|
|
|
Hello,
If you have any last minute Christmas tips, feel free to send them in. Also if you have any cool Christmas or Holiday decorations that you would like to show off feel free to send in some images. You can send them as attachments to images@thriftyfun.com
Thanks for reading,
Susan
Christmas Topic Site:
http://www.thriftyfun.com/Christmas/index.html?mode=clear
Enter The New Tip Contest:
http://www.thriftyfun.com/contest.ldml
Frugal solutions to everyday problems: Submit a request...
http://www.thriftyfun.com/add.ldml
Holiday Travel Tips Ebook
Today's newsletter contains:
Today's Tips:
New Requests:
More Reading:
Search ThriftyFun Using Google: Click Here
Today's Sponsor
For more information... Click here
Today's Tips
Today's Family Tradition...
It had been a particularly warm winter that year in the 1980s, no snow at all. The temps were extremely high for the Buffalo, New York region. EVERYONE was depressed because of the lack of snow.
At church choir, we would be singing "The Snow Lay on the Ground" in practice, but it just didn't seem to fit the season. But this year, December seemed like May or early June. The weather forecasters were uncertain about a white Christmas. Playing "White Christmas" and hoping for the best was all we could do at that point. (except for those Grinches who didn't like snow!)
At our church at that time, the choir would sing for the Christmas program at 11 PM, then sing the entire Midnight Mass and then occasionally there would be the Mass of the Angels at 1 AM. So, dutifully, we went upstairs to our places and sang our hearts out. JOY to the WORLD, SILENT NIGHT, O Come all Ye Faithful... the glorious songs of times past and times present.
We sang from 11 PM until we went to downstairs for Holy Communion. I looked out the church window and coming down in HUGE fluffy snowflakes, was the season's first snowfall.
Silly as it sounds, we all rejoiced at seeing the wonderful snow in our own Winter Wonderland of Joy, a winter gift of nature to a group of warm-weary snow angels!
By Lois Ann from New York
View More Christmas Family Traditions
Share Your Christmas Family Tradition
View Article: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Grease a 8" x 8" square pan with oil and preheat oven to 400 degrees. If using a glass pan lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees (Fahrenheit).
Sift together the dry ingredients and stir to combine thoroughly. Cut the soy margarine pieces into the dry ingredients until the pieces of margarine are the size of small peas.
Put the tofu in the blender and blend until very smooth. Add the tofu and soy milk all at once to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened.
Pour into greased 8" x 8" square pan and Bake at 400 degrees for 20- 25 minutes.
By Anna
View Article: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.
Coat bottom and sides of a 9x9 baking pan with oil. Sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of the wheat germ, and spread evenly over the oil.
Combine 1 cup of the wheat germ, the flour, the cinnamon and the baking soda. Stir thoroughly. Add raisins and chopped apple.
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients mixture. Combine orange juice and vinegar, and pour into dry ingredients. Stir thoroughly, but no more than necessary to combine ingredients. Add 1 tablespoon of molasses
Turn batter into the baking pan. Bake at 350F for 30-45 minutes, or until lightly browned on top.
By Anna
View Article: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Saute pepper and garlic in liquid of your choice 3-5 mins, until tender-crisp. Stir in remaining ingredients, bring to boil, simmer 5-7 mins., till tender. Serve with rice.
By Anna
View Article: Click Here
Cure for Cheap Earrings That Irritate Your Skin
If wearing "cheap" holiday earrings irritates your pierced ears, put a dab of antibiotic ointment on your ear, front and back, before inserting earrings.
By Linda
Post Feedback: Click Here
Toasting Nuts and Oatmeal For Cookies
Toasting nuts or oatmeal before adding them to cookies enhances the flavor. Put them in a shallow pan and toast in the oven at 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes. Stir them every 5 min so they don't burn.
By Linda
Post Feedback: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
The amounts for this recipe vary with taste and serving size, feel free to add more or less.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Chop potatoes into small chunks, put in bowl. Add spices and oil and mix well. Spread on a baking sheet and throw in the oven.
It usually takes 20 minutes for them to brown, but check them often.
By Anna
View Article: Click Here
Always whip cream in a cold bowl with cold beaters. Pop them into the freezer for 10 min before you whip the cream.
By Linda
Post Feedback: Click Here
Eggs whites whip into meringue best if the eggs are slightly older and at room temp. before you beat them.
By Linda
Post Feedback: Click Here
If you really hate to bake, try dipping Oreos, pretzels, or dried apricots in melted chocolate to have some "homemade" holiday treats.
By Linda
Post Feedback: Click Here
While one batch of cookies is baking I prepare the next batch on parchment paper or foil. As soon as a batch is removed from a cookie sheet, the next batch, on the paper, is slid onto the sheet and goes right in the oven. Speeds up things a lot!
I make several batches of cookie dough, different kinds, one right after the other, without washing the mixer or measuring utensils. Saves a lot of time. Then I can bake the cookies or refrigerate some of the dough and bake them at my leisure.
By Linda
Post Feedback: Click Here
Remembering Which Ingredients Have Been Added
When baking, in order to remember which ingredients have been put into your bowl do this: Place all items to the left of your bowl. As you use them; move to the right of your bowl. You'll know what you've already placed in the bowl and everything on the right is ready to wipe down and put away.
By Marian
Post Feedback: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Begin heating about a cup of oil in a non-stick skillet.
Mix the corn flour and vegetarian chicken seasoning together. Lay the cake of tofu down. If it was frozen and you thawed it out, make sure most of the extra water is pressed out. Slice the cake of tofu into 8 slices about 1/2 inch thick. Dredge liberally in the corn flour/veggie seasoning mixture.
Lay the coated slices in the heated oil and fly until golden brown. Turn over, and fly the other side until golden brown. Drain, and season.
By Anna
View Article: Click Here
I now work from home but when I had a job I made sure that I would not forget to make or bring something for our monthly pot lucks by calling my home and leaving a message FOR MYSELF on my answering machine. At first I got a lot of laughs, but pretty soon others in the office started doing the same thing for all sorts of things that needed to be remembered. I still occasionally leave myself a message. My husband travels a lot and also calls and leaves himself messages a lot. When he does, I just make sure I don't erase the message until he's done whatever it was that he needed to do.
By Margaret
Post Feedback: Click Here
Decorating Plant and Flower Pots With Wallpaper
Paint stores usually have outdated wallpaper books that they are willing to give away. I have taken some home and, with the pre-pasted wallpapers, I have taken two patterns, wrong sides together, dipped them in water for a short time and then formed them around a plant pot, bowl, glass jar, or cup. Tie a string around the paper or use an elastic.
When the paper fully dries, it will then form a very pretty bowl that you can fill with goodies to bring to a friend or just to set on the table or vanity to hold trinkets. No cost containers, what could be better! I used to do this as a home school art project with my son who is now in college.
By Roberta
View Article: Click Here
When things are buried deep in the back of your cupboards and closets they probably never get used. If you don't stack things too deep, make things easy and convenient to get in and out of your cupboards and closets those items will be used more often.
By Carol
Post Feedback: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in blender; blend until smooth. Sprinkle with nutmeg, pour into punch bowl and serve.
By Chell
View Article: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Cream butter in a large mixing bowl. Gradually add sugar, beating well at medium speed. Add eggs, one at a time. Combine buttermilk and soda, stirring well. Add to creamed mixture alternately with flour, beginning and ending with flour. Add 2 bars melted chocolate, chocolate syrup and vanilla. Mix well. Stir in 1 cup mini morsels. Pour batter into heavily buttered and floured 10 inch bundt pan. Bake in 300 degree oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until wooden pick comes out clean. Invert cake onto a serving plate and cool completely. Combine 4 ounces white chocolate and 2 tablespoons shortening in top of a double boiler. Bring water to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cook until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Drizzle over cooled cake. Melt remaining 1/2 cup mini morsels and 2 teaspoons shortening in small pan over low heat and let cool. Drizzle over white chocolate. Garnish with white and chocolate leaves.
By Robin
View Article: Click Here
Ingredients:
Directions:
Cream butter and sugar in large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, vanilla and almond extract. Combine dry ingredients; combine applesauce and milk. Add dry ingredients, beating well after each ingredient. gently fold in nuts and raisins. Divide batter evenly between 2 layer pans that have been well buttered and floured. Bake 30-35 minutes. Cool in pans 15 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely. Frosting: Melt 1/2 cup butter in saucepan. Continue heating over medium heat until butter is light amber in color, stirring frequently. Cool butter slightly. Combine melted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, salt and cream in small mixer bowl. Beat until smooth and spreadable adding more sugar if needed. To serve, place 1 layer of cake on serving plate. Spread 1/2 icing over cake. Repeat with 2nd half. Garnish with fresh apple slices.
By Robin
View Article: Click Here
Prepare 1 box sour cream white cake mix according to directions on the box. Add: 2 tablespoons creme de menthe and 1/2 Hershey's candy bar (shaved).
Pour into a large baking pan and bake in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until it tests done. Cool.
Spread with Hershey's fudge topping (not a frosting, but the syrup). Cover fudge topping with 1 large bowl of Cool Whip, to which has been added 1 tablespoon creme de menthe and the rest of the candy bar (shaved). Keep tightly covered.
By Robin
View Article: Click Here
Ingredients:
Cream butter and sugar well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing after each addition. Melt candy in double boiler. Add syrup to melted candy. Add chocolate mix to butter, sugar and egg mixture. Sift flour. Dissolve soda in buttermilk. Add the flour and milk alternately to creamed mixture. Add extracts. Pour into greased and floured bundt pan. Bake 1 1/2 - 2 hours at 325 degrees.
To make icing: Melt 1 Hershey's bar, 1/2 stick butter and confectioners' sugar. Beat until smooth and to spreading consistency. Milk can be added if needed to reach desired consistency to drizzle over cake.
By Robin
View Article: Click Here
Use dryer sheets for many things, insert in pillow cases for nice scented pillows, use to wipe tv screen dust, use in drawers to make socks et cup smell nice, use inside smelly shoes after removing them. and on and on.
By darleen
Post Feedback: Click Here
Be sure to check out our active topics page to follow the discussion.
http://www.thriftyfun.com/board.html
Tip Contest
Submit a tip and you could win:
New Contest! $30.00 Gift Card
In our newest contest we are giving away a $30.00 Gift Card at one of the following stores: Home Depot, Jo-Ann's Crafts or Amazon.com. If you are the winner, you get to choose which gift card! We figured it would be more valuable if you pick out your own prize, that's why we have decided to go the gift card route. This contest will end on December 31st.
Syndication Spotlight:
Here are some publishers that have chosen to publish our tips this week!
Dear Webby's Humor Letter
Webby publishes our tips daily! A very funny newsletter.
http://webby.com/humor
Do you publish a newsletter? Sign up for our Tip Syndication:
http://www.thriftyfun.com/syndication.html
New Requests:
3 Kids and Need Help so Santa Can Come
I have no money and I have 3 children 6yr 4yrs & 2yrs old. Can someone please help me out? My son asked me mom what do you think Santa is getting me. I had to tell him, mom don't have the money to give Santa so he might not be able to come this year. He looked so sad. Please help. I'm not asking for a lot, just something for them to wake up to. - STACEY from Yuba City CA
Editor's Note: We don't give direct charitable help but if someone among the ThriftyFunners that lives near Yuba City or has some suggestions, please post.
View Article: Click Here
I have a wool skirt that smells musty it was stored in a plastic container along with some Christmas ornaments, magazines, stuffed animals, craft items. They all smell musty and the container also. Can these smell be removed and will it come back? I want to keep these items and not get rid of them.
Post Feedback: Click Here
I have a wool skirt that smells musty it was stored in a plastic container along with some Christmas ornaments, magazines, stuffed animals, craft items. They all smell musty and the container also. Can these smell be removed and will it come back? I want to keep these items and not get rid of them.
Post Feedback: Click Here
Looking for a frugal solution to an everyday problem? Submit your request here: Click Here
Today's Sponsor
For more information... Click here
More Reading:
Me Time
By Amy Allen Clark
During this busy holiday season, it is often hard to remember to take care of ourselves. This is not only because of all of our holiday obligations listed on our calendars, but also because of the financial strains that our budgets go under after buying all of those gifts.
View Article: Click Here
Keepsake Quilting
By Rachel Paxton
There's nothing quite like the feel of an old patchwork quilt that was lovingly crafted by hand and worn in gently by countless generations. Anyone can go to the store and buy a quilt, but not many people ever take the time to learn the ancient art of quilt making.
View Article: Click Here
Six Steps to Raising Financially Responsible Teens
By Mrs. Crystal Paine
In today's money-driven society, teens are constantly bombarded by magazines, television ads, and peer pressure which make them feel less than ideal if they do not wear the latest clothing style and drive a 'cool' car. Briefly visit your local mall and you will observe multitudes of young people who shop as if credit cards have no maximum spending limit. With all this push for extravagance, is it even possible to raise your teens with money sense and save them from making serious financial mistakes?
View Article: Click Here
Let others know that you like this Ezine:
Vote For the Daily Thrifty Tips
More Stuff
Coupon Swap!
Swap coupons with other ThriftyFun.com users:
Seed Swap!
Swap seeds with other ThriftyFun.com users:
Tip Contest!
Submit a tip and enter our contest.
Submit a Request
Frugal solutions to everyday problems.
Search ThriftyFun!
Use Google technology to search ThriftyFun.
Like ThriftyFun on Facebook
