A HOUSE FULL!!

We have had visitors the past three days--LOTS of TEENAGERS! I had forgotten how it feels to have four teens in our house--all at one time. My daughter-in-law (wife of Son #1) was on her way to join some of her family for a camping trip in West Texas and stopped here for a couple of nights. She, brave woman that she is, brought our two grandchildren and two friends of Granddaughter #1.

We had 3 girls sleeping on blow up mattresses in our living room and that room was delightfully filled with giggles late into the night. Grandson #1 kept his granddaddy entertained by taking him to a movie and by attending to some other chores that they found needing their attention. Meanwhile, Daughter-in-law #1 organized these teens into an amazing cleaning crew while they were here. They could clean off a table and do the dishes before I could blink twice. And before they left this morning, all sheets had been washed, towels folded, and mattresses deflated and in their bags. Uh, Girls, please come back sometime to help out around here!

Not all was work, though. We went swimming--see grandchildren below enticing Daughter-in-law #1 into the cold water! Shopping and more shopping--no pictures, but lots of bags!!

And out to eat at the lake where we watched a beautiful sunset. Granddaughter #1 in the middle with her two friends.

And where would we be without our Blackberries??

Daughter-in-law #1 with the three girls.

Packing up their camping gear before they left this a.m. Lots to pack for 5 people!

Bye, Grandkids! Come back soon!

Daughter-in-law #1 checking to see if the girls are loaded up and ready to go.

Frugal Friday

Today's entry for Frugal Friday will be short because I am totally involved in our church's 25 Anniversary Celebration which is this weekend. It is so exciting to be a part of planning and making it happen.

Here is something I borrowed from http://www.clutterdietblog.com/ which is a blog that is helping me be more organized. Lori talks about the lessons that we can learn from bees and she says that "Bees bring home only as much as they can carry. They have pollen baskets on their legs that help collect pollen and bring it back to the hive. They do not have Hummers that they can load up at the "Costco of flowers" and bring home excessive amounts of stuff they don't need. They also know exactly what they are shopping for and don't deviate from their lists."

I have talked about the value of making lists when shopping. I must say that making a list and sticking to it is very important in saving money. When I go to Sam's or one of the big shopping places, it is so easy to get side-tracked into buying things I don't need by big displays and enticing items not on my list. Happy shopping (with lists) this weekend.

FRUGAL FRIDAY

I need to update my wardrobe and a couple of my pants are shiny on the bottom or wearing thin. I am planning my "frugal" approach to adding a few new items to my closet. I have shopped the sale racks in nearby department stores and have come away empty-handed. Things there either do not appeal to my tastes or are too expensive for me to consider. Since they say that our city has dozens of thrift, consignment, resale, vintage and secondhand stores with wonderful designer bargains, I think that I will check out some of these "bargain" stores and see what I can come up with.

The first rule that I will impose on my shopping spree is to put a set amount of cash in an envelope for my clothes shopping expedition. I learned that tactic from my daughter-in-law, Kara, who has envelopes of cash each month for food, entertainment, clothing, and so on. That way they know in their family how much money they have for each category and that helps them judge their purchases more carefully.

The next thing I will do is make a list of the items I need and stick to that list to avoid impulse buying.

Wish me luck on my frugal shopping adventure!

FRUGAL FRIDAY

Today I am thinking that I would like to go shopping. Actually I am avoiding tasks like cleaning out some drawers, closets, and my computer desk.

But going shopping brings another thought to mind--a new mindset that I am trying to adopt for myself. I am trying to determine the difference between things that I want, things that I need, and things that I have to have. I am now trying to evaluate my purchases with those three criteria in mind.

For example, I ran out of toothpaste this morning, so I have to have toothpaste. On the other hand, I would like to have a new laptop computer. Our old one is thick, heavy, cranky, and the battery will not stay charged. It is difficult to use when we go on a trip--if it works at all some days. So I apply my formula to buying a new computer: I want a new laptop. I probably need a new laptop at some time in the future but I mostly use my home computer and it works very well. And so--I guess I don't have to have a new laptop at the present time. Now, if I find $500 running down a pig track (my dad used to use that expression with us) I guess I could go shopping and get a new laptop, but that purchase is NOT on my to do list for today--or probably any time soon.

Frugal Friday

With the recent news about the economy, I have decided that my husband and I need to develop more frugal habits. I believe I first saw the idea of Frugal Friday on my daughter-in-law, Kara's blog, but I have noticed that several other bloggers that I follow are beginning to post money-saving ideas or ways to simplify their lives. Barbara has posted several great sounding recipes for hot roll and bread mixes and a homemade sausage mix. Linda talks about simplicity. Ms. Smockity , when she isn't moving her large family (seven children!) across the state, is great about posting her frugal hints.

My hint for this Frugal Friday is to clip coupons! Mercy! I have not done that since we were trying to feed four hungry boys on an educator's salary. However, this week, in my efforts to be more frugal, I
1) read the Wednesday grocery ads in the newspaper,
2) made my list of needed items from the sale items and determined to stick to the list,
3) went through the coupons that I still clip (but rarely use--until now!) and found several coupons that matched the sale items,
4) shopped the store and resisted impulse buying (except for the brussel sprouts that looked delicious and were half their normal price!), and
5) got my flu shot in the pharmacy because they were offering 10% off the grocery bill with a flu shot.

At the end of the shopping, my bill totaled about $81, but by the time the coupons and the 10% deduction from the flu shot were deducted, my bill came out to about $62 and the only item that was not on sale was the brussel sprouts!

I felt like I had pocketed a crisp, new $20 bill at the store yesterday! And that is my hint for Frugal Friday.

A Weekend Visit

This past weekend we met Son #1 and family for fun and work. The guys did the work at Uncle P's Place and we girls had fun down by the river and shopping. Grandson #1 joined us on Sunday for a trip to the Zoo. It was HOT, HOT, HOT, but Daughter-in-Law #1 brought wonderful spray sunscreen so I believe we all avoided bad sunburns--except I forgot the part in my hair! Ouch! This first picture shows Granddaughter #1 by the river.

The next picture shows Grandchildren #2 and #1 at the entrance to the Zoo.
The next two pictures were taken in the Butterfly Garden. That blue butterfly really liked Granddaughter #1!

We had to stop for Mexican Food because Grandson #1 looked weak from hunger! Yum!

And then we checked up on the workers and their progress.

We were all hot and tired when we headed home! But the workers seemed satisfied with their progress and the rest of us had fun staying out of their way while exploring stores, new eating places and the Zoo.