Using Corn Cobs after Freezing Corn: Corn Cob Jelly

 Today, I froze corn. It always bothered me to just throw out the corncobs because it seems like there is so much good stuff still there. I have always just thrown them out though, until this year! I decided to do a web search and came up with a site that talked about making corn cob jelly! I was intrigued so I went ahead and tried it. I like the idea our ancestors had of using everything possible.

 Here are the corn cobs boiling. The corn cobs have to be boiled for 30 minutes.

And here is the final product! The article said it tasted like honey and it really does, surprisingly so!

Here is the article and it contains the recipe I used. http://chickensintheroad.com/cooking/how-to-make-corn-cob-jelly/ It's fun to try something new and to know I finally found a use for those old corn cobs!

Happy Savings!

Frugal? Or Just Cheap?

I have been watching this reality show called Extreme Cheapskates lately. The things the people in this show do are unbelievable! I love frugality and saving money. But I think frugality is about saving money while still respecting the people you are around. Being a cheapskate means that saving money has gone too far, and you care more about saving money than you do about the loved ones and other people in your life.

For example, one man asked for leftovers off of other people's plates in restaurants, embarrassing his wife. Not only is this unsanitary and gross, but the man cared more about saving a little bit than respecting his wife's feelings. Another stole things from her family members and gave them back to them at Christmas rationalizing that they would be happy to get them back!

If I could sum up the difference between frugality and cheapness, it would come down to one word: respect. Is what you are doing respectful of others? There are many ways to save money and still respect other people. Here is an article about frugality and cheapness by Clark Howard: http://www.clarkhoward.com/10-signs-youve-from-frugal-to?ecmp=clarkhoward_social_facebook_sfp

The bottom line to remember in decision making about the difference between being cheap and being frugal is respect. Is it respectful to others? Does it make them feel like being with you or avoiding you? What is more important to you, saving money or being with people? 

Happy Savings!

Free Culver's Meal

The other day, I wanted to eat at Culver's but I didn't want to pay full price. So, I did a short google search and found out that I could get a Value Basket for free with the purchase of a Value Basket just for signing up on Culver's eclub. Here is the link: http://www.culvers.com/connect/join-the-club/

You can get a lot of restaurant freebies this way by signing up for the restaurant clubs. Many of them are birthday freebies but some are buy one get one like Culvers. Some people suggest using a different email than your regular email for these sign-ups to avoid so much junk mail.

The burger was really good! And free!

Hope you enjoy your own Culver's meal and Happy Savings!

How a Near $1000.00 Vacation Package for up to 12 People Cost Us Less Than $500.00

Okay, I am not going to try and convince you this was an inexpensive vacation. For true frugality, a tent and hot dogs are frugal. However, this was a really great vacation for up to 12 people for a really great price! We just got back from Jellystone/Warrens Lodging where we spent 2 nights. http://www.jellystonewarrens.com/ This is a really fun family vacation site and the accommodations are very, very nice!

 The cabin is for up to 10 adults and 2 children. There are two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a loft with four single beds, washer/dryer, full kitchen. It is just like home!

 This full package with the cabin for 2 nights, a great waterpark with mini-golf, slide, lazy river, pool, pond etc, and a golf cart for riding around in costs $856.00 (plus the food which is why I said about $1000.00). There is a website for deals in this area called http://www.dailydealstwincities.com/ This site had a deal where this package was offered for half price! So the package cost $428.00. Since the cabin has full facilities, we did all the cooking in. I brought pizzas, burritos, cereal, anything that was easy and my Mom brought some sloppy joe fixin's. Aside from the exhaustion of packing and funning myself to death, it is a relaxing, great time!

Since this deal is for up to 12 people, the more people you bring, the less it costs per person. Frankly, I would never pay full price for this. It can even be hard for me to choke up $428.00 plus food but it is worth it! To find deals like this in your area, usually radio stations and newspapers are the place to look. If I were in an area where I didn't know how to find the deals, I would start with a web search for radio and newspapers. And I would keep my eye out on a regular basis. Basically, I let the deals pick my vacations for me. I do not try and pick the vacation first as that is a way to not get a deal. Also, deals like this are usually during slow times so you have to go on slow dates BUT you also usually have a much less populated resort and don't have to wait in line as long.

Happy savings!

Berry Dessert for .17 a Serving!

Yes, this scrumptious berry dessert is only .17 a serving here in my household! It's berry season where I live. I went out and picked these lovely black caps yesterday so the berries were absolutely free (except for my time). I got about 2 pints. It makes me feel good to know that these were not planted nor cultivated nor transported so there were no fossil fuels used in the making of these berries!

 Then I found a nice deal on some loaf cake a while back and put it in the freezer. I got this out to use with the berries. It was marked down twice (original price was $3.48). I paid $1.36.

If I had bought 2 pints of these berries at perhaps $4.99/pint (I think they are usually packaged in 6 oz containers for about $2.99 or $3.99 so this is a guess) that would be $9.98 for the berries and then $3.48 for the cake for a total of $13.46 which comes to $1.68/serving. That's a a difference of $12.20 or $1.51/serving saved! It took me about an hour to pick the berries so I made $12.20/hr for my time (and in finding the cake on sale).

Happy Savings!

Garage Sale Season: Bargains Galore!

I rarely buy anything new. When I look around my house, it is filled with things that I found at garage sales or thrift stores or Craigslist over the years. My couch....a Craigslist find.....my desk, another Craigslist find. My entertainment center, a garage sale find. On and on it goes. 

I go into town once a week (we live in the country) so I try and get everything done on that one day. This time of year, I make sure to go in on a day when garage sales are going and depending on how much time I have, I may stop at a few or quite a few. Here are some of my find this year so far:

Here is my favorite for the year! This is solid oak and they wanted $20.00 for it. We settled at $17.00. I usually will offer less for things and often people will take what I offer or counter offer so I can usually get it for less than what they are asking. I try to be respectful and offer a decent price, not too far from what they are asking. If I think they are too high, I will usually search elsewhere. I then decide what I am willing to offer and what my top dollar will be. 

I got a cute set of 6 orange juice glasses for $1.50. I paid what they were asking on these since they were just .25 each.

Our old BBQ grill had definitely seen it's better days so when I saw this one I jumped on it!. My husband doesn't like gas grills and sometimes it's hard to find a nice charcoal grill. This one is very solid and has a number of nice features. It had green going down the legs and so I scrubbed it and re-stained the wood. They were asking $15.00 but took $10.00 when I offered it. I pulled our old one out to the front of the driveway and put a free sign on it and it was gone within an hour!

We have been enjoying this little glider! It was broken and the woman was asking $5.00 which I gave her without hesitation. My husband put about 10 minutes worth of work into it and it works very nicely.

Garage saling can be a lot of fun and you can find so many great bargains this way! I find almost all my shoes and boots this way and I only buy them if they look like new or very close to it. I found my husband some Mossy Oak hunting clothes and I also found a box of 40 music CD's in nice shape for .10 each that I decided to buy and donate to our new local up and coming library!

Happy Hunting!