Feb
2014

Easy Last Minute Frugal Valentine’s Day Gifts

categories: free printables, frugal, holiday

easylastminutevalentinesgifts

Do you have a Valentine’s Day gift for your sweetie yet?

Nope, me either.

Our gift budget is tight right now and I am the queen of procrastinators.  There are a million things I’d love to buy for Jed, but unfortunately they all cost money.  The Cirque du Soleil tickets I’d really love to get him are WAY over our budget.  He doesn’t really care about Valentine’s Day, but I want him to feel loved.  I’ve rounded up a few fun ideas for last minute Valentine’s Day gifts from blogger friends to share with you with permission from the creators.  Feel free to pin this post for the round up but always pin individual projects from their blog of origin through the links below.  I hope your Valentine’s Day is filled with love.  Check out my frugal date night ideas here for a little more V-day inspiration.

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Feb
2014

Frugal Friday: Ten Frugal Date Night Ideas {Perfect for Valentine’s Day or Any Day}

categories: frugal, marriage

frugaldatenightideas

With two small children galavanting around our house, date nights are hard to come by.  I love dinner and a movie, but sometimes you want a little something different even if you don’t have wiggle room in the budget.  Today I’m sharing ten frugal ideas for your next date night (or day) that are cheap or free after polling my girlfriends to get some fresh ideas for our own marriage.  These dates would be perfect for your Valentine’s Day celebration or any night you can get away with your sweetie.  If you need a frugal babysitting solution so you can afford to go on a date, check out my post on cheap/free babysitting options here.  Read on and please share your frugal date night ideas in the comment section.

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Feb
2014

Dining Out in Dallas for Under $20: Top Ten Taco Edition

categories: DFW, dining out, restaurant review
Dining out in Dallas can be both an amazing culinary adventure and a major budget buster.  Fortunately there are many affordable options out there for a lunch or dinner out without sacrificing quality or taste.  Jed and I always say we could eat Tex Mex food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and here in DFW you can do just that.  Read more about our dining out budget here.  Tacos are always a quick and easy crowd pleaser and Dallas has an abundance of fabulous choices from trendy to funky to authentic.  Check out the top ten taco shops where a couple can eat for under $20.
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Jan
2014

The Great Migration from Blogger to WordPress

categories: blogging

For the last two weeks I’ve been hard at work switching this little site of mine from the blogger platform over to wordpress.  I’m making the switch tonight after agonizing over the transfer and the design details and a million little things.  If you subscribe by RSS or Bloglovin’, nothing will change for you but it may take a day or two for everything to show up on the new site.  I just want to give a heads up in case you visit and things look wonky.  My site address will not change, you will still find me here at barefeetonthedashboard.com.  Thanks for your patience and support.

With this change comes a bit of a refocus of the ole blog.  I hope to bring more frugal living posts, and possibly a frugal living link party hosted with some other thrifty bloggers.  I will tell more of our own story of getting out of debt and living on one income.  As my life now is focused on raising my kids, I’ll more posts about kid activities and family entertainment.  I’ll share stories about our travels and DIY projects (some with tutorials from my handsome handyman husband), as well as my own crafts and creations.  Meal planning is a huge component of our food budget, so I’ll share more about that subject as well.  As always, my own faith is the backbone of everything I do, so I’ll continue to share my quest for Life to the Full in Jesus.  I hope you will continue to visit Bare Feet on the Dashboard as I make this transition.


Jan
2014

Life to the Full: Why Can’t We Stop Talking About Other People’s Sin?

categories: jesus, life to the full

I want to talk about the listing of sins and why we as Christians feel the need to do that to ourselves and especially to other people. I’ve heard too many times the excuse, “but we are supposed to speak the truth in love” when a fellow Christian speaks about one type of sinner or another.  I think we need to think long and hard before we try to point out anyone else’s sin.  Are we truly doing it in love to try and help that person?  I hope so, but often that isn’t the case.  In my opinion, we feel the need to call out someone else for their mistakes and sin for two reasons.

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Jan
2014

Dining Out in Dallas for Under $20: Burgers and American Food

categories: DFW, dining out

American food and burger joints are often family friendly but can run the gamut from fast food to gourmet.  Here in Dallas there are a million options if you are craving a burger and fries, but some of them will break the bank.  If you’ve read about our financial story, you know our dining out budget is TIGHT.  This list will give you the top ten burger and American food restaurants where a couple can eat for under $20.  At a few of them you can even feed a family of four for under $20.  From plain jane to funky toppings, however you like your burger you will find great prices and quality food at all the restaurants on this list.  Step away from the golden arches and head for one of the great options below.

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Jan
2014

Meal Plan: Two Ingredient Two Step Tasty Tomato Basil Soup + A Bonus Week of Meal Ideas

categories: meal planning, recipes
This recipe is so simple and delicious.  My friends Cat and Becky made if for a women’s lunch a few years ago and it has been my favorite ever since.  It is my go-to for lunches during cold weather.  If you’ve ever had the Tomato Basil Soup from La Madeline, this tastes very similar. Ready to make it? You only need two ingredients and a blender.
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Jan
2014

Eleanor Pearl at Eight Months

categories: baby
We have officially reached the age of impossible photo shoots.  My big girl won’t stay still for more than 3 seconds unless she is asleep.  She is crawling and pulling up on everything in sight.  I can’t believe it.  She has the sweetest disposition with just the right amount of sass.  She loves to watch her brother and giggle with him over nothing.  She sits up like a champ and loves to crawl anywhere she shouldn’t be.
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Jan
2014

Feed a Football Crowd without Missing Game Time + Make Football Ice Cream Brownie Cake & Cupcakes {Recipe & Tutorial}

categories: recipes
It’s that magical time of year when big games are played and football party food fills your shopping list.  I’m sharing a few football party ideas to help you feed a crowd without spending a fortune or missing the game as well as a recipe for a delicious ice cream cake and cupcakes perfect for your big game celebration.  I picked up some delicious game time goodies from Walmart and prepped them ahead of time.  I also whipped up a few cute decorations in our team colors (spoiler alert: they didn’t win).
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