A New Aspect to the Daily Grind

I have never thought I had the green thumb skill. I couldn't even keep a bamboo plant alive! But that doesn't mean I wanted to sit back and only watch others grow things. I had hoped that one day I could have a garden yard. Pretty flowers. Edible plants. Everything one might only dream of. Fast forward and that has not been a thing. The plant that lasted the longest for me was a succulent. Until the little pot it was in broke. Despite moving it to another pot, it withered away too. 

This year was different. Prices of produce, and the skimpy things you could find in stores, left a lot to be desired. Which solidified my resolve. I was going to put more effort into growing things myself. Would it work? Eeeehhhh maybe not. But I was going to give it my best effort!

I had seen shorts made by Creative_Explained on Instagram. The guy is awesome! He breaks down the process of seed starting and growing. I have used some of these already to try to grow things.   

My first plant was the cucumber. I was SO proud of how big it got. And it even flowered. Then, one of two things happened. Either it became diseased, or I over-watered it. I'm not exactly sure which... But it showed me I could do this!

So I started another plant. Sadly, something kept getting into the pots and pulling out the seeds.  I did get the watermelon started, but it didn't last long. Instead, I now have potatoes sprouting up. 

I have about 3 spuds growing that I saw when I transferred this to a bigger pot with more soil. I started this one from a potato we got at the meat market. It had started growing on my counter and has taken off from there. 

Then came the onion. This was also started from an onion we had purchased and then I sliced off the root side and planted it. Green onions (or chives) will grow the same way! I have had success with that in the past. 

Some wild flowers are growing from seeds I was given. Another happy experiment!  

Some helpful tricks I'm learning to balance in the process are adding cinnamon to keep away rot and mold. The brown flakes you see were from crumbled cinnamon sticks we were given. Also, if you soak banana peels in water for about 2 hours, you can then use that water to add potassium back into the soil. Used coffee grounds are also helpful. Soak in water, strain that out into a spray bottle and use it to benefit the plants nutrients and growth. I have to learn how to properly apply these techniques in a balanced way though. That might have been what killed my cucumber. Not balancing the 3 just right.  

Despite the ups and downs, I have taken this as another task to my day. One that can be disappointing when things don't grow. But can also bring great satisfaction when they do. It pushes me to try harder. Research more. Do better. Some days, I don't want to do anything. There is a lot pressing down on me lately, but this little change in life has helped me fight those down days. I can't wait to see what I can do later on!  

Spring cleaning? Not my favorite chore....

Its that time of year when cleaning out the clutter is necessary. We were preparing for a move but it seems that wasn't happening just yet. As I packed, I came across things that we never use, don't need anymore, or just don't want. I took a bag filled with old movies to Hastings first. While they didn't take everything, it cleared out a chunk of space and gave me a hefty bit of store credit so I can get the things I actually want. Those movies were ones that we had but either never watched or didn't even know why we had them. I also have some books that I tried cashing in, but was told I'd get .75 for each. While browsing posts by the Krazy Coupon Lady, I came across one she had for de-cluttering the home. She had a link for a website you can sell your books on and see how much you'd get for each one. Sadly, I'd get the same price as if I sold them at Hastings or Half Price Books. I'm thinking I'll list them on Listia or eBay instead.

Listia is a credit-based trading site. No money is exchanged for the items themselves, though you can have buyers pay the shipping. You instead get credits that can only be used on the website to "bid and buy". It's auction styled like eBay.

As for clothing, I have a large amount of boys and girls clothing that my kids have outgrown. I've just been tossing them into bags and piling them up. I tried Craigslist. Didn't get any hits off that. I tried posting to a local swap page on Facebook without much luck either. My last resort will be ThredUp. You just order a prepaid postage bag and when you get it, stuff it with clothes to send back. You can look up what types or brands are accepted. Whatever they don't buy, they will donate to a local charity.

I have to do some other organizing around here. Since my husbands Lego hobby is taking over more and more of the small apartment we currently share, I'm packing away my own stuff to make room and see how much I have so I'll know what kind of truck to rent when I move the kids and I out next year. I found some cool tips to help make extra space from the Krazy Coupon Lady. Here's a post on getting organized.

So here's to making room and maybe making money to boot! Let's get rid of the clutter and make more space for the things we enjoy. 

Money and time saving meal planning

I really dislike shopping with my kids. It's a lot of, "Mom! I want that!", "Mom, I'm tired.", "Can we go home and play Mario Kart yet?" Or even just straight up "Waaaahhhhh" from being too tired. So I decided to plan my meals ahead. Anywhere from 2 weeks to a whole month, depending on my financial status. I have a list of meals that I know my family loves. I have a list of things we need that I've been writing as things diminish in my pantry and I know we use often.

Knowing your family and their favorites is the most important part. Knowing your schedule is another important factor. I work part time. My husband has a time-consuming Lego hobby. Plus there are the daily tasks and chores of keeping house and home schooling. On the nights I work, my husband has to do the cooking. On the nights I'm off - I pick it up. So when I'm picking meals I have to pick the easy ones for his nights alone. I also try to incorporate things we get on WIC. We get beans, brown rice, cheese, fruits and vegetables, among other things. All healthy stuff. Beans and rice are one of my easy choices for my husband to cook. He likes to add sausage and onion to it.  None of us really like brown rice. So to compromise, we mix half white and half brown. Even my kids love it. It also makes the bag of white rice stretch farther.

When I'm planning, I also check the sales and try to match my meals with them. I print coupons based on what we use and try to match them with stores sales.

So here's how you get started. And yes... It's going to take time and effort, but it pays off later.

Start by making a list. Write meals that you know you and your family eat regularly and love. Know your ingredients or list them with the meals. I keep mine in a notebook but you could use a binder. Especially with the clear page covers so you can just flip through while planning.

Step two, is knowing your budget. We know when big bills are due and plan around them. I prefer to plan at least two weeks at a time, but maybe you can only do a week per stretch. Once you know your budget, count the days and pick a dinner for each one. Throw in a couple of lazy meals. Some days you aren't going to want to cook. So make it something easy to put together or make that the take out night. Either way, writing it into your list will remind you. Then pick breakfast and lunch items to fill in. I always keep peanut butter on hand. Tuna works well too. Snack things like chips, cookies, desserts - whatever little things you need to have on hand get added to your list next.
Now if you're really on a roll and want it super organized, take it a step further and actually list the items by category i.e.- meats, frozen, can aisle, snack aisle... You get the idea? I don't often have the patience and I'm still getting used to my stores here, but sometimes I aim for the ballpark. This makes your trip easier and faster. Also organizing your coupons to match your aisles helps too.

Now the fun part (not) of shopping! Coming home, you might have a kitchen looking something like this picture.

Another thing to keep in mind is how much storage space you have around your kitchen. We are fortunate enough to have a large pantry. But we are limited in freezer space. We don’t buy a large amount of freezer foods at once. Sometimes we have to go back to the store for things like bread, fresh veggies and fruits, or more freezer items.

Sometimes when I buy onions and bell peppers, I will chop them up and keep them in the freezer. Just remember that when you pull them out to cook not to let them stay thawed. They can get a little mushy. Cooking them right away tastes better.

I hope this is helpful in getting you started on meal planning. Be sure and leave a comment on anything you think I missed! Love hearing from you all.

snackTAXI review and giveaway

Looking to save money or even go green? How about both? And let's add a little fashion to it while we do! You've probably heard of and even use the reusable shopping bags every time you go to the store, right? I know I do. Between having my kids trying to put plastic shopping bags over their heads or my city considering charging for each plastic bag a customer uses, I began using reusable shopping bags. Well, have you ever considered having a reusable snack bag as well? Think about it. We buy plastic bags that end up in landfills after just one use of carrying our snacks and sandwiches. Not only is this adding waste to the environment, but wasting your hard earned money in a dropping economy. So what if there was a bag you could use over and over for just that purpose? I'm happy to announce - there is! I was given the opportunity to try a snackTAXI sandwich-sack out and review it for you.

*The one on the left is the sandwich sack and the one on the right is the snack sack*

snackTAXI makes these cute snack-sacks, produce-sacks, bread-sacks, and sandwich-sacks that you can use over and over. No more wasted money or waste for landfills by buying plastic baggies. Fill 'em up, take them on the go, and then wash them when you are done! There are so many cute designs on soft material to choose from too. I like how the front is sealable with Velcro. It makes it so much easier to get them open when your kids want a snack quick. My kids love the colors and design on it. So now we can save money, keep the planet greener, and look cute doing it.

*Easy open and close with Velcro*

snackTAXI also offers bamboo sporks that are cute, just the right size for carrying along on trips or for little hands. Or how about trying the make-your-own-taxi kit – which includes a set of 4 snack-sacks and 4 markers? Let your kiddos decorate their bags any way they choose and make it all the more fun to carry them! They also have reusable napkins and everyday aprons.

This is an American-based company started in 2003 in Massachusetts, by a mom who had three kids going to school and realized one day just how many plastic bags were coming and going through her home then on to the landfills. It truly is a wonderful idea and one that I think we should all be considering just a little more. These products are lead, phthalates and BPA-free as well as machine-washable and made here in the USA by local sewers. As snackTAXI says: Be a snacktivist – add the original reusable bags for snacks and sandwiches to your life on the go! Check out http://www.snacktaxi.com/ for more information and let’s keep our world greener.

Lastly, I’m offering you, my readers, a chance to win a snack-sack! Enter through the Rafflecopter options below and good luck! *The one pictured below is the one I will be sending the winner.*

***I was given these products free for the purpose of reviewing and sharing only. I was not paid to write anything I said, these are strictly my opinions.***

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Looking to boost your income?

If you are like me, the economy these days may be prompting you to seek extra income here and there. I recently found an article that was in Woman’s Day magazine way back in 2009. My mom had given it to me right after I had gotten married and was struggling to make ends meet. I’ve pulled some helpful tips from the article to share with you guys. As of right now, I haven’t tried all of these for myself (though I definitely plan to try a few more) so if you try them out and would be so kind – please share some feedback and let me know how it went for you!

Sell your books:

Have books lying around that you can’t seem to sell or don’t need anymore? Check out Cash4Books.net. It’s a family-owned book-buying and selling company that has been going since 2004.

1.      Type in the book’s ISBN number (on the back cover or on the copyright page in the front) and it will tell you if they are buying that book and how much cash you can get for it.

2.      Complete the transaction online.

3.      Print out a prepaid mailing label.

4.      Pack up those books and send them in.

In just a few days, you should either receive a check in the mail or a deposit to your PayPal account. But you don’t have to stop there. If you scour garage sale and thrift stores – you might find more money-making books. Be sure to check which books are selling before you buy though. If your mobile phone is internet-enabled, you can check cash4books.net/mobile while shopping.

*WARNING* While you might hit the jackpot buying a book super cheap to resell at a high profit, remember there are condition requirements. So get familiar with them before you head out.

http://www.cash4books.net/

Join e-clubs:

Most retailers, restaurant chains, supermarkets, drugstores and travel-related companies offer some kind of rewards program to encourage customer loyalty. These rewards come in the forms of discounts, rebates or even free products. So if it’s free – join it! Most times you get something special on your birthday. Check the websites of your favorite restaurants and retailers to sign up. Also look at PriorityClubRewards.com where you can earn points towards free night stays at IHG hotels, air miles, cruises, electronics and more. http://www.priorityclub.com/hotels/us/en/home

Cold Stone Creamery gives you a rewards card and will send you a promotion for free ice cream on your birthday. http://www.coldstonecreamery.com/promotions.html

DisneyParks.com – you might get a free entrance to a Disney theme park for your birthday. http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/

*WARNING* Merchants and service providers use e-clubs for sales and marketing purposes. This means you’re likely to receive a LOT of emails from them, so you might want to consider getting a separate email account just for the e-clubs.

Freelancing:

Elance.com is an online workplace where small businesses connect with qualified professionals to get small jobs done. Writers, programmers, graphic designers, marketers or whatever skills you might have to offer – you can bid on jobs and get paid to do what you do best. https://www.elance.com/

Yahoo! Voices (previously known as Associated Content) is an open content network that lets anyone submit content on any subject. If the editors like it, they’ll pay you for it and give you bonus payments based on the number of views the article receives. http://voices.yahoo.com/

*WARNING* Make sure, if you have a daytime employer, that they don’t have any restrictions on you freelancing.

 Auto Insurance discounts:

If you have a teenage driver that is bringing home great report cards, check and see if your auto insurance company offers discounts for such a thing. They might knock as much as 10% off the top if your teen maintains a GPA of 3.0. Or perhaps someone in your household is a teacher? Some insurance companies give discounts to credentialed teachers (too bad they don’t recognize homeschool moms as teacher’s right??) and educational administrators. Some insurance companies might even have a discount for those that have a Bachelor’s degree in an engineering or science related field. And lastly, most insurers will give a discount for having all vehicles on the same company policy.  

*WARNING* Don’t assume that the insurance company will automatically give you every discount available. Speak up and ask about anything you think you might be qualified for that they could offer. Ask for a complete list and remember that not all companies offer the same things.

 Sell your Cell:

Most Americans these days tend to get a new cell phone every 12 months or so. But how can you get money back for the ones laying around the house taking up space? You might be able to sell it on eBay.com or list it on Craigslist.com. But there are other websites out there you might try. For instance – Flipswap.com. Just input the brand and model to see the buyers are willing to pay. You might try CellForCash.com too but I couldn’t get it to pull up on my computer. Both sites are supposed to let you print a prepaid mailing label for sending in your phone. http://flipswap.com/

*WARNING* Before you mail it, make sure you remove the auxiliary memory card, reset the password to 0000 and delete all of your information from the phone or remove its SIM card.

 Selling CDs, DVDs, and video games:

Check out SecondSpin.com. http://www.secondspin.com/ I don’t know much about how their program works. I think it’s similar to the cell phones and books websites.

My mother sent me some other helpful sites that might interest you about saving money and helpful hints:
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/

http://frugalliving.about.com/

http://www.livingonadime.com/

 Hope this was helpful! Keep reading and following for future tips and possibly reviews to come.