I'm not a good housekeeper. I'd think that would be obvious from the blog title, but if not, there you go. I've tried FlyLady, which I found kind of love bomb-y, and various, 'One Month To Organized!'-type ebooks, and cleaning lists, and I typically end up overwhelmed, and playing The Sims instead of being useful after my son's gone to bed. So, at one point I just stopped, looked around, and decided what areas of housework make the place most Hoarders-like when neglected, and decided to worry about them, and nothing else. Oddly enough, it seems to be working.
My nightly routine is:
Laundry - Put dirty stuff in the machine, or a basket, if you'd rather, and run the machine when it's full. I wash everything together on cold, so no color-bleeding, and let the husband wash his own shirts and undies. Run the machine if it's full, dry it if it's done, fold and put away clothes (or leave a basket of folded clothes outside a sleeping kid's room). When we were still using cloth diapers, I'd put them on the drying rack outside at night, so they could get some sun, and bring them in the next night, since I'm not around during the day.
Trash - Pick up whatever half eaten muffins, bits of frozen vegetable bags, and junk mail might be lying around, and toss them. Take the trash out if it's the right night, take the bin back from the curb if it's just been picked up.
Dishes - Put them in the dishwasher and run when full, or wash by hand. Empty the dishwasher or rack.
If you have the energy, wipe down the counters, clean the toilet, or do whatever else needs doing. I find that when I only commit to bare-minimum cleaning I'm more likely to keep going on other tasks, so I try not to put too much on my list, or the little computer people start calling to me again.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
Banana Muffins a la Edna Staebler
I'm sure everyone's familiar with the concept of food porn, but imagine, for a minute, a book full of useful, practical, adaptable recipes, rather than fanciful pictures of cupcakes and things with sauce dribbled over them. More like a food Sunday Night Sex Show, which isn't a phrase I can see catching on soon. Maybe it's not pretty, but it's helpful, and you can use the information at home tonight.
I'm not sure she'd appreciate the comparison, but Edna Staebler wrote that sort of cookbook. Initially she was a journalist, and then she ended up collecting recipes, wrote a couple books, and lived to 100 on good Mennonite cooking. The Schmecks books have been reprinted, and are available on Amazon, but there were also a series of small, themed books you might still be able to find, though probably not in the US. Just as a sample, here's her recipe for Very Ripe Banana Muffins, with my edits. Make a batch in mini muffin tins, and toddlers will swarm like seagulls.
1 cup of ripe, mashed bananas
1/3 cup oil or melted fat of your choice
1/4-1/2 cup sugar - I prefer the lesser amount, but she liked her muffins sweet
1 tsp salt, or a pinch
1 egg, well beaten, or a flax egg*
1 tsp vanilla
1.5 cups flour - all purpose, or white whole wheat. It's all good.
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 chopped nuts or chocolate chips, if you want 'em
Mash the bananas. Putting all the ripe bananas on your counter into a Kitchenaid with the paddle attachment is pretty satisfying. Add the oil, sugar, and salt, keep mixing, then add the egg and vanilla, and mix again. Mix the flour, soda and powder, adding nuts or chips if you want, and mix into the wet stuff, just blending, not beating.
Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes (depending on the muffin tin size). She suggest letting them cool only slightly and serving with tea. That's good advice.
* 1 TB of ground flax + 3 TB of water, zapped until gel-ish = 1 egg. Great for veganizing things, or if you're low on groceries.
I'm not sure she'd appreciate the comparison, but Edna Staebler wrote that sort of cookbook. Initially she was a journalist, and then she ended up collecting recipes, wrote a couple books, and lived to 100 on good Mennonite cooking. The Schmecks books have been reprinted, and are available on Amazon, but there were also a series of small, themed books you might still be able to find, though probably not in the US. Just as a sample, here's her recipe for Very Ripe Banana Muffins, with my edits. Make a batch in mini muffin tins, and toddlers will swarm like seagulls.
1 cup of ripe, mashed bananas
1/3 cup oil or melted fat of your choice
1/4-1/2 cup sugar - I prefer the lesser amount, but she liked her muffins sweet
1 tsp salt, or a pinch
1 egg, well beaten, or a flax egg*
1 tsp vanilla
1.5 cups flour - all purpose, or white whole wheat. It's all good.
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 chopped nuts or chocolate chips, if you want 'em
Mash the bananas. Putting all the ripe bananas on your counter into a Kitchenaid with the paddle attachment is pretty satisfying. Add the oil, sugar, and salt, keep mixing, then add the egg and vanilla, and mix again. Mix the flour, soda and powder, adding nuts or chips if you want, and mix into the wet stuff, just blending, not beating.
Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes (depending on the muffin tin size). She suggest letting them cool only slightly and serving with tea. That's good advice.
* 1 TB of ground flax + 3 TB of water, zapped until gel-ish = 1 egg. Great for veganizing things, or if you're low on groceries.
Time to Consolidate
Okay, time to start updating here. I've migrated from LJ to Dreamwidth so I can keep watching people with better vintage magazine collections than me post old ads, I'm making plans to start moving files to one computer from, like, five, and I need somewhere to write down anything I can think of that's vaguely clever before that idea totally evaporates. And commit both terrible run-on-sentence, and fragments! Blogger, yo! I don't claim to be especially brilliant, but I'll be trying to keep up with trying to survive parenting, being an adult, and general nerdery here.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Reading a coupon list
You can get lists of deals from various blogs, like http://www.savingcentswithsense.net/2011/04/bashas-coupon-match-ups-420-426/
These will list items the blogger feels are a good deal, with links to printable coupons (just go and print 'em), or info on the insert a coupon was in. For example:
Dole Can Fruit $1.25
-$0.50/2 Dole Pineapple or Tropical Fruit 4/10/2011 SS Insert (exp 6/30/2011)
=$0.75 ea after coupon
Means:
Dole fruit is on sale at $1.25 a can. The Smart Source insert that came out on April 10th had a coupon for 50 cents off TWO cans of Dole fruit. If you keep your inserts whole (just stack them in a drawer or folder), you can flip through to find the one with that date on the spine (or write it on the cover when you get the insert), you can flip through that one until you find the coupon, clip it out, and get your cheap fruit. Why would a 50 cent coupon give $1 off a purchase? Easy. Bashas' doubles coupons so they're worth up to a dollar in value. Fry's does the same. When they're tripling, it means what it says, though there's still a $1 limit, so a 25 cent coupon is now worth 75 cents, but a $1 coupon, or 70 cent coupon, is worth $1.
These will list items the blogger feels are a good deal, with links to printable coupons (just go and print 'em), or info on the insert a coupon was in. For example:
Dole Can Fruit $1.25
-$0.50/2 Dole Pineapple or Tropical Fruit 4/10/2011 SS Insert (exp 6/30/2011)
=$0.75 ea after coupon
Means:
Dole fruit is on sale at $1.25 a can. The Smart Source insert that came out on April 10th had a coupon for 50 cents off TWO cans of Dole fruit. If you keep your inserts whole (just stack them in a drawer or folder), you can flip through to find the one with that date on the spine (or write it on the cover when you get the insert), you can flip through that one until you find the coupon, clip it out, and get your cheap fruit. Why would a 50 cent coupon give $1 off a purchase? Easy. Bashas' doubles coupons so they're worth up to a dollar in value. Fry's does the same. When they're tripling, it means what it says, though there's still a $1 limit, so a 25 cent coupon is now worth 75 cents, but a $1 coupon, or 70 cent coupon, is worth $1.
Grocery Stores - Fresh & Easy
My favorite, by far. They have awesome own-brand stuff, reasonably priced organics, random British items (hello, Spotted Dick!), and a mailing list that will pop 20% off coupons into your inbox. Oh, and samples to keep your toddler happy. They don't accept manufacturer's coupons, which I can live with, and which makes shopping fairly stress-free.
Watch your email or check http://www.retailmenot.com/view/freshandeasy.com for printable coupons. You can use more than one per order if the total is enough before taxes (so, if you spend $65, you can two $6 off $30's). The markdowns can be good, too, and their normal prices are reasonable.
Watch your email or check http://www.retailmenot.com/view/freshandeasy.com for printable coupons. You can use more than one per order if the total is enough before taxes (so, if you spend $65, you can two $6 off $30's). The markdowns can be good, too, and their normal prices are reasonable.
The Drugstore Game
Walgreens, Rite Aid, and CVS all had programs that can allow you to get items cheap or free after a rebate, or coupon good for your next purchase.
CVS uses a membership card, like a grocery store's loyalty card, that you can scan at the kiosk near the door in most stores, and that will print out Extra Care Bucks (ECBs) on some items. ECBs can be used like cash on any item in the store, and which expire after a month. For example, maybe this week the deal is on Colgate Total, which costs $3 per tube, and gives you $3 back in ECBs. There's a limit of two per card. You can spent $6, buy two tubes, and have $6 in ECBs to use on whatever next week's deal is. Or, you can spend $3, get $3 back in ECBs, and then spend those ECBs on another tube, and have $3 to spend next week. If you can find a coupon (printable, or from an insert) for that toothpaste, you could, say, spend $2 after coupon, and get $3 back. If you get the Green Bag Tag (it's a leaf shaped card, I put mine on my key chain), and scan it every time you use a reusable bag, you'll get $1 in ECBs for every four visits.
Walgreens uses Register Rewards, which are similar, but the rules are more restrictive. You don't need to use a membership card, but the RRs expire after two weeks, and are treated as manufacturer's coupons. So, if you're making a purchase, and want to use a RR and a manufacturer's coupon, you need to have at least two items. If you buy an item that generates a RR, and use it to purchase a second item, you won't get a second RR.
Rite Aid uses . . . damned if I know. They don't have any around here.
The idea of the Drugstore game is to use your ECBs or RRs on items that generate more ECBs or RRs, rather than on general merchandise. So, buy your toothpaste this week, use the ECB or RR on some shaving cream next week, maybe there's nothing worth buying the next week, so you skip it, but then the next week, you buy some obscure brand of tampons because the thing's about to expire, and you don't want to waste it. Just keep going on that way, choosing the free or super-cheap item of the week. You can donate anything you don't like. Blogs like iheartcvs.com and iheartwags.com will give you lists of current and upcoming deals. Pretty easy, and you'll end up with a lot of toothpaste, even if you only frequent one store.
CVS uses a membership card, like a grocery store's loyalty card, that you can scan at the kiosk near the door in most stores, and that will print out Extra Care Bucks (ECBs) on some items. ECBs can be used like cash on any item in the store, and which expire after a month. For example, maybe this week the deal is on Colgate Total, which costs $3 per tube, and gives you $3 back in ECBs. There's a limit of two per card. You can spent $6, buy two tubes, and have $6 in ECBs to use on whatever next week's deal is. Or, you can spend $3, get $3 back in ECBs, and then spend those ECBs on another tube, and have $3 to spend next week. If you can find a coupon (printable, or from an insert) for that toothpaste, you could, say, spend $2 after coupon, and get $3 back. If you get the Green Bag Tag (it's a leaf shaped card, I put mine on my key chain), and scan it every time you use a reusable bag, you'll get $1 in ECBs for every four visits.
Walgreens uses Register Rewards, which are similar, but the rules are more restrictive. You don't need to use a membership card, but the RRs expire after two weeks, and are treated as manufacturer's coupons. So, if you're making a purchase, and want to use a RR and a manufacturer's coupon, you need to have at least two items. If you buy an item that generates a RR, and use it to purchase a second item, you won't get a second RR.
Rite Aid uses . . . damned if I know. They don't have any around here.
The idea of the Drugstore game is to use your ECBs or RRs on items that generate more ECBs or RRs, rather than on general merchandise. So, buy your toothpaste this week, use the ECB or RR on some shaving cream next week, maybe there's nothing worth buying the next week, so you skip it, but then the next week, you buy some obscure brand of tampons because the thing's about to expire, and you don't want to waste it. Just keep going on that way, choosing the free or super-cheap item of the week. You can donate anything you don't like. Blogs like iheartcvs.com and iheartwags.com will give you lists of current and upcoming deals. Pretty easy, and you'll end up with a lot of toothpaste, even if you only frequent one store.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Cheap List, Phoenix-Based
I wrote this up for a recently fired friend, and am putting it up here for anyone who might find it useful. Every time we lose someone else there it's like friggin' Watership Down.
Anyway . . .
Anyway . . .
Go get a GMail or Yahoo or similar account just for this stuff before you do anything.
http://moneysavingmom.com/ - lots of info on sales, drugstore fun, and general cheapness. This is where so much of my toothpaste comes from. Y
http://www.savingcentswithsense.net/ - similar, but Tucson based
http://www.5dollardinners.com/ - some good inspiration
http://weelicious.com/ - ditto, but with more agave nectar. That ingredient pisses me off, for some reason.
http://startsampling.com/ - sign up with a spam account, receive tampons and fibre supplements in the mail.
http://instoresnow.walmart.com/In-Stores-Now-free-samples.aspx - Same idea. Don't mine the Walmart-ness. This is being done by the manufacturers.
http://www.kraftfirsttaste.com/default.aspx - Okay, it's not health food, but if you check the offers stuff, you'll often get coupons for free products.
http://www.vocalpoint.com/ - More stuff in the mail. Kashi coupons should make anyone at least moderately happy.
http://www.mambosprouts.com/sign-up.php - coupons for natural stuff.
http://www.getpaidsurveys.com/lightspeed/ - see if the link here works. My favorite by far, since it rewards pretty well, and you can get Amazon cards with it.
Look into Swag Bucks if you get bored. Not as fast, and I installed it on IE, so Firefox stays nice and clean. Run searches a couple times a day, eventually get $5 from Amazon.
https://www.mypoints.com - get points for clicking links in emails, or shopping through certain sites. I probably have a referral link somewhere, but haven't done much with this recently.
http://www.alpinevalleybread.com/ - go to the store on Friday (before 2:30), take $10 and a giant Ikea bag, come back with a ton of cheap, good bread. A lot of the labels are covered over, so you may need to guess, but your chances of scratching off the label when you get home and finding that you paid 50 cents for organic bread are pretty high.
http://www.freshandeasy.com/ - sign up for their mailing list, get coupons for $5 off $25 or $10 off $50 from time to time (they're nice about letting you do two transactions to use two coupons), get cheap organic stuff and markdowns. And get the banana gelato!
http://www.savingcentswithsense.net/ - similar, but Tucson based
http://www.5dollardinners.com/ - some good inspiration
http://weelicious.com/ - ditto, but with more agave nectar. That ingredient pisses me off, for some reason.
http://startsampling.com/ - sign up with a spam account, receive tampons and fibre supplements in the mail.
http://instoresnow.walmart.com/In-Stores-Now-free-samples.aspx - Same idea. Don't mine the Walmart-ness. This is being done by the manufacturers.
http://www.kraftfirsttaste.com/default.aspx - Okay, it's not health food, but if you check the offers stuff, you'll often get coupons for free products.
http://www.vocalpoint.com/ - More stuff in the mail. Kashi coupons should make anyone at least moderately happy.
http://www.mambosprouts.com/sign-up.php - coupons for natural stuff.
http://www.getpaidsurveys.com/lightspeed/ - see if the link here works. My favorite by far, since it rewards pretty well, and you can get Amazon cards with it.
Look into Swag Bucks if you get bored. Not as fast, and I installed it on IE, so Firefox stays nice and clean. Run searches a couple times a day, eventually get $5 from Amazon.
https://www.mypoints.com - get points for clicking links in emails, or shopping through certain sites. I probably have a referral link somewhere, but haven't done much with this recently.
http://www.alpinevalleybread.com/ - go to the store on Friday (before 2:30), take $10 and a giant Ikea bag, come back with a ton of cheap, good bread. A lot of the labels are covered over, so you may need to guess, but your chances of scratching off the label when you get home and finding that you paid 50 cents for organic bread are pretty high.
http://www.freshandeasy.com/ - sign up for their mailing list, get coupons for $5 off $25 or $10 off $50 from time to time (they're nice about letting you do two transactions to use two coupons), get cheap organic stuff and markdowns. And get the banana gelato!
http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/ and http://www.thesimpledollar.com/ - forgot these two.
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