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Shared Feb 2, 2019 comment

The Best Things to Buy in February

Published: by crystal on February 2, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Did you know you can save quite a bit of money if you wait to buy certain items during certain months throughout the year?

Check out this list of the Best Things to Buy in February!

Shared Feb 1, 2019 comment

How I Did On My 2019 Goals in January

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 1, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

It’s February 1, 2019. And it’s time to check in on our goals! How are you doing on the goals you set for 2019?

I spent some time today reviewing January and reflecting on the blessings of the past month and the lessons I learned. I also looked at my goals and made not of how I was doing in each area. (If you missed My Goals for 2019 post, read it here.)

In order to keep myself accountable (and because I know some of you really enjoy these posts) I’m going to be sharing a goals update post at the beginning of each month. I hope that this will not only motivate me to be focused and intentional this year, but I hope it might also inspire you in the goals you set for 2019.

So here’s my goals update for February 1, 2019:

Personal Goals

1. Read 40 books I already own. (I’m using GoodReads to track my reading this year!)

Update: I finished 5 books in January — 2 were books I already own and 3 were audiobooks I got free from the Libby app. Look for a Book Update post in the next few days where I share more about my thoughts on the books I finished.

2. Slowly read through the New Testament using the She Reads Truth Bible reading plans at the beginning of each chapter.

Update: I finished Matthew and am halfway through Mark.

3. Listen to 2 audiobooks per month. (I use the Libby app to get these for free.)

Update: I listened to 3 audiobooks in January.

4. Complete all of the Organize in 5 Diary tasks to get our home more organized and set up better organizational systems. (Psst! Did you get yours? It’s just $9 right now.)

Update: This has been going so well and I’m happy to report that I have been 100% keeping up with this. YAY! You can see two posts I did on some of my organizing projects: Cleaning Out the Cookbooks & Organizing My Purse & Bathroom.

5. Stay offline for 4 hours per day, 5 days per week. (I share more about why I chose this goal here.)

Update: This has been going well and I hit it at least 5 days per week every week in January!

6. Leave my phone in the basement every night. (I talk more about what inspired me to make this goal here.)

Update: I did this every night but two nights in January!! It has made SUCH a difference and I plan to do a full post on this and just how much it has impacted me. Stay tuned.

7. Go to bed before 10:30 p.m. 5 days per week. (I’m using this little spreadsheet I made to track most of my personal goals)

Update: I didn’t do this perfectly, but I did a MUCH better job of going to bed earlier in January and am happy to report that I went to bed before midnight every single night in January — which is definitely progress for me since I have a tendency to stay up really late on weekends and then sleep in and that throws off the whole week! I’ve been a lot more consistent in my bedtimes and wake up times and it has definitely made a difference!

Marriage Goal

8. Go on an overnight trip with Jesse without the kids.

Update: We got a trip booked to Destin, FL at the end of April!! We’re renting an AirBNB with two other couples and are so excited about it! We also are looking at possibly doing one other weekend trip later in the year. We’ll see!

Motherhood Goal

9. One-on-one time with each child at least 3 times per week. (I am planning to dedicate 40 minutes per child after dinner each evening at least three nights per week to hang out and spend time with each child individually.)

Update: This has been going so well! And I’m thrilled to report that I hit this every week in January!

Family Goal

10. Take the kids to at least two continents and 4 states we haven’t traveled to. (We’re hoping to travel to Europe in the summer and South America at some other point during the year. I have travel alerts set up to track the best prices for flights and am hoping to find a great deal to snag in the next 4-6 months!)

Financial Goals

11. Pay cash to redo our room and renovate our bathroom (we have to pull out the shower and put in a new one because it was installed incorrectly and is leaking and ruining the floor/wall and we want to do a few renovations while we’re at it + we want to finally decorate our room — we left it really bare when we moved in and decided to wait to prioritize it in the budget).

Update: We had a contractor come over and chat with us and take measurements. We’re waiting on an estimate.

12. Pay cash to paint the main floor of our home.

13. Fully fund our Emergency Fund (This is a carry-over from 2018 and we are hoping to have this done in the next few months).

Business Goals

14. Redo/set up a much more intentional customer acquisition experience for all three of our email newsletters.

Update: We’ve been hard at work behind the scenes working on this and made some BIG progress in January already!

15. Finish launching the rest of our beginner Your Blogging University courses. (If you want to start a blog, be sure to check out my other site, Your Blogging Mentor.)

Update: I’m working on my next course, Monetize Your Blog, and it’s going to be a bigger/more comprehensive course than I’ve ever done but I hope to have it ready to launch at the end of March! Stay tuned!

~~16. Launch a Blog Coaching/Accountability Group membership. (I’ll be opening this up to a very limited number of people in January of 2019. Stay tuned!)~~

Update: We launched this to 100 people at the end of January and it is going SO WELL and I am just loving it already. We’ll be opening it up to more people in a few months!

How are YOU doing on your goals for 2019? I’d love to hear about your successes and struggles. Tell us in the comments!

Shared Jan 31, 2019 comment

Organizing My Purse & Bathroom (this is embarrassing) + a giveaway!

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 31, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I told you all that I’m using the Organize in 5 Diary in 2019 to whip my house in shape. It’s a digital download that gives you a 5-minute organizational project for every day in 2019.

Each of the projects (that can be done in 5 minutes or less) help you work through your entire home and set up better systems and habits. It covers almost all aspects of your life:

Psst! If you haven’t purchased the Organize in 5 Diary, you can get it for just $9 here.

I tackled two decluttering projects yesterday — one that was part of the Organize in 5 Diary and one that I was inspired to do because of the Organize in 5 Diary…

Yikes! I’m embarrassed to show you this. But here’s some real-life for ya!

I see this every morning when I open the cupboard to pull out things to get ready in the morning and every night when I pull out things to wash my face and get ready for bed.

And every day, I think, “I really should make time to organize it.” And every day, it doesn’t happen.

Until yesterday.

I was supposed to go to the kids’ school for morning chapel and then to discipleship group at church, but school was delayed due to weather and discipleship group was cancelled due to weather.

So I got inspired and tackled this mess of a cupboard!

I pulled everything out, put things that didn’t belong where they needed to go, put some stuff in the Goodwill tub in the garage, threw some stuff out, and re-organized what remained.

SO much better! And it made me so happy to open up the cupboard last night and this morning and see the above.

I even brought Jesse into the bathroom to show him how amazing it looked. (Please tell me I’m not the only weird person who shows off their accomplishments to their spouse like that!!)

Next up, I tackled the Organize in 5 Diary upcoming project (I’m a little ahead on the projects right now!) to clean out my purse. Er, diaper bag.

But let’s pretend it’s a purse. (I almost always carry a big bag because I often am lugging my laptop in it, too! Well, and I may also be a Boy Scout type personality and go for the “Always Be Prepared” slogan in most of life, too.)

I dumped everything out, wiped out the inside of the purse, and went through the contents. I put the items away that didn’t belong, I threw out the items that were trash, and found a few surprises along the way (see below!)

And then I made sure I had all of the essentials and put everything back in in a much more organized fashion…

That feels so nice to have my purse re-organized. And maybe it will last for a few weeks — or longer! We’ll see! 🙂

Want to Win My $100+ Rite Aid Gift Card?

Giveaway is closed. The winner is Terra (frogger353@) Terra, check your inbox for an email from me!

I discovered a $100+ Rite Aid gift card in my purse that I had completely forgotten about (along with some great coupons that I can’t wait to use!). Rite Aid had sent it to me to make purchases for a post I did with them quite a long while ago.

The card still has $100+ on it and I’d love to gift it to one of you since Rite Aid is way out of the way for me to go to and I’d rather bless one of you with it!

~~To enter to win, just leave a comment on this post telling me what you’d spend it on. I’ll choose a winner on Monday and will send you the gift card!~~

Shared Jan 30, 2019 comment

How We Changed Our Financial Blueprint

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 30, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Hope of Under The Median:

Whether we realize it or not, the way we handle money is primarily a result of a template, set in childhood and reinforced by our parents. In other words, we tend to spend and save money much like our parents did.

This financial blueprint is a strong force in our lives, and if it’s not a fiscally strong one, it can take a moment of crisis to overcome it. This is my story.

My mother was widowed at the age of 42, with four children and no idea how much money was coming in or where it was all going. When I was 18, she told me tearfully one day that she and my father had never lived with a budget. He just made money every month and they paid the bills. There always seemed to be enough money. She was terrified!

Even though I watched her go through this experience, I didn’t live with a written budget (or any spending plan) until I was well into my 20’s. I worked with the only blueprint I had ever known — much like my parents, I just made money and hoped that there would be enough to go around.

Two moments of terror stand out in my mind.

The first, when I was 20. I had moved out of my mother’s home and was living with two roommates. One evening, my bank account dipped to just $25 and the ATM would not let me withdraw any money. My gas tank was nearly empty. I prayed every day on the way to work that week that I would make it there and back without the car dying. I got paid at 4pm, and by 4:15pm I was at the gas station!

The second incident occurred when I was 24. My husband and I had been married for just two months and our checkbook indicated an almost zero balance. My stomach plummeted into the pit of my stomach. My mind reeled as I realized we had spent nearly every penny of our wedding cash gifts in just a few weeks. If we didn’t make immediate changes, we would be in big trouble in a very short time.

That’s when the light went on!

I worked at a Christian radio station and a man named Larry Burkett had just begun a daily program called “Money Matters.” It was the first generation of live Christian money management call-in programs. I listened carefully and began to implement Larry Burkett’s suggestions.

Within weeks, I had plugged into some great authors and teachers. I read a lot of books. I figured out what ideas I could implement right away, and created a list of ideas to consider for the future. I learned to cook from scratch and how to track my expenses.

We focused on one or two areas at a time. When we had those areas streamlined and under control, we move on to another couple of areas.

Over the next thirty years, we rewrote our family’s financial blueprint.

We gained financial traction as we lived within our means. Although we made a salary which was significantly under the national median income, we paid off our first mortgage in five years. We brought up four sons in our tiny two bedroom bungalow, while saving money to pay cash for our second home.

I won’t tell you that it was easy… because it wasn’t!

At times the road seemed long. But, now I see my 20 and 22 year old sons living on a written budget, paying cash for automobiles, planning for the future, and sharing financial principles with their peers.

I realize that our change wasn’t just for us. It was also for them!

I’m Hope Ware, married to Larry since 1988. We’ve raised 4 amazing sons debt-free on an income which averaged under the national median. I blog over at Under the Median. In my spare time I teach in the high school department at our local homeschool co-op and I sing second soprano in a semi-professional ensemble.

Shared Jan 30, 2019 comment

Gretchen’s $76 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan

Published: by Gretchen on January 30, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Dillons

2 boxes Cheerios – $1.79 each, used $1/2 e-coupon – $1.29 each after coupon

1 box Honey Nut Cheerios – $1.79, used $0.50/1 printable and $0.25/1 Ibotta rebate – $1.04 after coupon and rebate

3 boxes Annie’s Mac & Cheese – $0.99 each

1 bag Kroger Shredded Cheese – $2.99

4 pkg American Beauty Pasta – $0.49 each

2 cans Red Gold Tomatoes – $0.49 each

1 Sweet Baby Ray Hot Sauce – $1.99, used Free e-coupon – Free after coupon

1 Green Leaf Lettuce – $1.69

1 Ronzoni Pasta – $0.49

1 bag Oranges – Marked down to $0.99

1 bag Apples – Marked down to $0.99

1 Kroger Sour Cream – $0.89

1 Kroger Cottage Cheese – $0.89

1 Simple Truth Maple Syrup – $4.99, used $1/1 e-coupon – $3.99 after coupon

2 Pineapples – $0.99 each

2 pkg Back to Nature Cookies – $1.99 each, used $1.50/2 catalina coupon AND 2 $1/1 Ibotta rebates – $0.24 each after coupon and catalina

1 Kroger Ranch Dressing Mix – $0.59

1 Dried Onions – $1

1 Oregano – $1

1 Zia Pasta Sauce – $1

5.02 lbs Bananas – $2.46

Total after coupons and rebates: $30.96

Aldi

3 pkg Strawberries – $1.49 each

1 loaf Bread – $1.39

2 Half & Half – $1.79 each

1 Unsweetened Applesauce – $1.89

1 pkg Frozen Peas – $0.79

2 cans Refried Beans – $0.79 each

1 lb Butter – $2.88

2 pkg Tortilla Chips – $0.99 each

1 pkg Fruit & Grain Bars – $1.39

1 pkg Fruit Squeezies – $1.49

1 can Chicken Breast – $1.99

1 pkg Mini Cucumbers – $1.99

1 pkg Green Grapes – $2.58

1 pkg Crackers – $1.39

1 Yeast Packets – $0.89

3 pkg Flour Tortillas – $1.19 each

1 gallon Milk – $1.49

2 dozen Eggs – $0.58 each

Total: $38.99

Walmart

I ended up having to run into Walmart to grab ground beef and enchilada sauce because my Aldi was out.

1 lb Ground Beef – $3.44

1 can Enchilada Sauce – $1.96

2 Gogo Squeeze Blasts – $2.94 each, used 2 $1/1 peelie coupons AND 2 $1/1 Ibotta rebates – $0.94 each after coupons and rebates

Used $0.25 Ibotta rebate for the receipt

Total after coupons and rebates: $7.03

Total for all stores: $76.98

Menu Plan for This Week

Breakfasts

Eggs, Toast, Fruit, Cereal, Granola Bars

Lunches

Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches, Tossed Salads, Cheese/Crackers/Fruit, Mac & Cheese, Leftovers

Dinners

Brown Bag Burritos, Chips & Salsa, Fruit Salad (We’re having company for dinner this night. Plus, I’m taking this as a meal to a friend who suddenly lost her dad last week.)

Chicken & Rice with Gravy, Pineapple

Pancakes, Eggs, Oranges

10 Minute Baked Ziti, Biscuits, Steamed Peas

Grilled Steaks (from my mom), Butterhorns, Baked Potatoes

Super Bowl Party – We are having a party at our house and everyone is bringing fingerfoods. I’ll be making Mac & Cheese, Chicken Crack Pinwheels, and Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Leftovers

WANT TO SAVE $100 FAST?!Join the FREE 14-Day Savings Challenge!

Click here to sign up!

Shared Jan 29, 2019 comment

Infertility and Why We Chose Open Adoption

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 29, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I’m doing something I’ve never done on my podcast before this week… I’m doing an entirely interview-driven episode.

I usually try to keep interviews with guests to around 15 minutes and then we devote the other 15 minutes of the podcast to other segments. But as I was prepping for this particular interview, I just had this feeling that I needed to go longer in the interview. That in order for you to really hear the story well, I needed to allow the entire 30 minutes for the interview.

So that’s what we did — and I hope that this story and interview blesses you deeply. I truly believe it will.

My guest on this podcast is Rachel Nielson. She and I first met when she traveled with me and a small team of blog readers to South Africa (you can read about her thoughts on our time there and see a few pictures here.)

Rachel is joining me today to share her incredible story of infertility and adoption. But more than that, she’s going to share how she walked through learning to love someone when it was hard to love them and how she will never regret that decision.

Even if you don’t struggle with infertility and even if you’ve never considered adoption, I believe her story will powerfully resonate with you — and it didn’t turn out like you would expect, but I think you will be inspired and challenged by her words.

In This Episode:

[02:05] – Rachel takes us back to the beginning of her marriage and shares her thoughts on motherhood from those days. She shares why they ended up deciding to do fertility treatments AND pursue adoption at the same time and the struggles and hard things they went through during such an emotionally taxing and physically exhausting time.

[05:41] – I asked Rachel if she felt lonely during this time… and I wasn’t prepared for how honest her answer would be. She talks about the deep loneliness she felt in her marriage and what helped her to walk through that (she gives some spot-on relationship advice that you don’t want to miss!)

[08:11] – Rachel shares really vulnerably what it was like to be in the middle of fertility treatments and she shares encouragement and some practical advice for those who are going through them.

[13:37] – The story of how Noah’s birth mom found Rachel and her husband and asked them to adopt Noah is pretty incredible!

[17:11] – What was it like for Rachel to be in the delivery room as her adoptive son was being born? She shares how it was a holy moment and how strong and brave Noah’s birth mom was.

[19:26] – Navigating an open adoption had its challenges — especially as Noah’s birth mom grieved and walked through some of her own hard times. Rachel talks about how this was a challenge to know what to do, but she ultimately decided to choose to love instead of pulling away. (If you only have a little bit of time, please listen to this part of the episode. It has convicted me so deeply!)

[24:53] – Rachel shares the next steps of the story after the first few years of Noah’s birth, including an unexpected and tragic turn of events. She ends the episode sharing about how the story is still being written, but she’s so grateful for the fact that her body didn’t work and she wasn’t able to get pregnant like she wanted, because God had something much more beautiful in store than she could have imagined!

Links and Resources:

3 in 30 Podcast (with Rachel)
About Rachel & 3 in 30
[email protected]
3in30podcast on Instagram
Real Life by Jeff Carson (“I never was the same again” song)
CrystalPaine.com
MoneySavingMom.com
YourBloggingMentor.com
My Instagram account (I’d love for you to follow me there! I usually hop on at least a few times per day and share behind-the-scenes photos and videos, my grocery store hauls, funny stories, or just anything I’m pondering or would like your advice or feedback on!)
Have feedback on the show or suggestions for future episodes or topics? Send me an email: [email protected]

How to Listen to The Crystal Paine Show

The podcast is available on iTunes, Android, Stitcher, and Spotify. You can listen online through the direct player we’ll include in the show notes of each episode. OR, a much easier way to listen is by subscribing to the podcast through a free podcast app on your phone. (Find instructions for how to subscribe to a podcast here.)

Ready to dive in and listen? Hit the player above or search for “The Crystal Paine Show” on your favorite podcast app.

Shared Jan 28, 2019 comment

We Spent $70 at Walgreens, Publix, and Kroger last week

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 28, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I’m currently challenging myself to stick with a $70 grocery budget for our family of five. This includes almost all of our breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and dinners + most household products (toiletries, laundry soap, etc.).

For live updates, be sure to follow my Instagram Stories. See all posts on my $70 Grocery Budget here.

Note: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links and we will be compensated if you click through and sign up. Read our disclosure policy here.

A number of you have been asking if I can go to stores other than Kroger… and so I’m going to try to make that happen, if it works out in our schedule and there’s a good enough deal warrant going to Publix or Walgreens or CVS or Sprouts or Aldi. We’ll see!

(As most of you know, I drive by multiple Kroger stores on an almost-daily basis. So it makes it SO easy to pop in there. Most of the other stores require going out of my way a little to shop at them, so that’s why you don’t see me shop at them as often. Plus, I’m just so familiar with Kroger and usually find such great deals there, that it’s hard for me to sometimes want to go to other stores!)

This week, Jesse and I were right by Publix and Walgreens one of the days and I had a few minutes, so I ran in to get a few deals. Plus, I went to Kroger three different times.

Here’s what I bought:

Kroger Shopping Trip #1 (pictured above):

Back to Nature Cookies — $2.99 — used $1/1 printable + $2/2 coupon that had printed for me at Kroger recently = $0.99 each + submitted for 3 $1/1 Ibotta rebates = free after coupons and rebates
Bai Bubbles — free with Free Friday coupon
3 bags of Simple Truth organic tortilla chips — $1.49, used $0.50/1 Kroger Digital Coupon (can be used 5 times per transaction) = $0.99 each
Lemon Juice — $2.49
1 bag Simple Truth frozen veggies — $1.29, used $0.50/1 Kroger Digital Coupon (can be used 5 times per transaction) = $0.79
1 bag of apples — marked down to $0.99
1 bag of peppers + radishes — marked down to $0.99
1 bag of sweet potatoes — marked down to $0.99
Total with tax = $12.56

Kroger Shopping Trip #2:

Colgate MaxFresh — $1.99 when you buy 6 participating items, used $2/1 Kroger Digital Coupon = Free after coupon
5 packages of Cheese — $2.99 each when you buy 6 participating items
Kroger half & half — $1.79
Natural Bliss Pumpkin Spice Creamer — marked down to $0.29 (I don’t think I’ve ever tried this before and I am loving it in my tea, especially at this crazy price!)
Kroger Unbleached Flour — $1.49
Kroger Whole Wheat Flour — $1.99
5 cans of Simple Truth Organic Refried Beans — $1.19 each, used $0.40/1 Kroger Digital Coupon (can be used up to 5 times per transaction) = $0.79 each
4 pounds of ground turkey — marked down to $1.99 per pound
Romaine Lettuce — marked down to $0.50
Dole Salad Kit — marked down to $0.89
Sweet Baby Ray’s Hot Sauce — free after Kroger Digital Coupon
1 bag of tomatoes — marked down to $0.99
Total with tax: $37.28

Pineapple and blackberries are just $0.99 at Kroger right now!

I was super excited to find these tomatoes just $0.39 per can when you buy 5 participating items at Kroger!

Publix Shopping Trip:

Hershey Gold & Pretzel Candy (10-ounce bag) – $4.19
Buy One, Get One Free Sale
Used 2 $2/1 printables
$0.10 each after sale and coupons

*Note: If you don’t live in the land of true BOGO, you can buy just one bag at $2.10 and get it for $0.10. If your store is true BOGO, you’ll have to buy two bags and use two coupons to get the price of $0.10 per bag!

Publix Shopping Trip Total with tax: $0.60

Walgreens Shopping Trip:

3 Arm & Hammer Laundry Detergent – $1.99
Used 3 $1/1 printable
$0.99 each after coup

Walgreens Shopping Trip Total with tax: $3.55

Kroger Shopping Trip #3:

2 bags of clementines — marked down to $0.99 each
2 boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios — $1.79 each when you buy 6 participating items, used $1/2 Kroger Digital Coupon, $1.29 each after coupon
4 cans of Red Gold tomatoes — $0.39 each when you buy 6 participating items
1 can Bumble Bee tuna — $0.79 when you buy 6 participating items
1 carton of sour cream — marked down to $0.49
1 pineapple — $0.99
3 boxes of Creamette pasta — $0.49 each when you buy 6 participating items
2 bags of Goldfish crackers — $0.99 each when you buy 6 participating items
Kroger sandwich bags — $1.49
Kroger gallon bags — $1.99
Total with tax: $16.36

Kathrynne signed up for birthday freebies since it’s her birthday week and when she signed up for Krispy Kreme she got a coupon for a completely free DOZEN doughnuts!! Needless to say, we’ve all been enjoying those! I may or may not have had one for breakfast! 😉

What We Ate This Past Week

Note: When you see the meals below, please remember this: I buy ahead often. Which means that when I find a great deal on something I know we’ll use, I buy as much as I can afford in our budget to have on hand.

This means that you aren’t going to see all of the groceries my shopping trip that I used to make all of the meals we ate.

Please also remember that I’m putting this out there and it’s not a perfectly balanced menu. This is just really what we ate — and I hope that it encourages you to see the real-ness and lack of perfection here. ?

Breakfasts:

Cereal, Oatmeal, Scrambled Eggs, Hard Boiled Eggs, Toast, Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Lunches:

Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches, Cheese Quesadillas, Cheese/Crackers, Hard Boiled Eggs, Salad, Leftovers, Clementines, Cookies

Snacks:

Cheese/Crackers, Popcorn, Apples, Cookies, Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, Brownies, Chips/Salsa, Goldfish

Dinners:

Sunday — Frozen Pizza, salad
Monday — Leftovers, apples, chips & salsa
Tuesday — Baked Chicken, mashed potatoes, Roasted Broccoli
Wednesday — Brats, Sweet Potato Fries, salad
Thursday — Refried beans with cheese, chips, lettuce (sort of a meatless build-your-own taco salad)
Friday — Dinner at Chipotle for Kathrynne’s birthday (we had some of her friends over), brownies
Saturday — Snack-y dinner (fend for yourself)

Total spent on groceries: $70.35

Psst! Need some help with cutting your grocery budget? Check out my series: 5 Days to a Better Grocery Budget.

Cashback earned this week: $3 from Ibotta for buying Back to Nature and 150 points for submitting my receipts to Fetch rewards.

Shared Jan 26, 2019 comment

40 Books I Plan to Read in 2019

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 26, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

One of my goals for 2019 was to read 40 books I already own. I finally had a chance to go through our bookshelves today and pick the 40 books I want to read.

For those who are interested, here are the books I chose (please note: I have not read these books, so by sharing them here, I am not endorsing or recommending them):

Secret Daughter
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society
The Choosing
Paris Letters
Becoming Mrs. Lewis
How to Walk Away
A Gentlemen in Moscow
Before We Were Yours
Beneath a Scarlet Sky
The Austen Escape
Come Matter Here
It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way
Bearing Hope
A Severe Mercy
In the Secret Service
Brave Love
The Wondering Years
Etched in Sand
Embrace the Suck
As Many Reps as Possible
Forgiving God
Daring to Hope
Thirst
Off the Clock
Slow
Everybody Always
Begin Again
The Healing Compass
Book Girl
So Good They Can’t Ignore You
Dare to Lead
Life on the Vine
Preach to Yourself
The Ministry of Ordinary Places
Sacred Ground, Sticky Floors
Parenting
The Path Between Us
Fierce Marriage
Whisper
Only Love Today
When People Are Big and God is Small (whoops! I guess I actually picked out 41! I guess the last one is a bonus!)

By the way, I’m tracking the books I read this year on GoodReads and I’ll be doing a monthly update on what I read and a little review of each book!

Have you read any of these books? Which one(s) should I read first?

Shared Jan 26, 2019 comment

Brigette’s $69 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan for 6

Published: by Brigette on January 26, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Aldi

2 64-oz cartons Orange Juice – $3.38

1 10-lb bag Russet Potatoes – $3.79

1 32-oz box Elbow Macaroni – $1.09

1 16-oz pkg Deli Sliced Turkey – $2.99

1 3-lb bag frozen Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts – $5.39

1 pkg Turkey Bacon – $1.89

2 cans Chicken Breast – $3.10

2 6-ct Applesauce Cups – $2.38

2 bags Frozen Corn – $1.50

2 bags Frozen Mixed Veggies – $1.50

1 pkg Mini Cucumbers – $1.69

1 large tub Organic Spring Mix – $3.49

1 bunch Bananas (@$0.37/lb) – $1.36

2 pkgs Fresh Zucchini – $2.98

1 pkg Mini Sweet Peppers – $2.39

2 pkgs Broccoli Crowns – $3.58

1 Baby Carrots – $0.75

2 pkgs Strawberries – $2.98

1 8-oz pkg Sliced Deli Cheese – $1.15

1 16-oz bag Shredded Cheddar Cheese – $2.15

1 pkg String Cheese – $1.65

3 boxes Honey Nut Oats – $3.45

1 1-lb box Butter Quarters – $1.99

1 24-oz carton Cottage Cheese – $1.59

1 pkg Flour Tortillas – $0.65

1 loaf Sandwich Bread – $0.65

1 pkg Hamburger Buns – $0.65

1 pkg Plain Rice Cakes – $1.15

1 bag Pretzels – $1.75

3 dozen Eggs – $3.21

Total: $66.27

Harris Teeter

I ran into Harris Teeter since I was already driving past it, and found these things reduced.

1 bag Spinach/Argula, reduced – $1.00

1 bag Lemons, reduced – $1.00

1 bag Bananas, reduced – $1.00

Total: $3.00

Grocery Total for the Week: $69.27

Weekly Menu Plan

Breakfasts

Everyone is responsible for making/cleaning up their own breakfast. Choices include:

Oatmeal, Toast, Fruit, Cereal, Fried/Boiled/Scrambled Eggs, Veggie Omelets, Smoothies

Lunches

Pretzels with Peanut Butter, Cheese Sticks, Bananas, Carrots

Turkey/Cheese Sandwiches, Bananas, Carrots x 2

Cheese Quesadillas, Strawberries, Cucumbers x 2

Leftovers x 2

Dinners

Paleo Chicken and Broccoli, Rice, Tossed Salad

Pancakes, Scrambled Eggs, Bacon

Chicken Gravy over Rice, Steamed Mixed Veggies, 2-Ingredient Pumpkin Muffins

Freezer-Friendly Barbequed Meatballs (I make these using a mixture of ground venison, ground beef, and ground turkey), Mashed Potatoes, Corn, Tossed Salad

Cheesy Hamburger Potato Soup (I’ll use the last of the ham from my freezer instead of hamburger), Biscuits

Pulled Pork Sandwiches (from my freezer – leftover from last week), Baked Parmesan Zucchini, Corn

Leftovers

Shared Jan 23, 2019 comment

My Favorite Decaf Teas to Drink

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 23, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

As most of you know, I stopped drinking coffee a few years ago… and it’s been the best thing ever! My anxiety is so much better, I sleep so much better, and I’m just all around healthier.

Instead of drinking coffee, I have fallen in love with decaf teas. Many of you have asked for me to share what my favorite teas to drink are, so I thought I’d list them here, for anyone who is interested.

In my Decaf Chai Latte post, I shared a few teas I like and I wanted to share a few more:

1. Tiesta Tea Relaxer: Cocoa Mint Chill (this is a loose tea)

2. Stash Decaf Vanilla Nut Cream

3. Stash Chai Spice Decaf

4. Rooibos Tea (I bought the one shown when we were in South Africa.)

5. Roastaroma (this is a really bold tea and a great coffee replacement)

6. Decaf India Spice Chai

7. Fireside Vanilla Spice

8. Mint Magic

9. Honey Vanilla Chamomile

A few tips to loving tea more — especially if you’re trying to drink instead of coffee:

Make the tea stronger. (I often use two bags instead of one.)
Use honey or maple syrup to sweeten it. (If you’re used to having a sweetener in your coffee or just to make it really delicious!)
Use half and half. (I loved half and half in coffee and have discovered that it makes tea that much better. Don’t have half and half? At least use a splash of milk!)
Drink it in a cute mug. (This just makes it so much more enjoyable!)

Want more details on this journey? You can watch my video on Why I Stopped Drinking Coffee and read about How I Drink a Gallon of Water Every Day.

What are YOUR favorite decaf teas? Any recommendations for me? I’d love to hear!

OVER-SPENDING EVERY SINGLE MONTH?Grab these FREE Budgeting Sheets!

Click here to download!

Shared Jan 23, 2019 comment

Gretchen’s $53 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan

Published: by Gretchen on January 23, 2019 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Aldi

1 lb Butter – $2.88

2 cans Green Beans – $0.49 each

1 pint Grape Tomatoes – $1.49

1 Cantaloupe – $1.29

2 dozen Eggs – $0.58 each

1 box MooTubes Yogurt – $1.55

1 bag Brown Sugar – $1.69

1 bag Chunk Cheese – $1.99

1 pkg Flour Tortillas – $1.19

1 Unsweetened Applesauce – $1.89

2 Cucumbers – $0.49 each

1 Soy Sauce – $1.29

1 box Fruit Squeezies – $1.49

1 pkg Cream Cheese – $0.99

1 bag Red Grapes – $1.80

1 pkg Frozen Boneless Chicken Breasts – $5.99

2 lbs Ground Beef – $3.39 each

1 Half & Half – $1.79

1 Yeast Packets – $0.89

1 lb Oven Roasted Turkey – $3.99

1 gallon Milk – $1.49

1 pkg Shredded Cheddar Cheese – $3.39

1 pkg Shredded Italian Cheese – $2.59

2 pints Blueberries – $1.79 each

Total: $53.15

I will probably also run into Dillons some morning this week to check for markdown items and grab lettuce and bananas since I don’t like Aldi’s.