Claiming Simplicity | Simple Life, Natural Living, Cooking from Scratch, Intentional Living, Save Money, Simple Systems, Easy Recipes

• EP 211 // Living Simpler and 3 Tidbits to Keeping Your Top Values a Priority as a Busy Stressed Out Mom

  Hello Friend! Welcome back to claiming simplicity.  If you are new here, welcome!  I so glad to have you here! I often hear moms complain about not spending enough time with their kids or missing kids' events because of work, but then don’t do anything to change their situation.  A good indication of what is important to you is what you spend money on.  You might say Jesus and family first, but your checkbook might say otherwise.  Another way to look at it is where are you spending your time.  If you spent most evenings in the gym, I would say sports are important to you, or if you spend alot of time on your phone, it may look like social media is important to you.  Sometimes the values don’t truely line up, so I just want to give you a few tidbits to help you live out your values so when the guilt of not spending time with your kids, you know where you can start to change that.  So grab a pen and paper and lets get to work.  If you are driving, make sure to come back to this, because this can change the direction of your life as it did mine! First, you need to make a list of what are your true priorities because if you are saying this is important, but your pocketbook and time are not confirming that, there will be friction and you won't feel aligned and something will always feel off.   Once you have your true priorities and most important values written down, now I want you to go to your calendar and bank account and see where exactly your time and money is going.  This is so very important and very eye opening for many that I work with.  For example, if you want a simpler life, but your calendar is always full, there will be friction and you may feel a little anxious, so the 3rd step is to figure out a way to get there.  With this example, maybe it is less time shopping or this may even be spending all your time at sports events when you can say no to live simpler if this is a top priority.   There are so many options, but in order to live this life of simplicity, you have to get good at saying no and making sure that you are saying yes to the right items that line up with your values.  When your life is coming to an end, will you be proud and peaceful about how you lived it or will you be stressed and worn out until the end?   I hope you will have peace living a simpler life that you are able to create.  It is simple to do, but you do have to take the steps to get there.   Blessings! Monica Email -> [email protected] Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/claimingsimplicity/ Website -> https://stan.store/ClaimingSimplicity/    

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• EP 210 // Simple Automations will Simplify Your Life and Business Easily to Reduce Stress

  Hi Friend! I want to talk about automating everything you possibly can.  I am so squirrley and always have many projects going on, so in order to stay sane at home and in my online business, I automate almost everything. In our home, we have systems and automations that help things run smoothly.  One of the biggest saving graces is having our money and bills automated.  There are very few things that I have to worry about due dates with.  From our insurance payments to our electric bill, it is all automated and because we live very frugally and with attention, we never have to worry about insufficient funds.  I also have my transfers to our savings bucket and expense accounts all automated.  We have an envelope system like Dave Ramsey has, but it is all electronic with automations in each bucket and that works really well.  I’m pretty sure our bank thought I was crazy when I set it up like I did, but it has been amazing!  There aren’t too many surprise expenses when you have a simple automated system to save and spend money!   Next, Laundry routines which have gotten much easier over the years as our teenagers do their own.  I do bedding on Mondays and 1 -2 other loads during the week depending on what we have.  My routine is to start the coffee, toss a load in the wash, grab my coffee and do my Bible study, so it works well.  Dishes we do as we go-for the most part other than when we get a little behind in crazy times like harvest season.     I would not be able to run my business in less than 1-2  hours a day if I didn’t have automations.  I have taken several different experts advice and made it into a super simple system~even on instagram!  If you remember when I was so exhausted with instagram last year and could only do a few weeks and get frustrated, it was because I hadn’t figured out to simplify and streamline it.  Once I had all my direct messages optimized and the scheduling done, there isn’t a whole lot else to do but watch the sales role in and that has been really fun!  It seems so simple and I don’t have to worry about going on there all the time, in fact, I rarely scroll or comment on others posts~some people will tell you that you need to do that, but my account is growing at a super fast rate with multiple daily sales, so I disagree that you need to engage unless you have time to or enjoy that.   Content is automated, sales are automated along with automated emails and this keeps your business running even when you are not available.  It has been the most simplest and efficient way I have found to run a business.  I actually don’t even need my website or all the extras I was paying for before I simplified it all.     I am super excited that I am working on a project for you if you want to learn how to do this too.  If you want to be a SAHM or retire early, this system can work for you while you are working full time in small amounts of time and I can’t wait to help you do the same with less stress and overwhelm.     If this is something you are interested in, please send me an email at [email protected] as I am gathering a group of beta testers and I would love for you to be a part of it!!!!!   See you next week!  God Bless! Monica

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• EP 209 // How I Started Saving Over $6000 a Year on Groceries in 2025

  Hello Friend!   I have had so many people asking me how we spend so little on food and the answer is actually pretty simple.  I have been posting on claiming simplicity on instagram about saving money on groceries the last few months and I have had so many people say they are struggling in this area and have no idea where to start, so this episode is going to get you headed in the right direction to saving money on food that you may not have thought of..   Yes, it is true…..once I learned how to spend very little on food (at the time was when I had 3 kids under 3 years old) and it was out of necessity with a very small food budget and no credit cards to go in debt with, I found out how easy it really was!  I remember looking through recipes that would be filling and I would look through cookbooks and figure about how much it would cost to make the recipe.  I actually had such a low food budget that I would bring my calculator to the store to make sure I didn’t go over because I certainly wasn’t going to bounce a check!  Yes, cookbooks is where it all started, so I am dating myself as it was nearly 30 years ago when I began this journey, but I still use this process today because I would rather spend money on assets than food.  It took me some work to figure it out, but over the years, I learned skills that make it even more possible.   If you want to save over $6000 on groceries this year and cut your grocery bill in half, you are in the right place.    The number one thing that people don’t realize is those unhealthy packaged snacks and meals are costing you nearly 10x more than they would be to make from scratch.  And no,  most of them are not difficult to make. Anything packaged is usually unhealthy and when you make homemade meals and items at home, you are only putting ingredients in them that you want in your body.  There are so many additives and unnecessary ingredients in them so once you start reading labels, you won't even want to put them into your body and certainly not your childrens bodies.  I’m working on a simple snack guide now that will give you simple easy snacks you can make from home on a budget and I know you are going to love it.  Watch for it on instagram!   Once you start making homemade meals, the next step for you will mostly likely be how to learn how to make all your own dressings, mayo, and mixes such as onion soup mix packet, ranch packets, or your own boullion which is another super simple way to cut food costs and add healthy options.  It really is a rabbit hole and once you learn how simple it is with such little time it takes, you will start making your own sour cream, yogurt, granola, vanilla, and pretty much everything in your kitchen!  You will not only save thousands of dollars every year, you will learn skills to be more self sufficient because you won’t need any started from the store once you make your own sour cream or yogurt and those type of items.     Another way we spend so much less on food is buying in bulk and cooking in bulk.  Not only will you save money, but you will have so much less waste and will more likely not to spend wasted money eating out.  It blows my mind, that people don’t think it is possible to spend less that $75/ week on dinners for a family of 4.  It really depends where you live, but I can’t definitely show you how to cut your grocery bill in half.  We now spend less than $100/month on food since we grow a garden and raise our own meat, mild, and eggs along with hunting, but the $75/ week, I teach people to do from the grocery store with the grocery price list from walmart or aldi and it is very doable. If you are thinking that you want to learn how to do this, here is the link to to a 1 week sample of the exact steps to how we save. https://stan.store/ClaimingSimplicity/p/weeks-worth-of-dinners-in-just-2-hours-under-75 Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/claimingsimplicity/ Have a great week!  Love you friend! ~Monica

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• EP 208 // You Can Enjoy Slow and Intentional Living with ADHD When You Simplify These 3 Areas of Life

  Hello Friend!     We hit 100,000 downloads last week, so in appreciation, for everyone that adds a rating and review, I am going to put you in a drawing for $100 amazon gift card!!!  You just need to send me an email at [email protected] letting me know you left a review with your user name.  If you have already left a review, share with a friend and add me in your instagram stories and tag me and you will be entered in the drawing as well!  This podcast wouldn’t be as successful if it wasn’t for all of you, so I appreciate you all!     I really want to talk today about 3 areas where you can easily simplify your life to live more intentionally with ADHD.  As I have talked about a few times here, I have never been diagnosed with ADHD, but I have many characteristics and that is really why I had to simplify my whole life to live with more intention.  I really enjoy slow living with my family now and I wouldn’t have it any other way.  When I was working as a full time nurse with 5 kids at home and all the activities and sports, it was exhausting, but once I changed the way I lived, I was able to quit my full time nursing job which gave me so much freedom to how I spend my days & more time with family.     The first area you can simplify is your cooking, if you haven’t followed claiming simplicity on instagram, you should do that now.  A large portion of many family’s budgets goes to food, but it doesn’t have to.  I can show you how a family of four can eat dinners on $75/week and that is nutrient dense, healthy meals.  You don’t need fancy expensive meals and you certainly don’t need to buy convenience foods at the store but instead learn to cook simple homemade meals at home on a very low budget.   Next, declutter your home.  Living with less stuff really reduces stress.  You will also feel less overwhelmed when you have less stuff to care for - start with one room of you home and see the difference.  Always make sure you carefully think about each item you bring into your home.  I am going to do another declutter challenge, so email me if this is something you would like to be a part of.  It is for busy moms, so it will be steps you can’t quickly declutter in a short amount of time.   And lastly, you will want to reduce debt, living debt free can be rewarding in so many ways.  If you are spending more than you bring in, think about where you can make changes.  I will be doing another no spend challenge starting January first and this time I am going to do all audio.  If you are interested in joining, please reach out by email or DM me on instagram!   And with all of this, make sure you are putting Jesus at the center of it all!   Love you friend!  Have a blessed week ~Monica Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/claimingsimplicity/ Email -> [email protected]  

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• EP 207 // 1st Steps to Take if You are Ready to Stay at Home with Your Kids and Become a Homemaker or Homeschool Mom

  Happy Fall Friend! If you haven’t visited claiming simplicity on instagram recently, you may not know that I have been teaching families how to eat dinners for less than $75/week and have taught over 3000 families so far after starting that in July and now I have expanded into a month of our favorite  crockpot dinners and am working on a snack guide to save money as well.  I love love love teaching people that you can eat healthy on a budget and it all started because that is what people were asking me. Now, I have people reaching out that want to live the lifestyle that we have, so I’m transitioning into showing them exactly how I was able to quit my full time nursing job to become a homesteader & homeschooling mom and it all started with knowing how to save money on groceries and then once I had that figured out, then I would reduce wasteful spending in other areas like making my own natural cleaning supplies that saved money and now I create an income just showing people how I did it because that is just how it has evolved!   I am very passionate about families raising their own kids and homeschooling….shaping them to be Jesus centered in everything they do is the ultimate goal in life.  You can’t take your home, your cars or material possessions to heaven with you, so why not chase something with eternal rewards and teach your children to do the same. Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it. If you are ready, I want you and your spouse to talk about this and see if it is something you both want & pray together about it. Talk about how you want your life to look and feel. My husband was on board and he found out quickly how much easier. How much money do you actually need to live comfortably and where could you reduce expenses if you need to.  Figure out all of you bills and then you will need to figure out all the bills you won't have if you decide to be a SAHM or homemaker such as daycare, gas, convenience items, maybe even one less car or less insurance.  There are many ways to make it possible!   There is so much peace and joy in intentional and slow living, that you will probably not ever want to go back to the hustle.  The time with your family will be treasured forever.  You can’t ever get the moments and memories back, so live in the present every single day. Freedom & Time are much greater asset than money if you value memories.    If you have any questions about any of this, please send me an email or DM on Instagram, I would love to help you get started or even help you take next steps if you are ready!   Have a Blessed day!

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