How did I do it? By shopping smart and substituting effort for convenience:
When I saw organic milk reduced to $2.48/gallon, I froze 2 for later and made my own yogurt. I crafted the week's meals based on what was on sale (potatoes and spinach, $1/bag). I chose fresh crudite like carrots and celery sticks over variety. It's February, after all.
Look what $50 doesn't buy--convenience foods, sodas, fancy coffee and cream. Snacks are affordable fruits like raisins, apples and bananas for the kids, nuts for my husband.
Whenever I fret about going all natural, I remember my friend Jordana's observation: I can't get obsessed about organic when there are people who don't have enough food at all.
Lord, help me to buy the best I can within my budget. Teach me not to complain while others hunger. Give me the energy to be creative with what I find.
8 comments:
I think you did a wonderful job in spending your 50 dollar budget. You have plenty of fruits and vegetables, I think. Nothing at all wrong with apples, bananas, celery and carrots.
Holly C.
Amen!
Thank you for sharing with us.
Kathy
Thank you for sharing how you stay within your budget. I also appreciate Jordana's insight. The Lord provides us with what we *need* and He knows better than we do what that is.
I have never even thought to freeze milk! Any tips?
Great job being a good steward of God's money!
Considering we already eat way better than probably 95% of the world and have double the life expectancy of some countries... well, it helps keep the desire for organic in perspective. The Lord has blessed us with so much abundance already. :)
Another amen from me! We are eating lots of apples, banans, and oranges when they're on sale at a good price. We also do the carrots and celery a lot. With four growing kids, one a teenage boy, I've got to make every penny and mouthful count!
Hey, have you seen the produce pesticide list on foodnews.org?
The Environmental Working Group tested a bunch of produce and made a list of those w/ the highest pesticide count to the lowest. It helped me to make a concious effort to buy the top 12 worst in organic or not at all. Then I always buy the bottom of the list in conventional. It helps a lot to know why you buy organic and when it's more important.
Here's the direct link to the guide:
http://www.foodnews.org/walletguide.php
I also think cooking from scratch and avoiding convience foods is a big one. Avoiding chemical preservatives and weird additives like cottonseed oil (cotton is the most chemically intensive crop in the world) is just as important as avoiding pesticides. : )
Great job!
Thanks for sharing!
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