tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43129997743331043542011-10-03T22:51:44.281-05:00Getting back to basics, saving money, decluttering life and focusing on what matters.Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.comBlogger281100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-80716212814333923452011-10-03T22:28:00.001-05:002011-10-03T22:31:50.146-05:00

I have realized more and more how much of a list person I am. I'm a visual person, so seeing a list of things written down in a way my brain can easily understand it is huge for me. I've been using a menu planning sheet that has really been working well for me. It's located here, if you're interested in that. But the area of my life that really needed help was keeping my apartment clean on a

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-70905451879735241292010-11-10T10:56:00.001-06:002010-11-10T10:57:00.745-06:00

This Saturday I am hosting our sixth annual fall feast. It is a special dinner I like to give for my closest friends and family where they can come and eat a nice meal without having to worry about cooking it or paying for it. It’s a small thing, but it’s something tangible I can do to express love to them. This year, I am making braised beef short ribs, mashed potatoes, polenta, acorn squash,

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-85624890712284887652010-08-03T09:55:00.000-05:002010-08-03T09:55:07.748-05:00

I definitely struggle with being joyful sometimes. Check out this post on "Joy: are you filling it or killing it?" from my church's blog. I love the fun story Tahni shares at the beginning. That's the kind of mom I want to be! She also includes some practical tips for how to increase your joy. Check it out! http://ebcfamily.wordpress.com/2010/08/02/joy-are-you-filling-it-or-killing-it/

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-12744544542714360982010-06-07T22:13:00.001-05:002010-06-07T22:20:11.316-05:00

When I started this blog, one of the biggest desires of my heart was to live life in a simpler way -- a life that is more focused on what matters and less focused on what doesn't. We were recently put to the test and made life changing decisions with this end in mind. This will take a couple posts to tell. I hope you enjoy reading about our journey. One of the largest areas contributing to

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-52127518359116102152010-06-01T20:49:00.000-05:002010-06-01T20:49:34.381-05:00

I haven't been blogging much the past few months. Things have been so hectic with moving and getting settled that blogging has not been a top priority. I have, however, blogged the past two days in a row...just not on this blog! If you don't know, I have a second blog where I write specifically about kitchen-related things, mostly about homemade cooking. Check it out, if you like: http://

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-25735189797847134052010-02-15T15:14:00.000-06:002010-02-15T15:14:00.885-06:00

Well, we're back from Arizona. What an awesome trip! I didn't expect Arizona to be so mountainous and beautiful. I thought the Arizona desert would be dry, flat and sandy. I was pleasantly surprised! We flew in Thursday morning (the 4th) to Phoenix and took a cab to my cousins' place just 5 miles south of the airport. We spent the afternoon lounging in the sun reading books on their patio and

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-76166206452726539562010-02-03T13:49:00.001-06:002010-02-03T13:49:13.557-06:00

Matt and I are headed to Phoenix early tomorrow morning for a long-overdue vacation. Evan will be staying with my parents for the week while Matt and I enjoy some hiking, kayaking, movie going, southwest eating, Grand Canyon gazing and cave exploring in Phoenix and the surrounding area. We are going from 20 degree weather to 60-70 degree weather, and I cannot wait! See you next week...

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-82104965793884471412010-01-28T12:44:00.001-06:002010-01-28T12:47:01.473-06:00

Well, I am true to form and did not write down everything we ate this month like I had planned. Life gets in the way and good intentions aren't good enough. But, I did pretty well with not buying much food this month, and we also didn't go out to eat very often at all. We had one dinner out as a family at Chipotle (Matt's favorite), but that was the only meal out this month that came from our

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-5044455225670493972010-01-14T10:10:00.001-06:002010-01-14T10:13:20.859-06:00

Okay, I might not remember every day here, but I'll try. January 9 Bought some groceries today in order to prepare an appetizer for our cousins get together at my parents house. Had to buy artichoke hearts and green onions to make my artichoke dip. Yum! Breakfast Cereal Lunch Turkey sandwiches Clementines  Dinner At my parents' house Shepherd's pie Sweet potatoes January 10 This was a bad,

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-70833320807035019502010-01-08T14:58:00.000-06:002010-01-08T14:58:35.965-06:00

January 7 Breakfast Homemade bread with peanut butter 1 clementine Lunch Frozen chicken pot pie 1 clementine Dinner Chicken ala King on biscuits Biscuit with crab apple jelly January 8 Breakfast Wheaties with milk Lunch Lunch at Michele's: Chili and hummus with multigrain chips (delicious!) Dinner Pork roast sandwich Frozen veggies

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-41216710413537255942010-01-06T16:21:00.001-06:002010-01-08T14:59:38.527-06:00

You all may or may not care what I eat, but I thought it would be fun to look back on what we ate this month. So, I'm going to try to document what I make. I might also use this space to try to meal plan for the week starting next week. January 5 Breakfast Home-canned peaches Homemade bread with peanut butter Lunch Some more of that delicious Ham and Bean soup Some more homemade bread Dinner I

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-47305588936816728972010-01-05T09:16:00.003-06:002010-01-06T16:15:11.052-06:00

One of the blogs I read regularly is hosting a challenge for the month of January -- to eat from your pantry and buy very few, if any, groceries. So, I decided to give it a try. I am still going to buy some groceries, like milk and fruit, and if I need one or two ingredients to make a meal made up of mostly pantry items, I will do that. The idea of this is to use up and eat what you already have

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-71660797291581015162010-01-04T11:26:00.001-06:002010-01-04T22:59:52.288-06:00

Over the past few years, I have come to desire a simpler way of life (hence the name of this blog). One of the biggest ways to live more simply is to have financial freedom. I think financial freedom is something almost everyone wants, but not many people want to take the necessary steps to get there. It's taken me awhile to get past the American way of instant gratification, and I'm sure it will

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-80956973270654741902009-12-22T13:21:00.000-06:002009-12-22T13:21:25.228-06:00

I bought a spiral ham last week on sale. It was about $15. We have enjoyed eating ham several different ways the past few days: first, ham slices served with baby red potatoes and broccoli, then as a pasta bake cubed up with the leftover broccoli and potatoes and peas (to fill in for the rest of the broccoli) baked with alfredo sauce and cheese -- very good!, and yesterday, I decided to try this

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-41206350262784169742009-10-30T22:10:00.000-05:002009-10-30T22:10:11.804-05:00

I don't think I've mentioned here that Evan is teething. All four front teeth at the same time, in fact. So last weekend when we went out to Wisconsin to make apple sauce with my cousins, Evan was pretty needy. Despite that, I was able to do quite a bit and contributed to making 61 quarts of apple sauce in one day! Of which our family gets 20 quarts. For basically free -- just the cost of gas to

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-48183502720555664102009-10-21T10:49:00.001-05:002009-10-21T10:49:13.042-05:00

You can get a free 11 month subscription to Parenting (early years) magazine here. And a $1.50 off 2 Ziploc bag packages here. If you purchase 3 packages of Ziplocs total, you can mail in this $5 rebate!

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-38878550760067569632009-10-20T14:34:00.003-05:002009-10-21T10:50:28.671-05:00

Wow. Has it really been that long since I posted? I guess having good intentions doesn't equal posts magically appearing on my blog... Well, since I last wrote, I: Roasted my first turkey! The hardest part was thawing it and getting the neck/giblet bag out of the cavity. Gross. After that, I just put it in the roaster, slathered the bird with butter, sprinkled it with salt and pepper and added

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-50666530456977467932009-10-01T13:09:00.000-05:002009-10-01T13:09:33.929-05:00

Tonight, I am making Swiss Chicken Casserole, baked potatoes and butternut squash from my garden. I have 2 coupons for $1 off Golden Plump chicken breasts, and they are on sale at Target and Cub this week. I think I'm just going to go to Target, so I'll end up with a package of chicken breasts for $2.99 (x 2 if I decide to get 2 packages and use both coupons)! I'm saving the beef roast for

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-59925805404940094852009-10-01T12:17:00.001-05:002009-10-01T12:17:34.699-05:00

Go NOW to get a reservation -- it just opened at noon! I got tickets for Rebecca, based on the book by Daphne DuMaurier, which I read in college and loved. It's playing at the Theater in the Round. There are several other shows to choose from and it's absolutely free! Maximum reservation of 2 tickets. This link will take you directly to the Twin Cities listings of plays. http://

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-39495290417935131312009-09-30T12:36:00.000-05:002009-09-30T12:36:11.482-05:00

I finally had a chance to make the granola bar recipe yesterday afternoon. They were fairly easy to make and turned out great! They are somewhere between chewy and crisp, so when I try to break off a piece of the bar it sometimes crumbles a bit, but I'm sure that is because there is no HFCS in them to make them gooey.  One other thing I'll make sure to try is to use regular instead of kosher salt

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-22963212535922323762009-09-29T22:48:00.000-05:002009-09-29T22:48:53.541-05:00

JollyMom.com, a great resource for moms, posted a review of and is doing a giveaway for the Britax Marathon CS car seat. It looks like a great seat with a lot of awesome features, including the fact that it goes from birth up to 65 lbs! I really like the Crimson color and think Evan would look quite dashing in it. ;) If you're interested in entering or just want to read Jolly Mom's review of the

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-30892760670412997772009-09-24T14:55:00.000-05:002009-09-24T14:55:18.234-05:00

Well, I made the crockpot oatmeal I mentioned in yesterday's post. It turned out...okay. I didn't love it but Matt thought it was good. I thought it had kind of a weird flavor that I couldn't put my finger on. It was sweet enough but somehow a little bit bland at the same time. Next time, I think I will try omitting the apples. I think there may have been too many competing flavors going on. I

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-60074383111379644652009-09-23T16:14:00.001-05:002009-09-23T16:15:06.776-05:00

Last Friday, my cousin Mark and his wife Amy came over and spent the night. I had the Hostess bug and decided to make a special meal for them for dinner. I made Chicken Cordon Bleu, Baby Red Potatoes with Garlic, and Sauteed Sugar Snap Peas. And for dessert, Apple Crisp. Everything turned out really well. I've made the Chicken Cordon Bleu before and it is one of my favorite recipes. It is served

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-65147273851713820822009-09-21T15:48:00.001-05:002009-09-21T15:53:07.527-05:00

I confess, I have been quite overwhelmed the last couple weeks and have not felt in a place to write much. Sorry for the lack of blogs. Here's what's been going on: My 14-year-old sister, Sanay, passed away one month ago today from cancer. The aftermath of her death has been emotionally draining, as you can imagine, and we've just been so busy. I have had an outpouring of love from many of my

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-22691483317424789072009-09-16T12:41:00.001-05:002009-09-16T12:42:39.916-05:00

Monday night, Evan was "walking" with Matt down the hallway (Evan was holding Matt's fingers while he walked). There was a basket of clean clothes in the hallway with one of Evan's clean socks on the floor by it that must have fallen out. Evan bent in half to reach and pick up the sock, turned, and put the sock in the clothes basket! I was on the phone and missed it the first time, so Matt did

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-52253303003625237112009-09-08T13:50:00.001-05:002009-09-16T10:40:06.490-05:00

Do you grow tomatoes in your garden but don't know what to do with them? There's always the option of making tomato sauce or salsa, or of course eating them fresh from the garden. But if you're like me, time and/or energy are sometimes lacking and you just need to do SOMETHING with them before they start to go bad. I learned a little trick from my dad that has been a great way to use the

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-6699885777996628902009-09-04T08:21:00.000-05:002009-09-04T08:21:35.145-05:00

Did you know that some retailers accept manufacturer's coupons for up to three months past their expiration date? It's true! I had a "$5 off your next grocery purchase" coupon at Cub. It was a manufacturer's coupon that printed out after my last grocery visit when I purchased a bunch of Kraft Foods items for a great promotion they ran. It expired August 29. I went to Cub and asked at the

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4312999774333104354.post-55622446812054676362009-09-03T13:00:00.000-05:002009-09-03T15:13:29.164-05:00

A friend of mine posted on Facebook yesterday that she was anxiously awaiting the arrival of a special FedEx package...her first shipment of cloth diapers! I remember 6 months ago feeling the exact same way and feeling silly for being excited about diapers, of all things. I shared with her what I have and my method for doing things and thought I'd share it here for anyone else who could

Rachelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16601511489080436785noreply@blogger.com3