Recipe Cinnamon Swirl French Toast

I normally get the Cinnamon Raisin Swirl bread loaf at Kroger when it is in the discount section for $1.00. I take it home and freeze it right away. This recipe will feed all five of us for one meal; However, I like to make this on a weekend afternoon on my electric griddle and freeze it, so the kids have this for breakfast instead of cold cereal. I warm it up in the toaster on a higher setting and press the frozen button. This past week they were lucky enough to have freezer muffins and Cinnamon Swirl French Toast to choose from.

If you do not have an electric griddle here is one from Amazon that is very similar to mine. This makes an awesome gift too.

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Cinnamon Swirl French Toast

1 loaf Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread

4-6 Eggs

½ Cup of Milk

1. Toast both sides of the Cinnamon Swirl bread on and electric griddle set for 350 degrees for a couple of minutes on each side or until starting to turn golden. After the bread is toasted allow to cool for a few mintues. Otherwise the bread gets too soggy.

2. Take 2 eggs and crack them in a large flat bottom bowl and add ¼ cup milk. Mix well.

3. Dip the bread in the egg mixture and let it soak a minute or two on each side. The egg should soak into the bread. Keep dipping pieces until the egg mixture is gone. Once gone add another couple of eggs and the remaining milk until all bread is soaked and on the griddle.

4. Spray electric griddle with spray oil and lay the egg soaked bread on the electric griddle. Let fry for a couple of minutes. The egg will get brown around the edges of the toast. Flip and let the other side brown.

5. Once complete serve with powdered sugar, apple butter, apple sauce or syrup.

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Last time I made Cinnamon Swirl French Toast I only used four eggs and a little milk. This costs me $1.00 for the bread and $0.44 for the eggs. So for the main part of the meal I spent $1.44 to feed a family of five for breakfast. This meal includes protein, carbs and a fruit.

How much do you spend on breakfast for your family?

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Recipe Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

2 ¼ cups All Purpose Flour (I used 2 Cups 100% Whole Wheat & 1/4 cup Buckwheat)

1 teaspoon Baking Soda (I add a little more, since I am using Whole Wheat)

1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice

½ teaspoon salt

2 Eggs

2 cups Sugar (You can use less. These turned out very sweet)

1 Cup Canned Pumpkin (I used pumpkin I had pureed in the freezer)

½ cup Vegetable Oil

1 cup dried cranberries

1. In bowl combine the flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and salt.

2. In a separate mixing bowl beat eggs, sugar; then add the pumpkin and oil mix well.

3. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry until moistened. Then fold in the cranberries.

4. Fill greased muffin tins ¾ full.

5. Bake at 400 degrees for 18-22 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before removing from pan.

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The Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins have a great blend of tartness of the cranberries and the sweetness of the pumpkin that blends well together. They were very moist and almost melted in my mouth when we ate them.  The sugar caramelized to make the edges a little crispy.They still are very moist and delicious after you freeze them. I know you will enjoy these.


I let them cool on a wire rack. Then I place  Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins  in a large gallon freezer bag and freeze for the kids to take out and enjoy every morning before school. Pop 2 of them in the microwave for about a minute. Let me know if you try these delicious muffins.

I have switched all of my flour use to 100% Whole Wheat flour. The biggest difference I have noticed it is more dense than regular white four and a little more grainy in texture. The kids don't seem to mind. The flavor is great. The whole wheat flour has little more nuttier flavor than the bland white flour. There is  more nutrition in using whole grains than processed and bleached products and your body can digest this better. I would recommend going whole grain before going gluten free.

I am thinking of adding a linky to my Wednesday recipe posts. Let me know if you would be interested in a recipe linky?


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Tips 4 Tuesday - Why I Never Shopped at Walgreens. Until TODAY!

One thing you have to realize when you are first starting to coupon is you can’t always get all the deals all the time. There are just too many stores and the amount of gas you would use would offset the saving you were getting anyway. That is mainly why I never shopped at Walgreens. It was too far away for me to justify making a trip out that way to get just a few items each week. Even if it was FREE. Since most of the time the FREE item was gone off the shelf by the time I got there. So all I did was waste gas and drive around for nothing. I spent time planning my scenarios, gathering my coupons. Instead of being excited about the awesome deals I was about to get, all I got was disappointment. This was not worth my time, gas or energy. I did this on several occasions. I vowed I would not go to Walgreens anymore.

Until now! I just realized that there is a Walgreens close to my son’s preschool, since this is on my way and I won't waste any gas money. I thought to myself “How can I now add Walgreens into my shopping rotation?” I stopped by there today, and the cashiers were so much nicer than the Walgreens closest one to my house. Someone in the aisle even asked if I needed help. They even had a ton of the sale items still in stock, and it was Tuesday. I was very impressed and I will go back to this store.

My new plan of savings is to hit Walgreens and CVS on Tuesdays. Then do my grocery shopping at Tom Thumb, Kroger and Sprouts on Thursdays. This way I will not waste any gas, since all of these are on the way home from my son’s daycare. Tuesdays and Thursdays are the closest to when the new sales cycles start for those stores. Woo Hoo more savings!


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Tips for Tuesday - Quick and Easy Breakfast

Most of us are looking for a quick and easy way to start the day. Let’s face it if the morning starts off bad, the rest of the day goes with it. Breakfast can be one of those moments where you can save a little bit of time and money. Cereal coupons are not always easy to find or always a good buy. Most of the time cereal is packed full of sugar and carbohydrates and not the most nutritious way to send the kids off to school. They will be on a sugar high and it will be difficult for them to focus during the morning. They will be hyper at first and then hit that crash after about an hour or more.

How can you reduce your morning stress, save money,

and provide good nutritious food for your kids in the morning?

One thing you can do is prepare a nutritious breakfast for the kids ahead of time. On the weekend try cooking a double batch of what you are eating on the weekends. Then you can take the leftovers and have those during the week. This provides the kids with options for breakfast.

Instead of making one pound of breakfast sausage, make two. One for eating on the weekend and put the leftovers in a container to heat up during the week. If you like bacon, make the entire package of bacon. Drain and let cool, then freeze it. Take it out as needed and pop it into the microwave for 30-60 seconds. This is also great for instant bacon bits. Bacon freezes great and comes out crispy in the microwave. This will save time and provide a great protein for the morning. 

There aren’t many people I know who like dirty dishes or like to cook a big breakfast on school mornings. A quick idea for making scrambled eggs is to spray a coffee cup with cooking spray. Then crack the egg and scramble it up in the cup and cook for 1 minute in the microwave. As soon as you get it out. Cut it up some more. This is quick and easy. You could also mix it with some of the sausage, a little cheese, put it in a tortilla and have a quick breakfast taco.

Make a double batch of muffins on the weekends and place the leftovers in the freezer. As soon as they come out of the oven put them on a cooling rack. Once they are cooled place them in a freezer bag and then in the freezer. To thaw and eat, take two out and place in the microwave for 1 min. They usually come out perfect. I use whole grain wheat and a fruit to make this a heartier muffin. I normally make them from scratch for pennies a piece. 

Pancakes are so easy to freeze and to have ready for the kids on school mornings . To add more protein to your pancakes add a half cup or whole cup Greek yogurt to your batter and decrease your liquid. Another bit of nutrition, add some frozen berries or pureed fruit to the mix. If you do both you are providing a protein and a fruit along with the carbs to make the pancake a complete meal. This will keep your kids full longer and avoid the carb crash later. I also use a multigrain pancake mix. Make a double batch. Once the pancakes are done, place them on a cooling rack to cool. Then place them in the freezer. I find they don’t stick together nearly as much after they are frozen. Then you can pop them in the toaster or microwave to thaw. Instead of syrup to top them off with some powdered sugar. It gives them the sweet taste, but they will not eat as much sugar.

If you start doing these things for your morning routine, you will find that you will not only save time, but you may also find you save money too. I have a pantry full of cereal that has not been eaten in while. The kids love the muffins and pancakes and little do they know it is good for them too! Do you any great time saving tips for the morning?

Want to find more great deals? Join Pounds4Pennies BlogFrog community. I will be posting more deals on BlogFrog than on my blog site. If you want to find Blogfrog and check out the latest deals, it is a little further down on the left hand side. Feel free to check back often to find some awesome deals.

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Product Review - MISTO olive oil sprayer

I found this great little gadget when I was shopping for Christmas gifts this year. It is the MISTO Olive Oil Sprayer. This serves two purposes for me. One I can put whatever oil I want to inside and two it is a GREEN product. I love the fact I can purchase oil on sale and I can put this into the can and use it for all my cooking. Also, I am not filling up some land fill with emptied spray oil bottles. I use mine more than I used the spray can oil and I am using far less oil on my food. I am not only saving money, but calories too!

This is so easy to use. You fill the MISTO container about half way full of oil. The extra space is needed to provide air pressure for the fine mist spray. Then you just pump the top about 10 times or so and spray oil on the surface you want to use. This is great for spraying muffin pans, cake pans, frying pans or whatever else you don’t want to stick. You can even mix up a salad dressing and spray on your salad. I use mine all the time.

MISTO is around $10 for the bottle. After four uses it pays for itself. Since normal aerosol spray oil cans cost over $3 a piece. I used mine for a while before I wrote an article on this fabulous product, since I wanted to make sure it would last. I have used it and refilled it once. Once you see how little oil is in the product you purchased before, you will so thankful for how much money you will save.

MISTO is not paying me to write this article. All opinions are my own. This contains affiliate links and I may be compensated from this article.


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Money Saving Monday - How to Save With a Kroger Plus Card

How to Save More With a Kroger Plus Card

Even though Kroger has taken away the double and triple couponing you can still save at Kroger using your Kroger Plus Card. Some people have even decided to give up on couponing altogether. Let’s face it we no longer really shop, we are shopping to save. I want to show you how to get the most savings from shopping for groceries and things you need even without using coupons. First go to Kroger and get your Kroger Plus card. You need to make one small purchase to take advantage of the online e-Coupons. Buy a gift card.

GIFT CARDS

Right now is a great time to buy gift cards at Kroger. You can receive 4 times fuel points you spend on gift cards towards gas purchases. If you buy one $25.00 gift card, that is 100 point or $0.10 off per gallon of gas. Kroger has a wide selection of gift cards you can purchase. I do all my gift card shopping at Kroger in order to save big on gas.

GAS

I usually fill up our SUV at Kroger, since I get such a great savings on gas. Gas is one area that is very difficult to save in a budget. We all use gas and it is not going away or going down in cost real soon. I might as well get as much savings as possible whenever I can on gas. I do this buy shopping at Kroger.

e-COUPONS

Not only does Kroger have e-coupons online, but they also have and app you can download to load coupons directly onto your Kroger card. Each week Kroger adds new coupons you can add to your card, so check back often. They have coupons for store brand items too. You can’t go wrong with adding coupons to your card. This applies to all Kroger affiliate companies too. I traveled to Arizona this summer where they have Fry’s stores and my e-coupons worked there too. This is great especially for someone who doesn’t want to clip and use coupons. However, Kroger will not allow you to use a digital coupon and a paper coupon together. If you have a better paper coupons, just remove that ecoupon from your card.

There are other e-coupon sites where you can load coupons to your cards too. Take a moment to sign up for UPromise and  Savings Star and easily load digital coupons to your card. Come back here after you finish.

Savings Star is great site, since these coupons are tied to your card, but they are not loaded to your card. You can load as many coupons as you want. You register your Kroger Plus card  and when you use it the savings will sit in an account until you reach the limit to redeem a FREE gift card. I LOVE FREE!


BUYING NECESSITIES

I like to purchase things like milk, eggs and my papers at Kroger. I need to buy these things nearly every week why not get the benefit of extra saving on purchasing them here. Milk is the same price at Walmart, Kroger and Tom Thumb. There may be a sale here and there and I will take advantage of those, but for the most part milk is the same price. Kroger usually has a better price on eggs than Tom Thumb, so I buy my eggs at Kroger. I spend around $10.00 to purchase 4 papers every week. So I will get 10 Kroger fuel points for just purchasing my papers there.

CREDIT CARD SAVINGS

Credit Cards are a good way to get additional savings. This sounds crazy right. How can you get savings from a credit card? This will only work if your credit card is paid in full at the end of every month by not carrying over a balance that will earn you additional interest. However, some credit cards offer a percentage cash back for all purchases made on that card or you could have a card that accumulates airline miles for each purchase you make with that card. Therefore you are making money by purchasing things you already need. This is a good way to replace your debit card for making purchases. This does take a little getting used to using your card this way, but you have to remember you are going to pay this off at the end of the month this is not a loan.

RECAP

Let’s have a little recap of way to get the most out of using your Kroger Plus Card:

1. Gift Cards - 4 Times Dollar Amount for fuel Points right now

2. Gas – savings from Fuel Points

3. e-Coupons – Just click and load

4. Buy Necessities – Milk, Eggs, Papers, ect…

5. Credit Cards - + 2% or more additional savings on Cash Back Credit Cards or FREE miles

Now go out there and start saving! 

Tips for Tuesday - Black Friday

It is almost here, Black Friday. I really like finding out the history of things. Most people don't know why it's called Black Friday. This is the day of the year most retailers go from operating "in the red" (a deficit) to operating "in the black" (making a profit). Thus Black Friday. This is a big day for retailers, and I think it should remain to just Friday. Let the employees enjoy their thanksgiving with their families and not be so greedy to make them work on thanksgiving. Ok that is my two cents. If you agree please do not shop on Thursday.

Here are a few of my tips for surviving the day. Do your research on the items that are going on sale to make sure that is the item you want. Sometimes it is last years model at a deep discount to clear the shelves. The item may not be the quality you really want.

Just like grocery shopping, you should have a plan and a budget and stick to it. Start by planning which stores are open earliest and have the item(s) you really want.

If you can convince someone to go with you, divide and conquer. Have one person go to one store while you go to another to get the most out of the time limited deals.

Don't worry if you don't get the deal you wanted. Another deal will come along during the holiday season.

Remember to:

1. Research

2. Have a plan and budget and stick to it.

3. Divide and conquer

4. Don't worry if you don't get the deal, another one will come along.

I enjoy shopping online and staying with my family on that day. I really don't like the crowds, but I would love to hear from my readers and I will have an additional black Friday linky for you to share your great deals you find on that day. I can't wait to hear from you.

Tips 4 Tuesday

First I would like to make sure you are getting all you can from Pounds4Pennies. I offer additional savings information and HOT coupons on my Facebook page and in my BlogFrog community. Please be sure to LIKE me on Facebook to keep up with the latest coupons and savings deals. I also offer additional tips and coupons on BLOGFROG. If you do like my site be sure to click Top Mommy Blogs and vote for me. One click = one vote. I am 108 and would love to get into the top 100 this week just eight more places to go. I know all my fabulous readers can take a few moments to vote for me. THANKS in advance.

I have a few tips to share with you about not throwing things out. My wonderful husband and I try to avoid throwing anything away. If something is about to spoil or we don't think we will use it in time, we just pop it into the freezer. Why let something go bad and have to throw it away. You might as well take that money and throw it in the trash that you purchased that food with. It is basically the same thing.

Do you ever make a pot of coffee and have some left over? Don’t throw it out. My husband and I love ice coffee. We make a little extra during the summer, so we can have ice coffee in the afternoons. We take the left over coffee and put it a plastic cup or make ice cubes out of it. We use plastic cups, since this is water and it will expand and break a glass container. We then put confectioners sugar and creamer and blend to make a great tasting frappe or just have iced coffee. The confectioners sugar dissolves quickly in ice coffee and you don’t have to worry about the grainy texture from granulated sugar.

What do you do with the left over heels of a piece of bread? Again don’t throw them out. There are several great uses for these. I put some butter on them and toast them in the toaster. Then I place them in my food processor to finely chop them up. I never need to buy bread crumbs. Another thing I do with the bread is make croutons. I butter them and cut them into cubes. Then place them on a cookie sheet and put the oven on broil. Watch very closely as these can burn quickly. I even sprinkle some seasonings on them to make them extra tasty. The kids all time favorite is to save these for duck food. We also keep a bag in the freezer and put left over hot dog buns, hamburger buns or bread crusts in there. When we want to go to the park we automatically have duck food ready for the kids to feed the ducks. This also make a great time for family photos.

My husband and I try not to throw anything out. I hope you will be able to use these tips in the future. Do you have any great tips on how to save or use the extra things you might consider throwing out? I love your comments and I would love to hear from you.

Money Saving Monday

Step 3: Big Savings on your Grocery Bill

If you have been following my couponing series the past couple of weeks, you should have accumulated tons of coupons by now. You can read my previous two posts:


1. How to start couponing. Coupoing 101
2. Go Shopping


If you do not have a lot of coupons you can PRINT COUPONS for free. If you have started trying to acquire coupons, you have probably printed a ton off the internet in order to create a nice coupon stash. I know I did when I first started. I had stacks and stacks of coupons to cut. I had the whole family cutting them out for me for a while. Now it is under control.

Now that you have quite a few coupons and you have made your first trip to the store, you are ready to take it up a notch. How did you feel the first time you scored saving 60-70%? It felt great, right? I know it was great for me, since we needed food and we needed food fast.

Maximizing Grocery Savings
Let's talk about your next trip to the store where you are going to do a larger shopping trip and make a larger list. Go to a matchup website such as Saving Well Spending Less or Southern Savers and pick the items where you can save 60-70% on items. Now that you have more coupons you should find more items to matchup. You will want to find items at the lowest price, then purchase as many of them as you have coupons for. This way you will save the most on that particular item until it goes on sale again.  The major grocery stores have sales that are discounted below Walmart price to entice you to go there and do your normal shopping buying items on sale and items that are not on sale.

Make a Grocery List
Now it is a good idea to gather your coupons from the matchup sites and make or print your list. Keep your coupons in a separate folder or envelope. Before you check out, check your coupons to see if they match according to brand size and type. Count the number of items in your cart and make sure you have the same number of corresponding items to match the coupons you have clipped. Then proceed to the check out. Be nice to your cashier as you check out. Find out if they would like coupons as they scan the items or after they scan.

When you are checking out pay close attention to the scanned price of an item and also make sure all your coupons are scanned. This is much easier to do if you don't have your kids with you, but if you are like me, most times that is not an option. If not try to review your receipt before you leave the store. I saved over four dollars on a trip because something didn’t ring up correctly and went to customer service for my refund.  Always be courteous, especially if you can calmly explain the error they will give a refund.

My standard price to buy an item is below Walmart price or 50% or higher. It is a good idea to know your prices when you are shopping for an item. Walmart claims to have the best price. What that really means is they have the better than the stores normal price. I will share a price list with you in a later post. It is not quite complete, since many rock bottom prices are going up. The only thing I normally buy that is not on sale is milk.

If you can also take a moment to vote for me at Rate My Blog @ Top Mommy Blogs

1. How to Start Couponing. Couponing 101


2. Step Two Shopping


4.  Step Four Drug Store Shopping - CVS

Have you tried the first two steps in my series? Do you have any questions? I will do my best to help answer any questions you may have.

Money Saving Monday

I love this fall weather. I am still waiting for the first big cool front to come our way. It should be here tonight. It will be time to bring out the big blankets and fuzzy pajamas. This is going to be excellent snuggle weather.

I would love to share some tips I use to help save a few dollars on heating during the winter months ahead. Muffins and breads will now be on the menu at our house more often, since the house will not get so hot from all the baking. After I finish baking, I leave the oven door open to help the oven heat the rest of the house. This is not recommended if you have little ones. Or at least make sure they are not around the oven. This makes a huge difference in warmth in the living areas where we normally hang out.

I love to use my crock pot for making meals too. When I am cooking something in the crock pot, I usually will place it on the counter by the living room. This is where it will cook all day and provide some heat to our common area. I am cooking a great meal for my family and heating the house. How great is that?

My dishwasher is the next source of warmth during those frigid winter months. After the cycle is done, I will open the door and let the heat and steam rise. This also provides some much needed moisture in the air during the dry winter season.

 If I can have all three going at once; the heater may not come on for quite a while. I am creating wonderful meals for my family and clean dishes. I can’t think of anything better!

Do you have ways where you try to create additional heat in your home without using your heater? Please leave a comment below.

Tips for Tuesday

I really love food and finding new and interesting ways to make creative dishes. Starting tomorrow I will be hosting a recipe swap on Wednesdays. I try to use things from my stockpile and things that are on sale for that week. Stop by tomorrow if you have a great recipe to share.

I have purchased a lot of cleaners, since they were on sale. I have a nice stockpile. However, I have decided I would really like to spend that money on food instead of things I am using just to wipe things off with. Food is always better. I have been researching how to make your own cleaning supplies. I posted about making your own laundry soap here and your own fabric softner here.

Today I am going to provide you with a recipe for Glass cleaner aka Windex.

Ingredients:

1 cup vinegar – I usually get this on sale and a coupon

2 cups Warm Water

1 spray bottle

Mix the first two ingredients and pour inside spray bottle. This is also great if you have run out of cleaner and there is no sale or coupon out and you need some more. You will save around 97% compared to the purchased brand name. Unless you can find it for FREE. I always like FREE. Who doesn’t.

Do you have any tips to save money? What about cleaning something that is difficult? Or any money saving tips you may have. Just Link UP below to share any informative posts you have.

Thoughts for Thursday

*

Do you ever wonder how the pioneer women did it all? I mean I have a vacuum; I don't have to beat the rug. I don't have to make the rug to be able to beat it. I even have a small electric sweeper. The pioneer women, if they had a wooden floor had a broom to sweep.

Cooking involved getting the food and preparing it from scratch. Like going to get the still clucking chicken and cleaning it for a meal. Then she would have to start a fire in the stove and get it to the right temperature. Then cooking and preparing the meal then clean up.

I have running water in my house and don't have to go to the well to pump it to wash dishes, take a bath or get some to drink.

I have a dishwasher that cleans my dishes sparkling clean with the press of a button. The pioneer women washed everything by hand and dried it and put it away. They normally had only one set of dishes for the family, so the dishes must be cleaned after every meal.

I do have a bathroom to clean, which I am very thankful for considering what the option was for the pioneer women. But I do have to clean it.

Doing laundry involved scrubbing each piece on a washboard in a tub of water. Granted you did not change your clothes as often as we do today. If so,  I think I would spend 40 hours a week just on laundry.

And she did all this while three or four small children running around with no TV, or computer, and very little toys for the children.

It just goes to show you how thankful for all the inventions we have to help us. Think about it. What would be hard for you to do without?

*Photo The Prairie Is My Garden Painting by Harvey Dunn. Image taken from Laura Ingalls Wilder Country: The People and Places in Laura Ingalls Wilder's life and Books, by William Anderson

Tips for Tuesday

My husband thinks I am not organized at all. However, I feel I don't have all the tools to help me get organized and stay organized.

One of the things that helped make this theory more concrete for me, is when we purchased our fabulous bookshelves in the kids playroom. Everything is now picked up and off the floor. All of this stuff in the bookshelf was lining the walls of the play room. It was aweful. I wish I had taken a before picture. I just love going in there now.  We even created little stations for the kids to play. Now I just need to paint this room.

The other day the kids got a lot of toys out to play with. It was so easy to pick them up because we knew where everything went. When we were done it looked just as fabulous. It has looked like this for almost a month. It is so nice to go in there and not have all that STUFF on the ground.

 My next project is to organize my closet under the stairs. This is where I keep my birthday bags and tissue paper for presents and a few other items. It is a weird space, but I know if I put a large chest with some drawers in the back and the rest was lined with shelves I could organize everything in there. Plus have room to store more things like food!

Thoughts for thursday

With hurricane Irene last week hitting the East Coast, I thought to myself, how prepared am I for an emergency? Have you thought about this? Here are a few things you may want to gather to make sure you are prepared for anything that may happen.

 

Water

Food

Batteries

Glow sticks

Matches/ or magnifying glass

Duct Tape

Manual can opener

Someone to call

What situation do you need to prepare for? How long could you be without water or electricity? Make sure you have at least three 20oz bottles of water for each person in your home for two to three days. After two or three days you should be able to get help and be able to obtain more water if needed. You may also look into getting water purification tablets or a solar powered water purification device and have bleach on hand. You can use 16 drops of bleach per gallon of water to disinfect water. Shake and let it stand for 30 min.

Do you have enough food to eat if you do not have electricity or gas to cook? Since I stockpile my food, the answer to this is a resounding YES. We could even cook outside for a while with propane or wood on the grill or smoker. I think we would survive for at least a month if I could not buy any more food from the store. Be sure you have a manual can opener to open any can goods you may have in case the electricity is out.


Do you have enough batteries for your flashlight or candles if the electricity goes out? We have been purchasing only rechargeable batteries for every battery we replace. This may be a little more expensive, but we are not putting many batteries back into the environment as our kids use them up like candy for all their toys. I think we have replaced nearly every battery at least once. We have a set in the drawer that has been charged for each battery type, AA, AAA, D, C and 9 volt just in case they are needed. I am considering purchasing a solar battery charger for just in case such an emergency is needed. They even have solar powered battery chargers for your phone. I am thinking of getting one of these as well.


Someone to call to check in to let them know you are OK and to spread the word to everyone else. This is a good idea to have someone to call and then they can post on social media or get the word to others to let everyone know you are OK and survived. This also helps relieve the phone lines of unnecessary calls. The lines will be free for emergencies from others who truly may need help.


If you do not have a kit all put together, you should make a list of the items you would want to bring or collect in case of an emergency. Also keep this list in a convenient place like taped to a kitchen cabinet where everyone in the house knows where it is.


Do you have any other items you think are a must for an emergency kit? Do you already have and emergency kit packed?

Tips for Tuesday

Wow! It is hot here. It is supposed to be 108 today. This past winter I thought I moved to Minnesota. Now I feel like I have moved to Las Vegas. It is hot. I said I would not complain one day about summer during our week being below 30. That was cold and I am really thinking about those days now. Kinda wishing they were back. It is hot. I think I am going to try to lead a campaign where everyone will exhale at the exact same time and blow this high pressure right outta Dallas. I am not sure that would work, but anything is worth a shot at this point.

I have a few tips on keeping cool in this heat and things to do with the kids. First make all sorts of popsicles. I have been making some yogurt and berry ones. Next I am going to try an orange dreamsicle. Yummy. I just love those. Also we have a snow cone lady here. She makes the best snow cones in the world. We are going to see her again this weekend.

Next try taking the kids to a splash park. These are a lot of fun. The water is usually cool and will cool the kids down too. I tend to stay on the outside edge and might walk through a couple of times to cool down myself.

Today I went to the play area inside the mall and let Little Face play there. He wants to go outside, but it is just too hot. We went outside at 9:00am yesterday morning and he was dripping with sweat within 15 min. There is no humidity here either. It is just hot, hot, hot.

Does anyone have any tips for keeping cool this summer? I need some. Please link up any tips about home, life, work, kids, family or crafting you would like to share.

Tips for Tuesday

Dishwashing soap has many uses. If you spill any oil or greasy items on your clothes put some liquid dishwashing soap on the area and rub gently. You can do this as soon as it happens or is you spot before you put it into the wash. If it doesn't come out with the first wash you can do it again. If it can get black funky oil off birds it can get out just about any oil. I got this tip from a friend of mine who was a message therapist who used it to get the message oil out of her clothes.

I use this for my pillow cases and sheets. I put a small amount in the machine before I wash. My husband sweats a lot in his sleep and releases a lot of oil. I swirl this around the washing machine tub once and wash on hot to get all the oils out. I keep a small bottle of this on my laundry shelf.

If you have run out of bleach or need to spot treat a white area, you can use automatic dishwashing machine gel. It is made of bleach and is great in a pinch if you have a small spot you need to bleach.

You can also use dishwashing gel for bad mildew stains in bathrooms. Since this is bleach based, anywhere you can use bleach you can use this product. I have had to use it on a stubborn mildew stain or two. Just coat the area and let it soak for a while. Come back and scrub this will get the mildew out.

You can make your own laundry soap. I am exciting about this one. I am going to be doing this soon. These ingredients are simple and do not cost a lot to make. I am going to be changing the recipe from this one instead of using Fels Naptha, I am going to grate some ivory soap I got for free. Some one else posted you can use this instead.

Make your own softener and dryer sheets. I am exciting about this one too. These ingredients are simple and do not cost a lot to make. I am thinking you can use lotion if you do not have conditioner for this recipe. My husband travels frequently so we have a ton of the little bottles of conditioner, so I am just going to use some of those. Wow FREE fabric softener.

Hope these help. Do you have any tips you would like to share?

Time Saving Tips

Don’t we all need to save some time here and there. I do try to cook healthy meals for my family, but cooking a meal from scratch can be a challenge when you are in a time crunch to be at soccer practice, school, brownies or whatever. Then try to have a wholesome meal on the table. Here are a few tips and tricks I use to keep good food going in and have time to do all the other things: