I've been doing better with the kids the past couple of days. I visited a friend of mine yesterday morning who has 4 children and is pregnant with her fifth. Her kids are all less than 2 years apart, and I always receive a blessing when I spend time with her. She is very laid-back and easy-going; not at all like me! Her philosophy is pretty much let them be kids unless they're hurting themselves or someone else. Who cares about the mess they make, which is where I struggle with my kids. I am such a neat-freak that to see a mess in my house stresses me out. I can feel my blood pressure rise when I see the toys and chaos. I am trying to teach my children to put away their toys when they want to play with something else, and my friend just has them clean up at the end of the day. After spending time with her, I remember not to make a big deal about the small things, so it makes parenting a little easier because I'm not constantly griping at my children. I guess I just need to find a balance between her parenting style and mine, along with getting rid of some of their toys!
As you probably noticed, I added a new ticker to the top of my blog. I have recently started to be more diligent with my use of coupons because of the fact that we will soon need to buy a larger vehicle. We do not currently have a car payment and would like to keep things that way, but quite honestly, we don't have the cash saved up to pay for a vehicle in full (at least not enough cash for a newer vehicle). My goal is to save $2,000 by the end of January 2012. That equates to a savings of about $250 each month. I have always used coupons if I had one, but never really made an effort to maximize my savings potential. Until now. And it's awesome!!! I wish I had started sooner because the savings available are crazy. I love the feeling I get when I save 50% or MORE on foods and items we use every week. Our grocery bill is typically $80-$100 per week or $320-$400 per month. That seems high but considering we're a family of 7, that averages out to about...
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