More frugal tips from Laine

[SHOPGIRL]

Dear Sisters,
Hi! It's hard to believe we are almost in December! I love this time of
the year. My clothes come in off the line smelling so fresh and cold. I
love to put on the stove and the oven, because the summer heat has now
left,and it's time to heat up the kitchen! Abbie and I look forward to
our tea time every afternoon with something hot from the oven. I love
smelling my bread baking or tortillas heating over a hot skillet in time
for supper. I even love washing my dishes just to get my hands warm. It's
so wonderful to look forward to certain things in each season.

Here are some recent questions:

1~ How do you make your home cozy and warm in the winter without spending
too much money?

Well, it's very inexpensive to keep things clean. ( I learned that from
my grandmother.) I think that is the foundation of a cozy home - that
it's clean. So I try to keep things clean, as best to my ability, and
smelling good.

In the winter, I love to light candles and have something cooking in the
oven or on the stove. So when my husband gets up in the morning, I have
the kerosene heater lit in the kitchen, the candles on, and the coffee
perking to welcome him. All these things are very inexpensive to do, but
he sure loves coming into a warm kitchen with something hot to drink. I
like to make him flavored coffees by adding a bit of cocoa to our coffee
for a mocha taste, or vanilla, or cinnamon. It just smells so good, too.

At night, I will put on our electric blanket so that when we get into bed
it's all nice and toasty. I'll put our pyjamas under the covers, too, to
warm them up. I usually do this while I am cleaning up after dinner. This
week I bought a candle holder at the Dollar Store that is a green and
glass jar with a pretty handle. I put a tea candle in it at night in our
bedroom. It was so pretty and cozy displaying blue and green hues on the
wall.

I love soft music playing all day. Right now I have my Christmas music
playing. I find that very cozy and warm. Abbie and I will pick special
tea music when we have tea in the afternoon. It's usually a classical CD.
You can check these out at the library, and it sets such a peaceful
atmosphere in our home.

There is nothing like a fire in the fireplace. We have old movies that
we've bought from the Dollar Store. And we'll put on one of those old
movies with the fire crackling and some pop corn in a big bowl, and we're
all so content.

Flowers from the garden are such a nice way to cozy up a room. Right now
I have red roses and a beautiful poinsettia in our living room. When I
was living in Germany, flowers were part of a woman's household budget;
and you always saw women carrying them under their arms on their way home
from shopping.

I love rice bags. I use these when the kids are sick, or Abbie and I have
cramps. They are also great when you're cold and just need some comfort.
A few minutes in the microwave, and you can tuck it under a blanket to
keep you cozy and warm.

Speaking of blankets, I have warm blankets and pillows everywhere. I have
them in the kitchen, in our bedrooms, and in the living room. The kids
love to grab one when they need it. I love dark greens and maroon colors
for our living room, so my blankets and quilts are in those colors in
that room. I think linens and laces are a wonderful way to "cozy up" a
room, so I buy those at thrift shops when I find them.

There is nothing like a pot of soup and homemade bread to feel totally
loved, at least  for my family So I make both many times a week in the
winter. Chili and stew is so good, too. And it's inexpensive to make
these dishes, plus it is so healthy to make soup from the bones. I love
making chicken, vegetable beef, bean, mushroom barley, split pea, turkey,
sausage and potato, and too many other numerous soups to mention. It's
really such a joy of mine in the winter, and it so cozies up the kitchen
like no other meal, especially with a hot bread coming out of the oven. I
feel so blessed.

2~ Can you tell us how you are handling the food prices going up? I don't
seem to be doing so well in this area. I know you've written about it
many times, but I need a pep talk so much.

Yes, I have watched the food prices go up as well in my area. And the gas
is higher than this time last year, as well as our electrical and water
bills. So I am doing my best to readjust my budget accordingly and
continue to save as much as I can. I pray for God's help all the time!

My best advice to give you is to learn how to cook as much as you can
from scratch. I am still amazed at how much I save from a continuing
learning and growing in this area. I learn from cooking shows, magazines,
friends and family, the ladies on this list, and cookbooks from the
library. I am constantly trying new recipes to increase my knowledge.

It is so wonderful to know how to make pasta from scratch, as well as egg
noodles, muffins, doughnuts, french fries, tortillas, bread, or numerous
other things. They really require so few simple ingredients, so it is
much cheaper to make them than buy them. Plus it is so much tastier as
well. We have so many recipes on our website for you to try. And learning
to cook with leftovers is so important, too. So often I look as forward
to the leftovers as I do the main meal, because I know what I'll be
cooking with them next.

It is also good to buy seasonally when things are on sale. For example, I
just bought all my canned pumpkin for the year while it was on sale at
Thanksgiving. I did the same with cranberries and froze them for the year
as well. I do the same thing during the summer on certain fruits and
vegetables. I also used coupons for cream cheese and stocked up on that
this past week, as well as many baking goods. With cheese rising in
price, it is nice to know how to make it; so I want to increase my
knowledge in this area for the future.

And that is really the key, increasing our knowledge in cooking, baking,
canning, freezing, growing, and drying food. The more we learn, the more
we can save. It is also so important to be ahead of our families in this
area. That is why I love to do my cooking in the morning, because then
there are good things for them to eat all day. And I know what is coming
out of the oven, so there is a plan for dinner when they ask me. Then we
don't need to eat out or munch on junk food, which are both costly and
not good for our health.

"She is like the merchant ships, she brings her food from afar, she also
rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and a
portion for her maidservants."
Proverbs 31:15

"The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish pulls it down with her
hands."
Proverbs 14:1

I think it is a continual learning and growing in our homes. I am
constantly asking the LORD to teach and train me!

I hope I have been of some help. God bless you!

Love,
Laine

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Laine's official website:           <http://lainesletters.com>
To subscribe:         <Laines_Letters-subscribe@welovegod.org>

[homesteadmamma]

I love Laine's letters. I really needed them yesterday and they arrived just at the perfect time. They are always such an encouragement and I'm thrilled to get them.

[alabamagirl]

Her life always sound so idyllic!

[SHOPGIRL]

You know, I know what you mean. She certainly has a gift of description. I'm so glad that someone posted her website on FV. I spent a lot of time this summer reading all the letters on her website. She makes a little sound like a lot. She has so many good ideas and is so industrious. I have to remind myself that she is a full-time homemaker. I work full-time outside the home so it's impossible for me to keep up with Laine! So, I just try to do a little at a time. She makes living a frugal life seem so blissful.

[alabamagirl]

Yes, I work full-time too and it's tough to be everything to everybody all the time!

I do enjoy her letters though - maybe when I retire next year it will be more realistic.

[FreesiaE]

Fun letter! However, I would caution that a fire in a fireplace may be cozy, but not necessarily frugal. I saw on Mythbusters (one of my favorites) that fire places suck the air (including your warm air) from surrounding rooms and draw it up the chimney. The space around the fireplace might be nice and toasty, but it could be chilly in the bedrooms later!

[SHOPGIRL]

I think she lives in California, and she may not use regular heat. If I recall right, she has mentioned that she doesn't use heat.