soda-stretcher
A simple method of both saving money on "flavored fizzy" and quenching your thirst better on extra-hot days. What you do is save a two-or-three-liter plastic soda-bottle after you empty it, and then pour in half the soda from a freshly-opened bottle of da same size. Then fill both bottles the rest of the way with drinking-water . Now you'll have twice as much liquid libation for about the same price as just one bottle, plus it will seem wetter and more refreshing, and the drink's milder flavor will help you feel "filled up" more quickly.
Raising your children to not have an excessively "sweet tooth" is a good idea just "in and of itself", of course, but it also has great advantages whenever you employ the "soda-stretcher" technique on hot days, since your kids will already be accustomed to blander-tasting beverages by that time, and so they will probably not feel particularly dissatisfied with your "watered-down" concoction.