Daily Thrifty Tips August 31, 2004

Hello,

The server will be down from 11:00AM to Noon PST while we swap in the new server.

And also our Digital Camera contest ends tonight and midnight PST so today is the last day to submit an entry. It's been our most successful contest so far, thank you for all the great submissions.

Thanks for reading,

Susan

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Today's newsletter contains:

Today's Tips:

• Open Late, Close Late
• Fun Little Reminders to Help You Stay Frugal.
• When Something Breaks, Contact the Manufacturer
• Easy Homemade Hand Lotion
• Use for Mesh Onion Bags
• Fast And Easy Party Punch
• Simple Soap Making Idea
• Use Hand Cut-outs To Teach Numbers
• Simple Terriaki Pot Roast
• Feedback: Homemade Air Freshener
• Feedback: Wrap Adorable Baby Shower Gifts
• Feedback: Uses for Leftover Coffee
• Feedback: Back to School... Head Lice!!!
• Feedback: Uses for Film Canisters
• Today's Recipe: Fresh Vegetable Bake

New Requests:

• Problem With Little Red Bugs

More Reading:

• Tips for Reducing Your Phone Bill
• Krispy Kreme Inspired Baked Doughnuts
• Comparing Options
• How to Cook Rice Right

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Today's Tips

Open Late, Close Late

When having a garage sale we 'open' late and 'close' later than usual sales. It seems the early birds are out to find something for nothing and the late arrivals are coming home from somewhere and they are usually the big spenders. Also our kids make money w/ bake sales along with our garage sales.

By Cynimin

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Fun Little Reminders to Help You Stay Frugal.

I am determined to increase the portion of my monthly pay I put into savings. It goes without saying, this is not always easy.

What helps me out is I have devised a little "totem" or "symbol" for myself.. It's a bird's nest, symbolizing a "nest egg". I have a little rubber stamp of a bird's nest with 3 eggs in it. I stamp or sketch little bird's nests on my grocery list, shopping list, budget, and daily To Do Lists. It's a pleasant little reminder to stay with the program and think about the nest egg, not just the desired purchase.

Also I have a "slogan". It is, "Can I make this myself or modify something I already have for this purpose?" This one's really telling, because it gets you to think about different uses for things you already have. And know what? Most of the time this works!

By Jayne

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When Something Breaks, Contact the Manufacturer

When something breaks around your home, do NOT be afraid to go on-line and write a nice e-mail to the company that makes that item and ask for help.

The spigot recently broke off our Brita water filter and I e-mailed the company to ask about how to get a new spigot - I was willing to pay for a new one. The company sent me a new part absolutely FREE! (And our filter system was way out of guarantee.)

Also - my Friskar craft punch was giving me fits recently so I e-mailed the company to inquire about the way to sharpen them. Fiskars sent me a brand spanking new one for FREE and I had that punch for years. I was told it didn't matter - they were still replacing it for free!

Many companies will send out replacements for free! And what's the harm in asking. It can sure a whole lot of hard earned cash to just take a moment and send an e-mail!

By Sue Archer

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Easy Homemade Hand Lotion

A very simple home made hand lotion recipe.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup rosewater
1/3 cup glycerin

Directions:

Combine the two ingredients in an 8 once bottle and shake well. Store in a cool, dark place.

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Use for Mesh Onion Bags

The mesh bags that onions come in are effective for washing small items in the dishwasher. It will hold all the items in place so that they won't wind up in the bottom of the dishwasher.

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Fast And Easy Party Punch

With the holidays fast approaching, I thought this might be an inexpensive recipe to have on hand for all those parties and for all year.

Fast And Easy Party Punch

2 cups sugar
2 large pkgs. Kool-Aid (your choice of flavor)
1 to 2 cups ginger ale
2 cans (12 oz.) 7-Up
2 cups pineapple juice
lime sherbet (optional)

Combine sugar and Kool-Aid in a gallon pitcher. Add enough warm water to dissolve. Then fill pitcher about 1/2 full of cold water. Be sure water is cold before adding other ingredients. Add 7-Up, pineapple juice and ginger ale. Best if lime sherbet is added to the punch and served in punch bowl.. Makes 25 to 30 cups.

I have used different kinds of juice or even added different kinds of soda for the juice, and then my choice of sherbet depending on the colors being used for the occasion.

By justmyimagination2002

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Simple Soap Making Idea

To make wonderfully smelling and silky liquid soap, grate a small bar of soap (or leftover slivers) into a med. saucepan. Add 1 1/2 cups of water and bring to boil, cooking 1 minute. Cool, add 1 vitamin E capsule liquid. (squeeze it out), plus 1 teaspoon glycerin, and some "smelly" stuff. You can use essential oil, almond flavoring, etc. El-cheapo way to make GREAT soap, just cool and pour into a mold! By eileen berry

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Use Hand Cut-outs To Teach Numbers

To teach my little ones the concept of numbers I did the normal counting beans and other objects. A fun thing we did as a craft and a lesson was this. We traced both hands on construction paper and cut them out. Then we traced these several times and cut them out. I would have the child take one cut-out hand, and show me how many fingers we needed for the number one. They would use their glue stick to glue down the other fingers just as we do when we hold up one finger. It was so cute watching them figure out which fingers to glue down and how to do it. When we got to the numbers six thru ten they really had to think because they had to figure out which pair of hands they needed.When they had met the challenge we tacked their work on their personal bulletin board. By Trigger

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Simple Terriaki Pot Roast

Here is a simple, time-saving recipe: Place a three to four pound pot roast in a pan. Sprinkle lightly with garlic powder. Add half a bottle of teriyaki sauce and the juice from one can of pineapple. Cover with foil and bake at 250F for about 8 hours. This tastes similar to teriyaki flavored jerky. By j.j.

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Feedback: Homemade Air Freshener

I put a little bottle of vanilla and water in the bathroom and use it as an air freshener. I add a little vanilla and water and shake. Keep adding vanilla until the smell is just as strong as you like!

By Racer

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Feedback: Wrap Adorable Baby Shower Gifts

I have always wrapped baby shower gifts in a receiving blanket and secured with diaper pins. I once wrapped a big gift in a crib sheet. No wasted paper :)

By Kim

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Feedback: Uses for Leftover Coffee

Uses: Refrigerate and make iced coffee for later in the day. Make coffee ice cubes, great in iced coffee, as they don't water it down.

I used to put coffee grounds around the blueberry bushes; wonder if watering them with coffee would also be helpful.

By Leslie

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Feedback: Back to School... Head Lice!!!

One thing you can use is Skin So Soft from Avon. My niece kept bringing lice home from school after weeks of being clear. We started using skin so soft from Avon when it got cold and her skin was dry. It stopped the lice from coming to her. Seven to eight children in her class a month were being sent home per week and she never got it again that year.

Put Skin So Soft in a spray bottle and mist on the skin after bathing. No more lice.

If your child already has lice.. before using chemicals try vacuuming first and then try regular coconut cream rinse on the hair after shampooing. While still in the tub, Leave cream rinse in hair and use the nit comb in all different directions after combing out tangles the lice cannot seem to move around with the cream rinse in. Rinse hair like normal and you should have removed all live lice. Repeat nightly or every other night until any remaining nits have hatched. This is a weekly regimen in my home while school is in session. Prevention is the best medicine and no chemicals. The chemicals in Rid and Nix do cause irreversable neurological damage.

By KyWoman

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Feedback: Uses for Film Canisters

I use film canisters to store my dangling earrings. I don't use the lids--I just set the canisters in a box on a shelf so I can see down into all of them. I put two or three similar pairs together in each canister.

Also, a friend uses them to store spices on camping trips. (Mmm, noodles and cheese with tuna is so much better with basil in it!) Of course you need to wash out the containers quite thoroughly before storing food in them.

You could also use them to store ear plugs in the car for loud movies or shows.

And you can fill them from large discount containers of pills you take frequently so you can have a small container for your purse, brief case, or glove compartment.

By Debbie

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Other Active Topics

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Today's Recipe: Fresh Vegetable Bake

- 6 medium carrots, thinly sliced
- 3 small zucchini, cut in &frac;" slices
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes or tomato cut up (250 ml)
- 1 cup herb-seasoned croutons (250 ml)
- 2 tbsp cornstarch (30 ml)
- 1 &frac; cups milk (375 ml)
- 1/4 cup butter or margarine (50 ml)
- 1 tsp basil (5 ml)
- 1 tsp salt (5 ml)
- 1/4 tsp pepper (1 ml)

Preheat oven to 375F (190C)

Spray oil in a 1.5 - 2 quart (1.5 - 2 L) casserole or an 8" (2 L) square baking pan.

Put carrots in a microwave dish and microwave until tender crisp.

Put carrots, zucchini & tomatoes in casserole/baking dish. Sprinkle with croutons.

Blend cornstarch & milk. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, cook until thickened (either on the stove or in the microwave). Whisk in butter until melted. Add basil, salt & pepper. Pour over vegetables.

Bake uncovered for 20-30 minutes or until bubbly and heated through.

VARIATIONS: Substitute other vegetables. Substitute cornflake crumbs for croutons.

About The Author: From http://www.CanadianCountryGifts.com

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Tip Contest

Submit a tip or recipe and you could win a prize...

In our newest contest we are giving away a digital camera. Submit a tip and you could win... Argus DC 1610: This fun digital still camera combines ease of use, fashion-forward styling and all around value. Quick PC connectivity and one-click controls mean fast, on the go snapshots anytime.

Complete with..

• Status LCD
• 8 MB Internal Memory
• Stores up to 104 Photos
• 3 in 1 Digital Camera: Photo,Web and Video
• USB High Speed Download
• Photo/Video editing software
• 2 x AAA Batteries included

Enter the contest!

New Requests:

Problem With Little Red Bugs

I have a problem with little red bugs. They are really small and I have no idea what they are. My house is 60 days old. I am a total neat freak and I can't understand where these things are coming from. They are on the walls in the sinks just everywhere. Somebody please tell me how to get rid of them!!! Thanks, Sarah

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More Reading

Tips for Reducing Your Phone Bill
By Naomi Knudsen

Is your phone bill getting out of sight, like ours did? With two teen-agers, a self-employed hubby, and the internet, we had to find ways to get our phone bills under control. Here are a few tips for bringing that phone bill back to a manageable level.

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Krispy Kreme Inspired Baked Doughnuts
By Kori Puckett

A few weeks ago I went crazy with Krispy Kreme. At the time I was also being plagued by mosquitoes, so in an attempt to take my mind off the little bloodsuckers, I decided to make my own doughnuts. And I came across a recipe for Baked Doughnuts.

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Comparing Options
By Gary Foreman

I would like to know if it would be unwise to stop my 401k contribution for the next 1 1/2 to 2 years and use the money instead to pay off unsecured debt and student loans?

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How to Cook Rice Right
By Niki Singleton

The easiest way to make rice well every time is to use a rice cooker. If you don't have one, or don't want one, though, here's a no-fail recipe for rice that one of my grandmothers taught my mother, who taught me. This one, I use mainly for seasoned rice dishes because things can be added to it before boiling, or broth (a plain soup) can be used in place of water.

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Thanks

Susan
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