It's interesting that as we developed technologies like dishwashers, vacuum cleaners and washing machines we used these machines to do more work rather than save time. My dad would wear a shirt for a week when he was young, now he puts a clean one on every day. Perhaps you can just do less, try time-boxing.
Of course, it's a bit tongue-in-cheek -- after all, all these gadgets also come with higher costs for the household -- but it is true that while in my grandparents' generation, most families working under the above model could afford a house and a decent life-style, it would now be impossible for my wife and me to buy a house just based on my income alone.
But that's again comparing apples and oranges a bit because let's not forget that today's lives typically have higher expectations and higher standards of living. My grandparents, for instance, never did a vacation overseas, etc...