I'm Crystal Paine, the blessed wife of Jesse and mommy to the two cutest little girls in the whole world (Kathrynne was born in 2005 and Kaitlynn in 2007).
I'm first and foremost a child of God. When I was 11, He saved me out of a life headed for destruction and gave me a new heart passionate about glorifying Him and making the most of my days on this earth. All I have and all I am is thanks to my Creator and Redeemer.
I'm also a homeschool graduate, sister to six, and daughter of the best parents ever. I owe so much to them--including being financially-savvy.
My mom was the one who first introduced me to couponing, made me my coupon organization box, and gave me a copy of Miserly Moms. Not only that, but she also put me in charge of the grocery shopping, menu-planning, and cooking for our family of nine for a few years while I was still living at home. Talk about great practice for the future!
When my husband and I first married and were living on a beans-and-rice budget in order to stay out of debt while he went through law school, I thrived on coming up with creative ways to pinch pennies. I didn't always enjoy barely making ends meet, but I certainly loved the thrill of getting the best bang for my buck.
One way we saved thousands of dollars during those learn years was to keep our grocery and household products budget to $35 a week. I had fun taking couponing to a whole new level and spent at least a few hours each week becoming proficient in "couponese" and playing the "Drug Store Game".
A few years ago, I briefly shared a bit on bargain-shopping on my other blog one day, and I was quickly inundated with questions on how we accomplish to eat on so little.
The questions kept coming despite writing a blog series, an ebook, and an ecourse on the subject of Supermarket Savings.
As time marched on and the questions and requests and emails continued to pour in, MoneySavingMom.com was born. It's been quite the adventure and has far exceeded my wildest imaginations thanks to the many wonderful readers who have spread the word. In less than a year, it has become one of the highest-trafficked personal finance blogs on the web. And it just keeps growing!
Who knows what the future holds, but I know that any success is thanks to the Lord, to my parents, to my wonderful husband, and to the loyal readers who constantly push and stretch me to be a better home economist myself.
When I'm not blogging or bargain-shopping, I enjoy tweaking recipes and baking big batches of things for the freezer, engaging in thought-provoking discussions, trying to keep up with politics, indulging in dark chocolate, drinking a hot cup of tea while reading a good book, or spending a quiet day at home with my family. I like to keep it simple, I disdain clutter, I like to laugh, and most of all, I love the Lord and my family. And that pretty much sums it up.
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