If you are trying to make some extra money in order to save some extra money (after all, it's tough to save money if you have none left to save at the end of the day!), you could consider starting your own blog.

The key to blogging is to find a subject you are passionate about. Something that you would enjoy writing about on a daily basis, and sharing with others. Experts in the blogging arena will tell you that niche blogging is a great way to go. The more specific your subject is, the better. Also you want to find a subject that is not overly-saturated in the blogosphere- easy to say, but harder to do.

You might want to consider setting up an e-commerce site where you set up an online store and sell products. In this case, dedicated server hosting is needed.

I know many people that run several blogs and/or websites, and do so full time. If you do fall in love with blogging (easy to do!), and set up several blogs, multiple domain hosting will allow you to host additional domains (different web sites) on the same account. A great source for researching web hosting is at www.webhostinggeeks.com.
Blogging can be fun as well as an extra source of income. I suggest starting slowly, with a subject you love to talk about...a hobby you are knowledgeable about...and once you get started, remember to post often to keep your readers interested and coming back for more!

It is one thing to want to save money, but another if at the end of the day you do not have any extra money to save.

So I have searched around a bit, and will continue to do so, for opportunities to make some extra money from home so that at the end of the day, you might just have some extra money to save for that rainy day!

cash4books.net: Just type in the books’ ISBN numbers (which you’ll find on the back cover or on the copyright page in the front of the books), and you will find out right away if you can earn some money for them, and how much.
Complete the transaction online, print out a prepaid mailing label, pack up those books and send them in. In just a few days you will either receive a check in the mail or a deposit to your PayPal account. You do not even pay for the postage--very cool!

(Also check out: www.sellyourbooksback.com and www.Powells.com)

After you go through your own books, hit garage sales, thrift stores, library sales, Craigs List for free books, etc... If you've got an Internet-enabled PDA, you can look up books at Cash4Books.net/mobile as you shop. Make sure you are familiar with Cash4Books condition requirements first though. You may find a book for .50 that is worth $5.00!

Once Upon a Child (ouac.com): You can sell your children’s gently-worn-but-outgrown items to the store for immediate cash or credit. And when you need to buy children's clothing--Once Upon a Time features name-brand fairly new clothes up to 70% off retail.

Epinions.com: Share your opinions and maybe make a little extra cash with this site.

istockphoto.com: If you love using your camera, check out this site. You can list your photos for sale here and maybe earn some extra money.

Also check out Stock Xchange (www.sxc.hu ) for listing and selling your photos.

NinerNiner.com: This online network has a list of blogs that you can write posts for and earn .50 per post. Niner Niner pays around the 1st of each month, via Paypal. If you write 10 posts a day each month (appx. 30 days), you will earn $150 on the 1st of the following month. Make $150 in August, enjoy your Paypal deposit around September 1st. Good way to make some extra Christmas cash. Write more=make more.


Etsy.com: Moms at home rave about Etsy. If you are creative and love to make handmade crafts of any sort, you must check out Etsy if you have not already. Set up an account, and start selling your hand crafted treasures.

Have more ways to earn some extra money from home that you'd like to share? I will continue posting ideas as I find them. In the meantime, do you have more ways to earn some extra money from home that you'd like to share?

So it is back to school time once again, and this year my "baby," aka my five-year old son, is starting Kindergarten! Oh my aching heart. We did the Kindergarten check-ups and vaccinations, met the teacher, bought school supplies and new clothes and are ready for the most part. At least he is. Not so sure about me and my achy heart. Sigh. One thing we did not have to get were new eyeglasses for my son however, ....the eye exam was perfect.
But I know many parents will be shopping for new eyeglasses for their children as they return to school, and a great place to find affordable eyeglasses is Zenni Optical. Not only do they offer a nice selection of kid-friendly frames, (see these too cute camouflage frames? My son would have picked these out, I am certain, if he had needed glasses!) but the prices are budget-friendly too! When it comes to our kids we always want the best quality, and we need affordability at the same time. More so in today's economy than ever before. With Zenni Optical, you can get both, plus styles that make kids happy. So if galsses are on your child's back-to-school list, check them out!

Lemons. Good for your health and good for your budget. These yellow tarty fruits are inexpensive to buy at the grocery store, yet can be used in so many ways. Used in cooking, cleaning, beauty routines...lemons are one of the most versatile and cheap items to have in your kitchen.

I know everyone has found so many ways to use lemons, and I would love to hear some! Here are a few ways I know of that lemons can be incorporated in your daily life that benefit your health and your wallet.

Put lemon slices in a pitcher of ice water and drink that during the day instead of expensive sodas, juices and flavored waters from the store. Lemon is full of Vitamin C, so drinking the lemon water is healthy and will save you money when you skip the grocery store bought drinks! And I find that preparing the lemon water in a pitcher and having it easily available in my refrigerator motivates me to actually drink it. The more convenient the better.

An extra benefit of drinking lemon water besides saving money: Both lemon and water are important in eliminating toxins. And lemon acts as an alkalizing agent in your body, so it helps to neutralize the PH levels in your body. Lemons are full of Vitamin C thus god for your immune system. Good for your skin, body and budget!

Sipping on lemon juice with hot water has been known to help ease nausea, heartburn, constipation, hiccups. Less expensive than buying over-the-counter remedies.

Lemons are cheap, natural and healthy hair products. Lemons are an excellent way to rinse out sticky built-up residue in your hair. Also, try putting some lemon in your hair to get some highlights instead of spending money on expensive hair lightning products that have chemicals in them. Squeeze 1/2 lemon into wet hair and comb it through; and then sit out in the sun for an hour. Brunettes tend to see golden or red highlights, while blonds become lighter.

For chapped dry lips, don't spend money on expensive lip ointments at the store-try using a mixture of 1 teaspoon lemon juice and honey and then rub it onto your lips several times a day.

Use lemons to make a natural skin lotion for dry skin. Mix equal amounts of honey, vegetable oil and lemon juice and massage this into and areas that feel dry, especially your hands, face, elbows and feet. Leave the mixture on for 10 minutes and then rinse it off with warm water.

Use Lemons to help those wrinkles: Apply a mixture made from 1 teaspoon honey, ¼ teaspoon fresh lemon juice and a drop of sweet almond oil. Allow this to dry and leave on the face for 15 minutes before washing off with warm water.

Use lemons to make a hand lotion which you can use as often as you want to need to.Mix 2 parts fresh lemon juice with 3 parts honey and 4 parts almond oil. Massage the mixture into hands and leave it for 10 minutes before rinsing it off with vinegar and water. This completely natural & inexpensive hand lotion will leave your hands feeling silky smooth and can also be stored in a container for up to 3 weeks.

When washing dishes, put lemon juice in the rinse water to make glasses sparkle.

Mix together equal portions of lemon juice and vinegar to make an inexpensive brass and copper cleaner. Apply the mixture with a soft cloth, leave for a few minutes and then rub it off with a lint free cloth.

I know everyone has found so many ways to use lemons, and I would love to hear some more ideas on using lemons to save money (and help our environment.)

I splurged a bit today and took the kids to McDonalds for some ice cream sundaes and an Iced Mocha for me. Yum! I loved it so much I knew I had better find a recipe online to make my own Iced Coffee, or I would be spending dollars I should be saving on those Iced Mochas!

So I found this recipe, and the best part is I can make a gallon and save it in the refrigerator for whenever I feel like a glass.

You'll Need:

1 pot (10-12 cups) strong coffee, cooled
1 can Low Fat Sweetened Condensed milk
4 Tablespoons Sugar Free Hershey's Syrup
Skim milk
1 gallon container (milk container is perfect...washed out of course!)

Pour can of sweetened condensed milk and chocolate syrup into coffee and whisk. Add enough milk to fill 1 gallon container. Serve over ice.

Sounds delicious to me. Can't wait to give it a try!

Here is a quick tip for saving money everyday that I found on Self.com:

Set up a 'daily allowance" for each day of the month, so to speak, for you and your spouse by subtracting your living expenses--mortgage, car, utilities, groceries, insurance, personal savings (or the amount of money you want to hide away at the end of each day) etc.--from your income, and dividing the remainder by 30. Now that amount is the amount you and your spouse can spend each day on whatever.

Now comes the saving money trick: Say you have allotted $20 discretionary spending each day. Try and only spend $15 on "whatever," and save that extra $5.00. At the end of the month, add up the amount saved from your "whatever" money, in this example $150, and transfer that amount into an emergency fund!

Before you toss out old stuff, get creative with ideas to reuse old items cluttering up your shelves and closets. Real Simple.com has some great tips for reusing old items--here are a few of my favorites:

Votive candle holders: Use for toothpick holders, paperclip holders, ponytail holders, marble collections.


Wooden Crates: Make Excellent bathroom storage centers for toilet paper and towels!


Old Books: Can make a free table stand instantly!


Empty Kleenex Boxes: Makes a handy place to store plastic grocery bags.



Extra Stamps: Interesting stamps can make for a fast and cheap nail manicure! Just trim the stamps to fit your finger nail, dampen and apply!


Other ideas: Shared on the Mail Tribune.com:

Trimming tree branches: Save long fallen twigs or branches that are in good condition. Tie in a bunch and let dry completely in the garage. Spray paint them in white, silver or gold and display in a vase or large urn as indoor decorations.

Dry leftover slivers from bath soap bars and place them in a large zip top plastic bag. Use a hammer to smash the bars into small pieces, and then close the bag. Poke several small holes in the bag with a pin, and then toss the bag into storage bins with clothes. The soap will repel moths and other insects, and keep clothes smelling fresh.

Save old socks or partner-less socks to store delicate Christmas ornaments.

Have any re-using tricks to share? We'd love to hear them!