Okay, these things may not be that fun for you… but they are for me .

I have been working on some things that I’m excited to share!

The one that I’m most excited about is a “Frugal Master Meal Plan.”  Things around here are tight and will remain tight through the summer, so instead of being down about it, I’m seeing it as a challenge!  I will use this challenge to become more frugal and more organized in this area.  I’m hoping to get this up on the blog in the next few days.

Not only are we going to try to grow more of our food (planting several gardens and growing our chicken “family”), but we are also going to make our meals more simple, and well, cheap.  I’m also going to continue making our own detergents, using cloth napkins and handkerchiefs, using reusable bags for grocery shopping, using reusable water bottles, and using reusable containers for lunches.  Not only are these things frugal, they are better for this world that God made .  The only paper products that we plan to continue buying is toilet paper… because honestly, I’m just not ready to give up on TP.  We’re hoping to “grow” in this area over time!

My plan will include a simple plan for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners (to rotate), as well as a list of foods to choose from for snacks.  Following these plans will be a list of our whole foods staples that we keep on hand (and plan to use to make these simple meals!).

My goal is going to be to spend less than $350-400 a month (about $90-100 a week)… and I would prefer to spend even less.  This will mean that we will only eat meat a few times a week, many things will not be organic (unless the price difference is minimal), I will only shop at Trader Joe’s and Costco (with the exception of our milk through the co-op), and I will buy very few processed foods (meaning, I will be in the kitchen a bit more).  I plan to make most of our snacks, and all of our bread products (which, I already make most of our bread products, but will do even more).

I am spending this week weaning myself from caffeine because next week Robert and I are backpacking, and I don’t want to be having caffeine withdrawals while I’m hiking a mountain with 25 pounds on my back .  I’m hoping and praying that when I get back, I won’t need coffee every morning, and my soda consumption will be gone.  I realized the other day that even though stopping by Sonic during happy hour isn’t expensive up front, the cost grows over time, and the styrofoam cups are SO bad for the environment!  Also, there is NOTHING healthy about sodas.  This will save us money!

So, along with my Frugal Master Meal Plan will be pictures of our more secure chicken pin (that should be finished soon!), pictures and our garden plan (we will finish that when we get back from our trip), and pictures of our backpacking trip (which, these aren’t really part of our frugal living… but they are a part of our desire to be outdoors more!).

It’s so nice to feel like myself again, and to be back to enjoying this part of life.