I shaved the poodles. I did pay, once, to have them groomed when I was overwhelmed about a year ago. This is how I know that I save about $180 each time I do it myself. Next week sometime, I'll get the whetstone, and I'll disassemble, clean, and sharpen the blades. New blades cost $20-$30 a pop, so taking care of the ones I have saves me in the long run.
Today, I'm harvesting everything from the garden that won't take a hard freeze; mostly squash, beans, rutabagas, and cabbages. I'll also save a few of the red carrot seed heads for planting next year.