Daily Thrifty Tips - April 10, 2007

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Keeping Lettuce Fresh

How do people keep lettuce fresh? I have tried everything I can think of, and always have to throw half of it away.

Marjorie from Michigan

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Thanks for reading,

Susan

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My Hibiscus Plant

This is an indoor Hibiscus Plant. It just started blooming about 1 week ago. It has on it at least 12 buds. The important tip with this plant is; When this plant is beginning to bud and bloom, It drinks up water very fast. It will only keep budding if it is fed each day, about 1 cup of water.

Also, Each day that it blooms, The bloom only last 1 full day. The next morning, Clip off at the end of the stem of the curled up bloom. Each day, It should increase the amount of blooms.

I noticed today, It has blossomed 3 new flowers. And this should continue for the spring and summer. When the warm weather is here to stay, This indoor plant can go outdoors. It loves the sunshine. But, Keep an eye on watering it. It is a lot of fun watching the growth in a plant like this.

Hugs,

By Jackie Hunt from Norton, MA

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Beatrice, Gabriel, Alexander and Bailey (Cats)

From top L to R are Beatrice (6), Gabriel (7 months), Lower couch, Alexander (7 months) and Bailey (6).

Beatrice and Bailey are brother and sister. Gabe and Alex are brothers. All were giveaways.

The kids love being out catching mice in the hay. Today, since it was so cold out, they just wanted to sleep.

By Ragteller from Tofield, AB

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Buy Three Chickens When On Sale

When whole chickens are on sale, I usually buy three of them, and I am cooking just for myself. I roast two of them at the same time, seasoned differently in the same pan. Only one pan to clean, eating one during the next few days. The other one I bone and freeze the meat in baggies to use for casseroles, salads, tacos or the like as I desire. The meat defrosts really quickly. The third chicken goes into a stockpot or crock pot and makes broth, some of which is turned into a yummy soup right then, and some of which is frozen as clear stock in small quantities for later uses. The meat is either added to the soup or also frozen for casseroles!

By Linda from Vista, CA

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Kill Pests In The Garden

Ants: Use aspartame (NutraSweet) around the foundation of the house and it will kill the ants.

Slugs: Slugs love beer. Put shallow bowls of beer where you have slug problems and the slugs will fall in and drown.

Aphids: Mix a mild dishwashing detergent and wash or spray the leaves of your plants. This works great on roses.

By Sherry from Silverdale WA

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Pick Up Free Samples At Health Food Stores

When you go to your health food store, look around for samples. The companies with products there are eager to introduce their wares, and often have free samples to try. At Whole Foods I got hand cream, tea bags and other things. I have also gotten sample packs of free vitamins I use for traveling.

By pamphyila from L.A., CA

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Link: Do You Remember Love?

This is a beautiful story about Love.

http://www.doyourememberlove.com/musiconly.html

By IMAQT1962 from ILLINOIS

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Tighten Screws In Doorknobs

Take a screwdriver along and check all the doorknobs in your home. It may save you some work later. I found that every one of mine needed two or three turns of the screwdriver.

By Jean from Charlevoix, MI

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Save Play Money and Game Pieces

When throwing out old board games: be sure to keep the money and playing pieces for backups in other games!

By Stacey from Orem, UT

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My Frugal Life: Bake For Special Days

This is how I give my dad a much anticipated gift for his birthday and also for Father's day. My dad loves to talk about the goodies that his mother used to make for her family. One of his favorites was Cream Puffs. He also raved about her Coconut Cream Pie and Coconut Cake. I decided that I would bake one of those treats for each special day, one for Father's Day, and another for his birthday. It just seemed to me that it was a simple idea, but his reaction when I gave him fresh baked goods, made by my own hands, let me know that I had "done good".

Now each year, I try to make something special, and it doesn't matter if I repeat the recipe that I used the year before, since he hasn't had that treat for a year! Flour, eggs, sugar, and coconut can be pretty inexpensive to buy, so the cost was not at all great, but the effort that I put in, and the fact that I remembered what he liked went a long, long way to make him happy. This Christmas, I even made my dad a personal sized pie made with little tiny wild blackberries that I had picked myself. His eyes just shown when he got it. I also make a special cake and cut and decorate it in a special shape for my children's birthdays, and they think it is a great gift. A bit of extra effort shows a lot of extra love.

Patty from Darrington, WA

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Lots of Cookie Baking? Use Parchment Paper

If you have a lot of holiday baking to do, use parchment paper on your baking sheets. Have the next batch ready to slide onto your baking sheet when the first batch slides off. This helps with clean up as well as speeding up the process.

DiAnna

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Stains on a Pewter Baby Cup

How do I clean water stains on a pewter baby cup? At least, I think they are water stains.

NHodge from MA

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Floam Recipe

How do you make Floam? Does anyone have a recipe?

Debbie from Waterford

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Keeping Lettuce Fresh

How do people keep lettuce fresh? I have tried everything I can think of, and always have to throw half of it away.

Marjorie from Michigan

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Pull Out Sofa Bed Frame

Where can I find sofa bed frame for a pull out sofa bed?

Tisha from Los Angeles

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UK Equivalent to Club Soda

I have seen loads of reference to club soda but don't know what the UK equivalent would be. Does anyone have a brand name to quote? I'm not sure if it is a liquid soda water, bicarbonate of soda, or soda crystals which are being referred to.

Margaret from Swansea, UK

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Making Room Diffusers From Wooden Skewers

Does anyone have instructions for making room diffusers from wooden skewers in a bottle of scented liquid, similar to reed room diffusers?

Marie from Fennville, MI

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Getting a Fair Price on a Car

How do you get a car salesman to give you a fair price? I can NEVER get them to give me more than 500 off the sticker price. And then they add it back with fees or some other generic type charge. They call it paperwork, etc.

They always tell me that they are only making 600$ on the car. What do I have dumb@# stamped on my forehead?

I think that is what infuriates me most. They tell me such as that and expect me to believe them! I DON'T believe they only make $600 on a car! Shouldn't you get a couple thousand off the price? Isn't it negotiable?

Paula from GA

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Finding Ripe Mangos

I am a homemaker for elderly people: housecleaning, shopping, etc. I have a client that likes mango's and I need to know how to tell when they are ripe? I have no idea, as I don't eat or use them. Thank in advance for help on this. I want to make sure I get her the ripest one I can for her.

jmz2005 from Illinois

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Name Ideas for a Cleaning Business

I'm starting a home cleaning business does anyone think the name Family Trends home cleaners is good? My slogan is "caring for your home".

Jamie from Sturtevant, WI

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Removing Gum From a Dryer

My sons pants went through the dryer with gum in the pocket. How do I get the gum off the dryer wall?

Sandra

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Get "The Complete Budget and Bill Organizer" Free

When you subscribe to my newsletter "The Budget Stretcher" you will receive this easy guide to effectively organizing and managing your money absolutely free. Get all of the Budget Forms and Worksheets you need to make it work for you. Click the below link to learn more:

More Information:
Click Here: http://www.homemoneyhelp.com/confirmsubs.html

Saving Money on Dryer Sheets

Tips for saving money on dryer sheets and fabric softener from the ThriftyFun community. Post your own techniques here.

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What to do when money is really tight?
By Patty Getz

One of the biggest challenges for a frugal mom, is finding yet more ways to save money when money gets tight. It could be that you are trying to pay off debt or perhaps you want to save for something special, you are already frugal, and just don't know what else you can do. All is not lost, as long as you are willing to try a few ideas, you didn't think you would ever try, and to count your savings in nickels and dimes, you can do it.

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Shortening Pants and Sleeves

Long sleeved shirts can become short sleeved shirt and highwater pants can be made into shorts. That way, if your child likes the clothing, but it is highwater-ish, it can still be re-used.

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Saving Money on Garden Supplies and Equipment

Here are some money saving tips on gardening equipment and supplies from the ThriftyFun community. Post your own here.

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