And now it's time to say goodbye...

It's been a fun ride, but all good things must come to an end. Not to worry though, I will always be on the look out for snacks, toys, and good coupon deals! Thanks for reading and giving all your great feedback--it's been a real pleasure!

me on the lookout

Au revoir!

Midway-month Fantastic Freebies

May still has another full week left, but I thought I'd give you a look-see at what I have so far in my freebies.

- Full size Suave Professionals hair spray

- Full size Cottonelle moist wipes

- 1 Colgate toothbrush

- 3 Oral B toothbrushes

- 1 trial size Dove deodorant

- 1 trial size Head & Shoulders shampoo and conditioner

- 1 travel size Aveda Hand Relief

- Misc feminine products

If you buy any of the Aveda products, I can't recommend enough that you put your name on their mailing list. Give them your email address and your mailing address. At least once a month I get a coupon for something free there. Plus they always give hand massages when you go in :) I got a hair product and hand lotion last month, hand lotion this month, and I just got a coupon for a free full-sized body wash for next month. You really can't beat it!

Happy freebie-hunting!

Final garden update

We're on the home stretch, and it's only appropriate that I give you a last peek at my "garden" since some tomatoes are starting to show up! I have a teeny tiny green pepper too, but it didn't photograph very well. As of my count this morning, I have 9 of these little guys between all four of my plants. Should be a good summer!

Ponderings

I am thinking I should go on the next space shuttle launch. Since the shuttle launch kept getting delayed, that gave me plenty of time to think about the reasons I should go into space.

This is Laika who went up on Sputnik 2

• I am in my physical prime. That's what my vet said.
• I am the best candidate for testing the survivability of blue toys in space.
• I could totally rock a space suit

I mean, if these fellas look this good, imagine how yours truly would look?? I think the phrase you're looking for is "devastatingly good-looking".

Ride 'em cowgirl

This is just degrading. What do I look like? A pack mule? Dismount and hang up your tack please, young lady.

Oil-vey

guest post by my mom

Get it? Instead of "oy vey"? That's why you come here, folks. For the cheap laughs, good times, and crazy dog antics.

But I digress.

If you cruise any of the big name frugal blogs on the internet, you've likely stumbled upon the oil cleansing method for face washing. Since I'm gradually trying to replace things in our home that contain way too many chemicals, this was perfect. It meets both of my goals: It decreases the amount of clutter in our home, and it doesn't contain artificial ingredients or chemicals. Please don't misunderstand, I haven't gone all "granola", but just trying to be more mindful of what we have in our home.

Ok, back to the oil cleansing method (OCM). It's just what it sounds like. You use oil to clean your face. Sounds counterintuitive unless you had to sit through chemistry class--in which case you know that "like dissolves like". So, with the right types of oil, you can quickly and easily clean off dirt, oil, and makeup.

I've been using olive oil and castor oil, but you can also use jojoba, grapeseed, or sunflower oil in place of the olive oil. You choose the "recipe" that best meets your skin's needs*.

Normal skin - 1:1 ratio

Oily skin - 3:1 Castor oil to olive oil

Dry skin - 3:1 Olive oil to castor oil

You mix the oils up in a small, clean bottle (I used one of the travel size shampoo bottles I had). Massage about 1/2 teaspoon of the oil onto dry skin for a minute. Wet a wash cloth with very hot (not scalding, though) water. Lay the wash cloth over your face and let the hot water steam your pores for a full minute (this part feels delightful!). When your minute is up, use the wash cloth to wipe off the oil. And you're done! You only need to do this once per day. I do it at night to remove makeup, and then just splash my face with water in the morning.

The best part of this is that it removes makeup (including eye makeup) and I haven't needed a drop of moisturizer since I started using it. Talk about frugal! Prior to using the OCM, I used a combination of the products pictured below on varying days. I also needed prescription creams for my face for eczema in addition to moisturizers.

Since using the OCM, I haven't needed any of those products! Just the oil and a wash cloth. It's been a great frugal, natural option!

If you try it out, let me know. I'd love to hear what you think of it.

*I've tweaked the "recipe" for my skin to more of a 1:1.5 castor oil to olive oil. My skin needed a touch more moisture than what the 1:1 ratio provided.

Please stay seated until the ride comes to a complete stop

Yes, dear readers. The time is coming when this ride will come to a stop. My mom has decided that this just isn't the season of life for her to be keeping up with a blog, so Frugal Pooch is going by the wayside. There are about 7-10 days worth of posts left to go up, and then we'll be signing off for good. Just thought I'd give you a heads up that things are coming to a close. It's been fun!