Preschool "W" Weather/Winter

We had preschool (aka joy school, my husband can't stand calling it that so we refer to it as both...) at our house this week. It was letter "W" and number 18.

Day 1: Weather
-clouds
-watched "Part
-read "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs"
-snack:
-songs

Day 2: Winter
-books: Strawberry Shortcake Snow Day, Itsy Bitsy Spider
-songs: Once there was a snowman, if all the raindrops..., rain/snow is falling all around
-activities: snowball fight with crumpled white paper while playing song ("new boots") from Wintersongs CD by John McCutcheon (the rest of the CD was just okay, this one way upbeat and fun). the kids had a ball with this!! made "snow angels" then threw the "snowballs" into a bucket
-hot potato with a mitten
-snack: kix (little "snowballs") and apples. had kids put kix on "W, w" printout before they ate them. instructed to count to 18 (one did it).
-craft: snow flakes (4 large popsicle sticks blued together, colored with crayons, cotton ball in the center)

A good kind of addiction

Amy has a great blog "Your Life Uncommon" (just added her button to this blog)and I really identified with her post about using coupons. Amy and I were in the same ward growing up and I've always looked up to her, but she continues to amaze me with her attitude and approach to life, relationships, really about everything she does!

i love books

"You'll be the same person you were last year except for the books you read and the people you meet."

I saw this quote (not sure who said it) on another blog I follow and really liked it. I love reading. And I really do appreciate all the wonderful people I associate with each day.

Weaning off reliance on the credit card

We pay off our credit card every month, haven't carrried a balance in a few years, which has been a huge deal. But we are working toward doing more with envelope systems, especially for groceries/dining and it's been amazing how differently I am thinking about money now that it's not just swiping a card that I'll "pay off" at the end of the month, versus really being accountable for the money right then. I consider myself a pretty frugal (maybe even somewhat stingy/miserly person) but have really been amazed at how much I might spend here and there, maybe even justify as a "need" when I'm swiping a card without much thought (even if we pay it off every month!). We really do spend more when we use a credit card versus cash or a debit card--using money you actually have right that second, not something you'll reconcile with later. Interesting. I really liked this thought from a favorite blog I follow:

"We aren’t 'behind.' We belonged to the school of thought that said credit cards were okay as long as you paid if off each month. Well, that is still debt! We were always a month behind. Instead of the paycheck going toward’s tomorrow, it was paying for yesterday. I’d rather pay it forward than backward."

This really made me think. I like the direction we're going. I really do feel more in control telling our money where it's going rather than reconciling with the credit card balance at the end of the month--even if we never carried a balance. I think we'll be much more accountable, responsible and spend less this way. Ah, freedom and control.

Hope