Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Saving Money and Blessings


       
     Top Five ways we save money......


      1. Meal Plan

Meal planning is the number one way we save money. Meal planning is definitely my thing. Not to brag, but I am really good at it.  Somewhere deeply engrained in my is this amazing ability to meal plan and make grocery lists in no time flat…. What an exciting talent… lol

By meal planning I have got it down to about an average of $1.50 per meal for us. We do not waste food. Throwing away food makes me ridiculously sad. There are tons of people that need that food and I hate seeing it go to waste. We try and use all of what we buy. For example: we bought a turkey while it was on sale for thanksgiving. We used the meat for about 10 different meals, used the bones for bone broth and the dogs got the fat. Nothing went to waste.

We buy only from Aldi’s right now. We try and make everything from scratch. Processed foods are more expensive. Yes, making everything takes more time but it is SO much healthier and better for your budget.

We don’t buy much meat unless it is on sale. Meat is expensive and I would prefer to only have organic grass-fed meat so we just don’t buy it most of the time.


2. Don’t buy household cleaners

I make all of our cleaners. Pretty much vinegar, baking soda, vodka, and EVO is all I really need for ALL of our cleaners. These are cheap and I always have them on hand. They are not toxic, and really inexpensive.

I also stopped “washing” my hair about a year ago…..  I have had more compliments on my hair since I started this. I have really fallen in love with organix coconut milk shampoo SO every now and then I splurge and wash my hair.
* You can laugh, its ok *


3. Clothe Diaper/ Homemade Wipes 

We clothe Diaper. We decided on the Grovia brand and LOVE it so far. Such a money saver. Seriously. They are so easy too. If people knew how easy they were, I really think more people would do them. We have started using disposables at night though. (Quicker for our baby who has quite the temper at night)

I make our wipes. I use high quality paper towels (VIVA!!!! Shout out sister friends if your reading this) I make a mixture of water, coconut oil, and a natural bath soap. Easy! Plus, no chemicals on the booty. 


4. Call companies to reduce bills

We have recently reduced our Internet bill, trash bill, and home and car INS.  Some we switched to other companies, some we just said we were going to cancel and they reduced the monthly payment.


5. No Cable/Cut wasteful spending

      Cable is a waste of money for us. Some day maybe it wont be… but at this stage of life it is. We have Netflix, and hulu. We are good to go. Anything else you can pretty much just stream with Internet.

      Everyone has wasteful spending somewhere usually. Our weakness is eating out. We love the local Thai place and Mediterranean place down the street.  They are local so we love to support them. We just make it treat rather then a weekly occurrence.


Top 5 ways living on a small budget is a blessing.

1.  Humility

      You can’t always go out with friends, or buy what you want. Paying bills is your number one priority.  When people offer help sometimes you have to be humble and accept it. No matter how hard it is to do. Things won’t always be hard. Some day they will be better and you can offer your help to others that are going through a hard time. I have such a heart for giving now being in this situation. I can’t wait to pay it forward some day. Right now I can’t do a lot, but If I see something I can help with, I jump to it.

       2. Gratitude 

      You become thankful for the little things. Like a heater, food in the fridge, time with family. The important things. 


3.   Shows you Gods character 

      No matter what, the Lord will take care of you. It teaches you to rely fully on him not on materialistic things. I know that’s why we are in this season of life right now. The lord is teaching, moving and changing us into better people. I pray everyone has a season of life they live pay check to pay check. It has been an amazing growth experience. 


4. Teaches you to enjoy the little things 


      We cant afford traditional date nights, but we can afford Netflix and cheese its. We can afford a box of wine to enjoy every now and then. I love our simple life. 


5.  Helps you focus on relationships

We aren’t focused on all the things that can cloud your world. We are able to focus on our little family, on our relationships and enjoy each other. 




Dakota and I have agreed we NEVER want a lot of money. It would be nice to not live on SUCH a tight budget, to be able to take Oliver on vacations when we are older, stuff like that, but we never want a lot of money. We want a simple life, simple home, simple things. I would love to have enough money to bless others like we have been blessed. Someday, maybe, if not its not a big deal to us. We are blessed in other ways.

I love our little 800 sq ft house, I love our little garden out back, I love our simple little life. We are SO blessed. 

I will send you with a picture of our dear son, since I'm sure you have not seen enough of him :) 


Merry Christmas!! 


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