Current Projects

This week I felt inspired to do some projects around the house. My first idea was to build a small shelf to put near the table in the kitchen. One of our goals for the new year is to read some Scripture together after supper every night. Quite honestly, we haven't done very well with it so far. It just hasn't been something that we think of after dinner. So we thought that if we had a shelf by the table where we could safely keep the Bible within reach, perhaps we will do better at remembering. So, here is the finished result:



I'm so pleased with how it came out. My Handyman really is handy!! He made the shelf out of some scraps of wood, and designed it all himself. I did the first coat of stain and poly, and he did the final coat. I am hopeful that this simple addition will help us stick to our goals.

The other project we've been working on is refinishing our kitchen table top. We bought the table six years ago, and there were several places where the finish had worn off, and it really just needed to be sanded down and refinished. So that's exactly what we did. Here's how it came out!


(Note the dust on the side that showed up only with the flash. Guess I have some cleaning to do still. =) ) It is SO nice to have a fresh table top. It's like having a new table, and it really came out beautifully! The stain doesn't match exactly, but it's close enough not to notice unless you really study it.

There's a beautiful testimony here today, of the joy and sorrow of life's ever-changing seasons. It touched me, and I think it may you, too.

Trusting

Why is it that just when you feel like you're getting things under control, the unexpected arises, and suddenly you feel out of control all over again. My Handyman and I have really been implementing the teachings of Dave Ramsey for about 6 months now, and we had really found our rhythm. The budget was working well for us every month, it was pretty simple to plan the month's spending before the month begins, and it just felt like things were really starting to roll. We're working on fully funding our emergency fund, and for the new year we set a pretty aggressive goal of increasing the 2 1/2 months worth of living expenses we have set aside to 4 months worth by June.

Then reality hit. It's January. Not a lot of people want to have their homes fixed in January. And my Handyman had first one day, and then another, and another day off because there was no work scheduled. So far he's worked two days in the new year. Yikes! Suddenly I've had to shift my brain from "Let's see how much money we can save" to "Let's see how very little we can spend" so that we don't have to start using our emergency fund, rather than adding to it as we had planned.

It's been a frustrating shift in focus. I'd so hoped to be making progress financially, and now we're just trying not to lose ground. It's been a good exercise for me, though, as I try to be as resourceful and creative as I can with our meals, to try to keep the grocery budget very low. And it's good, too, because I am realizing that it is possible to get by on very little, if I just stay out of the stores. Maybe this time is just a training period for us, to show us where we have been wasting money so that in the coming months when our income returns we can continue to live on little and reach our goals faster.

And our Father is so faithful. Throughout this time I know that He is our provider, and I don't have to worry. I've been readying through Job in the last week or so, and it has been such a good reminder that our heavenly Father is so good, all the time, no matter what circumstances we face. Job's example of humility and reverence of the Lord when he faced unimaginable hardship has been inspiring. It's humbling to know that our great God cares for us, knows our needs, and best of all, is present with us through every circumstance.

And things are looking up - my Handyman has work scheduled for at least the next four work days. =)

Look out fitness! Here Wii come!!

He he he. My Handyman and I have been throwing around the idea of giving each other a Nintendo Wii for Christmas. After watching my sister and brother-in-law using the Wii Fit regularly for nearly a year, and seeing the fabulous results they've been getting, I got really interested in trying it for myself. I've been working out faithfully for a couple of months now, and while I feel like I'm finally starting to see some results (probably noticeable only to me, but my post-pregnancy belly is finally starting to tighten up!), I'd like to kick it up a notch.

I've been watching intently for a deal on the Wii and Wii Fit, but really hadn't had much luck. The price of the Wii was recently reduced to $199, but I haven't seen it lower than that anywhere. I've even been watching some websites for the Black Friday deals, thinking that someone would offer it cheaper, but to no avail.

Then, a couple of days ago I came across this deal at Amazon. I love Amazon. The deal is if you buy a Wii and a Wii Fit Plus, they'll send you a $50 Amazon gift card. So after subtracting the $50, you end up paying $238 for both the Wii and the Wii Fit. That's by far the best deal I've seen anywhere, and since we do so much shopping on Amazon, especially this time of year, it really is like getting $50 cash. Plus, I have $25 in Amazon gift cards that I've earned through using Swagbucks, so it's almost like getting the Wii Fit Plus for $14.

(Incidentally, if you're not using Swagbucks, you really should!! I've downloaded the toolbar and use it as my primary search engine, and usually earn enough points to get a $5 Amazon gift card every month. If you sign up by clicking this link or the picture in the sidebar, I'll earn a percentage of the points you earn, too. =))

Anywho, back to the Wii. I mentioned the Amazon deal to my Handyman, and he thought we should go ahead and do it, so last night we ordered our Christmas present for each other. =) I am so excited!! It seems a little anticlimactic to be getting our gift for each other so early, so I mentioned that maybe we should wrap it and leave it under the tree until closer to Christmas, but my Handyman scoffed at that idea. He thinks that since we both know what we're getting, it would be silly to just have it sit there unopened. I can't say that I'm disappointed. I can't wait to start my new workout routine!

Oh - one more!

I forgot to mention one more bargain I got today. Bath & Body Works has their hand soap on sale 4 for $10. I love, love, love their hand soap, but haven't been using it for a while because I had a hard time justifying the splurge. 4 for $10 is a pretty good sale, though, so I decided to check it out. Here's the haul:


I got 12 bottles for $30, and used this coupon for $10 off a purchase of $30. Now I have a year's supply of luxurious hand soap, for $1.84 per bottle. I feel spoiled.

Bargain Hunting

I've gotten away from doing too many deals at Walgreens and CVS lately. Honestly, I'm still just not that good at figuring out exactly what I'm going to spend and how I'm going to come out ahead. That, coupled with forgetting to use the ExtraBucks or Register Rewards before they expire, and I got a little burned out.

My appetite was whetted yet again, however, a couple weeks ago when Jewel paid me $3 to take 6 boxes of Breyer's ice-cream off of their hands. I bought 6 boxes on sale for about $12, and got $15 in catalina coupons toward my next purchase. I turned around and got $15 worth of groceries that I needed anyway, so I didn't have to worry about the coupons expiring on me.

I also spent the past few days organizing a new system for my coupons. I had been using a system recommended by CouponMom, but I never really knew what coupons I had, and it was time-consuming to find what I needed when I needed it. So now, I've switched to the method used by MoneySavingMom, and have a coupon box which looks like this:


All my coupons are organized in envelopes by category and sub-category, so I know right where to look for whatever I need. I'm loving it already!

So today I ventured out on a bargain hunting adventure. I didn't get any huge steals, but I did get some pretty good deals on things that I know I will use.

Here's what I got at Target:

2 Glade Scented Oil Tins - $3.09 each
3 Glade Scented Oil Refills - $2.50 each
Total: $13.68

With coupons, I paid just $5.46 total, plus I can send in for this SCJohnson Rebate and get $5 back. It'll end up costing me just $0.46 for all these candles! Yay! =)

At Walgreens, I did 3 transactions:

Transaction 1:

2 Nyquil @ $5.99 each.
Used $1.50/1 and $1/1 coupons.
Paid $9.75 and got $5 Register Reward = $2.38 each

Transaction 2:

3 Tylenol Cold @ $4.99 each
1 Sudafed PE @ $5.99 each
Used $3/2, $2/1, and $1/1 coupons.
Paid $15.43 and got back $10 Register Rewards = $1.36 each

Transaction 3 (S'more was happy to get in on the photo-taking action):


2 Gold Medal Flour @ $3.39 each
1 Betty Crocker Warm Delights @ $2.29 each
2 Morton Salt @ $0.99 each
2 Clearasil Face Wash @ $4.99 each
3 Kleenex Tissues @ $2.29 each
Total: $34.62

Used:
1 Wag Q: 2/$3 Flour, Man Q: 1 $0.50/1 Flour
1 Wag Q: $0.99 BC Warm Delight, Man Q: 1 $ 0.50/1 BC Warm Delight
1 Wag Q: 2/$1 Salt
Clearasil was Buy One, Get One Free (saved $4.99)
Man Q: 1 $2/1 Clearasil, 1 $1/1 Clearasil
3 Wag Q: Kleenex $1.09 per box
3 Man Q: $0.50/3 Kleenex
$5 Register Reward

I paid $4.81 for all of that! I still have $10 Register Rewards to use, which makes me nervous - I don't want it to expire before I use it! But I'm really going to be vigilant and make sure I use it up. Ahh, a good day's work.

Meditations on Thankfulness

Since November is the month of Thanksgiving, I am focusing on thankfulness in my time with the Lord. This morning I read in Genesis of the creation account, how God so generously provided every need for Adam, including a companion in Eve. It's easy to get distracted in life, and focus on what I don't have, rather than the abundance God has so generously provided. But I so much to be thankful for! I don't deserve anything, so the fact that He has given so much is really humbling. Giving thanks for the thousands of blessings I receive from His gracious hand each day doesn't come naturally. It takes focus, intentionality. But the change that will occur in my soul as I choose to acknowledge the many blessings in my life will be so worth the effort!