Home and yard improvement staycation

What we have been doing for over a decade now because we are poor is now the hip thing to do for the newly poor, the "staycation". A staycation is a stay at home vacation. What do anal retentive neat freaks do on their staycation? Clean, organize and fix things of course! We worked our butts off this weekend. We just moved here about 3 months ago and we are still getting things sorted out and squared away. Here's what we did......

Pat went and got some really nice plywood cut to fit the area next to the kids craft/messy sensory area in the basement where there were already 3 2x4's to nail it to. We also rearranged and reorganized the area.


The rug is actually 2 area rugs put together. They are 100% cotton and were only $5 a piece! They are perfect for the basement because they can be washed in the washer and dried in the dryer. I want more for the rest of the basement but it wasn't in the budget this month.

Now my laundry area is separate from kids area and hopefully their space is less visually overstimulating.


"THE MAN CAVE" OR "THE PAT CAVE"

Pat spent Friday ripping apart an old work bench and turning it into a computer desk/recording studio. I spent Friday putting free virus software on that old computer so he could transfer files. I uploaded the virus software and then panicked that it would somehow mess up our newer computer by registering the free one to his e-mail. So I uninstalled it. Went to put our current free virus software on the old computer only to find out that it is only for the newer computer and had to reinstall the other brand of virus software on the old computer all over again. Then I did a virus scan that took forever and then a disc cleanup and defrag to prepare the computer for transferring his files.
Pat had to go buy this foam pipe cover for the support pole after Olivia banged the side of her face on it by turning into it, Pat and I also walked into it.


It looked like this before being covered. Ouchy.

Luckily we had an old flat sheet that just happened to match the couch and throw rug to cover his equipment and protect it from the dust in the basement.

Yesterday we tackled the horribly unattractive backyard that can be best described as weeds gone wild. I think this property was vacant before my landlord bought it this winter because the entire yard front, side and back is in terrible shape. Pat finished yanking down the dead vines. I had done the majority of it where I could reach and either pull them down or cut them down with sheers last weekend. Pat had the brilliant idea to use our metal rake to snag the ones that were out of reach.

I planted some flowers against the back wall after Olivia and Pat cleaned up the area. I found these bricks where the landlord had pulled down an old shed. They were half buried in the dirt as a foundation. Reuse and recycle!!

I found a use for the gazillion rocks I had sifted from the garden I planted on the side of the house (those of you who read my other blog remember the photos of all those rocks!) I pulled and dug out all the weeds and moss from underneath the shrubs and from the front of the house and covered the areas with the rocks. Cheap and cheerful!

BEFORE AFTER

BEFORE


AFTER


THE PORCH

The inside of our porch was covered in mold, dust and dirt. I wiped down every inch from ceiling to and including the floor with diluted bleach (except the ceiling).

Gee, which is the dirty side?




Gee, which side is the clean side?


BEFORE

AFTER

Finally, a clean healthy porch!

The cats give it the sniff test.

Pat took the screen to Lowe's where they showed him how to install new screen for $5 bucks and change! The old screen had a big rip on the bottom corner and every time we go to leave the house we worry the cats might slip out and escape through the hole. He also put a latch at the bottom and a child proof zip tie on the door so we can keep the storm door open and the kids and kitties can go out on the porch when it is nice out.

Can't wait for summer!!

What is Fimo and Sculpey?

Fimo and Sculpey are polymer clays that can be shaped and cooked in the oven to become hard. Like Play-Doh but better : ) We love this stuff and when it goes on sale for $0.99 a pack we buy a bunch. Just make sure that once you open a pack you store the remainder in sealed plastic bags or air tight containers so it doesn't dry out. We have made little figurines, Christmas ornaments and magnets with it. Try it out and you will be hooked! This is a great material for kids who use Play-Doh for sensory issues or working on fine motor skills because it is harder than Play-Doh. Plus it is very motivating to use once they realize that their creations can be baked, kept and displayed. All the Sculpey creations in these pictures were made by my daughter all by herself. She is soooo artistic and creative.


She lost the first ducky and made another and then we found the first one. Even though it becomes hard when baked it is still breakable (notice the broken "feet" on the duck on the right)

Rudolph, Santa and some of his elves. Santa can come out of the sleigh as well as his sack of toys.

The brown critter on the left was made by Olivia for 100 day and had 100 spaghetti quills that all ended up snapping off : (

Olivia's handmade jewelry (I just couldn't get a clear picture. My camera was not liking her room)

Lilacs!!

I grew up in Maine and lilac bushes grew everywhere like weeds. I have such fond memories of seeing them everywhere I went outside as a kid. They remind me of being in the fresh air and walking and biking around my neighborhood before we had to REALLY worry about "strangers" and being snatched off the street. They remind me of a safer and simpler time in my life. They aren't as plentiful here so when I saw them blooming in the backyard of our new apartment I was thrilled! Here are some photos I took of the lilacs in my vase and in the backyard : )

Leaves of 3, stay away from me!!

I found these lovely Poison Ivy plants near our lilac bush when I went to cut a few down to put in a vase yesterday. There are big ones and baby ones everywhere on the second and third level of the backyard. My husband and I will be donning biohazard suits and disposing of them this weekend. Oh, joy.

Acquiring and organizing your coupons

KNOW YOUR PRICES

First you need to know your prices on the products you buy frequently. This will help you know when you are looking at a coupon if it will save you a lot of money on an item. You also need to know your prices so you know if a "sale" is really a good price. Sometimes places like Walmart have really low prices on an item or roll backs and combined with the coupon make the price drop to pocket change. Example, Lasting Impressions oil warmer kits are $4.84 at my local store and there are coupons out for $4.00 off one. They retail at most other stores for close to $10.00 and I buy them for $0.84!

SUNDAY PAPER COUPONS AND FLYERS

You need to get the Sunday paper every week and go through the coupons. When you find good ones that have a high value, can be doubled, are for the retail value and make the item FREE, buy one get one free, etc. or are for your frequently purchased items go to ebay (U.S., I don't know how things work with coupons in other countries) and find coupon clipping services by typing in "**** coupons". This is the quickest, easiest and cheapest way to aquire large amounts of coupons.

Look through the flyers in the Sunday paper and keep them on hand until the next ones come in. I used to wait until I got the flyers and saw what was on sale before I got my coupons off ebay but I have learned there is a cycle to sales and coupons of about every 3 months, some things cycle every month. This can help you budget your money knowing that if you can't buy a lot now just wait a month-3 months and it will probably be on sale again. And if you can't get a lot of coupons right now they will probably come out in the next 3 months. As you look at coupons on a weekly basis you will see the pattern of how frequently there are coupons out for your favorite items. Some only put out coupons every six months so you need to jump on them when you see them. You will see a pattern over time. Coupons are also seasonal for certain products. There are a lot of BBQ/summer food/supplies coupons in spring and summer for example.

ACQUIRING LARGE AMOUNTS OF COUPONS

So now when I see good coupons on Sunday and I know I will be using them in a great enough quantity before they expire to justify getting 10-20 I go right to ebay and get them. Make sure you acquire coupons that won't expire for at least a month so you have enough time to use them. When doing searches for coupons always sort the results from lowest to highest and put things in the watching before you make a purchase. Many coupon clipping services have combined shipping discounts and you can save a lot of money by buying different lots from one person. If you are lucky enough to find coupons that don't expire for at least 3 months to a year try to figure out how much you will need to buy and stock up on those coupons.

ORGANIZING YOUR COUPONS

It makes the most sense to have coupons on hand when sales hit for your favorite items so you can stock up. If they run out of sales items and the store offers rain checks, get one and keep it with the corresponding coupons. This can extend the sale for you by a couple of weeks to a month and help you budget your money. I use an accordian check holder to store my coupons that are divided into two sections. The first half is by month and each month has a health and beauty section and a separate section for food and pets. The last half of the holder is divided into 2 month sections and all of them are for household and cleaning supply coupons. Every week I look at what I have in that month's sections to make sure I am going to use most of them before they expire.

MAXIMIZING SAVINGS WITH COUPONS

The best coupons are $1,$2,$3, etc. off 1 item, buy one get one free, high value coupons of at least a $1.00 that don't specify size, Free and $0.75 off one.

Find a store that doubles coupons and $0.75 coupons are worth $1.50!!

Sometimes an item goes on sale for a price close to the value off of the coupon and you can get the item for pennies. My stock pile of kotex thong panty liners were close to free because they were on sale for $1.00 and my coupons were for $1.00 off of one!

If the coupon doesn't specify a size you can usually buy the smallest size and get it for change or close to free.

Use buy one get one free coupons on items that are buy one get one free and the item is FREE (not including the small amount you paid the coupon clipping service)! The shampoo and conditioner and all the St. Ives products in my stockpile were close to free because they were on sale buy one get one free and I had buy one get one free coupons.

There have been "Free" coupons for things like cat food or toilet paper that I have used to stockpile. An example is the t.p. coupons I used to stock up were valued at up to $1.00 off on 1 roll. My local store sells them for less than a dollar so I got 20 coupons off ebay for a little over $4.00. 20 rolls for under $5.00!!

KNOW THE COUPON POLICIES AT YOU FAVORITE STORES

Every store has different policies. Some limit the amount of coupons per each different item you can use, some double or even triple coupons up to $0.99. My Walmart has no restrictions on amount of coupons you can use : ) This will also guide you in what value of coupons to aquire and how many.

CHECK EXPIRATION DATES ON ITEMS

Always try to buy food, toiletries, etc. with expiration dates as far in the future as possible especially if you are buying a large quantity of items. Try to only buy what you will use before it all expires.

Hope this helps you start saving! I saved $80.00 in coupons on my last trip to Walmart and only paid a little over $20.00!

Stockpiling vs. hoarding

How is stockpiling different from hoarding? Stockpile-A supply stored for future use, usually carefully accrued and maintained. Hoard- A hidden fund or supply stored for future use; a cache.

The key difference between the two is one is hidden and the other is usually carefully accrued and well maintained. I believe I am stockpiling based on the definition. We have had some tough financial times since we have been together over 11 years. Out of necessity, I have found different ways to save money and also stockpile. I know some of my reasons for accruing such a massive amount of supplies is due to the times in the past when we had so little money that we ran out of things and just didn't have the money to go out and buy more until the next paycheck. I always ask my husband, "Do you think I'm hoarding?" He knows that I just want to make sure we always have enough and don't run out. We are still on a budget and he now gets paid bimonthly.

It seems that in this recession everyone is looking for ways to save money. One way I save tons of money is by stockpiling items that we always use when they are on sale and there is a good coupon for them. More on getting large amounts of coupons and combining them with sales and rebates in another posting. All items in my stockpiles were purchased for at least 50% off or more and some for FREE!

First, let me show you some of my stockpiles : )

This is just some of what is in my upstairs bathroom. Yes, I have enough toilet paper for an army : )

I also stockpile clothing and shoes when they are dirt cheap! I found these shoes for my daughter about two weeks ago. They were on clearance at Walmart for $1.00 a pair!! I own a pair of real Crocs and they aren't any better. I bought 3 pairs for me, one pair for Stephen to wear now and one in the next size up (they didn't have a lot in his sizes : ( ) I bought her 3 pairs to wear now. These 4 pairs are in the next size up.

12 pairs of shoes for $12.00!! What I love is they are comfy, washable, can be worn in hot weather or worn with socks when it is cool.