not buying it - week 1

even though i've been at a for several weeks now, i've decided to start recording my compacting choices weekly as a sort of challenge for myself to do more with less. feel free to jump in and join me on this! too bad i'm not handy at making those cute little badges or i'd make one with 'not buying it' on it. i'll add on categories as they come up. anyway...

clothing
-mended my skirt that i caught on fire during the solstice ceremony (i don't think i ever wrote about that, did i?!) this was one of my favorite skirts and i burned a long hole (about 4") that was only about 1/4" wide so i sewed it up. it's a circle skirt so hopefully the seam will get lost in the folds of fabric.
-started planning a pattern to make a swimming suit out of a 2 piece shirt/skirt outfit made from polyester and spandex
-adjusted a business suit jacket for nina to use for her model un field trip (it was an old one of mine and i only needed to shorten the sleeves for it to fit her)
-reviewed sock darning....need to start doing that!
-made mental note to look up boxer pattern to make sage more underwear using worn out boxers of greg's and brand new ones i purchased from thrift shops (boxers come in the greatest fabric patterns and i can't resist!)

food
-make pizza instead of buying frozen
-made bread
-experimented with using figs instead of dates in sticky toffee pudding with great results
-dreaming about making yogurt, mozzarella and ricotta instead of buying it! i wish my goats would hurry up and freshen already! this is the longest i've had to wait for milk, usually one kids by mid feb.
-purchased wine in a box instead of bottled to economize on my liquor habit :D working on drinking less...it's habit more than anything...at 4:30, when i'm getting ready to prepare dinner, i want a glass of wine to chill with...then one for dinner...then one after dinner...i think it's boredom that leads me to it if that makes sense....
-converted leftover pork roast into a pork pot pie and included previously cooked veggies (mashed potatoes, cabbage) plus some frozen veggies (corn, peas)

household
-made laundry soap to avoid buying more
-reusing plastic bags for trash bags
-sewed 12 more wipes for tp wipes

utilities
-diligently shutting off power strips each night for computer/dsl and tv/dvd player
-using water from hot water bottles to water plants. we won't be using these much longer so i'll need to start saving the shower/bath water for doing
-purchased kerosene in bulk for the discount...200 gallons will last us 2 years probably/hopefully
-making sure lights are off when we are not in the room
-using woodstove when it's running to heat water for tea and make soup

gifts
-sewed 16 wipes for a friend who just had her baby last night! and placed them in an extra square basket i bought at the thrift shop eons ago. she uses cloth wipes but never sewed any, just cut out squares and they were trashed for her first baby so i thought i'd make her some as part of my baby gift to her

exercise/self improvement
-knife throwing practice..greg tried to 'improve' my throw by telling how to do it differently than i was doing it but then realized he was messing me up and told me to go back to what i was previously doing
-hooping for fitness! i wish i could figure out the 'tricks' though, it's frustrating not being able to learn them. i need to find local people to teach me i suppose but i'll keep working at it because it's great fun....did i mention my 11 yo daughter started hooping today and is already out tricking me?! not fair i scream!!
-yoga. did about 30 minutes this week, not great but better than previously done

homestead
-using soil block maker and reusing plastic containers for starting seeds
-cleaned out greenhouse today to get ready to re-cover with new plastic for this year

education
-purchased used copy of teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons online
-purchased math-u-see primer set from someone online for great discount/purchased wooden containers to hold blocks from ebay for 1/2 the cost of them new. i justified the wooden box purchase since we will be using these blocks for many, many years for 2 kids, i wanted something sturdier than the cardboard boxes they come in. the kids play with these blocks daily and the cardboard won't last more than a few months with that kind of use (plus we use them daily for math purposes)
-used library to request dvds, cds and books for learning purposes

weaknesses
-purchased new shoes (long overdue, have needed for about 4 years but have put off and made do with thrift shop finds...these should last me the rest of my life though)
-over indulging in wine daily