If at First You Don't Succeed....

So last night we had an "Appreciation Dinner" - meaning what we ate made us appreciate all the other dinners we've ever eaten. I really had all the best intentions, but the rice didn't cook right (actually not at all), and the fried apples and onions that sounded so delicious and cozy in "Little House on the Prairie" were definitely not delicious and cozy in the year 2010. The kids and Jared ate without complaint - oh, how I love them! They did ask if there was any dessert - meaning, "Is there incentive to eat this pile in front of us?" But I didn't even have any dessert.
They were all so stoic about it, and I just kept apologizing, until Jared consoled me by telling me that it was OK; every dinner doesn't have to be a success story. That meant a lot coming from him, considering that 1) he knows I have my share of dinner failures and then some, and 2) dinner is his only really good meal of the day (He eats oatmeal for breakfast and no lunch.).
The real point, though, is that he is right. Cooking from scratch to save money is not always a success story - and that's OK. I'm a better cook because I've learned from failure, and my family seems to get easily over the less-than-delicious meals with no negative side effects. We can't learn and be successful if we give up because of failure. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!!:)

Keeping it Simple Saves Money

I found this great blog posted a while ago. This lady talks about how we save money by keeping things basic and simple. This is a very enjoyable read - and goes along perfectly with my thoughts and how I feed my family. Check out the post at

 frugalc.wordpress.com/2007/08/23/keep-it-simple-keep-it-basic/

  Also, this weekend at the Bozeman LDS Stake Center is a Provident Living Expo from 10am-2pm. There will be lots of information on saving money in all areas of living. I will be doing a booth on food budgeting. (For example, did you know that cold cereal and milk cost over three times more than oatmeal and milk? You can save about $100 per year per person in your household if you make that simple switch! What are you going to do with all that extra money?:) Come check out all the fun stuff - plus lunch will be served! And if you have hubbies and boys, I hear the fire trucks will be there.:)