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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

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

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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.

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

Click here to download!

Shared Feb 4, 2015 comment

Come behind-the-scenes with us on our South Africa trip!

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

Lisa-Jo and I worked hard the last few days to put together a fun and very personal behind-the-scenes email newsletter sharing some of our favorite pictures, special memories, and a few surprising moments both of us had on our recent trip to South Africa.

Tomorrow evening, we’ll be sending out this behind-the-scenes email to those who are on our #ServeSouthAfrica email list.

If you’ve not signed up yet, you’ll want to be sure to head over here and subscribe today.

And then be watching your inbox tomorrow evening for this personal letter from both of us!

Note: We’ll only be using this list to share behind-the-scenes-updates like this, plus let you know about special projects we’re working on in South Africa and ways that you can get involved and make a difference, if you’re interested.

Shared Feb 3, 2015 comment

Two new recipes we tried today: Raw Cookie Dough & Peanut Butter Pancakes

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 3, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Silas and I made two new Trim Healthy Mama recipes tonight (I subbed half and half for the almond milk because I was all out of almond or coconut milk).

First up was this Raw Cookie Dough recipe. It was incredible easy to make and made just the perfect amount.

We all thought this was pretty good. It wasn’t quite like normal cookie dough, but still fairly yummy. I couldn’t get past the almond flour taste in it enough to declare it really good, though.

We put the extras in the freezer and will enjoy them for a delicious snack tomorrow. I think it might taste even yummier frozen! 🙂

Next up, Silas and I made these Peanut Butter Pancakes.

This recipe was really easy to whip up, too.

I subbed half and half for the almond milk in this recipe, too.

The batter was really thick so I ended up making one pancake with the batter according to the recipe and the second pancake with a little extra liquid added to see what the difference would be.

The thicker pancake ended up turning out better. However, neither pancake ended up looking that great — but it was mostly because I used this pan on the stove top instead of our griddle. I didn’t feel like lugging out the big griddle to just make two pancakes!

They aren’t really peanut butter pancakes as they don’t have any peanut butter in them, but the peanut flour mixed with all the other ingredients sure makes them taste a lot like they do truly have peanut butter in them.

They weren’t too bad, but we much prefer the Trim Healthy Mama pancakes. I think it’s mostly because I’m learning that I just don’t like things make with coconut flour or almond flour when compared to recipes made with oat flour or oat fiber. Live and learn, eh?

After we were finished, Silas also helped me clean up the kitchen. He rinsed all the dishes and Kathrynne loaded the dishwasher while I put everything away and wiped down the countertops. It literally took just a few minutes and the kitchen looked spic and span again.

As the kids get older and we’re training them to be able to help with more and more chores, I just can’t believe how much of a difference it makes in our workload and how much cleaner our house stays — without me having to do much work at all!

Moms of littles: keep on and know that one day soon, your hard work is going to pay off and you’ll be working yourself out of job… Don’t give up!

Links to the recipes we made tonight:

Peanut Butter Pancakes — makes two
Raw Cookie Dough — makes enough for 4-6 people, well, depending upon how much you eat. 😉

Did you try any new recipes this week?

Shared Feb 2, 2015 comment

A Day In My Life + my #Choose30 Challenge for February

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 2, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

My good friend and neighbor, Tam, is running a #Choose30 Challenge on her site this month, encouraging people to choose one thing to do differently that will make an impact in their lives.

I wanted to join in, but I was a little scared to commit to what I really wanted to commit to. Because, well, it seemed a little dorky.

Also, I knew that if I “put it out there” it would mean that I’d have to, you know, follow through. And while I can be the Queen of Great Intentions, following through is not always my forte.

I’m working hard on that and have made some big strides, but I still fall off the bandwagon more often than I’d like to admit to.

But anyway, since I’m all about public accountability, I might as well tell you what my #Choose30 commitment is, however quirky it might seem to some of you.

Drumroll…

Here goes: I’m committing to get up and exercise, take a shower, get dressed in something that makes me feel great, and read my Bible first thing every single morning this month.

Before I hop onto the computer.

Before I get distracted with washing a sink full of dirty dishes that I should have done the night before. Ahem. (Yes, don’t ask me why I’d rather wash dishes than exercise and take a shower, but it’s true!)

Before distracting myself with the 432 other things I can come up with to do first before exercising and taking a shower.

I seem to find all sorts of “important” reasons to stall and wait until the last minute to get ready for the day… every.single.morning.

And some mornings, gulp, I realize that it’s not even morning and I’m still sporting my comfy pj pants and a t-shirt and bed hair. Because I’m classy like that.

I dislike this habit of mine a lot. I want to break it. I really do.

I’m more productive when I have exercised, showered, and dressed. I feel better about myself. And I don’t have to avoid answering the door or rush around like a mad woman trying to get myself looking presentable during the last 15 minutes before we need to be out the door.

Plus, my day just seems to go smoother and better when I start it out by getting ready for the day. Not to mention, I want to set a good example for my kids.

So that’s my commitment for February. That’s my #Choose30 Challenge. Here’s to hoping I can change this habit of mine for good!

{If you need some accountability to develop a new habit or jump out and be brave and try something different, head on over Tam’s blog to read all about the #Choose30 Challenge and to sign up to join the journey!}

So after starting my day at 5 a.m. with exercise, showering, and Bible reading, I had my blogging time and then it was time to jump into my day.

I tried this new hot cereal for breakfast. It was so-so.

During breakfast, I read from our current devotional: Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing. And then we all got busy on our morning chores.

I am trying out Sarah’s idea to use Daily Lists to help my kids stay on task. The kids were fairly resistant to the idea at first, but after a little convincing and encouragement, they seemed to have a complete change of heart. And then, they’ve ended up loving it and it really has seemed to help them stay motivated and focused!

As a bonus, they’ve needed a lot fewer reminders from me on what they are supposed to be doing or encouragement to steer them back on course. We’ll see how it plays out long-term, but I’m really loving the idea so far!

While the kids were working on their morning chores, I cleaned up the kitchen, started the dishwasher, and cleaned out this cupboard that has been screaming for attention for quite some time.

I pulled most everything out of it, wiped it down, refilled the oats and flour canisters, and then re-organized everything.

You can’t tell that big of a difference, but I can. And every time I open up this cupboard, I will be glad it’s now clean and organized again!

I also wiped out the cupboard underneath our kitchen island — where we keep our trash can and some other miscellaneous items.

And then while the kids finished up their chores and got started on their morning independent work, I ran upstairs to have a Google Hangout with Lisa-Jo, Joy, and the folks from Help One Now. We’re working on project for South Africa that we’re going to be encouraging you all to join in with us and we needed to discuss some details for that.

I usually don’t schedule any phone calls in the morning, but this was the only time we could find that would work for all of us before next week (when we’re launching this project — stay tuned!) so I just made an exception to that policy and went with it. Because the kids had their Daily Lists, they stayed very focused and on task while I was in the meeting — which was such a blessing!

When I got off the call, Jesse was just walking in the door so we sat and talked for a bit to catch up on his morning and I brought him up to speed on how the kids did while he was gone. We also chatted about a few decisions we needed to make. And then we all headed to the kitchen table while we did our Morning Time (this idea has been revolutionary for our homeschool and we are just LOVING it!!). While we read, sang, reviewed our memory verses, worked on handwriting, and read some more, Jesse made lunch for us.

We ate lunch and did our family devotions and then Jesse took over homeschooling and I headed up to my office upstairs to get in a few hours of work. This afternoon, I worked on scheduling some blog posts and social media, responded to comments and emails, scheduled a few things for the rest of the week, and then had a phone call.

We got the kids ready to go around 5 p.m. and headed to have dinner with a few families who live in our area. We love this small group of families — some of our dearest friends here — and always look forward to when we get to hang out!

We made it back home a little after 8 p.m. and Jesse read to the kids while I wrote this post and finished up a few projects that had looming deadlines. (I try to be completely offline after 6 p.m. every night, but we make the occasional exception when I have a deadline.) And now it’s off to bed for me…

How was YOUR day?

Shared Feb 2, 2015 comment

My 12 Goals for 2015: January’s update

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 2, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

January was, overall, SUCH a great month. I feel much more focused this year because of setting fewer personal, family, and business goals and just sticking with a few priorities that we feel like will make the biggest difference.

It was so encouraging for me to review my progress in January!

My 12 Goals for 2015

Marriage

Read 1 book per month on marriage.

Read in January: 52 Ways to Wow Your Husband

Write at least 1 love note to Jesse each week.

Done in January

Motherhood

Read at least 1 book aloud to the kids per month.

Read in January: James the the Giant Peach

Write 1 love note to each child every month.

Done in January.

Myself

Complete all She Reads Truth 2015 Bible Studies + memory work.

Done in January — I absolutely loved the John study & am so excited for the Esther study that started today!

Read 1 fiction book per month.

Read in January: What Alice Forgot

MoneySavingMom.com

Hire a local personal assistant.

We spent January spreading the word about the position and conducting interviews. We’ve almost narrowed it down to our final candidate and I hope to be making this hire in the next 2-3 weeks. Yay!!

Launch 2 courses (we’re planning one for spring and one for fall — stay tuned!)

We made some major progress on our first course in January thanks to the help of an amazing long-time reader, Allison, who I’ve hired to help me write, organize, and compile the content. We’re scheduled to shoot all the video for it in March.

Launch our new product line (slated to soft launch in the summer).

Release my third book (slated to come out November 2015).

I finished up the in-depth content edits from my editor today & am so thrilled at how it’s coming together!

Money

Increase last year’s overall giving totals by 10% in 2015.

Part of my going to South Africa was to investigate the possibility of our family personally supporting the work of Take Action. After coming home, we both felt this was the direction we were supposed to take and our partnership with them will allow us to meet this goal. We’re so thrilled with what God is doing there in South Africa and, for those who have asked, I’m excited to share more next week of how you can be involved, too.

Finish funding our Rental House #3 Savings Account (we’re beginning the year at 35% funded).

This goal is currently on hold while we’re in the process of saving up enough to fully fund both of our IRA’s for this year.

How are you doing on YOUR goals for 2015?

If you set goals for this year, I’d love to hear how you are doing on them! Leave a comment telling us about your progress on them or leave the link over to your blog post about them. Here’s to a year of living with purpose, intentional, impact, and meaning!

Shared Feb 2, 2015 comment

10 Goals For This Week (+ an update on my progress on last week’s goals)

Published: by Crystal Paine on February 2, 2015 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

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. Finally get our Christmas thank you’s mailed (can I plead the fact that I was in South Africa for the lateness of these??)~~

~~4. Clean out the refrigerator. Get caught back up on laundry.~~

{Lunch at Chipotle with the birthday girl!}

~~5. Take Kathrynne on a special one-on-one outing for her birthday.~~

Personal Goals

~~6. Exercise at least 4 times (I’m trying out these BeFit in 30 workouts + doing a little jogging/running.)~~

7. Finish at least two books.

8. Knit a Cosy Posy Ear Warmer.

9. Try two new Trim Healthy Mama recipes: ~~Sugar Free Hot Chocolate Mousse~~ and Fancy Grilled Cheese on Coconut Flatbread.

Business Goals

~~10. Finish my first round of book edits.~~

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 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.

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.

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.

Summer Bucket List

Summer Bucket List

FREE Summer Bucket List!!

Aldi

Homeland

Menu Plan for This Week

Breakfasts

Lunches

Dinners

1. Time:

2. Money:

3. Brain space:

Aldi

Target

Harris Teeter

Weekly Total: $58.99

Weekly Menu Plan

Breakfasts

Lunches

Dinners

Snacks

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

Target Shopping Trip

3 Books I Read Last Week

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

CVS Shopping Trip

Appreciation

Living Our Values

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

Did you try any new recipes this week?

How was YOUR day?

My 12 Goals for 2015

How are you doing on YOUR goals for 2015?

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