After a bit of research, we decided we could safely keep our two caterpillars in a half-gallon canning jar with a healthy supply of our homegrown celery and eventually, watch them change into butterflies. The boys loved the idea of having “pets” for the summer.

So for about two weeks, we kept them in celery from the garden (celery and dill are their favorites as well as Queen Ann’s Lace). They grew quickly to be almost as big around as my ring finger and almost as long! Just before we left on vacation to Pennsylvania, they got very quiet and then found a spot to just stop moving (one on a stick and one on the side of the jar). They formed a little thread that anchored their bodies to their chosen spot and then began to get dull looking. The dull outer ‘shell’ eventually turned brown.

Not wanting to risk missing their transformation, Crunch and Munch (the names given them by my youngest) went in their jar to Pennsylvania with us. I knew that we could safely release them in PA if needed as it is well within the swallowtail’s normal range and there were also plenty of Queen Ann’s lace available for them.

As it was, they emerged the first and second day’s after we got back home. We knew it was going to happen and they emerged so quickly, we missed it both times. But the transformation was incredible! I still am amazed and humbled by how God transformed them! These were two pictures we took when we released them outside. Their wings take several hours to dry and stiffen enough for them to fly. During this time, the boys guarded them from any birds that might see them and think they could be a treat.

We said bitter sweet good-byes to Crunch and Munch when they flew off, thanking them for sharing this miraculous and awe-inspiring part of their lives with us. The boys still talk about how much they ate, how fast they grew and how they changed so dramatically from caterpillar to butterfly. Makes me think of how I look at my boys: how much they eat, how fast they grow and how they’re changing so quickly and dramatically into young men from the little babies and toddlers they once were.

I used this recipe:

3/4 C. margarine or butter

1 C. sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp of vanilla or lemon flavoring

1 tsp. baking powder

2 1/2 – 3 Cups flour

Mix together the margarine & sugar, add the eggs & flavoring.  Sift flour & baking powder.  Mix into creamed mixture.  Because we were handling it with our hands, I added a tad more flour to make the dough less sticky and to avoid the 1 hour chill time that I usually do.   When shapes are finished, bake at 350 degrees for anywhere from 7 minutes to 15 minutes depending on how thick your creations are.  YUMMY!

This activity for this age was really easy to supervise and about as inexpensive as you can get!  The BEST plus, is that the activity turns into the snack as soon as they bake!

Enjoy watching the creativity!  (Now scoot over & let the KIDS have room to work! lol )

My husband and I have 8 children.  The oldest two are married and off on their own.  If THEY told me they were going to be frugal because “Everyone is doing it” I’d say TERRIFIC!  And if they asked me for advice about the best areas to be frugal in, I’d have a bunch of suggestions.    (and actually, these kids are already doing a great job with their finances, I’ve been impressed)

1. Be aware of what your expenses and spending ARE.  Take a few minutes and make a list of all bills and spending you expect for a month.  Total that list and subtract it from your NET pay.  Decide what you will do with any left over pay… if you don’t choose what to do with it, it disappears like a thief in the night.
2. Eat at home. (your own home lol )  Designate the times you feel eating out might be justified, such as a birthday or other special occasion.  When you DO eat out it will feel much more gratifying.  Make a list of meals you can fix quick when you’re tired after work.  Keep ingredients for those meals on hand.  This will reduce the temptation to pick up take-out. (or you could live & work in the country and then it’s just a pain to drive to town to buy dinner in the same amount of time it would have taken to fix it yourself lol ) Set an amount of money for grocery spending and make it work.  ALWAYS grocery shop with a list.  Always.
3. Give each other an allowance if you have any money left at the end of the bills.  Even $5 a month of “play” money for each of you will help curb reckless spending when money is tight.  You don’t have to be accountable to anyone as to what you spend your allowance on.

There are plenty of other ways to start being frugal but you don’t want to overwhelm yourself right at the start.  Once you get these 3 areas down, THEN you can move on to other important areas like finding frugal friends or joining frugal websites such as www.frugal-families.com where you can find great ideas and support for a frugal lifestyle!

With this recession and a tough economy, one HUGE positive I see coming is that people are becoming aware of their finances.  They are controlling wants and taking care of needs first.  They are learning to live frugally and finding it very satisfying!

Okay kids…. go ahead…  even IF Everyone is Doing it.

Drive around and look at the lights!  (this is not as frugal this year as in the past because of gas prices)  If you are in a more populated location you could walk around your neighborhood one evening and enjoy the decorations.

Bake Sugar Cookies with the kids!  This can make for a long activity so I like to break it up.  I mix up the dough ahead of time & the kids help choose the cookie cutters and help cut.  I bake them and then we decorate the next night.

Make a paper chain as a countdown to Christmas.  Let the kids take off a chain link each day OR you can build a chain by putting a link on each day.

Watch Christmas movies or read Christmas books together.  We have a stash of Christmas books for both young and grown readers.  I have a collection of The Night Before Christmas books illustrated by different  people.  Though the story is the same each time, the different pictures make this fun.

Take a treat to a neighbor.  Nothing creates peace on earth and good will toward men like a yummy plate of goodies.    Let your children be involved so they can reap the rewards of doing kind deeds for others.

Do service for others.  We have a Christmas Bear.  Just an inexpensive stuffed bear dressed in a Christmas outfit who gets passed from family member to family member as quiet good deeds are done.  One child starts with the bear and secretly does a kind thing for someone else and then leaves the bear on that persons bed.  Then that person does a kind deed for someone else and leaves the bear on their bed, and so on.  This activity helps the time pass more quickly and helps us focus outside of ourselves.  It is so exciting to sneakily make someones bed without getting caught!

Have a family meeting and let everyone suggest their favorite Christmas activities and traditions.  Make time to SPEND time together!

Merry Christmas!

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 have a corner on the “right” way to raise children. The part of this that bothers me the most, is that ONCE in a while, those who think they are right, make the assumption that others who are not parenting the way they do are wrong.

I can’t claim to be an expert on any particular style of parenting. We are in the process of raising 7 children and we are on an adoption waiting list excitedly anticipating our 8th. The one thing I’ve learned over my 21 years of parenting so far, is that what works for one child, might not even phase another. What motivates one child, or even most children, won’t necessarily motivate EVERY child.
Sometimes raising our families is very challenging. I’d venture to guess that it isn’t a picnic in the park ALL the time for any of us. We use what knowledge we have and give it our best effort.

Let’s support those best efforts no matter the “method” used.

We still buy toys for our kids, but we’ve found many times over, that the things they enjoy playing with don’t always come from the store. A few ideas we’ve enjoyed over the years that provide lots of room for imagination and easily fit into almost any budget:

Boxes Boxes of all shapes and sizes are fun for play. Collect an assortment of empty food boxes such as macaroni & cheese, cereal, etc. Open them carefully as you use the contents and then tape them closed. These are fun for playing “store” or for stacking and building small houses. Shoe boxes work well too. Mid-sized boxes, large enough for a child to sit in, become cars, beds, swimming pools, doll houses. Large boxes that come from furniture or large appliances make wonderful playhouses. Mom or Dad can cut doors and windows or just lay the box on its side to crawl inside. As a child, I played spaceship with a refrigerator box for days. Check at stores you frequent and ask if they’ll save boxes for you. We found apple boxes once and made a “car” for each child and let them drive their cars to the “drive-in”(family room) and watch a movie.
Play Dough Homemade play dough is easy to make and provides hours of creative play. I like this recipe:

Homemade Play Dough

1 C. flour

1 C. water

1/2 C. salt

3 tsp. cream of tartar

1 T. oil

Mix all together in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture clings together and forms a ball. The color will change from creamy to a darker, non shiny color. Pour onto counter and knead slightly. IF you’d like to add color, you can add a few drops of food coloring before cooking, or a package of unsweetened Kool Aid works as well.

I like to keep a vinyl placemat to use while playing with the play dough. Kids will have fun just with this OR you can add more fun by finding cookie cutters, rolling pin, cups or any little kitchen tools you feel safe letting your child use. Try rolling it out smooth and then discover the texture change when you press objects into it – try rough fabric, hair brush, old toothbrush, etc. When you’re done, pack it up in a plastic ziplock bag or a plastic container with a tight lid to store for next time. This keeps for a long time if you keep it air tight.

Make a Mosaic Give your child a piece of paper. (I like cardstock or construction paper) Gather several small items to use to create your picture – we like macaroni, different shapes of other pasta, unpopped popcorn, different types of dry beans, rice, buttons, etc.   Drizzle glue (like Elmers type school glue) in patterns on the paper. Let the kids place their macaroni or other things in the glue to finish the picture. A muffin tin works great for keeping the decorating items separate while creating.

Make a collage Save some catalogs or magazines and depending on the age and skill level of your child, cut out several pictures. My 4 year old is able to roughly cut out pictures she likes. (with supervision of course – we’ve hidden scissors from other children this age to avoid self imposed haircuts LOL) Glue these pictures onto a piece of plain paper. You can get ambitious and use themes for your pictures such as “Things I love to eat” or “I love Yellow” or whatever your little heart desires.

Buttons or Keys My Mom had a button tin. Inside were hundreds of buttons of varying sizes, colors and shapes. I spent hours sorting through these.  I’ve since started my own button collection. I found quite a few around the house – extra’s that came with sweaters or shirts, cut from old clothing before throwing it out or relegating it to the rag box. I did actually purchase a few fun shaped buttons to put in and I’ve found a few at thrift stores. I’ve found my kids sorting by size, color, shape, number of buttonholes. You could string them on a heavy string or crochet thread. We started saving unused keys in another tin. We have all shapes and sizes. Old house keys, keys to items that have been broken or lost… this took longer to find that buttons. Even our 10 year old likes to sort through these. Keep in mind that small children could choke on these toys. We let the older kids play with them out of reach of our toddlers.

There are so many inexpensive options for creative play for children! I’m sure you have some of your own that you enjoy using and I’ll be posting more ideas in the future!

As food for thought in the meantime, here are a few of my favorite quotes concerning play.

Play is the beginning of knowledge.–George Dorsey

It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital connection between them.–Leo Buscaglia

Some things never change. My own children come home from school absolutely STARVING. LOL I do, however, give them snacks on a regular basis. If I don’t have a snack ready to go, they’ll start rustling through the cupboards and fridge stalking any possibilities. I’ve found that I can go broke fast purchasing some of the snacks available at the store, not to mention, many of them are nutritionally deficient.

I like to let the kids unwind for a few minutes when they get home and have their snack before starting on homework. I just think a hungry tummy gets in the way of being able to concentrate on homework. We don’t eat before 6pm so there is plenty of time for a snack and working up a good appetite for dinner.

Let’s consider some tasty, yet easy on the budget alternatives to the items you might find on the snack aisle: (keep in mind, my idea of a snack isn’t fancy, just something easy to get the hunger under control – if it’s fun… all the better. lol)

Veggies or fruit with dip. Without dip would be healthier, but not nearly as much fun. Carrots are our staple veggie here, sometimes celery. Apple slices are generally the fruit of choice. Use whatever your children enjoy, and your budget affords. Flavored yogurt is an easy and quick dip for fruit, ranch dressing for veggies.

Graham Crackers and milk. This is one of those old stand-bys that my Mom used. I’ve found that my younger kids really can’t tell the difference between name brand and store brand graham crackers and I can find store brand for a dollar or less. Dipping graham crackers in milk is entertainment as well. LOL
Bread and Milk. My parents used to eat this as children. Only about half of my kids like to break it up in a bowl and pour milk and honey over, but for those who don’t, they just have a glass of milk and a slice of bread.

Graham Cracker & Frosting cookies. When we have leftover frosting from cakes or cookies, we like to break a graham cracker in half, spread one half with frosting, and top with the remaining cracker. If you do them ahead, they soften up a little, but, most often, the kids make them as they’re ready to eat. (you can also just put frosting in a small dish and let them dunk the cracker in)

Homemade cookies, brownies, or muffins. I like to use whole wheat flour as ¼ of the flour in most recipes. My children will still eat it and I feel that they are getting a little better snack with the extra fiber. One of our favorite muffins is pumpkin chocolate chip. Yum!

A few other ideas would be popcorn, saltines, pretzels, leftovers you aren’t saving for another meal, biscuits, peanut butter sandwiches, etc. Give the kids a list of snacks you’ve approved and let them plan for the week.

After school snacking, when planned ahead, can fit nicely into your food budget AND add some well timed nutrition! Enjoy!

We set aside one night a week specifically for family night. Everyone adjusts their schedule around it and after dinner, we have a little religious message or lesson and then we play a game and have treats. Other nights of the week, we MAY watch tv together or play a game or two with whomever is home, but this one night is always scheduled.
Aside from scheduled family time, we occasionally find ourselves playing a game, doing a puzzle or watching a show together. Once in a while, a larger family activity is in order. How can we have a bigger activity using a limited budget? A few ideas we’ve had success with:

Invite your children to the movies! My ds who is 17 did much of the work on this, but the younger ones helped and we ALL had fun! We rented a movie (though you could just pull out one you own but haven’t watched for a while, or borrow from a friend or the library). The furniture was rearranged to be more “theatre” like, (he also had 2 amps he uses for his band that he hooked up for surround sound – it was great!) show tickets were made, play money from a game found to use. We hung a sheet over the doorway to our family room where the tv is and my son set up a ticket booth just outside the door. He also gathered a variety of snacks we had around the house, soda, fruit snacks, popcorn, and we bought theater sized boxes of candy as well. (though you could easily do without buying those – I spent hours vacuuming up Nerds that were spilled. lol) At the appointed time, ds handed each family member $20 in play money and started taking tickets. It was $5 for a movie ticket, $1 for soda and most other treats. You should have seen our 4 and 6 year daughters grin as they paid their own way. LOL! We had such a fun evening and even though very little money was spent, this is an event we’ll always remember.

Take the family to breakfast! (or any other meal) Years ago we started a tradition of going to breakfast on Presidents Day. One year our budget was much too tight to allow it, but we knew the kids would be looking forward to going. Dh and I did some planning. We made a couple of signs and menu’s on the computer with all sorts of fun choices for breakfast… pancakes, french toast, eggs, omelet, bacon, juice, milk, hot chocolate, etc. There were choices everyone would like. (Breakfast is an easier meal to short-order cook for) We organized our ingredients the night before and hid them. In the morning, we hurried getting everyone ready to “go to breakfast”. My husband loaded the kids in the car while I hurried and set the table and hung up signs to announce the ‘restaurant’. We drove to a nearby store, where I needed to buy buttermilk anyway. I ran into the store quick and when I was finished dh drove home. The kids were a little confused until we opened the door and seated them at the table. Dh wore an apron and took orders, I cooked and set up the plates for him to serve. Oh, did we have fun! We’ve done similar meals on occasion and each one has been wonderful. We spent time together and it cost a fraction of what it would have to take a family of 8 to breakfast!
Enjoy a picnic in winter! Pack a picnic lunch or dinner. Toss a blanket on the floor in the living or family room to eat on. Bring folding camp chairs if you’d like. Play CD’s of outdoor sounds like a waterfall or birds chirping. After lunch, lay on the blanket to read a book together or play games. You could jazz this up by going to the “beach” for your picnic and having everyone wear a swimsuit or shorts and bring a towel to sit on. LOL

Have a sleepover! Okay, I admit, I’m old…. or at least the floor isn’t as comfortable as is used to be, LOL BUT the minor discomfort was well worth it when we pulled out the sleeping bags, pushed the furniture back, and had a slumber party in the family room. Lots of giggling, storytelling, fake snoring, and MANY “goodnight John Boy” moments. A night to remember!
You don’t need to spend money to have fun with your family…. you just need to spend time.

1.  They teach responsibility.

2.  They teach skills.

3.  They allow family members to be needed.

We start when our children are quite small, allowing them to help with chores.  Most often, they start out helping someone else with a job and then as they are older, they are given their own for which to be responsible.   Right now, each child in our home has a daily chore such as unloading the dishwasher, putting clothes away, feeding pets, taking out garbage, bringing dirty laundry downstairs, putting away stray shoes. These are in addition to taking care of their own personal responsibilities such as making beds, getting dressed, etc..  Household chores benefit the family as a whole. Most of these chores are done in the morning before school.  (I personally think this timing also allows them to learn to use their time well since they have a deadline, such as the bus coming, to get things done)  In the past we’ve had chore charts, but right now, we just have assigned each person a specific job that they’ll do daily until the mood strikes me to have them change jobs.  (It’s my prerogative… I’m the Mom. lol)  Chore charts seem to work best with younger children.  Stickers, smiley faces, check marks, are good incentives for the preteen set.  My older children prefer to be assigned a chore and be left to do it.

Through chores, my children are learning to work without reminders and to take pride in their work.  They are learning skills that will be necessary later in life… who takes out the garbage once you move away from home?  Most importantly to me, (and hopefully to them) is that they are learning they are important in helping our home run smoothly.  They are needed as part of our family unit.  Who doesn’t love to feel needed?

We have a large family.  Having the older kids do chores REALLY helps!  I could, however, do the chores for the younger ones in half the time and do a much better job.  But that’s not the point, is it.  LOL  “I” already know about responsibility, “I”, as a MOM, am automatically needed.

Household chores are sort of “membership dues”, if you will.  I propose that every child in a family will benefit from the privilege of doing daily chores.  On the main page of Frugal Families, under “printables” there are some really cute reward coupons you could use when your children complete their chores for a reasonable length of time.  The biggest reward however, is the feeling of belonging.

My 6 year old daughter has 2 pair of jeans for school among a few pair of lighter weight pants. They’re 3-4 months old. Already a hole! These are cute jeans, and fit around her skinny waist. They are getting a tad short, but not enough to justify moving up to the next size. I need to get these jeans to last another month or two! I found a package of patches at Walmart for under a dollar. They have denim patch, but I just got the thin, fabric stuff… it came with 5 colors, dark blue, black, white, tan and brown. Each piece is about 3″x4″. I cut the white in half, rounded the corners, turned the jeans inside out. Following the directions, I ironed that on the inside over the hole. While that cooled, I cut about a 2 inch diameter flower… just a simple, 5 petal flower, out of the dark blue. I used the tan to cut a center for the flower. Turning the jeans right side out, I placed the flower over the hole, ironed that on, and then added the center. CUTE! I was out of time, but I could easily cut out 2-3 more flowers in a smaller size and trail those down the leg as well. (I could also use the other piece of white patch and iron on the inside of the other knee to reinforce it BEFORE it wears through) My daughter thinks they’re lovely and it’s not noticeably a patch! SUCCESS!!!

Why is it more than a patch? I creatively extended the life of a pair of jeans that would have been relegated to the “play clothes” drawer, I will be able to hold off purchasing replacement jeans for a bit longer when we can use the next size up, AND I saved money! A frugal victory!  Now, I’ve got to figure out how to patch my 11 year old sons jeans. Wearing them with the holes gaping isn’t acceptable at our house and somehow I just don’t think a flower will work. LOL Maybe a patch out of camo type fabric? I’ll give it some thought!
Frugality is all about getting the most out of what you have. I love it!