Ain't Nobody Got Time For THAT!

I have heard it over and over, and there was a time in my life that I had said it over and over..."Eating healthy is too expensive".

If I only knew then what I know now!! You see when you are buying things like frozen dinners with limited calories, 100 calorie packs, organic whole wheat boxed meals, extra lean ground beef, etc yes eating healthy can be extremely expensive (and not so healthy). But when you learn to eat REAL food, whole food, more veggie based meals it can be very affordable. We have to quit buying diet food!! It is full of fake sugar and nonsense chemicals that are more harmful that beneficial and they do nothing to help you break your addiction to sugar and processed carbs!

As I have mentioned in the past Justin and I use the Dave Ramsey cash envelope system (for more info on that check out www.daveramsey.com) and when we were in college we didn't budget at all and never had any money. We would buy things like hamburger helper and ramen noodles because it was cheap and easy, and we were exhausted between school, work, and parenting Bethany. So what happened when we sacrificed quality for quantity? The weight crept up, and before I knew it my sweet husband was almost 300 lbs and I was back up in the mid 200s.

The difference now? We budget 100 a week to feed our family of 4. We are able to purchase everything we need with this amount. Our diet is plant based and we use a lot of organic frozen veggies which our grocery store often has on sale. We use a ton of beans which are super cheap if you buy them dry (or even in a can) I would love to say that I am one of those super dedicated couponers who saves 1000s of dollars every day at every store, but lets be honest... "Ain't Nobody Got Time For THAT!" And most of those coupons are for food like substances not real food that is actually beneficial for your health.

But some of you are thinking that Aint nobody got time to prep and cook veggies and whole grains. Aint nobody got time to pack a lunch when I can grab a $5 foot long or dollar menu delight. Well if you aint got time for that then you are living on borrowed time anyway. Besides it takes me about 20 min (45 if I'm doing rice) to cook dinner every night and then the leftovers are packed for Justin's lunch the next day and most of the time mine too!

The name of the game in grocery shopping is READING labels!! If you are going to be successful with changing the look of your body on the outside you MUST know what you are putting on the inside. I have a rule that if I cant pronounce an ingredient I avoid it.

Sure it can be irritating to have to throw a cup of oats into the blender to make oat flour but does it really take up that much time? I mean honestly...we live in an age of technology its not like you are grinding it by hand with a rock.

So how do you keep it affordable? Buy what you can dry and frozen. Buy whole grains like Quinoa and steel cut oats in bulk. Check the newspaper for what is on sale that week and base your meals around that. HAVE A PLAN!!! You must know what you are going to eat for dinner and lunch every day!!!! Seriously!

So how do you keep it from taking FOREVER? Use 1 day a week to prep all of your veggies and proteins (if you are eating meat) for the week. This is something that I don't do, because I have my meals that I make regularly down to a science. You can also use your crockpot to do a ton of delish soups that are BTV.

 Here is a photo of my grocery trip on Saturday. I spent $199.04. Aside from our meal necessities and kids' lunch stuff, I bought a few toiletries ($15), toilet paper ($12), paper towel ($4), an ahi tuna steak to take to a party ($8), and baby wipes ($4).

 

If you are needing some more resources check out http://plantbasedonabudget.com/ and http://theultimatedanielfast.com

 

Shopping, now and then!

I love to shop. And really I don't know many women who don't. Bargain hunting for me is the equivalent to actual hunting for my husband. I love it. But it hasn't always been this way. Back in the day I can remember a terrible ordeal about buying a bra in a box. As a young teen with larger than normal breasts I was not lucky enough to get to wear the cute little bras you see in the stores. I needed support. My mother took me to Knopp & Metzger's (the local department store in Fredericksburg TX that is no longer there) and we looked at the lunch lady bras. Yep, in a box, silk, huge straps, the cone style. I had an absolute fit, refusing to wear a bra in a box.

It didn't stop at bras in a box. All of my friends would buy their clothes for school at all of the cute stores in the mall. I can remember buying my school uniform shorts (in junior high) in the men's department at old navy. My freshman year of high school was the first time that I was not required to wear uniforms to school. I was thrilled. My mom and I went on a huge shopping trip to San Antonio. I was bummed when I couldn't fit into the cute stores' clothes. But then it happened, I found the fat girls' safe haven...Lane Bryant! The catch, it was crazy expensive! My mom was able to get me a few cool outfits that would blend in and didn't look like I was wearing things from the woman's world department at Dillards. I will give it to plus size clothing that in the last 10-15 years they have really upped their game.

 But I was never able to buy from the cool stores, not until college when I lost the weight the first time. Shopping became way more fun. I was able to buy jeans from any store in the mall, I was able to try on size L tops instead of XL or XXL. I was able to buy more than purses and shoes and jewelery! I was in love!

Fast forward to now, and I am still thrilled every time I go into a store. I will look at a pair of jeans and think there is NO WAY these are going to fit me, and then they do. I pull out a L or XL top from the rack out of habit and they are too big, it is an awesome feeling to be a normal size and not 'speciality'. I love being a special person, and an individual but there are some aspects of life where it is nice to be 'normal'.

 It is sooooo much easier and affordable to shop for clothes now, and I have to say I love all of the options! There is more than one formal dress to choose from now. It truly is amazing.If the health benefits of losing the weight aren't enough for you, think of the fashion! It is awesome.

Also, I would like to apologize for the lapse in blogging, the baby turned a year old on Sunday and I had a packed schedule with my parents' visiting from Texas.