1 summer, money was extremely tight.  Our kids needed school clothes and no money to buy them.  With 4 kids, from grade school, junior high and high school needing apparel, we decided the have a yard sale.

Our Make and Offer sale, made $445 and got rid of a lot of stuff we didn't need.

We also served lemonade on a donation level, which brought in more money than had we stated a price.

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I lived with an abuser for over 13 years and in that time, I became nothing; my children became nothing and my life meant nothing.  I gave up all my self-esteem, my laughter and who I was.  After realizing that nothing I did could change this man, I was prompted by my children to seek help.  I started going to a counselor and soon learned that my thinking was okay and that I was okay as a person. 

I started looking for love and left.  I've since found my laughter, myself, my self esteem and the freedom to be who I am.  My children still struggle but I know they are better off without the harshness.

Never sell yourself short.  God created you, has a purpose for you and delights in you.

Psalms 18 proves it.

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I battled depression for years until I realized a few things about myself.  I was living in an abusive relationship and I was shutting down spiritually.  After much needed therapy, I left my abuser and moved on. 

Even now, the crunge wants to come in.  I've decided that if I change just one thing, the rut won't come.  I sit in another room of my house that I barely go in, move a flower to another area or sit outside for a few minutes.  I feel better and I can move on with my day without being unhappy.

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Dealing with creditors can be sticky.

Make sure you save every piece of correspondance with them. Keep receipts in a safe place.

Doing so, has saved me over $500 through time.  Twice I had creditors state I owed more than I did.  Producing my receipts made them realize they were wrong.

Had I started early on, I could have saved myself $28.  Not much $ to some but at the time, it was a lot of money for me to have to come up with.

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Dedication and being strong minded are the way to being debt free.

Start with the smallest bill and every time you pay it, add an extra $ or 2.  When this is paid off, pick the next smallest and take what you had been paying on the smallest and put it towards this bill.  Eventually, everything will be paid in full.

Cut up all your credit cards and call the companies to close the accounts.  Ask for a letter stating they are paid.

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Ever get ran down in the thoughts of cleaning your house everyday?

I was given an idea about how to spend an hour taking care of my house everyday, so I decided to give it a try.

This is what my morning consists of.

Start a load of laundry.

Clean up the kitchen.

Figure out what's for dinner.

Make my bed.   (change the sheets if needed and use this as my 1 load of laundry a day)

Clean the bathroom.

Back to put the laundry in the dryer.

Straighten up the front room and spray the furniture with lysol or febreze.  (If you have birds, these 2 sprays can prove harmful or deadly)

Wait on the laundry to finish drying and than fold and put it away.

Through the day I relax or do whatever else needs to be done but the basics are taken care of for the day and I feel good about myself and my house.

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Some time ago I volunteered to give 3 parties for relatives.  One was a bridal shower and 2 were baby showers.  I spent very little on each one but they turned out really well.   Besides the normal decorations, I came up with a few on my own.  I'm sure if you try and have a party for someone, you will be able to come up with unexpensive ideas as well.

Some of the bridal shower consisted of a 'clothesline' being hung around the kitchen and guests could clip money to it with clothespins.  One of the gifts I gave consisted of a big clothes basket.  Inside was everything from cleaners, a toilet brush and a rolling pin for the future husband. 

For the baby girls party, I bought baby hair barrettes and ribbon.  The basinette was used as the focal point; just as a coffee table would be used.  I took the ribbon and hung it around the crib and clipped the barrettes to it.  I bought duck plates at good will and used baby wash clothes as napkins.  They were pinned with diaper pins in the shape of diapers.  Sippy cups were the drinking cups.  The center piece were 3 balloons with various sayings for keepsakes and the table was lined with a reusable table cloth.  

For the boys party I bought a toy dump truck and a sand pail.  The dump truck was plastic wrap lined and used as a 'dump' for fresh fruit on the cake table.   The sandpail was used for punch.  I outlined 1 table with stuffed animals and a piggy bank for the gift table.  The new mother to be was given a bib and a childs spoon that she had to use throughout the party. 

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