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Shared Mar 27, 2013 comment

Breaking Up With Automatic Mode: The Spaghetti Shots ebook

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 27, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Do you have a nicer camera but you don’t feel comfortable shooting in anything but auto mode? I know the feeling.

I’ve wanted to try to learn how to shoot in manual mode, but even just the words like aperture, ISO, f-stop, and shutter speed seem complicated to me. So I’ve mostly stuck with automatic mode.

However, after reading 10 pages of The Spaghetti Shots ebook this morning while I was on the treadmill, I was totally inspired to break up with automatic mode and actually get brave and experiment with manual. In fact, I wanted to jump off the treadmill and bust out the camera right them! 🙂

Courtney writes in a way that is very easy to understand. She uses lots of photos to show you exactly what she means and how you can do it on your camera, too. And she manages to take a fairly technical subject (settings on your camera) and make it fun and interesting.

I can’t wait to read the rest of her ebook. But I didn’t want to wait to tell you about it because she just launched it today and she’s offering it for the discounted price of $2.99 through March 29, 2013.

By the way, if you have a chance, go check out Courtney’s blog. Her pictures and story of her daughter, Brenna, who was born with a rare genetic skin disorder are absolutely priceless.

Shared Mar 27, 2013 comment

Early to Rise Challenge: Turn Frustrations to Gratitude

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 27, 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.

Turn Frustrations to Gratitude

One of the most important things to be successful in the Early to Rise challenge and use your mornings well is to wake up with a cheerful attitude. Maybe that cheerful attitude isn’t right as your feet hit the floor, but hopefully soon thereafter, you feel invigorated and excited about the day before you.

Joy fuels our energy. The more positive we can be about life, the more energy we’ll have. And the more energy we have, means the more productivity we have.

If you wake up frustrated by a situation, it’s hard to be joyful and positive. But life is full of frustrations and disappointments, so it’s only natural that we’re going to encounter them.

How you respond to frustrations will either make or break your day. As I often say, you can’t always change your circumstances, but you can always choose your attitude.

So today, if you are feeling frustrated or discouraged about something, challenge yourself to choose a good attitude. Choose to focus on the blessings in your life. Choose to list the things that you can be thankful for in a situation. Dwell on the positive, the good, the beautiful.

How can you turn your frustrations into gratitude today?

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

Yes, it was another crazy-early morning. You can read why I’m adopting this short-term schedule here.

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 26, 2013 comment

Pinterest Experiment: Baked Oven Fries (oh-so-time-consuming and oh-so-good!)

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 26, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I find a lot of great ideas on Pinterest… but pinning something doesn’t do anything unless I actually, you know, try the idea. So I thought it’d be fun to challenge myself to do at least one Pinterest experiment every week — and blog my results.

I can’t promise that I’ll always have a Pinterest Experiment post up each week, because you know how I sometimes get distracted or on blog tangents. 🙂 But I’m at least going to try. By the way, you can follow my Pinterest account here, if you’re interested.

I found this recipe for Baked Oven Fries on Pinterest. And since I’d gotten a great deal on potatoes recently, I had to try it.

The actual recipe was a little bit more time-consuming than I was envisioning. {I don’t know why I always picture whipping up things like this in less than 10 minutes.}

Truthfully, when I was making these, I was thinking to myself, “Why did I want to try this recipe??”

And without even finishing the recipe or tasting these fries, I decided I was not going to be making this recipe again. It’s just way too many steps for a cook like me who prefers 5-minute recipes whenever possible.

But I persevered and I’m so glad I did. Because we loved the finished product. Jesse was thoroughly impressed that I’d made French Fries from scratch (sadly, yes, I think this was a first for me!) and he proclaimed them very, very good.

So now, I’m kind of torn on my verdict. I mean, I really was hoping that they weren’t very good. But now that I know that they are, I’m not so sure that I’m going to say I’ll never made them again.

However, if any of you have an easier homemade French Fries recipe that is equally amazing that you want to send my way, I will love you for it.

Want to see what ideas I’m thinking of trying next? Check out my Recipes I Want to Try board and my Do It Yourself board for things I’m considering trying next.

Have you tried any ideas or recipes you’ve found on Pinterest this week? If so, how did they turn out for you?

Shared Mar 26, 2013 comment

Ask Jesse: Where should we put our tax refund money?

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 26, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Today’s question is from Jessica:

Jesse,
We recently moved into a home that needs work, we also received money from our tax refund and do not want to blow through this. Where should we put our money that will draw interest and be able to access if needed? This is the first time we will actually be able to save our tax refund instead of using it on our home taxes as our mortgage now is all included. -Jessica

Hi Jessica, getting a tax refund always feels good. Like you said, it is important not to blow through it and later find you could have used it more wisely instead of buying that big new toy you’ve always dreamed about.

If I were in your shoes, I would make sure our emergency fund is built up to what we would need should all other sources of income shut off for six months, especially if you are looking at making some sizable repairs to your house in the future that could be a drain on any excess income you have coming in.

I have always used either a money market account at our local bank or an online account that ties to my local bank that I could easily get to if needed for emergency fund and other savings. The reason was solely for the ease of access.

I never really took the interest rate into account (except for the fact that it was higher than the usual savings account) because quick access to me outweighed the return I would get due to interest because the account was not set up for long-term use, other than the emergency fund.

Jesse Paine is a licensed attorney who owns his own law firm. He’s married to Crystal and is the numbers nerd of the MoneySavingMom.com team! If you have a question you’d like him to answer in a future column, you can submit it here.

The content of this column intended for informational use only and is not to be construed as providing legal, investing, accounting, or other professional advice. Your situation is factually specific and you should accordingly seek qualified professional counsel concerning your specific legal, investing or accounting needs.

photo credit

Shared Mar 26, 2013 comment

Do It Yourself: Pretty Fabric Flower Tutorial

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 26, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

CreativeSavingsBlog.com shows you how to make these pretty fabric flowers.

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.

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

Click here to sign up!

Shared Mar 26, 2013 comment

Early to Rise Challenge: You’re Not Alone

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 26, 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.

You’re Not Alone

If you’re feeling alone in this Early to Rise challenge, today’s post is for you.

It’s hard to go against the flow. It’s difficult to feel like you’re the only one doing something, the only one who cares enough to make changes in your life.

But I promise that it’s worth it. Even if most of your friends think that you’re crazy for trying to live on less than you make, pay off debt, set goals, and/or get up early, do not let that deter you.

And know that you’re not alone. There are thousands of us out there who are with you in this. We’re all struggling along in our own way, but we “get” you.We understand that you want something more than the status quo and we wholeheartedly agree with you.

So keep pressing forward. Don’t give up. Keep looking for fellow comrades who get your “weirdness” and who aren’t afraid to support you — or even join you. They are out there, it just might take you a little while to find them!

Do you feel alone in this challenge — or just alone in your life and goals in general? If so, would you do me a favor and leave a comment on this post or email me directly. I’d love to take a minute to write and encourage you to let you know that we’re cheering for you.

And if you are looking for an online accountability partner, leave a comment, too, and maybe someone here can link up with you to be your accountability partner and encourager!

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

Yes, it was another crazy-early morning. You can read why I’m adopting this short-term schedule here.

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 25, 2013 comment

11 Things You Can Do Tonight to Set You Up for Success Tomorrow (free printable)

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 25, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Many of you enjoyed my post on 11 Things You Can Tonight to Set You Up for Success Tomorrow that I had Joy from FiveJs.com create a printable for you.

This free subway art printable would be perfect to print and hang in your bathroom, bedroom, or on your refrigerator to remind you to kick off your morning well.

Click to download the free printable.

Be sure to also print the 17 Ways to Set Your Morning Up for Success printable, too.

Shared Mar 25, 2013 comment

10 goals for this week

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 25, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Well, last week was a good week, but I sorta bombed my goals. I did get a lot of reading aloud done with the kids, we had a great homeschool week, and Jesse and I had a great time at the Killer Tribes Conference. So I guess that’s gotta count for something, even if my goals list doesn’t look too impressive. 🙂

Last 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.

This week’s goals:

Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals

1. Read four chapters of Rascal by Sterling North aloud to the children. Read four chapters of Paddington Abroad with Kathrynne, read four 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.

5. Finish the Early to Rise Challenge.

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

7. Follow my planned early to bed, early to rise schedule.

Homemaking Goals

8. Do a Freezer Cooking in an Hour session.

9. Work on embroidery project.

Business Goals

10. Get three chapters of my book edited 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 Mar 25, 2013 comment

This week’s menu plan

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 25, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Pull Apart Oat Rolls

I’m keeping things simple food-wise here this week in order to streamline and focus on editing.

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

Making Slow Cooker Lentil & Black Bean Soup

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Quinoa Cookies

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

Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes
Crusty Baguettes
Quinoa Cookies

Freezer-Friendly Bean & Cheese Burritos

Dinners

Dinner with extended family
Slow Cooker Lentil & Black Bean Soup, Pull Apart Oat Rolls, fruit
Black Bean & Corn-Topped Potatoes, fruit, tossed salad
Whole Wheat Blender Pancakes, scrambled eggs, fruit
Bean & Cheese Burritos, fruit, veggies
Dinner with extended family
Dinner out

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

Shared Mar 25, 2013 comment

My Year of Kindness Challenge

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 25, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Dallas of Day-by-Day Masterpiece

In December 2012, I read The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin and 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker. Both books inspired me greatly, and I spent a lot of time thinking about how to be a better person.

How could I give more, do more, brighten more, serve more? And then the Sandy Hook tragedy occurred, and I mourned with the rest of our nation.

In my shock and grief, three questions kept rising to the forefront of my thoughts, refusing to be ignored:

How can I refocus and remember what truly matters?
How can I bring more love and joy to others?
How can I use my blessings to make a difference for others?

I want to be grateful and I want to be joyful; and in my experience, the best way to do so is to give gratefully and joyfully to others. I want to work on stepping outside myself {my petty grievances, my small problems, my unhelpful worries} and focus on the people and neighbors and global community around me.

So on the first week of January 2013, I started my “Year of Kindness Challenge” by pledging to do a random act of kindness for every week of the year. Some examples of kind acts I’ve done so far include:

donating canned goods to a food pantry
giving hot chocolate to someone out in the cold
writing and mailing a kind note
delivering Valentines to a nursing home.
baking cookies for a neighbor
leaving quarters on Laundromat washers & dryers

As a newly engaged graduate student trying to save money for my wedding, I knew when I started this challenge that I would not have much money to spare. So I am intentionally choosing every kind act to be inexpensive — some are even free! Also, they all take a short amount of time, so they can easily fit into a busy schedule.

What I’ve learned…

You do not need a lot of money to brighten the lives of those around you. Nor does it take much money to brighten your own life.

All you really need is a kind and open heart, a little creativity, and the willingness to make a positive difference. Who knows the ripple effects of kindness that will spread from your kind acts?

It’s very rewarding to keep track and reflect on acts of kindness – both the kind acts you do and the kindnesses others do for you. Chronicling my experiences on my blog every week has been a wonderful way to relive the joy of the kind act I did that week, and it’s also made me feel more aware and grateful for all the blessings in my life.

Whether it’s a sweet note I received in the mail, a door held open for me when my hands were full, or a free refill of green tea at Starbucks, taking a moment at the end of the day to write down and remember the little kindnesses I received fills my heart with contentment.

My weekly kindness challenge quickly became a priority in my life. It might only take fifteen minutes, but it undoubtedly boosts my own happiness and feelings of connection and positivity throughout the entire week.

Kindness really is contagious! The more I give, the more I want to give and give and give.

Will you join me?

Dallas Woodburn blogs about joyful, healthy living at Day-by-Day Masterpiece. She is also the author of two collections of short stories for children and teens; her latest, 3 a.m., was featured on the PBS book talk show “Between the Lines” and is available on Amazon.com. A passionate advocate for young writers and readers, Dallas is the founder of the nonprofit organization Write On! For Literacy and the publishing company Write On! Books, through which she edited and published the acclaimed anthology “Dancing With The Pen: a collection of today’s best youth writing.”

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

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Shared Mar 25, 2013 comment

Confessions of a Cloth Diaper Convert ebook (now available)

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 25, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

My friend, Erin Odom from The Humbled Homemaker, just released a brand-new comprehensive ebook today with just about everything you’d ever need to know about cloth diapering.

If you are considering cloth diapering, I highly recommend her ebook, Confessions of a Cloth Diaper Convert. Erin has extensive knowledge and experience — and she shoots it straight.

In this ebook, Erin addresses fears and concerns you may have surrounding cloth diapering. She also gives you step-by-step information on:

how to choose which cloth diaper is right for your situation
how to build your cloth diaper stash on a budget
how to make sure you get the right cloth diaper fit for your baby and toddler
how to wash your diapers properly
how to keep your cloth diapers stink-free
how to trouble-shoot cloth diaper issues
And so much more!

While I’ve cloth diapered exclusively in the past and have done a lot of in-depth research on cloth-diapering as a result, I still learned a lot from this ebook and feel it is well worth the price. Read more reviews and details on Erin’s just-released ebook here.

Psst! Erin is having a Facebook Party tonight from 8-10 p.m. EST and she’s giving away over $600 in cloth-diapering supplies!

Shared Mar 25, 2013 comment

Early to Rise: Share Your Success (and why I have a new crazy-early wake-up time!)

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 25, 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.

Share Your Success

Have you found success by participating in the Early to Rise challenge this month? If so, don’t keep a good thing to yourself!

Tell your friends, blog readers, neighbors, and co-workers about what you’re learning and the progress you’re making. Don’t make them feel guilty if they are not early risers, but DO inspire them to consider trying to make the most of their mornings.

I get so pumped by hearing about other peoples’ successes with early morning rising. It motivates me to keep at it — and it inspires me to aim higher and be more intentional in my early morning rising.

For instance, at the Killer Tribes Conference this past weekend, I had the privilege of spending a little time with Jessica from The Mom Creative. She’s an amazing woman who accomplishes a lot and does it well.

I asked her point-blank, “How do you do it?” Want to know her first answer? “I get up early.”

She told me how she accomplishes so much by being committed to going to bed early and getting up at 5 a.m. every morning and using the first hour and a half of her morning really intentionally to write, plan, and work on projects.

Hearing her success inspired me to continue to making early morning rising a priority in my life. In fact, it’s one of the reasons I opted to get up really early for the next three weeks to work on editing my book (more on that below).

Who are you going to tell about your early morning success today? Tell us in the comments.

What Time Did You Get Up This Morning?

I got up at around 3 a.m. this morning. And don’t worry, it’s not because I think 3 a.m. is a great time to wake up. It’s for a good cause, though.

You see, I got my editorial review back from my publisher this past weekend and I have until April 15 to make some fairly extensive edits. While I’m going to scale back in some areas, I don’t want to give up the good routine we have going in our life right now.

So Jesse and I sat down and worked out a plan together. He offered to take over the kids’ bedtime routine so I could go to bed really early (8 p.m.). Then, my plan is to get up at 3 a.m. most every morning for the next three weeks to give me a good two hours to work on book edits each morning. Short-term sacrifices for long-term benefits, right? 🙂

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 23, 2013 comment

Weekend Giveaway: $50 Origami Owl Gift Certificate (5 Winners)

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 23, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

I’m SO excited about this giveaway. Why?

Because if you know me in real-life, you know that I wear my Origami Owl Locket all. the. time. Well, okay, I do occasionally take it off (!), but it’s one of my very favorite pieces of jewelry and I typically wear it multiple times per week.

I love it most of all because I designed it. I have a charm representing each member of my family, so that I always carry them with me everywhere I go.

In addition, I love the versatility that these lockets provide — you can add charms, change out dangles to match your outfit, and more.

Origami Owl Lockets would make a fantastic keepsake gift and would be great to consider for Mother’s Day. Each locket is unique because YOU create it following these steps:

Get 10% Off Your Order Through Monday, March 25, 2013

Any orders placed by Monday, March 25th will receive an additional 10% off their total (before shipping and tax.) To receive this special discount, readers can either contact Holly directly (via email – [email protected] or phone – 701.866.6577) or place an order through Holly’s website. If you contact Holly directly, she’ll take the 10% off before you pay and if you place an order though her website, she’ll reimburse you for the 10% off amount.

If You’re Interested in Hosting a Party or Becoming a Designer

If you are interested in hosting a party, please visit Holly’s website or contact her directly. If you are interested in becoming a designer, you can sign up on the wait list through Holly’s website. Please enter in 12529 when prompted for a Designer ID number and then contact Holly for more information on becoming a designer.

Origami Owl lockets allow you to tell a story by using charms, plates, dangles, and tags. They will be a treasured keepsake for any recipient — or to keep and wear yourself.

If you are interested in staying updated on Origami Owl news and special discounts and giveaways Holly will be doing, be sure to follow Holly’s Facebook Page.

Would you like to win a free $50 gift certificate to Origami Owl? Just click on the graphic below and type in your name and email address. This giveaway ends Sunday, March 24, at 11:59 pm, CST.

Shared Mar 23, 2013 comment

9 Tips to Simplify Freezer Cooking

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 23, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Guest post from Krista of Krista Adams

I have enjoyed cooking and meal planning for a few years now, but recently I have been intrigued by freezer cooking. I thought it would make my weekday evenings easier if I had the option of pulling a meal from the freezer. But, I was very intimidated about the time required to do a freezer cooking session as well as what meals are freezer-friendly.

So I organized a cooking session with two of my friends, one of whom had done some freezer cooking already and had a better idea of what was involved. She was the one that decided which recipes we would make and how much we could cook in an afternoon. She also graciously did all the grocery shopping.

The three of us spent five hours making four recipes. Each recipe was multiplied by six so we each took home 2 x 6 servings of each dish resulting in 48 servings for each of our freezers.

We contributed some pantry items (seasonings) when needed, and our grocery bill totaled $66 per family (or $1.38 per serving!). Here are nine tips we used to simplify the freezer cooking process:

1. Buddy up!

Even though it was hard work, it was much more pleasurable being in the company of friends.

2. Plan ahead.

We didn’t have a good to-do list, and we spent a lot of time asking, ok what’s next? We would have been more efficient if we had created a task list and kept it visible in the kitchen.

3. Pick recipes with similar ingredients.

It’s more efficient if you can do the same prep for multiple recipes.

4. Overestimate on the time you think you will need.

We thought we could get everything done easily in 4 hours. But it took us over 5 hours, not including clean up.

5. Clean as you go when possible.

Don’t spend valuable time washing dishes when there are onions to be chopped, but when you are waiting on something else, use that time to wash a pot or wipe down a counter.

6. Pick the right kitchen.

You will need a lot of counter space, elbow room, and dishes. We discussed ahead of time who had what and who would bring what. We had plenty of cooking pans, but could have used additional mixing bowls.

I also had set a lot of bowls and pots out ahead of time so they would be readily available. But this just cut into our counter space and wasn’t necessary.

7. Pick simple recipes.

Find some recipes that are super simple and don’t require much work. One of our recipes included making a sauce and then adding raw chicken. Then it was done.

In total, we probably spent 10 minutes getting one meal done. We had other recipes that required more work, a lot more work, so it was nice to get one meal done.

8. Agree ahead of time on ingredients, cooking styles, and preferences.

We spent a lot of time preparing raw chicken by cutting off the fat. After the fact, we realized that the chicken probably didn’t need that much trimming.

During the cooking spree, we also discovered that none of us felt it necessary to fry the tortillas in oil before making the enchilada casserole. This didn’t affect the tastiness of the dish and definitely saved us time!

We also discussed ahead of time any diet restrictions and food aversions that our families have.

9. Ziploc bags are the way to go!

One of our meals was a casserole so we lined casserole dishes with foil and plastic wrap, then made the dish. It was a lot of work to get six dishes lined with the foil and plastic wrap.

This was also the last dish we made, and we were all tired at this point and ready to be done! We decided our next session we would only do meals that could be frozen in a bag.

Good luck on your freezer cooking session! It’s hard work, but worth it when you know dinner is in the freezer!

Krista is an engineer who works full-time. She is married and has a toddler. She enjoys cooking and meal planning. She is super organized which is her key to saving money, eating at home and most importantly staying sane! She also occasionally blogs at kristaadams.blogspot.com

Shared Mar 23, 2013 comment

FREE 4 Week Online Blogging Class

Published: by Crystal Paine on March 23, 2013 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

Blogelina is once again offering her very popular 4-week blogging class — for FREE! This online class will be held in April 2013.

If you sign up for this free class, here’s what you’ll get:

A class manual – packed with 60 pages of information that will help take the overwhelming out of starting your own blog
4 weekly online class sessions where you can ask your questions and get personalized feedback
A FREE year of web hosting.
Blueprints, step-by-step tutorials, networking with other bloggers – Everything you need to grow your blog.
Save yourself a lot of time, trouble, and money – learn from my own experiences what to do and not to do.

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Summer Bucket List

Summer Bucket List

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Breakfasts

Lunches

Snacks

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

Dinners

What I’ve learned…

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If You’re Interested in Hosting a Party or Becoming a Designer

1. Buddy up!

2. Plan ahead.

3. Pick recipes with similar ingredients.

4. Overestimate on the time you think you will need.

5. Clean as you go when possible.

6. Pick the right kitchen.

7. Pick simple recipes.

8. Agree ahead of time on ingredients, cooking styles, and preferences.

9. Ziploc bags are the way to go!

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