Frugal Art Class

We like to do some sort of art project on Friday's. I do not like to spend a lot of money or time on art...lol...call me crazy...but it's just for fun at this point. So, today's frugal art project was painting a pumpkin! I just printed off a pumpkin coloring sheet.

I always like less mess when we paint, so an easy and cheap way to contain our paint is to use cupcake liners!

Another thing we often do is give little ones a Q-Tip to paint with...it's easy for them to handle and we can just throw it away when we are done!

The finished product! These pumpkins will make wonderfully beautiful fall decor, don't ya think?

Home Improvments

With cold weather coming there is much to do around here! We need to winterize the house and barns...but also, it's home improvement time! This is exciting and frustrating all at the same time! LOL...our house is OLD, and when you try to do any sort of improvement you can count on finding at least 5 things that make you want to cry! LOL. So far, in every room that we have tried to fix we have found crazy electrical work, crooked walls, not properly patched holes, one room of our house is built with boards one on top of the next...and the boards have bowed, so our wall bows in...it's a strong room, I think it was the first room built. Our home started out MANY years ago as a one room "cabin"...and slowly people added to it to make it a farmhouse. Whoever built on to it didn't do it for looks, it must have been just to have space for a family to live. Then, about 30 years ago, my uncle built the upstairs portion...and did a very poor job. Soft floors, uneven everything...the house has settled so much there are cracks in the ceilings and walls...you get the picture! It's a work in progress! We are going to tackle two projects this winter...the mud room and the downstairs bathroom. Should be interesting as these are both part of the very old, original part of the house. I wonder what we will find! It's been fun to see the newspaper that they used to line things with (walls, floors...i guess it was used for insulation??)...but it's not been fun when you see something you had no clue was under the floor or behind walls that could have burned your house down! LOL...Praise the Lord it didn't! I also have a few smaller things to do, I need to finish some painting projects and paint the family closet room and my pantry. Fun times!

Obedience

As of late I have been doing a study on obedience to God. It has been convicting and forcing some soul searching...both for which I am grateful. In the last two weeks I have had two major events come up...My flesh was screaming for me to "take action"...and do SOMETHING! I have learned that the something I need to do is wait. First, I need to be willing to obey God...when He lets me know what course of action to take...I need to say "yes, Lord"...and then comes the hard part...ask Him..."what's next?"...and wait. I have learned that His timing is perfect & I screw stuff up. I am so thankful to have a Bible so I can learn. Each of those situations had nothing to do with me, really...but I was very involved...had I satisfied my flesh and acted hastily, without listening and obeying God step by step, other people's lives would have been effected. It's like a chain reaction.

Today I am not feeling well, so much time will be spent reflecting over what He has taught me...I

Weekly Meal Plan

A frugal tip....PLAN, PLAN, PLAN! It really does save you money. I am trying to cut down on my food budget even more in the next few weeks...wish me luck :0)

Breakfast:

1. french toast

2. muffins & smoothie (from homemade yogurt!)

3. eggs & toast

4. homemade granola cereal & toast (or fruit?)

5. pancakes

6. spice cake (either made with rhubarb or zucchini)

7. homemade cinnamon raisin bread

Lunch:

1, Kielbasa, fries & corn

2. tuna melt & celery w/ p.b.

3. ham & cheese sandwich...and a side

4. hot dog casserole & fruit

5. pizza toast & applesauce

6. p.b. & J & apples & grapes

7. toasted cheese & tomato soup

Dinner:

1. Pizza roll (homemade) & green beans

2. hamburgers, potatoes & corn

3. Corndog patties & veggies

4. "stuff" with biscuits on top (we made it up!) & fruit

5. shepards pie & homemade bread

6. spaghetti & homemade garlic bread

7. "shake & bake" chicken, potatoes & veggies

Having a plan that's not too strict helps as I just pick & choose from the above menu...whatever we feel like cooking that day! another bonus...since I am prganized about my meal plans and food shopping...rob takes me on Sundays after church....and we go out for lunch! I'm sure he would not do this if I was just aimlessly walking arounf the store throwing "stuff" into the cart...and then after all of that ask him what he wants for dinner...LOL....he'd rahter stay home if that was the case! Either way....meal planning saves money and might just get you a date!

Frugal Birthday Party

OK....So, let me give you a bit of background about birthdays and what they are here...I learned a VERY valuable lesson when my oldest daughter was turning 2. She was my only child (I was VERY pregnant with #2)...and thought she needed to "have it all"! We spent well over $400 on her birthday that year! We had a huge party...tons of gifts...a cake special ordered from another town, a new outfit for the birthday girl, and spent tons of time and money on decorations. This is how that party went....guests came, ate, made a mess, didn't look at the decorations, Ashley opened gifts that she never really played with, fell face first into her fancy cake and screamed her head off...and as I was rushing around in a frantic state to make sure everything was "just so"...my pants nearly fell down...for real! (gotta love well used maternity pants, right!)...so I literally dropped the plate of food I was carrying to pull up my pants....you get the picture...oh yeah...and my step-SIL told me I had ugly hair! Whew....that was worth $400, right??

This is now how we "do" birthdays....it's VERY low-key! I spend less than $5 on decorations...usually $1 for a tablecloth in the child's favorite color...and a treat for each spot at the table...and the rest of the decor is FREE! It may be cheezy...but kids DO NOT care about decorations! I think they would be sad if there were none, but they don't care what they actually are as long as it "looks" like a party to them! I put the gifts in the middle of the table (they get as many gifts as years old they are), I color and hang up coloring sheets in any "theme" they choose, and make a homemade birthday banner. They get to choose whatever homemade meals they would like to have that day, and what dessert they would like. Only a few of my kids like cake...they choose ice cream, pie, candybars...all different things! We don't have a single person over, and they still have to do school. We like birthday's, but we keep them in perspective...and cheap! I have never had a kid cry because they hated their birthday, so I guess we are doing ok!

The birthday pictured above was thrown yesterday for the little girl I babysit. It looks just the same as it would if it were one of my own kids. I think I spent around $10 for the whole thing...

decor...was only $1 for the table cloth as I decorated the table with her gifts, and stuff I had here

gifts...she turned 5 so she got 5 gifts...

1. movie, already had...Colton got a double for Christmas (Dora)

2. 10 commandments book (I buy the surprise packs from CBD and then hand out the stuff for gifts whenever I need one)

3. Dora coloring book $1

4. Play jewlery $1

5. A set of dolls $5

She had a brownie "dessert"....free....and the candles I had

She had the time of her life, the girls all dressed up in princess dresses....who could ask for more!

I Can't Comment!

I wanted to let you all know that Blogger won't let me comment on anyone's blog! I try...I want to comment....I just can't! Sorry! I am reading and enjoying....just can't join in. If anybody knows how to fix this issue...please let me know :0)

Blessings!

Frugal School Tip

Just a little tip....and maybe I'm the only one who would do this...BUT...this is a tip on how to be able to re-use all of your home school materials...and never buy the same grade level twice!

It has always irritated me to have to re-buy a grade worth of books that I had already bought once...we use a lot of books that are consumable. I buy a ready made package of curriculum for a very cheap price, and they come in mostly consumable workbook type books. I love the curriculum, the price is SO right, and it really works for us! Again, not thrilled about spending money for something I already paid for more than once....call me crazy! LOL. So, this is what I did and it works very well....I just tore all the pages out of each consumable book and put them in a binder with page protectors. The kids don't write in them, they just simple use a notebook! This is a HUGE savings....I will teach (for instance) 6th grade at least (still praying for more kids!) 7 times. I paid $206 for 6th grade curriculum (all subjects...awesome deal!)...so if I were to buy that same package 7 times (becasue most of the books are consumable, but we like them) it would be paying $1,442 just to teach 6th grade 7 times. I bought it once at $206 and had to buy page protectors and binders...I didn't calculate the exact cost as I had some of the stuff here to do that with...but just say it was around $50 for supplies....that makes the curriculum now cost $256 for gth grade wich will be reused to teach all the kids....that's a savings of....$1,186! I'm sure some of you have better curriculum that can be re-used...but this is what I have found works for us! :0)

Blessings on your day!

Blended

you know something.... I have waited, watched, and prayed for this to happen....and it did~ God is SO good~ our family has finally, really and truly, blended! I no longer see birth siblings gravitating to each other, I no longer see that when we ask them to stand or sit together as a group, birth siblings always stuck to each other. I no longer see the birth sibling groups always watching their own siblings to make sure they are OK. they no longer ask to make SURE their OWN birth sibling will also have a snack...they are blended. They are all mixed together. We are a true and real FAMILY! Praise the Lord!

Look At Me

I have a little issue I wanted to talk (vent) about....I was at Walmart last night and was walking along, quietly talking with my oldest son, and we hear this mom YELLING at her child...child is running away giggling...you know the scene. What I wonder is why do people do that?? Nobody wants to hear all of that! I am not judging her parenting skills or child...as some of you know I have a child with RAD and we know what bad behaviour in public looks like :0) ( Savannah is doing MUCH better these days, just in case you were wondering!) What I want to know is what makes people think it's OK to be so LOUD in public?? It changes the atmosphere and your experience when you have to hear a loud adult screaming at a child. My son quickly looked away, although I'm sure, as a child, he wanted to stare to see what was going on...and he tensed up. Not cool. There are ways to get your child's attention while in public (or at home!) without even saying a word! I have trained my kids to listen to me...but when they are out of line, I need to let them know....how we do this is.....I taught them that when they hear me QUIETLY clear my throat...I WILL HAVE ALL EYES ON ME....NOW! I then just simply make eye contact with the offender...they stop...life goes on. And NOBODY heard or knows anything at all happened! this leaves the people around us happy...the child happy as they were not just humiliated...and me happy because I just didn't fall into the sin of anger :0) Spread the word....you shouldn't yell at your kids in public (or at home!)....it makes an unwanted scene!!

Frugal Bathroom and Family Closet

My bathroom is pretty small and needs some work. Someday :0) The pictures aren't the best as there really isn't much room to stand and take photos! I did the best I could! LOL

This is what my shower curtain looks like. Nothing fancy...I recently got it at Walmart...I had another one up that was pretty...but I wanted it to be brighter!

Here you see our washer and dryer...my husband bought these before we were married! We have done minor repairs, but they still work just fine! On the shelf above the washer and dryer is where I put my donations (tall white hamper), my mate-less sock bin ( my dryer snacks on socks!), cleaning supplies for the bathroom, and laundry soap/vinegar.

This shot shows my homemade curtain...again from a bed sheet...the things hanging on the wall are glass star things....they were given to us (they are cool up close!), the potty, and the vanity & mirrors. the vanity and mirrors were given to us by Rob's dad...they are the same ones he had growing up...FREE :0) They need to either go soon or be repaired...but for today, they are fine :0)

This is the scary part!!! the family closet...EEK! Each person has a shelf with 4 baskets. A shirt basket, a pants/skirts basket, underwear basket, and a p.j. basket. They may not have more clothes than fits in the baskets! Mine are the fullest...and I have 2 shelves...lol...

My husband and Ashley keep their clothes here....shelves right by the "secret room"...my kiddos call it that! LOL....I think that's a hoot!

this system REALLY REALLY REALLY works for us!! below this last photo is where we have our dirty clothes hampers...so it's easy as pie....everyone showers, and changes in the bathroom...no clothes leave this room (except for the ones you would be wearing!)...they are washed, folded, and put away all in the same room! How easy and efficent is that!! The family laundry room was all free! Rob built all the shelves out of stuff we had around! It really could use some paint....or something....but it's what works... beauty wouldn't get my laundry done, right?

Meal time Filler

Homemade rolls are a GREAT filler at dinner time! These are served often at my house and really help me to stay on budget! I mix the dough using my bread machine. cheater....I know :0)

Then you punch the dough....

Separate into blobs that I call rolls....

Set them in a warm place to rise...I put them (covered) on top of my oven (set at 250) because my house is COLD....it takes about an hour.

Finally, you bake them at 350....for about 30 mins :0) YUM!

Frugal Living Room/ Play Room

This is what you see when you walk in to the living/play room. We have to multi-purpose our rooms here...LOL...

First, you must stop and take a good looong look at "Bucky"...our awesome buck rob shot a few years back, it was so cool, he had Ashley (oldest daughter) with him! you see our couches...we have 3...and they were all free :0) Ugly...yup...functional....yup....kid friendly....yup! This room is meant to LIVE in...and we DO! I wanted pillows for the couch for the cooler weather as the kids lay on the couches with blankets often...I didn't have the money to buy any...so, until I can find time to make some, these will do! The mirror on the wall was a gift, as was the other wall decor for the entire room!

Here you see more of the ugly couches with the cushions on wrong...I do have kids...and this is a play room! LOL...I didn't realize they were this way until seeing the pictures! LOL. Oh well. I made the curtains from a bed sheet...the round table was Rob's grandma's. The candle and wreath on the round table were from Rob's mom...she also made the puzzle on the wall and Rob made the frame. FREE! And you can also see my VERY OLD dog! He is a grump and has decided he doesn't have to follow rules anymore...so he's on the ugly couch. He's 15 years old! When I'm almost 100 (dogs age fast) I think I might break some rules too! :0)

Here is the toy box!! It's a large cedar chest that was left here when we moved in! It serves very well as a toy box! Rob has screwed the lid to the wall...so no injures will occur! We like to have the kids play in THIS room. We usually don't allow toys to be brought thoughout the house. We have had people trip and fall over toys left about...and it looks sloppy!

We have a small living room, that really could use some help...lol...but hey, it works for us! We live in a very old house, and we aim to fix up on room a year, and only when we have the cash to do so...so, in 11 years....ready to laugh....we have only done 2 rooms! LOL...Someday we will get it all done & won't feel a pinch on our purse!

Why I Am Frugal and the Start Of a Frugal House Tour!

I guess I will start with the frugal house tour...today I am going to give you a peek at my dining room and kitchen. As I show you each part of my house I will share some of the frugal things about the area shown :0)

Pictured above is a bookshelf my husband just bought at a yard sale for $5! I love how rustic it is and how cheap it was to buy! On it we keep our "special prayers" board, cell phones, there's chalk in the white dish on top, next shelf is where we keep our Bible's and tissue box, next shelf is where I keep my cookbooks that I most often use, bottom shelf is potatoes, papers to change out our "chore cupboard" (it gets poopy..lol), and my purse. Please don't come rob me now that you know where I keep my purse! LOL....just kidding!

This bench is a special to my heart bench! My husband made the top out of scraps from when we replaced our dining room floor...and the legs are made from part of a tree we cut down :0) It was FREE! We had the paint...and he had the stuff...and the labor...hehe... :0) We have used this bench for LOTS of things over the years...as a school seat, as a tattle-tail bench, as a time out spot...now it holds my "menu board". I made this chalk board from an old picture I no longer wanted. I now write daily on it what we will eat...the kids LOVE it! They read it many times a day...and I never hear..."what's for dinner??"! The chalk board paint I had and the picture I had, so this was free!

Here is the view of most of my dining room. Some is not shown in the picture. Our table, buffet, and china closet (not shown) were a gift from Rob's parents. They were the same ones he had growing up....so they are special to us! Our table is not large enough to fit us all, so we just pull up a folding chair at meal times. This was a free alternative to getting a larger table. My husband made a large leef to go in the middle of the table to make it as big as it is now!

Here's is the kitchen...where I spend most of my time! We just "re-did" this room over the winter. It was SOOO UGLY before...and we did the whole thing (some things twice) for only $1,500!

Ok...so why am I frugal?? I am frugal by choice and by necessity. When we got married I worked outside the home. We made more money than we do now and only had a small family. We spent every bit of what we made and were not very happy. Ty (my oldest son) got ill when he was a baby and I had to quit my job and stay home to take care of him. We found out we were not any more broke than we were while I was working! We didn't eat out, but I was home to cook, we didn't go on dates, but I was home to "date" hubby all the time...not just weekends...you see what I'm saying...by me staying home, we saved. Then my MIL started teaching me about being frugal and how to do some things to save here and there...and we sarted to see a difference! Fastforward a few years...and here we are with 7 kids...we are now frugal out of necessity! I am so glad that I learned about being frugal when it wasn't so much of a necessity, but a choice. I was so ready when it came down to it...as we added more mouths to feed and more kids to clothe, I was ready! God has blessed us with much...and I want to show Him my love and appreciation by being a good steward of what I have been given!

Hey!!

This is a new blog that I created to record the many ways we try to save money! I big part of my life is about being frugal and learning and trying new ways/things to save a few bucks. I am a stay at home mommy....so every little bit helps! I am looking forward to having a record of all the things we do...hope to be a help to someone out there! God Bless!