A Winter Boost

...try this lush version of "Una Notte de Napoli," courtesy of Pink Martini. You'll be feeling pepped up, fast. (Husband has already listened to it five or six times tonight.) The weird part? I first heard it in a thrift shop this week!

Eating From Your Pantry In January!

Money Saving Mom has a new challenge -- can you concoct meals primarily from your pantry for the month of January? It doesn't mean giving up fresh items like eggs, milk and such -- but limiting your visits to the grocery store to 3 per month (in Mom's case). She's challenged others to take it on too, making up their own variations as they go.

Husband eyed the umpteenth Safeway bag I dragged home tonight and said, "Aren't you spending a lot of money?" (I'd already been to Kohl's, Target and Michael's -- but little did he know I spent less than $5 at K's, and about $45 each at the other two.) Granted, I was shopping for a New Year's Day catering gig...but it got me to thinking. Why not try MSMom's challenge, too?

So here's the plan. I will visit grocery stores no more than 3 times in January. (Two, if I can get away with it.) I will purchase no more than $50 worth of stuff, and rely on my freezer, cupboards and pantry the rest of the time.
   In fact, if at all possible, I will visit other stores only twice this coming month -- period. I don't need any stuff, thanks to Christmas stocking. (The one exception to this 'rule' will be Target's 75% and 90% off Christmas sale items. Lordy, they have good bargains then...)

As God is my witness, we will not go hungry!
(Oops, channeling Scarlett O'Hara for a moment there.)

There will be weekly updates, recipes and such. Want to try your own version of this challenge? You're welcome to join in!

And don't miss MSMom's enlightening post on living poor during law school -- it reminds what's most important in life.

Yet Another Crazy Quilts Review

Pepper Cory, bless her little North Carolina heart, mentioned CRAZY QUILTS! See her review at Pepper's blog...which, incidentally, is a great place to visit regularly for quilting stuff, but also a great deal of interest and comfort.

Thanks so much, friend.

Between Holidays

Monday's panting on the horizon...and I know I have to Get Back to Work soon.

Sigh.

It was a lovely Christmas, in spite of our strange schedule -- everybody slept in until 10 a.m. or so (thank God for twenty-something children) and we didn't even have breakfast until noon. (Supper was at 8 p.m. Another spatchcocked turkey, British crackers (with strange party hats), and sachertorte for dessert.)

The girlies have both gone home...the Mama is still here, though, until Tuesday morning...and it seems strangely quiet. They won't be back for New Year's -- they enjoy going out with friends New Year's Eve, and we prefer cowboy movies, pizza and a quiet evening. (Too many drunken weirdos out on the street!)

For those of you who enjoy weirdos, here are the top 100 strangest stories of the year, starting with the top 5 or so. Keep clicking for the rest, once you get to the site.

The frugal will appreciate 50 money-saving websites...and they're not all what you would think!

And now I'll head to bed for a long winter's night, to dream of sugarplums and paperwork that magically gets itself done... hope you had a merry holiday, too.

Multi-Using Your Holiday Items!

Real Simple magazine has an intriguing slide gallery on uses for holiday decorations and such after the holidays. Some intriguing stuff here -- check it out!

I have a multi-purpose wish for you: a safe, warm and content Christmas, remembering the Child who started all the hoopla, after all --
    "Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask thee to stay
    Close by me forever, and love me, I pray.
    Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
    And take us to Heaven to live with Thee there."

Merry Christmas!

What Made You Start Thinking About Money?

J.D. Roth's superlative Get Rich Slowly has pondered this question in the past. Take a look -- here's the original post, plus the followup. (Don't miss the comments -- they're especially helpful.)

What made me start taking my finances seriously? Three events stand out clearly.

*I started an after-school job at Rogers Hardware. ($1.50 an hour -- riches!) College was a dream; my parents were farmers and not well-off. I knew I had to Do Something. Half the money I made during the three-plus years I worked at Rogers went into a savings account for college. I ended up with enough to pay for the first year plus much of the second, thanks to grants and scholarships. All because I started putting away money for college at 15.

*Husband was a well-paid mechanical engineer. I had a fascinating job as an editor for a quilting magazine. Our girls were about 7 and 9. Life was great!
    Then Husband had a nervous breakdown. In the next month or so, he stayed home from work and did strange things, like obsessively washing the same sinkful of dishes for four or five hours. At night he said he couldn't sleep, couldn't breathe...and wanted to walk. We'd go outside and pace up and down the street for a few hours. (I didn't dare go past eyesight of the house -- our children were asleep in there.) We'd go to bed about 3 a.m...then I would get up at 6 to go to work, while Husband slept the morning away.
    This went on week after week, until I felt ready to have a nervous breakdown myself. No income coming in. No time to think for myself. Fortunately, Husband began to recover and went back to work. (He found out, after his return, that his bosses at Martin Marietta didn't think a thing about it -- lots of engineers there had nervous breakdowns. Goes to show you the stress and worry they went through there.)
    We had enough, thanks to an emergency fund, to get us through that time. But it made me determined to never feel quite as desperate again. I took extra care with groceries, shopped primarily at thrift shops, had a large garden. Husband switched jobs -- then two years later, quit that one, saying he felt that if he didn't, he would have another nervous breakdown.
    By then, I was working for myself, and income was really spotty. But our emergency fund was larger, thank God, and it kept us going for three months. After that, Husband began a new job -- as a school bus driver.
    Needless to say, a bus driver's income is substantially less than an engineer's -- about 75% less. We lived on that income -- and mine, growing, thankfully, because of Brickworks -- until the girls both graduated from high school.
    Finances are better today; Husband is a trainer, which pays better, and my business has grown considerably. But I have never forgotten the lessons I learned from that first desperate period.

And finally:

* The Millionaire Next Door. This book helped me realize that it's not the big prizes or jumps in salary -- it's the slow, day-by-day accumulation of just a bit that makes you rich in the end.
    You can get this book for just a penny on Amazon -- and it will be one of the best purchases you ever made. Thomas Stanley has a new book I can't wait to read: Stop Living Rich...and Start Living Like A Millionaire.

Gingerbread Houses Made To Fit Your Cup!

Take a look at these tiny gingerbread houses...they actually fit (through the door slot) on the side of your cup.

The recipe is for gingerbread (of course), but shortbread and sugar cookie dough is also suggested, provided you chill the dough thoroughly so it doesn't spread.


I kept looking at these, though, and wondering if you could do something similar with graham crackers...

I have GOT to try these.

Monday Morning Stuff

What a surprise! Go out of town, and your friends leave piles of presents in your apartment when you return. (Unfortunately, they're your vacuum, books, clothes, stuff in the freezer...) Sounds like guys, doesn't it?

And this inspiring post about Faith, the two-legged dog, who learned to walk on her hind legs. She's been visiting veterans' centers with her caretakers. Gutsy, gutsy.

One of our boys has not been doing well. Weimaraners often have hip trouble, and Goonie's had a lot of difficulty getting up. (Goonie is short for Gunther -- Weimies are a German breed.) One eye has not been good, either -- his inner eyelid keeps showing, and the eye is red and inflamed. The bad part: he's 13-plus. He'd need a hip replacement, something we can't afford. (I'm not sure he'd survive the operation, anyway.) He's doing better today, for which I'm grateful. He got up twice by himself -- and without our urging. Amazing. I'm grateful for his cheerful, uncomplaining nature. Needless to say, he's been getting extra petting and snacks -- something which our other Weimie, Buck, is desperately jealous of!
   The worst is not over. But at least Goon is better.

Life Goes On...

Including a stop at the Governor's Mansion, to take the tour and admire the Palm room, full of large glass windows and sunshine. (Not to mention the 'jadeite' lamps in the hallways. Remember those candles you made in milk cartons, using ice cubes to get a 'Swiss cheese' look? They looked like that -- made out of jade. Very cool.) The holiday decorations were quite lovely -- you can see them here.

Then a wild cookie-decorating party with the piano (and voice) kids. Frosting EVERYWHERE. (But fun!)

I'm just beat. But not too tired to smirk at the guy who murdered three people, shot at two others, then tripped on his own fallen-down pants (he was wearing lowriders) and fell three stories to his death, as he was trying to shoot at another person. Oops. I keep hearing a song from kidhood:
    "My pants fell down, my pants fell down, my pants fell down on Main Street.
      I pulled them up, I pulled them up, I pulled them up on Main Street..."

Books are Here!

They finally showed up this morning...true to form, about an hour after we had to leave for Denver.

The boxes are in a long row down the hallway, until they can be schlepped into inventory...and every last order is done and ready to go out in a very late (midnight) run to the post office tonight.

But they're DONE. And barring any great weirdness, they should all arrive in plenty of time for Christmas.

Whew.

Waiting, Waiting...

Still no truck. I've stayed home for two straight days, waiting. (Nearly all of our staffers are on vacation through the end of the month -- two have agreed to come in for just a few hours, to help get the backed-up Hanky Panky orders sent out.)

The shipment's been in Denver since the 15th, says the tracking info. Castle Rock is 30 miles -- tops -- from Denver. What do I have to do: march down there and unload the boxes myself??

Sigh.

The Momma, yours truly and one feckless staffer have finally hacked a path through the inventory area. There's much more to go, but it already looks a heck of a lot better.

I must do some errands tomorrow -- they can't be delayed any longer. What do you want to bet the delivery shows up while I'm gone?

An Inconvenient Truth

Al Gore's recent speech...well, the poor man admitted he might have gotten his facts wrong.

Turns out the scientist whose data Gore quoted told the Times of London he had never made any such statement -- or conclusion. (Although he does have something to say about the polar ice cap melting.)

Gore's office admitted he based his remarks on a conversation he'd had with the scientist 'several years ago.'

Oopsies...

Need a Gift That's Inexpensive...Fast?

The Gingerbread Pop-Tart houses mentioned in the last post just might do the trick.


This post from Like Merchant Ships' archive might be what you need, too. Meredith had to get gifts for a hundred employees -- her husband's the 'big boss.' And $100 was the budgeted amount! You'll be amazed at the ideas that flow out of this post, especially in comments.

For my piano students, Mom and I are hosting a cookie decorating party Friday afternoon. The kids get to indulge in frosting, red-hots and chocolate chips up to their eyebrows, plus a large 'people' cookie for themselves and every person in their family. We get frosted cookies for the holiday plate! (My cousins used to come every year for a C.C.D.C. party, growing up, but the girlies are now Too Old for this childhood tradition. The abbreviation, by the way -- 'Cumings Cookie Decorating Committee.')

We'll have soup or chili for supper, then I'll take them to the local dollar store. (A looked-forward-to tradition now for the kids.) One dollar for every member of their family, plus $1 extra for tax. I love to see the presents they choose...the giggling...and the happy faces taking mysterious bags home to wrap!

Gingerbread Houses Made Easy

Try this Pop-Tart version, courtesy of Kellogg's. A couple of boxes of Pop-Tarts, a few cans of frosting, some goodies to decorate, and you're done! (Did you know they make gingerbread Pop-Tarts??) Some real architectural opportunities for expansion here...

Even simpler: sugared Christmas tree cupcakes that use sparkling sprigs of evergreen pushed into frosted cupcakes. I could see a row of these on your favorite cake, too. (Our Dec. 26 wedding was held among a 'forest' of trees -- unsold Christmas trees mounted on stands and decorated with shimmery stuff. Yes, inside the church.)

The Hanky Panky delivery truck isn't here yet. The shipping envelopes are addressed and waiting, and we have plenty of stuff to do. (Rediscovered the inventory room floor last night!) C'mon, buddy. We've got orders to ship for Christmas!

Make Your Own Paper Notebook -- and Fire 'Logs!'

I have a shameful confession to make.

I love notebooks.

Big ones, little ones, doesn't matter, as long as they have clean-smelling pages (gold-tipped edges are even nicer), pretty covers...and a pen's nearby. (Preferably one of those old-time fountain pens with silver nibs.)

And now, thanks to a new blog, The Art of Stinginess, I know how to make my own from scrap paper! Basically, he cuts two covers from something hard(er), a batch of pages (slightly smaller than the covers), clamps them together, glues them along one edge, then pastes on a spine cover.

Looks wayyy easy.

Hmmm. Couldn't I print out book pages and bind them this way for private editions? (I've been working on a cookbook of family recipes for the girlies, as well as Nephew and his wife, and Niece.) I'm going to try it -- will let you know if it works.

In the meantime, visit Mr. Stingy's Nov. 26, 2009 post. (Unfortunately, I can only give you a blog link, not the specific post link. Something about the way he set things up.) And when you're done there, go to the Nov. 20 post to know what to do with the paper leftovers -- very cool paper log/briquettes!

* * * * *
Mom's here, cozily ensconsed in Daughter #1's room (where it's warmer). I got an electric fireplace from Sam's Club, which she seems to really like. Basically where I need to go, she goes with me, including a pit stop at Big Lots to buy Swedish ginger thins (Husband's favorite cookie, only comes out at Christmas), imported olives and other goodies for Christmas stockings.
It's nice to have her here.

Welcome to the New North Pole

Went to Safeway last night to redeem the free clementines coupon. By the time I got back outside, the temp was -13!! I was afraid Buck, who was waiting in the car, would be a giant Weimie popsicle...but he was fine.

By the time we got home, some ten minutes away, it had moderated. To a balmy -9.

That's the story right now in Colorado. At least the snow has stopped, and we have plenty of sunlight...albeit no warmth.

The movie 2012 postulated that the earth's poles had shifted -- the new South Pole was now in Wisconsin. Gee, maybe it really happened, and someone forgot to tell us!

Time for some pork loin in the crockpot, with mushroom gravy, a shot of wine and a handful of chopped celery. It will be bubbly by the time I get home from the airport. I'll be picking up my mom, who's had two flights cancel on her since 'our' blizzard started making itself at home in Michigan.

Mom hates planes, and avoids them whenever possible. (I find that very amusing, since much of my business life is spent par avion, heading to or from somewhere.) At least my brother got her the last seat on a direct flight -- all she has to do is get on in Grand Rapids, and get off in Denver. I'll be waiting for her by baggage claim.

The dishes aren't done (yet), the tree (cut from National Forest land last weekend) isn't trimmed. But it will be lovely to have her here for the holidays.

Hang in there, Ma! I'm coming...

Some Random Stuff...and a Very Weird Experience

The "Barrel Man" , Tim McKernan, is dead. He's been sporting an orange-painted barrel and a cowboy hat for years at Broncos games. Football fans will miss his enthusiasm.

Safeway is offering a free five-pound box of clementines if you become a fan on Facebook. (The offer says good today (12/7), but my coupon's for use on December 8 only.) I also grabbed a $5 gift subscription to Good Housekeeping for Mom. (Other mags, including Country Living and Redbook, are available for this rockbottom price for a short time on Amazon. Thanks so much for passing the word, Coupon Cravings!)

An interesting post on low-cost and fast evening meals.

And recipes for Gluhwein (German-style hot mulled wine) and Christmas Glogg.

See...I told you it was random!

Went to see the movie 2012 last night. According to director Roland Emmerich, "I said to myself that I'll do one more disaster movie, but it has to end all disaster movies. So I packed everything in." He keeps his word, all right -- you've got everything from Los Angeles to Yellowstone to India being crashed into, breaking off/apart (I lost count of all the airport runways splitting juuuuust behind Our Heroes' taking-off planes), blowing up or (Emmerich's favorite) being inundated by ocean waves. It was fun in a weird sort of way, though I found myself rooting that the Hero would eventually be toast. (I still like Emmerich's Day After Tomorrow better, though it's also got plenty of hoke.)

The strangest part, though, came after the movie. We'd been having this whispery, heavy snow all day. The roads were slippery. Only a handful of people were at the 8 p.m. showing. We stayed to watch the credits -- alone, as usual -- and by the time we walked out, about 11 p.m., the lobby was deserted.

No one at the ticket counter. No one in the halls. No one in the office. No one at the popcorn counter.

Three cars in the deserted parking lot -- including ours. Lights gave a spooky, surreal glow. A light but impenetrable curtain of snow fogged the sky. Dead silent.

Only two people at King Soopers, where we stopped on the way home. (And they were clerks.)
Since 2012 ends with only a handful of people being saved, I started to wonder...did the rest of the world know something we didn't??

But then we saw a sheriff's patrol car at the stoplight, using his flashlight to trigger the green 'Go,' and I figured -- hey, if he's still around, probably all's well.

And it was.

Meredith's back!

COLD here...and has been snowing since last night. Light, tiny flakes. Unfortunately, they're not thick enough to force no school for tomorrow -- or so Husband thinks.

One of my favorite bloggers, Meredith at Like Merchant Ships, is finally posting again! I've missed her so much. True to form, even when she's talking about a subject that doesn't help me much (a Nutcracker's Suite ballet party for little girls), there's something wonderful tucked in as well -- like these cute little chocolate mice that may make an appearance in Daughters' Christmas stockings. (Here's another version, made with dried apricots.)

Tune in tomorrow for the results of the Great Stationery Giveaway. See you then.

Living Within Your Limits

It's hard for me to fathom living from paycheck to paycheck -- we've saved and scrimped for a long time, to keep from this happening. But I've also learned from the examples of people who do it regularly. (Here's another example of same.) You might, too.

Especially hard for those who get in this situation because of no insurance and high medical bills. Both Daughters do not have health insurance right now -- a reality that bothers us, but we can do little about. Neither is in school full-time, and that's the only way our insurance will cover them.

But if you can spend less than you earn, reality changes for the better very quickly.

It's a good reminder, when we're being pressured to buy, buy, buy during this holiday season.

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells...

Snow, all right... about 6" so far, and coming down steadily. The birds are having a heyday under the feeder; I put in just sunflower seeds, and that is apparently caviar to them.

Take a minute -- send your favorite people a phone message from Santa, Sammy the Snowman or NASCAR driver Tony Stewart! And it's free, courtesy of King Soopers. There's a long list of names to choose from for your recipient; I was able to cover everyone but my mom (Bonnie).

The top guy on the list was brother Mikey, whose birthday is in two days. He'll get to hear from Santa about that. Only two days, also, to enter the stationery giveaway -- fire me a comment, and you're entered!

Getting Ready...

Restless. What the heck is wrong with me?

I think it's a combination of things --

*some business stuff needs to be finalized (boring paperwork-type stuff)
*the girlies have gone home
*back to 'normal' life -- washing, dirty dishes, bits on the carpet
*a long-worked-on job...that still needs another week's worth of effort
*schlepping everything out for decorating -- I want it out, just don't want to put it out!

Gripe, gripe, gripe.

Also, a blizzard is moving in...a prime ingredient for restless temps and feelings.

I stopped and had eggrolls with Daughter #1 on my way home from Denver this morning. Better. A few hours of cleaning...that business paperwork worked on. Salmon and sweet potato fries for supper; Husband and a friend to share it with. Best of all.