Kid #3 is amazing.  She is knows what she likes and what she doesn’t.  She is shy, until you know her.  (Then you wish she was!)  She is an animal lover, hockey player, homemaker and caretaker.  She has been getting streaks of color dyed into her hair for a while now.  They are usually blue (to match her hockey jersey), but for spring she chose purple.

It is fun for me to see how happy this makes her.  I take her to my salon and a young “cool” stylist does her hair.  This time she said she could go alone.  So I sat in the waiting area.  She was so excited.  I was happy to let her have that experience.

My dresser is where everything drops.  I didn’t take a before picture because I didn’t have the idea to post this until after I cleaned it.  I will to that from now on.  I am going to be cleaning and organizing in manageable bits around the house.  My dresser seemed like the best place to start.

It was COVERED in kid art work, receipts, piles of mismatched socks and dust.  It is the first thing I look at in the morning and it caused me stress.

Here are the after pictures:

And a few items of mention:

This sign was buried in the clutter.  (Ironic, I know!)  It is in a spot to remind me what my goal really is.  It was made by a friend of mine.

My Mary tealight candle holder.  One of my favorites.

My landing spot.  Hopefully, I will always know where my keys are!

I also want to find better ways to display the kid’s artwork.

A page for buying and selling items in my community is on Facebook. It is a Buy It/Sell It page for selling “treasures” to others. We have sold lots of stuff. Household items, clothes, you name it. As I clean up, I take a picture and post items. It is so easy. It beats boxing items and waiting for a yard sale (although this year I am probably doing that too).

It has been a good way to clean out the kids’ closets and also find items in the next size. I will be posting items as I organize. The plan is porch, garage sale, donation to our church rummage sale.

 

Happy 17th anniversary to my DH. 

I have a love/hate relationship with budgeting. I do really well for a while and then find myself slipping. When you have a bunch of kids, you need to live on a budget. There always something to budget for like orthodontics, summer camps, medical bills, outgrown shoes……

I also have a desire to do some minor (and not so minor) home improvements. I want to pay cash for those.

Starting this month, I will be going back to pencil and paper budgeting. DH and I have a few expenses that we know are coming and we need to get back on track. Last week, I wrote down just my “random expenses” and they were $38 for the week. We all do it, but I was just surprised how much it was. Especially on a week I knew I was tracking.

Here is what I spent my $38 on:

Lunches out at work (3 days) $22

Diet sodas from vending machine $7.50

Muffin and drink one morning $5.50

A drink for Kid 1 at gas station $3.00

Not that I needed to track this to know, I spend too much on eating out and diet soda. (I know it is a bad habit. That will be a goal later)

I have dusted off my Dave Ramsey stuff. I have subscribed to his podcasts again. I have made a list of our debt smallest to largest. I have scheduled a meeting with DH.

I will be getting estimates on car and house insurance and looking at our cell phone plan. We already got rid of cable and we do not have car payments.

I will also be looking more closely at our food budget. When I review our expenses, we spend a good part of our budget on food. It is my failure to plan. I need to do some meaningful meal planning.

My husband and I also need to get back to meeting about the budget. Talking about money is stressful, emotional, and can sometimes be uncomfortable. So like things that are easily avoided.

I will be posting when we have a budget savings and how we achieved it. I will be looking hard at what we are doing and asking if we really need it. It is my hope that our ideas will inspire you to live on less for your projects and plans.

       

 

On a recent vacation, we stayed in a cabin near by the place my husband (and 3 of my 4 children) go on occasion in the Upper Peninsula. My husband rented this cabin because he knew that in order to get me up there I was going to “need” running water and a kitchen. The cabin was modest, but had what I needed and slept all 6 of us.

 

I was surprised at how well my children could adapt. The meals were modest. We often ate the same things over and over. It was the same activities over and over. It was all 6 of us together over and over. They had fun. They were such good travelers. Better than me.

 

During the day, we went to a property that my husband and his family own. It has been in the family for years. He has been going up since his childhood. There is no electricity, no running water, and an outdoor toilet. My kids hit the property running. They love it there. I went, packed lunch, put on my winter clothes (it snowed 6-8 inches while we were there) and used the potty outside.

 

I have resisted this trip for a many years. The car ride is long. The accommodations are rustic. I just kept telling myself to relax and enjoy it. I can do anything for a week. And I did. I am glad I did. It isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. My husband made the compromise to get me the cabin. It did work better for Kid 2 and I.

 

This trip made me realize, I am genuinely afraid of being uncomfortable. My kids can be comfortable any where. We will be planning another trip or two up there this year. I will channel my inner Ma Ingalls and begin to like (maybe even love) this as much as the rest of my family does. I don’t step out of my box often, but This Mom needs to do what her family loves.

 

I have had a love/hate relationship with my master’s program.  I started it when I was newly married and before I had kids.  Four kids later, I did not finish.  Then the classes started to “fall off” the back of my transcript.  (You have to finish in 6 years.)  When I came back to work I started again, but four kids AND a full time job has made it tough.  I have been debating how to get it finished.  I mean, I know how, but how to fit it all in.  Then I think about my career and whether or not it would be worth it.

It is a weird situation I find myself in.  I am a working mom.  4 years ago we made the decision for me to return to work.  The decision was (and still is) largely based on health care and my current position gives me that and does not require an advanced degree.  Other jobs I would like to have, do require one.  I can never really be considered for those until I finish.   I am always debating the pros and cons of continuing my education.

Pro: I set the example for my kids to finish what you start.

Con: I take cash from the family budget that we could use for something else.

Pro: I become eligible for other positions that would be a step up from where I am.

Con: I could lose the flexibility I have now.

I could seriously do this for an entire post, but I won’t.

I have 8 classes left and an internship.  Some days it seems like so many and other days I feel so close.  I will try and fire myself back up for summer.

Is there something you are putting off, wrestling with, trying to finish.  I would love to know how you do it, where you get the strength, or how you juggle it all.  All advice (constructive please) is appreciated.

You can leave it here in the comments.  🙂

 

 

 

 

 

He has taken this crazy 4-kid life with me in stride.  There is nothing he would not do for us.  Happy birthday to my DH and the super dad!

I have been a follower of Angelle Batten since Kid #1 was first diagnosed with Celiac Disease.  She has practical, useful advise that is easy to use.  I even took a few of her classes.  She is a busy mom of 3, so her advise is also realistic and not judgey.

Check her out at angellebatten.com!

Since we are all so busy, I have taken it upon myself to use Saturday and Sunday mornings to Cook Ahead for the week.

Here is what I did this weekend:

• Boiled a dozen and a half eggs
• Baked a 5 lb of potatoes
• Cooked 2 chickens in the crock pot
• Boiled a box of pasta (regular and gluten free)
• Made blueberry muffins (with freshly frozen blueberries)
•  Browned 4 lbs of ground beef and made taco meat to freeze

It does take some pressure off the week and gives the kids some quick grab items.

What are your favorite Make Ahead items?