• Miserly Moms – Living on One Income in a Two Income Economy – I won this book in a little contest on another website and it has been a wealth of information for me!  There are SO many tips in this book and so much information that was eye opening.  I really enjoyed the recipes too.
• Miserly Meals – I am a sucker for cheap meals, so I couldn’t pass up this valuable resource for inexpensive healthy meals.  You can find everything from dinners to desserts to snacks and the homemade mixes are really useful.
• The Complete Tightwad Gazette – A lot of times you’ll see the same tips recycled, but there are definitely some unique ideas in this book.  Some of the ideas are a bit extreme, but you can definitely use the ones that are practical for you and your family and leave the rest.

If you’re considering the transition to one income, these books on saving money can definitely help you.  It is a bit of a struggle when you first begin, but after awhile, living frugally becomes second nature.

• Rechargeable Batteries – If you use a lot of high power devices, you probably go through a lot of batteries.  Even buying cheap batteries at the dollar store turned out to cost me an arm and a leg.  Rechargeable batteries prove to be a money saver for me and the batteries in the Eneloop Power Pack are the best ones I’ve found.  It comes with 8 AA batteries and 4 AAA batteries as well as adapters so that you can use them in items that take C or D batteries as well.  It’s genius!  Just remember to keep them charged or it’s absolutely useless to own them.
• Water Filter – You can either use the pitcher type or the type that attaches to your kitchen faucet, but I personally prefer the water pitcher type.  For the size of my family I have to use the Brita Ultramax to have enough water for the day.  The filters can seem expensive, but if you’re buying bottled water, this is definitely going to a cheaper way to go.
• CFL Light Bulbs – I started using these a couple of years ago when they were on sale and have never turned back.  If you’re not used to fluorescent lighting, you may need some time to adjust to them because they make things look differently.  Beware of the first time you look at yourself in the mirror with this new lighting – it’s a little frightening!  I don’t think the brand really matters, I’ve bought several different kind and have not changed one yet!
• Clothes Drying Rack – Don’t get me wrong, I don’t ALWAYS hang my clothes to dry – I just don’t have time for it.  But I do like to hang up bulky clothes that take forever to dry, especially on a warm windy day.  You can also hang up items that have elastic in them to keep the elastic from becoming brittle and stretching out.  Then you can save money on your gas/electric bill AND you won’t have to replace your clothes as often.

Before making a purchase, you really have to consider the price of the item and how much money it will save in the future.  If the savings is small, you may need to consider the convenience factor.  Sometimes it doesn’t make sense to buy something if it’s only going to create more work for you, because chances are that you’ll quit using it and the money will have been wasted.

1. Black & Decker 6-Cup Rice Cooker with Steamer Basket – I just recently purchased this because I want to make more brown rice, but I am always struggling with getting the right amount of water, cooking it for the right amount of time and heating up our home.  Not only does it cook up my rice quickly (I swear it takes less time than the stove top) but I can also steam veggies or fish in the top basket.  The other night I made salmon and rice in like 25 minutes.  I save money because I can cook rice more often and a quick meal keeps us from eating out.
2. Presto Electric Griddle -I’ve always had trouble with making pancakes too.  Pan is too hot, pan isn’t hot enough, pancake is burning, etc.  Hubby bought this for me a couple of years ago and I LOVE it!  I use it for perfect pancakes on the weekends and can use it during the week for grilled cheese sandwiches and quesadillas.  Again, it keeps us from eating out because I can quickly cook up a variety of foods.
3. George Foreman Lean Mean Fat Reducing Grilling Machine – I’ve had this thing forever it feels like and it’s gotten a LOT of use.  Just the other night I was feeling too tired to cook and was about ready to send hubby out for fast food.  I looked in the fridge and saw some chicken breasts – so I got out my grill and the chicken breast cooked up in about 10 minutes.  What’s especially nice too is that you can do other things while it’s cooking.  So, I set my rice cooker and my grill and put my feet up while they cooked dinner for me.
4. Cuisinart Duet Blender/Food Processor – I believe I got this as a birthday present 2 years ago and it has been so wonderful.  I had a very cheap blender and a very cheap food processor that were more trouble than they were worth.  I love having both appliances in one and it’s a good quality brand.  I can save money with this by making more foods from scratch, especially baby food and smoothies.
5. Bissell Flip-Ease All-In-One Vacuum and Mop – Ok, so this doesn’t save me money, but good Lord I love this thing!  I got it while I was pregnant so I wouldn’t have to get down on my hands and knees to mop, but truly, I wouldn’t trade it for anything now.  I run the vacuum over the kitchen floor every day and spot mop as needed.  Now I only have to do a major mopping every month or two.  I guess I can say that it saves me money because when my kitchen is clean, I am more likely to cook at home

And there you have it.  I would love to hear some other kitchen favorites – then I can put them on my birthday wish list for this year!

• Financial – Store bought cleaners are for the most part, ridiculously priced.  And of course, the companies will market 20 different products that you just have to have in order to keep your home clean.  In reality, most cleaners can be made from products you already purchase such as ammonia, vinegar, salt, borax and baking soda.  Last I checked on those – they were all reasonably priced!
• Environmental – Many chemicals found in store bought cleaners are quite toxic to the environment and to wildlife.  They wind up in our water supply due to being flushed down the toilet and poured down the drain and unfortunately, these chemicals cannot be filtered out.  Natural cleaners are much more environmentally friendly and the damage to wildlife is minimal.
• Personal – For me personally, it is frightening to have a lot of chemicals around my small children, let alone my husband and me.  There are so many things in cleaners that can harm you, cause cancer and there are probably some side effects that are not even known.  When a package says that you need to wear gloves because the product may irritate your skin, it scares me to think what the fumes are doing to my lungs!

So, the next time you hear about homemade cleaners, know that they are a good thing for three different reasons.  Take the time to whip yourself up a batch and not only will you be protecting your family, but you’ll also be helping the environment (being Green is the IN thing!) and saving money.

So I did my homework and found that newspaper subscriptions are TOO EXPENSIVE!  The cheapest thing I found was a Sunday only subscription for $52 a  year.  Of course, being the frugal person that I am – I started researching.  I ran across this great site that offers cheap newspaper subscriptions at 50% – 75% off!  After all was said and done, I found a paper that offered Sunday only delivery for 50 cents a week.

I’m sure that I can save at least 50 cents a week by using my coupons, so this is definitely a wise decision.  Compare that to the original price which was $1 a week, and I save $26.  Needless to say I am more than happy with my discovery and wanted to share it with anyone who may need coupons or just a cheap newspaper subscription.

The instructions are pretty simple.  You’re supposed to get a roll of paper towels, take the cardboard out of the center, cut the roll in half and then put the roll into a plastic container of some sort.  Then you add the disinfectant of your choice and pull the towels from the center of the roll and it’s just like the containers from the store.

Ok, let’s break this process down so the world can see what went wrong every step of the way:

1. Take the cardboard roll out of the center of the roll.  I’ve yet to find instructions that mention that manufacturers GLUE the cardboard to the paper towels.  So, I expected the sucker would slide right out and it didn’t.  I ran a long thin knife down inside to pull it loose and it really chewed up the paper towels.  Nothing fatal though because I could just throw away the first few that I pulled out.  After performing major surgery, the cardboard roll came out.
2. Cut the roll in half.  Again, nobody mentions that you need a hack saw to cut this thing in half.  I tried a regular kitchen knife – didn’t cut.  Tried scissors – didn’t cut.  So I finally got out a bread knife which seriously resembles a hacksaw and it worked.  However, it also made confetti out of the paper towels as I cut and I was left with pile of paper towel dust when I was done.  Definitely not pretty, but it got the job done.
3. Put the half roll into a plastic container.  I looked at the store for a plastic container that would hold half a roll of paper towels but really couldn’t find anything.  I decided to use something I already had at home.  This was probably the best part of the whole project.  If you want to get REALLY fancy, you can even drill a hole in the lid so they dispense real pretty.  I opted not to do this and instead have to remove the lid every time.
4. Add the disinfectant of your choice.  I used 1 part Lysol kitchen cleaner to 2 parts water.  I think it’s breaking down the paper towels though because they feel weaker and weaker each time I use them.  I probably should have used more water…but then would they really disinfect?
5. Pull from the center and wipe.  The paper towels come out of the center and my husband was very amused that I was able to make something like this.  However, I feel like the wipes are getting thinner by the day and there is still some paper towel dust in there.

Will I Do It Again?

Nope.

A Better Alternative?

Buy a bottle of disinfectant, spray it on the surface and use a paper towel to wipe   Seriously though, I heard this on a show the other day and it is a great idea.  Bleach is one of the best and cheapest disinfectants there is.  Fill up your sink with bleach and water (read the instructions for the proper dilution).  While the water is in there, throw your sponge, scrub brush and anything else that needs disinfecting.  You can even use a white towel dipped in the water to wipe down your counters.   The smell is not the greatest and you’ll need to ventilate, but you can have peace of mind knowing that you’re kitchen is clean and that you’re saving some bucks in the process.

And you won’t have paper towel dust everywhere.

To Make Your Own Dishwasher Detergent

You’re going to need:

• Baking Soda
• Borax
• Container to store it in
• Scoop

You can make the batch up in any size you’d like, just mix equal parts baking soda and borax. Some other recipes call for Koolaid but I opted not to add it. Use 1-2 Tablespoons of your mixture (less for soft water, more for hard water). A very important consideration for this is to make sure you’re using a rinse aid. Again – do it yourself! You can fill up your rinse aid dispenser with vinegar or add a bit to the rinse cycle.

My Verdict on Homemade Dishwasher Detergent

Indeed it was easy to make – it took a whopping minute to measure and mix. Definitely inexpensive – two positives so far. Now, here’s the killer! My dishes didn’t come out clean and they had this nasty powdery residue left on them. I even ran them through an additional rinse cycle and the gritty mess wouldn’t come off. Long story short, some of my dishes still had grit after several wash cycles so I had to wash them by hand. I investigated this on the internet and some people said that maybe I used too much detergent, so I cut back. Better, but still not acceptable. Some people say it was the rinse agent, so I added extra vinegar to the rinse cycle. Again, better, but there was still too much grit on them for my taste (no pun intended because you could actually TASTE the baking soda on the glasses!).

This little experiment probably cost me more than it saved me because I had to wash the dishes so many times. This is not something I recommend because for me it just did not work well no matter what I did to correct the problem.

So what do I recommend? I went out and bought the largest box of Cascade I could find. Why the name brand? Because the larger box was cheaper per ounce than the generic! And the results?? My dishes sparkle again and are super clean.

Now if you want to try to save a little more money just cut the amount of detergent you use in your cups. This is something you’ll have to experiment with based on what kind of water you have but I find that I can fill each one half way and it works fine. Some people are able to leave the prewash cup empty and fill the regular cup 1/4 full and it works for them. Just experiment and find out for yourself!

Then, the very next day I was at Walmart and I had a huge DUH moment.  Instead of spending $7.99 on a fancy foaming hand soap dispenser, why not buy one that is already filled and just reuse it?

So, I bought one made by Dial because it was most appealing (completely clear) and spent $1.84.  Luckily I thought of this before I spent the $7.99 and now I’ve just saved myself an additional six bucks.

I think that’s the key to truly saving money is to think outside the box.  Find new uses for items, find items that can be reused, and find items that can stretch so that you can get more bang for your buck.

Rubbermaid makes a foaming hand soap dispenser.  Big deal, you say?  Well, they have a little tag attached to it that explains that foaming hand soap uses 1 part soap to 2 parts WATER.  I personally love foaming hand soap, but am turned off by the price of it.  However, if I can use the same soap I’m already using and make it go much much further with something that costs nothing, then I’m all for it.

The cost of the dispenser is $7.99, so it would take a little while to recoup the costs, but  once you do, the savings will be great.  Now, if you don’t wash your hands much, this is probably pretty meaningless to you, but for me, it’s gold.  I change a gazillion diapers, cut up raw chicken for dinner and deal with croup a couple of times a year, so the need for saving money on my soap is high on my list.

Besides that, it’s cool!  And as a double bonus, I got a $10 gift card to Target for Christmas!

1. Coffee – Whether brewed at home or bought outside the home, the price of coffee can put a dent in your wallet.  Add in the unnecessary calories and caffeine and it’s just all around a bad choice.
2. Soda – Here is where I’m going to be a hypocrite and tell you that you should drink soda while I continue to gulp it down.  Seriously though, it’s full of sugar, caffeine, empty calories and the stuff is expensive.  At .50¢ to $1 a pop (pardon the pun), one a day adds up to $182.50 – $365 a year.  I know some better things to spend that kind of money on!
3. Juice – Chant this mantra with me – everything in moderation, everything in moderation.  Yes, juice probably seems like a healthy choice, but it is PACKED with calories!  And again, the price is high so this becomes a bad choice.
4. Milk – Around my area, a gallon of milk costs more than a gallon of gas – need I say more?  Plus we won’t even discuss the amount of fat in milk which makes this choice doubly bad.  But don’t cut out milk altogether unless you have another source of calcium in your diet.

So what are some alternatives?  Here are two that will cost less and won’t affect your waistline.

1. Water – yep, good old H2O.  Buying bottles of it can get expensive, so if you don’t have good tap water, you may want to look into getting a reusable filter for your faucet.   Add a slice of lemon for even more flavor.
2. Tea – There are many different flavors and types of tea to choose from.  You can make a gallon of iced tea for less than a dollar and if you get a decaf variety, it’s even more beneficial.