Enjoying the Great White North

I think the best gift we got this Christmas was lots of fresh snow in an area not known to have a white Christmas very often. My husband's parents have a beautiful property, though in the 12 years years I have been on the scene, I have never seen it snow-covered like this. The kids had a great time sledding, helping make a giant snowman and just wandering around in the snow. Their parents enjoyed the time outside, too!

These memories, too, are unexpected and precious gifts!

The Great Christmas Tree Hunt

We had a blast going to find and cut down the Christmas tree shortly after we arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's, even though it was a very frigid day.

This girl loves snow and outlasted her brothers outside almost every day.

We had a beautiful morning out with the family, a memory that will be long-remembered!

Colorado Christmas

I can't believe how fast Sportster is growing up and becoming more helpful! And he took his job of fluffing the tree seriously. Sorry about the shadow on the photo. It seems with travel, we will be a "fake tree family" for many more years.

Every year we travel for Christmas as we alternate years with both of our families. So we have taken to making our own celebration here at home before we leave. We try to make this just a time to slow down, hang out together, open gifts and keep it simple. This year, as we looked at the schedule, our best shot was the first weekend of December so we went with that. We also put up our tree and a few other decorations that weekend. With the number of gifts the children receive, it is probably best to spread out the fun to avoid being overwhelmed. I don't think we went overboard, but we did give the kids more from us than I think we ever have, just because we wanted them each to have a big gift this year. These big gifts were sourced online, through Craig's List and at Goodwill, but appealed to what would be fun and meaningful to each one. I was happy to see the excitement over the hand-knit gifts I made for the kids, too. For the other gifts, I had been shopping throughout the whole year and adding to the stash as I found things they would enjoy at excellent clearance prices.

Looks like Smiley will need to grow into this one.

Smiley on his new Radio Flyer, complete with bell.

Sister by her new dollhouse, found unfinished at Goodwill
for a mere $7.99 and painted by mom with love.

And Sportster ready to assemble his new table hockey game which has already yielded hours of fun with dad, and more than a few lessons in sportsmanship.

And a couple weeks later, Sportster and Sister had the opportunity to be part of a Christmas pageant at our church. They really enjoyed being part of the choir and seeing the production unfold. Their choir was supposed to be dressed as animals from the Friendly Beasts song, so Sportster chose to be a camel and Sister chose to be a dove. I don't feel very gifted in the costume department, but was pleased how these came together as the deadline for costumes approached, and I even had 20 minutes to spare after finishing before walking out the door to their rehearsal with costumes in hand! :)

We really enjoyed our "family Christmas" at home with our kids and enjoyed taking it easy, taking time to open their gifts and giving them time to fully open their gifts and play with them as we went along. We definitely need to remember to allow lots of time for that activity next year.

How do you celebrate Christmas at your house and manage gifts and travel and Christmastime celebrations in your church and community?

Being Together and Giving Thanks

I'm really behind on posting from the last few months of activities in our family, but here are a few pictures from Thanksgiving with my family. It was great to be together this year and to give thanks, even though it has been a very challenging year in so many ways. God is good and carries us through these hard times.

Smiley enjoying a new book with Nana.

One of the shots I took of my sister's family. I really had fun with my niece and liked this grain bin background.

The continuation of an annual tradition, all the sons, whether by blood or by marriage, peeling potatoes for the big meal. One set of hands arrived later.

Tractor rides all around. Smiley liked it more once the door was closed and the noise was reduced.

Sportster and Sister hamming it up before Thanksgiving dinner.

We have much to be thankful for!

$100 January Grocery Challenge - Part 1

Well, we are almost halfway through January and it is not too surprising to me that I have already spent every last dollar I had allotted for groceries this month. I'm finding it difficult not to buy when things are at a price that only comes along once or twice a year and to break from the stockpiling mindset that I usually have, to buy items when they are at their rock bottom price. Anyway, here is the breakdown, along with a little commentary.

Alberstons - 2 transactions to get the best deals
8 boxes Quaker cereal - We go through Life really quickly!
3 boxes oatmeal packets
1 canister old-fashioned rolled oats
4 boxes granola bars
1 box breakfast bars
2 cheese sticks (the kids were hungry for a snack and I grow tired of telling them no)
4 packages pepperoni
4 packages Canadian bacon
Grand Total after promotions, sales, coupons & bag refund were deducted= $27.11

King Soopers - went there because we needed to kill some time before going somewhere else
1 package whole grain hoagie buns - marked down (m.d.)
4 packages turkey sausage links - m.d.
1 package turkey bacon - m.d.
1 large package pepperoni
1 jar of our all-time favorite dressing/pizza dip that we haven't had in a really long time
1 package chicken thighs - m.d.
Grand total after coupon, sales and bag credit = $13.26

Safeway
2 gallons milk
3 bottles of cranberry juice
2 boxes of Capri Sun
2 boxes of packaged cookie/cracker snacks - purchased because they were part of a deal with the juices and drinks and some will be kept in the van to help us avoid stopping somewhere for a meal to tide us over until we get home
2 small containers sour cream - m.d.
5 - 4pks. of Activa yogurt - m.d.
1 quart organic half & half - m.d.
2 cottage cheese - m.d.
1 organic cottage cheese - m.d.
3 lbs. bananas
3 avocados
2 lbs. organic whole wheat macaroni
6 - 4pks. of fruit cups, bought because they were marked down to $.70/pack
3 boxes yogurt fruit snacks, bought because they were marked down to $.50/box

Grand total after sales, coupons, and bag credit = $36.02, though it should have been $4 lower (coupons I forgot to give them when I checked out...argh! And I only bought some of those items because of the high value coupons I had.) and $2 lower ($1 off per gallon of milk based on a mailing I had received which is linked to my loyalty card) and $.75 lower due to a dairy markdown sticker they skipped. I may or may not go back to customer service for these savings. It was not worth it that day, a busy Saturday morning with a customer service line 6 people deep at a store that has not always treated me very kindly.

Target
plastic wrap - cheapest kind, we've been out for weeks
cornstarch
dishwasher tabs - had a great coupon
Grand Total = approx. $5.00

Costco
25 lbs. flour
huge can of tomato sauce
huge can of crushed tomatoes
big bag of tortilla chips
5 cheese take-and-bake pizza - purchased because there was a coupon and I had nothing else at home which could be fixed quickly for lunch that day, but still $7.00 could buy a whole lot more if I would have been more prepared
Grand total after pizza coupon = $22.10

So, I am just over $100 for January and am not planning any more purchases unless they are absolutely necessary, like milk and fruit and vegetables. I do have to be honest and say that I did stop at King Soopers to get some free-with-coupon deodorant today and ended up spending $3.50 from my allowance on 6 organic apples and a bag of marked down cherry chips...random, I know. But I thought they would be fun for Valentine's cookies. Although I didn't mind spending my allowance on this today, I don't plan to make a habit of that, since we have determined that our allowance is for each of us to spend as we please and not on goods for the family unless we REALLY want to.

Observations & Activities:
- I could do far better with this month's goal if I just stayed out of stores or sent my husband for the few essential items we needed. I think I am just so used to grocery shopping that it has become a (bad) habit to buy more than we need.
- I need to avoid grocery shopping to fill time. Even if I find good deals, I'll still be going over my budget.
- So far our meals have been fine and I anticipate that through the end of the month, though I wouldn't want to have this grocery budget long-term.
- The items listed above seem like a lot more junk than we usually buy. Keep in mind that this is not representative of our whole diet. The more balanced menu plan is here, which uses up other ingredients we had on hand at the start of the month.
- I did cook 1 of the 4 turkeys that was in our freezer, and divided the meat into meal-sized portions, cooked the carcass down to get all the little bits of meat off the bones and made wonderfully rich bone broth which was the base of a good turkey soup with homemade noodles. Yum! And we will still get at least 3 more meals from that one bird. I don't love turkey, but if I space out those meals, it should be okay.
- As I review my menu plan, it seems that very few of the dinner entrees are quick and easy, but convenience comes at a cost I'm not willing to pay right now.
- The more time-consuming the meal is, the more I feel I lose when my kids are picky and whine about or simply choose not to eat the meal I have made. We have never catered to our children at dinnertime at home, but somehow they don't mind holding out until breakfast, a meal they all enjoy.
- My husband supports me in this challenge, but has also given my complete freedom to up the budget if I need to buy more. I still hope to carry on with this month's plan as long as possible, though.
- It would be easier to carry through with the plan if we kept our dining out budget at its normal level instead of drastically reducing that, too. But this kind of plan does make you much more purposeful in planning dinners at home and anticipating the few times we'll eat out this month. True to form, we've already consumed our free Chick-Fil-A meal. We never seem to tire of that place! This leaves us with only 1 more dining out experience this month. Yikes!
- Meal sequence has been determined mostly by what needs to be used first so it doesn't go bad, reducing overall waste.
- I still have a balance on Walgreens gift card if I need something essential like milk.
- Our cupboards and freezer are still full!

Overall, this challenge is going okay for me. What goals have you set for yourself this month in your budget, the kitchen, or elsewhere?

What's Cooking in January?

We seem to have food in abundance around this place, a freezer, pantry and fridge filled to the brim. I'm not sure how it happened, but I think bargain shopping and then being away for Christmas are to blame. So, as we start the year fresh, I'm hoping we can use up what we have so much of and take it easy on the grocery budget this month. My goal is to spend only $100 for the month, but we'll see how that works out. Here is the menu I made using what we already have in the house. I anticipate a milk and produce run or two, but otherwise I think we are set. This menu has been printed up and posted on the fridge for easy reference. I don't assign days to each meal since this gives more flexibility to cook to suit the weather, what needs to be used the quickest and what we are in the mood to eat. As we eat a meal, I cross it off the menu to keep from getting confused.


January Menu
Goal – use what we have on hand, mostly only dairy & produce purchases

Dinners
navy bean & ham soup, focacia bread
vegetable beef stew, cheddar biscuits
spinach tortilla (homemade) quesadillas, fruit salad
beef & yellow split pea soup, crackers, jello
black beans & rice, queso or cheese, apple slices
homemade pizza, fruit
turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy, veggies
sloppy joe casserole w/ biscuit topping, mixed vegetables
turkey soup w/homemade noodles, fresh bread
turkey pot pie
broccoli cheese soup(w/ frozen grated squash), fresh bread
shepherd's pie
frozen pizza, steamed veggies
spaghetti & meat sauce
chili, cornbread
free meal with receipt at Chick-Fil-A
meal at Red Robin with remaining gift card and coupon
carmelized onion pork chops, mashed sweet potatoes, green vegetable
meatloaf, mashed potatoes, carrots

Lunches – served w/ fruit or vegetable
leftovers
fried egg & cheese sandwiches
snack lunch: meat, cheese, crackers
macaroni & cheese
quesadillas

Breakfast Items
grapefruit, bananas, oranges, apples
applesauce
cold cereal & milk
oatmeal
millet porridge
ham/turkey/cheese egg cups
oat waffles
yogurt
apple carrot WW muffins
blueberry scones
omelets
toast
scrambled eggs
sausage links
turkey bacon

Snacks & Baking
homemade WW bread for meals
brown sugar shortbread
smoothies
apple crisp
caramel dutch apple pie
rice krispie squares
pumpkin bars
lemon poppyseed muffins
potato chips & dip
crackers & herb cheese
rice cakes
string cheese
homemade bread & jam

Confessions of a Struggling Housekeeper

Stuff, stuff everywhere
on the floor and on the chair

comes through the door but rarely leaves
this is one of my pet peeves

clutter makes it hard to think
but at least it does not stink

abundantly outfitted for "just in case"
but we surely need some space

we are blessed, that's for sure
all our needs are met, and more!

oh, to close the cupboard with ease
that would make me feel so free

we do not need a bigger house,
but there is much we could do without

how many clothes can we really wear?
how many toys can for we care?
how many books?
how many pots?
how many towels?
how many gloves?

I want a house not packed with stuff, but a home filled with love.



I wrote this little bit to introduce:
Resolution #1 (not because it is necessarily the most important, though): Simplify our household and its processes and possessions to make space for what really matters!