Steps To A Simple Life Week 3: Good-bye Cleaning Supplies

I feel as if I have been duped. The culprit: household cleaning supplies. Just think off all the cleaners that are available at your local store, and which ones you have in your house. There is bathroom cleaner, toilet cleaner, kitchen cleaner, window cleaner, floor cleaner, disinfectant wipes, furniture polish and the list goes on and on and on. Now for the reason I feel duped. I didn’t need to purchase those cleaners. All along, I have had two products that I could have been using in place of those things: vinegar and baking soda. It’s true, these two products will take care of almost every cleaning need in your house. 

Mixing vinegar and water together makes a great all purpose cleaner. If you need some scrubbing power just add baking soda.. If you want to add some natural disinfectant, add tea tree oil to the mix. Vinegar can also be used as the main ingredient to make many other cleaners. At the bottom of this post is a list of the different cleaners you could be making yourself.

Not only have I been wasting money on name brand products, I have been wasting space. Under our kitchen sink has always been a crazy mess of cleaning bottles. Now all we need is one main bottle of vinegar and water. This is so much more convenient. I will no longer be knocking over bottles and I won’t be pulling out numerous cleaners before I find the one I want. Cleaning has just gotten simple.

Toilet cleaner

Cookware cleaner

Shower head cleaner

Furniture polish

A Word a Day

Here at the Schmuff house our vocabulary is expanding.  It seems like every day one of the babies is learning a new word.  Adelaide picks up on new sounds and new words quicker than Titus. If you point to something and tell her what it is, she always tries to repeat you. Sometimes she surprises us with what words she will say. She has said necklace, which seems like it would be hard to say. She also says many simple words, such as duck, dog, and baby. 


Titus doesn’t seem to care as much about words, but says some basic words.  The main ones he says are baby, dog, duck, and that. Every so often he surprises us by saying something different. I am pretty sure he knows the words, but just doesn’t care to say them. 

During our “school” time, which is basically me telling them the letters and sounds, they will repeat the sounds of the letters.  I don’t think they are making the letter/sound connection yet, but they are still learning to make new sounds. 

With them learning and repeating words it really makes Matt and I think about the things we say. The other day we were riding in the car and I said, “Darn”. Adelaide promptly repeated it. Not that “darn” is a bad word, it just made us  realize how our children copy everything we do even at this young age. We are the biggest example Titus and Adelaide have and we need to make sure we are always setting the right example. Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”  Matt and I want to train Titus and Adelaide to be godly people, and one of the best ways to do that is to be a good example, with our actions and our words.

I know everyone reads the blog just so they can see cute pictures. So he is Adelaide pretending she is Rocky.

Fun In The Snow

Today was the first day that Titus and Adelaide got to go out in the snow. We have had other snowy days, but our schedules and such didn’t work out so we could all go outside and play.  So today was the special “first snow day” for the babies.

We don’t have snow suits for the babies, so we bundled them up in two pairs of pants socks, hats, and mittens. Plus their coats. They also got some extra warmth from their cloth diapers.

Titus was wary the snow at first. He didn’t like being put down in it and cried. So most of the time he was held. He finally took a liking to it. It just took a little bit of time.

Adelaide walked around a little and then sat down. She spent most of her time in the same spot. 

We also took a short walk so the babies could see the snow on some different things. Mostly we looked at trees.

After our walk, we decided to come in. 

I wish Titus and Adelaide were older and could enjoy some hot chocolate, but I guess that will have to wait till next year. 

The Many Faces Of Titus

Steps To A Simple Life Week 2: No Nick- Nacks

Through my childhood and into my teen years. I was a nick-nack fanatic. Wether it was 15 China dolls displayed on a shelf, seashells and rocks sitting on my dresser, pictures, random glass rabbits, or the little glass figurings that Rose Tea used to put in their tea boxes, I had it displayed proudly in my room. 

Since I have gotten married,  I have slowly stopped buying and displaying nick-nacks. There are a few main reasons for this.

First of all, the more trinkets displayed, the more chaotic everything seems. The eye has nowhere to rest. There is always something going on. I like my house to be peaceful.

Secondly, a nice neat nick-nack display can easily become a mess all over the floor. One knock of a shelf and you have disaster on your hands, especially if you have small children. Talk about chaotic.

Finally, stuff on a shelf makes more to clean and makes the cleaning time longer. Not only do you have to move everything off to dust the shelf. You have to dust every item on the shelf and then put the items back. Not only is this really annoying, it is a waste of time. As I mentioned in my one of my previous posts, time is important and shouldn’t be wasted.

Sometimes less is more. This is just another way we living  a simpler life. 

Hand Picked 1/13

Coping With Breastfeeding Guilt- "In the end, it’s not about how a baby is fed. It’s about how a baby is loved."


Increase Your Wardrobe Without Spending Any Money- The idea of a women's clothing exchange is a great idea for those on a budget.

What's Love Got To Do With It?-"We are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind and with all our strength. He is not one love among many, but first and foremost. Moreover, we are to love him more than fashion, jewelry and clothes. We are to love Him more than the applause or attention of the world. We are to love Him more than our own vanity. A woman seeking to live out her love for God will be more concerned to cultivate her soul, rather than captivate and audience."

Having A Ball

Titus and Adelaide playing in their ball pit. It was a Christmas gift from their Grammy and Pop.

Steps to a simple life week 1: Limiting Television

Limiting TV is something that has simplified our lives greatly. This is something Matt and I have done since we got married. We have never had cable and we never will. This is a conclusion we have come to because we see how distracting and wasteful TV can be.   This is not to say that we don’t watch any television, because we do watch some. We have our favorite TV shows on DVD. It is just that we would rather fill our time with more meaningful and important things.

Limiting our TV time has helped many areas of our lives. Watching Television durning the day makes the following days more stressful. I have realized that when I watch TV I get nothing done. I put off the cleaning and cooking. Then I feel rushed and panicked because I have tons to do and a much smaller time frame to do it in. Then I end up having more work to do the following days. Where is the simplicity in that? 

Limiting TV also saves money. This is a no-brainer. If you don’t have cable, you don’t have a cable bill. Voila, money in the bank.

The main thing limiting TV has done is give our family more quality time together. During the days Titus, Adelaide, and I play and read together instead of vegging out on the couch. After Titus and Adelaide go to bed at night, Matt and I spend the rest of the evening together. We normally spend this time talking or reading. We also use this time to read the Bible and pray with each other.  Turning off the television is a great way to get to know your family better.

The idea of a simple life primarily comes from the principle of being a good steward of the things God has given to us.  Time is a big area of our stewardship. God gives us exactly the right amount of time in our days that we need. It is our responsibility to use that time wisely.

Steps to a simple life

A simple life makes for a much more enjoyable life. Or at least it does around our house. For the next 4 Wednesdays, I will be posting on ways that we have simplified our lives either by changing our routine or changing our living environment and some of the outcomes.  Who knows, maybe you will be inspired to simplify your life too.

Photo Credit

Hand Picked 1/6

What I would feed my family on a monthly budget of $250- Stephanie, over at Keeper of the Home tells how she would feed her family of 5 for a month spending only $250.


Something From Nothing: Dried Orange Zest- "...an often overlooked aspect of frugality is being careful with what you already have. As our grandparents said, “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.” Our generation is just starting to grasp this concept, but we’ve got a long way to go. Take a clue from those who lived through the Depression and the Great War, and learn to use up every last bit of everything before you throw it out."


In Love With Reading- I love this Idea. When Titus and Adelaide are older, this is something I want to do with them. 

Value In Monotony

Two weekends ago my Mother-in-law and her 3 young children came to visit. While I was sweeping the floor one evening she asked if I ever felt like I did the same tasks over and over again just to do them again the next day.  What mother doesn’t feel like she does laundry just so it can get worn and dirty again, or sweeps the floor to make room for the new dirt?  This is the predicament anyone with children has, so of course I answered “yes.” 

After a few stories of the things we do over and over, the subject was dropped and we moved on.

A couple of days later while sweeping the floor again, I remembered our conversation and started thinking about Chick-fil-A. For those of you who don’t know, I worked at Chick-fil-A for almost 5 years until I had the babies and started staying home. Then that led me to think about other jobs and careers that women do. I came to this conclusion- life is all about monotonous routines. At home I am continually cleaning up messes, changing diapers, feeding babies, baking bread, and the million other little tasks that moms do.  While working at Chick-fil-A I was constantly cleaning up messes, restocking condiments, cooking chicken, doing refills, and all the million other tasks that go along with serving at a restaurant.  The concept of monotony is found in any job someone does. That is life. 

The difference is the reward.  Working a job outside the home brings in a pay check.  There is nothing wrong with getting a paycheck. It pays the bills. While homemaking doesn’t give a paycheck, the things you do have more reward than you realize.  You are showing your children and husband that you care so much about them that you are willing to give up your time and energy on them.  You are able to teach your children the principles they need to live by. The things you teach your children can affect future generations to come.  This is no small task.  You may not see a paycheck at the end of the week, but you are building up an eternal reward. Next time you feel discouraged because you have to wipe up another spill, just remember the things you do at home have have a bigger effect than you realize. You are earning an eternal value. 

I am not writing all of this to disparage on the women who have to work. I am writing this to encourage those women who feel like the things they do at home have no meaning or reward.

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9

Parks Are Fun

Swinging is fun.

Sliding is Fun

Eating leaves and mud is fun.