Sep. 17, 2008
Come join me for a cup of coffee at my new blog
I wanted to share with you know about my new spot on the web,
But First We Have Coffee I'd love to have you join me for a cup of coffee.
I have downloads, coupons, lots of photos, and we plan on having some fun videos shortly. See you there!
Sep. 7, 2008
Sep. 7, 2008
The P word!
The "P" word! And you are wondering... oh no, is she going to start talk politics? Is it going to be more talk about Sarah Palin? Nahhh! I want to talk to you about
price books. Yup... price books. What? You don't know what a price book is? Get yourself a fresh cup of java and I'll tell you all about it. It's not too difficult, but I always like a good excuse to enjoy a cup of coffee with a friend.
A price book is a notebook of sorts, in which you write down each item you purchase and at what store. I also like to write down the cost per ounce so I can compare easily. You can categorize the book by store, product, or categories, such as cleaning items, canned foods, etc.
Amy Dacyczyn (pronounced Da cision), author of the Tightwad Gazette, gave me this idea and it has worked well.
The idea behind the price book is that you can accumulate the cost for each of your most common items, thus determining where the best prices can be found. When something is on sale, you will know if it really is a good deal. You eventually get a sense of what is good and what is not. I have used it to create goals for how much I spend on meals. My goals might be $3 for each breakfast and $3 for each lunch and $9 for each dinner. Your mileage may vary. At least with a price sheet, you will know where your money is going.
Another aspect of using this price book is that you can see seasonal trends for items. Produce are not the only items that fluctuate in price for the season. Turkey, ham, potatoes are just a few items that fluctuate according to the season or time of year. You will learn when the best time is to purchase these items. Stock up! Plan ahead!
I have provided
this price book for you in a .pdf format for your own use. If you prefer it in Excel, which can also be opened in Open Office,
click here. Feel free to print, copy, distribute. I simply as that you not remove the copyright information and website at the bottom of the page.
Other reading on the topic can be found at the following:
Wait, I'm not quite done, yet. There's another part of this picture. I have found a great little free program, which installs quite easily, wherein I can take all my data and set it up on the computer. The program can is simply called Shopping List and can be found
here.
The program is optional. It depends on what you would like to do and if you prefer to use the paper notebook solely. I like lists. I like options. I know that if something happened to my notebook, I have a back up.
Sep. 3, 2008
What a Mother Must Sacrifice
This blog post at Holy Experience blessed me today. I am happy to share it with you. Lord bless your day as you serve your family.
Sep. 1, 2008
A Poem By My Great Grandfather
My great grandfather wrote this poem circ. 1900.
Somebody's dog is killing sheep,
Out in the darkness while you' asleep;
Chasing them down in the midnight fog,
Tell me stranger, is that your dog?
Somebody's boy is riding his steed,
Out on the highway at breakneck speed.
Popping away with his little gun,
Say! neighbor, is that your son?
Somebody's girl is walking the streets,
Smiling at every tough she meets;
Loosing her head in the mid-night whirl,
Dear fond mother, is that your girl?
Lest the time will come
when your blood will seethe,
When that dog comes home
with wool in his teeth,
Or the boy ends up with a broken neck.
Or the girl, poor thing, is a hopeless wreck.
If that's your dog, the ornery pup,
Build a dog house or chain him up.
If that's your boy, 'tis the proper thing,
Tie him down with an apron string.
And if that's your girl, let little be said,
Spank her hard and put her to
bed.
Rev. Wm. J. Hopper, Browns, Illinois. Circa 1900
Aug. 31, 2008
Aug. 29, 2008
The List For Today
The agenda today consists of ... and not in any particular order:
- Coffee
- CTBHH chat
Watering the yardQuiet time- Wish my twins Happy Birthday!
- Finish getting our network hooked up to use SOS (Switched on Schoolhouse)
- Finish our MOTH schedule before school starts next week
- Attend a maquillage party, hosted by two of my daughters, Bethy and Anne
- Laundry
Aug. 28, 2008
Show and Tell
In my garage, I have a huge prize that I thought I'd share today.
My boys did a lot of labor in order to bring this baby home for us. It's beautiful! It's a restaurant-grade Vulcan stove range!
This thing is mammoth! It needs a lot of cleaning up!!! It has 2 ovens, side by side. There are only 2 burners, which are in the center with 2 huge griddles on both sides. The splash guard comes with and includes a warming shelf above. The below photos is the closest I could find. It is iron like the old fashioned cook stoves, and ready for propane.
This is something we would have for years to come!
It means we get to go back to having hash browns! It means... we get to sit down and actually eat fresh pancakes together... or bake multiple pizzas at the same time, instead of a lot of waiting!
The biggest problem now is finding a place to put it! We have to tear something up to install it.
It is very heavy! We don't have a place to set it up right now. We'd have to maybe add onto our kitchen so it could be on a cement floor. Our kitchen floor would would not handle it! We are considering waiting until we move, which we are hoping to do sometime in the future.
Thanks for looking!
Aug. 27, 2008
Quick Tip For Child Training
Say what you mean and mean what you say.
Col. 3:21 Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart.
Aug. 25, 2008
