27 and Frugal

There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to weight loss. Many people think that if you are physically healthy, you do not need to think about food. This is the same for being financially healthy. It is often thought thought that if you have a lot of money in your savings account, you do not need to think about money or plan ahead because you have a safe cushion. Reality couldn’t be far from the truth!

Stop Focusing on Diets & Debts

In the case of losing weight, dieting is very short sighted. While on a diet, you will count calories, routinely exercise, eat healthy, and be much more aware of what you are eating. These habits are successful and cause you to lose weight. Having met your weight loss goal, you might now think it’s safe to stop thinking about food. Now that you’re healthy, you will loosen the grip on your food habits; then become confused when the weight comes back.

This bad habit of a short sighted goal can happen when paying off financial debt as well. While aggressively paying off debt, you’ll constantly check your budget, be more conscious of your spending habits, and think more about your financial future. Then, once the debt is paid, you start to think of all that extra money you now have. Maybe you buy something as an reward. Then you find yourself losing track of your spending. It won’t be too long before you find yourself in trouble again.

Learning to be financially healthy and physically healthy is the same process: Make conscious decisions, plan ahead & be patient.
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Don’t ever throw that stale bread out! Making your own breadcrumbs is so easy and I bet you already have the ingredient on hand (bread!).

There’s a variety of ways to make your crumbs:

• Throw a piece of stale/toasted bread or two in a food processor
• Rip a few pieces of stale/toasted bread in half and chop with a manual food chopper
• Put a few pieces of stale/toasted bread in a sandwich bag and roll over it with a rolling pin

You can also make breadcrumbs out of crackers, nuts, or cornflakes.

Just store your breadcrumbs in a container in the cupboard … Continue reading »

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This recipe is so ridiculously easy, you’ll never buy canned soup again!

Cook 1/2C chopped onion and 1C chopped celery in a pot with 1T melted butter for 5 minutes until veggies are tender.

Stir in 60oz of chicken broth (4 cans), 14.5oz of vegetable broth, 1/2lb uncooked bite-sized chicken pieces, 1C chopped carrots, 1/4t basil, 1/4t oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then simmer 10 mins.

While all that is simmering cook the egg noodles in a separate pot then add to soup and simmer another 10 mins.

Eat and enjoy! … Continue reading »

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This is a fabulous cheesecake that is much easier to make than it appears. This recipe is very flexible, even for a cheesecake, and the end result is definitely worth it (and boyfriend approved!).

Crust: Press 2C cinnamon graham cracker crumbs, 1/8C sugar & 1/3C softened butter into a spring-form pan and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Strawberry Sauce: Blend 20oz. strawberries with 1T cornstarch until smooth then boil in a pot for 2 minutes and refrigerate to cool.

Cake: Beat 2pkgs cream cheese until fluffy then beat in 1C sweetened condensed milk, 1/8C lemon juice and 3 eggs. Continue reading »

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I was tired of dishing out $3 for sugary syrup at the store, so I decided to just make my own. Don’t worry! This isn’t a huge project at all; In fact, it’s easier than making a pot of rice.

Mix 2/3C cocoa powder with 1C sugar in a pot on the stove.

Stir in 1C of water and boil everything for 2 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool. Stir in 1t of vanilla then pour the syrup into a glass jar and store in the fridge.

Easy easy easy!

The syrup will thicken upon cooling and the … Continue reading »

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This is as easy as you can get and you should already have all the ingredients in your pantry.

Mix 1/3C of dijon mustard, 1/3C honey, 2T mayo, and 1t steak/worcestershire sauce.

That’s it! Mix it all up and it’s good to use right away or refrigerate it for later.

Some meal suggestions: dip for spicy chicken/wings, dip for french fries, dressing in a chicken wrap, mix with tunafish, mix with mashed potatoes or just as a chicken marinade.

This mustard is extremely flexible and you can adjust the ratio of ingredients to fit your taste-buds.

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Lunch is the only meal of the day that I try to plan ahead for, just to make sure I always have something to eat (since I don’t go out for lunch).

I found canned tuna on sale at my local grocery store last week because I thought it would make a good lunch. It did. However, I wanted to do something a little extra than just the tuna+mayo combo my parents fed me growing up. The result was delicious! Continue reading »

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Let’s be honest, I try to keep my morning routine to a minimum because I really like my sleep! So I don’t make cooked breakfast during the week. However, I have found that oatmeal is very quick to prepare and quite affordable.

I love eating oatmeal for breakfast on a chilly winter morning; But those instant packs of flavored oatmeal aren’t all that healthy and can be pricey. With four ingredients and 5 minutes, you can just make your own! Continue reading »

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I struggle with finding the balance between a healthy lifestyle and a frugal one. I am fortunate that I do not have any dietary restrictions and I like to cook. Yet I still find it difficult at times to eat healthy on a budget.

Well, if I thought feeding myself was tricky, I have an even greater challenge in trying to turn my father’s diet into a healthy one.

The Challenge

My 67 year old dad lives alone in an apt 2,000 miles away. He has been overweight my entire life and has subsisted almost completely on a diet of restaurants and fast food. Needless to say, he does not enjoy cooking.

Currently, he lives alone on a fixed income and obtains half of his monthly groceries from a local food pantry, where healthy options are not offered as much as I would like. He is also on the anticoagulant Coumadin. One of the downsides to this pill is that he cannot eat anything that is high in Vitamin K, for example, green leafy vegetables.

Other limiting factors to my father’s diet are his simple palate and the fact that he lives in Wyoming, where choices and competition are slim. Continue reading »

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Thursday

I had shredded mini wheats for breakfast and some muffins, peanutbutter toast, yogurt and an apple for lunch. After work, I unwound for a little bit then drove 20 minutes to Candyland Crafts. This place is amazing for baking supplies! I wanted to look at their gift boxes/bags and some cookie cutters for holiday gifts. I didn’t get too carried away and actually only bought a pack of 20 cellophane treat bags for $2.25. I figure that if I need more, I will just go get them. Back home, I made spicy blackened chicken and parsley rice for dinner then chatted with my dad on the phone for a while. I spent the rest of the evening reading and relaxing.

Total Thursday Cost: $2.41 Continue reading »

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Wednesday

I had the leftover Mac N Cheese for dinner, it was just that good! Thankfully, I actually ended up finishing it off. Usually with large dishes like that, it takes me several days to get through all of it myself. While I was eating, I watched an episode of Everest: Beyond The Limit from Netflix Instant Watch. That show is nuts!

After thinking about how crazy it would be to climb Mt. Everest, I decided to make Banana Pumpkin Muffins to use up some old bananas my roomate donated to me. I made these a few weeks back but I wasn’t satisfied with how they turned out, so I made some scary adjustments and was almost expecting these to be duds. While the muffins baked, I cleaned up the kitchen. Once done baking, I took a taste test and they were super delicious!

Total Wednesday Cost: $0 Continue reading »

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It was mentioned by Daniel of Sweating The Big Stuff, that even though I list my weekend expenditures, my weekly spending remains a mystery. I planned it this way because about 85% of all my spending occurs on the weekend. The only money I spend on a weeknight is either grocery shopping or paying bills. While this does help me to remain frugal, usually it’s just out of sheer laziness! However, I will begin to detail my weekly spending (and lack there of). I will do my best to make it as not-boring as … Continue reading »

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I can’t count the number of times that I have been hungry to the point I’m ravishing for anything to eat. This is one of the frustrating things about only buying ingredient-items. Sometimes I am just too hungry to wait even 20 minutes while I prepare a meal.

So, I make sure to buy and prepare a few convenience items ahead of time. This saves me from costly eating out and overpriced packaged foods. Continue reading »

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Not only is microwave popcorn unhealthy, but it is also expensive! Using Wegman’s prices, their store brand microwave popcorn (19.8oz) retails at $2.59. To go brand-name, Orville Redenbacher’s 15oz. microwave popcorn is $3.59.

Now, compare both of these to a 2lb (32 oz) bag of Jolly Time Popcorn Kernels that sells for $1.59! Continue reading »

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Every weekend, I will detail my activities and expenses to provide an example of how to implement a frugal mindset while still having a fun and active life.

Friday

I spent Friday evening just relaxing. I did some writing, played Call of Duty, and read for part of the night. I went to a costume party Thursday night so I didn’t feel like doing much Friday. Still, it was an enjoyable evening.

Friday Total Cost: $0

Saturday

I spent Saturday being oddly, though surprisingly, productive! I went grocery shopping in the morning. This was mainly to buy peanut butter to make brownies … Continue reading »

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