Best Laid Plans...

You know how they say you make plans and God laughs?  Boy did he have a good chuckle with me this week!  Most of my goal list items are going well, but the blogging and crafting one took a hit, after all it's hard to craft much when you've sliced your thumb open on a pineapple slicer.  (Hey Pampered Chef?  I promise to pay more attention to your warnings now...)  It's also hard to get anything done when one of your children is throwing up.  (Bug has a bug!  Ha!  I made a funny!)  Hopefully I'll be back on track soon!

Monthly Goals: January

We all make goals, we all make lists.  What I notice is that we don't always tend to stick to those lists.  One of my biggest faults is that I procrastinate.  A lot.  I find however, that writing down my goals seems to help keep me accountable so I've decided that every month I'll make a list of the things that I want to accomplish for the next month.  Then the following month I'll let you know what I accomplished and make a new list.  Some of them may be ongoing, some of them may be short term, but I truly think that if I put them out in blog land it might help me stay on task.  ;)

January's list is going to be a bit shorter since we're already halfway through the month, but I've got to start somewhere!

1.  Clean out Mistress's room and sell/donate anything that she has outgrown or doesn't use anymore.
2.  Figure out an incentive system that helps my kids be nicer to each other.
3.  Make the majority of our food from scratch.  (As we speak my first attempt at homemade burger buns are rising!)
4.  Do one load of laundry every day so that I keep on top of it.  (I was really good at this for a while but got out of the habit during the holidays.  Need to get back to it!)
5.  Get my kids to do more routine chores.
6.  Reduce (even eliminate) food waste!
7.  Have the kitchen cleaned and everything ready for the next day every night before I go to bed.
8.  Blog at least twice a week, one being a project.
9.  Hit 80 followers!  (Threw this one in just for fun!)
10.  Keep track of the cost of anything I put back on the shelf in a store because I was tempted to buy it.    Keep track of the cost of anytime I skip the drive through or takeout and make dinner/lunch at home instead.  Tally it up and transfer the total to savings at the end of the month.

So there you have it, my goals for January.  I'll check back with you in February and let you know how it's going!

My 10 Favorite Money Savers

As is usually the case, January is when we cut back for a few months to make up for the more expensive months of November and December.  I thought I'd share a few of my favorite money savers, maybe you'd like to try some of them out yourself!

1.  Menu Planning  It used to be that I shopped without a list and used as many coupons as possible.  Unfortunately it ended up that I spent MORE that way.  Why?  Because by using the coupons I was buying things that we may or may not have needed and without the list I was forgetting key ingredients needed for a meal.  My husband used to look at me with a dumbfounded look and ask my why I needed to go to the grocery again when I was just there the day before!  Now I sit down and plan out a week's worth of dinners, add any other incidentals that we need for lunches and breakfasts, and shop from there.  I don't clip coupons much anymore (gasp!) because we eat almost entirely natural and organic and there are far fewer coupons for those products.  Before shopping I patrol my favorite coupon sites to see if there is anything that matches up with what I actually need and print the ones that work for me.  Even after switching to natural/organic and ditching the coupons, I actually see major savings by shopping only once a week and using a list!

2.  Home Haircuts  Yes, you read that correctly.  DH cuts the boys' hair about once every 4-6 weeks with a clipper set I got at Target for $30.  Once every 6-8 months we take them in to get it professionally cut and then in between he is responsible for the upkeep.  I trim Mistress's hair for her every few months and I even got REALLY brave a few weeks ago and chopped about eight inches off my own hair.  I went at it with the attitude that the worst that would happen is that I would have to go see a stylist the next day.  It worked though, so I saved myself an easy $50 and can get it cut professionally when I want to go a lot shorter in the future.

3.  Homemade Laundry Detergent  I've been using this for almost eight months now and will never go back!  One cup washing soda, one cup borax, and one bar shredded soap (I use Ivory) mixed well together will last me about 3-4 weeks and costs a fraction of what I used to spend on laundry detergent. I'm now spending about $3 for a batch that lasts me the 3-4 weeks instead of the $10-12 I used to spend on the Tide that lasted me 2-3 weeks.  It works just as well too!

4.  The Library  So this one seems like a no brainer, but it amazes me how many people don't go on a regular basis as adults!  Most people go for their kids, but stop when they've finished the kids section.  I tend to read 2-4 novels a week and I love to check out informational books so the library saves me a ton of money.  Ours even lends some books digitally which is awesome, has an interlibrary loan system to expand the materials you can get, and has great movies if you're willing to wait a little bit for them.

5.  Swagbucks  Over the last year and a half or so I've earned enough swagbucks for over $100 in Amazon gift cards.  I'm not consistent on it or I could earn more, but for a half hearted attempt that's not bad!

6.  Secondhand Merchandise  I am lucky to have a craigslist type site on facebook that is just for our neighborhood.  I can sell the clothes and toys the kids have outgrown easily and get cash to use for other things.  I've also found several things on there that save me tons of cash.  I love designer jeans but balk at spending $180+ a pair on them, but have gotten 2 pairs that retailed for $180 and $200 respectively for $20 and $25.  Still more than Old Navy, but fit much better, better quality, and will last a lot longer.  I've also gotten $1 DVDs and CDs for the kids, $3 kids boots (that retailed for $60) a beautiful used once 10 foot artificial Christmas tree for $30, a $20 floor lamp and $1-2 games, among other things.

7.  Prescription Roulette  We have a couple of allergy prescriptions that we fill every month, and I have no loyalty to any pharmacy.  I switch them around to whomever is giving away free money.  In the last 3 months I've gotten $115 in free groceries at two different stores and know that I can get $105 for sure in the next month and a half with the coupons I already have.  Totally worth switching!

8.  Ask For a Discount  We recently rearranged our living room and found that we wanted a small table in a spot that we hadn't had one before.  I found one I loved at World Market for $100, but didn't want to spend that much.  The next week it went down to $79, and when I called they said they had one left but that it was the floor model.  I asked for an additional discount, and was given another $10 off for some minute scratches that weren't all that visible and would probably have happened in a house with three kids anyway.  I got the table I really wanted for 2/3 what it cost in the first place!  (Plus we had some Christmas money and I make it a rule never to spend gift money on anything boring!)

9.  Plan Your Errands  By planning where you need to go, you save a lot of cash on gas.  If you find yourself constantly running out to get things that you forgot, you're basically throwing money down the drain with extra gas, mileage, wear and tear on your car, and wasted time.  I try to do all my errands in one day, or plan to stop at a place on my way to or from preschool each day.  Plus, if you run extra places you spend extra money on stuff you didn't know you needed.  (If you don't shop, you don't spend money!)  I use around 2 tanks of gas a month with this, and next year when all three kids are in school every day using the bus, I suspect I'll use even less.  Especially with the gorgeous SC weather and walkability of our community, since anywhere in our neighborhood is reachable by foot or bike including the kids' school.  I'm curious next year to see how long I'll be able to go between fill ups!

And last but certainly not least...

10:  Always remember my favorite motto:  Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without!

Better Late than Never...

I know I know, this post should have been put up last month but I chose to spend the month with my kiddos doing fun stuff.  I didn't blog, I didn't facebook, I barely even emailed.  It was wonderful!  On the downside, now you're getting a Christmas post in January.  Oh well, is what it is!

We all know that the Professor LOVES anything to do with the military.  We even just redid his room for his birthday in a military theme.  (Post coming soon to a blog near you!)  One day when he was home sick from school he asked for a tree for his room and decided that he wanted to decorate it with, (what else?) a military theme.  Since I had no desire to spend a mint on ornaments, I pulled out a piece of leftover fabric and we got to work cutting out the tanks, patches, and eagles individually.

Then we put them through the laminator...

 ...and cut them out again.  My hand was VERY sore after this project!

Finally we punched holes in all of the new ornaments and threaded them with twine before hanging them on the tree.

And here is the end result!  A cute little patriotic tree topped with an American Flag patch.  The Professor was thrilled with the result and I was thrilled with the cost.  More importantly I was thrilled to spend some rare one on one time with my oldest, even if he had to be home sick from school to do it.

Simple Curtain Toppers

One of the things I love about our house is that the entire back is covered in windows.  We don't back up to another home, so we have a gorgeous unobstructed view of the backyard.  I wasn't interested in blocking the view but I did want to add a pop of color and soften the windows, so I decided to make some really simple toppers.  I started with this great cranberry colored decorator fabric that I found on clearance at Hobby Lobby for $7 a yard.  (LOVE clearance!)  I purchased 4 yards and still have some left over so in total I have about $30 into these toppers.  I also bought a coordinating taupe color that matched the paint color for the bands to hold them up.  My intent is to do a reverse for the window over the kitchen since the walls there are an accent red color.  I got them all stitched together and then stapled them to boards to mount above the windows.  Anyway, here they are:

 A photographer I am not...

 And another shot at night so you can see the color better...

In total, I have about $45 into this project, but there are 7 windows and I can probably get a pillow out of the leftovers.  Not bad price wise, and I love the extra color and softness they bring to the windows.  I should have guests more often, they spur me on to get projects finished!

A New Butler's Pantry!

I would be willing to bet that anyone who has ever built a house has at some point in time wished that they had done a few things differently.  I can honestly say that for the most part we have been very happy with all the choices we made, except for one.  

Everyone, meet our worthless closet: 

 Located across from the actual pantry, this closet was completely redundant and unused in the two and a half years that we have lived here.  The builder did put in one underwhelming wire shelf, but other than some empty cardboard boxes that I save for shipping, our stereo, and the broom, this closet was empty.  Empty and waiting for something better out of life...

 One of the options that we had when building was to make this area a butler's pantry.  We liked the idea at the time but really wanted to keep our final budget from getting higher than we had agreed on, so we had to pick and choose what mattered most to us.

But after a couple of years of saving we were ready to do what we originally wanted to this area.  Now I am a big do-it-yourselfer, but the most important rule to remember when doing something yourself is to know your limits.  This folks, was WAY beyond my skill level!  So, we called in a few experts and began the process.  :)  First up, the cabinet dude.  (No really, he calls himself Bruce the Cabinet Dude...)  He made this great sketch that we ultimately picked for our final design...

 ...and then we got the demo guys involved!  Here it is all cleared out up to the ceiling, patched and awaiting paint. 

 Next came the paint and then we waited for several weeks for the cabinets to come in.

 FINALLY the cabinets arrived and they began to go up!

 See this massive wad of wires?  This part sucked.  

(FYI, an HDMI cable is VERY fragile.  It is also expensive to replace.  Go ahead, ask me how I know...)

 Finally all the cabinets were back in, the stereo was hooked back up, and the wiring for the under cabinet lighting was complete. 

 Then we got granite that matched our kitchen, and a remnant at that.  BONUS!!!

 And then got the tile in for the backsplash to match the kitchen.  It ended up being a bit lighter than the tile in the kitchen since two years have passed, but I don't notice a big difference.

 And here it is from the same angle as the closet.  We LOVE the result and have so much more usable storage now.  The end result was worth every penny!

A Quick Cushion Re-Do

I decided a few weeks ago to re-arrange my front porch to allow for more seating (since here in the south the front porch is an extension of your living room!)  so I brought the two wicker chairs down from our top porch and moved the glider over and was thrilled with the results.  What I didn't love was the worn out old cushions on the chairs.  Not only were they mildewed and faded, but the red stripe kind of clashed with the blue and brown stripe.  Just a bit.  The old cushions were over eight years old, so they really didn't owe us anything!  I really didn't want to spend any money on the redo, so I decided to see how cheaply I could do the re-do.

I started by ripping apart the old cushions.  Not only did I use the old pieces for patterns to cut out the new cushions, but I also re-used the zippers and piping cord.  The fabric I already had in my stash, it is outdoor fabric that I bought at least six months ago and never got around to using it.  Technically I guess the fabric was my only cost, I bought about three yards at maybe $8 a yard?  Don't really remember...

 I assembled the cushions by working backwards, and put the new covers over the old foam filler which was still in great shape.

 When I was all done, I had new cushions that work great on the front porch and only spent money on the fabric.  Originally I was going to get rid of the ottoman thinking it made the space too cluttered, but I do like to put my feet up with a good book, plus it makes extra seating in a pinch or a coffee table.  (And I had enough fabric so why not?)  I'm thrilled with the result!