Great tips! Another way to pick up some skills is to volunteer with an organization like Habitat for Humanity. My husband and I volunteered for a home build with a group of my co-workers. A lot of the volunteers have been home building for 10+ years and are happy to share their skills. The most useful thing we learned was how to lay laminate floor, which we did in our own house a few months later!

avocado hummus sounds like a great idea. I need to stock up on chick peas!

I'm stopping by from Thrifty Thursday. I love this list, I'm not looking forward to lugging a diaper bag around either. I'm glad I'm not the only one!