Just curious who else is living super frugal

[chickymama32]

freeze flour?? Never would of thought of that! Does it "freeze" it or just keep bugs out?

 

[Outpost JWB]

freeze flour?? Never would of thought of that! Does it "freeze" it or just keep bugs out?

That is a good idea. I buy coffee whenever it's on sale and put it in the deep freezer. I was told the freezer is more efficient when full, or near full. Mine has 6 or so tubs of coffee, frozen foods, and I also freeze my seeds so they don't start the germination process.

 

[nayeli]

I'm excited to try the SNAP challenge starting February. I think I'm going to start doing budget shopping trip blog entries after the SNAP thing.

 

[Arielle]

I would LOVE for you to come teach me how to raise veggies! I have a brown thumb, and I don't get it because some people just plant seeds and they grow. I planted many seeds last year and while I got some vines no veggies ever grew on them. On top of my lack of gardening skills I'm working with bad soil.... my plan this year is raised garden beds with compost both from the city (free) and from my compost bins (I do vermicompost and I'm hoping the worms survive the winter, if so I'm going to bring some inside just to make sure they never all die from harsh conditions outside!).

Starting with god soil is key. You are sure to have better results with the raised beds. Just remember they require a bit more watering as they drain well. Getting the seeds in at the right time is also important. ANd be willing to replant if need be. My mother used newspapers layered in the garden to keep down the weeds. Weeds can chock out the seedlings very quickly. I'm sure you will have a better year in 2015!!

Growing up I rarely had dessert once a month if I was lucky at home (usually not even that maybe 2-3 times a year most years). But I was given a dessert every day with the school lunch. fried potatoes of any form at home? nope not until I hit middle/high school and it was spotty then but school lunch usually once if not more often a week. pigs in a blanket (biscuit dough covered hot dog) didn't know what that was until I started school, NEVER at home, corn dogs if I was lucky was once a year if mom and dad bought them (we rarely went to a fair/carnivals so it was spotty then IF we got them) but usually every week or two at school. fried chicken? not at home 3-4 times a year at pot lucks and family get togethers. but quite often at school. My parents rarely fixed any fried foods at home or got any fast food like that in the few times we where out and meals had to be taken out. but I got more than a lions share due to the "nutritious school lunch" I was in high school when I learned Manhattan was not the Atomic project during WWII or a Burrough of NYC, but bread gravy potatoes and sliced meat all in a pile. we had grilled and baked meats at home, occasionally a hamburger was pan fried and not grilled on an electric indoor grill (kind of a cross of a foreman and charcoal grill the foreman is more like a pan fried compared to this contraption) roasts, meat loaf chops steaks hamburgers boiled or bbq (oven style bbq) chicken never had any hamburger helper type meals. noodles (chicken or beef) was one to three times a year. plenty of garden raised veggies. but little good nutritious food with the "nutritious school lunch" at home there was no grease or butter on veggies unless it was mashed potatoes or corn on the cob (and mom gave in to the corn 4 or 5 times of a summer because she hated to eat it off the cob).

You were raised right!! No crappy foods. A friend once argued infavor of moderation. I had to bite my tongue and say nothing. What is moderation?? That varies person to person and generation to generation. Certainly the current moderation of sweets has piled on the extra pounds.

Quote: Good job on teaching your children how to be independent!! Whoot.

Chronic sickness doe to poor foods is costly too. I'm willing to select fresh or frozen vegies and fruits rather than crap food .I've learned to check the fliers and only buy the best buys, the work with those for meals. Besides it makes for very simple meals as it can be sliced vegies with dressing, or a salad; or lightly steamed vegies. Toss a roast in the oven, or sprinkle a jerk seasoning over a few pcs of chicken or pork chops. I haven't made the leap to organic yet, but I'm working on how to get there .

I agree that the cost of fresh food is crazy! I can get a box of Cherry Poptarts for less than it will cost me to buy a pound of fresh cherries in season. And the poptarts have frosting ...
The store bought white bread is cheaper than buying all the ingredients and time it takes to make homemade. And yes, my time is worth something. However, I much prefer the homemade and it is a free gym membership to gat off the couch and move around the kitchen making meals. I hate when DH goes shopping with me, he is still stuck in the 1980's when it comes to food prices and complains and refuses to "buy at those prices", so half of my shopping list will not be bought on that trip. I buy on sale what I can find, but $1.50 for a single grapefruit? makes it hard to eat healthy.

I shop seasonally and skip the more expensive items. There are less expensive alternatives to grapefruits. Many alternatives. Like oranges. lol We buy bulk frozen berries like blueberries raspberries and cherries year round. No added sugar. Add to a cup of yogurt and it is a nice dessert of a lunch or breakfast.

heehee LEave the husband at home. lol I feel your frustration.

I look at food based on the cost per pound of protein, or the cost of the micronutrients. No bread can match fruits and vegies for nutrition. Bread was booted long ago in favor of discounted meats and salad stuff and a few fruits and nuts/seeds.Oatmeal and pancakes are minimized. I try to buy the power foods. ANd my kids find them filling. Protein powder is about $25 for a large container. BUt when I look at the amount of protein it contains, it is a pretty good buy.

I also try to be aware of how much water is added to some meats. A little squeeze is very revealing. 20% added water is a rip off. Calculate it into the pricing.

I don't buy applesauce; only whole apples.

 

[LindaB220]

lol Im' happy to move over and make room on that soap box!!!



Oh I much prefer the WIC system!!!!

I play a game at check out: are my selections are healthier than yours?? Meaning I keep my self entertained while I wait my turn to check out. THe amt of white bread and cold ceral, chips and soda is staggering.

I don't have the money to buy junk food. Heeheee, that is what I tell the kids. " TOday we have $18. WHat are we buying? Creates great discussions why one food is better than another!!!

Coca Cola is laying off 2000 people because sales are DOWN. YEah sales are down, but sad too that so many people are loosing their jobs!!

Gee would there be any benefit to starting a thread to help people learn how to eat the basics and intro simple prep??????

Say the word and I'm there. So interested in this topic.

 

[LindaB220]

Probably not. I've found that people already KNOW what they should be doing...it's not a problem of not knowing. We are bombarded with information on healthy living and food choices from every type of media. The kind of people who make poor choices turn the channel or choose not to listen to or read such things. It's a conscious choice.

The only people who would respond to the thread are those who are already doing this kind of lifestyle. I guess I'm just jaded, but after posting on this site for so many years I've learned one important thing...everyone wants to go to Heaven, but no one wants to die.

In other words, everyone wants health~for their flocks or for their lives, and everyone wants to have more money~ or less debt, at least~ but no one really wants to do what it takes to get there. Oh, they will talk about it until they are blue in the face, but they won't ever make any real positive moves in that direction. They'll do little things in that direction that really don't do any long term good.....but it makes them feel better about their willful ignorance.

Bee, now this is just sad. I've not always, sometimes never, ha, make the right decision. Learning to cook back in the day was not much. My mom didn't want me in the kitchen. So when I got a home and started raising my kids, I did the best I could. Fried up chicken, pork chops, potatoes, etc, etc. Anybody getting a pattern. I didn't bake and other than fried meat and potatoes the veggies were canned. Hubby didn't like salad so we didn't have them. Canned fruit sometimes. IS IT ANY WONDER THAT I WAS FAT AND RAISED ALL THREE DAUGHTERS FAT? It took years for me to realize that there was a better way. I'd love the idea that there is a place for people to go to that want to learn, want to do better, want to be better. Stepping down now.

 

[Arielle]

Quote:
linda you're awesome!!

I've been looking to my kids for a place to start.

 

[nayeli]

Starting with god soil is key. You are sure to have better results with the raised beds. Just remember they require a bit more watering as they drain well. Getting the seeds in at the right time is also important. ANd be willing to replant if need be. My mother used newspapers layered in the garden to keep down the weeds. Weeds can chock out the seedlings very quickly. I'm sure you will have a better year in 2015!!

You were raised right!! No crappy foods. A friend once argued infavor of moderation. I had to bite my tongue and say nothing. What is moderation?? That varies person to person and generation to generation. Certainly the current moderation of sweets has piled on the extra pounds.

Good job on teaching your children how to be independent!! Whoot.

Chronic sickness doe to poor foods is costly too. I'm willing to select fresh or frozen vegies and fruits rather than crap food .I've learned to check the fliers and only buy the best buys, the work with those for meals. Besides it makes for very simple meals as it can be sliced vegies with dressing, or a salad; or lightly steamed vegies. Toss a roast in the oven, or sprinkle a jerk seasoning over a few pcs of chicken or pork chops. I haven't made the leap to organic yet, but I'm working on how to get there .

I shop seasonally and skip the more expensive items. There are less expensive alternatives to grapefruits. Many alternatives. Like oranges. lol We buy bulk frozen berries like blueberries raspberries and cherries year round. No added sugar. Add to a cup of yogurt and it is a nice dessert of a lunch or breakfast.

heehee LEave the husband at home. lol I feel your frustration.

I look at food based on the cost per pound of protein, or the cost of the micronutrients. No bread can match fruits and vegies for nutrition. Bread was booted long ago in favor of discounted meats and salad stuff and a few fruits and nuts/seeds.Oatmeal and pancakes are minimized. I try to buy the power foods. ANd my kids find them filling. Protein powder is about $25 for a large container. BUt when I look at the amount of protein it contains, it is a pretty good buy.

I also try to be aware of how much water is added to some meats. A little squeeze is very revealing. 20% added water is a rip off. Calculate it into the pricing.

I don't buy applesauce; only whole apples.

Dang Lady!
I can tell you feel strongly on the subject.
For the garden this year my plan is to lay newspaper down then put compost/soil on top of it, than seeds than more compost/soil. With our soil I think raised flower/garden beds are the way to go. We are also looking at investing in having gutters put on, our whole block was made without them and the lady who owned the house before us never felt the need to have them put on.

 

[Arielle]

yes, when you are faced with gestational diabetes with the well being of a tiny life depending on your every bite, I had to make changes. THis was a wake up call the type 2 was in my future. The dietitions at the hospital were and are a joke. I recently went back for a visit to see if they had up dated their nutritional program. NOPE. THru my pregnancy I depended on the knowlesge that I gleened fromreading Dr Atkins book. I ate plenty of clean meats, like chicken, fish, lamb, etc and lots of vegies and a huge variety of fruits. I was able to control my blood sugars via my food. I ate and ate and ate, and during the last month I lost about 10 pounds. ANd had a large baby, large enough that it is viewed that babies over about 9.2 pounds is considered a baby at risk. I'll skip all the details, just to sum up that this changed my life and view on foods.

I can drive down my blood pressure by eating good meats and vegies, and can drop 5 pounds in a few days. IT is all water and salts. So the method of treating high blood pressure with "watching" the salt intake doesn't hold a lot of water for me. I actually need to replenish those salt losses with more salt. ANd my docs done say anything if my BP is high normal. It is up to me to realize this is high for me and take action.

Many main stream TV segments are starting to feature guests that promote eating a diet of meats and vegeis, and fruits and nuts/seeds. AND eggs ARE good for you. The WHOLE egg!!

IF you have cholesterol issues look at the diet. If it full of breads, cereals, peas, corn, and breaded meats, potatos and such?? Might be time to dump these and reach for a few eggs for break fast with bacon; a salad and a chicken breast for lunch, and a repeat at dinner: steak, green beans and small salad.

OR do As I did , I bought the Dr Atkins New Diet Revolution. It was an eye opener. ANd led me to other doctors on the same path . . . .

 

[oldrooster]

Quote:
I asked a dietician who was in a diabetic clinic for the diabetic exchange diet, or any diet, she acted as tho I had 3 heads, and told her I was a vampire/zombie I wanted to eat her brains and suck all the blood out of her. So I am wrestling with trying to eat a healthy diet and lose weight, not having a good experience on either.