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Hello,
Some of you may have had some problems connecting to ThriftyFun.com this morning. We made some changes to the server last night that we thought would improve performance. Instead of making the site faster, it made it unusable for much of the morning. We reverted back to the old system and now it seems fine. We are working on upgrading our server in the next couple of weeks which should really help performance.
We have 10 new requests today, be sure to check them out.
This Friday's TF News will be about Organizing Your Workshop. If you have any tips for organziing tools and keeping a clean work area, feel free to post them.
Thanks for reading,
Susan
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Today's Photo Contest Entries
Hailey Hops Miller (Australian Cattle Dog)
This is our little baby, Hailey Hops Miller. At the time of the picture she was 3 months old. She is an Australian Cattle Dog. We got her in January. Hailey likes to play with her toys in the creek.
By Annie
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Sandpaper Collars to Deter Slugs
Place a piece of sandpaper around young plants to prevent snails and slugs from eating the tender leaves. The sandpaper cuts their underside if they attempt to cross. The sandpaper will degrade and become compost so there is never a mess to clean later.
By DiAnna Munson
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Today's Tips
A "Do It Yourself" Wedding For Less Than $600
When my oldest son married I knew that his fiancee been away from home for years and the expense of the wedding was pretty much up to them. Being the frugal Mom I am I went to bat.
She and I went shopping and found silk flowers for bouquets, corsages, candles, all the reception supplies, and ribbon. It took some work but I made her bouquet, 4 Bridesmaids bouquets, 6 corsages, 8 bouteniers, the pew bows, table decorations, 2 ring bearer pillows, 2 flower girl baskets, 2 Large centerpieces to go on pillars, a covered guest book and 4 handmade bridesmaids dresses.
The point I'm making is this: When you know you don't have a fortune to spend but you want a nice wedding to be proud of, Do IT YOURSELF. Use your talents and skills, don't hire people to do it. Tallying the reciepts I realized we had pulled it off for less than $600.
By Sharon KY
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I was visiting my sister when my oldest son was about 2 or 3 and he hurt his hand. You know how kids get when they think there's not a bandaid around. She got out some hand lotion and told him she was going to put some HURT FINGER MEDICINE on it. The crying stopped. Moms, sometimes you gotta outsmart 'em.
Mamaw KC
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Use for Sticky Backed Labels Attached to Prescriptions
Found another use for the sticky-backed label attached to our bag of prescriptions. (This "label" contains way more information than just a label so I am very cautious to make sure most of it is destroyed.)
However, my interest in the label was the fact that my name, complete mailing address and telephone number are all compactly put in one area. With two snips of the scissors (but leaving an edge for easy peeling), I now have labels for no extra cost for events where I would have to write out the info by hand. This will save me a lot of time, and all fits neatly into a plastic zippered snack bag.
By Ronsan
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The Value of Cell Phones When Travelling
My son and I learned a valuable lesson about cell phones in a car this fall. We left to make a trip to Frankfort (which is probably 100 or more miles away) to obtain a birth certificate copy. Outside Lexington we hit a construction area and picked up a nail having a flat. Under ordinary conditions that wouldn't have been so bad. He'd not had the car very long and the lug piece to take off the tire was back in our hometown at the dealership.
Bless his heart he walked 5 miles to an interstate exit to use a phone and called his brother. As it turned out the dealer (who's a friend) sent the piece by his wife to us as she was coming that way. This was a 5 hour ordeal and could have been handled lots easier by calling from a car. TWO lessons were learned from this experience.
(1) Cell phones are a valuable service when traveling.
(2) ALWAYS trust your instincts. As we left town I thought of stopping to pick up the piece from the dealer, but you know how kids think Moms worry too much so I let it slide. We own a Trac Phone and now if I know one of the family is traveling a long distance, I insist that they purchase a $20 card for safety sake. Trac phones are not that expensive. Walmart sells them and a little airtime goes a long way if left to be used only in emergency cases.
By Sharon,Ky
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When moving or storing items, use clear/see through plastic totes. These are much more durable than cardboard boxes and the clear totes allow you to see the items at a glance you have stored. When you no longer need these totes, they are hot items to sell at a yard sale!
By Lisa Barker
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Quick Potato Salad, From Leftover Mashed Potatoes
Got some leftover mashed potatoes in the fridge? Add one raw egg per serving, stir it up, and microwave about 1:20 per egg (the time will depend on your microwave -- stir at least once per minute of cook time).
Add one teaspoon of sweet relish and one tablespoon of mayonnaise or salad dressing per serving and mix it up.
Quick and easy!
By Auriette L.
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Cut the top part of used greeting cards off, then cut this down to whatever size (and shape) you wish, depending on the design. (If it's an angel, just cut her out.) I also like to use hearts or other shapes that perhaps match the occasion for the gift you will use them on. Punch a hole in it, write your sentiments on the back, and attach to your package with a colored ribbon or raffia.
By Patricia Fielder
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A great tip is to take most of your "posed" photos before the ceremony even begins - at least with your girls. That will save a lot of time from leaving the guests bored at the reception.
By iluvweddings
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Wedding Reception Slide Show Presentation
At the reception - set up your own slide show (PowerPoint presentation) or hire a professional to walk your guests through when you met - to the present time. That will keep your guests busy while you take photos.
By iluvweddings
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Cross Stitch Sayings - Thoughts - Seen On Cross Stich
"With the children asleep and crying now past, know that while days are long the years go fast."
"Peace on Earth Begins at Home."
"Who waits outside the door one may never know. So tarry not,my friend he too may have to go."
"Memories are the most cherished keepsakes."
"On my road through life may I handle each crisis as a small bump and not a major chuckhole."
"A true friend Warms you with her presence, Trusts you with her secrets, Remembers you in her prayers."
"There are two lasting gifts we can give our children. One is roots, the other is wings."
"Never let go. Dreams take time."
"Housework never killed anyone. But I'm not taking any chances."
By Sharon,Ky
Post your favorite cross-stitch sayings.
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Keeping Cats out of the Garden
If neighborhood stray cats love your garden, sprinkle cayenne pepper or citrus peel pieces throughout the surface. This will not harm them but they'll remember that your garden is no longer their bathroom or playground!
By Patricia
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Fire Safety Tools - Going Away Gift Basket
Give your college-bound son or daughter a going-away gift basket of fire safety tools. Include a flashlight, smoke alarm, first-aid kit, carbon monoxide detector, a grid for drawing up a fire-escape plan, and extra batteries - total cost, about $100. A three-story folding ladder costs another $150.
By Patricia
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Mother's Day and Father's Day Gift idea
With Mother's Day and Father's Day coming up, the best gift you could ever give is your presence. But if this is not possible, send them several prepaid calling cards so they can keep in touch with you and their grandchildren more often than maybe their budget will allow.
And since the printing on some of these cards can be pretty small, copy the numbers they are to use onto a separate piece of paper so they can use your gift more easily.
By Patricia
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Watering Tomato Plants Underground
Tomatoes... our picky plants! Never water from the top. You know those big recyclable 4 gallon milk containers? As you plant each tomato plant, dig a deep hole beside it. Punch small holes in the milk container after it is filled with water. A wee bit of liquid fertilizer early in the season is a great addition. Remove lid to water plants, fill when needed and cap again, No overhead watering!
By Bev Sobkowich
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Take the Sting Out of Insect Bites
Put liquid antacid products on insect bites to relieve the sting and discomfort.
By Patricia Fielder
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If you're new to planting flowers, you might want to plant perennials, they'll bloom every year without you having to replant them. So make the most of your planting time and dollars.
By T.H.
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Beware if anyone is going thru your trash. I know a lady who isn't at home much during the daytime. One day the UPS man showed up at her house with a whole truckload of packages for her. When she insisted that she'd not ordered anything, he said, "well, they're all addressed to you". When she opened a few of them to see what they were, the products had been ordered from a specific company. When she and her daughter called the company to see why they'd sent all those packages for? They replied that a person had called in a huge order and said it was to go to her address.
After some days of checking on this matter, both, from the company and by this lady and her daughter. The lady had recently tossed in her trash one of this company's catalogs. The company said the person who called in the order was a young man. After getting all this info, the lady and her daughter called the cops.
Upon hearing the situation and investigating it, what it came down to was...One of the lady's neighbors had gone thru her trash and with a stolen credit had made those purchases to go to the lady's house. They were just banking on her NOT being at home to accept the boxes of merchandise! They figured the UPS delivery man would leave the boxes on her front or back porch and they'd retrieve them before she got back home! Which this wasn't the case, she just happened to be home, that day. So beware of your trash and who has access to them!
By Terri
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Tips for organizing prescriptions. Post your ideas.
Both my spouse and I are on some medications. Instead of keeping all the medicine bottles on the kitchen table, we bought a box with several sections in it, just for this very reason. We were able to put each medicine's instructions on the top of the back side of each med's section, so we could toss away the bottles. So after our dinner meal, we open the box and get out each of our meds, according to the directions with them. It has a lid on it and each of the section sides are tall enough that if we dropped the box, as long as the lid is sealed, the pills won't spill over into another's section for us to have to straighten up afterwards, they all stay put.
By T.H.
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Ingredients:
Directions:
Drain all vegetables and mix in large bowl. Combine sugar, salt, pepper, vinegar, oil, and water and bring to a boil, then let it cool. Pour over vegetable mixture and then refrigerate overnight. Will keep 2 weeks or more in refrigerator.
By Robin
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Ingredients:
Directions:
Bake cornbread, using 2 cup of cornmeal; prepare according to package. Layer cornbread, bacon, onions, peppers, and tomatoes in large bowl. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and pickles. Combine mayonnaise, juice, and sugar; blend. Drizzle over salad and toss.
By Robin
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Ingredients:
Directions:
Mix sugar and flour. Add half and half cream, pinch of salt. Put apples into unbaked shell and pour mixture on top. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until pie is set. This is especially good with fresh apples.
By Robin
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Ingredients:
Directions:
Mix sugar, flour, nutmeg, and eggs with fork. Pour over rhubarb and stir until well coated. Place in unbaked pie shell. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 40 minutes more. Must be firm in center
By Robin
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Ingredients:
Glaze:
Directions:
Mix all ingredients well. Shape into 10 large patties and alternate with 10 slices pineapple in a 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Add glaze, basting every 20 minutes. Bake a total of 1 1/2 hours at 325 degrees.
By Robin
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Ingredients:
Directions:
Set oven at 350 degrees. Bake ham fat side up around 10 minutes per pound until internal temperature is 130 degrees. Stir together honey, brown sugar, mustard, and marmalade in small saucepan and cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Cut diagonal diamond pattern in ham with knife 1/4 inch deep, when there is 1 hour left on the baking time. Press a whole clove into every x created by the diamond cuts on the ham. Baste the ham with the honey apricot glaze. Bake 1/2 hour. Baste the ham again and finish baking the final 1/2 hour.
By Robin
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Saucijzebroodjes (Sausage Rolls)
Ingredients:
Directions:
Mix dry ingredients. Cut in shortening as for pie crust. Beat the egg and add to dry ingredients. More milk may be needed to make a soft dough to roll out into about 1/4 inch thickness. Take 2 lbs. pork stead, grind and season. Make into small rolls, about 3 inches long and 1/2 inch thick. Cover each roll with pastry and bake until meat is done (350 degrees for 40 minutes). Serve hot. Can be made ahead and frozen.
By Robin
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I decided to try to use some of the blackberry muffin mixes I got on sale last year for 29c a pack. I backed them in a shallow baking dish instead of the conventional way of using the muffin tins and papers, it worked out great!
I buttered the oval dish, substituted peanut butter for the cooking oil
and once cool I iced with cream cheese icing. Yum!
Becareful to watch and not let it burn. The cake seems to take less time to bake than the muffins would (I don't understand why, but ok.)
Also, I had some strawberry muffin mix. I did the same with no muffin papers but had some fresh strawberries to cut up into the batter along with the dehydrated ones that were in the mix. Awsome results!
Any other muffin tricks out there?
By melody_yesterday
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New Requests:
My grandparents spilled a couple gallons of milk on the seats. The stench is unbearable. Is there anything to get rid of the smell?
Heather from Utah
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Middle School SemiFormal Dance Ideas
I'm in the process of planning the 8th Grade Social for my daughters school. Please send me any and all ideas. It is semi-formal but I don't want it to be semifun. Limbo idea is good. Snowball? More details? Please let me know any and all ideas. PammySue
View Article: Click Here
I decided to try to use some of the blackberry muffin mixes I got on sale last year for 29c a pack. I backed them in a shallow baking dish instead of the conventional way of using the muffin tins and papers, it worked out great!
I buttered the oval dish, substituted peanut butter for the cooking oil
and once cool I iced with cream cheese icing. Yum!
Becareful to watch and not let it burn. The cake seems to take less time to bake than the muffins would (I don't understand why, but ok.)
Also, I had some strawberry muffin mix. I did the same with no muffin papers but had some fresh strawberries to cut up into the batter along with the dehydrated ones that were in the mix. Awsome results!
Any other muffin tricks out there?
By melody_yesterday
Post Feedback: Click Here
Removing Paint From a Woven Reed Chair Seat
I was given an old rocker. The seat is made of reed i believe, wider than cane and just woven. The whole chair has been painted brown. Could someone tell me how to get the paint off the seat. I can just repaint the chair but would like the seat natural.
Jo Anne from NY
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Building a Cage For a Large Lizard
Has anyone built a large cage/house for a large lizard? We have a water dragon, and it apparently needs a cage about 6 feet wide and 4-5 feet high. My son wants to build one as a homeschooling project and we are looking for plans.
Thanks for your help!
Leafy
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Making a Horse Out Of a Yard Stick
I need to know how to make a horse out of a yard stick for a school project?
Edwina from Winchester, KY
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Arbicola Plant - Sticky and Scaly Leaves
The leaves on my Arbacola Plant have gotten sticky and there is some kind of scaly substance on them. Can anyone tell me what to do to get rid of this?? Or do I need to throw the plant out??
Any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated, cause this is a really big plant.
Susan from Virginia
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I am absolutely overrun with ants in my yard and driveway. Have tried commercial pesticides. I think they like it. Anyone have any ideas? They are ruining my yard. (None in the house, thank goodness.)
c.j.cox
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Does anyone know where you can get good coupons online? I have found some at smartsource.com, pillsbury.com coolsavings.com and a few others. What about brand websites like general mills, or procter & gamble? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Rebecca
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I have been nominated to have a birthday party for my father in law who will be 75 years old on May 6th of this year. It is also my in laws anniversary date as well and they will be married for 51 years.
We had a 50th anniversary party for them last year. But with this milestone of his age and he isn't in the best of health any ways (recovering from prostate and colon cancer). We are going to have the party at our local church and we have the menu planned as well as the guest list.
I need ideas for something to honor him. We did a DVD presentation to them for their anniversary party. So we wanted to do something a little different this time. But we also don't want to leave out my Mother in law since it is her anniversary as well.
There will be about 30-35 people there, close family and friends. I only have a week to pull this off and I am desperate for any decorating ideas and any way to honor him. He is a retired magistrate of 22 years, a retired farmer, and does not party at all. He is a big joker however. My mother in law is a very quiet person who never says a lot because she doesn't get much of a chance with my fahter in law doing all the talking. She is very petite and fragile and so kind and loving.
Any ideas would be appreciated.
Thank you.
Donna from KY
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Today's Sponsors
11 Craft Designs By House of Greathouse
Just $5.00 (including shipping) for instructions on how to make 11 unique craft designs on CD. For more information and pictures of the crafts visit:
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More Reading:
Garlic Herb Zucchini Bake
By Mambo Sprouts
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Meal Planning Made Simple
By Monica Resinger
Meal planning can be a time-consuming job and often times, this is why we just give up on it and just go get whatever looks appealing at the store and be done with it. I know from experience that this leads to wasted money, extra trips to the store, frustration and cooking boredom.
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Make Your Own Onion Soup Mix
By Cyndi Roberts
I have been making this handy, inexpensive mix for years, instead of buying the "brand name" soup mix at the supermarket.
View Article: Click Here
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