Articles written by April Updike

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About me - April Updike

My husband and I have 5 daughters. We currently homeschool our youngest 3 girls. Our older two are now out on their own, with one of them recently graduating from college with high honors.

We are a farming family, raising ducks, chickens, rabbits, horses,

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Home & Garden > Home & Garden (Other) Survival techniques: Surviving power outage: 2 of 11

Our family recently survived a lengthy power outage after a major ice storm. We really did not find it that difficult to do, in part because we were prepared ahead of time. However, some of our neighbors who were not prepared ended up staying at a hotel for several nights, at the tune of $65 per night. I am passing on some o...
Home & Garden > Home & Garden (Other) How to prepare for a Midwest storm: 1 of 5

Spring is now upon is, and for a good part of the USA, this means the beginning of another storm season. Depending on where you live, a storm may mean different things, from heavy winds and rain with flooding, to tornadoes and thunderstorms to hurricanes. While there is nothing we can do to stop adverse weather, there are nu...
Home & Garden > Cleaning (Other) House cleaning tips that will save you money: 3 of 6

I save money a number of different ways by keeping a clean house. This may seem like "too much work" to some people or you may say it "takes too long", however I have not found that to be the case. True, I am a SAHM, but I do have other activities that keep me busy through out the day, such as running a farm, and being a hom...
Health & Fitness > Cold & Flu The best way to elude a cold: 2 of 4

The best way to avoid the flu and common cold (thus, saving money on medications, Dr visits and not missing work.) We have all heard the basic common sense ways to avoid a cold, "wash your hands", "cover your mouth when you sneeze", and if your mom was like my mom, "don't go outside with wet hair" (although most medical expe...
Home & Garden > Home & Garden (Other) Home safety tips for every day: 1 of 2

Years ago, I used to teach first aid, CPR and home safety. These tips are still just as sound today as they were 25 years ago. Being safe does not mean you have to spend a ton of money. 1. If your car has an alarm, keep your keys beside your bed. If you have an intruder during the night, hit the button. The alarm will scare ...
Celebrations & Holidays > Celebrations & Holidays (Other) Summer holiday activities that promote learning: 1 of 2

It is a well known fact that the majority of students forget a good part of what they have learned over the summer months. In fact, I have heard from one source that they can loose up to 1/3. That is 3 months of lost information! In our house, we home school and we school year around mainly for this reason. I have devised a ...
Home & Garden > Home & Garden (Other) Tips for surviving a house fire: 4 of 7

Hopefully you or someone you know or love will never be involved in a house fire. I completely lost my home and its contents in 2001. Having lived through the experience, I will admit it was not like I would have imagined it to be. 1. The most important things are the lives of your family members. 2. Keep good records and an...
Personal Finance > Smart Spending Money-saving tips: How to lower your grocery bill: 30 of 46

Ways to get your food bill down 1. Cook from scratch when possible. Normally you can make it cheaper than you can buy it ready made. A good example is bread. At our little grocery store a box of instant mashed potatoes is $4.98 that would feed my family 2 times. I can buy a 10 lb sack of potatoes for that, which will provide...
Sports & Recreation > Camping Ways to save money while camping in a RV: 4 of 4

Due to the price of fuel, many people may find that going on an extended trip in their RV is now out of the question. However, there are several things one can do to ensure that money is saved when possible. Plan ahead for the best savings results. Obviously the first concern is the price of fuel. While there is not much one...