IMPACT (Inspiration Meets Positive Action and Creative Thinking)

Yes, before you question the username I am a mother of eight children. One of my beautiful children is now an angel and one is what would commonly be referred to as my stepson but we dont do that step/half thing in my family. Family is family. And that small pearl of wisdom right there should be you mantra for life, if you wish to live the champagne life on a beer budget…. well ok, maybe not champagne but definately a pretty good bubbly =D

Ok, so you would probably be thinking to yourself they must be on a pretty good wicket to be able to afford that many kids. Well the truth of it is that my partner earns less than the national average wage and I am currently not working. So things could get a little tight around here if we werent they way we are. And no I am not going to keep “the secret” to myself. I am about to share it with you now.

First of all I am not going to drag out that old nag “Make yourself a budget”, which in-of-itself isnt a bad idea per-say but I have always found that creating a budget is a bit like dieting. One satisfaction splurge and your back where you started and feeling like its all too hard.

The first thing you need to do is throw away that idea you had as a child that when you grow up you were going to do things differently to your parents. It worked for them. Why is it such a bad idea?

Alot of the money saving ideas I use are the same frugal tips and tidbits I picked up from my mother and father.

First and foremost your life and everything in it is a war between need and want. Yes you want the massive plasma screen and home entertainment system to put in you media room that you just had built, but do you need it. Was you life lacking without it? Will these purchases create a state of wellbeing in your family greater than you have experienced to date? If you answered yes to these questions then you need this blog more than anyone else. If you answered no, congratulations, you’ve won the battle of need versus want. It wasnt really hard was it! But dont rest on your laurels yet, because you may have won the battle but you havent won the war….yet.

Now, take a look around you. How many of the items around you do you see that fall into the want category. And be brutally honest, for example, look at your home phone, yes you need a phone but did you really need one with three hand sets (after all chances are you dont live in a mansion) and an answering machine (telstra home messages is free). Now looking at your things from that kind of perspective changes the category you first thought of doesnt it. Well the good news is that that damage has been done. Dont try to change the past, just learn from it…. and that phone should last you a good many years to boot!

Now sometimes, when your out shopping, you can loose sight of that perspective so here is what I do. I will pick up the item and walk around with it for 5 or 10 minutes. 9 times out of 10 I will put the item back. You see we arent immune to it, we just need to know how to fight it. When that want monster comes to you disguised as need it takes a few minutes for you to see through the mask. But give yourself a chance.. you will learn to recognise it soon enough.

Now think about you kitchen cupboards. All that lovely food. All those pretty coloured labels, so inviting arent they. All those pretty labels are wants disguise! He got you again didnt he. Do not dispair for you have now unmasked that evil little gremlin and you will soon see need when you go shopping. Need is very recognisable by its lack of pretty colouring. You see, its all pretty much the same stuff and much of it comes from the same factories as the pretty coloured stuff, and no it is NOT an inferior product or by product or waste product.  Sometimes the production is different, which may result in a different flavour or texture but when it comes down to it, food is mearly sustinance for the body. But that doesnt mean you dont enjoy what your eating. (Insert gratuitous plug here–> I am currently writing an e-cookbook that will divulge a trick or 20 on how to create awesome food from staples). Now kids are the biggest want monsters that I have ever met so again, think back to your parents… they had this funny little two letter word they used to use on us…. No! You might think you are depriving you kids by not giving them fruit loops and rollups and other such sugar infused faux foods. But actually you will be teaching them a very valuable life lesson. (thats a whole other blog how ever so i wont go into that here)

Ok, kitchen monster banished… to the bedroom…..CHARGE!!!!!! Straight for the wardrobe. Now in here want is hidden in the garments… can you see him… hes about 2 to 3 cms squared… stitched to the seam in the collars of your shirts or waists of your pants…. you got him… GREAT! Now how to defeat the little bugger. Firstly you need to rememeber that un-doing the past is moot. Move on to the future. Look carefully at you wardrobe… you will notice that there are probably about a dozen or so items in there that you wear ALL the time. These are you “staple” clothing items. These are needs right…. yes….. and no. Take a look at the want monster in the clothing…. does it say “portmans” or “target”? Now think about when you purchased the item? Was it full price or on sale? Was it new or second hand? See the want monster poking his head out? Smack that little beasty on the  bean and lets explore the concept of “staple clothing”.

So we know that these are the thing you need. So how do we save when we need it. Its actually easier than you think. Now this is a 2 pronged fork. There are those of us in the community who think second hand clothing is like a swear word, but donot dispair. The first thing you need to do is create a savings account only for clothing… sounds positively wanton doesnt it. It not.. just $5 or $10 per week is a good start. Then when you see those staple items on sale, dont hold back, buy a couple of them. Different colours if you want, just to mix things up a bit. That way when you need to replace your staple you have one on hand, already brought and paid for, or on the other hand your staples will last longer because you dont wear them quite so often. Choice truely is a wonderful thing.

For those of us who can deal with second hand clothing, do the same thing. Start your savings account and when the time comes or is coming start hitting the stores. Vinnies, salvos, lifeline… they’re all good. And your doing a community service by shopping there, as the money you spend goes back into the community by way of charity. Some may suggest ebay for clothing but beware. It can be great for some things but not for others, and the killer there is postage. You might be thinking to your self a pair of jeans for $15 is a bargain, until you add the $10 average postage costs… not so much of a bargain anymore. So always include the postage as part of the purchase price BEFORE bidding or purchase multiple items from the same seller to ditribute the postage costs across the items and bring down the average price per item.

Another thing I commonly do is layby. You see I probably could get a credit card if i wanted one but i really cant see the point in paying even more for things and quite frankly I dont need it. And some of the interest rates they charge these days are just ridiculous (so if you do have one, its time to start thinking about paying it out and cutting it up… it is not your friend). Layby is great. Sure you dont get that instant gratification thing but thats not what life is about. Its way cheaper than Mr Interest and really is great way to give your self time to recognise the hidden want monster.

Also as a little foot note to clothing is that you shouldnt scrimp on laundry detergent. I know, I said before that pretty boxes are wants in disguise but I have to conceed that brand name laundry powder is better than the no name stuff. It can save you alot of money in the long run becasue it is easier on the fabric and removes stains more efficiently, which can make yours and your families clothes last longer… but dont get carried away. One box of pretty good powder is one thing… buying up all the other stain removal products is overkill. A good powder will do as much as all the spray on stain removers ever could.

OK so maybe I didnt outright give away any obvious secrets neatly displayed in bullet form, but its all there. If you missed it, go back and read again in a few days time. You see like everything else in life you need to be open to the change. The need to be ready for the change. If your not dont be downhearted. You will be. Life will hand you a bowl of lemons one day… so bookmark this link as “Lemonade” and when you are ready, you will see the recipe.

Before I start to post my crafty ideas because I know that why i was invited LOL

I feel I should share a little of my heart.

why do we celebrate?

to drink?

to show off?

No.

we celebrate to create memories, for ourselves and our children.

Naturally you want he best for your kids and craft seems like the cheap tacky way out.

But it can be just if not more magical then buying the best things you can.

children love to be apart of what your doing and by sitting down making decorations and gifts

you are also creating happy memories.

Time spend together.

which is what your children really want.

so I will be sharing crafty ideas that you can share with your children.

so no matter how little you have you will always have those memories

When Gail first asked if I could contribute to Impact, I was more than happy to. After all, I am a semi-intelligent mum genius who has somehow managed to get this far raising 5 kids despite the lotto gods forgetting about me. I must be able to contribute something. So with this in mind, I sat down to write up some pearls of parental wisdom so that we may all see life through as well as my husband and I…. and then it hit me, hang on. What exactly do I have to contribute?

I sat here on my bed, staring blankly at the screen trying to be able to explain just one thing that we do special to enable us to live well on low income. I finally came to the conclusion that either I am not as deeply involved in our monetary matters as I first thought, or we have been doing it for so long now its like second nature and I don’t really see how it is any different. I figure it can’t be the former because I remember paying the bills, and its certainly not the latter – my husband was working until April when his worsening carpel tunnel really drove home the point that daily computer operation was not in his best interests. So what is it then?

I was left with a couple of simple four letter words, and some a little longer.

Hope.
Love.
Optimism.
Family.

There is a lot to be said about technology. Some of it has been so wonderful for my family. The internet for example keeps us all close despite how far – something that used to be a massive consideration in both petrol and telephony costs. Now instead of Phone bills in the hundreds, we pay a fraction for the internet, and the phone bill is virtually non-existant. You don’t even need voip to be close. Family has been the most important factor in all of this for me. It seems no matter how things may look on the outside, just being able to talk with my siblings, or cuddle my son removes all doubt about the future.

As technology goes along, some will become cheaper and make our lives easier. Others will cause the Jones effect, something I left behind a long time ago. That was when I made the jones effect work for me.

My 11yo son recently got money from several relatives for his birthday – ironically cheaper to send to him than a present – but it amounted to $50. He bought himself a fantastic digital camera with it. Nope – not one of those cheap Chinese ones. It was a canon. He got it from eBay. There was nothing wrong with it – well, excluding the fact it wasn’t the absolute latest model with 12 megapixels and built in mobile phone, what its former owner replaced it with. A perfectly good, working piece of first rate technology for an absolute bargain, because it did not live up to the Jones standard. He knew to do this because he learnt it from us, for example when we upgraded our 50cm CRT tv with an 88cm CRT TV for a mere $120, no doubt replaced by something that takes up half a wall.

This is the first and biggest pearl of wisdom I can give anyone. Several small steps that can completely change your whole perspective.

First you must work out exactly what you need to survive. We are not talking about money here, but actual needs. You need to separate them from wants. Then you can break that down into what you will normally find is the cheaper alternative – and you don’t actually have to feel bad about taking it.

For example: I want a mobile phone. I only need it for people to call me. I do not need it to take photos. I do not need it for the free playstation 3. I do not need it as my primary means of communication. A $50 pre-paid mobile phone with a company that offers $10 cards is all I need.

Living to your needs makes living within your means far easier, and you feel much better about it because you know when you have what you need. Everything and anything above that makes you feel great, accomplished.

Feeling good about yourself and your situation is the greatest gift you can give yourself and your family, and only you can achieve this by refocusing your priorities. Release yourself from the Jones effect, and allow yourself to be happy with who you are.

I wrote this article several years ago, and since then it has been around the web a bit. I hope it has helped those who have read it, and for those who haven’t spotted it in their surfing, I an reprinting it here.

No matter how thrifty you are, there will come a time when you have to fall back on imagination and whatever you have in the pantry to rustle up a filling meal.

That’s where a store cupboard comes in. My mother and grandmother swore by their store cupboards, and I have carried on the tradition.

The store cupboard is the economic basis of any household. With just a few basic items, you can eat well without too much fuss when the need arises. When a bill needs to be paid or an urgent purchase made, you can fall back on your store cupboard to free up some money. It’s a relief to know that you have it behind you.

The stuff you buy shouldn’t be expensive. Supermarket specials and generic brands will do the job, and the variety of meals you can produce from a basic store cupboard can then be supplemented with home grown vegetables, and some more expensive items for variety.

Neither do you have to rush out and buy everything at once. Just add as many extra purchases you can afford to your regular shopping. Use specials, coupons and money saved on other items to add to your store cupboard and in no time you will have a healthy stock of meals to fall back on.

Here’s what to have in your store cupboard:

* Flour: Self-rising can be used for everything.

* Powdered Milk: full cream or skim

* One-Minute Rolled Oats: Cheaper than chips and dead easy to cook.

* Pasta: Different shapes and sizes, it’s all good.

* Sugar: White, for general cooking needs, and a small bag of brown sugar, for your porridge.

* Dried Fruits: Comes in handy for snacking and adding to meals.

* Cooking Oil: Canola or sunflower in no name generic bottles.

* Canned Tomatoes: Buy the cheapest brand.

* Tinned Meat: Braised steak and onion, spaghetti meat sauce, ham, Spam or whatever is on special. Never buy a damaged or rusty tin.

* Soup: Packet or tinned soup can be the basis of many meals or provide a quick meal in itself. Chicken noodle and vegetable soup are the handiest.

* Tuna: Large tins, packed in brine (water). A cheap quick meal.

* Processed Cheddar Cheese: Ok, so it looks and tastes a bit plastic, but it’s protein.

* Spices and Herbs: Just some basics will do, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, basil (or an Italian herb mix) and some curry powder, mild or hot as you like. Add some stock cubes or powder as well, in chicken, beef and vegetable.

* Rice: Short grain is useful for everything, long grain is for curries.

* Dried Potato: Essential and easy to prepare.

What Can You Do with This Stuff?

Porridge: Cook according to directions, add to cookie recipes, or add to minced beef to stretch it round the family. They won’t notice, trust me. Use it to make your own muesli with chopped dried fruit. You can also spread the muesli out on a baking tray, sprinkle with a little brown sugar, and toast it in a hot oven for a few minutes.

Flour: Make scones or biscuits, pancakes, and a simple cottage loaf with two cups flour, a teaspoon of salt and water. Mix, form into a round loaf and bake. If the flour is self rising you don’t need baking powder.

Tomato, Cheese and Pasta: Simply combine for a wholesome meal. Cook the pasta, stir in a can of tomatoes and some chopped cheese. Add herbs or cooked meat or whatever else you have that would taste good.

Rice: Make a risotto by cooking rice in stock and add vegetable, tinned tomatoes or tuna. Add curry powder and chopped dried fruit for an interesting and delicious curry. Or stir in some milk with the rice, add sugar and chopped dried fruit, and voila! Orchard creamed rice.

Tinned Meat: Add curry powder and rice, tinned tomatoes and pasta, serve on toast.

Tuna: Mix with the reconstituted dried potato, shape into rounds and fry or bake for fishcakes. Add to cooked pasta, top with a little milk to keep it moist, and grated cheese and brown under a broiler.

Dried Potato: Add to pancakes to make potato scones, thicken soups and stews, or serve as a side vegetable with tinned meat.

Soup: Combine with reconstituted dried potato, rice or pasta for a hearty meal.
That’s just a sample of the recipes you can concoct with your store cupboard stuff. By adding whatever else is at hand, you can come up with many more, and feed your family wholesome meals through the toughest times.