Simple living

It's very straightforward: Spend less, work less, live more.

I don't see the point in working my butt off just so I can spend two weeks a year lying on a generic beach somewhere hot, buy a 4x4 that will never see any mud and live in a detached faux Georgian mansion that's two foot from the identical one next door.

I'd rather wear charity shop jeans, make my little man wear really badly sewn cut-down clothes, grow courgettes and live in a house that only has one toilet to clean.

The simple things in my life include:

Tickling sessions with little man in the middle of other activities such as clothes sorting.

Eating food I cooked from scratch.

Collecting eggs from my three bantams.

Going out for tea and cake or a stroll with friends or family.

Pottering in the garden.

Using just one long piece of cloth to carry my little fella instead of putting him in an expensive, unwieldy pushchair.

There are other things I'd like to get on to, like ordering an organic veg box now and then and finally having some success at making my own wine. Getting organised enough to make bread more often. Changing to a much smaller car. And there are some things I do spend money on unnecessarily: more wine than is good for me, books I could get out of the library, new toys I see for little man that he doesn't need...

My first inspiration for all this was a book called Timeless Simplicity by John Lane. I heartily recommend it. I have given my copy to STBE husband though in the hope it might give him an alternative perspective on life. I had already been trying to get him to read it for years.

And my best tip for spending less is to avoid going into shops in the first place. Then you won't be tempted. I'm not strong enough to look round lovely shops without convincing myself I deserve to buy something. And it's amazing how many days you can survive without your big supermarket shop if you're as disorganised as me.