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Consumerism Creeping In…

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Posted on 21st August 2010 by Mish in family | frugal

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We’ve had a little bout of consumerism here lately and it’s starting to drive me a little nuts. When we first moved to the city, I thought it would be great. No, really, I did. How fabulous not to have to drive an hour to go to the grocery store! How wonderful that we can go to lots of festivals and fairs and see and do things we couldn’t do before! How amazing that there is a bookstore full of homeschool items practically right around the corner. Simply divine that there’s a convenience store nearby so I don’t have to buy 7 or 10 gallons of milk at once.

Oh how wrong I was. What I wouldn’t give for the days when it took an hour to get to a grocery store. When I only went to the “big city” once a month to stock up on supplies. When I purchased most of our homeschool books online because it was easier to have them delivered.

Suddenly, I seem to be in stores as much as once a day for things we absolutely “need.” And my kids are starting to get the gimmes because of it. I have fallen back into old traps of getting them “just one treat” or just one thing – just because we’re there. It dawned on me just how much I am losing my way.

We we’ve been to no fewer than 10 various festivals and fairs this summer and my wallet is aching because of it. Every single journey was considered a “learning” experience but what am I teaching about our core values if I keep forking over $100 just to get into some of these events? Even going to yard sales has become an exercise in consumerism lately – granted, it’s recycled consumerism – but still! The kids always thinking that going to a yard sale is an entitlement to another toy or game. And because they’re cheap – I buy them. Now, don’t get me wrong, what I consider to be spend-thrifty, most people will probably laugh at. But even my new tendency to curb pick and get things off Free-cycle seems a little materialistic to me. What exactly do I need all of this stuff for? I fear it’s to fill a big house and to replace the things I know I’m missing in my life.

But they’re just things. And I’m getting a little tired of them.

Whether or not we choose to move to Alaska and live out our rural dream, right now I have to refocus and double my efforts to remember what living simply means. We’ve done well in reducing our main expenses, but I’d like to see our miscellaneous spending stop and start focusing on saving more. Just because we spend our money frugally or pack a lunch to go to a gazillion dollar fair, doesn’t mean we’re living simply – it just means we’re trying to get more for less. And the point, after all, is to be more and have less.

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The Lance Mackey Story

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Posted on 7th August 2010 by Mish in miscellaneous

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Anyone who knows me knows I’m a huge fan of the sport of mushing.
I fervently waited for my copy of Lance Mackey’s book, The Lance Mackey Story, to arrive at my door. When it did, I dove in and couldn’t stop reading.

Of course, as an avid fan of both the Iditarod and the Yukon Quest, I knew all about Lance Mackey’s 4 wins in the Quest and then 4 wins in the Iditarod. Not only did he win these two amazing races 4 times in a row each, in 2007 and 2008 he won both the Iditarod and the Quest back to back. The Yukon Quest takes place in February, the Iditarod, in March…with scarcely two weeks between the two.
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Frugal and Healthy Tip of the Day- Mason Jars

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Posted on 4th August 2010 by Mish in frugal | green | health

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Using a Mason jar for drinks and food storage saves the planet, money and your health.I love my Mason Jars. Because of information I’ve been reading lately about the different chemicals in plastics, including phthalates, I’ve started switching most of our food storage and drink ware to glass (a tough decision to make with little kids in the house). I now use a Mason jar to drink out of everywhere. I put my coffee in it in the morning sometimes as it retains heat well, put my water in it all day and can put a lid on it and take it with me on our walks or other outings. Sometimes I feel like an old mountain man drinking moonshine out of a jar, but that feeling usually passes quickly!

Mom’s “jar of water” is now a frequent – and much sought after – site in the bottom of the stroller, especially on a hot day. I’ve also started saving smaller jelly jars for the kids to use. While buying jelly in the smaller jars isn’t the most frugal thing we could do, I buy the “simply fruit” brands because they don’t contain HFCS and because Alex needs a lesser carb count (he’s a Type-1 Diabetic).

So constantly reusing a Mason jar reduces the number of Phthalates we’re exposed to, reduces the amount of disposable cups and bottles (plastic) we use, and keeps me from wasting water washing out 400 hundred cups everyday (it sometimes seems like that!).

It bums me out a little that I constantly miss out on major product reviews and other money-making opportunities on my blog because I don’t ask my readers to buy a new thingy that will make them more frugal, healthy or green. So many blogs I see say – “You can be green and frugal, just buy this thing!” Oh well. I just don’t see the point. Just use common sense. Grab an old Mason jar. Put a lid on it. Use it. Cheap, simple, healthy and green. You can also use larger jars to store dry food and leftovers.

Here’s more info about Phthalates:
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How to Use Vinegar – 5 Ways

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Posted on 29th July 2010 by Mish in frugal | frugality | green living

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5 Ways to Use Vinegar

“But I hate using vinegar to clean, Mom,” my oldest daughter Lydia said, “it makes everything smell like pickles!”

And she’s right. For a little while, everything in the room being cleaned does smell like pickles, but once the pickle smell evaporates, the only smell left behind is – well, nothing. Vinegar is the ultimate anti-bacterial cleaning agent. It is acidic enough to kill germs, completely non-toxic and makes things shiny!

Also – since I’m notoriously cheap, vinegar is about the cheapest cleaner you can find and if you are so inspired, you could make your own. I haven’t done it yet, but hmmm….I smell a homeschool project!

1. Degrease your stove top. We have a lot of cooks around here. My two middle sons, my daughter, my husband and me occasionally, when I get a chance to cook something. Something is always cooking! And the stove top gets a little, shall we say, grungy. Straight vinegar in a spray bottle, sprayed on not only gets off the grease, but leaves a streak-free shine on the knobs and door.

2. Clean out the coffee pot. When we lived in Vermont, we had very hard water. I used to get mineral build-up in the coffee pot and in my tea kettle. I bought one of those little mineral collector metal things (it looks like a round metal sponge) to collect the deposits, but eventually that has to be cleaned too! Running white vinegar through the coffee pot or boiling it in the tea kettle removed all of the deposits with only a quick rinse after to make sure the coffee didn’t taste funny.

3. Odor eater. We have had a few issues with, well, let’s say there are a couple of small children who occasionally don’t make it to the potty. No worries, I don’t get mad about it, but I do have to take care of cleaning it and eliminating the odors. Spraying the affected area completely with vinegar spray disinfects the area and eliminates the smell.

4. Kill bugs. Seriously. I had an ant problem where one older child who shall remain nameless left some sticky stuff on a window sill. Ick! The ants were everywhere. I cleaned the sill and the wall (and the floor) with vinegar spray and water. Then sprayed the whole area down again with vinegar. I was so disgusted I almost dispatched my husband to purchase Raid, but then came back to my senses and didn’t. I couldn’t imagine spraying that toxic stuff near my kids play area. A few ants came back. I sprayed vinegar again. A couple of days later, no ants. We went from hundreds to three, to two and then none in two days time. Perfect!

5. Kill weeds. We have some really nasty, “pricker bushes” in our yard. Since we our new to this yard, we find them occasionally when we run barefoot playing soccer. They are awful and hard to pull (ouch) or dig out. I got out the vinegar, poured it on top, and presto, chango – weed dead and easier to pull out by the roots. Be careful though – it will kill any plant. It’s not toxic at all to other plants though, so as long as you get it directly on the weed you want to kill, you shouldn’t harm the other plants around it. You can also clip the weed (we did this with very invasive burdock) and then pour vinegar directly on the roots.

Oh yeah – one more – make pickles! We did. They’re fabulous!

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Of Walnut Trees and Tomato Plants…

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Posted on 27th July 2010 by Mish in gardening

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My eggplants are dying and some of my tomatoes. And my peppers stopped producing. I was starting to think my thumb was black. The symptoms were very strange. Healthy plants suddenly just wilting and then perking up again. The eggplants in particular would grow, produce flowers, wilt and then perk up again. But too late to produce an eggplant. Some of the tomatoes started to do it too.

I was completely puzzled. My tomato plants suffered from little pest damage, were planted in beautiful compost, and had received PLENTY of rain, sun and heat. I really was convinced that I was just a bad gardener and resigned myself to never finding out what I had done wrong.

Then, during a search for blight symptoms for my squash (another story!), I found this from the horticulture department at Iowa State University:

Walnut Toxicity
Black walnut trees produce a toxic material (juglone) that can injure and kill solanaceous crops (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers and eggplant) and other juglone-sensitive vegetables in the garden. Symptoms of walnut toxicity include stunted growth, yellowing and wilting of foliage, and death of susceptible plants. Juglone is present in all parts of the black walnut tree (fruits, leaves, branches and roots). The sources of juglone in the soil include both living and decaying plant material. Rain droplets leach juglone from the buds, leaves, and twigs. The decomposition of leaves and other plant debris by soil microorganisms also releases juglone. Living roots exude juglone into the surrounding soil. Generally, the greatest concentration of juglone in the soil exists within the dripline of walnut trees. Nothing can be done to save juglone-damaged tomato plants. Simply remove and destroy dead plants. Gardeners who have large walnut trees near their gardens should consider alternate sites. If alternate sites are unavailable, plant tomatoes and other susceptible plants 20 to 25 feet beyond the dripline of walnut trees to minimize walnut toxicity problems. Corn, beans, onions, beets, and carrots are tolerant of juglone and can be planted closer to walnut trees provided the area receives sufficient sunlight. Walnut trees that are 75 to 100 feet from the garden shouldn’t be a big threat to tomatoes and other juglone-sensitive vegetables.

Walnut Toxicity! Who knew? Certainly not me! I have three black walnut trees in my yard and one has a dripline that hangs directly over – guess where? Yup, the tomatoes. We’ll just have to wait it out this year and move the tomatoes out to the corner next year! Urban farming certainly isn’t easy – but I’m happy with cuke production as I just canned about 12 pints of pickles!

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How to Use Baking Soda – 10 Ways

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Posted on 19th July 2010 by Mish in family | frugal | green | green living | homemaking

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“Baking soda, baking soda,” my friend said. “Everywhere I go people say use baking soda for that. But all I ever use baking soda for is baking.”

My friend is right. Using baking soda seems to be one of the ultimate “green-living” tips – especially for the glossy magazines who can’t see beyond baking soda and overpriced “green” cleaners. But truly baking soda can do a lot of things, without harming the environment or you and your family.

What is baking soda? According to wisegeek.com, “bicarbonate of soda, sodium bicarbonate, and, less commonly, saleratus, is a chemical salt with diverse practical uses. With a chemical formula of NaHCO3, baking soda is a white powder with crystalline grains. Although it can be produced by artificial means, in its natural form, baking soda is called nahcolite, taking its name from its chemical formula.

“Baking soda is weakly alkaline. As such, it acts to neutralize acids and break down proteins. This quality accounts for its usefulness as a tenderizer and a leaven. Also, it is baking soda’s neutralizing action on acidic scent molecules that makes it an effective deodorizer. Added to the water when doing laundry, baking soda stabilizes the pH level, enhancing the detergent’s effectiveness. Baking soda may also be added to swimming pool water to balance the pH and keep the water clear.”
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Eating Simple = 30 lbs Gone!

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Posted on 18th July 2010 by Mish in food | gardening

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I am concentrating on keeping my eating simple. I’ve found that if I just eat simple food, without a lot of “stuff” – side dishes or sauces and dips for example – I eat less and feel more full. It’s been hard for me to disconnect from food. Food was the only thing I had in common with my parents, for example. It seemed like no matter what was going on between us personally (and there was usually a lot), if someone just fried up some chicken or grilled some steaks, all was well.

While I still love to eat yummy things, not making as big a deal out of meals has made it easier for me to lose weight. I don’t have a scale here at home, but the last time I stepped on a scale was at my son’s doctor’s office. I weighed…well, it’s embarrassing…I weighed a lot. More than 200 lbs. I was shocked because while I certainly didn’t feel fit, I didn’t feel huge.

I resolved then and there, though, to lose weight. I read a few books and was inspired to do some belly-busting, gut-wrenching workouts and eat only lettuce. That lasted about two days. So, I devised another plan.

I decided I would eat only things that God intended us to eat. Food that’s been here forever. I also resolved to put exercise back into my life more regularly, but not kill myself running an excessive amount of mileage or jumping up and down in the living room.

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The Anti-Lawn Campaign

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Posted on 24th June 2010 by Mish in food | frugal | gardening

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I’m still trying to find a purpose for lawns…other than golf. I really can’t. I mean, it’s nice for my kids to have a grassy area to play soccer on, but other than that…

In fact, lawns are pretty new to America. According to American-Lawns.com, “Green, weed-free lawns so common today didn’t exist in America until the late 18th century. Instead, the area just outside the front door of a typical rural home was typically packed dirt or perhaps a cottage garden that contained a mix of flowers, herbs, and vegetables.

In England, however, many of the wealthy had sweeping green lawns across their estates. Americans with enough money to travel overseas returned to the U.S. with images of the English lawn firmly planted in their imaginations. Try as we might, it wasn’t as easy to reproduce a beautiful English lawn. After all, they couldn’t just run down to their local hardware store and pick up a bag of grass seed. Grasses native to America proved unsuitable for a tidy and well-controlled lawn, and our extreme climate was less than hospitable to the English grass seeds.
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Salad Harvest

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Posted on 17th June 2010 by Mish in food | frugal | gardening

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Just wanted to post a prideful note (I know, pride’s a sin, but I can’t help it) showing the third full harvest of lettuce and spinach I’ve gotten from our urban farm. It gives me a thrill to know that not only do I not have to purchase lettuce from the store, suiting the frugal me, but also that I know exactly how this lettuce was grown – without any chemicals or fertilizers and with a slight donation to the rabbits before the fence went up!

I’m still trying to get most of the kids to eat salad, but I’ve been putting fruit in our salads lately and that seems to help! Although Jack’s propensity for ketchup is slightly disturbing…

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Living Frugally…

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Posted on 13th June 2010 by Mish in food | frugal | gardening

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According to the USDA, the monthly THRIFTY plan budget for the groceries of me, my husband and our 7 children is, wait for it…$1217 a month! Holy cow! That’s the cheapest plan they can come up with. If I was LIBERAL with our spending, according to the USDA we could spend $2400 a month! Is there anyone who spends that much per month on food? If so, we need to talk.

I was also reading over at the Jeub Family about a recent NPR article that said it now costs $222,360, on average, to raise a child. One Child! No wonder people get freaked out about having kids. If I listened to stuff like this all of the time, I’d be afraid to have kids too. Seriously, how much do people think car seats cost? And really, soccer was only $35.

Would you believe that we spend less than $600 a month on food for our family? That’s less than $3 per day per person. I’ve done it on even less than that – less than $100 a week – but in the summer we buy more foods to grill than we probably should. Winter is where I really save money.
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