A reply to VB's posts on Saving Money in the Kitchen and Checking in

I have been on hiatus for a few months from blogging.  The Advent and Christmas seasons were extremely busy for me (November - December).  Between taking care of my son while my husband fulfilled all of his commitments with the churches he is Pastor of, my parents and brother visiting over Christmas, and daily life, I didn't make the time to blog.  And life around here isn't going to slow down anytime soon.

2015 is going to be a busy year with quite a bit of transition from what life has been like the past 3+ years for me here in small town Fairfield, Montana.  I am excited and nervous about it.  I will share my adventures in future posts.

VB recently posted about saving money in the kitchen and budgeting.  Jason and I use budget methods very similar to Virginia and her husband, so I don't have much to add on that score.  We won't put a new budget together until April, once we know what our quarterly taxes for 2015 will be.

We have a flat budget for food every month of $350.  This amount includes groceries and eating out.  Occasionally we will go over our monthly budget (like this month) and will subtract the amount we overspent from the next month.  So for the month of January we will end up over our food budget, therefore, the amount we go over in January will be subtracted from our February food budget.  That means we will have less money to spend on groceries and going out to eat in February.  It will be tight, but we've figured it out before.

We haven't quite figured out a budget for toilettries, household, health and misc. yet.  We buy a lot of our paper products in bulk when they are on sale.  This includes, ziplock baggies in different sizes for freezing and storing foods, toilet paper, paper towels, the list goes on and on.  We reuse ziplock baggies so we haven't had to buy those for a while.  And don't get me started on diapers.  For a long time, Target had great specials on their Up&Up diapers in the bigger size boxes.  Not so much anymore.  I can't wait for my son to be potty-trained, but that is a blog post for another time.  Needless to say, our budget is a work in progress.

 In January we ate out a lot because Jason and I were away at the beginning of the month for a wedding in Kalispell, Montana, which is in Northwestern Montana.  But this is not the norm.  We hardly ever go out to eat.  We make yummy, healthy meals at home.  I'd like to second VB, in that most of our non-fresh food we buy is a generic and we save a lot of money that way.  We've found that it tastes the same for the most part as brand name items.  Although, I'd suggest paying the extra money for the actual Special-K cereal instead of the store generic.  You can tell the difference in taste on that one.

I will end this post with that thought.  Don't worry, I promise to share my upcoming adventures in future posts.  For now, I say, "Keep on keeping on!"

Budget Checkup

It's January, time for a fresh start, a couple of weeks ago my husband and I sat down and reevaluated our budget. So far following the Dave Ramsey method for 1 year has allowed us to pay off my car loan, save for my travel, save to pay for car insurance in 1 payment instead of monthly, save for birthday and Christmas gifts so we don't have to go into debt at the holidays, save $1000 in a cash emergency fund, and now we are throwing huge sums of money at my remaining student loan and expect to be debt free by summer or sooner!!!

Did you feel like you came up short on money or even had to go into debt these holidays? Hate that feeling? Take a cue from Megan and I. We are using variations on a tried and true method - budget! Megan can weigh in on her process if she'd like, but here is what we are doing.

How much do you want to spend on gifts for each person on your list next holiday season? Add that up, divide by 12. This number is what you have to save each month in order to have enough for your gifts in December. Delightfully easy. This is the method we use for everything. Car insurance is due every 6 months so we divide the premium by 6 and that is how much we need to save each month.

There are lots of free tools online. We have been winning with Dave Ramsey, there are other schools of thought out there too. The bottom line is assign every dollar to something - food, gas, rent, mortgage, loan, travel, etc.etc.etc. I don't actually use the Dave Ramsey forms linked above, but use a basic spreadsheet. You should try a few of the options on for size to see what fits your math brain and budgeting needs best.

6 Ways We Save Money in the Kitchen & Recipe Ideas

My husband and I love to cook. We only eat out a couple times a month if that. It saves sooo much money. Our biggest challenge is I get bored with the same foods all the time (and have slowly converted my husband's tastes over the last 5 years) so we have had to purchase many exotic spices to make up for not having access to all of the ethnic markets and restaurants I grew accustomed to when I lived in Boston.

In ambitious weeks we plan 3 recipes in the beginning of the week and purchase whatever ingredients we need. We eat most of our left overs (a huge money saver) so 3 recipes is plenty for 2 people for a week. In less ambitious weeks we turn to the pantry for spices and beans/tomatoes/grains and to the freezer for protein. That's when the wide selection of spices comes in handy. Maybe we have a hankering for Thai or Indian - we have lots of cookbooks, so we'll see what we have on hand and use the necessary spices to round out the dish vs. the recipe.

How we save money in the kitchen:

1. We buy generic canned goods or whatever is on sale the cheapest every time. We are not loyal to food brands and that saves us money. 
2. We keep several types of beans, tomatoes and grains on hand at all times for last minute meals.
3. We buy meats and fish on sale and always look for the cheapest prices. Freezers are your friend because sometimes buying lots at once is your best deal. If we had room we would definitely buy a deep freezer, but our apartment is way too small so we make do with the fridge. 
4. We have lots of cookbooks that we buy second hand for a couple of dollars and use the internet to find recipes. 
5. We eat leftovers for lunch and throughout the week. 
6. We invested in some hard to come by spices (which last a long time) and supplement with bulk spices from the bulk foods store and store them in dollar store or thrifted containers. This gives us lots of versatility in the kitchen - we can prepare chicken or ground beef 100 ways without it getting boring! 

I also use the interwebs as a source for recipes. I've started saving ones I like or really want to make because I think I will like them on my pinterest page.

Here's the pinterest link if you would like to browse my recipe box. I promise you won't be disappointed.

Checking In

I've been off the grid (but really back on the grid as I am home with my folks on the mainland) for a few months. I traveled back to my hometown in October and have been here through the holidays. I think I'll head back to the island late February or early March. After the cabin fever and blues of last winter I felt it was in everyone's best interest I winter in the tropical mid-western USA. It has been great!

Right after coming home I fell into a new product line making baby shoes from leather and luxury fabrics. Also, baby leg warmers from recycled sweaters and ear flap hats from recycled sweaters. My part time job picked up exponentially, allowing me to pay down huge payments towards my student loan. I think I will be 100% debt free in the next few months!!! AMAZING! Thank you Dave Ramsey and my dear friend that referred me to your method!

My folks have been grateful to have me around. My retired father enjoys the company and the project assistance. My mother has been managing a team at work short staffed for too many months and needs the domestic help at home - I cook, clean, help with household projects. When I came home my parents had just finished resurfacing their wood floors so the entire main floor was empty. I spent several days moving furniture and stuff back into the space.

It's been nice seeing friends and having a *gulp* social life. Albeit occasional, I get invited to do things with friends and sometimes even convince them to do things with me. Shocking! I even took a road trip to Orlando with my good friend and we went to Universal Studios for the first time in my life - fun! And I will tell you I was still able to throw $700 at my student loan last month and this month and go on a trip! No credit cards and all bills/food/needs are being paid for/met.

More Adventures in Baking and Potted Tomato Plants...

I recently hosted book club at my house.  So instead of doing what I normally do, which is buy baked goods at Sam's Club, I decided to save some money and make a dessert myself.  Someone for a bridal shower gift gave me a book called, "500 Cupcakes:  The Only Cupcake Compendium You'll Ever Need."  This person obviously didn't know me at all.  I HATE BAKING!  And this most recent baking adventure didn't do much to change my mind on the topic.  Nevertheless, here are the ingredients, instructions and a photo of the finished product.  It actually turned out well and was a delicious little treat. :)

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

Ingredients:
For Cupcakes
1 cup (2 sticks) sweet butter, softened
1 cup superfine sugar
2 cups self-rising flour
1 tsp. baking powder
4 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
10 crushed cream-filled chocolate cookies

For Frosting
3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 cup (2 sticks) sweet butter, softened
Pinch of salt
10 chopped cream-filled chocolate cookies

Baking Instructions
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 C).  Place 18 foil or paper baking cups in muffin pans
- Combine all the cupcake ingredients, except the cookies, in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and pale (about 2-3 minutes)
-Stir in the cookies
- Spoon the batter into the cups.  Bake for 20 minutes.
-Remove pans from oven and cool for 5 minutes
- Remove the cupcakes and cool on a wire rack
-To make the frosting, beat the confectioners' sugar, butter and salt using a mixer
- Spread frosting onto the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle the chopped cookies on top

The cupcakes can be stored unfrosted in airtight container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.  Makes 1 1/2 dozen

A photo of the finished product. 

In other news:

We had a mini winter here in the middle of September and we had to cover our outside garden with tarps and blankets to save the growing vegetables.  We brought our potted tomato plants inside and they became very spoiled.  More about our adventures in gardening will be in my next post, but for now I leave you with photos of our potted tomato plants hanging out inside during our mini winter.  

Our potted tomato plants hanging out in the corner of our dining room

Our potted tomato plants hanging out in front of one of the windows in our dining room

You can see three small tomatoes growing on our potted tomato plants. :)

Getting Involved in Church Stuff

The church program year has started here at Fairfield Lutheran Parish.  From September through the end of May, I give up my husband several nights a week and we go back to having family day on Friday and part of Saturday.  We still have lunch and dinner together most days unless he is not in town.  But it is far more routine than the summer schedule, which is nice with a two year old.  The more routine things are for my son the better.

I feel like I turn into a single mom most days.  Jason sometimes takes Preston to the office with him so I can get a break in the morning to exercise and do a few things for myself.  But most days, I am on my own for several hours.  So I don't end up depressed and pissed off about all of this, I have found myself throwing myself into getting involved in church stuff to give myself something to do for me.  Since there is not much else to do in town, getting involved in church has been a way for me to do somethings for myself and others.  I have become the token church volunteer, which gives me a sense of purpose outside of my family.

To begin with, last year, I volunteered to help out as a secondary leader for the parish youth group.  I also helped lead a Bible study at the church in town and I filled-in as a helper for confirmation on Wednesday nights as needed.  This year I am assisting with the Bible study in town, not leading it.  I still fill-in for confirmation when I need to.

One thing is different this year though.  I will be leading a Sunday afternoon Bible study for the parish youth group.  I am getting more involved in activities and the formation of faith of the youth in the group.  I am impressed by the kids in the youth group and am excited to see how they grow in their faith.  I am excited to be a part of that process.  I went from being the secondary youth group leader to the main youth group leader.  The other leader will be more involved in planning the group activities.  Once a month we have a fun group activity.  In September, we had a bonfire and games afternoon.  In October, we will be having a Halloween movie night.  The rest of the Sundays in the month we will meet and have Bible study and play games.  We'll see how it goes, but so far I am optimistic that it will work out well.

I also help out with putting the monthly newsletter together when I can and every once in a while, I help serve coffee for fellowship time.  When I can I help out and I am far more involved in church stuff than I intended to be when we first moved here, which to be honest, has been such a blessing.  Because of my token volunteer church lady status, I have met some of the most amazing people, the most amazing kids and have found a larger purpose in my life than just getting by in a place that I have a love/hate relationship with.  I am truly blessed with such an amazing family and friends who are near and far.  Through God's grace and love, I am able to share my blessings with others and hopefully, they too will grow in their faith as I have in the past 3+ years.

Bye-Bye Lonelies, Sometimes....

This blog post is in conjunction with a previous post that VB wrote.

Sometimes I get a massive case of the lonelies.  In truth, I am hardly ever alone.  Between my two year old son, who I stay at home with, my husband and the revolving door that was our house, I don't get much alone time.  So my loneliness is a different kind of loneliness.  My loneliness comes from a lack of friends that I can call up and say, "Hey, if I can find a babysitter to watch my son, do you want to meet up for coffee or go see a movie or both?"  My loneliness comes from the isolation of where I live.  The nearest place that has anything resembling culture is Great Falls, and most days it's just not worth the drive or the gas it takes to get there.

I do have one thing going for me though.  I have, after 3 years of living here, found a friend my own age that has kids around my sons age.  We have library time every Wednesday and then a play date afterwards until lunch time.  Sometimes, we even get together on other days and let the kids play and we just talk about our kids and other things going on in our lives.  For privacy reasons I will not tell you their names, but I can say this about our new friends, they have saved my life here.  I had given up on making friends that I can talk to about anything here and not be judged because I am the pastor's wife.  And then all of a sudden enter these wonderful people and everything has changed.  The power of consistent and badgering prayer folks.

I still find that most days, unless there is something really pressing that I just have to do, I don't leave the house.  Having our garden this year has alleviated some of my hermitage behavior, in that I have to go outside every day and inspect, water, prune and pick vegetables that are ready to be picked.

I can call or skype with my best friends that don't live here, but sometimes all I want to do is see them and give them big hugs and listen to them talk about their lives and share what is going on with mine.  Sometimes, I find myself day-dreaming about taking my son to the Como Zoo in St. Paul and meeting up with friends and just making a day of it.  Or I get flashes of walking around Lake Calhoun with friends and talking and exercising at the same time on a lovely late-spring, summer or early-fall day.  Basically, I find myself missing some of what my life used to be and I get the lonelies.

But nothing stays the same.  Even if Jason and I end up moving back to Minnesota someday, everything will be different.  I will have kids, when before I didn't.  I may or may not be working, or I may work out of my home.  I may have a more traditional job, or I may find something unconventional to do with myself.  Jason will continue to be a pastor.  And not all of my best friends live in Minnesota anymore.  VB lives in St. Johns Newfoundland, others live out East and others live out in the Northwest.  Again, thinking about all of this makes me feel lonely.

Thankfully, facebook exists, texting exists, skype exists, email exists and with money, planes, trains and automobiles exists to whisk me away to see my people.

I will look back on my time here, however long it may be, and tell stories about how I made a good friend in my small town and survived the lonelies.  Until then, I'm just going to keep on keeping on and try to stay positive about what the future may hold.