Laurie from Passionate Penny Pincher has a great post up with 10 Things You Need to Know Before Shopping at TJ Maxx.
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10 Foods You Didn’t Know You Could Make At Home
Living on a Dime has put together a list of 10 Foods You Didn’t Know You Could Make at Home. Did you know you could make all of these? Have you tried making all of these before?
Reader Tip: A Frugal Way to Bless Others
Serenity emailed in the following tip:
Last summer, I wanted to do something that would help my family AND help someone else, in an effort to teach my kids (ages 5 and 6) about helping others.
I knew both kids liked to garden, so we did some research at the library and started a garden. We also talked about who we could pless with some of the veggies we were planning to grow.
One of our friends who lived a couple blocks away was basically homebound as she had cancer. And because of her treatments, she could only eat certain foods — tomatoes and eggplant were 2 of those foods. We made sure to plant extra tomatoes and eggplant in our garden!
I am not a talented gardener, but somehow the garden ended up producing far more than we expected! We took pictures of the garden as the kids loved showing our neighbor “their project” and how it t was growing. Of course, our neighbor really enjoyed our company, and was thrilled when the kids shared what they had grown with her later in the summer.
The kids enjoyed having a summer project and always looked forward to delivering the tomatoes and eggplant to neighbor. They also got to learn more about gardening and are excited to have another garden this year!
Why We’re Sticking With Our Starter Home
Guest post from Andrea
My husband and I purchased our first home when we were 23 years old. With no kids in the picture, we weren’t looking for anything fancy; we were thrilled to have a house that came with a refrigerator and central air conditioning!
It was small, and we figured that we would live here for no more five years. Once we had kids, it would be time to move on to something bigger and better. Fast forward seven years and almost three kids later, and we are unexpectedly still here.
Well-meaning friends and family often ask us when we will be moving… and they are usually surprised to hear that we don’t currently have any plans to move.
Here are a few reasons why we have decided to stick with our starter home for the time being:
We Recognized Our Needs vs. Wants
Our home is about 1300 square feet. It’s not tiny, but the layout is awkward and boxy. The three bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms are pocket-sized.
I will be honest and say that I dream of a larger kitchen, an open floor plan, a finished basement, and two spacious full bathrooms. But when I step back to reevaluate, those are just wants at this point, not needs.
Our Priorities Don’t Allow for an Upgrade
A priority for our family is for me to stay home with our kids. Living in a small house and not having a large monthly mortgage payment allows us to retain this priority.
Our Smaller Home is Low Maintenance
I do not enjoy decorating, cleaning, or organizing… so I am thankful that my small house makes these tasks seem more manageable.
We have also been able to complete some major renovations on our home (including a new roof and a bathroom remodel) thanks to the fact that the spaces were so small and fairly inexpensive!
Love Grows Even in Little Houses
I want my family to be tight-knit. My big kids are cheerful and content in their shared bedroom, and I appreciate the nearness that our small house affords us even though we are cramped at times!
I Don’t Want My House to Own Me
On the contrary, I want to own my house, completely. Over the years, we periodically threw extra cash at our mortgage and celebrated our 30th birthdays last year by using extra money in our savings to pay the remainder of the balance!
Some people advised us against this decision by saying that we would be better off investing the money or using it for a down payment on an upgrade. But I will attest that it was one of the best decisions that we have ever made.
We feel such greater financial freedom, and the increased cash flow is awesome! Also, since we know the sweet taste of being completely debt free, we are not in a hurry to acquire another mortgage.
So What’s Next For Us?
As our kids and family grow, we recognize that a larger home may soon become a need rather than a want. We hope to use the next few years to save money for a larger home — our ultimate goal would be to pay for our next home in cash, or to have a very tiny mortgage.
We are looking forward to working towards that goal!
Do It Yourself: Homemade T-shirt Tote
CreativeGreenLiving.com shows you how to make a homemade tote bag out of a old t-shirt.
Do you have a fun and frugal DIY idea to share? I’d love to hear about it! Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
Dozens of different No Bake Energy Bite Recipes
Looking for a quick and easy no-bake recipe? We LOVE Energy Bites at our house and Tonia from The Sunny Patch has a free printable with dozens of different combinations for Energy Bite recipes.
Reader Tip: How We Literally “Cut” Our Spending
The following is a reader tip from Leah of Life Around the Coffee Cup:
When we look at our budgets so often we think it’s about cutting coupons or cutting line items, like cable or eating out. However, my family and I have saved over $1200 over the past 3 years — and we didn’t have to cut coupons, cut back, or even cut a line item out of our budget.
Instead, we made literal “cuts” in order to reduce our spending!
I cut my family’s hair!
I’m not a professional, but after some guidance from my husband on what he wanted, I was able to cut his hair without any trouble. This last year I even confidently helped him navigate changing to a new style. I also cut my son and daughter’s hair.
I usually get mine cut with a coupon, gift certificate, or by a friend.
We also cut t-shirts into reusable disinfecting wipes, cut flour sack bags into reusable “paper” towels, cut surplus veggies and fruit into small chunks for the freezer, and cut raggedy jeans into upcycled shorts.
When it comes to our budgets, we can get pretty creative with cutting. And all of it is a really good way to accomplish a goal (like becoming debt-free) or to take on a money-saving lifestyle.
Do you literally cut anything to help with your budget? If so, I’d like to know what!
5 Ways to Ruin Your Day — Guaranteed!
A while back, I wrote a post on 5 Things You Should Do Every Day. That post ended up going viral on Facebook and has been one of the most-viewed posts I’ve written in a very, very long time!
Just for fun, I thought I’d write a post that was the opposite of that post. Because it’s important for us to remember that just like small good decisions can positively impact our day in a big way, so seemingly minor poor decisions can also negatively impact our day in a big way.
So here are 5 Ways to Ruin Your Day (it probably goes without saying that these are meant to be tongue-in-cheek!):
1. Stay In Your Pajamas All Day Long
This is highly effective for encouraging you to be unproductive. Rock those sweats, wear your frumpiest t-shirt, don’t fix your hair, and whatever you do, don’t shower or wash your face.
The sloppier the look, the better it helps you feel like spending your day doing absolutely nothing. As an added result, you’ll probably also feel grumpy and just might start snapping at your kids, your husband, your neighbor, or even the dog.
TIP: If you want to take things a step further, also consume a significant amount of junk food and do lots of sitting and lying around. These things will kick the un-motivation up a notch and guarantee that you accomplish almost nothing.
2. Mindlessly Browse the Internet and Flip Through TV Channels
Whatever you do, while you’re wearing your PJs and snacking on foods with no nutritional value, do not read or watch anything that has any redeeming value. Some of the best suggestions for mindless browsing would be things like: cat videos, celebrity gossip sites, or blog posts about subjects you have zero interest in.
The more you can distract yourself with things that do nothing to help you, the greater your percentages of day-ruining will be.
Tip: Do try to have multiple forms of media playing at the same time — if you can be watching a cat video on your computer, have your browser open to a celebrity gossip site, and be flipping through channels on the TV all at once, this increases the mindless browsing factor and will help you use up even more time ineffectively.
3. Stew About Everything That is Wrong in Your Life
You have so much wrong in your life. I mean, just think about it. No, don’t just think about it. Start listing it off.
Maybe even write a blog post or Instagram or Facebook post about your lack of blessings? This will help you solidify your stewing and further encourage you to feel frustrated, grouchy, and annoyed by everything in life.
Once you’ve created your Un-Blessing List, take a lot of time to hash and re-hash over and over again just how much your life stinks, how difficult everything is, and how stressed you are about it all.
TIP: If you can, definitely call or text or tell someone in person all about how bad everything is in your life. The more you can camp on the negative, the more negative you’ll feel.
4. Start Project After Project, But Don’t Finish Anything You’ve Started
Think of all of the projects you’ve been putting off. Today is the day to start in on them. Only be sure to just get out all the supplies, begin working on them, and then move onto the next project.
I really think if you can try to tackle 10-15 different project starts today, that would be the best recipe for ruining your day.
TIP: The more materials you can get out and the bigger mess you can make, the better. If you need to go shop for a bunch of supplies, do it. However, just get all the supplies, lay everything out, begin working, and then move onto the next thing. Don’t finish things or put anything away.
5. See if You Can Stay Up At Least 4 Hours Past Your Bedtime
This final point is one of the most important. The later you can stay up past your bedtime, the more you’ll set up tomorrow for being ruined, too.
Whatever you do, don’t accomplish anything in those last few hours. This is key. Just spend your time on frivolous, meaningless things. And do make sure that you hit at least your second or third wind.
TIP: Do not set your alarm for the next morning. Or if you do, hit the snooze button at least 15 times. Set up tomorrow to be unsuccessful, too, by getting up late and tired.
What about you? What would be on your list of ways to ruin your day?
Simple Freezer Cooking Plan for Summer
Do It Yourself: 15 Homemade Popsicles
LivingOnADime.com shows you how to make 15 different homemade popsicles.
OVER-SPENDING EVERY SINGLE MONTH?Grab these FREE Budgeting Sheets!
Click here to download!
Shared Jun 22, 2015
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How I Won the “Cool Mom Award” With a Simple Trip to Kroger (+ enter to win a $75 Kroger gift card!)
How I Won the “Cool Mom Award” With a Simple Trip to Kroger (+ enter to win a $75 Kroger gift card!)
Last Friday, on our way home from picking the kids up from their last day at camp I said, “I’m so sorry, guys, but we’re going to have to stop at Kroger. I need to pick up something for a blog post I’m working on.”
The kids gave me weird glances. It’s not normal that I just up and go to Kroger seemingly spontaneously — especially not to buy something for a blog post. But they reluctantly agreed to get out of the car and troop into the store with me, even though they were tired and hot from a long day at camp.
Their reluctance turned to sheer joy when I marched them to the ice cream bar aisle and told them that we “had” to buy every kind of Magnum Ice Cream Bar the store sold and that I needed them to be my taste testers to see if the ice cream bars were any good.
Yup, I won the Cool Mom Award. And they also decided, again, that this blogging gig thing is pretty sweet most days.
I mean, what other job do you get to pay the bills by testing ice cream bars?? 🙂
{Okay, there may be a few other things involved in the gig, too, and we are always quick to let our kids know that these fun opportunities only come with lots of hard work, however, I think it’s wonderful for our kids to get to tangibly see that Mom and Dad’s hard work does pay off!}
At any rate, it seems we’ve all been living under a rock for the past number of years because not a one of us has ever tried the Magnum Ice Cream Bars. And I’m afraid that now that we’ve tried them, we may be just a wee bit hooked.
There were oohs and ahhs and lip-smacking all around when we got home. In fact, I didn’t even get to get a picture of all of the boxes of Magnum Ice Cream Bars before two boxes were completely G-O-N-E.
{Jesse said that I had to take a picture of the two empty boxes, even though I was a bit embarrassed that we inhaled so many ice cream bars in such a short amount of time. He wanted you all to know that these are the best ice cream bars he’s ever had. I did not twist his arm or offer bribes for that statement from him. I think he is a complete and diehard Magnum Ice Cream Bar fan, now. We may even need to set aside a budget line for them based upon how much he’s been raving about them!}
Magnum Ice Cream Bars are made with real Belgium chocolate. And trust me, we all agreed that, these are hands down the ultimate chocolate and ice cream indulgence. Apparently, it does make a difference to be the only ice cream bar made with Belgian chocolate!
They are an amazing ice cream treat — silky ice cream covered in thick, cracking chocolate. De-li-cious! For an even more indulgent experience, Magnum Doubles are dipped in a Chocolate, Caramel, or Peanut Butter sauce and dipped again in chocolate. We also loved the Magnum Minis. They are the perfect size for a quick snack!
The Magnum Ice Cream Bars are on the pricey side, but we felt like they were well worth the price for how delicious they were. Plus, I’ve often seen coupons for them. They would be a less expensive (and probably more mouth-watering!) option than going out for ice cream.
Win a $75 Kroger Gift Card!
Magnum Ice Cream Bars are available at a variety of stores, including Kroger and Kroger owned stores. And Kroger would like to give you the opportunity to try these amazing treats — for free!
They are giving away a $75 Kroger gift card on my blog today. To enter to win, just post on Twitter saying which Magnum Ice Cream Bar flavor you’d most like to try. Be sure to tag me (@moneysavingmom) and use hashtag #MagnumSummerIndulge. We’ll randomly choose one winner from the entries to win a $75 Kroger gift card.
{This post was underwritten by Lunchbox. Read our disclosure policy here.}
5 Lessons I Learned After Quitting Facebook
Guest post from Mary of Adventures In Frugal Land
Last month, I made the decision to say goodbye to my personal Facebook account. It was a decision that was in the back of my mind for a while. I took the plunge on May 6, 2015.
Since then, I’ve learned five important lessons.
1. I Don’t Have As Many Friends As I Thought
One my personal Facebook page, I had hundreds of “friends”. Once I said goodbye to my account, only a handful of them stayed in contact with me.
My birthday was less than two weeks after I made the decision to quit Facebook. In the previous years, most everyone on my friends list posted “happy birthday” to me.
Guess how many thought to call or text me? FIVE.
Most of them were family… which leads me to the next lesson.
2. I Don’t Care
Learning lesson one taught me lesson two. I don’t care about the lack of communication from my former Facebook “friends”.
The true friendships that I have are even more precious to me before. I value the few close friends I have more than I ever valued the fake ones I thought I had.
3. I Have More Free Time
I am amazed at how much time I really do have in a day. I knew I spent a good bit of time on Facebook, but I had no clue exactly how much.
I no longer feel the need to check my feed because I’m bored or out of habit. Instead, I use that time to do something productive or something I really enjoy.
4. I Am Happier
Let’s face it. Facebook is FULL of negativity… and I don’t want that in my life.
I am not the type of person who can just forget about something. So, when I would see a troubling post/picture, it would stay with me for days. I don’t want to focus on negativity in my life. I want to embrace the positive.
Since quitting Facebook, I am happier.
5. I Don’t Feel “Left Out”
I honestly thought that I would feel left out of the loop since quitting Facebook. I’ve found that I don’t. My friends and family inform me of any pertinent information I need to know.
Bonus Lesson #6: My Phone Battery Lasts Longer
It’s amazing how long a phone battery lasts when you are not constantly checking for updates and messages!
Mary is the mother of an energetic four year old daughter. She is passionate about bringing awareness to thyroid disease. You can find her blogging at Adventures In Frugal Land about thyroid disease, motherhood, frugal living and whatever else pops into her head!
Shared Jun 22, 2015
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6 Goals For This Week (I’m going to NYC & then we’re headed back to Atlanta!)
6 Goals For This Week (I’m going to NYC & then we’re headed back to Atlanta!)
Last week was Kaitlynn’s birthday, so we celebrated in number of ways — including a Mommy-Daughter Date and taking crazy selfies together. Because, of course! 🙂
It’s another full week this week! I’m at the ice rink all day today with Kaitlynn, then I’m headed to NYC tomorrow to film a segment with Fox Business (Eek! I’m split between being crazy excited about this and crazy nervous… it’s definitely another opportunity to jump out of my comfort zone! I’ve only been to NYC once and I’ve never been there by myself, so it should be an adventure!).
{The segment is supposed to air on Friday night, but things can always change when it comes to TV. I’ll keep you posted when I know for sure!}
I fly back home on Wednesday morning and then we’re packing up to head to Atlanta to meet my sister and her family for a few days of exploring the city together.
And then we’re headed back home again to spend time with two sets of out-of-town guests that are coming in Saturday and Sunday.
So with all of this in mind, I’m going to keep my goals very simple this week.
Last week’s goals:
Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals
1. Have a Family Movie Night with the kids.
2. Have an at-home movie date with Jesse.
3. Go out to breakfast with Jesse.Personal Goals
4. Exercise at least 3 times.5. Finish reading at least one book.
Local Ministry/Hospitality/Friendship Goals
6. Meet with our church’s Ministry Coordinator about plans for our church’s coffee bar.
7. Write a note of encouragement to a friend going through a difficult time.Business Goals
8. Prep for speaking at the Acworth, GA Say Goodbye to Survival Mode event this Saturday.
9. Launch the Make Over Your Mornings weekly email newsletter
10. Work on marketing copy and endorsement requests for my new book.
This week’s goals:
Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals
1. Write love notes to each of the kids and to Jesse.
2. Have an at-home movie date with Jesse.
Personal Goals
3. Finish reading at least one book.
Local Ministry/Hospitality/Friendship Goals
4. Have a coffee date with a friend.
Business Goals
5. Finish writing an article for an upcoming project.
6. Finish reading and writing an endorsement for another author’s book.
How did you do on last week’s goals? What are your goals for this week? I’d love to have you share your progress on last week’s goals and your goals for this coming week in the comments. Of, if you’ve blogged about it, leave your direct link below. Let’s cheer each other on to live purposeful and productive lives! You can download a free customizable weekly goal-planning sheet here.
Part-time Virtual Assistant Position Available
Platform University — Michael Hyatt’s online membership community — is hiring a part-time virtual Communications Assistant.
Here are some of the details of the job opportunity:
The position of Communications Assistant is a part-time employee position and it is a virtual position. The employee will start at 20 hours per week but will likely grow to full-time status as the position continues to develop. Hours are somewhat flexible, as this position is more about accomplishing certain tasks and objectives with a high level of responsiveness than adhering to a set clock in/clock out time. Occasionally, there would be the need to work additional hours on evenings and weekends during a launch or other event which happens a few times a year.
Due to the high-growth nature of this business, the duties and responsibilities of this position will likely evolve and expand over time, so we are looking for someone who has the capacity and desire to grow with the position.
Skills & Abilities
- Communication Skills: The Assistant must be an excellent communicator, in both written and oral form. This includes high proficiency in spelling, grammar and punctuation.
- Organization: Our Assistant needs to be highly organized and detail-oriented. We need someone with the ability to think at a big-picture level— looking at our annual content calendar — and then break those large projects down into actionable steps including production deadlines, posting schedules & corresponding calendar items.
- Discretion: Since our Assistant will sometimes be working with high-profile individuals, discretion and sensitivity regarding confidential information is a must.
- Technologically Proficient: While experience with some or all of the technology platforms that we use is ideal, including InfusionSoft, WishList Member, Rhino, WordPress, etc., we are willing to train the right candidate. However, the ability to embrace and learn new technology quickly is an absolute must. We also prefer someone who is an Apple computer and software user.
- Copywriting and Editing: The Assistant should possess supreme copywriting skills. The ability to communicate effectively in the Platform University brand voice is critical to this position.
Read more about this position, the qualifications, and how to apply here.
Update: Michael’s team reached out to me today to clarify a few questions readers had in the comments regarding the StrengthsFinder test you are required to take in order to be eligible to apply. Here’s what they said:
- A quick and inexpensive test called StrengthsFinder is a required step in the application process for this position.
- We are in no way affiliated with that test and don’t stand to gain anything by requiring you to take it.
- We just believe in intentionally designing our team so that each member can work in their sweet spot & we need to know your strengths in order to do that.
- We think you’ll really enjoy learning about your own strong suits through this test. It’s been hugely helpful for every member of our staff who’s gone through this same process.
5 Things I’m Loving This Week
How was your week this week? Ours was full, but good. Here are 5 things I’m loving this week:
1. Getting To Go With Kaitlynn to the Symphony
As an early birthday present, we surprised Kaitlynn with tickets to see her beloved Jackie Evancho sing with the Nashville Symphony earlier this week. Kaitlynn was ecstatic and well, truth be told, I was quite giddy to get to see Jackie, too. ?
I may almost like her as much as I like Josh Groban. Not quite, but almost. Considering how much of a Groban Groupie I am, that’s saying a lot.
Also, It felt like it had been eons since I had gone to a symphony performance… And it’s weird to think I used to go to one at least once a month, if not more (my violin teachers both played in the symphony and often had access to multiple free tickets that they’d offer us!)
2. Yummy Food Imported from South Africa
We’re counting down the days until we go back to South Africa to visit. In the mean time, we’re grateful that our local Carnivore Market carries imports like these shown above. I have gotten my entire family hooked on Appletiser, South African chocolates, biltong, and boerewors.
By the way, the kids’ passports came in a few weeks ago and it made me thrilled to think what traveling adventures may be ahead of us. October cannot get here soon enough! I never expected I could be so smitten by another country, but clearly I am!
3. A Breakfast Date with My Man
Our 3 kids were at day camp at our church this week, so we enjoyed some fun things together — including a breakfast date at Merridee’s.
After 12 years of marriage, I’m so thankful that we are still best friends and love hanging out together. Now, trust me, there have certainly been days along the way that we’ve not felt lovey-dovey. But love isn’t always a feeling; it’s an intentional choice.
Years of intentionally choosing love and choosing to believe the best and choosing to sacrifice for each other have resulted in a much stronger bond and deeper love than we knew was possible on our wedding day. 3 kids, 6 moves, 9 jobs, 4 businesses, and 12 years later, we feel like we’re just beginning to scratch the surface on how beautiful and wonderful love and marriage really are.
4. The Brand-New Make Over Your Mornings Weekly Email Newsletter
I’ve been wanting to start a weekly email newsletter for a very long time and I’m so excited to have launched the first Make Over Your Mornings Email Newsletter this week. This is a newsy email from me with helpful links, tips, suggestions, and other fun encouragement to help you live with more organization and intention in your every day lives.
If you purchased the Make Over Your Mornings course before today, you should have received a copy in your inbox. And if you haven’t purchased the course yet, you can do so here and we’ll add you to the weekly list!
5. An Encouraging Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Event in Atlanta Tonight
I was so blessed to get to spend the evening in Atlanta with some of you tonight! Thank you to everyone who came — you were such a blessing to me!
I was so excited I got to bring Kathrynne with me on this quick trip and she was quite smitten with the amazing array of treats and snacks they have set out for us in the “Green Room” (see above).
The church in Atlanta truly rolled out the red carpet for us and made us feel so loved and welcome! We drove there and back today and got back home close to 1 a.m. this morning, so now I’m headed to bed and looking forward to being encouraged at church and a day to celebrate fathers — well, after I get some sleep right now, that is!
See previous 5 Things I’m Loving This Week Posts here.
What about YOU? What 5 things are YOU loving this week? Tell us in the comments.