frugal

4 Moms: Favorite frugal tips

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

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May 10, 2012 By kimc

This week we 4 moms of many are sharing some of our favorite frugal tips. I’m already busy making this harder than it has to be, asking myself if ”favorite” means the tips we enjoy the most (or complain about the least), or the ones that save us the most. Or maybe our favorites would be the most creative ones, that make us happy just because we thought of them. Maybe our favorites are the ones that are so deeply ingrained as habits that we don’t even think twice about them, but then it gets really hard because we might be utterly unaware of them and then how would I tell you about them?

And if it’s hard to decide on the criteria for the word favorite, how about a definition for the word frugal? This blockbuster post on Frugal Hacks reminds us how widely our definitions can vary, and maybe when I decide which frugal tips are my favorites you’ll just snort derisively and mutter, “She calls that frugal?” Or you might be horrified and send the link to all your friends: “Can you believe she does this to her own family?!”

Now that you’ve been exposed to all my deepest self-doubts and neuroses, I’ll share a few of my best tips for stretching a single income in a double-income society. Some may seem too obvious, but I suspect much depends on where you’re standing and what you already do or know.

Save on food:

Cook from scratch. If you already do some scratch cooking, expand your skills by tackling new recipes: Enchilada sauce, pizza crust & pizza sauce, tortillas, biscuits, pancakes. This adds some work in the kitchen, but cuts your grocery bill and simplifies shopping because you buy greater quantities of staples like flour but less individual items like canned biscuits, bread, english muffins, bagels, and pancake mix.
Buy in bulk but always check unit prices. Bigger isn’t always cheaper, so don’t get fooled.
Shop the specials but check unit prices again. Not everything in the weekly sales flyer is a good deal.
Always watch the prices as your items are rung up. I get overcharged on at least one item almost every time I go to the store, especially sales and clearance items. If you catch the mistake before your order is finished, it’s easy to fix. It’s much harder if you wait and have to go through customer service.
Use what you buy. It seems obvious, but even a great deal is a waste of money if you don’t use what you buy.
Do some menu math. You might be surprised at the results.
Drink milk and water. Juice may have a few vitamins but is loaded with sugar – natural or otherwise. You get much more bang for your buck by eating fresh fruit. Other drinks have little or no nutritional value, so the less you drink of them the better.
Learn to eat meatless meals. Don’t make the switch all at once if you are heavy meat eaters, but begin having a meatless meal every now and then. Skimp on the meat in regular dishes, and teach your family to see it as a garnish rather than a main dish. It could be that your family won’t miss the meat at all!
Avoid eating out. Even a cheap meal out usually costs much more than eating in, so do your best to avoid eating out. It’s fine to treat your family to a restaurant meal, of course, but make it a planned event. Don’t let it happen by accident or default just because you failed to plan.

Save on repairs:

Take care of possessions. Reduce the need for repairs by taking good care of the things you own and use.
Ask how you can save on a repair. Some shops will let you order and provide the parts for a repair, just charging you for labor. If you can find a better deal on the parts than they offer, you can save some money. Prices are often negotiable, too. You’ll never know if you don’t ask.
Do your own repairs. You can do many of your own repairs on autos, appliances, furniture, walls, plumbing, and more. Don’t know how? Learn. The internet is a wealth of free information at your fingertips. If you need to actually see how a repair is done, YouTube is a wonderful resource.
Borrow tools for repairs. If you need a particular tool that you aren’t likely to use often, ask around for a loaner. Besides your own friends and acquaintances, Home Depot and Auto Zone often loan specialty tools for free.
Make it last or do without. Use cars, appliances and other big-ticket items as little as possible to extend their lifespan. When it’s time to repair them, ask yourself if it’s really worth the cost. How much would you miss it if you chose not to repair it?

Save on clothes:

Shop secondhand. If you’re used to buying new, secondhand stores may give you the heebie-jeebies at first, but that feeling passes. Thrift stores can be a great resource for high quality items for far less than you would pay for a new cheaply-made counterpart. Some items are brand new and still have tags from local retailers. We routinely find shoes that retail for hundreds of dollars in thrift stores for $10 or less. I have 2 pairs of boots that I absolutely love: one cost me over $100, and the other pair was like new for $4 (but retails for nearly $200). I bet you couldn’t tell which was which.
Enjoy hand-me-downs. Let it be known that your family appreciates hand-me-downs, and you may never need to enter a thrift store – except to drop off donations. Many people would prefer to give their children’s outgrown or out-of-favor clothes to someone they know rather than donate them to a business, but they need to know that you want them. Brag up the adorable bag of dresses that ____ passed to your daughter, and others will know that pride doesn’t stand between you and a new free wardrobe.
Plan ahead. Don’t wait until summer to hunt for a new summer wardrobe. Whether you’re shopping new or used, it pays to plan ahead. Great prices are easier to find at the end of the season than the beginning, so think about what you’ll need next year.
Repair and remodel. It doesn’t take mad sewing skilz to do minor repairs. Even some very impressive alterations take more creativity than skill. Get outside your comfort zone and you might be shocked at what you can do. Check out what Kaitlyn did in less than 10 minutes to pretty up a plain t-shirt.
Extend the life of your clothes. Washing and drying is hard on fabric, so if it’s not dirty don’t wash it. When you do wash it, consider hanging it out to dry rather than using the electric dryer. You’ll save 3 ways: less electricity, less wear and tear on your dryer, and your clothes will last longer.

Save on purchases:

Don’t fall victim to SOS. Shiny Object Syndrome is a dangerous disorder that can wreak havoc on your budget. If it’s new and cool, force yourself to wait and make a careful decision after the excitement has worn off a bit.
Don’t just ask yourself if you’ll use it. Go a step farther: ask yourself if you need it, or if you’ve truly missed having it. Did you just realize you wanted it when you saw it on the shelf, or is this a great deal on an item you’ve been looking for?
Shop around. Don’t assume that a sale – or a thrift store find – is a great deal. Take time to check prices, or make sure you already know prices when you are shopping for an item. If you weren’t already shopping for the item, you probably don’t really need it right now.
Know the return policy and save your receipt. Leave yourself room for buyer’s remorse, and be ready to act on it. Even many thrift stores allow returns under the right circumstances.
Don’t fall victim to the spend-to-save fallacy. Some deals make you feel like the more you spend, the more you save. Stop and think: if Option B leaves less money in your pocket than Option A, it’s probably not a savings.
Eye buyer’s insurance with deep suspicion. There’s a reason stores offer you those extra insurance policies, and it’s not out of the goodness of their hearts. They profit on the deal, which means somebody loses on the deal. The odds are against you, so unless you have good reason to believe you might beat the odds, just decline.

And a bonus tip: Don’t be shy. Ask for discounts. Ask for add-ons. Many prices are negotiable, and you’ll never know unless you ask. Negotiating is a dying skill in the US, but is alive and well in much of the world. Help bring it back! Be courteous, but bold. Smile when you make a request, and thank them whether or not you get what you asked for. Here are some phrases I have used successfully:

I would love to have this, but it only costs $8.99 new. Can you come down on the price?
I think my daughter would really like this dress, but it has a hole here. Can you take something off the price?
I love the color of this shirt, but it has some faint spots – see? Can you adjust the price?
I’m looking for an oven like that. Can you do a little better on the price for me?
If I buy these 3 items, can you throw this in for free?

What are some ways that you save money?

Here’s what the other 3 moms say:

Connie at Smockity Frocks
Headmistress @ The Common Room
Kimberly @ Raising Olives

Upcoming topics for 4 Moms:

May 17 - Q&A
May 24 - Homeschooling when in a rotten temper

4 Moms serve dinner for 50 cents/person {linky}

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

March 8, 2012 By kimc

4moms35kids 4 Moms serve dinner for 50 cents/person {linky} You’ve heard of $5 dinners, but they usually feed 4 or maybe 6 people. Today, the 4 Moms are going to try to do better. Really? Is it possible to make dinner for $.50/person?

In an attempt to reduce our grocery expenses without sacrificing healthful eating, our family has learned to eat many meatless dinners. This doesn’t mean we skimp on protein, though. We are hearty eaters, and we love our protein!

Beans and homemade bread are one answer that is both obvious and hearty. Two pounds of dry pinto beans from WalMart cost about $1.30 – call it $2 to allow for generous seasoning. A pot of beans can be surprisingly varied if you learn to season them differently. Meat is nice but not always necessary. $1.50 would be enough to make 2 loaves of sweet rich Challah bread or a big pan of cornbread and a little butter. That leaves us $2.50 for some fresh veggies – right now, that would buy 2 lbs. of carrots, 1 lb. of roma tomatoes, and 2 cucumbers.

Beans and cornbread together provide a substantial amount of complete protein, but not everyone wants to eat a pot of beans every day and maybe your family doesn’t like beans as much as we do. Surely we can be a little more creative.

How about pizza? We can’t have all the toppings we want, but let’s see what we can do with our budget.

Let’s make enough dough for 4 large pizzas. Sometimes I make more because I like to plan for leftovers, but 4 is plenty even when we’re famished and today we’re on a budget. Salt is cheap, and since I get flour (8 cups) and yeast (2 Tbs) from Costco and I don’t always use oil in my pizza dough, that’s just 60 cents so far. Let’s allow some oil for the pans, though, to make the crust nice and crisp: 50 cents will provide 2 Tbs. of butter or olive oil for each pan.

Easy Frugal Pizza Crust

makes 4 large pizzas

3 cups warm water
2 Tbs. yeast ($.08)
2 Tbs. salt
~8 cups flour

Combine water, yeast, salt and 2 cups of flour. Let sit 10 minutes, until bubbly and active. Stir and knead additional flour to make a firm dough. Knead by hand or in machine until smooth and only slightly sticky.

Let rest 10 minutes or up to 24 hours. Divide into 4 parts and pat onto large greased pizza pans or cookie sheets. Top and bake immediately, or prebake 10 minutes at 300 to finish later.

Add pizza sauce made from a gallon can of tomato paste (we season and freeze 1 cup portions, then add water and simmer until we’re ready to use it) for 50 cents (19 cents is the paste; the rest is the cost of spices).

We’ll divide 6 cups of grated mozzarella ($3.75 from Costco) between 3 of the pizzas, and make the 4th into breadsticks to dip in the extra sauce. Many people enjoy cheese pizza so let’s leave one plain. We still have 65 cents for additional toppings – 2/3 lb. of turkey sausage can be divided between 2 pizzas, or we can afford 1/2 diced onion, 1/2 bell pepper and a few sliced mushrooms.

Breakfast for dinner can be fun and frugal. We occasionally have pancakes and eggs when we find the dinner hour upon us without a plan.

Pancakes to feed a dozen

makes 50-4″ pancakes for $2.35

5 cups flour ($.35)
2 tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. salt
5 cups soured milk – 2 Tbs vinegar plus milk to make 5 cups ($1)
5 eggs ($.50)
1/2 cup oil or melted butter ($.50)

Combine dry ingredients. Add milk, eggs and butter, then mix just until smooth. Drop onto hot lightly greased griddle and cook until bubbles appear. Flip and cook until done.

We like to top our pancakes with butter ($.50) and a little sprinkle of brown sugar rather than syrup that’s full of HFCS.

Add 2 dozen eggs ($2.50), fried or scrambled, and you have a fun & filling dinner with plenty of protein for less than $6. There are no veggies this time, but maybe you had fruit with breakfast and a big salad for lunch. :)

More Dinners for less than $.50/serving:

Bean & cheese burritos. Cook your beans from scratch, but buy tortillas if you have an inexpensive source. We pay $1/20. Serve with diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, cheese, and salsa.

Spaghetti, salad and fresh bread. Make your own sauce from that gallon can of tomato paste, and skip the meat if you can live without it. Set out 1/2 lb. of grated mozzarella to sprinkle on top.

Taco salad. Serve homemade seasoned black beans instead of meat, along with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, crushed tortilla chips, salsa, and a little sour cream if we have it.

The other moms are talking about it today, too.

Smockity Frocks

Common Room

Raising Olives

How does your budget compare? How can you or how would you feed your family dinner for 50 cents/person?

Link up with us, and please remember to play by the linky rules:

You must link to a specific relevant post on your blog.
Your post must include a link to at least one of the 4 Moms blogs.
The post you link to must be completely family friendly.

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Upcoming topics for 4 Moms:

March 15 – How to save memories without being overrun
March 22 – Q&A (watch for your chance to post questions on Facebook)
March 29 – Making time to manage the budget
April 5 - Do you plan out blog posts? How do you manage blog time?

Comparing online tax preparation companies: H&R Block vs. Turbo Tax

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

February 4, 2012 By kimc

I’m getting ready to file my tax return for last year. We think that income tax should be abolished – after all, America grew and prospered all the way into the 20th century without an income tax – but we do the standard American tax ritual.

We have filed our tax return online for many years, and we went back and forth between Turbo Tax and H&R Block. We had no problems with either, and both were very easy to use. Both asked all the relevant questions and walked me through the process online, step by step, allowing me to save my progress and pick up where I left off if I didn’t want to do it all in one sitting.

One year when we had a particularly complicated return – several businesses and an out-of-state rental that we owned – I used both sites to compute our taxes and compared the results before actually filing the return. H&R Block found a deduction that Turbo Tax missed, changing our refund by $300 for the better. Since then, we’ve used H&R Block but I try to compare the 2 regularly and nearly always come up with the same numbers.

I love that both offer free filing, and even if you have too much income to qualify for free filing, each lets you go all the way through the process and only requires payment when it’s time to hit the Submit button.

Here’s my question for you: Do you think people who file online are crazy? Have you used either or both? Which do you prefer? I would love to have your input in the poll below, and I would love to hear more about your opinion and/or experience in the comments! Maybe you can convince me that I don’t need to take time to fill out my tax refund twice, if there is a clear winner.

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The links above are affiliate links, so if you use either company through the link I’ll get a commission. If you want to give them a try but don’t want to use the affiliate links, direct links are below. Don’t worry; I’ll never know the difference. :)

H&R Block

Turbo Tax

Filed Under: blogging & technology, frugal 20 Comments

Linky time: I want your best bean/lentil recipe

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

May 18, 2011 By kimc

Last week I paid over $3.50 for a gallon of milk, and my panic button finally went off. It’s been a while since I totaled my grocery expenses, and I really don’t want to do it now. I find it comical that the government excludes the cost of gas and groceries when they tell us we are not experiencing inflation on any significant level. It’s comical the same way a really, really bad day is comical: if I didn’t laugh, I would have to cry. Can they be any more obvious in the slant of their figures?

But I didn’t start this post to complain about the economy. I just want to keep the food budget under control, and I want to do it without resorting to ramen noodles, so we’re going to eat less meat, more beans and learn to use lentils. Beans are great for diabetics (we have one) and proved to be a miracle cure for my morning sickness, which I hope to experience again someday in the near future. We already enjoy beans, but I know we’re missing a whole world of variety when we limit ourselves to pinto beans with ham or taco seasoning. I want you to broaden our world with your favorite recipes!

Please join in by posting any or all of your favorite recipes for beans and lentils, then link up below. Extra points for meatless recipes!

Remember your linky manners:

Link to a single relevant post on your blog, not the front page.
Link back to this post so that your readers can join the fun.
If you find that your link is deleted, you probably broke one of the rules above. Feel free to try again.

pf button Linky time: I want your best bean/lentil recipe

Filed Under: food, frugal 45 Comments

Want to learn to make money with your blog?

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

April 19, 2011 By kimc

That’s the topic of my new series over at Frugal Hacks, thanks to 5 separate inquiries from ambitious friends and acquaintances. The first post went live today: Monetize Your Blog, part 1. Go see, and give it a link if you like it!

pf button Want to learn to make money with your blog?

Filed Under: frugal 1 Comment

Psst…cash giveaway over at Frugal Hacks

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

November 6, 2010 By kimc

I share a list of my favorite frugal articles from around the web nearly every Saturday over at Frugal Hacks. This week I decided to spice it up a little by offering $10 to whoever submits a link to the best article!

If I get a good response I just might do it this way every weekend, so show me what you think by participating and spreading the word. Pleeease?

Filed Under: frugal, giveaways & deals 1 Comment

Stirring up trouble…

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

January 23, 2010 By kimc

I just added this little gem to my Frugal Quotes generator:

We live in a strange society. The Bible says that debt is a curse and children are a blessing. But we apply for a curse and reject blessings. Doug Philips

You can see the script in action here, but if you want my script on your blog just pop over to Frugal Hacks and look in the sidebar to grab the code. Once installed, it will show any of over 100 different random quotes about debt, frugal living, and other wise and witty bits of financial advice and commentary. As I add new quotes on my end, they will show up on yours too.

script provided by Frugal Hacks

Cool, huh?

Filed Under: blogging & technology, frugal 5 Comments

No shampoo update: 7 months and counting

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

October 27, 2009 By kimc

It’s been a long time since I mentioned the no-shampoo thing (I just can’t bring myself to call it no-poo), because I’ve adjusted very well. The initial adjustment was tough, but that was largely because of the learning curve and my horrible hard water. Maybe somebody out there can learn from my experience and have an easier time of it.

There are a few pros and cons, but overall I think my hair and scalp are much happier and healthier. Saving some money is a nice perk, too.

MY PRODUCTS

soda water

To prepare my soda water, I boil 2 quarts of water. Then I turn off the heat and slowly stir in 1/3-1/2 cup baking soda. Once it cools, I pour into a large empty dishsoap bottle. This makes it easy to open and close, and easy to apply. I keep this right in the shower, like a bottle of shampoo. 2 quarts is enough for at least 8 uses, even with my long thick hair. For those with less hair, it would go much further.

Try just stirring together baking soda and water first. If you don’t have freakishly hard water, you probably won’t need to boil yours like I do. But if you find that your baking soda just sits like grit on your head instead of dissolving while the natural oils stay in your hair, try boiling. The soda water should feel slippery rather than gritty, and the oil should just rinse away.

vinegar rinse

My “conditioner” is just diluted apple cider vinegar in a second dishsoap bottle. I don’t measure. I just pour ~1/2 cup in the bottom of a 1/2 gallon bottle and add water to fill.

White vinegar works too but apple cider vinegar seems to be milder and has a more slippery feel to it, so it leaves my hair feeling more conditioned.

MY ROUTINE

Most of the time I put my hair up when I shower. About every 3 days, I decide my scalp is getting oily or dirty enough to benefit from washing. On these days, I use soda water to wet it down. I don’t know why, but I find it works much better if I don’t wet my hair first with plain water. Although my hair is long and thick, it only takes ~1 cup to thoroughly wet my scalp.

I don’t worry about the rest of my hair – that doesn’t really get dirty, and does gets plenty clean in the process. I just wet down my scalp and scrub gently to work in the soda water. I have a tendency toward dandruff in certain areas so I pay special attention to those areas.

After washing with soda water and rinsing with plain water, I squirt about 1 cup of this throughout my hair and gently work it in. It should feel slightly slippery. One more rinse and I’m done. I’ve learned not to worry about lingering vinegar smell. It dissipates as my hair dry.

PROS AND CONS

My hair used to be so oily that even 24 hours between shampoos was a little gross. I had dandruff nearly all the time, only barely hidden by frequent shampooing and trials with dandruff shampoos. At first I tried to go a week between washings. That was simply too much, and made the transition harder than it needed to be. Now I wash about twice/week. For the first time since I was little, after 3 or 4 days my hair just looks shinier than usual rather than having an oil slick on top of my head.

I have found that the occasional flakiness I get now can be brushed away. I think this is more of a natural shedding than the unhealthy scalp I had before.

My hair has a subtly different feel now, and I like it. It’s a bit heavier and more substantial. It feels thicker and is more obedient, even though I use absolutely no styling products. This always reminds me of the old saying, “I just washed my hair and can’t do a thing with it!” Now I know what they meant. My hair used to be so soft and slippery that I couldn’t keep it in a clip – it just fell right through. Now it’s soft but has some body to it. It also looks shiny and healthy, with none of the flyaway-frizzies that I used to get when I skipped conditioner. Weather affects it very little. No static, no frizzies, no flathead. Just normal happy hair.

One thing I don’t like is that the natural oils make my scalp attract dust and lint. I have to brush more often to keep it clean, and my brush gets a white greasy residue and has to be cleaned frequently. Yes, kinda gross, but I just remind myself that this is the natural oil designed to protect my hair from the elements. Frequent brushing helps distribute this oil to keep your head of hair sleek and shiny.

At first I missed the fragrance of shampoo and conditioner, but I quickly realized that I can add my own fragrances by applying a dab of perfume oil or a spray of cologne to my hair brush. The funny thing is, once I realized this I stopped missing it. Just knowing that could seemed to stop me from feeling “deprived.” I rarely remember to do it now.

I’m not one to jump in with every trend that comes along, and I thought this one sounded crazy when I first heard it. Now I have to admit there’s something satisfying about not being dependent upon commercial shampoo. It feels like the way hair is meant to be treated. Once I quit stripping my hair daily, it became hard to think about going back.

Have you jumped on the no-shampoo bandwagon?

pf button No shampoo update: 7 months and counting

Filed Under: crunchy stuff, frugal 44 Comments

Charlie’s Soap giveaway

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

September 10, 2009 By kimc

comments are closed on this post

We did our best to choose a winner randomly, but any Christian knows that Somebody is in control and there’s no such thing as random. That’s why I was delighted but not a bit surprised to find that the winner of last week’s giveaway for a free copy of Natalie Wickam’s Pajama School is

Tracey, who said:

I would love to win this! I would also love it if anyone that reads this would pray for me as my husband and I consider homeschooling our little ones who are not yet school age.

Thank you to everyone who entered, and please remember to keep Tracey in your prayers.

Don’t forget to enter Natalie’s fun and creative film-making contest to win a free pass to the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival, worth hundreds of dollars. What a great homeschooling project!

Next up: Charlie’s Soap.

We’re thrilled to be using Charlie’s Soap again after a brief excursion into making our own. Homemade was fun and easy, but as it turns out it does not work well in hard water, nor is it recommended for cloth diapers. If you have either, get thee some Charlie’s Soap pronto. It’s quite possibly the cheapest zero-residue laundry detergent on the market, getting things truly clean without a lot of fillers, fragrance or other fluff.

Charlie’s Soap is safe for HE washers, delicates, dogs, and nearly anything else you can think of.

Are you ready to try it? Don’t let me stop you from ordering some right now (tell them I sent you), but do take a moment to enter this giveaway. If you win, great! – you’ll have enough to share.

What’s up for grabs?

An all-expenses paid trip to laundry heaven. This Laundry Powder Combo Kit contains 80 loads of Laundry Powder, a handy Sprayer of All Purpose Cleaner, a Portable Emergency Stain Treater, a gallon refill of All Purpose Cleaner, and a stylish non-woven reusable Grocery Tote sporting the Charlie’s Soap logo. Retails for $51.92, and worth every penny.

How to enter

Visit the Charlie’s Soap website. Poke around the FAQ page, full of truly helpful questions and answers plus a healthy dose of good humor.

Then come back and leave a comment telling us why you need Charlie’s Soap or what you’ll be washing with Charlie’s Soap if you win. Be creative!

As usual, you can enter again each time you promote this giveaway:

blog it. Leave a comment with the link to your post.
facebook it. Leave a comment with your user-name.
twitter it. Leave a comment with your user-name.
become a fan of Charlie’s Soap on facebook. If you’re already one, that counts too. Either way, leave a comment with your user-name to tell us.
or really amp your odds of winning by doing all of the above! Just come back to leave a comment for each separate entry.

Ready? Set? GO!!!

Filed Under: crunchy stuff, frugal, giveaways & deals

We made it!

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

August 29, 2009 By kimc

This year we spent the entire spring and summer without a/c. Maybe you live up north and don’t have air conditioning, but we’re in south Texas. We’re farther south than the southern border of California. We’re way down there. And we did it.

We’ve had a record number of triple-digit days this year, but we made it. We only turned on the 2 little window units twice, for company, and all the windows were open at the time.

According to the forecast at AccuWeather.com, the high temps for our little town for the next 2 weeks should range from just 90-93 degrees, and then it’s just one more week until fall is officially here! That sounds positively comfortable. Maybe they’re wrong, but the very thought of sub-100 temps makes me giddy.

Do you know what else makes me giddy? The thought of all the money we saved by not running the air. We didn’t just save what we spent on air last year. This year was much hotter, so we would have spent much more. Ironically, we probably would have spent more and been less comfortable, since the little window units wouldn’t have been able to keep the house comfortable. They would have run constantly, but it would have been a losing battle.

Another advantage: we didn’t experience cabin fever. If the a/c was running, we would have spent all summer crowded together, huddled inside the stuffy house because it was 15 degrees cooler than outside. Instead, we spent a lot of time both inside and out – on the deck, on the trampoline, and visiting our new chickens. The kids explored the woods and climbed trees, and fashioned a makeshift seesaw out of a long plank and a paint scaffold. I still haven’t gone to look at it. I don’t want to.

And finally, not having a/c at home made leaving the house more pleasant. The a/c in our van works, but not well. To our acclimated bodies, it wasn’t bad. The desperate run from the air conditioned vehicle to the air conditioned grocery store wasn’t desperate at all. While others looked sweaty and uncomfortable, most of us felt very little inclination to complain.

Don’t get me wrong: there was complaining through the course of the summer. Some of us adapt more easily than others, and some are more prone to complaining than others. Some of us vacillate between the two groups. Some simply didn’t understand why were weren’t using the air.

It certainly wasn’t easy, especially at first. But it got better even as the temperatures rose. 100 now feels far more comfortable than 85 did in the early spring. God’s design for the human body is wonderful. We can adapt, and when the need presents itself we do.

In the end I feel triumphant. And I feel crisp and cool, even though it’s 7:30 PM and 92 degrees.

Now I’m wondering if we could adjust to winter temps without heat. I’m also wondering if the very suggestion would result in a mutiny. Maybe next year…

Filed Under: frugal 18 Comments

the Budget, and where my Chocolate falls therein

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

August 25, 2009 By kimc

Now that our 7 year stupid tax has come to an end, we’re putting our collective shoulder to the plow. Is that the right phrase? At any rate, we have embarked upon a new budget to help us pay off our remaining debts as quickly as possible.

It’s been many years since we had a formal budget. Generally, our budget plans have looked like this:

Pay bills.
Buy food.
Strive to resist unnecessary purchases.
Oops.

Now, our plan is a bit more detailed. We get paid on the 15th and 30th of each month. I’m leaving out most of the numbers out for the sake of privacy, but our budget looks like this:

15th

tithes – automatically deducted off the top.

cash – groceries, plus a modest amount of spending money for Perry and me.

gas - The plan is to put $60 in the tank every Friday. This gets us to town once for groceries and once for church, with a bit left over for unplanned trips. Hubby currently carpools with brother-in-law, so the cost of his lengthy daily commute is relatively small.

cell phones – we keep 3 on a family plan: one each for me and hubby, and one for the kids when we leave them alone to babysit. Our contract is up for renewal, but we’re toying with the idea of continuing on a month-to-month basis for maximum flexibility.

Netflix – we have the $8.99/month membership.

Samaritan Ministries – our alternative to health insurance. We also have dental insurance through Vision Forum for $80/month but this comes out before we ever see it, so it’s not included in the budget.

Any funds left over from this paycheck go toward irregular expenses (van repairs, dental bills, etc), emergency fund, & extra payments on debts.

30th

tithes – same as above.

cash – same as above.

gas – same as above.

house payment

short-sale balance – 18 month unsecured loan. We hope to pay this off sooner.

insurance – home, auto, life

electric – with no a/c or dryer, our bill has been very manageable this year!

notes:

We have a well, so there’s no water bill.

Our house is all electric, so we have no propane or gas bill.

We burn our trash, so no trash bill.

Our internet access generates some income, so we have the cost deducted from Paypal.

Obviously this will be tweaked and changed as the need arises, but it’s a plan. Already, we’ve gone over budget on gas. Hubby thinks we need to budget more for gas. I think we just had a few high-usage weeks in a row. At any rate, my orderly mind loves having a real plan, and hubby thrives on this as well. We are opposites in many ways and that’s often a good thing, but this is one area in which we are alike. That’s a good thing, too.

With a plan, we are forced to stop and ask ourselves before every single expense: “Where does this money come from? How do I categorize this?” Sometimes this is tricky: Does a shiny new kitchen gadget come from my spending money or the grocery budget? I think it depends on how badly I need it, and whether others in the house will use it too.

Other items are easier: a fountain drink comes from spending money. So do books. My personal chocolate stash will come out of my spending money, though some might contend that it’s a necessity and deserves a category of its own. Hubby might even feel motivated to use some of his spending money for my chocolate under certain circumstances. Ahem.

Our grocery budget includes all household incidentals: paper products, school supplies, pet food, minor auto maintenance, clothes, and charity. My last grocery trip included lots of edibles plus a bra, a box fan, chicken food, dog food, ant bait, silverware, etc. My rule of thumb is if I can get it at WalMart, it’s groceries. Yes, I extend this to include chicken feed, which I technically can’t get at WalMart, but you get the idea. Yes, I could also extend this to include chocolate, but I need the discipline imposed by my personal spending limit.

There are a few things about this new plan that just tickle me.

Our new birthday/Christmas fund is Swagbucks. We will either purchase from Amazon with gift certificates earned from Swagbucks, or try to sell the codes for $5 gift certificates at a slight discount.
Perry and I each have our own modest monthly allowances. This means that I can spend without ovarian guilt, something that is often difficult for me. I can stop for a dollar burger on shopping day if I choose without feeling like I really should have eaten before I left the house. I can add fries to that order. Not every time, mind you, but sometimes.
Now when I buy chocolate with my “allowance,” it’s really mine. I can hide and eat it without guilt. I will share, but it will be because I’m nice.
And when Perry and I are out together, he can gallantly pay the bill out of his very own money. I know, because he’s done it already. I could do it for him, too. That part is only theoretical because…well…I haven’t done it yet…but maybe I’ll bring him a big fountain drink the next time I’m out getting groceries.

Is it just me, or is there something exciting about embarking on a new budget? I can’t wait to pay bills, balance the checkbook, or pull a bit of cash out of the Food Envelope.

There’s something strangely satisfying about making a plan and seeing it unfold just as you designed it. There’s even something satisfying about revising a plan when things don’t quite the way you expected. I can’t quite explain it, but it makes me feel creative and responsible and capable. What can I say? Math is fun.

What do you think? Does that make sense, or should this post go under the Mom Is Neurotic category?

pf button the Budget, and where my Chocolate falls therein

Filed Under: frugal 13 Comments

Diapers

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

August 18, 2009 By kimc

pssst…

just a quick tip to let you know that I’ve been posting a bit more at my other blog. Go put in your 2 cents’ worth – I’d love to know what you think.

Cloth diapers: why I shunned them for 15 years. Why we switched.

Poll: cloth diapers

Filed Under: frugal, questions Leave a Comment

The good side of WalMart

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

August 14, 2009 By kimc

It’s Friday so I”m out getting groceries today. Consequently, you won’t be seeing much from me today. With an hour commute each way to and from town, groceries are an all-day affair.

If you’re wondering why you’re hearing from me right now, we just stopped in at Vision Forum for a brief nursing break and a visit with hubby. We’ll be back again when it’s time to pick him up and head home. I like this Friday routine. :)

I learned something good about WalMart today. I know a lot of people think poorly of WalMart for a variety of reasons, so it’s nice to have something nice to say about them.

I asked if they had any food-waste that I could have for my chickens, and they said no. I’m a big girl. I can take no for an answer. But here’s what I really appreciated: the manager came out to explain to me exactly what happens to each type of waste!

The meat is pulled and frozen on the sell-by date, while it is actually still safe to eat for several more days. They donate it to a local food pantry.
Unsold bakery/deli goods are also donated to a local distribution for the poor.
Any produce that goes bad before being sold is collected for a local wildlife preserve.

I was impressed. I’m not an environmentalist, but I do think we need to exercise good stewardship over the resources God gives us. This sounds like an excellent example.

I was even more impressed with the level of customer service displayed by the manager. She could have just had someone tell me no, but she took time out of her day to explain why my request was being refused.

Isn’t it refreshing when somebody can tell you no in a way that actually makes you glad?

Filed Under: crunchy stuff, food, frugal 9 Comments

Homemade Starbucks-style frappuccinos

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

August 10, 2009 By kimc

If you love Starbucks but can’t afford the habit, try my addiction instead. We’ve been sipping homemade cold coffee that tastes like the Starbucks-in-a-bottle for years, but now we’re taking it to a new level.

With our new blender (courtesy of Swagbucks), we are now serving them frozen. There are some definite perks to forgoing the a/c in South Texas. I have the perfect excuse to sip these treats all day long!

Each of my daughters seems to find her own area of expertise in the kitchen, and 11yo Megan has become our blender-meister. Here is the recipe she has developed for fraps.

Starbucks-style Frappuccino

makes 2 grande (16 oz each)

3 cups ice
1 1/2 Tbs. instant coffee - I use decaf. A good national brand tastes best, but even the cheap stuff will make you regret you ever paid $4 for a frap.
3 Tbs. granulated sugar
2 cups milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup heavy cream - Not strictly necessary, but makes it even yummier. Try this at your own risk.

Blend til smooth and enjoy. Drink with a straw. Remember to share, because this was 2 large servings.

options:

Mocha: add 2 Tbs. of unsweetened cocoa powder.
Java Chip: blend in chocolate chips
Caramel Macchiato: replace the sugar with a 1/3 cup of caramel sauce.
Get really fancy and top it with real whipped cream.
Try drinking it all yourself.

pf button Homemade Starbucks style frappuccinos

Filed Under: food, frugal 31 Comments

Frugal living

Current giveaway: Grandpa Jake's Campfire Cooker

August 1, 2009 By kimc

Debbie left a comment on this post about frugal living that I’d like to share because it was very encouraging to me. We are not crazy just because we don’t live the typical American-consumer lifestyle!

These are truly remarkable adjustments you have made. The added bonus is that should we reach a point when we MUST live without these conveniences we take for granted, it will not be the same shock to your family that it will to most.

I am currently visiting my son and family in Japan where the cost of living is through the roof and they are forced to be frugal. Last month this family’s water bill alone was $300 – JUST WATER. They think twice about long showers, extra laundry etc. Power and propane fuel is unbelievably high. I notice that they don’t dispense paper napkins, towels, etc. at home or in restaurants. We have come to rely so much on disposable everything and we waste so much in overpackaging – another reason to do more from scratch.

In Japan, they carry their groceries to the car, bus or train in reusable containers because they have to pay extra for a plastic or paper bag. Wouldn’t it be wise to start this before we have to pay for the luxury?

My son does the laundry and he hangs the clothes, often strung in bedrooms, kitchen and anywhere they can mount a rod or hang a plastic hanger. With lots of rain here, (and snow in winter in this part of Japan) they often don’t have the option of hanging outside. But, when they can there is plenty of support since everyone here is in the same boat – no snooty neighbors or ridiculous restrictive covenants that force unnecessary expenditures.

Where I live incineration is against the law due to air quality concerns. I remember having these in the 50s and early 60s. It really cuts down on garbage. The local restrictions can make it hard at times but in this valley we do need to make changes for the good of the community.

You probably use ceiling fans. I have installed these in two bedrooms as well as the living room and find them to be very helpful and cost very little. (Be sure they are switched the right direction depending on the season). How quickly we forget that we managed without A/C in the past – even in the car driving through the desert to Disneyland. I have no doubt that some places are worse than others without A/C or central heating. Here in northern Japan where climate is similar to Salt Lake where I live, only individual rooms are heated in winter when they are in use – thus the sliding walls and window coverings (paper, rice weave, bamboo, etc.). The children are very good at knowing to keep the rooms closed to conserve the energy and not let heat escape in winter. The same in summer but they only use A/C rarely in a single room. They have also learned that huge homes are not “needs.” There is much we could learn from different cultures.

I guess my suggestion is just to consider all we take for granted and realize much of it is habit; not necessity. (emphasis mine)

Frugal living is simply good stewardship in action, and is one of the ways we seek to honor God. It won’t look the same in every family and household, but we all need to live within our means and make the most of the blessings God grants us.