Secret Codes and Spies

Kids love to play spy. My boys drool over all the fancy spy toys at the store. Those toys are fun, but you don’t need special toys to be a spy. Spies do need undercover disguises though. Dig through the dress-up box. They might also like some sunglasses, a flashlight, and one of Dad’s hats. And spies need secret codes for their messages. (Don’t tell them that they are reading and writing, and using logical thinking skills.) You should tell them that coding and decoding messages is a science called cryptology. One of the simplest codes is to write words … Continue reading

Fashion Frugalista Alert: Oxford Heels

You can look fashionable and fabulous and still be frugal. Get the latest styles but spend so much less than everyone else. You can brag about your finds or just keep them to yourself as your little secret. It is all up to you. I just wanted to tell you about a very hot shoe that is very in right now. Many women love this show, and it also has gotten husband approval for being sexy but not over the top. I am talking about the oxford heel. This is a shoe that has been appearing in many fashion magazines … Continue reading

Fun With Morse Code

Morse code has a very interesting history, in many ways this simple code led to modern day communications. In Morse code, the letters of the alphabet are represented by dots and dashes. It’s also one of the few codes that can be communicated by light or sound. It can even be done with flags (a flag to the left is a dash, to the right it represents a dot. It’s fun thing to know, but it’s also saved a lot of lives. Morse code was what telegraph operators used. It’s still used on ships and in other emergency situations where … Continue reading

Pig Latin

Remember “Pig Latin”? It really doesn’t have anything to do with Latin, but it is a fun language game. You can either share these language skills with the kids or use it as a way to talk around them if they’ve already learned to spell. Some “Pig Latin” words have actually become regular scram words. Does “amscray” for “scram” sound familiar? To play at Pig Latin, take away the initial consonant sound of a word, and put it at the end of the word followed by the “ay” sound. So “boy” becomes “oy-bay”, “door” becomes “oor-day”, and so on. If … Continue reading

Top Coupon Tips

Even a casual coupon person can shave 15 percent off of their grocery bill without hardly trying. Real coupon geniuses can save 50 percent or more. Here are some tips to help you get the most out of those coupons. Use your coupon on the smallest size of the product. Sometimes this will allow you to get products for free! Compare the savings after the coupon with the generic version of the product. Sometimes the name brand is less, sometimes it is not. Combine store coupons with manufacturer coupons to get the best savings. Many stores allow you to do … Continue reading