I Am A Mom And So Much More

Alright, I have been having feelings off and on for a while now that had left me feeling that to the world I am just a Mom. 

I know, that is ridiculous. 

Truly, I am so much more and not to mention a Daughter of a Heavenly King!

Let me explain how these feelings had come about.

I went from working and going to school with one child, to going to school and back to work after having twins, then eventually to staying home with all three of my wonderful children and homeschooling.

So many changes in really short amounts of time.

To my children I am their Mom and to my husband I am his wife and mother of his children, but sometimes you forget that there is so much more to yourself.  At least, this happened to me. 

I am sharing this because it felt so strange to have these feelings inside of me, being the bubbly and outgoing person that I am.  It was as if everything that made me who I am up to a certain point was no more.

 How could that be?

Well, it couldn't possibly be and deep inside I knew I had to keep searching for the rest of myself.  I knew I had so many gifts and talents to share with the world if I could just get passed this. 

Well, guess what?  Last week I had an EPIPHANY!!!  I am so blessed and grateful that I did.

Honestly, I feel like little seeds were being planted all along that I was just not aware of.

It started with what seemed like little things that were obviously huge steps into the light for me.  I started scheduling workouts for myself, joined my church ward choir, started giving a friend cello lessons, and started my own business, to name a few.  How excited I have been.  I am such the frugal gal and it has been awesome to keep sharpening my skills with couponing and other saving strategies.

My children see my drive and the passion in the things that I do and I know it is very inspiring to them as well. 

I am more than a mom who deeply loves her children.  I am a daughter, wife, sister, niece, cousin, and friend.  I enjoy playing my cello, singing, being a consultant, staying fit, cooking, couponing, being frugal and chic, reading, learning, and so much more. 


But, you get the picture.


Even before my epiphany, I was still happy and enjoyed my calling as being a stay at home mother, but I do not feel defined by this one aspect at all and I know my children, husband, family and friends all see me as more as well, and this is a great feeling!

Staying Frugal and Chic With Coupons!

I absolutely love coupons!  No worries, you read that correctly!

After my husband and I had our twin girl's, I knew we needed to save more money.  Honestly, if I only knew, I would have been couponing all of my life.  I enjoy helping to provide for my family with items that we will use on a daily basis for less and even free.  I am also able to get items for beauty products that I otherwise would not buy.  Hey, this frugal and chic Mom wants to look fabulous too!  At a great price, of course.  I am able to try new products which provide me with high value coupons and it makes me jump for joy.

Many folks watch the Extreme Couponing show on TLC and then tend to think that all couponers are like that and that is not the case.  I am glad that they have shown people doing it big to help others with huge donations and I have even watched an episode who showed a vegan lady couponer.  I buy healthy foods for family with so much more and with the money saved, I can buy more of what I could not get with my coupons.  Also, they do provide coupons for meat products here and there, along with produce which is awesome!

Every family who uses coupons, use them in their own way.  No matter what, it is very important to organize them in a way that fits best for you and keep track of sales, expirations dates and more.  Yes, I spend some time every week with my coupons, but I save so much that it is like a part time job, but for me better.  I know it can seem crazy or scary at first, but trust me just try it.  We do not buy a newspaper and I am able to get inserts thankfully by the kindness of others who would just throw them away or have clipped the coupons that they want and give me the rest. 

It has been a blessing. 

After all, the whole point is that I am trying my best to save money where I can.

I use the binder method, so guess what my next post will be about!  Until next time!

Username and Password? Please, Come Again...?

I know I am not the only one who has forgotten my username and password to a website or two, or even three. 

Oh, this has happened to you as well?

Glad I am not alone.

The final straw for me was when my kids wanted to visit one of their learning websites and I could not remember our login information for the life of me.  My children were actually waiting patiently, unitl twenty minutes later and I still could not seem to get it going for them.

I decided that was it. 

I was taking some action. 

It was not on my schedule for the day, but I am known to add a few things to my daily list here and there.  Right then and there, I grabbed what sheets of paper I could find that had login information written on them, grabbed a notebook and got to work.  It turned out great!

Here is how I put down the information for each website:

1.  Name of website
2.  Login information
3.  Purpose and use of the website (I use some websites for only some of its content)

Very simple, RIGHT! 


Now, if I ever forget my login inormation...

I will check my Login Notebook!

Dinner Anyone?

You know when you put a lot of thought into your family dinner and you are sure that everyone will be so pleased, but nope, it's just not the case?

Oh, yes!

I sure felt that this evening.

As a mother we can all have our emotional moments and this was one of mine.  Yes, I am sharing this with you and it is quite alright. 

You see, I enjoy being in the kitchen.  Call it my sanctuary, if you will.  But, I have been so happy with my new cookbooks and working on my meal planning.  I have it painted in colors I love and it has become my canvas of art that gets daily use out of it.  I create in this special room and then create some more.

Last night I made nachos for a Mexican inspired dinner and it was a huge hit for the whole family.  I only wanted to have another hit this evening, but with an Asian inspired dinner.  I made cream cheese wonton, beefy wonton, chow mein, veggies and beefy fried rice.  My husband Scott, daughter Caylee, as well as myself all enjoyed this feast.  My son Caleb and daughter Kylie did not.

 I immediately became sad and felt that our nice family dinner was not so nice anymore. 

But, then a thought came into my mind.  I really feel it was the Holy Spirit softly whispering to me that everything will be ok, they are kids.

Well, this was totally right and put my feelings to ease.

Kids are known to be picky eaters.  I know that my kids can be picky eaters at times, but it was just the simple fact that I was sure they would love dinner and appreciate all of my preparation for the meal.  I am truly grateful for my loving husband who enjoyed the feast and really made me feel like a queen of the kitchen.  Sometimes, I will not be able to please everyone, but it does not stop me from trying one bit.

This was just one of those dinners.

We have so many dinners that bring me joy, which is why I must keep on cooking!

A New Year With A Plan In Action

Is it a new year already? 

Where did the time go? 

That's right, where did the time not go is more like it.  Welcome to Motherhood and life in general.

New changes have just begun for our family literally today and it looks very promising.

When your husband comes home happy from his training for a new position, I would say that makes for a great outlook.  Our family has always dealt with a schedule that is not of the norm when it has come to my husbands work, which has made for a not so normal routine for the rest of us within the home.  That all is changing and I am very excited, especially since I have always liked the company that he works for. 

At the beginning of each year we always hear about New Year's Resolutions.  I think it is great to have a goal in mind, but it is even more important to have a plan and then to execute it.  For instance exercise is very important to me and I could say that I want to exercise even more this year.  But, I like to have a plan to go along with my goals.  Last year was great in the workout department and this year I do hope to stretch it even more including my kids in a lot of the fun. 

YES, I schedule out my workouts!

Another item of business on my agenda has been cutting down the GROCERY BILL.  For this, I wanted to really focus on MEAL PLANNING, GARDENING and my FOOD STORAGE.

One of my Christmas gifts was the set of cookbooks for 30 Meals in one Day.  I absolutely love them and so many of the recipes in them.  I have made a few of the freezer meals before with some friends and now I have my very own set.  I have found that creating a menu plan for one to two weeks is what is best for my family.  I am focused on only buying what is on my list and that is it.  It takes determination, but it is very doable. 

With our nice backyard, I have decided that there is no reason to not a have a nice size garden.  It will take a lot of time, but the rewards will be great and it will be a family affair during this venture.

Food storage is always a great thing to have no matter what and so we will be building that up as well in a frugal manner, along with using my coupons.

I have found a website that is pretty awesome and stumbled upon in time for the New Year!  It is www.cozi.com and is a free organizing website.  Trust me when I say you will not be disappointed.  You can save recipes, create shopping lists, organize shedules and so much more. 

Welcome to 2014!