1 Way Grown Stay-at-Home Daughters Make Money

Olivia has decided to make coupon/deal shopping for our family her part time job. The thing about a job is that you have to be committed, you have to do it even if you don’t ‘feel’ like it. I have shopped the deals from time to time, and there really is no excuse for why I don’t do it now, other than TIME. But if I were on Facebook less and surf the deals more I could make it work (there is today’s confession).

Anyway, Olivia is committed to adding to our family’s economy by shopping the deals. She spent about 4 hours making list, clipping and printing coupons, devising her shopping trip. You can’t save or make money without a good plan!

For us it is about a 45 minute drive to the good stores (which is another reason why I quit the deals). So Olivia and Emma decided to make a day of it. The two of them set out for a day of adventure, deal shopping and memory making!

You can read more about their adventure and memory making at Olivia’s blog.

She bought $191.00 worth of stuff for $41.00!!!

They make money by saving us money! This is the real stuff of life, this is what they will use when they marry!

People are always asking our daughters (21 and 18) what they do now that they are “graduated”. I want to say, “How much time do you have?” They do things just like this. Things like this free me up to spend more time with the younger children and not be so frazzled when my husband comes in from his work. Working together as a family is not easy, but it sure is good when everyone is on the same page.

I’ve written about how Family Life Makes Good Cents and this is one way to prove that!

It All Sounds Good on Paper

It’s usually easy to come up with a plan. I personally love developing plans because I am a visionary by nature.

Plans are necessary if you have a goal and want to obtain it whether it be:

and so on…

And then…

comes reality…

the part where you roll up your sleeves…

and you start chiseling away at your plan…

it is usually dirty work, painful work, but necessary work.

This is the nitty-gritty of life.

This separates the dreamers from the doers, the idealist from the realist.

It’s great to dream, it’s great to plan, but if you do not get up and start working the plan you will find yourself accomplishing a whole lot of nothing.

I cheat on my diet occasionally, but at least I have a goal I am sloooowly working towards and not just sitting with Little Debbie every day (actually Little Debbie is NOT welcome in my house because she does not play nice).

We have a family chore chart hanging, we follow it the best we can…never perfectly, but at least everyone knows what is expected of them each day.

My lesson plans really look good on paper, but it rarely works out as I planned, but at least I know what direction we are heading in…we get there each quarter, each semester.

Our garden doesn’t look anything like I envisioned it to, but we are reaping some harvest! It’s better than last year’s, and maybe next year it will be even better! Gardening is hard work but the flavor of the food is so much better than store bought!

God has brought our desire to care for orphans to pass. This is HARD work, maybe a bit ~~harder~~ more complicated than we thought it would be, but we’re not quitters. We know the tasks set before us as a family, is an important one, an eternal one.

Family life makes for great pictures, but unless you are serious about the relationships in your family and all the behind the scenes loving and training then it is all in vain.

You may dream of being:

a missionary
married
a mommy
a successful business owner

The point is we can make anything look good on paper…

or a computer screen (especially with a good photo editing program),

but unless you are willing to carry out the details,

the daily hard work to get it done,

then you are nothing more than a dreamer!

Don’t waste your life dreaming and planing…be a doer!

This does not mean that every plan will succeed, many won’t, but at least you are moving…learning…DOING!

So often it is what is learned on the journey that is more valuable than the destination!

Building a Family Economy – Auto Mechanics

In our culture automobiles are a necessary evil. Okay, maybe they are not “evil” but when you have break downs you’ll think they are!

Both of our vehicles have had issues lately. The mechanic gave us a price of $1000-$1500 to fix our van…OUCH! Jeff knows a good bit about auto- mechanics and repairs, but some things are a bit much, not to mention having the right tools. Jeff’s brother is a mechanic in up-state New York, he has been walking Jeff through ‘what to do next’ over the phone…Praise the Lord!

Hayden been watching Jeff every step of the way, this is how Jeff learned as much as he did; he grew up at his grandfather’s side who was always working on someone’s car.

I don’t know if mechanics will be his thing or not, but after this week he knows what ‘a head and a piston’ are.

If your children are spiritually mature, allow them to spend time with people that know things, practical things! Let them spend their summer apprenticing with someone who knows a skill well. The ideal, yet rare, situation would be to find someone who is like-minded and skilled!

There is also the internet! There is so much information on line!

Think about what cost so much in your every day life:

Car Repairs
Plumbing
Electrical
Well Prepared Food
Hair Cuts

Building a Family Economy – Emergency Candles

I saw these on Pintrest and thought how they’d make a great gift this Christmas,

or even for a bridal shower or housewarming.

Place a book of matches and add a lid on and you’ll have about 40-50 hours of light.

These can be made for less than $2.00 if you are buying new jars,

but less than $1.00 if you are recycling jars.

You could sell these for $5.00 easily, especially if you market them as “emergency” or “survival” candles.

Go here to see how to make them (super easy),

be sure to read the comment section, lots of great ideas.

I think I’ll be making some of these for Christmas this year.

I’m going to start gathering jars.

I’m also posting over at Christian Home Magazine.

Building a Family Economy – Multiple Streams of Income

Our household has many streams of income.

For me personally I sell:

I also run Teaching Good Things where I generate some income through advertising and affiliate marketing.

I will occasionally babysit for a friend.

There are days I even go work with/for Jeff.

Our daughters, 17 and 21, who also live with us have several streams of income:

And then there are a dozen things my devoted husband will do to bring in his streams of income. My point is, don’t limit yourself to one or two things. When business is slow in one area, an other area can carry you through.

Building a Family Economy- Teach What You Know

I’ve talked before about how you can generate income by teaching what you know. Here is another example of that. Olivia teaches cooking lessons. She uses our church’s kitchen which is a huge blessing! She has a long term goal (actually a 10 year goal) to own a cooking school.

What are your goals? What baby steps are you taking toward the bigger, long-term goals? You need to start somewhere. When obstacles happen, turn them into stepping stones.

Everyone can teach something.

PRA Y

Building a Family Economy- More Than Making Maple Syrup DVD Giveaway!

I just viewed the Moore Family’s latest DVD, More than Making Maple Syrup and I love it! Whether you really do want to learn how to make maple syrup yourself to save money or make it to sell to help build your family economy; or if you just want to see how it is done as part of your homeschool curriculum this is the video for you.

What I love most about this video is that it is made by a down-to-earth family that really does work together. What a blessing it is to see that.

Again the more skills you have, the more marketable/profitable you and your family can be.

Every Christmas my mom and grandma gives us a jug of maple syrup that comes from the tapping of the trees on my grandmother’s farm. It’s like liquid gold.

This is a great film that shows everything from the tapping, to the cooking down, to the canning of the sap/syrup.

Save $3.00 if you buy this before Feb. 29, 2012.

More Than Making Maple Syrup

The Moore family is offering a giveaway for our readers.

The giveaway winner will be announced February 24, 2012.

To enter, all you have to do is leave me a comment telling me you’d like to be entered.

For additional entries (leave a separate comment for each):

Post about this giveaway on Facebook.
Post about this giveaway on Twitter.
Post this giveaway on Google+.
Write a post, linking to this giveaway, on your own Blog. (This is worth 3 entries. Please leave 3 separate comments.)
Become a Public Follower through Google Friend Connect.
”Like” Teaching Good Things on Facebook .

Linking to The Christian Home.

How to Build a Family Economy – Cake Decorating

When my first baby was born 24 years ago I took 12 weeks of cake decorating classes. I knew I needed something I would enjoy and be able to make a little extra money from home with.

It didn’t take me long to learn the skill and before I knew it

friends and family were wanting me to make their birthday cakes.

Within a year or so I made my first wedding cake.

Within a couple years making wedding cakes turned into

making other foods for weddings, showers and parties .

Investing in 12 weeks of classes (1 night a week) was the best money I have ever spent! The basics that I learned I cover in my Basic Cake Decorating DVD that I made.

Learning some foundational skills

and then always looking for ways to improve on them

makes you more marketable.

Cottage Food Laws

The Christian Home

Building a Family Economy – Mint

I recently set up a Mint account (it’s free). Mint brings all your financial accounts together online or on your mobile device, automatically categorizes your transactions, lets you set budgets and helps you achieve your savings goals. Although I know I am not using it to it’s full potential yet, I love it so far. It is a great free budgeting resource. Take an hour or two and set up an account. I’m going to have my older girls set up an account to help them learn more about budgeting.

Building a family economy is about managing what you have,

as much as it is trying to always make more!

Building a Family Economy – Sewing Kits

I have featured the business savvy Wreckler girls here and here, and to be honest, I just can’t get enough of them! Their business is growing as these two are learning skills that will really equip them for real life!

Not only are they being industrious and creative, they are also dedicated to giving a part of their profits and products to those in need.

The girls and their mom saw a need around them and then used their skills to meet that need.

Be alert and look for ways to grow your family economy!