tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43638931238807718022024-03-13T08:03:38.609-07:00The Rural SuburbaniteNicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-6663973079764611022015-08-09T09:39:00.001-07:002015-08-09T09:39:22.068-07:00Jezebel Ruined My ChildhoodToday while scrolling through my Facebook I came across an article about back to school items that 90s kids loved and spent a happy 10 minutes reveling in memories of Trapper Keepers, gel pens, erasable pens and Lisa Frank. One of my biggest memories from childhood was hunting the aisles with my mom for the erasable pens to send to family overseas. We had an elderly relative who loved crossword puzzles and was losing her eyesight, erasable pens made it possible for her to see her puzzle and still fix her mistakes. They weren't available outside of the U.S. so we had to ship them to her.<div><br></div><div>For me the best part of back to school was the school supplies! My mom was very frugal and didn't believe in anything unnecessary, but her one weakness was office supplies (still is). It was the one time of the year I was guaranteed to leave the store with something awesome. Now as a teacher I'm still a school supply junkie-no boring pens for me! I stock up on fun colored pens, pencil pouches with cool quotes and ridiculous folders. My husband says my design aesthetic is that of a 12 year old girl (I highly favor cartoon prints, pink and green, and animals). As a teacher I'm famous for wearing stupid socks (think socks with jellyfish or unicorns on them) almost daily and I proudly own a dress printed with rubber ducks (one of many novelty print dresses). I like color and I like quirkiness and I finally have the self confidence to wear all the things I couldn't in middle school (and I've moved on from an unfortunate phase of only wearing black and vintage band t-shirts. It looked wonderful with my blonde hair and pasty skin). </div><div><br></div><div>Even as a kid I loved Lisa Frank and I usually had one of her folders at the very minimum, but usually I had more. I had tons of her stickers and I can assure you none of them were ever used. I hated using my stickers so I kept them all pristine and stored them in a box. I would just take them out and look at them. Why yes I was a strange kid. I still remember my gifted teacher in 3rd grade bought me a little Lisa Frank notebook with unicorns on it to keep my book ideas in. I still have it and I still use it. Every year I look for Lisa Frank folders in the school supply aisle and I never find them. </div><div><br></div><div>After I reveled in my 90s memories for awhile I saw the recommended article and my heart sank. A piece by Jezebel called "Inside the Rainbow Gulag: The Technicolor Rise and Fall of Lisa Frank" with a cute picture of a unicorn being smashed under a rainbow. I clicked the article with trepidation and read through stories of drug abuse by the founders, abuse of employees and financial woes. With each line of the story my mood darkened just a little bit more-to me Lisa Frank meant hope, cheer and optimism. Hope that this was the year I was going to finally fit in (spoiler alert: I never did), a cheerful reminder on the worst days of middle school drama and optimism that the adult world would treat me much more kindly than the kid world ever did (and it does for the most part). Lisa Frank meant that heady time of the beginning of a new school year-part of a time in my life where you felt so different after 3 months off and where you could be anyone at the start of a new year. As a kid you measure your life around the school year and shopping for school supplies meant I was a year older, a year closer to being who I wanted to be, a year closer to the adulthood I so desperately craved. In my misguided youthfulness I thought the right Lisa Frank folder or sticker would let me fit in and finally be the ticket to my acceptance. I loved the start of school so much I became a teacher so I could hang onto that feeling of optimism and change. </div><div><br></div><div>I would make up stories about the character on my folders-each of them had a name and a backstory. These were my first attempts at writing and shaped me as the writer I am today. I still remember some of the stories I made up about the unicorns and dolphins that danced across my math folder. </div><div><br></div><div>Reading the article I was appalled by the allegations and saddened by the downturn for the company. It seems I had finally found the reason why I couldn't find any Lisa Frank products stocking the back to school shelves. The article was beautifully written and well researched, but it hurt. It hurt because in my mind I was still that kid who thought the adult world was my ticket out. In my 12 year old mind the adult world was a Lisa Frank world-she was an adult who lived her life being creative and surrounded by cheerfulness. I thought when I grew up my life would still involve rainbows and unicorns and I would be free to be who I wanted to be and people would love me for it. The article exposed the truth-a truth I know but I desperately tried to avoid. The adult world isn't pretty, it's sometimes hard and people are still just as mean as they were in high school if not meaner. Life gets more complex every single year and money and material things still don't make people happy. </div><div><br></div><div>I still haven't found acceptance and I'm still an outsider in most social situations, but I have found an amazing husband who loves me for every single part of my craziness and I have found a small group of friends who love the same things I do. I no longer feel the need to have everyone like me or feel hurt when people don't accept me. </div><div>I have the self confidence to laugh off the mean actions of others. When a co-worker accidentally sent me an email making fun of my outfit instead of sending it to her friend I laughed. I was hurt for sure, but I was able to laugh it off and still love myself.</div><div>I have the self confidence to be who I want to be. I'm no longer trying to fit it, but rather I'm trying to stand out. </div><div>I have a life that makes me happy and let's me be creative on my own terms.</div><div><br></div><div>I no longer believe the adult world is all rainbows and sunshine because I've seen both the good and the bad. Now I can see that Lisa Frank's life wasn't ever easy and that the hard times were always there. However, she kept looking for the unicorns and the joy in life even as her world was falling apart. Am I sad that my childhood was tarnished? No, because I know now that no one is perfect. I still admire her for influencing an entire generation and for providing me with hope during a dark time in my life. I still love her designs and I still hope for the best for her company and for her personally. I've also discovered that Amazon stocks her products so I'll be shopping up a storm and relishing in my adulthood freedom to like what I like! </div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-91760372029232473932015-08-08T19:40:00.001-07:002015-08-08T20:45:04.666-07:00The Kroger Coupon ScamRecently an awesome coupon deal has been floating around Facebook offering $200.00 off your purchase of $220.00 at Kroger. A peek at the Kroger corporate page shows tons of posts from people asking if it is real or not. My newsfeed is full of people sharing the coupon, a lot of times with the message "this probably isn't real, but it can't hurt to try".<div><br></div><div>In all actuality it can hurt to try. Many times these scams require you to complete certain tasks to earn the coupon (or iPad, shoes whatever). You may not notice that you're signing up for expensive monthly offers. A lot of times they ask you to give your credit card number and people are so entranced by the idea that they will get something for free that they give it. These scammers use the names of established businesses to earn your trust. I would probably feel comfortable giving Kroger my credit card number (since I use my card there every week), but not to some random guy on the Internet. Once the scammers have your credit card information who knows what they can do with it. A friend of mine fell for one of these "deals" and gave them her credit card information. Her next bill was filled with charges for various services. She attempted to dispute them with her credit card company, but since she herself had signed up for them (Since she didn't read the fine print she didn't know what she was signing up for, but ignorance is not excuse). She spent months trying to cancel all these subscriptions and as expected her "free" item never arrived.</div><div><br></div><div>Sometimes the scam seems innocuous. I told someone on the Kroger page that it was fake and they replied that all they had to do was like a page and share with friends and that the page didn't ask for their credit card number. Often times these scams are used to collect a massive amount of likes for a page which is then sold and rebranded. You don't know who is buying the page or what your name will be associated with. In addition often times these links can contain viruses or malware that can infect your computer or harvest data from your computer. You can be exposing your passwords, financial information or anything else you keep on your device to these people. When I think about the sheer amount of data on my computer or device it terrifies me to think about someone having unrestricted access to it. </div><div><br></div><div>You are required to share the page with your friends or with groups in order to spread the scam far and wide. This brings the scammers plenty of new victims and tons of people seem to fall for it. </div><div><br></div><div>So the big question is how do you avoid these scams? It takes some common sense and some internet savvy. Common sense seems to go out the window with the promise of something for nothing. It's an enticing offer, but take a minute to step back and think.</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LduqnNVno40/VcbCKT-oydI/AAAAAAAAttE/bm5cMDNUKjA/s640/blogger-image--1233589147.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-LduqnNVno40/VcbCKT-oydI/AAAAAAAAttE/bm5cMDNUKjA/s640/blogger-image--1233589147.jpg"></a> First things first take a look at the link. You can see the link underneath the words Get your $200.00 Kroger coupon now! This scam has a variety of different links attached to it. If it doesn't sound like a link to the legitimate page then it is a scam. You can see how long and complicated the link is in the first post. Somehow Amazon pops up in the link even though they have nothing to do with Kroger. That is a red flag right there!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-whgRS_kjRpg/VcbCH7ogq-I/AAAAAAAAts0/P0KjOLPLau4/s640/blogger-image-1475213200.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-whgRS_kjRpg/VcbCH7ogq-I/AAAAAAAAts0/P0KjOLPLau4/s640/blogger-image-1475213200.jpg"></a>Next check out the official corporate page on Facebook. Search for the business name in your search bar and find their page. When businesses run a promotion they will usually promote it-they want to promote their business. As you may see Kroger has posted nothing about offering a coupon. If they were offering it they would want people to participate.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IXkWkxhTGyU/VcbCGYjBsoI/AAAAAAAAtss/OSJIblKHtuI/s640/blogger-image--1630572137.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IXkWkxhTGyU/VcbCGYjBsoI/AAAAAAAAtss/OSJIblKHtuI/s640/blogger-image--1630572137.jpg"></a>Next do a Google search for whatever is being offered and the word scam. You can see I found tons of articles about different variations of this scam and other blog posts. Snopes is a reliable source for this information and you should always check with them before sharing something on Facebook. A Google search takes less than a minute of your time and can save you and your friends the heartache of being scammed. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-05lXnkXK6Jc/VcbCJC1WZLI/AAAAAAAAts8/0EEmOEY2w1U/s640/blogger-image--1281915183.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-05lXnkXK6Jc/VcbCJC1WZLI/AAAAAAAAts8/0EEmOEY2w1U/s640/blogger-image--1281915183.jpg"></a>Last but not least think about it! This is what the page asks you do to to earn your coupon (I didn't click on the link, I found this on the Kroger Facebook page. Someone had posted this asking if it was real). For these 3 simple steps Kroger is going to give me $200.00. Think about the number of times you have seen this coupon shared, plus the number of people you would be sharing it with. If the coupon was legitimate can you imagine the amount of money they would be giving away? Does that sound feasible? Think about other giveaways you have seen-I have seen drawings for a gift card in a large amount, but how many people win those? One or two at most. Think about the usual coupons you see-usually they are worth a dollar or less right? How does a $200.00 coupon make sense? </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I've seen the same scam run with Ugg boots and Playstations. Once again think about the expense-companies like to market their products, but they can't give away millions of dollars for something as simple as sharing a picture or liking a page. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">You may not think it does any harm, but it does. It clogs up Facebook with this drivel, annoys your friends, puts your personal information at risk and makes you look stupid for falling for it. It seems so easy and innocuous to click share and hope, but a responsible person does their research! Protect yourself! </div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-29990322970806914092015-08-07T18:50:00.001-07:002015-08-07T19:11:23.630-07:00Summer Fun comes to an end!Wow it has been a long time since I've written! I had the best of intentions of keeping up with this blog, but life got in the way. I spend most of the summer traveling (I was only home for 3 weeks) and I preferred to live life rather than document it. I have tons of posts planned-trip recaps from Italy and Amsterdam, the new donut shop in town, new lesson ideas, a few fashion posts! <div><br></div><div>I head back to work full time on Tuesday. However, I've spent the last few days working on my classroom. On the last day of school I had to board a plane at 4:30 to leave for vacation and I had to move to a new classroom that day as well. Needless to say I didn't do a very good job moving and all my stuff was just piled haphazardly in the middle of my new room. It has taken 3 full 8 hour days to get some semblance of order. Now that I'm finally set up (at least mostly) and now that I have lessons planned for the first few weeks I'm feeling better.</div><div><br></div><div>Like most teachers I'm dealing with the end of summer blues. I truly am excited for the year to start, but it's depressing to have summer come to an end. I think all teachers deal with the struggle of transitioning back into a school schedule and routine. During the summer we get used to having our freedom, doing what we want when we want and having no obligations or set schedule. It's just like coming back from a vacation, expect the vacation is much longer. I've figured out a few tips to make the transition easier.</div><div><br></div><div>1. Plan! Make a set schedule and a strict plan for those first few weeks of school as soon into summer as you possibly can! It takes so much pressure off and makes the transition easier when you aren't worrying about planning.</div><div>2. Keep responsibilities light for the first few weeks: teaching requires you to go go go all day long and we can't really change that. Those first few weeks I just plan on being exhausted after work and I try to not plan much for after school. I try to plan easy dinners, schedule time for relaxing and try to slow down a little bit.</div><div>3. Get on a regular sleep schedule: I always get off my schedule during the summer. I stay up late and sleep in. This summer has been worse since I spent most of it traveling internationally and my body was so messed up. I've been trying to go to bed a little earlier each night and wake up a little earlier each morning. Start getting back on schedule 2 weeks or so before school starts and that first week won't be such a crash.</div><div>4. Start planning for next summer: I keep a running list throughout the school year of things I want to accomplish over the summer. The list encompasses everything from chores and house projects to vacations and creative things! It helps me to remember that there will always be another summer!</div><div>5. Plan a short vacation: Luckily I go back in mid-August so we are only in school for a couple of weeks before its Labor Day. Even though it's only a 3 day weekend I use the time to take a short trip (even just to see my parents) or head out to the lake! Luckily the weather is usually nice enough to enjoy the outdoors and you can enjoy that last gasp of summer! It gives me something to look forward to during the first few weeks and it's a nice break!</div><div>6. Remember how lucky you are! Most adults don't get such a long break, enjoy it! Remember you have one of the best jobs in the world and back to school means a new year, new kids, new lessons and more chances to change the world! </div><div><br></div><div>As I get back on a schedule I'll be posting more, once I get back into a routine and meet my new classes. I hope all of you had a wonderful summer and a relaxing break (however long you got)!</div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-32099886441635316162015-05-20T12:45:00.000-07:002015-05-20T12:45:06.918-07:00Teacher's Aren't MartyrsAs the school year is coming to a close and I prepare to leave for summer break I keep pondering the teaching profession. More and more I see new articles, Facebook posts and blog posts etc. etc. accusing teachers of every wrong thing that has ever happened. Teaching as a profession is something that is easy to criticize and a convenient scapegoat for a lot of things. That being said I see the constant posts from other teachers where they make themselves out to be a martyr.<br />
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I hear complaints ranging from "we don't actually get summers off", "we do a lot of work at home", "we arrive early and stay late", "we don't get paid enough" etc. etc. and those comments frustrate me-they make the whole teaching profession look lazy and give people a bad impression of us.<br />
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I do work in the summers absolutely, but I don't work anything close to a 40 hour week. My only school related OBLIGATION (something that is required) for the summer is a 4 day conference in July-and it's only a obligation because I took a volunteer leadership position at school. There are many professional learning opportunities available to me and I'm sure I'll take advantage of some of them, but most of my summer will be my own. I do have a ton of work to do preparing for the next school year (as all teachers do), but I can set my own hours and working from my couch is way better than being in an office.<br />
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It is pretty awesome to get a 2 week Christmas break (which no professional job that I know of gives you) and a week at Thanksgiving, a Spring Break and plenty of random days throughout the year. Most other jobs aren't lucky enough to get that many breaks (and there aren't usually work related obligations during those times). DH and I don't have to choose between visiting my parents or his at Christmas since I get a 2 week break-because of that we have the time to do both. However, in order for DH to get the 2 weeks off he has to save all his vacation days and sick days and comp time for the WHOLE YEAR in order to get that time. I get all the breaks plus I get 12 days a year of sick time. That's a pretty great perk.<br />
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I do arrive early and I do stay late as do many of the other teachers I know. There have been plenty of nights where I haven't gotten home until 8:00, however, there are many days when I'm home by 4. DH is an engineer (definitely a professional job) yet there are many mornings he has to be at work by 5 in order to support a build or work with an overseas supplier. He often works 18 hour days-especially when he is on the road and he spends 6 months of every year traveling. He often spends 6 weeks or more away from home-no weekends at home, no evenings at home nothing!<br />
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As for the pay I don't make a ton, but I don't make nothing. DH makes WAY more money than me, but in my mind he works harder. In fact, I look around at my "professional" friends and I see that they have less freedom than I do, less time off than I do and they work harder and longer hours.<br />
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I don't do a ton of school work at home-at least I try very hard not to. Of course there are days that I have to bring home grading etc. but I use every single minute of my plan period to make sure that I get as much done during work hours as I can.<br />
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Teaching is not an easy job by any means, but then again neither is any other job. I feel that some teachers get an inflated sense of self-worth and they don't seem to realize teaching is a job just like any other. I've heard the argument that teaching is more important than other jobs because we affect the future of children. However, if DH messes up a design or misses something during testing he can cause people to DIE. At least I don't have to be 100% perfect or someone might die-suddenly teaching seems easy!<br />
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Teachers are attacked in the media, by our government etc. etc. and it's becoming worse. Plenty of other public service jobs are under attack at well (law enforcement springs to mind). The worst part is the fact that a lot of the accusations leveled at teachers are true. It is your job at a teacher to do the best thing for your students at all times, to work hard and to strive to change the public perception of teaching. Is that something unique to teaching?-Kind of.....but it's a responsibility you willingly took on.<br />
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Is teaching important? ABSOLUTELY! However, it is a job-all jobs require you to work hard, devote plenty of time to finding success and no one ever gets paid what they think they are work. Teachers-feel lucky that you get to work in a job that gives you paid vacations multiple times a year, time to work at home, shorter work hours (even if you don't get them every day), freedom to do things your way and the opportunity to influence the future of your country. If you are one of those people falling into the trap of complaining about how undervalued you are either do something to make a positive change for the perception of teaching or find a job where you will be valued. Honestly, you chose to go into teaching-you knew what the job entailed before you started and you made the choice-be accountable for your choice.<br />
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We as teachers can't keep making ourselves out as martyrs or as people with the worst jobs in the world. There are definitely things wrong with education (but that can be said for any industry), but we are in the unique position to change the future of America. We get to spend each and every day with the funny and unique people that make up the youth of America-even if they are surly sometimes or unmotivated. Teachers need to stop whining and start changing-we don't have it ANY worse than ANYONE else. In fact we have it better than A LOT of people-in fact we have it better than many people who work "fancy jobs". All jobs have hard parts and all jobs have awesome parts (as I always tell my students-there is good and bad in everything).<br />
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So teachers: as you're enjoying your summer break take a minute to do something positive for the public perception of teacher. Write a letter to the newspaper talking about all the awesome things your school does, plan a community involvement event, reach out to a former student, leave a Facebook comment on a news website about teacher. At the same time take a minute to think about why you have the BEST job in the world-if you don't think your job is the BEST maybe you should spend your summer researching a career change.<br />
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<br />Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-86288297633055010892015-05-19T13:05:00.000-07:002015-05-19T13:05:21.868-07:00End of the School Year Wrap UpThe 2014-2015 school year is coming to a close-only three more days left with students! I'm genuinely excited for summer, but at the same time I dread the end of school. The last day of school means letting go of the students I've worked so hard with for the past nine month, it means that I won't have one more chance to finally get those light bulbs to click on and it always means something is changing.<br />
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Gone are the days where teachers stayed in the same room year after year and taught the same lessons each year. I do repeat a few lessons each year, but for the most part summer is my time to refresh, find new ways of teacher, reflect on what worked and what didn't work etc. etc. This summer is going to be even busier because I'm changing subjects for next year. For the past four years I've taught English and next year I'm going to be a Social Studies teacher! I'm thrilled since my degree is in Social Studies and the English certification was just a back up in case I couldn't get a Social Studies job (and I'm thankful I had it).<br />
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While I'm super excited to be teaching my first love and getting to share my passion for history and government with my students I'm also freaking out a little bit over the amount of work that has to be done. My new colleagues are super supportive and helpful-always freely sharing resources but we have a new test to prepare for so none of us have all the resources we need. We need to get better at meeting the Common Core Standards and at covering document based questions so we're rewriting our tests, creating new lessons together and figuring out strategies to teach writing and reading in the Social Studies department. It makes me thankful I have the English experience so I'm already ahead of the curve-History and English are super easy to mix! This year I taught World War II/Holocaust, Civil War and The Great Depression all in the context of covering literature from those eras.<br />
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However, even though mixing English and History is easy it still requires a lot of work on my part. I have a ton of ideas for teaching and for making our Social Studies classes even better! Social Studies is often seen as something that isn't important (and it certainly isn't afforded the importance of Math and English), often times it is looked at more as an elective rather than a core class. However, Social Studies is a great opportunity to inspire students to make changes in their world, emphasize high level reading skills, utilize critical thinking skills to analyze historical documents and social problems and to write essays and letters that require evidence and the defense of a position. Social Studies can also help students become better citizens and affect our whole world in a positive manner. It is my goal to make Social Studies a course that is important, relevant and an important part of a well rounded education.<br />
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I'm afraid of falling into the trap of showing movies everyday (since there are SO MANY excellent Social Studies movies) or just having students color maps every single day. I've seen classes like that and I can't see the educational value-I want a class that is rigorous, truly prepares students for high school and life and inspires passion in my students. Too many kids complain that history is boring-but there are SO MANY fun things about history and I want to expose them to all of it!<br />
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Along with my new subject I have to move rooms as well so the last few weeks have been a whirlwind of cardboard and tape! DH is away on a business trip so I'm holding down the fort at home along with packing up a whole classroom (and I'm one of those teachers who should probably be featured on Hoarders). I'm also leaving for Europe on the last day of school to meet up with DH which means I'm desperately trying to get the yard mowed in between rain showers (which seem to be occurring every single day), running the dog to the vet to get shots, packing for the trip, buying last minute items, packing all the things DH forgot etc etc.<br />
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Even though my summers are never a do nothing time for me (seriously my to do list is 4 typed pages long!) I'm excited to catch up on all the stuff I neglect during the school year and prepare for my new classroom and my new subject. Plus I'm thrilled for a four day educational conference, two different trips to Europe and plenty of time with the dog! DH is in his busy time at work (harvest time) so he'll be traveling most of the summer, but I can't wait for the days he is home so we can do super fun stuff together (like swimming and bike rides). I'm also planning on teaching the dog to go on bike rides with me so she can get more exercise (since her vet said she was getting chunky) without killing my injured foot!<br />
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I'm sad to say goodbye to my current group of students and my current subject-I've really enjoyed my English career-yet I can't wait to see what next year holds! Posting will probably be light for the next few weeks as I travel and check things off the massive list, but I'll post when I can and hopefully posting will resume soon!Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-45697838261429946622015-05-14T08:36:00.000-07:002015-08-07T19:14:36.244-07:00Talk Derby to MeThis past weekend I packed up the Jetta and headed out the Kentucky Derby-alone. In an effort to live a bit of a happier life I've been trying to get out more and do more things that make me happy. DH gets to travel all the time for work and I get insanely jealous of his fantastic trips (he's jetting off to Italy soon).<br>
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A few weeks ago I had an epiphany-I could sit at home feeling sorry for myself and complaining about all the things I was missing out on or I could pack up and go. I've always used the argument that someone needs to be the responsible one in the relationship and take care of the house and the dog, but I deserve time for myself too. With that in mind I decided about 5:00 on Friday night to make the drive into Kentucky. DH stayed home and took care of the dog while I made the drive.<br>
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The only tickets left on the night before the Derby were infield tickets but I took what I could get, threw a few things in my little suitcase and hit the road. My plan was to drive through the night, reach Kentucky in the morning, sleep in my car for a few hours and then hit the Derby. About 1:00 in the morning (8 hours into my drive) that plan went out the window and I stopped in the lovely town of Mount Vernon, Illinois to grab a few hours of sleep at their Quality Inn.<br>
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The next morning I downed a Red Bull and drove the rest of the way in to Louisville. I drove straight to Churchill Downs and realized that was not the place to be! Most of the residents were offering parking for a low low price of $25.00 to cram my car in their yard-that wasn't going to happen. I couldn't imagine trying to get out of there after the race was over so I kept going. I was able to park at the Kentucky Expo Center for only $8.00-I had all the space I wanted and only had one small incident with a group of drunk tailgaters.<br>
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It's a pretty long and hot walk from the Expo Center up to the racetrack. I stopped at a Starbucks for water and to use their bathroom before braving the crowds at the track (I wasn't about to be stuck using a Port-O-Potty!). Getting into the track was suprisingly easy-I walked right up to the gate, handed them my ticket and off I went into the belly of the beast. I saw some other people getting their bags searched, but my giant Coach purse must not have raised alarm bells since no one even gave it a second look.<br>
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Once I was inside the gate was where the real madness started-thousands of people crammed onto the infield with most of them being drunk monkeys. In addition the Vineyard Vines tent was giving away foam hats shaped like their whale logo-I spent the rest of the day getting smacked in the face. I strolled around the infield, bought a few souvenirs and an overpriced lunch and checked out the lay of the land. Apparently getting their 4 hours before the race starts is getting there late since every spot of grass was covered with bodies.<br>
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Churchill Downs installed a large TV screen on the infield so people can watch the race-it cracked me up to see the rows and rows of lawn chairs people had lined up in front of the screen. It looked like the rows at a movie theater and made me question why on earth would you go into the mess of Churchill Downs on Derby Day just to watch the race on a screen? Why wouldn't you just stay home?<br>
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I staked out my spot on the first turn between two very boisterous groups of people and promptly fell asleep on the grass using my purse as a pillow(I'm blessed with the ability to sleep anywhere). When I woke up I was the color of a lobster and bored. Being there by yourself is not ideal since you don't have anyone to save your spot when you get up to get a drink or food. I couldn't leave my spot all afternoon in fear of losing it. The people in front of me had made a circle with their chairs and blocked it off with "Police Line" tape-I spent most of the afternoon imagining elaborate crimes that could occur there and giggling to myself.<br>
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The actual race started and was over in the blink of an eye. American Pharaoh won and I saw just a few seconds of the race when they thundered through the first turn. Then it was time to leave-one exit for 70,000 people (part of it includes a dark scary tunnel that you have to walk through). Leaving was quite possibly the worst possible part of the day. Everyone is pushing and shoving, people are whacking each other with chairs and coolers and drunk people are falling down. The lovely souvenir mint julep glasses are shattered on the ground so you're dodging glass with each step.<br>
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After I got home Churchill Downs sent me a survey about my experience, one of the questions they asked was "Was it a luxury experience?" and I just laughed. Imagine a frat party times about a thousand and that was the infield atmosphere. I like a good party and I like a good cocktail, but the amount of over consumption and rude behavior was ridiculous. People were passing out on the ground, marijuana was being smoked in the bathrooms, glass was being thrown etc. etc. and no security was present.<br>
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I guess the question is was is worth it? Yes and no. It's not something I would do again unless I could really do it up right (and I'm in no financial position for that) but the experience was definitely worth it. It was fun to see and fun to experience. However, I much prefer watching the race from the comfort of my own couch-it doesn't involve 22 hours in the car and I can cuddle my puppy during tense moments! I will say that the focus of the Kentucky Derby has changed from horse racing to fashion and booze. I love fashion (as evidenced by my overflowing closet) and I like booze, but on Derby day I want it to be ALL about the horses. I'm a huge horse racing fan-seriously I can name every Derby winner, their time, their owners etc. etc. I'm just a repository for useless facts (yet I can't usually remember where I put my car keys). Why can't we focus on the horses and their athletic achievements rather than on what hat Kendra Wilkinson wore? I don't even care about the gambling portion of it-I just want to see the ponies run.<br>
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Now I just need to attend the Belmont and the Preakness to complete my own personal Triple Crown-and it's nice to check attending the Kentucky Derby off my bucket list since next year I'll be curled up on the couch watching it!Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-5416831551703426342015-04-28T12:13:00.001-07:002015-04-28T15:37:57.101-07:00Mother's Day ExtravaganzaMy mom lives far, far away from me so we rarely get to celebrate Mother's Day together. Last year I drove up and surprised her for the weekend which was awesome! I kept texting my dad to let him know where I was on the drive and what my ETA was and my mom was getting suspicious because he NEVER texts! She had plenty of ideas in her head and me coming to visit wasn't one of them! She was super surprised when I walked in the door-it made my whole weekend!<br>
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This year my mom is going on a trip shortly before Mother's Day, so I won't able to make it up there to spend the weekend with her. Since I wasn't going to see her I had to put together an awesome gift! My love language is definitely giving gifts! It's one of my favorite things to do and I love shopping for (or making gifts) and putting together gift baskets etc.! I've been told that I go overboard (and I probably do)-I buy lots of random little gifts for people too-not just on holidays!<br>
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I keep a private Amazon wishlist throughout the year with different gift ideas for people on it. Whenever I see something neat in the store, online, in a magazine or someone mentions something I add it to my list. It's awesome because I can add everything straight from my phone right away! I'm pretty awesome at coming up with gift ideas, but I know not everyone else is so without further ado here is the 2015 Mother's Day Gift Ideas List!<br>
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Does your mom love snacking? How about some yummy fresh cookie dough from edoughable? The dough is eggless and packaged ready for eating straight from the carton! If anyone remembers the cookie dough they used to serve with school lunches this is NOTHING like that! It's gourmet and delicious! They have tons of flavors from the classic Chocolate Chip to Birthday Cake and PBJ. I've bought several boxes of the stuff and it's ALL amazing! They even have some Gluten Free and Vegan options for those on special diets. Each flavor costs between $8.00 and $10.00 so the price is right (and they ship super fast!)<br>
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You can buy it here: http://www.edoughble.com/<br>
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For a movie lover in your life a Netflix subscription is an awesome gift that keeps on giving! You can give a gift subscription of one year or six months or set up an account and pay for it indefinitely! You can choose whether or not to give just streaming or DVD and streaming! I went for the DVD and streaming package for both my mom and myself-I think you need both to really make it worth it!<br>
Netflix will send DVDs straight to your door and you can stream tons of choices! You'll never have to rent a movie again! In the five years I've been a Netflix member we've rented ONE Redbox movie!<div><br></div><div>You can buy gift cards in pretty much any amount. If you just set up the subscription it will cost 17.00 a month for both DVD and streaming. <br>
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You can buy it here: http://www.netflix.com or find a store that sells gift cards here https://storelocator.gmgpulse.com/v2/partner/netflix?locale=en-US<br>
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Want something that's sure to make mom cry (no matter how old you are?) How about a cute activity book from the folks at Knock Knock (they also have a Dad version). This is a great gift for kids to make or even grown ups (I made one for my mom this year)! The book walks you through different prompts about you and your mom. You write letters, draw pictures and choose the qualities of your mom. It's funny, but also super sweet! At 48 pages it takes some time to put it all together, but it really makes you reflect on your relationship with your mom and who your mom is!<br>
The price is right at $8.99-and if you have Amazon Prime it can be here in two days! If you want something homemade, but aren't super great at crafting this is the gift for you!<br>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=twboadakethcr-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=1601066015&asins=1601066015&linkId=ADLBOBPFUIG3VTFW&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
</iframe>Buy it here! (Affiliate link)<br>
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Is mom into traveling? How about a Try the World food box subscription?<br>
This is a monthly subscription box that sends you a box of food from a different country every other month of the year! Each box contains 6-7 gourmet foods from that region plus a booklet about the culture of that region. This month the box is from Morocco! Currently they are having a flash sale where you get a free box if you sign up! Subscriptions are available for 1 month, 6 months or a year. If Mom likes trying new foods or exploring different cultures this is the gift for her! Plus, with different tiers you can find one that fits your budget!<br>
1 Month is $50.00<br>
6 Months are $115<br>
12 Months are $210<br>
Plus you get free shipping, free returns and you can cancel at any time!<br>
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Buy it here! http://www.trytheworld.com/pages/the-gift<br>
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Is mom a reader? Magazine subscriptions always go over well-and it's a gift that brings joy 12 months out of the year! If you are a United frequent flyer you can use miles to get magazine subscriptions. If you redeem Coke Rewards points you can also earn magazine subscriptions. Amazon has pretty good prices on subscriptions and you can usually find them on sale!<br>
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If mom is into celebrities and gossip my favorites are People and US Weekly. Their reporting is a little better than most of the tabloid and they are a little less sensational than the other tabloids.<br>
People is a little pricey at $121.37 but it's worth it. US Weekly is only $52.00 a year! That's only a dollar a week!<br>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=twboadakethcr-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00005N7TB&asins=B00005N7TB&linkId=2STSHQLEE5G3SCYB&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
</iframe> Buy them here (Affiliate Links) <br>
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If Mom is into cooking and home things I can't recommend Real Simple enough! They have tons of awesome recipes, organizational tricks and even a fashion section! It is one of my favorite magazines ever. Plus it's only $23.88 for a year long subscription and the magazines are really thick! It's a great value!<br>
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=twboadakethcr-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B002PXW1IE&asins=B002PXW1IE&linkId=ZJXPR64MPNKYWJA7&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
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If Mom is into fashion you can't go wrong with the fashion bible-Vogue! Even though most of the clothes in Vogue are a little out of a regular person's budget it's still fun to look at! For more realistic fashion advice I like Lucky-they have lots of affordable clothes and things that aren't haute couture!<br>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=twboadakethcr-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00JARAU4K&asins=B00JARAU4K&linkId=UTGJHQCE3CIA5LL6&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
</iframe> You can get 6 issues of Vogue for only $6.00-plus a free clutch! That's a dang good deal!<br>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ac&ref=tf_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=twboadakethcr-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B00HG1BP3M&asins=B00HG1BP3M&linkId=SLQJGNYGN66ACO32&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;">
</iframe> Lucky is an even better deal at $3.00 with a free scarf!<br>
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If Mom likes to cook and likes fun kitchen gear you can't do better than Koziol. Koziol is a German company that makes super high quality and fun kitchen gear. You can find a spoon rest shaped like an Italian Gondolier, a cake knife shaped like a crocodile and a cheese grater that looks like a hedgehog. I got a few of their items in France and I love them! They last forever, are well made and they are adorable (as well as functional).<br>
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Buy them here: http://www.wayfair.com/Koziol-C537925.html or at http://www.koziol.de (Amazon also has a great selection.)<br>
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If mom is a tea drinker you can't go wrong with a cute tea infuser and some nice loose leaf tea! Amazon has a huge selection of cute tea infusers-they have the standard stainless steel tea balls as well as other cute shapes. The prices are great-$5.00-$10.00 and tea drinkers love them!<br>
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</iframe>(Affiliate Links)<br>
Seriously look at all the adorable choices you have! These are just some of the options on Amazon-I found so many more that I wanted! They even have one that looks like a scuba diver!<br>
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For the loose tea you can't get better tea than Chelmsford! They have tons of awesome options and their prices are pretty reasonable (5.49 for 2 oz for most teas). I love the White Chocolate Mousse Black Tea and the Apricot Black Tea. For the Chai teas I love the Lemongrass Chai and the Vanilla Chai. It is totally worth the investment and would go great with a cute tea infuser. They have tea that matches any taste-I would get several different kinds to try. It's hard to narrow it down to just one! They also have a tea of the month club for 150.00 for a one year subscription.<br>
Buy some here: http://www.chelmsfordtea.com/<br>
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Does Mom work on her feet a lot? If she does she needs Crocs-and no I'm not talking about the ugly gardening shoes from a few years back! Crocs has undergone a renaissance and I absolutely love their shoes. I have tons of foot issues and I teach so I need shoes that are comfy and cute-Crocs fits the bill. You can wear their shoes 12 hours a day with no foot pain or problems.<br>
Some of my favorites are:<br>
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Kadee Flat (which comes in tons of colors-I have them in snakeskin, leopard, black, brown and blue leopard)<br>
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Athens Flip Flops-I have them in black and they are my go to flip flop. They have WAY more support than cheap flip flops and aren't as harmful to your feet.</div>
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Cap Toe Flat: I have these in brown and in black and they are a great basic shoe! Super comfy for work and they even look professional! </div>
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Cobbler Clogs: These are the most awesome winter shoes ever! Mine are fur lined but they don't seem to have those any more. These are the only heels I can wear all day, every day without hurting. </div>
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Crocs have pretty reasonable prices-most of their shoes are less than $50.00 and even the more expensive ones are under $100.00. They have a pretty decent exchange policy too! Rack Room Shoes and Payless both sell Crocs so you can actually see them in person (plus there are some Crocs stores around the country). If you don't know Mom's size you can always do a gift card! </div>
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Buy Them here: http://www.crocs.com</div>
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A new obsession of mine and perfect for any mom is Pomegranate Clothing. I'm obsessed with their comfy cotton nightshirts and pajama sets. Their sets are made in India and are probably the softest cotton I've ever felt! They are a little pricey, but they are so worth it (and they are running a fantastic sale right now!). The prints are adorable and cheery.<br>
I love their nightshirts paired with a part of their Penelope shorts for the perfect summer pajama set! Every mom needs comfy pajamas to hang around the house in and these are probably the best pajama sets ever.<br>
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They are the perfect weight of cotton so you don't get too cold or too hot plus they are soft and cozy. I love to put mine on right when I get home from work and just hang out in them all night! I've been debating buying a set of the pants and the shirts for winter. I own 3 of the night shirts (Serengeti (sold out), Pink Elephant and Pink Pony) and 2 pairs of the shorts (Llama Parade in blue and Serengeti) and I'm always lusting after more! I feel like nice pajamas are a very grown up thing and something every woman should have in her closet! </div>
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Pomegranate also has super adorable clothing-lots of breezy tunic tops and comfy dresses! </div>
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I'm also in LOVE with their home section! Aren't these the most adorable pillows ever?! I'm pretty sure you couldn't pick out anything on Pomegranate's website and Mom would love it! They have a super easy Southern beachy style that I just love (hey I'm a Southern native!). I also ADORE their customer service (especially Elly!)-they are super duper helpful! (And no they aren't paying me for this review-I'm just in love with them!).</div>
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If you sign up for their mailing list you get an instant 25% off coupon for your first purchase-you can save quite a bit on such expensive items! And they have an awesome sale section on their website. </div>
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Check them out here: http://pomegranateinc.com/</div>
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Honestly, the most important and special gift you can give your mom is TIME! It's important to spend as much time as possible with your parents-and Mother's Day shouldn't be the only day of the year you appreciate your mom! Take her out to lunch, take her shopping, take her to see a movie, taker her hiking whatever she's into! Some of the best days I've spent have been curled up on the couch next to my mom reading while she reads. We don't do a lot of talking other than to read each other interesting passages of our books or to discuss our books, but it is such a bonding experience. Make time for your mom-it's a gift for both of you! Get your mom to pass down the family recipes (and teach you how to make them), show you family pictures and tell you stories of her youth-these are things you will want to know as time goes on!<br>
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While I love giving gifts and think it's important to acknowledge my mom on Mother's Day I also give her gifts throughout the year and I make sure we have a close relationship. The time I spend with my mom is probably the most important thing in my life-and she's one of the most important people in my life. You can never be too busy for your mom and that's a fact!<br>
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What do you like giving for Mother's Day? Let me know what I missed in the comments-I'm a shopaholic and would love to know of other ideas! <br>
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<br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-82460997017453577412015-04-20T07:46:00.000-07:002015-04-20T07:46:14.704-07:00Groom Genie ReviewA few weeks ago the fine folks at Knot Genie held a contest on their Facebook page to win one of their new grooming brushes for dogs-the Groom Genie. In my never ending quest against dog fur I entered and I actually won!<br />
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I got to pick whatever color I wanted (orange or blue) and they shipped it to me super quick! It arrived at my house 2 days after the contest was over!! In the box was a letter asking me to post a review. I kept putting it off and putting it off since I didn't really know how to write the review. Finally I came to the conclusion that I would try out my video skills and make a vlog! Check it out below!!<br />
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I will say that the Groom Genie is a nice compliment to my Furminator that I already use! Since I made the video I've actually used the Groom Genie more since it's a lot quicker and it makes Massey look SO NICE! It's great for just a quick brushing to make her look pretty-not necessarily a full on grooming session. Massey really enjoys it as well-once we got her inside where she wasn't so distracted she was loving it. It has become our nightly routine before bed to brush her with this instead of rubbing her belly. It's a lot easier on my hands and she loves it! It works great on more sensitive areas (like her belly and the top of her head). She does tangle a little under her collar and that was super easy. This brush pulled through the tangles so fast-I barely even noticed they were there! When I first did my review I was pretty ambivalent about the brush, but as I've used it more and more I'm starting to fall in love with it! Massey's coat is looking better and shinier-she already has a really pretty coat, but it tends to dull and dry out over winter. This brush actually brought life back into her coat after just a few brushings.<br />
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I'm also brushing her more since she likes the brush so much (at least once a day!) and even though I don't get as much hair out as I do when using the Furminator I am noticing less shedding since I brush her more. I haven't found an easy way to clean the hair out of the brush yet. I like the button that the Furminator has and it's annoying to have to pick the hair out of this one! I will recommend the brush though (I'm planning on getting one for my mom and her cats-we may have to do a vlog on how it works on felines!). 4/5 stars!<br />
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You can buy one of your own here: http://groomgenie.com/<br />
And I highly suggest liking Knot Genie on Facebook-they have some awesome giveaways!!<br />
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I'm a huge fan of the Knot Genie brushes and I highly suggest if you have hair that tangles you buy one! I keep one in every car, one at work, one in my suitcase and one at home! Brushing my hair went from being a 30 minute job (to get rid of all the tangles) to a five minute chore. No more ripping chunks of my hair out and no more crying! When I was a kid my dad would spend HOURS (no joke) brushing my hair and making it look perfect (my dad has WAY more patience than my mom or I do)-one step outside and all his work would be ruined. I seriously wish this brush had been around when I was a kid! I have naturally fine and straight hair, so when I brush my hair it looks just as perfect as it did after my dad combed it (in 5 minutes instead of hours!).When I buy baby shower gifts for people who are having girls I ALWAYS include one of these brushes-they are a lifesaver! I'll do another video review soon showing you how exactly they work! :) But until then take my word for it and pick one up at the affiliate link below-you won't be sorry! They have tons of different colors to pick whatever suits you (I'm partial to the pink!).<br />
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Disclosure: I was sent the Groom Genie for free and asked to post an unbiased, honest review. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by the company! Some links in this post are affiliate links.<br />
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What are your favorite tools for you and your dog??Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-20468842585721038602015-04-19T16:09:00.001-07:002015-04-20T06:28:52.568-07:00Lilly Haul Part 2!!I know, I know I shouldn't have gone back to Target but I did! I was super sad that I missed out on the makeup bags and the Essie nail polish this morning (since my Target didn't stock them) so I decided to make a trip into the big city to hunt for them! My plans were to do some online shopping to pick up those items, but of course I was thwarted by the fact that EVERYTHING was sold out!<br />
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I headed to the big store about 2:30 so I got there about 3:00-and I was still expecting pandemonium. Nope! Nice and quiet, but not much left. Kids clothes had one or two white tops and women's had 2 jump suits and one dress left. No accessories at all. Housewares was completely cleaned out-one hammock stand and one odd cushion left. It made me sad to see for sure. In the kids section a little girl was having a complete and total meltdown over the fact that the dress she wanted was gone. It was heartbreaking! She was such a cute little girl. </div>
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I really don't think Target handled this collection well at all-especially judging from the number of listings on eBay right now. Greedy resellers took advantage of Target and are trying to sell the items for up to $350!! Ridiculous!! Target should have learned its lesson the first time around (with the Missoni collection). Lilly is such an iconic brand-Jackie Kennedy wore her clothes in the 1950s and 1960s! They knew the demand was going to be crazy and they should have made more stock and put limits on what people could buy. I'm sure the collection still would have sold out, but more customers would have been able to purchase the things they wanted and would have left the store happy. Honestly you can't expect people to practice good manners on their own, sometimes limits are the only thing keeping people honest! I was lucky with what I got and I'm happy with everything I purchased. I am sad that I wasn't able to get some of the online exclusive stuff or the stuff that my local store didn't have, but I was luckier than a lot of people. The stories of people sweeping whole shelves into their cart and getting into fights over the clothing just breaks my heart. I really hope Target learns their lesson for the next go round (or produces more of the Lilly)! This was supposed to be a 2 week event and Target claims that they planned for the items to be available for the entire 2 weeks! They should've known better and planned better!</div>
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Now onto my haul from my second Target trip of the day! All I purchased was makeup type stuff since that was all that was left!</div>
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Weekender-Happy Place 29.99 (yellow)</div>
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Valet-My Fans 29.99 (blue)</div>
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My Fans Printed Bobby Pins 5.00</div>
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Happy Place Printed Hair Elastics 5.00</div>
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My Fans Turban Headwrap 8.00 </div>
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Nosie Posey Printed Hair Elastics 5.00</div>
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My Fans Printed Elastics 5.00</div>
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Nail File Nosey Posey 2.00</div>
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Nail File Happy Place 2.00</div>
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Nail File My Fans 2.00</div>
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There were still lots of hair elastics left and several of each of the bags I bought. There were lots of nail files, nail polish and lipstick left. In fact it didn't look like ANY of the Essie nail polish had been purchased. I didn't buy any of it since it wasn't anything special-it looked like they just wrapped a tag around the neck of a regular Essie nail polish that said Lilly Pulitzer for Target. I expected a special bottle (maybe with a print) or something special. They didn't even have Lilly themed names! For 9.00 a bottle I'll stick with my OPI nail polish-I can find plenty of colors to match my Lilly dresses! The lipstick was the same way-nothing special about it at all.</div>
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The nail files are super cute, practical and cheap! I was surprised that more of them weren't gone! I love the adorable patterns on them. I plan on keeping one at work, replacing my worn out one at home and keeping one in my purse. They were a great buy! </div>
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The turban headwrap is adorable! I saw a picture of a girl on Facebook wearing it and it looked massively cute on her! I thought it was more of a sweatband type thing but it actually covers more of your head! I haven't tried it on yet but I'm super excited to wear it. I will be a perfect way to liven up a boring outfit or add some Lilly to other outfits! The hair elastics are cute and once again I was surprised that more of them weren't gone! Each style I bought was fully stocked! They were a little pricey for elastics (over a buck each), and their quality doesn't seem super awesome. They are kind of thin and I'm afraid they're going to snap when I try to wind them around my hair. However, the pineapple charms some of them have are adorable and will match the zipper pulls of the dresses I got perfectly! The prints on these aren't very bright, in fact they look kind of faded, but I guess that's to be expected!</div>
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Let's talk about the bags now! I'm so so excited that I got them :) The blue bag is actually a hanging type toiletries bag which is awesome! I bought one off Amazon over Christmas and it's too small to actually hold what you need. </div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2baWZMFvuiA/VTQ1tnWn2OI/AAAAAAAAEfg/niCisWuNOeQ/s640/blogger-image--1784027189.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2baWZMFvuiA/VTQ1tnWn2OI/AAAAAAAAEfg/niCisWuNOeQ/s640/blogger-image--1784027189.jpg" /></a>Not this bag! It has tons and tons of pockets! You can even fit full size shampoo and conditioner in the bottom pocket! DH and I travel a lot so this will see a ton of use! The fabric is super thick and the plastic on the pockets is very thick! It feels very well made-much better than my other one!</div>
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The other weekender tote I bought just because I could pass up the print. I have no clue what I'm going to do with it, but I'm sure I'll find some use for it! I actually thought I would keep my full size toiletries in it, but now that I've discovered that they'll fit in the other bag I don't know what to do with it! Maybe I'll sell it on eBay for $100.00 (I kid, I kid!). </div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zjAvV2zuJSU/VTQ1ulb5hVI/AAAAAAAAEfo/jaRFWWRn4qc/s640/blogger-image--2066815786.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zjAvV2zuJSU/VTQ1ulb5hVI/AAAAAAAAEfo/jaRFWWRn4qc/s640/blogger-image--2066815786.jpg" /></a>The inside of the weekender tote! It has a zippered pocket on one side and two open pockets on the other. The fabric on this bag feels thinner than the other bag, but it still feels sturdy! Does anyone have any ideas on what to use this for? I'm not a big makeup girl and I don't use any tools on my hair, so I can't use it for that! Maybe I'll use it as a purse!</div>
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Overall, I'm most impressed with the housewares and the beauty sections of this collaboration. Read my previous entry to see my impressions of the clothing, but I can say I definitely prefer my vintage Lilly any day! </div>
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A lot of people are saying that Lilly herself would be disappointed by the collaboration with Target. I definitely don't think that would be true-Lilly was slightly eccentric and not really an elitist at all. Yes, she was wealthy and yes her clothes are expensive but she kept monkeys as pets and ran a juice stand (when she had enough money to never work again). I think she would have reveled in the fact that ordinary people were gaining access to her clothes and she would be pleased by all the excitement her fashions were creating. It saddened me to see how many people had never even heard of Lilly (I'm a native of the South so maybe that's why I love her so much-she seems to be a Southern thing). I'm glad that more people will learn about Lilly and get exposed to her cheery prints-they really are the best thing to brighten someone's day! </div>
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I highly recommend the book Lilly: Palm Beach, Tropical Glamour and the Birth of a Fashion Legend if you want to know more about her! You can purchase it below by clicking on the link (it is an affiliate link-help me make more money to buy Lilly clothes)! It's an awesome, in depth biography about her that really looks at who she was as a person rather than her company. It's a fast read and very informative plus it's filled with awesome pictures of early Lilly clothes! </div>
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I'm also saddened by the lack of manners shown by some people in their greediness. Lilly definitely wouldn't have liked that! I just checked out ebay to see how many items were listed-there are almost 20,000 hits for Lilly Pulitzer at Target!! That's ridiculous-I'm pretty sure most of the collection is on there! Shame on these people for profiting in such a way! The only way to fight back is to not give into temptation to buy their things (even if you missed out in the store). Make them get stuck with the inventory! I saw this after the Missoni collection-about 2 months after the collection launched everything was on eBay for .99-people just wanted to get rid of it! If we make it unprofitable for them maybe they'll think twice about doing it for the next collection!</div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5hkkbji7f6M/VTQ8HiFs1BI/AAAAAAAAEf4/VTOOjNsFghg/s640/blogger-image--421194211.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5hkkbji7f6M/VTQ8HiFs1BI/AAAAAAAAEf4/VTOOjNsFghg/s640/blogger-image--421194211.jpg" /></a>Seriously someone is trying to sell a MAKE UP BAG for $2700.00! I do love the hammocks but I'm not about to pay 500.00 for one (no matter how adorable they are)! </div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0zpgjcpHOIU/VTQ8IrDDRmI/AAAAAAAAEgA/TqcYXZaZ3O8/s640/blogger-image-1225672973.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0zpgjcpHOIU/VTQ8IrDDRmI/AAAAAAAAEgA/TqcYXZaZ3O8/s640/blogger-image-1225672973.jpg" /></a>People are trying to sell nail files for 4.00 (when I found plenty in the store). Plus, someone stole A SIGN from the store and is attempting to sell it for 2.75! Can you believe the nerve of some people??? This just makes my blood boil! How rude! </div>
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People like this put a nasty spin on the whole collection and ruin it for the rest of us. I really hope Target listens to their customers (the actual customers, not the resellers) and puts a limit on the next designer collection so they can't ruin it again.</div>
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Overall I'm pleased with what I got-sometimes living in the country has its perks (like less demand for Lilly!). I'll still keep shopping at Target and I'll still buy way too much Lilly but I might avoid ebay for awhile. I was one of the lucky ones with this collection and I got most of what I wanted so I'm happy. I really do feel heartbroken for everyone who didn't get anything. I also feel bad for the people complaining that they don't know what all the fuss is about or that we're too materialistic or that this collection cheapens their real Lilly-I'm sad they can't see the joy and the fun in stuff like this! </div>
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<br /></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-32515852926683687582015-04-19T12:02:00.001-07:002015-04-19T16:13:31.540-07:00Lilly Pulitzer for Target is here!The long awaited day has arrived! DH and I were up bright and early this morning to hit up our local Target in search of the Lilly collection. I've been anxiously awaiting this day since the collaboration was announced. This promised to trump even the Missoni collection for sure! When the Missoni collection came out I went to about 5 different Targets in the large city near me and left empty handed at each (as I remember it released on a weekday and I had to work so I couldn't be up early). Almost a week after the collection launched I discovered the sweet spot-a semi-rural Target closer to my house that had TONS of Missoni left in stock! I guess the designer collaborations weren't their style! <div><br></div><div>For the launch of Lilly I planned to just hit up that Target and maybe online (since they are a smaller store they don't get everything). DH and I got to the store about 8:30-half an hour after opening time and they still had plenty of Lilly. We stocked up on clothes first before hitting housewares. We were in and out in under an hour (which included buying the components for a gift basket for a friend). My Facebook was full of stories of people waiting in line for hours and then not getting anything! I was pleased with my hidden gem-seriously DH and I were THE ONLY ONES there for the first little while-2 ladies joined us after that but that was it! No crazy lines, no fighting over pieces nothing!</div><div><br></div><div>I'm a huge Lilly fan so I've been saving and saving since the collaboration was announced so I wouldn't have to deny myself anything! I own tons of "real" Lilly dresses (mostly vintage ones bought on eBay) and my planner is always a Lilly planner. I even have a room in my house decorated with Lilly and I have Lilly lightswitch plates on all my outlets! I'm a true fan for sure! I've loved previous Target collaborations-The Webster was probably my favorite and I loved Missoni! I'm pretty obsessed with Target in general (especially their dollar spot!). This collection combined by two favorite things!</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PowI0iJgcz4/VTP7qI4tt-I/AAAAAAAAEeg/XB5t1_p1iVU/s640/blogger-image-1092021282.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PowI0iJgcz4/VTP7qI4tt-I/AAAAAAAAEeg/XB5t1_p1iVU/s640/blogger-image-1092021282.jpg"></a> The total haul: I didn't get much to be honest. Not nearly as much as I planned on getting.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">What I got:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Shift Dress-See You Later (pink) $38.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Strapless Maxi Dress-Nosie Posey $34.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Shift Dress- Upstream (blue) $38.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Challis Pompom Shorts-Upstream $24.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Beach Towel-Fan Dance $25.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Gold plated Giraffe bottle opener $10.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Napkins with Pom Pom trim $10.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Ceramic Mugs with Gold Caddy $30.00</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Now the big question is how does the collection stack up to the real Lilly? I was actually pleasantly surprised with the two shift dresses I bought. They aren't nearly as thick as a "real" Lilly, but they seem to be well made. They even have a pineapple as a zipper pull! The fabric feels like a nice thick cotton and I would put them on quality level with dresses I have from the Limited! They have a lot of cute details-like gold zippers, slits on the side, and the zipper pull which make them look more expensive. They really seem close to a real Lilly (different fabric of course) and I felt they were well worth the momey. The maxi dress was NOT worth the money for sure-the fabric is thin and it doesn't seem well made. However, it looks adorable on (and is my first strapless dress ever) so I couldn't resist. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The shorts are cute, but very thin. They honestly feel more like pajamas than shorts-but that is what makes them comfy. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7vEhAyXPEuY/VTQCVlL5tXI/AAAAAAAAEew/K73bstUZjxM/s640/blogger-image-756216481.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7vEhAyXPEuY/VTQCVlL5tXI/AAAAAAAAEew/K73bstUZjxM/s640/blogger-image-756216481.jpg"></a></div>I was REALLY impressed with the housewares (even more than the clothes)! The bottle opener is heavy and well made-I would have paid way more than $10.00 for it! The cups are super cute (and printed on the inside is the words "Being happy never goes out of style") and they look great displayed in the caddy. I don't even plan on using them-I just have them set out to stare at them. The napkins are 4 different complimenting prints and they are a really thick cotton! The beach towel is pleasantly thick and the pattern is very bright and cheery. I own 2 Lilly swimsuits already so I'm excited to lay out on my matching towel! I commented to DH at the checkout-"you know you're an adult when you get more excited over housewares than clothes". All the housewares that I saw (including the plates and the cushions) were super well made. They all seemed more expensive than they were-the sewing is good and they have some heft to them. This was actually the best part of the collection!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I tried on a few more clothing items that I decided not to purchase including :</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Palazzo Pants-Fan Dance</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fJNfUSzKNL0/VTQCXv23SfI/AAAAAAAAEfA/5GJ7z9pVjUs/s640/blogger-image-1262064574.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fJNfUSzKNL0/VTQCXv23SfI/AAAAAAAAEfA/5GJ7z9pVjUs/s640/blogger-image-1262064574.jpg"></a>DH said these looked like pajama pants and they truly did! I usually wear a medium and I took a small in these pants and they were HUGE! I looked like I was wearing clown pants! The print was a little overwhelming on such big pants so they ended up just looking ridiculous! They felt like pajamas too-really thin and satiny. I have a pair of Missoni PJ pants from the last collection and these were the exact same just with a different print.</div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Satin Jumpsuit-Boom Boom</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MJRrEAqnQrU/VTQCWkaDNtI/AAAAAAAAEe4/_-31m4hTslI/s640/blogger-image-1385491436.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MJRrEAqnQrU/VTQCWkaDNtI/AAAAAAAAEe4/_-31m4hTslI/s640/blogger-image-1385491436.jpg"></a>I wanted this to work out for me so bad! I love jumpsuits and I've always wanted to wear one! However, even in a size small this was gigantic! The pants were about 3 times the size of my legs and the straps were so long that the top fell half way down my boobs. It doesn't come with a belt (as shown in the picture) so it looks silly. Once again it was really thin and felt more like pajamas than something I would wear out of the house. It did not seem well made at all!</div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">V-Neck Tank Top in Nosie Posey</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fprmGdPYR0A/VTQCYe1eWSI/AAAAAAAAEfI/62a5fRnX_mY/s640/blogger-image--807838596.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fprmGdPYR0A/VTQCYe1eWSI/AAAAAAAAEfI/62a5fRnX_mY/s640/blogger-image--807838596.jpg"></a>Another disappointing thin cheap looking top. It did have a cute zipper up the back, but it felt so thin and cheap! The sides on the one I tried on were cut SUPER low-like below my bra. I got another one and the sides weren't cut as low. The stomach portion was super billowy and large-it looked like a maternity shirt on me!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Out of all the clothes I saw the dresses were the ONLY thing that I felt was comparable to a really Lilly and something that was worth the money. My Target didn't have any swimwear so I can't comment on that. However, all the tops, pants and shorts seemed to be super cheap and flimsy. The sizing was inconsistent and they weren't well designed. Lilly has always done dresses well (especially the classic shift) and maybe they should stick to that.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I wanted a pair of flip flops for summer but they had a huge logo on the sole! Right in the middle of the print was the Target logo and the Lilly Logo! It made the flip flops look tacky-I don't want to advertise for Target when I take my shoes off. Even though they seemed well made I skipped them. All the prints have the Target logo worked into the print (much how Lilly always works her name into the print) but it's subtle and you have to look for it. Not so with the shoes, it was so obvious and glaring! I wish they had at least put it on the bottom of the shoe instead of ruining the print.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The beach bags that I saw were thin and cheap looking-they didn't have any structure to them at all and just kind of flopped over. The clutch bags were expensive ($20.00) and made of a thin canvas knockoff. I didn't really need one so I skipped it. My Target didn't have any of the cosmetics or cosmetic bags-and I was disappointed! They seem to be sold out online so I guess I'll be trolling ebay. I'm going to wait since the Target manager told me they might get more in over the next few days.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Overall, I wasn't impressed with the collection as a whole. The housewares and the dresses were definitely worth it, but everything else was a disappointment. I honestly thought the Missoni collection was better made and more expensive looking. However, most of the Lilly I own is older and the few newer pieces I've bought have been disappointing so I think Lilly as a whole is trading on their name and using cheaper fabrics and finishes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lilly used to be reserved for the wealthy, but as expensive fashion has become more for the masses (and regular people aspire to own it) companies feel that they can get away with selling cheaper clothes for outrageous prices simply because of the name. I've noticed this with A LOT of brands (not just Lilly)! I'm happy with the things I bought (and happy I spent less than I expected-more money for Europe!), but I was underwhelmed with the collection. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I will say I LOVE Target and their designer collections! I like that they introduce designers to the masses-my cashier didn't even know who Lilly was! I also love Target clothes-they are great priced and pretty well made! I love Lilly too-especially vintage Lilly (I'm a fan of the older prints!). It was a great experience and I'm excited that Lilly did this collection :) I also have to give a shout out to DH for being so patient with my constant discussion of the collection and for helping me shop today (and not complaining about the total!). I married a great guy indeed!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Of course everything is now on EBay for 4 times the retail value and Target says they aren't getting anything else in! While I love ebay I hate resellers-I mean come on! They take everything and leave everyone else with nothing! It's terribly disappointing. Target needs to set limits on what people can buy or make more of the collection!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">What were your thoughts? How was the shopping experience? What did you get?</div><br></div> </div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-51899824189439519482015-04-07T08:22:00.000-07:002015-04-07T08:32:54.976-07:00Cell Phone JailMy kiddos started state assessments this morning-that means a full week of testing and vainly attempting to keep them quiet. I came to school loaded down with a tote bag full of hard candies to keep them quiet and stacks of word searches, crosswords and mazes to distract them after the test.<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-IVKTogfy6Uw/VSP4pODAbNI/AAAAAAAAEbU/duI11hm5Lq0/s640/blogger-image-1863471799.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-IVKTogfy6Uw/VSP4pODAbNI/AAAAAAAAEbU/duI11hm5Lq0/s640/blogger-image-1863471799.jpg"></a> Massive bag of candy-purchased and paid for by me! Thank a teacher for all they buy for your students during the year. I've spent about $500.00 already this year!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KHQBYufUWwo/VSP4oKIfS4I/AAAAAAAAEbM/SPOmxyfNGNI/s640/blogger-image--881799578.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KHQBYufUWwo/VSP4oKIfS4I/AAAAAAAAEbM/SPOmxyfNGNI/s640/blogger-image--881799578.jpg"></a> Things to keep them entertained!</div></div><br>
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Keeping them off their cell phones is SUPER important during the test-and I knew if I let them keep their cell phones in their pockets they would be tempted to sneak a peek at Instagram or Snapchat during the test. That's a huge violation of testing security and makes BIG problems for the teacher. Last year a colleague had a student ANSWER his cell phone in the middle of the test-apparently it was his mom and he couldn't ignore a call from his mom! It caused a huge mess for sure :)<br>
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I set up a cell phone jail for my students-simply a plastic tub where they were required to place their cell phones before the test. They put a Post-It with their name on it on their device, turned the device off and left it in the tub. I warned my kids ahead of time that we would be doing this (so I didn't have the inevitable fights) and it went smoothly. I didn't have ONE problem with the kids giving up their devices! It was amazing :)</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c4fXzQTfoXQ/VSP4nBEQTHI/AAAAAAAAEbE/xy7oDkui8CQ/s640/blogger-image-835630744.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c4fXzQTfoXQ/VSP4nBEQTHI/AAAAAAAAEbE/xy7oDkui8CQ/s640/blogger-image-835630744.jpg"></a>Cell phone jail!</div><br>
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It was amazing to watch the transformation in my kiddos as well-they are usually glued to their devices if they have time. We have the daily struggle to keep kids engaged in the lesson and keep them off their phones. I often catch students scrolling mindlessly through Facebook when they are supposed to be working. The kids get in trouble for their addiction to their devices, but I'm no better-I'm often checking e-mail or looking at Facebook if I have a few spare moments.<br>
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Everyone finished the first section of their test and we had about 20 minutes left in the testing session. I told the kids it was okay to chat and expected a rush to get their phones! No one came to get their phone (and a few kids even forgot their phones when they left class). It was neat to watch my students work together to solve a word search, draw a picture together, play tic tac toe or just chat with a friend with no distractions. It was a great reminder to put down the technology and truly live. It was great to see how easy it was for them to let go of the phones (and to be fair I put mine in jail too). Without their phones they were still able to entertain themselves quite easily-a skill we often forget we have.<br>
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Some of my students commented that they didn't miss their phone or that we should have technology free days again! It was amazing to see my students who are of the tech generation truly live in the moment-and not be chronicling every second for Instagram. My students had more real conversations in that 20 minutes than we've had all year! Some students were even talking to kids they don't usually talk to which was amazing. When technology is removed you are forced to connect with the humans around you-which is a good thing!<br>
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What a good reminder to put down the cell phone and live! Tonight I'll be putting away the cell phone and the iPad and enjoying my husband and my dog without snapping one picture for Facebook or checking my e-mail. I'll focus on living and creating memories rather than chronicling memories to share with everyone. DH and I are going to have technology free days at least once a week-hopefully more! I'm also going to do a weekly technology free day in my classroom this year and next year! Let's learn how to live without technology distracting us! I challenge you to put down the phone and really live in the moment-you will be richly rewarded.</div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-33364608800746459652015-04-03T11:49:00.000-07:002015-04-03T11:49:00.262-07:00Choose My Plate Challenge SummaryWe FINALLY finished our challenge! It was tough-way tougher than I expected, but I learned so many valuable things from the project.<br />
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1. Cooking Skills-My cooking skills have improved immensely over the course of this project. I had some basic skills, but I didn't realize how much I didn't know! I've gotten so much faster at chopping veggies :) We did struggle with timing the cooking of different components of the meal. It often turned out that one part was done while we were still working on cooking another part. It got better as the project went along, but it's still not 100%. So much of cooking is about timing-and that's a skill that I don't have a lot of experience with. So many of the critics of healthy eating say that a barrier to eating healthy is a lack of skills. I can say that the more you cook the easier it gets-just give it a shot. We didn't ruin anything and most of our meals were edible. One of the biggest barriers to cooking is fear-I'm usually reluctant to try new things in case I mess them up. This project forced me to try new things and most of them worked out well. I feel more confident in my cooking skills and I've learned lots of new things. It also helped to bounce things off my mom (who is an excellent cook)-she was one of the most ardent readers of this blog and she would tell me what I could have done differently and how I could have made the meal quicker and easier. It was great to have a mentor to help me out with some of the facets of the project. Honestly, I don't think the excuse that you don't have cooking skills is valid. Anyone can learn and practice makes perfect! Don't be afraid to try new things and give things a shot. If you can find a mentor to help you it is so beneficial and valuable.<br />
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2. Cooking Equipment-This was a definite barrier to eating healthy. Many of the meals on this menu required several pots and pans, multiple sets of measuring spoons etc. None of the equipment required was specialty equipment, but it required a lot of it at once. There was no way you could only own one pot and make these meals. DH and I went to Wal-Mart and priced the kitchen equipment we used for this project. We selected the cheapest things we could find (our own pans are expensive Calphalon as you see in the pictures-we didn't price anything that expensive). The total cost for all of the equipment we used would be 226.78 (not including sales tax)! Kitchen equipment can often be found cheaper at garage sales and Goodwill-but it was still a lot of money. Obviously food stamps don't cover kitchen supplies and if you don't own kitchen supplies it would be easier to make meals that can be made in one pan or in the microwave. These meals can still be healthy though-all of that comes down to choices-however following this plan would have been difficult if not impossible.<br />
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3. Costs-It's obvious that healthy eating is EXPENSIVE! We spent way more than our allotment and more than we usually spend on groceries. The average food stamp budget is $3.00 per day (Source: A Place At The Table)-We were spending between $5.00 and $10.00 per day on these meals! There were ways to make them cheaper and I have many healthy recipes that don't require as many ingredients. If we were limited to $3.00 per day it would be difficult to find healthy meals. It's sad when processed, packaged foods are less expensive than produce-especially when those packaged foods take more to make and produce. This is something that needs to be dealt with-however I'm not sure that I have a solution. Part of the issue is cultural-demand drives down prices and the trend has been towards packaged foods. America doesn't value meals and family meals the way other countries do-it won't be until we create a demand for fresh food and create a culture of healthy eating that things will change. It is still possible to eat healthy at an inexpensive cost however, especially by buying in season foods and foods that are locally grown.<br />
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4. Time-This was the big issue! A lot of nights I was tired after work or had other things that needed to get done. It was hard to find the time to spend 2-3 cooking a meal and cleaning up when we had other things that needed to be done. It was hard to find time to come home and cook a lunch on the weekends-it was much easier to pick something up in town for lunch when we were out running errands. My mom revolves her day around meal times-and she arranges her chores so that she can be home at meal times (a very European thing). This is not something that is ingrained in American culture and therefore is difficult to do. It is cheap and easy to swing through a drive through, but it isn't the healthiest option. We must start prioritizing food over other things-which will be a cultural change-in order to make healthier choices.<br />
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5. Lack of education/mixed priorities-Healthy food must be the number one priority for a family. Many families don't have the education needed to make healthy choices-it should be a mandatory requirement that in order to receive government aid you must take and pass a class on budgeting, wants vs. needs, basic cooking skills and healthy eating. If you don't own basic cooking equipment it would be supplied during the course. A lot of the families I know don't know how to budget and they waste their money on things that aren't necessary. If you don't have the money to feed your family you don't have the money for ANY extras-that's just life. We worry so much about keeping up with the neighbors and fitting in that food falls to the lowest rung-that is something that needs to change! I know it is difficult to live on a minimum wage job-and I don't advocate cutting government aide-but it needs to be used wisely. I do advocate for austerity measures for those who are receiving government aide-not because they don't deserve nice things but because they can't afford them. When I can't afford something I don't get it-simple as that. I know several families who qualify for aide but don't take it-and they have to live without many "nice" things just to meet the basics of life-why should they be any different than those who are receiving aide. We need to increase education and teach financial responsibility-I teach a course to my 8th graders and it's surprising how many of them think it's okay to get credit cards and not pay them back or to buy things you can't afford. We have become a culture of greed, debt and instant gratification. It is more important to have designer clothes and an iPhone than it is to feed your family healthy meals. This is something that needs to change in our culture-and I'm not sure how you go about changing cultural norms. Our priorities need to change in order to make our country a success.<br />
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6. Unwilling to try new things: People tend to be stuck in their ways and not want to try new things-I know I am! This project forced me to try foods I've always rejected. I discovered a love for salads and bananas which was awesome! You just have to be willing to try anything. One of my biggest frustrations is to watch my students toss 90% of their school lunch (that is free to them) because they don't eat apples (or any healthy foods) yet still find the money to buy a bag of chips from the a la carte lane. Why do we subsidize families that have the money to give their child extras at lunch? Why do we allow kids to get away with not eating healthy foods? It should be a requirement that you try at least a few bites of each food-you don't know if you will like it until you try it. Unless kids are exposed to healthy foods they aren't going to like them. We have to bring education into the schools (and the homes) and encourage healthy eating and healthy choices. We also need to change our parenting styles to stop the culture of entitlement and kid led mealtimes etc. Parents need to be parents and require healthy choices from their children.<br />
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Overall, I felt like this particular project was a failure in terms of cost. Most of the recipes were good, but they cost WAY too much. I do feel that healthy eating is possible on a limited budget, but this plan was not well thought out. We need to consider all the barriers and objections and find ways around them. We need to make meals that are quick and easy so that those who work or who are disabled can still prepare them. We need to find things that you can make ahead and freeze, things that don't require kitchen equipment or even electricity to make and things that are portable. We need to expand the availability of healthy foods and full service grocery stores in rural and inner city areas. We need to expand the food stamp budget in order to allow familys the money to eat healthy. I also think that limited amounts of food should be available on food stamps-structure it similar to the WIC program where certain foods are approved for purchase. We need to work to decrease the costs of healthy food and increase the demand for healthy foods! Healthy eating is not just about money (or lack thereof)-there are so many other things that go into it. We need to address ALL facets of it-and we need to educate people. American culture is tied so closely with unhealthy choices and a lack of emphasis on food that we will have to change our whole entire culture in order to fix the problem completely. However, expanding the food stamp program, limiting what can be purchased, increasing education, making mandatory classes a requirement to receive aide, educating children in the schools about healthy eating and budgeting, increasing the minimum wage, increasing the availability of healthy foods and giving incentives for healthy choices we can make strides. I'm so glad that I did this project-DH and I struggled a lot at times but we enjoyed ourselves immensely! It was a great learning experience and it made me realize so many of the other issues that go into food insecurity! We must make changes in order to help our country-we could save so much in health care costs, environmental costs etc. if we were able to make these changes!<br />
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DH and I are still feeling very passionate about this issue-and we think we can do better that the Choose My Plate site! In the next few weeks we'll create our own 2 week healthy meal challenge and see if we can beat the government with cheap and easy healthy meals! Keep your eyes peeled for that!Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-8649601687382560212015-04-02T13:07:00.001-07:002015-04-02T13:07:40.897-07:00Great Blog!! http://www.lifeinthecircus.com/how-i-feed-a-family-of-seven-for-300-a-month/<br />
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This won't be a full fledged post, but this just happened to pop up on my Facebook newsfeed and I cheered!! This lady really is living the life that we were trying to simulate through our experience and she is doing it EXACTLY how we wanted it to be. She has a great menu that feeds 7 people (2 adults, 3 toddlers and 2 tweens) for one month on $300.00. She openly admits that she isn't a great cook and that she doesn't use a lot of processed foods! She has healthy meals that are easy and cheap! It's a great read and it's especially enlightening to see how she does it and how different it was from the Choose My Plate challenge! Well worth the read!Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-57368281745236973362015-04-02T09:01:00.001-07:002015-04-02T09:01:15.974-07:00Day 14The last day of the challenge!! I was so happy and relieved that it was over and I could get back to my regularly scheduled meals.<br />
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Breakfast:</div>
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Breakfast was perfect pumpkin pancakes. I forgot to take a picture since they took so long to make and we were rushing out the door to get to work. They were actually pretty good-but not very spicy. I was hoping for something that tasted like pumpkin pie but they tasted like you were just eating straight canned pumpkin. We will probably make these again though :) They were interesting and a fun way to make pancakes a little different. However, these would be better as a weekend meal than as a meal on a workday. It took about 45 minutes to mix up the batter and cook the pancakes-that's way too long for our mornings when we have to get to work.<br />
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Total Cost: 1.92 per serving (3.84 for both of us)</div>
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Lunch:</div>
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Lunch was leftover red beans with a side salad and milk. </div>
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-U9QyWqKKsjk/VRyJ5NyHfRI/AAAAAAAAEZQ/Y1wrsa8cCgM/s640/blogger-image--1093002627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-U9QyWqKKsjk/VRyJ5NyHfRI/AAAAAAAAEZQ/Y1wrsa8cCgM/s640/blogger-image--1093002627.jpg" /></a>Finished lunches! The salad were chopped cucumbers, carrots and lettuce with vinegarette dressing. It was a pretty yummy lunch-the red beans were the same as the night before (bland) but they kept well. I was definitely full after lunch. I'm surprised how much I'm loving eating salads! I will keep this in my lunch rotation after the challenge is over for sure!</div>
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Total cost: 2.03 per serving (4.06 for both of us)</div>
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Dinner: </div>
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Dinner was meatloaf muffins-it was quick to make but took an hour to cook!</div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VGbSaSIUEr4/VRyJ5z23dBI/AAAAAAAAEZY/j2VZQgt32CQ/s640/blogger-image--1903527815.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VGbSaSIUEr4/VRyJ5z23dBI/AAAAAAAAEZY/j2VZQgt32CQ/s640/blogger-image--1903527815.jpg" /></a>Ingredients for the meatloaf.</div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_9tx0XxR3zg/VRyJ4fzRPHI/AAAAAAAAEZI/p98aZsDQAb8/s640/blogger-image-1258736022.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_9tx0XxR3zg/VRyJ4fzRPHI/AAAAAAAAEZI/p98aZsDQAb8/s640/blogger-image-1258736022.jpg" /></a>The ingredients were simply mixed together and placed into greased muffin tins. They were baked for an hour at 350 degrees.</div>
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Finished dinners! The muffins were accompanied by mashed potatoes and frozen green beans! They were actually really good! These would be great to make on a weekend for an easy grab and go lunch or dinner during the week! They had a lot of flavor and were easy to eat! We will be keeping these in our menu! I'm glad the challenge ended on a high note since we've had so many disappointing meals! Today was probably my favorite day in the challenge!! I will say that I'm glad it's over-I learned a lot from the challenge and I'm glad we did it but it was a tough two weeks! Tomorrow I'll post a wrap up post about everything we learned and my overall impressions so be on the lookout for that.<br />
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Total cost: 3.76 per serving (7.52 for both of us)</div>
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Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-52324613123766215992015-04-01T06:51:00.002-07:002015-04-01T17:14:36.504-07:00Day 13Amid the madness of Spring Break and DH's new schedule we fell off our eating plan hardcore. I went North to visit my parents for a few days which threw us off track. I'm home now and we're back on track to finish our last 2 days of healthy eating.<br>
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Breakfast:<br>
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Breakfast was banana walnut oatmeal accompanied by milk and an orange. No picture this time since DH made it while I was visiting my parents. He's become addicted to oatmeal as a result of this project. It was never something we ate before this project started and now it's become a staple for him. I'm not a huge fan, but I'm happy that DH found something he's loving that's healthy.<br>
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Total cost: 1.74 per serving (3.48 for both of us)<br>
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Lunch:<br>
Lunch was a tofu salad sandwich-It was very odd.<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-yPTI9oV5G1o/VRyF8CLpU0I/AAAAAAAAEY8/FALuCUXknAM/s640/blogger-image--1024181521.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-yPTI9oV5G1o/VRyF8CLpU0I/AAAAAAAAEY8/FALuCUXknAM/s640/blogger-image--1024181521.jpg"></a>Ingredients for the sandwich. The tofu was chopped up into chunks and mixed with chopped veggies and a dressing made out of mayonnaise, mustard and soy sauce.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-tyIqTlBakTU/VRyF7fkL3JI/AAAAAAAAEY0/sFhy-yC5jvY/s640/blogger-image--1271783193.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-tyIqTlBakTU/VRyF7fkL3JI/AAAAAAAAEY0/sFhy-yC5jvY/s640/blogger-image--1271783193.jpg"></a>The finished sandwich. The salad tasted delicious when we made it, but it didn't work well in sandwich form. The bread turned soggy and it was really hard to eat. I took the sandwich apart to try and salvage my meal, but the salad tasted different than the night before. We got an orange and milk to accompany our sandwich-it was a small lunch. I can say that I liked the salad when we first made it and I might make it again. I've discovered that I actually like tofu-who knew?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 2.21 per serving (4.42 for both of us)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner was "easy" red beans and rice. It was easy to make, but once again it took a long time to make. We started cooking about 6:00 and didn't eat until 8:00!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-F_2rjHbHqlw/VRyF6dCqTrI/AAAAAAAAEYs/m9rikSxCVbo/s640/blogger-image--54877346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-F_2rjHbHqlw/VRyF6dCqTrI/AAAAAAAAEYs/m9rikSxCVbo/s640/blogger-image--54877346.jpg"></a>Ingredients for the rice and beans.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-JQAZuvMXTqE/VRyF5iMq1KI/AAAAAAAAEYk/g286Ymoq5QQ/s640/blogger-image-1099426905.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-JQAZuvMXTqE/VRyF5iMq1KI/AAAAAAAAEYk/g286Ymoq5QQ/s640/blogger-image-1099426905.jpg"></a>Finished dinners! The red beans and rice was accompanied by lemon spinach. The spinach was really good and simple-the spinach was simply cooked and coated with lemon juice! It was awesome-very tangy and flavorful! The red beans and rice were just blah. No seasonings were used so they were kind of bland and tasteless. I dated a guy in high school whose family was from Lousiana and I loved eating the Cajun food his mom made! I still make some of her recipes and I love how spicy and flavorful Cajun food is. Red beans and rice is a Cajun staple and his mom's was amazing-this in no way matched the flavor. With some spices and flavoring in it it would have been amazing-but without any spices it was just bland. I was pretty disappointed-I don't know why this plan is so against the use of spices! That's what makes the meal :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 1.82 per serving (3.64 for both of us)</div><br></div></div><br></div><br></div><br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-18171374385761502882015-03-25T17:11:00.001-07:002015-03-26T15:47:02.862-07:00Day 12We're so close to the finish line! I'm getting excited to get back to my regular cooking schedule! This has definitely been a very eye opening project. It is a lot more difficult to eat healthy than I previously thought. I was really one of those people who was dismissive of a lot of the excuses that were given for not eating healthy. I tended to look down on a lot of the choices people who were living in poverty made. While I still disagree with some of the choices made I can be more understanding of the challenges that go into making healthy choices. The average food stamp allotment provides $3.00 per person per DAY! That is not a lot of money to make healthy food choices. Many of our meals were over 3.00 per serving-that would be impossible to make on our food stamp budget. I will say I'm thankful that DH and I have the resources to do a project like this and that it isn't our reality-it was way harder than I expected.<div><br></div><div>Breakfast:</div><div>Breakfast today was cereal and scrambled eggs with salsa. We essentially combined the meals from the past few days to make one meal.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-8oNIJfWrWxc/VRNOnx52kOI/AAAAAAAAELw/4g3t3prxSt0/s640/blogger-image--446539415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-8oNIJfWrWxc/VRNOnx52kOI/AAAAAAAAELw/4g3t3prxSt0/s640/blogger-image--446539415.jpg"></a>Getting ready to cook up the eggs! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-X1pkXWxJTAU/VRNOmiuTZBI/AAAAAAAAELo/Cg5adB23wjE/s640/blogger-image--1051417805.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-X1pkXWxJTAU/VRNOmiuTZBI/AAAAAAAAELo/Cg5adB23wjE/s640/blogger-image--1051417805.jpg"></a>Finished breakfasts! I've already talked about the values of cold cereal so I don't have much to add. The eggs and salsa were delicious-I liked them better in burrito format rather than just scrambled but they were still pretty good.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 1.86 per serving (3.72 for both of us)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lunch:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lunch was the leftover white chili from the night before.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-H8WwZcdwH4o/VRNOgrXsh3I/AAAAAAAAELQ/S0Myzko6jMU/s640/blogger-image--816897479.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-H8WwZcdwH4o/VRNOgrXsh3I/AAAAAAAAELQ/S0Myzko6jMU/s640/blogger-image--816897479.jpg"></a>The leftover chili was accompanied by a side salad-carrots, lettuce and vinegarette dressing.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SfK-D-b7P44/VRNOh5zUAHI/AAAAAAAAELY/Uv1zjKk3fsU/s640/blogger-image-1529937930.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-SfK-D-b7P44/VRNOh5zUAHI/AAAAAAAAELY/Uv1zjKk3fsU/s640/blogger-image-1529937930.jpg"></a>Finished lunches! The toast and milk were the usual accompaniments. The chili kept well for the next day and was pretty easy to reheat in the microwave. The salad was yummy. The toast was actually a good accompaniment to the chili-it was pretty tasty to dunk the buttered toast in the chili.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 3.78 per serving (7.56 for both of us)</div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner was quick and easy but strange-it was misickquatash also known as Indian succotash. We had a side of mashed potatoes to go along with it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-3cQUbY1TFQU/VRNOfSztOTI/AAAAAAAAELI/n4j7WXRo5XA/s640/blogger-image--1679442169.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-3cQUbY1TFQU/VRNOfSztOTI/AAAAAAAAELI/n4j7WXRo5XA/s640/blogger-image--1679442169.jpg"></a>Ingredients for our dinner. Luckily it was WAY less ingredients than yesterday's dinner!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Y5KusuUStRU/VRNOj6QV0VI/AAAAAAAAELg/Gg94l4L1CIM/s640/blogger-image--1365000565.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Y5KusuUStRU/VRNOj6QV0VI/AAAAAAAAELg/Gg94l4L1CIM/s640/blogger-image--1365000565.jpg"></a>First step was to brown the ground beef.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GosAVFuk_3E/VRNOo_p1QwI/AAAAAAAAEL4/9pk7WdbrkRU/s640/blogger-image--1079677551.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GosAVFuk_3E/VRNOo_p1QwI/AAAAAAAAEL4/9pk7WdbrkRU/s640/blogger-image--1079677551.jpg"></a>Once the ground beef was browned the tomatoes, Lima beans and corn were added. Once they were added simmer for 5 minutes covered and dinner is finished! This was a less than 15 minute dinner which was nice! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-iXyyHJorGeE/VRNOp573A9I/AAAAAAAAEMA/K_y0ekrnSNY/s640/blogger-image--495895139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-iXyyHJorGeE/VRNOp573A9I/AAAAAAAAEMA/K_y0ekrnSNY/s640/blogger-image--495895139.jpg"></a>Finished suppers! This wasn't a bad supper-it was definitely full of veggies, colorful, healthy and easy to make. It tasted pretty good as well-right before serving it was topped with nutmeg which was an interesting choice. If I was making this on my own I probably would have added more seasonings to it to give it some more flavor. This meal could work with lots of different types of veggies and still be good! However, it was kind of expensive which worked against it. I do think this is something simple to make and something that we could make again.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 3.10 per serving (6.20 for both of us)</div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-73106157475214218942015-03-24T17:40:00.001-07:002015-03-25T10:32:34.470-07:00Day 11Holy moly! Thank goodness it was Spring Break! Day 11 was a complicated and time consuming day! Dinner took almost 3 hours to prepare-and most of that was hands on cooking time!!<div><br></div><div>Breakfast:</div><div>Breakfast was scrambled eggs and salsa wrapped up in a burrito!</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9DqMCidSlhY/VRID68hhZOI/AAAAAAAAEKc/8Cyj8Jsedvg/s640/blogger-image-1909926719.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9DqMCidSlhY/VRID68hhZOI/AAAAAAAAEKc/8Cyj8Jsedvg/s640/blogger-image-1909926719.jpg"></a>Breakfast! The eggs were made in a very interesting way-you baked them in the oven in a Pyrex pan! They actually turned out really good and it reduced the cooking time by a lot! I liked that the burritos were portable-I had a ton of stuff to do and I could take my breakfast in the car with me! We will definitely be making these again! You could add veggies, sausage, cheese and all sorts of stuff to the burritos to make them more filling! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total Cost: .80 per serving (1.60 for both of us) This was our cheapest meal yet!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lunch:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lunch was a roast beef sandwich, carrot sticks and an apple with peanut butter. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c-u0Ivkhnko/VRID2robajI/AAAAAAAAEJ0/d6Q_y7xUbOw/s640/blogger-image-1466001872.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-c-u0Ivkhnko/VRID2robajI/AAAAAAAAEJ0/d6Q_y7xUbOw/s640/blogger-image-1466001872.jpg"></a>Ingredients for lunch! I like all the fun ideas they have for sandwiches on this plan. It's easy to add some tomato and lettuce to a sandwich to amp up the health factor!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-IMasx1mevWI/VRID1xofwpI/AAAAAAAAEJs/Ooe_NSOqTl8/s640/blogger-image--332967255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-IMasx1mevWI/VRID1xofwpI/AAAAAAAAEJs/Ooe_NSOqTl8/s640/blogger-image--332967255.jpg"></a>Finished sandwiches. The lunches also included carrot sticks and apple slices with peanut butter. DH ended up putting the peanut butter on his carrot sticks and he said it was really good! I find the carrot sticks to be kind of boring even with some ranch dressing. I'll have to try peanut butter next time!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 2.48 per serving (4.96 for both of us)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner:</div>Dinner was white chili, herbed vegetables and baked sweet potatoes! The chili took FOREVER!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dzxXDdFO-3M/VRID3tv-MEI/AAAAAAAAEJ8/7v_qSQMs7B0/s640/blogger-image--1507454246.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-dzxXDdFO-3M/VRID3tv-MEI/AAAAAAAAEJ8/7v_qSQMs7B0/s640/blogger-image--1507454246.jpg"></a>All these ingredients for the chili. Thank goodness we had some leftover cooked chicken or we would have had to cook chicken too!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-5Yf3rxMGvAs/VRID4SwWxnI/AAAAAAAAEKE/Wa8bhSSjUlA/s640/blogger-image--1873555832.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-5Yf3rxMGvAs/VRID4SwWxnI/AAAAAAAAEKE/Wa8bhSSjUlA/s640/blogger-image--1873555832.jpg"></a> First step was to cook the beans. It took an hour and a half to cook the beans! I didn't realize it took that long to cook beans! All the water cooked away and I ended up having to add more half way through.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-5RJoHppgPeg/VRID07yGbtI/AAAAAAAAEJk/uJ5ziqrEmtU/s640/blogger-image--528578257.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-5RJoHppgPeg/VRID07yGbtI/AAAAAAAAEJk/uJ5ziqrEmtU/s640/blogger-image--528578257.jpg"></a>While the beans were cooking it was time to chop up the veggies! We had some tomatoes that needed to be used up so I went ahead and added them to the chili. The chili used 3 cloves of garlic!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jibjdhwQ_lE/VRID5cGn3II/AAAAAAAAEKM/6hyYt0SzSmA/s640/blogger-image-1657325052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-jibjdhwQ_lE/VRID5cGn3II/AAAAAAAAEKM/6hyYt0SzSmA/s640/blogger-image-1657325052.jpg"></a>I made the sweet potatoes in the oven. It's very easy-stab them with a fork, sprinkle with salt, garlic powder and pepper, wrap in aluminum foil and bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes! They turned out so good!! They were really soft and tender and delicious!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fOSQam8QMQ0/VRID8jGymiI/AAAAAAAAEKs/gl00mgiTiKc/s640/blogger-image--121899553.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fOSQam8QMQ0/VRID8jGymiI/AAAAAAAAEKs/gl00mgiTiKc/s640/blogger-image--121899553.jpg"></a>I was running like crazy-three pots on the stove and the oven going!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-r5O4XlWe4To/VRID6LfcZGI/AAAAAAAAEKU/kPwmDsdBrBM/s640/blogger-image-769077420.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-r5O4XlWe4To/VRID6LfcZGI/AAAAAAAAEKU/kPwmDsdBrBM/s640/blogger-image-769077420.jpg"></a>The canned vegetables were mixed with onions and Rosemary. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-_Ga09qNNN9U/VRID9nt5RAI/AAAAAAAAEK0/PcaDZrw6Ws4/s640/blogger-image-32307483.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-_Ga09qNNN9U/VRID9nt5RAI/AAAAAAAAEK0/PcaDZrw6Ws4/s640/blogger-image-32307483.jpg"></a>Finished chili! It looks like a lot of food, but it was only 4 servings!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-bOUMTNJkbE4/VRID7wvCj5I/AAAAAAAAEKk/C8u16_yIFps/s640/blogger-image--887700639.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-bOUMTNJkbE4/VRID7wvCj5I/AAAAAAAAEKk/C8u16_yIFps/s640/blogger-image--887700639.jpg"></a>Finished dinners! The chili was topped with shredded corn tortillas. It was a lot of food! Dinner was good-the chili was certainly interesting. I liked it but because of the preparation time I probably won't make it again. I usually make delicious chili in the slow cooker-it takes only 15 minutes of hands on time and it tastes just as good! It's also cheaper than this recipe-the chili was EXPENSIVE! The herbed veggies were good, but we used a little too much Rosemary. I always forget that since our Rosemary is from the garden it's more powerful than the dried stuff. These were simple to make-I'll definitely make them again! I LOVE sweet potatoes and we already eat them quite a bit-these will be made again for sure!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 4.25 per serving (8.50 for both of us). All the veggies that went into this really raised the cost quite a bit!</div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-45739916409224028142015-03-24T15:48:00.001-07:002015-03-24T16:02:56.850-07:00Day 10We've had a crazy schedule lately due to DH's work schedule so we have been eating out more and more and cooking less and less. We've finally been able to get on track-we're so close to being finished!<div><br></div><div>Breakfast:</div><div>Breakfast was cold cereal with fruit and milk. It was a morning I was in pain and I was happy it was something I could eat on the couch while using my massager! It was a cheap and easy breakfast! Cold cereal is such an easy meal and it's pretty healthy! We've made so many complicated breakfasts and this one was so cheap and easy! There really isn't a lot you can say about cereal. We had peanut butter toast to go with it! I love the fact that peanut butter toast has healthy fat, protein and whole grains! It's so easy and makes a great snack! I've actually added peanut butter toast to my regular repertoire! </div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Vty0cK0Rz8E/VRHtE-zgGxI/AAAAAAAAEHg/dPotxjhaS_o/s640/blogger-image-127211347.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Vty0cK0Rz8E/VRHtE-zgGxI/AAAAAAAAEHg/dPotxjhaS_o/s640/blogger-image-127211347.jpg"></a></div></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Total cost: 1.10 per serving (2.20 for both of us)</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div>Lunch:</div><div>Lunch was salmon salad with milk and crackers. It was disgusting!! </div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-8Ge9TcM_A1Y/VRHpd4fHRII/AAAAAAAAEG0/AT7zlT2RECw/s640/blogger-image--561955828.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-8Ge9TcM_A1Y/VRHpd4fHRII/AAAAAAAAEG0/AT7zlT2RECw/s640/blogger-image--561955828.jpg"></a>Ingredients for the lunches!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-RsBw2vx012s/VRHpfj4mQeI/AAAAAAAAEHE/bbt33O4Teao/s640/blogger-image-608814443.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-RsBw2vx012s/VRHpfj4mQeI/AAAAAAAAEHE/bbt33O4Teao/s640/blogger-image-608814443.jpg"></a>The salads were made with a whole can of salmon! It kind of overpowered everything else! Even with a ton of dressing you couldn't hide the fish smell.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-EPqobFdCBg4/VRHpgoP2IcI/AAAAAAAAEHM/enC7rBLpUQc/s640/blogger-image--1502023442.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-EPqobFdCBg4/VRHpgoP2IcI/AAAAAAAAEHM/enC7rBLpUQc/s640/blogger-image--1502023442.jpg"></a>The salads were accompanied by crackers. There wasn't a lot of food with this meal-no fruit or side dishes :(. The salads didn't keep well in the fridge! When I took it out to eat it I practically threw up-it smelled like the salmon had turned. I texted DH (since we all know my aversion to fish) and he agreed. I tried to pick off the cucumbers and tomatoes to eat but they had absorbed the fish juice!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-j798QWg8bDI/VRHpe1XvrmI/AAAAAAAAEG8/5Exqay4oRxc/s640/blogger-image--835243062.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-j798QWg8bDI/VRHpe1XvrmI/AAAAAAAAEG8/5Exqay4oRxc/s640/blogger-image--835243062.jpg"></a>I ended up cheating and going to Burger King. This was the first meal that was truly inedible! I texted DH this picture with the caption "yup I cheated". Slightly awkward situation since his friend was looking at his phone and didn't see the picture! Oh well! I did drink my milk and eat my crackers!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 3.46 per serving (6.92 for both of us) This was a very expensive and terrible meal-not even factoring in the cost of eating out when it was inedible.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">After the disappointment of lunch I was looking forward to a yummy dinner. DH ended up cooking and I didn't have to be involved at all! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-S06aZxyV9uI/VRHtFqPG3MI/AAAAAAAAEHo/shJUI_U9sRc/s640/blogger-image-387388801.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-S06aZxyV9uI/VRHtFqPG3MI/AAAAAAAAEHo/shJUI_U9sRc/s640/blogger-image-387388801.jpg"></a>Simple and easy supper-honey mustard pork chops and baked potatoes. The soy sauce and mustard were mixed together and the chops were soaked for a few minutes before being fried in oil!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--KT4we-ZQg4/VRHtGrMD4II/AAAAAAAAEHw/8rSZAksEDDY/s640/blogger-image--211079164.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--KT4we-ZQg4/VRHtGrMD4II/AAAAAAAAEHw/8rSZAksEDDY/s640/blogger-image--211079164.jpg"></a>Dessert was applesauce cookies (and cake since it made so much!) DH said these were really easy and quick to make!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Sr6pWxarnP4/VRHtHucF1_I/AAAAAAAAEH4/58blnLXJ2cg/s640/blogger-image-1505268770.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Sr6pWxarnP4/VRHtHucF1_I/AAAAAAAAEH4/58blnLXJ2cg/s640/blogger-image-1505268770.jpg"></a>Finished dinners-it didn't look like much. They were yummy! The pork chops had a lot of flavor-we did over cook them a little bit. Next time I would like to bake them instead of frying them! The potatoes were topped with salsa-I was unsure about that combination at first but it's actually really good and saves a ton of calories! Surprisingly we didn't have any frozen veggies with this meal-I thought that was strange! It would have added some much needed color.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-930BM8DhiF0/VRHtDmGXnII/AAAAAAAAEHY/Pmrd8ebp37g/s640/blogger-image--73489876.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-930BM8DhiF0/VRHtDmGXnII/AAAAAAAAEHY/Pmrd8ebp37g/s640/blogger-image--73489876.jpg"></a>The applesauce cake! We had so much batter that we turned it into a cake! It was awesome! I've been really impressed with the desserts on this plan! They are healthy and taste delicious! It's nice to have desserts to munch on during the week, even if we don't eat all of it! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I really liked today's dinner! It was easy and very delicious!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 3.45 per serving (6.90 for both of us) It was a little pricey for sure, but the dessert was a large part of it!</div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-5741553017271311002015-03-20T11:19:00.000-07:002015-04-20T06:30:24.829-07:00A Place At The TableAs part of our project DH and I are trying to learn all we can about food insecurity and the reasons behind it. My mom recommended the excellent documentary "A Place At The Table" which is available for streaming on Netflix or can be purchased at the affiliate link below.<br />
<iframe style="width:120px;height:240px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=ss_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=twboadakethcr-20&marketplace=amazon®ion=US&placement=B00B119H1A&asins=B00B119H1A&linkId=LUKYNRF5SS7NFQNJ&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true">
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DH and I decided to watch it this weekend and we were pleasantly surprised by the film-but concerned by some of the choices people made. The film looks at food insecurity mostly through the stories of various families and their struggles. The most moving story was of Barbie and her children from Philadelphia. When the film starts she is receiving aid due to a job loss, but by the end of the film she has found a job and been cut off. She is still struggling to feed her children even though she is working. Her story was probably my favorite since she was really trying her hardest and still struggling. I appreciated that they made the point that without living wages we can't expect lower income workers to feed their families.<br />
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However, I was frustrated by some of the choices people were making and their lack of priority on food. My grandmother lived through World War II in Germany and passed on her feelings of food insecurity to my mother and then onto myself. Food is something that should ALWAYS be the first priority. It was frustrating to see well fed dogs running around while the family was complaining about having nothing to eat.<br />
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DH and I discovered that seeds are actually covered under food stamps this weekend! Many of the families had ample space to grow a garden. DH and I are able to grow all the fruits and vegetables we need for the summer for about 4.00 worth of seeds. We are also able to get plenty of meat from his family farm. Those options weren't explored for either of the farming families that we profiled.<br />
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The one part I didn't like the was the insistence on the film of attacking agribusiness and touting the oft repeated line about corporate farms taking over the world. 87% of farms in the United States are family owned farms (http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/ag101/demographics.html) and some of those farms are very large. DH works with a family farm that encompasses over 60,000 acres and runs several different crops-in fact they are one of the largest suppliers of wheat to Anheuser-Busch! They are incorporated as an LLC but it is one family that does all of the work. It frustrates me to see misconceptions spread about the farming industry and especially about ag subsidies. That is an issue that the film didn't handle correctly and actually spread misinformation. All farm subsidies are public knowledge and most farmers receive very little. Combined with the fact that the majority of farms are family owned (and farming itself is a tough business) I don't see how cutting farm subsidies is going to help the problem of food insecurity.<br />
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Overall, I would highly recommend this film-it does a wonderful job exploring all the different facets of food insecurity and the governmental response to it. It's a nice overview of a complex problem and the personal stories make the issue hit home better. I would recommend the film to anyone interested in the issue as long as you take some of the political issues with a grain of salt (since all film makers have an agenda).Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-37625607452532616242015-03-18T18:32:00.001-07:002015-03-18T18:32:33.971-07:00Day 9I was thankful that day 9 was an easy day. In between the craziness of my birthday (most of the night was spent cleaning up dog vomit and pee after an accident) and work craziness I wasn't at all looking forward to a long day of cooking.<div><br></div><div>Breakfast:</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-q94f2BMS1CE/VQonJbSA0ZI/AAAAAAAAD3I/TU8Djpyn3Mo/s640/blogger-image--765547482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-q94f2BMS1CE/VQonJbSA0ZI/AAAAAAAAD3I/TU8Djpyn3Mo/s640/blogger-image--765547482.jpg"></a>Breakfast this morning was a sausage omelette and hash browns. It was pretty yummy and the omelette was very cheesy!! If we were making this on our own it would have been made with egg whites. It was a nice treat to have a real egg omelette! The hash browns were good (except that they cost me one scorched stainless steel pan since DH isn't very good and cooking in anything other than a non stick skillet). It took about 25 minutes for the eggs to firm up-is that normal? I feel that cooking eggs should take less time than that.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 2.31 per serving (4.62 for both of us)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lunch:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Lunch was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and carrot sticks! I was happy it was a quick meal to make the night before.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sBnte-6atYg/VQonMBdUyJI/AAAAAAAAD3g/Kq4A4cbej1M/s640/blogger-image--1893841582.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sBnte-6atYg/VQonMBdUyJI/AAAAAAAAD3g/Kq4A4cbej1M/s640/blogger-image--1893841582.jpg"></a>We used Damson plum jelly on our sandwiches! It was so yummy! Sand plum jelly is very sweet and it mixed well with the peanut butter. I just can't say much about carrot sticks with ranch dressing or PB&J. This was a pretty basic and simple meal that anyone could make. Even my students could make this meal on their own without any danger!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 1.78 per serving (3.56 for both)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Dinner was tuna casserole with frozen green beans and a roll.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ec_YDF17lUI/VQonIbFtuWI/AAAAAAAAD3A/5fj-D8YXVQ8/s640/blogger-image-1929264468.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-ec_YDF17lUI/VQonIbFtuWI/AAAAAAAAD3A/5fj-D8YXVQ8/s640/blogger-image-1929264468.jpg"></a>Ingredients for quick tuna casserole.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-T_d47gm23_Q/VQonHkp5iUI/AAAAAAAAD24/gMjf0LHXLuI/s640/blogger-image-1507913904.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-T_d47gm23_Q/VQonHkp5iUI/AAAAAAAAD24/gMjf0LHXLuI/s640/blogger-image-1507913904.jpg"></a>The milk, tuna, peas and cream of mushroom soup were all mixed together in the pan. The recipe indicated that you should mix them in a bowl and then put it in the baking dish but I just used the dish as the mixing bowl.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Qdaz-JlR2H4/VQonKZF40QI/AAAAAAAAD3Q/WZ-CtRxIHtU/s640/blogger-image--1411385362.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Qdaz-JlR2H4/VQonKZF40QI/AAAAAAAAD3Q/WZ-CtRxIHtU/s640/blogger-image--1411385362.jpg"></a>You cooked the egg noodles for two minutes and then added them to the mixture before topping with bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes and dinner is done!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xFr7k9vx3mw/VQonLB0nsxI/AAAAAAAAD3Y/21u-Kwv8mu8/s640/blogger-image--1274048764.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xFr7k9vx3mw/VQonLB0nsxI/AAAAAAAAD3Y/21u-Kwv8mu8/s640/blogger-image--1274048764.jpg"></a>Finished dinners! The casserole really tasted like tuna! When you cook tuna it gets really smelly (or maybe I'm just crazy). DH really enjoyed it and I wasn't a big fan. The roll and the green beans were standard fare-the usual stuff we eat every day. This was a good meal to make after work-I think the casserole would work well with any type of pre cooked meat (chicken, ground beef etc.). I'll probably modify the recipe and use chicken next time-then it will be a keeper! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 2.48 per serving (4.96 for both of us)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I liked that today was very simpler and fitted to a working schedule. While none of the meals today were exciting or fancy they were filling, healthy, cheap and easy to make! This is what I wanted from this meal plan since we started! I didn't have to spend hours in the kitchen and I still had time to get stuff done even after cooking! </div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-79708810463729568142015-03-17T13:10:00.001-07:002015-03-18T18:06:53.703-07:00Day 8Day 8 was a very interesting day. I wasn't a fan of breakfast and lunch-but dinner was a huge hit.<br>
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Breakfast<br>
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Breakfast was raisin oatmeal (no peanut butter this time) along with milk and a banana. I'm honestly getting pretty tired of the obsession with oatmeal! There are so many other breakfast options out there and adding raisins to it just doesn't make it any better!!<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-SHmsceu0_8A/VQof_YyIsvI/AAAAAAAAD2Y/G0oTmkZ_4YA/s640/blogger-image--2041766071.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-SHmsceu0_8A/VQof_YyIsvI/AAAAAAAAD2Y/G0oTmkZ_4YA/s640/blogger-image--2041766071.jpg"></a>Raisin oatmeal-it definitely is a healthy and filling meal but not exactly the most appetizing way to start my day. I know lots of people enjoy oatmeal, but I don't. I will say that this is an easy and practical breakfast that is pretty cheap. This would be practical for many families.</div><br>
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1.63 per serving (3.26 for both of us)<br>
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Lunch:<br>
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Lunch was a tuna sandwich with tomatoes, mayo and lettuce along with a side of sliced cucumbers and ranch dressing. I enjoyed the sandwich but it didn't keep very well in the fridge-the tomatoes made the bread all soggy by lunch time which was gross. I definitely enjoyed my side of cucumbers-I actually didn't even dunk them in the ranch. They were just as tasty on their own! It was a fine lunch, but nothing that was very exciting!<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-3ob1j6KQLA0/VQicJT_o8dI/AAAAAAAAD0Y/KYfNbtEvJLE/s640/blogger-image-203038462.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-3ob1j6KQLA0/VQicJT_o8dI/AAAAAAAAD0Y/KYfNbtEvJLE/s640/blogger-image-203038462.jpg"></a>Lunch ingredients</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-6KR9jVM3Wh8/VQicKageqGI/AAAAAAAAD0g/WwRLiPhASk4/s640/blogger-image--1813965771.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-6KR9jVM3Wh8/VQicKageqGI/AAAAAAAAD0g/WwRLiPhASk4/s640/blogger-image--1813965771.jpg"></a>Sliced cucumbers-it wasn't a lot!</div><br></div><br>
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2.12 per serving (4.24 for both of us)<br>
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Dinner:<br>
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Dinner was red hot fusilli pasta. We ended up using bow ties since they didn't have fusilli pasta at our grocery store. The side dishes were peas and a dinner roll. For week 2 we bought pretzel rolls instead of white dinner rolls. They were the same price and have less calories (and ours are whole grain!). It made all the difference! It was so much better than just a plain dinner roll.<br>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-kyiU4SQhF-A/VQicIAHLHHI/AAAAAAAAD0Q/JBtHZpFQLGQ/s640/blogger-image--1170898016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-kyiU4SQhF-A/VQicIAHLHHI/AAAAAAAAD0Q/JBtHZpFQLGQ/s640/blogger-image--1170898016.jpg"></a></div>The pasta was pretty simple to make and delicious! I enjoyed it, but I'm not sure we cooked it right since our sauce wasn't very saucy. It was more like chunks of tomato and chicken-it was good though!</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SV9JXAYqVEI/VQogAOHHcnI/AAAAAAAAD2g/U2jDDOOxz6M/s640/blogger-image--153330030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SV9JXAYqVEI/VQogAOHHcnI/AAAAAAAAD2g/U2jDDOOxz6M/s640/blogger-image--153330030.jpg"></a></div>Finished dinners. I was able to mix the peas in with the pasta which added some flavor to the frozen veggies. I'm actually growing more fond of the frozen veggies at each meal! They are so quick to make and are such an easy way to add some health to a meal. It doesn't add much to the preparation time and can be added to any meal. This is something I could easily encourage my 8th graders to do-they could even prepare some frozen veggies for a family dinner! Some progress is better than none!</div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-9BLf-f0F_sg/VQicLIBNg0I/AAAAAAAAD0o/toqFnbLTe6g/s640/blogger-image--1460504775.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-9BLf-f0F_sg/VQicLIBNg0I/AAAAAAAAD0o/toqFnbLTe6g/s640/blogger-image--1460504775.jpg"></a>I think more topping would have maybe made them set up into bar form. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-gAT8k-jtJRA/VQohK7JQdTI/AAAAAAAAD2o/q4ofsfzNoHM/s640/blogger-image--787541718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-gAT8k-jtJRA/VQohK7JQdTI/AAAAAAAAD2o/q4ofsfzNoHM/s640/blogger-image--787541718.jpg"></a>More of an apple crumble</div><br>
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Dessert was apple cinnamon bars. They were actually pretty simple to make and they were tasty-however they didn't quite turn out like a bar. I was expecting something portable, but it was just a crumbly mess. There wasn't quite enough sugar mix to cover the apples and they never set up into a bar format. It was really delicious and tasted a lot like apple crisp! We will be making these again but I might try to find a way to modify the recipe in order to make them turn into more of a bar. These would be a great thing to have for breakfast as well. Dinner tonight was definitely a hit!<br>
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Total Cost: 3.71 per serving (7.42 for both of us)</div></div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-12394055515290027992015-03-17T12:46:00.001-07:002015-03-18T17:45:28.606-07:00Week 2 ShoppingWe went shopping for week 2 with a heavy heart! Last week was SO expensive and I wasn't looking forward to another marathon shopping trip. The list was once again massive!<br>
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We tried to halve everything we could, but somethings you just couldn't halve (like a bag of chocolate chips). While we were shopping for this trip we made note of the things we had leftover and didn't buy additional foods that we already had ton of. I was hoping that this would save us some money and lower the grocery bill. The grand total for week 2 was $108.71!! We did save a little money over week 1, but not a lot, We're still over our SNAP allotment. We purchased only the cheapest products available and skipped purchasing many of the things that we already had.</div>
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It did take less time this time since we were more familiar with the store and both of us went shopping. So far I've been pretty disappointed in the project since we are spending way more than we usually do and the recipes aren't that great. I'm wearing myself out cooking every day and not getting any monetary savings from it. We saved less with our store savings card this time than we did last time (only 3.58) and we didn't use any coupons again. </div>
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All the bags! It does seem like less than last time for some reason! </div>
<br>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-86553201995891102572015-03-17T12:22:00.001-07:002015-03-18T17:46:06.567-07:00Day 7Day 7 fell on a weekend for us and it was SO much less stressful when we had the whole day to cook.<br>
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Breakfast:<br>
Breakfast today was fantastic French toast! I had actually mentioned to DH that I was craving French toast and I was so surprised when I woke up! I actually thought he had forgot about our challenge and made me a surprise. The breakfast was paired with juice and a banana! The French toast was delicious! I just wish we could have had more than one slice. I have no complaints about this breakfast!<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-gDe3vQtC_ng/VQocE2A7O-I/AAAAAAAAD14/j9MqOwo4GRg/s640/blogger-image-201854050.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-gDe3vQtC_ng/VQocE2A7O-I/AAAAAAAAD14/j9MqOwo4GRg/s640/blogger-image-201854050.jpg"></a>French toast cooking on the Griddler. For a cooking implement I totally recommend the Cuisinart Griddler! It takes on the job of a griddle, panini press and you can buy plates to turn it into a waffle maker! We use it all the time-for breakfasts, lunches and dinners! It cooks awesome hamburgers :) Plus it's super easy to clean-I used to have a George Foreman and it was a pain to clean. The plates on the Griddler are removable so it's awesome.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">We forgot to take a picture of the rest of the meal-we were way too busy chowing down! It was an awesome breakfast.</div><br>
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Total Cost: 1.18 per serving (2.36 per meal)<br>
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Lunch:<br>
Lunch was leftover lentil stew with toast and milk. Since I already covered the lentil stew in Day 6 I won't cover it again. It was just as delicious the second day (and it was even good cold).<br>
Total Cost: 1.32 per serving (2.64 for both of us)<br>
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Dinner:<br>
Dinner was a pan fried pork chop with a baked potato and cabbage slaw. DH commented that we were frying more things on this plan then we usually do-which is true. The pork chop was awesome-DH jazzed it up a bit with some breadcrumbs and seasonings. The baked potatoes were okay-the salsa was an interesting topping and something I hadn't thought to add to my baked potatoes. I would have liked to add some sour cream or cheese as well.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9vWRMJU3cmI/VQocGs3a1yI/AAAAAAAAD2I/uwGRvVhORyU/s640/blogger-image--1031082102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9vWRMJU3cmI/VQocGs3a1yI/AAAAAAAAD2I/uwGRvVhORyU/s640/blogger-image--1031082102.jpg"></a>The pork chops were pretty simple-I've made these before out of my Loveless Cafe cookbook-typical Southern food! </div><br></div>We made lettuce slaw instead of cabbage slaw since our cabbage went bad before we were able to use it. It was actually pretty interesting and kind of tasty. DH wasn't a big fan but I really liked it. We apparently did a terrible job of taking pictures today. I guess the meals were so delicious that we were too busy eating to photograph the meals!<br>
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Total cost: 3.41 per serving (6.81 per meal)<br>
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I really liked today! Every meal was pretty simple to make and nothing took a lot of time! Also the meals were inexpensive and delicious. This was probably the perfect day so far out of the challenge.</div>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-78414163560666432562015-03-13T09:05:00.001-07:002015-03-18T17:35:15.563-07:00Day 6<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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I was still feeling frustrated on day 6, just like day 5 so I apologize in advance if this post isn't very positive. Currently I'm feeling that healthy eating is such a complex topic it's impossible to tackle with any sort of fidelity. There are so many issues that go into healthy eating and the availability of food that it isn't easy to just give people a book of recipes and expect it to work (as I feel Choose My Plate does). </div>
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Breakfast:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tZlG9rPsvV4/VQoZvMlt2SI/AAAAAAAAD1k/WNcp0dgP8lU/s640/blogger-image--1862015620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-tZlG9rPsvV4/VQoZvMlt2SI/AAAAAAAAD1k/WNcp0dgP8lU/s640/blogger-image--1862015620.jpg"></a>What tofu looks like before its cooked-not very appealing!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nK51zT1Ufmg/VQoZwagPrHI/AAAAAAAAD1s/dtru6mHqGcM/s640/blogger-image--865134339.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-nK51zT1Ufmg/VQoZwagPrHI/AAAAAAAAD1s/dtru6mHqGcM/s640/blogger-image--865134339.jpg"></a>Finished burritos! DH was pretty proud of them.</div><br></div><br></div>
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-w4RVXPCJZzA/VQMD-PhWpvI/AAAAAAAADo8/7Y24E88P3xQ/s640/blogger-image--888491272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-w4RVXPCJZzA/VQMD-PhWpvI/AAAAAAAADo8/7Y24E88P3xQ/s640/blogger-image--888491272.jpg"></a>Breakfast was a scrambled tofu burrito and reconstituted grape juice. It was actually a pretty decent breakfast-the tofu was mixed with 1 scrambled egg so it kind of tasted like eggs. If you put enough salsa on it the taste of the tofu was pretty hidden so it tasted like you were just eating a burrito of salsa. I didn't find breakfast to be very filling today-it was hungry by 9:00. I also felt that more veggies could have been added to the burrito to make it taste better-there was barely any pepper chunks to add some flavor. DH and I eat A LOT of breakfast burritos-he'll make a batch of them on Sundays and freeze them so all we have to do it heat them up. We make our burritos with egg whites, veggies, turkey sausage and cheese-they are amazing and pretty healthy. I don't feel that our tofu burrito was any healthier-in fact with the lack of vegetables I feel that it was less healthy. </div>
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Total Cost: 2.43 per serving (4.86 for both of us)</div>
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Lunch:</div>
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Lunch was crunchy chicken salad sandwiches. It was ridiculous to have to prepare a whole different meal at the same time we were cooking the fish/couscous. It made dinner preparations take forever and dirtied up tons of dishes. I just don't feel that making a completely separate meal for lunch makes sense.</div>
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Ingredients for the crunchy chicken salad: Chicken breast tenders, celery, apples, green peppers, chopped onion grapes and plain yogurt. The salad was also supposed to have cucumber in it, but we had used all our cucumber in our salads so we skipped it. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_BKQKtkKu4I/VQMMeiTt6uI/AAAAAAAADpc/3gvJGr55F1s/s640/blogger-image--1892372591.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-_BKQKtkKu4I/VQMMeiTt6uI/AAAAAAAADpc/3gvJGr55F1s/s640/blogger-image--1892372591.jpg"></a>I just cooked the chicken up in a frying pan with a bit of oil-I'm not sure if this was the best way or if baking it would have been better. In my logical mind dinner the night before should have been a chicken dish and then you would repurpose the leftover chicken into salad rather than cooking up a batch of chicken especially for this-apparently that wasn't logical to the creators of the menu.</div><br></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yVOqnttmee0/VQMD_1aMLLI/AAAAAAAADpM/Yuy47H6hwsg/s640/blogger-image--902698068.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yVOqnttmee0/VQMD_1aMLLI/AAAAAAAADpM/Yuy47H6hwsg/s640/blogger-image--902698068.jpg"></a>While the chicken was cooking you diced up all the vegetables and added them to bowl. I find it strange to put grapes and apples into chicken salad. I also discovered how much of a pain it is to slice grapes-they have a tendency to crush under the knife or roll off the cutting board. </div>
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-qT50ZYKlaIA/VQMD-1BNBjI/AAAAAAAADpE/t4nlZcvqUMI/s640/blogger-image-56344185.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-qT50ZYKlaIA/VQMD-1BNBjI/AAAAAAAADpE/t4nlZcvqUMI/s640/blogger-image-56344185.jpg"></a>Chicken salad war wound-this is what happens when you try to cut grapes. I was trying to do too much at once (check on the chicken that was cooking and slice veggies) and I wasn't paying enough attention to the knife in my hand. It was a pretty small cut but it's in that annoying place on your thumb where it keeps breaking open! </div>
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-VF4aRU6boJk/VQMD7I9iRuI/AAAAAAAADoc/WhCuxenlNVQ/s640/blogger-image-1550930727.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-VF4aRU6boJk/VQMD7I9iRuI/AAAAAAAADoc/WhCuxenlNVQ/s640/blogger-image-1550930727.jpg"></a>After the chicken was cooked and diced it was added to the salad along with the yogurt and mixed up. For some reason this salad seems like something you would find in a 1950's cookbook-maybe that's just me though? I can really see Betty Draper bringing this to a neighborhood potluck!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-fKR9zIasQic/VQMMfqbLMCI/AAAAAAAADpk/ZnWPEZNZiOc/s640/blogger-image-371608801.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-fKR9zIasQic/VQMMfqbLMCI/AAAAAAAADpk/ZnWPEZNZiOc/s640/blogger-image-371608801.jpg"></a>The finished product-the only dressing was the yogurt but mixed with all the veggies it was pretty delicious.</div><br></div>
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-2MLbzOrHq9M/VQMD78MpSYI/AAAAAAAADok/fGTu3V3IQZM/s640/blogger-image--136983310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-2MLbzOrHq9M/VQMD78MpSYI/AAAAAAAADok/fGTu3V3IQZM/s640/blogger-image--136983310.jpg"></a>The bread was toasted and the salad was put on the bread on top of a slice of lettuce. It was hard to fit enough chicken salad on each piece of bread and trying to pick them up meant half the salad would fall out. At one point I ended up shouting at the salad to stay on the bread-DH found it pretty amusing.</div>
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<a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-pCHTaGZGWsA/VQMD9ViQ4OI/AAAAAAAADo0/47FO9uA4UzU/s640/blogger-image--609197620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-pCHTaGZGWsA/VQMD9ViQ4OI/AAAAAAAADo0/47FO9uA4UzU/s640/blogger-image--609197620.jpg"></a>Finished lunches: The sides were an orange, carrot sticks with ranch dressing and milk. The salad was actually pretty yummy-I thought the grapes and the apples were a nice addition (even if it seemed kind of odd). I did end up taking my sandwich apart and eating the salad with a fork-it was a little too messy to eat in sandwich format.The carrot sticks were okay-nothing special or different. My whole classroom smelled like oranges for the rest of the afternoon-it even overpowered my Scensty! I actually really liked the chicken salad-it would be a nice summertime meal or a nice simple Sunday lunch. To be honest it wasn't too hard to make-it was only when you were trying to cook two meals at once that it became overwhelming. I think we'll be making this one again in the future. We eat a lot of chicken and turkey based dishes and this would be a great and simple way to use up the leftovers and make something simple that would keep in the fridge for a few days for lunches or quick dinners. I think next time I would add some seasonings (like paprika) and maybe a squirt of lemon juice-that would really enhance the flavor without adding a lot of calories.</div>
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Total Cost: 3.88 per serving (7.76 for both) I feel that the meals are getting more expensive as we go through the program. I wonder why that is?<br>
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Dinner:<br>
Dinner tonight was lentil stew-yuck! I have a tortured history with lentils which is all my mother's fault. My mom was one of those hippy granola moms before it became cool to be one (a product of a European upbringing) and she was always ahead of the curve. When I was a kid she went through her own healthy eating experiment phase and decided to make lentil patties for dinner one night-they were TERRIBLE (even she admits it). However, I gagged on them (a small child with a very sensitive gag reflex-it was bound to happen) and my dad yelled at me for being disrespectful to my mom. I wasn't being disrespectful-they truly were an ill thought out idea. My mom is an amazing cook and makes other delicious lentil dishes but that it the one that stands out in my mind, I can eat them (unlike fish) and I kind of like them in certain dishes but it's not one of my favorite foods.<br>
<br><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GbWm4OSCJEA/VQOKA1PdxnI/AAAAAAAADp4/FcUjiSEVXPw/s640/blogger-image-923309124.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GbWm4OSCJEA/VQOKA1PdxnI/AAAAAAAADp4/FcUjiSEVXPw/s640/blogger-image-923309124.jpg"></a>Ingredients for lentil soup-I was excited to see that there were plenty of other veggies to give it flavor!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-m4p2Qh7HZOQ/VQOPVF_BWFI/AAAAAAAADqY/DkHOlcgYPv0/s640/blogger-image--1967829670.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-m4p2Qh7HZOQ/VQOPVF_BWFI/AAAAAAAADqY/DkHOlcgYPv0/s640/blogger-image--1967829670.jpg"></a>First step was to chop up the onion and sauté in a little bit of oil until the onions were tender (about 3 minutes is what the recipe said-in my stainless steel pans in took about 6)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Jy27Jz0mZ0c/VQOPTEfo30I/AAAAAAAADqI/M9PSxjX_MKQ/s640/blogger-image-812175868.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Jy27Jz0mZ0c/VQOPTEfo30I/AAAAAAAADqI/M9PSxjX_MKQ/s640/blogger-image-812175868.jpg"></a>All the other ingredients were then added. 2 cans of diced tomatoes, sliced carrots, lentils, garlic powder and chili powder. You let the mixture simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. While it was simmering we worked on the side dishes of broccoli (once again frozen and heated up) and brown rice.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-OVohwwedxcU/VQOPT4nF71I/AAAAAAAADqQ/CDGLKw8CnEw/s640/blogger-image-1056442810.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-OVohwwedxcU/VQOPT4nF71I/AAAAAAAADqQ/CDGLKw8CnEw/s640/blogger-image-1056442810.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Finished dinners! I thought the soup was awesome! It was a quick meal that didn't involve really any hands on time so it was perfect for me! This is the recipe I've been searching for-something quick and simple. It was very rich in flavor and you couldn't taste the lentils at all! This would be a perfect wintertime meal (not so great on a 75 degree day!)! I would like to try making this in the slow cooker-I think that would work well and make it even more hands off. I also think it would be yummy to add some sausage or browned ground beef to it. It would add some more protein to the meal and really kick up the flavor. I found the side dishes to be unnecessary-We did mix our rice into our soup which was delicious but not really needed. This recipe was just what I needed after a frustrating few days-something tasty, healthy and easy! Plus we only dirtied a cutting board and a pot! This meal is definitely a keeper! The dessert was canned pears-it was fine. There really isn't a lot to say about canned pears.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 2.22 per serving (4.44 for both)</div><br></div><br></div><br>
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<br>Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4363893123880771802.post-57316764204378998472015-03-11T09:28:00.000-07:002015-03-12T17:42:39.217-07:00Day 5It seems that every day the meals get better and better! I was excited about the breakfast for day 5 since it was something I would normally eat.<br>
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-9_xBeoh2MZ8/VQBjU_z2dcI/AAAAAAAADmo/KVpJ430uyzg/s640/blogger-image-1192954436.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-9_xBeoh2MZ8/VQBjU_z2dcI/AAAAAAAADmo/KVpJ430uyzg/s640/blogger-image-1192954436.jpg"></a>Breakfast was a fried egg and tomato sandwich on an English muffin along with apple juice. It was delicious!! DH had some problems making the eggs! We always eat scrambled eggs, not because we particularly like them but because they are the only things we know how to make. If we go out to eat we always order scrambled eggs because we don't know what the others mean and we don't want to end up with runny eggs. DH had to Google how to fry an egg and he kind of overcooked them a little bit. They were still yummy and the cheese and tomato hid the taste of the burnt eggs! For next time DH says he will put the cheese in the pan with the eggs and fold it over. We will also probably use an egg ring or a biscuit cutter to make the eggs more circular-they were a little big for the bread which made it kind of tough to eat. We will totally be making these again! They were SO good and pretty cheap and easy. It only took DH about fifteen minutes to make breakfast-that's a pretty good time to make a hot, filling breakfast!</div>
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It was nice to have a break from drinking milk! The juice is actually frozen juice that is reconstituted. It's cheaper than buying bottled juice, but once again you run into the storage issues. When I was a kid I used to suck the syrup directly out of the package (Shhh...don't tell my mom!) and it was AMAZING but super sugary from what I remember. I think that the frozen juice contains a lot more sugar than regular juice-it definitely tastes that way. </div>
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Our usual breakfast drink is water so we are getting more sugar and calories by adding in the juice. DH doesn't drink coffee and I drink tea on my way to work-not with breakfast. I like to have my glass of water with breakfast to hydrate (hydration is super important to me since one of my migraine triggers is dehydration and I don't want to end up in bed for a day from not drinking enough). I take my tea to work with me in a Tervis and switch between tea and water for most of the morning. I've noticed since I started this plan we've definitely been drinking less water and a lot more milk and juice. I know milk has calcium and is good for you, but at the same time I feel that water should be more encouraged! Water is practically free and super healthy for you! </div>
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Total Cost: 1.43 per serving (2.86 for both of us)</div>
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Lunch:</div>
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I was surprised that lunch didn't ask us to use any dinner leftovers, but I was happy because that marinated beef was delicious! We chowed down and didn't have ANY leftovers! :) We still have a TON of leftover polenta (even after quartering the recipe)-anyone want some? </div>
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Lunch today was a peanut butter and banana sandwich-a meal fit for the King (Elvis that is). It was quick to prepare and is something that anyone could make. This would be a good meal for my students who are living in a motel or living without electricity. It's also good for some of my kids whose parents don't provide them with meals-this is something they could make on their own pretty easily. </div>
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To make the sandwich you spread the PB on the bread and top with sliced bananas-easy peasy! The recipe called for 2 tbsp of peanut butter per sandwich! It was actually a lot of it-it covered both slices of bread completely! Each person got one sliced banana on their sandwich-I had trouble making the whole banana fit on there. DH snuck a few slices off the cutting board to help me make it fit :)</div>
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-bq2tj1SyRIU/VQBjTGCNj0I/AAAAAAAADmY/_j-IYRHyq5U/s640/blogger-image--538503921.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-bq2tj1SyRIU/VQBjTGCNj0I/AAAAAAAADmY/_j-IYRHyq5U/s640/blogger-image--538503921.jpg"></a> Finished Lunches! The side for the day was 1/2 cup of celery sticks and the beverage was milk (of course!). I was still full from breakfast, so I actually ate later in the day than I usually do. My kids were in the room while I was eating and they were making fun of my Elvis lunch-but a lot of them want to try to make these sandwiches at home so I'm calling it a win. I can see why Elvis liked these-they were delicious! This was such an easy lunch to make-I'll totally be making it again! The celery sticks were just meh-they weren't bad but they would have been better with some ranch dressing to dunk them in or some sort of flavor. Celery just doesn't have a lot of taste on it's own and it was pretty boring to eat them. I spent most of the afternoon munching on them (1/2 a cup doesn't sound like a lot but when it's celery it sure feels like a lot)! My kids kept complaining about the smell of celery, but they made no comment on the tuna from yesterday-just goes to show you how strange 8th graders are!</div>
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My mom wants me to point out that DH and I eat a lot less than most people do. I'm not a huge foodie by any means-honestly if there was a pill I could take that would keep me healthy and let me never eat again I would totally take it. I've been known to forget to eat and when I do eat I don't eat very much. I also tend to graze throughout the day rather than sitting down for 3 square meals-I have noticed that DH and I haven't been snacking AT ALL since we started this program. The meal plan provides healthy snacks, but we've never actually wanted them. DH and I just don't have big appetites so keep that in mind when we say we're full. Your mileage may vary-however I do feel that the meals are large enough for most people. It's also easier not to snack when you've had a balanced meal. DH and I were discussing our usual dinners and we realized we tend to make a lot of one item dinners-we don't make a lot of side dishes since that takes extra time. That means we miss out on the opportunity to hit more of the food groups with each meal and we have to eat snacks to fill in the gaps. With this meal plan we're getting all the food groups with each meal so our bodies don't need a snack to fill in the gaps! DH has already lost 2 pounds just since we started this plan-and we aren't even trying to lose weight (and that wasn't our goal!). He's pretty darn excited and he's loving this plan!</div>
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I'm loving the plan because he has been way more involved in the cooking and meal prep. Instead of me just deciding on dinner and making it we've been working together each night to make dinner and prep lunches! We've had some great conversations while we cook together and it's nice to have some help in the kitchen. Honestly, it makes meal prep more manageable (even when we're making something complicated) and the time flies by because we're talking and laughing. It really has been a great bonding experience for us. DH is also learning the kitchen better-where stuff is and what stuff we have! He does cook a lot, but it truly is my kitchen (since he travels so much). It's nice that he now knows where stuff is-hopefully he'll stop buying duplicates of stuff we already own!</div>
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Total cost: 1.92 per serving (3.84 for both)</div>
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Dinner:</div>
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This was the dinner I was most worried about! The main dish was oven baked fish and I HATE fish. A little tortuous back story to explain my hatred of fish: I've never really liked fish, but I could eat it for most of my life. It wouldn't be my first choice, but if I had to I would eat it. My freshman year of college my roommate brought home a blue betta she christened Delmarva. Somehow the fish became my responsibility and when she moved out at the end of the year the fish became mine. Delmarva lived for 3 whole years (a LONG time for a betta). I took excellent care of her and when I went home to see my parents I would bring her with me. She had a travel tank and would ride on my front passenger seat all the way home (they were only an hour and a half away at that time). One time I was cleaning her cage and she fell down the garbage disposal! Luckily my dad rescued her and she was okay! I LOVED that fish so much! My sophomore year of college I lived alone in an apartment and it got pretty lonely-it was nice to have a friend. However, cleaning her cage was disgusting! When you poured out the dirty water it smelled like raw fish-now every time I smell fish I think of Delmarva and it just turns my stomach. I do eat shrimp and crab (since they smell different) and the only actual fish I'll eat is my dad's tilapia that he makes (and only if my dad makes it-since he makes it super lemony and garlicky so you can't even taste the fish). DH and I have tried to make fish and I just can't handle the smell!</div>
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I know that I sound like a picky eater and I'm really not. I really will eat almost anything-and I eat a lot of food other people might consider strange. I am judging recipes for the blog pretty harshly since it's part of the project. I'm also open to trying new things-before this project I thought I hated salads and bananas but I've gained a new appreciation for both. Fish is really the ONLY food that I'm picky about, but I was willing to try it for the sake of the project. DH read some of the past entries and thought we sounded picky and we truly aren't AT ALL! </div>
<div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-lk6MWWqMznA/VQIsF-4eaDI/AAAAAAAADn4/cD3JZRE2oIU/s640/blogger-image-728000615.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-lk6MWWqMznA/VQIsF-4eaDI/AAAAAAAADn4/cD3JZRE2oIU/s640/blogger-image-728000615.jpg"></a>DH handled the meal prep for this one-we used tilapia. First step was to coat the filets with lemon juice and then sprinkle onion power on the fish. We didn't have onion powder so we used dried chopped onion.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ZTyKilI1PBc/VQIsFOyT8hI/AAAAAAAADnw/3JOGZMoODmg/s640/blogger-image-1732538438.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-ZTyKilI1PBc/VQIsFOyT8hI/AAAAAAAADnw/3JOGZMoODmg/s640/blogger-image-1732538438.jpg"></a>The chicken was breaded in a mix in a mix of hot sauce, milk, bread crumbs, salt and pepper.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-es01e56WV_8/VQIsDr7whfI/AAAAAAAADng/c_iq6hRu3Nc/s640/blogger-image--417162711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-es01e56WV_8/VQIsDr7whfI/AAAAAAAADng/c_iq6hRu3Nc/s640/blogger-image--417162711.jpg"></a>The chicken was baked at 475 for 15 minutes. It was a pretty simple and easy dish!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VI3aSFpB72k/VQIsCSY3J8I/AAAAAAAADnY/YqwJ8tiJFVY/s640/blogger-image--2132496690.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-VI3aSFpB72k/VQIsCSY3J8I/AAAAAAAADnY/YqwJ8tiJFVY/s640/blogger-image--2132496690.jpg"></a>Side dish was couscous and green peas. The couscous was mixed with the peas, water and some sage and allowed to soak for about 10 minutes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SkrSFtktSxg/VQIsEdZW-LI/AAAAAAAADno/jsgQCctTaj4/s640/blogger-image--1760430036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-SkrSFtktSxg/VQIsEdZW-LI/AAAAAAAADno/jsgQCctTaj4/s640/blogger-image--1760430036.jpg"></a>Next step was to fry up the mixture with some oil and chopped onions. Another quick and easy side dish. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-EqHL8-0cCLg/VQIyYt2D9kI/AAAAAAAADoI/AGB829VR_l4/s640/blogger-image-1584896170.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-EqHL8-0cCLg/VQIyYt2D9kI/AAAAAAAADoI/AGB829VR_l4/s640/blogger-image-1584896170.jpg"></a>Finished dinners! The green beans were just frozen veggies heated up. Honestly, the fish was okay-it tasted super fishy but I still managed to eat about half of it. There wasn't a lot of flavor that wasn't fish to it-I was hoping that the breading would kind of disguise the fish taste but I wasn't that lucky. The couscous was AWESOME! We added a touch of salt to it and it was delicious. I could even see making it for breakfast with some cinnamon sugar. The peas really added a little bit of sweetness to it-it was amazing. I ate all of mine! This recipe is definitely a keeper! I don't have much to say about the roll and the green beans. The roll was simply a dry dinner roll and the vegetables were nothing to write home about. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with the meal-the fish wasn't as bad as I expected. I probably won't be making it again but it wasn't too terrible. I've now discovered that I like couscous-it's nice to have another new food in my toolbox!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Total cost: 4.56 per serving (9.12 for both) This was a very expensive meal-the fish alone was almost 5.00!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Overall I'm getting a little bit tired of this project. Between prepping lunches for the next day and making dinner we're spending an average of 1.5 hours in the kitchen each night-even with two of us cooking. For tomorrow's lunch we had to cook an entirely separate meal along with cooking up tonight's dinner. By the time we get home from work, get dinner cooked, get the kitchen cleaned up, get lunches prepared and eat dinner we aren't left with a ton of time-especially since I have to be in bed by 9:00. It's exhausting and annoying not to have time to get other chores done or relax. I'm tired of constantly thinking about food and cooking. I'm dying for a night off (which doesn't have to mean eating out-even an easy slow cooker meal would suffice). I don't know how my mom cooked every night when I was growing up-maybe it's because I have no love for cooking. I don't find cooking relaxing or enjoyable-it's just a necessary frustration. I feel like we're spending more time and money than we usually do, getting less done in the house and eating foods that aren't our first choice just for the sake of "saving money". I can't wait for my birthday since I get to go out to a restaurant! I'm honestly at the point where I'm just ready to scrap the whole project, but DH is still really into it so he won't let me. I think he enjoys cooking more than I do so it isn't as annoying for him. My cooking skills aren't awesome, I'm not terrible but I'm definitely not as good as my mom-I do feel like I'm learning a lot from the project and maybe as my cooking skills improve I won't hate the project as much as I do today.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Pain is another thing that's making me hate cooking-I've had a bad pain week and can barely stand when I get home from work-the extreme amount of cooking just makes me hurt worse and I get grumpy. Many SNAP recipients are disabled and while I'm by no means disabled my small amount of chronic pain shows just how hard it can be. Disability can be a huge barrier to healthy eating and just another one of the many factors that must be considered. It's really something I had never thought of before we started this project-since before we started I could plan meals based on my pain that day. Now that I'm not doing that I really notice how much pain affects my mood and my abilities in the evening. I'm also not letting my body rest as much as I usually do in the evenings (since I'm cooking) and I've been waking up in pain every morning-maybe it's a cycle? It's just another fascinating insight into the barriers to healthy eating-I'm excited for the weekend since it will be our first weekend on the project. I'm wondering if it will be easier on me when I don't have to work all day-it will be interesting to see! I'm excited by how much I'm learning and the insights I've made into food insecurity and the barriers to healthy eating-I'm just hoping the project gets a little easier! However, for many people food insecurity and government assistance is their life and they don't have the option of quitting their "project" so I won't either!</div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br></div><br>
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Nicolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05823859944948570886noreply@blogger.com0