Take care of your wood cutting boards and someday they’ll be heirlooms. It only takes a few minutes each month to keep them in tip top condition.

If you drive a high-mileage vehicle, your headlights probably aren’t as clear as they used to be. All of that exposure to sunlight is tough on plastic, and over time it causes headlights to become foggy and yellowed. That doesn’t look very nice, and it isn’t very safe either. Foggy headlights don’t give off as much light as they should, and that really hurts your ability to see – and be seen – at night. In fact, Consumer Reports did a study, and found that foggy headlights can cut your visibility by as much as 80%. Yikes!

Fortunately, cleaning your headlights, can remove that foggy haze in a matter of minutes. My husband cleaned the headlights on our Jeep yesterday, and I documented the process, so you could see what was involved. Check it out.

Earlier today, while headed back from thrift shopping, our Jeep hit 200,000 miles. So, naturally, we did what any frugal person would do: we pulled over and snapped a picture of our odometer. Because hitting the 200k mark is cause for celebration. It might even be something to brag about. Forget about fancy cars and car payments; driving a car until the wheels fall off – that’s much more impressive.

In the 11 years that my husband and I have been homeowners, we’ve had:

• Our neighbor’s tree fall on our house
• Another neighbor’s tree fall on our garage
• A sewer line back up
• three gas leaks
• A power surge fry our downstairs HVAC unit

Washing machine hoses. You probably bought a set when you bought your washing machine, installed them, and then forgot about them. Am I right? If so, you’re taking a major risk. Because washer hoses, they wear out.

Stand there and watch the next time your washing machine fills up, and you’ll see just how much pressure those hoses are under. It’s crazy!

And if your washing machine hoses are over five years old, you’re really flirting with disaster. Because if one of those hoses fails, guess where all of that water is going to go. Yep. Right into your house. That’s bad if your washer is in the basement, and really bad if your washer is located on another level of your home.

Because, let’s be clear on this point: If a hose fails, it will continue to pour water into your home, until you catch the problem and manually shut off the valve. There is nothing to stop it. No fail safe to save the day.

Just imagine how much damage could occur if a hose were to fail while you were at work or worse while you were on vacation. We’re talking catastrophic flooding. We’re talking call your insurance agent, pay your deductible and hire a construction crew to come tear out damaged dry wall and flooring. It is not a good way to spend your time or your money.

So, pay more attention to that washer hose. Replace it if it looks worn; and swap it out every five years, even if it looks fine. It’ll cost you $20 tops, and it could help you avoid thousands of dollars in damages.

According to the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety, the average washing machine failure costs $5,308 after deductible

Suddenly inspired to replace your washer hose? Here’s how it’s done.

Refrigerators are expensive and a major pain to move, so take care of the one you have. Just vacuuming your refrigerator coils regularly will greatly extend the life of your fridge, and it’s a task that you can knock out in 15 minutes or less.

Not sure how it’s done? Here’s a walk-through:

A well-made wooden spoon is a joy to cook with. I have my great grandmother’s wooden spoon, a couple hand-carved spoons that I bought from a local craftswoman and a couple more oldies that I picked up at estate sales. I love them all. The weight of them. The way they fit my hand. Their beautiful shape. Their wood grain. Using them just makes me happy.

I want them to last a long time – long enough for me to pass them on to my daughters, so I take care of them. I seasoned each of one when I got it, and I re-season them regularly. It only takes a few minutes, and it’s well worth the effort.

Feel the same way about your wooden spoons? Here’s how to season them: