Seven Best Decisions You Can Make About Money By Al Jacobs When this title was first suggested to me, I instinctively blurted out: "I can think of only one best decision . . . acquire as much of it is you can!" I've since reconsidered; there are others. 1. Don't spend what you don't have. First and foremost, regularly spend less than you make. Consider a local mattress dealer that advertises on radio and TV. His madcap skits, offering "no deposit, no interest, and no payments until . . . whenever," are hilarious. However, I shudder at the thought that someone actually purchases an unaffordable product, gambling that in a year or so the full purchase price can be paid so to avoid scheduled fees and retroactive interest. It's a recipe for disaster. 2. You'll find your financial helping hand at the end of your arm. A half-century ago, the average American anticipated retirement through an employee pension fund, supplemented by social security. Much has since changed since. Many employers, for sheer survival, are under-funding their pension programs and ridding themselves of employees. And with Social Security rapidly evolving into a welfare system, there is little outside assistance to count on. The significance is clear: Fund your own retirement through regular savings and sound investments. Fashion your life so that part of your income is not consumed, but available for the future. You must do this yourself; don't expect help elsewhere. 3. Arrange to make your money grow. The adage that time is money is accurate; it depicts the earning power of money astutely invested. Let me suggest a method. Open a self-directed brokerage IRA account-preferably a Roth if you're eligible-in which you accumulate certificates of deposit, treasury notes, and high grade corporate bonds. Begin at an early age and pursue this program systematically through your working years. An annual contribution of $4,000 invested at 7frac12; percent, compounded semiannually over the 40-year period from ages 25 to 65, results in more than a million dollars. It's the compound interest that brings this about, a phenomenon as close to magic as you'll ever encounter. 4. Don't be taken advantage of. There is no limit to the ways your money can be misspent or the persons who will take it from you. Don't let this happen. Delete spam e-mails unopened. Recognize that all advertisements qualify for the admonition: Ninety-five percent of everything is nonsense. Purchase nothing from uninvited salesmen. Ignore random solicitations for charitable contributions. 5. Plan for the changes that must surely come. Life is a constantly evolving process, with significance at each stage. In your twenties it's acceptable to live on a shoestring while dreaming and scheming for the future. By your thirties, as family or professional obligations take precedence, closely control your spending and savings habits. During your forties assiduously concentrate on asset accumulation. I recommend that by age fifty you are able to subsist on passive investment income if necessary. By your sixtieth birthday, you qualify as wealthy, meaning that you can live in a style you choose with no employment required. Be aware that things will work out this way only by your early decision to make it happen 6. Don't expect money to make you happy. You've heard the old saying: "Money isn't everything." That's true. Like it or not, wealth brings with it certain demands and responsibilities, and if you ignore them you'll regret it. As you become wealthy - recognizably wealthy - certain aspects of your life change, and not all for the better. Although the problems of meeting the mortgage and financing the children's schooling may no longer exist, other problems move in to take their place. Your relationship with friends and relatives begin to change as you are viewed as something apart. It seems that admiration and envy are opposite sides of the same coin, and as your perceived fortune grows, you will be the recipient of both emotions. Merely possessing money doesn't ensure happiness. Only its prudent use results in satisfaction. 7. Give away what you don't need. In the final analysis, there is a practical limit on personal consumption, beyond which satisfaction is marginal. At some point in our lives there must be more than mere acquisition. In this hostile world are deserving people, and the opportunity to share your bounty in a meaningful way is exactly that - an opportunity. There is satisfaction in giving back a portion of your good fortune. Establish a private non-profit educational foundation into which you contribute sums of money. These funds become available for scholarships to students chosen by the foundation directors whom you select, perhaps faculty members of a nearby college. The student chosen receive payments as long as they perform satisfactorily, and it's your task to monitor their performance. Not only do deserving students benefit directly to the extent of nearly 100 percent of your contributions, but also your donations qualify as tax deductions. This is a fine way to fund a philanthropic enterprise in which the value to the actual recipients can be seen and appreciated. What finer way might you spend money? AL JACOBS has been a professional investor for more than four decades. His business experience ranges from real estate, mortgage, and securities investment to appraisal, civil engineering, and the operation of a private trust company. In addition to managing his investments on a day-to-day basis, he is a featured financial columnist for both online and print publications. He is the author of Nobody's Fool: A Skeptic's Guide to Prosperity. You may subscribe to his financial Newsletter, "On the Money Trail," at no cost or obligation, by visiting www.onthemoneytrail.com . Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

Tips for Inexpensive Graduation Parties By Jill Cooper LivingOnADime.com Bobbi asks: Our daughter graduates this spring and wants to have a graduation party afterwards for family and friends. We have very little money for that. Do you have any ideas for finger foods, salads, and decorating ideas that would fit our budget? Thank you, Bobbi First of all, keep it simple. Decorate using anything that your daughter has collected over the years that has her high school colors or mascot on it. For a tablecloth, go to the dollar store and get a plastic tablecloth in her school colors or go to Wal-Mart and get an inexpensive twin sheet (for about $3) in her colors. Hang school pictures or scrapbook items around the room or lay them on the table. Also, balloons and streamers from the dollar store can add a lot to the decorations for a small price. For my daughters graduation I didn't decorate much, but I did lay out a very nice food table. As far as food goes, it's really more about the presentation than the food. Even the most inexpensive food looks expensive when served on a silver platter or glass tray. Do things like cut the sandwiches into triangles and cut off the crusts. Use foods like egg salad, ground up chicken or ham sandwiches. When you grind your meat, it can go much farther. Punch can be a less expensive alternative to trying to serve pop. I make punch all the time by mixing 3-4 different flavors of Kool-Aid and then freezing it long enough to make it slushy. Use less water than what the directions indicate. If the package calls for 2 quarts of water, I use 1 and 3/4 quarts. People frequently ask me for my recipe and are often surprised to learn that it is just plain old Kool-Aid. Look through your cookbooks and find salads that call for less expensive ingredients. For example, adding a few veggies to a pasta salad is less expensive then making a veggie salad with lots of cauliflower and broccoli in it. Here's a strawberry salad that I used at my daughter's graduation that is great because it freezes well, allowing me to make it long before the party. If you have a cake, too, this dessert can be used as a fruit salad instead. Strawberry Dessert This is probably one of my favorite desserts, partly because it is not too rich. It is a very light dessert. It is an especially good one to keep made up in the freezer for when unexpected company comes by. I like to use it not only for graduation parties, but also for baby showers or any other get-together because I can make it a week ahead of time and that means one less thing to have to deal with the day of the special event! Crust: 1 cup flour frac14; cup brown sugar frac12; cup nuts frac12; cup butter, softened Mix and slightly press or crumble into a 9x13 pan. Bake at 350deg; for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally while baking to make crumbly. When cooled, remove 1/3 of it to save to sprinkle on top of the dessert. Evenly spread out the remaining portion in the pan. Topping: 2 egg whites (pasteurized) 2/3 cup sugar 1 10oz. package of strawberries 2 Tbsp. lemon juice (must use) 1 small container whipped topping Place first 4 ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat at high speed for 10 minutes or until it forms stiff peaks. Be sure to use a large mixing bowl because this really increases in volume. Fold in whipped topping and spread over crust, Sprinkle with the 1/3 cup of crumbs you saved back. Freeze for 3-6 hours or overnight. Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the editors of LivingOnADime.com . They have helped thousands save money and get out of debt by starting with just their grocery bill. To get their free mini e-course on Grocery Savings visit LivingOnADime.com . Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

Feeding a Family for $300 a Month? By Tawra Kellam LivingOnADime.com I do something that most people think they can't do today. I feed my family of 5 for $300 a month. Most people say that's an impossible feat, but what boggles minds even more is that I do it without using coupons. How do I do it? First, I use what I have . If I don't have milk in the house, I don't make a special trip to the store for it. The kids won't die from malnutrition if they miss drinking milk for a day or two. If I'm out of bread, I'll make some cornbread or muffins. If I'm out of fresh veggies, I will use canned or frozen instead. Stop going to the store for one or two things. I shop for food 2-3 times a month and that's it. You'd be amazed how much this saves on the cost of gas. Shopping the clearance sections, I regularly find milk on clearance for $1.20 a gallon. My store marks the milk down a few days before the "sell by" date. The great part is that milk stays fresh for 1 week after it's opened. I generally only buy the milk when it's marked down and I buy enough to last until the next time I find a great deal on it. I throw several in the freezer and then I don't have to make a special trip for milk (or pay the premium price). Just thaw, shake and serve. Purchase meat only on sale or on clearance. Again, butchers mark down their meat a day or two before the "sell by" date. Generally, meat is good for 3-4 days after the "sell by" date in the fridge or 6 months in the freezer. I never buy meat unless it's on sale for $1.99 or less a pound. If it's not on sale, we don't eat it. (Even so, we never have a shortage of meat in our house.) You can get some great unadvertised deals just by watching the meat counter's clearance items. I found 5 lb. rolls of hamburger for $2.95 each just the other day. Of course, I stocked up and will have enough hamburger to last the next 6 months. I can get "soup bones" with enough meat on them to make a great vegetable stew for under $2.00 for the entire family! Add some rolls and you have a complete meal for 5 for less than $3.00. When chicken is on sale for $1.66 per pound, I stock up. I do this with all my meats. This way we can always have a variety of meats." Another important tip: Ask. Most people are intimidated by asking, but I regularly ask when things will go on sale or be marked down. By asking, I've found out that bananas, milk and meat are marked down each morning. I try to shop in the mornings to get the best deals. When we lived in Texas, the stores marked things down in the evening, so we made it a point to go shopping in the evening. Adjust your shopping times to find the best deals. Serve your family proper portions of food. Most parents give their kids way too much milk, juice and soda. My kids get soda on special occasions only. They eat milk with their cereal. For snacks, they eat a piece of string cheese, fruit or one or two cookies. The kids don't sip on milk or juice all day long. They drink water and are just fine with it. As a general rule, I try to give them one vegetable and one fruit for lunch and dinner and then a piece of fruit with cookies or cheese as a snack. This way, they get their "five a day" in very easily. Stop letting kids just "graze" on chips and other snack food all day. My kids get one small "bowl" of chips (1/2 cup to 1 cup depending on the size of the chips) a day and that's it. So what do we eat? Here are some of our menus: Slow cooked roast, brown gravy, onions, carrots, potatoes, buttermilk muffins and a fruit plate(The next day, the leftovers from the roast are used as barbecue beef along with potato salad, green beans and strawberries or grapes.) Pizza (homemade), tossed salad and fruit Maple glazed chicken, scalloped potatoes, glazed carrots, applesauce and dinner rolls Sloppy Joes, cucumbers and tomatoes Tacos, refried beans, green beans, sliced apples and tortilla chips w/ honey With savvy shopping, you to can cut your grocery bill even when prices are going up! Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the editors of LivingOnADime.com . As a single mother of two, Jill Cooper started her own business without any capital and paid off $35,000 debt in 5 years on $1,000 a month income. Tawra and her husband paid off $20,000 debt in 5 years on $22,000 a year income. Tawra and Jill teach thousands of readers each month how to save money on their grocery bill and get out of debt. Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

Don't Bury Your Head in the Sand! by Jill Cooper LivingOnADime.com I had a dog once, who when I would scold him, would run and hide under the bed. He knew he had done something wrong and thought that by hiding he wouldn't get into trouble as much. I think he figured if he couldn't see me, I couldn't see him and he wouldn't get scolded. There was just one slight problem. He couldn't fit under the bed. Only his head and front paws were hidden but his back half was in full view. He had put himself in the worst possible position but since he had buried himself under the bed he didn't know that. It's human (and critter) nature to think that if I don't acknowledge something that it won't come to pass or it will go away and I won't have to deal with it. We are often like the two year old who thinks there's a monster in his room. He will cover his head up with a pillow thinking "If I can't see the monster then the monster can't see me and it will go away." We as adults laugh and think how silly this is. We know that if there really WAS a monster, hiding our head under a pillow would not help us. If anything hiding our heads would make it worse because we can't see what the monster is doing and so we are unable to come up with a plan of attack to protect ourselves. Meanwhile, the monster takes a bite out of our britches. Even though we find the dog or the two year old's actions foolish and amusing, many of us do the very same thing when we don't deal with our financial situation and our debt. Have you ever decided not to open a bill or look at a credit card statement because you don't want to know what the balance is? Clicking your heels and saying "There's no place like home" is not going to help. How about your bank statement? Do you balance it every month or just throw it in with the pile of unopened bills because you don't want to know how much is in your account? I hear someone saying "But I don't know how to balance it." Then learn. There isn't a bank in the world that isn't willing to show you how to balance a checkbook if you ask. My grandson in the third grade has enough math skills to balance a checkbook but I often hear from college graduates, full of pride with their degrees, that they can't balance a bank statement. It is just another excuse that helps them keep their heads buried in the sand. Learning to balance your checkbook is much easier, much less time consuming and much less stressful than hiding from the monster. Another excuse many people use is refusing to use cash. Often when helping people get their credit card debt under control, I suggest that they get rid of the credit cards and just carry a small amount of cash in their wallet. The first thing that I always hear (and I have honestly never had anyone yet say anything different) is "I can't carry cash because I will spend it". This statement makes no sense to me. What do they think they are doing when they pull out their credit cards to buy something? Lack of self control is lack of self control no matter how you package it. (If your financial situation is fully under control, but you use a credit card for convenience or for reward points or some other reason and pay it off every month, this is not referring to you.) If you allow yourself $20 cash, don't keep credit cards in your wallet and you are shopping you MAY spend the full $20, but when it is gone there just "ain't no more" to spend. On the other hand, when you use a credit card, once you spend $20, you can pull it out again and spend another $20 and another and then maybe even $100. You don't even have to keep track of how much you spend for the day. Just stuff the receipt away and put your head under the bed! If you have a credit card problem, you will end up spending 2-4 times as much more with the credit card than if you just use cash... But this is why people in financial denial love credit cards... They don't have to acknowledge or see how much they have spent. "If I don't see it it won't hurt me." The Bible says "When I was a child I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man I put away childish things." (1 Corinthians 13:11) We need to put away childish or foolish actions where our money is concerned and start using adult reasoning concerning it. If this is you, stop burying your head in the sand! Stop being afraid and start taking an honest look at your finances. Open those bills, balance those bank statements and acknowledge how much you spend! Then figure out how to get it under control. Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the editors of LivingOnADime.com . As a single mother of two, Jill Cooper started her own business without any capital and paid off $35,000 debt in 5 years on $1,000 a month income. Tawra and her husband paid off $20,000 debt in 5 years on $22,000 a year income. Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

Save on Groceries Before You Leave Home By Jill Cooper LivingOnADime.com One of the easiest ways to save money on your grocery bill starts before you even leave the house. It's no extra work, you don't have to deprive yourself of anything and you don't have to clip any coupons. What is it? Stop wasting food. On average most families throw away 50% of the food they buy. If you have trouble believing that then watch your family's eating habits for the next few days. How many times did your child eat only half of his lunch or dinner or drink only half of his glass of milk or juice? How much food gets thrown away when you wash dishes? How many fruits and vegetables have rotted and been tossed? How much meat have you thrown away because it is freezer burned? And what about those leftovers in the fridge or the cartons of sour milk? If this is you, do you realize if you spend $400 a month on groceries you are literally throwing $200 of it into the trash? What would you think if someone you knew took two $100 bills and threw them away?!? That would make dumpster divers out of the most genteel among us. Better planning keeps you from throwing away so much food, saving you money! Here are some ideas on how to help you to stop the waste: Only fill a child's (or adult's) glass half full if they normally don't drink it all. You can always give them more when that is gone. If they do have left over milk or juice at the end of the meal put it in the fridge for them to finish at another time. When you get ready to cook a piece of meat like a roast or chicken, plan ahead. For example, when I take a roast out to thaw I don't think, "Ok, we'll have roast and mashed potatoes tonight." But I think "I will have roast and mashed potatoes tonight, Bar-B-Q beef tomorrow and beef and noodles the next night." That way you won't find yourself three days later gazing guiltily at that dying leftover roast thinking, "I really should do something with this but what?" and then end up throwing it out a week later. Check your fridge the night before you go to the grocery store. That way you can plan your menus and choose what to buy based on the leftovers you have. If all else fails, make one night a week as leftover night. That's when you set out all your odds and ends of leftovers for everyone to polish off. This is especially good if you do it the night before you buy groceries because this leaves your fridge empty for the new things you are buying tomorrow. Jill Cooper and Tawra Kellam are frugal living experts and the editors of LivingOnADime.com . As a single mother of two, Jill Cooper started her own business without any capital and paid off $35,000 debt in 5 years on $1,000 a month income. Tawra and her husband paid off $20,000 debt in 5 years on $22,000 a year income. Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

When Daughters' Financial Emergencies Cause Financial Strain Tawra Kellam LivingOnADime.com Susan from Texas asks: "As a single mother of two grown daughters, scratching and clawing my way out of substantial credit card and other debt, please give me some ideas about dealing with daughters' emergencies, specifically health issues, not life-threatening but urgent never the less. My daughters work full time and dabble in college. Both have health insurance but the one who needed assistance (I volunteered) did not think that it was in effect at the time of the incident. I was going to have the cost of the dental problem put on a credit card but her Dad intervened and paid for it so I was off the hook." I think the bigger question here is one that I have dealt with for many years and that is, living very sparingly, never having enough to cover unexpected expenses and then putting those unexpected and sometimes living above my means expenses on credit. Now that I live alone I am trying to remedy that as quickly as possible. Guilt as a single parent ends up being very expensive. Tawra: You said "Guilt as a single parent ends up being very expensive." -- I would say that sounds like it right there to me. You don't need to worry about your daughters' expenses. I understand being a parent you want to help out but if they are working adults it's not your responsibility. They need to be responsible with their money and save back money each month to cover what their insurance won't . If that means cutting the cell phone, eating out or whatever then that's their responsibility to do it. If you are paying for your own stuff then start living below your means ASAP and try and get that debt paid off. It's not always easy or fun but it sounds like you need to worry about your expenses and not theirs right now. I'm not saying to be unreasonable. If they get $50,000 in medical expenses and need to live with you or whatever to pay it off, of course help them out if you can. But if it's minor stuff then let them take care of it. Susan: Thanks so much. Sometimes we answer our own problems when we put pen to paper and it jumps right back at us! I will always be there for my kids; however, I want them to grow up and become accountable and learn from their mistakes and life, etc. Tawra Kellam is an expert in frugal living and the editor of LivingOnADime.com . Tawra and her husband paid off $20,000 debt in 5 years on $22,000 a year income. Visit us for money saving tips and free recipes!Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

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What to Cook When You're Exhausted By Ruth Haag www.manageliving.com You've had a long, hard day at work only to get home to discover it is your turn to cook dinner. You really want something nice, but have only about 15 minutes of energy left. Here is what my husband, Bob would do: Bob's quick dinner solution # 1 Look in your refrigerator and freezer. Find some of these things (it's ok to not find all of them): Onion Garlic Sausage Chicken Green beans Broccoli Zucchini Cauliflower Peas Green pepper Paprika and Cumin or Sage, Basil and Oregano Tomatoes Cut up what you have, and keep in piles on the counter. Get out the frying pan, add a pat of butter and a dollop of olive oil. Put the ingredients into the pan and cook them in the order listed. Turn off the heat and add the tomatoes last, so that they just get warm, but don't get overcooked. Scrounge around for some bread and serve. Bob's quick dinner solution #2 Start some rice cooking Find a steak in the freezer Start the charcoal grill outside (in any weather) Make a tossed salad Grill the steak Serve Set a nice table No matter how tired you are, take a brief moment to set a nice table. Your busy work world will melt away when you sit in the luxury of a good meal and a nice environment. Use a serving bowl, not the skillet, to serve the meal. Make sure that you have all of the proper utensils. This is not a time for sporks; think about adding a cloth napkin. In the winter, candles really make the meal special. About the author: Ruth Haag's "Useable Cookbooks Series" was designed to help her family learn to cook, so that Ruth would have time free to run her company, and to write other books. Listen to Ruth and Bob Haag weekly on their Internet Radio Show, Manage Living, at www.modavox.com/VoiceAmericaBusiness . They will help you manage the work world; and will tell you how to take those solutions home, to better manage your home life. Visit their website, www.manageliving.com . Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

Easter Egg-stravaganza! By Tawra Kellam LivingOnADime.com OK, so the kids noticed on the calendar that Easter is approaching and they want to make a huge production of dying eggs. In the past, the little stickers you bought at the store sufficed, but now they want the real thing. Here are some old standards with a few new ideas for you. One important note: When the kids get really excited about egg dying, don't feel sorry for them and pour the left over egg dye in their bath water so they can have more fun (no matter how much they beg and plead! Especially if it's food coloring). Someone might panic and declare a citywide medical quarantine if they see your kids dyed all sorts of strange colors in their Easter finery. Before you decorate Easter eggs, cover the entire table with newspaper. Keep a huge roll of paper towels or rags handy for messes. Have each kid wear one of dad's old (now disposable) tee shirts. Making Easter Egg Stands: Cut toilet paper roll cores into one inch cylinders and use for egg stands. Decorate with stickers or paint. Decorating Eggs: Traditional method Hard boil eggs. Fill several mugs with boiling water and add 1-2 tsp. vinegar. Place a few drops of desired food coloring in each mug. Place eggs in mugs for several minutes until eggs reach desired shades. Remove with a spoon. Place on paper towel to dry. When dry, polish with a small amount of shortening on a paper towel. Buff until glossy. You can draw or write on the eggs with a light colored or white crayon before dipping. The drawing will remain white after the egg is dipped. To clean out mugs, put a little bleach water in the cups and soak for a few minutes. Natural Easter Egg Dyes If you would like to try dying eggs naturally, try the following: Yellow-- yellow onion skins, turmeric (frac12; tsp. per cup water) celery leaves Orange--any yellow dye plus beet juice Red--beets, paprika, red onion skins Pink--cranberry juice Blue--blackberries, grape juice concentrate, red cabbage Brown--black tea, white oak, juniper berry, coffee, barberry Light purple--blackberries, grapes, violets Green--alfalfa, spinach, kale, violet blossom plus frac14; tsp. baking soda, tansy, nettle, chervil, sorrel, parsley, carrot tops, beet tops or dip yellow egg in blue dye Hard boil eggs with 1 tsp. vinegar in the water. Place dying ingredients in non-aluminum pans, cover with water and boil 5 minutes to 1 hour until desired color is achieved. Use enough material to make at least 1 cup dye. Crush ingredients as they boil to extract as much dye as possible. Strain the dye. Most dyes should be used hot. Let each egg sit in the dye until it reaches the desired color. Some dyes will take longer than others to make the desired colored on the egg. Remove the egg and let dry. Glitter Eggs- Place 1 tablespoon each of glue and water in a cup. Stir the mixture and then paint the eggs with it. Sprinkle with glitter. This can also add sparkle to already dyed eggs! Crepe Paper Eggs- Wet a white or dyed egg. Dab torn pieces of colored tissue paper or pieces of pretty colored napkins on the eggs. When the paper dries, the paper falls off and leaves the color behind on the egg. Decoupaged eggs - Tear small pieces of wrapping paper, napkins, stickers, or clip art. Mix equal amounts of glue and water. Paint egg with glue mixture. Place paper on top and then cover with more glue mixture. Let dry. Spotted Eggs- Place 1 tsp. of cooking oil in dye. Dip the egg. The oil will cause the dye to make an irregular pattern on the egg. Waxed Eggs- Dip a portion of the eggs in melted paraffin or candle wax. Then dip them in the dye. Remove from dye. Dry and peel off the wax. The egg will be white on one half and colored on the other half. You can also dip in dye before waxing to get two colors. Hollow Eggs- Poke a hole in one end of an egg with a very small needle. Poke another slightly larger hole in the other end. Then blow on the small end and the egg will come out the other side. Decorate as desired. Tawra Kellam is the author of the frugal cookbook Dining On A Dime: Eat Better, Spend Less. For more free tips and recipes visit her web site at LivingOnADime.com . Get your own FREE copy of Tawra's Quick Dinner e-book here . Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>

Kid-Friendly Treat: Best Ever Granola By Cheryl Tallman and Joan Ahlers www.FreshBaby.com Granola can be great tasting hippie food, but buyer beware. On one side, some of the packaged brands cram a lot of unfamiliar flavors in the mix. While these ingredients are often healthy, the flavors can be tough to swallow for kids. On the flip side, the more mainstream brands cram a lot sugar and artificial ingredients into their products which put them on par with the nutritional value of a candy bar. Sticking to basic ingredients is the trick. Simple flavors - oatmeal, pecans and cranberries baked with natural goodness. This recipe is so simple, that homemade granola may soon become a staple in your house for breakfasts and snacks! Best Granola Ever is perfect for family members 3-99 years old. Ingredients: 4 cups of old-fashioned oats 1 frac12; cups chopped pecans frac12; cup packed brown sugar frac12; tsp salt frac12; tsp cinnamon frac14; cup cooking oil frac14; cup honey 1 tsp vanilla 1 cup dried cranberries Directions: Preheat over to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, mix the oats, pecans, salt and cinnamon. In a saucepan warm the oil and honey and stir in the vanilla. Carefully pour the liquid over the oat mixture. Stir gently with a wooden spoon until the mixture is evenly coated. Spread the granola onto a large cookie sheet (15X10X1 inch). Bake 40 minutes, stirring carefully every 10 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely. Stir in dried cranberries. Storage: Store granola in an air-tight container at room temperature for one week or in the freezer for 3 months. Makes 9-10 servings. About the authors: Cheryl Tallman and Joan Ahlers are sisters, the mothers of five children and founders of Fresh Baby ( www.FreshBaby.com ). They are the creators of the award-winning So Easy Baby Food Kit and Good Clean Fun Placemats, available at many fine specialty stores and national chains including Target and Whole Foods Markets. Permission granted for use on DrLaura.com. More >>