Aside from being a bad blogger recently, I've been a bad thin-green-rich person as well. Its not that I've given up my mission, but I've definitely tossed aside a lot of things and let the wool be pulled over my eyes on others. So, in the interest of purging my guilt: my list of confessions.
I have used half a roll of paper towels in the last month. This does not bode very well for the remaining 8 or so rolls to last me the next year! In my defense my husband is responsible for some of the usage, and my dog puked not once, but twice. But other times I simply felt too lazy to go to the drawer (5 feet away) that contains rags and get one, wet it at the sink, and use it. Bad, lazy, wasteful!
I have used a significant amount of my remaining stock of Swiffer wet pads and Clorox Clean-Up wipes. Again, no excuse but laziness and, paradoxically, being super busy lately. I have been a lot better about using rags and mopping with a bucket of water instead of the Swiffer, but there have been quite a few incidences that I thought to myself "f*** it". No excuse, again!
Running is over, for now. With the exception of any mild days that may make an appearance over the next 4 or so months, running is out. If it was just me I could stick with it (and probably would, because I do enjoy getting outside) but I think anything below 40 is too cold for my bundle of joy, even if he is bundled up. I have resorted to my old DVR'd workouts and Tae Bo, but since its a lot harder to do crunches and kickboxing with your toddler than it is to strap them into a stroller, I'm somewhat limited. Meaning--nap time is when I now need to squeeze in exercising, along with cleaning, writing, and showering. Since nap time is (average) about 2 hours long, somethings gotta give now and than. I'm trying to make a conscious effort to at least do a half hour work-out when I'm pressed for time...especially with the holiday season coming up!
I need to get a drying rack. Or get something in my laundry room. Though I have been hanging clothes out when I can, they aren't really drying. And, today I went out to check them and found the whole line of towels and rags frozen solid! So, I admit I have been using the dryer WAY more often in the last 3 or so weeks. I have the perfect spot to hang two bars in my laundry room, and that coupled with a drying rack should be more than enough. I just need to DO it. You would think with my next confession I would be all over having to run to Walmart and, you know, buy things.
I keep buying things. Its hard this time of year. I know we're in a recession, and I know that my son is too young to remember this Christmas. I know that I don't "need" a new wreath for the door, new stocking for the whole family, or a Magnadoodle for G3. But lately, I've been bad about spending, and I've been TERRIBLE about using coupons and CVSing. I had started to develop a really nice stockpile of non-perishables and know I missed a lot of good deals. But--sometimes life is just too busy! I really need to sit down and start shopping the way I had been for groceries and necessities.
My final confession...I don't want to be green with Christmas wrapping paper! Well, in my head I do but in my heart I want to wrap everyone's presents in brilliant holiday paper adorned with bows and ribbon, or stuffed into decorative bags with oodles of tissue paper. I recently wrote an article on Helium about ways to be green during the holidays, and a big focus of it was re-using materials like newspaper, paper bags, and previously used wrapping paper, and skipping the embellishments. So why don't I want to follow my own advice!!??
Okay. Confessions over. I promise to be better!!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Friday, November 7, 2008
Self-Evaluation
Since its been a few months of concentrating my efforts on being thinner, richer, greener, I thought it would be a good idea to sort of evaluate how I've been doing, what I've learned, what was easy and what is harder than expected...
Running: My initial goal was to exercise 5 times a week, on top of running in the evening with my husband. This has changed a bit, because (1) My husband stopped running for awhile due to a myriad of health factors, mainly a herniated disk and (2) Its now dark at 5pm so our days of post-work running have come to a close, at least until March or so. I'm still continuing to aim for 5 workouts a week and its constantly an uphill battle. I generally get 3-4 workouts a week, 5 is an excellent effort and does happen sometimes. Unfortunately, slacking also occurs, mostly due to extenuating circumstances like going away for a weekend--and I feel it when I do not exercise.
"Thinner" Goals in General: You may have noticed I don't have a whole lot of these. Other than diet and exercise, there isn't much short of liposuction I can do about my shitty metabolism and my post baby flab. Perhaps I need some more specific goals in the future...such as "never eat french fries or cookies ever!" Yeah.
Now onto the greener goals...since these seem to be the most plentiful...
Dryer Usage: By far, cutting out the dryer usage has been the easiest and reaped the most tangible benefits. Surprisingly, I found that I enjoyed the process of hanging clothes out to dry and using the dryer only for necessary items. Our electric bill is significantly lower. I do need to get a drying rack for indoors for the winter, but then again, I think as long as there's no precipitation there's no reason not to hang clothes out in the winter and just touch them up with 10 minutes in the dryer...we shall see...
Going Wipe less: Found a few glitches in my plan to go wipe less. 1. I started doing some minor potty training with my son. Cleaning out the potty (human waste) and then throwing the rag in the laundry? Not going to happen, at least not with the extra gross clean-up jobs. Also, during a party or gathering of people, its really hard to limit your usage. About a half roll of paper towels was used in ONE night. (The other half had been sporadically used over a few months.) The dishwasher was run multiple times, and although I had visions of not using paper plates, I did anyhow b/c I didn't feel like loading and unloading the dishwasher yet again. But really, I'm not going to ask my guests to watch how many paper towels they use or count the squares of toilet paper.
Conserving Energy: My husband and I are getting better about this. We used to be horrible ones for having every light in the house on, unnecessary things plugged in, and taking ridiculously long showers (well, that was more my husband than me!) I think seeing it reflected in our electric bill--we can view it online at any time and see how much energy we've used) has helped a lot. But we could be doing better.
Recycling: Remember, when I started this, we didn't even recycle? Its amazing how many alcohol bottles, I mean recyclables, we go through in a month. Amazing.
Future endeavors: Solar panels. We might have to work on the "richer" part of this blog before that happens. Compost pile. Haven't gotten there yet, and must research to see if things like wild animals and unruly dogs will prevent a compost pile from happening. We shall see!
And finally, the richer goals. I know people laugh but the CVSing has made a difference, and I've changed my mentality about shopping a bit--stocking up when I can and comparison shopping a bit. I have put a lot more energy into writing for helium.com, and it has paid off a bit. And hopefully will continue to do so. Right now it doesn't behoove our family for me to go outside of the home to get a job--we both feel its important for our son to have a parent home with him for now, after all, in a short year and a half he'll be in preschool (sob!) And, my "trade" of being a veterinary technician would probably just cover childcare--unfortunately we aren't lucky enough to have a family caregiver (read: free babysitter) locally. So, although my income from eBay and writing and what I save through shopping conservatively is slim, I do feel it has made a difference.
Running: My initial goal was to exercise 5 times a week, on top of running in the evening with my husband. This has changed a bit, because (1) My husband stopped running for awhile due to a myriad of health factors, mainly a herniated disk and (2) Its now dark at 5pm so our days of post-work running have come to a close, at least until March or so. I'm still continuing to aim for 5 workouts a week and its constantly an uphill battle. I generally get 3-4 workouts a week, 5 is an excellent effort and does happen sometimes. Unfortunately, slacking also occurs, mostly due to extenuating circumstances like going away for a weekend--and I feel it when I do not exercise.
"Thinner" Goals in General: You may have noticed I don't have a whole lot of these. Other than diet and exercise, there isn't much short of liposuction I can do about my shitty metabolism and my post baby flab. Perhaps I need some more specific goals in the future...such as "never eat french fries or cookies ever!" Yeah.
Now onto the greener goals...since these seem to be the most plentiful...
Dryer Usage: By far, cutting out the dryer usage has been the easiest and reaped the most tangible benefits. Surprisingly, I found that I enjoyed the process of hanging clothes out to dry and using the dryer only for necessary items. Our electric bill is significantly lower. I do need to get a drying rack for indoors for the winter, but then again, I think as long as there's no precipitation there's no reason not to hang clothes out in the winter and just touch them up with 10 minutes in the dryer...we shall see...
Going Wipe less: Found a few glitches in my plan to go wipe less. 1. I started doing some minor potty training with my son. Cleaning out the potty (human waste) and then throwing the rag in the laundry? Not going to happen, at least not with the extra gross clean-up jobs. Also, during a party or gathering of people, its really hard to limit your usage. About a half roll of paper towels was used in ONE night. (The other half had been sporadically used over a few months.) The dishwasher was run multiple times, and although I had visions of not using paper plates, I did anyhow b/c I didn't feel like loading and unloading the dishwasher yet again. But really, I'm not going to ask my guests to watch how many paper towels they use or count the squares of toilet paper.
Conserving Energy: My husband and I are getting better about this. We used to be horrible ones for having every light in the house on, unnecessary things plugged in, and taking ridiculously long showers (well, that was more my husband than me!) I think seeing it reflected in our electric bill--we can view it online at any time and see how much energy we've used) has helped a lot. But we could be doing better.
Recycling: Remember, when I started this, we didn't even recycle? Its amazing how many alcohol bottles, I mean recyclables, we go through in a month. Amazing.
Future endeavors: Solar panels. We might have to work on the "richer" part of this blog before that happens. Compost pile. Haven't gotten there yet, and must research to see if things like wild animals and unruly dogs will prevent a compost pile from happening. We shall see!
And finally, the richer goals. I know people laugh but the CVSing has made a difference, and I've changed my mentality about shopping a bit--stocking up when I can and comparison shopping a bit. I have put a lot more energy into writing for helium.com, and it has paid off a bit. And hopefully will continue to do so. Right now it doesn't behoove our family for me to go outside of the home to get a job--we both feel its important for our son to have a parent home with him for now, after all, in a short year and a half he'll be in preschool (sob!) And, my "trade" of being a veterinary technician would probably just cover childcare--unfortunately we aren't lucky enough to have a family caregiver (read: free babysitter) locally. So, although my income from eBay and writing and what I save through shopping conservatively is slim, I do feel it has made a difference.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Let's Talk About Being Wasteful
Sharing". Anyhow, we both noted the funny thing about this book is that of all the reasons they cite for being NOT wasteful, protecting the environment isn't one of them.
For example, the book illustrates how taking a long shower uses all the hot water...and then you have nothing but cold. Or, how using large amounts of shampoo means that then, you have none. Nothing about how it costs more or how its not very eco-conscious.
Amazing the difference in the world in a mere 24 years...
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
A Very Successful CVS Week
Well, I knew it was going to pay off sooner or later, and finally a week came when there were some very good deals on things I would be buying whether CVS had them on sale or not. I don't have all the exact numbers due to accidentally throwing out my receipt, but here's the skinny based on what I remember:
* 1 pack of Huggies diapers: on sale for $9.99, plus coupon for $1.50 off
* 4 packs of Huggies wipes: on sale for $2.79 (I think) plus a $0.50 off coupon for each
* 2 boxes of Q-tips: on sale for $2-something
By purchasing $25.00 worth of the above products (I think the total for them was about $26.00) I received $10.00 back in ECBs. Yes, I'm aware that buying individual boxes of wipes is not very green, but the interest of a good deal won over here. I also purchased:
* 2 cans of Progresso soup: $1.99 but they were B1G1 so about $1.00 each. I eat this kind of soup constantly for lunch, and in hindsight it would have been smart of me to get a few more.
* 3 bags of Brach's candy corn: I forget how much they were but I received an equal amount back in ECB's so they ended up being free
* 3 cans of Red Bull for $5.00: This saved me roughly a dollar, but since we're having a party this weekend and its foreseeable I'll need a pick-me-up to dump my vodka into, this was a likely purchase no matter what
* 4 boxes of Kleenex: on sale for $0.89 a piece, had a coupon for $1.00 off 4.
So, my grand total after coupons (I also had $5.00 in ECBs to cash in) was about $33.00. And then I received $12.00 in ECB's back, making my expenditure for the week $21. Normally the diapers and wipes alone would have been more than that, so I was pretty happy with this...
* 1 pack of Huggies diapers: on sale for $9.99, plus coupon for $1.50 off
* 4 packs of Huggies wipes: on sale for $2.79 (I think) plus a $0.50 off coupon for each
* 2 boxes of Q-tips: on sale for $2-something
By purchasing $25.00 worth of the above products (I think the total for them was about $26.00) I received $10.00 back in ECBs. Yes, I'm aware that buying individual boxes of wipes is not very green, but the interest of a good deal won over here. I also purchased:
* 2 cans of Progresso soup: $1.99 but they were B1G1 so about $1.00 each. I eat this kind of soup constantly for lunch, and in hindsight it would have been smart of me to get a few more.
* 3 bags of Brach's candy corn: I forget how much they were but I received an equal amount back in ECB's so they ended up being free
* 3 cans of Red Bull for $5.00: This saved me roughly a dollar, but since we're having a party this weekend and its foreseeable I'll need a pick-me-up to dump my vodka into, this was a likely purchase no matter what
* 4 boxes of Kleenex: on sale for $0.89 a piece, had a coupon for $1.00 off 4.
So, my grand total after coupons (I also had $5.00 in ECBs to cash in) was about $33.00. And then I received $12.00 in ECB's back, making my expenditure for the week $21. Normally the diapers and wipes alone would have been more than that, so I was pretty happy with this...
Monday, October 20, 2008
Helium...Making Me Richer!
A while back I stumbled across a website called www.helium.com. It's basically an online forum for freelance writing. Anything and everything you can possibly think of to write about--its there. The general idea being that someone (say, a magazine editor) is looking for an article about such and such and can come to this website, search, and come up with a bunch of articles. Part of the way the website works is peer rating--you are supposed to read others' articles and rate them. So lets say there are 55 articles on Helium about dangerous dog breeds. And the editor of "Dog Fancy" comes looking for an article on dangerous dog breeds. And instead of reading 55 articles, this editor just reads the top 5. And yours just happens to be in the top 5, and just happens to be the one the editor likes. Sweet! You've just sold an article.
Helium also has tons of contests, message boards, and freelance writing opportunities. There is also the Marketplace, which consists of specific titles submitted by specific publications. These are topics that are for certain going to put a little bit of cash into your pocket. You also earn a piddling from Helium just for your article being on there (for example, I have now earned $2.37 for the first article I ever wrote--about a year ago.)
So--Helium sounds like a great place for me, right? I like to write. I think I am fairly good at writing. Writing comes very easily to me. I'm not good at things that require extra work, discipline, or going outside of my box too much. But I am good at what I know. And I can write an article on a topic I am familiar with in roughly a half hour or so. Which is very conducive to my other job (G3's caretaker.)
Anyhow, I started with Helium about a year ago. I would write a few articles, slack off for a bit, write a few more. I found it fun, cathartic, and it was exciting when one of my articles would inch closer to the top of the pack. Over the summer I totally stopped writing, mostly just because of life--being busy, running around after my little boy, going on weekend trips.
Anyhow, after my recent failed attempt to step out of my box and sell candles (again, "attempt" is a strong word, I know) I made the decision that I need to make more of an effort to earn a little cash. EBay immediately came to mind, and I decided to start writing more often on Helium.
In the past two weeks I've probably written about 8 or so articles. Since I'm on the money-making path, I wrote strictly for titles listed in the Marketplace. AND today...not one, but TWO of my articles were purchased, by two separate publications! I've never heard of either of them, and my grand total of earnings from both was just under $60.00...but what a motivator!
Go me:)
Helium also has tons of contests, message boards, and freelance writing opportunities. There is also the Marketplace, which consists of specific titles submitted by specific publications. These are topics that are for certain going to put a little bit of cash into your pocket. You also earn a piddling from Helium just for your article being on there (for example, I have now earned $2.37 for the first article I ever wrote--about a year ago.)
So--Helium sounds like a great place for me, right? I like to write. I think I am fairly good at writing. Writing comes very easily to me. I'm not good at things that require extra work, discipline, or going outside of my box too much. But I am good at what I know. And I can write an article on a topic I am familiar with in roughly a half hour or so. Which is very conducive to my other job (G3's caretaker.)
Anyhow, I started with Helium about a year ago. I would write a few articles, slack off for a bit, write a few more. I found it fun, cathartic, and it was exciting when one of my articles would inch closer to the top of the pack. Over the summer I totally stopped writing, mostly just because of life--being busy, running around after my little boy, going on weekend trips.
Anyhow, after my recent failed attempt to step out of my box and sell candles (again, "attempt" is a strong word, I know) I made the decision that I need to make more of an effort to earn a little cash. EBay immediately came to mind, and I decided to start writing more often on Helium.
In the past two weeks I've probably written about 8 or so articles. Since I'm on the money-making path, I wrote strictly for titles listed in the Marketplace. AND today...not one, but TWO of my articles were purchased, by two separate publications! I've never heard of either of them, and my grand total of earnings from both was just under $60.00...but what a motivator!
Go me:)
Monday, October 13, 2008
Failed Attempt at Getting Richer
Okay "attempt" is a bit of a strong word for this...
I'm not sure if I have mentioned on here that I belong to an online "mommy group" that formed after we all became regular posters on Babycenter.com--the "due in July 2007" boards. Its a very tight-knit group of women--I would 100% consider them my close friends. I would probably go above and beyond to help one of them if needed, and I know they've got my back.
We talk about and share everything, and about a year ago one of our "mommies" joined Gold Canyon Candles as an independant demonstrator in effort to bring in more income for her family. She's been wildly successful with this (basically, she sells candles in the same manner that one might sell Avon or jewelry or gourmet food.) She has become so successful that she's inspired a number of us to try this candle business out. I should also mention she's become so successful that she's put in a gigantic, impressive in-ground pool with a waterfall.
Anyhow, awhile back another "mommy" joined under her and has done the candle business in a more limited scope, but she too has been successful. This week, there was a lot of discussion on our boards about becoming an independant demonstrator and before I knew, 3 other mommies had signed up. One was a SAHM mom like me (who's preggo again!), the second is a working mom, and the third is a mom with 3 kids who is in school working towards being an RN. As in all of them are definitely busier than I.
At first I just thought it was an interesting discussion, and although I was inclined to give it a try, I was holding back mainly because...I'm not really a salesperson. I don't really have enough local friends to see myself having a party, and I personally don't really like it when people try to sell me stuff. Still, the idea of extra income sounded good, and I kept telling myself Why don't you just try it? My friend (we'll call her Chris) was extremely encouraging, and when she said "you can basically do almost everything without ever leaving your computer" I was hooked.
For about an hour.
I sat down on Friday night with a glass of wine and my laptop, debit card in hand, ready to sign up, create my website, and order my sampler kit! I was excited! Until I immediately hit a wall and needed Chris's help. Over the next hour, after about 15 texts back and forth to Chris, I was slowly starting to realize...I don't want to sell candles!!! I had signed up, paid my $55, and I didn't want to go any further. It was too complicated (I'm sure being tired and tipsy while doing this was not the best laid plan, but oh well...) Chris was totally and utterly helpful, and when I shamefully told her I wanted to quit she wasn't upset with me, which was good.
So, things I've learned:
1. Weight the pros and cons and make sure I really want to do something BEFORE charging it to my debit card!!
2. Listen to myself. Never along the line did I really feel like I wanted to do this, but it sounded good and there's always the tiniest bit of guilt of not having an income, despite the fact that I DO have a job...
3. My friend Chris rocks.
So anyhow. No more home businesses or candle-selling. I'll stick to what I know--writing, and hope that in my ventures I will come across something that makes me a bit of cash (um, maybe this blog?) But I do want to put a shameless plug in for my girls who were brave enough to start this up. So far I only have one of their websites, so here it is. If you want a candle, need a gift for someone, or just want to help a SAHM starting up her home business...GO HERE:
Cortney's Candle Website
Jen's Candle Shop
I'm not sure if I have mentioned on here that I belong to an online "mommy group" that formed after we all became regular posters on Babycenter.com--the "due in July 2007" boards. Its a very tight-knit group of women--I would 100% consider them my close friends. I would probably go above and beyond to help one of them if needed, and I know they've got my back.
We talk about and share everything, and about a year ago one of our "mommies" joined Gold Canyon Candles as an independant demonstrator in effort to bring in more income for her family. She's been wildly successful with this (basically, she sells candles in the same manner that one might sell Avon or jewelry or gourmet food.) She has become so successful that she's inspired a number of us to try this candle business out. I should also mention she's become so successful that she's put in a gigantic, impressive in-ground pool with a waterfall.
Anyhow, awhile back another "mommy" joined under her and has done the candle business in a more limited scope, but she too has been successful. This week, there was a lot of discussion on our boards about becoming an independant demonstrator and before I knew, 3 other mommies had signed up. One was a SAHM mom like me (who's preggo again!), the second is a working mom, and the third is a mom with 3 kids who is in school working towards being an RN. As in all of them are definitely busier than I.
At first I just thought it was an interesting discussion, and although I was inclined to give it a try, I was holding back mainly because...I'm not really a salesperson. I don't really have enough local friends to see myself having a party, and I personally don't really like it when people try to sell me stuff. Still, the idea of extra income sounded good, and I kept telling myself Why don't you just try it? My friend (we'll call her Chris) was extremely encouraging, and when she said "you can basically do almost everything without ever leaving your computer" I was hooked.
For about an hour.
I sat down on Friday night with a glass of wine and my laptop, debit card in hand, ready to sign up, create my website, and order my sampler kit! I was excited! Until I immediately hit a wall and needed Chris's help. Over the next hour, after about 15 texts back and forth to Chris, I was slowly starting to realize...I don't want to sell candles!!! I had signed up, paid my $55, and I didn't want to go any further. It was too complicated (I'm sure being tired and tipsy while doing this was not the best laid plan, but oh well...) Chris was totally and utterly helpful, and when I shamefully told her I wanted to quit she wasn't upset with me, which was good.
So, things I've learned:
1. Weight the pros and cons and make sure I really want to do something BEFORE charging it to my debit card!!
2. Listen to myself. Never along the line did I really feel like I wanted to do this, but it sounded good and there's always the tiniest bit of guilt of not having an income, despite the fact that I DO have a job...
3. My friend Chris rocks.
So anyhow. No more home businesses or candle-selling. I'll stick to what I know--writing, and hope that in my ventures I will come across something that makes me a bit of cash (um, maybe this blog?) But I do want to put a shameless plug in for my girls who were brave enough to start this up. So far I only have one of their websites, so here it is. If you want a candle, need a gift for someone, or just want to help a SAHM starting up her home business...GO HERE:
Cortney's Candle Website
Jen's Candle Shop
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Back in the Game
The CVS game that is. I suppose there are some people who find this game silly (after all, is it really worth the piddling I'm saving?) but I think it is worth it, and I'll tell you why in just a minute. First, the CVS loot of the week. I'll admit the last few weeks I haven't really "CVS'd", just stopping in to pick up 1 or 2 items I use normally that happened to be on special. But this week: 
- Scott 12 pack toilet paper: Regularly $11.99/On sale for $6.99 with card/coupon for $1 off=$5.99 spent
- Bic Soleil Razor: Reg. $6.99/On sale for $5.99 with card/coupon for $2.00 off=$3.99 spent
- Colgate Toothpase: Reg $1.30/On sale for $.99 with card/coupon for $1.00=FREE!!
- Head and Shoulders: Reg $5.89/On sale for $4.99 with card=$4.99 spent
I also had an ECB rewards coupon for $3.50 off, and I received a total of $5.00 in ECB back (plus a coupon for $4.00 off $20.00 of Playskool items...which probably won't be used, but still.) Anyhow, after using coupons and factoring in the "money" I got back, I technically got the above 4 items for $6.74. That's not too bad, right?
After hitting CVS I moved on to the grocery store. I was inevitably going to spend less money today because I was shopping alone (i.e. without my husband) but I was impressed that I got a week's worth of provisions for around $69.00. I know Money Saving Mom feeds her family of 4 on $35 a week...but I don't think we're there yet, actually I don't think we'll ever be there. But we usually spend between $100 and $120 a week, so $69.00 is pretty good to me! This included ingredients for a sirloin steak dinner. I think not "needing" to get things every week allows me to buy what's on sale to stock up and the fresh items I need (i.e. milk, produce, meat.) To make this week even sweeter, I then used my gas points at Giant (not sure how that works but basically they give you cents off gas after spending x amount of money at the grocery store) for a full tank of gas at just $3.17 a gallon. Not bad at all.
One final note, I found a blog of interest: Cousin Yellowstone. This guy (I think its a guy) picks up recyclable trash as sport. Pretty noble.
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