• An article on living on 1 income:
• http://www.stretcher.com/menu/1income.htm

• by Jeffry Strain:
• his blog on saving money:
• http://www.pfadvice.com/
• his website(register & you can sign-up for free weekly newsletter by email):
• www.savingadvice.com

a few old favorites:

• sample frugal weekly meal-plan
• http://savingdinner.com/menu_mailer/frugal_mm_order.html

• http://planabudget.com/money-tips.htm
• refunds & coupons:  Refund Express,  http://www.refundexpress.net/
• http://www.livingonadime.com/tipindex.htm#Leftovers
• www.budgetonline.com/
• Hillbilly Housewife    www.hillbillyhousewife.com/index.htm
• www.thethriftshopper.com/
• www.thriftyfun.com/

As a busy Mama, I'm finding it hard to find time to spend online, so I'm not adding to this real quickly, but my main thing is I'm trying to see this as a tool to track some of my own interests and activities.  If anything I add here helps someone else with similar interests and concerns thats good too.

I'm having a hard time getting anything typed in again today because of a box that keeps popping up on my computer.  Tihis can be such a helpful tool to have access to but also so frustrating! 

Before I give up for now, I'll try to post a link here to a refund form to print out for a new Land o Lakes butter product.  I like to find deals on foods that are just basic-type real foods.  the web site for this is http://www.landolakes.com/pdf/TryMeFree.pdf   Notice that its a pdf file so you need the Adobe Acrobat to get it.

ta ta for now, the frugal mama

Wacky Cake

1 1/2 c. flour

1/4 c. cocoa

1 c. white sugar

1t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

1/3 c. salad oil

1t. vanilla

1t. vinegar

1 c. water

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees (F).  Mix dry ingredients into an ungreased 8"x8" pan.  Make 3 holes in the mixture.  In one hole, pour the vinegar; in the next hole, pour the oil; and in the last, pour the vanilla.  Pour water over the whole works and mix just until combined.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Cool and eat!   

This demonstrates when an alkali and an acid are mixed, causing a chemical reaction.  Vinegar and baking soda are leavening agents in this recipe.  They create gas bubbles that cause the cake to rise.

abbreviations in recipe:  c=cup     t=teaspoon  

warning, once you get your kids started playing with vinegar and baking soda, they'll want to do all the old favorites, so get ready to turn 'em loose!: model volcanoes, plastic pop-bottle rockets,  (any other ideas?)

 Have fun! Get messy! Frugal Mama

The planting garden, homeschooling (very eclectic- personalized studies for 4 kids), and other projects have been keeping me really busy lately...  I was wanting to record more often in this spot what we've been doing , and maybe even start another site dedicated to just our homeschooling projects. One set-back to trying to do this--when I started I thought we were going to get a faster internet connection but that isn't possible where we are (our rural phoneline doesn't even handle the 56k speed that is always listed as the slowest speed when you try to download something.)  A small disadvantage to being so rural, but the advantages far outweigh the inconveniences. 

 I'll try to get some crockpot recipes here soon.  We use my crockpots alot!

After a relatively healthy winter, we are passing around a tummy flu.  Teas seem to help as much as anything with this. peppermint or ginger are good ingredients to look for to find something to settle upset tummies.  My husband swears by baking soda in water for upset stomaches; its what he grew up taking as an all-purpose cure-all. 

 the frugal mama, still hanging in here

Quote

I've started planting my garden (cool weather crops)

Gardening planting dates.:

to March 10 - plant below-ground crops

March 10th - 25th  above ground crops

rest of the month- below ground again

Source : Countryside and  Small Stock Journal, March/April 2005

  These dates are based on the position of the moon.  Above ground vegetables and flowers as the moon is waxing and root crops between full and new moon.  One of my grandmothers always relied on the position of the moon for planting her large successful gardens.

Genesis 1 : 14.  And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to seperate the day from the night and let them serve as signs to mark the seasons and days and years." 

  My other grandmother was a proponet of companion planting; that plants should be next to the other types of plants that they grow best near, in the garden.  I try to always plant marigolds around my tomatoes because they protect the tomato plants by repelling  pests.    

Both women grew their gardens in an era when folks relied on their gardens to help feed their families, They had bigger gardens than mine and did a lot of canning.  They counted on being able to grow amounts that would help feed their families throughout the year. 

  I did more canning this past summer than I had done previously, and enjoyed both the canning and the having fruits and vegetables to serve.  Just this week we came to the end of the greenbeans.  I want to can more this summer than I did last summer.

 the Frugal Mama

Gardening planting dates.:

to March 10 - plant below-ground crops

March 10th - 25th  above ground crops

rest of the month- below ground again

Source : Countryside and  Small Stock Journal, March/April 2005

  These dates are based on the position of the moon.  Above ground vegetables and flowers as the moon is waxing and root crops between full and new moon.  One of my grandmothers always relied on the position of the moon for planting her large successful gardens.

Genesis 1 : 14.  And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to seperate the day from the night and let them serve as signs to mark the seasons and days and years." 

  My other grandmother was a proponet of companion planting; that plants should be next to the other types of plants that they grow best near, in the garden.  I try to always plant marigolds around my tomatoes because they protect the tomato plants by repelling  pests.    

Both women grew their gardens in an era when folks relied on their gardens to help feed their families, They had bigger gardens than mine and did a lot of canning.  They counted on being able to grow amounts that would help feed their families throughout the year. 

  I did more canning this past summer than I had done previously, and enjoyed both the canning and the having fruits and vegetables to serve.  Just this week we came to the end of the greenbeans.  I want to can more this summer than I did last summer.

 the Frugal Mama

First, I wanted to point out that the links to the CD (at the bottom of the page) and the one on the book list for the rebate on the "...for  Dummies" books both should take you directly to forms to print out that are in the Adobe Acrobat pdf format.  To access these you'll need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader already in your computer.  Most folks already have this, I think, but if you don't you can go to the Adobe Acrobat website and download this for free.___________________________________________________________

A list of Cheap Organizers:

 Always begin by asking yourself, what do I have on hand....

Spiral notebooks-  I use them constantly to write things down.  Keep at least one with you all the time.  Take notes on life, you may need them.  Stock up on these during back-to-school sales.

Rubber bands- The mailman (and other sources) keeps me supplied with these and they come in handy all the time.

Plastic bags-  The bags from the stores make perfect waste paper basket liners.      Small ziplock bags organize purses by holding groups of like things like cosmetics, tissues, pens, & whatever else you usually carry with you. & you can see the contents of your bags.  Ziplocks, etc are also handy for craft or sewing supplies.

A thought on cleaning supplies:  The swiffer-type cleaner hasn't completely replaced my broom, [after all the frugal mama's got kids so there is a lot to sweep up!], but it is a handy tool to have on hand...  Something to note is the dry cloths they sell to use with the swiffer/duster (whatever brand) are not one use only.  After I've dusted the floor I throw the cloth in the laundry.  They go through the washing machine just fine and I think they can probably make it through the dryer as well. Although drying them doesn't seem necessary because they're thin and come out of the washer dry, so I don't bother hanging them on the clothesline.

l   Frugal Mama

My plans for this space:

I'm hoping to share cheap and easy things my family enjoys as I think of them and I hope that if you read something useful here you'll add ideas of your own.  But please , no spam!

_______________________________________

  Today I made muffins.  I do this when we have leftover oatmeal, using the recipe from The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn.  In the older edition, its in Vol.II, pp. 164-166, "Create a Breakfast Muffin."  Its more a formula than a recipe.  I like making it with leftover cooked oatmeal but I have found that it has to have some flour as  part of the grain and I like it best (texture) when I also include some dry cereal flakes, i.e. bran flakes.

  The Tightwad Gazette, I think, is published now in one big volume.  It was originally 3 volumes.  I have the older version and have used them a lot, for the recipes, tips and inspiration.  If you are not familiar with it-- I'd suggest checking into it the next time you're at the library.  You'll probably end up wanting your own copy.

A quick project I did with my kids today:    They spread peanut butter on pinecones & dipped them in birdseed and hung them up outside for the birds.  I spread extra birdseed on the top of a cement wall in the yard and our dog climbed up there and ate it! LOL  At least he can't reach the pinecones.

For supper, I've started soup in the crockpot.  I begin with dried beans and when they're cooked I add fresh and leftover veggies, a grain (barley today - often its rice) and I add spices, salt, pepper....    My crockpot soup is a lot like the muffins mentioned above: it's made with what I have on hand.  [This may be the key to frugal mama-hood.]

   the frugal mama