Freezing our buns

Elizabeth at Real Learning alerted me to the Freeze Yer Buns challenge this winter. Our family does many things that are considered "green" but the environment is seldom our primary motivator. This challenge is a classic example. This winter is the first winter we'll be paying for heat. Utilities have been included in our last two apartments but here we pay gas and electric. We kept the AC off as much as possible this summer and when it was on we tried to use it to kill the humidity and not refrigerate the place. Most of the time it was off or set to 82 degrees.

Eric and I are both much better at being cold than being hot so the winter should not prove to be such a thermostat challenge. So far we haven't turned on the heat. The lowest temp has been 63 degrees first thing in the morning. I can raise the temperature in the main room of the apartment two degrees just by baking a loaf of bread. Our plan is to keep the heat off until we are too cold and then bump things up one degree and leave it there. We are fortunate to have gas heat, but every little bit helps and this should help our utility bills this winter. And, hey, if we reduce our carbon footprint while we're at it, so much the better.

We're considering alternative methods of keeping warm, but since our main goal this winter is to save money, there is a limit to what we can buy before it would cost less just to turn on the heat. There is the argument, I suppose, that long underwear and extra blankets last for years. We also have the children to consider. Margaret sleeps with us but refuses blankets during naptime or the few hours before we join her in bed. I'll let you know when we finally turn on the heat. In the meantime--how do you stay warm in the winter?