Practical Ways to Protect Your Time & Do What You Enjoy with Chrystal Paine

So Chrystal Hurst, I'm like a, like a long-term stalker of her. She is, um, my kind of mom. So when it comes to managing your home, um, saving money, um, managing your children, their schedules, all the things that go into keeping a house running while also developing a business kids, growing a business, supporting your husband. She is doing it all. But we know y'all, if you've been around the block any amount of time, that women who quote unquote do it all aren't really doing it all. They're certainly not doing it all at the same time. And they have systems and things that they put in place to make the load reasonably bearable. Um, Chrystal Hurst is one of those women who doesn't just create systems that work for her. She is gifted to then share her life with others, to share what's working, what she's doing, what she's trying, and she has both blessed her family and blessed so many of us, including me, by downloading the lesson she's learned. Thank you, Chrystal Hurst. I'm so excited to have you here with us today.

I'm so excited to be here. And also, I really love your name.

I just have to say that from the top, you know, listen, I mean, maybe that's the attraction. Who knows? I could have been like a crystal because you have been blogging. Okay. So if I think back here, I remember when I was blogging, 2007, 2008. I mean, you've been blog— you were blogging. You started back when blogging was the main thing people wanted to do with their lives. You started what year, do you remember?

So I started on LiveJournal. Remember the days?

Oh, oh yeah, not even a blog, LiveJournal.

LiveJournal in 2004, and then started an official blog on Blogspot in 2005. So I feel like I'm almost hitting great grandma status. Like I used to say, I was a grandma blogger. I don't know, I feel like I'm almost great-grandma status. So.

Long time, long time. And so you've been through all the ebbs and flows of all the things. And, um, but what I've admired is that you've been able to, and I don't want to use the word balance because balance is this word that doesn't really work, but we know what we mean. Um, you've been able to continually in various seasons, doing things in various ways, but continually keep alive, um, the passions that you have. Learning what you want to learn, digging into it, but then using your writing and your presence online to share what you're learning. And I think the beauty of the conversation that we're going to have today, even surrounding where you are in life and the book that you have that you'll be releasing into the world, um, that it is still an overflow of what you're learning, but you didn't just learn it yesterday. Like you didn't just have a year, 365 days of Crock-Pot recipes, and then you were done. Like, it's like You know, we're into the decades now of the lessons that you've learned and things that are tried and true. Um, you also, while I think it's wonderful if we have one child, you also have a few more than one. So this is not something that's doable, um, and where someone's going to look at your life and say, oh yeah, but that's of course you have two children. Like, um, you've got a handful, quiverful, and, um, you're able to make things work. So let me just start with this. You, I would love for people to, first of all, just hear about your family. So as we talk about, um, what it looks like, the title of your new book, uh, The Time-Saving Mom: How to Juggle a Lot, Enjoy Your Life, and Accomplish What Matters Most. Um, I want them, as we discuss some things that you're going to be sharing, for them to know the picture of your life. So can you just talk about who you are, where you are, who you're living with?

So my husband and I have been married for 20 years. We just celebrated our 20th anniversary and we have 6 kids. Um, 5 biological and then one sweet boy that we just recently adopted. So they are, um, almost 18, 15, 13. Then we had 10 years of secondary infertility. We started pursuing foster care, um, just God was really moving in our hearts for that. And so we got all licensed. The very last week of our licensing process, they were doing the walkthrough of our home visit, and I just was like, I am feeling really off, like something's not right. And we had gone to fertility testing and we had looked into doing IVF, and they said we weren't even candidates for IVF because of all of our fertility issues. But lo and behold, I was pregnant, um, naturally. And, uh, that was a huge surprise. But we continued on with foster care, just feeling like God had led us to that. And so we wanted to say yes and be faithful. So 4 weeks before we had our now 2-and-a-half-year-old biological daughter, we also brought home a sweet little boy who was with us for 8 months and, um, got to just love him and walk with his mama. And so we had two newborns in 2020. And then he reunified with his mom, and we're still really involved in their life, which is such a gift. He's almost 3 years old. We also then said yes to David, who— he was almost 8 months when we said yes to him. He has some pretty severe medical complexities. He has Down syndrome. He had a severe cleft lip palate. He also has a feeding tube and was just really malnourished and struggling when he came to us. And so we got a crash course in all things related to special needs, and we had to quickly track down lots of specialists and take him to lots of appointments. And he had a surgery 4 weeks later. And so our life is— a lot of it now is therapies and specialists. Even today, as we're recording, we almost call the ambulance because he had this really scary episode where he was vomiting blood. Um, and so this is just— last week we almost had to take him into the hospital. Um, it's, it's a very big part of our life, um, loving this little boy. And also we're constantly learning new things. Like today we found out we— they think he has gastritis, and apparently you can vomit blood when you have gastritis. So who knew? We did not know that. But, um, so we are just always reliant upon the Lord. But anyway, he is almost 2 and a half. We adopted him in December, so he has been with us for almost 22 months, and we are so grateful for the gift of his life. And then 4 weeks after we said yes to adopting him, which was in, um, October of 2021, I found out that I was expecting again. And so we have our little sweet caboose Micah, who is 6 months old. So yes, we are doing the college thing and also potty training and also, um, nursing, getting up in the middle of the night. So we just, we do all the things, all the parenting things at once. Um, and this life is never what I could have imagined, but also just such a gift.

Nobody understands your life right now. People are like, now what? What? So if you're listening and you want a little more of the behind the scenes, um, be sure and, um, follow, uh, Chrystal Hurst Hurst. She has a website too, thetimesavingmom.com, not the timesavingmom.com, just timesavingmom.com. So you can learn more about her. But let me just, let me just start with this. Do you have help besides you and your husband in your house? Do you have help?

Yes. So we are big into, um, paying other people to do things that we don't necessarily have to do. And so I'm constantly looking at, um, what do I want to prioritize and focus on, and what has God called me to, and what can I ask someone else to do to help? And so not only are 3 teenagers our a huge help. It's amazing having drivers.

Amazing. It's a game changer.

It's like, what? When they can just take themselves places like go to school and come back home and go get groceries. It's incredible. But so, yeah, so having them has been incredible. And then we also have help with the business. So we run a full-time business, like you said, moneysavingmom.com. My husband is home full-time also, so that is a huge help. I work full-time from home and then he works part-time. And so we don't have childcare, but we have the ability to be very flexible with our schedule. And so that is such a gift. And we have, hallelujah, praise Jesus, cleaners who come clean our house once a week, which is amazing.

Because, you know, I think there's a complex, um, and it's a Western thing because, you know, in other parts of the world, you, you don't, you know, you're not rich because you have somebody helping you. It's a part of the society that it's, it's, um, how we as women, as families are able to have balance. And so it comes with all of these nuances and, um, assumptions. You know, I remember I used to even say, um, when, uh, care.com— so my husband traveled for 20 years, um, he worked for music artists and they would be gone for stretches of time because of tour. So he would take the per diem that he would earn because he didn't need it. He was always eating for free. So he would save it up and he would give me an allowance, basically give me money so that I could hire a sitter so that one night a week I could go to Bible study. I was going to BSF. And so that while she was home with the two little ones or three little ones or whatever, also laundry could be folded. So one night a week I could go and talk to an adult if he was going to be gone for three weeks and my laundry would be folded. And I remember someone said to me once, oh, so yeah, don't, don't you, didn't you tell me you had a nanny once a week? And I said, no, I would never have a nanny. I just have a mommy's helper. And because in my mind, You know, my mind, nannies are for rich people. Nannies are for people who don't want to be with their kids, which is not necessarily true. Um, there are ways, whether it's people cleaning your house or people supporting you, um, so that you can do the things that matter the most. And so, and that was one night, put the kids to bed and let— do some— fold the socks so I could go to Bible study. It was amazing. And so I think sometimes we just need to— I asked that question first because I think it's so important for women to be freed up from this idea that they have to do it all. No, none of us All of us can do it all and we just do it smart. And that's what I'm really excited to talk to you about today. So here's my next question. You have a job, you own your own business. You've got these kids, you've got, you know, I always say college and kindergarten happening in the house at the same time. Um, of course your husband is involved and, um, you mentioned the special needs child that you have. What does your day look like, like in broad swatches? Um, do you set aside? Blocks of time for work or days? Do you block your days? Like, generally speaking, how are you blocking or planning for time, um, with your family and for you to be engaged at work, at home, that kind of thing?

So one of the things that I talk about in the book The Time-Saving Mom is my time blocking. This is something that has helped me so much. I use Google Calendar to brain dump all the things in my head, which I fought against that for the longest time because I was like, I'm not a technology person, but I outline in the book how I use it and how it has just been the greatest gift. And then I time block my day, so I actually write out specific time blocks for when I will do things. That is just so helpful. It's like my brain on paper. Yes, yes. Follow what that says, and I put all the things I need to remember. I mean, before I go out the door, I will literally say, bring bottle, bring blanket. Like, it's just— I need to remember all those little things. And if I don't have it written down, if I don't take the time to make that plan, I just find that I kind of just chase my tail all day. So that is really helpful to me. And also then my husband and I, we work together to kind of figure out, okay, since we don't have child care, we do both need some time during the day where we can get some focus work done. And so we decide the beginning of the day what that's going to look like. So usually it'll be, you know, a time block that he will— I will take the 3 kids and 3 little ones, and he will be able to do his work, and then he will take the 3 little ones so that I'm able to do my work. And so that's really helpful for us to communicate ahead of time and decide ahead of time what that looks like. And then the other thing that I really prioritize, and I talk about this a lot in the book, is sleep. Because I have found that I am a much better, nicer, calmer, less irritated mother when I get more sleep. And I think so often we have this feeling of like, well, I can just burn the candle at both ends. Like, if I just sleep less, then I'm able to get more done. But at the cost of what? Your health, your sanity, your being able to have cheerfulness Like, it is something that I really prioritize because it makes such a difference in my life and in our home.

Yeah, I love that. And I mean, I write things. I'm with you. I'm a digital-analog person. I like to be able to see things on the go, but there's something magical that happens when you write it down. And forcing myself to actually see the time in the day, it's like, I think I can get 13 and a half things done, but actually when I plot it out, there's I don't have all that time. Um, because I don't know about you, but I think the greater the, the opportunity to do things I love, to enjoy my family. Um, I've gotten better and more efficient, but sometimes moving faster, swimming faster, running faster is not the answer. So at a certain point, my efficiencies don't go any further than the time that I have. Right. And so then it's like, Actually, I just need to acknowledge the fact that there's limits on my time. There's only so much I can do. And sleep is— did you ever cut corners on your sleep? I mean, you're saying that now, but was sleep a thing you cut corners on in the past?

Absolutely. So, um, I have this gift of— we had 3 older children that I, you know, had, and then we had a 10-year gap and then 3 little children. So it's like I get a redo. And the biggest— one of the biggest things I'm changing, not only is just just in how I'm approaching parenting with— from a place of like, I don't need to perform or please other people, but I can just love my kids and confidently do what God's called me to do. Um, that's a whole nother podcast. But also, I am prioritizing sleep. When my older three were little, oh my goodness, I remember so many nights when I would stay up till 2 or 3 in the morning. I was just working on my work. I would just save all my projects till then, and then I would work. And then of course, if you have a you know, a little one, a lot of times you're getting woken up then. And so it was— my sleep was shortchanged so much. It was a good night if I got 5.5, maybe 6 hours of sleep, and I do not function well on that. And so I had anxiety. I had a lot of issues with postpartum depression. I had a lot of health issues. And I look back and I realize I was just burning myself, like burning the candle at both ends. And that doesn't make you productive. It makes you crazy.

Okay. Now you mentioned productivity. Um, I'm, I'm curious, you know, you, you, you are a builder and you've been building and being in the lane, um, as your life has evolved and changed. And as the focus has changed based on the opportunities with your family and opportunities to do work that you love, you, you just, you know, you, you've done a lot and you've done a lot lot all at the same time, or at least that's the way it seems. Have you ever had people tell you that you need to do less? You need to slow down. Chrystal Hurst, you don't have to do all that. And I'm curious how that landed. In other words, I'm sure there were times where, um, maybe you should have listened to that and you didn't. Or sometimes, because when you are a fairly high capacity person, which I'm pretty sure you are, there are times when people look at their own capacity and then try to put you in that box. You can't do all that. And so I'd love to know how you have balanced with when people come to you. Okay. Now we've acknowledged that there are things we need to do. We need to sleep. We need to put boundaries on our time. But when people have come to you and said, you need to put that down, girl, that blogging thing, you have too many kids now. Or, um, now what is it that you do? Um, cause your husband is, or was an attorney, right? Am I making that up?

Yes, he, yes, he wasn't, he is an attorney, but he's not currently practicing.

Okay. There you go. So, so, you know, your husband's an attorney. Why do you even have to do all that? So how have you responded to people, um, not necessarily understanding or celebrating your capacity and your desire, your drive to create and to do and to make room for the life that you want?

I think that's such a great question. And it is something that I've grappled with because I feel like sometimes we do need to hear, like, you need to slow down. And I have found that when I am hustling, it's usually because there's something dysfunctional in my belief about God. So if I am just feeling like I gotta be doing more and I gotta be working and getting all this stuff done, it's because I'm not resting in the Lord and believing that he's enough. I'm trying to control my life. I'm in that space where I feel the stress rising. To me, that's an indication that I am not resting in the Lord in some area of my life. So one of one of the things that I talk about in Time Saving Mom, the very beginning, the foundation is starting my day from posture of prayer and starting it from praying over all of the details of my day and recognizing that I can't do this in my own strength. There's all those, you know, tattoos and t-shirts that are like, "You're enough." Well, guess what? I'm not in my own strength. And when I just acknowledge that and say, "God, I can't do this. Every day it feels like I hand up my little crumbs to him. I'm like, this is what I've got, God, take it and just use it however you see fit. And so having that posture of reliance upon the Lord, that is the place and the space that I want to live from. And so I really practically walk that out in the book. What does that actually look like to rely upon the Lord when life is hard, when life is heavy, when there's a lot to do? How do you not give in to just hustling in your own strength and trying to white-knuckle through, but truly rely upon the Lord. And there was a reason that the subtitle of this book is not How to Streamline Your Life and Do Less. It's How to Juggle a Lot, because I feel like there are seasons when God has called us to juggle a lot. And that this is my season that he has called me to juggle a lot. And like you said, I do have high capacity. Capacity, but I have been at capacity in the last year and had to truly just rely upon God every day and say, "God, I can't do this in my own strength, but I know and I trust that you are enough and you have called me to this, and so you will equip me for this." And especially when it comes to things like special needs and foster care, which is a whole other— it's a whole world.

It's a whole world.

It just— there's so much that is involved with that and so much with my heart that I've had to walk through. Lay down and just open up my hands. And so that's where I just have to rely upon the Lord. And so when people will say things to me, you know, recognizing that, okay, I want to listen and receive what I need to listen and receive, but also to understand that God has called me to a life that He hasn't called you to. And He probably maybe hasn't called you to foster care, to adopt a child with special needs, but He's called you to serve in the way that He's called you. And so what does it look like for you to be faithful? Faithful. And I think it's really important for us to remember, you know what, Jesus didn't pursue a life of ease and comfort. And so often I think that's what we kind of feel like— oh, you know, I just want to be comfortable. And it's like, that's not what we see in scripture. And so if we're not stepping out and taking risk and challenging ourselves and being in a place where we have to rely upon the faithfulness of God, then I feel like we need to reevaluate. And so that doesn't mean we need to fill our completely full. But I do think there is such beauty in, you know, having to step out in faith and rely upon God and see him be faithful, because you know you can't take the credit for this. It is only God and only him. And getting to be in that place constantly where you're fully reliant upon him, because without him there's no way that I could be doing this life.

It's so very good, so very good. You, um, You know, you've been through iterations of Chrystal Payne, Money Saving Mom. I remember, you know, this is back in the day, right? When you, you didn't say your real name, you know, you had your code word, but you know, the big thing was just managing your home, saving money on groceries. And of course, your platform, your message, which overflows from your life, has evolved with your life beyond dinner to foster care, adoption, special needs parenting, teenagers. I'm curious, just kind of an off-the-cuff question here. Have you found that as your message has evolved and broadened and taken, you know, branches out from the root of where you started, that has it been fairly easy for you to bring your audience with you? Did people say, you know, but when are you going to I want to get back to that. I mean, did you have any struggle with that or has it been an easy flow because people were just following? Yeah, keep teaching me how you're living your life because I'm learning from you.

You know, you're never going to please everybody. And so, I think that there are a lot of people that started following me back whenever it was the lean law school years where we were barely keeping dry. And, you know, I think there are a lot of people that would love for me to still be back back there because that's maybe where they're at. And so to recognize, like, this is a different stage that God has me in, and, um, so to share from where he has me right now and what he's called me to and what I'm passionate about. And it's okay to grow, it's okay to change, and it's okay to follow God's leading and recognize that not everybody is going to come along with you, but that just to share the message that he has given you and to be faithful to the calling that he has for you and to trust that he's going to bring the people that need to hear what you have to say. Now, one of the things I do talk about, and this is kind of getting into like blogging and behind the scenes of that, but, you know, if you are sharing kind of and encouraging people to follow a platform where it's just a specific topic, then if you decide to change topics, they're not going to come with you. But if they're following you as a person and they're getting to know you as a person and they love you as a person, then kind of as things change and morph and you are, you know, go down different directions, they will follow along with you wherever you go.

Yeah, that's, that's good counsel. I think one of the struggles, you know, in the lane that you're in is the whole concept of branding. But I think the brand doesn't mean anything if you're— back to the subtitle of your book— if you're not enjoying your life. And so much of when you are sharing on social, sharing in blog posts, sending email newsletters out, it is an overflow really of where you're at. I mean, if you can just speak out of that, it can definitely bring deep joy. I'm, you know, when you think about though, how you've had to make adjustments, um, uh, you know, whether you're thinking about how your platform has evolved, but more specifically how you've had to balance work. Um, when you, as you have gone through the years and as you've been led to juggle differently in different seasons, what are some of the changes that you've had to make not obviously in response to what people want you to do, but in response to where you feel you need to go. Or maybe that was a part of it. Maybe it was realizing I'm doing this thing that people need me to do, and I got to get away from that. What, what does that journey look like? Because so much of how we manage our time is about doing what we're supposed to be doing and the transitions from season to season. You know, I worked this much, or now I need to work this much. Um, or I used to provide this service and I'm going to have to cut that off because we can't do that anymore. Like those decisions, especially when you love what you do, or maybe you're known for what you do, can be tough. So can you talk a little bit about that? Because I think the hard part for many of us is that the seasons change and we realize well into the new season that we should have been making changes like months ago. And the reason why we know we need to change is because we're feeling the pain of not changing. Um, change is not something we like to do. What does that look like to ebb and flow with specifically with the change in work? Because I think that that's such a pain point for women, how we work and how that influences how we live with our families.

So it's interesting to have had 3 children and then this—

Yes.

Large gap and then 3 little children again, because our older 3 children, they were very much independent and could take care of themselves. And so we were in the season of we traveled a lot. I did all these things work-wise. Promoted all these, like, produced all these new products and, um, started new websites and just was in a season where I could do that. Um, and so it's been interesting to now be in the season of littles again. And, you know, we brought in 4 babies in 2 and a half years, so that was a lot. And, um, it's really caused me to shift my perspective in how I approach work and to really focus on just a few things that I can do well. And so there's a lot that I used to do that I'm no longer doing. And I think for me to recognize, you know what, there are seasons, and just because I'm saying no now doesn't mean that I'm saying no for forever. But this is what God has called me to right now. And so, for instance, for quite a long while, I had a website called Your Blogging Mentor, and I was helping people to make a— yeah, I mean, blogging And I'm really passionate about that. Like, I love to help women come up with creative ways to use the gifts that God's given them to be able to earn an income. And I feel like that's something that God has just wired me in, but that's not the season for that. And so to just let that take a back burner— I had a mastermind group and had a very active, um, Instagram that I was doing with all of that, and courses and big dreams for that. But right now it's okay for that to just lay dormant. And you know, the Instagram account is still there, the website is still there, the courses are still there, but I'm not doing anything with them. And to be okay with that and to say, right now I'm just focusing on a few things. So running my Instagram, I'm @themoneysavingmom on Instagram. I'd love for you to follow me if you aren't. Lots of behind the scenes and fun, just everyday life and encouragement, and also lots of money-saving stuff as well. But I focus on Instagram and I'm focusing on writing books and launching them, and then also just running the company as a whole. But I have a wonderful small team who takes care of a lot of the details of things so that I can just focus on creating content and then also engaging with my audience. And that's really what I spend the majority of my time doing, is answering comments and emails, engaging with my audience on Instagram and in the blog and on Facebook. And also creating content for those pieces. And so letting other people do a lot of the other things and also just setting aside a lot of other ideas, saying, you know what, not right now, maybe later, but right now I just want to keep my work streamlined so that I have a lot of flexibility to be focused on my little people at home and then launching my 3 older teens.

Listen, cause that launching season, you know, I always tell people when the children are small, it's physical. When they get older, cause they say, oh, your kids are older. I know it's so much easier in some ways, but it just, you exchange the, some of the physical, uh, energy for mental or emotional energy. Cause they still need you. They just need you, um, in, in different, in different ways. Um, when you were talking about, um, Setting aside some things. Um, I know, uh, one of the stories I've heard read over and over again is Joanna Gaines and her little store on Bosque Street and telling her husband, um, I love this store, but I just feel the Lord telling me to put it down, you know. Um, do you, who, have you ever had that experience where you, as you protect your time, protect your family, Protect the Investment, where you didn't have to run into a wall to realize that some— a season was not the right season, where you just sensed, I need to lay this down. And what did that look like?

Yeah, so I was really involved in our church's women's ministry for 4 years. I led women through this 9-month intensive discipleship program, and that was life-transforming for me and also just life-transforming for women. And so getting to walk with women as they kind of had their eyes open to gospel and how it changes them radically from the inside out, and just helping them go back to childhood wounds and work through and process through all this stuff— I mean, it was just really incredible. But at the end of the fourth year, I just really felt in my heart, God is asking me to step away from this. And it was hard because it was that thing of like, but this is important work. Like, this is life-changing work. I just, in my heart, I just, you know, you feel that still small voice of like, it's time to step away. And maybe you can come back to it later, but right now this is not the year for it. And so I did. And I look back and I see how God's hand was in it because I didn't know that we were going to be saying yes to a little boy with a lot of special needs. Like, I didn't know that. And I, had I known I would have been like, there's no way I could do it. But God knew, and God prepared my heart. And so that was really helpful to me to— I know I wrestled with that so much, but to recognize I just didn't feel that peace, and then to look back and see, oh, there were multiple things that year that I realized this is why, like there was a reason why, and I didn't see it at the time. And so just recently, I stepped away from something that I had been involved in for 2 years, um, and it was really hard for me. Like, I really wanted to continue on with these women. We were, um, going through the Bible project, um, the, their seminary classes, and I loved it so much. But when the time that they were meeting, it just wasn't working well for my family, and it was really causing some strain. And I realized, you know, as much as I love this, I don't love the results of this. And so I need to say, "Not right now," and to trust God that He has something else for me and that there's a reason that He's prompting me to lay it down and to just trust Him for that. And I don't know what it is, but right now I'm just trusting that He's going to reveal that eventually.

That's so good, because I think that the, you know, the assumption is that someone who knows how to juggle things and enjoy their life and accomplish what matters most doesn't struggle to make hard decisions, you know, that they've been given some gift or some muscle that those of us who struggle don't have. And to know always that the lessons are coming from a place where it wasn't easy and it wasn't, you know, I love doing this and I had to listen and obey. And it wasn't necessarily my first choice to lay it down is encouraging for those who are needing to make some decisions. And, you know, just wondering if that's possible to do and to do well. Switching gears a little bit. I mean, And you know, saving money on food and going to the grocery store. I mean, man, that was the beginning, the root of the tree for sure. Um, but a little bit of the same question. What did you do then that you don't do now? Like this was Bible, maybe the way you planned your meals or the types of foods that you would make, or yes, it saves money to make this from scratch, but it also takes time. Like what are some things that you were totally committed to? That still in saving time, but saving time in this season, you do differently?

So many things, but the biggest one is— so if you have followed me for years and years, you would know that I used to have this big tub of coupons that I carried to the store, and I was constantly getting groceries for free or even getting paid to get groceries. And I loved it. Like, I still love the idea of that, but I'm in a space right now where I don't have that time to be— or I would say I'm choosing not to invest my time in that. That's one thing I talk about in the book is instead of saying I don't have time, I'm choosing not to spend my time doing that because I'm choosing to spend it differently. And so for me, um, now I just use digital coupons, and I also only go to the store usually once a week, and I rarely go to more than one store. I used to go to multiple stores multiple times a week and used lots and lots of coupons. Now I just use digital coupons on the Kroger site, the Kroger app, and I go to the store once a week. And sure, do we spend a little bit more money? Yes. Do I not have these crazy impressive grocery hauls with all this stuff that I got? Yes. But we're still able to stick with a grocery budget. And so taking those principles of, you know, buying things when they're on sale and buying extras, I'm looking for those great deals and keeping things simple, sticking with inexpensive ingredients for our meals, those types of principles still apply and can still save us a lot of money while also me not investing very much time. I mean, I maybe spend 5 minutes planning our grocery shopping trip, and then I usually am at the store for maybe 45 minutes to an hour, and that's it. And so it saves a lot of time, and it still allows us to live frugally. Another thing is I used to do a lot of freezer cooking.. And I also did what we call the drugstore game, which is where you can buy things and get rebates at the drugstore and then take those rebates to buy other things that are on sale that will give you more rebates. And it's like this whole game that you play and you can get some really great deals. My sisters actually do that right now and they post on Money Saving Mom about their great deals. And in fact, just yesterday I was sharing in my email newsletter that I send out about this great deal that my sister got, and I was sitting there going, I really should start doing that again. Like, that's like, look at all the great— you know, this is not the time. Keep it simple. And so for me to recognize, maybe in 3 years from now I'll be able to pick that back up again. But right now I just keep it simple by one trip to the store every week.

Yeah, I'm with you. I I mean, I did that coupon thing, but I feel like, like once, you know, once too many people started getting their groceries for free, then stores started changing their policies. Or I would go to a drugstore down the street, like a CVS or something, and whatever was on sale, and then there was a coupon, there were none left because somebody came and bought them all up. I was like, this is not any fun anymore, Candy. But I did. I had my big 3x5, I mean, my big 3-ring binder, and I'd take it to the store. My husband was like, She's like, wow, that's just a lot. I said, you're happy that I'm saving money though, aren't you? Um, but same like you, I'm, I, I make a run once a week and anything else that's small comes delivered to the door. I'm not even in the store. It's just, um, and we have those seasons where, you know, the saying is right, time is money. So sometimes you have the time and it saves you money. And sometimes you're spending time doing other things and then enables you to generate money, like either way. Um, looking at your household and the needs of your household, um, makes, makes sense. What do you feel like right now is, you know, we, time is our greatest, not the greatest, but it is one of the great commodities, right? That we have. So using our time wisely, um, is super important, but it's not just to be wise so we can check the boxes, even the boxes that really matter. Course we want to make sure we're spending time with the Lord. And of course we want to make sure we're spending time with our family, our husband, our kids, all those different things. But sometimes the beauty of saving time is so that you have time for what you enjoy. I really do believe that there are seasons of life where what you enjoy is not, um, you know, you don't get these major blocks of time to do it. Uh, Meredith Andrews, a worship leader, she's been on the podcast a few times. I said, how do you create these songs with small kids? And she said, I've just learned to create in the cracks. I think that so much of what we can do to enjoy life is not the 7-day vacation, or it's not the fact that I, you know, the kids were gone all day and I ate bonbons while I, you know, scrapbooked or whatever. It is that I actually had a crack or a crevice to do something I love. So as far as it goes for you, like enjoying your life. What are small pleasures that the payoff for you organizing your life in wise ways? How does that payoff result in the joys for you?

I absolutely agree about using the small cracks of time. In fact, this book, I wrote it in 5 and 10-minute and 15-minute segments. I rarely had more than that because I was in the middle of morning, noon, and night sickness and also had 2 toddlers. So, plus 3 teenagers. But so for me, you're absolutely right that I want to be intentional with my time, just like I want to be intentional with my money so that it's not just so that I can get more done, so that I can hustle harder, so I can be this productivity queen, so that everybody looks at me and goes like, wow, she gets a lot done. No, it's not about that at all. It's so that I can have time to invest in people and have the space to be able to invest in people. A lot of that is the people in my home. Like, I love my teenagers so much. Some days they are— I'm just on my knees needing Jesus so much. Let's put that out there. Let's make that very clear. But they make me laugh so much. I love when their friends come over, and they teach me so much about emojis and about, you know, new apps and, and all nice new words that I didn't know anything about. And I just love hanging out with them, and I love to be able to have space to be able to hang out with the teenagers in my life. And we have a few extra teenagers, they're kind of like my bonus children.

That's good, that's good.

I love that we have space to just be with them. Be, you know, kids, I feel like teens today, they just want to know that adults adults see them and value them and that you're just available for them. So that's one thing. Um, also, I love to read, and so I have to get creative. Uh, I set a goal for 2023 that I was going to read 52 books, and I say read— I should give air quotes for that because I also allow listening.

Um, yeah, the information's getting in there, you know, that's all right.

So listening to audiobooks, I set a goal to listen to 30 minutes of an audiobook every day and read for 10 minutes. And so just finding those little cracks of time to do that because it feeds my soul, and it also just— it feeds my creativity, and it's just something that's really enjoyable. And so making time for that, and then just time to enjoy my little ones as well, and then also time for life-giving friendships. That's something that even in the midst of when there's so much going on, I found that if I don't prioritize life-giving relationships, even if it's just an hour with someone, you know, every few weeks, it, it just feeds my soul so much, and it gives me so much more energy when I have been with people who are pouring into me and that there's just this mutual life-giving relationship.

Yeah, that's so, so good. So, so good. I know that people are listening, and you mentioned your Google Calendar, so I want to get a few nitty gritty questions in here for the people who want to know the details. So when you write things down, where are you writing them down?

So anytime anything comes to my head, like I need to remember that to bring something to some event, or someone has a birthday, or I want to remember to pray for someone, or my child has a, you know, a basketball game or whatever, I put it in Google Calendar. If it has a specific time, like it's at 6:30 on this evening, I'm gonna put it as that time, but then I also put it as an all-day event on that day. So anything that I need to remember the day that I need to remember it, or if it's something that I'm like, I probably really should remember that 3 days before because it's going to take me a little bit of time, like I need to go shopping or whatever for that thing, I'm going to put it on the date that I want to make sure to remember it by as an all-day event. And sometimes I will break things down. So for instance, let's say I'm going to host some people coming to my house. And so I want to make sure that I need to get the groceries for that. I need to plan what we're going to do and I need to make the food. So I'm going to actually put that as all-day events, maybe on 3 different days. So breaking it down and this just helps me, it gets it out of my brain. So everything is in Google Calendar. I don't have to worry about remembering anything because it remembers it for me. And then the night before when I write my time block to-do list, I just look and see the all-day events plus the of specific time events on that day for the next day, and I make my time block to-do list based upon that. And one of the things you talked about, when you write a list and you time block, the benefits is that you don't try to cram in 36 hours of work in a 24-hour day, and you're allow— you're able to allow space for just breathing room. And so I always try to at least allow 2 to 4 hours in my time block day for just nothing. Because we know things are going to come up, we know there are going to be interruptions, we know there are going to be unexpected things. And so when we plan for them, then when it comes up, you're like, oh, I planned for this. And instead of it being an emergency and causing a lot of stress, you actually can just be fully present because you planned for it.

And when you write down your to-do list from your Google— where is that, a Notepad, a spiral notebook?

It is just a notebook. Yes. You can get one at the dollar store. I'm all about like free and non-fancy.

It's like somebody's gonna, did she go get her Franklin Covey planner? Is she using a Day Designer? Like what's the thing? Because isn't it the truth that we get so caught up in the tools, you know? Um, and then we spend so much time fussing with the tools that we actually don't do the things that the tools are supposed to support us in doing. And so I found too, the simplest thing, the simplest thing. I mean, even I have a planner we just released because people will ask you all the time, how do you do it? How do you do it? How do you do it? And even though the methodology for me has lived for years in a composition book, or if I wanted to get super fancy, I bought a Moleskine. But it was just, it was my method though, in my head that worked for me. And I say, one of the girls on the team, she tells me all the time, you do want people to buy this planner, don't you? If you keep telling them it doesn't matter what they use. I'm like, it doesn't. But I do realize that sometimes the things that we develop that work for us, they're systems that work for us. And so we can use any tool and make it happen. It's like a piano player, Maestro. It doesn't matter if they're playing on a grand, a baby grand, or, you know, your old grandfather's piano. When they're skilled, they're going to sit down and play a beautiful tune. Um, if you get too distracted by the tool, then you'll, you'll be distracted by the fact that you have two hands and you can play your tune. So I do know that sometimes, um, the tool for some people does matter and it's helpful. Um, but I love the fact that it's just simple. Everybody has access to a Google Calendar. Everybody can pick up a notebook and write down the things that they have planned to do, however they plan to do it. And so that's, that's wonderful. Right now in your life, last question, right now as you look at what adjustments you have not yet made but you've been contemplating making. So you— this is not a one and done. To be a time-saving mom, a money-saving mom, and a time-saving mom, you are constantly scanning. What are the needs? What do I need? What does my family need? Um, where have our stress points changed? What do we need to acknowledge in our schedule or in our finances? It's a constant surveying of the land. Um, and with all the things that you've been able to figure out, learn, and do, I know that that doesn't mean it's done. So I'd love to know, like right now where you live, as it relates to your time and, and the shifts that you need to make. What is on the horizon for you? Like, what, what things are you currently looking at and trying to decide where you're, um, going out or coming back, scaling up, scaling down, making changes and expectations in your house? Anything at all that's right where you're living?

Well, you know, it's interesting, you were talking earlier about balance and saying like, that's such a misnomer. And it's when you study tight tightrope walkers? Like, I, I don't know that most people study them, but I did because I, I found this really fascinating because I was reading a book on this really well-known tightrope walker, and he was talking about how he— you never stand still on a tightrope. You're constantly making little tweaks. And I think that's how it should be in our lives as well. In order to stand upright, we need to constantly be making the tweaks. If we just try to stay what we're doing and not, you not ever make tweaks, we're going to fall off. And so constantly reevaluating, constantly, you know, paying attention and having conversations with those people closest to us. I just did annual reviews for my employees. And so actually just right before this call, I had a review with one of my employees and we were talking about the future and what that would look like. And so I feel like my brain right now is kind of thinking through, can I add some more things? Or should I be okay with status quo? So that's something that I'm really contemplating of what does the future look like for moneysavemom.com. And then also we're getting ready to launch our 18-year-old, almost 18, she turns 18 in a few days. And just what that's gonna look like for our family of, you know, is she gonna go away to college? Is she gonna go to college and live at home? How are we going to adjust for that? That? Because then if she goes away, we're not going to have her as a driver like we were talking about. And so, like, what that was gonna look like. And so what adjustments would we need to make for that? And how would I adjust my morning for then driving kids to school? And, um, we're also moving into more of— our 2.5-year-old is really, really excited about learning in school. And we homeschooled our older kids for 6 years, and so we're planning to homeschool for at least a few years. And so moving into preschool, doing some homeschool preschool with her, and so adjusting the schedule some to make space for that. And so I feel like it's just constantly evaluating, tweaking, talking with my husband, praying, seeking the Lord, and just, you know, wanting to use my time intentionally and really wrap my time and my life and my energy about what— around what's going to matter in 25 years from now, and keeping that as my focus and not getting stuck or off track or psychoanalyzing stuff that really isn't going to matter. Yeah.

Yeah. That's so good. So good. Y'all listen, I, like I said, when we started, I've been following Chrystal Hurst for a long time. Trust me, you can start at the most recent on her site and just keep working your way back. There's so much gold to be found there, and I know there's gold to be found in her latest book, The Time-Saving Mom: How to Juggle a Lot, Enjoy Your Life, and Accomplish What Matters Most. Chrystal Hurst, thank you so much for joining me and sharing your wealth of knowledge and just all the things that you learn that you continually download. Thanks for living your life out loud so we can learn from you.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to be on here and share with your audience.