Tommarow is the big day!

Well tommorow is the big day that we have been waiting on for what seems like forever . Tommarow morning at approximately 7:30 am this little guy that has been practicing his black belt moves in my belly for the last 9 months will join our family . I can not tell you how excited we are as a family, the kids have been asking for months when the baby is coming out of my tummy . I can't wait to see what he looks like , who he favors the most, how much hair he has and most of all what God has planned for him . I am a true believer in the fact that none of us are here by accident , and each and every one of us has a purpose and was planned by God before the world began .  God has big plans for him, as he does my other children and I love that I get to be a part of it .

Jeremiah 1:5  "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

This has been by far  the easiest pregnancy of all four . Yes I had gestational diabetes for almost the entire pregnancy , but for me that is just part of it . I have had that with every pregnancy so I have learned what I can and can't eat , and how to manage it and it's not really a big deal to me .Other than that it has been a fairly uncomplicated, normal pregnancy .

With my last pregnancy with Andrew the last month or so was a complete nightmare . I had a doctor who didn't care , and told me not to go to the hospital if  I thought something was wrong after I had gone twice and it being nothing . He didn't check on me after my c-section and paid me absolutley not attention to me the two days I was in the hospital or after .  I swelled horribly, to the point I gained 5 pounds of fluid per day a total of almost 60 pounds in water weight by the time the pregnancy was over . I had to practically beg the doctor at 37 weeks to do my c-sections early and I had a 10 pound 6 ounce baby boy . It was quite a scary ordeal, thank the Lord everyone ended up doing just fine . The doctor had delivered my other two children and had been a great doctor through both of my other pregnancies , or so I thought . I still have no idea what happened as to why he suddenly didn't care . With this pregnancy there was no question we were switching doctors . We decided to go with a doctor that a friend highly recommended , Dr. Caroline Felty at Village Center for Women in Greer . I am so glad we did. Talk about a completley different experience , Dr. Felty is so proactive and is so on top of everything. She is genuinely concerned with you, your feelings and how you are doing . I went to the doctor much more often, had several test done that I had never had done before. She couldn't believe that  I had never had a non stress test after 3 c-sections and 3 pregnancies with gestational diabetes . I have learned so much since becoming her patient, such as the insulin regiment that my former doctor had me on was pretty much useless .  It would only keep my blood sugar down for a couple of hours and then it would skyrocket . I would get good blood sugar readings when I tested but it was after that 2 hours that it would go through the roof . He was my doctor and I trusted him , and just did as I was told .  It was almost like he wanted me to have big babies , so I would have to have a c-section . He would make more money that way . So I am so grateful that we chose Dr. Felty . I have stayed pregnant this time longer than I ever have before , I will be 39 weeks tommarow . The longest I have ever been pregnant before this is 38 weeks and 2 days . I always had to be delivered early because of high blood pressure and with my first I had preeclampsia . This time it appears that I will be having a much smaller baby, somewhere around 8-9 pounds.

My one and only concern as far as the c-section is concerned is the anesthesia . The surgery and recovery really doesn't bother me ,  a needle being stuck in my spine however does . When I was having Jackson it took 9 tries to get my spinal in . At the time we didn't know all the back problems that I had , I just knew I was in alot of pain . Finally on the 9th try they were able to get it in place . I have nightmares about having a spinal .  Two months after Jackson was born we found out that I had a ruptured disc , along with two bulging discs and degenerative disc disease in my low back . I had back surgery on February 18th 2010 and it was the best thing I ever did . I got my life back because I couldn't function before my surgery . With Andrew's delivery it took one try and it worked . Please be praying that all goes well , and that it will only take one try this time around .
  We have been so blessed this time around , with a good doctor , a healthy pregnancy , a healthy baby boy and just overall a great experience . I can't wait until tommarow morning . We are all so excited , and can't wait for there to be another member in our family to join in the organized chaos .

Our Monthly Menu

When I was writing out of menu for the month of October/November I had asked friends on Facebook, as well as non facebook friends for different meal ideas because I was coming up with nothing. A few friends gave me ideas, but also wanted to know what I had come up with. At the time I had pretty much nothing planned but I promised that I would share once I got the month figured out.

So here it goes. I ended up buying about 47 days worth of meals, only 45 which were orignally planned. When I got to the store I thought of a couple other easy pop in the oven type meals so we ended up with 47 instead of 45 . I bought extra because I'm currently almost 33 weeks pregnant, and I know next month shopping is the last thing this pregnant Mama is going to want to do just weeks possibly days before D-Day . There are a  lot of crockpot recipes, soups, and simple meals along with some larger meals. I'm trying to make things easy because with all the doctors appointments things are starting to get crazy. I hope that these will give you some ideas , I'm also including the recipes. It will either be by a link or my own personal recipe typed out. Hope you enjoy :)

1. Cheesy Potato and Smoke Sausage Casserole http://www.food.com/recipe/joleans-cheese-potato-smoked-sausage-casserole-126623

2. Creamy Crock Pot Chicken and Broccoli over Rice http://clippingmoney.blogspot.com/2012/07/crock-pot-cheesy-chicken-brocolli-over.html

3. Taco Soup   1 pound of ground turkey browned , 2 cans of diced tomatoes , can of corn , small can of green chiles , 1/2 cup of onion diced, 1 green pepper diced, 1 can of kidney beans, 1 can of chili beans, 1 package ranch dressing mix, 1 package of taco seasoning. Brown the meat, onions and green peppers in skillet. Drain off the grease. Add in taco seasoning mix. Put all other ingredients in large pot. Add in meat. Cook on low until all vegetables are cooked well (about 3 hours) Serve with Tortilla chips.

4. Creamy White Chicken Enchiladas and broccoli and cheese rice a roni. http://foodfamilyfinds.com/recipe-easy-and-creamy-white-chicken-enchiladas/

5. Baked Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken , boiled sweet potatoes , green beans http://www.daydreamkitchen.com/2012/08/baked-garlic-brown-sugar-chicken/

6.Cheesy Vegetable Chowder http://luluthebaker.blogspot.com/2011/09/cheesy-vegetable-chowder.html

7.Simple Crockpot chicken over Mashed Potatoes and green beans http://www.food.com/recipe/simple-crock-pot-chicken-167491

8. Baked Tacos http://blogchef.net/baked-tacos-recipe/

9. Shepards Pie Brown one pound of ground turkey or beef with 1/2 cup of diced onion . When done drain and put in 13 by 9 casserole dish . Add in one can of tomato soup and a bag of frozen mixed vegetables. Mix together well. Top with Mashed potatoes . bake at 350 for 45 minutes. top with shredded cheddar cheese, let cheese melt and serve .

10. Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes , Bacon http://minimalistbaker.com/chocolate-chip-oatmeal-cookie-pancakes/ I use regular eggs instead of the flax egg , regular butter , regular milk , and regular flour . I have to double this recipe to make enough for our family .

11. Spicy Nacho Bake http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Spicy-Nacho-Bake This a double batch of the recipe I use , just cut in half and it's usually plenty for our family . This is recipe my kids and husband LOVE

12.Chicken and Cornmeal Dumplings http://www.diabeticlivingonline.com/recipe/chicken/chicken-and-cornmeal-dumplings/

13. Chicken and Bacon Pasta, Salad and Breadsticks https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7jT4A_yw5ErUhYdCGL0UpJdEvfb0bu9cv4gJ6AVQb-HK0msjOVC295ZdFMDH8WFlPXazWibcRAvmHYG7wOR9i44CnRqNZt_HZmeUo1PSbfT9crdtQqc_L952yndCfKytz7jwIvvW8PmgG/s1600/IMG_6388.JPG

14. Sausage Breakfast Pizza http://jimmydean.com/recipes/sausage-breakfast-pizza.aspx

15. Crock pot Baked Spaghetti http://heidisnest.blogspot.com/2012/01/crockpot-baked-spaghetti.html

16. Baked Pork Chops, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Carrots http://www.campbellskitchen.com/Recipes/RecipeDetails.aspx?recipeId=25459

17. Crock pot Chicken and Stuffing, Green beans http://team-t-adventures.blogspot.com/2010/01/easy-crockpot-chicken-stuffing.html

18. Eggs, Bacon, Diced Potatoes, Biscuits and applebutter

19. Tomato Soup, Grilled Cheese

20. Vegetable Soup over top of Mashed Potatoes

21. Ham and Cheese Rollups, Macaroni and Cheese, Green beans http://www.pillsbury.com/recipes/ham-and-cheese-crescent-roll-ups/fa391d2f-a05e-4184-a593-b1fc2fc315cf

22. Pork Chops and Stuffing Bake, carrots http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pork-chops--stuffing-bake/
I just use stove top rather than the pepperidge farm stuffing.

23. Easy Chicken Pot Pie http://www.recipe.com/easy-chicken-pot-pie-1/

24.Chili and Cinnamon Rolls. The recipe that I use is my Mom's recipes. Anyone that trys it loves it. First brown 1 pound of ground turkey or beef. I use turkey. Add in 1/2 an onion diced, 1 green pepper diced, and about a cup of 1 cup of celery diced. Season with chili powder, salt, pepper and garlic salt. Once meat is done drain and put in large pot. Add in two cans of tomato soup, 2 cans of diced tomatoes, and 2 cans of chili beans. Cook until veggies are done. I do cinnamon rolls with it because growing up my tiny little elementary school always served cinnamon rolls with there chili. Now eating Chili without cinnamon rolls just doesn't seem right.

25. Hot Dogs, Baked Beans and homemade potato wedges

26. Tater Tot Casserole http://www.duggarfamily.com/content/duggar_recipes/30458/duggar_s_tater_tot_casserole
I just cut this recipe in half.

27. Basic breakfast potatoes with ground sausage and eggs http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/04/basic-breakfast-potatoes/ I just add in some cooked ground sausage and scramble some eggs in with it.

28. Homemade Pizza

29. Lasngna and Garlic Bread http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/simply-lasagna-69196.aspx

30. Italian Chicken, Sweet Potato Casserole, Green beans. This is how I make my italian chicken. I let it set out and thaw, then I tenderize it and pour italian dressing overtop and let it marinate in that all day long. Then I bread it with pepperidge farm italian bread crumbs and fry it in just a little bit of oil until golden brown.  I will link to a recipe similar to recipe for the sweet potato casserole.http://southernfood.about.com/od/sidedishcasseroles/r/bl90911u.htm

31.Salisbury Steak, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Corn http://www.mommyskitchen.net/2010/04/salisbury-steak-now-i-have-two-great.html

32. Tenderloin Sandwiches, Slow baked Macaroni and Cheese, Green beans. To make tenderloins you will need boneless pork chops. Tenderize until very thin. Then dip meat in egg and then in crushed up ritz or saltine crackers. Fry in a little oil until golden brown on each side. Serve as sandwiches. Here is a link to the slow baked macaroni and cheese. http://whiskandaprayer.blogspot.com/2010/08/magazinecookbook-monday-slow-baked-mac.html

33. Baked Pork Chops, Stuffed Baked Potatoes. I just salt, pepper and garlic salt the pork chops and bake for about 10 minutes, flip and bake another 10 minutes or so until done. The baked potatoes I bake for about an hour, then take out the potato part and mix in broccoli and cheese (i use the green giant cheese and broccoli packs) Put back in potato top with shredded cheese and bacon bits.

34. Ham and bean soup, Cornbread http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com/2009/04/ham-white-bean-soup.html

35. Homemade Chicken Subs, homemade potato wedges and fruit salad
1 jar of pears, 1 jar of peaches mixed with cherry pie filling

36.Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Carrotts. To make my meatloaf first take 2 pounds of ground beef, add in 1 egg, 1 sleeve of crushed saltine crackers, 1/2 cup of onion diced, 1/2 cup of green pepper diced, about 1/2 cup of salsa (maybe a little less, I never measure I just pour.)Mix ingredients with hands. Put in loaf pan or shape into the shape of a loaf and bake at 350 for 1 hour or until done.

37. Blueberry Pancakes, Sausage I use Jiffy Muffin mix to make my blueberry pancakes. There is directions on the back of the box to make pancakes.

38. English Muffin Pizzas. Simple as it sounds, pizzas made on top of english muffins.

39. Baked Ham, Scalloped Potatoes, and green beans

40. Homemade Pizza

41. Frozen Pot Pies for the nights I don't want to cook.

42. Frozen Pizzas, another no cooking night choice.

43. Hamburgers, French Fries, Baked Beans

44. Chicken Noodle Soup The easiest prep ever, just open the can :)

45. Waffles and Sausage


Desserts

1. Peach Crisp http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Peach-Crisp

2.Candy Corn Crunch http://scrambledhenfruit.blogspot.com/2010/10/candy-corn-cookie-crunch.html

3. Monkey Squares http://www.the-girl-who-ate-everything.com/2010/06/monkey-squares.html

4. Snickers Apple Salad http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2011/08/snickers-salada-potluck-pleaser.html

5. Pretzel Cookies http://sugarcooking.blogspot.com/2010/07/pretzel-cookies-with-chocolate-peanut.html

6. Peanut Butter Balls

Make it stretch, one month at a time part 2

As I said before it usually takes me several days to menu plan , and make a grocery list . This month however didn't take as long for whatever reason . I did inventory , menu planning and my grocery list all in two days . When I went through everything I realized I had quite a bit to work with, but my meat stock was getting low . So instead of buying only one meat a month I ended up buying ground beef , chicken , ground turkey , ground sausage and pork . Still I did pretty good given that I had to buy more than usual . I was able to come up with quite a few meals for the month of August and beginning of September and I really didn't spend a whole lot . I ended up with 36 days worth of meals .
This is how our menu plays out this month . I also included the cost per serving, how many servings , cost for the whole meal, and the amount that I paid minus the veggies , and any other ingredients that I may have already had (just to show how much a garden and using what you have can cut down on meal prices) , and if I can the recipe because I know I'm always looking for new recipes and to show what we eat on such a small food budget . If you would like any of the recipes that aren't listed feel free to ask .

Week 1

1 .Skillet Macaroni and Cheese- This recipe can be found here : http://www.momswhothink.com/quick-and-easy-dinner-recipes/skillet-chicken-mac-and-cheese-.htm

cost for the meal : 6.85 What I paid : 4.70 Cost Per Serving . This usually makes 6-8 servings but I usually add more macaroni . 

2 . Vegetable Beef Soup over Mashed Potatoes : The recipe can be found here : http://www.food.com/recipe/old-fashioned-vegetable-beef-soup-58901

I tripled this recipe, and leftovers will be divided up and frozen for future use .

cost for the meal : 10.78 What I paid : 7.28 Cost per serving . 35  There is usually about 6-7 servings per batch .

3 . Taco's- Cost for the meal : 4.86 What I paid : 3.21 Cost per serving : .53. There is usually about 11-13 servings which usually leaves extra's . I will use ground turkey instead of ground beef which usually keep the price down and you can't tell a difference . I also sometimes mix a little rice in with the meat to make it stretch farther . I have also heard oatmeal works very well too .

4 . Breakfast Burritos- Cost for the meal : 7.23 What I paid : 3.97 Cost per serving : . 66 This usually makes about 8 burritos which is MORE than plenty . Usually there are leftovers for breakfast the next day .

5 . Goulash, Garlic Bread, and Salad- Cost for the meal: 7.03 What I paid: 2.54 Cost per serving: .42 There are usually about 7-8 servings. Usually there are plenty of leftovers with this. I use ground turkey with this as well.

6 . Pepperoni Pizza Quesadilla's , Salad- Cost for the meal : 5.38 What I paid : 0.00 this was leftover from last month's menu . Cost per serving : .57 This usually makes 5 quesadillas that I quarter. It's usually more that enough for us . 

7 . Fish Sandwiches , Corn on the Cob , Sweet Potato French Fries- Cost of the meal: 5.86 What I paid: 4.87 Cost per serving: .81 I usually make enough for 6 servings . 

Week 2

1 . Tenderloin Sandwiches , Homemade Macaroni and Cheese , Green beans , squash and zucchini - Cost for the meal : 7.10 What I paid : 4.85 Cost per serving : .80 This usually makes about 6-7 servings . There is always leftover macaroni for lunch the next day or dinner later .

2 . Homemade Chicken Pot Pie- Cost for the meal : 3.96 What I paid : 2.91 Cost per serving : .48 There are usually 6-7 servings in this recipe .

3 . Pumpkin Pancakes , Sausage Links- Cost for the meal : 3.26 What I paid: 0.00 because I already had everything . Cost per serving : .46 if I had to buy it . There is usually about 7-8 servings of two pancakes a piece,  leaving leftovers for the next days breakfast .

4 . Mexican Cornbread- Cost for the meal : 4.53 What I paid : 0.00 because I already had everything. Cost per serving: .41 if I had to buy it . There are usually about 10-11 servings in this . I always have leftovers .

5 . Aunt Sue's Potato Soup-Cost for the meal : 3.28 What I paid 0.00 because I had everything . Cost per serving : .19 This is a double batch , so it makes about 14-16 servings for a double batch . I always freeze the leftovers and use them later .

6 . Homemade Pizza and Salad-  Here is the recipe I use for my pizza crust :http://trickschefs.com/showthread.php?tid=1177  Cost for the meal 2.43 What I paid : 2.00 Cost per serving : .33 There is usually about 6 servings in this . 

7 . Cheesy Chicken and Rice Bake -This recipe can be found here : http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/main-courses/cheesy-chicken-and-rice-bake/  Cost for this meal : 4.92 What I paid 3.05 Cost per serving: .38 This usually makes about 8 servings .

Week 3
1 . Chicken Stuffing Skillet- Cost for the meal : 5.27 What I paid : 4.07 Cost per Serving : .67 There are usually about 6 servings .

2 . Oatmeal Pancakes , Sausage Links . This recipe can be found here : http://duggarfamily.com/content/duggar_recipes/30467/oatmeal_pancakes

Cost for this meal :  3.58 What I paid : 2.54 Cost per serving: .36 This recipe usually makes about 7-8 servings .

3 . Tuna Noodle Casserole-This recipe can be found here :  http://www.campbellskitchen.com/recipedetail.aspx?recipeId=24254
Cost for this meal: 3.98 What I paid: 2.18 Cost per serving : .36 This recipe usually makes 6-7 servings . I do not use the pimentos that the recipe recommends . I also use the Aldi 's brand cream of mushroom soup rather than Campbell's .

4 . Homemade Salisbury Steak , Mashed Potatoes and Gravy , Peas and Carrotts- This recipe can be found here : http://www.food.com/recipe/the-very-best-salisbury-steak-56694 This isn't the exact recipe that I use but it's very close . I add in mushrooms and I use dry onion soup mix rather than the actual soup. Cost of this meal: 5.92 , What I paid: 4.02 , Cost per serving : . 57 This makes about 6 salisbury steaks.

5 . Chimichangas, Salad -Cost for this meal : 7.60 What I paid : 5.60 Cost per serving : .80 This usually makes about 8 chimichangas and usually leaves leftover meat . I use ground turkey with this as well.

6 . Ham and Bean Soup , Homemade Cornbread-http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com/2009/04/ham-white-bean-soup.html  Cost for this meal : 4.39 What  I paid : 0.00 I had all the ingredients already. Cost per serving: .43 This is a double batch and total makes about 10 servings . The leftovers will be frozen for future meals . This recipe is very close to what I use. I don't use the leeks, or the bay leaf. Here is my cornbread recipe as well . This is the best cornbread ever : http://allrecipes.com/recipe/golden-sweet-cornbread/

7 . Homemade Pizza, Salad- Cost for this meal : 2.43 I paid 2.00 Cost per serving : . 33 There is about 6 servings in this recipe .


Week 4
1 . Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff- You can find this recipe here : http://www.campbellskitchen.com/RecipeDetail.aspx?recipeId=50426&ref=%2fSearchRecipeTypeResult.aspx%3fRecipeTypeSearchId%3d5%2c96%2c356%26page%3d13  Cost of this meal : 4.75 What I paid : 4.08 Cost per serving : .59 Makes 8 servings . I use ground beef instead of the steak suggested in the recipe .

2 . Ham and Cheese Sliders , Chilled broccoli and cauliflower salad , Potato Salad- The recipe can be found here : http://4peatssake.wordpress.com/2011/08/17/ham-and-cheese-sliders/ Cost of this meal : 7.87 What I paid : 6.45 Cost per serving : . 53 This makes 12 servings . I am not planning on making the poppy seed topping .

3 . Lasagna, Salad and Garlic Bread-This recipe can be found here : http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/simply-lasagna-69196.aspx Cost of this meal : 8.31 What I paid : 5.56 Cost per serving : . 69 This makes about 8 servings .

4 . BLT's and Fruit Salad- Cost of this meal : 3.51 What I paid : 2.31 Cost Per serving: . 46 I make enough for 5 servings .

5 . Scrambled , Eggs , Fruit Salad , Homemade Banana Bread-Cost of this meal : 3.83 What I paid : 1.98 Cost per serving: .39 This makes 5 servings .

6 . Hamburgers, French Fries, Onion Rings, Baked Beans- Cost of this meal : 7.33 What I paid : 6.23 Cost per serving : 1.05 This makes 6 servings with leftover french fries and onion rings .

7 . Barbeque Pork Chops, Corn on the Cob, Potato Salad- This recipe can be found here :http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/barbecue-pork-chops/ac2e0742-663a-485c-a938-e9feb96786c8
Cost of this meal : 5.77 What I paid : 2.99 Cost per serving : .49 This makes 6 servings .

Week 5

1 . Crescent Chicken , Mashed Potatoes and Gravy , Carrotts and Green beans- The recipe can be found here : http://comfyinthekitchen.com/2011/02/crescent-chicken/  Cost of this meal : 6.94 What I paid : 4.74 Cost per servings : . 79 This makes about 6 servings .

2 . Barbeque Sandwiches , Baked Beans , Potato Salad and Chips- This recipe can be found here : http://allrecipes.com/recipe/slow-cooker-pulled-pork/ Cost of this meal : 9.59 What I paid : . 39 this was leftovers from a pervious meal . Cost per serving : . 39 This makes about 10 sandwiches .

3 . Fried Chicken , Zucchini Casserole , Green beans- Cost for this meal : 5.11 What I paid : 3.96 Cost per serving : .66 This makes about 6 servings with leftovers of the Zucchini casserole .

4 . Honey Chicken and Fried Rice- This recipe can be found here : http://www.yourlifechoices.com.au/news/honey-chicken  Cost of this meal: 5.60 What I paid: 4.25 Cost per servings : .70 This makes about 6-7 servings.

5 . Sausage and Egg Crescent Ring- This recipe can be found here : http://www.navywifecook.com/search/label/Crescent%20Rolls Cost of this meal : 5.55 What I paid : 4.89 Cost per serving: . 81 This makes about 6-7 servings . I usually double this recipe .

6 . Blueberry Breakfast Cake , Eggs- This recipe can be found here : http://www.alexandracooks.com/2011/06/29/buttermilk-blueberry-breakfast-cake/ Cost of this meal : 3.06 What I paid : 2. 26 Cost per serving : . 32 This makes about 7 servings .

7 . Homemade Sloppy Joes , Potato Salad , Baked Beans and Chips- Cost for this meal : 4.35 What I paid: 3.35 Cost per serving: .47 This makes about 7 servings with leftovers of the Sloppy Joes

Deserts for the Month
1 . Homemade Peach Crisp
2 . Apple Salad http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1743,144173-248201,00.html
3 . Applesauce Cake http://chicagoist.com/2008/01/21/eating_in_guilt.php
4 . Reese Krispies http://www.ohsweetbasil.com/2011/11/reeses-krispies.html
5 . Strawberry Jello Cake

After all was said and done I ended up with 41 pounds of meat , lot baking necessities like flour , baking powder , pepper , and yeast , a few vegetables , a few house cleaning necessities like windex , fabric softner , tooth paste , deodorant , paper towels , a loaf of bread,  2 cases of poweraide , a gallon of milk , 2 bottles of juice , some cheese , several canned goods , and snacks for my kids .

The total  damage done was :
Wal-Mart: 120.43
Alid's 85 .62
Total : 206 .05
Money saved just by shopping at Alid's 26 .45

I will still have to make a couple trips to the store this month for bread , milk and produce . We usually go through about 2 gallons of milk , 1 large bottle of juice and 1-2 loaves of bread a week . It usually ends up to be about 10.00-15.00 or so spent every week . The month's total should be around 250-260 .

This picture doesn't show all of it . There are 2 cases of Poweraide , a gallon of milk , a 6 pack of protein drinks, a 12 pack of diet soda . You also can't see the food piled on the two chairs towards the back . Things were piled up , and the table was full .

I hope this can help others to live more cheaply, and to give you some ideas for meals . It really doesn't cost of fortune to feed a family well, large or small . It just may take a lot of planning and more time to prepare than something you can just pop in the oven or the microwave .

Making it stretch, one month at a time

Over the past year or two I have been asked by several friends and family on how we can afford to buy groceries for our growing family , as well as our two furry children. Most people are shocked to hear how little I spend , and how little I shop . I've even been told it's impossible, to spend that little we must be starving or eating grass . A lot of people ask how I do it , what do you eat, how do menu plan a month at a time . Which is the reason I am writing this blog , to answer those questions .

I use to be a person that just went to the store every week with a vague list and bought whatever sounded good, and usually ended up spending around 300-450 dollars a month  and was just for me and my husband . Half of the stuff I bought didn't get eaten and usually went in the trash before I could use it . A few weeks before our first child was due I quit my job waiting tables . I was just getting to large and it was hard being on my feet for that long everyday . When the money wasn't there to spend that much every month I had to make adjustments . If I wanted to stay home it was time to learn how to do things differently. So I decided to start menu planning , at first it was just a week at a time , then eventually 2 weeks at a time . One month I menu planned for a month at a time and was amazed how much money it saved us . Our grocery bill dropped from 300-450 a month to 150-250 a month . It has stayed about the same ever since, even after adding 3 soon to be 4 children to the family .
In my opinion the reason I'm able to feed my family so cheaply is because :

#1 Menu planning . I don't plan breakfast and lunch , although I do buy things that are suitable for those meals and just kind of wing it . If I know we will be having company on a certain day for lunch I will plan that lunch but just for my family it's just whatever sounds good that day . I mostly plan dinners and desserts . I menu plan for a month at a time .  I do one BIG, usually 3-4 hour grocery trip a month . I usually hit 3 stores : Aldi's , Wal-Mart and Sam's . I know it sounds like a lot but shopping at all three saves us alot of money, especially shopping at aldi's . That alone saves me about 50 dollars or more per trip . Then I do one trip a week for fresh produce , milk and bread . I buy a different meat every month , and I buy in bulk . I buy beef one month , chicken the next , pork the next and fish as needed . My mother in law bought us a Sam's membership a couple of years ago and it saves us alot of money . Especially on meat.

#2 My garden and my canning! I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love gardening and canning . It saves us huge amounts of money every month . We can our own beans , carrotts , corn , cream corn , applesauce , tomatoes , spaghetti sauce , pizza sauce , peaches , pears , sweet potatoes , jellys , jams , tomato soup , potatoes , pear sauce , pickles and the list goes on . I never have to buy veggies and most fruits . The only things that I regularly buy is banana's and sometimes blueberries and strawberries . I also freeze things like squash , zucchini , green peppers , diced onions , shredded potatoes for hashbrowns and many other things .That way I always have it and never need to buy it .

#3 Cooking from scratch saves us a ton of money. I make all of our pancakes, about 25% of our bread, biscuits , cornbread , cookies , and brownies from scratch . I do use a mix for cakes though, just haven't mastered that one yet :) .I will occasionally do frozen biscuits or rolls for a quick addition to breakfast or dinner .

#4 Leftovers save a ton , but I never plan them into my menu . You just never know what will be leftover and when it will happen . So if we have it one night a week is leftover night . If we have leftover soup or meat from a meal it gets frozen and used later .

#5 I do NOT coupon on a regular basis . From my experience most coupons are for processed food that I never use . Why use coupons on things that you won't use . The only reason I might use a coupon is if it was already something I was going to buy , and that coupon would make the brand name item cheaper than the brand that I normally buy anyway .

Preparing for a Grocery Trip

Getting ready for a grocery trip can be a long ordeal . Depending on how motivated I am it can take anywhere from a couple of days to a week . Which isn't easy with 3 little kids , especially when I can only really plan during nap time or when they are in bed at night . I was always start by doing what I call inventory . Meaning I go through what we already have , and make a list of what's in our two refrigerators, deep freeze, and our two pantrys . That way I know exactly what I have on hand. I will look through that list and see what I can make out of what I already have . A lot of the time I can make quite a few meals out of what I already have without spending a dime . Other times I might be lacking an ingredient or two but that's much cheaper than paying for the whole meal . This month I was able to plan these meals without needing to buy anything, or almost nothing :
Goulash, Salad and Garlic bread-the only thing I will have to buy is the sauce . I had the meat on hand, the noodles, and the bread .
Homemade Pizza- I just have to buy yeast to make the crust. I already had the sauce and toppings and this is  on the menu twice this month .
Oatmeal Pancakes- I didn't have to buy anything .
Chimichangas and salad- I just had to buy the refried beans and tortillas. I already had the meat and enchilada sauce and the veggies for the salad .
Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup over brown rice- I just need to buy the meat and the broth .
BLT'S- I will just have to buy or make the bread, and buy the bacon .
BBQ Pork Sandwiches- I had to buy nothing because it was frozen leftovers from another time when we had this for dinner .
Ham and Bean Soup and cornbread- I had to buy nothing . I had the beans , veggies and the ham was leftover from a previous meal .
Potato Soup- I had to buy nothing . It was frozen leftovers from a previous meal .

After I do that , I plan the rest of my meals around what I have . I might only have one ingredient needed , but that's one ingredient I don't need to buy . I buy as little as possible . The routine around here is we have breakfast for dinner once a week a least , one really nice meal with a homemade dessert a week , and Friday's are always pizza night . So I first put that into the equation and then fill in the remaining days with cheap meals , and casseroles . I always try to fill the meals with vegetables from our garden , because that's free . We eat a lot of vegetables with most meals .
I almost always every month use new recipes that I find in cook books , and mostly ones I find online. I just get tired of the same old thing all the time . I usually mix new and old recipes together, and it makes for a menu full of variety .
After the grocery list is made it's time for the hard part, the shopping . Which believe it or not I enjoy because I almost always get to do it by myself . One of the few times where I can go anywhere by myself  :)

God's Work Never Lacks God's Provision

With the announcement that our 4th child is on the way I have gotten several unusual comments . Most people have been genuinely happy for us , several people have been well meaning but come across as hurtful or in some cases rude ,  and others have just been down right mean and hateful .  Sometimes it really gets under my skin, other times not as much . One that we got from a well meaning family member was : " You must be have a really good job and  you better hope that nothing ever changes if your going to raise that family of yours". We as a family have been blessed with a great job for my husband, but things aren't exactly predictable .  As a wife of a man whose job demand changes from month to month I have learned that God provides in all circumstances . In years past there have times where my husband hasn't worked for as much as a month . Usually the slow time as an electrician is somewhere between October-Feburary . Sometimes that means shorter work days , and sometimes that means weeks with no work at all . In the past that has meant some really dark and scary days . In those time God has proven himself faithful time and time again .

In 2009 we had one child and one on the way, and it was also a very rough year for us . In October we hit our usual slow down and my husband went without work for almost a month . It was a dark and scary time there for about a week , we honestly didn't know what we were going to do .  We had savings, but we had been through several slow times that year so our savings was pretty much gone . We had a trip planned to visit family in another state , but I called to let them know we wouldn't be able to make it because we needed to save the money that we had set aside because I honestly didn't know when we would get another paycheck . Turns out that they needed some work done on there property , and were willing to pay for the trip and pay for my husband to do the work . So we made the trip and were there a week . When we left a week later they had paid my husband way more than we expected , and we left with boxes of home canned foods and a cooler full of meat.  That trip truly saved us financially and came at the most needed time . 

Several times God's provision has been unexpected phone calls from friends , and sometimes complete strangers that are friends of a friend , calling because they need electrical work done or work done  to there house . One of those calls usually comes after a unexpected expense has happened , or if work is slow . It always seems to happen without fail when we really need it to . 

We have also gotten several unexpected checks in the mail just at the right time . When my Dad passed away in mid August of 2009 we had the majority of his things that no one wanted sold at auction . We were told it would at least be a month , possibly two before the auction , and could be a least a couple of months after that before we recieved anything from it . We were told to expect it around mid December . In late October early November , work for my husband was slow , but there was a paycheck coming in every week . Still we were behind on bills , because not enough was coming in . I was however grateful that the lights were on , and there was food on the table , and clothes on our backs . One day at the beginning of November I went to the mailbox to find a check from the auction company for over 800.00 . It was over a month earlier than expected .  After the money was split between my brother and myself it was just enough to catch us up on bills , and to have a little extra . 

There have been a couple of occasions of trash bags of kids clothes and shoes being left on our front porch that were left by unknown people , and unexpected packages showing up on the front porch filled with clothes and shoes from friends . 

We've been blessed with food that was completely good that would have otherwise been thrown out. 

In the past couple of years  I have learned ways to be more frugal , to make each and every dollar stretch. I have done so by growing our garden, learning to can, using cloth diapers, buying used when possible, and learning to cook cheaply . God has provided for us so much through that. I cannot tell you how much  money I have saved just by being more watchful of what I spend and when I spend it .

Luke 11:9 ""And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you."

In early 2011 work slowed down for us, as it did for many people due to economic times . He was still working but it wouldn't always be a full week . So we cut back to just basic expenses and began to pray that God would provide . We as a family began to pray nightly for God to give Daddy lots of work to do . We continued to pray for about a month and slowly but surely business started to boom . Before we knew it the company that my husband works for had more work than they knew what to do with , they actually had to much work and had to hire a couple of people to be able to do it all . It came to the point where we stopped praying for work because we were overwhelmed. In a year that most people were out of work , and unemployment levels in many areas were sky high , my husband and his coworkers were overrun with work. As I said there is usually a slow time around October-Feburary . There just simply wasn't in 2011 . As of this month they have worked for almost 2 years straight with no slow periods at all. I can only credit God for that . 

2011 and 2012 have been such blessed years for our family . We have been blessed with more work than we can handle . We were blessed with two children , Andrew who was born in January 2011 , and this baby in my belly who is due December 21st 2012 . Our garden is booming , and we have been so blessed with more green beans , cucumbers , tomatoes , potatoes,  green peppers and corn than we can imagine and our sweet potatoes and carrots are doing very well . So far this year we have canned 172 jars worth fruits and veggies and it's only July . Our pantry is completely full with over 600 jars, and we are officially completely out of canning jars . Everyone is healthy, and we have been richly blessed. In the past couple years we have become a lot more financially stable as we have paid off debt and become smarter with our money . Still the truth is things do change , things around our house aren't always predictable . Regardless of weather we had 2 or 10 kids you can never predict the future, regardless it's always in God's hands. I've found that there is always enough of everything to go around . A good friend of mine told me that when she was pregnant with her 4th child , she was being criticized for having more because at the time they were struggling financially , her response was "God's work never lacks God's provision ." and that has  showed true for her family over and over again.  I have found that to be true in our lives, God's work never does lack God's provision". 

Matthew 6: 31-34

³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

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Use it up, Wear it out, Make do or do Without

My Grandmother along with her 4 brothers and sisters were children of the Great Depression. She told me many stories about the hard times that they endured. One I specially remember is she use to get upset with my brother for putting to much sugar in his coffee, when she was young there just simply wasn't sugar, and if there was it was in rations. She thought he was being wasteful, that the sugar he put in coffee could have put to better use . Her whole childhood for the most part was spent making do with what they had , there was a lack of money and resources and times were very hard. A popular saying of the day , and she use to repeat parts of it often was" Use it up, wear it out, make do or do without" Yet she always seemed to remember her childhood as a happy time, hard times did not ruin her childhood it seemed to make it better.

 The greatest generation was the greatest generation not because they chose to be, but because they were forced to be. In fact if you had asked them before the depression if they wanted to go through all that happened I can almost guarantee that they would have paid as much money as they could not to go through the depression but some things are out of our control ,God always has a reason for everything .  With the inspiration of my my Grandparents my predicament  looked much smaller in comparasion. If they could make it than so could we.

Money was tight after I had quit my job, over 2,000 a month was no longer in our monthly budget so I had to make up the difference somehow. We had made alot of stupid decisions, we had 2 car loans, we financed furniture, and had 2 credit cards and school loans. It was time to turn it around, to start being responsible. I started researching how things were done in my Grandmothers day , how they did things differently than we do. At first the changes were slow. Some of the changes we made were:

 I started buying ground turkey instead of ground beef, it was significantly cheaper and is better for you.Turkey bacon instead of regular was next, it was also cheaper and better for you .

 I had Matt put up a clothes line in the back yard, as long as it wasn't raining the clothes went on the line instead of in the dryer. Our power bill went down about 25.00 the first month.

We started a small garden, our first year wasn't particularly a success. We did get some produce that year but not much.

We stopped buying as much soda and began drinking alot of water. I also made tea, instead of soda.

We cut downgraded our cellphone  plans, and did away with netflix.

 Eventually we also made other changes in our life . When our second child was born we began making more significant changes. We moved to a much larger house when I was pregnant with our  second child and that house came with an acre plot. We turned about a little over a 1/4 of that into a garden.  Our first garden at the new house was a HUGE success. We were over run with squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, potatoes and more, so much that we could never use it all before it spoiled. So one afternoon I called my Mom over. Growing up she use to do some canning and I wanted to learn. She taught me how to do green beans and tomatoes in one afternoon. The concept is mostly the same with every food, just different processing depending on what food you are canning. After that it was like someone opened a door of opportunity for me . I could grow a garden, and feed my family year round with what i grew . Since then we have accumulated two pressure canners and last year we canned just under 600 jars of fruits , vegetables , jams , jellys , soups and sauces . I also put alot of squash , green peppers and onions in our deep freeze . I credit my garden, canning and freezing for being able to feed my family for 150.00 a month diapers included. It's so nice to know you never have to buy green beans, corn, carrotts, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, potatoes, tomato soup . I haven't bought any jam or jelly in over 4 years .

We started making our own laundry detergent . As you can imagine with 3 little ones in the house we accumulate alot of dirty laundry . It just made more sense to make out own , and it does a better job than Tide could ever do . For those interested the recipe is : 1 bars of soap grated (i use ivory soap), 1 cups of Arm and Hammer washing soda , 1 cup of borax . I usually double the recipe and it will last me about a month and half .

I also use cloth diapers at home , and cloth wipes . I've found that using cloth diapers while we are home really makes those packs of diapers and wipes stretch . Each of my boys are in different sizes of diapers but cloth diapers are adjustable with velcro . I very rarely have a leak . I've found that it really cuts down on the amount of diapers we buy, I buy maybe one pack per child per month and a half. It usually equals out to be about 25.00 a month .

I started menu planning, and I planned my menu's around what was already in the freezer, pantry, and refridgerator. For example if I have sweet potatoes (which believe me I've got alot) I plan a meal with sweet potatoes. If I have ground beef or chicken I plan meals around that . I do inventory of what I have and plan meals with that before I even start writing a grocery list . I usually do a menu for a month at a time and I do one big grocery trip a month and one small trip every week for milk. I always have breakfast at least once a week to cut down on cost , homemade pancakes are very cheap .

I started cooking from scratch. Before I made pancakes, biscuits, cornbread, cookies and cakes from mixes . I discovered it is so much cheaper to make it yourself and it really doesn't take that long and it tastes so much better .

I started shopping at two grocery stores . I use to only shop at Wal-Mart , it wasn't unusual for me to spend 100-150 every two weeks . I had shopped at aldi's before, but typically only when money was tight. I started shopping at Aldis first and buying the things that Aldi's didn't carry at Wal-Mart . I started keeping track of the prices at Aldi's and Walmart and I was saving about 30-40 dollars per grocery trip just from shopping at Aldi's . I now spend less with 3 children on groceries than I did when it was just Matt and I .

I have also learned to make one meal stretch into two . For example on my stove right now is a big pot of Chili. When making the chili i add in extra veggies . After we've eaten dinner tonight I will put the remaining soup in the freezer and that will be a meal for another night . I always make big batches of soups and freeze, it make for an easy meal one night where I don't want to cook . I also do the same with Tacos. When we do taco's there is always meat left over, I save the meat and make taco omlettes another night . We also save our leftovers and do a leftover night once a week. Usually there is a little bit of this and that that usually end up making a great meal.

We are all the time re purposing things . Just recently Matt built my raised bed out of free pallets. We reuse sandwich meat containers and butter containers. I am currently sewing a quilt made out of old blue jeans. I patch Matt's work jeans, and we reuse old towels as rags. I just planted watermelon in an old plastic swimming pool. Sometimes if you can't afford to buy something, there is a way that it can be done differently for cheap or free.

We look for free stuff, or nearly free. We recently built a raised bed for a family member. We used free wood that was leftover after a job my husband did . We have gotten many things off of craigslist. Andrew's crib matress was free off of craigslist. The lady we got it from said it was for her grandson, and was only slept on a handful of times. We bought our double stroller on there for 45.00, it was a 250.00 stroller. Our swingset also came from craigslist.The lady who we bought it from said her kids never used it. We paid 75.00 and it cost 200.00 new.

I shop at alot of thrift stores. In fact one of my favorite places to shop is Goodwill and Miracle Hill. In the nearly four years since my children have been born I have very rarely bought anything brand new for them . I have found so many good deals on brand name clothes that were practically new . I think it would almost been stupid to pay full price for them when i can get it for a dollar or two .


 I also will buy ahead of time. I started this when Sarah was a baby. We were given lots of hand me downs from friends. They were of a variety of sizes so I bought a couple of plastic totes from wal-mart and seperated them according to size . As time went on, if we were out shopping and I found something cute but it was to big I would buy it and put it away in one of those totes. Eventually she would wear it. If you buy an item here and there, eventually it adds up and you have a whole wardrobe for that size and you really didn't pay very much for it . It cheaper to do it that way rather than going out and buying all new clothes when your child outgrows his/hers current size. Currently there are two totes in Sarah's closet and two in the boys closet. The ones in Sarah's closets are for sizes 4t and for sizes 5t and up. The 4t tote is almost full, I've already got sandals for her for the summer, and a winter coat for next year. i bought the winter coat on clearance for 4.00. Jackson's are labeled 3t and 4t and up. His totes are overflowing, we have been very blessed with hand me downs for boys and I bought pretty much nothing in there. I already have his christmas outfit and winter coats for both boys for next year .  When Jackson grows out of it Andrew will wear it next. I will also buy shoes also and put them away, it's nice to be able to put out a box and pick out the next size rather than go to the store and buy  a new pair . Usually I pay no more than 3.00 per pair of shoes.


I bought a libman freedom mop and threw away the swiffer. it's amazing how much a mop pad that you can wash over and over will save you. Swiffer pads get expensive. 


We do almost all of our own auto work . Matt changes our oil, and he has replaced a power steering pump on his truck and a alternator on my old car . It saves us a lot of money because we don't pay for labor.


We started doing all these things because we had to, we had a lot of debt and barely enough income to cover it . We saved alot of money and have been able to pay all but one of those debts off. The only thing left is my husbands truck and we only have about a year and a half on that and we will be debt free. We have a strong desire to be debt free, to not owe our whole paycheck to someone else. We still continue to be frugal, to pinch every penny even though we don't have to anymore. It's just become a way of life, after all who wants to pay more than they have to .Yes it is easier to skip the garden and just go to the store and buy your veggies but it is more expensive and when you grow it your self you know where it comes from and you don't have to worry about e-coli outbreaks and your children are healthier.  I've grown to love gardening ,this year I couldn't wait for gardening season to begin. I'm even more excited about canning. I can't wait for the tomatoes to be overflowing off the vine, and carrot's to be filling our counter top. It's a joy to know that gardening is a free way I can feed my family . One thing I've learned is children are just as expensive as you want them to be. Kids don't require new clothes and shoes, brand new toys, and soccer, dance , piano and gymnastic classes. What they need is there parents, kids won't remember what they got for Christmas in the middle of January , they will remember that you loved them, and the time you spent with them . Children aren't expensive, lifestyle is.

A Different Path Than Most

 My Dad use to say that he was born 100 years to late . He was a cowboy through and through, he loved to hunt, trap and probably would have been able to live off the land if he wanted to . He stuck out like a sore thumb in todays world, he was very different but he was my Dad .There are days where I think the same applies to me, I'm very different than most 25 year olds. Most 25 year olds nowadays have just recently graduated from college, most aren't married and if they are they just newly married. Kids are nowhere on there radar screen. Some partied in college , slept around , and had there fair share of hangovers . That just isn't me . I am so different from that. I went to college but never could figure out what I wanted to do so after 2 years of college I took a break and never returned. One thing I always wanted to be was a Mom, I couldn't see any career that would top being a fulltime Mom. Nothing to me was worth my time away from my future children. I can count on one hand how many alcholic drinks I've had in my entire life and I have never been anywhere remotely close to being drunk and I've never been to a college party. I was raised to be an adult, to be responsible. I just never had any desire to do the things that most young adults my age did, my ambitions were much much different.

Matt and I met in November of 2004. I was 18 he was 20 . I was in first semester of college at North Greenville University. At the time my major was Mass Communications . We started dating, and everything went fast. He told me he loved me on our third date, and pretty much asked me to marry him on our 5th date. Within a month after our first date he was ready to buy a ring and to get engaged. As you could imagine my parents weren't exactly thrilled about me marrying a guy that I had just been dating for a month so we waited. As time went by we became closer and closer, he was my best friend . It seemed that if I wasn't in class and he wasn't at work we were together. Matt rented a place close to my school so we could spend more time together. Gas prices were soaring, or so we thought then and it was getting expensive to drive back and fowarth. I remember sitting in line at a gas station in Campobello for 1.99 gas . We of course at the time thought that price was ridiculously high . What I wouldn't give for that price now .

After my first year of college ended in May of 2005 I moved in with Matt . My Mom always told me not to marry a person until I had lived with  them . That you could never have know a person until you have lived with them, and learned there quirks, habits and how they really were when they didnt' have there best face on. Looking back it probably wasn't the most christian thing to do, but at the time it seemed like the right thing to do . We had absolutely nothing . I think our accumulation of furniture included bunk beds, a dresser, a stereo and one end table and a turn dial tv that we paid 10 dollars for a goodwill . At the time Matt was working for BFC Construction and I was waiting tables at IHOP on third shift . We were beyond broke, but we made it . We made it through the summer , and on August 14th which also happens to be my birthday Matt took me up to Caesars Head at sunrise and proposed . It hadn't quite be a year yet, but it had been much more than when he had first proposed . We knew each other much better than we did then. Both of our families were thrilled and the wedding planning began . Within a month we had set a date, September 30, 2006 which also happened to be my Aunt Barb and Uncle Clair's 40th anniversary . I was 19 years old and planning a wedding . Almost all of my friends had no plans of a wedding in there near future. 

A little over a year after Matt first proposed we were married at Lake Welchell in Gaffney SC . It was a beautiful day. I had just turned 20 and Matt was 22 .  By that time we had moved to a little apartment that was closer to both of our work . We had accumulated lot more furniture and I had started working full time . We still didn't have much money, but my estimation of wealth has never been how much is in the bank account . There are many more important things in life . Soon that little apartment became very little for the two of us and our two dogs that we had adopted from the humane society , Hershey and Maggie . Within 6 months after the wedding this Mama began longing for children . Matt however thought it was to soon . There was no way we could have fit a baby in that little apartment anyway so we started looking and we eventually moved to Plantations at Haywood Apartments . Our 2 bedroom apartment was much bigger, and was much more like a home than anything that we've lived in before . And the best part was there was fire place. Within 6 months of moving in, I was pregnant with our first child .  With a baby on the way we began looking for a house, someplace where our dogs could go outside, so we wouldn't have to walk them. (I know we move alot, so far we are at home number 4 in 4 years) . When I was about 4-5 months pregnant we found a cute little 2 bedroom house. It wasn't to much more than 800 square feet, it was just a little smaller than our apartment and it only had one bathroom . It needed some work, and even though it was just a rental we fixed it up .They said whatever you want to do to make it look nicer, your free to do it just don't tear it up . We painted just about every room, and Matt refinished the hardwood floors. We didn't have much money so thankfully the landlord paid for some of the improvements . At the time Matt was still working for the construction company . They told Matt he could have any paint and wood that was leftover that he wanted, and a man that did work on some of there buildings lent him a sander so he could refinish the floors . Eventually we added a small deck and Matt built a small shed in the back yard, all built our of free wood. I think the improvements maybe costed us 100.00 total . It was all worth it to make it a home , to make it nice because we really had intended on staying there for a while .  About a month after we moved into this house Matt switched jobs. His job at BFC Construction had ended, thankfully God had blessed us with a job offer that was much better paying months before that job ended. He started at Bailey's Electrical Service on April 1st 2008. He really liked the job, but at the time a lot of travel was required and that was new to us. We adjusted quickly, we really had no choice . About 2-3 weeks later I quit my job . We had planned on me being a stay at home Mom and my due date was getting closer and I was getting larger and it was much harder to be on my feet all day waiting tables . Once I quit working it became apparently clear that I was going to have to learn to be creative with out finances if I was going to stay at home full time . Matt was making significantly more at his new job but it still was not as much as we both made before he started this job and we had a considerable amount of debt. It became obvious that some things had to change, sacrifices had to be made and things had to be done differently  Most people say going from two incomes to one can't be done, that due to economic times it was just impossible but I love a challenge and I was determined to succeed . 

How it all started .....

For as long as I can remember I have always wanted a whole house full of kids . Growing up it was just me and one brother, all of my cousins were much older than me and none of them were very close by . I always wanted a whole house full of friends, but it never happened to me as a child. I always said when I was married I would have many children, that we would live a simple life, and we would be happy . At 25 now I've been married for almost 6 years to my very best friend, and we have 3 wonderful children so I would say I'm well on my way to having a larger than the average family. Somedays those children drive me crazy, but I'm convinced after many stories from my mother this is the way it's suppose to be.. They are my life's greatest blessing, and I would gladly accept many more if God saw fit to give them to me .  This is a story about how I got to this point in my life, and the joys and heartaches that came along the way .

When my Mom was expecting my brother I was almost 4 . The whole pregnancy I prayed and prayed for a baby sister . When September 15th 1990 came around, and I recieved a baby brother instead of a baby sister I was not pleased . I told Ryan to go back where he came from and  I didn't speak to my Mom for a week . A week in the life of a four year old is like a month. I had put my order in for a sweet little sister, instead I got a brother. I was very upset.  As time went on though I began to accept him, and I tried my best to turn him into a sister to no avail. My Mom has several pictures of Ryan dressed up in dresses and makeup on. He was like a live baby doll that I took advantage of for as long as I could, which was somewhere around 5 when he started to fight back . I prayed for along time that God would give me a sister, but I guess it wasn't meant to be . We were poor by most peoples standards, or at least that's what I was told, I don't remember once feeling poor . My Mom worked sometimes as many as 3 jobs at one time just to make ends meet. So it was probably a good thing that it was just myself and Ryan although I will always wish there were a few more of us Haney's running around .

We grew up in a small Iowa town called Churdan, and by small I mean small. Everyone knew what everyone was doing 5 seconds after it was done . There wasn't much there, the whole town consisted of a school, gas station, a couple of hair salons, a bank, a post office, a general store, a bar, a library, fire department, at one point an arcade and a clothing shop, 3 churches, a methodist,baptist and catholic along with about 100-150 people . The town was so small that we had one police officer, and he never patrolled because there was really nothing to patrol . If there was ever an issue people knew where he lived and his name and number were in the phone book . The school was small, so much so that two towns of kids went to the same school to have enough kids to bother teaching. Kindergarten through 12th grade there couldn't have been more than 120 kids. I remember my kindergarten class was one of the largest on record at 20 children. When my parents divorced when I was in 6th grade I was the only child in the whole school who's parents were divorced. That's saying alot considering that just about everyone now comes from a divorced home .

All the neighborhood kids played together at the city park . There was about 10 of us, and we had alot of fun playing hide a go seek, tag and baseball, volleyball, riding bikes, we ran around barefoot especially in the summertime and we drank out of many garden hoses. There wasn't much to do in the small town of Churdan but we made our own fun . Our house was right in front of the schools baseball diamond. I remember many nights of Mom working in the garden, and us kids in the backyard watching the baseball game and catching fireflies. Like all kids we would put them in mason jars to keep them alive, and it never failed they always died. On hot summer days there were many lemonade sales to try to earn money for the county fair, bell tower days, or possibly a Friday or Saturday night at the skating rink . I know on more than one occasion we fried eggs on those hot tar roads . There were many trips to the Jefferson swimming pool. We weren't allowed to sit around watching tv, and playing video games. After chores were done we were to be outside. We didn't even own a video game, and with only 4 channels there wasn't much to watch . And with no air conditioning who wants to sit in a hot house .

Growing up we always had chores. Mine were dishes, I had to help with the laundry as well as clean my room,the dinner table and in the summer mow the yard . Like all kids I tried to shove everything in the closet and under the bed, that almost never worked and I learned quick. When washing dishes, they were washed and dried by hand and inspected afterwards, if one was dirty all were washed again . Mom hung clothes outside if the weather permitted, our job was to help fold and put away our clothes . We didn't get to do anything on the weekends unless our chores were done through the week and they had to be done right . At the time I'm pretty sure I hated it, most of my friends didn't have chores and if they did it was only keeping there room clean . Now I realize that it was good thing, that it built character and responsibility. I learned to do it right the first time or I would end up doing it twice . Now that I have three children, I have learned to start them young, as soon as they can walk they have a job, even if it is just helping pick up toys or putting something in the trash .

Even though money was tight, we always had a home cooked meal and the majority of the time it was good eating around our dining room table. There is nothing better than Iowa sweet corn in the summer, pork tenderloins, homemade chili, meatloaf, and fried chicken on occasion. Everything just about was made from scratch. There were on occasion though things that we didn't care for . I remember fighting not wanting to eat ham and bean soup. It took a few times of it being warmed up again and again for breakfast, lunch and dinner before I realized that it was just best to eat it the first time . Ryan went through the same thing with biscuits and gravy  . My Mom use to say that this isn't a restaurant, you either eat it now or you eat it later. There simply wasn't the money to cook something different for each person, you ate what was put in front of you at that meal or you would eat it for another meal . We ate lots of leftovers, and at least one night a week was left over night. There was little to no waste in our house, you couldn't afford to waste . I remember thinking that my Mom must of had eyes in the back of head. She would hear the refrigerator door open, no matter how quietly you tried to open it. she say "what are you doing in there?" to which we would say getting a drink, to which we'd get there's glasses in the cabinet and water in the faucet .

We always had everything we needed as children . There was always food to eat, clothes to wear, a roof over our head . We always had presents and a homemade cake at our birthday and Christmas and we did fun things but we weren't showered with new toys often . At some point, I'm not really sure what age we started working for things we want . We were paid a small amount for each chore we did, I don't remember how much it was. For me it started about the time roller blades first became popular . All of my friends had a pair, I wanted them so bad . Mom told me I would have to work for them, that I would appreciate them more if i worked for them . I did chores for what seemed like months, I believe I even asked for extra chores to make the money faster . I saved and saved until finally I had enough money. One day we took the 45 minute drive to Fort Dodge, that was where the nearest walmart and kmart was . I picked out my first roller blades, they were white and pink. I loved those things, took good care of them and used them until they just couldn't go anymore . I did appreciate them more because I bought them, I worked for them .

Compared to most places especially nowadays it was a simple old fashioned life , and the perfect place to raise children . As a child I remember being bored stiff ,  but now I realize it was good for my imagination we made fun rather than having to be entertained . I've discovered now from talking to friends , I was raised alot different than most but I wouldn't have it any other way . It's made me who I am today .  It's the only place that I know of anymore where everything still closes on Sundays and church bells are heard all through town and you know your neighbors and they actually care about you .  We had a great childhood, or at least that's the way I remember it. If it weren't almost 18 hours away , i would love to raise my children there . Oh how I miss home, I hope to visit soon .