Home economics

In the fall of 2012 I went to a coupon/frugal living conference called Becoming, and it charged me up to work at couponing and cutting costs more diligently.  I have "saved" over $600 this past year by shopping at CVS.  I say "saved" because that is just what they say, but it isn't actually compared with my totals from last year so who knows. Before the conference I never shopped at CVS but my friend did and between her and the conference I started getting our toiletries and random stuff there.
I still am not tracking my expenses like I should.
Last year I also started a price notebook which really opened my eyes to the price differences at the stores I shop at.
Our staples I get from Sam's club, meat, cheese, salad stuff, milk, eggs, yogurt, flour.
Publix is right across the street so I used to get most of our can goods, pasta and bread from them.
Sav-a-lot has the best prices on fruits and random sausage and turkey and cilantro so I will try to hit that every 10 days.
Last week, my frugal friend that I  went to the conference with told me that she has started shopping at Target and saving a bunch.  I gathered all my coupons, got all the electronic deals lined up on my phone but I haven't been able to get over there and now some of my coupons have expired! AGGHH.
Somehow I have got to get back to couponing.
And Stewart informed me that I need to go get my hair colored for free from the chemist at Crew so I can bring home some free shampoo for him.  Fortunately I haven't gotten around to coloring my hair and the colorist called me this morning to ask if I could come in?  She is testing a dark blond and a dark brown this week.  Hopefully I can do that Wednesday but it is early release week and John-Thomas asked me to take him to open a bank account that day.

Comments

Today I received an email about people following my blog.

Who follows my blog, I don't even write on my blog anymore!

Do I still have a blog?

Well of course I still have a blog, and turns out I had comments awaiting my approval.
A while back, a long while back I changed the settings for comments on blog to be approved first because I was getting a lot of spam comments...only I forgot that I did that.
Sorry
I thought you had forgotten me.
You hadn't.
I miss our routine.
I wish life was like it used to be.  I would read your blog, comment and write my blog and we would encourage each other, spur one another on with good deeds and all that jazz.
Now I pinterest and it just isn't the same, but I can do that on my phone and that is so much easier than fooling with a slow computer and trying to figure out how to get the pictures off my phone to put on my blog.

This is my favorite eyeliner right now...it is only a dollar!

Hopefully I will start this book with Susan and Tracy this week but I don't think Susan will order it in time to start.  Tracy already has it because she is on the ball like that.  Tracy celebrates her 40th birthday this Saturday.

For the last couple of months I've been spraying this on our clothes to get stains out....Last week I noticed it was carpet cleaner. It works great as a stain getter outer for clothes.  I picked it up on clearance at Publix so I probably won't shell out full price for it now that I used the last of it up today.  Thankful that Pinterest has taught me about Hydrogen peroxide and dawn.

Alright, I really should do my dishes, they won't wash themself.  I don't mind starting my laundry,sorting and folding but all the rest of the household duties I really have to ramp myself up for.  Maybe I'll get on pinterest for a minute.  Have a great day!

Czech Gifts

This English Camp this year was the largest the Brown's had put together in the Czech Republic and it had the smallest team from America.  This is fitting because the Gideons were leading it.  God took the smallest team so far and did great things. At the team meeting before camp Marshall gave us a pep talk and shared his excitement of the gospel and it's transforming power.  He mentioned Romans 6:28,   "The wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus," and  “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2: 8,9) He went on to make the word picture of being a gift and either opening it or leaving it. I remember him giving us this same pep talk two years ago on our last trip and I was excited to see what God would do this time.

The camp is made up of people from the Brethern Church in Celekovice and their neighbors, co-workers and people in the community.  One of the first years that the Brown's were involved in putting on the camp they advertised in the village paper.  From that advertisement there are a half dozen people that have come back for their third camp.
"Why do you keep coming back?" they ask us.
"Because we love you and want to share God's love with you," we say.
"Why do you keep coming back?" we ask them.
"We have a good time, the people are very nice and our family has a great time," they say.
Throughout the year the church has a weekly English Club for kids.  This is a great way to introduce the kids to the church.  The translator for my class brought their neighbor's daughter to the kids club during the year and then invited the mom and daughter to the camp.  She was an attorney and didn't really believe in God. She didn't feel comfortable saying who God was. You can imagine her discomfort level about going through the creation story and talking about sin.  We knew that it was only the Spirit of God in her heart that would soften her heart and receive the message.  By the end of the week we could see her softened heart and we were rejoicing in her desire to enter into conversations with us.  My translator Jara and her husband as her neighbors will continue to reach out to this woman after I go home.
I had the beginning/intermediate class so there were many conversations that I couldn't take part in because of their level of English vocabulary and my level of Czech.  But I was told that my class was having those conversations with their Czech friends outside of class. During our last class there were a lot of doubts and disagreements shared and even the one lady in our class who is Catholic and I had previously thought was a believer said she doubted whether Jesus really died and was resurrected. And class time was up at that point...it was time for group class and I still had my class gifts to hand out.  I set my translator gifts down at their feet (because they were still involved in their conversations...in the Czech language) and all of sudden the conversation stopped and they reached for thier gifts.  I stopped handing out gifts and told them to wait.....
"Are Jara and her husband excited about their gift," I asked my class? "If they open it and take it home they can use their gifts but if they leave them here unopened then they haven't received their gift.  This is the same with God," I told them.  "You can take this gift He is offering you and make it yours or you can leave it, it is up to you."
After I gave the class their gifts, the sweet couple sitting on the couch next to me gave me a gift.  I told them I would hang it next to my sink and would think of them all during the day while I did dishes. And it has been a great reminder to pray for them and that the Gift of God would grow in their hearts and minds.

Czech Trip

Confidence

The anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit--just as it has taught you, remain in him.1 John 2 : 27

Yesterday was the second time this year that the pastor's sermon was expanded on thoughts I had durring the week.

The first time , I had the image of a closed fist all week.  I had been mulling over in my thoughts what that was in my life.  Then the pastor did a sermon on giving.  

Yesterday his sermon was the first in a series of the gospel in the carols and the first carol was Charles Wesley's "Come thou long Expected Jesus."

I must say that I pay more attention during the sermon is about something God has already initiated during the week.

It was with that affirmation that I read today's scripture  from John2:27.

What confidence He gives us that He is at work in us and will continue it.

Fight on.

Joy

I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

John 16 : 23-24 

I am long overdue to write.  

I am long overdue on a lot of things.

I  was laying on the floor trying to do some longoverdue planks and non crunch crunches when I saw some longoverdue hairballs inbetween the loveseat and endtable.

Reminds me of something/someone else that wasn't longoverdue but necessarily long expected.

The reason for joy.

Come thou long-expected Jesus, 
Born to set Thy people free; 
From our fears and sins release us, 
Let us find our rest in Thee. 
Israel's strength and consolation, 
Hope of all the earth Thou art; 
Dear Desire of every nation, 
Joy of every longing heart. 

Born Thy people to deliver, 
Born a Child and yet a King. 
Born to reign in us for ever, 
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring. 
By Thine own eternal Spirit 
Rule in all our hearts alone; 
By Thine all-sufficient merit 
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.