Odd, how a twist in the economic ’style’ of this country has brought back some age old thought and wisdom. When it comes to ’stuff’ and ‘things’ we really evaluate what we ‘need’ vs the, ‘eh, I could do without’, when times get a bit ‘uncomfortable’.
As we prepare to make our big move, we are finding that there are things we have here at this location, that we have no use for in our soon to be location.
As we ‘look around’ and see things we have, but truly do not need, or want to move— because hey, let’s be honest, it’s nice to have things that make life easier! It’s nice to have ’the latest model’. Question IS…Will we ‘need’ these things in our new homestead? We see opportunity, to barter or sell those things, to get the things we will really need and use at our new place. Or do we know someone who could really use something we have, but really never use? BLESS THEM!!! Give it away!
Anyhow, that leads me to my point of this post (really!) I have found lately that folks are A LOT more apt to sell for cheap (or somewhat reasonable), barter (whatever happened to this GREAT idea!?), or even GIVE things away! I have also found that there are a variety of places to find what we do need on the cheap or even FREE.
Let me give you an example. A few months back as we were planning for this big change in our lives, we knew we’d better start shopping around for a few things. We also knew we’d better start planning on getting rid of a few things. So, to Craigslist I go. I start checking daily on a few key items we are hunting for. Sure enough, within a few days I find the fuel tanks that my husband is looking for! Best part? The seller is open to bartering! (I find this a LOT these days on Craigslist) Anyhew…for a truckload of wood (that we wouldn’t be able to take with us anyway) and an air conditioner, (that we would not want to be running and sucking up our off grid power!) we got the 2 huge fuel tanks we needed. Voila!
Just yesterday I stopped by the Salvation Army and gave away a bunch of very nice clothing. Many nice things the children have outgrown, never worn or had been given that they just didn’t care for–we had a bunch of baby clothes that our son never even wore (folks give babies FAR too many clothes! lol), some clothing that I had, that was very nice, from when I worked outside the home… many moons ago, that hadn’t been worn since the day I left the cubicle behind! I am sure all these items could bless someone else though, and help empty my closet, clutter and moving load!
Searching Craigslist is a great blessing! We’ve sold goats, refrigerators, given away a piano to another homeschool family….bartered for equipment, bought some spendy tire chains for the truck that were less than 1/3rd the price new, bought some “impossible to come by–sold out game” — baseball tickets, for a special outing for one of the children and daddy’s ‘day out’….we even acquired one of our Livestock Guardian Dogs through Craigslist!!! Check out their “FREE” section too!
Now my REAL find. We homeschool, we love books…. and I have a myriad of options and know of TONS of places and vendors to buy from , when it comes to buying books and materials. TONS. I found this place (via Craigslist too!) that is a couple hours from me, geographically, and I’d heard of it before–just never drove the distance to go check it out. Well, come to find out, (this is SUCH A HUGE BLESSING!!) this is a GOLDMINE of a gently used local homeschool bookstore/curriculum shop!
The best part? I email them with my list of book titles, or curriculum wants–they shop for me, pull my choices right from my list–and UPS it to me! This is homeschool heaven, folks!!!!! I will share–because you can email Jessica your list and since they ship UPS, you can have your order shipped direct to you too! They are professional, carry a HUGE variety, have NICE stuff, and make finding titles EASY. I love em! The shop, for any Northwest Washington locals, is “Homeschool Potpourri” in Kirkland.
Next idea for maybe getting rid of things that you’ve got that you just don’t truly need and are cluttering your home and life, is FreeCycle! You can not only get rid of things you don’t need any longer and that will bless someone else–but you can find things you do need, for FREE! FreeCycle is a non-profit, staffed by volunteers, and is a great way to ‘recycle’ and GIVE to others who may need something, that you no longer have need for-it’s a win-win! Check out their site for specifics at www.FreeCycle.org
When we buy, sell, barter and giveaway with one another–we are helping out neighbors, and ourselves…saving time, money, reusing, recycling…sounds like a winning combination to me!
Lisa
Lisa is blessed to be a Wife to Marc, a Mama to 4 blessings, and a Keeper at Home! They live a God centered, family centered, homesteading lifestyle of learning in the mountains of the Northwest. They operate their family run business Homestead Originals where they specialize in handcrafted candles, soap, and gifts for the Homestead. She is also the author of the Homestead Simplicity E-book series that focuses on Encouragement for the Homekeeper, Simple Family Living, Natural Cleaners, and Making Everything from Scratch! Come on by and visit Lisa’s Blog for great ideas, tips, freebies and contests too! To contact Lisa, email Lisa@HomesteadOriginals.com
I love to make anything and everything homemade if I can!So when it comes to the kitchen, homemade is definitely a priority!I just love to ‘create’ my own buttermilk!This makes SUPERB pancakes, salad dressings, biscuits and so much more!This is so easily done.
I grab a quart of organic, raw buttermilk from my local Natural Foods Co-Op (you can use regular store buttermilk too!)I take 2 cups, I then pour this in one of my (very clean) half gallon glass milk jugs and fill the rest of the way up with raw goats milk (You can use store bought milk here too if you wish).I set this out on the kitchen counter for 12 hours. I give it a little shake, and put in the fridge. Voila!
Use clean containers, and fresh buttermilk and milk to start. It should smell ‘buttermilk-ish’ not ‘bad’.I’ve yet to have a bad batch.I use a good amount of buttermilk and if you always keep it FRESH, and keep 2 cups to make a new batch…you’ve got your own homemade buttermilk! (This is akin to a ‘starter’) If you don’t use so much buttermilk, just cut this recipe in half!
If you give a mom a muffin,
She'll want a cup of coffee to go with it.
She'll pour herself some.
Her three-year-old will spill the coffee.
She'll wipe it up.
Wiping the floor, she'll find dirty socks.
She'll remember she has to do laundry.
When she puts the laundry in the washer,
She'll trip over boots and bump into the freezer.
Bumping into the freezer will remind her she has to plan for supper.
She will get out a pound of hamburger.
She'll look for her cookbook ("101 Things To Do With a Pound of Hamburger").
The cookbook is sitting under a pile of mail.
She will see the phone bill, which is due tomorrow.
She will look for her checkbook.
The check book is in her purse that is being dumped out by her two-year-old.
She'll smell something funny.
She'll change the two year old's diaper.
While she is changing the diaper, the phone will ring.
Her five-year-old will answer and hang up.
She'll remember she wants to phone a friend for coffee.
Thinking of coffee will remind her that she was going to have a cup.
And chances are...
If she has a cup of coffee,
Her kids will have eaten the muffin that went with it.
Neat FREE Homeschool Resource--from Tapestry of Grace!
I love Tapestry of Grace--and they are offering this VERY NEAT Freebie--Check it out! ~Lisa
Did you ever wish you could help your kids see the "big picture" of what they're studying, and why? Did you ever wish you could see that big picture yourself? Now you can! Lampstand Press has come up with a "Map of the Humanities" that puts it all together. The separate paths of history, literature, fine arts, church history, government and philosophy all wind through world history from Creation to the present. All the majortopics that are covered in the four-year cycle of Tapestry of Grace are presented in one map, perfect for any family that wants to survey the classics of world history from a Christian perspective.
We’re all looking for ways to cut back on expenses and do things more naturally! One way I do that is to make my own concoctions to clean my homestead.
I love to make my own 'cleaners', it's quick, easy and natural--no chemicals, no toxins..I love that. Here is one that is so simple and WORKS :)
Homemade Glass / Window Cleaner
Take one of those empty sprayer bottles, fill 50/50 with water and vinegar. Shake, spray and clean. EASY! (I add 10 drops of Peppermint essential oil OR 20 drops of Lavender essential oil to this too! Peppermint repels bugs & leaves a nice really fresh scent, and Lavender is a great all around anti-bacterial oil). No essential oils on hand? The Vinegar & Water will also do the job :)
Joyfully (& frugally) Homekeeping,
Lisa
Lisa is blessed to be a Wife to Marc, a Mama to 4 blessings, and a Keeper at Home! They live a God centered, family centered, homesteading lifestyle of learning in the mountains of the Northwest. They operate their family run business Homestead Originals where they specialize in handcrafted candles, soap, and gifts for the Homestead. She is also the author of the Homestead Simplicity E-book series that focuses on Encouragement for the Homekeeper, Simple Family Living, Natural Cleaners, and Making Everything from Scratch! Come on by and visit Lisa’s Blog for great ideas, tips, freebies and contests too! To contact Lisa, email Lisa@HomesteadOriginals.com
