Thrifty Tip Thursday

The end of summer is here. That means sales/clearances will be starting on perennials, trees, bulbs, and other garden goodies! Fall is the best time to plant trees and perennials...did you know that? I have already seen local sales starting at 50% off. Watch the stores in your area. Last year I got a burning bush and day lilies at 75% off.

Another way to save money on plants when you are looking for perennials is to get starts from someone you know. Perennials are the plants that grow back every year. In the fall and early spring you can get a start off the full size plant and re-plant it somewhere else. FREE plants! If we all shared what plants and flowers we had this way we wouldn't need to buy nearly so many.

Ask a neighbor or friend about getting a start from their perennials.

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday

You know all these little toys you have around the house....from Happy Meals, birthday bags, trinkets from wherever....I find them annoying sometimes. You never have a place for them and they serve no purpose.



Anyway...a few years ago a good friend shared with me a great use for these toys....the bathtub!

We have a large supply of bathtub toys. I even rotate them since we have so many little toy things.

Never buy expensive bathtub toys again, plus clear out some clutter!

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Don't throw away perfectly good organizing bags. Why spend extra money on organizing bags when half the stuff we buy comes in them?

This is a bag that my daughter's underwear was in when I bought it. It's perfect for her jewelry and other trinkets!

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Ever wonder if printing coupons is worth it? Ink can be expensive!

Utah Deal Diva has some great tips for us on keeping the costs down. Check out her post HERE.

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday

One thing I love about the internet is all the information that's available. There are so many creative and knowledgeable people out there sharing great tidbits and ideas.

Today I wanted to share a thrifty tip I found on Vanilla Joy's website. Her idea of using empty soap dish containers for toys and trinkets is a great idea! I have done this with other containers but not soap dish containers. Perfect for kids.

photo courtesy of Vanilla Joy

It reminds me of Real Simple magazine, and their column New Uses for Old Things. I love reading these ideas.

What do you repurpose?

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Being the middle of summer, we are loving our ice shaver I purchased at a garage sale for only $1. We use it quite a bit to make snow cones. YUM!

There are some yummy flavors of snow cone syrup at the store. Root beer, grape, cotton candy, lemon lime...you name it. We bought 4 containers of syrup from Walmart for $1.50 each a few weeks ago. Not super cheap but still better than taking my kids to the Snow Shack to pay for snow cones.

However, I ran across THIS POST from Skip to My Lou on how to make your own snow cone syrup. Genius! I love making things homemade but I am not one to experiment with recipes. Now that I know how to do it, we will be making our own for sure. See if this coupon can sweeten the deal:

Save $2 off any sugar when you buy (10) Kool-Aid Unsweetened Packets (7-31-09) SS-6/21

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday

I love to organize. I also love to keep lots of stuff.

It seemed I always had lots of papers, little things I wanted to keep but I didn't know where to put. Even papers my kids brought home from school or something they made in church. I just didn't have time to always put them in permanent homes. Does this sound familiar?

Here is how I conquer that problem! I found this idea from Creating Keepsakes a few years ago. Take these manila folders, label them for every month of the year and attach a ring.

I hang these on the side of my fridge on a hook. Now when I have those misc papers, little notes, pictures drawn in church or just things I want to keep but not sure what to do with....I put them in the monthly folder! I have done this for 2 years now and it really helps me keep things in order. It is one of my favorite organizing techniques!

I take this idea a step further. At the end of every month I write a monthly summary of what we did and what happened that I want to remember. It only takes a few minutes. This came in handy just a few months ago when I was completing a 2007 digital scrapbook of our family. All I had to do is go back to these folders, pull out our monthly summaries I made and I had all the journaling I needed. It brought back memories I never would have recalled if I hadn't had written that stuff down. I was so glad I did.

Thrifty Tip Thursday

Thrifty Tip Thursday: Popsicles

Popsicles are a big hit in the hot summer months. Our house is no exception!

However, I do try to keep the sugar intake down too....so I make homemade popsicles most of the time.

You know how you end up with overripe fruit and a little bit of yogurt left no one wants to eat? Put those in the blender with some ice, orange juice concentrate and whatever else you have, blend up nice and pour into popsicle molds. I have the vintage Tupperware Ice Tups. I love them. If you don't have popsicle molds you can use small paper cups with a popsicle stick.

photo courtesy of flickr

I carry it a bit further and add in carrots and spinach from my garden so the kiddos get more nutrition. When I use spinach I add in pineapple and honey to sweeten it and blueberries and strawberries so it doesn't look so green.

I love being able to say to my kids when they are asking for their 4th popsicle... "Sure, you can have another popsicle!"

Thrifty Tip Thursday: Popsicles