No one really knows where you're going to land up in one, five, or even ten years. Ten years ago, I wanted to be an architect. Five years ago I wanted to be done with my college degree, and last year, I wanted a business where I could stay at home with my kids while they were at school. Sounds like everyone's dream doesn't it?
I've got my bachelor's degree and change diapers for a living. I wanted to be an architect and I build towers of legos. As for a business...I have an official photography business. Does it allow me to work part time and be at home with the kids when I need to? Yes. Do I have a lot of customers? Not one. But that's okay. It's not about the money. It's about being able to spend time with the kids, have a somewhat clean home, and able to cook for my family.
Hubby pays the bills, so any luxuries will have to wait until either my "business" takes off or I get a "real job". I'm okay with that. Yes, I've struggled with wants, but in reality, my family is a phone call, Facebook message, or Skype away. I've learned to adapt and get rid of the excessive junk out of my life through the past years.
I'm not close or even Facebook friends with every person I meet. I have my acquaintances, close friends, and family somewhat nearby. I didn't become an architect by profession, but have built a worthwhile home and life around me. What more could a girl ask for?
We are currently putting over $400 extra towards our car debt and then once that is paid off, that extra $750 will goes towards paying off the student loans. This will take around 2 years. 2016. Then my daughter will graduate high school in thirteen years. We have so little time with them in the grand scheme of things. So let's sit back and enjoy the ride as we get rid of those debts and enjoy life as its suppose to be. :) God and life is good.
Showing posts with label stress. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stress. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Monday, April 7, 2014
First Week of April with $200 out of $400
$400 per month on groceries. Yes ma'am. Or sir. Whichever you prefer. $400 to shop for all natural/organic products.
Right now, we really cannot afford to buy a whole cow or poultry straight from the farm. It's literally hundreds of dollars. Well, maybe not for 1-2 whole chickens.
Vons, Albertsons, Save Mart, Wal-Mart, and other big chains are starting to carry all natural meats, eggs, and dairy along with their organic produce. Granted organic produce is absolutely not the best quality (its still in the grocery store nevertheless), but you still have to look around. Yes, you can drop $100 per week at a health food store like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. But really, where do we shop to find the best deal?
It depends on what your plan is. Yes, that nasty P word. You must meal plan before you buy anything. Otherwise you will drop that $100 and try to figure out what you're going to make each day. Who wants that stress?
Meal planning usually takes place on Sundays. It doesn't matter what time, but this gives me time to figure out how much and what I need to get me through the week.
It's quite easy and if you have a hard time meal planning, check out plantoeat.com (I am not an affiliate). I did use their free trial, and you know what? It's simply amazing. If we weren't on such a tight budget, I would definitely use them. If you are trying out a new diet, you can search Pinterest, other blogs and websites and actually bookmark the recipe. The best part about plantoeat.com? It even makes a shopping list for you!
After you get your meal plan written out, find a store you like best and watch their sales. I know there aren't a ton of organic produce, meat, or dairy on sale every week, but when there is, pick up a couple extra items if you can freeze them for later. If not, then don't worry about wasting your money.
I personally hate shopping at Wal-Mart, Albertsons, and all those big national chains. I dread giving them such big portions of my husband's hard earned paycheck. So what store <i>do </i>I shop at?
I love Fresh and Easy for their organic, reasonably priced, smaller sized stores. I can get in and get out rather quickly. They always have a large selection of almost everything organic in their store. Some items are priced higher than others, but hey, I'm not buying everything that says organic. If I'm in a quick pinch, they do have organic-not raw- milk. They have organic honey, organic syrup, along with non-organic foods (for when hubby goes with me-bad idea).
As for flour, I purchase sprouted flour at a local health store. We have a Lassen's that carries their whole wheat sprouted flour in the bulk section. I love bulk bins! Especially when this particular flour costs $4.19 per pound (don't tell hubby). My body cannot tolerate white flour (no gluten allergy), so I buy this when I know I will be baking something (tortillas, bread, etc.). I still am working on learning how to bake with this flour, so bear with me!
We also did try drinking the grass-fed milk. My son loved the cow on the front and how can I tell him no to milk? The only weird thing about it was the lumps in your glass (cream tidbits). Other than that, we loved the flavor! Cost: $5.69 for half gallon.
Another awesome find at Lassen's was their selection of One Degree sprouted grains cereals. They had four or five to choose from! :) My tummy was so happy! Add this to the grass-fed milk and my body loved me. Now since this cereal is a little expensive, only I eat maybe 1/2 a cup of cereal. Not kids. I'm not big into sugary cereal and cannot stand the taste of cornflakes, so this was perfect for me. Cost: $5.69 for a 12 oz box.
Early this month, I ran out of laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent! Agh! Not a good thing when your brother is coming from Washington! So for these items, I get my washing soda, borax, and lemi-shine from Winco. They do have organic dairy, but I have yet to see any organic produce besides lettuce. I will write another post on household cleaners on here soon!
What has Jenn bought so far?
Lassen's: Ancient Sprouted Maize Flakes Cereal $5.69
Grassmilk, Whole, Half Gallon $5.69
Fresh N Easy: Eggs, Brown, Cage Free Dozen $3.99
Bananas (Not Organic) 6 bananas $1.14
Organic Mini Cucumbers $2.99
Organic Carrots $1.69
Organic Kale (won't buy again) $2.99
Organic Apples $1.99
Winco: Washing Soda 3 boxes @ $3.15 $9.45 (seems really high compared to the last time I bought it)
Borax $3.97
Fels Naptha 6 @ $.97 $5.82
Spicy Tuna Roll tsk tsk tsk $4.98 (how did that sneak in there?)
Lemi-Shine 2 @ $3.97 $7.94 (ouch)
Cream Cheese (school snack)2 @ $1.78 $3.56
Non-Organic Baby Carrots (school snack) $ .98
Whole Olives (school snack) 3 @ $.98 $2.94
Sliced Olives 2 @ $.58 $1.16
Bring your own bag -$ .06
Grand Total: $71.94
$200.00 (first half of month)
- $71.94
127.00 left for groceries until next week. I always put all my change into the piggy bank to go towards debt at the end of the year (hubby doesn't know this).
That's not too terrible is it? Other than the household cleaning supplies and school snack- I'll have to show you what I made with these three items. Big hit with 5 year olds!
Although my brother is coming into town this week, we also have a 5 year old turning 6 that I have to buy groceries for... all for $127.00 Can we manage feeding three adults and two young kids until the 15th?
Even if you don't have these stores or enjoy swiping your rewards card at other stores, you can always shop for the conventional clean 15 at regular grocery stores. <a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/list.php">Here </a>is the full list of the EWG's clean list. The numbers with the lower number have the most pesticides. Yuck! Eating organic should not be considered a trend.
Clean 15:
andpoint of pesticide contamination:
Onions
Sweet corn
Pineapples
Avocado
Cabbage
Sweet peas
Asparagus
Mangoes
Eggplant
Kiwi
Cantaloupe (domestic)
Sweet potatoes
Grapefruit
Papayas
Mushrooms
Not a lot of these are on our weekly shopping list :( Sad.
Right now, we really cannot afford to buy a whole cow or poultry straight from the farm. It's literally hundreds of dollars. Well, maybe not for 1-2 whole chickens.
Vons, Albertsons, Save Mart, Wal-Mart, and other big chains are starting to carry all natural meats, eggs, and dairy along with their organic produce. Granted organic produce is absolutely not the best quality (its still in the grocery store nevertheless), but you still have to look around. Yes, you can drop $100 per week at a health food store like Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. But really, where do we shop to find the best deal?
It depends on what your plan is. Yes, that nasty P word. You must meal plan before you buy anything. Otherwise you will drop that $100 and try to figure out what you're going to make each day. Who wants that stress?
Meal planning usually takes place on Sundays. It doesn't matter what time, but this gives me time to figure out how much and what I need to get me through the week.
It's quite easy and if you have a hard time meal planning, check out plantoeat.com (I am not an affiliate). I did use their free trial, and you know what? It's simply amazing. If we weren't on such a tight budget, I would definitely use them. If you are trying out a new diet, you can search Pinterest, other blogs and websites and actually bookmark the recipe. The best part about plantoeat.com? It even makes a shopping list for you!
After you get your meal plan written out, find a store you like best and watch their sales. I know there aren't a ton of organic produce, meat, or dairy on sale every week, but when there is, pick up a couple extra items if you can freeze them for later. If not, then don't worry about wasting your money.
I personally hate shopping at Wal-Mart, Albertsons, and all those big national chains. I dread giving them such big portions of my husband's hard earned paycheck. So what store <i>do </i>I shop at?
I love Fresh and Easy for their organic, reasonably priced, smaller sized stores. I can get in and get out rather quickly. They always have a large selection of almost everything organic in their store. Some items are priced higher than others, but hey, I'm not buying everything that says organic. If I'm in a quick pinch, they do have organic-not raw- milk. They have organic honey, organic syrup, along with non-organic foods (for when hubby goes with me-bad idea).
As for flour, I purchase sprouted flour at a local health store. We have a Lassen's that carries their whole wheat sprouted flour in the bulk section. I love bulk bins! Especially when this particular flour costs $4.19 per pound (don't tell hubby). My body cannot tolerate white flour (no gluten allergy), so I buy this when I know I will be baking something (tortillas, bread, etc.). I still am working on learning how to bake with this flour, so bear with me!
We also did try drinking the grass-fed milk. My son loved the cow on the front and how can I tell him no to milk? The only weird thing about it was the lumps in your glass (cream tidbits). Other than that, we loved the flavor! Cost: $5.69 for half gallon.
Another awesome find at Lassen's was their selection of One Degree sprouted grains cereals. They had four or five to choose from! :) My tummy was so happy! Add this to the grass-fed milk and my body loved me. Now since this cereal is a little expensive, only I eat maybe 1/2 a cup of cereal. Not kids. I'm not big into sugary cereal and cannot stand the taste of cornflakes, so this was perfect for me. Cost: $5.69 for a 12 oz box.
Early this month, I ran out of laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent! Agh! Not a good thing when your brother is coming from Washington! So for these items, I get my washing soda, borax, and lemi-shine from Winco. They do have organic dairy, but I have yet to see any organic produce besides lettuce. I will write another post on household cleaners on here soon!
What has Jenn bought so far?
Lassen's: Ancient Sprouted Maize Flakes Cereal $5.69
Grassmilk, Whole, Half Gallon $5.69
Fresh N Easy: Eggs, Brown, Cage Free Dozen $3.99
Bananas (Not Organic) 6 bananas $1.14
Organic Mini Cucumbers $2.99
Organic Carrots $1.69
Organic Kale (won't buy again) $2.99
Organic Apples $1.99
Winco: Washing Soda 3 boxes @ $3.15 $9.45 (seems really high compared to the last time I bought it)
Borax $3.97
Fels Naptha 6 @ $.97 $5.82
Spicy Tuna Roll tsk tsk tsk $4.98 (how did that sneak in there?)
Lemi-Shine 2 @ $3.97 $7.94 (ouch)
Cream Cheese (school snack)2 @ $1.78 $3.56
Non-Organic Baby Carrots (school snack) $ .98
Whole Olives (school snack) 3 @ $.98 $2.94
Sliced Olives 2 @ $.58 $1.16
Bring your own bag -$ .06
Grand Total: $71.94
$200.00 (first half of month)
- $71.94
127.00 left for groceries until next week. I always put all my change into the piggy bank to go towards debt at the end of the year (hubby doesn't know this).
That's not too terrible is it? Other than the household cleaning supplies and school snack- I'll have to show you what I made with these three items. Big hit with 5 year olds!
Although my brother is coming into town this week, we also have a 5 year old turning 6 that I have to buy groceries for... all for $127.00 Can we manage feeding three adults and two young kids until the 15th?
Even if you don't have these stores or enjoy swiping your rewards card at other stores, you can always shop for the conventional clean 15 at regular grocery stores. <a href="http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/list.php">Here </a>is the full list of the EWG's clean list. The numbers with the lower number have the most pesticides. Yuck! Eating organic should not be considered a trend.
Clean 15:
andpoint of pesticide contamination:
Onions
Sweet corn
Pineapples
Avocado
Cabbage
Sweet peas
Asparagus
Mangoes
Eggplant
Kiwi
Cantaloupe (domestic)
Sweet potatoes
Grapefruit
Papayas
Mushrooms
Not a lot of these are on our weekly shopping list :( Sad.
Saturday, April 5, 2014
$400 a month for groceries?!
$400 per month for groceries. Yes, you read that right. Is it possible to spend this much on a family of four? Yes! As long as you are careful and don't overspend, it really is possible.
Why only $400? Well, that's our budget. We have other bills to pay as well. Granted not every extra dollar is going towards debt (because of our erratic medical bills), but we have two kids 4 & 5. There's a lot of times we have to say "no" to toys, candy, movies, trips, etc.
How are we surviving on $400 per month for groceries?
First things first, I do not use coupons. That's right. Absolutely no driving to pay for a newspaper, scanning the inserts for desired items, and cutting until your hand falls off. I tried that. I found I actually spent more money at the stores using coupons. 99.9% of coupons are for processed junk. Granted, I occasionally saved 50%-75% by matching coupons to store sale ads for a certain shampoo and soap for hubby, but I've only been able to do that maybe two times. Therefore, store coupons are not allowed in our house.
How to maintain a grocery budget (of any amount):
1. Look at the family budget and decide what is allotted for groceries. I've heard of people spending $400-$1200 on food per month and wonder where their money is going? Well, duh.
2. Cut out the junk. No soda, no candy, no treats. Period. None of it is good for you! It's called junk for a reason. Plus, you know what you're putting into your body when you cut out the junk.
3. Meal Plan. Now I'm not the best at planning a week's worth of meals, but we try our best to sit down together and plan out what we want to eat. This way no one complains about why we aren't having T-Bones for dinner every night. There's several meal planning websites out there. You'll have to decided which ones you like best. (I'll write more about these later).
4. Check out your local CSA (another post later). These are well worth the price- and the best part. Very affordable! You also get to try new foods. Ours includes fruits and veggies in every week's box. I've never had so many oranges this past winter!
We ordered a the large "food box" and it cost $38.30 per week. They had a smaller box for around $25 I believe. I could be wrong, but still- very affordable for any family. All I had to do was pick it up (or someone else if we were out of town). Fresh organic food per month for a large box: $153.20 per month.
So, $400 for groceries
- $153.20
$246.80 leftover for dairy, grains, household cleaners, etc. Definitely more than enough to last the month!
5. Try your best to resist the lure of expensive meats. Meat is the most expensive item in the cart and when you're eating all natural, it's sometimes twice or triple the cost of conventional meat. How to curb the extra cost?
a. Check out your CSA. We found our farmer's market prices to be astronomical in prices, so we checked out a CSA and were so happy with it.
b. See if you can split the cost of a cow at a local farm with friends or family
c. Most importantly, buy only what you need. I noticed the other day that my Sam's Club started carrying all-natural chicken. Now, that's not my top choice for chicken, but it's all we have in our area for fresh/natural chicken. It comes in a twin pack and I plan to use one for a rotisserie chicken and the other, cut it for parts for other meals.
d. Eat less meat. I know this is really hard for most of us, especially my family, so incorporating more veggies and some grains will do great to fill up the family.
6. Don't stress. It took me a few months to realize how to cut costs and stay on track. Nothing is achieved overnight.
7. Try a garden- even if you only plant just one plant, it will cut costs. A packet of seeds will cost maybe $2, but if your plant is taken care of, you'll save a ton of money if you get 10+ tomatoes or strawberries off that plant! Plus, it teaches science if you have little ones. Two for one deal!
To recap, look at your budget, cut out junk food, meal plan, check out your local CSA, watch the cost of meat, and don't stress! At first I stressed about eating healthy and staying on budget, but once I figured out what my family likes best, we decided what not to buy (kale, swiss chard), and can focus on more positive things: spending time with the kids and not stressing about a healthy dinner (as my 5 year old daughter calls it). Or supper-as my mother calls it.
Why only $400? Well, that's our budget. We have other bills to pay as well. Granted not every extra dollar is going towards debt (because of our erratic medical bills), but we have two kids 4 & 5. There's a lot of times we have to say "no" to toys, candy, movies, trips, etc.
How are we surviving on $400 per month for groceries?
First things first, I do not use coupons. That's right. Absolutely no driving to pay for a newspaper, scanning the inserts for desired items, and cutting until your hand falls off. I tried that. I found I actually spent more money at the stores using coupons. 99.9% of coupons are for processed junk. Granted, I occasionally saved 50%-75% by matching coupons to store sale ads for a certain shampoo and soap for hubby, but I've only been able to do that maybe two times. Therefore, store coupons are not allowed in our house.
How to maintain a grocery budget (of any amount):
1. Look at the family budget and decide what is allotted for groceries. I've heard of people spending $400-$1200 on food per month and wonder where their money is going? Well, duh.
2. Cut out the junk. No soda, no candy, no treats. Period. None of it is good for you! It's called junk for a reason. Plus, you know what you're putting into your body when you cut out the junk.
3. Meal Plan. Now I'm not the best at planning a week's worth of meals, but we try our best to sit down together and plan out what we want to eat. This way no one complains about why we aren't having T-Bones for dinner every night. There's several meal planning websites out there. You'll have to decided which ones you like best. (I'll write more about these later).
4. Check out your local CSA (another post later). These are well worth the price- and the best part. Very affordable! You also get to try new foods. Ours includes fruits and veggies in every week's box. I've never had so many oranges this past winter!
We ordered a the large "food box" and it cost $38.30 per week. They had a smaller box for around $25 I believe. I could be wrong, but still- very affordable for any family. All I had to do was pick it up (or someone else if we were out of town). Fresh organic food per month for a large box: $153.20 per month.
So, $400 for groceries
- $153.20
$246.80 leftover for dairy, grains, household cleaners, etc. Definitely more than enough to last the month!
5. Try your best to resist the lure of expensive meats. Meat is the most expensive item in the cart and when you're eating all natural, it's sometimes twice or triple the cost of conventional meat. How to curb the extra cost?
a. Check out your CSA. We found our farmer's market prices to be astronomical in prices, so we checked out a CSA and were so happy with it.
b. See if you can split the cost of a cow at a local farm with friends or family
c. Most importantly, buy only what you need. I noticed the other day that my Sam's Club started carrying all-natural chicken. Now, that's not my top choice for chicken, but it's all we have in our area for fresh/natural chicken. It comes in a twin pack and I plan to use one for a rotisserie chicken and the other, cut it for parts for other meals.
d. Eat less meat. I know this is really hard for most of us, especially my family, so incorporating more veggies and some grains will do great to fill up the family.
6. Don't stress. It took me a few months to realize how to cut costs and stay on track. Nothing is achieved overnight.
7. Try a garden- even if you only plant just one plant, it will cut costs. A packet of seeds will cost maybe $2, but if your plant is taken care of, you'll save a ton of money if you get 10+ tomatoes or strawberries off that plant! Plus, it teaches science if you have little ones. Two for one deal!
To recap, look at your budget, cut out junk food, meal plan, check out your local CSA, watch the cost of meat, and don't stress! At first I stressed about eating healthy and staying on budget, but once I figured out what my family likes best, we decided what not to buy (kale, swiss chard), and can focus on more positive things: spending time with the kids and not stressing about a healthy dinner (as my 5 year old daughter calls it). Or supper-as my mother calls it.
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