Afghan To Keep in the Car

On Wednesday following the day of the snow, Robby & I didn't go into work. The temperature dropped to zero with wind chills well below that. It was brutal out there and I don't mind telling you I didn't so much as put my nose outside.

All I could think about was the ordeal I had been through the day before and how I never wanted to go through it again. I decided to get stuff together to keep in my car just in case anything like that ever happened again. I will go into detail a little later about everything I am planning for my car. I will be calling it my 'Get Home Bag'.

The first thing I decided to do was make an ugly afghan to keep in my car. I went to the craft room and plundered in my stack of yarn until I found colors I didn't particularly like and a crochet needle I thought would work nicely. I carried them back to the warmest room in the house (my living room/bedroom) and got started. I was determined to make sure it was as warm as possible and in colors that were not like anything I had ever made before. This way I would know it was strictly for the car (and so would everyone else). I didn't want anyone to fall in love with it and just have to have it. I worked for the next two days on a simple large granny square afghan.

By Wednesday evening our water had froze again. I honestly wasn't surprised. It was just so bitter cold. We had water in gallon jugs so I was sure we would be ok until the water thawed and we could repair it.

Robby was getting stir crazy sitting at home, so by Thursday he was ready to go back to work. They opened a few hours later than normal and he went in. I stayed home and kept working on my afghan. I did not want to even try driving because I knew the roads would still be icy and I didn't want to be stranded again.

That evening when he got home, he fixed the water leak, but we still didn't have water. We checked everywhere to make sure there were no leaks and couldn't find one anywhere. Robby finally tracked it back to the water meter. It was frozen inside the meter, under the ground. It was too late to call the water company that night. So, the plan was for him to go in to work Friday and I would stay home and wait on the water company.

Later that night, I was able to finish my afghan.Yay me! It was ready to go in the car!
Here is a picture of it.

The Day Hell Froze Over

Tuesday morning, we were running late. The alarm didn't go off. We were both so tired after the busy past few days that we over slept. Robby & I hit the floor running, tripping over each other in our haste to get dressed and get out the door before we were both late for work. We didn't even have time to grab a quick cup of coffee. It was just get dressed and dash out to the car. We only work about 15-20 minutes from where we live and we were both cutting it too close for comfort when we pulled out the driveway.

I was almost to work when I realized I forgot my cell phone. I had left it on the desk charging. Oh well, there was just simply not enough time to go back to get it. I would just have to make do one day without it. So, I just kept going on in to work.

On the radio, the weather man was telling us that we might get a few afternoon snow flurries, but nothing to worry about. It would not be sticking and the roads were going to be safe for travel. If we got anything at all it would be late afternoon or early evening. The snow accumulations would be well south of my location by about 100 miles. Good, the last thing I wanted to worry about was icy roads when I knew I would be running errands that day at work.

I went on in to work and got ready to go back out into the cold to run my errands. When I left, I noticed the sky was dark and gray and it looked like snow, but I had faith in the weather man. He knows more than me about what it is going to do, right? Well, by the time I got to my first stop, it was starting to snow. It was just a few little flurries, nothing to get excited about. By the time I finished my third stop, it was snowing heavily and the bridges were icing over and the roads were slick in spots. I got back to work and told them the situation.

We started watching the weather even closer, the weather man was still saying nothing to worry about. The bad stuff was going to be south of Montgomery. A few schools were starting to close, but again we were told that it was not going to get bad. Within 30 minutes all of that changed.

Almost every school system in Alabama was closing, most of the roads in Birmingham were almost impassable. It was snowing harder and it was sticking to the roads, cars, the ground, and anything it touched was freezing to it as soon as it dropped. We closed up at work at 11:15 and headed home.

I tried to go my normal route home. The interstate was already barricaded off. I tried another more direct route. I couldn't make it that way either. Cars were sliding into ditches and sliding into one another. I turned around and tried another way home on the main road. It was already blocked off by police. I had one option home left and headed that way. I made it across a very scary, slippery bridge and thought the worst was behind me. I made it about another half mile at a snail's pace until I came to a small hill. Cars were not able to make it up it. They were slipping and sliding into each other on the icy road. It was like a bad nightmare. I knew at this point I had no choice. I had to park the car and start walking home.
I was about 7 miles from home. The temperature was dropping and the snow was coming down harder. Never in my life have I been stuck in weather that became so rough so quickly. I knew I had to try to make it home the best way I could. It was all up to me. Of all the days for me to forget my cell phone, I had no way of calling for help. I had to hurry to get out of the weather as quickly as possible, but had trouble seeing beneath the snow. I constantly tripped over tree roots, curbs, and other debris on the sidewalk. I was just about in tears. I knew it would not help to cry, it would only make things worse. So, I just kept walking.

After I made it about 3/4 miles, I saw a man pulling into his driveway and asked if I could use his phone. I tried calling my husband, but it went straight to his voicemail. I left him a message to let him know where I was and that I was on foot if I did not make it home, to come find me. The gentleman who loaned me his phone told me that the phone system was not working very well. I thanked him and kept walking. I was even closer to tears at this point. I just bit back the tears and kept going.

It reminded me of something from one of those end of the world movies. I was freezing and I couldn't get home, and the worst part was I was on my own. I had no way of knowing if my husband would even get my message. So I did not know if anyone knew where I was or if help was coming. I just had to keep trying. I was basically on the main street through our town. The roads were empty. All the businesses were closed. There was nowhere to even get in out of the weather for a moment. It was a little scary and a lot cold.

After I had walked about another 1/2 mile, I passed a gentleman closing up his business and asked him to borrow his phone. He told me that the phone system was down, but he would be glad to give me a ride. Thank goodness! He had a 4-wheel drive and was able to take me the last few miles to my house. Bless him for being a good person. I was so cold that my fingers had started burning and hurting. I bet I thanked him over a hundred times on the way home. We took a short cut home and avoided a traffic jam on the 4-lane. We saw school buses that had slid in the ditch with kids still on the buses. There were wrecked cars everywhere. It was terrible. I was just so thankful to get home. I don't think I have been happier in my life to see my house. It had been over 4 hours since I left work.

As soon as I hit the door, I took off all of my wet clothes and wrapped up in my big fluffy house coat, grabbed my phone and called my husband. It didn't go through, so I called Mom to check on her and see if she had any word about my girls. Thankfully, my youngest was at home with my granddaughter. The oldest one was stuck in the next town over, but she was staying in a motel. She was safe and warm. Phew! That was a load off of me. Mom said my Dad and uncle were stuck in the big traffic jam on the 4-lane, but they were on their way home. I got off the phone and tried to call Robby again. This time, thankfully he answered. He was stuck in the big traffic jam too. I think he almost cried when he heard from me and knew that I was home safe and sound. He had received my voice mail and had been worried to death about me, but he was not able to get to me because of the traffic.

While I was waiting on him to make it the last 3-4 miles home, I started a big pot of chili with left over red beans. I felt better knowing that if we lost power, at least we would have a good hot meal. If need be, we could always heat it up on the grill outside. We would be warm because we had the propane heater installed and our bed was in the same room as the heater. I made sure my water jugs were full in case the water pipes froze. It took Robby another 2 hours to make it home. He would have been home sooner, but he kept stopping to help people who were having car trouble. I was proud of him for helping. I wouldn't have made it home if someone had not helped me.

It was a day from Hell. I didn't relax until Robby and all of my other family members made it home. I was not the only one with a horror story. Almost everyone in several counties had some version of the same story. They were stuck on the road and it would take them hours to get home.

Our bedroom moved to living room

Monday it was back out in the arctic cold to go back to work. It was so hard to believe that it was so cold here in Alabama. We looked like were Eskimos getting ready to go ice fishing, just bundling up to go to work. The cold was just bitter and harsh, but we braved it and headed out to put in our hours at work.

After work, I treated myself to a little pampering and went to have my hair done. My oldest daughter, Laura is a beautician. She gave me a cut and style and then we went out to dinner at a local Italian restaurant (my treat of course since she did my hair that was only fair). Time with family is always important. We get it any way we can, wherever we can.

When Robby & I got home that evening we started trying to move the living room furniture out to make room for the bed in there. The weather man on TV was telling us that the cold was only going to get worse as the week went on. I was so tired of freezing every night and running electric heaters wide open just to try to stay warm. I was also so scared that if we lost power we would really freeze in the bedroom with just an electric heater.

After about an hour of struggling with the sofa and loveseat, we called in reinforcements. I made a phone call to my nephew Cameron. He is 21 years old and has more muscle than me. Bless his heart, he came right over and not only helped to move out the love seat and sofa, he also helped Robby move the bed into the living room.

I was so grateful. I was exhausted after a very busy weekend. I just couldn't muster up enough strength. We gave him a few dollars for braving the cold to come to our aid. He was was proud to have a little extra spending money. It was well worth it to have him do some of the heavy lifting.

After he left, I made up the bed and crashed almost immediately. I was past the exhaustion point. Rest was the highest priority for me at that point.

Some projects accomplished!

On Sunday of last week, 1/26/2014. we were finally able to get some of those projects finished. Early that morning, my husband went to Tractor Supply and was able to get the heat lamp (for our side porch -my washer & dryer are out there and it is a favorite sleeping spot for our pit bull). The plan was to keep the pipes and the dog from freezing.

Robby (my hubby) also was able to get the items to fix the toilet, the sink in the kitchen, and pick up the other items we needed to get our propane heater installed. While he was gone, it was my job to get everything ready to make his repairs easier.

My first task was to clean out from underneath the kitchen sink. I removed all of the cleaning supplies and other items that seem to find their way underneath there. I scrubbed the area and had it empty and ready for him when he got back. Before I put everything back in its place under there, I found a plastic crate and placed everything in it. It now serves as a drawer to slide out to access those cleaning supplies. It looks so much nicer, plus I don't have to climb all the way under the sink if I am looking for a certain cleaner. I was proud of myself for coming up with this awesome idea. I will post a couple of pics a little later so that you can see how easy it is to get to things now.

I then started in the living room, moving furniture around and making sure everything was clean and ready to install that heater. I was past ready for it to be in there. I washed the walls down, and swept and mopped and got everything ready.

While I was busy doing all of these things, I also put a big pot of dried red beans on to cook. I just let them boil and do their thing. I just popped through to make sure they had plenty of water every so often. I wasn't sure if they would turn into chili, red beans and rice, or maybe just beans and cornbread. It really didn't matter at least we would have something warm to eat for dinner that night and left overs for the next couple of nights and I wouldn't have to slave over the stove to get that done.

I stayed busy all day, using expanding foam insulation in every crack and crevice I could find. I used up a whole roll of 3mm plastic sheeting putting plastic over windows, doorways, around the side porch and everywhere I could think of to block some of that cold, bitter wind. My husband said he was scared to stand still for too long, he was afraid I would wrap him plastic and seal his mouth shut with that foam insulation! I was an insulating madwoman! For some reason I felt a very strong urgency to get it done as quick as possible.

That afternoon, after my husband completed all of the small repairs, my Dad came over and helped him install the propane heater in the living room. It was so nice to feel good warm air coming out of it. I was proud! We were able to save some money too by re-using our old copper pipe and some of the fittings from the old place to install it. That was awesome to be able to take some of the things back to the store and get our money back.

Mom came over a little bit later with my granddaughter and we all ate dinner together while enjoying the warm heater. It did wind up being beans & cornbread, with a few sides and I even made a lemon cake for dessert. We were so tired by the end of the day that we were not able to get the bed moved in there, but like Scarlett O'hara once said "I will think about that tomorrow. Tomorrow is another day."

Nothing ever goes as planned....

I must apologize for taking so long to get back to this blog. For the past two weeks it has been absolutely crazy around the house. I will try to catch you up. Buckle up it is going to be a bumpy ride.
First, my husband was sick with a cold and a sinus infection. Then, just because he loves me so much and wanted to share, he gave it to me. I do believe it made me feel worse than I did when I had the flu. It took me out of the game for over a week. All I did was sleep. When I did wake up it was just to take more meds, get something to drink and then back to bed. I had to make a trip to the doctor to get antibiotics to get over it. It was yucky!
I am not sure what the weather has been like where you are, but here in Gadsden, Alabama, it has been manic. It will be nice and fairly warm one day, and then it will go down to single digits and water pipes all over town will bust. Some businesses will be closed, schools will open late. It is really bad on those warm days when the pipes defrost and flood yards, or even worse when it busts inside and floods the rooms inside. My house has suffered with this problem too.
Twice in the past two weeks we have had water pipes freeze and bust. I have murdered three electric heaters so far this winter just trying to keep warm. So, it has thrown me behind on everything from cleaning to cooking to staying warm.
We have had to go Mom's to get showers and do laundry, just so we could have enough clean clothes to get us through the weekend while we tried to conquer these repairs. This weather has thrown a monkey wrench into everything.
When I heard the weather man predicting the coldest weather this upcoming week in the history of Alabama, I made the executive decision to do something about our situation. I was tired of not having water, of freezing, and dealing with a dirty house. Do we need to even discuss the fact that my power bill tripled from running electric heaters?
I planned to install propane heaters in the house and use this to heat with. Originally the plan was to install two propane burning heaters in the house. One in the kitchen and one in the living room. We had to get the water pipes fixed and do some weather proofing. Plus, I wanted to put the bedroom into what is now the living room to try to cut down on the square footage we were trying to heat.
Saturday morning we planned to go to storage, get our propane heaters out, the 2 -100 pound tanks, mounting brackets, etc, and go fill up the tanks at a local gas dealer . Go by Lowe's and get our copper pipe, fittings, and supplies and have heat by the evening. In the meantime, hopefully our pipes would defrost and we could take care of the water repairs after we got the heaters installed.
Wouldn't you know it, nothing ever works as planned. We head over to Mom's for a shower before we get started & to get my Dad to help us with the installation of the heaters. For those of you that can afford it, go ahead and call a plumber for the water pipes and the gas company to run lines. In my case, we cannot afford that so we call someone older and wiser than we are on the subject. Especially, when it comes to things that can be very dangerous (such as propane or electrical problems).
Dad & I are getting ready to leave to go do the shopping, while my husband grabbed the gas tanks to go have them filled. We decided to divide and conquer to get everything knocked out quicker.
Before Dad & I could leave, I got a call from work and had to drop everything I was working on to run deal with a problem there. Thankfully, it did not take but about an hour and soon I was back on track to getting things done, back to the house to get Dad and on to Lowe's. I spent over $120.00 buying things to get the heater installed and weatherproofing materials.
Of course, they didn't have a lot of things we needed. They were sold out because it seemed that everyone in town had the same idea that I had. On our way to the car to leave, we were planning our next stop to pick up the remaining items we needed when his phone rang. It was Mom, they had a leak at their house and it was flooding the yard. So I had to rush him back home so he could try to repair his water problems. He was hoping it would be a quick fix, but of course it wasn't. It took him until dark to get it fixed. This put installing my heaters on the back burner. My uncle was going to help my Dad work on his busted water pipes. So, I was free to move on to the next challenge.
In the meantime, my husband had been to have the tanks filled only to discover that our tanks were out dated and would have to be sent off for 4 - 6 weeks to be retrofitted. This was going to cost us an additional $40.00 per tank. We had to have heat, and buying a new tank was not in the budget, but he went to the bank, did a little juggling and managed to get a small personal loan just in time to get to the only store in town that was open that sold the tanks and get it back to the gas company 10 minutes before they closed.
My husband and I decided to meet up and go out together to see if we could go to the other stores to find the remaining items we needed to get the heater installed and try to find the things we needed to fix our water pipes. After hitting two more home improvement stores to try to find all we needed, we finally were able to go back home. He tracked down the leak and started to work on it. I started inside the house trying to clean up and straighten up so that they would have plenty of room to install the heaters the next morning. By this time, it was dark and I knew that getting heaters intalled was not going to be feasible. It would have to wait until the next day.
It wasn't long after we got home until Robby (my hubby) was able to get the water leak fixed. We were happy! We had water again! YAY! Then, it wasn't long until we discovered that the toilet was running nonstop and every time we turned the water on in the kitchen the spray nozzle spritzed water all over the counter and whoever happened to be in front of the sink. Almost every occassion it was me. Oh goodie! More repairs demanding attention and requiring money we had not budgeted for. Stress and frustration mounted by the second. Robby calmed me down a little by reminding me that he had borrowed a little from the bank, and still had some left so we would be ok. These problems would just have to wait (like the installation of the heaters) until Sunday. I gave up. I went to bed and prayed that Sunday would be a better day.

Make Your Own Instant Oatmeal and Save Money!

How would you like a nice, filling breakfast for about $0.10? It is so easy!
Make your own instant oatmeal!

Use a cannister of quick oats. Measure out 1/4 cup of oats into snack size bags. Grab a pack in the morning and treat it the same way you would instant oatmeal. Add water to a bowl and pour in the quick oats. Pop it in the microwave for about 2 minutes and Voila! Your breakfast will be ready before you have had time to get dressed in the morning.
My cannister of quick oats yielded 22 bags and cost me about $2.00 including the bags. This equaled out to around $0.09 per bag

A box of instant oatmeal costs around $2.00 and has 10 pouches inside, which equals around $0.20 per pouch for the exact amount in my DIY bags.

I was very proud of myself a couple of weeks ago. I thought I was saving quite a bit of money (and even bragged in a blog about it) by having my instant oatmeal for breakfast. I thought I was doing awesome by cutting my breakfast budget down below $0.25 until, my daughter showed me this trick.
I eat oatmeal 4-5 times a week for breakfast. It's nutritious, low in calories and low in cost.
This trick of my daughter's is going to save me quite a bit over time. I just had to pass along this helpful hint.

Laundry Tip: Make Liquid Fabric Softener Last Longer

Love the way liquid fabric softener leaves your clothes smelling? Hate the price and having to buy it every time you turn around? Have you tried skipping buying it only to have to deal with all of that static electricity? Well... that is no fun either.

I have just the solution for you! This simple tip will make any liquid fabric softener last at least 4 times longer and your clothes will still have that same wonderful smell and no static electricity.

Buy yourself a couple of packs of sponges. I found mine at Dollar General for $2.00 each. While I was at it, I went ahead and bought a new bottle of liquid fabric softener for $3.00. (I don't typically use fabric softener because the powdered laundry soap I make has Purex Crystals in it, eliminating this need for me. But, it is nice to have on hand for if/when I decide to use it.)

I cut my sponges in half length-wise and then in half across the middle, getting four small sponges out of each sponge I started with. This gave me a total of 52 small sponges.

I put all of the little sponges into a container I had on hand. I recycled an old, plastic snack tub. You can use a plastic coffee can, or any other container you would like. Plastic or glass is best.

Then, I simply poured the liquid fabric softener over the sponges until the liquid fabric softener was about 2 inches from the top. I was only able to pour about 3/4 of my new bottle of liquid fabric softener into my container. This gives me more to refill my container as I use it up.

 Next, you will need to label your container. I always put the name of what is in the container and the date on mine so I can see just how long it lasts. 

Directions for use:
When you start a load of laundry, use one small sponge per load. Squeeze out excess liquid and place in your washing machine with your dirty laundry. When the washing machine finishes, put laundry AND sponge into dryer. After dryer finishes, place small sponge back into the container to re-use.

Eventually, the liquid fabric softener will be used, just refill container with fabric softener remaining in original bottle. You will be so surprised at how much longer this will make one bottle of fabric softener last!

My bottle stated that it was a 40 load bottle (which would last me about a month if I followed the instructions on the bottle). I only used 3/4 of the bottle filling my container. I had 52 sponges to start off. They will be recycled over and over again. I am predicting this one 40 load bottle will last me around 6 months, if I wash on average one - two loads of clothes per day.

Easy Way to Keep Your Shower Clean

If you are looking for a super easy way to keep your shower clean all you need is these three things.

Take the cardboard off of your scrub brush. I bought mine new at Dollar General for $2.00. This type opens at the bottom of the handle.

Open it and pour two tablespoons of dishwashing liquid in. Fill the remainder with vinegar.

This is what it will look like once you have finished filling it.

Now, hang it in your shower for easy access. After each shower, before you get out, use the scrubber to wipe down the walls and tub. Use your shower to rinse the scrubber and your shower. Now, your shower will be clean the next time you use it. So simple! So easy! You will never have to scrub and break your back cleaning your tub and shower again! 

How to Clean Your Stove Top For Less Than $1.00

I have one of the oldest (& dirtiest) stoves known to mankind. It is so disgusting that I have been threatening to trade it in on a new one! (I just can't afford it yet!) I have to make do with it. I am just tired of it looking like I pulled it out of the county dump. I have tried all sorts of cleansers and nothing really works. Oh, it might take off a little, but nothing like I want it to. I have even tried Easy Off oven cleaner with no success. I thought after my success with the oven, I would try to tackle this.

EWWW!!!
Believe it or not, I actually washed over it with hot, soapy water just before I took this picture. I am so embarrased but before I show you the after photo, I wanted you to see what it looked like before.

The first thing I tried was a paste made with baking soda and peroxide.

I just poured the box of baking soda in a bowl and slowly added hydrogen peroxide until it made a paste. Then I coated the stove top with it and left it alone for about 30 minutes. After I wiped all of the baking soda paste off, I rinsed the stove top with hot water. These were my results.

It definitely looked better. You can tell it worked. My stove top was just so bad, that it would not get it all. If your's is not as bad as mine was, this is probably all you need to get yours sparkling clean.

Because my stove was so stained and had at least 100 years (I may be slightly exaggerating, but it certainly felt like it as I was cleaning it) of grease built up on it, I had to keep trying.

I remembered the mixture I used to clean my oven, and thought about giving it a shot.

I brought a pot of water almost to a boil on the stove. I did this for two reasons. First to heat up the stove top, and second to get my water as hot as I could stand it.

I poured the hot water into a cleaning bucket and added two tablespoons of dishwashing liquid.

Pulled out my rubber gloves,

And, added 1 1/2 cups of lemon scented ammonia to the mix.

I used an old rag to wash off the stove top. There was a tiny bit of steam because of the hot water and hot stove top. I was able to stand it without difficulty. I used a stainsless steel scrubber around the edges of the eyes to try to get the old, cooked on grease off. After about 30 minutes of wiping and scrubbing, I gave up.
This is the final result.

It still did not get off everything, but I have never seen it look this good. This is a stove I can live with while I am saving my pennies to buy a new one. (Patting myself on the back for a job well done!) Try it for yourself and see how good your stove top can look!

How to Clean Your Oven for Less Than $1.00

I have an old second oven. I have tried everything to get it clean. No matter how hard I tried it just would not come clean. Until, I tried this simple solution. Here is the before shot. (Hanging my head in shame)
 

I started the cleaning process the night before. I put the oven on the lowest temperature setting. For my old oven, it was 200 F. While my oven was heating, I put a pot of water on the stove top to heat up. Make sure your pot does not have a plastic handle. You will be putting this in the oven.

As the water was coming to a boil, I poured lemon scented Ammonia into another oven safe pot (around 1 1/2 cups).

 The entire bottle of Ammonia was $1.99. I used only about 1/3 of the bottle.

When the water came to a roaring boil, I turned off the oven. Then, I placed the pan of boiling water on the bottom rack of my oven. I put the ammonia on the top rack. Closed the oven door and went to bed.

The next morning, I opened the oven door, let it air out for about 15 minutes, put the pot of water back to heating on the stove.

I removed the ammonia and set it to the side while I removed the oven racks.

Next I added, 2 tablespoons of dishwashing liquid to the ammonia.

Once the water was hot again, I poured it into a wash pan with the ammonia and dishwashing liquid mixture.

Next, I found my trusty rubber gloves. Please make sure you wear gloves if you try this. Ammonia can be harmful to your skin.

Now, it was time to start the cleaning. I used an old cut up bath towel to wipe out the oven with. There were some really bad places that I had to use a stainless steel scrubbie on. Once I had the oven as clean as I thought it would get it, I used fresh hot water and a clean cloth to rinse it.

Here is what the oven looks like now.

BIG difference from the before shot! (Grinning from ear to ear! So proud of myself!

Sandwich Bag Organizational & Storage Tip

To store those sandwich or storage bags out of the way and still keep them handy, use push pins to pin them onto the inside of a cabinet door. In this case, they were pinned to the inside of a pantry in a tiny space between the door frame and shelves. This idea will free up cabinet space for other items. Absolutely love this idea and it works great!

DIY Citrus Rosemary All Purpose Cleaner

Do you need a great all purpose cleaner to use around your house? I have an all natural cleaner for you. It only has 3 ingredients so it is simple and easy to make. You probably have all of the ingredients on hand, so why not give it a try?

Start off with oranges. I still had plenty on hand from the holidays. Instead of throwing those peels away, I had the family save them. I put those in a recycled plastic mayonnaise jar.

Orange peelings contain citrus essential oil which is a natural solvent. It will cut through grease and grime and is great to clean those really tough jobs, like the stove top.

I poured vinegar over the peels and this is what it looked like.

Vinegar is a natural bi-product of fruit, vegetables and grains. It kills bacteria, mold, and germ causing viruses.

I added a few sprigs of dried rosemary.

Rosemary is a natural disinfectant and a natural air freshener. As a bonus, the aroma is known to have properties that stimulates brain function that will aid in mental clarity and increased memory. It is also a stress reliever and promotes relaxation.

When the rosemary was added to the orange peel/vinegar mixture it looked like this.

The Citrus Rosemary Cleaner starter is now complete. All it needs is a label with date and time to wait.

Place the jar in some place out of the way. Let it steep for about 30 days. Shake the jar every few days to stir contents. Then, strain the liquid and pour into a spay bottle. Place rosemary and peelings back in the jar. Fill with vinegar to start your next batch of cleaner.

This cleaner is non-toxic, all natural, biodegradable, and environmentally friendly.

Vertical Shower Organization Plus a Bonus Storage Solution

Do you have a lot of shampoo, conditioner, body wash etc., in your shower? If you are like me, I am forever knocking something over (hoping it doesn't spill when it crushes my toes). I have found out the hard way that yelling and saying things I shouldn't to those bottles does absolutely no good.

I have to give my Mom a 'that-a-girl'. She came up with this genius solution to the problem.

She tacked up a shoe organizer in the back of her shower. It cleared the edge of the tub of body washes and hair products. All of the bottles fit in it nicely and nothing can tip over and spill or fall and crush tender toes. She even has a place to store other things you might need in there as well. You are able to see each item through the mesh. This was a great idea, Mom!

When she measured it to see if it would fit, she discovered that it was too long. She cut off a couple of rows and turned the excess into a mail organizer.

This trick solved another organizational problem she had of sorting each person's mail without having stacks of mail all over the table. She attached it to the wall in the hallway across from the bathroom so each person that has mail is sure to see it. She used push pins to secure it to the wall.

This would be a great office organizer too!

Way to go Mom! Twice the organization out of one item!

DIY Laundry Pods

Do you go to a laundromat  to do your laundry and hate carrying big bottles of soap and fabric softener? Or maybe you are going to be traveling and need to do laundry while you are away. I have a solution for you. Make these laundry pods and make your life a bit easier. These are simple to make and easy to carry.

They only have five ingredients and odds are you have most of it in your house now

Ingredients:
3 cups of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
1 cup of Fels Naptha Bar Soap - shredded
4 tablespoons of Epsom Salt
6 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide
1/2 cup of vinegar

Directions:

Add 1 cup of shredded Fels Naptha bar soap to a mixing bowl.

Then, add 3 cups of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda.

Next, add 4 tablespoons of Epsom Salt.

Then you will need to add 6 tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide. It will fizz and bubble. This is normal. Next, add 1/2 cup of vinegar and stir.

The mixture should have the texture of slightly wet sand.

Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to make scoops. Pull against side of bowl to remove excess from spoon. Place on a parchment covered tray or cookie sheet.

Allow pods to dry over night. Then, store in an airtight container. Will make about 40 laundry pods. Each pod costs only pennies to make and is safe in HE machines. No fabric softener is needed when you use these pods.

DIY Laundry Soap Powdered

Tired of paying high prices for name brand laundry soap? Not me. I have been making my own for years. This is my favorite DIY powdered laundry soap. It makes enough to last for months and costs less than $21.00 total. You have to try this one!

You will need this for your ingredients:
1)   4 pound box of Borax ($3.38)
1)   3 pound 7 ounce box of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda ($3.24)
1)   3 pound container of Oxi Clean ($2.73)
2)   14.1 ounce bars of Zote Soap ($0.97 each)
1)   4 pound box of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda ($2.24)
1)   55 ounce bottle of Crystals Fabric Softener ($8.96)
All ingredients were purchased at Walmart in the laundry aisle.
The cost for everything was $20.55 before tax.

Directions:
Grate the Zote Soap. I used a food processor.  You can grate it by hand, or slice it and put it in the microwave for about 30 seconds and crumble it. Do it anyway you want, I just found the food processor to be the quickest and easiest way. You want it to look like pink shredded cheese.
This is what it should look like after grating.

Next you will want to layer your ingredients. Think of making lasagna. Once you have used all your ingredients in the layering process, it will look like this.

Now it is time to mix all of the ingredients. You can do it the old fashioned way with a big spoon and stir until you feel like your arm will fall off.

Or you can do it the easy way by pouring it into a garbage bag and rolling it back and forth.

 

When you get it mixed well, fill your containers. I try to recycle my old ones by refilling them. I label the front with 'Laundry Soap' with directions on how to use.

I make a label with the ingredients for the back. This way, I know exactly how much and what types of ingredients are in it so I do not have to hunt for the recipe when I get ready to make more.

Now, how much to use per load? It only takes 2 tablespoons per load. I use the scoop that came in my oxi clean container. You can also use the lid from the Purex Crystals bottle. Fill to the middle line on the  bottle lid.

You will be surprised by how much this makes and by how little it takes per load. It should last 6 - 12 months depending on how big your family is and how much laundry is done each day in your home.

It is safe to use on HE machines.

To make it easier and more fun to make, get a laundry soap making buddy. In my case, I went to Mom's and we made 2 batches. This way she had one and I had one to take home. We spent the day together AND got something done! Yay us!

Christmas Clearance Sales 50% - 90% off

Now is the time to pick up those essentials you will need for the Christmas season next year. No one likes to miss out on a good deal. Now is the best time to buy decorations, ornaments, trees, wrapping paper, etc. for next Christmas.

Walmart has their Christmas merchandise marked 50% - 75% off. That sounds like a pretty good deal and you might want to pick up one of those big inflatables for the yard or a few artificial trees to decorate with. You may even find good deals on stockings or ornaments.

Target has their Holiday merchandise marked 75% - 90% off. I was able to score ornament hangers  $0.10 for a pack of 100 and wrapping paper for $0.25 a roll. The shelves are beginning to look thin and the merchandise has been picked over, but you can still find some good buys. Don't forget to check other areas of the store. I found clearance merchandise in toys, pharmacy, grocery and clothing.

Publix has a table full of those edible goodies from Christmas marked 50% - 75% off. In my store, it was near the registers.

No matter where you shop, take advantage of these awesome sales. You can save your self quite a bit of money just buying and storing wrapping paper now for next Christmas. Think ahead - spend a little now to save a LOT later!

Kitchen Tip - How to Easily Clean Cookware

Ever have one of those oops moments in the kitchen and burn your dinner? Or have a big pot cooking and your food sticks to the bottom?  What do you do after you scrub and scrub and it still refuses to come clean? Don't throw it away. I have a much easier solution.

Cover the bottom of your pot with water, plus a couple of inches. You will want about 3-4 inches of water in the pan. Put it back on the stove and heat the water to the near boiling point. Turn off the heat and add 2 - 3 effervescent denture cleanser tablets of your choice (Efferdent, Fixodent or store brand). Let it sit over night. The next morning pour out the water mixture. Your cookware will be as good as new and ready for it's turn in the dishwasher. It is so easy! You will never scrub burnt on food from cookware again!

A Cheap, Quick, & Healthy Breakfast Choice

Was your New Year's resolution to save money? or maybe it was to lose weight? I have a simple breakfast idea that is healthy, quick, easy, very inexpensive, and low in calories, and it will keep your tummy full until lunch.

It is instant oatmeal. Surprised?

One packet of plain original instant oatmeal has 100 calories and costs around $0.15 - $0.20. (depending on what brand you purchase, sales, coupons, etc). You can jazz it up with your favorite fresh fruit, spices, or just have it plain. (I add cinnamon, 1 packet of Splenda, and 1 tsp of butter.) Personalize it. Make it your own. On these cold, winter days, it really warms you from the inside out.

Instant oatmeal takes less than two minutes to heat in the microwave. That is less time than going to a fast food drive-thru and just think of all the money you will be saving! I keep a box in my office at work and while everyone else is eating a drive thru breakfast that costs around $5.00 and has around 500 calories (or more!), I enjoy my oatmeal that costs less than a quarter and has around 150 calories (after I add the butter & other good stuff).

If you ate instant oatmeal only two days a week for breakfast (instead of going to a fast food restaurant), you would save almost $40.00 a month and eliminate over 3,000 calories from your diet!

10 Ways to Save at Publix

10 Ways to Save at Publix
I have heard several people say that Publix is so expensive that they can't afford to shop there. I am here to tell you that is just simply not true. From my perspective, Publix is one of my favorite stores to shop at because I always get awesome deals. With the deals and bargains I find, I can't afford NOT to shop there. I want to show you how to get the most out of your Publix shopping experience.
This is how to rack up those savings at Publix!
1) Weekly Ad - At least 30 BOGOs every week - Check out their weekly ad. Their weekly ad can be found online at www.publix.com, in the mail, and in the store. You can find all of their BOGOs, and deals right there. This gives you a starting point to start matching coupons with deals.
Example: General Mills Chex Mix $2.55 Bogo
Buy 2
= $2.55 for both (Savings of $2.55)
2) Coupon Savings Helper - If you don't have the time or energy, to match your coupons to the weekly ad, Publix will do it for you. Publix makes it easy to save by matching their sales with manufacturer coupons. Check out this awesome tool at http://www.publix.com/coupon/CouponHelper.do
3) Manufacturer Coupons - By all means, bring those shopping with you, whether you match the coupons yourself, have Publix do it, or use one of the multitude of deals sites (www.truecouponing.com , www.thekrazycouponlady, www.couponmom.com, www.coupon-wizards.com, etc) out there. These are found in the Sunday paper, magazines, inside or on products, online (www.coupons.com, www.redplum.com, www.smartsource.com, www.couponnetwork.com,www.enlinks.com, etc) & many other places. You can even buy them online individually or by the insert. Publix will double coupons up to $0.50 in value in every state except Florida. This doubles your savings! Use those coupons with the sale items!

Example: General Mills Chex Mix $2.55 Bogo
Buy 2
Use (2) $0.50/1 manufacurer coupon
Publix doubles itit, so it becomes $1.00 ea
= $0.55 for both bags (Savings of $4.55)

4) Publix Coupons - These can be found just about anywhere you find manufacturers coupons. You can also find these at www.publix.com. For the most savings, stack your Publix Coupons with your manufactuer coupons. Publix allows one of each to be used with each product. This is called stacking and is one of the best ways to get the most out of coupons.

Example: Alka Seltzer Plus $4.99
Use $2.00/1 Manufacturer coupon
And
Use $2.00/1 Publix coupon
= $0.99 (Savings of $4.00)
5) Flyers - Publix puts out several flyers full of coupons every two weeks. You can find these in the store. I always get mine from the service desk. If your store does not keep them at the service desk, they should be able to tell you where you can find them in your store. Match these coupons with sale items to get BIG savings.
6) Email - Best Things Happen At Home - You can register at www.publix.com to have an email sent to you every week that is full of great coupons. Just register and you will begin receiving your coupons in your inbox the following week.
7) Competitors Coupons - Publix accepts competitors coupons. They do not double them like the manufacturer coupons. You can simply call your local store to ask them which stores coupons they will accept or check out this site that has them listed for you http://truecouponing.com/publix-stores-competitor-list/
8) Digital Coupons - If you dislike fooling with paper coupons or are just looking for extra savings wherever you can find them. Check out Publix Digital Coupons. You can register for these coupons at https://publix.couponselectionpage.com/offers/all
The coupons will be electronically linked to the phone number or 10 digit code that you enter. After signing up, you can choose which coupons you would like to have. To redeem these, simply type in the 10 digit code or phone number during the check out process and the coupons that you selected that match the items you purchased will deduct automatically.
9) Penny Item day - Once a week on the day that your Publix store's sale starts they will have a certain item for a penny. To find out more information about this Penny item day, check at your store's Customer Service desk or give them a call,
10) Publix Brand Products - price compare Publix brand products to national brand products to see how you savings can add up. Publix also puts out a flyer for savings on these items frequently.

DIY Project - Clorox Wipes - reusable

Love Clorox wipes! Hate paying the high price for them and hate the waste. I decided to make my own natural, cheaper version that actually cleans so much better. The wipes can be washed and used over and over again. The best part is I used items I already had on hand to make them.

I used an old towel that was destined for the 'rag basket' It had definitely seen better days, but it was perfect for this. You can use an old t-shirt, old washcloths, or any type of cotton material that you are comfortable with.


I cut it up into squares about the same size as Clorox wipes cloths.

I was able to get over 30 square cloths out of this one towel.

These are the ingredients I used to make my version of Clorox wipes.

The Domino's Sugar container is an empty container I am recycling to put my finished product in. I did not want to use a 'baby wipes' container because we have a toddler ( my granddaughter) running around this house getting into stuff. Plus, I did not want to take the chance on getting wipes confused. I did not use a glass container because of my granddaughter too. You feel free to use any type of container that makes you happy.

Recipe:
1 cup of hot water
1/2 cup of vinegar
2 tablespoons of dishwashing liquid (I used Dawn because it was what I had on hand)
10 drops of peppermint essential oil

Mix all ingredients in measuring cup. Place cloths in container and pour liquid mixture over cloths.

Put lid on and shake to saturate all cloths. In this instance I made a double batch of the cleaning mixture so all of my cloths would be saturated.
Don't forget to label your container. I used pieces of old poster board to make mine. I covered the labels with packing tape to keep the labels from getting damaged. I also put the recipe on the back. This way I don't have to look it up again when I get ready to make my next batch.

 

  You can fancy your container up a bit if you are into that kind of thing.

 

The most important part to me is - how well does it do the job?

I had to put it to the test. I went to the dirtiest room in the house - the bathroom and did some cleaning.  I put 'real store bought' Clorox wipes up against my DIY Clorox Wipes. Here are the results. You be the judge. I can tell you my version was thicker and cleaned easier than the name brand one.

 

Before

 

After

 

 

 

Before

 

After

 

Close up view of ring stain - top portion is my DIY cleaner and bottom portion of the picture is the store bought name brand.

 

 

 

Floors were cleaned with only my DIY Clorox wipes. These are the before and after shots. I only used 2 cloths on the entire floor.

 

 

Before

 

After

 

 

Worst part of the floor - Behind the toilet - Before cleaning with DIY Clorox Wipes

 

After cleaning with DIY Clorox wipes.

 

 

These little wipes certainly cleaned a lot better than I thought they would. The name brand store bought ones did not stand a chance up against the ones I made. If you don't believe me, try your own test and experience the results first hand.