I find myself going to Kroger twice a week, then Walmart for a few more items and then by Saturday, I need more food. I have spent 150.00 or more in a week on groceries by not planning and shopping right. Not any more. Times a tough and I don't have the funds to spare on sloppy shopping habits. So....As I have learned, I will share with you some tips today and continue for the next few months with recipes, grocery lists and meal options for families with various dietary needs.
If you REALLY want to save money on groceries, shop once a week and have enough for three meals a day, you'll have to follow these simple instructions. Modify to suit your dietary needs but try to stay withing these guild lines.
OKAY: First step today: Don't be discouraged, read this all the way through, take your time, it will OK.....It's worth the simple amount of work ahead.
Try to shop without purchasing processed foods. Buy from a bulk foods store if you can and only eat whole foods, which means that you’ll make almost everything from scratch and usually with 6 ingredients or less. You’ll also learn to abuse your crock-pot. If you don’t have one, buy one. It’s a great 15.00 investment. So if you are saying , "this is not going to be feasible for our family... I work all day and the last thing I want to do is come home and cook a dinner from scratch'. Wait! Keep reading, It doesn't even take that much time if you do some smart preparation ahead of time.
One side note: There is a theory about processed food that seems to be true for many folks including my family and me. Eat less processed, garbage, food and see your doctor less.
Once you have decided that you will not eat processed food the next step is to round up 31 days worth of recipes. We have a monthly menu that we use each month. Every 1st of any month is always the same breakfast, lunch and dinner. My family never tires from any one thing because they only eat that item once a month except for breakfast and lunches which may repeat because, of course, I am not a restaurant. So to clarify you will make a month's worth of menus that you will start over again the following month. So in essence you have a year's worth of menus with your 1-month menu plan.
If you can make a calendar or print one out from the Internet you’ll have space for what you need…
Here is an example of from one of our days:
Breakfast: scrambled eggs & cheese in a wrap, OJ
Lunch: turkey & cheese sandwich wrap, fruit, yogurt or applesauce
Dinner: Mac n cheese casserole, broccoli
So in each block, or day of the calendar, write out a list of what you will eat for the day. Once you have all of your blocks or days filled with breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, you need to number each week. So the first full week will be Week 1, Week 2, and so forth. Start your weeks on a Sunday, not on the 1st day of the month.
For desserts or snacks pick three for each week and write them either in the margin or down at the bottom. I like to write them in the margin of the corresponding week so I know when I am supposed to make it. After you have completed this step you need to secure five pieces of paper and each you will Name Week ___ Shopping List. Go to Week 1 on your calendar and make a list of all of the things you will need to accomplish those dishes onto your Week 1 Shopping List. That way at any given week you know what you need to shop for. You do not need to deviate from this list unless you have run out of staples. So you should have the same total to budget for every week you go grocery shopping. No more of these crazy amounts to pay for groceries each week. Do this same thing for all the weeks in the month - you should end up with five just to cover you in all cases. Now you have a months' worth of menus and your shopping lists for each week.
It's best to place all of these items into a binder for organization.
Behind your Monthly Calendar you need to put tabs with Week 1, 2, 3, 4, & 5 on them. This is so that you can file all of the recipes for that week behind the tab.(You can also place coupons in these sections to use when shopping). This way when you need to look up September Week 4, Thursday's recipe all you have to do is flip to that section in your binder and you have everything ready. If someone else is doing the cooking they will also be able to find out what to cook for the night with relative ease
The key to making this work is selecting cost effective dinners that you can stretch or get the ingredients for less. For instance, on the night you make chili, you can make a big crock-pot full so that you can bet that you will be having chili the next day for lunch. Or lets say that you have crock pot chicken 'n' dumplings. That requires a chicken carcass so you can make chicken broth from that and it can be used for soup later in the week. Be creative. Come up with menus for different days that compliment other days. Grow a garden so you can have fresh produce and you might be able to whittle down your weekly shopping bill even more.
If you work full time this is not a problem. Set aside a Saturday to cook some of the things that you can freeze like lasagna. Other things that are crock-pot recipes - get up 10 minutes earlier and put all the ingredients in and have a hot meal done and ready when you get home. On the Saturday you decide to cook a couple of things go ahead and chop a bag of onions or carrots and put them into a Ziploc so you don't have to cut anything during the week. This should not take up a long time on Saturday - maybe two hours or so. If you have kids you need to put them to work. Ages 8 and up should be allowed to peel carrots, dice onions, etc. Being in a family means that you contribute to the family's well being. That means helping in meal preparation, clean up, etc.
The initial work sounds like a lot but it really isn’t more than an hour or so. However, I will make it easy here for you by doing a lot of the work for you.
Stay tuned for later in the week when I will blog a weeks worth of recipes and the grocery lists that accomany them.
-Let This Circle be Unbroken
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Living Well on Less Tip 3
Coupons, home-made Bread and now Laundry Detergent
I've wanted to post this recipe for my next living well on less tip. (#3)
I've used this Home Made Laundry Detergent recipe for years with luck. I make variations every once in a while....see end of recipe for options...
This recipe will cost about .70 cents per 2 quarts of detergent.
Big savings, especially if you do laundry daily like me.
Have fun with it!
Home Made Laundry Detergent:
1 quart Water (boiling)
2 cups Bar soap (grated)
2 cups Borax
2 cups Washing Soda
* Add finely grated bar soap to the boiling water and stir until soap is melted. You can keep on low heat until soap is melted.
* Pour the soap water into a large, clean pail and add the Borax and Washing Soda. Stir well until all is dissolved.
* Add 2 gallons of water, stir until well mixed.
* Cover pail and use 1/4 cup for each load of laundry. Stir the soap each time you use it (will gel).
Options:
#1. For the bar soaps required in the recipes, you could try Fels-Naptha, Ivory soap, Sunlight bar soap, Kirk’s Hardwater Castile, and Zote. Don’t use heavily perfumed soaps.
#2. Washing Soda and Borax can normally be found in the laundry and cleaning aisles.
#3. Some people with really hard water or well water may have to adjust the recipes if the clothes look dingy.
#4. You can make huge pails of this at once, or smaller quantities. Also if you can get your hands on a few empty liquid laundry detergent bottles they work great for storing the detergent. Just make a big batch and pour in bottles, cap then use as needed–shake before use.
#5. This recipe calls for a large amount of water. Check with a local restaurant to see if they have any empty large pails from deep fryer oil–that’s how many restaurants buy the oil. See if you can have one or two of the pails after they’ve emptied it–just wash them out really well before using. They’re big, heavy plastic and very sturdy when stirring the soap and hot water.
#6. I have used essential oils to make the soap more fragrant. My favorites are Sage or Lavender Oil. 5-7 drops per recipe is plenty.
I've wanted to post this recipe for my next living well on less tip. (#3)
I've used this Home Made Laundry Detergent recipe for years with luck. I make variations every once in a while....see end of recipe for options...
This recipe will cost about .70 cents per 2 quarts of detergent.
Big savings, especially if you do laundry daily like me.
Have fun with it!
Home Made Laundry Detergent:
1 quart Water (boiling)
2 cups Bar soap (grated)
2 cups Borax
2 cups Washing Soda
* Add finely grated bar soap to the boiling water and stir until soap is melted. You can keep on low heat until soap is melted.
* Pour the soap water into a large, clean pail and add the Borax and Washing Soda. Stir well until all is dissolved.
* Add 2 gallons of water, stir until well mixed.
* Cover pail and use 1/4 cup for each load of laundry. Stir the soap each time you use it (will gel).
Options:
#1. For the bar soaps required in the recipes, you could try Fels-Naptha, Ivory soap, Sunlight bar soap, Kirk’s Hardwater Castile, and Zote. Don’t use heavily perfumed soaps.
#2. Washing Soda and Borax can normally be found in the laundry and cleaning aisles.
#3. Some people with really hard water or well water may have to adjust the recipes if the clothes look dingy.
#4. You can make huge pails of this at once, or smaller quantities. Also if you can get your hands on a few empty liquid laundry detergent bottles they work great for storing the detergent. Just make a big batch and pour in bottles, cap then use as needed–shake before use.
#5. This recipe calls for a large amount of water. Check with a local restaurant to see if they have any empty large pails from deep fryer oil–that’s how many restaurants buy the oil. See if you can have one or two of the pails after they’ve emptied it–just wash them out really well before using. They’re big, heavy plastic and very sturdy when stirring the soap and hot water.
#6. I have used essential oils to make the soap more fragrant. My favorites are Sage or Lavender Oil. 5-7 drops per recipe is plenty.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Shop till you drop...
A week ago, a local Church called my organization and said they wanted to donate some clothing. I said OK, 'I'll pick the cloths up on Monday'. The voice on the other end of the phone said, 'You'll need a truck'. 'You mean a pickup Truck'?
She said, 'No, a U-Haul'. So I rented a U-Haul and brought my 10 year old son and his Dad with me to load the truck. It was more like 2 U-Hauls worth of clothing. At the time I was still making calls to see where in this town we could bring the clothing. On the way to the Church, I got the call that a space in the Mall was donated for our event and that we could have it all week long. What a blessing!
So I worked hard all week organizing the clothing along with my sister, my 81 year old Mother, my son, and some friends. We folded, and folded, and folded, and folded clothing for men, women and children. I wish I had pictures, It was an impressive vision to behold.
Yesterday The Cause had our first clothing give away event. I really didn't know what to expect...My biggest fear was that no one would come.
Well at 8:00 am when I lifted the gate at the Mall store front. The people were there, forming a line. There was a steady stream of folks shopping until about 3:00 PM. My volunteers and myself assisted people with their shopping needs, shopping bags, boxes, and my 10 year old son and his friends helped deliver boxes of clothing to the cars of the shoppers as well as babysitting some smaller children so their Moms could shop. The organization was perfect and everyone was happy and grateful. We had folks signing up for assistance and to volunteer. I was amazed at the smoothness of this days events. I estimated about 400 - 500 people came in and shopped.
By the middle of the day we decided that we should do this on a regular basis with clothing, food and house hold supplies. So what is next on the horizon should be the equivalent to a 'FREE' store. Supplying the community with all of the above on a regular basis.
The donations that were offered blew me away. The Appalachian Community amazes me every day. These folks that need help want to help, they want to give, they encourage, they want to donate there time...HHHHHH, How I am feeling I can not describe in words... I am so fortunate to be working with and for the Appalachian Region of proud, soulful, wonderful, generous people. They say that the Appalachian Region of the United States is the poorest in the Country.....I have observed the richness of this Region. I am a humbled part of the bigger picture that is unfolding in front of me and ever evolving.
Let This Circle Be Unbroken -
She said, 'No, a U-Haul'. So I rented a U-Haul and brought my 10 year old son and his Dad with me to load the truck. It was more like 2 U-Hauls worth of clothing. At the time I was still making calls to see where in this town we could bring the clothing. On the way to the Church, I got the call that a space in the Mall was donated for our event and that we could have it all week long. What a blessing!
So I worked hard all week organizing the clothing along with my sister, my 81 year old Mother, my son, and some friends. We folded, and folded, and folded, and folded clothing for men, women and children. I wish I had pictures, It was an impressive vision to behold.
Yesterday The Cause had our first clothing give away event. I really didn't know what to expect...My biggest fear was that no one would come.
Well at 8:00 am when I lifted the gate at the Mall store front. The people were there, forming a line. There was a steady stream of folks shopping until about 3:00 PM. My volunteers and myself assisted people with their shopping needs, shopping bags, boxes, and my 10 year old son and his friends helped deliver boxes of clothing to the cars of the shoppers as well as babysitting some smaller children so their Moms could shop. The organization was perfect and everyone was happy and grateful. We had folks signing up for assistance and to volunteer. I was amazed at the smoothness of this days events. I estimated about 400 - 500 people came in and shopped.
By the middle of the day we decided that we should do this on a regular basis with clothing, food and house hold supplies. So what is next on the horizon should be the equivalent to a 'FREE' store. Supplying the community with all of the above on a regular basis.
The donations that were offered blew me away. The Appalachian Community amazes me every day. These folks that need help want to help, they want to give, they encourage, they want to donate there time...HHHHHH, How I am feeling I can not describe in words... I am so fortunate to be working with and for the Appalachian Region of proud, soulful, wonderful, generous people. They say that the Appalachian Region of the United States is the poorest in the Country.....I have observed the richness of this Region. I am a humbled part of the bigger picture that is unfolding in front of me and ever evolving.
Let This Circle Be Unbroken -
Sunday, August 15, 2010
The Bread of Life
Of all the things that I could be doing on this hot, August, Sunday afternoon....I'm making bread. Something I've been wanting to dabble in since I was about 13. So here I go......
I only have a few cook booked so I do what I know best and I began to Google bread recipes. I didn't want to make white bread, I want something delicious, special but simple and I also want to be able to use the items I have in stock in the pantry. Below is the recipe I discovered.
While googling, I found several good websites with blogs about how to calculate what each recipe cost and other helpful hints. check out,
http://sensetosave.com/2007/12/05/how-much-does-that-recipe-cost/
from there you'll find directions on how to calculate recipes so you know exactly where your grocery money is going. I'd like to be able to offer the readers....hello? is any body reading this besides my sister?....ways to make food for a family without spending a lot of money. Now I shop at Bulk Foods stores so i am able to get good, quality dry ingredients for less. It is worth the trip so check out your local bulk food store.
Here is my calculation for this Sunday August Bread... $67 cents per loaf, this recipe makes 2 loaves.
Ingredients
* 1 1/3 cups water
* 2 tablespoons butter, softened
* 3 tablespoons honey
* 1 1/2 cups bread flour
* 1 1/3 cups whole wheat bread flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
* 1/2 cup flax seeds
* 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
Directions:
Bread machine recipe: see hand made conversion below......
Place all ingredients (except sunflower seeds) in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select basic white cycle; press start. Add the sunflower seeds when the alert sounds during the knead cycle.
For 2 loaves. 2 cups of warm water with 6 tbsp of honey dissolved in it. then sprinkle 2 1/4 tsp of yeast and let proof for 10 minutes. Then add 1/4 cup of oil and 1 1/2 tsp salt. Then all your flour (I used about 5 cups, half whole wheat and half white) and seeds. You can add other seeds, than what is listed above, what ever you like. I added Chia seeds which are high in iron......and sunflower seeds.
Then I let rise in a oiled bowl for 1 hour, punch down and divide into 2 loaves then let rise again for 45 min. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.
This is a yummy & nutritious bread. I am going to have some this evening with dinner and I will attempt to use it for sandwich bread for my 10 year old son.
I found so many good reasonably inexpensive recipes to try.
I will save the butternut squash recipe for Fall. It's amazing and very inexpensive. Buy squash in season, cut, cook and freeze for holiday recipes coming up.
Let This Circle Be Unbroken -
I only have a few cook booked so I do what I know best and I began to Google bread recipes. I didn't want to make white bread, I want something delicious, special but simple and I also want to be able to use the items I have in stock in the pantry. Below is the recipe I discovered.
While googling, I found several good websites with blogs about how to calculate what each recipe cost and other helpful hints. check out,
http://sensetosave.com/2007/12/05/how-much-does-that-recipe-cost/
from there you'll find directions on how to calculate recipes so you know exactly where your grocery money is going. I'd like to be able to offer the readers....hello? is any body reading this besides my sister?....ways to make food for a family without spending a lot of money. Now I shop at Bulk Foods stores so i am able to get good, quality dry ingredients for less. It is worth the trip so check out your local bulk food store.
Here is my calculation for this Sunday August Bread... $67 cents per loaf, this recipe makes 2 loaves.
Ingredients
* 1 1/3 cups water
* 2 tablespoons butter, softened
* 3 tablespoons honey
* 1 1/2 cups bread flour
* 1 1/3 cups whole wheat bread flour
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
* 1/2 cup flax seeds
* 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
Directions:
Bread machine recipe: see hand made conversion below......
Place all ingredients (except sunflower seeds) in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select basic white cycle; press start. Add the sunflower seeds when the alert sounds during the knead cycle.
For 2 loaves. 2 cups of warm water with 6 tbsp of honey dissolved in it. then sprinkle 2 1/4 tsp of yeast and let proof for 10 minutes. Then add 1/4 cup of oil and 1 1/2 tsp salt. Then all your flour (I used about 5 cups, half whole wheat and half white) and seeds. You can add other seeds, than what is listed above, what ever you like. I added Chia seeds which are high in iron......and sunflower seeds.
Then I let rise in a oiled bowl for 1 hour, punch down and divide into 2 loaves then let rise again for 45 min. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.
This is a yummy & nutritious bread. I am going to have some this evening with dinner and I will attempt to use it for sandwich bread for my 10 year old son.
I found so many good reasonably inexpensive recipes to try.
I will save the butternut squash recipe for Fall. It's amazing and very inexpensive. Buy squash in season, cut, cook and freeze for holiday recipes coming up.
Let This Circle Be Unbroken -
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Coupons
Okay, the craziest thing happened to me last week. I saw a piece on CNN about this lady called the Coupon Mom. She collects coupons and saves big at the grocery store. I thought it was a bunch of bologna at first, but I logged on to her site http://www.couponmom.com/ and what do you know? To my surprise there were a million coupons there....and they are for all the things that i buy.
I discovered that I could download coupons electronically to my Kroger card or print coupons out for the things that were on my list and find out where the sales were and when stores have those elusive double/triple coupon days.
So I remembered this when I was writing my grocery list out this morning. So I went on line and researched a little more, I printed out coupons and downloaded a few to my Kroger card. Here's the big win....I bought $152.00 dollars worth of groceries, and after coupons, I paid just $84.18. Not kidding! I was so happy I almost cried. I felt like I had stumbled upon a great secret. The cashier looked at me and said you saved $67.82. I said, Are you kidding? She said, there are a few people who come in here and save a lot when they shop smart and use coupons.....I thought saving 12 bucks was good, that happened to me once a few years ago. But $67.82? Hot Diggety Dog!!!
I must share this information with you. With careful searching on this site http://www.couponmom.com/ you too can save, save, save.
The coupon Mom says within a few months time one can collect enough coupons to safe really big. So, I guess this is my new obsession.... Hope you join in the fun and worthy while savings!
I discovered that I could download coupons electronically to my Kroger card or print coupons out for the things that were on my list and find out where the sales were and when stores have those elusive double/triple coupon days.
So I remembered this when I was writing my grocery list out this morning. So I went on line and researched a little more, I printed out coupons and downloaded a few to my Kroger card. Here's the big win....I bought $152.00 dollars worth of groceries, and after coupons, I paid just $84.18. Not kidding! I was so happy I almost cried. I felt like I had stumbled upon a great secret. The cashier looked at me and said you saved $67.82. I said, Are you kidding? She said, there are a few people who come in here and save a lot when they shop smart and use coupons.....I thought saving 12 bucks was good, that happened to me once a few years ago. But $67.82? Hot Diggety Dog!!!
I must share this information with you. With careful searching on this site http://www.couponmom.com/ you too can save, save, save.
The coupon Mom says within a few months time one can collect enough coupons to safe really big. So, I guess this is my new obsession.... Hope you join in the fun and worthy while savings!
Monday, August 9, 2010
Todays events 8/9/10
I realized today that giving of my time and helping others gives me more than I could ever have imagined. I was giving an interview for a local newspaper today and as I was answering questions & describing what The Cause is all about and why I do what I do. At one point I became glossy eyed and overwhelmed with emotion. I silently thought...What has happened to me? I used to be so tuff!
I used to pride myself on never crying... I felt a little unprofessional.
After the interview was over, I remembered the times in my life when all I thought about was myself and what I wanted and how I was going to get it. Times when I was so self absorbed and talked about myself ALL the time. I believe I judged others that were not thinking like me.........Something happened during the course of my getting it together, getting this organization together. My heart grew... like the Grinch...
What I get from helping others is indescribable. The donation of my time is healing me.
Help someone today and you'll know what I'm talking about.
Let This Circle Be Unbroken -
G.L. Gagne'
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Let This Circle Be Unbroken
Posting helpful tips on how to live a life well for less in Appalachia USA.
Today I have decided to Blog about my life experiences as a single Mom in Appalachia, a single women with the desire to make it on my own, A Mother struggling to make ends meet as well as my experience in regards to my journey on living well no matter how much money I have (or don't have) & regardless of how I feel when I wake up.I have done an incredible amount of research through life experiences and through my 40 + years helping others. I now have enough information to share through this Blog and through my organization, The Cause, Inc.
The main objecting through my work with The Cause, Inc. is to assist individuals and families in the Appalachian region in a quality of living which aides in maximizing a families full potential.
Our resources are many; just check out the website to see it grow through weekly updates.
However, on this Blog, what I would like to do is to share some personal notes, ideas, goals, tips and tricks as well as some recipes and good old fashion advice on how to live well & live better for less.
I will also share with you how I reconnected with my true self and am how I am able to live the life I want to live.
I hope you will join me in my mission to assist others by sharing the things we know that make life easier. If you have an idea you'd like to pass on, Please email me at The Cause and I will share all good, sensible ideas with the amazing, prideful people of Appalachia.
-Let This Circle Be Unbroken
G.L. Gagne'
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)