Today has been quite the day!
We started off by going to the homecoming parade here at school. Since we live next to campus, it was a short walk to the parade route. Lots of fun seeing the floats, the people dancing, throwing candy, and the little kids having a ball. Definitely something we'll do again next year.
After that, it was off to Enrichment. Fun, but it meant that I was gone for Guy's entire first nap and didn't get anything accomplished at home. Lunch was served, so that was nice to not have to cook anything. There was even extra to take home to the hubby!
I then went and did some very necessary grocery shopping. And after that, it was off to a birthday party for a couple who we're good friends with. It was a barbecue, so I didn't have to cook dinner, either!
This evening has been spent working for me, and doing homework for Josh. Now, I'm done staring at a computer screen and get to go do some more work, in the form of that mountain of dishes in my kitchen! At the very least, I need to transfer the leftovers from the crockpot in the fridge so I can wash the crock.
Which reminds me of my Sunday solution: Josh is often gone at meetings most of the day on Sundays, and I rarely know when he'll be home. Since he longs to have a good home-cooked meal on Sundays, I avail myself of the breadmaker and the crockpot. Then, I have dinner ready from the time I'm home from church. Not much work, and it's always tasty. Except that chili I burned that one time! Well, and last week's lentil stew was a bit gross-looking, but it tasted fine to me.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Weekday Widow
In case I haven't mentioned it before, my husband is a university student. He's in a top-rated program, where they ask their students to work no more than ten hours per week in order to focus on schoolwork.
My husband also has a job. He's got a lot to keep him busy at work, and often ends up working thirty hour weeks without having planned. This means that most days are a lot like today.
He had only six hours of sleep, interrupted twice by an unusually fussy son. Home for lunch after class, we had a few minutes to chat and relax. From work, he went to to a professor's home for dinner. It's 7 p.m. and my son didn't see his father all day.
This makes me a bit sad, but it gives me motivation to work hard around the house so that it is peaceful and happy when he comes home. Every minute counts when you don't see each other very often. Who wants to waste time bickering or sniping? Not me!
What works well is keeping on a schedule, keeping busy (but getting things done--not too much socializing), and having fun whenever I get the chance. Nothing he needs more than a happy wife.
My husband also has a job. He's got a lot to keep him busy at work, and often ends up working thirty hour weeks without having planned. This means that most days are a lot like today.
He had only six hours of sleep, interrupted twice by an unusually fussy son. Home for lunch after class, we had a few minutes to chat and relax. From work, he went to to a professor's home for dinner. It's 7 p.m. and my son didn't see his father all day.
This makes me a bit sad, but it gives me motivation to work hard around the house so that it is peaceful and happy when he comes home. Every minute counts when you don't see each other very often. Who wants to waste time bickering or sniping? Not me!
What works well is keeping on a schedule, keeping busy (but getting things done--not too much socializing), and having fun whenever I get the chance. Nothing he needs more than a happy wife.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Here's lookin' at you, fridge
So, in the quest to keep my kitchen clean, I have challenged myself. Fourteen straight days of a clean kitchen at the end of the day (or at least cleaner than it started, seeing as I started with a mountain of dishes). This means any dish used must be washed before going to bed.
The reward? A new dress. I've only got two Sunday outfits right now, as I've skinnied myself right out of everything else. Two days in, I'm thinking I can make this work. Even while preparing two meals a day for the family, it's a doable task, and I love cooking in a clean kitchen. So motivation is right in front of me.
In other news, I read an odd blog post today claiming that it's not any cheaper or healthier to make baby food than it is to buy jarred food. This I do not believe in the slightest. For one, the baby food is processed in order to jar it. This would include heat, and other methods that weaken or alter nutrients. Secondly, the jars then sit on the shelves for ages, further reducing nutritional content. Thirdly, it's cheapest to simply breastfeed until the child is old enough to start eating real food. Mashed bananas, veggies, oatmeal, etc. are good starters until your child has teeth and can start to chew.
Honestly, I've been amazed at my son's ability to bite, chew, and swallow as a 9-month-old without much practice on even eating food. He can even drink from a cup, which he did on the first try. Sometimes it takes lots of practice, but it seems to me that it's all pretty intuitive for my little bubby.
The reward? A new dress. I've only got two Sunday outfits right now, as I've skinnied myself right out of everything else. Two days in, I'm thinking I can make this work. Even while preparing two meals a day for the family, it's a doable task, and I love cooking in a clean kitchen. So motivation is right in front of me.
In other news, I read an odd blog post today claiming that it's not any cheaper or healthier to make baby food than it is to buy jarred food. This I do not believe in the slightest. For one, the baby food is processed in order to jar it. This would include heat, and other methods that weaken or alter nutrients. Secondly, the jars then sit on the shelves for ages, further reducing nutritional content. Thirdly, it's cheapest to simply breastfeed until the child is old enough to start eating real food. Mashed bananas, veggies, oatmeal, etc. are good starters until your child has teeth and can start to chew.
Honestly, I've been amazed at my son's ability to bite, chew, and swallow as a 9-month-old without much practice on even eating food. He can even drink from a cup, which he did on the first try. Sometimes it takes lots of practice, but it seems to me that it's all pretty intuitive for my little bubby.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Basic Kitchen Tip
Home-cooked meals are invariably cheaper than the storebought variety.
Cooking in a clean kitchen is a joy, while shuffling the dirty dishes while trying to cook is frustrating beyond belief.
Add two and two, and you realize that having a clean kitchen is a good step towards wanting to cook frugal and healthy meals.
Get a clue, Emily. Seriously.
Cooking in a clean kitchen is a joy, while shuffling the dirty dishes while trying to cook is frustrating beyond belief.
Add two and two, and you realize that having a clean kitchen is a good step towards wanting to cook frugal and healthy meals.
Get a clue, Emily. Seriously.
Friday, September 7, 2007
Tips for a New Baby
I left a comment on one of my favorite blogs, Frugal Upstate, with some advice for a mom-to-be on how to save money and space with a little one. I thought I'd reprint it here.
We live in a tiny two-bedroom apartment (my husband is still in college) and one of our biggest space and money-savers was borrowing from friends. My son's bouncer, baby bathtub, sling, and swing were all borrowed. When we were done, we gave them back so we didn't have to store them for future kids. We also didn't have to pay for them.
I change my son on the floor on a kitchen towel to protect the carpet, because we have no room or money for a dresser or changing table. So, all of his clothes are stored in a closet hanging shoe organizer (less than $20). This makes it easy to find what I need quickly, too!
We haven't spent much money on toys, either. My son loves to play with an empty formula can, plastic measuring cups, an extra tv remote with no batteries, and some rubber ducks and dinosaurs my mother purchased for us. We have spent money on board books, so that he has something he can "read" himself.
I make sure that all his toys fit in a basket we keep in the living room, an extra that we had laying around. This makes clean-up easy and helps prevent us from amassing too many things at this stage.
Also--my favorite frugal find was a Maclaren umbrella stroller at Costco for about $75. It works like a dream and is very sturdy but lightweight. This is one of those things you just have to watch out for if you're a Costco shopper.
Have I jabbered on enough, yet?
We live in a tiny two-bedroom apartment (my husband is still in college) and one of our biggest space and money-savers was borrowing from friends. My son's bouncer, baby bathtub, sling, and swing were all borrowed. When we were done, we gave them back so we didn't have to store them for future kids. We also didn't have to pay for them.
I change my son on the floor on a kitchen towel to protect the carpet, because we have no room or money for a dresser or changing table. So, all of his clothes are stored in a closet hanging shoe organizer (less than $20). This makes it easy to find what I need quickly, too!
We haven't spent much money on toys, either. My son loves to play with an empty formula can, plastic measuring cups, an extra tv remote with no batteries, and some rubber ducks and dinosaurs my mother purchased for us. We have spent money on board books, so that he has something he can "read" himself.
I make sure that all his toys fit in a basket we keep in the living room, an extra that we had laying around. This makes clean-up easy and helps prevent us from amassing too many things at this stage.
Also--my favorite frugal find was a Maclaren umbrella stroller at Costco for about $75. It works like a dream and is very sturdy but lightweight. This is one of those things you just have to watch out for if you're a Costco shopper.
Have I jabbered on enough, yet?
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Morsbags to the Rescue!
I needed a project. Okay, so that's an outright lie. As I was surfing the internet the other day, I came across a few websites that left me dreaming of better things for myself, my family, and the environment.
www.reusablebags.com was one of these, and I got to thinking how nice it would be if I could cut down on the enormous number of plastic bags coming into my household.
Well, there's a $50 set that would be nice. However, I don't think I'm willing to spend $50. Let alone $100 for a bag that proclaims "I'm Not a Plastic Bag". Ridiculous.
I happened to have several yards of a neutral-colored fabric, very sturdy, purchased for the purposes of making a civil war re-enacting corset. Obviously, that never happened, as I'm sadly no longer involved in re-enacting. And yesterday, I found the best website!
www.morsbags.com
The idea is that people get together, sew these bags from scrap fabric, and then leave them at grocery stores for people to use to prevent the wasting of precious resources manufacturing and then throwing away plastic bags.
There's a wonderful visual tutorial clarifies the instructions. You need an iron, some fabric, and the ability to sew straight lines (thus a machine is incredibly helpful).
I managed to finish one yesterday (thanks to the husband, who watched the baby while I finished it up) and it's very sturdy. I have enough fabric to make three more, which will undoubtedly take much longer than necessary, but anything to save the planet :-)
www.reusablebags.com was one of these, and I got to thinking how nice it would be if I could cut down on the enormous number of plastic bags coming into my household.
Well, there's a $50 set that would be nice. However, I don't think I'm willing to spend $50. Let alone $100 for a bag that proclaims "I'm Not a Plastic Bag". Ridiculous.
I happened to have several yards of a neutral-colored fabric, very sturdy, purchased for the purposes of making a civil war re-enacting corset. Obviously, that never happened, as I'm sadly no longer involved in re-enacting. And yesterday, I found the best website!
www.morsbags.com
The idea is that people get together, sew these bags from scrap fabric, and then leave them at grocery stores for people to use to prevent the wasting of precious resources manufacturing and then throwing away plastic bags.
There's a wonderful visual tutorial clarifies the instructions. You need an iron, some fabric, and the ability to sew straight lines (thus a machine is incredibly helpful).
I managed to finish one yesterday (thanks to the husband, who watched the baby while I finished it up) and it's very sturdy. I have enough fabric to make three more, which will undoubtedly take much longer than necessary, but anything to save the planet :-)
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Frugal Cleaning Tip
There's nothing I hate more than toxic chemicals. Yes, I know that they work really well for cleaning, but it's not worth poor health to have in my home.
Yesterday morning, I noticed the shower was clogged. It wasn't pretty! The best way I know of to remove a clog is to physically remove whatever is blocking the drain. It's a quick fix. In my case, it was a lot of hair--we shaved the husband's head yesterday, and I've got long hair that ends up everywhere. With this removed, I wanted to make certain the drain was clear.
The solution here? Baking soda, followed by vinegar. Then, (and don't skip this step!) after 10 minutes have passed, pour a kettleful of boiling water down the drain. This will remove any last strongholds that the baking soda/vinegar combination weakened.
Yesterday morning, I noticed the shower was clogged. It wasn't pretty! The best way I know of to remove a clog is to physically remove whatever is blocking the drain. It's a quick fix. In my case, it was a lot of hair--we shaved the husband's head yesterday, and I've got long hair that ends up everywhere. With this removed, I wanted to make certain the drain was clear.
The solution here? Baking soda, followed by vinegar. Then, (and don't skip this step!) after 10 minutes have passed, pour a kettleful of boiling water down the drain. This will remove any last strongholds that the baking soda/vinegar combination weakened.
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