Grocery Shopping Strategies

I've got food on the brain ... and an empty stomach and 'fridge, so I'll write about it instead of eating (yeah, that'll work).

I recently read where the average American buys groceries twice a week. Are You Serious?!?!? Are you like me and don't really love the grocery store? It's not bad, it just takes a lot longer than I feel like it should and that's my basic beef with it. Not a quick thing -- so, maybe that's why people go twice a week and make 2 quick trips. Not efficient, Cupcake.

The price of food, along with everything else, is going up. Brace for your grocery bill to rise 4-5% this year compared to last year. What can we do to make sure we get the best bang for our grocery buck? Here are some of the things I do:

• Clip coupons ... but only the ones you already buy.
• Make out your menu list for the week before heading to the store. This way, you won't have to make that quick trip later on to pick up that one item because you will list all ingredients needed for your meals when making your shopping list.
• The Main Squeeze, an efficiency expert, was impressed when he discovered I listed needed groceries working from the south end of the store to the north end. When I run out of frozen waffles, for example, I write it down on the bottom portion of the list because it's on the north end of the store (and I get the frozen stuff last so it won't melt in the heat).
• The less expensive meats are poultry.
• Freeze meats that you're not using within a day or two, especially when they've been marked down because stores typically do this on the last date of sale before expiration.
• Did you know that store brands are typically 15-20% cheaper than national brands? Noodle that one.

I'd love to hear your grocery shopping tips. Share with the group.

Airing out Dirty Laundry

Like opinions and other things, everyone’s got this, too – dirty laundry. And it’s come to my attention that nobody really knows the dirt on it! So, I’m here to iron out some of the kinks.

Recently, a newly divorced dad emailed me desperately seeking the truth about dirty laundry. Apparently his teen-age daughter insisted that colors and whites be washed in the same load. He didn’t think it sounded quite right, but needed a referee. While it seems like a time-saver, I suggested he let her know that the end result of that color co-mingling would be gray undies, which aren’t the rage at dance or in the locker room. Another teenager saved from ultimate embarrassment. Sigh!

We all get those emails about how Coca-cola cleans toilet bowls and other outrageous-sounding tips. Even stuff about laundry. I’ve now done the research on several of them and have amassed help for you languishing about laundry.

Unabashed Product Endorsement.
I love, love, LOVE Oxy-Clean. A mama can’t get through white pants baseball season without a tub or two of it. I still haven’t gotten through all 100+ uses for the product. I may need to do a segment just on this amazing invention, but I digress.

Basic Laundry Tips:
~ Read the labels on your clothes before plopping into the wash. You don’t have to remember which type of fabric or color goes in what temperature.
~ Generally speaking, separate into 3 categories (especially when you do laundry all the time like I do) – whites, darks, and pastels for best results.
~ Inside out: turn dark clothes inside out (including jeans) to prevent fading. This also helps prevent piling (you know, nubby knots that form on the fabric of your clothes making them look old)
~ ALWAYS empty the lint trap every single time you dry clothes in the dryer. Also, occasionally vacuum around your dryer. Your local fire department thanks you.
~ Do you ever wonder how to separate the white shirt that has red trim? They’re marked washable, but you’re afraid the color will run. If it does run, DO NOT put it in the dryer – dryers set stains. Try washing it again. While bleach may take out the newly formed pink, it will also blanch out the red trim. Good luck.
~ Should you use dryer sheets? This is a personal preference. They can be a skin irritant, but they also keep static at bay. If you do use them, you may want to save some dough by cutting the sheet in half.
~ If you have heavily stained items, eg. a baseball uniform that slid into home plate and brought half the ball field home, wash it separately from other clothes.
~ Read the box – your detergent will tell you the best way to use it. Did you know that water temperature, amount of detergent, and the timing of the load all goes into how well your clothes get clean?! Yep. True story.
~ Towels sometimes share lots of lint with other clothes. Wash them separately. And dry them separately, as a matter of fact, since they can take longer to dry out.

Stain Removal Procedures:
~ Fresh stains are MUCH easier to remove than old ones, so take care of stains as fast as you can.
~ Blot up excess liquid with a clean white cloth, paper, or other towel. Remove solids by scraping or chipping with a dull knife.
~ Never rub a fresh stain with a bar soap – it can set the stain.
~ Use cold water on stains – the heat can set a stain, especially a protein stain.
~ Try not to rub a stain. Rubbing can spread a stain, damage fiber or finish of fabric.
~ Don’t iron over a stain before washing.
~ When you take your stained item out of the wash load, check to see if it was removed before you put it in the dryer.
~ Pre-treaters are a wonderful invention. Besides Oxy-Clean, I also love Spray N Wash. One or the other or a careful mixture of the two will pretty much get out anything that leaps on your clothes.

Unique Stain Treatment Tips:
~ Chewing gum: Apply ice to harden the gum. Crack or scrape off excess. Spray with pre-treatment, rub with liquid detergent. Rinse with hot water.
~ Deodorant stains on washable shirts: Test on a hidden spot first!!! Sponge on or soak in white vinegar for 30 minutes. Launder shirt in hottest water safe for the fabric.
~ Glitter on clothing: Some of those glittery girly shirts share the sparkle with everything else in your load. Spray the original shirt with aerosol hair spray to make it stay put AND wash alone and turn it inside out.
~ Grease: Sprinkle cornstarch or baby powder over the grease stain
~ Ink: Rubbing alcohol on the stain will take it out, but be pretty precise because it can take color out of fabric.
~ Rust and mineral stains: Add 1 cup of bottled lemon juice to the load to remove discoloration from cotton laundry.
~ Soiled shirt collars: Using a small paintbrush, brush liquid detergent into the soiled area.
~ Spaghetti stain: Grab some Oxy-Clean and a small laundry brush or toothbrush, rub it in, and launder.

Mistakes to Avoid (like the content in those “helpful” emails)

~ Dishwasher detergent on clothes. Nope, they’re for dishes, not fabric.
~ Hair spray on ink. They can deposit a gummy residue. Yuck!
~ Ironing candle wax actually drives the stain in deeper to the fabric.
~ Milk on Ink. You’re adding a protein to a stain? What are you thinking?
~ So, now you have the low-down on laundry. You’re free to move on to other, more important issues like having fun getting your clothes dirty playing with your kids! Good clean fun, I’d say!

Cheer! (and Tide, and Woolite, and Biz … yeah, I know I’m corny!)

Clutter Tips Continued

Well, that closet is looking a lot better now, so I'm back with more tips to keep you going with those resolutions.

Sorting
Get several boxes as you go through each area.
· “keep”
· “trash”
· “not sure”
· “sell” (consigment, yard sale)
· “give away”
· “needs parts” (in order for them to work right AND you intend to fix in short order)
· “return to rightful owner”

Storage Solutions
~ Create a home for everything.
~ Have a good reason for putting something in a particular location (like it’s near where you use it)
~ Make things you use often easy to access / reach
~ Keep climate in mind – consider humidity, cold, and insects
~ Leave 15% of your space free for future additions
~ Use see-through containers whenever possible
~ Label every container so you know the contents – additional idea: put a list of contents in the top of the box

Think you’re out of space? Have you thought of these places:
~ Under all the beds in the house
~ Clean out your bookshelves and donate books you’re never going to read again. Get baskets with lids to put in the empty space.
~ Get rid of appliances you don’t use (that one’s a jewel, Peaches!)

Rules of De-cluttering Engagement:
~ When in doubt, throw it out.
~ Use it or lose it
~ Store for efficiency
~ You MUST PURGE once a year
~ Recycle whenever possible
~ Pick a number and stick with it (you don’t need 82 pens in your house unless you have 41 residents living there! And if that’s the case, I sure hope you have a full-time chef who’s not you!)
~ A place for everything and everything in its place
~ Don’t save things to do “later”. Deal with it now. If you can’t decide, refer to the top of this list
~ Label containers
~ Get help. Call a friend or relative. DO NOT CALL ME; I will simply refer you to someone fabulous but expensive.

This week Target, K-Mart and others are slashing prices on their storage containers and baskets to help us all keep those resolutions. Load up on the things now. XOXO

Fridge Fritz Factoids

A diva never knows what she'll return home to after an effortless get-away. This time, it was a dead 'fridge-freezer. I walked in and thought Tony the Terminex guy couldn't have just left. But that's precisely what it smelled like, but worse.

The Main Squeeze sprang into action after I got SO ticked with Sears Customer Service/Repairs (10 days to come out to fix the dad-gum appliance, my @$$). He found Mr. Appliance. LOVE THEM!!!! They showed up to the Diva Digs in under 2 hours of the call. Mr. Appliance, who's son we hope will get into Georgia Tech in the Fall (cross your fingers), fixed the blown gizmo and didn't charge the service call in addition to the repair cost. Saved me $60 (even better than the $95 Sears wants to charge to show up and ring your doorbell).

While that's all well and wonderful, he spent 10 minutes on a tour of my kitchen giving me tips, which I'll pass along to you, 'cause they're splendid.
1. Get Jet Dry for your dishwasher and use it. Especially due to the drought, which is kicking up more mineral deposits than usual in our diminishing water sources, drains and small holes are getting clogged with minerals. Jet Dry helps break them down and keep the clogs from forming. Just saved you a big repair-a-clog bill there.
2. On several oven models, it is not a good idea to use the Self Clean feature. According to Mr. Appliance, he has yet to make a service call due to Easy Off. He has seen melted/cracked glass on the window, melted stove wire casings, and other catastrophes due to the temperature of the automatic self clean reaching more than 1,400 DEGREES. So, use Easy Off.
3. When you lift the stove lid to clean the area between the drip pans and the top of your oven, do not set a bowl of water there. This had, frankly, never occurred to me- I just use a sponge or Chlorox wipes. Mr. Appliance told me that he has seen the entire stove shorted out due to the bowl of water spilling. Stick with the wipes, Princess.

Mr. Appliance fixes everything except microwaves and TVs, which I'm told you should just replace because it will be less expensive.

Off to get those Cholorx wipes to clean out the fridge and freezer and then re-load all the stuff from my garage fridge and coolers. Toodles!

Hope to save you some dough

While you're watching those fantastic football line-ups, I know you're going to start packing away all the Christmas decorations. Before you run out to get those pricey, yet seemingly essential Ornament Organizers, please check this idea out. I don't know exactly were I read about it many years ago, but it really works. I've been using this packing method about 4 years and I haven't lost/cracked/damaged an ornament by storing it this way so far. Here's what you do:
Get a cheap, plastic bin and fill it with plastic Dixie party cups (read: beer cup, not the kind you use to rinse your mouth when brushing!). Put paper towel in the bottom of the cup and wrap the ornament's sides with another one. Here's the visual (I just snapped it like 5 minutes ago!). Make sure all ornaments fit inside the cup area and allow for head-room when you snap on the cover. Notice that some of the ornaments are inserted "head down" for best packing stability. I put unbreakable ornaments in between the cups to stabilize them. For this photo, I took out several of the side paper towel "packaging" for you to best see the effect.

Hope it works for you as well as it works for me, Cupcake! Now, I've got one tree packed away; only one more to go.... Another day. Whew! Hard work!

Happy New Year, Divas and Dudes!!! May 2008 be the most delightful year yet!!! XOXO

The Space Between

What is a diva to do between the Christmas Holiday and New Year's? My suggestions, random order:

• Are you kidding? Shop. Man, they're just giving away stuff at department stores, except for what I REALLY want (designer purse, the particular pair of black Clarks clogs, etc.), but you will not leave disappointed. The Main Squeeze was treated to a shopping spree and got great stuff for half price - so double the present!!!
• Visit friends, especially those in from out of town. Take wine, but of course. Swing by Diva Wine-Know's (Jennifer, do you like your Nom de Diva???) The Wine Cellar in Vestavia City Center near Publix. She and her staff are wonderful!!! While you're there, contemplate your mental plans for a wine cellar at your diva digs. A girl can dream.
• Plan your Spring Break vacation if you haven't done so already
• Make plans to send your kids to summer camp. Need ideas? http://www.alabamacamps.org/ Trained staffs will entertain junior for up to an entire month. Now, THAT's relaxing!
• Travel. I'm heading to the beach with the extended family. My dad's feeling so well and all my sisters and brother will be there with everyone - thanks to all who've asked, emailed, and sent inquiries about my dad after his quadruple bypass surgery. He's walking 3+ miles a day. Amazing.
• Do laundry. I'm trying to work it in between shopping excursions while the kids are away. It's tough to schedule, you know.
• Take a long soak. I actually did this last night with Epsom salt and scents. Wow! It was a treat.
• Get a mani/pedi
• Shop for a new car. The dealers want to get rid of inventory. Want a Benz? I recommend Comer Automotive. http://www.comerautomobile.com/ Check out their fantastic prices. You will not beleive how excellent and fair their service is. Tell Greg I sent you. They have BEE-U-TI-FUL cars. (Tell Jeff I'll be calling for service work soon.)
• While you're at Comer shopping, have Quinton to detail the car you want to keep. He does a splendid job.

Well, that should keep you busy for a little while. I've got more content to work on to post soon. Toodles, Poodle! XOXO

Shopping Strategies

Out of the gate, I am compelled to tell you that I am a kamikaze shopper. I really don't like the malls. Stunning, n'est pas? But, they can come in handy around this time of the year - disgusting as they may seem (I have to pass a mall twice a day and dread it more and more as the traffic gets worse and worse). As a giving diva, I share my closely-guarded efficient shopping secrets with you, Poodle.
1. Of course, I find what I can on the internet - but that's sometimes more time-consuming than the mall (shriek!)
2. For those special people on your list, instead of giving a gift, give a memory. Which reminds me, Saucy Diva, when do you want to reschedule your birthday horseback ride? Oh! Back to the group ... a play, dinner out, a dinner in. For my kids, we put up the play tent in the living room, fill it with pillows, pop corn, and have movie marathons. They love it. 2 years ago at my nephew's, we watched Polar Express and ate s'mores that we cooked in the fireplace. We still talk about it with great fondness.
3. On that mall-avoiding note, you can create personalized gift certificates (my dad named them Goodfer's years ago 'cause it's "good for" something). Create a hiking outing, walk in the park, drive to the beach /mountains /country / Tuscaloosa, a knitting lesson, help decorating before a party ....
4. Visit locally-owned and operated stores. Katherine would love for each of you to call her at Jonathan Benton Booksellers and she will recommend books and take your order. (How much do you love me, Katherine????)
5. Shop at off-peak hours. Avoid lunch and post-school or post-work times. The least crowded times at the mall are when the stores just open. Check the paper or call the mall office for hours as they change closer to Christmas. In the same vein, shopping after 9 p.m. will avoid crowds.
6. Plants can make a nice gift for your gardening enthusiast (this Dish, though, kills inside plants, yet they flourish outside where they belong - so know your recipient on this).
7. Gifts in the Adult Beverage category are also great for us imbibers and do not require a trip to the mall.
8. Martha Stewart endorses homemade gifts. I plan on giving homemade salsa and tomato chutney made from items grown in my garden. I yearn for Divann's homemade cookies and treats. If you're at Chez Dish and you see a plate of delicious items from Divann - BACK AWAY. It has MY name on it, not yours. I'll share just about everything else, but not that. Dem's da berries.

Parking at the Mall
1. Don't try to find the closest spot. It does not exist. Plan on hiking and burn off those party calories.
2. Don't enter the first entrance. It's always more clogged.
3. Take a look-out when possible.
4. I seek those spots near the cart return and call that efficient (at Tar-jhay, of course!)
5. Do one loop and then give up - park at the back of the lot. Gas is getting expensive, my little Elf!

Good luck, Tinsel! XOXO!

Tree Tips, El Segundo

Keeping that Fresh, Sprucy Tree … Fresh
Once you’ve selected your tree, make sure the tree “professionals” cut about 1 inch off the trunk above the base while you’re at the lot. This removes clogged wood from it that prevents the tree from taking in water.

I know it’s exciting to take your tree home and put it up right away, but DON’T! (if you didn't cut it down yourself). The first day at home, your tree should absorb about a gallon of water. I do a lot of flower arranging and the same is true with fresh cut flowers. Cut them, then plunge your fresh item into a large bucket of water. Check every 4-6 hours to see if re-watering is necessary.

Why is this important? A tree that is well hydrated is less likely to become a blazing inferno. Really, isn't this what we're all after?!

How to keep a tree fresh and perky:
~ Regular tap water without anything added is fine as long as you do not allow the tree to dry out (if it dries out, it can’t absorb moisture as well once re-watered)
~ If you are compelled to add stuff to your tree, then save your change and mix up 1 quart of water, ½ cup light corn syrup, and 1 TEASPOON liquid bleach. Why? Water keeps it watered. Corn syrup gives it sugar (and everyone needs a little sugar to spice up life now and again!). ~ The bleach kills all the growing science experiment that forms when water stands, becomes room temperature, and dust or whatever else from the ornaments falls into it. Just make sure your cat/dog keeps to the toilet bowl for her drinking water.

Ready to light that baby up?
~ Of course, check the lights. You already know that.
~ If you don’t want your forearms looking like you have a pox upon you, then don dishwashing gloves (they also help save your manicure, Precious!)
~ Work from the inside base and move to the outer edges. There’s a big debate in my family whether to wrap individual branches or string the lights in a spiral manner, but I’ll spare you.
~ For a 6 foot tree, you need about 400-600 lights; for an 8 foot tree, 600-800
~ Once the lights are on, add the garland. For a 6-foot tree, you need 85-90 feet of garland; for an 8-foot tree, 130-145 feet.
~ For ornaments, start with your filler ornaments (solid color balls, apples, etc.) then add your special ornaments.
~ You need about 20 “filler ornaments” for every 2 feet of tree. Or an overall total, for a 6-foot tree, you’ll need about 85 total ornaments; for an 8-foot tree about 200
~ To add dept and interest, hang ornaments both on the outside of branches and on the inside of them

I am feeling very good now that I have taken my kids to a Christmas parade and completed TWO trees (one fake, one live). On to decorating the outside of Chez Dish.

Dishin’ Turkey with Marjorie, The Main Dish

The big cooking day is one week away, so I'm at your service serving up tips just for you, my little Giblet! Let us give thanks that Thanksgiving is a one day feast – and won’t drag on for days like the original one did.

One Ground Rule: If you’re one of those folks who believe it’s just not Thanksgiving without Great Aunt Lulu’s famous hooch dressing and you’re going to be ticked if the idiot your brother married doesn’t include it again this year. Here's how to avoid your utter disappointment:
1) Make it yourself
2) Let the hostess know you’re bringing it (If you're not making the beloved dish yourself, proceed directly to the next step)
3) SHUT UP!

Keep focused: Thanksgiving is about families, working yourself to death, worrying in advance about other people’s behavior, and eating yourself silly.

If you are the host/ess, here are tips to keep your head above the dish-water:
~ Whenever anyone offers to help or bring a dish, say, "I’d love for you to! What do you have in mind?" If they need prodding, suggest staples like sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, vegetables, wine, or … my favorite, squash soup. WAIT! What am I thinking? Wine IS my favorite. Though, I do love squash soup.
~ Use hollowed bread loaves for serving cheese or dips. Save your serving pieces and spare the dishwasher.
~ Before the guests arrive, sit in each chair to make sure each guest won’t whack others with elbows, or constantly kick the person across from them.
~ Include favorite kids' foods, especially those they can eat by hand (you know that louse your sister married is only a giant kid anyway!)
~ Plan at least one low-calorie dish and consider a vegetarian option.
~ Before dessert, clear the table, and fill the sink with soapy water so stuff can soak
~ When creating your shopping list, don’t forget candles, flowers, and be sure to pick up club soda for immediate spot removal
~ Save food containers and grocery bags for packing up leftovers and handing them out to guests on their way out.
~ Bake desserts and side dishes that can be refrigerated and confirm deliveries from food services or caterers.
~ Create a timetable for the cooking that has to be done on Thanksgiving Day so everything will be ready at mealtime.
~ Don't forget breakfast on Thanksgiving morning. Cereal, frozen waffles, or fruit are low-prep ideas. Heck, if you’re cooking the big meal, send a caravan-load of folks to IHOP or Mickey D’s for Pete’s sake! Don’t make any more work for yourself. It also gets that rowdy kid out of your house and you get a moment's peace.

Off to stick my head in the oven. Toodles!

Get Your Yard In Gear, Part II

Don’t let your pots rot
Disinfect pots to get rid of moss and soil residue that may have disease:
· First, soak the pots in a sink, bucket, or bowl filled with a solution of one part bleach to ten parts water. Then scrub them inside and out with a scouring pad or bristle brush (Do you still have a baby bottle cleaning brush? Use that – it’s perfect).
· To prevent buildup of icky mold, let pots dry completely before stacking and storing by laying them on their sides, one tucked inside another
· Never stack pots vertically—changes in temperature and humidity will make them swell, causing them to stick together and they’ll break when you pull them apart. Didja' know that, Kitten?

Don’t be a tool to your tools
· Since tools seldom become obsolete, it makes sense to keep them going as long as possible.
· At the end of your gardening time, wipe off dirt and moisture
· Every couple of months, sharpen dulled edges, grease creaky hinges, and replace missing parts. · Disinfect pruners before using them on other plants as you remove spent blooms and foliage throughout the garden.

Light – Bulb on Bulbs
As far as planting goes, bulbs are on my mind, specifically tulips, crocuses, jonquils, and irises.
· Plant them before the ground freezes.
· Keep them in a cool, dry place until you plant them (mine are in my garage refrigerator currently)
· You don’t necessarily have to dig them up year after year.
· When selecting bulbs, bigger is better. Large bulbs produce more impressive blooms.
· Bulbs should be firm and look fresh
· Plant them with the fat side down. I'll bet you wondered about that.
· They need to be planted in well-drained soil. When bulbs fail, it's usually because they rotted in wet ground. Most bulbs prefer full sun. I know I do.

More to follow, my little garden mumsie. I'm on a roll. Yard bags adorn my curbside hoping to be picked up tomorrow (Columbus Day - we just never know when the city trucks have a mystery day off!). Toodles!

Clobbering Clutter

School's been in for what, 3 weeks now? Are the papers driving you crazy yet? Is your New And Improved School Organization System at the brink of failure? OR are you saying to yourself, now that we're in the swing of the school year, I guess it's time for me to get around to all that organizational stuff I kept putting off until school starts. Welcome to it, my little minx!

How can we Clobber Clutter? I have a few overall tips. But of course, dahling!

Aim Low
Realize that your goal should not be “Get Totally Organized”. Impossible. Overwhelming. Never gonna’ happen. Sorta’ like me saying, “Hey, I should drop 15 lbs., so I’m going off to climb Mt. Everest.” Not a chance of that ever coming to fruition. Completely wrong scale, here.

Pick your Poison
No one I know rubs his or her hands gleefully and says, “I can’t wait to get organized”. It’s more of a defeat-est thing. Like, “I can’t take it another minute. I can’t get anything done. Guess I should break down and do something about this clutter problem.” Whatever the impetus, break the problem down into small, do-able goals:

• Tackle the paper on every flat surface in the house
• Pick a room to organize
• Choose to start with your desk/ kitchen cabinets/ kids toys

Assign a Happy Home for the wayward items

• Get a wire basket for the mail and put it on the counter where you “land” when you come in the door
• Get a hook for each person in the family. Each person has a hook to hang their raincoat / jacket /backpack – preferably in a closet
• Tools belong in a toolbox. Tool boxes belong in places like a garage or basement or work room.
• Library books. Hang a tote bag on a door knob and keep the library books in it.
• CDs. Keep a small CD box (I have one with a lid that closes) near the CD player and put the ones you play the most in that.
• Toys. Well, that’s a stand-alone category. You may want to decide where toy zones are and organize from there. That is, unless you have particularly neat kids, and then, I probably can’t relate to you at all.

Well, there's more wisdom I can impart, but it's a holiday still and I have a little more cocktailing to do, so if you'll excuse me, I'll hit this weighty issue tomorrow, Scarlet!

Cheers!