Oh goodie!
Then I started getting blurred
vision which usually means a
migrane is on it's way.
I have learned over the years
how to stop it before it
starts by taking a couple
Tylenol or Ibuprofen immediately.
Today I have a ton of laundry to do.
I love doing laundry during the warmer
weather. Smaller articles of clothing
and smaller loads of laundry.
Come Winter I have a hard time
keeping up. Large, bulkier clothes
that are changed a couple times a day
due to getting wet. Bulkier clothes
lead to more loads of laundry due
to their size. I sometimes try to
reduce the amount of laundry by
having the family hang back up pants
after one wear if they are not soiled
or smelly. Now shirts, socks and undies
I wash on a regular basis.
Do you know I get paid to do laundry???
I have a small container with lid
that I sit on the dryer. Each
time I find money in the washer or
dryer I put it in my little bank!
If you don't empty pockets before I
do laundry then I claim the money
and it goes into the laundry fund.
Today was unusual as I found $11.47
falling out of the dryer when opened.
Woo Hoo!
I've noticed I'm running low on fabric
softener. If this happens to you,
you can use straight vinegar in your
rinse cycle.
But hey I raised enough from doing
laundry today to buy some fabric
softener.
Walgreens this week has a store
coupon to get Suavitel buy one
for $2.79 get one free. Limit 4.
$1.40 each sounds good to me.
Sauvitel is my favorite anyway.
I like it better than Snuggle or Downy.
The smell, I think, seems to stay
in the fabric longer.
Weather.com says it's 9 degrees out
but feels like 0. BRRR!
It's cold in our basement this time
of year and another reason for not
liking to do laundry now.
I have noticed the windows down there
are leaking in cold air. We had discussed
the option of getting glass block windows.
I priced them at homedepot.com for
a complete glass block window from
$60 to $109 and those included a vent in them.
Times that by 6 windows is $360 to $654
just to start and doesn't include other
supplies needed to put them in, and
we don't have the experience in doing so.
So one of our goals this year is to go around
and caulk all basement windows. Then maybe
get sheets of plexiglass and have it cut to
the size of the windows. Then caulk that
in place in front of the other window making
it like a double paned window.
Then go around with a can of spray foam
insulator and spray it into any cracks from
where wires, cables and pipes run through the walls
in the basement.
--------------------------------
Like I said before I ALWAYS research items
that we consider purchasing. I want the best
bang for my buck.
So my research for today is about portable
heaters.
-How much of an area do they heat?
-How much do they cost?
-What kinds are there?
-How much to run?
-Safety features?
-Does it actually save you money to run them?
I have found these web sites to be very
informative. At the moment I am still
researching a couple different products.
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/good-questions/good-questions-best-space-heaters-004646
http://www.alternative-heating-info.com/Small_Space_Heaters.html
Stores will eventually be moving out Winter
stock and setting up Spring items.
So I would like to be on the lookout
for portable heaters to be marked down.
Timing is everything and finding the right
sales at certain times of the year can
save you lots of money.
------------------------
I'm slowly moving around today trying to get
things done. My stomach has been hurting,
I haven't any energy and am having bowel
problems to put it nicely. Hubby said I
should call the doctor and make an appointment.
I'm not one who goes to the doctor. I will
wait out my problems for a week or two
to see if they clear up and they usually do.
Could you imagine how much I would be
forking over to a doctor every time I had
an ailment if I did!! But some others out there
are like hypochondriachs
and run to the doctor if they get a paper cut.
And people wonder why doctor bills and insurance
are so high! Unnecessary visits to the doctors.
It's a no wonder they drive Porsches.
Now I know if I need medical attention right away.
It takes common sense for that!
I just figure the problems I have now are the
results of much stress from the past week or so.
Doctor's usually don't tell you about home remedies.
Why would they? They don't make money off you if you
do. So go to the library and look for home remedy
books or search it online before heading to a
doctor.
-----------------------------
I got my dishes put away and another load
in the dishwasher. To save money make sure
you run full loads in it! Never run a load
only half full!
I also got tired of kids dirtying every cup
in the house every time they wanted something
to drink. I took 2 plastic cups, and with a
sharpie marker, wrote their names on them.
This is now their own personal cup!
Now if they want more to drink, we wash or
rinse out the same cups.
I also made up a batch of Teriyaki deer jerky
and have it in the dehydrator. So much cheaper,
and probably healthier for you, than store bought.
I used:
2 pounds of deer burger at $2.00 then teriyaki
sauce for 1/3 cup probably cost about .60 cents.
So look how much jerky I made for $2.60.
Next time you're at the store see how much
they want for some!!
---------------------------
Yesterday in the mail we received from
Hellmann's Mayo a taste test to see if
we could figure out which packet was light
and which one was regular mayo. We nailed
it correctly! One was more saltier than the
other while you could taste the imitation
sweetener in the other.
These results come from a family
with a diabetic who uses things
like Splenda.
Next we received a packet from the
Arbor Day Foundation.
In this packet was a free sheet
of address labels.
Then if I send them a $5.00 donation
and fill out a questionnaire I get
these items free:
-10 free trees specifically chosen
for the area we live.
-free purple Lilac
-free Arbor Day magazine subscription
-free copy of The Tree Book
Then if I am one of the first 50
to respond (not likely) I get a
year's supply of Arbor Day Specialty
Coffee.
I might do it then maybe they will
keep me on their mailing list and I
can get more free address labels, lol.
Just be sure to read any small print
to see what you may be getting into first.
And make sure it's a reputable company,
one you've heard of!
--------------------------------
Tried to make a quick trip to Kroger today
to get some more Big K pop while it
was on sale for .59 cents.
While there we found Kroger brand
sour cream chip dip for .50 cents each.
Picked up one for our chips
then another one to use on some
baked potatoes.
I'm already thinking of meals to make
this coming week.
One night will be pork chops with
baked potatoes.
Then the pager went off in the store
so we rushed to get checked out.
----------------------------
Then another recipe came across a Yahoo groups I want to try.
This way I can use up some more leftover ham I have
in the freezer. I also have a 10 pound bag of potatoes.
Crunchy Potato Balls
2 cups cooked, stiff mashed potatoes
2 cups finely chopped, cooked ham
1 cup (4 ounce) shredded Cheddar or Swiss cheese
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon prepared mustard
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 to 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups crushed cornflakes
Combine potatoes, ham, cheese, mayonnaise, egg, mustard and pepper in mixing bowl. Mix well. Add enough flour to make a stiff mixture. Chill.
Shape mixture into 1-inch balls. Roll in crushed cornflakes. Place balls on greased baking sheets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes or until heated through.
Serve hot.
Makes about 6 dozen.
-----------------------------------
I can't wait til tomorrow. That
will be the end of being on call
for Tony for at least another 4-6 weeks.
I hope he doesn't get on call when we
have a thawing of ice and snow.
That's when roof leaks will appear!
From what I have figured up so far he's looking
at 22 to 25 hours overtime. The day is not
over with yet and he just got paged out
yet again!! So more hours will
be added on top of that time.
----------------------------
Sitting here for a moment waiting
for the loads of laundry to end.
Tony has me addicted to this one
game called 8 Ball Quick Fire Pool!
We used to shoot in real pool tournaments
years ago but don't anymore due
to kids and not having the money
for the extra expense.
So for now we like to play
Yahoo Pool or Mini Clip pool online.
Give it a try and see if you can beat
my score of 32,850. No one else
here can, LOL!
My longest streak to continuously
hit balls into their pockets
without missing is 48 balls!
My top rack to reach is rack 8.
http://www.miniclip.com/games/8-ball-quick-fire-pool/en/
-------------------------------
At the moment me and my oldest son
are discussing using these plastic
cards for different stores.
Every time you use them you get
savings or points.
At Kroger using your card you
get sales prices and double coupons
with it. It also keeps track
of how much you spend so you
can earn discounts on gas.
http://www.kroger.com/in_store/fuel/Pages/columbus_program_details.aspx
I think Giant Eagle has
a card that can be used
towards discounted gas.
I don't shop there so don't know
exact details about it.
http://www.gianteagle.com/fuelperks/home
At Speedway you can use your
card for every purchase except
alcohol or cigarettes. You
accumulate points to get free
merchandise, gasoline discounts
or coupons for free drinks and such.
I got an email stating if I purchase
something from Speedway 10 different
times in 3 weeks using their card I
will receive 7,000 bonus points.
I told Tony to be sure to use his
card when he goes there!
Currently we have 55,605 points.
We've already turned in 50,00 points before
that for a free cell phone awhile ago.
Sign your card up at SpeedyRewards.com
In doing so you can keep track of your points.
Also if you lose your card you can get a
new one and transfer your current points
to it. I've lost mine before!
---------------------------
We don't rent movies or order them
from the pay per view channel as those
are extra expenses. Instead we watch
movies online for free. They may be older
but hey it's probably something we haven't
seen yet, lol.
Also when the kids have the tv tied
up with game playing we can still
watch our favorite shows online free.
http://www.hulu.com/
http://www.fancast.com/
http://www.joost.com
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/4od
http://www.nbc.com/video/library/full-episodes/?__source=front-door|video|video-library
http://www.cbs.com/
http://www.thewb.com/
http://www.fox.com/
http://community.abcfamily.go.com/watch
http://www.syfy.com/rewind/?__source=Syfy_Global_Nav
Every once in awhile we'll take the kids to
the movie theater. It's a special event
if we do.
Our movie theater of choice is
Cinemark Theater on Bethel Rd.
http://www.cinemark.com/theater_showtimes.asp?theater_id=172
.75 cent admission on Mondays.
Bargain matinee before 6pm $1.50
for Friday and Saturday.
Senior day is all day Monday anytime of day for $1.00.
----------------------------------
Getting close to bedtime.
Thinking about cuddling
up under the covers to keep warm.
I have plenty of blankets for everyone.
I'm a blanket addict, lol.
Even though we have a small house with limited
storage other than the basement, I have found
a way to store several blankets.
In the kids room I take off their mattress
and lay all the blankets as flat as possible
over the box springs. Then return the mattress
on top. To keep it from looking ugly on the sides,
I throw a fleece/velour type blanket over top their
mattress and sheet sideways so it hangs down
the sides of the bed to cover it up. Kind
of like a larger dust ruffle.
Plus this blanket on top of their sheet
helps to keep them warmer at night when
sleeping on it.
We use electric blankets and heating pads
if needed because sometimes the bedrooms
feel a little chillier than the rest of the
house.
If you don't have one you can make a
microwavable bed warmer with white rice,
NOT instant. Put drops
of essential oils on the rice before sewing it
up. You could use the legs off an old
pair of jeans and sew tunnels in it to
distribute the rice. Don't pack them too full
leaving room for the rice to move around some.
http://www.ehow.com/how_5364928_make-microwavable-bed-warmer.html
http://makeitdo.wordpress.com/2009/11/04/make-it-do-gift-cozy-bed-warmers/
------------------
I don't buy regular pj's for the kids.
They are too clingy and the kids don't like them.
So instead of pj's they have designated sweat pants
and shirts we use at bed time. They are roomy
and plenty warm!
Hubby's parents got him a sweat suit for Christmas.
He doesn't wear sweat suits so tonight I am wearing
it to bed. Love it! I call it my Snuggie PJ's
considering they are about 2 sizes too big on me, lol.
Had to roll up the legs and arms.
