Monday, October 28, 2013

October 28th, 2013 - Meal Planning: Dinners: Tackling Family Meal Time


Ladies,

welcome to the core of our meal planning journey!

At this point, your meal planning board should be built and your pantry and freezer should be cleaned out.

Not quite there yet? Thats OK! You can ease into cooking every night of the week by still holding on to those old stand bys of frozen nuggets & fries!


The Concept

Here is the concept, or the way to make this plan work for you.

  1. One day each week (Friday, Saturday or Sunday works best), sit down and go through your meal cards and select a meal for each day of the coming week.
  2. Write out a grocery list of the things you need, all conveniently shown on the back of the card, being sure to check the pantry and freezer for ingredients you already have on hand
  3. Add to your grocery list things you will need for lunch or breakfast. Its helpful to add things to the list during the week before as you run out.
  4. Go shopping and buy ONLY what is on your list (and no bringing a pen to change your list!)
  5. Go over the recipes if you are not that familiar with them to get an idea of what you need to do each day.
  6. Each day, make the meal set out on your planner, and sit down with the whole family to enjoy.
There is a recipe card and a meal card for each meal included in the print out. The purpose of the recipe card is to allow someone else to start or cook the whole meal for you. My reason for this?  Well, my husband makes the most terrible choices in the kitchen with spices and such but give him a recipe and he is good to go. This is also great for houses with teens, let your teen cook one day a week and pick the meal they want to cook.

How to Pick Each Day's Meal

Really, this one is up to you. There are probably 100s of ways you could choose what to eat for the up and coming week, and no way is wrong.

There are some things you should consider:
  • Family schedule - don't pick a labour-intensive recipe for soccer night
  • Work schedule - is hubby likely to work late? Are you? If you know in advance that someone will be home late, either pick a quick and easy meal, like a sandwich or pick a crock pot meal
  • Special events - don't plan liver and onions for little Johnny's birthday night, he hates it! Pick one of his favorites (or let him pick) or use a delivery, takeout or eat out card to celebrate
  • Guests - don't make a family dinner of 4 chicken breasts if your mother-in-law is showing up, possibly in time for dinner on Friday night. Pick something easy, like a soup, chili or casserole, that can be stretched to feed more people
  • The weather - don't pick a BBQ meal for the middle of a blizzard (unless you have an indoor grill) and don't make meat pies that take hours to bake in the middle of a heat wave. In general, we like to eat a lot more soups, stews and casseroles when its cold, and sandwiches, barbeque and vegetarian meals when its hot
So, now that you know what to think about, here are some ways to pick those meals for the week:
  • Pick 7 random cards. So what if you end up with Mexican every night this week?
  • Have designated nights (Monday is chicken, Tuesday is Pasta...)
  • Let the kids pick, but be ready to end up at the end of all your meal cards, with a week of meals that they think are gross!!  This can be a good choice if each child has an extra-curricular activity one night each week - let them pick what they want to eat before it or after, depending what time
  • Sort your meal cards into fast, medium, slow and pre-made meals, and apply those based on the family schedule
  • Let hubby do it. I DO NOT recommend this option. I would end up with every food I hate in the same week and I would want to murder him.
  • Pick based on what you feel like.
  • Pick based on what is on sale (particularly in the meat and cheese department) and what you have coupons for. If there's an awesome sale on cheese, this is a great week to do the mac and cheese!
Pop each meal up on your menu board, and make the shopping list as you go!

How to Shop

Again, shop any way you like. 

Typically, I might go to the grocery store 2-3 times per week, and pick up the meat and fresh vegetables for the next 2-3 nights, rather than buying it all on a Sunday and then hoping it all keeps until the following Saturday. I also save freezer space for other things like ice cream and bulk frozen meals (like the Tourtiere recipe, I make 6-12 at a time) and for meat that I find on sale and portion out myself.

Remember that the grocery store makes the lowest profit on the things on the outside of the store - the produce, fresh meats, dairy case and basic baked goods like breads. Try to venture only down the aisles that you know you need something from, and when you get there, make sure you look all the way, top to bottom of the shelves, because the stuff they want you to buy - its at eye level. (and the stuff they want you to buy for your kids... yep, its at their eye level). Often you can find a cheaper and equivalent option to the brand name premium product you are looking at, just by looking up a few shelves or down a few shelves.

The Meal Cards

Each meal card has the meal name and ingredient list posted on it. See below.

For the most part, the fresh items you need to buy are on the left and the pantry items you likely have around are on the right, but are there for you to double check your stock. Likewise, you might have some of the items to buy already, and then you don't need to add them to the shopping list.

Each card also has the corresponding number of the recipe card you will need. This will help you, or your helpers or cooks for the day, to find the right recipe and prepare the dish successfully.

The Recipe Cards

 The recipe cards are standard recipe cards, with the ingredients and procedures on them.

Some cards will have two recipes, one for the main and one for one of the sides. There is only one recipe card for each meal, so if there is something you are not sure how to prepare and it isn't on the recipe card, we have assumed you have your own recipe already for something like that, and its pretty easy.

An example would be rice pilaf. No recipe is included, since most people have a similar pilaf recipe: cook rice in broth with some frozen vegetables according to the rice package directions, fluff with a fork when complete.

Alright, clear as mud?

Here is the link to go get the pdf of the menu and feel free to email us at the Frugal Mamas if you have any issues or would like a blank template (Word 2010)

Thursday, October 24, 2013

October 24th, 2013 - And the winner is....

Mr and Mrs James
We will contact you for your shipping information!
Thanks to everyone who played!

-Danielle  

Sunday, October 20, 2013

October 20th, 2013 - Giveaway day!

Good morning!!  Today is a giveaway day - just for the ladies!  Today's giveaway is actually a *REALLY* great deal, valued at $30, and perfect for the new mom or new mom to be in your life! 




Today's giveaway is focused on all mothers.  It is a t shirt, sponsored by Boppy, professing their support of all mothers who feed their children, and breast pads.  Most women, at some point in their process of pregnancy, leak milk, whether they are still pregnant, drying up their milk, equilibrating while nursing, or weaning, and most women have tried using disposable breast shields at some point.  If you have, then you probably also know the unfun parts of using them. Peeling a piece of gauzy material off of sore nipples, the feeling of a pad inside your bra, the sometimes chafing of said nipple - it's not great.  It also contributes to the trash created on this earth.



The benefits of fabric breast pads are many.  No running out of disposable pads, no repeated cost - they run about $10 per 60 pads, and many women have n idea how many they will use until they need them - some women use more than that in a week, some use less.  Reusable fabric pads generally run between $4 and $5 a set, and most women need 3 to 6 sets.  That's a pretty good deal - an investment of $12-$30 bucks, and they can be washed in the sink if need be.  Fabric reusable pads also don't contain the absorbent chemicals that disposables ones do because they are made of naturally absorbent material, and they allow for greater air circulation, thus lowering your chance of infection.  (And no one wants infection on their chest!)  They are also contoured to fit your chest, and be unnoticeable or minimally noticeable.  Lastly, they help the environment - they cut down on trash greatly, and the washing of them is negligible since they can be tossed in a load already being run or hand washed and air dried.

Donating today's breast pads is Ana, and she owns Nirvana Cloth, on etsy.  Anna lovesto work with her hands. From putting furniture together, refinishing them, gardening (which right now is just several pots on her balcony lol) to sewing. She isn't some great seamstress but simple things she can do.

A bit about Ana -

I finished an EMT course and I bought myself a great stethoscope and I wanted to protect it with a cover/sleeve. I searched Etsy for them but all were for double sided bell stethoscopes, which mine wasn't. So I thought - how hard can it be to make one myself... I did and it looked great. From there I went onto the reusable menstrual pads. I started using menstrual cup couple years ago but there were still some days where I needed a pad. Using a disposable one became unpleasant. Mainly because it gave me rashes and it seemed I always ran out when I needed one. Since I'm slightly ocd (my family might argue that) I researched for months different designs, materials used etc. And finally I went and made some. And that work is still in progress lol (did I mention I'm slightly ocd?)

On to reusable nursing pads. My brother lives in Europe, Croatia, and life there is very expensive. He and his girlfriend are expecting a baby and as it's the norm there, she will breastfeed the baby. I, yet again, went onto Etsy to research some nursing pads but I didn't like them to much. So, again, I thought to myself how hard can it be? I made several, showed them to my sil and she wanted some. Besides loving to sew, I love how the pads feel and the long term saving with those. Not the nursing pads, just because I doubt my 4yo would want to go back to nursing at this point of her life o_O.  I hope my sil and the ladies who decide to try my items are satisfied and happy they're reducing the landfill and, of course, saving money.



Ana's Etsy shop is Nirvana Cloth, and you can visit it here: NirvanaCloth on Etsy
and you can join Nirvna Cloth's Facebook group here 

Feel free to message her on Etsy, and ask for something specific - her breast pads are a GREAT deal - 3 pairs for $9, and she is very willing to work with you and very easy to work with!  (I've ordered from her myself!)

The contest will run from 9:30a CST 10/20/2013 to 4p CST 10/23/2013

Ways to Enter:
1.  View Nirvana Cloth on Etsy, and heart your favorite item, then comment here what item it was.
4.  Comment here on what you like best about reusable breast pads
5.  Follow this blog
6. Email Thefrugalmamas@gmail.com and tell us what kind of giveaway you would like to see next!

Enjoy and good luck!

~Danielle

Saturday, October 19, 2013

October 19th, 2013 - Weekend Edition - Get Planning Your Meals - Part 1

Hi Ladies,

Welcome to a little mini-series on Meal Planning.

There will be two parts to this:
Part 1: Introduction to Meal Planning and Before You Start
Part 2: Dinners - Tackling Family Meal Times

Stop back each week for the next installment.

 

Introduction To Meal Planning


What is it?  A way to simplify your life by setting out the menu for your week on Saturday or Sunday and then following the plan.

What are the benefits?
  • Reduce food waste and save money!   The US wastes $165 BILLION in food waste every year! $2275 per family of four. Read more here.
  • Save even more money by reducing your reliance on convenience foods like frozen meals and take out
  • Simplify your life
  • Reduce stress
  • Make after-school and work activities nights easier on everyone
  • Improve your overall health by reducing your consumption of overly processed and overly salty foods
  • Re-introduce a food-based culture into your family
  • Lose weight without a costly program - What? Yes. If you plan smart, portion controlled meals throughout the day and stick to your program, you can diet smart without your family even really realizing you are on a diet. Trust me, I've used this theory to lose 20 lbs (150 to 130 lbs, dropped my BMI to 22) and then maintain my weight loss, and my husband never complained he was on a diet, and he was eating the same food as I was (albeit at much larger portions!) 
    Note: a particularly sneaky wife could probably get hubby to lose weight without him realizing this way...
Wait, a what-where-who culture?
A Food-Based Culture. The rise of obesity in North America and elsewhere can be directly linked to increase in convenience foods since the 1960s or so and the demise in the family dinner. When convenience foods started emerging, the time spent in the kitchen decreased. Just think, your great-grandmother spent all day baking bread and making a family meal. Her daughters helped out.  The centre of the family home was the kitchen, and everyone came together for not one meal per day or week, but 2-3 meals per day!!
Fast forward to today, and most families don't even eat dinner together. Not only that, but tons of people have no idea how to make the most basic things, let alone baking their own bread!!
The loss of contact with our food - how to prepare it and how to be in control, coupled with the loss of family contact and interaction has made us unconscious eaters - we mow down on our Big Mac and Fries on the way to Jimmy's soccer game in the car while driving, rather than sitting down with Jimmy and eating something nutritious that will give him good energy fuels for his game while talking about how excited he is and encouraging and bolstering his confidence.

No way, I can't do all that!
Yes. Yes you can. By planning ahead and making quick easy meals for game-nights, and saving the pot roast for a quiet night, you can serve your family wholesome and nutritious meals, with the ingredients you want, in a snap.

But I'm not making my own bread. No way.
Not a problem. I would encourage you to try it though. I can make a loaf of bread in my breadmaker between the time I get home from work and the time I go to bed (about 5 hours). I get home, fill up my breadmaker with the recipe I want (a family-favourite is a multi-seed bread) and then we have fresh bread for the next two to three days for my current family of 2.

Isn't this going to take time away from my kids?
No. You have a few choices here. Homework time can be while mom cooks, with everyone seated around the kitchen table working on their work (and also nearby in case of questions). Or, get the kids involved in the cooking!! There are fabulous products out there like the Pampered Chef My Safe Cutter which will let young kids help with chopping (as long as you don't mind strange shaped carrot pieces). Kids also love to mix, stir, measure, roll, and of course, taste!! Not only is it fun to cook with your kids but its educational - they are learning life skills of cooking, and maybe a bit of chemistry too!

Not convinced yet?? I challenge you to try it for a month. Just one month. I promise, once you get the hang of it, you will enjoy the control and planning in your life. If you are a very strong Myers-Briggs P type, this may never be for you. But try it.... maybe some of my 90% J will rub off ;)

Before You Start


What? I can't just start?
Well, you can. But lets call this the program with training wheels. Or really, what it is, the "Empty the Pantry" part of the program.

Your Planning Board

OK - to really keep with the plan, you need a meal planning board, or a weekly menu board, to outline your dinners on.

Some great inspiration can be found here and here and even a horizontal version here. A quick google search will find you even more.

Wait? Not the crafty type? Me either. (OK I lie, but easy got hold of pregnant and lazy me on this one!)

So you can either make something like my linkies above, or you can go my way and make one like mine (detailed below).

Either way, make sure your menu board has the following things on it:
  • A place to put the meal for all 7 days of the week
  • Some way to stick said meal to the spot it is allocated to.
    Great ideas for this: magnets, clothespins, velcro (OK, thats expensive!), see through plastic pockets (good if you have a food chucking toddler around) or push pins (not the best if you have said toddler around)
  • A place to stick your shopping list pad
  • A shopping list pad  (spend the extra $$ and get the sticky post its. Trust me. I will explain all soon)
  • big pocket of some sort to hold all the meal cards you will use
  • A title. OK - you don't need a title but I mean, you want it to be pretty and you don't want people to say "What the heck is this board without a title?". Yep. I'm a bit of stickler.

My Planning Board

So, as I wandered the halls of Wal-Mart looking for the perfect magnetic board for me to use, I stumbled upon these gorgeous Quartet 14"x14" Black magnetic dry erase boards, with NEON dry erase pens. I was in love. True love.  And it was $10 (that's CDN!). I was SO excited because even my magnetic paint cost me $20 for the little tiny container.

So I settled, right then and there, to totally change my plan of awesome gorgeousness.



Further exploration found these cute push-pin look magnets, in NEON! I had to have them, and at $2 for 10, who was going to complain??

Then off to the shopping note pad section. I settled on 4"x6" as it looked best on my board and was a very common size (easy to find in the future). I ended up getting these at Staples because of a debacle with the ones I had picked at Wal-Mart. They are sticky Post-its but Staples brand ones (although I kind of wish I had gotten the pretty neon stack, in the end my inner cheapskate won that argument and I bought plain yellow).
Why sticky? Because they stick to my board, meaning I can mount just a few papers at a time and hide the rest so that my grocery pad doesn't disappear too quickly.
Also... there is nothing better than driving around the grocery store with your list stuck to your hand, cell phone, cart... forehead?  Whatever. Its quick and easy and remains accessible. I mean, once I have a kid, I could stick it to his forehead... HMMMM.

Anyways, I digress.

So total cost for my board:  $12+tax
Cost for 250 grocery notes: $8+tax

Thats $20 on my fancy schmancy board!

Empty the Pantry (and Freezer) Program

The first and most important step to any life change is to ENABLE IT.  Commit and make it happen.  And as long as you have those Lean Cuisines, boxes of chicken nuggets and goodness-knows what else in your freezer, they are there. Tempting you to abandon your plan. So they need to go.

So here are the steps to take. You may need to rinse and repeat over a few weeks if your house is jam-packed with junk like mine is. 
Note: if you are an "extreme couponer" or a "hoarder" of grocery items like BBQ sauces, skip the pantry analysis portion and just focus on the fridge and freezer. When you do your weekly shop, compile your list based on your meal plan, and then shop first in the stockpile, crossing off whatever you have, and then shop second at the grocery store, mostly for your fresh items.  If you have a freezer stockpile too, then... make it work sistah!!

Start this program on a Saturday or Sunday

  1. Take an inventory of what you have in your fridge. Discard anything that isn't edible any more. Anything in there that you don't use often, either chuck it out or find a recipe that will make it work.
  2. Any ingredients you want rid of from step 1 and have found a recipe for, put those on your meal plan for dinners this week.
  3. Head to the freezer(s). Empty those babies out. 
    Feed the kids 20 popsicles, ice lollies and freezies each to get rid of that colossal waste of space.  Send the kids to grandma's all hopped up on sugar. You and daddy-o finish off all the bits of ice cream. Or, make an ice cream cake
  4. Based on what you find in the freezer, chuck or keep everything. The things you keep, work them into your meal plan.
  5. If your menu isn't completely full for the week, head to the pantry. If it is, stop there, add some fresh veggies to your meals for the week (unless you are hoarding frozen veggies, I am terrible at that)
  6. In the pantry, same process. If you bought a souvlaki marinade for meat 2 years ago like me and you haven't used it, put it on that meal plan. Now is the time ladies!!
So as I said, rinse and repeat until you have gotten rid of most of the bulk and surplus foods you have in your pantry, freezer and fridge, especially the overly processed convenience foods. 

If you're having some anxiety because your freezer is bare and your pantry looks empty, don't worry. We will fill it back up, I promise.

In the mean time, if there are any great deals on foods you want to stock up on that are not overly processed AND you have room in your freezer or pantry (this is not for fridge foods ladies, those expire too quickly), go right ahead.

I would recommend that you buy a kitchen scale if you see one on sale to help with portioning bulk meat

Foods you are allowed to stock up on:
  • dried pasta of any sort. Preferably whole wheat or other "fancier" pastas like the tri color or spinach fettucine, but if your family will only eat white pasta, then OK
  • rice - you are going to want a few varieties, namely a long grain like basmati and a quick cook rice like brown rice quick rice. If you don't want to eat quick rices, just stock up on a long grain and a medium grain rice of choice.  Wild rice is another option you can easily add in, as is any bagged rice blend. 
  • Other grains if you like them - quinoa, bulgar wheat, etc. If you eat them, they can be substituted in our meal planner for any meal that says "and rice" or any meal that says "and pasta". I specifically did not include these grains in the specific recipes since a lot of people are not comfortable with their use
  • boneless skinless chicken breasts - these are a big source of protein in our meal plan so go ahead and buy. Freeze them in good freezer bags in packs of 2 and/or 4, or by the pound. Mark on the outside
  • boneless skinless chicken thighs - these can be substituted for breasts in any recipe and are cheaper. Pack them by the pound
  • Pork - chops, loins, shoulders, bacon, hams - if there is a farmer nearby who sells a whole pig type deal, you can definitely go with something like that to get a variety of cuts. The menu planner uses a few different cuts mentioned above, but if there is some part of the pig you like to use or that you get that we don't have a recipe in the planner for, you can add it your self and then share with the rest of us
  • Beef - again, you could buy a quarter or so, but a whole cow is a bit much for most people to store. The main cuts you will need is ground, stewing meat and roasts, with a selection of a few steak meals, and again, add more if you like
  • Ground meat - why is this its own category? Because you can make a ton of things with different ground meats. So stock up and package by the pound, 1 1/2 lb and 2 lb packages of ground turkey, chicken, beef, veal, pork, boar, bison, venison, etc
  • Frozen vegetables - spinach, corn, peas, mixed veggies, broccoli - these are all staples you can use any day as the vegetable side to your meal. Don't feel like salad? Switch it up with frozen veg, they take no time to prepare and are often more nutritious than a fresh version. Why? Individually quick frozen (IQF) green beans are frozen within 8 hours of picking. In that same time, the beans lose 50% of their Vitamin C. And unless you're out picking them yourselves, you are not going to get fresher! 
  • Canned staples - diced tomatoes (no salt added, packed in juice), tomato sauce (watch the sodium and additives!), canned corn (vacuum packed, no salt added), beans and chick peas (no salt added, in water, or select dried versions to save even more money) are all staples you will use from time to time, so keep a few on hand
  • Spices - this is only on here if you are not a spice and herb user. If you have a well-stocked and relatively fresh supply of spices, don't worry about this. You can add spices as we go. The best way to start an herb and spice collection is to buy a spice rack and fill the jars by buying your spices at the local bulk store (Bulk Barn in Canada). Spices are best in the first 6 months, so don't bother buying in bulk unless you are a caterer. To start, you need a nice pepper grinder and some peppercorns. Personally I like a blend of colored peppercorns. Then herbs I recommend include: Italian herb blend or Italian seasoning (salt-free), oregano, basil, thyme, parsley and perhaps dill (I personally hate dill). Then some other spices you will need are chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper (skip if you don't like spicy-hot), paprika, meat tenderizer and a nice spice blend for meats and beef (i.e  Montreal Steak Spice). If you are tight for cash and can't afford to stock your pantry all at once with spices, buy them bit by bit as you need them, and feel free to Google or message us for suggested substitutes.  
  • Pantry Staples - these are the basics, and again, stock up if you have the money, or buy as needed. These include at least two oils - olive oil and a vegetable or canola oil, vinegars - balsamic, red wine and white at least, soy sauce, chicken/vegetable and beef broths, and your basic condiments - ketchup, mayonnaise and mustard. I would suggest at least a yellow mustard and a Dijon, the world of mustards is huge and we have about 5 varieties in our fridge. Of course sugar, salt and flour should be present as well.
Those are the basics you will need. Of course there will be a lot of emphasis on fresh in the meal planner, and always choose lower-sodium options, and fruits and veggies packed in their own juices or vacuum packed over packed in syrup or brine. 

For kitchen equipment, hopefully you have most of the essentials you will need - pots and pans with lids, mixing bowls, a good cutting board and few nice knives, random gadgets. PLEASE go out and get a garlic press if you don't have one. There is nothing like fresh garlic both from a taste and a nutrition standpoint. 

In Summary

You should meal plan because it will make your life easier and less stressful. It will give you a sense of organization, and send you on a purposeful trip to the grocery store. Start by making a meal planning board and practice using it and planning meals to empty your pantry and freezer of many of the salt and preservative-laden convenience foods you have come to rely on.  If you are a couponer or a deal-seeker, start stocking up on the ingredients mentioned above. Make sure to portion the food out into usable sizes, and label well. (See Meal Planning -extra tips when released for more tips on shopping smart and food portioning). 

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

October 16th, 2013 - Family Fun Time

At the Poenisch house, most of our nights are spent getting into some mess or another.  So when my daughter asked if we could do an experiment, I grabbed the cornstarch, and figured we'd make something up.
 
The ingredients for this were:
- Cornstarch
- Water
- Bowl
- Something to mix with
- The space to make a mess
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We talked a little bit about solids and liquids before we started.  My three year old was able to easily understand that water was a liquid and cornstarch was a solid.  We didn't get to complex with matter though.  We explained that liquids don't have a certain shape, and they flow.  We tipped our measure glass back and forth and watched the water move.  We talked about how solids have their own shape, and are hard when we touch them.  Then we poured some cornstarch in the bowl and touched it.  We spent a few minutes having Isabel identify other solids (her blocks, and her cat...well, close enough anyways) and liquids (her bubble bath and apple juice).
 
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We poured some cornstarch in, and added a bit of water.  Isabel stirred it until it was too stiff for her to stir, so I took over.  I mixed it until it was thoroughly mixed.  Then we talked about solids and liquids again.  We poked and prodded the cornstarch water mix.  We talked about how it felt solid when we touched it.  We even squeezed it in our hands, and watched it go from solid to dripping.
 
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At this point, she asked what would happen if we poured more water in, so I told her to go ahead and pour more water into the bowl.  She mixed it up, and was less than thrilled to see that the cornstarch suspension seemed to have lost it's magical half solid, half liquid properties, and was now all liquid.
 
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Her papa's explanation of how the molecules are no longer lining up when she touches it, and that's why its not firm anymore did not help her.  So this is where it gets interesting.  Isabel turned and asked, 'Mama? How can we make it feel hard again?'  I figured this was a great time for the scientific method, and so off we went on our adventure.  Here is the simple version of the scientific method we use with our little lady.
overview_scientific_method2
 
Isabel has asked the question - how to make it firm again, and sort of did the research backwards (prior to asking the question.)  We reviewed what we had learned already about the suspension of cornstarch and water.  We talked about how each had felt separately, and how they felt when we mixed them.  Isabel described what it felt like to poke, and to squeeze after we had mixed the two, and the again stated her dismay at the cornstarch turning all liquid when she added more water.  Her next step was to come up with a hypothesis - a proposed solution, and then to test that idea.  Her hypothesis was to squeeze the mixture.  This was a pretty good idea, since with the first round, when it is squeezed, it becomes firm.  We were proud of her for thinking of it.  She dug her hand in, and squeezed.

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No dice.  She was not impressed when it ran out of her hand like water.  Her conclusion was that squeezing it was not a successful solution to make it hard again.  Though, I think she put it something like, 'well. That didn't work. What now?' So she thought some more.  Her next solution (hypothesis) was to pour more of the cornstarch in.
 
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So, we poured some in, and she mixed it up.  Then, when it got too stiff for her, I mixed a bit.  She tried touching it, and...
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Success!
Her second hypothesis was successful and correct.
She was very proud of herself, and so was I (she's my only smallie :) ) and because we were now satisfied with our experiment, we spent the next twenty minutes or so just playing in the mixture.
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After we finished playing in the cornstarch water mix, we called in the troops (daddy) to help clean it up.  Everyone had a lot of fun, and it was a great hands on learning experience for our little lady.
 
Enjoy!

~Danielle

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

October 15th, 2013 - Frugal Living, Budget pt. 3

Hello again!! This week, we are working on the functionality of your budget.  You've had a week now, to think on things, and see how they are going.  What you will need this week if your spreadsheet, and your check book, or however you keep track of expenses. 



First things first, look through your budget once more.  Make sure you are meeting all your needs - and make sure you are paying yourself.  Some people like to put aside a certain percentage of money each month, and some people select a dollar amount.  At our house, we have set dollar amounts that go into our emergency savings, 3 month savings, then our 'whatever we are saving towards right now' and our daughters savings account.  Those don't vary, and if need be, we cut from other areas first before cutting from savings.  We also put the grace money that isn't used into our savings each month. 

After you make sure you get your savings sorted out, go through your budget and consider where you can make cuts.  For instance, maybe you go out to eat as a family once a week - eliminating one time out to eat, or even two, can often add $50-$100 to your ability to save each month. I know in our budget, we were able to cut our gas costs by a third each month, just by altering our work schedules so that my husband could drop my daughter and myself off each day and pick us up.  We also cut down eating out to twice a month, as well as started meal planning, which has saved hundreds of dollars alone. 

Another thing that helps is setting an allowance of sorts for everyone.  We don't have a lot of weekly costs, so we each take out $20 a week for discretionary spending.  It is much easier to turn down lunch out at work when it will use all of your spending money, versus just swiping a card.  Keeping daily discretionary spending to cash only is a fast, efficient way to cut down on spending.

Now that you have freed up some money, gather your cc's.  If you have none, that's great. If you have some but maintain a zero balance, even better!  If you are like most of middle America, you are fighting a losing fight to pay down the debt.  So, sit down, and write down all of your cards, their balances and their interest rates.  Pick the one with the highest balance, and pay as much as you can (while still paying yourself first) towards that card.  Maintain your minimum (or higher, if you can) payments on your other cards, and just move towards carrying a zero balance on all cards.

One last tip. Make sure your spouse is on board.  Budgeting and becoming debt free can be very stressful and frustrating - don't shoulder it alone if you have a partner. They helped you get where you are and they will help you better your position in life.

Hope this helps! Enjoy!

~Danielle
  












 

Monday, October 14, 2013

October 14th, 2013 - Match ups

A few match ups today - the best deals we saw!

Target


Buy 2 Del Monte Seasoned Vegetable Cans $1.49, regular price
Use two $0.75/1 Del Monte Seasoned Vegetables from RP 10/13 (exp 12/8)
And use $1.00/2 – Del Monte Canned Seasoned Vegetables
Final Price - $0.24 each, when you buy 2 




Vaseline Lotion, 20.3 fl oz $4.99, regular price
Use $1.50/1 Vaseline Lotion, 20.3 fl oz or larger,  Limit 2 identical coupons in same shopping trip from RP 9/29 (exp 10/27)
And use $1.00/1 – Vaseline Lotion, 20.3 oz or larger (target)
Final Price - $2.49 




Huggies Little Movers Slip-On Diapers Jumbo Pack (reg $8.99) $7.64, clearance price
Use $2.00/1 – Huggies Little Movers Slip-On Diapers, NO doubling
Or $2.00/1 – Huggies Little Movers Slip-On Diapers
Final Price - $5.64 

Walgreens



Buy 3 Gas-X Extra Strength, 20 ct $4.99, sale price through 10/19
Use $2.00/1 Gas-X Gas Relief Product, 18 or 20 ct Walgreens Coupon- from October Walgreens Coupon Booklet
And use $10.00/3 Prevacid 24hr, Gas-X or Benefiber Products from SS 10/13 (exp 12/31)
Final Price -  Free, when you buy 3



Cottonelle Fresh Care Wipes, 42 ct $4.49, sale price through 10/19
Buy 1 Cottonelle Cleansing Cloths, 42 ct, Earn up to $1.50 with Ibotta 
Use $1.00/1 Cottonelle Upright Dispenser from SS 10/13 (exp 11/16)
And use one $1.00/1 Cottonelle Fresh Care Wipes, 42 ct from Walgreens October Savings Book (exp 10/26)
Pay $2.49, Submit for $1.50 Ibotta Credit
Final Price - $0.99 



Advil PM Pain Relief, 4 ct $1.00, sale price through 10/19
Or $1.00/1 Advil PM Product, Limit 4 like coupons in same shopping trip from RP 10/13 (exp 12/12)
Final Price - Free  



Reach Access Flosser $2.89, regular price
Buy 1, Receive $2.00 Register Reward through 10/19
Use $1.00/1 – Reach; Total Care Floss, Gentle Gum Care Floss, Dentotape or Access Flosser, limit one coupon per person, limit 4 coupons of any kind in same transaction, redeemable at Walmart 
Or $1.00/1 Listerine Whitening Rinse, 16 oz or larger, Smart Rinse, Pocketpaks or Pocketmist, 72 ct or larger, any Reach Floss or any Rembrandt Product, Limit one coupon per person, Limit 4 coupons in same transaction from SS 10/6 (exp 11/3)
Pay $1.89, Receive $2.00 Register Reward
Final Price -  $0.11 Moneymaker 




Enjoy!
~Danielle