The Story Behind the "M"

The "M" is 620 feet above the Missoula Valley floor. It is 125' feet long and 100' feet wide. University of Montana forestry students cut the switchbacks into the side of the hill in the early 1900's. The first "M" was assembled out of whitewashed rocks in 1909, and given a fresh coat of paint by freshmen every year, until 1968, when all those rocks were cemented together with concrete.

Photo by Nelson Kenter, kenterphotography.com

Archive for the ‘Erin Turner’ Category

Tips For NOT Eating Out

By ERIN TURNER - Eating out is expensive! Here are some tips for how to avoid the "eating out trap" and why a little planning can pay big dividends with your household budget.... more

Are You Up for the Annual Pantry Challenge?

By ERIN TURNER - On February 1, we'll start a month of trying to use what we have on hand and not buy groceries. It's called the Pantry Challenge. Are you up for it?... more

How to Use Coupons to Create a Wad of Pseudo-Cash

By ERIN TURNER - Once the clerk rang in all the coupons and Extra Bucks, I heard the words that make any couponer jump for joy…”Oh, maam your total is negative 14 cents, so you need to buy something else.... more

Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup

By ERIN TURNER - Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup...it's not only food for the soul, it's cheap and it's a whole lot healthier for you and your family.... more

A New Year, a Fresh, Frugal Start

By ERIN TURNER - 2013 is here, the resolutions have been written, and it's time put those resolutions into action! Here’s my plan to accomplish my frugal yearly goals.... more

Last-Minute Christmas Gift: Homemade Coffee Creamer

By ERIN TURNER - Need a last-minute Christmas gift idea? I have the perfect thing: Homemade coffee creamer! It's an easy, inexpensive gift for your favorite gourmand.... more

The Frugal Cure-All: Homemade Chicken Broth

By ERIN TURNER - Grandma was right to chase away colds with chicken soup! Here's my recipe for homemade chicken bone broth, Nature’s All-Purpose Medicine.... more

Discovering Thred Up–A New Online Thrift Store

By ERIN TURNER - If your kids have gone through a growth spurt and need new digs or you are cleaning out their closets in preparation for new clothing at Christmas, check out Thred UP--an online consignment sto... more

Fantastically Festive Pinterest Christmas Projects

By ERIN TURNER - It’s Christmas season and Pinterest is alive with an endless world of ideas, inspirations, recipes, and whatever else you can imagine for the holidays. ... more

Tips for Smart, Thrifty Holiday Shopping

By ERIN TURNER - Just because Black Friday's over doesn’t mean you missed all the deals! They may not be as obvious, but if you do your homework you'll find them.... more

Eleven Tricks to Keep Holiday Guests Happy

By ERIN TURNER - This week marks the beginning of holiday guest season. Here are a few of my favorite tips to make guests happy and keep your stress to a minimum.... more

Save Money with Seven Savvy Shopping Strategies

By ERIN TURNER - If you don’t adopt new attitudes towards shopping, you’ll never see any couponing success. Here are my Seven Savvy Shopping Strategies to save money.... more

Homemade Hot Sauce

By ERIN TURNER - Some like it hot and our family is no exception. When it comes to hot sauce we love it hot and use it on everything! Here's a homemade recipe for hot sauce. ... more

Little Grizzly Football: Much More Than Just a Sport

By ERIN TURNER - If you were a boy growing up in Missoula in the last 30 or 40 years, you may remember Little Grizzly Football. Our boys have learned more than a sport... more

Save Money by Reducing Wasted Food

By ERIN TURNER - Since October is National Unprocessed Food month, it may be helpful for you to explore how to save money by reducing the food waste in your house.... more

Take the No-Processed-Foods Challenge

By ERIN TURNER - October is national “Unprocessed Food” month. Take the Challenge: consume less processed/packaged food and more whole/real food. ... more

Frugal Living: Super Easy, Super Cheap Carpet Stain Remover

By ERIN TURNER - Last week, I found the "Miracle Carpet Stain Remover” technique on Pinterest. I'm happy to say that it definitely lives up to its name!... more

Frugal Living: Figuring Out Walgreens’ New Coupon Rewards Program

By ERIN TURNER - I've done some footwork to figure out Walgreens' new customer rewards program. It may seem confusing, but the Coupon Queen is here to help!... more

What To Do with All Those Tomatoes? Make Homemade Ketchup!

By ERIN TURNER - With the abundance of tomatoes this year, I’ve explored some new ways to use them, including homemade ketchup. Here's my recipe!... more

Quality is the Key When Couponing

By ERIN TURNER - Does buying off-brand items always pays off? My answer is usually--you just have to be careful. Quality is the key when couponing.... more

Save Money with Easy School Night Dinners

By ERIN TURNER - With school starting up soon, I'm getting organized for fall. Making freezable meals in advance saves money and makes life easier on school nights.... more

4-H Kids Go for Gold (and Blue) at the Western Montana Fair

By ERIN TURNER - The Western Montana Fair opens this Tuesday, but for 4-H kids, the fair started months ago. Stop by to congratulate them on their hard work!... more

Save Big As We Say Goodbye to Missoula’s Kmart

By ERIN TURNER - On September 30, the Missoula Kmart will close its doors for good. It is sad to see the end of an era, but the silver lining is that everything's on sale!... more

Kale Chips and More Easy, Healthy, Homegrown Summer Veggie Chips

By ERIN TURNER - Each week at the Farmers’ Market, I am asked two questions: 1) Do you have kale? and 2) Do you know how to make kale chips? Yes and yes!... more

Frugal Living: Save Money with an Old-Fashioned Remedy

By ERIN TURNER - I love economical, old-fashioned remedies and natural ways of curing minor ailments, so I was thrilled when I discovered all the benefits of Epsom salt.... more

Frugal Living: 10 Summertime Money-Saving Tips

By ERIN TURNER - With warmer temperatures and longer days, summer offers us a lot of easy, smart opportunities to save money. Some are delicious, too!... more

A Time to Preserve Summer’s Harvest

By ERIN TURNER - Despite the slow start to the growing season, crops are finally popping up. These are the days filled with fresh food straight from the garden (or from the markets) and it's time to stock up.... more

A Pinterest Project: Organize Kids’ Art Projects & School Papers

By ERIN TURNER - Now that school's out, I'm facing tons of my kids' school papers, art projects, and stories. Fortunately, I found a Pinterest project to get it organized.... more

Frugal Living: Healthy, Easy, Cheap Breakfasts for Everyone

By ERIN TURNER - If you're like me, it's a challenge to come up with breakfasts that are cheap, healthy, and easy. Here are some ideas that everyone in my family loves.... more

Frugal Living: 25 Frugal Uses for the Humble Coffee Filter

By ERIN TURNER - In my quest to keep household costs down, I found a huge variety of tips and ideas for saving money using coffee filters. It's amazing what you can do!... more

A Pinterest Project: Get Organized with DIY Spice Jars

By ERIN TURNER - My kitchen was being overrun by all my spices until I stumbled on a great project I saw on Pinterest: Recycle old bottles into DIY spice containers. ... more

Eat Local and Eat Well with Community Supported Agriculture

By ERIN TURNER - Community Supported Agriculture farms have started to become popular in Missoula. They're a great way to eat healthy, local, economical food.... more

Frugal Living: Eat Tapas, Cut Your Grocery Bill

By ERIN TURNER - Serving tapas-style food, a traditional Spanish small-plates meal, is a delicious, easy way to cut your grocery budget significantly.... more

Frugal Living: Go Green and Grow Your Own Food

By ERIN TURNER - Growing your own food is making a huge comeback. Not only are homegrown fruits and veggies healthier, but you can save a ton of money, too.... more

Frugal Living: Use Your iPhone to Save Money

By ERIN TURNER - When a friend told me about the money-saving couponing apps for the iPhone, I realized I was missing out on some major couponing technology!... more

Frugal Living: The Art of the Garage Sale

By ERIN TURNER - With its distinct neighborhoods and their close proximity to one other, Missoula's a great garage sale town. Here are some tips for hosting a great sale.... more

Frugal Living: Popcorn, the All-Season, All-Budget Snack

By ERIN TURNER - It may seem like a simple thing, but homemade popcorn (not microwave!) really is a perfect snack for all seasons, all ages, and all budgets.... more

Frugal Living: Learn How to Save at Staples

By ERIN TURNER - I like to shout-out my favorite stores in Missoula that offer some great deals and coupons. This week, learn how to save on supplies at Staples.... more

Frugal Living: Spring Cleaning on a Budget

By ERIN TURNER - Spring cleaning is in full swing at our house! Unwilling to pay $250 for a professional cleaning, I found a frugal way to clean our microfiber furniture.... more

Frugal Living: Mouthwatering, Homemade Deli Meat

By ERIN TURNER - Last week, I made homemade deli-style sliced meat from an elk roast. Not only was it a Montana-style money saver, it was delicious!... more

Shopping (and Saving) at Costco: A Missoula Staple

By ERIN TURNER - In Missoula, Costco is about as popular as Grizzly football. You can definitely save money there, but you have to approach it wisely.... more

Frugal Flu Season Remedies

By ERIN TURNER - Last week, the Missoula Health Department issued an Influenza Alert. Here are some tips for staying healthy and save a few bucks at the same time.... more

A Successful Frugal Living Pantry Challenge

By ERIN TURNER - With the close of February drawing near, our month-long Frugal Living Pantry Challenge is winding down. The result? We saved a TON of money! ... more

Frugal Living Pantry Essentials

By ERIN TURNER - During our Frugal Living Pantry Challenge this month, I’ve discovered some key items that are essential for a frugal pantry.... more

You Are What You Love

By ERIN TURNER - In honor of Valentine's Day, here's a list of the things I love about Missoula. Add your favorites in the comments!... more

The Frugal Living Pantry Challenge

By ERIN TURNER - Our family is doing a Frugal Pantry Challenge for the month of February.... more

A Year in Review

By ERIN TURNER - Today, I celebrate my one year anniversary of writing the Save It blog for Make It Missoula! What have you learned and what should I write about in 2012?... more

What’s so interesting about Pinterest?

By ERIN TURNER - Have you heard about the new social network addiction called Pinterest? It's my new favorite way to get inspired, save time, and be frugal.... more

Cheap Homemade & Store-bought Snacks on a Budget

By ERIN TURNER - It seems every year about this time, my sons have some major growth spurts. In order to keep them full, I’ve come up with a bunch of easy, budget-conscious snacks.... more

Why a Household Budget is Necessary

By ERIN TURNER - The first step to fulfilling a New Year's resolution to save money, reduce debt, or manage finances better, is to set up a household budget. Here's how to do it.... more