Cloth Diapering so far

pic of my Bug's cute little cloth diapered tush!

Some of our parenting decisions were made automatically for us; cloth diapering and breastfeeding being the biggest. It was VERY important to both of us for me to stay home to raise the bug and for that to happen we had to lessen the cost of having a child. Diapering a child comes with an obscene cost, cloth diapering seemed like the best way to cut that and it has been. Thankfully we had purchased some cloth when we took care of my nieces twins and one of my friends handed me down some of her cloth diapers as her kids outgrew them; so even the cloth diapers didn't really have a significant impact on our budget. Even if we did have to purchase them it really just does make sense financially to go cloth. There are other bloggers who have gone into the cost analysis so I'm not going to do the math, I'll just link up a few here, here and here. I also like the environmental aspect of cloth diapering and appreciate how my frugal choices also tend to be green.

What we didn't realize is that when we left the hospital they would give us TONS of disposable diapers, we literally left with 5 packages. These 5 packages proved to be a great incentive to start with the cloth, we both HATED them. The bug some how leaked so bad that every time we changed him at night we were changing the sheets and his clothes too (some times ours as well).

It was so irritating, and both brands that they gave us let to the same effect. The hubs and I were so happy when we started using cloth because they really held the business in. We honestly haven't even noticed the laundry part of it too much, it works out to be an extra load every 2-3 days and you don't have to fold them!

So yeah, we cloth diaper and it isn't at all horrible like everyone insisted it would be when we were pregnant (all while giving us knowing looks and saying "we'll see how long that lasts"). It just works for us and for the boy, although I could see how if you were working full time or didn't have a washing machine cloth diapering would be hard. Also breastfeeding has its own advantages on cloth diapering so if I was formula feeding I might be singing a different tune.

The one thing that bothers me when people talk about cloth diapering is that they believe you have to buy the fancy expensive diapers. You can go crazy with cloth there are many many different options and some of them cost over $20 a diaper but you can go way cheaper than that. We opted to purchase prefolds, cheap prorap covers
and snappis to secure. Diapering with those options it costs about $50 per size and you can reuse for subsequent children, super cheap!

So what do you do? What made your decision for you?

Feeling so Spoiled

So the hubs and I went out yard sailing this morning and I was keeping my eyes open for a few things. Things for the baby that I didn't really want to register for but kind of wanted anyway; like a co-sleeper and an extra swing and some other stuff. Well I found a Take Along Swing for $5, great deal as they go for $70 in the store. Found some other great small things; some outfits, a baby gate, random stuff. Then as we were leaving the one I just said a random prayer "Lord it would be really nice if we could find a cosleeper for under $20". It was a tall order as they retail for anywhere from $140 for the mini and $190 for the regular. I didn't want to register for it because I really wanted a play pen and couldn't see registering for both. Well we went to one bomb of a yard sale and on the way home we passed by a house with like 6 things in the driveway and stopped. You guessed it, they had an Arms Reach Co-Sleeper. I asked the lady how much and she gave it to me for $5, doesn't even look like they ever opened it up!!

It makes me laugh because it seems like there are alot of prayers that God answers like this in my life. It reminds me that I am His child and he really does delight in me and listens to my prayers. One time I was moving 15 min away but didn't have a couch and said "Lord please help me find a couch for $10 on the way home", don't you know I did and they delivered it for me! It may seem silly to some but these answered prayers just reinforce the love I already feel and today I just feel downright spoiled!

Have you ever tried some yard sale prayers?

Cloth Diapering Amazingness!

So this little lobster is getting cloth diapers, way more for frugal reasons than for any other but the environmental issues did weigh in in our decision making. The hubs is totally on board with it, I think it made it easier that he learned how to do cloth with the twins and realized its not that difficult. Thankfully I have some IRL friends that use cloth on their tots that have totally helped me decide what I do and don't need. When we had the twins we purchased about 2 dozen prefolds and about 6 covers in medium size; which is awesome now cause that money was long ago spent and doesn't impact our current budget. In the past week or so I've gotten awesome gifts and loans of more cloth diapers. One of my former doula clients and friends gave us on loan 32 Swaddlebees with a bunch of newborn covers, woolies and fleece. Another friend who is on her last babe passed along a bunch of prefolds. My dear friend, Mama K, has said she would help me organize my stash and see if there are any holes (as well as pass along on loan some of her small ones). I also won the most adorable medium cover from Deb at Made By Mama by being her fan on Facebook.

As it looks now we pretty much are set for diapering our babe in October. I'm just so incredibly thankful that this is working out so early in my pregnancy and I don't need to worry about it later on. I'm also so thankful that I have friends and family that already do alot of the things that the hubs and I would like to do with our child. What a wonderful support network already in place.

I am blessed.

Frugal Holidays

So one thing the hubs and I do for holidays is make our own cards for each other. The hubs will make a lovely card with what he wants to say in it. I know that he took time to make it and it says what he wants it to so I treasure it. Just a little thing that saves you $8(two cards) a holiday that to me is way way more special than the store bought version. His cards usually are made with some photoshop elements while mine are drawn with each of us using our strengths to show the other one how much we care. I love these cards because he usually will work in some inside joke into it so I'll be laughing out loud while reading.

Frugal Friday-My guide to online shopping

Today's frugal friday involves online shopping. Being the stereotypical American, I'm a busy person. By the time I get home from work, make dinner, throw a load of laundry in the washer; I don't want or have time to run out to the mall. Online shopping has wrapped me in its warm blanket of simplicity and ease. I love the fact that I can shop for gifts in the comfort of my own home, bargain shopping easily between sites. I also love being able to find gifts that I can feel good about giving; as I'm becoming more environmentally aware I'm able to find organic cotton, sustainable and fair trade products with great ease right on the internet. When I first started online shopping I wasn't quite the bargain hunter that I am today; I made a few blunders and paid for things that weren't quite what they seemed. So this is a little guide to tell you my tricks to online shopping.

1.)Find the item you want-If I'm completely blank on what to get someone I check out some of the standard gift giving websites (Mighty Goods, Red Envelope, Non Toxic Tots). If I really don't have any idea I just start googling away, when shopping for my wedding invitations I google "cheap wedding invitations" my husbands wedding band was purchased on eweddingbands.com. There are so many online retailers that it really is simple to find ANYTHING YOU NEED. Be careful once you find the item; read the small print, check the measurements, read the reviews of the product.

2.)Figure out what site you will use to purchase-Once I find the item I will google the item and look at the different sites that sell it. Its here that I try to put my money where my mouth is. I try not to purchase on big mega giants like Walmart, Target, Macy's; but put my money to something I feel good about supporting (WAHM shops, Environmentally Sound Companies, Companies supporting Fair Trade). Within these sites I do a bit of bargain shopping to see where the cheapest place to purchase is.

3.)Google for Coupon Codes-I then google to see if I can find a coupon code for free shipping or a percentage off of my order. Its like the old saying goes-You never know until you ask.

I know its not rocket science but these are the things that I've learned from online shopping, hope it helps you!

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I found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood, go check out the original!

The Frugal Friday that wasn't

So I'm still recovering and have been sick all week. So I'm going to rest today instead of doing a frugal friday. I've been having a hard time sleeping the past few days and my throat is killing me. I'm doing some natural remedies which inlcude sucking on a lemon and gargling with salt water, so thats frugal! Hopefully I won't need to go to the doctors but I'm thinking I might need to this weekend if my throat continues to stay swollen and hurtie. Please keep me in your prayers!

Frugal Friday-Bad Company Corrupts Good Character

A good frugal tip that has helped me tremendously is having good down to earth friends, my husband being the best of them. My husband and I are both tremendously frugal (cheap!). It really helps our relationship that we both don't like wasting money on things we don't need. He loves that I don't have the attention span for an afternoon at the mall. It has helped me greatly that just having him around makes me double think purchases, most of the time that extra time thinking makes me not purchase the impulse buys that sometimes kill the best planned budget. They say that thing most couples argue about is money but honestly (knocking on wood) this hasn't been a problem for us. We both sat down and made our budget together and work to staying on it together.
Most of my friends aren't in to the whole "keeping up with the Jone's thing"; when one of them get something they've wanted I'm honestly happy for them. Its interesting the choices you make and the things that are important to people; if you tried to keep up with all your friends it would be ridiculous. The hubs and I like travelling (on the cheap usually) and we do like having our electronic toys (but don't mind waiting up for them all night on black friday to get a good deal). Some of my friends like having new cars so they make their payments faithfully every month. Some people its the jewelry, some people its the clothes, some people its the house and the landscaping and some like going out to dinner all the time. The things that are important are different for most people and if you tried to keep up with everyone, you would run yourself ragged with work or run up your credit card bills.
Not saying that you should cut out all of your friends if they are competing with you in this area, just saying that maybe you should limit your time with them at the mall. Or just acknowledge in your mind that this doesn't have to be a competition, who cares what they have. Find the contentment in yourself so that you don't look to "beat" someone else at having the biggest, the best and the most expensive. Its so much easier to just live within your means and be happy for others who get the things that they wanted.
What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

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I found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood, go check out the original!

Frugal Friday-Just Wait

Sometimes my best frugal finds have come from waiting. I have wanted a freezer for our house for over a year to help us stockpile and for general use. Right now we have a side by side fridge and the freezer section leaves a little to be desired. There have been many times in the year and a half we've had the house that we've had the cash and I was tempted to just buy one. I have browsed the aisles of Kmart, Sears, Lowes, Best Buy, and Home Depot drooling over their pristine clean white Frigidaires. Something stopped me every time I went to buy one, held me back from dropping my benjamins down to bring home an Electrolux of our very own. We kept on shoving and smooshing and creatively packing our freezer, precariously balancing our ice trays (broken ice machine) on leftovers. Then two weeks ago I saw an email on Freecycle offering one. In my haste to reply back to the woman I neglected to realize that I had another email showing that there was someone lined up for it already with backups already waiting. My heart sunk a little but oh well, it wasn't meant to be. The woman wrote me back though and said although that one was taken she did have another one that she had to empty out first but I could have that(I would just need to wait a couple of weeks). I was so excited!! That weekend the hubs and I went to a few yard sales and found.... go ahead guess... a freezer! This one was gorgeous and looked basically brand new for $40!!! Since we had one promised already to us we called up the hubs brother to see if his family could use it, as my sil was also looking for a deep freeze of her very own. They ended up buying that one and helping us bring ours home with their minivan. Ours wasn't in such pristine condition but with a little bleach and elbow grease it got some shine to it and dontcha know it freezes things just fine. God then choose this week to shine down on us and there were some kicking meat sales for Fathers Day, so our first week with a freezer we were able to start filling it with sales.
Its amazing what a little waiting will do!
What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

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I found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood, go check out the original!

Frugal Friday-Staying Hydrated

I don't know about you but I'm a thirsty girl. I used to wet my whistle by stopping at WAWA or another convenience store to buy soda's, juices or waters. Besides being bad for me (the soda's and the juices that is) it was killing my pocket book. Generally drinks go for a little over a dollar a bottle and I was definitely getting more than one a day.
Enter my Klean Kanteen:
Now I fill up before I leave the house, pretty much every day so while I'm searching yard sales, grocery shopping, driving to the shore, going to work; there is always some good old healthy water next to me. Its saved me countless dollars. Of course you can use any water bottle and don't need to buy some name brand jobbie. I choose my Klean Kanteen because of the materials used and also the manufacturing methods the company uses; if you would like one you can purchase yours here.
I've found that my most frugal changes haven't been the big ones, but have been my small changes. Looking around at my lifestyle and changing the things that don't seem to matter; I find out that they really do and the money adds up!
What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

Don't forget to leave a comment so I know to link you up :)

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I found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood, go check out the original!

Frugal Friday-Frugality is a silly little thing

So last month I challenged myself. I was going to try to reduce our electric bill to be lower than our same month last year. I made a game of it and tried to beat last years bill. I told the hubs about it and he was like, ok whatever(I'm sure he was excited on the inside :). Well for the past month I've been turning out lights, line drying (as much as possible) our clothes, replacing light bulbs with fluorescents, working more outside in the garden (as opposed to watching tv) and just trying to be very mindful of our electric usage. Let me tell you when I got our bill I was AMAZED!
Last year at this time we used a daily average of 30.3 KWH and this month we used a daily average of 19.5 KWH both average temperatures for the month were exactly the same. This month was the absolute lowest month of our electric bill since we've been in the house. I'm amazed at how much our bill was reduced and excited to work on reducing it more!


If you are interested in lowering your bill here is a neat website that shows you the average cost of running some of your appliances.
In trying to find the average homes electric usage I found this:
As an electrical engineer for a power company I see on average a house that is 1600-2000 square feet and having electric appliances except for the furnace use an average of 1500Kwatts per month making 50 Kwatts per day and a total of 18,000 Kwatts per year. (from WikiAnswers). Also according to this report from the Department of Energy the average house uses 10,654KWH per year, which is a good deal lower than the above quote in red. As of last year we fell right in the middle of those two estimates. However, we do have that electric furnace so I don't know how that figures into the equation. This year I hope to see a great reduction in this, its amazing what a little competition with yourself will do to your bills.
(hee hee the months spell out the hubs name)

Once again frugality and "living green" collide.

What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

Don't forget to leave a comment so I know to link you up :)

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I found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood, go check out the original!

Frugality Gives

Frugality to me is doing the best that you can with your money. Making it stretch where you need, saving up to buy important things, budgeting, etc. One important part of frugality for the hubs and I is giving. We both come from the belief that if you always give you will always have. When you dig a little around there is always something you can share with someone else and something you can give. There have been so many times in my life that people have blessed me when I have been in need. There was one time in college that a friend out of the blue gave me a car and $200, another time a stranger gave me $4000 to buy a car and to buy books for school. These times that I have received had been times of great need in my life, those gifts helped me greatly. Through this and through the provision that has always been shown to me I have been shown that the principle of giving is key in our budget. Not to say that you should just go out and give your money to a stranger on the street or even to a homeless person; you do need to be careful. In giving to people I try to reach their needs and determine which needs I am capable of meeting. You could take your money and buy lunches to hand out to homeless in the city or donate (time or money or both!) to a homeless shelter. You still have to use your money wisely in giving and be a frugal giver. There are certain charities that I will not give money too because they support things that I don't want my money associated with. I try to make sure that I'm not just giving money away but hope by investing in companies and organizations that have proven themselves to be frugal and also that use their money for what they say. You have to do research on what you are giving to, many times I research with prayers asking if it is something the Lord would have us do with our money but I also research with a little friend I call Google. Sometimes though giving could just mean buying flowers for a friend thats having a hard time, writing a letter, buying coffee and listenning. You have to find out what it means to you and where you can use your money/time to help benefit the world around you.
Here are just some of the places that the hubs and I feel you can't go wrong in giving too:
Hope Alive Clinic-amazing organization started by one of my friends parents that provides medical, physical, emotional and spiritual relief to Haiti.
Compassion International-provides food, clothing, schooling, etc to over 1 million children in 24 countries.
Sheohannah's Hope whose mission is to care for orphans by engaging the church and helping Christian families reduce the financial barrier to adoption. This is the ministry was started by Steven Curtis Chapman who I spoke about in the last entry. It is his song I posted below as they are especially on my heart right now.


What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

Don't forget to leave a comment so I know to link you up :)

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Found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood

Frugal Friday-Whats In My Wallet

Probably one of the best changes we have made to help us manage our money better and be more accountable is going over to a cash only system. Our system is similar to the envelope system but without the envelopes. We take out a certain amount of money every week, a portion of it is just for groceries and the other amount is split between the hubs and myself as "fun money". This "fun money" I believe is crutial to our state of mind, it allows us to budget for entertainment. I think some people when they decide they are going to be more frugal they do drastic things and don't allow for any "extra's". Even if its only $20 a month I think it really does help your state of mind to have some mad money to use to go out for coffee, to go out to yard sales or to go to a movie with your cutie.
This cash system makes it so I can't go over my grocery budget, because I only have the budgeted money with me. Before I go to the store I estimate what my bill is going to be, I write a detailed list with approximate prices. While going through the store I will update the prices so when I go to the register I have a very close idea of what my total is. This in itself has saved me a great deal of money as most of the grocery stores around here have a policy that if something rings up wrong at the register it is free. I've gotten shrimp, a case of seltzer, cuts of meat all for free just for paying attention to what I'm paying.
Another thing I'm trying to do as I save more money is to have a grocery budget surplus envelope to save up for when we have company and also for throwing parties. I would take the money that is leftover from my weekly trips and put it in this envelope. Then we wouldn't have to use any of our other money for throwing a party or having friends over. I'm still learning on this whole system but I know it has helped me focus on what I have and not go over.
We do use our credit cards for gasoline to keep up our credit rating. The hubs has about an hour and a half commute to work so it would be too difficult in our house to do a cash system for gas. Most frugal sites point far away from the credit cards but I think my time as a mortgage underwriter has shown me the importance of a good credit rating even if you don't want to use it. What I will say, if you do use a credit card have a budget for what you want to put on it. We put gifts for others and gasoline on our credit card. We have a monthly budget for both of these and pay off our two credit cards monthly. NEVER, ever leave a balance on your card; thats what starts getting you in trouble.


What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

Don't forget to leave a comment so I know to link you up :)

Razor Family Farms has been cleaning up! She's been making her own detergent, this is completely on my list of frugal stuff I want to do!
Trace is rocking out with multitasking and being a superhero by saving money on gas, exercising(seriously it took me 10 minutes to try to figure out how to spell that!! Dude!!) and saving the environment; all while making time to smell the flowers!
Tara is saving money and encouraging others at the same time! Gotta love those Tar-jay deals!
Em In Stitches also has an idea about the great credit card debate and saving some cash on gas. She also threw in an idea for the little ones.

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Found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood

Frugal Friday-Letting it all Hang Out

No I'm not saving money by becoming a nudist, I'm line drying my clothes.
I've been researching and the average load of laundry costs about .76 cents a load to dry. It doesn't seem like much but considering our family of 2 generally does about 5 loads a week it definitely adds up. I can only imagine the laundry and savings you would generate with children!!!

There is something soothing about shaking your clothes out and hanging them out to dry. It helps me to slow down and kind of take in the moment and breathe in the fresh air around me. I use it to help me unwind from my work day and my drive home and to relax. I also LOVE the smell of line dried clothing.
The act of hanging the clothing can be done by children, I know I used to hang up our families clothes at 6 or 7 years old. So it can be used to instill responsibility in your kids and to delegate some of the household chores. Or, like me, you can throw your laundry in before you leave for work and hang it up on the line when you get home.
I did grow up hanging my clothes out to dry, not because of necessity just because thats what my family did. When I lived in the cabin I wrote about earlier this week I didn't have a clothes dryer at all. Needless to say this is an easier change to me than it is for the hubs but he's all for saving the money.

What are you guys up to?
Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

Don't forget to leave a comment so I know to link you up :)

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Found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood

Frugal Friday-Its all in your mind

One of the things that have helped me the most with being frugal is straight up in my brain. Taking time to realize what I have really puts in perspective what I need. I've been on some missions trips to third world countries that have changed my life, they have shown me the excess that we live with in the United States. When I get caught up in the American mentality of buy buy buy I try to stop and remember what I have seen.
The first time I went to Haiti I met a little boy named Edward, he was 10 and just the sweetest little boy. Edward and I became best buds for my time down there and every time I went off of the "compound" Edward was right at my side. He brought me to meet his family, his mother and two little sisters who lived in a space that was about the size of my kitchen pantry. It had two closet sized rooms(not walk in's either); the first one had a waist high "table" that Edward and his sisters slept on, the second had some blankets on the floor where his mother slept. I gave the little gifts that I brought with me to Edward and his family as well as whatever else I had. My last day there I was walking to the bus to go to the airport and Edward ran up from behind and pressed something in my hand and ran away. I looked and it was the smoothest, most beautiful shell I have ever seen. I keep this shell with my most prized posessions and look at it often to remind me of what I have.

Usually during these periods of introspection I realize that we have plenty. That my 9 year old Ford Escort is good transportation, that our house is more than what we need, that I don't need ANOTHER pair of shoes. That shell keeps me from spending and inspires me to give more. Thats exactly the type of person I wanted to be when I was little.

Basically taking stock and being thankful for the things you have is my Frugal tip for the week.

This Weeks Participators:

EmInStitches has been brown bagging it and found that it helps more than her pocketbook

Mama K is saving her cash in the beverage dept

Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

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Found out that Frugal Friday didn't start here-the original is at Biblical Womanhood

Frugal Friday-I'm a Diva! (cup user)

Yes, its true. I use a Diva Cup.

I've heard it all on the Internet how unsure people are of the Diva cup and I've been there and overcome it. There are many reasons that I use my Diva cup, um, monthly. Mostly, to be honest, its for the environment but a big part is the money I'm saving.
As Mama K has said frugality often goes hand in hand with being environmentally friendly, and the Diva cup is one way I'm trying to be responsible with my own environmental footprint.

According to my Google searches: A normal female's
average flow is 5 days
average number of years you have your period-39
Number of times you menstruate in a year-11.5
Days in your lifetime with your period-2242.50
Hours in your lifetime with your period-53,820
According to this;
You would use approximately 13,455 tampons/pads
for a pack of twenty you would use 673 boxes of tampons at $3,155.20 plus whatever pantyliners and pads you would need to purchase.

With the Diva cup you would use 1 cup, which I hear you can use for about 10 years for 32 bucks each it would be 130 bucks for a lifetime of protection. I will be supplementing this with Mama Cloth as soon as my order gets in, but even there the cost isn't that significant. It sure beats having to run out to the drug store when you run out, also you can wear these for 12 hours between changes so its very convenient for working and sleeping. To top it all off you get a cool pin.

This weeks participators:
Trace is rocking the menu planning and thinking ahead for dinners for the week!
Shelly has been saving some cash on her Cell Phone Bills and taking some crazy cute pics of her little boy!
Mama K the only person I know who got hungry watching Supersize Me; makes it personal and talks about how she avoids the drive-thru line.
Kitten Mom just bought her new house and has been making some frugal changes as well!

Join in the fun, grab the code below and post your own frugal ideas!

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ha ha I just got this email
On Apr 25, 2008, at 8:17 AM, the hubs wrote:
It’s a little embarrassing when I pull up a website and I’m confronted with a huge picture of a diva cup at work.

-just found out that I didn't think up the Frugal Friday first-the original is at Biblical Womanhood

Frugal-Organics

If you're like me you try to incorporate as much organic into your shopping trips as you can and just work the prices in by cutting out excess meats and desserts. Well you might be having some fillet paired with creme brule this week (or at least a ckicken cutlet and frozen yogurt) cause Shoprite has a booklet at the registers for Earth Day called Go Organic. If you have one near you grab like 10 of them as they have tons of manufacturers coupons in them for organic milk and products that don't expire till August! Yeah!

Frugal Week 1

So for my first post for Frugal Friday, I'd like to tell you about dinner last night.
We were invited over Jason's brothers house to order Chinese. I was thinking on the way home that I already have all the ingredients for my old standby Chicken and Broccoli so there was no need for us to buy from the Chinese place and to make this the second time we ordered out this week! Since my SIL and I get along well I knew she wouldn't be thrown off by me bringing some food from home to save some cash! I got home and chopped up some Chicken into the tiny strips you get and the broccoli and threw them in the steamer and got to the sauce. The sauce I used was just a veggie/soy base that was in the freezer already from a previous recipe. I threw some sesame oil in a pot and simmered some garlic for a few minutes then put the base I already had in with some shredded ginger. I let this simmer for about 10 minutes then strained out any veggies, garlic and ginger out. After I had just a brown gravy I added a few teaspoons of cornstarch till it got to the right consistancy. It was sooo good and I was super proud of myself for making one of my take out standby's. Since we already had the ingredients we saved about 15 dollars on the cost of take out for the night!

If you don't know where to start in making some of your favorite take out foods you can google some easy recipes, I found one on Rachel Ray's website for Orange-Cashew Chicken with Broccoli . I know I would order that if it was on the menu!

This weeks participators
Mama K tells us how she scores with her Produce budget
Trace has been boosting her bank account by making food plans and pizza.

and one of my fav reads Down To Earth posted some great tips on Frugal living today

Click the link above to find out about Frugal Friday and join in on the fun! :)

Frugal Friday!

So a huge interest of mine currently is frugality and trying to maximize the money we have and saving as much as we possibly can. Lately I've been reminded of the story of Joseph in the Bible, where the Pharoah made him second in command and made him in charge of keeping the people of Egypt from starving during the years of famine. Joseph made a plan during the years of plenty to carry his people through the years of scant. The story just impresses on me the need for frugality that no matter how much you have that you should not use more than you need. In our country there is a great emphasis on having things, the best houses, cars, clothes, jewelry, etc and sometimes its hard to step back and ask yourself if you really need these things. Well thats what this frugal friday is about, its about those moments where you step back and start thinking of things you could change. What I would like is for people start blogging every Friday about the steps they are taking towards frugality however small they may be. I have friends who are starting herb gardens, making their own bathroom cleaners, one friends husband is even forsaking his beloved cheese in his ham and cheese sandwhich until the weekends to save some money; its all about the small steps. Small steps added together add up to a big change.


How to participate:
1. Take the button code below and put at the top of your frugal friday post
2. Leave a comment letting us know that you are participating on my FF Post.
From there I will make a list letting people know what you are up to and linking to your blog.

If you don't have a blog, you can always leave comments letting us know how you are cutting costs!

<a href="http://www.dirkey.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Dirkey" src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2306/2422433079_00cdb91b63_m.jpg" border="0" /></a>

If you are on Google Reader, you will actually have to click over to my blog to get the code. :)

Update 4/25/08, I just found out that Biblical womanhood already does a frugal friday!
I guess great minds think alike. I'm going to keep going with this one as well to get more people thinking about frugality.
Check out the original at Biblical Womanhood