Decluttering, Unsubscribing and Letting them eat cake.

Decluttering is what's going on here.  Yesterday I started remaking over my tiny walk in closet that I share with my husband.  I moved in a dresser from my daughter's room to hold my purses, scarves, swim suits and extra beauty products.  It looks pretty good and I have more room on the floor of my closet.  I got rid of a few purses, clothes and shoes. 

I've been whittling down my collection of samples and foil packets.  I've been deleting and unsubscribing from any beauty company emails.  It's refreshing to let go of all this stuff and I don't need the temptation from a good sale anymore.  I need so little.  And I'd rather have the money.


Today I am baking a birthday cake for my son's 8th birthday party.  It will not be bakery gorgeous.  I don't do that.  But, it will be fun.  I bought Lego shaped candy to decorate it and a big Lego person pen to put on top. 

I'd better get to it.  I'm actually excited about a clean closet.  Isn't that weird?  The happier I become with my house, the less I will want to shop for an escape.

Birthday Party Favors.

We have two birthday parties next month so I've started thinking about gift baggies. I need to make about 30 baggies. I'm trying my best to keep things cheap and still get things that won't annoy other parents. You know- be light on the candy and keep the plastic junk toys to a minimum.

So far I just have:

After Christmas candy sticks that do not have holiday markings on the individual packages- I bought five packages for .25 cents apiece.

A small bag of jolly ranchers and a bag of bubble gum.

Mini containers of Playdoh leftover from the after Halloween clearance bag I bought a few months ago. Some of these ended up in Christmas stockings.

To supplement I just bought a few items from Oriental Trading Company with a 20% off code. (BEMINE). Mini back scratchers, some sticker puzzles, and train shaped suckers should be on there way here soon.

I'm trying to keep the cost per bag around $1- 1.50. I think three pieces of candy and one or two small toys should be sufficient.

Anymore ideas?

Mommy Sanity Savers.

It's a balmy 75 here in St. Louis.

The sibling fighting began as soon as the Big Girl got in the car after school. Not today!

I contemplated driving an hour to Grandma's house. I looked up directions to the closest indoor bouncing place. And then I just decided to have them put on old clothes and threw them into our jungle of a back yard. The mower gets it's first use this year tomorrow.

For the price of one load of laundry and one bubble bath I get an hour free of bickering.

With toilet training our washer has seen double loads lately. And pretty soon our carpet cleaner is going to have to make an appearance.

But for now- I'll open a window and do some chores while I listen to the birds chirp and the kids ooh and ahh over the dirt clumps, rocks, and bugs they've discovered hiding in our backyard jungle.

Wedded Bliss without the debt

It's wedding season and I just finished reading Donna Freedman's article on her daughter's debt free wedding.

My own wedding eleven years ago was very budget friendly. My husband and I were working hard at paying off our college and consumer debt. Neither one of us thought it was appropriate to ask our parents to pay for our wedding or to go into a lot of debt. I also was never a girl who daydreamed about her 'perfect' wedding day- the groom yes, but the affair- no.
I spent $100 on a white chiffon gown from The Jones Store. I wore a pair of pumps from my closet. Hubby wore his only gray suit that he wore to job interviews. We paid one hundred dollars for a marriage certificate and for the use of a Reverend to marry us at the city hall. We were married on a chilly winter Friday afternoon. Our parents were the only attendees. We did get a small bakery cake, some sparkling cider and nice florist flowers. I insisted on a real florist bouquet and boutonnieres for the groom and fathers. The Moms each got a pink rose bud to hold. We took our parents to dinner at the Old Spaghetti factory.
For our honeymoon, we booked a room in a Bed and Breakfast in Eureka Springs. The total for our whole wedding and honeymoon was under $700 I'm sure.

To include our whole family we had a separate small reception a few months later at a social hall in my home town. We designed and printed out simple invites ourselves on stationary and envelopes that were deeply discounted/discontinued at Office Depot.
One of my Mom's friends made vegetarian egg rolls and cooked them on site as her gift to us. We ordered a big sheet cake with a wedding cake topper from the Wal-Mart bakery. My Mom and I laid out a table with veggies and dip, cheese and crackers, melon balls, and other things we'd bought from Aldi. We had punch and pop on a separate table. My Mother was friends with a florist and I picked boquets at a whole sale price. I used vases I'd been collecting from thrift stores.The other decoration was fairly minimal and had been collected at discount stores months before.
My Father-in-Law read some verses from Song of Solomon and lead the prayer. I vividly remember thinking that I was so glad that I didn't have to get married and have the reception on the same day. For the hall rental, decorations, and food we spent under $300.

So, for the wedding, the honeymoon, and the reception we spent $1000. And we could afford to pay it all without going further into debt.

Since our wedding there's been a few times I've regretted our meager wedding/reception. I would do things differently if I got to do it over again. I would have gotten married in a church.
I would have bought the dress I really liked instead of the one I ended up with. I might have had the wedding and reception on the same day and just had cake and punch.
But, two things I absolutely do not regret- The man I said "I do" to and that we didn't add to our debt.

Birthday Excess and a Balancing Act

I haven't quite figured out a nice balancing act between the normal suburban birthday party bash with it's glut of plastic excess and a nice and simple birthday with a homemade cake and a few humble presents.

Again this year we had a big birthday party. The kids received lots of new shiny presents and we gorged on cake and soft drinks. Then we sent everyone off to the pool to play. It worked well.

But, today is a large contrast to yesterday. Today is Big Girl's actual birthday and she's getting one new toy and two Goodwill toys for a total of $16. Instead of a new cake we're going to have leftover party cake. Our party tonight consists of a visit from the our Parents as Teachers lady. For dinner we're having curly pasta with red sauce because that's what the birthday girl requested. It's very low key but somehow more satisfying than yesterday's birthday carnage.
Don't get me wrong. I am ever thankful that we can both afford to have a nice birthday party and that we have friends who willingly give of their time and money to celebrate with us. But, I'm just wondering where the happy medium is.

Birthday Party dilemna

Big Girl talked me into another big birthday party this year even though I told myself I wouldn't do it like that two years in a row. She requested the same party as last year. I gave in because the idea of planning a birthday party for 38 people at my house the week before we have house guests and leave on a week long overseas trip gives me hives. She also has to share the birthday party with her little brother who turns 2 a week after her birthday.

The party is only for twenty people- 10 kids/10 adults. There are 13 children in her preschool class and we have another two or three families to invite. And grandparents if they want to come. There is an additional charge for each person over that 20 mark.
I don't want to risk offending any of the preschoolers by not inviting them. I don't want to leave our family friends out either. What to do? Suck it up and pay for it? Limit the number and risk offending someone?

Even with the added charges if everyone comes that we invite it's still cheaper than the other two birthday party options outside of my own house. Plus, all I have to do is supply a cake, candle, and a serving knife.

I unsure I'll attempt decorating my own cake. I might go with the giant Costco sheet cake like we did last year. Goody bags will be simple affairs with a water squish ball (ordered in bulk), clearance candy, and maybe a few other toys. Since it's a swimming party the only activity I'm bringing is pin the tail on the donkey.

It feels like I'm giving up on any frugal/creative ways to celebrate their birthdays but someday I hope to achieve the $25 Dacyczyn birthday blow out with a homemade birthday cake but- not this year.