BUSY GARDENING!

I feel bad that I've been neglecting this blog, but my garden is in the producing mode and I can't keep up with everything AND the garden. I've been canning and freezing lots of raspberries, currants, zuchinni, green beans, and beets. I'm thankful that the tomatoes, corn, potatoes, and cucumbers still have some time to go. Anyway, I'm writing this just to let those of you who read this that new posts may be less frequent while gardening season is in full bloom.

Philosophy of a Tightwad

I just recently had an article done in the newspaper about the fact that I economise to stay at home. It was a good article, but I felt a little disappointed that the true message didn't get out...that economy is a philosophy of life.

• To really be a stay at home mom both you and your husband have to believe that your family is more important than everything else of worldly importance. Together you would sacrifice all in order to keep the influence of mother in the home.
• Mother is REALLY in the home.....not just sitting in front of the tv watching soaps and yelling at the kids to be quiet, or to stop fighting, or to stop running in the house. Mother gets actively involved nurturing, teaching, playing, training, feeding wholesome food, and giving LOTS of love and attention to her children.
• Never pay someone to do something in your home that you can do for yourself. You are the co-executor in your home and if you know how to do something....do it!
• If you don't know how to do something....learn how to do it!
• Learn the difference between disposable purchases and investment purchases. Disposable purchases are things that are used up quickly... this would be stuff like food, clothing, toiletries, paper goods, etc... Believe it or not a car is a disposable purchase because it will not increase in value over the years, in fact, it loses quite a bit of it's value just leaving the dealership parking lot. Clothing is a disposable purchase because it can be ruined easily. Have you ever bought a $30 blouse only to get a stain on it the first time you wear it?Learn to make do with the cheapest items that you can find in the disposable purchase category. Investment purchases have to do with items that increase in value through time. This would inclued homes, antique furniture, artwork, etc.... Save for the best you can afford, but get the best deal that is out there. For example, if you need a 5 bedroom home because you have a large family, don't make the mistake of buying a new home with outrageous payments because it is the right size. Find a "fixer-upper" in the price range that you can afford and then put your time and energy in painting, mending, cleaning, and improving the home, which makes it an investment purchase because you've already made it worth more than when you bought it.
• Gratitude!!! If you learn to be grateful for what you have, then you won't sit around wishing that you had more.
• Patience!! Learn to wait til you have saved enough money to purchase an item outright, and/or learn to wait til it comes down in price.
• Learn to be happy with less. If we learn to value the worth of a child and what they learn under our care, over that of expensive cars, houses, jewels, clothing, etc..., then our perspective changes and we can be genuinely happy with less. As Andy Dapper, the author of "The Two Income Myth" states, "...you won't have it all, but you'll have enough."

I haven't hit on all the points of tightwad philosophy, and if any of you who read this can think of something that really inspires you I would encourage you to leave your comment to share.