One of our readers Amber H. sent us this guest post on canning meat. She shows you how each step goes and can help you save money by getting your meat on sale, buying in bulk, and canning it to use later. Doing this can help your stockpile, save on the electric freezer bill because you wont need to put this in the freezer!

 Wait until the pressure gauge goes down on your canning lid.  Do not open your canner until this valve goes down.  Take your jars out with a canning jar grabber.  (Is that what they are called, it sounds funny  Enjoy your canned roast in a pinch.

Thanks to Shy Babies for this post on how to start a preschool routine for your child at home.  I loved her ideas and tips, some times I tend to over think things, and preschool is one of those things can be so easy.   You just need to make it consistent and fun!

With back to school season in full swing, it is time to decide what you are going to do if you have a preschool aged child at home. Should you put a strong focus on preschool at home or ignore it all together? Maybe find a middle ground.

No matter the skill level or attention span of your child, consider at least working on one learning activity a day. This can be a fun way to spend the day with your child and advance his or her learning.

If you want to start small, identify one type of activity for each day of the week and plan each week with that in mind. Some activity types include but are not limited to:

-art (i.e. edible finger paint)
-cooking
-letters/reading
-science (i.e. effects of freezing and thawing)
-physical education
-music

By staying consistent with what type of activity you will focus on each day, your child will know what to expect each day. When your child knows what to expect, he or she will be more likely to respond positively toward the activities and the structure that comes with it. Also, this will also make it easier for you as a parent to plan ahead. You will know what you need to plan and a little less overwhelming.

Once you are starting to plan your preschool week, pick one theme for the week.  If your child loves dinosaurs, plan a week of dinosaur related fun.  A sample week could be as follows:

Art Monday -Make a dinosaur out of the tube from a roll of toilet paper and construction paper
Reading Tuesday- Read books about dinosaurs and focus on T lettered dinosaurs
Physical Activity Wednesday- Go for a walk an you and your child walk like dinosaurs the whole time
Science Thursday- Compare pictures of reptiles and dinosaurs to see how they are alike and how they are different
Food Friday- Let your child help you make dirt pudding and bury some dinosaur gummies

Finding these fun weekly themes combined with a set activity for each day of the week, makes preschool homeschooling on a busy schedule easy to plan and fun together time.  If you would like to be a little more active in teaching your child you could combine multiple activities per day or find some of the great free online curriculum sites such as Preschool Palace.

Just remember that the most important thing for young kids is to teach them that learning is fun.  This time should be fun!

Thanks to A Little Inspiration for passing along this recipe for Wedding Cookies.  If you have not tried these before, then you are missing out.  They are SO Yummy!

Mexican Wedding Cookies are traditionally handed out to guests at weddings and other celebrations.They are also known as pecan butter balls, or snowdrops!

Ingredients:
2 Sticks(1Cup) of Unsalted Butter
*1 Cup of finely crushed Pecans or Almonds
1 1/2 Cup of Powedered Sugar
1 Tsp of Vanilla
1 Tbsp of Ground Cinnamon
2 Cups of Flour (not pictured)

*You can ommit the nuts if you are allergic.

Directions:

1) Cream butter until light and fluffy
2) Add 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and vanilla to the butter. Blend well
3) Add flour and mix well.

4) Grind almonds or pecans
5) Add to cookie dough and mix well
6) Place dough on a container and wrap with plastic. Regrigarte for about 15 minutes.
7) On a small bowl combine the remaining cup of powdered sugar with ground cinnamon

Preheat oven at 350F. Make small balls and place them on a cookie sheet one inch apart. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden at the bottom.
9) Let cookies rest for about 5 minutes on cookie sheet. Then transfer the warm cookies to the cinnamon sugar and cover completely! Let cool.
10) Enjoy!

Photo Credit 

Did you know that you can  freeze eggs?

Break each egg into an ice cube tray, 1 egg per cube. Mix the yolk & the white together slightly (to prevent texture inconsistencies after thawing). Freeze the eggs and transfer to a ziptop bag and label with the date. Eggs can be stored, frozen for up to a year. Just thaw in the refrigerator over night before use.

This is a great tip for when eggs go SUPER CHEAP around Easter each year!

Thanks Realistic Couponers 

Thanks to Super Coupon Lady for this post on tips. I have to agree that yes I am a very “thrifty person” but feel you should NOT skimp  on a tip… but Matt on the other hand likes to go a little over board and normally leaves a 30% or more tip.  We do not eat out often but I just bite my lip as he fills out the receipt. I know that he is just being kind, but  I feel that 20% for standard service is plenty and more if they did an outstanding job…. am I just being cheap?I love to Save Money and, as I’m sure you all know, I am an avid couponer!!  However, I am not cheap when it comes to tipping.  When dining out I always tip from 18-20%.  I was a server throughout college so I know what a tough job this can be and how much you rely on those tips.

I am a little perplexed when it comes to tipping in other situations.  Like, haircuts for the kiddos, carryout orders at restaurants, help to your car with your groceries, etc.  Recently, I went to a New Doughnut shop in town with a friend and my receipt had a place for a tip.  I was really surprised since I went to the counter, ordered and waited there for my doughnut and coffee.  Was I suppose to tip for that?!  I didn’t see how it was any different than ordering food at McDonalds or Panera?!

So, what I’d like to know is this ~  What services do you believe require a tip, how much do you tip, what do you do if the service is horrible? Share your thoughts and comments below.  Thanks so much!!!!

Hi everyone! My name is Melissa and I write over at Living A Frugal Life. Come visit me and get some new frugal ideas a long with some deals, coupons and DIY projects. I LOVE frugal things and ideas and I am so excited to be guest posting today to talk a little about a type of living frugal that is a daily part of my life.

Photo Credit Qwik Care
I am by far not an expert on all this simple living stuff. But I do know first hand the cost of clutter. I grew up in a home that was clean and taken care of, but my room on the other hand was not. I always had a hard time getting rid of things because I am a saver by nature. I always wondered what I could use that for in the future. The 1/2 used spirals always got the used pages thrown away and the other pages saved. I saved them because it was good paper and I would be wasting if I got rid of them.

This way of thinking flowed into my house after marriage. I was always saving something for later. My house wasn’t dirty, but I had a lot of stuff. As I had kids, I saved EVERYTHING from baby 1 to baby 2 and then to baby 3. The summer before we moved I realized that we just had too much. I LOVE garage sales and decided to go through all our clothes and furniture and get rid of those things we really didn’t need.

My definition of need has changed a lot since that time. We got rid of a few things but not most of it. So 4 garage sales later, we are finally down a bit to more of needs. When we moved down to So Cal we decided to get rid of over 1/2 of our furniture. So we did one last moving sale and sold as much of it as we could. It felt so good to get rid of those less needed items.

When we moved again (6 months later) we found that we don’t 100% fit in our space. We have spent the last month just trying to make it work, but after much thought it is time to simplify yet again. Simplify and be VERY real with myself. I began to look back on all those years where we stored so many things. Starting with the times I stored all my papers and drawings from school to the times we saved our high school memories to the baby stuff and finally to now as we have downsized.

I have discovered what all that clutter did. It was more then just stuff, stuff that took up space, it made our life harder. It made cleaning harder, organizing harder and mostly living harder. It took away much of my enjoyment over the years because I was always wondering if I would get things done if I stopped to spend time with my family. It kept me from inviting people over or having an open house for our friends because I didn’t want them to have to battle with all the stuff.

I now see how much less stress I would have had, how much more fun I could have been and how much I missed out. I have come to terms with my past and I am ok with that, because it has brought me to who I am now. I know now that I value my life, my family and my happiness way more then the clutter and I know now that I can live without anything I need to as long as we are all happy and together. Real needs always come first and the rest of it is just things that make our life a little better.

What do you think is the cost of clutter? please leave a comment and tell me your thoughts!

Thanks to Mama Bee Does for sharing this easy but oh so tasty recipe for Eclair Cake, best part is… NO BAKING!

Eclair Cake  a no bake dessert with only 5 ingredients. Easy peasy.

Ingredients:

• 1 (14.4 oz.) box graham crackers
• 2 (3.5 oz) small boxes or 1 large box vanilla instant pudding mix
• 4 cups milk (only 3 cups if you use 1 large box of pudding mix)
• 1 (8 oz) container whipped topping; thawed
• 1 (16 oz) can chocolate cake frosting

Directions:
1. Prepare pudding mix with milk as directed on the pudding box. Mix in the whip topping gently so you don’t soften the whip topping to much.

2. In 11×13 baking dish layer the bottom of the dish with graham crackers.
3. Spoon pudding/topping mix over layer of graham crackers.

4. Repeat layering of graham crackers and pudding until you use up the pudding.
5. End with a layer of graham crackers on top.

6. Melt the chocolate icing on the stoptop (I rig up a double boiler for this so I know I won’t burn anything). You can also melt it for 1 minute on half power in the microwave but only do it 15 seconds at a time so you can stir it in between.

7. Pour melted chocolate over top layer of graham crackers.
8. Refrigerate overnight (about 12 hours should do) for best taste (my boys and I only waited 6 on the most recent one I made) Its just that good.

I usually cut this into large squares to serve but when the guys get to it first it just ends up being spooned out. Not as pretty that way but it still tastes the same. Yum yum! Enjoy!

Thanks to Tammilee Tips for passing along this yummy recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls.  She also made a few changes and added Nutella to them as well…. yummy!

Peanut Butter Balls – Original Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups (500 grams) creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 – 2 1/2 cups (230 – 290 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar
• Chocolate Coating
• 9 ounces (255 grams) semi sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons (25 grams) shortening

Directions
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the peanut butter, unsalted butter, and salt in a microwaveable bowl, and heat in the microwave for about one minute or until just soft (check and stir the ingredients every 20 seconds). Stir in the vanilla extract and confectioners sugar and mix until it has the consistency of a dough (add more sugar if necessary).
Roll the dough into 1 inch (2.5 cm) round balls. Place on the cookie sheet and refrigerate for about one hour, or until firm.
Melt the chocolate and shortening in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Dip the balls, one at a time, in the melted chocolate, making sure the entire ball is coated with chocolate. Then, with two spoons or a dippingfork, remove the peanut butter ball from the melted chocolate, allowing any excess chocolate to drip back into the bowl. Place the chocolate covered balls back on the baking sheet. When all the balls have been dipped in the chocolate, place in the refrigerator until the chocolate has set. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks. To serve: place in small fluted candy cups.
Note: If you want to make Buckeyes: place a toothpick into each peanut butter ball and dip, one ball at a time, into the melted chocolate, leaving the top quarter of each ball undipped.
Makes about 40 pieces, depending on size. Preparation time30 minutes.

 Alterations to the recipe
I ended up changing this recipe a little bit. I had a ton of chocolate left over from Halloween and I have a husband who loves Nutella in everything.
The first set I made I used Hersheys Milk Chocolate Halloween Bars. I used the double boil method and melted the chocolate in a bowl. I added a touch of milk to make the chocolate more pliable to dip the peanut butter balls in.
The 2nd set I made with Nutella and Hersheys Dark Chocolate bars. I used the same double boil method. The Dark Chocolate Nutella mixture worked really well. The peanut butter balls have a really nice thick coating of chococlate on them.
I will definately be making these again. I think they will be great holiday gifts and surprises for friends and family.

Hi everyone! My name is Melissa and I write over at Living A Frugal Life. Come visit me and get some new frugal ideas a long with some deals, coupons and DIY projects. I LOVE frugal things and ideas and I am so excited to be guest posting today to talk a little about a type of living frugal that is a daily part of my life.

I have spent a lot of time in my frugal journey of the last 6 years thinking about how much we really NEED. There are many things that are MUSTS in our life that we couldn’t really live without if we tried. I think about people in the 50’s and how they lived. They had much less then us, but they were happy for the most part. I think we tend to forget how much stuff can cost us int he long run, and I am not just talking money. there is a cost mentally and emotionally that this can effect.

We currently live live in a 950 square foot 2 bedroom home. We have 5 people living in the house currently. It was built in the 50’s and still have much of the original layout and set up. The walls are plaster, the kitchen counters are so small and we have NO dishwasher… GASP!

I thought it was going to be hard to fit everything in, to make room for the toys and such. Having 3 kids in 1 room was a challenge, but we have found that things are not as bad as I thought they would be. Things are surprisingly easy to fit in and put up with. The Kitchen is the hardest area to function in, but we have made that work too.

So you get an idea of what I am talking about, the counters are small and they have a tile ledge on them making them even smaller. I have often wondered how did people use to function when they didn’t have any modern things. They had no microwaves, cooked most items from scratch, and had to be in their kitchens most of the day.

The answer is that they just did it. That is what they had to work with and they worked with it. They made bread, rolled it on the table if they had to. They made the choice to do things that way so they could live with what they had.

This has taught me a great lesson in making things work. I think you would be very surprised at what you really could live without. Things you never thought were essential may not work very well for you now. We have many modern small appliances that just wont work in our house. They don’t fit on the counters or under the cabinets. So we are having to figure out ways to do without them. We use our stove a whole lot more then we used to, but it is working and I am not missing the other things we have in the garage sale pile.

Another great way to make things work and do without others is to use a substitution. Sometimes when I use a substitution in recipes things taste a little different and sometimes we don’t like it very much, but I am trying it and not buying something. We learn what we like and what we don’t.

When trying to substitute things in other places in your house you may have to get creative. If you ran out of wipes and they aren’t on sale, use water and pieces of cloth and wash them out until you can get them on sale. Doing dishes by hand when you run out of dish washer soap before the sale comes up is another great way substitute and do without. It may be a little bit more work, but it pays off in the long run with a simple life and saving money!

Living without can sometimes be tricky. You sometimes have to step out of your comfort zone but in the end it helps you to be more simplistic, frugal and happy.

What are somethings you could do without in your life?

Ever wonder how you can make those cute square scarfs that every one is wearing? Why pay the $20 bucks for some store bought one when you can make one for under $5 bucks? Our friend over at Living Life and Loving Every Second figured out a easy way to make your own and she is sharing it with us! It’s so easy!

Photo credit: Living Life and Loving every Second

Materials Needed to make your own square scarf:
1. Iron
2. Light Fabric of your choice but make sure it is double sided
3. Heat n’ Bond hem tape
4. Scissors
5. Pom Pom Trim
6. Fabric Glue

I am not even going to do a picture tutorial on this one because it is so easy a child can do it! First you want to take the fabric lay it on a flat surface then with a yard stick measure a square 40″x 40″. After that get your iron and hem tape and hem all four sides….YOUR ALMOST DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Take your trim and fabric glue and I used my fingers to put the glue then press the trim and YOU ARE DONE.( I put trim on only two sides)

With Halloween coming up we want to make sure we are all save and still have fun. With this night coming up we all usually end up getting pillow cases full of candy. Here is a post that Integrated Nutrition shared with us on how to have a Healthy Halloween too!

Halloween can be a tricky holiday. The omnipresent candy, the festive parties, and the excited enthusiasm of costumed kids can make us go overboard on treating ourselves – especially since we can rationalize that the holiday comes but once a year.

Truly, Halloween is a good time to treat yourself and your kids – not just with a little extra candy, but also with family activities. Bob for apples, tell spooky stories, or have a mini pumpkin hunt!

Halloween definitely doesn’t have to be scary for your health, which is why we’ve compiled this list of tips and recipes to help you moderate the treats and avoid the tricks.

Want more? The Integrative Nutrition community will discuss more tips for a healthy Halloween on Thursday, October 20 during a free webinar. Register for Tricked by Halloween Treats? Not This Year! to reserve your spot!

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Candy

The trickiest part of Halloween is keeping yourself and your kids from going nuts over all that candy. It’s in the grocery, the drugstore, and practically pouring from every nook and cranny, all shiny in neat individual wrappers. One piece seems so small, almost harmless.

Of course, it comes in a bag with 50 or 100 other tiny “harmless” pieces. Take heart, though – we have a few ways to tackle the Halloween-candy blues while still allowing a little festive indulgence.

Handing Out Candy Without Diving Into the Bowl

1. Buy a candy brand that you don’t particularly like to eat for handing out to the trick-or-treaters. Candy corn if you’re a chocolate lover, or Milky Ways if Bit O Honey is your downfall. You’ll be more likely to leave some for the trick-or-treaters.

2. Handing out apples might lead to an egged house, but non-edible options like stickers or yo-yos can be good for treat bags, too. Maybe include an organic lollipop or even a mini Larabar for good measure.

2. Go small. If you hand out something in really small portions like Hershey’s Kisses, not only will you be giving less sugar to the neighborhood kids, but you can also enjoy a few chocolate morsels yourself without much guilt.

3. Buy better candy for only yourself. You really want to waste your candy calorie budget on a few 3 Musketeers that have been sitting on a warehouse shelf for who knows how long? Have a small stash of quality chocolate, and you’ll be less likely to break into the cheaper stuff. For extra benefit, choose dark chocolate – it’s delicious and loaded with health promoting flavonoids. May we suggest Gnosis or Nibmor? 

Keeping Your Kids Safe from Sugar Shock

1. Eat a scrumptious, filling meal before you and your kids hit the pavement. Both of you will be less tempted to munch on candy while you go door-to-door.

2. Upon arriving home after trick-or-treating, let your kids pick out 5 or 6 pieces of candy to enjoy that night. Then pop their bag in the refrigerator. The candy will still be good out of the fridge, but they won’t be able to eat it as fast. Younger kids may also forget about their stash altogether – out of sight, out of mind.

2. After Halloween, ration out the candy as you see fit, OR…

3. Buy the remainder candy off them. Your kids might be happy to trade their hard-earned candy for cold cash, a new toy, or a promise of a trip to the zoo!

Arts and crafts are a great way to keep the kids busy during the summer months. If you are looking for an inexpensive craft solution, you can use different materials found around your home such as pencils, and markers along with pipe cleaners to make a pipe cleaner duck.  I found this guide on the Factory Direct Craft blog.

1. Coil a white pipe cleaner around a pencil and then slide it off to the side.

2. Fold an orange pipe cleaner in half and bend the top of the folded pipe cleaner, which will become the beak.

3. The next step is to assemble the beak. This is done by sticking the orange pipe cleaner into the white torso about two coils from the top and slide it as far down as possible

4. Create the feet by bending the orange pipe cleaner’s loose ends.

5. The last step is to make the wings with the last white pipe cleaner. After creating the wings, you should attach them to the coiled section of the body.

This project is a lot of fun and your kids will love it. You really don’t have to spend a lot of money to keep your kids occupied.  There are many fun craft supplies to work with, but I’ve found that pipe cleaners provide my kids with hours of entertainment.

Thanks to Maryhelen for sharing her thoughts on couponing and how it blesses one’s family!

Grateful Couponing

A HUGE thanks to Brittaney for sharing her wisdom and amazing tips to making your Disney vacation wonderful and Thrifty! She also makes some adorable bows, so make sure you check out her site Bella Bow-Tique

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It seems like everybody, and their dog, are planning a trip to Disneyland sometime this year. YAY!! I’ve had sooo many people calling, emailing, texting me and asking me whats the easiest way to save money on a trip to Disneyland…. Well i’m NOOOO expert! In fact, i’ve never even paid for a hotel or tickets to Disneyland, BUT, i do know some fun, easy ways to save. These are also great tips for the fair, carnivals, parades, and other theme-parks.

TIP #1 : Make your own Autograph Books!

It’s been a long time since i’ve bought an autograph book at disney but if i remember right, they are around $12-$16 EACH! (OUCH!) I went to the craft warehouse and found small blank spiral notebooks on sale for $1 each. I got some of my scrapbook stickers out and voila! Cute custom autograph books! And there are plenty of pages to be able to use them for a couple trips to Disney, the fair, or anywhere else with characters!

TIP #2: DOLLAR STORE= YOUR BFF!!!

This is probably my favorite tip; Souveniers and lights are E.X.P.E.N.S.I.V.E in Disneyland, as with any theme-park! A simple little keychain character will cost around $10 (again, OUCH!) The easiest way to save money on this is by going to the Dollar store BEFORE you leave! It may sound silly, but the Dollar store has A TON of Disney character items, and each is only $1!! I was able to get the kids several items each and i will pack them with us and give one toy to each kid each day we are there. And i only spent about $12 for everything! (that’s 6 toys each!!!!)

If you are at Disney when it gets dark you will notice carts and carts that walk around selling everything imaginable that lights up! Glow sticks, necklaces, glasses, etc. A simple necklace will cost you about $6!!! BUT, the dollar store carries a pretty good variety of glow stuff! They even had light up swords and wands! The necklaces and bracelets all came in a pack of 4-6, so for $5 the kids can be a GLOWING SENSATION at Disney! Walmart is also a cheap place to look for Disney items before going.

TIP #3: Make your own t-shirts!

Of course, you can’t go to Disney unless you are decked out in something Disney right?! i found these cute Disney Cars and Disney Princess shirts at Jo-Ann’s, used my 50% coupon and got them for around $3 each. You can buy fabric markers and have the kids color them themselves before the big day! They can then proudly wear them and show them off!

Tip #4: Coin Tubes

Landen LOVES getting pressed pennies from anywhere we go! Everytime we go on vacation somewhere we always look for pressed pennies machines! Disney has a HUGE selection of them! Every character, every ride, every land, every EVERYTHING!! They even have a shop on Main Street FULL of pressed penny machines! it can get REALLY frustrating trying to dig through bags/purses to find 2 quarters and a penny for each machine. An easy way is to have the kids do chores before Disney that will earn them a quarter or two each. Then have them gather up all the pennies they can find between the couch cushions and put them in an M&M tube! Just about any grocery store sells these tubes full of mini M&M’s, buy one for each kid, enjoy M&Ms, peel off the label, have the kids decorate the tube with their name, stickers, etc and organize the coins, 2 quarters one penny, 2 quarters one penny, till it’s full! I will also attach a piece of yard to the bottles so we carry them easily! You may want to bring a sandwich baggie for all the pressed pennies!

Tip #5: Take alongs

This year we are going to attempt driving (yikes!) but, it’s only going to cost us around $600 to drive from Idaho to So. Cali and 2 nights in a hotel, instead of roughly $1500++ for airfaire. (kids ages 2+ have to buy a full price airline ticket!) So here are a few things we will be taking with us to survive the drive! (Besides your obvious books, toys and snacks)

1. DVD player with new movies (library is a good idea)
2. Again, hit up the dollar store for new toys, sticker books, coloring books, playdoh, white boards, stitching patterns, etc.
3. WRAP toys! It may seem silly but wrapping new toys for the kids to play with will entertain them longer (just make sure you take toys out of packaging to prevent too much trash build up)
4. ALUMINUM FOIL! Bring a tube or two to make aluminium foil animals/figures/hats, etc.
5. Potty break? Bring a kids training toilet, it is small enough to fit in a car and instead of pulling over every hour for kids to go potty, use the portable toilet. Also, bring a thick burp rag or reusable diaper to put on the bottom of the potty so prevent splishing and splashing of toilet goods til you can dump it.
6. Headphones for the kids! After listening to cartoons for a few hours, mom and dad will get SICK of it!
7. Have the kids pack their own backpack with a few of their favorite toys and keep it accessable to them throughout the drive.
8. Lap Desk- I bought these lap trays/desks for each of the kids to take with us in the car. Since they are both in carseats it’s hard to do anything on your lap, but these will allow them to color, play, even eat without making a big mess in my van! They make actual “car trays” online but those can be pretty spending. I found these at Hobby Lobby for $6.99 each and they’ll work perfect! They even have little cubbies to store crayons, coloring books and more in them!

Make seek and find jars, you can buy colored sand at most crafts stores and find random objects to put in the jars. Make a list of what items are in it and have contests to see who can find that item first.

Tip #6: FOOD, need i say more?

A typical “fast food” meal at Disneyland will cost you around $12!! Stay at a hotel that has a free breakfast buffet and FILL up before you go into the park, that will last you a while! Your not “supposed” to bring food into Disney but we’ve been able to bring in snacks for the kids without any problem. Granola bars, fruits, gold fish, fruit snacks, and refillable water bottles are a great way to save! One apple at Disneyland will cost you almost $2!!! You can also bring a cooler of food and leave it in your car to go have lunch or rent a locker outside of the entrance and go have snacks/meals, doing that for one meal will save you on average for a family of four around $50! Another idea is to bring a toaster to your hotel, you can make several different meals with just a toaster. Toast, bagel sandwiches, waffles, etc.

Tip #7: What to bring into the park

Bring your own ponchos, even if it doesn’t look like rain, bring one for each family member and your stroller just in case! You can expect to spend around $10-$15 for ONE poncho from Disneyland, but you can often find them at (guess where?!) THE DOLLAR STORE! Even if it’s raining most of the rides/attractions stay open during the rain, most people leave the park or don’t go on rides during that time so it’s perfect!

Bring your own stroller. A stroller rental from Disneyland will cost about $10/day and they are uncomfortable and offer no room for storage!
Camera, extra batteries, film (do people still use film?)

Change of clothes- Forget the “you may get wet” caution sign in front of splash mountain! Let’s face it…. YOU. WILL. GET. DRENCHED! Bring extra sunscreen and DRINK WATER! LOTS AND LOTS OF WATER!

Tip #8: Don’t forget the Beach

You can’t go to Southern Cali without making a trip to the beach! Make your list to the Dollar Store even longer by getting beach toys at there! I was able to get sand molds, beach ball, buckets, shovels from the dollar store!

Everytime we go to the beach i bring an empty, clean baby food jar and have the kids fill it with real beach sand and seashells they found, then label “Kaylee’s 1st trip to the beach” etc. It also makes for a fun Find and Seek Jar afterwards!

Tip #9: Princess at home?

If you have a little princess at home and she wants to dress up as her favorite princess DO NOT buy a costume at disneyland! The Pixie Place kiosk in the Boise mall now sells Disney princess dresses. They are not like costumes, they are light and comfortable enough to wear all day, even on rides. And they only cost $30! They are machine washable and they even make them for 1-3 year olds! In case you’ve never looked around for princess dress pricing, $30 is GREAT!

Tip #10: CityPass

If you are planning on being in so. Cali for a few days, the best way to save money is getting a CityPass. Getting a citypass gets you admission into Disneyland, DCA, Universal Studios, Sea World, and the Zoo. It’s about a 30%-40% savings to do that.

Tip #11: Parking

Parking in the parking garage is going to cost about $15/car! Killer!! One tip we usually do is park in the Downtown Disney area. You get free parking for 3 hours. You’ll have a little ways to walk, but you can walk through shops making it less boring but just move your car every 3 hours.

Tip #12: Child Swap

•Adults with kids don’t have to stand in line if the ride is only for the adult.
?Example 1: If Mom wants to ride Space Mountain but Dad and kids do not, tell the guy working the ride and show him your family. He will let Mom go in a special, shorter line.
?Example 2: Mom and Dad both want to ride Space Mountain but they have an infant who can’t. All 3 wait in line and when they get to the front, tell the staff you want to trade off. Mom rides first while Dad and baby wait; when Mom is done, Dad takes her seat and rides immediately.

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A far as hotels, i’m definately not the person to ask, but i know that staying off-site you can get a decent price hotel, especially off season. AAA, and travel agents also offer discounts.

For tickets into the park, again i’m definately not the person to ask because i’ve been over a thousand times and never paid, but getting a “park hopper” pass is definately the way to go. This will get you into Disneyland and DCA and you can go back and forth as much as you want. Also buying more than one day at disney will be cheaper. (i.e. a 5 day pass is cheapest!) And it may sound silly, but check craigslist or ebay for discounted tickets. Often times people will pay for additional days but not be able to make it. Just do your work and make sure they are legit before purchasing!

ADDITIONAL TIPS:

• Even though Disneyland closes at (let’s say) 9pm, main street shops stay open til the LAST PERSON is gone! So do all your shopping at the end of the day! Last year, my family and i were the very last people on an empty main street at 2am! It’s kinda neat to see Disney with NO ONE there!
• If you go to guest relations you can get a FREE button if you’re there for a special occation, birthdays, anniversaries, honeymoons, 1st trip to disney, newlyweds, family reunions, etc. Just go to guest relations and ask for a specific button and everyone can get one free!
• USE FASTPASS! Fast pass is a ticket that gets you a “go to the front of the line” sort of thing. You can get only one per person per every few hours. So, if you want to go to splash mountain but the line is 2 hours long, get a fast pass, go on a few less busy rides, come back any time after your ticket says and wait a MUCH shorter time!
• A Character meal is TOTALLY worth it! These cost more than your average $10/person meal but they are TOTALLY worth it! You can sit and eat really good food and have the characters come to YOUR table! No waiting in line after line in the park, you can take pictures, get autographs without even leaving your table! There are SEVERAL different character meals.
• Disney Princesses no longer walk around, so you have to look for specific area where they will be and the line is usually pretty long! So have one adult wait in line while the other takes the kids on another ride.
• Here’s a trick that the hubs and i did in WDW, i don’t think it’s “technically” allowed but it saves time! get your fast pass for just one ride and use your spouse’s ticket to get a different fast pass. You can ask the ride attendent for a stroller pass and that allows one person to get in the fast pass line. So technically you are 2 fast passes at the same time and get to go on 2 rides in just the fast pass line.
• Even though your fast pass says, “use between 2:00pm and 3:00pm” that doesn’t mean you have to go in that hour block. You can still use your fast pass anytime after 3pm.
• Go on rides during parades, or lunch/dinner time. Wait lines are SIGNIFICALLY shorter during these times!
• Have an iphone? The iphone has an app that will tell you the shortest wait line!

Thanks to Utah Deal Diva for passing along this thrifty guest post on her money saving ideas for keeping your produce fresh longer.  Nothing is worse  than spending money on fresh veggies and have them go bad before you get a chance to eat them.  Here is a link to the story on the freeze in Mexico.  Looking for a way to cut the cost of produce?  Don’t forget about Bountiful Baskets a way to get  $35-$55 in produce each week for only $16.50.

Being as the price of produce may drastically increase in the next week due to the freeze in Mexico, I thought it’d be helpful to share a few tips as to how to keep produce fresh longer. By taking a couple extra steps when you bring your produce home, you can extend the life of your fresh goods by as much as a week or two! Below I’ve listed several common fruits and vegetables and ways to prolong their shelf life. If you have tips to share, please leave a comment and I’ll add them to the list!

Apples & oranges: will stay fresh in fridge for 3-4 weeks. Don’t store other produce in the same place as apples in the fridge as they give off a gas that causes other produce to ripen quickly. {Oranges don’t seem to be affected, so I store them together.}

Asparagus & celery: Wash & cut off ends. Store in a container with stalks standing upright with a little water on the bottom.

Bananas: Buy small bunches in varying stages of ripeness. Break up bunches and store on the counter in a container that allows for good air circulation. I have a wrought iron basket that works really well.

Berries: Store in fridge. Berries just don’t last very long, period, unless you opt to freeze them. However if you wash them, they spoil faster, so opt to wash just those that you’ll eat immediately. Also be sure to pick out any moldy berries immediately as they will cause others to spoil faster.

Broccoli & cauliflower: Will stay fresh in the fridge for about 10 days. If you opt to freeze, you’ll need to blanch them first which is a very easy process detailed here.

Green onions: Slice them and store them in a container with a folded up paper towel. They’ll stay fresh for about 10-12 days this way.

Lettuce & spinach: Wash & dry leaves. Store leaves in a loose but closed bag or container with a folded up paper towels. The towel absorbs the moisture and leaves stay fresh longer.

Mushrooms: Store in the fridge in a paper bag. Will stay fresh for about a week this way. {Keeping them in the container you bought them in makes them slimy within 2-3 days.}

Onions: Will stay fresh in a cool, dark place for 3-4 weeks. You can also dice them and freeze them for use beyond that time frame.

Pears: Store in fridge until ready to eat. Once they’re out on the counter, they’ll ripen within 2-3 days.

Potatoes: Open bag they came in and store in a cool, dark, dry place. I store mine in a cupboard in my garage- they keep for 5-6 weeks!

Well it seems like almost every day my kids are wanting me to tie their blankets around them so they can run around like a super here. Well here was a cute idea that  One Momma Saving Money sent to us:

I posted about a Tylenol Sleep Kit (no longer available)not long ago.  Well in it came a blue sleep mask.  After opening the freebie, I left the sleep mask laying out.  Hubby opened the package and held it up and exclaimed I have an idea!  He quickly grabbed the scissors and started cutting 2 holes in the mask.  Then I grabbed some thread and quickly did a stitch around the hole to stop frays.  Now granted it was not the best cuts or sew job, but as you can see from below it didn’t matter! Instant Super Hero!!!

Andrea at Coco Candi sent us this thrifty craft project. Looks simple and cute:

I stole this idea a lady on Crocheting Club on Facebook. I then decided to figure it out and make a tutorial for those of you that might want to make it too. This is about a 30 minute project and I used a size 5/ F hook.

Collect approximately 13 Tabs for soda cans. Be sure that the little circle in the center has been removed.

Choose your yarn. Line up the tabs one on top of the other, staggered Two double crochet in each two tabs.

The tricky part is holding the tabs while trying to double crochet through them. Just be patient.

When you are finished with the top side connect with a slip stitch and then move to the bottom side.

Put it on and enjoy!

Thanks to Michelle for passing along this thrifty tip on how to make Red Velvet Cake balls.  She is so talented and I love her ability to think outside the box, and be thrifty!  You can check out more of her ideas at Polka Dots and Pizza. If you would like to be a featured guest post on Look What I Made , watch for our weekly post each Tuesday called A Thrifty online craft fair, link up and you may be selected for our weekly feature post.

We have an awesome guest post from Kristie at Blushing Basics:

As a freelance Makeup Artist, the Holidays are one of the busiest times of the year. Since not everyone wants to splurge on a Makeup Artist, I thought it would be helpful to pass on some tips and techniques to get your Thrifty Holiday Look. I went to my local CVS and picked up some makeup to create this fantastic look. I purchased my Wet ‘n Wild eyeshadow, lip gloss, eyeliner, highlighter, and nail polish for only $8.50. Combine that with my makeup tutorial explaining the basic application technique, you too can look like you just left the Makeup Artist’s chair.

I hope this was helpful in creating your own Thrifty Holiday Look. As a tip from an insider, blending is your key to success.

xo
Kristie

Kristie {a.k.a. Blushing Basics} is a wife, mother of two, and freelance Makeup Artist. Her love for all things artistic began at an early age and has since blossomed into her favorite medium, Makeup! For more makeup application techniques, as well as video tutorials and frugal fashion advice, check out her blog http:www.blushingbasics.blogspot.com.