• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

michelejo.com

seeking minimalism

  • home
  • about me
  • Recipes
  • Frugal Living
  • Homeschooling
  • Adventures
  • Celebrations
  • In the Garden
  • Tending Hearth
You are here: Home / Archives for stewardship

stewardship

A Year of Less: February Plans and Progress

February 11, 2013 by michelejo Leave a Comment

So with January’s No-Spend turned Low-Spend experiment behind us, I’ve been decompressing a bit so far in February.  I honestly cannot believe we’re practically halfway through this month!

I’m still definitely working on our Year of Less.  I am working hard to be mindful about each and every penny I spend.  instead of the old “see it, want it, buy it” mentality, I’ve been doing a “see it, want it, ask myself if I truly need it” mentality.  This involves envisioning how useful it really will be, analyzing its cost versus its usefulness and being really honest with myself about whether I really need it or if I simply want to need it (in order to justify getting it).  Then if I still think I should get it, I make a mental note to mull it over for a few weeks and then get it later if I still need it.  That gives me time to price shop and wait for a sale or coupon.

I’ve been doing this for quite some time.  I’ve talked myself out of buying a Silhouette Cameo and a new gas grill for months with this method.  My conclusion is that I don’t really *need* either.  The grill certainly seems like more of a necessity than the Cameo;  I can actually make a case for needing a grill.  (Since I really crave real grilled chicken–not faux-grilled in my George Foreman–in my primal-friendly salads that make up the core of my daytime diet when I’m eating right.)  But ultimately, I can still cook chicken without the grill.

But I do think that having a grill would enhance my quality of life so I did decide to buy one.  But when?  My decision on that has been to purchase a grill at the end of February so long as no other unexpected/large expenses come up.

Part of this plan is to clean up and sell my George Foreman Evolve, not because I’ll get that much money for it, but because I just don’t have space in our smallish kitchen for all the small appliances I have.  So getting an outdoor grill will allow me to clear out all the space that the Evolve and it’s accessories take up!  (I have waffle plates, grill plates, omelet plates, cupcake plates and cake plates…most of which have never been used!)  I will probably sell a few other unused or rarely used gadgets while I’m at it.  I have a never-used juicer, for instance.  It’s not that I don’t like the idea of juicing.  I do.  I may start doing it regularly some day.  But after trying and returning several disappointing expensive juicers, I bought a cheap one with a really narrow chute.  And because of that flaw, I don’t use it.  I don’t have the patience to cut all my veggies into slender pieces when I factor in all the clean-up juicing involves.  I’d be better off reclaiming my space for now and if I really want to juice again in the future, I can pay better attention to features when choosing a machine.

But back to the Cameo–I almost did click BUY on that one during Silhouette’s amazing Black Friday sale.  It was the best deal but I knew that I had a house that still wasn’t completely unpacked, still needed to be organized and decorated and that heading into the holidays I was not going to have time to learn and use the Cameo.  I pictured it sitting with my sewing machines and many other unused craft items for months on end until I finally could get to a place where I felt justify spending time doing something *just for fun.*  Since we’re almost in the middle of February and I’m *still not there* I think my decision to hold off on the Cameo was a good one!

Spending isn’t the only facet of having a Year of Less.  Getting rid of things is another huge part of that.  I’ve been decluttering and re-organizing and purging.  I’m putting into practice all the tips and advice I’ve gleaned from books and blogs over the past several years.  One big thing that helps me is to put things where I’ll see and remember them rather than where they’ll be prettiest (can you tell I’ve read a bunch of books about organizing for people with ADD?).  I got new hampers and put them right under the towel rack in the master bath.  Suddenly I’m washing hubby’s clothes before he runs out and has to scavenge for things to wear in the AM!  I hung a clipboard for my Monthly Bill Payment Record right beside my desk!

I’ve done similar things in my bathroom and am implementing these types of systems in other areas of the house. I’m keeping a list of supplies I need for certain organizational ideas and instead of rushing out and buying everything, I’m spacing it out and buying what I need for one project at a time.  That way I don’t buy stuff and have it sit around (or even worse….get lost!) before I get to it.  Hubby also has gotten on board and has made amazing progress organizing and purging the garage and shed.

Things are shaping up…2013 is going to be a great year!

Filed Under: Tending Hearth, Uncategorized Tagged With: bills, finances, Frugality & DIY, money, stewardship

***FREE*** Monthly Bill Payment Record

February 9, 2013 by michelejo Leave a Comment

I created this chart in Microsoft Publisher but for those you don’t have Publisher, I’ve included a PDF copy.  You can simply fill it in by hand monthly, edit it in Publisher or fill in the names of your bills and due dates and then scan or copy it to make additional copies.  🙂

I keep my charts on a clipboard that hangs on a clear Command hook next to my desk and each new month, I just add a new one on top of the stack, so I can flip through if I need to look up something from a previous month.

This way I easily see it daily and can make sure I don’t forget to pay things.  Since I have ADD, I have a terrible time remembering to pay things on time!  This could be one’s only system for remembering, but I do have other systems on well.  I just find that redundancy is good for me! 😀  Our others systems and filing cabinet reside in our office where my husband can keep an eye on things; this chart is just for my peace of mind.  My desk is in our bedroom, so I’ve got my info right there and see it even if I don’t have reason to venture into the office!

***I was unable to upload the Publisher version due to security restrictions in WordPress.  If you need that version, please e-mail me and I’ll send it back as an attachment. 🙂

[ddownload id=”1536″ text=”Download Now” style=”link”]

 

Filed Under: Tending Hearth, Uncategorized Tagged With: bills, finances, free, money, stewardship

Primary Sidebar

h e l l o . . . . . . . .

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Search…

summerland.az

Meant to paint these rocks and leave them along th Meant to paint these rocks and leave them along the way from AZ to NC, so ran out of time. New plan: leave them around the complex! 💜

(Reminds me I totally forgot to hunt for Pokémon on the trip out here!!! Argh!!)
Celebrating Father’s Day today! Katie has a hom Celebrating Father’s Day today!  Katie has a homemade ice cream cake in the freezer and cribbage was played earlier. Now Mario Kart. Tom’s mounting the bedroom TV between hanging out with the kids. 💜 I’m trying the Hime Chef hot honey butter salmon, Home Chef shrimp recipe for dinner.
It’s pretty here 💜 It’s pretty here 💜
Instagram post 17961454066819439 Instagram post 17961454066819439
Instagram post 17888103242661920 Instagram post 17888103242661920
Shamelessly hiding in my car while Tom and Dakota Shamelessly hiding in my car while Tom and Dakota load a U-Haul van.
The stuff of nightmares but less scary alone than The stuff of nightmares but less scary alone than going in the elevator with Tom and our stuff 🤣😳
New brands of treats!? New brands of treats!?
Chicken and biscuit place, in an old Wendy’s… Chicken and biscuit place, in an old Wendy’s…
Enjoying trying new things. Enjoying trying new things.
Instagram post 17913759302460332 Instagram post 17913759302460332
Next to last one this trip!! Next to last one this trip!!
I had to order Mississippi and Alabama on Ebay. 🤣 I have picked up New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana and now...Florida! 💜
She was mad I moved the blanket 🤣 She was mad I moved the blanket 🤣
The crew 🤣 The crew 🤣
In my car with Katie next to Tom in his car, tryin In my car with Katie next to Tom in his car, trying to wait out the second big Florida storm of the day. And oh, we’re in Florida today. 🤣 They have great rest stops!
Dinner date. Waffle House was EMPTY so we ate INSI Dinner date. Waffle House was EMPTY so we ate INSIDE!! 🤣🤣🤣
Instagram post 17985629758517420 Instagram post 17985629758517420
Instagram post 17924056823388516 Instagram post 17924056823388516
Instagram post 17876329877701619 Instagram post 17876329877701619
Load More... Follow on Instagram
July 2022
M T W T F S S
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031
« Nov    

Copyright © 2022 · Genesis Sample on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in