Laura Williams' Musings: About Me

Thursday, April 12, 2007

About Me Pin It

Hi I'm Laura.

I am a Christian first and foremost. I am not perfect by any means but I try to live a life that is pleasing to God. I am a wife, a stay at home mom, a sister, an aunt, and a grandmother. Before becoming a stay at home wife and mother, I was a paralegal. Although my degree lays in a drawer drawing dust and age, my role and job as a stay at home mother has been far more rewarding than when I was a paralegal.

I enjoy reading, scrapbooking, sewing, as well as cross-stitching, crocheting, quilting, and a few other crafts too but don't always have time to do them all so I do what I can when I can. I also love to garden and cook. I don't like weeding that garden though or washing the dishes up but it has to be done. My family and I grow a mixture of herbs, flowers, vegetables, fruit trees and vines. We don't use pesticides or herbicides so you can really just wash off the dirt and eat it. We practice the putting up of food by canning, dehydrating, and freezing. Would love to have a root cellar but living on this mountain makes it hard to dig a root cellar through the rock.

My husband and I both grew up in upper Northeast TN around the Bristol, TN area.. Bluff City for me and Piney Flats for hubby. We now live nearer the Chattanooga area in the beautiful mountains outside there and although it is not our hometown area we still have that small town feel (well when we travel off the mountain into town) and we love it. We live on 5 acres in the country and are raising our children to appreciate country life like we both grew up with. We are parents to seven here on earth and a little one in heaven as well as being grandparents two sweet little boys.

We have been a homeschooling family since 1999. Our oldest, who was homeschooled from 4th grade through 12th, graduated in 2006. At the current time, I homeschool a 6th grader, 5th grader, 3rd grader, 1st grader, kindergartner, and a preschooler. Fun times!

I am an ~~avid~~ extreme couponer and refunder. As such, I created the Coupon Binder Method in the late 90’s while a member at MyCoupons.com where I posted under the username of LWMSAVON.

The Coupon Binder Method caught on and now numerous women and men across the country are using it to organize their coupons to maximize their savings.

I am also frugal by nature and a home canner which combined with the couponing helps me to keep the pantry stocked and the grocery budget low.

During my money saving journey, I have been featured in:

Refunding Makes Cents Magazine

December 2000

April 2001

May 2001

June 2001

August 2001

November 2008

December 2008

Jan/Feb 2009

along with my binder method being posted on the Refund Cents website where is still posted to the present time.

July 2001

Woman's Day Magazine

October 9, 2001 – wherein I was featured in an article titled “Save Like a Super Shopper”

Here are the scans of the Woman's Day Magazine article in which I was featured.
(You should be able to click on these to enlarge them enough to read if you wish.)

Countryside & Small Stock Journal
Volume 88 Number 5 September/October 2004 – Canning recipes and apple cider vinegar how-to featured in the "Our favorite canning recipes" article. You can see that article here.

The Encyclopedia of Country Living
Worked with other reviewers and testers at HomesteadingToday.com forum in conjunction with the Author, Carla Emery, in preparation of the publication of the 10th Edition of this book. Mrs. Emery passed away before the 10th Edition could be finished and published with new information and/or revisions. Her husband had a different version of the 10th Edition published.