Meet a Reader | Jennifer from Arkansas
Hello! We're meeting an Arkansas reader today and initially, I thought she was the first one! But then I realized that we'd met Jane before, and she hails from the Hot Springs area of Arkansas.
Anyway! Here's Jennifer. 🙂
1. Tell us a little about yourself
Greetings from the NW corner of Arkansas, where I was born (around 40+ years ago) and raised. My time in Arkansas has only been interrupted by 15 years in SW MO on a remote farm in the holler, where I commuted from & was a caregiver for the spouse.
I’ve been an RN for 22 years at the same hospital, primarily ER/TC. Now I'm living on the small acreage that I was raised on (which is now smack dab in the middle of town & 2 miles from work) with my mom & my two kids, 15 & 8.
We teamwork together to homeschool-I was homeschooled until nursing school, and I am privileged to be teaching my kids & have my mom assist on the days I work.
We all went through a messy complicated divorce-I'm grateful to say my kids & I are finally safe, but still recovering/healing.
When my daddy passed last January, I inherited all the heavy farm labor responsibilities- I never knew I could have impressive muscles😊.
It feels like I’ve been going to a homesteading college this year, it’s a love/hate relationship. Especially right now in negative temps-breaking ice, hauling water & firewood, and defending the birds from a marauding fox.
We have sheep, an old goat, chickens, guineas, dogs & cats. We use the eggs, harvest meat & if I can't get out to hunt venison we've had friends give us meat.
We also grow a large garden & lots of flowers, fruit trees & a 100-year-old grapevine.
This year I was so pleased to have frozen tons of veg/fruit & made jam/juice from the grapes.
We have significant food restrictions so sourcing our own is helpful health-wise & cost-effective too. We cut our own firewood from trees on our land that were blown down 5 years ago in a tornado.
I seriously overextended on planting and underestimated how much work my dad used to do so hopefully I’ve learned from my mistakes & will not kill myself in the garden this year!
Besides farming, I love reading, enjoy baking & am always looking for new affordable adventures for my kids & I (new trails, a movie, water park, climbing, bookstores off the beaten track, escape rooms)
2. How long have you been reading The Frugal Girl?
Since summer ’09, right after I had my first kid. I had huge medical bills for the spouse, was only working PRN, and needed new ideas on cutting corners.
3. How did you get interested in saving money?
I was born frugal, into a super frugal family.
My Dad was a blue-collar factory worker with an incredible work ethic (3 jobs at a time to pay bills if needed), Mom (& her higher degree) quit teaching & chose to stay home to educate me & eventually my brother; they started a ministry when I was a year old-we all helped with the maintenance & function of said ministry.
Sports/extracurriculars were funded by Mom cleaning houses/church. My first memory of helping was around 2 years old; I kept a ledger of expenses at 8 years old, which reflected priorities early (books & leather boots) & so it goes.
4. What's the "why" behind your money-saving efforts?
Multi-pronged answer here: historically it was hard-wired in my DNA as a necessity but also being a good steward of what we’re blessed with & being able to give/help others; having enough for emergency funds was always a high priority as well.
Those skills/needs became vital in my marriage as the spouse was chronically ill with astronomical medical bills & expensive tastes. Staying out of debt was/is very important to me & miraculously I have succeeded this far, praise God.
Now-I’m a single parent who works part-time, cares for my elder mother, homeschools & runs a farm. This means funds are tight.
My kids both have chronic medical issues that are costly & require much budgeting. Don’t even talk to me about retirement! I’ll be working until I die in the harness😊
5. What's your best frugal win?
Two “small” ones come to mind- my first car & first motorcycle-owned for a while, did a few small repairs & sold for what I paid. As a young 20 something, that felt big!
When college was looming, my parents offered to let me live at home cost-free while I was in college, as their contribution to my higher education. I also hunted & scrounged for scholarships like a bloodhound.
By the time I got my degree, I came out being paid vs paying for school!
6. What's an embarrassing money mistake you've made?
In my first year of marriage, I listened to unwise counsel & spent money willy-nilly, the stuff just disappeared like water. Do I know where it went? Heavens, no.
7. What's one thing you splurge on?
Used bookstores, fair trade products, and locally sourced food/baskets/pottery are favorites, in addition to monthly outings with my kids.
8. What's one thing you aren't remotely tempted to splurge on?
Electronics/beauty products/new furniture or household items (I'm using things left by my grandparents & living in their house, have done some changes & repairs but free/thrift is excellent).
Basically, I'm not tempted by anything over $50 that’s not a necessity😊
9. If $1000 was dropped into your lap today, what would you do with it?
Ironically, this happened at Christmas-totally out of the blue.
I cut it in half & split that half between my kids' college fund, spent $100 on myself as a Christmas gift, and I'm saving the rest for new tires within the next few months
10. What's the easiest/hardest part of being frugal?
Easiest is so many parts of living frugal are just natural, like it didn’t occur to me that packing my lunch/making my own coffee/repairing ripped things is abnormal or cost effective-I just did it, then reading Kristen opened my eyes to a lot of neat saves, things I do that I didn’t even consider frugal!
The hardest-it gets really old being on a tight budget sometimes, even looking at the end game or the why.
I do try to do special things for myself & kids as possible (new to us book, sweet treat, adventures on the cheap, etc) in addition to choosing gratitude (Thankful Thursday anyone? Plus the Examen habit-I write down gifts daily, I must for my heart)
11. Is there anything unique about frugal living in your area?
Living in NW Arkansas is Walmart headquarters land.
So I have watched the cost of living skyrocket in the last 20 years but wages haven’t caught up yet. And the community resources & infrastructure are still trying to catch up-namely trails/CSA or food salvage/affordable theater/art/farmers markets-things that used to be affordable but have shot up with everything else.
There’s always been garage sales/flea markets, library, state parks, fishing. But generally, most things have gone up in cost.
This is a challenge that is usually a game for my mom & me, how to beat the system, how to score needs/wants (carhart coveralls for a $1 or a free day pass to a climbing gym most recently) for practically nothing.
12. What frugal tips have you tried and abandoned?
Cost comparison or coupons-my time is limited. Basically, Aldi’s/Sam’s are the most affordable & that’s the best I can manage right now!
13. What single action or decision has saved you the most money over your life?
Except for that one-off year of stupidity, the deliberate intentional mindset of “Do I need it/can I afford it/do I have something else to sub for this/can I fix it??” It's reminiscent of the WWII mantra, in fact!
14. How has reading The Frugal Girl changed you?
As mentioned, this blog has changed my POV on what’s “actually” frugal, so that makes me feel more successful & victorious!
15. Which is your favorite type of post at the Frugal Girl and why?
Thankful Thursday, 5 Frugal Things, and her way of graciously sharing her faith but loving everyone here
16. Did you ever receive any financial education in school or from your parents?
From my mother: she taught me mostly everything including checkbook balancing, saving, investing, economics, etc. It clicked with me early (as we saw above) so anything that smacks of poor management gives me hives.
17. Do you have any tips for frugal travel or vacations?
Similar to many others, we pack snacks & cook on trips. We have several food intolerances/needs so cooking is just mostly easier/cheaper. I usually take laundry pods & wash clothes wherever for less luggage/cost.
We don’t travel much anymore, so I enjoy reading everyone else’s tricks.
_______________
Jennifer, it was fun to read about your life! We have a lot in common...our age, a divorce, a nursing career (though mine has not even started!), and I smiled when I saw you'd spent time applying for scholarships. Me too!
As a seasoned nurse, do you have any tidbits of advice for me?
Your grapevine is beautiful! I'm assuming it produces seeded grapes, so I'm wondering...how do you remove the seeds for jam/juice?
Very interesting interview! I loved reading this. How cool to live with your mom and be able to both have her help with your kids and you also be able to help take care of her.
Pictures of the grapes were gorgeous.
Hi Jennifer! You do lead a very busy life! Your mother must be very happy to be part of your family in this way. I am impressed that you sometimes shoot your venison on top of all the other things you do (I do not hunt, but am convinced you need patience as well as skill).
@JNL, to me the most impressive part isn't the hunting and shooting itself, it's processing the meat afterwards.
Jennifer, what do you do with the skin and such?
@WilliamB, I can't speak for Jennifer, but what my husband does is discard the skin and bones of a deer he gets. Sometimes he'll mount the head, or just the antlers, depending on the size and quality.
Jennifer,
You are knocking it out of the park. I am glad you are part of the community. Thank you for taking the time to share your life and for including so many photos with your interview. I love the life you have pieced together and how devoted you are to family and the family farm. I hope it becomes easier as you establish a new "normal".
I loved reading this interview! I am a single mom, living a divorce, and money will be very tight but I have always been very frugal because we all lived on one salary while I was still married. I also homeschooled my boys! I look forward to reading more of your interviews 🙂
Nice to meet your, Jennifer. I'm sure it's not ALL sunshine, but I'm envious of you having your mother with you, helping you out with homeschooling. My father lives with us, and he is more than willing to help with homeschool-- but he does not have experience/patience?--for whatever reason, the children would prefer Mom helping them with their school. Except for spelling test. A couple of them will let him dictate spelling tests 🙂
You are amazing.
Lovely to meet you! I really admire your hardy work ethic and resilience and dedication to your family. Thanks for sharing your story!
Grapevine: you juice them and use only the juice. (Grew up picking wild grapes which my mom made into jelly.)
Thanks so much for your interview, Jennifer! I am exhausted just thinking about your life, but you seem to be rocking it. You and your kids are so attractive and you look just like your mom.
Wow! What a joy it is to read about your life! There are so many things in your interview that are inspiring: your work ethic, your sense of family, your love of community, your resourcefulness, and your faith. I do not know how you have time to do all that you do. Do you have any helpful hints for time management?
On a side note, my husband had a project a few years ago in Arkansas. While there, he had a medical emergency and I flew out to be with him. The people in Arkansas were the kindest, most helpful people that I ever met. I felt like I had stepped back in time in a good way.
Nice to meet you Jennifer. Do you have to prune grapevines??
You and your mom are nicely helping each other out!!
It's great to hear from another of our "pioneer women," as I think of you, @kristin @ going country, and others. Your farm photos are all lovely--although I'm sure I wouldn't have enjoyed doing farm chores in the recent cold snap, either! And your picture of the firewood in the trailer was a blast from the past for me, as it reminded me happily of my DH's "urban logging" days. (He had a trailer almost exactly like yours.)
It was lovely to meet you, Jennifer. I admire all your efforts to run the farm, homeschool, and work!
But when do you sleep?
This was very enjoyable to read. My daughter is in a season of applying for scholarships, so it was encouraging to read how financially helpful it was for you. I found myself nodding when you mentioned looking for inexpensive fun options for your kids. My kids are 18 and 20 and I still look for good deals when we have opportunity to go out as a family. 🙂
My condolences on the loss of your father. It's hard to lose your daddy. I'm sure your mom appreciates having you and your children living together and helping out. Thanks for sharing a bit of your life with us!
@Kris,
If you have a daughter looking for scholarships, please check out PEO International @ https://www.peointernational.org/
This organization has many types including scholarships for graduate students and women who have had their educations interrupted by life events. They even have very low interest loans - much lower than those offered through the Department of Education. They even run a highly-regarded small college in Nevada, MO. Don’t worry they are legitimate. They have been established for 150 years and have Chapters in every state. Women helping women reach for the stars.
I got a PEO scholarship, and it paid for my books for my first semester. 🙂
@Bee, thank you! I think my MIL is a PEO member. I was unaware that they had scholarships. I appreciate your thoughtfulness.
You are very inspiring. Even with all the challenges it sounds like you have a beautiful life. Side note - your black dog with the white paws is a twin to my pup. She came from Arkansas as a rescue!!
@Jill A, My coonhound was found looking like a skeleton in the woods of Arkansas.
Jill A and Rose, my dog (also black and white) is also a rescue from Arkansas!
Hi Jennifer! I think we both found FG at around the same time. It sounds like you're making the best out of a tough situation and you're doing a great job of of Living Cheerfully on Less. Your children will cherish the memories of living as a multi-generational family and they're going to be fantastically competent. Go you!
@WilliamB, I whined about being overwhelmed to my organization person today, and she said, "Oh, one step at a time," and I said, "Thanks, you are always so cheerful!" She said, "Me? Cheerful?" I said, "When you have the personality of Lurch like me, everyone else is more cheerful."
Northeast, not northwest, Arkansas was in our local weather “circle” when I was growing up but I still feel like I know your area. It’s a pretty state.
I am impressed with all you do. I’m also impressed with your attitude! I lived on a hog farm with chickens, a horse and we rented pasture to other farmers for their cows. I know your work is hard, much harder than mine was because my daddy handled the hardest stuff. Yet you are so upbeat!
Thanks for submitting. I wish you good weather, healthy family and livestock, and a weed-free garden!
Kristen, I get juice by crushing the grapes in a strainer like an old Victorio hand cranked strainer or in a foodmill. I can also crush and cook the grapes then strain them but I usually put them through a food-mill. A jelly bag or cheesecloth is used after that to get clear juice, such as for jelly.
Hi Jennifer! Everything is a thousand times harder in very cold/snowy weather when you're caring for animals and heating with wood. Chopping out the water or carrying it gets old, cleaning out the woodstove gets old, hauling in the wood gets old . . . I feel you. And I am suitably impressed that you choose to do all of this on your own. I would definitely not have as many animals if I were the sole caretaker for them. Gold star for you.
When I saw the title, thought it was funny as I'm Jennifer from NWA at least during the school year. This is a very expensive part of the state to live in, which is partly the reason we are building a shouse on our daughter's land. Thank you for sharing and yes, Kristin has made me realize things that I'd never thought of as frugal, actually are. You are rocking the life your leading now & I love that you have a multi-generational home. The library in Bentonville is marvelous & they always have books for sale, very inexpensively. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Jennifer - I agree with all the others; you're doing an amazing job! I hope your homestead college courses get easier quickly - I think I would have overextended in the garden too. And I would personally dread getting to the outdoor chores in the cold. But what a rich home you've created! You've made me realize - I don't think there's a single room in my house that doesn't have hand-me-down furniture from my grandparents or parents. I love using those things and thinking of them (and they're so much sturdier than things we've bought more recently).
BTW I love that first picture of your family - it's rather gray here today, and seeing your nice family with the Christmas light background made my day much more cheerful - thanks for sharing!
Jennifer, what a gal you are! And I'm all for the multigenerational lifestyle. It is so enriching. Thank you for sharing your life with us.
Kristen, I have those Concord type grapes, too. I slip the skins and put them in a bowl, a tedious process to be sure. Cook the grapes for a bit and then run them through a food mill. I add the skins (after blending) back in and make the best grape preserves following the recipe in the Sure-Jell pectin package. I have also made a scrumptious grape pie by slipping the skins and adding them back in whole with the milled grapes (to remove the seeds). The 70's Better Homes and Garden Recipe Book has the recipe.
Good to meet you Jennifer! Single moms are hardworking moms. I greatly respect you and everything you do for your family. Your sunflowers are gorgeous. I agree the best course of action for food intolerances is whole foods and cooking from scratch. I know so many people struggling with GF and they don't "know" how to cook from scratch.
Jennifer, I love seeing your trailer filled with firewood! I too am burning wood from my property. Over the weekend we were gifted a mesh bag of firewood that someone bought but did not use. That wood is so beautiful -- all the same length, nicely shaped, pretty bark, and not a speck of dirt. I became instantly dissatisfied with my back yard hodge podge. Your variety of sizes helps me remember what is important - free heat. Do you split the wood yourself?
Jennifer, I am in awe of your work ethic and talents. And, managing a college degree plus letting your kids know that they will go to college, too, and how important that is. In earning power it really is the best frugal move. Anyone may need to stand on their own two feet, economically, due to circumstances, let alone provide for children.
Your kids are learning more lessons from you than I can count. Major props to you! You have a lovely family and care for them so, so well. Their smiles tell us that.
I also went to college in SW MO (Springfield) and made many visits to friends’ homes in NW AR (Rogers and near Eureka Springs and Thorncrown Chapel). Arkansas is a beautiful state.
You are doing an amazing job with your homestead (plus everything else)! I only grow part of our fruit and veggies and that’s plenty of work by itself.
Oh, we're getting 2 profiles for the cost of one today. And both from Arkansas. Jennifer, you are a real pioneer woman with all the work around the farm/homestead that you do. I am greatly impressed! I hope things thaw out enough to make it easier on you, but you're really working hard year 'round. That tornado must have saved you a fortune in not having to pay a tree man to chop down the trees! (Don't ask me how I know that one.) But it sounds frightening and I hope no one was hurt. You have a fine looking family and I know the kids must have an amazing life, living in the country and getting to go on adventures with you.
What hope that a messy divorce can result in safety for kids and mom! That’s my prayer for me and my kids. I feel you on working til death. I also have a kid with disability and it will keep getting more expensive.
Isn't it nice to hear stories from the other side? One of my professors this week told her story of a divorce, then nursing school, and now she's in a happy marriage...she said, "He is my whole world." and then tears sprang to my eyes in class.
We will get through this, and there will be happiness on the other side.
Hi Jennifer! I loved reading about your frugal and interesting life. You're doing an amazing job keeping everything going for your family. I'm very glad you are all safe and thriving.
Jennifer,
What an inspiring sharing. You clearly inherited the work ethic and other skills from your Mom and Pop (who sound like such wonderful people) who modeled so much that has become a part of your life.
I don't know how you have the energy to run the farm, work part time, also home school and generally be a caregiver and parent. May you have good health to match all your energy and thoughtfulness.
I hope you will be safe and secure from whatever things/people who caused problems in your life.
You were clearly already involved in "frugal" living and are clear about what is the best use of your time (keeping the farm going, taking care of loved ones). It's great that you can reuse/recycle furniture from the family. It's great that there was furniture to reuse!
I admire your commitment to maintaining the farm, keeping what your Mom and Dad created. Just thinking about all you have to do is overwhelming.
May you have the physical strength and mental fortitude to continue on your path!
My goodness, Jennifer, you are amazingly self-sufficient, capable, determine, and just plain herculean in overcoming enormous difficulties! What a fabulous example you are to us and to your daughters. Thank you for letting us peek into your life.
I really enjoyed reading your interview, Jennifer! Thank you for sharing with us! One thing I love about gardening is that it seems like there is always more to learn. You learn from your previous year and adjust. There's always something different you can try. I wish you all the best in your gardening adventure and everything else this year!
Nice to meet you, Jennifer! Our stories are eerily similar, only I am older than you and my children are 27 & 37, proudly serving in the armed forces medical fields.
I live on and singly work my parent's farm, only work pt as a nurse. I grow, harvest and process my own meat (deer, elk, duck, goose, ocean fish) and can/dehydrate/freeze dry from my 1 acre garden/orchard. I use a saftborn juice extractor (steam) that I bought from the sweet owner of my first farm. I use an attachment on my kitchen aid mixer to remove seeds/skins from berries and tomatoes for canning purposes. So nice to meet you! One of my favorite homesteading reads is ashleyadamant@substack.com.
You may give new meaning to "hard working." I cannot imagine carrying your load, and with such a good attitude. Thanks for sharing your story.
Wow, Jennifer, you are amazing. I always get so happy reading about those with multigenerational homes, and it's great that your mom is on board with homeschooling! We tried for years to get my in laws to at least move to the same town as us, and get out of their falling-down-house, to no avail.
I'm tired just reading about all you do! Thanks for sharing your life with us. 🙂
Jennifer I'm your neighbor! I live in western Benton county & have been here 34 yrs. I came here as a newlywed & I homeschooled. Your mom looks very familiar to me....we could have been in the same groups. Such a small world.
what a wonderful post. thanks for sharing . growing up with frugal parents is such a blessing. your post is so impressive. great pets. you are so strong, smart and loving. all the best to you and your wonderful family.
Oh my goodness, just sat down to read all the comments (yes, I've been outside doing farm work:), it's been sunny & warm-giving me opportunity to get stuff done!)
Everyone is so very kind, it made me cry! Thank you for your encouragement & awe. To me, it just seems normal so I totally don't see myself like y'all do.
I'll try to answer the questions... And to reiterate it truly is a team effort.
My brother helps with the really super heavy-duty tasks-commercial weight chain saw. He & my son do the wood splitting, some by hand & some by a gas-powered splitter. The hay bucking & fence building have been me, but I injured my arm so I may have to outsource some this spring. I also access help for homeschooling subjects I hate or am not good at (MATH!)
Grapes seem to be quite popular. Agronomist evaluated the vines many years ago-it's so ancient there's not a conclusive answer, however they do resemble Concord. Slightly tart, seeded. This was my first year to process them. I cooked them, stuffed them into cheesecloth & let drain overnight, made jelly the next day, didn't skin them. We have several hand crank grinders but one dedicated to grapes as they scar it, hence the draining. Yes, I prune them (today in fact:). I use the vines to make wreaths.
Hunting: all the tools to process myself are in MO, inaccessible. When we did do it ourselves, the skin went to a friend's daughter who tans them & makes clothes. Now I take them to the same processing plant as our sheep/cattle. I do it because it's a need, I hate the actual killing-so much so that I practiced my shot to be a one shot kill for no suffering, up to 1000 yards.
Animals: HA!! I didn't actually choose the quantity. Only the Corgi & one sheep were my choice. We had the Ewe bred, expecting one lamb for food...she's had twins once, triplets twice. This has become ridiculous so I'm selling some this spring. Guineas-this year was the highest hatch rate ever...60 chicks!! We have to baby them, as the adults don't take care of them but thankfully sold most of them.
In my efforts to learn, I've been attending various seminars on farming (thankfully virtual).
Nursing: Kristen, you have an excellent attitude & life experience to get you going well. What I like about the career is the wide variety of options, if you get tired/burnt out on one specialty there's tons more to jump into. I miss the ER, but I just can't hack that with all the other things. So now I am in the Hub, hospital air traffic control-not fun, but provides. Tips: persevere, take mental breaks, take the negative with a huge grain of salt, be kind to yourself, you're not in it for $ or kudos. I view it as a ministry/calling.
@Jennifer, using the pruned grapevines to make wreaths - that seems like a great symbol for you; using leftovers and creating beauty!
I wish I could give that sheep a loving squeeze! 🙂
Thank You posting, this is another good one! The photos are great, reminds me of my Grandparents and the home place.
the Examen habit; new to me, I like it, thanks