Fashionista Friday: Budget Fashion

Who doesn't love shopping?  If you don't love it, I don't understand you.

Photo courtesty of photostock; FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Although I'd love to have a handful of shopping bags every week, it just isn't realistic.  So how can we recycle and save on clothing?

Shop Discount Stores

Look around at the Salvation Army, Goodwill, or consignment shops.  Stop being a snob about where you shop.  I had the snob problem for quite awhile, but Neonatal Nurse Nancy, wonderful friend that she is, got me out of the groove and into the glory of buys that you just can't beat. 

I've found like-new sundresses that cost $150 for $7.99.  I have a beautiful Columbia down coat in white that is in perfect condition, also $7.99.  I have purchased countess items from the favorite brand-name stores, all for pennies on the new-cost dollar.

Photo courtesy of Grant Cochrane; FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I once shopped a really long time in the Salvation Army on 50% off day (once a week, check your local store) and left with 17 items I had paid $42 for.  Shazaaaam!  And this was not a one time occurrence....I get deals like that frequently.



Sell Your Old Stuff

Whether you choose consignment, ebay, Craigslist, or an Amazon shop, the ways to sell your old stuff are plentiful.  Just get rid of what you don't love or what doesn't fit.  Your trash is treasure to someone out there, so get it listed and get something for it.  You can earmark the proceeds from the sales for new clothing purchases.  This is especially useful for children's clothes.

Accessorize Old Favorites

Accessorizing can update outfits in a flash.  Spending a little money in a new season on a couple of updated belts and scarves, bold jewelry and a pair of shoes can stretch far in your closet.

Try wearing things paired in ways you have not before; belt jackets and see how you like the new look.  Update with costume jewelry or a great scarf in the color of the moment, and you'll look and feel fresh without breaking the bank.

*For this spring, grab a clutch handbag and some sea-blue chunky jewelry.  Your wedge sandals are still hot, so you should be ready to go in a flash!

Don't Spend on Weird Colors

I'm serious.  If you absolutely have to have a puke-green item of clothing, don't spend a lot of money on it.  "Off" colors come and go very quickly and are the easiest way to date your look.  Instead, go for neutrals when you are spending a little more cash or purchasing something like a coat.  Khaki, navy, black, white, denim, chocolate, gray...those neutral colors will see you through many seasons.

Thumbs Up Thursday: New Category

Ok, so inspiration did not get high votes on my poll, so I've been looking for a new Thursday theme.

It's really hard!

People seem to want more hints and tips, so I thought I'd use Thursday to introduce helpful websites, products, or systems that have a Thumbs Up from myself and/or close friends.

I just came up with this.

Right now.

So I've got nothing this week!  Ha!

Tune in next Thursday!

What's Cooking Wednesday: Leftover Chicken Yummies

When I roast one chicken, I always roast two.  This serves two purposes.  First, it alleviates the problem of 2 legs, thighs, or wings available for more than 2 hungry mouths and second, it gives yummy leftover meat that is precooked for another meal.

My baby sister, MathGeekSis, loves this recipe and has requested it more than once.  It is adapted from the Betty Crocker cookbook I have had for 15 years or so.  I highly recommend having a staple cookbook like this...Betty showed me how to cut up a whole chicken, how to roast a whole chicken, and how to troubleshoot my pie crust issues.  It's a handy tool to have around.

2 12 oz bags frozen broccoli, cooked until tender-crisp
1 lb box of orzo pasta, cooked OR rice, cooked (1 1/2 cups when measured dry)
cooked chicken, shredded, sliced, cubed, or just pulled off the bone and put into a pile
1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. flour
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
3 c. chicken broth
1/4 c. white wine
1 c. parmesan cheese, plus more for spreading on top

Melt the butter over low heat.  I mean it when I say low.  If you heat it too quickly, you will have browned butter, like this:

Impatient butter melting is never a good thing.  I wasted 50 cents here.

Add flour and nutmeg to melted butter and stir in using a whisk, or if you are very lucky to have one, a Pampered Chef mini-whip (best tool ever invented for the kitchen - gets lumps out of everything.  Well, I think everything.  So far I have a 100% success rate with it, and I've had it for about...I can't remember....6 or 8 years?).  Heat to boiling and bubbly and cook for a minute or two, stirring constantly.

You need to boil and cook beyond the boiling point when you add flour.  This removes the taste of raw flour from your sauce.

Turn off flame or remove from burner and slowly add the chicken broth, pouring with one hand and whisking with the other simultaneously. 

Turn the heat back on and bring to a boil; Boil and stir the mixture for a couple of minutes and it will thicken up beautifully and grow a little.  Ok, maybe it doesn't grow, but it appears to.

See?  Doesn't it look big?

Remove from heat.  Add the wine and 1 cup of cheese and mix until smooth.  If you don't want to use wine, you can use more broth but it really isn't the same that way.

Assemble all the components and a casserole dish.  Well, actually, get two dishes.

Cheese sauce, cooked orzo, cooked broccoli, leftover chicken, casserole dish

Layer the ingredients with orzo or rice on the bottom, then broccoli, chicken on top of broccoli, and divide the cheese sauce between the two casserole dishes.  Finish by sprinking grated parmesan on top of the sauce.

Orzo on the bottom, topped with broccoli

Chicken on top of broccoli

Forgot to take a pic with just the cheese sauce, so this has parmesan sprinkled on top of the cheese sauce already.

Cool and put in the fridge for later, or cook right away until heated through.  Baking at 375 for 20 to 30 minutes should do the trick.

You can also freeze this; I prefer to make it in aluminum pans if I'm freezing it.  If your family is small, go ahead and make the recipe this size and freeze half for another day.  I'd say up to 3 months in the freezer; just be sure to cool completely before freezing to lessen the chance of freezer burn.

Tightwad Tuesday: How to Negotiate Lower Utility Costs

Photo courtesy of Salvatore Vuono; FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Unless you are completely off-grid, you've got to pay utility companies for electricity, cable service, Internet service, phone service, natural gas and heating oil.

Several of these bills can be negotiated since different companies are competing for your business:

Check out the competition. 

See what offers you can find available from carriers other than your current one.  Record the offers and who they are from.  It is best to use offers that are not only for new customers when you negotiate with your current company.

Approach your current carrier:

• Express your desire to lower your bill.  You don't have to be secretive or sly about it, just state your intention.
• Ask what their best offer is.  Assume you can do better.
• Present offers from other companies and ask if they are willing to match or beat the offers.
• Once they present their "best" offer, ask for a better one by saying, "That doesn't work for me.  Can you do something better?"
• If the company representative is not giving you what you want, ask kindly to speak to their supervisor.
• Go through the same steps with the supervisor.
• Be friendly and open to walking away if you don't get what you want.  This is an attitude assuming you will get what you are after, not a superior attitude toward the employees.

Remember what doesn't work:

• Demanding to speak to a supervisor
• Nasty, mean, or condescending tone
• Threatening to go to another carrier right away.  Save that one for a last resort tactic.
• Making the call when you are in a rush.  Allow time to be on hold, to discuss, and to hold again.  If you assume and allow for this, you are less likely to get angry for being on hold for lengthy periods.

Revisit at least once a year or preferably, every six months.  I write it in my calendar on the day I make the initial call so that I won't forget and accidentally pay the higher rate when my promotion period has expired.

Monday Motherhood Musings: Mean Girls

Photo courtesy of David Castillo Dominici; FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend.

We had some fabulous, some un-fabulous.

One of my daughters had a "mean girls" experience this weekend, and it just about set me over the edge.

Why are tween girls so nasty?

I think this is particularly prevalent if you are pretty and smart.  I think girls perceive the girls they are mean to as having something they don't have.

I don't understand mean.

I have my b*&%# moments, to be sure, but I don't understand malice.  Well, that's not true.  Once you hurt my kid, I totally get the concept of malice.

What is even more disturbing to me is that my lovely daughter actually cares what these girls say about her.  And, forgive me, I spewed out my disgust at why she would care what trash thought about her.  That is so not in keeping with what I try to teach my kids, but saying "Those girls are jealous, we should pray for them" just wasn't in my faulted human self this weekend.

I definitely chose the wrong tactic, because she broke down in tears and said, "It's not that easy not to care, Mom."

And I get it.  I really do.

In middle school there was someone who made my life miserable.  She was so mean to me it is actually kind of disturbing.  I was miserable and dreaded school.  She was older than me and when she moved on to high school it was one year of complete relief.

I have no idea why she was so mean.  She was much prettier than I, so she had no reason to be jealous in that respect.  I believe I possess a higher level of intelligence, but she was certainly not stupid.

I don't know why she picked me.

I don't know why my daughter is picked on, however, she is extremely intelligent and has an exotic beauty (her dad is 1/2 Korean, that's why the exotic)  that is sometimes disarming since she is so young.  So maybe that's why.

All I know is that I messed up this weekend, asking her to have a spine and stand up and not care.  Of course she cares.

We need to remember, as parents, what that age felt like.  If it felt great for you, you are the exception and you have to get outside of yourself and listen to your kids.  Just listen.  Don't make the mistake I did initially.

Our conversation was much more productive when I said, "Oh honey, I remember.  I'm sorry.  Kids your age are just mean and they suck!"

Have a good day, and pray for the mean girls.

XOXO