I got this desk for free! I know, it doesn’t look like anything too special just yet — but it was EXACTLY what I was looking for, and I can already picture where this desk will fit in our new farmhouse… Plus, I never turn down free wooden furniture! Obviously, the previous owner didn’t know …
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Farmhouse Inspiration
Earlier this week, I blogged about our dream house — and how excited we are to be moving there in just a few short weeks!! Well, apparently many of you found our news equally exciting! Since Monday, I’ve received TONS of positive feedback via facebook, twitter, blog comments, and even a bunch of emails from people I …
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Frugal Shopping Tip
I LOVE finding great deals and getting things for free — it’s a sickness! I follow a handful of coupon blogs, I cut my own coupons, and I shop the sales; all in an effort to reduce our grocerry bill and get a lot more for a lot less. And you know what — it works! …
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Clutter-Free Gifts for Kids
Guest post from Melanie of Unique Holiday Gift Ideas. Its hard enough for my children to keep their things neat all year long but when Christmas comes along, the pile of new things to find a place for can be overwhelming to say the least! For this reason, I greatly appreciate friends and relatives who choose …
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Cinnamon Bread
It’s officially November, which means Thanksgiving, Christmas, and a bunch of other holiday festivities are just a few weeks away! It also means that you’ll probably end up baking…a lot! I love baking, but I don’t always have the time I need; so instead, I make double {or even triple} batches of our favorite foods. …
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We’re Moving to Our Dream House!
Do you have a vision of THAT house you’ve always dreamed of living in? I do! — It’s a big, old farmhouse like this one. Do you have the image of your dream house so ingrained in your brain that you can’t get it out even if you try — really hard? I know the feeling. …
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T-shirt Rags
The other day, in the middle of one of my speed-cleaning sessions, I pulled a rag from our “rag basket” and realized we could probably use a few new ones. We had lots of “holey” rags, stained rags, dirty and grimy rags — it wan’t pretty! I guess I just figure, they are rags…and I should use …
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Old Fashion Chicken Pot Pie
Chicken Pot Pie is one of my all-time favorite comfort foods {kind of like chicken soup I suppose} and if you’ve never eaten pot pie made from scratch, you are really missing out! REALLY. This is one of those meals that doesn’t require any side dishes {hallelujah}. The meat, potatoes, and veggies are all there, inside …
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Tell Your Time e-Book
I’m a time-management “junkie” — but you already knew that didn’t you? Well, you do now! I’m obsessed with making lists, planning out my days, and finding short-cuts to increase my productivity. Doing these things helps me accomplish so much more and even allots me a little time to do what I love {imaging that!} How About …
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My Ideas Book
For those of you who don’t know me, my dream house is a big, old farmhouse just waiting for me to move in and completely renovate it from the inside out. {I know, I’m crazy!} And even though I don’t live in my dream house just yet, I’ve been collecting ideas for years already…many, MANY years! I’ve been …
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Cream Cheese Frosted Banana Cake
Photo Credit: Sugar Cooking I always keep a few containers of over-ripe bananas in the freezer; I store them {peeled} in groups of 4 or 5, since that’s what many recipes call for. Then when it’s time to make my cherished Frosted Banana Bars, all I have to do it defrost one container. No more …
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The Season for Giving — 64 days and counting
I’ve been thinking a lot about clutter free gifts {again!} No, I’m not a scrooge and I don’t hate gifts — but I do hate all the needless clutter and overspending that seems to accompany every holiday season. Last year, Dave and I gave {and received} plenty of great gifts, but one thing we decided to give everyone …
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Finding Great Coupons — The Simple Way
DISCLAIMER — If you have vast amounts of extra time and money, you probably don’t need to read this post! I LOVE saving money and finding great deals — I think it’s in my blood! However, I also value my time and try to only spend time on things that are important to me and my family. …
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Kitchen Clutter & Empty Cabinets
I had so much fun clearing out my food storage container clutter! I started with this cluttered mess… and ended with this! It’s still not perfect, but all the containers have lids, there are no more gross stains, and I have room for my new Stack Mates! But I didn’t stop there! I literally went through every …
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Simple Ways to Prepare Your Home for Fall
It’s that time of year again… time to start preparing my home and garden for cold West Michigan winter. This is not necessarily something I look forward to — but it saves me lots of time the following spring when I want to get outside and start planting flowers. The whole process really isn’t THAT bad, …
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Email Clutter {Revisited}
We’re talking about email clutter — again! Two weeks ago I mentioned how I’m clearing some of my email clutter in an effort to check my email less. Since then, I’ve received even more questions about email clutter — specifically SPAM and e-newsletter subscriptions. Unfortunately, I don’t have a magic wand that I can wave to make it …
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Favorite Fall Foods
I know I’m bias, but I am willing to bet that West Michigan is one of the prettiest places to live in the fall. The colors are absolutely beautiful right now…and the sun just continues to shine! It’s still warm enough to open the windows for a few hours in the afternoon {which is not …
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Creating a Home Inventory — Protect Your Assets
Things have been pretty crazy around the Dekker house lately. To make a VERY long story very short — we’re moving! I’ll share more about the old, OLD farmhouse we’re buying later! I’ve never really moved before…this is totally new territory for me. I lived in the same house my entire life. Sure, I “shuffled” a few …
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