So I signed up for a CSA. The farm is East Farms. http://www.eastfarms.net/about.htm is the link. It was $185 for a half share of approximately 20 weeks of fresh produce. The pick up is about a mile away from my house. I'm thinking I could easily walk there with my jogging stroller and walk home. I'm not sure which day my pick up is. I'm really excited, though it doesn't start until May or June. If you haven't heard about CSAs here is what their website says:
What is Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)?
CSA is a partnership of mutual commitment between a farm and a community of supporters which provides a direct link between the production and consumption of food. Supporters cover a farm's yearly operating budget by purchasing a share of the season's harvest. CSA members make a commitment to support the farm throughout the season, and assume the costs, risks and bounty of growing food along with the farmer or grower.Members help pay for seeds, fertilizer, water, equipment maintenance, labor, etc. In return, the farm provides, to the best of its ability, a healthy supply of seasonal fresh produce throughout the growing season.Becoming a member creates a responsible relationship between people and the food they eat, the land on which it is grown and those who grow it.This mutually supportive relationship between local farmers, growers and community members helps create an economically stable farm operation in which members are assured the highest quality produce, often at below retail prices. In return, farmers and growers are guaranteed a reliable market for a diverse selection of crops.
2.28.2007
Well, okay, I have to admit I am truly a delinquent blogger. But NO MORE! I have a lot to say and since no one around here really wants to here it I will just spew it all out into cyber space for any poor sap that unintentionally happens into it.
I'm doing extremely well with my first resolution, to walk 1/2 hour every day. I'm up to 45 minutes now and have signed up for the Salt Lake Marathon 1/2 marathon walk April 21st. I'm really excited! I truly love to walk! I have purchased 4 Leslie Sansone walk at home DVDs and I love them. Yes, she's a little too perky and normally I distrust people who are just so damn happy. But she has big thighs, and for that I love her. Plus they are pretty fun to do. They remind me of doing aerobics in college. Plus I can do them whenever I want.
The other two resolutions, um, not so much. But I still PLAN to do them.
So am I getting skinnier as a result of all this walking? Maybe a little bit. But here comes the simplify part-- I don't really care. I am done worrying about being super skinny and perfect. Sure, most my friends are magazine worthy. Oh well. I am done worrying about trying to ever be that hot. I'm me. And I'm a good me. Sure we have a big beach vacation coming up in August--I still don't care.
I just finished reading Intuitive Eating and I love it! It makes soooo much sense. I am just going to focus on eating normal, for me. I'm going to focus on quality food and really really enjoying it and stopping when I'm full. Sounds pretty simple, eh. I will probably have more to say about Intuitive Eating as time goes by, I haven't been this excited about NOT dieting since, well, ever.
I've also decided to dress myself in fashionable for me clothes and stop waiting until.... I deserve to look good. I maybe 20 pounds overweight, but I'm still really quite pretty if I do say so myself.
I can't really think of anything simpler than just being myself and enjoying my life regardless of my weight.
I'm doing extremely well with my first resolution, to walk 1/2 hour every day. I'm up to 45 minutes now and have signed up for the Salt Lake Marathon 1/2 marathon walk April 21st. I'm really excited! I truly love to walk! I have purchased 4 Leslie Sansone walk at home DVDs and I love them. Yes, she's a little too perky and normally I distrust people who are just so damn happy. But she has big thighs, and for that I love her. Plus they are pretty fun to do. They remind me of doing aerobics in college. Plus I can do them whenever I want.
The other two resolutions, um, not so much. But I still PLAN to do them.
So am I getting skinnier as a result of all this walking? Maybe a little bit. But here comes the simplify part-- I don't really care. I am done worrying about being super skinny and perfect. Sure, most my friends are magazine worthy. Oh well. I am done worrying about trying to ever be that hot. I'm me. And I'm a good me. Sure we have a big beach vacation coming up in August--I still don't care.
I just finished reading Intuitive Eating and I love it! It makes soooo much sense. I am just going to focus on eating normal, for me. I'm going to focus on quality food and really really enjoying it and stopping when I'm full. Sounds pretty simple, eh. I will probably have more to say about Intuitive Eating as time goes by, I haven't been this excited about NOT dieting since, well, ever.
I've also decided to dress myself in fashionable for me clothes and stop waiting until.... I deserve to look good. I maybe 20 pounds overweight, but I'm still really quite pretty if I do say so myself.
I can't really think of anything simpler than just being myself and enjoying my life regardless of my weight.
1.01.2007
Happy New Year!! I'm kicking around my New Year's resolutions. I haven't finalized what I'd like them to be just yet but they are all focused on Simplifying my Life and making sure I am true to myself and priorities. I know I've got to think small, I just don't have the energy for a major overhaul just now. Some I know will be on the list are: Walk 1/2 an hour every single day, use canvas bags, practice random acts of kindness towards my hubby. Other ideas include: drink one large glass of water before drinking coffee in the morning, have a small garden, quit eating after 7, have more fun! I will be posting my final list soon.
11.03.2006
Excess
Excess. If I had to sum up in one word the source of my issues the word would be excess. Let's build on my 3 biggest issues, being too fat, in debt and disorganized.
Too FAT
Well it's pretty obvious. Excess calories creates excess body fat. So I've been thinking about where my excess lies. I love fruits, whole grains, and veggies. I could be a most the time vegetarian if the family hadn't completely revolted. I don't generally even eat that much chocolate, though I do LOVE chocolate. I think I am drinking my calories. Starbuck's and alcohol to be specific. After having a big night out recently that went on into the wee hours of the morning I realized I drank at least a 6 pack. If each beer had 200 calories, I easily drank a days worth of calories in beer. Never mind the dinner prior and the late night snack attach that resulted. So I have decided to not drink on the weekdays. I've also decided to quit getting drunk. I feel so cruddy afterwords. Another excess is fast food. Z and I grab lunch out most days. Can't be great for either one of us. So I am also going to say fast food only on Wednesday to Mommy Group and Saturday (for M). And last but not least R and I have decided not to eat after 7 pm unless we are out for something special. That should curb boredom eating.
And to really put a twist on things I told R this morning that I've budgeted $100 for each of us to buy gifts for each other at Christmas. If I haven't lost 10 lbs by Christmas morning my gift goes back the very next day and $100 goes to the Republican Party. I would rather die!!!
Debt
Obviously debt is spending in excess of what you earn. I vow to faithfully use my Financial Peace wallet to track all spending. I also vow to use my YNAB spreadsheet to budget and keep myself accountable. No new debt!!!
Clutter
Clutter is excess stuff or necessary stuff that doesn't have a system. So I am all set up on Flylady and vow to organize and declutter 15 minutes a day. I also vow to not bring home new crap. There are things I want and need. There are millions of things I don't.
So there you have it. I am editing myself. No more excess. Enough is really enough.
Too FAT
Well it's pretty obvious. Excess calories creates excess body fat. So I've been thinking about where my excess lies. I love fruits, whole grains, and veggies. I could be a most the time vegetarian if the family hadn't completely revolted. I don't generally even eat that much chocolate, though I do LOVE chocolate. I think I am drinking my calories. Starbuck's and alcohol to be specific. After having a big night out recently that went on into the wee hours of the morning I realized I drank at least a 6 pack. If each beer had 200 calories, I easily drank a days worth of calories in beer. Never mind the dinner prior and the late night snack attach that resulted. So I have decided to not drink on the weekdays. I've also decided to quit getting drunk. I feel so cruddy afterwords. Another excess is fast food. Z and I grab lunch out most days. Can't be great for either one of us. So I am also going to say fast food only on Wednesday to Mommy Group and Saturday (for M). And last but not least R and I have decided not to eat after 7 pm unless we are out for something special. That should curb boredom eating.
And to really put a twist on things I told R this morning that I've budgeted $100 for each of us to buy gifts for each other at Christmas. If I haven't lost 10 lbs by Christmas morning my gift goes back the very next day and $100 goes to the Republican Party. I would rather die!!!
Debt
Obviously debt is spending in excess of what you earn. I vow to faithfully use my Financial Peace wallet to track all spending. I also vow to use my YNAB spreadsheet to budget and keep myself accountable. No new debt!!!
Clutter
Clutter is excess stuff or necessary stuff that doesn't have a system. So I am all set up on Flylady and vow to organize and declutter 15 minutes a day. I also vow to not bring home new crap. There are things I want and need. There are millions of things I don't.
So there you have it. I am editing myself. No more excess. Enough is really enough.
10.24.2006
Debt.
It's a four letter word to be sure.
R and I have been in debt before. I came into the marriage with $10K in credit card debt. I fell into the typical trap in college when everyone was offering me credit cards. Never mind I worked 4 hours a day making $5 an hour. R had no debt. He even owned a house and was making extra mortgage payments because he had several renters. But he had an investment deal he just couldn't pass by. $8K for untold fortunes in the future. So we took out a home equity loan. Then we needed replacement vehicles. Pretty soon we had $30K. We would pay some down and then buy some more. Finally we sold our house and paid off the debt with equity.
After that we were pretty much as anti-debt as you can be. I remember feeling so proud when we refinanced and the loan officer could not believe that we had zero debts. No car payments, no credit cards. It felt so good.
Even when I quit my decent paying job and we survived on R's small earnings the first year he sold real estate, we had no debt. Then he was doing really well and we had money in savings. Quite a bit.
And then another investment opportunity. This time it was a smart investment. This time I was as excited as he was and felt elated that we had the money set aside. Plus I was sure that we would have our savings back up in no time. I'm still glad we invested the money.
But I didn't count on R not earning as much for the next year. We are the typical house poor Americans. Our house payment is way too much of our monthly expenses. But I still think our house is a great investment as well. It just puts us in an area where we see the Jones' way out ahead of us, and sometimes that is hard. Sometimes I get the wants really bad. And somehow we ended up in debt again.
Debt complicates your life. Debt makes you second guess going to the doctor when you think your child might have strep. Debt makes going out to dinner on your 10th anniversary bitter sweet because you know you should be putting that money toward paying down the damn credit cards. Debt makes your husband mentally calculate every dime you spend while your family is in Disneyland. Debt sells your future and taints your present. Debt is hell.
I am proud to say that Ris working hard and doing great for our family. Yesterday we paid off a BIG chunk. Feels sooo good. Good-bye Citibank. Good-bye American Express. Hello light at the end of the tunnel.
We have big dreams for our future. They include a lot of time in Costa Rica. They cars that aren't breaking down every other month. They include investments and passive income. They include a large cushion for security. They include college funds for the monkeys. They don't include being owned by credit card companies. They don't include debt.
It's a four letter word to be sure.
R and I have been in debt before. I came into the marriage with $10K in credit card debt. I fell into the typical trap in college when everyone was offering me credit cards. Never mind I worked 4 hours a day making $5 an hour. R had no debt. He even owned a house and was making extra mortgage payments because he had several renters. But he had an investment deal he just couldn't pass by. $8K for untold fortunes in the future. So we took out a home equity loan. Then we needed replacement vehicles. Pretty soon we had $30K. We would pay some down and then buy some more. Finally we sold our house and paid off the debt with equity.
After that we were pretty much as anti-debt as you can be. I remember feeling so proud when we refinanced and the loan officer could not believe that we had zero debts. No car payments, no credit cards. It felt so good.
Even when I quit my decent paying job and we survived on R's small earnings the first year he sold real estate, we had no debt. Then he was doing really well and we had money in savings. Quite a bit.
And then another investment opportunity. This time it was a smart investment. This time I was as excited as he was and felt elated that we had the money set aside. Plus I was sure that we would have our savings back up in no time. I'm still glad we invested the money.
But I didn't count on R not earning as much for the next year. We are the typical house poor Americans. Our house payment is way too much of our monthly expenses. But I still think our house is a great investment as well. It just puts us in an area where we see the Jones' way out ahead of us, and sometimes that is hard. Sometimes I get the wants really bad. And somehow we ended up in debt again.
Debt complicates your life. Debt makes you second guess going to the doctor when you think your child might have strep. Debt makes going out to dinner on your 10th anniversary bitter sweet because you know you should be putting that money toward paying down the damn credit cards. Debt makes your husband mentally calculate every dime you spend while your family is in Disneyland. Debt sells your future and taints your present. Debt is hell.
I am proud to say that Ris working hard and doing great for our family. Yesterday we paid off a BIG chunk. Feels sooo good. Good-bye Citibank. Good-bye American Express. Hello light at the end of the tunnel.
We have big dreams for our future. They include a lot of time in Costa Rica. They cars that aren't breaking down every other month. They include investments and passive income. They include a large cushion for security. They include college funds for the monkeys. They don't include being owned by credit card companies. They don't include debt.
10.18.2006
So I've been thinking about simplifying for A LONG TIME! But I am finally there and ready to start breaking it down. I like to soak and think in the tub and this morning I had a moment of clarity. I am re-reading Elaine St. James Simplicity Reader for the billionth time and one chapter talks about figuring out what really makes your life complicated. And I finally boiled it down to 3 major things: 1) Disorganized home 2) Unhappy with my body 3) Debt. That pretty much sums it up. Now it's time to figure out how to simplify these things!
2.21.2006
Simplifying in the Suburbs?
I live in the Suburbs of Salt Lake City, though not as far as I used to. I was in Sandy, now I'm living closer to the city. I've decided (and I could be wrong) that the suburbs are the least simple place to live.
If you live in the country, you can raise your own food, send your kids out to roam, forget about doing a lot of shopping and connect with the environment. In the city, you can walk to most places and your life is likely to take place in a relatively small radius from where you live. And there is public transportation. There are so many things to do and they are so close! But in the 'burbs you pretty much need a car. There aren't a lot of cultural experiences within walking distance. For most, the nature they see has been planted by someone.
But I'd like to do a little experiment. I'd like to see how I can simplify my life in the suburbs. So I will start looking for ways to simplify my life and my families life. I will start looking for resources that are close to us. I would like to see if I can prove my theory of the suburbs as un-simple wrong. And if I can remember to, I will tell you about it.
If you live in the country, you can raise your own food, send your kids out to roam, forget about doing a lot of shopping and connect with the environment. In the city, you can walk to most places and your life is likely to take place in a relatively small radius from where you live. And there is public transportation. There are so many things to do and they are so close! But in the 'burbs you pretty much need a car. There aren't a lot of cultural experiences within walking distance. For most, the nature they see has been planted by someone.
But I'd like to do a little experiment. I'd like to see how I can simplify my life in the suburbs. So I will start looking for ways to simplify my life and my families life. I will start looking for resources that are close to us. I would like to see if I can prove my theory of the suburbs as un-simple wrong. And if I can remember to, I will tell you about it.
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