Home-made Fabric Softener

I haven't tried this yet, but I've seen this same recipe online on several blogs. I am planning on trying it next week and I will post results here.


Here's a recipe:

3 cups hot water
1 1/2 cups vinegar
1 cup hair conditioner
essential oils (optional)

Price-Matching

I want to share with you my price-matching list of stores (along with Aldi,Kroger, and other regular stores -  you get their ads in the mail each Tuesday)

Rancho

Mc somthing

Bravo

Rio Grande

Old deals end on Tuesdays and new ones start on Wed. Sprouts' week goes from Wed to Wed, so on Wed they have double deals,thus the best time to shop is Wed.

To print these ads you need right click on each page and save the picture as jpeg,then select all and print. Since you have modern electronic devices, I would just open all these ads in your tabs and keep them open in case if the cashier asks you to show the price.

What I usually do is write it all out on my grocery list and as I hand over the item, I tell the cashier what price it is at. Attached is an example of one of my lists. 

Here's what I wrote to other people asking me about price-matching (people would see me in the store and ask for advice on this matter):

Have a list of price-matching/groceries ready. Attached is a sample of my list 

Choosing the right cashier is the KEY! I go for mid-age woman, young men and young girls. If you go to our Walmart, DO NOT go through a line if it's an older or mid-aged man or older ladies. Young men are the best. They are fast and polite.

Don't go during pick hours, when cashiers are tired and the store is very busy.

When you see in Kroger's ad that they have a special price if you purchase 10 items or more- Walmart doesn't care how many you get, so you can price-match without the minimum number of items requirement. The only limit I have faced so far is the maximum limit. The other week I price-matched ground beef to 50cents/lb and the limit was 5 lbs in the ad, so that's how much Walmart would let me buy, so I went through the line twice and got my 10 lbs.

Fresh meat - you price-match only fresh Walmart meat even if Rancho's ad says frozen chicken

Other's stores STORE BRAND is price-matched to Walmart's brand - Great Value.

How it's actually done:

I have a list (grocery/price-matching) and when I get to the check-out line I tell the cashier that I have items to price-match. Then I hand each item over to the cashier and tell her how much it is. I keep all the ads handy in case if the cashier asks to show an ad. Usually I am never asked to show the ads, so if your cashier is the one who asks to show every or every other item - don't get discouraged! Just choose not to go through that cashier's line ever again :) Choose your Walmart and choose your cashiers in a few shifts that you MIGHT be shopping during the week and go shopping then (for me once a week). So, yes, you will have to kind of memorize your favorite's cashier schedule :) I love going on Wed morning and my friend goes on Sat afternoon, for example.  Not all of the cashier ask for the ads, you need to find the ones who don't, so it doesn't take you long to check out. They actually shouldn't ask for them. 

You can print Walmart's price-matching policy and keep it with you:http://corporate.walmart.com/ad-match-guarantee

I arrange my items in categories and my grocery/ price-matching list looks like this:

I write store's name in each category and then write a list of price-matching items for that store.

It has worked so well for my family! Thanks to price-matching we were able to cut our grocery bill at least in half.

Inexpensive Meal Ideas

Do you every find yourself out of ideas what to cook for dinner? I surely do. All You magazine has a list of cheap dinner ideas and recipes. Check it out here.

Savings electricity when cooking pasta

I didn't make our dinner on time one day and I started preparing pasta. I brought it to boil and it probably was boiling for about 5 min when we had to leave. I had to choice, but turn off the stove, close the lead, and leave. We came back an hour later and pasta was ready! So, instead of boiling it and using the stove for 30 min, I only did it for about 5 min :) That was a nice discovery!

Nursing Covers

I was surprised that it took me only 30 min to make a nursing cover! I found some beautiful pattern at Walmart on sale, then bought all the rest of the supplies at Joan's. This simple and useful present was about $5! And I still had some bonning and two rings left to make another cover for myself.
Check out this blog for simple instruction on how to make a nursing cover.

Budgeting is easy

The golden rule for having a fatty savings account is to keep a budget. I started budgeting once I realized that all I earned would disappear within a month and there was nothing left. I started keeping track of my expenses, analyzed which ones were unnecessary ones, adjusted them, and there was some money left every month available for savings.

My first budget tools were a pen and a paper. Then I used an Excel file (if you are interested in having one, email me and I will send you a great Excel budgeting file with detailed and categorized expenses, balance sheet and income statement calculations). Now I use Quicken and I am really enjoying it. This program is simple and saves you a lot of time. If you are a college student, you can purchase Quicken from your university for a much better deal than buying it online.

Home-Made Laundry Soap

One of my friends sent out this email once with a home-made laundry soap. I've never made it myself, but it seems to be much cheaper than buying $15+ Tide! here is the recipe:

1 bar Fels-Naptha soap (in laundry isle) ( we got ours online)
1 cup borax
1 cup arm & hammer washing soda

Grate soap and add to 5 cups water in pot on stove.
Cook over medium heat until melted;
Add borax and washing soda.
Boil for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and add to 5 gallon bucket that is ½ full of hot water, stir and fill the bucket up to make 5 gallons;
Let the detergent sit for 24 to 36 hours, soap will gel.

I fill my laundry soap bottle half full and then add water to the top.
Shake before each use, top loading washers ¾ cup per load and front loading washers ¼ cup per load. Use a big pot too because it gets foamy and will boil over the top if your pot is not big enoughI found all three ingredients at Reams after looking at Macey's, Walmart and Albertsons.

The bar soap was $1. The borax was $4 and the washing soda was $3. You also will need a five gallon bucket. I am planning on refilling the laundry containers I already have since it is not practical to carry a five gallon bucket to the laundry.