Frugal Accompilshments

This past week went pretty well, frugally speaking.  There were a few surprises that really helped us to stretch the grocery budget until the end of the month, which is always nice.  We did travel to see family, which costs more (about $40 in gas plus road trip snacks).  But we tried to compensate for this in other ways, like staying with family.

So, without further ado, here's how we saved this past week:

• All meals were cooked at home.  This included leftover salad, Asian chicken, and we did easy pasta and sauce one night.  I was also blessed with some leftover portions from dinner with Mom and from our parenting class.  Breakfasts were smoothies, cereal trail mix, banana bars, and oatmeal.
• Enjoyed shared meals with friends and family three times, including parenting class and Thanksgiving.  
• We continued to use what we have to make snacks for our trip including banana bars, popcorn, and nuts.
• Continued to compost and use cloth diapers to save resources.
• We graciously accepted some things from the food pantry:  fresh fruit, green beans, asparagus, mushrooms, yogurt, milk, ricotta cheese, bread, and (huge surprise!) a whole turkey that was smoked at a local BBQ restaurant.  The pantry ended up with extra turkeys, so the restaurant generously said they'd smoke them to ease the burden on pantry volunteers.  We love smoked turkey, so immediately said yes when Mom said one was available for us.
• Saved smoked turkey carcass for making stock.  It makes a great chili or wild rice soup.  We will use the meat for enchiladas, quesadillas, sandwiches, and to top salads.  
• Went to Costco with family and stocked up on produce, yogurt, frozen broccoli, frozen salmon, frozen blueberries, honey, and other staples.  (Even though I'm not doing sugars, the rest of my family still enjoys honey in tea or on a slice of bread.) I also found some low sugar, grain free granola that I'm super excited about.  It tastes great by itself or with plain yogurt and berries.  We also found fire extinguishers that we'd been looking for for only $15 each.
• Continued to plan to purchase land, looked for house plans online.  We will try to broker the deal for the land ourselves to save on the realtor cost.  We will use a realtor to sell our current home, when we get to that point.
• Accepted some hand-me-downs from my cousin for the boys, mostly baby.  
• Put together at least two bags of stuff for Goodwill.  Will continue to try to put together at least 2-3 bags each week for Goodwill, Craigslist, or eBay sales to try to clean out.  
• Pulled out an old wool coat to use this winter.  My black leather one is very shabby and got paint on it from a kid project, so the wool one will work and is still warm and in relatively good condition.
• My grandmother fixed my open-fingered gloves that were coming unraveled on one thumb.  It took her no time with the right tools, which I didn't have.  I now have a repaired glove, and I know how to fix it the next time, should it happen again.
• My mom had some homemade lemon nut cookie dough (a slice and bake recipe) in the freezer.  We thawed that and the boys decorated those for Thanksgiving dinner for them, in addition to the traditional pies.  It was fun for the boys, and helped clean out her freezer a bit.
• Were thankful for an early Christmas gift from Mom.  She paid to have our windows washed, which is something we don't do since we've essentially got a three story home on the side of a mountain.  The windows look wonderful, and it's so nice to have clean screens too!
• Began decorating for Christmas using existing supplies.  We use an artificial tree,wreath, and garland.  We save ornaments from year to year, and this really helps cut down on the cost.  We have window candles, but won't use those until our toddler is done with pulling things out of windows!  My mom bought a live wreath, which we'll use existing decorations, for us to decorate and hang on our porch railing.

How did you live and save green this week, especially amidst the holiday consumerism push?  I'd love to hear from you!

Frugal Accomplishments

This week we did really well, frugally speaking.

I am thankful that I am feeling better, so that definitely helps things.  It is amazing how much energy, or lack of, affects the budget.  It is so easy to rely on convenience items.  That is motivation to me to put a few more easy freezer meals together, like crock pot ones or frozen homemade soup, that we can pull out when we're sick.

We are also beginning the dreaming and exploring stage of purchasing land and building a new home.  When we built this home, we thought it would be our forever home, but we're realizing there are things about the neighborhood and road that will never change.  So, we're looking to move closer to my mom and into her neighborhood, which has lots of kids and very, well, neighborly neighbors.  This would allow the boys to walk to her house as they get older, and would give them playmates in the neighborhood.

Here's how we stuck to our budget this past week:

• Cooked all meals at home including crock pot Asian chicken with veggies, cauliflower and cheese sauce, banana nut whole wheat muffins, crock pot oatmeal, smoothies, "big boy breakfast" of eggs and bacon, whole wheat pizza, and salad.
• Took advantage of four community meals with our parenting class, our school faculty, our church, and my mom.  This kept our kitchen clean and meant that we only had to take one dish or item to share.  We took a salad to church, salad to school, and potatoes to Mom's to roast.
• Thankful for items from the food pantry this week:  gluten free crackers, cereal, plain instant oatmeal, fresh fruit (melon, pineapple, and grapes), and some pouches of baby food (I use them in smoothies, though sometimes the boys will eat them).  These are items that clients typically don't take, so we're glad to use them.
• Composted all possible items including food scraps, brown paper tubes, paper towels, tea bags, and coffee grounds.  Compost will be added to the gardens to prepare them for winter.
• Kept grocery spending to $10 for pie crust, refrigerator biscuits, eggs, snack pack (free item of the week), celery, and peanuts (small cans for stockings).  We used coupons for the pie crust, biscuits, and peanuts.  Trying really hard to keep our grocery spending to $70-80 this month, not $150.
• Continued with cloth diapers, except at night.  We're using free diapers from the diaper bank at the Children's Council for our night time ones, saving expense there.  Grateful for this newfound resource.
• We made our OCC shoebox this weekend and shopped at home first.  We found:  plastic cups, plastic spoons, foam balls, blanket, new towel, stickers and small toys, new toothbrush and soap.  We went to the Dollar Tree to purchase seven items.  Little man had a great time shopping and picking out items for the box.  We wrote a note to them as a family, and paid the processing fee online.  (This allowed us to use our credit card = points which we'll use for a future vacation.)  Little man is really excited about the possibility of seeing where our box goes, which is enabled by the QR code on the label.  It was nice to be able to do this with things we had around the house.
• Took advantage of our Children's Playhouse membership (thank you Mom!) and went on Saturday.  The boys had a ball.
• Combined all errands when possible.  Sundays we usually do our grocery shopping before church, since the boys are up early anyway.  This is nice because it combines the errands, but the store is also very empty before church, so it's easier with the boys.  
• Had a doctor's appointment out of town on Thursday, but went with Benny and baby.  We were able to make a date of it, use a gift card for lunch, and get some work done for Benny's boss while we were near Best Buy.  This meant that we could count some of the time in the trip as work time for him, which is really nice.
• Began taking pictures to post more items on eBay.  These funds will help pay for my medical expenses, and it helps to clear out the house some.  We're beginning to feel overwhelmed with the amount of "stuff" we have, so this is helping, even if we can only do a few items at a time.
• Started another bag of stuff to take to Goodwill.  Will get a tax receipt for this.
• Had a short craft date with little man last night and really enjoyed painting together.  Going to try to do this more; it really feeds both of our souls.
• Began cleaning up the boys' room and craft room some more.  Hoping to weed out more things by the end of the year.  Might set a tally amount, just to keep us going and motivated to continue weeding.

I'd love to hear what you did to live and save green this past week?  How do you do it with the holidays just ahead?  Please share!

Frugal Accomplishments

Spring has officially arrived!  We've had beautiful weather, mixed with showers.  It's been really nice for outside play, yard and garden work, and hanging clothes outside.  We've had cool enough evenings to enjoy the windows being open.

• Cooked all meals at home including egg and cheese sandwiches, homemade granola (added pumpkin seeds and dried coconut), lentil sloppy joes, egg salad sandwiches, homemade pizza, and crock pot lasagna soup with salad.
• Enjoyed a date night, thanks to Mom for keeping little man, with baby.  We used a gift card for a local restaurant, and then did dessert at home of brownies and ice cream.  
• Salvaged several containers of berries, pears, apples, lemons, mushrooms, several loaves of bread, bagels, yogurt, and half and half from the food pantry.
• Gleaned several snacks, milk cartons, and cheese sticks from the school cafeteria.
• Kept up with all regular cold water laundry activities and hanging clothes to dry.
• Kept up with composting activities, adding more hay to the compost.  This seems to be helping the fruit fly situation we had.
• Planted free basil plants in the garden.  The parsley we planted has been eaten by rabbits (anyone know an easy way to keep them away?).
• Spent a little time weeding the garden.  Need to split irises and hostas, so will relocate these to another garden area where they can multiply.  Might also split hellebores, as they're doing really well in the back garden.
• Purchased new sandals for 50% off.  They are really good quality, so should last several years.
• Carpooled to work two days.  Should be able to carpool most of next week, and the following weeks.
• Enjoyed some time outside with little man on walks and playing "egg hunt" in the yard/garden.  He also helped some with weeding.
• Enjoyed the cool air and having the windows open.  Will substantially save on the electric bill this month too.
• Stayed away from the local kids consignment sale this time.  The boys can make do with what we already have for summer, so we didn't need anything.  
• Met with our financial adviser to set up automatic savings for the boys, contribute more to retirement funds, and a little more to mortgage.
• Accepted a curriculum writer position with DPI for the summer.  It will be a substantial amount of work, but the stipend will be worth it.

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

Frugal Accomplishments

We're trying really hard to think creatively about our budget, our needs vs. wants, and how to accomplish the most with what we have.  Our big success this week was finalizing the car sale, including bartering for the exterior painting we need done, and we transferred the title of the new-to-us car from my in-laws to us.  We also are skipping the grocery store this week, primarily because my in-laws brought things for us from Costco and Mom brought us two boxes of things gleaned from the food pantry.

Here's the breakdown for this week.  I'll be back later this week with our March menu plan.

• Cooked all meals at home.  This included crock pot lasagna soup, Asian chicken (yes, this has been a new favorite), steamed lemon pepper tilapia with roasted veggies, lentil and sweet potato stew (see comments for adaptations), breakfast egg casserole, and banana chocolate chip muffins.  The in-laws did treat us to pizza out one night, and lunch one day.
• Gleaned three bunches of bananas, strawberries, two cartons of mushrooms, a bag of oranges, three loaves of bread, six small cartons of yogurt, half gallon of milk, and a pint of whipping cream.
• Enjoyed a shared meal with Mom.
• Continued with our regular composting and recycling.
• Washed all laundry in cold water except towels, sheets, and diapers.  Line dried everything except sheets and towels.
• We did go by the grocery store for a deal on diapers and I got 4 packs for $20.  This will last us several months since we only use disposables for night time.
• Carpooled to work three days, saving on gas
• My inlaws graciously brought some things from Costco, including blueberries, frozen broccoli, cheese, and rice.
• Ordered a bulk order of black beans, steel cut oats, and grits.
• Enjoyed seeing my chives and garlic coming up in the garden (though this is unseasonably early)  Plan to use them in meals this coming week.
• Benny and I decided on direct deposit amounts to contribute to his retirement, the boys' 529 accounts, and our savings.  He is going tomorrow to set these up.
• Weeded out some clothing and toys to send to Goodwill.
• Called the library to renew books, rather than stopping by.
• Planned a double date with friends.  Mom will keep little man, saving us on babysitting.  We will go to the restaurant early to miss crowds and will use a coupon we have.  Will get water to drink to save money.  Will enjoy dessert and a movie at home.
• Tried making homemade Hershey's syrup, and it worked!  We now have two bottles of it in the fridge for use in coffee drinks, desserts, etc.
• Worked out with You Tube videos at home
• Had to laugh a little when little man reminded me to turn out a light when I left a room.  Glad he's already getting it!
• Enjoyed reading books at home to the boys and watching baby boy pull up on everything in sight!

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

Frugal Accomplishments Holiday Edition

This past week was great for us in terms of frugal accomplishments.  We did splurge on family photos with a photographer, but she gave us a discount since I've taught her children.  Our focus this past week was on saving time and money in the kitchen so that we could take advantage of some holiday gatherings with friends.

• Prepared all meals at home.  Were grateful for holiday leftovers, gifted soup from friends, and everyone being healthy enough to eat this week.  We made cranberry muffins for breakfast one morning (which were a total hit since 11 of the 12 were gone by the end of the day!) and used pantry items to fill in with the leftovers.
• Welcomed gifted food from my grandmother who was cleaning out her pantry.  We acquired some fruit syrup, canned goods, baking mixes, and dried fruit.
• Washed all clothing in cold water and hung most laundry to dry inside.  Only sheets and towels were run through the dryer.
• Continued using cloth diapers for baby, saving a bundle.
• Made candied popcorn for little man's teachers using ingredients on hand.
• Opted not to purchase new glasses for myself this year, but will wait until next year.  My prescription hasn't changed much, so it wasn't a necessity.  The 14 year old glasses will serve just fine for another year!
• Began putting holiday cards up on the mantle for some festive cheer
• Listened to Pandora for Christmas music
• Wore existing clothing to a holiday party and paired green accessories with red sweaters/shirts.  Little man wore a Santa jammie shirt as his festive item.
• Participated in two holiday parties over the weekend, so were grateful for the food there and gracious hosts.  We did take pizza toppings to share at one, using green peppers and homemade pesto we had in the freezer.
• Used Christmas books as our advent calendar this year.  I had enough collected that I could wrap them, and might need to borrow a few from the library.  Little man gets to open one a day.
• Saved my supplement check to pay for car repair/maintenance work being done today.  Using a shop that is close to my school, so I can drop it off in the morning and walk to school.
• Finally located the box of 12 month winter clothing for baby, so glad to have found winter sweaters and jackets for him.  Also grateful for a cousin sharing baby clothing with us which we'll return to her.
• Intend to help little man weed through his toys some to give to other kids in need this season.  He has many (though not as many as some), and as with most kids, seems to find the most joy in simple blocks, stones, balls, and time outside.  We will keep the treasures, but need to weed out some to begin making room for more clothing storage as the boys grow.
• Accepted a small table top tree from my grandmother to decorate upstairs for the boys.

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

Frugal Accomplishments

This past week was particularly frugal for us for several reasons:  we had the stomach bug which was miserable, but resulted in frugality; we didn't travel because we didn't feel well; and we took advantage of community meals.  Here are the details:

• All meals were made at home including butternut squash and chickpea salad, roasted veggies, turkey with rosemary butter, butternut squash casserole, and apple and cranberry crisp.
• While we were sick, we were grateful for our stash of homemade popsicles, Cheerios, rice, and a wonderful friend who delivered Gatorade to us.  We were also grateful for my mom who kept little man while we were sick.
• Friends made soup for us when we were recovering, so it was nice to have a meal we didn't have to prepare.
• Used peppers, onions, pineapple, and sugar snap peas from the food pantry for a yummy stir fry.  Saved the sesame seeds from a bag of bagels to use as topping for the stir fry.
• Made shared meals with family for Thanksgiving, Saturday, and Sunday nights.
• Continued to nurse and pump for baby boy, so thankfully he didn't get the stomach bug
• Used humidifier to ease baby boy's congestion, saving on a doctor's visit.
• Composted all appropriate kitchen scraps, paper towels, and brown paper
• Planted garlic in prepared beds with little man using garlic saved from last year, so not out of pocket cost.  Used gifted straw to mulch beds.
• Washed all laundry except diapers in cold water and hung to dry.
• Little man continues to do well with night time underwear, so we're trading disposable diapers for a little more bed linen laundry in the short term, but most nights he is dry.  Yay!
• Showered every other day to save on hot water and keep my skin from drying out.
• Used accumulated credit card points as cash to purchase our last Ecobee thermostat for upstairs.  Will install that this weekend, hopefully.  We really like this brand of smart programmable thermostat, especially because we can adjust the temperature from our phones while we're away.
• Decorated for Christmas using saved items from previous years, so no out of pocket expense.
• Used a coupon combined with sales to make ornaments with little man for Christmas gifts for his teachers and family.  Spent about $5 for 12 ornaments and used paints we already had for decorating them.
• Found coupon code for Shutterfly, so ordered Christmas cards and used Ebates on the order, so 2% cashback.
• Received my annual supplement check, so will put half of that toward paying down home equity line and half toward car repair/replacement fund.
• Will take advantage of discount offered to public workers this week at optometrists' office to order new glasses for myself.  We've used Zenni in the past, but for my prescription, we feel like going through the office is better, and I like the frame selection better.
• Began making Christmas gifts and will give three of those this week while family is in town, since we won't see them again before the holidays.  We love this candied popcorn recipe, and its super easy.

I'd love to hear what you did to live and save green this week!  I'll be posting again soon on ways to save on Christmas gifts and decor.

Frugal Accomplishments

This week we're still trying to keep the grocery budget low, but I did pick up a few staples we were out of (canola oil, sugar, salt, and dried parsley).  We're doing a great job of keeping our weekly expenses low in general, so hopefully that'll help out with the home equity line and saving for a new car.  (My 10 year old one is starting to rust out thanks to our winters, so we're starting to save for purchasing a new-to-us late model, used car sometime next year.)  Here's how we kept our expenses low this week:

• Continued to make all meals at home.  Enjoyed three shared meals with family and friends that were pot luck.
• Used the crock pot for several meals, saving energy.
• Accepted bread, mushrooms, kale, 2 lbs of strawberries, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes from the food pantry that were going to go to waste.  
• Used pantry and freezer items to plan meals for the week including lentil and sweet potato soup, kale salad with sun dried tomato dressing, hot German potato salad with sausages, veggie stir fry over rice, winter squash baked oatmeal, and winter squash waffles with fruit smoothies.
• Processed peppers from CSA for the freezer.  Chopped tomatoes and froze them for later use in chili.
• Purchased canola oil and sugar in bulk to save overall.
• Took leftovers for lunch each day, saving on prep time and money.
• Made most of our meals meatless, saving on the cost of meat and choosing more nutrient dense foods like beans, lentils, potatoes, and greens.
• Composted as usual including tea bags, coffee grounds, and kitchen scraps.
• Washed laundry in cold water (except diapers and towels) and hung clothing to dry inside or on the line outside when weather permitted.
• Swapped desserts with our housemate, giving us more variety and a fun shared experience.
• Gleaned apples from an apple tree on commercial property this week, with the owner's permission.  Plan to process apples tonight for making applesauce.
• Continue to make do with hand-me-down clothing for the baby, even with the changes in seasons, we're able to make things work with short sleeves and a few jackets.  (Most of our things from little man are the wrong season for the size that the baby's at right now.)
• Carpooled to work four days, saving on fuel.
• Combined errands and planned our route as much as possible to save on fuel and time.
• Continued to advertise the upstairs rental space to be filled in December.  A few promising leads, but nothing firm yet.
• Weeded out a few things in the closet to donate to Goodwill for a tax receipt.  Will try to do more before the end of the year.
• Ordered two Christmas gifts for the boys using gift card money, so no funds out of pocket.
• Began planning little man's Halloween costume using things we already have.  He wants to be a fireman this year, so his fireman raincoat and gifted fire hat will be taking on starring roles.

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

Frugal Accomplishments

This past week has been all about food preservation for us.  We got a boatload of tomatoes from the food pantry (heirloom green zebras), so we've been drying them and making sauces.  I've also been trying to put up some of the carrots that are rolling around in the fridge and taking up too much space.

Here are our weekly accomplishments for this week:

• All meals were made at home.  We shared three community meals with family and friends, which helped with time and budget.
• Took advantage of meal provided at school on a day we had a workshop
• We made six cups of pizza sauce using this recipe.  I added some gifted mushrooms.  We froze this. (We plan to make another batch or two.)
• We made two batches of dried tomatoes overnight in the dehydrator.
• Processed winter squash for baby food and stored in freezer in ice cube trays.
• Used food pantry bread for egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfasts.
• Froze fruit from food pantry for use in smoothies and Popsicles.
• Used brown paper bags for draining bacon rather than paper towels
• Used crock pot to make three meals/sides
• Composted all kitchen waste
• Washed most laundry in cold water, except diapers.
• Continued to hang clothes to dry, either inside on racks or outdoors.
• Did shared family baths with the boys to save on water.
• Used rags for cleaning and washable mop pads for mopping the floor
• Skipped grocery shopping and relied on pantry, fridge, and freezer staples.
• Combined errands to save on fuel
• Carpooled to work most days
• Began weeding and deadheading the gardens for fall.  Need to rake leaves to add to the compost or use as mulch in garden beds.
• Had a contractor come for quotes on various jobs around the house.  Hope to compare with another contractor in a week or so and compare.
• Posted upstairs rental space ad on Craigslist to be filled by January.  Hoping for responses soon.
• Made new chore chart for little man and hoping to re-implement this with him so that there's more motivation to clean up toys in his room and common spaces before bed each night.  Added clearing the table and setting the table for dinner.

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

Frugal Accomplishments

This past week we did pretty well with sticking to our budget.  Benny did take off work on Saturday to spend the day with little man, which was awesome and I think they both benefited from a "boys day."  Mom and I took baby boy to a baby shower for my cousin (out of town), and Mom drove, which saved us on gas and wear and tear on our car.  It was a great weekend for us all and we had some much needed family time, even though we were all in different places.

• We cooked all meals at home.  We had several shared meals, which saved time and money with meal prep.
• We composted all appropriate kitchen scraps, brown paper, and paper towels.  We're calling this week to pick up spent grains from a local brewery for more compost material.  
• Used the crock pot twice to fix black beans and black bean chili.
• Made an expired corn bread mix that was donated to us.  It didn't rise as much, but tasted great, so we'll use the rest of the mix up soon.
• Appreciated heirloom tomatoes donated to the food pantry (they came from a farm and they were the ugly ones that wouldn't sell... they donated over 150 lbs!).  They were going to be bad by Wednesday, so I took a box and made homemade pizza sauce in the crock pot.  We'll eat the rest fresh or freeze them for later use in soups.  If I weren't juggling the boys, I would have taken more to make and can salsa.
• Used our herbs and garlic from the garden to spice up meals.
• Made smoothies with food pantry fruit.
• It was super doubles at HT this week, and I managed to stock up on several necessary items and keep the food budget in tact.  The bill was $40.
• Continued to hang all clothing and diapers to dry.  The season for using the outdoor clothesline is waning, as the fall rains begin to set in, but we're making use of our drying racks and ceiling fans to dry things indoors.
• Used family cloth and cloth wipes while at home to cut down on the use of disposables.  
• Repurposed mismatched pillow cases for changing pad covers.  They work great and are easy to change.
• Gratefully accepted some hand-me-downs for little man from a coworker.  He loves the new clothes, and it's nice to have a few things he can grow into.
• Reused gift bags and greeting card fronts for gifts for a baby shower and birthday party this weekend.  Little man made a tie dye t-shirt for his friend using a kit we had, so it was a cheap gift and he had fun making it.  It's also nice that these can be made ahead and are unisex, so they work for either gender.  
• Began getting estimates for some carpentry work we need done around the house.  We had planned to do it earlier this summer, but it just didn't happen.  We're hoping that we might get a better rate on it now that its not the busy season and people are needing jobs more.
• Spent time weeding the garden some and planning for fall preparations.  Would like to find some free straw bales for the garlic beds so I don't have to purchase any.  

What did you do to live and save green last week?  I'd love to hear from you!  I'm linking up to The Prudent Homemaker today.

Frugal Accomplishments

This past week we did pretty well with our budget.  We've thankfully filled our rental space upstairs, at least until December, so that eases the budget (and she's a great fit so far!).  We did have a hefty dental bill this week, but it was for expected cleanings for me and little man, so it was within the budget and paid with our HSA money.  The food pantry was a huge help this week and we were glad to be able to save some produce that would have otherwise gone in the dumpster.

So, here's the breakdown for those interested in specifics:

• Made all meals at home.  We did have one treat out thanks to Mom, when a local restaurant was having a fund raiser for the food pantry.  Packed lunches from leftovers.
• Composted kitchen scraps, brown paper, and paper towels for minimal household waste.
• Put one quart of strawberries in the freezer from the food pantry.
• Froze one gallon of mixed fruit from the food pantry for use in smoothies.
• Put up two quarts of bell peppers in the freezer from the pantry and our CSA.
• Made a quart of pickled jalapenos from some that were in the freezer that needed to be used.
• Picked up a few veggies from the food pantry that I knew we would use in meals this week including mushrooms, sugar snap peas, and celery.
• Used bread bowls from the pantry to make two batches of croutons.  We're loving these in soup, and they're a popular snack lately.  They are a nice free substitution for crackers, since they fit that crunchy craving.  Little man loves them.
• Used the crock pot to make a white bean and kale soup with ingredients we had on hand, saving on electricity.
• Took advantage of two shared meals.
• Made mint tea with mint from the garden.  Need to harvest more to freeze or dry.
• Spent less than $30 at the grocery store for milk, cream cheese, some yogurt, and a little fruit on sale.  Also picked up four packages of natural sausages for $2 each on discount.  We love these on the grill or in jambalaya.
• Enjoyed snacks at our parenting class for kids with speech delays.  They provide child care, so even though we're paying for the class, we don't have the additional cost of child care.
• Used rags to clean spills
• Made homemade shower cleaner (need to make one for upstairs too) using white vinegar and dish soap
• Hung most laundry to dry, except sheets and towels, which needed a quick turn around this week.
• Used HSA money to pay for two dental cleanings, which meant that we could use this money pretax from my paycheck, saving us some in the long run.
• Carpooled most days to work, saving on gas.
• Continued to pump breast milk at work, saving on formula.  It is nice that the baby is getting close to solid foods, so I won't have to pump as much soon.  We keep our pumping supplies minimal, using a hand pump and one bottle that we wash between feedings.  This minimalism really helps us cut down on clutter and saves time in the long run not having to worry about set up, etc.
• Figured out Benny's work schedule and Mom watches the boys one day so that he can work.  He's working about 12 hours a week, which is nice for the budget and gives him some time away from the boys.  Grateful to have a mom who will keep the boys for free.
• Accepted an invitation to a baby shower.  Taking some things that we didn't need for the boys, as well as a few hand-me-downs she might appreciate.  Made a card and will reuse a gift bag.
• Grateful for a scholarship for one of little man's preschools.  He goes two mornings a week to a speech/language preschool and two mornings to a church preschool.  The speech/language one isn't cheap, so we're glad to get help with the other.  We're hopeful that by investing now, his transition to school in a few years will be much easier.  
• Used a gift card to purchase two bed pillows for us for Christmas (we needed some new ones badly).  The older ones will go to the boys' room.  We're trying to really use gift cards and coupons to keep holiday spending minimal. (Does anyone know how to environmentally responsibly dispose of used pillows that aren't natural materials?  I've thought of reusing the filling for something, but not sure...)

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

March Menu and Grocery Shopping Plan

This month will be a little different for us since we're expecting baby #2's arrival mid-March.  So, we're stocking the freezer and hoping some friends bring us some meals.  We're also trying to stock the pantry with easy to fix meals, such as pasta and stir fry.  And, we're able to take advantage of Harris Teeter's Super Doubles this week, which is really helping to save.  So, we're hoping to keep this month's grocery budget to under $100.

It's really helping out that my mom is volunteering at the food pantry and able to bring us some items that would otherwise be labeled as "waste"  (they only are open on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, so what's left on Thursday in terms of fresh produce is usually tossed because it won't hold until the next week, but it's still good.).  Most of this, we end up processing for the freezer or dehydrating and using at our leisure.

Just a few of the items we've been gifted from the food pantry include:  Panera bread and bagels, jalapeno peppers, potatoes, pomegranates, kiwi, citrus, bananas, fresh herbs, turnips, carrots, mushrooms, and many others.  It's not like we get a whole crate, but even a small grocery sack helps to offset our grocery bill and round out our meals.

Here's the menu plan for the month, including some gifted items:

Breakfast:  bagels with cream cheese, quiche with gifted eggs from friends, gingerbread muffins with dried cranberries, banana breakfast bars, oatmeal with dried fruit, lemon poppy seed muffins, smoothies, egg and cheese sandwiches, homemade yogurt with cereal and fruit, and "big boy breakfast" of eggs, grits and sausage or bacon.

Lunches:  leftovers, egg salad sandwiches, fruit and hard boiled eggs, pasta salad with olives, canned salmon, and veggies

Dinners:  lasagna soup with bread and salad, baked potato soup with fixin's, beans and rice with fixins and corn bread, veggie stir fry over rice or noodles with egg rolls, bean tacos/quesadillas with fixins, lentil sloppy joes with cheese and steamed veggies, hot dogs/sausages with sauerkraut and oven fries, Asian ginger chicken with rice, breakfast casserole with smoothies, waffles with fruit and sausage, open faced meatball subs over homemade bread with oven fries, pizza with pesto and veggies, pasta with pesto, and any gifted meals from friends/family once the baby comes.

Snacks:  popcorn, dried fruit, yogurt, fresh fruit, carrot sticks and dip, tortilla roll ups with guacamole, sour cream, and salsa, smoothies, crackers with peanut butter

The plan is to make the more labor intensive meals (waffles, lentil sloppy joes, stir fry) early in the month and save the "quick and dirty" ones for once the baby arrives.  Many of the easy meals are crock pot meals or one pot meals on the stove, so they will come together quickly.  Unlike many of the "recommended" ideas for when you first bring baby home, we will not be doing paper plates, etc.  I find this really wasteful on so many levels, and am blessed to have a wonderfully helpful husband who does dishes and knows his way around the kitchen (sometimes more than I do!).  So, we'll use our regular stuff and run the dish washer like we always do.  We are hopeful that having some meals from friends and family will help to ease the kitchen cleanup, so that it's just plates/silverware we're cleaning up and not the whole kitchen.

Here's what we'll need to purchase this month to make this menu work:

• salad greens (we'll use a gift card so we can buy organic and in bulk)
• avocados/guacamole (HT has this on super doubles this week, so we'll stock up)
• whole grain hot dog buns (I usually make these, but am too tired right now to think about that!)
• organic milk or almond/soy if it's on sale with a coupon
• canned tomato products if they're on sale or have a great coupon
• 5 lbs potatoes (these are on sale at Lowes Foods this week, so I'll probably get them there)
• paper towels (these are on sale at HT)
• onions
• diapers (not a food item, but necessity before baby fits into our cloth ones... on sale at HT w/ super doubles)
• large bag of popping corn (still can't find this locally in bulk... ideas for online?)
• kefir (for smoothies and general health in recovering after the baby arrives)
• yogurt (if deeply discounted, there's some at HT this week for less than 20 cents a carton)

And here's what we'll be making from scratch:

• whole grain sandwich bread (I may cheat and use a gift card to buy a loaf from the local bakery, if I'm too tired)
• yogurt
• cooking dry beans (lentils and either black/pinto beans) for easy use later
• of course all our regular meals, as mentioned above

Frugal Accomplishments

This week was a little different for us, since Benny's mom came with our two year old nephew.  It was great fun for little man to have them here, and it definitely helped out with groceries, since she brought a bunch of stuff from Costco for us.  Here's what we did to save this week:

• I made pizza dough in the bread machine twice to make pizza on Sunday night when they got here, instead of opting for a Domino's deal.  (Takeout would have been easier, but more expensive, and not as healthy.)  We used homemade pesto and veggies we had in the freezer for the toppings.  I added slices of meatballs to one.
• Monday night, we got to have a date night while Benny's mom watched the boys.  We used an Applebee's giftcard and took advantage of their burger special, so we had enough to order dessert too.  We didn't have to pay anything out of pocket, and we really enjoyed the time together.  (Though, for the record, there are other places in town we'd much rather go for a really good local burger, but this was free.)
• Tuesday night, I had a Wesley Foundation board meeting, so dinner was provided.  I got to bring home a few of the leftovers.  Benny cooked at home with his mom, and they had French toast and fruit.  During the day, they went to the Playhouse, and had lunch out, which Benny's mom treated for.  They all had a great time and the boys were wiped out.
• Wednesday they left, and Benny and I helped out with serving dinner at the Wesley Foundation for church that night.  This meant that not only did we get a free meal of tacos after the students were served, but we also ended up coming home with some things that the students wouldn't eat (leftover sour cream, extra salsa, and taco shells).  This gave us at least three extra meals this week.
• Thursday and Friday were snow days for us, so I didn't go to school, which saved on fuel.  These days gave us a little bit more time to catch up on prepping for baby, and general cleaning.
• We made a double batch of quiche last night with the last of the pie dough we had in the freezer, plus frozen broccoli and cauliflower and a few chopped tomatoes.  We used cheese that had been purchased on sale and frozen, and some powdered and evaporated milk, since we were out of regular milk.  I used saved butter wrappers to grease the pie dishes.  Little man loved the quiche and requested a piece of "pie" for breakfast this morning, which I happily gave him.
• Benny's mom brought a boatload of stuff from Costco for us, including a lot of fresh fruit (most of which is gone, thanks to two hungry boys and a pregnant mama), organic cereal, yogurt (which is also gone), crackers, quinoa and kale mix which they didn't like (and we love), dried fruit, and some cheese.  She also brought some stuff for our Greek day at school, which I'll probably end up with some leftovers of.  There were also some things in there to stock our freezer when baby arrives, such as soup and whole grain bread.
• Mom gave us some bagels from the food pantry (they were going to be labeled "waste" otherwise), and a jar of bacon grease (we are currently out because I haven't been doing as much bacon) that we like to use for frying eggs and greasing pans for corn bread.
• We made our list for Super Doubles, which starts tomorrow.  I've budgeted about $30 for this trip.
• I found a deal on Vitacost, so I'll be able to save about $10 off my probiotics this month.
• I made this salad dressing recipe to take with our salad to a friend's house for dinner tonight.  I've made it once before, but was out of some of the ingredients, so I substituted some things.  I hope it's good.  I reused an old salad dressing bottle to take it in.
• We continue to cut down on our waste and are filling a kitchen trash bag about every 2 1/2 weeks, which is including night time diapers.  (This would be much less if we weren't using these.)
• We used scrap paper for little man's collages and scissor practice this week.  He had a great time doing that today, which made my artist soul happy.
• I found a few more crockpot recipes to try out once the baby arrives.  My mom is graciously filling some freezer bags with the ingredients for these, so that all we have to do is thaw, dump it in, and cook.
• We finalized our Barnes and Noble list, so we'll place that order using gift cards.  It will be nice to have some new books for us and puzzles for little man once baby arrives.  
• Benny found a way to repair the sink top in the apartment, so we're thinking if it works out (he did the first step today), then we won't have to pay for a whole new top or entire vanity.  (It was damaged when the mirror inexplicably fell off the wall, while our tenant was out of town, so we're not charging her for the damage.)
• Someone is coming to check out the upstairs rental space on Monday (hurray!).  She sounds very nice and normal, so we're hoping this will work out.
• Because I did have school earlier this week, I did get to tutor two days, which meant that I did get paid for that this week.  That extra money will go towards the baby fund, I think, at this point.  I also offered to tutor over the summer, so we'll see if that pans out.

Frugal Accomplishments

This was a pretty normal week for us.  I tried to keep grocery spending low, and succeeded at about $15 with coupons, e-coupons, and apps, such as Ibotta.  We're looking toward some more wintery weather this weekend and next, so are glad to have kept things within budget in terms of electric use, thanks to the new thermostats and moderate December temps.  It will be interesting to see how switching Benny over to my workplace health insurance affects my paycheck this month, since that money will be pulled out pre-tax.  We're anticipating not a significant increase in our total income, but it will obviously drop my paycheck some.

So, here are this week's accomplishments, including some that work toward my efforts to form some new habits:

• All meals were eaten at home.
• We tried a new recipe for a brown rice salad with olives, feta, and cucumber.  I liked it, but I don't think the boys did much, so it might just be something I make occasionally with leftover rice to fill out my lunches.
• We used the crockpot twice, once to make black beans, and again to make black bean chili.  That provided lots of leftovers for lunches and dinners.  This saved us substantially on energy usage and on cleaning up the kitchen.
• Made waffles, zucchini and flax muffins, oatmeal, and bread for breakfasts/snacks.
• Used applesauce and baked beans from the freezer to fill out some meals.
• Composted and recycled as usual.  We continue to only fill about one kitchen trash bag/week with our family of three.  We hope this continues as we become a family of four.  We continue to look for ways to reduce waste further, such as reusable produce bags and buying things from the farmer's market, which generally come with less packaging.
• Washed all clothes in cold water.  Diapers and towels are always run in hot water.
• All clothes and diapers were hung to dry.
• Working diligently on potty training, and little man is doing great with very few accidents, so that's eliminating some extra laundry cost (at least until #2 comes along in March).  Used a printable potty chart found online and stickers we already had to make it more fun, and less about sweet treats, for little man.
• Carpooled to work daily, using only about 1/2 tank of gas by using the most fuel efficient car, as it was my week to drive.
• Combined errands to make the most efficient route possible.
• Benny stayed home with little man at least two days this week, saving on gas.
• Watched a few shows for free online.
• Tried to close curtains nightly to save on energy loss, and kept them only partially open during the day.
• Washed my hair every other day to save on shampoo, water, etc. and also keep my hair from drying out as much in the winter.
• Benny began sanding, priming, and painting a shelf for the living room that was upstairs.  This will be additional toy storage for the living room, and with the new coat of paint, will blend nicely into the room.
• Tutored twice after school to earn $35.  
• Our new tenant moves in this weekend, which will provide income from that space.
• Posted room ad for upstairs with Samaritan's Purse.  Will post it through the university in February to have it filled for summer/academic year starting in August.
• Used Evite to send out little man's birthday invitation, saving on the cost of paper invitations and postage.
• Plan to move recycling to the basement and put a kid sized table in its place this weekend.  The "new" table is coming from my mom, so it is at no cost to us.  It will just need to be cleaned, as it has been in storage.  We will have to figure out a new system for recycling, though, to make it easier with kitchen/office recycling, so that we're not going downstairs multiple times a day.
• Set up diaper changing station using things from little man.  Also brought out newborn clothes out of storage to wash.  We plan to reuse everything we have for #2, so that we don't have to buy new.  There may be a few seasons that we are off, so some "new " things may need to be purchased.  If this is the case, we will shoe thrift stores and consignment.

I'd love to hear how you lived and saved green this week!  Leave some love in the comments!

Saving on Maternity Clothes

This time around, I've tried to be just as frugal as we were with our first little man.  We're trying to save as much as we can for the baby fund, while also building up our regular savings and paying down our car and home equity line debt.  Part of this means saving what we can on maternity clothes.

I've been fortunate to be able to borrow maternity clothes from a few friends and family.  I also had a few things left over that were my own from the first time around.  I haven't been choosy about things, but willingly took whatever was offered to me.  Some of it isn't my normal style, but if it fits and suits the occasion, I'll wear it.

My mom also generously purchased a few new to me things at the local consignment sale.  These have been really nice to fill in the gaps from things that I've borrowed.

The only thing I've had to purchase this time around has been some compression tights and leggings.  (Yea! for varicose veins in pregnancy.)  I found a great website, Preggers by Therafirm to purchase them from that's been wonderful to work with, especially when we had to return a pair because they were obviously going to be too small a few months from now.

So, the basics for saving on maternity clothes:

Beg and Borrow  
Don't hesitate to ask friends to borrow their stuff.  I asked around at work and was able to score a few things too.  Most maternity clothes are worn for such a short time that they're in really good shape.  If pants are too long, you can temporarily tack them up with some simple stitches that you can remove when you return them.  Take care of things, of course, because you'll want to return them in as good a shape as they were loaned to you.

Use Your Own Stuff
There are some of your regular clothes that will work and stretch, at least for the first two trimesters.  I have several shirts, sweaters, and leggings that will be modified to work all the way through.  Scarves and jewelry also allow you to personalize things that you've borrowed.

Purchase Used When Possible
Shop consignment or online (eBay, Twice, Thread Up, etc.) for used maternity clothes.  I found a deal on a maternity coat for $10 at the consignment sale, which probably would be upwards of $40 or more new.

Expect the Unexpected
I never thought (or even really knew) that varicose veins would be an issue this time around.  And compression hose, socks, leggings, tights, etc. are not cheap!  But by finding a well designed product with great customer service, I've been happy and comfortable.  We also found coupon codes to use, and shopped the sale items, to find items that would work for me.  For example, I found that the tights with toes were way too tight and my toes really hurt by the end of the day.  So, I found some footless tights and leggings through Preggers that worked for me.

I've probably spent about $50 in compression hosiery, but that's all we've spent out of pocket in terms of clothing this time around.  By borrowing things and using what I already had, I'll make it through this pregnancy in comfort and well dressed.  Do you have any tips for saving on mommy stuff during pregnancy?  I'd love to hear from you!

Five Frugal Habits for Today

As I reflect on today, I realize that there are tons of things that I incorporate into my day that are frugal that are completely second nature to me now. I don't even think about them, and they've become such a habit that they're an automatic part of our budgeting process now. Perhaps one or two will be something you can incorporate into your routine to save a buck, some of our planet, or both.

1. Homemade breakfast (and all meals). Today we had toast from homemade bread and grapefruit that we purchased in a bulk case from our local Rotary club. The bread is from the french bread recipe from The Prudent Homemaker. (Her site is one of my new favs, btw.) We both had hot tea with breakfast, which we purchased with coupons during Harris Teeter's Super Doubles (good through tomorrow). All told, I think we probably spent fifty cents total on the meal for the three of us. Later in the day, we both had other meetings after church, so we took our lunch instead of going out to eat. This was made easier since I had pre-packaged our soup for the meal into portable soup mugs, and we took some bread to go along with the soup. (The soup was turkey soup, which I'll share the "recipe" for later in the week.)

2. Take advantage of potlucks and free food when possible. Our church always offers a great little breakfast and coffee bar on Sunday mornings. So, generally, we eat a light early breakfast on Sundays and then take advantage of this offering to fill the gap. Since I'm still nursing, I'm always hungry, and there's usually a good selection of healthy fruit and breads available, as well as coffee and cocoa. We take our own travel mugs so we have some after the service too, although our church does use reusable coffee mugs instead of disposable (thankfully, though I'm still pushing for a composting bin on site!). The coffee bar volunteers also know that we're always open to leftovers, so the past few weeks we've gone home with some leftover fruit, which has been a wonderful and welcome addition to our weekly breakfasts (and often includes fruit I wouldn't ordinarily purchase, such as more expensive grapes or strawberries). We also applied this principle to our church's Thanksgiving potluck, where the church provides the turkey. The cooks knew we did a lot of from scratch cooking, so they offered to send us home with four turkey carcasses. Unfortunately, I only had freezer space for two, but we brought home two and have been using them for turkey stock, soup, and casseroles since.

3. Carpool and combine errands whenever possible. Yesterday, this wasn't quite possible for us, since we both had meetings in different areas of town at the same time, but almost always we ride as a family to church and combine that trip with some errands (grocery store, etc.). Since we've been having to do a little more work to the Jetta as it ages, we're doing all we can to get in the habit of being a one car family. It helps that I carpool to work, and now that Benny's home with our little one, the idea of being a single car family is a little more realistic. If we did make the switch, it would save us on car insurance. We continue to weigh the options here and try to decide what's right for our family, our planet, and our budget.

4. Compost your organic waste. This has become such a habit for us, and it truly saves tons of stuff going into the landfill each year. It also saves us some cash by creating nice fertilizer and potting soil for our gardening needs. I'd estimate that it probably saves us $40 each year on supplies, and would save more if we had to pay for garbage pick up (we take our own to the dumpster, recycling center, or landfill).

5. Hang clothes to dry. We use cloth diapers, which means we do a good bit of laundry (at least one load a day). Despite the volume of laundry, we still always manage to hang our clothes to dry, except the occasional load of sheets or towels in the winter months. We make good use of our drying racks, the clothes line in warmer weather, and rod/trim above the laundry closet. We have gotten into the habit of doing the diapers at night so that they can dry under the ceiling fan in the living room while we sleep. This way, we can stuff/fold them first thing in the morning so they're ready to go. The same strategy would work for other clothing items hung on a drying rack.

There are tons of other things we do throughout the day that are frugal, but this is just a sampling. I hope it inspires you to take a look at something you already do in a new way. I'd love to hear from you! Here's to living green and saving green at home!

Feeding Baby the Green Way

Throughout my pregnancy, we tried to make sure that I was eating healthfully and that meant mostly organic produce, hormone free, local milk from Homestead Creamery, lots of nuts and seeds and whole grains, and minimal but lean meat, including some seafood. Now that Raygan is here, it's just as important for me to continue to eat healthfully, although there are some things that I can branch out on, such as the occasional glass of wine and a little caffeine in the morning cup of BGB coffee.

Why is this so important? Because everything I eat transfers to him in the form of breast milk. So, I really try to make sure that I'm eating well for both of us, which isn't always easy when I've got him in one hand, but we try to plan well in the morning before Benny leaves for work so it's easy for me to heat up soup or grab a sandwich or salad from the fridge. Essentially, the next five months or so of feeding him are free and won't cost us any more than before he was born. Another perk to breastfeeding is that I have to keep my caloric intake up by an additional 500 calories or so compared to during my pregnancy, so that means I get to eat more. So, maybe it does cost us a little extra in groceries since I'm eating more each day.

Breastfeeding is healthier for both of us. For Raygan, it provides immune support, much needed calories and vital nutrients, and its comforting for him. The human body is truly amazing since it adjusts the nutrients and fat and amount of milk based on his needs, so I don't have to worry about whether he's getting the right things at the right stage in his development. I still occasionally pump just to see how much he's getting at a feeding, but also to store it up in the freezer for when I go back to work. We plan to breastfeed for a year, or at least have enough in the freezer so that Raygan can get the benefits of breast milk for that long. Even when he transitions to solid foods, we can mix the milk into his mashed potatoes or squash, and of course he can still drink it.

The health benefits for me of breast feeding are lower risk of certain types of cancer, easier postnatal weight loss, and breast feeding helps the uterus to contract and go back to its original size quicker after delivery than not breast feeding. All of those were a plus for me. Even though breastfeeding was initially really difficult for me and Raygan had a tough time latching on, once we got over that hurdle, things have been great and he's gotten really goo at eating efficiently and not sleeping while nursing.

Once we transition to solid foods, we plan to make our own homemade baby foods, some of which we already have in the freezer. We're using the Start Fresh cookbook by Tyler Florence as a guide to make things easier. We're also using these ice cube trays to make storing the purees easier. It's really easy to make your own baby food from pureed fruits and veggies, and so much cheaper than the store bought stuff at 50 cents or more for a jar.

So, that's how we're feeding our little one and keeping him healthy. We're hoping he'll learn to be an adventuresme eater and learn to love food like we do. Here's to living green and saving green feeding baby! I'd love to hear from you!

Cloth Wipes

Today's post is a follow up to yesterday's where I mentioned the cloth wipes we use with diapering Raygan. We use the cloth wipes for a number of reasons.

1) They cut down on cost.
2) They cut down on waste.
3) They are more effective than disposables.

Because the cloth wipes (both handmade flannel ones and inexpensive store-bought washcloths) are reusable and can be washed with the cloth diapers, they cut down on the cost of wipes significantly. Even if we purchased disposable wipes with coupons, we'd still be spending more than by using the cloth wipes. We still keep a few disposables around in the diaper bag for babysitters, when we're out, etc. but 95% of the time we use the cloth wipes. We've seen a huge drop in our waste volume since switching to cloth diapers and wipes, which means fewer trips to the dump, which also means less fuel used for the cars. Win win all the way around.

Because the cloth wipes have more texture than disposables, they're more effective at wiping away sticky poop, so we have to use only one instead of two or three or four like we would with disposable wipes. Sometimes, we find that the washcloths are more effective than the flannel ones, but it really depends on the situation.

Below you'll find the recipe I use for the wipe solution. Right now, we're using about a dozen a day, since we've got about that many diaper changes. So, I double the recipe since it makes enough for about six wipes. I mix my solution in a bottle that I can shake, because it distributes the lotion more evenly than just stirring with a whisk. It doesn't store really well (gets musty), so I mix ours up each evening for the next day. I store the wipes in old formula containers someone gave me, but we'll probably start putting them in an old wipe container we just emptied.

Wipe Solution:

1 tablespoon baby shampoo
1 tablespoon baby lotion
1 tablespoon baby oil (this helps to remove sticky poop, but you can omit it)
1 cup warm water

Stir or shake to mix. Then pour half into the bottom of your container, insert wipes, and pour the rest over the top.

Makes enough for six wipes.

An added plus to this system is that you can control the ingredients in the solution, so we use the Berts Bees stuff or other more natural products. We've found this seems to reduce diaper rash, which is minimal anyway since we're using cloth diapers.

Here's to living green and saving green while diapering baby. I'd love to hear from you!

Cloth Diapering with Baby

We brought our little Raygan home from the hospital six weeks ago and my how they've flown by! The first few weeks were definitely an adjustment for everyone, but now we're in a groove as a family and loving our little monkey to pieces. So, hopefully, I can find time to get back to blogging on a regular basis during some of his nap times.

We were committed to cloth diapering and going diaper free (sometimes, when it works for us) well before we even found out we were pregnant. The cost and environmental benefits were huge to us, especially knowing that we hoped to have more than one child and that the cloth diapers could be used with the next baby. The health benefits to him are an added bonus.

Most of the cloth diapers we purchased were Charlie Banana ones, mostly because they were available at Target through our registry. We were given two that are velcro closure style, one from my friend who makes them for her (Etsy store. These are easy to leave in the diaper bag for those times when we need to leave him with someone who's not as comfortable with cloth diapering since they're styled more like the disposable kind in terms of closures. We discovered that people were hesitant to buy cloth diapers, I guess because they either weren't sure we were committed to the idea or because they wanted to buy something cute like clothes or books. So we ended up pooling our gift cards and buying them ourselves, which worked just as well. My school faculty also wanted to throw us a diaper shower, so we ended up getting about 12 cloth diapers that way also. We've found that the 30 cloth diapers we currently have is enough to get us through about two days of cloth diapering, allowing for what's in the laundry. Since Raygan is still so little, he's eating frequently, which means frequent diaper changes.

Washing is a cinch with these. We keep a diaper pail beside his changing station, so we just toss the dirty diapers, liners, and cloth wipes we use in there at each change and wash them when the pail is full and we're down to about six clean diapers. We love the design of the Charlie Banana diapers since the pocket is in the front, it means its less messy to get the liner out, and they're really adjustable with the elastic in the legs and the snaps in the front. We wash them on warm with a phosphate free detergent and either line dry them or toss them in the dryer on low heat. Stuffing them is easy; we can do it while we watch an episode of White Collar on Netflix and it takes no time; it's really easy to do with him in the Moby Wrap too.
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All told, we figure we "spent" about $300 with gift cards to get the cloth diapers for him and we had a few given to us as shower gifts. Since we're cloth diapering exclusively now (he was a little small for them at first), we're not having to buy any disposables, which is saving us probably $20 a week right now. Rough estimates from various sources figure we'll save between $1000 and $2000 on diapering costs alone with him, and that doesn't include the cloth wipes we're using instead of disposables (they're flannel ones a friend made and thin washcloths). This savings is huge, since it's helping us cut costs so that Benny can stay home with him when I go back to work in August.

And then there's the environmental benefit of not filling the landfill with all those disposable things. Of course, there are folks who would argue that it's a toss up since we're washing with warm water, which uses more energy, but hopefully our new water saving washer will help to offset that somewhat. And we wait to wash until we've got a full load of diapers, which means we're saving some energy there too. Being able to line dry them in the summer will be great, and it'll help sun bleach out the poop stains. By using cloth diapers, we're also able to cut down on our chemical consumption as a family, since there are far fewer chemicals used in these than in the disposables (all those super absorbent polymers, etc.).

Plus there are health benefits for Raygan to using cloth diapers. Since he can feel it more in cloth diapers when he's wet or dirty, we change him more frequently than we might in disposable diapers. This means there's less diaper rash and less of a risk of yeast infections for him. It also means that potty training will be far easier, because he won't have lost that feeling of what it's like when he "goes", which means hopefully we'll be out of diapers sooner than if he were in disposables. Friends who cloth diaper also report that they've seen fewer accidents with their kids who were in cloth diapers exclusively, probably because they're more aware of the signs of needing to go and so they don't wait until it's urgent. And, we're exposing him to fewer chemicals by cloth diapering, which makes us feel better, since many of these chemicals haven't been researched in terms of long term effects.

So, all in all, we're thrilled with our decision to cloth diaper. Some might say it's more work; we just see it as a different kind of work (more laundry vs. more trips to the dump). We love that it allows us to save some significant money, and it allows us to save a huge amount of landfill space. Do you cloth diaper? Thinking about it? I'd love to hear from you! Here's to living green and saving green bringing up baby.