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Today’s question is from Rachel:
I am looking to get my mom a Ninja blender but there are a few different ones and I’m not sure if she needs all the extra stuff. I was wondering, if you have a Ninja, how much do you actually use it and for what type of things? -Rachel
Do you have a question you’d like to ask Money Saving Mom® readers? Read the submission guidelines and submit it here.
I wrote a post over on MomLife last week on a mothering lesson I’ve been learning recently:
Recently, I was frustrated with a few of my children who were dawdling with their room cleaning. As I walked into their still-messy room to reprimand them for being so slow in getting their project done, I was about ready to lose all of my cool.
“Why do I have to constantly repeat myself over and over again? Why can’t they just do what I ask them to do? Why do I have to constantly be checking up on them and making sure they are following through with what I’ve asked of them?”
As my anger reached its peak and began to bubble out in heated words, my heart was pricked as I thought of all of the grace and mercy God has extended to me. And, as a Christian, aren’t I supposed to be imitating Christ in how I respond to others — including my children?
Read the full post here.
These yummy breadsticks are super easy to whip up and will have your kitchen smelling delicious! Everyone will love them!
Well for starters — it’s easy!
Also, it only uses a few basic ingredients I always have in the house.
And… they taste absolutely amazing! Everyone will ooh and ahh over these delicious breadsticks — I promise!
We’ve been making these breadsticks forever and ever, and they always get rave reviews.
1. Put all ingredients in the bread machine in the order listed.
2. Turn the machine on the dough cycle setting.
3. Once the dough cycle is finished, roll the dough out onto a 10×12 greased cookie sheet.
4. Cut the dough into 24 slices, cover with a towel, and let rise for an hour.
5. Once risen, bake at 375 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.
6. As soon as you pull the breadsticks out of the oven, brush them with melted butter and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and garlic salt.
7. Eat and enjoy!
These are SO easy to make — and absolutely delicious, too. If you haven’t tried this recipe yet, I highly recommend it.
On the rare occasion that you have any breadsticks left over, simply store them in a zip-top bag at room temperature for 3-5 days (or freeze them for longer).
You do not have to reheat them to enjoy them as leftovers — but if you prefer warm breadsticks, simply microwave them for 10-15 seconds or wrap them in foil and reheat in a 300º oven for 10-15 minutes.
Here’s my slight adaption of the original recipe from Memories on Clover Lane:
Make sure to share and save it on your favorite platform below!
Meal time just got so much easier!
If you want to make the most of your mornings, you can’t just expect to jump out of bed without a plan and somehow have all of the pieces fall into place for a very productive day. No, a productive morning is usually the fruit of planning and preparation. And it begins the night before.
If you go to bed late and the house is a mess, the dishes are piled in the sink, you’re way behind on laundry, you don’t have food for breakfast or lunches the next day, and you don’t even know what appointments or events are scheduled for the next day, no wonder you wake up feeling frazzled, stressed, and behind!
If, on the other hand, you go to bed at a decent hour, your house is picked up, you have clothes laid out to wear, breakfast is in the crockpot, lunches are made, and backpacks and your purse and keys are by the door, you’ve given yourself a huge head start on a successful morning.
Instead of trying to get up at some too-early hour and cram in a crazy amount of things in the morning, focus on changing your before-bed routine first. You might find that this is the thing that transforms your morning much more than getting up early does.
In fact, if you prep well ahead of time in the evening, you just might be able to sleep in a little bit more in the mornings. (I bet all of you non-morning people just let out a collective shout of “Hallelujah!”)
1) Determine Your Bedtime
What time do you need to get up in the morning by in order to be out the door in time or start your day off on the right foot? Write that time down and then count backwards by 8-9 hours. Whatever time you land on is your new bedtime.
This is the time that you must be in your PJs, have everything finished for the night, and be in bed. No ifs, ands, or buts. I’m your new drill sergeant and you must do what I say, okay? 😉
Sticking with a consistent bedtime just might be your number one key to morning success. When you’re well rested, you have more energy, more clarity, and more productivity. Not to mention that you usually are less stressed, less irritable, and life just looks a lot rosier when your sleep tank is full.
2) Pick Your Top 5 Evening Must-Do’s
Once you have your bedtime determined, then it’s time to determine the five things that you are committing to do every evening before bed. I know you might want to come up with a list of 25 things that seem like they’d really be good to do, but let’s keep it simple and just pick the top five must-do’s.
You can make a list of 25 ideas, but promise me you’re going to whittle it down to just the top five for starters. Keep it simple and you’re most apt to actually stick with it and follow through with it. I’ve learned that one the hard way!
Possible Evening Must-Do’s
::Clothes Laid Out for the Morning
::Kitchen Cleaned Up
::Lunches Made For the Next Day
::Breakfast In the Crockpot (Or cereal out and cereal bowls and spoons set out on the table.)
::To-Do List Made for the Next Day
::Quick 15-Minute House Clean-Up
::Everything Together and Set By the Door That You Need For Getting Out of the House the Next Day
Once you have figured out your Top 5 Must-Do’s, write them down on a piece of paper and put them in a conspicuous place. You could even print them off in a cute font, laminate or stick them in a page protector, put this on your fridge, and then use a dry erase marker to mark each item off as you accomplish it each evening.
3) Plan Your Start Time and Stick With It
Think realistically how long it’s going to take for you to accomplish your Top 5 Must-Do’s and then work backwards from your bedtime to figure out your Evening Routine start time. In most cases, your start time is going to be at least an hour before your bedtime. I’d add in some extra time, just to be on a safe side and to give yourself a cushion in case something comes up.
Write this start time down on your Top 5 Must-Do’s List, set a timer or an alarm to go off to remind you when you’re supposed to start, and just do it. Stick with this for three weeks and I promise you’ll start to see some significant improvement in your mornings — and in your days as a whole.
At the end of three weeks, you can tweak your evening routine and even add a few more things, if you’re sure you’re up to it. If you miss a few days or have a few hiccups along the way, don’t be discouraged, just pick back up where you left off the next day. And remember, moving forward — even at a microscopic rate — is still moving forward!
Day 2 Project
1. Determine a bedtime. Follow the steps above to figure out what a good bedtime is for you and commit to go to bed at that time every single evening for the next three weeks.
2. In addition, pick your top 5 Evening Must Do’s, write them down, and commit to following them for the next three weeks.
3. Leave a comment telling us what bedtime you’re committing to stick with and what your you determined were you Top 5 Evening Must Do’s.
Tomorrow, I’ll share my bedtime and Top 5 Evening Must-Do’s and will check in daily here at 1 p.m. EST to tell you how it’s going for me and to see how you’re doing in sticking with it, too.
Want some practical help with setting up your day for success? It all starts the night before! Be sure to grab a copy of my brand-new online course, Make Over Your Evenings.
This 14-day online course includes videos, a workbook, and step-by-step projects and is designed to help you maximize your evenings in order to experience more success in your life, more order in your home, and more joy in your soul.
It’s time to stop sleep-walking through life and wake up to the amazing excitement and fulfillment that comes when you follow my simple plan to Make Over Your Evenings.
Need a quick, practical, and frugal hostess gift? Simply My Kitchen shows you how to gift wrap homemade bread in a tea towel. Such a cute and practical idea!
SimplyRebekah is offering a free downloadable and customizable one-year cleaning checklist.
For more cleaning checklists and downloads, be sure to check out my post on How to Stay Motivated to Get the Housework Done.
As long-time blog readers know, I love to read. And this past year, I’ve been seeking to make reading more of a priority. In fact, I set a personal goal to read at least 125 books by the end of the year. (I’ve read 75 books so far, not counting the books I’ve read aloud to the children or my daily Bible reading!)
Reading 125 books in a year might seem extremely ambitious and utterly impossible to some of you — and that’s totally understandable as I’m a quick reader and reading is something that I do instead of many other hobbies. I’m also at a season of life where I have more time to read than I did a few years ago when I was doing good to read 2-3 books per month, if that!
Others of you, like Martha, couldn’t imagine only reading 125 books in one year. She’s a huge inspiration to me when it comes to reading voraciously. Get this, she’s already read 208 books in 2012 alone!
For those of you who don’t read much at all right now, can I encourage you to make reading more of a priority — even if it’s just a few pages of a book each week? Here are two reasons I think everyone should make reading a priority in their lives:
While I think it’s wonderful to let yourself relax on a regular basis, if all you ever feed your brain is entertainment, it can turn somewhat “mush-y”. Now if you’re in law school or med school or have some sort of mentally intensive job, you probably don’t have any issue with this. But if you don’t have very regular opportunities to sharpen your thinking skills, reading good books is a great way to do so.
I’m an analytical person by nature and am always questioning the reason behind why something is right or true. I never take anything at face value, as my friends well know. 🙂
So that’s why I love good books. They make me step back and reconsider long-held positions, they make me examine things in a different light, and they help me further solidify what I believe and why I believe it.
You might not be an analytical person and you might think that my number one reason for reading good books above is a little on the whack-o side. If that’s the case, that’s okay, I accept that I might just be a bit eccentric in some areas ;). Hang with me here, though, because reading good books isn’t just for the mental exercise.
One of the other excellent reasons to become a reader is because good books open up worlds to you that you might never experience yourself. Reading biographies about single moms and parents of children with disabilities or long-term illnesses helps me to have a deeper understanding of their struggles and trials so I can better reach out to them. Reading books on different cultures and time periods has helped me get a better grasp on history and has made me appreciate so much of the modern conveniences and freedoms we have that many others never experienced.
Books have changed me, challenged me, and shaped me as a person. And they are constantly motivating me as a wife, mother, friend, business woman, writer, and thinker.
The books I’ve read have encouraged me to deepen my relationship with the Lord, helped me learn new concepts, spurred me on to develop more character and leadership skills, exemplified to me creative ways of presenting concepts and communicating points, and have pushed me to think “outside the box”.
Now, you might be thinking, “Of course, I know that it’s good to read books, but I can’t seem to find the time! I’m just trying to figure out how to get food on the table and the dishes washed.” Well, here are five ideas that may or may not work for you:
5 Ways to Fit Some Extra Reading Into Your Everyday Life
1) Read First Thing in the Morning — Before you turn on the TV or the computer, challenge yourself to read a chapter from a book. I’m amazed at how quickly I go through books just by making reading a part of my morning routine.
Note: I recommend reading non-fiction books in the morning. If you’re like me and quickly get sucked into a great biography or fiction book, you might want to save those until after dinner. Otherwise, you might start with a chapter and then end up realizing it’s lunchtime and you’re two chapters away from finishing your book! 🙂
2) Read While You’re Exercising — I run on the treadmill almost every day, so I use my 5-minute walking warm-up to read. You can also read while stair-climbing or doing the elliptical, ask me how I know! 😉
Note: If you typically work out at the gym or walk outside, you might want to skip this tip as you may get some weird looks at the gym or might run into something if you usually walk outdoors! 🙂
3) Read During Commercial Breaks — If you aren’t ready to ditch the TV habit and you don’t have TiVo, consider making a habit to pick up a book during every commercial break. I did this some while we were watching the Olympics and got through a number of chapters just by reading a few pages at a time during commercial breaks.
4) Always Have a Book Going on Your Phone or iPod or E-reader — With the abundance of free book downloads available, there’s no excuse for not having a book handy in your purse at all times — provided you have the technology! I download quite a few of the free ebooks and slowly work my way through them during those unexpected wait times that pop up during the course of the week.
5) Listen to Audiobooks — You can’t talk about creative ways to fit reading in without mentioning audiobooks! I’ve grown to really appreciate audiobooks over the past year.
I usually download 1-2 audiobooks per month onto my phone and try to listen to 10 minutes or so per day — usually while I’m cooking, cleaning, driving, or running. There are hundreds of free audiobooks available in public domain or you can also check your library to see what audiobooks they offer online for free. While not as handy as downloads, many libraries also offer books on CD that work great for traveling or those of you who have regular commutes.
For more ideas of ways I find time to read, be sure to check out my post on How I Find Time to Read. You might also want to check out my post on How I Choose the Books I Read and Recommended Chapter Books for Children.
Pinterest Experiment: 100-Calorie Mug Cake — more details coming on this recipe and how it turned out later this week.
Breakfasts
Oatmeal, Cereal, Toast, Eggs, and/or Fruit
Lunches
Lunch with friends
Snack-y lunch
Cheese quesdillas, carrot sticks, apple slices
Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwiches from the freezer, veggies, apple slices
Tuna sandwiches, raw veggies,
Leftovers x 2Snacks
Fruit/Veggies
Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Baked Oatmeal
No Bake Energy BitesFreezer Cooking in An Hour (I’ll post details and photos on how this goes on Thursday.)
Barbecued Meatballs
Do-It-Yourself Instant Oatmeal Packets
No Bake Energy BitesDinners
Dinner at Subway
Lasagna Casserole, Bread Machine Bread Sticks, steamed broccoli, fruit
Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Fruit Salad, Molten Chocolate Lava Crockpot Cake
Quinoa, Tomato, and Avocado Salad, Grilled Chicken, Fruit Salad
Barbecued Meatballs, steamed broccoli, fruit
Breakfast for Dinner
Dinner with extended family
What’s on your menu this week? Share details and/or your link to your menu plan in the comments.
Last week’s goals:
Family/Mothering Goals
1. Finish reading Stuart Little aloud to the children.
2. Enjoy our vacation with extended family at the lake in Arkansas.Personal Goals
3. Start and finish reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
,
The Life You’ve Always Wanted,andThe Mom Walk.
4. Exercise at least five times.Homemaking Goals
5. Type up our new Fall Schedule.Business Goals
6. Write at least two articles for other blogs/sites.
Here are my 10 goals for this week:
Family/Marriage/Mothering Goals
1. Finish reading Stuart Little aloud to the children. Start a new read-aloud book.
2. Begin our Fall homeschool schedule.
3. Write a love note to Jesse.
4. Have a date night on Thursday.
Personal Goals
5. Start and finish reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
6. Exercise at least five times.
Homemaking Goals
7. Try at least two new recipes.
8. Start a new handwork project (trying to decide between knitting a new dishcloth pattern or redwork on a tea towel. I’ll let you know what I decide!)
Business Goals
9. Write at least two articles for other blogs/sites.
10. Do the final edits to my new ebook on self-discipline (more details coming soon!)
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.
Guest post from Elise of ElisePhotini.com
A month ago we discovered that our kids were suffering some stressful fall-outs from my years of homelessness with their abusive dad. I decided it was important to shut down my growing freelance writing business to ‘stay home’ full time. Even though I was working from my home office, what my ‘tots in tow’ needed me to do was really be here with them all the time.
It was a nerve-wracking decision. At the time my husband was just finishing his Nursing Program prerequisite classwork and had been unemployed or very under-employed for our entire 3+ years of marriage. How were we going to make it now?
That’s when I remembered that I’d had a rural-area motor paper route a couple years ago. Maybe I could toss my kids in the car and do this side-gig as a family now that my little guy was two years old.
Well, for the past few weeks I’ve been training on a couple routes, subbing for some permanent drivers in our Eastern WA small town and getting ready to take on a regular route. And I’ve learned a few MUST-DO’s for working a side gig with ‘tots in tow’!
The route takes us about three hours so it’s almost like a mini-road-trip every afternoon. And there is something about kids and cars that gives ’em the munchies!
By having a mid-point, or even a couple, planned into your side-gig. My kids love stopping by the Walla Walla Roastery on one of the routes we run to say hi to our friends the owners and to grab some ice water.
Only forgot this necessity one day and never again. My little guy falls asleep within 20 minutes of us starting the route now and at some point my girls nod off too. I put on NPR, Dave Ramsey, or some Classical music and we’re all in peaceful land.
One of the reasons this motor paper route works for us is because I can do all the planning/tracking/paperwork beforehand and then just show up and throw papers while on the route. As anyone with ‘tots in tow’ knows, deep thoughts or strategizing is nearly impossible with the conversations and interruptions that little ones bring! By getting my paperwork done during a quiet moment the night before, I can enjoy the benefits of manual labor while we’re out on the route.
Since ‘coming home’ full time I’ve discovered one huge key to getting through even the toughest times: enjoy the moment that is right here. This is one gift of manual labor (or gardening, cooking, even housecleaning sometimes).
Last week one of my tots spotted a family of deer walking calmly across a ridge. What a great memory to make, while making some extra $$’s to help out our bottom line!
Do you have any tips for working along with your kids?
Elise Photini Adams is Mama to four cute kiddos and wife to ‘God-picked’ hubby Andre. Coming from a background of struggle and triumph Elise is determined to overcome her past to become a less-grumpy stay-at-home-mama while cutting through the static in the frugal, green and ‘better-life’ advice out there on her blog ElisePhotini.com. If you’re struggling financially, you might enjoy downloading her Free Report ‘Emergency Cash…Seven Sources of Extra Money for those Tough Times‘.
Fall is almost here and, for most of us, that means a new schedule, the resuming of school, and leaving behind the leisurely days of summer. I don’t know about you, but I always feel inspired to get more organized and back on track at this time of year.
One area that I really want to improve in my life is how I use my mornings. I had a great morning routine going before summer, but it all went out the window in July.
We weren’t on a strict schedule and I stayed up later than I should have many nights. This, in turn, meant that I got up later than I should have many days. By the time I got up and around and took the children to swimming lessons first thing in the mornings, it seemed like our day was half gone and I had little to show for it.
Summer is almost over and it’s time to get back on the ball — starting with my mornings. Because I’ve found that when I begin the day on the right foot, the whole day goes so much better!
And I’d love to have you join me! For the next three weeks, I’ll be hosting a Make the Most of Your Mornings Challenge here. We’ll be talking about specific ways to improve our productivity in the mornings, ways to make the mornings less stressful and chaotic, and how to start the day off well.
Each week day at 1 p.m. EST, I’ll be sharing some inspiring thoughts and practical steps to take to make the most of our mornings, I’ll be issuing a simple project or challenge for you for the following day, and I’ll be giving you an update on how my morning went and asking you to tell us how you’re doing, too.
Kojo Designs shows you how she spent one afternoon of chopping and prepping to result in 14 Crockpot Freezer Meals. Love this!
Testimony from KM of Lessons From Ivy:
When we announced that I was expecting our third child, my car was a 98’ Camry sedan and my husband drove an 02’ two-door Cavalier. Inevitably, the first question everyone started asking us was, “When are you going to get a minivan?”
Our response was, “Oh we don’t need one right away, we’ll buy one when we have the money.” Raised eyebrows always followed. Apparently no one could picture three carseats in my Camry!
Could we have gotten financed for a vehicle? Sure, many car salesmen are more than happy to find a finance company for just about anyone. But we weren’t going to let the excuse of an extra child cause us to finance a larger vehicle.
And I’m here to tell you that three kids doesn’t automatically mean you need a minivan. As we discovered, it is possible to fit three carseats (and properly install them) in the back of a 98’ Camry.
We used two Cosco carseats and an infant Graco carseat with a base. Getting the kids in and out of the car was a choreographed dance each time, but we managed until the right minivan came along and we could afford it.
We kept our eyes open and saved for a minivan for a year. It wasn’t until our son was three months old that we found that perfect minivan (a 2000 Sienna) at our perfect price tag.
It would have certainly been more convenient to have had a minivan right when our baby was born, but doing the crammed in a Camry shuffle was definitely worth it. I’ll take the financial stability of debt freedom over a spacious interior any day.
But I won’t lie; we all love the spacious interior!
KM Logan has a blog of Christian encouragement for women at Lessons From Ivy and has written several books that can be purchased through Amazon.
This shake is perfect for a quick breakfast or a mid-day pick-me-up on hot day. It’s so refreshing… and actually fairly healthy!
Guest post by Brigette Shevy
This thick, creamy, refreshing shake is the perfect recipe for the long, hot summer afternoons.
It’s a healthy version of “Pina-Colada meets Orange Julius,” combining some of my all-time favorite flavors.
I like this shake so much that it’s the only reason I always keep coconut extract on hand!
There are many ways to mix up this smoothie recipe based on your taste preferences (or what you already have in the house).
1. Blend all ingredients in a Vita-Mix or high-powered blender.
2. Pour into 2 glasses and garnish with additional shredded coconut or orange slices.
Make sure to share and save it on your favorite platform below!
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.
Meal time just got so much easier!
Benita emailed in the following tip:
I’ve recently found myself, like I do most summers, with an excess of zucchini thanks to my prolific garden! Even after giving a lot of it away, I still have more than I can keep up with. So, I’m always on the lookout for new ideas.
One of our family’s favorite desserts this time of year is to make “apple crisp” with zucchini. The last time I made it I started wondering if I could also use zucchini to make applesauce.
So, I peeled and seeded three medium-sized zucchini, sliced them up, and put them in the slow cooker with about a 1/2 cup of water (just enough to cover the bottom so the zucchini wouldn’t stick) I set the crock pot on high and let it do it’s thing. I stirred them occasionally and after several hours got out the potato masher to mush them up.
However, I quickly realized that zucchini could not be made into “apple”sauce! Not to be deterred, I pureed the mixture in the blender, poured the mixture into some canning jars, and put the jars in the refrigerator.
The next day, I was making muffins and was going to replace the oil with applesauce. But then I remembered the pureed zucchini and decided to give that a try instead of using applesauce (or oil). It worked great and we couldn’t taste any difference in the final muffins!
I froze the remaining zucchini puree in 1/2 cup portions and have since used that in several different recipes, all of them turning out perfectly. Our favorite so far is zucchini brownies — made with zucchini puree in place of the oil, of course!
Yay! One more way to make use of my abundant zucchini! -Benita