The Sensible Mom

Food, DIY, Chicago Mom Blogger

Thrifty Thursday

Thrifty Thursday: Re-purposing your daughter’s leggings

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Yesterday evening we decided to go through Breanna’s clothes and take out the ones that no longer fit, could be garage-saled, or that we could use for rags. We found a couple of pairs of leggings with holes and worn out knees, so, I decided to go ahead and try an idea I had read on the Mom Advice blog not too long ago.

Amy talked about how she cut her daughter’s old leggings and turned them into comfortable shorts that could be worn under dresses. What a great idea!

And in less than 5 minutes….

We re-purposed those leggings to become comfy shorts that could be snuggly worn under Breanna’s dresses. πŸ™‚

For more Thrifty Thursday ideas, please visit The Coupon Teacher.


Frugal Friday: Finding Fun Locally

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Clifford PartyWe’ve found a hidden gem when it comes to finding fun and inexpensive things for our family to do. What is it you ask?

The Park District.

They put out a catalog once per season (Fall, Summer, Winter, Spring), and it is packed with fun things for the kids to do, and they even offer a lot activities for adults and whole families. In the picture, the kids were attending an event with Clifford. I think it was called, Clifford’s Birthday Party? But they got lunch, a picture with Clifford, and got to participate in some fun crafts for only $20 for four people. Ruben took the older ones while I stayed home with David, and just look at the fun they had!

The two older kids, Nathan and Breanna, are currently signed up for swimming classes through the park district, too. They had their first lesson last week, and it was fun watching them being pulled out from their comfort zones when it comes to the water. They were doing things with the instructor that they would NOT have been willing to do if I were teaching them. The best part is that they actually enjoyed it! I wasn’t sure if that was going to be the case because they took swimming lessons once before through our old park district, and they REALLY protested being signed up again. I actually text messaged Ruben shortly after the lesson started, and my exact message was, “I have a feeling the kids are not going to want to come back next week. The instructor is going a bit fast!” :-0 I was wrong, though. Thankfully!

Some other classes we’ve done over the years…..

1. AquaTots – This class is a parent/child class that focuses on getting little ones used the water. We sang songs and did little exercises like having the kids throw a small toy and scooping to get it. We also sang songs like “I’m a little tea pot” and tried to get the kids to put their ear in the water at the “tip me over and pour me out part.” Fun!

2. Mommy & me stroller fitness class – What fun this was! I would take Isaac and David in our double stroller and meet up with other moms at a park with a trail or at the mall on cold/rainy days, and we’d really get a work out! These instructors did not play games! Wow.

3. Gingerbread house – Ruben did more than one of these classes with the kids where they enjoyed decorating a gingerbread house.

4. Swimming classes – of course.

5. Summer Bowling – Nathan did this a couple summers ago and loved it. Β He and several other boys were taught how to bowl properly, and they got a free pizza lunch every week, too!

6. Karate classes – Ruben, Nathan, and Breanna have both taken karate classes in the past. I would sign them up again except for the location the classes take place is a bit of a drive and not worth the gas.

7. Daddy/Daughter breakfast – Ruben and Breanna created a lasting memory for this one.

8. Lots more – These are just a few! πŸ™‚

And there you have it. I’ve you’ve never taken a look at what your local park district has to offer, here’s some encouragement to give them a try. Oh, and they offer lots of FREE events, too.

For more Frugal Friday tips and ideas, please visitΒ Life as Mom.

This post is also linked to Thrifty Thursday.


Thrifty Thursday: Frugal halloween tracts

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Halloween. What to do with it as a Christian? Well…there are differing opinions. Some Christians would say that even though halloween has satanic roots, it is harmless today if you’re simply dressing your child up and walking them up and down the neighborhood to load up on candy.

Others opt not to celebrate it at all and turn off their lights on that day in the hopes that Jason or Freddie Kruegger don’t show up on their doorstep.

Where do we stand? Somewhere in the middle. We don’t celebrate halloween in our family. (And for anyone who is wondering, my children will not be scarred for life because of it.) My husband and I personally don’t demonize the day because every day belongs to the Lord. We have simply let our children know that we don’t celebrate this day and why.

And actually, I think the retail stores may be doing a better job of us at instilling the idea in our children that halloween isn’t something to be celebrated with their 5 foot moving tarantulas, goblins, and bloody masks. They don’t find those things to be friendly or humorous.

No, we’ll stay home on halloween, but we will keep our lights ON. We will welcome trick or treaters, and we will give them GOOD candy. And by “good candy” I don’t mean healthy, of course, but instead I mean the “good kind.” That means there will be no small baggies filled with candy corn passed out here! πŸ™‚

We know we have to give out the good stuff because we are passing it out along with a tract lovingly homemade by Breanna, our eight year old daughter. Take a look.

frugal halloween tract

It’s simple, free, and it comes with something of more value than gold in this life. God’s Word.

frugal halloween tract

I decided to put only two verses inside of our pumpkins in the hopes that they’ll actually be read and reminded that Jesus loves them and died for them and if they receive Christ as their Savior, they will have their sins forgiven and eternal life with Him.

We are giving these out with good candy because well….it’s the same as when you leave a tract at a restaurant with the tip tucked inside, you want to leave a good tip with the tract in order to leave a fragrant aroma of who Christians are. Only Jesus can open eyes and save, but we can “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” by leaving a proper tip and giving out the good stuff on halloween. πŸ˜‰

What does your family do for halloween?

For more Thrifty Thursday ideas, please visit the Coupon Teacher!