Tis that time of year when the schedules get busy and well there is still lots t do this holiday season. For me I have always loved homemade gifts especially as hostess and teacher presents. What do I do? I love gifts in a jar! Can you say yum. They are an inexpensive way to say thanks and in most homes they are greatly appreciated. So I was excited this year when I saw this Free downloadable Ebook at Favecrafts. Can you say 34 Holiday Ideas for Gifts in a jar? For me this makes sense. What I do I take my favorite jar recipe and then head to the local dollar store for jars. That way I am ready for holiday parties and teacher presents. Roo gets to decorate the lids.

Simply sign up and go to latest free ebooks and you can find this there as well as some other great choices.

For me this works! Now I am off to We are That Family to see what is working for everyone else.

Well week one on my way to becoming a frugal fit and fabulous 45 yr old is done..How did I do? In some ways I sucked, really I didnt exersice near enough. In some ways I did great:

How?

• Signed up to Bust a Move ( Nova Scotia needs more digital breast diagognstic equipment and we are raising 1 million dollars to help increase the capacity of our local services by 75%. Every second day a woman dies here from cancer. That is a scary stat. I want to be part of the solution so I am busting a move. I will be exerscing for 6 hours on January 30th all for the cause. If you can help out even with a small donation you can go to my donation page here.
• I drank alot more water this week.
• I did eat alot of raw veggies, and fruit.
• I drank less soda
• I joined a gym. Today I became a member at Nubody’s and have a meeting there next week with a trainer.

Now for some real good news.. I lost 4 pounds this week so I am happy about that.

By the way on the frugal side of things I got a great rate at the gym. How I made use of a corporate rate. At $20.34 it definitely made this a more affordable option.

Starting today, each Saturday I will write about some of my favorite blog posts around the blogosphere. There are so many good posts out there but a few each week always stand out in your mind. Some weeks I may even introduce you to some of my favorite bloggers.I will also recap me week.

This week here on the home front it was a busy week with my daughter Roo away at Tim Horton’s Camp for part of the week then what did she bring home with her but a yeast infection. So I have been filling her with 2 old fashion remedies yogurt and cranberry  juice. I also made the choice that this 40 something mom is going to be a fit frugal fabulous mom.

So what caught my eye and attention as I read this week:

1. Over at Wisebread read a really good article on 7 Cheap and Natural Ways to Fight the Cold and Flu. With all the talk about this being a harsh cold and flu season I found this a very timely read.

2.Once again over at Where does all My Money Go Preet talks money and kids..This week It is all about Planet Orange. It seems ING has launched a new website Planet Orange as a tool to teach kids like my Roo about money. I told Roo and well she checked out the site. First the game is set up like many kid game sites online. You have two guides Cedric and Amy who help teach you and you get to explore for areas where you do learn about money. Roo gave the site a 3.5/5..She thought things were a little easy. But then she is 11. So age wise she is at the older end of their target spectrum.

3.Over at Get Rich Slowly there is a cool post about Accumulation and Attachment: Finding a Balance. Having been somone who has lost everything she owned more then once I have learned the lesson things are things-they come they go, they have usefulness but really what do we need. In our apartment now there are functional things and a few things well we love..I believe in everything we can find balance.

4.Okay I think everyone who knows me knows I am a huge Gail Vazoxlade fan. This week one of her posts Its Only hit close to home. Sometimes it really is too easy to justify with a its only and where does that get me, where does that get you.

Now one of my favorite blogs is turning 2 this week ..so why not stop by and wish We are that Family a happy anniversay! she offers up a great Works for Me Wednesday carnival and I am loving her Do It Yourself Projects.

If I could not walk far and fast, I think I should just explode and perish.”

~Charles Dickens

For those of you who know me, know I am fat! I am also trying to lose weight. To bIe honest I am at my heaviest ever! It scares me. In fact today I did a real age test. It said my body is 56! I am 44. Yikes!

What works for me  as I try and battle my weight and have made the choice to get healthier is walking. For those of us blessed with legs that can move we can WALK. It is a great frugal way to get yourself in shape. For me there are some great trails right by my apartment so I am lucky. As winter comes soon though I may become a mall walker because this girl does not plan on being fat for long.. In fact if you come back on Friday I am going to start a new series here on the blog where I track my progress and share what is working for this mom when it comes to frugal fitness. Now I am off to see what is working for everyone else this week at We are that Family.

This post has been a long time coming. One could say it was 40 years in the making. You see I have been on a journey through out my life for things that make sense. For me God makes sense. I know he doesn’t for some and that is ok for them but for me he does.

As a child I grew up in a typical Christian home of sorts, as a teen I had lots of questions about theology. Then as a young woman I decided Mormonism was the answer for me. For many years I was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. After my divorce 10 years plus ago I started to formulate more theology questions. I even started back at my christian roots but the answers werent there for me. Where did I find the answers I sought for many years-in Islam. Yes, Common Cents Mom is coming out and telling the world I am a practicing Muslim.

With that the Hijab, a veil that women wear works for me! It identifies me as a woman of faith, a woman who prays 5 times a day. A woman who worships God (Allah). I have just started to wear it on a more regular basis and I want it out there that I am one who wears the hijab with pride. It works for me.

Now

Now I am off to read over at We Are That Family what works for everyone else and as well see what pictures are being posted for Wordless Wednesday.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=188fVog7KiI]

Have you ever listened to a song that just encourages you this is one of those, and well today I needed the reminder to dream. So I wanted to share it with you all.

Have you discovered the music of Diane Birch yet? I discovered her earlier this week when one of my online friends sent me a song of hers on You Tube. I fell in love with her music. Well it seems this wonderful musician has a very giving heart too and well if you purchase an album through the widget above $1 goes to Autism Speaks. My daughter Roo has Asperger’s syndrome which is on the high functioning end of Autism so this cause is near and dear to my heart. Well it seems the widget for donating does not want  to load here sio if you want to get to where you can buy click here and use the one on my other blog Simply Hollie.

So buy the album, you will love her and think we get to help out too.

Leaving you with the video that was shared with me earlier this week.

Fire Escape

PS You too can participate in discover and donate here!