How do we teach our kiddos to ask for less?

This is cool site for kids... comics-rrr | greenplanet4kids.com I really need to impress upon my almost-six-year-old to get rid of her crap and NOT ask for any more. Maybe I can start here? This year's Christmas season has prompted many conversations about just how good she has it... and she's still not getting it because she keeps asking for MORE.  I've told her I'm going to help her go through her toys for donation purposes, and she seems pretty open to that.  She's pretty keen on selling things, too, to earn money so she can purchase other things.  So here's my question to you parents... how do we get our kids to ask for less?  How do we encourage them to be happy with all the wonderful things God has already given them?  How do we teach them to be good stewards?

I think in 2011 I'm going to give her "experiences" rather than "stuff". This will be yet another ongoing thing for me to chronicle here. I know. I know. I haven't been too good about chronicling all that other stuff I told you about. Hahaha! I'll get there!

Delays Delays Delays

So, I haven't done much cutting of the crap.  At least not this week.  I stalled out at 10k words for my NaNoWriMo aspirations, and that was because I COULD NOT cut out distractions; the month of November passed without me reaching my 50k word goal.  Sad.  However, in the past month I did a huge purge from all the crap I had in my cubicle.  What was the reason, you ask?  Our offices changed locations, and I had to get rid of stuff.  HAD to.  They wouldn't move everything, and I didn't feel like lugging a huge box of personal crap from the old office to the new one. 

So... what went with me to the new office?  All of my Project Management stuff.  The books.  The manuals.  All the personal self help books are in a box now and will come out AFTER the holidays when I need them... and they'll come out at home.  All of those little chotchky (sp?) things have been seriously weeded out.  I now keep only a few things my daughter gave me, because, well, those have special meaning.  So my desk has less clutter than the one before, and I like that.

However, this past week has been a mess for me, and my desk reflects that.  So that brings me to some spiritual questions... like how much does my inner state reflect on the outside?  My desk is certainly evidence of the clutter I have in my head right now.  Is is possible for me to keep my desk clutter-free if my head is decidedly NOT?  and vice versa?  These questions have inspired me to clean my desk.  The result?  I actually FEEL BETTER when my desk is clean.  Now that explains a lot about my state of mind when I get home and see the mess my two little Tasmanian Devils have created.  Their dad loves them and plays with them most of the day.  That's what they need.  My house's appearance suffers, I think.  LOL  Still, I think I now know why I get grumpy when I get home... what to do to make that better, though?  I can't afford a maid.  Something has to give!

To have or not to have...

I keep looking at the bottom of my empty tea cup and keep contemplating whether or not I want more.  I have a plethora of tea in my cubbie here at work, and thanks to my wonderful Sri Lankan teammates, I have the really good stuff: Uva, Dimbula, Meda Watte…  I can drink whatever I’m in the mood for at any given time.  My question is this: do I really need another cup?  All the extra caffeine probably wouldn’t be a good idea, despite my lack of sleep last night.

Some have told me that I should cut caffeine out of my diet altogether.  My only caffeine intake is a daily cup of tea, and no matter how you spin it, tea is NOT crap.  I will not cut it.  J  However, I can keep my intake to a minimum.  

Dilemma solved.  I will not have another cup.    

McDonald’s Happy Meal resists decomposition for six months | The Upshot Yahoo! News - Yahoo! News

McDonald’s Happy Meal resists decomposition for six months | The Upshot Yahoo! News - Yahoo! News

Talk about cutting the crap! I definitely do NOT want to eat at McDonalds ever again, and I do not want my children to ingest this stuff!

30 Smart Time Management Tips and Tricks - Yahoo! Finance

I've been on an article-sharing kick lately about ways to cut the crap. Sorry if it's not as fun... I'm convinced no one is reading this blog anyway, so it's all good. I'm writing this for me, and if someone else happens to read it... well... then that's gravy.

So yeah, we all need to better manage our time. There were some very obvious tips on this list, but some of them were things I want to try. So... for the rest of October, I'm going to try out these time management tips and report my progress to you. I encourage you to do the same. Let me know what you think!!!

30 Smart Time Management Tips and Tricks - Yahoo! Finance

Cutting out your bank? Could you live without that crap?

I hate banks as much as the next person, but I found this author's experiment to be an eye-opening one. I'm convinced that financial institutions are out to get our money any way they can. All of them.


Living without a bank: Fees and confusion galore - Yahoo! Finance

Speaking of Cutting the Crap...

If ever there was a budget that needed crap cut out of it, it is that of our beloved country. I've got a proposal. For one year, let's cut spending on things that happen outside our borders. I'd love to get your comments on this one. Fire away!

Who's ready for the fiscal New Year? Not congressional budget writers. - CSMonitor.com

Tips for the Dollar Store Spenders

I don't shop at the dollar store, but here's an interesting article for people who do. Have a look!


The Super-Saver's Guide to Grocery Shopping at Dollar Stores on Shine

Decorating Ideas - Budget Decorating Ideas and Links

I still have some decorating to do in our home... downstairs anyway. Upstairs is a disaster and will take some real re-imagining, I'm afraid.

I have a feeling that with our current budget I'll be frequenting thrift stores to see what I can find. I also need to break out my sewing machine and make it pay for itself. LOL For those of you who like the DIY aspect of home making, this link (which has other links) might be of interest to you.

Decorating Ideas - Budget Decorating Ideas and Links

Amy Googles Cut The Crap

I googled “cut the crap” and came up with some pretty interesting entries.  For instance, The Clash’s 6^th and final album was titled Cut The Crap.  And then there is this youtube video that’s absolutely hilarious.  For those of you with sensitive ears, I suggest that you refrain from clicking on that one.  There is also a movie review site, a hair studio in Amsterdam, and an interesting article on the French’s view of adultery, of all things.  It seems many of us have different views, but universally, cutting the crap means getting rid of what we don’t need.  I pretty much thought so, hence the name of my blog.    

Yahoo! Finance - Financially Fit

Yahoo! Finance - Financially Fit

I'm doing most of this stuff already. Any new ideas?

Over a MONTH! BUT there are good things to report... good things...

WTH is wrong with me?  I've been writing on the side, and perhaps this has satiated my need to update my blog.  Perhaps I should start a "writing" blog like my friend and colleague Brett.  Then maybe I would be inspired and motivated to keep a running tab on this blog as well.  Or that could backfire... and this blog would become obsolete for me...

Since last I posted, I have lost 5 pounds.  Not much for a month of better eating, but it is good.  My husband has lost more than 20lbs, and that's a very good thing!  My family and I continue to eat more healthy foods, and I'm certain that's having a positive effect on our well being. 

We've started taking advantage of a program called Helping Hands in our neighborhood.  For $55 a week, we get to fill up a grocery cart with food and household items.  It's been an interesting journey since foods are never the same.  You get what you get.  It has saved us a tremendous amount of money on groceries, however, and since our budget has been tight, this has been a good thing.  We've gotten a lot of produce from this place, and since it has been necessary to eat it quickly, our meals have had less preservatives!  We continue to cut the crap!

My best friend Jenna and I have decided that together we're going to eat as fresh as possible.  I know that was the initial goal postulated in this blog, but I haven't had anyone to actually do that with.  My hubby isn't for it... and sometimes fast is easier when you have kids.  I wish I had more time to prepare fresh meals for my children... they deserve that... but working 45+ hours each week doesn't leave much time for that.  So... Jenna and I are going to hold each other accountable as much as possible.  I hope it works!

Home projects are going well, too.  As I posted before, we picked up some patio furniture from the curb and Rob started spray painting them to give them a new life.  Again, we're cutting stuff from the landfills AND we're saving money.  Can't beat that!  I'm hoping to post pictures of our recycled bistro set soon.  Nothing fancy, but it serves its purpose!  We (meaning mostly ROB) put some steps in our backyard.  For those of you who haven't seen our yard, it is severely sloped and terraced.  We have one section that -- for lack of a better word -- is a slope that leads to the uppermost portion of our yard.  It was nothing but dirt... so we installed railroad ties and are in the process of filling those in with river rock.  It looks great, and the whole project cost only $50!  The river rock was free on Craigslist, and the railroad ties were given to us by our friends who no longer needed them!  We paid for rebar and garden tarp.  Cutting the crap has never been so cheap.  It's been hard work, but as I said, it looks GREAT!

I also promised some opinions and comments on said opinions... when I posted the question "What would you do to cut the crap?"... I'll get to those next time, and I hope next time is sooner than a month from now.  Those were silly and interesting and deserve a little more time than I have to go over them right now. 

So that's the post for now.  I hope you all have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend! 

It's MONDAY. Here's your cut-the-crap post...

We need to save money... especially after this weekend.  What was supposed to be a nice, inexpensive trip to Rock Springs, WY quickly became an expensive one.  We spent nearly $500!  However, I must say that it was all worth it... Next time, we will NOT spend so much on food, I think.

So in the spirit of cutting the crap, I found this article to share with you.  AND BTW... I put some questions up on Yahoo Answers and got some very interesting answers.  I'll share them with you in my next post. 

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/8-Painless-Ways-to-Save-usnews-4181079233.html?x=0

Butter or Margarine? Experts Reveal What's in Their Grocery Cart

Butter or Margarine? Experts Reveal What's in Their Grocery Cart

This was an eye-opening article. I was especially intrigued by the frozen veggies vs. fresh veggies bit. Good to know!  I prefer olive oil as opposed to canola oil, and we already drink 1% milk.  Milk... I'd love to go organic but it's literally twice as expensive.  As for the butter, did anyone read that viral email a few years ago that stated margarine is literally 1 MOLECULE away from being plastic?  It made me never want to eat margarine again.  Besides, butter tastes better. 

I'm getting groceries again today for the first time in about 3 weeks.  We wanted to eat as much from the cupboards to get rid of the bad stuff we don't need.  Now we can replace these items with more healthy choices.  I have a feeling our grocery bill will be quite expensive this week...
   
So am I cutting the crap or making my life more simple by making better food choices?  One could argue that if I simply didn't care so much about all of this that I'd reduce my stress and thus become happier.  What could be more simple and unencumbered then that?   

Cut the Crap Day WHATEVER

So here we are a month later. Much has happened. Crap has been cut, but still not to the extent I had hoped.

• Rob got a work from home job as DSL tech support. He just completed training on Friday. We’ve cut the crap a lot with that job:
• He doesn’t have to drive to work, so we’re saving a ton on gas. He has a ’79 K5 Blazer. When I say “a ton”, I mean it.
• He’s eating at home obviously, and he’s already shed 20 lbs. He’s cutting the fat! YAY!
• We finally got our tax incentive for buying a house. I can’t say we cut the crap with that, but we did get new furniture, new carpet, and a new TV. I must say, my house is looking GOOD.
• We rescued some terra cotta planters from the curbside… as well as some patio furniture. Rob is going to sand down the patio furniture and repaint it. So… even though we didn’t cut the crap on that, we cut the amount of crap going to the landfill. AND all it cost us was some water, cleaner, and two cans of spray paint.
• Xander burned his hands on our door threshold on Friday. After an ER visit, much Tylenol and Motrin, bandages, and some sleep, he’s doing fine. We have an appointment with the burn specialists at Children’s hospital tomorrow morning. Part of keeping Xander comfortable means keeping the AC cranked. I want to make sure he doesn’t have any undue swelling. So, that was kind of the opposite of cutting the crap. We’re actually using more energy and will pay for it in our next bill.

Day 14

We’re not doing so well cutting the crap as a family. It’s hard if one person wants to eat more healthy and the rest of the family just isn’t feeling it. For instance, last night Rob made some wonderful beef stew in the crock pot. The house smelled so delicious when I got home from work that I was instantly hungry… and I stayed that way until dinner. The stew was absolutely mouthwatering – even if Rob was not happy with the level of meat tenderness – and I had seconds because I couldn’t help myself. All the ingredients were fresh, so that was good. What is bad about this, you ask? Well nothing at all. It was what we had for dessert. Rob made pudding… chocolate and butterscotch. It was oh so yummy and oh so bad for us, but I couldn’t resist… it was chocolate after all.

I’m not doing very well with chocolate. I simply cannot – and will not – bring myself to cut it from my diet. Chocolate haunts me everywhere, and I’m beginning to feel like an addict. I’ve been all over the house looking for “stashes”, too. I even raided Megan’s candy cauldron (the place where all candies go.). AND then there’s all the tempting candy at the check-out when I’m getting groceries. Somewhere a little voice tells me I need a Kit Kat or a Snickers, and then I’m done for. I’m pitiful and pathetic, really.

Wean Yourself Off Processed Foods in 7 Steps

Wean Yourself Off Processed Foods in 7 Steps

Here's a good article to help me cut the crap!

Cut the Crap Days 6 and 7

I’ve lost more days. I need to write more than this… because I liken this blog to a pressure relief valve. If I don’t write, the pressure builds. What kind of pressure, you ask? ALL kinds of pressure. Writing makes that all easier to deal with.

As a side note, I’m not sure if it’s the eating better or the writing, but I seem to have much more clarity recently. I have a focus I didn’t have before. Don’t know what that means, but I’m embracing it.

So… How did I cut the crap these past few days? Well, my family and I are eating better. For desert the other night we had fresh mangoes. For dinner we had homemade turkey burgers will real cheese. In fact, the bread on which we placed said burger patties was the only thing that wasn’t “fresh”. Store-bought bread usually lasts longer than the bread I make in the bread machine at home… and I rarely bake in the summer.

AND that brings me to my next idea. Should I bake my own bread every few days? I love homemade bread, but I’m not sure how much time I really have for this. The ingredients are simple, and the recipe is easy for basic white bread. This would get rid of the preservatives, most certainly. AND it would taste better… but I estimate I’d have to bake at least twice a week. If not more.

Now I’m off to eat steak and potatoes for lunch. Not too shabby, eh?

Days 3-5

So much for writing every day. Hopefully I can get back on track with that.

We went over budget on groceries this weekend. However, most of that “overflow” was due to extra things we need at the moment: better bathroom storage, chlorine for the pool, laundry detergent & fabric softener. However, I am pleased to say that I only spent $30 @ Sprouts! I got a pretty large variety of fresh fruit, some dry goods (rice & beans), and ingredients to make salads for the week. Overall, I think I did pretty well. If we can stick closer to our budget, then I think we’ll be doing fine.

As an aside, we had pizza and Taco Bell this weekend, too. So much for cutting the crap there. I am doing my best to eat better today, though. AND I’ve decided that I will eat breakfast at work to leave more breakfast goodies for my family to eat. It isn’t the most healthy choice since my employer provides bagels and cream cheese every morning except Tuesday. BUT hopefully it will make the cereal/eggs/poptarts last a little longer if I’m not eating them.

Do I sound pathetic yet? I’m beginning to think I can’t commit to and/ or stick to anything.

Day 2

So while thinking of what I should write today, I thought, “What is the opposite of crap?” That’s profound only in a Beavis and Butthead sort of way, but really, what is the opposite? If crap is something we don’t need in our lives, then could its opposite be everything we DO need in our lives?

What would be your absolute must haves for daily living?

Cut The Crap - Day 1

I was inspired by the movie Julie and Julia to write this blog. I know that’s fairly unoriginal, and I apologize for that. Still, like most people who need to write, I’ll take inspiration anywhere I can get it. This blog will chronicle a journey, and I hope to write something – even if it’s drivel – every day.

My first idea was to chronicle my family’s move from processed, preservative-laden foods (i.e. CRAP) to a simple, healthy diet of fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats. I think I’ll still do that, but given that my husband lost his job last week, I might also chronicle how we’re cutting other extraneous crap from our lives... you know… in order to make ends meet without putting us on the street.

So here’s a little background (and I’ll try to keep it short).

• My husband and I have been married for nearly 15 years. I weighed 125 when we got married. Rob weighed 215. We now weigh 170 and 285, respectively. As you can see, 15 years have really packed on the pounds.
• We have two beautiful children, aged 5 years and 9 months. Our kiddos are healthy and thriving without any weight issues. I chalk that up to high metabolism and an active lifestyle for them… at least for the 5 year old. J
• Rob wants to go back to school, and he was actually hoping to drop to part time before the work-rug was pulled from under his feet.
• Without telling you how much I make, our mortgage = one of my paychecks each month. I only get two.
• We have no credit cards. We have no daily Starbucks habit. We aren’t overpaying for cable/internet/phone (my company reimburses me $50/mo for my internet anyway). I have a Crackberry that I use for work, and even though I’m not currently being reimbursed for that, it really does help my productivity. We already have cheap car insurance, AND we have no car payment (YAY!).

So now we’re at this crossroads. I wanted to get rid of all the “non fresh” food in our cupboards and fridge and then start with “fresh” stuff. But, given the money situation, I’m not sure that’s a wise move. We’ll be eating what’s in the cupboards and the fridge, and replace all of that with fresh, more natural foods as we go. And what about other things? What can I actually cut that will make the one-income calamity more easy to weather?

Do you guys have any ideas? Suggestions?