Menu Plan

I am a bit short on time today due to sleeping in until 8:00, so I may not have a chance to link all the recipes to the menu, but I will try when I get a chance. Our garage sale went well other then getting rained out on Saturday. I have a lot of cleaning up to do. Another exciting thing that happened this weekend is that we paid off our Saturn Vue! No more car payments.

Breakfasts-
Baked oatmeal, peaches
eggs, hash browns, grapes
waffles, fruit
smoothie, homemade cereal
baked oatmeal
toast, eggs, salsa
puffy pancakes

Lunch-
Family lunch for Father's Day
chicken nuggets, organic tator tots, fruit
grilled cheese with raw cheese, fruit, veggie
hummus with homemade cheese crackers, fruit slushie
chicken nuggets, fruit, peas
sloppy joes, organic corn chips (from amazon), fruit
leftovers

Dinner-
Cereal, fruit
lentil soup, bread
rice, beans, cornbread, salad
chicken curry over rice
vegetable fajitas with homemade tortillas
meatloaf, green beans, mashed potatoes
leftovers

Snacks-
Homemade popcorn
birdseed bars
Homemade fruit popsicles.

Supporting Local Businesses

I had a chance to drive out to Yoder without the kids this week. I had a great time all by myself going to the dairy, the bulk food store, and one of my favorite restaurants, Carriage Crossing. Due to the fact that I shopped at locally owned stores I was not able to use any coupons so my totals are a bit higher then usual, but I was able to get locally produced, homemade, and organic food for my family. Yes, if you were wondering those are a couple of bags of candy and some white pastry flour. I don't always buy these items, but I decided to get the kids a bit of a treat (hopefully to be used as some potty training tools as well.) I also picked up the pastry flour because I like to sometimes use a small amount in breads and tortillas for when I have to cook for extended family members who do not like whole grains.

If there is anyone who lives near me I am wanting to find a small group of people who would be willing to start a rotation picking up milk once a month. I reset my trip meter when I started out, and it was an 80 mile round trip. If I could get 4-5 individuals who would be willing to drive we each could have fresh milk weekly, but only drive once a month.

Here is what I picked up....

Borntrager Dairy-
3 gallons of raw milk $2.50/ gallon (I got 3 this week to make ice cream)
1 1/4 pound raw, homemade cheddar $5.60
1 dozen fresh eggs $1.50
Total $14.60

Yoder Bulk Foods-
Pastry flour
2 small bags of candy
1 small bag dried veggie chips
sea salt
celery salt
garlic salt
raw peanuts
pistachios
Total $14.40

Since I was in Yoder I decided to stop into Carriage Crossing for a cinnamon roll. They are usually large, but this had to be the biggest one I have ever seen. That take home box is one of the large ones that they usually put a full meal in. That is my 4 year olds hand. My husband was watching me post this picture and said, "Oh yeah, that looks like some natural food!" Well, like I said sometimes it is OK to have a treat. This treat fed us for breakfast twice combined with some fresh berries and raw milk.
Total for the cinnamon roll and a book for Madison $4.02! The roll was only around $1.30.

Hummus Recipe And More About Whole Foods

I have to admit that I LOVE hummus. My husband loves it when I make this recipe. From all the research I have done chickpeas are very good for you which makes this dip extra healthy since it contains olive oil, tahini, and garlic. Yes, it is a bit high in fat, but it is good fat. I am a firm believer in eating full fat and whole milk as long as it is healthy fat and comes from a reliable if not organic source.

If you are wondering about why I believe in eating this way you should check out the 2 books that completely changed the way my family eats, The Maker's Diet and Nourishing Traditions. In fact my husband lost around 60 pounds eating real butter and full fat diary. HMMM that seems to go against everything we have been taught. I feel we should eat our food the way the Lord made it and not mess with it too much. If I could find a source of farm fresh milk anywhere near here I would be buying it.

Using coupons to eat a whole foods diet can be a bit of a struggle. Since we are currently working to pay all of our debts off we have decided to compromise on a few foods, but I have to say that eating a whole foods diet can be just as cheap if not cheaper then using coupons alone for processed foods. I strive to use my coupons to help off set the price of some of our produce and other things. There are also great sources of organic and whole food coupons if you keep an eye out for them.

The way I have found we save is by making nearly everything we eat. It is amazing how much you can save when you are not buying premade or processed foods. It is so much healthier and cheaper, even when you can get some things for free. My sister-in-law said once that she would rather pay more for food now then pay much more for medical bills later.

All this said here is my favorite hummus recipe...

15 oz garbanzo beans (chick peas, I use dried beans, but you can use 1 can)

1 clove garlic

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup tahini (sesame "butter" found in the health food section of grocery store)

1/4 cup lemon juice

olive oil to taste

Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend together. If the hummus is too thick you can thin it with olive oil or a little water.

Place in a bowl and garnish with pine nuts, paprika, and a little olive or sesame oil if you like. I usually don't.

Serve with pita or fresh veggies.

Garage Sale Day

Sorry I did not get around to posting anything today. I decided to have a garage sale. It was almost 100 degrees here today and my husband had to work. At least I made a little money. I can not believe how many people came out despite the heat. If you live in the area come by and see me tomorrow or Saturday. I could use the company.

Milk

If you are anything like me you have been told growing up that you should always drink low fat or skim milk from a grocery store because raw milk and whole milk will make you sick and fat.

Have you noticed that there has been a huge increase in the incidence of heart disease and other cardiovascular disease within the last half of the 20th century? How could this happen? We are doing the right things by cutting out butter and full fat milk? Well I believe the answer is that the Lord put fat in our milk for a reason. He knew we needed it to survive. Fat is not the enemy.

Seriously have you looked at the ingredients in a tub of margarine? My husband read an article once that said margarine is one molecule off from having the same makeup of plastic. I don't think I want to eat that.

But isn't raw milk dangerous? I used to think so. I have a mother who is a nurse and is still convinced that I am making a mistake. A couple of things that have sold me on raw milk is that it can be so helpful for children who have eczema and allergies. The other thing I noticed was that I had a partial gallon that was forgotten at the back of our fridge for a couple of weeks. When I discovered it I thought it would be stinky when I opened it. Would you believe it had no smell at all? If you need more in depth info I would recommend the web site real milk. It has a wealth of information. Way better then I could ever put together.

Isn't organic milk just as good? Well yes and no. Organic milk is great because it has not been produced by cows who have been given synthetic hormones or antibiotics, but that is about where the similarity ends. Most organic milk has been ultra-pasteurized and homogenized. Pasteurization heats the milk up to a point that it kills all the so called bad germs to the point that it no longer resembles real milk anymore. This process also kills off all the vitamins and minerals in milk. To make the milk worth drinking they have to add back synthetic, fortified vitamins.

Homogenization is a process that keeps the milk fat from separating from the milk liquid. Raw milk will have the cream at the top. This cream can be used to make so many things. For example whipped cream, not Cool Whip, real whipped cream. Never ever buy Cool Whip. It is not even real milk. It is a man made hydrogenated oil. Have you seen the commercial lately asking if you would like cream or oil?

Another thing I discovered about organic milk today is that not all organic dairies treat their cows well. You can read a report about it here. Notice where Horizon rates.

Won't eating fat make me fat? No, on the contrary. Eat fat to lose fat. I know this sounds crazy, but it is true.
The following is from the book Real Food: What To Eat And Why. This exert is taken from the article written by Kelly The Kitchen Kop.
"Unlike polyunsaturated fats, which the body tends to store, the saturated fats in milk are rapidly burned for energy.” “The butter fat found in milk helps the body digest the protein, and bones require saturated fats in particular to lay down calcium.” “The cream on the milk contains the vital fat-soluble vitamins A and D. Without vitamin D, less than 10% of dietary calcium is absorbed.”
Read more about Eat Fat Lose Fat from one of my favorite authors, Sally Fallon, here.

If I can not get raw milk what is the next best thing? I believe that if you can not get raw milk try to find unhomogenized milk. I have seen it in health food stores. Kelly the Kitchen Kop has a great article dealing with just this issue and more. Check it out here. If I were to get into everything about raw milk this would be a very long post.

OK, you have convinced me. So where can I find raw milk? The best place to start looking is at Real Milk. They have a list of dairies that offer it. Although you may still have to look if there is nothing listed in your area. The way I found my dairy was word of mouth. If you have a farming community near you go there and ask around. You might be surprised what you find.

If you have any questions that I have not addressed please feel free to leave a comment and I will try my best to answer it for you.

Food You Can Sneak Veggies Into

Kelly the Kitchen Kop asked if anyone had read the books The Sneaky Chef or Deceptively Delicious. I thought I would repost an old post from my old blog about trying out these methods. I am still a little skeptical about how many servings of fruits and veggies you really get out of doing this, but since I have a really picky 4 year old (who used to eat anything!) I have had to become creative in how I get her to eat her vegetables. So I learned what foods you can sneak veggis into. She has been eating things that she would normally turn her nose up at. I have to tell you this works on adults too. I have compiled a short list of the things I have tried so far. Most of my ideas came from the book The Sneaky Chef and others I came up with on my own.

Some of the concoctions look terrible, but I have tried each one and they are actually very good. Some recipes have other healthy things instead of veggies. All the recipes are healthy and full of good things.

Cocoa Chocolate Chip Pancakes (SO GOOD and actually healthy)-blueberries and spinach
Breakfast Ice cream-Pumpkin, banana, berries, avocado, apples
Breakfast cookies-Whole grains and cottage cheese
Grilled Cheese-Any orange veggie pureed
Mac and Cheese-Any orange or white veggie pureed
Spaghetti sauce-You can add anything white, red, or orange This is easy to hide things in
Pigs in a blanket- Sweet potatoes or butternut squash
Quesadillas-Sweet potatoes, squash, zucchini, cauliflower, white beans
Chicken Nuggets-Any white or orange veggie snuck into the wet step before breading
Fish Sticks- The same as chicken nuggets
Meatloaf-Just about anything Peas, spinach, and broccoli pureed are a great combo
Lasagna- Hides a ton
Burritos-White veggie and white beans
Brownies-Blueberries and spinach (Sounds bad, but my kids cleaned them up!)
Pancakes-Pumpkin and any fruit
Smoothies-Pumpkin and any fruit (Can be made into Popsicles)
Biscuits- Sweet potatoes and squash
Mashed potatoes-Zucchini and cauliflower. If your kids will eat orange mashed potatoes you an add some sweet potatoes to the white ones.

All of these recipes work best if the "snuck" in item has been pureed first. It makes it easier to hide and less noticeable for kids or some adults. I have found that baby food works well in a pinch.

Amazon Deal Alert

I ran across a great deal on Silver Palate oatmeal at Amazon. It is the same stuff I received in my order today. From what I have heard the reviews say this stuff is really good.

If you click on the picture of the oatmeal in this post it will take you directly to it. Right now when you enter the code OATME333 into the coupon code line at checkout you will receive 50 % off.

Here is a great deal scenario...
Place 2 of these 4 packs into your cart (For a total of 8 boxes)
Go to check out
You will now qualify for FREE Super Saver shipping
Enter code OATME333 get 50% off
Your total should be just over $16 after taxes.
That is $16 for 8 pounds of high quality oatmeal shipped.




You can also get 32 ounces of pure maple syrup shipped for $18.61. Maple syrup is expensive so this is not a bad deal...

Click the above link and place 1 jug in your cart
To get the best discount you will want to sign up for the Subscribe and Save. Basically you will be signed up to get a shipment every 1-6 months. I did it and then immediately canceled it. It is really easy.

After you hit the Subscribe and Save button you will be taken to check out. Paste in the code MAPLES35 to receive another 15% off.

You should get free shipping for your order being over $25

Make sure that before you hit the sign me up button at the end you for sure want to order because if you have credit card filed it will automatically order. I know from experience, but don't let this scare you off. It really is easy.

If you have a any Amazon Swagbucks gift cards apply them before you order as well.

There you have it, 2 great Amazon deals on wholesome foods.

Amazon: Great Deals On Organic Foods

I received a shipment from Amazon today. I love getting these little boxes. It is always fun to open and see what you ordered. It is even better when you are able to get things very, very cheap or even free. How you may ask? Well by utilizing Swagbucks and the discounts that Amazon offers. I am planning to start doing posts about cheap, organic deals I see on Amazon. The best deal I have gotten from them is 6 pounds of raw honey for less then $2 by using my swagbucks gift cards. So don't rule out places like Amazon when you are on the hunt for great deals on organic foods. If you are interested in getting the specifics on my most recent order you can find the honey and the oatmeal in my side bar.



I am sure that you have heard of Swagbucks by now, but if you haven't you really should be using it.

Basically Swagbucks is a search engine that you can use just like google and any other search engine. The bonus to using Swagbucks is that when you search for things you will occasionally be rewarded with a swagbuck or 2. After you accumulate enough you can redeem your swagbucks for things such as Starbucks gift cards, Amazon gift cards, and tons of other prizes.

The other great thing is that if you have a website or even an email you can refer friends and earn extra points. For every point your friends earn you will earn the same number up to 100 points.

There are lots of other ways to earn bucks. The best way to learn about the program is to go ahead and visit here. It is so easy to get started. So far I have earned around $40 if free Amazon gift cards. Go ahead and give it a try. Did I mention that signing up is FREE and painless. I would not refer you if it was not legit.

A Whole Foods Budget

I had planned to do a post on dairy foods and where to find them today, but I have decided that I should start with a rough break down of my grocery budget instead. I thought it might help to see where I am coming from and what I have to work with.

I would like to start out by saying that I realize every person has a different budget. Some have more to spend then others as well as more mouths to feed. I feel it is extremely important not to get bogged down with the numbers or to think that what one person is able to do should be what you strive for. Each family should try to do the best they can and be good stewards of what the Lord has given them. So if you can only put beans and rice into a whole foods budget instead of grass fed steak and organic produce that is completely OK as long as you are doing what is right for your family.

I would also like to say that I do not feed my family a completely unprocessed, organic diet. I too am still working on trying to transition everything over as I am able to. I am still in a learning process as well. Sometimes I am not able to get organic things into my budget so I try to at least strive for a whole food such as conventional produce, beans, or cheese. At least it is real food.

I promise tomorrow I will start into each food group and navigating the grocery store, but I felt it was important to get the basics down first.

My budget every month is typically $250-$300 a month feeding 2 adults, a 4 year old and a 19 month old. Before I started a whole foods diet I would spend around $400-$500 a month. So I am actually saving money. How you may ask? Well we quit buying junk and convenience food. Yes they may be quick and easy, but at what expense?

I would also like to say that I feel it is OK to spend money on good quality food. I went through a time recently where I was so concerned about paying off debt that I thought our grocery budget was a good place to skimp. I have since learned that it is better health wise to cut other areas of the budget and try to keep as much money as possible in the grocery budget. Think of it as preventative medicine.

Another way I save money in our budget is by making almost everything we eat. You may think that I spend all my time in the kitchen, but you would be surprised. With all of the modern conveniences that we are spoiled with these days I am able to get things done a lot quicker. For example a bread maker, food processor, crock pot, and a yogurt maker. These things take minutes to get started and save me a ton of time in the kitchen.

What are some things I try to avoid in our foods? Hormones, antibiotics, MSG, high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors and preservatives, hydrogenated oils, white sugar, and white flour. If you look at the ingredients in most store bought items you will see at least 1 if not many of these. Even in the so called "all natural" items. Don't let yourself be fooled.

I think I have gotten a little off track here. Back to the budget.

Meat-
Beef $25 a month
I typically buy our meat once a month from a local cattle ranch. I know where my beef is coming from and how it was raised. They even offer tours. The nice thing is they have a store here in town and they have Fill Your Freezer Friday where everything in their freezer case is 50% off! This make things like ground beef $2.50 a pound. Not too bad. If you live around here the ranch is called Satchel Creek Steaks. Go check them out.

Chicken $? Not sure. I stock up when it's on sale and it lasts for several months
I try to buy Smart Chicken brand at Dillons when it is on sale. I can also get it at farmers market or Satchel Creek Steaks.

Fish $10-15 a month
I live in a land locked state so I have to buy this frozen at the grocery store. I usually find wild fish fillets on sale for $1 each at Target. This can easily be stretched by making fish sticks or fish patties.

Grains and Flour
I buy these in bulk from an Amish bulk foods store in Yoder. If Azure Standards would ever start delivering in my part of the country I may get it from them. I buy 25 pounds of locally grown whole wheat flour for $10 and freeze it in smaller freezer bags. I wish I had a grain mill, but not yet.

I buy beans from a local health food store in bulk.

Produce
I try to buy these in season at the cheapest price possible and freeze or can the extras. Today I had a ton of apples that I decided to make into applesauce. I often get these at farmers market, grocery stores and Aldis (Not always organic, but it fits in the budget)

Milk $30 a month
From a dairy or conventional if I have to.

Misc. What ever is left.

Like I said this is a really rough breakdown of my budget, but hopefully it gives you some kind of idea of what I have to work with.

Stay tuned for my series on transitioning to a whole foods diet and navigating your way through the grocery store to find the most nutritious foods.

Getting Rid Of Fruit Flies

I have decided to join in Kitchen Tip Tuesday over at Tammy's Recipes. The tip I have for today is something that I am sure most of you have already heard, but this time of year I thought it would be nice to hear it again.

I have had so many fruit flies lately. They seem to be everywhere. I can not stand it when I go to do dishes or cut up some fruit there are these irritating little flies all over my kitchen.

The solution...... apple cider vinegar. I love this little tip because it is all natural and cheap. There are no chemicals to harm children, pets, or food.

I don't have any pictures of this today, but all you do is put a little bit of apple cider vinegar a small container and cover it with plastic wrap. You then put a rubber band or some tape around the edge and poke a couple if small holes in the top with a ball point pen. The flies are attracted to the smell and get caught inside the container. For some reason they rarely find their way back out of the small hole. This works very well for me. I hope it works for you.

Raw Milk And Paid For Cars

Ok I know that raw milk and paid for cars have nothing to do with each other, but they are what I am thankful for this morning. With all the lay off that have been going on in my city I am so thankful that my husband still has a job and in fact is getting overtime as a technical college instructor.

Due to him teaching extra classed we are going to be able to pay off our Saturn Vue in the next 3 weeks! We will never ever buy a brand new car again. Thanks to Dave Ramsey who has taught us so much about finances. We never thought that we would be able to pay our car off so fast. I got a letter from the finance company telling me I was way ahead on my payments. I thought it was kind of funny.

I am not trying to brag, but we bought this car in April 2006. We made minimum payments for 2 years and saw little traction. After being introduced to Financial Peace University we decided to try a little harder and learn to budget. The Lord has blessed our efforts. Last June we owed somewhere between $12-14,000. We did not start getting serious and paying extra until November. It is now June 1 year later and we are almost finished! That is on a teacher's salary. Now do you have an idea of what my grocery budget looks like?

I am also thankful for raw milk. I have looked for almost a year to find a good source that does not charge $6 a gallon and take an hour to get to. The Lord finally blessed us with a wonderful source from an Amish farm about 30 minutes from my house. Mr. Borntrager only charges me $2.50 a gallon for fresh, organic, raw milk! He also has fresh eggs for $1.50 a dozen. I noticed that his wife also makes cheese. I think I will have to try some when I go this week.

To put this all together I am thankful for having 1 paid for minivan and 1 soon to be paid for SUV to be able to drive and pick up healthy, reasonably priced food for my family. Hopefully if my toddler will let me type this post will be a nice lead into my planned topic for today, buying diary.

You can go here to sign up for a free subscription to Kiwi Magazine and get $5 in Earth's Best coupons. I get this magazine and I really like it. It is full of green living ideas for moms.

Why Eat Whole Foods?

I heard a statement recently that only confirmed my stand on eating only whole, natural foods when possible, "If you grandmother or great grandmother would not recognize it don't eat it." Along with this statement and having watched Super Size Me and the trailer to Food Inc my husband and I are convinced that a diet that has been processed as little as possible is the best way to go for us. My theory is if God made it that way then it is OK to eat. (For example whole, raw milk) If man made it think twice.

I am not going to say that we NEVER eat anything that is not processed or has artificial ingredients in it. That would be nearly impossible in today's society, especially with little ones. I am not going to throw a fit if someone feeds my child something that I do not necessarily approve of, but I can try to teach my children what will nourish their bodies the most and hope that someday they will remember.

The problem becomes how do we afford to eat the way our grandparents did? When the words "organic" and "all natural" were unheard of. Things already came from local farms and were not sprayed with pesticides or genetically modified.

The other day I noticed a mother shopping in our local grocery store and she was filling her cart with only organic, healthy foods for her family, but I could not help thinking to myself, "Wow her bill is going to be HUGE. I wish I could tell her that I can teach her how to make most of those things herself and save tons of money." I realize that not everyone will have time to make all of their own foods from scratch, but it is possible with some time saving techniques. Only in the last 50-60 years have we decided that we need to make everything as fast as possible and not spend time making nourishing foods. We need to slow down and realize that good food is necessary for a healthy life. We could avoid so many health issues if we would just slow down and prepare wholesome food.

Well I got to thinking about how to go about buying cheaper food that is less processed. I went into Aldis last night and the family in front of me had nothing but prepared dinners and overly processed foods in their cart. I felt bad for thinking that they could have made better choices. They had absolutely so fresh produce at all. Again I felt bad for judging them and I tried to think about something else. Maybe this is all they could afford. They were doing the best they could. Then I heard their total, over $70. I got to thinking that I budget $250 a month for whole foods. What could possibly be the difference between us.

Between the lady in the first story spending $100s on healthy food and the family spending close to the same amount on processed food I had to stop and think, there has to be a middle ground. How can I possibly show others that they can live healthy, natural lives and not spend tons of money. We will have to see were things go. That is the purpose of this blog. Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to start my series on where I buy my whole foods and how much I spend. Thanks for bearing with me on this bit of a rant and long post.

This Weeks Menu Plan

I decided at the beginning of this month to try and make a one month menu. So far I love it. I usually hate to sit down on Saturday or Sunday and make out my menu. This way I only have to do it once a month. Here is what I have planned. I am not sure how closely I will stick to it. I realized today that I have a ton of fresh and frozen veggies to get used. We have new things starting to ripen in the garden as well. I am a little disappointed that critters seem to have eaten all of my strawberries before I had a chance to pick them.

I bought some organic lamb and goat at the farmers market today. I wonder if I can change some things around to try it.

Sunday
Breakfast-Waffles and fruit
Lunch-Dinner at my parent's
Dinner- Crock pot chicken and rice

Monday
Breakfast-Green smoothies with homemade yogurt, eggs, and toast
Lunch-Hot dogs (not nitrate free unfortunately. Leftovers from a party last week-Yuck, but they need to be used)
Dinner-Stir Fry with brown rice and chicken

Tuesday
Breakfast-Oatmeal, apples, raisins
Lunch-Bean burritos with homemade refried beans and homemade tortillas
Dinner-BBQ beef sandwiches, green veggie

Wednesday
Breakfast-Green smoothies, almonds for protein (My kids love almonds)
Lunch-Homemade chicken nuggets, watermelon slushies (If I remember to by a watermelon)
Dinner-Penne with chicken and asparagus

Thursday
Breakfast-Oatmeal and fruit
Lunch-Quesadillas with homemade tortillas, carrots and apples
Dinner-Baked potatoes with broccoli and cheese

Friday
Breakfast-Green smoothies, eggs, and toast (Does it seem like breakfasts this week are a bit monotonous?)
Lunch-Grilled cheese and homemade garden chowder
Dinner-Rice and beans with cornbread and salad

Saturday
Breakfast-Pumpkin pancakes with fruit and maple syrup
Lunch-Leftovers
Dinner-Leftovers

New things to try and bake:
Amish white bread tweaked a bit to make it healthier
Bird seed bars
Hummus, not new, I make this all the time. Yummy!

Most of our lunches are geared toward the children. I try to make enough food for dinner so that my husband is able to take leftovers. He usually loves this idea. I sure am lucky to have a husband who likes leftovers.

I will try to get some of the recipes for the things I am planning to make posted soon.

You Can Buy Organics For Less

I don't usually do my grocery shopping until Mondays, but I needed to run into Green Acres to get some vitamins for the kids and I could not pass up some of the deals I found. I then decided to make a quick run into Dillons (Kroger) to use up a couple of coupons. Everything in the picture above is either organic or all natural. Total I spent only $25.09!! I am also planning to make a quick trip to a local farmers market this morning as soon as the baby wakes up. Later this week I will try to do a post breaking down my food budget.

Here is what I got and how I used my coupons...

Green Acres

Cascadian Farms frozen asparagus $2.69
- $1/1 coupon (Found in front of display)
Final $1.69

Cascadian Farms frozen mix veg $2.69
-$1/1 coupon
Final $1.69

Cascadian Farms frozen green beans $2.69
-$1/1 coupon
Final $1.69

2-4 packs of Organic Valley milk clearance priced $1.59 each. I am usually against purchasing pasteurized or homogenized milk, but I decided these would be nice to have on hand for a picky 4 year old as a treat.
- $1/2 coupon (From Earth Day coupon book. Still in some Dillons)
Final $2.18 for both

Nature's Path poptarts (I know junk food) Clearance priced $2.99
-$1/1 coupon (Earth Day coupon book)
Final $1.99

3 pack fruit/veggie juice
clearance priced $1.59

16 organic apples $4.77

6 organic green bell peppers $3.18

Ignore the pineapple. I think it was already on the counter. I did get it with a coupon for $1.50 last week.

I also found at the store $2 off when you purchase both Nature's path and Organic Valley product. I was not sure if I should use it since I had already used a coupon for both products, but the cashier let me. I am still not sure if this was ok.

Total at Green Acres $16.95


Dillons (Kroger)

5 bottles Santa Cruz organic lemonade On sale for $1.66 each
-$.75/1 (used 6 which doubled) From earth day coupon book or print here
Total $.66 each

Cascadian Farms frozen corn $3.49
-$1/1 shortcuts e-coupon (I think this is already gone)
-$1/1 coupon
Total $1.49

3 pack organic hearts of romaine lettuce
Clearance priced $2.50

Total at Dillons $8.14

Total for everything $25.09 YEAH!!

I thought you might also enjoy a picture of all the lemonade I already have in my pantry. We realize that this is a lot of sugar, but it is summer and we hope it will last a LONG time. In total I have around 23. Total spent $15 plus tax for ORGANIC lemonade.

My husband has begged me to make stuffed bell peppers for dinner tonight. I am planning to use the grass fed beef and organic brown rice that I was able to get with coupons and discounts. I will be starting a series next week on where and how I get quality foods for less.

Food Inc. This is interesting

Coupons Are Only For Junk Food

If I had read the title of this post 2 years ago I would have completely agreed, and for the most part I still do. That said I would like to show you that there are some coupons out there that can be used for organic or natural foods. I still think that buying organic ingredients and making your own food is definitely cheaper, but not everyone is able to spend time in the kitchen cooking every meal. Later this week I will try and post some recipes that use whole foods that are frugal and easy to prepare.

I am always on the lookout for organic coupons. I seem to find them everywhere. If you have a health food store anywhere near you make sure to check them out. They often have coupons in their magazines or in my case a whole book of coupons that comes out every couple of months. I always grab several. The nice thing is that the coupons are for REAL food like butter, milk, veggies... A couple of weeks ago I was able to get 2 bags of organic carrots for $.99! I have also been able to get Cascadian Farms fruits and veggies for $.50 a bag buy combining coupons and sales.

Make sure to keep an eye out in your local grocery store as well. In April of last year and this year they had coupon books for Earth Day. (I still saw some of them last week) These came in very handy. I always check to see what items might be on closeout in the health food section and then see if I have coupons for them.

If you remember to buy your produce in season you are usually able to get organic items for the same price or less then conventional. Here is a good list of seasonal produce in your area. Also see if you can buy locally at a farmers market. Or better yet grow your own. Even if you only have room for a container garden you can grow fruits and veggies. If you have noticed from some of my shopping trip pictures I rarely buy cleaning products or processed foods. I will admit that I cave and buy a few junk food products when a craving hits or I can get something for free. These items are either saved as treats for my kids or donated to my church's food pantry. Sometime I feel bad donating food that I prefer not to feed my family, but I also want to help as much as my budget will allow. I would hope that if I ever were in a position to need help that someone would help me. When I do donate I try to make sure the food is at least somewhat healthy. I realize this picture has some unhealthy items, but it was all I could find for an example. (toothpaste, cookies, veggies with added ingredients)

If you are looking for coupons for "real" food there are numerous sites that you can go to. Often if you will go to a manufacturers web site they will offer you a coupon. For example Seventh Generation and Muir Glen tomatoes.

Here are some great articles on buying organic food with coupons.

How I Buy Organic Fresh Food For Pennies

Tips For Saving Money On Organic Foods

HUGE List Of Organic Coupons (I mean HUGE)

Making Butter

Ok I have to start out by apologizing for not getting pictures of my butter making adventure for you. I know it helps to see the steps as they are described. This is the first in my series of making your own groceries. The cost of a gallon of raw milk for me is $2.50. I used 2 gallons to make about 8 oz of butter. So for $5 I will have milk, butter, cheese, and whey. Not to bad, plus it is much healthier.

Here is what I am planning for future posts...

Bread

Yogurt

Tortillas

Mozzarella cheese (I will be making this for the first time)

Pita

More as they come to me. I have lots of ideas.

My husband and I are striving to either make, grow, or raise as many of our own groceries as possible to save money, and also this will help us know exactly where our food is coming from. I think it is kind of a fun adventure to learn so many things that women used to do everyday without even thinking it was anything abnormal. I want my children to know how we get food and not to just think it comes from a grocery store.

One thing I find interesting is that from 2 gallons of raw milk you can make butter, ricotta cheese, and mozzarella cheese.

I forgot to mention that I finally found a source of raw milk about 30 minutes from my house for $2.50 a gallon! That is a steal compared to the $6 a gallon I have been paying for organic milk.

Here are the steps for making butter...

1.)Skim the cream off of the top of raw milk. You can buy cream if you want, but it will defeat the purpose of saving money.

2.)Fill a food processor 1/3 full of cream. I filled mine to the max liquid line.

3.) Set the food processor on high and let it run for about 10 minutes.

4.) At this point you should have the fat separated from the milk. You should see chunks of butter in the milk. Scoop all of the butter out into a clean bowl.

5.) Run COLD water into the bowl and squeeze out all the excess milk with a spoon. Repeat this step until the water is clear.

6.) Squeeze out all the excess water and you should have a nice ball of butter.

For a much better tutorial on this with pictures go to Heavenly Homemaker.

I promise for the next post I will remember pictures.

Budget Cut Backs For A Healthier LifeStyle

This is an old post that had quite a few comments from on my other blog. I thought it was worth posting again. We are all looking for ways to cut back. Hopefully this will help. Although this post is about trying to save money to be a stay at home mom I felt it might be helpful for cutting back on some other areas. By doing so we are able to put more money towards eating more nutritious food.

I had a reader mention recently that she was about $500 short per month from being able to balance the budget and stay home. I hope that this post will somehow help others see that you can make this work.

How much are you willing to sacrifice to stay home with your children? This is a question that I often have to ask woman when they ask me how I manage to be a SAHM on my husband's teaching salary. The other statement that I often get from people is "Oh, you are so lucky to be able to stay home with your children. Your husband must have a good job." I have to make sure that I am polite and say thank you I know I am lucky, but what I want to say to them is luck has nothing to do with it. I stay home by choice and I make choices daily that keep me there.

What are some of the luxuries or so called "needs" that you may have to sacrifice to stay home? I have decided to put together a list of things that my family felt we did not need and truly have not really missed. I realize that some of these things we may be able to have again in the future, but for this season of our lives they are not necessities.

I am going to put an approximate dollar amount to the things on this list so you can see how quickly you can "find" that extra $500 in the budget. It may not seem that you will have any material comforts left at first, but I think you will soon realize, just how little you really need to be happy. The Lord said that he will make sure that we have food to eat, clothes on our back, and a roof over our head. This is the ultimate picture of true contentment. To be happy with the simple things in life. I will not say that I am not still struggling daily with contentment, but I am trying.

• Cable tv Total we saved $100/month going with minimal cable, phone and internet.
• High speed internet (We do have DSL, but a slower version)
• Call waiting
• Caller ID (Ok this one I miss)
• Long distance telephone service
• Cut Blow money $50/month
• NO eating out except special occasions $50-$100/month
• Gym membership $50/month
• OnStar $15/month
• Budget groceries Depending on your family $100-$200/month
• Try to get your electric and gas on an average payment plan For us this saved about $50/ month
• Use less water, shower every other day. $5-10/month
• Eliminate trash bill (A little radical, but it can be done.) $30/month
• Cut back on your driving to save on gas (If you don't work this should be easier)$50-$100
• Cut family clothing budget. Try garage sales and thrift stores. $25-50/month
• Coupon shop or make your own cleaning supplies $10-15/month
• Put a $5 limit on gifts. This can force you to be creative. With coupons I still am able to come up with some nice gifts. $25-$50/month
• Cancel magazine subscriptions. $10/month
• Come up with free or cheap entertainment. Keep an eye out for coupons or free events, or try having a family night at home. $25/month
• Possibly sell one car $300/month
• Before quitting your job eliminate debt. $100-$300/month

As you can see these numbers can very quickly add up.

Realize that some of these changes will not be permanent. They are just some things you may have to sacrifice for a season to make your dreams come true. You can eventually start adding some small things back in. See Crystal's post here about living on a very bare bones budget of $1000 a month. It is amazing.

Think of saving money as your new "job." You are not technically being paid for it, but you are sort of making money. Remember all the expenses you will no longer have by not working out of the home. The average mom only makes a couple of dollars an hour after all the expense are paid so she can work, unless you have a very high paying job. That hardly seems worth it to me.

• Work Clothes $25-50/month
• Dry Cleaning $25/month
• Work Lunches $50/month
• Daycare! $400-500 per child per month
• Gas $100/month

Things you will gain as a SAHM...

• Seeing all your child's firsts and not hearing about it from the sitter
• Being able to go to all school events and field trips
• Showing your children by example how to live a Godly life
• Seeing those beautiful smiles first thing in the morning and knowing you will not have to leave them with someone else.
• Being able to stay home with a sick child and not miss work
• Home cooked meals
• A happier family because mom is not stressed out
• Time to plan a menu, shop, and save money
• Quality time with your husband
• This list could go on forever. You can add some of your own perks.

Soap Nuts Giveaway

Passionate Homemaking is hosting a soap nuts giveaway this week. If you would like to enter I would recommend that you do so quickly. It ends tomorrow Friday June 12.

What are soap nuts? They are basically a fruit that can be used to clean your laundry! They are reusable and contain absolutely no chemicals. What more could you ask for. To learn more about them go to NaturOli to get more in depth info. When I get some more time I will do another post with more specifics on soap nuts.

Green Smoothies

I thought that I would share my take on green smoothies. I got the idea from two of my favorite healthy blogs Passionate Homemaking and Heavenly Homemakers. They both have great recipes for green smoothies/slushies. I took both recipes and kind of made up my own yummy green smoothie. They are so good for you and even my 1 year old will drink them. Unfortunately my 4 year old will not, but she does not care for smoothies of any sort. Weird I know. Oh well.

Green Smoothies (I tend to eyeball amounts)

Frozen strawberries

Frozen or fresh banana

A couple hand fulls FRESH spinach (Frozen tastes terrible)

A little juice (or water)

Yogurt or kefir (I use homemade for extra nutrition)

Honey if you like (I leave this out)

Put everything in the blender and blend very well. All of the spinach should completely blend away and leave you with a nice green colored drink. You can hardly taste the spinach. The fruit does a nice job of masking it.

The nice thing about this recipe is that you can add any fruit you like as well as change out the greens. Experiment with what you like to eat. Start out with only a little spinach and eventually you can add more as you become accustomed to the taste. This is a great way to get some nutrition down picky eaters.

One thing I discovered is that you do NOT want to use frozen spinach. It does not blend well and will leave chunks in your smoothie. YUCK! It also left behind a strong spinach flavor.

Head on over to Tammy's Recipes for more kitchen tips.

Healthy Coupon Links

Here are the coupon links I have found for healthy food...

$.75/1 Fresh Del Monte Pineapple here and here

$1/1 Cascadian Farms (Great frozen veggies)

$1/1 Muir Glen product

$2/2 Ians natural chicken nuggets

$1/1 Country Choice Oatmeal

$1.00/2 Method (At Target)

$1/1 Lifeway Kefir

$.75/1 R.W. Knudsen After doubling at Dillons this makes organic apple juice around $2.

$.75/1 Santa Cruz These are on sale right now at Dillons (Kroger) 3/$5. After you use 3 coupons they are $.66 each! I stocked up. Kroger often has large jugs of lemonade on sale for $2 in the summers. After the coupon double that makes it $1 for organic lemonade! This coupon is a pdf coupon so you can print as many as you need.

$1/1 Organic Valley cheese

Various Stoneyfield Farm products

Various Horizon Organic coupons (These are nice when the gallon milk is marked down)

I will try to add to this list as I come across coupons. You can eat healthy with coupons you just have to plan. I know you can do it!

Just as a side note I found organic butter at Target a while back for $3.50 a pound. This is about $1 more then Kroger brand, but about $2-3 less then national organic brands. I feel that butter is a place I can splurge when I have the extra money to do so since most of the antibiotics and growth hormones are found in the fat of diary foods.

I am hoping to start a series on how to make most of the items we eat or buy weekly in the grocery store. It is so much cheaper and healthier to make your own. If there are any request as to what you would like me to start with let me know.

About Natural On A Budget

I decided to start this blog after I realized just how much money I was spending on trying to feed my family healthy food. I also realized that you can spend almost as much buying the not so healthy things.

So what can you do to change things? I decided to start by no longer buying all the convenience items I thought I "needed" as well as extra snack type things. Next I decided to only use coupons for things that would truly be good for my family. By doing this I was able to put my money toward more nutritious items.

I know that every person is at a different place in their journey toward a healthier lifestyle. Hopefully I can inspire you with some ideas that will work for you and your family. Remember everyone is different and has to do what works best for them.

Contact Information

I love to hear from my readers. Please feel free to email me. Due to being a busy wife and mother I will do my best to get back to you as soon as possible.

naturalonabudget2@yahoo.com