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Online Shopping Comparison Engines

October 6th, 2009

shopping cartOnline Shopping Comparison Engines may seem confusing but they make shopping online easier and more cost effective.  You can search for the best deals around from just one site.

 

There are lots to choose from but today we are going to take a closer look at Kelkoo as it is one of the more established sites and is easy to navigate.

There are a wide range of categories including baby and nursery and flights. You can either search by the category or if you know exactly what you want you can type in the name. Once you are in the right area you can refine your search by price or by more specific categories.

 

nintendo dsSo if we are looking for DS for our kids christmas we can type in “Nintendo DS” but this gives us alomst 10000 results!! We can then refine it by typing in “Nintendo DS Console” and then clicking on the game console category on the right and we only have 194 results left! You can then sort by most popular or ascending price to find the best deal for you.

 

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Save the planet and your cash

September 24th, 2009

Energy Saving HouseThere is lots of talk at the moment about our carbon footpring and being green however Saving Enenrgy can also save you money. Follow our top tips for painless ways to save energy.

  1. Turn your heating down by 1 degree. 
  2. Is your water too hot? Your cylinder thermostat should be set at 60°C/140°F.
  3. Wash your clothes at 30 degrees or lower.  Now if you have very mucky kids I would suggest buying some pre-wash stain remover or you will just end upwashing things twice!
  4. If possible, fill up the washing machine, tumble dryer or dishwasher: one full load uses less energy than two half loads.
  5. Shower rather than take a bath.
  6. Hang clothes out to dry instead of using the tumble dryer.
  7. Check your tyre pressure so that less fuel is used.
  8. Clear all your clutter out of the car and the boot so you burn less fuel.
  9. Turn off appliances and lights when not in use.
  10. Use an energy comparison site like Uswitch to ensure you are not paying too much for your energy.

 

 

EST_logoFind out what grants may be available to make your home more energy saving.   There are grants available for loft and cavity wall insulation for many homes.   Check the Energy Saving Trust to see if you can save.

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Cheap children’s activites for a rainy day

August 31st, 2009

rainy-dayWith the weather changing I thought I would write a quick post with some of my favourite rainy day activities that don’t need to cost the earth.  I have linked to some websites for you so you can get lots more ideas but the 3 below are my favourites.

Homemade play dough

This is really easy to make and the making is part of the fun.  Try and split the dough into a few pieces if you have more than one child and they can each make their own colours.  It keeps well in a sealed container in the fridge, you may need to knead it and add a little more flour when you take it out.

Your will need:

  • 3/4 cup of salt
  • 1 cup of flour
  • 1 tablespoon of oil
  • 3/4 to I cup of boiling water from the kettle.

Mix the dry ingredients together and add the water.  Start with 3/4 of a cup of water and add more as required.  Add a few drops of your favourite colour to the water or you can knead it in later if you want a few different colours.

paper snowflakePaper cutting

There are lots of sites with templates for you to use.  I would suggest starting with little people or snowflakes and see how it goes!  Paper aeroplanes are also ever popular. 

http://www.scissorcraft.com

http://www.papersnowflakes.com

http://www.activityvillage.co.uk/origami_for_kids.htm

http://www.paperairplanes.co.uk - Lots of instructions and videos for the little ones to watch. 

 

fimbles sportsSports Day

This is my daughters favourite rainy day activity.  We set up an obstacle course in the house, they make a slide off the spare bed and generally get rid of excess energy. 

Before you start you can do some arts and crafts and can print out a great set of badges and medals from cbeebies and their fimbles site here.  You can colour them in and decorate the winners trophy.

Some of our favourite games are:

  • An obstacle course with a blanket to crawl under, chairs to climb over and stairs to bump down on bottoms.  You can tailor this to the age of your children and their abilities.
  • Skittles with empty plastic bottles and beanbags.
  • Beanbag throwing into baskets and pots.
  • Musical pots and pans (if you can stand the noise!)

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2p Increase in Fuel Duty Spetember 2009

August 31st, 2009
2p increase in Fuel Duty per Litre

2p increase in Fuel Duty per Litre

Just a quick reminder that the fuel duty goes up by 2p a litre from tomorrow the 1st of September. Remember to fill up your tanks today and save a few ££s.

Motorists will be affected with the rise in fuel duty from tomorrow despite petrol prices of 105p a litre. This measure was delayed from last year because of high oil prices. It will generate £1.3 million a day in additional revenue for the Treasury, according to the AA, and means that the taxman takes 65 per cent of the price of a litre of petrol.

There is an indepth article here from the times online about the implications for the economy and business.

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Do you use Freecycle?

August 14th, 2009

I don’t know if you know about Freecycle or not but I can recommend it in these hard times. You can do your bit reusing your items and get something back in return – everyone wins! 

Freecycle

Freecycle

 

Our local group tends to offer larger items and outdoor things along with a good selection of baby items.  We have offered lots of baby things that are not really suitable for the local charity shop such as little ride on cars and a baby seat.  In return we have received a swing and garage shelving.  Each group is different and it all depends on what people have to give away! 

The worldwide Freecycle Network is made up of many individual groups across the globe. It’s a grassroots movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns.

Freecycle groups match people who have things they want to get rid of with people who can use them. Our goal is to keep usable items out of landfills. By using what we already have on this earth, we reduce consumerism, manufacture fewer goods, and lessen the impact on the earth. Another benefit of using Freecycle is that it encourages us to get rid of junk that we no longer need and promote community involvement in the process.

Why not have a look and see if there is a group in your area -  http://www.uk.freecycle.org/

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Websites and Domain Names

August 10th, 2009

@mail

I have had a bit of a saga with my main website www.more4mums.co.uk and the hosting.  I will spare you all the gory details but I was left in the lurch by my previous hosting contact.  After much searching I found Carol at www.trainormaintain.co.uk who has been superb.  She helped me sort out my web hosting and has  been great so if you are looking for some advice or support I recommend getting in touch.  She offers reasonable rates without tying you up in a complicated contract.

Luckily I had registered the domain name at another company in my own name so it was easy to prove that the site belonged to me.   This is a very important word of warning to anyone setting up a new site, whatever you do please register the domain with another company in your own name.  You should also try and get the hosting set up in your name if possible so that if there are any problems you can reclaim your site!  Let my problems be a warning to you, I had hours of worry before it was all sorted!

I eventually settled for Vidahost  who offer great s ervice levels and have been answering emails in less than 10 minutes which is a miracle!  They offer a very reasonable hosting starter package at only £17 plus vat for the year which includes superb support.  Domain names are also cheap to purchase from only £2.49 per year.

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Credit Card Fraud

July 26th, 2009

Credit Card FraudI had a worrying episode the other week when I lost my card but thankfully it turned up safe and well.  It got me thinking that even if you take every precaution to prevent your credit card from being stolen or misused, it can still happen.

Below is a list of steps that you can take in order to make the after event a little less painful.

  • Always keep a copy of you card’s emergency phone number so you can contact your card issuer as soon as you are aware that the card has been stolen or misused. Furthermore, keep the number separate from your card as you do not want the phone number to be stolen with the card!
  • Report any card theft to the police immediately. This can be inconvenient and time consuming, but it will simplify the process of getting the card issuer to refund any unauthorised use of the card.
  • If you are travelling abroad, make yourself aware of the card issuer’s procedures for dealing with stranded tourists. For example, Barclaycard will arrange emergency cash advances or replacement cards. 

The maximum liability on credit cards is usually £50 for fraudulent transaction made before the issuer is notified. Your liability is not limited if you have been grossly negligent, such as writing your PIN on the card, or if you have played a part in the fraud. Preventing your card from being stolen or misused is clearly preferable to the hassle and upset involved in dealing with your card being stolen or misused. Below is a list of measures that you can take in order
to help prevent your cards from being used fraudulently:

  • Keep an eye on your card when using it in a shop or restaurant, especially overseas. If an embossing machine has been used, ask for carbon copies and destroy them.
  • Never discard transaction slips which display the card number.
  • Never leave your card where the detail can be copied by a fraudster.
  • Check your transaction slips at the time of purchase, raising any discrepancies with the retailer.
  • Never write your card PIN number down or disclose it to anyone.
  • Ask the retailer to confirm the amount being debited from your card, including any delivery and booking fees, when using your card to pay for an order.
  • Check your credit card statement against the transaction slips you have accumulated through the month. If the transaction was not electronic, it is possible for mistakes to be made when your card is debited, such as transposing two digits.
  • Do not buy products and services from websites that do not use a secure serve to process credit card payments. A secured server is indicated by a small icon of a closed padlock begin displayed at the bottom of your browser.
  •  Never offer your card details to ‘cold’ telephone callers, i.e. anyone contacting you out of blue, even if they claim to be from a reputable company.

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