A side benefit to being frugal with money (ie. broke) occurred recently when the children wanted to decorate cupcakes. We’d run out of sprinkles but my!, they were amazed that I could make colored sugar. They kept hollering, “Look! Mama MADE this sugar! Look, it’s
colored!” I’ve learned a few other things about being frugal in the house during this hard time:
* Buying generic brands in everything is frustrating, but it has also introduced me to a few alternate products. The store-brand Saltines in one store, for example, taste like the Premium brand.
* Laundry gets just as clean on a longer cycle with half the detergent called for on the box.
* Breakfast is cheaper by far without cold cereal. Cereal uses too much expensive milk! I’ve been making muffins, pancakes, cinnamon rolls, etc.
* The children don’t NEED prepared snack foods like Cheez-Its and Rold Gold pretzels. They will keep content as long as they have SOMEthing when they are hungry.
* Free, fresh eggs from our chickens are awfully useful
* Margarine, even though I’m NOT happy to have it instead of butter, at least spreads more easily.
* The chickens can live – and thrive – on only table scraps (thanks to the baby, we have plenty!) and free-ranging (that’s a term for letting them loose).
I’ll think of more tips soon, I’m sure!
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