Lessons Learned

I have been spending a lot of time talking with my children about the importance of living below your means. Not only do we talk with them about it but we also try to live be example. I have so many regrets of how we used our money in the past and we are still cleaning up the mess from living that way. If only we knew then what we know now,but could of,should of and would of won't do us any good now. All we can do is pick up and keep moving forward taking what we have learned and instilling it in our hearts and minds. To make it a part of our lives.

Yesterday while with my youngest son Brandon,I asked him,"What do you think it means to live below your means,what are the steps to insure you are doing so?" His answer was very good! He said " you don't go into debt,no loans and no credit cards. I mean it's stupid to get a car loan and it loses value as soon as you drive it off the lot." He said " it's best to save up and buy things straight out then you own it and are not paying more than it's worth buy getting a loan, the same is right about credit cards they make no sense,when you charge things and they are used up and you are still paying on them. How stupid is that! "

Yes he is a very smart boy. He also mention putting God first forever and always. And saving a portion of your income without fail.
What he didn't mention and it's probably because I haven't talked about it as often or gone into any sort of detail about it. That is taking care of all you have to make it last as long as it can.

1. give to God
2. save a portion of your income
3.no debt unless it's a mortgage
4.use up what you have before buying new
5. buy things used or on sale or clearance always try your hardest to get the best price on all things
6. use cash or debit,tracking every penny that comes in and out of your home
7. take care of what you have and make it last as long as you can saving you even more money

my seven rules of living below your means

*Photo provided by dsleonard on photobucket.com*





Happy Homemaking

What we learned while being laid off

When my husband was laid off from his job last April,when I first found out this was going to happen. I had a panic session,I went out onto our deck and prayed and cried out to God,asking him to not let this happen to us. I was so afraid of what would happen to our family. But within a couple of weeks he was laid off.

The first thing we did was get our budget out and start cutting back. We cut cable,phone,heating bill and electricity. The bills took a little time but cutting the cable bill and phone took a phone call. We got our expenses down as low as we could.

We had only one problem. We were still in debt! We had  a car payment (stupid debt) and credit cards (very stupid debt). That's where my panic came in.

We signed up for help that we needed only. We worked and pushed through the rest. We had a rough time and had some help from our church to get us through.But we made it.

We stayed faithful to the Lord. I knew he had a plan for us and I kept telling anyone and everyone I could that it was all going to work out because we are in God's hands and he was going to take care of us. And oh how he did.

We managed to keep our utilities low and I am still going to do this even though he is working now. We paid off 2 of our credit cards and made big payments to the other 2 and  on our car loan. We are now ahead on the car loan and taking big chunks out of our remaining 2 credit cards.

You know God's not going to take you through something like this without teaching you a valuable lesson. Maybe it's something you knew already but was just to stubborn to acknowledge it or do what needed to be done to put it to work.

We learned it is vitally important to live below your means. It's not demeaning to live this way,in fact it's refreshing. Give your tithes to the Lord and remain faithful to him. And it's so  important to save,you must save a portion of your income no matter what. Also up there as equally important is to get out and stay out of debt. We are working our way out of debt and are going to try to not accummulate any more stupid debt. The only debt we will aquire is a house. But that is more of an investment rather than just debt. We can do things to increase it's value making it an investment. With credit card debt and auto loans all that is done is paying and paying and paying some more,nothing you can do with this debt can make it into an investment. Its just wise to stear away from that kind of debt all together if at all possible.

We have a new understanding for money and debt and know how God intended for us to live. Instead of how we ended up living. It's freeing to give up what you really don't need,to imbrace the freedom of saving,paying of debt (dreaming of the day when it's all paid off) investing in your future and living below your means. I am loving our new life,I no longer feel the pressure of needing to get the best of things,I look at what I have now and think,this will do until we can SAVE up the money to get something else. We are now looking at buying used over buyng new. Good quality used furniture and things like that can last a very long time and cost much less than buying new. Our vehicles we are aiming to save for future cars not going out and getting into debt for one.

We are wiser and more equipt that before and we have the Lord to thank for teaching us the lessons that we would have never learned had my husband not been laid off. Sometimes we just don't understand the Lords plan for our lives but once he lays it out for you and your start taking the faith walk toward him he will bless your life like you would never be able to imagine. Give to God and he will give to you!

Happy Homemaking

MYO: Laundry Detergent

I know there are many versions for this but I wanted to share mine. So here goes...







What you will need....






1 five gallon bucket with lid


2 Cups borax


2 Cups washing soda


1/2 Cup baking soda


1/2 gallon white vinegar


1 bar of soap




grate your soap into a medium sized pan (I use the 6 to 8 qrt size),cover the soap with water and place on stove and melt over medium heat. Stir constantly to avoid it overflowing and making a big mess.


Once it is fully melted,add the borax and stir until completely dissolved (add water as needed),then add the washing soda and baking soda again stir until dissolved.


To the bucket add your vinegar and 4 C of hot water. Add your soap mixture to the bucket,it will fizz a bit adding it to the vinegar and water because of the baking soda. Stir and stir some more to make sure it's all well blended. Then fill the bucket up with hot water. Add the lid and wait 24 hours for it to set.


 1/2 cup per load.


I use baking soda and vinegar in my recipe because of the boosting power they provide. Vinegar kills germs and odors and is a natural stain fighter. Baking soda is a detergent booster making my recipe work harder and your clothes to come out very clean.




Happy Homemaking

Four Basic Rules of Frugal Living

I got this off the net once and I can't for the life of me remember where but it's a good list and worth sharing.

There are four basic rules of frugal living:



- Buy things cheap
- Make them last longer
- Use them less
- Turn them into something new


Beginning to live frugally won't exactly be hard, but it will take perserverence and determination.

Try these simple steps to get you started:
Look at Your Expenses .Scrutinize each and every purchase.


Think NEEDS vs WANTS.


Really think if you have to purchase this item.Is there something else you already have that could be substituted? Could the purchase be postponed?Keep track this month of EVERY purchase you make. Make sure you write down those small impulse purchases, such as snacks, drinks, magazines, and so on. They do add up!


CREDIT CARDS:


Quit using them


Except for extreme emergencies


You have to decide what these are for you. Maybe close all but one or two. You can close the account with a balance due.This keeps you from charging more, though you still have to keep paying the debt.


BUDGET:


Make one.


Sit down and figure how much you bring in each month, or year and divide by 12. This is what you have to save/spend each month.


Figure out what expenses you can not eliminate (rent or mortgage, electricity,
phone, food for example) and start eliminating the others.


Do you need cable, movies out every week, meals out every week, so many extracurricular activies for the kids? Start eliminating and cutting out or cutting down on those and use the extra money to pay off the debt. Really look at your grocery budget. This is almost always a place where improvement can be made. Shop the sales.

Make a Plan:
Figure out exactly how much you owe. Start paying the debts with the largest interest rate first, putting all extra money to those first, while making the minimum payments on the others.When the highest interest rate debt is eliminated put that money to the next highest interest rate debt. Most importantly is to keep in touch with your debtors with any payment problems you have. They would rather hear from you than assume you are skipping out on paying them altogether.


PLAN AHEAD.
Shop at thrift stores for next year's needs, stockpile things you always use, find
pantry space for good deals, think ahead for Christmas, etc.


Set a Monthly Goal:


How much money would you like to save this month?
How much do you NEED to save in order to start paying down those bills?
Review your goals with your spouse, and/or family members, to help get their support in reaching that goal.
Discuss with them the types of things that you can alter during the month to help you reach your goals.


Research/Learn:


Visit your local library and read every book, magazine, and newspaper articles you can
find about saving money, or do a search on the Web.


If you feel like you just have to buy something, buy these books -The Tightwad Gazette
books (a 3-book set) by Amy Dacyczyn, and Your Money or Your Life, by Joe Dominguez
and Vicki Robbins.


You can likely find them at the library, but for the long haul, I have found it helpful to
read and re-read them.


It is well worth the money, and you will spend countless hours reading helpful and fun
tips on living a frugal lifestyle.


The Envelope Budgeting SystemThis simple to use system is based on the Premise that all of your income gets allocated to one of three different budget categories.


1. Fixed ExpensesAre those which you have on a regular basis such as tithes, utilities, child care, mortgage, rent, credit, insurance and taxes, etc. These are considered fixed because you generally receive a bill for themand/or they are constant. The portion of your income that is designated to pay these expenses shouldbe put into your checking account each month.This is because you will most likely write checks to make these payments, and these funds will go in and out of your checking account quickly.


2. Savings Is the portion of your income that you should save each month for emergencies, short-term, long-term goals and retirement. These funds should be put directly into the saving and investment accounts that you have selected.


3. Non-fixed expenses Are all of the other things that you spend your money on such as groceries, entertainment, gifts, clothing, etc.


The amount you have available for these expenses is the difference between your net take home pay, fixed expenses and savings. Once you have decided how you want to allot this money, place cash into the various
envelopes.It sounds too good to be true, but it isn't. That's all there is to it-really!


If you have already done these sorts of things, and still don't have enough money to meet
more than the minimum, then you may need to consider more drastic measures, such as
trading down your car, selling something, moving to a less expensive neighborhood, orother.


General Frugal Tips


1) Instead of paying high prices for products that are easy to make, use these recipes to make them yourself: Make Your Own Products


2) Buy at thrift stores. A lot of nice clothes and kids toys can be found at those kinds of stores for a lot less than they would be at department stores. Keep your eye out for sales at your favorite stores too.



3) Buy gifts when you can get them cheap, not just when you need them. They might take up more room in your house, but it's better to get them on sale now, then to pay full price later!


4) Cancel all of your newspaper subscriptions and/or Cable TV.

You can get the news online and just buy the Sunday fliers for the money saving coupons
each week.


5) During the winter, wear sweaters and put sand snakes or small blankets near the doors to keep the cold drafts out. This will stop your heater from constantly being on, which can add up to a lot of money each month. Make sure you have plenty of warm blankets in your house and use them instead of cranking up your heater when you get cold.

6) During the summer, keep a pitcher of cold water in the fridge.You're family will be more likely to drink the cold water than the expensive juices, sodas, ice teas, and so on. Also make your own cool summer treats: posicles, smoothies, and slushies galore! :-)


7) If you use a dishwasher, make sure you fill it up all the way before you run it.
Don't bother wasting extra money for the dry-cycle....just leave the
door open when the dishwasher is done washing.


8) If you have extra Cola that is flat and needs to be thrown out, do not
pour it down the sink!Pour it down the toilet seat instead.
Swish it around with a toilet brush and watch how clean your toilet gets!


9) Recycle your jelly jars, baby food jars and any type of jar you find.
Turn them into mini-planters for growing herbs.
Many herbs are easy to grow yourself, and it will save you a lot of money from buying those pre-packaged herbs.


10) You can get furniture and other large household items you need much
cheaper by getting them at garage sales.
Any time a neighbor or someone in your town is having a garage sale, browse around and
look for other valuables too.
You might find something old, but still nice, and be able to sell it for much more.


11) Use a battery operated radio, a wind-up clock, and a manual can opener,
instead of paying for the electricity to use those items.
They are also good to have around the house just in case you lose electricity.


12) You really don't need a dryer.
Even if you live in the city, you can hang your clothes on a clothes line outside during the
summer, or even inside your house during the winter!
Not using the dryer at all, or not as frequently, can save quite a few dollars each month
on your electricity bill.


13) Get a bill consolidation loan at your bank.
It will likely save you a lot in interest, and reduce the bills to deal with.


14)Chop up your credit cards.
Maybe keep one, but keep it at your parents' house, or some other unhandy but safe spot.


15) Take your lunch to work/school, and break any latte/coffee shop/vending machine habits.


Think thermos.


Think sitting in the park.


16) Avoid fast food.
Cut down or cut out junk food.
Make your own substitutions if you must. Cookies, cakes, brownies, popcorn.




17) Go through a few recent grocery receipts and use a hi-liter to mark all the non-essential


(read "junk food" and "impulse buy") purchases you've made.
This was a mind-boggling revelation to me!
Those things I felt I just *had* to have when I was standing in the grocery store
just look like money poured down the drain in retrospect.
Terrible nutrition and poor value.
We still slip now and again, but I am more conscious about those sorts of purchases.


18) OAMC - this has saved me tremendous money on my food bills.

19) Grow your own garden.
Even if it's only a salad garden in containers, you can save quite a bit and have healthier
foods too.


20) Popcorn - Cheaper than chips and healthier too.
A great cheap snack.
Carmel corn is super too.


21) Cook with powdered milk:
It's SO easy to mix up a cup of milk when you need it, no one can tell you've used it when
you just cook with it, and it saves.
Not only is it cheaper than fresh milk, but it saves me trips to the stores (where I always
seem to buy more than just milk).


22) Make more things from scratch. I save a lot by making my own homemade
versions of many things - hot cocoa mix, fudgsicles, pancake syrup, choc syrup, salsa,
dried onion soup mix, etc. Many more things.

Happy Homemaking