This week was another productive one.  I decided to take on the project of working on the camper.  When we moved here, the camper stayed at the farm where we spent the summer. That kept the side area open for loads to be taken into the shop, wood to be stacked and other activities to be done.   After a few weeks, we moved it down.  By that point, I was focused on the house, and I just grabbed things out of it as I thought of them after wondering where they were, or needed them for a recipe, or a project.  So, a week or two ago, I decided to take a look around out there. Yikes!  Pretty bad!  Some cupboards look as if a giant just went through and stirred, or worse!  So, I started cleaning it out little by little.  I really, really don’t want to do it all at once right before we go on a trip since it’s a big job, and I will want to pack it with our clothes, etc. when that time comes.

Last summer was fun!  I can’t wait until we can get out again.

Friday morning, I started on 2 food cupboards out there.  I took out several partial packages of things, and used them up.  It was good for my food challenge, too.  I sorted, organized and made a list of  non-perishable items I need to replace.  I like buying them on sale, instead of waiting until the day before we go camping when I would have to buy them at full price. I keep a plentiful supply of groceries in the camper at all times because when we go camping we eat from there most of the time.

I spent a morning cooking a few freezer meals.  They will save me money later on a busy day.  I made gluten-free bread from a mix I had purchased quite a while back.  I will post about the final week of our grocery challenge (we are on week 4 now because we started the last week of February) on Monday night or Tuesday.

I was given a rose at Fred Meyers one day.  For whatever reason, each lady was handed a rose as she walked past on her way out of the store.  They may have been getting old, but it’s still going strong several days later, so it couldn’t have been on it’s last leg!

I worked a few extra hours because Michaela did not feel well.  I had to get her from school one day, and then kept her home the following day.  She was fine after that.  It’s always a balance–it cut into the girls’ homeschool time a bit (to be driving around, etc.), but I am very happy that I can be there for her, and they still finished their work just fine.  It just took until later one day, especially.  Over the course of this week, we’ve probably played between 15 and 20 games of Yahtzee.  That girl loves Yahtzee!

I had my broken filling fixed, using my insurance.  That is still wonderful to me, after over 20 years without dental insurance.  At this point, I did not have to pay any more money, because they are waiting to see what the insurance pays and they feel we may be up-to-date or even have paid a little more.  Nice!  No worries if we did overpay a few dollars–Rob’s got more work to be done–it will get used quickly or they’ll give it back.

We got a $10 check from something we accidentally overpaid a while back.  We hadn’t realized it, so it was like pennies from Heaven.

I rode the exercise bike 3 times this week at the YMCA, totaling around 17 miles between the 3 sessions, and we did the pool one night. I sat in the hot tub not exercising for quite a while that night.  Felt great!  I’m loving how much we are using our membership.

Lovana took us out to lunch.  Yum!  She has worked at her job for 6 weeks now, and wanted to treat us while she was home for the weekend.  That was nice.

Rob has been taking both girls, Lovana and Ja’Ana, driving on the weekends.  They both have their permits and it’s time for them to practice.  Ja’Ana and Alissa have driver’s ed classes starting soon and they want them to have some knowledge coming in.  Lovana just wasn’t ready until now, although she’s had her permit for some time.  I took J driving one afternoon, and she did great!  I have high hopes.  Alissa’s parents have been taking her.  It will be a few months before they can even try for the licenses, but we are on the right road.   Pun intended!  We want to get out money’s worth out of the classes, thus we are practicing ahead of time.  It would cost Lovana $1,500 for private driving lessons at her age, so……

How did your week go?

Whew!  What a busy week this has been!  I’ve had several refreshing glasses of lemon-water, and boy did they hit the spot.

On Monday, we had a snow day.  It is very rare to have one of those at all, especially this late in the year.  Although we had 4 inches, it was pretty much melted by 1 o’clock, and we were able to go do some errands.  Since my husband had the day off, due to the schools being closed, we took the opportunity to head up to Portland (about an hour away) to pick up some paper cups. They were given to us to use.  There were a lot of them (several cases) and we are going to have plenty to share with the youth group at church.  A friend has been tasked with cleaning out a warehouse, and these were in there.  Some are a bit “shop worn,” but most are in plastic packages, and can be easily sorted.  We were happy to get them, and happy to get a time where we could use the several hours it took to pick them up.  He needs the warehouse clean by a certain time, so it was get them or lose them.  Some of the items in there will be burnt or thrown away if a home is not found for them, but it looked like he was making good progress finding homes for things.

I was able to stop by the mall after picking those up and get some clothes, using gift cards I’ve had for quite a while.  I didn’t have a lot of time, as Rob dropped J and I off and took Patsy and Jake to Toys R Us to keep them busy, then kept them in the van until we finished.  He has the patience of a saint, but, we still hurried.  We got some things Ja’Ana needed desperately, and a few tops for me.   Mine are getting so worn because I wear the same ones over and over.  It’s nice to have some new ones.

I will post about this week’s grocery challenge on Monday night or Tuesday, but I will say I was very happy to get potatoes for 10c/lb.  Rob had found them last Sunday night, and got a few.  I went back Tuesday morning and got 100lbs.  Needless to say, we’ve had a lot of potatoes this week.

We had some friends drop in from out of town, and were able to easily feed them lunch with what I had on hand. I had a couple of hours notice that they were going to eat with us, so I just thawed out some more ingredients for tacos.  We had tacos several times last week.  I cooked a chicken last night.  It was a nice change, although I will say tacos are one of everyone’s favorite foods and I don’t get protests no matter how many times we have them.

Jake and Patsy enjoyed some art activities this week.   Before Christmas, I got one of those little art kits with several items in it for $3.50 at Michaels.  The quality is not high (and the markers are already drying up), but neither was the price. They’ve been using it a bit, and yesterday, they painted.  I’m not sure if Jake has painted much with watercolors before, but he wanted some “water” for his current Lego boat to float in, so I gave him a piece of paper and he painted some.  He enjoyed it.  Patsy painted and drew for a long time, even after he went home.  One thing she enjoyed is some watercolor crayons my niece, Rachel, sent along when she cleaned out.  I had some card stock, and that is what I gave them to paint on.

I also read aloud to Jake several times, re-reading last week’s library books.  Since I keep them at my house, he is learning to look forward to hearing the current ones when he comes over. I read part of a chapter book to Patsy.  We started it last summer in the camper, and it came to light when I was doing some cleaning, so she wanted me to read it some more.  It’s an old Trixie Belden book from my childhood, and she likes it.

Both Patsy and Jake built Legos for quite a while.  Patsy listened to library books on c.d.  She worked on her sewing project, a skirt, for a while one day.  We went to the YMCA and exercised while both girls were in their dance classes.  On Friday night, Rob took Patsy and Jake swimming.

This is the last scheduled overnight for my nephew, Jake,  for some time.  I’ve had several occasions to keep him over the last month, but now will go back to my regular schedule for the most part.  I’ve enjoyed the extra time with him.  Last week, I ended up getting Michaela, my niece, from school one day, as she was sick.    She watched the movie Cars, which we own, until her daddy picked her up when he got off work.

Ja’Ana was able to go to a movie night at church, which was fun for her.  She was able to clean house again for money that is put into an account at church towards her summer church activities.  She is earning money for both camp and a mission trip.  My mom came for lunch and Ja’Ana and Alissa made soup for her to practice their cooking. (They make soup almost every time, and it’s almost always potato- cheddar.  They made some broccoli-cheddar as well this time. There’s a theme here.  Let’s hope I never run out of cheese.  Good thing Grandma is a good sport!) I also showed them how to make a simple cornstarch chocolate pudding, using the microwave.  The recipe is from my “More With Less” cookbook, which I’ve had for years.

Our tax refunds both came already.  They came super fast, so we were delighted.  We’ve got good plans for the money.  One thing that we will do is get some maintenance done on the van, as well as new tires.

Our power bill went down by about 25%.  It was really high last month, and we turned a few things off, worked on shorter showers and lights off, and what ever else we could think of to cut it down.  The weather was slightly warmer and the days are getting longer, which all helps, too.

Rob had more dental work done, using our insurance, and now has his permanent crown from the tooth he broke.   Again, that is such a blessing to have dental insurance after so many years without.  Although we still have co-pays, they are so much less than we used to pay.   It’s my turn this week to get my broken filling fixed.

Last fall, Patsy planted about 50-100 daffodil bulbs next to the sidewalk.  They were from my sister’s yard, so were free.  They have started to bloom.  They are such a cheerful yellow.  There are many that did not bloom this year, but she spaced them nicely, and next year they will fill in even more.  I also have several other bulbs that came up and are blooming in the flowerbeds.

On Thursday, Jake was not feeling well.  He came to my house and rested.  Later in the day, he felt better.  I took him and Patsy to the library, where they enjoyed the puppets and checked out books.  You may notice, he was wearing his Mario outfit.  He was so cute, and got a lot of interested glances as he travelled through the building, heading upstairs to the children’s section.

They have a large assortment of adorable puppets.

We had some friends come down and go to church with us today.  We had them over for lunch afterwards.  We served tacos. I made home-made refried beans, some cookies and Patsy made Rice Krispie treats.  They brought shredded cheese, which was really helpful, as I was running a little low (until they generously left the rest of the bag).   I did a lot of other cooking this week, and used up a lot of random items, but I’ll cover that when I post about the March Low-budget challenge.  The second 2 weeks will be over tomorrow night, so I plan to post then, or sometime Tuesday.

I rode over 15 miles on the exercise bikes at the YMCA this week in 3 different sessions.  On Friday, Rob and I took Patsy, Jake, Michaela and Alissa swimming at the Y while Ja’Ana had her dance class.  I love the fact that we are using our membership so much.

The girls practiced their guitars this week for a couple of hours.  They used chord sheets we had.  Alissa recently started up lessons, and Ja’Ana had some lessons a while back.  So, they played away, and the soothing sounds of guitar chords filled the house on a few mornings.  They were so cute.  They would choose a song.  Ja’Ana would start off, playing all or most of the chords called for.  When Alissa got to the chords she knew, she would dramatically strum that chord until J moved on.  Both of them were singing, sometimes in the correct key, and sometimes not.  They had so much fun, and although there were a few false starts, they sounded  good to me.

We ran off coloring sheets for the younger kids to color.  Jake worked on some craft kits he had not finished at Christmas on the day he was sick, while I did school with the big girls.  He also played Legos for hours while here.  Patsy worked on her embroidery some this weekend.  Ja’Ana cleaned house again for money towards her summer church activities.  I worked extra again this week.  The extra hours are available for just for a short time, which is nearing an end, but I have a plan for the extra money, so am glad to get it.  So, we came out of the week earning more than we spent, which is always a triumph.

I’m really enjoying all of the bulbs that have popped up, and started to bloom, in our yard. There are several kinds and colors.  They are so pretty.

This week was a busy, productive one.  I had time to do a few more things around the house than normal, which felt good to me.  There was one day where the sun was trying to peek out between raindrops and I decided to make Rob some sun tea.  You might call it “shower tea,” but it worked despite the rain drops that fell.

I went to the shop and dug through boxes (AND unpacked and put away 3 more bins of stuff-yea!) looking for fabric.  I found several pieces and Ja’Ana immediately started sewing one of them into a skirt.  I started a sundress for Patsy.

Ja’Ana also got an opportunity to work through the “rent-a-teen” program at church.  They match teens with people who need jobs done and the money is put into an account at church and helps pay for things like camp, retreats, and the summer mission trip.  She hopes to get many more opportunities, because she has lots of events she’d like to attend! I’m delighted she can earn some money towards them.  The retreat she attended in January was over 1/2 paid for by the wood-chopping/stacking job the teens did last fall.  This job was house cleaning for 2 hours.  She felt she could do that, as she’s had plenty of practice:)

We went to a yard sale and found clothing items for $1.  I got the girls some more skirts.  I am gathering several below-the-knee skirts because of our summer plans.

The sun came out yesterday and I weeded the small winter garden I planted last fall.  It was too muddy to do much, other than pull out chickweed from around the surviving plants, but I did what I could.  There is more to do, but it was a good start.  I am hoping that the spinach will go ahead and make some leaves and the onions will start to grow into bulbs with the longer days.  Notice that red lettuce on the right hand side.  It lived through snow, ice, hail, etc.  I’m going to let it go to seed if it survives to that point.  It’s got to win some kind of prize for hardy lettuce!

I had “the boy” overnight on Friday-Saturday again.  His family was busy with his sister, Michaela, who was participating in the Special Olympics.  It was sunny and we had a great time.  We took him, Patsy and Alissa swimming at the YMCA on Friday night while Ja’Ana was in her dance class, then out and about Saturday morning while we did errands.   Then he and Patsy played in the yard while I weeded and Rob did work in the shop with the door wide open to let that fresh air in.  They even earned money for doing jobs for Rob!  I think Jake got a whole dollar for his efforts and he was very pleased!

Our taxes are done.  Yesterday, we drove over to the tax office and signed so they could be electronically filed.  We are getting a nice refund.  That is exciting!

I cooked some mystery meat from the freezer.  It turned out to be a thigh and drumstick from a turkey.  I made turkey-noodle casserole, broth and bits which I will made into soup soon, and ate some.  I used a gallon can of crushed tomatoes I was given years ago to make a mega-batch of spaghetti sauce.  I made shell pasta (like lasagna) and meatballs for the Sunday family lunch.  I have about 4 cups of sauce left for another time.  I used some of them in chili as well.  I decided not to go to the store this weekend, as I usually do, because I want to force myself to use up some of these kind of items, plus use up all of the produce before it goes bad.  Next weekend, I can replenish it, but hope to stick to my regular budget, and save this week’s grocery money for another purpose.

The train set got a good workout.  I have several classic toys I saved from when my boys were little.  I love it when they get used.

I got some seeds at the $ Store for 4/$1.  I also made out my order for Territorial Seed Company.  I love the Territorial seeds for my main crops, and things I care about certain varieties for.  I love the inexpensive seeds for tucking in corners, planting early, and food I don’t like very much, like kale.  (I think Lovana likes kale now, so I’m growing it for her, but she won’t eat much–Rob won’t eat any)  This huge pile cost a little over $10.  You don’t get very many seeds in each packet, but I’m not thinking that’s going to be a huge problem with things like kale.  With zinnias, I’ve used these seeds many times and just plant several packets wherever I want the flowers.

I cleaned my fridge.  It was awful.  Then, I made a menu plan for the upcoming week based on what I found inside, freezer items, home-canning, and the small grocery list I formed.

Rob was given several items from a friend who is cleaning out some large sheds/shops.  He accepted napkins, tissues, craft supplies (not sure exactly what), some t.p. to donate and some seltzer water.  There may be more, I haven’t looked at it all, yet.

He went and got wood from my sister’s farm.  He figures we have enough stored up there for another year, but we will need to chop some wood this summer to dry for the future.

I cooked quite a few items for meals, but mostly used the rest of the food from last week.  This coming week, I will need to cook more, but I have a good plan.

Thankfully the ice has melted and it’s been pretty springlike the past few days.

Most of my week was full of homeschool, work, and some extra cleaning I got done.  It was a very productive week.

We enjoyed spending Saturday night at the Oregon Coast.  The waves were breathtaking!

My sister and brother-in-law were helping with a high-school retreat with our church.  So, Gail has been cooking and freezing, organizing meals, and planning for weeks, since she was in charge of the food.  She was cooking for around 40.  2 beach houses were rented–one for the boys and one for the girls, plus sponsors.  She went down and got all the food organized, defrosted, etc.  Ron travelled with the group.  Rob and I watched Jake and Michaela.  On Saturday, we drove down to the beach and joined them with the kids.

The teens were still there when we got there, and I helped put a dinner of leftovers out for them.  They had one last singing, message, etc. and then they were off to home, except our girls, who stayed the extra night with us.  Our 2 families stayed the remaining night, using only one of the houses. They were huge, each sleeping 20 people.  They had over 5 bedrooms, 4 or 5 bathrooms, 2 sitting/living areas, a huge kitchen, hot tub, and a marvelous ocean view in each house.   This morning, we needed to clean them up.  Towels and some linens had to be washed.  The kitchen had to be cleaned up and all extra food packed.  Sand had to be sucked up out of the hot tubs, floors swept, rugs vaccuumed, dishes done and put away and counters wiped.  Piles of trash had to be collected.  We had to do a really good job in both houses, because they don’t usually rent to large groups of teenagers, which is why my sister welcomed some help.  And, we did.  In between cleaning, we had lots of time for wave watching and playing Yahtzee.  Some Veggie tales were watched, along with a Thomas the Tank Engine movie.  That place was stocked with so many games, movies and books–my sister said the teens had a blast.

We ate leftovers for all the meals we were there, and ended up bringing home some food as well.  Things that could be saved for future teen outings were saved, and other sponsors took home a few more portable things.  I was able to bring home some leftover pulled pork, breakfast casserole, a few browning bananas which will be frozen tomorrow, and some gourmet snacks and goodies.  Yum!  We had taken a large picnic lunch on Saturday, so I had a big cooler with me, so that worked out good to bring things home safely.

I took the younger kids who got left behind to the store.  I let them choose some snacks and junk food to take on our picnic.  It was amazing how much enjoyment they got from choosing their own.  We enjoyed watching the ocean while we ate our lunch.  Afterwards, we took them to ice cream before we joined Jake and Michaela’s parents.  We watched a glass blower for a short time, as well.  It turned out to be an amazingly frugal weekend, because we didn’t eat out, see any sights that charged admission, etc., but enjoyed watching the waves in the luxurious beach house.

Rob broke a piece of his tooth off in early January.  After a couple of unsuccessful attempts to get in to the dentist on a day off, it began hurting badly and he had to take an afternoon off work to get in to have it seen. He didn’t sleep much all week, due to pain.   Our family dentist sent him to a specialist, and he ended up with a root canal.  This man could see him at 7:30 on Friday morning.  I had a diabetes specialist appointment I’d had for months on Friday morning.  We had Jake and Michaela all night Thursday and they were at our house on Friday morning, of course. The plan had been for him to drive us all, keep the kids in the van and entertain them, and come back and get me.  Not happening.  So, I took all kids, including Patsy, to my appointment.  Lovana went with Rob for moral support.  He was worked on for 1 and 1/2 hours.  It was painful, tiring, and stressful for him.  I was in a car with 3 impatient kids, in heavy fog, and got routed around 2 accidents on I-V, and ended up late.  I was so glad they still let me be seen.  Sometimes they don’t if you are late.  I combined another errand with this trip.  I also took those lovely children to McDonald’s, as promised, and felt very happy with the company for existing and have play structures after all that time in the car and waiting rooms.  It made a great bribe for an entire morning of “goodness.”  I actually have great luck with positive reinforcement with the kids.  They were all 3 good as gold during that long ordeal.  It actually took longer for us to get to my doctor’s than it did to drive to the coast on Saturday.

All this to say, we are very thankful that we have dental insurance for the first time in about 30 years.  We still get to pay a lot, but the insurance will cover a large portion.  Since we have paid every cent of my crowns, filings, etc. for all these years, this is something we appreciate more than I can say.

I worked more than usual this week, including 2 overnights for Michaela.  Rob also did 2 overnights for Jake.  I spent one night over at her house with Michaela as she doesn’t like to be away from home very much.  The other night was spent here.  Rob was in so much pain with the tooth issue, that I had to do quite a bit of the childcare, but he hung in there when I wasn’t there.  I also worked a tiny bit more as there were a couple of times that I needed to be over there (at their house) that I don’t usually need to be there.  It will make up for when I was sick at the beginning of the month.

I only needed fresh veggies, salad stuff, milk, etc. this week.  So, I did not buy more than that.  I have lots left for the week ahead.  We had leftovers, plus I cooked a cauliflower for our dinner tonight after we got back from the beach.  Although eating out was tempting, we didn’t do it this time.

It was a great week!

I wasn’t sure I had anything to write about saving money this week, after enjoying our trip to San Francisco.  Then, I realized that I wasn’t the only one who saved money around here!  Rob saved a lot, I saved a little.

Right before I left, I was given most of a large 25 -pound bag of pinto beans.  The top portion had been used, and the rest was not going to be used.  When it was offered to me, I snatched it up gladly.  While I was gone, my husband soaked quite a few beans.  He cooked some and froze the cooked beans in quart-sized zip-top bags.  He made chili in his dutch oven.  He also made baked beans.  Yum!

Rob also cooked a chicken and vegetables in his dutch oven.  He loves outdoor cooking, and is good at it.  After a vacation where I really, really struggled with stomach issues (I clearly got into some gluten-filled cross-contaminated food, more than once), the simple, plain food really hit the spot.  It was so nice to have good-for-me food ready when we walked in the door Monday evening.  I took some of the leftovers over to my sister’s house and made a simple soup for Tuesday’s dinner.  I was working over there that afternoon, and wanted soup badly, so we all benefitted.

He did do a couple of fun things with the rest of the family that were sad to be left behind, such as taking them to Mod Pizza, a place where you can choose your own toppings.  He’d been wanting to try it, and this weekend was a good time.  He also took Patsy to the YMCA, where he used our pass to take her swimming.  We still receive a greatly reduced rate on our membership there, based on our income.  They went to the movies at the bargain theatre, where the tickets were only $4.

Although San Francisco was expensive, and we spent a lot, we saved on a few things.  We did take a few snacks with us.  On 2 mornings, I ate one of my Luna bars for breakfast, along with little cuties.  Several times, my sister and I both had pretzels or nuts we brought for snacks.  She was able to get breakfast at her conference one morning for free.  On our tour, the driver took us to a market where we could buy gluten-free food, which was a little less than a restaurant.  (They were not careful, though, and I got sick–but we tried).  We wanted to buy lunch at the restaurant, but ran out of time.  My sister got us cheese plates on the plane, which were quite reasonable.

We all shared one room, instead of getting 2.  It worked great.  She was able to write the room off as a work expense, because she was attending a conference for her work, and she had to have the room, and had to be there for her conference, with or without the rest of us.  The girls all refused to share beds with us mothers, instead wanting to sleep on the floor, so we got extra blankets galore, extra pillows, piles of extra towels, and Gail and I each got our own beds.  They say we snore too loud.  I have no idea what they mean, I couldn’t hear a thing while I was sleeping soundly, alone, like a queen, in my bed….

We got passes on our phones where we paid a flat fee and rode the public transportation as much as we wanted while we were there.  It was certainly cheaper than renting a car.  Parking was very expensive and scarce.  We were glad to not deal with it.

So, in the end, I guess Rob saved the day, or should I say week…and kept it frugal here at home, while J and I galavanted.

Rob made biscuits and gravy.  He used a packet of biscuit mix I got for 50c at Grocery Outlet.  This way, he can have regular gluten-filled biscuits without contaminating the kitchen, and that is far less expensive than our normal gluten-free biscuits.

I made the cheesecakes again.  This time, I used a pint of canned blueberries to make the sauce.  They were delicious.  We were having a family get-together for my niece, Rachel.  She is leaving this week for Ireland.  She will be gone for 6 months on a mission trip.  We will miss her, but are very excited for her to have this opportunity.  The first 3 months will be in Ireland and the 2nd 3 months will either be in South Africa or SE Asia.  I’ll be excited to see where she lands!

I used my new Instant Pot as a slow cooker and made vegetable-beef soup. It cooked in 7 hours on low, but could have gone longer without being overcooked.  I was pleased.  My old crock pot would have given me raw veggies after 7 hours.  It was simply not working.  We ate that soup several times this week.  I also cooked some noodles and opened a jar of pasta sauce I got at Winco for $1.19 and several people have eaten that this week.  One night, Rob barbecued chicken and steak from the freezer and we had that for a few meals.  We used some 79c hot dogs, too, some home-canned green beans and jars of fruit, like peaches.  Because I am still recovering from the flu, we wanted easy meals.  I’m not eating much and the girls never do.  So, food is lasting a long time this week.

When I realized that 2 library books had been overlooked when we returned the rest of them, I got on-line and renewed them.  I still will have to pay a fine, but it will be lower than it could have been.

It’s been really, really cold.  We had another big snow and ice event. Last Sunday, church was cancelled and on Wednesday, it was cancelled again.  That’s pretty rare for our part of Oregon!  Rob missed yet another day of work, due to the schools being closed.  Once the snow landed on the ground, it stayed.  In fact, there is still quite a bit out there after a week.  It’s supposed to thaw this week, maybe tomorrow.  I won’t complain.  We heated our house with wood during this time and have been very comfortable.

I went to 2 estate sales with Rob yesterday, mostly because I was feeling house-bound and wanted to spend some time with him.  I found a few rolls of non-Christmas wrapping paper and a lunch bag for Patsy for a grand total of $1.  Rob got a cast-iron cook book that looks brand new for $2.  He loves making things in his cast iron when we are camping, and sometimes when we are not.

We made camping reservations for the upcoming months.  It costs us $8 per time we go, because we use our foster/adopt park pass.  So, it makes it very affordable.  We need to come up with gas money, but take our own food.  We usually save up a bit of “fun” money, but never spend much.  We always have a blast.  Although the trips are still a ways away, we are getting excited about going.  It feels like forever since last summer!  It’s a good thing to think about when the yard is covered with snow, for sure.

Recently, I was sick.  The kind of sick where I couldn’t do anything but lay on the couch, waiting to get better.  During this week of enforced rest, I watched numerous tv shows, looked at countless blogs, and read several magazines.  While watching all of this tv that I would normally not have time for, I ran across a show about saving money.  I thought I’d have an interest, obviously, so I watched several episodes.  I was appalled.  Instead of joyfully saving money, the people on the show lied, cheated, stole, and were otherwise quite miserable in their quest to economize.  I learned a lot about what I would never be willing to do to save money.  Since the most popular posts on my blog deal with saving money, I thought I’d pass along my thoughts

Balance is the key with saving money, along with everything else in life.  Quality of life is important.  If a person gets to the end of life with lots of money, but is miserable and has been miserable for years, what have they gained?

In the show I watched, some of the houses the people lived in were dumps.  They were filthy, unkept, and unattractive.  They said they kept them this way to save money.  In my opinion, this is not necessary.  Soap and water are very cheap.  There are many home-made cleaners that could be used, or cleaning supplies can be purchased with coupons or from the dollar store.  At my house, I use rags for cleaning.  When an item is worn out, I cut it into pieces.  These pieces are stored in a basket in the garage in a place where they are easy to grab.  When we are done cleaning, I wash them.  I do keep a few paper towels for really gross messes, but we mostly use rags for all of our cleaning.

Paint and decor can add up.  I would suggest that if you are on a tight budget, you save up for a can or two of paint, and then go to yard sales of thrift stores for decorations.  You can also craft items.  Sometimes friends or relatives are finished with an item, such as a couch pillow or a picture, and they are looking for a home for it.  If it fits in with your decorating scheme, gladly accept it if it is offered to you.  On the flip side, don’t take or buy everything that is offered or is on clearance, you may end up with a cluttered mess.  Sometimes furniture can be found second hand on Craig’s List or at a yard sale or thrift shop.  Rob found a dresser we needed at a second-hand store for a fraction of the cost of a new one.

Although I’m sure some of the show I watched was dramatization, I was not amused when some of the participants actually stole things in the name of frugality.  One main tip from a person was to go into restaurants and take large handfuls of things like napkins, ketchup, and disposable cups, etc.  They suggested that you “never buy those things again” and, instead, just keep going back for more.  That’s wrong in my book.  The owners of the restaurants have to pay for those things—they are only free to the one who just stole them.  Instead, use dishes and wash them.  Seems obvious, doesn’t it?  At this house, we do not have a dishwasher.  We are still making out just fine.  There are times when we do want paper, though.  There are several ways to obtain inexpensive paper plates for times when they are useful.  Sometimes you can get a large quantity for a low price from a place like Cash and Carry or Costco, or from Amazon.  I actually have several boxes of them that have been gleaned from yard sales, thrift stores, or given to me by people who were cleaning out.  We are not picky about the pattern, i.e. we will use Thanksgiving plates any time of the year.  Many people on the internet use cloth napkins.  We do not, but I can see the value of them.

One of the most helpful things Rob and I do to manage our money is to have regular “meetings” about money.  These consist of a short talk where we go over our budget, bills, and upcoming expenditures.  We make a plan about what and how we are going to handle each item (i.e.: pay the bills, do we want to buy this or that, etc.) and then we pay the bills. This keeps us on the same page as each other.  We both know if we have money to spend on extra items, and what we have in savings.  I was saddened to see husbands and wives lying to each other on the show I watched.  Some people were hiding money from the other partner, and outright lying about what funds were available or in savings.  I believe that we have more harmony in our marriage and more happiness even though we likely have less money in the bank than those people did.  It is much easier for me to face a “short” month if I have someone to do it with.

The last thing I noticed about the show is the level of unhappiness for everyone concerned.  The families of the “cheap” person were miserable and embarrassed as they witnessed the “cheap” person be vocal in trying to get the clerks to lower the prices of the items or charge less for meals, etc.  They were often without any small comforts in life in the name of frugality.  Some wore very outdated, dowdy clothing when attractive clothing was the same price at a thrift store.  Underneath the surface, it was easy to see the anger simmering in the people who were getting to live this lifestyle because they had no control over the choices others were making for them.  I’m mostly talking about children, but I also saw a wife or two who were very unhappy.  I’m quite sure those children will run from that lifestyle as fast as they can as soon as they can.  I would not be surprised if some of the couples end up splitting up.  Even the “cheap” person did not often seen very happy.  They seemed so concerned with saving money that it overshadowed everything else in their life.

So, I’m going to continue to save money when I can.  We work pretty hard at it around here, and will continue to do that.  But, I’m going to keep striving for balance.  When we can figure out a way to do something fun, we will do it.  When we can afford an item I think we just want, we’ll buy it.  I don’t plan to worry or stress about it, but instead enjoy my life the best I can, and hopefully stay frugal–not cheap!