Beans: A Love/Hate Relationship

For as long as I can remember, I have disliked beans. Much to my mother's chagrin, if I even suspected beans might be a part of the dish set before me, I quickly went on a search and destroy mission before they could ruin the rest of my food.

This continued into adulthood. Enter my quest for a frugal, more natural lifestyle. I remember the day my relationship with beans took a turn for the better. I was reading The Tightwad Gazette, aka the frugalista bible, and there it was in print: You will never be able to hit a rock-bottom grocery budget unless you incorporate dried beans into your diet. (My paraphrase)

If anything could convince me to give beans another try, this was it! That statement hit me right in the pocket book!

I started with lentils because they are so small and tend to take on the flavor and the consistency of whatever food you combine them with. I hit a roadblock, however, when I couldn't think of anything else to do with them besides putting them in soup. When an occasional idea did come to mind, I would end up not wanting to mess with re-hydrating the beans (even through this isn't that difficult with lentils) and would end up just leaving them out. Don't laugh. I know that re-hydrating lentils is no big deal, but you have to understand that my brain is still looking for any little excuse to forego those little buggers!

As I began reading about homemade convenience foods, I saw that a number of families create their own "canned" beans buy cooking dried beans in bulk and freezing them so that they can throw them into whatever is on the stove without any prior planning. I decided to give this a try by following directions I found here. I am looking forward to adding my pre-cooked beans into not only soups, but also skillet dishes, casseroles, and ground beef. This will stretch and add nutrition to many of the common meals we fix. What's not to love about the convenience of canned beans at the price of dried?

Do you like beans? How do you prepare them? What foods do you like to freeze and have on hand?

Make Your Own...Disposable Towel Mop Refills

When buying cleaning products for the home, I generally ask myself two questions. 1) Is this something I can create using items I already have at home, and 2) Will buying this item require ongoing "refill" purchases?

Several years ago, before I began to consider these things, I bought a "disposable towel mop" (I'm not a fan of using brand names, but I'll give you three guesses at the common brand name) and would buy a box of refills every couple months. Yes, it was convenient, but it also had an ongoing cost that is not emphasized in the marketing of the product. When I stopped buying the refills, the mop just sat for a while until I realized I could create the refill cloths myself at very little cost.

I bought a stack of plain white cheapo wash rags that I use for various cleaning tasks. All I have to do is take one out of the drawer, fill up the sink with cleaning solution and water (until my cleaning solution runs out, at which point I'll use the ever-versatile vinegar and water solution), soak the rag, and wrap it around the mop head. When it begins to dry out, I stick it the sink, wring it out, and apply it to the mop again.

The other day as I was mopping, it occurred to me that if I wanted the scrubby strip Swiffer refills offer, I could simply buy some of those rags with the scrub side built in, which would achieve the same purpose when folded over the top of the mop.

This method is no less convenient than using the real deal refills, and it eliminates the ongoing cost of owning a disposable towel mop.

By the way, steam mops operate using pretty much the same principle. They come with several cloth mop heads that you detach, wash, and reuse. My mother-in-law got me a steam mop for Christmas that I love, but I still use my disposable towel mop once in a while when I want to clean the floor with some kind of solution.

You don't need a lot of fancy products to clean your home. You just need to allow yourself to think outside the box!

Make Your Own...Self Watering Flower Pot

Last year I bought several small flower pots on closeout for something like 79 cents each. Since developing more of a green thumb, I have learned that as cute as these pots are, they tend to kill plants quickly due to their lack of drainage holes. Pots with proper drainage, however, tend to be more expensive and not as cute.

Enter...yogurt tubs! We get a lot of mileage out of these at our house. In fact, I believe the yogurt tub featured in the picture used to hold homemade pizza sauce. Here is yet another use for them. Cut some holes in the bottom and si

des of the tub. Pot your plant inside the tub and then set the tub inside your pretty but impractical pot. This creates a self-watering container. I am sure this would work well with bigger tubs (like ones for bulk potato salad, etc.) and bigger pots, although I haven't tried it.

Now you can enjoy your pretty, healthy plant in its cute pot!

Stretching Birthday $

Yesterday as I was getting my grocery list ready, I remembered that I had $50 in birthday money to spend! That made my shopping trip all the more enticing.

My first stop was St. Vincent de Paul, my favorite thrift store. I find it easy to shop there because they organize their clothing by size. I wondered how far I could make my birthday $ stretch at a place like this.

I found a pair of Columbia cargo-type shorts, a pair of Old Navy khaki pants, and a pair of Cato brown dress slacks (tags still on) for a total of $9.50.

With the rest of the money, I decided to buy shoes. I have been so good at not buying shoes and purses the last few years, so I decided to buy myself some cool footwear even though I don't actually NEED shoes right now. That's what fun money is for, right? I found gray and blue New Balance tennis shoes on sale for $29.95 and a pair of nice flip flops (with a real sole and thick straps) for $12.95. That brought my grand total to $52.40...pretty close to $50!

Shopping with deals in mind helps your money buy MORE FUN!

How do you like to spend your birthday money?

Cutting Board

Many of you know that I just returned from completing my Kodaly certification at Indiana University. To save money on lodging, my in-laws graciously agreed to let me stay with them at the church camp they oversee outside of Bedford. During the first week, my husband Seth was holding down the fort at our house and taking care of his mowing business. But the 2nd week brought him to camp to serve as head cook for 3rd and 4th grade camp. We got to do our individual tasks during the day and be together in the evenings after dinner. Seth even stayed up late with me when my homework was particularly intense. It was a great arrangement!

One evening when I arrived back from class and went down to the dining hall to eat dinner, Seth pulled me aside; he wanted to show me something.

He had gone out to his dad's workshop, found some thick beech wood lumber, and made a cutting board for our home. I had thought about buying a cutting board for Seth (and me) this past Christmas, but we talked about it and decided he could just make one sometime. I am so glad we waited because our new board is gorgeous (albeit gargantuan)!

Check it out!

I have been searching online to find out what something like this would cost if we were to buy it at a store. The closest I can find is this board which costs $195.00 retail, and it isn't even as big as ours!

Yes, I know I am boasting, but I am just so proud of my husband, and I want to shout it from the rooftops. Will you forgive me?

Most importantly, this is an example of the following guiding principle for frugal living:

Before you buy, think about how you could either make it yourself, buy it secondhand, borrow it, or trade for it.

Shopping Changes

As much as I enjoy my bi-monthly deal hunting, I am burnt out! As a result, the idea of once-a-month shopping trips is appealing to me more and more. This way, I would only be spending one Saturday per month on shopping.

The disadvantage to this approach is that I may miss some great deals at the drugstores. For instance, the Register Rewards at Walgreen's expire after just two weeks. You see, I have tried monthly shopping trips before, but when I receive those rewards, I can't stand the idea of wasting them, so I make the half hour trek to the closest store every two weeks even if I don't need to. While I'm there, I stop at Walmart, Save a Lot, etc., and spend more money saving money. As wonderful as it is to stock up on free stuff from the drug stores, I'm just not sure it's worth it. I may save just as much money (or more) by shopping less.

Here is another motivation for me. I spend $2.00 on a Sunday paper every week JUST for the coupons. Neither Seth nor I actually care to read the newspaper. I know that may seem a travesty to some, but we get our news online, on TV, and on the radio. I just don't want to spend $8.00 on coupons every month, even though I save more than that every month couponing, especially when most of the coupon inserts seem to be filled with ads for ugly house dresses and diabetic socks. For my monthly shopping trips, I am hoping I can find most of the same coupons online. Without the newspaper coupons and flyers coming into my house on a weekly basis, I will be less tempted to run out and spend money to get a good deal.

Don't get me wrong, I still think using coupons is a good idea. I am just too busy right now to pour myself into it like I have been. Plus, I really want to try to make more of my own food and cleaning products from scratch, and couponing just doesn't contribute much to those kinds of things. For instance, how often can you find a coupon for a gallon of vinegar or a bag of flour? I have put off making a homemade alternative to deodorant and making a powdered cream of anything soup mix just because I've had coupons to buy that stuff from the store. Maybe cutting back on my couponing will inspire me to actually experiment and try some of these things. If they don't work, I can always go back.

What are your thoughts? Is it possible to save just as much money shopping less often as you do shopping more often with lots of coupons?

Consider the Container

Since becoming a student of frugality, I have enjoyed looking at the items I buy in a whole new way. In my spendthrift days, I enjoyed buying storage containers that were dedicated to specific, and therefore limited, uses. And being the type-A personality that I am, my containers HAD TO MATCH!

Let's just say I have gotten (mostly) over that! These days, when I buy something, I pay attention to the container in which it is packaged. In fact, sometimes the container excites me more than the product itself.

I took a picture of some of my favorite re-purposed containers. Left to right:

I love gallon ice-cream buckets. I use them to store lots of things, including candy, borax (not together, hehe), and washing soda. I also use them while cleaning, both for supplies and for soapy water.

A friend game me the sour cream container with elephant garlic she had just planted. What a great, frugal container. Obviously, it is time to re-pot!

I literally giggled with delight when I saw that Wal-mart is packaging their peanuts in plastic canisters instead of the old cardboard kind. They sell those same canisters, sans the label, in the kitchen aisle for about the same price I pay for the peanuts AND the container. I am excited to collect more of these as I buy peanuts in the future. Then I will have a whole set!

Yogurt tubs make great canisters for beans or pasta. They don't hold a lot, but they are an okay size for a household of two.

Rather than buy a new spray bottle for my homemade kitchen cleaner, I waited until I was out of my store-bought cleaner and re-used that bottle. If you do this, make sure you clean the spray bottle thoroughly before adding your own cleaner, and always label the bottle clearly.

My old chicken bullion container now houses my homemade seafood seasoning mix. I might even consider drilling holes in the lid of the next one and using it for a flour shaker.

On the far right of the picture is a take-out container from our local Chinese restaurant. Not only do these make great leftover and lunch "tupperware" (they are even microwavable), but they also make great gift containers at Christmas. Fill with Snack Mix or cookies and top with a bow, and you've got yourself a nicely presented homemade gift.

How do you re-purpose old containers?

Frugal Comfort Food

Sometimes when I get home, I don't feel like cooking. Correction: that happens more than sometimes. My old standby used to be a soup and sandwich, but that gets old. In the last few months, I have discovered something that is quick to fix and comforting to eat, yet tastes like it comes straight from Cracker Barrel (or close, anyway).

Amy's Hash:

Scrub and slice one medium potato.

Chop 1/4 a small onion.

Fry the onion and the potato in oil or butter.

When potatoes are tender, cut up a slice or two of lunch meat ham and add to skillet.

Brown the entire mixture and remove from skillet.

Top with shredded cheese and chives and cover.

Fry two eggs over medium in the same skillet used above.

Place eggs on top of potato mixture.

Slather with ketchup.

Devour.

Yummmmmmmmm!

Besides the taste, another thing this meal has going for it is its versatility. I enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

You know I wouldn't leave you hanging without discussing the cost-effectiveness of my recipe, which happens to be very easy on the wallet. Each ingredients adds up to just a few cents.

I know I should have a picture and a cost breakdown, but I just don't feel like being that detailed at the moment.

Christmas Home Tour

Merry Christmas to all of my friends online! Today we are stuck inside due to 1/4 inch of ice coating everything outside. This is our 2nd day off school this week. It feels great to be off now, although I worry that at this rate, we will race through our built-in days too quickly and end up going to school into June. Since my sister is getting married June 4, that is not an option for me.

Below is my frugal wreath. It is frugal because I simply use the same grapevine wreath year-round and change the ribbons and decorations according to the season or holiday.

Here is the fall version of the wreath.

This is my sideboard in the "dining room" section of our great room.

Our pretty table. I just love the cute snowman candle. I think I received it as a gift back in high school and have been careful not to burn it too quickly. Guess I'm doing pretty well on that since I have been out of high school for almost 9 years!

Our little tree. The angel on top was the first tree topper my parents had when they got married, so it is very special to me. Notice the wrapped presents. That usually doesn't happen until school is out, but the snow days have given me time to do Christmas-y things.

Our living room mantle. Hidden in the gold garland are a quintet of electronic brass instruments that play Christmas songs. They light up blue when they play.

Side table in the "parlor" area of the great room.

Door to office.

My new nativity set. I got it at Kohl's for $30 on Black Friday. I love how the figures look more middle-Eastern than most nativity sets I see. Also, I like how they look like they are carved out of wood. Each one has a gold star somewhere on it and most of the characters are holding their hands over their hearts in devotion. The wooden mirror was made by my Papa, and the angel and plaque were my Meme's. I like how Meme's angel is looking over the scene, just as I imagine her watching over us from Heaven.

I decided to hang up the Christmas cards this year in the office so we can see all of them.

Our bedroom mantle.

I tried something Meme used to do...put lights and ornaments in a glass hurricane. I like the effect!

I hope you enjoyed the picture tour of our cozy home. We are so thankful for God's provision in our lives and for his most precious gift, Jesus! Merry Christmas!

Frugal Cheese

Last weekend when I made my bi-monthly Wal-mart run, I planned to buy a HUGE block of cheese (I forget how many ounces) I had seen during previous visits. At first I didn't see the cheese and thought I had missed my window of opportunity. Luckily, I am not shy when it comes to asking questions, and an employee led me right to it! When you buy a large quantity of cheese in the deli, it is expensive, but this cheese was located outside the deli in the refrigerated section. It was about half the unit price of the larger block of "Great Value" cheese I usually buy.

This story gets even better! Having read in the Tightwad Gazette that many stores will slice meat and cheese for free, I had the deli slice the cheese into thin squares for sandwiches. I paid just $10.95 for all this!

My hubby placed it in a ziplock bags for the freezer. As we run out, we will pull out a block, thaw it in the fridge, and eat. All this cheese will last us a LONG time.

I really should have bought another block and shredded it in the food processor... Maybe next time!

A New Perspective on Entertainment

When my husband and I first moved to Southern Indiana, we located in an area where television options were scarce. Being fresh out of college with brand new careers, we had no money anyway, so we tried to be satisfied with my collections of old TV shows on video cassette. We watched the Waltons, Andy Griffith and Dick Van Dyke like nobody's business! Being from a home where the TV was on most of the time, even if just for noise, I began to become bored with our arrangement, and Seth felt the same.

We then decided to go with a satellite company after receiving a promotion in the mail. After a year of paying $30/month for our great package, the price began to climb steadily until we were paying something like $80/month. God began to convict me in the summer of 2009 not only about the expense of this but also about what we were allowing to come into our home. I would watch HGTV ALL the time and noticed that the more I watched, the more I became dissatisfied with our humble home. I was always spending money on decorations or small pieces of furniture to try and reach an impossible ideal. It wasn't until six months later that we finally got up the nerve to cut off our satellite. Let me just say that I wish we had done it sooner. The extra $80 has been an incredible help as we pay off the last of our debts. Also, I have been so much more content now that I am not bombarded by shows and advertisements that tell me I am not enough and do not have enough. It is hard for me to believe that I used to consider cable/satellite TV one of those necessary expenses, right up there with the electricity :)

While I do miss particular shows and channels sometimes, I am happier this way.

I have been learning some ways to find quality entertainment for free though antenna TV, radio, and internet. We get PBS, CBS, Fox, and sometimes NBC with our bunny ears. We also get a weird local station that broadcasts Portuguese soccer, but I'm not a fan of that channel. Yes folks, that is all. Anyway, I have discovered that PBS has great programming for adults (I hadn't watched it since I was a kid). In fact, I am looking forward to a documentary on Appalachia here in a half hour or so. I am learning to play the dulcimer and am excited to hear what they share about the music of that region. Also, there is a cool show on Monday nights called History Detectives that I really like. It seems much better written than our old History Channel programming, which at the time of our departure was mostly about aliens and conspiracies, anyway. There are a few shows on the other channels that we like, too.

The radio is another great source for entertainment. I enjoy listening to sermons and other programming on our local Christian station. NPR is another station that offers two shows I really enjoy, "Cartalk" and "A Way with Words," on Saturdays. Dave Ramsey is on a couple of times a day on the AM talk radio station. If I miss any of these programs or if reception isn't very good, I can always listen to them online whenever I want.

Speaking of the internet, we have a Netflix membership and are able to watch movies that way. Their instant viewing selection is really growing, and Seth has hooked up a computer tower to our nice TV so it's almost as good as the real thing! Also, Hulu has some shows I like on their website for FREE! The only downside is that we must wait for the movie to buffer every 12 minutes, but I figure that is a small price to pay for a free service. We like to borrow movies from the library, as well.

Sometimes, when nothing sounds good, I am even learning to enjoy some precious silence in my peaceful home. This is a huge step for me, as I have always had a hard time with silence. Silence makes me think, which makes me worry, which fills me with irrational anxieties. But with a less-cluttered life, silence is more common, and I am learning to treasure it.

How I make my shopping list

Each Sunday afternoon, I sit down with the newspaper, scissors, a calculator, my price book, and the computer. I clip coupons and sort them into my coupon file box. Then I visit http://hip2save.com/. I simply copy and paste the deals that apply to me into a Word document. I used to just list the item I wanted to buy, but this can get confusing when multiple coupons/rebates are employed. For items I regularly buy without coupons, I just list the product. I will fore go trips to some stores this week. Other stores do not release their ad until tomorrow, so I will pick those ads up at school tomorrow in the paper that is delivered to the teacher's lounge. The question of when to actually go shopping is a tricky one. Last week I went after school on Monday, but that means not getting home until late (in my neck of the woods you have to drive to get anywhere!!!). Sometimes I go on Wednesdays after church, but church ends at 7 and some of the stores close at 8, which doesn't leave me much time. When I go on Saturdays, the stores are often out of the products I want. Still, I can get rainchecks and buy the missing products the next time I visit the store.

Here is my shopping list for this week (so far). I am excited to get lots of free items at Walgreen's.

August Grocery Challenge Results

It has been exactly four weeks today since I started my August Grocery Challenge, and I am excited to share the results with you this evening. My goal was to spend no more than $100.00 for groceries. Drum roll please.............

WE DID IT!!!!!

We spent a total of $96.99 and came out with $3.01 left!

You can check out the post detailing all of my expenditures here. The only things I had to put back on the shelf as a result of my experiment were frozen dinners, soda, and coffee creamer. These things are certainly not necessities and don't provide real nutritional value; therefore, we were not deprived. Still, I will probably purchase those things this weekend. My husband has suggested that we just give up soda altogether, but I don't know that I'm ready to take that step. I grew up in a pop-addicted household and have never been able to kick the habit.

Not only did we not deprive ourselves, I would say that we ate very well. You can see some of the meals we enjoyed here and here.

It is a comfort to me to know that WE CAN DO THIS when we really put our minds to it. Next month's challenge...$50.00...JUST KIDDING!!!!! I think that averaging $125 will work well for us in future months, as I want to be flexible enough to take advantage of great deals when they come along.

Granola

I very rarely buy cold breakfast cereal for two reasons. 1) You guessed it, it's just too darn expensive per ounce; 2) It doesn't fill me up, leaving me starving a half hour after eating it. As a result, I have come up with some breakfast alternatives that I consider superior in cost and quality.

One of those alternatives is granola. In this post I would like to share my recipe, which I collected from the book Miserly Moms by Jonni McCoy. I usually make a double batch and it lasts a long time.

Ingredients:

3/4 c. brown sugar

1/3 c. concentrated apple juice from frozen concentrate (I just use apple sauce, which is a more versatile ingredient, and it tastes fine).

1/2 c. nonfat dry milk

1/3 c. honey

5 c. quick-cooking oats (the regular kind work fine, too)

2 T. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. dried fruit (I have tried raisins and cranberries)

1/2 c. nuts (I have tried peanuts, pecans, and almonds)

*The last 2 ingredients definitely up the price of this cereal. I find peanuts and raisins to be the most affordable, but sometimes I leave the fruit and nuts out altogether if I don't have any on hand. It still tastes good without, especially over yogurt.

Process:

"Mix sugar, juice, dry milk, and honey in saucepan and heat over medium heat only until sugar dissolves. Combine dry ingredients and fruit in mixing bowl. Pour sugar mixture slowly over dry mixture and blend well. Place on cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 10 to 20 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes." (My oven runs hot, so I turn the oven down a little and stir every 5-7 minutes.)

"Options: Be creative by adding peanuts, sunflower seeds, coconut, sesame seeds, peanut butter, or whatever else your family enjoys."

"Cost analysis (1 pound):

Homemade = $1.50

Store-bought = $3.29"

Here it is fresh out of the oven. Yum!!!

August Grocery Challenge

After bragging to several people over the summer about our grocery budget, I got a healthy dose of humility when I added up my grocery receipts for July. Instead of being disciplined and recording my expenditures every week, I assumed I was doing fine and just recorded at the end. Instead of spending $150, we spent $234.38! This month, I am determined to stay at (or under - ha) $100. I believe it will help to hold myself accountable here. Now, I realize that spending money on food is FINE, and we are way under what we could be spending. Nevertheless, I want to know how little we can really spend on food and still eat a tasty, well-balanced diet.

Here is what I have spent so far:

July 31 - IGA

• 2 loaves sandwich bread - $1.98

August 2 - Walmart

• Block of cheese, 2.77 lb. of nectarines, 1 lb. dried northern beans, light sour cream - $8.31

August 2 - Save a Lot

• Unsalted butter, 34.5 oz. coffee, 2 8-oz blocks cream cheese (Seth wants a cheesecake), bag of flour, 1.36 lb. fresh tomatoes, 24 oz. bottle of ketchup, 1 lb. bag lentils, head of lettuce, package of bologna, 2 12-oz bags shredded cheese, 3 lb. yellow onions, 2 gallons orange juice, 1 canister quick oats, 1 package turkey franks - $30.97

August 3 - IGA (New ad + I was already right next door at my eye appointment)

• 2 half-gallons milk, 1 dozen large eggs, 1 canister of Parmesan cheese, 4 packages of hot dog buns (I freeze these, and when we have pasta dishes I split them spread them with garlic butter and bake them--great bread sticks!!!), 7 lb. whole Boston Pork Butt, 8 1/2 lb. chicken legs and thighs (Pilgrim's Pride...no hormones or antibiotics), 1 package bologna (for freezer...it was only 37 cents after coupon)- $22.10

August 3 - Mor For Less

• 3 lb. ground beef - $4.40

My total so far is $67.76, so I have $32.24 to spend. I know it's early in the month, but if you could see my freezer(s) and pantry, you would surmise that pretty much all I will have to buy for the rest of the month is bread, milk, orange juice, yogurt, cheese and some fresh fruit. We have fresh veggies from the garden, so no need to buy those! And we could make the bread-YUM!

Update:

August 8 - Mor For Less

• 2 loaves bread - $2.18

August 9 - Walmart

• 2 cans crushed tomatoes, 2 cans tomato paste, huge canister of peanuts, applesauce - $8.10

August 9 - Save a Lot

• bananas, graham crackers, 1 gallon orange juice, 48 oz. tub margarine - $8.08

New Total: $86.12

Left to Spend: $13.88

Update:

August 12 - Wesselman's

• 2 dozen medium eggs - $1.18

August 18 - Mor 4 Less

• 2 loaves bread - $2.18

New Total: $89.48

Left to Spend: $10.52

Update:

August 23 - Walgreen's

• Smucker's Strawberry Jam 32 oz, 2 boxes Frosted Mini Wheats, $1.19 (I had $6 in register rewards and several coupons)

August 23 - Walmart

• 16 oz. frozen peas, 16 oz. frozen green beans (garden has not been doing well), 32 oz. yogurt, 2 lb. fresh plums - $5.94

August 23 - CVS

• 1 box Wheat Thins, 2 gallons milk - $.38 (I had $4 ECB and coupons)

New Total:$96.99

Left to Spend: $3.01

All that is left to buy before the end of the month is probably 1 loaf of bread. Yahooooooo!

On the Utility Warpath

When I received my utility bill the other day, I almost had a heart attack. It went from about $150.00 last month to $218.00 this month. When I calmed down, I had to remind myself of the many reasons the bill had to be higher this time:

1. We have one more person living with us this summer. It goes without saying that when you add someone to your residence, your bill will increase.

2. It has been H O T these past few weeks. I don't think the high has dipped below 90 degrees all month.

3. Related to #2, we live in the UPSTAIRS of an older home. Heat rises; there is nothing we can do about that.

4. We just purchased a 5.5 cubic foot deep freezer. It is an older freezer and probably not the most energy-efficient. However, since we paid just $20 for it, I figure it is worth a try.

5. Because it is summer, someone is home nearly all the time. Therefore, the temperature has to stay in a comfortable range. When school starts, no one will be home for 8 hours a day, during which times the air will be set to run less often.

All that said, I am still ON THE WARPATH to lower utility costs. I am going to try some things to get that bill down...

A) I will no longer shave in the shower. When I need to shave, I will do it after my shower by sitting on the edge of the tub, filling a bowl with warm water, and using that water to wet my razor and legs instead of keeping the faucet running.

B) When I do the dishes, I will resist the temptation to run the hot water constantly while washing everything with my sponge wand. While this is more convenient, it wastes water. Instead, I will fill one sink with my soapy water and one with plain warm water for rinsing. I will dip the dishes in the rinse sink instead of turning on the faucet to rinse.

C) I will place a small bottle filled with water in the toilet tank. This will make the toilet use less water with each flush.

My hubby and my dad have nixed this idea. They say our toilet tank is already small and it won't flush properly if I do this.

D) I will wash all of my laundry in cold water except for extra dirty clothes or clothes with stains. I'm a little skeptical of this, but I know plenty of people who do this and they don't stink...so it will probably be okay.

I haven't been brave enough to try washing socks and undies, towels, or sheets in cold yet. We'll see...

E) I am going to try to leave the air on 76 instead of the usual 73 or 74. Instead of turning the thermostat down when we get hot, we will turn on the fan and wear lighter clothing.

This has been absolutely comfortable during the day, but a little hot at night, even with the fan.

F) Before bed every night, I am going to go around the house and turn off my power strips. There is no need for those things to be on all the time.

G) Whenever light bulbs burn out, they will be replaced with fluorescent bulbs (we have been doing this already).

H) I won't use the heated dry setting on the dishwasher.

I) I (read Seth) will change the AC/furnace filter once a month without fail.

J) I will keep gallon jugs of water (ice) in the above-fridge freezer to improve efficiency. There isn't much in it (yet) with the addition of our deep freeze.

K) I will keep lids on any pot I place on the stove whenever possible.

L) I will boil water in the microwave when possible.

I'm not doing really well with this method.

M) I will use the slow cooker instead of the oven whenever possible.

N) I will try to coordinate baking times when I am already using the oven. I can plan this stuff on my 2-week meal plan.

O) I will turn off the lights and TV when I leave a room (unless it's for 5 minutes or less, in which case it wouldn't really matter).

P) I will watch the weather and purposefully open the windows (and turn off the air) when the opportunities arise.

It's been too hot!

Q) I will vacuum the refrigerator coils (I have NEVER done this...).

Haven't gotten to this yet.

R) I will dry our regular clothing (shirts and pants) for 10 minutes and then hang it on hangers on the hanging bar over our washer and dryer. There's really no need to dry these all the way.

This is working fine, although sometimes the t-shirts are a little "crunchy".

S) I will actually pay attention to the itemized portion of our utility bill and place the cost of each on a graph so I can track usage.

Haven't done this yet.

T) We will turn off our computers at night and set the updates to run at some other time (hubby might argue with me on this).

I'm doing this, not sure if hubby is.

Well, I feel like I should finish the alphabet, but I can't think of anything else right now. This is a lot to tackle, so I may have to focus on just a few at a time. How about you finish it for me?

How do you save money on your utility bill?

Blueberries Galore!!!

Seth and I were invited to go out and pick blueberries this morning! A friend of a friend owns some land that used to be part of a berry farm. We picked five gallons--FOR FREE! I haven't gone berry-picking since I was a little girl. My mom and I used to pick raspberries and blackberries from the bushes that grew out behind our backyard shed. I should have taken a picture of Seth in his suspenders with an ice cream bucket threaded through his belt; we both looked pretty funny, actually.


I did take some pictures of our haul...




We will freeze them on sheet pans, place them in plastic baggies, and pull them out as we need them for pancakes, muffins, batter breads, etc. I like to eat them straight from the freezer, also. They taste like little frozen candies!!! Luckily, we are getting our first deep freezer within the next couple of days. The timing is perfect, as our garden produce is really beginning to come on now!




I'm so thankful for this blessing of free food!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Last night, I made my own laundry detergent for the first time. I am very pleased with the results so far. My clothes had a pleasant soapy smell when I took them out of the washer and then had no scent coming out of the washer; they just smelled clean! They felt fairly soft, even without fabric softener, and had no residue or stiffness as was the case with my purchased detergent. Here is the recipe:

Homemade Laundry Detergent:

• 1 bar Fels-Naptha laundry soap (I have read you can use most any bar of soap except for "beauty bars" with lots of lotion and additives).
• 1 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda
• 1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
• (Some recipes I have found suggest using 1/2 cup Oxyclean, especially for whites; I may try this if I feel the whites are not maintaining their brightness over time)

1. In a large bowl mix together the washing soda and Borax.

2. Place your shredder disk in your food processor. Shred the bar of soap in the processor. Remove shredding disk and place the metal blade in the bowl. You can also grate the soap with a hand grater.

3. Add about 1/2 cup of the dry mixture into the FP bowl with the shredded soap. Process until the texture of sand.

4. Dump the soap mixture into the remaining dry mixture and combine thoroughly.

5. Use 1 heaping tablespoon per full load, 2 for heavily soiled loads. (Some recipes say 2 tbsp. per full load, but I thought 1 worked fine for my full load of jeans and t-shirts). Store in a yogurt container or large butter tub.

*As this is a compilation of many things I have read, there may be some variation depending on your water hardness and preferences.

*Be aware that this does look strange because the soap doesn't completely blend in with the powders.

*Another useful tip I have discovered is that vinegar works great for a fabric softener and also keeps your washer clean and deodorized.

This recipe is an incredible savings per load. I haven't done any figuring but it is something like between 1 and 2 cents per load. The Simple Dollar Blog did a cost breakdown and found that commercial laundry detergent is 10 times more expensive. I'm actually surprised that more people don't do this; it's pretty easy!

My only question is this: IS IT SAFE TO USE MY FOOD PROCESSOR FOR LAUNDRY SOAP MAKING AND FOR FOOD AS LONG AS I THOROUGHLY CLEAN AND SOAK IT? I know Borax can be toxic. I would appreciate comments on this.

Journaling through the Tightwad Gazette

I recently finished the Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn. As I turned to the last page, I was seriously bummed; I knew it was coming, but I didn't want to believe it was all over. I savored this book little by little (having started reading it in November). Not only is it useful, but I find it extremely entertaining. Perhaps most importantly, I came to regard the author as someone who was cheering me on toward my financial goals. One of the most valuable lessons learned from Amy is that tightwads fall along a spectrum of lifestyles. Some are "blackbelt" tightwads who go to almost any length to save their cents. Some are "borderline" tightwads who pick and choose what to cut and what to keep from their spendthrift past. Many, including myself, fall somewhere in the middle of those two. Wherever you fall, learning how to be a good steward of your resources and finding alternative (free) ways to acheive a fulfilling life WILL make a significant difference in your budget.

Instead of returning this book to my shelf, I decided to read it over again. This time I am keeping a journal where I record facts and recipes to remember and ideas to inspire. The centerpiece of my journal will be my experiences in trying out Amy's (and her newsletter subscribers') cost-cutting and life-enriching tips. Watch for excerpts from my journal on this blog!

Excerpt from the book:
"When I learned that walking a mile burned up the same amount of calories as in an apple I wondered how many miles I would have to run to burn the calories in a candy bar. It made more sense to give up the candy bar. Most Americans are running to burn up candy bars. They are running out of the house, rnning to the daycare center, running on the job...so they can afford candy bars and Nintendo games, meals at McDonald's, and designer sneakers."

Why Buy?

Here is a list of things I no longer buy:

• Fabric Softener--I have found that vinegar works fine.
• Plastic dish scrubbers--instead, I use the mesh bags that oranges come in, which are made of the same stuff.
• Boxed mixes--mixing my own ingredients for things like pancakes and hamburger helper doesn't take me very long, I like the taste better, and I know exactly what is in the item.
• Extra facial concoctions--I have to come to believe that a basic cleanser and moisturizer are all I need. Exfoliation and toning are nice once in a while, but not really a necessity, especially if you use good basic products (I use Mary Kay and make it last FOREVER).
• Haircuts--We cut each other's hair and are happy with the results. Seth also colors my hair.

Here is a list of things I would am hoping not to buy in the future:

• Laundry detergent--I will be making my own as soon as my box of Gain is gone.
• Floor Cleaner--I have heard vinegar and water work fine. Thoughts?
• All-Purpose Cleaner--I would like to make my own.
• Scouring Powder--I will make my own and keep it in a Parmesan Cheese container.
• Cooking Spray--I have heard that vegetable oil in a spray bottle works fine, but I haven't tried this yet. Does anyone do this?
• Swiffer Wipes--I need to buckle down and just use my mop and bucket. It really wouldn't take that much longer and would be so much cheaper!
• Disinfectant Wipes--As much as I love these to quick-clean the bathroom vanity, I could just use a cloth and some all-purpose cleaner. This could be a toughie to give up.
• Dishwasher rinse aid--I will use vinegar.

"Extreme" things I am considering trying not just to save money, but also for health and the "sport" of frugality:

• Deodorant Substitute--I have heard that some women use a baking soda mixture applied with a cotton ball under the arms. The chemicals in deodorants and antiperspirants can be harmful to your health.
• No-poo method of cleaning hair--I read about this on a blog. It gets rave reviews by lots of women.
• The Keeper--a substitute for tampons. I know this sounds weird, but I really think I'm going to try it. If you want more info, you can look up the company on the internet. In the interest of modesty, I won't elaborate here. Imagine never buying tampons again!
• Cloth Napkins--Especially while it's just my husband and I, this would not be a big deal and I could just throw them in the wash.

That's all I can think of for now. What do you have to add?