A couple of great freebies and discounts I have found so far!
*In my daily email from allyou.com they posted this link to a free sample of Pampers UnderJams. Although I don’t have kids, I thought I’d pass this on to those who do :)
*Collin over at www.hip2save.com has some great deal posts today especially this (a link to a coupon for a free bottle of Excedrin Extra Strength). Update: she also just posted an awesome Yoplait deal here!
I was browsing on Amazon today, and found some great deals for anyone doing Christmas shopping. Here are a few I thought looked interesting:
1) I discovered the Grocery & Personal Care Warehouse
2) They have some amazing toy deals, especially on Crayola items. For example:
This Crayola Color Wonder Sound Studio
This deal gets even sweeter by combining it with the Crayola rebate form found here to get an additional $3 back!
Let me know in the comments if you snag any great deals!
Today I was thinking about stress. This time of year, I think the most common source of stress is just having too much to do. Once upon a time the word holiday meant something like a vacation, but today when we hear the word holiday, vacation is often the last thing to come to mind.
I thought about researching and writing about how stress negatively impacts our health, but then I realized I always feel more stressed after reading those types of articles. Then, I thought maybe I can write about ways to reduce stress. Yet again, I realized that writing about all the things I “should” be doing to reduce my stress just increased my stress level.
Then this question popped into my head, “What would happen if I got sick and only had enough energy to be out of bed for two hours a day?” What would I choose to do with those two hours?
This question really challenged me to look at priorities. What about all the things I didn’t have time to do? Would I leave them undone, or pass them off to others? What commitments would I turn down? How could I find time-efficient ways to accomplish my goals? (i.e. just take box-mix brownies to the party instead of trying to make gourmet homemade candy). If I had four hours, what would I add to my list?
I guess it is still just the same old advice wrapped up in a new question, but for some reason thinking about stress management this way feels empowering. It helped me to see that I have more time than I think I do. For the next few days, I will be writing my to-do lists through this lens.
My only other thoughts about holiday stress are: stop feeling guilty if you are frazzled. Instead of thinking about how we “should” be handling this better, we need to give ourselves some grace. This time of year is stressful for everyone, and no one maintains all their health goals this time of year. I have to continually remind myself that God sees me, loves me, and will provide for me, no matter how well I do or don’t handle things.
“But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. -2 Corinthians 12:9
In an effort to build community, I would love to hear your thoughts on managing holiday stress. Feel free to comment below.
I have so many exciting things to share, it was hard to decide what to write first. For now, I wanted to finish yesterday’s post on eating healthy for less.
4) Have a budget and set aside a portion for fresh produce. Decide what you can get canned or frozen and what you must have fresh. When possible, try to use your local farmers market for the fresh portion of the budget. I know the word budget usually makes people cringe, but in order to save money and be healthy you have to have a plan. You have to have a general idea of how much you want to spend, and how much you generally spend on the required staple items. Also, it is important to know your local growing season cycle. Fresh produce is usually cheaper at its peak season. I found an interesting interactive map here
5) Use recipes that stretch the meat. For example, here is how I stretch a pound of ground beef. I brown the entire pound and then put half of it in the fridge for chili. Then, I use the second half to make tacos. (which can be healthy if you use low fat ground beef, add lots of veggie toppings, and use whole wheat tortillas). The next night I make chili, and have found that by adding a lot of beans and tomatoes we can eat off of a pot of chili at least two meals sometimes three. This means getting creative with leftovers by making chili-mac or nachos. That totals 3-4 main dishes from one pound of ground beef.
I am also mastering the one chicken breast meals (keep in mind I am only cooking for 2). The typical fresh chicken breast you buy at the store is usually much larger than the recommended 3oz portion, thus you are not depriving your family by reducing portions and cost. A few of my one chicken breast recipes include: pulled BBQ chicken in the crock pot and homemade BBQ chicken pizza.
Meat is one of the most expensive parts of the budget, so I am continually trying to find creative ways to use less of it. When using less meat in your main dish, try to use side dishes that contain other protein rich foods (such as cheese, beans, yogurt, broccoli, humus, and whole grains, just to name a few).
Due to the need to save both calories and cash during the holiday season, for my first post I would like share a few ways I have found to get more health for less wealth at the grocery store:
1)Use what I call “double duty foods”. These are foods that are long lasting, inexpensive, and can serve a multitude of purposes. Here are a couple of examples:
a) Ronzoni Garden Delight Pasta-I discovered this brand a month ago due to a store sale, and it has completely changed my meal planning process. What is great about this product is that it has a full serving of vegetables in every 4oz serving, and it tastes wonderful! The other great part about this product is that there are always coupons available on their website, so I never pay more than $1 a box. We get at least 2 meals per box, which makes it a great value. Here is a link to Ronzoni’s website, which has both coupons and nutritional information.
b) Spinach- I have found that keeping spinach on hand has been very valuable. It is so versatile, because you can throw it in on or in almost anything thus adding a serving of vegetables. It also lasts longer than romaine or other salad lettuce. I add it to salads, scrambled eggs, sandwiches, pasta or casserole dishes, and homemade pizza. I am not a huge spinach lover, but when added to other things, I rarely notice it, and it packs major nutritional punch.
2)Watch for when canned veggies, whole grain pasta/rice, and frozen fruit goes on sale, and stock up.
Having these items on hand, will make sure you always have healthy options. Non-perishable items often go on sale, so I rarely buy them at full price. Also, watch for salad coupons or salad that goes on clearance right before its expiration date. Although I have not had much luck with dated salad, it’s worth keeping an eye out for.
3)Have a meatless meal at least once a week.
For example, when eggplant was in season, we could get eggplant for .75 cents, and we could make a large pan of eggplant parmesan for less than 2 dollars a meal. You can still get the protein you need by adding other protein rich foods thought out the day. Ideas include: peanut butter, cheese, beans, yogurt, broccoli, humus, and whole grains.
Part 2 coming soon!
My goal is to create blog centered on healthy living. I am hoping to use my education and life experiences to help others become more of who they are created to be. I want to provide information on easy ways to take steps towards health in a variety of areas, (financial, emotional, relational, physical, and spiritual). I plan to provide short, action oriented, and easy to implement daily posts. Each post will focus on a specific area such as: 5 ways to eat healthy for less this week, 5 ways to improve your communication today, etc.
I want to be reader focused and provide my readers with content that they wish they had time to research on their own. My hope is that I can also provide a daily deal round up that provides links to the best deals, freebies, and coupons that I have found that day. I also plan to work with healthy living companies to offer product discounts and giveaway contests.
We are under construction. We hope to be up and running by the second week of December! Can’t wait to see you then!