My New Stuff

We have been shopping like crazy trying to get ready for Persistence's baptism on Saturday. Why do these things have to involve so much planning and cost so much money? We found some suits on clearance at Macy's so we bought one for Victor for the Ball we're going to in March. Look at me! Planning ahead for a change!


While we were out I used a Barnes and Noble gift card I received for Christmas. I normally don't shop there because I can't stand to pay full price but since I had an excuse why not buy a couple new knitting books? Seriously, why not? Is that hat not the most adorable thing you've ever seen? (From Itty-Bitty Hats by Susan B. Anderson)


And HELLO! Look at these pacifier clips!!! Don't you want to have another baby just so I'll knit you one? (From Itty-Bitty Nursery by Susan Anderson) This is the kind of knitting I can handle. It doesn't take 100 hours and it doesn't have to fit anyone.

The thing that makes me crazy is that once you buy the suit you have to buy the shirts, the belt and the tie. Then you have to go find new socks and fancy new shoes. Then it's not like you can throw it in the wash when it gets dirty, which it will, so you'll also be paying for dry cleaning. So what if the suit was on sale? You still end up spending a fortune.

So what if the knitting books were free (for me anyway)? I had to buy new yarn and woops, I didn't have the right size knitting needles so I had to get a few of those too. Another fortune spent.

Tis the Curse of Stuff.

Not Born To Run

To run errands I mean. I hate them. I hate shopping. I hate driving and parking and getting in and out of the car. I remember back when I was single and I thought it was a hardship if I had to make more than two different stops in one day. Then I got married and had a baby and I thought my life was really hard. I could barely manage to drive to one store with him in tow, drive home again and collapse from the exhaustion.

These days I seem to be an errand running machine. Why do I have more energy at 35 than I did at 20? Today we left the house at 10:30 for art lessons and we didn't get home again until bedtime. I still didn't get half of my list accomplished, including my work out, dang it.

• Art lessons
• Lovely's hair cut. Yay it's short again! Go ahead and call her a boy, see if I care. (Yes, this is an old photo but I am too tired to post a new one.)
• Lunch
• Target
• Bank
• Book store
• Old Navy
• Roller skating rink (where I forgot my driver's license last week!)
• Music store
• Library
• Macy's (going out of business sale)
• Payless shoes
• Dinner (no cooking for us today)
• Basketball practice
• HOME!!!

Needless to say I sent everyone to bed early and I'm on my way there right now.

Have I ever mentioned what perfect little angels my kids are? In the car that is. None of them were blessed with my car sickness disease so they bring a book everywhere we go and read constantly. It's Heavenly! Oh, except for my two year old little devil who spends half her time screaming at me because she can and she knows I can't reach her from the drivers seat. Did I mention that she is almost three and she's starting to act like it?

What's up with all this shopping when I don't buy stuff? I tell more tomorrow and show you some of the fun STUFF I came home with!

Yes I'm back on line!

Down and Out

I brought my laptop with us to the library today to let you know that our internet has been down for two days. One itty-bitty snowstorm and our lives have come to a halt! Ok, maybe it's not that bad but it's unbelieveable how we have come to depend on the internet. I can't look up phone numbers or recipes or contact people through e-mail. Hopefully I'll be up and running again soon. If not we will be spending a lot of time at the library!

Sorry about missing Talk About Tuesday! Hopefully I'll see you back here for it next week.

If you have placed an order for bags they might be delayed a bit but I will get them shipped as soon as I'm back on-line. Thanks!

Remember the 80's?

Lovely had so much fun with her new found skating friend yesterday. It took them ten minutes to make it one time around the rink but at least they had each other. Next time I'm going to bring brightly colored combs for their back pockets. Hi Marni, friend's Mom!

Did anyone do any organizing today? I spent most of the day on laundry. I even sorted through the evil sock basket. I started a bad habit several months ago and I can't even blame it on the pregnancy because the bad habit came first. I don't fold socks anymore. I just throw them all into a basket and make everyone fend for themselves.

The result has been that people are now wearing each pair of socks 14 days in a row because it's easier than rummaging through the basket looking for a pair. Although it's obvious Victor doesn't spend a lot of time rummaging because he will show up at basketball wearing one of his little sister's ankle socks on one foot and one of his Dad's tall socks on the other. He's ten. Apparently when you're ten this doesn't bother you. Even when your Mom cheers, "GO HOME SCHOOL!" during your game. You still think unmatched socks are perfectly fine.

I did more than laundry today though. I also baked bread and washed six storage buckets. SIX! If I wash six every week then it will only take me 24 weeks to get them all clean. I think that sounds like a good plan. Or I could just get off my lazy cow and finish washing the rest of them next week.

I also started making a list of items we need for food storage and emergency preparedness. You want to see my list don't you? I thought so. Feel free to tell me if I've forgotten anything.

My Emergency Preparedness List

• buckets
• wheat
• oats
• beans
• popcorn
• sprouting seeds
• sugar
• honey
• salt
• red pepper, cumin, chili powder, garlic, oregano, basil (our favorite spices)
• vanilla
• baking powder
• baking soda
• cooking oil
• vinegar
• powdered milk
• bread bags
• various canned fruits and vegetables although I'm hoping to grow and bottle some of my own this summer
• dried fruits
• first aid supplies
• candles and matches (I bought a bunch of big pillar candles at the thrift store for $1 a piece. I tried to get the ones with the least stink!)
• laundry soap
• dish soap
• shampoo
• bar soap
• deodorant
• toothpaste
• feminie hygene products
• diapers, wipes
• toilet paper
• plastic garbage bags
• extra winter coats and gear
• shoes and boots in the next biggest size for the kids
• One set of extra sheets for each bed
• Water
• Bleach (to sanitize water)
• Vegetable seeds for the garden
• Plant an apple tree! (Besides apricots, I think that's about all the fruit we can grow at our climate. I hate apricots.)
• Install a wood burning stove
• Wood
• Lyme (for waste sanitation)
• Generator

Can you tell I'm excited about this food storage thing? Here is a list to help you buy yours slowly over this next year. You might want to add more items to it. The biggest advice I have for you is to buy what you use. If you want to store wheat, learn how to use it. That's what I'm trying to do.

Why are you doing this?

We encourage Church members worldwide to prepare for adversity in life by having a basic supply of food and water and some money in savings. We ask that you be wise as you store food and water and build your savings. Do not go to extremes; it is not prudent, for example, to go into debt to establish your food storage all at once. With careful planning, you can, over time, establish a home storage supply and a financial reserve."—The First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

Smart Habit Saturday

Welcome! If you are new to SHS find out all about it here: Getting Started with SHS. Click here to read more SHS posts. Please don't forget to link back to this post so your readers can find out more about SHS.

Habits, habits, habits. I was talking to a friend about our schedule and how it is always changing. Things have been different around here since I've been pregnant and once the baby gets here they will change again. In a big way. At every age and every stage things change. We have to be flexible but hopefully our good habits help us survive and adapt to all those changes.

I did a couple new things with my cooking this week. I want to incorporate some new grains and seeds into my bread and other cooking so I added some oat flour to my wheat bread and it was good. I tried to find a recipe for oat/wheat bread online but failed. Does anyone have a good one? I am also sprouting my first batch of bean sprouts. Just when I was ready to give up on them my son noticed the tiny sprouts today! Yummy! Now to figure out how to use them.

We went roller skating with the home schoolers today. Have you noticed how weird home schoolers are? We talked about sprouting, wheat grass green drinks, food storage, and the economy today. I assigned someone to teach us how to make our own cheese and amunition for next time. (You know I'm joking, right?) I'm feeling like we are crossing over to the other side. I don't know what side that is but we're on our way there. As long as I can take my crock pot with me it should be a good trip.

And my point is... I skipped a few meals this last week but I have them all planned out for next week and my shopping is done. Speaking of shopping. I went without my kids last week and it was horrible. I didn't have anyone to push the cart, unload the groceries at check out, or load them into the van. Yes, my kids are definitely starting to earn their keep around here and I kind of miss them when they're not around. Especially the fighting. That is really hard to go without.

If you are new and you want to catch up on last year - Smart Habit Saturday 2007

*Important - Please link to your individual SMART Habit post instead of your home page or else my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder will have to spend time fixing the links. Here is how you link to an individual post if you’ve never done it before: Right click on the date at the bottom of the post you want to link to (or the post title depending on where you blog) click “Copy Shortcut” and then paste it into Mr. Linky.

Get To Work You Lazy Cow

And by Lazy Cow I mean me...

I was going to start staining my kitchen island just now. I got it all cleared off from the morning's (and let's be honest, yesterday morning's as well) activities except for the fruit bowl. That's when I got distracted by a juicy orange and of course sat down to read a blog or two while I ate it.

Have you checked out Ellen's blog yet? Something about that girls just cracks me up. I don't even watch her show. I think just reading her blog and watching the clips is as much funniness as I can handle in a single day.

Some people think cows are lazy. I just think that they have a motivation problem. They’ve got the same 2 choices every day. Graze or gaze, day in and day out. It’s not like the good old days when it was graze, gaze or stampede.

I think she's onto us though. Our little internet support group for lazy people that we have going here is perfect. You don't have to get dressed or drive anywhere to get to it.

It just hit me today that my daughter is getting baptized next Saturday. Do you think it might be a good time to start making her baptism dress and plan some sort of meal for the family that will be showing up? That is if I get around to inviting them?

I know. I'll get to work on my island and see if someone else magically plans the baptism for me in the mean time.

Crock Pot Lasagna

I've had a few people ask for my crock pot recipes so here is one you can begin with. You can find more recipes at Slow Cooking Thursday. I am going to check out more of the recipes posted there because most of mine are just adaptations of regular recipes that I used to cook in the oven. We need some new dishes.

I'm so lazy that I never thaw my meat before I throw it in the crock pot. I love to put frozen ground beef in it for a few hours and then chop it up to use in a recipe. It's so much easier than frying it on the stove! Plus you can add onions and spices to it so they simmer all day giving lots of flavor. I do the same thing with chicken and spices and then serve it on tacos that night. There is no need to add any water with the meat.

I've made lasagna in the crock pot before but I wanted to try a new recipe and found this one from SCT that is super easy! I made a few changes of course because that's what I do. Here is my version (I don't measure). If you want more exact measurements try the original recipe. Notice I start with frozen ground beef? Easy! (Of course if I were just making this for myself I wouldn't add any meat.)

Crock Pot Lasagna

• 1 pound low fat ground beef, frozen (the beef I use is very low fat so I don't have to drain it off)
• 2 cans Diced Tomatoes, 14.5 ounce
• 6 ounces tomato paste
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 each onion, chopped
• jalapeno peppers, 1-3 chopped (One pepper adds a very mild chili flavor. Next time I'm going to add two or three because my kids like spicy food.)
• dried oregano
• dried basil
• garlic
• salt
• 8 lasagna noodles, uncooked
• 1 cup or more cottage cheese (I used three cups and we loved it.)
  about 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded

Mix tomatoes, paste, water, onions, peppers and spices in crock pot. Add frozen ground beef. Cook on high for a couple hours or on low all day. Break up the ground beef as it thaws and cooks.

Break noodles in half and press into the sauce making sure they are all covered. Mix the cheeses together and spread on top. Cook on high for 1-2 hours more. I cooked mine 2 hours and the noodles were a little too soft. When it's done it will look a little soupy but if you turn the heat off and let it sit for a few minutes it sets up. We can't wait that long so we eat lasagna soup.

Everyone loved this recipe. Even Stranger who doesn't like my lasagna (hence the new recipe)!

Talk About Tuesday

Welcome to Talk About Tuesday! If you are new, check out the Guidelines before posting. Thanks for joining us!

It's an organized pantry! Stranger spent an entire day finishing up the cupboards on this wall. Putting the drawers together and installing everything was more work than I could have guessed. I guess I'll let him take a break before he finishes the other wall. Aren't I sweet? Actually he's been at work. That's where he goes when he needs to rest. Sometimes I wish I had a job where I could go to rest and take a break from Motherhood.

I designed the pantry with some countertop space so I could make hidden messes on it. Now if I can just keep it cleared off so I have room to make the messes I can't wait to make.

It's also a perfect spot for my wheat grinder. The bonus is that I can shut the door and hopefully not wake up the neighborhood livestock because it's loud! I like keeping all of it in a container to catch spills and make it easy to move. I had a friend who kept her wheat grinder in the garage which is another great idea to keep the noise and mess outside. Except when it's -20 degrees. Freshly ground wheat is just not worth freezing your tootsies off.

This is one of the upper cabinets. I'm still trying to decide if I want the doors installed. They will look nice but they will create one more step in putting things away and it's not like people are going to be hanging out in my pantry thinking about how nice it looks, right?

This is the pasta and rice drawer. I love big drawers!

I gathered up all the stray plastic tubs and bottles and threw them in another big drawer.

Persistence was the lucky one who got to organize all of it.

She got rid of at least half of it. She did a great job! BTW, this isn't stuff we use on a daily basis. I use pyrex for leftovers and I keep it in the kitchen.

Did I mention how fun it was to organize all my new cupboards and drawers? Good times.

What do you have to talk about this week?

*Important - Please link to your individual Talk About Tuesday post instead of your home page or else my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder will have to spend time fixing the links. Here is how you link to an individual post if you’ve never done it before: Right click on the date at the bottom of the post you want to link to (or the post title depending on where you blog) click “Copy Shortcut” and then paste it into Mr. Linky.

Why do we love stuff so much?

There is almost nothing more exciting than coming home with something new to wear or play with. Why is that? I can always tell when Stranger is especially pleased with a new toy because he brings it to bed with him. Sometimes I'll ask him, "Do you like it so much that you're going to sleep with it?" His latest favorite purchase I think was his snow plow which, sadly, I won't allow in the house let alone the bedroom. He had to buy a part for it a couple weeks ago though and I think that came to bed with us.

Why do we have all these holidays that are all about Stuff? Why do we have to buy each other Stuff to show them we love them? I'm thinking it's purely a sensory thing. I bet blind people are not into their Stuff as much as seeing people are. Am I wrong? I have a blind nephew and it seems the only Stuff he is into is his computer gadgets that talk or read brail to him. They are his way of experiencing the world.

What did God start with when he created the world? Stuff. And then he formed it into a bunch of other beautiful Stuff and created us to see and feel and smell and hear and taste all of it. Well we wouldn't want to taste ALL of it. Just the tastey Stuff. So I guess it's not such a bad thing for us to like Stuff. We just need to make sure we are good stewards over it and use it to create happiness and not saddness.

Having a cluttered home makes me sad. Not being able to find things makes me sad. Fighting with my kids to put things away makes me sad. I have learned one important thing about stuff. If it causing anxiety get rid of it!

If you hate doing laundry then you probably have too many clothes. If you dread doing dishes and they pile up for days then you have too many dishes. If your kids cry when you tell them to clean their rooms then they have too many toys. Get rid of at least half of them and stop buying more. If you've already gotten rid of half of them then get rid of half more.

It's a terribly profound concept, I know, but do you want a happy, easy life or a sad, difficult life? You get to choose and your Stuff has a lot to do with it.

Bucket Answers

Since some of you were so astounded by all my buckets I thought I had better answer your questions.

Where did we get the buckets?

Industrial Container and Supply Company in Salt Lake City Utah. You might check your nearest city to see if there is a similar company. Hopefully we won't need them all. We bought a whole pallet because it was a little bit cheaper and we can sell the extra to family or friends who need them.

Why did we buy so many?

We encourage Church members worldwide to prepare for adversity in life by having a basic supply of food and water and some money in savings. We ask that you be wise as you store food and water and build your savings. Do not go to extremes; it is not prudent, for example, to go into debt to establish your food storage all at once. With careful planning, you can, over time, establish a home storage supply and a financial reserve."—The First Presidency of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

If you are LDS (Mormon) or know of anyone who is LDS then you know of our obsession with food storage. We have been instructed by our leaders to store a one year supply of food in case of emergency. That could be anything from a natural catastrophe, to losing a job. For our family a one year supply is 2160 pounds of grains and beans plus other items. Food storage calculator. You can go here to find out more about food storage. If you read the bible you might have learned a little bit about food storage from Joseph of Egypt.

What are we storing in the buckets?

Wheat, oats, corn, other grains, beans, sugar, , salt, yeast, etc. Anything we use on a daily basis that we could live off of if we didn't have access to any other food. We also store canned foods, baking powder, powdered milk, oil, water, spices, etc. I am slowly learning how to cook with these foods so we're not just storing the food but using it and continually replenishing it with a new supply. Not only is it economical but when you add fruits and vegetables to a whole grain diet it's healthier too!

Why are we doing this now?

We were planning on moving for several years so even though I should of been getting prepared, I didn't work on getting my food storage because I didn't want to move it! Now we are in our new house so I don't have any more excuses. It is a big financial investment but obviously worth it in the long run and much cheaper than fast unhealthy food. Another stop on our food storage trip is to grow a garden and learn to can our own fruits and vegetables.

Where are we storing everything?

We have a cold storage room in our basement and also a crawl space under our house were there is lots of room for storage. If you live in a small house or apartment then you obviously won't be able to store as much. I know some people make beds and coffee tables with their food storage!

Did I answer everything?

Smart Habit Saturday

Welcome! If you are new to SHS find out all about it here: Getting Started with SHS. Click here to read more SHS posts. Please don't forget to link back to this post so your readers can find out more about SHS.

I was out having a romantic evening with Mr. Darcy tonight so I will catch up with all of you tomorrow after I drag myself out of bed!

A friend of mine threw a Pride and Prejudice movie marathon slumber party last night. I was told the series is five hours long. We started it at 4:00 in the afternoon and with all the eating and movie discussions we finished it at midnight. I was a baby and didn't end up spending the night. I much preferred driving home in a cold car at 12:30 and sleeping in my own bed. At least at home I know I get to sleep in!

I didn't have a great meal plan this last week but I always managed to have something for dinner. I used my crock pot several times and not having such a busy schedule helped. Have I mentioned how happy I am that the holidays and two of my kid's birthdays are over???

If you are new and you want to catch up on last year - Smart Habit Saturday 2007

*Important - Please link to your individual SMART Habit post instead of your home page or else my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder will have to spend time fixing the links. Here is how you link to an individual post if you’ve never done it before: Right click on the date at the bottom of the post you want to link to (or the post title depending on where you blog) click “Copy Shortcut” and then paste it into Mr. Linky.

Food Storage Anyone?

I told you I was going to work on getting our food storage organized this year. I didn't lie. Sometimes I lie but this time I didn't.

I sent Stranger on a little errand this week to buy 144-5 gallon buckets. Yes that's right. 144! Well if you're going to store 3,000 pounds of food then it takes a lot of buckets! How do people afford this?

Now I'm just trying to figure out who's going to wash all those buckets.

What's the deal with all these buckets?

De-Clutter Your Liabilities

A Liability is anything that is a hindrance, or puts individuals at a disadvantage. To me it's anything that costs time and money to own and maintain.

What are some of the liabilities we own?

• Our House - that's the biggest one. It costs us money every day but our bodies need one to live in so I think we'll keep it. The trick is to have the smallest, most easily maintainable home you can. We don't live in a huge house but it is a lot bigger than most people have or need. It is a very comfortable luxury and we are definitely paying for it. Stranger tells me every other day that we need to sell it and move. NO!!!



• Our Kids - yep, we're keeping those too but we're hoping they grow up into assets.



• Our Vehicles - We own a 17 year old pickup truck and an eight year old mini-van. Not to mention the Green Liver (it cost $50) that Stranger keeps out of town for work and a Jeep Wagoneer with a plow (it cost $300). Everything is paid for and Stranger is pretty good at fixing the little things himself. Still they cost money to run and maintain. If we were city types or if Stranger wasn't going to work at all hours of the night we would definitely try to get by with fewer vehicles. You know several months ago when I was talking about wanting a new van? We went shopping for one and couldn't stomach the idea of spending the money so I guess we'll keep driving the old one, which is perfectly fine, a while longer.



• Our Computers - HUGE liabilities. We spend so much time and money on them that it's ridiculous. Of course I run my business off my computer so it could be considered an asset. When it makes me rich I'll let you know.



• All the little gadgets and gizmos we have - My MP3 player that I can now not live without causes big headaches just keeping the music organized, finding the right earphones, fixing it when it's not working, etc. I also love my Bosch mixer/food processor/blender. I use it several times a day and I don't know how I would live without it but I'm sure I could find a way. I have a friend that makes homemade bread and mixes it all by hand. Imagine! If I had to do that I would spend more time whining than making bread. My headset telephone that's been broken and taped back together because life would not go on if I couldn't organize while I'm talking on the phone is another one of my favorite gadgets.



• Need I mention my four sewing machines? - No, I'm not getting rid of any of them. If anything I would like to buy a few more. You know. For the four times a year that I actually sew.



• The Bob Stroller - It is a definite luxury that I love, love, love and was worth every penny. It's not costing us any time or money to maintain but it certainly doesn't make us money and we could have bought something much cheaper. But then how long would it have lasted and how functional would it have been? Those are always big questions when making a purchase.



• Our VHS video player just broke and we won't be buying another one. I'm wishing our DVD player would break too!



• As far as any big extras we don't have them. We don't own a boat or a mobile home or a four wheeler or anything fun and exciting. Mostly because I'm too lazy to want the hassle and Stranger is too cheap to pay for them.

I can only think of a few things I would like to buy at this point of my life that doesn't involve finishing our house. I want a slicer/shredder attachment for my Bosch but I guess I don't really, REALLY need one. I just really want one. And new couches for my living room would be nice. Our eleven year old stained and ripped couches are not looking too cute these days. We weren't very smart when we picked them out because they show every little spot. That's the end of my wish list. Until I think of something else.

I'm sure you notice every day how much time and money your things are costing you. Is it worth it? What could you get rid of that you don't really need and is not bringing your life greater joy?

Another Birthday Party and A Little More Work

Persistence had a birthday party today. It didn't quite work out as easy and stress-free as Victor's party a few weeks ago. I actually had to plan this one!


Persistence is my little chef so I had an expert come to teach her and three friends how to decorate cakes. (She got a cookie press for Christmas.)


They had a great time but you know who had the greatest time? My ten year old son! He would have spent four hours decorating his cake if he could have.


Aren't they beautiful? Can you tell which one my two year old did? That was supposed to be my cake but Lovely wouldn't let me near it. She had to decorate it by HERSELF! I snuck in a little border around the bottom and she almost didn't recover from the insult.

After we were done with the cakes everyone made their own pizza.


Persistence modeling her Christmas present.

Apron Pattern



We actually don't have friend parties every year and when we do I definitely don't go all out like some people do. Simple and easy is my style as we all know.

Talk About Tuesday

Welcome to Talk About Tuesday! If you are new, check out the Guidelines before posting. Thanks for joining us!

Remember all these boxes?

Stranger spent some time last week putting all the many parts together.

Yes that's my Christmas tree in the background. Do you want to make something of it?

There is still a lot to do but he's making progress!

See how happy this makes us?



While we're at it would you like to see my bear bum?

If we're done in here I need to go exercise while I organize these paint bottles. I'm a mulit-tasker.

Excuse me while I get this mess cleaned up and model my new Christmas present.



Apron Pattern


What do you have to talk about this week?

*Important - Please link to your individual Talk About Tuesday post instead of your home page or else my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder will have to spend time fixing the links. Here is how you link to an individual post if you’ve never done it before: Right click on the date at the bottom of the post you want to link to (or the post title depending on where you blog) click “Copy Shortcut” and then paste it into Mr. Linky.

I Bought Stuff

I know. We are always spending money. But the questions is... on what? Is it useful? Is it going to last a long time? Do we need it?

I haven't bought new sheets for our bed or my son's bed for ten years. They were so thin that we could see through them and the edges were all frayed. Then they started ripping and Stranger still couldn't bare to part with them so he sewed them up. By himself. Because I refused to waste time on a lost cause. WE NEEDED NEW SHEETS!

Well, the sewing actually held up for a few more months. Long enough for me to find some more sheets for a good price. So we have new sheets for our bed and for Victor's bed. Aren't we so frivolous?

Oh and I also bought myself two new towels this week. Stranger and the kids got new towels for Christmas but I didn't. (We all have different colors so I know who to yell at when they get left on the floor.) Yep, we've also been using the same towels that we got for our wedding almost 12 years ago. Is that gross or thrifty?

My excuse is that I was going to buy new towels when we moved. Well, we decided to move about five years ago but it took us three years to move and then two more years to actually buy the towels. I think that makes us careful consumers. Or lazy.

Photograph curtesy of Grandpa Burt.

Smart Habit Saturday

Welcome! If you are new to SHS find out all about it here: Getting Started with SHS. Click here to read more SHS posts. Please don't forget to link back to this post so your readers can find out more about SHS.

How were your habits this week? Our meals were better last week. This week it seemed like we just had too much going on to stay home and cook! It's time to get out the crock pot so we have a meal waiting for us when we get home. Today I made the greatest beef stew for my daughter's book club and they snarfed down every last bite so there was nothing left for our family dinner. Rude! Actually I was flattered that they liked it so much.

Basically I put a roast in the crockpot with a package of onion soup mix at midnight when I went to bed and cooked it on low all night. In the morning I cut up the roast, added water, potatoes and carrots, a couple bay leaves, worchestershire sauce, and paprika and cooked on hight until the vegetables were tender. If you want a big pot add lots of veggies and water and add another package of soup mix. Easy and yum!

If you are new and you want to catch up on last year - Smart Habit Saturday 2007

*Important - Please link to your individual SMART Habit post instead of your home page or else my Obsessive Compulsive Disorder will have to spend time fixing the links. Here is how you link to an individual post if you’ve never done it before: Right click on the date at the bottom of the post you want to link to (or the post title depending on where you blog) click “Copy Shortcut” and then paste it into Mr. Linky.

Buy Me Stuff!

Yesterday Persistence turned 8. Happy Birthday! She didn't NEED anything so we didn't buy her anything. Instead I took her shopping. How ironic is that? First we went to get her hair cut and then we went to dinner and then shopping. She actually does need a new dress to wear to Church but we never found anything.

Instead she picked out a pair of shoes that were on sale for $5, 8 little mini bread pans because she loves to cook, and a scarf and hat for a couple dollars because she doesn't have any and she does go out to play in the snow every day. My prediction though is that they will be lost in the snow or trampled to death in the garage within a week.

She had a fabulous time. When we were at dinner she said, "How come Victor didn't get a fancy birthday like this?"

When we were out we saw this...

If you're going to raise a proper American consumer it's important to start the brainwashing as soon as possible. Laurie left me a comment the other day:

I do wonder, seriously, what would happen to our economy if we all cut back and
didn't spend. I'm on the bandwagon for no spending. But after 911 what did they
encourage everyone to do but go out and shop!

I'm betting that if everyone cut back even 20% of their spending it would have serious repercussions on our economy. I'm not worried about that though because it's not going to happen. America is a country full of addicts (television, shopping, food, s*x, smoking, drugs and alcohol, etc.) and they're here to stay.

Did I ever tell you what I saw at Walmart one day? A package of little girl's panties that said, "Sweet and innocent...for now!" Just thinking about them makes me feel sick to my stomach all over again. I can't imagine any mother buying something so disgusting for her four year old but apparently they do.

Speaking of addicts I'm going to go out on a limb and announce to everyone that I am off sugar. Again! Of course today is my first day but still...

How long do you think I can make it this time or will I finally conquer the beast? I'm writing about it at Eatopia.

Talk About Tuesday

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Speaking of bandwagons, we are now official Ikea groupies. I see and hear about a lot of Ikea on the web but we just got our own store last spring. We've been there a few times to be amazed by the vastness of it all and to see if, once we entered, we could find our way back out again. Let me just give you a word of warning if you've never been there before. Don't take children and use the bathroom before you get started because once you're in you're not coming back out again until you've seen it all. Not even if you wanted to.

Well, this time we weren't just window shopping. We actually came home with cabinets for our pantry.

I know!

This and now this? We'd better watch out or we are going to be seriously organized one of these days. The great thing about Ikea though is that everything fits through the door! They are amazingly good planners that way.

I don't know if you can tell but that is three carts full of boxes. Two in front and one behind on the left. At least all those boxes make me feel like we got our money's worth. Now if I could just get Stranger to stop running off to work so he can stay home and put the whole thing together for me. Why would anyone not be excited about that? I know I'm excited to watch and offer useless advice if he needs it. I'm nothing if not helpful.

What do you have to talk about this week?

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Story of Stuff

Update: Hidden in the sacrasm of this post is my excitment and support for all of this. I love that people are blogging about it. I don't think anyone trying to consume less is funny. I think the fact that our country needs to have a "movement" about it is funny in a sad way. Since I am also on the bandwagon I am putting myself at the top of the list. I hope more will hop on because I was getting tired of doing all the nagging myself.

Apparently there is a new movement surging the nation (or blogs at least) which I find wonderful and hilarious at the same time. People are getting on the band wagon to STOP BUYING STUFF! This is wonderful because the money I see people waste on crap brings tears to my eyes and it's hilarious because some of us have been doing it all along. Where were the rest of you? Oh ya, out shopping.

Here are some of the new (or maybe not so new) band-wagoneers. Hopefully they will inspire us to new heights of simplicity. Do you know of any more?

Me!
We Don't Buy It
The Year of Not Shopping
A Year Off
Random Rantings
The Simple Family
Can We Make It?

Stranger and I sat down and figured out how much money we spent total on Christmas this year. It was around $400. That includes money we spent on each other, our three kids, friends and family. Are we cheap? Maybe. Are we trying to live a frugal, clutter-free, stress-free life? Most definitely yes!

I'm sure you've all seen The Story of Stuff but if you haven't watched it with your kids yet you must do so immediately. I watched it with mine and we had a lengthy discussion of it. They saw for themselves why their mom won't buy them every little piece of crap their heart desires. One thing I taught my kids long ago is that we can afford anything we want. We just can't afford everything we want. I never EVER tell them, "We can't afford that," because we can. Most people afford what they want to afford. If you're broke and you're paying for your Internet connection and a cell phone instead of food then that is your choice.

When we're in the store and my kids see Moms buying stuff for their kids the