Moms Summer Camp 2012

Last years "Mom's Summer Camp" was a huge success.

Not only did I get to spend the Summer with my kiddos, but we saved a ton of money by not sending the kids to a week of expensive camps. You can read about last years camp here.

I'm trying to plan ahead this year in order to come up with some really creative and new experiences for this Summer.

I'm keeping my eye out and keeping a little list.

Here are the weeks that I've come up with:

"Cruise Week"

We'll be hitting up the Titanic Exhibit this year.

I've tied this in with the movie and an inexpensive ferry ride on a historic boat.

Want more info? Click Here

"Music Week"

In our community paper I saw and noted that our favorite beach has Saturday night concerts by the sea. We'll check out one or two of these and visit the our making music museum.

http://www.museumofmakingmusic.org/visit/visitorinfo

"Sports Week"

We are really fortunate to have an Olympic Training Center right down the freeway from us. We'll go take a tour and learn about some other international sports. My kids are old enough to do some online research now, so this will be their task.

"Pottery Week"

Most cities have one of those "paint your own" pottery places. We'll go hit this up and head down to a children's pottery making class. I'd like to visit one of our local Missions to see some historic pieces too.
http://www.spanishvillageart.com/classes.htm

"Grape and Cheese Week"

I was inspired by a little cheese shop in Seattle to create this one. I've seen recipes on Pinterest to make home-made cheeses. We'll try them. I also noted that a nearby area is having their "Balloon and Wine Festival" in June. So, we will go stomp some grapes and learn a little bit about the process of making wine. Festivals are great form kids and parents.

http://www.temeculawines.org/blog/tag/kids-activities-temecula-valley/

"Sand Castle Week"

The Annual U.S. Open Sandcastle Competition is happening this week. We'll get inspired and then spend the rest of the week at the Beach perfecting our own. We all like to go paddle boarding too, so we'll try to hit the boards this week.

Every year we do the Summer reading program too. We'll often seek out books that are in line with our theme for the week.

There it is! Weeks loosely planned out for a fun and educational Summer.

Some tips:

Start planning now to catch the local events going on in your area. This can save you a lot of money by seeking out specials, free or almost free things to do.

Find a theme. This helps a ton with planning and organizing.

Pick up your local area papers and write down the events that your interested in on a list. (Otherwise I forget)

Be flexible....if it doesn't work out. Don't sweat it. It's the time with the kids that's important, if they want to stay home, fine.

Want to know a little about Fat Tuesday?

During a recent trip to New Orleans I imagined what it was like during the celebration, as it was nuts on a regular night. Today is the big day and I'm not exactly sure what the celebration is about and why there are all of these traditions....are you?

Here's what I found:

-First, Mardi Gras is French for " Fat Tuesday" and Fat Tuesday refers to exactly what it sounds like, a night to eat rich, fatty, delish foods.

-Fat Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday which is the day that the Lenten Season begins
-Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras is also called "Shrove Tuesday" a day to confess before Lent.

-"Ash Wednesday" is 46 days before Easter and is a period of prayer and fasting to signify a fasting by Jesus before his public ministry began.

Why is it "Ash" Wednesday?

Ash Wednesday is a day of repentance and the dusting of Ashes signifies sorrow and repentance. (There is a lot more to the day, which I may have to do an entirely different write-up on tomorrow)

So What about this King Cake?

Trying to describe the King Cake is opening big bag of worms! There are a ton of different variations in type, appearance and filling. The one above is the most popular American version. It gets its name from the biblical term "Three Kings" and is made with brioche and covered in icing with the traditional colors of gold, green and purple.

The tradition is that whoever gets the little baby is the "king" of the night. Getting the baby could also mean that you bring the cake next year.

Click here for a recipe

Read Here for a ton more information.

Why Gold, Purple, and Green?

Purple= Lent, Justice

Gold=Easter, Power

Green= Epiphany, Faith

Other Random Mardi Gras Facts:

-The beads have been around since the late 1900's (they use to be glass, now plastic)

-Flame-torches (flambeau) are another popular tradition during the parade. The carriers use to be slaves.

-The Mardi Gras Coconut (Zulu Coconut) use to be painted walnuts but switched over to painted coconuts and are a popular throw, along with the beads. They were a less expensive alternative to the original glass beads.

-Doubloons are small coins usually thrown from the floats. Now days they are minted with the year and are original to the specific float

The Best for Last :)

Why nudity?

Women have been showing their wares since 1889 in exchange for beads and trinkets.

Apparently it was the dang tourists to Bourbon Street that started this tradition.

Brown Rice Vs. White Rice

I truly never believed that I'd be blogging about rice. Well, here it is. Getting back on my plan for my next upcoming Figure Competition and I'm questioning the rice thing. Let's be honest, white rice just tastes better and it's easier to cook.

So, I did a little research.

Which is one piece of advice I have for anyone wanting to know what is going in there body or why one thing is "better" than another.

What is "White" rice?

White rice is created by removing the bran and germ portions of brown rice. By stripping the rice the healthy oils, magnesium, fiber and other nutrients are lost.

"Brown" rice?

A whole, natural grain that includes the above.

So, what does this mean?

Brown rice and white rice have similar number of calories and carbohydrates. The main differences between the two forms of rice lie in processing and nutritional content.

This also means, that I'll suck it up and cook my brown rice. Why eat something that could increase my chances of Diabetes and Obesity, when there's another option.

Push "Easy Button" Here :)

Need More?........

“The other consequence of the refining process includes loss of fiber, vitamins, magnesium and other minerals, lignans, phytoestrogens, and phytic acid, many of which may be protective factors for diabetes risk.”

"Refined grains “can wreak havoc with blood sugar levels and energy” and increase the risk not only for type 2 diabetes but for obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and other health problems. "

"Harvard estimates that replacing 50 grams daily of white rice (uncooked, equivalent to a one-third serving) with the same amount of brown rice would lower the risk of type 2 diabetes by 16%."

See my blog post here about some other "easy button" swaps and the Why's.

Find info here:
http://diabetes.webmd.com/news/20100614/brown-rice-vs-white-rice-which-is-better?page=2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_rice

Glamping!

A while back I was doing some research on Camping and got a chuckle out of it really. I'm not much of a "camper". We did the RV thing and honestly it exhausted me! Extra shopping, pack it up, messy it up, bring it home, clean it out...repeat. Don't even get me started on the whole "cooking" thing. However, I know that the experience is good for the family so I'm willing to give in a little.

As I cruised around the internet to find camping that I thought

I could tolerate,

I came across these:

Ok, so maybe not this last one....but crazy isn't it!

I was reminded of my blog intentions when I read this funny article in the NY Times.

Also, I am happy to report that I am not the only one who doesn't find the term "roughing it" appealing. There's a whole site dedicated to Glamping!

Check out http://www.glampinggirl.com/ for an awesome glamping experience.

Camping: nature's way of promoting the motel industry. ~Dave Barry

Some national parks have long waiting lists for camping reservations. When you have to wait a year to sleep next to a tree, something is wrong. ~George Carlin

Camping: The art of getting closer to nature while getting farther away from the nearest cold beverage, hot shower and flush toilet. ~Author Unknown

It's the perfect combination! Meal Planning and Couponing, the Lazy Girl Way.

I'm not going to lie. I do not see the value in couponing. I tried it.

I found alot of stuff that I didn't need. Alot of stuff that I don't need 10 of. Alot of stuff that is not a great choice nutritionally speaking. Alot of name brands, that frankly I don't buy because they're more expensive and why waste the time to clip the coupon on something that I can the "cheaper" version of already. I know that it's a craze and I'm hoping that someone will be so disgusted with me that they will attempt to show me the greener side of the couponing fence. I'm all about easy too. You know K.I.S.S (Keep it simple stupid!) Chances are good that I am not going to drive around town to save a few cents on my bread and I haven't done the math on the gas factor of doing so either.

So What's my point?!

I try to save money and my sanity by planning my menu. I already shared the most amazing Menu planning site that I have found to date. She puts together the menu, the recipe and the shopping list. Check it out here.

So, in comes all*you's Grocery Circular Roundup

This has got to be the best couponing site. From my shopping list, printed up from Eat at Home (above), I circle the things I need to get. Then I pop on to all*you and type in the items that I need. Searching by your area code, this site will pull up

all of the "deals" in your area right from

your own list!

No more shuffling through endless pages of circulars to find the stuff that you might actually get, finally getting to the store to find out that your coupon is expired or from another store.

I hate that!

The site also has printable coupons available to check out.

It might not be all of the deals and coupons that I could ever need, but it's an easy step in the right direction. If it's easy enough I will follow through. How about you?

So, I'm off to the store with my list and my "deals" and it took me about 5 minutes.

That I can do!

Check out all*you grocery circular roundup here.

What else can I make? ..........

Have you checked out Pinterest yet? You have to...it's an amazing time waster, oh I mean resource :) Click the link to the right to check it out. It truly is an incredible site. Tons of information and ideas. You'll create a long, long list of To-Do's. (as if we needed more)


Enter Project Number 1!

I bought the ingredients to make my own laundry detergent and will follow the instructions here. I picked up the recipe from Pinterest via this great blog.

$20 for several (9-12) months of laundry detergent!! Yes please!
This is right on track with my money saving and being "greener" goals.

Project Number 2!

Who else but Martha could come up with a fantastic Tub Scrub with a couple of simple ingredients. Check out the recipe here.

Here's another one:

Every Day Shower Spray! Does it bother you to spend $4 a bottle on a spray that goes so quickly?

This one is great for Shower Doors and Faucets Daily.

Just a couple of easy ingredients =Green and Inexpensive.

I'm seriously loving the ideas that I find on Pinterest. I'll be working on these 3 tommorow. The only thing that's missing from this fabulous site is a "Did It" button.

Planning for a successful New Year....the budget

About mid-year this year I pulled together our budget and started the "Envelope System Plan." It isn't easy to keep to it, I'll be honest. We were fortunate to be able to go on a wonderful family vacation and have slipped a little to the original plan of eating out "occasionally".

So, with the holidays staring me in the face and a New Year ahead, it's time to pull in the reigns. I'm pulling out the envelopes and looking for other ways to maximize savings for the upcoming year.

Here are the ideas that I came across during my search.

(Click on the links below for hundreds of ideas)

These are the things that I plan to work on or am in the process of:

Sign up for every free customer rewards program you can.

I've been signing up for stores debit cards to earn back rewards that you would normally have to get their credit card for. The money comes right out of our checking account, but I earn rewards and get money back! Nordstrom (rack too) and Target are the two that I get the most money back from.

Eat out only twice per month

This is huge for us. We don't go out to restaurants alot, but we get pizza, Subway, and burritos more often than we should.

I'm keeping my eye on "Groupon", "Restaraunt.com", "livingsocial" and other coupon sites for eating out deals. These have saved us a ton of money in the Food and Entertainment department and we've tried new restaurants and outings in the process.

Make your own gifts instead of buying stuff from the store
This is something that I'm working on. It's takes planning and some organization to have enough time to be able to pull this off. I like to browse Etsy for some handmade gems and reasonable prices. I've also been turned on to "VeryJane" which has amazing homemade and often personalized gifts at fabulous bargains.

Write a list before you go shopping – and stick to it

This has become so much easier thanks to "Eat at Home," a wonderful blog that offers weekly menus, recipes and the shopping list.

Invite friends over instead of going out.
I think our friends are just as happy to do this as we are. Not only are we all saving money, but it's kid friendly too.

Don’t spend big money entertaining your children
"Realize that what your children want most of all is your time, not your stuff, and you’ll find money in your pocket and joy in your heart"

I definitely need to work on this. I am guilty of taking my kids out for "little" treats (ice cream, hot chocolate, lunch, special breakfasts, pedicures, movies etc.) This is on the top of my list of things to modify.

Clean out your closet.

There are a couple of fabulous resale stores in our area. I just recently went through the families closets and sorted the good from the stained to take to resale.

Hide your credit cards.

Take your credit cards and put them in a safe place in your home, not in your wallet where it’s easy to spend them. If you argue that you need it for “emergencies,” just be sure to keep a small amount of cash hidden in your wallet for these emergencies. Don’t keep plastic on you until you have the willpower to not use it even when you’re sorely tempted.
MUST DO!!! It is a scary thing to give up the credit card....the "what ifs" are endless aren't they.

Do a price comparison – and find a cheaper grocery store
I've attempted this before and find it daunting to compare ads and prices. I'm not great at it and honestly think it is due to my lack of memory in the numbers/prices department.

Challenge yourself to try making your own things
This is a great idea really and I have found a ton of ideas on Pinterest for homemade soaps, cleaners etc. Not only does it save money, it's a greener way of doing things.

Reevaluate the stuff in the rooms in your house.

Go into a room and go through every single item in it. Do you really need that item? Are you happy that it’s there, or would you be just fine if it were not? If you can find stuff to get rid of, get rid of it – it just creates clutter and it might have some value to others. You also improve the perceived value of your house – and you’re likely to get a lot of cleaning done in the process. It’s a frugal win-win-win.

I love this and do this pretty regularly. You'd be amazed how much money you can make on eBay and in garage sales with all of the "stuff".

Go through your clothes – all of them.

If you have a regular urge to buy clothes, go through everything that you have and see what you might find. Take the clothes at the back of the closet and bring them to the front and suddenly your wardrobe will feel completely different. Take the clothes buried in your dresser and pull them to the top. You’ll feel like a brand new person who doesn’t need to spend money on clothes right now

Brown bag your lunch

I'm home during the day, so this isn't as much an issue for me. My husband is really good at taking his lunch and we made a "No buying lunch" rule for our kids school lunch. Not only for money saving reasons, but for health reasons too.

Consider dropping your home telephone line.

I'm working on this too. These darn companies really get you all tied in don't they. I guess I've made the mistake of bundling our services. I'd like to drop the phone, but it would make the cable and Internet more expensive. I'd like to drop the cable, but haven't figured out a way to make the family happy with the options available. This is on the to-do list. I need options.

Cut back on trips to Starbucks or other premium coffee shops. Often called the latte factor, spending several dollars per day on luxuries like premium coffee can really add up. For example, if you spend $4 for a cappuccino five times a week for 50 weeks out of the year (you're on vacation the other two weeks), you would spend $1,000 in a year. Try treating your trip to Starbucks as a treat instead of a habit. You'll save money and probably lose weight too!

This is my weakness!! I get a "latte" a day, every day! Yes, that is a ton of money. So, for Christmas I am getting a very nice Espresso machine and all the syrups and cups to go with it. That sucker will pay for itself in a very short time and we will be on our way to saving thousands in coffee alone.

Wish me luck! :)

Click Here to see the 100 tips to saving money. Here are few other great ideas.