Learning to Be a Self Sufficient "DIY'er" : a Guide for Women

It wasn't until after I had lost my husband that it dawned on me just how much he did around the house that I took for granted. There were many things that I just accepted that he would do. I was self sufficient in the household chores...he never washed a dish, nor a stitch of laundry, and I was okay with that. He never expected me to change the oil in my car, or mow the lawn.

We had our individual chores to keep the house running, and that is just the way it was. Learning to be totally self- sufficient has been a wake up call and I realize there are many things I now need to do myself, and I haven't a clue!

Shortly after losing him, I needed to go to town. My truck would not start, and after transferring everything into his truck, I looked down and realized it had a flat tire. Panic set in and I just didn't know what to do, even though his work shop had an air compressor sitting in it, and a set of jumper cables. In my other life, I would have simply come back in the house and he would have taken care of it.

Learning to be Self Sufficient in the House

I bought myself a small cordless drill. I purchased it at a resale shop for just a few dollars, but the feeling of independence that drill gives me is priceless. All of those hard to break loose screws are now as easy as getting my little drill. I can quite easily replace curtain rod hardware and I can tighten all of those screws that seem to always come loose from cabinet doors.

A small "woman sized" hammer is another handy little tool to have. The weight is easy to handle and I am not afraid to drive a small nail with it. You would be surprised at the number of things you need a small hammer for. I find that I can do a lot of things myself now that it would have never occurred to me to try before because I have tools that fit me.

Ace Hardware has become my favorite place, just like it used to be his. Ace may not be your favorite, but gals, you seriously need to check out a hardware store and stock up on some of these little tools and learn to use them. You may not think you need them right now, but if the time ever comes, you will be glad you know how to be totally self sufficient. It will be a huge stress reliever.

Ace hardware also sells a small level that has a laser light on it. Mine came with a tape measure that has a level bulb on it too. These are the perfect tools for figuring out where to hang pictures, or to stripe your walls for a new paint scheme, or to make sure your curtain rod is level.

DIY Car Care

Learning more about your vehicle is another step in becoming more self sufficient. Maintenance and Repair shops cost a lot of money, and there are a lot of simple things you can do yourself. Ask someone to show you how to check your oil, your brake fluid, your radiator and windshield wiper fluid. Once you know how to do it, continue to do it on your own. Not only will you save money, you will know more about your vehicle and you will become more self sufficient.

Self Sufficient DIY'ers Feel More Confident

Whether you live with your parents, your spouse, or a significant other, strive to "do it yourself" if at all possible. Take a few moments to think about all of the things someone else actually does for you, and that you would have to do, if they were know longer there to perform these tasks. Some things may not even dawn on you.

You may believe you are already self sufficient and do plenty of things yourself. I never even thought about the millions of little things, until I had to. Do you look at your tires before you drive off to make sure they are all properly inflated? When is the last time you checked to make sure all of the lights worked on your vehicle?

What if you blow a fuse in your home? Do you know where the fuse box is? Who changes the filter in your furnace? Do you know where all of the shut-off valves are at in your home? This is just a start of the things you should know to become a self sufficient DIY woman. Start thinking and your list will grow!

Even if you feel like these are things you shouldn't take care of right now, at least take the time to know how to do it yourself, because you never know when you might have to. Moving away from your parent's home, knowing these things, will give you confidence and ease your parents mind about you "leaving the nest."

If you suddenly find yourself a single woman, due to a number of different reasons, knowing how to be self sufficient will take a lot of stress off of you and give you the confidence to go on with your life. Watching HGTV will help you to learn a lot of DIY projects that are simple and easy to learn. Hands on experience is another great way to figure something out.

You might be surprised to learn just how much you do not know how to accomplish on your own, or do not know about running your own household. It has certainly been a wake up call for me. I appreciate every thing my husband did, and love that he cared enough to spoil me the way he did. I realize how many things, both large and small, that he did take care of for me, now that I have to figure it out myself.