A new week! (actually the middle of a new week). This week I'm adding at least one hour each week decluttering the house. We have a large, old house and it's been very easy to hang on to every old thing. My goal is to open up space in the house and to gather up items for next summer's big community yard sale. Even just one hour a week through July will net me several boxes of items to sell. The changes I've made so far - washing in cold, baking bread, and planning meals - have cut our expenses noticeably. I am surprised, really, at the savings and inspired to keep pushing.

 Striving-

Thanks for ideas!  Yesterday I made a big meal as it was first day of school for 5 kids.  I made Velveeta mac and cheese (comfort food), a salad with about 1/2 a variety of cut up tomotoes, spinach, parmasean-the good kind, mushrooms, and a mix of ranch and balsamic dressings, a heated up quiche, cantaloupe and raspberries, and 2 of my dds made choc chip cookies for dessert. Most of the kids really liked the salad.

Pam- I am trying to slowly declutter, I have since summer.  This week sorting through books to donate back to the library book sale. I have a bookcase in the basement, with books I haven't looked at for a long time, surely a few of those should go. 

To very slightly refer to Feng Shui (I only barely know enough to mess it up, lol) clearing out junk and messes allows fresh energy to flow through rooms and houses, and allows new 'things' to arrive in your life. So, while I pack up boxes to move to the barn for next summer's yard sale, I am thinking about extra creativity and more physical energy and maybe even some extra income coming our way. :)

I agree with decluttering!  two big boxes, 2 garbage bags and a toybox went last weekend.  have to go though the kids books to donate to the classrooms.   I have toys  and books earmarked for the kids old preschool, consignment store, and classrooms.

have shopping bag filled with kids clothes to donate already.  pulling things out as I do laundry.

 plan to do some today.  dh needs to take things out to the garage too. clutter never ends with kids!

My plan to cut down on dryer use is working!  I have not eliminated the use of the dryer totally, but I expect to see some improvement in our electricity bill.

And now, for my new Different Thing....

I am trying to cut down on the amount of money I spend on sodas and junk food in the afternoons.  I somehow got into the habit of treating myself to a Coke every day.  To make matters worse, I was buying them at inflated convenience store prices!    It occured to me that Kool-Aid is no less nutritious than Coke.  So I made a pitcher of Kool-Aid (the unsweetened kind so that I can control the amount of sugar), poured it into several reusable plastic bottles and stashed them in the fridge/ freezer.  Now, when I'm dashing out the door, I can grab a bottle from the fridge, and a bottle of water and hit the road.   If I travel with my drinks from home, I do not need to go to a convenience store and I won't be tempted to buy chips and other junk to go along with the soda!

I've also realized that my soda/ junk food consumption was closely linked to my boredom while waiting for DD to finish her extracurricular activity.   So, I now walk with a book or other form of entertainment, and if that doesn't work, I'll seek out a parent that's always good for intellectually stimulating conversation!  My brain gets a workout, my money stays in my wallet, and my butt is thankful that I'm not loading up on empty calories that will make me fat!

Dear Virginia,

As for the dishwasher, as it turns out it is cheaper for my family at this time to run the dishwasher than it was to do them by hand.  Cost of hot water, gallons and gallons of it. I just turn off the heated dry cycle and open the door a crack.  Not to mention, no more fighting to get help from the grandchildren!

My dryer broke couple of years ago, and I have been hanging clothes out ever since, I tried to get a handyman to put a pole by the back porch with wheelies on it so that I could just stand there and hang them and run them out, (Like NYC in the 30's, pictures) But the cost far outweighed a new dryer, SIL will be home in December, I will try to convince him to do this for me, and I was thinking "shoulder buggered up" could have it low enough to help with that. Just my two cents.

You could put the clthes on hangers then put them outside to dry, that way it's less strain on your shoulder.

If you start to miss your pizzas, try doing a "make your own" night using a flour tortilla per person and offer different toppings.  Cook in either a microwave or watch closely as you melt the cheese in the oven under the broiler.

You can use wheat flour tortillas instead of the white flour ones and use a thick fry pan instead of broiling it's easier. The microwave tends dry out breads and tortillas.

Scheduled menus do help.  I do pinto Mondays and salad Saturdays. If I fixed homemade pizza on Fridays, Cuz would want it six days a week.

The nature of my work makes cold water wash an impossibility.  Staph, hepatitis, e.coli...you name it.  I'd give anything for on-demand hot water for the shower and faucets and boiling water for the dishwasher and washing machine, but it's just too expensive.