My kids' elementary school is currently having a food drive, to help stock our local food pantry. As I was gathering items from my pantry this morning, for my kids to take to school, I was reminded of an article I read last year that shaped the way I view food drives. Last year I came across this article from Lynn at Lynn's Kitchen Adventures and it really had an impact on how I choose what foods to donate to food drives. I thought with Thanksgiving right around the corner, this would be a good time to share this article with you all. I will admit to being one of those people that used to quickly grab a few items from my pantry, with little thought as to who would be receiving the … [Read more...]

It's Off To Work I Go... I am happy to announce that I begin working full-time tomorrow. (Yay!) While I love being a stay-at-home mommy, I feel like it's time for a change. My children are in school all day and I have been blessed with a wonderful job opportunity that I would be silly not to accept. What This Means For Saving Stace When I started this blog, my goal was to write about what I am passionate about - raising three fabulous (but slightly crazy ;)) kids, my journey in healthy eating and wellness and saving money along the way. I will continue to write about my experiences and I would love for you all to join me in my adventures! I know that many of you utilize my weekly … [Read more...]

The first time I ever visited Kansas (in fall of 2000), my husband introduced me to Polk's Farm Market. If you're not familiar with Polk's, it's a little produce market in Medora. It's open from August through December and is owned by a couple named Earl & Pam, who are always friendly and helpful. Polk's sells fresh fruits & vegetables, fresh apple cider, pumpkins, nuts and candies. I had never experienced real, freshly made apple cider until I visited Polk's. What can I say? I led a sheltered life. ;) This stuff is amazing! (They do offer samples of the cider, so be sure to ask!) Anyway, I fell in love with this little place. The cider is wonderful and there is always an … [Read more...]

Last week was Homecoming week. If you know me or my husband at all, you know that we are not sports fans. Sure, we like to watch our kids play soccer, but that's pretty much the extent of our enthusiasm for sports. So, when I found out a few weeks ago that Little D's name had been drawn to be ball carrier this year, I will admit that I was a little torn at first. My thought process went something like this: Oh, that's neat. Little D will be excited. Wait, that means we have to go to a football game. I don't know anything about football. Well, Little D likes football. :P Anyway, he ended up participating and he loved every minute of it. Getting to be in the spotlight (he's quite the … [Read more...]

This photo was obviously taken at the beginning of summer, when everything had color! Where we live, we have one week left until school starts. Yay! I think we're prepared. Backpacks are filled with school supplies. School wardrobes have been replenished (with the exception of shoes...that's next on my list). We are steadily working on completing our 2012 Summer To-Do List. I'm really excited about school starting, as it's good for both the kids and I to get back to a regular routine. Plus, this year will bring a lot of new extracurricular activities for my kiddos. I'm looking forward to seeing them branch out and try new things. I am one of those people that embraces change. … [Read more...]