Simply Live

It is still my desire to have "homemaker" classes here at the house, but God just has not opened the time yet. So for now I would like to share my journey toward simple living with you on my blog. I will title them all Simply Live and will label them the same, in attempt to make it easy to identify these posts.

Honestly, I don't know where to start. There are so many wonderful things that I have learned over the past few years.

I think for today I would like to start by talking about Co-ops since tomorrow is my Farmer's Market Co-op. We are now reaching our one year anniversary of this wonderful venture. There are several similar co-ops in the area, but all of them were full when I learned about them. A group of friends and I decided to start one ourselves on a tentative basis. We were unsure of how well it would fit into our lives. Needless to say it has been wonderful. From that group of 5 families we have grown to a group of about 24.

I am still overwhelmed each time with the power of buying in bulk. Not only are prices less at wholesale distributors, but often they offer even better deals to groups that buy in large amounts. There have even been times we were given things for free, just for being good customers. Each of us puts in $20 and receives two bags full of fruit and veggies (at times we have received over 30lbs of produce). We stick to buying very basic foods and if it happens to be something we don't like or can't eat all of, many of us have enjoyed being able to share with others.

There are many co-op opportunities available, such as the one I am playing around with to provide Wright Dairy milk to our area. This is a wonderful milk that is low-temp pasteurized and not homogenized. The taste is amazing and the health benefits are high due to the special processing. It is a bit pricey, but it is so worth it. Although it comes from sweet home Alabama, there are few places to get it. Again, through cooperating we can work to make it available and more affordable (the closest store to me sells it for $7 a gallon, and we are getting it for closer to $5.50).

Another opportunity is Azure. I am just researching this company, but it seems to be a company that will deliver to your area if your group can place an order of $550. They provide a wonderful selection of hard to find grains and organic foods at a wonderful price. Again- the power of bulk buying.

So consider grouping up. Even a group of three or four has more buying power than one. The wonderful fellowship is a great bonus as well.