Norwex, If you like that sort of thing

Okay, so I am still a fan of homemade cleaners, but I have found a new product that is spinning my tuque (as my mom would say). Norwex is a Norwegian company that makes cleaning cloths, among other things, that you only use water with. The cloths kill germs but are 100% safe for you and your kids. Clean your house with water. Shazam! How's that for natural.
The down side is that it's fricken expensive. Seriously.
UNLESS...
You host a party. I went to my friends party, bought a few items and signed up to host. My party was last night, and I am BLOWN AWAY by all the free stuff I am getting. Everyone should hose one and invite all their friends. This is one product that is worth spending on, if you can; but if you can't, it is well worth your while to make up some snacks and have the girls over.
The product I am specifically salivating over are their face cloths.
$20 for three, and they'll last at least 2 years. Sounds pricey. Until I tell you that you will no longer have to buy face soap (mine costs $30 every three to four months) or exfoliator (which if you haven't been buying, you seriously need to read up on exfoliating) OR makeup remover. Yes, it takes off foundation. Yes, even waterproof mascara. Yes, yes, yes. You can use up those products and not buy them anymore. These cloths are going to pay for themselves in the first 3 months. I LOVE how clean my face feels after I use my pink face cloth - it actually feels CLEANER.
So if you are at all interested, I would highly recommend it...

Roughing It - SPA 3.0

Last night was SPA night, and although this may not excite you as much as it excites me, I finally found a hair dye in the right color. Nice'n'Easy 120 (Natural Dark Brown). I have tried 4 different colors the last 4 times I have done my hair, which has left me a bit mottled looking, so things are looking up from here! What is really exciting about finding a color I like is that Nice'n'Easy sells touch up kits for 2 or 3 bucks cheaper, so if I don't change my color, I save even more money when I cover up those unsightly white hairs that are sprouting like weeds all over my head.

Any Requests???

Remember how I said that I was going to try to sell stuff online for the next big project? Well, after my friend commented on that post about her great successes in that area, I figured that it's been proven that it works, she says she's made a bzillion bucks doing it - so you don't need to hear it again from me. So I will skip that and find a new pasture to graze in.... only, I am not sure where.
Any suggestions, dear readers? Is there an area of money saving that you are interested in and would like me to head?
As you can tell from my infrequent posting, I am at a bit of a loss as to what comes next.
I'll do some brainstorming, and get back to you....

Oatmeal on the Cheap

I don't even know if I have mentioned it before, but a big savings in our monthly grocery budget is oatmeal. A big 1 kilo bag of it is between 5 and 6 bucks and will last a month. Considering that a box of cereal is the same price and will last a week, oatmeal is a good idea, even every few days.
Here is our tried and tested recipe:

Burton Oatmeal
(1 serving)
1/2 cup quick oats
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
Handful of raisins or cranberrys (optional)

mix in a microwavable glass bowl (make sure you've room to spare because oatmeal grows). Microwave uncovered for 3 minutes, then stir. Microwave for 3 more minutes. Stir again and let sit for a minute or so.

We eat it with brown sugar and milk, but I've been tempted to try honey... mmmmm....

America, Cheap America

EVERYTHING that I wanted was cheaper in the States.
My craft supplies (I needed special paint) was half the price.
My make up was 10 bucks cheaper.
My hair spray was close to the same.
A gallon (4L) of milk was $1.99.
And the lawnmowers were $100 cheaper than here, at regular price ($360 Here, $260 there - HOT). We didn't end up getting one though, because I have heard tell that there are some cheaper places right here in town, so we are going to investigate (and borrow our neighbors mower in the mean time).
And for the men out there: everything we looked at in Home Depot was cheaper there. In a disturbing role reversal, my husband was full of shopping excitement while I wandered around aimlessly with the baby wondering when we were going to eat.

Shopping Around, Internationally

We are going to visit one of my favorite people in Washington this weekend - and her mommy of course! One of my dearest friends moved to the States a few years ago for the love of her man, and in order to have any proper girl time, one of us has to make a road trip. I could pretend that this is a bad thing, but I happen to LOVE Walmart in the States. And Joanne's; my word, any other crafters out there?

So we are heading down tonight, and tomorrow we SHOP!

In times past, I would shop for clothes and girly stuff, but since we are homeowners now, our shopping is going to look a little different. For example, we are going to check out lawn mowers. Sexy, no? And I need new foundation, and I am wondering if it's cheaper there (my mom got me hooked on some really nice expensive stuff, but if it isn't cheaper in the States, I am going to try a cheap brand [shhh... don't tell]). If you stay 48 hours or more, the duty free limit is $450 - surely a lawnmower and some make up will be far less than that!

If you live close to the border like us, it's well worth the hour drive... I will let you know what we save!

Setbacks

Okay, so there are many reasons I have been such an infrequent blogger this month - but the most important one is... (sigh) our tax return.
I think it's important to share defeat as well as victory with you, my friends.
I have been counting on throwing a couple of extra payments on our mortgage this year (as is a responsible and LOVELY thing to do) with that tax return. For months I have been dreaming about watching that enormous number shrink a little bit extra this April. But as enormous as our tax return is this year, I don't think that we are going to do it.
Why?
Car repair $350
New tires ? (I was told $600)
Get Will & Power of Attorney $400
...
and the list goes on.
So I have been dreading posting, not because I feel like a failure, but because somedays this money thing seems impossible to get ahead in and posting about saving $5 on toddler shoes or cheap beef just seems a bit trite.
It seems silly to be so disappointed about not being able to make extra mortgage payments, but you know how you get your heart set on something?
And (oh, the horror of typing this out), yesterday our groceries cost me $200. It was like watching a car accident. We were just out of so much stuff...
So I post, dear friends, so that when you have a month of enormous unexpected bills and expenses, you will know you are in good company (with me).

Hopeful Herb Garden

As you can see, my little herbies are definitely not growing yet. Hmmm. Maybe it's too cold yet?

Baby Saving 2.0

Since I've been working a fair bit these last two weeks, I've been scrambling to find free child care. I have a few faithful friends who are more like family, really, and for the most part they've been able to cover most of my shifts, and gladly which is a real bonus. But I didn't want to stretch anyone too thin, so I tried to find a sitter.
Luckily, I know another SAHM who's pinching her pennies, so I asked her. And she said?
Keep your money. Let's swap hours. I'll watch yours if you watch mine later.
Genius.
We all have heard about swapping hours for dates or what have you, but I just hadn't done it yet. So for the very few of you, if any, who haven't heard the idea yet, I thought I would post.
It's an especially great idea for those of us who don't have grandparents near by who are itching to babysit.