I complain about this little guy a lot, but, I love him so much I can't stand it. He is the most cuddly thing I have ever seen. If I would let him, he would sit in my lap with his blankie all day long. All night long. Yes, he is in a bad mood A LOT. A really, really bad mood. But at this age, Ada never wanted to sit in my lap. But my John-John loves to cuddle with me.
As I already mentioned, I am trusting the Lord to help me get control of my home. That seems overwhelming and impossible, but I am trusting Him to form the habits in me. To redeem my mess, literally ;)
We are also trusting the Lord, this year, to get us out of debt. Which seems much more doable than the messiness thing. We are in this tiny, costs next-to-nothing rental house, and we finally have the opportunity to do this thing. So, in an effort to focus on that with "gazelle intensity," as Dave Ramsey says, I will most likely be blogging about that process. It's a way to reflect on God answering prayers that we have been praying for years.
On that note, is anyone else having trouble saving money at the grocery store? I mean, you die hard couponers, are you finding that the deals aren't what they used to be? In fact, the past two weeks I have shopped at Wal-Mart with no coupons because I didn't have enough coupons to justify going to Publix. Yikes. I don't like giving up Publix for Wal-Mart. So, I am refocusing my efforts. I am going back to square one, and I am determined to get things back on track coupon-wise. And, I am refocusing my efforts on making do with what we already have in the pantry as much as possible, even if it makes for a boring dinner. I am cutting waaaaay back on the fast food, though we are allowing ourselves to "grab lunch" on Sundays because I have not mastered the art of having Sunday dinner waiting on us when we get home from church. I hope that just comes with age, maybe? Do ya'll have a good plan for Sunday lunch? Something that is working well? Did you grow up eating a big Sunday lunch, or is it no big deal to just eat pb and j and call it a day? Anyway, for now, we are allowing that to be our time to eat outside of the house. We are not big spenders--no joke, right ;)--but I do waste a lot of money on a diet coke here, a hamburger there, and I want to get rid of those "holes" in the budget. We are sticking to the budget no matter what, and it's exciting because we can see ourselves reaching these big goals in the not so far ahead future, Lord willing (not to mention that one of those goals is a family beach trip in late summer/early fall).
So, that will be another blog "theme" in the coming months.
And, by the way, I will be back in a couple of days to discuss the successes and failures of this first week of operation get the house in order.
6 comments:
I have had to put a temporary stop to couponing due to my crazy schedule and life right now. But, when I do look for coupons and great deals, I don't really see them out there either. We have to had resign to 'boring' dinners as I refuse to pay full price for most stuff, which is hard! ;) We have also been eating many PB&J sandwiches cut out with cookie cutters for excitement. ;)
The pictures of John are absolutely too cute to bear. Thanks for posting them. What about crockpot on Sundays?
Love you.
Hey! We, too, are on the "live on less" theme this year. I spend a lot on a shirt here or Target clothes there; so I have committed not to buy anything for myself. We'll see how that goes :-) Anyway, I have slowed on couponing as well b/c of time. I meal plan once a week, make a list, and shop at WM - going only ONCE. I do not go back for an ingredient. If we don't have something, we eat grilled cheese or freezer food or waffles and eggs (how easy and cheap are breakfast dinners?!). Anyway, definitely focus on meal planning, as you always do, and keep your list tight - going only once. I was finding that we were going to the store multiple times a week, and you will always spend more if you don't stick to your list. As for Sundays, we always head home and do PBJ. Friday nights are our "nights out." I agree, it's too hard to get food ready for the kids when just getting home from church. You are doing great - keep the budget blogs coming...I'm always encouraged when someone else is on the "spend less" train with me! Love you girl!
thanks so much for the comment! YES! i have read WD what a great read! I am currently reading the best marraige book ever called created to be his helpmeet! check it out..although i must say WD was a mind changer for me TOO!
Your little guy is too cute! And as for Sunday lunch we always do leftovers - whatever is left over gets put on the counter, heated up and eaten (2 spoonfuls of green beans the 5 bites of spaghetti, that rice from 4 days ago, and usually whatever I cooked extra of on Sat) - a good reminder too about how God provides and we start the week off with what is leftover from the week before - more than enough. And then if there isn't enough for us we have quesadillas as the filler (cheese + tortilla)- I guess pbj could be the filler but I've pbjed out lately. Sometimes I prepare a crockpot soup and throw it in the fridge Sat night and put it on the warmer Sun am.
I am definitely having a harder time finding deals with couponing. I think I have mentioned to you before that I have always still gone to Walmart after getting the loss leaders at Publix, but lately have found that I am better off just going to Walmart for everything. An easy Sunday idea is nachos...just throw some black beans on some chips with some cheese and warm them up. I also love the Crockpot for Sunday soups etc. Another good one is a small roast in the crockpot and them just pull it apart for french dip sandwiches in the afternoon.
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