I am always so happy to participate in the Ultimate Blog Challenge. It's wonderful to connect with other bloggers, to see my old challenge friends again, and to have discussions with them on my blog and theirs. I wasn't able to do weekends this time (so no completion ribbon this time), but it helped a lot to have that two-day break. And I still enjoyed the month of blogging. Possibly the best part of all, more people came to visit me here at my blog. :) I think at last count, I got about 4400 pageviews and a thousand new visitors a week. It started to taper off as we got toward the end of the challenge, but I am still grateful. If you're reading this, and you're a UBC blogger, how was your experience this month? If you're not, join us for the next challenge in April. You can register at ultimateblogchallenge.com. One thing this month of blogging did for me, personally, is help me get clearer about what I want to blog about and how often I would like to do it. But it also reminded me of how much I need to write in advance. So I have some posts ready for next month, starting tomorrow. Hope to see you here! :) Love to you!! Jeanine
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You might remember from a previous blog post that my goal is to spend $1 each on dinner, for both me and my son. In an average month, that's going to be $60. Update: we are at the end of the month, and I have not yet managed it, but it's definitely still a priority. There's a book in the Healthy Meal Planning Bundle called Dinner for a Dollar, and I am reading it to help me do it. What's your dinner or general meal-planning budget? "To do this, look at your income against all your bills, and ask yourself this: Without making more money, reducing other expenses, or going into debt, how much money do you have available to spend on food? " - Shelly Longenecker, Dinner for a Dollar The Struggle is Real but the Commitment Continues
I admit that, in the past, I have been careless about spending money on food, even though we were eating or meals at home. Sometimes, I didn't do any meal planning for dinner at all, and just bought whatever seemed good at the time. So when I decided to take a careful look at where I was throwing money away, dinner came to my attention. This is the one meal where my son and I are sure to sit down at the same time, and eat together. So it's important. And maybe I wanted to fill it with love and joy. But as a single mom, I have had to get serious about how to control my food budget, and it looks like I will need to squeeze my dinner budget the hardest. The book, Dinner for a Dollar (DFAD), and the system that goes with it, are helping me see things more clearly, stay committed and figure out what to change. In the Healthy Meal Planning bundle, which is where I got the book, there's also a budget-friendly meal planning ebook. But to be honest, I wouldn't even take a look at that, until you have read DFAD. It walks you through the process of making the commitment, choosing your budget and making the changes. Once you have done that, then you can get creative with your meal planning. The goal - and the book helps with this, too - is how to buy the best food and get it for the best prices. Budget Meal Planning Progress
Last week, several of my meals were actually dinner for a $1.50. but this week, because of BOGO deals I bought last week, a couple of meals have been a dollar each. So I'm encouraged! I'm making progress. I just need to keep it up and get that to happen for every dinner. What's the hardest part of budget meal planning for you? See you next time! Love, Jeanine We've been talking about stress, relaxation and gratitude during the past week or so. Today, I want to share a brief meditation you can try right now that may help you replace stress with the energy of love. Take a moment to check in with yourself. Are you experiencing any stress or tension or discomfort? If so, as you try the moment of guided meditation, see if you can let it go. |
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