Today's 27 Thing Fling is made up of small items. There is pearl chain, rosettes, a crochet rose, little bows, and charms. These were sets you could use to make collage pins. Obviously, I never made them!
A friend of mine issued a challenge to make the house "thinner" over the next 27 days. The goal is to get rid of 27 things each day. I decided to take the challenge as I have some things that need to go. I have a lot of paper that needs to go and a garage full of things to take to a thrift store. I will start this in tomorrow and will try to post updates as I go. If you're interested in joining, please do so.
Money is finally flowing into our home once again. Having regular paychecks will allow us to budget and keep ourselves afloat.
I have been looking at where money goes. I am most amazed by the areas where we don't spend money. We don't pay for cable/satellite television. We don't go to fancy restaurants. I don't spend a small fortune on crafty items. Jer does not have all of the latest xbox games.
Even without these items we are happy. We have internet access, netflix, and lots of free music & games online. We have a nice house, good food, and a lot of love. We're far from suffering.
We have a long couple of months ahead of us. We have to dig ourselves out of the pit that is debt. If I start to complain about the lack of funds, remind me that we really have it pretty good.
Jeremy drives an 18 wheeler over the road & is out for 8 to 10 days at a time with his new company. These new home times and a larger refrigerator in his truck mean that he is able to eat more meals in the truck. This saves a TON because 2 to 3 meals out each day, mostly at a truck stop, add up to big bucks quick!
I'm going to start cooking daily (something I don't do since it is just me at home - I tend to eat the leftovers from a meal for days before cooking again) and freezing a portion or two for him. We have a vacuum sealer and plan to borrow a single electric burner from J's dad so the initial expenses won't be very high.
This week he did store bought "heat and eat" kind of meals just to test things out. He enjoyed the meals but they are expensive and are full of sodium and other things he really does not need in his diet. We're hoping that making these meals will allow for some savings in our budget.
I know I've not been posting. I really want to. My life has just been a little on the chaotic side. Jeremy was working for someone (contract labor) and they did not pay him for 3 weeks before he quit. It took another 2 weeks after he started his new job before his first payday. In all, we went 6 weeks without any income. This depleated our savings and if it weren't for my family we'd be even deeper in debt.
We're on the right track again. I'm able to pay my parents back at a reasonable rate each week and still start putting some money into our savings.
Instead of posting and working through some of the problems, I hid. I tend to do that...I'm like a turtle hiding in my shell.
Anyway, I'm back and ready to start posting again.
...when life throws you a curve ball and you are left floundering? Yeah, that has been me the last few weeks.
Life is getting back on an even keel. I'll be back posting this coming week.
I found this great tutorial to make a wrap bracelet. I waited until I found a piece of ball chain & then went through my stash to see if I had the other items needed. In the first one I made, I improvised by using embroidery floss instead of waxed linen cord. In the second one, I used colored hemp & pearl bead chain stuff. I really like how they turned out.
Menu planning is one area where I am sorely lacking. Most days, we plan the dinner meal sometime after 10:00 in the morning. We're making way to many trips to the store and we're spending money on impulse items like crazy.
I have turned to the Internet in search of ideas but I wonder if half of these recipes are meant for people feeding between 2 & 3 adults & 2 teenage boys on a daily basis. Steak for 5 is not in my budget. We're lucky to get red meat more than once per week. Even frugal sites seem to be full of meals that are either too complicated or too hands on. I have CFS & FMS as well as other hidden illnesses. Some days I just cannot be in the kitchen for an hour or two prepping dinner.
So now, I turn to you...my few (LOL) readers. Do you have any tried & true frugal meals that are easy and kid friendly? Please comment if you do. I'd love to hear from you!
Today we went to just a few sales. I was feeling ill (getting used to new medications) so we cut our outing short. However I did manage to snag a few things.
I budget $20 for yard sales. I also take change along with me. The change is "free" money in our budget (we round up to the whole dollar) so it is like getting things totally for free! Today I spent $3.75 in change and this is what I got.
