Tuesday's Tip

I have decided to start doing a tip a week. It might be any kind of tip, from a frugality tip to a laundry tip, to a cooking tip - just depends on the kind of things I have been doing this week :) Let me know if you like it! I know this blog was started for personal reasons, and posting about my walk is important to me, but I can't do that everyday, and I need something to fill in the rest. Some of these will be auto-posts, I will do them as I think of them, and set them to post for the next Tuesday. If you think of something you would like a tip on that I might know, let me know and I will post it :)

So this week's Tuesday Tip is about money. Or more importantly how to control it. It's a simple tip, and one many of you might already use. It's called the "envelope system." I will not even begin to take credit for this one, I have heard it so many times over the years from places like Money Matters and Dave Ramsey, however it was something I had never put into practice until I needed to.

It's fairly simple, as I said. Basically you take your budget (you have one, right?) and look at your non-bill money expenditures such as gas, groceries, clothing allowance and entertainment (or any combination of what you spend. I don't actually have a clothing allowance or entertainment budget, but I know many of you do). Then, every week, two weeks, bi-monthly - however often your family gets paid - go to the bank and take out EXACTLY that much money.

So for example, say you get paid weekly to keep this simple. Say you spend $50/week on groceries, $30/week on gas, and on average $5/week on clothing. The clothing one is a bit tricky, rarely is it people buy clothes weekly, but it does need to be budgeted so that when it does come up, you have the money for it. For us, except for shoes, we don't have to buy clothes - there are kids in line just above mine who seem to outgrow their clothes just as my kids need more. And being a SAHM, I can wear just about anything that is modest and in good condition, so occasionally I will go to the salvation army with leftover money from other budgeted areas, but mostly I have been blessed with clothing gifted to me by others (either used or new, it doesn't matter to me :) So anyway, back to the budget....

When you go to the bank, take out (for this example) $85. Put the money in designated envelopes, then put the checkbook and the mac card in your desk drawer. (Or hide it in your wallet - the idea is out of site, out of mind, but be mindful of emergencies such as needing a tow truck or some other such hassle). As for the envelopes, you should mark them with what they are for - food, gas, entertainment, etc. If you get paid every other week and you took out two week's worth of money, have 2 sets of envelopes, and each one has either week 1 food or week 2 food. You get the idea. Some might accumulate, such as the clothing - you won't buy anything for $5, however by next season you will have enough for a few new (or new-to-you) items. Some might be drained weekly...

Now the hard part. Once the money in any envelope is gone, that is it. No more spending in that category. If you use up all your gas money by Thursday and still have somewhere to go, you have to pull money out of clothing or food, etc in order to get there. It helps keep you accountable for your spending limits. I find it necessary to take a calculator to the grocery store to keep to my limit - it's embarrassing to get to the checkout just to say, "I can't pay for this, this, this and that, can you please take them back?" :-) When I get to my limit on my calculator, I decide if what is left on the list is a necessity. If it is, I go through the cart to decide what has to go back. NEVER has it happened that I didn't have the money for what was necessary, but needs and wants rarely meet.

One very important part of the envelope system that doesn't seem obvious is PRAYER! Pray over your monetary situation!!! :) We pray over everything else, don't we? When we give at church, don't we ask God to multiply our money to do it's greatest good for His kingdom? Why shouldn't you pray over your envelopes? "God, please grant this money the ability to do all it needs to through You. Let the food money be enough to fill our bellies, let our gas not run out, and let us be clothed in attire fitting our representation of You. In Your precious Son's name we pray. Amen"

It doesn't have to be elaborate to work. That goes for the money system as well as the prayer! :)

Be Blessed.
One Christian Mom

A Not-So-Abbreviated Menu Planning Monday

Back to basics! :) Menus are simple, and fun if you know how to make one. Today, I am not only going to show you my menu. (Nope, can't keep it short and simple! :) I am going to walk you through how my mind works when making one :) Ok, so I usually do this, but it will be more in-depth this time.

Breakfasts.... to tell you the truth, I don't make my menus by day. I make them by meal. All the breakfasts first, then the lunches, and finally on to dinners. I do it this way because it keeps my momentum up. Breakfasts are easiest for me to plan. I don't like planning lunch, but it plans itself pretty easily. Then dinners. This takes a little more work, so I save this for last after I have been "successful" at planning the rest of the week.

So breakfasts.... LOL ;) I rotate through a few - our daily choices are cereal (not preferred, but if not on the menu the kids ask for it every day), eggs, french toast, pancakes and oatmeal. When bacon goes on sale you will see it added on Saturdays. For special occasions I have breakfast bars, muffins and a few other things that the kids don't eat, but everyone else likes! :) So for this week, it looks like this:
Sunday - my menus always go Sunday to Saturday. as you read yesterday, it was a crazy busy day, so I am going with cereal.
Monday - Pancakes - we don't have anything planned for Monday morning, so I have time to make these. I will make two batches and freeze one for another day that might be hectic. To warm them I just put them in the toaster.
Tuesday - Oatmeal - This takes about 10 minutes to make, and the kids eat it all up. I make enough for 4 people, sometimes we eat it all, sometimes we don't. If we don't, I save the rest for "fried oatmeal" another time.
Wednesday - Eggs - This, believe it or not, takes some time. Eggs around here are to order. My daughter likes them scrambled plain, and I do mean plain! No butter in the pan even. So I do hers first. My sons like them scrambled with cheese. And I like them over medium, with toast. This, from start to finish will take about 20 minutes or so, but the kids help by cracking eggs and stuff, so it's an activity as well as mealtime :)
Thursday - French Toast - again, this one takes a little time, usually - but I did a double batch last week, so this week I will just pop them in the toaster ;)
Friday - Oatmeal - We usually have oatmeal 2x a week, just because I can't think of something healthier to do :)
Saturday - this week it's bacon and eggs. I found bacon on sale for $1.50 a lb last week and picked up 4 packages. Hubby was happy :)

On to lunch. Anyone still here with me? Not out to lunch? Sorry, silly pun. Ok, then.
For lunch, as you may have read in previous posts, I have difficulty with what to serve. I still have chicken nuggets and fish sticks in the house, so I will serve those until they are gone. I actually have chicken tenders and fish fillets to make my own with, and I may when the packaged ones run out. Also in the rotation are the all-famous hot dogs, occasionally mac-n-cheese and grilled cheese sandwiches. For my daughter, who won't eat cheese, she gets jelly sandwiches. Along with lunch is usually carrot sticks, apple slices, grapes, or whatever other fruit is in season. Recently I was asked for "little trees with snow on them", or in other words, broccoli with ranch dressing :) So for this week, it looks like this:
Sunday - request. We will be getting home after lunch as it is, and usually "request" means cold sandwiches :)
Monday - Chicken Nuggets
Tuesday - hot dogs
Wednesday - leftovers (usually by Wednesday we have some that aren't portioned to another meal ;)
Thursday - Fish sticks. I try to keep the "prepared foods" separate from each other, meaning only on mon-wed-fri or tues-thurs-sat, but with so many in rotation, I have a hard time with that as well. I just learned that American cheese is actually "cheese product" which disturbed me a little, what else is in there???
Friday - speaking of cheese - grilled cheese
Saturday - Ravioli. I don't know what Buddy will eat, he doesn't like these. Maybe a peanut butter sandwich.

On to dinner. I think I have explained the way I plan dinner before. Here it is in short (or as short as I get, anyway!) After I re-read this I realized it's not so short - go figure! :0D Go through your cabinets, refrigerator, freezer and pantry. Note anything of worth. I keep a running log of everything I have, so I know what I can make any given week. As I menu plan, or grocery shop, I adjust the "inventory" as it were. I keep mine on the computer for ease, but some people find it easier to do it per meal on paper. So once you know what you have...

Get out your recipe books. I keep one book that has all my most favorite recipes. I copy ones that I like from books that I seldom use and put them in plastic protector pages in a three ring binder. Also, ones I clip from magazines, print from the Internet, or just plain make up myself are in there. I have them all written down because at first menu planning can get overwhelming, and it helped to know exactly what goes into every dish I make. Then my husband pointed out that as they get older, the kids will be able to cook from the recipes.

So you have your inventory list and your recipe book(s), right? Start matching them up! Do you have some ground beef, a can of tomato (pasta, marinara, whatever you may call it) sauce (or the makings for it), spaghetti and some Parmesan cheese (optional)? Spaghetti and meatballs sounds good. If you don't have all the fixins for meatballs, then meat sauce sounds better! :) Do you have rice, chicken, dried or canned beans, spices and some chicken broth? Chicken and rice is on the menu - just don't forget to plan time for the dried beans. No chicken broth? Boil your chicken to cook it with some carrots, onion powder or onions, garlic powder or garlic, salt, pepper and oregano. Poof - chicken broth!

Ok, you get the idea. If you ever need help turning what you have into a meal, you can feel free to post and I can try to help you. Or you can go over to hillbillyhousewife.com - she has some (tons) of excellent frugal recipes, even for "convenience" foods, like mock rice-a-roni.

So for dinner this week, I am going through my freezer and what do I find? A roast!!! Jackpot. :) That's at least two recipes this week, and depending on leftovers, one for next week. We always have rice in the house, bread, potatoes, things that are either cheap to begin with or go on sale fairly frequently. Other things I try to buy a few of when they are on sale to have them in the house, such as tortillas (I do know how to make them, but really dislike rolling them, it becomes a chore!), veggies, etc.

Sunday - chicken stir fry. It's a busy day. I have some chicken already cooked, I will throw it in with some boiled ramen noodles sans sauce, add teriaki and soy sauces, throw in a package of stir fry veggies I got on sale a few weeks ago for $1.75 and call it dinner :)
Monday - Oven roast. I used to do a pot roast, but I noticed that my son eats it far more easily if I do it in the oven. Temps are allowing that now (being it's below 40 outside!) so I do it that way. With it we will have oven roasted potatoes and peas.
Tuesday - Pork Chops with rice and "candied" carrots
Wednesday - We go to church Wednesday nights, so this has to be simple. Let's see, what do I have around... how about crock pot turkey meatloaf with mashed potatoes and corn. I have some mashed potatoes in the freezer, so I will just reheat those. The crock pot turkey meatloaf will be assembled in the morning and left all day to cook. Cleanup in a crock pot is a breeze.
Thursday - Hamburgers. This doesn't happen often, that we have hamburgers for dinner, but it was requested this week, so here it is. The veggie when we have hamburgers is - don't laugh - pickles. :) And the starch is the bun, so there you go.
Friday - we eat at church on Fridays. I usually make either a side dish or a dessert. I don't know what it will be this week. Probably a dessert.
Saturday - Ummm - I am about out of ideas. What do I plan for when I am out of ideas? Oh, right. The roast from Monday! I can turn that into the now-famous fajitas. I say now famous because when I first started making them, the kids refused. Now they ask for them. :) That will include the meat, tortillas I found on sale for a dollar, leftover corn (yes, in fajitas, my kids won't eat peppers) and some seasonings.

Done! Phew. If you came this far, thank you! If you have any questions or would like help planning your meals, please post. If you want me to keep it shorter, well... you just might be out of luck :-) Next menu Monday will be just a menu, I promise. Ummm, should I make a promise like that?

In good humor,
One Christian Mom

Spiritual Sunday

I don't think that I will be able to get online later today due to the business of the day. I will be at church for most of the day for different events, but I didn't want to leave "spiritual sunday" flat. So today's post won't be about our church's message for today, but I do want to leave you with something... So here's my post... please, if you post something on your blog today that has to do with your church message, a scripture that moves you, or any other spiritual thing, leave me a link so I can read it tonight!

My prayer for today:
Lord, please grant peace over this day. Please help me enjoy the body of Christ as we dedicate this day to you for your furtherance. Please let me go through this day with joy in my heart and a smile on my face. Please help me only say things that You would have me say and do things that You would have me do. God, please bless my blogging friends with joy and peace in their endeavors for this day, and let it all be dedicated to you in your name. Amen.

That's my prayer for today. There is lots to be done, and I want to do it FOR Him, not just doing it to do it. I want others to be blessed by our doings today, and I don't want to stand in the way of it, if you understand my meaning. I have heard it said, God remove me so I can do your will. That's my prayer for today, that and joy for myself and for all of you.
God bless!
One Christian Mom

PS - I can't say anything succinctly, can I? :)

A Look Back

I decided to use my blog for what I originally intended it to be - a journal. I looked back at a few of my first entries. When I look at it I see two things. I see a woman who has grown a lot in a year and a half. Then I see a woman who still has a TON of growing to do.

My house is MUCH cleaner. My kids are MUCH more well-behaved. Mostly I have my house in order. I notice these are the things I have been focusing on lately. Also, Up until a week or two ago, I have been praying a ton more and reading my bible (or my daughter's bible :) almost every day. That helps bring me closer to the Lord, which is important.

Now for the troubling part. Every so often I slip. And when I slip, it seems to be a mudslide! That is what I am going to start working on. Every so often I evaluate where I am on my walk with God, and where I am with my family. I seem to be doing well with my kids - we all have happy healthy days mostly. Yesterday and the day before notwithstanding, when I was letting the enemy plant false seeds into me, things have been relatively content around here. My husband and I have a lot to work on. I will continue praying for his salvation (would you join me in that?) and leave it at that for now. I had been convicted of this recently, and let it fall by the wayside when I started feeling low about myself.

Someone once commented to me (not on this blog) that depression is a selfish state. I didn't want to hear it then, I was in the middle of my pity party! But it's true. You stop thinking of anyone else, and only focus on how to make yourself feel better. It's like an addict - they just need the next "fix" and all will be good. Well, with depression, it's if I could only drag myself out of this, all will be well. Unfortunately, the turns it takes are usually unhealthy not only for the depressed, but for everyone around them. I have realized this - yet again - it's a process. And I will try to keep my negative feelings to myself and just ask for prayer if I feel I need it!

So for my walk - I will pray whenever I am feeling like I am "falling". Even if I don't want to! I will call a friend and let her know I need prayer. I will NOT demean anyone in order to make myself feel better. I will NOT treat others in a way I would not like to be treated. And I will NOT leave fuel for the enemy to get his stronghold on me.

Please continue to lift me up in prayer, and I will resume praying for all of you - I used to every night, and to be totally honest, my prayers have been self-centered lately. Unless I have specifically told you I would pray for a certain situation (which I always do if I say I will) I have not been praying for anyone but myself. How incredibly selfish!!! You are all once again in my prayers. I pray you will all be accepting of me even through my recent fall and folly, and thank you for doing so!
In God's Forgiving Love,
One Christian Mom

A post deleted

I have decided to delete my previous post. I felt a leading to do so, and tonight when I arrived home, a fellow blogger and friend had the same thought and passed it along to me. Coincidence is conviction. :)

Just know that I was able to attend a "celebrate recovery" meeting at church tonight. I am off my pity party, and am on a better and healthier road to recovery from my depression. I have started to get the help I need, and will try to rely on God and my friends rather than drag the blogging world down with me.

Your ongoing prayers and support are cherished and needed, so please continue to pray.

Thank you,
One Christian Mom

A Picky Eater

Buddy is becoming increasingly more picky. It seems every day there is a new battle to be fought. Princess has always had food issues - you can read about it many times on this blog (and one day I will get the tagging thing down and you can read about it!) :) Between my husband's requests, my daughter's needs and my son's pickiness, I feel I am left with little to choose from. I don't have to deal with hubby's requests for breakfast almost ever, he doesn't eat it. Lunch only Saturday and Sunday. Dinner every day even though he only eats a few times a week. I try to make it a point to always have something here for him to eat, though. As for Princess, her needs are simple enough that given anything I cook, if she doesn't like it I can appease her simply enough (and sometimes I have to, based on what we have and what she needs). Applesauce, pudding, etc can all be opened and handed over after we have all eaten. She understands that I cannot give her that while everyone else is eating or they will all want it, and that they can have it with her if they finish their dinner. She always sits with us at dinner, and at a minimum I always sit with her while she eats, so she doesn't feel isolated.

As for Baby Bug, he will eat anything he sees me eat - unless it is openly refused by someone else. Princess has gotten good at this! :) Sometimes I will give her a plate of food because I think she is ready to try it. Even if she does, and doesn't like it, she will keep it at her place and not say anything. Sometimes she will even say, "MMMM, baby, isn't this food good?" as she has a revolted look on her face :-) Too cute. Anyway, sometimes my husband will pick out veggies from a stew, then you will find baby bug doing the same. Or he will decide not to eat at all, and the baby follows suit. At least that is only on the weekends, he's never home early enough to eat with us during the week.

All this is leading up to a point. I promise!!! :-D I think I have mentioned previously that Buddy has "eating issues". He likes prepackaged foods - chicken nuggets, hot dogs, fish sticks, mac n cheese. And not the kind I make. Everyone else will eat my homemade chicken nuggets, but not him! My husband LOVES my baked mac n cheese, but not buddy. He won't even eat it. One time he put a bite in his mouth and started crying. It wasn't too hot, so I asked what was wrong. He said, "I thought we were having mac n cheese!" He just didn't realize it was - when I told him, he objected.

I have to admit, it would be difficult to get ALL the prepackaged foods out of the house. Hubby eats them, and when I take one away, my son will go to another. I have gotten a lot of it out of the house. We used to have chips, etc in the house, but I stopped buying that. If hubby wants chips for a game, I will make them. :) But then, Buddy started eating crackers and popcorn. Decidedly healthier, but not perfect, right?

I am not a fan of the serve it the next day camp, but that is what my parents are telling me to do. That if he won't eat his dinner, I should put it in the fridge and serve it the next day. They actually used to make me sit up until I had eaten everything, even after everyone else had gone to bed. I just can't seem to be able to do that to him. I have a tendency to feed him too much snack because I know he hasn't eaten, or won't eat... etc.

I have no idea how a healthy child of his age eats. How much food should a 4 year old eat? He's in the 1st % for height and the 30th or so for weight. My family is small (I'm 5', my mom is 4'6") and so is my husbands, although not as small as mine ;) That being said, he will eat one pancake or one piece of french toast, and I call it a good breakfast. For lunch, 3 chicken nuggets (4 if I coerce) is as much as he eats. I get the fruits in as snacks - half an apple and some crackers for one and a handful of grapes and maybe some popcorn for the other. Then at dinner, I am lucky if he eats a few bites of meat, maybe a few grains of rice. He absolutely won't eat potatoes unless they are fried in some manner. Hardly any pasta at all. No veggies. no casseroles, no stew.... I feel like I am at the end of the food rope here, that if I take away ALL prepackaged foods that he might become the first ever anorexic toddler! :)

I guess what I am getting at is that I am afraid. I know I shouldn't be - children of Christ aren't supposed to worry or fret, however I do. I am a worried mommy. I worry that I am not doing it right. I worry that as an adult he will drive his wife crazy with his inability to eat anything other than chicken. I am worried that he won't grow up healthy. I am worried that he will stop gaining weight, or have unhealthy eating habits, relying on snacks to fill him.

Thanks for listening, and if you have suggestions, feel free to post! :)

In God's Love
One Christian Mom

"Sick House"

Have you ever felt like you were under quarantine? My son is sick, and my daughter has started to get sick. The baby has a runny nose and a cough. We aren't welcome anywhere (rightly) and don't want to have anyone over. So.... no adult interaction 'till it's over! AAAHHHHH :-)

Seriously, though. We went to the doctor's office today. Buddy was tested for the flu, and thankfully it came back negative. Princess was tested for strep throat, and that also came back negative. Buddy has a runny nose, fever, sore throat, and a chest cough. Princess has a sore throat, a runny nose and a dry cough. Together they make quite a pair. Homeschool is on hold for now, they just aren't able to concentrate. So I made an appointment and the doctor said it's viral, and that I can give them cough suppressants and decongestants if I feel the need, and also that ice cream is great for morale! :) So we bought some ice cream on the way home, along with some Robitussin for night time. During the day the coughing doesn't seem to bother them (it bothers me, though :) but at night it keeps them up, which makes for cranky kids. So I will give them a dose at night, but leave them alone during the day. I don't believe in over-medicating, but sometimes some medication is ok - that's my opinion on that controversial topic, anyway.

So time is limited, I will catch up with all of you when they are back to their normal selves. As it stands now, one is whining for a blanket and the other swears she is hungry (although when I bring her food, it will most definitely sit so long it will become non-edible!) :-)

I pray you are all in good health, and please pray that this is it for us - colds I can handle! :)
God Bless
One Christian Mom