Homemade Vanilla

No, she hasn't been in the vanilla.  She's just a bit odd.

Thrifty, but meaningful Christmas gift idea #1:  Homemade Vanilla Extract

Yummy and SO easy.

I actually shouldn't be posting this because I've given vanilla to friends and family as Christmas gifts and now they'll know that, even though it was a delicious and thoughtful gift which they loved, it really wasn't a whole lot of work on my part.

This Vanilla is not your usual grocery store variety of Pure Vanilla Extract and the only thing it shares in common with Imitation Vanilla Extract is the word "vanilla." (And the word "Extract" too, I guess, but it sounded so much better just having one word in common...)  By the way, did you know that "pure" vanilla extract sometimes has extra stuff like corn syrup in it?

No, the Vanilla I'm showing you how to make actually smells and tastes like vanilla.  It's just amazing!  You'll love what it does to your baking.

It is a useful gift, too.  Those who receive it, unless you give some to your college aged brother or something, will love using it to make those they love happy!  It's a gift which keeps on giving.  They won't ever have to dust it or decide if they should keep it or send it to the thrift store 5 years from now.  That's my kind of gift!



All you need to make Vanilla

 To top it all off, homemade vanilla is easy on the budget.  There are 2 ingredients in Homemade Vanilla Extract - vodka and vanilla beans. 

You don't need expensive vodka.  To be honest, I don't know if expensive vodka makes it taste better or not.  I've only used cheap vodka and have loved the results.  In fact, I've never actually paid for the vodka used in my vanilla.  Around the holidays, the liquor stores in our area all have vodka with manufacturer's rebates which make the vodka free!  A 1.75 litre bottle of vodka will make about 60 oz. of vanilla and costs less than $10.00 or $1.33 per 8 oz.  Pretty cheap!

I've now typed the word "vodka" 8 times in one paragraph.  Pretty sure this about 7 more times than I've ever typed that word before.  Don't tell my Grandma.  I'm not sure she'd understand.



Vanilla pods with ends cut off

I've bought all my vanilla beans off Ebay.  You can get anything on Ebay.  This year I bought 40 organic Madagascar vanilla beans for about 12 dollars including shipping.  They came from France, which was an added bonus because the Young'uns love seeing the French postage stamps.  From all I've read Madagascar beans are best for making extract, but if you want to do some research of your own, go for it.  Google is a good thing.  It takes 2 beans to make 8 oz. of vanilla.  So, the beans cost about 60 cents per 8 oz.
One word about vanilla...technically, you don't buy vanilla beans.  You buy vanilla pods.  They are long, thin, dark brown and wrinkly.  They should be a bit moist and flexible.  The vanilla beans are INSIDE of the pods.  If you cut open a pod, it is filled from top to bottom with very tiny little black dots - these are the seeds.  The seeds can be scraped out and used in your baking and cooking.  I like eating a little taste by itself.  I'm a sucker for vanilla anything!

Are you doing the math?  $1.33 (vodka) + .60 (vanilla beans) = $1.93 for 8 oz. of REAL Vanilla Extract.  This is a steal when compared to buying it in the store!

About 5 years ago, I bought 8 oz. amber colored glass bottles from the Sunburst Bottle Company.  I bought a few cases and gave Vanilla as gifts that year.  I also saved some of the bottles for myself and have reused them every year since.  The bottles cost about $1.75 each including shipping.  This seemed a bit steep for a bottle, but they looked great and made the gift!  Even with the bottle costs, each gift still cost under $4.00.

If your vanilla will be a gift for someone, make a cute or cool label (depending on if you lean towards the cute or cool side) to stick on your bottle.   I wish I still had a copy of the one I made on my computer.  I must say it was cool. I'm not real computer savvy.  So, you can make an awesome one, I'm sure.

Just making vanilla for you own personal use? You can make your vanilla in any old glass bottle you want.  An wine bottle or vinegar bottle that's been well cleaned will work!  Just make sure it has some sort of tight lid because there's some shaking involved.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

2 vanilla beans per 8 oz. of extract you wish to make
vodka (there's that word again)



Beans in the bottle



Cut ends of vanilla so that they fit into your bottles.  I usually have to cut off about 1 inch of the beans.  Place 2 beans in each bottle.  Fill bottles to near the top with vodka.  Place on the lid and let it sit in a cool, dark place for at least 4 months.  6 months is better.  Try to give your bottles a shake every few weeks.  (I told you it was easy.)

I have read about people who cut their beans into small pieces before they put them in the bottles.  This might make the vanilla permeate the vodka a bit more.  I'm not sure.  I don't do it because you'd have to strain your extract before using it if you did it this way.  Otherwise, there would be lots of little black vanilla beans in your extract. 

I leave my pods in the bottle even after I start using it.  When the bottle is empty, I put the pods on the counter to dry out and then stick them in a bag in my freezer.  After I've collected several pods, I stick 4 in a bottle and add some more vodka.  This gives me one more bottle of Vanilla without buying more pods.  Two soakings seems to be about all each pods can take.

This was a very long post for such a simple idea... Enjoy!

Thrifty, but Meaningful, Chirstmas

I know it isn't actually Thanksgiving yet and the Christmas season has NOT begun despite what every retail establishment has been telling us for weeks.  However, over the past couple of weeks, I've been in some conversations with friends about Christmas and Christmas gifts and how it all goes around here on the Farm.

A few of the conversations went the way of "Christmas is so crazy with all the gifts and stuff and running and blah, blah, blah.  I'd love for it to be simpler so the true reason for the celebration isn't lost."  A couple of others were more along the lines of "How do you get gifts for others and your passel of kids without breaking the bank?"

I've opinions on those questions to fill several blog posts, but here's my short answer.

In order to keep Christmas about Christ and his gift, you and your spouse have to think and talk about it now.  It's not too late, even though all the stores have been proclaiming Christmas is here already for the past month. In your talking and thinking, you need to decide what the holiday will look like for your family.  Not your neighbor's family or your sister's family...just YOUR family.  Remember you have your OWN ruler.

When you've got that vision...stick with it!  If you decided to get one gift for each kid, get one gift and don't be tempted by all the great deals on other things your child would like, too.  If you decide five gifts works for your family, just get five, not ten.  Maybe it's one family gift and a few smaller gifts for each kiddo.  Or, gasp, one family gift and no individual gifts.  Just decide and stick to it.

We tend to lean towards the one larger, which is a very relative term, gift for each Young'un with a few smaller gifts thrown in for fun and good measure.  It is such a JOY to give good gifts to our children.  I love it!  However, the joy of the giving would be robbed for us if the gifts we gave threw our budget out of whack and put financial strain on our family.

As far as giving gifts to extended family and friends, things lean towards small, meaningful or unique and sometimes homemade.  Again, giving brings us joy and we try to make up with thoughtfulness what might be lacking in the cost of each gift.

My plan is to share some of our ideas with you in the next few weeks.

Stay tuned for the Thrifty, but Meaningful, Christmas

Fruit Fly Trap - Cheap and Chemical Free!

Our homemade fruit fly trap. 

 Isn't it gross?  Can you see all those little buggers in there?

At least they aren't in my kitchen anymore!

I hesitated posting this because I'm basically admitting we've got bugs all over the kitchen here on the Little Farm.  It makes me seem like a pretty poor housekeeper...but here it is anyway.

We've got fruit flies.  In a pretty big way.  Ugh.  I hate these things. 

Every so often throughout the year, it seems we get a few fruit flies here and there, but not in August.  In August, when the weather is warm and we've got garden produce all over the kitchen and back porch, the things just seem to swarm.  Especially, when I've been out of town for a few days and one of the sons who was left behind, cuts off half of a banana and leaves the other sitting on the counter.  Um...not good anytime during the year, but fruit fly season it means a fruit fly convention.

A couple of years ago in August, while I was elbow deep in canning tomatoes, the fruit flies were driving me crazy.  I actually had a couple of kids come into the kitchen and try to swat them.  FYI- this doesn't work at all, but it is fun to watch.

When swatting didn't work, I turned to my good friend Google.  A quick search for "fruit fly traps" turned up my solution.  I didn't want something which used chemicals since the trap was going to obviously be in the kitchen around food and Young'uns.  Thankfully, the trap I found was chemical free, cheap and I could make it myself.  Music to my frugal, do-it-yourself ears.

So, just in case you've got a few of these little things driving you to distraction at your house, here's how to make your very own Fruit Fly Trap.

This photo was taken before we put some apple into the jar.

The shot above has the apple pieces.

Materials Needed:
-glass or jar of some sort
-sheet of paper (I used some from the recylcing)
-apple cider vinegar
-piece of fruit - apple or banana work best

What to Do:
Pour about an inch of vinegar into your glass or jar.  Place a couple of pieces of fruit in also.  Make your sheet of paper into a funnel and tape it in place.  Making the funnel is the hardest part of this whole deal.  You want the bottom opening to be large enough for a fly to crawl into, but small enough that it's hard for them to figure out how to fly back out.  The top of the funnel needs to be large enough to rest on the top rim of the glass and keep the bottom of the funnel about an inch or so above the vinegar and fruit in the glass.  Make sense?

Don't feel bad if it takes you a whole lot of attempts at making the funnel.  I've been there.  If you get really frustrated at making it.  Just call in one of your sons and they'll whip out a funnel that fits the glass perfectly in about 10 seconds. 

Once the funnel is made, set it into the glass and put the whole thing on your counter or wherever the flies congregate the most.  Let it set for a few hours and then be amazed!  Your jar will be full of the little pests.  It's exciting and gross all at once.  My kids always like to look at them.

Obviously, to get rid of the flies in your glass you don't want to take out the funnel in the house.  We take it outside - far far away from the back door - and pull out the funnel.  (Word to the wise - make sure you are VERY specific in these instructions if you let one of your kids take the glass outside to release the flies.  I know this from experience.)  The vinegar, fruit and funnel can be used several times.

Happy Hunting!

Famer's Markets = Great Deals

The Farmer's Markets in our area have begun. Truth be told, we don't buy a whole lot of veggies at the Markets, because, um, we live on a "farm."

However, we do like to frequent them from time to time. It's great fun to see all the tables loaded with produce! In addition to delicious, locally grown, reasonably priced produce, Farmer's Market vendors often sell gorgeous cut flowers, honey, real maple syrup, meat, cheeses, baked goods, clothing, handmade soaps and jewelry. Throw in some yummy food vendors (love those egg rolls), a band playing and some of the best people watching around - you've got yourself a night (or a morning) out on the town!

The produce is generally cheaper than what you'll find at the grocery store. It is definitely fresher! Plus, you're supporting local farmers and craftsmen when you shop at Farmer's Markets. It's a good thing.

Farmer Ron and I swung by our local Market tonight to oogle at other people's veggies and got a great deal on plants for the garden. We bought 3 eggplant plants and 1 mint plant for a total of $2.00! It hadn't crossed my mind to look for actual plants at a Farmer's Market, but there they were and for a much better price than the local nursery.

Just wanted to throw this out there in case you need a few plants for your "farm!"

Double Coupons, Double Love

Be still my couponing heart!

I know it isn't Saturday, but I couldn't help posting this! We only have one grocery store which doubles coupons here in town. The said store only doubles coupons 2 days per week (Wed. and Sat.) and will only double the value of 5 coupons AFTER your total has reached $25.00. Sounds like a lot of restrictions, and it does require some figuring, but it is still possible to get HUGE discounts.

Today the store, Copps, was having a special Super Doubles Day. Today, you could double 10 coupons with each $25.00 transaction. I'll say it again - be still my couponing heart!

I checked out three, yes three, different times at Copps this morning. Only the littlest Young'un was with me today, so no older kids were subjected to the embarrassment such a number of trips through the check out lines would certainly have caused.

The deals were great!

Trip #1

1 pack Pampers diapers

2 tubs Pampers wipes

1 bottle Dawn dish soap

4 packs of hot dogs

3 men's body wash

1 men's deodorant

Total Spent $16.49

Total Saved $28.04

Trip #2

6 boxes Kellogs cereal

4 bottles of BBQ sauce

3 packs of strawberries

2 gallons of milk

2 packs of cheese

7 lbs of chicken

Total Spent $8.94

Total Saved $53.95

Trip #3

6 boxes of Kellogs cereal

2 bottles salad dressing

3 bags of tortilla chips

2 cucumbers

2 1/2 lb of bananas

1 gallon milk

1 pack of cheese

Total Spent $5.01

Total Saved $37.44

Grand Total $30.44

Grand Total Saved $119.43

Plus, I have a coupon for a free gallon of milk to spend on my next trip!

Are you drowning in your food bills? Groceries are one of the easiest items to trim in your family's budget. I KNOW you can spend less than you are right now! Start searching the internet - Money Saving Mom should be your first stop. This site is the mother off all couponing/frugal living sites on the web. Money Saving Mom has the best deals for stores all over the US listed on her site and update weekly. There is also a ton of other information about how to save money in ways other than grocery shopping on the site.

If you live in the Frozen Tundra, Green Bay Savers is a site to check out, too!

I'm no expert, but I'm happy to share what I know, too. Just ask!

PS- I also swang by Target today and got a bottle of Olay body wash and a 10 pack of Ivory bar soap for $1.50. The body wash will be donated to the Woman's Shelter in town, I was after the bar soap for 15 cents per bar!

Making Homemade Cleaning Wipes

Doesn't that title just reach out and grab you?

One of my experiments around the Farm in May was making my own cleaning wipes. You know those Clorox or Lysol cleaning wipes we all have under our bathroom sinks? Well, I wanted to see if I could make some which were cheaper and, if not better, at least as good in terms of cleaning.

The Young'uns use those wipes while cleaning bathrooms and other various messes around the house. With 5 kids, a dog, 2 bathrooms and said kids doing at least half of the cleaning (they use more product than I do when they clean), finding a cheaper alternative was appealing. Plus, I'm always on the look-out for a way to clean things using less harsh chemicals than those found in most cleaning products.

I made the wipes at the start of May and after a month's use, here is the verdict from all involved: they are fine. No one raved about them, but after getting used to the "newness" of them, no one is complaining either. Also, I haven't noticed a difference in the cleanliness of our commodes and such. All in all, I'm thinking this means the homemade wipes have passed the test thus far. (If I was going to be honest I'd tell you I was actually quite excited about them and had to stick the container in the Big Guy's face for him to admire when I was finished making the wipes. I didn't make him come examine the counter I wiped off with my new creation, however. That would be taking it too far for even a good sport like him.)

Homemade Cleaning Wipes

1 lidded plastic container large enough to hold 1/2 of a roll of paper towels (think one of those plastic Flogers coffee cans)

1 roll of GOOD paper towels - like Bounty or Viva (the kind I never usually buy)

water

cleaning agent of your choice - I used something from Fleet Farm called Jungle Jake, but you could use Pine Sol or whatever you like. (I have a goal to use Tea Tree Oil soon, more on farther down)

1. Take the lid of the container off and lay it on a cutting board or your garage work bench or a surface you won't mind dinging up a bit. Get a sharp something or other (I used an exacto knife sort of thing) and cut an "X" in the top of the lid. The legs of my "X" were each about 1 1/2 inches long. Cut a bit from each of the sharp corners on the inside of the "X" you just cut. If you don't round these cuts a bit, your paper towels will shred when you pull them out.

2. Put the lid aside and put your roll of paper towels on the cutting surface. Use a serrated knife to cut the roll in half all the way through. Serrated knifes are the ones that look as if they have teeth. They are also the only knife to use to cutting homemade bread!

3. When you've cut your roll of towels, stuff it into the container and then ease out the cardboard center of the roll. I had to rip a bit of the cardboard to get it started, but then it came pretty easily.

4. Pour the water and cleaning mixture into the container. For my purposes - general cleaning - I used about 1/4 cup of cleaning solution and 2 c of water. You'll probably want to play with this a bit. The first wipes I made were really wet so I cut back on the water. I'd say start with less water and go up if you need it.

5. Put the lid on and shake gently. Let the wipes sit for several hours so the towels can soak up the liquids. If they seem dry to you, add a bit more water.

6. Stick the end of the towel from the inside of the roll (hint - the part where you took the cardboard out of) through the "X" in the lid and put the lid on. Ta Da! Now just pull out a wipe and you're good to go!

A few notes from my whole ONE month of experience in all this.

-The towels shoud come out and rip on the perforations. If they don't come out easily or rip at a place other than on the factory made perforations as you pull on them, you probably need to make the cuts in the lid wider and/or more rounded

-We tried Bounty towels on our first go round and Viva on the second. Viva seem to be the winners thus far.

Here's the cost breakdown:

2 pack Viva towels $3.46 - .40 coupon + .50 for the cleaning solution = 280 cleaning wipes for about $3.56

This is about 1.3 cents per wipe. If you get a GREAT deal (sale price and coupons) on Clorox/Lysol wipes, you'll pay at least 4 cents per wipe.

My kids said they felt like they had to use more of the homemade wipes to get the job done. With the price different, even if they had to use double the number of homemade wipes, we'd still be saving money - 1.4 cents to be exact. They didn't think they used double the amount though. I know 1.4 cents seems like practically nothing, but eventually practically nothing adds up to dollars and we like saving dollars.

I am planning to try making the next batch using a Tea Tree Oil in place of the cleaning solution. A 1 ounce bottle of the oil costs around $8.00, which seems like a fortune for such a small thing. However, I think I'll only have to use 10 or so drops for each batch so it should last for a long time. Tea Tree Oil is a natural disinfectant, smells good and I love the idea of the kids using natural things while they clean up around the place. I've also thought about trying Grapefruit Seed Crush/extract. I'll let you know which way we end up going because I just know you'll be waiting on pins and needles to find out.

Earth Day the Little Farm Way

If you missed that yesterday was Earth Day, you must have spent the day locked in a dark closet. Did you noticed how Earth Day was all over everything - from TV ads, to the newspapers, to magazine covers. I even saw "ads" for Earth Day on grocery store shelves this week.

Without getting too political (that's the job of the Big Guy over here), let me say that Earth Day was not celebrated here on the Farm, at least not in the way that most people were celebrating. There are many "issues" wrapped in Earth Day that just don't quite jive with the way the thinking tends to lean here on the Farm. So, we skip it.

Don't get me wrong - we love our earth! We praise and thank God always and often for His creation. It is truly an amazing gift to be respected and studied and enjoyed! Because of this, we make a concerted effort to use the resources of the earth in ways that would be honoring to Him. We were put here to take care of the earth - to be stewards of it.

One of the ways we do this is by being mindful of what we do and do not throw away. The three "R's" are part of the thinking here - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. We try not to buy things we don't need - including toys of which we have very few - and what we do buy is often from a thrift store. Conversely, when we don't need an item any longer, it heads off to the thrift store or into a rummage sale. We recycle lots - just ask our oldest son, Nate, who has to haul it all to the curb each week.

One of the areas in our home where I've found it easy to cut back on what we use is the kitchen. Please don't get weirded out here and, if you are a personal friend who eats here from time to time, please come back,...I've got something to admit. I reuse ziploc bags and foil and rarely use plastic wrap. I know - it isn't enough of an Earth Day event to get me on the Sierra Club's top 100 people list, but it is still a good thing.

The first time I ever saw anyone reuse a ziploc bag was when the Big Guy was in seminary. Our next door neighbors were preparing to head out on the mission field. I often saw the plastic bags turned inside out and stuck over other dishes while drying. To be honest, at first I thought it must be a missionary thing. You know, those people have to be very resourceful and all. (Big stereotype, I know.)

Over time, I got to thinking about it, gave it a try and realized, it just made sense. Why should I throw all the plastic in the trash when it could be use many more times? So, now after we've used a bag, I turn it inside out and throw it in the water as I wash the other dishes. They dry in the sink along with the other dishes and then folded and put into a drawer. I do NOT reuse bags that had raw meat of any sort in them.

I also reuse aluminum foil. This is really easy. We don't have a microwave here on the Farm so I reheat things like muffins and tortillas in the oven. I always have a couple pieces of foil folded in a drawer and ready to go. If a bit of food gets on these, I just wipe it with a damp cloth. I don't reuse foil that had raw meat on it or is really oily and dirty. You know what I mean.

Plastic wrap or saran wrap rarely makes an appearance in our home. I try to use bowls and such that have their own covers instead of wrapping plastic around the top. Sometimes I use foil instead. Other times, when I've a large item that needs covering like a pizza I've make ahead or a few loaves of bread, I wrap it in a CLEAN kitchen garbage bag.

Yes, I know - kitchen garbage bags are plastic. I've been through this in my mind several times. Here's my thinking - we don't use that many (to my mind) compared to the number of people we've got around here. I bought a box of 150 bags last July and we just had to get a new one in mid-March. Also, once I have used the bag to cover food, it goes under the sink and we reuse it in the trash.

So, there you go. Have I got you thinking about how you can celebrate Earth Day just a bit? Coincidentally, reusing all these items can save you a bunch of money.

The Season of Rummage Sales

Rummage sale season is upon us here in the lands of snow and ice. I am not a hard core rummage saler. If I was really a frugal zealot like one of my favorite frugal books, The Tightwad Gazette (see here) describes, I'd live for this time of year. But I don't.

I'm not sure why. I frequent thrift stores on a regular basis, so I don't have any objection to buying used stuff. It might be the hours a true rummage saler has to keep. Those sales start pretty early on Saturday mornings and I have become a gal who likes to take it easy on a Saturday morning, if I can help it. Yeah, that's probably it. Thrift stores are open during hours when I am actually awake and functioning.

While I don't do much garage sale shopping, I do hold a sale of my own every couple of years. I am pretty ruthless about clutter around the farm - fodder for another post. We donate lots of items to a thrift store/food pantry in town, but when we need some extra cash a rummage sale is a great way to go. We're actually going to be having one at the end of the month.

But back to the point of this post...

SOMETIMES I do go shopping at garage sales. I go when I have some specific items that we need and I know that I can get them MUCH cheaper at a rummage sale than anywhere else, even a thrift store (which is why I have never earned my Frugal Zealot badge - I know where the cheapest prices are and I don't always shop there). The local newspaper and craigslist are my favorite places to scout out the sales. If I see one that is offering an item we need or it seems like they might have the item based on other items they're advertising, I'll give it a shot.

This year canning supplies are at the top of my list. I've gotten all of my canning equipment from rummage sales over the years. It wouldn't have broken the bank to go out and buy new items, but getting it all at rummage sales made the initial investment next to nothing. In the photo above are my beauties - the big processing pot with a jar rack in it, the funnel used to fill jars, some lids and seals, a few jars and the grabber thingy that takes the jars out of the hot water. These things, plus another big pot or two to cook up your tomatoes and such, are all you need to start canning.

I encourage you to give rummage sale shopping a try - just make a list of what you need before you head out the door. Just a warning; It's easy to get sucked into buying that amazingly cool set of dishes because they are practically giving them away or that gigantic box of legos because your kids will LOVE you or that life size bust of Elvis because, well, if you find one of those at a rummage sale you HAVE to buy it. Something like that will definitely come in handy some day.

I'll be on the look out for canning jars, rings and seals this year to hold what will hopefully be a bumper crop here on the farm so don't take them all if you get there before I do, ok? Leave some for the lazy gal, please.

Oh yes, and I was serious about the Elvis thing. Think of what you could do with that!

Foamy Soap - My Love

I love foamy hand soap! Ellie, my 6 year old, loves foamy hand soap, too. We seriously get excited when we are in public restrooms and we push the button on the soap container and foamy soap comes squirting out. It makes us smile and giggle. There is just something fun and soothing about it. Maybe we're just a bit odd that way...

"Could we get foamy hand soap for home?", Elle Belle asked me one day. I told her I'd start looking. I found some...it seemed a bit pricey, especially when I usually got our hand soap for free or pennies at Walgreens or CVS. I bought some lemon foamy soap at Bath and Body Works with a gift card I received. We were in heaven.

Then it ran out.

I tried filling the lemony foamy soap container with regular antibacterial soap from the big jug we had under the sink. The soap came out...sort-of, but it wasn't foamy at all. That was a dud idea.

I got to thinking about what the lemony foamy soap liquid looked like before we used it all. It was pretty watery.

Eureka!

I poured some of the regular soap I had put in out of the foamy soap container (about 3/4 of it) and filled it up with water. Shook it gently. Put the lid on and then...the moment of truth...foamy hand soap came squirting out. I called Ellie. She tried it. We laughed and giggled.

Here's the bonus - doing it this way will make the big jug of antibacterial soap that I got for about 50 cents from Walgreens last MUCH longer.

Foamy hand soap in our home and it will save some money. Oh my stars!

(The photo isn't foamy hand soap, but it sure is pretty. It is actually a shot of the Essential Lavendar Bar from Bug Stuff - a great little company that sells handmade soaps and such. Bug Stuff is run by one of the sweetest homeschooled gals you'll ever meet! I like using it in the shower.)

To Clip or Not to Clip

This is a photo of my coupon box...yes, you read that correctly. I have a coupon BOX, not an envelope or a small accordion file thing. It's a box. The couponing all started innocently enough and look what it has come to...

I cannot tell you how geeky this makes me feel, but there it is. I'm actually a bit surprised that I posted it. I've been debating how much you all really need to know about me...all these dark secrets.

In previous posts, I mentioned that I've only been "seriously" couponing for about 18 months. Prior to that, I'd always been frugal - we've pretty much had a grocery budget since we were married (Thanks, Dad!). The budget wasn't huge, but it was always enough.

These days we have more mouths to feed or, to use a good farm analogy, we've got more mouths lining up at the trough. The budget is pretty much the same, maybe even a bit smaller than its been at times. Praise God - it is still always enough.

Couponing really helps. I've just had to learn how to do it and, let me say, it is a learned skill.

If you cut out the coupons from your newspaper this Sunday, grab the stack and head to the store on Monday and buy the food you have coupons for, you will NOT save money. You will more than likely spend lots more than you usually do and you will end up with a large majority of your cart full of junk.

If you make out a grocery list, after deciding what you'll eat that week, what you have on hand, what is listed on sale in the store ads and match those sales to coupons, you WILL save lots of money. It's more work, especially at the start, but personally I think it is worth it.

I don't use every coupon I come across because lots them are for items we'll never eat or use. It is NEVER a good deal to use a coupon on something that you don't need. Saving $1.00 off of a box of Super Sweetie Sticky Snacks that cost $4.00 will save you a buck, yes. But if you would never buy those things anyway, you just spent $3.00 to bring home a trip to the dentist.

I also don't use coupons to buy some items, even if I know they are cheaper with a coupon. There have been times when I could have purchased instant oatmeal for less than it costs me to make it from scratch. However, I like the list of ingredients on the back of the canister of whole oats (it reads--Ingredients: oats) much more than the long list on the back of the instant packets.

Last month, I came across an interesting article about couponing in the Wall Street Journal online. The author breaks down couponing into an hourly wage which is something I've thought about but never took the time to actually compute. Check out the link below.

I have to admit - reading it makes my big ole' oddball coupon box seem more like a treasure chest.

Doing the Math on Coupons by Brent Arends

By the way, my kids are cringing right now. The whole world has seen the box.

Sticky Situation

Muffins, granola, some cereal - you know that much about our breakfasts around the farm. Many mornings will also find us eating eggs or oatmeal (not together!).

Oatmeal is probably the cheapest breakfast food on the planet. Give your kids a couple "toppings" options and they'll think they are eating ice cream sundaes for breakfast. Ok, not really. I'll be honest, oatmeal, even the good steel cut stuff, is not the favorite breakfast food for my family, but they still eat it. Everyone has their favorite toppings. Sometimes I give options, other days not.

Here's what we put on our oatmeal:

butter, of course!

brown sugar

cinnamon

mini-chocolate chips

raisins

craisins

toasted nuts

fresh fruit, like strawberries or diced apples

"maple" syrup

milk

whatever seems like it might taste yummy

You're probably wondering why the quotes around the maple syrup. Well, it isn't real maple syrup. It's my homemade version. Real maple syrup, while very delicious takes a big hunk out of the food budget. We use syrup for oatmeal, pancakes, waffles and french toast. A jug of syrup does not make it long with 7 people, 5 of whom are under 18, using it.

For a while, I bought the generic fake syrup from the grocery store, but the fact that high fructose corn syrup was the main ingredient just kept eating at me. We are not HFC purists; we still eat foods that contain it, but we do try to avoid it when we can. I started looking for options and found one which is much better for us (not as good as real maple syrup, I know), is EASY to make and tastes really great. My version also costs less than the fake syrup from the store. Bonus!

Homemade Syrup

1 c dark brown sugar (light works too, but dark tastes better)

1 c white sugar

1 c water

1 T butter

1 t vanilla

Put everything into a medium saucepan and stir over medium heat until dissolved. Bring to a boil for a minute or two. Turn the heat down to very low, just above simmer, and let it cook for about 20 minutes. Put a lid on the pot when the mixture has stopped boiling. Don't stick the lid on right when you turn the heat down - TRUST ME ON THIS! Your syrup will boil over and it is not fun to clean up burned sugar from the crevices of your stove top. I speak from experience unfortunately.

The syrup will thicken as it cooks.

After about 20 minutes, remove from heat and add butter and vanilla. That's it! You can use it right away or store it in the fridge. If I'm not using it right away, I let it cool and then pour it into a 1 quart canning jar and pop it into the fridge. When we need syrup for pancakes and such, I pour some into a small pitcher or glass measuring cup to warm it up and serve it.

I always double this recipe when I make it...we use lots of syrup. The double batch fits into a quart sized jar. I'd suggest only making a single batch to start to allow you to get the hang of it. If you cook it longer, the syrup will be thicker. However, if you don't use the syrup in a reasonable amount of time, it will start to crystallize a bit in the jar. Syrup that looks longer will crystallize faster. Real maple syrup does this, too. That's just part of being a sticky liquid whose main ingredients are sugar and water.

Happy Breakfast!

Doing the Same Book Over and Over and Over

Books are part of going to school. They just go together like peanut butter and jelly or the Packers and bratwurst or The Big Guy and me. You can't imagine one without the other.

I admit that I am one of those strange people who loved getting my new school books each year, especially if they were new. The smell those new books had and the sound they made when you cracked them open, I just loved it. Please don't analyze this...I am sure there are deep issues there somewhere.

Books are part of homeschooling, too. However, instead of walking into a building and having your books handed to you, homeschoolers have to do some searching and, this hurts a bit, have to lay down some cash to get those books. Sometimes it is a lot of cash. It's still exciting! I love when a box of books arrives and, for the most part, so do the young'uns.

Here's the difference: you think about school books a bit differently when you are shelling out your own money for them.

We consider content, scope and sequence, age appropriateness and the like. Those are all huge considerations and I am sure there are several blogs posts there, but this post is about making those books last and last and last...for 5 children.

Some books are hardcover and made to be reused, especially those for older kids. Many of the books for the younger set are consumable. They do the math page -all 20 problems - and it is done. When the next kid needs that math book, you shell out another $25.00.

After seeing Nate, our oldest, rip through his first $25.00 math book, I started doing some math of my own. We only had the three boys at that point, but I could see every math level costing $75.00 and that was if the price stayed the same from year to year (not likely). Not to mention, the latin, handwriting, grammar and spelling workbooks looming in our future. This was a problem that needed a solution.

Page protectors to the rescue!

I took the workbook apart and put the pages inside of clear plastic page protectors. These pages went into a large three ring binder. When it was math time, we opened the "book" to the appropriate page, Nate took out a dry erase marker and did his thing. When the lesson was done, one quick wipe with a napkin or baby wipe - whatever was handy at the moment - and the page was ready to be done again in a couple of years. Problem solved!

As the kids have gotten older, we still put workbooks in page protectors. However, the writing instrument has changed. More advanced books require smaller writing and even thin dry erase markers are a bit clumsy.

Sharpie markers to the rescue!

Sharpie markers come off of page protectors with rubbing alcohol and a bit of elbow grease. It is a perfect job to do while watching TV. (Just ask the Big Guy.)

A box (or several) boxes of page protectors and three ring binders aren't free, but they do cost less than buying the same math book several times. Office supply stores often have great sales on both items. I've also found some brand new binders at the thrift store.

Even if you don't homeschool, this is a great way to take a puzzle book or a not-for-school-just-for-fun math book and make it last a bit longer. I've put some of the activity books we have for preschoolers in page protectors since they love to do the same thing again and again.

Right now you are seeing your precious shelf space overrun by gigantic three ring binders. I know how you think. If storage space is an issue, and really, when isn't it, just take the workbook pages out of the page protectors and put a rubber band around them until the next kid needs the book. Now you have a binder free and ready for whatever book is needed at the present time. Hmmmm....reusing page protectors and binders. Now you are saving even more money. What could you do with that extra cash?

I think I see a parent-teacher conference in your future...nice.

FYI - parent-teacher conference is homeschool slang for date night.

A Frugal Reading List

It's already been established that I lean towards the cheap...I mean frugal...side of things. I admit it. Guilty as charged. I'm a tightwad hear me roar.

I'd like to think that it isn't some sort of crazy obsession with me. I don't save dryer lint to stuff pillows. I have tossed out tubes of toothpaste when I knew there was little bit left in the bottom. I have not put all of our electrical devices on sensors so that they shut off automatically when not in use for 2 minutes. We turn on our heat in the winter.

Instead, I think it's become a way of life. God has given us what we need and more, but I don't want to squander it. I try to be mindful of using these things that have been put under my care to their utmost. It's my "job."

I could go to the grocery store without a list and buy our food for the week and we would be fine. I could look at my son's pants, see his ankles showing and head straight for the mall to get some longer ones and the world wouldn't end. We still spend money! But here's what I've learned...

If I am mindful of our family's resources, do some planning and, yes, some extra work, those resources will go much much farther and we can use them to further bless our family and, more importantly, others. Our kids can take part in some activities that otherwise might be out of reach. We can go on vacations from time to time. We can entertain more people in our home. We can share more with others. We can give as we feel God calls us.

This place wasn't arrived at over night and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a struggle to stay here at times, but I feel confident it is where God has placed me (and our family).

We're trying to use what God has given us to his glory. It isn't just me; it's a team effort.

I've been asked for some suggestions of "frugaly" books. Here are some of my favorites:

Miserly Moms by Jonni McCoy

Miserly Meals by Jonni McCoy
The Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn

The Miserly books by Jonnie McCoy are pretty basic and were the first books that got me started. The Tightwad Gazette is hardcore frugality. To be honest, I think many of the suggestions in this book are crazy, but others are very helpful if only to get your mind going. It is actually a fun read, but that just might be me.

A true tightwad would borrow all books about being frugal from the library, I suppose. Many of those books have gone on my library card and I've looked them over. But I have bought the books on this list and keep them on my shelf to loan out and also to reread from time to time just to remind myself what my goal truly is.

What's your goal for yourself and your family? I'd love to hear it!

Buy Soap, Make Money, Get Clean

Yep, it's true. This week I bought bar soap enough to last us for at least 4 months, probably longer. I also purchased a bottle of fancy body wash. The purchases were made at Target. Here's how it all worked:

2 - 8 packs of Olay bar soap
1 bottle of Olay body wash
Total - $16.50

less 1.00 coupon for bar soap
1.00 coupon for bar soap
2.00 coupon for body wash

Total - $12.50 spent out of pocket (plus tax)


Here's the kicker: I also received a $5.00 Target gift card that I can spend on
whatever I want. I'll probably put it towards another great Target deal. In
addition, I'll also be receiving a $15.00 rebate check from Olay in the mail.

Yep, you read that correctly! I spent $12.50 out of pocket, got a $5.00 gift card and will be getting a $15.00 check.

All told purchasing my stockpile of soap earned me about $ 7.00 after tax and postage stamp. I love shopping!

Butter Me Up

Good deals make me happy because they allow me to keep our grocery budget in check and use what God has given us wisely. So, if I find a good deal, I'll pass it along.

This one is for folks who live around a Kwik Trip store.

Until the end of March, Kwik Trip is selling a lb. of butter for only $1.49! That is about .50 per pound cheaper than I've seen elsewhere in the past few months.

So stock up now! Butter freezes just fine. If your family uses 5 lbs. of butter a month, you'll be saving $2.50 which doesn't seem like much but it adds up!

While you are there...check out the milk in a bag. I know it sounds crazy, but they sell milk in half gallon bags. A half gallon of skim is currently .99 per bag or $1.98 per gallon. This is a great price! Also, if you buy milk there. ask for a milk punch card. For every half gallon you buy, you'll get a punch. 20 punches equals $1.00 off your next milk purchase. This means you're getting .05 off every half gallon you buy. You'll need to pick up one of their free milk pitchers for your milk while you are there also.

Gifts on the Cheap...I Mean Frugal

Tonight The Big Guy and I stopped at Menards (a Home Depot-like store here in the mid-west) because we wanted to pick up a birthday gift. We were on a date...don't you always go to the hardware store on a date? We bought a great 20 inch hand saw and MADE $7.45! Yep, we made money buying a gift.

Here's how:

The saw cost $10.55 with tax. I had a $8.00 merchandise credit or rebate from a previous deal. When we applied the credit, we paid $2.55 for the saw. However, the saw was a rebate item and we'll be getting another merchandise credit for $10.00. So, we made $7.45! There is a little bit of paperwork involved, but it is worth it.

Here's why:

Having 5 children, 9 nieces and nephews and 2 god daughters (not to mention my children's friends) means that we give lots of gifts each year. I love coming up with gifts they, hopefully, enjoy. However, because we do our best to live within our means, I don't have a great deal to spend on gifts. What I can't spend in money, I try to make up for in creativity and thoughtfulness. Hopefully, none of the above gift receivers read this and protest. I may come up short at times, but it isn't for lack of trying.

One of my favorite things to give our kids are gifts they can use both now and later. (My friend, Lisa, my creative Mom hero, gave me this great idea years ago.) Starting at age four, we give each of our sons a tool and each of our daughters a kitchen "tool." I use the quotes because some people don't consider them tools - they're wrong!

So, when our first son turned four, he received a REAL toolbox - the kind that men walk out of Home Depot with. It was a load for him to carry but he loved it. He also got a tape measure that year. The next year he got a hammer and some nails. The following year he was the recipient of a saw. And so on...


When our first daughter turned four, she received a Rubbermaid container and some rubber spatulas and wooden spoons. The next year we have her measuring cups and spoons. You get the idea.


The purpose of these gifts are two-fold. First of all, they give our kids a chance to do some real work while they are young. They learn useful skills and have fun doing it. These gifts also give The Big Guy and I the opportunity to spend time teaching them to use these gifts. Second, when our kids leave home, they will hopefully have a box of tools they can use to take care of themselves and their families.

I appreciate these gifts for a number of reasons. They don't cost an arm and a leg and keep us within our gift budget. I love seeing what my children can do with their tools. They are very proud! These gifts don't clutter our home with toys that make noise, have lots of small pieces or get lost over time. I also don't have to spend lots of time thinking about what to get them - it's all planned out for 14 years.


We do get our kids another gift to go along with the tools, but they really do like the tools.


I like the thought of one of my sons reaching into his toolbox when he is 25 and taking out the hammer we bought for him. The thought of one of our daughters using her tools to make a great meal for those she loves makes me happy. We pray they can use these simple gifts to bless others!