Household Expenses

Money is really tight and with unemployment on the rise, the number of people going to school to “re-tool” is also increasing. This means that students in service industries — hair and nail care, dentists, massage therapy and more — will need people to “practice” on. If you’re willing to take some risk, you can save a lot of dough. You may be surprised about the services they offer.

“You’re going to have to do better on your price.” “You’d better go back and sharpen your pencil.” Purchasing agents have a way of making any seller want to hide under a rock. They are notorious for getting vendors to lower their prices or give concessions and discounts. How do they do it? Better yet, how can we take some of the things they do and apply them to our shopping habits?

You work hard to save money on groceries. You review the food ads, and plan your menu around them. You reorganize and catalog what you have in your pantry and freezer so you know what you have in stock. You plan your shopping list and figure the most efficient route to take so you can hit two or three stores in one trip. You’re armed with a great plan and ready to make a killing on the food you’ll purchase to feed your family.

This killer idea was shared with us by Dianne Guastella — Annette’s best friend from grade-school days. It takes some planning, but works like a charm.

We recently were given a new queen-sized mattress. You know, one of those super thick ones that look like you’re re-enacting The Princess and the Pea? As a result, none of our other queen-sized sheets would fit and we needed to buy some new, deep pocket sheets.