A Thrifty Mom » My Family

Oh happy day…I have sheet-rock

A Thrifty Mom — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 19:01:47 +0000

When I last updated you on our remodel it looked like this….

Well I am happy to report that we now have a fully wired kitchen, with sheet-rock!

You have no idea how excited I am!!!

We still have to tape, mud, texture, paint, hang the cabinets, finish the floor the list goes on and on……. but I could not be happier with the progress we have made this week!

We have been doing this project in phases as we can afford it and as we have time. It is not the fastest or easiest way to remodel BUT as least it is paid for!

For example we put the island in, and used an old sheet of plywood as a counter top for months…yes it was ugly and not ideal. But it worked till we could afford the granite we really wanted.

That’s one HUGE Apricot Tree

A Thrifty Mom — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:02:54 +0000

I told you last week that our Apricot tree was ripe, and we have been enjoying the free falling fruit. The tree is over 30 years old and has not been pruned properly, so most the fruit is at the very top of the tree and almost impossible to reach. Thanks to my Dad we were able to harvest the fruit from the tree.

My sister Jessica was in town so she came with her kids to help too. Dad had this HUGE latter, and tied it to the top of the tree (with orange bailing twine, He is a Farmer and uses it for everything!) We were scared to death the limbs may break and he would come crashing down. Luckily it was only the fruit that fell, not Grandpa.

The kids had fun helping!

Look how much fruit we got!!!!!! Time to share with the neighbors and make Jam!

Thanks for your help Dad, Sure love ya!

Apricots are ready

A Thrifty Mom — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 18:04:03 +0000

Our new house has a huge old Apricot tree in the back yard. They are now ripe and rather delicious (much better than anything you can buy in the store) The only problem is the tree is huge and most the fruit is 30 feet in the air. So every day this week the kids run out and and see what has fallen, and try to get it before the squirrels, or birds.

It is rather fun to have free fruit falling in the back yard…. now if I could just teach those darn squirrels to leave them alone.

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 16:04:57 +0000

Little Matthew trying to apply his own Hair Gel, so he can be handsome like Daddy……….Just a LITTLE too much.,

My little helper…

A Thrifty Mom — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 20:00:17 +0000

I try VERY hard to not shop with my little ones. I love them, and love spending time with them….but shopping with children makes my brain whirl especially if I am trying to use coupons.

Saturday I ran into Winco really quick, and took my 5 year old Mckeely with me. She is such a good girl and I really enjoyed spending a few minutes with her one on one. She made me smile when she would see something she wanted, then ask, “Mommy do you have a coupon for this?” She knows that just because she wants it does not mean that she will get it.

This is something I struggle with a little bit, I want to make my kids happy and give them special treats, as a way to let them know I love them. BUT I also want to teach them gratitude, self control and just because you want something does not mean you can have it. It is often harder for me to tell them no…than to just get it. She asked if she could have cookies, I told her I would be happy to make some with her at home. I then asked her if she could help me pick out some fruit. We talked about what fruits and veggies were on sale this week. Then I let her pick them out, teaching her to look for bad spots, ripeness and then let her count them and bag them.

She was thrilled to be my helper, so proud that she picked out the peaches, nectarines, corn, grapes, and broccoli all by herself….she had forgotten all about the cookies. She was so excited to go tell Daddy what she did.

I share this with you because this is how I was raised. I often wanted things at the store that were not on my moms shopping list, was I a bit disappointed to not get everything that looked good to me…yes. But Mom taught me a greater lesson, when she did get a special treat we realized it was just that, something special. I only hope I can teach my kids the came lessons.

20 years ago Today

A Thrifty Mom — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 18:06:48 +0000

Each year I celebrate this day, and reflect on the things I have learned!

(My baby sister Amelia 9 months old, Sarah age 10)

On July 10 1990, I was only 10 years old and I was facing one of the biggest days of my life. I was going in for major head surgery, where my scalp would be totally pulled away from my skull, ear to ear and down to my neck. Half my skull would be taken off, and major repairs would be done to my head. The details are not important, but it was major surgery and it was very scary for my parents to have me be so sick.

Surgery went well, but recovery had major complications, my brain swelled I lost the ability to walk, speak, or control my body. As sick as I was, I had been taught by my parents that with faith in the Lord all things are possible. My little 10 year old spirit, had unwavering faith that my Heavenly Father could heal me. Sure enough I was healed and with time I was able to go home.

I was only 48 lbs, tiny and bald. As a little girl I had always loved my long dark brown hair, it was what made me pretty ( or at least I thought). I had to figure out how to face the world as a bald little girl. Even as a child it was very clear to me the concern and worry on peoples faces when they saw me. The kids at school were very curious as to where all my hair had gone. We all have moments or events in our lives that change us, or shape the person we are today. This was a life changing experience for me, I made the choice to smile and make people laugh. I knew they would be curious and looking at me, so I might was well make them smile too.

Out of that tiny 10 year old came the courage to face the world, I put on a brave face. Some days ended with my head held high, self confidant and ready for what ever new challenge came my way. Other days ended crying on my Mommy’s lap, wishing I could be “normal” and letting others harsh words eat away at me. The thing is that little 10 year old girl is still inside of me, If only I had the faith and courage I had back then. I enjoy facing most days with a smile and love making others laugh. But some days when life challenges seem a little more than I can handle, I see a glimpse of that tiny 48 lb girl who just wishes all life’s challenges would go away. But I have learned that some of the hardest things we do make us strong, and shape us into the person we are today. I am grateful for what they have taught me!

AHHHHHH!!!!!!

A Thrifty Mom — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 18:09:03 +0000

So in 20+ years of doing laundry ( yes I started doing laundry when I was 10) I have been lucky and never had a crayon end up in the dryer. Well my luck just came to an end…..and I have a very colorful load of purple, pink and red swirls all over my laundry. I was lucky that is was a load of the kids play clothes, so no huge loss.

I did hurry and toss them back into the washer, on a HOT soak, and about half the crayon came out. A few weeks ago my friend passed along a recipe for getting crayon out of clothes (click here for that post) but it cost about $30 in products. So I figured the play clothes were not worth the investment. Lets hope it is another 20 years before this happens again.

Any guesses on who’s crayons they were?

Dress Like a cow get a Free meal on 7/9

A Thrifty Mom — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:00:44 +0000

It is back again….Chick-fil-A restaurants are offering a FREE meal to their customers on July 9th, when you dress up as a cow. This is in honor of cow appreciation day. They even allow you to print off your own cow started kit, cow ears, nose, spots, tail and a sign that reads “eat mor chikin” We printed ours and the kid had a blast playing with them. Click here for your starter kit and for more details.

Photos from last year, (even though we do not have a chick-fil-A in our area) and the kids had a blast playing with them!

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:06:25 +0000

Another Fishing trip with the kids. This time we went to a pond in Idaho Falls that is stocked just for kids and we STILL did not catch anything. I think we may just have the worst fishing record ever. But we sure have lots of fun trying…. I guess that is the important part right? Little Matthew also learned what happens when you kick your shoe into the middle of the pond….(uggghhh)

Funnel Cakes….with Papa and Granny

A Thrifty Mom — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 20:48:09 +0000

So I am 30 years old and never had a Funnel cake, yes I have seen them at the fair, and heard everyone rant and rave about how good they are……but I have never been willing to pay the inflated $5 fee they charge for carnival food.

Matt’s parents have been making them at home since the 70’s, back in Rhode Island. They wanted to make them for the Grandkids this weekend. It was rather fun….cost pennies to make and the kids and I LOVED it.

Funnel Cakes

1 egg
2/3 cup milk
2 TBS Sugar
1 1/3 cups Sifted Flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 TBS baking powder

Beat egg, add milk, sift salt, sugar, flour and Baking powder together. Add eggs and milk. Beat until smooth. Pour batter into funnel. Funnel into oil that is 350 degrees (recipe makes 3 large funnel cakes)

You want to overlap the batter to create a “cake” that will form a solid shape that you can flip, to brown the other side.

Once both sides are golden brown, drain on paper towels and top with powdered sugar.

The outside has a great little crunch, and the inside is light a fluffy…..YUMMY!

Thanks Granny and Papa these were great!

I Spy …with a twist

A Thrifty Mom — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 20:41:18 +0000

Little Matthew is out of school for the summer and getting a little bored. So I have been trying to come up with new fun ways for him to learn. One of our favorite games is I Spy with the newspaper ads.

I ask him questions like:

I spy something you would eat on a hot day……
I spy a yellow fruit….
I spy the number that comes after 9….
I spy the letter p….
I spy something you use to wash your clothes

He then looks for the items in the newspaper ads, cuts them out and glues them to a paper. He loves this game, and it is something he will actually do for awhile (he has an attention span of about 2 mins).

What fun games or ideas are you doing this summer with your kids?

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 19:04:28 +0000

No need for a fly swatter…. my 8 year old loves to catch them and play with them…yuck! But he thinks it is the best thing on earth!!!

Just give my kids a pile of dirt….

A Thrifty Mom — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 18:22:23 +0000

Sometimes I feel like getting my kids ready is like trying to herd cats…they all go in different directions, ( if you are a mom you know what I am talking about) Anyway the other day I had the kids ready to go, I asked them to wait in the front yard while I ran upstairs to grab Maverics blanket (which takes all of about 30 seconds)

In that time they popped their shoes off, plopped down and were happily digging in the empty flower bed. Happy as can be, making a mess of their clothes, hands and feet. So what did I do? Well I wanted to scream…but instead I took a photo ( so some day when I am old, I can remember how cute they were) dusted them off and off to the park we went…looking like a bunch of dirty hillbilly’s! At least “I” know they were clean before we walked out the door!

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 17:01:10 +0000

“Mommy the chips bit me”

Well at least I didn’t forget the baby……

A Thrifty Mom — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 00:00:47 +0000

So after doing the Albertsons match ups last night I was beside myself excited about getting FREE butter and FREE sour cream ( click here for all the details) I was going to wake up and go at 6am before Matt went to work….but that didn’t happen. You all know I try REALLY hard to never shop with my kids because it is just to hard. But I decided to go ahead and get them all dressed cute and head into town with 4 little ones.

It is like a three ring circus getting them all ready, brush your hair, brush your teeth, blow your nose, wash your face, put your pants on the the right way WHERE ARE YOUR SHOES!!!, turn your shirt around it is inside out, great you found your shoes but they are on the wrong feet, No you can’t wear that you look crazy, what why did you poop…time for another diaper change,…..(sound familiar?)

I finally had them all ready to go, when I ran to get a quick shower. Remember the Marsh mellows I bought last night…well they found them and were covered in a sticky white mess. AHHHH at that point I just gave up, sat them down for lunch (which they did not want to eat because they were full of marsh mellows) and put the baby down for a nap. I gave myself a few hours to “re-group”, get them in clean clothes and try it again.

I got them all loaded into the car, got to Albertsons only to realize I forgot my coupon binder at home.…..good grief!!!! But I went ahead and went inside to show all the cashiers little Maveric being that this was his first coupon trip with Mommy. I see the cashiers often so they feel like my friends, they were all pretty excited to see him as well. We got the kids a free cookie at the bakery, then went home. Feeling a bit overwhelmed, nothing like a wasted trip. I will try to head in late tonight once Matt is home from work. But hey at least it was my coupon binder I forgot ….not the baby!

Maveric, had a great trip…he slept the whole time!

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 20:09:49 +0000

“Mom I got it!!!”

For a little girl who is scared to death of any bug ( even tiny little ants) this was a bold move to smash the fly with her sisters shoe, (she did not want to use her own)…..she came running in with a grin ear to ear, Mommy I got it!!!

Happy Memorial Day

A Thrifty Mom — Mon, 31 May 2010 17:08:50 +0000

This Saturday I had my heart set of tackling our cluttered garage, and getting it nice and clean. But when my 5 year old Mckeely asked me what Memorial Day is… I was I realized I needed to take that moment to teach my children what Memorial day is and why we are so blessed to live in America.

Both of my Grandpas were in the Military, and severed our country in times of War. My Dads parents have both passed away, as well as my Moms Dad. But I am blessed to still have my Grandma Callahan. So Matt and I loaded up the kids, and went on a little road trip. We talked to them about their Great Grandparents and what Memorial day means. We bought them little flags, and flowers for Grandma, and for Grandpas grave.

Grandma was happy to see us, and she pulled out some old photos of Grandpa in his uniform, (he sure was handsome) and told my kids a few stories when he was in the service. I invited my parents to come as well, so they could share stories and memories. It turned out to be a wonderful day.

I think I need to make sure we do this every year, it was a great way to teach my kids,and remember those I love!

Isn’t my Grandma cute…she is one of the spunkiest Grandmas you will ever meet!

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 26 May 2010 19:05:17 +0000

It snowed last week, when we were in Idaho Falls….yes it is May and it is snowing????

Wordless Wednesday

A Thrifty Mom — Wed, 19 May 2010 19:08:30 +0000

Little Maveric is starting to smile!

I NEED some Ice cream…..

A Thrifty Mom — Tue, 11 May 2010 20:50:02 +0000

Yesterday we did not have any water, which means no toilets. So I went to Albertsons to use the restroom. But while I was there I thought “it has been a long day, and I NEED some icecream”

Sale price ends tonight. Before coupons or sale this would have cost $23.36

I was able to get them all for $11.86

But after I paid I got back a $4 catalina and a $1.50 catalina

For all the details of this promo click here

If you have been reading my blog, you know that we have been remodeling our home ( the last 5 months) It is one huge project after another. We are doing the work ourselves in an effort to save money. But that means it also takes lots of time….. This week all the plumbing in our house had to be replaced. We hired our neighbor, who is a plumber to come do part of it. But I can say I was not quite ready for what it really meant to have all the pluming redone. We have found lots of rotten floors, water damage, the list goes on and on.

This is a photo of my Kitchen…now totally open to the garage. The Door had to be moved to allow more space for the new cabinets.

This is just one of the three bathrooms, that have been gutted down to the studs. At least this one still has a toilet.

This would be my master bathroom….or well WAS my mater bathroom.

So as you can see we have lots or work ahead of us still. Living in a remodel is not real fun, In-fact some days it is a little hard to remember that it will be well worth it in the end.

Our toilets are working finally but, we do not have working sinks or tubs yesterday or today. Guess who got the stomach flu……yes our little Maleeya was up all night. Cleaning up throw up with no running water is NOT fun. Ahh the ups and downs of everyday life, But I have to say it is a great life and the bad days make the good ones seem that much brighter.