Sunday's Special Guest Speaker - Easter Basket Ideas by Tawra Kellam

Easter Basket Ideas
by Tawra Kellam
http://www.LivingOnADime.com/

A reader asks:

Got any inexpensive ideas for Easter gifts for the kids? Also, do you have any ideas that would focus on the real meaning of Easter and not just bunnies and eggs?

Easter is a great time of the year to celebrate, especially if you have the hope that comes from Jesus Christ and His resurrection. Here are some ideas for Easter gifts. Try some of them and if the creative juices start flowing, make up some of your own!

Easter Baskets:
You can find inexpensive Easter baskets at garage sales and thrift stores. I never spend more than .25 for one.
If you don't have Easter baskets, you can also use:

• Plain wicker baskets
• Baskets spray painted an Easter color
• A cute straw hat
• A pail for the sandbox
• A bowl wrapped in tissue paper
• Paper sacks that the kids decorate. Cut out pictures from magazines or use stickers. Glue or stick them on and then paint or color around them.
• Any sort of plastic storage container. These often can be used later for storage.
• For a "family" Easter basket, set a nice plate on the table with Easter grass and goodies arranged on the plate or platter. This is great when you have older kids.

Fillers for Easter Baskets:

• Buy candy after Valentine's Day at half price and keep to fill Easter baskets.
• Make Easter cookies in the shapes of bunnies, eggs, crosses or any other Easter shape that comes to mind and decorate.
• Popcorn Balls or Rice Krispie Treats colored in pastel colors.
• String Froot Loops onto yarn and tie to make a necklace.
• Don't fill baskets. Instead put jelly beans and candy in plastic eggs so the kids can fill their own baskets. You can also put nickels, dimes, toy soldiers, bugs, stickers, barrettes or hair ribbons in the eggs. Hide them outside or in the house if you live in a climate where it's usually cold on Easter.
• Make coupons for getting out of chores, staying up late one night, having a friend over for a sleep over or a special dinner that they like.
• Include like new books purchased at garage sales or thrift stores.
• Homemade slime, play dough, sidewalk chalk, bubbles or the ingredients for crystal gardens.
• Wacky crayons- Crayon pieces melted together in a muffin tin to make a "big" crayon.
• Flower seeds that the kids can grow
• Mini-stuffed animals purchased at garage sales or on clearance the year before.
• Paper dolls or coloring books. There are many available on the Internet that you can print yourself.
• For teenagers, put these items in baskets: lotions, soaps, suntan lotions, fingernail polish, movie tickets, tickets for getting out of a chore, ticket for $5 worth of car gas, clothes purchased on clearance and of course lots of candy!
• Leave a trail of jelly beans or candy kisses from their rooms to their Easter baskets.
• Easter Kisses
  Put some Hershey Kisses or chocolate chips in a plastic bag and attach the following poem:
  This cute little bunny has hopped all day
  Been delivering baskets for the holiday.
  His paws are so tired and his little nose itches.
  He left you something special-something to fill all your wishes.
  These cute little hugs and Easter kisses.
• Put 1 Pound Jelly Beans into a bag and attach this poem:
  RED is for the blood He gave.
  GREEN is for the grass He made.
  YELLOW is for the sun so bright.
  ORANGE is for the edge of night.
  BLACK is for the sins we made.
  WHITE is for the grace he gave.
  PURPLE is for His hour of sorrow.
  PINK is for our new tomorrow.
  A bag full of jelly beans colorful and sweet,
  Is a prayer, is a promise, is a special treat.
• Easter Carrot Treats
  Buy disposable plastic decorating bags and fill them with orange jellybeans or cheese balls. Then stick some green Easter grass in the top of the bag (leave some hanging out) and secure the bag with a rubber band and then ribbon so that it resembles a carrot.

Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the authors of the Dining On A Dime Cookbook. Dining On A Dime will help you save money on groceries and get out of debt, by cooking quick and simple homemade meals. For free tips & recipes visit LivingOnADime.

Sunday's Special Guest Writer - Jill Cooper

Poo Free - Homemade Shampoo Recipe
by Jill Cooper
LivingOnADime

Poo Free... Ahhh... I know that sounds strange doesn't it? This really isn't an article on what to do when constipated and I don't feel the urge to write on that subject at all. No, this has to do with shampoo.
Years ago, I mentioned in a post about how I had a great aunt who was about 90 years old and had never shampooed her hair and everyone was horrified at such a thought. Even when I mentioned that I only wash my hair twice a week they thought that was awful.
Well guess what? The latest new buzz phrase is "poo less hair". The people that talk about it think they have invented a new thing. They have "discovered" what my aunt knew almost 100 years ago - You don't need to use shampoo or soap to clean your hair.
Actually I have thought about trying it myself for quite a while and I'm not sure why I didn't just jump in and do it a long time ago. But I finally did and I love it.
No more shampoo or conditioner for me. I have been "poo free" for a couple of weeks and still can't get over how great my hair looks.
Now I can hear some of you saying, "No way. I have oily hair and have to wash it every day and need the shampoo to get rid of the oil." Please read on and consider what I am explaining.
I have very oily, fine, limp long hair. At times I have to deal with fuzzing and all kinds of weird things. To comb my hair out is a pain because of tangles. That is why I am so in awe.

How it Works
It works on the principle that the more oil is stripped from your hair the more oil your body will produce to replace it. It is a cycle. It works something like nursing a baby. The more you nurse the more milk you produce and when you stop all your milk goes away.
We have gotten into a shampooing frenzy, shampooing our hair every day to clean it, so we have started an awful "not good for our scalp" cycle with our bodies. Most shampoos are really bad about stripping the oils out of your hair, causing your body to produce more.
Guess what the number one selling hair product is on QVC (or home shopping network)? Wen. It is a "no shampoo" treatment for your hair. The price? Almost $35 for 16 oz. (about 2 cups) and for long hair you have to use 48 pumps of it. Do you know how expensive that is?
The treatment I'll share below does the same thing at a cost of about 3 cents for the same amount and you use significantly less of it.

What's The Worst that can Happen?
I asked myself, "Why did I put this off so long? What is the worst that can happen?" I might have oily hair for a week or so and have to wear my hair in a pony tail. It won't cost me a thing.

What do I have to Gain?
I will have healthier hair and save, in some cases, lots of money on shampoo, conditioner and hair products for the whole family. I am finding that I don't have to use any products like mousse or gel because my hair is holding its curl better. This means I will save by not having to use or buy other products and I'll also save time. Usually, within an hour, my hair would have lost all it's curl and if I was going someplace later I would have to curl it again, damaging my hair more.

I Did It.
I jumped in and did it. The only thing I regret is that I didn't do it years ago. Some people say their hair needed a 2-6 week adjustment period but I didn't need one, even with my oily hair. The first time I didn't use shampoo my hair looked even better than before. It combed out more easily with almost no tangles at all and it looked unbelievable. As I said, an added side bonus I hadn't expected is that it keeps the curl and style better than it did before, so I don't have to mess with it as much.
I am also going a little longer in between washing it and this is only after two weeks of doing this. I can't wait to see what it will be like after a couple of months. This has been one of those things that has changed my life. I know that it may sound silly but you know how having a bad hair day makes us ladies feel. I don't think I can ever have a bad hair day again!

What Do You Do?
There are different ways of doing this but I like to keep things simple so this is what I do. I also brush my hair before I start.

1. Mix 1 Tbsp. baking soda with 8 oz. hot water and stir or shake until well dissolved. You can use a funnel and put this in a container like a squirt bottle.
2. Mix 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar in 8 oz. water. Again mix and store in a squirt bottle.

Essentially, you just replace the baking soda mix for shampoo and vinegar for conditioner. Wet hair well, rub in some of the baking soda and mix into your scalp well. Rinse. Then squirt it with the vinegar mix, rub it in and rinse.
I have long hair and the 8 oz. lasted me about 4-5 washings. If you use the same proportions, you can mix a larger amount and keep in a larger bottle if you want.

Questions Answered
If your hair seems a little oily, only add the vinegar rinse to the ends of your hair. You could also use lemon juice instead of vinegar.
If you see a white residue, you may be using too much baking soda. The proportions I listed seem to be just right. Some people place the baking soda in their hand and make a paste to rub into the scalp but it is hard to get the right consistency and I think it is harder to distribute evenly on your scalp.
Some people have found after using this method for a while that they only have to rinse their hair with water because the ph and oil becomes so perfectly balanced. I haven't been using it long enough yet to know about that.
I know some of you have used regular or apple cider vinegar for a rinse and liked it, and I have too, but adding the soda for shampoo is wonderful.

In Closing
Try it and see. If you are still too afraid to do it, try it on your children or husband for a week or two and see what happens with their hair.
It isn't like you are investing large amounts of money or time into something. It is very simple. All I can say is I can never go back myself. My hair is so much more manageable and looks so good now that I don't want shampoo near my hair.
I hope you give it a try!
      -Jill

Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the authors of the Dining On A Dime Cookbook. For more bath and beauty recipes, check out the Pretty for Pennies chapter in the Dining On A Dime Cookbook. Dining On A Dime will help you save money on groceries and get out of debt, by cooking quick and simple homemade meals. For free tips & recipes visit Living On A Dime

Sunday's Special Guest Writer - Jill Cooper

10 Uses for Plastic Milk Jugs
by Tawra Kellam
Living On A Dime

• Cut the tops off of plastic milk jugs, poke holes in the bottom and use them to start seeds.
• Cut the bottom off and use as mini-greenhouses to cover plants. Remove the cap on warm days to let heat out and remove altogether when it gets hot in there so you don't fry your plants.
• Cut the top off, fill with sand and pour some used oil over the sand. Keep it where you can put your hand tools in there to clean and oil them all at once.
• Cut the bottom off of a 1/2 gallon jug of milk or juice and make it into a scoop. These work great to scoop out bird seed, fertilizer, grass seed, sand and many other things like that.
• You can also use old milk jugs as weights. Fill them with dirt, sand or even water. These work well if you need to tarp something like a pile of firewood or if you need to hold bird netting or row covering down on the sides. Just tie a cord to the jug handle and then tie the other end to a corner or grommet in the tarp and let them hang.
• Cut milk jugs into long strips and mark them with Sharpies as plant tags.
• Fill plastic milk jugs with sand or rocks about 1-2 inches deep. Then poke 2 or 3 very small holes in the side at the bottom. Fill it with water and it makes a great drip irrigation system for your plants. Just refill with water and a scoop of liquid fertilizer (as needed) and water. The plants do better with a slow trickle than a huge dump of water.
• Cut the bottom off about 2 inches from the bottom and use as plant saucers.
• Cut a section out of the front on the side opposite the handle and then use it to harvest berries and cherry tomatoes.
• A full sized milk jug is one gallon, so use it as an easy measure when watering with liquid fertilizer.

...and here's a bonus tip I thought was too important not to use!

• Cut the bottoms off of plastic milk jugs and put them over plants you don't want to hit when spraying weed killer.

Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the authors of the Living On A Dime Cookbook. Dining On A Dime will help you save money on groceries and get out of debt, by cooking quick and simple homemade meals. For free tips & recipes, including gardening tips, visit Living On A Dime