Nola Redd's comments

Are We Out of Love With Marriage? - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 05:20 PM

Sad to say, but I think as a nation we ARE falling out of love with marriage. More than half of the US households in the 2000 census were single rather than married. Granted, this includes widow(er)s and college kids, but still. At the same time, most of the folks I know - including my dad - prefer cohabiting to marriage, apparently not realizing that statistics show couples who live together very rarely wind up married. Now there's a whole blog right there, LOL.

How to Save Money on Bread - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 05:18 PM

We recently moved and 'lost' both our day-old bread store AND our bread machine (space reasons). Like so many things, I'm experiencing 'sticker shock'. I used to stock up on Sara Lee bread at the bread store for .50/loaf; now they want $2-3 on sale. !!! Even the store brand is more expensive. That said, I didn't know stores carried a 'day old' bread shelf; I'll have to check that out. Sad to say, our bread machine was primarily used for Friday night pizza night; that's a big loss.

Matilda - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 03:18 PM

Great review. Matilda is one of my favorite books, and I actually thought that the movie managed to improve on it in some ways. I thought Ms. Trunchbull was Ms. Honey's aunt, or did they change that in the movie? It's been awhile since I saw it. Anyway, great story, and I love that little girl, she's so adorable!

Struggling to Focus - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 03:14 PM

I didn't have any suggestions for helping with focus - during church, I somehow have to try to get my 5 yo, 4 yo, and 2 yo to focus - but I wanted to empathize. Some of the 'worst' times for me are when I am praying before bed. Somehow after we were married, my dh convinced me that it was okay to pray while laying in bed, which helps with the mind-wandering. I've found that when I kneel down in prayer, instead of taking a more casual attitude, I tend to stay better focused. Similarly, I've found that carrying my scriptures and any lesson manuals with me to church helps me stay focused in class on Sunday. I tend to make notations of what impresses me, and I also probably annoy the teacher by contributing in class; both of these keep me on topic. Lastly, I've followed a friend's often-given advice and started keeping a 'spiritual journal' while studying my scriptures at night, which sometimes ends up as summaries and sometimes ends up in me relating what I've read to current problems, and then...helping me solve them, or at least resolve on a different course. On the other side, my inlaws took my kids to church and said the older two were very reverent - put away their 'distractions' - while the sacrament was passed (the most reverent part of our meeting), without being prompted. So I guess that means they ARE listening! Look, I wound up answering your question anyway, huh? LOL.

Ella Enchanted - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 03:08 PM

Wow, I didn't know this was a book! What age range is it in? I am going to have to try to find it at our local library.

We loved the movie, and you're right, my 16 yo SIL loves it. I thought it was cute, but I do wish I'd read the book first. The book always ruins the movie, but I hate having the movie make me prejudiced about the book!

Thanks for the review!

Five Tips to Paying off Credit Cards - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 03:03 PM

Also, if you transfer a balance from one card to another, don't forget to close the first card. Otherwise, you'll wind up charging, or at the very least, paying annual fees for a zero balance card!

Budget Strategies: Budgeting a Variable Income - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 03:02 PM

A great article! DH's income just went from a set salary to a variable income, which freaks me out in theory. That said, since we know what his check should be 2 weeks before we recieve the check, it makes it a little easier to plan the budget.

Family Home Evening: Goals - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 02:58 PM

A great FHE topic for the new year! I wish I'd seen this before today (Monday!)

The 31 Most Talked About Blogs of 2006 - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 02:56 PM

A great list of articles! Thanks for an awesome resource!

Keeping Up with the Jones - Blog Entry

01 Jan 2007 02:54 PM

I know that very feeling! Thanks for the feedback and letting me know that, at least when it comes to keeping up, I manage to keep up with the Jones'! :D