Raising Families Archives

Sugar Cookie Playdoh – a Frugal Kid Entertainment!

Today my little girls, ages 6 & 8 each got to have a friend over.  Rain prevented a lot of outdoor play, so I mixed up a batch of sugar cookie dough!  I gathered a cookie sheet, some flour to powder hands for each set of girls and set them and their imaginations free.  You [...]

Everyone’s Doing It!

  When I used to say that phrase to my parents, I always got the “Well… if everyone was going to jump off a cliff would you do it too?” line.  LOL!   BUT, some things are terrific if everyone’s doing it, and it appears that being frugal is becoming one of those things.  [...]

Fun and Frugal Christmas Activities

Wow!  Can you believe Christmas is almost upon us!  My children are counting the days. LOL  I love the holiday season as it lends itself well to family activities.  There are so many fun things to do!
Drive around and look at the lights!  (this is not as frugal this year as in the past because [...]

Raising our OWN families

This has little to do with being frugal, but has been on my mind so much lately.
I notice these days that there are so many parenting “styles” and methods out there. Some are popular enough to have been given names, some are used and remain unnamed. Some methods and some parents claim to [...]

Creative Play for Little Ones

Christmas of 1985 was a momentous occasion for my husband and I. Our first baby was 4 1/2 months old and we were SO excited to share this fun holiday with her! I woke her at 6 a.m. (yes, I AM crazy LOL) and we ‘helped’ her open her little gifts we’d bought. [...]

Feeding the After School Hungries

I remember, back in my school days that I was STARVING when I came home from school! Absolutely STARVING. Gosh, it had been 3 1/2 hours since lunch. If I asked, Mom would let me have bread and butter, sometimes sprinkled with sugar or once in a while there was a cookie [...]

Family Fun on a Frugal Budget

Family activities are always a focus in our home. We have fun playing together as a family and dh and I feel the time we spend together is important. The kids are very supportive of having family activities…. sometimes our budget is not. lol
We set aside one night a week specifically for [...]

Chores Bring the Family Together.

I’ve been thinking lately about what brings our family together. What is it that makes us a thriving, functional family unit?   Though there are many facets to consider, I’ve decided that there are a few things that top the list.   Being loved, having basic needs met, playing and spending time together, and chores.
I know, [...]

It’s more than a patch.

What is it about kids and the knees of jeans? I don’t SEE my kids crawling around constantly but the knees of their pants make me wonder. When my oldest kids were small, I remember buying the toughskin jeans at Sears for my boys. They had double knees (and they carried slims [...]

Raising families and pinching pennies. Does it have to hurt?

Hi there!  I’m absolutely new to this blogging thing.  I’ve read them before, but this is my first attempt at writing.  No snickering.  LOL   Just a short intro – I’m Joy, known as Enjoyin’9 on the boards.  I’m older than I’d like, but most people guess my age at least 5 years younger than I [...]