Living whole cheaply

I have kinda made it a mission of mine to try and cook whole foods without spending a ton of money and if you look in the right areas you would be able to do it. I can't afford to go to Whole Foods (even though I love that store) so I have found other ways to cook whole and healthy. All the meals might not be organic or natural but they are fresh. One way I have been able to save a little bit of money is to grow my own stuff. I have a very small garden right now but plans for bigger and better are in the works. If you only live in a apartment it is feasible to grow somethings. Granite you probably wont be living 100% off your plants but some things are achievable. One of the most common is tomatoes. They love the sun and can grow in a tin can if need be proven by Jamie Oliver on one of his shows. When you cant go out its lovely to go up. Beans, peas, cucumbers, tomatoes and if you are really crafty zucchini just might be able to also, Zucchini grows huge though but it also produces a lot. Herbs are also a nice thing to grow. I was in the store and I needed some fresh basil, well let me tell you what, I was not prepared to pay 3 dollars for a couple sprigs when that could buy me a pack of seeds and yield 100 times that amount. If you put basil in a big enough pot it will give you a ton as long as you cut it back and dry what you cut. I will try to put post up about individual herbs and what my experiences are with them. So if you can only do a container garden or a full blown acre what ever you do it will pay for itself plus more not to mention ripe on the vine is always better. Some people like to say "Well its just quicker to make hamburger stuff out of a box in reality you can make a full blown meal in just as much time. Last night I was roasting a chicken along with rice and zucchini well the chicken didn't get done in time and my bird were squawking at me so with my zucchini I threw in some fresh tomatoes, canned white beans a little seasonings and put that over the rice. I was surprised when they all said they loved it.(I do have two picky eaters) So I finished the chicken shredded it and going to make Sheppard's Pie with chicken and fresh vegg instead of hamburger.

Well I know this was all over the place there is so much I want to say and so little room or attention to do it. Until we meet again

Home made Laundry Soap

I have started to use my own homemade laundry soap. Its not only cheaper but there isn't a bunch of chemicals that are washing and sticking into your clothes. I was at Walmart yesterday and just for giggles I priced a big thing of liquid Tide and it was 20 dollars. As much as I would like to have got it but I'm a stay at home mom who has to make a penny stretch. There for I picked up the washing soda and borax along with the ivory soap. All in all it didn't cost me more then 7 dollars and I will get why more loads out of it then the Tide. If you cant find the washing soda I would suggest getting it online due to baking soda just doesn't work the same. I use washing soda for the dishwasher and cleaning carpets also. There are many uses for the borax as well.

Laundry Soap

2c. Washing Soda

2c. Borax

1 bar of ivory soap graded on a cheese grader

After you grade the soap crumble it up some more with your hands. This way they soap will dissolve faster in the washer. Add the other ingredients and put into a container. I use 1/4 c for every load. I do add softener to it to give it yummy smells.