I have fond childhood memories of visiting the library. We lived just 4 blocks from our local library, so at a fairly young age I was permitted to walk or ride my bicycle to the library. I spent countless hours there. Looking back, I wonder if the librarians ever thought I was an orphan. During those early years, the children’s department offered a frequent variety of children’s programming. I do have memories of some of those programs but one of my favorite recollections is the day I found the huge card catalog in the adult section of the library. A librarian noticed me opening and closing the drawers, viewing the endless number of cards contained within. She asked, “Would you like to know what these are for?” With an affirmative nod of the head form me, she took the time to explain how books are cataloged and notated on the cards, as wells as how to use the information on the cards to locate the books on the shelves.

Today, card catalogs are a thing of the past. Most libraries have all information cataloged on computers. I am ever so grateful for this service, but the lack of the card catalog has also left our children without a meaning behind searching for information and how to perform a search in the event that the somputer system might be down during a visit. In an effort to teach my children the who, what, where, when, why, and how of a library system I found it sheer drudgery. Those nostalgic memories had me feeling inadequate, to say the least. My children were easily irritated by library lessons. So, after a few unsuccessful weeks, I developed a FUN method of teaching library skills.

I made each of my children a detective; specifically a library detective. This got their interests piqued right from the  start. I then explained that many cases require deep investigation and if they were up to the task, they would be given secret assignments. The word secret produced a glitter in their eyes, but their body language of unsurety remained. At this point, we had already unsuccessfully discussed the Dewey Decimal system. However, they had enough information to begin teaching themselves. Each was handed a secret assignment message written on it. The smiles on their faces told me they were ready for the challenge. On the message was written a little blurb such as, “You are working on a case that requires information about (topic). Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to use the following clues to uncover a book that will give us the needed information to crack the case.” This is followed by a few clues, such as location in the library, author, call number, or topic. They were eager to complete their assignments (each child had three) and now look forward to their missions on library day. They are learning where to find information about a wide variety of topics, the computer, what questions to ask a librarian, and discovering all types of interesting books on new topics in a way that didn’t seem like lessons, but much more like having an adventure.

Now, each week I pick three areas I would like to have the children learn; i.e. the layout of the library, a certain section of the Dewey Decimal system, books that are pertinent to topics we are schooling about, etc. Then I write a secret mission message offering clues based on my three main objectives for each of the children. They are given only one mission at a time. If they get confused, they either come to me, or seek out a librarian for help. When they complete a mission, they turn in that message for another, until all three missions are complete. Time from beginning to end of the “game” varies depending on what they are asked to find, if it is a new concept or one that have previously worked with, and how many books there are on a given subject. However, we average approximately 30 minutes per Library Detective session. This allows them to have FUN with the game, but also have plenty of time to explore the library on their own.

My memory of the librarian who took the time to notice a young child and teach her a lifelong skill is vibrant as ever. Did she ever realize the impact she had on my life? I am uncertain. I know she was employed there through my senior year of high school, as I often sought her out over the years, to assist me in research. Perhaps watching me grow up, she knew little more than the fact that I could navigate a library. However, her impact was so much deeper, as I learned how to research topics and seek out pertinent people to interview for different projects, as well as other critical thinking skills.  Part of our homeschooling goal is to teach our children to be good problem solvers. Learning library skills is an essential element to achieving this goal, but it can also be great FUN!

Hidee Ho Everyone! One or two more glitches fixed (thanks for taking the time to tell me) and we are back on our Journey to Simplicity!

In an effort to continue to make Journey to Simplicity serve you in ways that best meet your needs, I am wondering you would take a moment to answer a few questions. Your answers will help us to improve our website, information, and Fre-Ezine to serve you in the most effective way. There are only 8 questions. Your opinions are of utmost importance! A gracious thanks for taking some of your precious time to help us. The link to the survey is located on the top of the right sidebar. Just look to the right…easy, eh?

Be on the lookout in the next couple of days for a FUN method to teach your children about using the library, overcoming de-cluttering, and a recipe that will knock your socks off!  

Kindest thanks for your patience throughout our upgrading.

~L

I am hoping that the main components that have been worked on are all ironed out. I believe the site visibility will be clear regardless of web browser. The site should work with all web browsers. Please, if you have a problem viewing the site or certain links do not work, email me at Leslie@leslievaleska.com and include what is not working properly and what web browser you are using. This would help a lot! Here’s working more smoothly for everyone!

~L

We are working behind the scenes (technical issues) here at Journey to Simplicity. We will up and running in full mode shortly. Thank you for your patience.

Got snow? So many of my friends have been sending me pictures and emails about all the blizzard like conditions they have been experiencing. You too? Well, my southern friends may not be experiencing snow, but I can tell you that the Jack Frost has been here, and his friend Winter Wind, seem to have decided to become a snowbirds this year.  Brrrr! Its cold for us anemic thing blooded folk! Ok, so when the weather is cold we all love to enjoy warm snuggly activities like sitting in front of a fire reading, sipping hot cocoa, baking, etc. These are all fun, but being indoors during these cold spells has another advantage; it’s the perfect time to organize and simplify the home! Here are some tips on how you can re-organize areas of your home at a low cost!

• Organize earrings and pins by using foam, screening, or a small granny square of yarn. The earrings and pins will go right through any of these and keep your drawer or jewelry armoire organized!
• Use a shelf and hide storage underneath. If you put up a shelf on a wall, you can easily use Velcro and some scrap fabric to match the décor of the room and make a skirt that is attached to the rim of the shelf to hide whatever you need to store beneath it. This is an exceptional idea for stacking boxes of toys, games, or other items that aren’t in pretty storage containers.
• Have a wooden CD tower taking up precious wall and floor space in a room? Turn it sideways and mount it as a wall shelf. You may need to cut off the bottom “feet” of the shelf, but this can make an awesome impact on the wall. You can still store your CD’s (or DVDs) but you gain extra space on top of the unit. In addition you just freed up some floor space. This will make a room look less cluttered and provide more storage than its traditional use.
• Organize your cleaning supplies under the sink. Get rid of the junk and almost empty bottles. Give a good scrub down to the area, and then place a plastic dishpan under the sink. Place your remaining cleaning products in the dishpan. (A good rule of thumb is if you have more cleaning products than fits in a dishpan, you have too many.) Now, whenever you need to clean the area out, simply pull out the dishpan, wipe down the area, and replace the dishpan. Simple, easy, frugal organization!
• Use an old large coffee can, jar, or box and keep it in a central location. You can decorate it anyway you’d like. Now every time you see something out and about that doesn’t have a home, put in the container and replace the lid. Once the container is full (trust me this doesn’t take long) go through it. If you can find a home for an item, put it there. If you can’t get rid of it! Chances are, if you haven’t had to dig for it and don’t have a home for it, you don’t need it. I am always surprised at how many items I place in that can and think, I am going to find a home for that, and never do. GONE!

Get creative! You can do almost each of these frugal organizing ideas in less than 30 minutes. Gives you a little something to do while you are snowed in, and your home will be simplified and organized.

These are my thoughts.

Yes, we all know that eating out is costly. They give you straws with your drinks because they want you to become comfortable with the sucking (of your money) when the bill comes. But in all seriousness, there are ways you can treat your family to eating out without breaking the bank. Here’s a few helpful ideas to keep the fun in dinning out, while cutting back on your expenses.

• Consider dinning at lunch time. The costs are less, which keeps your wallet full. The portions are less, which keeps your waistline trim. The experience is just as good, which keeps it feeling like a real treat. Remember, eating out should be a special occasion. Do it only once or twice per month and you will notice a big savings, your kids will start looking forward to those events without whining in between visits, and you will have something to look forward to.
• Instead of eating a meal, how about going out for dessert? Desserts can be expensive (avg $5 each). But the nice thing about desserts is that you can get one or two for your family and share. Again, this makes it special, a family event, and keeps your money in your wallet.

• Errands taking longer than expected? There are times when we don’t pack food because we think we are going to be out for a short period of time. A few forgotten items and a call from the hubby to ask me to stop elsewhere and what would have been 2 hours turns into 5. At the 2 ½ hour mark my kids grumble for food. Take a trip to your local grocery. Pick up a box of crackers, a bit of fruit, or some cheese. This will hold those grumbly bellies over and costs a LOT less than a restaurant tab. If you must eat out, only purchase one dollar menu item per person.
• The average American family spends about $30 per meal, not including a tip, each time they dine out. If you eat out once per week that equals $140+ per month. How about not taking everyone out at the same time? One day have Dad take a child out for lunch, dessert, or a neat snack. Next week Mom takes another child. If you watch for specials and places where kids eat free with an adult meal, you can get away with a very small cost, $6 a visit, not including tip. If an adult and child ate one meal out per week that expense could be as low as $24+ dollars per month!

• We all have those times when we visit a restaurant as a family, even the most frugal of us. But you can cut a good portion of your bill by having everyone order water as their beverage. For a family of four, this will save about $6 off your bill. Six dollars less on the bill saves as much as an additional $1.20 off the tip. That’s a $7.20 savings!
• When the day has gotten away from you, you forgot to thaw out that chicken, or chaos just came in and parked it’s butt in your life, uninvited, we all have a temptation to want to go out for dinner! It’s not just the ease of having someone else cook the meal that appeals to us. There is the clean up factor. No one has to do dishes, wipe the table, etc. One friend told me she saves so much time, because she doesn’t have to set, clear, and clean the table. I asked her how long it takes them to drive to and from a restaurant and she laughed; same amount of time. As an alternative, if you are going to drive to a restaurant, choose the grocery and pick up a pre-cooked rotisserie or other pre cooked meat and make 2 sides at home. It takes little to no time to steam some frozen veggies and cook a bag of instant rice. Quick, easy, little clean up, and a LOT less money.

A few months ago I was talking with my friend Kathy about my desire to participate in a bookclub. But how could I fit that into my life? I have been working on pulling back for simplicity’s sake, not adding on to my life schedule. Then there was the fact that it would take me away from my family. There was the drive to the book club venue, the drive home, the time for the bookclub, the extra time for chatting, and the cost of drinks and/or food and gas. I didn’t want to commit to something I knew I might not be able to participate in regularly or might need to quit. After a lot of prayer, look what God did———>

First of All

• We hope you and yours enjoyed the recent holiday season! It is so great to connect with you again!

Thank YOU!

• For your responses to our survey. They were instrumental in helping us pray for God’s will to serve your specific needs.

THE REVEAL—So What Exactly Is Happening at the Girl’s Gathering Place in 2010?

• Drum roll please!

• A TALKING BOOK CLUB!

What Book Are We Going to Read?

• Ready for a makeover—a character makeover? That’s what our book, Character Makeover, written by Katie Brazelton and Shelly Leith is all about.
• Together we will explore 8 character qualities: humility, confidence, courage, self-control, patience, contentment, generosity, and perseverance.

• We will discover how to join God in this collaborative effect of our character makeover journey…our goal is to become more and more Christlike!

• Want to buy a copy on-line? Click the link of your choice in the side-bar of the blog

Want to Get a F.R.E.E. copy of Character Makeover?

• We are giving away TWO F.R.E.E. COPIES OF CHARACTER MAKEOVER

• Enter your name in the draw by filling out the TALKING BOOK CLUB form at the top of this blog BEFORE MIDNIGHT ON MONDAY JANUARY 25.

• Winner will be announced on Tuesday January 26!

When is the Talking Book Club?

• Each Monday for 8 weeks, beginning February 1, a new 30 minute podcast will be available over at the Girl’s Gathering Place Talk Shoe page. Listen in as Leslie and Kathy talk about the current week’s chapter and share what God is doing in their personal character makeover journey.

• Each day, Monday to Friday, we ( Leslie and Kathy) will be posting on our blog about our own character makeover stories as well as things we are learning from the book.

• On the 9th week, we will be doing our Talk Shoe call LIVE! We are inviting you to not only join us, but tell us some of your character makeover stories—a second big reveal of how God been changing your life. We can’t wait to hear them!

How Will It Work?

• We fit into your unique schedule! No more travelling to a specific location at a specific time to participate in a book club!

• Just download the audios from our page at Talk Shoe directly onto your mp3 player.

• Do you use iTunes? One click on the iTunes button will ensure that all Talking Book Club podcasts automatically update automatically and download every time you open your iTunes.

• Start listening today. Our Talking Book Club introduction podcast is over at Talk Shoe ready for you to listen to right now!

What Does It Cost?

• Besides the cost of your own book, it’s absolutely F.R.E.E.

• Just a reminder: you’ll find links to purchase Character Makeover on-line are on the side-bar of the blog.

 

So, that’s what’s happening at the Girl’s Gathering Place!

 

Can you tell we are excited? Be sure to

 

 

 

fill out the form before midnight on Monday January 25th for a chance to win your own copy of Character Makeover.

 

I can’t wait to see you at the Talking Book Club!

Life as You Know It

With the holidays behind us, decorations packed away, and 2010 ahead of us it is time for “normal” life, right? Ok, you caught me. I have said this not so long ago. But now is the time when many are just getting to the reality of life as you know it. Sometimes you return to your normal schedule and think that it feels good to slow down. Yet others slow down during the Christmas season causing the return to standard life schedules to be a choking hazard. That’s what makes this a great time of year to pull out your planner and re-prioritize and plan.

You may have a New Year’s resolution, a theme, a lifelong goal, or some projects to accomplish. Perhaps you just want to reduce your driving time. Is there something new that is going to be added to your schedule? Take time this week to look over the next three months. You want a simple life. That requires working towards it. Pairing back, prioritizing, and planning. What’s got you buggered, stressed, or overscheduled?

List all of your activities in order of priority. Cut some off of the bottom of that list! Do it! No really! I am in prayer right now about cutting out a stressful task. Not easy. Right? Well, not exactly. See when something isn’t easy it is typically because we are self focused. OH NO! Not me! I always put others first. I rarely ever think of myself. I never buy clothes, shoes, or get my hair done. I don’t belong to any clubs. My family is my focus. Ooops! I just outted myself.

I can’t be putting my family is a top priority when I am not scheduling time to take care of me. I am not saying that you have to go out and spend money on clothes, movies, music, restaurants, classes, clubs, or anything. Instead what I am suggesting is scheduling 30 minutes to focus on your own needs. Have you been working through and issue with God and need a little more time with it? Do you feel refreshed after writing a letter to a friend? You may be like me and just like to read in complete silence. Just a small amount of time each week really helps me accomplish my schedule. If I don’t write in my planner, though, it doesn’t happen. Life takes over. So schedule some mom time for the next few weeks and see the difference for yourself.

Striving for a simple life is a wonderful thing. So let’s look at one more largely overlooked scheduling issue. As mom’s we do tend to put our children and their activities as a major component in our lives. Take a moment to reflect on whether the activities are needed. Would fewer activities have more of an impact? Maybe. We have to separate our emotions from the decision and look at the facts. Participating in a lot of activities and being on the go regularly sets a life pattern. One question that truly helps me is, “Why do I want my children to participate in this activity?” Once you have the reasoning behind it you may find that you are succumbing to outside pressures instead of God’s will for you and the life of your family. God sent me a lightning jolt the last time I asked myself this question. The answer was something I never suspected or anticipated.

This weekend spend some time in prayer and reflection as you look upon your calendar over the next few months. Remember you are simplifying. So if something is on the horizon that will be time consuming for a bit, plan for that now. Life planning with God is the surest way to a simple life.

I often think of little “everyday” ways for me to show my appreciation to my husband. I take into consideration what I have, what I want to do, as well as what would truly benefit him. My husband goes all out to be the head of our family, a fantastic husband, an outstanding father, and a dedicated employee. If you have a husband who loves beef, steak is a nice way to offer him a treat as a little token of your appreciation. Steak is expensive. Here on the south west coast of Florida, top sirloin steaks cost around $9 per pound. It would be an understatement to say that that is outside of our budget. One way to accomplish a treat such as this is to spend less. A good sale here will have these same steaks offered at $6 per pound. Not bad, but we can do better!

Consider purchasing a roast and having the butcher slice the roast into 1 inch to 2 inch thick slices. If I ask the butcher to do this, he typically will not take a roast from the case; he goes to the back and cuts it fresh. Additionally, the steak cuts are much larger than a roast. When I trim the fat at home, I can get 2 steaks from one that the butcher has cut. Roasts are typically less expensive and at this time of year they are deeply discounted. Lately roasts have been priced on sale at $2 per pound. When a sale is offered I purchase about 10 – 15 roast slices. The meat is not as tender as a steak so you need to take that into consideration when you prepare the steaks. They are easily tenderized. When you get home, trim fat from each steak, wrap individually, and place in freezer bags. Then freeze. Amazingly, you are getting fresher cuts of meat for a loss leader price!

This is a great way you can treat your husband and family and stay within your budget. Simply frugal!

Here it is January 4^th and life is getting back to normalcy. The tree and decorations are packed away for Christmas 2010. You may look around and begin to plan how you will organize your home and keep it that way. There are likely new things in your home that need a place to live. Don’t become overwhelmed; be encouraged.

This is the perfect time to organize your children’s toys. A simple fact is that it is easier to get your children to weed through toys now than before Christmas. What? There are more toys in your home than before and the same amount of space so it may seem a greater challenge, but it isn’t. Children are more likely to part with older toys and games at this time than any other throughout the year because they are able to physically see what they now have. Having a visual of the total toys in their possession can offer them less of an emotional tie to toys of the past.

Gather your children and tell them it is time to find a home for each and every gift they received. Everything must have a place. Give them a designated place or box to put older toys that no longer have a home. Toys with pieces may need a container. Suggest that they determine if there is a toy(s) that is presently stored in a container that they may consider giving to someone else so that they can use the container to hold a new toy and its components.

Once everything has a place you are left with a pile or box of kid stuff. Ask your children if where they would like to donate the toys. Some ideas, other than Goodwill, are children’s centers, hospitals, doctor’s offices, libraries, and churches. Do they know a child who really enjoys one of the toys they are giving away? Wrap it up and leave it on the door step as an after Christmas Secret Santa gift. Not only will your home be more manageable, but your children will learn the importance of the purging and giving processes. Everyone wins with this idea!

These are my thoughts.