Money Saving Mom®

Classic View

Grid View

Shared Apr 11, 2013 comment

30 Day House Cleaning Challenge: Project #11

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 11, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

During the month of April, I’m encouraging my readers to participate in a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge (read more here, if you missed my announcement about this challenge last week). Every week day morning at 9 a.m., I’ll post the daily project and every evening around 6 p.m. EST, I’ll post an update and link-up.

April 11, 2013 Project

Your project for today is to clean your bathroom(s).

You can follow this list, if you find it helpful:

Set the timer for 20 minutes and put toilet cleaner in each of the toilet bowls and let it soak.

Remove any items that don’t belong in the bathroom, put away items that need to be put away in the bathroom, empty the trash.

Spray and wipe down the sink and tub.

Finish swishing and cleaning the toilet.

Shake the rugs outside (or throw them in the laundry) and mop or vacuum the floors.

Wipe down the outside of the cupboards and clean the mirror.

You’re done!

Or, you can choose a particular area in your bathroom(s) to work on. I’m planning to tackle my bathroom drawers. Because they need some serious help!

Then, come back here at 6 p.m. EST and I’ll show you pictures of my cleaning accomplishments for today and have a linky so you can link up yours, too!

Join in the Chatter

::Want to blog about this challenge? If you’re blogging through this challenge with me, be sure to leave your link to your direct post on the daily check-ins. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Pinterest Group, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

::Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? I’ll also be sharing some of my cleaning pictures on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #Cleanin30 to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

photo credit

This homemade tub and tile cleaner is SO easy to make, smells wonderfully, and works GREAT!

Shared Apr 10, 2013 comment

Homemade Tub & Tile Cleaner

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 10, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I was so, so happy with how this recipe from my friend Ruth (from Living Well, Spending Less) turned out.

It smells wonderfully. It is easy to make. And it works really well.

Just be sure that you mix it up in a larger bowl. You would think I would have learned my lesson about baking soda and vinegar! 🙂

I realized after mixing it up that I don’t have a funnel.

So I improvised and used my tea pot instead. Hey, it was a little non-conventional, but it worked!

And then I used the spilled cleaner to scrub my clean off my kitchen table.

Homemade Tub & Tile Cleaner

3/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 Tablespoons salt
3 Tablespoons dishwashing liquid
1/2 cup vinegar
10 drops essential oil (optional)

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour into a plastic container with a lid. You can use a spray bottle (that’s what I had), but since the mixture is thicker, I couldn’t get it to spray out of my cheap spray bottle.

To use: Shake and pour a small amount onto a rag or directly onto the area you are cleaning. Scrub and then rinse with water and wet rag.

Recipe from Living Well, Spending Less

See more homemade cleaner recipe ideas I’ve tried here.

Head on over to Ruth’s blog to see her incredible post with 10 homemade cleaning recipes that can all be made with just the same 10 ingredients in less than 10 minutes each. She even has a free printable recipes sheet.

Shared Apr 10, 2013 comment

Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 10, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Not only are these cookies super quick and easy to make, they are also more nutritious than a traditional cookie… and they taste amazing!

Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal No Bake Cookies

We love these healthier no-bake cookies!

The minute I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. A healthier version of the traditional chocolate oatmeal no bake cookies? Bring it on!

Ingredients for Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 cup oatmeal

Ingredient Notes:

My cookies were a still rather flat, so I think you could add even more coconut, quinoa, or oats if you wanted an even heartier cookie.

You could also replace the coconut oil with butter and I think that the cookies might harden up a little more. Mine were still pretty soft. But they are perfect straight from the freezer!

How to Make No-Bake Cookies

1. In a medicum size sauce pan, bring honey, coconut oil, and cocoa to a boil.

2. Turn down heat and summer for three minutes.

3. Remove pan from heat and stir in peanut butter, vanilla, coconut, quinoa, and oatmeal.

3. Scoop cookie-sized portions onto a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.

4. Refrigerate or freeze the entire cookie sheet until cookies are set.

5. Store cookies in a ziptop bag or airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer.

If you like this recipe, be sure to check out my Good For You Peanut Butter Fudge too!

Recipe

Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies

Author Crystal Paine

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 2

Ingredients

1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 cup oatmeal

Instructions

In a medicum size sauce pan, bring honey, coconut oil, and cocoa to a boil.
Turn down heat and summer for three minutes.
Remove pan from heat and stir in peanut butter, vanilla, coconut, quinoa, and oatmeal.
Scoop cookie-sized portions onto a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.
Refrigerate or freeze the entire cookie sheet until cookies are set.
Store cookies in a ziptop bag or airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer.

Notes

My cookies were a still rather flat, so I think you could add even more coconut, quinoa, or oats if you wanted an even heartier cookie.

You could also replace the coconut oil with butter and I think that the cookies might harden up a little more. Mine were still pretty soft. But they are perfect straight from the freezer!

Nutrition

Love this recipe?

Make sure to share and save it on your favorite platform below!

Pin Recipe

Shared Apr 10, 2013 comment

30 Day House Cleaning Challenge: Project #10 Update

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 10, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

During the month of April, I’m encouraging my readers to participate in a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge (read more here, if you missed my announcement about this challenge last week). Every week day morning at 9 a.m., I’ll post the daily project and every evening around 6 p.m. EST, I’ll post an update and link-up.

How did your Project #10 go?

I was pretty excited because I woke up to a clean living room — and it didn’t even know that was on the project list for today!

Apparently, someone’s been painting in the living room. 🙂

Cleaning the living room took all of 15 minutes — and I even dusted and cleaned under the couches. I almost felt bad it was so easy, so I went and tackled the suitcase that was half unpacked in my bedroom from the trip I came home from three days ago. Because I’m all organized like that. 😉

Join in the Chatter

::Want to blog about this challenge? If you’re blogging through this challenge with me, be sure to leave your link to your direct post on linky below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Pinterest Group, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

::Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? I’ll also be sharing some of my cleaning pictures on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #Cleanin30 to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

Shared Apr 10, 2013 comment

Success Is Only Rented and the Rent is Due Every Day

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 10, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

While in the midst of packing for my trip last week, I was listening to my new podcast “addiction” EntreLeadership. (Now I know why my husband has been telling me over and over that I must start listening to it!)

Chris LoCurto was interviewing Rory Vaden on the topic of procrastination. Truthfully, I’m not sure what all they said about procrastination because I got so stuck on this one phrase Rory said:

“Success is not owned; it’s rented — and the rent is due every day.”

Stop and ponder that for a minute. It’s powerful.

I think we often think that once we reach a certain level of success, we’ll have “made it”. But truly, like I talked about yesterday, there is never a point in which someone has truly “arrived”.

Think of those who are celebrities or in high-profile positions. Their success could be stripped from them at any time if they stop paying rent.

If a CEO of a multi-million dollar company checks out, starts making foolish decisions, or starts spending money without accounting for it, the company is eventually going to topple. And we’ve seen this happen many times in the last decade.
If a talented basketball player stops working out, eats whatever he wants, and doesn’t show up for practice, his career is going to be over very quickly.
If a highly-acclaimed blogger with a large audience stops blogging, doesn’t respond to emails, never posts on Facebook, and just disappears from the face of the earth for awhile, people are going to eventually stop coming to the blog.

If you want to be successful at anything in life, you have to be willing to pay the rent. You have to work hard, persevere, and keep at it even when you’d rather be doing something else.

Every day you have an opportunity to pay the rent toward your current or future success. You can choose to make little steps in the right direction — not eating that piece of cake if you’re working on losing weight, getting on the treadmill for 30 minutes, making that phone call, honing a skill, reaching out to someone, and writing 500 words on your manuscript.

Or, on the flip side, you can choose to make deductions from your rent payment on your future success. You can choose to stay home from the gym, procrastinate on that phone call, say “no” to that opportunity for growth that scares you too much, eat that extra brownie, or skip working on that side project.

The choice is yours. What are you doing today to pay your rent on the future?

{By the way, if you missed yesterday’s post, be sure to go check out it. There was some very thought-provoking discussion in the comments!}

photo credit; photo credit

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

Click here to sign up!

Shared Apr 10, 2013 comment

30 Day House Cleaning Challenge: Project #10

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 10, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

During the month of April, I’m encouraging my readers to participate in a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge (read more here, if you missed my announcement about this challenge last week). Every week day morning at 9 a.m., I’ll post the daily project and every evening around 6 p.m. EST, I’ll post an update and link-up.

April 10, 2013 Project

Your project for today is to deep clean the living room.

Here’s what I’m planning to do:

Set the timer for 20 minutes and pick up and put away all items that are out of place. (Bonus: find 7 items to get rid of.)

Dust the furniture, wall-hangings, and knick-knacks.

Wipe down the baseboards.

Vacuum/sweep the room. (Bonus: use an attachment on the vacuum to vacuum around the baseboards and vacuum the furniture.)

Clean fingerprints on the windows.

Bonus: Spot-clean the carpets and walls.

You’re done!

You can follow along with my list — or do whatever constitutes “deep cleaning the living room” to you. There is no one right way to do this.

Then, come back here at 6 p.m. EST and I’ll show you pictures of my cleaning accomplishments for today and have a linky so you can link up yours, too!

Join in the Chatter

::Want to blog about this challenge? If you’re blogging through this challenge with me, be sure to leave your link to your direct post on the daily check-ins. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Pinterest Group, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

::Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? I’ll also be sharing some of my cleaning pictures on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #Cleanin30 to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

photo credit

Shared Apr 9, 2013 comment

30 Day House Cleaning Challenge: Project #9 Update

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 9, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

During the month of April, I’m encouraging my readers to participate in a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge (read more here, if you missed my announcement about this challenge last week). Every week day morning at 9 a.m., I’ll post the daily project and every evening around 6 p.m. EST, I’ll post an update and link-up.

How did your Project #9 go?

So, I told you I was planning to clean the girls’ room. And I totally was.

Until I walked into my closet.

Ahem.

Remember how I told you that I really need a Put-Er-Away-Er? Yes, here’s definite proof that I wasn’t joking, was I?!

After lots of reorganizing, going through stuff and finding things to get rid of and moving other things to where they are actually supposed to reside — like in the basement and elsewhere in the house! — my closet is actually fairly presentable again.

And I even vacuumed it. 🙂

Join in the Chatter

::Want to blog about this challenge? If you’re blogging through this challenge with me, be sure to leave your link to your direct post on linky below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Pinterest Group, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

::Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? I’ll also be sharing some of my cleaning pictures on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #Cleanin30 to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

Shared Apr 9, 2013 comment

A Quick & Easy Method for Freezing Fresh Herbs

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 9, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Ever buy a bunch of cilantro when you only need a small bit for a recipe? Or do you plant an herb garden that always overproduces?

Here’s a very quick & easy way to freeze those fresh herbs for later use:

Wash, remove stems, and chop the herbs.

Put roughly 1/2 to 1 Tablespoon of the chopped herbs into ice cube trays (I didn’t measure; I just plopped some into each cube). Fill the ice cube tray with water and freeze.

Remove cubes and place in an airtight freezer bag for up to two months. To use in recipes, just pull out the necessary amount of cubes and add to your soup, stew, sauce, etc. If need be, thaw first and then add to your recipe.

How simple is that? It’s a great way to preserve fresh herbs — and to not let any go to waste before you have a chance to use them!

Shared Apr 9, 2013 comment

Be Discontent… With the Status Quo

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 9, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Recently, Jon Acuff shared the following on his blog:

A few months ago, Dave Ramsey celebrated 20 years on the radio. That is the equivalent of 834 regular years.

Radio is that tough, that cut throat, and that difficult. Suffice it to say, 20 years is an incredible accomplishment.

During a Q&A session, someone asked Dave a question. They said, “What was the moment you realized that you had arrived?”

Dave’s answer surprised everyone in the crowd. Without missing a beat, he said, “We haven’t arrived yet. There’s still so much we need to do. We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.”

Dave Ramsey leads a company of hundreds. He inspires millions through his radio show, books, websites, and courses every single week.

Yet, he clearly doesn’t feel like he’s made it. And I think there’s a lesson here for all of us.

We should never, ever feel like we’ve arrived. There are always many more things we can learn, many more ways we can improve.

The day we feel like we’ve “arrived” is the day we begin to die as a person.

Always be looking for ways to grow as a person. Constantly challenge yourself to move a little bit further outside your comfort zone.

Learn new things. Try new recipes. Take a class on a new-to-you subject. Read widely. Meet new people. Ask questions. Challenge yourself to run farther or workout longer. Engage in thought-provoking discussions.

Never be content with the status quo. You were made for more.

What’s one new thing you’re trying or learning right now?

photo credit; photo credit

Shared Apr 9, 2013 comment

30-Day House Cleaning Challenge: Project #9

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 9, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

During the month of April, I’m encouraging my readers to participate in a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge (read more here, if you missed my announcement about this challenge last week). Every week day morning at 9 a.m., I’ll post the daily project and every evening around 6 p.m. EST, I’ll post an update and link-up.

April 9, 2013 Project

Your project for today is to surface clean your bedroom(s).

If you have multiple bedrooms in your house, you can choose whichever one most needs a good surface cleaning. I’m planning tackle the girls’ room today because it needs some work!

Here’s what I’m planning to do:

Set the timer for 20 minutes and pick up and put away all items that are out of place. (Bonus: find 7 items to get rid of.)

Pull out any items under the bed that don’t below under the bed and make the bed (wash sheets/bedding, if needed).

Vacuum/sweep the room. (Bonus: use an attachment on the vacuum to vacuum around the baseboards and vacuum under the bed.)

Clean fingerprints on the windows.

Bonus: Spot-clean the carpets and walls.

You’re done!

You can follow along with my list — or do whatever constitutes “surface cleaning the bedroom” to you. There is no one right way to do this.

Then, come back here at 6 p.m. EST and I’ll show you pictures of my cleaning accomplishments for today and have a linky so you can link up yours, too!

Join in the Chatter

::Want to blog about this challenge? If you’re blogging through this challenge with me, be sure to leave your link to your direct post on the daily check-ins. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Pinterest Group, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

::Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? I’ll also be sharing some of my cleaning pictures on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #Cleanin30 to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

photo credit

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

Click here to download!

Shared Apr 8, 2013 comment

2013 Goals: March Update

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 8, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

While I didn’t cross off any goals in March, I did make some good headway on a number of goals. Those little bite-sized chunks that I’m tackling on a daily and weekly basis will add up over time!

If you’re brand-new to goal-setting, be sure to read my post on How to Change Your Life By Setting Goals.

Here’s my list of 25 Goals for 2013 and an update on how I did in March:

Personal Goals

Read through the Bible in a year using this plan. {I’m on track with this so far.}
Run in at least one 5K race. {We signed up for one in June — yay!}
~~Complete the Couch to 10K program.~~
Memorize Romans 1 and 2 with Jesse. {This has been slow going, but I almost have the first 10 verses from Romans 1 memorized.}
Wake up by 6 a.m. and exercise, shower, and dress by 8 a.m. every day. {Still working on this! The Early to Rise Challenge really helped!}
Read 150 books/ebooks {See my list of 48 books I’m for sure planning to read here — I’ve read 46 books/ebooks so far in 2013, so I’m on a good track to hit my goal!}

Marriage Goals

Read 3 marriage books.
Finish reading through the Psalms together as a couple.
Have overnight stay (sans children) at least every other month. {Jesse & I went to the Killer Tribes conference together in March.}
Go on at least one date per month. {Done in March.}

Mothering Goals

Continue memorizing together from the Grace and Truth memory book.
~~Ice-skating lessons for all three children during the first quarter of 2013.~~
Swimming lessons for all three children during the summer.
Finish at least 37 read-aloud books. {We’ve finished 16 books so far this year, so we’re on a good track here.}

Ministry/Friendships/Extended Family Goals

Weekly accountability meetings with a friend.
Get together with friends for a playdate or lunch at least once a month. {Done once in March.}
Continue being involved in our local church, couple’s group, and blogging accountability group.
Continue with weekly get-togethers with both sides of our extended family.

Financial Goals

Use a portion of the proceeds from my next book project to fund a well project.
~~Fund our Child Survival Program for 2013.~~ {Done — yay!}
Buy a new bedroom set.
Invest in another rental property.

Business/Blogging Goals

Release two new ebooks.
~~Attend one speaking conference.~~ {I attended the She Speaks Intensive in January.}
~~Finish and submit the manuscript for my next book.~~

photo credit

Did you set goals for 2013?

If so, tell us how you’re doing in the comments or leave a link to your blog post update below. Let’s encourage one another to live lives of intention and purpose!

Shared Apr 8, 2013 comment

30-Day House Cleaning Challenge: Project #8 Update

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 8, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

During the month of April, I’m encouraging my readers to participate in a 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge (read more here, if you missed my announcement about this challenge last week). Every week day morning at 9 a.m., I’ll post the daily project and every evening around 6 p.m. EST, I’ll post an update and link-up.

How did your Project #8 go?

We clean our floors on a very regular basis, so today’s project wasn’t too much of a challenge — and truthfully, I skipped some of the floors because they didn’t need to be cleaned (it also helped that we were out of town all weekend and came home to a clean house!)

Each of the children are responsible for vacuuming one room of the house each day. Silas vacuums his room. Kaitlynn vacuums the girls’ room. And Kathrynne vacuums the living room.

Silas thinks that vacuuming is really cool.

He’ll often beg to vacuum more rooms… which I’m happy to let him do!

This is the typical homeschool aftermath in the kitchen every day. And actually, this was after Kathrynne had already cleaned up most of her stuff and Kaitlynn’s stuff.

At least there’s a lot of creativity and work going on… er, that’s what I try to constantly tell myself as the messes multiply during the day! 🙂

Kathrynne and I worked on the kitchen together. She’s always willing to help out whenever I’m working on a project and is my child who is a very focused, hard worker.

At 8 years old, Kathrynne is such a great girl. She loves all things related to LEGOs, spies, and adventure — and Jesse and I are thrilled to see her personality and interests blossom.

Even though many of her interests are much different than mine, she and I are really close — sharing lots of laughs and deep discussions throughout the day. I love her so much!

Kathrynne swept the dirt into piles and I went around with the dustpan and swept up the piles.

{Why yes, those are my pajama pants! I gave myself a PJ Day today after our busy weekend in Cincinnati. It’s nice to have a “down day” every now and then. :)}

The end result.

Join in the Chatter

::Want to blog about this challenge? If you’re blogging through this challenge with me, be sure to leave your link to your direct post on linky below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge Pinterest Group, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

::Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? I’ll also be sharing some of my cleaning pictures on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #Cleanin30 to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

Shared Apr 8, 2013 comment

This week’s menu plan {It’s the perfect week for some chocolate-themed baking!}

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 8, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I think I’m on a chocolate baking kick this week (what’s new?!) Can’t wait to get to baking — and eating. 😉

Here’s our plan for this week:

Breakfasts

Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit

Lunches

Mac & cheese, fruit
Snack-y lunch
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Leftovers x 3

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Whole Food No Bake Cookies

Pinterest Experiment {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

The Easiest Loaf of Bread You’ll Ever Bake

Freezer Cooking {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Whole Food No Bake Cookies
Chocolate Peanut Butter Energy Bars
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Quick Bread
Freezer-Friendly Pizza Dough

Dinners

Dinner with extended family
Mexican Chicken Lime Soup, fruit, tossed salad
Bean & Cheese Burritos, fruit, veggies
Build Your Own Haystacks, fruit, rice
Black Bean & Corn-Topped Potatoes,
Homemade Pizza, fruit, veggies
Dinner out

What’s on your menu this week? Share details and/or your link to your menu plan in the comments.

Shared Apr 8, 2013 comment

10 goals for this week

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 8, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

It was so wonderful to meet many of you at the Cincinnati Homeschool Convention this weekend! Thank you for coming to my sessions, coming up to the booth, and taking time to chat with me. I was blessed by each of you who did!

Last week’s goals

Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals

1. Read 20 pages of Rascal by Sterling North aloud to the children. ~~Finish reading Paddington Abroad with Kathrynne, read three chapters of Life With Lily with Kaitlynn, finish reading The Adventure of Laura and Jack with Silas.~~

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

Personal Goals

3. Memorize Romans 1:9-10.

4. Exercise five times. {I failed miserably at this one!}

5. Finish reading ~~Uneclipsing the Son~~, A Charlotte Mason Education, ~~Sleep: It Does a Family Good~~, One Question, and ~~The Chance~~.

Homemaking Goals

~~6. Follow the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge.~~

7. Work on embroidery project.

Business Goals

~~8. Tweak & practice my talks for the Cincinnati Homeschool Convention.~~

~~9. Speak at the Cincinnati Homeschool Convention.~~

10. Finish all my book edits per my editor’s suggestions.

This week’s goals:

Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals

1. Read 20 pages of Rascal by Sterling North aloud to the children. Read four chapters of Paddington at Large with Kathrynne, read four chapters of Life With Lily with Kaitlynn, read four chapters Little House Christmas Stories with Silas.

2. Write a love note to Jesse.

Personal Goals

3. Memorize Romans 1:9-10.

4. Exercise five times.

My book stack for this week

5. Finish reading: One Question, While We’re Far Apart, 24/6, Start, and When the Game is Over It All Goes Back in the Box.

Homemaking Goals

6. Follow the 30-Day House Cleaning Challenge.

7. Work on my embroidery project for at least 30 minutes.

8. Try three new homemade cleaning recipes.

Business Goals

9. Finish tweaking recipes for my new recipes page.

10. Finish all my manuscript edits per my editor’s suggestions.

How did you do on last week’s goals? What are your goals for this week? I’d love to have you share your progress on last week’s goals and your goals for this coming week in the comments. Of, if you’ve blogged about it, leave your direct link below. Let’s cheer each other on to live purposeful and productive lives!

You can download a free customizable weekly goal-planning sheet here.

Shared Apr 8, 2013 comment

Free samples in my mailbox: Venus razor, Nescafe Memento samples, Gevalia K-cups, book by Randy Singer, plus more!

Published: by Crystal Paine on April 8, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

We got a few fun free samples in our mailbox last week:

::Free book by Randy Singer from points accredited through Tyndale Rewards

::Free Venus razor

::Free GUM product samples

::Free Nexcare samples and a coupon

::Free Nescafe Memento samples and a coupon

::Free Nivea for Men sample

::Free Gevalia K-Cup samples

What freebies have arrived in your mailbox this week?

By the way, if you want to start getting great freebies in your mailbox, just start signing up for the freebies I post every day that interest you. Within 4-6 weeks, your mailbox will start filling up with great freebies!

Summer Bucket List

Summer Bucket List

FREE Summer Bucket List!!

April 11, 2013 Project

Join in the Chatter

Homemade Tub & Tile Cleaner

We love these healthier no-bake cookies!

Ingredients for Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies

Ingredient Notes:

How to Make No-Bake Cookies

Healthy Chocolate Oatmeal No-Bake Cookies

Ingredients 1x2x3x

Instructions

Notes

Nutrition

Love this recipe?

FREE One Week Menu Plan!

Join in the Chatter

“Success is not owned; it’s rented — and the rent is due every day.”

The choice is yours. What are you doing today to pay your rent on the future?

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

April 10, 2013 Project

Join in the Chatter

Join in the Chatter

The day we feel like we’ve “arrived” is the day we begin to die as a person.

What’s one new thing you’re trying or learning right now?

April 9, 2013 Project

Join in the Chatter

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

Personal Goals

Marriage Goals

Mothering Goals

Ministry/Friendships/Extended Family Goals

Financial Goals

Business/Blogging Goals

Did you set goals for 2013?

Join in the Chatter

Breakfasts

Lunches

Snacks

Pinterest Experiment {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Freezer Cooking {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Dinners

Footer

Sign up for myHot Deals Newsletter

Ingredients