Cutting Expenses! Snip! Snip!

Let's revisit expenses since it's such a fun topic:) First there are the environmentally-friendly things that 'we' all know we should do at some point to help the world and our own pocket:

1. Lower the temperature on your hot water heater to around 120 degrees F. Not only is this good for your utility bill but it's also safer if you have small kids in the house since there's less chance for scalding.
2. Change out your incandescent light bulbs for CFC light bulbs. They'll last 8,000-10,000 hours and use 75% less energy. Wow!
3. Contact your utility company and see if there is a way to benefit from using non-peak time energy. We participate in a pilot program with Dominion Power in Central Virginia and get a great break in our power bill if we are aware of the times that we consume our power. [This is a huge topic so I'll re-address it fuller in a later post.] But seriously, it can't hurt to ask since many power providers around the country are looking for ways to cut their own expenses. Be the one to help them out and be the one to get the break yourself. 

So, these are some of the things we have already done around our house to cut our expenses. I can't claim them as new for the purposes of this forum but I will add another that I have been working on to see if it would work for us. 

You know I love milk. It's a huge consumable in our home and a corresponding expense. I also love to bake and it dawned on me that when I'm cooking and baking with milk I was removing our beloved milk from our mouths - literally. It was through reading a few of the frugal mom blogs that an idea - a classic Cool Idea - came to me to try. Powdered Milk.

I remember when my mom 'made' us drink powdered milk when I was little and I remember not liking it at all. I must admit that I have not tried it since. Not even now. I know. It's silly. But I have made up a quart sized bottle of powdered milk to keep in the fridge and I've been using this to make our muffins, or scrambled eggs, or whatever else we needed. No one, not even me, has noticed a change in taste. It's been great to be able to consistently know when we'll need milk - we go through 3 gallons a week just in drinking alone. And in that consistency we are keeping our expenses consistent as well. That is great idea and adding Powdered Milk to our life has been a wonderfully Cool Idea!