Old habits die hard...but die they must!

I am not sure why I hoard food...I am not terrible about it, but I do do it. I fit right in when I lived in Utah. Mormons are well known for food storage. I am also a very good food shopper...cashing in on great deals combined with coupons and store loyalty programs. I have frequently saved more than 50% on my grocery tab by clipping coupons and shopping with the sales. Many a time I have held the checkout line as a captive audience while my overflowing cart of food gets cheaper and cheaper, leaving them in awe at the savings, even drawing applause on one occasion. As our eating habits have morphed toward more healthful (i.e. less processed) choices, my coupon savings have dwindled. I imagine that I will no longer be able to stock up on specials like my most recent purchase of 30 bell peppers at $0.64 per pepper which were sliced up and frozen, in an RV. My larder size will decrease by 80% or more!! I certainly wont have a pantry and a baking cabinet!

 Oh my, will I even bake while on the road? Surely, I will find a way to do that! But my habit of buying a cart load every time I visit the store will have to end. I will no longer have a chest freezer and a 22 cu ft freezer fridge combo!
Yesterday I went to the store and in my mind I had already had this discussion, but I still came home with nearly $200 worth of weekly groceries that were promptly added to my larder...most of it will not be used this week. Today, as I looked through it all I had to vocalize to the family that I MUST stop doing this. I must learn to live with less storage and that means less food. The thought of it causes me some stress. I am so accustomed to having plenty that I don't even see that it is actually excess! This is the story of our lives anymore and it really hits home today that I do not want my kids to be raised this way. Recently a friend of mine posted this link on his facebook. My children definitely enjoy chocolate less than I did as a kid...they get it too often! Living a simple life is going to help us to take pleasure in the pleasures in life again! I can't wait.
Until then, we set about killing old habits and forming new ones...we will keep you posted!

A road map of the PATH

So the path we are planning to take is to get an RV and take the kids on the road for the adventure of life...great...how do we go about doing that!!?? We have about 1100 sq ft of space now and we fill it pretty well. We have stuff , lots of it! Thinking about making such a BIG life change is a bit overwhelming, and should probably be approached with caution...at least a little bit. So we are making a list of what must be done...a running master list, of sorts, that we will add to as we discover new "to dos". The list will be under the "live" tab of this blog and we will line out items as we accomplish them and add items as we discover them...we would also love to here from you...anything that you would like to suggest for the list (whether based on experience, because you want to see us try it, or because it is important to you) can be sent privately as an email (livefreelynow@live.com) or posted as a comment.

checkpoints on the path:

• locate and purchase RV
• give notice on lease and job
• prioritize possessions
• purge possessions
• eat chickens?
• establish route
• plan income
• logistics...mail, phones, Internet...etc
• move out of house, into RV
• fill tank
• go

The offense of money...

Money. I hate it, passionately. I hate that this current way of life is ALL about it...
earning it,
spending it,
worrying about it,
never having enough of it.

Money is used to categorize people...you know...the haves, have muchs, have littles, and have nots...
We define a person's "success" by what they earn...we actually take the whole person and within minutes minimize them into a measurement of "successfulness" based upon their display of money. It is displayed, of course, in what they wear and what they drive, where they live and what cell phone they carry...

it is obscene!

And what is the worst of it all....???? MONEY is totally REQUIRED to live in this country (most countries). Even the self sufficient are part of the money game...there is no way to avoid it.

So while consumerism is something I detest--and you will frequently hear me bash--it is the money that I, too, require to live...and yes, you will see advertisements on this blog AND I will hope that you do, on occasion, click on them...the path I intend to follow will require a somewhat hefty initial outlay of the dreaded MONEY and every little bit helps.