Having less and enjoying it more

I read a wonderful commentary on CNN.com by Peter Bregman. (If I could figure out better how to post links I'd do it, LOL, but you could find it on cnn.com if you go looking)

He talked about my favorite topic, which is having less and enjoying it more. Apparently he, at one time, was very wealthy and succesful and enjoying every minute of it. Then, as it has with many people in this country, it all came crashing down. He took the opportunity to learn and grow from it, and feels he is a happier person now. My favorite quote is this:

"Having less forces choices. And consciously making those choices can bring us closer to the things we care about. Which can make a poorer life more rich than a rich one".

I agree 100%, and feel that for us, it becomes more true every day now that we've made the pledge to simplify our lives. I read alot in the paper these days about living frugally, since its such a hot topic. Unfortunately, its always presented as such a BAD thing--doing without, cutting back, depriving yourself. I rarely see it pointed out that an uncluttered life can be refreshingly peaceful and happy. It certainly isn't presented as something one would advocate doing on purpose. Which brings me to another quote that I really liked:

"Above a basic threshold, money doesn't make us happier. But we think it will, so we do all sorts of things that make us unhappy in order to get it."

Isn't that the biggest irony of all?

There is a certain degree to which we need money. For basic necessities,a few luxuires, some comfort. We need it for emergencies, to educate our children and for retirement. But what we don't need it for is lots and lots of stuff, and if it weren't for all that stuff, we'd have it more of it for those other things. So in some ways, a poor economy and forced choices could be a blessing in disguise, especially if people choose to see it that way. I for one certainly hope the economy picks up and things get better, but until then I'm hoping and praying that people will come away from this having learned some good things.

Yard sale extravaganza

Spring is here! In my little corner of the world, the weather is amazingly beautiful, the windows are open, birds are singing, and I am cleaning and organizing! It is so wonderful to clear out the clutter, whther it be dirt or stuff! All this clearing and cleaning has me motivated to get to that short list of things we need for the house. I have a final, overall picture of exactly how I'd love the house to be organized, exactly how I'd like it to look and what I need in order to get to that point. With hubby working and a tax refund in the bank, I am more than ready to get going and get done.

Today was a very successful yard sale day. It was really fun ( and very unusual) to go with a specific list, come home with several of the items on it, put them exactly where I intended them to go and start enjoying them right away. Two hours, start to finish!

One of the readers left a comment on my post about the freecycle Christmas dishes, suggesting I look for finishing pieces at garage sales now that I know what I'm looking for. Well, I took that to heart and put it in my list. Imagine my surprise when the FIRST thing I saw at the FIRST garage sale was a set of 8 soup bowls and 8 dessert plates to match the freecycle china--for $2.00!!! I honestly couldn't believe it. I'm pretty excited about that find!

The next thing on our list was a VCR. Ours bit the dust a couple of weeks ago. We could certainly do without one if we needed to, but all of the 2-year-olds favorite things are on VHS, so we figured we find a cheapie VCR at a garage sale to get us through the next year or so until we can freecycle the baby videos and VCR in one fell swoop. Well, we manage to find one for $5 and they threw in 10 grown-up videos ffor free, so we're happy with that. The videos were mostly the action-adventure Clint Eastwood kind of things that my hubby loves and I don't watch, so he's got something to watch when he's on his own, and we can donate them when he gets tired of them. Before I put them in the cabinet, I pulled 10 out to donate so that we don't get overloaded.

Item 3--I've been looking for some kind of cute little basket to corral our mail and variou bits of paper that land on the kitchen counter and/or need to be there temporarily. I found this cute little one--still with the World Market $9.99 price tag on it, for $2.

Item 4--we've been looking for a train table for our little guy forever!! Even on Craigslist they are a little pricy, but we've always had it on our list as something to snap up when we found the right deal. We found this for $20. The little guy is beside himself with joy! (and so is the big guy) I figure we can easily sell this when he's done with it for at least what we paid, so its free entertainment.

And last--a garden bench. We've been wanting one for the front yard to sit on when we are out watching the kids play. It was on my wishlist of things for my birthday in February, and hubby had yet to find anything I had asked for without buying anything new. I fell in love with this beautiful bench and hubby is sighing with relief that he has FINALLY gotten me something. We paid $45 for it.

I also got (but couldn't download pictures because I maxed out my allowed number) 2 rolls of shelf paper (on my list!) and some pretty candlesticks for the family room coffee table.

Now that all my pretty "new" things are in their places and functioning, I'm busy clearing out what we don't need. I have boxes in my bedroom for sorting, and hope to finish soon. Our weekend is full, however, with soccer and out-of-town guests and watching some kids while their parents are away, so I guess I'll have do what I can in the time I have, and relax and enjoy the weekend. :))

shopping, reduced-for-quick-sale and menus

I actually went grocery shopping on Sunday and never got around to posting anything about it, but I was so excited about the deals I found that I figure Thursday is better than never! I seem to be finding plenty of organic chicken marked down these days. Maybe its something people are cutting out of their budget during tough times--who knows. Even though we have plenty, I bought it to stick in the freezer for when the deals aren't so plentiful. I was thrilled to find organic gourmet coffee marked down from $10 to $4.99 a bag--I bought all 3. We will be enjoying this find all month! And the cute little mini pitas were only 99 cents a bag. I never buy things like this because they don't seem worth the price, but at 99 cents I'm willing to spring for them. I put one bag in the freezer and we've been eating the other this week. Hubby and I have been enjoying them as snacks with a white bean and pesto spread I made, while the little one has been eating "spaceship" pb&j sandwiches. I actually bought store-bought yogurt this week. They had my daughter's favorite flavor marked down, which I haven't been able to replicate at home, so I took a break from yogurt-making this week and put these in her lunch boxes. Also pictured with the yogurt were my two extravagant (75% off) finds--some fresh mozzerella cheese (YUM!) and an imported sheeps-milk feta. These are the things that make me feel like a queen--such indulgence!!!

There were some great sales on produce this week. Fresh asparagus was 50 cents a pound! I was so excited I bought a HUGE bag for less than $2.00. I got online when I got home to search for recipes when I got home and we've been really enjoying it this week. I will miss it when the season is over! I rounded out the produce with broccoli, cabbage, bananas, grapefruit, mushrooms and grapes on sale along with sweet potatoes, cauliflower, organic apples and organic celery very much NOT on sale.

My coupon deals--got a bag of rice cakes for free, whole wheat pasta for 29 cents, saved $1 on organic eggs, got a package of Huggies for $4.99 and Kroger-brand diapers for $2.99, cheese $1 for 8 oz (got 3).

Finally I picked up some staples--butter, canola oil, frozen veggies and salt (I went all out for the Mediterranian sea salt) bread, and sugar-free ice cream. My work was done!

In total I spent $104.28. My savings thru sales, coupons and reduced items was $64.12.

once I got home with all these goodies, I revised my meal plan for the week. We have been eating SOOO well, even the kids are happy! We haven't even considered going out to eat. Here's what we have been (and will be) eating:

SUNDAY: grilled pork chops, sauteed cabbage, baked sweet potatoes,

MONDAY: baked chicken legs, suateed asparagus, steamed broccoli, green salad

TUESDAY:steak fingers, mashed potatoes, steamed yellow squash*, mustard greens*,

*from frozen from my parents garden. I also cooked all the rest of last weeks potatoes and froze mashed potatoes for later meals.

WEDNESDAY:salmon topped with sauteed mushrooms and green onions, steamed cauliflower, blanched asparagus marinated in lemon vinaigrette

THURSDAY:chicken breast topped with pesto and mozzerella, whole wheat pasta with olive oil, green beans, roasted asparagus parmegiano

FRIDAY: crock pot hamburger soup, homemade bread, salad

SATURDAY: turkey meatballs, brown rice, sesame broccoli

SUNDAY: lemon pepper pork chops, homemade coleslaw, sauteed sweet potato rounds, corn on the cob

We are still doing the dessert thing and its still keeping the kids eating like I want them to. We've been having either sugar-free ice cream or sugar-free pudding.

Breakfasts have been eggs this week, since my daughter is having achievement tests at school and needs protein to get her through the morning. I am allergic to eggs and the kids don't love them, so this isn't a usual week for us. I've been serving them with either pancakes, home cooked oatmeal or toast. I've been having cooked oat bran and a grapefruit every morning.

Rediscovery

In the time since we've pledged not to buy anything new, I have rediscovered lots of things in my house. When I need something now, I have to make do. And now that its been 3 months and I'm so used to it, I wonder why I was ever so closed-minded as to go out and buy something for a specific purpose when something else would do. Little things--I got to looking at my cell phone the other day and realize it has the functions of about 12 things I own--camera, alarm, memo, clock, timer, address book... I can do way more on the computer than I ever thought to do before. I can reserve library books and DVDs, watch cable shows and shows I missed on TV, pay my bills. And of course, there was the one time we laughed ourselves silly when we finally used the timer on the VCR to record a show--technology that's been nearly obsolete for a decade but hey, its there and we own it and why go out and buy something else?
The list of rediscoveries goes on and on, but one thing I never realized I would rediscover was my kids. I'm home with them all day, I talk to them and play with them, I KNOW them. But the thing about kids is that they are always changing. They are complex little creatures with thoughts, hopes, dreams, questions, goals and fears. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our own world that their little protests and questions seem inconvenient or unimportant to us. But I'm finding now that what I learn about my kids through day to day interaction really just scratches the surface of who they are, and who they are becoming.
We've changed our schedule a little in the house recently, which has led me to my epiphany of rediscovery. The kids have always been put to bed at the same time. The 8-year-old gets a hug and a kiss and a "good night", then I go on to rock the little one to sleep. I have always enjoyed the time with him at night--the only time he is ever still enough to hold and talk to. Well, this has never gone unnoticed by the 8-year-old, and she's always wanted her share of the attention to. In the past few months, she's really fussed and complained about wanting me to lie down with her for a few minutes before she falls asleep. After all my thoughts of "She's way too old for this" and "I can't get this started when my hands are full as it is", I finally realized--she needs something from me, and neither she nor I probably know what it is. So after spring break, we decided to put the little one to bed an hour later. He plays with Daddy in his playroom while I spend time with big sister. This has worked far better than I thought, for many different reasons. Now that hubby gets home later, he misses out on time with the kids and they need it. And a later bedtime keeps the little one in bed an hour later in the morning, and I have been able to get the whole day up and running and organized in that blessed hour of peace. The whole day runs more smoothly, and I have more time for him and for everyone because everything is done.
But for the really amazing part--my daughter talks to me. And she is a really neat, really wonderful kid. All year, I have been asking the usual Mom questions--"How was school? Who did you play with today? How was your spelling test?" I pretty much get a shrug and an "I dunno". At dinner we have fun chatter, and we certainly spend time together and talk about lots of other things. But at night, she says she just feels like she needs to be hugged. And if I sit there, not talking, just "being there", her words start to tumble out. "Guess what so-and-so did at P.E.!" and "You know what happened in math?" and after that, there are sometimes questions. "What happens when people die? Are there really UFO's?Why did Grandpa Dan get cancer? Is Dad going to get it? Can we get another cat?" They come at me, no particular order, just a jumble of things she's trying to sort out in her 8-year-old mind. I find I have to answer without any change in tone of voice, because the first hint of amusement or concern will close the door immediately. After the questions often come the things that weigh on her most heavily, probably the real reason she needs Mom and needs to be hugged. "So-and-so yelled at me at recess and called me stupid". "I forgot my math book in the other room and the teacher was really annoyed". And things that tug at my heart--"Am I ugly?" What can I say? "Of course not! Did someone tell you that?" Silence. "Why do you think that?" Silence. But I've been hearing that one alot, and I know she's reached the age where she's self -conscious, other kids' opinions matter, and Mom can't fix everything. But I can listen, I can hug, and I can be there. And I can learn more and more about this wonderful kid, whose thoughts and questions and fears are important and real.
Every day I see neighbor kids coming home at 7 at night, their parents tired and impatient and shooing them in to do homework and get to bed. In the morning I see the same kids, often fussing and crying as their parents shoo them out the door, warning them to hurry up and not make everybody late. And all I can think is that those kids have so much to offer, and I hope their parents are listening. I hope they aren't those gadgets in the house with all those cool features and capabilities that get forgotten and underused because life is just too busy.

Another Freecycle find

I haven't been paying much attention to Freecycle lately, other than to give things away, because we have just a short list of things we'd like to have and we really don't need to bring anything else into the house. I'm so pleased with all our decluttering and the feeling of everything being in its place--I don't want to lose it! But one of the things I've wanted for a long time is Christmas dishes. Every year I tell myself I'll get some, and every year I decide it isn't worth the money to buy a set of dishes I'll only use for a few weeks. Of course, I always intend to find them on post-holiday clearance, but that never happens either. So I was really excited to see a post offering some on Freecycle--a service for 4, perfect for our family. The giver lived only a few blocks from me, so I was able to have them in my hands in about 15 minutes. I'm pretty excited about this find--too bad I have another 8 months until I can decorate for Christmas. They'll be waiting!

A weekend of yard work

Despite a cold start, its been an absolutely beautiful weekend--lots and lots of sunshine, warm days and a cool breeze to keep us from overheating. The back yard needed attention and the garden needed planting, so there wasn't much question of what we were going to do this weekend.

Friday, we relaxed and watched "Because of Winn-Dixie", checked out from the library. We hadn't seen it and the kids loved it. Saturday mornings are all about soccer, so in the afternoon we finally got to the yard. My daughter helped spread dirt and transplant our seedlings while my husband took care of other yard work and my son made sure enough mudballs hit the side of the garage. Our seedlings seem to be experiencing some major transplant shock, so in a few days we may need to go back to the mounds and plant more seeds. Fortunately, there is still time! We have a tiny garden, so we tried to focus on what we like to eat and what we've been succesful at growing in the past. We planted zucchini, yellow squash and cucumbers in mounds. We made a row for parsley, planted from seed. (I can already taste the tabbouleh!!) and a row of basil (ditto the pesto). I have lettuce already started in a container, along with cilantro in pots. We mulched around the edges to keep the weeds down, and I guess we'll keep watering it and see what happens!

While we had the mulch out we went ahead and re-mulched the little one's playscape. We made this play area last year so that he'd have a place to play and a place to keep all his toddler stuff out of the way of the lawnmower and dog and various other hazards. It didn't need to be too elaborate, since we have 3 well-equipped parks within walking distance, but it needed to be fun. He loves it! We got the landscape timbers and mulch at Home Depot last year with a gift card (credit card reward) and bought the sandbox at Wal-Mart. Our neighbor was throwing away the climber/slide--it was too bulky to bother to take anywhere and she was overjoyed when we said we could use it. My brother's family handed down the picnic table that their boys had outgrown, and the little ride-on toys were another curbside-at-trash-day find. His little Spongebob chair was $1 at a garage sale. We've all had alot of fun in that little area--my husband and the little one scooping sand and hauling it in the dump truck, my daughter and I being served mud pies and "cookie-doughnuts" at the picnic table. I can see the playscape from the kitchen window, so he can play putside while I cook and wash dishes.

Other than the play set, we have two swings for the kids--each hanging from a branch of our pecan tree. My daughter has a trampoline we gave her for her birthday last year which tucks neatly around a corner so that she can play on it but we don't have to see it from the windows. So the kids have plenty to keep them busy while the grown-ups work!

Now that the garden is in, the weeds are pulled and things are in order, its up to Mother Nature to fill in the trees and the plants in the landscaping. When summer gets here, we will be spending most of our time out there!

Menu plans

I mentioned yesterday that we have bumped up the grocery budget now that hubby has a new job, and that the reduced-for-quick sale and the fresh, in-season produce deals have been great. We have an abundance of food in the house, which I LOVE, and I'll talk a little about what we're doing with it.

I was able to make a complete menu plan for this week, along with a menu plan of entrees for next week. (I'll have to fill in with more fresh produce on Monday) I also was able to make and freeze a few things using the excess. The picture above is of our frozen strawberry treats. I made up this recipe, mainly because the kids like frozen treats and I couldn't find anything sugar free, organic, without artificial coloring or preservatives, AND affordable. I make these whenever we have the ingredients and the kids consider them a big deal. They basically contain yogurt (I use homemade), organic whipping cream, fresh strawberries, and Stevia. I freeze them in cupcake liners (I have an abundance bought after Easter one year for 5 cents a pack). I'll do an e-how on it when I get the chance and post a link here. This made good use of the sale organic strawberries and the yogurt made from the bargain milk!

Another thing I was able to make and freeze was "green potatoes". They are basically twice-baked potatoes with broccoli mixed in and topped with cheese. They freeze well --first on cookie sheets to individually freeze them, then placed in a freezer container--and make a good quick addition to a lunch or dinner when we need a little something extra. These used up about 50 cents worth of my potatoes, some fresh broccoli (.99/lb!) and the sale cheese ($1/8 oz).

I decided NOT to make and freeze pancakes or muffins this week. I found that when cooking from scratch and trying to save money, our diets start to revolve around wheat a little too much. This is probably fine for most people, but for whatever reason my family doesn't do well on too much of it. I especially start to feel lethargic when I eat too much wheat. So we are taking a break from that this week, focusing on all the other goodies we have available.

I'm glad to be cooking less complicated meals, since our evenings are so hectic. Hubby gets home later now and can't help with the shuttling to extra-curricular activities, so 3 nights a week I need to feed the kids early and get my daughter out to swim team or soccer with the 2-year-old along for the ride. Once we get home, we head straight into bath and bedtime routines.

So what have we been eating?

Monday: baked chicken legs and thighs, mashed potatoes, steamed broccoli and carrots, green salad

dessert:strawberries and whipped cream

Tuesday: Tuscan bean soup, greek salad, whole wheat artisan bread (reduced/$1) dessert:sugar-free ice cream

Wednesday: grilled salmon, sauteed asparagus and red peppers, spinach/strawberry/walnut salad with homemade honey mustard vinaigrette

dessert: sugar-free pudding

Thursday: beef and pasta skillet, green beans (from frozen), yellow squash (frozen from parents garden)

dessert:fresh pineapple

Friday: homemade cream of broccoli soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, carrot sticks dessert:sugar-free ice cream

Saturday:grilled hamburgers, homemade french fries

dessert:sugar-free popsicles

Sunday: pork chops, blackeyed peas, green potatoes, steamed asparagus

dessert:sugar-free blueberry cake (reduced for quick sale; in the freezer)

Next week's entrees: (will decide on sides once I shop and see what I find)

Monday: chicken breast

Tuesday:turkey meatballs, brown rice,

Wednesday: salmon stuffed with spinach and pesto

Thursday: simmered chuck steaks, mashed potatoes (leftover in freezer)

Friday: homemade pizza

Saturday: spaghetti with meatsauce

Sunday:baked chicken (whole, cut up), blackeyed peas (LO in freezer from previous Sunday)

Normally I would have one or two "leftover buffets" per week. However, since the little one and I eat leftovers for lunch and hubby now takes them to work, I just leave the leftovers alone. A couple of times this week we've had even more than we needed for dinner and the next day's lunches, so I froze them into individual meals for hubby to pull out of the freezer when there is nothing else available.

This week has been my first experiment with offering dessert after every meal, and I'd have to say so far I'm pleased with the results. I have been careful not to bribe the kids with it, but when we sit down I make sure to tell them; "I have xxxx for dessert!" They have eaten all their dinner and all their veggies every night, and it has been nice to linger over the table for a few more minutes over dessert and talk. Since they've been eating their meals so well, they've been snacking less. I'd rather they do this, because I've read studies showing that kids who graze all day tend to take in the same number of calories as kids who don't but not as many nutrients and not the variety of nutrients they need. (probably because they don't tend to snack on sauteed asparagus or steamed broccoli!) And while I suppose this is okay once in a while, its not okay every day and my kids were starting to want to do that. So if some strawberries and whipped cream or sugar-free ice cream helps improve their overall nutrition--fine by me!! :)

For breakfast this week, the kids have asked for exactly the same thing every day:

-smoothies made with homemade yogurt, soy milk, a banana and the ugly strawberries that they won't otherwise eat

-ham slices (hormone-free, nitrate-free)

-cantaloupe or fresh pineapple

They eat every bite!

Hubby and I have our own breakfasts--I've been having the millet cereal and he's been having that along with two eggs every morning. Breakfast has been easy at our house!