​

Hello, Reader.

A few days ago, I overheard my kids discussing with great enthusiasm the fact that anyone can earn gift cards simply by searching on Bing. As I listened to them talk, I had two thoughts.

First, it made me happy to see them so excited about finding such an effortless way to save money.

And second, I made me want to kick myself for never having told them about this opportunity myself -- because I've been using Bing as my search engine for years and have earned so many $25 and $50 gift cards (primarily for Amazon) that I've lost count!

Interested? You can do it too by joining the Microsoft Rewards Program. Hint: If you do it now and set Bing as your default browser, you'll earn points for every link you follow from this week's money-saving themed link list below!

Free resources for you this week:

• Our Best Budgeting Tips - several ways our family has been saving money for a long time
• Successful Garage Sale Strategies - best practices for shopping and/or selling
• 50 things to Sell for Cash - ideas for turning unused items into profit
• Financial Charts for Hardworking Kids - something to feed your child's entrepreneurial spirit
• Earn Cashback with Rakuten - new users can earn a $50 casback bonus by signing up now

What I'm reading this week:

​

My daughter-in-law recently read Esther Engelsma's How Can I Feel Productive as a Mom and enjoyed it so much, she bought several more copies to share with family and friends. She gave one to me while I was in San Antonio last weekend, calling it "the best kept secret" of parenting books. It's only 35 pages long, so I read the whole thing aloud to my husband on our trip home & felt very productive doing so. 😉 The author calls for a shift in mindset: Instead of using how much we accomplish as a measure of productivity, she suggests we consider how well we use our time. More Mary, less Martha. She articulates this premise so beautifully, I ordered my own stack of gift copies. ❤️

On the podcast this week:

Loving Life at Home: Episode 101 SURPRISING BENEFITS FROM FAMILY STORYTELLING Studies show that the #1 predictor of a child’s emotional well-being is how well that kid knows his family history. So this week, we're talking about how important storytelling is for the growth and development and emotional wellbeing of our children, and about what kinds of stories parents need to make sure they pass down to their kids. Listen Now

Progress on last week's goals:

I did pretty well on last week's to-do list -- especially considering the fact I was out of town five of the past seven days! Nevertheless, during that time, I ✅ struck camp and put everything away, ✅ cut my grandson's hair, ✅ attended my husband's 40-year high school reunion, ✅ crocheted severalstuffed pumpkins, ✅ celebrated an early Thanksgiving with our Canadian friends, ✅ recorded one (but ❌ not two) new podcasts, ✅ buried two new compost bins, and ✅ started (but ❌ didn't finish) cleaning out my closet.

Personal goals for this week:

• pare down inbox (messages really piled up again while I was out of town!) 📤
• fly home from Kansas after my daughter's last volleyball tournament of the season 😅
• finish cleaning out my closet 👚
• make lesson plans for second quarter 📝
• crochet lace edge on thrifted linens 🪡
• use my time wisely ⏰

Thanks for reading to the end! I'll be back next week with more links, reviews, and resources. Please note that several of the links I've shared above are affiliate links.

I love hearing from you. If you have any special requests, hit reply and let me know. 😊