[email protected]

In a message dated 11/15/05 6:11:14 PM, a-lane@... writes:


> -=-This has been our biggest obstacle. Several times we have tried to make
> dietary changes and we just couldn't afford it. It costs over twice as much
> to but organic for us than to buy crap.-=-
>

Extremes aren't helpful. To say you can't afford to make a change and that
you're buying crap will make it difficult for you to see how gradual changes
work, and how living by principles works.

To define food as crap is in the same category as callng someone stupid. It
doesn't help anything.

There's not "crap" on one end and the perfect-yet-unaffordable food on the
other, with a choice between the two. Every time you shop you have a choice,
and you can make the better choice of the things you can afford. Each time
you decide how to prepare something, you have choices. If you don't want to
choose among a hundred or a dozen, give yourself two choices: omelette or
scrambled? Butter or spray? (not a good example for vegans; fine for
vegetarians). But you could look at those two choices and realize you'd really
rather have boiled eggs and bypass all the oil and need of cheese.

-=- I guess I could cook from scratch more.-=-

Guessing or knowing? <g>

Yeah, I'm being picky about words, but it's not "just semantics." It's
about seeing the world in a bright and hopeful way and not being defeatist or
limiting ourselves by feeling powerless and poor.

-=-(I bake like Betty Crocker though.
Cookies anyone?)-=-

I'm way better at baking than at doing meat and vegetables.

Here's an idea that will work with just about ever aspect of life:
Every time you make a decision, wait until you've thought of two choices and
choose the better one. It seems simple, but I was surprised when I thought
of that way to ratchet the quality of life up to find how many times I was
acting without really thinking.

It first came up when a friend who was being knighted was saying that he felt
bad that he didn't have good a good period-looking camp, and he couldn't
afford one, so he had to look shabby all the time. I said if you always
make the better choice, gradually your equipment will get better. If you can
only afford a nylon tent, get a brown one instead of a blue one. If you're
buying used dishes, choose what looks older.

Having that idea almost 20 years ago changed my own life. Kirby was a baby,
and I used that method on my own life, not just on improving my camp (which
was already better than other aspects of my life), and I still do.

Don't choose between crap and unaffordable. Pick two good things that ARE
in your range of possibility and choose the best of those. The next time you
choose, your two choices might be better than last time because you'll know
more, have better ideas, be unsatisfied to consider anymore that lesser of the
two from the last time.


Sandra





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Ann

SandraDodd@... wrote:
Don't choose between crap and unaffordable. Pick two good things that ARE
in your range of possibility and choose the best of those. The next time you
choose, your two choices might be better than last time because you'll know
more, have better ideas, be unsatisfied to consider anymore that lesser of the
two from the last time.
____________

Sandra,

Thank you for sharing this. I don't know where I picked up this 'all or nothing' type thinking, but what you just wrote should be so simple and obvious, except for many people it's not.
This will help me with my kids. When they have an interest or want certain supplies, I don't always have the money at the time. But I always have some money and can get them some of it now instead of waiting until I can buy everything.
One of my kids has been wanting to redecorate her bedroom. I'm thinking I can't do new furniture right now, but I can buy paint, fabrics, stencils, posters and many other things that would allow her to do much of what she wants. The rest can come later.

Thanks for the post,
Ann




---------------------------------
Yahoo! FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

The vegetarian thang:

Anyone else dealing with only ONE veg-head in the family???

I didn't eat meat twice in my life---once at five for a year, and again at 13 for two years. But there weren't all the "alternatives" out there as there are today. I just didn't eat the meat that was served.

*NOW* there are all sorts of meat substitutes and tofu and crap.

Cameron is a vegetarian again. It's NOT that much fun to make two things every night.

Any advice??? I called Deb L (a SERIOUS vegetarian!) for info on how to prepare some of this stuff---it's NOT pleasant to work with IMO. But I guess some of you veg-heads feel that way about handling meat! <G>

But we eat a LOT of meat around here---high protein: we NEED it. Cam does too!

I like to cook, but I'm not wild about cooking TWICE! <G> Any suggestions? It can be off-list!

Thanks!

~Kelly

Kelly Lovejoy
Conference Coordinator
Live and Learn Unschooling Conference
http://liveandlearnconference.org




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

April

I had many years of this. Kate was vegetarian for quite a while. We tend to
eat a mix of meat and vegetarian dishes anyway, so that helped.

I usually try to make meals that can be put together since we have quite a
variety of tastes here anyway. I just bought vegetarian alternatives to add
to the mix. So when I make spaghetti, I have noodles, sauce, cheese and
meatballs all separate and people combine whatever they want. I just add
veggie meatballs as an option. For things like chili, I don't put meat in
sometimes anyway (the beans provide plenty of protein). If I'm in the mood
for meat, I just put some in another pot without meat or with a meat
alternative. It dirties an extra pot, but it's not any extra work. Chicken
patties, hotdogs, hamburgers all have veggie alternatives of course. Tacos
are easy to do this with. If I'm doing a meal like roast chicken or beef,
then I just make sure there are quick and easy veggie "meats" available to
heat up. Kate would do that herself. I would make sure to do some
vegetarian meals as well since we like that anyway. As long as I have the
alternatives handy, it wasn't' much extra work. It is pricier though.



~April
Mom to Kate-19, Lisa-16, Karl-14, & Ben-10.
*REACH Homeschool Grp, an inclusive group in Oakland County
<http://www.reachhomeschool.com> www.reachhomeschool.com

* Michigan Unschoolers
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/michigan_unschoolers/>
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/michigan_unschoolers/
*Check out Chuck's art! <http://www.artkunst23.com/>
http://www.artkunst23.com
"Know where to find the information and how to use it - That's the secret of
success."
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

_____

From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of
kbcdlovejo@...
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 9:00 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [UnschoolingDiscussion] re: attention vegetarians



The vegetarian thang:

Anyone else dealing with only ONE veg-head in the family???

I didn't eat meat twice in my life---once at five for a year, and again at
13 for two years. But there weren't all the "alternatives" out there as
there are today. I just didn't eat the meat that was served.

*NOW* there are all sorts of meat substitutes and tofu and crap.

Cameron is a vegetarian again. It's NOT that much fun to make two things
every night.

Any advice??? I called Deb L (a SERIOUS vegetarian!) for info on how to
prepare some of this stuff---it's NOT pleasant to work with IMO. But I guess
some of you veg-heads feel that way about handling meat! <G>

But we eat a LOT of meat around here---high protein: we NEED it. Cam does
too!

I like to cook, but I'm not wild about cooking TWICE! <G> Any suggestions?
It can be off-list!

Thanks!

~Kelly

Kelly Lovejoy
Conference Coordinator
Live and Learn Unschooling Conference
http://liveandlearnconference.org




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Deb

--- In [email protected], SandraDodd@a... wrote:
>
>
> In a message dated 11/15/05 6:11:14 PM, a-lane@s... writes:
>
>
> > -=-This has been our biggest obstacle. Several times we have
>>tried to make
> > dietary changes and we just couldn't afford it. It costs over
>>twice as much
> > to but organic for us than to buy crap.-=-
> >
>
> Extremes aren't helpful. To say you can't afford to make a
>change and that
> you're buying crap will make it difficult for you to see how
>gradual changes
> work, and how living by principles works.
>
> To define food as crap is in the same category as callng someone
>stupid. It
> doesn't help anything.
>
> There's not "crap" on one end and the perfect-yet-unaffordable
>food on the
> other, with a choice between the two. Every time you shop you
>have a choice,
> and you can make the better choice of the things you can afford.
Exactly. For example, we love flour tortillas. Making whole wheat
ones at home was something DH used to do but now we don't often
find/make the time for that process. There are several 'white bread'
equivalent types that often are on sale (buy 1 get 1 etc) - cheap.
However, they have tons of sodium (as well as other stuff). With a
little looking around at the grocery store (major chain place, not a
small, local or specialty place) I found, clear across in the deli
section, some really good, half the sodium, whole wheat tortillas
that cost about the same as the other, except they are rarely on
special. So I choose the 'better' choice - not perfect but better.

Actually, though, one thing we did was to go 'totally plant' for
about 2 weeks (one big and one small grocery trip) - no regular
cheese, no animal milk, no meats, etc (hmm okay maybe some margarine
got in there, I'm not sure if it did or not). Yes, that was a bit
more expensive than our usual shopping trips. Then, we added back in
bit by bit those things that we really wanted to add back in and
kept the organic, vegetarian, etc stuff that we liked as well. The
*process* was important. Instead of saying "this is what we usually
get, this is what we can afford" we looked (and continue to look)
further afield and check out alternatives to the 'same old, same
old'. We weren't all that big on prepared, packaged foods anyhow for
the most part, now we just look a little more closely at what we get
and think more consciously about what we are wanting and how to
arrive at that end in different ways. Some stuff is organic, some
stuff is veg, some is lower in sodium or higher in this or that
nutrient/vitamin/mineral/whatever. It's more a conscious choice when
I pick out this particular pasta sauce - it may be because it's
organic or because it's low sodium or it may simply be that it is
the one we like best. As with everything else, it's a balance -
sometimes we have to choose between item a which is a vegan organic
product and item b which is not and costs half as much which would
allow space in the budget for item c which we want to get but is not
critical.

--Deb

Aubrey Lane

>> Thank you for sharing this. I don't know where I picked up this 'all or
nothing' type thinking, but what you just wrote should be so simple and
obvious, except for many people it's not.

So true! I once spent over $200 on groceries (after going to 2 different
places to find everything we needed) at a large health food store when my dd
started complaining of stomach-aches all the time. My family (DH mostly)
complained about most of the stuff and wanted their old stuff back. Maybe a
more gradual change would work better. See what we like and what we don't.

I would love for my family to eat organic, but it is expensive where we
live. Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of these things are
at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since these are things we eat
all the time they concern me the most. I haven't seen any other choices in
our grocery store and I am seriously concerned about additives and
preservatives, pesticides and hormones in our food.
Any ideas?
Thanks, Aubrey

[email protected]

In a message dated 11/16/05 7:34:53 AM, soggyboysmom@... writes:


> -=-The
> *process* was important. Instead of saying "this is what we usually
> get, this is what we can afford"-=-
>

Although I've always kind of envied those families with a regular schedule
(spaghetti on Thursday, fish on Friday...) it would also drive me crazy.
Sometimes it's just an artichoke day, and how could I know that two days before?
Sometimes it just happens. <G>

I just use locally made cheap flour tortillas, and I might worry about it
more if I didn't have to wait for the 80 year old ladies to get out of the way
before I could get to them. They seem happy, and aren't spending large chunks
of their day going on about how terrible life is and how we're all going to
die in a minute. That in itself seems a healthy thing to emulate, to me.

Sandra




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

In a message dated 11/16/05 7:59:34 AM, a-lane@... writes:


> -=-Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of these things are
> at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since these are things we eat
> all the time they concern me the most.-=-
>
Maybe the answer is not to eat them all the time. If the eggs you want are
twice as much, eat them only half as often. Find something else now and good
for you to have the other times.

Maybe you could join a food co-op and get things less expensively that way,
or tag on to someone who's already in a food co-op and just occasionally order
a thing or two on her order.

Sandra




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Aubrey Lane

I've never heard of a food co-op in my area but I'll check into it.
Thanks--
Aubrey

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of
SandraDodd@...
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 9:08 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [UnschoolingDiscussion] making choices (was re: attention
vegetarians)


In a message dated 11/16/05 7:59:34 AM, a-lane@... writes:


> -=-Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of these things are
> at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since these are things we eat
> all the time they concern me the most.-=-
>
Maybe the answer is not to eat them all the time. If the eggs you want are

twice as much, eat them only half as often. Find something else now and
good
for you to have the other times.

Maybe you could join a food co-op and get things less expensively that way,
or tag on to someone who's already in a food co-op and just occasionally
order
a thing or two on her order.

Sandra




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




"List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.

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<http://www.unschooling.info>
Yahoo! Groups Links

robin marcoccia

This was the advice I was going to give. If you can join an organic produce coop, they're often alot less expensive than a WholeFoods, for example. The only drawback is that you often get a strange assortment of things that are in season at that time (can be fun figuring out what to make!). I would post the website where you can find local farms but can't seem to put my hands on it a the moment (CSA something or other?).

And to respond to Kelly-- we tend to make large batches of vegetarian stews and soups (especially in the winter) and freeze several multi-portion containers (check recipes to see what frezes well--lentil soup does not freeze well IMO). You could make something veggie and rich in bean proteins, for example, and then on a meat night Cameron could defrost something of his choice from the freezer.

Robin
----- Original Message -----
From: SandraDodd@...
To: [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 10:07 AM
Subject: Re: [UnschoolingDiscussion] making choices (was re: attention vegetarians)



In a message dated 11/16/05 7:59:34 AM, a-lane@... writes:


> -=-Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of these things are
> at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since these are things we eat
> all the time they concern me the most.-=-
>
Maybe the answer is not to eat them all the time. If the eggs you want are
twice as much, eat them only half as often. Find something else now and good
for you to have the other times.

Maybe you could join a food co-op and get things less expensively that way,
or tag on to someone who's already in a food co-op and just occasionally order
a thing or two on her order.

Sandra




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Visit the Unschooling website and message boards: <http://www.unschooling.info>



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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

-----Original Message-----
From: robin marcoccia <randrs01@...>


And to respond to Kelly-- we tend to make large batches of vegetarian stews and
soups (especially in the winter) and freeze several multi-portion containers
(check recipes to see what frezes well--lentil soup does not freeze well IMO).
You could make something veggie and rich in bean proteins, for example, and then
on a meat night Cameron could defrost something of his choice from the freezer.

-=-=-=-

Thanks, Robin! I'm laughing because almost *every* night is a meat night! Southern, doncha know! <G>

But thanks, I will think about making some things and freezing them for him.

~Kelly

Kelly Lovejoy
Conference Coordinator
Live and Learn Unschooling Conference
http://liveandlearnconference.org


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

elainegh8

Hi
there used to be a book published in the UK called A Vegetarian
in the Family that looked at creative ways of making one meal that
with additions or subtractions would suit everyone. Dunno if it's
published anymore but worth looking for.

You could do things like make a basic tomato sauce for pasta, divide
in to two portions, add already cooked meat to yours and already
beans,lentils, soya mince or tofu to his. Then you on;y have to cook
the spaghetti. You could make a few veggie loaves in one go and
freeze in easy portions. Then you could make up a whole dinner and
you have the meat and he can have his loaf. Same with burgers, batch
cook and freeze then it's only the fixings and buns to do.

Make a whole basic tomato pizza, cut in half/quarters or whatever
before it goes in the oven and add meat to your portions and extra
cheese or mushrooms or something to his.

BWs Elaine


>
> The vegetarian thang:
>
> Anyone else dealing with only ONE veg-head in the family???
>
> I didn't eat meat twice in my life---once at five for a year, and
again at 13 for two years. But there weren't all the "alternatives"
out there as there are today. I just didn't eat the meat that was
served.
>
> *NOW* there are all sorts of meat substitutes and tofu and crap.
>
> Cameron is a vegetarian again. It's NOT that much fun to make two
things every night.
>
> Any advice??? I called Deb L (a SERIOUS vegetarian!) for info on
how to prepare some of this stuff---it's NOT pleasant to work with
IMO. But I guess some of you veg-heads feel that way about handling
meat! <G>
>
> But we eat a LOT of meat around here---high protein: we NEED it.
Cam does too!
>
> I like to cook, but I'm not wild about cooking TWICE! <G> Any
suggestions? It can be off-list!
>
> Thanks!
>
> ~Kelly
>
> Kelly Lovejoy
> Conference Coordinator
> Live and Learn Unschooling Conference
> http://liveandlearnconference.org
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

Beth

I would love for my family to eat organic, but it is expensive where we
> live. Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of these things are
> at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since these are things we eat
> all the time they concern me the most. I haven't seen any other choices in
> our grocery store and I am seriously concerned about additives and
> preservatives, pesticides and hormones in our food.
> Any ideas?

Check with someone from your local health food store to see if they are
involved in, or know of, a local co-op for buying organic fruits and
vegetables.

We buy our beef, pork, chicken, and eggs from local farmers. The animals
are grass-fed and not given antibiotics or hormones. We found them through
the Eat Wild website: http://www.eatwild.com We found the cattle farmer
first and he then directed us to the pig farmer and the chicken farmer.
It's relatively easy to make connections in the organic farming community
once you figure out where to begin, and Eat Wild is a good place to begin.

Beth

Liz in AZ

>>I would love for my family to eat organic, but it is expensive
where we live. Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of
these things are at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since
these are things we eat all the time they concern me the most. I
haven't seen any other choices in our grocery store and I am
seriously concerned about additives and preservatives, pesticides
and hormones in our food.<<

You don't have to buy only organic to reduce or avoid additives,
preservatives, pesticides, and hormones.

If you cook from scratch, you can easily reduce additives and
preservatives. Even frozen vegetables don't have the additive load
that canned do (or prepared meals).

To reduce pesticides, do some Google research on the crops that are
most heavily sprayed and consider reducing those. When organic
produce isn't an option, wash the produce you do buy with soap (not
antibacterial, unless you want to trade triclosan for the
pesticides). Peel things.

To reduce hormones, eat *less* meat/milk, and/or replace *some*
meat/milk with organic varieties. Maybe replace some milk with
soy/almond/rice milk.

Not eating meat, or eating less meat, is cheap; you don't have to
get soy versions of everything as replacements. Poor people the
world around eat little or no meat. If you aren't familiar with
vegetarian meal options beyond salad or spaghetti, plan meals around
complementary proteins, like a grain and a legume: rice/beans,
cornbread/beans, tortillas/beans, pasta/chickpeas, pita
bread/hummus, rice/lentils, barley/beans... Consider less-
expensive "meat replacements", like TVP (texturized vegetable
protein), which can be rehydrated with beef stock (obviously not
vegetarian, but a less-meat option) and taco seasoning to make a
fine taco/burrito filling.

Other options to get organic produce and meats less expensively are
gardening, Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs), farmers markets,
and you-pick farms (though some can be just as expensive as the
store). Check www.pickyourown.org or www.localharvest.org for CSAs
and you-picks near you. Craigslist sometimes has listings for farms,
too (www.craigslist.org). I realize it isn't the best time of year
for these in most of the country, but file the idea away for spring,
maybe.

Liz in AZ

Pamela Sorooshian

On Nov 16, 2005, at 5:46 AM, Ann wrote:

> Thank you for sharing this. I don't know where I picked up this
> 'all or nothing' type thinking, but what you just wrote should be
> so simple and obvious, except for many people it's not.

This is so true. Black and white thinking and all or nothing thinking
seems to be what I default to when under stress or feeling low. I've
been using the "choose from at least two options" idea for many
years, now, and it makes a HUGE difference. It is simple enough that
I can remind myself of it even when under stress or overwhelmed or
too tired or just not wanting to think about whatever it is I have to
do.


And it does something to put one's brain "in gear" or onto a solution-
oriented path or something. Really.

When I say to the kids, who are having a conflict, "Okay, well, we
could try this thing or that thing," they often jump in and start
naming other possibilities. Before we know it, we've got a mutually
agreeable option.

-pam

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Robyn Coburn

<<<<< One of my kids has been wanting to redecorate her bedroom. I'm
thinking I can't do new furniture right now, but I can buy paint, fabrics,
stencils, posters and many other things that would allow her to do much of
what she wants. The rest can come later. >>>>

New furniture is the last thing to change - you haven't been watching enough
BBC America - try "House Invaders" - the mandate is to use only leftovers
that the homeowner already has and a the few little bits and pieces that the
designer has in her (usually her) kit. Its amazing what they accomplish.

Paint is cheap. Go to your large home supply or paint chain store and ask
about mistints - mistakes that the sales associate made that sell for half
price. You can mix any water based paints together regardless of finish.
Save oil based for trim or small furniture pieces.

Fabric is not cheap a lot of the time - especially if you are looking at
furnishing fabrics. Dye is cheap. You can get dress fabrics on sale and dye
them if necessary. It is also a way to bring a range of remnants into the
same tonal range.

Speaking as someone who had to do a lot of temporary redecorating in the
film business, don't forget Contact paper. You can make a wooden
table/dresser top look like marble. The trick is to cut (with a Stanley
knife) a random wavy line at the overlap point of sections, rather than try
and line up the straight edges.

Robyn L. Coburn

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Danielle Conger

kbcdlovejo@... wrote:

> The vegetarian thang:
>
> Anyone else dealing with only ONE veg-head in the family???

Yes, I am. What I do is take out meat for dh--kids can take it or leave
it, depending upon what it is, marinate it and have it ready for him to
grill. I then make my meal *around* the meat so that the meat is a side
dish or a topping. For instance, some kind of fabulous salad or pasta
salad with bread, olive oil and hard cheese, makes a delicious, protein
rich meal for me, which dh can easily top with chicken or salmon. Or, I
make a really great quinoa or risotto or some other substantial grain
that I can top with a bean salsa of some sort, maybe bake an acorn
squash and stuff that, something along those lines, with which a grilled
chicken breast goes nicely. Or, I make mashed/ baked/ cubed/ hashed
potatoes with eggs for me and some kind of meat for others. Or, I can
make pannini sandwiches with chicken or mozzarella, roasted reds, baby
spinach and tomatoes.

The key is to view the meat as the side dish rather than the main
dish--difficult for mainstream America, I think. ;) It helps to be
lacto-ovo, of course. I do cheese and/or nuts in almost everything
dinner related. I thought I'd have a really hard time going veg, because
I envisioned having to learn to like eggplant and mushrooms (ewww!), but
it really hasn't been difficult at all. I just kept all the flavors I
liked before and dropped out the meat.

Then, there are some nights where we do simply make different meals
because we're all feeling like different things.

--
~~Danielle
Emily (8), Julia (6), Sam (5)
http://www.danielleconger.com/Homeschool/Welcomehome.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"With our thoughts, we make the world." ~~Buddha

Danielle Conger

Aubrey Lane wrote:

>
>
> So true! I once spent over $200 on groceries

BWwwwwaaaaa, haaa, haaa! cough, cough, sputter, sputter.

Okay, now that I'm done my spit take all over my computer, let me just
say that I drop this *easily* per week. Without batting an eyelash.
American, east-coast dollars that is, and that's without going to fancy,
all-organic grocery stores, but buying as much whole/ organic as my
local mainstream grocery carries and buying scratch ingredients and very
few prepared foods except cracker/ pretzel type snacks and cereal.

Groceries and mortgage. That's where all our money goes. Dh's
grandfather used to say, you spend it on groceries or doctor
bills--better the groceries. I think that's true.

--
~~Danielle
Emily (8), Julia (6), Sam (5)
http://www.danielleconger.com/Homeschool/Welcomehome.html

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"With our thoughts, we make the world." ~~Buddha

Robyn Coburn

<<<< Okay, now that I'm done my spit take all over my computer, let me just
say that I drop this *easily* per week.>>>>

Me too. One big shop per week between $175 - 200, and then a smaller shop of
close to $80 half way through the week when we run out of milk, eggs and
bread and other stuff.

<<<Groceries and mortgage. That's where all our money goes.>>>>

Rent, cars, health insurance, then groceries over here.

Robyn L. Coburn

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Heather Woodward

I wanted to chime in here - I try and buy organic and natural food as much
as possible - and it is true most organic food costs more than regular
grocery store name brand stuff. However, I have done several things to be
able to afford to do this.

I found a local natural food store with a great bulk food section. Buying
things this way is much cheaper than even the store brand in some cases. You
have to serve yourself - and there aren't shopping bags and other things
that would cause overhead at this store. You can also look for a natural
food co-op in your area where you share bulk buying with other members. This
brings the cost down as well.

I also joined a CSA farm ( Consumer Supported Agriculture) and I worked 70
hours throughout the season in exchange for the share of organic fresh
veggies and herbs each week. this was great for me and myr kids as they went
along and helped some weeks, played or found all kinds of interesting bugs
and snakes ( We even saw a hummingbird on its nest!)

I go to local farmers markets and (lucky for me I am in Amish country!) can
find great meats that are local and fresh and have many are grass-fed and
groan without hormones, yogurt, cheese, etc.

There is another local homeschool mom that has a farm where we get our milk,
eggs and some chicken, turkey & I bought a 1/8 of a cow cut up and packaged
and delivered to my freezer.

I think what was said about the little steps are important. It's not all or
nothing. We actually ate at McDonalds today because we met friends and
exchanged kids. I make better choices at McDonalds than before....Salad and
parfait are not bad - but the kids usually like nuggets, fries and soda -
and I don't think it is horrible because on average we eat pretty healthy.

I may not always have the money to go to the natural food store, although I
find that I will then choose the items of most importance to buy organic. I
usually eat less meat that week - and buy some organic, I cook a lot form
scratch - and tonight even we had scrambled eggs and buckwheat pancakes with
local maple syrup. I don't buy a lot of cookies and cakes and stuff, but
tend to bake with the kids. We have a vita mix and I make homemade ice cream
and smoothies often.

It didn't all happen overnight....but one thing led to another and it is
do-able.

Here are some sources that will help you find local stuff in your area.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/purelink.html
http://www.localharvest.org/

Good luck! I am sure you will figure this out!

Heather


----- Original Message -----
From: "Aubrey Lane" <a-lane@...>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2005 9:35 AM
Subject: RE: [UnschoolingDiscussion] making choices (was re: attention
vegetarians)


>
> >> Thank you for sharing this. I don't know where I picked up this 'all
or
> nothing' type thinking, but what you just wrote should be so simple and
> obvious, except for many people it's not.
>
> So true! I once spent over $200 on groceries (after going to 2 different
> places to find everything we needed) at a large health food store when my
dd
> started complaining of stomach-aches all the time. My family (DH mostly)
> complained about most of the stuff and wanted their old stuff back. Maybe
a
> more gradual change would work better. See what we like and what we don't.
>
> I would love for my family to eat organic, but it is expensive where we
> live. Meat, vegetables, fruit, eggs, milk, butter; all of these things are
> at least twice as much as the regular stuff. Since these are things we eat
> all the time they concern me the most. I haven't seen any other choices in
> our grocery store and I am seriously concerned about additives and
> preservatives, pesticides and hormones in our food.
> Any ideas?
> Thanks, Aubrey
>
>
>
>
>
>
> "List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.
>
> Visit the Unschooling website and message boards:
<http://www.unschooling.info>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Andrea L. Roher

My husband and my interest is in growing/hunting/providing our own
food, more from a self-sustaining kind of a life philosophy than from
any kind of a health perspective. But of course, we expect that will
come too, as we would be avoiding the chemical fertilizers and
pesticides and such. Of course, at the moment we're not in a
position to even make grocery choices (we live with his parents and
don't have money to stock a second fridge), so it's nice to dream.
:)

Providing your own food can be much more expensive in the short run
(buying the land, etc.), but probably is about the same or less
expensive in the long run, and you have the ultimate quality control
built in. Maybe even city dwellers have space to grow a few beans or
something that might be too expensive at the local health food store.

elainegh8

Don't suppose anyone knows what that is in pounds sterling? I think
it's still gonna be a LOT of money :O

BWs Elaine

> Aubrey Lane wrote:

> > So true! I once spent over $200 on groceries
>
> BWwwwwaaaaa, haaa, haaa! cough, cough, sputter, sputter.
>
> Okay, now that I'm done my spit take all over my computer, let me
just
> say that I drop this *easily* per week. Without batting an
eyelash.
> American, east-coast dollars that is, and that's without going to
fancy,
> all-organic grocery stores, but buying as much whole/ organic as
my
> local mainstream grocery carries and buying scratch ingredients
and very
> few prepared foods except cracker/ pretzel type snacks and cereal.
>
> Groceries and mortgage. That's where all our money goes. Dh's
> grandfather used to say, you spend it on groceries or doctor
> bills--better the groceries. I think that's true.
>
> --
> ~~Danielle
> Emily (8), Julia (6), Sam (5)
> http://www.danielleconger.com/Homeschool/Welcomehome.html
>
> ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
>
> "With our thoughts, we make the world." ~~Buddha
>

Ann

Speaking as someone who had to do a lot of temporary redecorating in
the
film business, don't forget Contact paper. You can make a wooden
table/dresser top look like marble. The trick is to cut (with a Stanley
knife) a random wavy line at the overlap point of sections, rather than
try
and line up the straight edges.
________

Robyn,

This is a great suggestion! She has a dresser that has a veneer type finish that doesn't hold paint or stain well, but contact paper would be neat! She is wanting to paint several small murals on her wall with the neon type paint that glows with black lights, so the whole look is very casual. She will be 13 in January and I think she is just wanting to transform her little girls' room into something she feels is more grown up. She loves to paint and draw so, she sees those walls as a huge canvas to be enjoyed. If I had not found unschooling, I' m not sure I would have ever just handed her the supplies and asked how I could help.
I do enjoy this list.
Ann


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Ann

Well, I drop anywhere form $100-200 a week, depending on how much we entertain or if there is a holiday that we buy extra stuff for. I don't buy anything organic, nobody here is a vegetarian and well, we all eat what we want, no food rules at all. I only say this for those of you who do buy organic and such, I don't think you are probably spending that much extra. You probably aren't spending money on the ice cream, oreo cookies, spaghettios etc... that we buy all the time because we like it. We also eat a lot of fruits and veggies (none organic, but I do love to garden), but will do a cheeseburger with fires some nights too. I really think that with some creativity most people can eat the sort of diet they want within most budgets. I admire all of your discipline and dedication to eating healthy. I'm not inspired enough to change anything:0) I suppose the vision of my 80+ yr old granparents who regurlay ate eggs and bacon for breakfast has left me with little motivation.
Ann

Robyn Coburn <dezigna@...> wrote:
<<<< Okay, now that I'm done my spit take all over my computer, let me just
say that I drop this *easily* per week.>>>>

Me too. One big shop per week between $175 - 200, and then a smaller shop of
close to $80 half way through the week when we run out of milk, eggs and
bread and other stuff.

<<>>>

Rent, cars, health insurance, then groceries over here.

Robyn L. Coburn

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The Coffee Goddess

> I only say this for those of you who do buy organic
> and such, I don't think you are probably spending
> that much extra. You probably aren't spending money
> on the ice cream, oreo cookies, spaghettios etc...
> that we buy all the time because we like it.

We eat mostly organic--but I don't know what that has
to do with eating ice cream and cookies--we eat those,
too! But we have an organic ice cream parlor in our
town, and the grocery store across the street from my
house has 4 kinds of organic cow's milk, not to
mention all the other organic milks...We spend about
$800-1000 a month on groceries, sometimes more,
because we just LOVE to eat REALLY GOOD STUFF, drink
REALLY GOOD STUFF.

Organic ice cream rocks!

Dana Hoffman

Guadalupe's Coffee Roaster
100% Organic Fair Trade Coffee
Roasted to Perfection Daily
http://www.guadalupescoffee.com



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Patti

Wow! That's quite a bit! I complain when I spend more than $80 a week :).
Maybe demographics have more to do with it than actually the food itself. I
know that before the hurricanes hit, we could get large oranges and
grapefruits for 4 for a buck, sometimes 5 for a buck. This year we can't
touch them for well over a buck each. Chicken makes up most of our meals,
with frozen veggies and a side it makes a cheap meal. We don't splurge on
cookies, ice cream, ect. nor do we eat out. And do I get strange looks when
I say that! LOL!

Patti



> Well, I drop anywhere form $100-200 a week, depending on how much we
entertain or if there is a holiday that we buy extra stuff for.

Ann

Oh see, I was just making the assumption that if one bought organic foods then they may also tend to avoid some of the more 'processed, higher sugar' type foods. I didn't even know there was organic ice cream, well except for perhaps the homemade kind. So i learned something new today.
My point was that some thought they may spend more because they buy organic, we don't buy anything organic and we still spend a lot. We just spend it on convenience stuff, sweets, chips etc... We also buy foods that most would consider healthy, we just don't make much distinction between the two on a daily basis. By the end of the week, we're out of food both the healthy and the not so much, so all things get eaten. Of course I am also feeding four older kids ages 11 and up, and they can eat a lot of food.
Ann

The Coffee Goddess <hoffmanwilson@...> wrote:


> I only say this for those of you who do buy organic
> and such, I don't think you are probably spending
> that much extra. You probably aren't spending money
> on the ice cream, oreo cookies, spaghettios etc...
> that we buy all the time because we like it.

We eat mostly organic--but I don't know what that has
to do with eating ice cream and cookies--we eat those,
too! But we have an organic ice cream parlor in our
town, and the grocery store across the street from my
house has 4 kinds of organic cow's milk, not to
mention all the other organic milks...We spend about
$800-1000 a month on groceries, sometimes more,
because we just LOVE to eat REALLY GOOD STUFF, drink
REALLY GOOD STUFF.

Organic ice cream rocks!

Dana Hoffman

Guadalupe's Coffee Roaster
100% Organic Fair Trade Coffee
Roasted to Perfection Daily
http://www.guadalupescoffee.com



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http://www.yahoo.com/r/hs


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