A Convuluted Lesson in Frugality

I'm not a brand snob. Really, I'm not. My mother is the queen of frugality, and I have learned well from her. (Ask me later about the frozen watermelon! I'll have to save that story for another blog post.)

But, yes, those are Nike swishes on my new tennies. I feel a little guilty about that, but maybe if I blog about it, I'll get over it. My husband has a love-hate relationship with the frugal nature of my character... and he talked me into getting these cute brown Nikes... but, no, I won't blame it on him.
Truth be told, I'm learning that some things are worth the extra money. I've always considered price first (and I still do) but cheaper is not always better.

For example, did you know that "high fructose corn syrup" is not only a cheap sweetener, it's also a preservative? I have been reading up on the controversy between HFCS and natural sugar, and I discovered that a lot of foods have HFCS added just because it extends the shelf life. So I've been reading labels more carefully. The cheap brand of chili beans had HFCS in it, and the name-brand didn't. Guess which one had more calories? I still buy a lot of off-brand groceries... but not without comparing ingredients.

But I digress. You wanted to hear about my Nikes, didn't you? Well... first, I have to tell you about my new coffee pot. It ties in. Really it does. (The groceries don't... but the coffee pot does!)

A few months ago, I was on a quest to make a great cup of coffee. My friend, Laura, recommended a particular coffee pot. When we were together this summer she fixed a pot of coffee so I could try it, and told me it was available at Kohl's. It made great coffee! The only drawback? It was $100, which seemed a little spendy to me for a coffee pot. Needless to say, I didn't run right out and buy one.

When we got home from our trip, I noticed we had accumulated quite a few "thank you" points on our credit card from all the traveling we did this summer... plane tickets to my grandmother's funeral, besides our road trip, etc. As I was browsing the gift site to see what I could get with my points, I noticed they had gift cards for Kohl's. And I had enough points to get the coffee pot! So that's what I did. I still felt a little guilty about spending that much "money" for a coffee pot... but it was somewhat easier because it was "free" money. (Okay. It's really not free, but you know what I mean.) As I was paying for the coffee pot, the cashier gave me a $30 gift certificate to use in Kohl's the next week. Apparently they were running a promotion where you would earn a certain amount of store credit depending on how much you spent.

In the meantime, I was needing new tennis shoes. I have been trying to get back into the habit of exercising, and my 10-year-old Reeboks are just about worn out. The Reebok outlet in our area went out of business awhile back, so I thought I would just get some cheap athletic shoes from Wal-Mart. They had the cutest white cheerleader shoes, with little sparkly colored tabs that slid into a pocket on the side to match your team's colors or whatever. Yes, I'm way too old (not to mention uncoordinated) to be a cheerleader... but I thought they would be good workout shoes. I just had on flip-flops that day so I didn't want to try them on in the store. I just grabbed a box in my size, thinking I could take them back if they didn't fit. After I got home with them my daughter opened them up to look at them and said, "Mom, did you know you got 2 right shoes... in 2 different sizes?" Of course I didn't know that! So I had to take them back after all. This time I made sure I had a matching pair! Unfortunately, they turned out to be uncomfortable. They didn't bend right with my foot. And I took them back again and didn't get more at Wal-Mart.

So when I got the extra $30 at Kohl's, I decided to see if I could find some tennies that fit there. They had a much wider selection than Wal-Mart, and lots of name brands. Lyle's the one who spotted the brown pair of Nikes. They were $45... but with my $30 off coupon, I got them for $15... which is cheaper than the cheap cheerleader shoes at Wal-Mart! See?

I'm lovin' my new tennies... and my new coffee pot! I'm glad I didn't have to pay full price for either one... but, to be honest, I kinda think it would have been worth it, even if I had.

I'm curious. What items do you insist on a particular brand?

Simple Woman's Daybook

It's been awhile since I've done one of these. I always love the way this particular meme causes me to slow down and reflect on the simple things of life. I see that the "thought prompts" have changed up a bit since the last time I did it. I like that. I'd love to read your "simple" reflections, too! Be sure to let me know if you post them. And pop over to the The Simple Woman's Daybook blog to link up with the other participants!Outside my window... it's a glorious October day. Cool and sunny.

I am thinking... about topics for upcoming blog posts.

I am thankful for... the hope of Heaven.

I am wearing... a full denim skirt and a long-sleeve cream t-shirt... with socks and fleece slippers!

I am remembering... Kay.

I am going... on a quick down-and-back road trip to Boise with Lyle and the kids later today. It's 8 hours each way. We'll drive down this afternoon, spend the night, make some deliveries in the morning and then drive home.

I am reading... Love is a Battlefield by Annalisa Daughtey.

I am hoping... to have the time to stop at the Oregon Trail museum in Baker City, Oregon on our way home from Boise tomorrow.

On my mind... decisions to be made.

From the learning rooms... we have been reading about Lewis & Clark and the westward expansion. The Oregon Trail museum will tie in well with that.

Noticing that... I function more efficiently when my surroundings are in order. That doesn't mean they always are. In fact, they usually aren't. But maybe I should work on that!

Pondering these words... "We'll get to spend eternity together!" (What Kay's daughter told me after the funeral on Friday. What comfort!)

From the kitchen... lotsa apple goodies lately! My daughter has been enjoying trying a variety of recipes including apple pie, apple sauce, and apple cookies.

Around the house... I want to find time to shampoo the carpets soon.

One of my favorite things... learning right along with my children.

Sunrise

One of my favorite things about our home is how it is situated on the corner of a street, on a hill, with a wonderful view of the sky. I have mentioned before how much I love the sunsets... but we have an equally good vantage point to watch the sunrise, too. I don't see it as often, though, because in the summer I'm not up that early (4:30ish) and now that it's rising later in the morning, I just don't take time to slow down enough to appreciate it.
A couple days ago as I went to the kitchen for my first cup of coffee, the sunrise caught my eye. I regret that I don't have the photography expertise (or maybe it's just my camera... yeah, can we say that?) to properly capture the beauty of the moment.That was the day of my friend Kay's funeral. As I stood in awe of the beauty of the sunrise that morning, I thought about how glorious heaven must be. Then I realized that just as my camera can't capture the true beauty of the glorious sky... so we can't possibly comprehend what awaits us in heaven.

The sun shall no longer be your light by day,
Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you;
But the Lord will be to you an everlasting light,
And your God your glory.

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes;
there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying.
There shall be no more pain,
for the former things have passed away.
Isaiah 60:19, Revelation 21:4

I get a little Homesick sometimes, don't you?

Music Opportunities

There aren't many public school experiences that I regret that my girls have missed. One thing that I did enjoy, however, when I was in public high school (we won't say how many years ago) was the opportunity for music training, and I wished the same for my children. Of course, private lessons are available, but due to a number of circumstances we haven't been able to pursue that option. So I had been keeping my eye open for group music classes.

A few weeks ago we got a catalog in the mail from the city Department of Parks and Recreation listing the sports teams being organized for the fall, as well as personal enrichment classes. Last year they listed art classes, but no music. I wasn't very hopeful, but I quickly flipped through it to see if anything caught my eye. I was pleased to discover that a Beginning Orchestra class was being offered for the very reasonable price of $75 for 10 weeks. We hadn't considered violin before, as we already own a piano and a guitar... but my daughter has friends who play violin, so she was definitely interested.

Just a week or two later we got another catalog, this one from the local community college, offering more personal enrichment classes. Wouldn't you know it... a beginning guitar class was offered in that catalog for about the same cost! My daughter was excited. She could take both music classes! Um. No. We didn't think that was very wise, so we made her choose.

She chose violin. Her first class was last night. There are a dozen or so teens and adults in the class (one cello, one viola, and the rest violins). I was amazed at how much they learned in one hour! The instructor told them she is hopeful that they can play a concert by the end of the year, and she would like to see this evolve into an ongoing community orchestra.

I am just so excited that my daughter has this opportunity. We also registered my younger daughter for a middle-school age class which will start in 2 weeks and move a little slower.

If you're interested in inexpensive music or art lessons for your homeschooled children, check to see what's available in your community. It may not be just sports!

And speaking of music, a couple of Sonlight employees have set up a new music blog: Sonlight Music. I will be interested to see what they have to say on the topic.

Apple Picking Time

It seems like fall arrived in our area right in sync with the calendar this year. The temperatures have been cooler for the past couple of weeks, and fall is in the air!

As a fun fall activity we decided to visit the Green Bluff area northeast of Spokane yesterday. It's only about an hour from where we live. The kids and I had been there a couple of times on a "pumpkin patch" field trip years ago when they were little, but we had never been there as a family. I think we've started a new fall family tradition!

We visited several farms... some of which had fun country stores to browse, but our favorite was the "u-pick" orchard we stopped at last.
It was a drizzly morning, but we didn't let that stop us. We enjoyed tromping through the trees checking out the different varieties of fruit. The orchard owners had also planned a "letter boxing" game with 6 or 8 different boxes throughout the orchard for the kids to find and stamp a card. Hunting for the the letter boxes made it even more fun!This was a Red Delicious tree. The lady told us we could recognize the Delicious apples (both Red and Golden) by the star on the bottom. I love how dusky they look hanging on the tree.
I thought these weathered apple carts lined up against the old red barn were picturesque.
And here's my gang heading in with their harvest.
We only picked enough to enjoy fresh for the next few weeks. I was disappointed to discover that we can actually buy apples at the grocery store cheaper than we can pick our own.
But just the experience was worth the drive over! The girls found all the letter boxes and got to choose a prize from the prize basket.

And Laura made a most delicious apple pie when we got home!