- $700

Actually it is probably a whole lot more than that, electric bill $200, packaging for 400 lbs of cow $272, truck payment and groceries would be nice. Good news is we sold the four wheeler, the money wasn't supposed to be used as income but work is super slow right now. Any money we did have saved wasn't yet a months income. So the 4 wheeler will go and maybe we will have $500 to put into our emergency fund. We are following Dave Ramsey's advice, baby step #1 $1000. I am waiting for a loaf of bread to finish baking so the kids will have something to put their tuna fish in between. I don't care for tuna fish without celery but oh well. I think I will sneak a little apple and onion in there and top it with some spinach. I made granola bars today but there weren't a big hit. They will still go in their lunches because if they are hungry they will eat it. I take pride in stretching the staples and scrounging for a few bucks for eggs, butter and milk. Today my husband and I decided we could take or leave wine and beer but not coffee, today was the first time in 13 years that he came back from the store with Folgers- we have always ground our own.

May 2010

Well it is almost summer here in Montana, I am ready for the flowers to flourish and the garden to grow. It has been a busy year. I didn't quite document my life of rice and beans nor the amount of bread I baked but I recall it all because it is still the norm. We are dependent on God's providence, either there is work for my husband or there is not. When there is we need to be frugal for the months that there is not. This year God was good, we purchased a 1/4th of a cow in September and made it last until now. I carried and delivered a happy baby boy into the world! I was diligent about packing lunches and curbing my "thrift store junkie" habit. Actually I have purged this house over and over. We have sold our hot tub, our shed, a gas stove, masonry rock, and other garage sale items. We have tried to sell our camper and my husband's utility trailer. "Simplicity is an exact medium between too little and too much." (Sir Joshua Reynolds). Last summer we increased our garden size and I experimented with lasagna gardening. We have cut back and evaluate our budget monthly, but all this may not be enough to keep our home.

Sub Prime served Rare

Here's a title with no text, I like coming up with titles, titles to books and chapters. All the thoughts are all jumbled up in my mind and I like to just sum them up and hope someone gets what I mean. So this title, well it's about the houses, it's about yours but it's really all about mine. Subprime served rare, like a steak? no like a punch, a wound, a skid, a sore...RAW!