This Thrifted Life

For over a week and a half, I have been on almost complete bed rest while fighting a chest cold. Lots of rest, gargling salt water, eating fruit every day, and taking my echinacea and vitamin D have all kept the infection from getting too severe. I even found out that a stong cup of chamomile tea before bed will calm a cough long enough to let a person get some sleep.

What I have been missing these past couple of weeks is hearty, nourishing food. At first, I had no appetite for much of anything and just ate some small meals to sustain myself and drank lots of water. Last weekend, I was too sick to cook anything and Jason was too busy with wiring, so he got some yummy take-out for us whenever he had to go out for project supplies. But this week I knew I needed to start eating real, healthy food again if I wanted to get my energy back.

So I’ve been heading into the kitchen late in the afternoon so I can take plenty of time and not wear myself out (it’s amazing how tiring just coughing can be). One night I fixed black bean and chicken quesadillas with Spanish rice. Then I cooked up some spinach rice casserole, and Jason fixed an organic ribeye he had discovered in the freezer–still no idea how I could’ve lost track of something like that! Tonight I’m planning on heading in there really early to cook up some scalloped potatoes and creamed corn. After meager meals and take-out, real, homemade food tastes so good.

Before we moved to this area a few years ago, we lived in homes that were both around 1100-1200 sq ft. We had plenty of room in each of them and I don’t remember ever feeling cramped. It was a great size for us.

Then we moved here and lived in a 900 sq ft house for 3 years. For those of you who live in 450 sq ft studio apartments, that kind of space might sound huge. But compared to so many of our friends and family members who live in 2000 sq ft homes and above, we lived in a cracker box. When we decided to purchase our own home, we knew we didn’t want anything nearly that big, but I was really craving a bit more space. We decided something around 1500 sq ft wouldn’t be too crazy for us to buy. As it turned out, the home we ended up purchasing is just over 1500 sq ft.

And it is too big for us. After a few months of living here, I miss a smaller space so much. This house feels too spread out, and we’ve only used the living room a handful of times. Even with a baby on the way, we are going to have lots of extra living space.

I am really surprised by this realization. I grew up in a 1600 sq ft rancher, and I always thought it was the perfect size. But what I have come to realize is it is not the size of the house that matters the most to me but its efficiency. I realized I chafed at the small laundry room in our last home not because it was small, but because it had a terribly inefficient layout. What I thought I wanted was a little bit of extra room; what I have come to understand is that efficiency in a small space is truly what calls to me.

So we are discussing options for the future, including some ideas I never thought I’d even consider. We had looked at Tumbleweed homes in the past, but I don’t know if that’s an option we’ll put on the table this time. All we are sure of at the moment is we thought we were moving up and gaining a bit of space and freedom, but living small is where our true freedom lies.

And don’t forget you have until midnight tonight to enter the giveaway!

This dreary, freezing weather has me dealing with cabin fever; I find myself running to the coffee shop or the consignment store just to get out of the house. The winter always seems to be the time of year when I spend more. Summers are full of free community events or simply spending time at the park. I have been craving some motivation to keep my eye on the long-term prize (let’s just say we have a myriad of goals right now) I recently reread Getting a Life, the companion book to Your Money or Your Life, and it’s provided me with fresh incentive to focus on eventually reaching financial independence.

When I first read Your Money or Your Life a few years ago, I immediately identified my “gazingus pin.” Magazines (and most of you guys know that!). I’ve been subscribing to different magazines since I was 10 years old, and I’ve always loved poring over those glossy pages as an afternoon escape. Last year I gave up buying fashion magazines and decided to only buy publications that were actually useful to me, like magazines that provided good recipes or home remodeling information. So while I no longer splurged on Harper’s Bazaar or Lucky, I have still been buying titles like Real Simple and Better Homes and Gardens.

Now I’m just tired of maintaining that gazingus pin hobby. The only magazine we’ll still subscribe to is Mother Earth News as we both use the wonderful information that publication provides. I’ve decided to let any other subscriptions I have run out, and any other magazines I want to buy for recipes or other info will have to be done at the thrift store. $3.99 compared to $.25? It’s time to get over that gazingus pin!

I’ve never been a huge fan of the traditional Valentine’s celebrations–I don’t really fancy going to a crowded restaurant to spend more money than I normally would on a regular dinner out. Roses are insanely expensive around V-day, and I’m not much of a jewelry person. But, hey, I still enjoy celebrating a holiday. So just how did we celebrate?

Jason came home with a bag of chocolates and this pretty bouquet; you can buy these mixed bouquets for less than $10 at most grocery stores.

On Saturday I made my gift to Jason: my first-ever batch of homemade cupcakes (hey, I am usually a cookie-maker). I cheated and bought store-bought icing, but these were delish.

On the day itself we hit up the dollar theater so we could finally see The Princess and the Frog. For $4, we bought 2 tickets and a small popcorn and soda for me. Then we hit up our favorite pizza place for dinner–pizza places aren’t usually too crowded on Valentine’s day.  

Last weekend we traveled to my parents’ place a few hours away and indulged in some thrifty weekend goodness. Here’s just a sampling…

*My mom and I hit up Panera for lunch. Since their sandwiches are so huge, we opted to split one and saved at least $6 on a second meal. And we were quite satisfied.

*My brother wanted us all to meet his new lady, so we all sat around a big homemade meal and then played a cutthroat game of Scrabble afterwards. No expensive dinner dates this weekend.

*Since we ended the night early, we entertained the idea of catching a movie. But what’s fun and free instead? Heading upstairs with some drinks to catch up and relax.

*Instead of letting my dad put some of his unwanted items in a garage sale pile, we bought them off of him for a song. For $100, we came home with a like-new miter saw and garden tiller. Plus he threw in a couple of small things for Jason (um, I’m not even sure what they were. I didn’t unload the trunk.)

*When we got back home, I realized I had some redemption to take care of. I had enough mypoints to order a $25 Olive Garden gift card. I rarely do anything but spend 2 seconds clicking on their emails, but all those little points add up to a free evening out. Then I headed over to swagbucks and claimed a $5 Amazon gift card. $30 for just clicking a few things online? Not bad!

Did I intentionally look for ways to save money on some things and score mega deals on other things we needed? Not really. I just slowed down and opened myself to whatever the weekend might bring. When you slow down and start practicing conscious frugality, you might be amazed at how natural it will become.

While I have to admit we do have cable–why oh why is a package always cheaper than just internet alone?–we actually tend to watch shows online. We’re way too cheap to have a dvr, yet we miss shows we like all the time (it’s this thing called life). So we just catch up on The Office or Fringe when we have time to sit down and click on that little icon. TV doesn’t rule our life, and there is tons of free content online.

hulu–The ever-popular tv site where you can watch shows for nada. Hulu rocks.

Network sites–Websites for channels like cbs.com and fox.com post lots of their episodes online. You can usually only catch up on the last few, though–so don’t dilly dally.

HGTV.com–Love interior design and real estate? HGTV also has plenty of full episodes online for you to enjoy.

The best part about watching TV online? Very limited commercials! We’re usually only exposed to 2-3 (if any) ads when watching something online, as opposed to dozens during one episode on the tube.

And don’t forget dvds–we don’t really enjoy keeping up with TV shows, so we tend to wait until a series or a season finishes up and premieres on dvd before we watch it. And there’s always zero advertisements when watching this way!

And remember–enter my giveaway by leaving a comment on this post by midnight tonight. Good luck!

There are those of us who love to make plans, who relish the way the numbers work out on paper or spreadsheets. Jason and I have different categories in our budget (ahem, spending plan) for bills, entertainment, and the like. I have friends who swear they would be lost without their budgets; they want to know exactly where their money is going and the most fruitful way to use each dollar.

But what if you’re not a budgeter? What if you really don’t care a snitch about all those numbers and how they translate into your spending habits? What if, at the end of the day, you just want to see a little extra dough in your bank account?

My brother and I had a powwow this weekend about just this topic. He’s only ever had a fleeting interest in establishing a spending plan for his income and really doesn’t want to keep track of a bunch of numbers. And if you don’t really want to and plan to do that, all the best intentions in the world won’t add up to leftover money at the end of the month. My advice to him? The most basic of all: put aside a certain amount for yourself each payday. Put away 10%. Save $35. Pick a percentage or number that works for you.Whatever you are able or willing to do, just take it out and do it. Don’t worry about the rest. As long as your obligations are met and you’re not spending more than you earn, it can be ok to let it go. Just make sure you pay yourself first.

It’s that easy.

Before you head to the store (yes, even the thrift store), remember to ask your friends and family members if they might have what you need and are willing to part with it. Most of us usually have a few things taking up space in our homes that we wouldn’t feel the slightest hesitation to part with if we knew someone was in the market for them. You might know someone who has leftovers from a previous project or materials from a hobby they don’t really pursue anymore. It’s always worth it to spread the word and just ask.

Lately I’ve acquired quite a few things I was looking for just by mentioning them to others; turns out I knew plenty of generous people who didn’t need these things anymore. Here’s just a sampling…

*glue gun

*caulking gun and trim paint

*lots of miscellaneous tools

*art supplies, like watercolors and colored pencils

*paintbrush

And when you’re blessed by the generosity of others, don’t forget to listen in case they mention something they need–you just might have it lounging around in your home somewhere.