Greatest Advice?

My mom always has the best advice:
-It is ok to agree to disagree.
     (i.e. going to bed mad is sometimes a good thing. Gives you a chance to calm down and think about it.)
-Kill them with Kindness.
-Never wear high heals on a soggy lawn.
(. . .just to name a few.)

I have a friend on FB who asked
what is the best advice anyone has given you? 
What is your favorite advice about life? Love? etc. 

For me, I think the whole "have an attitude of gratitude" plays a huge role in my life. I also regularly think of D&C 122- through trials, persecution, etc, "and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee.... these things will give thee experience and will be for thy good." I know that is extreme, but for me it helps me remember that regardless of what it is I can get through it and there is something I can learn from it. I am strong. You are strong. I've heard it said that God allows trials that are difficult but that ultimately we can overcome. I believe this. Yes, I kick and scream my way through some things in life, but I do try to remember what the point of all this is. You know? I am also a weirdo and am always saying things (in my head) like, "I bet my ancestors are calling me a whiney baby"- "They (the pioneers) are probably trying to smack me upside the head." I mean, I am lucky. I have a home, running water, toilets, washers of dishes and clothes, cell phones, email, can buy a bag of chicken breasts at Costco (I am picky when it comes to meat on the bone), etc. I might be low on funds, have high stress, or what-have-you, but in all reality I have it pretty good, most of us do, when you think about it. Even at our worst there are others who might have it worse. There is usually someone out there with a harder situation than your own. Can you even imagine being a pioneer and coming to the Salt Lake valley and seeing this...

(image by William Henry Jackson)

Then you hear, "This is the right place." I would have been thinking, "I am tired. Where is the hotel? This is it?"

Thinking back on history like this makes me grateful for those who were strong enough to trek and settle here. This is also where I remind myself to be grateful that didn't have to wake up this morning with my hair frozen to the ground (read the 8th paragraph down, "We started..."). 

So what are your great pieces of advice? What inspires you?

What you can do with an afternoon and the neighbors' old bricks...

Not bad for a budget of $0. Now I just need to reseed around it. 

The neighbors were getting rid of these bricks and I had a sizable bald spot near the garden. Now I can sit on a chair on my miniature patio while the kids play. Or they can sit and watch me weed after I banish them from the garden for not listening and walking on the plants. 

(I know it is not squared off... there is a beam in the dirt there to mark where the garden is.... maybe when I finally get around to putting in railroad ties I can move it back.)

I love this

"Fairy tales are more than true — not because they tell us dragons exist, but because they tell us dragons can be beaten." - G.K. Chesterton


(Thanks to Matt for tweeting this.)

To Coupon or Not To Coupon?

I like good deals, coupons, and freebies.
I am not a coupon clipper. I print them sometimes, but I don't get the paper since they don't offer the deal I had a few years back (I only paid $16 for a YEAR of Sundays). I find that many offered coupons are items I don't normally buy, so it usually isn't something I really want/need. My MIL is amazing with coupons. If I did coupons like her it might be worth it to get the paper. It is nice that you can print so many coupons now-a-days.

For me I like a consistent low price and I stick with it, but keep an eye out for a good deal. I glance through the ads, mostly looking for pull-ups for cheap, produce deals, or a great sale on meats or poultry. I buy many of my staples at Costco: Milk, cheese, bread, meat. I shop my local stores for canned goods, etc. I love a good case lot sale. I subscribe to the diaper newsletters only for the coupons.

Here are a few of the sites I follow on google reader: Freebies4Mom and Hip2Save.
I would love to hear your tips, favorite websites, etc for how you get the most food for your dollar.

OK but I don't like it.

For those of you who have already seen it, I apologize. Here are the pictures of my hair. 

It was just a little trim. It used to be almost shoulder length.