The Sweet Life On A Budget

NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.       May USDA Low Food Plan According to this plan, our family would have a budget of $184.90 per week.  Given our health concerns, we struggle to maintain this budget, but I will try to make this happen.    Cost-Saving Tip of the Week: Our family loves fruit as a snack and to round out meals. We always look for the price per serving or the lowest price per pound when we pick up the fruit.    One key thing to look for is the fruit that is in season.   Right now cherries are in season, so there is more supply than demand thus lowering the price.   This past week, Meijer had a flash sale on cherries which made them only $0.99 per pound.   Another tip is to pick up extra fruit when it is at the rock bottom price and freeze the extra.   We use the f

  The Frugal Five: #61 With inflation on the rise and our salaries not being able to keep up, it seems like we have taken a pay cut and must be more careful with our money.   The Frugal Five is a series where we celebrate the daily or weekly activities that help us live a frugal life.     1- Haircut Savings Since haircuts are $30 per cut plus tip, each time my husband asks me to cut his hair, I am happy to.    This is a huge savings!   He gets his hair cut every other week, so on average, we save $60 per month on just his haircuts.    2- Abundance of Squash We have an abundance of squash from our garden this year, so I am looking for different ways to use it up.    I found a variety of recipes for the yellow squash bread recipe, squash casserole, steamed squash or grilled squash.     In addition to squash, I checked my tomato plants and found them heavy with fruit.     Although they are not ready to pick, I am planning how I am going to preserve them.     3- Free Wood  My husband broug

  NOTE-  1- Click on the picture and get a link to a post sharing the recipe.  2- Although all prices were correct at the time of the blog postings, the current cost of preparation of these dishes may be higher due to inflation and/or location.       May USDA Low Food Plan According to this plan, our family would have a budget of $184.90 per week.  Given our health concerns, we struggle to maintain this budget, but I will try to make this happen.    Cost-Saving Tip of the Week: We make a healthy dish and put it into lunch portions for the week.   For busy weeks, it makes packing lunch a breeze and you will not be tempted to order out because the work has already been done. This week I am making a huge pasta salad with all of the leftover vegetables in the refrigerator from last week.     Here is what we did this week to make our week easier:   Breakfast Options:  Hard Boiled Eggs Yogurt Bagels Cereal Monday Salad Tuesday Crock Pot Tacos Wednesday Wings Salad Thursday Pasta Primavera S

  The Frugal Five: #60 With inflation on the rise and our salaries not being able to keep up, it seems like we have taken a pay cut and must be more careful with our money.   The Frugal Five is a series where we celebrate the daily or weekly activities that help us live a frugal life.     1- Garden Harvesting Our garden is growing fast and it is starting to produce food for harvesting.    At this point, I have a lot of yellow squash to harvest, share and preserve.   We are eating a lot of steamed, sauteed, and squash casseroles.   I am trying new recipes and may even try my hand at picking some squash this season.   In addition, my tomatoes are starting to develop a lot of fruit, so I am preparing to preserve gravy, salsa, diced tomatoes, and more.    2- Sales and Loss Leaders  This week ground beef (90/10) and Kielbasa were at a rock-bottom price, so I picked up as much as possible within my grocery budget.   In addition, I was able to score 4 ice creams for free after sales, rebates,

  I was first introduced to Living Large In the Cheap Seats by a college friend, Chris J., who introduced me to lawn tickets for popular bands.   We were able to see great concerts at a significantly discounted rate.   Later when reading Brokenomics by Dina Gachman, I revised this concept and decided to share it with you.  I have been doing this for years and have been able to enjoy wonderful experiences for FREE! Concert in the Park Series The Keehner Park concerts are 7-9 p.m. on select Saturdays between Memorial Day and Labor Day at the Keehner Park Amphitheater.  The free concerts welcome all guests to pack a picnic for the evening.  Sorry, but alcohol is NOT permitted. July 15 – Monday Night Big Band July 22 – University of Cincinnati Community Band July 29 – SHAKESPEARE IN THE PARK Colerain Park has their summer concerts posted starting in June.  July 21- Cincinnati Civic Orchestra (7:00 PM) Liberty Center : Join us in the Square from 6:00- 9:00 PM for a new concert experien