30-Minute Martha » 30-Minute Homemaker

Sunday Holiday Card Savings

admin — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 16:31:36 +0000

Yeah, believe it or not, it’s about time to start thinking about your holiday greeting cards. I’ll be making mine, but not all of them… And for those of you who are ordering bulk (which is totally okay…), here are some recent deals that have crossed my email box…

First, from Cardstore.com, for TODAY (Sunday) only:

All Cards 70% Off, includes Free Stamp at Cardstore.com. Use Code CSSAVE702. Valid on Sunday, November 6th only.

Need a little more time? From Vistaprint (ends 11/10):

(This is a fantastic bargain, but be warned… they will try to sell you everything under the sun as you check out!)

More holiday card promotions, this time from TinyPrints. Loving the thick matte quality of their printing! Check out the current deals by clicking on the banner below (free card samples, up to 25 percent off, and more!):

Now, go order some cards!

Free “Save Time and Money” eBook

admin — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 14:02:54 +0000

While at a marketing conference earlier this summer, I was so lucky to meet a handful of fantastic female bloggers who share my passion for bringing useful, entertaining information to their readers. Out of that chance meeting came the old, ‘Let’s put on a show!’ But instead of a show, we’ve pulled together some of our best information on frugal living, saving time, and creating a healthier, more satisfying life. And now we’re offering it to you… free!

This ebook is delivered digitally and includes information on topics such as:

Saving money by couponing
Using a menu plan
Making time to connect with your friends
What to do when you’re so overwhelmed you don’t know what to do (my contribution!)

If you’d like a copy, all you need to do is sign up for the 30-Minute Martha email list using the box in the upper right corner of this page or this link here. I’ll be sending the download link later today to anyone who’s subscribed. (If you are reading this after Wednesday, 10/5/11, no worries! You’ll get a copy as soon as you sign up for the email list!).

I think you’ll find it well worth a quick read. At 28 pages, you’ll be able to skim through quickly and get some great hints and ideas.

P.S. We’re planning to make this available on Kindle as well, so stay tuned if you’re a Kindle lover!

20 Easy Ways to Save the World

admin — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 20:06:53 +0000

When it comes to “doing the right thing” with regard to Mother Earth, it can be downright terrifying. I read one article that says that paper is better than plastic at the grocery store, then I turn around and read a complete rebuttal. I think buying a pair of TOMS makes great sense, but then I read that the approach TOMS takes to provide aid to needy countries is not helpful. It’s more than a little confusing, and the temptation is to use this confusion as a reason to do nothing at all.

Don’t do that.

I just spent an amazing weekend with my good friend Jennifer Louden, who is striving to teach people how to savor life at the same time you’re serving the world (she wrangles with topics like is it incongruous to shop at Whole Foods while people are starving in Africa… and is it okay to buy a nice house when millions of people are homeless…)

While Jen doesn’t claim to have all the answers, she does challenge people (like me!) to struggle with the questions.

And even though I haven’t come to a decision regarding the paper vs. plastic debate (or the disposable diaper vs. cloth diaper war — thank goodness my kids are out of that one!), I do have some suggestions for you. I have spent the last few days doing the ole Oprah thing, as in, What I Know for Sure. And as of today*, here’s what I know for sure about saving the world. These are the things I have decided to commit myself to adopting as habits:

1. Choose organic. The fewer pesticides we use on our food, the better off we all are. Pesticides kill not only harmful insects, but good animals and insects as well. If we have the luxury of spending a bit more on organic produce, we’ll go for it. And if we’re are tight with the pennies (as a lot of us are these days), we’ll focus on the “Dirty Dozen,” the produce items which tend to harbor the most residual pesticides in them.

2. Walk instead of ride. If we can walk it or bike it, leave the car behind. You know the drill: Not only is walking good for us, it also keeps us from emitting pollutants into the air, and using fossil fuels.

3. Use reusable bags. I plan to skip the paper-versus-plastic head-to-head completely by opting to bring our own reusable bags to the store. I keep a bunch in the trunk of my car and need to add one to the basket on my bike (see #2 above!).

4. Carpool when possible. This just makes sense. If we can carpool, we limit the amount of pollutants and fossil fuels used. Plus it’s fun to hang with friends.

5. Opt for the item with the least packaging. All other things being equal, less packaging is better (weren’t we all SO RELIEVED when the CD industry stopped putting CDs in those massive boxes??).

6.Use what we have. The cutting board/desk chair/pair of shoes that is best for the environment is the one we already own. Don’t use “it’s green!” as an excuse to buy more. Even “green” items require resources to produce.

7. Take shorter showers. According to Answers.com, over a billion people don’t have access to clean drinking water. While taking shorter showers isn’t providing them directly with clean water, we’re doing the earth a favor by not using what we don’t need.

8. Turn the car off when idling. We live in an “idle-free” zone, which I always found funny. But now I get it — even when a car is not moving, it produces emissions and uses fossil fuels. If I’m waiting longer than a few seconds, I’ll turn the engine off.

9. Turn off the lights. This one is so easy, and I bet you remember it from your youth, too — TURN OFF THE LIGHTS! You know why.

10. Shop local. When we shop locally, we support local businesses (which is good for the community) and we also spend less time and resources on travel (although if we’re WALKING OR BIKING to a farther-away place, we’ll go for it!).

11. Borrow instead of buy. We like to own our own things. But what if we shared a snowblower with our neighbor in exchange for using their sander? We create community and save money and save on producing an item that we might use only a few times a year.

12. Buy used. If we are set on owning our own, we’ll try secondhand stores, Freecycle, or Craigslist.org. A used treadmill can work just as well as a new one.

13. Compost. I once ran a municipal yard waste and composting program (back in the day — WAY WAY BACK!) and I was amazed at how much yard waste and kitchen waste could be repurposed, quickly and easily. And if you’re really into it, you can try vermiculturing. : ) We composted for a while at our first house here in Boston but left our compost bin when we moved the second time. It’s time to get a new one.

14. Put on a sweater (or open a window). Before we hit the thermostat, we’ll try using clothing or a fan or (egad!) an open window to adjust the temperature. We are so spoiled that we forget many people don’t have central air.

15. Eat one vegetarian meal a week. Wherever you sit on the animals-are-people-too debate, it’s been shown that it takes more resources to raise a pound of meat than to grow a pound of vegetables. So by eating vegetarian once a week, we’ll be getting a big dose of vitamins in our family as well as possibly saving a few hundred gallons of water.

16. Choose fewer processed foods. I’m getting on the “natural foods” wagon and looking for the foods that have the least processing, chemical additives, etc. The less that’s been done to the stuff we’re eating, the better.

17. Drink more water. We drink way too much juice and soda. Not only is it bad for us, it’s requiring more raw materials and resources to produce. Water is good. Water is good. Water is good. (Can you tell I’m trying to convince myself?)

18. Grow our own. I’ve always wanted a vegetable garden, and now that we are settled, this is the time to make it happen. Next year at this time, you’ll see me harvesting pumpkins! We will start small with lettuce, carrots, and some squash. Just call me Farmer Lain.

19. Give earth-friendly gifts. Coupons for services, movie passes, “experiences” instead of items are all good choices that we’ll be leaning towards. Even gift certificates are great because then we’re not purchasing items that will be unwanted and wasted. (and we’ll probably give a few unique gifts through something like kiva.org).

20. Be kind. One of the best t-shirtss I ever saw was when I did the Avon 3Day walk and the slogan was, “Humankind. Be both.” If we just tried to be a little kinder to each other and to the world around us, I think amazing things could happen.

Now, I’m not going to get these things right the first time. But these are actions and decisions I feel comfortable with. I challenge you to come up with your own action list and take small steps towards living a kinder life. Some of you may be way beyond my efforts (hurray!) and some may find my list overwhelming. Remember, you don’t have to be perfect — just find a starting point for YOU and take action. Feel free to share your thoughts below!

30DOH: Day 30 – Celebrate!

admin — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 07:22:22 +0000

Welcome to Day 30 of 30 Days to an Organized Home, our 30-day journey to sanity and cleanliness.

On Days 28-29 we created our insurance records via photograph. I also spent some time finishing up a few areas I ran out of time for earlier in the month. I have to admit, I’m impressed! I’m going to post a photo of the pile of giveaway stuff that was purged from our home, and that is now going to head to the Goodwill. It’s crazy that all this stuff was just sitting there in our home, taking up space, gathering dust, etc. etc. It feels good to be free of it.

Your Task: Celebrate

Read through Page 33 about maintaining your home, and please leave a comment to tell me how the month changed your home. I’d love to hear!

30DOH: Day 28-29 – Insurance Records

admin — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 07:18:01 +0000

Welcome to Day 12 of 30 Days to an Organized Home, our 30-day journey to sanity and cleanliness.

On Day 27 we put our disaster preparedness kit together. I didn’t call it that, of course! Instead, I told my little one that it was our “snowed-in kit.” I said, “You know how sometimes we get a lot of snow and the power goes out in the winter? This is in case they can’t get the power back on right away.” She understood that, and my bit of a roundabout answer kept the word “disaster” out of the discussion!

Today and tomorrow, we’re preparing some more. And we get to take pictures, too! Wahoo!

Your Task: Insurance Binder

Follow the instructions on pages 31-32 of your book and take photos of your valuables in case you ever need them for insurance purposes (heaven forbid!). You can also do this by videotaping your home and valuables, and storing a hard copy of the video on a DVD, CD, or USB drive in your home safe. You may want to store the photos and/or video online, too, in case your computer is destroyed or your safe is inaccessible. Be prepared, and all that!

Just one day left… does your home look any different than it did 29 days ago?

P.S. Check out AboutOne if you haven’t yet — it’s an easy way to store your data online! Free trial, too.