3 kids with big imagination equals fun

© Vladimirm | Stock Free Images & Dreamstime Stock Photos




My three kids, it only takes a spark to ingnite a whole imaginary world for them.  Someone decided  that the ice chest looked like a treasure chest. From that thought came a whole world of games  pirates, treasure hunting, hide and seek etc. The kids have spent the most part of the day playing these games. I love it when they get going like this. It keeps them active and happy.

getting ready for cousins camp

It is that time of year again when we get together with our kids for cousins camp. The last three or four years we have done it, and the kids have a blast. I am in charge of the backyard olympics. It should be really fun. I found a new site that is wonderful.  enchanted learning  is a site for teachers etc. I was able to print out all kinds of things for our own olympic games. The kids are so excited to help make the medals. We printed out the medal template and then we used glitter glue (on sale at walmart for back to school) to make them pretty and shiny. Look forward to seeing my siblings and having a good time with them.

I'm the farmer

My Kaytlin loves to wear her bibby overall shorts and dresses.  Several times a week she says. "I want to be a farmer!" We put on her overall dress or shorts; to which she responds "I am going to find a cow!" She then goes off looking for her brother and sister and announces that they are the cows. They start "mooooing" and the fun begins. I love my active and entertaining kids. When in the car, we do not put on a movie like other families. We play "old fashioned" road games

Last summer we started a game of "dunk the cows".  The car is divided into two teams. One team on each side of the car. Each team looks for cows on their side of the road, collecting as many cows as they can. When water is found on your side of the road, you get to dunk the other teams cows. They then have to start all over again collecting cows. It started off with cows, but then went on to whole farmyards. It is a fun game for everyone including the little ones.

What do you do to keep your kids active?    What road games to you play with your family?

my three wild ones

If only I had known that I would be raising three very "spirited, lively, and strong willed " children.

Don't get me wrong, they are very lovely children, but they are children who put everything to the test. When we go out people comment "oh you have your hands full" and nearly everyone comments about my youngest  "busy child".

Growing up I envisioned life with kids all nice and neat. I pictured myself going to church well behaved kids in tow.You have seen it (You know the ones I am talking about.)  I knew that I had what it takes. I was sure that I would have the best behaved childen, but what I have looks something  more like this.....

I was a shy and quiet kind of a kid. I was naturally obedient. I just followed along with the family. I did not get into alot of trouble. I was happy to sit and read a book or to entertain myself quietly. To have kids that are such opposites of me, it is a real challenge.


Our oldest is so noisy. He can not go anywhere without making a ton of noise. Some people put squeaky shoes on their kids, my son comes with it built in. Grandpa calls it his "audio locator" You almost always know where he is because you can hear him.  He is all boy. He loves things that go fast. He is curious about things and how they work. There are many toys that are broken because he wants to know about them and how they work.

Our middle child is a bit more quiet. She gets awfully quiet and you knew she is into something. The hard part is hearing the quiet with her noisy brother around. She is extremely emotional and sensitive. She also has a condition where she cries at certain times of day. I warned a babysitter that she would have a meltdown and cry about 7 pm. I told the sitter not to worry that it was normal for this child. Sure enough right on cue, she melted down into a crying puddle. No one knows the cause of this, but it is what we deal with.

Kaytlin earned the nickname whirlwind early on. She is so busy all the time (even in the womb she was busy). It is a full time job to keep up with her. She is curious about everything. She wants to know how everything works. She adds to the broken things about the house. She is not shy about anything and makes freinds everywhere she goes. She is headstrong and wants to do whatever it is she wants. Keeping her in line takes alot of work and is not easy.

My sister was asked by her daugher "Am I going to have any more cousins?" They were going through the family to see who might still be having babies. When it came to my husband and I, my sister said "I think they are done having kids" to which my neice breathed a huge sigh of relief.  My sister asked "what is that all about?" the answer, "Have you met Kaytlin!"

The most difficult part is knowing how to reign them in without stomping out their spirit. Kids need alot of spirit and determination to make it in this world. I want them to keep their spirit and determination alive and well. But how do I survive in the meantime?

I am reminded of a bible verse Proverbs 22:6 "Train up a child in the way he should go:and when he is old, he will not depart from it."   I am also reminded of a quote by Joseph Smith  "We teach them correct principles and they govern themselves"  My parents tried hard to teach us and give us the tools we needed to make it in life. My husband grew up on a ranch and worked hard and has been taught good values in life.

Living in the slow lane allows me to get back to my roots. It allows me to teach the kids life lessons. We recently aquired chickens. Part of the project was to become more self reliant in having our own sustainable food source and teach the kids about real food. The other part was to teach the kids  responsibility of taking care of the animals. We are growing a garden, even if I have a black thumb. We have not had much success, but I am learning along with the children. As a family we are striving to have a better place. Slowing down and getting to the heart of things has been a real blessing in my life. Some of the best lessons have been learned while working together as a family.

cherry harvest time

We got a call from the neigbors telling us  "cherries are ready come and share the harvest."

we ended up with about 16 pounds of fresh cherries

The children and I woke up the next morning and picked cherries.  The children really enjoyed helping to pick cherries.They were eager and willing to help. It was a fun experience for them. I loved being able to teach them about real food. We spent several hours processing the cherries. My four year old made up a song to sing as we pitted cherries. We made some good memories as we prepared the harvest for storage. We ended up with 16 half pints of cherry jam, 3 quart size bags of frozen cherries, and 1 dehydrator full of cherries to be dried.

 It was nice to see the harvest all laid out. We were tired and sticky red by the end of the day, but it was well worth our efforts. I was glad to be able to teach the children how to work hard towards a good goal.

This morning when we had fresh cherry jam on our pancakes, the smiles on the kids faces said it all.

I am grateful for my neighbors who shared with us their abundance. I am also very grateful that I have put our family in order to be able to receive such gifts. We keep our preserving supplies on hand and within easy reach. When these opportunities come along we can take advantage of them. I know many people who are far to busy to enjoy these simple pleasures. Many of my freinds are so busy that  things meant to be a blessing end up being a burden. I know several people that 2 am is the only time they have to do such projects. Not wanting to waste an opportunity, they preserve in the middle of the night leaving them groggy, and irritable the next day. They miss out on the real opportunity of teaching the children the art of the harvest.

 (You can read about me learning how to preserve the harvest with my Grandma here)

SIMPLE LIVING HAS ALLOWED ME TO LIVE AN ABUNDANT LIFE
SIMPLE LIVING MEANS THAT I CAN ENJOY REAL BLESSINGS
SIMPLE LIVING IS REAL LIVING.

June Brides

We had the wonderful opportunity to go to Idaho to see Gregg's oldest daughter be married.  It was a good trip. There were many freinds and family there to support her. It came fast. It does not seem possible that the little girl I met a few short years ago is a grown woman. I wish her the most happiness in her new marriage. 

Cooking withGrandma Wright also known as cooking with whatever

Growing up I had the the privelege of being close to both sets of Grandparents.  You can read an earlier post about my Grandma Keyte here 


I got the chance to live with my Grandma and Grandpa Wright for several summers while I was going to college. Several years later while attending college a second time, I was able to live with Grandma. She has since passed away, but her memory sill lives on in my heart and my cooking.


Cooking with Grandma was always an adventure. Grandma would say the meal wasn't complete until we had added our favorite ingredient which was "whatever".When she would ask what I had put it something, I would respond "a little this, a little that; whatever." We loved to invent good eats. Grandma used recipes as a starting place. She hardly used a recipe as is. She would always add her own twist to it. I have many of her recipes now. They are full of notes about what she added or changes she made.

One summer Grandma made some yummy strawberry ice cream. Her sister asked for her recipe. My Grandma replied "Oh it is your ice cream recipe!" Her sister looking rather perplexed stated "I don't have a strawberry ice cream recipe." The story goes on with some very colorful languge that I will not expand on here. The point of the story being; the recipe was for burnt almond fudge ice cream. Grandma had used it as a base and added her own twist. I get that from her.  

Grandma taught me the art of cooking from the pantry. She always had a well stocked pantry and could cook whatever from what she had on hand. I love those skills that I learned from her.  I learned alot of my home preserving skills from her also. I have many fond memories of being with her in the fall harvest time preserving all types of fruits and vegetables. I am grateful for her knowledge that she passed on to me.

Cooking with Grandma was a joy (most of the time) except for the part where I am supposed to learn the secret of her famous Divinity candy.  For the holidays she had several recipes that she would make. You can read about her green onion dip here.  She would make fudge, gumdrop bars and divinity for family members and for select friends and neigbors. The Divinity was a favorite. Those who came to her house for the holidays left with a real treat. Most everyone agreed that her Divinity was something special. 

 Learning to cook the divinity was a real challenge and one that I have not mastered yet. It starts with beaten egg whites to which a hot sugar syrup is beaten it. It is again beaten, this time by hand to create the smooth creamy texture. It is then dropped by teaspoonful onto buttered cookie sheets to cool.  It all sounded easy until; "Cook until it looks like this,When it does like this, it is ready". I am learning and putting it all into my brain and then,"Oh it is humid today we have to cook it a bit longer".  She has been doing this so long 20+years, it is a part of her. She has temperatures to which to cook the syrup on her recipe card, but she says that they are no good. She can't trun it out using a thermometer. I have to learn to do it her way. I tried hard. I spent many a years at her side trying to get it right. She would look at a batch halfway through and she could tell if it was going to be perfect or just ok. I tried and tried, I could not see any difference. With her help I turned out some batches of divinity, but left on my own.....oh dear!

How many batched of divinity can one ruin? For me it was an endless supply. One year I made a bad batch that did not set up. It was a gooey mess. I recreated it into the most lovely ice cream topping. My sister asked how I had made it and I said "First you have to wreck a batch of Grandma's divinity" Mom would say that you better enjoy food I made, you may never have the same thing again. This was a prime example. 

I have found that if I slow down and don't hurry it. I can turn out some good divinity. I turned out one nearly perfect batch and one ok batch this last winter. I also wrecked two batches. 50/50  It is better than one good out of every ten (which is what it seems like I started as). But it is things like this that we cherish.  Take time to teach each other and learn from others.  The time that we spend together now becomes one of the most important things later on.


TAKE TIME OUT FOR THOSE YOU LOVE.

Birthday Ballons our family tradition

One of the best parts of family life is the traditions that we have. My son a few weeks ago asked if we could start having pancakes on Sunday. He saw it on Curious George. George liked Sundays the best because it was pancake day. "Why can't we have pancakes on Sunday?" he asked. We decided as a family that we could do something special for Sundays.We negotiated it to be breakfast for supper on a Sunday.

We have some fun family traditions. One of our favorite is Twisty balloons for Birthdays. A couple of years ago I bought some twisty ballons at the dollar store. We looked online and found some insructions on how to make ballon animals. It was a blast. We decided that Birthday balloons it was going to be. It is fun, and the kids are so creative with it. We love to share this tradition with others. Earlier this month we were able to share with our cousin. It was her birthday and we were able to make it fun by sharing our ballons with her. 

What is your favorite family tradition?

Leave a comment below and let us know!

Graduation time of year

Congratulaions to our Erika. We had the opportunity to go up to Idaho and be there when she graduated from High School. Two  children Graduated from high school.  Gregg is so proud of his kids. Now to get the boys through school.

Kaytlin had to take her turn to try on the cap! 



We also got an invite in the mail for Gregg's Nephew Brandon. He will be graduating in June.  Congrats to him also. 

I

learning values by working together

Doing chores and helping with the home is an essential part of family life.We find that in those moments we become better. I struggle with so many "helpers", but I know the value of it. We try to keep it light and fun. Hopefully the kids will come to enjoy helping out.  I think we are making headway.

When we cleaned the church on Saturday Kaytlin needed help setting up a chair. She turned to me and said "let's do teamwork." She is learning the value of working together.


Dad hauls more than  just dirt and weeds in this wheelbarrow'ofun



all in the wheelbarrow for fun!

















gardening becomes a family affair

filling up the garden boxes





Andrew love to take care of the chickens.  He is pretty good at catching them and helping to gather them up
I can't wait for our first eggs to be laid. 

and when we are done Relaxing is always in order 



Kindergarten Graduation

I can not believe how time has flown. It seems like yesterday that I was holding a newborn in my arms and here he is graduating from Kindergarten.  Love ya buddy.

See me now at life less hurried

I have decided to keep this particular blog as more of a family blog.   I am still keeping a blog about living simple I can now be seen at http://lifelesshurried.blogspot.com/

What is simple living?

What does Simple living mean to you?  For each person it is different. Tara of simply made home has some great ideas. You can read some of her thoughts here.  For me simple living is fast becoming a way of life.

 Here is where it all begins

When I decided that I was not going to be the typical "Soccer Mom",  I was left with an empty spot inside. What was I going to be?  I didn't really know, but the typical housewife was not it. I spent over a year in "Survival mode"  I was just surviving. Life itself was never dull, because I have three very busy young children, but I was dull. I was weary and dreary.  I was turning into a grumpy, frumpy, mom. That is not what I wanted.  It was not a good choice.

I was watching t.v. alot. I was searching for answers through Doctor this and Doctor that. I wanted a quick fix. I was looking for that magic thing that would change my life.  I tried some things, but they were not a permanant fix.  I found myself trying to fix everyone elses problems with what I had learned on tv. If I fixed other people, I felt better. When my Dad said "Please quit Dr Philing me". I knew I had to stop.  It was not making me happy. I would feel better for a while, but I was still miserable. I was  miserable I was lost. I needed new life.

I had to get out of this rut. (Sometimes easier said than done).  I started setting goals and writing lists of things that I wanted to accomplish. I was reading money saving mom's blog you can check it out here. It inspired me to do better. I was doing more, I was getting dressed, and combing my hair (most days).  I was accomplishing more in life, but still not fullfulled.  If I  have want I want in life (a home, a husband who takes care of me, three wonderful kids) Why do I feel like crap?

I am searching the iternet looking for a good way to improve my life. I'm looking at blogs.I'm getting ideas for how to improve my life. I am finding all kinds of things. I should do this with my kids. I should make this improvement in my home.  I should-----, I could-----and the list is growing. Then you add Pintrest to the mix! It was too much.  

Pintrest was the breaking point.  I was so overwhelmed. Pintrest was making it way to easy to grow my list to infinity. Now I could have an infinite list of things that I could and should do. I can share with my friends. I can add their list to mine. I am feeling really guilty because I have placed upon myself this unbelivably long list of expectations and goals that I can not accomplish  I got on my knees and prayed.  The answer was simple.  Throw away the list. Get rid of the things that really do not matter.

I threw away that silly list. I quit surfing the internet all day. I quit watching all those Doctor shows on tv.  I threw away all the stinking thinking that I was doing. I took a real hard look at myself.  I didn't really like what I saw, but I saw potential to be something better. I was surviving off this list of things. It was my main motivation. A daily list of things I must do, and one for things I should do. without my tv and lists. I was really lost. I am able to find new motivation and new direction for  my life. My motto and the main theme in my life has become this

TO LOVE AND CARE FOR MY FAMILY IS THE HEART OF WHO I AM.

By clearing away the clutter of things that really did not matter, I was able to see what is real. I thought that with this list I would somehow be able to do those things on it. I would be superwoman. Without the list I felt worthless. But now looking back I know that the list was holding me back. I am better able to do the important things without the list. I do not worry that I am doing A when I should be doing B. The details of each day do not matter so much. What does matter is that I am getting closer to the end goal,  to LOVE MY FAMILY WELL. 


To love my family well leads to a much better attitude and way of life than what I had in the past.  I am now able to take time to teach my children. I am able to do all those activities that used to be on the list.  I am happier because I do not place all the demands of that list upon myself. I am finding my strenth and my mission from within. I am no longer listening to all those outside voices that call out to me "do this, do that".  I feel what is important each day and if I have a question about it. I just have to ask myself  "Is this helping me to love my family well?"

Loving my family well is in simple living. What does loving your family well look like?  What does simple living look like to you?  I would love to hear your comments about it.

make your own playdough

I grew up with homemade playdough/Salt dough. I have found a new recipe made with kool-aide powder. It is smoother than my mom's recipe and smells good too.  It is really simple to make




Kool aide play dough
1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tarter
1 envelope kool-aide unsweetened drink mix
1 cup water
1 1/2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

mix dry ingredients in a medium sauce pan.
Stir in oil and water
cook on a medium high heat for a few minutes until the dough forms a ball. 
remove to a floured surface and knead for a few minutes until smooth and cool enough for the kids to handle. 
store in a zip top bag

here is the dough as it formed in the pan it comes together quickly

leftover rice becomes rice pudding

My husband loves homemade pudding. Whenever we cook rice he wants to be sure that we have leftovers so that we can make rice pudding.

Here is our recipe that we have developed

In a meduim saucepan

1 can (12 ounce) evaporated milk  (We like the added flavor of the evaporated milk)
1/2 to 1 cup leftover cooked  rice, (depends on how much rice you have left over)
1/2 cup water
Cook this mixture at a simmer until the rice plumps up and gets softened (about 10-15 minutes)

1 1/2 cups of milk
add to this milk add
3/4 cup sugar
4 Tablespoons cornstarch
3 whole eggs
Beat this mix well and then add it to the hot rice mix stiring quickly so the eggs do not curdle

cook and stir over a medium high heat until it comes to a boil. 
Add
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
about 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (you can add this to taste)
raisins or dried fruit if you like


It can be served warm or cold.  Although hot from the pan (with a steaming mouth) is my husband's favorite way to eat it.

A MOTHER'S DAY SURPRISE

I have to admit that I really don't like Mother's Day.  This morning as I got up I was thinking "Oh great, here we go again......a whole hour in church hearing people blubber on about how much they love their mom."  I was very surprised by what I heard at church today. 

Speaker #1 We got a history of Mother's day. I was surprised to find out that the woman who instigated Mother's day had a turn around when she discovered that Mother's day was becoming overcomercialized.  She bacame an advocate of nulifying the holiday just a few years after it was adopted as a national holiday.

Speaker # 2  Read a  humorous thought about how we as women need  to no longer fear Mother's day and no longer need to feel guilty because we are not the perfect Mother. She said,  "Never fear you too can be perfect, and here is how to do it", then proceded to go through an exhaustive (and somewhat exagerated) list of things that the "perfect mother" would be or do. Starting at 3 am and going throught the day until  "try to be in bed by 2 am because a quarter to three comes early when it is time to start all over again". 

Speaker #3  Started her talk with "I hate Mother's day"  She went on to say that Mother's day makes her anxious. She dreads it for weeks. It is as Stressful as the "Holiday Season".  I was taken back by her honesty and her ability to tell it like it is.


It was a very surprising Mother's day indeed. 

YARD SALE AHEAD

Ever since I heard the word frugalista I knew that it described me.  I love a good bargin.  I love yard sales. They make me happy. 

I am becoming quite the yard sale queen. 

Some things to consider if contemplating a yard sale.



1. WHEN TO HAVE A YARD/GARAGE  SALE

Right after payday is the most profitable.  People have just cashed thier paychecks and think that they have extra to spend.  A bad  time to have a yard sale is right before payday when everyone thinks they are broke. Some areas/places in the country this is really important.

2. LOCATION

If you live in an home that is hard to find or your home is far off the beaten path, a sale at your place may not be the best idea. Find a freind with a better location.  You could even knock on doors in a good location and see if someone would be willing to let you yard sale there.  You never know until you ask

3.  SIGNS
A few well placed signs can guide people to your sale.  Make sure the signs are readable from a distance. People will not stop and take time to read a sign, but an easily readable sign with an arrow will do.  Just point me in the right direction. Do a practice drive by. Did you see the sign? Could you read it? Does it do the job?

4. BE VISIABLE/ EASILY FOUND
I have driven right on by past sales even when  I had the address and was looking  for them. They were hidden from view of the street.  Have items out where people can see that you are having a yard sale.  A big sign that says "YARD SALE HERE" and a some balloons can do the trick. make sure that people can find you.

5. BE ORGANIZED

If I pass a yard sale that looks like a hurricane blew through and deposited a buch of junk, I am less likely to spend any real time looking. If it looks like you cleaned out the attic or garage and just dumped it into a pile. I am not that interested.  Clean up your items. Dust off the cobwebs and wipe off the dirt. Organize like things together. Toys in one area, tools in another etc. Get things up off the ground. Ask your neighbors if they have some tables you can use, or create some. An old door thrown over a couple of sawhorses for example. A makeshift clothes rack made from an old broom handle and two stepladders works wonders. Get stuff out so that people can see what you have for sale. People are not real intersted in digging through big boxes or totes to see what is in it.


6. DO SOME RESEARCH

find out things like:  Where to advertize online?  Where are the hot spots to place your signs? Where do people look for yard sales?  What is the going rate for items similar to what you will be selling?  When do yard sales in your area usally start?  Is your area prone to early birds?  Attend a few yard sales in your area. Observe what goes on there.


If you want a sucessful yard sale you have to put in at least a little bit of effort.    With a bit of effort you can have a very sucessful sale. 

GOOD TIMBER

This is a poem that I memorized years ago when in the 6th grade.  It has been an inspiration in my life. It is a reminder that the hard times are worth it in the end.


                                        GOOD TIMBER

by Douglas Malloch

The tree that never had to fight

for sun and sky and air and light,

but stood out in the open plain

and always got its share of rain,

never became a forest king

but lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil

to gain and farm his patch of soil,

who never had to win his share

of sun and sky and light and air,

never became a manly man

but lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease;

the stronger wind, the stronger trees;

the further sky, the greater length;

the more the storm, the more the strength.

by sun and cold, by rain and snow,

in trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,

we find the patriarchs of both.

and they hold counsel with the stars

whose broken branches show the scars

of many winds and much of strife.

this is the common law of life.

Maximize your grocery budget part 3

THIS IS PART THREE IN THE SERIES if you missed it you can read part 1 here  and part 2 here



SMART COUPONING

I was introduced to smart couponing three years ago. I was a busy mother with three very small children (the oldest was only three). Many days just finding time to have a shower was a chore. Finding hours to coupon seemed like the imposible.  I had been invited out to a class on couponing. I thought "I will go see". My real motivation for going was to have a night out away from the kids and to enjoy some adult conversation. I was still not sure about it. I had a freind who was a nanny. The family asked her to work extra hours on tuesdays. They did this so that the mother could spend time clipping coupons and getting ready for shopping trips. She told stories of this woman spending hours clipping, and sorting coupons. Then she spend hours looking online to find the best place to use all those coupons. I thought to myself  "Is it worth it to let someone else raise my kids so that I can save money?"  Long story short, The Frugalista inside of me woke up and I found that you can clip coupons and save money even with very little time. I like the clipless method for organizing coupons.  Jessica Willams Of Utah Deal Diva has a great tutorial on coupons. You can read about her clipless coupon method here   

FINDING COUPONS

Coupons are everywhere. Companies are trying to get you to try their products. The Sunday paper has been the standard for many years.The internet has brought about a new way of couponing. There are several sites dedicated to printable coupons some include coupons.com, coupon suzy, and red plum. You can also add coupons directly to your stores loyalty card. I am near Smith's food and drug I can load coupons to my card here.  Another place to add coupons to your card is cellfire  Facebook has coupons when you like a particular company. You can also write the companies that make your favorite products and request coupons.  I use all these in addition to the traditional Sunday newspaper. Many of these sites require you to join or sign up.  I would use a junk E-mail for this. Sometimes there are alot of ads sent to your computer after you sign up.

A note about internet coupons You can usually print out two coupons per computer. The coupons cannot be photocopied. There are some places that will not accept internet coupons because of others actions. Please be courteous and follow these basic rules so that we can continue to use these services.


We have found coupons NOW WHAT?


THERE IS A RIGHT TIME TO USE A COUPON

Just because you have a coupon does not mean you have to use it. There is a saying out there that coupons are like "free money" and not using them is like throwing money in the trash. It is a bunch of Baloney. Buying a product just because you have a coupon can be a big money waster. Buy only items that you will use.

Using a coupon when an item is on sale is the right time to use a coupon. The product is already on sale and you can stack the savings of the coupon on top of that you have yourself a deal. If you have more than one coupon then you can really add up the savings. You can stock up with several months worth of the product.


HOW DO I MATCH UP MY SALE ADS WITH MY COUPONS?

Knowing when to use coupons can be  tricky at first. There are many sites that help in matching up coupons with the sale flyers. My favorite internet site and the one that I first learned is grocery smarts There are many others. I heart the mart Matches up coupons with Walmart. wild for wags matches up coupons at walgreens. coupon mom is also a useful site.

If you can't find a site that matches up coupons with your local store never fear. When you look at the ad and see that a product that you use, check out a coupon database such as  a full cup They have an advanced search option that lets you check and see if there is a current coupon available for a specific product.


REBATES

This is something that I personally do not do alot of.  Some people find great savings in reabates.  With the advent of the internet it is alot easier.  I just really do not want to take the time to jump through the hoops to get it done. Also I hate spending money now to get it back later. I worry that they may forget me, or it will get lost in the mail. I worry that I will miss something or not follow the instructions just right. For me it is not worth the worry. If you do decide to do rebates, just make sure to follow the instructions.  They usually have to be done a specific way and in a specific time frame.

Beer rebates can be a great way to get free food.  Look for them in the beer isle of your store.  How it works: 1. Buy beer. 2. buy the food listed on the rebate form. 3.Send in your receipts and get a rebate for the food purchased.  In Utah (and a few other states) you do not have to buy the beer. That means just buy the food listed and send in the rebate form.  Totally free food!   It works for some but is not my style.


IF IT IS OVERWHELMING!

Take it a bit at a time.  Don't try to coupon at every store, or every time you go shopping. Pick a few coupons for the things that you will use. You do not have to know everything all at once. It took me quite a while to learn how to coupon. I am not an expert, but I know that the time I put into it saves me a bunch.  Attend a class in your area.  Read up about it. See if it could work for you. 



AS AN ADDED NOTE
I have started eating more "real food"  I use alot less food coupons. I do however, use coupons to buy all my toiletries for supercheap so that I do have more room in the budget for better quality food.

Go Figure

We borrow a movie from the library. When we goto take it back; we can't find the cover.  We renewed the movie in hopes the cover will turn up. No such luck.  I am left with two choices

1. Pay a large sum to replace the movie
2. find a copy and pay a restocking fee of $2.00

I choose option 2. I get online and find the movie for $2. Shipping is $3, but I figure it will be worth it.
The movie comes in the mail and... go figure.  That same day we find the cover for the old one.

Fish Tacos

There is fish in this taco under all the veggies and stuff

Fish tacos are yummy and easy to make

these were made with some tilapia filets that I battered and  fried. I prefer to cook my own fish nowdays.  I have used  battered frozen fish portions in the past. 

Once the fish is cooked it is easy to do,


1. warm tortillas
2. add a piece or two of cooked fish (depending on your tortilla size and size of fish)
3. top with lettuce, tomato, chopped onion, avacado, salsa, sour cream, cheese and a squeeze of lime.
    you could add cilantro if you like it.
 4. enjoy

If you have never had fish tacos you should try them.

My Favorite things

Spring is blooming all over!  I love the smell of spring.   Lilacs are in bloom.  It makes me happy.
There are a few things in life that make me happy. simple little things like:

Lilacs
Roses
My husband who has taken to making the bed each morning after I mentioned that I hate making the bed.
Jumping into a bed with nice clean sheets
warm towels fresh out of the dryer
Custard
magic erasers
Listening to my children say their evening prayers
The list could go on and on
For all these things I am truly grateful.

WHAT ARE YOU TRULY GRATEFUL FOR?

super easy green chile puff

The other day when I found cottage cheese on sale I could not pass it up. It was dated that day and needed to be used.  I did not want to make my standard recipes for cottage cheese so I got on all recipes.  I love the site because I can put in whatever ingredient I want to use and it gives me a whole list of recipes.  I found a recipe that is a keeper


Green chile puff

5 eggs beaten
2 cups cottage cheese (16 oz container)
1 cup jack cheese
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup melted butter
1  can diced green chile (4 oz)


Mix all ingredients together and pour into a greased 9x9 square baking pan. 
bake at 350 for about 40 minutes until set and no longer wet in the middle  Serves 6

I did make one change. The original recipe called for 1 cup cottage cheese and 2 cups jack cheese, but I switched the two. I wanted to use the entire container of cottage cheese and only had about a cup of jack cheese on hand.  The results were yummy.

While it was baking I whipped up a batch of biscuts and some fruit salad to accompany it.

Maximize your grocery budget part 2

THIS IS PART TWO IN A THREE PART SERIES. 

 IF YOU MISSED PART ONE YOU CAN READ IT HERE

The Grocery retailers know how to get us to buy product!  How many times have you gone to the store for milk or bread and come home with a whole cartload of stuff? Retailers are a major marketing machine.  They know how to arrange the store and place items so that you are tempted to buy.

I buy groceries, but I am careful about what I buy and when.  Here are some of my stragaties for buying the most for the least amount of money.

1. BUY MOSTLY SALE ITEMS.

When I go grocery shopping I buy mainly items on sale. usually 80%  of my cart is sale items, the other part is usually staple items.

2. MAKE SURE THAT A SALE ITEM IS REALLY ON SALE

Do the math. 3 for $5=$1.67,  4 for $7=$1.75  I personally saw people loading up their carts with an item listed at 3 for $5 thinking that they had a smoking hot deal. Upon closer examination the item was normally priced at $1.68. My brother had a simailar experience.  A place that he frequents has candy at the register priced at ten cents. He went in one day and noticed a sign  stating "special 8 for $1". He asked the cashier about it.  The cashier said that he had sold a ton of the product.  People were taking notice and buying in groups of eight. It just made my brother laugh.  He said to the cashier "Do people not know how to do simple math?"  Pay attention and know if it is a good deal or not.  As a side note, When the sign says 4 for $10 do you really have to buy 4? The answer is NO! The power of suggestion is strong and retailers know that. You can buy just one or two most of the time. There are exceptions and usally it is stated in the fine print. It will usually state something like this; 4 for $5 or $1.59 each.

3. READ THE ADS.

When you look at the ad you have an idea about what specials are going on. You can make a list of things you want to buy that are on sale. A good place to make a list is grocerysmarts The site matches up coupons with the sale prices. They also have a stock up scale that I like.  three gray stars means it is on sale this week. Four red stars means pay attention this is a pretty good deal.  Five red stars means it is a really good deal and it is a time to stock up.

4. STOCK UP YOUR PANTRY AND FREEZER WHEN PRICES ARE LOW

buying items when they are on sale is a great way to save. Buying not just what you need now, but for later is advisable. Many of the items we buy come on sale in a cycle.  The cycle is usually 3-4 months between good sales. Buy 3-4 months worth of product to get you through until the next big sale on that item.

5. CREATE YOUR MENU AROUND SALE ITEMS AND WHAT IS IN YOUR PANTRY AND FREEZER

Buying everything for a meal all at once can really hit you in the pocketbook. Pasta, and pasta sauce are an example of things that you never really see on sale together. Buy the pasta when it is on sale.  Buy the sauce when it is on sale.  keep in your pantry until ready to be married together.The other night I made a really great dinner. I found shrimp on sale that day for a great price. I paired it up with pasta from my pantry, and made a nice Alfredo sauce with the supplies I keep on hand. I had fixings for a salad in my fridge. The only thing I bought at full price was some french bread. The price of that meal (had I bought everything that day at full price) would have been a real budget buster. By buying each piece of the meal on sale and then putting them together later I really saved.  I really can live a champagne life on a beer budget. 

 6.  BUY IN SEASON

Buying produce in season is always a good idea, you get better product and better prices.  Yes, you can buy strawberries in November, but they are really pricy and been shipped from halfway around the world. 

This advice is also for other foods as well.  Right now we are heading for BBQ season.  It will be a great time to stock up on kechup, mustard, spices etc.  Fall time is a great time to stock up on baking supplies.

With a little bit of planning you too can save a substantial amount on groceries  Take time to know what is on sale at your store, plan meals around sale items and you too can live a champagne life.

Strawberry Saturday

 I got an Email late Friday night from my favorite grocery stores. It said  that they would have strawberries in stock on Saturday for $3.99 a case.   I was overjoyed!   On Saturday morning I was able to pop over and picked up 6 cases of berries, some sugar, and pectin to make Jam. 


I love freezer jam, but haven't made it for a while.  I have not had the freezer room until recently.  I was shocked to find out that the recipe in the pectin box called for corn syrup.  since when does freezer jam call for corn syrup?   I happened to have some on hand, so we were able to make jam without another trip to the store.  We made freezer jam, rhubarb strawberry jam, and frozen berries for smoothies etc.

The grand total

28 pint jars freezer jam
5 freezer containers that each hold about 2 1/2 cups jam
11 pint jars rhubarb strawberry jam
16 quart bags whole berries

Plus we still have a case of berries to eat fresh.
We will be making an angel food cake today!  

I was glad that I had signed up for email alerts from my favorite store.  It saved me from buying the berries at $5.99 a case plus the pectin was on for a steal at that same store.  I saved over $20 on my jam making experience just by keeping my eyes and ears open.


P.S.
If you missed the first post in my series on how to maxamize your grocery budget you can read it here

Training our chickens to "come"

We have sucessfully trained our chickens to "come".  It came in handy when several of the chickens escaped through a hole in the fence into the neighbors yard.  We were able to call them right back through the hole. No chicken rodeo to get them back.

Training chickens is easy. 

When we feed and water them we call out chick, chick, chick while shaking a container of food.  It is like Pavlov' and his dog.  When you call out chick, chick, chick, they come running for food. Now when we call food or not they come running

Maximize your grocery budget part 1

THIS IS PART ONE OF A THREE PART SERIES

I decided to write a series on how to maxamize your grocery budget.  With the price of everything going up expecially food, I thought it would be a good time to share some of my thoughts.

1. GET TO KNOW THE STORES IN YOUR AREA

This is an important first step. Take some time to visit each one and find out about them.  There is alot of difference between stores.  Not all grocery stores are created equal! 

2. CHECK OUT THE PRICES ON BASICS

See how it compares to what you have been paying. Sometimes we really do pay for convienence. Make a list of everyday prices on the things that you use most. Compare prices and see what you may be paying for convienence. It may just shock you. 

3.  WHERE ARE THE DISCOUNT BINS/SHELVES IN YOUR STORE?

If you do not know, find out!   There is a world of bargins to be found in the discount areas.  A word of advice A bargin is good only if you will use the product, otherwise it is a waste of money.  Avoid the temptation to buy something because it is a good deal.  I have to ask myself  "Would I buy this if it were not on sale?" If in doubt pass it up.

4. WHEN DOES YOUR STORE DISCOUNT MEATS, BREADS AND OTHER STUFF

Knowing when your store puts out discounted  items can really maxamize your savings.  We have one store that does in the morning and another that does in the evenings. Having that information gives me an advantage to know when to shop that particular store. I hardly ever pay full price for my meats( I can't afford it) I always buy when discounted and use right away or freeze it.

5. SIGN UP FOR THE STORES INTERNET NEWSLETTER

The stores in my area have internet coupons, and special sales only for those signed up to recieve their news letters.

6. KEEP YOUR EYES OPENED FOR UNADVERTISED/MANAGERS SPECIALS

My main shopping store is full of unadvertised specials.  They do not advertise very much.  The theory is that if they spend less on advertising they can pass the savings on to you.  Each store has their own style, look about for signs. One of our stores has blue signs, another has yellow ones.  Train your eyes to see them. I have saved a ton just watching for those signs. Another store in our area has a sign right by the front door listing the managers specials.  


7. CHOOSE WHICH STORE IS THE BEST STORE FOR YOU TO SHOP.

Once you have had a chance to try out the stores you will have the information you need to choose one or possibly two stores to shop.  There are some who spend time running all about town cherry picking the best deals from each of the stores, but my life is to busy for such things. I used to do that when I had more time. But for now I have picked one main store. My main store is a bit further out, but they have lower prices on the basics. They have a deeper discount on meats usually 50% off as compared to the other stores 25-30%. When you add the unadvertised specials on top of that, it makes the 6 mile drive worth it.

Armed with a bit of information you can make a choice that works for you.

easy grilled pork chops

This is a recipe I have developed for easy pork chops.  Everyone has just loved them expecially the kids.

We use pork loin chops. We usually cut up our own. We buy a whole pork loin and cut from it pork chops, pork roasts, boneless ribs, and scraps for stir fry etc.  learning to cut your own meat can save a bundle.


1. preheat the grill

for the recipe you will need
6 pork loin chops about 3/4 inch thick these happened to be about 1/2 inch, but I prefer a thicker chop
Salt and pepper
garlic powder
Worchestershire sauce
Sazon goya seasoning

2. Season the pork chops on both sides with the above mentioned seasonings I only use a small amount of the Sazon.  Msg is a main ingredient.  The instructions say to add a packet to 4 servings of food. For the six pork chops I may use up to 1/2 packet although about 1/3 is normal for me.

3. cook the chops on the hot grill.   You will want to cook them covered about 2 minutes then turn them 1/4 turn to get the nice grill marks and cook about 3 minutes more.  Then turn over and finish cooking  about 8-10 minutes in all.  You can give them the old poke test to see if they are done.  They should feel firm to the touch, not springy or spongelike. 

4. cover with foil and let rest for a few minutes so they will remain nice and juicy. 

5. Serve up with your favorite vegetables and sides.

YUM! 

P.S.
these can be made inside under the broiler.  They are still pretty good that way, but I like the looks and taste of grilled foods.  It also makes the neighbors jelous when they smell the grill. 

Gardening made easier this year

my garden boxes

I am not a gardner! I hate to weed the garden. I have young children who tend to destroy the garden while trying to help. There are many reasons I hate to garden, but I want my children to learn about their food. I want to teach them to work. I want to be self sufficient. There are many good reasons to learn to garden. I want these things, but I get so frustrated by children, animals, and weeds that I just want to pull my hair out.

Last year was just a bad year in general for many people in the area.  It was our first garden in our new home. We did not enrich the soil, and the list goes on about why it was bad.  Taking all these things into consideration and making a plan to overcome We will triumph. I am working toward creating a simple garden that works for us. 

Grow boxes seem to be the thing for us this year I was able to create my boxes from scrap wood that my husband picked up for free. (Love freecycle but that is a story for another time).  I took some of the split and broken pieces  and created four garden boxes. We lined them with newspapers and a layer of leaves from the fall cleanup.  A few inches of dirt mixed with a good mulch lined the top and we were ready to go.





my girls were great helpers moving the dirt with the dump trucks




Filling the boxes up

  

My top three reasons for building boxes to grow my garden this year



1. Makes it look like I know what I am doing

2. Less weeds!

3. I can tell where the plants are supposed to be growing


In the past we have had a weed patch with a few garden items growing alongside the weeds. I am always unsure about what is a weed and what is a plant to keep. By the time I figure it out, that weeds are so big and out of control they seem so overwhelming. I let the weeds grow and hope that the vegetables will grow also. Looking back it seems so silly, but at the time it seemed like a good plan.  As a busy overwhelmed mother the things we do make sense at the moment. As I have been able to simplify my life I am finding that I am less overwhelmed. Being less overwhelmed means less crisis living and better decision making skills.  I hope that I will have less crisis in the garden this year by eliminating the big trouble spots.

 Being able to tell where the plants are growing has been a frustration. We have marked the rows, but somehow the plants still get trompled. The dog and kids can't really tell where it is safe to walk (expecially while running).  Building the boxes has saved me that frustration this year.  The kids and I both know that the boxes are where the plants are supposed to be growing.  It is alot easier for the kids to see the boundries. They know that they do not dig or play in the boxes. Now if I can keep the robins and chickens from eating my seeds.

Last year many of the rows of seeds got trampled by the children and dog. Those seeds and plants that were not trampled were eaten up by robins.  I would see robins out there picking up things in the garden, not knowing that it was my seeds.  I went out looking for plants I looked, and looked for the tiny plants. "They should be growing here" I thought to myself. I then noticed that there was a nice neat row of tiny holes right along in the spot that I thought I would see vegetables poking up their heads. The robins had eaten my tiny plants.  I was so frustrated I wanted to give up gardening forever. 

I will keep gardening.  I may not be good at it, but when I have to survive off of what I can grow I will be glad that I learned how to grow something. I would rather have the learning curve happen now when there is an abundance of food rather than when it is critical with no food. So I may not like to garden, but I do it because I love my family and I want them to have the values and skills that come with this process. I think that is part of what I loved about my Grandparents. You can read an earlier post about my Grandma.  She is wonderful.  I am grateful fof her teachings and want to pass that on to my children. I want to leave a good legacy.  I don't want to leave the legacy of a stressed out mom.  So I will continue on with the process and journey called life.