Busy, busy, busy, busy.
Minor car accident + increased school costs + PA Day childcare costs + sick child + car battery dead + physiotherapy = budget not balancing at all. Pure joy I tell you, pure joy 
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Welcome!
I'm Frugal Trenches (no, not my real name!) a lover of natural, simple and frugal living! I use this space and my camera to document a beautiful, purposeful, downshifted and abundant life! Life is not always simple (oh how I wish it was!) but it is always rich and I hope this space demonstrates beauty and joy!
If you have a question, feel free to leave it in the comments! I read and appreciate every comment and will reply to questions within the comment section, even if it takes a day or two (or three, but whose counting!).
Archives
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Money Spent On Groceries in 2013
January $198.39
February $231.88
March $248.71
April $Books Read in 2013
Myself
Fiction:
1.The Help
2. Away
3. Flowers For Algernon
4. Animal Farm
5. Room
6. The Secret DaughterNon-Fiction:
1.The Two Nazanins
2.Confessions Of A Bad Beekeeper
3.The Encouraging Parent
4.Freakonomics
5.Why Be Happy When You Can Be Normal?
6.Raising A Right Brained Child In A Left Brained World
7.How To Make Your Child A Reader For Life
8.The Bookseller of Kabul
9.The Sane Woman's Guide To Raising A Large FamilyDaughter Grade 3 (Chapter Books)
Stanley's Christmas Adventure
George's Marvelous Medicine
Sarah Plain and Tall
Ramona Books x 5
Road To Avonlea Chapter Books x 3
Junie B Jones Chapter Books x 6
James and The Giant Peach
Freckle Juice
Reader Level 4 Books x 9Son Grade 1 (Picture Books)
January: 62 books
February: 73 books
March: 95 books
April: 89 books
I hope you’re all ok.
Me too!
Ugh! When it rains, it pours! Hope things look up for you!
Oh dear! I hope things get better from here.
That’s motherhood for you
Never enough money, never enough time, things never done. Before I had kids, we were going to do all green, simple wooden toys, a lots of outdoor play, book reading… Reality? Always short on money, kids almost always arguing, things breaking, never enough time for anything. But you know what? It is still million times worth it. Even though the girls hair in not brushed, sometimes not even the teeth, some days they have PBJ sandwiches for 3 days in a row, the car stinks from spilled juice… I look at them at night, sleeping, and no amount of money, peace, quiet, and organized life would be worth trading it for.
Is there any government help you can get? I got my kids on state health insurance, which paid for my daughter speech therapy (which we could not afford). After 2 years she finally started talking.
If anyone can rise to the challenge FT it’s you
xx
Yikes! Have you thought about budgeting each paycheck separately based on the expenses and income at the time? It is good to have a general guideline for the year – but as you can tell – nothing will always work out and when you have kids there are almost too many variables. I use Dave Ramsey’s method of balancing the budget to the penny each paycheck. This way I can fit in whatever needs to be fit in. So sometimes I don’t fund certain things, sometimes I spend less on food than I would like, etc. Good luck, I will keep you in my prayers.
Know the feeling all too well I am afraid. Hugs and love.
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