Metro Atlantans share their money- saving strategies for daily expenses such as food, transportation and entertainment. Have your own way to save? Please share it at eveningedge.com/savingdough

FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT

Take a walk to the library

Evonne Sims and her two nieces settled into auditorium seats recently to watch the Disney movie "Ratatouille" at the Decatur library. The movie was free.

They even walked to the event. All of this saved money.

"I got on the Internet last night and did my research," Sims said. "I wanted to do something fun with my nieces, but one that didn't cost a lot."

Beyond books, a slew of free children's activities are also on deck at your neighborhood library —- puppet shows, music time and family movie nights (you can bring your blankets and dinner, too).

Activities vary from one library to the next. To find your neighborhood library and a schedule of events, go to www.georgialibraries.org/directories/publiclibdir.php.

GROCERY

Take bite out of grocery bill

Angie Galloway adds up the savings every time she goes through the supermarket checkout line. A recent trip to the store netted $216.73 worth of food, and cost the Alpharetta mother just $91.38.

Galloway figures she saves as much as $4,000 a year on groceries for her family of five through strategies that range from buying items when they're on sale, to subscribing to online bargain sources such as www.couponmom.com. She uses some of the savings to give food and toiletries to those in need.

Galloway used to look for brands, but now she buys whatever variety is on sale or has a coupon —- and stocks up. She also plans meals around what's on sale.

"It's a pretty simple, fast way to save money," she says.

SPORTS

Catch Braves action for peanuts

Gordon Weaver, 46, husband and father of three, figures every time he leaves his house he spends $100. A stop at the grocery store? Gas station? A meal? Not to mention something fun to do for his son Troy, 11, and his youth baseball team buddies.

So Weaver didn't mind driving from Canton to be in line 2 1/2 hours before Tuesday's Braves game for the $1 Skyline tickets at Turner Field. The Braves sell 186 upper deck tickets for $1 at every home game. "For a dollar, I'm going to entertain them for eight hours," said Weaver, a fourth-grade teacher at Oak Grove Elementary.

The $4 Weaver paid for himself, his son and two buddies was a bargain —- the average ticket price is around $30. He brought two backpacks full of provisions from home, including a bag of Braves brand peanuts. "They're $1.39 at Publix," Weaver said. "They sell inside for $6.50."

DINING

'Kids eat free' nights stretch family's budget

Like most everyone, Britt Berg looks for ways to save money on food for her family of four —- but that doesn't mean giving up the occasional night out at their favorite restaurant, the Flying Biscuit Cafe in Candler Park. Berg takes advantage of the restaurant's "kids eat free" nights, 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.

"We do that a lot, about two times a month," said Berg, the mother of two growing girls, ages 7 and 1. Even the baby gets a meal, she said. "Both girls are big eaters."

Berg, who works at Emory University, said they also save money by staying close to home. The Flying Biscuit is close to their Druid Hills residence. With gas at more than $4 a gallon, she said, "we try to take advantage of what's local."

Most kids-eat-free nights aren't advertised, and people usually find out through word-of-mouth. Even Web sites that claim to list all the offers in your area have few or inaccurate listings. But if you have a favorite restaurant, call and see if they have kids-eat-free deals.

THRIFT SHOPS

'Not too proud' to snag a bargain

When it comes to items for her home, Cheryl Franco strives to get the best bottom-dollar deal. She has three kids and one on the way. Then again, it could be because she and her contractor husband are simply handy.

Need a new sink? She tries the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. How about a new door? She'll consider salvage yards. And a new bench or chair? She's not above rummaging through trash.

Yes, she admits, she's been known to Dumpster dive for a cast-off treasure, such as a nightstand she refurbished and painted for her daughter's bedroom.

"I'm not too proud," she said. "I don't go purposefully looking —- I just keep my eyes open to see what's there."

RECREATION

Dive into public pools

Amy Hughley and 14-month-old daughter Katharine swim most days in their Decatur neighborhood pool featuring a beach-like entry and bubbling fountains.

The McKoy pool is a newly renovated, and it's public. Read: less expensive.

With family season passes going for $100 for Decatur families, it's quite the deal, too, she said. Compare that to nearby Lake Claire. That private pool charges a $2,500 initiation fee and annual dues of $450. Public swimming pools dot metro Atlanta for a fraction of the cost.

And there's no waiting list at public pools. Peggy Brodsky, program supervisor for tennis and aquatics for the city of Decatur, said season passes to the city's three pools are up 25 percent this summer compared to previous seasons.

CARPOOL

Clean Air deal sweetens a car pool plan

Martha Britt lives in Dacula, about 19 miles from her job at Gwinnett Medical Center in Duluth, but she's just two miles from co-worker Amy Tsangarides, a nurse who shares the same shift. As gas prices approached $4 a gallon this spring, the two met in a grocery store parking lot between their homes and began to car pool.

Britt, 64, and Tsangarides, 41, signed up for the Clean Air Campaign's Commuter Rewards program at www.cleanaircampaign.com. Both earn $3 a day, up to $180, for changing their commute. Britt says she saves about $70 in gas for her Buick Rendezvous during the weeks that Tsangarides drives her Toyota Corolla to work and knows she can earn an additional $15 a week.

The savings inspired Britt to change other habits. She walks to the grocery store and pharmacy and makes fewer stops at stores with her car. She and her husband vacationed with their daughter's family to save money, too. They all piled into the Rendezvous and split the $275 gas bill to and from Florida.