May 10, 2007

• Trying to be faithful in very little…

  
  Luke 16:10-13 - ”One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.  If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?   And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?  No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

  
  

  I really can’t say that I have LITTLE, as it’s referring to in the verse above! I live in America! Who can say they have LITTLE in America! I’m blessed above and beyond what my Christian sisters in other countries have. Yet, because of the fact that I DO live in America, I have the perpetual ‘Jones’ with their  never ending examples of the American Dream taunting and pulling at my  fleshly desires saying… you really NEED this one new thing or just look how much easier your life will be if you bought this … or … you MUST live in this size home and it must look updated or others will look down on you. These are temptations each of us probably fight in one way or another if we are choosing to serve Christ rather than money.

  
  

  So, I’m seeking to be faithful in unrighteous wealth so that I can be trusted with eternal riches. I know cutting back is not the only thing involved here but it’s something I’ve been working on. Living like a Christian in America when it comes to our finances is very challenging!

  
  

  One main principle that has been revolutionary in my finances is SHOPPING AT HOME FIRST. I’m taking Cindy’s (Cindy’s Porch) idea and trying to SHOP AT HOME FIRST before I hit the stores.

  
  

  1. I ran out of face wash so I’m using an old bottle of  Mr. Bronner’s Pure Castile Soap (Trader Joes’)            instead of buying my preferred brand from Bath and Body Works. This decision saved me about 18.00 which is what it costs for my favorite face wash.

  
  

  2. We use fragrance free laundry detergent due to skin allergies. I was blessed with a large bottle of laundry detergent that is not fragrance-free. So, I’m using the fragrance detergent for my towels and anything else that is not clothing.

  
  

  3. I’m still hanging my clothes on drying racks inside my laundry room or on my clothes line outside. This saves me at least 10.00 a month off my PG & E. I ‘fluff’ them for less than 10 minutes to take out wrinkles and soften them.

  
  

  4. I experimented with washing dishes by hand and air drying them vs.using  my dishwasher without using the dryer. I don’t run hot water to prewash them in before I put them in the dishwasher. There doesn’t seem to be much of a difference on my electric bill. So, guess which one I’m continuing to use.  

  
  

  5. My goal this month is to spend $100.00 less on groceries. So far it looks like I’m going to reach this goal and even possible hit below it.

  
  

  6. I’ve been making  Kool-aid (to replace sodas) for hubbins with stevia instead of sugar. This is cutting down on the sodas which is saving money.

  
  

  7. I went through my clothes closet and packed away my winter clothes and unpacked my summer clothes. I don’t care for a lot of my clothes but I’m going to make them do and try to not spend too much money on clothes for this summer. I’ve visited our Goodwill store and found some great bargains. It’s amazing how many articles of clothing you can get for under $15.00.  

  
  

  8. I’m using the library instead of purchasing books. My Vet recommended a book for training puppies. I was so tempted to purchase the copy he had in his office but instead I waited and  found it at my local library. We are blessed to have a Christian library in the next big town so whenever I visit my children I’ll stop by and check out books and tapes for free.

  
  

  9. I’m still carrying a phone book in my car so that I don’t have to use 411 on my cell phone. This is saving me money.

  
  

  10. Interest rates are dropping so I checked this past week to see if we could save money on our mortgage if we refinanced.

  
  

  11. I printed out a freezer inventory sheet from The Organized Home. I plan on making a list of everything I have in the freezer. I’ll plan my meals around what I already have before I buy any new packages of meat.

  
  

  12. I FINALLY made a batch of homemade laundry detergent. I’ve been reading about gals who have made it for quite a few years. I read great reviews so I finally decided to try it. I can’t believe how easy it was! It took me less than 10 minutes to make and was SO easy. I see no difference in my clothes. But, remember, it’s not highly perfumed so if you are used to using a fragrance soap you might want to add some essential oil drops to it. I didn’t have Fels Naptha soap so I used a bar of Ivory soap. I found the borax at Walmart and the washing soda at Food Max and the Fels Naptha at a local grocery store. I’m sure the larger chains would carry all three. I read you can use it in the new top loading machines since it doesn’t have a high volume of suds. Here is the recipe:

  
  

  Homemade Laundry Soap

  
  

  1/3 bar Fels Naptha or other type of soap, as listed above

  
  

  ½ cup washing soda

  
  

  ½ cup borax powder

  
  

  ~You will also need a small bucket, about 2 gallon size~

  
  

  
  

  Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use ½ cup per load.

  
  

  Crystal, from Homesteading Happenings, calculated the cost and it came to .01 a load. Here is her link where you can even find pictures with by step directions.

  
  

  Homemade Laundry Soap

  
  

  1/3 bar Fels Naptha or other type of soap, as listed above

  
  

  ½ cup washing soda

  
  

  ½ cup borax powder 

  
  

  ~You will also need a small bucket, about 2 gallon size~

  
  

   Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan.  Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts.  Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved.  Remove from heat.  Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket.   Now add your soap mixture and stir.  Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir.  Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.  You use ½ cup per load.

  
  

  http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/laundrysoap.htm

  
  

  13. I’ve been trying to go back to the way I used to cook when the children were living at home by cooking from scratch. I made Laine’s (Laine’s Letters) mother-in-love’s tortilla recipe and plan on using the one her son, Quincy makes called Jen’s Tortillas, this Sunday for Mother’s Day. We’re having mexican food. I also made her MIL’s beans and then refried them. I froze them and pull them out when I need refried beans, pop them in a skillet and reheat  them by frying them with a little oil. I’ve also started making my own salad dressings.

  
  

  14. My husband has a favorite meal he likes to eat at a local restaurant. We used to eat there every Sunday but since we’ve cut back I oftentimes make his favorite meal at home the day before. It’s called Camorones (spelling?) Mojo De Ajo which means shrimp in garlic. I searched the internet for similar recipes and the owner of the restaurant also gave me some tips. I’ll do as much of the prep work on Sat. so that all I have to do is fry the shrimp with the garlic and butter (already sauteed) when I come home from church. I have several batches of refried beans and spanish rice wrapped individually in the freezer so I just take one out to defrost in the fridge the day before. This has saved me over $45.00 a month.

  
  

  15. We’ve cut back in a lot of other areas, too. My husband likes to watch tv but allowed me to cut his cable programs back to the minimum package. This has been a great learner because we were forced to search for different programs to watch that we might not have watched before. We found a great program about two missionaries who travel to different cities called The Traveled Road. We also watch the Food Network and Animal Planet. We never watch the preacher’s on TBN but have found that in the evenings they will sometimes run great Christian and family movies. I hope we never go back to the bigger package. There is not much worth watching on tv these days. 

  
  

  16. My white tennis shoes seem to turn ‘brown’ within a short period of time since we live in the country. I only try to wear them for good but they still get to looking dirty fairly quick. I started taking them into the shower with me and I use a scrub brush and scrub them with liquid soap. They don’t look like they did when I first bought them but BOY are they better than before.

  
  

  17. I have some pantyhose that were given to me (yes, I still wear panty hose!! My legs are WHITE!*S*) that are black. I don’t care for  the color  and they have sat in my drawer for a while. I decided to wear them instead of buying a new pair.

  
  

  18. The hot summer months create a challenge for keeping my home cool. I’m changing my morning schedule to accommodate. Before I do any work in the house I go outside and get my outside work done first. (I get sick in the heat!) Then once my basic chores are done in the house I start my dinner. The house just heats up too quickly when I run the oven and stove in the late afternoon. It’s nice, too, to have all my dishes cleaned and out of the way.

  
  

  So, that is a little clip of a few things I’ve been trying to do in my home to cut expenses. I’d love to hear if you have any new things you are doing to cut back on expenses in your home.

  
  

   

  • 9:27 am
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