Freebie Friday!

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Product Review: Carpet Express

About a month ago the carpet in my office had become so gross I couldn't stand to be in there.  Our sweet and "innocent" dog Lilly decided to make it her master bathroom.  Have you ever tried to get dog pee smell out of carpet?  It is not easy.  My husband decided we should shampoo it or just rip it out and replace it.  (It was horrible.  Ewww..I'm having flashbacks.)  

We decided to try the shampoo route.  I called up our local Home Depot and rented this sweet machine called Carpet Express (at left) for only $25/day (or $15/hr if you think you can get this done in an hour).  It's so simple to use!  You just add the proper amount of shampoo (the nice man at HD will tell you) and fill the reserve up with hot tap water.  It's a shampoo/scrub/vacumn all in one easy step.   

Now that it has been about a month since I used the machine I am starting to see a couple spots returning.  However, I am pretty sure they are my fault.  I scrubbed this rug with so many different products that there is a build up or residue from the other cleaners.  In the places I never tried cleaning before they look brand new!

Rating:

User friendly- 4 Stars (some parts are a little wonky if you don't get them in just right and you can only go in straight lines)

Cost- 5 Stars (way cheaper than hiring a professional)

Smell- 4.5 Stars (the shampoo you have to use smells like baby shampoo to me)

Overall rating: 4.5 Stars!

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Tub Help!

I have a confession to make. I loathe scrubbing the bathtub! I'll let it go for a couple of weeks (nasty, I know)!!

See, we live in an apartment and have a plastic (?) garden tub that is textured. For a woman who is 5'2" this is not a good combination for a couple of reasons:

1) I cannot reach into the tub very well because my arms are so short. (Stop laughing)

2) You really have to apply some pressure in order to really clean the grime out of the textured dimples of the tub. While those little dimples have saved me from slipping they are still the thorn in my side.

My solution? Dish Scrub Brushes and soft scrub!

I use the lemon Soft Scrub and I just squeeze it all over my dry tub and rub it in a little bit, just to spread it out, then I let it soak while I clean the sink.

I don't know if the "soaking" thing really works but I do it every time. Anyway...once I'm done with the sink I come back and turn on the shower to get make sure all of the Soft Scrub gets wet then I used my handy little scrubber brush and get to work. It only takes a few moments and a little elbow grease but even the residue leftover from a mechanic husband will come up with this technique! Trust me, I know from experience!

Use the Soft Scrub with Bleach for the really tough stuff!

Save Big, Save Small

Here are some practical tips for downsizing your lifestyle in this rough and tough economy! Whether you try one or try them all...I am sure they will help!!!

These are in no particular order, by the way...

~If you need to save money to catch up on bills, or just get a little ahead, declare a "no spending" month! You'll be amazed how much you save when you only pay bills and buy necessities like food and gas! No toys, books, haircuts, movie rentals, clothes or eating out!

~The markup on household cleaning products is HUGE! Consider making your own household cleansers. Head to the library and try to find a book about Green cleaning tips!

~Use a hand towel, mop and old rags instead of disposables like paper towels, cleaning wipes and Swiffer pads.

~The best deals at the grocery story can be found on the top and bottom shelves. Companies pay top dollar to be featured eye-level.

~Keep nonperishable snacks in the car to cut down on visits to convenience stores and vending machines!

~Make large batches of convenience foods, like waffles, French toast sticks, and pancakes, in your own kitchen and freeze them. Pop the waffles or pancakes in the toaster (and the french toast sticks in the microwave) for quick convenience food without the added cost!

~Make sure your tires have the proper amount of air in them...this will save you SO much in gas! Keeping your engine tuned will also be a HUGE help!

~Use cruise control to get better gas mileage.

~Buy gifts throughout the year, whenever you see things on sale, and put them away until needed. Keep a running list of what you've bought and for whom, so you don't end up with three plaid throws for Uncle Bob. Check out the post on Cozi, it could help a lot in this area!

~Put together a theme basket of gifts for a family instead of individual presents - for example, a DVD, popcorn and drinks!

~Try to make an extra mortgage payment during the year, or add a little extra to your mortgage payment each month. This will help you save on interest and reduce your loan balance more quickly!!!

I hope these tips help. Stay tuned though...we may post more of these money saving ideas in the future!!

Need more financial help? Check out the book Dollars & Sense: a mom's guide to money matters by Cynthia Sumner or head over to http://www.crown.org/!

Coupon Resources

Hey everyone!  Do you ever wish you had a coupon for something you needed? I know I do!  Here are some of my favorite places to get coupons (if you don't get a newspaper) and special offers online.

Coupons.com  is a site with basically every coupon you can get in your newspaper.  In fact, if you do see something you could use in your paper check out this site and you can have double the coupons!

Smartsource.com is the online version of the Smart Source insert in your Sunday paper.

Coolsavings.com  is a great resource for grocery coupons as well as online shopping specials such as free shipping.

Thegrocerygame.com  is a membership site that databases the grocery sales in your city and compiles a registry of what is on sale, what is a great deal and what you can get for free.  (Yes, FREE!)  I love the fact that they tell you exactly which coupon to use and the date of the paper it was in.  This is my all time favorite resource!

iheartcvs.com is a site for those of us who love to shop CVS and use Extra Care Bucks (ECBs).  

Did I miss a great coupon resource?  If so, let us know in the comment section!

Gettin' Cozi

As a busy working mom if there is one thing I know it's that there aren't enough hours in the day. Let alone hours wasted tracking down family members and backtracking to pick up things forgotten.

I have found something that just might revolutionize your entire life.

I'm not kidding.

Let me introduce you to my new best friend, Cozi. This nifty (and cute) little site is packed with HUGE helps such as:

• A family calendar
• Customizable lists
• Send reminders and messages
• Mobile phone access
• Photo collage screen saver
• Plus it will sync to Outlook!

Here's what makes Cozi so unique. If used correctly, it will become your families launching pad. Take the family calendar for example. Every member of your family get his or her own color so that identifying the who's who from the what's what is easy enough for a preschooler to do!

Cozi even syncs with Outlook! That means when Mom or Dad update their calendar at work, Cozi automatically updates the family calendar - no more missed appointments or double bookings!

Oh, and if you're sitting at Chick-fil-a waiting on your play date friends to arrive and start thinking "...wait, are we supposed to be at McDonald's today?" you can call Cozi and have today's appointments read to you or texted to your phone!

(standard text messaging fees probably apply.)

Oooh, now lets look at another one of my favorite features!! The customizable list feature!

Cozi promises "No more sticky notes and scraps of paper, no more return trips to the grocery store. Cozi helps you manage the various items you need to purchase and tasks that need to be done."

Anything you can think of to list (favorite dinner ideas, errands for the day, Christmas shopping list) Cozi can help! So if you make a mad dash to the store to pick up some TP and they have a sale on something you *think* might be on the Christmas shopping list, you just give Cozi a call and they will text it to you (or read it to you over the phone)!

Last but certainly not least...

Keeping your family up to speed throughout the day is a no-brainer with Cozi. Have a change of plans or need something from the store? Send a quick email or text message. You don't even need a cell phone, because you can do it all from your Cozi family home page!! Now Dad can swing by the store on his way home to pick up that gallon of milk!

This isn't even all the stuff that Cozi offers...this is just the top of the iceberg people! Go check it out!

Did I mention that all of this is FREE!?