Author Archives: Traci Anderson

5 New Uses for Old CDs

My son just walked into a living room with an old music CD stuck on his thumb. “Look Mommy…a ring”. “Cute, honey…now throw your ring in the garbage before you break it”. While I would never suggest that old CDs would make a pretty ring, it made me wonder what I could do with the piles of CDs I have shoved in my desk. They are everywhere because my husband recently bought me an Ipod at a discount store. While I hate to throw away perfectly good music CD’s, I can’t imagine that there is a big market for the … Continue reading →

A Frugal (and Humane) “Do it Yourself” Mousetrap

Last night I was busy blogging in my dining room when I heard a scurrying sound in the kitchen. I knew immediately what it was. “Ug…here we go again”, I grumbled. A few weeks earlier we had a mouse who had been visiting our kitchen each evening. My husband purchased sticky tape traps and placed them on the kitchen floor. Unfortunately, he left for work early that morning and left me with a frantic little mouse to deal with. It was awful. “Oh mommy…he’s so cute”, my daughter squealed when she saw our very own Stuart Little. I could stand … Continue reading →

Frugal Summer Gatherings: Host a Neighborhood Seafood Boil

You’ve just read the title of this post and are probably finding it hard to believe that I am associating seafood with frugality. Don’t tune me out yet. I am anxious to share one of my favorite, and yes …least expensive entertaining ideas. If you aren’t familiar with a seafood boil, here is a quick definition from Wikipedia.com; “ A boil is usually done in a large pot (60 to 80 quarts) fitted with a strainer and heated by propane. Seasonings include crab boil packets, cayenne pepper, hot sauce, salt, lemons, and bay leaf. Ears of corn, new potatoes, onions, … Continue reading →

Garage Sales – Three Big Pet Peeves

Yet another post I am starting with a disclaimer. If you are looking for garage sale tips, advice, strategies..or anything remotely useful from this post stop reading and read these wonderful posts instead… Pricing Items at a Garage Sale Garage Sale Season Has Arrived Why Should I Have a Garage Sale? However, if you would like to commiserate with me a bit while I vent about my biggest garage sale pet peeves….you will probably appreciate my little temper tantrum this evening. If you haven’t figured it out yet, I went garage sale’ing this morning. Normally, I love garage sales. I … Continue reading →

I Just Made $250 by Paying My Bills

Perhaps I should start this post with a disclaimer. I am going to talk about credit cards. Personally, I have a love – hate relationship with the convenient little pieces of plastic. If you are able to pay the balance on your credit card (in full) each month…continue reading. If not, this is not the post for you. Around this time last year I made a decision to pay all of my bills with my credit card. This included my auto insurance, my utility bills, my cable, internet, phone…etc…). In fact, I used my card to buy everything – groceries, … Continue reading →

Save Money by Hiring a Baby-Entertainer Vs. a Baby-Sitter

The other day I was talking with a girlfriend of mine about my various home-based businesses and how hard it was finding time to catch up. Last year, I hired a high-school student to watch my children two days per week while I went to a coffee shop to catch up on e-mails and write. She was wonderful, but frankly when I factored in the cost of the drive, my coffee and her services I am not sure if I was able to make enough money to make up the difference. “Why don’t you hire my daughter to watch your … Continue reading →

Save Money by Making a “Cream of Leftovers” Soup

Tonight I am having what I affectionately refer to as “cream of leftovers” soup. It is delicious. In fact, it is the best meal I’ve had all week. Last night, my husband and I grilled some steaks and asparagus spears. Unfortunately, I waited a bit too long to cook the spears so some of them were a little, well…floppy. I love asparagus and I hated wasting them. I decided to chop them into pieces and put them in a crockpot with Campbell’s classic Cream of Mushroom soup. Have you ever made a fantastic meal using miscellaneous items from your cupboard … Continue reading →

Tie on an Apron and Become a Frugal Fashionista

A friend of mine recently moved into a new home and I was looking for a unique housewarming gift for her. As I was surfing the internet, I noticed that aprons are becoming popular again. Whenever someone mentioned the word apron in the past, I would cringe. “Are you kidding me?” “I would never be caught in an apron”. It brought up visions June Cleaver or stereotypical “barefoot and pregnant” housewife. As I continued my search I was fascinated by the beautiful “hostess aprons” that were available. There were ones with cherries prints, some were made with vintage fabrics and … Continue reading →

Keep Your Kids Busy this Summer by Starting an Activities Co-Op

I spent much of last Saturday afternoon playing at a local gymnastic studio with my daughter. It was a blast. She had been invited to a birthday party by one of her preschool playmates. As I watched her tumble, hang, somersault and spin (with a grin that lit up the room) I immediately went to the front desk to find out the class rates for the summer. I felt like I had been hit with a ton of bricks. A class for one child cost thirteen dollars per three hour session. While that wouldn’t break our budget too badly, I … Continue reading →

Need a Little “Fun Money”? Donate Plasma

Perhaps I should start by clarifying. I am not talking about your plasma television. I am talking about your blood. Okay, technically the yellow liquid part of your blood that suspends blood cells. I used to sell my plasma back in college. At the time, I sold my plasma for purely selfish reasons – pizza, beer and text books. If you live in a town near a college, the chances are probably pretty good that you have a plasma donation center near you. The process is actually quite simple (if you are not squeamish about needles, that is). You start … Continue reading →