Featured Stories

Taking Internet Use to New Heights

In the old days, we used to meet our friends and spouses through school, church and social face-to-face gatherings. In the old days, we used to go down to the store to buy our food and clothing or to the dealer to buy a new car. In the old days, we had to stop at a pay phone or friend’s house to call home about something. Funny thing is that those... [Read more of this article]

Wordless Wednesday: Lincoln Logs

I loved Lincoln Logs as a kid, so I couldn’t wait to buy them for my oldest. When she out grew them, I saved them for the next child. My daughter constructed this for her hamster. Unfortunately, she forgot that he wouldn’t sit patiently while she built it. Buddy got bored and wandered off. We spent the next hour locating buddy. SHARETHIS.addEntry({... [Read more of this article]

Top 10 Indications You Are Coupon Crazy

I blogged a while back about taking a couponing class, and now it seems I’m coupon crazy. The whole thing started out as an oddly intriguing thing. Then it quickly became a hobby, and now it’s more like a frugal frenzy.  I think I’ve gone coupon crazy. The following is a list of items that I believe apply toward my coupon craziness.... [Read more of this article]

Not Again

I’m really open about our family, adoption journey, and my love for my kids. I’ve even written and published several articles on this site. I’m very tolerant of questions, even from strangers who mean well or simply are curious. I have amazing patience, usually. And then there are times… Does anyone else have a family of special... [Read more of this article]

A Profound Moment

Do you have profound moments? You know the type of experience where you are able to be 100% in the moment, on the outside looking in? I had one last week in Worthington, MN. I traveled there to present a two hour workshop on using social media to aid early childhood educators and child care providers (and related fields) in their work of reaching... [Read more of this article]

Couponing 101: Local is Key

I promised to blog about a recent couponing class I took in my own town, Hutchinson, MN. I have been very interested in learning more about how those “crazy” women do it that I see on the news. You know the stories; $200 of groceries for $1.57 or some amazingly small amount. I have also been watching other moms who blog about coupons and... [Read more of this article]

The Garden is Planted

I can’t believe the unusually warm spring weather we’ve had here in Minnesota, but I’m not complaining. I love warm weather. The hotter, the better. Last week I got our garden tilled, planted, and fenced with the help of the kids. We made some changes from last year, as we had a slug infestation that caused much of our garden to rot.... [Read more of this article]

Can You Eat Volunteers

I’m not talking about people, silly. I’m talking about voluntary vegetables in the garden. I don’t do a fall tilling, so the dried up plants are still there. Yesterday, I noticed that my brussel sprout stalks have all sprouted leaves and are growing really well. Given that last year’s growing season sucked and I didn’t... [Read more of this article]

Saving Money with Coupons

I consider myself a fairly frugal person. I like to save money and be as practical as possible. If there’s a coupon available, I’ll use it. However, I have never gone out of my way to locate coupons for specific products, nor have I strategized about using multiple coupons (web, in-store, and manufacturing) for the same product. I guess I have... [Read more of this article]

Bulk Cooking and OAMC

I have posted before about freezer cooking and OAMC (Once a Month Cooking) which I continue to do. I always field questions about how I do things or for more ideas. Today I was inspired to post a couple pictures of the dish I was making for our upcoming freezer trade. I found a recipe for Savory Pork Chops, which is pork chops dredged in a flour and... [Read more of this article]

Help for Allergies When Medicine Isn’t Enough

I have a daughter who suffers from asthma and allergies. I believe her correct diagnosis is allergy induced asthma. Anyway, she is on the medication Singular, and it works really well for her. The problem is that during certain times of the year, it simply isn’t enough. In the spring, her nose starts to cause her problems which leads to coughing... [Read more of this article]

The Jungle in Our House

While we were waiting for our first adoption referral, I busied myself with getting the spare room ready for our daughter. I’m not sure how it all started, but I decided to decorate in a jungle theme. Since I love to draw and had done a few murals for people, I saw lots of potential in the plain white walls. The whole room was my canvas. One... [Read more of this article]

Kids in the Kitchen

I love teaching my girls to cook or at least to love trying new foods. If they choose not to love preparing food, I hope that they will understand and appreciate the fine art of good food and all that it takes to prepare a meal. Yesterday I offered to let my daughter prepare supper, which she excitedly accepted. I had her sit down with recipe books... [Read more of this article]

Traveling in Spirit to Rwanda with Friends

Some close friends of mine are traveling to Rwanda for 11 days and leave tomorrow. I am in awe of their courage and faith. The opportunity presented itself, so my friends and their  two sons are going to spend time in orphanages there. This isn’t their first time traveling abroad; in fact that is how I got to know and love them. We traveled... [Read more of this article]

Family Valentine Activity

Here’s a great Family Valentine’s Day Activity: Years ago when I worked as a counselor at a girls’ group home, we invented a fun activity to boost self-esteem. The girls decorated boxes and left them in the living room for each other and the counselors to leave fun notes each day. We’d leave self-esteem boosters, compliments,... [Read more of this article]

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