I just found out, from our old neighbor Angie, that our Ann Arbor house just got put back on the market. WTF?! That crazy lady practically forced us to move out in less than 3 weeks and now she's selling it?!
And she's asking 30K over our selling price.
It's been 6 months... in Michigan... good luck with that!
Monday, January 26, 2009
The Great School Debate
Things have been going well mood wise around the house... but just under the surface I am starting to really sweat the school issue. We just can't afford to continue to send Kid to her current school. Private school is shockingly expensive here and we needed Mr F's bonus and an anticipated yearly raise to make ends meet. Neither of those are looking very likely and things are beyond tight. There is really not much more we can do. I'm struggling to lower our food costs and Mr F is selling his car... so when I say things are tight I really, really, mean it.
Taking her out of school is an unfortunate necessity at this point. She'll finish out the year but there is just no way we can swing another year's tuition. This year's has already pushed us past the point of comfort. But pulling her out isn't easy either. Kid suffers from pretty severe social anxiety. And I'm not just saying that. I mean it's a real problem.
We held her back from Kindergarten in Michigan, which was the best possible decision we could have made for her, and that extra year did help her... some. But being the "new" kid is excrutiatingly difficult for her. She has made herself comfortable at her new school. She is doing very well socially and has become a social leader among her classmates. That is a triumphant accomplishment for a sensitive kid who compares herself to others in a very self-depreciating way... on just about every single level (except looks... she's pretty into her long golden hair!). Her current social comfort is a reflection, in no small part, on the particularly wonderful group of kids she just happened to be placed with. Kids, who due to the very small nature of the school, would be her classmates all the way through the 8th grade. She has taken great comfort in that thought.
Even still Kid is a kid who rips up her artwork if it isn't perfect enough. She comes home and announces (daily) that she is the only kid who doesn't know how to: read, spell, add, play violin, swim in the deep end, climb Mt Everest. She refuses to preform on any type of test, and is routinely under evaluated because of it. Long story short the girl has got ISSUES. She is intensely observant... and to her... everyone else's strengths exaggerate her weaknesses. She's smart (and hysterically funny)... but school isn't as easy for her as it is for others.
Right now, with LOTS of coaching from yours truly, she has got a set of teachers who (for the most part) get her. She is thriving (beyond my wildest imagination). She's still got her issues but they are not holding her back as much as they used to. She wants to go to school everyday (unheard of!) and loves all her friends. And lets face it... happiness should count for something. She is in an environment that has nurtured her quirks and allowed her to blossom in spite of them. At the same time, we can't jeopardize our financial health when there are other schooling options. And while I don't know that the other schools will fail to bring her out of her shell... I fear it... and that fear can be almost paralyzing.
It's a hard time for me since I will be the one to make and carry out this decision. The completely ridiculous school system here isn't helping matters. It would be one thing if I could know what school I was preparing her for. I have filled out the Magnet application and will be submitting it next week. It will be another couple of months before I find out her placement. In the meantime I will also apply to all the charter schools and hope (against hope) that she manages to snag a spot (available only if someone vacates a spot and then we win it by lottery). In April or May I will weigh our options (including homeschooling) and see where I think her best interest lies.
But I know she will be heartbroken to leave the small comfortable space she's made for herself among friendly faces. Especially since not even a year ago she said goodbye to her childhood friends in Michigan. That's a lot of unwanted change for a socially anxious kid... any kid for that matter.
It's tough, too, since I have completely no control. I have to just wait and see what spots we're offered and hope that what is best for her presents itself. I am thankful that this transition will happen after the summer break so that she will have already spent some time away from her classmates and the adjustment won't seem so abrupt (I hope). But seeing as there is no way we could ever afford to send Baby to preschool (or have either child take any type of extracurricular class) and afford Kid's tuition we'd have to pull her out sooner or later. So hopefully sooner, while hard right now, will be easier in the long run.
Listen, I know to most people the decision would be a no brainer. Take her out and put her in whatever free school you get into. "She'll do just fine!" But when your child has an issue and you find them a place that allows for them to develop confidence (and is markedly happier than she has ever been) it isn't so easy to pull her out. She loves her current school because she is happy socially. Taking her out is one of the hardest things I'll have to do. It's killing me. I want to do what is best for her but can't. This is one case where what is best for the family isn't best for everyone in the family... and Kid is taking a hit for the team.
Taking her out of school is an unfortunate necessity at this point. She'll finish out the year but there is just no way we can swing another year's tuition. This year's has already pushed us past the point of comfort. But pulling her out isn't easy either. Kid suffers from pretty severe social anxiety. And I'm not just saying that. I mean it's a real problem.
We held her back from Kindergarten in Michigan, which was the best possible decision we could have made for her, and that extra year did help her... some. But being the "new" kid is excrutiatingly difficult for her. She has made herself comfortable at her new school. She is doing very well socially and has become a social leader among her classmates. That is a triumphant accomplishment for a sensitive kid who compares herself to others in a very self-depreciating way... on just about every single level (except looks... she's pretty into her long golden hair!). Her current social comfort is a reflection, in no small part, on the particularly wonderful group of kids she just happened to be placed with. Kids, who due to the very small nature of the school, would be her classmates all the way through the 8th grade. She has taken great comfort in that thought.
Even still Kid is a kid who rips up her artwork if it isn't perfect enough. She comes home and announces (daily) that she is the only kid who doesn't know how to: read, spell, add, play violin, swim in the deep end, climb Mt Everest. She refuses to preform on any type of test, and is routinely under evaluated because of it. Long story short the girl has got ISSUES. She is intensely observant... and to her... everyone else's strengths exaggerate her weaknesses. She's smart (and hysterically funny)... but school isn't as easy for her as it is for others.
Right now, with LOTS of coaching from yours truly, she has got a set of teachers who (for the most part) get her. She is thriving (beyond my wildest imagination). She's still got her issues but they are not holding her back as much as they used to. She wants to go to school everyday (unheard of!) and loves all her friends. And lets face it... happiness should count for something. She is in an environment that has nurtured her quirks and allowed her to blossom in spite of them. At the same time, we can't jeopardize our financial health when there are other schooling options. And while I don't know that the other schools will fail to bring her out of her shell... I fear it... and that fear can be almost paralyzing.
It's a hard time for me since I will be the one to make and carry out this decision. The completely ridiculous school system here isn't helping matters. It would be one thing if I could know what school I was preparing her for. I have filled out the Magnet application and will be submitting it next week. It will be another couple of months before I find out her placement. In the meantime I will also apply to all the charter schools and hope (against hope) that she manages to snag a spot (available only if someone vacates a spot and then we win it by lottery). In April or May I will weigh our options (including homeschooling) and see where I think her best interest lies.
But I know she will be heartbroken to leave the small comfortable space she's made for herself among friendly faces. Especially since not even a year ago she said goodbye to her childhood friends in Michigan. That's a lot of unwanted change for a socially anxious kid... any kid for that matter.
It's tough, too, since I have completely no control. I have to just wait and see what spots we're offered and hope that what is best for her presents itself. I am thankful that this transition will happen after the summer break so that she will have already spent some time away from her classmates and the adjustment won't seem so abrupt (I hope). But seeing as there is no way we could ever afford to send Baby to preschool (or have either child take any type of extracurricular class) and afford Kid's tuition we'd have to pull her out sooner or later. So hopefully sooner, while hard right now, will be easier in the long run.
Listen, I know to most people the decision would be a no brainer. Take her out and put her in whatever free school you get into. "She'll do just fine!" But when your child has an issue and you find them a place that allows for them to develop confidence (and is markedly happier than she has ever been) it isn't so easy to pull her out. She loves her current school because she is happy socially. Taking her out is one of the hardest things I'll have to do. It's killing me. I want to do what is best for her but can't. This is one case where what is best for the family isn't best for everyone in the family... and Kid is taking a hit for the team.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Aw Yeah...
Warning: This post will have absolutely no meaning if you haven't spent part of your life in Southeast Michigan!
What does that look like folks?!
If you said an Olga than you know how astatic we all were to be having one of these babies grace our tummies this weekend.
How could it be?! You aren't back in Michigan are you?!
No! We're right here sitting in our little old house in North Carolina.
Last week I stumbled upon a posting of the Olga bread recipe and I just about had a coronary. There isn't a member of this house (is there anyone in the world?!) who doesn't swoon at the sight (and taste) of Olga bread served up in any fashion.
Since there is absolutely no chance that we'll be having a real Olga anytime soon I thought it was worth making a trial batch... just to see.
They were surprisingly easy to make (and I say that as someone who bakes everyday so keep that in mind... easy for me... not necessarily easy for everyone). It's basically like making a pizza dough and then rolling out small rounds and pan frying them (no oil) much like tortillas. So if you've made either of those you're good to go. This bread is slightly sweet, slightly yeasty, and more dense and chewy than a traditional flatbread. In highschool I'd go to the food court and eat nothing but Olga bread for lunch. It is seriously good. The home version was pretty close. I have a feeling some oil might actually be used to fry these up in the restaurant... they were missing a little something. Nonetheless we'll be making them again... probably next week.
Kid said "Mom these aren't like Olga's... they are better than Olga's!"
Without further ado the recipe...
Olga Bread
I have no idea where this was taken from... sorry!
1 cup milk
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup margarine (I use butter)
1 teaspoon salt
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 egg
Scald milk, remove to large bowl. Add honey, margarine and salt to milk; stir until margarine is melted. Set aside to cool until lukewarm. Combine yeast, warm water and sugar; stir until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
Add 1 1/2 cups of the flour to lukewarm milk mixture and beat well. Mix in egg and yeast mixture. Add remaining flour, a little at a time, until sticky dough is formed. Turn out on a floured surface; knead about two minutes. Dough will be sticky, but don’t add more flour. Place dough in oiled bowl, turning once to oil whole surface of dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand in warm place until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough; divide into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece to a thin rough circle about 1/8 inch thick and 8-10 inches in diameter.
Heat a large dry skillet over medium-high heat; do not use any oil. Bake 15 seconds, flip and bake about 10 seconds on other side, until mottled brown spots appear. Do not over cook. Cool and store in a plastic bag, use them at once or refrigerate or freeze. Makes 16.
*I halved the recipe to turn out 8 - 8" ish small flatbreads. I also found the cooking time to be about 30 sec per side.
(wondering how you halve an egg?... I get that a lot... just beat it and then pour in half)
We didn't have any shaved lamb or olga sauce on hand but I managed to do a pretty good knock off of the Olga Burger.
We had these crazy 1/3 pound hamburger patties in the freezer so I used those up slicing them to fit (about 1/6 pound for each). I topped the bread with mayo and seasoned it generously with house seasoning (1 part garlic powder, 1 part ground pepper, 4 parts salt). I put ketchup under the burger and topped with sliced red onion. I swear to God it tasted exactly like the Olga burger you know and love. (I should know... I ate at least one a week throughout my pregnancies).
What does that look like folks?!
If you said an Olga than you know how astatic we all were to be having one of these babies grace our tummies this weekend.
How could it be?! You aren't back in Michigan are you?!
No! We're right here sitting in our little old house in North Carolina.
Last week I stumbled upon a posting of the Olga bread recipe and I just about had a coronary. There isn't a member of this house (is there anyone in the world?!) who doesn't swoon at the sight (and taste) of Olga bread served up in any fashion.
Since there is absolutely no chance that we'll be having a real Olga anytime soon I thought it was worth making a trial batch... just to see.
They were surprisingly easy to make (and I say that as someone who bakes everyday so keep that in mind... easy for me... not necessarily easy for everyone). It's basically like making a pizza dough and then rolling out small rounds and pan frying them (no oil) much like tortillas. So if you've made either of those you're good to go. This bread is slightly sweet, slightly yeasty, and more dense and chewy than a traditional flatbread. In highschool I'd go to the food court and eat nothing but Olga bread for lunch. It is seriously good. The home version was pretty close. I have a feeling some oil might actually be used to fry these up in the restaurant... they were missing a little something. Nonetheless we'll be making them again... probably next week.
Kid said "Mom these aren't like Olga's... they are better than Olga's!"
Without further ado the recipe...
Olga Bread
I have no idea where this was taken from... sorry!
1 cup milk
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup margarine (I use butter)
1 teaspoon salt
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 egg
Scald milk, remove to large bowl. Add honey, margarine and salt to milk; stir until margarine is melted. Set aside to cool until lukewarm. Combine yeast, warm water and sugar; stir until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
Add 1 1/2 cups of the flour to lukewarm milk mixture and beat well. Mix in egg and yeast mixture. Add remaining flour, a little at a time, until sticky dough is formed. Turn out on a floured surface; knead about two minutes. Dough will be sticky, but don’t add more flour. Place dough in oiled bowl, turning once to oil whole surface of dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand in warm place until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough; divide into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece to a thin rough circle about 1/8 inch thick and 8-10 inches in diameter.
Heat a large dry skillet over medium-high heat; do not use any oil. Bake 15 seconds, flip and bake about 10 seconds on other side, until mottled brown spots appear. Do not over cook. Cool and store in a plastic bag, use them at once or refrigerate or freeze. Makes 16.
*I halved the recipe to turn out 8 - 8" ish small flatbreads. I also found the cooking time to be about 30 sec per side.
(wondering how you halve an egg?... I get that a lot... just beat it and then pour in half)
We didn't have any shaved lamb or olga sauce on hand but I managed to do a pretty good knock off of the Olga Burger.
We had these crazy 1/3 pound hamburger patties in the freezer so I used those up slicing them to fit (about 1/6 pound for each). I topped the bread with mayo and seasoned it generously with house seasoning (1 part garlic powder, 1 part ground pepper, 4 parts salt). I put ketchup under the burger and topped with sliced red onion. I swear to God it tasted exactly like the Olga burger you know and love. (I should know... I ate at least one a week throughout my pregnancies).
Saturday, January 24, 2009
God I Love These Guys
Today was one of those days. A day when I was acutely aware that I am living the life I dreamed of living. Having a cup of coffee, sitting in a chair reading a book, with the sounds of laughter and chatter drifting in and out of the room. Making bread with a little helper standing on a chair, hands dusty with flour, rolling pin in hand. Sisters holding hands, running up and down the sidewalk, with the sunset shining through their golden hair. Pancakes for breakfast, and a movie at night. Compliments enthusiastically bestowed for a good lunch. Laughter with my husband. A day that played out exactly as I imagined my adult life would be. Except I didn't know then how full it would make my heart to be so fulfilled... so indescribably happy.
I'd also like to thank everyone for their thoughts, prayers, and positive energy that they sent my Nana's way. I am thrilled to report that it worked and that she made nothing short of a miraculous recovery. She does not know that hundreds of kindly strangers were rooting for her but I am sure she felt it. My aunt told me that against all odds, with all her children gathered at her bedside, she never gave in. She just never let go. And we are so grateful!
Our Hallmark Moments
In the midst of a typical potty humored Saturday morning, Mr F saunters over and kisses Mrs F on the cheek.
"Special... cause it's nonexistent." Mrs F replies.
laughter ensues
Friday, January 23, 2009
Gratitude
"Mom you are actually lucky that llama spit in your face." Kid says
"How?" I ask, suddenly taken back to that horrible day this past summer.
"Because this could have happened too..." Kid begins and then pauses dramatically.
"Llamas can bite all your fingers off!" Kid proclaims.
"Oh God." I say through laughter.
"For real! It's true... it could have happened." Kid continues
One more thing to be grateful for. Sure I had wretched disgust spit directly into my eyes, but Kid's right... at least I have my fingers.
Don't Hold Back... Tell Me What You Really Think
Last night while cuddling up on the couch, watching The Food Network (as is my early evening routine once I am too sore and tired to stand it anymore), Kid grabbed Baby's foot and took a long deep smell and then made some exaggerated gagging sounds.
It was awesome and classic all at once.
Like the little mimic that she is, Baby then had to smell her own feet.
And, of course, so did I.
"They don't smell that bad... smell your own feet... I bet they stink." I said.
So Kid did, but claimed hers didn't smell (of course).
Then she took off one of my socks.
"They aren't going to smell... I've had socks on all day." I stated.
She took a long whiff and then stuck out her tongue.
"They can't smell that bad." I protested.
Then Baby crawled over and took off my other sock and took a smell of that foot.
"Smell them yourself." Kid insisted.
"I can't my butt is broken... you'll just have to tell me what they smell like." I offered.
"Hell." Came her reply.
It was awesome and classic all at once.
Like the little mimic that she is, Baby then had to smell her own feet.
And, of course, so did I.
"They don't smell that bad... smell your own feet... I bet they stink." I said.
So Kid did, but claimed hers didn't smell (of course).
Then she took off one of my socks.
"They aren't going to smell... I've had socks on all day." I stated.
She took a long whiff and then stuck out her tongue.
"They can't smell that bad." I protested.
Then Baby crawled over and took off my other sock and took a smell of that foot.
"Smell them yourself." Kid insisted.
"I can't my butt is broken... you'll just have to tell me what they smell like." I offered.
"Hell." Came her reply.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
The Upside Of The Financial Downturn
Everyone has to make their own life choices and those choices can (and should) change as all the pieces that make up your life change. There is no sense in looking back and wishing you had "known better" (or known what was to come). Being able to look back and know you were doing the best you could, given all your life circumstances (maturity included), can give you the freedom to move forward.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
What Do NudeFest, Nudeville, & Googling Nude Schools Have In Common?
Kid's love of being completely unadorned.
Hey where's all the text I promised you?!
Ladies and Gents my butt hurts. Maybe I'll get back to this tomorrow... or maybe I'll tell you about the platonic personal ad I answered. What?! I never told you about that?!
Hey where's all the text I promised you?!
Ladies and Gents my butt hurts. Maybe I'll get back to this tomorrow... or maybe I'll tell you about the platonic personal ad I answered. What?! I never told you about that?!
Cheers
Yesterday someone asked me what my tips for a newly relocated SAHM would be. I thought of the usual tips. But after sitting with it I thought of something no one tells you.
When you move to a new place, especially if you have left a place you were really connected to, the thing you miss is being known. It's hard enough not knowing where to go. You'll spend weeks finding all your new stores and services. But the hardest part is that nobody recognizes you.
There is no way you can feel at home while you feel like a stranger. But there are some surprisingly easy ways to fix that.
Become a regular.
Go grocery shopping at the same time and day each week. If you can keep checking out with the same cashier. In a couple weeks that will be one person who recognizes you. You can do this with all your errands (and should). In a month's time when you go get your prescriptions, pizza, movies and 3 more people recognized you... I swear... you will feel more settled.
Ever since moving here Mr F had ordered the same pizza from the same place every Friday. One week he changed our order and they said "What you're changing it up?!" We hadn't even been here 5 months and the pizza guys knew our order... Mr F left there feeling like a rock star. Same thing goes with going out to eat. If you go out... especially true if you stick to small ethnic restaurants... give it a couple of weeks at the same place and pretty soon the waitress and hostess will remember you. That's two people for the price of one!
And for my last bit of advice... if you are home when the mail comes go out and take it from the mailman by hand. It's easy to do... heck the mailman might even appreciate a little decency anyway... and pretty soon someone will know you. You might not have friends yet (although who knows maybe your mailman ROCKS and you'll be BFFs in no time), and you might never have family nearby... but you will no longer be an invisible stranger. And that helps immeasurably. Because the worst part of making a big move is feeling isolated.
(Oh and if this doesn't work... just go online and order a Book Of Mormon... boom... you'll have 2 friendly faces knocking on your door)
When you move to a new place, especially if you have left a place you were really connected to, the thing you miss is being known. It's hard enough not knowing where to go. You'll spend weeks finding all your new stores and services. But the hardest part is that nobody recognizes you.
There is no way you can feel at home while you feel like a stranger. But there are some surprisingly easy ways to fix that.
Become a regular.
Go grocery shopping at the same time and day each week. If you can keep checking out with the same cashier. In a couple weeks that will be one person who recognizes you. You can do this with all your errands (and should). In a month's time when you go get your prescriptions, pizza, movies and 3 more people recognized you... I swear... you will feel more settled.
Ever since moving here Mr F had ordered the same pizza from the same place every Friday. One week he changed our order and they said "What you're changing it up?!" We hadn't even been here 5 months and the pizza guys knew our order... Mr F left there feeling like a rock star. Same thing goes with going out to eat. If you go out... especially true if you stick to small ethnic restaurants... give it a couple of weeks at the same place and pretty soon the waitress and hostess will remember you. That's two people for the price of one!
And for my last bit of advice... if you are home when the mail comes go out and take it from the mailman by hand. It's easy to do... heck the mailman might even appreciate a little decency anyway... and pretty soon someone will know you. You might not have friends yet (although who knows maybe your mailman ROCKS and you'll be BFFs in no time), and you might never have family nearby... but you will no longer be an invisible stranger. And that helps immeasurably. Because the worst part of making a big move is feeling isolated.
(Oh and if this doesn't work... just go online and order a Book Of Mormon... boom... you'll have 2 friendly faces knocking on your door)
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
No I'm Not Dialing It In
I'm on standby.
The kids are fairly occupied. I'm making soup.
And I'm at your beck and call.
Got a random question for me?
Then ask away.
The kids are fairly occupied. I'm making soup.
And I'm at your beck and call.
Got a random question for me?
Then ask away.
Snow Day
Take a look at that picture and tell me what you see. Because I see maybe a dusting of snow on some of the grass... but completely clear and dry roads and sidewalks. That's what you see right?!
Today... is a Snow Day... and I CANNOT freaking believe it.
Just for the fun of it this is a picture of our backyard in Michigan:
Now this is what a Snow Day looks like!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Like You Didn't See This Coming
Overheard during bath time...
[splashing... crazy, crazy, splashing]
"I mean it. Sit down NOW and don't move!" Mr F says firmly.
[sudden silence]
"Turn around so I can wash your hair." Mr F instructs.
"I'm not moving. You told me not to." Kid replies somewhat snarkily.
[splashing... crazy, crazy, splashing]
"I mean it. Sit down NOW and don't move!" Mr F says firmly.
[sudden silence]
"Turn around so I can wash your hair." Mr F instructs.
"I'm not moving. You told me not to." Kid replies somewhat snarkily.
Compacting In The Kitchen
I know this is long... but it's chock full of information. If you are trying to cut back but don't know how this might be worth reading. Skip half way down (below the bold line) to check out the dollar for dollar changes we're making now. We are saving some serious money without giving up our quality of food. Sure a few of the changes are more time consuming... but not as much as they sound. Last year I wouldn't have thought there was much I could take out of our spending... I was seriously deluded. Oh and check out the link at the end of the post.
*****************************************
Not even a year ago we were spending over $200 a week for our groceries... and that didn't count takeout or eating out (2-3 times a week), or Mr F's lunches at work. That might seem like a lot but it's actually the national average! At that time we had been buying high end brands and some (more and more over time) organic foods. But we were throwing out rotting produce and meat EVERY week.
I started meal planning and that helped some but the lure of the $5 Hot & Ready often meant I pushed meals around and/or never got around to making them. Before we left MI I had worked pretty hard to lower our grocery spending to around $180/week for nearly all organic foods but we were still doing plenty of take out and still wasting food. When we moved we had a completely stocked fridge/freezer and pantry of partial opened foods that we had to give away!
Moving here actually gave me a clean slate and instead of filling them back up with everything we had had before I decided to only buy things AS NEEDED. Which meant not buying every kind of vinegar, oil, and baking ingredient "just in case", etc. I really switched my head space from buying things to make a new recipe to trying not to buy things... like if I don't have "x" let's just scrap that and find something I can make with what I've got. Is my cooking somewhat less adventurous?... yep... but it's also a hell of a lot cheaper.
When we started "compacting" a couple of months ago I decided to take meal planning one step further. Instead of thinking of meals and then seeing which components we had and buying the rest, I started carefully assessing what we had and trying to make a meal plan around buying as little as possible. It's a subtle but important difference that resulted in... oh... $40-$50 a week. To make that work most effectively we do a monthly stock up on our basic meal components that we eat EVERY SINGLE WEEK: frozen vegetables, frozen fish filets, pasta, rice, peanut butter, jam, butter, popcorn kernels, instant oatmeal, dry cereal, pancake mix,chicken stock, tomato soup, canned salmon, pasta sauce, and apple juice.
Did you get all that? Because we are buying all organic foods the cheapest way to get them is to buy the store brand. Organic food rarely has coupons (sigh) so the store brands are where it is at... and the bulk bins! I have found (and believe me I have diligently searched and price checked) that Whole Foods has the cheapest (and best quality) of store brand organics. We don't have one here but Mr F drives about an hour and half with a cooler in his trunk and loads us up. It is winter so the cheapest (and best quality) produce is frozen.
Now at this point we don't buy more than a months worth of food... because we don't have a chest freezer or a lot of pantry space... and we can't front that much money. The stock up costs us about $80-$140 bucks depending on how much we needed to replace. That lets us limit our weekly spending to fresh ingredients: dairy, eggs, meat, bread, some vegetables, and fruit. Doing that brought my weekly spending down to about $75-$80 with the monthly stock up bringing our monthly spending to about $440. When we started compacting Mr F also started packing his breakfast and lunch and we only got take out or a restaurant meal once a week. So our total monthly food budget went from about $1200 a month to $520 (that counts one night of takeout once compacting started).
Now we are down to $400 a month... maybe less... time will tell. Here are the changes we've made (some since Compacting some since January):
From buying 2-3 loaves of organic bread each week for $4.50 each
To making our own bread in a bread machine (it was free!) for $1.25 per loaf
From buying lunch meat for Mr F's & my lunches for $9 - $12 a week
To buying a rotisserie chicken and eating chicken & chicken salad sandwiches for $5 a week
From making 2 cups of coffee every time we made coffee for a total of 2 pounds of coffee a week $16
To making 1 cup at a time and not pouring any down the drain for a total of 1 pound of coffee a week $8
From having several beverages in the house to having ONE beverage choice other than water per person. KId gets milk, Baby (still breastfed) gets apple juice, Mr F & I have coffee w/half & half. Savings for us $12- $16 dollars a week!
We don't have premade packaged snacks we now have fruit, yogurt, cereal, pb &j, or popcorn for snacks. Mr F & I have both lost 3 pounds in 3 weeks just by getting rid of packaged snacks. It took a little adjustment but the kids are doing just fine ;) Once a week I make homemade muffins using up whatever apples or carrots are getting old. Savings of $5-$10 a week. (and a pound a week)
From ordering pizza once a week for $17 (it was fantastic)
To making it or having a frozen pizza for $4-$5. Saving $12-$13 a week!
I make exactly 4 portions of dinner. Kid, Mr F & I each have one and Baby has 1/2. The remaining 1/2 is immediately packed up for Kid's lunch the next day.
I have lowered our protein portion down an ounce per person and raised the carbs up a small bit to make up the difference.
I have figured out the costs of each dinner I typically make and keep that in mind when I'm meal planning. Tomato & Meatball Soup is about $5 for 4, Brown Sugar & Ginger Salmon w/ rice & broccoli is about $12 for 4. Our dinners have not lost any of their nutritional value I just try to plan more cheap meals versus expensive per week.
Using frozen vegetables saves me about $1-$2 per pound which is $7-$14 a week. And I have mastered the art of cooking them so they are not mushy and you would never know it wasn't fresh broccoli.
We do not go out for dinner. Period. Saving us about $80- $200 a month. For us, right now, we just can't afford to. And the expense just isn't worth it for what you get when your dining companions are 2 and 6 years old.
For our sweet tooth we still have dessert.... just not lots of choices. I have my Trader Joe's dark chocolate covered caramels. The kids & Mr F have Newman's Own Organic Fig Newman's or Newman's O's (cheapest at Target). We have vanilla ice cream and we have chocolate sauce. We make a simple icing-less chocolate cake that is a depression era recipe that has no dairy or eggs (it's moist and it is cheap) once a week. We make cookie dough and freeze them in portioned balls... so we only bake what we need for that dinner. We eat less of them saving money and calories. I'm not sure how much money this saves certainly a couple of bucks a week.
My whole philosophy with all this is to strip it down to what we NEED. We buy fresh fruit as needed. No more bowl on the counter with rotting fruit just because something looked good at the store that day. When it's gone we buy more. That's the great thing about living in modern times.. we can just go to the store. I find we don't need to go as much as we thought we did... we can make do with what's on hand. And the less times you go to the store (in my experience) the less you spend.
*******************************************
Oh and if you are at all interested in coupons or don't know where to start hop over here. Scroll down and she's got an introductory post... but, dude, she just got 21 jars of Ragu for less than a buck! It's almost enticing enough to make me cross back over the conventional/organic divide!
*****************************************
Not even a year ago we were spending over $200 a week for our groceries... and that didn't count takeout or eating out (2-3 times a week), or Mr F's lunches at work. That might seem like a lot but it's actually the national average! At that time we had been buying high end brands and some (more and more over time) organic foods. But we were throwing out rotting produce and meat EVERY week.
I started meal planning and that helped some but the lure of the $5 Hot & Ready often meant I pushed meals around and/or never got around to making them. Before we left MI I had worked pretty hard to lower our grocery spending to around $180/week for nearly all organic foods but we were still doing plenty of take out and still wasting food. When we moved we had a completely stocked fridge/freezer and pantry of partial opened foods that we had to give away!
Moving here actually gave me a clean slate and instead of filling them back up with everything we had had before I decided to only buy things AS NEEDED. Which meant not buying every kind of vinegar, oil, and baking ingredient "just in case", etc. I really switched my head space from buying things to make a new recipe to trying not to buy things... like if I don't have "x" let's just scrap that and find something I can make with what I've got. Is my cooking somewhat less adventurous?... yep... but it's also a hell of a lot cheaper.
When we started "compacting" a couple of months ago I decided to take meal planning one step further. Instead of thinking of meals and then seeing which components we had and buying the rest, I started carefully assessing what we had and trying to make a meal plan around buying as little as possible. It's a subtle but important difference that resulted in... oh... $40-$50 a week. To make that work most effectively we do a monthly stock up on our basic meal components that we eat EVERY SINGLE WEEK: frozen vegetables, frozen fish filets, pasta, rice, peanut butter, jam, butter, popcorn kernels, instant oatmeal, dry cereal, pancake mix,chicken stock, tomato soup, canned salmon, pasta sauce, and apple juice.
Did you get all that? Because we are buying all organic foods the cheapest way to get them is to buy the store brand. Organic food rarely has coupons (sigh) so the store brands are where it is at... and the bulk bins! I have found (and believe me I have diligently searched and price checked) that Whole Foods has the cheapest (and best quality) of store brand organics. We don't have one here but Mr F drives about an hour and half with a cooler in his trunk and loads us up. It is winter so the cheapest (and best quality) produce is frozen.
Now at this point we don't buy more than a months worth of food... because we don't have a chest freezer or a lot of pantry space... and we can't front that much money. The stock up costs us about $80-$140 bucks depending on how much we needed to replace. That lets us limit our weekly spending to fresh ingredients: dairy, eggs, meat, bread, some vegetables, and fruit. Doing that brought my weekly spending down to about $75-$80 with the monthly stock up bringing our monthly spending to about $440. When we started compacting Mr F also started packing his breakfast and lunch and we only got take out or a restaurant meal once a week. So our total monthly food budget went from about $1200 a month to $520 (that counts one night of takeout once compacting started).
Now we are down to $400 a month... maybe less... time will tell. Here are the changes we've made (some since Compacting some since January):
From buying 2-3 loaves of organic bread each week for $4.50 each
To making our own bread in a bread machine (it was free!) for $1.25 per loaf
From buying lunch meat for Mr F's & my lunches for $9 - $12 a week
To buying a rotisserie chicken and eating chicken & chicken salad sandwiches for $5 a week
From making 2 cups of coffee every time we made coffee for a total of 2 pounds of coffee a week $16
To making 1 cup at a time and not pouring any down the drain for a total of 1 pound of coffee a week $8
From having several beverages in the house to having ONE beverage choice other than water per person. KId gets milk, Baby (still breastfed) gets apple juice, Mr F & I have coffee w/half & half. Savings for us $12- $16 dollars a week!
We don't have premade packaged snacks we now have fruit, yogurt, cereal, pb &j, or popcorn for snacks. Mr F & I have both lost 3 pounds in 3 weeks just by getting rid of packaged snacks. It took a little adjustment but the kids are doing just fine ;) Once a week I make homemade muffins using up whatever apples or carrots are getting old. Savings of $5-$10 a week. (and a pound a week)
From ordering pizza once a week for $17 (it was fantastic)
To making it or having a frozen pizza for $4-$5. Saving $12-$13 a week!
I make exactly 4 portions of dinner. Kid, Mr F & I each have one and Baby has 1/2. The remaining 1/2 is immediately packed up for Kid's lunch the next day.
I have lowered our protein portion down an ounce per person and raised the carbs up a small bit to make up the difference.
I have figured out the costs of each dinner I typically make and keep that in mind when I'm meal planning. Tomato & Meatball Soup is about $5 for 4, Brown Sugar & Ginger Salmon w/ rice & broccoli is about $12 for 4. Our dinners have not lost any of their nutritional value I just try to plan more cheap meals versus expensive per week.
Using frozen vegetables saves me about $1-$2 per pound which is $7-$14 a week. And I have mastered the art of cooking them so they are not mushy and you would never know it wasn't fresh broccoli.
We do not go out for dinner. Period. Saving us about $80- $200 a month. For us, right now, we just can't afford to. And the expense just isn't worth it for what you get when your dining companions are 2 and 6 years old.
For our sweet tooth we still have dessert.... just not lots of choices. I have my Trader Joe's dark chocolate covered caramels. The kids & Mr F have Newman's Own Organic Fig Newman's or Newman's O's (cheapest at Target). We have vanilla ice cream and we have chocolate sauce. We make a simple icing-less chocolate cake that is a depression era recipe that has no dairy or eggs (it's moist and it is cheap) once a week. We make cookie dough and freeze them in portioned balls... so we only bake what we need for that dinner. We eat less of them saving money and calories. I'm not sure how much money this saves certainly a couple of bucks a week.
My whole philosophy with all this is to strip it down to what we NEED. We buy fresh fruit as needed. No more bowl on the counter with rotting fruit just because something looked good at the store that day. When it's gone we buy more. That's the great thing about living in modern times.. we can just go to the store. I find we don't need to go as much as we thought we did... we can make do with what's on hand. And the less times you go to the store (in my experience) the less you spend.
*******************************************
Oh and if you are at all interested in coupons or don't know where to start hop over here. Scroll down and she's got an introductory post... but, dude, she just got 21 jars of Ragu for less than a buck! It's almost enticing enough to make me cross back over the conventional/organic divide!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Being Frugal Is The New Black
That's what I tell myself at least. Because if it's not I'm becoming a nerd with a capital N-E-R-D. I just spent an inordinate amount of time this weekend registering for online grocery coupons, trolling our local stores' circulars, joining Freecycle, and filling out customer surveys (in the desperate hopes of winning big in the monthly drawing). The word is out... saving money is in... and I'm bringing my A game in the hopes of, well, not going under (not without a fight at least).
In the past year I've lowered our grocery budget from over $200/week to under $100. We've gone from expensive chlorine-free diapers to Target brand (sorry about that one Mother Earth... hopefully you'll survive). Outside of the diapers (the savings from which is HUGE... we're talking over 50%) we've actually reduced our household food and upkeep expenditures while at the same time making a complete overhaul to all "green" body products; "green" household cleaners; hormone free/antibiotic free/humane certified meats; all organic dairy, produce, and dry goods... even our butter people... our stinking butter!
Intrigued? Bored? Whichever I'll be back to update this post with exactly how we're doing it. Are we skimping?... you freaking betcha. It is not a snack buffet around here (as we're apt to say to Kid quite a lot these days)... but hey there are unexpected upsides to that as well (Mr F's down 3 pounds without even trying). But it's doable... highly doable. So for now we're doing it and hopefully we'll get even better at it as time goes on. (I told you we're down about $1000 a month since we starting compacting right? So I think we might be on to something here.)
More Tomorrow!
In the past year I've lowered our grocery budget from over $200/week to under $100. We've gone from expensive chlorine-free diapers to Target brand (sorry about that one Mother Earth... hopefully you'll survive). Outside of the diapers (the savings from which is HUGE... we're talking over 50%) we've actually reduced our household food and upkeep expenditures while at the same time making a complete overhaul to all "green" body products; "green" household cleaners; hormone free/antibiotic free/humane certified meats; all organic dairy, produce, and dry goods... even our butter people... our stinking butter!
Intrigued? Bored? Whichever I'll be back to update this post with exactly how we're doing it. Are we skimping?... you freaking betcha. It is not a snack buffet around here (as we're apt to say to Kid quite a lot these days)... but hey there are unexpected upsides to that as well (Mr F's down 3 pounds without even trying). But it's doable... highly doable. So for now we're doing it and hopefully we'll get even better at it as time goes on. (I told you we're down about $1000 a month since we starting compacting right? So I think we might be on to something here.)
More Tomorrow!
Mr F Wants Everyone To Be In Love With Him
So behold...
Yes, he does the dishes.
But the reason I'm married to him is because he watched Saving Sarah Cain last night, a Lifetime Original Movie, about an orphaned Amish family (yes take that ALL in).
Just wait it gets better.
In reference to the funeral scene wherein a fancy city slicker awkwardly shows up late (bearing flowers no less) and then has her cell phone go off Mr F said...
"That's like the worst case scenario."
"What your cell phone going off at an Amish funeral?" I asked.
"Yeah. It's bad enough that she's an Englisher." Mr F replied.
Then he smiled up at me and said "Do you love me?"
Yes I do.
Yes, he does the dishes.
But the reason I'm married to him is because he watched Saving Sarah Cain last night, a Lifetime Original Movie, about an orphaned Amish family (yes take that ALL in).
Just wait it gets better.
In reference to the funeral scene wherein a fancy city slicker awkwardly shows up late (bearing flowers no less) and then has her cell phone go off Mr F said...
"That's like the worst case scenario."
"What your cell phone going off at an Amish funeral?" I asked.
"Yeah. It's bad enough that she's an Englisher." Mr F replied.
Then he smiled up at me and said "Do you love me?"
Yes I do.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
