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Shared Mar 19, 2013 comment

Early to Rise Challenge: Don’t Live Today on Accident

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 19, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the Early to Rise Challenge! Throughout the month of March, I’m challenging myself and my readers to make the most of their mornings. So every week day morning at 9 a.m. EST, I’m posting a short Early to Rise post. I’ll share a few of my thoughts on the day’s passage from Early to Rise, tell you what time I got up that morning, and encourage you to leave a comment to tell us what time you got up and how you’re doing on the challenge.

Don’t Live Today on Accident

You have a choice today: you can stumble through life just trying to make it through and survive the day. Or, you can live today on purpose.

Which option do you think will give you more fulfillment and productivity? Living each day with intention will give you much more energy and passion for life, not to mention that you’ll probably end up doing a lot more things that matter!

Andy mentions in today’s Early to Rise passage making out a framework for your day. I love this and it’s something that I do every single day. It’s likely the Type A in me, but I just can’t stand to live my days without some sort of plan in place. 🙂

So, either before I go to bed at night or first thing in the morning, I write out the to-do’s for the day and create a simple order for the day. I write a targeted time beside each item on the list and this helps to keep me on track. However, I don’t feel constrained to stick exactly with this time; it’s more of a ballpark figure.

The structure for most of each day is somewhat similar around here, but because my husband and I are both self-employed, there are variables and no day is exactly alike. So, instead of trying to stick with a scheduled formula of sorts for each and every day, making a fresh plan each morning has been really helpful for this season of our lives.

Do you have a plan for today? If not, take 5 minutes right now to make out a simple game plan. The little bit of time you invest in this will likely pay off in big dividends throughout the day!

Related post: My Top 3 Tips for Getting Stuff Done

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

I got another great night’s sleep last night! Went to bed at 9:30 p.m. and got up — without an alarm! — a little after 5:40 a.m. My phone was dead, so I had to charge it up before I could get a picture of the clock. 🙂

What time did you get up? Leave a comment and let us know!

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 for today below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the Early to Rise Group Board on my Pinterest page, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? Each week day morning on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account, I’ll be posting a picture of my alarm clock as public accountability. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #EarlytoRise to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

Shared Mar 18, 2013 comment

10 Goals for this Week

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 18, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I had a wonderful time at the Southeast Homeschool Convention last week. It was wonderful to get to meet some of you and we were so blessed by the southern hospitality there.

Last week’s goals:

Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals

1. Read three chapters of Vinegar Boy: Encounter Christ Through the Dramatic Story of Vinegar Boy aloud at lunch. ~~Read three chapters of More About Paddington with Kathrynne, read three chapters of Anne of Green Gables with Kaitlynn, read three chapters of The Courage of Sarah Noble to Silas.~~

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

Personal Goals

3. Memorize Romans 1:9-10.

~~4. Exercise five times.~~

~~5. Continue with the Early to Rise Challenge.~~

6. Finish reading Uneclipsing the Son, A Charlotte Mason Education, ~~Sparkly Green Earrings~~, Sleep: It Does a Family Good, and The Chance.

Homemaking Goals

~~7. Do a Freezer Cooking in an Hour session.~~

~~8. Work on embroidery project.~~

Business Goals

~~9. Go to South Carolina and speak at the Southeast Homeschool Convention.~~

10. Finish updating the recipes for our new recipe page launch.

This week’s goals:

Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals

1. Finish Vinegar Boy: Encounter Christ Through the Dramatic Story of Vinegar Boy aloud at lunch. Read four chapters of More About Paddington with Kathrynne, read four chapters of Life With Lily with Kaitlynn, read three chapters of The Adventure of Laura and Jack to Silas.

2. Write a love note to Jesse.

Personal Goals

3. Memorize Romans 1:9-10.

4. Exercise five times.

5. Continue with the Early to Rise Challenge.

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

Homemaking Goals

7. Do a Freezer Cooking in an Hour session.

8. Work on embroidery project.

Business Goals

9. Go to Atlanta and speak at the Killer Tribes Conference.

10. Finish updating the recipes for our new recipe page launch.

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 Mar 18, 2013 comment

This week’s menu

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 18, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Pull Apart Rolls

Breakfasts

Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit

Lunches

Mac & cheese, fruit
Snack-y lunch
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Pancakes, eggs, fruit
Leftovers x 2

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn

Freezer Cooking in an Hour (stay tuned on Thursday when I’ll share a play-by-play on how this goes!)

Pull Apart Oat Rolls
Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Pancakes
IHOP-Knock-Off Pancakes

Dinners

Dinner with extended family
Crockpot Fried Rice, fruit
Bean & Cheese Burritos (recipe coming later this week), fruit, veggies
Steak, Baked Oven Fries, The Frugal Girl’s French Bread, fruit, veggies
IHOP-Knock-Off Pancakes, fruit, scrambled eggs
Slow Cooker Lentil & Black Bean Soup, Pull Apart Oat Rolls, fruit
Dinner out

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

Shared Mar 18, 2013 comment

How to Write and Sell eBooks

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 18, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Kathy of Kathy Hutto

In today’s market, eBooks are hot commodity. With Kindles and iPads taking the place of laptops and personal computers, you can bet that eBook sales are through the roof.

You might be surprised to learn that it isn’t hard at all to write an eBook. If you have a good idea for a book or just want to find out what is selling and then explore ideas for writing your own, this article is for you. It will walk you through a step-by-step process for creating (and then selling) your eBook.

It couldn’t be easier using the techniques listed here… and best of all, it’s possible to create your own eBook for free using the resources listed and links provided to you here.

Microsoft Office PowerPoint

One tool you can use to write your eBook is Microsoft Office PowerPoint. PowerPoint is super easy if you plan to add a lot of graphic elements to your book. It allows you to move around the objects and manipulate them much easier than Word does.

Here’s what you do:

Open PowerPoint. You will be taken to a new slide show.
Remove the title and text boxes that automatically are there.
Design your cover.
Click New Slide (under the Home tab) and begin with your first page.
Continue adding slides for the number of pages you need.

One Feature that I like is under the Tab Insert. It’s the Word Art button. It allows you add a little more pizzazz to your words. This is great for the cover of your eBook.

Your PowerPoint presentation will automatically be horizontal (landscape). To change it to vertical (portrait), you will need to hit the Design tab and then Slide Orientation. You can choose landscape or portrait.

While you are working on your book, if you want to see what it’s going to look like, just hit the View tab and then Slide Show. You can click through to see the entire project and escape if you want to end the show.

Play around while on the Insert tab. You can add clip art, pictures, shapes, smart art, and charts. When you are ready to save your eBook, click Save As and PDF.

Free Images

Images like photographs and clip art will be important to your eBook. Look for public domain images that are free.

My favorite site for photographs is Public Domain Pictures (I also really like the Illustrations section of this site.)

My favorite site for clip art is WP Clip Art

If you are writing a How-To eBook, you can take a screen shot of whatever you are working on.

A Good Cover Design

The key to a good eBook is having a professional looking cover design. Photographs often make the best cover designs, and it’s best if you find one that is vertical. You will need to stretch it to fit the entire page.

Promote Your eBook

There are many places that you might sell your eBook. Here are a few places I’ve had success selling mine.

EBay

The very simplest way to sell your eBook is through EBay! Set up an eBay account if you don’t have one already. Be sure to include in the product description that the auction is for an eBook in a PDF format. You can email the buyer the eBook file (zipped if it is large), once you receive payment.

Currclick

If you want your book to reach the homeschool market, then Currclick is the way to go! You will need to create an account and send in your title for review. Once approved, you can upload other titles.

Kindle Direct Self Publishing

If you want to sell products that will be purchased by those with Kindles, then you can follow the very simple steps for setting up a free account and selling them here.

Teachers Pay Teachers

If you want to sell products to the teaching market (as in school teachers), then you may want to check this site out. Follow the steps for creating an account and uploading your products. The first product must be free, so choose wisely. You want it to be a good product to begin building confidence in your items, but you want your best products to earn you a profit.

If you’d like to learn more about creating and selling eBooks, be sure to download your free copy of How to Create and Sell eBooks the Simple Way.

Kathy Hutto is a Christian, wife, and homeschooling mother of two. She loves serving the Lord and has a heart for reaching families with devotions and resources that will enable them to disciple their children at home. She strives to “bloom where she’s planted” and maintains a blog where you can find family devotions, Sunday School ideas, homeschooling resources, recipes and more. She writes curricula which she sells through TeachersPayTeachers and Currclick.

photo source

Shared Mar 18, 2013 comment

Early to Rise Challenge: Choose Who You Will Be Today

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 18, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the Early to Rise Challenge! Throughout the month of March, I’m challenging myself and my readers to make the most of their mornings. So every week day morning at 9 a.m. EST, I’m posting a short Early to Rise post. I’ll share a few of my thoughts on the day’s passage from Early to Rise, tell you what time I got up that morning, and encourage you to leave a comment to tell us what time you got up and how you’re doing on the challenge.

Choose Who You Will Be Today

Who is the only person you can change?

Yourself.

You can inspire other people, you can motivate other people, you can nurture and mentor other people. But ultimately, you can only change YOU.

And that’s what today’s reading in the Early to Rise book is all about.

Every day, you wake up and you have the opportunity to choose your attitude. You can choose to be a victim or a victor. You can choose to be a complainer or a conqueror.

You choose your attitude. And your attitude sets the whole tone for your day — and your life.

So choose wisely.

What attitude are you choosing for your day today? Me: I’m choosing to be cheerful, flexible, and energetic as a wife and mom today. I might not end up getting everything done on the to-do list, but I want to look back at the end of today and be happy with the time I invested in loving and blessing my family. You?

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

I went to bed around 8 p.m. last night and I got up a little before 5:45 a.m. this morning. Felt so good to get in a very good night’s rest after a full weekend!

What time did you get up? Leave a comment and let us know!

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 for today below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the Early to Rise Group Board on my Pinterest page, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? Each week day morning on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account, I’ll be posting a picture of my alarm clock as public accountability. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #EarlytoRise to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

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

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Shared Mar 16, 2013 comment

Living Abroad – an Extreme Approach to Saving!

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 16, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Genevieve

Although we had six months to prepare, the shift to one income after having our first baby was a total shock to the system.

We were in a situation not unlike many other families out there. We had a new business which was only making a little bit of money, but had so much potential that we didn’t want to “shelf it” while we had a family. And as a new mom, I didn’t want to go back to work to make ends meet. So we came up with a rather novel solution.

We packed up the family and moved to Cambodia!

We were fortunate that our business didn’t require us to have a physical presence anywhere. Our business was small, but the income was mostly reliable. We realized would make the same money no matter where we lived, so while we were only making ends meet in an expensive Western consumer society, we live a wonderful lifestyle with our kids abroad.

Our business is 100% online — we sell name change kits to new brides — but even if you don’t have an online business, moving overseas might still be possible for your family!

Developing countries have large expat communities of teachers, hairdressers, architects, graphic designers, bloggers, writers and so many other professions. These people can make decent money abroad. In some cases you only need to work 20 hours a week as you’re making the same hourly wage as if you would in the states. As an added bonus, it’s wonderful way to watch your children grow up in a multi-cultural society.

Interested? Here are some suggestions on how to gear up for a move:

Freelancer? Reach out to all your business contacts and see if any can commit to a monthly work load. Consider charging less for the added flexibility, and you’re more likely to get an ongoing contract.

Online business? All you need is a decent internet connection. Even rural South America has decent internet these days. Get a US toll free number that diverts to Skype so you can provide customer service anywhere

Teacher or hairdresser? Most capital cities have a thriving expat community and you can make decent money serving expat clients.

No special skills? Become a freelancer or create your own blog with your adventures abroad. Sites like Freelance.com and Odesk allow you to find work in data entry writing, customer service, and more. Virtually all the jobs posted on these sites have no geographic requirements.

Benefits of Living Abroad

Cheaper cost of living. Rent, food, and travel, is all considerably cheaper in developing countries.

Affordable, quality childcare. If you’re a working mom, you can find an abundance of wonderful caring nannies in many countries. With wages from around $60 per month part-time, it’s an affordable investment

More time with family. Especially if you work from home with a nanny. Be with your kids when you want, and work when it suits you.

Consume less. Embrace a simpler lifestyle. Consumerism is hard to come by anywhere outside of North America and Europe.

Healthier lifestyle. So many of the fruits and veggies sold in the US are months old before they hit the supermarket. Developing countries are flushed with affordable and fresh fruit and vegetables, often organically grown.

De-stress. With finances less of a worry and more time with your kids, your mental state of mind is sure to improve.

Cheaper healthcare. Cost and quality of healthcare vary wildly depending where you live, but nowhere is more expensive than the US. If you have an existing health condition, check the quality and prices of hospitals where you plan to move.

Life experience. This is something that money can’t buy. Our 2-year-old is a budding tri-linguist. We love learning about other cultures!

Affordable travel. If you need a break from your break, it can be very affordable to travel to neighboring countries and get a real glimpse of how others live.

Yes, there are some drawbacks of living so far from home — Grandparents missing out is the biggest — but we will be living back home soon enough and all this will be a wonderful memory.

If we were back on the money treadmill in the states we wouldn’t have much time for socializing with friends and family in any case, and we would be stressed out all the time.

We are three years into our five-year adventure and haven’t looked back!

Genevieve Dennis is a reformed corporate stress head. She lives with her husband, Miss 2, and Miss Newborn in rural Cambodia. She and her husband run Easy Name Change in the mornings, then swim, play and socialize in the afternoons.

Shared Mar 15, 2013 comment

Homemade Kale Chips

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 15, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Believe it or not, I’ve never purchased kale before — at least not that I can remember. But when I found the bag of washed and chopped kale marked down to $1.29, I figured it was high time we try kale.

I asked on my Facebook Page for ideas of what to do with it — knowing that you all would steer me in the right direction. And you did!

I decided on the kale chips, mostly because they were so simple and because I already had all of the ingredients on hand. These were so easy to make — especially since the kale was pre-washed and chopped!

And all of my family was impressed with how yummy they were. In fact, Jesse turned up his nose at first, but then I convinced him to just try a little piece. Soon, he convinced all the kids to try these, too.

They aren’t anything like typical chips, but they sure do pack a nutritional punch.

Homemade Kale Chips

1 bunch kale, rinsed, thoroughly dried, and chopped (remove thick stems)
olive oil
sea salt

Spread the kale evenly on two cookie sheets. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.

Bake a 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes until the edges are browned but not burnt.

Recipe from AllRecipes.com

Shared Mar 15, 2013 comment

Pull Apart Dinner Rolls

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 15, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

In my opinion, not many things in the food realm are better than homemade bread. It can take an average weeknight dinner into the gourmet category — and these rolls are no exception!

You’ll Love This Oatmeal Rolls Recipe

Seriously, is there anything better than the smell (and taste) of fresh bread coming out of your oven?

This is a simple, healthy dinner roll recipe that my family really enjoys… and I love how quickly they can be whipped up, thanks to the help of my faithful bread machine.

This recipe makes a large 9″x13″ pan of 24 rolls, but that isn’t a problem at my house considering how fast they disappear!

Ingredients for Oatmeal Rolls

2 ¼ c. very warm water (110ºF)
3 Tbsp. butter, melted
2 Tbsp. honey
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 ½ c. quick oats
1 c. whole wheat flour
3 ½ c. all-purpose flour
2 packages instant active yeast (1 ½ Tbsp.)
Melted butter for tops of baked rolls

Oatmeal Rolls Recipe Substitutions

The addition of oatmeal and whole wheat flour gives these tall, fluffy rolls a hearty boost! I sometimes substitute wheat germ or wheat bran in place of some of the whole wheat flour for a little different twist.

How to Make Pull Apart Rolls

To Make Dough in a Bread Machine:

1. Combine all ingredients in a 2-lb bread machine in the order listed.

2. Run the dough cycle (if your machine has an option of dough cycles, choose the “short” one).

To Make Dough In a Stand Mixer:

1. Add warm water and yeast to the bowl of your stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Let sit for 5 minutes to activate the yeast.

2. Add remaining ingredients and mix until a sticky dough ball forms.

3. Continue mixing for 3-5 minutes.

4. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place for 45 minutes.

To Make Rolls:

1. Punch down dough and gather into one large ball.

2. Divide dough into 24 even pieces and roll them into balls with floured hands (you can weigh them if you want them to be perfectly uniform.

3. Place dough balls into a greased 9″x13″ pan, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes.

4. While rolls rise, preheat over to 350ºF.

5. Once rolls have risen, bake them in the preheated oven for 18-22 minutes, or until golden brown (cover with foil if necessary the last few minutes to prevent over-browning).

6. Remove rolls from over and lightly brush the tops of warm rolls with melted butter.

7. Serve warm with more butter!

How to Store Leftover Oat Rolls

Let rolls cool to room temperature and store any leftovers in a zip-top bag for 48 hours.

How to Freeze Pull Apart Dinner Rolls

If you want to make these in advance (or need to store leftovers for longer than a couple of days), just pop them in a zip-top bag or tightly sealed food storage container and freeze.

Pull out as many as you want, let them defrost at room temperature, and you can even pop them in the microwave for a few seconds if you want to eat your rolls warm! They reheat beautifully!

These rolls are the perfect accompaniment to just about any meal.

If you love homemade bread, but don’t have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen – this recipe is for you!

Recipe

Oatmeal Rolls Recipe

Author Brigette

Course Bread, Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Rise Time 1 30

Ingredients

2 ¼ c. very warm water 110ºF
3 Tbsp. butter melted
2 Tbsp. honey
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 ½ c. quick oats
1 c. whole wheat flour
3 ½ c. all-purpose flour
1 ½ Tbsp. instant active yeast 2 packets
Melted butter for tops of baked rolls

Instructions

To Make Dough in a Bread Machine:

Combine all ingredients in a 2-lb bread machine in the order listed.
Run the dough cycle (if your machine has an option of dough cycles, choose the “short” one).

To Make Dough In a Stand Mixer:

Add warm water and yeast to the bowl of your stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Let sit for 5 minutes to activate the yeast.
Add remaining ingredients and mix until a sticky dough ball forms.
Continue mixing for 3-5 minutes.
Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes.

To Make Rolls:

Punch down dough and gather into one large ball.
Divide dough into 24 even pieces and roll them into balls with floured hands (you can weigh them if you want them to be perfectly uniform.
Place dough balls into a greased 9″x13″ pan, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes.
While rolls rise, preheat over to 350ºF.
Once rolls have risen, bake them in the preheated oven for 18-22 minutes, or until golden brown (cover with foil if necessary the last few minutes to prevent over-browning).
Remove rolls from over and lightly brush the tops of warm rolls with melted butter.
Serve warm with more butter!

Notes

These freeze beautifully!

Nutrition

Love this recipe?

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

Pin Recipe

Brigette is a full-time wife and mother who is blessed with three amazing bundles of energy. She enjoys music, experimenting in the kitchen, homeschooling her children, finding great deals, long-distance running, and anything chocolate.

Shared Mar 15, 2013 comment

Early to Rise Challenge: The Halfway Mark!

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 15, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the Early to Rise Challenge! Throughout the month of March, I’m challenging myself and my readers to make the most of their mornings. So every week day morning at 9 a.m. EST, I’m posting a short Early to Rise post. I’ll share a few of my thoughts on the day’s passage from Early to Rise, tell you what time I got up that morning, and encourage you to leave a comment to tell us what time you got up and how you’re doing on the challenge.

The Halfway Mark!

Yay! You’ve made it halfway in the Early to Rise Challenge!

I’m so proud of all of you who have been joining me for this challenge. You’ve motivated, inspired, and blessed me with your comments and participation.

And for today, I want you to celebrate your successes. I want you to focus on the progress you’ve made, instead of beating yourself up over where you feel you failed or fell short.

Remember: moving forward — even at a microscopic rate — is still moving forward.

What successes are you celebrating today? I want you to leave a comment today telling us how you’ve succeeded in this challenge, even if it’s just that two mornings this month you got up 15 minutes earlier than usual. Or that you have been more intentional in how you’ve been using some of your mornings.

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

I got up at 6:01 a.m. EST (I’m in South Carolina speaking at a conference this weekend) — so that would be 5:01 my time. And I’m going to celebrate that today! 🙂

What time did you get up? Leave a comment and let us know!

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 for today below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the Early to Rise Group Board on my Pinterest page, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? Each week day morning on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account, I’ll be posting a picture of my alarm clock as public accountability. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #EarlytoRise to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

Shared Mar 14, 2013 comment

Freezer Cooking in an Hour: Kale Chips, Bean Burritos, and Pizza Pockets

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 14, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Last night, I switched up my planned Freezer Cooking in an Hour session and used up some of the items I’d purchased at great prices at Dillon’s yesterday instead.

First, I made Kale Chips. (More pictures and details on this recipe coming tomorrow.) These were super simple to make since I had bought a marked-down bag of pre-rinsed and torn Kale chips.

Then, while the Kale Chips were baking, I whipped up two bags of Bean Burritos. As you probably guessed I would, I tweaked the recipe some. I’ll share my tweaked version with you soon — probably early next week.

Finally, I make two pans of Beef & Cheese Pockets. You can read more about that recipe creation here.

I was highly motivated to get finished quickly since it was almost dinner time — and sure enough, all of this was accomplished in right at an hour. Yay!

Did you do any freezer cooking this week?

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Shared Mar 14, 2013 comment

Free Pillsbury Pizza Dough + Free Oscar Mayer Meat = Beef & Cheese Pockets!

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 14, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

So I showed you yesterday how I picked up free Oscar Mayer Roast Beef and got paid for buy Pillsbury Pizza Crust. Well, I thought you might like to see what I did with it last night.

I chopped up the roast beef and shredded some cheese.

Then, I had to face my fears of opening up the canned dough… which is the very worst thing of all about buying canned dough. {Am I the only one who has this irrational fear?}

I tried. I really did. But in the end, I ended being too much of a coward and had Kathrynne “pop” them for me. {She was all, “Mom, I LOVE popping canned dough cans!” Apparently, she didn’t get that gene from me!}

I rolled out the dough and sliced it into six pieces…

…And sprinkled each piece with some chopped beef and shredded cheese.

Then, I folded the sides in and then were ready to stick on a pan and bake.

I didn’t get a picture of any of the baked Beef & Cheese pockets, but they were a hit last night. If you wanted to add some extra flavor, you could dip them in barbecue sauce — yum!

I love coming up with creative uses for what I get free or very inexpensively at the grocery store. It makes shopping and cooking a fun adventure!

If you’re looking for a healthier, non-processed Pizza Pocket recipe, be sure to check out my Homemade Chicken Salsa Pockets Recipe and my Homemade Pizza Pockets Recipe.

Coming up later, my freezer cooking session pictures and what I did with that bag of Kale!

Shared Mar 14, 2013 comment

Do It Yourself: Paper Lined Envelopes

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 14, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

StayAtHomemadeMom.com shows you how to make homemade Paper Lined Envelopes.

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.

Shared Mar 14, 2013 comment

How to Plan a Weekly Menu in Less Than 10 Minutes

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 14, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Sarah of Early Bird Mom

For a while, I had been planning out all our meals a week at a time: breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. It didn’t take a lot of time and it was nice to take a glance at my menu and know what to cook.

But over the past few months, this practice had fallen by the wayside and my family was getting tired of the same couple of stand-bys for dinner.

So even though I didn’t want to, I reluctantly wrote “Menu Plan” on my to-do list the other day.

Why do I dread menu planning?

The menu planning itself isn’t that difficult. The problem, I think for me, is that making a menu reminds me of all that cooking! Somehow I think if I don’t make a menu, the cooking will take care of itself; of course nothing could be further from the truth!

If you also dread menu planning, here are two quick tips to help you plan your menu in 10 minutes or less!

1. Start with a previous menu plan.

I pulled up an old menu plan on my computer to refresh my memory. I like saving old menus on my computer – they are a great source of inspiration.

I deleted a couple meals from the menu that didn’t interest me this week. Then I filled in the breakfast column. Breakfast around here is usually oatmeal, eggs, smoothies or brown rice with brown sugar and milk. By this time, I’m halfway done! I’m gaining momentum!

Then I checked my calendar to see if there are days when we need a crockpot dinner or when we might have extra time for baking. A couple more entries go on the menu.

Note from Crystal: If you don’t have any old menus to look at for inspiration, you can check out my weekly menu plans.

2. Take note of foods you already have in the house.

I quickly looked downstairs in our second fridge and realized there was a lot of cauliflower that needed to be eaten – this will work for Tuesday’s side dish. I decided to thaw some chicken for Wednesday. Tonight will be Tilapia since we have lots in the freezer.

I filled in the remaining blank spots with a couple more of our favorite recipes.

That’s it! I’m finished.

All in all, this took less than 10 minutes of my time — and I feel a lot better about the cooking for the week.

The cooking still has to be done whether or not I plan ahead, but it sure is nice to know ahead of time what I am going to make for dinner.

What are your tips to quickly plan a weekly menu?

Sarah is happy to have a loving husband and 4 of the most rambunctious boys you’ll ever meet. She blogs at Early Bird Mom all about helping moms get more done at home and in home business.

Shared Mar 14, 2013 comment

Early to Rise Challenge: Find What Motivates You

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 14, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the Early to Rise Challenge! Throughout the month of March, I’m challenging myself and my readers to make the most of their mornings. So every week day morning at 9 a.m. EST, I’m posting a short Early to Rise post. I’ll share a few of my thoughts on the day’s passage from Early to Rise, tell you what time I got up that morning, and encourage you to leave a comment to tell us what time you got up and how you’re doing on the challenge.

Find What Motivates You

I thought it was interesting that Andy talked about getting up early for a flight in today’s reading from the Early to Rise book — because that is exactly what I had to do this morning! My alarm clock went off at 4:15 a.m. and while it took me a few minutes to rouse and get up, I had to get up — or miss my flight to South Carolina (I’m speaking at the Southeast Homeschool Convention this weekend)!

It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we are highly motivated. To be successful at rising early, it helps to discover what motivates us to get up.

For me, I’m motivated to get up by a few things:

1. I know that I’ll be glad I did later. If I’m tempted to crawl back into bed, I remind myself of the benefits I’ll experience later on in the day if I get up and get moving.

2. I love the early morning quiet. I love my children to pieces, but there’s something very refreshing and energizing about starting the day with quiet. I use the first 20-30 minutes of the day to read my Bible, pray, write in my gratitude journal, and sometimes read from a devotional book. This prepares my heart and mind for the day ahead.

3. It gives me a jumpstart on the day. When I wake up early, I always feel like I have a lot more time in the day. If I wake up when my children do, I feel like I start the day already behind.

4. I love coffee. My morning cup of coffee is something I look forward to and savor. But please, make sure it’s with milk and sugar. 😉

What motivates you to get up in the morning? And if you’re not very motivated to get up in the morning, what changes could you implement to help you become motivated to get up?

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

I got up at 4:18 a.m. in order to catch my early flight to South Carolina.

What time did you get up? Leave a comment and let us know!

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 for today below. Plus, if you’d like to post your daily posts to the Early to Rise Group Board on my Pinterest page, just shoot me an email (moneysavingmom @ gmail dot com) and I’ll invite you.

Want to follow along on Twitter or Instagram? Each week day morning on my Facebook Page, my Twitter account, and my Instagram account, I’ll be posting a picture of my alarm clock as public accountability. I’d love to have you do the same or join in the discussion on Twitter and Instagram. Just follow hashtag #EarlytoRise to see what others are tweeting and Instagramming about this challenge!

Shared Mar 13, 2013 comment

Today’s shopping trips: Dillon’s and the health food store

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 13, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I had an errand to run this afternoon, so I popped into Dillon’s and the health food store since they were right by where I was. And I found a few bargains!

Dillons’ Shopping Trip

Pepsi Next — used free coupon
Kale — marked down to $1.29
Marked-down Bananas — $0.61
Oscar Mayer meat — used free coupon
Yoplait yogurt — used free coupon
2 tubes of Pillsbury Artisan pizza dough — on sale for $1.25 each, used 2 $1.50/1 coupons = free plus overage

Total with tax: $1.70

Stay tuned tomorrow for my post on what I’m going to do with the Kale and Pizza Crust. And no, I’m not using them both in the same recipe. 🙂

Health Food Store Shopping Trip

Gala apples — $0.99/lb.
Blueberries — $1.99

Total with tax: $4.54

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1. Start with a previous menu plan.

2. Take note of foods you already have in the house.

What are your tips to quickly plan a weekly menu?

Find What Motivates You

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

Join in the Chatter!

Dillons’ Shopping Trip

Health Food Store Shopping Trip

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