Several years ago (like 3-4) my mother in law gave me a shoot off her peony bush. I planted it in the center of my yard near my favorite rocks. I have reminded well meaning, but over ambitious children with weed whipping devices not to cut it down. I have hand weeded around it and hoped it would grow and someday bloom.

This spring it did…..

One adorable bloom. I even bought another this year to keep my first one company. I can’t wait for next year.

Don’t give up. Even if it takes a while, you will eventually bloom. 🌸

I know it is summer vacation but I am working on getting my house clean and organized.

I discovered this “recipe” somewhere while searching for cleaning products. My kitchen cupboards were dirty, sticky and kind of greasy. This did the trick.

2 cups of Dawn Dishwashing soap

3 cups of white vinegar.

I mixed it in a bowl.

Then I have these cloths that are scrubby on one side.

I scrubbed all the cabinets and left the soap mixture on as I cleaned. (About 10 minutes). Then I rinsed with a clean wet cloth and then dried with a towel.

The cabinets look good and the grease is gone.

I saved the rest in a spray bottle. 🙂

Any other cleaning recipes I need to know about?

This is the second phase of my new found love for meal prep. Greens!!

Since lettuce started killing people, I did a deep dive into where and how greens are processed. I have made a decision for our family that I would prefer to buy whole vegetables and process them all myself by hand. It takes more time, it makes a mess, but the control freak in me enjoys knowing that everything was really washed – twice.If you don’t have a salad spinner you need one. I love mind and didn’t realize how wet my greens were until I got one. I love these Tupperware veggie containers. They keep things fresh for a while. And they are cute. I freeze spinach for smoothies and such. I tried to take a picture of all the dirt….I compost the pieces and such into a little container that goes to the big container in the yard.

I did an experiment this January with meal prep and my family. I spent several weekend days preparing food for my family for the coming week. Here is what I do each Sunday: I boil a dozen eggs. Then make one dozen “Egg Cups” with a dozen more eggs.

Then I make at least 2 main dishes and a big pot of soup/chili in my Dutch Oven Pot. This week I made eggplant lasagna, meatloaf and meatballs, chicken tortilla soup and I browned 2 pounds of ground beef that I seasoned with taco seasoning. This makes for a busy few hours in the kitchen, but saves so much time during the week. What are your make ahead meal favorites? Want some of mine? Check back soon and I will post my plans.

Hi, my name is Kim and I am an impulse buyer. Once someone in my family says they “need” something, I go to work finding it online.

I also subscribe to many sites that offer me deals for a limited time or because I am a preferred customer. Add the words rewards or cash back and it’s over.

Here are a few steps I have done to help with my problem:

1. I have unsubscribed to many site mailing lists. I know where to find them if I need them.

2. I am only allowing an item in if one leaves (or two or three…).

3. I am waiting 24 hours in all online purchases, 48 hours if it came from an email.

4. I have developed a budget for these items as well as a list of things we need like sneakers for kid #4.

Hopefully these few rules will keep me on track this year.

What are your impulse buys? How you you avoid them? Drop your tips here. I could use them.

In my attempt to “find” money in the budget, I spent about 30 minutes and I was able to save a bit of money.  Because this was so “easy”, I plan to do a deep dive later this week and really see what I can squeeze out of our spending.

Here is what I did:

I cancelled a subscription box ($44.95/month).  I loved the service and the box, but I am on  mission.  Total savings $539.40.

I also cancelled another recurring charge of almost $100 a month (I missed the fee for January).  This saves me $1100 a year.

In the coming weeks I will be evaluating Hoopla for audiobooks and see if I can cancel Audible (another $15/month) as well as heading to the Resale shop and selling some stuff online.

What are some ways you are saving money in your budget?

January is a natural reboot. Everyone everywhere is making a list of the things that have done, want to do and wish they could do. I do it too. Here is the thing that has smacked me in the face this year.

My list has been more or less the same for 20 + years.

Here are the basics more or less:

Loss 20 (30, 40) pounds and develop a healthy lifestyle.

Payoff all debt, get a budget and live within it.

Organize the house. Create an inviting space for me and my family.

Create an outlet for me: business and personal.

Make my marriage and family life a priority.

On this first weekend of the new year I am working on a plan to make sure some of these come off my list this year. In future posts, I will drill down on my plans, hold myself accountable, and make sure this is the last year some of these are on the list.

What are your goals for 2019?

Let’s hold each other accountable.

~Kim

There is something about having time to think. The older I get, the more I appreciate time. Right now, my husband is keeping the kids busy while I sit. 

I am reading, drinking soda and making plans. The plans will come soon enough, but today’s post is just to remind you to take time to think.  

Happy August!

~Kim

Well, I quit my job today. Actually, I did that 2 weeks ago. Today was the first day in over five and a half years that I didn’t go there. Seems like a vacation sort of.

There are lots of reasons that lead me to my decision. Kid #1 started high school. Kid #2 had major surgery. Kid #3 was diagnosed with a learning disability. Kid #4 missed several days of kindergarten with “just a virus” fevers.

I also started my own business. I am a tutor. I love working with student and didn’t realize how much I missed it. It wasn’t feasible that I could keep my full time job and my business, politically or practically.

Today, there were moments of relief. Nowhere to be. Dinner before 8pm. Time to write and connect with people interested in hearing about my business.

Today, there were also moments of panic. Budgets, payments, invoices, decisions. The knot in my belly eps and flows.

I will probably need to get a part time job while I grow my business. I have had lots of friends call in the last 2 weeks with offers. I have 6 pro/con charts started. Tomorrow, I hope to have half that many.

One thing I have learned about myself, is I don’t like to tell people no. I HATE disappointing them. (Add that to the list of things to work on….) The thing that I HATE more than that is change.

Change is hard. Change is unavoidable. Change is good. Change is bad. Change is necessary. Change is here. So, I will handle it. I am leading to a “new year” in September with a plan for this change. One part of this plan is to write more…..no promises yet.

I grew up thinking I could do anything. I had never considered that being female would get in the way. I am not a feminist, really, but I am a strong, opinionated woman (and was that way as a girl). I do think I have been treated differently because I am a woman. I know we have “come a long way”, but I feel like there are still things that we have to overcome. My attitude has always been “forget” them, I will succeed anyway.

I remember when my son was younger. He saw a “girl” dentist. All day he kept calling her a “girl” dentist. This gave me the opportunity to let him know that she was “just a” dentist. And that girls can chose any job they want.

I also have 3 daughters. My lens has changed. I want them to see other woman succeed. Not that I don’t want them to see men succeed, but I want them to see other woman as dentist, doctors, nurses, lawyer, or business owners.

I do business with other woman. My community of women business owners include my accountant, insurance agent, our eye doctor, landlord for my new business venture, local gift/home decor shop owner, and even my direct sale business transactions. Once I sat down to write this, it had not occurred to me how much that factors into my decisions of who I do business with.

I want my girls to know they can do anything they put their minds too. I want them to see me and other women as an example of that.