Creative uses for fruit that you would otherwise throw out

Welcome back to Replay Thursday, where I replay an oldie - but goodie - savings tip for you...so you don't miss out on any of the good stuff. :)

I'm still enjoying my time in Oregon with family, sorry I've been a bit on hiatus! (Gotta love vacay.)

My folks are caravanning back to Utah with me tomorrow, so we're packing up today. Part of preparing for a trip is going through the fridge and:

1. TOSSING anything that can't be salvaged (don't want to come home to a stinky fridge...) and
2. FREEZING anything that can be frozen (HERE's an example). By anything I mean anything. Leftover meals (I freeze them right in their Tupperware containers. If they are gross when they thaw out...at least you tried!), fruits/veggies, milk, juice, cheese, you name it.

My mom has a bunch of fruit in her fridge that will either go bad while she's gone, or is already on it's way "out" in terms of being firm and good to eat in the raw. Rather than throw out the fruit, find a creative use for it! The idea came from THIS post from way back when.  Here are some ideas for you:

Creative uses for fruit, RATHER than trowing it out:

• Make smoothies (like I did HERE a long time ago). 
• You can put ANYTHING in a smoothie. Veggies, fruit, leftover juice, half-eaten yogurt, you name it. I have a Blentec blender from Costco and love it. That thing can blend a rake (literally) so it always comes out smooth and good. If your fruit is on the way out, blend it up! Top it with whipped cream and you can't go wrong.

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• Make applesauce. 
• Peel them, cut them up, cook down in a crockpot with a little water, done and done.

• Make fruit leather.
• Didn't know you could do that, did ya? :) Click HERE to see how.

• Cook/bake it.
• Make a pie, cobbler, or dessert, 
• put it in a jello salad, 
• grill it (grilled pineapple?? yes please...), 
• cook with meat, 
• make into a soup,
• add it to muffins, 
• cook it down into a syrup, 
• add it to pancakes, 
• make into applesauce and use instead of oil in many recipes, 
• use bananas instead of eggs when baking, 
• make banana bread...
• the list goes on and on and on (saying aaaay oh, gotta leeeeet go.....)

I recommend allrecipes.com. Type the fruit you have into the ingredient search and it will pull up a bajillion recipes that use that fruit.

• Dry it.
• Use a dehydrator and dry the fruit. You can even do it yourself. I tried it once in the oven and it didn't work for me, but I must've done it wrong...

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• Make baby food. 
• Cook the fruit down in a crockpot with some water, or simply blend it to a pulp! Put it in leftover baby food jars, label the jar, freeze it, and you have homemade baby food for cheap (with no sugar added!).

• Puree it.  Puree the fruit in a blender (you can add a little water to make it go farther if you want). 

• Put it on top of ice cream, 
• mix it in with applesauce for your kids, 
• add it to oatmeal, 
• add to yogurt, 
• make into popsicles, 
• make into a slushy drink
• freeze it for later.

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• Freeze it.
• Peel bananas and freeze them in a baggie to use for smoothies. Wash berries, let them dry, spread them out on a cookie sheet, sprinkle sugar on them, freeze the entire pan, then put in a ziplock and freeze. Use for ice cream toppings, smoothies, desserts, or just for a cool treat. As long as the fruit is peeled, you can freeze ANYTHING. I recommend slicing or dicing the fruit first before freezing it though. Freezing a peach whole (for example) will make it mushy when it thaws. However, frozen grapes are awesome. 

Photo source

• Freeze in ice cubes.
• Looks fancy shmancy (and tastes good!) for parties.

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• Make into a slushy drink.
• Click HERE for lots of recipe ideas.

• Make into popsicles.
• Click HERE for lots of recipe ideas.

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The list seriously could go on forever.

The take-home message? DON'T THROW ANYTHING OUT before trying to get creative. Remember how that's the C in my "F.A.C.T's of saving"?...there's a good reason for that :)

What are some creative uses for fruit that YOU have used in the past?

 Happy Thursday :)

Guest post: Great deal on Food Storage buckets

I am still enjoying my time with family in Oregon, so I'm letting my friend Lauralee take over and do a post today. Get excited! Not only is she reminding us of the importance of being prepared for if when an emergency occurs, but she's also giving you amazing prices on products that will - literally - save your bacon in case of an emergency.

Thanks for the deals, Lauralee! Enjoy :)

Food Storage...Better ten years too early than one day too late

My dad is very passionate about emergency preparedness. Two years ago he started DFW Food Storage to service those in the Dallas/Fort Worth metropolitan area in Texas. They offer AMAZING prices for long-term food storage products and can give you rock-bottom prices through the power of "group buying".

The great news for you is that I am expanding and bringing these AMAZING deals for these buckets to Utah! I will be putting together an order soon. With local pick up options in Sandy and Lehi.

These dehydrated food products provide for long-term food storage needs and have a 25-year shelf life!

These are the highest of quality food storage items for the lowest possible price. Serving start at just $.24 each! The emergency food is packaged and sealed into 5-gallon pails. They are filled with nitrogen gas and will last 25 years unopened. 

The food is also packaged in a convenient family-size presentation and delivers 5 servings of survival food per package for rice dishes, and approximately 12.5 servings for the vegetable and lentil soup foods.

The only catch is I have to sell 100 bucket before I can place the order. So spread the word!

Even better, the costs on the price list includes the entire cost of shipping, handling and taxes.

*if you are in an area outside of DFW or Salt Lake City we want to still be able to service your need for food storage and there is a small $10 fee added for shipping

In the event of an emergency your local grocery stores will be emptied out in a matter of a couple days. I experienced this first hand while visiting my family last February in Texas. They had a massive ice storm. Almost the whole city shut down. All business were closed. And the grocery store shelves were empty! The fact is, stores will be cleared out in a hurry in case of emergencies and we never know when or how these may hit our area. Are you prepared? We want to help!

If you have shopped around for retail food storage, you will recognize the wonderful price these buckets are. Most retail food storage companies charge around $2/serving for dehydrated food. Costco's price for a month supply for one person is $140. Some company's with similar products are 2-3 time the price of DFW Food Storage and they also charge a hefty shipping fee!

If you are interested in ordering dehydrated food buckets look at the order form and product description list

**If you live out of the area and are interested product delivery in your area, please let me know. There are nice perks for organizers too!**

Contact information:

Lauralee Altice

801.367.0926 cell

utah@dfwfoodstorage.com

dfwfoodstorage.com

I am aiming to place an order for 100 buckets by April 28, 2012 keep in mind after an order has been placed it will take 2-3 weeks for processing and delivery.

So be prepared and let me know what you think!

Thanks - 

Lauralee

Get paid to give your kids vaccines - Utah

Remember THIS post about how I made $350ish by giving my son a flu shot through Jean Brown research? Well, here's an opportunity for YOU to make money! Here are the details:

Cash for Kids 10-12 year olds who need vaccinations for school can earn money. Each year, Jean Brown Research watches a certain number of students to make sure the vaccinations are staying in our children's systems. Its' the same shot you get at the Dr.'s office, only, the doctors at Jean Brown continue to monitor your child and the benefits of the immunization.   The trick IS...you have to call to get a spot before they are all gone. 10-11 year olds get the TDAP shot and can earn 300 bucks! 11-17 year olds get the Meningitis and HPV shots and can earn 250.00. I took my little ones in for the flu shot and they each got 250.00 for their time.   We are also enrolled to go in for a dental study. Jean Brown is monitoring the numbing shot they give children (2-5 year old's) when they get a cavity filled. Kids get a cleaning, x-rays and if they need a cavity filled they get the cash. Better than me paying for it! But spots are limited, they only study a few children each year. Oh here's the number, 801-261-2000. They are the same company giving out free formula to mothers and babies who cannot nurse or for some reason choose not to nurse-pass that good news around! Call and get on the list! 801-261-2000

Check it out. It was a bit obnoxious because I had to keep a log/journal thing at home, and had to do a bunch of visits (some of which were annoyingly long...) but hey, it's some free cash!

Want an ipad or vacation? Saving up for new clothes or furniture? You need to get to work and find a way to afford what you want, rather than spending money that you should be saving. This is an example of something that takes a little work but will help you be able to afford fun things that you WANT.

Give it a try!

Thanks to Utah Kids Club for the info.

Home.

Do you ever feel homesick?

I have never felt homesick before. Ever. In my whole life. I've always been independent, adventurous, spontaneous, and couldn't WAIT to get away from home when I was younger. But you know what? I've been a bit homesick lately.

If you haven't guessed before, I'm happiest when I'm surrounded by people. I love parties. I love gatherings. I love girl's night outs. I love going on trips with friends. I'm constantly around people!

But lately, for whatever reason, I've felt a bit lonely. It's like the Michael Buble song "Home" where he says:

Surrounded by...a million people I...still feel all alone...and I want to go home. 

Which, essentially, is what led me to drive from here:

Draper Utah, our gorgeous new home in Utah...

...to here:

The Dalles, Oregon, a tiny little orchard town where I grew up, equally as gorgeous...

Photo source

...to see these two:

...the best parents ever. 

On impulse.

By myself.

12 hours.

With a 2 yr old and a 7 month old.

By myself.

12 hours.

In a car. 

By myself.

Worth it.

Why?

I've thought about this a lot lately. I've come to a few conclusions.

For one...
I've concluded that many times the people who are deepest and dearest to you are the ones that you knew before you got married. While this isn't always the case, think about it...

• Who are the friends that know you the best?
• Who are the friends that you pick up where you left off every time you talk to them, no matter how long it's been?
• Who are the friends who you'd plan a vacation to go visit?
• Usually those are your best high school friends, college friends, and family members. 

Not always, but usually.

Why?

I think it's because when you get married your emotional need for a best friend is mostly filled. You tend to marry your best friend, so you don't make as deep of connections with people. You just don't need them as much.

I think another reason is because...we're just plain busy! We have kids, clubs, jobs, houses, pets, family gatherings, carpools, church responsibilities, and more. We simply don't have as much time to spend with friends as we did when we were single.

So why do I feel a little lonely, even though I'm surrounded by tons of great FRIENDS, and good people who are fun to be around and make me happy?

My second conclusion is this...

While I have lots of new friends, so far I don't have anyone around me who fits into the above category of my deepest and dearest. I have good and even best friends in the state of Utah, and we even have some extended family here. BUT as a mom you tend to rely heavily on your immediate network (like your neighborhood). So while there are so many amazing people in the new city we moved to...

No one knows me. 

No one loves my child like my deepest and dearest do. 

I don't really have anyone (yet) to call and vent to when I'm just having a hard day. 

I don't have anyone (yet) who I'm emotionally connected to.

And the hardest to face is...

No one needs me (yet).
It seems that people's emotional needs are filled by their deepest and dearest.

...so I needed a little dose of HOME.
(My mom just had knee surgery and she needed a lift too. Perfect!)

I say YET because I'm sure it will happen. The longer you live somewhere, the deeper your roots go. I know it seems like I'm wallowing in self-pity, but I'm actually doing ok. It's ok. I'm facing the facts. I'm out of my comfort zone, but it's good. I'm coping, I'm finding ways to get involved and am looking for my "place" in Draper, and I have no doubt I will find it eventually.

 But for now, we are new. 

We are (really) young for our area. 

And really, we are a bit alone. 

...but only for now!

So why am I boring you all with my sob story? 

I bet many of you are like, "woa! Stop complaining, sheesh!"

But here's my thought...if I'm feeling alone, I'm sure someone somewhere is also feeling alone. Wanna know what's cool about that concept?

That means we are not alone.

We all go through this. This is life. It's ok. It's beautiful, wonderful, hard, and worth it. 

It's ok.

My advice? Do something about it! I, personally, have been all over the internet looking for classes, mommy groups, book clubs, and play dates to join. I've been hosting parties, calling neighbors to go walking with me, and we have tried to have someone over for dinner and/or dessert every single weekend since we've moved in, trying to get to know people better.

If there's one thing I've learned, it's that...

...if you wait for people to come to YOU, you will be sitting around and waiting forever. If you want something to change in your life, YOU need to be the one to make the first step. You can't sit around and wait for life to happen!

Also, I find solace in turning to God and my Savior who know me better than I even know myself. It really does help, I have to say.

Once again, I'm so happy in our home. I am blessed beyond belief. BUT...I am also human, and humans need to be loved. Especially us moms! It can be lonely being home all day :) So really, I have no doubt that this feeling is temporary. In fact, I feel better already. Why?

I came home.

Ahhhh....it feels good.

Product review: ListPlanIt.com website

Happy Friday!!

Today's Friend Feature is a fun one. If you haven't noticed...

I LOVE LISTS.

I love bullet points.

I love check boxes. 

I love crossing things out.

And while I rarely get to everything on my list...I still love them! I have a bajilliion lists in my cell phone, in a notebook in my purse, on my computer, everywhere.

It's nuts.

I was introduced recently to Listplanit.com. Jennifer, the creator, is officially the QUEEN of lists.

Not even kidding. 

We might even be sisters...?

Her site is pretty cool. She challenged me to check it out. Here's my experience:

She signed me up for a "Download" membership. 

She has a few different options. The "Download" option basically means I can physically type things into the list on my computer rather than just printing out the blank list and writing it in by hand.

I was impressed with the look of the site. It's bright and airy, made me feel calmer already :) haha. It got so excited to try it out!

I wasn't quite sure where to start, so I clicked on the lists tab at the top of the site. BOY OH BOY are there so many fun options to choose from! Here are the list categories:

I went to holidays & occasions, then got excited to see TONS of birthday lists. There were 14 different lists related to birthdays, actually. So cool! Basically she thought through any list you might need and pre-created it for you so you can print it out and simply fill it in rather than creating the list for you. 

(As you see under "March" in the list above, I was able to click on a cell and type in birthdays with my download membership.)

Seriously, every list you could ever imagine is on this site. It's an organizer's dream. It's just so nice to have everything there for you so you can micro-manage your life.

Look at some of the creative options under "Home Management":

I know, right?! I would've never thought up half that stuff...

On some of the lists she has even filled in some of the ideas for you such as this one.

...so it gives you a good starting-point. 

These lists aren't digital, they are PDF format, so they are perfect for those who love to have a physical paper list with them. They are great to print out and put up on your fridge or wall.

Spring is here, time to get organized! This site can certainly help. Click HERE to check out ListPlanIt and give it a whirl. 

TGIF!

Spend less at the dentist - tips for cutting dentist costs!

Welcome back to Replay Thursday, where I "replay" an oldie - but goodie - savings tip, so you don't miss out on any of the good stuff :)

Today's post is is inspired by THIS one (posted way back when). It was one tip as to how to save money when you need a dentist. I decided to amp it up a bit, if you will, and I've added a few more tips. Enjoy!

Source

Spend less at the dentist:

• When you need a dentist, go to ADA.org and consider finding a dentist-supervised dental student. It will cost dramatically less.

• Go to dental schools for free cleaning and exams. Your appointment might take a little longer, but is worth the savings.

• Understand that dentists are trained to up-sell. A few of my husband's best friends recently graduated from dental school. They ALL said how shocked they were to learn how much sales is involved in dentistry. They work on straight-commission; if they aren't working on a patient, they aren't getting paid. My husband does sales for a living, there is nothing wrong with a salesman! It's just important to understand that dentists need to sell to make a living, too. One of my husband's friends in particular said they train them intensely on the "up-sell". "There are three types of crown, but this is the one I recommend because it will last longer and look better..." and it just so happens to be the most expensive one. Be sure to 
• A) get a second opinion, or 
• B) simply keep that in mind when you're at the dentist and try not to get up-sold!

• Use coupons and deals. I get deals ALL the time in the mail from local dentists. There are also daily deals that offer dentist deals all the time. Use my daily deal list for ideas as to where to start. They will get you into their office for a great price in the hope that:
• A) you will become a forever client, and
• B) that they will find something that needs fixing.

• Ask what things cost BEFORE getting them done! Find out how much a cleaning, exam, xray, filling, ANYTHING costs before going to the dentist. Which then leads to the next tip...

• Negotiate pricing. Simply say, "that's not in my budget" or "is there any way to bring that cost down so it's more affordable for my family?" or "Is that the best pricing available? Is there anything you can do?" Most dentists (and doctors too!) are more than willing to cut you a deal, simply for asking.

• Prevention is key. Floss, brush, take care of those teeth of yours...you want to keep them for a very, very long time!

Those are a few quick tips for affordable ways to keep those pearly-whites sparkling!

Source

Thanks to this article for some of the tips

My Favorite Things: The perfect "Tub Toy" basket

I haven't posted a "Favorite Thing" in a while, so I thought it was about time!

While this favorite thing might not be all that exciting, it's saved my life in terms of Tub Time.

If your kids are anything like mine, they love tub toys. If they are anything like mine, they have lots of them. And if they are anything like mine, your tub has a tendency to look like this:

It really creeps me out when toys stay in tubs. They stay wet, they get kinda stinky, and who knows what germs and nastiness are lurking under them all.

Shudder.

There are tub toy wall baskets that suction on, but my son would pull those down in about 1.354 seconds. My personal solution is this baby!

I got this basket for $1 at Family Dollar when my son was a baby and I've used it every single day since. 

I keep all the tub toys in there and simply keep it on the side or bottom of the tub.

It's sturdy, and I love that it's full of BIG holes. The toys can't fall out, yet all the water runs through and they dry completely. 

 My son loves to take the entire basket into the water with him. He thinks it's totally awesome.

 When we're done my son scoops up all the toys in the basket, and the water runs out the bottom. 

I've gotta tell you...I love this thing! I don't think it's sturdy enough to use as a conventional laundry basket, but it's PERFECT for the tub because it's so lightweight.

So there you have it! Simple, effective, cheap. 

boo ya. It sooo gets the stamp.

 What do you use to organize your tub toys? I'd love to hear your ideas!

FCF Weekend Wrap-Up: Free tix to a musical, concert (back stage with the bands!), dinner with lots of freebies & tons of other fun, cheap, free things

It feels like Monday to me, but happy Tuesday nonetheless!

(Thanks, by the way, for your sweet comments and concern yesterday! Baby Priya is doing better, just sick and miserable.)

Other than having to go to the hospital at 4am on Sunday I had the most amazing weekend! It was one of the funnest, cheapest, and free-est weekends I've had in a long time. Here's what I did...

Thursday:

Started a consulting session with a FCF reader, Shelese. It's exciting to see how much money her family is saving already! (Want me to help you save too? Check out some details HERE.)

Friday:

My hubby and I went on a hot date! My birthday was on the 8th, but Friday was my real birthday celebration. When my hubby asked what I wanted for my birthday this year I said 

1) to eat out a lot using my freebies list (to avoid cooking), 

2) to have people over for a dessert party, 

3) to go to a play (I'm a theater nerd)

The first two were easy, but the tickets to the play we wanted to see were a little pricey ($28 each). But in true form, my husband ended up WINNING tickets! He wins everything. Remember how I wanted an ipad for my birthday last year so he won me one? I need to start writing down everything he wins, we could write a book someday...

He simply puts his mind to something, looks for opportunities to enter contests with the prize he wants, and DOES IT. It's that simple! You'd be surprised at how many people DON'T enter contests because they 

A) don't want to put in the work, or 

B) figure they won't win. Trust me, if you try hard enough, you'll win eventually.

Anyway, we went to dinner at our favorite sushi place that always has 1/2 off rolls (making them around $3 each! Yes Please!) then went to the US Premier of Zorro at the Hale Center Theater here in Salt Lake. We had amazing seats. Honestly, it was one of the best musicals I've been to in a long long long time. It was so fun and so well done!

 There was sword fighting,

 Lots of dancing,

 And some Da-Rah-Ma!

It was hilarious and exciting. Loved it. 

We traded babysitting with friends so we didn't spend a dime on sitters. Otherwise we would've had to pay for 6 hours of babysitting. OUCH. Always try to trade when you can!

Saturday:

We cleaned out the garage. Boring, but feels oh-so-good.

Saturday evening I had a fun girl's night out with my bestie from College, Bree (you'll see her in most of the pics HERE). She recently broke off her engagement so we decided to go wild for a night! (In a good, clean, fun type of a way, haha!).

We started off the night eating dinner with our friend Nikki at Buca Di Beppo's. 

I'm on their email list so I got a $10 off $20 coupon in the mail.

Boo ya.

I also signed up for their birthday freebies from THIS list and got a free dessert coupon.

Bingo.

But then...I also checked my emails on my phone real fast at the restaurant and found ANOTHER coupon! It was for a free chicken canoli because it was St Patty's day. 

Are you kidding??

Technically they are only supposed to let us use one coupon per table per visit, but I asked...and guess what? He let us use them all.

Behold the power of asking, people. 

Remember the "A" (be assertive) in my F.A.C.T's? Learn it. Live by it. Love it.

We ate the Canoli as an appetizer then split two dishes. I wish I had taken a picture of the pasta dishes, they were the biggest portions I have ever seen in my life. Not even kidding.

Here's what our receipt looked like:

The $11.95 "good will" was because we worked some magic. It was Nikki's birthday too, so we asked the waiter if we could get TWO birthday sundaes. He brought us out this instead:

a $12 GINORMO dessert!

What do we learn here? A) ask ask ask ask ask ask ask. B) make friends with your waiter!

Ok seriously, look at the size of this dessert!!! It has 6 scoops of ice cream...I'm just sayin'....

My friend Bree also made friends flirted with the bartender and we got free soft drinks out of it. She also was given a free shot...which was a bit awkward because we don't drink....

Very kind of him though.

Anywho...

After dinner Nikki headed home and Bree and I headed to a concert. 

P.S...Do you recognize this dress? Yup, this is one of the ones I got for $1.99! (See HERE)

Three bands played, "The After Party" (unfortunately we missed most of their performance because the line outside was so long)

 "Secondhand Serenade", 

and "Boyce Avenue."

Seriously, they all sounded amazing. Best live music I've heard in a long, long time. I hate to say it, but they all sound much better live than recorded.

 (My little brother is a musician so I'm a live music snob!)

We hung out after the concert and struck up conversations with random people. Turned out to be members of The After Party! (oops...didn't even recognize them...)

We had such fun talking with them, they brought us out to the tour busses to show us around and introduce us to the bands.

Bree with John Vesely from Secondhand Serenade

We ended up hanging out with them all for a while, then we headed out and went dancing for a bit before heading home.

Yes, I'm a mom of two.

Yes, I feel too old to go to concerts and go dancing sometimes...

but YES...

a girl's night out is SO HEALTHY once in a while!

(Especially when your bestie is cute and single.)

Oh, and just for the record,

!YES!

My husband is amazing to let me galavant all over the city with my wild and fun friend. Isn't he the cutest?

Sunday

I had a childhood friend over for dinner last minute. I didn't have time to go to the store and wanted something yummy, but needed it to be from things that I had on-hand.

I made my crockpot salsa chicken. I added kidney beans (didn't have any black beans) and corn to the crockpot for more heartiness. I made a whole line of toppings in bowls on our island (lettuce, red onion, diced tomato, cilantro, avocado, refried beans, cheese, salsa, etc...) and we had tostadas, spanish rice, and black bean soup (puree black beans, salsa, and chicken stock. EASY!). It was delish...and I didn't have to buy a thing. LOVE.

Unfortunately dinner was interrupted and cut short by Priya's 104 degree temp, but it was fun while it lasted. 

WHEEW!

That was my fun/cheap/free weekend! How was yours?