Hide the Lays Potato Chips

More spending than saving today, I'm afraid! I spent $51.68 on the items pictured below while saving $42.34.


The purchase I'd most like to hide is the Lays potato chips; they're pretty much a forbidden food in our house! However, our daughters have a concert at school tonight, so I needed something quick to put on a plate with our sloppy joes. At least they were B1G1 Free - and I bought the barbecue flavor which the rest of the family likes, but is not a temptation to me!

The best deal was the granola bars and yogurt. There was a peelie on the granola bars; if you bought a box of granola bars (on sale for $1.99) you got three containers of Yoplait yogurt free. Even better, I had two coupons for $.40 off the Nature Valley granola bars. Since the coupons doubled, I paid $2.40 for two boxes of granola bars and six containers of yogurt. Not bad!

Visit Money Saving Mom, I Heart Publix, Southern Savers and Frugal Fun and Fortune to find out how much others were able to save this week.

Homemade French Bread: Another Baking Success!

After having relative success with baking a loaf of homemade bread last week, I was excited to see Jen at Beauty and Bedlam post a v-log and recipe for homemade French Bread. I decided to give it a try, following her recipe but halving it in order to make just one loaf. (I didn't want to waste the ingredients in case it didn't turn out well. Oh me of little faith!!) I also don't have a Kitchen Aid mixer, so I did all of the kneading by hand. If I did this every day, I'd be able to take some one down in arm wrestling!

Would you believe that this was even better than the bread I made last week! It was so delicious and not at all difficult to bring together. Now I just need to buy stock in flour and yeast and I'll be set!

In the interest of keeping it real: while I was typing this post, I realized that a chicken breast I was boiling for supper had been cooking away on the stove for an indeterminate amount of time and may now be too rubbery to eat. A gentle reminder that I still have a long way to go in becoming a true Suzy Homemaker!

I'll be back later today with my grocery savings post!

A Mom Worthy of Honor

She called last night to check on me, to see if I had recovered from a brief illness the day before.

For over forty years, she's been making sure I was okay, that my needs were met, that I was safe and happy.

Though the miles prevent us from seeing each other often, when we are together the talk flows easily. I can share with her - problems and disappointments, successes and victories - and get wisdom and advice for challenges I may be facing.

Her love for my daughters is all-encompassing. It shows in the way she plans for our visits - hiding a treat under their pillow for that first night, storing up new books to read with them, planning a favorite breakfast. She is a role model all grandmothers could follow.

I doubt I will ever understand the enormity of the sacrifices she has made through the years to allow my brothers and sister and I to have all that we did. I'm certain I didn't appreciate it as I should. Becoming a mom myself has perhaps granted me a window into that part of her soul.

The Master that she serves has made her the woman she is - one that I love and respect from the bottom of my heart.

Thank you, mom, for being a woman who is truly worth honoring on Mother's Day.

Seven Outdoor Activities for Kids

As I watched my seven-year-old cavort around the living room a few nights ago, I realized anew how much our children need to move their bodies. Allowing my daughters ample playtime in the hours after school is a high priority with me. On nice afternoons, we'll often take fifteen or twenty minutes to stop at the neighborhood playground on the way home from school.

We attempt to get most of their homework done in the car so that, except for piano practice, they are free to play when they get home. If the weather is at all bearable, I sent them outside for at least thirty minutes before or after supper each night. Here are several activities that might help your children want to be active outdoors.

1. Take a family walk or bike ride.


2. Have bats, balls, rackets or other equipment available for them to use. My husband recently invented a game with our girls in which they hit a small plastic basketball with a badminton racket and run some bases. It's an interesting combination of sports, but they have lots of fun playing it!


3. Send them on a nature hunt around the yard. See how many types of leaves, rocks, sticks, etc. they can collect in a bucket.


4. Inexpensive dollar store items such as jump ropes, bubbles and sidewalk chalk can provide plenty of creative play.


5. In warm weather, water is always a winner! Give them a bucket of water and paint brushes so they can "paint" the house or driveway. Make a few water balloons for them to toss back and forth. Fill a bucket with water and let them use play dishes or tea sets to make an outdoor "meal," then "wash" the dishes when they're done.


6. Help them create an obstacle course with items from the garage such as bikes, beach chairs, coolers, etc., then see how quickly they can make it around the course.


7. On wet or rainy days, let them play in the rain! Our children love to use their umbrellas (or not!) and splash around in the puddles.

What activities do your children enjoy doing outside?

Allowing my girls to burn off some of their energy outdoors works for me! Find more tips and ideas you can use at Works for Me Wednesday hosted by We Are THAT Family.

Beautiful on the Inside

As my seven-year-old daughter and I stood in a checkout line on Saturday afternoon, I spotted a young woman sitting at a table. She was obviously some type of beauty queen, a tiara on her head and a sash across her body.

I pointed her out to my daughter, who is not familiar with pageants and such, but does like collecting autographs. The woman smiled and waved at my daughter who, having never met a stranger, walked over to her. She returned a moment later with a card bearing a picture of the woman and her name handwritten across the front.

When we got in the car, my daughter was studying the picture. Hoping not to let a teachable moment pass, I mentioned that the girl was very pretty. My daughter agreed; then I stated that I hoped she was as pretty on the inside as she was on the outside.

We've had previous discussions along these lines, so my daughter knew exactly what I meant. I have always tried to emphasize with both of our girls how important true beauty is - that it comes from the way you treat others, the attitudes you express, the peace and joy that can only show on your face when they're in your heart.

It always bring me full circle to determining whether or not I am setting the example in true beauty. Do my daughters see me spending more time making my inside or my outside pretty?

Today I want to be truly beautiful. Amidst the fine lines and the highlight-covered gray hairs, I want my inner beauty to shine

Find other gifts to celebrate today at Tuesdays Unwrapped.

Homemade Baked Beans

In my quest to make even more of our foods from scratch, I decided to try homemade baked beans. I'm a huge fan of Bush's Original Baked Beans, so wasn't too hopeful that I would find anything I liked as much. I started with a Boston Baked Beans recipe from All Recipes, changed it just a bit and cooked them in my slow cooker. They were wonderful! We ate them for supper tonight with a pork roast and Crock Pot Macaroni and Cheese.

Homemade Baked Beans

2 cups (16 ounce package) navy beans
6 slices bacon (uncooked)
1 small onion, finely diced
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 cup ketchup
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar

Soak beans overnight in cold water. [I chose to follow the quick-soak method printed on the back of the package of beans.] Simmer the beans in the same water until nearly tender, approximately 1 to 2 hours. Drain.

Arrange the beans in a slow cooker by placing a portion of the beans in the bottom, adding the bacon and onion, then topping with the remainder of the beans.

In a saucepan, combine maple syrup, salt, pepper, dry mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over beans. Pour in just enough water to cover the beans. Put cover on slow cooker.

Cook on low for eight to ten hours or until beans are tender. Add more liquid if necessary to prevent the beans from getting too dry. Should the beans have too much liquid, remove the top for the last thirty minutes of cooking time.

Find more recipes to try at Tempt My Tummy Tuesday and Tasty Tuesday.

photo courtesy morgue file

Are You a Motivational Speaker?

As I navigated the zoo that is Walmart on a Saturday afternoon, I crossed paths with a woman wearing a shirt that said, "I'm not a nag; I'm a motivational speaker." I had to chuckle as I passed, thinking how nice it would be if nagging could truly be interpreted that way.

However funny the saying may be, it certainly points out a truth that I need to evaluate in my own life. Am I guilty of nagging my husband and my children?

According to the dictionary, nag means, "to annoy by constant scolding, complaining, or urging; to scold, complain, or find fault constantly."

The words that I use with my husband should be those of encouragement and support, not complaining or fault-finding. As for my children, I can correct them with a loving attitude and without repeatedly harping on their offenses.

May my home be a happier, more inspiring place today because I choose not to nag.

Read how others will make their home sing today at Make Your Home Sing Monday.

Saturday Salutes

I have added these Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies from Amy at The Finer Things in Life to my menu for next week.

Since I sometimes let e-mails build up in my inbox, this post from Blogging with Amy on How to Keep Your Inbox Empty proved quite helpful.

Katie at Blessed Femininity has a list of topics related to Biblical femininity that she is planning to cover on her blog. Be sure to let her know which ones you would be most interested in reading about!

Finally, I enjoyed reading Simple Mom's 5 Great Reasons to Not Watch (much) TV.

Have a wonderful weekend!