5 Easy Ways I Keep the Grocery Bill "Lower"

Oh man.  I was just NOT prepared for how much food children eat.  Here is how I help keep my grocery bill "lower."

1.  No Juice.  One glass of milk at breakfast only.  (This also keep the kids from filling up on milk only).  The rest of the day we drink water.

2.  Go meatless a couple days a week.  Black bean burgers, pinto bean enchiladas, and Chile are some of our favorite meatless meals.

3.  Limit snacks.  I try and limit the snacks the children eat.  They eat better at dinner then too.  I keep bananas and clementines on the counter for a between meal option and that is about it.  

4.  Plan  meals around the weekly sale ad.

5.  Stock up on essentials when they go really cheap.  About every 5-6 weeks my local grocery store will run a 10 items for 10 dollars and get the 11th item free deal.  Every item that is in the sale that we eat on a regular basis I buy in bulk (whole wheat bread, frozen waffles, frozen veggies, toothpaste etc.)

*Kids help themselves to breakfast.

Thoughts on giving up facebook

Recently I gave up Facebook.  Let me tell you friends, it has been life changing!  I know for some moms Facebook is really their once opportunity to stay in touch with family who lives far away or their one connection with reality outside of diapers and laundry.  For one time in my life it served that purpose, but then it just became the opposite and it took away from real life.  It was time for me personally, to give up Facebook. I wanted to take some time to absorb life and live in the moment.   Daily I have made an effort to read more, pray more, and spend time with my children.
At the end of the day I get to reflect on the day (rather than get lost in facebook).  Reflections at the end of the day...

Did I take the time to feed my children good food?
Did I make an effort to keep our home organized and clean?
Did I spend time playing with the kids?   Did I read to them?   Did I take the children outside?
Did I spend some time in prayer?   Did I pray aloud so my children can hear me?
Did I make an effort to do at least one load of laundry to prevent it from piling up?

If I can answer yes to these questions then YES it has been a great day.

Being a stay at home mom is hard.  What truly makes it difficult is finding the beauty and goodness in these never ending task...cooking, cleaning, laundry  the then hitting repeat the next day.  It has been a process for me, and still is, to find joy in these everyday task that serve my family.  I can say that my family is my life and I am proud of it.  I want to look back at these precious moments and say, yes, I gave it my all.  These children will only be 1, 2, and 4 once. They deserve my everything as a mother and homemaker.