Money Saving Tips for Welfare Recipients

"Octomom" Nadya Suleman, the single mom of 14 (including octuplets) is back on welfare again, says TMZ. Suleman is an extreme example of negative welfare stereotype. But her unhealthy financial choices highlight key issues that we can all learn from. Here are money tips for parents on welfare, culled from five months when we received food stamps and Medicaid. I practiced these then and now that we're not receiving food stamps. Living simply is the key. Money Tips for Welfare Recipient Parents

Save Big Money on Electric Bills with Simple, Green Tweaks

 'Green' is the buzzword for this decade. Living green means using less electricity. Electricity, which has never been a terribly expensive utility, is now escalating in price with all the other utilities. Our electric bills have doubled in the past 5 years despite the fact that we have installed every energy saving device possible. Here are 25 easy ways to counteract the rising costs of energy by reducing usage.  read more

Holiday Clean Up Tips-- Avoid Garage Sales, Donate Used Items, Get Tax Credit

I'm not lazy, but I don't like working needlessly. Spring cleaning, purging and weeding closets is torture enough. But to lug it all to the basement in anticipation of having a garage sale is overwhelming. Here's my solution: Donate garage sale fodder and take the tax credit. Having a garage sale is exhausting, time-consuming and labor intensive. And that's if you have a garage. I do not. I have a yard which I must somehow convert into an open air market, if I'm to hold a garage sale and sell my used goods. It's not cost-effective or energy efficient. For holiday clean up or spring cleaning donations, read more

Surprise costs, hidden problems remodeling our 100-year-old home

My husband and I bought our Grand Haven, Michigan, home in 2000. We hoped to save money buying a 100-year-old fixer-upper for just $52,000. Newer homes that needed less work were selling for about two to three times what we paid for ours. We've had to make do with a lot of inconveniences that would cost us far more than we saved in purchase price to properly fix. Even fixing our home on a shoestring has cost us nearly as much as we saved -- around $49,000. Here are some of our costlier old-home-buying surprises.  read more

Best Green Ecology Movies for Earth Month

Earth Day, formerly Arbor Day, is celebrated on April 22. Spring is manifesting herself in a big way in April and the whole month is devoted to earth-friendly activities. Those of us who care about our planet know that every day is, or should be Earth Day. Here's a list of green-themed films that explore environmentalism and green living. Topics include oil, fuel alternatives, sustainable living, corporate farming problems, health issues, pollution and more. Use these for science class, homeschool, activist rallies and public awareness campaigns. Read on at Best Green Ecology Movies for Earth Month - Yahoo! News

Save Money on Electric Bills

Save Big Money on Electric Bills 25 Ways to reduce energy consumption and lower electric bills. 25 easy ways to cut costs and live green. View more »

Keep Cool Without AC

Keep Your Home Cool This Summer the 'Green' Way Without Air Conditioning
Tips for keeping it cool in your house without air conditioning. View more »