It's the little things that make a difference

I discovered a few money saving ideas this weekend adn thought I would share...

* Shorter cycle - I don't know why I never used this before. Our new HE washer has a "Quick Wash Cycle". Instead of taking 54 minutes, it takes 29 (for light soil). Honestly, none of our clothes are so dirty that they need a 54 minute wash cycle. For the kids clothes, which do tend to have a few more stains, I can set it for medium to heavy soil and it is still faster than a regular wash cycle. Not only does this save us money, it saves a lot of time too! When it comes to laundry, that's always a good thing.
* Reviving our veggies - I was getting ready for Super Bowl Sunday and I pulled out my celery to find it completely limp. A quick search of the internet revealed that all was not lost. I cut off the bottom of the stalk and placed it in ice water for an hour... worked like magic.
* Rethink the recipe - One of my favorite recipes for entertaining is Italian Beef made in the crock pot. It's one of the easiest and best recipes I have, but the meat is pretty expensive. I decided to try a new recipe for BBQ pork instead. The meat was about 1/3 to 1/4 of the cost and it was just as easy. It was a huge hit with our guests and I have enough to freeze a big tub.

I plan on doing a few more things to help with the budget too - like switching from fabric softner sheets to a reusable formula from Kara (I'd post the link, but I can't find it right now). I'll write a review after I try it out.