Frugal fun

I've been reading this book: Living with less so your family has more.

 

Basically the authors (Mark and Jill Savage) use lots of scripture and are laying out the biblical way to honor God with your resources.  Not just money, but time too! And in prioritizing to do so, putting your family first.  They lived off one income, below what society said they should, and made it work. I highly recommend this book.  A HUGE amount of family and marital problems are over finances so this would be a great book for any couple- especially engaged or newly marrieds- but really anybody, and especially if you are looking to cut your expenses and dive into budgeting!!

I appreciate this book because a lifestyle that puts your family first and sees the benefits of having a parent at home is not one that is encouraged in our culture, or even in most of our churches.  We are instead encouraged to work more, make more, have more, spend more, be busier, get into more debt, and consequently have more conflict and less time with our loved ones.

One thing that I liked is that they discussed sacrificing costly hobbies.  Mark traded regular golf for Frisbee golf because it was usually free after you have the equipment and this better fit their family budget.  We turn down ski trips, paintball outings, and other events that occur because they are costly, require equipment, and just don't fit into our budget.  They're not bad things of course, but we really are not missing out on anything. 

I began pondering all this after we took the boys to a small amusement park nearby a couple of weeks ago.  Under 3 is free so we only had to pay for ourselves, but those types of outings can be expensive...especially with older kids and also factoring in gas and food.  As the boys get older and get more expensive (I think babies and toddlers are pretty cheap to take care of for the most part)...we need to be proactively planning entertainment/family fun that fits in our budget.

Our new favorite "frugal fun" is exploring all of the elementary schools on our side of town.  There are 5 different elementary schools within a couple of miles.  All have fun play structures, soccer fields, tracks, and trails.  Mateo is at the age where he loves exploring and playing...and really just doing anything that involves us all together outside. So after naps on Sunday afternoon lately we'll load up and drive the short distance to one of these schools (one is walking distance).  We'll play and run around until dinner time and then head home.  I've been trying to plan ahead for Sunday dinners so we don't have to cook much and so we can have more family time.  Sometimes I'll do a double batch on Saturday so we can just heat up some leftovers and keep it simple!

 

Exploring a new school on a sunny Sunday!

 

Joy in getting dirty....

A mama group I'm part of just finished the book Ordinary Mom, Extraordinary God that is filled with individual devotions from the author's lessons in motherhood.  I encouraged everyone to write their own "devotion"  Here is mine.  

Devotion # 61: Joy in getting dirty

I want to be a mom....

who dances,

who sings loudly,

who plays on the floor,

who shares my chocolate chip cookie,

who gets dirty,

who draws with side walk chalk,

who goes down slides,

who laughs,

has joy,

loves unconditionally....

The NLT version of 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 says this: 16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.

Being a stay-at-home-mom can be exhausting and thankless Downsizing our life to live on one income requires a lot of extra “work” and the demands of motherhood- from diapers, laundry, and cooking, to cleaning, errands, and yard work...... can make the best of us act stressed out and cranky.

But I don't want my kids to look back and remember their mom as a stressed out work horse (and believe me... I do feel like one of those at times). And it's not about me looking “good” to them in their memories, but I want to be an example to them. I want them to look back and remember JOY and GRATITUDE. I want them to see an example of prayer without ceasing, a woman of gratitude who has a thankful heart. They should see me singing in the kitchen and see me thanking people when I appreciate them. They should hear me pray for them every day.

If I truly have a thankful heart I will have more joy. I will see washing endless loads of laundry as a blessing because I am so thankful to have a family that needs their clothes washed and I will be grateful for the memories we made while dirtying said clothes. I will see hour long trips to WinCo and endless hours preparing food and making things from scratch to save money as a blessing because I'm thankful for the food we've been provided with. I will be content with what I have (Hebrews 13:5) and not longing for the next best thing.

I want to be Mary in a Martha world (See Luke 10: 38-42). Diligent and faithful work is important, but I want to show my kids that I value people. Time spent with my family is more precious than diamonds and emeralds and any salary I could have made working full time.

So finish folding that load of laundry and go outside and play. Your kids want YOU!

30 days of intentionality

I saw this idea recently...30 Day Challenge... that challenged you to spend 30 minutes of INTENTIONAL play time with your kid(s) each day.  At first I thought...well I spend all day with my kids...but to be intentionally engaged with them is different.  It's for the month of June but you could surely do it any time.

It's become harder to spend one on one intentional time with Mateo since his baby brother was born.  To be honest, babies can be a drag.   Two year olds are much more fun.  Babies are cute and sweet and precious...but they just can't "do" much.  SO yesterday, when we had a little bit of time in the afternoon when Alex was sleeping (praise Jesus...this teething baby is not liking the sleep lately).... we grabbed a snack and went and ate it in Mateo's new "fort".  Then we spent the next 30-40 minutes swinging the afternoon away.  Underdogs galore.  And one good thing about being pint-sized is that I get to swing, too, haha.   Then, alas, baby brother wakes up and we sadly have to come in. 

What will you do today to intentionally play with your kids?

As a SAHM it's not hard to occasionally (or often) see your precious kiddos as an inconvenience and focus on the things you need to get done...but being intentional and building play time into your "To Do List" is a fun relief....one that will be a treasure in heaven.  I find I spend a lot of time playing with Mateo (can you spend too much time playing?)  I would much rather play than do chores and stuff at home...but it's a crafted balance to spend time with him (and Alex) while also encouraging him to have independent play time while I cook dinner, nurse baby brother, etc.  Since we don't have a TV in the living room he comes up with some pretty interesting games and ways to play.  Most recently he likes me to go to his "work" which is his room. When asked what he does at work, sometimes he answers "I play basketball" or "I cook food" (He has a bball hoop and a mini kitchen in his room).  But whatever it is he does at work on any given day, he is always working "very hard" just like Daddy.

Matthew 6:19-20 (NIV)

¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.