Saving on a Tight Budget

~I decided to write a few words on budgeting this morning because I'm currently trying to aid my mother with a budget (Since my father passed away, she's had major changes), as well as my adult kids are living life. Life happens to all of us and there is help available , you will find it under the words: budget and self responsibility. 
Saving on a Shoe String Budget

$ Money, Money, Money. The mighty dollar and how to save. $ 
Cash, Money, Money.

Make a commitment to yourself. If you're in a relationship, get your significant other, and family member's agreement to support the new budget plan. "We can do this!" and "Let us do this together!" Can go a long way in a household of folks wanting to make change happen in their home. A fun family idea that I used involved putting up a central jar for all family member's to contribute their change to (negative words cost $.25 each word. Once enough was saved, it was a fun pizza night!) 

Don't start the new year short on cash; saving money is possible. It's imperative that you save when your discretionary dollars are limited, because when your budget is tight, one random expense can derail your life, making a huge impact because it's harder to come up with the money! Finding a way to start saving money so that unexpected expenses aren't so devastating may not be easy. But shifting your thought patterns can yield long-term results. Being a "saver," may come natural to some; however, it is not natural to most people. 

Having a mindset of a "spender" is the current American way. It is too easy to put that "on sale" item on a credit card with a 20% interest rate because you're saving money, while the reality is after you pay off the bill, the item cost more than regular price. Any and everyone can become a Saver, it can be developed through practice. 

Eight Ways to save money when money is tight.

1. Shop smarter (Collect coupons, read the store's newspaper, compare prices, make detailed lists, and rid yourself of impulse buying!) [Grocery Coupon Apps: http://www.squawkfox.com/2014/01/15/grocery-apps/] Great grocery saving ideas: http://www.mymoneycoach.ca/blog/budget-grocery-shopping-tips-to-save-money.html
2. Keep the change (Make additional games to save money with this old fashioned idea: every time you think of having an expensive latte coffee, put that $3.95- $5.00 [http://hackthemenu.com/starbucks/menu-prices/coffee-espresso/] into your jar, or whenever you visit an ATM, find your bank using GPS on your phone and save that $2.00 fee into your jar!  Add your loose change to your emergency fund every month). 
3 Pay yourself first (Decide on a percentage and make it a priority over that new purse you have your eye on. By saving each month first, then paying fixed expenses and lastly, budgeting the rest for variable spending, you will not be as overwhelmed, because you "have a plan.") 
4. ***Stop using credit cards (If may be old fashioned to pay with a checkbook, but it's harder to part with cash, while you're keeping track in the checkbook ledger, than to slap a plastic card down with the pay later mentality). Another, more modern day version of this practice is to keep a running log in your phone/ I-Pad for every single cent spent, or in a notebook. Tally each dollar spent from the budgeted amount. You can't overspend if you are subtracting and you will be aware of where your money is actually going. Hum, $5.00 for a drink? Forget it! I'll sip my flavored water out of the thermos I brought with me; thank you! 
5. Make it automatic (Arrange an agreement with your bank to move $10 a month into your emergency fund, while moving $20 into your long-term future home fund). 
6. Save with purpose ( Label your saved fund with a name: emergency, new apartment deposit, car repair fund, or even a date night fund).  

7. Create a budget (I use a spreadsheet program on my computer. Create "cells," or squares that re-calculate as your expenses or income changes). Your main expenses will be fixed amounts (and choose wisely your fixed expenses, make your rent affordable at your income level), food, clothing, entertainment is not fixed. Come up with a number, like $100 for groceries and entertainment for the month. Take that cash out of the bank and stick to the plan, not taping into other funds because you want to "have a drink out." Each month try to lower that amount by $10; you will find money that you never knew you had. Once you've grown accustomed to living on your budget, you'll open up more money for saving toward various goals.  
8. Stay committed. 

***More on Credit Cards, because they are the worst vandals: 
If you don't have the cash, you don't need it! 

If you don't have any money to save at the end of the month, you shouldn't be putting more onto credit cards. The top priority goal needs to be to pay them down and get rid of them so that you can start to work from a cash basis as opposed to a debt basis. Rather than using credit cards to fund living expenses that are beyond your means, or are outside of your income, cut out nonessentials and focus on eliminating your use of credit cards. If your extra cash each month is spent on making credit card payments, you'll never be able to save and get closer to your financial goals.
 (Funny and great article from a former shopaholic: 
http://forevertwentysomethings.com/2011/08/18/finance-tips-from-a-shopaholic-10-steps-to-save-on-a-recent-grads-budget/). 

And, then the biggy: Where it all starts, You must have a full-time job. That is just starters! If there is debt, it is wise to continue paying yourself first; taking on more hours or even a second job to pay down the debt.

Additional Great articles: 
Ideas and organizations to help if you are attempting to save on a shoe-string:
http://www.americasaves.org/for-savers/make-a-plan-how-to-save-money/saving-on-a-tight-budget
I found this article funny and if you read further into peoples comments, you will find great ideas (thinking outside of the box for great savings!):
 http://www.bankrate.com/finance/smart-spending/the-craziest-thing-i-did-to-save-money-2.aspx
Ideas of things to do, instead of spending money: 
http://www.figuringmoneyout.com/50-things-to-do-instead-of-spending-money/

A Quick Guide to Help jumpstart a happier, healthier, thinner you!

Here is a monthly plan to a happier, healthier, thinner you! Start living a better quality of life today. Model after choices that are known to increase happiness and it will make you happier too! This is a brief guide to help jump-start you into your new routine. Jump in on any day, pick up where ever you are when you read this `Just be sure to cover all your bases. A monthly plan to a happier, healthier and thinner you! You can start living a better life today. 

Sunday, August 21:

Fill your shopping cart using a healthy grocery list: Sunscreen, face moisturizer, a multi-vitamin, vitamin D and calcium, healthy snack foods like: low-fat cottage cheese or low-sugared yogurts (I like vanilla flavored Activia, and Dan Active), fruit like mango’s and watermelon (cut up and place in refrigerator in Tupperware once home), baby carrots or broccoli to dip into cottage cheese, cherry tomatoes, any berries like blueberries are an antioxidant, almonds & sunflower seeds. For meal items grab wholegrain products like Quinoa, wheat berries, and brown rice, get into Omega 3 by selecting fish like salmon, sea bass, orange roughy, grouper and mahi mahi (if you dislike fish, pick up an omega 3 supplement). Choose green leafy vegetables like spinach, or grab some asparagus to give yourself needed vitamins, minerals and fiber.

Monday, August 22:

Spread your calories throughout the day. Cravings aren’t always born out of hunger but if your stomach is slightly growling, it can make for a convenient excuse to indulge. If you graze lightly throughout the day on your prepared snacks, instead of heaping on the massive portions during mealtime, you’re less likely to rationalize that mid-day bag of chips.

Tuesday, August 23:

According to a recent study, Tuesday is the most stressful day of the week because most of the work is still ahead of you. For anybody who works, in or outside the home, the weight of the week's workload and to-do lists can be a heavy thought. The key to stress management is not eliminating stress, but rather, finding better ways to cope with the stress everyday life brings. Take a walk around the outside of your office, or in the morning before work. Try giving yourself a foot massage! This is one you can do while at work at your desk!

Instructions:

Take your shoes off. Take the heel of one foot and press it against the sole of the other foot. Rub the heel into the sole. This motion generates heat at a pressure point responsible for energy and vitality. Repeat with the other foot.

Wednesday, August 24:

This is where fake it until you make it comes in. Being grateful, expressing gratitude is good for our overall well-being, but until it becomes a habit, we may find that complaining is more our Go-To style. We need to work on seeing the glass half full, our brain wants to align with our actions, this will provide us support on the way to happiness. Notice little positives and say thank you to the individual responsible. Thank you, husband. Thank you, God. Thank you universe. Not only will you feel better, but other's will be watching from your example (especially our kids). If we wait until we "feel moved," we may never begin. Choosing to act grateful for what we have is a move toward happiness that everyone can do! 

Thursday, August 25:

Take Your Vitamin D
Pop vitamin D daily and you may be adding years to your life. A 2007 study of over 57,000 adults -- mostly middle-aged and elderly people in good health -- in Europe, the U.S. and the U.K. showed that those taking vitamin D (as opposed to a placebo) were 7 percent less likely to die during the span of the study. The authors don't know exactly why vitamin D seemed to increase life span, but the vitamin is known to offer many benefits, including strengthening the immune system and building bones. Without vitamin D, calcium cannot be utilized in the body. So, to prevent osteoporosis, taking a calcium supplement without vitamin D voids the calcium benefits.

It also lowers the risk of being diagnosed with diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure and heart and kidney disease. You can get vitamin D from the sun, but most people don't spend enough time outdoors -- or in sunny enough climates -- to take in an adequate amount. FDA guidelines issued in November 2010 boosted the recommended daily dose to 400 International Units per day for people over nine (people 71 years and older should take 800 mg daily), combined with a diet rich in the vitamin. Foods with loads of vitamin D include mackerel, fortified yogurt and orange juice, whole eggs and Swiss cheese. 

Friday, August 26:

Have sex!

Have sex! A Queens University study found that men who had sex 3 times a week reduce their risk of having a heart attack by half. The same likely holds true for women, though quality may be more important than quantity. The average American only has sex once a week. The goal here is to engage in two intimate encounters a week. Safe, monogamous sex helps to reduce pain and stress, and improves immunity. Sex is a natural way to feel healthier - and burn off some calories.Talk about a two-for-one deal: Having sex not only offers pleasure, but it may also extend your lifespan by eight years. You probably don't need a scientist to tell you that regular sex relieves stress, improves sleep and increases intimacy with your partner. But it also boosts immunity and makes you look better (a Scottish study showed couples with a healthy sex life may look up to seven years younger than those with a ho-hum bedroom ritual). The sum total of all those benefits may just be a longer life. British researchers found that men who had sex once a week were less likely to die in the next 10 years than men who had sex less than once a month. Meanwhile, a Duke University study showed that compared to women who were indifferent with their sex lives, women who were happy with their sex lives lived seven to eight years longer.

Saturday, August  27:

Hang Out with Friends

Spending time with friends cuts your risk of an early death in half, according to a recent study out from Brigham Young University. "A lack of social relationships was equivalent to smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day," the research team's head, Julianne Holt-Lunstad, told Reuters. The study, which pulled information from over 300,000 participants in 148 studies, found that strong social relationships have an extremely positive effect on health. The authors found that having close social relationships may be more beneficial to longevity than pneumonia vaccines and hypertension drugs. "Throughout human history, we have relied on others for survival such as protection and food, and despite modern advancements that may help with certain aspects of survival so that we can live more independently, it appears that our relationships nonetheless still impact odds of survival," said Holt-Lunstad.

Go ahead and indulge, lightly. We never fully outgrow our inner child, and parents know the cardinal rule with kids is when you say they can’t have something, they want it more. Same goes for your own cravings. The more you deny yourself sweets, the more you’ll want them. Sweets shouldn’t be completely taboo, but they should be considered the occasional reward, enjoyed in bites not boxes.

Keep it brief. So you’ve caved into that piece of cake. All is not lost. Try to limit your indulgence to a few bites, savoring the flavor and texture but avoiding the complete annihilation of the object of desire. The satisfaction of tasting your treat will be intense at first but researchers have found that pleasure decreases dramatically after the first few bites. So savor the first few bites slowly and then stop yourself before your start destroying the evidence through your stomach. 
 
Sunday, August 28:

Keep the Faith

Keep the Faith. Believing in a greater power can help you live longer, according to thousands of studies. Most recently, a small 2010 study of liver transplant patients found that patients who had faith were three times more likely to survive four years after transplantation than those without religion. Regardless of creed or churchgoing habits, high religious coping correlated with higher survival rates. A 2006 study also found that regularly attending religious services could add up to three years to life. Though experts aren't sure why, they hypothesize that having a supportive community, a guiding belief and coping mechanisms decrease stress and add purpose to life.

Monday, August 29:

Get More Sleep

This goal is the most important anti-aging secret. The benefits of a good night's rest cannot be understated. People who sleep less than 6 hours a night have an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. Sleeping for as little as 6 hours can also make you crave more sugar. 

The key point is to get closer to the ideal amount of sleep: 7.5 to 8 hours a night. It's important to sleep this much, because it's the end of the sleep cycle that certain regenerative hormones are released; this phase is crucial to brain function.

Tuesday, August 30:

Be Happy

Cutting out stress and doing things that make you smile may just add years to your life. In a 2006 study, Dr. Ruut Veenhoven, a Dutch researcher, found that in healthy people, happiness predicts longevity. In fact, he found, a person's outlook can have as much of an impact on lifespan as whether or not they smoke.

And long-running study of 180 Catholic nuns showed that those who were happy at 22 were likely to live about 10 years longer than those who had a more negative orientation to the world. So how to start feeling dandy?

According to Dan Buettner, who compiled information from 146 countries for his book Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer from the People Who've Lived the Longest, there are several things that, universally, make human beings happy and healthy: a stable community, a satisfying job, close friends, financial security and a happy home. Buettner also found that people who know and understand their purpose in life -- and who can therefore follow it -- are 20 percent happier than those who do not.

This advice goes to the heart of a key finding of happiness research: It's important to learn to be content with how our decisions turn out. My children's preschool teacher, Joyce Drolette of Bozeman, MT, sent the girls home repeating what turns out to be a powerful mantra for happiness: "You get what you get and you don't throw a fit." Barry Schwartz’s, a professor of psychology at Swarthmore College, in Pennsylvania, and author of the book The Paradox of Choice, "But if happiness is your goal, that's exactly where you need to aim "research shows that for many people, having multiple options and aspiring for the very best among them causes far more pain than gain.


Schwartz calls these people "maximizers," and we all know them: They are the ones who can't enjoy the balcony at their beach hotel because they see a better balcony around the corner. In fact, maximizers may never even get down to the shore at all. They are so consumed with making the "right" and best choices that they end up paralyzed, unable to decide if they should ask for the pool view or the beach view. For every one of them, though, there is what Schwartz calls a "satisficer": someone totally at peace with her balcony, who goes out there, sits back, and enjoys the view. She knows she chose this hotel at this rate and will relish the fact that she has a few days to escape. In a practical sense, says Schwartz, this means making a deliberate practice of being personally and publicly satisfied with your own decisions and not second-guessing yourself or comparing yourself to others. This may not be your nature, and you might not always succeed, but trying is half the battle.

If you find yourself roiling inside, take a walk, read a book, anything that will refocus your mind. Limiting your family's selection is another proven tactic for making dissatisfaction and regret less likely, says Schwartz. It can help contain that always ultimately fruitless search for the optimal experience.

Wednesday, August 31:

Welcome Aging and lose yourself in the moment
in a society that bows down to youth and beauty aging can seem like as terrifying as it is inevitable. But research suggests that a long-held positive attitude toward old age can help you experience up to 7.5 years more of it. In Ohio, 660 people age 50 or older were studied. The results? Those with positive self-perceptions of aging lived nearly eight years longer than those with negative self-perceptions. While nobody is sure exactly why, researchers believe that attitude is linked to the will to live -- and that a negative approach to old age, in which a person believes the elderly are weak and unhappy, can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. It has also been shown that unhappy people, those who rage against old age generally have a more difficult time recovering from heart attacks and strokes.

You might also regularly take time to remind your kids about the good things that happened in the past, and what might happen in the future. "Before the family goes to bed each night, we talk about what we're going to dream about," says Shannon Rebolledo, a Wichita, KS, mother of three children under 5. "Usually, it ends up being dreams about things the kids really loved during the day."

Savoring the past is particularly helpful at creating happiness, says Bryant, because it lets you milk a single event. Research has shown that during these reminiscences, the brain actually re-experiences its original sensation of pleasure. Susie Rolander, a mother of three girls under age 8 in New York City, joins her family in saying thankful prayers each night. In her own, she always includes her late mom. "The girls didn't know her, but just thinking about her this way increases my happiness because it brings her into our everyday."

"There are plenty of adults who won't look back on things that are gone forever because they fear it will make them sad," says Bryant. "But we can teach our children that we can relive moments that were precious to us and, in doing so, enjoy them again."

Have you made new habits yet? Continue into your Thursday with your new mind-set and continue for an entire month!

Kids art projects from school, what to do with them? How to display them in the home as interior design verses clutter?

Your children bring home art projects from school and they are too adorable to simply toss out with the rubbish. What can you do with those masterpieces?

My favorite thing to do with the 'most loved' art pieces is to turn them into tiles. You can google a company in your area that will turn kids works into tiles. I had the luxury of building my home, so I could incorporate my youngest's works into the kitchen tiling. However, a small section, like a blackspash, could be remolded to just hold favorite art work that you had made into tiles. Can you think of a better scene to look at while doing the dishes, or cooking? ;-)

 Some of Adler's art works:

 I just love kid's creative imagination!

This one is behind where I hang glasses. My little artist. ;-)

So, just what do you do with the little artist's work in your home?

Kid's are proud of their work. What better way to encourage them than to praise their efforts by giving their work a value equal to the other decorations in your home?

Of course you can frame it:

Or hang it in the form of a hotplate:

Or use as trivits (hotplates) at the dinner table regularly. My favorites are the ones the kids made; you can see they are well used:

These tiles, seen below, are an example of very large tiles, hung as pictures. The kids did not do these, but this is a great example of what you can do to preserve their art:

Or simply hang it "as is" when they hand it to you. ;-)My oldest daughter did this one when she was very young. I have kept it all these years. It is currently placed in a mudroom cubby:

I like to use their works to cover the backs of bookshelves (But you can do any cabinet, shelf, or backsplash to a desk, etc), like wallpaper:

Everyday, capture their wonderful talents on display situations like this one. I asked Meagan to do the menu for our last Crawfish Boil. It is so cute, we still have it up!

On the back of our laundryroom door, I painted magnetic chalkboard paint. Not only is it a good place to house messages to the kids, but to hold drawings, or messages that they feel like leaving:

For everyday projects that come home and need to be rotated; I have put artwork on clips, clipboards and magnetic boards before. I have even used diaper pens on an adorable rope line. Instead of looking like clutter, there is so much more one can do (besides the refigerator door) that actually suits your home. I love the ideas that an interior decorator came up with in this clip for this very reason:

http://gmctradesecrets.aol.com/decor/how-to-display-kids-artwork/?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl7%7Csec1_lnk1%7C68124

I hope you enjoy preserving their art and enjoying their creations as they grow into adults. ;-D

A shelf, dedicated to the kid's pottery art in my bedroom. This shelf has an ocean theme. ;-) Too adorable, and it makes me smile. If it makes you smile, isn't that the environment you want to create? Set up spots to "make your day", everyday as you pass by them. ;-D

We've all had compliments on our "homemaking skills;" however, that is not what it takes to make a great mom. The imperfect mother story:

Why an Imperfect Mother is Really the Most Perfect Kind of All

This was composed on May 4, 2011By Megan Bello; I think it is just the perfect story to post on Mother's Day for anyone feeling not so "homemaker endowed." 

In 1985 we banned my mother from making meatloaf. To be honest, I think she was relieved. I doubt she enjoyed making it any more than my father, brother, sister or I enjoyed eating it. My mom, Sheila, subscribes to the 1:2 ratio when it comes to eating bread with butter and grew up believing butterball turkeys and store-bought bundt cakes to be “homemade” dishes.

What she lacked in culinary skills, however, she more than made up for in creativity. And despite the occasional overcooked frozen vegetable mishaps, we grew to love the enthusiastic improvisation Mom brought to the table. She somehow managed to make every meal special, regardless of the bag, box or fast food restaurant from which it hailed. I still drift off into reverie over our cool taco assembly line dinners, Friday pizza nights and the Tupperware-microwave parties — aka leftovers night. Flaws and all, she put the fun in dysfunction.

Case in point: One Tuesday night a few years back, my brother — who inexplicably still likes mashed potato flakes from a cardboard box— requested his ol' favorite. Sheila obliged. As the bowl was placed upon the table, we noticed it to be a little off. (Well, even more off than one could normally expect from potatoes made from powder.) The flakes had congealed into a gummy glob. My dad quizzically plopped a pile onto his plate. Then my brother got his hands on it, literally. He dug his paws into the potatoes as if needing dough and gauging the consistency to be that of the perfect snowball-making snow, he swiftly rolled his faux-spuds into an edible (er, inedible) ball. And then he threw it at me.

I actually caught it, looked to Dad to sense the temperature in the room … and there was my athletic father ready to catch. I chucked him the monster mash; he cradled it like a football and then gazed up at his wife, smiled his big warm grin and tossed the ball of food Mom had just “slaved” over right into her hands. And true to form, all she could do was laugh (and toss a highball to my sister). Game on! When Mom gives you mashed potato flakes, make a ballgame out of it. Then promptly order up some pizza.

Sheila's cooking did gradually evolve over the years, thanks to our aunt Kath (one of the best cooks in the entire world), who took Sheila under her wing and molded her into her sous chef (of sorts). She even managed to master a few signature dishes, from tuna noodle casserole to baked ziti. By the time we were adults, Sheila had started a tradition of making our favorite meals on our birthdays. And like a fine wine, these dinners have gotten better with age. So for Mom's 50th birthday, we decided to return the favor.

Keep in mind that Sheila's original habits had settled into a permanent spot in our subconscious. To this day, thanks to olfactory sense memory, we love the smell of boiling hot dogs (a childhood staple) and when my sister and I are together making mac 'n cheese from a box or PB&J out of the jars, we ironically tilt our heads with a wink and a smile and declare, “just like Mom used to make.”
Nevertheless, we decided to set the bar high for Sheila's 50th. The menu was set: tequila-lime marinated chicken with mango salsa chutney. Wine, check. Bread, check. Chicken breast? Well, we'd bought chicken tenders rather than breasts, but they were close enough. We doused the teeny pieces of chicken in not one but two bottles of marinade for five hours. Then we made the chutney from memory, because in delusions of grandeur we were convinced we were THAT good. Two hours later, my godfather was drunk and the grandparents were pacing. Dinner was finally served! As the plate hit the table, my dad innocently asked, “What fish is this?”
The tiny chicken strips had soaked up the tequila lime sauce like their lives depended on it. The meat was dead on arrival.
“No honey, you don't want that," my Nana said as she slapped down my Pop-Pop's hand as he unwittingly reached for more of the chutney, a nauseating confusion of potent garlic and angry fruit. Break out the wine, STAT.

While we were processing the surreal realization that this dinner was inedible, my resourceful little bro snuck away from the table and nuked a bag of rice. He returned with a fork in one hand and the bag in the other, walked around the table and scooped a pile onto everyone's plate. No one spoke. We just ate the grains as if they were filet mignon. Sheila's legacy had simultaneously created a monstrosity and saved her own birthday. Rice-in-a-bag: just like Mom used to make.

Those years without the Holly Homemaker home-cooked meals actually turned out to be family-bonding dinners. I'm now a firm believer that family meals should be a joyful expression of love, no matter what's on the table. They're opportunities to reconnect, appreciate everyone's personalities and simply remember why we like being together. In our home, we never had to endure the cold and stoic dining room propriety or learn to appreciate sushi at an age when it's probably not all that good for a kid. Don't get me wrong, we learned our manners and could dine with adults at a fancy restaurant if the occasion called for it, but we were partial to down-home fun.

I wouldn't trade our crazy meals for the world, as they gave way to unplanned and unforgettable splendor. We grew up with a role model who didn't take herself too seriously, always did her best but had the wits to laugh at her goof-ups and celebrate her imperfections. It's a relief to be able to laugh at yourself and make the most of it. We now take pride in turning our faux pas into funny anecdotes that always make for a great story.

Sheila may have been sparse on culinary expertise, but her spunk made up for it. Like many parents, she found other ways to express her love. She took us to museums and nature centers on weekends, built science projects with us, gave us the freedom to express ourselves when we picked out our own outfits, let us get dirty in the backyard on our exploration missions and shared all of her super-cool vintage clothes that she'd saved for us in our special "dress up box."

At a time when competitive parenting is at an all-time high, interviewing for pre-school, the challenges of fitting into a new school system or the inevitable stink eye shot between the stay-at-home moms and the working ones, how do the Sheilas of the world measure up? At the end of the day, what really matters? How do you compete with the mothers who diligently keep their families perfectly coiffed, poised and fed five-course meals on good china every night?

I'm no expert, but I'd say as long as your kids are smiling, laughing and learning about life and how to make the most of any situation, it really doesn't matter what your pot roast looks like or if Johnnie went to school with two different shoes on. What it boils down to is love and cherishing the time, however much you have, together.

To this day, tidy packages scare me. I prefer the creative-looking family unit, where it's obvious love abides, but sometimes there's just not enough time in the day to brush hair or turn on the oven. Mistakes are often blessings in disguise and a great opportunity to see imperfect people perfectly. After all, isn't that what love is?

My perfectly imperfect mom wrote the recipe on family bonding with her contagious laughter, undeniable sense of humor and innate way of seeing the (wine) glass half full, and she's passed it on to her kin. I endeavor to pass it on to my kids one day. It's the gift that keeps on giving and feeds more than our bellies, but also our spirits and our souls.