http://www.budget101.com/blogs/ Complete Money Saving resource to drastically reduce your grocery bill, dirt cheap recipes, do it yourself ideas, make your own mixes and daily freebies en Sat, 18 May 2013 22:33:12 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.budget101.com/images/styles/b101pink/misc/rss.jpg http://www.budget101.com/blogs/ http://www.budget101.com/blogs/wonderwomyn/1696-new-forum.html Fri, 10 May 2013 12:56:07 GMT Greetings from the land of Cheese and Packers. Although I was born in... Greetings from the land of Cheese and Packers. Although I was born in Wisconsin and lived here most of my life, I am not a Packers Fan. I don't like football would rather watch women's rugby. I have a cat named Oreo we just recently had to put our other cat Nermal down because he had a stroke. Very sad day. My partner passed in November and well that is the gist of my life right now. Trying to get myself back into the groove of things. Thank god I work for myself. ]]> WonderWomyn http://www.budget101.com/blogs/wonderwomyn/1696-new-forum.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1695-another-excuse-work-more.html Wed, 08 May 2013 16:13:50 GMT This past week was a doozy for us, dh has been working really late hours... This past week was a doozy for us, dh has been working really late hours (until nearly midnight a couple of those nights), oldest ds has also been working quite late - in fact the managers at the restaurant decided he was ready to "Close" for them. Needless to say, I was less than impressed with having to stay up until nearly 2 in the morning just to make sure he was home safe and sound before I could crash (quite literally!) in bed.

For those of you that don't know me well, I spend A LOT (understatement!) of time at the computer working- either on my websites (I actually have 27 sites that I maintain!) plus I handle all of the office/bookwork/accounting for a construction business. In doing so, I've (very slowly) updated my office little by little, building my own computer system, adding a monitor here and there, etc.

Well, I was frustrated by the lack of organization of my screens and desktop area, so I decided to "build" my own workstation the other day.

I found a piece of plywood section that my husband left in the garage and cut 2 pieces the exact measurements of each of my monitors. Then carefully spray painted them black so they would match the screens when they are off and not be too distracting to the eye. Once they were dry I not so carefully mounted the hardware onto the back of each of them so they would line up with the multiple monitor displays. I say not so carefully because after getting the first one together it wouldn't line up perfectly and I was getting annoying until I realized that the back of the monitor juts out 1/2" to allow for mounting, so I took them all apart again and added an additional spacer board to the back to mount the hardware to.

Problem solved, well, almost. See the problem was it didn't seem like one of the screws was down far enough and having Just screwed it in I thought I'd run my thumb over the top of it to see if it was "flush" enough. Haha, joke was on me, because my blonde brain apparently forgot for a second about that very basic thing called FRICTION and the heat it generates. Well, suffice it to say, I burned an interesting pattern into the tip of my thumb:

Dumb, dumb, dumb. Which reminds me, did you know that you can apply a freshly cut onion to a minor burn to IMMEDIATELY alleviate pain and prevent blistering?



So anyways... after getting everything mounted I screwed on hardware for a clipboard, added some hibiscus flowers to match the design painted on my accent wall and voila, instant organized desktop. (Ignore my vitamin bottles and my racing grannies, the WTF stamp, the therapy ball, etc.. these are just things I've accumulated to amuse myself on days when I don't feel like working- afterall, I don't have co-workers to gossip with or aggravate.

After all that, I decided that I probably ought to get outside and get some yard work and managed to get a couple acres mowed, the chicken coop cleaned out, limed and the nesting boxes filled with straw. I didn't realize that I'd forgotten to collect eggs the day before, but we ended up with 82 eggs yesterday. I REALLY need to find a few more egg recipes to share!! We have one bird that often lays double yolkers but the other day we actually got a Triple Yolk out of her.



I wish I had more time to spend in the garden these days, but time seems to be one of those things that I have so very little of lately. What's new in your neck of the woods? ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1695-another-excuse-work-more.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1692-just-3-more-days.html Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:34:52 GMT tomorrow and next Thursday are group project days... in addition, next... tomorrow and next Thursday are group project days...

in addition, next Thursday is a final exam in English --

I am so done doing work...I am tired...ready for vacation or laying out on our boat on Lake Erie (if it ever stops SNOWING) ]]> CulArtStudent http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1692-just-3-more-days.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1691-just-keeps-getting-better-lol.html Fri, 19 Apr 2013 05:56:10 GMT So, I submitted my final essay to the writing center -- where I once... So, I submitted my final essay to the writing center -- where I once thought that my "anti-global warming" would rustle the sheeple....I never imagined that my final essay would be the one that the director of the center wants to meet with me next week on!

I know I am not in trouble, but I can't say as much as the dweeb that I wrote my paper on -- who happens to be well known on campus for his antics -- why he is still employed here (he is a student too), I will never understand...

anyway, without much ado -- here is the essay that caused the director to want to meet with me...I told him today wasn't a good day (seeing as I was wearing a shirt that says "sarcasm is the body's natural defense against stupidity" -- I will dress more professionally.... )

~*~
enjoy!

~*~

It is my opinion as a transfer student, that the writing center is similar to “another government agency.” It doesn’t have to be a separate, stand-alone department the way that WCC has it set up. Having transferred from MCCC, the writing fellows were students who worked the position in the spirit of volunteerism. They were nominated by the staff of the college, based on their personal grades in English.
In many ways, the process by which WCC has their Comp1 students jump through hoops to appease the writing center is both an extra burden and a hindrance to the learning process. At what point did WCC decide that doubling the work of a first year student was a good idea? If WCC used MCCC as a guide, the writing center would implement four class papers to have a writing center stamp of approval before submission could occur. This stamp of approval meant that the student had made an appointment at the writing center, sat down with a writing fellow, discussed how changes to their class-work could be improved, and finally, submitted the revised draft for approval, before being allowed to get a grade for the paper by the instructor.
I did have the opportunity to meet two wonderful writing guides, several mediocre guides and one guide who had the personality of a rock, and that’s being generous. While having a personality is probably not a requirement for the position, it is a very redeeming quality when you need to work with fellow students. Perhaps those who are awkward in social settings should take up a course on how to better fit in.
In the end, I am thankful this is over with. In many ways, I do not feel I have benefitted from the extra work placed on me by WCC for a comp 1 class, especially as a transfer student; but I do see where it is beneficial to those adult students who couldn’t form a complete sentence out of a paper bag…all I know is, whether they can write or not matters none – for they can still vote. ]]> CulArtStudent http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1691-just-keeps-getting-better-lol.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1690-mary-mary-quite-contrary-how-does-your-garden-grow.html Tue, 16 Apr 2013 13:11:46 GMT The garden is coming along nicely, although I didn't take the time to companion plant as much as I'd hoped to. This might actually bite me in the butt later in the season as the bugs hit, but for now, it seems to be working okay.

Here's what I planted this year:

Pumpkins all along the back (outside row).
Eggplant middle center along fenceline back row
Radishes all along the front (fenceline row)
Marigolds all around the entire garden, this helps keep the rabbits out.
Row 1: Jalapeno & Cayenne Peppers, At the End: Zucchini
Row 2: Crookneck Summer Squash, Zucchini, Okra
Row 3: Cucumbers and Sunflowers - great companions in the garden
Row 4: Tomatoes, Bell Peppers, Marigolds, - again, great companions
Row 5: Tomatoes, Bell Peppers, Marigolds- Carrots, radishes, beets
I left a walk path between all the rows and along the sides and also planted morning glories and carrots along the sides.

The garden should be weed free with the fabric I used over the mounds and of course is self-watering too. Here's my DIY sprinkler layout here. This is our Main garden, we still have a few plants down in back of the house under the trees too. I planted later this year than I should have so I won't have fresh peas until fall (can't plant again until August!).

What are you planting this year? ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1690-mary-mary-quite-contrary-how-does-your-garden-grow.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1689-boston-marathon-bombings.html Mon, 15 Apr 2013 22:17:22 GMT :voodoodoll:Yet another sicko hits the streets and attacks innocent... :voodoodoll:Yet another sicko hits the streets and attacks innocent people. It's amazing how SPINELESS some people are in life. I'm not against bringing back PUBLIC Hangings, just sayin'. ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1689-boston-marathon-bombings.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1688-case-missing-kitten-smell-wall.html Fri, 12 Apr 2013 10:01:00 GMT We recently adopted a pretty little grey kitty cat... and shortly... We recently adopted a pretty little grey kitty cat... and shortly thereafter, she surprised us with 5 adorable little ones. One of them, sadly, did not make it through the first night, so we've been entirely too protective of the remaining 4; So you can imagine my extreme distress when I went out to see how momma and babies were coming along and discovered that one of the babies was missing. Mind you, they're 9 days old at this point and barely have their little eyes open, so mobility really isn't much of an option for them.

Momma cat seemed oblivious to her missing kitten and I searched the yard, the garage, the barn and even watched the skies for any hawks that may have taken a chance and grabbed her. Nothing, nada. After forcing the entire family to play detective and search for several hours, we concluded that something must have lugged the baby off in the middle of the night. However, the next day I spotted our gray momma cat attempting to lug one of her babies across the back patio. Did I mention she's almost completely Blind?

After dropping him half a dozen times on his little head, she finally changed her mind, picked him back up and dragged his little butt back to her kitty house, safely with the other 2 kittens still inside. I started to get hopeful, I mean, the fool cat just played basketball with her kitten across the patio, maybe, just maybe she moved the other kitten and something didn't eat him after all! So I again searched and searched and still nothing. 8 hours later, ds gets home from school and heads upstairs in the garage for something, he comes running downstairs, face flushed, eyes wild, the kitten is in the Wall of the garage.

I'm thinking, oh Yuck- a few months ago the house suddenly took on a horrifying smell in the kitchen, I cleaned the fridge out- found Nothing, scrubbed the floors- despite the fact that they were already cleaned and still found nothing. We checked under the house to see if something had crawled under there and died and NOTHING. Then, we decided to change some cupboards which required us to move the refrigerator & freezer and discovered that a mouse had attempted to squeeze into an electrical outlet that didn't have a cover on it- and managed to electrocute itself, Hence the horrible smell of rotting flesh that I could not find! I digress, back to the kitten... so immediately I'm thinking, oh yuck, the poor thing died, it's 85F out and he can smell it upstairs... but NO!

It's still alive, in the walls, literally Screaming for it's (not overly bright) momma! We removed some panels and dug him out of the wall and we're happy to say, he's doing very well, albeit a bit "needy" and rightfully "clingy".

]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1688-case-missing-kitten-smell-wall.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1687-media-overload-zombie-munchies.html Thu, 11 Apr 2013 11:50:51 GMT *Do you watch the News?* :didimiss: I go in spurts, listening in the... Do you watch the News? :didimiss:

I go in spurts, listening in the morning to the same ol' same ol' - North Korea is going to bomb us/ Nuclear war is impending, shootings here, stabbings there, tornadoes widespread here, hurricane there, allergy season WORST in history, Flu outbreak Most severe in Decades, blah blah freaking blah. Every year it's the same thing, over and over. This is the worst, most severe, terrabilist (I know that's NOT a real word) ever . . .

:mornincoffee: Then it occurs to me that I've become completely desensitized to their daily rhetoric. 9x's out of 10 the media blows things so far out of proportion that I barely believe Anything I see or hear on the news any longer. My kids, unfortunately, have not been completely desensitized to the daily dose of BS that blares on the tv & radio and our youngest is full of questions about Korea & the very real possibility of Nuclear War and Fallout. I find him searching websites, reading articles from various other countries newspapers/websites, etc in order to get a complete picture of what is really happening.

Do you watch the news? How much of it do you "believe" and does it change how you shop, live your daily lives, etc?

I have to admit, I did get extra seeds this year and avoided varieties of hyrbid seeds that may or not create "dead" seeds. I want to be able to harvest the seeds from this years fruits/veggies to plant next season- because quite frankly, I don't want to rely on whether or not I can buy them downtown.

Which brings me to another question... do Hybrid/ genetically engineered foods bother you? I have to say that I don't particularly care for them. For most of the foods that I choose to eat, I do so for a reason. I like fresh corn (& the cornsilk) which is great for a number of conditions, but if it's been genetically modified- how do we know that those beneficial elements are still in it? At what point does their "genetically engineered" stop being Real food and become little more than zombie munchies... after all, do you really know which nutrients they've bred OUT of the food you're eating?! Are you willing to take their word for it??

Do you wish that the Government would Label these so-called Zombie foods and if they did, would it change how & what you purchase?

Food For thought, over and out. ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1687-media-overload-zombie-munchies.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1686-how-can-anyone-possibly-stupid.html Fri, 05 Apr 2013 02:01:48 GMT I will remind readers that I pay out of county tuition, and that amounts... I will remind readers that I pay out of county tuition, and that amounts to $187.00 per credit hour plus a tech fee of $7.00 for a grand total of $194 per credit hour. English Comp is 4 credits, so I am paying $776 for this one course plus $148.75 for the books.

THIS IS COLLEGE for Crissakes!

Today's English lecture (a full hour of an hour and a half class) was devoted to "HOW TO SEARCH GOOGLE TO HELP YOU ON YOUR RESEARCH PAPER"

Seriously.... excuse my language, but HOW IN THE HELL DID YOU MANAGE TO MAKE TO COLLEGE WITHOUT KNOWING HOW TO PERFORM A SEARCH??? Seriously? In addition, it's near the end of the semester -- so even if you made it to college without knowing this skill, how the f*** did you manage to skirt through the semester without doing a search on a search engine?

Smack my damn head -- give me a break -- if you are struggling that much (apparently half of my peers do not know how to use proper grammar either, and spelling is a whole new world) --- TAKE A REMEDIAL COURSE...like 3rd Grade English!

Most of my peers are 22 years old and older -- with me (of course) being the eldest of the bunch.... O.M.G. ...obviously they are products of the schools they went to, and probably skipped most of the classes.

:/

Almost $800 for this class, and this is the content I get to deal with -- with only 3 weeks left of the semester! :Siggycensored: How in the world do they expect to survive, seriously? :/ ]]> CulArtStudent http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1686-how-can-anyone-possibly-stupid.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1685-something-i-never-thought-i-would-do.html Thu, 04 Apr 2013 04:00:22 GMT To me, blogging is much like keeping a diary, only everyone in the world,... To me, blogging is much like keeping a diary, only everyone in the world, including future employers, can read it -- if they know how to search by your name. In some respects, my name is as common as the other 10,000 culinary arts students in the United States, but one never really knows.

As an "older" student (sometimes I can identify with 'mature'), it's truly an uphill struggle. You would think that the older you get, the easier college gets -- but it doesn't work that way. There are new challenges that you have to face when you return to school at an "advanced age". As an example -- most of your instructors (who would be called Greenhorns back in the day) are your children's ages, and like your children, they don't listen to you either.

Many college instructors expect their students, regardless of age, to have the stamina of a teenager -- that doesn't work too well either. We are older, slower, wiser, and more experienced than most of our instructors; worst of all, we PAY for this abuse through our ever rising tuition and books.

Speaking of books... holy smokes! Books are EXPENSIVE. I paid well over $1200 for 5 books for this semester alone...and when it's time to sell them back at the end of the semester, I will be lucky if I can recoup 1/4 of what I paid. It should be a sin or at the very least, a criminal offense! The alternative, so I have been told, is to get all my books on Kindle...but I am older... my eyesight is shot...my glasses need glasses, and until they make a kindle the size of a 27" computer monitor, I just don't see myself investing in that disappointing trip. That my friends, is called foreseeability ... I already can imagine what it would be like to sit with my nose pasted to a tiny screen trying to finger through to the next screen to read technical manuals -- it doesn't paint a pretty picture does it?

I have a lot of rants about school ... it's a challenge ... but it's something that I must do to reinvent myself. Stick with me, you can go to school vicariously through my blog posts -- it doesn't get any easier than that does it? ]]> CulArtStudent http://www.budget101.com/blogs/culartstudent/1685-something-i-never-thought-i-would-do.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1684-diplomatic-moderating-why-i-inadvertently-suck.html Mon, 25 Mar 2013 12:19:37 GMT One thing that I've learned over the years, I would NOT make a good politician! I am just not very good at explaining things in a diplomatic manner, although I always endeavor to. Case in point, on occasion we have members share tips and ideas through the "Articles" tab. But an "Article", for all inclusive purposes, must be a minimum of 400 words and contain a photograph, etc. Otherwise, it's not really an article, but a tip, that is best placed in the forum in whatever category it happens to fit in. I've had members submit tips as articles and I don't know a way of explaining it without making them feel reprimanded. I've tried just sending a short sweet note, a "heads up, here's where you can find your tip”, but I worry (almost excessively) that I've offended them or hurt their feelings. Seriously!

I also have to worry about Copyright concerns, because you wouldn't believe the number of people that copy and paste articles and think that they're simply "sharing" them, but aren't aware they're actually violating Federal Laws and can get the site they're "Sharing" to shut down! Recently a member shared a great article & photos, which were hot linked to another site. Hotlinking, if you aren't familiar, is when you link to a photo that hosted on someone elses server. This too, is illegal. Essentially, it's stealing their bandwidth- they're paying for you to see and enjoy the photo, but they're not benefiting from it in any way.

We generally disallow any kind of hotlinking (even linking that has been done with permission of the original site). Here's the issue with linking even with permission- down the road, if that site closes, those links break and the photos are no longer available, breaking the page. Or, worse, the domain is transferred to someone else and they decide to replace those photos with something that's Not So Nice... like Porn. Don't laugh, it happens, more frequently that you would think.

There are a few other issues to consider ...

SEO - Which is Search Engine Optimization- when a site reshares the same exact article in the same words, major search engines consider it "Scraped" which is a hit against BOTH sites- the Site hosting and the site copying. The Duplicate content is penalized and the pages that are duplicated end up not be indexed or getting blacklisted, if too much duplicate content is found. All search engines have regular algorithm updates which determine how/where/when a sites pages show up in their indexing. Duplicate content is punished so severely during these updates it can virtually wipe a site out of the search engine all together for months at a time.

How does that directly affect you?

When you're searching for something in particular, that link will no longer display to you, even if it's the most relevant link to your search. SEO is a serious beast and even sites like Budget101.com that have been on the web for 12-15 years take a big hit if they don't follow proper SEO procedures. Last year when Google unleashed their "Panda" Update it impacted 1.3% of ALL Queries. To a website guest, that doesn't sound like much, but that update Literally wiped thousands of websites off the grid altogether. If a sites pages are not indexed by search engines, the site becomes virtually obscure and impossible to find.

I have yet to figure out the best way to explain how/why we moderate certain areas of the site to meet all of the guidelines without managing to overwhelm or dishearten our members/guests. We love that you share content; it's what makes the site such a great resource and I don't want to discourage anyone from sharing their own ideas/thoughts, recipes and photos.

It doesn't stop there either, there are other Algorithm changes that bloggers and publishers need to be aware of, such as Googles Penguin update that occurred last year. This one had a massive effect and decreased site rankings that had too many unnatural links. Their goal was to crack down on link exchanges and low quality link farms, link directories, etc. What did that update mean to you? Well, it changed how we list/share freebies and coupons on the site. In order to make sure we don't get penalized for each external link to the freebies we find, we make sure each and every freebie has a description BEFORE the Link. You may have noticed that if you post too short of a message in the freebie or coupon forum, you receive an error message. This is Why.

It's kind of funny sometimes because I've met people and they say, "oh you just find freebies" or "Oh, you take pictures of food, how nice", but there really is a LOT of figuring, planning and forethought that goes into every aspect of the sites to make them run, I just haven't figured out a great way to explain it so I don't frustrate anyone!

Have you ever been moderated and wondered to yourself (or aloud) "What's his/her problem anyway??!" ? ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1684-diplomatic-moderating-why-i-inadvertently-suck.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1683-buh-bye-free-ebooks-free-ebooks-no-free-stuff-program.html Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:37:43 GMT I'm a little bummed to have discovered that Amazon.com is punishing websites and bloggers for sharing free eBooks (thank you Bethaliz!) They've implemented a new 80/20 rule... which essentially states that any amazon affiliate whose ID shows up on 20,000 or more free kindle book purchases (or total of PAID eBooks are less than 1 in 4) will lose their entire Amazon Affiliate income for the month. No questions asked or answered.

How does this affect Budget101.com?

In several ways... while our Amazon income isn't very lucrative to begin with, it is how we fund our Thank you gift program. We use the Gift Cards we receive from our Amazon affiliate link to purchase surprise goodies for our members.

Offering eBooks without an Affiliate Tag

I considered sharing the Free eBooks without any affiliate tag, but it was brought to my attention in the Amazon Associates forum that Amazon will be tracking websites individually and checking to see if they are sharing the free ebooks- apparently to Penalize sites regardless.

I'm really frustrated by this for several reasons:

• I personally LOVE the Free eBooks- I can't tell you how many times I've downloaded a (free) book from an author and then gone back and purchased several books from the Same Author because I loved his/her writing style & or expertise on a subject.

• It seems very unfair to me that Amazon can take away an entire Months revenue due to "too many downloads"- seriously, isn't that defeating the purpose of advertising Amazon?

• Bloggers/Publishers don't get Paid for promoting the eBook Anyway- so why penalize us for it? I say it again, we do not make ANY money at all from Amazon for promoting the free books, nor do we charge advertising to 3rd parties (like the authors!).

• The only time we'd actually make any revenue is if the person who visited the link purchased something Else at the same time. - So you click on a free ebook and then decide to buy another title from the author, or maybe that you wanted a kitchen gadget you saw on sale, etc.

At first I thought that this wouldn't affect Budget101.com- after all, we don't have that many free downloads, but guess what... I was wrong! That's only 700 eBooks per day- we have 30,000+ members with an average of 3,500 visitors at any given time. So if just a tiny percentage of those members download a free ebook or 2- We lose the revenue that funds the Thank you gift program.

Here's an even worse scenario... if you click on my affiliate link to Amazon and then download/"buy" 5 free ebooks- Even though the link was ONLY to Amazon and I didn’t promote ANY of those free ebooks, I am going to get nailed for all 5 downloads- which counts towards that 80-20 rule. Basically- they can penalize any affiliate at any time based on this new "rule" and assume that we, as publishers somehow have control of our members and guests after they click on our links!

Amazing and ignorant, all rolled into one. It seems like Big Business are losing their grip with reality lately... first the exec at Yahoo throwing Work at Home Employees to the dogs (whilst being a complete hypocrite and installing a massive office-side nursery for her own kid!) and now Amazon throwing publishers under the bus for doing what they're supposed to .. which is.. drive traffic to Amazon.

What's next I wonder.. will Bing and Google punish us for searching? ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1683-buh-bye-free-ebooks-free-ebooks-no-free-stuff-program.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1682-spring-ahead.html Tue, 12 Mar 2013 13:56:11 GMT Spring rains have hit our area and although I love the warmer... Spring rains have hit our area and although I love the warmer temperatures, I'm not looking forward to green/yellow slime allergy season! On a brighter note, we got our garden tilled up and a new automatic sprinkling system installed. I want desperately to plant already, but cannot for several reasons-

#1: Poison Ivy/Oak/Sumac and Jasmine! - our family takes a week off each year and I don't want to take the chances of getting plastered with any of the itchies before our "vacation". Even if it's just to have family & friends visit or to camp for a couple of days, I don't want to be smothered with any kind of rash.

#2- It's pouring out and the garden area is a mudhole at the moment.

#3- I just know we're going to get hit with frost at Least one more time and I don't want to kill my seedlings.

We expanded our garden area by almost double this year. Last years drought sent prices of fresh produce soaring and quite frankly, I'm not too keen on genetically engineered foods. I'm not a fan of being a guinea pig & waiting 20 years to discover that I've obtained some odd cancer or disease due to the government playing god with our food supply. Besides, there's something very satisfying about growing and harvesting your own food.

We "Mound Garden" which apparently is quite unique in the South East (pretty common in the North East)- because I sure do get lots of "looks" from people when they go by.

In years past we've used automatic watering timers to keep the garden watered on a regular basis and while that worked for our smaller garden, we literally tripled the garden size this year. We opted to build our own, do it yourself, garden sprinkler system using a bit of pvc pipe, a few sprinkler heads and a timer.

The entire project was relatively inexpensive, but did take a little extra preparation. Once the garden area was completely tilled and aged manure was added & tilled in, we dug trenches to run the pvc pipes. I'll add photos once the stupid rain stops long enough for me to take some!

I'm really looking forward to getting my hands in the dirt again! Are you planning a garden this year? What are you thinking of planting or what have you already planted? ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1682-spring-ahead.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1673-pastey-confessions-starchaholic.html Mon, 11 Feb 2013 22:34:45 GMT I have a confession to make, I am a starchaholic... that is, I LOVE... I have a confession to make, I am a starchaholic... that is, I LOVE :loveshower: starchy foods... corn on the cob, potatoes (baked, boiled, mashed, steamed, grilled- you name it!), breads, cakes, croissants,bagels, pastries, pasta, rice and just about anything you can imagine made with starch/flour.

Why is this a big deal? Because they're all notoriously bad for you. Do you know how to make your own homemade paste? You just mix Flour and Water together. Now- imagine eating that and what it does to the insides of your intestines. It literally coats them with paste.

Like bread? Eating fresh rolls or biscuits with dinner coats your stomach and literally makes it nearly impossible for your body to absorb the vitamins and minerals from the other foods consumed during the same meal. Starchy foods also have a tendency to clog up the lower intestines, which in turn cause you to eat more to feel full/satisfied, thereby causing your body to absorb more fat from the large intestine. What I'm getting at here folks is that if you're trying to stick to a New Years Resolution to lose weight or get fit, you're going to have to give up starches for awhile (& then drastically cut down in the long run as well!).

As if the mere thought of that fresh hot roll turning to mushy paste in the intestine wasn't quite enough- here's another thought for you... you don't have to completely give up starches, you can minimize their effects by eating your protein first. If you're going to eat starchy foods, always eat them within an hour of exercise so they are burned off rather than stored as FAT! ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1673-pastey-confessions-starchaholic.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/herblady/1680-free-stuff-adventures-broth-making.html Tue, 05 Feb 2013 21:21:43 GMT Sometimes events just come together and create the most fantastic results.... Sometimes events just come together and create the most fantastic results.

It all started because I've been improving my cooking. I'm home anyway so why not strive for perfectly prepared meals. I love to eat so I should eat well, right? I'm not looking for complicated meals with ingredients I can't pronounce, no, not for me. Instead it is getting the basics down and doing it very well. I decided to start with broths. These are simple and can be the base for many dishes.

My cousin has been thinning out his stuff. He's been bringing over things like alien key chains, bobble heads, a nice sauce pan, and other little odds and ends. Last week he showed up with a gigantic 32 quart stockpot with a spigot at the bottom. The clouds parted, light came down and made that pot just glow.

A couple days before the stockpot came to me, like a gift from heaven, my neighbor mentioned they were going to be butchering a cow. Once I finished hugging my new stockpot, I went over and asked if I could buy some bones. I walked home with a femur in a plastic bag for free.

Yup, 32 quarts of homemade beef bone broth for the price of 2 onions, 4 carrots, and 6 stalks of celery. I feel the universe has come into alignment as I sit here with a smug self-indulgence sipping my rich, hot broth.

Did I mention I can get a second batch from those bones?

**tip to anyone smugly making broth - roast the carcass or bones with the vegetables until caramelized. This makes for a more flavorful broth.** ]]> HerbLady http://www.budget101.com/blogs/herblady/1680-free-stuff-adventures-broth-making.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/akingskid/1678-making-your-own-stash-stampers.html Wed, 23 Jan 2013 15:29:42 GMT Hi everybody! :039: You know all those packages and buckets they... Hi everybody! :039:

You know all those packages and buckets they have in the store of foam shapes, characters, and letters...? Well, you can make stamps out of them by gluing them to pop bottle lids.
I keep pop bottle lids for all kinds of crafting ideas anyways, so using them to make stamp bases for my foam shapes came in handy.

I keep small, med. and large :mornincoffee: coffee cans also! I paint them then label them as to which can has shapes, letters, animals, flowers etc. of my foam stampers.

Just another way of re-using instead of throwing out! *Bump*

Thx:031: ]]> akingskid http://www.budget101.com/blogs/akingskid/1678-making-your-own-stash-stampers.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1677-motivation-medical-bills-general-life.html Tue, 22 Jan 2013 10:46:58 GMT It sometimes amazes me just how fast time flies by, I just can't get over how every single day seems like a fleeting moment of time. Dh threw out his back again and we've not had much sleep in the house in the last few weeks. It seems that nighttime hours are the worst for him and he just can't get comfortable no matter what he does. As for me, my days start by 5 am and often don't end before 11 pm- so by the time my head hits the pillow, I'm dead to the world. EXCEPT that I lie awake listening to hear him breathing while he's sleeping or to hear if he gets up and whether or not he needs assistance getting up and down the stairs, etc. So for the past week, the only thing I can count on is luggage under my eyes, hence the new tip on the site about how to reduce puffiness and dark circles!
We're all working on eating healthier and getting as many things accomplished around the house as possible, getting the garden ready for spring, cleaning out the garage, cleaning out cabinets & cupboards, organizing the pantry, etc etc. Wrestling season is nearly over, the States Competition was the other day and unfortunately a kid broke his neck during the tournament. He underwent surgery and has to undergo another tomorrow. It really makes me appreciate that my kids are healthy and safe. He and his family are definitely weighing heavy on our minds this weekend.

I'm behind in adding menu plans, responding to PM's and answering my emails, but then again, what else is new! The school called me the other day, youngest ds split and old wound on his knee and they were concerned because he hadn't stopped bleeding after 30 minutes. He kept telling the school nurse that it needed to be elevated, but she told him that wasn't a good idea, just sit still. They called me and for a few moments, made it sound as though the kid was going to bleed to death. I grabbed a couple of fresh eggs off the counter and brought them with me. Once I got him out of their overly concerned clutches I cracked the eggs (dumped the insides on the ground) peeled off the inner membrane, applied it over the bleeding knee and it stopped bleeding almost instantly. *Waves magic wand* Instant Painless stitches.

Once we got him home, we waited an hour or so, peeled the membrane off, washed it with peroxide, applied an herbal salve and a couple bandaids and he's all patched up. Funny how people freak out over little things.

All in all, it's been a pretty nice weekend though, we had a chance to spend some time with friends, I got in my workouts, and even managed to get a few new recipes and articles published. I swear I'll get to answering the stack of questions in my inbox, I'm really NOT ignoring anyone! Also, for those who have been watching the Free Stuff thread waiting to see the latest recipients, I got behind on those. I'll be sending them out shortly. How's everyone elses weekend going?? ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1677-motivation-medical-bills-general-life.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/freebiequeen/1675-pet-peeves-other-sites-jack-wagons.html Thu, 17 Jan 2013 20:58:04 GMT So, today I was once again reminded why I don't bother with forums on many other websites, a site that I Used to Love- for the "friendly members" and educational atmosphere has become like the rest, full of bitter, bitchy people who would rather retort with a snarky sarcastic comment than offer any real advice or answers.

I used to purchase a whey protein powder several years ago (and actually had bought several of them while they were on sale) and when I started weight-lifting and working out again I wanted to start taking it. When I went back to the original site that I purchased it from, I realized that it had been completely removed, as though it had never existed. I made the mistake of asking on the sites forums about the product and was immediately Blasted from multiple people about how I was a shill working to for the company and trying to make them (the company selling the product) look good, etc.

Come to find out, that particular company literally sued members of the forum for defamation against their product. I was floored for 2 reasons, first, just couldn't believe that a company would go after members of a forum for voicing their own Personal Opinions on a Product- I mean this is AMERICA, Right???? and then Secondly, for having multiple people jump all over me like fleas on an unwashed dog.

WTH?! You can't ask a simple question without being accused of something anymore? I don't know why it made me so seriously angry, I guess once you spend the majority of your time in a site like this one where people are warm and receptive and then go elsewhere, it's like a rude slap in the face. It seems common decency and courtesy aren't so common any longer . . . ]]> FreebieQueen http://www.budget101.com/blogs/freebiequeen/1675-pet-peeves-other-sites-jack-wagons.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/herblady/1674-debt-free-best-99-i-ever-spent.html Thu, 17 Jan 2013 02:10:47 GMT At some point in our lives most of us go into debt. It starts simply... At some point in our lives most of us go into debt. It starts simply enough, for most people as that card they offer to us while we are in college. Just thinking of all the free travel you could do with those points you earned started all sorts of dreams of exotic locations. Maybe the debt starts later, you need to build a credit rating so you can buy a house or car. Short term loans or a credit card is exactly what you need. As long as you pay it off on time you are getting free money and the side benefits. It is a winning situation for you, right? Then life and reality set in. You can't make that payment on time and the debt is building. You open another card and shuffle the debt around. Before you know it your freedom has eroded and your life consists of being a wage earner for the bank. Welcome to modern slavery.

Several years ago we spent $99 on a program called Financial Peace University by Dave Ramsey. I don't like spending that much money on anything but we'd heard his radio program and needed a kick in the pants. My husband agreed that Dave Ramsey was teaching what we needed. We have followed the program and we are free! I don't own a credit card, I don't give a hoot about my credit score, and I the only thing I owe money on is the house, which we are purchasing from a relative at 0% interest.

Like all challenging goals the best way to achieve them is to break them into simple, measurable, and attainable steps. Using this as our guide, my family is at Step 4.

Baby Steps

Here is a link to the Dave Ramsey web site. There are free budget tools and a simple search by zip code if you wan't to look for a class in your area. In addition to the Financial University there are materials available for helping teens and children understand how to put their money to work, instead of the other way around. ]]> HerbLady http://www.budget101.com/blogs/herblady/1674-debt-free-best-99-i-ever-spent.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/brchbell/1672-new-year-old-me.html Thu, 10 Jan 2013 13:56:51 GMT Well 2013 be any kinder than 2012 was??? I hope so! But so far the... Well 2013 be any kinder than 2012 was??? I hope so! But so far the drought is continuing here so this coming years growing season isn't looking to good. Usually by January it is in the 20's and we are buried in snow that stays until the Spring thaw. It's been in the 50's and for over a year if we get any moisture it's always less than 1/4 inch. There is no public water supply in our area. People are running out of water and the local communities are turning off the water to those who want to haul water. We are still ok here but another full year of drought will be troublesome for us.

But on a bright note, our oldest son who lost his job just 3 weeks after getting married is now working again. He had to move from St Joseph, MO to Topeka, KS but it's a good job as a programmer for the state of Kansas Board of Education. They found a 2 story studio apartment for $300 a month so hopefully they can handle that along with their $535 house payment until they get the house ready to sell and hopefully sell it fast.

I have been reading my scriptures daily all the way through during the year, this will be the 4th year of my doing that. I decided to try another new item to see if I can start a new habit. I'm not a pack rat but my basement sure looks like I am. I am trying to go through everything in the basement store room and toss, repack or giveaway everything down there. I have been finding some amazing things! Most of this junk are things our kids have packed up and tossed down there. I have found 8 boxes so far of nothing but trash in them. I had pre-asked the kids to either go through their boxes and let me sort it out. I now know why they all so freely told me to go for it. My Mom really did do me a favor by sorting it all out and getting rid of 99% of my stuff!

I'm still canning and storing up as much stuff as I can do. I got a wonderful 11 cases of pint jars for Christmas! So happy my kids listened this time! I have been boiling up a turkey each week and canning it and the broth. this are the 7 turkeys we butchered in November and only 3 of my 9 family members would eat it. Meanwhile my freeze is full and I can't find anything! So I'm canning it all up, some day my family will eat turkey again. I have decided now that the kids are all moved out I want to be free of all animals. So as soon as the turkeys are done I will start butchering 2 or 3 chickens per week and get those canned up while no one is home to see me. At least they should eat the chicken! I'm allergic to the eggs so no reason to have them. the ducks are pets and 4 yrs old and the dog and cats are old to, so in a few years we should be critter free.

I am hoping to get DH to build me a small heated green house just outside my basement door (south side) so I can grow salad stuff all year long and also start my own seedlings for spring planting. Well guess I rambled enough.

I'm still here running crazy. Don't get to check in as often as I'd like but I am still around.

Blessings to each of you!
Cherlynn
http://www.onewomansprepping.blogspot.com/ ]]> brchbell http://www.budget101.com/blogs/brchbell/1672-new-year-old-me.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1671-year-review-looking-ahead.html Tue, 01 Jan 2013 16:05:43 GMT :Liss: What an incredible year it has been, the past 12 months seemed to... :Liss: What an incredible year it has been, the past 12 months seemed to fly by with only a few days that lingered on . . . I watched our budget, diligently, scrimped, cut expenses everywhere I possibly could, made a few changes to our home (with the help of my wonderful husband, of course) and made it a priority to spend more time with both friends and family.

At first, it was a concerted effort for me to get away from my work and to just "leave it alone" while we were all together. I'd find myself sneaking off for a few minutes here and there to check my sites, respond to messages or return phone calls and emails, even though it was supposed to be a "work free" time. Did you know... It has been more than 3 full years since I took a complete "Day Off" where I didn't work at all?! :bee: After awhile, it got easier and this past year I learned that having the time away has made a huge difference in my stress levels and has allowed me to enjoy my work even more.

I've met some incredible people over the past year, some that have changed my life forever in just a short time, as well as lost a few, May they rest in Peace :tulip-icon:Bridget, Kimmie, Michelle, Wylie, and Anita. We were visiting with friends the other night, planning New Years when they got a phone call that a good friend and his wife were in an accident. The wife didn't make it and the husband is not well, already undergoing multiple surgeries, etc. It was yet another wave of realization for us that you HAVE TO LIVE FOR TODAY. You just don't know when your time is up. I don't want to wait until "retirement" to see the world and learn new things, undertake new projects, etc. I want to live every day like it's my last, because let's face it, it really could be.

My kids have grown into fine young men and I hadn't realized just how much until last night when my youngest accompanied the band on drums on songs way before his time and fit it with them like he'd been playing all his life. It was a "wow" moment for me and so much fun to listen to them all play and I think it was the first time that it dawned on me just how "old" they've gotten.

Over the holidays we had family visit that I literally hadn't seen in Years and it was as if those years in between had never happened at all after just a couple hours with them. We all hemmed and hawed over the impending Fiscal cliff mess and decided that we'd all say to heck with it, we already do what we can and we can't change congress now, we'd better just hang on to our hats and move forward. So with all that in mind, I'm strengthening my resolve to do the following:

• Continue Saving when/where I can
• Grow more of my own food/ take on a better appreciation for self-sustainability & pass it on to my kids
• Spend more time with friends while we can, because you never know when they'll be taken from you :heart:
• Learn something new Every Day- even if it's a little thing

May you blessings be abundant, your debts meager, your health radiant and your table full this coming year! :dance: ]]> Liss http://www.budget101.com/blogs/liss/1671-year-review-looking-ahead.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/splashangel/1670-beauty-budget.html Fri, 28 Dec 2012 06:47:04 GMT So, that's me. First off, let me say I've had the flu since Christmas day and today was my first real day up.

I havn't took a bath yet, havn't brushed my hair since last nights washing but thought if you knocked on my door right now... Well, this is what you would get. So, I aimed and clicked. When I concentrate I tend to bite my lower lip and raise an eyebrow. I cann't control the eyebrow thing so there it is.
I'm 45 years old. And at 45 you have to do some stuff ya know? So listen, if your say, twenty something, then turn around and leave now. I don't want to scare you. But if your brave enough to peek into the future and find out what waits, then I'm about to spill the beans. But for any of you over 30, this is all no surprise to you, so let's talk about it.

When I was in my twenties I could be awake and out the door in 10 minutes. It takes me that long just to pee now. I used to hang my head out the car window to dry my hair, pulling my head in long enough to slurp at my coffee. I wouldn't dare now. I used to buy 99 cent lotion and it went from head to toe. I thought it was the same thing as face cream. I used to bask in the sun on the beach all day every day, useing butter for sun tan oil.

I used to get two hours sleep and hit it wide open the next day. Now I have days that I need a two hour nap after sleeping all night. So, like at 7, I should get up but I take that nap and get up at 9...ish. O.K. I do 10 some days but I have restless legs and sometimes I'm tired.(sigh)
I'm not a young girl anymore though. And a long with being a big girl comes big girl problems. Like cellulite, saggy skin ( don't be fooled, small breast sag to) Dry skin/ oily skin, BIG blackheads, and hair in some messed up places. Then you have grey hair to deal with. Teeth get yellow, skin gets sallow...

So what do you do? The first thing I found out was that getting older can be expensive. And the stores know it. Even at Walmarts, face creams are expensive. Here's some of the things I do. I'm no beauty Queen. But, here it is.

Drink lots of water. I know you expected something more... exciting maybe. It's true. Take a picture of you now. Drink loads of water. At least 8 cups a day but more if your sweating or just can.
two weeks of this and no other changes, take another pic and compare.

Eat healthy as possible. Lots of fruits and veggies. Lean meats and not so much junk food.

Excercise some. Go for a brisk walk. Get the oxygen flowing through your body. 20 minutes a day will do wonders. But at least 3 times a week.
I order free samples of facial products whenever I see them. I make a scrub with sugar and olive oil or coconut oil. What ever I have. I also use organic coconut oil as an all over hair and skin conditioner. Great stuff. If you eat it and wear it, you cann't go wrong. I also make a face cream from the Plantain plant. I sometimes mix it with Coconut oil, olive oil or lard. ( yes lard). I grease my face with something after my bath and sometimes I'll do it again if I'm going to be working outside. I don't wear make-up. I don't cut, color, perm or blow dry my hair. I rarely even put hair spray on it. My hair is greying but I like the silver color mines turning. Cann't say the whole turning grey process makes me want to shout for joy though.
I have been a fan of waxing for a lot of years. I plucked in between, but I'm in love with threading now. If you don't know what it is then google it. It's pretty cool. I, however, have a lot of facial hair to deal with. To start off, my eyebrows are thick and grow down the eyelid(ouch) and unibrow isn't a descriptive enough word. I have a mustache and have recently discovered a few brave hairs on my chin. ( May they rest in peice) Threading costs a little more than waxing, but it's not hard to learn. I just did my face again tonight.

I brush my teeth once a week with baking powder. Once a month I add fresh lemon.

I wash my hair as little as possible. I do buy my conditioner from a salon. I spend about 20-25 bucks and it will last me prolly 3 monthes. I skip conditioning sometimes and wash with a little baking soda added to the shampoo. Suave or whatever. Then I put Argon oil ( Dollar tree) or coconut oil in it before I put it in a towel. That's what I did last night.
I spend next to nothing on my beauty tools. I hope that something in this will be interesting to someone out there. Take care and I'll be back with something to run on about in a week or so.

Do you have an inexpensive beauty product that works for you?
What has caught you most off guard about ageing? ]]> splashangel http://www.budget101.com/blogs/splashangel/1670-beauty-budget.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/splashangel/1669-six-roses-subway-sam-cooke.html Mon, 17 Dec 2012 21:16:56 GMT Yep! It's our anniversary!
Don't think I was heartbroke either when husband came home early due to rain. He got the roses and food ( what else besides Subway Spicey Italian will do?) I sang him some Sam Cooke, Nothing could change this love( we both cried) and passed the time... Talking... Yea, we talked.
Soon the boy's will be home and the real world will set in. Homework, arguments and canIhave's.
But I know from experience that this too is a blessing. I've already raised one who is 26. It's over all to soon! So I welcome my little rats home and all the messes, questions and child energy they bring with them. Because, I know one day, it will be just me and the husband remembering the years we spent together raising the boy's.
What are some of you best Anniversary memories?
Do you remember special anniversaries with your parents?
Do you know that old Sam Cooke song? (By the way, I did say Man of my dreams)! ]]> splashangel http://www.budget101.com/blogs/splashangel/1669-six-roses-subway-sam-cooke.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/splashangel/1667-self-reflection.html Sat, 08 Dec 2012 16:05:16 GMT I'm finally home!
The work pace was grueling but worth it. I know I can do a little better on time by manageing things better. For instance, I lost my list from last year and ended up driving around looking for some of my customers. I'm sure I missed some. Other's,I've been working for now for years, and wish I had time to just sit and chat. As busy as I was though, I had time to reflect. Not idle time. But the kind of time you have when you are working alone and your thoughts leave the task at hand. I was in that place a lot. My outward self painting candy canes and snowmen, but my inward self was setting some things right.
Some of you may have heard me complain about burn out. I've been saying for the past few years that I just didn't want to do this anymore. I'd hustled to hard for to long. I really thought that was the case. But it wasn't . I lost my Dady a few years ago now, and my Mama a year later. I lost the bio father( didn't know him for very long or very well) in between the two of them. Ummm. For the bio, it was a strange sense of loss. To much to share. But as for Mama and Daddy, it was two tremendous blows for me.
I havn't been burnt out.
I've been grieving my Mama and Daddy. ]]> splashangel http://www.budget101.com/blogs/splashangel/1667-self-reflection.html http://www.budget101.com/blogs/tarrien/1665-lots-lots-work.html Thu, 29 Nov 2012 15:39:05 GMT So I started working recently and I'm just enjoying having something to do and to keep my mind busy.

If I ever wanted a job where I didn't have much time to think and get depressed, due to lack of mental stimulation, this was it.

I've also found that my etsy shop where I sell tarot is finally picking up now too, an order about one or twice a week isn't bad in my book. I try to charge fairly and give as much customer service as I can. Though there have been a few slip ups here and there, but so far its going well. I'm thinking about starting to sell my felt stuffed animals as well on there, but I'm a bit hesitant because I don't want to figure out shipping costs... Nor do I want to sew more than I want to. Its merely a hobby for me on my off days.

I've also been early Christmas shopping for everyone in my family... But I'm having problems figuring out things my mom would like due to her having everything she needs mostly. I hope she does like what I already got her though... Its my first time being able to afford gifts for my family, so I'm hoping everyone likes what I've gotten them. ]]> Tarrien http://www.budget101.com/blogs/tarrien/1665-lots-lots-work.html