Hunger Challenge Day 2

Previous Days: Starting the Hunger Challenge, Day 1

Pot Pie fresh from the oven

Monday means back to work. I am thankful that yesterday, I spent so much time prepping to make today nice and easy. We tend to do breakfast on the fly we have a nice selection of yogurt, eggs, toast, and cereal to choose from throughout the week. Lunch is salad for my husband and left over chicken soup for me. I will pack a snack of celery and peanut butter to get me through the afternoon munchies. And dinner is Chicken Pot Pie, I a typing as it cooks I wish you could smell the awesomeness that I smell.

Hamburgers I made and froze
after getting a great deal on meat.

My pour husband is going to get sick of chicken this week. As a savvy shopper I have learned to stock up on whatever items are at their best price. From week to week it means that we have a well stocked Freezer/Pantry to choose from every day. For the purpose of this challenge, we are stuck with what was on sale this week.

If you are reading me for the first time here are some of the tricks I use to feed my family on a tight budget from week to week.

Living on such a tight budget doesn't happen over night. It takes time to learn the sales cycles and for items to cycle through their rock bottom prices. And it takes some effort. In the beginning I spent a lot of time on my favorite blogs learning the ropes. And I still check them on a daily basis to keep up, but it is not as time consuming as it once was.

Our garden the first year.

My first step toward being frugal though was not couponing, it was planting a garden. I reached out to friends and family and asked lots of questions. Through them I found inexpensive ways to build my garden, and fill it with produce. I was able to get 2 trailers full of free compost to build it initially. It was a lot of shoveling, but well worth it. Then I was able to share seeds with friends. (Most seed packets contain more seeds than you need for a back yard garden, so sharing is a great way for everyone to save.) In the years since I have been able to share the cost of renting a tiller, get free manure - more shoveling, and share excess produce. Due to a variety of factors your tomatoes may be great, and someone else might have better luck with peppers than you, share and you both win. I now have a larder filled with free produce I grew and preserved myself.

Jams, Jellies, and Fruit Preserves

I know that our family has been blessed beyond measure. We have been surrounded by a generous group of friends and family that share excess garden seeds and seedlings, produce off their trees, and bushes, and from their gardens. I can't explain why so many people are willing to share with us. All we can do is thank God everyday for the grace he shows us.