How It All Began...

I am a 31 year old Speech Language Pathologist serving the birth to three population. I am married to a man that rocks! And he also happens to be an amazing cook, a thoughtful theologian, a servant to others, an 'idea guy', sensitive, shocking, and entertaining!

I am mostly from Nashville, Tennessee, but this past year my husband and I had the opportunity to reside in Wuhan, China. We were there to develop relationships and teach English in one of the local universities. We made great friends and ate some unbelievably delicious as well as strange food. We learned so much from the culture and our experiences that we will carry with us for a life time.

While in China, we were blessed enough to have a cleaning lady that came about once a month. She charged 10 yuan an hour which equals out to about $1.50! Not only that, when she finished cleaning, that old apartment looked brand new. She deserved so much more money but absolutely refused to accept anything over what she charged. So, we started collecting our bottles and at the end of the month we would hand them over to her for recycling. This is a very common way for many Chinese to earn some extra money.

After seeing how many bottles we collected over a months time, it made me wonder why I wasn't joining in with the recyclers back in the good 'ole U.S. of A. And thus begun the big Research of '07-'08...

I started researching where to recycle, what items to recycle, and how to reuse items. Not to mention just green ideas in general like alternate cleaning supplies, composting, and reusing junk mail. That led me to thinking about living more simply and frugally. So I started getting interested in sewing, gardening, finding great bargains (such as shopping at CVS!!), freebies, and making our food stretch farther.

Well, this was great research, but there was only a small percentage of it that I could actually put into practice in China. I wasn't really there long enough to garden, there was no mail to turn into note pads, there was too much of a communication barrier to figure out all the recycling rules, and there was definitely no CVS.

Now we are back in the U.S. Not in Nashville, but in Kentucky so my husband can go to seminary. We are just now getting settled so I still haven't had the chance to really practice many of the these new ideas and hobbies. What I want to share with you through this blog is my journey as I actually try to bring my research to life. I have A LOT of info, so keep in mind I will be doing this slowly - one step at a time.

However, all of these things I have shared are seen as a part of my greater identity. My identity is found in Jesus Christ. It's through Him that I will participate and share these gifts. As a Speech Pathologist, I will show patience and gentleness. As a wife I will be loving and supportive. As a participant of different cultures I will give respect and understanding. As a bargain hunter I will be honest and giving. As a student of new hobbies I will not keep found knowledge to myself. I will be a good steward of all things because all that has been given to me has been a gift from God.

So join my husband and I as we experiment in living frugally and environmentally. Your feedback, stories, and questions would be greatly appreciated as we shop, save, and share our way through this investigation of all things living simply.