..IF YOU ARE MARRIED OR HAVE A SWEETHEART YOU WILL RE-FIND THE ONES YOU USED TO BE BEFORE WHEN YOU FIRST MET..REMEMBER WHEN YOU FIRST MET OR WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED OUT IN YOUR JOURNEY OF ADULTHOOD. I HAVE LEARNED SOME FROM RELIVING THROUGH THESE FOSTER KIDS WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO YOU...

1.instead of big meals or fancy things...try small sandwhichs or picnic style meals...spread a blanket outside or if its cold on the living room floor....MAKE IT SIMPLE AND FUN...if you are single...who cares..you did something lke this in your past...invite a friend over and have it with them.....nothing like bringing out the young at heart...

2. instead of cable tv with all the fixins cut it down to basic or get rid of it completely...you can always get movies from the local libraries free or borrow from friends....tv has nothing but mostly violence, trash and filthy language within...rarely do you get good clean movies like you did when you were children....

3. instead of a big full size dinner..try getting a movie (free preferably) open up some cans of tuna and mayo, put a plate of crackers (ritz are great for this) and cheese out and and kick back....your full, its a change and is rather inexpensive...most kids would rather have fun than full meals and as an adult there is less clean up is to do

4.How about a picnic....weather- warm or cold tempatures- a blanket on the grass or living room floor is a great way to spend time together...different...light meal...fun...and an inexpensive meal also....a good way to reconnect with your spouse or if your single, invite a friend over just to share fun times together again....if you have kids, giving them a chance to fix the meal for the picnic with what you have..it is very interesting and you definitely have laughter flowing here..
(we had peanut butter sandwhiches, cut up fruit, hot chocolate, and left over shortcakes with jelly and whipped cream...yeah kindof icky combo-but-joy on a childs face making it was worth it..a dandelion in a cup and a cut out bird hanging in the living room--it was raining outside so inside nature came).

4. send a letter or email if you have to cut phone time down or get rid of it completely....stamps are a little bit of a price, but a postcard is cheaper and EVERYONE LOVES to get things in the mail from someone they have in their circle....children love to do this and receive something also.....ADULTS get a letter with the knowledge someone actually took the time to think of them...everyone likes to open the mail box with something for them in it thats not a bill....

5.spending things for kids is almost a waste anymore....make things together...we all sew or do crafts...make your gifts for each other with one on one time....its a time to have a special time together...if you are single, what a better way to have a friend over and getting creative with what you already have in your home..gifts were almost always made in the earlier settlers time...it was rare you got store boughten items then, we should give a gift of love and not money...


OK...NOT A GOOD THING MAYBE, BUT IF YOU CANNOT DO ANYTHING ELSE THEN...

How many of you have been giving something you have put away and never used because it just wasn't your style.....or...
how many of you have something that someone else has made a comment on and really meant it saying they like or love it....if you really do not care for it, clean it up and give it as a gift....a surprise to them that you would give up something they had admired and just tell them you wanted them to have it because you knew they really liked it....If it makes them happy and you don't really care one way or another, then there you go....you have de-cluttered some and made someone happy, you have given a gift without spending one cent...
as far as regifting....we all know what makes one person happy does not always make another happy...if you have packed it away
and it just sits there, what good is it if it takes space....perhaps it some different-perhaps not your style container...make some
cookies and wrap it up and give to someone else...oh yeah just not the person that gave it to you....

WE ALL HAVE WAY MORE THAN WHAT WE STARTED OUT WITH IN OUR BEGINNING OF ADULTHOOD....THE DIFFERENCES IS WE HAVE BEEN SPOILED WITH WHAT WE HAVE NOW AND HAVE FORGOTTEN WHAT IT WAS LIKE WITH NOTHING,,,,

I remember my husband and i first getting married and in our first place..it was 7 miles to town..we had an old elcamino that sucked gas and oil....I was 17 with no job and he was 25 just got laid off and on a small unemployment check....we would go pick strawberries in town make 30.00 dollars between us...that was enough for gas a quart of oil, and food for the day. We WORKED TOGETHER..28 1/2 years later...this is what I remember...we laughed and enjoyed each other being dirty and sore from bending over picking those berries....we washed clothes in the bathtub and hung them up to dry...a 50 lb bag of potatoes was pretty cheap and we got pretty good at making different dishes out of them...there were times when bottles we picked up and turned in payed for bread or milk for the babies...cooking with powdered milk instead of regular....yeah actually they were the good days when we had less

I know alot of people are hurting and I know that we get scared because of the fact...I do daily...BUT I do not ever remember the LORD letting me go without food and clothes and I do not remember every not having a place to lay my head...
I do remember being behind on bills and not being able to buy all of what I needed...but we did get by and we still to this day do even without a 2 income family....

GET CREATIVE AND AS THE BIBLE SAYS DO NOT WORRY ABOUT TOMORROW ONLY TODAY....

YESTERDAY IS GONE AND YOU MAY NOT BE AROUND FOR TOMORROW....

i have been so much advice hope and encouragement on this site that I believe the hope and love will get everyone through life...