Why I DON'T Buy GMO Free for Halloween

It's no secret that I'm a bit obsessed with the foods my family eats.  Just a bit....

However it may come as a surprise that when it comes to Halloween, I relax my rules.  I buy all the "good stuff" and by that I mean- Snickers, Kit Kat's, Reese's, Twix and more.  Yes, I know that these brands have way too many chemicals and I know they contain GMO's.  Relax, I know.

But here's another thing that I know- my son will go Trick or Treating and come home with a huge bucket overflowing with all this junk.  And when I look back and remember those precious years spent enjoying Halloween, I do NOT want him to remember that Mommy took away all his good candy.

GMO Free Alternatives

So instead I have chosen to simply pick and choose my battles.  I allow this GMO filled candy into my home and I pass it out to all the sugar pumped Trick or Treaters- just as many other parents do.  But let me be very clear- this is the ONLY time I buy these candies.  I have also imposed strict rules on candy consumption.

I firmly believe in the 80/20 rule.  If I can keep 80% of the foods in my home organic and GMO free then I consider myself a success.  I don't stress about the remaining 20%.  I have given myself permission to relax and let my son enjoy Halloween- GMO's and all!

Now- if you just can't do it, which I totally understand, you can click this link here to read about 12 GMO free treats to pass out on Halloween night.  Whatever you decide, I wish you a safe and fun Halloween!

Green Smoothie

We've started drinking this yummy & healthy Green Smoothie several times per week.  And whenever I'm not feeling so well, my tummy is hurting, I'm tired or just a general case of the Blahs- I whip up one of these and instantly feel SO much better.

The kiddo is not a fan of these, he prefers my Yogurt Berry Smoothie's instead.  However, the other day he ate a cheeseburger from Five Guys and his tummy wasn't feeling well.  And wouldn't you know it- he actually asked for a Green Smoothie!!!  Seriously, my jaw was on the floor.  On.  The. Floor.

So here's the recipe, I hope you'll give it a try!

Green Smoothie

Green Smoothie

• One large handful of frozen pineapple
• 1 green apple, core removed        *alternately you can substitute the apple for blueberries but this will change the color of your smoothie
• 2 big leaves or 2 handfuls of kale
• 2 stalks celery, cut up
• 1/2 cucumber, cut up
• 2 cups cold water

Dump all the ingredients in the blender and blend away.  You may need to add more water depending on the consistency.  It's helpful to put the frozen stuff in first, followed by the chunks of celery and cucumber.  I layer the kale in on top and then pour in the water.  My ancient blender prefers it this way.  But really- it doesn't make a difference.

Then simply pour it into a cup.  This amount will make enough for 2 large servings or 3 medium sized servings.  I typically fill a super large plastic cup for the husband to take with him on his drive to work and then I have enough for a medium sized glass for myself later in the day.

You could also pour any extras into a Mason Jar or other container with a lid.  Just shake and drink later on whenever you want it.

So there you have it.  My Green Smoothie recipe.  Super easy, takes less then 10 minutes and will make you feel great!!  Enjoy!

Grocery Budget Challenge Week #2

Alright- so if you're just tuning in, click here to read all about this Grocery Budget Challenge I am embarking on.

Let's recap.  Week #1 was a disaster.  DISASTER!!!

If you remember, my weekly goal is $150.  Last week, I spent $189 at Safeway and then went to Grocery Outlet and spent another $60.  AAAAHHHH!!!  Not good!

I was super prepared and had my meal plan and my grocery list ready.  However, I did not account for items that I needed to stock up on and I did end up buying $30 worth of items for my Father-in-law.  Clearly I am still learning.  

This week I have revised my meal plan in an effort to make up for the colossal suckiness that was last week.  So that means I am going to be feeding my family from the items I have already stocked up on in my fridge, freezer and pantry.  I will only be going to the grocery store to buy more Halloween candy for the trick or treaters because my family ate all the Halloween candy I bought 2 weeks ago.  Seriously- ate it ALL!  And I will be using some of my grocery money to buy the pizza for our Pizza & Beer get together with neighbors on Halloween night.

Week #2

Monday

Baked Potato Soup *double batch

Hasbrowns, turkey sausage, avocado & fresh fruit for breakfast

Tuesday

Macaroni & Cheese with Green Salad *double batch

Pumpkin Bread & fresh fruit for breakfast

Wednesday

Crockpot Taco Soup

Toast w/peanut butter & fruit & yogurt smoothies for breakfast

Thursday

Pizza & Beer- It's HALLOWEEN!

Toast w/peanut butter & fruit & yogurt smoothies for breakfast

Friday

Leftovers

Pumpkin Bread & fresh fruit for breakfast

Saturday

Meatballs, Rice and roasted veggies

 Toast w/peanut butter & fruit & yogurt smoothies for breakfast

Sunday

Spaghetti with Marinara Sauce & green salad *double batch Marinara Sauce

Pancakes *double batch

I will be sending my husband to work with leftover soups- both Baked Potato and Taco.  I will also send him with some leftover Cheese Enchiladas & Beans- would you believe he'll eat this cold! Cold?!? If I run out of leftovers- PB & J it will be!  If you remember- my son and I eat leftovers for lunch too.  This saves me from having to buy lunch items- at least for this week!

You'll also notice that I'm baking Pumpkin Bread again this week.  My boys can't get enough of it! And they've requested that I bake more- thankfully I have enough pumpkin and eggs!  Did you also see that I have 4 meals that I will be adding to my freezer stockpile this week!  WooHoo!

Now all I need to do is stick to my budget!

*Want to go back and see what happened on Week #1?

The First 72 Are On You.

Say what?

The concept is pretty simple and everyone from FEMA, Red Cross,  to your local city recommends that you have enough emergency supplies to last you for 72 hours.  That's 3 days folks.

Why am I talking about this here?  Well, first of all, it's my blog and I can discuss whatever I want.  But most importantly, I feel that the job of a Wife and Mother is to care for her family in every situation.  Every single one.  And that includes emergencies.

Do you have enough food on hand to feed everyone?  What about water?  Would you be able to find your flashlights if the power went out?  How would you cook a meal if you didn't have electricity?

My goal here is not to alarm you or lead you to think I'm some sort of crazy conspiracy theorist.  Trust me...I'm not.  What I'm trying to have you do is simply prepare your family for an emergency.

First- think about where you live.  Is your region prone to earthquakes?  What about a flood?  Research what has happened in the past in your area and how long it took to get things back up and running.  Then plan for that.  Simple as that!

For example, I live in the Seattle area.  We have snow, ice storms, lots of rain and sometimes heavy wind.  OH- and we are due for a major earthquake.  Several years ago when my son was 18 months old, we lost power for almost 2 weeks in the home we were renting at the time.  This was in part to a wicked series of wind and snow storms.  I thought we would be fine because the house had a wood burning fireplace.  What I did not know at the time was that the fireplace was inoperable- completely.  We went without heat in the middle of winter, no showers and hot water and all our food spoiled.  I resorted to heating our home with candles and at night we all huddled in the master bedroom in order to be warm enough to sleep.  And by all, I mean- husband, kid, dog and rabbit.  Yes, even our rabbit.

By the end of those 2 miserable weeks, I learned a very valuable lesson.

1. It could have been worse.
2. I didn't ever want to be unprepared again.

In the last few years, I have slowly taken steps to ensure that my family won't be caught in the storm again.  Literally.  I began working on our 72 hour emergency kit.  I grabbed an old duffle bag and put in a good first aid kit, some food that only needed water to be cooked, flashlights, candles, extra dog food- basically anything I thought we would need in the first few days after a major storm or event.  In the last couple of years, I have started increasing that 72 hour kit.  I now have enough emergency supplies on hand to last 8 days.  My goal is 14.

I am also careful to make sure that I have a well stocked home.  What exactly does this mean?  Well, I always have lots of canned items in my pantry.  Extra freezer meals, a large first aid kit, extra toilet paper, firewood, charcoal grill and plenty of charcoal.  Think about it- what good would all that food be if you had no way to cook it?

7 gallons & BPA free!
  Find them at Walmart

I have also made sure that I have enough water for my family and our 2 dogs for at least 3 days.  The rule here is to have 1 gallon per person per day.  Surely you can find room in your home to store 3 gallons of water per person for an emergency?  We all know that we can go a week without food, but water- now that's a true necessity.  So if you do NOTHING else- please do this!

My hope is that you'll take 15 minutes and simply stop and think about what you need to provide for your family in an emergency.  Really think about....if you have canned foods, do you have a manual can opener?  How would you cook those foods?  Do you have enough water?  What if there was NO running water or the water was contaminated?  How about heat?  Do you have extra blankets?  Candles?  Matches and lighters?

Another important factor to remember- don't assume you'll be able to buy what you need after the storm.  If the power is out and a store's backup generator is also out, that means your credit and debits cards won't work.  If there's trees down or power lines down and they are blocking your road- how are you going to drive to the store?  And do you really want to wait in hour long backups to buy gasoline or bottled water?

A little prep time now will save you down the road.  And it will definitely add to your sense of security.  I hope you'll think about it!


***Want to read more?

Have you got the first 72 hours covered?

Well check out my follow up post that tells you what you will need for the next 2 weeks.  It's an Emergency!

What Do You Mean You Don't Have a Curriculum?

Whenever I tell people that we are homeschoolers, one of the common statements I hear is- "I know "so and so" who also homeschools.  Aren't you lucky that there's so much curriculum available."

Ugh.

Here we go.

And so begins the question from non-homeschooling people- "what curriculum do you use?"  And then I feel compelled to tell them the truth, which is- we don't.  And of course their eyes bug out just a little bit and they stammer- "wha what? how can you homeschool without curriculum?"  Hmm...well gee- I don't know.  How can you parent without a manual?  It's not rocket science here folks, although if it were I would definitely hire my son a tutor!  Ha!

The reality is that many homeschoolers do NOT use a boxed curriculum.  I talk a bit here about what we use and how we personally save money on homeschooling resources.  But there's other reasons besides money that we have chosen to not buy a curriculum.

• Boredom.  Boo- sometimes those boxed sets are downright boring and tedious.  No thanks!
• Flexibility.  My son is 8.  He is totally focused on one thing for a week or two and then it's on to another.  I have no clue a year in advance what he'll be into.  How could I possibly plan curriculum around this?  You can't.
• To follow a specific method of homeschooling.  We are eclectic homeschoolers who lean towards unschooling.  This can't happen with a boxed curriculum.
• What about the gifted or disabled kids?  A boxed set is designed to do what a traditional public school does- it aims for the middle of the road.  What if your kid is ahead of the game?  What if they have a learning disability?
• This is not the way my son likes to learn.  He is NOT a sit down with paper & pencil learner.  He's a hands on, doing, touching, feeling sort of kid.  So to go against his natural learning style would be a huge detriment to him.
• And of course money.  Holy Buckets are those boxed sets pricey!

See there- lots of excellent reasons.....So if we don't use a formal pre packaged curriculum then what DO we use?  

• Books
• Magazines
• DVD's
• Homeschool classes
• Field trips
• Workbooks
• The outside world- nature
• Participation in sports- soccer, martial arts, swimming
• Workshop classes
• The Internet
• Toys & Games
• Physical tools- magnify glass, projects, microscopes, arts & crafts, etc

So I suppose I shouldn't feel so guilty the next time someone comments on my lack of curriculum.  I think what we use and how we have chosen to homeschool is pretty awesome.  It fits our lifestyle and it fits my son's learning style- which is really all that matters.

What do you use in your homeschooling journey?

How to Homeschool for a Year for Under $20

My homeschooling budget is small.  Seriously- small.  I do my very best to keep my yearly costs under $25.  Say what?!?  Trust me- it can be done and I'm going to tell you how.

So what do we use exactly?

Just $6.99!!

I love these Scholastic grade level workbooks.  I buy them at Costco, which is just a large discount warehouse store.  The best time of year to look for these is late summer, well before Fall and the start of the new school year.  Price is $6.99- which is just awesome for the budget minded Momma's like myself!

I am also a huge fan of the website Education.com.  This is my go-to website for science experiments, fun crafts and great holiday themed activities.  You can pay for workbooks and worksheets on this site but they also offer a limited amount of free pages per month per email address.  So really- why pay for something you can get for free?!?  I have 3 email address', so you better believe I signed up with all 3!  And to increase my cost savings, I print the pages at my local library for free.  That's free + free = FREE!!!!

My son attends Edmonds Heights K-12 and they have amazing classes like Paragraph Writing, Math, Spanish, Latin, Science, Lego Engineering and more, all taught by certified teachers.  These classes are free. Yippee!!  They also have workshop classes and for an additional fee, a student can take fun classes like Musical Theater, Martial Arts, Sewing, Pottery, Jewelry Making and more!  It's a very valuable tool in our homeschooling journey.

We are also regulars at our local library.  Did you know that you can put books, movies and magazines on hold online and then pick up at your local library?  Since our library is super small, this is how I get all of our books and such.  We are lucky that our library system is pretty large so we have access to new release DVD's and a huge variety of books for all ages.  In the summer time, we also participate in the weekly Summer Reading program.  Lots of fun activities, stories and crafts- all for free!  My library also does NOT charge late fees.  WHAT!?!?!!  I know...I know....calm down Homeschooling Momma's, I know it's super exciting but let's not freak out now!

Still with me there?  That's free classes taught by certified teachers, workshop classes, free books, free DVD's, free magazine, workbooks and free science experiments and arts and craft projects.  Now let's add in sports and PE.

William participates in soccer through a local club.  We are able to get a discounted price so the registration/participation fee is just $10.  Each year I sell his old cleats on Ebay and use the money to buy new cleats.  This means, I spend nothing on cleats.  Nothing!  He's also able to wear the same uniform for 2 years in a row.  My tip here is to buy it a little big the first year and hopefully it will still fit for the 2nd year.  That's a $40-100 savings!  Sweet!

Last year William took Martial Arts classes through his homeschool program.  His school budget money paid for the classes which was $350 for the year.  Keeping score?  A $350 dollar value and all for free!

William also does swimming lessons.  Last year he went to the local YMCA which offers a Swim and Gym class just for homeschoolers.  The class consists of 1 hour of gym class and then 1 hour of swimming and meets once per week.  The fee is $125 per session however my local YMCA royally screwed up and I ended up getting the whole class for free.  Let's just say it was a huge mess....but William really enjoyed the class so we saw it through until the end of the school year.  However, this year- William qualifies for FREE swimming lessons.  There was a grant provided to the school district where he does his homeschool program and all 3rd graders get 3 free sessions.  This will give him free lessons until the end of the school year. I'll take it!

Imagine Children's Museum

Occasionally we like to take field trips and I try to pay as little as possible for these.  I have learned that most  museums offer a free night at least once per month.  I have several in my area that offer free admittance- Museum of Flight, Bellevue Arts Museum and Imagine Children's Museum just to name a few.  I highly recommend you look into this!  You are of course at the mercy of their schedule but hey- free is free! I also regularly check out websites like Amazon Local, Groupon and Living Social to find great deals on other educational and fun places to visit.

This year I was also able to use some of William's school budget money to buy a science kit and some great new workbooks.  My out of pocket expense was zero!

Here's a recap:

• Yearly workbook------------------------------------------------------ $6.99
• Science experiments ----------------------------------------------------FREE
• Arts & Craft projects--------------------------------------------------- FREE
• Musical Theater, Martial Arts, Jewelry classes & more------------------ FREE
• Foreign Language classes----------------------------------------------- FREE
• Math, Science, Language Arts classes -----------------------------------FREE
• Books, DVD's & Magazines --------------------------------------------FREE
• Soccer----------------------------------------------------------------- $10
• Swim Lessons ----------------------------------------------------------FREE
• Museum Field Trips----------------------------------------------------- FREE

Grand Total: $16.99

Not included in this cost is school supplies, supplies for science experiments and those for art and crafts projects.  But lets be honest- we homeschool.  I don't have a ridiculously long list of required unnecessary school supplies.  It's paper, pencils, erasers, markers, crayons, glue, etc.  My wonderful family routinely gifts William with all of these items for birthdays and holidays.  Want to know what to get my child for Christmas?  School supplies!

So there you have it.  A full year of homeschooling for under $20.  Lots of great activities, curriculum and classes.  If I can do it, so you can you!

Do You Have a Freezer Stockpile?

I've said it before and I'll say it again- I believe in being prepared.

That's why I like to keep my freezer well stocked with easy meals made from healthy foods.  If you've read my blog before, you know that I like to cook whole foods, mainly vegetarian and organic foods from scratch.  I keep the processed foods to a minimum.

The easiest way that I've found to build up my freezer stockpile is to simply make a double batch of a meal as you're cooking it.  I do this with just about everything- provided I have enough ingredients on hand.  This assumes you are keeping a well stocked fridge and pantry.  Sometimes you make a meal last minute and simply don't have enough ingredients on hand to make a double batch- don't worry about it!  There will be plenty of chances to double up later!

Handy Chart for Freezing Meat

Here's a list of some of my favorite meals to stockpile-

• Meat & Bean Chili
• Lentil Chili
• Black Bean Chili
• Black Bean & Cilantro Quinoa
• Macaroni and Cheese
• Cheese Enchiladas
• Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Black Bean Soup
• Baked Potato Soup
• Chicken Noodle Soup & other veggie based soups
• Vegetarian Burgers
• Beef Burgers *not cooked
• Spaghetti Sauce
• Lasagna
• Twice Baked Potato Casserole
• Meatloaf *not cooked
• Meatballs *not cooked
• Muffins
• No Yeast Breads like Zucchini & Pumpkin
• Cookie Dough *not baked
• Pie Crusts *not baked

I will also cook up a roast or whole chicken (very rarely) and then make broth with the bones and save the meat to add into other meals.  The cooked meat is then easy to thaw & throw into soups, chilis etc.  One five pound whole chicken will provide a full chicken dinner for my family, up to 3 additional meals where chicken is added (soups, stews, enchiladas etc) and not the main course, a gallon of chicken broth and scraps to feed my dogs for two meals.  I use every single part of that chicken!

I also freeze yogurt, cheese, berries, chocolate chips, fresh fruit, nuts, deli meat, packaged hot dogs and more!  Just about anything can be frozen.  So stock up when your favorite items are on sale and pop it in the freezer!

I use foil pans like this one for freezing casseroles, enchiladas, lasagnas etc.  For soups, I cool in the fridge and then put it in a large ziploc bag the next day.  Don't forget to label it with a sharpie with the name of the recipe and the date you made it!  For meats that I don't cook- I will make a double batch and bake one that day then put the other half in a labeled ziploc bag.  For burgers, meatballs and cookie dough, I flash freeze then stick in a ziploc bag.  Super easy!

This is a simple way for you to save money- you won't eat out as much and for you to feed your family healthy meals!  For a busy wife and mother- it's guaranteed to make your life much easier!

The Grocery Budget Challenge- Week #1 Meal Plan

Tomorrow is Monday and the OFFICIAL start to my Grocery Budget Challenge.  If you remember, I am attempting to feed my family of 4 people and 2 dogs on $150 per week.  But here's the real challenge- I will be buying mostly organic foods.  Now- if you shop for organic, you know how expensive it is! YIKES!

Meal planning will be essential to staying on budget.  Here's a look at what this week's meals will be- a good mix of beans, soups, crockpot meals and vegetarian dishes.  Awesome!

Week #1

Monday

Crockpot Lasagna with Green Salad

Fried Potatoes, Fresh Fruit & Oatmeal for Breakfast

Tuesday

Pinto Bean Tacos with Mexican Rice

Pancakes & Fresh Fruit for Breakfast

Wednesday

No-Chicken Chicken and Dumplings 

Leftover Fried Potatoes, Fruit & Oatmeal for Breakfast

Thursday

Cheese Enchildas with Vegetarian Refried Beans *Double Batch

Leftover Pancakes & Fruit for Breakfast

Friday

Leftovers for Dinner

Toast, cereal, fruit, yogurt for Breakfast

Saturday

Tator Tot Casserole with Cucumber Salad and Roasted Veggies *Double Batch

Toast, cereal, fruit, yogurt for Breakfast

Sunday

Red Beans and Rice *Double Batch of Red Beans

Toast, cereal, fruit, yogurt for Breakfast

For my baked goods this week, I've planned on getting into the holiday spirit with some Pumpkin Bread and Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies.  SO good!  I will be making my Black Bean and Cheese Taquitos to send with my husband in his lunch.  For his lunches- he likes things that he can eat while driving.  I know....I know....but it is what it is....he also doesn't have access to a fridge or microwave so that severely limits what I can pack for him.  So lunches this week will be the taquitos and if I run out, good old PB & J.  Fresh fruit and some pumpkin bread will round it all out!      

BTW- did you notice that I had 3 meals to freeze and add to my freezer ready stockpile?  This is perhaps one of my biggest tips for busy Moms- freeze, freeze, freeze!!!  I simply can't say it enough.  If you cook 100% from scratch, I can guarantee you that there will be nights that you simply don't want to cook yet again.  There will also be nights where you're so busy during the daytime that you haven't had time to start dinner.  Many times, I just pull out one of my freezer meal and I'm ready to go!  This also means that you don't have to spend a ton of money on expensive and unhealthy freezer meals.  Really- the only meals in my freezer are those I make myself- oh, and a couple organic pizzas! ;)

Stay tuned for Week #2!

The Grocery Budget Challenge

This week I posted over on my Homeschooled Housewife Facebook page that I was going to get back to meal planning in an effort to get my grocery budget down.  It was quite the lively topic and I'm thankful for everyone's input!

My goal was to get my weekly budget down to $125.  I asked my readers if this was realistic and wanted to know what others spent each week to see how this compares.  Turns out- for all organic groceries, this is quite the ambitious undertaking!

So I've decided to give myself a little more room to tackle this and have upped my weekly budget to $150.  This budget includes all household and beauty products as well.  So toilet paper, toothpaste, laundry soap, face wash, deoderent, dog food- it's all included!  Eek!

Currently I am spending approximately $250 per week on all organic foods and household and beauty products- so realistically, I am going to be cutting $100 from my weekly budget.  Whew!  I sure hope I can do it!

My first step has been to plan the next month's worth of meals.  I have planned 7 dinners, 2-3 breakfasts and zero lunches for each week.  Zero lunches?!?  Ok, that's not entirely true.  I've planned my husband's lunches for work.  As for me and my son, we eat our dinner leftovers for lunches during the week so no planning is needed. In addition, we typically eat out for one lunch on the weekend.  For the breakfasts- I have only planned roughly 3 per week because I make a double batch and have enough left over for another day.  For example, next week I've planned on fried potatoes with fresh fruit and oatmeal.  I'll make a double batch of fried potatoes so I can make this meal twice during the week.  Perfection!

My weekly menu plans also include crockpot meals, one night per week of leftovers, baked goods and at least one meal will be a double batch.  This way I can freeze the double batch and add it to my stockpile of freezer ready meals.  Now that's awesome!

When meal planning, I like to keep things interesting.  You won't find 3 days of beans or 2 meals with rice in a row.  I plan on a nice mix of Italian foods, Mexican foods, beans, lentils, soups etc. in an effort to avoid things getting boring.  You might also notice that there's not a lot of meat.  We don't eat that much meat anymore- so even things like Lasagna or Chicken Tortilla Soup will be meat free.  To appease my husband, I may include one meal per week that has meat- or I may not!  BWAHAHAHA!!!!

I encourage you to think about making more of your meals meatless- it's cheaper and healthier for you!

Alright- back to the Grocery Budget Challenge....My challenge begins on Monday and I've already put together next week's meal plan.  Click here to take a look!

A few other rules for my Grocery Budget Challenge:

• Toiletries and household items are included in the budget.
• Meals out are NOT included in the budget.
• Meat will be on the menu only ONCE per week- if that!
• Dog food is included in the budget.
• Holiday's and special events are included in the budget.  Holy Thanksgiving Batman!
• At least 90% of the meals are homemade.
• None of my grocery items are free/gifted/grown etc.  Unfortunately, I will have to buy everything.
• Coupons are allowed!
• Food items will be at least 90% organic.

Well- I think I have a good starting point!  If you think something is missing or have some grocery budget advice, I would love to hear it!

Bring on Week #1!!!!

Keeping an Organized Pantry

Keeping a neat and tidy home should be the goal for all Wives.

Something that is essential to me in the keeping of my own home is making sure my kitchen and pantry are organized.  I spend a ton of time cooking and laboring over homemade meals- I need to be able to find shit!  And let's face it- keeping an organized pantry saves you time and money.  Plain and simple.

I'm the first to admit that my pantry isn't fabulous but it works.  I am also battling a super small 1980's kitchen.  Did these people NOT eat?!?  Why so little storage space?  So my solution was to buy a pantry and stick it in my living room.  Ugh....I know...I know...

My Spice Drawer

Even with my extra pantry, which is really just a cabinet with 3 shelves, I still don't have enough room.  So I keep all my baking supplies in one cupboard in my kitchen and my spices go in a drawer near my oven where I can reach them easily while cooking.  As you can tell from the photo the left- it's a bit of a mess.  Is that a cell phone charger in there?!?  Chapstick?  Cash?!?

The goal to keeping an organized pantry is to have your items visible and easily accessible.  I also suggest stocking up when things are on sale and rotating your items so nothing expires.  This ensures you will always get a good price and always have that item available in your home.

My Pantry

Here's a peak at my pantry.  Full disclosure- I did NOT organize it before taking a photo.  It always looks this way- organized chaos I like to call it. Unless of course my son has been "helping" me unload groceries.  In that case, it's a mess.

You can see that my cans are lined up, forward facing by item.  This allows me to know when I'm running low on something.  Which BTW- see that empty space between the Pinto Beans & Black Beans?  That's where my Kidney Beans should go.  I totally ran out and the store I usually buy my organic Kidney Beans at has not had them in stock during my last 2 visits.  Oops!

I keep items that are currently being used towards the front of the pantry and simply place the extras behind them.  For example, the cereal boxes & crackers on the top left are lined up with the name of the item facing forward.  The unopened extra boxes are directly behind it.  So when we finish the item, I toss it and move the one behind up to the front.  Then I put that item on my grocery list so I can by a replacement & restock.  Make sense?

The Box

Sometimes I find a really good sale.  Like on the Cascadian Farms Purely O's cereal.  We don't usually have so many of them but I found them on sale for $.99 per box.  That's a savings of over $3!!!!  So you better believe I bought as many boxes as I could!  The additional extras were then placed at the bottom of my cabinet pantry, usually behind the cardboard box.  This is where I store all my items that I have stocked up on.

Keeping yourself organized does not have to cost you a buttload of money.  There is NO reason for you to

The Snack Basket

run out and buy fancy boxes, baskets and organizers.  I use a large cardboard box to store my extra plastic wraps, foils, ziploc baggies, extra bags of lentils & barley, extra dog treats, hot chocolate mixes, tea bags and yes, even my coffee filters.  I also have an old basket that I pulled the broken handle off of and I keep my snack foods in here.

Potatoes, extra paper napkins, larger sized items and my recipe book all go down on the bottom shelf on the right.

The big green bowl belongs to my son- he puts his candy from Christmas, Easter & Halloween in here.  There's also a package of Oreo's that he got after a soccer game & a can of Pringles in there.  Yuck!  This is his treat bowl.  I bought it on clearance after Halloween many, many years ago and it works great!  When he has earned a reward or treat, he's allowed to pick something out of this bowl.  And if I'm honest- most times after a meal he can grab a small piece of candy.  Don't tell him- but every month or so, I weed through his bowl and throw stuff out.  Shhh....

So there you have it.  A glimpse into my somewhat OCD life.  If you don't already have an organized pantry or some system in place- I highly recommend you work on it.  Get creative and use things you see around the house, improvise!  You can do it!

Halloween in Pictures

I love Halloween.

There- I said it.  Halloween, Fall, Thanksgiving, Christmas....ah, it's my favorite time of the year.

When I met my husband over 13 years ago, he didn't much care for Halloween.  We went to a few party's and did the obligatory "couple's costumes" but that got old real quick.  After the birth of our son, the way we celebrate holidays changed.  No longer was it about kegs, loud music and sexy nurse costumes.

So today, I want to share with you something that we have done just about every Halloween and I'm so very glad we did!

Seems simple really and I'm irritated that the thought didn't occur to me until my son was 2 1/2 years old.  But here it is- each year we take a professional photo of my son in his Halloween costume.  Seriously, when you spend $50-100 on a costume that is only worn once, seems fitting to make it a bit more memorable.  I only wish I had thought of it sooner!

William's very first Halloween photo was when he was 2 1/2 in his Nemo costume.  That year he became obsessed with Nemo.  He watched the movie just about every day, was running around quoting lines from the movie and so when it was time to pick out his costume- it was a no brainer- Nemo!

William "Batman" age 5 and Lucky Dog "Robin

In the years that have followed, William has taken pictures as Pluto clutching his Mickey Mouse stuffed animal, Lightening McQueen, Batman with his trusty sidekick Robin, Sorcerer Mickey to commemorate the year we went to Disneyland for Mickey's Halloween Party and a Lego.  This year we've turned a corner in the costume department and he's dressing up as something scarier- a Zombie.

Every year I frame William's picture and bring it out of storage as part of my seasonal holiday decor.  William loves seeing his costumes from year's past and I have to say, that it's pretty awesome to see them as the years go by.  All too soon, he'll be grown and dressing up won't be cool anymore...What a great way to remember a fun time in our life!

Snack Mom

Since when did it become acceptable to pass out crap after a soccer game and call it a "snack"?

A typical snack

I knew we were in trouble when the very first game ended with a package full of Oreos, a baggie of Cheez Its and a Capri Sun.  GMO's, hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, trans fats, MSG, artificial dyes, preservatives, carcinogens and more- ugh!

I briefly thought about emailing the coach with a helpful list of alternatives.  Instead of Cheez Its how about Annie's Cheddar Bunnies?  Substitute the Capri Sun for an Honest Kids juice drink.  Organic popcorn, fresh fruit, carrot sticks....oooh but I had a fabulous list of much healthier alternatives.  Except that my son begged me not to say anything.  He didn't want the other kids to find out and he didn't want to fall into that dreaded "different" category.  Sorry kid, we are different.  Get used to it!

So instead I've decided to simply lead by example.  Our turn to bring snacks is up and we are only 1/4 of the way through the soccer season.  My hope is that our snack will stand out.  I want parents to wake up and realize there are better choices.  And perhaps the rest of the soccer season will see an improvement in snack time.  Maybe...

You've seen a photo of a typical snack.  Now let me tell you about the snack I've prepared for game day.  Popchips, organic apple slices and Honest Kids juice drinks.

Listen, I'm the first to say that Popchips are NOT healthy.  These are the "fun" part of our snack.  William desperately wanted something "cool" and he requested chips because that's what the cool kids handed out for snacks.  So I compromised on these.  They are baked instead of fried, they have NO artificial flavors and do NOT contain any of the dreaded GMO's.  Let me also say that I do not buy these for my family.  Mainly because they are still highly processed and not made with organic ingredients.  However, I felt they were a good balance of healthier ingredients and that "cool" factor William requested.

Up next- organic apple slices.  Can you believe that we have had 4 games and NOT a single piece of fruit has been handed out?!?  I don't know about you, but in my house a snack almost always includes fruit or veggies.  Enough said.

And finally, Honest Kids juice pouches.  They are certified organic and a great alternative to the icky Capri Sun drinks.  They are not a staple in my house but more of a special treat.  Mainly because they still contain way more sugar then I want my son consuming and because they are not 100% juice.


Now this is all well and good but how does it compare price wise?  Well lets see shall we....there are 9 kids on my son's soccer team.  I always make 10 just in case there's a younger sibling or something that feels left out.  So I've priced these with a quantity of 10 in mind.

Crap Snack

Individual package of Oreos $.45
Single serving bag of Cheez Its $.46
Capri Sun $.33

Per kid $1.24
Total Spent $12.40

Healthier Snack

Single serving bag of Popchips $.17
Single serving bag of Apple Slices $.70
Honest Kids $.38

Per Kid $1.25
Total Spent $12.50

So to all of those folks who say that buying organic, healthier foods cost way more money- here's your proof.  I priced the "crap snack" at my local Safeway grocery store.  The "healthier snack" is what I actually paid for each item.  Literally 10 cents more for the healthier snacks.  Are your kids worth an extra 10 cents?

A Healthier Snack

Garlic Parmesan Orzo

Need a super simple & fairly cheap meal?  I love this dish.  It's great all by itself with a veggie loaded salad or works well as a base pasta to add on to.  Sausage, asparagus- the sky's the limit!  We eat it just like it is and I've doubled the recipe for you, it will now feed 4 "real" people as a full meal.  You just might have some leftovers....

Yum!

Garlic Parmesan Orzo

2 cups orzo pasta
1/4 cup butter
1 head of chopped garlic, you might want to use less if you're not a garlic fan
1/4 cup fresh parsley or 2 Tablespoons dried parsley
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, you might want to use less if you don't like it super cheesy
1/4 milk, may need more
salt & pepper

Cook orzo in boiling water.  At the same time, chop your garlic & simmer on low in your butter in another pan.  When orzo is done, drain & add back to the cooking pot.  Pour in your butter & garlic mixture.  Add parsley, Parmesan cheese & milk.  Depending on consistency you may want to add more milk.  Season with salt & pepper.

That's it!  Amazingly simple.  I would say that it's just as easy as opening one of those horrid Pasta Roni packages & it's a WHOLE lot better for you!  And done in under 30 minutes!

Enjoy!