Coming Up for Air

Missions Week 2012

2012-01-24T20:19:00.002-06:00

Every year, at the school where I now teach, they have Missions Week. Yesterday was the kickoff and it will continue through Friday.

As a kid, I was terrified I was going to be asked by God to go to......a particular country. =) It is a country with a culture so completely different from my own, that I was sure it would just be terrrrrriiibbbllllleeee!!!!! I was quite paranoid about it.

As a direct result of where I went to college, I eventually came to view foreign missions and the people who serve as some of the most interesting, exciting acquaintances one could ever make. This week has reminded me of this fact once again.

If you want adventure, listen to a missionary. If you want your faith to be proven and increased, hang out with a missionary. The stories could go on all night!

This week, I have introduced my students to Touching Lives for Christ. This organization gives these kids a chance to go for a short-term missions trip during the summer for 2-4 weeks. It was so fun to tell them all about the trips available and see the excitement grow. Of course, they will see their first missionary miracle if they can raise the funds to go on one of these trips....but that's a good thing.

Maybe...just maybe, they will come to see missions as I do. =)

Watcha Readin'?

2012-01-17T21:57:00.001-06:00

Photo Source

Chad got me just what I wanted for Christmas - a Kindle! He did this mostly for himself. You see, when I go on trips (such as a trip during Christmas vacation), I am not ready to go until I have my "stuff" stashed all around me. I'm not a hoarder in general, but when I'm traveling in the car...I've got to have my stuff. This makes Chad feel crazy and claustrophobic - and I totally understand that. I also understand that if I don't take along entertainment, I might get bored on the trip and that is a definite no-no. One of my favorite things to take on a long trip is a good book....or books. I can never decide which books to take because the books that look interesting right now may not look interesting in the car. So, the obvious answer is to take lots of books!

Enter the Kindle. Right now, I have 80 books on this thing! (I've discovered the free books.) I knew that I was going to have an automatic block on getting used to using this device because I am so used to holding a book in my hand. I decided just to make myself get used to it and eventually it would feel normal. It worked! Now I can go on a trip from Kansas to Key West and back, if I want to, and never run out of books. Plus I have more room at my feet for other stuff now that the books aren't taking up all of that space!

Reluctant Entertainer

2011-08-10T08:53:00.000-05:00

Please visit the Reluctant Entertainer blog today. She has a good message that everyone needs to read. Yes, YOU! =)

Maggie's Accident

2011-08-09T22:38:00.001-05:00

We had an unfortunate incident this summer. Maggie the Small Munsterlander broke her foot. I mean, she smashed it up good! =( She was being excited and hyper and got her foot hung up in the fence. Chad heard a loud crack and it was immediately obvious that a trip to the vet was in order. As you can see, she has that big 'ole ugly cast on her leg. That is actually the second cast. She has two more casts in her future. Poor thing! You may also be able to see a raw place on her leg just above her cast. She made an extra trip to the vet today because that spot was looking worse and worse. As it turns out, her cast was too high on her leg and was rubbing in the joint. As you can tell, the vet just cut the top of the cast off so hopefully, with antibiotic cream, etc. that 'lil mess is gonna clear right up.

The worse news is that she needed to be trained and tested before her first birthday. Since her birthday is in November, and obviously all training has stopped while she heals, she probably won't be ready in time for her tests. Chad is disappointed but resigned to the fact that nothing can be done. In the meantime, Maggie is getting lots of extra loving and we are hoping she heals up quickly!

Coupons

2011-08-09T22:22:00.001-05:00

One goal of mine this summer was to use coupons and lower that grocery budget. I can't tell you how fun it was to go in a store with Chad the other day and pull out a coupon. Of course, he has seen me cutting coupons and organizing and coming home with strange amounts of soap, laundry detergent, etc. He hasn't gotten involved but I knew he had noticed. Yesterday, he needed to make a small purchase of medicine for his dog. It was going to cost $4.84. I quietly pulled out a coupon and watched him as he looked at the total on the cash register screen. When it dropped to $0.84, he was quite surprised. "How did you do that?, he asked. Of course, his next question was, "So do you have coupons for sporting goods at Walmart?" Um, no. =)

The first thing I did was to begin keeping a price list of all the groceries I bought. I recorded what I bought, what brand, what size, where I bought it, and how much I paid for it. This gave me a guideline so that when I saw something that was a sale, I could tell if I had ever gotten it for less. If I can see that I have bought it for less in the past, then I don't buy it until the price drops again.

I began clipping coupons. The best coupons come in the Sunday paper. Usually there is a Smart Source booklet, and a Redplum booklet, as well as a P&G booklet (sometimes). Sometimes, there are a lot of coupons and sometimes there are a few. Personally, I do not do business on Sunday - no buying or selling. Therefore, I had a challenge before me to find the Sunday paper....on Monday. I prayed about it and have had success every week. My coupon stash has grown and I've been able to get good deals!

Obviously, the best deals come if you can buy something on sale plus use a coupon or coupons. When I find a super-duper buy, I stock up on that item while the price is low. Currently, I have a mini-store when it comes to things like shampoo, soap, deodorant, etc. I got it all at super prices and spent much less than I've ever spent on it before. We will have no need to buy those items for a long time....unless I can get them for free. =) We have also stocked up on meat and have a nice amount in the freezer.

It has been a lot of fun to learn how to do this. There are definitely people who are experts at the drugstore game and do a better job than me. However, I am satisfied with the progress I've made and feel really great that we are saving money that can be used in other (read: more fun/useful) places. Chad, however, is still looking for coupons to Bass Pro! =) Crazy guy.

Summatime....is almost ovah!

2011-08-09T22:06:00.000-05:00

Summer is winding down. Before you know it, it will be back to school and to the usual routine. I must say I am looking forward to it!

I've had a few projects on my to-do list this summer and I've decided it would be a good thing to update. Up next...coupons.

2011-07-05T00:00:00.003-05:00

Forgiveness

Notes from John Piper/Thomas Watson

Resisting revenge
Not returning evil for evil
Wishing them well
Grieving at their calamities
Praying for their welfare
Seeking reconciliation - as much as it depends on you
Coming to aid in their distress

One could no more do these things than to fly.

Run, John, run,

The Law commands,

But gives us neither feet nor hands.

Far better news the Gospel brings

It bids us fly, and gives us wings.

-John Bunyan

Chocolate Chocolate Chip

2011-07-04T15:44:00.000-05:00

Ingredients
2 and 1/4 cups of flour
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of baking soda
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 cup of granulated sugar
1 cup of packed brown sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon of vanilla
(I used 1 tsp. It was perfect.)
1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa
Chocolate chips

Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Stir together flour, salt and baking soda
In another bowl, stir together butter, both sugars, eggs, vanilla and cocoa
Mix flour mixture and butter mixture until combined well
Stir in chocolate chips
Drop onto cookie sheet
Bake for 10 minutes
Foodnetwork.com Cathy Lowe

Enjoy instant popularity =)

Fresh from my garden....=D

2011-06-27T12:00:00.002-05:00

This just makes me happy!

A Great Summer Recipe:Cilantro Bowl

2011-06-26T12:00:00.003-05:00

Chad and I had just gotten home from church camp and I was out of energy. I needed an easy supper that was going to taste good. I went to E-Mealz for inspiration and this is what I found. Chad loved it and we both chowed down. Super yummy!

Cilantro Bowl
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef, browned and drained
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon sage
1/2 teaspoon pepper
White rice, cooked
15 oz can corn, drained
15 oz can black beans, drained
1/3 cup chopped red onion
2 tomatoes, diced
(I used a can of tomatoes since my tomatoes are still green)
1/4 c. jalapeno slices, chopped fine
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of shredded cheese
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
8 oz of sour cream

Directions:
Brown ground beef until cooked. Drain. Add spices.
Cook white rice.
Combine corn and beans in bowl. Cook for 4 minutes in microwave. Keep warm.
Dice tomatoes into small pieces. Toss with chopped onion, jalapenos, and salt. (I went ahead and added the fresh cilantro here to make the perfect salsa)
Assemble in these layers: rice, beef, corn and beans, salsa, cheese, cilantro, sour cream.
Eat!
*By the way, E-mealz is a great lil program if you are like me: not the greatest or most creative cook and need lots of help when it comes to grocery shopping. For $1.25 a week, you have access to 7 meals, complete with directions and a shopping list, telling you how much everything should cost, approximately. It even tells you which aisle where you can find the items on the shopping list. If you want to try it, click here.

Japanese Food

2011-06-25T19:59:00.000-05:00

Normally, I'm not the Asian food type. When we were invited to go and celebrate a friend's birthday, I was a little uneasy about whether or not I would find anything I would like to eat. Picky, picky....See the green vegetables in the white bowl in the picture above? Could.not.stop.eating.it. Sea salt and oil = fabulous on these little veggies.

We were all seated at a u-shaped counter, as if we were pulled up to the island in someone's kitchen. The cook(s) stood at the grill on the inside of the counter and did our food in front of us. Dinner AND a show - what more can you ask? There were knives being thrown in the air and large flames. What more do you need for entertainment? =)

The food was spectacular. I ordered chicken but got someone's steak by mistake. I did not give it back. =) Super fun night.

Doin' That Grocery Thang....

2011-06-18T17:01:00.000-05:00

Trying to jump into the grocery game has proven to be a study in frustration to me.
Problems:

I would see a fantastic deal explained on a coupon blog. I would go out and get the newspaper that had Smartsource or Redplum in it. Then I would be ready to implement the plan of action - only to discover that the coupon I needed wasn't offered in my area.
I didn't really know good deals when I saw them because my brain does not generally register what I normally pay for items. I had no way to compare! I got a price sheet from someone online and it proved to be some help to me but again, these prices weren't necessarily for my area specifically.
I didn't understand the full benefits of or how to do the drugstore game.

Slowly but surely, I have made some progress on my own. It has had to be on my own since most blogs/teaching on the subject does not apply to my area. (I live in a rural area so Target, CVS, Hyvee, Publix are usually out of the question for me.) Here is what is working for me. I completely realize that I am a beginner and I'm probably am doing some things wrong or could be doing more. Here is what I can do right now:

I don't buy anything that is out of the ordinary for me just because it is a good deal - UNLESS it is part of a chain of actions where I am saving money even if I hadn't gotten that item. Example: I could buy an expensive razor at Walgreens this week for about half price with coupons. Normally, I wouldn't have given it a second glance EXCEPT that it was going to give me a coupon that would help me get items I use all of the time for a much better price than usual. If I had bought peanut butter, mayonnaise, and tea at Walmart, I would have paid more than if I got all of the PLUS the razor at Walgreens. This is the only time I pick up stuff that is out of the ordinary for our uses.

I began making my own price list. On my price list, I have 6 columns: Item bought, Price, Amount in container (lbs, oz, etc), Brand name, Store where I bought it, and Date. This has been quite informative. Example:

Green Peppers @ Walmart:

March - $1.44

May - $0.88

June - $0.78

As you can see, it would make sense for me to stock up on peppers now - since we use them every week - and freeze them in preparation for winter when the prices go high.

I understand the Walgreens game a bit more. The trick to is to buy items (with coupons, if possible) that will give you Register Rewards. (These are coupons for certain dollar amounts, to be used on any item on your next purchase.) Buy an item with a coupon. Get the Register Rewards. Use it on your next purchase, combined with coupons. You can get stuff for free or for very cheap. I bought an 8 roll package of paper towels today - normally $5 - for $0.38.

We Are Debt Free!

2011-06-10T07:39:00.001-05:00

Since I probably will not be calling the Dave Ramsey show and screaming about it, I thought I'd just post our news here. =) We are debt free!

This week, we paid off our last debt, after working towards this goal for approximately 2.5 years. We had some hurdles along the way - a hospital bill for an appendectomy, a vehicle that had to be replaced, etc. Honestly, towards the end, I didn't think we were EVER going to get there, but it's finally done.

I have blogged somewhat about this goal of ours and you can click on the link in the sidebar that says "money" if you are interested. (I realize some of you are not - and that's okay too) =D

I learned a lot of lessons along the way:

The art of compromise in marriage
The thin line between working hard towards a goal and allowing the goal to take over our lives
The backbone to say "No!" when I really want to say "Yes!"
That it is possible to set a big goal, and actually reach it.
Not to give up at the hard part

The most helpful tools were Mvelopes and Dave Ramsey's 7 baby steps. These two things were used just about every day of the process!

Chad has gotten a little amused/annoyed with me calling him up randomly through the day to say, "Hey. Guess what. We're debt free!" hehe If I'm not going to call Dave and say it, I've GOT to call somebody! =)

We're Debt Freeeeeeeeee!

.

Hey! This really works!

2011-06-09T23:41:00.013-05:00

This is my new favorite product! I know this may seem like a strange post, but when I find something that really works, I like to share it. We were having trouble with our dishes coming out of the dishwasher looking cloudy and sometimes not clean enough. We were pre-rinsing the dishes before they went in. We switched detergent brands. We thought maybe it was time for the lake to turn over and that was giving us issues. I mentioned it to my Aunt, who recommended this stuff - purchased at Walmart. I decided to try it and it was amazing! I wanted to take everything out of my cabinets and wash them in this stuff! Thought I'd share...just cuz I like ya. =D (Do they give bloggy awards for the strangest post?) =D

Love This Scene...=)

2011-06-08T23:32:00.001-05:00

The garden is thriving.

The first fruit of my labor! A green pepper!

Snapdragons =) They make me smile.

In between the raindrops....

2011-05-25T18:38:00.000-05:00

The boxes =)

The beans are coming up at different times - even though planted on the same day. Those blank spots do have sprouts - though you probably can't see them in the picture.

Cucumbers. Only planted a few vines because we've been overrun in the past.

Tomatoes, Squash and Peppers

Flowers make me smile.

Sprouts, Flowers, and Green Stuff

2011-05-13T20:53:00.000-05:00

The beautiful little sprout that convinced me I had not planted in vain. =)

Green beans (and marigolds) Hopefully, there are more down under there, getting ready to poke their little heads out.

Tomatoes, to-mah-tos - they are looking mighty fine. I love the smell of tomato plants, by the way. I used to hate that smell when Dad made me work in the garden, against my will. =)

Yellow squash (which I dearly love) and peppers. Yum! Gonna be so good this summer.

It's All Comin' Up Roses

2011-05-05T20:15:00.001-05:00

Flowers and birds just make me happy. I think I get it from my Grandpa. =)

Progress...

2011-05-03T22:09:00.001-05:00

Okay, so I realize that not everything about this picture is beautiful. However, I am so excited about the progress I am making in my (not-s0) Square Foot Gardens that I decided to go ahead and share. First of all, I have a third box. You just can't see it in the picture. Secondly, almost all of my flower places are partial shade and there are so many beautiful, full-sun flowers! I decided to put one section in flowers and then I planted flowers in the edge of the gardens that is closest to our street. I planted 54 green bean plants, 3 squash plants, 5 tomato plants, and 3 peppers. I know that this may not seem to be much to some of you seasoned gardners but this is just my second try so I'm keeping it pretty small. I am also hoping to put some mulch around and between the boxes to make it look a little prettier. We shall see. Can't wait to see things starting to grow!

Sunday Night Snack

2011-05-01T21:25:00.002-05:00

This picture really doesn't do the recipe justice. However, this pizza was Mmmm....mmmm good! Here's the deal:

Chicken Club Pizza

Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 30 minutes
Makes: 6 servings

Pizza crust (I used Jiffy Mix)
1/4 cup Mayo
1/2 c. Ranch dressing
1 1/2 Shredded cheddar cheese
1 1/2 chopped cooked chicken
Crumbled bacon
1 1/2 cups shredded lettuce
1 tomato, chopped

Heat oven to 400 degrees
Bake pizza crust for 10 minutes
Mix mayo and 1/3 cup dressing and spread on crust.
Top with half the cheese, chicken, remaining cheese and bacon.
Bake 5 minutes or until crust is golden.
Top with lettuce and tomatoes.
Drizzle with remaining dressing.

Easy peasy!

A new website that I really like

2011-04-30T16:20:00.000-05:00

Reluctant Entertainer is a new website that I am really enjoying. I first heard of the authoress on Family Life Today and just enjoyed her talk so much that I jumped over to her blog.

Now, you may think that the reason I would like a blog by this name means that I don't like to entertain. Au contraire, my friend. =) I LOVE to entertain. The problem lies in my perfectionism and my lack of good cooking skills. In my mind, my whole little world is guided by Martha Stewart and Rachel Ray. In reality, I sometimes struggle with making jello. =) This blogger understands that sort of thing and people like me are her target audience. I thought you might like it too.

This is why I am a country girl =)

2011-04-25T23:13:00.000-05:00

For all ya'll who wonder what would possess someone to live in the country: Click here =)

Square Foot Garden ~ 2011 version

2011-04-22T09:58:00.002-05:00

Photo from Samsclub.com

Well, I finally took the plunge. I bought these raised garden beds with my birthday money (combined with some money I made from giving piano and violin lessons.)

Here are some pictures from my last Square Foot Garden: (see also the link to all my SQF posts in sidebar)

As you can see, I just used plain old wood to build the beds and they worked really well! However, this year, Chad discovered that the wood had rotted and was just generally icky. I read on a blog somewhere about Sam's having these raised beds that were more durable because they are made from recycled materials - not wood. I was almost tricked by something similar at Walmart, but upon further inspection, realized that the Walmart ones were also made of wood - which I am trying to avoid. My order has not yet arrived so I am looking forward to seeing what I bought. The product does have good reviews online - which gave me confidence to put spend my money this way.

I just can't wait to get the garden going again! I won't have corn this time, as the raised beds are a bit shallow and the corn blew over in some of our fierce Kansas winds. (Actually, I think I just didn't put enough dirt in the bed, but still...) =) Chad is planning to plant corn in our friends' garden. I started to get concerned that I should already have my garden planted, but we had some very cold days hit us, so I was glad I wasn't having to cover the garden. If I plant by the end of April/first of May, it will be fine. So excited!

Love this!

2011-04-20T19:01:00.000-05:00

I love THIS! It is an awesome gift from a Mommy to her beautiful little blind daughter.

Why ARE we doing this?

2011-04-09T13:40:00.004-05:00

Chad and I have not really ever been on the same page when it comes to money. When I got excited about this debt-free thing, I could not understand why he didn't want to throw all caution to the wind and plow in! (It couldn't have been that I promptly turned into a nag. No. That Can't be it! hehe) Now, don't get me wrong. He has never been one to "surprise" me with a $2,000 gun purchase - or even a $150 gun purchase, or any such thing. Quite honestly, we wouldn't spend $50 without the other knowing it, in most cases. However, when it came to financial decisions, often we were on opposite sides. [If it sounds like I'm getting ready to do some husband bashing - please understand that I am NOT. Keep reading. Also, know that Chad approved this message. =)]

In the past month or so, some friend of ours took us to see Dave Ramsey. (Thank you Bob and Shar.) They knew we are following his plan. They also knew that though Chad doesn't love Dave, that Chad WOULD enjoy the fellowship. So off we went. Neither Chad nor I really learned anything new that day since we've been on the plan for quite a while - though Mr. Ramsey does make the convention very fun and a good time was had by all. The convention did, however, spark a question in Chad. It was a definite "AHA" moment!

After the convention, we were sitting at the kitchen table. I was going through grocery sale ads as he and I talked. Suddenly, he looked at me and said, "Why are you doing this?" I just looked at him a little confusedly. He said, "Why are you into the Dave Ramsey thing, this finding grocery deals thing, and all that? Is it because you think we are poor?" My answer was, "Absolutely not! Our income definitely covers the bills." He said, "Is it because you are afraid that the whole world is going to fall apart and we will be left in bankruptcy or something?" "No!" I said. "Then what is it?" he asked. My answer was this: "Honestly, I just can't stand the thought that someone is hiking prices on me and I'm handing over my hard-earned money to them when I could be getting the same product for a lot less!" He smiled and said, "Gotcha." This week, Chad pulled out the grocery ads from the newspaper. "Hey!" he said. "Chicken is on sale this week and I think it's close to the stock-up price. We need to go pick some up." BIG GRIN! Guess he doesn't like handing over hard-earned dollars either!

It taught me an important lesson! He thought I wasn't trusting him to be a good provider. I thought he was being stubborn. I know that some people have commented to me that they want to save more money but their husband isn't really on board with the idea and it has led to frustration and money fights. Maybe this will help????

Modesty, The Wall Street Journal, and Youtube

2011-04-02T16:32:00.002-05:00

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal regarding modesty. Here are some excerpts:

Why do so many of us not only permit our teenage daughters to dress like this—like prostitutes, if we're being honest with ourselves—but pay for them to do it with our AmEx cards?

A woman I know, with two mature daughters, said, "If I could do it again, I wouldn't even have slept with my own husband before marriage. Sex is the most powerful thing there is, and our generation, what did we know?"

So here we are, the feminist and postfeminist and postpill generation. We somehow survived our own teen and college years (except for those who didn't), and now, with the exception of some Mormons, evangelicals and Orthodox Jews, scads of us don't know how to teach our own sons and daughters not to give away their bodies so readily. We're embarrassed, and we don't want to be, God forbid, hypocrites.

...not one woman I've ever asked about the subject has said that she wishes she'd "experimented" more.

Read the full article here. Wall Street Journal, March 19. 2011, by Jennifer Moses.

Also, interesting video about the modesty topic. I'm interested to hear what the female side of the population thinks about this guy's perspective. (I first saw this on Joel Byer's blog)

* Not really into the music at the beginning or end and don't agree with all the theology, blah, blah, blah

For Girls With Long Hair

2011-03-22T21:27:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty much the queen of long hair, so I know what it is to be walking with a million pins stuck in your skull. (Hey, gotta keep that hair out of the way somehow!) Anyway, a friend of mine gave me a package of these little darlins' and they work wonders! I was nervous to put them in my hair at first because it looks like a tangle waiting to happen. Nope! They go in or come out perfectly with no problems. I got an additional package in order to have four of them. I got mine at Walmart.

A price list for those rock-bottom prices

2011-03-21T11:24:00.001-05:00

Here is a link to a free price list. This list is one person's opinion of rock-bottom prices for which you should be aiming. I recently acquired another such list from another source and was interested to compare the two. Some items were quite similar, others had some surprising difference in prices. This just taught me that it's probably going to be different for different people. It helped me to see that there is no need to get discouraged if my purchases don't exactly line up with someone else's. No biggie. The goal is to save a little cash. =) Here's the link.

What I Listened To Today....

2011-03-18T13:50:00.002-05:00

If you....

Know a special needs child
Feel uncomfortable around those with special needs but are brave and willing to explore something outside of your comfort zone
Have a family with a special needs child in your church
Know a family with a special needs child who MIGHT COME to your church

....then you MUST listen to these two programs. All humans are created in the image of God. All life is valuable. Sometimes the interaction with special needs children and adults will seem to be the closest you can possibly get to God on this side of Heaven. Don't be afraid!

I've posted these programs in the reverse order in which they were aired. I have my reasons for doing so.

Family Talk #1 - Just click here on this link then click "Listen to the Broadcast."

Family Talk #2 - Just click here on this link then click "Listen to the Broadcast."

Woohoo! My first deal!

2011-03-09T18:12:00.001-06:00

I got a price list recently. The first column has the item, the second column has the "stock-up" price, and the third column as the "Don't pay more than" price. Here you will see Bone-in chicken drumsticks/thighs (per pound): Stock up @.69 and don't pay more @.99.

Here, you will see an ad for chicken drumsticks or thighs for this EXACT stock-up price! YAY!

A couple days ago I was semi-complaining because there were no or very few sales that matched the price list. I suddenly realized that even if there had been a lot of good sales, I wouldn't have been able to take advantage of them because I only have the regular amount of grocery money set aside in the budget this week. This will be a process but today is the first step. So excited!
Here is one of my inspirational videos from Money Saving Mom explaining the stock-piling reasoning.

This Grocery Stuff Is Harder Than I Even Thought! Argh!

2011-03-07T19:45:00.000-06:00

This is a picture of my dining room table right now. I've got ads from Walgreens, Country Mart, Marvins and our local grocery. I also have a price list from a grocery guru who has two columns - one that is a stock up price and the other is a don't-pay-more-than price. Ummmmm, this is going to take a while to stock up! This evidently is not a good week for sales on meats. Patience, Aimee, patience! =D

Chad is actually quite better at this - already - than I am. I've been trying to learn about this stuff for forever! Tonight, I gave him a brief synopsis of what I'm trying to do and he had me organized before I could bat my eyelashes. Guess I'll keep him. =)

I am planning on a trip to Aldi's this weekend since I am supposed to already be in "the big city" for an event. I will take my handy dandy price list with me and see what happens.

A man and his dog . . .

2011-03-06T20:59:00.001-06:00

Not so sure about the look on Maggie's face but the look on his face tells me he is in looooovvveee. =)

Low-Country Smothered Pork Chops - My new favorite meal

2011-03-05T08:58:00.003-06:00

This photo is from Paula Deen's website

My new favorite meal is easy and really yummy. Chad likes it a lot too so we have had it a couple times lately. We have Paula Deen's Low Country Smothered Pork Chops, paired with sour cream mashed potatoes, and roasted asparagus. Throw in some garlic cheese biscuits and it is deeeeevine. =)

Ingredients:

4 center cut pork chops

Salt

Black pepper

Cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons of butter

1/4 cup of flour

2 medium bell peppers

2 yellow onions

cloves of garlic, minced ( I just throw in however much I'm in the mood for)

2 cups of chicken broth

2 or 3 dashes of Worcestershire sauce

Melt the butter in the skillet. Roll the pork chops in the flour, then shake off the excess. Throw the pork chops in the skillet and brown on both sides. Then, take the chops out and put the vegetables in the skillet. Saute them until they are getting soft. Move the vegetables to one side. Put the chops back in. Move the veggies on top of the meat. Pour in the broth and Worcestershire sauce. Cover the pan with foil and simmer for about 45 minutes. Take the foil off (don't get a steam burn!) and smell the goodness! =)

Garden Planners

2011-03-05T00:08:00.001-06:00

I found a link to someone's site who has some garden planners - including one for Square Foot Gardens. =) Here ya go!

Bringing tech to the Music Room...

2011-03-03T20:00:00.002-06:00

I'm now the owner of two blogs! I created one for my violin classes and the students have had such fun clicking on the links and seeing stuff about themselves on the internet. Such fun....If you want to check it out click "here."

Spending Money....On Groceries (Ugh)

2011-03-01T21:36:00.001-06:00

So I have this thing about food. I don't care that much about it! Pretty much as long as it is hot, tastes reasonably good, and doesn't give me a stomach ache, then I am good to go. It's even better if SOMEONE ELSE makes it! However, my husband is not of the same mind. That man wakes up in the morning to plan supper! Herein lies the problem. Since I don't really think too much about food, it usually sneaks up on me that I am going to have to cook something for supper - and it can't be Mac-N-Cheese from the box.

Just as important as working out the food situation with Chad is the fact that because I haven't spent time on planning meals, I tend to have extremely poor eating habits. I am not exaggerating. It's bad. So far this hasn't really been a big bad terrible thing, but I know that in the future, it will affect our health.

I am suddenly experiencing feelings of paranoia about any readers knowing what a dreadful person I am for not being Paula Deen. Hmmm...Maybe I'll just keep it real. =)

Because of these two things, I have been actively trying to do better in the food department. Lately, I've been actually beginning to enjoy cooking! Also, because I have been making things from scratch, I have more of an interest in how it actually tastes. Lo, and behold, I can make some pretty tasty stuff every once in a while.

All of this leads to the category of the budget labeled groceries. Because I have been an impulse cook, this has let to impulse purchases, made on the run, at the grocery store. While I'm sure our local grocer approves heartily of such spending, my budget hurts every time I do it. Unfortunately, I have been quite overwhelmed with the whole process of learning how to do these super-duper good deals that I see bloggers posting about all over the internet: "I got $98 worth of groceries for $17." Say what? I tried to figure it out and just kept going into overload.

Finally, this week, I found something that may be a help. We will see.

I have been making a menu for the week. However, I now see that instead of making a menu, then checking the sales, I need to switch it around. Check the sales first, then make a menu from the items that can be bought below regular cost.
Stockpile. This is a new concept to me. Evidently, I am going to learn to see fantastic sales every once in a while, (like, say, on meat) and when I do, I am supposed to stock up on that item - as long as it is something we will actually like and use.

There is quite a bit more information out there on couponing and the like, but I have decided to stop right where I am with the two concepts I just mentioned, and just start working on them. There are not a lot of stores to choose from in the town where I live. (Not complaining...I love where I live.) However, I go to the big city about once a month. If I watch the online sale flyers for the stores that are there, perhaps I can go at the most opportune time and get some deals while I'm at it.

This spring, as I have mentioned, I do plan on planting a garden. That will help some as well.

I really, really want to conquer the grocery part of my budget. Hopefully these first two steps will be the beginning of success.

National Public Radio...and my favorite songs from church

2011-02-21T08:08:00.000-06:00

When I am driving in the car, I often listen to the radio. At school, one of my students who was hoping to draw me into a debate regarding types of music, asked what I would be listening to on my drive home that day. She may have been disappointed when I informed her I would most likely be listening to National Public Radio. =) Today, I happened to hear an interview with the person who wrote the score for 'True Grit.' I have not seen TG but what caught my attention was that the interview opened with a hymn being played simply on a piano. I was surprised to hear something so familiar from church on NPR so I continued listening with interest. The entire interview was very interesting to me as the man, Carter Burwell, explained why he had used particular hymns and even the reasons for his presentations or takes on some of the songs. This music is dear to me and I found it all fascinating. Here's the link to hear the interview for yourself: http://www.npr.org/2011/02/19/133877190/true-grit-a-new-score-from-old-familiar-tunes

Here's the end of the story. =)

2011-02-20T00:56:00.001-06:00

Some gardening inspiration! =)

2011-02-20T00:54:00.003-06:00

This warm weather has soooooo put me in the mood for the garden! It's been a couple years since my first square foot garden and tonight I decided to do a little search on Youtube for some inspiration. Lo and behold, I found this lady, Donna, who documented her square foot garden! She has 69 videos! Videos 1-50 are of her garden in Florida. She then had to move to another state and I have not looked at any of her videos at her new home yet. I am posting video #2 and then video #49 so you will get the beginning and then the end of her story. (I am not posting video #50 because she had to go out of town for a while and so when she got back, her garden was not at it's best.) I hope to get Dad to watch these videos since he has started his Florida garden doing a version of the Square Foot Garden method.

**** See next post for the other video!

Square Foot Gardening - Revisited

2011-02-14T19:52:00.001-06:00

A couple of years ago, or so, I found a book on Square Foot Gardening. I don't remember how I got introduced to the concept but I remember being intrigued because it seemed simple enough that I could do it. I did three raised beds that year and had a total blast! (You can read more about my last round with SQF by clicking on the Square Foot Gardening section in my sidebar.) During the long, winter months I start looking through those wonderful seed magazines and my imagination starts working overtime. Therefore, I have gotten out my trusty book and started planning this year's garden.

This booklet came in the mail today. I signed up for it for free a few weeks ago. Of course, it is "Proven Winners" so it's basically an advertisement. However, it is FILLED with inspiration....for FREE! Can't beat that. =)

I also found this website that has different garden layouts: (see above photo) http://www.squidoo.com/VegetableGardenLayout This is the particular one that caught my fancy, only using the square foot gardening method.

My Dad has done the raised beds at his home in Florida this past year. When we lived in Ohio, we usually had big gardens but he hadn't had one since he now lives almost on the beach. Way too sandy. Raised beds were the ticket for him and he is having a great time growing things again.

Better Homes and Gardens has this link (http://www.bhg.com/gardening/design/nature-lovers/welcome-to-plan-a-garden/) for creating your own garden plans. Such fun!

Peach Cobbler in a Skillet

2011-02-13T17:38:00.002-06:00

Spray skillet with cooking spray. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, pour in two 16 oz. cans of peaches. (one should have the juice but drain the other can) Mix in 1/3 cup of sugar, 1/2 a cup of baking mix (I used Bisquick), and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Topping:
Mix 2 1/4 cups of baking mix, 1/4 c. sugar, 1/4 c. melted butter, 1/2 cup of milk. Drop bits of the dough on top of the peaches. Sprinkle on cinnamon/sugar.

Put in oven for 30-45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and crusty. Sooooo yummy.

Got this recipe from Paula Deen...only she didn't put hers in a skillet.

Valentine's Day Violence aka "There Goes My Cake!"

2011-02-12T13:42:00.006-06:00

A few years ago now, I took a cake decorating class. In one of the first classes, we were required to make a cake and deocrate it with the star method. Since it was near Valentine's Day, and I was working in a Special Education classroom at the time, I decided to do holiday appropriate theme for the kiddoes. I spent some time on it, (though it is obviously the work of a beginner) and then proudly put it in my brand new cake carrier. Off to school I went.

That day at school, one of the students was having a rough day. (By the way, this student has looong since left this town and gone his way. Privacy laws and all that...no names mentioned.) Throughout the day, he began to escalate in his inability to deal with even minor adjustments to his expectations. Finally, we were within sight of the finish line of the school day when he exploded. This explosion led to several actions on his part that were a little jaw-dropping and, um, exciting. The icing on the cake - so to speak (har, har) was when he picked up my beeyoutiful Valentine's Day cake - the one I had worked on for so long - and in slow motion, swung it behind him, and then brought it up, up and over his head and flung it over his head to the opposite wall. SPLAT! Valentine's Day was now a little unrecognizable - at least if you were looking for it in cake form. For some reason, this struck me as extremely funny. My mind just kept replaying it over and over....the cake flying through the air in slow motion and then splat. Oh my goodness. I guess the stress of the day had finally gotten to me. Every Valentine's Day I remember (insert name here) and the slo-mo cake. Happy Valentine's Day everyone! May you feel the love! =)

I'm a child of the internet age . . .

2011-02-12T09:24:00.005-06:00

I love to organize things. Maintaining the organization is a whole 'nother story, but the process of organization is a good thing. However, about the maintenance factor, I do tend to create such elaborate organizational structures, that they come tumbling down if there is one misstep. Then, it is easy to become what a relative of mine termed as a "discouraged perfectionist." Until it can be done perfectly, (i.e. I have two hours/the right tools/etc.) it doesn't get done at ALL. Um, that can leave you in a big mess for a while until you feel motivated to tackle the elaborate plan again. Ask me how I know this.

There are two things that have really worked for me because they aren't too complicated and they are all online! So I thought I'd share.

Online Planner

I love to get a new calendar and fill up all those blank spaces with all the things I need to get done. The bigger the planner, the better. I feel so organized! Except....I don't carry it around with me. Enter Cozi. Cozi is pretty straightforward. In fact, I would like it if they offered more features. Of course, then it would get too complicated and I would stop using it. Here's what Cozi does for me.

Calendar ~ You put important dates in the calendar and then you have several choices. You can set it up that the system will send you a reminder by email or by text message. (Surprisingly, I have not gotten even one unwanted email or text from them. They ONLY email or text when you tell them to. No advertisements. Yay!) Also, at the beginning of the week, they will automatically send you an email of your appointments for the week so you are reminded and prepared. In addition to all of this, you can divide the calendar between family members. Therefore, I can put down that Chad has a meeting on Thursday morning and label it with his name, and he will get an email about it but I won't. I don't have to see information that does not apply to me. Chad likes that feature a lot. (He is just uninterested in my card class schedules! Can you believe it? Hmph.)
Cozi also has a place for To Do lists and Grocery Lists. These are most helpful if you have a phone that can access their app. I would love to be able to access a grocery list on my phone, but alas, I am to cheap to own such a phone. =) Great feature tho!
The Journal. I have no desire to put lengthy journal entries online. However, I do use this feature to keep track of my New Year's Resolutions. Every Saturday, I list my resolutions and post a sentence or two about how it is going. Example: "Exercise - nope. Didn't happen this week either." hahahahaha

Mvelopes and Online Bank Access

I have written extensively about the Mvelopes program in my Money section, which you can get to in the sidebar of my blog. Because of this program, we have control of our finances and will be debt-free within the month - Lord willin' and the creek don't rise. =) This program helps you to set up a budget, keep track of how you're spending your money, and therefore, you are more likely to reach financial goals. This does require a member ship fee. There are some programs out there such as CommonCents or Mint that do not require a fee or perhaps a one-time fee. Mvelopes is the one that made the most sense to me and it is worth the price in my opinion. I won't repeat all the information about this program but if you are interested, check it out under "Money" in the labels sidebar.

Now, if I can just find an online program that will do my Saturday cleaning for me, I will be blissfully happy. =)

Card-making

2011-02-09T21:36:00.003-06:00

Here is a little card I made in time for Valentine's Day. =)

Cool decorating link

2011-02-09T14:38:00.002-06:00

The bunk beds in this room are totally fantastic! Check it out!

http://augustfields.blogspot.com/2011/02/boy-bunk-room.html

Bread bowls and Potato-Cheese Chowder

2011-02-09T14:32:00.001-06:00

I've never made bread before so today was a new experience. Chad loves to get bread bowls filled with soup sometimes when we eat out. So, when I found a recipe online, that claimed to be easy, I decided to give it a whirl. The dough itself made the house smell SOOO good!

Lesson learned: Smooth the dough out as much as possible. Those little lines turn into cracks in the bread bowls!

Here they are, all hollowed out and ready to go back in the oven after being brushed with egg yolk and water.

And here it is, filled with one of our favorite soups - Potato Cheese chowder. I think I only had one bowl that leaked. =)

Here are the recipes:

Bread bowls: (Source is www.gettingfreedom.net on her February 7, 2011 post)
2 cups + 4 Tbsp. of warm water
4 tsp. of butter, softened
6 1/2 cups of flour
2 Tbsp. sugar
3 tsp. of salt
2 pkgs. of yeast

Put the yeast and water in the mixer and dissolve. Add in the sugar, butter and salt.
Add in the flour and mix it up until combined.
Let the mixer knead for about 5 minutes. (Was so excited to use my hook thingy. Hadn't done that before! =) )
Let it rise until it has doubled in size.

Punch the dough down and then make balls about the size of your fist. I could have gone slightly larger.
Put on a cookie sheet and then let it double in size again

Bake at 425 degrees for about 20-25 minutes or until it begins to brown. 20 minutes did it for me.
Cut the bump off the top so it is flat. Then scoop out the insides until there is about 1/4 inch of dough to form the shell.

Lightly beat egg white and mix it with 1 Tbsp of water. Then brush the outsides of the bowls with this mixture.

Put back in the oven for about 5 minutes.

Potato - Cheese Chowder (Source: Southern Living Cookbook Easy Weeknight Favorites)
Takes about 45 minutes to prep and cook

1/2 c. chopped celery
1 large carrot, scraped and chopped
1/2 c. of chopped onion
1/2 c. chopped green pepper
1/4 c. butter, melted
3 c. chicken broth
1 medium potato, cubed
1/2 c. flour
2 c. milk, divided
12 oz. of Sharp American cheese
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

Cook celery, onion, and green peppers in butter until tender. Add broth, potato and carrot; bring to a boil. Cover; reduce heat, simmer for about 20 minutes (veggies are tender.)

Combine flour and 3/4 c. of milk, stirring until smooth. Gradually stir flour mixture into soup. Add remaining 1 1/4 c. milk, cheese and parsley. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, 8 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Yields about 8 cups.

A New Venture

2011-02-05T22:59:00.001-06:00

So, one day at school, a student of mine mentioned wanting to learn to play the violin. We've been studying the orchestra and I've been surprised at how interested the kids seem to be - especially in grades 1-4. When this student mentioned what she was thinking, it got my brain's wheels a-turnin'. Now, mind you, I've never given violin lessons. In fact, I'm a very intermediate player myself. However, I never let little things like that bother me. =) I jumped right in! I announced grandly that I would be teaching a violin class and that whoever was interested could just let me know. To my surprise, I had 15 that signed up. FIFTEEN! Naturally I was instantly overwhelmed but went with it. Eventually, the group was split into three different groups so that I could give a little more individualized attention. (As a side note, I charge a very minimum amount. I figure my lack of experience really shouldn't cost too much until I get the hang of it.) As of last week, for the first time, one of the classes was able to play a song, all together, at the same time! Woohoo! I was so excited! They were actually excited also and at one point in the lesson, one of the students broke out into applause. (grin) How fun is that! So, this week, I found them their first "real" song. ("Real" means that it isn't a nursery rhyme like Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.) They were quite pleased with this announcement and took their music home, ready to try. I hope I haven't set to lofty a goal too soon. If they can do it, I will just be so satisfied. One of the students said, "Hey if we can learn this, can all three classes play together? Then it will be sorta like a real orchestra!" Awesome. Just......awesome. Love.it.

New favorite song....

2011-02-02T18:41:00.006-06:00

I'm not crazy about this video necessarily but I love the words of this song!

The scene out our back door...

2011-02-01T19:28:00.001-06:00

This snow drift is up to my waist! Beautiful! So glad God invented this sparkly stuff.

Children's Ministry Links

2011-02-01T14:14:00.006-06:00

For those who work with children -

Homeschoolers
Sunday School Teachers
Christian Day School Teachers
Parents who do things like family devotions with the kids

- sometimes, we need some extra help with ideas. I have recently been looking into different websites that a friend shared with me and I thought I would share some. Several of these do require memberships. However, there is still some free information here and there. If you do particularly like what one site has to offer, it may be that the your church or school would be interested in helping to pay for the membership if everyone in the group could have access. If you know of more sites that have been helpful, please leave their address in the comment section.

Kidology ~ http://www.kidology.org/ This site has info for everything from family devotions to bulletin inserts to games and lesson plans.

Sunday School Kids ~ http://sundayschoolkids.com/

Danielle's Place ~ http://www.daniellesplace.com/ This site has TONS of ideas for Sunday School and for homeschool! I've been using it a lot for my Primary Sunday School class and some also at work. They have quite a bit of free stuff but you have to pay to have full access. This website would be worth the money in my opinion.

Zoho ~ http://www.zoho.com/ This is actually a different kind of website. I enjoy using powerpoints during some of my presentations and the kids seem to enjoy it also. However, my computer did not have a powerpoint program on it. I did a search and found a free way to make powerpoints and present them (with a projector, of course) on this site. It's fairly simple to use.

What a pleasant surprise!

2011-01-29T10:34:00.003-06:00

My Mom and I both love magazines. She will buy subscriptions for me for my birthday, or sometimes, just because. =) I really enjoy plopping down in my big chair in the living room after a long day and relaxing with a magazine about decorating or whatever. Imagine my surprise when I opened the latest edition of the Ladies' Home Journal to discover this picture with the quote "The Bible says to dress modestly," at the top! What followed was a pleasant article about this woman, Sarah Shultz, and a few reasons of why she dresses the way that she does. Actually, this was just one of several pictures of different women dressed in different ways for religious reasons. At first, I felt nervous to read the article because I was concerned that it was going to be a put-down. However, my curiousity got the best of me, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was a very nice article. As you can see, there is not a large amount of text. Ms. Shultz evidently did not go into specific Scriptures to support her choice of clothing, or perhaps the author of the article just did not include that. However, the Bible was clearly referenced as the reason for her attire. The author of the article stated, "They set their standards according to Bible passages that say that women should dress modestly, avoiding elaborate outfits or fancy hairstyles. 'We live by that, and it informs how we appear out in public.'" Interestingly, the next portion of the set was about an Orthodox Jewish woman and her choices of dress also. The similarities between Sarah Shultz and the Orthodox Jewish woman were very apparent. However, the Jewish woman covered her hair altogether. In a time when many magazines seem to be putting the Christian faith down, it was refreshing to see an article that zoomed in on some of the most conservative elements of the Christian faith and yet did not attack.

Tiger Mother, Educators, and the Golden Rule

2011-01-27T17:41:00.005-06:00

An article from the Wall Street Journal caught my attention a couple of weeks ago. (It can be found here.) The article, "Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior," is written by a Yale professor who is the daughter of Chinese immigrants to the United States. In a nutshell, Chua writes that Western parents, particularly those in the United States are entirely too lenient with their children, while, in general, parents in some Eastern cultures have a superior method of being much more stringent. Here are a few examples Chua listed as things her daughters were never allowed to do:

Attend a sleepover
Have a playdate
Watch TV or computer games
Get any grade less than an A

Chua goes on to state that she had called her daughter "garbage" when her daughter was disrespectful and she inferred that it was okay to call your child "fatty" if they truly were overweight. Chua once handed a handmade card back to her daughter saying, "I deserve better than this." Chua goes on to say that she made these types of decisions because of her love for her daughters. She knew that her daughters could do better and she believed her daughters knew themselves that they could do better. She was encouraging them! (according to her)

Needless to say, this has caused quite an uproar, which has led to an interesting discussion. American women seem to have become infuriated and yet, interestingly, these same women seem to be considering the idea that perhaps maybe they have been to lax with their children and too concerned with their self-esteem.

As I have been interestedly observing this discussion, a new one has come on my radar. CNN.com has a survey asking whether teachers should be able to grade parents on their job performance, when it comes to students in the classroom. (The article can be seen here.) The idea is that many students are not getting enough rest, a good breakfast, and nightly, parental help with homework. Therefore, teachers should be able to write a grade on the student's report card about the parents' behavior. No one seems to be suggesting any repercussions for a parents who gets an unacceptable grade, however.

While I find these conversations fascinating, I must admit that I feel a bit relieved that Chad and I do not have to face this bombardment of pressures about parenting. As you may know, God has not seen fit to bless us with children to this point - though some may mistake Maggie and Dixie (our dogs) as almost human. =) I am, however, a teacher. Every day, I work with students, who may or may not have had breakfast. When you put all of my students together, the parenting styles represented in that group vary as widely as the East and West!

As for me, I'm choosing to remember this:

Speak the truth - to students, to parents, to everyone. Sometime that is the hardest thing to do. (Well, maybe not for Amy Chua - she seems to thrive on speaking truth that hurts!) However, in addition, I must remember to . . . .
Speak the truth with love. I agree that self-esteem has become way too high of a goal when it comes to teaching (or parenting) children. But truth without love is just plain 'ole meanness!

I know it's parent/teacher conference day...

2011-01-27T17:19:00.004-06:00

Because I dropped food on my skirt......

....and my button came off my sweater.....just in time for the meetings to begin.

Yes! I'm a professional! (on some days) =)

Guess I'll eat my soup Chad made for me until the next set of parents come in. =)

I only eat healthy stuff

2011-01-25T22:47:00.005-06:00

If I were Pioneer Woman, I'd be able to bake AND make a beautiful presentation. Pioneer Woman, I ain't. However, I am here to tell you that this cake is super duper yummy! I'm not a fruit kind of girl but:
Orange Cake
1 box of yellow cake mix
3/4 cup of oil
3 eggs
1 (11 oz.) can of mandarin oranges, including the juice

Icing
1 (20 oz.) can of crushed pineapples (including juice)
8 oz. of instant vanilla pudding mix (I threw in half vanilla half lemon)
1 regular container of whipped topping.

Mix all the cake ingredients and bake in a large glass dish at 350 for approximately 30 minutes. Let it cool. Mix the icing and put on cooled cake. Refrigerate.

Chad has been wandering the house, sniffing the air, and talking about how something smells wonderful! =)

But...but officer....!

2011-01-24T23:18:00.004-06:00

So, back at Christmas time, Chad had a little...incident. Let's just say he changed lanes unsafely. =) Unfortunately, it was a police officer in the next lane! Now, Chad would never purposely be unsafe on a public road, or any road for that matter. He does, however, have a tendency to get a little distracted with things like ducks flying overhead, deer in the cornfield...you get the picture. Sure enough, the old red and blues started flashing. This resulted in a yellow sheet of paper saying that Chad owed a certain city in Ohio some cash. Within a few days, we began attempting to pay the fine online. Several things were incorrect on the ticket, though, which caused us some problems. First of all, the date was wrong. Secondly, the year of our car was wrong. The court date the officer put down was for a Sunday. He wrote that he had pulled us over at 4:58 AM. Um, nope. Our address was wrong! About the only thing right was the name! Needless to say, when trying to get this paid online, the system just couldn't find Mr. Chad. Multiple phone calls were made to the phone numbers on the ticket. "He isn't in the system so we can't help you," was all we were hearing. Luckily, the nerd of the family started keeping track of the phone calls, who we talked to, what they said, etc. We felt pretty safe. Until today. When we got the mail. (Yes, I know those aren't complete sentences.) A WARRANT FOR MY HUSBAND'S ARREST!!!!!! I'm thinking he isn't gonna look very good up front preaching in stripes! After a series of freak out sessions that a knock was going to come on the door at any moment, I realized a very important detail. On the letter was a case number. Sure enough, when we put the CASE NUMBER in the website, his ticket came right up. (Silly us for thinking that his name and birth date would work!) Unfortunately, the price had now doubled because we were paying for a warrant (undeserved, hmph!) but you know, it looked pretty cheap next to that $3500 bail. So if you live in Dayton, Ohio, please know that we donated .11 to the Justice Program Services Fund, among other sundry donations. =)

Let Me Make the Introductions...

2011-01-23T20:27:00.003-06:00

This is Maggie. At least, that is how I assume her name is spelled! I haven't actually asked her owner how to spell it. Never mind that her owner is my husband. =) My dog, whom you've previously met, is not impressed with the new addition! Chad brought Maggie in to show her to Dixie and Dixie just gave a big bark and decided to ignore both Chad and Maggie altogether. HA! I told Chad that is what he gets for bringing another woman into the family. =) By the way, Maggie is a Small Munsterlander. I hadn't ever heard of the breed until now. Their job is to point birds, retrieve ducks, and ride around in pickups looking cool. =)

Time to give thanks...

2010-03-16T22:36:00.002-05:00

I've been reading Ann's blog for a while now. (Click on the banner) I noticed that she would have huge lists of things she was thankful for. As it turns out, a whole bunch of people have joined her in a quest to get to 1,000 thanksgivings. I've decided to join her. Naturally, I won't be listing 1,000 today! I'll just begin...1. Thankful Chad's ankle wasn't broken - only sprained.2. For friends who keep the day interesting with their funny text messages3. Skype - which has allowed me to actually SEE my sister when we are talking on the phone.4. The promise of a new violin

Dixie

2010-02-26T12:27:00.001-06:00

My sisters

2010-02-26T12:20:00.000-06:00

This week...

2009-12-12T22:03:00.000-06:00

...marks 4 years since this happened.....

Oh dear...

2009-10-17T12:45:00.001-05:00

Why, oh why did I change my blog background??? Now all my links are gone!

New Year's Resolution Re-visited

2009-10-12T22:47:00.005-05:00

So, back in April, I did several posts about my adventures in budgeting and dealing with our money. (You can refresh your memory by going to the archive sidebar and clicking on April, if you so wish.) I'm happy to say that things are still trucking along well. Mvelopes is definitely a fixture in our budget life and I keep track of all of our expenditures there as well as our budget.

Dave Ramsey often talks about "gazelle intensity" on his program. What he means by that saying is just that you get so intense about getting debt paid off and living a completely debt free life that you kick it into high gear until you've reached the debt free goal.

I have been in "gazelle" gear since January when I made the New Year Resolution. However, in my devotional time recently, I feel as if I'm recognizing the temptation in my own soul of making my gazelle-ness an idol. Ya know what I mean? While getting out of debt is a good thing and still is my/our goal, God has been showing me that there are definitely some areas in life which need that kind of intensity, but money isn't one of them.

For me and my personality, I actually find it enjoyable to go over what we've done with our money each day, record it, make sure it is taken out of the correct envelope, double check that I know how much money is left, etc. I can spend a particularly long amount of time estimating when the next bill will be completely paid off and we can start on the next one! (Chad thinks this has become my hobby! ha!)

Lately, and today in particular, it seems that God has put His big hand under my chin and lifted my head up - up towards more noble things. Yes the budget is important. Yes Mvelopes is a permanent part of my life. Yes we need to be sure we are spending and saving wisely. However, there are some weightier matters that need to be attended to now that the money thing is running smoothly. Luke 12:31-32 KJV "But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you. Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom."

My mind began particularly running through this vein of thought when I read this blog, written by Ann. Her temptations towards idols are different from mine but the lesson is the same.

I do have to say, though, that it feels good to have followed completely through on a New Year's Resolution! =D

2009-10-11T21:39:00.002-05:00

Pictures from our weekend

2009-10-11T21:28:00.000-05:00

My friend, Leah

Leah's adorable son....isn't he so cute?

Friends from Rocky's church....

Some random man that was sitting at the next table. The adorable little boy pictured above decided to take pictures of fellow patrons and I had some very amusing pictures on my camera!

More pictures from our weekend

2009-10-11T21:26:00.001-05:00

For some reason, Chad and Rocky did not want their pictures taken. I have strict orders from Chad not to put any pictures of him on the blog or Facebook. Do you see how submissive I'm being? =D

Jennifer and Trelanie are good friends of mine - even if they do accentuate my need for a tan. =D

These are allegedly some famous ex-football players for the Kansas City Chiefs. I do not know anything about them but thought it would be cool to have famous people on my blog. Ha! (Shawn - if you read this, I would have put your pic with them on here but ya had your eyes closed. You must have been overwhelmed with the aura of the "famous" people!)

From my Secret Pal at Church

2009-10-11T21:17:00.000-05:00

Our church does Secret Pal for a whole year. We recently drew names and I got my first gift! Isn't it purdy? I loved it!

2009-08-03T11:52:00.001-05:00

Sweet!

2009-07-06T18:46:00.002-05:00

Cousins, sisters and brother

2009-06-28T00:21:00.000-05:00

Goons! =) (Family joke)

More family ...

2009-06-28T00:20:00.000-05:00

So I decided, at the last minute, to go to the church camp where I grew up. It was sooooo much fun. I love those people!!!!! My Uncle Steve, Aunt Beth, Kent and Maria, were there as well. It was so great to see them. They are on deputation representing the Bible Methodist mission in Mexico.

Date night

2009-06-20T09:56:00.001-05:00

You've heard of Phillips 66, right? You know, you can buy gasoline there. Well me and Mr. Phillips go way back. (Or at least he goes way back) His "country home" is located near where we live. It has been turned into a gorgeous museum, lodge, and wildlife preserve. The hills there are so pretty and wild animals everywhere! When I heard that OK Mozart would be playing there with Time for Three, I asked Chad if we could go. Chad isn't a classical music lover but he said he would go. Music, outdoors, is one of my very favorite things! So as the sun set, we listened to Beethoven and Dvorak and then the evening ended with a fireworks display. (I tried taking pictures of the fireworks but that didn't work out so well.) We had a great time!

Went to see the family!!!!

2009-06-20T09:48:00.001-05:00

Knowing my penchant for Dr. Pepper, my loverly husband bought me an extra large can of the poison. I was amazed at his generosity! See how large it is next to his Diet Coke? It was a great way to start a trip where we were going to see the fam. =)

My cousin Mark and almost all of his gorgeous family. Ellie is missing in this picture. She was sitting on our side of the table so she missed this shot. =)

Julia and Luke

Elisa is so gonna kill me for putting up a picture with her french fries in her jaw. LOL!

2009-06-20T09:44:00.000-05:00

Cousins once-removed, second cousins, whatevah....I just know they are cute!

2009-06-20T09:43:00.000-05:00

I should feel guilty for posting this picture of my brother....but I don't. =)

Memorial Day with family and friends

2009-06-08T23:18:00.000-05:00

Memorial Day with friends and family

2009-06-08T23:17:00.000-05:00

Life lately

2009-06-08T23:15:00.000-05:00

2009-05-30T12:07:00.001-05:00

A good deal

2009-05-12T00:19:00.002-05:00

Go Here to get Dave Ramsey's budgeting software for only $10! It's an instant download so you don't have to wait for the mail. That is a good thing! {=)

Gold finches

2009-05-12T00:06:00.000-05:00

This is the sight I see when I look out the window in front of my desk at work! I counted 10 finches at one time and another time my co-worker saw 17 gold finches all at once. =)

Stolen from Jon E's blog =) (Sorry Jon)

2009-05-09T21:27:00.001-05:00

Stopped.....by the police!

2009-05-09T14:21:00.002-05:00

I had the unfortunate experience of seeing flashing red and blue lights in my rearview mirror yesterday. My first thought was that I had been speeding. But wait, I was sitting at a stop light! Oh, bother. I pulled onto a side street and the officer came up to my window. He asked to see my paperwork. In the meantime, another officer pulled in behind him! I thought it must be a case of mistaken identity to require two policement just for little 'ole me!!! The officer explained that I had an expired tag. Uh, no. I don't. I renew my tags in October and while I may make the mistake of thinking I've been speeding while sitting still at a red light, I KNOW this ain't October! Turns out that when I did renew my tag, they gave me an April sticker instead of October. I willing placed it on my license plate and never thought a thing about it. I'm the only person I know that can speed while sitting still and mistake "APR" for "OCT." *sigh* Maybe that will be the last of the blonde moments for a while. Wait, am I moving or sitting still??????

The first roses of the year! YAY!

2009-05-09T14:11:00.002-05:00

I was so excited to see the first roses showing up in our little garden! I love it. =)

The last post of Money Week =)

2009-04-25T22:21:00.003-05:00

To finish off this week of money discussion, I thought I'd mention one last thing. Dave Ramsey fans will be oh, so familiar with this! This is what has gotten Chad and me into some serious debt kicking gear. Ready? It's the baby steps, ya'll! =)

1. Save $1,000 for emergencies. Since you will no longer be using credit cards EVER and they are cut up into a million little pieces, you are going to need $1,000 right up front for anything that crops up.

2. Pay off all debt with the debt snowball. Pay off your smallest debt first. Then, add the payment you'd been spending on that little debt to the payment of the next smallest. Keep doing this until you are making whopping payments! For example: say you owe

$2500 on a car with a $200 monthly payment,

$1,200 on a credit card with a $50 payment,

and $10,000 on a student loan with a $175 monthly payment.

Pay off the credit card first. All extra money goes on the credit card. Pay minimums on everything else. Once the card is paid off, take the $50 payment from that and add it to the $200 car payment. Now you are making a $250 car payment, plus anything extra you can throw at it. When the car is paid off, take the $250 and add it to the $175 student loan payment. Now you are paying $425 payment on the student loan. See how that works? Pay off everything except your house.

3. Save 3-6 months living expenses. This will be your emergency fund now instead of the $1000 dollars. Once you have this, then pay your last bill - your house payment.

4. Now you are debt free! Invest 15% of income into Roth IRA's and Pre-tax retirement plans.

5. Pay for your kids' college.

6. Pay off your home early.

7. Give all your extra money to Bible Schools, missionaries, and special projects. (Dave's actual last step is to "build wealth and give." I don't really like how that step is worded. Just my personal opinion."

Chad and I are so excited about the debt snowball idea. We can't wait to say "WE'RE DEBT FREE!"

Thanks for traveling along this week while I vent about the whole money thing! Ya'll are so nice. =)

How to make a budget

2009-04-23T20:19:00.003-05:00

Warning: If you are sick of listening to my rants about money, just step away from the blog. Just step away and no one will get hurt. =)

So a couple of people have mentioned that they are cool with the whole budget thing, but their spouse....not so much. According to what I've learned and from our experience and our story, there are a copule reasons for this.

1. The hesitant/disinterested spouse feels like s/he will be controlled by the budgeting spouse.

Have you ever seen a kid that absolutely hated school? I mean absolutely HATED it. That kid knew that his homework wasn't ever done and the teacher was always going to be mad and on his case and griping at him because he wasn't getting his school work done. Getting him out of bed in the morning was like pulling teeth because he does.not.want.to.go.to.school.or.see.that.teacher! You know that kid? Sometimes, I think our non-budgeting spouses feel that way. He or she knows, if a budget comes along, an answer is going to have to be given for every single purchase. If he wants to do anything extra, he is going to have to fight for it. Or if she sees a cute pair of shoes on sale, she is going to have to answer for that purchase. So there is this huge cloud of potential guilt and control looming on the horizon at the mention of a budget. Nobody is going to volunteer to live that way! Here is what Chad and I did. Maybe it will work for you. Since I'm the budget freak, I sat down and made the budget. Then, (on the advice of Dave Ramsey) I took that budget to Chad. I told him to look at it, and if he thought more money should be set aside for a particular area, go ahead and change it! I got the framework done, he was able to mess with it and make it look more like he liked it and then we agreed on it. Yes, there are a couple areas that I think should be tightened up. But that is okay! We've reached a compromise, we have a reasonable budget, and we are both basically happy with it. I did the hard part so he didn't have to worry about it. Also, I make sure to leave some money aside that isn't in any particular envelope. I know that we need some "blow" money or the constraint of the whole thing will just wear us out. It's not a lot of blow money, but there is a little. That way, if something minor comes along, neither of us have to freak out about the budget being blown apart. It works for us. If your spouse is hesitant, try to make a deal. Ask if they will try the whole budget thing if you promise not to nag or freak out about it. Money fights are no fun! When you're tempted to get on your high horse, ask yourself if the consequences will be worth it!

2. The hesitant spouse feels overwhelmed by their financial situation, or a budget sounds too complicated or difficult.

The bad news is this. Making a budget is going to take time and effort. Your first budget, most likely, will not work. I've heard that it usually take 90 days to get the budget so it really is the way you need it to be. The good news is this: A little work on a budget is a WHOLE lot better than all the work and all the STRESS being broke causes. I choose the budget! Here are a few links to get started:

Free charts for budgeting: Click Here

Steps to making a budget: Click Here

Budget Calculator: Click Here

Why do I need to have a budget? Click Here

Of course, there's always Mvelopes! Have you heard of it? =)

So, I don't know if this will help YOUR situation or not. Sometimes a spouse's refusal to do a budget is just part of a much larger marital issue. I don't really have any answers for that. I know prayer makes a difference, and I'm not just saying that because it is the "right" answer. We've seen it work in our marriage.

So happy budgeting.....believe me, it's so worth it! One example of how it is working for us is this. One of Chad's friends is getting married this summer. In the past, about a month or so before the wedding, we would have both suddenly realized that we were either going to have to pay for plane tickets or make a road trip to the wedding. Plus, there are the gifts, the tuxedo, etc. That would have caused us a problem! But, since we've started Mvelopes, we've been putting a little bit of money away every week since January. It's such a little bit that it almost seems laughable! But you know what? That envelope is getting pretty fat. How great is it going to be to take the trip and just sit back and enjoy the wedding, not having to worry about a thing, because we planned ahead. It's SO worth it.

I hope ya'll aren't sick to death of reading about what I've been learning. It's just been so great for us that I just have to share! =)

Time's Up! =) The GUY won!

2009-04-22T22:24:00.005-05:00

So it was way too hard to figure out who should win the wallet. So I decided to use my random number picker thingy......also known as ........Chad! He said he chose the number. I think it's a conspiracy.....is it just me? or are the males taking up for one another?! Actually he didn't even know who the number was. Jon, send me your address to aimeelynnes@aol.com and I'll get it out to you. Thanks everyone for playing! It was great reading the comments.

A Giveaway! (C'mon...it will be fun!)

2009-04-21T18:17:00.005-05:00

A Giveaway!!!!!!

To encourage anyone who is excited about getting their financial house in order, I'm having a give away! This is a deluxe, envelope wallet system. If you are doing the envelope system, this wallet comes with slots for gas, restaurants, food/groceries, entertainment, miscellaneous and receipts. The slots are already marked for your convenience. Remember, if the money runs out, you can't spend anymore in the section! =)

If you want to enter, leave a comment in the comment section, saying something/anything about finances, your goals, or whatever. I'll choose a winner at 10:00 P.M. tonight (Wednesday) Central Standard Time. Once the winner is announced, it will be up to him/her to contact me at aimeelynnes@aol.com after I've announced the name. How fun is this going to be?!

Commoncents

2009-04-18T18:40:00.006-05:00

Commoncents is an alternative to Mvelopes. It has a few differences.
1. It does not connect to your bank. This is good if connecting to your bank makes you nervous. The downside is that you must manually enter all transactions into the software. Mvelopes does take care of that for you. I like the convenience of Mvelopes.

2. You pay a one time fee of approximately $35. After that, you never pay again. Mvelopes you pay a fee once a quarter.

3. You get a 2 month trial with this program. Mvelopes is a one month trial period for free.

Just giving ya'll options! To check it out, click here!

Shiver Me Timbers!!!

2009-04-18T10:39:00.003-05:00

I have to admit that when I wrote my post about the Budget, I was terrified. I felt very concerned that people would look down on me because I don't know where every cent has gone since 1985! Well, I got a few comments and they made me feel a little better. Then, I went to church, to IHC, to a friend's house, etc. and a l.o.t. of people have come up to me and talked to me about their budgets, or the lack thereof. Let me tell you, I feel much better about risking a little transparency. There may be some of you out there who feel condescending, but you've been polite enough not to say it. You have my heart-felt thanks! =) For all the rest of us, we hate the "B" word!

Some have checked out Mvelopes and your bank is not yet supported. This happened to me, as well. It did not take them too long to add my bank, so if you are really interested, you may want to request that your bank be added.

Some are overwhelmed by the whole process of the computer program. You may want to try the old-fashioned way. Just get several small manila envelopes, write "food," "gasoline," and whatever else on them. Then, when you get your paycheck, go ahead and deposit it. Then write a check to yourself for however much you think you'll spend on food for the time period before you next paycheck - 1 week, 2 weeks, whatever. Do the same with the other envelopes. Cash the checks and you will have the exact amounts to put in your envelopes. (Ask the teller to give you exact change of each check instead of adding them all up and giving you a lump sum. Otherwise, you may end up with too many $20 dollar bills when you need smaller ones to make your envelopes have the correct amount.) Then, spend only the money in the envelopes! Nothing more! Which leads me to my next point...

If you haven't had a budget, you probably don't have any idea how much you spend in different categories. So guess what! Your budget isn't going to work at first! It's going to take a while to figure it all out. Quite honestly, it usually takes people 90 days to get it fine-tuned. Don't get discouraged!

I've added the main websites that I use for help with my money on my sidebar. Money Saving Mom has to do with coupons. Crown Financial Ministries and Dave Ramsey are strictly for guidance towards getting control of a budget, etc. Of course, Mvelopes is over there too. Check them out! They explain things better than I ever could.

If you have questions about Mvelopes, or whatever, feel free to email me: aimeelsnider@gmail.com. I'll see if I can throw my 2 cents in for you. I love messing with that program and should probably get my Master's degree in Mvelopes trouble-shooting! =)

Thanks, friends, for not throwing me out in the trash for not being perfect. You'll never know what it meant! =)

Mvelopes Link

2009-04-16T21:56:00.003-05:00

For those who have asked for the link to Mvelopes.....click here! It's worth it!

Smiles...

2009-04-10T17:55:00.003-05:00

My New Year's Resolution was about a bad word - MONEY

2009-04-10T13:44:00.007-05:00

I love to make New Year's Resolutions! Most years, I sit down and write huge lists of all the things I'm going to do or change. Well, for 2009, I did something different. I came up with 2 resolutions that I felt were the MOST important things I needed to work on. One of those had to do with money. Yes....that big, bad "M" word. Here's my story:

The vague, uneasy feeling of necessity of paying more attention to my finances and, more specifically, where they were all going, played around on the edges of my mind like a mosquito buzzing around my head, getting ready for the big bite. I often swatted at the situation haphazardly and thought about buying "bug spray", but just never really got serious about it.

I knew the basics. My Dad has always praised my Mom because of her frugality. She always did the shopping for our family and often I would see her cutting coupons and looking for the best deals. In fact, we used to tease her about spending all the money she saved when she drove all over town to get the good deals at the next store over! =) My family seldom went out to eat. When we did, it was a big deal.

However, I didn't take the time to do any of this. When I got out on my own, I didn't really feel like cooking after working 10 hour days so I would grab a Subway sandwich. I thought nothing about eating out because I knew food was a necessity and I also knew I didn't feel like cooking!

When Chad and I got married, we kind of continued this trend. Now don't get me wrong! We weren't buying new furniture. We weren't doing any rent-to-own stuff or leases or insisting on the newest and best. I never had to worry about Chad going out and buying an expensive golf club or really anything. He didn't worry about things like that with me either. We were just nickel and diming ourselves into a hole.

I handle the finances for Chad and me and every so often, he would ask me if there was money for this and that. I always hated that question!!! I hated it for two reasons. First of all, it made me feel like I was in the position of being in charge. I had to decide whether I thought there was money. Since there was no budget written down, Chad wasn't really able to see for himself the status of the finances. If I were in his shoes, I would resent that feeling! I didn't want him to feel that way. Secondly, since I did have to give an answer, I would freak out because I was pretty sure where everything stood, but what if I'd forgotten something! Then we might get into trouble and have a late payment or something and then it would be all my fault!

December, 2008, I decided that money was going to be ONE of my TWO New Year's Resolutions. Period. This situation had to change. Since that time, we have implemented several things into our financial life. These things have made such a huge difference for us, I decided to share them on my blog.

1. The first thing we did was to create a budget using the Mvelopes program. The benefits of this program are this: we actually have a written budget, it keeps track of what has been spent in each category so far this month/week/year, and both Chad and I can access it to see up-to-the-minute status of everything that has to do with our money at any time. (It even has a feature where if you have internet access on your phone, you can check the Mvelopes while you are doing your grocery shopping, or whatever. We don't have that on our phones so it doesn't apply to us.)

Here's how it works. The Mvelopes program actually connects, one-way, to our bank account. No money can be moved in or out of the bank account by this program. The only thing it does is show how much money has been deposited into or debited from the account. It's like getting your bank statement online, a few items at a time. So, let's say I deposit $500 into my bank account. The money then shows up in my Mvelope account. When it does, I divide the $500 into separate envelopes that I have created. I'll put some money in the grocery envelope, the fuel envelope, the health insurance envelope, or whatever. Maybe I put in a month's worth of fuel money, according to the budget we decided on. When I go this week and put $30 of fuel in the car, it will come through Mvelopes, I tell it that debit was for fuel. It takes it out of the fuel envelope and I can see how much money is left for fuel for the rest of the month. Now, if Chad wants to know if there is gas money this month to drive to Springfield to visit Bass Pro to spend his gift cards he got for his birthday, he doesn't ask me! He can just go to the computer and see for himself. It take me out of the position of being "in charge" of the money and it allows us to make good decisions based on the facts that we can see according to our budget - which we have agreed upon. Let me add here that yes, this is the same as just using old-fashioned paper envelopes. But to me, that system was too cumbersome. It took so much trouble that I quickly ditched it. Having it online works much, much better.

Like everyone, we have large expenses that come around every single year. Christmas is a biggie. Not only do we have gifts to buy, but we do a LOT of traveling at Christmas b/c we have decided that, for us, family is so important that we are willing to spend the money to visit them every year. However, we aren't going to be able to do that if we start thinking about it December 1st, or even November 1st. So this year, we set aside a special envelope in just for Christmas. We decided how much money we feel we are going to need, we subtracted our Christmas bonuses that we get, then divided what's left by 52 (weeks.) Every single week, we put that certain amount into the Christmas envelope. But we aren't necessarily waiting until December to spend it. If I go to TJMaxx and see a great sale on something my sister would love, I use the money from the Christmas envelope and just put the item away for a Christmas gift. We've already gotten a few gifts for Christmas 2009. Neither of us had to worry about whether we should buy the gift or not because the money was already set aside. It was so cool after one great sale that we found, we'd just paid and were walking out of the store. Chad said, "This is so AWESOME! We are already started on Christmas, we aren't rushed, and we can choose the best way to spend the money because we are watching for it all year." That made us both feel really good.
* Mvelopes costs money each month. For us, it made such a positive difference in our marriage, we decided to that we would pay for this service. It's not a lot but it isn't free either. If you want to try it out, you do get a 1 month free trial. Free trials are good.
* You can expect that it will take 1 or 2 months for you to really get a feel for your Mvelopes/budget if you haven't been using one in the past. You will be surprised how much/little you are spending in different areas and will have to adjust accordingly. If you stick with it, it's worth it.

2. Are you still with me? (This is getting absurdly long!) The second thing that has helped us is anything having to do on cutting down on our grocery bill. The grocery bill is like a hole in the bottom of our financial ship! It was making me crazy there for a while. Well, several of my friends were posting about CVS/Walgreens and the great coupon programs that they have. I look up their weekly flyer online. Every week they have items that you can buy and you will get a coupon for money back to be used the next time you shop. (This is not to be confused with items that offer you money back if you mail in a little piece of paper. I don't do those b/c I never get around to mailing it in) Once I got $15 towards my next shopping trip. That was pretty cool! Of course, you have to be careful that you aren't buying non-necessities just because of the rewards. That would sort of be missing the point. =)

In my continuing quest for saving money on groceries, I thought about signing up for "The Grocery Game." That is a website that puts all the deals in your area - advertised and un-advertised - together in one spot for you. You print off coupons, whatever, and supposedly save lots and lots of $. I decided against it for two reason: first, they didn't have that many stores in my area. (Rural Kansas must not be a big one on their list.) Secondly, a friend told me about several free (L.O.V.E. free) websites that kind of do the same thing. You just have to do a little more work with them. Here they are: redplum.com, coolsavings.com, coupons.com, and moneysavingmom.com. I'm sure there are tons of others, but those are the ones I'm starting out with. I'm just starting this phase of money management.

3. If you are a person who dislikes cooking or tends to fly by the seat of your pants when it comes to buying groceries, this site may be for you. E-mealz costs $1.25 a month. Now, see I LOVE decorating (whether or not I'm good at it is another matter!). I do not enjoy cooking. I know, I know, all the Southern women in my audience just gasped and started fanning themselves. But it's the TRUTH! It's overwhelming and exhausting and it happens THREE TIMES A DAY! Argh! So I spend $1.25 a week for this. (Between E-mealz and Mvelopes, I'm spending about $15 a month. I don't plan on spending anymore $ for things such as this but much thought has been put into whether or not I should pay for these two things and since they both are big necessities for me personally, we decided to do it.) E-mealz is pretty cool. I don't like every single meal that they do so sometimes I substitute. Otherwise, they tell you what to make, the instructions are simple, they have a reasonable amount of ingredients, it isn't anything exotic and it prints out a shopping list. Glory be! It works for me.

4. In the midst of all of this, Chad and I have committed to some financial goals. In order to meet those goals, we have decided to do some extra money-making things. We do not plan on becoming consumed with trying to make a dollar. We want to be sure we have our values in the proper order. Obviously, Chad's job as a pastor is top priority. However, he has found some side jobs that he can do that will not interfere with church work. One of these jobs is helping out at the funeral home. Often they will call him and ask him to drive a vehicle or be an usher at a funeral. If there is a church event, he is free to tell them no and it will not cause a problem for them. However, if he is free, he can say yes and it brings in a few extra dollars to put towards those goals we have. I have taken on some extra work as well that I am doing each week. It's great because now we are on the same team, and working towards something that is so good for our little family.

Money is so important but it isn't the most important thing. The most important thing is to get to Heaven and take others with us. We are going to keep the main thing the main thing!

My latest decorating scheme

2009-03-28T21:47:00.002-05:00

For Christmas this past year, my wonderful cousin, Sherilyn, got me one of those sayings that you put on your wall. Well, I've had a blank spot above my bed for a long time and decided to fill it up and do something different with my wall art as well! Chad generously donated the frame and here it is! I thought it turned out kinda cool.

2009-01-30T13:09:00.002-06:00

Top picture = The culprit. It's the tread that came off of the tire that caused the accident.
2nd picture = My brother's filthy face from all the dirt flying in the van as they flipped over 2X.
3rd picture = Up until two weeks ago, THERE WERE TREES HERE!!!!! (God is amazing)
4th picture = The window that one girl ended up flying out of but with no serious cuts. It's a miracle.
I can only thank God over and over for His mercy.

The Wreck

2009-01-29T16:08:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Mary Ellen, I now have pictures of the wreck my brother Paul and my sister Julia were in yesterday, along with several other people. The tread came off of one of the tires. That caused the trailer to start whipping around which resulted in them plowing across several lanes and flipping TWICE! Shockingly and miraculously no one was hurt. The sheriff himself even said that it had to be God that they all walked away with no major injuries.

My hunter/gatherer

2009-01-15T00:41:00.000-06:00

I had no idea my hunter/gatherer husband also had "seamstress" on his resume. I guess when a job needs done, he'll just get 'er done! =)

New Year's Resolutions

2009-01-08T18:15:00.003-06:00

I was so proud of myself. Normally, on New Year's Day, I suddenly remember the whole resolutions thing and quickly make these goals that end up being monstrous (read - unattainable). This past NYD was different. For two weeks, I thought and considered and ruminated about what my resolutions should be. And you know what? It all came down to two. There are two things that I decided are so important to me, that all of my focus is on just those. And here's another thing. I'm not telling anyone (except Chad) what they are. I know, I know....I'm supposed to be accountable. Somehow, though, this year, reverse psychology is working well for me. I'm not telling and somehow that has kept the excitement and interest at a higher level for a longer time. But, guess what. Today......interest g.o.n.e. I'm officially back to the regular hum of life. BUT. I'm not back to my pre-resolution days. I ain't going back. Those two things are that important to me. I learned a long time ago that feelings don't matter. I gotta put on the workin' boots and hit the road. Feelings will come later.....after the goals are accomplished.......right?

So....whaddya think?

2009-01-07T16:54:00.001-06:00

Taking down Christmas decorations is such a depressing sport. I'm trying to get into the winter decoration spirit....Not sure what I think about this. I know it looks busy, but in a pretty sparse room, one little busy spot is okay, right? (Oh, and please ignore the fact that two candle holders are standing empty. My next Walmart trip may remedy that.) Do I need some sort of ribbon on that icy wreath or leave it as is.....opinions are welcomed. =)

Happy New Year Everybody!

2009-01-02T09:54:00.002-06:00

2008 ended with a bang! Traveling this year was so.....uncool. Chad and I decided to make it as complicated as possible by driving to Indianapolis, catching a plane that night to Florida, then later flying back to Indy. The driving was fine. The flying...not so much. I do have one slightly amusing thing to tell you however. Chad and I took our dog, Dixie, to Indianapolis to be dog-sat by my cousin, Brent. (Who may or may not ever want to see my dog again.) We arrived at the airport with Dixie and we waited for Brent to show up to get her. I was unsure of airport rules concerning dogs who are not in containers - or even on a leash! But I was cold. Very, very cold. So Chad asked some random airport worker if I could sit with the dog just inside the door. No problem. Okay! So, I sat down on my upright suitcase. I was a little nervous because what I was leaning against was a glass railing that overlooked the the story below. I know the glass is thick but it gave me the heepy jeebies thinking about what if the glass broke and I went tumbling an entire story down and landed on a stewardess' head! So, I sat up straight on my upright suitcase and began rocking back and forth. (I probably looked like a complete imbecile but hey, I was bored.) What I had neglected to take into consideration was that my suitcase has wheels on it. Hello! All of a sudden, the suitcase flew out from under me, I crashed into that scary glass, my spindly legs flew into the air in a most unladylike manner and my dog's ears shot up wildly and her eyes got huge. Chad, my knight in shining armor, was laughing so hard, he couldn't even help me up so I laid there helplessly on the floor of the airport laughing so hard I was crying. I can only imagine what the airport security cameras were reporting! Welcome to 2009! It's gonna be a doozy!

For Thanksgiving.....breathtaking

2008-11-30T21:12:00.002-06:00