These delicious pumpkin bars are perfect for fall, or really any time of the year. The fluffy cream cheese frosting is the perfect compliment to the moist pumpkin bars.
I’ve made these several times in the past month, and have gotten rave reviews and recipe requests everywhere I’ve taken them!
Guest post from Brigette Shevy
You’ll Love This Recipe for Pumpkin Bars
For as long as I can remember, this church cookbook recipe has been a family favorite all year long, but especially during the fall months.
In fact, we like them so much that these delicately flavored sweet-but-not-too-rich bars have been a welcome addition to our Thanksgiving (and Christmas) dessert table on many occasions.
Since these pumpkin bars are easy to throw together and the recipe makes a huge pan, they are perfect for serving to company or bringing to a party.
And… they freeze well too!
Pumpkin Bar Recipe Ingredients
For the Bars:
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups pumpkin (15-ounce can)
- 1 cup oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (I use ½ teaspoon each ginger and cloves and ¼ teaspoon nutmeg instead)
- 1 cup chopped nuts, optional (we never use)
For the Frosting:
- 4 Tablespoons softened butter
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tablespoon or less milk, if needed
How To Make Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease an 11″ x 16″ jellyroll pan and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, mix sugar, eggs pumpkin, oil, and vanilla with an electric mixer until well blended.
4. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix well.
5. Stir in nuts (optional).
6. Pour into greased pan and bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until done.
7. While the batter bakes, mix all frosting ingredients together (adding more or less milk to achieve desired consistency) and set aside.
8. Once the bars are fully cooled, spread frosting overtop.
9. Refrigerate after 2 hours or freeze for later.
Storing this Recipe for Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
Here are a few tips for storing your pumpkin bars (if you somehow end up with leftovers!)
Do pumpkin bars have to be refrigerated?
Since the frosting is made with cream cheese, it’s best to refrigerate pumpkin bars after 2 hours. Many people prefer the taste of cold cream cheese frosting as well.
Refrigeration can dry out baked goods, so if you plan to store your bars for more than a few days, they will taste fresher if you freeze them instead.
Can you freeze pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting?
Yes, they freeze beautifully and thaw extremely quickly.
Simply pop the whole pan in the freezer (covered with aluminum foil and/or plastic wrap) and they should be good for a couple of months. And yes, you can freeze the bars already frosted!
You can also freeze individual bars (with frosting) in small containers for a portion-perfect dessert.
When you’re ready to serve the bars, simply remove them from the freezer a couple of hours in advance. It should be incredibly moist, but not soggy (I’ve had excellent results after freezing this recipe).
Pumpkin Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe FAQ
Well, if you can keep people away from eating them long enough, they should easily last for a week or more in the fridge.
That said, they should still taste fresh after a couple of months in the freezer — so you really could make these well in advance!
No, you should refrigerate the frosted bars after 2-3 hours as cream cheese is a dairy product that could spoil.
One benefit of using cream cheese frosting (besides the delicious taste) is that it freezes quite well.
Pumpkin Bar Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
For the Bars:
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
- 15 oz. pumpkin puree
- 1 cup oil
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
For the Frosting:
- 4 Tbsp softened butter
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tabs milk (or as needed)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease an 11″ x 16″ jellyroll pan and set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix sugar, eggs pumpkin, oil, and vanilla with an electric mixer until well blended.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix well.
- Stir in nuts (optional).
- Pour into greased pan and bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until done.
- While the batter bakes, mix all frosting ingredients together (adding more or less milk to achieve desired consistency) and set aside.
- Once the bars are fully cooled, spread frosting overtop.
- Regrigerate after 2 hours or freeze for later.
Love this recipe?
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Brigette is a full-time wife and mother who is blessed with three amazing bundles of energy (ages 6, 4, and 2). She enjoys music, experimenting in the kitchen, homeschooling her children, finding great deals, long-distance running, and anything chocolate.
FREE DOWNLOAD: 60 Meals To Help You Avoid Takeout!
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How to Be an Online Shopping Ninja (my guest post at DaveRamsey.com!)
How to Be an Online Shopping Ninja (my guest post at DaveRamsey.com!)
I’m honored and excited to be guest posting over at DaveRamsey.com today on how to be an online shopping ninja. Here’s a snippet:
Shopping online is not only convenient, but it also saves you money—especially if you’re armed with my secrets for sleuthing out super deals. Here are three of my favorite ways to get the best bang for your buck online:
1. Use a Coupon Code
My husband and I have a policy to never purchase anything without first finding a coupon code to use. I’ve tried a lot of different coupon code websites and I’ve also tried Googling for coupon codes, but in my opinion, nothing compares to RetailMeNot.com. They are the best coupon code website in existence right now.
All you have to do is go to their homepage, search for the store you’re planning to shop from, and ta-da! you have a long list of coupon codes that have been rated by their large community of users. More often than not, I’m able to find at least one coupon code from the long list that works for me. And, for possibly one to two minutes of effort, that coupon code will usually save me at least 10% off my order—sometimes even as much as 25%!
If you find it helpful, would you do me a huge favor and share it on Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest? I’d love to bless the folks at Dave Ramsey for their kindness to share my post today. Thank you so much!
Swagbucks Helps Me DIY
Today’s Swagbucks success story is from Nikki:
I’ve been a loyal Swagbucks user for several years. I’ve bought Christmas gifts, groceries, and more with the gift cards that I’ve earned in the past. But recently, I’ve turned my focus into DIY projects around the house.
I’m a full-time student, wife, and mother. Needless to say, I’m on a very tight budget.
My husband and I bought our starter home 15 years ago and never moved out. We’ve always lived paycheck to paycheck, and never had money left over to upgrade our house. Fast forward 17 years into our marriage, and now that we’ve learned a lot of things about budgeting and style, we have desire for changes and upgrades, but no budget for it.
That’s where Swagbucks comes in. Swagbucks allows me to buy light fixtures, windows, paint, and more to slowly upgrade my house.
I’m currently remodeling my children’s bathroom and my most recent purchase was a new bath exhaust fan. Because I had a $100 gift card from Swagbucks, I only had to pay $5.93 out of pocket! WOW!
My Daily Swagbucks earning tips:
- As soon as I wake up, I start the Swagbucks Mobile TV App.
- I have the Swagbucks Toolbar installed on all of my browsers and earn 1 point a day from that.
- I take the Daily Poll and NOSO every day.
- Search: I search using the Swagbuck tool bar on both my mobile devices & my computer.
- Encrave: play some videos & earn those Swagbucks! This feature is only available on a computer.
- I always check out Swagbucks Facebook page, Twitter, and Blog for codes that are worth several points.
- Shop & Earn: When I buy anything online, I always use the Shop & Earn link. Swagbucks awards vary but you can earn at least 1 swagbuck for every dollar you spend.
It generally takes me 3-4 months to earn 10,000 Swagbucks or a $100 gift card to my local home improvement store. But it is so worth it, when I can walk into my local home improvement store, and buy that big purchase and hardly have to pay anything out of pocket. I’m currently saving up to buy a new bathroom countertop!
Do It Yourself: Tissue Paper Stained Glass Turkey
HappyClippings.com shows you how to make a homemade tissue paper stained glass turkey.
Do you have a fun and frugal DIY idea to share? I’d love to hear about it! Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
Help! We love books, but they are taking over our house!
Hi Crystal! I wondered if I could get your insight about children’s books…namely what to do when they are taking over your house! We have SO many books that our kids’ bookshelves are completely full…But we LOVE to read and I would say that we read and love just about every one we have. However, I just feel like the books are taking over their rooms. It’s much better than toys, but still…what to do!? Thanks for your advice -Courtney
I love books, as you probably well know. 🙂 But we actually don’t have shelves and shelves and shelves of them at our house. Why? Because I can’t stand clutter — even book clutter.
I’ve had to be really intentional with this, because otherwise our rooms would be overrun with books, too. Here are some things that help:
1. Define Your Book Boundaries
We have a shelf in the living room where we keep our very favorite books. I have books I’m currently reading in my bedside table drawer. The kids can keep a small stack of books in their room. And we have two large bookshelves in our basement that hold books we haven’t read yet.
Keeping our book boundaries to about three shelves total has really forced me to not collect or hang onto to books we didn’t absolutely love.
2. Only Keep Your Absolute Favorites
I know, I know, this is so hard to do. But if you love books as much as our family does, you have to draw a line somewhere. If a book didn’t radically impact me in some way or just seem overall amazing, I don’t keep it. I just can’t — unless I wanted to have all our walls lined with books. 🙂
3. Swap/Sell or Bless Someone With Your Extras
I love PaperBackSwap — not only because it saves money, but also because it’s a great way to keep your book collection under control. Why? Because you can’t earn book credits unless you get rid of some of your books.
You can also sell your books, though you often won’t make a lot on them. My favorite way to get rid of books is to share them with others. In fact, even if I loved a book and it’s one I’m planning to hang onto, I’d rather loan it out or pass it on to someone else and let them enjoy and be inspired be them than have them sit on my shelf collecting dust.
4. Become Best Friends With the Library
The library is a frugal, minimalist mom’s best friend. 🙂 My kids can check out stacks of books each week and then we can return them all the next week. And provided you return them on time, in the same condition you checked them out in, it’s 100% free.
If your library doesn’t have a great selection, check Inter-Library Loan to see if you can get the titles you’d like through there. It seems they have (or can get) just about any book under the sun.
What are your suggestions for Courtney? I’d love to hear!
How Our Boys Saved Up & Paid Cash for Their Own Kindles
A testimony from Stephanie at Mrs. Debtfighter
Everyone around my boys seemed to have a Kindle Fire — or their own electronic gadget. And every time they were around any of these people my boys would tell me how they wanted their own.
Finally, over the summer, my husband and I sat them down and had a talk with them. We told them they could have their own Kindles but that they would have to pay for the Kindles themselves.
We wanted them to know and understand that we aren’t just going to buy them something because they really want it. We also felt that they would take better care of them if they had to save up the money and pay.
After two months of hard work, here’s how they saved the money for their Kindles:
1. My oldest son saved birthday money — Granted, this made a huge dent in how much money HE had to save but he still had to give up receiving toys from family.
2. We sold the family iPod — Selling the iPod also made a big dent. My husband and I got the iPhone 4’s last year for $1 each when the iPhone 5 came out. The iPod pretty much became non-existent then so there was no point in hanging on to it.
3. We purged their closets and bookshelves — The boys went through their closets and found items that they did not like anymore and haven’t used in a long time. We listed the items on Craigslist and sold them $5-$15 each. We were able to do the same with books that they outgrew; selling them on Amazon $5-$15 each.
4. We waited for the better version to be on sale — When they began working towards their Kindles I decided to start researching them. The 8GB was $159 and the 16GB was $199. I knew to be able to put more apps and books on the Kindle, we would need the one with bigger memory. While they were saving, the 16GB went on sale for $159; however, they weren’t ready to buy yet. They finished saving the money and we had to wait for them to go on sale again. My older son asked why, and I explained to him that he would have to save $40 more if we didn’t wait. So, he got a little lesson in sales, too!
The excitement and pride on their faces the day the Kindles arrived was priceless! They were so excited to tell their friends (they even shared how they had to sell things to pay for them)!
Stephanie is a mostly-stay-at-home-mom to two boys and wife to her best friend! She blogs about her debt-fighting journey at Mrs. Debtfighter.
Have you saved up and paid cash for something — large or small? Submit your story for possible publication here.
Ask The Readers: Target’s markdown policy?
Today’s question is from Jay:
There are a lot of sites that explain Target’s markdown schedule, but I recently came across some info on Buzz Feed that said:
If the price of a marked down item at Target ends in 8, it will be marked down again. If it ends in a 4, it’s the lowest it will be. (It’s #30 on this list.)
I’ve never see this information posted anywhere else so I’m wondering if it’s true or not? Have you ever seen this before? -Jay
Do you have a question you’d like to ask Money Saving Mom® readers? Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
52 Ways to Save $100 Per Year: Have an All-Cash Christmas {Week 36}
52 Ways to Save $100 Per Year: Have an All-Cash Christmas {Week 36}
By being intentional and planning ahead, you can save a lot of money (and headache!) on Christmas. Follow these steps and you may save as much as $100 on Christmas this year, if not more:
1. Create a Budget
Yes, it’s kind of a no-brainer, but you can’t stick with your Christmas budget if you don’t have a budget in the first place. Sit down this weekend, if at all possible and look at your current expenditures and your income and decide what is a realistic budget amount to set aside for Christmas.
2. Start Saving
The sooner you can start setting aside money for Christmas, the better. Even if all you can manage to squeeze out of your budget is $3 to $5 each paycheck, start setting that aside in a separate fund. Do not allow yourself to touch it for any reason, except to purchase Christmas gifts.
We typically start planning for Christmas spending halfway through the year. Since we use a cash envelope system, we just start socking away most of our gift cash for Christmas. In addition, we also save up our Swagbucks Amazon gift cards to use for Christmas presents. And I keep my eyes open for other ways to earn free gift cards or products that would be good for gifting.
By the time December rolls around, I usually have a nice stash of gift cash plus gift cards to use for gifts and this becomes our Christmas budget. By doing it this way, we don’t have to dip into any of our regular savings or other money to pay for Christmas–we just have to plan ahead and then look for deals to stretch that money as far as possible.
Feeling strapped for cash this Christmas? Be sure to check out my 31 Ways to Earn Extra Cash Before Christmas series for lots of ideas to help shore up your Christmas gift budget over the next few weeks.
3. Make a Plan
After you get your Christmas budget created and you’ve begun setting money aside, it’s time to start planning your gift list! Again, if you can do this early, you’ll have a huge advantage.
Why? Because when you see some amazing rock-bottom bargain deal that would be perfect for someone on your Christmas list, you can snatch it up then and there and cross that person off your list! Not only will you save a lot of money by starting your shopping early, but you’ll also feel so much more organized and relaxed going into December!
There’s a free printable Master Christmas Gift list here you can use to keep track of everyone you plan to buy for and what you’re planning to buy. If you prefer to keep a running total on a spreadsheet, you can download the Excel Christmas Budgeting Worksheet here to help you stay organized and stick with your budget.
4. Use Cash
If you’re at all tempted to go over your written Christmas budget, I highly recommend that you have a cash-only Christmas. Take the money you’ve allotted for your Christmas budget out of the bank in cash and then only use that money to pay for your Christmas gifts. This will force you to carefully evaluate each purchase to make sure it is the best use of your money and it will guarantee you don’t go over-budget.
Since many of the best deals are online, I suggest that you either use Paypal and refund the money to your bank account immediately from your cash envelope or take money from your cash envelopes and purchase gift cards for your online purchases. This is a bit more of a hassle, but it means you don’t have to worry about any staggering credit card bills come January!
5. Keep It Simple
Christmas should not be about impressing people with expensive gifts. If you’re going to give someone a gift, do it to bless them. Meaningful gifts don’t have to be extravagant and costly.
Consider giving experience gifts or handmade gifts as opposed to high-dollar items. Sometimes, the most remembered gifts are those that took time and thought, not money.
How do you save money on Christmas while still making it memorable?
How I got 6 shirts, 16 bars of soap, and 30 hair bands for just $4.48 for Operation Christmas Child!
How I got 6 shirts, 16 bars of soap, and 30 hair bands for just $4.48 for Operation Christmas Child!
Kimber emailed in the following tip:
The other day, when I saw the $10/$25 coupon for JCPenney posted here onMoneySavingMom.com, I wondered if I might be able to use that coupon to grab some items to finish filling my Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.
I remembered that I had received a similar coupon in the mail, so I dug through my coupons to find it – and discovered that I had been mailed a $10/25 coupon AND a $10/10 coupon! I knew I had to head to JCPenney!
I hit up the clearance rack and found some cute shirts for $4. But when they scanned, I was thrilled to see that they had been marked down to under $2 each! I picked up six shirts for a total of $11.97, so after the coupon, I ended up paying $1.97 for all six shirts!
I’m blessed to live near several major stores, so I hit up Michaels next to see if they had any fun clearance items. I found some cute sparkly hair bands for $0.19 per package. So after tax, I paid $1.03 for 5 packages (30 bands total!)
Finally, I ran to Target to pick up a few groceries and one more thing for my boxes. A few days ago, Dial had a coupon for $2 off 8-10-count packages of men’s Dial soap on their Facebook page. I used two and I printed off a $2/2 TQ from Swagbucks. The two packages of soap I purchased were $3.49 and $3.99; so after coupons, I paid just $1.48 for 16 bars of soap.
My Operation Christmas Child total for the day was $4.48 — and I brought home 6 shirts, 16 bars of soap, and 30 hair bands. Now I just can’t wait to ship off my shoeboxes that Swagbucks paid for!
Do It Yourself: Paperback Book Christmas Trees
KaylaAimee.com shows you how to make homemade paperback book Christmas trees.
OVER-SPENDING EVERY SINGLE MONTH?Grab these FREE Budgeting Sheets!
Click here to download!
10 Goals For This Week
Goals from two weeks ago:
Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals
1.Read 3 chapters of The Borrowers to Kathrynne. Read 3 chapters of Caddie Woodlawn with Kaitlynn. Read a few picture books with Silas.
2. Write a love note to Jesse.
3. Go on a date with Jesse.Personal Goals
4. Work on memorizing & reviewing Romans 1:1-23.
5. Run 10 miles.6. Read Daring Greatly, Leaving Yesterday, Bread & Wine, What’s So Amazing About Grace?, and Notes from a Blue Bike.
7. Write thank you’s.
Business Goals
8. Write op-eds for book launch.
9. Finish final book edits.
10. Write one post for the 52 Ways to Save $100 a Year series.
This week’s goals:
Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals
1.
2. Write a love note to Jesse.
Personal Goals
3. Work on memorizing & reviewing Romans 1:1-24.
4. Run 8 miles.
5. Read Daring Greatly, Leaving Yesterday, Bread & Wine, and What’s So Amazing About Grace?
6. Work for 30 minutes on my embroidery project.
Business Goals
7. Write three articles for book launch.
8. Finalize book launch team.
9. Write one post for the 52 Ways to Save $100 a Year series.
10. Put together media information for my book publicity team.
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.
This Week’s Menu Plan + One-Hour Freezer Cooking
It’s freezing cold here this week… which is making me want to spend all day in the kitchen! 🙂 Here’s our menu plan:
Breakfasts
Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit
Lunches
Lunch with friends — pizza, veggies, fruit
Mac & cheese, fruit
Snack-y lunch {veggies, cheese, yogurt, fruit, crackers, etc.}
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Leftovers x 2Snacks
Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Boiled eggs
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter CookiesFreezer Cooking in an Hour (I’ll share more how this goes later on this week!)
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Waffles
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies
Peanut Butter & Jelly MuffinsDinners
Slow Cooker Rice & Beans, fruit
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Waffles, scrambled eggs, fruit
Dinner with extended family x 2
Cheesy Chicken & Potato Chowder, Peanut Butter & Jelly Muffins, fruit
Dinner with friends
Dinner out
What’s on your menu this week? Tell us in the comments or leave a link to your menu plan post.
Gretchen’s $64 Grocery Shopping Trip and Weekly Menu Plan
Aldi Shopping Trip
I wanted to use the $10/$40 coupon that was available to print last week so I bought a lot more at Aldi than I usually do. I splurged on a few items that will be so nice to have around.
3 Frozen Strawberries – $2.29 each (We love smoothies for breakfast!)
1 Frozen Blueberries – $2.29
1 Cream Cheese – $0.99
1 Frozen Whipped Topping – $0.89
1 Frozen Peas – $0.95
1 gallon Milk – $1.99
1 Butter Quarters – $1.69
2 lbs Shredded Cheddar Cheese – $5.99
2 Pomegranates – $0.49 each
1 Salsa – $1.69
1 Parsley – $0.99
1 Chocolate Chips – $1.29
1 Sugar (4 lbs) – $1.89
1 Walnuts (1 lb) – $6.89
1 loaf Bread – $0.99
1 Pineapple – $1.29
1 Parmesan Cheese – $2.39
1 Celery – $1.29
1 Tortillas – $0.99
Used $10/$40 printable coupon (no longer available)
Total with tax ($3.03): $35.37
Dillons Shopping Trip
Items a part of the Mega Sale (Buy 10, Get $5 off):
2 Lever 2000 Body Wash – $2.99 each, used $3.75/2 coupon from the 10/13 RedPlum insert – $1.11 each, Got back $2 catalina (like $0.12 each after coupon and catalina)
4 Betty Crocker Cake Mix – $0.79 each, used 1 $0.75/2 printable and 1 $0.85/2 coupon from the 9/29 SmartSource insert – $0.39 each after coupons
2 Betty Crocker Mac & Cheese – $0.49, used 2 $0.25/1 coupon from the 10/20 SmartSource insert – $0.24 each after coupons
4 Campbell’s Soup – $0.49 each, used $0.40/4 coupon from the 11/3 SmartSource insert – $0.39 each after coupon (I usually always make my own from scratch but these will be nice to have handy during the holidays.)
4 Gerber Puffs – $1.39 each, used 2 $1/3 printable – $0.89 each after coupons (My toddler LOVES these and I was so excited to surprise him with some.)
Ronzoni Healthy Harvest, Garden Delight or Smart Taste Pasta – $0.69, used 2 $1/2 printable – $0.19 each after coupons
2 Green Giant Green Beans – $0.49 each
6 Powerbar – $0.49 each, used 2 $1.50/3 printable – Free after coupons
2 All Laundry Detergent – $2.49 each, used 2 $1/1 coupon from the 9/29 RedPlum insert – $1.49 each after coupons
Other Items
2 Lindt Chocolate – $2, used 2 $2/1 printable (no longer available) – Free after coupons
1 Kroger Ice Cream – $2.50
1 Kroger Dishwasher Detergent – $2.99 (not pictured)
1 Kroger Foil – $2.69 (not pictured)
5 Clif Bars – Marked down to $0.29 each
1 Cucumber – $0.75
1 Angel Soft Bath Tissue – $3.99
2.88 lbs Bananas @ $0.54/lb – $1.56
Used $5/$50 e-coupon (no longer available)
Total before coupons and sales: $82.67
Total with tax ($3.19) after coupons and sales: $28.57
Menu Plan
Breakfasts
Smoothies, Toast, Cereal, Oatmeal
Lunches
Tossed Salad, Cheese Quesadillas, Scrambled Eggs, Baked Sweet Potatoes (I got a few that were marked down at the Health Food store about a week ago.), Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches
Dinners
Chicken Noodle Casserole, 30 Minute Rolls, Green Beans, Fruit Salad
Spaghetti, Tossed Salad
Salad Bar, Baked Potatoes
Venison Stew (We were blessed with the meat from an entire deer a couple of weeks ago! My freezer is completely full with venison right now.) :), Banana Muffins
Leftovers, Peaches (I canned these earlier this year.)
Dinner out (using a gift card I earned from MyPoints)
Dinner with family
Being A Parent AND Pursuing A Dream
Guest post from Jim from Jim Woods Writes
When you become a parent, your dreams don’t just disappear. You might want to pursue a new career, become debt-free, grow in your relationship with God, get in shape, or maybe even all of the above. But you’re already overwhelmed — how do you pursue a dream while being a parent?
Here are five steps to help you achieve your dream.
1. Think about where you are.
Be realistic about your situation. Don’t hold back. Ask your spouse and your closest friends for their input.
Spend some time in silence and pray about it, too. It’s essential to know where you are before you map out a route to the destination.
2. Have a support system in place.
Get your spouse on the same page with you. If you are a single parent, reach out to family and friends.
Moms need support from other moms and dads need support from other dads. This could mean a phone call, meeting for coffee, or sending a text message. Don’t overlook the power of encouragement!
3. Pursue smaller, achievable goals.
A dream not broken down into specific goals is not clear enough. Life happens, time goes by, and you get off track. When you have laser-like focus, you get more done.
4. Remember life is seasonal.
If you have a newborn, sleeping patterns will be inconsistent, so you’ll have less time and energy for your dream. Over time, as your baby adjusts to a sleep schedule, you will too.
The same goes for when your family plays the “pass the cold around” game. It’s normal to feel discouraged. Use your support system to get a needed lift.
5. Don’t compare with others.
Comparison leads to jealousy. Focus on your attitude and take note when it gets negative. A great way to avoid falling into this trap is to compliment others.
Let’s apply these concepts in a real-life example:
Meet Mike and Jenny Willis. Mike is a full time engineer working 50 hours a week. Jenny stays at home with their two kids: Jimmy, 3 years old and potty training, and Jonny, 6 months old and teething. Mike and Jenny are $55,000 in debt. Their dream is becoming debt free.
1. Think about where you are.
Mike and Jenny are in a very challenging place right now. Until they get control of their finances, the debt will not just go away by itself. Mike is working a lot of hours and this must be taken into consideration too.
2. Have a support system in place.
Mike and Jenny need to support each other, both talking things through and coming to an agreement about getting out of debt. They also need to reach out to friends who can encourage them — another family who has become debt free could provide guidance.
3. Pursue smaller, achievable goals.
Working out a budget and then filling it in with actual numbers at month’s end would be a fantastic first step. There is an easy-to-use free website called Mint or a free spreadsheet template like these here. The next step could be knocking out the smallest debt owed.
4. Remember life is seasonal.
The financial situation will improve. Jonny will stop teething. Jimmy will soon be potty trained. Mike’s hours could decrease if he asks for help at work or finds another job that pays more or has less hours.
5. Don’t compare with others.
Mike and Jenny should keep their goal in mind and not be discouraged by the amazing meals and desserts in their Instagram feed.
Yes, pursuing a dream is difficult, but know it will be worth it. Remember good things do not happen overnight, so doing great things take even more time.
As you develop good habits, you’ll reshape your routine—and this will help you build momentum and grow. Challenges will come, but with support and intentionality, you can achieve amazing things.
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Jim Woods is a writer, dreamer, husband, and dad in Nashville TN. His passion lies in helping others turn ideas into action. He’d love to connect with you on his website or on Twitter @jimwoodswrites.
How to Eat on a Beans-and-Rice Budget when Your Husband Hates Beans
How to Eat on a Beans-and-Rice Budget when Your Husband Hates Beans
Guest post from Kelly of KellyWiggains.com
How do you make frugal meals if you can’t use beans?
When I first started menu planning, shopping sales at the grocery store, and learning about the grocery game, every single site, every blog post, every sample menu plan featured beans — and for good reason. Beans are incredibly healthy, incredibly cheap, and incredibly versatile.
One problem: My husband hates beans. He says eating beans is like eating “little packages of dirt.”
I’ve tried every variety, texture, and flavor combination in the bean repertoire, and I’ve yet to change his mind. So I’ve finally figured out ways I can still have a frugal budget and avoid serving beans to my husband.
1. Beans at Lunch
My husband may not like beans, but my boys and I love them (unfortunately, my daughter stands firm in the anti-bean club). I often make bean-and-cheese burritos, nachos, or beans and rice for lunch. I love making a huge batch of refried beans in the crockpot (using this recipe) and portioning the beans into freezer bags.
2. Add Beans Last
Anytime I make something requiring beans, I figure out a way to include the beans as an option. Mexican Stack-Up, Taco Salad, Chili, Build Your Own Burritos/Fajitas/Chalupas — these are all cheap and tasty meals, and I can make my kids’ plates heavy on the beans and my husband’s heavy on everything else.
3. Double the Rice
The second half of the beans-and-rice budget doesn’t have to play second fiddle. My husband loves rice, and I find ways to use rice as much as I can.
4. Blended Black Beans
I’ve added pureed black beans to our favorite brown bag burritos. My husband noticed the flavor, but he didn’t mind it as much as usual. If you have a bean-hater in your family, see if you can sneak some blended ones into your burrito filling.
I would also encourage you to find other frugal meals that make your family happy. My husband happily eats the following:
1. Roasted Chicken
I can get a whole chicken on sale for under a dollar a pound. My family loves roasted chicken as well as chicken salad, quesadillas, chicken and rice, and chicken tacos from the leftovers.
2. Breakfast for Dinner
One of our standbys — we usually make pancakes or waffles with a side of scrambled eggs and sometimes sausage or bacon when it’s on sale.
3. Hard-Boiled Eggs
Though my husband gets funny looks in the teachers’ lounge, one of his standard lunches includes 2 hard-boiled eggs, a hunk of cheddar cheese, an apple or pear, and some saltine crackers. Eggs are a super simple and healthy protein alternative for the bean-hater.
4. BBQ Chicken Sandwiches on Homemade Rolls
I buy bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts for about 99 cents a pound on sale. I can make these into boneless skinless chicken breasts using this method, or I can remove the skin from one breast and cook it in a crockpot with BBQ sauce. I shred the meat with two forks. I make up some of these 40 Minute Dinner Rolls, and we have a tasty and frugal meal using only one big chicken breast for my family of 5.
5. Chicken-Fried Rice
For this classic skillet meal, I use leftover rice, leftover chicken, a bag of frozen veggies, an egg and some soy sauce. My husband loves it!
Do you have a bean-hater in your family? If so, how do you still eat on a beans-and-rice budget?
Kelly blogs about everything from Literature to Living. An English teacher by trade, Kelly left the classroom a few years ago, but she still tries to convince those around her to read and write. She loves to connect her reading to the real world around her. Her blog is a place for book lovers and book skeptics alike, offering concise book recommendations, tips for reluctant readers, along with stories and observations about her life. Kelly writes at kellywiggains.com.