14 Days of Valentine's Day

This year we have decided to approach holidays differently and incorporate more fun into our celebrations. So part of doing this is extending holidays and celebrations. So for Valentine's day we thought it would be fun to celebrate 14 days of ooey gooey love. Since tomorrow is February 1st this will be our first day.  Almost all of our treats came from our local dollar store. A few exceptions are, I bought coupon books from Wendy's back in October and Donald and I are giving our boys their purity rings this year. The most important thing is to have fun and let your personality shine through. This will be something your children and spouse will always remember.

So stay tuned for the next 14 days as we celebrate Valentine's with flare!

examples:
Day 1: Frosty Coupon with a scratch and sniff valentine's card.
Day 2: Hot Cocoa with a small bag of heart shaped marshmallows
Day 3: Popcorn (in red and white popcorn bags) with cinnamon hearts.
Day 4: Pretzel sticks n cheese (come in one pack, with 5 packs attached) w/ mini juice boxes
Day 5: Purity Rings, Earrings and/or play rings, depending on your child's age. And a few chocolate hearts.
Day 6: Conversation Hearts w/ a coupon for an extended bedtime and a nice long chat with Dad and/or Mom....

Our Valentine's Bags all ready for tomorrow.

This should get you started and give you some inexpensive ideas to spoil your children rotten! Have fun!

*I have my garland reinforced with clothes line twine so it will support the weight of the bags and goodies.

Your Children are Watching...

Friday morning I was sick in bed, Amarissa had come in to keep me company and asked her daddy if she could have breakfast in bed with me. He agreed and when he had finished cooking, brought breakfast to her on her favorite princess plate, with her strawberry shortcake spoon and he came in so happy and was joking around with her. Amarissa looked up at him with a big grin and her big brown eyes and said "Daddy you are prince charming!"

I am so blessed that my girls have a good man to grow up with. One who loves them beyond all measure and wants to please the Lord more than men (including his wife).  Girls if you don't have a husband please know that there will one day be a very impressionable life looking at your husband-to-be's every move. Please make sure that you pick a man who loves the Lord and wants to serve and please only him. In turn, he will please you and be all that your heart desires. Wives if you are currently married but you are thinking "My husband sure does fall short...". Pray for your mate and love him anyway.  God can and will do great things with him, our job is to love them and to build them up.

Why Courting?

 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, 

in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.

1 Timothy 4:12

Amber turns 16 this year. As we prepare for this part of her life we felt it was important to know how God wanted us to handle "dating". So with a lot of prayer we sought God for His will. It was made clear to us that courting was the way to go. It has become a trend in our society that once a child hits the teen years parents back off and alot of times pursue their own dreams and goals while their teen is left to do his/her own thing. Donald and I feel that is destructive thinking not only for our teen but also for our family. Teens are thrown all kinds of temptations and they need their parents wisdom and guidance during these years probably more than they needed it in their early childhood years. They also need to know that they are still and integral part of your family, even though at times it may be hard for them and for you.

When Amber was younger we talked with her often about what our dreams and thoughts were for her teen years. We thought it was important to let her know what we were feeling and thinking before the hormones and emotions of the teen years set in. We are also doing this with our boys. This way they know that our rules and expectations have always been the same and weren't put in place to make them miserable or to hurt them. They were in fact fashioned out of love and genuine concern for their well  being. We are new to raising young adults and don't claim to be experts but so far with a 15 yr old, 11 yr old and 12 yr old it has been our saving grace. Also knowing our rules are grounded in the Word of God helps them see the bigger picture for their lives.

We feel that courting is important, it is the opposite of the world's model and it keeps down the baggage that dating can bring along. Dating by definition is designed to throw failure at our children. You pick someone based on looks usually and try to get that person to fit in your mold, we all know how well that works. However with courting you seek God's will for your life and ask what He would like for your future spouse to be like. And then once he brings the two young people together, in his time, the parents of both young adults are able to help them navigate their new found relationship, centered on God's word and His truths. We have asked Amber during her own personal devotion time to seek God and ask what His goals are for her and her spouse to be, and to search His word as her model for a husband. And also to seek whether or not she is too be married. I know a lot of Godly women who are single and serve the Lord in very fulfilling and mighty ways, the important thing is that Amber is in the middle of what God has for her. Her father and I are doing the same thing concerning our children's future. We want our children to know that finding a spouse should be a deliberate journey.We are seeing that by asking Amber to be active in prayer and searching scripture she is taking responsibility for this new phase in her life and the importance of picking a spouse is becoming more real to her, and most importantly she doesn't feel alone during this time. She knows that her parents are here for her every step of the way.

An eventful day.

I do believe I have found my personal trainer today. I met with a gentleman and his wife at our local rec center and was put to ease immediately. He understood that I am super nervous about getting back in the gym and was perfectly comfortable putting together a routine for someone my current size. He and his wife work together, which is awesome. He also understood that it was important for me to work very closely with my weight loss doctor and will be submitting monthly reports so he can see my progress. And the best part is he let me know that he was flexible and could work out a schedule that would be good for me and for our budget., which of course I loved. So Donald and I are looking at the budget to make sure we can do this long term.

We also added 4 new family members. My sister and her 3 little ones will be staying with us for a little while. So it will be an adventure making menus for 11 people now. The kids are over the moon that their cousins will be here. And I have someone to watch movies with when Donald is working. Yay!  So be on the lookout for some new entertaining posts as we adjust from being a family of 7 to a family of 11.

Inflation and Our New Way of Eating

So I had to make another trip to the grocery store this week and I spent $130.00 on groceries. So we didn't quite make it on the $300.00 from last payday. We have found that Amber cannot eat school lunch without it irritating her stomach, so I had to get some lunch stuff.  Donald has also decided to join me in losing weight and is doing low carb so that is more protein being bought. I still don't think we have extended ourselves too much, we are only 2 days from payday and the things I bought today will last at least a week. And lets face it, cooking at home is still cheaper than eating out (especially for our family) so we are still on top. I have also noticed that food seems to have gone up more since I went shopping last, which doesn't make it easy at all. Not to mention that the boys are eating us out of house and home. Looks like they have found those teenage appetites.

Day 15

This week has been interesting, our paypal account was hacked and we were charged $202.00 in paypal charges. So our bank account is in limbo for the next 10 days. It seems that we can't catch a break on our budgeting, I know this is temporary but it is so hard. Thankfully we take our household money out of the bank and use cash only. So I went grocery shopping and spent almost all of our $187.00 from payday last week. We needed supplies for laundry detergent, toilet tissue, dog food, groceries and Amarissa and Annaliese needed new tennis shoes. I was able to buy every thing we needed and have $10.00 in my pocket, at the end. Not a bad day.

This Week's Dinner Menu:

Meatloaf, Mac n Cheese, Salad (lettuce, tomatoes, cheese)
Turkey Sausage w/ Onions and Peppers served over Brown Rice
Chicken hotdogs sliced w/diced Potatoes and Onions, Baked Beans
Grits, Scrambled Eggs, Toast, Sausage
Bean Soup and grilled cheese
Chicken Stir Fry Over Brown Rice
Tomato Soup (homemade), Hot Ham N Cheese Sandwiches

The Other Part of My Life, Weightloss

Last year I decided to get healthy. I started a popular meeting type weight loss program and stayed on it for a total of 8 mos. After a very odd rollercoaster ride of losing and gaining, I weighed 9lbs more than my starting weight. It didn't take a genius to figure out it wasn't working, so I stopped. The problem was what was I to do now? So at 403 lbs I decided that gastric bypass was my only option. So in July I visited a bariatric surgeon and started the process. My surgeon relocated a few weeks later and a new partner came in. I was upset but trusted that God knew what He was doing, especially since I had prayed about surgery for 5 yrs. So I met with the new surgeon in November (there's lots involved in this process..nutritionist, psychologist, tests, etc.) and he wanted me to lose weight before surgery, I wanted to cry. Didn't he know that I had tried dieting and this is why I was here, it didn't work.  I was skeptical at best. I met with the new Bariatrician in November. He wanted me on a very low carb diet, I was to drink, drink, drink, and he put me on supplements and meds. Weight loss for me is complicated by PCOS...long story short I am insulin resistant and my body doesn't react to carbs like I would like for it too. My Bariatrician started me on metformin to treat the insulin resistance and help my weight loss. So with reservation I started my new lifestyle change. On Dec. 19th I had my first weigh in, I had lost 17 lbs total in less than a month. I have went from a size 30/32 to a 22/24. I am still amazed that I have been able to accomplish this much with out surgical intervention. Tomorrow is another weigh in with my primary care physician, I am still nervous even though I see indicators that I am losing and I know that I am doing what I should be. I am trying to look for non scale milestones. This helps keep me encouraged when I can't get to the scale. Finding new favorite foods helps too. I love lemonade and pickles, before losing I never drank or ate either. I have also learned what to avoid, sugar makes me extremely tired and yucky feeling, so I avoid it at all costs. I have learned that soda in any form makes me hungry, so I drink water and crystal light only. I cancelled all subscriptions to food related magazines and I never watch cooking shows on television. We tried the other night and after 10 minutes I would promise I was hungry, but prior to the show I was not, this is something I cannot handle so I stay away from it.  I am learning what my pitfalls are and what my body needs, and enjoying the journey as I discover a new me!

Things that help make losing weight easier:
My GNC Blender, great for protein shakes, smoothies, dressings.
Crystal Light in lots of flavors
Almond Milk, I seem to lose more with AM than with dairy milk.
Unjury Protein Shakes, vanilla and chocolate are my faves
Sugar Free Jello
My Bobble Water Bottle, it filters when I drink, I am never without it.

Date Night!

My Honey and Me

Tonight Donald and I are going out! Date night when you are married and especially when you are raising kids and have crazy jobs is a necessity. It gives us time to reconnect, relax and enjoy some fun. Not to mention, we get to talk without being interrupted. Dating your spouse can be a fun, exciting adventure. We try to have date night at least once a month if possible. Sometimes it is just dessert and the used book store. Some nights we stay in and cook and treat ourselves to a netflix movie after the kids are in bed. It doesn't have to cost a fortune to spend time together. I have even accompanied Donald when he goes golfing. Now I don't golf but I love to read so it gives us time to talk, he gets to do some thing he loves and I can catch up on my reading. Get creative and have fun with it.

So let me tell you how we are going to pull this off and still stay somewhat true to our 31 day buy nothing challenge. For dinner we are headed to a local steakhouse with a gift card that Donald received as a Christmas present, it is a $25.00 card so it will cover almost all of the dinner, and then it is off to the dollar theater to see Courageous! We shouldn't spend any more than $10.00 for a great night out. Wooing your spouse and keeping things balanced is a necessity so I don't feel guilty at all.

Cloth Diapering, the beginning

A sweet friend's dear boys. 

Cloth is so cute!

I came upon the frugal lifestyle quite by accident. Annaliese had just come into our lives at 2 weeks old, she was allergic to every thing. Her formula made her sick, soap aggravated what I later learned was eczema and yes she was even allergic to diapers and baby wipes. As a relatively new mom (my first baby was only a year old at this time) I was clueless until a dear friend of mine very lovingly sent me a set of cloth diapers and inserts. I was hooked. Why hadn't I known about this when Amarissa was a tiny infant? Now if you had told me before the babies came that I would willingly use cloth diapers, I would have laughed at you. That is something my grandparents and mother did.  What I wasn't aware of was cloth diapers have changed radically since my mom was a baby. They come with snaps and velcro instead of needing pins. There are inserts and flip diapers, the possibilities seem endless. I quickly saw that there is something special about seeing your new baby in a pretty cloth diaper, free of chemicals. You know there is nothing next to their skin that could harm them, and they just look so comfy. When Annaliese's rashes started clearing up I knew this was what we needed and we would not turn back.  So I ordered 24 more diapers for Annaliese and Amarissa, and added cloth wipes too. Now in case you didn't know there are some great smelling baby wipe solutions out there, that are gentle on baby's skin and are all natural. So you can find the right "recipe" for your baby.  My dear friend, that sent me the diapers, made such a solution, our baby's always smelled so nice.

The first time I put a cloth diaper on Amarissa she looked at me, smiled and said "ohhhh mama". If Daddy or Amber tried to put a disposable diaper on her she would say "No, No" and go to the drawer and grab a cloth diaper, she was too cute and we knew this was a  more comfortable choice for her. We did use chlorine free diapers for church and long outings just so we knew we had enough on hand and that they wouldn't aggravate rashes or eczema. And with cloth I never had to worry about running out of diapers, or inflation. I knew that this was a need that was always taken care of.  Our diapers and wipes survived 2 babies, potty training and still look great.  It was by far one of our best investments.

When Frugality is Hard

The 31 day challenge has been a blessing, it truly has. However tonight it was also difficult. My husband's family wanted us to go out to a local restaurant and meet members of the family they had never met, they were so excited and we were included...yay! But we had committed to giving our budget 31 days to rest and heal, I was so torn when I had to say no. If we didn't have 5 small children we would have went and just had a glass of water and good conversation, but that doesn't work with little ones, so I stuck by our decision. My sister-in-law and mother-in-law were very understanding, let me just say what a blessing that is. This  just shows another reason why we should spend deliberately so when these opportunities pop up we have money budgeted for eating out. Being frugal isn't always the popular thing to do but it is still the right thing for us in this season in our life.

Frugality = Adventure

My grandmother Ginny, Grandpa Jack, Uncle Paul and Daddy

enjoying a day out.

This is day 8 of our buy nothing challenge. Being content with what we have has become easier and easier with each passing day. Our time is freed up to create and be with one another more often, we are no longer in the rat race of  "keeping up with the Joneses". As I write this our children are outside riding scooters, playing catch and reading on the back patio. They are interacting with one another and broadening their horizons. Eight days ago they would have been stuck in front of the TV begging for the newest toy being advertised  or yelling "I'm bored".  I am glad we have moved on.

When we take the time to slow down, we realize that life is a big adventure, full of possibilities and new things to learn. We start looking at our home as our safe haven again, instead of somewhere to escape. We view our family members as friends and companions to enjoy our journey with, and most importantly we relax and learn who we truly were meant to be. I no longer want things handed to me on a silver platter so to speak. I want to know the joy of creating, of making things around me more beautiful. I believe this was the legacy handed down from my grandparents, great aunts and uncles. I am more relaxed in my own kitchen making jelly, homemade bread and detergent than at the spa or eating out. I now want to conquer home gardening and serving vegetables that I grew to my family, not sure how long this particular lesson will take to learn but I am willing to find out. :-) Being frugal gives us things to do. We make jelly, detergent, play games, read, bake bread and yummy treats and soon we will garden. We are no longer waiting for something to happen for us to enjoy but we are making things happen around us that are joyful.

I want to leave you with something to think about. Last night we made homemade coleslaw and it struck me how pretty it was. The contrast of the freshly grated carrots against the light green of the cabbage. I was proud that I made that dish from start to finish. It made me ask myself why can't everything in our lives be deliberately crafted works of art?

Brunch and Fun in the Kitchen

Today started out with a brunch of low carb breakfast casserole, toast (for the kiddies). And then we made homemade apple jelly. Jelly is one of those items that seems to disappear in this house, we cannot keep enough in stock. I only buy the high fructose free jelly so it is like $3.00 for an 8 oz. jar. I had to find a more cost effective way to provide jelly. So I took out my vintage cookbooks and looked for a jelly recipe. I found one using 3 ingredients: juice, pectin and sugar. Since I don't have fruit trees I bought 100% juice (concentrate) from the store, sugar and pectin. My one can of apple juice rendered 3 sixteen oz. containers of apple jelly, and it only cost our family $4.00. Why didn't I think of this sooner? The kids also love making these treats at home, they were all piled around the stove watching contentedly, whispering about how good our jelly would taste on sandwiches and toast, these are the things they will remember the rest of their lives.

*thaw apple juice, pour juice in a large pot, heated to a slow boil, added 4 cups of sugar, whisking until sugar was completely dissolved then in a small sauce pan I heated 3/4 c water, added 1 package of pectin, heated to a boil, let boil for 1 min. Added pectin mixture to the apple juice and sugar mixture, whisked until thoroughly mixed. Then ladled into 3 (16oz) Ball Freezer Jars. You let cool on table 24 hrs. then put in fridge. It will keep 3 weeks in fridge or you can freeze for up to 1 yr.

This afternoon we make clothes detergent!

Today's Grocery Excursion

Okay so I wanted to go to Aldi's today but after a meltdown about shoes from one of my sweet girls we were running late and I only had 2hrs to get to the store, shop, load up the car and get to preschool. That was cutting it too short. So, I went to Kroger, it is close and I do earn gas perks. I spent $138.00 on groceries and toiletries and I have a $25.00 credit on my Kroger card thanks to a coupon I had for transferring a prescription. And yes we are still serving gluten free meals. I have gluten free bread mix in the pantry that I will be using for our Spaghetti dinner, and GF noodles (a few months back I caught a BIG sell at Bi-Lo for their gluten free items so I stocked up then). That would have added another $10.00 had I needed to buy them today. Not bad for a week's worth of dinners and lunches (using items from the pantry that were leftover from last week). So that leaves me with $187.00 until payday in 2 weeks.

Why handmade gifts are a good idea.

Drew and his snowman scarf, Christmas morning.

I love handmade gifts, they seem to always come with a story about why and how the giver picked that particular gift and how it came to be. And of course those stories get passed down and the gift becomes more and more loved. There has been a trend in our family over the last few years where the grandmothers are making more and more things for our children that are special and handmade, not to mention personalized and custom. I have noticed that these items are treated very differently than their store bought counterparts. Take my son Drew for example. He asked his Grandma Janet (Donald's mom) for a scarf with a snowman on it for Christmas. She didn't crochet so she asked her nephews girlfriend (Denise) to do the honors, and she did a fantastic job. So Christmas morning Drew found his snowman scarf under the tree. He must have jumped up and down for 5 mins, screaming "It is my snowman scarf, it is my snowman scarf". It never finds its way to the floor, he tells everyone he meets about it and of course has to show it off. Where are the toys that his dad and I bought? In the toy box forgotten...he will probably play with them another 3-4 times and then he will forget about them completely. However I think the snowman scarf will be around until Drew is a grown man. He says he is going to give it to his child when he is grown. If you take a look around our home there are crocheted afghans, handmade hats, beautiful quilts and unique artwork, all lovingly gifted by friends and family. They all come with their own story and memory, I wouldn't trade them for anything. This year I want to spend my time creating little masterpieces to give to our friends and family, things that make their spaces more interesting and more personal. Gifts with character.

Day 6 is upon us.

I just have to say that Day 5 was hard. I did not want to stay home and save money yesterday. I had a bad attitude about it but I powered through, and whew today is 1000x better. There are hard times on this journey but staying focused on the bigger prize helps keep us on track.

With me losing weight I have learned that I am an emotional eater...and since I can't do that anymore I think I transferred those emotions to shopping. I don't have to spend a lot of money but just spending something seems to be soothing, until the regret of spending even a small amount of money frivolously sets in or I have to clean out the closets. My dear, sweet, inspirational hubby said it best today. "I would rather bite the bullet and make these radical changes now and enjoy our money in a bigger way later, than to satisfy our immediate wants and miss out on the bigger things we could have had." And by things he doesn't necessarily mean material possessions or destinations. Even though that surely is one of the perks to controlling your finances and enjoying the smaller things in life. There are other blessings that come with being a good steward of your money. You can help others in need when situations arise. You can bless God's ministry and his servants where before it may have only been a passing thought. You can retire and not be dependent on the government. You can know the joy of living in a paid for home, and enjoy your grandkids instead of working because you have to and the list goes on and on. So when you hit the hard times please power through and realize there is a greater reward at stake and you will be glad you did.

The really great thing about this challenge is the fact that my husband has gotten really excited about us being more aware of our money. When I look at it from his perspective it makes sense. We live a very traditional life. He works long hours in a local plant, while I stay home and mother our children and take care of the home. He views his job as a way to show his love and commitment to us. When we spend carefully it shows that his time and hard work mean something to us and that we cherish his gift of love. So in turn he is more excited to save, and in the long term it means that he can stop working at some point and just enjoy his family with what he worked so hard for.

This Week's Menu (January 6-12)

Dinners:
Monday: Hamburger Patties, Mashed Cauliflower, Cabbage w/rice and gravy
Tuesday: Spaghetti*, Salad (lettuce, tomatoes, cheese), Homemade Bread
Wednesday: Beefy Vegetable Soup and cornbread
Thursday: Broccoli Beef, cauliflower "rice"
Friday: Spiced Turkey Loin w/crockpot applesauce, sweet potatoes, green beans
Saturday: Sloppy Joes, Cole Slaw and Homemade Fries
Sunday: Sandwiches, popcorn and fruit

Lunch:
Monday: Tuna Salad w/cucumber and apple slices
Tuesday: Protein Shake made w/unsweetened almond milk (Amarissa: Jelly Sandwich and fruit)
Wednesday: Simple Salad w/ chicken
Thursday: Protein Shake w/ unsweetened almond milk (Amarissa: left over soup and grilled cheese)
Friday: Left over Broccoli Beef
Saturday: Brunch: Grits, Low Carb Breakfast Casserole, sliced fruit
Sunday: Crockpot Chili and grilled cheese

*I make gluten free bread in the bread machine for our kiddos that are gluten sensitive.
Since I am very low carb at this time I serve spaghetti sauce over baked zucchini and squash halves for myself. It is yummy and filling.

Day 5

Not alot to report...4 of our kiddos started back to school today, they enjoyed having time with their friends. Amarissa had her first full day of homeschooling, it was nice to be back in teacher mode. No money was spent, I did take the girls to Wendy's for a jr. Frosty w/coupon books I had purchased back in October. They enjoyed  the special treat.

4th Day of the Buy Nothing Challenge

There is a wonderful air of peace and excitement that has settled over our home. We have started cutting away from our society's message that you have to live in debt and it feels great. This morning my sweet hubby Donald got up and made a wonderful homemade breakfast that included muffins, oatmeal and sausage links complete with sweet tea. Later on today my parents, sister and our 2 nieces and nephew are coming over for a game night and dinner. My mother blessed me by cooking our dinner and is bringing it over. Our families have all been wonderful getting on board with our new frugal lifestyle which makes this even easier on us and has given us much more time bonding as an extended family.

We had a great evening of games and good food. Mama made ham, black eyed peas, rice and cabbage. Tina made apple cobbler and I made raisin oatmeal bread. We played UNO Attack (our family's new obsession) this evening.

Earlier today I had to make a run to get food to make it to payday. I bought Strawberry Jam (High fructose corn syrup free), a pack of garlic bologna (ewe but our kids love it) and 8 eggs, the total was $3.03, then I went by the bread store and bought Sara Lee Honey Wheat bread for $.50 a loaf because they were closing early today and were trying to move product. I stocked up with 7 loaves for $3.54. Not too shabby, $6.57 for a week's worth of lunches and toast. I'll serve with popcorn and fruit for a well rounded meal, from the pantry.

Life is in the small things.

The thought occurred to me this morning while getting ready for church that a lot of readers might be asking themselves “Why are you being so transparent with your finances and your decision to live frugally?”  The more important question to me is why not? We are living during a time where many Americans are jobless, homeless and hopeless, yet our media is pushing their wares more than ever. I sat amazed this year amid the luxury car commercials and jewelry commercials portraying gifts that cost thousands as normal. Do these things show love and appreciation more than a thought out, lovingly chosen homemade gift or inexpensive gift? The answer is no, if anything it shows less thought. Who wouldn’t love waking up Christmas morning to a luxury car in their driveway or a diamond necklace? It is however, a rare treasure to open a gift that took time and energy from the giver to create. Or to find a gift that was chosen months before from a passing comment from the receiver. I want to bring hope to those that are struggling and show others that we don’t have to go in deep debt to be happy.

The gift that inspired this article and brought the tears was a packet of Crystal Lite Lemonade given to me by my husband, why you may ask. Because since losing weight I have craved lemonade like crazy and rarely go without it, but found myself out the week of Christmas and without the funds to buy it. My husband as a very loving and thoughtful gesture bought me this small gift. It showed me that he pays attention to me and that he cares about something so small. Where are the commercials showing these types of moments? Perhaps it would bring hope to those with low funds to show that you can bless someone you love without going into debt and spending a small fortune. That there is joy found in the little things, more often than in what we think are the big things. So I challenge you this year to listen to your loved ones, pay attention to their needs and bless their socks off with something small.

3rd Day of Buy Nothing

Happy New Year to all of you. Today we are spending the first day of 2012 at Church with our Church Family. So this is an easy day of buying nothing. Breakfast was jelly toast and milk for the kiddos and hubby and I am enjoying a vanilla protein shake made with unsweetened almond milk.  We have planned pizza for dinner today (10.00 from the local grocery store). So all in all not a bad day.