We have a duel fuel system for our hot-water heating system in our home. We use a combination of an oil boiler and an electric boiler to heat our home. The electric boiler is actually controlled by our power company. During peak times, they can shut it off. This causes our back-up system, the oil boiler, to kick in. By operating our heating system this way, we save about $150/month on our heating bill (compared to just running the oil boiler). We keep our home at a constant 68 degrees … [Read more...]
A year ago there were two
One year ago today, I had the ultrasound that showed I was having not one, but TWO babies. When you find out you're having twins, you feel a mix of emotions. You feel doubly blessed. You question why you bought a Ford Focus.One of the best pieces of advice came from a friend of mine, who suggested finding which businesses have programs for parents of multiples. I did some web research, and with a few phone calls and letters, snagged some great stuff for the babies.Here's a list of some of … [Read more...]
Kill-a-watt
Ever wonder how much electricity that old refrigerator is using? Well, at my local library you can check out a cool little device called a "Kill-a-Watt" to find out. You can also purchase these in stores, but if your library or power company has one you can check out for free, that's all the better.To use it, you simply plug in the appliance/item you want to know about, and then plug it into the wall. The "Kill-a-Watt" measures how much electricity the item uses. It's best to let it measure … [Read more...]
The fur’s flying
My little Cairn Terrier had grown quite hairy, and so, yesterday, with the help of my mom, I gave her a haircut. I have no training in dog grooming whatsoever. But my Molly Dog was very patient with me, and she looks decent with her new 'do.I saved myself $30 and the hassle of taking her to the groomer. Not bad for about 45 minutes of work. P.S. Next time I'll pick a short-haired dog that never needs grooming. Hee hee! … [Read more...]
I love the bread store!!
My community has a Sara Lee bread outlet. They sell day-old or about-to-be day-old bread items, spices, snacks, etc. They have GREAT prices. On Tuesdays, you can take an additional 10% off your total, and on Saturdays they give you double stamps (they have a frequent buyer reward program).I have a huge chest freezer (you have to when you live in the country), and so I just throw it all in the freezer until I am ready to use it. Last week I got 12 loaves of Sara Lee bread and two packages of … [Read more...]
Coupon mania
About the time we moved to our new house was when I first read Mary Hunt's "Live Your Life for Half the Price." The biggest piece of information I gathered from that book was about grocery shopping. Hunt suggests stocking your pantry by watching for sale items. Buy enough items to last until the next sale. This way you won't run out of something and be forced to run to the store and pay full price. You can "shop" from your well-stocked pantry. The trick is to watch the sales and match them … [Read more...]
A financial wake-up call
A couple of weeks ago my hubby and I met with a financial advisor to find out if we were on track for retirement. He gave us an exercise to do that involved us figuring out a budget. It's been awhile since we've had a written budget. What a wake-up call!! The exercise showed us that we were spending just slightly more than we made each month.... in essence, we were slowly bleeding our savings to death. And the thing is, we weren't even spending extravagantly or anything. This was just everyday … [Read more...]