Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Strategic Shopping: A Review



This post contains affiliate links :<)




Friends. You know how I feel about frugal shopping. One of my favorite places to frequent is The Thrift Store and “Clarence” (you might know him as “Clearance”) is a good friend of mine. I am always looking for new and creative ways to save a buck. It can be a fantastic adventure! Fantastic, though sometimes challenging.  I was recently given the chance to review two first-rate books about the subject. 



Let me first tell you a little about the author. Candy Foote is a mom of 12! I think she probably has quite a bit of experience shopping strategically! Just her weekly grocery trip alone must be an adventure. You can check out more about Candy and her methods by visiting her website. In her book, Strategic Shopping, she gives step by step practical help.  Candy does talk about how to use coupons, but she also has wonderful advice on how to save money everywhere.  I found that my small family of 3 (just The Muffin, Josiah and Me) benefited just as much as a larger family would. 

http://candyfoote.com/the-store/?ap_id=bekethebookworm

Strategic Shopping is a great resource, but my favorite has to be Christmas with Strategic Shopping. I have to say that this past Christmas stressed me out (just a bit). There were those handmade projects that I didn’t allow enough time for (talk about last minute!). Those homemade goodies I didn’t budget for and so much more I wanted to do for family and friends, but just didn’t have the funds to bring it about. 

I love Christmas and all that comes with it. One of my favorite things is being able to share lovely things with the people I love. Candy helps those like me to “strategically shop” all through the year to make Christmastime all that I hope it can be. How does she do it? Candy gives us a month-by-month plan. She talks about all the items to look for in a particular month. For example, I love knowing that in March I be looking out for socks, gloves, hats or anything wintery that I can sneak into a stocking next year. The price will be drastically reduced as they are preparing the shelves for summer. 

http://candyfoote.com/the-store/?ap_id=bekethebookworm

Another idea I absolutely love is to create a non-perishable box. This box is to hold all the supplies I might find for my homemade treats and goodies through the year. We all know that certain times of the year are better to purchase particular ingredients. I was inspired to get started on my own non-perishable box.

Candy also provides printable pages at the end of her book. These are wonderful organizational tools. I love that she encourages to make a plan and then gives us the tools to do so! 

One of my favorite parts of this books is hearing of Christmas in the Foote house. Candy does such a wonderful job of inviting us into her home. I loved reading of the family traditions. Made me all squishy inside (not that I wasn’t already squishy here and there:<))

I am already putting Candy’s advice into practice. I was somewhere over the weekend and ran into a few shelves with .25 Christmas items. Yay! I spent a couple of dollars and feel good about having a running start on this next Christmas. 
 

Both of Candy Foote's books, Strategic Shopping and Christmas with Strategic Shopping, can be bought from Candy's site. Both are PDF ebooks (I downloaded them to my Kindle) and are easily managed. Right now Candy is providing us with a terrific discount. Just use the Code given below. I know you won't be disappointed.

http://candyfoote.com/the-store/?ap_id=bekethebookworm

I posted yesterday details of a fantastic Facebook party happening tonight (Tuesday, January 28). I encourage you to attend! I am going to try and be there :<)


Happy shopping!



Monday, January 27, 2014

Strategic Shopping Facebook Party!

I am getting ready to post my review for a set of really handy e-books all about Frugal shopping (which you know I love!). For now, I wanted to pass on a bit of information about a fun Facebook party coming tomorrow Tuesday, January 28 @ 8:30PM. In the meantime, stay tuned for my review...I know these books are really going to appeal to a lot of you!

SSFBPartyBanner

Who's ready to party, save some $$$, and win some awesome prizes?  Candy Foote is celebrating the release of her new book, Christmas with Strategic Shopping and the re-release (with a new low price!) of Strategic Shopping, with what looks to be a rockin' Facebook Party! 

Here are some of the prizes you could win! Build a Menu: She will be giving away a one-year membership to this awesome, money-saving meal planning program. In three easy steps you can select the store you like to shop at, pick your recipes and print your customized shopping list. You’re done menu planning for the week! You can choose recipes... from any of these categories to create a menu that’s perfect for you family:
Family Friendly Trim Healthy Mama Low Carb Gluten Free Low Fat/Sensible Portions Allergy Friendly (No gluten, dairy, nuts) Vegetarian Slow Cooker Soups On Crowd Pleasers Manly Meals

To learn more about Build a Menu, go here.

Molly Green Magzine/Econobusters has donated for 2 giveaways during Tuesday's party-- (3) one-year memberships to Molly Green Magazine, which includes future issues as well as back issues, as well as a bundle of 5 eBooks!
Total Value of these giveaways is more than $265!

To learn more about Econobusters with Molly Green, go here.

Did I mention that one of you could win more than $100 in Paypal Cash or an Amazon Gift Card (winner's choice)? There's also an awesome bundle of ebooks up for grabs, from wonderful folks at  Hal & Melanie Young, Phyllis Sather, and Tabitha Philen. Not to mention Candy's books!

SS facebook event cover

So, what exactly is a Facebook party? It's a fast-paced, fun-filled hour and a half where Candy will be answering your Strategic Shopping questions, asking you some fun trivia questions, and best of all, giving out prizes.

Everyone who attends the party will receive FREEBIES just for showing up! Your first step is to RSVP on the events page over here. The actual party will not be on the events page though. It will be on Candy's STRATEGIC SHOPPING page. Throughout the party, watch for new status posts every 5 minutes with trivia questions, giveaway offers, and more fun. Leave comments, ask questions, and have fun! Refresh the page often so you don't miss out on new posts! See you there! 

Friday, January 24, 2014

5 Essentials of Homeschooling: So You Wanna Be Superwoman



 This week I am going to talk to you about the 5 Essentials of Homeschooling. Instead of writing about my favorite brand of #2 pencil and math curriculum, I want to talk to you about what I consider to be truly Heart issues. Of course, these issues are what I have found to be true in my own experience. They might be different for you. My topics for the week are Discipline (the self kind, not the a timeout…though you might need one), Flexibility (and if you can put your leg over your head I don’t want to hear about it), Creativity (you might be able to borrow someone else’s), Teachability (believe it or not…you’re not done learning)  and Grace (I need it daily!). My apologies to those who really wanted to know my thoughts on dry erase boards (I like them) and co-ops (I am slightly afraid of them). Happy Reading!


Today is my last post for the 5 Essentials of Homeschooling Blog Hop. 

I really consider this to be the most important "Essential," not only in Homeschool...but in Life. 

Like my header picture? I could be Superwoman. Well. If you took away the dark, shiny hair, the flawless complexion, the 14-inch waist, the super human strength and general awesomeness. 

Truthfully, there is not much to compare me to Superwoman. Though I try and convince myself now and again I must possess some of her wicked ninja moves. 

Do you know your limits?
I find I know them, but have difficulty sticking to them.  Superwoman I am not. 
Another story (cue sappy daytime soap opera music). I have been in treatment for cardiomyopathy since 1999. For those of you who are not "in the know," it is disease of the heart muscle. In my case, my heart  weakened. Doctors aren't sure why it weakened, but weaken it did.  Most of the time I’ve puttered through life with no ill effects. I am treated with a few different kinds of medication and have a good prognosis. It has caused a few issues for me. For one,  I've 2 major episodes of Congestive Heart Failure. The first happened when I was just 27. 

The second happened in 2006 when Josiah was just 4-years-old. This episode left me broken. Financially, emotional, physically. I spent too many days in guilt. My little boy was not experiencing the same kind of childhood that little boys should have.  My husband had spent too many years taking care of me. 

You can see that I was right smack in the middle of a huge pity part (complete with all the ice cream I could eat). I might have had good reason to feel like this might be the end of the world (let alone my life), but I wasted valuable moments not embracing what I did have. 

Do you ever feel like you just aren’t enough? 

The laundry (oh, the laundry) never seems to be done.  I feed my son all the wrong things. I never seem to be in step with the latest homeschool trend. Some days it’s all we can do to get through our schoolwork...forget about lunch. 

This verse has been such a comfort to me over the years. 

"And He has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me."
2 Corinthians 12:9

In this Homeschooling journey (and in life) we will all eventually feel like we aren’t enough. We can’t do enough to keep up. We aren’t equipped to handle the task in front of us. Raise a hand if you’ve been there. Sista! I see that hand (or is that mine?).

This where Grace comes in. 

Grace is recognizing that I can only do what I can do. God’s going to have to fill up the rest. 

Grace is knowing when I need to take a step back and just rest in Him. 

Grace is being able to say, “no,” to those things that I need to say “no” to. 

Grace is understanding that God has not given me more than I can bear. If I have added to that…I need to stop it! 

Grace is being confident that He has numbered my days and He guides my steps. And that He is sufficient. Even when I feel that I am not. 

Here is what I have concluded. It might change one of these days, but for now,…it’s all I’ve got. 

When it’s all said and done, God has given me the care of this beautiful boy. He is also able to provide my husband and me what we need to complete the task of raising him. We might not make all the right decisions, but we try. I can’t promise that I will never make a trip through the Drive-Thru. That I might never cancel Math for the day to read a book. Most of Josiah’s clothes will be clean when he leaves the house, but I can’t make any guarantees about his underwear. 

As I face the other challenges in my life, I am reminded that He can take care of those things, too.

So, my friends. Today (on this last posting for 5 Essentials of Homeschoolin) I encourage you to give yourself a little Grace. I know I need some. 

Be sure to check out the following blogs. We are all part of the Schoolhouse Review Crew. You can check out even more by clicking on the banner below. 

Nicole @ Schooling in the Sun
Leah @ As We Walk Along the Road
Heather @ Thrift Schooling
Joanie @ Simple Living Mama
Lisa @ Home to 4 Kiddos
Amy @ Homeschool Encouragement
Monique @ Living Life and Learning
Jenn @ Fresh Start Academy
Lori @ Special Connection Homeschool


 5 Days of Homeschooling Essentials 


I hope this series has blessed you in some way. Have a great weekend!


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