A Week of Leftovers!

After two weeks of cooking I have now come to week three with a freezer full of leftovers! I will not be cooking this week unless its toasted sandwiches or something of the like so, therefore I will not be posting a meal plan for this week. And the best part is that I won't have to do a very big grocery shop and, will only be buying the essentials. Have a great week readers!

Ken, Baby Born and Space Lego

To be a wife, mother, and the keeper of a home, it's the desire of most little girls hearts. 

I had many female Barbies but I only acquired one Ken doll because you only needed one prince charming to sweep you off your feet. As I nursed my baby Born as a child I always knew that someday I'd be a mother for real. And when I played with Lego I only ever built houses with four walls, a kitchen and three bedrooms, even if it was space Lego. 

As we get older the reality of life becomes apparent, and you soon realise that your childhood dreams and assumptions no longer appear in your toy box, nor can they be assumed. Finding the real life Ken is like a needle in a haystack, you can no longer buy him from the toy isle. And Santa won't just give me a Baby Born for Christmas. The real life Baby Born is nothing short of a gifted miracle! And well, the Lego home is a seemingly unattainable 30 years of debt but only after 5-10 years of saving.

I'm so blessed to have married my incredible prince charming at the young age of twenty. And even more blessed to have given birth to Rupert our miracle baby at just twenty two. And the house, well we're still working on that one. It seems to me that the more God blesses me with the more I want. 
I look back at our wedding and think how proud we were to have had a beautiful wedding on a budget. And that we were so content to have less in order to be married young, not be in debt of a one day celebration and to not have drained our savings (We were also very thankful that our parents contributed to our wedding).

As newlyweds we moved into the bottom floor of an elevated home (I had already been boarding here for some time). It was one big room which had no kitchen and the combined toilet and shower was also the laundry for the whole house but, it did have a small fridge and a microwave. We were again so content to live there and pay only $50 a week, if it meant we could be together with just my wage supporting us while Matty completed his degree.

Blessed yet again when friends put in a good word for us to be able to rent the cosy 2 bedda which we're still living in over 2 years later.  And I am still so grateful for the lovely unit we live in but, I wouldn't be honest if I didn't say I sometimes become discontent. The more God gives, the more I want from him! The absent backyard, the bathless shower/ toilet/ laundry room, the lack of a third bedroom for baby #2... all things that bring my discontent to light.

It was Thursday morning when I wandered through Bunnings for practically no reason other than to walk the rows of pretty flowers, punnets of hopeful veggies, get a glimpse at the oven of my dreams, and to spy at the glorious crystal chandeliers. It's nice to have goals and dreams to work towards, so long as it doesn't consume us so much so that we become covetous and, forget where we should really be storing treasures, and that my friend is in heaven! 

The afternoon came and I somehow got talking with our neighbours on the floor above (neighbours we weren't very acquainted with). They have two young daughters so I mentioned that they were an inspiration to us ('encouragement' would have been a more suited word), showing that it was indeed possible to have a family in a small 2 bedroom unit. Stuart than went on to say that he was Christian and that it can be hard but, he believes God is teaching him CONTENTMENT! What a breath of fresh air! Just to hear someone else with a common struggle, and even though his daughters would LOVE a house with a yard for a dog, he believes its God shaping him. Right there and then I felt ashamed for being so selfish but it was such a revelation that I too am being shaped by God and, I am learning the art of contentment. I am beyond blessed!

Whats for Dinner?

With the new addition of Rupert in our lives and the absence of my wage, our family has stepped into a new chapter of our lives. Our family has changed [for the better], our budget has changed... our lifestyle is now different to that of our previous.

So, lets start with whats for dinner.

How can I shop cost effectively for groceries? Which meals are most cost effective? And how can I keep it healthy, delicious and exciting?

When we both worked full time I found it difficult (or inconvenient, lack of desire rather) to make the time to do proper grocery shops and to cook regular healthy meals. I usually cooked the same few meals on a regular basis. Spag bol, apricot chicken, schnitzel ect. Whatever was quick an easy! And then on other nights we might resort to supporting our local fish and chip shop, or maccas.

I've started with a budget of $200 a month excluding perishables such as milk and fruit and vege. It's been 14 days since I did the monthly shop and we're not doing too badly. I've probably spent about $20 over the past 2 weeks on additional groceries. At the end of the 4 weeks I will evaluate how well the $200 was spent and whether I had to make many additional small shops within the month. And remembering to create a shopping list along the way so, that when I get to the next monthly shop I won't leave anything out (to prevent additional small shops).  I brainstorm and source all the meals I want to cook within the month before doing the shopping, so that I can be prepared with all ingredients.

Now for the meals. What have I been cooking? I've decided to expand my repertoire/menu and try new recipes or new variations of recipes I already use. This months cooking recipes I have sourced from the taste.com website. Let me give you bit of a commentary of a few recipes I've tried at late.

Thai kangaroo salad with crisp-fried garlic - Kangaroo is my favourite selection of meat as its cheap (comparatively) and very healthy for you. It's 98% fat free, high in iron, high in protein, low saturated fat, gluten free and most of all  its delicious! This dish was quick and easy however its supposed to serve 4... not so. Matty and I only got one meal for 2 and we were still hungry so, next time it would be best served with garlic, herb or focaccia bread. Otherwise it was very nice and had a refreshing taste. Click on the link to view the recipe.

Spanish tuna pasta bake - This was a great recipe. We managed to stretch it out to 4 meals for 2! But that doesn't allow for seconds or massive portions. I've decided this is cost effective, yummy and easy to make.

Sweet and sour pork - now for something asian. This dish tasted good but felt like a bit of work. I didn't enjoy the process of deep frying, it was messy. And it's also not the healthiest of dishes. You can get about 3 meals for 2 out of this recipe.

So there you go... thats what was for dinner.