Healthy Cooking Cheats for Crazy-busy Parents

Mealtimes present a dilemma for me: I want the kids to enjoy hot, hearty, healthy meals, but I generally lack adequate time to cook. If you're a crazy-busy parent who values nutritious meals, you need shortcuts to "get-er-done" fast. Here are cooking cheats from a 24-year veteran mom of four. Tailor recipe sizes to family need. These meals are easy on the budget as well. Healthy, Cheap Cooking Cheats for Crazy-busy Folks

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

Easy Green Recycled Holiday Gifts to Make for Homebound, Seniors, Bird Watchers

Bird feeders are some of the easiest crafts to make for holiday gifts. Bird feeders are inexpensive, eco-friendly gifts that will delight anyone on your holiday gift list, especially grandparents, shut-ins, elderly and homebound. Bird watching is something everyone can enjoy. Those who cannot get out as often or who are homebound will enjoy a little bird-feeder hung right in their kitchen or bedroom window. Here are several simple homemade bird feeders to make from your recycle bins. These make excellent school, scout troop or Sunday School holiday crafts. Read more

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

How to Safely Clean Up After Weather Disasters

Hurricane Irene flooded parts of the Passaic River in New Jersey last year. In Vermont, massive clean-up efforts are underway from storm surges and flooding. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy dumped more flood waters on New York, New Jersey and other parts of the U.S. eastern seaboard. Flood water from swollen rivers and overflowing sewers is extremely toxic. Here are safety tips for storm, flood and sewage clean up. How to Safely Clean Up After Hurricane Flooding

Thaw Frozen Water Pipes, Prevent Winter Plumbing Freezes

My husband and I lived for ten years of our marriage in a mobile home. A common winter maintenance problems in trailers is frozen water pipes. Here are tips to prevent plumbing freezes. If pipes do freeze, here are tips to thaw them. My husband has donned Carhart coverall many times, armed with heat lamp and hair dryer to trudge through three foots drifts and thaw frozen pipes. It's a horrendous job. Pipes take forever to thaw. It wastes gobs of resources and it's expensive. Frozen plumbing can pose fire hazards, too. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! How to Prevent Plumbing and Pipes from Freezing in Winter 

Fire Safety, Emergency Preparedness Concerns for Families

Last year, a family of seven kids perished in a home fire in Pennsylvania. Without faulting the Clouse family and with deepest sympathy, it's important to ask: could this tragedy possibly have been prevented? What can we as parents take away from this terrible tragedy? The need for family emergency preparedness. And the holiday season is a time to be particularly aware of fire dangers: candles in Halloween pumpkins, decorative candles, holiday lights, flammable Christmas trees. More decorations mean more things to catch fire. I almost sent our mobile home up in smoke (and us with it) leaving a Christmas candle burning. Thankfully, we had a smoke alarm and charged fire extinguisher and my husband is a quick thinker. So check those fire extinguishers and smoke alarms. Here are more resources for parents to prepare their children for emergencies and prevent home fires. read more

Cheap Recycled Bible Character, Saints Costumes, Halloween or All Saints Day

Every parent has a little different spin on Halloween. Some go all out with the spooky costumes. Others celebrate it but only allow certain costumes. Still others make it a religious event where kids dress in Biblical costumes. Many Catholic families celebrate it for the religious holy day it is--All Saints Day. Whether you celebrate Halloween and trick-or-treat and have children dress as saints, or if you celebrate All Saints Day with a costume party, here are easy cheap Bible character and saints costumes. Use recycled materials green, eco-friendly free costumes, too. Read on Easy Bible Character and Saints Costumes for Halloween or All Saints Day 

Uses for Baking Soda: Green Cleaner, Odor Neutralizer, Health, Beauty Care

Baking soda (or bicarbonate of soda) is the definitive multi-tasker. It is the quintessential cleaner and scrubber. Baking soda deodorizers and neutralizes all sorts of odors. It's use in the kitchen, bathroom, nursery is limitless. Baking soda can be used in a multitude of ways medicinally and for first aid. Baking soda should be on every glamor girl's vanity table. And here is some great news; baking soda costs about $.39 a box. Here are over 25 ways to use baking soda in many different applications. 20 Uses for Baking Soda: Cleaner, Odor Neutralizer, Health Aid and Beauty Care