An Excuse to Spend?

Couldn't resist....

According to the Mayans, this means we can forget about financial fasting and just go out and SPEND and rack up credit cards, right?

They will throw their money in the streets, tossing it out like worthless trash.  Their silver and gold won't save them on that day of the Lord's anger.  It will neither satisfy nor feed them, for their greed can only trip them up......Therefore I will make all their wealth disgusting to them. 
Ezekiel 7:19-20

Other DIY Gifts

In the search for our DIY inspiration, I came across some other ideas.....maybe we'll implement these throughout the year for birthdays, Mother's Day, and other occasions too!

Four different kinds of hot chocolate in a jar.....from Sunset

Classic Cocoa

Mexican Cocoa

Mocha Cocoa

Peppermint Cocoa

Cookies in a jar from Make It Do

Cookies For Santa

This is a great DIY gift from Style Me Pretty and I'm totally doing this next year!  Just have to plan ahead about three months to get it started in September.

Homemade Vanilla

I love this way cool idea from The Gunny Sack .....Pampering in a Jar, Energy in a Jar, Refreshment in a Jar.  Click on the link and scroll to the bottom for even more "Everything in a Jar" ideas!

 

 

And a fun little pampering idea from Deliciously Organized

 

Summer Sugar Scrub

 



Do It Yourself Christmas Gifts

Our money saving plan for Christmas this year involved creating DIY gifts--so I did some web-research and came up with a great family-friendly idea.  The kids and I made "Chocolate Christmas Gifts" and they plan to give them to their teachers, friends, and family too!  I feared DIY gifts would be fun but not necessarily cheaper in the long run.  So my cost-comparison standard was a hot chocolate pre-made gift package in the Walmart aisle for $10.  If I could make them at home for less than that, then we would in fact be saving.  All ingredients purchased (with a few I already had in stock at home) was a total of about $28.  Divided into 8 gifts, that totals about $3.50 per gift!  And they're not only yummy, but super cute too!  (Yes--we tested out the yummy part....)

Hot Cocoa Mix

Chocolate-Nutella Spoons

Chocolate Marshmallow Sticks

Chocolate Candy Canes

all in a cute Christmas mug package