Here is my first attempt this year in becoming more organized:

The space under my bathroom sink was unorganized, and the space was under-utilized

Here is the before picture:

Here is the after picture:

As promised, here is the first post in the series on New Years Goals / Resolutions:


Healthy Foods don't have to be costly


Many people have a mentality that you can't buy healthy wholesome food on a limited budget, but I want you to know that you can!

First, if you are not doing so already, may I suggest that you plan out what you will be cooking for breakfast, lunch, dinner and any snacks you might have. Take an inventory of what you already have in your pantry and freezer and see what you can come up with first. You should also have the grocery store circulars in front of you so you can plan meals based upon what is on sale at the time.


If you do nothing else, make a menu and stick to it. You can save a ton of money by not having to go to the store every other day, or resort to takeout food.


Second, take a look at what you and your family are eating & drinking. Do you buy cases of soda and bags of potato chips every time you shop? If you do, try to eliminate the soda & find a new snack (such as a handful of peanuts).


Next, you will need to make your grocery list. I shop at 2 stores every week, Kroger and Walmart, and I go to Foodtown when I need to stock up on meats. Plan what items you will purchase at what store based on who has it on sale. Keep it realistic and don't plan to go to 5 different stores across town, especially at first, keep it to 1 or 2 stores.


By shopping the sales and using coupons, you will be getting the most for your money. (I will be posting more in-depth info on using coupons at a later date) If you find a great deal on a shelf stable or freezable item, you should stock up as much as your budget allows.

************************************************************
Maybe another way you can save money and still be healthy is to make some of your own food. Does your family go through a lot of store bought pancakes, muffins or breads? Find a healthy recipe for pancakes (or use the one here) make a couple dozen, put 2 or 3 in a ziplock bag and freeze them. Making 2 dozen pancakes and freezing them your self can be as inexpensive as 1 box of the pre-made variety, not to mention, healthier.

************************************************************
Do you buy bottled water? Another way you can save is to be using a faucet mounted water purifier. The filter on the model I have has lasted over a year

Once the red line completely fills the window, the unit will not allow water to pass through until a new filter has been installed. For about $20, this little beauty has paid for itself many times over. One other thing that is good about this brand, is that in the P&G coupon inserts, you can usually find a coupon for a few dollars the replacement filters :)
*****************************************************************

Is there any way you could grow some of you fruits and veggies? Even if you live in an apartment, you can still grow many things in containers. It doesn't cost a lot to get started and its very simple to do. (I grow tomato plants in containers on the patio of my apartment.) The end of the year is the best time to buy any extra containers you may need. You can also peruse the pages on Craigslist to see if anyone in your area is giving away or selling their pottery or gardening tools.

Have you shopped at a farmers market or co-op? Many times you can get great deals on fruit and veggies there. Become familiar with what foods are in season, and what is local to your area to find the best prices. Have you thought about bartering? Maybe you have a skill or other resource that the farmer needs and could trade fresh produce for your talents?...

Two last things to remember is, be watchful of the way you cook your food. Instead of frying, bake, broil or roast it. Also, be careful not to let food go to waste because of leaving it out or not making leftovers into another meal. The last thing you will want to do after all the healthy attempts of saving money on good food is to let it go to waste.

2 egg whites
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup skim milk
1 tbs. brown sugar (packed)
1/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
3 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Spray an electric skillet or griddle with non stick cooking spray. Use 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. When air bubbles form, flip only once.

This recipe makes approx. 10 pancakes

Every year when the clock rolls over at 12:01, we all get a chance to make a resolution to ourselves for the year ahead. We think of something that we would like to change or to be better at, but how many people do you know actually stick with what they said they were going to do?

I prefer not to make resolutions, but rather set goals. Goals seem to be something you work at consistently and diligently throughout the year, and most of the time are achievable with hard work.

Some of the goals I have for this year are:

• Become better organized

• To lose a few pounds

• Save 3 months worth of expenses

• Learn to knit/crochet

Throughout the year, I plan to keep updating everyone about how these goals are progressing. My next posting will be about losing weight without shrinking your wallet.

Awhile back I posted a blog entry about Totally Ready on my old blog (you can read it here). Well they are starting off the new year with a bang by giving away an Adult Delux 72 hour kit (valued at $122.00)

After hurricane Ike came through my town, my love and I made a promise to ourselves that we would do whatever it takes to be prepared in case we are ever in a situation like that again. Totally Ready has helped tremendously by giving 7 things to do every week to better prepare ourselves.

Everyone, no matter what part of the country you live in, can benefit from having an emergency kit ready to go, and what better way to have one than winning it for free!

Please follow this link to the giveaway, and take the necessary steps to enter into the giveaway. While you are there, take a look around and maybe start trying to incorporate some of the ideas given to become better prepared in your lives.

As the Christmas season rapidly approached and then passed by, I decided that I wanted to make the majority of the gifts I give next year. I then took it to another level and thought it would be fun to include birthdays in this as well.

My best friend's birthday is on Sunday (so I hope she doesn't see this before then) and I decided to make her matching reversible make-up/tote bags. They are not perfect by any means, but they are close.





















I will most likely include little bottles of shampoo and conditioner, toothpaste, small soaps, tea light candles and a poof (you know those poofy shower things you wash yourself with) inside.

The entire project was fairly easy, was inexpensive, and was made from the heart. I used the tutorial from this website. Overall the instructions were pretty clear (there was one part with sewing the zipper on that ended up backwards, but nothing a seam ripper couldn't fix)

I hope you like them Nikki and I hope you have a wonderful birthday!!!

Here are a few posts from the old blog that I'd like to not bury quite yet:

Recipes:
Banana Muffins
Ham and Swiss crescent Braid

Free Entertainment in Houston:
Sea Center Texas

A guide to moving inexpensively

For my blog that is. It has been on my heart for some time now to start a different blog. I felt that the last blog wasn't titled properly for the topics that I blogged about. After an unexpected month long blog hiatus, now seemed to be the right time for Shining Light to be born.

The end of 2008 was extremely busy and after a couple days without posting anything new, it was suprisingly easy to slack from blogging and find other things to do to fill my free time. I feel guilty, because I had a good, steady readership and I abandoned them.

Over the last month, it seemed, I thought of an abundunce of topics to write about, what I wanted to do differently, and how to keep blogging a regular part of my already busy schedule. It seemed everyday I was cooking something that I wanted to share a recipe for or making a handmade gift I wanted to teach others how to do as well, and just didn't get around to sharing it.

I have a new motivation to stay active with this blog and I hope all of my previous readers will be accepting of this new creation. The old blog will still be available, but will no longer be updated.