Fun at the Farm

Autumn is by far my favorite season, and I feel like I find even more to do every year. It's to the point where I've decided we need 2 Octobers to fit in all the fun!

One family tradition is to go to Hobson's Farm in Rockville, IN. I love that you pay one admission price and get to enjoy a variety of activities! This is fun for the whole family and I love that we got to enjoy it with my daughter's girl scout troop this year!

New Domain + Update

I feel like I'm already moving up in the blogging world. I decided to buy a domain for this blog, so now I am the owner of http://www.frugalteachermama.com! That's so exciting! I hope that this helps me build a better blog. I have already made a few changes, so if you usually view this on an RSS feed you may want to check it out and see what has changed. I am still hard at work, I want to make this a blog that you want to read. Thank you for being here from the start, I really appreciate that you are here.

Speaking of working on the blog, I had plans to do many things last night, but I ended up caring for a sick baby. It is really unsettling to have a sick infant. I hate it when any of my kids are sick, but even more when they can't communicate what is going on. He seems to be on the mend today and I have a lot of catching up to do, around the house and here.  It's amazing how much work one house can be, especially when you're unable to do the usual upkeep. I am working on my own cleaning routine and will be posting about it soon.

I'm used to being busy and having a lot to keep track of, but even so this has been a pretty rough week. It was already a long week for my husband, he works a swing shift and will work 4 days of one week then 3 the next (12 hour shifts). He ended up taking an extra shift on one of his days off this week and worked 18 hours yesterday. On his one day off we had to take my baby to see a Neurologist for a follow up and he had to get to bed early in order to be up for the 18 hours shift Friday. I am used to being home with the kids, but this was one of the more difficult times.

The visit with the Neurologist went well though. If you don't already know, there seems to be a Genetic disorder that my side of the family has. It causes a seizure disorder and right now we do not know exactly which gene it is, so we don't know that it is affecting someone until they start to have seizures. It is considered benign because the seizures are "outgrown" by age 2. My daughter had seizures as an infant, was put on medication to stop them, then weaned off when she was a year old. She is 7 now and hasn't had a seizure since she was 4 months old. My youngest son is 6 months and had his first seizure at 4 months. He ended up having around 8 seizures, 6 in one day, and is on medication to stop them. I am so thankful that there is medication that can help stop them from happening, it is a really scary thing to watch your child have a seizure. I also worry about that medication because it is known to cause developmental delays (most often with prolonged use).

So, for now, he is monitored by a Neurologist and his Pediatrician is closely monitoring his development so that we can watch for any delays. He is a happy baby and seems to be developing right on track. I just wanted to add a little background to that because I know I would be curious if someone mentioned seeing a specialist without any other information :) I have to say that what my daughter went through as an infant really shaped my educational philosophy. I feel like I am better prepared to help my youngest thrive because of what I learned through that experience. I will go more into detail about that later though.

Enjoy the updates to the blog and spread the word :) If you have a facebook, you can like me there too :)

The Best things in Life are Free

One aspect of frugality that can be the most difficult is the feeling that you're constantly denying yourself the things you want. Spending money can be more fun than saving it, but there are ways that we have fun and make our families happy without breaking the bank.

The simple things in life make me happy. I love sleeping in a few extra minutes, getting to enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning, lazy Sundays where the kids wake to their own internal clocks, and the chance to spend time outside in the dirt. I think my kids would agree with that last one. They love to ride their bikes, create pictures out of paper, crayons, and glue, and play with the dog.

We are blessed in that we get to do many things as a a family, but some of the things that make us the happiest are ones that we take for granted. We have at-home movie nights as a family which really can be more fun than going to a theater because we can enjoy the movie without worrying about making too much noise. We are happy to just relax in the comfort of our own home and spend time together.

Gardening is another thing that makes my family happy. We enjoy the food it provides, but it is also a hobby that we can all enjoy together. The kids helped my husband plant the starts a few weeks ago and a few days ago they were so excited to report that some had sprouted. When the plants are in the ground outside they are my biggest helpers and love to water the garden, pick the produce, and eat what they pick. It helps save money, but it is also a fun and happy experience for my family.

Reading is another frugal activity that makes my family happy. I love a good book and my kids aren't able to go to bed until they have heard a bedtime story, or 4. We keep this frugal by going to the library often. The library is such a great resource in our area. They have a weekly story time for my son, but also have many reading programs for kids of all ages. We participated in their summer reading program and my kids were so happy to get to read so many books and earn prizes. Each week they would get to learn about something new, I think my son was the happiest when Firemen came to speak and he got to sit in the truck.

How do you make your family happy without breaking the bank? Are the best things in life really free?

“I wrote this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms and Farm Rich blogging program, for a gift card worth $25. For more information on how you can participate, click here.”