No More Dry Turkey

Busy Mom's Tip #4: How to Create More Time

How do I create calm in the midst of chaos? I think most, if not all, of us can relate to this question. Life throws all sorts of things at us, and when you add little people and multiple schedules to that mix, it makes it so much more complicated. But what if it didn’t have to be? Obviously, we can’t control everything - sickness, emergencies, unexpected late nights at work, etc. all pop up. But when you create a base plan that allows for the unexpected bumps along the way, when you create little pockets of time that leave you refreshed and ready to return to life, you create a framework that enables you to live a fulfilled life. Recently, I was talking with another mom, and she phrased it this way: ‘Storms are inevitable, but we can be the eye of the storm, the center of calm for our crazy, chaotic lives.’ Personally, I can attest to it being difficult to implement time management and pre-planning. I always thought, “Pre-planning is not something I would like or ever thrive on.” And so I just lived life trying to keep it all in my head, to have ‘freedom’ to do what I wanted and needed to do as I had time. But my brain felt like popping popcorn, ideas and little things I remembered constantly exploding and reminding me of yet another thing to add to my day. When I finally started to implement time management, I found the exact opposite of what I always thought. I thrive on the freedom time management and planning ahead of time creates. It’s impossible for me to remember every little detail and thing to do in both my work life and personal life. But as soon as I get that all down on paper and a calendar and block off the time to do it, it suddenly doesn’t seem as daunting. This week, Liz shares her tips on how she creates more time in her day in order to accomplish her goals. She also shares how she creates time for herself, because it is important to make time to recharge and return to what she calls ‘happy chaos.’ Tip #4: How to Create More Time “Plan, plan, plan! Talk with your spouse or support people to plan for a few hours a week to have kids and meal prep covered, and then a larger chunk (like a whole day!) once a month or so. You could even plan a yearly time away at a retreat or conference that will feed your soul. (Nursing babies usually come along, of course!) Meal plan so you are not stressed at meal time and so the type of prep you need to do fits the schedule for that day of the week. It is amazing how simply feeling peaceful while you work seems to take less time and energy. This also makes the shopping list easier to create and easier to keep trips to the store to a minimum, which both save time. (Also utilize your crockpot and one-pan recipes - they help save so much time spent in the kitchen!) Try to get the maximum from your time to yourself. What types of leisure activities truly feed your soul, help you rest, and leave you feeling refreshed? You have to return to the happy chaos at the end of it all, so you don't want to come back feeling worn out or overstimulated. Time in nature, reading life-giving books, creating art or crafts, exercise, prayer/meditation/silence and connecting with loved ones are all examples of soul-feeding leisure that can be really refreshing even in very small bursts. Involve your family (especially kids!) in housework as much as possible. I am constantly asking myself, ‘Could a child do this task?’ This will also create moments together as you train a kid or work side-by-side. When you have spent a lot of meaningful time with your family, you will feel more at peace with the decision to leave them or do your own thing for a little while. It will also leave you with a bit less on your own to-do list. Also teach your family to participate in and enjoy the activities that you love. One family chose to begin rock-climbing together so that Mom and Dad got to exercise, too, instead of spending their time driving kids to and from sports practices. Another hikes and runs together regularly for the same reason. I love to read good books that I love myself to my kids and to do family craft and cooking projects. Many families involve older kids in faith-related activities and parents trade off going with them. Suddenly you will need less time "away" because your life is more full of the things that nourish you and make you happy. Keep a little list of long-term projects or ready-at-hand activities that you want to get to ‘when you have time.’ That way you will have ideas of what to get into when little pockets of time present themselves. Enforce an afternoon quiet time for everyone until at least age 5. Some families do it for even longer! Audio books, repetitive crafts like potholder weaving or finger knitting, coloring/drawing, looking at picture books are great for those who no longer actually sleep during quiet time. Early bed time for littles also helps a lot. Join a book club, Bible study, crafters' group, yoga class, etc. to have ‘appointment’ time to do something you love. It is easier to make yourself go, and for your family to release you, when it is happening at a scheduled time and/or people are counting on you to show up!” Resources: A Mother's Rule of Life by Holly Pierlot Leisure, the Basis of Culture by Josef Pieper The Well-Read Life: Nourish Your Soul through Deep Reading and Intentional Friendship by Colleen Hutt and Marcie Stokman

Busy Mom's Tip #3: What Is Really Important?

The average person spends over $1,000 per year on subscription services. Think Netflix, Amazon, Instacart. Each year, Americans spend over $1 trillion on travel, which averages to about $3,000 per person per year. Every year, the USA wastes 38.5 million tons of food annually (that’s one of the most conservative statistics out there). Since the 1950s, the mineral and phytonutrient content of our food has decreased by 20-50%. Most Americans consume 50% of their calories from ultra-processed foods. The US spent $4.9 trillion in 2023 on healthcare, which averages $14,570 per person. Of that $4.9 trillion, 90% goes toward treating chronic and mental conditions. Compared to the $4.9 trillion spent on healthcare, USA citizens spend just $1.7 T on food, which averages to $5,054 per person. Currently, about 6 out of 10 adults struggle with chronic disease, and 23% of American teens are diabetic. Perhaps these disturbing statistics reveal something about the priorities of most modern Americans. Could it be the societal norm of expecting and budgeting around cheap food compromises our own health and that of our loved ones? At Whiffletree, we believe food is medicine. What we eat is who we are, which I think the above statistics point out. And I get it - I am a single gal living on a single person income in a very expensive place to live. It’s not always easy to make ends meet, especially if you have little mouths to feed. This week, Liz Straight shares some tips and ideas that might help you as you figure out how to make your budget include nourishing food. These are ways she and Jesse have implemented these practices into their lives in order to afford high quality food, which allows them to give their kids the very best they can and provide them with a healthy foundation for living life. No, it’s not always easy. But is it worth it? They say yes. Tip #3: How to budget around what is most important to you “When deciding what you will spend food money on, start out by deciding what you care most about getting top quality without compromise. For our family, it is meat, eggs, raw milk, fats, and oils that we don’t compromise quality on. We put those items into our budget first. Then we decide what items we are okay with compromising quality in order to make our food budget work. An example for us would be some fruits and veggies. We’ll sometimes try to compromise and pick local apples that are low spray rather than buying organic apples that are shipped from across the country. I’ll also go off the ‘dirty dozen’ guidelines (a guideline you can find online for fruits and veggies in the grocery store that are heavily sprayed vs ones that aren’t) for when I am purchasing produce from a grocery store. Or things like a condiment that has corn syrup I won’t get, but in a pinch I will buy one that has healthier fats or cane sugar in it. For money, there will always be a limit to what you can spend. But if you look at your actual budget, there may be more available for quality food than you think. Are there any entertainment subscriptions you can cut? Do you eat out regularly and could you start to make one more meal per week at home? Things like that. Sometimes, sacrifice and practicality are necessary. Some examples for us are: I don’t often buy premade items. For instance I will get whole dates, nuts, or chocolate chips, but I won’t purchase Larabars. Either we eat the whole food items as they are or I make them into a bar myself. Try to save on clothing wherever possible, making use of secondhand, consignment, and discount shopping.Travel budgets and entertainment services aren’t big parts of our budget.Even our home has gone through slow renovation rather than being done all at once so our budget could be spread across things that mattered.Etc. If your time allows, doing things to grow your own food is also helpful. Maybe you can garden or grow herbs on your patio, or raise a few backyard chickens. There is an unexpected satisfaction in eating food you have raised yourself, and is also great for kids to be able to learn alongside you. Eating quality food as a priority isn’t always easy. Modern life isn’t set up to make healthy eating the path of least resistance, but with practice and energy and time up front, it becomes a routine method of life that doesn’t dominate you. While like every family we’ll have the flu once in a while or colds come through, we thankfully don’t deal with chronic health issues. The kids also know the basics of cooking and gardening and caring for animals which may help them someday in their own adult lives. And the blessing of being able to give our kids a good foundation so they have strength and health to navigate life with is a privilege.”

Busy Mom's Tip #2: How to Feed Quality Food to Your Family on a Budget

Meal planning actually helps to save money. If you walk into the grocery store without a plan or a list, you are much more likely to buy things you don’t actually need. Or accidentally buy more than you can use in a week. And meal planning helps to simplify things A LOT. There’s no wondering at the end of the day what you are going to make for dinner. If you already know what you’re making, it’s much easier to plan ahead so you have the time and ingredients on hand. It also helps to simplify your pantry. Ever open the door to find a can of veggies that’s expired? Or an herb that you haven’t used in two years? If you’re intentionally meal planning around ingredients you’ll actually use in your meals, your pantry is less likely to fill up with odds and ends you have to sort through and figure out how to use up later…or worse throw out because it is old. So without further ado, here is Liz’s next tip! Tip #2: Meal Plan Ahead of Time! “I serve the same meal plan each week, changing it every once in a while when new produce is coming in season or our family schedule is changing, etc. Exceptions for holidays, birthdays, special meals for guests seem to be enough to keep it interesting! You could even just pick a cut of meat or type of meat to build each weekday around if you want a little more variety. Or make a 2, 3, or 4 week plan to repeat. Example: Monday: chicken, rice, broccoli Tuesday: tacos Wednesday: egg casserole with sausage, baked sweet potatoes, spinach Thursday: beef roast in the slow cooker, sauerkraut, roasted potatoes and carrots Friday: salmon with zucchini and peppers, rice Saturday: soup, salad, nice bread Sunday: grill out, cole slaw or salad Make enough dinner to have for lunch the next day, with Saturdays as a "combinations" lunch to serve all the leftovers still around. That helps to simplify your meal planning quite a bit so you don’t have to come up with ideas for every meal. Also get away from strict meal categories. You can have soup for any meal, or leftover dinner for any meal, or eggs for any meal, pancakes, hearty smoothies, etc. You can put pretty much anything into an omelette or scrambled eggs :) Also simplify your ingredients! Great ingredients don’t need much seasoning. Things like garlic, onions, salt, pepper, fresh or dried herbs, or good fats such as butter, tallow, or bacon fat, are all great at seasoning meats and veggies without spending a lot of money on a pantry full of spices you use once or twice a year. Keep some staples on hand, such as carrots, onions, garlic, celery, potatoes, frozen corn and peas, ginger, lemons, parsley. They’re very versatile and I use some of them almost every day. They can also be the main veg or part of a soup any time if I need them to. It also helps to shop on a schedule. If you have your meal plan, you can make a list of ingredients you’ll need to cover all your meals for the week. Do your grocery shopping once a week at the store or farm. Again, this helps to reduce impulse buying, which your wallet will thank you for. Shop with a budget. You can break it down between each source you use, or even break the budget for a certain store into food categories for a while until you get used to spending within the overall budget. For example, have a certain amount you’ll spend on meat, an amount you’ll spend on produce, an amount you’ll spend on pantry essentials, etc. Stick to it every week, and it will help ensure you don’t overspend. I think I said it before but......don't fear monotony! Your family may get bored from time to time, but mostly if you are using good ingredients and find a few tasty simple recipes no one will complain! We eat eggs and toast pretty much every single weekday (and it is definitely boring). But we are busy on weekday mornings, and it fills us up and is healthy. So we stick with it! You will also save money by having a shorter list of ingredients that you always shop for and have on hand. There will be less waste because you will use those things often and you will be able to buy them in bulk.” Give these tips a try and let us know what you think!

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No More Dry Turkey

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Busy Mom's Tip #4: How to Create More Time

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