Thrifty Tip #11 - Dryer Sheets

There are lots of ideas out there for DIY dryer sheets or things that can take the place of dryer sheets.  One thing I saw on pinterest was to soak a washcloth in fabric softener and put that in the dryer.  Another pin said to use a ball of aluminum foil.  We get our dryer sheets from the dollar store and they work fine.  I make my own fabric softener but I've heard that you shouldn't use fabric softener on towels because it makes them lose their absorbancy.  And I've also heard that dryer sheets and fabric softener cause built up on the lint trap that can lead to fires.

Then my mom told me a trick she had been using and liked.  Tennis balls.  She throws 2 tennis balls into the dryer with her clothes and that's it.  She loves it.  So, while I was at Tar-jay this weekend, I grabbed a container of tennis balls for $2.  Then I went home and did the laundry.  I put all three balls in the dryer with a load of clothes.  I'm not sure, but I think it helped them dry faster.  And the towels were definitley fluffy.  I think I will keep this trick.  the balls make a lot of noise bouncing around in the dryer, so if your dryer is close to where you sleep or watch TV, know that you'll hear them.  I can use the tennis balls for a while, so I guess that's money in our pocket too.  But I don't think I'm ready to give up my DIY fabric softener just yet...

Cheers!

 

 

That's my down comforter in there.  Should be nice and fluffy when it comes out!

Body wash

I have to share a discovery I made this past week with you because I'm really excited about it.  Since we moved to a house that is significantly smaller than the one we had in Georgia, unpacking has been slow.  Around Wednesday, I finally got to opening a box that has been sitting in my bathroom for a month.  I knew what was in it, but hadn't had the motivation to unpack it because I didn't where the stuff was going to go.  When I went through it, I discovered that I only had one body wash left in my collection of bath products.  This. Was. Huge.  I promised myself over a year ago that I could not buy any more body wash until I went through my collection (it had grown pretty obscene).  I actually stuck to this rule and used almost my ENTIRE supply!  Go me.

Hey, it's the little things, you know?  Now, on to the lotion collection...

Cheers!

The lone survivor

Then and Now

I try to take really good care of my hair.  When I found these pics while unpacking, I realized that I'm doing a pretty good job of it.  Now, if I can just find my crimper...

Cheers!

And this is just one of my favorite pics of me as a kid.  Just thought I'd share.  ;)

PS:  I've had different hair cuts and styles since 1989, I just decided to stick with what works a few years ago. :)

Walton Rocks Beach

A couple weekends ago, we FINALLY spent some time at the beach.  We went back to the dog beach because I liked that it wasn't really crowded and the beach was big.  It was really windy but hot.  We got blasted by sand a few times, which I chalked up to getting exfoliated (which I needed anyway).  We didn't take our boys because they didn't really like the beach the first time we went.  There were lots of dogs and most of them ran up to say hi, which we didn't mind.  There were also really cute little crabs digging holes in the sand near us.  We didn't stay for very long but it was nice to just lay on a beach for a couple hours.  We're going to try and not repeat beaches from now on since there are so many to choose from.  I want to find a good place to go swimming.  I love our new beach life.

Cheers!

Selfie on the beach!  I got my bathing suit for $10 at Old Navy

He doesn't take serious pictures

I tried something new out in the sun.  This "browning lotion" had good reviews and is supposed to be all natural, although a little pricey.  I didn't see a big difference after the hour it recommended, but I'm going to stick with it.  I can't be pasty white now that I live in Florida.  Has anyone tried it?  Any safe recommendations for getting some color?

#tbt Post: MI Christmas 2012

I always spend Christmas in MI.  Always.  To me, Christmas means cold, snow, fires, getting bundled up and the Griswolds.  All of our family is in MI and almost all of our friends are too.  So, I have to go home ("home" for me will always be MI).  We managed to do a lot on our visit in 2012.  And we got snow.  Really pretty, fluffy white snow.  Just like it should be.  :)  Here are the highlights.

Cheers

Snowing before Christmas.  Its gonna stick!

 Putting on new Christmas presents

Miss Maddy loves her new marching band themed ride!

My Aunt Karen made us a polish lunch complete with kielbasa and pirogis

My Dad and I love coney

Kim getting her 8th? tattoo

My turn

Besties for life!

Then we went shopping :)

Hit the after Christmas sales hard

Good thing we don't have to get Maddy...

But my FAVORITE part of Christmas break was learning to shoot.  Lately, knowing how to shoot a gun has become very important to me.  I want to be able to protect my family.  My dad took us and I'm happy to say that Kevin and I are pretty good.  Sniper Schwemmin hit dead center his first shot.  Ever.  With a gun.  Insert eye roll here...  Take away message, don't mess with the Kendi Haus.

 

Stories from the Train - Week 1

When we decided to live 5 miles from Mandi's job, we knew there was a possibility that I would find a job more than 50 miles away. Turns out the actual distance is 75 miles. Fortunately 70 miles of that is straight down I-95 and traffic here isn't anything like Atlanta, so the drive takes about an hour and fifteen minutes in the morning and about an hour and a half in the evening. The only problem is that I would be putting 150 miles on my car everyday and Jeeps aren't exactly known for their fuel economy. When I drove down to campus for my interview I noticed a commuter train running along the side of the freeway. I filed that bit of information away in case I got the job and then looked into it right after I got the offer. The train runs from the north end of West Palm Beach all the way down to the Miami airport and it has a stop near campus. I did the math and figured that taking the train will save about $150 a month, even though my commute will take considerably longer (about two hours now). There is a bus route that connects campus with the train station and I learned during my orientation that FAU pays the fare for students and staff. I decided to ride the train a few times before taking the plunge and buying a monthly pass. That first week on the train was a doozy. Here are the highlights from that week (I'm hoping this will become a regular feature of the blog):

Tuesday (Day 1):
A girl on the morning bus ride from the train station was regaling everyone within earshot (the entire bus) about how fast her toenails grow. Not really the conversation I wanted to start my day with. I learned that it is necessary to keep the headphones on all the way to the office.

The trip home was one for the history books. The bus from campus was late, so I ended up missing my train. On top of that, the next train was also late. The train option wasn't looking good at this point. But that was nothing compared to what happened on the train. A woman sitting behind me was having a very loud phone conversation with who I presumed to be her father. From what I gather, her father and her daughter had gone to the grocery store to buy some needed items. The daughter had assured her mother that she knew what she needed to get, but she apparently did not get the right items. The mother proceeded to cuss out her daughter because she bought the wrong frozen pizzas and crackers. The conversation got pretty heated and the father hung up on her at one point. She happened to be going to my stop and as we were walking to the stairs I heard her say something about how "he knows my voice carries and I wasn't really angry." Mmm hmm.

Wednesday (Day 2):
I made the decision the savings outweighed the potential headaches of a longer commute and delays from late trains/buses, so I needed to get my discounted monthly pass. Not an easy feat. Because it was a discounted pass, I had to go to one of three stations that sell the passes so I could get my picture taken. One of the stations was the station before my normal stop, so I left early and took the train before my normal train to give myself enough time to take care of my pass before my normal train got to the station. I wasn't expecting the woman to take my picture through the glass at the ticket window. But she did. It is by far the worst ID picture I have ever had. But I got my discount pass.

While on the bus to the train station that afternoon a girl was talking with a friend on the phone about gummy bears. As I listened to the conversation it became clear that she wasn't really talking about gummy bears. The first clue was her comment about not wanting to get addicted to gummy bears. Kind of a strange thing to say. But then she talked about how she liked to have some gummy bears before bed because they helped her relax. Sounds to me like she was partaking of something a little stronger than gummy bears.

Thursday (Day 3):
I witnessed a guy sit down next to a stranger, start up a conversation with her, and proceed to flirt with her. And it wasn't creepy. I was incredibly impressed.

Edmund Fitzgerald

 It's a Michigan thing...