Cutting corners to save money (aka sanity)

One thing about being a mom and having this blog is that I aspire to improve.  I'm not the best mom or wife out there, but I really want to be the best that I can for the family God has placed me in.  One of those ways is being careful with our money.  Do you and your family have ways that you cut corners to save money?  We haven't always, but in the last 10 years, I've been more diligent about it.  Now before you start  thinking I'm Miss Happy Homemaker, come visit me for a while and we'll shoot that theory down very quickly!

• Making our own laundry detergent
• using vinegar for fabric softener
• homemade household cleaners (409, soft scrub, glass cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner)
• homemade baby wipes 
• most all of our homeschool curriculum is bought very used (I spent $30-40  per child this year total!)
• via www.vegsource.com
• a local church which has a huge selection of curriclum
• friends who are finished with theirs for this year.
• Ebay
• homemade spaghetti, bbq, secret pizza sauce,
• Honey is my do-it-all repair guy (and a handsome one at that) if he doesn't know how to fix it, he researches it
• Resale shops.  Some of you may cringe at this one, but Only can get a pair of American Eagle jeans for less than $6.  People unload their stuff there and at Goodwill.  Don't discount these places yet.
• checking books out from the library (church and public library)
  
• coupons, coupons, coupons.  I think my  kids hate that word)
  
• free books via Kindle  I have yet to pay for any of the more than 30 books I have on my Kindle for iPhone).  CBD also offers free ebooks. 

• One of the latest I'm looking forward to reading is Craving God by Lysa Tlekeurst which is FREE at the moment on Kindle.  
• The Pioneer Woman: An Early Excerpt First two chapters are free at this time. 
• I'm hoping to win One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are from The Momma at Finding Joy in the Little Things, but I'm not holding my breath. 

• speaking of iPhones - there are 4 of us in our home that have Apple products (1 phone and 3 iTouches).  Once we all sync our devices to the computer, we can all share apps that the other uses without having to waste $$ with repurchasing! 
• If you have a need, put the word out to friends and God.  We've been so blessed to be GIVEN a great new stove and God lead us to a wonderful cast iron Kohler double sink for only $25 that was at a local bakery!

There are too many to list, but I'm sure you help your family save money some way.  Can you tell me a few of your favorites?  

Works-For-Me Wednesday

We love to make homemade pizza at our home. Making the dough really doesn't take much time, but it seems that everyone loves to have a different kind of pizza. To solve the problem, I use round cake pans! The dough recipe I use will make 2 personal pan pizzas or 1 large pizza per batch, so it is easy to figure out how many batches to make. I spray the cake pans with Pam Olive oil, roll out a small (a little bit larger than my fist) portion of the dough, and place it in the pan. I use my pizza cutter to cut off the excess dough by rolling the blade around the edge, just above the dough. You can make a thin or thick crust depending on how thick you roll out the dough. Put on your layer of sauce and create away. We lay all the ingredients out in containers and everyone can either construct their own pizza or I can make them up for them. Works me me!

Baking with Bunnie

We love getting together with friends. Sharing a meal, listening, and laughing. Last night, our friends Max and Bunnie joined us for dinner and baking. We started out the late afternoon baking muffins together, Ms. Bunnie and I. Ms. Bunnie put on the guest apron from Australia and got right in there. What fun we had! I so much enjoyed talking with them that I got distracted talking and quickly realized - I'd NEVER make it on Food Network! I so much appreciate how Caleb and Claire got right in there, reading the recipe over my shoulder, getting out the needed ingredients so we would have them ready at our fingertips! Thanks Kids!


After making two kinds of muffins (Morning Glory and chocolate chip), we started work on assembling our dinner - pizza! We're so thankful for the time Max and Bunnie took to join us for a quiet evening and giving us a gentle reminder that we should not be timid in having people over. We learned things about each other, chatted about infamous people in our families, and enjoyed having the chance to visit. What a blessing they were to our family and we look forward to doing this again soon!

** Just a sad note, that 6 months after we had the Max and Bunnie over for dinner, Max died of a massive heart attack and he has been terribly missed.