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ALL PURPOSE CLEANER:
½ cup ammonia
¼ cup vinegar
¼ cup baking soda
Mix the above ingredients with 1 gallon of warm water and use for basic cleaning jobs around the home.

WINDOW CLEANER
3T Ammonia
1T vinegar
Put in spray bottle and fill the rest of the way up with water.

JEWELRY CLEANER
1/4 cup ammonia
1/4 cup dishwashing liquid
3/4 cup water.
Mix all the ingredients well, then soak your jewelry in the solution for a few minutes. Clean around the stones and designs with a soft-bristle toothbrush. Buff dry. (Caution: Don’t use this with gold-plated jewelry; with soft stones such as pearls, opals, or jade; or with costume jewelry, because it could ruin the plastics or loosen the glue.)

TOILET CLEANER
1 cup borax
1/4 cup vinegar or lemon juice
Combine the ingredients to make a paste. Apply it to the inside of the toilet bowl, let sit for 1 to 2 hours, and scrub.

LAUNDRY DETERGENT
In a large heavy-duty plastic container, combine 1 cup soap flakes, 1/2 cup washing soda and 1/2 cup of borax. Use 1/2 cup of mixture per load of laundry. Use with cold and warm water washes, with cold water rinse.

FURNITURE POLISH
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp white vinegar
4 cup water in spray bottle
swipe with cloth.

Essential Cleaning Oils
·* Lavender disinfectant, calming scent to ease tension and anxiety.
·*Lemon, Orange and grapefruit oils are tough degreasers with refreshing scents.
·* Eucalyptus is a disinfectant and relieves a stuffy nose.
·* Tea Tree Oil is anti-bacterial, anti viral, and anti fungal. Use as an all purpose disinfectant, especially when there is illness in the home, also eases congestion.
·* Pine oil is a degreaser and disinfectant.

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:::upcycling::: taking something that you would otherwise throw away, and finding a way to give it a second life by making it into something else.

We do what we can to make our money go further. At times, we try to make things ourselves, instead of buying it. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.

Other times, we look for ways to use something before we get rid of it. It’s kind of fun to try and see what we can come up with. Not to mention the benefit of recycling and reducing waste. My youngest has gotten pretty good at finding a second life for things and she uses a lot of odds and ends for art projects.

Finding a second life for things, instead of throwing it out, is something I enjoy doing and find it very creatively rewarding. I enjoy finding simple uses as much as taking on larger projects. Sometimes the quick and easy projects are more enjoyable because you can see the results quickly.

:1: My husband used two thick wooden beams to make a balance beam for our kids in the back yard.
:2: A old tea cup saucer became a place for butterflies to drink by adding some small rocks and water.
:3: Some old picket fence panels got painted and placed around our pool pump.
:4: Crushed up cookies at the bottom of the bag get tossed on top of pudding or ice cream. (my kids love this!)
:5: Old washcloths and towels become cleaning rags
:6: Sunday comics to wrap the kids birthday gifts (they think this is cute!).
:7: A very large piece of cardboard became a mobile jigsaw puzzle holder while it’s being worked on.
:8: We save buttons, tassels, old earrings, greeting cards, etc to use for art & craft projects.
:9: An old plastic container became our buried time capsule.
:10: Four wheels from a table left behind by the previous home owner became the wheels for Buddie’s (our iguana) cage…even though she’s hardly ever in it. We only use it when people are over.
:11: My youngest just did this 5 minutes ago: She’s got a cold and is on the couch with a box of tissues. She just finished the box, so I gave her a new one and went to throw the old one out. She told me not to because she was going to use as a garbage pail and put the old tissues in it.
:12: When a folding table started to rot, we removed the folding legs and attacted them to a piece of wood to make a new table.

Another thing that my husband & I did when we first bought this house was start composting. We really didn’t do it very well, got discouraged and then with the adoption process underway, composting was the last thing on our mind. But, I’ve been giving it a lot of thought again lately. One of the things we’ll have to do first is make a bin. I don’t want to spend a lot right now because I’m not sure it’s going to work (especially with rainly season upon us) or that we’ll be able to keep up with it. We might actually start collecting grass clippings now and start in the fall when we can use the fallen leaves as a base.

These are some ideas I found online that we might want to incorporate when we do start one.

Old Fencing Take down the fence in sections. These sections can be used to make a great compost bin, ready-made with small space between the slats so your compost can breathe.
Dresser Drawers Take an old dresser / bureau. Knock out the bottom of each drawer. With a few 2×4′s you can attach the drawers together to make a small compost bin. Detach the top of the dresser and attach to the top of your bin with hinges at the back for easy accessibility.
Simple Compost The simplest compost bin container – 4 sticks of wood in the ground, Wire or plastic netting round the sticks, lined with cardboard.

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So how do we go about disconnecting? There are varying strategies, and no one is better than another. I won’t be able to tell you what will work best for you — I suggest you experiment, and find a method that fits your needs and situation best. Often that will be a hybrid approach, which is perfectly great — every person is different, and no cookie-cutter approach will work for everyone.

Some ideas:

1. Unplug ~ Just unplug your network connector or cable, or turn off your wireless router, or go to your connections settings and disable temporarily. Close your browser and open another program so you can focus on creating without distraction. Do this for as long as you can.

2. Have a disconnect time each day ~ It’s like setting office hours. You set the times that work best for you, and you can even let people know about these times. Let’s say you are disconnected from 8-10 a.m. each day, or 4-5 p.m., or even anytime after 2 p.m. Tell people your policy, so they know you won’t be available for email or IM.

3. Work somewhere without a connection ~ This might be the public library — while it has computers with Internet access, there’s no wireless in my library. Some coffeeshops don’t have wireless connection. Some of you might have to look for a good building that’s quiet but doesn’t have free wireless. Go to this disconnected zone ready to create, or perhaps just to relax and enjoy the quiet.

4. Get outside ~ Leave your devices behind and go for a walk, or a run, or a bike ride. Enjoy nature. Watch a sunset, go to the beach or a lake or river or forest. Take your child or spouse or friend. Recharge your batteries, reflect and contemplate.

5. Leave your mobile device behind, or shut it off ~ When you’re on the go, you don’t always need to be connected. Sure, the iPhone and Android and Blackberry are cool, but they make the problem worse than ever. If you’re driving, shut off your device. If you’re meeting with someone, turn off the device so you can focus on that person completely. If you’re out with your family or friends and not working … leave the device at home. You don’t need this personal time to be interrupted by work or your impulse to check on things.

6. Use blocking software ~ If you’re doing work on the computer, you can use various types of software to shut yourself off from the Internet, or at least from the most distracting portions of it. For example, you can use software to block your web email, Twitter, favorite news sites, favorite blogs, and so on — whatever your worst distractions are, you can block them selectively. Or block all Internet browsing.

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Yam I Am Chips  

1 large sweet potato, sliced thin

1 TBSP olive oil

Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the sliced sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet in a single layer. Drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle with the salt. Bake 10 minutes, flip and continue baking another 2 minutes or until a light golden brown. The salt on these chips is optional. If you prefer a little sweeter taste, sprinkle them with a little cinnamon before baking.

 The Great Pumpkin Spread  

1 (15 oz) can prepared pumpkin

1 tsp. cinnamon

¼ C pecans, finely chopped

1 (4 oz) pkg. cream cheese, softened

Graham crackers

Place the pumpkin in a small saucepan. Heat the pumpkin over low temperature just until warmed through. Remove from heat and stir in cinnamon and pecans. Allow mixture to cool slightly and then add cream cheese. Mix well to combine all ingredients. Spread on the graham crackers and serve. This makes a great dip for fresh fruit also. Try some sliced apples, pears or even strawberries the kids will love it.

 Edible Flower Garden  

1 (16 oz) container of sour cream

1 TBSP white vinegar

2 TBSP parsley, minced

½ tsp. garlic powder

2 TBSP onion, grated

Radish slices

Cucumbers cut into rounds

Baby carrots

Celery stalks

Cherry tomatoes

Spinach leaves

Cauliflower pieces

Broccoli pieces

Mix together the sour cream and vinegar until very smooth. Sprinkle in the parsley, garlic powder and onion. Continue to mix until all ingredients are incorporated together. Refrigerate until ready to use, at least 1 hour. Clean and dry the vegetables. Place them on individual plates. Use the cucumbers, radish slices, cauliflower and tomatoes to make the flowers. Use the celery sticks for stems. The spinach leaves make great flower leaves. The broccoli can be used to make grass. Make as many different flowers as you like. Serve with the dip and enjoy.

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They were $2 each and in like-new condition.

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Anyone who has kids knows that any life with kids is going to be complicated, at least to some degree. From extra laundry to bathing and cooking and shopping and driving and school and chores and crises and sports and dance and toys and tantrums, there is no shortage of complications.

You won’t get to ultra-simple if your life includes children … but you can find ways to simplify, no matter how many kids you have.

Take my life, for example: I have a house full of kids, and yet I’ve found ways to streamline my life, to find peace and happiness among the chaos. How is this magic trick accomplished? Nothing magical, actually, but just little things that have simplified my life over the years.

The main magic trick, however: making my family my top priority, and choosing only a small number of priorities in my life. If you have too many things you want to do, or need to do, your life will become complicated. But if you choose just a few things that are important to you, you can eliminate the rest, and simplify your life greatly.

What follows is a list that might seem complicated to some — 25 items! Trust me, I could easily double this list, but I don’t want to overwhelm you. Instead of trying to tackle everything on this list at once, choose a few things that appeal to you, and give them a try. Bookmark this page and come back to it from time to time to try out other ideas. Best yet, they might inspire new ideas of your own!

1. Self-sufficiency. This one tip could simplify your life greatly, over time. However, it will make things more complicated in the short term. The idea is to teach your kids to do things for themselves as they get older and more capable. Teaching them to do something themselves instead of just doing it yourself takes time and can be a little frustrating at first, but it will pay off for years to come. My kids, for example, can make themselves breakfast, shower and dress themselves, brush their teeth, and generally get themselves ready in the morning with only minimal prompting from us. They can clean their rooms, wash dishes, sweep, mop, dust, wash the car. The older ones can cook basic dishes and babysit the younger ones. This type of self-sufficiency has saved my wife and me tons of time and trouble over the years.

2. One calendar. If you have more than one kid, you might have a lot of activities going on that you need to track, from school events such as Christmas performances and parent-teacher conferences to extracurricular activities such as soccer practice, dance classes, or Spring concerts. Organize your life with a simple calendar (I use Google Calendar) and enter all activities and appointments on this one calendar, from kids’ stuff to your own goings on. When they hand you papers from school, or soccer schedules, immediately enter everything onto the calendar. Then a quick glance at the calendar each day will help you plan your day.

3. Toy bins. It’s an inevitable fact of life that kids have lots of toys, and that they will be everywhere. You will drive yourself crazy if you try to manage them with dictator-like ruthlessness. Instead, let kids play, but have lots of bins where they can toss the toys inside when they’re done. Then cleaning up is a cinch — they just toss everything on the floor into the bins, and move on to making their next mess. You can have designated bins for certain toys (this one’s for Legos, this one’s for stuffed animals, this one’s for cars), and also have some general-purpose bins for things that don’t fit anywhere else. Don’t be too strict about them — the whole purpose is to make things simpler.

4. Regular cleanups. If you’re like me, you don’t like a huge mess. Teach your kids to clean up after themselves — let them make a mess, but every now and then, tell them it’s time to clean up. Be sure to tell them to clean up before moving on to something else, such as lunchtime or bedtime. It’s good to have regular times during the day when they do cleanups, such as before bed or before they leave for school, so that the house is always clean at night and during the day.

5. Quiet bedtime routines. Kids thrive on routine, and no routine is better than the one before they go to sleep. Have a regular routine before bed — it might consist of cleaning up, showering, brushing their teeth, getting into their pajamas, and reading a book. Reading aloud to them just before bedtime is a great idea, because it quiets them down after a day of activity, it gives you quality bonding time together, and it gets them into the habit of reading. Plus, it’s just something that everyone can enjoy.

6. Prep the night before. Mornings can be a hectic time for parents and kids alike, but they don’t have to be. Instead, prep as much as possible the night before, and have your mornings be a little more relaxed. I like to prep lunches, get their clothes ready (and mine as well), and have them shower, get their homework and school bags ready. Then the morning is simply eating breakfast, a little grooming, getting dressed, and gathering everything together before you head out the door. It’s a great way to start your day.

7. Don’t schedule too much. Sometimes we schedule things back-to-back-to-back, so that every minute of every day is planned out. That leads to stress and problems. Instead, schedule as little as possible each day, and leave space between events, appointments or activities, so that your day moves along at a more leisurely pace. Start getting ready earlier than necessary, so there’s no rush, and leave yourself time to transition from one thing to another. A more spaced-out schedule is much more relaxing than a cramped one.

8. Have dedicated family times. Try to find regular times in your schedule when you do nothing else but spend time together as a family. For some people, dinner time works well — everyone sits down to dinner together as a family, and no other activities are planned at that time. For others, weekends, or maybe just one day of the weekend, work better. We reserve Sundays as our Family Day, and try our best not to schedule anything else on that day. It’s something we look forward to. Weekends in general are for our family, as are evenings — all work gets done on weekdays, before 5 p.m.

9. Simple clothing. It’s best to buy clothes for your kids that will match easily — choose a similar color scheme, so that you’re not always digging through their clothes to find stuff that matches. Go through their clothes every few months to get rid of stuff that doesn’t fit (kids grow so fast!) and donate the old clothes to relatives or charity (or pass them on to a younger sibling). Keep their wardrobe simple — if it doesn’t fit neatly in their drawers, you have to get rid of it or get rid of something else. Don’t stuff drawers, or you’ll make it hard to find stuff. Also, socks are usually a challenge — use mesh bags, one for clean socks and another for dirty ones. Then throw the dirty mesh bag in the laundry, and socks won’t get lost (or at least, not as often).

10. Always prep early. I try to make it a point to look at the schedule in advance (usually the day before) to see what’s coming up. That allows me to prepare for those events or activities early, so that we aren’t in a rush when we’re getting ready. For example, on soccer days, we make sure that all the soccer gear, plus folding chairs and water bottles and snacks and whatnot, are all ready to go beforehand. Prepping early makes things a lot easier later on.

11. Always bring snacks. Kids always get hungry. So be ready — if you’re going on the road, pack some snacks in baggies. Crackers, cheese, fruit, carrot sticks, PB&J sandwiches, graham crackers, peanuts, raisins all make good portable snacks. An insulated lunch container with re-usable ice packs help keep things fresh. Also always bring plenty of water, as kids are always thirsty. Can’t help you with the urgent bathroom breaks, though.

12. Baby wipes and emergency kit. There will always be messes. Be ready. Baby wipes, even after they are past using diapers, are indispensable for all kinds of messes. Pack them in a little “emergency kit” that might include medical supplies, reading material, activities, a towel, and extra clothes — anything you can think of that might prepare you for anything that regularly arises.

13. Pack spare clothes. We have a little carry-on luggage that’s always packed with a couple of changes of clothes for each kid — good clothes (for a party or something), regular clothes, underwear, socks. This way we’re always ready, if there’s an accident, or should they want to spend the night with grandparents or a cousin while we’re out at a party or something. It’s indispensable.

14. Create weekly routines. Aside from regular family times (mentioned above), it’s good to have a weekly routine that’s written out and posted somewhere everyone can see it. A weekly routine might include regular practice times, house cleaning day, washing the car, yard work day, errands day, recurring appointments, etc. This makes the schedule more predictable for everyone, and eliminates a lot of surprises.
15. Communicate as a family. Regular communication between family members solves a lot of problems. Have regular times when the family can talk about family issues. Dinnertime is a good time for that. We also have a weekly “Family Meeting” where we all sit down and talk about household issues, we compliment and thank each other, we plan our Family Day, and we play a fun game at the end.

16. Go on dates. If you have trouble finding alone time with each child (whether you have one child or more than one), setting up “dates” can be a good way to ensure that you do things together. Make a date with your child for a specific day and time, and together you should decide what you want to do on that date. It can be something simple, like taking a walk in your neighborhood or in a park, reading together, playing board games, sports or video games, or it can be something like going to a restaurant or movie or amusement park. If you have lots of kids, you might have to rotate dates with them.

17. Create alone time for your spouse. It’s easy to become so busy with your kids that you forget about your significant other. Don’t let this happen — it’s a sure way to drift apart and lose that bond that led you to having a family together. Keep the relationship alive by getting a babysitter (maybe once a week) and doing something together, just the two of you.

18. Let things go sometimes. I’m not always good at this, but it’s something I work on constantly: don’t always be so strict. Let things go. They’re kids — let them live. I have a tendency to be very strict about things, but I remind myself constantly that it’s not worth all the hassle to get on their cases about things. Instead, let things go, and just relax. They’ll turn out just fine in the end, as long as you love and support them.

19. Make decluttering a family event. I like to set aside one day every few months when we go through all the stuff in our rooms and declutter. We do it together, and it can be a bonding time. We end up with trash bags full of junk, boxes full of stuff to donate or give to family, and in the end, much simpler rooms. It’s very satisfying.

20. Spend quiet time at home. Often we get so busy that we’re on the road all the time, going to one thing or another. And when we have family time, that’s often spent on road too — going to movies or restaurants or other fun events. But that can be exhausting, and expensive. Instead, try to spend time at home as often as you can. You can watch a DVD instead of going to the movies, and pop some popcorn. You can play board games or go outside and play a sport. You can read to each other, or by yourselves, or tell stories. There are dozens of things you can do at home that cost nothing, and that are relaxing and fun.

21. Create traditions. Kids love traditions, from holiday traditions to family traditions. My mom likes all our kids to come over before Christmas to make Christmas cookies, or come over before Easter to color eggs. The kids love those traditions. You might also create some traditions at your house, whether that’s a family dinner time, Family Meetings or Family Day, or anything that brings you together. If you make it a regular thing, and give it special importance, it will be a tradition, and it will be something your kids remember into adulthood.

22. Make cooking and cleaning a family thing. Cooking and cleaning can be complicated things, and they can take your time away from your kids. Doing these activities as a family solves both problems — having everyone pitch in can really simplify cooking and cleaning, and it gives you quality time together while teaching your children valuable life skills. Make it fun — let them choose recipes, go shopping for ingredients with you. See how quickly you can clean the whole house — if my whole family pitches in, we can do it in about 30-40 minutes. Make everything a game or a challenge.

23. Reduce commitments. This tip applies to both your commitments and your kids’ commitments. If you have too many, your life will be complicated. If you reduce your commitments, your life will be simplified. It’s that simple. Make a list of all your family’s commitments and see which ones align with your priorities, and which ones are the most important. Which ones give you the most joy and benefit? And which ones just drain your time and energy without giving you much back in return? Keep the essential commitments — yours and your kids — and eliminate as many of the rest as possible.

24. Get active. These days, kids can become very inactive (and unhealthy) with all the TV, Internet and video games they consume. Get them active by going outside with them and taking walks, going for swims, playing sports. My family likes to play soccer or kickball. Play freeze tag. If you run, let your kids run with you, at least part of the way. Get them bikes and go to the park. Do challenges, like races or pushup or pullup challenges. Make it fun, but get them active. How does this simplify your life? It means they consume less media, which in my opinion is a complicating factor. And even better, it gets them healthy in an inexpensive way, reducing your healthcare costs down the road.

25. Focus on doing, not on spending. Too often we send messages to our kids about how to live life, based on what we do: we like to go shopping, and eat out, and go to the movies, and so our kids learn that having fun means spending money. We focus on material things, and therefore so do they. Instead, teach them (by talking but also by your actions) that what’s important is doing stuff, not buying stuff. Go for walks in the park, play outdoors, play board games, read, tell stories, play charades, cook and clean, go to the beach or lake, build stuff, wash the car. Spend quality time together, doing stuff that doesn’t cost money.

“You can learn many things from children. How much patience you have, for instance.”
- Franklin P. Jones

photo copyright: G.& P.Winberg

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