But I am exceptionally thankful this week, just too busy to get around to posting! This week has been a huge week for us as our legal paperwork is processed and we have concrete proof we are a family! I never realized how much I would appreciate seeing it on paper! And the thing I’m most thankful for? My two sleeping beauties, the loves of my life, who are doing SO well it’s INCREDIBLE! We have definitely moved from that strange adjustment period to functioning as a family. I love it!

Real posts soon, as well as some pictures! Happy Wednesday!

Photo Credit

Recently I mentioned that I only watch tv on certain days, I thought I’d take a bit of time to share what has worked for me when it comes to time in front of the tube.  Firstly I want to say that I don’t think, like everything in life, there is a one size fits all approach to tv watching – you’re not a better person if you do or don’t watch tv. I’ve seen people be judged terribly for having a tv in their home, yet the person doing the judging watched a movie every night. There are very few things I’m certain of in this life, but finding what works for you is one of them ;0)

I’ve had periods in my life (a year plus, at least 3x) where I haven’t had a tv and I’ve had periods in my life where I’ve watched far too much tv and used it for background noise. Similarly one of my personality traits I’m trying to work on is my propensity to think things have to be all or nothing, I’m a bit of a fatalist in that regard –  if I eat a bit of sugar I may as well give up my “diet’, if I break my budget, well it’s never going to work; tv watching was all or nothing and it didn’t sit well with me.  Add to that I do want to have a tv for my children, I do want them to be able to watch good quality films (Sound of Music, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Mary Poppins etc) and tv (Road To Avonlea, nature programs, travel shows etc.) but I don’t want tv to be a battle or pop culture to become a part of our lives. The truth is I like my period dramas and I love good quality news with journalists not using scare mongoring or playing on the fears of the masses to sensationalize & sell stories. I like nothing more than sitting with some knitting in a room lit by candlelight and enjoying a quality production without gratuitous swearing, violence or sex to generate ratings. I also enjoy documentaries. But, I dislike 99% of what is on tv and no longer want to sit mindlessly in front of it; I needed to find a system that works for me. Roll on the jars…

Each week I pay myself $5 in 25 cent denominations in a jar. This affords me (love those puns!) five hours of tv/movie/documentary/news watching whether it is on the computer or the tv. I can only purchase more time if everything on my list/goals is done (never happens), or if I’m sick. I pay myself Monday mornings taking out 50 cents per half an hour, the money has to last the week because when it is gone, it’s gone!

Here’s what I’ve found:  

• Because I know I will want to watch My Mr. Armitage Saturday nights & Masterpiece Theatre on Sundays, I begin the week wanting to save as much as possible
• Getting out of the habit of daily tv watching is the key. If it isn’t on daily then you stop even thinking about it or mindlessly putting it on in the morning or after work. It also makes you really think about what you are watching and whether it is the best use of your time & whether it is something you should actually watch.
• Going to bed earlier becomes much easier
• I read much more!

If you watch a lot of tv and want to cut back, my suggestion would be to begin a diary of how often your tv is on (including DVD’s, movies on the laptop etc). Next I would suggest starting with one day a week as your unplug day, once you’ve had a taste then try the jar system, start of realistically – if you currently have the tv on 20 hrs a week then put $10 in a jar, if you normally have it on for 10 hours a week, try putting $8 in a jar. Slowly I’m sure you’ll find a system that works for you!

What does my tv schedule look like now?

Mondays – nothing
Tuesdays – nothing
Wednesdays – nothing
Thursdays – 30 minutes of Outnumbered {a hilarious comedy about a family with spirited children}
Fridays – nothing
Saturdays – Robin Hood & Lark Rise to Candleford
Sundays – Masterpiece Theatre

For those who’ve kept tally, that works out at $3.50 a week, leaving me $1.50 to play with.  Some weeks I don’t use it, other weeks like this week I use it for a documentary (I watched Bears of the Last Frontier with Chris Morgan last week), or when it’s on I quite enjoy Selling New York and even the occasional Corrie (usually it is only to hear the accents and remind me of my mum and aunties!). But honestly and truthfully, probably 3/4 weeks, I don’t use up 5 hrs worth. The rest of the time I have peace and quiet or listen to good quality radio (CBC Radio One or BBC Radio Four) and CD’s (mostly classical music with a bit of Adele, Coldplay, Corrine Bailey Ray and Nina Simone mixed in!). I also just love total peace and quiet above anything else!

So that is what has worked for me!

Do you watch tv? What is your approach to time in front of the tube? Does it have a daily appearance in your life? Do you wish you could cut back?

So I had a choice - make do & stick within my budget or throw it out {which I would have done a few years ago, in all honesty!} and have to come up with three more meals for this week making it less likely I’ll stick within that budget. And really, there wasn’t a choice at all, the soup stayed.

Sunday night after taking Sophie for a quick walk in the snow {oh yes, it is still snowing in these parts!} I came back to a home that smelled heavenly and I very much enjoyed a bowl of my soup, even if I needed to down it with a couple of glasses of water

So my frugal tip for this week is this: where possible, make do. If you need to have a meal that isn’t quite what you’d like, so be it. If you have to wait for a book at the library, so be it. If you have to make do with one pot in the kitchen until you have the cash to buy another, so be it. Learning to make do, in the long run, will save you thousands  and help you identify needs vs. wants.

Do you have any stories in making do? Has making do taught you any essential financial skills?

Wise words for the maze that is life!

1. People view them as a need
2. People  find it hard to exhibit self control once they have one
3. People don’t realize how expensive they can be

I don’t actually think the problem is cell phones themselves, you could quite easily have one sitting in a drawer, your handbag or your car for emergencies {which may be a very sensible idea}. The problem is that once people have one, they often have an inability to exercise self-control and view them as an essential part of their social life, without realizing they are costing you time and money.

Viewing Them As A Need

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say they are a need for some people but not most people.  I also struggle with the concept that we think something is a need simply because someone may want to get in touch with us. There were a few reasons why I may have chosen to have a cell phone, but the more I thought about it, the clearer it was to see  in an emergency I could be contacted at work via reception and at home I could be contacted via my answering machine. Yes there will be many times that I’m at neither. For me though, I decided that was enough.  Everything else could wait.  There was little I could do by knowing about someone being in hospital 20 minutes earlier.  I didn’t want to spend the $$ unnecessarily, I didn’t view having a phone as  a need. 

A Lack of Self-Control

We all know people who it is uncomfortable to be around because they are constantly on their phones. I have three friends that I find it very hard to have a meal with because they are always chatting to friends or texting, I don’t mean once during an hour-long meal, I mean constantly.  These same people say that they “need” a cell phone because people rely on them, yet for 99.9999 % of its use, it’s social, fun, expensive interaction.   Of course the trendy phones now allow you to check email, play games, watch videos, update facebook and twitter, listen to music and a whole lot more I don’t even know about. But it costs…

The Expense

It is easy to kid yourself and say it is only £35 or $50 a month, but when you add up 2 year contract you are looking at £800 or $1200 without any extras, or long distance calls, or extra minutes.  Do you have a better use for that money? Could it go towards building that emergency fund, paying your mortgage or giving?  Is chatting to your friends when they feel like it worth that amount of money?!

Conclusion: The Real Cost

Like I said at the beginning I really don’t think the problem is the phone itself. I think it makes sense for many people to have a way for someone to contact them in an emergency if your lifestyle means that you aren’t working in one place, you are away from home a lot, you are driving at night on your own etc. I think when you have elderly relatives or children who may need to get you in an emergency, it may be a sensible idea. BUT. I think people struggle with the temptation they provide, the ability to pick up that phone the second we are at a loss of what to do, or lonely, or bored. And I think there is a cost to having one and using it frequently. Each morning everyone under 35 (except me) who gets in the lift in my building start texting or phoning. The other day I made a joke as I was the only one of 9 people not on a phone during the elevator ride.  I made a joke about it and several people admitted they find the 2 minute elevator ride boring so they text friends and surf the net. It was really interesting to me, because I guess by not having access to technology I find joy in the quiet times, I enjoy those 2 minutes to give thanks or pet the dogs that are riding in the lift.  It reminded me that apart from finances, there is a cost, a real cost and it is the cost of temptation.

Questions To Ask Yourself Before You Buy

• Can I afford to pay my mortgage, rent and bills?
• Do I live in a way in which in an emergency people would not be able to contact me easily through work/home?
• When I am gone for longer spells at the weekends am I usually with my spouse. Does my partner/spouse have a phone people could contact us on?
• In an emergency how much credit would I need in order to safely make some phone calls? Is there a minimum package that would give me enough time for a true emergency to be dealt with? For example 50 minutes a month.
• What is the difference in cost between the most basic option, say £10/$15 a month and the “cool” package which lets me have that phone I can check email on £35/$60 a month. Is the difference the best use of that money?

I’m praying a lot over my heart being less anxious, more giving and an example of true transformation in all I do.

John 10:11

I can do it!

I can do it!

I can do it!

Thanks!