Journal of a Busy Mom

living one day at a time

Four Seasons of Christmas

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Merry Christmas!

Today starts the 2018 Advent. I have purchased 3 chocolate Advent calendars per the request of my daughter. We will start eating our one piece of chocolate today.

I will put out our Christmas Advent Candles for Sunday, the first day of the Christian Advent which is the four Sundays leading up to Christmas Day. I posted about this tradition here.

Today though, is about reflection. I was reading my devotional, the Finishing Touch by  Charles R. Swindoll.  I have had this devotional for years, decades even. I picked it up a few weeks ago and decided to finish off the year reading his daily devotional. Yesterday, he suggested something I have never considered.

He said there are four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas why not spend each of those weeks reflecting on the four seasons leading to Christmas. Starting with Spring, then Summer, Fall and Winter one should reflect on the blessings of the year. This seems like a New Years type of activity, but he makes a good point about why Thanksgiving is right before Christmas. He says, it is good to start the season being Thankful so that Christmas isn’t lost in the hustle and bustle. If each week we stop and consider the blessings of each season, we will come to the Manager with so much more thankfulness.

So, I decided to look through my Photos starting with March and found 10 things to be thankful for that happened this Spring:

1) My daughter was baptized in March. This was her own step of faith, as directed in the Bible. It was a beautiful ceremony.

2) Same daughter, received her Certificate of Merit for her piano playing. A great reward for all her hard work.

3) My son passed Level 10 in the Barton Reading and Spelling Program. He started this program in fifth grade when we found out he had dyslexia. This year he was finishing ninth. He did it! I did it without killing him or myself!!!

4) We had a wonderful trip to Hershey, PA, Philadelphia, PA, Gettsburg, PA, and Georgetown, KY. This trip was a result of a homeschool assignment. My daughter was assigned to read a biography and she chose Milton Hershey. After reading this book, she expressed her desire to visit the town he created. We wanted to take a vacation, but really had no destination in mind so we decided to take this mini cross country road trip.

5) We got to see the college my daughter will attend next year. It is a small private college called Georgetown College in Kentucky.

6)My son got to visit his best friend in Kentucky.

7) We saw the amazing Ark Encounter in Kentucky.

8) I ran a 5k with my sister. That was amazing! It challenged me. I have done one more after that.

9) My daughter graduated from homeschooling! It was a blessing to be able to graduate her.

10) My son and husband found out they have SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth). (a blessing and a curse)

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised at all the wonderful memories of the spring.

Next week, I will focus on Summer 2018.

 

Ligia

 

Pantry Challenge Prep

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I haven’t done a pantry challenge in a long time. If you have never done a pantry challenge, its quite helpful not only for your budget but also for emptying all the stuff that might go bad.  In a nutshell, a pantry challenge consists of planning meals around what you have in your pantry (and fridge and freezer) and only spending a little money on perishables.

I just printed out some things to help me for the next weeks as I am trying to do this for at least 2 weeks.

Here they are:

An “ingredients on hand list” from Money Saving Mom. She uses it for freezer cooking, but I like it for my pantry challenge

Next, I downloaded two freezer inventories. I tend to forget what meals and meats I have in the freezer. I am hoping this will help.

What’s in the Freezer   by Polished Habitat

Freezer Inventory by Beauty and Bedlam

I am hoping to survive until end of March on this pantry challenge. Wish me luck

Ligia

No Spend Month: See the Finish Line

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This month has been a No Spend Month (with my own modifications). For example, we did eat out unlike some families that choose not to. We could have saved another $350, so that’s a bummer but it kept my kids from going nuts. We didn’t go to the movies or go to any “expensive” restaurants like BJ’s.  We tried to have $30 and under meals which ended up being In and Out and our cheap local taqueria.

I am really excited about the amount of money I saved on groceries. I spent $408. I budgeted $550. Our normal monthly budget is $750. I spent a little more than half but I also included  a Labor Day party and a few extra things I had not planned to buy but they were on sale- super sale.

I am really going to try and implement the NO Spend Weekend each month and a Pantry Challenge at the end of month. Perhaps I can replicate some of these savings throughout the year.

I will report my actual savings at the end of the month.

Ligia