I’ve always been one to eat out. When I was a kid, it was McDonald’s; (okay, I admit it).

My mom would throw five bucks my way and I (the latch key kid) would skip my way over to the golden arches about ten blocks away with the biggest smile on my face. That was decadence back in the late 70’s, early 80’s.

As an adult, I became a vegetarian and, still, I liked to eat out. Portland is great that way with it’s abundance of vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free restaurants and cafes.

Lately, however, I’ve been experimenting more with eating in and I’m feeling very abundant. My boyfriend and I decided to share crock pot meals each week. On Monday I make my crock pot dish and his turn is on Wednesday. We split both dishes which last for several meals.

I thought at first, I might feel scarce not treating myself to eating out. After all, the reason we started thinking this way was to save money and become more mindful where we were spending our dollars. The opposite has happened. We treat ourselves to organic ingredients and with all those yummy left-overs, I feel decadent and rich. The refrigerator seems more full than usual and I like it.

I noticed the difference this week in particular.  I’ve only spent $35 (so far) at the market and tomorrow, I’ll be treated to vegetarian Chili that I can’t wait to try.

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t ever dine out. I still do and I love it.  But now, I’m more particular about where I go, who I’m supporting, and where I’m spending my dollars.

It’s a important lesson in savings, sharing and getting creative. As we practice this ritual each week, I look forward to my next recipe and get excited about my new creations. In the process, I feel rich and very, very grateful.

Are these the sweetest cards you’ve ever seen?

There’s a serious sample-sale happening over at RedAphrodite.com; 50 cents for beautiful, artist-created cards, made with 100% post-consumer recycled paper and printed in Portland.

Laura just came back from a visit with her sales reps where they returned hundreds of cards (left over from the Spring Collection) in perfect condition, that can’t be sold to stores.

Here’s how it works: Visit RedAphrodite.com, choose the cards you like, send a check, and Red Aphrodite will send them off to you in the mail.

Happy shopping!

I had heard all the tips on saving electricity and water for all long time now and to the best of my ability was applying ’savings techniques’ in all areas of my life.

But it wasn’t until my niece and her boyfriend came to live with me for three months that I really saw the effect of savings on the planet and on my pocketbook.

Unplug everything

Just unplug it. Kind of a weird concept to actually put into practice after years of simply turning off the lights, cel phone and iPod chargers, computer, toaster, t.v., and anything thing else that goes into the wall, but it really works.

For the past three months, my guests and I have been unplugging everything when not in use and remembering to turn off the lights when we leave the room. To make it easier, in the t.v. room, we plugged t.v, dvd player and lights into a power strip with an on/off switch and we turn it off when we are finished watching.

$ Result: My monthly electricity bill has gone down 20% and that’s with an additional two people in the home. Amazing.

If it’s yellow, let it mellow, brown flush it down

So no, it’s not the most attractive topic to discuss, but let’s face it, there’s a water crisis in the world and water is getting more expensive by the minute. I only have one bathroom at home and was sharing it with two other people (these past three months) and we all made a commitment to practice ‘not flushing’ when we went pee. It took some getting used to and there were many times when I had to talk to myself and say it was okay not to flush and just walk away. Other times, I had to get used to looking at other people’s pee and again tell myself it was okay.

It is a practice but well worth it.

$ Result: My water bill has stayed the same living with three people. Ordinarily, three people means triple the amount of water used but as you can see not in my case. And that includes, taking showers (separately please).  Saving water (by flushing less) has translated into saving $ and the planet.

I have officially changed my habits and am encouraging my boyfriend and friends to do the same.

I am experimenting more these days with creative ways to save $. Next up: saving $ in the winter time by reducing heating costs.  I’ll continue to share my findings with you here.