i read a whole book. cover to cover.

reading:  finished Redeeming Love – 45 minutes before the book discussion on Sunday.  real good.  I’ll spare you all the emotions and life changing moments here.  but yes, I would recommend it and yes, I would love to talk with anyone that has read it.  now the dilemma – for all of those books I have started and just never finished (and to no other fault but my own, not the book’s) – do I pick those up and see where they get me? list: velvet elvis :: blue like jazz :: jesus wants to save christians :: sex god   … yep, started them all.  any suggestions on which to (re)start first?

music: a lot more counting crows these days / sandra mccracken / the fray::there & back

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we made applesauce this weekend – 7 quarts to be exact.  But I think I want to make more – crazy?  We still have plenty of (free) apples in the garage and they won’t last much longer.

pasta sauce is still on the docket for this weekend.  fingers crossed that all goes well.

sweet potatoes are still in the ground.  after the first frost last week, I thought we would have to dig ‘em up.  but no signs of a “killing” frost (darkened vines) so it looks like they can continue to gain nutrients.  we left the bell peppers out there as well – hopefully to grow some more. too many on the kitchen counters already.

garlic STILL needs to be put in the ground, although I was able to do a little research to know how to do that

haven’t touched the glass project(s) yet.  really need to look into that. wet saw – check.  anyone have experience with sanding cut glass?

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no heat yet in the van duyne household.  and this is on purpose.  i’m thankful for: blankets (multiple), socks, sweatpants and a little puppy that is always looking to cuddle when there’s a blanket involved.

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currently, we are a one car family.  took the car BACK to the shop.  a quart of oil does NO good when it is poured thru the honda, directly on the road.  next – family discussion of what it looks like to only have one car… pray for this one.

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oh, and October?  it’s the Van Duyne Household Financial Analysis Month! holla. tracking every dollar that comes in and goes out.  i have a feeling it’s going to have a similar affect as the diet strategy – writing down everything you eat in a day causes you to eat less.  i’ll let you know if this is the case.

as of late.

reading:  finally finished The Shack. check. next, Redeeming Love to be finished by sunday evening.

music:  pete yorn::Back&Fourth / mutemath::armistice  / and of course, counting crows, since it’s fall. the ampersand ep also made the fall cut>sandra mccracken & derek webb

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i have some christmas crafts up my sleeve… involving glass. i hope to begin in the next two weeks.

also in the next two weeks, pasta sauce from 3 years worth of tomatoes and peppers. i am quite excited to use the red onions we harvested this year. this was a great decision.

we also have many, many apples (thanks, Dr. Gupta’s office).  here comes sauce and pie filling.

hopefully there are sweet potatoes under the leafy mess left in the garden. we will wait and see…

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now that we are in the new house, we will need to till our new garden plot.  but first, we need to plant our garlic and resurrection bulbs.

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still no cable or internet at the house.  i’m feeling internet will be the first to come back, but not sure when.  we have had some sad football days at the van duyne home, though.

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also concerned that my car will not make it through the winter.  when is it “too much” to fix the ‘92 honda? if only we lived in scooter weather = problem solved.  a nice city bike would work, some of the days… do we really want to put money into another clunker, just to have the same problems? no car payment in ‘09!

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this is all for now.  am i missing anything in the world of tv? anything in the world outside of small town, oh?

life w/o cable and internet at the new house …

(+) Sunday afternoon nap – not in front of meaningless tv, but pillow and blanket on the floor of the screened-in porch – i drooled.  / many more opportunities for discussion with friends accompanied by the hookah / we go to bed earlier / work emails are left for work / less time wasted stalking people’s lives via facebook / weeding/watering/playing in the vegetable garden / finished my cross stitching project waaay ahead of time! / much more time to pray and reflect without interruptions or distractions / Cash gets much more play time outside

(-) Still would love to know the weather forecast for the day… perhaps it’s time for a weather stick / once i finish my book (this week), i will find it a struggle to relax around the house (isn’t it so sad that I have trained myself to unwind with television?) / not able to use the new itouch at home

I’m glad to see there are more positives than negatives on this list.  But I can’t stop thinking about the fall… football, shows returning like House and Fringe …  I really want to continue with this detachment from tv/internet.  I have heard from many that have lived without and/or currently living without, and they are still alive and well.  It’s pretty ridiculous how much this shakes our day to day.  But it can only be a good thing – even if it is just for a season.

I’ve received some very useful information regarding an antenna to pick up a few stations … this is definitely something we will price out and consider for the fall. But for now, I think we are going to be OK here.

I Know I Know I Know

this blogging thing really ebbs and flows for me.  someday, perhaps, it will stick … with the flow.

new side topic:  life without cable and internet access.

Tony and I recently purchased our first home – you know, because “it’s a great time to buy”!  And it really is.  But for the next few months we are holding off on extras to get a handle on this mortgage and utilities business -  including cable and internet services.

So, for the last two weeks I have been taking notice of the things I am now able to accomplish instead of wasting away in front of the tube or laptop… but then, there are also limitations.

Here’s a start:

(+) dishes get cleaned right after usage / we talk to each other more / cash, the dog, gets more play time–walks / reading! / screened-in porch gets much use

(-) i can’t check the weather forecast before leaving the house in the morning / i miss robin meade – headline news / googling anything, at anytime

. . .to be continued.

I’m a FREE nut.

I’m always looking for free stuff.  And it’s out there.

Just today, I ran across this site called Free Birthday Treats where it lists many places that “reward” you for celebrating your birthday with them.  Many of these companys require you to sign up for the e-newsletters or mailing list, but if you can handle the advertisements for just a little while, when your birthday nears, they will send you a coupon for that free birthday item!  If you know where you want to celebrate  your birthday this year, just sign up for that restaurant’s mailing list – endure the emails, and get a free something in return!!

I think it’s a pretty good deal.

Check out the site – you might just find your favorite restaurant.

Not listed on this site is the Macaroni Grill restaurant – no sign up needed, just mention you are celebrating a birthday, and they will usually embarrass you with a birthday song in Italian, but then follow up with an AMAZING piece of chocolate cake – on the house!

Does anyone else know of places that do this that are not listed on this site?  share!

Take care of those pets… and get a little something in return!

Every hour, gettothevet.com is giving away 80 -  $20 rebate vouchers to those who take their dog or cat to the vet for a check-up before May, 31st!

The guidelines are straightforward, and all you need to do is remember to take the voucher to the vet so they can fill out their part; save a copy of the visit’s receipt, and mail it away!

This offer ends February 28th.

It’s that easy.

No excuses.

No-spend Month.

Tony and I are on the last leg of a no-spend month. Our first go at it was February 2008 and it was quite successful. (I chose February since it was the shortest month of the year!)

We went grocery shopping a few days before, allowed ourselves 20 bucks or so for “whatevers”, and also made room for perishable purchases: milk, bread, eggs, etc. Our monthly bills – those that we must pay, of course, did not count.

It was amazing to see the amount we were able to throw into our savings account at the end of the month. There was a small addiction to the idea of saving every penny – something I definitely didn’t have before the experience.

Since then, I think my perspective on spending has changed, for the good. I did, however, realize how much of our social networking and entertainment revolved around spending money: movies, shopping, EATING OUT, coffee dates, etc.

We again chose February as our month for 2009 and added the latter half of January for an added challenge. I’m still processing the whole experience, but either my spending habits have changed since last year, where I’m just not spending money everywhere I go, or maybe I just didn’t have the added pressure of proving to myself and Tony that I could do this – because I knew I could.

It was really easy this time around.

It always helps to surround yourself with people that are also trying to save money and adapt a frugal lifestyle.

I haven’t seen this year’s numbers yet, but I hope they are as good as last year, if not better.

Has anyone else tried this?

Forgive me.

… and again.

I have not posted in quite a while.

Excuse: Many of my fall/winter projects were Christmas presents. I didn’t want the recipients to know.

I DID intend on back-blogging. Maybe on a rainy day…

I do hope to start up again. Here’s for new – new beginnings.

Another list??

Can you make another list before completing the first?

Well, this is definitely my DREAM list … but not unattainable. I will not give these items numbers, because then its truly a list – so, a list in progress …

- Make homemade raviolis.

- Learn about solar energy (and take a look at the cost).

- Get a bike. A good one.

- Start garden veggies indoors.

… and so on.

Overwhelmed with Simplicity

Being overwhelmed was not on the list.

But as my life gets busier this time of year, there is a panic, and just not enough time. *taking deep breath*

The list is going well, though!

1. Organize coupons. Still organized, and even used them this weekend! Saved $24 dollars … seems worth it to me!
2. Make homemade laundry detergent. I’m really enjoying the laundry detergent. My clothes do not really have soapy scent to them, but they just smell fresh. We made one batch and I believe it will last us a very long time. If anyone is interested in the soap, but doesn’t have the time to make it, let us know! You just cover the cost of ingredients (which is nothing!) and we’ll make it for you!
3. Clean out pantry. Still clean! And it was so refreshing to stock the pantry from our weekend grocery trip, where every item had a place.

1. Read up on drying herbs, then do it. – working on it! (see below)
2. Organize closets.
3. Begin One Hundred Push Ups Challenge. – started! (see below)
4. Organize bookshelves. Well, as organized as they are going to get. Let’s just say I threw out A LOT of papers and folders … stuff I always thought I would come back to, but never do. YOU know that stuff.
5. Get rid of clothes.
6. Print wedding photos and create album. (3 years = never too late …right?)
7. Canning veggies from the garden.

I started with the sage, in hopes to make a sage tea (with honey and lemon). I cut the largest leaves off the plant and laid them out on a table to dry individually. The sage had a very sweet smell, but I’m told that they become a tad bitter once dry… They are dry now – maybe two weeks later. They have curled and definitely don’t look as pretty, fresh. And it’s all about the prettiness. But, none the less, I have placed the dry leaves in a jar, and I’m working up the nerve to try this sage tea.

Then comes frozen basil and oregano cubes … I know you can’t wait. I can’t either.

And then there were push ups. And many of them, there were. Tony and I are on week 3 of the one hundred push-up challenge. The goal of this program is to do one hundred push-ups at the end of 6 weeks. After the 2nd week, we decided there is no way we could make the jump from week 2 to 3, so we repeated the 2nd. The program suggested to do this at anytime throughout, so we took their advice. It definitely does not take much time – 3 days a week (M-W-F) for maybe 15 minutes/day, and there is something about not being able to lift your arms for the rest of the evening, that really makes you feel like you have accomplished a great feat.