I was really bummed when I figured out I couldn't read books on our iPad!!

My 7yr old came in at 4:30am with it, I think. Ugh. W have had the some kind of stomach bug 4 times since thanksgiving!! And the flu one time! I have never seen so much sickness in my life!

Some of you totally get my dilemmas, thank you. Ha!! My husband is the saver, I am the spender. When I spend the day running the kids to piano and such, it's so easy to go through drive thrus. I wish it weren't so easy. :) I love the thought of multiplying my $6 for the whole year...yikes. And I have stopped going to Walmart!! Yay!! Part of our problem is we are in a tiny town and we have Walmart and 1 grocery store. So the grocery store is significantly more expensive. But we have found a new aldi about an hour from us, and we are trying to go once a month and stock up. We also started ordering from www.azurestandard.com and it is awesome!!! Yall should see if it delivers to your area.:) The great thing about having a hubby that desperately wants us on a budget is that he will gladly go to Walmart for me because he knows he will spend less than me!! :)

Thank you all...thankfully I'm married to an accountant who creates spreadsheets for fun. Ha!! So he helps balance me out...he would never spend a dime. On anything. Ever! :) I'm going to show him these ideas and see what we can come up with. I think having an allotted Amouny of "blow" money for myself - cash - would be good. Just out of curiosity - do any of you have a blow money fund for yourself? How much? Does it include fast food? Thanks!!

Thank you, ladies! These ideas are great! Keep them coming. :)

I would love to hear some practical ways to change my bad habits in the area of spending!! I don't spend a LOT, but it's those $2 candles at walmart, the drive thru for a $3 meal...those things I do WAY TOO MUCH. I really, really want to break these habits. We are trying really hard to stick to a budget and I am the problem! :laugh: One way that I spend less is just plain ole staying home. But I can't do this forever. :crying: When we are out at meal time I'm going to try and think AHEAD the night before and pack snacks/food for us - and water bottles. I know it's not healthy to eat the fast food, we eat pretty healthy at home...but it's seriously like a HABIT when I get in the car, I want a big sweet tea or something?!?! UGH! Any suggestions?

I haven't been posting but just wanted to jump in and say thank you for this thread and everyone sharing your progress!! It has been so inspiring and helpful!! I started in my closet and only went through 2 shelves and had 2 trash bags full! Whew!! And I didn't think I had too much stuff! Ha! I also started in the kitchen decluttering cabinets - this has been sooook helpful!! At the same time we are trying really hard to stick to our new budget and so menu planning, cooking more, stocking up on deals - all of thisady the need for more cabinet space more urgent. :) Thank you, everyone, for a great thread!! I've been reading a little bit each day for motivation!!

I have a music degree and have taught in various capacities in the past, including private piano lessons and regular classroom kindergarten. I have not had success with teaching mine piano!! Ugh! We tried it for a few years and just were not consistent...so when a wonderful opportunity opened up for us with another teacher, we took it. :) piano is very important to me also, but it wasn't happening on my own...just our experience. :)

We did a full year and we did enjoy the videos, but the workbooks are terrible and therefore, for us, little retention. The audio was just not great - the songs or the quality. I really did like this program for the first semester but it just did not really lend itself to moving beyond that level and advancing.

I just got the baby boy kit today and I am SO darn excited!! It's a gift so I can't really blab about it on Facebook or Instagram. So I'll blab about it here!! It is awesome!! I just love it so much!! If any of you do end up ordering the baby kits, be sure to watch her video on the baby kits because she gives her idea behind some of the cards and it is helping me to put together this album for my sil. On her website if you click on "videos" one of the very first ones is on the baby kits. :)

Hi!! First if all, my family went through something very, very similar the last few years...so I am very sorry for what your family is facing. It is difficult for everyone. Secondly, I have a resource for you and any family members who may enjoy books and are Christians. If you aren't interested, please just ignore!! Carol Kent is an author who has written 2 really good books about having her son be sentenced to life in prison. The books are really encouraging for family members - I loved both books. (For that matter anyone going through something huge like this.) The books are When I Lay My Issac Down and a New Kind of Normal.

I am still waiting on the new kids to be available!!! I want it now!! :) I am going to order olive. I did amber in 2011 and clementine last year.

You can do it for this year or take old pictures that you've never done anything with and create an album. :) I have been starting at the new year since I started project life and have been finishing my albums "on time" meaning I have finished albums for 2011 and 2012!! I never thought I would be able to say that!! I am thinking of taking her new baby kits and going back to organize my kids baby pictures but haven't bought any of them yet.

Jillian, do you have any music on your iphone? I don't actually go through itunes to use the app - I just play whatever music is on my phone, press play and then start the app and it does just fine. Not sure if that helps or not...

I got almost to the end of couch to 5k over the summer and then quit...one of those weeks where there was a huge jump...like I had been running 8 minutes and then it jumped to 20 or something crazy. Anyway...wish I had kept with it. But yesterday I started over. Day 1. I'm so thankful that I did it and it seemed easy...over the summer it was torture just to start it, so I'm hopeful that maybe a tiny bit of what I had gained is still there. I had also lost about 20 pounds over the summer and have gained 5 back. It feels like a lot more than that...I could still stand to lose 20 more but that's not my focus. I'm trying to focus on just being healthier, eating better, etc. I really did not want to start the plan over but I haven't been exercising at all and seem to do better with this app and having a plan to go by...so I'm hopeful. :)

I am trying to rotate my purchases through friends blogs too!! Great idea!! I'd love to have a list to go through!! :) Www.mercyisnew.com

Look at all that chicken we're eating!! Ha!!

I've chosen a "word of the year" for the past few years and God has really done a lot in me regarding these topics each year. Is this the kind of thing you mean?? Here is my post about my 2013 word of the year and a book I'm reading about having a word of the year that was really good, too!

Yes, the cards are great quality card stock!! :)

I used the Amber kit in 2011, last year I used Clementine, and this year I'm leaning towards Olive. I can't wait for the kits to become available on amazon!!! I'm so really excited about her new baby and childhood kits!! I have a brother and sil expecting their first and going to get them the baby edition. I would love to buy 3 myself and go back and do better with all our baby pictures, but not sure about that yet. :) By the way, if y'all aren't following Becky's blog, I really enjoy it a lot! Obviously a lot is about project life, but she shares a lot about her own memory keeping, her kids and how she does stuff. :) gives me lots of great ideas!!

Www.beckyhiggins.com There is a video on her site that is 2-3 minutes long, super cute and explains her product beautifully!!

I gave 20-30 jars of my lotion and it has been wonderful!! I've been using it for around a month and my skin is genuinely softer!! This lotion is easy, cheap and good for your skin!! I love lotion so this has been exciting for me! :) Homemade Coconut Oil Lotion (you can also use olive oil) Sorry cant figure out how to link on my phone. http://www.mercyisnew.com/2012/11/homemade-coconut-oil-lotion-it-works.html?m=1

I absolutely love Project Life!! 2013 will be my 3rd year doing it. I have never kept up with any scrap booking like I have with this! This week with my "down" time I completely finished my 2012 album!! I had about 3 months to catch up on and did it in a few short hours!! Here are my project life blog posts if anyone is interested. :) http://www.mercyisnew.com/search/label/Project%20Life?m=1

I'd love to hear how you prepare your maple mashed sweet potatoes!! :)

Caitlin, you are SO right and I have fallen into that trap the past few years!! That is why I gave away my grinder! :laugh: I hated it and just decided it wasn't something i *had* to do!! Why do we do this to ourselves?!?! We are trying to eat healthier and live more frugally, but am just looking for ways around the grinding. :bored: