Simple Times
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Vol. 14, No. 1 — May 2012
http://afrugalsimplelife.com
mailto: d.taylorhough@gmail.com
Copyright 2012 Deborah Taylor-Hough
ISSN: 1527-1269 All Rights Reserved
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Saving your time, money, and sanity … since 1997!
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IN THIS ISSUE:
– “Dear Readers”
– Simple Living Quote
– Featured Guest Article: The Power of Habit
– Debi’s Featured Blog Post: Teacher Appreciation Ideas
– Featured Recipe: Debi’s Confetti Salad
– Letters to the Editor / Reader Tips
– Assorted Information (books, other resources, etc.)
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“Like” us on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/frugalsimplelife
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Dear Readers,
I’m back! Sorry to be so scarce the past few months. Life, you know.
Although I haven’t been publishing Simple Times regularly, I’ve been
trying to stay in touch via Facebook as much as possible during this
crazy time. If you haven’t found me on Facebook yet, be sure to stop
by! I have several Facebook pages that are fairly active:
http://www.facebook.com/frugalsimplelife
http://www.facebook.com/frozenassets
http://www.facebook.com/thesimplemom
In other news, I’ve recently made the ebook version of The Simple Mom’s
Idea Book free to download! If you haven’t downloaded your own free copy,
go to my blog for the link and details (and feel free to tell your friends!):
http://thesimplemom.com/2012/03/26/the-simple-moms-idea-book-ebook-is-now-free/
Keeping this note upbeat, but if you want a super quick personal update I’ve
included a more personal note near the end of the newsletter.
Hope you and yours are enjoying the changing weather! We’re well into
Spring here and I know my readers in the Southern Hemisphere are getting
all set for Fall and Winter. In preparation for Spring (or Fall), I did a Spring-
Cleaning Project-a-Day on The Original Simple Mom blog last month. I didn’t
get quite as much done as I’d hoped, but I made a lot of progress in the right
direction. Things that hadn’t been dusted or vacuumed in a long time finally
got to see the light of day (and the swipe of a cleaning cloth!).
One of my favorite tips I learned while cleaning was to dust lampshades with
a lint roller. Worked like a charm! The dust and cat hair just doesn’t want
to dust off or vacuum off easily … but the lint roller made the shades look as
good as new with very little effort.
If you want to do a little day-by-day cleaning, it’s not late to jump into the
Project-a-Day from whatever point you’re at … you can find day one at:
http://thesimplemom.com/2012/04/02/spring-cleaning-one-day-at-a-time/
Simply Yours,
Debi
(Deborah Taylor-Hough)
–Editor, Simple Times eNewsletter
–Author of the popular Frozen Assets series; A Simple Choice: A
practical guide for saving your time, money & sanity; and Frugal
Living for Dummies®
To browse my books and other resources, go to:
http://afrugalsimplelife.com/my-books/
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SIMPLE LIVING QUOTE
“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”
– Unknown
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Follow my favorite links, tips and quotes on Twitter!
http://twitter.com/dsimple
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Featured Guest Article:
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THE POWER OF HABIT
Copyright Catherine Levison.
Used with permission. All rights reserved.
http://charlottemasoneducation.com
We all want to raise polite and loving children who aren’t
causing our lives or homes to be in a constant state of friction.
Both adults and children tend to be creatures of habit and there
is no end to the problems (or, better yet, lack of them) that arise
from habit.
It’s a good thing that much of our daily activities are habitual. For
example, people operate cars through the power of habit. What
would it be like to have to think about the turn signal, foot brake,
steering wheel and two mirrors every time we made a turn? What
does this have to do with raising children and education? Everything.
Much of what we do, and how we do it, is controlled by habit.
I observed the power of habit first hand when we moved the dining
room clock in our house and replaced it with a picture. Because
the clock had hung there for nine years everyone found themselves
disoriented by the change. I don t know how many times I stood in
front of the picture mystified, trying to figure out the time.
I also came face to face with the power of habit when we moved into
a house that had a sink with reversed hot and cold water faucets. I
thought I would grow accustomed to the reversal rather quickly — I
was wrong. I would have been able to replace one habit with another
if there had only been one sink in the house, however, it wasn’t the
only one and I admit I found myself in constant confusion when I was
in front of this particular sink. I had to think instead of relying on habit.
Charlotte Mason was a British educator who recognized and wrote
about the power of habit and claimed that even virtues such as
patience, meekness, courage, generosity and truthfulness are a
matter of habit and can be trained as such. I agreed with her to a
point, but I didn’t really know this to be a fact until one time when
I paid for my groceries with a hundred dollar bill. The clerk made
change, then wrapped it up inside the receipt and inadvertently
included my hundred dollars. No one saw this, in fact, I almost
didn’t look at the wad myself. At the last moment I did look in my
hand and saw what had happened. My reaction came so fast, even
I was surprised. One of my habits is honesty and it was out of habit
that I returned the money. Later, I thought about habitual morality
and realized its significance.
If you find yourself always telling or asking your children the same
things over and over again, then this teaching on habit will benefit
you. If I had the proverbial nickel for every time I told my kids to put
the milk away, I’d be rich. Mason noted that when you find yourself
always telling children to do the same thing, you have not trained
them in the habits you wish they would perform.
The key is to identify one bad habit at a time in your child (or even
yourself) and then purposefully replace it with a good habit. We often
make the mistake of tackling too many bad behaviors at one time.
Success comes when we focus on one problem at a time. It’s best
to approach the child, clearly state what the bad habit is and then
explain how it will affect their future.
For example, if your teenage child prefers to sleep in rather than
getting up at a decent time, explain to him how this can affect his
employment, college grades, and ability to catch the bus on time.
The goal is to get him to see why he would want to make a change.
Make that your first and final lecture. With a view that the child has
to exert himself toward the new habit, do not interfere when it isn’t
necessary. Help as inconspicuously as possible.
Habits ordinarily take six to eight weeks to take shape and become
permanent. Then they are habitual and will not need additional work.
After the bad habit has been replaced by a good habit you can target
a new habit.
For Charlotte Mason’s own words on the subject of habit formation,
be sure to check out the new book, Habits: The Mother’s Secret to
Success, edited by my friend, Debi Taylor-Hough (and editor of this
email newsletter you’re reading right now).
To order, go to: Habits: The Mother’s Secret to Success
http://tinyurl.com/mothershabits
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Catherine Levison is the mother of five children and resides in the
Seattle/Tacoma region of Washington State. A popular speaker to
educational and parenting audiences throughout the USA and Canada,
Levison is the author of the popular book, A Charlotte Mason Education:
A How-To Manual, the sequel More Charlotte Mason Education and A
Literary Education: An Annotated Book List (SourceBooks). Visit
Catherine online at: http://charlottemasoneducation.com
For more of Catherine’s thoughts on habit formation in children, go to:
http://charlottemasoneducation.wordpress.com/2007/05/30/the-formation-of-habits/
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DEBI’S FEATURED BLOG POST
Teacher Appreciation Ideas
http://thesimplemom.com/2011/05/02/teacher-appreciation-week-ideas-1st-week-of-may/
Remember, this isn’t a competition to see which child or parent
gives the teacher the best or most expensive gift. Showing our
appreciation to assorted teachers should be an expression of
heart-felt thanks to the dedicated people who have touched our
lives and given of themselves to our children.
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< < < OUR SPONSOR > > >
The Original Simple Mom’s General Store
http://astore.amazon.com/thesimplemomstore-20
Everything sold in The Original Simple Mom’s General Store is sold in
conjunction with Amazon.com and has been specifically handpicked
by Deborah Taylor-Hough (aka “The Original Simple Mom”) … so you
can be assured of quality, service and easy ordering. Recommended
books, movies, baking and cooking supplies, and lots more!
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FEATURED RECIPE
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DEBI’S CONFETTI SALAD
Copyright Deborah Taylor-Hough
Used with permission. All rights reserved.
http://thesimplemom.com
Gluten-free. Meat-free. Cheese-free. I even make ours sugar-free.
Sounds like there’s nothing in it but air, doesn’t it? Nothing but
yummy deliciousness, that is!
Debi’s Confetti Salad
Ingredients:
- 3 cups cooked rice, cooled (your choice of white, basmati or brown)
- 1 can (16-oz) red kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 can (16-oz) black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 can (16-oz) corn (drained)
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 1 small or half a large green or red pepper (finely diced)
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro (if available)
Dressing:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
- 1 Tbsp sugar (or your choice of sweetener)
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp coriander (optional)
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Place first set of ingredients into a large mixing bowl. In a separate
smaller bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients. Pour over salad in
large bowl. Toss to coat. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
This goes together really fast once the rice is made. And if you have
leftover rice from a previous meal, so much the better (and faster!).
This is an easy dish to play around with … add a can of garbanzos …
chop up a cucumber … use different beans … add a little freshly
squeezed lime juice. Maybe some diced avocado?
Yum … I’m getting hungry!
To print this recipe, you’ll find an easy print option here:
http://eatingcheap.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/debis-confetti-salad/
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Feel free to forward this newsletter to your family and friends.
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR / NOTES / READER TIPS
We’d love to hear YOUR tips and ideas for simplifying daily life.
Send your simple living comments and tips to: d.taylorhough@gmail.com
Re: Cleaning lampshades with a lint roller
I’m definitely going to try the lint roller on my lampshades. Great idea.
– Susan B.
Re: Summertime activities
You are awesome!!! Love all your ideas. I was sick of driving kids around
all summer for “camps” and decided to plan stuff for them all summer like
having a “home summer camp” — so I’ve been searching the net for ideas
and I’m really looking forward to this summer. Your website is so much fun
and I bet you are a cool mom. Thanks!
– Lori P.
Editor’s Note:
Hi, Lori …
I know several families who have done “stay-at-home” summer camps for their
kids over the years. I think it’s a GREAT idea! Have fun this summer!!
– Debi
http://thesimplemom.com/2007/05/27/200-summertime-ideas-for-bored-kids/
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Simple Times Online Archives – NEW!
http://simpletimesarchives.wordpress.com/
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SIMPLE TIMES RECOMMENDED BOOKS
Book list for frugality and simple living
Go to: http://snurl.com/simplebooks
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As always, a special “Thank you!” goes out to Gary Foreman
and the friendly folks at The Dollar Stretcher for making this
mailing list possible!
== http://www.stretcher.com/ ==
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EDITOR’S BOOKS AND RESOURCES:
Books and resources by Deborah Taylor-Hough
http://snurl.com/debisbooks
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DEBI’S ON-LINE RESOURCES:
Personal Blog: http://dsimple.wordpress.com
Frugality: http://afrugalsimplelife.com
Cooking Ahead: http://frozenassets.info/
Cheap Eats: http://eatingcheap.wordpress.com
Homeschooling: http://commonsensehomeschooling.com
Kids’ Books: http://snurl.com/books4kids
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A Personal Note:
On a more personal note, I’m still unemployed. Still struggling to find ways
to keep the rent paid and the lights on. Trying so hard not to get overwhelmed
or depressed. It’s been five months since my seasonal job ended and still
nothing regular (not even part-time). Things haven’t been going well financially
as far as college goes, either, so I haven’t been in classes at all this school year
and I don’t know how things are looking for the Fall (still uncertain if it’s going
to work out or not). Prayers and good thoughts my family’s direction are so
appreciated right now!
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AMAZON AFFILIATE DISCLAIMER:
Throughout this newsletter and on my blog and Facebook page, you’ll
sometimes see links to Amazon.com for various books and other resources.
To try to supplement my family’s income, I’m an “Amazon Affiliate” which
means if you click on one of my links and buy that product, a small
portion of the sale (about 6%) will be sent to me from Amazon. It won’t
effect the price you pay or add to your bill in any way. It’s essentially
Amazon’s way of thanking me for sending a customer to them.
If you’d like to help our family a little financially, anytime you enter Amazon
through one of these links, it will keep track of anything you order for about 24
hours and I will receive a small Affiliate payment from Amazon. So if you’re
going to be online shopping anyway, this is a simple way to help our family
make it through this difficult time in our lives as we struggle to keep afloat as
a single-parent family.
Thanks in advance!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/bestsellers/books/ref=sv_b_3/simplepleasuresp/
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Copyright 2012 Deborah Taylor-Hough. All Rights Reserved.
3840 A Street SE, Ste 105-119, Auburn WA 98002
Contact us at: d.taylorhough@gmail.com
