This morning when I woke up, I found that my husband had made all of the preparations for a family hike. We spent the late morning/early afternoon enjoying a pleasant hike around the Mount Rose Meadows. My kids were exhausted when we came home, so the teens and I watched the last episode of EurekaRead More

So often I hear people almost apologize as they admit they are renters. Perhaps that is because they know most people hear the word renter and visualize this:I refuse to apologize; I am a proud renter! But perhaps that is because I know rentals can look like this:If we bought our house when we movedRead More

I am reprinting this post I wrote about my son’s third birthday as part of the Birthday Cake Round-Up at Life As Mom. For some reason, one of the hardest thing for me to reconcile with our bonus baby is what to do with the toys from the first batch. When children are born aRead More

For the month of June, I am participating in the Food Stamp Challenge hosted by Katy at The Non-Consumer Advocate. Our challenge is to try to spend less on groceries than what our family would receive if we were to receive food stamps. The average family receives $101 per person. I also have a 3Read More

I do not subscribe to the local paper; I prefer to read the news online, but I do occasionally buy the Sunday paper for the coupon inserts. I used to buy the paper every Sunday, but was sometimes disappointed that the coupons were not ones that I could use and sometimes the paper did notRead More

Katy at The Non-Consumer Advocate is hosting a Food Stamp Challenge this month. So what is involved in the challenge? Try to spend less on groceries than what our family would receive if we were to receive food stamps. The average family receives $101 per person, so our budget for the month is $505. IRead More

My friend, Rebecca at Turned Loose, has been running a series called Intentional Summer. If you have not visited yet, you will want to do so. In this 15 part series, Rebecca  reviews “an idea, method, or motivation toward making your time off from school intentionally valuable”. She warns that “the 80 days of summerRead More

I realize that you are used to visiting on Mondays and reading about menu plans, but I want to talk about something more important: your retirement plan. In writing this post, I am going to assume that you are taking full advantage of any company plans, 401Ks, or IRAs for which you qualify. Most peopleRead More

I made note cards out of some of my children’s art work for the grandmothers and aunts at Christmas. They were very well received, so I am going to be making some for my husband’s mother for Mother’s Day. The paintings were too large for my scanner, so I took them to Office Depot toRead More

I have mentioned before that we usually use handkerchiefs (I actually cut up soft pieces of flannel for my toddler; it is so much gentler on his little nose than even the softest paper tissue, but I digress). I do, however, keep Kleenex on hand for company so I occasionally have leftover boxes. Before IRead More

The best window cleaner that I have found is eco-friendly and very inexpensive! I make it at home using: 1/4 cup vinegar1/2 teaspoon liquid soap 2 cups of water Add ingredients to  a spray bottle. Shake to blend. Spray the solution on your window and wipe off with an old fashioned cloth diaper (they areRead More

Today’s Clear Out the Clutter Challenge is the Kitchen and Stockpile. Just like the living room challenge, I thought I had done a pretty good job of decluttering the room earlier in the year. However, I have approached our possessions a little differently since my husband shared an experience at work. A while back someRead More

For some reason, one of the hardest thing for me to reconcile with our bonus baby is what to do with the toys from the first batch. When children are born a couple years apart toys are naturally passed down, but with a 14 year gap between my second and third child, the toys hadRead More

Overheard at my house: DH: Are we breaking our resolution by taking this vacation?Me: No, because we aren’t buying stuff.DH: So, we’re okay as long as we have nothing to show for the trip?Me: Exactly! We might not come home with souvenirs, but we will come home with wonderful memories, shared experiences, and hundreds ofRead More

I won the book,  Cleaning Up the Clutter in a giveaway hosted by My 1/2 Dozen Daily.  Although I have read through most of the book, I am still working on chapter one: How to Feel Personally Organized. My house is clean and fairly well organized, yet I often feel disorganized. In large part thisRead More

Have you wondered how I am going to clothe my children while committing to the The Compact this year? That question can be answered in large part by visiting Angela today at My Year Without Spending. She has once again featured one of my daughter’s thrift store finds on her latest installment of Thrifty Threads. Angela participated inRead More

We have a fourteen year gap between our second and third last child. I feel like I am having to learn how to parent all over again. I am sure that I have forgotten more than I ever actually knew. Most child rearing tips come back to me AFTER an incident. This tip is noRead More

My husband describes are pledge to buy nothing new for an entire year as our “year of not buying anything frivolous”. He has an interesting interpretation. You could follow the guidelines of The Compact and still spend a lot of money on used things that you don’t really need. Since we are planning on movingRead More

Usually my resolutions are very easy to keep: eat more chocolate, host more game nights, laugh more… But for some reason this year I have made some pretty big resolutions. In addition to committing to not buying anything new for a year, and making money while decluttering my house, I have resolved to exercise regularly.Read More