An Annual Tradition

Every January I break out my copy of The Tightwad Gazette. I like getting a little inspiration and motivation from reading all of the thrifty living ideas. The funny thing is when the books first came out I watched an afternoon talk show with Amy Dacyczyn. The only part I remembered was her saying she never bought ice cream but used the leftover juice from canned fruit to make frozen treats. I was a teenager, and I was horrified! No ice cream?? If that was frugal living then I wanted no part of it. Oh how times have changed. I have not gotten to the point of not buying ice cream yet. I suppose I could, but I still like an ice cream treat every now and then.

Now I do flip through it looking for tips or hints to try. Yesterday I tried the homemade cocoa mix. It was good but I am going to try doubling the cocoa and sugar. I do not care for the packages anyway . I also marked a granola recipe to try. I have a big container of oatmeal left from holiday baking. I do not know what possessed me to buy such a large box, but I am not going to let it go to waste.

Some of the ideas are a bit out of date, but the majority of the information is relevant. I think I have to decide how far I want to take it. I have cut out disposable items such as paper plates and paper napkins. I even put real silverware in dh's lunchbox. I think over the next few weeks I will be examining what I spend money on to see if there is anything I can do without. As I said in an earlier post, I do not want to be a miserable miser. I am sure there are things I could not buy though. I just have to decide what those are.


{Blogger will not cooperate with me uploading a picture today.}