I noticed I had been neglecting my frugal tips of the week section so I thought I'd better remedy that.  This weeks frugal tips deal with the trash bill.  I'm not sure how it works all over the country but here you get charged by the bag or trash can.  So in an effort to reduce those trash bags here are a few tricks I've started doing.

1. Take the time to tear up the cardboard boxes into small pieces.  You'll be able to get more in that trash bag.  If you live in the country you could burn them in a burn barrel but I live in town so I can't do this.

2.  Recycle your pop cans.  Around here you can get between $0.60 - $0.80 a lb. for them.  I think it's worth the extra effort.

3.  Start a compose pile.  Or you can do like my dad does and dig a hole in the yard.  Place your food scraps in there and put a light layer of soil over it.  When it is full start a new hole.  Not only will this save you money on the trash bill but you'll also be adding nutrients to your soil or garden.

4.  Recycle those cottage cheese, sour cream, yogurt containers.  You can use them for leftovers, freezing broth stock, storing homeschool supplies, and a million other uses.  I also save my old coffee cans.  I use those to pour hot grease in that needs to be thrown away.  When it's full I throw it away and don't have to worry about it leaking in the trash can.

5.  Now for an extreme one that my mother has used for years and yes I'll admit I do it sometimes myself.  She saves all her bread bags from store bought bread.  There is a few uses for these.  One you can use them to store your homemade bread or rolls in.  Two (I must warn you this one usually brings laughs)  in the winter when it is all snowy and wet they work great for keeping feet dry and warm.  Just wear 2 pairs of socks putting the bag on inbetween the layers.  This way no one knows your wearing them and you keep your feet dry and warm.  Go ahead and laugh I know it sounds funny.  My husband found this totally humorous one year when he caught me doing it.  But I didn't have boots and the kids wanted to go out and play in the snow.  Now he's asked me for them a few times.  Also what's a mom to do when the kids get their boots all soaked or somehow manage to always get snow down in them.