Saturday's Saving Tips: Electricity

There is something about summer that makes me more aware of how much power we use.  Maybe because every time the air conditioning kicks on, I hear money flying out the window.  But when it's 100 degrees outside you have no choice if you want it to be bearable in your house!

Here are ways I've used less electricity:

•  Turn the lights off when we're not using them.  This is common sense but something I used to not be as conscious about.  For example, our bedroom is off of the kitchen.  We have a two part master bath, the area with the vanity and closet and then a separate room with the toilet and shower.  So if I'm going to take a shower, I turn on the lights in every room I walk through - kitchen, bedroom, over the vanity and in the bathroom.  Well, for the duration of my shower, there is a 2ft fluorescent burning in the kitchen, three lightbulbs burning in the bedroom fixture and SIX over the vanity.  Not to mention the two lights in the bathroom.  Do I really need that many lights on while I'm in the shower???  NO!  But that didn't occur to me until recently.So now, if I am just walking through the room to get to another one, I don't turn the light on.  Also, porch/outside lights are the most forgotten about lights.  I'll turn one on so Hubs can see when he gets home at night and the next day when I get home from work, it'll still be on!  OOPS!  If you have kids, a great responsibility for them would be to check the switches to the outside lights before bed or before leaving the house in the morning.
• Don't use more light than you need.  If I'm using my laptop in the living room, I don't need the overhead lights on.  I'm just fine with the lamp next too me.  It uses less wattage and doesn't heat up the room like the overhead lights do (which saves on running the AC)
  

Money-saving tip! Save on garbage bags!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip helps you save money by not wasting garbage bags (cause those are expensive!)

•  Use plastic shopping bags as garbage bags in smaller trash cans.  It recycles the shopping bags and saves you from purchasing rolls of small bags.
• Use plastic shopping bags as dirty diaper bags.  Or for cleaning up after the dog or cleaning out the cat litter box.  Again, saves on purchasing specialty bags for this purpose.
  

Money-saving tip! Laundry for less!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Here are some money-saving laundry tips:

• Wash primarily in cold water.  Using hot or warm costs more because you are using your hot water heater to heat water.
• Measure out less detergent.  As long as it's not a heavily soiled load, less detergent will get it just as clean.
• Cut dryer sheets in half.  They work just as well.

Do you have a tip for saving on laundry (or anything?)  Please share with us!

Saturday's Saving Tip: Are you Christmas shopping yet?

I told you how I was saving Swagbucks so I could pay for Christmas gifts with Amazon giftcards.  But that's not the only way to save money on Christmas gifts.

• Daily Deal Sites - You can find deep discounts and retailers (both in store and online).  You can use these discounts to purchase gifts.  (For example, when Old Navy had a Groupon that was $20 worth of merchandise for $10 - you could've purchased it and spent it on Christmas gifts.  Getting $20 worth of gifts for $10!)  Daily deal sites often offer credits for new sign ups that you can use on your first deal and credits for referring your friends.  So if you refer 2 friends and earn $10 in credit then a deal comes along for $10 - you'll get it for free!
  Here are some daily deal sites to check out: Groupon  Eversave  Plum District  SaveMore  Living Social   You'll need to sign up so you will receive deal alerts right to your inbox!
  

Satruday's Saving Tips - DIY Pest Control

In a effort to try to cut costs, I decided that I was no longer going to pay a pest company $75 every three months to treat my house for bugs. I went to Wal-Mart and bought Raid Max Bug Barrier. It's supposed to be as good as the stuff the professionals use, guaranteed to kill bugs up to 12 months (what?!? I've been paying people to do it 4 times a year!) and is easy to use!

So, a couple weeks ago I treated the inside perimeter of the "man cave" which is in the basement (and really the only place we see bugs) and then I sprayed around the doors and windows in the garage. I also sprayed around the doors and windows of the house from the outside and around the edges of the porches.

I have not sprayed anything inside in the "living areas" of the house. I limited the inside spraying to the basement. I'll see how this goes. Hubs says he's seen less spiders downstairs. And I've noticed a couple dead bugs around the garage doors that must have come across the "poison perimeter" and not made it very far. :)

So far I am pleased and since I barely used anything out of this enormous jug, it will last a while. Should I want to retreat every month, it still might last me a whole year. And since I paid less then $10 for it (I used a coupon too!) I have saved myself over $290! ($75 every 3 months x 4 for a years worth of professional service is $300!)

Do you pay a pest service or do you DIY?

See more Saving Tips!

Money-saving tip! Household uses for vinegar that will save you money!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Here are some tips on how to use vinegar and other low cost ingredients for common household problems. saving you money on more expensive remedies!

• Baking soda and vinegar make a great drain cleaner. Pour about a half a box of baking soda (a whole box for a badly clogged drain) and 1-2 cups of vinegar. Let it "fizz" for 10 -15 minutes. Then flush with a small pan of BOILING water. It's certainly cheaper than Draino!
• Boiling water and vinegar will kill WEEDS and ANT BEDS. Pour on vinegar and then the hot water.
  
• Use 1/2 - 1 cup of vinegar in a load of wash to brighten whites or colors. Also if you wash a load and forget about it you can wash the load again with 1/2 - 1 cup vinegar to get rid of that nasty smell (use 1/2 the detergent you normally would along with the vinegar to keep it from smelling like vinegar)
• Vinegar also cleans coffee pots. Run half a pot of vinegar through the coffee pot. Then run another full pot of water before making coffee again.

Do you use vinegar for around the house jobs?

Saturday's Saving Tips: Save on vacation!

Vacations are expensive! But there are a few ways you can cut down on the expense - accommodations, attractions/entertainment, food and souvenirs.

Accommodations are what they are and you usually get what you pay for. But you can use sites like Travelocity to compare prices on rooms in a certain area (this is how we picked our hotel when we went to Gatlinburg last year) and usually, the further outside a certain area you get, the better rate you get. (Just make sure there won't be too many additional expenses like parking fees if you stay farther away from your main attraction.)

How about food on vacation? I'm all about saving money on food! Here are my tips for saving on food when you are traveling:

• If you are staying in a condo with a kitchen or a suite with a kitchenette, then take groceries! (Try not to buy too much at your destination because you'll end up paying more! Milk and maybe eggs if I'm planning on fixing breakfast, are usually all I buy once we get there) Pack cereal, snacks, drinks, quick breakfast foods, microwavable meals, sandwich stuff (all bought with coupons of course!). Also, with access to a kitchen you can take the ingredients for any 'simple meals" your family enjoys (think one-skillet meals like hamburger helper). Aim to eat breakfast and one other meal in your room each day.
• If your room doesn't have a kitchenette, try to get a room with at least a mini-fridge and a microwave. Take paper plates & bowels and plastic spoons. Take plenty of your family's favorite snacks and drinks. You can still make breakfast in your room - bagels, cereal, oatmeal (if you have a microwave - or a coffee pot! Just heat the water in it!) You can still aim for the eat-two-meals-a-day-in-your-room with just a mini-fridge and microwave. Cup-o-soups and soup or chef boyardee bowls can be heated in the microwave. Sandwiches are still a great choice too. If we are at a beach location, I fix breakfast in the room then we go to the beach or pool and come back to the room for lunch. Then we clean up to go sight-see and eat dinner out. If we are in the mountains, then we do our site-seeing during the day and eat lunch out. Then we have dinner back in the room.
• Pack a cooler for the trip down. You can save time and money by "picnicking" in the car on the trip down. Pack foods that are easily eaten in the car. Premade sandwiches or wraps, tuna or chicken salad, chips, cheese and crackers, grapes, bananas, apple, sandwhich crackers, etc.

A family of four can eliminate and average $20-$30 of spending for every meal they eat in instead of out at a restaurant. Even fast food adds up when you're feeding four! On a 4 day trip, eating 2 meals a day in your hotel room could save you $160-$240!

What about the fun stuff when you get there?

Daily Deal sites are a great way to save on attractions and entertainment. Just subscribe to deals from the city you will be vacationing in. You might get lucky and catch a deal on tickets to the amusement park or museum you were wanting to visit on your trip. We are wanting to go to Chattanooga, TN soon I'm subscribed to deals from there. Hoping to get a good deal on Aquarium tickets!

And finally, souvenirs! Every parents worst nightmare with a price tag! How do you save money on souvenirs?

• This seems to popular among people I know that vacation at DISNEY: You can always find Disney-themed toys at the Dollar Tree (for just a dollar!) and other stores very cheap. Buy up these things ahead of time and take them with you. Then each night after the kids are asleep, lay out a treat or two for them to find in the morning. Or find some reason to have to go back to the room and get dad and the kids to wait in the lobby and you can set the treats out to be there when you get back.
• For BEACH trips: You can also score on Dollar Tree items before the trip. Flip-flops, sun hats, sunglasses, bucket and shovels, beach balls, water guns, etc. Get all these things before you go and distribute them as needed on the trip.
• Other themes: For our Chattanooga trip, we will be staying at the old railstation downtown because Bug LOVES trains! So there are a few train themed things we'll be doing plus going to the aquarium. He's only 2 1/2 so the pressure to buy souvenirs isn't too bad. But I will have some train-themed goodies and some aquarium related things to pull out as needed on the trip - new things that he hasn't seen before - so this should satiate his need to "have" something new!
• Just say no. Do you REALLY need the 64oz souvenir cup that glows in the dark? Probably not. ;0)

How do you save money on vacation?

Money-saving Tip! Easy way to build your savings!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip helps you start your savings even when money is tight!


Have money automatically put in your savings account. Sometimes it's hard to "save for a rainy day" but it's an important thing to do!! My husband was laid off two years ago when his company shut down. He was without at job for almost a month. If we had not had money in our savings account, we would not have made it. Years ago, I set up our account to automatically take money from our checking account and put it in our savings account every time we get paid. I get paid on the 15th and the 30th. My husband gets paid every Tuesday. Our checks are direct deposited, so the same day they enter the bank our account moves a set amount to our savings account. It's there and I don't even have to think about it! In fact, when I balance the checkbook at the beginning of the month, I go ahead and write in that month's automatic savings amounts. So when I look at my account ledger, that money is never even really there because I went ahead and wrote it "out" at the beginning of the month.
No amount is too small. If you can only do $5 or $10 per paycheck, do it! It adds up! And over time you can increase that amount!

How do you save for a rainy day?

Find more money saving tips!

Money-saving Tip! Don't let that water just go down the drain!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip is a nifty way to not waste water when you're waiting on it to heat up!

• If you need hot water for something, don't just let the water run and wait until it is hot. As soon as you turn on the faucet, fill up a pitcher or a container until the water is hot and use this water to water your plants, fill a humidifier or a pet's water dish.

Money-saving Tip! Creative ways to brown bag your lunch!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tips are lunch ideas when you just can't bear the thought of another ham sandwich!

• If you always have extra meatloaf left over, freeze individual slices. Pack a slice of the frozen meatloaf and some bread in the morning and it'll be thawed by lunchtime for a delicious meatloaf sandwich!
• When you're cooking your chicken for Chicken Quesadillas, cook some extra and refrigerate them. They're a great topping for a lunchtime salad.
• If you have access to a microwave at work, hot dogs are another option. Hubs LOVES to take hot dogs to work for lunch! (I know, weird, right?) If you have extra ketchup and mustard packets from take-out lying around, this is a good use for them!

What do you like to take to work for lunch that's not the "norm"?

Saturday's Saving Tip: Budget Billing for your Utilities

I got my power bill in the mail yesterday and I was reminded of why I love Budget Billing so much!

• Budget Billing through the power company
  Does your electric company offer budget billing? Mine does (Alabama Power). What it does is average your power usage over the course of 12 months and then each month you pay the average. It helps protect you from fluctuating costs when your usage is higher from one month to the next.

Se, we had an unusually mild May this year. I have pictures of Gavin playing outside in mid-May with pants on, it was that cool. (In the South, pants are usually packed up by the end of April!) It really didn't get hot until the last week of May. So our power bill for April 19-May 18 was low. Like around the $140 range. But because we have Budget Billing, we paid our normal $160. The overage goes into our "difference". You always want your difference to be "negative" because that means you are using less than you're paying for and when they reevaluated your bill (twice a year) your monthly payment will drop!

But when it gets hot in the South, it gets HOT! We were pushing triple digits by the first week of June. And it hasn't let up! I've tried very hard to only run the air when necessary, but when it's 102 outside, what can you do? So our power bill for May 19-June 20 was $222.59. Wow...what a jump! (It wasn't all because of running the A/C - a couple nights the outside lights got left on allll night and I wasn't really on top of my game about turning lights off and all. But it was mostly the AC.)

But thanks to budget billing, we still only paid $160! AND our difference is still -$6.63. It was $69.22 - so even though over the last we months, we paid $69 more than we use, it was a little over time so that when our usage jumped $80, it didn't affect us at all!

Hopefully I can redeem us this month!

Do your utility companies have a similar program? I'd love to hear about it! I wish the water company had a similar policy!

Money-saving Tip! Ask for a discount!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip is when, where and how to ask for a discount:

Two summers ago (before we were a no cable family) I saw an ad for Directv for a promotion they were running for new subscribers. It was DIRT cheap! I was mad because we've been a Directv customer for 5 years and I felt like I was paying for the people who were getting it this cheap. So I called Directv and politely explained how I felt and that I too wanted a good deal for being a good customer. Well, while I didn't get the dirt cheap price, I did get $5 off my bill for the next 6 months!
Another example, I was having my oil changed on a Monday evening. The place I was having it done has Ladies Day on Tuesdays and ladies get $5 off their oil change. While normally, I would try to go on Ladies Day, I was waiting on a prescription to be filled at the pharmacy down the street and needed something to kill the time. The manager came to my car and said, "Tuesday is Ladies' Day and we give all the ladies that come in a rose." And he handed me a rose. I said, "Thanks and since I got the rose, can I get the discount too?" And you know what he said, "Sure!" So, see, sometimes, it's as simple as asking!

So check around - Ladies Days, Senior Days, Military Days can save you money. Sometimes all you have to do is ask!

Money-saving tip! Stocking up on meat and more...

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip is about stocking up on meat!

When family-sized packs of ground beef go on sale, grab an extra pack or two. Divide them into one pound portions, wrap in foil and place in a freezer bag (squeeze all the air out) and freeze for three months.

You will generally pay less per pound when you buy in bulk (this is also true for chicken and porkchops). And you'll waste less if you divide them into manageable portions. I know for our little family, 3/4 of a pound is sufficient for hambuger helper, spaghetti, chili, etc. I just make sure I divide it up and freeze it as soon as I get home from the store so I don't wait too long. You want to freeze it at the peak of it's freshness or it won't be any good.

Money-saving tip! Make your own baby wipes!

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip is making your own baby wipes!

Make your own baby wipes
Take a roll of paper towels and cut in half. Remove cardboard core after cutting. Place in empty wipes tub. Pour in two cups baby oil and one cup water. Close container and let sit until mixture has seeped into the paper towels. Feed center of paper towels through hole in the lid. Done! You should be able to make two boxes of wipes for under $4!

Saturday's Saving Tip: Keep your car stocked when you're on the go

When it comes to saving money, no amount is too small. When you find a money saving tip that works for you, run with it! All those little savings add up.

Today's tip is about saving money when you're out on the road - to-and-from ball practice, running errands, etc - you know, those days where you feel like you spent all day in your car!

It's so tempting to swing through a drive-thru for lunch or grab a snack at a convenience store. But that's not saving money! What can you do instead?

Pack healthy snacks and bottled water in the car.

Yes, it takes a little planning. But if you make it a habit, you can save big! During the winter it's nice because you can keep drinks in the car and they will stay cold. But in the summer, keep a small cooler or insulated bag in the car. Freeze a couple bottle of waters and toss them in the cooler with some juice boxes for the kids (you won't even need ice/ice packs if the waters are frozen!). You can also pack snacks in the car (that you bought frugally, of course!) to prevent you from having to pick up non-frugal items while you're out.

I've even gone so far as to toss a few lunchables or sandwiches in the cooler if I know we'll be out at lunch time. We "pause" our errands and stop at the closest park and eat our lunch. When you are out all day running errands with a 2 year old, this is a fabulous idea! Lunch outside, a few minutes to play, it helps keep Bug from melting down in the next store if we stop and do something "fun". And I love that I don't have to spend $10 at McDonald's to feed us while we are out! This would also be a great idea for after ball practice - since you're already at the park anyway, why not picnic?

Saturday's Saving Tip - Save on gas!

Gas prices are RIDICULOUS! Can I get an amen on that?

So, we all need to figure out how to use less.

Here are some tips to consider:

Adjust your work schedule. If you have a flexible job, you could try working longer days four days a week in exchange for having an extra day off. Cutting out one days commute will save you on gas!

Check the pressure in your tires. Under inflated tires make your car work harder and burn more fuel. Most express lube places will check this and add air for free.

Fill up your car in the morning before it gets hot. Supposedly the hotter it is the more the gasoline is lost to evaporation. This affects how much of it actually makes it into your tank.

Plan your errands. Think about everything you do in a normal week. Do you really have to get out on Saturday morning to go to the post office and drop off the dry cleaning? Or can you do those things on the way to and from work? Think about the places you go and see if you can consolidate your location.

For example, when I do my shopping (and you know, "shopping" means a couple drug stores and a couple grocery stores because I'm always hunting for the deals!) I was going into my local town for CVS and Walgreens trips and then getting on the interstate to go to the next city over to go to Winn-Dixie and then stopping at Publix on an alternate route home. I was driving 60+ miles round trip in a big circle to do my shopping! Then I found a different part of town that has a Walgreens, CVS, Winn-Dixie and Publix all together! I get on the interstate just a couple miles from my house and at the exit I get off is a Walgreen's, 2 miles later is the CVS and 2 miles after that the Publix and Winn-Dixie are across the street from each other! It's about 20 miles from my house to the Winn-Dixie (the farthest point on my route) so 40 miles round trip. I just cut my driving by 20+ miles AND it doesn't take me as long!!

Pick one day a week to commit to staying at home. Just not cranking your car one day is saving gasoline. When you start consolidating your errands, you just might find that you have a day you don't have to go anywhere!

Take advantage of gas card deals. For example, a few weeks ago, Publix was offering $10 off a $50 gas card if you bought at least $25 worth of groceries (of course, pre-coupon price!). So that saved me $10 on gas! And CVS is giving free gas cards with qualifying purchases all summer!

Saturday's Saving Tip - Have a yard sale!

It's that time of year again for yard sales! I love yard sales! I love having them and I love going to them!

I am having a yard sale this weekend. Well, I am participating in one. All I have to do is show up with my stuff which is a good option for me this year. Less time and planning involved than trying to have one here.

I thought I'd resurrect my post from last year on How to Have a Good Yard Sale for you to read in case you wanted to have one too! It's a great way to clear clutter and make some extra $$$!

Yard Sales are a great way to clear out some clutter and generate some extra cash. The best yard sale I've ever had was last year and I made over $250! I'm geared up this year to have another one! I came from a family of "yard sellers". I'm pretty sure I've been through 25+ yard sales my whole life including the 6 I've done since moving out on my own.

Here is what I've learned:

• List your yard sale in your local paper and give GOOD directions!

• Make GOOD signs that look alike. I use hot pink posterboard. (You can find hot pink, electric yellow, neon green and fluorescent orange posterboard in the arts and crafts or school supply sections of most retailers.) Whatever you pick, make each sign the SAME color. That helps people looking for your yard sale to find you when they know what signs to follow.

• Make your signs BIG with thick BLACK lettering. List in your ad what color your signs are so people can spot them and follow them.

• Price EVERYTHING. Nothing is more annoying than having to ask how much everything is. Be reasonable with your prices. Remember, people who frequent yard sales are looking for a bargain. They are more likely to buy more when the prices are good. To me, it's about getting rid of the stuff FIRST and what I make off of it second.

• The more you can spread your sale items out, the better. I hate yard sales where someone has 5 or six big boxes and you have to dig through them. Hang clothes up on a portable clothes rack, along a fence or makeshift clothesline. Set up tables to lay out smaller items so people don't have to bend over to look through everything. Short on tables? Use your boxes! Flip them over and lay stuff on top. This is great for shoes or purses.

• Profit from the summer weather. Have a cooler with can sodas and bottled water. Sell for 50c each. If you have a stockpile of sodas and waters just use those. If you want, keep track of what you make from selling drinks separate and you can put that money back in your grocery budget.

• Have a rain plan. I always list "rain or shine" in the ad because I have a garage. Two years ago it rained on my yard sale day and I still made $120!

• Go in with a friend or neighbor who wants to sell stuff. Have a yard sale together.

• Have PLENTY of CHANGE. I start out with at least $30 in ones, $30 in fives, $10 in quarters, and $5 each in dimes or nickels.

• Offer a bargain. I always have a 10c box for all those things that don't feel like it's worth my time to price. T-shirts, belts, athletic shorts, tank tops, makeup bags, change purses, kitchen utensils, koozies, pot holders and socks are all things I've put in a 10c box before. I throw it all in boxes and put a sign on the boxes. (This is where I break my "spread everything out" rule. But I do make sure to group like items together.) Last year, I had a lady spend $2 on things from the 10c boxes. I always put magazines and books out as 25c each or 3 for 50c.

• Be prepared for haggling. Yes, you will put 50c on a pair of shorts and yes, some lady will ask you if you'll take 25c. Give it some thought ahead of time about what you'll waver on and what's firm. Anything under $1 I will usually take what they offer me. Large items I usually price a little more so I can haggle. For example, one year we sold a pushmower. We wanted $60 out of. I priced it $75 so I could negotiate down. We ended up selling it for $65! Some people feel like they get a better bargain if they get you to come down on the price. If I had price the lawnmower $60 that guy would've still asked me to take $10 off. But I wouldn't have because I wanted $60 out of it so I probably would've lost the sale. But don't price too high or people won't even ask. I couldn't have priced that lawnmower for $100. People would've just walked away.
  

• Push your merchandise! When customers arrive, greet them and ask if they are looking for anything in particular. If someone is looking through your collection of rock band t-shirts from the 80s that you've priced $1 each, tell them if they are interested in them they can have them for 75c each or buy 2 get 1 free. Tell the guy thumbing through the box of car magazine that he can have the whole box for $2. Be friendly. Chat. Point out some of your larger items. "Could I interest you in an area rug today?" You want to sell, they want to buy. Work with it!

• Remember to arrange for pick up of what is left if necessarily. I call the Hannah Home (a local mission center that runs several thrift stores) to come pick up around 3pm on yard sale day. I always have my yard sales from 6-2. (Yes, I like early birds.) I put in my newspaper ad and on my largest sign out on the highwaye that everything is half price after noon. I've done this for 3 years and have GREAT success from it. People who see that come by after 12 for that reason. I've had morning shoppers to come back after lunch to get more deals. Usually after 12 your flow of customers will slow down. Now that I do the half price after noon I'm still getting a steady stream of customers!

Did I forget any yard sale tips? Leave me a comment below!

Happy selling!

Saturday's Saving Tip - "Pick Your Own" Farms!

If you are looking for a way to save some money with out having the care of your own garden, you can always visit your local Farm. Visit PickYourOwn and search for a local farm in your area where you can tour their farm, pick your own flowers, veggies or fruit all for a very reasonable price! We live near Cincinnati and I found 3 that are within driving distance for us to visit and pick our own!

The PickYourOwn site offers a ton of information! Below I included a farm in my area- they tell you exact location, what they have to offer and any visitor information you may need to stop by! They also have reviews from readers so you can see what others have to say about a local farm. Some farms offer a lot of options or they may specialize in just one produce.

Thanks Just Trying To Save Money! I knew there was a U-Pick Blueberry farm not too far from me that I wanted to visit this summer. I had no idea there are a total of SEVEN "pick your own" farms within a 20 minute drive of my house (2 of them are less than 10 miles!) I'm already making plans to take Bug to these this summer!!

Have your own garden that you want to share? Have any tips, ideas, pictures or just anything you want to share showing you getting dirty? Add the link to your post below, and if you want to share- copy this button and add it to your post. Your readers will then be able to see others gardening tips, ideas and pictures!! Don't have a blog? Leave a comment telling us about your garden!!

Saturday's Saving Tip - No Shampoo?

This post comes from my cousin and faithful reader of my blog, Tesla.  She blogs at "No 'Poo, Buckaroo!" about how she has ditched store bought shampoos and hasn't looked back!

I'll be the first to admit, the thought of ditching shampoo was a little scary at first. Every article and blog I'd read about it though was always positive and in most cases they never used shampoo again. When you learn about the damage being done to your head, it's hard to ignore it. People who had tried it before raved about how much more manageable their hair was and how easy it was to style it, and since I'm prone to really bad, annoying hair I figured I didn't have anything to lose. So why do it? Well, for me there were a few reasons.

1) Hair condition. - Shampoos contain some really harsh chemicals (like engine degreasers). As you wash your hair, the shampoo is stripping away your natural oils, which causes your scalp to work overtime to replace them. Going "No 'Poo" levels out your natural oils and gets your hair back to good condition.

2) Cost. - Shampoo is expensive. It doesn't seem like much, but spending $10-$15 dollars every few weeks for shampoo adds up. Think along the lines of $250 per year. That's $250 you could be saving or using to pay bills. I use baking soda and cider vinegar to wash my hair now, which cost just about nothing.

3) Pollution. - We really don't think about how much trash our world has scattered all about, or where our water goes after it flows down the drain. If I can prevent even a small amount of pollution, that's all that matters.

No, it's not easy and it takes a lot of dedication. But I've had some really awesome results though and I've always usually had bad hair issues all my life. I'm pretty excited about it. If you're interested in trying to go "No 'Poo", check out my blog.

I'd love to hear from anyone else who has gone "No 'Poo"!

Saturday's Saving Tips - How we live without cable/satellite TV

I've briefly talked about before how we have given up paying for satellite service at our house.  I wrote this more detailed article for my good friend, Kristin at Couponing to Disney.  I wanted to make sure to share it with you too!

How Our Family is Surviving without Cable/Satellite TV

So, after my husband went through his second job change in a year for an even lower salary, we had to take a hard look at our budget.  The only thing we had not cut back on was cable/satellite TV.  We had the bare bones package, with DVR and an additional receiver - this was costing us $75/month.  We had DirecTV and they have a great offer for those not sure if they're ready to take the full plunge into no TV.  You can "suspend" your service for up to 6 months.  This is what we did - hoping that the no TV situation would be temporary until we got back on our feet. 

Now, just because we aren't paying a DirecTV bill anymore doesn't mean we don't watch TV anymore.  Here's how we survive: