Another week zooming by! In my attempt to look at where the money goes and see where the budget could be tweaked - well, here goes...

Electric - Fluorescent bulbs in all fixtures as I can tolerate (maybe it's just my cheap ones, but do all give off that blue, harsh light? I know grow lights have a warmer looking light, but are there bulbs available for house lamps and ceiling fixtures? If there aren't, one lamp in the living room and the one on my side of bed will remain with the more-expensive-to-use regular lightbulbs.) Our house mantra is turn off any lights we don't need on. And we're using the many candles I received from my students at Christmas, when we're not needing light for reading or other such activities. After reading some of the threads in the forums, I'm encouraging my electronics-loving husband to the possibility of unplugging a few of the currently not being used items (baby steps are okay, dear.) I remember this from years ago, but whew, do we get lax (ok, I can blame this one on my husband - electricity is his passion.)

Natural Gas - We heat with gas, as well as have a gas water heater, dryer and oven. We have a 1200 sq ft old (as in not as insulated as it could be) house, but keep the temp down to 60 from about 10pm until 5 or 6pm. For about 4 hours in the evening we turn the temp up to 65. If someone is home sick we turn the temp up, and if the temps are sub-zero, we turn it up also. Generally, we like a cooler home, though not cold, and encourage the use of sweaters and sweatshirts and slippers. We open the blinds on our south side to let in the sun during the day. As you can imagine, with six of us, there is high use of our shower. We only have one, and it works having only that one. My husband takes a daily shower, while the rest of us usually do every other day (with what my mom called a spit bath in between, lest you wonder of our cleanliness!) We all suffer dry skin and showering every other day helps a lot with that. Again with the six, I wash every day (rather than save for a whole day once or twice a week.) I do one to two loads daily ( yes, I am one of those who will throw everything into one load! I wash in cold water - have forever- and for the most part, our clothes have been washed many, many previous times and I haven't had any of the problems that the detergent commercials like to list - dingey whites, washed out colors, etc. I wash new items, lights with lights and darks with darks, until I think we're past where it matters. Also the majority of the clothes are hand-me-downs from girl to girl, and also from lots of friends - it's so nice to have friends who buy good quality clothes and pass along. I've gotten things used and they go through all four of my girls and then I pass it all along. Amazing!) As far, as the oven, I tend to use my crockpot a few times a week, with the rest of the meals done in and on top of the stove. When I use the stove, I usually try to make extra to freeze or plan several items that can go in at the same time if there is room. I also leave the door open afterwards, to make use of the residual heat, now that my girls are older. Our gas bill is on the budget plan and is only $20 more a month than last year (and I think it will go down when they reevaluate it in Feb - they like to start us out high, and we always use less than they think we will.)

Water/Sewer - I guess some of the above also applies here. The shower/bath use is above. With a 15yo and a 13yo, I've said the rule of our house is only one shower OR bath per day! Only occasionally does it get a bit out of hand. The laundry use is above, with a few extra loads on the weekend (towels and sheets.) January through March sets our sewage amount, based on our water use. The town's thinking is that these months represent typical usage. Then in the summer months, with gardening and lawn and pools using water, the sewer rate is based on the Jan - Mar rate, and your water is your actual use. So my thinking is reduce our use during these months! Well, as much as you can with a family of six.


Well, that's all for now...take care!