Since it’s been three and a half years since I wrote anything here, it seems like we’re overdue for an update. Thanks, Jean, for the encouragement :-) Our family is doing well. My husband and I have worked from home for nearly two decades now, so we had no work-related changes when the pandemic began…. Continue Reading
Goodbye, mortgage!
In January 2003, my husband and I bought our first house, and saddled ourselves with our first mortgage — I believe the first payment was due in March 2003. And in March 2018, just about exactly 15 years later, we made our final mortgage payment. So for the last two months, we haven’t had to… Continue Reading
Achieving our goals, thanks to long-term frugality
Since it’s been a year and a half since I posted anything on here, I guess I’m a bit overdue for an update. All is well here, but I’m currently freelance writing for four separate organizations, so there is always paid work to be done when I’m in front of my computer. And when I… Continue Reading
Still here!
Hello dear readers! Since it’s been five months since my last post, I guess I’m a bit overdue for an update. I just read through that last one, and it was sort of like reading a journal entry. All of the things I mentioned are still going well. And in my normal overly-optimistic-about-how-many-hours-are-in-a-day fashion, I… Continue Reading
An update from our frugal corner of the world
Hello friends! I got an email from a reader today (Hi Jean!) checking to make sure that nothing had happened to me, since my little blog world here has been so quiet. So I figured this would be a good time to check in with some quick updates on our life. All is well! But… Continue Reading
Outfitting our whole life – second hand
Our second grader (my how time has flown!) is in choir this year. He absolutely loves it, and looks forward to Tuesday mornings despite the fact that he has to be at school 50 minutes early for choir practice. We love seeing him have so much fun with it, and we’re glad he decided to join…. Continue Reading
Why I love our stove
There she is. What’s not to love? Actually, when I think of the two years I spent as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Africa with no electricity or running water, cooking with charcoal, or – as a special treat – kerosene, this stove seems like a Bentley. But that’s not why I love this stove. I… Continue Reading
We’ve come a long way since I started blogging in 2006
Hello dear readers! I’m still here, but I’ve been prioritizing paid work and time with my family over blogging for fun, so there’s a bit of dust on the old blog. But all is well, and we’re in need of an update around here. I hope 2015 is off to a good start for all… Continue Reading
Credit: A long term, worthwhile game to play
The following is a post from Sam Peters, with lots of (purple!) commentary from yours truly. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know I’m a big fan of credit cards. We only use cash to pay the local farmer who sells us eggs, and for the occasional garage sale. Everything else… Continue Reading
Our new-to-us sectional and a homemade plyo box
For the last few years, I’ve contemplated getting new living room furniture. But there was nothing wrong with the furniture we already had, so I wasn’t in any hurry. We don’t have a means of transporting furniture, and I didn’t want to invest a whole bunch of money in a replacement for something that didn’t… Continue Reading