OK...today I am having lunch with my amazing mentor Dorothy along with my kids whom she sets out her HUGE dollhouse to play with while we chat! My girls thanked the Lord for "getting to go to Mrs. Dorothy's house" in our devotion time this morning:) The neat thing is that she and I have been meeting together at least twice a month for the past 6 years and it has been wonderful for my soul and for my practical life. She is a precious widow who has loads of amazing advice and wisdom to give me...I love it!
So...I am kind of rushing this morning between dividing up my Amish Friendship Bread (which I did NOT kill this time...thank you Mary!!) to give out to my neighbors, having my dishwasher leak when I turned it on (thank you Lord for living in an apartment...just a phone call and it's all better!), and trying to get out the door to her house. I thought I would just share some really fun and easy ideas that you may have already heard of or do yourself...but just need a reminder or encouragement to do it...so we can give more!
Here we go...
*Wash out and reuse your ziplock bags. Take one time and invest in the good ones and then wash them out after that. Seriously, I have timed myself and it takes me less than 30 seconds to wash out the bags and then I use a clothes pin (1 dollar for 12 of them) and hang them up in my pantry. I love to save to give...but I don't want my kitchen to look like Sanford and Sons moved in:) This saved me about $6-8 a month on sandwich bags, freezer bags, and snack bags. Enjoy the convenience without all the cost!
*Stop using paper plates. Ugg...this one was hard for me because I love conveniences! I used paper plates for every single lunch we had. But, it was not a necessity and in trying to live more in line with the rest of the world...it was something we didn't need. Now, I don't even think about it. I had bought these small little plastic plates with sections in it for the kids to eat on a long time ago. That way I can put their fruit, popcorn, and sandwich on the same plate and that is all I have to put in the dishwasher for lunch. We even sometime use them at night. That alone saved me almost $10 each month! That is 1/3 of a Compassion child monthly right there!!!
*Get into the habit of each family member using only 1 cup each day. This will help to cut down how many loads of dishes you have to do and money too! We used those paper cups in the bathroom for the girls to use when they brushed their teeth. They would use and toss...use and toss! So, we got rid of those. Again, I had bought a small set of cups from the dollar store that had blue and red cups. So...each morning Virginia gets a red cup and Anli gets a blue cup FOR THE DAY.
I put them right on the counter and they drink from them all day long. Jay and I have larger cups that we set right there on the counter next to their and everyone now knows where the cups stay and at the end of the day or the next morning (if they drink from them during the night) they get washed in the dishwasher. This has been a HUGE time saver for me...and it cuts down on those little paper cups each month. That saved me another $3 each month or more.
*Embrace Ivory soap! My girls and I all had body washes that we ran through at least once a month. The girls would squirt WAY too much out onto their puff and then lather up:) Well, we switched to Ivory soap that is $1 for 3 bars (we all get our own!) and that has lasted at least a month. It lathers up just as nice, smells so pure and clean, and gets the job done! This has saved us at least $8 each month!!
Because I had been using moisturizing body washed for so long...when I switched my skin felt a little dry. But, I stuck with it because my skin needed to regulate its own oil supply and learn how to regulate itself again as God created it to do. Now...it's so soft! Ivory is completely pure and so you don't have all those chemicals and parabens on your body and in your body...so it's better for you and your kiddos!
*Stop paper towel craziness. I keep a basket of rags handy in the kitchen to mop up spills, dry off random things, etc. We all wash clothes every day anyway, so throwing them in there is no biggie. I only use PT for cleaning the bathrooms and for messes that are super grody- like puke or mud all over the floor. (this was directly from Alysia).
OK...I am still working on this one. I cut up a large old towel and made some rags that I didn't care about getting gross. I have them in a little basket too...and I am weaning myself off paper towels. I LOVE paper towels. I go through a LOT of them! I know...it's bad...a sickness really. I have cut my use to about half...but still have a ways to do. That alone saved me at least $5 each month already.
Well, I have successfully gotten to having too much fun writing all this and now I gotta run! Pray for a sweet lady named Jeanette that the Lord connected me with during my prayer walking time this morning. He is just SO good...got to pray right in the street with her...I love you Jesus!
1 comment:
Hope your friendship bread/cake turned out well...mmmmm. :)
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