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Shared Feb 9, 2015 comment

10 Goals For This Week (+ I’m loving this new season of life!)

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 9, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

One of my big goals for 2015 is to be more home focused. We made some significant changes in December to make this desire of mine become a reality. And I’m almost 6 weeks into 2015 and I just can’t even begin to express how thrilled I am at the difference these changes have made!

The last two years have been r-e-a-l-l-y stretching for me on so many different levels. And I don’t regret the decisions we prayerfully made for me to be on the road or as involved in as many projects as I was. I grew so much and God was so faithful, even in those times when it felt that it was physically and emotionally possible to do everything we felt He was clearly calling me and our family to.

But in December, I really felt that the season was coming to an end and I feel so settled about it. I’ll still be traveling and speaking some, developing a few new products, and working on a few big projects, but we’re really streamlining this year and being incredibly picky about which opportunities I’m saying “yes” to.

We only set a few business goals (as opposed to our long list of goals last year!), and we’re also bringing on some new team members (God has brought some of the most amazing and perfectly-suited people my way in January and I’m so grateful!)

All this to say, I’m loving this new season of life and soaking it up. And I’m also loving that there is much more margin in most of my days, we’re spending so much time together as a family (often just hanging out and being together!), and that I’m doing a much better job of getting my goals crossed off.

I’m so content at such a deep level. And I’m so grateful.

It feels like such a gift to have this season of reprieve and I’m humbly grateful that, after years of Jesse and I working so hard, we’re finally at a place where we can both work a lot less and carve out the lifestyle that we feel like God has called us to and the rhythm of life where each of us will best thrive.

Last week’s goals:

Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals

~~1. Continue on with our Morning Time routine. Read aloud for at least 20 minutes every day.~~

~~2. Write a love note to Jesse.~~

~~3. Have a family movie night.~~

4. Work with the kids to help them learn their new chores (we just added a few new chores to each of our kids’ daily lists and Silas, especially, is needing a little extra help learning how to do the chores.)

Personal Goals

~~5. Exercise at least 4 times.~~

~~6. Finish at least two books.~~

7. Knit a Cosy Posy Ear Warmer. (I’m hoping to finally get this started this week!)

~~8. Try two new Trim Healthy Mama recipes: Raw Cookie Dough and Peanut Butter Pancakes.~~

Business Goals

~~9. Get back with bloggers interested in the ePantry opportunity.~~

~~10. Tweak my presentations and slides for the Friday night Say Goodbye to Survival Mode event in Mississippi.~~

This week’s goals:

Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals

1. Continue on with our Morning Time routine. Read aloud for at least 20 minutes every day.

2. Write a love note to Jesse.

3. Have a date with Jesse.

4. Write a note of encouragement to one person.

Personal Goals

5. Exercise at least 4 times.

6. Finish at least two books.

7. Knit a Cosy Posy Ear Warmer. (I’m hoping to finally get this started this week!)

8. Try two new recipes: Trim Healthy Mama Waffles and Hot Fudge Pie.

Business Goals

9. Shoot a short video for a project I’m working on.

10. Finish up edits on the script/handbook on my soon-to-be-released course. (More details coming soon! I’m SO excited about this and how it’s coming together thanks to a great team who is putting so much heart and effort into it!)

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.

Shared Feb 9, 2015 comment

Jamerrill’s First Crock Pot Freezer Cooking Session (Trim Healthy Mama recipes!)

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 9, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Thinking of trying your hand at making some crock pot freezer meals?

Check out Jamerrill’s thorough post with the recipes she made, how it went down, plus some things she learned from her first crock pot freezer cooking experience.

Shared Feb 9, 2015 comment

My Monday Morning Plan + Today’s Cleaning Project

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 9, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

It’s Monday and guess what that means? That means it’s time for our weekly deep-cleaning project! Every Monday morning this year, I’ll be assigning us all a deep-cleaning project to tackle (well, that is, if want to join us!)

Today’s project is to go through your purse/handbag/diaper bag. Clean it out, toss at the trash, re-organize it, and add anything to it that you’ve been meaning to or that you’re always wishing you had when you are out and about.

Here’s my plan for this morning:

~~Exercise, shower.~~
~~Bible reading/journaling.~~
~~Morning blogging time.~~
Get kids up — morning chores/breakfast.
Morning Time with the kids.
Get kids started on their independent work.
Clean out my purse.
Ready to go — coffee made/lunch made — head to allergy appointment and then to work at our office space.

{Thanks to the #Choose30 Challenge, I already have some “big rocks” done for today!}

This evening, I’ll share a post about how my morning well and give you an update (with pictures) on how my purse-cleaning project went.

Need some motivation? Check out my post on 10 Ways to Make Cleaning More Fun.

Want to join me? Leave a comment to let us know you’re participating! If you have time, tell us what your morning plan is, too.

Shared Feb 8, 2015 comment

A Peek Into Our Week: Book edits are DONE!, a simple change that’s made a big difference in our homeschooling, a trip to Mississippi, and my #Choose30 challenge update

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 8, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

It was a full but good week this past week.

I finished my book edits and turned them into my editor on Monday… and what sweet relief that was! I didn’t realize how much they’d been hanging over my head until I turned them in and she approved them later in the week.

These were the substantive edits — which means that this was the hardest edit. The next rounds of editing will be more for grammar/typos, etc. Those kinds of edits are much easier to go through than this round where I needed to completely redo a few of the sections!

We’ve been loving the new addition of Morning Time to our homeschooling. You can head over here to see a video I posted of our Morning Time on Tuesday. And you can read a little more about Morning Time here.

On Wednesday, we had our usual morning routine and then I ended up having back-to-back meetings all afternoon and then Jesse, Brian (one of my business managers), and I met with a potential new hire that evening at our house. So it made for a long day, but it was productive and worth it.

I spent Thursday afternoon getting ready for our first Say Goodbye to Survival Mode event on Friday while the girls had a play date at a friend’s house. I decided to completely revamped one of my talks for it — which is always a time-consuming, but rewarding task.

Earlier in the week, I had felt like I had zero creative ideas for this presentation. I knew what I wanted to communicate, I just couldn’t figure out how to effectively communicate it. So I’m so grateful that it all came together on Wednesday and Thursday and it will definitely be a talk I’ll be tweaking and re-sharing again and again.

I left on Friday morning to fly to Mississippi for the event. We were thrilled that over 140 people showed up for our first ever Say Goodbye to Survival Mode event — especially because the church that hosted it was in the tiny town of Purvis, MS!

{There are a number of other churches and groups very interested in hosting a similar event in other areas of the country, so stayed tuned for more details on where our next event will be held. I’d love to get to meet you there!}

The women in Purvis were amazing! So warm, friendly, gracious, and welcoming. I was incredible blessed and encouraged to be there. Thank you, all, for having me!

While I was gone, Jesse took the kids to Movie Night at our church on Friday night. They were supposed to wear PJ’s and had all sorts of fun kid-friendly things and yummy snacks. The kids had fun at the photo booth, as you can tell. 🙂

Jesse surprised me by cleaning out the garage, taking a bunch of stuff to Goodwill and completely reorganizing it today. The garage had been the one part of our house that had been neglected pretty much ever since we moved in here. It felt amazing to come home to a spic-and-span garage!

I arrived home late this afternoon and we spent the rest of the day just hanging out, catching up on the events of the past day, and having a Family Movie Night tonight. And now we’re looking forward to a restful Sunday to refresh and recharge for the coming week.

My #Choose30 Challenge Update

I told you earlier this week that my #Choose30 Goal was to get up and exercise, shower, get dressed, and read my Bible first thing every morning. For those of you who have to get up really early to leave for work, this might seem like an easy-peasy thing to do. But for me, since I work on my own time schedule and don’t have to clock in at a certain time and can dress however I want to, committing to get up, exercise/shower/dress/read my Bible first thing takes some effort and discipline.

I’m happy to report that, so far, I’ve been really committed to this goal this week. I’ve slipped up a tiny little bit and gotten a little distracted here and there, but only for a few minutes and then I’ve gotten back on task.

And I’ve noticed a big difference in making this change. Not only do I seem to get more done every day, but I feel better about myself and feel more energetic since I’m starting the day off with exercise, making myself look presentable, and quiet time to read and pray. Yay!

How was YOUR week this past week? Anything interesting or eventful happen?

Shared Feb 8, 2015 comment

This Week’s 6 Most Popular Posts

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 8, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

My 12 Goals for 2015: January’s Update

3 Books I Read This Past Week + What I Hope to Read This Week

Why We Love the LEGO Magazine & How You Can Get a Free Subscription

How to Save Money By Taking Your Own Baby Pictures

Silas & His Self-Imposed “Budget”

Why We’ve Chosen to Rent Instead of Buy

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

Click here to sign up!

Shared Feb 8, 2015 comment

Gretchen’s $64 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan

Published: by Gretchen on February 8, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Aldi

We were out of town all last week and I had used up most everything in our refrigerator before we left so this week I had a LOT of items to buy!

2 pkg Strawberries – $1.29 each

1 pkg Cauliflower – $1.69

1 pkg Celery – $1.29

1 pkg Asparagus – $1.49

1 pkg Green Peppers – $1.49

1 pkg (3 lbs) Navel Oranges – $1.68

1 pkg (5 lbs) Potatoes – $0.99 (I was so excited about this price!)

1 dozen Large Eggs – $1.49

1 pkg Carrots – $1.49

1 pkg Baby Carrots – $0.99

1 pkg Trail Mix – $1.99 (My 3 year old son is growing like a weed and is constantly hungry. I saw this and thought it would be a great snack for him on those days we are out and about.)

1 pkg Ocean Spray Craisins – $1.29

1 pkg Spinach – $1.79

1 pkg Rice Cakes – $1.29

1 pkg Frozen Peas – $0.89

1 frozen Orange Juice – $1.19

1 pkg Mozzarella Cheese – $1.79

1 Mild Salsa – $1.69

1 Grape Jelly – $1.45

1 Natural Peanut Butter – $1.69

Total with tax ($2.16): $32.40

Dillons

1 Green Leaf Lettuce – $0.99

2 pkg Tyson Frozen Chicken Breast – $5.57 each (This was NOT on my list to get this week, but when I saw it was on sale for my target price, I ended up buying 2 bags and going over my grocery budget this week. I will spend less next week to even out this month’s grocery budget and will save money in the long run. 🙂 )

2 half gallons Dillons Milk – $1 each

0.32 lbs Broccoli Crowns – $0.60

1.64 lbs Bananas – $0.97

1 South Beach Diet Bars – $6.99, used Free e-coupon (no longer available) – Free after coupon

1 Chobani Greek Yogurt – $1.25, used Free e-coupon (no longer available) – Free after coupon

2 Kroger Shredded Cheese – $1.99 each (These were advertised as $1.67, so I was disappointed they did not ring up correctly.)

2 Cantaloupe – $0.99 each

Total with tax ($1.61): $24.07

Homeland

1.11 lbs Tomatoes – $1.43

2 Cucumbers – $0.69 each

1 Farmland Sausage – $1.25, used $0.55/1 printable (doubled) (no longer available) – $0.15 after coupon

1 Hiland Cottage Cheese – $1.94, used $0.50/1 printable (doubled) – $0.94 after coupon

1 Motts Applesauce – $2.89, used $1/1 printable (doubled) – $0.89 after coupon

2 Kellogg’s Pop Tarts – $1.29 each, used $1/2 printable (doubled) – $0.29 each after coupon

2 Wishbone Salad Dressing – $1.69 each, used $1/2 coupon from the 1/11 SmartSource insert – $0.69 each after coupon

Total with tax ($0.69): $7.95

Total for all grocery items: $64.42

Menu Plan for This Week

Breakfasts

Cereal x 3, Scrambled Eggs & Juice, Oatmeal, Cranberry Almond Scones & Fruit (We are having a playdate at our house this week and I will be serving this.)

Lunches

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches/Veggies, Turkey Meat/Cheese/Fruit/Crackers, Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches/Carrots x 2, Leftovers, Vegetable/Banana Smoothies x 5 (I will be eating this for lunch every day.)

Dinners

Hawaiian Haystacks (Brown Rice, Chicken, Gravy, Canned Pineapple, Coconut, Cheese)

Venison Stew, Steamed Asparagus, Leftover Scones

Hamburgers & Fish (A church friend kindly gave us a bag full of fish he had caught, cleaned and frozen for us!), Tossed Salad, Homemade French Fries

German Pancakes, Eggs, Sausage, Cantaloupe

Venison Roast, Potatoes, Carrots, 30 Minute Rolls, Steamed Asparagus

Homemade Cheese Pizza, Tossed Salad

Dinner with family

Shared Feb 7, 2015 comment

Why We Rent: Unexpected Lessons About Home Ownership

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 7, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Kaly Sullivan

It was 2004 and the housing market was hot. Everyone around us was buying. People were making money buying a home and selling it a few years later. The prices kept going up and up. You couldn’t lose. We jumped on the bandwagon and decided to buy before the prices went any higher.

Couple that with the path our parents and grandparents had paved for us. You get a degree, you get a job with a pension, you get married, buy a house, build equity, have kids, trade up into a bigger house, and retire.

Following that blue print, my husband and I removed ourselves from the urban center we had come to love, and traded in our car-less life for a red shingled house with a two-car garage.

We bought on a five-year ARM because that is what everyone was doing. We bought a small fixer upper with potential because you’re supposed to buy the smallest house in a nice neighborhood (for resale value). We started the process of turning it into a home.

The list of tasks that we undertook is now unimaginable.

Over the next nine years we spent thousands of hours and dollars upgrading systems, putting in new features, shopping for the perfect item to complete a room. Our evenings and weekends were filled with tasks, Home Depot shopping lists, and annual attempts to grow lush grass.

Meanwhile our children were born, and we adapted to life as suburban home owners.

Don’t get me wrong. I loved that house. I loved every creak and every brick in the patio we had installed. But it’s quite possible that the little red house is the only house that we will ever own.

My husband took a job in a different city, and we made the decision to relocate. We sold our house fairly easily (we did not make any money, but we did break even).

Because we were unfamiliar our new area, we thought renting would be a good way to get the lay of the land and settle in before buying a new home.

Now that we are well into the second year of our lease, I’m not convinced that I ever want to own a home again. Although it isn’t always as easy as “Call your landlord and they fix it,” we have thoroughly enjoyed this time off from home ownership.

I can’t imagine walking into Home Depot anymore than I can imagine landing on the moon because as renters we have more…

1. Time:

Weekends are used for adventures, naps, downtime, and new experiences not upkeep and chores.

2. Money:

Our rent is more expensive than our previous mortgage but the money we save in home maintenance and purchases has us saving money every month. And we have zero debt!

3. Brain space:

We don’t worry about systems, resale value, and lists of repairs so we have more room in our heads to pursue our true interests.

My husband feels a little differently about the rent vs. own situation. He worries that as renters were not part of our community because we haven’t put our money where our mouth is and invested in a more substantial way. That maybe if we’re not buying, we’re transients that aren’t going to stick around and are not worth getting to know.

I see his point. People ask me, “Are you going to stick around? Have you started looking at houses?” I still challenge my husband to think about it differently.

If you ask yourself, “What am I going to do with my one life?” Does owning a home make the list? Your top ten?

If you think, “What legacy do we want to leave in this world?” Is the answer, “I was a good homeowner” part of your response?

Since we’ve been renting, we’ve put less of our resources into our home. We’ve used our time and money to start a company, travel more, and explore our new city. We spend more time together as a family and our overall stress level has decreased.

As a family, we will continue to consider what home ownership can offer us. But we are definitely looking at our options through a more critical lens and will not be buying just to buy this time.

In the meantime, we’ll keep renting. And enjoying every second of it and the freedom it brings.

When Kaly doesn’t have her nose in a book, she wrangles and referees two elementary age boys and blogs about her often humorous efforts to lead a mindful, connected life. She’s the co-founder of Harlow Park Media and is the author of Good Move: Strategy and Advice for Your Family’s Relocation.

photo source

Shared Feb 6, 2015 comment

Silas and his self-imposed “budget” (AKA: Yes, your children are watching you!)

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 6, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

We were at Cracker Barrel last week to celebrate Kathrynne’s 10th birthday. (I still cannot believe I have a daughter who is 10 years old. How did that happen?? I still feel like I’m 17!)

After we ate dinner as a family, we went out to the store to window shop for a bit. (My kids think Cracker Barrel is just about on the same level as the LEGO store! They love that place and I don’t blame them; they have such fun kid’s toys and games!)

I noticed Silas was on a mission in the toy section. He kept picking one toy up, looking at the price, and then putting it back. As he did this over and over again, I started following him around to try to determine what he was doing!

It was then that he picked a toy up and triumphantly exclaimed, “Yes!! This is in my budget!”

I about burst out laughing right there in the store. First, because I hadn’t heard him use the word “budget” before. And secondly, because it sounded so grown up and funny to be coming from the mouth of a 5-year-old.

But I held my laughter in and instead asked him more about this budget of his. He explained to me that he has $30 at home in his piggy bank — money he’s collected from doing chores, birthday gifts, etc. — and he decided that he had a $10 budget to spend on something from Cracker Barrel. He didn’t want to spend all of his money, so he’d set the $10 budget to make sure he didn’t spend all his money.

He said he hadn’t brought his money this time, so he was just looking to see what he could buy in his budget. Next time, he’d bring his money and buy the $10 or less toy.

As he recounted all of this to me, you can imagine how much I was grinning from ear to ear. I love that he’s learning money management skills from a young age.

But more than that, I was reminded of how much our kids are watching and learning. We’ve talked about basic money management with Silas (spending and saving, etc.), but we’ve never actually gone over what a budget is or why you should have one. So Silas has picked up the idea of budgeting from watching us and hearing things we’ve told to Kathrynne and Kaitlynn.

It also reminded me of how important it is that I set a good example before my kids. Because it’s not just the words I’m saying that they are paying attention to; the life I’m living before them is what they are paying the most attention to.

Shared Feb 6, 2015 comment

This one simple change is saving us $75 on every electric bill

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 6, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

This is a great tip! Head on over to read Early Bird Mom’s post on one simple change they made that is saving them around $75 on every electric bill.

Shared Feb 6, 2015 comment

Brigette’s $58 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan

Published: by Brigette on February 6, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I usually enjoy grocery shopping (I know, I’m weird like that), but this week ended up being a less than ideal experience. Every store was completely out of the “best” deals (you know – the ones you go into the store excited to buy), and apparently “cold” weather puts everyone in a shopping mood, because the lines were ridiculously long. My preplanned list mostly went out the window and I just ended up doing the best I could, adjusting my weekly menu plan as needed. Some weeks in life are just like that, though! 🙂

Aldi

1 3-ct package Romaine Hearts – $1.99

2 2-lb packages Carrots ($1.19 each) – $2.38

2 dozen Eggs ($1.19 each) – $2.38

1 bag Ceasar Salad Mix, reduced – $0.15

1 1-lb box Butter Quarters – $2.99

1 2-lb bag Lemons – $2.29

1 1-lb carton Strawberries – $1.49

16-oz bag frozen Peas – $0.89

1 head Cabbage – $1.29

1 3-lb bag Golden Delicious Apples (so disappointed they were out of the advertised Fuji Apples!) – $2.99

1 3-lb bag Gala Apples – $2.99

1 bunch Bananas (2.53lbs @ $0.44/lb) – $1.11, plus receive $0.25 back from Checkout 51 – $0.86 after rebate

1 12-oz bottle Hot Sauce – $0.85

2 16-oz cartons Eggs Whites ($1.99 each) – $3.98

1 gallon Milk – $3.29

Total after Rebate: $30.72

Target

5 8-ct packages Pencils ($0.50 each) – $2.50, used $1.50/5 School Supplies printable – $1.00/5 after coupon

4 boxes Barilla Veggie Pasta ($1.16 each) – $4.64, used 2 $1/2 Barilla Proteinplus, Whole Grain, Veggie, White Fiber or Gluten Free Pasta, exp. 3/31/15 (RP 01/04/15) – $2.64/4 after coupon

2 bags Hormel Pepperoni ($2.84 each) – $5.68, used $1/2 Hormel Pepperoni Product, exp. 3/2/15 (SS 01/04/15 #2), plus $1/2 Target printable (NLA) – $3.68/2 after coupon

4 jars Ragu Pizza Sauce ($1.15 each) – $4.60, used 2 $0.75/2 Ragu Product, exp. 2/22/15 (RP 01/25/15 #2 R) – $3.10/4 after coupon

Received $5 Target Gift Card for buying 10 Select Items

Total after Tax, Coupons and Gift Card – $5.49

Harris Teeter

2 12-oz bags Eight O’clock Coffee (B1G1) – $6.25, used 2 $1.50/1 printable, plus receive back $1.50 from Ibotta – $1.75/2 after coupons and rebate

3 Lara Bars – $3.00, used $0.75/3 printable (doubled), plus receive $0.75 back from SavingStar – $0.75/3 after coupon and rebate

3 boxes Hamburger Helper – $3.00, used $0.75/3 printable (doubled), plus receive $1.00 back from SavingStar – $0.50/3 after coupon and rebate

2 18-oz jars KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce (B1G1) – $2.39, used 2 $0.50/1 printable (doubled) – $0.39/2 after coupons

1 LA Looks Hair Gel – $1.50, used $0.75/1 printable (doubled) – FREE after coupon

1 Colgate Toothpaste – $1.00 (used raincheck), used $0.50/1 Colgate Toothpaste, exp. 2/14/15 (SS 02/01/15) (doubled) – FREE after coupon

1 Frozen Orange Juice concentrate (already made up into juice in the picture :)) – $1.67

2 12-oz packages Frozen Broccoli – $2.00

10 8-oz bags assorted Shredded Cheese (B2G3) – $13.00

2 packages Butterball Turkey Bacon – $5.00, used 2 $0.75/1 printable (doubled) – $2.00/2 after coupons

4 packages Gwaltney Hot Dogs -$3.88, used 2 $0.75/2 printable (doubled) – $0.88/4 after coupons (After trying many more expensive brands of hot dogs, my husband and children have declared these their “favorite.” I refuse to eat them, but my husband will buy them if I don’t – so I was happy to find a sale/coupon. These will go into our freezer in anticipation of warmer weather and cookouts over our fire pit!)

Total after Sales, Coupons, Rebates, and Tax – $22.78

Weekly Total: $58.99

Weekly Menu Plan

Breakfasts

Oatmeal and Fruit (using frozen fruit from the freezer stirred in) x 3

Scrambled Eggs/Veggie Omelettes and Toast x 2

Cereal x 2

Lunches

Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwiches, Carrot Sticks, Chips x 2

Build-Your-Own-Salad (Fresh Veggies, Tuna, Hard Boiled Eggs, Craisins, Sunflower Seeds, etc.) x 2

Fried Egg Sandwiches, Bananas, Carrot Sticks

Leftovers x 2

Dinners

Homemade Chili and Cornbread, Carrot Sticks

Date Night Out (Super excited about this! We haven’t had a date in…almost forever it seems. We got several gift cards to restaurants for Christmas, and will finally get to use one of those.)

Chili and Cheese over Baked Potatoes (using leftover chili), Homemade Applesauce

Homemade Pepperoni Pizza, Tossed Salad

Baked Chicken Nuggets, Steamed Peas, Baked French Fries, Apples

Egg Roll in a Bowl, Brown Rice, Green Beans

Leftovers

Snacks

Popcorn, Apples with Peanut Butter, Chewy No-Bake Granola Bars

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

Click here to download!

Shared Feb 6, 2015 comment

How to Save Money by Taking Pictures at Home

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 6, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Liz emailed the following tip:

As a new mama, I worked outside of the home and had a very nice income, so I took my daughter to a professional photographer for all her first year pictures without blinking an eye.

Once I started to stay at home and we added three more kiddos to our family, professional pictures were no longer the rule, but a very rare exception.

Although, we couldn’t afford professional pictures of our kids all of the time, I still wanted to have some sweet, quality pictures to hang on the wall. So, I began to experiment and research great ways to get high-quality photos of my kids, without breaking the bank.

Here few tips for taking great pictures in the comfort of your own home:

Set your baby up a few feet off of the ground. This puts your child at an easier level for you to photograph. I always have someone there to help in case the babe begins to roll or squirm — safety first!
Grab some cute blankets, quilts, fabrics, or even a simple sheet. In this shot, I had a vintage quilt that was a family heirloom, a black and white striped blanket, and a fuzzy, white bathrobe that I used for the base prop. It is always good to use texture below the baby if you are doing a naked-baby shoot. If your babe was clothed with color and pattern, go with a simple, solid base blanket.
Gather a few simple baby props. I used a baby bonnet in this photo shoot. I have used hats, headbands, wraps, and even kept a bare head before. Again, the key is to not have too much texture, but to also have enough to add interest.
Make sure you have good lighting. In this example, we are in our nursery next to the window. This ensures that I don’t have to use the flash and my camera can gather enough light to make the picture crisp and clear.

I hope you enjoyed these tips and found inspiration to take your own photos at home! Once you take the leap, you’ll never go back (or at least not very often!)

Shared Feb 6, 2015 comment

Gretchen’s Target Shopping Trip: Spent $2.41 for 8 items!

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 6, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Target Shopping Trip

2 Jergens Lotion – $1.84 each, used $3/2 printable – $0.34 each after coupon

2 Bic Ballpoint Pens – $0.99 each, used 2 $1/1 coupon from the 1/4 SmartSource insert – Free after coupons

2 Ziploc Bags – $1.25 each, used $1/2 printable AND $0.75/2 Target mobile coupon (Text SNACKS to 827438) AND $1/2 Ibotta rebate – Free plus overage after coupons and rebate

2 Barbara’s Cereal – $3.41 (On Sale Buy One Get One 50% off), used 2 $2/1 printable – $0.56 each after coupons

Total before coupons, sales and rebate: $20.47

Total with tax ($0.89) after coupons, sales and rebate: $2.41

Shared Feb 5, 2015 comment

3 Books I Read Last Week + What I’m Hoping to Read This Week

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 5, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

3 Books I Read Last Week

Against All Grain — Multiple friends have mentioned this book to me and suggested I read it. Truthfully, I was disappointed in it. Most of the recipes were complicated and not really the kind of recipes we’d typically fix. I also have decided, that barring some physical issue, I actually feel a lot better when I eat some grains.

I don’t eat at all as much gluten as I used to, but I still enjoy rice and oats and a few other grains and don’t see myself giving them up anytime soon. However, if you have some physical issues where you can’t eat grains or don’t want to eat grains, this book would be a great resource for you.

Surprise at Yorktown (Imagination Station Book 15) — This is our 15th book in the series to read and I think Silas is now the one who really gets into these books, but the girls still enjoy having me read these aloud.

Chocolate-Covered Katie — So I know this wasn’t on my list for last week, but I just couldn’t help myself. I had to read through this book and dog-ear a bunch of pages! Here’s what I posted on Instagram the day I got it in the mail last week:

Squee!!! My Amazon order just arrived and I couldn’t be more excited! If you aren’t already following Chocolate-Covered Katie, you are seriously missing out. And her cookbook looks even *better* than her blog — which I didn’t think was possible!

In a pretty much unheard of move, none of the recipes in this cookbook have ever been posted on her blog and they all look a-maz-ing (yes, there are mouth-watering pictures of each and every one recipe… Which is another reason I’m in love with this cookbook!)

Sorry, y’all, I know I sound like a total groupie, but I just really love this girl and her recipes!

(Disclosure: I don’t know Katie and I bought the cookbook myself… Because I’m a CCK fan girl like that!)

After reading through the book, I realized that I do think there are 2 recipes in it that have been posted on her blog and they were the two most popular recipes from her blog, so I think they totally deserve to be in this wonderful book! Okay, I’ll stop swooning now… 🙂

6 Books I’m Hoping to Read/Finish This Week:

Lizzy & Jane — Not sure what I’ll think of this book & I can’t even remember if someone recommended it to me or not, but I decided to try something a little different for my fiction reading this week. Have any of you read this book?

The Cricket in Times Square — I’m excited to read this to the kids. We started the first chapter today and, so far, it seems like the kind of book we’re all going to love. We’ll see!

The Grain-Free Table — This book showed up in my mailbox as a gift from the author and it looks good. I’m looking forward to diving into it this week!

Long Walk to Freedom & Kaffir Boy — I didn’t get these finished before my South Africa trip — hoping to finish them soon!

The Anxiety Cure — As someone who struggles with anxiety during different seasons of life, I’m on a mission to learn more about it and what I can do to help prevent or minimize it. I read Sleep: It Does a Family Good by Archibald Hart two years ago and learned so much from it that I picked up this title to check it out, too.

From This Day Forward — I saw an article about this book on Ann Voskamp’s site and was intrigued so I picked up a copy.

What did you read this past week? Any must-read book recommendations?

Shared Feb 4, 2015 comment

Gretchen’s CVS Shopping Trip: Spent $1.30 for 6 items!

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 4, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

CVS Shopping Trip

1 Bengay – $4.49 (Buy 1, Get $3 ECBs)
Used $1/1 printable

1 Excedrin – $4.99 (Buy 1, Get $2 ECBs)
Used $2/1 CVS coupon from the in-store machine
And used $1.50/1 coupon from the 2/1 SmartSource insert

1 Colgate Toothpaste – $3
Used $2.50/1 CVS coupon from the in-store machine
And used $0.75/1 printable

3 Kleenex with Lotion – $0.99
Used $0.50/3 coupon from the 1/11 SmartSource insert
And used $1/2 CVS printable

Used $6 ECBs from previous shopping trip

Total before coupons, sales and ECBs: $23.48

Total with tax ($1.10) after coupons, sales and ECBs: $1.30, Received $5 ECBs

Shared Feb 4, 2015 comment

How We Paid Cash: Braces… Not a Car

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 4, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

We paid cash!

A testimony from Karen

After six years of living cash-only on a modest salary, I thought I had learned all the lessons this way of life had to teach.

I was wrong.

Two years ago we decided that with two aging cars, we needed to begin saving. After a year we were close to having enough for a decent used car.

However, while refinancing our house we discovered an outstanding credit card debt that somehow had fallen through the cracks. We needed to use the car savings to pay that debt.

While that was difficult, we knew for certain at that point that after three years of hard work we had paid off over $200,000 in debt and were now debt free except our mortgage.

With my teacher husband home for the summer, I took on a full time summer job so we could save more; and in 4 months we were able to save $4,000!

We began to get excited and projected that in a few months we would be able to buy a car.

And then we learned our daughter needed braces. Not the vanity kind of braces to make good teeth perfect, but the palette-expanding-there’s-not-enough-room kind of braces. After insurance we owed $4.700.

My husband and I had meltdowns. It wasn’t pretty. You see, along with a car there are many things on our wish-list. House projects. Vacations. Retirement funds. College Savings. Not braces.

We outlined our options and made the difficult decision to use the car savings to pay for the braces.

Here’s why:

The orthodontist offers an 18 month no-interest payment option, but because they also offer a discount if you pay in full, that option really costs $250 – the amount of the discount. Technically, this is borrowing.
We could pay for the braces out of our emergency fund and keep the car savings on track, but this wasn’t an emergency. We don’t need a car, we want one. If one of our cars breaks down, then we’ll have a real emergency and can consider those funds.

So we start again at ground zero, armed with two valuable lessons.

Appreciation

It was through the experience that I was able to make a mental/spiritual shift from focusing on what I didn’t have to an honest, deep contentment for what I did have.

I realized that if I never had anything more than I had at that moment I would be happy because I was blessed beyond measure in so many ways. How could I truly think I needed more?

Living Our Values

Making the tough decision to delay buying a car forced us to examine our values and make the choice that supported those values.

We have done it for years every month when we make our budget, but had never thought about the fact that we were doing it.

It feels good.

Much better than a new car would!

Karen Lasher is a chef and writer who teaches how to bring peace, calm and serious creativity to everyday meal preparation at Joyful Dinners.

Have you saved up and paid cash for something — large or small? Submit your story for possible publication here.

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