Operation Baby Preparation: Mealtime Adventures

If you've ever googled "Babies on a budget" or typed this into pinterest you will find 100s of articles and blog posts related to the topic, and some of them are great. I have particularly liked the ones that talked about what items are considered essential baby gear and which never get used. However, a lot of them are way too general to be at all helpful and it's really hard to figure out how their generic advice is supposed to fit into my life (like ones that say pay off all your debt before baby arrives....oh great idea, I was just hanging on to this student loan debt for the fun of it but now that a baby is coming I guess I'll finally part ways with it).

So this blog post is about one of the most talked about areas in our household: food.

For the past few weeks I have been engaging in meal planning like we have never done before. Usually we would have one or two ideas of something we wanted to make for the week, sometimes not even that. And then we would stop at the store mid-week, sometimes multiple times, to pick up dinner items, which is terribly inefficient and we ended up eating a lot of the same stuff over and over again. Chicken breasts with veggies. Taco salad. Chicken burgers. Week after week.

So I finally decided to crack down and start learning to cook. I do love to cook, I am just very bad at it. However, with baby on the way I really want to be able to make some delicious and nutritious meals. Family dinners are one of my favorite memories of childhood and when I go home the first thing I do is check the fridge to see what leftovers Mom has lying around, because nothing beats a homemade meal...even if it has been sitting in tupperware in the fridge. So I really want to be able to make a few meals here and there that can become family favorites.

Each week I plan ahead for the next week by entering meals into my google calendar that I intend to make. I have even become strategic in picking out these meals, first I think about what we already have. We get a lot of meat at Costco, so we usually have frozen chicken breasts and ground turkey on hand. Then I look at the sale papers to see what our local grocery stores have on sale, which usually helps me pick out another meal. Then I take to pinterest to figure out what kind of recipes exist for the things we already have and the things that are on sale. And you guys, we have been eating so many fun things!!

I suck at taking pictures of food so I promise they all taste better than they look - but here are some of the dishes I've cooked up in the past couple weeks.

Spaghetti Squash Carbonara (I found a tip that if you cook the squash in rings like this it helps you to get longer noodles!)

Pizza Zucchini Lasagna

Skinny Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas turned into Tostadas

Homemade Mango Salsa with black beans

With this meal planning we are able to get all the groceries we need for the entire week in one weekend trip, which is great because then we are able to stick within our allotted grocery budget. To further help with this effort (and to be honest the one thing that actually keeps us within our grocery budget) is this awesome app called grocery pal. I have seen it listed on various websites as a great app for coupon collecting but I don't use it for that. It allows you to enter in each item as it goes into your cart along with the price and keeps a running total of your grocery bill. THIS IS AMAZING. Too often I have gone to the grocery store, looked at my cart and thought "Yeah, this is probably about $50" only to have the actual total land somewhere around $75. With this app we can see the price adding up as we choose items and make better decisions about what to purchase.

I'll note that using this app is easier if you go with a partner because typing in each item takes a minute and I tend to think the people around me just assume I am just clogging up the aisle with texting and hate me for standing still. So while I type, Devin drives the cart, and we tend to progress through the store pretty quickly.

I also keep a grocery list in the google calendar, where I add things as I decide on what meals I will be making. Then I can also look back from week to week to see what our usuals are so that I don't forget to pick up things like eggs, milk, bananas, cereal.

I have to say all of these have been fairly easy changes, but honestly changes we never felt like making before we had an actual reason. Now that we have a reason to save money and add some organization to our lives these changes have felt easy and very welcomed.

What We Know About Babies

At our very first birthing class (we took a two week Mindful Birthing class all about techniques for having a natural partner supported labor) our instructor asked us to share 1 thing that we knew about birth and 1 thing that we wanted to know. I said that I know birth can be unpredictable and given my type-A over-planning personality I wanted to learn ways to cope with those unexpected moments that won't fall in neatly with our birth plan.

Now when you broaden that question and ask "What is one thing you know about babies and one thing you want to know?" I have an easy answer. Babies are expensive and how the hell are we going to pay for one?

Like I mentioned I am an over-planner, sometimes to my detriment, so the idea of waiting any longer to figure out the answer to this question sends my anxiety levels through the roof. Thus Devin and I have started to make some changes to our lives that are really helping me feel like we've got this whole baby thing under control. Part of why I started this blog was because I am one of the first of my close friends to venture into parenthood, and I can tell you that as I prepare for this life event I am gobbling down baby information as fast as I can get my hands on it. But my favorite accounts of parenthood are those that come from the mommas I already know, and sometimes just reading their own personal experiences is enough to put my mind at ease. Deep breath. There are others who have been in this boat and they survived. So for the next few posts I'll be sharing the little things we've been doing to financially prepare for baby and maybe they will eventually help ease the worries of a fellow mom-to-be.

Budgeting 

Ok, so this sounds super obvious right? Like we should have been budgeting all along. But we haven't been. I have always been conscious of putting money into savings but we have developed a bad habit of relying on that money for non-essentials. For instance if at the end of the week our checking account is running low and we really want to go see a movie and get dinner we'll just use the savings account because it's only $30, right? Well not anymore.

I get paid once a month, so all of my check goes to paying essential bills (rent, credit cards, insurance, car payment, etc.). It is spoken for before it even arrives. On the other hand Devin gets paid every week, so we use his pay check for weekly things like groceries, gas, cell phone bills and the like. We also put part of each of Devin's check into savings, and once baby comes we will be dividing the day care bill by 4 and putting that amount into savings each week when Devin's check arrives. So this means our habit of pulling money out of savings willy nilly has to end quick, because we don't want to be the kind of parents who spend daycare money on sushi and froyo.

So to prepare ourselves for this change we are starting to treat that money in savings like daycare money now. When Devin's check arrives I immediately transfer a portion to savings, and we don't even consider pulling it out as an option. 

Then I start subtracting the essentials. Is a cell phone bill due that week? Electric? Obviously that gets subtracted first because there is no wiggle room - it has to get paid. 

Then we subtract gas. Depending where Devin is scheduled to work that week he needs anywhere from 1-2.5 tanks of gas, so I always check in with him to see how much he anticipates needing. This comes next because there is usually a little flexibility with gas (if he really needs to he could put in $20 instead of filling up the tank at the end of week) but more or less it is a non-negotiable essential. 

Then comes groceries. Depending on what is left after the essential subtractions I decide how much we have for groceries that week, because this is definitely an area with flexibility. If we have a little extra money for food that week maybe we will pick up some chips and salsa, if it's a tighter week this really isn't a necessity. (I'll chat more in the next post about how we have been sticking to this budget each week).

Then we subtract money for anything we have planned for the week (ie a weekend home or dinner with friends).

Then I see how much is left and decide what kind of extras we can afford that week. For instance I am waiting to order some prints from Walgreens to work on an art project for the babies room, but since ordering them would have been cutting it pretty close for the week I am waiting till the next check when I know Devin had a little overtime and we will have a bit extra. This is also when I decide if it's a good week to buy things like a new blouse, a few items for the baby, or a Father's Day present. This is a HUGE change because I never realized how fast these little things would add up and would typically just stop at the store to grab what I wanted (thus the need to pull from savings some weeks).

For some people this type of down to the wire budgeting may seem a little intense but to be honest I love it. I love knowing where they money is going, I love feeling like we have control over our finances, and I really love that at the end of the week our savings has remained untouched. Now obviously if something unexpected happens like a blown out tire or a much needed prescription needs to be purchased we have our savings to fall back on, which I am very thankful for. We are very lucky to not have to choose between groceries and fixing the car, but with this new method we are really learning about what can wait and what is an immediate need. Again these things probably sound like common sense, but I have to believe there are other young soon to be parents who just haven't developed these habits yet. 

Memorial Day Weekend: The River Trip of the Century

This year I got to spend Memorial Day weekend with my near and dear friend Emily, who has remained one of the most genuine and sweetest people I've ever known. We have been friends since the 7^th grade and even though we went to different colleges and now live in different states we have remained close all these years in a truly lifelong friendship.

So Friday after work I hit to the open road and left Iowa for the great state of Minnesota, with St. Paul as my final destination. Lucky for me, Devin made sure to pack the car with my favorite snacks (see below) and even filled it with gas the night before my journey. I rocked out to some great tunes and took in the fabulous sites (mostly small town USA and some fields) during what felt like a surprisingly short drive. 

By the time I got to Emily I was pretty darn hungry because I didn’t want to fill up on snacks during the drive, so we went straight to a local spot that had some awesome burgers! I got one that was Hawaiian themed with a spicy chili sauce, Canadian bacon, grilled pineapple, jalapenos, and mozzarella. So delicious. And of course tots because if tots are on the menu this girl is getting them. We caught up on life and then took a walk down by the river where we chatted some more and enjoyed the lovely evening weather.

Saturday morning Emily made me a delicious scramble for breakfast, I don’t know how I got so lucky but all the people I love in life have a tendency to make me delicious food. 

Then we packed a picnic lunch and set out for Stillwater, MN! The town was so unbelievably adorable and we drifted in and out of all the little shops and boutiques and were amazed at the reasonable prices. 

Then I had to stop at this little candy shop for some treats because how could I walk past a place called Candyland and not go in? I was reasonable with my purchases though and only got a few chocolate covered potato chips and some toffee type of popcorn with a boat load of nuts in it.

Then before we left Stillwater we went to Teddy Bear Park, which as it sounds is 100% intended for children because it is a playground but I LOVE teddy bears and could not let the opportunity pass. Plus, I thought I could pass it off as park scoping for the unborn baby. If you ever get a chance to stop there you must because it was too cute for words (see photos below), and would probably be even more fun if you brought a child.

Then we went a bit north to William O’Brien State Park where we decided to try our hand at canoeing. Neither of us had ever been on a canoe but it sounded like a great way to spend the afternoon, and how hard can canoeing be? We soon learned the answer to that question. The hard way.

Here is a picture of the calm lake we should have canoed on. I took this while we ate our picnic lunch and eagerly awaited getting into our canoe.

I do not have any photos of the actual canoe trip because I was unsure how stable canoes were, and I was really afraid we would tip and I would ruin my phone – which it turns out this was a good call on my part. 

The problem began when I thought that the river was actually just more of the lake pictured above. I have no idea why I thought this, but I did. So we set out on the "lake" and got to talking and laughing and hardly noticed how far we had gone. The sites were beautiful! Trees, birds, and clear blue skies for miles. During this portion of the trip I really regretted not bringing my phone because it would have been nice to take some pictures - instead all I have is this shotty memory of mine to retain the lovely sites. Our canoe was due back by 5:30 so at around 3:00 we decided to head back and figured we could stop at some of the beachy spots we had noticed on our way down the river. Only this is when the trouble began.

We paddled for 20-30 minutes before we realized we hadn't really moved...like at all. The current of the RIVER (not a lake!) was strong enough that all our efforts were being undone almost as soon as we made any progress. We decided to paddle over to the very edge of the river to see if we could get out and walk our canoe but with the thick brush and marshy landscape this was a no-go. Plus canoes are a LOT bigger when they are out of the water and I wasn't sure carrying a canoe for miles was on the list of approved workout activities for a pregnant woman.

So we got back in our boat and tried to stay as close to the trees lining the river as possible so that we could shove our paddles into the brush and propel ourselves forward. We worked at this for a long, long time, and finally made some progress. We then began taking little marshy detours where the current wasn't as strong and despite the heavy amount of trees (which were smacking us in the face and clawing at us with each stroke forward) we were slowly but surely getting there. Until we reached a dead end. Nooooo!

At this point I refused to go back because we had made some good progress (at least in my head it felt like we had made progress) and there was no way I was about to back track. Plus the 5:30 deadline was looming ahead of us as it was now around 4:30. So having reached a dead end, we abandoned our canoe and got out to figure out where we were. We walk down a trail a bit and realized we had found a boat launch, so our best bet was to retrieve the canoe and drag it down the path to be put back in the main branch of the river at the boat launch. However bending down wasn't feeling really great on my belly so Emily started pushing our canoe down the asphalt path, while I followed behind looking like a completely unhelpful dick because I am still not obviously pregnant which means I just looked lazy. Luckily we found a man who looked pretty strapping so we asked him to carry the canoe to the boat launch and he obliged. So we got back in the river, and decided to switch spots so that now I was in the back and Emily was leading the front.

However, we had gotten so good in our respective positions that this was a pretty epic fail and not long after we set out we reached yet another impassible spot in the river where logs blocked our path. Emily got out on the spot of land that separated our little branch of the river from the main branch, and we planned to just pull the canoe over this bump of land and try our hand in the big wide river again. Only when she got out she started pulling the canoe onto land before I had a chance to get out and the canoe tipped over sending me toppling into the ice cold river water. I told you, it was a great thing I did not bring my phone.

Ok so at this point I am soaking wet, cold, exhausted, and still no where near the place where the canoe needs to be returned. Oh and now it was pretty much 5:30 so the deadline was about shot. With very few options  we returned to the canoe, put our best foot forward and started paddling towards the car. We paddled. And paddled. And realized that even though our arms were cramping and aching we really couldn't stop paddling because the river would push us backwards and undo all our hard work, which was not worth the break on our muscles. It was at this point that I was really wising Devin was with us. He always knows what to do in situations like that and usually bails me out of large pickles like the one I am describing. However, with determination, lots of laughter, and promises that we would NEVER forget this canoe trip we finally caught a glimpse of the car!! Only now it once again felt like we were stalled. We paddled and paddled and nothing. No movement. We were at our wits end but the car was right there. At this point I told Emily that this is what childbirth must be like, you are so close to the end and you are certain your body can't go on any longer and all you want to do is give up but you know that no one is coming to save you. You and your body alone have to work up the strength to get to the end. So we paddled with every ounce of energy we had left and finally, finally, made it to the land!!

It was 7:00. Then we had the awful task of lifting the canoe up on to its stand and tying it back up. The great news is that when I returned the key for the canoe the lady at the front desk did not charge us extra for being late - woohoo!! We had planned to make some really yummy stuffed peppers for dinner but were both so exhausted that when we finally arrived home we threw in a frozen pizza and called it dinner. It was delicious by the way. We also made this banana cake because when you have been out on a river all day you freaking deserve as much cake as you please.

The next day we started with an epic breakfast feast and ventured to a movie called "Far From the Madding Crowd" which was a total girly movie that Devin never would have watched with me, but was actually pretty good. 

Then we stopped at a local bakery called The Buttered Tin because when I travel I always like to bring home a little treat for the hubby, and I got way too many things because it was the end of their day and everything was half off. We finally returned back to Emily's house where we hoped to enjoy some of the refried beans we had been working on making all weekend. We soaked the beans overnight. Loaded them into the crockpot, and let them cook all day. But when we returned they were still not nearly as soft as they needed to be. Second fail of the weekend.

However, it's fails like that which tend to make for very memorable weekends. And given our long friendship Emily and I have had more than our fair share of mishaps and accidents, so in a way it was simply tradition. As my countdown to life drastically changing forever grows shorter and shorter I become all the more thankful for weekends like this one. Simple weekends with people I love dearly. Weekends where I can rekindle relationships before I embark on a brand new relationship with a tiny little person that I can't wait to introduce to the world. Knowing that in 3 months life will look utterly different than it does now is frightening, like sometimes you wake up in the middle of the night and think "OMG WHAT HAVE WE DONE?!!?" type of scary. But knowing that the people closest to me will still be there to support me makes all the difference in the world.

Here's hoping the rest of the Summer is just as exciting (but maybe a little less exhausting).