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Show -NEWS Spanish Fork Covering what matters most WEDNESDAY, JULY 16, 2008 • A3 Be frugal, don't waste Benjamin 1st Ready or Not Dawn Van Nosdol I'm cheap. No, I think that I would be better described as being frugal — verrrrry frugal. Some people would still say cheap. To me there is a difference. To be cheap is to buy items that are inexpensive and it doesn't matter if it breaks because you can replace it cheaply. To be frugal is not necessarily purchasing something inexpensively, although it can be, but instead it is to purchase quality (don't confuse this with something that is overly expensive just because it has a name brand attached to it), to take care of it and to use it up until it can't be used anymore. To me it is less expensive and more dollar wise to be frugal than to be cheap. It really frustrates me when my clothes become threadbare, furniture or appliances wear out, not that they have given me 20+ years of good service (not the clothes generally), but I would prefer to put a little thought into really looking at what I want, what I need it to do, and then pay a fair price for it. Then go home and take care of it forever like it is new so that it will last, well, forever. I guess that the rising cost of everything is really starting to make me think about my frugal ways and to see if there is anything more I can squeak out of my already tight dollar. There are a few things that I do with everyday products that I must replace on a regular basis that has saved me money and allows me to use the full amount of the product that I have paid for. Let's start with lipstick and lip balm products. I use all of it; even the stuff that is left behind that most people throw away. I use a small lip gloss type container and when I get to the point that the lipstick or balm can't be applied easily anymore, I just dig it out and put it in my little container. It is just as portable as the original container and... I am being frugal. Don't limit yourself to lip balm for this little trick. I buy my under-eye/blemish cover-up in stick form and I do the same with that. You can laugh, but the amount of product that is still left in the original packaging is enough for me to use another six months or longer! It is ridiculous how much product is thrown away because you never thought to dig out the rest and transfer it to another container. How about lotion? I have never thrown away an intact lotion bottle in my life because I always cut it in half, scoop out the rest of the lotion and then throw the bottle away. This is actually my favorite tip. A lot of people I know just turn the bottle upside down to let the lotion drain towards the cap, but I don't care for that. I always make such a mess of things when I open the lid and I always invariable get too much lotion out — and that is being wasteful. Instead what I did was to go down to the store and I bought the cutest little glass container with a lid (like a cute little lidded candy dish). Then when the lotion stops pumping out easily, I very carefully cut the plastic bottle in half and scoop out the lotion with a flexible scraper or spatula and put it into my beautiful little covered decanter. This way I can use the right amount every time and I don't have to beat my hand trying to get that last little bit that never comes out. Nifty huh. Now on to shampoo. I wash my hair every day - and no, I'm not going to change my ways to conserve my shampoo (J ust think extreme bedhead without the benefit of using a product to make it look that way). Instead, I have found a very effective way to extend my supply. I bought a large bottle of shampoo at Costco that had a really good pump on it. It dispenses just the right amount every time I use it. Since I started using that bottle, about 10 years ago, I started going through a lot less shampoo. If you are manually pouring shampoo in your hand every time you shampoo, I can almost guarantee that you are wasting it and using too much. Just give it a try. Get a really good-sized bottle with a quality pump and" remember: frugal is buying quality — dollar store stuff generally won't hold up. I would suggest you buy a shampoo bottle that already has a pump and then when it gets low, just fill it with your own preferred shampoo. I have been using the same bottle, like I said, for the last 10 years, with no problems — and I have very clean hair. Extending the life of what you have already paid for is just plain smart and frugal — or cheap. Whatever you want to call it. Bridal shower philosophizing Life after Birth Janene Baadsgaard Men and women bond differently. Males stare at the same football game on TV. Women talk. When someone in our gender decides to get married, we like to gather, gab, eat goodies and give each other presents. It's called a bridal shower. Bridal showers don't have anything to do with bathing like my young son asked. Bridal showers are parties we women give each other to celebrate our decision to join our lives with a man. Our sister, daughter, niece, granddaughter, or friend is about to become someone's wife and create a brand new family. So we set aside a Saturday afternoon to honor her choice and wish her well on her new journey. Bridal showers used to bug me. I got tired of all the silly games such as contests to see who could make the most beautiful toilet paper wedding dress or pin-the-lips on the groom. I thought they seemed silly and trivial. These days I actually look Madison's Avenue Janene Baadsgaard forward to the bridal showers I'm invited to. These days I see the multi-generational bonding of women to honor our newest bride as an important feminine cultural rite of passage. Every woman who attends a bridal shower is at a different place on her life's journey. The oldest woman present is usually a widow longing for the touch of her husband's hand. The retired woman is wondering what to do with a spouse who is suddenly under foot and home all the time. The middleaged woman is trying to find a rare quiet evening to spend alone with her husband without the children. The newlywed has most likely faced her first reality check with her knight in shining armor. The single woman wonders if the opportunity to marry will ever come. Every age and circumstance has its own set of challenges and joys. Yet when we join together to wish our daughter, sister, niece or friend well as she begins her new journey, there is power in the room — the power of united women to bless our newest bride with tender words of advice offered with gentleness and love. After all the games are over, refreshments served and presents opened there are usually a few quiet moments when the women in the room contemplate their own marriages, widowhood or singleness. The woman in charge often asks each guest to give the soon-to-be bride marital advice. A hush comes over the room as each woman is contemplative. Then the words come — words like: "When my husband and I ran into a rocky patch in our marriage I tried to change him. It didn't work. I finally figured out that you can't change anybody but yourself. I changed me. That has made all the difference." "I have learned that love is a choice not a feeling; you make a choice to love." "Love is a verb — what you do, not how you feel." "If you love your husband exactly as he is, then he becomes all you've ever dreamed of." "Forgive." When the words stop and everybody goes home, there is a feeling of hopefulness that we each take away. We know we will gather again when another of our own chooses to become a bride. Even as we slowly step toward death, we know some new bride will'be stepping into marriage. The circle of life will begin all over again — all because one woman and one man choose to love each other. Janene Baadsgaard is the autlxor of many humorous and heartwarming books for families including her most recent publication 15 Secrets to a Happy Home - available at local book stores or on-line at www. springcreekbooksjcom. by "Big Al" and "Famzy" auxiliaries reorganized 'Round and About Benjamin Kathleen Olsen Welcome home to Elder Tyler Ferre who has returned from serving an LDS mission in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. He spoke in the Benjamin 2nd Ward on Sunday, July 13. Elder Ferre is the son of Jerry and Bonnie Ferre and the grandson of Dorothy Hawkins. We congratulate him on his good work and are happy to have him home again. ••• Temple night for Benjamin 1 st Ward is scheduled for the third Saturday evening of each month. This usually takes place at the Provo Temple but, because of its closure for cleaning-. July's temple night will be at the Mt. Timpanoj>os Temple in American Fork. Those participating should be in the temple chapel by 5:45 p.m. on July 19. ••• We have several members of the community who are recuperating from accidents or surgeries. We wish them continued improvement and will be glad when they can be out and about with us again. ••• Since the sustaining a while back of a new bishopric in Benjamin 1st Ward, all of the auxiliary organizations have been reorganized. Here is a list of the new officers: Relief Society: Shirley Shepherd, president; Phyllis King and Carolyn Bumingham, counselors; and Susan Beckstrom, secretary. Young Men: Keith Argyle, president; Jason Taylor and Ben Thomsen, counselors; and Derk Winn, secretary. Young Women: Eileen Oxborrow, president; Alison Young and Jodi Lundell, couselors; and Jana Lee Williams,secretary. Primary: Becky Davis, president; Grisel Montoya and Janine King, counselors; and Christine Winn, secretary. Sunday School: Lloyd Wilkey, president; Andrew Caras and Scott Beckstrom, counselors; and Lynn Hazel, secretary. _ High Priests: Wayne Anderson, group leaden Ray Virchow ~and Blaine Wride, assistants; Eric Oxborrow, secretary. Elders Quorum: Dean Roberts, president; Greg Maughan and Chris Bartold, counselors; and Brent Shelby, secretary. ••• The summer is in full gear with all the things that summer brings, including mosquitoes, unfortunately. Ballgames occupy a lot of the time for the players, their parents and grandparents. Some grandparents have a real juggling act to get to two or more grandchildren's games in one evening. Family reunions, camping trips, picnics, swimming, outdoor parties, and just plain enjoying the season keep most people pretty busy. It's all fun but we invite you to also take a few moments and listen to sounds of sum-. mer. Here on the farm land we hear birds chirping, the piping of pheasants, the wind rustling through the leaves on trees, tractors working in the fields, the various sounds of animals and children enjoying the freedom of being outside. There are the smells of summer also; there are few things that smell as good as fresh cut alfalfa, or there is the dusty smell of harvested grain, and the cleansing smell of a summer shower, or the unwelcome scent of a skunk that has passed by — at least, we hope it's passed by and not stopped for a while. At any rate, enjoy the season while it's here. Have a happy week! UVU Professor seeking lease on small home/apartment/duplex beginning August 1st. 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