Meet a Colorado Reader | Dorinda
Dorinda is a girl after my own heart...she sent lots of photos in with her interview answers. I love it!
1. Tell us a little about yourself
Hi! I’m Dorinda. I grew up on a wheat and beef farm in Kansas, spent seven years in north Dallas, and now reside in Colorado with my husband Greg (Mr. A) and our three young boys (ages 9, 7, 5).
Kristen and I share a birth year, but I married and started a family significantly later. So her kids are in college and my kids are in early grade school.
Family snapshot while out camping.
Mr. A and I are both computer techies who use our skills to serve the international missions community. While many people think of “missionaries” within the Christian community as pastors or Bible translators or maybe a teacher or a doctor, our missions team helps keep the computers-that-make-things-possible running behind the scenes.
Mr. A is a software developer while I work with computer training/business analyst projects as well as coordinate our volunteer events like the annual Spring Break Code-a-Thon for Missions. Between work travel and vacation, we’re often on the road 25-35% of the year.
Leading a session at a missions tech conference
I like hiking/camping, reading, being practical, finding adventures, sewing small projects, helping people, sharing Hope, and taking pictures to commemorate joy-moments. We live in an average three-bedroom house in the city (with mountain peaks in the distance outside our windows).
And I’m still a country girl at heart and love taking my family back to see Kansas sunsets and experience the small joys of rural living.
But if you were to know me for very long, you’d find that I’m also honest.
Life has been hard and stretching over the last few years as I juggle parenting, homeschooling, working in ministry, coordinating travel, and my own mental health journey through burnout and depression. I simply don’t have the capacity to #doallthethings that I’d like to do.
This picture is when my 3yr old fell asleep at a cafeteria table during a conference we were running. But it definitely represents how I feel many days! *laughing face*
I read the quilter and canner and amazing home meet-a-reader posts with a touch of envy, and then I have to stop myself and be thankful for the things I have in this season of life. There will come seasons when I have more time for creative projects and homemade things, but this is a season God has given me to pour into my kids, my family, and ministry.
In each part of life, I can acknowledge the hard AND look for the thankfuls. I can feel dejected over a rough day of whiny kids AND cherish the joy on their faces as we blow bubbles (which we’re doing to keep mama from yelling).
I can miss having lots of time to be creative or do things from scratch but I can enjoy the moments I do have here and there. I did can tomatoes this year for the first time (Mr. A is the gardener), but we certainly haven’t saved money by having the garden yet.
Boys and husband at garden
Our raised garden is completely covered by hardware cloth to help protect from deer, raccoons, squirrels, rabbits, and our abundant spring hail. The growing season is so short that it can make gardening a challenge, even when we do start plants indoors.
And I enjoy small sewing projects, though very much on the practical side--mostly mending. (A big thank you to the FG community on the FB page a year ago where you ladies posted some links to some great mending techniques! That upped my mending game considerably!)
Mr. A. stalked Craigslist a couple years ago and found me a Bernina 830 sewing machine - an amazing workhorse of a machine. He drove five hours round trip to buy it for me, negotiated the price, and then did all the clean-up work on the gummed-up gears himself.
Then I’ve used the sewing machine to make heatable rice bags that I sell for $5/ea on our local BST groups at Christmas time. (If I sell anything homemade, I make sure I pay myself at least $20/hr. My time is precious!)
The profit from that bought a new watch for Mr. A when his old one died, so he got blessed in the end too! And someday I’ll have the energy to tackle bigger projects. 🙂
Finding the balance between time frugality and money frugality is an ongoing consideration for me. I definitely watch for stock up grocery prices, but I don’t fanatically coupon. I can make a homemade loaf of bread for less than .60. But when I can pick up top quality, outdated bread for $1/loaf, I often buy instead of bake.
I make homemade broth by the gallons and cook most of our meals at home, but I’m also the average shopper who stocks up on spaghetti sauce and cereal and we get Burger King coupon deals when I’m exhausted.
This fall, my 9yr old and I rescued apples from a neighbor’s tree and turned them into applesauce and apple butter. I don’t always have the energy for those things, so we treasure the moments when I do.
Homemade apple butter on a slice of homemade bread
One of the things we do as a family for our mental health is get off-grid for 2-3 weeks of each year and tent camp in the mountains of Colorado and Montana.
Renting a cabin for that long would be expensive, but tent camping allows us to do that. (One of our family members has a permanent disability, so the NPS Access pass also helps us stretch the budget.) And camping gets us away from our technology!
2. How long have you been reading The Frugal Girl?
Ooh… I know it was before fall of 2009, but I’m not sure when exactly. My college roommate recommended your blog and I’ve been hooked ever since – usually obsessively checking for it via Feedly during breakfast. 🙂 However, reading via Feedly usually means I’m not down in the comment section as much.
The blog has definitely found its way into our lives – chicken and biscuit casserole (which my picky eater loves!!!), Kristen’s pizza-making method, eyes on our sugar cookies:
4 yr old: It's a moose looking through a bush for the yummy flowers it wants to eat.
...and countless jean repairs (inspired by Kristen’s ongoing repairs to her favorite pair of jeans). And this year’s “Meet a Reader” series has definitely brought me to comments more since I’m putting faces/personalities to the names.
3. How did you get interested in saving money?
I grew up in a frugal family. My grandparents grew up during the depression. My parents never made more than ~$20k/yr on the farm. I didn’t make more than $22k/year until after we got married.
I grew up thinking that everyone carefully washed aluminum foil for re-use, abhorred the use of paper towels (Here! Use this rag!), and added cooked wheat kernels to chili and meatloaf to make the meal more filling.
16 yr old me driving the combine during wheat harvest
4. What's the "why" behind your money-saving efforts?
We try to live simply to honor those who are supporting us in missions and to free up funds to make a difference in the lives of people around the world. As part of living simply, some areas of our budget have less wiggle room than many families, so I try to stretch dollars where I can. I also want to use our finances to bless those around us: the homeless in our area, the neighbors on our street, the teachers in our school, and the community at our church.
My little kitchen helper as we make food for a staff dinner
5. What's your best frugal win?
Oooh… probably marrying a man who can do automotive work. 😉
Seriously, Mr. A-mazing does all the work on our vehicles (including replacing the engine on our minivan two years ago) and that saves us so much money! Also, his proactive work means that our vehicles are super reliable for our road trips.
Our first Plymouth Grand Voyager van (which he had before we got married) carried us on road trips until it hit 360,000 miles and we decided to retire it. That van was also our only vehicle for the first eight years of marriage, so the bikes and jogging stroller were kept busy with grocery runs and errands.
We still try to walk or bike as much as we can.
The 360,000 mile van at the Tetons
6. What's a dumb money mistake you've made?
Vehicle-related again. Paying too much for my post-college car. I had never car shopped before and ended up paying too much at a used car dealership. I paid in cash and it was a good car; I just overpaid due to their sales tactics and my inexperience.
7. What's one thing you splurge on?
Backpacking gear.
When Mr. A and I first started backpacking, we researched and bought our main backpacks on Craigslist. But those didn’t fit us well and I ended up with nerve damage. We eventually ended up going to a full-service camping store and finding packs that truly fit. (It’s a God-provision, frugal-win story on how we got Mr. A’s $400 pack for $175 brand new, but you can’t tell all the stories at one time!)
Our boys have traveled with us on over 125 miles of backpacking trails.
8. What's one thing you aren't remotely tempted to splurge on?
Beauty stuff. Perfume. Purses. Designer clothes. Anything that would put us in debt.
9. If $1000 was dropped into your lap today, what would you do with it?
My counselor is advising me to take one day a month and give myself a complete break from responsibility. So I’d probably put it towards childcare costs to make that happen more often. Or better lighting for my kitchen. It’s a toss-up. 😉
My favorite lookout from the trailhead five minutes from our house
10. Share a frugal tip with other Frugal Girl readers.
Use your goals and your talents to find your own unique ways to be frugal. If your food budget is an area where you’re frugal, find a few meals that are easy and inexpensive and rotate them in regularly.
Example: I can make taco soup to feed 10+ people for about $4. It’s gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, and easily vegetarian. And super quick. I can toss together a salsa chicken freezer meal (feeds four adults) for about $1.50. Or chicken noodle soup for a family for $2.
Having recipes like that allows me to stretch our budget, splurge on some meals, and easily bless the families around me when they need meals. (Probably my Midwest hospitality coming out there – dropping off a meal is my go-to way of blessing people.)
In May, a friend gave me lots of frozen chicken and egg noodles and rice she didn’t need. When several friends were hospitalized with Covid later that month, I turned that food into meals for 50+ people for a total of $8 out of pocket. The boys loved helping with the food deliveries and making encouraging signs!
the boys at a friend’s house as we dropped off food and decorated her porch
11. Is there anything unique about frugal living in your area?
For our house location: yes. We live less than three-fourths of a mile from two grocery stores, two thrift stores, a fabric store, a dollar store, and more. Two grocery stores keep the price of milk down 😀 and I don’t have to go far for what I need.
For our town: We live in a bit of a tourist town, so many activities are priced for tourists and out of budget for us. Sometimes I’m able to find free/low cost access to such activities if someone has planned a group trip and didn’t have enough sign-ups and puts out the word on the local FB B/S/T sites.
I definitely appreciate our vibrant freebie group communities. And if you can learn to dress for cold weather, you’ll have the trails and wilderness to yourself (and some activities at reduced prices!) on cold days instead of sharing that space with a gazillion people on the “nice” weather days.
Our boots on a hiking trail at a mountain resort area
Mr. A. and I enjoyed a 10th-anniversary getaway at a mountain resort that is popular during the summers and the winters, but our visit was in that in-between time where it was too cold for regular outdoor fun, but not enough snow for snow sports.
We enjoyed hiking as well as indoor roller skating, archery, and rock climbing at cheap prices. (And this was funded because I stumbled across some succulents on clearance, fancied them up, and resold them on FB as teacher thank-you gifts!)
So to Kristen and to all of my fellow readers: thank you for sharing your lives and your joys and your encouragement with me over the year(s)!
May you find joy-moments (even in the hard) and share joy with others (even in the midst of mundane) as you travel your journeys!
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Dorinda, I just want to say that I love what you would spend some of that imaginary $1000 on. When you are a parent and in particular, when you are the primary caretaker for kids, the feeling of constant responsibility can get wearing. So, I think spending money on some Days of No Responsibility is such a good idea!
Readers, the floor is yours!
P.S. Unless I missed someone's submission, Dorinda's interview is the last one in my queue. So, if I've emailed you questions and you still want to participate, fill 'em out and send them back! And if you'd like me to send you the questions, just email me and let me know.
Hi Dorinda! I loved every bit of this, including your wonderful pictures. Your kids are precious! Thank you for brightening my day!
@BJS, Thank you for your encouragement! My boys are precious... and precocious! 😉 Glad the pictures could make you smile!
Hi Dorinda,
Your answers were so thorough, thank you for sharing! My family camps too, for money reasons, I’ve been to lot of places around my home state and a few outside to other states- so no complaints here! You’re so lucky to get 2-3 weeks off; our excursions are usually only a week due to low amounts of PTO. We haven’t camped the last 2 years for a multitude of reasons but I’m hopeful about next summer!
@Ali in the Midwest, We are very blessed with PTO. Our ministry leaders know that life in ministry can be very stressful, so they encourage us to take the time we need to refresh. But camping for a week is still a big endeavor in and of itself! I'm glad you guys have been able to get out in the past -- hoping and praying you get back into it next summer!!!
@Dorinda,
Thank you much we hope to get back out there too! It’s really great when your employer acknowledges your hard work and appreciates your value and rewards you for that. I’m so happy you have a job like that; which emphasizes taking the time to take care of you. I recently changed jobs for this reason( not feeling valued/supported) and feel much more valued where I am at now.
@Ali in the Midwest, I'm glad your job changed has led to you feeling much more valued! It's amazing how much that can encourage our souls!
What a wonderful interview Dorinda. You've honestly portrayed a rich life. I hope you are even more blessed going forward.
@K D, Thank you for your kind words and well wishes!
Hi Dorinda! That photo of your son asleep on the table reminded me of a saying in my family for when kids are exhausted, "Falling asleep in the mashed potatoes." Looks like your son just missed the potatoes. 🙂
My kids fell asleep in their lunch more than once, mainly in that period of time when they were first giving up their morning nap. They were SO tired by the time lunch rolled around!
@kristin @ going country, Haha! Yep! My kids have never been ones to randomly fall asleep places, so that made it all the more amusing when it happened. I was off leading a lunch session and returned to find my husband laughing over the sleeping child. I like your saying. 🙂
It is wonderful to meet you!!!! Your interview really touched me. I want to thank you for writing about the difficulties that you have experienced as a mother who works outside of the home. Balancing the demands and responsibilities of family, career, and community can be overwhelming. I think it’s important for our mental and physical health to recognize that not every moment of life needs to be Instagram worthy.
Many years ago before social media was a thing, I was working mother of 3 and a perfectionist. I often found that I couldn’t accomplish what I felt that I needed to everyday. I would work until midnight and get up at 4:00am. Eventually I was so exhausted, I couldn’t function. My pursuit to have it all was leaving me with very little. With help from my husband and some soul searching, I learned to set more realistic expectations for myself and prioritize better.
Even though there were times when my children went to school with unmatched socks, they grew into wonderful adults anyway. Yes, there were days that I hoped no one would come to the door, because the house was a wreck. On occasion, I made an disastrous meal, and we had to eat PB&J. I learned to set aside my ambition and enjoy a career path that was not as stressful as the one I envisioned. Although life was not perfect, it was good.
I’m so glad that you shared your journey and your solution. I have few regrets. However, I often wish that I had spent less time trying to be perfect and more time enjoying the moment.
Wishing you peace, good health and God’s Grace.
@Bee,
I chuckled at “Yes, there were days that I hoped no one would come to the door, because the house was a wreck”. As a mom of young kids I still have those days. When the house is perfectly clean , not a soul in sight. On the rare occasion it’s a wreck someone just has to show up unannounced.
@Bee, thank you so much for trusting me with part of your story. I treasure you sharing your experience and the changes that you made and the wisdom that you gained in the process. I'm still very much on the journey, so I appreciate what you've shared and your prayers for my journey and my family's journey as we press on. <3
@Natasha, So true! It's the "wreck" times when the people I want to impress the most show up! *laugh/cry*
Thank you for sharing your story. I love that you talk about the things that are worth splurging on. I have made many a mistake with inadequate outdoor gear and it really does make a difference. I would love those recipes you mentioned! They sound absolutely delicious. I second taking that time for yourself. You have an abundance of creativity and you need to be filled up as well especially given all the ways you bless and serve others.
@Emily, Thanks for the encouragement! What are some of your favorite pieces of outdoor gear? Always ready to learn! And I added a main comment with the recipe links. Hopefully they can be a blessing!
@Emily, I think Kristen's spam eater ate my comment with too many recipe links. :-/ You can also find them here: https://thoughtsntravels.wordpress.com/2021/11/16/easy-frugal-allergen-friendly-recipes/
Dorinda, thank you for sharing about your life and family. But thank you also for sharing about your mental health struggles. That is not easy to do. I feel it is especially difficult to talk about in the Christian community. So often those of us with well meaning Christian friends are told to pray more or read the Bible more. But sometimes we need medications or other therapy. We need permission to take good care of our mental selves. Your post was a huge blessing.
@Nancy, Very true. I have encountered this very same "pray away the sad" dismissal by well meaning but utterly clueless people.
Of course I didn't exactly have the best experiences in therapy/counseling so I don't have any advice for anyone.
Sometimes a therapist is just not that good, or they're not a good fit for a particular person. And that makes it tough! You have to go to a number of appointments to figure out IF they are a good fit, and it can be discouraging to keep trying to find someone who is helpful.
So hard!
@Nancy and Battra52 - I remember when one pastor told me that the only reason I struggled with depression was because I slept too much and didn't get up and do enough things. I stood there and looked at him and was flabbergasted. Let me assure you -- I don't get ENOUGH sleep and I'm definitely doing enough things.
There definitely can be a lot of stigma around it in the Christian community and I hope that my sharing can create a safe place for others to share their struggles as well. My family and I spent three weeks at a retreat center for missionaries going through burnout and the Christian psychologists who ran the place were amazing! We learned so much while we were there about our brains and our bodies and our emotions and how intricately God created all of these pieces and how they work together. It was truly a jump-start to our emotional health journey. I wish more people could encounter such people.
And Kristen is right -- sometimes trying to find the right therapist/counselor is a challenge and can be an expensive challenge at that!
Dorinda,
Thank you for a kind, honest post. You are a very generous soul, both with others and here, when sharing with us!
As another mother who worked full-time outside the home while raising kids, I can appreciate that desire to do it all, and the exhaustion and unhappiness upon finding "all" was not going to get done. Giving yourself permission to cut back is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself. Well done.
@JD, Thank you for your solidarity and encouragement and kind words. I'm not having to work full-time, but the hours that I do work are enough to stretch me thinner. Thankful for a board of directors and a husband who are trying to help me cut back more during this season.
Hi Dorinda! I can definitely relate to your comments about creative things. Before I had my children, my hobby was sewing all my own clothes. Hunting down beautiful designer fabrics for cheap in NYC's garment district, then making them into fabulous garments on the weekends. I even made some spectacular baby clothes for a friend's baby. That all came to a screeching halt once my own children were born. They're 27 and 24 now, and I still haven't made that bolt of cashmere I bought in 1993 into a coat...
As for creative writing, I was only able to do that once my kids hit their teens. Ah well. Children take up so much bandwidth when young.
@Rose, Your talents sound amazing!!! And your bolt of cashmere story reminded me of a wardrobe that my mother just finished refinishing this fall. She did the first door in 1983, but then her father had a heart attack. Baby number three arrived a few months later and.... she finally finished the wardrobe 38 years later.
And for creative writing, well... you could check out this short, humorous piece that I wrote about that challenge a few years ago: https://thoughtsntravels.wordpress.com/2016/12/24/on-composing/
So nice to meet you, Dorinda! I love how honest you are and how practical. It’s totally ok and worth it to buy the bread if making it from scratch in that season means stretching you too far and taking you away from your family. Thank you for an encouraging peak into your beautiful life! What a happy way to start the day!
Totally didn’t mean to write “peak” instead of “peek”! Apparently it’s too early! Lol
@Haley, I have a "peak" outside my house, so it's totally appropriate! 🙂 Thanks for the kind and encouraging words! I hope your day went well!
Thank you for all your encouraging comments! My heart already feels encouraged by you! I gotta run feed my littles breakfast and get two of them off to school, so I'll stop back by the comments later.
But a quick note -- the photo of me silhouetted with my arms in the air is the trailhead five minutes from our house. The photo of the beautiful lake is about 2.5 hours from our house. 🙂 I sent just a *few* pictures and captions to Kristen to keep straight. 😉
Got it! I switched them back up and hopefully they're right now. 🙂
@Kristen, excellent! Thank you!
Dorinda, I believe you and I are in the same stages of parenting. My kids are 9 and 7. There are days when I just "can't" Someone else (Burger King normally) needs to handle dinner. LOL. It sounds so silly to type it, but it's so true that I just need a day where someone else makes the decisions and does the work.
@Jenelle, Oh yes! Some days we just "can't." Yup. Right there with you! Our brain only has limited capacity for deep thinking and some days that capacity is zilch. Praying for you this evening -- that you can find a good rhythm, find some mental breathing space, and be okay with Burger King on the days that it is needed. 🙂
So nice to meet you Dorinda. I hope you get your lighting and you childcare help. Your photos are fantastic and your backstory is so inspiring. I loved seeing a young girl on farm machinery. I am a city girl born and bred. Thanks for sharing and don't be so hard on yourself.
@Anita Isaac, Thanks for such encouraging words! I wish I could take you on a tour of my parents' wheat farm during harvest time. Showing my city friends around the farm is one of my biggest joys. <3
Dorinda, thank you for sharing your journey and frugal life. Being a mother is hard work. Being a mission worker is hard work. Homeschooling is hard work. Put those three together, well... you can do the math!
This blog reinforces an idea that I have been contemplating. Frugal blogs often focus just on MONEY. But, we have three great resources in life: (1) money, (2) time, and (3 energy (both physical and mental.) We have to be wise stewards of all three resources. It would be unwise to sacrifice all our time and energy just to save a few more dollars. A wise woman (or man) will manage all three of these to bless her family and those around her.
May God bless you and all the FG readers!
@Margery, this is so true and I’ve been working at it for many decades. Learning to say No is a must.
@Margery, I love this! I never really thought about the importance of being frugal with my mental energy. This is an interesting concept
@Margery - I do love the way you phrased that! We often refer to "buying sanity" at my house -- the concept of spending money to reduce the mental/physical energy load. Example: I work in the office on Tuesdays and so supper is always Taco Night from Del Taco. I don't try to cook that day at all.
And thank you for your encouragement and validation. You're right -- I'm "working" several full-time jobs. Appreciate your prayers and encouragment.
Hi Dorinda - would you be able to share your taco soup recipe?? 🙂
@Lori, I'd be glad too! It's nothing fancy -- I'm too practical for that. 😛 You can find links to the taco soup and salsa chicken recipes here: https://thoughtsntravels.wordpress.com/2021/11/16/easy-frugal-allergen-friendly-recipes/
This........this is fantastic. Thank you for sharing you and your family with us.
@TT, Thank you for the encouragement. <3
Hi Dorinda, I really enjoyed reading about your life.
I love that you enjoy blessing others with meals and have gotten your kids involved. This reminds me so much of my Southern Mother who loved to cook to share with her family and friends.
I make something similar to your heated rice bags but use cherry pits to stuff them instead of rice. It had never occurred to me to try to sell them. Mother recently passed away and going through her things I found over half a dozen huge containers of fabric she had collected for her quilting projects. Maybe I should try to use some of that fabric to make heated bags to sell.
Also, love the picture of you driving the combine. As the youngest in the family, I never got to drive the tractor or combine so I'm a little jealous you got to do it! 🙂
@Beverly, I 've heard of people using seed corn kernals, buckwheat, wheat, and rice, but I hadn't heard of cherry pits! Do they smell nice when they're heated up as well?
And driving the combine is definitely my favorite job on the farm! Wish you could come join us for wheat harvest and I'd let you drive. 😉
Yes, we use rice! I was curious about the cherry pits too; I've never had enough pits to stuff anything.
@Kristen, Me too! And all the work of cleaning them off so they're not moldy over time....
My gosh! Your photos are beautiful! I almost feel like i am there. Thanks for sharing your way of life- your boys are adorable. They definitely share your love of nature. Wonderful thing to pass on and teach our children.
@Amy, Thanks for the kind words! I do love capturing joy-photos and my heart feels joyful that my pictures brought you joy as well! <3
As a former teacher, I have to say your succulent gifts would be a joy to receive! I'd love to see those frugal recipes you mention.
What a lovely, unselfish person you are! And it is more fun to give than receive and your boys are experiencing that in real time.
@PBE, I certainly still have lots of selfishness in me! My kids and my marriage remind me of that every day. 😀 I'm thankful that God continues to work in me in that area. And I do try to be generous and care about others. My parents taught me that well and I hope to pass it on to my kids!
Dorinda - thank you so much for your post! I applaud you for being real about the struggles of caring for young kids while working full time. I know there are many out there who do it but the struggles are not usually highlighted or even mentioned and it is such a breath of fresh air to feel solidarity in this season. Your mention of a Day without Responsibility has me thinking all kinds of things over here - I feel the need to journal about that so I can bring it to fruition! May God abundantly bless you and your family!!
@Angie, thank you for your encouragement! I'm thankful I don't truly have to work full-time the majority of the year, but even the hours I do work are stretching.
Since I wrote this post, two of my boys have been enrolled in public school and my third (who is still homeschooling) goes to a homeschool enrichment program once a week -- leaving me with six hours each week that I'm child-free. My husband encourages me to use those to refresh, not #doallthethings. So it's a blessing! I hope you can find something to work out for you!
Thank you so much for sharing your life, Dorinda! I appreciate your honesty as I have also found myself feeling burned out a lot since the beginning of the pandemic. While I hate to hear of others struggling with similar feelings, it does help to know that I'm not alone! You have a beautiful family and how wonderful to live in beautiful Colorado.
@Susannah, the pandemic has created a lot of stress on all of us. Our brains have had to figure out new ways of life instead of just reverting to age-old patterns. And figuring out those new ways of life cause the brain to use a much higher level of glucose and energy and it leaves us exhausted. Just like a baby/toddler is exhausted from constant learning and thus needs naps, many of us spent significant time in the "constant learning" in how to live in the midst of a pandemic. And we all need more naps as a result! 🙂
Solidarity, Susannah! You're not alone. Thanks for sharing and for your encouragement!
Very nice to meet you. I am a teacher and I love succulents!!
@Stephanie, Thanks for your encouragement! It's always good to hear that teacher gift ideas are good ones. 🙂
What a wonderful and honest interview. I love her openness about struggles.
And I have forgotten about the thousands we have saved in 40 years of marriage because my husband had a talent for cars (back before they were so computerized). He also will build anything I ask for that is not too complicated.
@Anne, thank you for your encouraging words! And sounds like you have a talented husband in the fixing and building things as well! How wonderful!
Dorinda, I really enjoyed your post and your themes of simplicity, thankfulness and generosity. Your honesty regarding parenting and mental health is refreshing. And a big YES to valuing the time you spend on homemade items and charging accordingly. I hope you are able to give yourself regular Days of No Responsibility as your wise counselor suggested. Thank you for sharing your life and photos of your precious family.
@MB in MN, Thank you for your gracious words and encouragement! Since I wrote this post, two of my boys have been enrolled in public school and my third (who is still homeschooling) goes to a homeschool enrichment program once a week — leaving me with six hours each week that I’m child-free. My husband encourages me to use those to refresh, not #doallthethings. So it’s a blessing!
Love your pictures! You live in a marvelous place.
You will find time to be creative again. When you are in the thick of young parenting it seems like those days are long gone but life will cycle back around. Each stage of life has its joys and struggles.
@Kris, We are blessed to be here! And thankful we moved here and bought before the big rush arrived that have tripled house prices - yikes!
And thank you for that encouragement that there will be time again to be creative. Some days I need that reminder. 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing, Dorinda! I thoroughly enjoyed reading your interview. We have friends that also work in the tech/business/behind-the-scenes part of missions and it's important work!
As a fellow mom of 3, accepting that I cannot #doallthethings has been very freeing, though I do need to remind myself from time to time that there really isn't anyone who CAN do it all! We just do the best we can with what we have at the time (physical energy and mental energy factored in, for sure!) You're point about finding the balance between time frugality and money frugality is spot on!
And I'm with you on the Midwest meal drop-off... I've got two planned this week. (Recovering from COVID? You need a meal. Overwhelmed mom? You need a meal.)
Blessings to you, Dorinda!
@Ruth T, So fun that you know people "behind the scenes" too! It's such a critical, but under-recognized need. And solidarity from one mom to another on the "not doing all the things" side of life!
And it made my heart smile to hear about you loving on your community. Yay!!! Blessings to you as well, Ruth!
So many neat things in your interview; thanks for sharing, Dorinda! I especially love the moose looking for tasty flowers, and the long-lived van. And I'm really interested to hear about your ministry; what a great idea, to facilitate economies of scale and sharing of expertise. The Code-a-thon sounds like a really meaningful option for a spring break experience.
Your life sounds very fulfilling, and also very full - I hope you do get your regularly-scheduled days of no responsibility! (PLUS spectacular kitchen lighting : )
@Suz, Thanks for taking time to share such encouraging comments! I'm thankful that God has brought us in to this ministry and God has used our Spring Break Code-a-thon to impact 250+ participants over the last ten years -- enabling them to see how they can use their unique computer skills to make a difference around the world.
And we'll have to see about when I get that kitchen lighting... 😉
Hi Dorinda! I'm a fellow Colorado gardener (I live on the Western Slope) so I sympathize with the short, dry growing season and the perpetual fight against critters. I agree that the best free entertainment Colorado has to offer is hiking and camping. Thank you for sharing a glimpse of your life with us.
@Cindi, Hi to another Coloradan! Thanks for reaching out and may all your starts next spring be healthy and may the weather cooperate for you! 🙂
Hi Dorinda, I wanted to tell you that I’m very impressed that you’ve realized at this point that you’ll have time later for sewing and craft projects and that now is time to spend energy raising your very happy looking family! It’s kind of like when Andy from the Office says “I wish there was a way if knowing you were in the good ol days”. I think you’ve figured that out and you’ll thank yourself later for it. Thanks for sharing today!
@Jenni, Your comments made me smile! Thanks for taking time to share those thoughts and that encouragement. Sometimes those realizations take moment by moment decisions to keep my focus healthy, but I'm thankful for the gift of perspective.
Wow! One of the most inspirational profiles yet! Love how you stretch your food budget and all, but the best part was how easily you and your family give to others. How kind!
I also applaud you for paying yourself $20 an hour when you make things to sell. I am often surprised by how little many crafts people make on their goods once they realize how much time they spent to make the item.
@Nancy, Aww... your comments warm my heart. Thank you for the encouragement! And yes -- I hit a local craft fair two weeks ago and was astonished at how cheaply some of the ladies were selling things. I quickly bought up a load of items for teachers' gifts!
1. I love your name, Dorinda.
2. Those succulants for sale---genius!
3. THank you for all the pictures.
4. I am not from the midwest, but I, too, like taking meals to people who need help. I have been at the receiving end of such generosity and know how much it can help. But I have never turned chicken, rice and noodles into meals for over 50 people!
@Lindsey, Thank you! <3 It makes my heart smile to know you enjoyed the post and the pics. And to know that you're reaching out to your community where you are!!! And I must admit that it was 50 people over a two week period. The first week was just crockpots full of 25lbs of chicken, an IP full of rice, and bags of frozen broccoli. We drove from house to house, unloading food into the dishes they put on the porch for us. The next week, I took the leftover bones, created broth, added the leftover chicken and egg noodles and some frozen veggies and turned it into soup. So it was baby steps making it happen. 🙂
You are delightful! God bless you and your family!
Thank you, Maria! Blessings on you as well!
This was a delight to read, especially what you said about seasons of life. I am in a relatively unfrugal season of life right now. My job has become more complex and demanding and I simply don't have the time available to do all the things I'd like to do. I have had to prioritize specific activities and let others go. It's hard for me to do, but I appreciate the encouragement I have found in reading these profile.
@Profesora H-B, Yes, each season has it's own unique combinations of available time, money, and energy as Margery mentioned above. I'm thankful you've found encouragement and hope you find the right balance during this demanding season.
Dorinda, this was absolutely awesome! I loved reading about your life and I am so impressed with all of your frugal ideas! God bless you! <3
@Jennifer Williams, Thank you so much for the encouraging comment! You made my heart smile this evening. May the Lord bless you as well!
Thank you Dorinda! I loved your honesty and insight! Such cool jobs too!
@Suzanne Beckett, thanks for the encouragement! I've been working in missions tech for 20 years now and there's lots of cool parts and lots of parts that just require a lot of faithfulness. But I love what we get to do!
For those who were wanting my recipies, I'll include the links here.
Note: the prices I listed were pre-2021 inflation prices. *facepalm* I usually stock up on diced tomatoes at .50/can and I try to use dry beans (cooked in my IP ahead of time) to keep costs down. And leg quarters on sale at .69/lb provide much of my chicken as well as the bones that make scrumptious broth. My broth is flavored with all the odds and ends and outer layers of celery, carrots, onions, garlic, and peppers that get tossed in a growing bag in the freezer in the weeks leading up to broth-making. My taco seasoning is mixed up at home (vs the cost of store packets).
Taco Soup: https://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2008/02/original-taco-soup-crockpot-recipe.html (I usually skip the ranch packet to make it dairy-free, but it does make it yummy!)
Salsa Chicken: modified from this recipe: https://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2008/06/crockpot-salsa-chicken-recipe.html (I use ONE leg quarter with a cup of frozen corn and a cup of salsa and a can of black beans and then serve it over rice.)
If I 'm making a Salsa Chicken freezer meal for a friend, I drop a leg quarter and a cup of corn and a cup of salsa and a can of black beans in a gallon ziplock bag and then give this link to my friend: https://thoughtsntravels.wordpress.com/2019/01/24/making-salsa-chicken
For my chicken noodle/rice soup, I just use homemade broth and toss in noodles or rice (depending on what I have on hand or if I want it gluten-free), add in diced cooked chicken, some frozen mixed veggies, and some basic spices like basil and sage. If I have celery and onion on hand, I'll saute that and some garlic before I add the other ingredients.
Hope this helps!
This was great! I’ve done so many cool things, but I’ve never driven farm machinery! I want to and think I might be good at it. Fifty years ago I had a young beau who was a farm boy. Who knows what might have been? We try to bloom where we are planted, but even blooming things have phases of rest. Thanks very much!
@Jenny, come by my parents' farm some summer and join in the wheat harvest! We'll even let you drive the combine -- promise! 🙂
And yes, there are seasons of pruning and seasons of growth and seasons where we can't see anything happening, but yet God is still working.
Really enjoyed reading about you and your life. May you continue to have the strength to do those things God has called you to.
@Zina, thank you so much for your encouragement. That means a lot. <3
@Caroline Starr Rose, My succulents got a little *too* much attention that year! One lady told me that she walked into with the succulent to give to her child's teacher only to find three other of my succulent plants on the teacher's desk already! 🙂 I hope THAT teacher liked succulents!
I’d be glad to share recipes! It’s nothing fancy — I’m too practical for that. 😛 You can find links to the taco soup and salsa chicken recipes here: https://thoughtsntravels.wordpress.com/2021/11/16/easy-frugal-allergen-friendly-recipes/
Dorinda is a wonderful woman of God. I have known her and her family for at least two decades (holy, moly! How am I that old! 😉 )
The way these 'strangers' on this blog speak of her is spot-on. She is loving, generous, creative, funny, connecting, genuine, and real.
I want to add something about her rice bags. We have a friend whose father died suddenly of Covid last year. Dorinda made many of her bags and sold them with the profit going to our friend and her family to help cover expenses. Another way she uses her talents to bless those around her.
Dorinda, I thank God for you and your family. There is no doubt that my life is better having you in it.
I am not at all surprised to hear the story about the rice bags; that seems just like something Dorinda would do. 🙂
Oh, Amy.... I didn't share that link so you could come here and rat on me. 😉 (Should I rat on how you bought 18+ rice bags just to support that friend? And how is it possible that we've known each other for +20 years?!?!) But thank you for such kind and encouraging and gracious words.
One of my all time favorite quotes is from a book titled _Tales of the Kingdom_ about a character who emerges from her carefully curated world and then lives her life as a testimony to a banished King.
"And Thespia became a street player in the back alleys and dead ends of Enchanted City, acting out the King’s story in such a way that all who saw her suspected—then hoped—that there was a real kingdom."
And that's my desire... that people who see my life will suspect--and hope--that there is a real King and a real Kingdom. Keep praying for me for that, will you, Amy? <3
@Kristen, Your comment made me grin with happiness like a Cheshire cat! Thanks for your gracious words and encouragement in the blog and in your comments.
Just blown away and inspired by this lovely post. Everyday life,working,helping,mothering,wife-ing, all can be so draining when we’re in that season of Life.. never enough hours or energy in a day or a night..
Thank you for sharing!
@Madeline, thank you for your gracious and encouraging words. Yes - always limits to our energy and hours. May you be encouraged as well as you journey through your responsibility, blessings, and challenges!
I really needed to read this today. I have been dealing with a lot of transitions and you sound so encouraging. I have to keep reminding myself that I can't do it all but I still want to. You sound like a woman after my own heart with only sewing practical things! I don't create but I'm ALWAYS mending my kids and husband's clothes.
@Jenni, I'm glad my post could encourage you in the middle of your transitions and hard days. I'll be real with you -- my kids are alternating back and forth between two pairs of pants each right now because I haven't even managed to get to the practical mending!!! You're right -- we can't do it all. Praying for grace for you as you're in the thick of things. Transitions are even more exhausting than regular life as you have to figure out new rhythms and new ways of doing things and new relationship dynamics!
Thank you so much for such an open and honest post! I read it in the morning when it posted but knew I had to save it and re-read it when I had better time to appreciate it (and formulate a comment since English is not my first language).
While it’s not good to read that other suffer too from burnout and depression I found both inspiration and motivation reading what you wrote. I find it so easy to be swept up in the #doallthethings mentality, so it’s so good to read sensible thoughts about it.
Even though one can say it’s really just common sense it’s hard to manage to see that when you’re struggling. So thanks again for sharing so generously.
It looks like a such beautiful area you live in and you’re blessed with a lovely family, I wish you continued joy and happiness and that you manage to get some regular time for yourself without responsibility.
This was a fascinating read! Thanks for sharing.