Monday, November 15, 2010

My New Toy


Check out my new garden toy!  I am so happy to be able to compost again.  I haven't been composting due to the fact that since we are currently renting there is no place to build a compost pile. 

Thanks to a program being run buy our township I got the wonderful compact tumbler style composter for only $50.  Now I did a little looking around and found a few compareable bins for anywhere from $110 to $260.  The idea is that the more people compost the less waste gets hauled to the dump.  This allows for less money being spent by thwe township on hauling and storing garbage.  It also increases the lifespan of the current dump.


Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Hot Stuff


I did have one plant that has surpassed all the others in terms of production.  No its not the zucchini plant... it is my jalapeno plant!  I have already picked 27 peppers off this plant and I figured it was done for the season.... but NO its still going strong!  If you look closely at the picture you can see tons of tiny peppers growing.  It's going to be a hot time at our house when they get done.  I think I'm going to lok for a recipe for jalapeno poppers and try my hand at making my own.  How good do you think they will taste with fresh off the bush peppers?

Monday, September 6, 2010

Don't Give Up On Me

I can't believe the summer is over already and I haven't posted my garden going ons once.  Yes I actually did some container gardening this year but I've been working so many extra hours that my poor blogs have been suffering. 

Well I did have some pretty good luck this year my zucchini did wonderfully.  I had five bushes and got 20 zucchinis from them.  most of my tomato plants did well.  My cherry tomatoes still aren't doing as well as I would like.  And I tried the topsy turvey this year and wasn't impressed.  It is very flimsy and the top piece of plastic broke while I was putting it together.  The hanging ring was too small and I had to get a larger one.  When filled it is too heavy for my shepards hook which I ended up bracing with the container that had the zucchini.  I also had to water about three times more often then my other containers.  I got about t tomatoes off the plant.  For the 10 bucks I paid for it I could have gone to thew farmers market and bought a bushel of tomatoes.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Back To Normal

Things are starting to get back to normal around here. My Hubby has gone back to work which frees up the computer for me to start posting again. The kids have started summer camp which is the biggest expense of getting a job but they get some good life experience from it so its worth it. They are remodeling the store where I work and its been very interesting to go into work to see whats changed. I have also taken on more responsibility at work (unfortunately it didn't include a pay raise) I now take care of the birds as well as the small animals. It's fun most of the time but it can be a pain in the butt too.

Now that I'm doing more driving running back and forth to summer camp I thought it would be a good time to do a little reusing here and repost the tips for saving gas.

Saving Cash Behind The Wheel

Find An Alternative Route

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

$10000

You may have noticed the quiet chirping of crickets here at the Crazy Green Cheapskate. (It's quiet on Cats and Dogs Turtles and Frogs and Plant Container Garden too). Well my hubby was working from home while the Merchant Marine Academy is between classes. So I am taking advantage of him being home with the kids to get some extr hours at work.
We have a Savings account that is only in my name and it is almost untouchable. There is no checks since it is a savings account. We have no ATM card or debit card for it. Basically the only way to get to the cash is to drive to New Jersey to the bank. This is where my pay check goes by direct deposit. Since we have no direct access to it we have no way to spend it so it has been growing. With the extra hours I've been getting we have now passed the $ 10000 mark.
I consider this paying ourselves to reach our goals. Which in this case will be a home when we move out of Long Island.
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Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Long Over Due Update

Its been a rather crazy couple of weeks. We went to Omaha for my hubby's graduation he just got his Masters degree. Yea Team :D My daughter is getting ready for finals and we had a massive spring cleaning here in the Crazy House. So needless to say I didn't get much blogging done and now I have a bunch of stuff to talk about and so there will be plenty of posting today on all my blogs.

Lets talk Omaha first. Now it has never been what I would think of as a vacation spot but if you are going through the area spend a few days there. The zoo is amazing (sorry I forgot to take the camera so no pics) but here is a quicky link so you can check it out: Henry Doorly Zoo. We also took in the Durham museum which had a great exhibit on natural disasters and the history of the area. The last day we took in the the Strategic Air and Space Museum andhere is a quicky link for that too

All in all it was a pretty good trip.

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Interesting Store Visitor

We usually just get dogs visiting our store but today we had this wonderful bearded dragon come in. She happily sat on her owners shoulder while talking to us.
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Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Rather Expensive Recycling

I like the TerraCycle company their use of old soda bottles and such to sell their worm tea is a great was to recycle plastic bottles without having to shred them up and melt them into little plastic pellets to become something new.

But this idea is a little off the mark and I'll tell ya why I think so. They are recycling old yogurt containers into little herb gardens for kids. While that may sound nice its rather expensive for what you get. I saw these at Walmart for $2.50



What you get is three old yogurt containers filled with dirt and a few seeds added. Why would you PAY $2.50 for that? You can easily just save your own containers fill them with dirt and lets your kids pick their own seeds which you can get as low as $ .99 for about 50 seeds. Use a few seeds in each container and save the rest in an air tight container to use again next year at no extra cost! I showed a picture of my seedlings growing believe it or not in the exact same containers and I'm reusing them this year to grow more seeds.


Monday, May 24, 2010

Make It YourSelf Monday

This is a first time recipe for me but it is something I've always wanted to try but thought it would be too difficult. It turns out it's really really easy and extremely tasty. Today's Recipe is the Crustless Quiche. I got the directions from about.com under the low carb diet section (for my hubby on Adkins)

Crustless Quiche:

Ingredients
4 Eggs
1 to 1 1/2 cup liquid ...I used whole cream but you can use milk, unsweetened soy milk or condensed milk.
cheese
other ingredients depending on what flavor quiche you want. We used bell peppers onions and beef (cut small into very small chunks)
Preheat oven to 375

1st thoroughly cook other ingredients (not the eggs milk and cheese)


2nd place cooked ingredients in 9' pie pan and cover with cheese

3rd blend eggs and cream together
( I used 1 1/2 cups next time I think I'll use just 1)


4th pour over ingredients in Pie Pan

Last Cook in oven for 30 to 45 min
quiche is done when a knife inserted into the middle comes
out clean. If it browns on top too fast
cover with foil.


ENJOY

Friday, May 21, 2010

A Most Welcome Visitor

This guy has been hanging out in my garden. I've been trying for wweeks to get a shot of him but he is very fast. Today though I was able to get very close. 5r is still a little hard to see since he is half in shadow and I was using my cell phone to take the shot.

I'm very happy to see him. Not only will he be eating garden pests right and left but he is a good indicator of the health of the environment. Not as good as a frog would be but there is no available water source for a frog so I'll take what I can get.
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Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Sustainable Ecosystems and Community News:

The Myth of Mountaintop Removal Reclamation


I found a very interesting article over at ENN and thought I would share it with you. It definitely makes you think twice about those new Coal Commercials that try and convince us how environmentally friendly coal is.

Sustainable Ecosystems and Community News:

Posted using ShareThis

Monday, May 10, 2010

Make It Yourself Monday

I hate to admit it but my hubby and I use to love the On -Cor Salisbury Steaks. I also hate to admit that before the kids were born we could polish on a family pack by ourselves. Yeah I know kind of why I'm working on the weight loss bit now.



Now a days I make it myself and I have to tell you it's a whole lot tastier then the stuff in the box. The Recipe I use comes from a set of cook books my hubby got from his mom. It's the Woman's Day Encyclopedia of Cookery (copyright 1966)

I don't even know if this set is still in print but you can have the Salisbury Steak recipe cause I'm going to share it with you .

Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Sauce

1 lb beef chuck, ground
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 can chopped mushrooms drained (feel free to use 1 cup fresh)
2 Tbls butter
2 Tbls Flour
1 tsp curry powder
1 Cup Water
1 beef bouillon cube

Mix meat, salt, and pepper and shape into 4 patties. Pan fry in lightly greased skillet until it reaches desired doneness. Remove from the skillet and keep hot. Cook mushrooms in butter for 2 or 3 minutes. Blend in flour and curry powder. Add water and bouillon cube; cook until smooth and thickened. Pour over meat patties and serve.

Makes 4 Servings

This is a simple recipe to make and beats the boxed stuff hands down.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Don't You Love ...

Don't you love company scare tactics to separate you from your money?

I was at the gym the other day when I looked up at the TV and saw a commercial for this


This is the Lysol no touch Hand Soap System. On the commercial they showed the HORROR of your regular pump soap. OMG look how many germs on on that pump.

AAAAHHHHHH RUN AWAY


UMM So What?

You are about to USE a product that is designed to kill the germs on your hand other wise why use it?

Lysol wants you to be scared of the big bad germs so you will buy their more expensive soap pump.... which by the way wastes more plastic and batteries. Save your cash and just buy a bar of soap. It's cheaper and just as effective at killing germs as the more expensive stuff.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Make It Your Self Monday

A couple of weeks ago I posted a recipe for Baking Mix. Today I'm going to share a couple easy recipes using it.


PANCAKES:

2 Cups Baking Mix
1 Cup Milk
2 Eggs

1 Heat skillet or griddle and spray with cooking spray.
2. Stir all ingredients until mixed well.
3. Pour 1/4 cup on to hot skillet for each pancake and cook until edges are dry flip and brown the other side.

For variations add 1 cup chocolate chips, blueberries, strawberries, apples and 1 tbls cinnamon, or our personal favorite 1/2 cup white chocolate chips and 1/2 cup smashed banana.

BISCUITS:

2 1/4 Cup baking mix
2/3 Cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. Mix ingredients until you get a soft ball of dough
3. Place dough on flour covered surface and coat turn to coat. knead and roll until 1/2 inch thick.
4. Cut using biscuit cutter.
5. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake 8 to 10 minutes.

You can also make drop biscuits by dropping spoonfuls on to cookie sheet instead of rolling out and cutting.

CINNAMON COFFEE CAKE


Topping:
1/3 c baking mix
1/3 packed brown sugar
1 tbls cinnamon
2 tbls firm butter
Mix all dry ingredients together then cut in the butter until mixture is crumbly.

Cake:
2 cups baking mix
2/3 cups milk or water
2 tbls sugar
1tsp vanilla
1 egg

1. Heat oven to 350
2.Grease a 9 x 1 1/2 inch round baking pan
3. Mix all ingredients until blended and pour into pan.
4. Sprinkle with topping and bake 18 to 22 minutes.

You can make this Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake by chopping up a small apple and putting it on top before the topping.

Friday, April 30, 2010

Happy 2nd Annual Save the Frogs Day



I just read this morning that today is Save the Frogs Day. I didn't know if I should post this Here since its environmental or on Cats and Dogs Turtles and Frogs, since it's about Frogs... so I'm compromising and posting it on both.
Frogs are one of the best indicators of whether or not an environment is healthy since they are the first affected by changes. If there are no frogs then you know something is wrong!

According to the ENN (Environmental News Network) There will be activities in 15 counties around the world. Including protests against restaurants that sell frogs legs. Apparently over 100 million wild frogs are captured and killed for their legs. YUCK!

Another thing they are trying to bring to light is the use of the herbicide Atrazine. which is linked to the chemical castration of male frogs. If you want to read the whole story check out ENN.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Things are Kind of Slow

Things have been slow around here and I'm sorry there haven't been as many posts as I want to make. I've been wanting to do a make over of my blog and have been trying to decide on what to do. Here are a few updates from older posts I made

I didn't make it a month before needing to go shopping. Since my Hubby decided to do the Atkins diet I kept having to go back for things like eggs, more meat and salad stuff. I still think in the long run this is the best shopping plan for us but I'm going to wait until he is off the induction phase to go back to it. Until then I'm going to practice matching ads to the coupons I have. I've very lucky to have several grocery stores within one mile of the house so I can hit all of them for their sales without wasting gas.
Wait loss... I've lost 17 lbs so far. I'm hoping to get under 200 ..... yes unfortunately I'm over that ... by June. They have a spring ball at the Merchant Marine Academy where my Hubby works and I don't want sore feet at the end of the night from the damn high heels. My second goal in that respect is to lose enough weight to trim these ample hips enough to fit into a Kayak. My Hubby has agreed that if I lose the wait then that would be my prize!

Well That's about I have to head off to work. For the most part I like working at Petco. It's alot of fun working with the animals and helping people pick out just the right pet. The best part is my whole pay check is going straight into the bank for a down payment on a house when we move.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Make It Yourself Monday

I love places like Buffalo Wild Wings and Wings Stop but lets face it your paying a lot of money for those little tid bits of chicken. Well the Hubby has been craving some wings and we cant really go to a wings place because we can't really tell what's in there that might not be so Atkins friendly for his diet. So Here are a couple of tasty wings recipes to make at home whether your on Atkins of just love wings as much as I do. Enjoy!

Lemon Pepper Wings
2 lbs. chicken wings
1/2 c. lemon juice
1 whole garlic clove (4 slices chopped) 1 tbsp. pepper
2 tbsp. salt
1/4 c. vegetable oil

Place wings in bowl; pour on Sprinkle on the salt and pepper then pour on the lemon juice, and oil; stir.
Marinate for 2 hours at room temperature, stirring occasionally to keep coated.

Wings may be barbecued or baked 20 to 30 minutes, basting occasionally.


Hot Wings
We bake our wings so this recipe is based on that
Bake thawed wings for 25 to 30 minutes (for a little extra crispy spray with cooking spray). While they are baking mix together Hot sauce below. After wings are done toss them into the sauce and coat thoroughly. We always bake ours for an extra five more minutes but if you want to do this be careful because hot sauce vapors can clear the house lol.

Hot Sauce for Hot Wings: ¼ c butter
¼ c hot sauce 1 dash black pepper
1 dash garlic powder

Mix the butter, hot sauce, pepper and garlic powder in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir together and heat until butter is melted and mixture is well blended. Remove from heat.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Bikes For Africa


I will be the first to admit that a lot of times people let me down. If you watch the news you see every type of inhumanity that a person can commit. On the roads people ignore the laws designed to keep up safe so they can get one car ahead, one second closer to the "important" place they just have to be.

Then there are the teens at Wheatley High School. I met them today as they spent their Saturday collecting bikes for people in Africa. I recycled two of our bicycles with them today. The kids had outgrown them and they have been sitting in our garage since we got to New York. They will be sent with the other bikes collected to help people in Africa get around. Whether to work, get to school, collect firewood or water they will have a way to get it done faster and safer.

Can you think of a better recycling program then this?

Want to learn more here is a quicky link to their website: Bikes For Africa

UPDATE: The site used by the Wheatley School Teens is www.ghanabikes.org . Thanks Melissa!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Spring is such a busy time

As you can see I've started some seeds. I figured I would try to use up some of the seeds from last year and had a little success. Most don't seem to be doing much. The one in the corner I'll be transplanting today into one of the yogurt containers I saved from last year. It's running out of growing room in the little seedling green house.
I started some romaine lettuce too but it's looking a little scraggly since I forgot to water it. Hopefully it will bounce back.

Earth Day Photo Collage

ENJOY







HAPPY EARTH DAY

Today is the day lets all sing:



HAPPY EARTH DAY TO YOU!
HAPPY EARTH DAY TO YOU!
HAPPY EARTH DAY DEAR EARTH!
HAPPY EARTH DAY TO YOU!

Time to celebrate what will you do today (and every day) to show your love of the planet that keeps us alive.

Here are 10 Easy ways to show the Earth some love:

1. Walk... Where ever you need to go today leave the car behind and hoof it.

2. Plant an organic garden... whether flower, veggie, or cactus... a garden with no chemicals dumped on it will help every living thing.

3. Set up a bird bath. Our feathered friends do more then sing for us in the spring. They also help control the bug population so give them a place to drink and bath.

4. Check your plumbing.. leaks are the biggest waste of water there is.... next to having grass in the desert :P ... REALLY PEOPLE YOU HAVE TO TRY AND GROW GRASS IN THE DESERT?

5. Help ban the spraying of mosquitoes. I truly believe this practice will kill us all. They spray this poison in the air to kill mosquitoes and kill every other insect as well. Nature has her own way of controlling them. If you want to help ma nature along then get together with your community and place bat houses and purple martin houses around your neighbor hood. These are hunger predators that just love mosquitoes. Then make sure you are emptying any container that holds water to prevent them from breeding around your home. Even that bird bath I suggested in number 3 should be cleaned every day!

6. If you are still drinking bottled water then take a walk to the nearest store and buy a reusable container... what are you waiting for they have already done studies to show that most bottled water is only tap water in a bottle . So save money and the environment and skip the plastic.

7. Replace your light-bulbs.... ok I know you have been procrastinating but today is the day to finally get around and put in those money saving compact fluorescent bulbs.

8. Write your congress person. Lets face it there are a lot of things that need fixing in our government when it comes to the environment and the only way they will listen to us instead of the big business that are padding their re-election funds is if everyone is united on the need to fix the problems.

9. If you haven't started yet the get that compost pile started. This is natures own recycling system and it saves you money ....Think FREE Fertilizer.

10. Stop junk mail -- To help stop junk mail, write to: Mail Preference Service, Direct Marketing Association, 11 West 42nd St., PO Box 3861, New York, NY 10163-3861. By writing to them, you can help reduce junk mail by up to 75%. the recycle the rest.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Make It Yourself Monday

I love baking mix it makes cooking so much easier. I even have the Bisquick cook book. I didn't like the ingredients in Bisquick so I started surfing the web to find a home made substitute. I found this one on a site called Bisquick Recipes (not actually sponsored by Bisquick). But along with how to make your own Baking mix they have plenty of ways to use it. When I get off my diet I"m going to have to try the chocolate cobbler.


Baking Mix:


Ingredients

8 c. Flour

1 1/4 c Nonfat Dry Milk Powder

1/4 c Baking Powder

1 Tbls Salt

2 c Shortening

Take baking powder, milk, flour and salt in a large pan and mix well. Cut the shortenings in it till it resembles the coarse corn meal. Store in tightly closed containers in dried cool place.

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Being green and cheap doesn't mean sacrificing comfort it just means finding a better way to do it! Now its time to cut those energy costs while still staying cool this summer.
  • Try whole-house fans help cool your home by pulling cool air through the house and exhausting warm air through the attic. They are effective when operated at night and when the outside air is cooler than the inside.
  • Set your thermostat as high as comfortably possible in the summer. The less difference between the indoor and outdoor temperatures, the lower your overall cooling bill will be.
  • Use a programmable thermostat. it will allow you to set the A/C to a warmer temp when you are not at home to save electricity.
  • Don't set your thermostat at a colder setting than normal when you turn on your A/C. It will not cool your home any faster and could result in excessive cooling and, therefore, unnecessary expense.
  • Consider using an interior fan in conjunction with your window A/C to spread the cooled air more effectively through your home without greatly increasing your power use.
  • Don't place lamps or TV sets near your A/C thermostat. The thermostat senses heat from these appliances, which can cause the A/C to run longer than necessary.
  • Plant trees or shrubs to shade A/C units but not to block the airflow. A unit operating in the shade uses as much as 10% less electricity than the same one operating in the sun.
  • Consider planting a large deciduous tree on the southern side of your home. The leaves will shade your home in the summer and when the leaves fall will allow the sun to warm it in the winter

Monday, April 12, 2010

Make It Your Self Monday

Just in case you this is your first visit to my blog. My Children are on the Feingold Diet. This Diet removes Artificial Flavors and Colors and certain preservatives from you diet. We started this diet when my daughter was in 1st grade because her teacher wanted to have her diagnosed with ADD. We decided to try everything else before even considering Drugs. For us this diet has worked wonders with about a 95% improvement in her behavior. That being said we had to give up alot of premade items that you get from the store and start making things by hand. Well I've decided to share some of those recipes with you. I have found that homemade is not only cheaper but it taste better too. Today I'm going to share a few of our simple favorites just to get things started and as I go along I will try to include pictures of the finished dishes..... now where did I put that camera???

My friend M. gave me this recipe.
Hot Chocolate Mix:

INGREDIENTS:

* 1 cup baking cocoa
* 2 cup granulated sugar
* 5 1/3 cups powdered milk
* A dash of salt
Mix all ingredients well and store in an airtight container. (recycle an old jelly or peanut butter jar.)

To Use:

Put three or four teaspoons of mix into a cup, add hot water and a drop of vanilla. Stir well.

Now you will notice that once you've made it, it is just as easy to use as the store bought stuff.


My son is a lover of Taco's he would eat them for every meal if he could and this next recipe is great to have on hand when making any thing take on a Mexican flare. I found this recipe in a cook book I got from the library... Unfortunately I didn't write down the name of the book just the recipe so I can't give credit where credit is due...

Mexican Seasoning Mix

1/4 cup flour
2 T. chili powder
1/4 cup onion powder
4tsp salt
4 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp oregano

Place all ingredients in a blender and cover. Blend for 5 seconds or less until powdery (don't over do it) Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months. (Save up those old spice containers to use for your new found mixes.)

3 Tablespoons = 1 package of taco mix.

And the last recipe for the day is another easy to use seasoning mix. I got this from the same book as the last one..... I think I will have to go back to the library to see if I can find it. I might even add it to my permanent collection.

Italian Seasoning Mix

1/4 cup dried basil
2t. dried sage
1/4 cup dried thyme
1/4 cup dried rosemary
1/4 cup dried oregano

Once again place all ingredients in a blender and cover. Blend for 5 seconds or less until powdery (don't over do it) Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Enjoy

Saturday, April 10, 2010

10 Ways To Promote Covservation in Your Daily Life

I received this list from the World Wildlife fund when I donated to them and though it was a pretty good list to share with everyone.

1. Don't buy furniture or decking made of tropical hardwood (like mahogany) unless it has a Forest Stewardship Council label. The FSC label guarantees that the manufacturer abides by established environmental standards for sustainable and well-managed forests.

2. When possible, choose and electric company that does not produce power from polluting sources such as fossil fuels and nuclear fission.

3. Replace standard light bulbs with energy- efficient fluorescent. (This reduces emissions by 500 lbs per year per light bulb.)

4. Install low-flow shower heads that use less water (This reduces emissions by up to 300 lbs per year.)

5. Plant local species of trees.

6. Buy only those seafood products that have the Marine Stewardship council label. The MSC label guarantees that the manufacturer standards for sustainable and well-managed fisheries.

7. Avoid air fresheners and other perfumed products. Freshen your air by opening windows or using baking soda, cedar blocks or dried flowers.

8. Buy organic cotton clothing, fruits and vegetables and other goods to reduce the use of toxic chemicals.

9. Wrap your water heater in an insulating jacket. (This reduces emissions by up to 1000 lbs per year.)

10. Buy a car that gets at least 30 miles per gallon. (This reduces carbon dioxide by 2500 lbs per year, compared to a car that gets 10 mpg less.)

DON'T FORGET EARTH DAY IS APRIL 22.

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

10 Free Ways To Save Water

As you know the motto of my blog is Save Money Save the Environment.... Ok well maybe I never said it but it makes a good motto don't you think?

Here is my Top Ten List on how to save water (which saves you money) and not spending any money to do it.

10. When washing dishes by hand, don't let the water run while rinsing. Fill one sink with wash water and the other with rinse water. Or better yet do what I do... (This is with the understanding that with the first solution you will have to dump the rinsing water to get fresh soap free water at least once.) Place silverware in sink fill with just enough hot water to cover. Then when you rinse do it over the sink that the silverware was in to allow enough water to cover the plates or bowls. Then wash the plates or bowls and rinse over the same sink to allow the fresh hot water into the sink. Wash glasses and rinse the same way. Then you will have a nice hot sink full of soap water to do the pots and pans. Rinse these in a separate sink or drain the sink some to allow for the water. This way the rinse water is getting a second use as wash water wasting less water.

9. Adjust sprinklers so only your lawn or garden is watered and not the house, sidewalk, or street. This is assuming you are not currently in a drought in which case to Hell with the Lawn save all the water. I would advise planting local plant that require less watering but this is things you can do for free.

8. Do laundry or run the dishwasher only when they are full. You can save up to 1,000 gallons a month.

7. Use the garbage disposal sparingly better yet set up a compost and put your food waste there instead. (except meat and dairy which isn't suppose to go down the disposal either!)

6. Keep an eye on your water bill. A sudden increase may indicate a leak some where.

5. Water your lawn and garden in the morning or evening when temperatures are cooler to minimize evaporation. Use a drip hose and get the water directly where you want it with out the evaporation from being tossed through the air from conventional sprinklers. Also don't water on very windy days the water won't be going where you want it too.

4. Use a broom instead of a hose to clean your driveway and sidewalk and save water every time. You'll get some wonderful free exercise as well.

3. Turn off the water when soaping up in the shower and save several gallons of water. Also turn off the water when brushing your teeth....but then again you already knew that didn't you.

2. When you give your pets fresh water use the old water to water your house plants. This includes the nutrient rich water you remove from your fish tank when adding fresh water.

1. Fix those leaks... Every drippy faucet, running toilet, and drippy shower. Don't forget to check outside as well as in for leaks.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Spring is in Bloom

A few Spring Blooms for you to enjoy!











Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Need To Know Information

I've been wanting to get an early start and plant some seeds so that after the last frost I can put them in the ground. The problem is knowing when I can expect to be frost free.

SO... I googled it!

What I found was a nifty little site called Dave's Garden. Which has all kinds of gardening information including a look up by Zip Code of the First and last freeze/frost date. Here was my results:

Each winter, on average, your risk of frost is from November 14 through April 1.

Almost certainly, however, you will receive frost from December 2 through March 20.

You are almost guaranteed that you will not get frost from April 13 through October 29.

Your frost-free growing season is around 227 days.

So I think I'm safe to get started and by the time the date for the last possible frost comes and goes I'll be all set with a healthy batch of seedlings.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

New Bike

I got a new bike this weekend. Sorry I don't have a picture of it. Its dark now and I didn't think of it when I sat down to type.

I'm so excited I'm going to start biking to work and the Library. Though I'm going to have to be extra careful since there are a lot of drivers around here that are total road jerks. I want to save money and stop wasting gas not end up in the hospital.


Luck for me there are plenty of side streets to take to get there so I can avoid the majority of the traffic. It's also pretty quiet in the mornings, its the afternoons where I will have to be extra careful.

I still plan to stop at the gym on the way home so I'll get a double dose of exercise each day. Oh by the way I"ve lost 13 lbs so far. GO TEAM GO lol.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

FAILED

Well this months 1 only shopping trip was a bust. My hubby decided to go on the Atkins diet and hit the store for a bunch of meat he could eat while the rest of us eat what I have planned. Well I figured not to count that since he is trying to lose weight. But he went again today because he decided he wanted more soda and came home with a trunk load of stuff. So much for planning


I'm not giving up though! I still have plenty of time till next month to plan so I will try again then.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

DONT FORGET

Tonight is the night don't forget to turn your clocks forward for DAYLIGHT Saving Time. Everyone except those of you in Arizona and Hawaii since you don't participate.
I miss living in Arizona it was nice not to have to worry about Daylight saving time twice a year.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

So Far So Good

Well just a quick update... so far no extra trips to the store but I'm going to have to break down and go for some dog food. When I asked my daughter Sam how much we had she said plenty and instead of double checking... Not because I think she would lie to be but because sometimes children have a hard time making such estimates... I didn't add it to the list. Well now we are just about out so tomorrow after work I"m going to have to make a quick trip.


If I can just get the dog food and leave I will still consider it a success. I tell you this because maybe a little guilt will help me avoid those impulse purchases.

Thursday, March 4, 2010

The Final Results

Well I hit the store and $295 dollars later I have almost everything I need.

What am I missing?

One key ingredient for one of the meals my daughter picked. She asked for General Tso's Chicken but I couldn't find the little dried peppers for the recipe. I'm going to have to hunt down a speciality store to find them I think.

Alterity Button Jewelry From All Buttoned Up Left me a couple questions so I'm going to answer them here for everyone.

Her Question: What do you do when the milk spoils and the veggies get yucky? The answer:

First I looked for the milk with the longest experation date. I found some that is good until April 18th. We will have cereal at the beginning of the month and bagels muffins waffles pancakes and what every at the end of the month when the milk runs out. I have a box of powdered milk for any recipe that calls for milk. No one notices the difference in flavor when its all mixed together. Though personally I don't find anything wrong with the flavor of powdered milk but the hubby doesn't like it so I only use it for baking. This also helps save money since powdered milk is cheaper.

As for the veggies the plan is to eat the fresh fruits and veggies at the beginning of the month and switch to frozen and canned at the end of the month when the fresh runs out.

Since I"m waiting a month to go shopping again it gives me time to gather more coupons for the stuff I use regularly so hopefully I'll save more when I have to buy more on the next shopping trip. That will be important since for this trip I had plenty of items already in the house for the meals that we have planned.

I'm also going to place a running list on the fridge so everyone can write down things we run out of as we go along. This will help save time at the end of the month since I won't have to check everything to see what we need.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Today's The Day

I'm hitting the grocery store today.

The plan... Get 1 month of groceries and not go back until next month. I've been preparing for this trip for the last couple days.

I've taken inventory of what we have to include cat food and litter, dog food, shampoos and soaps and cleaning supplies not to mention food. I want to make sure I don't have to go back for anything!

Next I got together with the kids and let them pick several meals to have during the month. The list includes Pizza, tacos, chicken and dumplings, spaghetti and meatballs, mac and cheese, plus many other kids favorites. My daughter wants General Tso's chicken so I've been combing the web for a recipe.

Then I made my shopping list to include the ingredients for the suggested meals, the meals I've chosen to fill up the rest of the menu and breakfast and lunch box supplies. I'm going to be using my crockpot on the days I work so I don't have to worry about making dinner when I get home.

The last thing I did was clip the coupons I have that correspond with the shopping list. If I don't need it I didn't clip it! Now I just have to gather up my shopping bags and hit the store after I take the kids to school.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Second Catalog

This one is from Gardens Alive. It has all sorts of natural garden supplies to help organic gardeners. I have really been enjoying looking through it.


I found the Mason Bee nest and the information about them fascinating. They are suppose to be 95% more efficient at pollinating and don't sting. Sounds like a definite plus for a gardener.


They are so sure you will like them that then sent this coupon with it.

It's $25 dollars off no matter how much you spend. So if I spend $20 then I get it free. Definitely a plus for someone who is trying to save some cash.

Friday, February 26, 2010

Be Careful What You Wish For

I love the snow and I"ve been complaining all winter "Where's the Snow Where's the Snow" Well we got hit again. It was so deep this morning that I had to jiggle the back door back and forth to get it open. I couldn't even get the front door open.

But I do love the snow. It makes everything look like magic. Its so quiet and peaceful even the trains rushing by is hushed. I was out shoveling snow early this morning and there was no about. The plows hadn't even come through. When I got tired I would just stand there and listen to the quiet. If i listened really hard I could hear a car passing a few roads away. But it seemed for that moment all the world was at peace.
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