Plans

Plans are interesting.  They can revolutionize our lives or they can make us feel like a failure.  Anytime I have a problem, I love to make a plan that will solve it.  Actually, planning is my favorite part, the action or endurance, not so much.   Good plans will let us achieve our goals with out wearing out. 


When it is someone else's plan, I guess I would be willing to try it on for a fit.  When I have a problem, I love to do a lot of research to find out how other people solve it.  It may be my solution or it may not work for our family at all or it just may need to be modified to fit us.  I think it is important to periodically reevaluate your plan too. Things change over time.  Now I coupon and stock up on good deals, with in sane reason :) and without waste or committing coupon fraud.  Perhaps when my kids are teenagers, they just might eat more if we have more.  At their age now, no one wants to go down to the basement on their own, even for food!  In years to come, when our basement becomes a teenage cave, I can see the food vanishing quickly.  I have to be open to changing my plan.

Lately I have been using couch to 5k, and it is very motivating to have a plan and to check it off as done.  Plans are better when they are reasonable and have small increments of change.  Short term plans give us a sense of accomplishment.  9 weeks, I can do anything for 9 weeks.  It seems so much more manageable.  

Also, I think it is very important to bare in mind that people are very different and have very different circumstances.  I am not sure if one plan is better than the other as far as laundry, running, meal planning, etc.  My friend has an extremely clean house, and I keep thinking, I need to get her cleaning routine so I can have a super clean house too.  But I have to remind myself, she has one child and an extremely neat husband, while I have 3 and a very nice, but untidy husband :-)  Some people think she is too neat, but I respect her cleaning plan because I know she does it with a good heart.  Her husband really needs a neat house for it to feel like a sanctuary, but others don't know that and judge her without knowing her heart.

Ruling Over My Laundry Pile

There is nothing like the change of seasons to bring on an eruption of Mount Washmore.  This time it has made me rethink our laundry system because apparently it is just not working.  First of all, the laundry is not getting done.  Second, I am doing it all, the kids should be helping more.  They are 10, 7, and 5, so no more excuses.  Lastly, if I am fortunate enough to wash, dry and actually take the clothes out before they are completely wrinkled, they sit in all sorts of places, except in their proper place - in our drawers and closets.

Most people will organize their laundry system by letting clothes pile in bins, marked with each child's name.  Then, once the bins are full, they put them away.  This does not work for us right now because seeing all those clothes to put away makes me want to put it off, not to mention that it totally overwhelms my kids.  Also, part of doing the laundry every day is so we need less clothes.  This would not work if we only put the clothes away once a week.  This is not just with laundry, I find just about anything multiplies if I do not put it away right away - mail, kids' artwork, toys, etc.

The solution is to make sure I put in a load first thing in the morning, if I wake up early enough, the load will be dried by the time I start homeschooling.  Because lets face it, once we start school, that is pretty much it for the rest of the day as far as household management is concerned.  To get more help, that is done correctly, we are going to put the laundry away, right away, and as a team.  After breakfast, I can wipe down the dining room table, which I need to do for school anyway.  Then the kids take their spots standing by their seats, and I dump the laundry in the middle.  I hang or fold the clothes and they run and put them away, pretty much one item at a time (mostly tops and bottoms).  This keeps them busy while I fold or hang the clothes. It helps to be faithful in the small things first!  Once they master this, my hope is they can also hang and fold their own clothes.

This part takes some training.  First time I found my pants in my 5 year old's drawer.  Also, I like sweat pants with sweat pants and jean with jeans.  If it is not done the way I want it to, I know I will end up doing it myself, and besides, showing them exactly how to put clothes away helps the task seem achievable for them.  My kids always need the helpful reminder, "We get done faster, if we do our work right."  Next time I think I need to add about being a careful listener too, my post put away inspection finds many "now how did they get that out of what I told them to do" examples.  Hopefully this whole scheme leads to "many hands make light work," clean clothes and our laundry problem solved!

Canning

There is just something so satisfying about being close to your food - cooking, preparing and preserving the food your family intends to eat yourself. Recently a friend offered to teach me to can. It was so much fun, and not anywhere as complicated or hard as I expected it to be. Canning is actually quite simple. Here is a good website by Ball if canning is something you always wanted to do, but did not know where to start. It is no substitute for a friend to show you the ropes, but it does give what you need to know to start yourself if you do not have a canning buddy. It is also a good reference for beginners. However, I must say, canning with a friend is much more fun!

Simplifying Life at Home

It is the stuff again, overflowing from every vantage point. There are mountains of work every where - dirty laundry, dishes to be washed, toys to put away, books to find a home for, it could go on and on. The kids, even my husband, have not been cleaning up after themselves, which means I end up dealing with their messes, and I can't get to the heavy load already on my plate. While I may feel like flipping out at my husband and pointing my finger at my children, it really all starts with me. Mom sets the mood and tone for the household. If I want self sufficient cleaner uppers I need to lead by example.

The problem is that trap I mentioned above. After all, how can you clean up or do your chores when the family is making dirty faster than clean. It is not possible, especially if you work outside the home or homeschool. No matter how hard one tidy person works, they cannot make up for four people who do not pick up after themselves. My friend once put her husbands dirty socks in his coffee maker to teach him a lesson, that was brilliant, but I wonder if it only worked for a while. Trust me, I have try all sort so ways - hard as nails, crying, bagging, threatening, and bribing. You can lower your standards, but eventually, if you lower them too much you have ran out of clean dishes, clean clothes and the floor is covered in "stuff."

We are about to start our homeschooling year tomorrow, and this issue of the "mess" and "stuff" was weighing heavily upon my spirit. For the past month I have been asking God for wisdom of how to solve this problem and to show me what we needed to change. Then the Lord used another family's similar struggle to answer my prayer.

It was a blog post on Building Cathedrals titled "Less is More." Basically, you take everything out you can and box it up, donate it or put in the trash. Everyone will find it much easy to pick up after themselves. Then, as you master that level, you can bring some things back up from the basement. Follow the link and read the whole post, it sounds extreme, but I think it will make your household much easier to run. It follows a very basic, biblical principle of stewardship (Parable of the Talents). Focus on one thing, master it and then and only then, move on while reviewing what you mastered. It is so simple, so basic, now we must need to do it.

The photo at the top is a big mess my son made while I was schooling my daughter, below is my repentant son after he cleaned it all up.

Myths of Couponing

There were a lot of reasons why for most of my life I have not really used coupons. However, after trying to use coupons in a more efficient way, I see that they are not true. Also, you do not have to be a crazy coupon lady like me with a 3 inch binder full of coupons. Couponing can be done on many levels. Here are the myths:

#1 There is nothing I would buy that I would use a coupon on.

We all use deodorant, toilet paper and toothpaste, or we have an entirely different problem on our hands! Actually, some of the best savings are on things you cannot even eat. I have not paid for one bottle of saline solution, toothpaste or deodorant since I started couponing.

So if you think you will have to give up your whole foods, healthy lifestyle, you are wrong. Think of it this way, if you go into Shoprite or any other major food store chain, the many of the eatable items in that store will be over-processed and unhealthy. This would be the reason why Traders Joes is about 4 isles and Shoprite has at least 12. Logically, this would suggest that many of the coupons would be for processed foods like cereal, cracker or artificial frozen food. However, there are still lots of coupons for healthy items, just like there are plenty of healthy choices at Shoprite. Also, you must realize that produce coupons are rare. Cheap produce is found instead by buying in season. Do not forget pharmacies too, I have gotten 6 large containers of regular (not instant) oatmeal for free from Rid Aid.

#2 I would not save enough to make it worth cutting all those coupons.

I can easily save at least $10-20 in manufacture coupons in one shopping trip, combining those coupons on store discounts(sales), I can save 50% off my bill. If you try a little harder you can save 70% to 95% off your bill. The time commitment for a big discount would take me about 10 minutes to read a couponing blog, 30 minutes to pull or print coupons and about 1 hour to shop. However, this depends on how long your list is; how well your coupons are organized; and how well you know your store. Since I have been paid $100 for 1 to 2 hours of work, it makes it MORE than worth my time.

Also there are plenty of deals that involve no coupons at all. Recently I saved $730 on our vacation by making 1 phone call after seeing an advertisement. Even though we booked our trip already, they were happy to adjust our reservations to include the promotion. Couponing is a way of life. You do not have to have a coupon binder or order 4 papers a week. While you will save more if you do, do what you can in the season you are in. Just questions yourself if there is a coupon or discount code for what you want to buy. For example, before you go out on a date with your husband, look on line for discounts for restaurant you want to go to. A couple minutes on Google could save you $5 to $10 bucks.

#3 I have no place to store a stockpile, so I can't coupon.

As I have said above, couponing is more of a way to live. While a stockpile will help you save big, you do not necessarily have to have one to coupon. The good news is a lot of the expensive items can be gotten for free are small in size. You can get great deals on over the counter drugs, vitamins, make up and skin care products, which do not take up a lot of room. You can get them for free, and that would save you a lot of money. So, you still would be stockpiling, but it just would be much smaller. You have to make do with what you have available.

One of the best things about couponing is that you can donate a ton of items, and all it will cost you is your time. Obviously, this requirers absolutely no space. Pregnancy centers need diapers, shelters need deodorant and toothpaste, those who have lost their job need food and laundry detergent. Keep one for yourself, donate the other 3!

#4 I have tried using coupons before, and I have never saved that much. I just am not good at it.

While sometimes I match up deals myself, usually I find all my deals on a couponing blog. I list the blogs I use in posts under "couponing," and I keep up on the blogs by using Google Reader. On the blogs it lists match ups of manufacture coupons with store deals. It tells me the exact coupon, and where to get it or print it. They also calculate the lowest price, though this may be different at your store, so you still need to do your math.

The blogs also tell me if there is a Catalina deal, that is when the little printer next to the register prints out a coupon. However, usually catalinas are only noted on the blogs if it is a certain value off your next order or for a free item. Getting a 75 cents off 3 bottles of Coffee Mate is not an earthshaderinq catalina. The other day I spent $25 after coupons, and got a $20 and $3 catalina off my next shopping order. While the weekly ad from the store described what items qualified for these catalinas, the blogs told me exactly, down to the oz, what to buy, how many to buy, and what coupons I could stack to get this deal. The best part is it took me all of 10 seconds to read it, simple. So, if you want to quickly find the deals, you have to read the blogs.

#5 Coupons cost the store and manufacture a loss in money.

Actually, coupons are just like money. The store gets the full amount back from the manufacture and also get 8 cents a coupon for handling it. If it is a store coupon the store takes the cost, just as if they discounted an item. Both parties do this happily. Why? It gets you in their store because they make their money by moving volume. A Rite Aid manager once told me that they make their ads around the coupons printed in Sunday papers. So, it is no surprise when we match up a coupon to a store deal to make a great deal.

The manufacture just wants to get to you try their product, in hopes you will buy more and tell all your friends too. These are major corporations, they know exactly how many coupons have been used. Remember too, they printed them in the first place. :-)

Coupon fraud does cost stores and companies a lot of money, and can earn you jail time or heavy fine. That is why a couponer should always play by the rules and educate themselves about fake coupons. Coupon fraud costs all of us money!

#6 Couponing is greedy, you should leave the deals for the poor people.

Well, you could be greedy in just about anything. Even John Wesley suggested living on less, so you could save more and give more. Couponing is about making your money more efficient, so you can be more available to God. In addition, if you coupon, you can teach those who are financially struggling how to coupon too. You would be able to help so many people.

However, couponing could also mean that you are a hoarder or you are not a considerate shopper. Like the woman who cleared out the store and bought 40 rolls of free toilet. Maybe she was going donate them, I do not know her heart. But I do know she was inconsiderate of the other shoppers that really needed that deal, not to mention the store. Leave some for the other shoppers.

Well, those are all I could think of today (actually over several days, I get interrupted a lot).

My Turn! | Catherine

Hi Friends,

This is Catherine posting.  I hope you enjoy getting to know me a little better through the following questions. :)

What am I reading?

 In the Bible, I'm going through Deuteronomy right now.  It sounds like a dry book to read, but I loooove Deuteronomy!  It's actually filled with quite a lot of drama and woven throughout is the amazing faithfulness of our God. 

For fun, I'm also reading my camera manual (yes, I think that's fun!) and anything and everything related to photography!  Check out I Heart Faces and ILP for some great photography forums.  You can also visit my blog to see my latest photo shoot.

What can my children do instead of watching TV?

We're not a no-TV kind of family.  I do permit them to watch one show in the morning and one show in the afternoon.  But when they're not doing that, they can do chores!  Seriously!  The more I involve them in doing chores along with me, the happier they have been.  It sounds strange, right?  But there has been less bickering, more joyful attitudes about helping Mommy (not so at first!), and I just enjoy their company. 

What am I grateful for?

I am grateful for all the little things I take for granted each day.  Healthy children, a roof over my head, food and water, heat when it's cold, and clothes that we're literally swimming in (and have bought literally none of it).

What have I done for my marriage lately?

We're going through Love Dare. :)

Small House Advantage

One advantage of living in a small house is that I can keep tabs on where my kids are, what they are doing and what they are saying. I can hear when they are saying mean things to each other, or conversing with themselves how mean I am to make them do math. Most lovely of all, hearing them be sweet to each other and their cute conversations when they think no one is listening.

Small houses have their challenges, but this is one big advantage.

Recycle Challenge

In honor of Earth Day, I thought I would share about what kind of paper you can recycle. There is so much paper we just throw out. First of all, you need a convenient and pretty place to put it. We use a large, sturdy basket I purchased at a yard sale. It sits in our living room in a high traffic area, so it makes it easy to toss in the recyclables.

Remember not to put paper in plastic bags. Instead, use paper bags or cardboard boxes. Plastic bags clog recycling equipment at the recycling center and jams the system. Of course you can recycle your plastic bags at the grocery store! Or even better, buy reusable buys. Not only will you not have all the clutter of plastic bags in your house, but they will pay for themselves with the few pennies you get credited for at most stores. They are more sturdy too, and are great to haul other items like books from the library.

CAN

• paper envelopes with those plastic windows
• staples are O.K.
  
• most of your mail except for the pieces that need to be shredded (this adds up to a lot of recyclable paper)
  
• food boxes like cereals and crackers (as long as the food is in a plastic bag
• newspapers of course
• magazines to packaging (must be clean, dry, and free of food, most plastic, wax, and other contamination)

CANNOT

• foiled coated boxes
• food contaminated cardboard, like greasy pizza boxes
  
• some areas cardboard must be free of tape, but staples are fine
  
• frozen food containers
• junk mail with plastic wrap, stickers, product samples, and those fake "membership" cards
• waxed paper
• waxed cardboard milk & juice containers
• oil soaked paper
• carbon paper
• sanitary products or tissues (hope you would know this one ;-)
• thermal fax paper
• plastic laminated paper such as fast food wrappers, juice boxes, and pet food bags
• paper with any sort of contamination or plastic layers

???????????

• Check your phone book and area recycling center where and if your old phone books are recyclable
• Books is another item you would have to contact your local center for