Jen from Thrifty NW Mom, Karrie from Happy Money Saver and I have teamed up to bring you the most comprehensive list of Christmas Family Fun in the Pacific Northwest. In this post, I have listed Christmas events, kid-friendly outings, bazaars & craft fairs, and concerts in Western Oregon and SW Washington. Head to Thrifty NW Mom for a list of Puget Sound events and Happy Money Saver for a list of Eastern Washington and Central and Eastern Oregon events. PORTLAND METRO America's Largest Christmas Bazaar, November 25-27 & December 2-4, Portland Artisans in the Grove Holiday Market, November 2 & December 3, Forest Grove Christmas Keep Reading
Pacific NW Christmas Events: SW Washington & Western Oregon edition
What’s for Dinner?: This week’s menu plan (10/31)
Meal planning is a great way to help your family live within your monthly grocery budget. For those of you who haven’t started creating weekly menu plans, take the plunge! You can do it. Come up with a system that works for you. You don’t have to plan on Mondays. Do it on your payday or grocery shopping day. You don’t have to do a full week. Start with two or three days at a time. Keep at it for a few weeks until you see the benefits for yourself! For those needing some inspiration, here's a list of what's for dinner at my house this week: Monday -- Halloween party! Lots of kid friendly food -- sandwiches, cheese & crackers, olives, Keep Reading
Frugal Trick: Use shampoo to clean make-up brushes
Frugal Trick from reader, Kai: I use mineral makeup and have a lot of brushes to clean. Instead of using the expensive make-up brush cleaner they try to sell you, I use regular shampoo to clean the brushes. The brushes feel great! Do you have a household remedy, quick fix or money-saving method up your sleeve? Head here to share your frugal trick with the rest of the Frugal Living NW community! Keep Reading
Frugal Trick: Using hair conditioner as shaving cream
I was watching the Home Shopping Network while making dinner last week (yes, I am fascinated with shopping networks. Those people can sell.). They were selling a new book, The "Who Knew?" Almanac, which shares little and well-known tricks to save money. They were highlighting a few tricks from the book and one caught my eye (and ear) -- Use cheap hair conditioner as shaving cream. Interesting. Mostly because I am almost out of real shaving cream and I was planning to wear capris the next morning. So, I put my free-after-coupon hair conditioner to the test. Would it work as well as shaving cream, or regular soap for that matter? The result? It Keep Reading
Frugal Homemaking for October
Shakshuka from Smitten Kitchen If you have never heard of Shakshuka, allow me to be the first to introduce you. It's an Israeli dish of poached eggs in a spicy tomato sauce. Served with a side of bread, it's a great meal for breakfast, brunch, or dinner. Try a south-of-the-border spin on it by swapping cilantro for the parsley and tortillas for the pita bread. Muy delicioso. Enchiladas with Green Tomato Sauce from The Oregonian's Foodday section Have more green tomatoes than red ones now? Check out this recipe. Do you have a favorite way to use green tomatoes? Spicy Sauteed Corn from Orangette Corn is one of my favorite late Keep Reading
Frugal Fine-Print, part 3
photo credit Guest Post by Kari Patterson from Kari Patterson.com. This is her final post in a 3-part series. Welcome back! Last week, we talked about the key to making frugality last: Live Simply. By simplifying and streamlining we can gain more than we drain and leave a legacy of gracious giving, not irritable exhaustion. Here are a few practical ways to make it happen: :: Watch the clock. The real trap of deal-hunting can be the toll it takes on our time. Anyone else ever get caught up in online coupon clipping and then realize we forfeited two hours to save two dollars? Not worth it. To keep things simple, set aside a small amount Keep Reading
Frugal Fine Print, part 2 of 3
photo credit Guest Post by Kari Patterson from KariPatterson.com. This is the second post in a 3-part series. On Monday, we looked at my humdinger of a frugal failure. Today let's think big-picture. If you have ever felt frustrated in your pursuit of frugality, you're not alone. Some of us are swimming in the sea of coupons, discounts, sales, and specials and still not achieving the frugal life we're striving for. The deal is not working. We've got all the coupons, but the register is beeping and nothing is going through. And we're frustrated. We're saving our pennies but losing our joy. We're gaining a dollar here and there, but Keep Reading