North West Regional Strategy

Money is a scarce commodity that all of us need. With the economy in the pits right now, we all need money more than ever. Instead of looking for a second job to cover living expenses, you should look into cutting your costs.

Pittsburgh resident Dana Vento can offer many ways to save. She started a blog site called pittsburghfrugalmom.com to share her great tips with anyone who is interested. She has around 25,000 followers so far. One great way to save is on groceries. Not only do grocery stores offer weekly circulars full of discounted items but many stores will also allow you to use manufacturer coupons on top of already great sales.

She also explains that when shopping online, there are great deals to be had. For instance, many websites offer discounted clothing. Once you choose the items that you would like to purchase, do a quick search for a promo code before checking out. She claims that over half of the time, she is able to find one of these money saving codes.

Vento also has some other great advice. If you are looking for toiletries, shop at dollar stores. You will save a large amount on the necessities that every family needs. Also, look for products that offer rebates. That will help to add the savings up.

Every household needs a little money saving help. Try some of these tips and you might surprise yourself on your actual savings!

Nanny cams are one of the most useful tools a busy parent can utilize. For those who don’t know, a nanny cam is a camera that parents set up in their home. It is primarily used to keep an extra eye on their children during times when they have a babysitter, friend, or family member over to watch their kids. It can help put parents’ minds at ease, because they will know exactly what went on while they were gone. Once they return home, they simply replay the footage.

Nanny Cameras

In addition to monitoring your babysitter, nanny cams can also be used to watch your child while you are home. They can be placed in their room during naptime or playtime for you to view what the child is doing while on his or her own. Nanny cams are also a great way to ensure that your children are playing safely together while you are in another room, such as in the kitchen making dinner.

Many nanny cams are very small in size and will not be noticed or draw attention to themselves regardless of the location in which you decide to place them. They are also relatively cheap in price, depending on the various features that you want included with your camera. They can be as simple as hiding a camera in a stuffed animals nose to more advanced and technological options that require a little more work to get set up. You should buy a camera that is suitable for both your needs for your child and your wallet.

As you can see, a nanny cam is a very useful tool for parents. It can help them maintain the safety and security of their children even while they are away. A nanny cam helps bring peace of mind to parents, because they will know the exact actions of both their sitter and their child.

While there are some precautions you can take to help prevent your home from being targeted for a burglary, there are additional steps you can take to protect yourself from being robbed of your valuables by a burglar who has gained access to your home. Don’t let yourself fall victim to a thief. Be crafty and think outside the obvious safe spots when hiding valuables in your home.

People have used various places, devices and obvious heavy weighted secured house safes for years as an inconspicuous hiding place for their valuables. Unfortunately these are the first things a trained thief looks for when entering a home. You may think the fake head of lettuce in the refrigerator or the faux can of chicken noodle soup in the cupboard is a diversion, but they are red flags for the trained eye of a thief. There are some crafty and uncommon places that can be used for hiding valuables in your home.

Burglars are looking for high ticket items like televisions, computers, laptops, jewelry and collectibles. While it may be difficult to conceal the bigger items, jewelry, cash and smaller items can be hidden quite well among the everyday that a robber wouldn’t think twice about. Keeping a jewelry box out in the open with cheap costume jewelry is a good diversion and may keep a burglar’s searching to a minimum. Use the inside of a couch cushion to stuff a bag containing your fine jewelry inside. Open the zipper of the cushion cover and use a sharp knife to make a slice in the foam cushion. Place your valuable jewelry inside a plastic or cloth bag and stuff it into the cushion before closing it back up. Most burglars will not go into your couch cushions looking for things.

Hollowing out a book may seem like an obvious idea, but it can work if you have an extensive book collection. A thief isn’t going to take the time to pull out every book from your personal library to look for the one that has been crafted into a hiding place.

If you have an attic or a basement where you store things, utilize that space and turn an old 13 inch television or clunky old computer monitor into a makeshift safe. Open up the box and remove enough of the insides to create a space large enough to hold jewelry, coins, cash or other small valuables. Replace the back and toss it in the corner like a piece of junk that is waiting for pick up week. This is another item that thieves and burglars are going to pass by.