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Shared Jan 11, 2014 comment

A peek at my handwork projects this week

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 11, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I’ve been having so much fun doing more handwork recently!

I’ve been working a little on an embroidery block for my sister’s baby quilt. My mom always makes a baby quilt for each of her grandchildren when they are born, and I sometimes help with a few blocks.

I took this Simple HeadWrap project idea and changed it up a little to make an ear warmer to replace mine that has gone missing.

I still want to make the Simple HeadWrap exactly as the pattern states and hope to do that soon. I’m really happy with how the ear warmer turned out and it’s going to come in handy during these cold days we’ve been having!

I also completed another dishcloth.

This pattern is so easy to make and since I’ve gotten quicker at knitting, I can finish one of these in a few days — just in the little snippets of time and as we’re reading the Bible together as a family in the evenings.

And finally, this cup cozy is my favorite project of the week. I took this DIY Cup Cozy Pattern and changed it up a bit. I’m not completely happy with the buttons and botton-holes.

So I’m working on perfecting that with a second cup cozy project and will hopefully show that to you in next week’s handwork post.

(And I also want to actually follow the DIY Cup Cozy pattern exactly as written — but I fear I’m starting to follow knitting patterns about as successfully as I follow recipes… or don’t follow them! :))

Did you complete any handwork projects this week? If so, I’d love to hear about your projects. And if you blogged about them, leave your links in the comments.

Shared Jan 11, 2014 comment

6 Places to Find Discounts on Counseling

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 11, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Jessica of Homemaking Through the Church Year

If there’s anything sure beside death and taxes, it’s life itself. Life goes on despite tragedy and misfortune, and so ordinary people find themselves in need of counseling in order to deal with life’s bumps and bruises — and such help usually comes with an expensive price tag.

However, counseling doesn’t necessarily need to be a budget breaker.

Tough economic times might prompt people to deal with common stressors (depression, divorce, or parenting difficulties) on their own, but the truth is that counseling sessions don’t have to cost half as much as your weekly grocery bill.

If you find yourself in the market for expert assistance in psychological matters, consider these resources for finding top-notch care without paying top-of-the-line prices.

1. Your insurance.

Some health insurance plans cover psychotherapy as such, but even if yours doesn’t, make an appointment with your primary care physician. He or she can either refer you, or possibly offer some treatment themselves.

(If the psychological problem is treatable with medication, some physicians are comfortable prescribing it. This is completely dependent on your situation, of course, but it’s worth making an appointment in order to find out.)

2. Your HR department.

You may be allowed to set aside part of your salary, pre-tax, to pay for counseling sessions. Check with your human resources department for more information.

3. Local colleges or universities.

Institutes of higher education with counselor-training programs often offer counseling at a reduced price so that their students can learn their trade. Don’t worry about receiving inexpert help: in clinical psychology programs, quality control is assured by overseeing doctors who are licensed and experienced.

4. For-Profit counseling centers in your area.

Don’t dismiss an expensive-looking clinic right away. Many clinics have sliding scales based on income, and if you qualify, you can get $100 an hour help at a much cheaper price. Make sure you call around too as prices vary by clinic.

5. Community clinics.

On top of regular, for-profit counseling centers, many communities have counseling centers clinics that are intentionally set up for low-cost care. Straight Talk in the Los Angeles area is just one example of such an institution. To find such a clinic in your area, check:

Your city hall — Local governments often list such resources on their websites.
Your local hospital — Hospitals also often have resource referral lists.
Google — of course!

6. A local church.

Pastors regularly provide counseling for couples with marital difficulties or parents who need a little guidance.

It takes a bit of legwork, but help for mental health issues doesn’t have to be an impossible dream — and the benefits can greatly outweigh the up-front expenses.

Have you found any other ways to save on counseling?

Jessica Snell is a mom of four who makes her home in sunny Southern California. She loves celebrating the traditional Christian feasts and fasts, and helping others do the same! She’s the editor of “Let Us Keep the Feast”, and blogs at Homemaking Through the Church Year.

Shared Jan 10, 2014 comment

Change Your Attitude and You’ll Change Your Life

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 10, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Someone asked me the other day, “If you’re feeling overwhelmed and discouraged by everything in your life, what is the one of the most important things you can do to change your life?”

I thought of a lot of different practical things I could encourage someone to do, but at the heart of your success in anything in life is your attitude. If you have a can-do, creative, committed attitude, you’ll go far in life. If you have a can’t do, won’t do, too hard, whiny attitude, you’ll probably never go anywhere.

Change your attitude and you’ll change your life. This goes either way. You can choose to look at a situation with positivity or negativity.

The choice is yours. But your choice will have a ripple effect.

For instance, when Jesse started law school and we committed to stay out of debt during his three years of law school, I won’t pretend that it was an easy choice. Because it wasn’t.

We knew that the road ahead of us was going to be rocky and rough. We have a choice to feel discouraged and disheartened or we could approach it with all the courage and heart we could muster up (with God’s help).

We chose the latter, seeing the law school journey as an opportunity to learn, to make short-term sacrifices, to get wildly creative, and to look for the blessings along the way.

There were many days when it wasn’t easy. There were many set backs, curve balls, and disappointments. But we kept choosing to make the most of the experience. To do the best we could with the time and resources we had.

Looking back, every single one of those years of struggle and working so hard to try to make ends meet was worth it. Oh so worth it!

If we hadn’t struggled financially, I wouldn’t have been highly motivated to learn how to pinch every penny.
If we didn’t have to worry about how we were going to afford groceries, I probably would have never taken the time to learn how to play the Drugstore Game.
If we hadn’t wondered how we were going to pay our rent and utility bills, I doubt I would have never spent hours and hours and hours of time trying to figure out how to make money online.

And it’s because of those lessons, that I started this blog. Writing books, speaking, growing as a person, and meeting so many, many dear people who are a part of the MoneySavingMom.com community… none of this would have happened without those lean law school years.

When the road ahead of you looks bleak, don’t give up.

When it feels impossible, keep going.

When you want to throw in the towel, hang on.

You never know what the struggles and difficulties you are going through might be preparing you for in your future. Don’t lose heart!

Shared Jan 10, 2014 comment

12 Months to a Healthier You: Week 2 Check-In

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 10, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

12-Months-to-a-Healthier-You

Are you joining us for the 12 Months to a Healthier You Challenge? If so, it’s Friday and guess what that means? It’s time for our weekly check-in to post our progress.

January’s Challenge:

We’re focusing on developing the habit of exercising more in January. I encourage you to set a simple and doable goal for exercise and to stick with it.

If you haven’t set your January Exercise Goal yet, be sure to do so and then leave a comment on this post telling us what your goal is. New to this challenge? Read more details on the plan for this year here.

12 Months to a Healthier You

My Exercise Goal for January

My goal for January is to consistently exercise at least 5 times per week. I plan to follow the P90X workout schedule except for the days when I’m traveling/out of town. On those days, I plan to stick with cardio/running.

This Week’s Progress:

It’s Week 2 of P90X and I’m still loving it. Although I have to admit that I was happy when my rest day rolled around on the schedule. But then I missed exercising and was excited to get back to it the next day.

I’m already seeing more muscle definition and toning… and I’ve only been at this for a 10 days. So that’s truly encouraging! Plus, I really can tell a difference in my energy levels! Yay!

How Are YOU Doing?

Leave a comment telling us how you did on your exercise goals this past week. If you’re blogging about this challenge, leave the direct link to your blog post about the challenge below.

Are you on social media? You can also share your progress on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter by using hashtag #12MonthstoaHealthierYou.

Shared Jan 10, 2014 comment

Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge: Day 5 (Clear Out the Clutter)

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 10, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the 7-Day Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge. Each day this week, I’ll be blogging through the 7-Day Challenge. If you’ve not signed up yet, enter your name and email in the orange sign-up box at the top of the page here and you’ll get the daily emails and challenge in your inbox.

Clear Out the Clutter

As you probably already know, I’m not really into clutter. In fact, I’m positive that some people would come to my house and think it’s entirely too empty! But we love the uncluttered look. Here are four reasons we don’t have a lot of clutter:

1. It simplifies things because I have less to clean up. The less stuff you have, the less stuff you have to take care of.

2. It makes things easier to find. When you don’t have as much stuff, it’s easier to put things away.

3. It provides breathing room. I love wide open spaces — they allow my soul to breathe and make life feel calmer.

4. It saves money. The less you buy, the more you usually save. Plus, the less you have, the less you have to pay to maintain.

Here are some things that help me stay on top of clutter:

Ongoing Garage Sale Boxes

We have a designated spot in our home for garage sale boxes. In our current home, this is in the garage. As I find things we no longer need or use, I start filling up a box. When one box is full, I fill up another. And so on.

Instead of moving an item around from one room to the next when we aren’t using it anymore, I pitch it in the garage sale boxes and it’s out of our way. This method makes preparing for a garage sale quite simple since I already have a huge head start on collecting stuff to sell.

Thinking of having a garage sale? Check out my 10 tips for having a successful garage sale.

Annual Clutter Elimination

Once or twice a year, I go through my home from top to bottom and am ruthless about eliminating clutter. Every nook and cranny is cleaned out and every item is evaluated.

By doing this on a regular basis, no area of our home ever becomes unmanageable. Rooms or closets might be messy or unkempt at times, but they never get so overwhelming that I can’t deal with them.

The No-Pile Rule

Except for my husband’s dresser and our laundry basket, we try to strictly adhere to a no-pile rule. I’ve found that a small pile quickly grows–without any effort. So if you don’t start a pile in the first place, you can avoid a lot of disorganization.

{Confession time: I have a few small piles in my closet right now… I’m tackling those as part of today’s project. :)}

In the Door, In Its Place

Instead of piles of paper around from place to place until you have time to deal with them, take care of them immediately. When the mail or other papers come into our home, I go through it right then and there and throw out everything that we don’t have to keep.

Bills go on my husband’s dresser, magazines go in the magazine basket, coupons go in my coupon box, and junk mail goes in the trash. Within just a few minutes, the mail is completely dealt with!

Avoid Clutter-Collecting Furniture

I’ve found my utilitarian nature helps avoid heaps of clutter. How? Because we don’t have a lot of furniture that tends to be clutter hot-spots for others. I’ve found that when there’s no place to collect piles, you are much less apt to make them.

For more ideas and suggestions, check out these links:

The Clutter-Busting Challenge: Get Rid of 7 Things Every Day in May

How to Turn Your Clutter into Cash

How I Keep My Kitchen Countertops Cleaned Off

How I Purged 91% of Our Stuff

Today’s Challenge

If you feel overwhelmed with clutter, don’t panic. Pick one space in your home to declutter as soon as you can today. This can be a drawer, cupboard, closet, medicine cabinet, your nightstand, or if you’re feeling overly ambitious, the pantry or refrigerator.

Ruthlessly clear out any and all clutter and unnecessary items you find. Consider passing on extra food and household items to friends or donating these to someone in need. Start with this one small space and I promise you will feel a sense of accomplishment right away.

Today’s Project

1. Read Day 5 of the 7-Day Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge (type in your name and email address in the orange box at the top of the page here if you haven’t signed up yet).

2. Leave a comment telling us what area of your home you are planning to tackle today for at least 15 minutes and clear out the unnecessary clutter. Remember, keep it simple and don’t bite off more than you can chew!

My project: I’m planning to tackle our bedroom closet. It seems to be the space in our home that can always use a little TLC and it has a few piles of mine in it that need to be dealt with. 🙂

photo credit; photo credit

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Have a difficult time finding time to exercise while being a mom to young kids? Read this!

Shared Jan 9, 2014 comment

Q&A: How did you find time to exercise when you had young children?

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 9, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Crystal, I’m curious if you worked out as regularly as you do now with young children? How did you manage your time when your kids were in a more time-demanding stage? I am pregnant and have a 2-year-old at home — the former keeps me up all night with dance parties in my stomach & the lovely toddler still doesn’t sleep through the night.

I’m working 2 days a week now (down from 5-7 in residency… hooray!), but still can’t manage to pull myself out of bed before my child wakes up (usually 5:30-7:30 a.m. time range) after being up 2-3 times a night. I’m just wondering if you have any tips on how to fit it “all in” when exhaustion & time aren’t on my side right now? -JLyn

I thought this was a great question to address as exercise is the focus for January as part of the 12 Months to a Healthier You Challenge. Here are some of my thoughts:

Make It a Priority

If you don’t make exercise a priority, there’s a very good chance it’s not going to happen. It takes dedication, motivation, and commitment to stick with consistent exercising. But it is so worth it — not only because you’ll probably feel better, but you’ll also have more energy!

When I had young children, I found that I had to exercise first thing in the morning or it just seemed like it wouldn’t happen. Before I knew it, the day would be over with, I’d be exhausted and ready for bed, and I hadn’t exercised yet again.

Practical Ideas For Making Exercise Happen With Young Children

- Use a Playpen — When I had a baby or a young child, I’d often put them in the playpen with a few special toys to play with in the same room while I exercised. This will usually buy you at least 10-20 minutes’ worth of exercise time if your child can’t climb out of the playpen yet!
- Do It Together — If I don’t get exercise in before my children get up, they often exercise with me. In fact, just this morning, Kaitlynn and Silas did my entire hour of P90X with me. They had a blast trying to do the exercises with me and it was so fun to do it with them — and I got in a great workout, too!
- Take Advantage of Naptime — If you are energetic enough to not lie down and take a nap while your child naps, this can be a good time to get in a quick workout.
- Turn on a Movie — When my children were really little, I sometimes would plan their movie time to coincide with my exercise time.
- Have a Basket of Special Toys — Another fun way to keep children occupied is to put together a basket of special toys that they can only play with while you exercise. You could even create Day of the Week Tubs specifically for them to use during your exercise time.
- Play Outside Together — Go outside and get some fresh air. Play tag or swing on the swing set at the park. It might not be a strenuous workout, but it will be something. And something is always better than nothing!
- Go on a Walk — Strap your child in a stroller and go on a brisk walk around the neighborhood. Too cold to walk outside? Head to the mall or another indoor location and walk.

Give Yourself Grace

Now that I’ve given you some ideas that worked for me, I want to leave you with this reminder: give yourself grace in this season, JLyn. You have your hands full — and you are nurturing a baby inside of you.

If you’re exhausted, sleep. If you only have energy to do a 10-minute workout DVD or play with your child at the park, that’s okay.

Don’t beat yourself up over what you can’t do. Just do the best you can do and be free from guilt!

What advice and ideas do the rest of you have for JLyn? We’d love to hear!

Shared Jan 9, 2014 comment

Gretchen’s Target Shopping Trip: Spent $15.69 for $55 worth of products!

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 9, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Target Shopping Trip

Transaction #1

2 Little Critters Gummy Vitamins – $3.99 each, used 2 $1/1 coupon from the 1/5 SmartSource insert – $2.99 each after coupon (On Sale Buy 2, Get $5 Target gift card)

Total with tax ($0.21): $6.19, Received $5 Target gift card

Transaction #2

(All the Christmas stuff was marked 70-90% off at my store. I picked up a few that were great deals!)

1 Carter’s Baby Outfit – Marked down to $0.99 (Normally $10! I’m always on the lookout for inexpensive baby shower gifts!)

3 Reese’s Candy Canes – $0.30 each (I’m sending a belated Christmas box to my niece and nephews and these will be perfect.)

1 Hershey’s Whoppers – $0.30

1 Ornament Hooks – $0.10 (We’ve used paper clips for all our ornaments ever since we got married 5 years ago…I’m so excited to finally have real ornament hooks for next Christmas.)

3 Ornament Sets – $0.50 each

2 GoGo Squeeze (12 ct) – $6.97 each, used 2 $0.75/1 Target printable AND 20% off Cartwheel coupon – $4.82 each after coupons

1 Fast Fruit (4 ct) at $3.49 – Free (if you bought 2 GoGo Squeeze, this was free)

Used $5 Target gift card from Transaction #1

Total with tax ($1.07): $9.50

Total for both transactions before sales, coupons and gift card: $55.84

Total for both transactions after tax with sales, coupons and gift card: $15.69

See more deals at Target this week here.

Shared Jan 9, 2014 comment

Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge: Day 4 (Use Your Minutes Wisely)

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 9, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the 7-Day Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge. Each day this week, I’ll be blogging through the 7-Day Challenge. If you’ve not signed up yet, enter your name and email in the orange sign-up box at the top of the page here and you’ll get the daily emails and challenge in your inbox.

If you want to be more productive, you need to become the master of your minutes. Do you ever find yourself with short five-minute windows of time here and there? Our schedules are so jam packed, but there always seem to be those little niches of time that pop up throughout the day.

It’s easy to mindlessly pick up your phone, browse the web, or check your Facebook news feed for the tenth time. Sometimes, we’re not even aware that we’re spacing out. But consider what you can actually accomplish in a few minutes of time. For example, you can do the following:

Write a thank-you note or encouraging e-mail.

Clean the kitchen sink or bathroom toilet.

Switch a load of laundry from the washer to the dryer.

Pull out dinner from the freezer.

Make a healthy snack to munch on instead of grazing on high-calorie, low-nutrition foods.

Take your vitamins, and drink a glass of water.

Do twenty-five sit-ups.

Tidy up a room.

Read a short story to your child.

Wipe down the kitchen counters.

Text your husband to tell him you love him.

Read two pages of the book you’re currently reading.

Pray for someone you know who is struggling or for a need in your own life.

There are a thousand other ideas for how to use wisely the little slots of time that show up throughout the day. Don’t let these golden nuggets slip by unproductively! They can quickly add up in your favor. In fact, if you pay attention and make purposeful choices, you may find they add up exponentially.

Today’s Project:

Look for little pockets of time throughout the day that you can use to accomplish some of the tasks above — or other small tasks. I bet you’ll find that you have at least 5-10 of these pockets throughout your day (maybe more!) and if you put them to work for you, you’ll end the day feeling much more accomplished!

Your turn: Tell us 1-3 things you accomplish or plan to accomplish today in the little pockets of time. Also, if you have time, I’d love to hear what ideas you have to add to my list of things you can accomplish in a few minutes.

photo credit

Shared Jan 8, 2014 comment

Q&A: When do you fit reading into your daily schedule?

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 8, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Crystal, when do you fit in personal reading into your daily schedule? -Brenda

Ever since posting my 12 Books to Read in January post, I’ve been getting asked this question. And it’s a very valid one since I used to wonder how on earth people could manage to finish more than a few books per month.

However, I found that when I stopped saying, “That’s not possible!” and started looking for opportunities to fit more reading into my life, there were many nooks and crannies where I could fit more reading in.

Here’s how I’m currently finding time to read in the midst of a full schedule:

1. First Thing In the Morning

The first thing I do in the morning is to spend time reading my Bible, praying, and journaling. I also read a chapter or two of a devotional book of some sort.

I’ve found that by reading a chapter or two of a devotional book every morning, I can usually finish one book per week just in this early morning time. The thing I love about reading first thing in the morning is that it starts my day off on a great foot and it also guarantees that I always get a little reading in every day.

2. On the Treadmill

When I walk or run on the treadmill, I often read. I can’t hold a book while running, but I discovered I could prop my iPad up on the treadmill, make the text larger, and read while running. Yes, I don’t speed read, but it’s a great way to get through some of the free ebooks I download and I can usually read at least one ebook per week if I run 3-4 times in a week.

3. While Waiting

I pretty much always a book with me just in case there’s a little pocket of time that opens up while I’m waiting somewhere, riding in the car, waiting for the water to boil on the stove… you get the picture. 🙂

4. At Night

If I’m not really tired at night when I crawl into bed, I’ll often read a chapter or two of a book. I so try to limit my reading to something that’s not so interesting that I have to read “just one more chapter” and then end up staying up until the wee hours of the morning to finish the book! Been there, done that and it doesn’t work out so well if you want to be coherent the next day! 🙂

5. On the Weekends

One of my very favorite times to read is on the weekends — especially on Sundays. We take Sundays “off” from our normal routine and I usually am completely offline. So Sunday afternoons are the perfect times to curl up with a good fiction book and read for a few hours.

For more ideas and suggestions, here are a few posts from the archives:

Your turn: how do you find time to read? I’d love to hear your tips and tricks!

Shared Jan 8, 2014 comment

Gretchen’s $32 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 8, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

This week, I’m trying to make meals based on what we have in our cabinets and freezer. I mainly just stocked up on snack items this week since they were having some great sales.

Aldi

1 Green Onions – $1.19

1 gallon Milk – $2.49

1 Butter – $2.49

1 Flour Tortillas – $0.99

Total with tax ($0.51): $7.67

Dillons

2 Bamba Snacks – Marked down to $0.29 each

1.96 lbs Grapes @ $2.49/lb – $4.88 (I should have purchased these at Aldi…)

1 Jeno’s Frozen Pizza – $1, used Free e-coupon (no longer available) – Free after coupon

3 Ramen Noodles – $0.20 each

1 Turkey Hill Ice Cream – $3.99

1 Kroger Cottage Cheese – $1.25

1 Kroger Marble Cheese (24 oz) – $4.99

1 Kroger Frozen Onions – $1

1 Kroger Marshmallows – $1

2 Yoplait GoGurt Yogurt – $2 each, used 2 $1/1 printable – $1 each after coupon

5 Dole Fruit Squish’ems (4 pk) – $2 each, used 5 $1/1 printable and coupon from the 1/5 SmartSource insert – $1 each after coupons

Total before sales and coupons: $43.28

Total after sales and coupons: $25.29

Total for all grocery items: $32.96

Menu Plan

Breakfasts

Cereal x 3, Oatmeal, Toast and Eggs, Homemade Granola

Lunches

Leftovers, Cheese & Crackers, Fruit/Veggies, Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Macaroni and Cheese

Dinners

Lasagna Casserole, 30 Minute Rolls, Steamed Broccoli

Meat Potato Quiche, Banana Muffins, Tossed Salad

Apple Turkey Picadillo, Peas

Cheesy Hamburger Soup, Homemade Bread, Sliced Oranges

Braided Pizza Bread, Tossed Salad

Barbecue Sandwiches, Chips, Steamed Cauliflower

Italian Chicken, Green Beans, Baked Potatoes

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

Click here to download!

Shared Jan 8, 2014 comment

Get the 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook when you pre-order my new book!

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 8, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Would you like to become disciplined, but you just don’t know how to go about developing good habits into your life? My ebook, 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life, is here to help you!

In this ebook, you’ll learn:

How to prioritize and name your goals so that you can accomplish them faster than ever.
How to expose the obstacles that will come up, and then make a plan to conquer them.
How to break up a goal that feels insurmountable into bite-sized pieces.
How to stop making excuses and get the job done now — and then enjoy the rest of your day!
How to put accountability in place to help you stay on task and motivated.

Through tomorrow only (January 9, 2013), if you pre-order a copy of my new book, Say Goodbye to Survival Mode, you’ll get a free PDF download of 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life! Plus, you’ll also get a free Motivated Moms Printable Planner and other fun freebies and discounts!

If you’ve already pre-ordered a copy of my book, you can fill out the form below to get your FREE ebook, planner, and other discounts!

Here’s How to Get a FREE copy of 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life, the FREE Motivated Moms Planner, + More Discounts & Freebies From Companies We Love:

1. Pre-order a copy of Say Goodbye to Survival Mode from any retailer. It’s available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, ChristianBook, iBooks, and Mardel. (You can pre-order the ebook here or read a sample chapter if you’d like a sneak peek.)

2. Once you’ve done that, just click this link and fill out the form.

3. That’s it! As soon as you submit the form and verify your email address, you will get an automated email giving you access to your free copy of 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life, the Motivated Moms Printable Planner, plus exclusive coupon codes and freebies from other companies we love.

Psst! Want to buy a copy of Say Goodbye to Survival Mode for a friend? You can pre-order the book for them and gift them the ebook + the planner + the discounts package!

Note: This offer for a free copy of 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life is only available through January 9, 2013.

Shared Jan 8, 2014 comment

Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge: Day 3 (Create a Morning Routine)

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 8, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the 7-Day Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge. Each day this week, I’ll be blogging through the 7-Day Challenge. If you’ve not signed up yet, enter your name and email in the orange sign-up box at the top of the page here and you’ll get the daily emails and challenge in your inbox.

Create a Morning Routine

Do your days feel chaotic and disorganized? Do you feel like you’re always behind and always running around in circles?

You need a routine. It will calm your chaos and bring rhythm, order, and peace to your days.

A routine is a plan for the flow of your day. It can be very basic and bare bones or it can be more specific. However, it is not a regimented schedule with detailed time blocks for how you’re supposed to spend every minute of every day.

While a rigid schedule works well for some, we’ve found that a routine is much more doable for our family–especially since our children are younger and my husband and I both have our own businesses. No day is exactly the same, so the flexibility a routine provides is perfectly suited to allow for the interruptions that inevitably arise.

5 Steps to a Successful Morning Routine

The best way to start yourself out on the path to success with a routine is to create a morning routine. Here are 5 steps to creating a great morning routine:

1) Make a List

If you’re anything like me, you’ll come up with a bunch of ideas of things you’d love to do each morning. You’re just brainstorming right now, so your list can be as long as you’d like. In fact, I’d recommend that you take a half a day to mull over what you want to put on your list and to keep adding things as they come to mind.

2) Pare It Down

Once you have a nice long list made, sit down and really evaluate the items on there in light of what is going to make the biggest difference in your day and what are the most important things you need or want to accomplish each morning. You can organize the list in order of priority if that helps you to categorize things more clearly.

3) Pick the Top 3-5 Things

After you’ve cut your list down to the top 8-10 things you really hope to do each morning, cull it down even farther to the 3-5 most important things. {If you couldn’t come up with a long list, well, you’re going to make it a lot easier on yourself! And I wish I could be more like you and not have such high hopes and unrealistic ambitions! :)}

4) Put Your List in a Conspicuous Location

Write your list of 3-5 Morning Must-Do’s down (or make a fancy document on the computer if you’re all tech-y like that!) and then put this list in a very conspicuous location. You could even put it multiple locations — on your refrigerator, in your laundry room, on your bathroom mirror.

Do whatever it takes to be constantly reminded each morning to stay on task. It takes awhile for something to become a habit, so the more reminders, the better!

5) Stick With It For 3 Weeks

Commit to following through with your Morning Must-Do’s every single morning for the next three weeks. You might not always hit them all each morning and, unless you live in a cave and don’t have any electronics nor interact with other human beings, I’m positive you’re going to have some interruptions.

Don’t let these things throw you off track. Do the best you can do, stick with it, and keep plodding along.

At the end of three weeks, stop and re-evaluate what’s working and what’s not. Tweak your list or your morning plan, if need be (maybe wait to have your coffee until your morning list is done?!), and then keep the Morning Must-Do’s practice up.

For more ideas and suggestions, read my series on How to Develop a Routine That Works and my post on 3 Things to Do To Have a Better Morning.

Today’s Challenge

Create your ideal morning routine. If you don’t have any structure in your life right now, this one action will make a big difference in how you approach each day.

Take some time right now to write down the five things you need and want to do each morning. Things like exercise, read and pray, clean up the kitchen, wake and feed the kids breakfast, and prepare lunches or even dinner.

Think about how much time you will realistically need. Whatever those five things are, commit to getting up and doing them first thing tomorrow and then consistently for three weeks.

Today’s Project

1. Read Day 2 of the 7-Day Say Goodbye to Survival Mode Challenge (type in your name and email address in the orange box at the top of the page here if you haven’t signed up yet).

2. Share your morning routine in the comments. Ideally, this will be a list of 5 things (or less). Commit to sticking with this morning routine as best as is possible every morning for the next three weeks.

My Morning Routine

Get up, read Bible/devotional, journal, pray

Exercise, shower/dress (depending upon what time I get up/my schedule for the day, this sometimes gets bumped to after blogging work)

Check e-mail, clean out e-mail inbox

Writing/blogging work

Breakfast

Your turn: What’s your morning routine? Share it in the comments!

Shared Jan 8, 2014 comment

Kimber’s Target Shopping Trip: Christmas Clearance Items + more!

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 8, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

The following deal was submitted by Kimber

Today at Target, I was able to snag a few great deals – and one of them was a complete surprise!

Here’s what I was able to find:

Almay Eye Makeup Remover:

This is regularly priced at $4.99, but right now, there is a $5/2 coupon available from Coupons.com, and there is a 20% Cartwheel coupon to stack with it! The Cartwheel coupon takes $1 off of each product, making the total after coupon $1.49 when you buy two, or 70% off.

GoGo Squeez Yogurt:

There is a promotion for GoGo Squeez this week (my kids were SO excited): buy two 12-packs ($6.97) and get a free 4-pack of their Fast Fruit. In addition, there is a 20% Cartwheel coupon. And then this morning, a $0.75 off coupon popped up on Coupons.com!

The pre-coupon total was $13.94, but Cartwheel took off $2.80 and the coupons (remember, you can print two) took off another $1.50. So my total was $9.64, or $0.34 per pouch.

Christmas Clearance Items:

I thought my store’s Christmas selection would be picked over by today, but I was delighted to find rows and rows of baking mixes all marked down 70%. I bought 10 tubs of frosting at $0.59, and two pouches of cookie mix at $0.56.

I had two $0.75/2 coupons from Coupons.com, and I was thrilled to get those 12 products for $5.52. Then, when I checked out, I learned there was a promotion going on this week, and these products were participating in it (buy 10 products, get a $5 gift card) – so my total after gift card was only $0.52!

If you’re going to be at Target in the next few days, make sure to check out your Christmas clearance items. You might be pleasantly surprised!

Happy Target-ing!

Shared Jan 8, 2014 comment

Gretchen’s CVS Shopping Trip: Spent $1.60 out of pocket for $28 worth of products

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 8, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

CVS Shopping Trip

1 Sundown Naturals Gummies – $7 (Buy 1, Get $4 ECBs)
Used $2/1 coupon from the 1/5 RedPlum insert

1 Milky Way – $0.75
Used $0.75/1 CVS coupon from the in-store coupon machine

1 Pedia Care – $5.99 (Buy 1, Get $5 ECBs)
Used $1/1 coupon from the 1/5 SmartSource insert

1 Colgate Total Mouthwash – $5.99 (Buy 1, Get $3 ECBs)
Used $2/1 printable

Used $13.79 ECBs from previous trips

Total before coupons and ECBs: $28.07

Total with tax ($1.41) after coupons and ECBs: $1.60, Plus received $12 ECBs back.

See more deals at CVS this week here.

Shared Jan 7, 2014 comment

How I Earn $50 in Amazon Gift Cards from Swagbucks Every Month

Published: by Crystal Paine on January 7, 2014 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Today’s Swagbucks success story is from Liz:

I was very wary of Swagbucks at the beginning and thought it involved downloading a toolbar that could mess up my computer. After seeing so many people post about how they were able to pay for Christmas using only Amazon gift cards from Swagbucks, I decided to research it and finally took the plunge to sign up.

I am happy to say that I was able to pay for my three children’s birthday presents this year, and am now saving for Christmas!

At first, I earned about 25 points per day doing a search, NOSO, daily poll, and any random video that might be on the homepage. Then, after reading on MoneySavingMom.com that some people were earning lots of points even without having any referrals, I decided to up my game.

I usually spend about an hour each morning while I eat my breakfast and drink coffee to work on Swagbucks and I now earn about $50 in Amazon giftcards per month. Here’s how:

1. Using the Facebook page: People post whether they are on “dubs” or “trips”, which means that they have gotten 2 or 3 search wins. If I know that other people have gotten 2 wins, then I continue to search after my first win until I do, too. (If everyone is only on singles, then I don’t waste my time searching more.) 15-30 points per day

2. Swagbucks TV mobile: I don’t have a smartphone, but I do have an iPod touch. I start SBTV mobile every morning on my iPod and only have to monitor it to make sure it hasn’t frozen on any commercial. 50 points per day

3. Radium One Offers: The Swagbucks Facebook page usually has people that comment about which offers are crediting and don’t require spending any money. I use this info to quickly find the offers, sign up, and get points. They also usually have offers for printing coupons or watching videos. 10-20 points per day

4. Encrave: Right now, after getting a search win or doing the NOSO, you can click on a page with lots and lots of offers that simply require you to click on links to get points. 30-50 points per day

5. Jun videos: These all earn 2 points and can usually be found on the homepage or ledger. They are not always there, but when they are, can net between 10-50 points.

6. Surveys: I don’t spend much time on these, but if I see a survey that takes less than 10 minutes, I do it. I usually get about one per week. 50 points per week

7. Making my goal: By doing all the above steps, I make my points goal every day. This gives me a bonus of about 500 points every month!

I am a stay-at-home mom and my husband is a teacher, so our budget is tight. I love that I have been able to get my three kids something special for each of their birthdays without having to eat into our savings. I am now saving up to surprise my husband with a PlayStation 4 for Christmas, using Swagbucks to pay for over half of it!

Liz: Can you email me so I can send you your $50 Amazon gift card as a thank you for sharing your Swagbucks success story?

Summer Bucket List

Summer Bucket List

FREE Summer Bucket List!!

1. Your insurance.

2. Your HR department.

3. Local colleges or universities.

4. For-Profit counseling centers in your area.

5. Community clinics.

6. A local church.

Have you found any other ways to save on counseling?

January’s Challenge:

My Exercise Goal for January

This Week’s Progress:

How Are YOU Doing?

Clear Out the Clutter

Ongoing Garage Sale Boxes

Annual Clutter Elimination

The No-Pile Rule

In the Door, In Its Place

Avoid Clutter-Collecting Furniture

Today’s Challenge

Today’s Project

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

Make It a Priority

Practical Ideas For Making Exercise Happen With Young Children

Give Yourself Grace

What advice and ideas do the rest of you have for JLyn? We’d love to hear!

Target Shopping Trip

Today’s Project:

1. First Thing In the Morning

2. On the Treadmill

3. While Waiting

4. At Night

5. On the Weekends

Your turn: how do you find time to read? I’d love to hear your tips and tricks!

Aldi

Dillons

Menu Plan

Breakfasts

Lunches

Dinners

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

Here’s How to Get a FREE copy of 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life, the FREE Motivated Moms Planner, + More Discounts & Freebies From Companies We Love:

Create a Morning Routine

5 Steps to a Successful Morning Routine

1) Make a List

2) Pare It Down

3) Pick the Top 3-5 Things

4) Put Your List in a Conspicuous Location

5) Stick With It For 3 Weeks

Today’s Challenge

Today’s Project

My Morning Routine

Here’s what I was able to find:

CVS Shopping Trip

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