Make a New Year’s Resolution that is easy to keep. Plan a vacation. How? Easy, save your change. Break the dollar, save the change. When paying for anything, always break another bill. Don’t dig in for the change. Rinse out a big jar. At the end of every day, deposit your change into the jar. When the jar is full, set up a special savings account for a vacation. Watch your vacation become a reality.

Try using a bar of Ivory soap. Scrub the spot with an old toothbrush and rinse.

Have them help you in the kitchen. They enjoy the time, you enjoy them and their help! Kids enjoy the assembling, measuring, and chopping tasks that require their deepest concentration, and they like projects that have a beginning (preparation), a middle (messy fun), and an end (happy diners around the table). Choose a recipe you will both enjoy. Begin with supervision and have fun.

Put plastic bags over socks. Use a rubber band to hold them up or tie the handles of the bags around their legs. Then put their shoes/boots on. Pull their pants down over the tops of the plastic bags. This keeps everyone’s feet dry. Wet feet will cause everyone to feel colder, but keeping their feet dry will enable them to stay out and have fun longer.