My MIL has been in Africa for a week. She is coming home next Tuesday. So far things are going well…her last update was from Sunday. They went to church (a 4-hour service) and had a whole fish for supper.
Still been swimming against the tide, mentally/spiritually/etc. I am starting to find words for the ache and what it may mean, but still not ready to write it down. On the other hand, maybe writing it down is exactly what I need to do…that always helps me (read: “forces” me) to figure out what I mean. We shall see…
We did make it to Bible Study yesterday morning. It’s really hitting home this time. Why we aren’t living the Christian life as the bible describes it and what we need to do about it. Good times! Sadly, one lady at my table is a little difficult in that she talks a lot, but doesn’t stay on topic and tends to ramble. I know I need to work on my attitude toward her, but her rambling is very frustrating to me. Any suggestions?
OH! And yesterday, I bought myself some pants! I have been needing to exchange a pair of jeans my mom got me for Christmas, but haven’t made it to the mall. So yesterday, because the babies’ naps were messed up from Bible Study, I decided I had time. So I went to the mall and exchanged the jeans. Then I stopped in another store on my way out and used my $25 Visa gift card from Christmas (a stocking stuffer) to buy a second pair of jeans. YAY!!!
AND IN other news…the babies are sleeping better again. No midnight or 2 a.m. wake-ups. The last couple of days, Alex has been waking up at 5:30, but going back to sleep until 6:30-7:00. I do like sleeping. It’s very nice.
Also, they have figured out how to turn on the cd player in the living room. The cabinet door is baby-proofed, but it opens enough for them to get their arm inside and push buttons. And they’ve figured out which button turns on their Toddler Tunes. Which they LOVE. So we have toddler music playing all.the.time now. And there is much dancing (them) and singing (me) along. Good times!
I’ve recently ordered some bible song cds, too. I’m looking forward to mixing things up!
I talked to my friend, Ghena, yesterday. It was a really great conversation, though only about 25 minutes. I just love good friends who can say so much in such a short time. Thanks, Ghena!!
My chore list has been going well. I’ve discovered that what I chose as my 5 daily chores are really the ones I need to do every day. If they are done, my house feels “tidy” – as if someone could drop in and I wouldn’t mind. It was really good to get so many other chores done in one week for once, and it was amazing how much free time I still had (really free time, too, since I didn’t feel like I needed to be doing something else). Hopefully, I can continue with this pattern!
And finally, I am trying to figure out how to cut our grocery budget. Have any of you ever tried that herculean feat (and succeeded)? What did you do? Or what have you heard that seemed to work?
February 3, 2010
TWO pairs of jeans in one day! that’s amazing. 🙂 I love smart little kids who can turn on stuff. it’s so cute!
One of my all time fave books is COnfessions of an organized homemaker (i blogged about it ages ago) and that’s exactly her theme: get the things done in an organized way b/c it really frees up time to do other things that you really love. what a nice feeling. 🙂
Grocery budget cutting=my all second favorite topic next to motherhood….
i’m going to post this comment…and then start another one. my computer shuts down the internet sometimes and erases everything, so i’m going to beat it to the punch….
February 3, 2010
when i first started trying to save, I’d look at the sale flyers and choose my meals for the week based on what was on sale. I would do one big shop the first week of the pay period, buying enough ingredients for TWO of my week-long meal plans, and we’d have identical meals plans both weeks. The second week, I would only have to go back for produce & such. (and really, most of the time, i didn’t end up with exactly the same meals–they would usually be the same ingredients, but changed into something else.)
and then i started thegrocerygame.com and it really has changed the entire way i shop and think about shopping. the short story is that i clip coupons, and i stock up on stuff when it’s on sale. (ex. huggies were on sale at target for $8.99, plus get a $5 gift card when you buy 3. I had a lot of $2 coupons for huggies also. so I got them for $6.99 each PLUS a $5 g.c. to use later..i did it twice so now i have 6 packs of diapers. I don’t NEED Them all this week, but i WILL need them. And I’d rather pay less than $6 NOW (even cheaper than store brand) than more later.
I got 115 items at kroger last week (name brand stuff, including 5 ziploc container packs, electrosol power tabs, ritz, cheezits, tons of cheese, yogurt, organic milk..all staples, mostly pricy stuff) for $157……so that’s a little over $1 per item.
sorry for the length…but really grocerygame.com has changed the way i shop and we’re saving SO MUCH MONEY (it’s more of me spending the same amount but bringing home SO MUCH MORE. My shelves are bursting. But you could easily turn it into spending less.)
their message boards are free and full of great info. also, i use moneysavingmom.com to alert me of deals. there are other free sites that people use, but i just really love thegrocerygame.com cuase all the work is done for me (they make a list, tell you what’s on sale and tell you what coupon to use.)
the end. 🙂
February 3, 2010
My grocery budget works well because I make a lot of soups and salads and then I have leftovers all week. It’s easy because there are no little ones in the picture.
I’ve been thinking about your Bible Study lady. I don’t have any advice, but I’m wondering if she’s so random and chatty because she loves the fellowship and the community of your group as much as (or more than) the actually study part. When you first started this group, did you set aside some time to discuss your goals – deeper faith, growth of knowledge, richer relationships? It seems a little touchy-feely, but I think there might be a gentle way to talk about the group’s expectations. Best of luck!
February 3, 2010
I need to revamp the chore routine around here. I’m out of sync, and it ends up I feel like I work dawn to dusk, with no down time. I need to get my daily work done, and then have the free time I crave. Your paragraph up there opened my eyes to the state of affairs around here.
And as to swimming against the tide… praying for you, for figuring it out, for overcoming, for dancing in joy. Hugs!
February 3, 2010
@faithchick – Wow, I have nothing to say after that! Good tips!! I too have found that I can save more money by paying attention to sales flyers and planning my menus ahead of time. Other than that my main vices are shopping when I’m hungry (big no-no) and picking up things that aren’t on my list.
February 4, 2010
I have used coupons for years and one of the things I do is pick a day when I can go to the store alone. I pull all coupons that are getting ready to expire and make sure these are things I can use. I go through the store ads and then I shop based on lowest price and coupon value. If I have to go to 2-3 stores I do it. I can usually accomplish this task in 1 1/2 hours if I stay focused and it disciplines me to be more aware of prices and value.