Frugal Living NYC: March 2015

After days of a clogged (and leaky) bathroom sink, my husband wanted to run to the store and get some toxic and costly drain opener. Well, I thought I'd see if I could find a home made remedy on line. One quick "home made drain opener" search on Google and I found an awesome tip from food.com.

Take 1/4 cup baking soda and pour it down the drain, then pour 1/2 cup vinegar. It should fizz, then drain. Viola!! No more clog. I decided to chase some boiling water down after it as some of the commenters suggested, but that may have been unnecessary.

Not only did we not have to run to the store, spend money on toxic checmicals, but for almost nothing and very little effort, I got the job done!!!

Love it!!

Here's the after...(but before cleaning)

Now, I just have to take care of the leak. One thing at a time. Stay tuned!

Thursday, March 19, 2015

FREE Pack of Wildflower Seeds

Click here to get your FREE pack of wildflower seeds. Awesomeness!

Monday, March 16, 2015

Thank You, Go Project

I was sure no one would show up. But I was wrong. Not only did folks show, but they were a fantastic audience. We all shared ways to save and commiserated on the challenges.

One particular ah-ha moment was when a participant said she begrudgingly returned a blouse which would have otherwise gone back to her family and friends in her home country. I made the observation that perhaps those family and friends would have appreciated the cash from the clothes better. Plus, who's to say that the family and friends have your same taste and your size. Not to mention, that with the refund money you could get many more clothes from a rummage sale or thrift store. These ideas really resonated with folks since many participants also send boxes back home. Sometimes it takes looking at a dilemma at a different angle.

I have no idea who wrote this, but it makes my heart sing that someone really had so many nice things to say about the workshop. I am so happy he or she enjoyed the program!!

Weirdo Kid

Hmmm. One of my weirdo kids decided they had to create and sleep in this contraption. And yes, there is a sleeping weirdo in there. LOL.

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Rummage Sale Scores

My son's school had a rummage sale. We arrived close to the end when they had a $5 fill-a-bag special. As it so happens, I come from a long line of gifted bag stuffers.

I crammed into a little plastic grocery bag:

Three boys' long sleeve shirts
Two pair girls' short shorts
Two pair girls' jeans
One girls' yoga pant
Three girls' summer tops
Four girls' long sleeved tops
One girls' summer dress
One girls' summer skirt
Two adult women's sweaters
One women's dress

Shoes were not part of the deal. They were two pairs for $5. The boots are a great find, the sparkly shoes are cute but not well made.

Saturday, March 14, 2015

FREE Cone Day at Dairy Queen, March 15

Monday, March 15th is FREE cone day at Dairy Queen. Stop by for some yum.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

FREE Pi Day Celebrations

Pi Day (not pie day) comes around every March 14th at 1:59 pm This is the calendar representation of 3.14159... While this is a great time to bring out your inner (or well hidden) math geek. It's an even better time to get your kiddos involved in some fun math action.

MoMath museum has fun stuff planned at the museum and across the street at Madison Square Park.

LES Girls Club also has activities from 1pm to 3pm. College students from Bucknell University have been in town celebrating Pi Day with the girls since Wednesday. The event culminates with three activities today.

DIY Waterproof Matches

1) Get your least favorite nail polish.
2) Dip a match in the polish.
4) Air dry.

Done.

Homemade Pizza

One of the very few meals my family universally enjoys that I make is pizza. Usually I buy flat bread, pitas, or even premade pizza bread like Mamma Maria's. But lately, I've been making my own pizza dough (as well as tortillas) and they come out excellent. And, by making it myself, I use only healthy ingredients like whole wheat flour and no hydrogenated oils, lard, or preservatives.

I also used my homemade spaghetti sauce and chopped up, frozen veggies (purchased on sale). These factors make this low cost meal even less expensive. I also pared the pizza with some salad.

They may look funny, but they are so yummy!!!

FREE Passover Palooza

The Streit's Matzo Factory is closing its LES store after 90 years and moving out of town. (So sad.) Come to the final annual Passover Palooza celebration with the Mama Doni band and a tour of the factory. Its fun, its free, and its an end of an era.

Sunday, March 15th at 1pm

Streit's Matzo Factory
150 Rivington Street
New York, NY 10002

Sunday, March 8, 2015

Interesting things

Here are a few interesting things I saw while walking around town. A weird mural and an unusual clock and water tower.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Purim and a candy buzz

My favorite holiday secular or religious is Purim. It's so much fun. Everyone dresses up, there's carnivals, and lots of food and drink. One tradition is to exchange Purim baskets (mashloach manot). Some folks go all out and make very fancy and clever baskets.

We stepped it up a bit this year with a theme (purple), cute note (printed in purple ink), (purple) Easter stuffing, and plentiful candy (purple).

So many awesome themed bags: Frozen, Candyland, 7-Eleven, and many more.

Beautiful Snowy NYC

Even though many people had enough snow, I thought it was beautiful and looked like a snow globe. Plus, it wasn't too cold or too warm where it would be very messy.

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Celebrate National Nutrition Month

Did you know March is National Nutrition month? Check out these gems to make eating healthy meals and snacks easier.

Visit EatSmartMoveMoreNC.com for more posters and advice on healthy living. I found the at work tips particularly helpful.

Monday, March 2, 2015

FREE Young Adult Healthcare Career Readiness

Young adults ages 18 to 26 can get FREE career coaching in the healthcare industry.

See attached for details...

FREE Mandarin Positive Parenting Classes

FREE six week Mandarin parenting class. See attachment for all the details.

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Dried mangoes, finally!

I love Trader Joes' dried mangoes. I buy them all the time. They're healthy, delicious and everyone in my family loves them. The problem is that they are expensive at $2.99 for one pack and we go through tons of them.

Friday, I saw a great deal on mushy (but not bad) mangoes for 6 for $1. And I thought this is my big chance to make my own.

They came out okay, not great. They dried too long and I like them a little chewy. Still, a good effort on my part and I've eaten and shared most of them.