I'm not normal.

I'm not normal.

If you're a regular reader around here you probably know that already.
"Normal" is what conforms to our culture. Our culture does not recognize Jesus as Lord; it has warped ideas of marriage, family, and sexuality; it encourages us to spend what we want when we want regardless of our income.
By that standard, I am very abnormal.

• I am a follower of Jesus in a world that hates--and sometimes, what is often worse, ignores--him.
• I am committed to honor, respect and even submit to my husband, Biblically, as the Church submits to Christ (aka, place myself under his loving care and leadership, not become a doormat).
• I am a homemaker and proud of it. I do not seek validation from a conventional career, although I do also work outside the home.
• I and my husband plan to homeschool our children as we were also educated at home, and feel that as future parents it would be best for us to be the primary influence in our future children's lives (radical, huh?).
• I and my husband gladly and frugally live within our means and don't have any credit card debt. We rent an apartment (for now), drive a used car, and don't spend more than we make.
• I believe in Biblical femininity--in embracing my God-given role as a woman.
• I believe that sex is an amazing gift of God, designed to be enjoyed within a marriage by a husband and wife (one man and one woman).
• I strive to avoid eating and cooking with processed foods, and cleaning with natural, inexpensive products.

(See all the links in the text above? Click on those to read more in-depth posts I've written on those topics.)

Paul wrote to the Romans, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2)

Jesus said to his disciples (which includes believers who follow him), "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. " (John 15:18-19)

Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:3-6)

Peter wrote, "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul." (1 Peter 2:11)

Scripture itself tells me that I'm not "normal" by the world's standards. I am not to conform to the pattern of the world; I do not belong to the word; I do not fight with the weapons of the world; I am, in fact, an alien and stranger in the world.

I am a child of God: heaven is my eternal home, and therefore I live my life with an eternal perspective--this life is not all there is.

So, no, I'm not normal. And that's just how it should be.

How to Have A Beautiful Wedding (Without Breaking the Bank)

Getting married can be an expensive event, and not just for the bride and groom--for their parents and even their guests.  Ceremonies are elaborate, receptions are lavish, and wedding registries are often at pricey, upscale stores.

You might know this already, but there is a way to have a beautiful, memorable wedding day without breaking the bank!  If you can save money, time and stress in planning your wedding, you can put more energy into planning for your marriage, which is so much more important.  A wedding is one day--your marriage is for life!

That said, I know most girls dream about having a beautiful, fairy-tale day.  I hope these suggestions can help you do that while keeping to a modest budget!

Simplicity is a good thing.
If you're getting married in a pretty church, you shouldn't need many decorations.  We just had candles and tulle bows on the ends of the pews, and a bouquet of flowers on the altar.  We didn't have our reception at a fancy hotel or reception hall (see "Think outside the box").  You don't need to have ribeye steak and a big open bar.  People are at your wedding to celebrate your marriage--if they want to go out later for a five-course-dinner, they can.

Do it yourself.
There are SO many things you could do yourself!  I have a friend who made her own wedding dress.  If you know someone with sewing skills, this would be an option even if you aren't a seamstress (for more on that, see "Enlist friends and family to help").

We didn't hire a wedding planner.  I decided where things would happen, when, and who our vendors were.  Unless you're planning on having your wedding at a venue that requires you to have a planner (which if you're trying to save money, I don't really suggest), you don't need one.

You could ask a friend with excellent amateur photography skills to take your pictures (pay them, of course) instead of hiring a professional whose fees will be higher.

Instead of a DJ, I made a CD with our favorite songs that we played over the PA system for the dance. A live band or DJ aren't necessary unless that's one of your priorities.

Enlist friends and family to help.
We had friends do the decorating for the ceremony and reception.  A friend of my mom's came over to do all the girls' hair, partly because our wedding was on a Sunday and our usual stylist couldn't come.  Two of my bridesmaids did my makeup.  My mom practiced doing French tip manicures for weeks and did them beautifully on all the girls.  (We saved a ton of money this way!)

We paid the lady who did flowers for us, but she wasn't a florist, just someone we knew with a knack for flower-arranging who does it a lot.  She was able to find a lot of things that were blooming in season, so we didn't have to order out-of-season flowers.

Instead of hiring caterers, we ordered food from the deli at our local grocery store (broasted chicken, cheesy potatoes, and rolls), bought fruit and vegetables to be made into salads, and had four dear couples from our church take care of all the food pick-up, prep, and serving (they had volunteered to serve at my wedding when I was in high school!).  Ask around--between both of your families, and the congregation of your church, you can definitely find people willing to help you out.

Look for bargains.
The place we had the reception had a much lower rate on Sundays, and after talking with the manager, we were able to have our "decorators" go in on Saturday to decorate without getting charged for the extra day.

Joshua and the groomsmen wore suits instead of renting tuxes--a better investment in the long run, because Joshua still wears his suit.

I wore my mom's wedding dress, and all it needed was $40 worth of alterations.  I wore her veil, too, and bought a tiara off Amazon to wear with it instead of the original cap.  Some second-hand stores will have really great wedding dresses that you can get cleaned and fixed up for a fraction of the price you would pay for buying a new one.

Instead of renting expensive dishes and glassware, since the reception site didn't have that available, we used high-quality, color-coordinating paper plates and napkins and plastic silverware and cups.  Oriental Trading is a great source for these things.  We even found plastic flatware that was colored silver so it really looked metal.  You can get these things personalized (we still have napkins with our names and the date!) for a fraction of the cost of linens and dishes.  Plus, there's a lot less clean-up!

Borrow things you won't use much again.
Like the wedding dress, for example.  We also borrowed a lot of our decorations--mirrors, vases, lights, fake greenery, table cloths.  A friend had two children who had gotten married a couple years previously, and she saved all their decorations.

Think outside the box (or reception hall, or cake).
We had our reception at our city's arts center.  It's not a huge place, but we had room for our reception of about 75 people.  I had been in plays there in high school so I knew the manager personally, which meant they were willing to negotiate with us.  It ended up costing only about $75 to rent the place for the weekend. It was just a couple blocks from the church and half a mile from the grocery store where we got the food, so it worked out perfectly.

Instead of a regular cake, we ordered cupcakes!  We were able to have three different varieties, and it was less messy (and required less serving ware) than regular cake.  We also had a cake reception at the church, right after the ceremony, for all the guests, and then had a smaller group (family, close friends, and out-of-town guests) for the dinner later.

We asked an acquaintance who also happens to be a Christian contemporary singer to sing for our wedding.  I didn't think he would be able to, but he said he was glad to, and then hardly charged us a thing!  It was so much more meaningful than just hiring a string quartet or something.  If you know someone with really great musical talent, see if they'd be willing to provide special music for the ceremony and/or reception.

Do things your way.
You don't have to have organ music, get married at a church (although that I do recommend, but parks are lovely), have a big, fancy reception at a hotel or country club, have 500 guests, put them up at the most expensive hotel in town, etc, etc.

You don't have to order all your bridesmaids' dresses from David's Bridal (although I did, and they were great).  I have a friend getting hers from Modcloth.  You could even have your bridesmaids wear dresses they already own, and just pick a common color.

My point is, it's YOUR wedding.  As long as Christ is central, the sky is the limit!  Be creative, let your wedding reflect you, and remember what's important.

Put more money toward lasting, important things.
The photos, for example.  Your wedding pictures will last decades past the actual day, and that's something that can't be said for the flowers, cake or decorations.

Put aside money for a honeymoon, but remember that you don't have to go all-out for that if you don't want to, either.  I know a lot of people go to Hawaii or on a cruise or to Italy or whatever, but we went to a bed and breakfast (a really nice one!) in the same town where we got married, which happens to be where my parents live.  We stayed there for two nights, flew home, and spent another night in a nice hotel suite because Joshua's parents paid for it for us.  Then we had a week together getting used to sharing an apartment before Joshua went back to work.  And it was great!  Someday I'd love to go on a big trip together, but it wasn't the distance that mattered--it was being together, having a great time (which we did), and getting to know each other as husband and wife.


Remember to plan for your marriage as you're planning for your wedding.  I highly recommend seeing your pastor for pre-marital counseling.  You can work through a lot of things on your own, but it's very helpful to have someone who's trained to be a counselor and spiritual leader help you look at things you might not have thought about.  It was a very helpful process for us, and enjoyable, too.

Now it's your turn: What tips do you have for low-budget wedding planning?  Talk with me! :)



Linking with The Alabaster Jar, Countrified Hicks, The Better Mom, The Modest Mom, Exceptionalistic, Growing Home, Fancy Little Things

Update on the "No-'Poo" experiment, and Giveaway Winners!!

I have a confession to make to you all.

I'm impatient.

After a week and a half of the baking soda/apple cider vinegar hair-washing, I'm ready to quit it for now.
I know what all the proponents of it will say--you have to keep at it for at least a month to give your hair time to adjust.
Well, you know what?  I don't like what my hair is doing as it "adjusts"! :(  It looks greasy so quickly, and even right after it's washed and dried it's clumpier than it used to be, and not nearly as soft and smooth or easy to manage.
That, right there, is enough reason for me to go back to my regular shampoo and conditioner--the minimal amount that I use anyway.  I feel prettier.

Granted, I could try adjusting the ratios of baking soda/ACV.  I might do that at some point.  A little more baking soda might do the trick.  But like I said, I'm impatient.  I don't feel like adjusting the ratios and giving it another couple weeks.

Besides, I buy those bargain-sized bottles of Suave shampoo/conditioner (one of the cheapest brands), and they last me nearly six months, people.  It's really not much cheaper to use the baking soda/ACV, once I mix up another batch every two weeks or more, because I use so much more of it than regular shampoo.

So I'm calling it quits.  For now.  Maybe this summer (when I won't be seeing so many people) I'll give it a shot again.  I'll let you know.  But right now, I have something much more exciting to talk about....

The winners of the Rekindling Romance eKits!!

Thank you all, so much, for participating in my first-ever giveaway.  I hope to have more in the future--especially once I hit 100 followers (hint, hint :) ).

A reminder:  Even if you didn't win one of the eKits, they're available for purchase on A Biblical Marriage for just $4.99, and you still have plenty of time before Valentine's Day to prepare the printables for you and your spouse to use!

So, without further ado (drumroll please), thanks to random.org, these are the three winners:

Entry #92, Alyssa Zech

#51, Kellie Green

#108, Elisa Pulliam

Congratulations, ladies!!

You'll be contacted by email within 48 hours with details about your free eKit.

Thanks again to all of you for participating!!

I may be crazy...

Bath products.
Makeup.
Cleaning chemicals.
Personal care products.

What do all these things have in common?
They're generally made from things that aren't very good for your body or your health.  They're expensive.  And I think I can do better.  With some help, of course.  I have already gotten started:

-For cleaning, I already use white vinegar, mixed with water in a spray bottle for general cleaning and sanitizing.  That's about it.
-I tried making homemade liquid soap--which I haven't used up yet, and I may or may not try this technique again.
-I've just started using the baking soda and apple-cider-vinegar hair cleaning method.  (More on that in a future post, but five days in, I love it!)

I've been reading ideas and recipes for all sorts of natural, homemade products to replace conventional ones.

The reason I'm interested in making homemade versions of products that most people spend a lot of money on, is mainly the simplicity of it.  There are more frugal alternatives to commonly-used products, more all-purpose products (like vinegar and baking soda), and homemade versions that I think work just as well or better than the "store-bought" versions.

(Please understand, I don't have a problem with people who use shampoo, Lysol, Windex, etc, etc.  I'm just excited in researching alternatives for myself and my family.)

I have found several bloggers who have embraced this kind of "homemade" lifestyle, and I wanted to compile some of my favorite ideas of theirs that I have found--for my future reference and your benefit.

From Shaye at The Elliot Homestead:
Castile soap and all its amazing uses--shower soap, hand soap, shampoo, general household cleaning, and more!
A variety of what Shaye calls "cleaning products for the poor," starting with my friends vinegar and baking soda.
And a list of all Shaye's homemade products, including baby items and lip balm.

From Thank Your Body (the writer has more of a "hippie" lifestyle/mindset than I will ever have, but she has some great ideas and recipes for a lot of things):
Homemade hand soap (different recipes than I used, including one that's yet another use for Castile soap).
Natural "bleach"--hydrogen peroxide and lemon juice!
Homemade deodorant--this one sounds nice, although probably not something I'll need to make for a long time--my body doesn't need deodorant much anyway, so it takes me ages to go through a regular stick.  I have got to invest in some coconut oil, for a ton of reasons!

I also want to invest in less refined foods--like raw honey and real maple syrup, all whole wheat flour (and ground oats, and other non-white-flour grains).  I want to start using healthier fats, like high-quality butter and coconut oil.  I have all these dreams, plans, and ideas... but I keep reminding myself, I'm doing pretty darn good for a young, year-and-a-half married, college student on a little bitty budget!

Bottom line, I want to use the gifts God has given us to the best of my abilities--to honor God with our bodies, which includes the way we eat and the chemicals we use in, on and around our bodies.  I want to make the best use of the resources we have, especially food.  I want God to be glorified in all aspects of our lives, and that means not making all this stuff into a god, but focusing (there's that word again!) on THE important thing in my life: not health, not money, not food--GOD.

The results of the soap-making experiment...

I'm sorry I don't have pictures.  It's plain white, nothing very interesting, and I just put it into sterilized glass jars and my shower-gel bottle.

I had to laugh yesterday when I came home from work and the stuff had "gelled" already--it only took about six hours!  It was like not-quite-set jello in the pot, so I whipped it up with a whisk, and then with my hand mixer.  And I'll be honest--the reviews I read saying the consistency was "snot-like"?  They were absolutely right.  It is. :)  It was hilarious pouring the stuff into the bottle and jars... such a funny consistency!

But you know what?  It smells good.  It cleans my skin and leaves it feeling perfectly soft.  It's workable in the shower.  I won't force my husband to use it--but hey, now I won't have to buy shower gel for probably three or four months or more!

Most of all, I'm proud of myself for trying something new.  For sticking with it.  And for not having high expectations of myself or my project for once--I couldn't be disappointed, just amused! :)

Next on my list for do-it-myself, natural beauty products is to switch from regular shampoo and conditioner to baking soda water and apple cider vinegar water.  Have you heard of this method?  I'm most interested in it as a money-saving enterprise (a little baking soda and acv is waaay cheaper than a bottle of shampoo or conditioner!), plus as another effort to use more natural products on or in my body.  I'm getting there...slowly but surely. :)  Probably in another five years you'll be able to label me a "crunchy" homemaker--but I'm good with that!  See this site, this one, and this one for info on the "no-poo" method.  I'm excited. :)

What about you?  Have you started making any homemade cleaning/beauty products?  What works for you?

I'm experimenting--with homemade liquid soap!

So, blogging friends, I'm embarking on a new homemaking, home-made adventure: making liquid soap!  I've been wanting to do this for a while, ever since I happened on this recipe.  My mom gave me a couple bars of nice Yardley's soap for my birthday, and I bought a $7, six-ounce bottle of glycerin at the drugstore the other today, and today I decided to go for it!  I also referred to this post , and I read somewhere else (forgot to bookmark that one) that including isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol added antibacterial qualities, so I mixed in that too.  Here's the final recipe that I used:

10 1/2 cups water
1 cup grated soap flakes
1 tablespoon glycerin
2 tablespoons rubbing alcohol

I sanitized my grater, measuring spoons, cutting board, whisk, and glass measuring cup with boiling water.  Set the 10+ cups of water to boil while I grated the soap.  (If I do this again, I'll use a food processor--it was tiring and I think I breathed in some soap dust.)  The soap melted almost instantly, and the mixture foamed a bit when I poured in the alcohol.  The fumes were a bit strong, but now the entire apartment smells nicely of lavender soap!  I'm going to let the mixture cool in the pot until it reaches the consistency I want.  If it turns out too runny or too "snotty" (that's a word a lot of commenters on both those posts used to describe their soap), I'm going to try whisking it or using a hand beater to incorporate air.  We'll see if that works.

If it's too thick (which I doubt will happen) I'll probably heat it up again and add some more water.

A lot of people were complaining that the soap didn't lather.  Plenty of others explained that lather doesn't equal cleaning.  I know it's soap, and I know it'll do the job whether it lathers or not!

Others were concerned about bacteria growing in the soap if purified water wasn't used to make it.  I'm not worried about that, for these reasons:  I boiled my water, for several minutes, before I added the soap, and boiled it some more after the soap flakes were mixed in.  I sanitized all my utensils, and I'm going to sanitize my storage containers before I put the finished soap in them.  Also, again-- it's soap.  It already contains ingredients that kill germs.  Plus, that's why I added the rubbing alcohol.  If the boiling didn't already kill off any bacteria, the alcohol will!

Finally, if this experiment turns out to be a complete flop, I'm not going to fuss.  The soap didn't cost me anything since it was a gift, and I wrapped the leftover bits in a piece of cotton fabric and tightly rubber-banded it shut, and I plan to use that in the shower.  And I still have most of a bottle of glycerin, which I can use as a skin moisturizer mixed with water.  So even if I decide that I can't use my homemade liquid soap, it's still not a loss--and maybe I'll try again with a different technique!

In the meantime, I'm baking bread (a combination of white and whole wheat flours), and I finally figured out how to get the loaves to rise properly and avoid having the dough stick to the towel covering it.  Cover the dough first with a well-greased piece of plastic wrap, and then put the wet towel over that.  Also, the second and third risings were on top of the warming-up oven, not in it, so that I wouldn't collapse the dough by taking it out of a very warm oven into a less-warm kitchen.

I'm so proud of myself.  And feeling so very domestic. :)

How I'm Frugal at the Grocery Store (8 Tips and Ideas)

Otherwise known as, "How To Save Money at the Grocery Store and Still Get Lots of Good Food."  :)

I'm not nearly a professional at this yet, having had only a little over a year of practice.  However, I have developed some tips and tricks for saving my family money at the grocery store.  I'd like to share my new routine with you in the hopes that it will prove helpful for you as well!

1) Divide items on grocery list by category. That way I don't make multiple trips across the store.

2) Check weekly store fliers. If a store has a sale on something that I'll be buying anyway, I'll get it at that store (but I only ever go to two or three).

3) Note on shopping list which stores have which items.  If milk is $2.50 at one store and $3 at another, I'll get it at the first.

4) Include rough estimate of what each item will cost, on grocery list. 

5) Round up costs on everything.  That way, if I accidentally round low on something (since I don’t know exactly how much everything is) it mostly evens out.  It helps me avoid going over-budget.

This week I have a bigger grocery budget than usual, thanks to a bigger-than-usual paycheck—God is good!  However, there are a few extra things I need that I don’t usually buy, like plastic sandwich bags, plastic wrap, a pork roast for when my family comes for dinner on Monday, and toilet paper.  Those are things I don’t often buy, however, so they don’t need to be regularly budgeted into my groceries.

6) Add up estimated costs on all items, including things not absolutely necessary.

What I like doing to myself is putting things on the list that I would like but don’t necessarily need, like more vinegar for cleaning (I still have over half a gallon), coffee, which is a would-like-very-much-but-don’t-absolutely-need, and ground beef, which is expensive and not the healthiest meat out there.

7) Cross off like-not-need things if total cost is over budget. I might end up being able to get them anyway, if I come under-budget with the necessary things..

This week, after adding up my grocery list, I came out about $50 over budget.  I’ll cross off things like lemonade ($5 for 5 cans), Reese’s Cups (which I was going to use in a dessert but don’t have to, $5), elbow macaroni and Velveeta (Velveeta is expensive, $6), and other things.  I ended up crossing off about $48 worth of items.

Now, most of my crossed-off items probably won’t be as much as I estimated, and the other things on my list probably won’t be as much as I expect.  So I might be able to get a few of the things that I crossed off anyway.  (Coffee is top priority!)

But, the thing is, they’re all non-essentials.  We’ll have plenty of food without them; most of the things I crossed off were “extras.”

8) Take a calculator to the grocery store.  For littler trips, I just add mentally. When I add, I'll round everything up to the nearest 50 cents or so. Then, when I have everything on my list, if I’m under budget at all, I can get some of the “extras”…

and, since I will have rounded up, I’ll still come out under-budget at the cash register!

Maybe I'm weird, but I find this sort of thing fun.  I hate spending money, so anything I can do to save money is great!

It's important to not make saving money all-important, of course.  What's my real reason for doing all this?  Am I honoring God and serving my family?

I think the answer to that is YES.  I'm doing my best to be frugal, to be a good steward of what God has given me, and still to provide good food for my family.

What are your ideas for saving money and time at the grocery store?  I'd love to have you share in the comments!

Eating well and spending little

As a way to contribute to our family finances this summer, I've been doing my best to go grocery shopping as little as possible and, when I do go, to spend as little as I can.  We're still eating really well, I'm just getting creative with food and doing a few little things that make a really big difference!  So here is some of what I've been doing--perhaps it will be helpful to you as well!

1) Watch for sales and use coupons.
I'm not a big coupon-using person.  We don't get a regular newspaper and we live in such a small town that there aren't many stores to put out ads anyway!  But there are sales every week and often the weekly fliers contain coupons.  Plus, a lot of stores will have coupons in the checkout lane--I just picked up a packet of them the other day.  Please note, however, that the only way to really save money with coupons is to use them only for items you would normally buy.  Even if a box of name-brand cereal is on sale for $1.00 off, I wouldn't be saving any money by buying it because I wouldn't get it in the first place!

Source

2) Compare, compare, compare!
Prices, ingredients, and package sizes, that is.  Often store-brand products are the cheapest.  However, that does NOT always mean they're the best deal!  I always check these things:
-price per unit (ounce, pound, whatever.  Also, if you shop at multiple stores, compare prices on the things you buy most often, such as milk and eggs, and see which store has the better overall deal.)
-ingredients and nutrition facts (does the store brand have the same ingredients and nutritional value as the name brand?  Which one is the most healthful?)
-package sizes/serving sizes (this one is tricky!  Sometimes something is cheaper because it contains less product.  Packaging companies like to play visual tricks on consumers.  Just because two packages look like they're the same size doesn't mean they contain the same amount.)


Source


3) Eat less meat.
Meat is EXPENSIVE!  Ground beef prices just make me shudder.  We eat beef MAYBE once a week, if that.  Otherwise it's chicken, fish, or vegetarian options!  We're not vegetarian, but we've been eating like it because it's cheaper AND much healthier.  Also, I'm very careful to pay as little as possible for the meat I do buy.  I buy whole chickens for roasting (and get at least three meals out of them, between meat and making stock from the bones), or I buy bone-in, skin-on thighs or leg pieces.  It means a little more work to prepare, but the price difference is so worth it.

4) Make the food you have last longer.
For those of you who have starches (bread, pasta, potatoes, rice) as a main part of your diet, this is the best way to make food stretch.  For example, I made homemade refried beans and mixed in some rice.  Voila: twice as much food for pennies.
As another example, I bought one pound of ground beef the other day (for nearly $4.00!) and am making it stretch through THREE meals.  Meal one: meatballs with cream-of-mushroom-soup-and-sour-cream sauce (it is SO good) with mashed potatoes and a green salad.  Meal two: macaroni and cheese from a box (on sale for 50 cents!) with three of the leftover meatballs cut up and mixed in, as well as some leftover crm-of-mushroom soup, with green beans on the side and berry muffins for dessert.  Meal three (coming soon): beef-and-bean quesadillas with broccoli or salad on the side.  (P.S. Homemade tortillas are yummier and cheaper than the store-bought version.)

Also, another way to make food last AND keep it interesting is to vary the way you prepare it.  Instead of plain white rice, mix it with various herbs and spices (a cheap, calorie-free way to add tons of flavor to dishes), add it to beans like I did, stir in some shredded cheese, put it into soup, etc, etc.  Potatoes are just as versatile: add to soups and casseroles, bake, mash, fry, or shred them; roast alone for oven-fries or with other root vegetables; etc, etc.  Chicken can be prepared in a myriad of ways.

I realize many of these tips and ideas are ones you've already discovered for yourself...but perhaps one or two things here will be of use to you!  Now I'd love to hear your ideas.  How do you eat well while spending little?