Game Closet
Our game closet has been cleaned out and re-organized so we can more easily access the games. We got rid of some of the games the girls had outgrown! Some of the games we donated and others we sold at our garage sale or online.
Games have always been a fun activity in our family. It came to our attention a few months ago that it would be beneficial to do a weekly game night with the kids. Playing games, we have noticed, has allowed for extra teachable moments in our family. While everyone wants to play well it’s good to learn how to have fun and be a good sport even if you cannot win every game. There are a lot of positive attributes to playing games such as reading, counting, strategies, waiting turns, being a team player and so much more.
While we play at least once a week on our regular “family game night” ! We often pull out a game when friends are over or at some point (or two) over the weekend. Playing games together allows everyone to relax, spend quality time together, while talking, and creating memories. To keep it fair we roll a dice to see who will be picking the game for the evening. If time allows we may play two games or stretch a game out over several evenings. Our girls look forward to game night every week!
How to Keep Fresh Garden Vegetables Separate & Accessible in a Refrigerator Drawer
Refrigerator drawer full of fresh garden vegetables
We love it when our vegetable drawer is crammed full of fresh garden vegetables! The problem is at times it can be difficult finding the vegetable you want in the middle of all the other goodies in the drawer. Now that Spring is here and people are planting gardens, going to farmers markets, and stocking up on some of the great fresh produce in the stores I thought it would be a good time to share how I have found an easy and inexpensive way to keep the garden vegetables separate yet accessible while in the refrigerator drawer.
Solution – recycled bread bags! It seems silly but it really works well! You probably already have them around plus you can usually fit more bags into the drawer. We tried doing containers but every week we had a different amount of vegetables or they were overflowing among other things that just didn’t make them work well. As I was throwing out a bread bag the thought came across my mind that it would make a good “holder” for the garden vegetables.
The bags can be packed as little or as much as needed (and can be adjusted accordingly) plus they keep the vegetables separate so I can easily reach in and grab whatever veggies I needed at the time. It also made it super easy for the kids to pack their own lunches or to grab a quick snack from the vegetable drawer.
Here’s how we did it:
French bread loaf bag, washed & dried so it can be filled with cherry tomatoes from the garden
Once the tomatoes are all in the bag roll the remaining bag down until it is even with the stack of tomatoes
Bag of tomatoes ready to be put into the fridge drawer
Fresh veggies organized and accessible for the next meal
Giveaway & Review: “Celebrating & Savoring a Simple Christmas” ebook by Crystal Paine (24 HOURS ONLY)
Do you want to have a meaningful, memorable, relaxed Christmas this year? Do you really want to be able to savor and enjoy this season-not just rush through it feeling overwhelmed and behind? Are you tired of overspending every Christmas in attempt to feel close to your loved ones? I am excited to introduce you to Crystal Paine’s new ebook Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas. Crystal is the author of the popular Money Saving Mom blog and this is a positive and practical ebook that will encourage you to focus on the joy of Christmas while staying within the family budget!
24 HOURS ONLY 1 lucky reader will win a FREE copy of the Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas ebook by Crystal Paine! ENTER NOW for a chance to win a copy of this great ebook (it only takes a couple seconds to leave a comment and be entered into the giveaway, please see all the giveaway details below)!
You can get started reading Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas ebook by Crystal Paine for only $0.99 for the next 3 days only (November 13 – 15, 2012)!
Who is This Book For?
Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas is for you if:
- You end every Christmas season frazzled, with a cold, and in need of a nap.
- You dread the day after Thanksgiving and every day following up and until New Year’s Day.
- You want your house to look beautiful for Christmas, but instead it’s a mess!
- You end up overwhelming yourself by spending too much time on Christmas crafting and baking
Why I love this book:
I LOVE the Christmas Holidays and celebrating with my family! Somehow with the busy activities, shopping, gift wrapping, delivering, programs, and everything else the “to do” list gets longer and before long I am exhausted. Not to mention some years our budget has been stretched a little bit too much. I like that Crystal encourages people to kept it simple and stay within your family budget.
After reading Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas I think it will help inspire you to make positive steps in the direction of a Simple Christmas as well. My husband and I have already discussed our Christmas budget (and sticking to it) and several other items already. I am looking forward to spending some time together to go over more of the topics I read about in Crystal’s book. I know many of you will enjoy this ebook and find it to be a wonderful resource especially with the upcoming Christmas season! Here’s just a few topics covered in this book:
- How to organize your Christmas list
- How to make & stick to a Christmas budget
- Holiday freezer cooking
- Simple and inexpensive homemade gifts
- How to get and keep your home clean & organized
- Printable worksheets for your Holiday planning
- And Many More great tips to help you have a fun Christmas Holiday with your family.
24 Hour Giveaway Details
As a way to say thank you to my readers and to share Crystal Paine’s ebook I am hosting a giveaway! 1 WINNER will receive a free copy of Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas ebook by Crystal Paine!
Enter the Giveaway (up to 4 entries per person)!
- Sign up to receive Blessings Multiplied via email
- Follow Blessings Multiplied on Twitter – @BlessMultiplied
- Like Blessings Multiplied on Facebook – BlessingsMultiplied
- BONUS – you can get a bonus entry into the drawing if you leave a separate comment below sharing your favorite part of the Christmas Holidays.
All comments must be made by Wednesday, November 14, 2012 10:00 PM EST to be entered into the drawing.
I encourage you to check out more information on Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas by Crystal Paine if you are interested in finding ways to help you to tackle all those Holiday projects and events! This ebook book may give you the just right dose of motivation to get you on track for a simple and relaxing Christmas season! What are you waiting for…….get a copy and start reading today!
The Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas ebook by Crystal Paine is currently available for $0.99 for the next 3 days ONLY (Tuesday, November 13 to Thursday, November 15, 2012) after that it will go up to $4.99.
I was given this ebook for free to write an informed review. The ebook, specific product information, and pictures were provided by Crystal Paine, however, the opinions expressed in this post are my own. I was not paid to write this post. A special thanks to Crystal Paine for providing me a copy of her Celebrating & Savoring A Simple Christmas ebook to review as well as one to giveaway to my readers!
CONGRATULATIONS to Our “21 Days to a More Discipline Life” Winners!
The 5 names have been drawn for the giveaway!
CONGRATULATIONS to
for winning Crystal Paine’s new ebook
“21 Ways to a More Disciplined Life”!
Thanks for making a comment in honor of our Giveaway!
An email has been sent to you with more information*
I hope this ebook is a wonderful blessing in your life!
If you didn’t win you can still get a copy of the 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook by Crystal Paine which will be available for $0.99 for 2 more days ONLY (Wednesday, October 24 to Thursday, October 25, 2012) after that it will go up to $4.99. You can also order it through Amazon for the same great price!
Don’t forget to enter our Toys R Us Gift Card Giveaway (which will be ending next week on Wednesday, October 31, 2012)!
*Giveaway must be claimed within 5 business days of the prize being announced. Failure to claim the prize within the allotted time frame means you forfeit the prize.
Giveaway & Review: “21 Days to a More Disciplined Life” ebook by Crystal Paine (5 WINNERS – Today Only)
Do you have ideas, hopes, goals, and dreams for what you want to accomplish in your life, but you feel like you’re being held back by a lack of personal discipline? I am excited to introduce you to Crystal Paine’s new ebook 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life! Crystal is the author of the popular Money Saving Mom blog. This is a positive, practical, and motivating ebook that will encourage you to make progress, in the right direction, on those areas of your life that need extra attention!
TODAY ONLY 5 lucky readers will win a FREE copy of the 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook by Crystal Paine! ENTER NOW for a chance to win a copy of this great ebook (it only takes a couple seconds to leave a comment and be entered into the giveaway, please see all the giveaway details below)!
You can get started reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook by Crystal Paine or through Amazon for only $0.99 for the next 3 days only (October 23-25, 2012)!
Who is This Book For?
21 Days to a More Disciplined Life (or through Amazon) is for you if:
- You have trouble following through.
- You get overwhelmed by huge projects.
- You start strong, but your passion fizzles out.
- You are super-disciplined in a few areas of your life, but you have one or two pet areas that you just can’t get under control.
- You check out 10 different books on discipline and organization from the library, but return all of them late.
Why I love this book:
There are specific areas in my life (physically, spiritually, and more) that I need to focus on because I haven’t given them the extra attention they need and it is mainly due to a lack of discipline on my part. I am looking forward to implementing several of the great ideas Crystal shared in this book. She has help inspire me to get “back on track” and tackle those many goals / projects that I keep putting on the back burner for several weeks, months, and yes (although it’s embarrassing to admit) even some goals that I have been delaying for several years now.
After reading 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life I think it will help inspire you to make positive steps in the right direction as well. I know many of you will enjoy this ebook and find it to be a wonderful resource! It is a great time of year to re-evaluate our lives, goals, and priorities.
- Are you easily overwhelmed by your big ideas or projects, and you just don’t know where to start and how to make real progress?
- Do you find yourself making “all-or-nothing” plans for transforming your life, and then three days later you crash and burn under the weight of your plan?
Giveaway Details
As a way to say thank you to my readers and to share Crystal Paine’s ebook I am hosting a giveaway! 5 WINNERS will receive a free copy of 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook by Crystal Paine!
How to Enter:
- Sign up to follow my blog (if you haven’t done so already) and leave a comment below telling us how you follow Blessings Multiplied. You can sign up to receive Blessings Multiplied via email or like on Facebook.
- You can get a bonus entry into the drawing if you leave a separate comment below sharing your best tip that helps you stay on track with your projects and goals!
All comments must be made by Tuesday, October 23, 2012 11:00 PM EST to be entered into the drawing.
I encourage you to check out more information on 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life by Crystal Paine if you are interested in finding ways to help you to tackle all those projects and goals you have been putting on hold for days, weeks, months, maybe even years! This ebook book may give you the just right dose of motivation to get you on the road to a more disciplined life! What are you waiting for…….get a copy and start reading today!
More information about 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life by Crystal Paine can be found:
- 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life by Crystal Paine
- Amazon – 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life
The 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook by Crystal Paine is currently available for $0.99 for the next 3 days ONLY (Tuesday, October 23 to Thursday, October 25, 2012) after that it will go up to $4.99. You can also order it through Amazon for the same great price!
I was given this ebook for free to write an informed review. The ebook, specific product information, and pictures were provided by Crystal Paine, however, the opinions expressed in this post are my own. I was not paid to write this post. A special thanks to Crystal Paine for providing me a copy of her 21 Days to a More Disciplined Life ebook to review as well as five to giveaway to my readers!
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
There was so much more I was hoping to get done last week, but somehow wasn’t able to squeeze everything into the week. I made a dent in what was on my list and continue to move in the right direction so I guess that is always a positive. Hopefully this week I will be able to tackle more items on my list!
Last week’s goals:
Family Goals
- Read to the girls and have them read to me daily – the girls read to me daily but we didn’t have time every night for me to read to them once after school activities, homework, dinner, and baths were completed
Lunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night beforeDaily School Activities & Homework CompletedAttend After School ActivitiesPlan one special Activity with the Family– we took our family pictures, built a catapult together, & spent time together
Personal Goals
Exercise at least 5 days this weekDrink 8 glasses of water each day- Finish reading Impact Equation by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith (I got a pre-release copy to read) – working on it
- Finish reading The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life by Hannah Whitall Smith – working on it
Home Management Goals
All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one dayWeekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week– some of the recipes on the menu weren’t as successful as I had hoped
Start tackling my Fall Organizational Schedule– I got the Fall Clothes out, sorted, and put away- Pay all upcoming bills – have to work through a small stack of insurance bills
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attention- Get caught up on 5 blog items – got 3 of the 5 items done
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchWrite and Send Out Community Group Email- Work out the details of our Community Group Camping Adventure – getting the final details completed
- A Friend Challenged me to read through my Bible – since I am already through the majority of the year I am working on a plan where you can read through the Bible in 90 days by YouVersion – made it through week 2 and still on track!
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4 – went over budget and didn’t get a chance to take pictures this past week
- Payoff the Van – working on it, made our first payment and was able to pay extra
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses (we are trying to build this back up because we had to take some out for unexpected expenses recently.) – working on it
My goals for the upcoming week:
Family Goals
- Read to the girls and have them read to me daily
- Lunch Boxes & Book Bags packed the night before
- Daily School Activities & Homework Completed
- Attend After School Activities
- Plan one special Activity with the Family
- Go on a Field Trip with the Girls Classes
Personal Goals
- Exercise at least 5 days this week
- Drink 8 glasses of water each day
- Finish reading Impact Equation by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith (I got a pre-release copy to read)
- Finish reading The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life by Hannah Whitall Smith
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Weekly Dinner Menu planned out for the week
- Start tackling my Fall Organizational Schedule
- Pay all upcoming bills
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- Get caught up on 5 blog items
- Complete the Website Blog Update
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Write and Send Out Community Group Email
- Work out the details of our Community Group Camping Adventure
- A Friend Challenged me to read through my Bible – since I am already through the majority of the year I am working on a plan where you can read through the Bible in 90 days by YouVersion
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Payoff the Van
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses (we are trying to build this back up because we had to take some out for unexpected expenses recently.)
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Organized Chaos: Clean Pantry
Organizing the Large Kitchen Pantry
Since I cleaned out the white pantry cabinet it is time for the large pantry to be cleaned out. It is wonderful having a large pantry in the kitchen but when it gets all disorganized it makes it difficult to find the items that you need. Thankfully I have a system where the different types of food go but there are times when they don’t get put away in the right place so it becomes a little crazy over time.
Organizing the left side of the pantry
- First Shelf (from the top) – Flour and Sugar
- Second Shelf – Granulated Sugar, Brown Sugar & Powdered Sugar
- Third Shelf – Cream of Mushroom, Cream of Chicken, Mushrooms
- Fourth Shelf – Tomatoes (Diced, Whole, Paste, Sauce)
- Fifth Shelf – Pasta & Spaghetti Sauces
- Bottom Shelf – Pasta & Spaghetti Sauces, Oatmeal, Oils
The middle shelves hold a lot of other food items from soup, pickles, olives, salsa, tuna fish, jam, jelly, frosting, and more! It is nice having it all organized. Now I know exactly what items I need to pick up at the store and which ones I have plenty of in the pantry.
Organizing the back right side of the pantry
I didn’t get a picture of the full right back side of the pantry. The first two shelves have boxed items from desserts to pancakes to muffins and more.
- Third Shelf – Boxed Food Items
- Fourth Shelf – Canned Fruit
- Fifth Shelf – Canned Vegetables
- Bottom Shelf – Canned Beans
It makes me happy having a clean and organized pantry! Let’s hope it stays somewhat organized for at least a few months (who am I kidding maybe a few weeks) with both of us and the kids going in and out of it! Although I am thankful for a husband and kids who enjoy helping out in the kitchen.
Organized Chaos: Organizing Our Stockpile
I LOVE getting a great deal but over the last couple of years when I find a good deal the more I find myself asking “Do I really need this?” Yes, using coupons are wonderful and getting a great deal is amazing only if you are going to use those items or plan on giving them away. A friend introduced me to the show “Extreme Couponing” and after a few episodes I could no longer watch it. The amount that some people had stuffed in various places in their home was too much for me to even watch. After some thought I decided to come up with a plan to organize my stockpile in a way that would give me a visual indication that our family’s stockpile is full plus keep the items organized in a way that anyone in my family can find an item, including the kids.
Here is what I did:
- Reorganized our Linen Closet to make room for the stockpile bins.
- Purchased inexpensive containers from the Dollar Store.
- Used the Label Maker to put the description on the front of each container.
- Filled the containers with items from the stockpile.
- Once a bin is full then I know it is time to stop buying that item
- Any extras items that I get for free I put into a separate box to be given away.
The new system had to be practical for our family. I think it is wise to be good stewards of what we have been given and find opportunities to share what you have with others. I decided that if I had enough of a certain item to last our family for 6 months to a year our stockpile is considered full and I didn’t need to purchase any more of those items. If I did get a couple items for free they would be put in a special box to give to others (charities, school, church, people in need, friends, family, and anyone else that may need an item from it).
I have been using this system for several months now and I am really pleased with how it works. It is easy to know when the stockpile is full enough for your family and it is more efficient when someone needs to locate an item. The majority of the items in this closet are office supplies, school supplies and miscellaneous household items. I love having the freedom to take a few weeks off from using coupons, shopping, or getting deals in general because I know exactly what I have on hand and when I have enough for my family.
Life Simplified: Laundry Day
For those who don’t know me…….I am NOT a big fan of doing laundry. Don’t get me wrong , it gets done in our house because I don’t like wearing dirty clothes but doing laundry everyday is almost like torture to me. Before discovering a system that worked for our household I would delay doing laundry until the last possible moment (ie…someone was out of underwear) then do a huge batch. The laundry would then sit on the guest bed waiting to be folded and put away. Many times if you wanted to wear a certain shirt or were looking for clean underwear you had to dig through a massive pile in search for an item.Thankfully, we had a season in our life that forced me to get organized in the laundry department as well as other areas. Several years ago my husband took a contract position in a town an hour and half away from our home. Since the girls were young and not yet in school the entire family commuted with him on the contract. The company gave him an allowance for an apartment and we were able to find one less then the amount we were given so we could save a little bit extra. A couple of the downsides to the apartment being less expensive is that it was tiny and it didn’t have a washer and dryer hookup. Since we came “home” on the weekends it wasn’t that big of a deal, however, that meant we had to keep track of groceries in two houses plus carting laundry back and forth every week. During this season in our marriage I learned a lot about organizing and planning especially with living in two places at one time, an apartment during the week and at home on the weekends. There were several benefits to our family doing laundry only once a week:
- Less Stress for Mom because once laundry was completed on Saturday it was done for an entire week.
- More Cost Efficient as far energy, water, and laundry soap.
- Only 4 Loads of Laundry per week (on a typical week we do 4 full loads of laundry for an entire week: 1 – Sheets & Towels, 2 – Light Clothes, 3 – Dark Clothes, 4 – Whites)
- Saves Time when I do everything all from start to finish in one day. The laundry gets washed throughout the day and for about an hour in the evening I take the time to fold, hang up and put away the items.
- Happy Family – no more digging through piles of clean laundry on the bed looking for underwear or a shirt, etc…. everything is cleaned, put away and ready to be worn.
- Cleaner Home when the piles of laundry are no longer stacked on our guest room bed or in front of the washing machine our home is neater.
- Items are Pre-Treated prior to being put in the laundry basket instead of trying to remember which ones to spray when I am putting them into the wash machine.
- Organized System – having a specific day and task to accomplish enables me to get it done for the week and move onto the other tasks that demand my time and attention
On the weekend we had to get the laundry done in order to have clothes to wear for the next week so it was a great motivator. Even though that was several years I still do all our laundry in one day. I no longer have to get it done on the weekends so currently laundry days are Monday’s at our house. Everything is washed, folded and put away all in one day. Since starting this organizational task it has allowed additional freedom in my week plus it has been a blessing to my family. I no longer dread doing laundry because I know it will be done completely on “laundry day” and I will not have to think about it again until next week. My family no longer has to dig through piles of clothes looking for something to wear. It was a win-win situation for everyone.
Even though that season in our life was difficult balancing the two households looking back on it I realize how many rich blessings and memories were created during that time as well. It is during the times of stretching and change in our family when we discover new ways to make life more enjoyable for ourselves as well as those around us. Having the opportunity to look at our organizational system from a different perspective may be all it takes to make it more efficient.
Do you like doing laundry? What works for one family may not work for another. What are ways you use to help make your time doing laundry more efficient?
Photo by Jon Yu
Event: “Dine Out for Mom”
There is a special event going on today called “Dine Out For Mom” which is a part of the “Let There Be Mom” organization. As a Mom with small children it is important for me to remember that life is precious, sweet, and short. We never know what joys and trials life will bring our way. You may know of a friend or family member that has gone through serious illness and given only a short amount of time to live. This event is to remind us to celebrate life, create memories, cherish our family, and help others because our life here on earth is not forever.
What is “Let There Be Mom”? It is an organization that provides help to Moms when they or their spouse is diagnosed with a serious illness. “Let There Be Mom” comes along side the family going through this difficult time to preserve memories. They do this through a variety of services tailored to meet the needs and wishes of the individual families. Some examples of ways they are involved – photography, scrapbooks, journals, videos, meals, errands, special events, care packages, family cookbooks, and many more wonderful activities. The “Dine Out For Mom” event today is designed to help raise funds for this great organization. When you eat at one of the participating restaurants today they will donate a portion of the proceeds to “Let There Be Mom” so they can continue to help families that are losing a loved one.
Take some time out of your busy day to meet a friend for lunch or take the family out for supper. What a great way to spend time with those you love while helping a wonderful organization that is committed to preserving family memories.
For more information about the “Let There Be Mom” organization, their services, and how to get involved please visit their website.
Kim Fritz
Renelle
Lynette
Gina Badalaty
Tracy