Tips for save winter driving

I am very happy this is a mild winter here in Ohio.  We have only had a couple small bouts of snow and we are nearing the end of January.  That's pretty unusual for around here.  I don't like being cold.  I don't like wet boots coming in the house.  I don't like wet dog feet from trips out in the snow.  I REALLY don't don't like DRIVING in the bad weather conditions, like when there is snow on the ground.

To make me feel more at ease when I am beind the wheel during snowy conditions, I follow some simple tips to make my driving more safe.  Here are some I would like to share with you:

First of all, do I really have to even have to go out?  I ask myself that when I look out and see snow or know snow is coming.  Most of the time things can be post poned.  Errands, shopping etc can wait.  Appointments can be rescheduled.  Most often roads will be cleared and good for driving within hours if the snow has stopped.  Readjusting my plans by a few hours is certainly worth a safer, more relaxing ride.

Next, make sure you are driving around on good tires.  It really makes all the difference to have tires with good tread while facing snow and icy conditions.  Slipping and sliding is not a good feeling while driving.  It can often be totally avoided by keeping your tires in good repair.

Also, make sure your windshield washer fluid is plenty full.  Driving without a clear view of the road and other things around you is dangerous at all times, even more so when conditions are bad.  As you drive on wet, snowy salty roads your windshield will become dirty quickly, sometimes every few seconds.  A good supply of windshield washer fluid will run out fast.  Make sure you check it often.

Don't let your gas tank run on low.  You want to make sure that if you were to go off the road you have enough gas to run the heater at least on occasion while you wait for help.  Also, if weather conditions get bad while you are out, it will take you longer to get to a destination and possibly reduce your gas mileage too.  Driving with a tank on empty could leave you stranded if you run out.

Drive at ta speed YOU feel comfortable and safe at.  Don't worry about those few vehicles that fly up on you and feel the need to pass.  Don't be pressured by tailgaters to pick up your pace.  If the roads are slick and you feel well under control driving 40 in a 55 zone...do it.

Think twice about passing slower vehicles.  Perhaps they are right to pick driving at a slow speed in view of the conditions.  Even if they are being too over cautious and driving way slower than necessary, to pass you will have to accelerate quickly.  This could cause loss of control especially if you end up doing so at an area that is a bit more icy or snow packed.  Passing usually only saves you seconds anyways.  Notice how often cars will zip past you and end up stopped one car length ahead of you at the same traffic light!

Make sure you have emergency supplies with you at all times.  Warm blankets for everyone normally with you in your vehicle.  If you are not going to wear boots and hat and gloves when you go out, pack them in the car in case the need for them arises.  Also, have an extra pair of socks and gloves int eh car in case you get wet trying to free yourself from a jam.  You can switch out socks and be much warmer.  A few snacks for the kids are also a good idea.  It will help them pass time while waiting for a rescue and will save you from hearing a lot of whining "I'm hungryyyyy" at a time when your nerves will be shot already.  Make you keep your cell phone...well charged...with you too.  I know to most people these days that seems silly to even have to say...most people would grab their cell phones before pants when leaving the house these days...but for me my phone is not important and I do often forget it!

Let someone know when you are going out and where you are going too.  If you live in a rural area, like us, there is often gaps in cell coverage and miles before houses.  If you were to need help it might not be easy to get.  If someone knows where you went and how long you expected to be gone they can investigate should your arrival be delayed for some reason.

For peace of mind and good financial reasons, make sure you good car insurance.  Accidents do happen, and frequently in bad weather, make sure you are prepared with an option like Esurance.    
About Esurance
With a wealth of easy-to-use online tools as well as 24/7 expert service, Esurance is making car insurance smarter from quote to claim. Everything we do is done with the goal of saving you time, hassle, hair-tearing-out, and oh yes, money too. Use the Esurance Coverage Counselor® to help you figure out the exact coverage limits you need. File a claim (and send pics of the accident) from your mobile phone. Call anytime — and by that we mean anytime — to talk to a friendly expert about discounts. Do what you need to do, when you need to do it. And do it with ease. That's what Esurance is all about.

More info on Esurance: blog.esurance.com

Esurance on Facebook

Follow @esurance on Twitter

Those are just a few tips I have.  Most of all, just remember to be smart and safe each time you travel no matter what the road conditions and weather conditions may be!

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Esurance blogging program for 8,000 My SocialMoms Rewards Points. For more information on how you can participate, click here.

Boost Your Budget (week 4)

So first I want to talk about my budget conscious decision to take our new puppy to a vet clinic.  Sounds easy enough, right?  A shop-with-your-pet style pet store was hosting a clinic where you paid $3 for each animal seen and the cost of the vaccinations etc they received after the exam cost.  I arrived at the store Saturday morning at about 11:00.  I found the line a bit long running down one whole aisle of the store and curving down the back of the store.  How long could it take, really?  A simple exam on each animal and a quick shot or two.  I figured we had an hour of line standing in front of us...tops.

My 10 year old,  2 year old, baby and 12 week puppy entered the line.  An hour later we had moved up two whole dog food bag widths t word the front of the line.  Not remarkable progress to say the least.  After another hour my 2 year old was really getting pretty tired of standing in line.  After another 1/2 hour the baby had about enough of the experience as well.  After 3 hours we could see the exam table ahead of us!  With the hour long ride to the store location, hour long ride home and standing in line time the ordeal lasted over 5 hours!!!  Wow.  What a nightmarish way to save a few bucks!  Looking back, our dog was on the exam table for maybe 3 minutes tops...so why did it take so long for every else to get done and for us to work our way to the front of the line???  It doesn't really all add up. 

I am also trying to add couponing into my grocery routine. While I have always used coupons, I was more of a casual couponer...if I was buying something and had a coupon, I used it.  I am now very actively seeking out coupons, figuring the best way to organize them and carry them with me at all times when I leave for a store, and using the weekly ads to plan couponing with for great savings.

I scored some great deals at Kroger and Meijer this week like cereal for 50 cents a box (organic at that!), chex mix for 50 cents a bag and Skinny cow candy at Target for 50 cents a box. Free coffee at CVS.  After my shopping this week I had a $20 bill left over BUT I had to spend cash at the vet clinic so I used money out of my grocery fund envelope so that was around $35 so I actually cut my actual grocery spending $55 this week and I bought a lot of extra items because the couponing deals were too good to pass up so I got more and spent less!

Of course this required a lot more time invested.  Time to find and cut and organize coupons.  Time to sort and compare ads and pull coupons.  And lots of shopping time and hassle as I drove from store to store to store unbuckling and rebuckling a car full of small children over and over and over.

Boost your Budget (week 3)

As part of a money savings effort I have pretty much eliminated eating out.  Where that is most difficult is on days I have errands to run or grocery shopping to do etc.   The problem is we live quite a way shopping areas.  When you have an hour travel time to get to your location, and even if you spend as little as a hour out accomplishing your mission (which is rare because I save up and do my running around all at once so its more like 2 or 3 or more hours) you have another hour home....its unavoidable to cross over one meal time or another.  It's easy to go through a drive through.  The kids love it.  One trip through a drive through cost my family over $30 on most occasions, however.

So I am making an effort to pack a meal for when we are out.  This past Wednesday one of my children had an appointment the have his pictures taken.  I packed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, clementines, granola bars and a chip type snack for each child.

Also, in my grocery shopping efforts, last week I went a whole $20 under budget.  This week it was about the same.  What really made that good was last week we had 2 extra kids staying with us for a good part of the week so that was extra food to buy and also last Sunday we had company for dinner so that meant preparing a bigger nicer meal and feeding extra people too.  Then this week I prepared a meal for a family in which the mother just had surgery.  So that was extra to buy for as well.  And both weeks I came under budget pretty well.

I wrote this blog post in response to the budget challenge at Making Time for Mom.