photo by guccibear
My kids go through a ton of frozen juice pops during summer. Sometimes I buy them, and other times I make my own. I really like the first tip that uses silicone muffin cups as a mold. It’s much more practical than using an ice-cube tray and easier to manage than using cups.

HOMEMADE POPSICLES: I used to have a set to make these, and I have no idea what happened to it. I tried to make frozen treats in Dixie cups, and they turned out pretty well. But I only had a few of the small cups. I decided to try my reusable silicone muffin cups, and they turned out perfect. They pop right out much easier than with the plastic set or the small cups. I make them with juice, lemonade and/or Kool-Aid. My kids love the multicolored ones, and I have been making them almost every day on a cookie sheet. — Aimee, Indiana

REMOVE SAP: When my husband and I went to Hawaii three years ago, we parked the car for a week under some trees at the motel where we stayed. When we got back to the car, the trees had deposited a thick layer of sap on the windshield, and it was nighttime. We went to the nearest gas station and had to scrub the windshield for about an hour with gasoline in order to see enough to drive home. The next day, a friend told us to put hot tap water in a bucket with some Dawn dish liquid and pour it on the windshield, scrub and repeat until the sap was gone. Whaddya know? It worked well — and fast. Do not put hot tap water on a cold windshield! This was summertime, and it was warm outside. Doing it when it is cool/cold could cause your windshield to crack! — Tammy, California

MINI GREENHOUSE: My hubby has saved and used plastic containers like the ones that hold strawberries, rotisserie chickens, cookies, etc. You get the picture. We don’t buy much of this stuff, but when we do, he washes the containers and reuses them for seed starting. They work great. They’re mini greenhouses. — Suki, Arkansas

FREEZE HERBS: When I have extra fresh herbs, I’ll chop them finely and freeze them with water in ice-cube trays. Then, if I need some fresh herbs in a sauce or soup, it’s easy to pop out a cube or two from the freezer. It saves extra fresh herbs from going to waste. — Kit, e-mail

WHEN IT’S GONE, IT’S GONE: My kids are home from school. I have been trying to get my grocery bill down. Now that they are home, they snack more during the day. When we go on trips (short or long), I pack goody bags with cookies, candy, chips, fruit, etc. for the kids to eat on the way. I refill their goody bag for the rest of our stay and for the trip home. In the past, the kids have complained about one getting more of something than the others. I buy groceries weekly, so I thought about doing goody bags for the week. I wouldn’t have to hear complaining about someone not getting any or one getting too much. They could trade off like they do on vacation if they want more of something than what I gave them. I was also thinking that by doing this, if the kids knew that was their limit for the week, they might choose to “save” some for later and not eat it all just because it’s there. — Suzy, South Carolina

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