Getting Creative With What We Have!

I have always been one to rather save time than money...always loved my sisters modo "it will pay for itself", and when it comes to holidays and celebrations making it memorable has always been of higher value than money.
So when Halloween comes we will get the 5$ bag of gourds...and when Christmas comes we will use them again!
So this week while cleaning the house, coming up with ways to save money yet make Christmas special I was about to toss away October's perfectly round small gourds...we are in a new season and though the artist in me tends to want to pack rat, I am certainly no horder, just running a little behind on changing the theme in the home...but wait this has played in my favor.
"Reid!!! we got snowmen!!!" He obviously has no idea what I am talking about until I bring out the white paint and construction paper. He even got creative and pulled out Gigi's jumbo packets of straws..."Mommy! Corncob pipe!" Reid your a genius I tell him!
Voila! we have two new Christmas ornaments to fill the home, no holiday shopping involved whatsoever!!!
And there you have it Christmas on a budget!!!
I'll let you know if I get anymore inspiring ideas...now I am just on a Christmas cookie making kick...reminds me of Christmas at Home!

Christmas on a Budget!

40$ trees!? Point me in the right direction!
As we searched around the town to buy this years Christmas tree someone let us know that Home Depot was selling trees for forty dollars. We went straight away only to find that they had just sold out of the last forty dollar tree less than an hour ago and that was their last shipment! We had spent much traffic sitting and gas running and time spending at this point, what's another twenty dollars? 6ft trees was all they had.
"Here Reid hold this one right here so I can take a look"...TIMBER!!!-Tree shopping with an eight year old (with very skinny arms) was quite a tree wobbling adventure. But we managed to pick out our new temporary addition to our home and off we went to the tree prepper.
"Can you take maybe a foot off???" (My home has very low ceilings)
So now with a 5ft tree all tied to my car, we set off for home. Little did I remember my tree stand is made for trees up to 5ft tall- and cutting it down does not change the girth of the trunk.
"Ohhhh Fudge" (as Ralphie would put it)
"I will not buy a new tree stand, I will not buy a new tree stand" was my mantra for the next thirty minutes it took to figure out a way to get this tree secured in the good old fashioned tin tree stand made for tree trunks about an inch and a haf thinner than the one I had. "Reid hold the tree, hold the tree, HOLD The Tree so it doesn't fall!"
Man when that tree was set so was my mind-ON CHRISTMAS! strung the lights, hung the old red balls that we had stashed away, and now to dress it up.... No way with the strung popcorn that's just inviting those little bugs! But with what!
"I will not buy Christmas ornaments I will not buy Christmas ornaments..." became my new mantra! I am really trying to do this on a budget...EUREKA! For some crazy reason I saved all my Christmas cards from last year!
So there wwe were, me and Reid, in our reindeer ears and Christmas music playing cutting up all the pretty glittery holiday images off the cards and tapping string to the backs and hanging them on the tree! Voila!!! Christmas On A Budge!. Mama's proud, Son is happy- Making new Christmas memories. More Christmas on a budget ideas to come!!!

In case you are wondering what this is about...it is more than just pie- promise

What an exciting Thanksgiving. Like none other- 70 Homemade pies! Thank you so much for your generosity. I will post pics and recipes soon. I think I am only now recuperating from the Thanksgiving Holiday...and we are only a few weeks away from Christmas!!!

It is an interesting experience trying to walk faithfully, I am not really sure what exactly is going to happen but I can share what the plan is and only do what I can do today without worrying about how it all pans out tomorrow...

So these pie sales are to raise funds and awareness for some long-terms goals for the boys home in India. 

The idea is that the food I prepare is a gift for your donation. I AM prayerfully preparing to go to India long-term but the funds that I am raising through A Sweet Dedication are NOT to sponsor my own trip- airfare, living, other costs... The funds that are raised from your generous gifts are going towards an account that can be used to implement some basic life-skills initiatives while serving there. 

(Separately I will have to find sponsors interested in funding my mission)

But FIRST, I am sending sponsor letters for a short-term mission with the India Impact Initiative Team for this coming March! (This will also be a good time to connect with the leaders there and create more of a plan too.)

I know, that's a lot of fundraising isn't it. 

Well like I said in the beginning of this post, It is an interesting experience trying to walk faithfully...
Actually it is more than interesting. It is exciting, challenging, and even sometimes lonely and confusing;  it is an adventure-the unknown, facing fears, stretching beyond comforts, and finding strength and rest in God's mercy and grace...one thing is for sure, no matter what happens it is always 100% with a purpose bigger than myself and my own wants, and without regrets! I am doing it for Jesus, my heart is His, completely.

One goal is to have monthly donors with a heart for this service and for being a monthly donor I will deliver a special lunch to your home or workplace once a week. I really love cooking for others so I made it a service that I can provide for your generosity. But even without being a monthly donor, if you want to ever order something for a potluck or your small group meeting, or anything at all you can just email me an order and I will prepare it for you. Instead of going to a supermarket your money will go towards 35 wonderful boys in India who God is going to use to change a nation! And it is tax deductible so if this speaks to your heart email me at a asweetdedication@gmail.com anytime!
If you want to learn a little more about the boys home check out teamfaith.blogspot.com