This month many will celebrate Valentine's Day by giving loved ones gifts of flowers, chocolates and jewelry. But the greatest gift we can give one another is quality time. Since I was a young girl, I have been making homemade coupons that are redeemable for thoughtful favors. This month, I feature a website that gives you step by step instructions on how to make these thoughtful valentine gifts that cost very little and mean so much!

To bring you up to date on QVC, We are moving right along with sales. My airtimes last month were very successful and I will be back on the air on February 20th at 5pm on the PROBLEM SOLVERS show. Thanks to all who have tuned in.

Happy Valentine's Day,

Feeding the family is a continual production and the responsibility may fall on mom's shoulders, or it can be a team effort involving other family members. At any rate, coming up with food choices on an ongoing basis that are nutritious, taste good and will not break the bank can be tricky, and unless you build in some planning, you may be compromising in one or more areas.

In a perfect world, whoever is feeding the family would know exactly what is on the menu for every meal, have all the necessary ingredients in stock and have just the right amount of time and expertise to pull off the preparation and presentation. Just writing that makes me laugh since we do not live in a perfect world and as moms, we manage many variables that affect our ability to be successful such as kids activities, appointments, illness, travel, vacation, energy level, time management, and financial resources.

Here are a few tips to help whoever is primarily responsible for feeding the family to keep up and maintain nutrition, taste, and low cost:

Poll the family from time to time on what meals they like and do not like. If you think of them as your customer, then this would help you to understand them better and provide more of what they like and perhaps reduce waste. Stock your pantry with items that support your family's favorite recipes. For example, spaghetti is a family favorite of ours and I always have spaghetti sauce, pasta and Parmesan cheese in the pantry. Additionally, using manufacturer's coupons and combining them with store sales will give you the deepest discount on stock-up items.

Keep your family calendar current and visible at all times. The calendar keeps a record of the events and appointments so by having it out in the open you are able to continually take in information that may affect your planning and meal schedule.

Lastly, when you are building your shopping list for the week, plan your anchor meals first. Anchor meals are the ones where you are all sitting around the table together and sharing the meal. When these meals are lovingly and deliberately planned, the chances they will happen are greater. Also, you may shop your pantry and freezer first to see what you need and what you already have.

By applying these guidelines in your everyday routine, you may see more consistency in your ability to maintain meal appeal. Be sure to build in some time off from cooking by going out to eat occasionally. While eating out regularly is a sure budget buster, every now and then is a welcomed break and will enable you to enjoy being served and perhaps give you some new ideas!

If you would like to make your own "Cupid Coupons" for Valentine's day this year then check out this website. Here you will find everything you need to make these and give them to your loved ones this Valentine's Day. Also, you will find recipes, activites and other crafts that are family oriented, creative and low cost.

I am happy to inform you that I received my Couponizer on Saturday, December 31st. I immediately opened it and fell in love with it as soon as I laid my eyes on it. This product is going to benefit me very well during my shopping trips. I am disabled and wheelchair bound, therefore, I don't have much room for anything that I can use to display my coupons I am using. That was before I received the Couponizer. I have found that I can open the Couponizer onto my steering column and display the coupons I will be using for said shopping trip, and it is very convenient to access the coupons I need when I need them. I went shopping (just arrived home about 30 minutes ago) this morning for my monthly groceries and was very pleased to find that I saved a "whopping $53.87" total off of my gross bill of $120.12 So it is going to save me lots of money monthly, and money, I might add, that I can use for other items such as my prescriptions. I cannot thank you enough for creating such a wonderful, useful item for shoppers to use.

I only wish I had found this Couponizer before now. I just shudder to think of all the money I wasted because I had no way of carrying my coupons with me in such an orderly fashion as this. Thank you again for such a wonderful product. It has paid for itself already 3 times over.

Sincerely, A very devoted Couponizer, Violet Edwards