Found Money

This is my second full week working as a Domestic Engineer (stay-at-home-mom) and I'm enjoying it quite a bit more than I might have anticipated. As one of my friends has commented, it does tend to make you a bit more OCD about the house!

As you might imagine, I like making lists. I've developed a full-page list of things that I'd like to do before baby #2 arrives November 4. This includes making meals ahead and freezing them, deep cleaning most of the rooms in the house, and prepping the nursery. I hope I can get it all done, considering the number of naps I seem to need right now.

Since we are operating on one income, there's a renewed frugality in me. I'm finding myself interested in evaluating the house to find items I don't use much and can sell. I have a few items up on eBay and was thrilled to find a new consignment shop with adult clothing just opened up a few miles from my house. I'm already planning to rent a table at a Mother's Mart when we're ready to pass on some of the larger baby items.

Flipping through the channels last night, I found a show with people trying to do the same exact thing, only the items are much bigger ticket. It's called Buried Treasure and it's sort of like door-to-door Antiques Roadshow. Very cool, though I kidded my husband that I don't keep anything around long enough to let it become an antique!

Have you found a particularly effective way to recoup some value from items that you are no longer using? I'd love to hear it!

Trash by any Other Name Smells as Sour

Key idea: If you aren't recycling, WHY NOT?

My Dad told me something very interesting last week. He throws out about six bags of trash a year. Only six! That really benefits him because the trash pickup in his area is done by paying per bag. So, he spends about $12 a year to take care of what he can't compost, burn in his woodstove, or recycle. Can you say the same about your trash output?

I find it disturbing the names of some trash companies. There are at least five of them that growl their way through my development once or twice a week. We have the ever-present Waste Management (do I need someone to manage it for me?), the new Evergreen Waste Solutions (using green and solution, of which garbage dumps are neither) and others who are a bit less ostentatious about what they do.

Do you ever think about what goes in your trash can? Isn't there a good chance it contains stuff you could be recycling (the styrofoam tray from the chicken that you were too squeamish to rinse?), food items that could be composted or put down the disposal, or paper that can be disposed of elsewhere? What about stuff that you simply don't have to throw out? Donate used electronics to the thrift store, look up how to recycle cardboard on Earth911.com or find a clever way to use those old socks with holes (dust rags, sock puppets, etc.).

Here's some sobering data about how the United States compares to the rest of the world in trash production, er, "waste generation." For those of us unaccustomed to the metric system, 760kg equals 1,672 pounds per person...or more than 3/4 of a ton of trash every year. That's sick.

So, in conclusion, let me give you a pat on the back for putting your soda bottles and aluminum cans in the recycle bin. But, don't just stop there--first evaluate what you've got and then recycle, compost, reuse or flat out eliminate buying something that you will end up throwing away. 

Mail, Bills and Paperwork

Key idea: Handle a piece of paper only once. At most, twice.

Mail is one of the most aggravating things to keep up with, because it comes nearly every day. And 90% of it is stuff that we don't need or want. Who wants bills, right?

Here's a typical scenario at our house: My darling husband checks the mailbox when he gets home from work, before he even gets in the house. He drops his briefcase and keys in the foyer and plops the mail on the kitchen counter. After saying his hellos, he pulls out what he wants to look at and sets it back on the pile. Then, if it's a day that I've been at work, we launch into making dinner. The mail gets in the way.

Every house seems to have a clutter catch-all. For some people, it's right inside the front door. At my house and  my parents' house, it's the kitchen counter. A wise woman advised me before we were married, "Figure out what one part of your house always has to be clean [for your peace of mind] and make sure your husband understands that." Turns out, my place is that kitchen counter.

Mail bursting into flames (gas stove) and Christmas cards splattered with tomato sauce are unsafe and inappropriate, so how can you deal with the inevitable flow of paper into your house?

• First, I open and look through everything in one batch, and pull out what needs attention or is actually fun to read. Hubby and I look at any letters or cards right away, and magazines are placed in the living room for future reading. If something needs to be filed, that goes with the bills. Since we pay our bills online, the outer envelope, return envelope and any stuffing gets put on a pile for recycling. The bills that need payment get set aside to be entered into the computer. This reminds me that I should set up my accounts to receive bills electronically... Look for a future post on why paying bills and managing money online can save you time and money, if you aren't already doing it.

• Second, recycle as much of the junk paper as possible. I have become a big fan of the Abitibi Paper Retrievers in the area since they provide money for local schools. I usually drop off a paper bag full once a week. To learn more, visit paperretriever.com.

• Third, if you have time, try and get off the mailing lists of charities, catalogs or other companies that send you junk mail. That way, they won't sell your name to someone else who will send you junk mail. And of course, make sure you pull out the bills and pay them, so you don't end up getting more mail in the form of late notices.

We've been swamped with credit card offers recently. While I love to recycle, I shred anything that could be simple for an identity thief to work from before I recycle the shredded paper. If you want to be removed from the list for pre-approved credit card offers, you can follow an automated system by calling 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) or visiting OptOutPreScreen.com. This will notify the big three credit bureaus that you don't want such mailings for five years.