Why I believe in Giving Children REAL items instead of Toys (when appropriate)

FTC disclosure:  This post contains affiliate links.

I've always been a bargain shopper.  I also always thought the things my grandmother could do with yarn was absolutely amazing.  When I was about six, I picked up a child's toy "Learn to Crochet" kit at a garage sale for a quarter.  I took it to my grandmother's house and asked her to teach me.  She took one look at it, and threw the plastic hook in the trash and gave me a REAL one.  She said she could never crotchet using that hook and she wouldn't expect me to, nor would she teach me using such a cheap thing.  That was the first time I ever had an adult replace a toy with a real item.  Now, looking back, there is no way someone could have learned to crochet with that little kit I bought, but handing a six year old a skein of yarn and an adult crochet hook?  Absolutely a six year old can learn with the right tools. (And even easier now with youtube videos and such.)

The Trick to Finding Cheap Items for Free Super Saver Shipping at Amazon

FTC disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links.

It seems this time of year everyone is ordering from Amazon.  I sometimes order multiple times a day if I find a good deal.  I have Prime so it's not a big deal to me.  (Hint:  This would be a good month to sign up for a free trial!)

But if you don't have Prime, sometimes you need a small item to boost your cart up to the $25 or $50 amount for free shipping.

Here are some searches that often bring up inexpensive items:

I chose to link to books because it works for book orders or other item orders.


Dover Sticker
Dover Activity books
Dover Classic Books   (some of these are as low as $1.00!)
Decorative notebooks

Five Lesser Known GREAT Christmas specials

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1.  Christmas Eve on Sesame Street.   I remember when I
was really little, in the 1970s, in the days before VCRs we used to have to try and watch for this to be on.  And the public broadcasting station always interrupted it for their fund drive, which seemed to be FOREVER.  This is another I watch every year.  Oscar the Grouch scared Big Bird about how Santa can deliver all the toys in one night, Big Bird camps out on the rooftop without telling anyone and all of Sesame Street is searching for Big Bird.  The Bert and Ernie rendition of O'Henry's classic Gift of the Magi story is fun.  Even without kids, you will find me watching this every year!

Book Review: Take Your Life Back by Stephen Arterburn

FTC disclosure:  I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.  All opinions are my own.

I have been a long time fan of books by Stephen Arterburn.  In a world of too many Christian psychology books giving pat answers, I love his approach combing true therapy answers with faith.  Take Your Life Back:  How to Stop Letting The Past and Other People Control you was once again a breath of fresh air in a genre where it seems all too many books give the answer "pray".  (While I'm not saying you shouldn't pray, there are studies and discoveries that can enrich our lives with their knowledge.)

Bible Journaling and Scrapbook Stickers from Faith That Sticks!

FTC disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links.  I received samples of the products from the company for review purposes.  All opinions are my own.

I have been a sticker fan since I was a child.  I can remember counting my stickers by the hour to see how many I had in my collection.  So whenever there is a new sticker product on the market, I want to try it.

I've tried my hand at Bible journaling, and while I love the creativeness of it, my art skill are somewhat lacking.  I often stick to coloring Bibles or when I do Bible journaling, just doing fancy lettering of the Scripture in the margins.

Thanks to Tyndale House Publishers and Faith that Sticks,  I had the opportunity to review their coloring stickers and Bible journaling stickers.

Preparing for Black Friday And Cyber Monday: Christmas without debt

FTC disclaimer:  This post contains affiliate links, all opinions are my own.

If you have been following the Christmas without debt series, you should have some money saved up this month for buying the things you want to purchase for others as gifts.  But hold on, let's save money money while we're spending, don't you think?

First off, have a list of everything you want to buy.  Check prices NOW, before Black Friday and Cyber Monday and jot down prices at three stores.  So now you know what price you want to beat.  Sometimes the sales over Thanksgiving weekend aren't the best deals out there and that's not what we want.  We want to save money.

Connecting Caregivers With Mobile Technology

This is a sponsored post from U.S. Cellular.  All opinions are my own.

While I used some apps when helping to care for my mother who was on dialysis, there are many more available these days.  One of the best things is as long as everyone who is a caregiver has the password, each person can access the information on their Apple iPhone 7.   Back in 2012, we primarily used texting and phone calls.  My mother didn't have a smart phone, so I tracked everything on mine, and my health was bad at the time, so there was a lot of use of my cell phone!

Ellie Claire Bible Journaling Kit Review Giveaway Ends 11/20/16

FTC disclaimer:  I received a free product in exchange for a fair and honest review.  This post contains affiliate links.

When I was offered the opportunity to review the Bible Journaling Kit by Ellie Claire, I was excited.  The kit includes:

• 4 sheets of word stickers
• 4 sheets of alphabet stickers
• 24 "tab" stickers
• 8 twistable coloring pencils
• 1 journaling pen
• 1 pouch with adjustable strap
• 1 ruled page protector mat with tracing lines

I am not very artistic when it comes to non-fiber arts, but I do enjoy coloring and some Bible journaling.  With my Bible journaling I often just recreate Bible verses with lettering, but still this kit seemed perfect for me.

How I am saving on Home Improvement Costs

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My house was built in about 1890.  The carpet in the living room is from the 1960s with layers of padding, carpet and linoleum underneath.  It needs replaced.  The entire house is paneled except for one room.  When we moved into this house in 1986, I was a teenage girl, and of course I wanted to paint my room lilac.  My dad wanted paneling in my room.  After a lot of going back and forth, I got purple.  Obviously paneling went out of style soon after that.

When there was the earthquake in Virginia a few years ago, it damaged part of the roof in the house, which caused some other problems in the room where the damage was.

I've decided it's time to get these things fixed.  Being the frugal person I am, I want to get the best price possible for home improvement supplies.

How to Win a Skill Contest

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My favorite type of sweepstake or contest is a skills content.  The reason is, the more creative and off the wall I can be, the more likely I will win.  These are usually fully judged.  Sometimes they are judged and then go to voting.  You can read more about how to win a voting contest, but in this post I am going to concentrate on how to win a skill contest.

As we learned in the basic of entering contests and sweepstakes,  be sure and read the rules.  I have seen all kinds of unique rules ranging from no animals may be in a photo to no people may be in a photo to people and/or animals required to be in a photo.  Just make sure whatever you submit follows the rules because if it doesn't you won't be able to win.  If it's an essay contest, make sure you say within the word or character count.  No matter how good your entry is, it will likely be disqualified if you go even one word over the amount allowed.