Branding for Children

Recent conversation between Max and I:

"Mom, we drive a Honda."

"Yes, we do."

"Dad drives a Honda."

"No, dad drives a Toyota."

Max thinking for a minute. "You mean there are two types of Toyotas?"

Slightly confused I reply, "What do you mean two types?"

"Well, there's the car type like daddy drives. And then there's the toyota from Star Wars."

Once I figured out he was saying toy Yoda, I laughed so hard I cried! It's amazing how their brains work! If I could only climb inside, I would probably be amazed and enthralled with the world all over again...

Library

I love books.

As part of my no consumerism, slower year I'm trying the library. This is huge for me. I love books. Did I mention that I love books?

Books have been my friends for years. They are my constant companions. I travel, I cook, I dream, I learn all through books. Books have the power to transform me into another person, in another life and sometimes a different world.

Given the choice between TV and a book, 99% of the time the book will win out. And in fact, if I do watch TV, I am usually also reading a book at the same time.

I read when I'm lonely, sad, bored, in pain, to relax and even to procrastinate. I can't think of a day when I don't read. I read when I go to bed and sometimes my idea of a perfect day is to be alone with a book. There have been times when the boys are at their dad's that I can stay in bed with a book for most of the day...

I re-read books. I also re-watch movies; and have no problems knowing the plot ahead of time - it is still just as entertaining to me.

I like to own books. A perfect evening for me would be to go to dinner and then a book store. I can stay in there for hours - browsing, looking, reading, coveting.

However, I am seriously trying to cut down on my consumerism. Books are expensive. Yes, they are my constant companions. Yes, when I can't sleep I will go pull a favorite off the shelf and start reading. But how many books can someone own?

When I clean my house, it always involves moving books around. It's not quite so bad this past month since my very large stacks of books for graduate school have been put away. But, there are probably at least three books on my bed, a few on my nightstand, the kitchen counter, the couch, my car, my purse the kitchen table...I have boxes of books in storage (although these came from my ex mother-in-law, and I haven't been able to go through them yet).

My parents are also avid readers. When we go garage saling, my mom always buys lots of books for about 25 cents a piece. She buys the detective books, crime, police stories. I'm an equal opportunity reader. As long as it isn't a romance novel, I'm good to go! My mom and I trade books and most of those either end up in our own garage sales or the used book store. If my dad gives me a book, I know it's good. I don't think I have ever seen him read a book of fiction, and he is probably the smartest person I have ever met!

A friend gave my a gift certificate to Amazon for graduation. While looking online today for several books that I had been wanting, I decided that as part of paring down and not purchasing, I would utilize the library. This is really hard for me. I know that if I find an awesome book that needs to be on my shelf I can always purchase it later, but I really love that instant satisfaction of having a new book and ensconcing myself someplace comfy.

Most of the books I am currently interested in are about sustainability, making a life from scratch, slowing down and enjoying life. Apparently other people that are also interested in these things - also frequent the library! Every book I wanted was already on hold for someone else and in fact I was 6th in line for one of them!

This has made me think about the role of books in my life. I really turn to them for my escape. It has also made me think about why Ryan's difficulty with reading has been so hard for me. I want my children to enjoy reading. I want the world to open up for them. But reading is hell for my oldest. I will do everything I can to help make reading easier for him, but I also have to accept the fact that reading just might not be his thing.

Recently, I have started reading blogs. They have become a good replacement for travel and cook books! I found the following book on one of my favorite blogs that combines living in France with amazing cooking. She has a really good review if your interested here.

By the way, I did decide to use part of my gift certificate for a book:

January Challenge

Well, January is over. I understand this is not a surprise since it is over a week into February now. However, I had challenged myself to no shopping during the month of January except for fresh veggies, eggs and milk. I wanted to clean out my freezer and pantry and see what I really ate. I also wanted to challenge myself again to not consuming things I really don't need in the first place. It is amazing after having done this a couple of times, how much I buy that I really don't need. It is also amazing to me how much I use "buying things" as an emotional crutch to feel better. In case anyone was following my January challenge, I'm posting an update on how the month went.

Surprisingly, the month went fairly well. I didn't have that many withdrawals (in fact, if I stay out of stores altogether, I don't even find the things that I didn't know that I always needed). I did have a few instances of running to the store, but that was mainly for convenience sake. I ran out of flour tortillas and that is just not acceptable in this house. We eat quesadillas at least 3-4 times a week and it is my standby, just picked up the kids and they must eat RIGHT NOW meal/snack. I also bought some lunch meat for Ryan's lunches. Again, this could have been avoided with better planning, but right now I am just trying to exist and get through the next few months with school.

I also bought a large sack of flour and instant yeast. I have been making my own bread, bran muffins and other yummy goodies since I'm on a baking kick. Also, making bread just tastes worlds away from the store bought stuff, is cheaper and is not considered purchasing. My trusty Food 4 Less down the street, doesn't carry large sacks of unbleached flour or instant yeast, so off to SaveMart I went. I haven't been in a one for a while and it was a little overwhelming. So much stuff! Where I used to go down every aisle to see what I might need and would spend over $100 a visit, in fact more like $200, I didn't even want to see what they had to offer. We didn't need it. But even sticking to the stuff on my list for things that Food 4 Less doesn't carry, it still cost $91!

I would like to reduce my need even further, but short of raising my own meat, I'm not sure I can right now. So, it is about using what I have and trying to plan my meals farther in advance! One of the things that I have learned from this challenge however, is that I really don't cook out of my pantry. Except for staples such as flour, sugar, rice and pasta, most of it is still in there.

Oh, I did make one major purchase this month - chicken fencing. Darrin built me a beautiful chicken run to keep the chickens out of the garden and off the patio (translation - no more chicken poop to step in). So far, the run is doing fairly well. We didn't put netting on top to see if the fence itself would keep them cooped up before we went to added expense. For the most part it does, but every couple of days one will fly over the fence and wander around waiting for the others to join her...

Ryan's Birthday Party

We had a reptile guy come out for Ryan's 7th Birthday Party. I had some misgivings about this party and still do actually, but the party was a huge success. My misgivings are that every year we are throwing my children these huge, expensive parties. They don't need them. I can't afford them. But their father wants them to compete with other kids their age. What do you do? I don't want my kids to feel left out, yet I think it is a huge waste of money. So, what do you think about big birthday parties for kids?

Okay, enough ranting because it was really fun! Here are the pics if you're interested...