Living Frugal and Fabulous

I need this as a ring tone

2012-01-29T11:20:00.003-06:00

I've been going through old digital photos and videos. I came across this taken back in 2007. It's my Madeline as a baby laughing.

This is the sweetest sound ever!

You can't help but smile!

Mother Natures Before and After

2012-01-25T09:20:00.002-06:00

When we purchased our country home we made our decision based on the potential of the property.

If the house and land were 100% perfect it would have been way out of our price range.

My husband and I took a risk and in one area it paid off! The best part this improvement didn't cost a thing.

This was our pond when we bought the house. Completely bone dry.

Can you even see it?

It looks like a hill. This is a photo I took this morning. It's full! I couldn't get too close because of all the rain. The total size of the pond is about an acre. It's about 5 ft deep at this point.
I'm very excited after several good rains to have our pond holding water. This is the major reason we picked this property.

We had visions of a little paddle boat and the kids fishing in our backyard.

I'm like a kid on Christmas morning! I was so excited last night when it kept raining and raining.

Winter Burgers

2012-01-21T10:15:00.002-06:00

On a lighter note.... my last post was pretty heavy. Thank you for your great comments. I feel very passionate about raising good daughters, I've got 3 of them.

Here in North Texas we've been lucky with some summer like weather.

Yesterday it was 83! Crazy for mid-January.

When the temperatures rise.... it's grill time!

I discovered some wonderful burger seasoning. It's only $1 and it's AMAZING!

I've tried all kinds of burger recipes but nothing beats this seasoning pack.

It's super easy, just mix in with 1 pound of ground beef and make into patties then grill.

I HATE the feel of mixin up raw meat so I always wear disposable plastic gloves.

YUM!

This isn't my photo but sure looks ready for a summer grilling party!

If you don't have warm temps don't worry you can broil burgers in your oven or put in a frying pan. Still good just missing a bit of the smoky flavor.

Menu Monday

2012-01-19T08:58:00.004-06:00

After a long busy weekend. I feel like doing this....

Monday's are only 2nd to Fridays.

Monday the kids head back to school, husband back to work and me back on schedule.

I don't know about you but Monday's are recovery of my house and my mind! It's always a nice peaceful start of the week.

Let's talk about food. Here's what's for dinner at my casa.

Monday

Mexican Lasagna click here for my recipe

Tuesday

Crockpot Ravioli (super easy)! Take a bag of frozen rav and a can of your favorite spaghetti sauce. Toss in the crockpot frozen and cook on low for 3 hours. Top with some mozz cheese for a few and ready! This is one of our activities night. We get home around 7pm from basketball practice. Dinners ready right when we get home.

Wednesday

Frozen Pizza night. I do a lot of driving Wednesday night, my husband helps out and makes pizza. We get frozen cheese pizza and add our own toppings. I get home and pizza's ready! I didn't mention we can't order pizza we're too far out in the country. BUMMER!

Thursday

Make your own Sandwiches and pasta salad

Friday

Burger Friday, I shared my recipe yesterday. Yum!

A Must Read for Moms, My Eyes are Open

2012-01-18T08:30:00.008-06:00

WARNING THIS IS CONTROVERSIAL!

MOMS please read!! It's time your eyes were opened. I was shocked to learn.

Let's talk ladies, candidly. This has nothing to do with being frugal or fabulous just an honest mom to mom talk, heart to heart.

I'm a 30 something mom of 3 girls. Back in the early 90's I enjoyed teen magazines such as TEEN and Seventeen. They had pop quizzes, make up and fashion tips. When the topic of sex was brought up it was all about waiting and abstinence.

Well it's 2012 and its changed. Don't be naive about what your daughters are looking at and reading. This is a copy of a Cosmo cover. Because of copyright I won't show the label.

UMMMM, yeah..... completely inappropriate even for me a 34 year old women.

This sure sounds pornographic to me. Since when has the V word and sex tips become mainstream available right at the check out lane. No black cover just for our young girls and boy to see at the grocery lane.

Our girls are bombarded with the same message by the media, let's review:

Pop stars: Lady Gaga, read this She's way worse than Madonna ever was. They all tell the kids the same thing, sex is great and do it with whoever and wherever. When was the last time you saw a music video, I'll recap orgy's, sex and more sex. It's not the same MTV (except if your watching Taylor Swift she's the one exception).

The internet: have you ever checked your google searches. An innocent word can bring up porn. Most kids get Internet on their phone. My teen has seen all kinds of things at school on other people's phones. Youtube is a kids favorite. Does your child have a computer in a public space or a private one with Internet in their room. Have you ever checked their Internet history. It's porn at their fingertips. I'm not even going into sexting.

TV: The most popular network TV shows are :Glee (features openly gay characters and shows making out of same sex, not to mention the complete disrespect of adults by minors) Modern Family (A happy gay couple raising a child, a young sexy mom married to an unattractive older man, and a dysfunctional heterosexual couple (the only natural couple is a mess go figure) America's Got Talent (has recently brought on Howard Stern as a judge, that was considered a family show that has gotten edgier each season from a little opera star to a male pole dancer in drag) Let's just say The Bachelor looks family friendly compared to these shows.

With all the forces against us how are we to raise good moral girls? Even if your a mother on the more liberal scale do you want your daughter sexually active at a young age with multiple partners? The media world says it's ok. If it feels good do it. Don't think your elementary girls don't see this too. Moms, were not stupid

Your daughters and sons are in your home need the moral compass to be set. If you don't tell them the truth and be open look what the world will tell them. It might be hard and you WILL have resistance but it's your responsibility. God intrusted YOU to raise your kids. Even if you avoid the consequences now you will be held accountable at some point.

Moms, we must put a stop to the smut and teach our girls they are beautiful and worthy. They are not sex toys and objects. The world wants a baseball or basketball to have more purpose then our daughters to these young boys.

I found a wonderful site to help do something. Check out Project inspired.

MOMS I KNOW YOUR OUT THERE!!! Church attendance is up and so many proclaim to be Christian. Please raise your voice and teach your daughters right. Don't think your daughter isn't involved and doesn't see this. She does it's EVERYWHERE!

You can do it, spend some time in quiet reflection and think about what you say and do. Who does your child spend the most time with. Do they have the same ideals, rules, expectations.

Think about it and say a little pray for your eyes to be open and for God to give you the graces you need to be a good mother. Most of all love your children and show them pure love.

Joy my Word of the Year

2012-01-16T11:21:00.005-06:00

Layla over at The Lettered Cottage is hosting a word of the year party.

I saw it and just knew my word:

Such a simple word, but so elusive at times.

Joy doesn't cost anything. It's with you at every moment. It only needs you to look for it.

The world is full of joy but it's the easiest thing to loose.

I'm working hard to see the joy in the little things I do each day....

Cleaning up after my family, there can be joy. The kids had a fun time making the mess remember their joyous face!

Enjoying the time in the morning they won't always be little.

When I make lunches leaving a little note for them.

Slowing down and enjoying the quiet time when the kids are at school and the others are napping.

When I tuck the kids in at night taking a moment to relish the time.

My youngest daughters middle name is Joy. When I picked that name I wanted to be reminded when I see her to think of the joys in life.

Children are filled with Joy and happiness. Life is full of joys. We must look for them each day and take them in.

Family Time

2012-01-12T12:50:00.005-06:00

I've been MIA a bit on my blog. We've been busy around here.

We've had Christmas break movie sleepovers at home. Santa brought Will a skateboard.... praying for no broken bones. You can see Kate in the background, the teenager is most interested in trendy stuff.

My little cowboy is growing up.

So is my littlest baby. She finally started walking at 17 months old. Scooting and being carried is much faster than walking. She's a smart one!

Madeline showed off her acting skills in the church Christmas pageant. She's the little lamb with the baby stuffed lamb in front of her face. My girl got shy, but she was so darn cute!

We took a family trip minus the baby to the symphony to see the in real life Von Trapp family singers. Our favorite movie is The Sound of Music. They were amazing!

Madeline made muffin tin crayons. Sporting her favorite shirt. My "vintage Jennifer" strawberry shortcake shirt.

We're doing homeschool pre-school this is one of our projects.

I had the honor of attending a mother/ daughter luncheon at my oldest daughters high school. I'm so proud of the young lady she has become.

I might not be busy blogging but I'm busy around the house.

We are working on some new projects on our country house:

we refinished the barn floor

painted the downstairs barn walls

ripped out some front dead landscaping

relocated a frog farm from the koi pond to the big pond

I'm very anxious to do some big projects like my kitchen and library. For now we have a big empty room that functions as a running track for the kids!

Funky Chair Redo

2011-12-16T08:05:00.005-06:00

On my weekly trip into town I almost always stop in the local Goodwill and check out their chairs. I've been on a hunt for some chairs with personality,

My desk and sewing table need new chairs and I want to make them fun.

Right inside the door I found a pair of 1970's chairs with really cool curves and details. Sold $10! I pulled out my trusty Heirloom White and got busy painting. I didn't prime because I knew I wanted to distress and bring out the wood underneath. It took about 3 coats of paint.

I recovered the cushion and took out the basket weave material. It was in bad shape.
Funky soft animal print perfect for my desk!

I used nail heads for the first time. Looks easy... NOT! It was very hard to get them in straight and they were bending all over the place. Next time I'll try something else.

Here they are side by side.
BEFORE and AFTER:

I love the back and the great details. Little Caroline wanted to get in on the fun!

I'm not sure what to do with the 2nd chair. Any ideas? I was thinking egg blue with a burlap seat cushion. It will be my sewing chair.

Homemade Gift Ideas

2011-11-27T16:22:00.002-06:00

My favorite gifts are homemade one's. I also prefer home cooked meals to out to eat. Something about the time people put into making something makes it a ton better.

I have this frame I painted a while back. I got it at a garage sale for $1.

I added a bit of fun to it. I see these fabric flowers all over the places at boutiques. We've been looking at fabric for window treatments so I have a ton of scraps. I found a use!

This is how you start. With a triangle glued to a small felt circle or square.

Then you just twist around and glue. You could use fabric glue but I have burned finger tips immune to burns....

I added a 2nd fabric for some contrast.

This is another frame I finished.

There are a lot of printables online I'm thinking this is a great gift for teachers, family and friends.

Boys Room Before/After

2011-11-08T07:29:00.000-06:00

My favorite part of makeovers are the before and after shots.

This is Will's room. Lucky guy got Daddy's big book shelves from his old office. It give him a lot of storage and display. This is what it looked like when we looked at the house.
Boring white walls and a bed on the floor.

Will loves his new room.

He especially loves that he has his own bathroom and doesn't share it with any girls.

Menu Monday

2011-11-07T06:34:00.003-06:00

Can you believe how grocery and eating out prices are going up?

A couple weeks ago we visited Chili's and all menu prices up.

To counteract this we do most meals at home... we also live 20 minutes away from the nearest restaurant.

Monday: Crock Pot Brisket - easy and better than most BBQ joints

Pick up a center cut brisket trimmed

1 jar of Claudes brisket marinade

Cook it for about 5 hours

Take out once cooked put in fridge for an hour

Cut and put in oven for about 30 minutes (This makes it that dry BBQ)

Enjoy! Costs about $13 compared to take out BBQ at $35

Tuesday: Leftover BBQ

Wednesday: Frozen Pizza

Thursday: Freezer Purge

Friday: Grill Burgers at the Barn

Goodwill Bench Transformed

2011-11-03T08:49:00.008-05:00

I'm baaackk! I felt like I should shout that out as I was painting a piano bench I found for $5 at Goodwill.

For those of you who've read for a while know I loved to spray paint and transform things. Well baby #4 and a move held things up a bit.

I found this messed up and gooed up bench and knew it had potential. Solid wood, score!

We've gone back to the tube TV. Our friends graciously let us borrow the tube while we try to figure out what the heck to do. Remember we had a 55 inch flat screen and had custom built in's at the old place.

I regress, back on subject....

See it was pretty shabby. I kept it with a basket of our shoes for a whole day before I prettied it up.

I used my favorite Heirloom White paint and English Chestnut stain and bingo a new side table.

Caroline can't contain her excitement over mommy's new pull up bench.

Gotta say it again, I'm back and ready to paint.

The girls and I are heading to Canton this weekend to turn some trash into treasure.

I'm linking up to Miss Mustard Seed

New Look

2011-10-31T09:22:00.002-05:00

What is frugal living?

To me it's living within or below your means.

All of our means are different and with time it changes. We've had our ups and downs financially as most families do.

As you can tell our family has had some major changes. We recently bought our dream home and property.

Without frugal living for many years it wouldn't have been possible.

It's important to make goals and know where your headed. For our family a country home was important. We scrimped and saved and did it with a lot of hard work and saving.

I've had people say you can't be frugal Jen living in that house.

My answer, yes I can. I'm still as frugal as ever. I'd love to decorate the house immediately with all new things but I can't.

We live on a strict budget and we don't live beyond our means.

Frugal is a way of life. You can make it drab and boring or your can make it fabulous and an adventure.

Cheers to new adventures!

Fall Fun

2011-10-31T06:50:00.005-05:00

Life with 4 kids is seldom boring. Mostly we're busy going from one activity to another or working on the property.

Each Tuesday we make a trip into our old town for gymnastics and lunch with Daddy. Here's my little gymnast. Will's turned into a pumpkin head.
We spent or family night out at our barn. We carved pumpkins and hung out by the fire.

This is our 2,400 sq ft bonus building/barn. It could be a charming house. We laugh and say it's where we will live when we get old. One of the kids can move into the main house.

We have big plans to finish it out for a guest room, home office, shop and entertaining space. Our favorite part is the huge deck out front which overlooks our pond.

Our little country girl Caroline.

It's not Texas if we're not playing baseball. In between watching the Rangers world series games we were watching our favorite ball player. His nickname is "homerun Will". My dude has some serious skills. Since we moved to an ultra competitive city he's improving daily. I love to see the joy in his face while he plays.

I've fallen in love with drinking out of mason jars. I ditched the old glass cups.

I don't know what happened to my city husband but he's seriously wanting to buy a big tractor. He was checking them out at the state fair. As you can see Will thinks it's a good idea. We have a new search on Craigslist for tractors.

Our open living room and catwalk have a sniper you have to be careful of. He's a sharp shooter with a nerf gun. I know he's coming if I hear screaming girls.

We are enjoying out time at our new home. It's a dream come true to have some land to roam.

Honestly the first couple months I thought.... what have we done, I want to go home. After time I'm loving it. I don't do well with change but now I pull up and breathe a sigh of relief, I'm home.

We laugh we still have a home in the "city". Our old home didn't sell during the selling season so we put it up for renter. We have renters in until the end of the school year. Not sure if we will sell or continue renting it out. Rentals are in high demand so the extra $$ is nice.

Dining Room Progress

2011-10-21T07:57:00.006-05:00

I've been so busy I've neglected the blog a bit.

I underestimated the amount of time I would be busy.

This is our dining room taken this morning. I'm slowly picking out decor.

Something funny has happened to me, I actually like the gold accents.

Call me 90's Jen but I really like it. A year ago I would spray paint in Oil Rubbed Bronze.

I see some tall tablescaping in the future too.

We've had the hardwood floors refinished twice, yep twice.

Seems our inlay was week and required some replacement. Didn't want anyone stepping through our floors.

You can see in the below photo the floors before we did the 1st round. The wood was a little light for our taste.

We've been busy.

Gone is the wall paper.

We put white bead board and had the walls textured to match the rest of the house.

The floors got a dark refinishing.

This is my favorite part the chunky molding.

It's been easy to get overwhelmed because there is so much to do. Our last house was completely done decorating wise.

It's exciting and fun to pick out new items although I'm a little impatient because I can't buy it all at once.

Grocery Challenge

2011-10-06T09:55:00.002-05:00

I've done a little experiment with grocery shopping.

Over the past couple years I've gone to Wally World (wal-mart). I started to wonder what was up when my grocery bill gradually went up. It quickly got to the point of out of control.

Each time I visit I have to go from one side of the store to the other.... that's where they get you.

I was picking up candles, craft items, kids clothing... etc.

My bill in the meantime had gone up almost $100 a week. Out of control I tell ya!

So, after we moved I visited the new Wally World, same deal.

Then I decided to go back to the grocery store get a saver card and all.

In 2 weeks my grocery bill is down $75 a week and I'm getting more food. Yes some items are more expensive but I'm saving money. I've also noticed the high quality of meats and produce.

I'm saying so long farewell to my weekly trips to Wally World! Hello little ole small town Brookshires.

P.S. I love that I get help out to the car!

Coming soon, back to coupon Frugal Jen.

Menu Monday

2011-10-03T07:21:00.005-05:00

I forgot what a schedule was like...

We're back on Menu Monday.

Country living doesn't mean no evening activities it just means we drive futher to get there. However I LOVE the drive. It's beautiful driving in rural areas with no traffic. We see many sunsets and beautiful bluff views.

Ok on to food:

Monday: Grilled Burritos (yeah a night at home!)

Tuesday: Frozen Pizza (baseball practice)

Wednesday: Crock Pot Brisket, come and go (youth group)

Thursday: Leftover BBQ (Dance and baseball practice)

Friday: Burgers at home with a movie night... relax from the busy week

Gotta share some decorating and I need ideas. This is our casual dining off the kitchen. I'm looking for fabric for a valance.

I'm stuck on what to do on the back wall. I don't like the mirror it doesn't seem to go there. I'm looking for a country idea. Any ideas?

This is our oldest daughter who seems to be missing from blog posts. I'm so proud of her. She's adjusted great from the move. She's got a great group of new friends. This past weekend she went to homecoming, the dance and also had a slumber party with new friends. She's a busy girl.

New Family Addition

2011-09-21T20:39:00.004-05:00

Since we're country folk now we had to get a dog.

Saturday we surprised Will for his upcoming birthday with a basset hound pup. He quickly named him Gus.

Madeline is loving Gus too.
I had to throw in a cute photo of Caroline. She's growing up so fast!

This is where Gus loves to relax next to the shrubs in the back. He perches up on the ledge and howls at the sky.

Our oldest Kate is enjoying Gus as well. She didn't have makeup on when I took photos so I was forbid from putting them on my blog.... teenagers.

On a different note we are so proud of her. She made the homecoming princess nominees. She was 1 of 10 out of a class of 500. Awesome for a new girl!! She found out today that she didn't make the top 2 for the award but we are thrilled with making the list. Let's just say she's adjusting very well!

Bugs and Wildlife

2011-09-16T14:57:00.004-05:00

Yipee I'm connected to the world! We just got our internet hooked up today.

Let me tell you this is a HUGE adjustment, nothing could have prepared me for the many differences of living in the country.

Scorpions, wild hogs, deer, skunks, snakes, and lots of bugs. Oh yeah and a 50 pound beehive in the roof. That's only the wildlife.

We've had many unexpected breaks and we are learning really quick how to take care of things ourselves or just call the warranty company (which gets nothing done).

The positives are great! Our kids love the new schools and are fitting right in. They are even riding the bus. I've met many wonderful people everyone is kind and slower paced. My anxiety has gone and has been replaced with a bit of loneliness but that will be soon fixed when I start the moms group next week.

I hope to upload some photos and get back to blogging soon. For now I'm filling all the cracks in the house and sealing up the doors to get rid of the stubborn scorpions. Apparently they are smart creatures and have evolved to be resistant to Terminex bug spray. Anyone have tips?

Hellos and Good-Byes

2011-08-26T20:41:00.006-05:00

This week we say Good- Bye to our city home Hello to our new home in the country
(Can you tell we like red brick?)

This week has been bitter sweet. It was the kids first week of school in our new district. Since we were still having work done to the house we drove the kids into school. On Tuesday I put 115 miles on my car!

The first day was filled with tears and wondering.... what have we done.

On Tuesday a bombshell was dropped. The sell of our home fell through the buyers had financing issues. Only 6 days before closing.....

We lowered the price of our house hoping for a quick sale. We've also listed it with a leasing company to have the option to just lease it out. Our realtor says we have a great rental market so we think that's what will happen. The positive is we get to keep the house.

Back to the kids..... day 2 was much better. Our oldest who's in 9th grade LOVES the new school. She's made friends quickly and likes it better. She's already joined several clubs and has made plans for her first sleepover and football game.

Our son is enjoying it. He started his new baseball team this week and has made fast friends.

Today, we say good bye to our old home and city. First thing in the morning the movers come to move us to the country.

I said bye to our wonderful next door neighbors. We've been pregnant together and both have 3 girls. Our evenings have consisted of riding bikes in the cul de sac and chatting as the sun goes down. They are also moving. I had my share of tears today.

We've really done it. We're moving.

Tonight is our last night in the house. That makes me very sad. It's been a wonderful home with so many memories.

I'll see you in a couple weeks after we've settled and I have my new Internet set up.

So long city living!

Dining Room Before/After

2011-08-18T21:22:00.003-05:00

This is my favorite room in the new house.

I'm thrilled to have beadboard in the dining room. The chocolate brown pops with all the white trim. I'm in love!!!

Don't you love our fancy dining room table? Kidding..... we haven't moved our furniture yet.

This is what it looked like before with 1990's wallpaper:
It's very exciting to see the transformation. Each day it gets better. Today they stat refinishing the hardwood floors. Tomorrow carpet!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-17T08:29:00.004-05:00

Thankfully, I'm not the one getting up on that to paint. Glad our painter has insurance!

We actually did it!

2011-08-15T13:30:00.005-05:00

This is a view from our back porch to the left.
We closed on the new house on Friday. It's really ours, I can't believe we did it. We actually did it!

I'm a country girl!

We spent the weekend working on the land (my husband and son did). The girls and I picked out fun paint colors for their rooms. I remember how much I don't like painting a whole room.

I prefer murals and fun stuff. Photos coming soon of the progress.

We had the most simple moments out at the house. I was painting looking out of the window and saw 2 of the kids playing and running in the backyard. 10 acres is a lot more than our previous 1/4 acre lot.

It was a simple moment where I just smiled and knew this was the right decision.

Each night when it was time to drive back to our home in the city the little one's cried and didn't want to leave.

In 2 short weeks we will close on our house in the city and we will be all moved.

Our oldest daughter when to "Fish Camp" at the high school. She had a blast and even met a girl who is new they hit it right off. God answered a simple prayer request from me, a friend for her to sit with at lunch. This girl and Kate have the same lunch and 4 classes together.

I'm learning when things are meant to be... all the details just fall into place and your left with peace.

Choosing Paint Colors High Ceilings

2011-08-08T08:15:00.005-05:00

We are very excited to be closing on our new house in the country on Friday. As you can see it's not really a country style.

Here in Texas we seem to plop down a southern style home out in the middle of no where. We bought the house because of the land it's on. I'm going to turn this into a cozy home.

It's so different from our current home. Currently we have 8 ft ceilings this one has 20 feet in the main areas.

This is the formal living room and entry. I LOVE the chunky moldings.

They just need some paint to pop! I also think a darker color will bring the ceilings down for a warmer feel. Here's a few from the other side.
We have some major work to do. My goal bring this 90's gem to 2011!

First order of business paint.
(Yes, I'm getting rid of the brassy lights. Except for the crystal chandelier turns out it's a Schonbek)

Our painters start the same day we close.

This is what we're doing to the entry ceiling to show off the barrel vault.

This is an inspiration photo from a model home on how we can warm up the spaces with a good neutral color.

Major anxiety over paint colors. I've NEVER had such high ceilings I don't know how to judge a good color. I tend to go darker but this time around I don't want to live in a cave.

I've got the paint narrowed down to Sherwin Williams Nomadic Desert. Anyone use that color?

Busy times ahead!

We're having the whole house painted (walls and ceilings).

Hardwood floors refinished and re-stained darker.

New carpet installed.

All in 2 weeks!!

Yes it's going to be crazy busy, especially since I'll be driving the kids an hour to school.

We can't move in until all the work is finished.

Wish me luck!

Moving Sale

2011-08-02T15:10:00.003-05:00

If you live in the DFW area and want to hit a summer garage sale this Friday we're having one. It's a big moving sale! Email me and I'll send you the info.

So I guess you can tell we are moving.... long story but a very exciting one!

Last spring we decided to move to the country. We found some houses we loved but they went under contract and a deal on our house fell through.

Wow, things have changed. One of the houses we loved came back on the market their deal feel through and we got it!!! We're working on something on our home now just after 2 weeks on the market.

Lot's of big changes. My blog is going to change.

I see things a bit more like the pioneer women but more green acres! I'll be living on a small ranch. We're going to raise animals and garden. My husband will still be wearing a suit to the city each day. When he gets home he will put on his boots and hop on his new John Deere tractor. Seriously... he is!

The first posts will be at the beginning of September once we've moved and I have computer access.

In the meantime, the city girl is exiting the concrete jungle...... to a new life in the country.