Book: The Amerucan frugal house wife

This is a FREE Kindle e-Book that lets you see into the frugal lives of families back when times where much harder.  If anyone knows how to save money it's the people that lived before the modern conveyances we spend so much money on today.  Many of the things in this book can still be used today.  Its full of recipes Guides to wasting less.  Wile we have more advanced ways of doing many of these things some are better off doing the old fashioned way.  

Frugal recipes: Dried fruit & veggie strips

These are a yummy healthy treat for kids.  The ones pictured above are made of strawberry.  I don't have a food dehydrate something I want one day but i'm fine with out it.   Just put 3 cups of your choice of fruits or veggies or a mix of into a blender and puree.  You can very easily mix in a small amount of oat meal as well for a whole grain addition.  Blend in 1 teaspoon lemon juice as a preservative and if you would like a tablespoon sugar as is in the above strips.  Line a pan with heave duty plastic wrap taping it so it stays over the edge.  poor your puree in and place in your oven as low as it goes between (150-170) cook for 7-8 hours until a nice dry but chewy texture. Store in an air tight container.

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Frugal Recipes: Homemade dumplings

Dumplings are a great way to stretch soup even farther.  I like to make a big batch of chicken soup serve with  noodles and crackers for dinner, with grilled cheese for lunch the next day, and the last night with dumplings. shhhhh hubby hates the veggies in the soup, he always leaves them in the bowl but, I chop up green beans really small and add along with herbs to my dumplings before I roll them out.  It's not much for veggies but it sneaks him some.  Here's is the basic dumpling recipe feel free to ad your favorite herbs that will go well with your choice of soup.

What you need:

1. 2 cups flour
2. 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3. 3/4 teaspoon salt
4. 1 tablespoon butter
5. 3/4 cup milk

Mix together.  Roll out onto a floured board and cut in to squares.  Drop each square into very hot soup one at a time.  Cover and cook for about 20 minutes over med heat or high in a crock pot.  Do not lift the lid during this time or you will have soggy dumplings.

Enjoy!  If you would like to share this recipe please link to this page.

The NON-Extreme Couponer: Example of Why I use coupons.

I know many people have a ton of excuses as to why they do not use coupons.  The truth is the benefits out weigh the work involved. It may come to a surprise to many of you (it sure dose to my in-laws) that lower enlisted military dose not make a lot of money.  It's the end of the pay period and my lovely husband got into the kids juice.  We have very little money left with out going into our savings.  What is a girl to do?   I for one refuse to give my very young kids the kool-aid my husband loves so much.  Tea has caffeine and we all know where that goes.  My solution a quick coupon trip to the commissary.  So here I am planning out coupons I will take with me for my nice walk to our local commissary.

Coupons in my bag:

1 free Pantene shampoo/conditioner - Max value 4.99- No longer available
1 free Fresh Express bag salad - Max value 4.00- No longer available
2 $1.50 off one Welch's Jam, jelly, or spread - Facebook offer - Grab on Wednesdays wile promotion and
       supplies last
2 $1 off 1 10pk. Minute Maid juice boxes - Coupons.com print off swagbucks for 10 swagbucks after you
   use it and another one here  so you can get up to 4
2 $ 1 off 1 Renuzit super odor neutralizer (Works on cones) - Coupons.com print off Swagbucks for 10
   swagbucks
2 $2 off 8th continent soy milk- Get off 8thcontinent.com
1 $1 off 2 yoplait Greek yogurt cups - No longer available

What came home with me?

Pantene 2 & 1 $3.77 - coupon = FREE
Fresh Express salad $2.17 - coupon = FREE
2 Greek yogurts $.69 each - coupon = 88 cents total
2 Welch's jelly $1.85 each - coupons = 70 cents total
1 Minute Maid Juice box $2.79 - coupon = $1.79
1 Capri Sun Roarin Waters $1.69 - no coupon

Surcharge $0.78


Total coupons used:       10.44                 Total spent:          5.84      % coupon savings:   67

In addition I will be sending my receipt to Welch's and getting a free sandwich keeper box.  Here i the form for that.  Welch's sandwich keeper.

This shopping trip provided me with:
For this week:
Fruit juice
Veggies
Dairy
Flavored water for hubby


For my stock pile:

2 Jellys
1 shampoo/conditioner

And a bonus sandwich keeper

Coupons can be really good even for the NON-Extreme couponer

Frugal Recipes: Supper Spice cake

Here's one of my favorite treats for fall.

This is my Supper Spice Cake. Great for serving with ice cream, apple sauce, apple cider, or coffee.  The ingreadiance for this cake ca be found in most homes and are very cheap.

You will need:

Cake:

1. 1/2 cup butter or shortening
2. 1 egg
3. 1 cup sugar
4. 1 cup milk
5. 1 teaspoon baking powder
6. 2 cups flour
7. 1 table spoon ground cinnamon
8. 1 teaspoon ground cloves
9. 1/2 tea spoon ground ginger
10. 1/2 tea soon ground nutmeg

Glaze:

1. 1 half cup brown sugar
2. 1/4 cup milk

Pre-heat oven to 375.

Beat butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Add beaten egg mixing well.  Mix together flour, baking powder, and spices.  Add alternately with milk to the butter sugar and egg mix. Mix well and pour into your choice of pan.  I like to bake in a square pan and cut into large bars to serve with coffee.  Bake until a tooth pick comes out almost clean but not fully from the center.  Let cool.

After cake cools to a warm to touch temp.  Mix the brown sugar and milk.  Drizzle over the cake and serve for store covered in the fridge. Enjoy.

If you wish to share this recipe please link to this page.  Thank you!

Making Cloth Napkins/hankies

Have a yard or less of fabric that you cant find a use for?  Looking to make a gift for someone?  Here's an easy project that even the newest at sewing can make.  I decided to make mine when I realized that I was in need for some new cloths to cover my rising bread this fall/winter.  Yes I'm already thinking about winter.  I can not bake in the Kansas summer heat so I look forward to it.  Part of being frugal is starting early so you can spend less then everyone else.  My fabric choice is some extra quilting fabric I found on clearance.  I'm not crazy about this pattern but I really wanted the fall flower fabric that came with it for an apron. Waist not, want not. So I'll make something I need with it.

You will need:

• Fabric 1 yard can make 4. More if your looking for a Handkerchief.  You can wash your fabric or if you don't mind a little shrinkage and prefer to sew on fresh stiffer fabric go a head. 

• Thread that ether matches or contrasts.  I recommend matching if you wish to embroider later go ahead.

• Sewing needle or machine.  I'm the hand sewing type.  Something to keep busy wile you cuddle on the couch with hubby on a cold winter night.

• Scissors

1) Start by cutting to the size you want.  I evened the salvage edges and cut into 4 even peaces.  About 20.5 x 19 Mine will shrink some in the first wash as I prefer when not making clothes just to work with the fabric nice and fresh.  Starch would work well for making the fabric stiffer but these are made to be used and starch lessons the strength for fabric.  

 2) Fold the edges in 1/4 to 1/4 inch.  I refer 1/2 for a larger edge but, many chose 1/4 inch.  Smaller Handkerchiefs should be 1/4.

 3) Mark along the edges top and bottom

 4) Ad a line connecting the tops of the guide lines you just made.

 5)  Cut the resulting triangle off.

 6) Fold down folding the edge in half. a 1/2 inch edge will become 1/4 and a 1/4 a 1/8th inch.  Press edges to keep in place as you sew.

 7) Sew together. Start and end your thread under the edge and no knots will be visible.

 8) Sew all edges And repeat at all corners.

9) If you wish to embellish you can add embroidery and or ribbon/lace.

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Freebie Friday

No this is not a freebie site. But it is about frugal living and one way to save money is to get free stuff.  Friday is the best day of the week to do it.  Yes theirs freebies other days of the week but Friday has the most.  Here's a list of this weeks best freebies that are live on Friday August 26th 2011.

Swagbucks Mega Swagbucks day  Earn extra Swagbucks in the search today. (Use Swagbucks to get free stuff - referral link)

Folders is having a big unveiling of two new products today with a surprise RSVP before Noon EST Facebook offer

Free Activia Selects (Printable e-mailed coupon)

Free Oikos yogurt (printable e-mailed coupon)

Olay sample (by mail)

Pantene give away at 12 est (Facebook offer free coupon by mail full size)

Cloth Diapers: Why use cloth diapers?

Welcome to my cloth diaper series.  We decided to give cloth a try for the reason of reducing chemicals.   We fell in love with the economical benefits.  $200 bucks has diapered our baby from about two weeks of age to his now 11 months.  We intend to keep going until hes potty trained.  We found diapers that adjust to a fit as baby grows so we have not needed to buy new diapers as he grew.   We went away for the weekend this past weekend and used the throw away kind.  We did not like them.  Leaks, poo that escapes, flimsy, And our son could escape.  Hes a bit of a stripper baby but his diapers have snaps and he cant get out of them, yet.  Really for any family looking to be frugal with a baby should look into trying cloth.  their not all folding and pins anymore.  In fact some work just like the throw away diapers except you put them in a diaper pail then into the wash.

The average cloth diapered baby potty trains 6 months sooner.  :)  I'm looking forward to this one with DS. My DD was a late potty trainer.  I wish I had tried cloth with her.

We at Happy Frugal Life will be sharing tips reviews and valuable cloth diaper information in our cloth diaper series.  You may even here right from my hubby who is well a HUGE fan of cloth diapers. In fact a mom-to-be cant get past him with out herring him sing the praises of cloth diapering.  *giggle*

Dealing With Spiders

Spiders are the one thing I can not stand.  In the spring they start appearing droves.  Where we live many are poisonous. It's really scary when you find a brown recluse in your kids toy box.  Wile looking for a safe way to deal with them I found a tip about Lemon Pledge.  If you spray lemon Pledge on your window and door frames it will help keep them out.  Spiders taste with their legs and do not like the taste of the lemon oil in the Pledge.  Yes you could use plain lemon oil but lemon Pledge is easier to spray right onto the spiders that do get in.  During a recent battle with a hobo spider I discovered that if you spray them with Pledge not only do they run from you they also drop dead soon after.  It doesn't have to be name brand lemon Pledge Though it dose have the highest amount of lemon oil so it dose work better the dollar store brand dose work to.  Why am I sharing this first?  Lets just say their is a very lemony spider in my trash can right now.