May 4, 2013 | A better way, Save $ |
I’m doing a new challenge, one I’ve decided not to blog about until it’s complete. Well, I guess I’m breaking my own rule here, as the challenge is for 2 months and I haven’t even completed the first month. The challenge is to buy...
Oct 2, 2011 | A better way, One year of downsizing, Save $
I’m on day 224 of 365 days in this challenge. Today marks a milestone, not in the days or numbers, but how I feel about this process. Difficulty. It’s increasingly more difficult to find areas in my house that I haven’t downsized. For some reason,...
Sep 26, 2011 | A better way, Repurposed, Save $
My boys needed a sling bag for a school camping trip. Now the really great thing about this, is that I tried to buy one of these for them at the beginning of the school year. They both said they didn’t really need one and could find something else to use....
Sep 24, 2011 | A better way, Cultural chaos, Save $
Yes, that’s my thermostat. It’s reading 92°. No, I don’t want to turn my air conditioner back on. One cool day is all need to motivate me to turn it off until the heat is needed. I’m tired of the high electric bills. I’m fine in the...
Aug 4, 2011 | A better way, Cultural chaos, Read the fine print, Repurposed, Salvaged, Save $
Yes, it’s time to start preparing for back-to-school. My kids are in denial that they’re going back soon. I’m in denial that I have to spend a lot of money on school supplies. Of all the challenges a year of no retail shopping posed on our lives,...
Jul 25, 2011 | A better way, Mini challenges, Save $ |
My new mini-challenge… no fast food through the end of the year and no eating out for a month. (one exception: my friend’s birthday dinner) It pains me to see all of the paper waste from eating fast food. Not doing the fast food thing through the end of...
Jul 19, 2011 | Downsizing, One year of downsizing, Save $, Thrift store |
With a goal of 365 items, downsizing one item a day over a one year period, has proven to be more difficult than I imagined. With the exception of my garage, there’s just not much left to downsize in my house. When I open a cabinet or a drawer, thinking I...
May 31, 2011 | Flashback, No retail shopping, Save $
I decided not to be the ugly neighbor any longer. I didn’t do much to my yard last summer, so this year, it’s looking a little rough. Should I go shopping? This is going to be weird… I chose Home Depot because I had a store credit from a return I...
May 31, 2011 | Am I still here?, Save $
On the last day of my no retail shopping challenge, I started my day as I do everyday. I turn on my espresso machine so it will heat up to make my latte. I got one latte out of it before it started constantly running, trying desperately to fill itself up with water,...
May 20, 2011 | No retail shopping, Save $
I get teased pretty often about my use of paper towels, or should I say lack of use? Over the last year I might have used almost 4 or 5 rolls and 3 of them were in the first part of the year. I don’t have any now. When people come over to eat and I did have...
May 11, 2011 | No retail shopping, Save $, Sharing
I’ve done over 5,000 transactions on eBay. Not recently, and not all purchases either. I had an eBay business from the late 90’s until about 5 years ago. I still shop on eBay and so do my kids. I just had an interesting observation. Many of the items I...
May 7, 2011 | No retail shopping, Save $ |
I was going to wait until the end of the chalenge to do the final financial update, but I thought it was pretty relevant today. Although the financial implications of the no shopping challenge were not a driving factor in starting the challenge, it’s been a...
Apr 28, 2011 | No retail shopping, Save $
Tonight, we’re discussing some household budget items… electric, groceries, dining, movie rentals, cable tv and more. When I say ‘we’, I mean me and my kids. No, I’m not excluding my spouse, I don’t have one. I know my kids are...
Apr 19, 2011 | Cultural chaos, No retail shopping, Repurposed, Save $, Sharing |
I was given a challenge several weeks ago to come up with an artistic creative element to do during a church service. I remembered about two years ago, I had seen some motion sand art created on a light table with a camera mounted above it. As I started fantasizing...
Apr 10, 2011 | Downsizing, No retail shopping, Recycle, Repurposed, Save $, Thrift store
There’s a lot of stuff that might be considered trash, but before you throw something away, think about the possible uses for it. These are partially full cleaning supplies and pesticides, well, there’s also a random bottle of unopened champagne too....
Apr 4, 2011 | No retail shopping, Repurposed, Save $
I have really come to hate the taunting music played from the ice cream truck, getting louder as it gets closer to my house. As soon as I hear the fain sounds of it, I know what’s next. Mom!!!!! The ice cream truck!!!!!! My kids know I’m not a fan of...
Apr 2, 2011 | Downsizing, No retail shopping, Save $ |
Deciding to get a pet of any kind is a big decision, not only for the responsibility associated with them, but for the expenses you will incur. A couple of weeks ago we adopted Zuri, a 6 month-old kitten. She’s precious and is the perfect fit for our family....
Mar 28, 2011 | Downsizing, No retail shopping, Save $, Thrift store
Buy one, purge one. I’ve been practicing my “buy one, purge one” philosophy and it’s going well. I was hoping to photograph all of the items, however that would take a lot of time. I am doing it though. I don’t shop near as much as I...
Mar 26, 2011 | Downsizing, No retail shopping, Save $
I’ve gotten a few questions on my new grocery shopping plan. I shop more frequently, but buying less, limiting myself to 25 items or less. You can read the story about the downsizing and new shopping plan that was published in early February 2011. Take a...
Mar 26, 2011 | Ideas, No retail shopping, Save $
Maybe I’m a mean mom, but I make my kids try new foods. I don’t make them eat it if they don’t like it and I don’t go out of my way to get things that will gross them out. Both of them like pistachio nuts so I thought I would make some...
Mar 24, 2011 | No retail shopping, Read the fine print, Recycle, Repurposed, Save $, Thrift store |
I decided to check out a little boutique in downtown Frisco. Yes, I said boutique. I heard a story about some recycled jeans they are selling and decided to check it out. The Blue Door Boutique, a cute little shop with a lot of style, carries a lot of interesting...
Mar 17, 2011 | Downsizing, Mini challenges, No retail shopping, Save $, Sharing |
We’re taught from little on that we should always share. As we get a little older, we have our own stuff, but we’re still told to share on occasion. Then we hit our teens. I don’t think anyone told me I should share anymore at that age. We start...
Feb 28, 2011 | No retail shopping, Salvaged, Save $ |
My friend Lauren posted this photo on her Facebook page last month. It’s her dead Mr. Coffee machine. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many comments on a photo before. This very basic coffee machine lasted 10 years. Now that’s...
Feb 7, 2011 | Downsizing, Ideas, No retail shopping, Save $ |
I’ve been doing a lot of downsizing lately. Right before snowmageddon, I decided to clean out the kitchen, not just utensils and cabinet crap, but food. I don’t like being wasteful, and although we waste a lot less than the average American family, I...
Feb 7, 2011 | No retail shopping, Read the fine print, Save $ |
I was doing some image research for work and stumbled upon this photo. Save -$10! I wonder if they actually sold any of these at the higher sale price? You would think that this error had to have been seen by at least 2 employees, and yet, it made it to the sales...
