Saving Families Money Since 2007
Susan emailed in the following tip:
For the last several weeks iBotta has been offering a $0.50 rebate on a gallon of any brand milk plus a bonus $0.50 rebate if you redeem two other offers. It usually expires Sunday night and by Tuesday night they post a new one.
Also, this week they have a $0.50 rebate on any brand of bread. I don’t remember when they started doing this but I know it’s been at least four weeks in a row. -Susan
A testimony from Christina
Growing up, saving money was always important to me.
My parents taught my siblings and me to save 60% of the money that we earned. I was naturally not a spender and saved closer to 80%. I remember at age 16, I had the goal of saving up for a down payment for a house! I wasn’t interested in the latest electronics, clothes, fads, etc, so I steadily built up my savings.
When I married my husband 3 years ago, I married a saver as well! While neither of us have college degrees (or college debt!), we are both hard workers. We have chosen to live simply, save as much as we can, and pay cash for everything.
When we bought our first home, we knew we were in for some major renovations. We found a great deal on a farmhouse foreclosure. The kitchen was in need of an overhaul as the only counter space was an island with a sink in it.
My sweet husband gave me an amazing gift: he told me to design my dream kitchen and he would build it for me – whatever the cost! It didn’t take me long to come up with the layout that I wanted. However, the quote for the cabinets alone was around $10,000!
For me, purchases aren’t nearly as fun if I don’t get a good deal on them — so, we put off the cabinet purchase as we tried to decide what to do.
We are huge Craigslist fans, so I began searching for used stainless steel appliances. During my search, I found a set of appliances that looked nice and they were part of an entire kitchen that someone was selling due to a remodel. There were a lot of cabinets, so I had the thought of possibly purchasing the entire kitchen since it was such a great deal.
The cabinets were in nice shape – the problem was that they were dark brown and I was set on antique white cabinets for my dream kitchen. My husband and I decided that we could make it work somehow even though their kitchen layout was completely different. It was too good of a deal to pass up!
We figured and figured, and with God’s help, we were able to make them work for my original design! We bought the kitchen – cabinets, range, microwave, dishwasher, pendant lights, sink, faucet, and garbage disposal — all for $1,500. We found a fridge for $200 on Craigslist. We painted the cabinets and added new hardware and no one would know they were second-hand!
I absolutely love my new kitchen! Besides getting the materials for a bargain, I love that I can LIVE in my kitchen and not worry about my children messing up $10k cabinets!
Christina is a full-time wife, homemaker, and mommy to three children ages 28 months, 16 months, & 2 months. She’s learning to live out her roles with dignity and to thrive where God has her.
Have you saved up and paid cash for something — large or small? Submit your story for possible publication here.
Life is full of opportunities and choices. And as I talk about in my book, Say Goodbye to Survival Mode, if you want to have margin and breathing room in your life and not feel constantly exhausted and overwhelmed, you’ve got to learn to say no.
This doesn’t mean that you say no to everything and everyone all the time, but that you carefully evaluate each opportunity in light of your long-term priorities and goals and your current responsibilities — and say “no” when something is not a good fit.
That all sounds great to most people, but the feedback I’ve been hearing a lot is, “I want to pare down my responsibilities and commitments. I want to stop rushing through life and feeling pulled in so many different directions. But how do I start saying no without ruining relationships?”
Here are some suggestions:
When saying no, always be very gracious in how you say it. If you come across as uncaring and rude, you’re bound to hurt the other person. Express gratitude that they would ask you and then explain that this isn’t going to work because of X but that you are so honored they would ask.
Example: Just this past week, some friends asked if we could get together. While I would love to get together with them, as I looked at the calendar, I realized that the week was already quite full and that adding one more thing would probably be too much.
So I expressed how much I appreciated the invite and that I’d love to get together, but that this week was already full and adding another commitment to the week would probably be cause for stress. I then followed up with another possible date for us to get together in a few weeks.
I’ve found that it’s helpful to give a concise explanation when saying no to someone or something. This lets the person know that it’s not about them; it’s just that the opportunity is not a good fit for your current life season.
Don’t over-explain, but a simple two or three sentence reason will help the person who asks to know where you’re coming from and why you’re saying no at this time.
Example: An online acquaintance asked me to endorse her soon-to-be-released book. As I have time, I am honored to occasionally endorse books that are coming out. Since I try to always read through books before giving an endorsement, this takes quite a bit of time on my part. As a result, I’ve learned to check my upcoming schedule before committing to read and endorse a book.
In this case, the deadline was too soon for me to be able to get the endorsement in with other responsibilities I’d already committed to. So I wrote back and told this person that while I’d love to endorse her book, the time frame didn’t work out for me right now.
If you can’t say yes right now, consider if you can say yes in the future or offer an alternative. This is especially important for close friends and family members. You can’t say yes to them all the time, but you can look for ways to offer an alternative.
Example: In point number one above, I shared how I had told friends we couldn’t get together this week, but had proposed another week that would work. This is a great way to be able to say no without completely saying no — thus, finding a compromise that is a good fit for everyone!
If you are thinking of stepping down from a commitment, be sure to clearly communicate why you’re going the direction you are to those involved and then tie up the loose ends on your responsibilities and projects before pulling out completely. This way, you’re fulfilling your commitments and not leaving people high and dry. It might require more work in the short run, but it will probably mean that you don’t frustrate others and burn bridges in the process.
If you follow all of these steps and the end result is that someone is angry and upset because you had to graciously bow out, it’s probably not a healthy relationship to begin with. In fact, I’d wager to say that you might be being used in the situation — and the person cares more about you as an asset than you as a person.
If they are angry that you are no longer going to be helping or participating instead of understanding that it’s not a good fit for you right now, it’s probably time that you step back or set boundaries in this relationship. You can’t make everyone happy all the time, but I encourage you to surround yourself with people care more about you than they care about what they can get from you.
Today’s question is from Alrena:
Do you have any suggestions for websites I could use to check prices before buying things?
I just bought a new dishwasher and did a web search by name and model number — in the process, I found a different store not far away that had the same model for over $100 cheaper!
I told the store I was at, and they matched the price — but I’m wondering if there is an easier way to do these types of searches? -Alrena
Do you have a question you’d like to ask Money Saving Mom® readers? Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
Ruth at Living Well, Spending Less shows us How to Create a Cleaning Schedule That Works For You. This post is full of practical tips and lots of free printables to help you get your house clean on a schedule that works for you.
Here’s a little of what she has to say:
“If the idea of creating any sort of cleaning schedule sounds overwhelming, try not to worry—I promise it is not as bad as it sounds. In fact, as you will see below, you can do it in three easy steps! The point of a schedule is not to make you feel guilty or to make you have more to do, but to actually relieve guilt and to create a routine that gives you more freedom and less stress. Knowing that you have a workable, manageable plan to tackle those sticky sinks and dusty dressers makes the idea of cleaning house seem a lot less overwhelming in the long run.
So bear with me. We can do this. I promise.”
Don’t forget, you can get a bunch of cleaning printables for free!
There’s a reason I don’t have a parenting blog. And there’s a reason I don’t give out parenting advice.
Why? Because most days, I feel like I don’t have a clue what I’m doing.
I see these moms who have all these specific systems and philosophies for their parenting and I wonder what’s wrong with me. I’m over here on my knees praying I don’t mess up my kids too badly.
I love my children beyond what words can express. But some days? I don’t do a very good job of showing that love.
Take last night, for instance. We’d had this wonderful weekend trip to Oklahoma City. We’d unplugged, laughed together, had great discussions, enjoyed fun experiences, and made beautiful memories.
And then we came home and, in the process of cleaning out the car, my patience disappeared. I got frustrated at the messes made and said words I regret to my family members.
My kids went to bed feeling hurt and I started to go to bed feeling like a failure. Why did I have to ruin a perfect weekend? Why can’t I be more patient? Why do I get so frustrated sometimes?
The thoughts started swirling around my brain and I began to beat myself up over failing, yet again.
But then I realized: the night’s not over with yet. I couldn’t take back the words I’d said or the attitude I’d had, but I could ask my family to forgive me.
So I went into my children’s room and sat by their beds. I confessed that I’d been wrong and asked their forgiveness for getting frustrated and saying words to them that I shouldn’t have said. They readily forgave me and expressed their love for me.
I walked out of their room feeling ten times lighter! Yes, I’d messed up. Yes, I’d made a mistake. But my kids still love me — in spite of my many imperfections.
I might not have any amazing parenting advice to dole out, but one thing I’ve learned through making many mistakes is this: being willing to ask forgiveness and admit when you are wrong is hard, but it’s one of the best things you can do for any relationship.
Read this post from Ann Voskamp on Why Your Kids Don’t Need a SuperMama.
My husband and I love to travel. However, we’ve found some creative ways to do so, while still sticking with our budget. How? Here are some simple ways we save:
We’ve done a lot of comparing and have found that you can almost always beat the prices you’d get over the phone or through a travel agency if you purchase airfare, hotel rooms, or car rental online. Some of our favorite sites to use are: Hotwire.com, Orbitz.com, and Travelocity.com.
If you’re willing to be adventuresome, you can purchase your hotel, flights, and rental car “blind” through Hotwire or Expedia and get a great deal. You’ll save at least $15 or $20 — often more! — if you’re willing to purchase the hotel room without knowing what hotel you are staying at. You can search by lowest price and star rating to see what prices are for the area you’ll be traveling to. We are typically able to find a three-star hotel for around $50-$60 per night this way.
Each site is a bit different and will offer you different rates and options. When we are making travel arrangements, we always check multiple sites to compare prices and options.
Note that some travel sites add the tax already into the final price shown and others don’t add this in until you checkout. Make sure that you know if there are any extra fees which will be added in when you’re comparing prices.
Need a Laugh? Check out Frugal Failure posts on How We Spent $145 Trying to Save $40 and How a Split Second Mistake Cost Me $500.
Unless you don’t mind staying in rather questionable hotels, I wouldn’t suggest getting anything less than a three-star hotel as we’ve learned the hard way that two-star hotels can be hit and miss and one-star hotels should be avoided altogether. (Ask me to tell you the story of the roaches and the guy trying to break into our room in San Antonio at the one-star hotel we stayed at there if you need further proof. Yikes!)
If you want to get to pick your hotel before you purchase or be able to get a refund if your travel plans change, I’d recommend going through Orbitz. They have great deals, they show you the price including fees, and they do not charge you if you cancel your reservation. Usually, their prices are a little higher, but it might be worth it to pay a little to know what hotel you’re reserving ahead of time, and to not be charged if you cancel your reservation.
Four Tips to Save on Online Travel Deals
1. Choose a Package Deal
You will usually save a substantial amount of money by purchasing airfare, hotel rooms, and car rental as a package deal. In fact, it’s usually a savings of 50% or more off the retail price to go this route. And sometimes, it’s even greater savings than that!
Even if you don’t really need to rent a car, but it would be nice to have, it’s worth checking into. Many times, you’ll actually save money by renting a car—as opposed to just getting a hotel and flight package.
2. Be Flexible with Dates and Times
The more flexible you are, the more possibilities there are for you to score a great discount. When you’re searching online for deals, I recommend inputting different dates and times to see if there is a significant price difference. Oftentimes, just being willing to go 12-24 hours sooner or later, you’ll be able to save $300 or more per person on a package deal.
3. Use a Coupon Code
When you’ve chosen which package deal you’re interested in, do a quick search for a coupon code. You can find these codes listed on sites like RetailMeNot.com. You can’t always find a coupon code for the travel site you’re booking through, but it’s worth checking on if it will save you $50—as the coupon codes often do!
4. Shop Through a Cashback Site
After you’ve compared prices, found the best package deal, and applied a coupon code, the final way to save is to shop through a cashback site. Do not overlook this important savings tip! Considering that most travel packages are around $300 or more per person and Ebates offers at least 1-3% cashback on orders through Orbitz.com, Travelocity.com, and Hotwire.com, your cashback earnings on travel purchases can quickly add up to a nice little bonus savings!
Jesse loves to do this when we’re booking hotels. He’ll pick out a few hotels he’s interested in having us stay at and then he’ll call them and ask them for the best rate they can give us. We usually can’t get as great of rates as we can reserving the hotel online, but we almost always are able to get at least a 15-20% discount off the price they initially quote us.
Be sure to ask for any applicable discount that might apply to you (AAA membership, AARP, Military, etc.) and call knowing exactly what you’re willing to pay. If they aren’t willing to do it, call the next hotel on your list.
As always, though, be polite and courteous. There’s no need to get irritated at them if they aren’t willing to go down on the price. Many hotels have specific pricing policies and can’t go lower than a certain price point.
I love this idea that Kelli wrote about in her post on Using Groupon to Boost Your Vacation Budget:
As a reader of MoneySavingMom.com, there is a good chance you already enjoy the benefits of using Groupon. But have you considered using it to save money while on vacation?
Our family was recently planning a vacation and my cousin happened to send me a link to a mini-golf Groupon for one of the cities we’d be staying in. That triggered my mind, What if I signed up for the Groupon emails for those cities just until our vacation was over? I am so glad we did!
We love to eat out while we are on vacation and it is usually our main expense besides lodging. We like to try local places, and not stick with the chains. Groupon is great for that! For our vacation we not only bought vouchers for some local restaurants, but we also found a Groupon for a small local grocery store, where we were able to get ingredients for a few meals.
In addition, we found a Groupon for admission to a state park that saved us around $20. We also purchased a Groupon for an Imagination Movers show. With the four tickets we bought, we saved $84 from the at-the-door cost! Best of all, the kids loved it.
We’ve done this before and it does have some advantages, namely that you’re able to scope out the hotels and area ahead of time, instead of just relying upon pictures or information on the internet. You usually won’t get quite as low of a price as you could have by purchasing through Hotwire, this works well if you need some flexibility in your travel plans or plan something at the last minute.
I recommend that you decide on a price you are willing to pay per night and then pick out a few hotels in the area to go into and ask for a deal. This approach works especially well if you’re traveling in the middle of the week or off-season when hotels are quite empty and are often more than willing to work with you to give you a discounted price. If you were going somewhere during a busy season, this approach likely won’t be as successful.
Planning a roadtrip? Check out my series on How to Have a Successful Roadtrip With Young Children. Also, check out Jenifer’s post on How to Save on Meals While on Vacation.
If you’re more adventuresome than our family and love to camp, read Jackie’s post on How to Plan a Frugal Camping Trip.
Three Steps to Paying Cash for a Vacation
1. Set A Goal and Break It Down Into Bite-Sized Pieces
A lot of people want to go on paid-for vacations, but few actually sit down and make a plan to make it happen without debt. Do you want to go on a three-day road trip in six months from now or a week-long cruise in three years from now?
Either way, you need to sit down and figure out how much it is approximately going to cost (I recommend rounding up the amount you think it will cost in order to give you some wiggle room in case it ends up costing more than you’ve planned on.). Once you have a set figure for how much you plan to spend on your vacation, break that down into monthly and weekly savings goals.
Let’s say you want to go on a three-day road trip as a family in December. If you calculate that it will cost you $500 ($250 for hotel, $100 for gas, $150 for food + attractions) and you have around six months to save, than you’ll need to come up with an extra $84 each month or $21 each week.
2. Make a Plan of Action
Once you’ve figured out where you want to go, how much it is going to cost and how much you need to save each week, you can devise a plan of action. What specific actions are you going to take to save the money for your vacation?
If you don’t have extra money in your budget to divert to a special vacation savings, think of things you could cut from your budget to free up the necessary money. To take our previous example, if you have a goal to save $21 each week for your three-day December road trip, that could mean giving up dinner out each week or shaving that money off your grocery budget by using coupons or playing the Drugstore Game.
3. Put On Your Thinking Cap
If you feel like there’s no way you can squeeze any extra out of your budget or lower an of your expenses, there are still ways to save money for a vacation, if it’s something that’s really important to you. You could have a garage sale, sell some items you no longer need on Craigslist or eBay, mow lawns, babysit, take on a small cleaning job, start a side freelance business, teach classes… the possibilities are endless. Think about things you are good at or love to do and consider how you could earn extra income by investing a few hours each week into them.
When you set a goal, work hard, and finally reach it, it’s very rewarding and fulfilling. And you can enjoy your vacation without having to feel guilty or worry about how you are going to afford to pay for it later!
We took a family trip to Oklahoma City this past weekend. Silas was so excited about the trip and had looked forward to it for quite awhile.
On the drive down, he kept exclaiming, “This is the BEST day of my life!”
Every time he said it, it made me smile. Not just because it makes me so happy to be able to bring so much thrill to my 4-year-old, but also because I love his enthusiasm for life.
I want to live each day with that kind of attitude. I want to wake up each morning thinking, “This is the BEST day of my life!” And then I want to go through the day living like that.
Because truly, today is the only day we can live right now, so we might as well choose to make it the best day of our lives. And then we can wake up tomorrow and think the same thing!
Last week’s goals:
Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals
1. 
Read 4 chapters of A Big Year for Lily to Kaitlynn. Read a few picture books with Silas.
2. Write a love note to Jesse.
3. Clean out 2 drawers in our bedroom/bathroom.
4. Take a family overnight trip to Oklahoma City.
Personal Goals
5. Work on memorizing & reviewing Romans 1:1-28.
6. Complete four days of the P90X Program.
7. Read Sarah’s Key, Samson, On Every Side.
8. Finish embroidery quilt square project. Make this Knit Headband.
Blog/Business Goals
9. Put together details for a download for March’s 4 Weeks to a More Organized Home Challenge.
10. Write three content pieces for my blog.
This Week’s Goals:
Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals
1.
2. Write a love note to Jesse.
3. Clean out 2 drawers in our bedroom/bathroom.
Personal Goals
4. Work on memorizing & reviewing Romans 1:1-28.
5. Exercise four times.
6. Read Sarah’s Key, On Every Side, and Restless.
7. Finish embroidery quilt square project.
Blog/Business Goals
8. Write content for two new pages on my site.
9. Write one guest post for another site.
10. Write three content pieces for my blog.
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.
Guest post from Alina of Vegan Runner Eats
Looking good can boost our confidence even when everything is going downhill, so while our shopping trips and meals out may become less frequent when we’re struggling financially, we’ll often still be pinching pennies to continue buying our favorite shampoo.
Add to this a possible concern with going ‘green’, and the picture can get even more complicated — have you seen the price tags on some of those ‘all-natural’, ‘organic’ beauty products?
About a year ago, I went on a quest to find ways to simplify my beauty routine while making it ‘greener’ and more affordable. I had just switched to a plant-based (vegan) diet at the time, after reading about its benefits to our health and the environment, so looking for ways to be more environmentally friendly seemed logical.
After some searching, I discovered a few hair and skin care tricks that proved to work great, saved me money along the way, and helped me clear my bathroom of countless bottles of beauty products that had turned out to be useless.
Today I’d like to share three of those tricks – they won’t cost you anything, and you probably have everything you’ll need at home right now!
Coconut oil has moisturizing, antimicrobial and anti-fungal properties that can prevent the formation of new pimples. Most anti-acne lotions on the market are oil-free, so our skin kicks its oil production into overdrive when we use them, cue in even more acne. My skin has been acne-prone since high school, so I was surprised to see that coconut oil made things better.
Why it saves you money:
You only need a tiny dab of coconut oil to cover your face once or twice a day. A tablespoon of even the finest organic coconut oil will last you more than a month while costing you much less than a bottle of any face cream. Apply a dab of coconut oil onto wet skin in the morning and/or at night.
After you’ve brewed your morning pot of coffee, save 2 tablespoons of used coffee grounds and mix them with one tablespoon of body wash. Apply the mixture on your skin from the neck down in the shower, massage for 3-5 minutes, rinse, and be amazed how unbelievably soft your skin has become! Use 1-2 times a week.
Why it saves you money:
Because it’s free! You’ve used those coffee grounds anyway to make coffee, and the body wash is already in your shower.
Here’s the most surprising discovery I’ve made: my hair looks clean, shiny, and has better texture after I rinse it with a mixture of 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of baking soda, and then follow with a mix of 1 cup of water with 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in it. This method works better than most shampoos because it cleanses the hair more gently while not stripping all of its natural moisture, so my hair is never as frizzy anymore.
Why it saves you money:
A tablespoon of baking soda and apple cider vinegar will cost you pennies, plus since your hair is going to have better texture, you won’t need to spend money on additional hair styling products.
A few months into my new beauty routine, I noticed a big difference in my appearance: the acne on my face cleared up; my skin was always soft and glowing; and even my hairdresser complimented me on how well my hair looked. I’m sure my plant-based diet contributed to these changes too… but you get the picture.
I was also glad to get rid of numerous bottles of beauty products that I tried in the past and had to stop using because they were making matters even worse for me.
And the best part?
My ‘going green’ attempts ended up SAVING me lots of money, plus I won’t be likely to splurge on new miracle beauty products in the future since these tricks are already working great!
Alina Zavatsky is passionate about whole food, plant-based (vegan) diet, exercise, running marathons, and designing one-of-a-kind handmade sock monkeys. She blogs about the benefits of plant foods and fitness at Vegan Runner Eats.
We’re excited to have Plant Therapy as one of our sponsors. We had the opportunity to interview them and get to know their company a little more recently:
Plant Therapy was started about 5 years ago. Chris and Amanda Jones had recently been given the opportunity to buy a all natural body care company. Part of this company was a small line of essential oils. They decided that they wanted to do more research in the essential oil industry.
Quickly, they found that most essential oils were overpriced and not the quality that is needed for aromatherapy. That is when they decided to break the essential oils away from the all natural body care line and start Plant Therapy. They wanted to provide 100% pure, undiluted essential oils of the highest quality at a more affordable price.
Plant Therapy offers 100% pure, undiluted essential oils of the highest quality. They also offer synergies, carrier oils, and all essential oil accessories.
Plant Therapy was founded with two goals in mind: to provide the highest quality essential oils at a price that everyone can afford and to provide the highest quality customer service. We know the benefits that can come from using essential oils. That is why we try to keep our essential oils and accessories at an affordable price so that more people can benefit from their uses.
Plant Therapy has donated up to 20% since the beginning to charities both locally and world wide. You can check out some of the charities going on right now here.
Plant Therapy cares about our customers. We sim to educate them on essential oils so that they can make the best educated decision for themselves and their family members.
We strive to have the best customer service possible. We also offer 100% customer satisfaction. If for any reason a customer is unsatisfied, we will simply refund their money or exchange the product.
Also, when our customers have any questions about our products or their uses, their email are answered within 24 hours 95% of the time. We work with one of the most well known essential oil experts in the industry. We are doing everything possible to provide the most information to our customers so they can get the most out of the essential oils they are using.
Plant Therapy offers free shipping in the United States. We also offer our first time customers a coupon code to get $5 off their first purchase of $10 or more. We know if you try Plant Therapy’s essential oils that you will know the quality we provide and that you will be a customer for life.
Interested in becoming a monthly sponsor or advertising with us? Find more details here.
Who Needs a Cape? shows us how to utilize our freezer and a slow cooker to prepare 7 Meals in 1 Hour. They even have a handy list of tips to help you make the most of your crockpot freezer cooking experience.
For more Crockpost Freezer Cooking ideas, check out the following links:
I had another really successful Freezer Cooking in an Hour session earlier this week!
Remember the Crockpot Granola that I wasn’t thrilled with? Well, I used it in place of the dry ingredients in the No Bake Peanut Butter Granola Bar recipe (plus, I added in some chocolate chips — are you surprised?!)
The result? Really amazingly delicious granola bars!
It’s been awhile since I’ve made a batch of Cinnamon Swirl Bread.
After the loaf came out of the oven, I wondered why I’d waited so long to make this again. Because it is SO good!
And these Ham & Cheese Pockets are another recipe I hadn’t made for awhile.
Kaitlynn helped me roll out the dough and stuff them, so the pan of pockets had some character, but they tasted delicious, as always.
Guest post from Shelly of Frugal Family Home
Do you tell yourself, I’m just not “this” or I’m not “that”?
I used to tell myself I didn’t like exercise. I would say, “I’m just not the exercising type”. But when I started to think long and hard why I told myself this I couldn’t really come up with an answer.
As a child and teenager, I was awkward. I could walk across the floor and trip over nothing. I would go to walk out a doorway and end up running into the door frame as I left the room. My family would joke with me about the walls jumping out to get me.
My performance in any sports was about the same, awkward and uncoordinated. But I played a lot as a child. But now as an adult I had decided or convinced myself that exercising just wasn’t for me. How did this happen to a once very active kid?
The only logical reason I could come up with was that it’s just what I told myself and I started to believe it. Then, I had an light bulb moment! If I had convinced myself I didn’t like to exercise, then why couldn’t I just change my mind. Why couldn’t I decide I was an exercising person?
So that day began a new way of life for me. I started to get up early and do some form of exercise each day. At first, it wasn’t pretty at all. In just a few moments, I was out of breath and feeling as though I might die.
I decided to give myself a goal, so I could measure my success. My first goal was to do a short CrossFit routine without feeling like I was going to die. It took me about three months and one day I realized this is easy for me. And so my transformation began.
How did it all start for me? It all started with my thought process.
What kinds of things do you tell yourself?
Do you tell yourself you aren’t a good cook, you aren’t a good mother, you aren’t a good wife, you don’t like exercising or you don’t like to get up early?
Think about how this self talk might be holding you back from becoming the true person you should be. The person you were destined to be. The person God has for you to be.
Here are three things that helped me change my mind:
I decided to tell myself I’m active person, I need to exercise to be strong, I need to exercise to be healthy. Once my mind changed, my body followed along. I started to want to get up early (well, most days!) to get my exercising in.
If you have something you really want to change, work on changing your mindset first and see if that change doesn’t become easier.
I wanted to lose weight last year. But all year long I kept hearing that voice in my head saying you tried so many times and failed.
Instead of fighting that negative self-talk with positive self-talk, I would give in. I had chosen to believe I couldn’t do it… and so I didn’t. I didn’t make the changes I needed to make my goal.
Be mindful of your own doubtful self-talk and counter each thought with a positive one.
Starting out last year I had an accountability partner. We would check in once a week by email. In each of these emails we would share our goal or goals for that week and how last week went. We would also share what we wanted to do differently this week and what things that might be holding us back.
Find an accountability partner you can check in with each day or each week to help keep you on track. You may find this makes all the difference for you. It’s always good to have positive support for someone you trust.
Changing your life CAN be as easy as changing your mind. I’m not saying it’s an easy process, but once you have made up your mind, the rest of you will follow along.
What kind of things do you tell yourself that might be holding you back from being the person you are meant to be?
Shelly is a homeschooling mom to 2 and wife to her sweetheart of almost 24 years. She blogs at Frugal Family Home about homemaking on a budget. Where she shares money saving advice, recipes, homeschooling helps and more.
I’m excited to be joining Andy Traub on Tuesday, February 18, 2014, from 7-8 p.m. CST (8-9 p.m. EST) for a free live webinar. We’re going to be talking about How Every Mom (or Woman) Can Find Margin.
I believe that everyone will be able to benefit from what we’ll be talking about — even if you’re not a mom. Some of the topics we’ll be discussing will be:
Many of you will remember Andy from his book, Early to Rise. We did an entire month-long challenge based upon this book because I was so inspired by reading it!
And guess what? I’ve got some exciting news for you: everyone who attends the webinar will get a free download of Andy’s re-released book, The Early to Rise Experience. If you’re wanting to start getting up early and really struggling with making it happen consistently, I highly recommend this book!
>>Register for the FREE webinar on Tuesday evening here.<<
Note: If you can’t attend the webinar but you’d like to have access to the free replay, be sure to sign up above as well. Everyone who registers will also have access to the recorded webinar.
