I have some confessions that I just need to get out so here we go:
- I eat white rice AND unbleached white flour.
- I’ve eaten a whole chocolate bar in ONE sitting. (recently!)
- I’ve eaten brownies and/or cookies for breakfast.
- I’ve paid way too much for cheese and/or fruit and/or tomatoes from the store before simply because I was craving them. (I have a thing for tomatoes…don’t ask, lol.)
- I brush my teeth with a non-organic, fluoride toothpaste.
I could go on but I think I’d rather go hide under a rock right now.
Want to know the point behind my confession? I’m not perfect. I’m not always frugal and I’ve occasionally spent more than I should on an item. Heck, I regularly spend $6 on a jar of organic mayo because it’s just one of those convenience foods I don’t want to take the time to make.
And no, I don’t always eat healthy. Sure I enjoy my sprouted grain flour, raw milk, and other healthy goodies but let’s face it….sometimes a girl just needs a good old fashioned bar of chocolate! And also you should know that I don’t spend $0.50 on a chocolate bar, I have a brand preference and I like the gourmet stuff. How bad is that!?
And my house isn’t perfect either. So far I haven’t found a natural toothpaste that I really like the flavor of and would be willing to 100% switch over to. I use a conventional deodorant too!
So now that you are about to push the unsubscribe button from LHL I need to tell you something first. I don’t feel guilty for anything of these things…
Wait now…come back here I’m not finished!
You see, I realize I’m not perfect. I know I can’t afford to buy all 100% organic items and my house isn’t totally eco-friendly. Maybe if I cut some of the money expensive non-essentials out of my grocery budget (like my chocolate!) I could do better but you know, I just don’t care to!
There is a point that you come to when you have a budget and also in your greener living journey where you have to be happy with where you are at. There’s no point in living a miserable life and persecuting yourself for every mis-step that you take or that you make. We all make mistakes, no one is perfect, and you are doing the best you can with what you’ve been given and that’s what you have to remember!
Ok time to make me feel better….fess up, what are your imperfections?
Linked to Frugal Days, Whole Foods.
you go first 🙂
I think I am getting lazy!
I fed my family Hamburger Helper last night for supper. My mother-in-law keeps giving it to me, thinking she’s helping. Sometimes it’s too close to the expiration date to pass it on to a food bank. In that case, instead of throwing it away, I save it for supper on a super busy night. We did have green beans and local tomatoes on the side, though, so I feel like I redeemed myself a tiny bit.
Yup! Many of the same confessions here! I haven’t tried it but I have heard great things about tooth suds from Heritage Essential Oils. I am a baking soda girl myself. My weakness is Trader Joe’s chocolate–oh so good and 3 bars for 1.79! And gasp! I have three loaves of zuchinni bread in the oven right now made with Gold Medal unbleached flour. It’s gonna be good 🙂
Yum…..Zucchini Bread!
Lana, use the Tooth Suds from Heritage Essential Oils! It is wonderful! The first time I ordered, I bought a small jar so I could try it first. Second order I bought a large jar! Good stuff! My husband said to me, “Why are you buying toothpaste that looks like it comes in a cold cream jar?” lol.
I’m so thankful a friend introduced me to HEO! I just love this company!
🙂
I LOVED this because I am so far from perfect! I try to do my best at making what I can, canning what we need, and buying as cheaply as I can. But, I also go with conveniences for some of our food. I love my chocolate bars, other candy, let’s just say that I have a very big sweet tooth and its not helping me loose any weight. I love listening to the honesty of others because then I know I fit in and don’t have to pretend to be something I am not. Thanks so much for all that you do to help us do the best that we can. LOVE all the canning recipes and just the site in general. 🙂 God bless.
I’m so glad you love the canning recipes! I have a BUNCH more that will be posted soon!
I have to confess that I use Dove soap or stuff from Bath & Bodyworks… I know it’s bad but everything else in my house is organic from laundry detergent to dish soap to cleaners, even my dog’s and cat’s food. I just haven’t found an organic soap that smells good. If anyone has any suggestions I’m open to them.
I just go for the unscented soaps because I’m not a fan of the strong “natural” scents that many soaps are 🙁
We love Sungold Soap. It basically has no smell at all and is reasonably priced if you purchase in quantity. azsungoldsoaps.com
Cherie, I think Kiss my Face soap is organic or natural. Right now there is a coupon for 3 bucks off any of their products and if you have a Whole Foods near you, the whole food coupon combined with the Kiss my face gets you the soap for free! I really love the soap and highly recommend it.
Okay, I can totally be snooty about my soap – I use our home-made lye soap almost exclusively. *grin*
But then there’s the bag of chocolate (it’s medicine, HONESTLY) by the fridge and the Velveeta bbq chicken stuff I made last night. We even buy white bread sometimes, mostly because one of my partners basically won’t eat anything but that.
We do a lot of things “the right way” … we prepare for emergencies or Zombie Apocalypses and such. 🙂 But frankly, until the zombies are at my windows, I plan on using my dryer to its fullest, and I use a dishwasher every day.
“Medicine”….um yes! I totally agree!
I save on what I can, but there are some things I won’t compromise on. Even though I know it is suuposed to be better for me, I can’t stand the taste of whole wheat or other “healthy” bead. Imagine my relief when I found out from the allergist that I am allergic to bran, which might be why I don’t like it. It might not just be the taste, but the way my body reacts to it.
I cook almost everything from scratch, I do a lot of home canning, pickles & tomatoes & fruit juices (my husband isn’t into jam). You’ve done nothing to feel guilty about, so enjoy!!
PS – HAven’t you heard, chocolate is good for you!
I have tons of confessions, especially since we are just starting on this journey. But my biggest guilty item is how much we eat out, especially fast food. It’s just so easy to do. In a few months baby #3 will be here and I will quit my job and I really hope we can get that under control.
I am not a regular subscriber, but i check on here quite often. I work Full time and in our busy lives I am just looking for ideas on how to change things for my family. I am happy to hear no one is perfect! It makes me feel better also. i am always down on myself thinking I should be doing more. I cut out and change things that I can. I think if our heart is in the right place we are doing exactly what we should be doing. Thanks for the honesty and I love chocolate also! I also use regular flouride toothpaste. I am a crest girl. have tried a lot of others but I get a gag reflex usually( mental on my part) I also use regular white rice. why? cuz I am limited on my time. So thank you everyone. i have always wanted to share on here and this time I couldn’t pass up the oppurtunity. A suggestion for future articals… how to reuse things in stead of throwing them away. like a pant hanger from store, hanging from cupboard to hold open cookbook, the clips on same hangers cut off to use as bag clips, tissue rolls and dryer lint to make fire starters. that kind of stuff makes me feel better about myself then buying all organic. Keep the recipes coming though. I love them. Homemade hamburger helper was a huge hit with me. Thank you for everything!
I love those ideas and I’ll consider making the focus of a future month on re-purposing! Great idea!
I LOVE this post! When I first started trying to move to a “healthier” lifestyle, I got so discouraged. When I finally realized that I can only do what I am able, and I will try to get to the rest eventually, a big weight lifted off my shoulder! At least we all are doing little things to make our lives, our pocketbooks, and our planet healthier…which is more than I can say for A LOT of folks out there! Yay us!!! :o)
Great way to look at it, at least we are trying!
Lol. Thanks for sharing. I actually *choose* white rice when I’m out, or white flour, if I know it’s not home prepared anyway :). My adrenal low-energy crutch: potato chips. Yes, on the dirty dozen, non-organic potato chips (kettle brand because they don’t use corn oil that would make my hands bleed). Sometimes I order a bag or two from Azure that are cheaper than local plus organic; other times I just need a handful with some ice tea to take care of my family!
I am uber fussy about my toothpaste, but I have found that 3% hydrogen peroxide and baking soda are a terrific alternative. They whiten better than commercial, and I can actually use them! 🙂
Amen sister! We all need to realize perfection is insanity and an impossibility! I remember reading and article about someone who was a health nut her whole life…yet, died early from cancer. Before passing away, she told her family to take care of themselves, but more importantly enjoy life! It’s okay to have an “unhealthy” item every once in a while…that’s part of living in-the-moment!
Oh…..
I bug bomb my house with Raid about every 4 months, because I am more scared of a Brown Recluse spider bite than the constant inhalation of poison from the Raid! I know, it’s bad!
lol I’m with you on this one…
I confess to learning on a curve!
…and I cheat when ever possible.
Eating out is high on the list. I hate that; because, well…we only eat out because I’m lazy that day.
Here is the TRUE STORY… all kidding aside. (my honest confession)
I’ve been doing some of these things a long time. Living Simply, cutting corners, etc. But only in the last 5 years (3 of those getting serious) have I been learning that it only takes a little bit of time and effort to make a ‘natural’ face scrub, or a DIY cleaner, or a made from scratch hot meal.
I have read and re-read frugal, tightwad, and homesteading type books until I’m blue in the face. But one day– I woke up and decided, I should start implementing some of these things, because I want to not because I HAVE TO . So… even though I’m savvy to the whole food, herbal remedy and home-made experience. I’m still ‘wet behind the ears’… and old habit die hard. 😉 ~ Pat
I don’t think anyone should feel guilty about any of these things. You are all doing wonderful things for your families, your communities (real and virtual,) our environment and for yourselves. I’m not perfect in what I am doing but I am so far ahead of where I was last year that I can’t feel guilty. I quit smoking, quit working (I’m a stay-at-home-grandma/nanny) make all my own cleaning products and laundry detergent, changed most of my beauty products to healthier alternatives or make my own, eat real food 80% of the time, eliminated most processed food, eat mostly organic and local, joined a csa and am freezing leftover veggies for the winter. The most important thing I’ve done is spread the word and passed a lot of good healthy info onto family and friends and watched changes happen in their families. These things happened because of bloggers like you and all of you people who write comments. Thank you.
So true! Loved this post! My confessions: I like Minute white rice. It’s yummy. I also like store bought orange juice (Simply Orange, anyone?). I make my own laundry detergent, but I still use fabric softener (homemade stuff has no scent, and I like my clothes to smell good!). I eliminated a microwave from our house until I was pregnant, craving steaks, and needed to thaw some out quickly.. and it hasn’t gone back into storage since.
Merissa – have you ever tried Melaleuca brand toothpaste? We love it!
I have tried the Melaleuca toothpaste and I did not like it. I am not a fan of tea tree oil and just haven’t eve been able to get into it!
Have you tried DoTerra toothpaste? I tried it recently and I really liked it. Tastes like cinnamon.
Well lets see I can not grow a garden if my life depended on that so I try to go to farmers markets but my pantry is FULL of canned goods from the grocery store (does is help that I do go to a bent can store to get them cheaper?) We currently do not have any livestock but hope to change that REAL soon ( I am GREAT with animals) I use a washer but do hang the clothes out and i make my own laundry soap and body soap Chocolate keeps the out numbered males in the house alive from month to month. There are many other things that I Know I can do but I guess lately I have gotten a little lazy and will start working on it now that the brats (said lovingly!!!) are back in school. We use to be totally off grid and except for veggies and staples self sufficient. This is defiantly a step down or back ward but I do not feel guilty
WOW, you just made us all feel better about ourselves. In 2008 I read a “Green” book and cleaned out my house of all chemical products, from bleach to fingernail polish & polish remover. I mean everything with a chenical compound…I even talked my husband into not using and chemical products on our lawn. He tried to go all natural in the yard and we ended up with weeds and a dead lawn. The birds had a good time..We had to re-sod…
The non-chlorine bleach just didn’t cut it for cleaning, the organic nail-polish remover, didn’t remove it. The tub cleaner, didn’t clean. The natural toothpaste wasn’t good. The organic hair color, didn’t.
I tried hanging my clothes outside on an Umbrella type clothesline. The plastic clothesline molded & mildewed in the Florida humidity & summer thunderstorms making black marks on my wet clothes. I would clean and it was back. I gave up and put them all in the dryer again.
I did learn from all this though, that where I could compromise I did., but it didn’t always work for me. I would never have my house sprayed with chemicals for bugs as I found out that Plain ol’ cheap Boric Acid works better & I live in Florida where we grow huge cock roaches that fly. I avoid chemicals any way I can, but when nothing else will do I use them sparingly now. I will not buy any artificial sweetners, or products containing them. I watch diligently for ingredients. I don’t fry any foods now, but I have been known to resort to Hamburger Helper on occaision, but always feel guilty about it.
So, thank you for making me feel better about my not being able to do it all the way I’d like to or at least know that I should.
Huge Florida flying cockroaches! I lived in Florida for 25 years and still am terrified by just thinking about them!
Thanks for this confession Merissa because sometimes I feel like I can never measure up to you ladies. I love your humor and appreciate you trying to help us poor slobs out here. Frankly, I have been hearing the Lord say that we need to live more simply, and I do what I can but my dear husband is just not on the same page. I’m afraid he’s all caught up in trying to keep up with the Jones’s, feeling like he needs bigger and better everything. Ah well, I will continue to make the changes I can and pray and try to let go of the rest. Hugs!
Don’t you feel bad at all! I do all of those things! And, I have noticed that the fanatical health food people are always sickly. Really.
I laughed when I read your post because I had just published something about myself that I would have given anything to not be public. My whole diet consists of nothing but junk food, prepackaged everything and I want a local newspaper but I didn’t pursue it because I’m overweight. I finally had enough of trying to wait for a perfect life before pursuing my dream, so my husband and I put our videos on our page to mark “we are here now” so we can just get it over with and move on. Your post brought me here instead of just reading from my email subscription and now I find a whole bunch of people in the same confession boat. LOL It’s so good to be free. Now I can just move on and lose weight, learn homesteading and get away from junk as soon as possible.
loved your ocnfessions! not to force toothpaste issue but I lOVE Tom’s Cinnamon flavor…it really is the only one I can stand. I so agree with you. And as far as deodorant goes I love the crystal roll on by these companies: Lafes or this one http://www.swansonvitamins.com/CRY005/ItemDetail
P.S. I wish I owned more organic clothing : (
Even though I can make my own…I still prefer Ruffles store brand chips.
There is nothing like a fresh bag of Ruffle potato chips!
Speaking of chocolate confessions…I’ve been known to put the dry Ghirardelli triple chocolate chunk brownie batter in a coffee cup, add water and eat it out of the cup. My lame excuse is that it’s “healthier” that way- no oil or eggs and it’s, you know, out of a cup and whatnot 🙂
Haha, love this!
Awesome post. I think many times we idealize the way someone lives and feel that we can never live up to that standard. I have been on both sides of it.
I try to purchase away from the dirty dozen list but don’t always get there either. Azure helps with that a lot. Other than that I can’t think of anything right off. I do love baking soda and coconut mixed to a past for deodorant, H2O2 for mouthwash and tooth past, it wasn’t fun to start with but I got used to it.
Love your site.
This was so good for all of us. We all need to realize that no one is perfect. That is the one thing about facebook that I dislike is the fact that we all get to view everyone elses best days and triumphs. Most people don’t write about their bad days. (some do). I once heard a speaker say “The best gift we can give our girl friends is to be average”. I think there is alot of truth to this.
Personally, I am as imperfect as you can get when it comes to organic eating etc. But, I am pretty good at making the most out of what I have.
I once wanted chocolate so bad that I was trying to reach a bag of chocolate chips (meant for cookies) with a long wooded spoon high up in the cupboard. I went to fling the spoon at the bag and accidentally let go of the spoon dropping it on my own face lol! A wooden spoon hitting your face actually hurts a little :)! I felt a little dumb in the moment! Since then I do the logical thing…..I use a chair 🙂
Hi just thought I would let you know about the Crystal Deodorant….if it is made in the USA, the potassium Alum ingredient is in a natural form…but if it is made in Thailand the potassium Alum is synthetic…oh dear me…..so do be awear of this..I know I was shocked to say the least…
Loved this post! Us women are way too hard on yourselves. Perfection is something that we just cannot attain.All we can do is do our best with what we have. My confessions? Well, occassionally I still use white sugar, I have bought take out pizza the last 2 Saturdays in a row and the other night I ate a bacon cheeseburger AND onion rings from Dairy Queen. Am I proud, well no but I don’t feel a bit guilty about it. I got back on the healthy wagon and other than a few (ok 6) sugar cookies that my daughter made, I have been doing pretty good!
I loved this post. I read so many and I always feel like I cant measure up. I work full time and try to be as homemade and basic as I can. SO, I buy store toothpaste, I dont know how to can my own food (in process of learning) and I still have cable. I cant do without my 3 fave shows.
I love all the comments, too! I realized a few months ago that all the small changes I’m making toward my family being healthy is better than where I used to be a year ago. I will NEVER be 100% organic or 100% natural. I don’t have time nor do I want to steal valuable time away from my quickly growing children obsessing about being these things above either. I don’t want to have “idols” in my life either — focusing on gardening, 100% organic and other things that take my time away from the important things — my Lord, hubsand and family. So, I realize that what changs I make are great strides in what I used to do and I am thankful I’ve made them because I’ve seen healthy changes in not only my own life but my family’s lives as well! I have friends who don’t even bake, cook or garden (and I’m not being hard on them) and they always say to me I wish I could be as healthy as you. I’ve realized they need equal encouragement to start SMALL and then progress onward. I believe we always need to realize the blessings we have and the accomplishments we make and that in turn puts joy into our hearts! Thanks, Merissa for your honesty!
Humans used to die of starvation and animal attacks. Now we just guilt ourselves to death.
i’m so glad you did this post. too often we pretend to be all high and mighty and shiny. we urban and/or rural homesteaders, ethical eaters, and pro-enviro/health/etc… people AREN’T perfect. i’m pretty good about sticking with foods that are available locally, in season and organic. most of my meat is pastured. but i still buy bananas and avocados from the grocer. you’re my new favorite person 😉
today is the Wednesday Fresh Foods Blog Hop – I was hoping, if you feel up for it, that you’d link up this fabulous post (and any future fabulous, seasonal and/or real food posts) with us 🙂 Everyone is welcome so feel free to stop by. take care! xo, kristy
Ok so I love that your human..lol I buy my four in 20# bags. It is the organic unbleached stuff..lol
We are an entire household of diabetics. I will NOT use ANYTHING with aspartame. BUT I buy Spenda and sucralose products. That being said. I buy coke with splend and diet RC. I was getting eggs from my neighbor,just recently discovered that they do not collect everyday so there went that. I now buy the organic vegan fed stuff. I can make my own laundry soap( i have all the ingredients) I`m just pure lazy. I only buy whats on sale or with a coupon making it the same dollar amount.I am making all my own house cleaning products though. I love your site. Thank you for putting it all out there..
There is a protective film around eggs that keep out air and bacteria until they are washed with water. They do not have to be refridgerated immediately so do not worry about them being collected daily. I am sure that you have seen the baskets of eggs in older pictures, that are just sitting on the counter? This is why they can sit out. But once refriderated, they must be kept cold at that point. I do not know how long they can sit out without refridgeration, but I’m sure that it could easily be days with the protective film that God added to protect us since chickens like to hide their eggs when outside. Just my thoughts from research…lol
Ahhhh, I love you even more now, LOL!
I’ve been trying to convert my household to my homemade concoctions, natural,chemical free, etc… But some things just don’t cut it, and I revert back to what worked fine in the first place. I am addicted to sugar & everything it’s made with! I try stevia, but there is a weird taste, honey is good, but not always convenient to use, etc…sometimes I’m in a hurry & I just grab something pre-made at the store. Hey, we’re only human & not perfect by a long shot!
Thank you for baring your secrets, I honestly sighed in relief!
Enjoy your chocolate & have a fantastic day!
Thank goodness! I’m so not perfect either.
-Coke (the good ole full sugar version) is my drink of choice. I can’t figure out a good alternative.
-I haven’t found a cleaner for stone so I have to use granite and travertine stone cleaners which have a heavy chemical smell.
-Saturday is my lazy day. I still do some things but should be doing a lot of cleaning and don’t. Sunday is my frantic day that I have to do everything I was supposed to do the day before.
-My 13 year old son won’t eat veggies. And many days we eat take out because I burn our ruin our dinner. I guess I won’t be getting my own cooking show any time soon.
Thanks, and enjoy your chocolate bar!
I love is Site and I thank everyone for their “confessions”, I too have been trying to learn how to be a “natural woman” for many years; from growing my own herbs and veggies, to using natural products and eating more sensiblilly, which has been working for weight loss reasons for my hubby and myself. I use hamburger helper when I’m rushed and I try to stay as close to natural as I can. It’s been a work in progress but I’ll keep on enduring. God bless you all.
I love this post! We can’t all be perfect whole foods eaters. I have definitely eaten brownies for breakfast. But we do what we can and try our best…and accept that we’re not perfect.
Thanks for sharing with the Fresh Foods Blog Hop!
Hi, my name is Stephanie and I’m not perfect. I don’t do laundry til I have to, I still buy regular breakfast cereal, and I haven’t started my garden that I’ve intended on starting for 3 years. I do can veggies, make my own cleaners, and buy organic when I can. I use store bought shampoo and love Olay bodywash. Baby steps are important in my house. My husband doesn’t like change and for me, it’s trial and error until I find something that really works. Thank you for your confessions. I feel much better now.
Woohoo for store bought shampoo!! (I use it too, I just can’t stand the smell of homemade stuff!)
I also eat unbleached white flour & rice. I found out I am actually allergic to bran, but even if I wasn’t, whole wheat just tastes gross (to me, anyway). I cut corners in those areas where I can, partly so I can afford the other things that I like/love. I live in a BC border town, so I use both Canadian & US coupon sites, to help me save money. Deoderants give me a rash, so I just use baby powder under my arms & in my undies. I love tomatoes too, but when they climb over $3/pound in the winter, I just go nuts! Fortunately, being in Abbotsford, there are a lot of places where I can get free food, including vegetables! As my aunt likes to say (I’m a Buddhist, myself), “Do your best & leave the rest to God”. Nobody is perfect, but you’re awesome. I love your site! I have learned a lot of cool things here.
I ate half of a store-bought carrot cake for breakfast. (It IS my 50th birthday!) 🙂
Happy Birthday!
I love this post :).
My pantry is full of canned veggies and beans, and I have another stash in the garage. You would never know it to look at my girls.. they’re both underweight and have issues gaining.. but they eat all day. They wake up at 5am every single morning and don’t stop eating until they go to bed. It’s just easier and less expensive for us to use canned veggies most of the time. We use fresh veggies from the farmer’s market for dinner, and I make a pot of beans every single day in addition to the canned ones that they eat But we just can’t keep up with their appetites. They eat 15-30 cans of veggies every single day!!!!!!! Thank God for being able to shop on a military base, because we get the cans at a third of the price we’d pay anywhere else! We buy fresh and organic in most things, but there are a lot of times where it’s easier and cheaper to use something canned while I scramble to keep them fed all day!
We eat out more than we should too. There are days where I’m just done with my endless rounds of cooking and don’t feel like putting in the effort to feed my pigs haha! Thankfully we have the income to support those times without any issues.
I hate natural deodorant. I’ve tried different ones multiple times. I love my rose scented Dove! And I hate natural toothpaste.
We have a ridiculous amount of Girl Scout cookies right now, and there’s more chocolate in the pantry than I’ll ever admit to ;). And I can’t leave out the Coke. I love Coke. I did give up Sun Drop though.. so hard to do.. so I’ll give myself kudos for that! And I love to cook in bacon grease.. just love it!
None of us are perfect. We’re just all doing the best we can in our own circumstances, and that’s always something to be proud of :).
Woohoo for Girl Scout cookies!
When I was a kid my mother told me I could eat ice cream for breakfast when I grew up. I still feel guilty about it, but I do it every once in a while.
Me too!
Oh, let me count my ways!
I still indulge in the very worst addiction of mine: Cheezits.
I don’t always eat organic or non-GMO produce or foods simply due to a very awkward financial situation.
Sometimes, I go for ice cream for breakfast.
Sometimes, I miss eating breakfast, then feel sick all day.
Frozen pizza in the freezer(it’s locally made, little less guilt), and I spent $5 (yes $5) on two Endangered species chocolate bars that are my total down fall. Also there is a bag of Fritos and Lay’s potato chips in my pantry because my husband says that’s what he wants. I would rather have him a little unhealthy and happy than on a totally organic/no processed food diet and be miserable wishing for chips.
And he also drinks (gasp!) soda! 🙂
My hubby is a pop drinker too. Seems like he can just jump right past the ingredients chart because he loves it so much!