Minory dietary tweeks: Healthy AND budget friendly!

So, I guess I'm a vegan now! I actually prefer plant based, simply because I don't want to get wrapped up in the politics/ethics side of the whole sordid affair simply because I don't think that eating animals or animal products is unethical. I think many of our current factory farming techniques are unethical from an animal treatment and environmental standpoint, but I also think there are ethical choices for those that can afford them.

I also can't be considered 100% vegan because I still enjoy local honey or may taste a bit of fancy cheese when the opportunity presents itself! Eggs are a go as well, if I happen to be in a place where they raise their own chickens/ducks. I also can't promise I will be seafood free when fresh catches are available on the coast. But overall, I have gone plant based as has the family.

The result?

Less spending and easier meal prep! This is less stress on me, the primary cook, because there isn't really any involved cooking required to have a healthy vegan diet.

Our dinners now tend to be highly diverse salads featuring a ton of veggies, tofu, tempeh, or legumes. Or, we have grain bowls featuring quinoa, rice, barley and the above veggies and proteins. Wraps are also a popular choice. All that's needed is to chop a few things, throw them on a silpat mat, and roast it all for a half hour or so before filling a bowl or tortilla.

Sauces add variety, but they are still inexpensive. Vegan cheeses have come a long way, and a small amount goes very far flavor-wise.

I don't think everyone is cut out for this kind of diet, but I do think everyone can cut down on meat and dairy. Those two things have some of the largest environmental impact as well as the largest grocery budget impact.

A February Update: Odds and Sods

I meant to make several posts this month, but it wasn't to be. I'm still working on my food post. I need to update our budget posts (there have been some major updates), and I have a few more things to share. Instead of doing any of those right now, I'm just going to present a simple list of February updates. The "odds and sods," if you will.

1. I've lost 6 pounds this month. I credit this entirely to my diet change.

2. The highlight of the diet change? I went 95% vegan. Family went 95% vegetarian. Better health and lower budget for all. More details to come.

3. I shaved almost $500 out of our "fixed" expenses budget. More details to come.

4. We got a gym membership to the YMCA. I think it makes good financial sense. More details to come (sensing a pattern?)

5. I've been chronically behind this month on my two most important responsibilities: work and school. Yet, somehow it is working out. (Still passed exams without studying, unexpected bonus from a client to make up for missed work.)

6. Filed taxes for free using CreditKarma. Amazing, since most services charge if you are self employed.

7. I've had a bad month for anxiety. A really bad month. It's been awhile since I've had this much anxiety without an obvious trigger. This is likely why I am behind. I think it's finally turning around. I hope it is.

8. I joined the Frugal February challenge on the MMM forums, then promptly stopped updating. I probably hit my goals, but I don't have the mental space to go back through this month to create an update. Maybe next month.

9. I had to face the reality that last year was a very bad year financially when I actually saw our AGI, and this year may only be slightly better. We have dropped below the state poverty line and I need to adjust plans accordingly. Oddly, this realization coincided with my anxiety subsiding. Perhaps this was a subconscious trigger?

10. I've planned and pretty much paid for a four day/three night birthday extravaganza trip to Glacier National Park for my mom and ScienceKid. Cost: $150 for cabin accommodations. Gas in our little Prius will be less than $50, and we'll bring groceries to prep meals in the cabins (mainly picnic meals to take into the park). We consider our NPS annual pass a required expense, so park entrance is free. You guessed it, more details to come.

After the sunshine at the beginning of the month, the snow and bone chilling single digit temps moved in (that's Fahrenheit, folks). I'm a pretty deft winter driver, yet I almost killed ArtKid and I on the way to campus one day thanks to shitty roads. Hopefully my sanity is resuming and I'll post more in March!

How We Saved - Week of February 5th

It's felt like spring this week. Lovely from a personal standpoint, alarming from an environmental standpoint. Early spring=lack of snow pack=bad fire season this summer. Not to mention this is becoming the new norm....

Regardless, I did take advantage of the weather to go on two mid-length day hikes!

So, how did we save money and work toward our goals this week?

• All meals prepared at home from inexpensive ingredients.
• I have maintained my new vegan diet, which has resulted in both money savings and pounds lost. The family has maintained a vegetarian at home diet.
• I made lunches and took snacks for both hikes. One hike/adventure took the place of the weekly cafe date I have with DS2, thus saving me about $10. (It did cost about $2 in gas, yay for owning a Prius!)
• Did a combined 13 miles of hiking at two different state parks this week. It was effectively free because we buy the annual pass - which pays for itself after 10 visits. We visit a state park area at least 50 times a year, so the pass is long paid for!
• Picked up three "free Friday" items at Fred Meyer before they expired. Not items we normally buy, but nice for treats!
• Hosted a board game night with friends. We supplied home-cooked pizza and chips, they brought a stack of board games! (Our entertainment spending is crazy low this month. We may finally have a handle on this problem category.)
• Cheap date night listening to live music at the hippie store deli and eating cheap tofu wraps, followed by darts at home. Also enjoyed a long walk downtown along the river.
• Filed our taxes for free via Credit Karma (most so-called free filing services charge ridiculous fees for self employed peeps.)
• Turned in a (huge) scholarship application, plus one smaller app!
• Family movie night at home, watching a free movie via my student Prime membership (a necessity for renting cheap textbooks.)
• Been saving up items for an Amazon purchase. These are household things we need and can get cheaper on Amazon -- toilet paper, cat food, etc. Many of the items are add-on items, so I have to spend at least $25 to get the really cheap add-on price. Waited until we had $25 of necessary items instead of adding on fluff to hit the minimum. 
• Received two checks in the mail for a total of $26, and put them right into savings. These were for some class action lawsuit against the company that issues our mortgage and them making calls at odd hours to the wrong mortgage holders, or something weird like that. Oh well, free money!
• Went to a meeting for a board I sit on -- free coffee! 
• Solved a problem for free -- we used to dry the water bladders for our hiking packs with paper towels, which we no longer use. The cloth towels leave lint in the bladders, yuck. Instead of buying the expensive plastic bag drying system, I made two bag dryers from old wire hangers we no longer use -- free

How we saved: 2018 Week #1

We all need inspiration, especially when we are trying to achieve big goals that can take several years. In the same vein that my monthly action items are supposed to help maintain the momentum on our goals, keeping track of all the little things we do every day that move us closer to our days may also help.

So here is the how we saved the first week of 2018!

• Quiet New Year's Eve at home with a homemade fondue feast. This is a family tradition :)
• Quiet New Year's day at home, with homemade black eyed peas and a chive focaccia bread for dinner.
• Worked out at home, using free yoga videos and body weight exercises.
• Began the Uber Frugal Month challenge.
• Reusing school supplies from last quarter -- purchased no new supplies!
• Modified a planner to work for my needs instead of buying the "perfect planner."
• Played the free print-n-play version of Cards Against Humanity.
• Walked to the library instead of driving (and bypassed buying coffee even though it was 20F out!)
• Made paneer from scratch -- so easy and cheap! Used it in saag paneer for dinner one night.
• Used the leftover ground oatmeal from making oat milk to make DS1 oatmeal cookies to take to school as a snack.
• Roasted chickpeas for a salad topping, made scratch hummus, and grew sprouts for fresh greens. 
• Didn't buy a parking pass this quarter -- am taking advantage of the free student bus pass!
• Took snacks and coffee from home to school. 
• Had to get a graphing calculator -- ordered the half-price warehouse deal even though my grant covers school supplies and books. (I do get to pocket any extra cash!)
• Made a warranty claim to Keen for a damaged lace on one of my new shoes. They gave me a $150 credit and let me keep the shoes -- Pay attention corporations, this is how you win loyal customers!
• Used some of our stored apples to make an apple sheet cake for a potluck, even though I was sorely tempted to just buy something on the way.
• Movie night at home with frozen pizza and Netflix.
• Continuing to grow sprouts for salad -- keeping them in rotation so I don't run out.
• A client sent me a small holiday bonus -- straight to savings instead of purchasing a "treat." I just checked the Pretirement app: saving this $120 makes it so we can retire 4 days earlier!