Tasty Tuesday

Cook Books

If you are like me you collect recipes from every source. Magazines, newspapers, hand written scraps from your friends house, Internet print out, and everywhere else. LOL!

Well here is my solution: Make your own cook book.

First you will need a few things. I had most of these around my house when I made mine.

• A 3-ring binder - 3" would be great and a clear pocket on the front is handy too.



• Page protectors - easy to keep clean!



• Left over craft paper and stickers if you want



• computer paper

I made a cover for mine to match my kitchen color and added a little title.

Then I made dividers labeling the section. Hints and tips, breakfast, breads, soups and salads, main dishes, kids favorites, pasta, cookies, deserts, and cake decorating ideas.

Next start adding you recipes. I have a mix of magazine cut outs ( I LOVE pictures.),

printed out pages,

and hand written. Some of the are on odd ball scraps so I just glue them to a piece of paper first.

A couple of hints here.

If you are printing from a blog: cut and paste to word or whatever program you use. Also include the name of the blog/site you printed from. This makes for easy referencing if you need help or more information about that recipe.

When dealing with hand written recipes, be sure to write who you got the recipe from or what book you copied from.


Also a binder with an inside pocket is nice. Sometimes you want to try a recipe before you add it or you simply don't have time to add it yet.

Are you lucky enough to have a spot to stand this baby up? Make sure to label the spine.

These make great gifts. I made one for my sister one year. It had red and white checked paper and I found some cute little ant stickers. Very Cute!! You can make it so individualized it's insane!!

Remember to think about Christmas, mother's Day, and birthdays. You could even make a smaller Blank Family Recipes Favorites. Make one for each sibling ! Or you could make one for a missionary, collage student, or newly weds.

Thrifty Thursday

Think Thrifty

Thrift Stores that is!

My friend Daphne is the queen of second hand store shopping. Goodwill is like her second home. She can find the most awesome finds. Not only the cutest dresses for her girls but every thing from hoodies to dressers. She also knows how to rock it on Craig's list. I often (think at least weekly) find myself ogling her finds.

How does she do it? I ask her this all the time. She goes often. She knows when the racks will be stocked. She is friendly with the workers. She asks questions. She also has their return policy down pat.

Recently Elizabeth and I needed some jeans. So off to Goodwill we went. I got both of us killer dark washed jeans that looked brand new and fit perfectly for $3.99 a pair. NOT BAD!! Not to mention they were name brand not walmart brand.

Parade Magazine (Sunday paper) had a article the Secrets of Secondhand Shopping. A good quick read to get the inside scoop.

Thrifty Thursday

Just like the Restaurant

One of my families goals is to stop eating out as much. We would like to keep it down to twice a month, but we will probably bee weak and go out once a week. We will try though. So to accomplish my goal I set about to find the foods I love in a cheaper way. Making them at home. Initially this can cost a bit to get set up with the pantry items you will need to have on hand. In the long run though it is way cheaper. Plus can be a whole lot funner than waiting in line and having to possibly put up with bad service or cranky kids (your or theirs).

In may search I found a great little site that hosted some of my top favorites!

Restaurant Recipes

Below are a few of my to die fors right off the top!

KFC original recipe!!!
olive garden bread sticks recipe
Outback steakhouse potato soup recipe

Thrifty Thursday

Take a mini vacation

Not everyone can afford a trip to Disneyland or a romantic getaway cruise. Here are some ideas for local and lower cost day trips and mini-vacations.

The local zoo. For me this is Point Defiance and North West Trek. Also we are planning a trip up to Woodland Park Zoo (here is a coupon worth $2 off up to 4 tickets). Point Defiance and NW Trek have a great combo membership you might want to consider. Remember memberships can make up for what you would pay in one or two visits. Plus when you have a membership it is like a prepaid fun-day!

Local water parks and/or theme parks. For me this would be Wild Waves Water Park & Enchanted Village.

Museums and Historical Centers. Places like the Museum of Flight, the Pacific Science Center, and the Tacoma Art Museum are all great places to visit and learn. If your going to Tacoma visit the the Museum District. If you want to be super local check out the Karshner Museum. Keep in mind most museums offer one free or discounted admission day each month.

Looking for something a little more romantic? A Bed & Breakfast can be a sweet treat. Washington is full of them. Just google bed and breakfast and you will find tons of sites ready to help you choose. My personal favorite is the Chinaberry Hill . The view is to die for, the food is killer good, they have an open snack bar, and the owners are total sweet hearts!!

Local landmarks. Snoqualmie Falls, Decetions Pass, Mount Rainer, Mount St. Helen. Take your pick. Washington has so much to offer. State Parks.com has a great list of all national parks.

Whatever you do ENJOY IT!!!

Thrifty Thursday

Joy in Frugality

As I read my Sunday paper I went right for the easy stuff. The parade magazine. I get my bits of gossip, a few comics, and a look at what easy and quick reads there are. With kids and Sunday mornings this is my quick fix. In this process I found an article I thought perfect for this blog. Finding Joy in Frugality by Alix Kates Shulman.

What a great find and a must read for anyone who thinks life ends when ones decides to be frugal. Here are some quotes that I found most enlightening.

"If you don’t need it, don’t buy it; never buy a new one if your old one works; never buy an expensive one when a lower-priced one will do. I abandoned bookstores for libraries, restaurants for my kitchen, boutiques for bargains—and soon found myself enjoying a gleeful sense of liberation."

" Instead of buying what you think you need, adapt your needs to what’s around you. "

Thrifty Thursday

On the Cheap

Work outs

I want to get rid of my baby belly. Seriously the twins are 2+ and I still look 6 month pregnant. GRRRRR!! So I am going to get my body back....I hope. So today I scrolled through my cable's on demand and found a plethora of work outs!! No gym fees, no baby sitter needed. Hey I don't even have to worry about a descent workout out-fit nobody will see me!! Oh and if you don't have on demand with you TV service check out the public library's DVD/video section!! So here is to free work outs!

Online shopping

Here are some great sites for those "secret" codes.

currentcodes.com * retialmenot.com * couponheaven.com

Gift wrap and cards

Just come to my house and get some from me!! Seriously I say almost every gift bag and piece of tissue paper that comes in my door. I haven't spent my money on gift bags in probably 5 years!! So save those oh so cute bags, you will use them again!! Also I saw a cute gift tag made from a piece of child's art. Too cute!! Wouldn't the Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts and Uncles love those!!

Dinner out

Restaurants.com !!!! Check out this entry at the Bargain jargon for more info! The deals are amazing!!

Also for a family night we like to hit up Sheri's on Saturday. Two kids per adult meal eat for free after 4 pm on Saturdays. For us that means all our kids are free!! Plus the kids get a yummy treat for desert.

Movies

I have fallen in love with RedBox!! When you sign up online you get a code for a free rental plus they put out codes every Monday and Wednesday for free rentals, one per debit/card card used. Even if you don't have a code movies are only $1.00 per day!!!

Again here look at your cables/satellite on demand section for all kind of free movies. or your local public library!!