Decluttering on a Major Scale

For me it was FLYlady, then I was given the book "It's All Too Much". Finally I am able to feel like I've gained control over the clutter that had grown around us. (My husband, who gave me the book,"It's All Too Much," says from now on he'll only buy me joke books because he had to make so many trips to the dump and recycling center! True story!)

The hardest items to let go were the things I would never use that I'd been given by people I love, some of whom have passed on. To get rid of them seemed wrong, somehow. Some were from 10-20 years ago, but I still felt I had to hold on to them. In the book "It's All Too Much" I read that we don't need "things" to keep memories alive, and that helped me to release a lot of items to go to new homes where they'll be honored and appreciated. I still treasure the people and memories I have, but let's face it: we all have limited display and storage space.

I sorted items into three boxes: keep, donate, and trash. I used the "one year" rule. If we hadn't used an item in a year then it went into the "toss" or "donate" piles. I couldn't believe the things I came across that we hadn't used in several years!

It turns out that the more things I let go the easier it got. Out of all the things I let go, I only needed to replace one kitchen item. It felt so good after it was over. Our house is much easier to clean after that and has a more peaceful air. The space that is left is very calming. I love looking at a room after I've decluttered it and straightened it up!

 No Whining

With all the conserving of energy and money that we're doing at our house you might wonder about our attitudes. I'm very proud to say that we are a "no whining" family.

Not all the changes we've made are easy or fun, but I'm taking it as a personal challenge to see how low I can get our spending. Luckily, the whole family is on the same page. We are all excited to see our spending go down, down, down. It's already making a difference. Of course, if gas and groceries weren't so high, it would be making much more of a difference!

A few years ago, the current economy would have seen me throwing a huge pity party. With the knowledge that I have now, I know that I still have many choices and it doesn't seem like we're doing without anything. I think the word "choice" is the key.

The kids don't feel as if they are doing without either. They are still getting things they like from the sales we see.

My husband is glad we are saving more money. I hated that we were spending all or more than he made. It was unnerving, knowing that we were just a payday or so from being in real financial trouble. Our savings is going up at a good pace, and that makes us all feel SO much better!

It's the time of year for home school resource fairs and early curriculum planning, so we still must spend on that. Yes, it's possible to home school on a shoestring budget, but with a high school student I want to make sure she gets a great education. I've been tracking down good, used curriculum as well as offering some of our used curriculum for sale so that has helped.

The point I'm getting at is that we are still able to supply our material needs less expensively so that no one is "feeling poor." Wealth is truly a state of mind.

 Saving Gas by Hypermiling

I'm all about getting good gas mileage these days. I drive a van, so there's a limit to how much I can save, but I've stumbled across a cool way to improve gas mileage, no matter what you happen to be driving. Hypermiling mimics your vehicle's cruise control by applying gas as needed to go uphill and coasting downhill. Basically you're taking advantage of gravity. There are several websites devoted to hypermiling, but beware of those that advise unsafe practices such as drafting or driving while in neutral.

Speeding, and sudden starts and stops will lower your gas mileage, sometimes dramatically. Most of us already know that, but I'm learning to gauge hills to see how much gas I'll really need to crest it, then I let gravity take over. It's a good idea to keep your brake covered. I've been surprised at how often I've been applying gas when I could actually let my van's weight pull itself down a hill. I've seen a difference in my gas mileage. Normally when I'm running the A/C, it goes down quite a bit, but I've not seen a big difference at all this year! I still wish gas prices would go down, but at least I can squeeze a few more miles out of each gallon.

All the advice telling you to walk when you can, or ride a bike, and take public transportation when possible is great, but what about when you live in a rural area where there are no sidewalks, no public transportation, and the roads aren't safe at all for biking? Some people have no choice but to drive, like the area I live in. I would walk or take public transportation if I could, but it's not an option for my area.

What do you do to save money on transportation?

 Conserving Water

There are so many parts of our country and our world that suffer from drought that we should all conserve water as much as possible. In some areas, water is a precious resource, the people there would give a lot just to have the water we waste in one day.


Repairing leaky faucets and toilets is a no-brainer but how much further can we go?

Do you remember to turn off the water when you aren't really using it? Do you turn off the water when you brush your teeth, or scrub dishes?

I'm pricing low-flow shower heads. We already try to limit our time in the shower but this will help reduce our water waste even more. There are also low-flow adapters for faucets.


I'd love to have a grey-water tank for watering the garden and plants but that might push my husband over the edge!


One thing I do is keep an old plastic pitcher on the counter for "old" water. All glasses of water not drunk up are poured into the pitcher. I water the houseplants with this, and haven't had to "run" water for my plants in some time!


I got this idea from a friend: Use dishtubs for washing your dishes. When you are finished, pour the water on your garden or plants outside.


We adjusted our toilets until they use just enough water to flush. I added water bottles filled with sand to the tanks, and we set the floaters to the right level (not too low and not too high!)

When we save water we save money, but we are also helping ourselves and our "neighbors" on the earth.

Home made Laundry Soap Link

 
http://www.thefrugalshopper.com/articles/detergent.shtml

There are several recipes you can use on this site. Recipe #3 is most like the recipe I use. I don't use Fels Naphtha soap which is recommended on the site, but I do use Octagon. I like the way it rinses clean. Plus it's old-fashioned and versatile. My kids don't really like to use the home-made stuff on their clothes. For some reason it breaks them out and makes them itch. It doesn't seem to bother them on the sheets and towels though, for which I am thankful. I use the home-made stuff for all my clothes and the sheets, towels and rags.

 Laundry - Clean Thoughts!

No matter how you do it, laundry will always take time and money. It just depends on how much time and money you want to spend!

I save money by making my own detergent with a bar of soap (usually Octagon), washing soda and warm water, and adding a bit of commercial detergent. Right now I have several bottles of Whisk on hand that I bought on sale with a coupon thrown in, so I'll add that in. I can make that last a lo-o-o-ng time! I'll add the recipe later, plus links where you can learn more. For fabric softener, get a bottle of white vinegar. Add 1/2 cup to the rinse water for deoderizing and softening. Plus, vinegar kill some germs.

I only tumble dry our sheets and towels. For blankets, beach towels and all other clothing I hang them to dry. We have several clothes lines in our laundry room but things don't really dry quickly in there like I'd hoped unless there's a very good breeze. I love my wooden clothes racks and my umbrella hanging dryer. I use these for socks, underwear and sweaters. Our shirts and pants get hung up on hangars and left to dry on the shower rods and the rail around our stairwell. Our dryer doesn't get used very much now! I wash our cloth rags we use in place of paper towels and hang them up, too.

 My Grandma always said, "What you waste, you'll want for"

I'm sure we all see things wasted on a daily basis. Throwing away good food is just like throwing away money. As much as food costs now, it really is! For an example, I once saw a little girl throw away two perfectly good pieces of bread before her parent picked her up from a sleepover b/c she felt she couldn't eat them before her mom got there. I found the bread in the trash after she left. I got them, dried them out, and fed them to the birds.

At what point do we teach our children that waste hurts? One way our waste as a nation hurts the earth is polluting and by using large parcels of the earth for landfills that are full of toxic waste that aren't even safe to build houses on later. How many things are thrown away each day that could be recycled, repaired, or used by someone else? Our community dump doesn't allow people to take things they could use home. My idea of a perfect "dump" isn't a dump at all, but a drop-off that would allow people to take what they can use home, kind of like a swap-meet, or a free flea market.

Another way that waste hurts is by using natural resources in unwise ways that prevent others from using them wisely. What do we want left for our children and grand-children? Memories of what natural resources used to be? Beautiful wild animals that can only exist in zoos? A world where rainforests and their native inhabitants live only in pictures? Not a happy thing to look forward to, is it? How many of us truly try to cut down on waste each day? Wasted electricity, water, fuel, money, resources... Most of us could be so much wiser with our resources. Food for thought.

My Canning Project

I still need shelves in the cellar for my canning project which I'm starting. I got a pressure canner and some pint jars. I already had a water bath canner and quite a few quart jars. I plan to can green beans, dried beans, soup (beef and chicken), tomatoes (for making spaghetti sauce and salsa),jam, possibly corn and potatoes. I'll have to find something to do with the zucchini I'm growing. Any ideas? Last year I experimented with drying some veggies and it worked real well with squash. We are still eating them a bit like potato chips!

I think I'm a throwback to pioneer or depression-era times since there are things I like to do that don't fit in with "modern" ways. I take pleasure in using items that don't require electricity, like my Pampered Chef food chopper and slicers. If I could convert my sewing machine to a treadle, I'd do it! I admire the ingenuity of my ancestors.

Couponing and Shopping Sales

I'm trying to be green, while also acknowledging my "inner frugal person". I've learned from a friend how to "stack" deals and coupons, and to shop the sales in order to build up a supply of food. After you build up your supply, then you need to shop only to keep your supplies up. I used to worry about possible power outtages at the stores due to weather or a truck driver strike (hey, I was getting a little paranoid with all the high prices and talk of shortages!) but now we'd be fine if I didn't make it to the store for 3 or 4 weeks, and even then we'd probably only need eggs and bread! I bought everything on sales and some things I also had coupons for, which made it doubly sweet! If you wait until the coupon is about to expire, sometimes you will find the item on sale. I will buy store brands if they are cheaper than the name-brand item with a coupon. Today I found buns for $.99 and stocked up. My freezer is looking great! Look out for the 10 for $10 sales, though. A few times I was tempted by something that looked great, but then I realized that I wouldn't normally pay $1 for a can of beans, so I pass those up.

I converted a closet into a pantry for food. (You have to make room for the food you buy because it really starts to add up!) The toiletries are kept in a half-bath that has shelves for storage. I love to do Christmas Child boxes each November for Franklin Graham's ministry and this year we'll only need to buy toys, washcloths and towels as I have plenty of toiletries to include already.

For coupons, I use a zippered binder with plastic pocket pages for baseball cards. My coupons are in alphabetical order by the type, not necessarily the name brand, of the product. My name and phone number are in there in several places. I included a calculator and small pair of scissors. It can take a few weeks to build up your coupon supply. Don't be ashamed to ask family and friends for their cast-off coupons. Throw your store and product loyalty out the window (except for where allergies are concerned!). I learned a lot from moneysavingmom.com, and Couponmom.com (you have to fill out a lot of e-mail forms and go through a lot of offers on that site, but she has some great ideas and wonderful e-books). I also used The Grocery Game at thegrocerygame.com. I've learned a lot about shopping frugally for my family, which I pray that I'll shop wisely and well.

What do you do to keep costs down for yourself and/or your family?

 Going Green

If you want to "go green" but aren't sure how, just take one step, or a few small steps each month. It doesn't have to be overwhelming. For example, each week when I go to the store, I buy a flourescent bulb. This week I found a great deal at Walgreens for a pack of 4, so I got those. We'll install them this week. I'm interested to see how it affects our energy consumption.

Some other steps you can take are:

• separate your trash, and recycle paper, plastic, glass and metals (we started out with plastic grocery bags hung on nails in the back porch)
• composting your fruit and veggie scraps (we keep a small bucket in the kitchen)
• wash clothes in cold water more often
• hang clothes and blankets to dry as often as you can (in winter it can really help moisturize dry air in your house
• use re-usable bags for shopping
• wash and re-use plastic bags. Why throw away a perfectly good bag?
• use cloth rags in place of paper towels (I was amazed at how this reduced our trash!)
• use cloth napkins in place of paper napkins (I got ours at a great price at a discount store)
• use cloth diapers or cloth feminine products in place of disposables
• grow a garden - start small if you aren't sure if you'll like it. You can grow lots of veggies in containers. Can or freeze what you can't eat.
• turn off unneeded lights and unplug items that pull electricity all the time, but aren't necessary, such as stereos, computers, and televisions. How many clocks do we need blinking at us, anway?
• replace your incandescant bulbs with CFL's to reduce energy consumption. I don't care for the "blue" looking ones, but I was fortunate enough to find them in "soft white" which I love and can't tell from incandescant.

These are just a few ideas I've incorporated into my family's life over time. We didn't do the whole list overnight. Even a small step forward is still a step in the right direction!