Our resources

I work hard to make the most of our time, money, space and natural resources.

Time to shine

February 19, 2010

I’ve got my spit rag out and I’m ready to shine things up. My faithful followers: Here is my first post in my renewed effort to kick procrastination to the curb. My pseudo-maternity leave is over and it’s time to pound the virtual pavement to find the next step in my career. To that end, I wrote this post for Help a PR Pro Out. Those visiting me for HAPPO: Like many journalists, I’m a procrastinator at heart but I am firmly determined to kick that habit as I move out of the ink-stained dredges of newspaperdom into the...

I am giving up. Giving up procrastination, that is.

February 18, 2010

I’ve decided what I am going to give up for Lent. Procrastination. Uh, what? Yep, I know that’s what you’re thinking. When the idea struck me (like lightening), my inner self thought: You are The Recovering Procrastinator. Haven’t you been trying to give up procrastination for at least two years? Isn’t that why you started this blog in the first place? Well, self and readers, yes and no. Yes, that is why I started this blog: to chronicle my efforts to stop procrastinating, to share my success and laugh over my failures. But the focus has been lost, leaving...

Gifts for kids that don’t mean clutter for parents

December 4, 2009

I was going to wait till next week for the next installment of my gift guide, but this Frugal Friday post about stocking stuffers dovetails nicely with my ideas for a post about kid consumables, because most of them fit in a stocking and aren’t expensive. Though they are certainly gifts that would be good for any young kids, not just for your own and not just for stockings. By consumable gifts, I don’t mean just food; I mean anything that gets used up instead of sitting around taking up space forever. These are things we go through often...

Crafting your life

December 3, 2009

So who am *I*? I guess I don't really know. ... I will follow her journey while making my own, maybe now with a little more sense of purpose instead of blindly fumbling through each day just waiting for it to end.

Getting back to meal planning

September 23, 2009

My freezer just exploded. I ended up with chili all over myself and the floor. Why? I buy meat when it’s on sale but never make a plan to cook it. Or a freeze half of a large meal and never make a plan to reheat it. So here’s the plan for the rest of this week: BreakfastsW-SmoothiesTh-Oatmeal with fresh peaches/pears (but what will Grace eat?)F-Blueberry muffins and yogurtS-Pancakes and baconSu-Cereal LunchesW-Fried egg sandwiches with cut-up fruitTh-Mac and cheese with broccoliF-Grilled cheese and tomato soupS-Sweet skillet chicken with peas and cornSu-PB&J and applesauce DinnersW-Chicken Biscuit stewTh-Pork chops with BBQ...

Scheduling our days

August 4, 2009

I created a weekly schedule for us to help keep us all sane, so check that one off the to-do list. Here it is. Wish us luck. ———— To do update: I decided not to bother calling the chiro until I know what’s up with our insurance. Still haven’t called Kris. I’ve been putting it off.To do on Wednesday: Call Kris; grocery shop; pick up computer and library books.

To do: Save even more on groceries

July 9, 2009

One of my new favorite Web sites is momadvice.com, especially the blog The Motherload. If you are into saving money, organizing, doing craft projects or just getting fun ideas for things to do with or without kids, check it out. Amy recently reposted her list of 35 ways to save on groceries on the blog. I had been thinking about trying them all. And now that my income has been halfed and my time doubled (sort of), there’s no better time, right? Here is the list and my thoughts on it. I’ll update you on how I’m doing sometime...

You’ll be hearing a lot more from me

July 1, 2009

Notice that this is one of only a few times that my subject isn’t prefaced with “to do”? Because I don’t really know what to do today … or any time in the near future. The last few days have been very strange. It’s disorienting to have no place to be and nothing in particular to do for an unforeseeable amount of time. I still have to clean the house, take care of the kids, pay the bills, and on and on, but I have all the time in the world to do it. Not a good thing for a journalist....

The movie is free, but the popcorn …

June 17, 2009

Mark and I took the kiddos to their first real movie today. Shrek 3 was showing as part of the Regal Cinema’s Free Family Film Festival.Both kids love Shrek 2 and I though a free showingwould be a good time to test Connor’s ability to sit it through awhole movie. The theater (in Eagan) has arm rests that push up out of the way,which was nice for squirmy kids. The four of us used three seats, andthe kids sat together part of the time, rested their heads in our lapspart of the time, etc, without disturbing anyone else. Also,...

“Oh, you are not”

March 12, 2009

That is what a coworker said when she saw me sorting coupons a few weeks ago. (It probably looked like an overwhelming task because I hadn’t been doing much with bargain shopping since before Christmas.) She asked how much I saved and if it was worth the effort. I really couldn’t give her an answer. A couple of friends have since asked how much I save because they are looking for ways to cut costs, like the rest of the U.S. population. Three weeks ago (when the big cereal deal was going on) was a good week for bargains...

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