November/December Menu

So, I'm getting this out a little later than planned, but better late than never!  This season is all about making use of what we have and capturing the flavors of the season.  I'm using up a lot of our freezer stash (broccoli, tomatoes, winter squash, applesauce, and meat) and pantry staples.  We're incredibly grateful for at least three community meals a week, which really eases the hectic nature of our lives.  We're also trying to keep things healthy and on the Paleo/Keto side of things with loads of veggies, which does mean we're probably spending a bit more at the grocery store for things like avocados and coconut milk.

I am finding that our boys are going through more fruit than usual, so maybe that indicates a growth spurt?  Or maybe it's just the fruit is lower calorie than most other stuff, so since we're eating more whole foods, they're just hungrier because they're eating more of the good stuff?  I'm grateful to be able to glean from the food pantry when we help out there.  It really helps to supplement our grocery budget.

So, here's the plan:

Breakfasts:

• Smoothies (1 cup greens, 1/2 banana, 1 cup berries or winter squash, liquid and flax seeds)
• Baked pumpkin oatmeal
• Eggs, sauteed greens, and breakfast meat (bacon, liver mush, sausage)
• Roasted veggies and eggs
• Energy bites and fruit
• Hard boiled eggs and fresh fruit
• Yogurt parfaits with frozen berries and chia seeds

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Fresh fruit, cheese, and gluten free crackers
• Salad with protein (leftover chicken, hard boiled eggs, nuts)

Dinners:

• Chili with ground beef from the freezer and beans from the pantry
• Beans and quinoa with fixin's
• Crock pot Asian Chicken with roasted veggies and Asian slaw
• Breakfast for dinner
• Paleo dressing with chicken sausages and sauteed greens
• Turkey soup and salad
• Turkey taco bowls
• Beef and cheddar pie with salad or sauteed greens

Snacks:

• Popcorn with cheddar powder and butter
• Roasted spiced nuts
• Homemade trail mix
• Fresh fruit 
• Veggies and dip
• Gluten free crackers and cheese

What are you making and eating this month?  I'd love to hear from you!

October Menu Plan

As usual, this month is all about keeping costs low while staying as healthy as we possibly can. That means that we'll use our freezer and pantry stash, glean where we can, and purchase produce on sale (and locally when possible).  We're grateful to have a pretty well stocked freezer, which will be the basis of a lot of our meals this month.

Here's the basic outline:

Breakfasts:

• baked oatmeal with dried fruit and nuts and applesauce from the freezer
• hard boiled eggs and fresh fruit (likely citrus, apples, or pears)
• leftover roasted veggies with eggs or bacon
• weekend "big boy" breakfasts with Paleo pancakes and fruit or yogurt parfaits
• smoothies with frozen fruit, non dairy milk, and any seasonings (ginger and cinnamon are seasonal favorites)
• banana bars with fruit

Lunches:

• leftovers (sometimes remixed over rice, pasta, or inside tortillas)
• ants on a log (celery spread with peanut butter or almond butter and topped with raisins)
• hard boiled eggs
• fresh fruit
• sliced veggies (peppers, carrots, cucumber, or whatever we have around)
• deli meat and cheese roll ups
• homemade energy bites (with almond butter or peanut butter)

Dinners:

• Thai chicken crock pot soup
• crock pot potato soup with fixin's (bacon, cheese, chopped onion or mushroom) and salad
• community meals at the Children's Council 2x week and Sunday dinner with Mom
• Friday night pizza night (homemade pizza dough in bread machine or almond flour pizza dough)
• sausages and roasted veggies
• crock pot pork roast and potatoes
• chicken stir fry with Asian slaw and egg rolls
• crock pot chili and almond flour "corn bread"

Batch Cooking:

• energy bites
• roasted veggies (I try to make a double batch over the weekend so that we can reheat them throughout the week)
• Asian slaw (it's one of my favs and keeps well)
• hard boiled eggs
• crock pot meals

Freezer stash (i.e. what we'll use from our freezer)

• ground beef (for chili)
• chicken breasts
• tomatoes from last year
• pesto
• pork roast
• corn
• sliced almonds
• frozen fruit

Pantry stash:

• oatmeal
• flax meal
• chia seeds
• honey
• chocolate chips
• almond flour
• dried beans
• onions
• potatoes
• sun dried tomatoes
• olives
• dried fruit (this varies, but can include raisins, dried coconut, apricots, prunes, currants, etc.)

Frugal Accomplishments 4th Week of September

Sorry I've been so absent for a while!  Summer got super busy (and fun), and then school started and things seemed to get even busier.  We've added a few new things to our schedules, which do make things hectic at times, but it's also things we've been wanting to try (like choir for little man and some free workout classes for me).

So, without further ado, here are our accomplishments for last week:

• All meals were cooked at home.  This included sausage and roasted veggies, mini quiche, and snack plates.  We were able to use ingredients from our CSA for these meals, as well as things from the food pantry (sausage and wanton wrappers for the quiche crusts) and discount produce rack at the grocery store.  All lunches were leftovers or made at home (the boys have recently discovered the joy of ants on a log).
• We stretched our groceries by using pantry staples and waited until the weekend to go grocery shopping.  I used a $10 off $50 deal at the grocery store, and a rain check, to stock up on some staples like bacon, tortilla chips, and cheese.
• Enjoyed some shared community meals, including a Sunday dinner with friends (pot roast we made in the crock pot, they brought bread and apple pie), meals at the Children's Council, and dinner with Mom (burgers, baked beans, and chips).
• I read books I had at home for pleasure reading and devotionals.
• I took the boys to the library.  We checked out books under little man's account (if they check out under their school ID, they aren't charged late fees).  He was proud to know his number, and it helps us out too.  While we were there, the boys did the scavenger hunt at the library and earned a prize from the treasure box (stickers and Pokemon cards).
• I participated in a free workout at school.  We have a parent who is a personal trainer and is graciously offering two workouts a week for free for any faculty who want to participate.  It was great, and loads of fun.  I was really sore afterwards, but I hope that by continuing to do it, I'll get in better shape and it will be some much needed time to focus on me too.
• I worked out for free with yoga on Thursday at the Children's Council.  It was great, and dinner was good too.  
• Little man is enjoying choir at church on Tuesdays, and there's a free snack provided too.
• I composted all reasonable scraps, recycled what we can, and limited our trash to one bag a week.
• Picked up a few more baby bucks at the Children's Council for our programs, so we're close to earning another Walmart card.  We plan to purchase an air popper for my classroom for after school snacks.
• I took little man to the movies on Saturday as a reward for doing so well with his reward system at home.  Mom came with us, and she treated us to the movie.  We went to the $2 theater on campus and took our popcorn bucket, so the whole thing only cost $8, which was probably cheaper than one ticket to the regular matinee.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 4th Week of June

This week is all about summer fun for the family.  I have some professional development, but just one day this week.  That means that it's the boys day with my mom, and they've got some fun free things planned:  going to a local lake to walk and fish, and going to the public library for story time and checking out new books.  We're also planning some play dates with friends and spending some fun family time doing things.

Here are our accomplishments:

• I participated in a professional development opportunity, which included a $50 stipend.  It was training that will provide me professional renewal credits and some food was provided.
• The boys helped me clean out a lot of things for a group yard sale that we'll be a part of this week.  The back of my car is loaded with items, and we're hoping to bring home another $50 or more from that.  Whatever we don't sell will be donated to our church yard sale. (Our goal this summer is to make $1500 from side hustles like this, including eBay sales.)
• Used brown paper bags that we cut in order to drain meat, rather than using paper towels.
• Cooked chicken in a crock pot for mole chicken.  It was organic chicken from the food pantry and mole sauce from the food pantry, so there was no cost to us.  We used this for taco bowls using our CSA ingredients (greens, spring onions, squash, radishes) and refried beans, quinoa, and salsa from our pantry to make these.  This made enough for several meals of leftovers, which could be made into tacos or a casserole.
• Enjoyed a free meal at VBS last week, which yielded some free food.  We were able to take grapes and bananas.  I used these bananas to make banana nut chocolate chip muffins for a breakfast treat for the week.
• We chose to make a donation for the meal at VBS, as well as purchased a CD of the music from the week.  This music will sort of become our summer soundtrack.  It really helps us keep the boys entertained in the car and much more patient when trips are longer.
• Our pot of tomatoes had become water logged with the recent rains.  We realized that the drain holes weren't fully drilled, so we borrowed a drill and drilled the holes.  Hopefully, this will save the tomatoes, especially since they already had fruit.
• Used our laminated chore charts for the boys.  We use dry erase markers on these, so it saves the stickers.  These really help for summer routines and getting them going in the mornings.
• Used an earned Walmart gift card to purchase some needed groceries and a large pillow to replace one we had to toss.  I had a little left over on this card, so I'll save it for another purchase.
• I listened to a podcast for free while washing dishes.  I was getting a little disgruntled about having to do so many dishes (they multiply when we're home over the summer), and the podcast was about gratitude.  It helped me to reframe the opportunity to wash dishes and be grateful for the clean water and dishes we have.
• Enjoyed an "open house" at a community garden.  There were light snacks, and the boys loved the garden. We plan to go out and volunteer there this Friday.  It will give me a chance to do something with the boys outside, and is a free community event.
• Washed all laundry in cold water and hung to dry.  We find that this really saves our clothes, and electricity.
• Opened windows and used fans for cooling.  I also tried to be diligent about turning out lights when we're not in a room.
• I did some extra detox work at home for free.  This included Epsom salt baths, clay baths, and sauna.  I only do this once a day in order to not deplete necessary minerals.  I'm trying to do this at least 4-5 days a week.  It's nice that I can do all of this at home now, and it really is making me feel better.
• I resisted the impulse to buy some new flip flops.  They weren't expensive, but I knew it was $4 that we could save.
• Began planning a menu for next month focused on the things we have on hand and will be getting in our CSA.
• Planned free activities for the boys:  play date at a local park, children's council groups, use our membership to the local children's museum, activity at the community garden, picnic at a local park with live music in the evening.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

What did you 

Frugal Accomplishments 3rd Week of June

This has been our first official week of summer, and it's been great!  I've really enjoyed my time with the boys, even as a finished up a few things with school.  I'm still working toward my goal of getting up before they do, but we're getting there.  We've enjoyed some great community meals this week, and did some batch cooking, which has made meal prep easy.

Here's how we saved this week:

• Did our usual thing with hanging laundry and washing in cold water.
• Baby is doing awesome with potty training, so we're having to wash fewer loads of training pants.
• Meals were made at home including:  double batch of quiche (made at Mom's for Sunday dinner), salads, snack plates with fresh fruits and veggies, oatmeal, smoothies, roasted veggies, and Asian slaw.
• Community meals included our Children's Council meals, which I brought home a serving of leftovers, Bible school cook out, a meal at a workshop I had one day, and Benny had lunch provided at work one day.
• We are grateful for our CSA share this week with loads of spring/summer veggies and greens, as well as eggs.  (We pay for this with our eBay sales each year.)
• Picked currants for free at my mom's place.  These, plus oranges from the food pantry, have been our fruit for the week, primarily.  One kiddo added them to his oatmeal, which was a great thought!
• Made a batch of spiced nuts as a snack, as well as some guacamole using salsa, avocados salvages from the food pantry, and spring onions.  I also made a batch of energy bites using things we had on hand.
• I made a batch of veggie and chicken stock.  I've been trying to have some daily, about two cups.  It does seem to be helping my gut, and it's tasty, as well as fulfilling some of my liquids for the day.
• Helped out with the food pantry pick up and salvaged a few cartons of organic blackberries, avocados, rutabagas, turnips, and some broccoli and onions.  We also got some mini pitas, which I used to make breakfast pocket sandwiches for those who can do gluten.
• Signed up to help with pick up again this Saturday.  We enjoy helping, and it's nice to come home with things we can salvage.
• I cashed in baby bucks for a Walmart card, and earned one for my service as a parent leader with the group.  We will use that $20 to pay for toiletries and supplements that we don't account for in our grocery budget.  I also got free diapers/overnight pull ups for the boys.  
• Gathered items for a group yard sale next week.  We will price those this weekend.
• Continued to take pictures of items to post on eBay or Craigslist.
• The boys wanted to earn some money for the mission project that VBS is supporting, so they helped me clean the bathroom and kitchen floor.  It was a great help to me, and taught them the importance of hard work.  They were really pleased to put their money in the basket today.
• The boys were at VBS this week, which was free and great programming for them.  It's a daytime model, so it meant that I could get some work done on National Boards renewal while they were there.
• I attended a workshop one day that has a stipend, which will be paid in my check later this month.
• We got the new house estimate from the builder.  It's still a bit more than we'd like to pay, but we think that we can change a few things and get the numbers down.  We're also exploring more side hustles to build up our funds again after medical expenses.
• Little man and I had dentist appointments this week.  We opted to wait to pay the bill until our HSA card is reloaded so that we can use those pretax funds.
• I'm finishing up some insurance claims forms, which should put a little bit of cash back into savings for us.
• Our accountant got our taxes to us, after filing an extension.  We'll use that refund to pay medical expenses.  If there's anything left, it will go to savings.

Overall, I think we have made some good headway this week.  I really look forward to selling some things at the yard sale and decluttering our house a bit, while putting some money into savings.  I'm also planning some free play dates with friends for next week with the boys.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments First Week of June

This past week we've worked really hard to keep spending to a minimum and increase our side gig business.  I did have a doctor's appointment out of town, but was able to combine it with a visit with my in-laws and stay with them, saving hotel costs.  They also took me to Costco while there and refused to let me pay for the things I got, which is a gracious gift. 

Here's what we did this past week to save:

• Made all meals at home including tacos with chicken from the freezer, salads, smoothies, snack plates with veggies, nuts, hard boiled eggs, etc., and breakfast for dinner (Paleo pancakes, fruit, bacon, and egg scramble with greens and mushrooms).
• Enjoyed shared meal with the Children's Council at their annual summer bash.  The boys had a great time playing and Benny got some real visit time in with friends.
• Had another shared meal with Mom, as well as a fundraiser benefit meal for Benny's aunt who recently passed away (the fundraiser will help to cover medical expenses).
• Washed laundry in cold water and hung to dry.
• Cut up brown paper bag to drain bacon, rather than use paper towels.
• Used veggies from our CSA for salads, smoothies, and cooked greens to eat with eggs.  We paid for our CSA through our eBay sales.
• Cashed in baby bucks for diapers and a Walmart card.
• Used Walmart card to pay for part of Father's Day present.  The boys decorated a bag to wrap the gift in.
• Benny put the screens in the windows of the rental house.  They were bent and torn, but we made them work and patched the holes.  They provide nice cross breeze in the house and it's been really cool lately, so we haven't needed the fans.
• I took a few things that my sister in law was getting rid of.  Most are kids toys that we will probably post on Craigslist.  My goal is to make $1500 this summer on Craigslist, eBay, and Amazon reselling things.  We'd like to get some bills paid off and increase our savings.
• I have a lead on some summer tutoring opportunities, so I'll follow up on that later this week.
• Benny took on a side job reviewing electronic equipment.  He got his first product to review this week, so we'll see how much he makes from his review.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

June Menu

We're winding down our school year and enjoying the first weeks of our CSA.  That means loads of greens and spring onions, so this month's menu is planned with that in mind.  We're also, as always, trying to make good use of what we have on hand.  And, of course, we're trying to keep the kitchen cool by doing cooking in the morning or in the crock pot.

Here's the plan:

Breakfasts:

• Overnight crock pot oatmeal with added cinnamon, chia, and flax seed
• Breakfast casserole with potatoes, onions, and spinach/chard (and bacon if we have it)
• Smoothies with greens, berries, and coconut milk
• Gluten free biscuits with eggs, greens, and cheese or bacon
• Breakfast snack plate with hard boiled eggs, fruit, nuts, and maybe small yogurt parfaits
• Fried eggs with sweet potato hash and greens

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Picnic with fruit, nuts, energy bites, seaweed snacks, etc.

Dinners:

• Crock pot Asian chicken with egg rolls and Asian slaw
• Salmon with green salad
• Crock pot cilantro lime chicken for tacos with greens, spring onions, and radishes
• Dinner salads with spring onions, radishes, seeds, nuts, and hard boiled eggs
• Grilled hot dogs (of the all natural, nitrate free variety) with veggies and dip and fresh fruit
• Crock pot Asian chicken lettuce wraps (different recipe from above)
• Father's Day meal:  mini meatloaves, baked potatoes, and salad
• Community meals with our Children's Council support groups
• Black beans and rice with fixin's
• Chili with frozen tomatoes, leftover black beans, and ground beef/venison from freezer

Groceries to buy:

• Eggs (some will come from CSA)
• Almond milk or soy milk
• Canned coconut milk
• Hot dogs
• Sausages for breakfast
• Organic bell peppers
• Chipotle in adobo (I saw a trick for freezing it, since I only use a small bit.  But it adds so much flavor!)
• Plain yogurt
• Corn tortillas (non-GMO)
• Egg rolls
• Gluten free hot dog buns
• Fresh, seasonal fruit

How will you live and save green in the kitchen this coming month?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments Last Week of May

We worked really hard this past week to save where we could.  Our side hustles on eBay and Amazon are proving to be a little fruitful, and I did some more cleaning out to find even more things to sell, and donate to Goodwill.  We spent some great time with friends over the holiday weekend, camping and using what we had on hand to feed everyone.

Here's what else we did to save money this past week:

• Cooked meals at home including:  beef tacos/nachos with grassfed beef, radish greens, spring onions, cheese, and salad greens; smoothies; overnight oatmeal in the crock pot; snack plates with dried fruit, fresh pineapple, veggies, hard boiled eggs, and nuts
• Enjoyed yoga and a fabulous dinner from Chick-Fil-A with salad stuff and fresh oranges.  Yoga class was great and we had wonderful discussion.  I came home with leftover nuggets and had them on a salad the next day for lunch.
• Cashed in baby bucks for a Walmart card at the Children's Council.
• We had several shared meals including ones at our children's council groups, with our Tang Soo Do family for belt promotions, dinner with Mom, and meals with friends camping.
• Used a few other gift cards that were floating around my wallet for groceries.  Bought a watermelon and pineapple on sale for $3 total.  I also bought frozen berries for smoothies on sale for $6/48 oz and some bananas.
• We camped out with friends over the holiday.  They have a wonderfully flat yard, so we camped there and had a bonfire (we had helped clear some sticks from their yard and they had cut some limbs recently).  We pooled our resources in terms of food and had a great spread.  There wasn't enough wood to cook dinner over the fire, but we did do s'mores, which the kids loved.
• I took some time to clean out the garage at Mom's where we have some things stored.  I mostly organized, but did find a few boxes and toys to donate to Goodwill.  I made sure to get a tax receipt.  
• I found some toiletries in my clean out that we can use, saving us purchasing new.  I also found some more t-shirts for the boys.
• I cut both the boys and Benny's hair.  They got their summer cuts and all look very nice.
• The boys had a blast playing outside most evenings and even got to build a fort with some scrap plywood.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 2nd Week of May

We worked really hard this past week to stretch our budget and still do things we wanted to do.  We did make one large purchase of an infrared sauna, which I need for health reasons, but we'll all benefit from.  Thanks to our frugal ways, we are able to pay for it without going into debt.  I also asked if they offered an educator discount, and they took an additional $300 off the sale price.  It will ship this week, so I'm looking forward to having one at home and saving on the travel costs to the one that's about 30 minutes away.

Here's how we saved last week:

• All meals were prepared at home including:  smoothies, overnight oatmeal, breakfast for dinner, roasted veggies and homemade chicken tenders, mini meatloaves (we made a double batch), salads, and yogurt parfaits
• We enjoyed shared meals with family and at our parent support classes through the Children's Council
• Earned baby bucks at our Children's Council classes, so we now have enough for a Walmart card.
• Checked out free toy boxes at the Children's Council.
• Made use of our Playhouse membership to play on Saturday.  I was grateful for the free coffee.
• We were grateful for my mom watching both boys on Saturday night.  It meant that we had our first overnight without either kid in over three years.  It was really nice, though we kept it very low key and cooked a meal at home together and watched some of Chef's Table.
• Gladly received some leftovers from yoga class dinner including hash brown potatoes and applesauce.  This applesauce got us through with fruit for the week when we were running low.
• Gleaned greens from the food pantry.  We took radish greens that most would toss and made pesto with some.  I also chopped some into our meatloaf mix.  I plan to chop, saute, and freeze the rest for soups later.  They are also good sauteed in scrambled eggs.
• I used a mesh basket for steeping loose tea rather than a tea sack.  This saves these for when we're traveling.
• Composted some kitchen scraps in the bottom of one of our larger containers with tomato plants.  I layered the compost with potting soil and added a bit of garden soil, so it should add some nutrients to the tomatoes.  I also composted some coffee grounds by mixing them with potting soil.
• Reused some boxes to make solar ovens with the kids using black paper and aluminum foil.  They want to test them out to make s'mores this weekend.  Hoping it will be sunny.
• Stopped at Aldi on the way back from a funeral out of town.  We don't have an Aldi in town, but we enjoy shopping there when we can because it's so cheap and they have a good organic selection.
• Exercised with the boys by running races around the yard.  They make up various paths around trees and we just run.  It's fun, and great exercise for everyone.
• I began getting up a little earlier to pray.  The goal is to get up by 5:00 to pray and exercise before anyone else is awake.  I'm slowly inching there, but I at least am feeling better prepared for the day with the few minutes in prayer.  I try to combine this with some yoga breathing exercises to really help me focus and push other thoughts to the side.
• Mom kept little man a little later on Tuesday afternoon.  He really enjoyed the time and had the chance to earn a little money for our summer trip by doing some garden work with her.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

May Menu

This month's menu will make use of fresh local produce, items in our freezer and pantry, and trying out a few new recipes.  We'll probably also try to glean some things from the food pantry when we volunteer. 

We generally try to have a loose weeknight schedule of meals that looks something like this:
Sunday:  Dinner with Mom, roast two sheet pans of veggies for the week
Monday:  Leftover roasted veggies, salad, and some sort of protein
Tuesday:  Crockpot meal night, usually paired with salad
Wednesday:  leftovers or breakfast for dinner (usually sauteed greens or veggies, eggs, bacon/sausage, and maybe pancakes or waffles)
Thursday:  Dinner at yoga
Friday:  Pizza night with gluten free crust or snack plate
Saturday:  Leftovers, tacos, or a new recipe (I try new recipes on Saturdays because I generally have more time for meal prep)

This loose meal plan helps us to use things we have on hand.  It also makes planning pretty easy, and the boys generally know what to expect.  Of course, there are times when things get changed up, but overall this is the plan we follow.  You'll notice that many of the meals are ones that could use multiple proteins, which allows us to always pull from our freezer stash.

So, here's the plan for May

Breakfasts:

• Overnight crock pot oatmeal (I always make a double batch for easy weekday breakfasts)
• Eggs and tomatoes or veggies
• Breakfast tacos with scrambled eggs and guacamole
• Breakfast hash with sausage, roasted root veggies, and fried eggs
• Gluten free coffee cake or biscuits
• Smoothies
• Paleo pancakes or waffles with fruit

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Salads with protein (chicken, fish, sausage, nuts/seeds, hard boiled eggs)

Dinners:

• Roasted vegges and fish
• Mini meatloaves or meatballs served over sauteed greens and sliced tomatoes
• Dinner salads with protein
• Tacos with ground beef and fixin's
• Crockpot chicken catchatore with salad
• Almond flour pizza and salads
• Crockpot cilantro lime chicken for tacos/taco salad
• Beef and cheddar pie or quiche with broccoli, cheese, and dried tomatoes
• Paleo chicken pot pie (new recipe)
• Crock pot Asian chicken with Asian slaw
• Breakfast for dinner

Snacks:

• Nuts
• Dried fruit
• Popcorn
• Energy bites
• Yogurt parfaits with organic yogurt, berries, chia/flax/pumpkin seeds and cocoa powder

Batch cooking:

• Roasted veggies (two sheet pans)
• Herb crusted chicken
• Energy bites
• Crock pot overnight oatmeal
• Meatballs

What do you plan to make this month?  How do you live and save green in the kitchen?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 1st Week of May

We did a lot this past week to work with what we had.  We're always trying to make things special for our kiddos but also keep it within our budget.  We've been working hard to side hustle a bit and pay off some bills, as well as saving for the new house.

Here are some of our accomplishments:

• Cooked meals at home including: smoothies, overnight oatmeal, salads, guacamole, herb crusted chicken, roasted veggies, breakfast for dinner (sauteed cabbage and sausage, eggs, bacon, and fruit), pasta with salad, energy bites, and chocolate caramel popcorn (we used walnuts rather than peanuts because that's what we had, though peanuts would be cheaper)
• Saved glass jar from olives and salsa for our home fermented veggies and food storage
• Found some items at school that were being tossed that we can resell on Amazon or eBay
• Walked several days with the dog, getting us both some exercise for free.
• Participated in our children's council parent support groups, appreciating the free meals, childcare, and support.  Yoga was great with a new teacher.  We earned baby bucks for our participation, getting us closer to a Walmart card.
• Took part in a county wide conference on Saturday to find ways to be a more compassionate community and support those going through trauma.  It was great to work with community organizations like DSS, Montessori schools, and others in the school system.  The school paid for my registration and it included breakfast and lunch (both of which were fabulous!).
• Have enjoyed visiting a new church.  The boys have really enjoyed Sunday school there and have much larger peer groups.  It is also closer to home and they offer an early service, which gives us more time on Sundays as a family.
• Enjoyed some shared meals with family and friends.  We shared some veggies and chicken and helped prepare the meal.
• Had a lovely visit with a friend we hadn't seen in a long time.  She shared some plants with us including tomatoes, raspberries, and herbs.  We're looking forward to planting these and then taking many of them to our new property once we move.
• Stopped at Aldi on my way back from a workshop.  I stocked up on avocados, cilantro, frozen berries, organic coffee, and more.  It was more than I normally try to spend for the week, but many items will last us several weeks.
• Benny brought home a flat of tomatoes from the restaurant.  We used them in salads, guacamole, and just ate them in wedges with salt and pepper.
• We gleaned several items from the food pantry pick up.  Farmer's market season has begun for us again, so we're helping with the gleaning project from the market for the food pantry.  Some of the items won't last from Saturday to Wednesday (greens are really sensitive and the food pantry doesn't always have enough fridge space to store ideally).  This meant that we came home with three bags of greens (radish, spinach, and mixed greens) and some turnips with greens.  We also were able to get some fruit from the grocery pick up and mushrooms.
• We're finalizing our details for vacations this summer.  We plan to use credit card points to pay for flights and hotel.  The hotel will include breakfast and have a pool, so it will help with food costs and entertainment.  We'll be visiting a family friend, so many of our meals will be shared with him and we'll source things locally through the farmer's market there.  It will be an exciting trip and we can't wait!
• I saved egg cartons to give to a coworker in exchange for fresh eggs.  What a deal!
• We began planning for our outdoor clothesline at the rental house.  There's a logical place for one, we just need to get the line, which I think we can get with a Walmart card that we earn for free.
• The boys are thrilled that their seedlings are beginning to sprout in the garden!  We should be harvesting radishes and greens in 3-4 weeks.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 4th week of April

This past week was spring break for us.  We always try to spend spring break at home as a "stay-cation", taking advantage of things that we don't typically get to do around home.  We kept our spending relatively low, although we did spend on a few special things.  Meals were at home or picnics, mostly.  The beautiful weather allowed us to spend loads of time outside, so that was great for the boys.

• Cooked all meals at home including:  chili without beans (I'm avoiding legumes for a few weeks to try to heal my gut) using mostly things we had in the freezer/pantry, picnic with fruit, veggies and dip, nuts, etc., made energy bites, made homemade cheese straws, salads, overnight oatmeal in the crock pot, and paleo waffles
• Continued with regular laundry habits of washing in cold water and hanging clothes to dry
• Listened to a few free podcasts, etc. while getting ready in the mornings
• Visited local attractions for a discounted rate because we're local.  Every year this location offers April discounts to local residents, which is really nice.  We enjoyed seeing wildlife, hiking, and picnicking here for $9 total (it's usually $22 per person) plus the small amount of gas to get there.  The boys had a blast and because we got there early, we missed the traffic and lines.
• We took the boys to a play of the Cat and the Hat at an area theater.  Mom purchased the tickets for us, so we just had to pay for gas to get there.  It was a sweet show, and a really nice experience for the boys.
• Planted our garden with the boys.  We planted onions, radishes, various greens, basil, oregano, borage, beans, and cucumbers. These were all from seeds, so they will take a while to grow.  The radishes will grow quickly, which should be exciting for the boys.We had some rain, so we didn't have to water them by hand.  Most were planted in pots, but a few of the larger ones were in a small garden area we'd prepared.
• We spent several days at The Playhouse with the boys.  They had a great time outside with the bubble machine set up on the playground, and had a great time playing with all the indoor exhibits.
• I took advantage of a $10 off $50 order at Harris Teeter and stocked up on some items.  We hadn't done a big grocery run in a while, so we needed some staples and some produce.  I was able to make things stretch further with coupons and a raincheck for the sale price on something.
• We gleaned a few items from the food pantry this week, though the collection from local stores was less this week, perhaps due to the holiday.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 2nd Week of April

The weather was beautiful this past week!  It gave me such an itch to get out in the garden!  (The weekend was a total washout, so I'll probably wait until Easter at this point to plant our containers.)  The boys took a little road trip, so Mom and I had a wonderful girls day together yesterday.  We hadn't had one in ages and it was super fun.

But you're here to check out the frugal accomplishments, so here's what we did to live and save green this past week:

• Ate meals at home including:  double batch of quiche with mushrooms, sundried tomatoes, and onions with goat cheese (all from our pantry and fridge), dinner salads, almond flour pizza, smoothies, energy bites, and homemade bone broth.
• Helped with food pantry pick up and was able to glean several items including organic milk, nondairy milk, organic keifer, fruit, veggies, gluten free snacks, tea, etc.  We plan to help next Sunday as well, as they're short on volunteers right now.
• Enjoyed reading from our own library at home.  I also enjoyed a few YouTube videos at home.
• Worked out at home with YouTube and walking.  I also enjoyed some yoga at the Children's Council.
• Washed laundry in cold water and hung to dry.
• Participated in our regular children's council groups and earned baby bucks, which we were able to cash in for a Walmart card.
• Loved some time outside with the boys and dog playing.  The sunshine was great, and it was fun to be with them.
• Mom and I had a great girls day.  She treated me to brunch after early church and we did a little shopping.  Then she helped me do a little mending and we had a nice visit.  
• I entered a few free sweepstakes online.  They're a long shot, but would be helpful if we won.  It would really help with the house and medical bills.
• We continued to research some side hustle businesses, and I wrote up a few eBay posts.  We have a goal of posting 3 items a week, which should help us pay off bills faster.
• I took the boys to a free event at the high school that was STEAM focused.  They loved it!  We got there early and they had a blast:  huge blocks, box city, real fire truck!, physics and robotics demos, etc.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

10 Ways to Entertain a Family on a Budget

We are all about entertaining our children on a budget.  Kids generally don't want anything other than time with you, the parent, when you get right down to it.  So, when it comes to entertaining our kids during the day, or weekend, we try really hard to make it quality time and something that we'll all enjoy.  So, here some of the ways we try to honor our family principles and quality time together.

Public Library (Free!)
We try to go to the public library at least once a week.  Our children's librarians do a great job of story time, but also other activities.  Recently, they had materials out to build leprechaun traps for St. Patrick's Day.  They regularly have a scavenger hunt up for kids, as well as other things.  The summer reading program is probably our favorite thing they do, and many public libraries have them.  The boys love visiting the library, and we also find that it's a great meeting place for us, and there are many times when we need a quiet space to do some work that we find ourselves there.

Local Park (Free!)
We're fortunate to live in an area that has many local parks.  Some are more natural areas, while others are specifically designed with children and families in mind.  One of our favorite parks has great play equipment, but also nice trails for biking and walking.  The great thing about parks is that they're free and the kids get loads of energy out, so they're getting their vitamin D and a good night's rest (which means more time for Mommy and Daddy to have an at home date when they crash early!)



Visit a Local Farm or Farmer's Market (usually free)
If your kids are anything like ours, they love animals!  Visiting a local farm or farmer's market almost guarantees seeing farm animals doing their thing, as well as a pretty up close experience.  Our local CSA farmer organizes farm visits a few times a season, which we love, because it means our kids are really learning where their food comes from.  Sometimes, the kids are even invited to eat from the farm too, which is super cool and means they're getting some extra veggies in too.

Take a Hike (Free!)
In most areas, there are at least a few hiking trails around.  If you're in a big city, you can probably find a state or national park within easy driving distance.  We love to visit our local hiking trails, some of which have waterfalls or other cool things to look at along the trail.  By packing a picnic, it means that we can make a day of it, and it usually doesn't cost us anything more than the gas to get there.  Hiking is also an excellent way to get some exercise, and we're beginning to be able to teach our kids about some of the cool edible plants out there, as well as some of the wildlife native to our area.  Do you have a favorite local hiking trail?


Family Pizza and Movie/Game Night (Free, depending on ingredients on hand)
We used to do family pizza night every Friday night.  We'd make homemade dough in our bread machine and use our homemade pesto and go from there.  This cast iron pizza dip also sounds incredible. Since we've gone mostly gluten free, we're experimenting with almond flour crusts, and we think we've found a good one.  It's a little more costly than the wheat based one, but it's worth it for our health.  We then add whatever veggies or toppings we have on hand.  Movie choices are easy now with Netflix (or whatever you pick up from your local library) and as the boys get older, games are easier to play.  We're really looking forward to them getting old enough to get into board games.  You could even organize a game swap with friends if you're kids are getting a little bored with the selections at your house.

Cookout or Camp-out (Free or low cost, depending on venue)
Our family loves a good cookout, but who doesn't?!  It doesn't have to be anything elaborate, and if you plan ahead, you can use some things in your freezer or pantry to pull it off pretty easily and inexpensively.  We try to keep quality ground beef and chicken in the freezer, so if we plan well, we can easily thaw that in the refrigerator.  That means all we need is sides to go with burgers or grilled chicken, which might include pasta salad, green salad, sliced fruit, or some grilled veggies.  One of the things I love about the grill is that it doesn't heat up the kitchen in the summer, and cleanup is generally pretty easy. 

If you're planning a camp-out, it might take a little more prep, but if you have your own camping gear it's pretty simple.  We have friends who have a flat yard, so there are times we just do a friend's camp-out there.  Other times, we rent a site at a local park for a few dollars a night.  Either way, it's a fun outing and quality family time.  We usually take the ingredients to make foil pouch campfire meals.  Do you have a favorite camp-out dish you make?  Share it in the comments below!

Water Play or Pool (Free or low cost)
If you're looking for a summer activity to wear your kids out, consider water play!  We have several rivers, creeks, etc. in the area where the kids can play.  Our local children's museum (which we have a gift membership to) has a water table outside that's loads of fun too.  Playing outside in the water is a great way for kids to get some energy out, engage in positive play with peers, and stay cool on a warm day. 

We love our local pool too, for water play.  It can get a little packed out on some days, so we try to go on the early side, but it's loads of fun.  It was tougher with the boys when they were smaller, but now that they're big enough to trust a bit in the water, it's much easier.  We usually take snacks so that we don't have to purchase from the vending machines, saving our wallets and getting healthier snacks into their bellies.

Local Community Events (Free or low cost)
With Easter coming up, there are Easter egg hunts all over the place.  Our public library is awesome at organizing events for holidays, and many area churches and organizations put together egg hunts.  We've attended local school international arts nights, science nights, etc., which are generally open to anyone in the community, not just that school community.  The boys really like attending vacation Bible school at a local church and it's always really well organized and run.  This weekend, our local children's museum is putting together a huge event for kids to explore all things science, math, and arts related.  There are so many free events to check out in your community, especially if you're plugged in.  If you're new to the area, the local library is usually a great resource, not only for the events they plan, but also because they know of other community resources and events.

Children's Council (Free)
Our area children's council does a great job of organizing parent support groups with free child care.  They offer several of these throughout the week, and there are various incentives to participate.  There is a toy library that they have for checkout, and they also organize the signup for The Imagination Library, which provides free books to kids ages birth to 5.  Our boys love getting their books in the mail, and the toy library is phenomenal.  It's a great way to try out new toys without having to sink money into them.

Bowling (Low Cost)
Through Kids Bowl Free, our kids get to bowl two games for free throughout the summer.  There is a charge for shoes (half price), and you can include adults for a discounted rate.  We have saved some on the adults by buying our own blowing shoes (we still rent the kids, since their feet are growing so fast).  This is a great rainy day activity and the kiddos love it.  Check it out to see if your local bowling alley participates!

Bonus!  Games at home (Free!)
There are so many games to play at home.  My kiddos are young, but here are a few that are regular hits around our house:

• Hide and Seek
• Scavenger hunt/treasure hunt (hide toys.plastic eggs, etc. and hunt for them)
• Build your own race track (using recycled materials like card board, etc.)
• Outdoor play:  balls, running, tag, remote control cars, fill bird feeders, etc.
• Play kitchen
• Puppet shows
• Build a fort with sheets/blankets and read stories
• Make a snack in the kitchen:  air popped popcorn, cookies, energy bites, etc.
• Coloring/art centers
• Make a game with math problems.  Do math with edible manipulatives such as raisins, nuts, green peas, or chocolate chips

What low cost entertainment ideas do you have for your kids or family?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 1st Week of April

As usual, this past week was all about saving where we can.  We did take a weekend trip, but it will be reimbursed by the school since it was work related for me. 

We continue to work at developing a side hustle to bring in some additional income.  I'm hopeful that this blog will become one such way, and we're doing some research to figure out some ways to monetize this without it becoming so ad heavy that it's unappealing to readers.  (If you have any ideas, please let me know in the comments section!)  Earning baby bucks through our Children's Council activities is another way we're able to supplement our income a bit, since each time we accumulate 10 we can earn a Walmart card.  This Walmart card allows us to purchase some needed items without spending out of pocket.

Other ways we've saved:

• Meal planning for the month of April will allow us to stick to our food budget and our dietary needs.  This past week we've had banana bars, a snack plate, and crock pot Asian chicken with Asian slaw.
• We enjoy our shared meals through our support groups at the Children's Council.  We also shared a meal with my mom, using some things we had on hand for minimal cost.
• Our play activities were focused on free things, like hide and seek and doing an Easter egg hunt.  We've been stuffing the eggs with little man's sight words and plan to add letters to the eggs for baby.  This helps with reading readiness and they've had a blast with it.  We've had fun with hide and seek by using skip counting (5, 10, 15, etc.) to rehearse counting and basic number sense.
• The weather was pretty enough outdoors this weekend for a lot of outdoor play.  I was able to do yoga outside while the boys played, and this gave all of us some vitamin D exposure.
• I worked out with YouTube videos and our yoga parenting class.  I also was able to get some walking in on the college campus this weekend.
• We washed most clothing in cold water and hung to dry.  Potty training continues to go well, so we've pretty much packed up the diapers (we used cloth).  We still use a diaper at bedtime for baby.
• A big Costco run was made this past weekend, where we restocked on pantry staples and some organic freezer items like berries, broccoli, and fish.  I price checked a few items, and realized that we can get them cheaper at our local store, so I skipped those.  We keep a running list using Google Keep, so I stuck to our list so that we didn't buy a lot of things we didn't need.
• The ThreadUp bag (referral link) I sent it was finally processed.  I didn't earn as much credit as I'd like from it, but hopefully I'll get some referral credit or add a little more to it when I send in the next bag.  This is a nice way to clean out a bit and give me a little spending money for clothes without paying out of pocket.
• A generous coworker gave us some eggs from her free range chickens, which was really nice.  The eggs will be great for breakfasts and for baking.
• I did a few Epsom salt baths at home for relaxation and cleansing.  I have found that I really do sleep better, especially if I include a little lavender and tea tree oil in the bath.
• I've begun picking up little man from school more so that Benny isn't driving across the county multiple times a week too.  It's a little tougher to get my work done, but it's worth it for the savings.  Little man is also getting some of his homework done during this time, so that's a plus.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

April Menu

This month is, as always around our house, about eating as cleanly and healthfully while still enjoying the food we eat.  We just did a major restock run at Costco for some essentials, like almond flour, olive oil, coconut oil, nuts, etc.  The bill was more than we normally spend, but since we're trying to eat more organically, I'm ok with that.  Once our CSA share starts in May, as well as some of our own edibles, we'll be able to bring the organic produce bill down quite a bit.

We're also trying to find some more time this month for Benny to work, so we're trying to make meals quick and easy.  That means more crock pot meals, more leftovers, prepping ahead on the weekends, and easy dinner salads.  You'll also notice that there are several meals that use the same side or dish reworked.  For example, when we make chili, I'll freeze some to have later with baked potatoes.  Or, I'll fix Asian slaw on the weekend and make a large batch so we have enough to go with stir fry and crock pot Asian chicken.

So, here's the plan for this month:

Breakfasts:

• Smoothies:  frozen berries, some other fruit, greens, nondairy milk, flax/chia, and any spices we add in (cocoa powder, turmeric, ginger, and cinnamon  are all favorites)
• Banana bars
• Baked oatmeal
• Roasted veggies with eggs
• French toast (for those eating gluten) or Paleo pancakes
• Yogurt parfaits with berries and granola

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Snack plates:  fruit, nuts, hard boiled eggs, veggies and dip, crackers and cheese, etc.
• Salads

Dinners:

• Thai coconut chicken curry soup (from America's Test Kitchen Slow Cooker book)
• Beef chili with corn bread
• Veggie stir fry over brown rice with egg rolls and Asian Slaw
• Cabbage and kielbasa skillet meal with corn bread
• Chicken tacos with greens, salsa, Greek yogurt, and cheese
• Beans and rice with fixin's
• Tomato basil soup and salads and quesadillas
• Loaded baked potatoes with beef chili and salads
• Crock pot Asian chicken and Asian slaw
• Pecan crusted chicken and roasted veggies
• Breakfast for dinner (some combination of French toast, pancakes, bacon, eggs, roasted potatoes, etc.)

What meals do you have planned to help you live and save green this month?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 4th Week of March

This past week was once again about using what we have and trying to save where we could.  We were glad to find out that the fix to the car was about $30, not a few hundred like we were anticipating.  I'm grateful to have a mechanic that we can walk from, so I can drop the car off and then little man and I walk to school from there.  It was some good free exercise and mean little logistical issues.

On the down side, we were kind of blind sided with a hefty medical bill.  I had a test done back in February that ended up being way more than anticipated.  We're working through things to try to come up with creative ways to pay that down asap.

• All meals were made at home including:  smoothies, salads, pork loin and potatoes in the crock pot, roasted veggies, and breakfast for dinner.  
• Grateful for shared meals with friends and at our Children's Council groups.  I came home with enough leftovers from our yoga class for at least three extra meals.
• We volunteered for the food pantry pick up at a local grocery store, so we came home with several things including organic yogurt, nondairy milk, fruit, veggies, etc.
• Because we serve on the Wesley Foundation board, the campus minister generously invited us to the board retreat and allowed us to bring the boys.  So, while Benny was in meetings and planning sessions, I got to play with the boys at the conference center and took them to a local science museum that we have a gift membership to.  The boys had a great time and it was a nice break.  We were grateful for the meals and a little overnight time away.
• We continued with our regular hanging of laundry to dry, except sheets.  We had a few extra loads of sheets because of some nighttime accidents, but that's just par for the course right now.
• I worked out by walking the track at the school that's not far from our house, as well as YouTube videos at home.  It was nice to be able to get outside and walk some with the weather warming.
• I worked another hour or so on lesson plans for the local art and history museum I'm consulting for.  I'm hoping to finish that work soon so that I can be paid for that work soon.
• We explored an offer from BB&T to open a new account with them for a $200 bonus.  It looks legitimate, so we'll probably do that this week.
• Combined errands as much as possible.  This saves on gas and allowed us to also be intentional about spending.
• I began completing the paperwork to file for a $100 health credit with one of the insurance policies we have.  It looks like I'll have to get my doctor to complete part of the form, but it shouldn't take too long to get that credit back.
• We found a few more things we can sell on eBay to make a little extra money, which should help pay down the medical bills.  We had a little time to chat last night after the boys were in bed and made a goal of posting at least three new items on eBay each week, which should be do-able.
• I looked through the seeds I'd saved in the freezer from previous years.  I plan to start a few things in pots soon, because we can give them a little protection under the carport.  I'm hoping to begin some greens and maybe herbs.
• Our regular recycling and composting efforts continue.
• I looked over a few of my threadUp emails (referral link).  There were a few tempting things, but to keep our budget, I didn't order anything.  If I earn some more credit with them, I might use the credit to buy a new summer tunic or dress, but it's just a want, so not really necessary.
• After much debate, I decided to let my Mary Kay business lapse.  It's just not where my heart is anymore, and it was becoming difficult to even get enough orders to make the annual activity order reasonable.  I was spending more money than it was worth, so it's better for me to spend elsewhere and let it lapse.

What did you do to live and save green this week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 3rd Week of March

This past week was a mixture of success and failure, frugally speaking.  We did a pretty good job keeping our regular expenses low, but had a surprise with one car almost dying on us yesterday.  So, we're still waiting to hear what the cause might be and how much the repair will cost.  I'm grateful to have some savings and that the car didn't leave Benny and baby stranded.

Here are our frugal successes (and potential failures):

• Cooked meals at home including:  Asian lettuce wraps (very good, definite repeat), Asian slaw, dinner salads with salmon patties, sloppy joes, eggs and greens, roasted veggies, breakfast for dinner, and smoothies.  The dinner salads with salmon patties were a date night meal, which was nice and something we hadn't made in a while.
• We enjoyed some free meals at our Children's Council parent support groups, as well as dinner with Mom.  
• Treated the family to a meal out since we had some gift card money to spend.  It was not our first choice of restaurant, so I think in the future, we may choose to resell the gift cards and spend the money elsewhere.  The meal upset both of our tummies, though it didn't seem to affect the boys.
• Combined as many errands as possible with trips we were already making into town, including a trip to the grocery store.  I picked up some things on Thursday afternoon on my way to yoga (canned coconut milk, cabbage on sale for 17 cents/pound, and a few other small things).
• Continued with potty training.  Baby is getting very good with things overall, although we still have an accident or two daily.  Sometimes it's just a battle of wills, but we'll work through it.
• All laundry was handled as usual, with washing in cold and hanging to dry.  
• I resisted the temptation to purchase some new shoes I saw on sale online.  So, while I'd have liked them, the $50 we saved by not purchasing them means that we've got more in our savings.
• I put out an appeal to our faculty for trinkets for our treasure box at home.  A few folks have shared items, which makes the treasure box even more fun at home.  The boys are enjoying it, and it's saving us $2/week instead of purchasing something at the Dollar Tree each week.
• Picked up pull ups at the Children's Council instead of purchasing them.  This saved us $7-$10.
• On Saturday, the boys and I went to the library to make leprechaun traps (so fun!).  Then, we went to the Playhouse for some play time, and went to the Humane Society to take the items that little man had received for his birthday to donate there.  He loved the time in the kitty rooms, and was very proud to give his donations.  We saved the tax receipt for the donations.  It was more driving than I usually do on Saturdays, but worth it for the smiles and time petting the cats.
• Gratefully accepted an offer by Mom to keep the boys so we could have a date night.  We stayed home and cooked together, which is something we enjoy but hadn't really had a chance to do in a while.  The dinner of large salads and salmon patties cost us nothing, because it was all from our regular grocery budget, and it helped us clear out the pantry a bit because we used canned salmon.  It was really only a one pan meal, too, since we just had to make and cook the patties.  We made them grain free by using almond flour and coconut flour instead of bread crumbs.
• A wonderful coworker gave us some beautiful free range eggs, just because we shared extra egg cartons with her.  The eggs were clearly more nutritious than grocery store eggs, because the yolks were bright yellow-orange, almost like we'd added turmeric.  They made wonderful meals.
• I used some ingredients we had on hand to make homemade berry popsicles with some coconut water, banana, and frozen berries.  They've been a big hit as dessert or a treat after school.
• We took the boys up to the school yard near the house on Sunday afternoon to practice riding the bike and for some bubble play.  Little man is getting really good at his bike, although I'm afraid he's growing so fast he may need a new bike by summer!
• We began planning our summer vacation.  We got dates on the calendar and are working on ways to save on these trips.  One will be to see family, so lodging and most food will be covered.  We're always sure to take some of our own food and purchase some of our own to help out.  The other trip will be to CA to see a wonderful friend.  We'll pay for this with travel points.  We will likely eat most of our meals with this friend, and take advantage of a hotel breakfast, so meals shouldn't be too expensive.  We'll do a quick shopping trip while there to provide for any snacks or picnic items we might need.
• The previously mentioned car repair is a financial drain, but we're hoping it won't be too big.  We've been trying to set aside some funds to purchase a new car, but had hoped that we could wait to do that.  We'll see what the repairs entail.
• We were grateful to receive a box of gleaned produce, organic non-dairy milk, yogurt, etc. from the food pantry.  This, plus the little bit we had to purchase at the grocery store, will get us through this week nicely.  We continue to try to work down our freezer and pantry shelves.
• I took on a curriculum consultant position with a local art and history museum for their upcoming exhibits to develop lesson plans for them.  I was able to work a few hours this week on that project, so I've documented my time.  I'll submit my initial draft of the first lesson plan to see what they think and so that I know how to proceed with the others.  I'm happy for the side gig work, and am hopeful that it might lead to more consulting work with them in the future.
• I also applied for a summer professional development opportunity.  The stipend is substantial, so we're hopeful that I'll get in.  However, if I don't, it will still be a wonderful summer with the boys at home.  I'm really looking forward to that time with them.  

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Ways to Save on Meat

Meat is a staple in most diets, though that may be shifting somewhat as more and more people choose a plant based diet for a variety of reasons.  We've found several ways to save on meat over the years to keep our grocery budget low (we try to keep it at about $150/month for our family of four with two smaller kids).  Meat can quickly eat up your hard earned funds if you let it, especially if you don't shop sales.  So, here are a few ways we save on meat:

Eat Less
This is probably the first and easiest to master.  When you consider ways to eat less meat, you can think of meals where meat is a small portion, such as soups, pot pie, or stir fry.  We've also learned to stretch meat in even meat-based dishes like meatballs or meatloaf by incorporating some grains or cooked quinoa.  One of our favorite ways to eat less meat is to use legumes as a substitute.  I often make lentil sloppy joes or chili with black beans instead of using meat.  The recipe is just as filling and tasty, and it means that we can save the meat for another meal.  Then, you also have the option of having a meal that's entirely meatless, such as a dinner salad with nuts and hard boiled eggs on top.  This ensures that you're getting plenty of veggies (I shoot for 9 cups a day, though I know most aim for less than that), as well as getting your protein.

Use All the Parts
This used to be traditional, especially when families hunted for their food or harvested animals they raised.  Now that our culture has moved away from that food landscape and into a more industrialized one, we seem to have lost some of the respect we once had for food.

In our house, we try to purchase organic meat, so that means that meat is more costly.  So, when we purchase it, I find that it's generally cheaper to get a whole chicken, for example, rather than having it already cut up by the butcher (because, of course, we pay for that labor).  I'll either butcher the chicken at home myself or cook it whole.  Then, we save the bones to cook with veggie scraps for a delicious and nutritious bone broth.  Bone broth is very healing for your gut and immune system, and it provides glutamine which supports your liver in detoxifying your body of things you don't need in your system.



You can also access bones for stock through your local butcher, and we've also found local farms that will sell soup bones for a very reasonable price.  I'm also the one to always ask for the turkey carcass at a family holiday meal.  Most of the family doesn't want to bother with soup later and is happy to have me take care of part of the clean up!  You could employ the same strategy with roasted chickens at pot lucks, etc. when you're with people who understand your way of thinking.  When you use all the parts to make stock too, you quickly recoup the money you spent on that organic meat.

Raise or Hunt Your Own
While we don't have the land to raise our own meat, we are fortunate to have family and friends who hunt.  Many times, they're very willing to clean out their freezer of last year's venison before this year's hunting season begins.  I've also had students who hunt bring me some frozen venison, because they know I understand the value of their hard work in providing for their family and helping to control the local deer population.

If you do have the land a skill to raise your own meat, you could raise some heirloom breeds.  I'm fascinated with heirloom chickens, and my aunt and uncle are considering raising rabbits in their retirement.  You can have a local processor process the meat for you at harvest time, or you could be bold and do it yourself.

Seek Out Low Cost or Free Sources
Saving on the meat you eat doesn't have to be really complex.  When we do purchase meat, we make sure we're purchasing on sale.  Sometimes you can catch markdowns, especially if you pay close attention to when the butcher cycles things through.  If you talk with your butcher, you can usually learn which day of the week they mark things down and stop by that day.

Another way we've learned to save on meat is by utilizing our local food pantry.  We volunteer regularly at ours to help with the grocery store pick up, and are able to get a few things when we volunteer.  For example, this past week, we picked up some packages of bone in organic chicken.  So, those few packages will last us for several weeks, if we plan well and use all the parts.

How do you save on meat?  Are there other strategies you employ?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 2nd Week of March

This week we did our best to spend as little as possible, including eating from the pantry and freezer, combining trips, and recycling where possible.  We did schedule some regular maintenance work on the cars.  Little man continued with his sickness, though no fever, but we were able to conveniently get a trip to the doctor's in at his regularly scheduled physical, so there was no copay.  The peds office is also on the way home, so it wasn't a special trip.

• All meals were made at home including:  oatmeal with raisins and honey (we're out of brown sugar), smoothies with fruit, greens, and nondairy milk purchased on sale, eggs and leftover roasted veggies, leftover chili over rice, homemade mac and cheese with leftover bits of cheese and noodles, baked sweet potatoes topped with leftover sausage and salad, dinner salads with hard boiled eggs and other toppings.  We also made homemade sloppy joes with Paleo bread (a bust of a recipe, but we ate it), and we had snack plates with cut veggies, hummus, and some sliced apples.
• Lunch was always leftovers.  Little man ate school lunch one day.  He gets to choose school lunch once a month, and usually chooses chicken nugget day.
• Saved an olive jar and used it to hold homemade pesto made with spinach, olives, and sun dried tomatoes.  This was used as a pizza sauce, and we may freeze some for later use.  It's always a nice addition to pasta, sandwiches, or salad dressing.
• Used juice from homemade sauerkraut in homemade salad dressing in place of vinegar.  This makes our daily salad habit a bit more healthy by adding probiotics.
• Made good use of foods gleaned from the food pantry pick up, including lots of frozen bananas.
• Made homemade chicken stock using freezer bag with collected bones, veggie scraps, etc.
• Purchased organic veggies on sale and shopped local stores for best price on canned coconut milk.  Began investigating a subscription to Thrive for some of our pantry staples to avoid GMOs and purchase organic at a reasonable cost.
• Continued with potty training.  This is cutting down on laundry for the most part (we used cloth diapers), and baby is really proud of himself.  We continue to use diapers at naptime and bedtime.
• Laundry was washed in cold water, aside from sheets, towels, and any dirty laundry from potty training.
• Worked out at home with YouTube and made an effort to park as far from entrances as possible to get in a little more walking.  
• The boys, including Benny, continued with their Tang Soo Do karate.  Baby (3!  not baby anymore!) begins class this week and loves his new uniform.  This is good exercise for them, and good character development too.
• We completed baby's application for half day preschool in the fall.  He got in for five days a week, and Benny is excited to get back to work a little more than part time.  Baby will have wonderful teachers and we're excited for him to have more of a social experience than he has at home.
• I made baby's birthday cake a week ahead and froze it.  I goofed and accidentally left it out overnight, so if it seems a bit dry, I think I can poke some holes in it and pour a little decaf coffee over it before I add the ganache and no one will know. (It's a chocolate bundt cake, so the coffee will be good.)
• We volunteered at the food pantry and came home with two boxes of things we gleaned, including some organic nondairy milk, organic yogurt, organic chicken, and organic fruit.  We also found a few things to restock our pantry with, so we're in good shape for this week and beyond.
• I picked up some educational consulting work with our local art and history museum.  I'll be developing lesson plans for their upcoming exhibits in an effort to draw in more local school groups.  This is work that's exciting, and it will pay reasonably well.  I'll continue to work to pick up other side hustles.
• I think I found a decent landscape design program for free through Better Homes and Gardens.  They have a pretty extensive plant library, and it looks like I can upload our images to begin to play with site planning.

What did you do to live and save green last week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments First Week of March

This past week was again about using what we had on hand and spending as little as possible.  We were able to do some things that felt special for the boys, but stay at home.  Here's what we did for the week:

• Cooked all meals at home including:  enchilada casserole, greens and eggs, smoothies, oven baked salmon and roasted veggies, large dinner salads, snack plates (fruit, nuts, hard boiled eggs, cheese, veggies and dip), oatmeal, chili made with dried beans, banana bars, and homemade pizza (for those who could do gluten).
• Purchased necessary groceries with coupons or on sale.  Many other groceries were picked up at the food pantry.
• Took advantage of shared meals at yoga, with Mom, and another Children's Council group.  I also enjoyed some free snacks at a professional development meeting, and brought home a bottle of water from that.
• We washed all clothes in cold water, except ones that were worn by little man who was sick.  We hung clothes to dry inside on drying racks.
• Began seriously potty training baby.  He's been in training pants exclusively for three days now, with a few accidents, but is showing much more awareness.  He really seems to be getting it, and is really motivated when big brother helps him with it.  While this has made some mess, it has cut down on the laundry loads of cloth diapers.  We know it's a short term thing, and he is so proud of himself!
• Little man was sick for a few days with a fever.  Since so many kids had had something similar at school, we didn't take him in to the doctor's.  He toughed it out with homemade popsicles, broth and noodles, children's Tylenol, and rest.  We made good use of coloring books, story time, podcasts, and some screen time.  We found a few new free sources for children's audio books, including some of Aesop's fables told in a kid friendly way.
• We saved some money by not venturing out on Saturday as we usually do. We had centers at home (coloring, Legos, reading, rhyming word study, dress up, etc.) and spent a lot of time helping baby with the potty.  Little man was a big help, even though he felt puny, and we played a few of his easy card games with him on the couch and baby on the potty.  It was a kind of sweet, but comical morning.
• I began picking up little man on Wednesdays, as well as Mondays and Fridays.  While he loves for Daddy to pick him up, it really does save quite a bit for me to get him on the afternoons I don't have meetings, rather than Benny making a special trip.
• I registered for a a conference for school with the school credit card, rather than using our personal one.  This saved us the fee, and hassle, of having to get reimbursed.
• Benny picked up a few extra hours at work, which was nice.  He did it in the evenings, which meant more nights of me and the boys doing bedtime alone, but it was nice for him to find some extra time to work.
• I have taken on a contract position with the local art and history museum as a curriculum consultant for one of their new exhibits.  This is totally up my alley, and I look forward to finding out more about the position this week.
• Used a gift card to purchase baby's birthday gifts.  I ended up underestimating the cost, so we paid a little out of pocket, but that's ok.  The birthday party will be low key and hosted by Mom, which is really sweet.  

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

March Menu

March will also be about keeping our expenses low.  We're really trying to sock it to some outstanding debt in order to enter the new house debt free, aside from the mortgage.  We're also having to budget some more for the detox protocol with the integrative practice I'm working with, which of course isn't covered by our very traditional insurance.  But I know we can do it, and the fact that I'm feeling better really is motivational.

To that end, we'll continue making use of things we have in the freezer and pantry.  There will be some essentials we need to stock up on, like frozen berries, coconut milk, almond/soy milk, and fresh greens.  We'll also continue with our typical weekly use of the crock pot in order to save time and energy.

So, here's our plan:

Breakfasts:

• Smoothies with 1 cup greens, 1 cup coconut milk, 1/2 frozen banana, and some berries.  Add in seeds, cocoa powder, turmeric, ginger, etc. as desired.  Fill with filtered water to max fill line.
• Banana bars
• Eggs with leftover roasted veggies or greens
• Oatmeal with various dried fruit, seeds, and brown sugar/molasses
• Overnight crock pot steel cut oats
• Yogurt parfaits with granola, seeds, and frozen berries
• Coffee or tea (using loose tea when possible at home, because it's cheaper and generally better)
• Big boy breakfast:  Paleo pancakes, breakfast meat, eggs, fruit/veggies

Lunches:

• Leftovers
• Snack plate:  cheese, olives, pickles, gluten free crackers, chips and salsa, dried fruit
• Salads

Dinners:

• Crock pot Asian Chicken over rice or quinoa with Asian slaw (I usually make it without the Ramen because it keeps longer)
• Crock pot lasagna soup with gluten free noodles and salad
• Crock pot Thai chicken soup with Asian slaw (using leftover chicken or turkey in the freezer)
• Enchilada casserole with leftover chicken and corn tortillas, served with side salad
• Crock pot beans and rice with fixin's (cheese, salsa, plain Greek yogurt, maybe avocado
• Crock pot venison chili with fixin's (using leftover crock pot beans)
• Paleo dressing with sausage, mushrooms, onions, and celery
• Oven baked salmon with roasted veggies or salad
• Homemade mac and cheese with gluten free pasta and salad

Snacks:

• Cheese and crackers
• Fruit
• Energy bites
• Nuts

Batch cooking:

• Crock pot chicken/turkey stock (I've been trying to make some each week so I can have a cup or two daily and then put some in the freezer)
• Double batch of banana bars (one to eat, one to freeze)
• Energy bites
• Crock pot beans

Groceries to purchase/source at food pantry:

• Almond/soy/coconut milk (we try to do a rotation to get the health benefits from all)
• Cilantro (for Thai soup, Mexican recipes, and chili) and spring onions
• Frozen organic berries for smoothies
• Greens for salads and smoothies (we try to rotate baby kale, spinach, collards, and salad mix, again for health benefits, since each has a slightly different nutrient profile)
• Fruit (organic apples, citrus, pineapple, or whatever is on sale)
• Mushrooms (for Thai chicken soup, though I might use the dried ones we have)
• Avocado

The nice thing about most of these menu items is that they use pantry/freezer items as the base, so we can make them at any point.  The ones that rely on fresh ingredients, we'll try to make back to back so that things don't go bad (cilantro goes quickly, but we can freeze it in cubes for use in chili).

What are some things you plan to make in March?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 4th Week of February

This was a pretty average week for us, aside from some maintenance work that needed to be done to my car.  Thankfully, we've shopped around a bit and have found a few mechanics in town who will do the work at a reasonable price.  The mechanic we chose guarantees the work and parts for a year, which is a nice bonus.  Aside from that, life was about keeping costs low and being creative with what we have.

• All meals were prepped at home including:  double batch mushroom, onion, and sundried tomato quiche with roasted veggies, cooked collard greens and eggs for breakfast, smoothies, oatmeal with raisins, banana bars (really flexible recipe to add in seeds, nuts, etc.), energy bites, leftover turkey from Sunday dinner, and salads.
• Grocery spending was kept to a minimum and we worked really hard to use our frozen and dried fruit toward the end of the week when we ran low on fresh fruit.  We also used shelf stable veggies (potatoes, onions, homemade sauerkraut) later in the week when we were low on salad greens.
• I continued to try to get in my 9 cups of fruits/veggies daily, sometimes subbing dried or frozen items for fresh (I keep kale powder for smoothies when I run out of fresh greens, especially for smoothies.  I'd like to get some red raspberry powder and maybe beet powder for smoothies too.).  This, plus daily homemade bone broth really seems to be helping my health.
• Exercised at home with YouTube videos.  The boys exercised at karate 3 times this week.  I did yoga, cardio, and hand weights at home.  I also made an effort to walk more during the day by parking further from entrances, taking advantage of 10-15 minutes here and there to walk the dog, walk around the school track, etc.  I also used the small trampoline at the Playhouse to exercise while little man played independently one day.
• We took a new approach to a snow day and structured the day much like a home school might operate, at the request of little man.  He was disappointed about missing art at school that day and requested time for an art center at home.  We ran with his idea and he developed a whole list of centers to do that day, including math, reading, free choice (building with Legos), PE (yoga on YouTube for kids), snack, coloring (both coloring pages and cut up brown paper bags), puzzles, and cooking (the energy bites mentioned above).  It was a great day with very little sibling arguing, so we'll definitely continue this strategy when we have snow days or long afternoons.
• Cut up brown paper bags for use as wrapping paper, which the boys colored.  I saved the thicker bottoms for draining the grease from bacon, etc. instead of paper towels.  You could also use the brown packing paper for this.
• Enjoyed my regular yoga class at the Children's Council and earned my monthly parent reward for helping with setup.  This month was a $10 Walmart card.  We plan to use this to purchase baby's birthday present.
• Little man and I had a date one afternoon.  I took him to Starbucks (I had a gift card) and we went to Michael's to buy a gift for a birthday party.  I used a coupon and my educator discount to get the lowest price, and he was very excited about the gift he chose.
• Made goodies for a bake sale at school using ingredients we had on hand.  I chose a no bake for ease of time, and to save on the energy of running the stove.
• Made coffee for the week at home.  If I make 10-12 cups on Sunday, that will get us through most of the week.  We refrigerate the leftovers and reheat as needed in the microwave.
• We washed and hung all laundry to dry at home.
• We've had two pretty successful days with baby on the potty training front. He's stayed in training pants most of the day, and while he's had a few accidents, he knows to go straight to the potty.  Hopefully by next month we'll be out of diapers during the day completely!
• Read a few frugal living blogs and tried to implement some of their ideas.  I would love to go into the new house completely debt free, aside from the mortgage there.  Our plan is to pay down the mortgage quickly there, hoping to clear it in 10-15 years.  By integrating some rental properties there, we should be able to do it.
• I explored another option for a side hustle, which would be teaching online through a private company.  It's something I think I would enjoy, but I really just need to figure out if it would fit our schedule.
• Added a few more items to the eBay bag for listing there.  We hope to have our CSA totally paid for through our eBay sales.
• I sent in more items to ThreadUp using their shipping label and a box we had on hand.  It's nice to have credit there because it allows me to replace items in my wardrobe without shelling out money from savings.  (If you use the link, it's my referral link, so I do get some credit if you make a purchase through that link.)
• We used a baby buck from our Children's Council groups to "purchase" a pack of wipes.  We use cloth wipes at home, but the disposable ones are great when we're out. (We'll probably continue to use them after the kids are out of diapers because they're great for car messes, messy hands when a sink isn't nearby, etc.)
• I took two chicken carcasses from our yoga meal.  The chickens were rotisserie ones, so I combined them with some scrap veggies from the bag I keep in the freezer and made some stock in the crock pot.  These would have been otherwise thrown away, so it was essentially free food.

How did you live and save this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 3rd week of February

This week was all about getting through.  Both Benny and I were down with some sort of viral sinus infection.  We got through with homemade broth (which I started at 3:00 am in the crock pot when I was up and couldn't sleep!) and soup, homemade smoothies, and rest as much as possible.  We saved money by staying at home and eating what we had on hand.

Update:  My mole removal came back clear and there's nothing further to remove!  Thanks for the prayers, all!

Here are the rest of our accomplishments:

• Made all meals at home including:  soup with collards, sausage, tomatoes and kidney beans from our stash in the freezer/pantry, smoothies with greens and frozen berries and bananas, roasted veggies with crock pot chicken, leftover roasted veggies with eggs, and snack plates with cheese, nuts, dried fruit, olives, etc.
• Went to my GP (only a $10 copay for a visit to her vs urgent care or specialist) to rule out flu and strep, since I'd been exposed to both as a teacher.  She said it was likely viral, but called in a prescription for me in case things got worse.  I pushed through the virus with bone broth, soup, rest, hot baths/showers, and loads of hot herbal tea.  Grateful that the boys don't seem to have developed it.
• Enjoyed community meals with Children's Council, at a professional meeting, Tang Soo potluck, and shared meal with Mom.  We brought home leftovers from Mom's since we fixed a turkey and roasted veggies.  Those will get us through many meals this week.
• Benny and little man had their belt promotion on Thursday, which included a pot luck afterwards.  It was a late night, but a very nice ceremony for them.  We're proud of them!
• Continued with my detox protocol and seem to regain health weekly.  I'm back to exercising at home regularly and can do yoga without a problem.  I'm so grateful for that!
• Appreciated several items from the food pantry including fruit, organic yogurt, organic free range eggs, some dried fruit, and a few lunch snacks for the boys.
• Frugal fail:  I spent more at the grocery store than planned.  I ended up taking the boys with me, so I promised they could each choose a fruit that was on sale.  Of course, both chose berries (most expensive, even with being on sale).  I'm working with little man to explain how we make our money go further, but it's baby steps.  Success would be that the boys made healthy choices!
• Made homemade banana bars using frozen bananas from the pantry a few weeks ago and pantry staples.  The boys love these, and they're generally healthy (aside from a few tablespoons of brown sugar).  They make a nice breakfast snack or lunchbox treat.
• Mom gave us a surprise dinner date out, which was really nice.  We ate relatively inexpensively, and I brought home veggies from my fajitas and had them with eggs the next morning.  Benny and I used some of the time to consider how to rework part of the new house plans to make it more usable on the lot.
• We kept the heat low and did all our usual hanging laundry to dry to reduce electric bills.
• Wore pajamas and other clothes (sweaters, jeans, etc.) more than once to save on water and wear and tear on our clothes.
• Brought home leftovers from an event at school.  This will give us cheese to use in quiche and for snacks, as well as olives and pita chips the boys will love.

What did you do to live and save green this past week?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments 2nd Week of February

We continued to work toward our goal this week of eating out of the pantry and freezer, saving money.  I worked hard this past week to combine errands and trips into town, since we're living further out of town now.  We did have to spend a bit at the dermatologist's office to have an atypical mole removed, but it's worth it for health.  Here's the details of our spending/saving for last week:

• Meals cooked at home included:  roasted veggies and crock pot chicken, salmon and salad, chili thawed from the freezer, breakfast for dinner (bacon, eggs, collard greens, and fruit), smoothies with greens and frozen fruit, Paleo almond flour pizza crust from Elana's pantry (great first attempt at Paleo pizza crust!) and batch cooked chicken stock for use in soup.
• Saved chicken bones and veggie scraps in the freezer for another batch of stock.  I am finding that consuming at least a cup or two of bone broth is really helping my gut to heal, so I've just got to get into the habit of making some on a weekly basis.  This may mean purchasing some bones from our CSA in bulk, but it will be worth it.
• Enjoyed community shared meals at the Children's Council twice and at a baby shower.
• Used a gift card to purchase a few items at EarthFare, saving on our grocery bill this week.
• Purchased only necessary salad greens, almond milk, and yogurt.  
• There was loads of produce at the food pantry on the Sunday pick up that wouldn't make it until Wednesday, so we got fruit, milk, cheese, and a carton of yogurt for this week.  We also stocked up on bananas to freeze for smoothies.
• Benny and I both won the door prize at our Children's Council support groups, so we have a total of $20 gift card for Applebee's.  We plan to use them later this coming week for a date night.
• Signed up the boys for a free parent's night out at church.  We made sure there's a gluten free option for the meal for baby.
• Dropped off two bags of items we weren't using at Goodwill and got a tax receipt.  (I don't know that we'll need the receipt if we don't itemize, but it'll be good to have.)
• Took a few travel bars of soap from the "free" bin at the Children's Council.  We were running low, and these will get us through until we're gifted more.  (Typically, I receive a few nice bars of soap as teacher gifts throughout the year, so this gets us through.)  We prefer bar soap to body wash because it limits plastic packaging and seems to have fewer chemicals.
• Used and washed our cloth napkins and handkerchiefs.  We usually wash these with towels when we have a full load, and it keeps us from using (and purchasing) paper replacements.
• Found printable Valentine's coloring pages I could shrink to Valentine's size.  Little man has enjoyed coloring these for his classmates, and they were free (minus the cost of cardstock, which I already had on hand).
• Picked up a cilantro plant at the food pantry that I think I can salvage.  This should provide us cilantro for the spring, and I can save the seeds the plant produces in the summer for next spring (or I might try a fall planting).  We also continued planning our garden for the new house, as well as some container options for the rental when the weather warms up.

What did you do to live and save green this week?  I'd love to hear from you!