that won't feel is significant!

I currently define significant (for this purpose) as: 1. A noticeable savings on something relatively expensive, and 2. Things that are very difficult to find here or not available at all.

As I'm organizing my thoughts for the latest person who's offered to transport stuff, I decide to write a list of items I think are worthwhile bringing over from America. This is a pretty long list, and I'm REALLY trying to keep it short, but even so, it is obvious that this list cannot be gotten all at once. Thankfully, I don't need everything on the list every time someone comes!

List 1 (Noticeable savings on expensive items):

Shoes for everyone in the family (I love finding deals on 6pm!)
Probiotics
Lego sets/pieces
Baby Gifts
Vanilla Beans
Maple Syrup from Costco
Dancewear
Athletic Equipment
Deodorants
Small electronics and accessories
Underwear 
Sunscreen (usually we get the generic ones from Target)

List 2 (Hard to find in Israel):

Neosporin
Lactaid pills (preferably Ultra-Lactaid) ge
Benadryl tablets, liquid, and cream
Aquaphor
Odor Eaters products
Roach and Ant Control Products
Sudafed
Good food containers - disposable type
Good food containers - thermos type
Cayenne Pepper
Good Raisins
Canned Salmon
Ziploc bags 

I've left a bunch of things off this list that I DO find are cheaper in America, but I can easily order them from online stores like iHerb or Vitacost or Better World Books so I don't need to use valuable luggage space for them. You can see my iHerb list in my post dedicated to that! I also left off some really heavy or bulky items that ideally I would get, but their size or weight makes it impractical.

So now that you know what I'm mulling over, I will let you chime in with your ideas -- and I'm going back to trying to really hone in on the most important parts of this list! (I am definitely ordering shoes for nearly everyone!) Please leave a comment below with your favorite items to buy abroad!

And since this time, the offer is to bring a whole piece of luggage over for us (at no extra cost, how awesome is that?!), I've got my handy 1 lb duffel bag waiting for them!

*this post contains affiliate links, thanks for your support!

Better World Books 48 hr Sale!

YES! Fall is here! Well, at least that's what the calendar says. And it did feel *much cooler* here overnight, even. And you know that means that some rainy days are on their way (yay!) - actually I'm rooting for rainy nights. I like those best. But I digress - back to the point of this post! Sometimes you just need a good book to read on a rainy day (or night)...

SO... go ahead and save 20% off your order of 5 or more books from the Better World Books Bargain Bin! This way you'll have your rainy day reads all ready and waiting for you! (No coupon code needed, just click the link and shop!)

And of course, there's always free international shipping from BWB!

Sale ends on Thursday, October 22,2015 so hurry! Don't miss out!

Frugal Breakfast Ideas

I don't know about you, but with no holidays this month, I feel like it's time to get the budget in order. We want to make sure we're not overspending on food or other necessities, so I'm evaluating what we've been eating.

Really, we're doing ok considering there are 6 of us who rely on what's in the house for nearly every meal we eat. But lately - due to circumstances I felt were beyond my control - there's been a lot of cereal for breakfast.

So it's time to start encouraging everyone to find alternatives to cereal.

Here are some of my frugal, yet healthy-ish breakfast options I'll be offering my family

Oatmeal - I like to add things like tahini or peanut butter, and dried fruit and spices to it 
(Rolled oats and quick-cooking rolled oats are really inexpensive here, I get them for 4 shekels for 500g from Nizat HaDuvdevan. When we all eat oatmeal a few times a week, we use about 500g per week)

Muffins/Breakfast breads (made the day before or from the freezer)

Fruit and Leben (leben is on the price controlled list, and can cost as little as 1.44 per container, be sure to check it out!)

Leftovers from the day before (I've even eaten lentil soup for breakfast, I know that sounds pretty unconventional, but who needs to be conventional?! My daughter likes to eat polenta for breakfast sometimes!), or salad, can work as well!

Some people like to make things like pancakes, but I am not a big fan of cooking before I've had my coffee. But pancakes can be very inexpensive too. Since I have been known to serve eggs for supper or lunch, I'm not usually looking to make them a breakfast option, but at 1 shekel per egg, they can be part of an inexpensive breakfast.

Speaking of coffee, I am addicted to coffee, and if you are looking for some EXCELLENT, small batch freshly roasted coffee, please check out Zeh Cafe! I've even got a coupon code for you! They make some really great coffee!

What are your favorite, inexpensive breakfast options for busy mornings? I'd love to hear!

Black Bean Salad

This is one of my new favorite salads. I love dishes that are simple, easy, dairy-free, and wheat free, soy-free, and nut-free so that we all can enjoy them together.

The inspiration for this dish was a salad I had years ago when we lived in Texas, and I decided to finally figure out my own dressing for it - for truly the dressing is what completes this salad!

For the salad:

2 cups black beans, already cooked and drained
2 cups frozen corn kernels, lightly steamed or roasted and cooled
2-4 red peppers, diced (you can use a mix of red/green peppers, too if you like)
4 tomatoes, cut into cubes
(the original dish had raw onions in it, but raw onions are a major source of food poisoning, so they scare me, and my picky family won't eat it anyway)
(You can totally adjust this and use more or less of something as you like - go ahead and make this "your own"! - it's great with acocado, or lettuce, or quinoa, or all, or whatever inspires you!)


For the dressing:

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
juice of 1 orange or clementine (I had a clementine in the house)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
Chili pepper flakes (to taste)
Smoked paprika (to taste, I used about 2 tsp)
salt (to taste)
ground black pepper (to taste)

Place all the vegetables in a pretty salad bowl. Mix the dressing together in a jar, bowl, or container. Mix really well. Pour dressing over vegetables and gently toss it all together. Serve cold. 

This salad can actually be a meal in and of itself, or is a great accompaniment to anything at all.
Let me know if you give it a try!

Movie Day Is Back! Movie Tix for Just 10 Shekels!

10 Shekel Movie Tickets are Back!

This Thursday (Oct 22, 2015), participating theaters will offer movie tickets for just 10 shekels, and 3-D movies will be 14 shekels (online purchase will be more, as there are additional fees for online ticket purchases). Price is for regular tickets only, VIP tickets are not included.

Links to Participating Theaters, click thru to find out what's near you and when:

YES Planet

Cinema City

Rav Chen

Lev

Globus Max

Bet Gabriel (in Tzemach, not a chain)



  
So if you can make Thursday your movie night, enjoy your special deal!