Of course, there is a kink in this elation. Most of it is headed right to my hips (why can't food land in my chest where I could use the boost??) or my stomach, resulting in extra rounds on the Wii Fit & a visit to my more harsh Zumba instructor. Ugh.
Despite this kink, I continue to spend hours every weekend cooking and preparing for my week so I don't have to do very much when I get home with my boys in tow. About 6 months ago, I realized that we had hit a cooking rut. Our menu was on a 2-3 week loop! With my son fresh into toddler-hood and a new & very BIG interest in solid chunks of food, I decided that had to stop.
TO THE INTERNET!
Pinterest. Oh my lawdy, Pinterest. New meals galore! Easily stored at the click of a mouse for later perusal and trial. Which I did...until my grocery bill tried to spiral out of my control. I was serving up new and (mostly) delicious meals to my little family, but my meals were disjointed, not well planned and costing me a bundle. Like most families, we work in the confines of a very strict student loan bogged budget. Time to rethink, and attack from a place of strength.
For three months, I obsessively followed a single food blog called Budget Bytes. Beth is a genius with food & is such a food penny pincher it makes my OCD glands quiver with delight. Yes, that was a compliment. Gradually, I watched my grocery bill shrink and my recipe staples grow. I like to think of this as the time of much learning & dish washing.
Finally, after months of trial and error, followed by months of doing it the Budget Bytes way, I believe I am ready to strike out on my own again and find yet MORE recipes to try. There will be pictures, recipes and tales of the good, the bad, and the horrendously ugly. But this time, I will plan better, cook efficiently & spend less.
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