Simple Living - how does the garden grow?

Living simply is a journey that I decided to embark on at the start of the year.  For me, it’s a conscience effort to slow down, live more in the moment and get back to the basics of life.  Growing my own vegies was one of the ways I wanted to get more in touch with nature and so I planted a vegie patch in April.  Time to see how the garden grows!

 

We’ve been enjoying many salads and sandwiches from our rather extensive lettuce crop!  The beauty of it is I just pick off as much as I want at the time, and then by the next time I make a salad… it’s grown again.  This mix is just lovely…. Grown from seed it is so inexpensive to grow and barely needs any care.  I’ve probably planted a bit close together, but the baby lettuce leaves are just so sweet and delicious.

 

 

Carrots that my daughter and I planted using newspaper pots haven’t fared so well.  Over winter they have barely grown at all.  Now that we’ve had some warmer weather though, they seem to be have a bit of a growth spurt.  I hope so! 

Unusually, a tomato plant that my daughter potted last year and we transplanted into the vegie patch has thrived.  It’s grown incredibly huge over winter – something I certainly didn’t expect.  It already has a baby green tomato growing, and plenty of promise for more to come with its budding yellow flowers. 

 

We had also planted broccoli seeds, but the seedlings ended up being overgrown by the tomato plant, and they didn’t survive.  I’d like to attempt broccoli again next winter. 

So, a few hits, a few misses.  Lots more to learn about what to grow when and happily I have replaced having to buy lettuce with growing my own.  I’m certainly proud of that!

If you have successfully grown vegies over winter, I love to hear about – please share your tips with me!  Write a post below or send me an email to livewelllivesmart@gmail.com .

Mindfulness - right here, right now

“I want two!  I want two!”  My 4 year old was whinging about not being able to have two slices of the delicious, fresh Tuscany loaf that we buy from the local farmers market every second week.   She had already struggled to finish off her fruit salad and yoghurt, and not being a big eater I was fairly certain one slice would do her.  A second slice would be wasted and we weren’t going to be able to buy another loaf for a fortnight.

“You haven’t even started the first one!”  I objected.  “Eat that first and then if you’re still hungry I’ll cut you another slice.”  “No, I want two, like her!” (big sister), came the retort.

I thought to myself what a perfect opportunity for a lesson in mindfulness … living in the present moment rather than thinking about the future.  So I told her this:  Enjoy this slice of fresh, soft Tuscany loaf.  Feel its texture, soft and crumbly.  Smell the wonderfully homely aroma of the durham wheat.  Look at the creamy colour of the slice, and the perfectly baked warm brown crust.   Smother the slice with a generous amount of butter and then savour the flavour of the bread in your mouth as the butter and bread melt together on your tongue.   Enjoy your slice of bread.

 

She was silent and I knew I’d struck a chord.  She did exactly as I had said, taking an enormous whiff of the bread, then smothering it in butter and eating it all, bite by bite without another word.  She’s not usually a fan of crusts, but this loaf was so delicious that every last crumb was licked off the plate.  She was in the moment!  She finished off her lunch and left the table without asking for another slice. 

Mindfulness is all about being in the moment rather than trying to make sense of the past or planning for the future.  It has been said to improve daily life in the following ways:

1.        Chronic pain.  By being relaxed in the moment rather than worrying about the future, sufferers of chronic pain have been shown to produce less coritsol and more oxytocin which increases ‘relaxation’ chemicals in the brain.  Patients have been able to cope better with the pain.

2.       Anxiety and worry.  Mindfulness teaches people to notice when they’re worrying and to return to the moment by recognising what they can see, hear and feel now. 

3.       Eating issues.  Eating mindfully and appreciating everything from the feel of the cutlery to how you cut the food, the muscles you use to rise the food to your mouth, the texture, smell and savouring the taste of the meal as you chew it slowly can all reduce overeating.

4.       Household chores.  Mindfulness can put you deep in the moment of the chore you are doing, whether that be the dishes, vacuuming, hanging the washing or gardening.  Being appreciative of the objects or appliances you’re using, taking the time to look at your house or garden in detail and to take it all in.

5.       Being stuck in a traffic jam.  Turn a negative into a positive and use the time focus on the feeling of your hands on the steering wheel, the sun on your arms, if you’re alone in the car – the time for yourself, and the music on the radio.

6.       Relationships.  Mindfulness teaches you to recognise negative scripts in your head and gives you a chance to counter them with a more positive frame of mind before they have a chance to play themselves out to your partner.  This helps to improve your relationships

7.       Parenting.  Being a busy working parent it can be easy to dismiss the relentless questions that children have.  Busy routines mean that the day’s structure becomes important and time cannot be wasted.  But using mindfulness can help parents to be really present with their children and tune in to their needs.

According to Wikipedia:  “Mindfulness is gaining a growing popularity as a practice in daily life, apart from Buddhist insight meditation and its application in clinical psychology. Mindfulness may be seen as a mode of being, and can be practiced outside a formal setting.  In 2000, The Inner Kids Program, a mindfulness-based program developed for children, was introduced into public and private school curricula in the greater Los Angeles area.  In the U.S. business world, interest in mindfulness is rising strongly. Many companies are providing training programs in mindfulness. These include Fortune 500 companies (such as Raytheon, Procter & Gamble, Monsanto, General Mills, and Comcast) and others (such as BASF Bioresearch, Bose, New Balance, Unilever, and Nortel Networks).”

Do you use mindfulness in your daily life?  Have you seen the benefits of practicing mindfulness?  I’d love you to share your insights and experiences, so post a comment or send an email to livewelllivesmart@gmail.com .

Just....APPRECIATE

We had the most amazing last week of the school holidays, getting away to a beautiful area in Western Australia’s South West region.  The best thing about going away in winter time is that it’s better value for money, and there aren’t so many crowds to contend with.  And winter is our family’s favourite time to visit the South West region, savouring the crisp, country air and gorgeous green landscape against the mint green and aqua hues of the glorious coast.

It was great to have down time, and to really just be in the moment.  We didn’t plan a hectic schedule – we barely planned anything at all.  We rose in the morning when it felt right, ate leisurely meals or missed them if we were engrossed in activities and didn’t worry too much about keeping up a regular routine.  We spent some time at the beach, clambering over rocks.  Some time at local attractions, climbing up and down steps of the local caves.  It was just an awesome time.  And we all felt so appreciative.

We appreciated the time we could spend together.  We appreciated the beauty of the environment and landscape, and amazing sunsets.  We appreciated the quality of the local produce we ate and drank, and the people that brought it to us.  We appreciated the place where we stayed and the owners’ ability to cater for all our needs. 

And on hearing of the most terrible act affecting Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 on the 18^th July 2014…. all those lives lost – many children, all of them innocent; the unimaginable pain of their grieving families and friends….. it just brought home the importance to appreciate what we have here and now. 

I really like the following quotes on the topic of being appreciative, and I hope you do too:

“I would rather be able to appreciate things I cannot have than to have things I am not able to appreciate.”
― Elbert Hubbard

“I wake up in the morning and I see that flower, with the dew on its petals, and at the way it's folding out, and it makes me happy, she said. It's important to focus on the things in the here and now, I think. In a month, the flower will be shrivelled and you will miss its beauty if you don't make the effort to do it now. Your life, eventually, is the same way.”
― Dan Buettner, Thrive: Finding Happiness the Blue Zones Way

“Be happy with who you are and what you do, and you can do anything you want.”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

“Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough”
― Oprah Winfrey

Do you ensure that you appreciate the goodness in your life?  Have you felt the benefit of acknowledging that appreciation?  I’d love to hear your thoughts, so post a comment below or send me an email to livewelllivesmart@gmail.com .

Buyer's Remorse

The day after can be cruel – oh, so cruel!

This week I experienced buyer’s remorse and it was not a pleasant experience at all.  The only positive I can draw from it is that it’s something I definitely don’t want to experience again!  And I’ve promised myself (and my husband, too) that I won’t ever put myself in that situation in future.

I was at a dinner fund-raiser, which followed a half days’ golfing with some colleagues and customers.  It had been a sensational day – the weather could not have been better, and everyone was feeling thankful for the sunshine following the dismal weather we’d had in the lead up to the day.   After 18 holes of golf, we were looking forward to a hearty, hot meal and so the dinner was very much welcomed.

And then, between dinner and dessert, came the auction!

There were about 20 items up for auction, and to be honest I wasn’t really interested in any of them.  The items had been donated by various companies willing to contribute their wares or services to the charity, and most items were snapped up at a fraction of the listed value.  By the end of the auction, I was thinking that maybe…. maybe… I could have a go at this.  After all the items on the list were exhausted there came a couple of bonus items – one which I thought would make a sensational gift for a family member for Christmas.  And I could afford it, after all my disciplined saving.  So when the item was offered, I put up my hand.  Was I dreaming, or really doing this?  It’s so uncharacteristic of me.  Then another bidder put up their hand to offer a bid.  Why, oh why didn’t I just let it go there?!  I have no idea what I was thinking, I put up my hand for another bid and not only did I get this bid, but the auctioneer doubled the value, so that I actually ended up bidding for a much higher amount than I intended.  Goodness, what a novice….. no, what an idiot! 

I chastised myself on the drive home.  I chastised myself as I told my husband about it when I got home (and earned the scorn he delivered, rightly pointing out that I don’t let him spend that kind of money without discussing it first.  Yes, you’re 100% right, dear).  I chastised myself as I went to bed, and then again in the morning when I woke up.

And I woke up feeling an enormous dose of BUYER’S REMORSE.  Wikipedia’s definition:  “It is frequently associated with the purchase of an expensive item such as a car or house. It may stem from fear of making the wrong choice, guilt over extravagance, or a suspicion of having been overly influenced by the seller.”  I can’t blame anyone else for this except myself.  I am usually such a careful shopper that I very rarely experience this feeling.

So, what to do about it.  It’s not a question of not being able to afford it, because I can.  But should I have?  Heck, no!  I have a few options from here:

-          I can cop it on the chin and just move on. 

-          I can try to sell the item on Gumtree or Ebay to get back part of the money spent (I’m sure I won’t get the entire value back).

-          I can keep the item and try to work out how I can make up for the value of the item. 

I have decided that I’ll do the latter.  I have been holding on to some outgrown baby and kids clothes and clothes given to me by a friend that I’ve been meaning to sell on Ebay.  Tomorrow I’m going to get off my butt and do just that. 

I’ll be killing two birds with one stone really, as I’m sure the decluttering will help to free my mind of this task I have long been putting off, as well as free my mind from regret of the purchase.  And then I can only hope that the recipient appreciates the gift at the end of the year.

13 Ways To Make Money

Every week I look forward to reading the advice of Scott Pape, Australia’s “Barefoot Investor” who writes articles about finance in our Sunday papers.  He has a no nonsense and common-sense approach to building wealth.  It relies heavily on ways to better manage and save money, and invest in smart options for long term returns.  People can write in to Scott and he’ll answer their questions at the end of his article and on a number of occasions he has suggested to his readers that they should increase their income by taking a second job.  I’ve often wondered how people deal with that advice – I could not have imagined taking on a job in addition to the one I have.

Then just last week I picked up a book from Kylie Ofiu (www.kylileofiu.com) titled “365 Ways to Make Money”.   I thought at first it would be all lemonade stands, carwashes and dog-walking, but the ideas were actually  whole lot better …. I could even see myself getting started in a few of them.  It was quite exciting to read the possibilities so I’m recording the ones I am most interested in here:

1.   Rent a room to a boarder

This one is not for everyone, and really isn’t for me right now either, but a dear friend of mine has had several boarders share her house, enabling her to earn an extra $250 a week!  What a quick and easy way to earn decent coin.   She advertises for boarders on websites such as www.gumtree.com.au and interviews people, ensuring they sign a tenancy agreement.

2.    Host an exchange student

This would be a great way to introduce an overseas student to the Australian way of life.  Some programs will pay about $200 a week for the student’s room and meals.

3.   Rent your house out while you’re on holidays

I’m probably a little too suspicious of people to rent my house out to strangers, but would consider doing this for acquaintances or if someone I was close to needed a house for visiting family etc.  You could potentially make up to $500 per week – much cheaper than if the family were to stay in hotel accommodation.

4.   Be a product tester

Won’t probably make big bucks, but will save you some money on your grocery bill, providing some of the items you try are substitutes for what you might normally purchase.  Websites to try are www.freestuff.com.au and www.soup.com.au

5.    Record your shopping habits

This is one that is not featured in Kylie Ofiu's book but one that I currently do through AC Nielson (homescan.acnielsen.com.au.).  Each week I scan through the grocery, butcher and fruit & veg items I purchase with a hand-held scanning machine.  The information is sent back to AC Nielson who compiles it and sends it out to their clients.  I am rewarded for this on a points system and when I get to about 500 points, I can order a $50 voucher. You can keep accumulating points for better rewards, but I like to use the vouchers – it takes about 3 months for me to hit this target.

6.    Sell potted bulbs or herbs

I have recently planted some seeds, some of which have sprouted and I can see quite a few basil plants growing now.  I’ll need to split these out into individual pots and then, once they are mature enough, I’ll be able to sell them either on www.gumtree.com.au or www.ebay.com.au or www.ripenear.me .

7.    Type resumes

The friend I mentioned earlier who has a boarder is very astute, and always looking to improve her financial situation.  She’ll give anything a go – she has great drive and tenacity.  She has investigated Express Mobile Service’s franchises, and found that typing resumes was one she could do for little cost, and decent reward.  She’s a very good writer and has had experience in developing her own CV and resume with successful outcomes.  Once a template is in place it can be easily adapted to others’ situations and then tailored to meet the needs of the job for which the customer is applying.  Sounds like an excellent business idea, considering the current climate for jobs in Australia at the moment.

8.   Become an editor

I’m really interested to pursue this one, as I enjoy the process of editing for marketing material and tender submissions at work.  I’m pedantic about correct grammar, and find it so irritating to see spelling mistakes in published works (my own included!). Kylie suggests that a way to attract work is to contact websites where there are errors in copy and ask if they are interested in paying you to provide an editing service for future published pages.

9.   Design and print restaurant menus

The menus might also be used for a direct marketing campaign as part of a letter-box drop, so the order could be quite large.

10.                 Creating a local real estate website

This business has small start-up costs – just a domain name and some web design software – but may require some funds to advertise and get some traffic onto it.  By only showing houses for sale or rent within a specific area means you can provide more information about that area – what the amenities are, what the demographics are like, even some statistical information about property sales.  You could provide stories of families that have lived in the area for a long time, or are new to the area and are enjoying it.  You can make money through the property listings on your site, and possibly make commissions.

11.                 Become a household organiser or a “just moved out of home” coach

“Many people live in absolute chaos and could do with someone teaching them how to organise their home.…..Visit your client’s homes and help them to declutter…create a budget, and organise realistic schedules so that their domestic lives can run more efficiently.  You could charge around $20 per hour for your organising services.”

People who have just moved out of home could also benefit from a similar service, although tailored for their needs.  This might involve cooking, regular household chores, ensuring adequate insurance cover is in place and more.

12.                Prepare homes for sale

Many real estate agents are so keen to list a property that they don’t even allow time for the owners to make simple improvements before the first home-open or photo shoot.  I could offer a service where I advise clients what furniture to keep and where to place it, what needs to be gotten rid of, and complete some simple styling improvements.  It would be reasonable to charge from $800 for this service.

13.                 Offer your services as a frugal living consultant

This is definitely up my alley – I would love to build up the skills and knowledge to do this.  And I’m quite certain that over time I will have a stack of information and personal experience to draw upon to offer this service.  I could offer an in-home service and charge around $50 per hour.

There are plenty more ideas in the book, so try to get your hands on it or go to the website www.kylieofiu.com.au  to find out what might suit you.  If you have any good money making ideas I’d love to hear them!  You can drop me a post or send me an email: livewelllivesmart@gmail.com   

Is Enough Ever Really Enough?

Last week I celebrated my birthday, and much to the kids’ dismay I didn’t put as many candles on the cake as there are years in my life …. there just aren’t enough candles in the house (or room on the cake)!  A week ago dear hubby asked what I wanted for my birthday and after thinking for half a minute, I couldn’t come up with anything on the spot.  And I reckon this is a great thing!  I’m blessed with so many good things in my life, do I really need to add anything more?

It can be really easy to get caught up in the materialistic things in life.  We live in a consumer–driven society obsessed with obtaining more and more stuff.  As a society we are told that it’s the next thing we attain, earn, achieve or own that is going to make us happy, fulfilled or good enough. But Eastern philosophy, particularly the Buddhist philosophy of minimalism, focusses on life outside of the physical and suggests that we don’t actually need much of the ‘stuff’ we surround ourselves with. 

On his blog www.simplefamilyfinance.com, Chris Tecmire says that Buddhist monks were historically only allowed to own 8 possessions.  He says “Buddha taught that suffering is caused by desire (or craving), which is ironic since the TV tells us that we should crave particular products because they will end our suffering.”

While I have no intention of becoming a minimalist and selling up everything we own, including the kids toys (although I must admit I have thought about it, when they are strewn all over the family room), there are plenty of advantages in keeping the amount of “stuff” we own in check.  Some of these are:

·         Better Clarity

Having fewer possessions reduces the distractions that can make life feel more complicated.  The fewer distractions, the clearer your purpose in life can become.

·         More Time
Less time spent on shopping, and more time spent on more meaningful activities.

·         Less Clutter
Researchers at the Princeton University Neuroscience Institute published results of a study they conducted on the effects of cluttered environments on the brain.  They found that when your environment is cluttered, the chaos restricts your ability to focus. The clutter also limits your brain’s ability to process information. Clutter makes you distracted and unable to process information as well as you do in an uncluttered, organized, and serene environment.

·         More Money
If you are buying fewer things you are saving more money.  It’s as simple as that.

But while I can say that I have enough physical, material things in my life (a house, a car, clothes, TVs, computer etc), I think I will never have enough of learning.  I just love it and can’t get enough of it.  I need to learn new things and strive for excellence in the new thing.  Just recently I have decided on a change in career direction, and I’m looking forward to the challenges and learnings that this new opportunity and position will provide.  I’m hoping that it will also fulfil my goal of attaining simplicity – a simple concept and structure at work to complement the simplicity I’m striving to achieve in my home life.

Jessika Hepburn writes some beautiful words on “enough” on her blog http://ohmyhandmade.com/2012/businessy-goodness/we-are-enough/ : “Enough recognizes that our needs are vast and different and will shift as our responsibilities and lives do. It is not about an endless pursuit of more but of loving the stage we are at right now and growing with intention. Contentment does not equal complacency! More pushes us to feel inadequate, as if staying small or feeling your own slow way forward is unacceptable-leading us to frenzied business building, over consumption, overwhelm, guilt, resentment and insecurities. More says there isn’t enough to go around so take all you can get and hold tight to it. There is a brittle, frantic neediness to more and it feeds on fear, scarcity, and uncertainty.

On the other hand, enough is abundant and has lots of breathing room. It allows you to build your business and life while defining what you need and deeply want. At each stage there is space to expand and contract. Enough gives you permission to look clearly at where you are right now and forward with intention. Your enough might very well be a 6 figure income and a house in Hollywood but maybe it is a little farm and a sweet cottage biz making jam while your children play outside. Both have value and a place as does all the range of diversity in between.”

So, did I end up with any presents for my birthday?  Of course! And they were fabulously practical… vouchers for our local nursery to be spent on our upcoming kitchen garden, and a new lamp to read by in the lounge after the kids have gone to bed.  Just perfect!

Have you any experience in living a minimalist lifestyle that you would like to share?  Do you have any thoughts on "having enough"?  You can post them below or send an email to me at livewelllivesmart@gmail.com

Organised Sports vs Family Recreation

This morning we spent a leisurely three hours by the beach, basking in the sunshine, spending most of the time in the water swimming and waiting for a wave big enough to ride to shore, which happened very infrequently with the Easterly winds blowing today.  My youngest daughter was in her element “it’s like a swimming pool!”, as the lack of waves made her more comfortable to venture into the water, powering her body board with her legs in lieu of wave power.  It was a tremendously enjoyable morning, and it got me thinking about how lucky we were to have this time to ourselves this morning, not having to rush off to any activity or planned event.

Our morning was probably a huge contrast to that of the man I met last night at a charity auction dinner.  He told me that his daughter was in Little Athletics and for some reason this weekend they had to attend on both Saturday and Sunday from 8am to 12 noon.   What a chunk of time to be taking out of their weekend!  At the moment we have no planned activities for our 7 and 4 year old but many of our friends are involved in heaps of lessons out of school hours:  gymnastics, hip hop dance, ballet, art classes, swimming lessons, aikido, tee ball, drum lessons, piano lessons, guitar lessons …. The list goes on and on.  Do I think my kids are missing out by not being exposed to all these extra activities?  No, I truly don’t: and here’s why.

I think that parents get caught up in comparing their children with other children, and fear that if they don’t involve their children – even at a really young age – in extra activities then somehow they are robbing them of the opportunity to discover a talent, and that their children will miss out.  This “fear of missing out” is so prevalent in our society at the moment, affecting every generation, and I can’t help but feel it’s brought on by the constant barrage of social media which delivers up every minute detail of friends and acquaintances’ lives, so much that it’s difficult not to compare their lives with ours.  But in the rush to go from school to an afternoon activity a couple of nights a week, then one activity after another on the weekend the children end up tired, the family is constantly stressed out, and in the end the children aren’t even enjoying the activities at all!

My preferred approach is to spend time with the children at the beach, at the local park or even at home where we can exercise together, play together and have fun together.  Isn’t it better to run around and exercise with the kids keeping fit and healthy along with them, rather than standing or sitting for an hour or so while they run around in their organised sport?  The whole family benefits!

On the other hand, I do believe that learning to work as part of a team is an important element of team sports and I will encourage my daughters to get involved in one team sport each year.  This will expose them to the idea of working towards a shared goal, and the feelings of camaraderie and belonging which I think are important for them to experience.  It will also help to extend their social networks ... these are all excellent benefits.  The problem lies in involving children in too many of these activities at the expense of important down time, particularly on the weekend.

I firmly believe that boredom breeds creativity.  By constantly providing children with structured and organised activities we are robbing them of developing their imagination.  My husband and I make sure that there is some time on the weekend – usually Sunday afternoon – where we are all at home and the kids are left to their own devices ….. no television on.  They must entertain themselves and come up with something to do.  Yes, we get the “I’m bored” whine, but little do they know that when I hear this I glow …. They are just on the cusp of inventing a new game or getting involved in an activity they haven’t tried before or perhaps haven’t used in a long time and they’ll be better off for it.

My kids are really happy kids.  They are polite, gentle, kind, considerate of others, bold and independent and enjoy getting into life and trying new things.  These are the qualities and behaviours that my husband and I try to demonstrate and instil in our kids.  They are both very keen to socialise with others and share their time and their belongings with neighbours and friends from school.  They both enjoy school very much and put in 100% effort everyday- this year I’m amazed at how much our 4 year old has progressed with writing the alphabet and creating drawings.  My 7 year old just received a merit certificate at her last assembly for transitioning so well to her new school, working hard and being kind.  Our girls are not overly stimulated and have enough space in their lives for creativity, connection with community and invention.  I wouldn’t want it any other way.

If you have any thoughts on structured activities as opposed to sharing family recreation time, I’d love to hear about them so please write a post or drop me an email at livewelllivesmart@gmail.com .