I did pick up a GREAT book at Lehman’s, although I probably could have purchased it on amazon for a few dollars cheaper… but I was caught in the emotion of all the simplified-living possibilities at my fingertips!

Homemade: How-to Make Hundreds of Everyday Products Fast, Fresh, and More Naturally (Reader’s Digest)

So many recipes & ideas… So many ways to save money… So many things to learn.  On my starting to-do list, I will need to learn a little about essential oils.  I will also need to strategically choose herbs for my garden this summer, in accordance with the recipes for home remedies, cleaners and skincare products.

And speaking of gardens… the seed catalogs are out and we are choosing veggies and flowers for this spring!  Nothing beats dreaming of garden plans to overcome the winter blues. And let me tell you, they got me.

and I like it.

What I have read this month so far:

Shades of Blue :: Karen Kingsbury

This was real good – I cried a lot. (but we’re not surprised.)
The book discusses the topic of abortion, and the journey of finding healing and forgiveness.

Even Now :: Karen Kingsbury

Also a good book – definitely cried reading this one too.
A classic forbidden love – you are too young to marry him even though you are carrying his child – story.

What I am currently reading:

Ever After :: Karen Kingsbury

The sequel to Even Now… I wanted to read this to resolve the relational story lines, but I’m struggling with the political story line of the war in the Middle East… this is definitely something I’m wrestling with.  Perhaps I will write of this soon.

Next in line:

The Red Tent :: Anita Diamant (for a book discussion in February!)

Pride and Prejudice :: Jane Austen (because I’ve watched the movie too many times!)

And I’m also looking for suggestions …

- I have recently added white vinegar to the whites – I’m going to give this a few weeks and see if there is any change. (I’ve also read that adding salt to the load helps as well…. anyone know what works best?)

- I have also decided to use more pretreatment stain remover on ANY spot … I’m messy, what can I say!?

- And, I am also entertaining the thought of buying a bottle of the tried and true, Tide (on sale and with coupon, of course!) to use on those items I would like to see last.

I am intrigued to make homemade dish soap, but I still have a few free bottles under the sink (thanks, mail-in rebates!), so that will be on hold for now.

Oh, and watch out, February – we feel another No Spend Month a comin’!

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.

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?

(-) 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.

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.

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!

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.

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?