tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54123294040044849072024-02-07T14:42:50.823-08:00Life Freedom FamilyLife Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.comBlogger158125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-14738322856954523092017-11-25T04:07:00.001-08:002017-11-25T04:07:18.709-08:00The Great Grocery Project: Mid-November UpdateWell, this month I have had no income but lots of outflow. So far we have spent $269 on groceries - which is totally reasonable. The grocery shopping has been going well - but I am not thrilled with spending in other areas.<br />
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Nonetheless, I am going back to work in one week so busy times are ahead.<br />
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This month I have mainly been focusing on getting ready for Christmas.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What have I done to save money this month?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>1. I used a coupon to make purchases at the Salvation Army.<br />
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2. I made<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/11/diy-gifts-lavender-bath-salts.html" target="_blank"> Lavender bath salts</a> to put in with Christmas gifts.<br />
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3. Using money I had set aside, I ordered handmade cold pressed soaps from my cousin (she has her own business) that I will include with the bath salts as gifts.<br />
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4. Instead of spending money eating out or buying expensive pre-made foods, I made a birthday cake and appetizers from scratch which we brought to a birthday dinner for my mother in law.<br />
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RECIPE SHARE: This is the <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/5797-marbled-chocolate-bundt-cake" target="_blank">Marble Bundt Cake </a>with Chocolate Ganache from Ricardo. Sooo good.<br />
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5. I said "NO!!!" to many great deal on Black Friday.<br />
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6. I took advantage of one great deal on Black Friday - I bought an Instant Pot. Although I bought it now, I will be using money from a Christmas gift that I know someone is giving to me to pay for this. I have been wanting one for a long time and I think it will help with some changes to my food plan that I want to make. I already have two Crock-Pots (yes two, I use them ALL the time often simultaneously) but there are some things Instant Pot does that Crock-Pot does not. We will see how this goes...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birthday Art</td></tr>
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7. My oldest turned 4. We kept his birthday simple. He had a friend over and they played, ate grilled cheese and cake, and they each painted their own canvas art using supplies I had on hand. I gave his friend an easel (from Dollarama) that he could display his canvas on at home. <br />
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8. I did a superspend of points at Shoppers Drug Mart (I had $170 worth of points to use - and the Black Friday special was that you could use $170 worth of points but get $40 worth of points put back on your card). I used it to purchase grocery and household items as well as Lipikar Baume AP+ which both my sons use to help with severe dry skin in the winter.<br />
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9. I went on a date with my husband (our first dinner out alone in three years). We went out for breakfast and used the time to crunch a bunch of numbers for our year ahead and analyze some different options for decision we need to make in the year ahead. It was time well spent. After, we went to Shopper's Drug Mart for free flu shots. How romantic. I know. Stop.<br />
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10. I made someone else's life frugal by giving them partially used cans of primer we had leftover from our renovations. Sharing the frugal is fun!!<br />
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More to come after the month is officially over...Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-89410653190171616182017-11-21T04:11:00.000-08:002017-11-21T04:11:17.486-08:00DIY Gifts: Lavender Bath SaltsWorking through my list of gifts to make, I arrived at the "bath salts" component. This is the Relax part of my Read, Write, & Relax Christmas gift theme. There are hundreds of bath salts recipes online, and they are all different. I searched up and down and read and read, but I could not find a consistent formula - so in the end - the bath salts I made were made based on the formulas I preferred. A good place to start, if you are looking for a bath salts recipe, is <a href="https://www.marthastewart.com/270270/homemade-bath-salts" target="_blank">this one </a>provided by Martha Stewart. Martha's recipe uses a lot more Sea Salt than Epsom salts, but I did the opposite - I used more Epsom Salts and fewer sea salts.<br />
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My original plan was to make three different kinds of bath salts for gifts: a lavender (relaxing) bath salt, a Eucalyptus (de-congesting) bath salt, and a citrus (energizing) bath salt. In the end, I just made a whole bunch (and I mean a whole bunch) of Lavender Bath Salts. Due to other unrelated expenses, I just did not want to spend the money buying more oils so I only purchased Lavender Oil to make the lavender salts.</div>
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Sidenote: I love the idea of bath salts - but not everyone takes baths. I don't. So I had to do some sleuthing to make sure the people I want to give these gifts to actually take baths and are not shower only folks like myself.</div>
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Bath Salts are not difficult to make, and they make a beautiful gift.</div>
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<b>MATERIALS:</b></div>
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<b>-</b>Epsom Salts (I got 2 5.5kg containers from Costco)</div>
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-Sea Salts (they sell these in three packs at Costco - I used 5 of the 750g containers)</div>
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-Baking Soda (I used almost an entire box)</div>
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-Lavender Oil (purchase a quality oil - I bought mine directly from <a href="https://maisonlavande.ca/en/" target="_blank">La Maison Lavande</a> in Québec)</div>
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-Lavender buds (completely optional - I purchased these at La Maison Lavande as well</div>
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<b>FOR STORAGE:</b></div>
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You will need airtight containers. I used Mason jars (with rims and lids).</div>
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You may also want material to make tags and ribbon to attach them to the jars.</div>
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<b>METHOD:</b></div>
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Very straightforward - combine your ingredients (based on the formula you choose) in a large bowl and then place in airtight containers. I made some that did not include lavender buds, some with buds mixed in throughout, and some where the buds were placed on the very top of the jar.</div>
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It really is that simple. You do not need very much oil - so a tiny jar of oil will go a long way - consider joining forces with a friend who might also want to make their own salts. This will help ease the cost of the oil. </div>
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How much did this make? With the ingredients listed above, I was able to make:</div>
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8 x 1 L jars</div>
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15 x 500 ml jars</div>
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2 x 250 ml jars</div>
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My favourite part of this project (aside from the super - relaxing smell) is that I had some green Bernardin jars just waiting for something special to be funneled into them. I put the plain (no buds) salts in these jars. In addition, I had some purple lids and rims on hand, which paired beautifully with plain jars and the lavender salts. My cousin has her own cold pressed soap business, so I will be putting a little half bar of beautiful soap along with the large jars of bath salts. I am really looking forward to sharing these gifts with friends and family over the holidays.</div>
Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-56255891576962089352017-11-05T05:05:00.003-08:002017-11-05T05:05:56.065-08:00The Great Grocery Project: October RecapThis post is coming a bit late because I needed to regroup after losing our freezer.<br />
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Yes, we lost everything (over $1000.00 worth of food) that was in our upright freezer - packed full of a year's worth of fruit, meat, pastry, and other food supplies. How did this happen? We had a contractor doing work on our house. I specifically told them to make sure the freezer was plugged in before they left. When I came home, I put my hand on the freezer to make sure it was cold (it was, but obviously just still from when it had been plugged in). I looked at the outlet, it *looked* like it was plugged in. A week later I went to get something out of the freezer, when I opened the door.....everything was ruined. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that the plug had not been shoved all the way into the outlet. I was very upset (obviously). My call to the contractor has not been returned and we will obviously never be using them again. Lesson learned (several actually).<br />
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This was a huge blow for us both time wise and financially. Nonetheless, we soldier in. There are far worse things that could happen. As a result, I am making a change to my Great Grocery Project. I am not going to be tracking my per category spending this year. It is just going to be so far off the norm and our menu is being significantly reworked in an effort to minimize the financial impact of losing the freezer. I am unsure about whether or not we are going to work towards refilling it at this time since we might be moving in the coming year.<br />
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So, moving on -<b> in October we spent $497.68 on groceries - </b>much more than I wanted to spend but such is life. A large portion of this was spent replacing a few things that were ruined, but also on a birthday party open house we had for both our sons (very fun!). We actually had a very economical celebration, but I also bought pickles and olives and specialty cheese for the party which adds up quite quickly.<br />
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I like to keep kids events as simple as possible and I also wanted to serve one of my son's favourite foods. Our menu was simple but delicious:<br />
A grilled cheese buffet (brie, cheddar, etc., caramelized onions, apples, various condiments)<br />
Crudités and dip (the classic French Onion Soup mixed with Sour Cream)<br />
Pickles and Olives (wide assortment)<br />
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For dessert, my son and I made a Rainbow Bit Cake the morning of the party - he loves cooking. We also made Molasses Ginger Cookies. In the weeks prior to the party, I made over a dozen miniature cheesecakes (in 250ml Mason jars) and froze them (in the freezer that was not ruined). On the day of they were served with optional toppings like crumbled Oreo, Strawberry Maple Sauce, Peach Rum Sauce, and some fresh fruit.<br />
You can find the recipe for these <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/5562-slow-cooker-cheesecake" target="_blank">individual cheesecakes here</a>. (Very simple to make!!!)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Individual Cheesecakes without topping</td></tr>
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The birthday party was great and simple. My mother in law brought her coffee maker and coffee since we do not have one (neither of us drink coffee). Everyone commented on what a nice, relaxing party it was and how much they enjoyed the food so that made this hostess very happy. I do love a theme party, but I really felt my kids do not need that yet. I would like to do this when they can be more involved in the planning. Somebody asked me "well don't you have a theme for the party?" "Yes," I replied, "the theme is BIRTHDAY."<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Recipe Share:</b></span><br />
Since I have been reworking the food plan and adjusting everything accordingly, I have been lining up and trying loads of new recipes. Not all recipes are good. It has to be really good for me to make something twice. Twice this week I actually had to throw out some new snack recipes I tried (they were very bad!!!). However, there are a few fantastic recipes I tried this month that I want to share.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. Our Best Blueberry Muffin Recipe</span><br />
This recipe is from Crosby's molasses. It is fantastic (truly) and there are many variations of it that you can make. I used the lower sugar amount every time and they are fantastic. I love having a muffin, some cheese, and some fruit for breakfast most days so <a href="http://www.crosbys.com/best-blueberry-muffin-recipe/" target="_blank">this recipe</a> will definitely be going in the rotation.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. Broccoli Cheese Soup</span><br />
Via The Pioneer Woman, <a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/broccoli-cheese-soup/" target="_blank">this recipe</a> is a fantastic base for creamy soups. Having tried many of these soup recipes over the years, this one is a favourite because it requires no broth (unless you want to thing the soup - but I did this using broth one day, and water another), instead relying on milk (which I always have on hand). The first time I followed the recipe exactly - it was great. The second time, I used cauliflower and red pepper instead of broccoli, I omitted the cheese and only added it as the soup was served. It was still fantastic. This soup recipe will be used over and over in our house.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What did we do to save money this month?</span><br />
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Besides the usual (making everything from scratch, etc.), we focused on simplifying whenever possible. <br />
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<b>1. Christmas Gifts - </b>I finished wrapping all the gifts for children (we buy for quite a few) and made note of any missing items. This ensures that no unnecessary extras are purchased and allows me to keep careful track of who is getting what. There was one additional thing I needed to purchase for a child, and I did so this past weekend so I can cross all the kids off my list and know that their gifts are packed and ready for action.<br />
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<b>2. DIY Gifts - </b>I finished up some gifts, and gathered the final materials needed for the remaining gifts that I need to make.<br />
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<b>3. The Charity Shop</b> - A visit to The Salvation Army was very productive and I was able to get several needed items. I wrote about some of them <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/10/10-ways-to-save-money-this-holiday.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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<b>4. Optimum Coupon </b> - I got something in the mail from Shoppers Drug Mart Optimum Rewards. I love free things I can actually use - and this little gift included a 20X the Points coupon, a notebook, some pencils and an eyebrow brush. Everything was put to good use.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Optimum Gift Package</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipmVdzKMOKll4dVuQiUZnPAGECiYe5ot5KIAq71zp8KncEpKqvhY-dPEWSmrkJ2mEO-8vesCcGEuhRjBzPrJM7hQtygnBcn3WHNH2iiYrp8MvwZmZ_1nOYeM2OZEfVajU45FklXlyFS1o/s1600/IMG_20171009_095302.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipmVdzKMOKll4dVuQiUZnPAGECiYe5ot5KIAq71zp8KncEpKqvhY-dPEWSmrkJ2mEO-8vesCcGEuhRjBzPrJM7hQtygnBcn3WHNH2iiYrp8MvwZmZ_1nOYeM2OZEfVajU45FklXlyFS1o/s320/IMG_20171009_095302.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This Christmas canvas has been mailed. I was sad to see it go.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHc-yYXvbqPPh3-eKYygNySIJiHPAhrfcdyJ8_u0EoEO_ed6eK8b2aheJC_j5jNij1cf25dga13dnpWBMaEO3DfBP6_Rfo0OpK0P12HlXKuLaRZSTB6Ee_yhirj_sdOO-zOhLwwMCluEY/s1600/IMG_20171020_071754.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHc-yYXvbqPPh3-eKYygNySIJiHPAhrfcdyJ8_u0EoEO_ed6eK8b2aheJC_j5jNij1cf25dga13dnpWBMaEO3DfBP6_Rfo0OpK0P12HlXKuLaRZSTB6Ee_yhirj_sdOO-zOhLwwMCluEY/s320/IMG_20171020_071754.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A gift basket that was made (by me) for a friend - Italian Themed<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
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<b>6. Photo Gifts - </b>As part of Christmas gifts for my mother and mother in law, I making photo albums of family photos. This is a gift they will love (who doesn't want photos of their grandchildren?) and it is economical. I was able to get one photo album 50% off at Michael's, and I found the photo album below brand new and still in its packaging at The Salvation Army.<br /><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4i2lTSoUMqhrqwzftEylrkVW_b5VEE9j71mHfAxXG6nA4L-yZDTUs3hX4X6pC21d-ZTeXcJ2bjZa4__oNndNhDz88fENsCsvjalCU1-gRkG00erePO8kzgiQ4hISsSmeXlxjAD9yShM/s1600/IMG_20171019_085821.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-4i2lTSoUMqhrqwzftEylrkVW_b5VEE9j71mHfAxXG6nA4L-yZDTUs3hX4X6pC21d-ZTeXcJ2bjZa4__oNndNhDz88fENsCsvjalCU1-gRkG00erePO8kzgiQ4hISsSmeXlxjAD9yShM/s320/IMG_20171019_085821.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<b>7. Enjoying the outdoors </b> - I took my kids to as many outdoor farms and activities (all free) as possible in October. There were lots of great events on for Halloween and we took advantage of as many as possible. I love visiting local farms where our kids can play outside and then picking up a healthy snack (usually fruit) while we are there. I also went hiking a few times with my youngest - which is a bit of a nightmare because he wants to be able to go on his own all the time - but it is so worth it. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBuPJRkpF08kwaIwdwBqSEWq8IXl5VcjWf-FwEkLfOfFD8mS7fkLb-A46Ga8UcIHJ9gOXb55igbrBtTdRQRpEA4W7Zb2KU2FGVqmegkM2odZQYCHq2RR1nw2fUYwQ6Pa2Hx9R97wT6vKk/s1600/IMG_20171023_144246.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBuPJRkpF08kwaIwdwBqSEWq8IXl5VcjWf-FwEkLfOfFD8mS7fkLb-A46Ga8UcIHJ9gOXb55igbrBtTdRQRpEA4W7Zb2KU2FGVqmegkM2odZQYCHq2RR1nw2fUYwQ6Pa2Hx9R97wT6vKk/s320/IMG_20171023_144246.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A walk in the woods cures many ills</td></tr>
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<br /><b>8. Swimming lessons </b> - I wanted to sign my son up for private swimming lessons but they are very expensive and I could not justify the expense at this time. I decided to sign him up for lessons during the day, knowing that these classes are usually smaller in size (and literally 25% of the price of private lessons). Well, I got very, very lucky. Only one other person signed up for my son's class, and they have not shown up for a single lesson. So, my son (who I feel really needed private lessons at this stage for his own emotional well being) is getting private lessons for the not private lesson cost. I am just thrilled that he is going in the pool with his teacher. That would be enough for me - but he is actually developing his water skills as well. This has been a total blessing.<div>
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<b>9. Pickle Jar - </b>I saved a Gherkin pickle jar to use as a pencil/pen holder. I really liked this shape of it and I love keeping pens and pencils in clear glass jars where they can be on display at all times. These are the things a person who loves the written word gets excited about.</div>
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<b>10. Halloween Candy </b> - We do not get many kids, and I did not want to end up with a bunch of leftover junk food that we do not need to eat. I bought the large boxes of chips at Costco (not the Halloween ones but the regular individual bag ones) when they were on sale. This way, any leftovers could be used for a little treat on days I take sandwiches to work. <br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;">Going forward...</span><div>
November is the final month that I will be off work. My baby is easing into full days at daycare. My older son is already going 4 days a week. I am prepping for going back to work. The stress is mounting, but so is the excitement. I will be spending as little as possible on groceries this month. I know it is going to fly by. We have my son turning 4, my mother in law's birthday, my mother's birthday shortly after, American Thanksgiving, loads of appointments that I am trying to get out of the way before going back to work, and general life busy - ness. Or business. I will be making my final Christmas gifts (yes, I will share when they are done). I am also trying to exercise more this month. Wish me luck.</div>
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Have a wonderful week everyone. Thank as always for stopping by...<br /><br />
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Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-7501756974718431072017-10-29T11:48:00.001-07:002017-10-29T11:48:14.658-07:00Rantings and Ravings on a House Overhaul + Prepping Your House for PicturesThis was supposed to be a multi part post, but after the Part One, I realized I do not have time to do so many posts. Welcome to the great merger!<br />
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CONTENT WARNING: The photos below may make you feel like your house is cluttered and you need to clean. Let me assure you, my house <b>never</b>, and I mean <i>never</i> looks like it does in these photos - so you can browse them guilt free!<br />
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We had photos done of our house over a month ago. Our realtor suggested getting them done while the weather was still good, so that we have nice, fresh photos ready to go up at a moment's notice should we decide to list while there is still snow on the ground.<br />
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Our house was completely renovated (more or less) over the past 18 months. It was exhausting and expensive.<br />
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If you do not want to read all my thoughts, I can give you a quick recap here on how to prep your home for photos: GET RID OF EVERYTHING. Good luck.<br />
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Moving on...<br />
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These are not the pictures the photographer took, just some that I snapped with our camera. This is not a House and Homes spread - but maybe I can share a few things that might help someone. Or you can just revel in my fake-clean house!<br />
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Before we did the pictures, aside from doing a scrub clean from top to bottom, we put pretty much everything we own away. Stuffed into our furnace room, shed, and vehicles. All the family pictures, the toys, the strollers, the kids artwork, the homemade crafts, the small appliances, everything. Goodbye. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1hqmtV3z5MRV6BepSXHU-Zb8qXm5pDMRTaBNgsC7zW_SqDjpwGfCM3mhaS1SEAkyBmtoaUxeyZ1GnKyBF5pHtiQP8fUm7xiIAWk6Gu1-PL_k5oUq6g6IOOxG-iaSVhfjdX8nkKJQfYcg/s1600/DSC_0707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1hqmtV3z5MRV6BepSXHU-Zb8qXm5pDMRTaBNgsC7zW_SqDjpwGfCM3mhaS1SEAkyBmtoaUxeyZ1GnKyBF5pHtiQP8fUm7xiIAWk6Gu1-PL_k5oUq6g6IOOxG-iaSVhfjdX8nkKJQfYcg/s320/DSC_0707.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master Bedroom</td></tr>
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Above, is our master bedroom. We have no headboard. We have no fancy bedding. This seemed a little sparse - so I picked up the two cushions you see in the photo from Canadian Tire. They were for outdoor patio furniture and were 50% off at an end of season clearance. They did the trick. The curtains are blackout curtains and they are from Costco. This room used to be a beautiful rich (and very not neutral) brown. We repainted it in Mennonite Grey Tint 2 by Para Paints. We also replaced old and raggedy carpet with engineered hardwood.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhONaczO2Cv4JmHK6emm8j4ureUhjMFfkggPj3nunBwql-lsJmj6kb7xyvC7WAhd-TjM1F2a7qKZiLW_BtZY5E-cTzHuJAl8ECRyQNPTghOjsBgIW_9N8Ik-Bm5Lew1-ZNxhrwZK8IelCA/s1600/DSC_0712.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhONaczO2Cv4JmHK6emm8j4ureUhjMFfkggPj3nunBwql-lsJmj6kb7xyvC7WAhd-TjM1F2a7qKZiLW_BtZY5E-cTzHuJAl8ECRyQNPTghOjsBgIW_9N8Ik-Bm5Lew1-ZNxhrwZK8IelCA/s320/DSC_0712.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Living and family room</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLqmSRQ_CBdo1BdawTZfls0eyMHbDxSMP-MXNFW7w6C05PNYFJMquTGKqCncQfWaXz4c7CRwCjxKMo-xMQt2Dw2rmjhjKhNFalyXoBrSGMCBFrjDTzwkrQ2mMRE8mvCIbxqn3n4981_3E/s1600/DSC_0715.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLqmSRQ_CBdo1BdawTZfls0eyMHbDxSMP-MXNFW7w6C05PNYFJMquTGKqCncQfWaXz4c7CRwCjxKMo-xMQt2Dw2rmjhjKhNFalyXoBrSGMCBFrjDTzwkrQ2mMRE8mvCIbxqn3n4981_3E/s320/DSC_0715.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A different angle</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtvbtPplg3bBm6_CBBWgKOh5QfvJDcL0OXkPYw2bhb5lbZdp19gDys0dLEq7VfeegBIggteY7HrqacmiUFl2eVzSoQlHvycIt8NiXKrkv6S441djhkH79DYC2OtWJWKWa6B7sNQZATcCY/s1600/DSC_0716.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtvbtPplg3bBm6_CBBWgKOh5QfvJDcL0OXkPYw2bhb5lbZdp19gDys0dLEq7VfeegBIggteY7HrqacmiUFl2eVzSoQlHvycIt8NiXKrkv6S441djhkH79DYC2OtWJWKWa6B7sNQZATcCY/s320/DSC_0716.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flowers</td></tr>
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We did not do much to our living and family room. We had repainted it when we originally moved to the house. The rug on the floor we had made from an roll-end at a carpet store.<div>
<b>MONEY SAVING TIP:</b> I wanted to use lots of flowers to freshen up the photos. Floral arrangements cost a fair amount of money if you are going to a florist. I do not grow any of my own flowers. The day before the photos, I went to a local grocery store and bought multiple packages of flowers. These were used to make all the floral arrangements for our pictures. They worked wonderfully and this resulted in significant savings.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixbCUOctBI0_lDgf6YYmLOaeb4q2D9hrOyh01GUiSAmH4kfcM20wKhGdckOL7HzwzSKnCzPanU8-D9t43xwfQH0dAZV9FKT2eSS2PbGRk7dyAESDTgCSL77rzat6G21qJs4Kt3giLi53Q/s1600/DSC_0717.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixbCUOctBI0_lDgf6YYmLOaeb4q2D9hrOyh01GUiSAmH4kfcM20wKhGdckOL7HzwzSKnCzPanU8-D9t43xwfQH0dAZV9FKT2eSS2PbGRk7dyAESDTgCSL77rzat6G21qJs4Kt3giLi53Q/s320/DSC_0717.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kitchen and Dining Area</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuEhxLqZz29EiJ-qzc1XqnT5t5NGgJRorm0BPH86BnP9GSay1t0udoTuPRZnXeXIFuCSJOpOiAgdpYMIyj-MvF_T7Hi5n6Sz4CzA2_wU2O_qnssqCdryA5cuvmlfs4xDS_2U1Fymgvg5A/s1600/DSC_0718.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuEhxLqZz29EiJ-qzc1XqnT5t5NGgJRorm0BPH86BnP9GSay1t0udoTuPRZnXeXIFuCSJOpOiAgdpYMIyj-MvF_T7Hi5n6Sz4CzA2_wU2O_qnssqCdryA5cuvmlfs4xDS_2U1Fymgvg5A/s320/DSC_0718.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kitchen</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir9eD5PiwYi8EVNHE3QfoASCQU9xxFSVyOaKdYwmKjid7XjFf31xRVmgZoDxH1jjQwfc4lOQfS-Nqf8M0TD6IV90GNk56u7zaCTZHHlOfmsH8cHq-Uu6QHQJvAzLg3Uf9WbDgmL-jt_FY/s1600/DSC_0719.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir9eD5PiwYi8EVNHE3QfoASCQU9xxFSVyOaKdYwmKjid7XjFf31xRVmgZoDxH1jjQwfc4lOQfS-Nqf8M0TD6IV90GNk56u7zaCTZHHlOfmsH8cHq-Uu6QHQJvAzLg3Uf9WbDgmL-jt_FY/s320/DSC_0719.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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To update our kitchen, we replaced a very ugly laminate (I have nothing against laminate, but this laminate <i>was</i> ugly) with a quartz countertop, we added a backsplash, and repainted the entire area. It made a big difference. For the photos, I removed all small appliances (and everything else) from our countertops - except for the Kitchen Aid Professional Stand Mixer - because you have to be able to imagine yourself whipping up something gourmet in the kitchen, right? I placed a small bowl of lemons by the stove, and a small vase of tulips by the sink.</div>
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On a normal day, we also have an island on wheels in our kitchen. It is just a cheap-o I refurbished that works perfectly for us but is not good for the resale photos. It was shoved into our master bedroom during these photos.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqToGhYJSs3HKrvTEkpxkvTQWueFkrGgyKIKi-RpdCRfzoGBEKK8odVdD4UXmfygSD37SuPFujjKuI7SyyLga_CKQDQdnVW2ikaoR6ImENJxYBqo3_pIc6_Ghe8zgxTb2zoYgrOMRYW9U/s1600/DSC_0720.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqToGhYJSs3HKrvTEkpxkvTQWueFkrGgyKIKi-RpdCRfzoGBEKK8odVdD4UXmfygSD37SuPFujjKuI7SyyLga_CKQDQdnVW2ikaoR6ImENJxYBqo3_pIc6_Ghe8zgxTb2zoYgrOMRYW9U/s320/DSC_0720.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dining Area</td></tr>
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This is our humble dining area. The solid wood table and chairs I bought on Kijiji when we first moved back to Canada. The curtains (both sets) are from Costco. The tablecloth is from Simon's (one of my favourite stores). The small bowl (I really should have done a closeup) was $4.00 at Dollorama and is filled with the most delicious apples.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty flowers</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghp2b2j_O_GA2HTiP4Q7C6oodpK4zEpqrfzPc1WVYPrliilIChVPUvJlydvdWV1a7B-ZGYXAVcbdwLvr3-EIVzatjulH3Do-p8ECGQpRCLZ76X6PWcripRpHrPtbBjqSArr8uM-m0JBYM/s1600/DSC_0722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghp2b2j_O_GA2HTiP4Q7C6oodpK4zEpqrfzPc1WVYPrliilIChVPUvJlydvdWV1a7B-ZGYXAVcbdwLvr3-EIVzatjulH3Do-p8ECGQpRCLZ76X6PWcripRpHrPtbBjqSArr8uM-m0JBYM/s320/DSC_0722.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tulips are my favourite - this is a close up so you can see the backsplash.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZZUXKP9-ohE5fWKtbuefCJ-MTp0DH3skT4NmQ3pEgyCr50QhnKxMAysP8b4xjx2Y7dNlKyR3AM6fQ26PgSpb58zyCVay5u7T3t4eU9CZfofFg6BkwV1R4HCA4wABzg4VYgfn-zJz1B-Y/s1600/DSC_0723.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZZUXKP9-ohE5fWKtbuefCJ-MTp0DH3skT4NmQ3pEgyCr50QhnKxMAysP8b4xjx2Y7dNlKyR3AM6fQ26PgSpb58zyCVay5u7T3t4eU9CZfofFg6BkwV1R4HCA4wABzg4VYgfn-zJz1B-Y/s320/DSC_0723.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lemons!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1H3Uh40BdiixCP4WalAsWeAPHuvPVALpvgY5azQOShifqt6qvzRMUSVfun9Ao6PkjBfEX9VSSkyN7swjNasYzrCwhtZSWdiUdTK5AVJW5F-PKuBtZSsoJu53f5iWlMNZj6ppDEKotRP8/s1600/DSC_0724.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1H3Uh40BdiixCP4WalAsWeAPHuvPVALpvgY5azQOShifqt6qvzRMUSVfun9Ao6PkjBfEX9VSSkyN7swjNasYzrCwhtZSWdiUdTK5AVJW5F-PKuBtZSsoJu53f5iWlMNZj6ppDEKotRP8/s320/DSC_0724.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front entryway</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This is a small glimpse of our front entryway and the second bedroom is through the doors.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWqBSPrJIA6hnbyfZWNm1FP2kAMnIlcQS3p49i-76DwX6WmpVV0p19ZLoxo-9rhs8NTuINaM1IXbieLpGfYM2h13BpU3nhZYGnwspODelvkBDrCYArtE39vtTYE63z_sSchlJjvtbK-VA/s1600/DSC_0732.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWqBSPrJIA6hnbyfZWNm1FP2kAMnIlcQS3p49i-76DwX6WmpVV0p19ZLoxo-9rhs8NTuINaM1IXbieLpGfYM2h13BpU3nhZYGnwspODelvkBDrCYArtE39vtTYE63z_sSchlJjvtbK-VA/s320/DSC_0732.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Does your kitchen normally look like this? Mine doesn't. I am pretty sure only people who do not cook have a kitchen that looks like this.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHTdrS2QlOlUPtQVAoeiydpXoIh1sP5BiMNmIFrsYZHKLns9BgPCGKNPe14_-sEDpXNjo7PS5QIFfbocry1zs7ynUZcAiyD33VVvIMkGSHZ9KDhgV2RWYOcv_i7ue5ueaPj5wrYs4pSCk/s1600/DSC_0742.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHTdrS2QlOlUPtQVAoeiydpXoIh1sP5BiMNmIFrsYZHKLns9BgPCGKNPe14_-sEDpXNjo7PS5QIFfbocry1zs7ynUZcAiyD33VVvIMkGSHZ9KDhgV2RWYOcv_i7ue5ueaPj5wrYs4pSCk/s320/DSC_0742.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raised Garden Beds</td></tr>
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Our two raised garden beds are surrounded by all the baby trees we planted a few years ago. The vegetables had already been pulled for the season, but I left the Marigolds in so that the beds would not look completely bare in the photos.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZD7ggpr7UPaV9aLa_hTmr8La0EPJDJ6qP03OVFLMzX3YE5iHYYXcBZyzirfA-oXtElrTuKr3q-rewt01jxME5g9XKXffyPPdYqD-UcBuaOvedZdBDGAK5tc-yZceVQJEDsIvOsWUsqKc/s1600/DSC_0746.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZD7ggpr7UPaV9aLa_hTmr8La0EPJDJ6qP03OVFLMzX3YE5iHYYXcBZyzirfA-oXtElrTuKr3q-rewt01jxME5g9XKXffyPPdYqD-UcBuaOvedZdBDGAK5tc-yZceVQJEDsIvOsWUsqKc/s320/DSC_0746.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tea?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />We have a large patio area, but no substantive patio furniture. Instead of putting this in the middle of the patio and having it look odd, I decided to make a little tea corner. <br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhch_mqmX97sjhTErbSARe2iEdEc0J7plTWs3dQEMpEDT-Dju3Y6BqR7NHhCOSugkDYVqp9KbTJSBS2vXPefDe2CAYGOLGT1ta4vGduV8iIShn1CyfGlsWtpKMHLVn5dweE8lqvLRILXRg/s1600/DSC_0750.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhch_mqmX97sjhTErbSARe2iEdEc0J7plTWs3dQEMpEDT-Dju3Y6BqR7NHhCOSugkDYVqp9KbTJSBS2vXPefDe2CAYGOLGT1ta4vGduV8iIShn1CyfGlsWtpKMHLVn5dweE8lqvLRILXRg/s320/DSC_0750.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laundry Room (La buanderie)</td></tr>
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Unfortunately, I did not take a before photo of the super small space that is our laundry room. If I had, you would know that this shelf never would have fit on the wall before due to a large, unnecessary bulkhead that was taking up space and stopping us from opening our dryer. Having it removed and the drywall repaired did not cost very much - but it has made an enormous difference to this room. Not only can we now fully open our dryer, we can hang this pretty wood shelf and top it off with a picture of the Cannes harbour and some pottery posies.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM1T9Nd4OOcZboOhBG7rc-5j-bFXQ4BGKfw1i0WzxJQ0WR9tHHJbT0RNqjWy_-UZ1RLfFaUqTUGOeka_ztfKw5AzAig_wnJaPtsE04BCYU0E7DgjXlSr9r7RsMA-vfYxPumeH3cPDrMj8/s1600/DSC_0755.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM1T9Nd4OOcZboOhBG7rc-5j-bFXQ4BGKfw1i0WzxJQ0WR9tHHJbT0RNqjWy_-UZ1RLfFaUqTUGOeka_ztfKw5AzAig_wnJaPtsE04BCYU0E7DgjXlSr9r7RsMA-vfYxPumeH3cPDrMj8/s320/DSC_0755.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basement shelf</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrkyaa-AcLM0dGQ_hKFr28WJe6eKS-57dhAElnjTc0qccJkxEgLCuev7-sHRXBbNZTFPT-T8pLnGbkynMPPQC64DCPNCHu-0DzSGjznrBjHq2vhU1fit1xfGlWwrSRdQv0NGrVAZRgmIA/s1600/DSC_0751.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrkyaa-AcLM0dGQ_hKFr28WJe6eKS-57dhAElnjTc0qccJkxEgLCuev7-sHRXBbNZTFPT-T8pLnGbkynMPPQC64DCPNCHu-0DzSGjznrBjHq2vhU1fit1xfGlWwrSRdQv0NGrVAZRgmIA/s320/DSC_0751.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basement shelf</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I wrote about these shelves when I talked about the basement renovation. They were completely empty - but I filled these jars from Ikea with candy (using a gift card I had to the Bulk Barn). In the previous picture I used some greenery from Dollorama to fill a vase, and a tin from Simon's. It is not much, but enough so the shelves are not completely bare.<br /><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH3uQhvcBvq1tLub29hYuwEILQfhlF_NnSZb94iXZUppV4PRs1b20WoW9HIe0RwZqGMvcyWq5cyEXYTNeFT6zQf7n9T9KMkZ5WbFmvoVV6307m1mJQi1-cW6BnHLSZyIPqeWduArVSCKU/s1600/DSC_0757.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH3uQhvcBvq1tLub29hYuwEILQfhlF_NnSZb94iXZUppV4PRs1b20WoW9HIe0RwZqGMvcyWq5cyEXYTNeFT6zQf7n9T9KMkZ5WbFmvoVV6307m1mJQi1-cW6BnHLSZyIPqeWduArVSCKU/s320/DSC_0757.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Guestroom</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Our guestroom. The headboard is homemade. The bedside table belonged to my Great-great grandmother. The dresser on the left is something I refinished, but I have since decided to get rid of the dresser (it is a long story, but it is very old and the drawers are all coming off their tracks). So this picture already seems out of date...<br /><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs6HdzT2Z0QeS9yCd4DrmdOgg06qQDJT9DOpH7bdTHMUhj9dLiECUJWrEPUmD9FI25m1Puf60LkKhDL6idSow0ClXMEKuOsdn86-BgzC1VMEBNybIjjirtSLrnR_CL0JZohqiD_PmFh3s/s1600/DSC_0733.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs6HdzT2Z0QeS9yCd4DrmdOgg06qQDJT9DOpH7bdTHMUhj9dLiECUJWrEPUmD9FI25m1Puf60LkKhDL6idSow0ClXMEKuOsdn86-BgzC1VMEBNybIjjirtSLrnR_CL0JZohqiD_PmFh3s/s320/DSC_0733.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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If I had to make one comment - the best thing to do for your pictures is just get rid of simply everything. Stuff it away, give it away, hide it. It is cheap and provides tremendous results.</div>
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These flowers wish you good day.</div>
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Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-62231493188609790282017-10-24T12:22:00.000-07:002017-10-24T14:53:36.526-07:0010 Ways to Save Money this Holiday SeasonChristmas is supposed to be a joyous time of year - it is about giving - but not about presents. It is so easy for the expenses to pile up during this season, but there are always ways to reduce the financial costs.<br />
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Here are a few ideas for reducing costs this season:<br />
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<b>1. Drink more water.</b><br />
Not only is this good for your health, but if you find yourself out for holiday parties and drinks more than a few nights - cut your bill instantly by drinking plain old water.<br />
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<b>2. Stay home.</b><br />
This doesn't mean be a hermit! Instead of going out for expensive dinners, why not host a dinner in your home? Have friends over for a potluck - share the work! Screen a Christmas movie in your own home and ask everyone to bring a batch of their favourite cookies. Or, if you are trying to keep the waistline from expanding - try some delicious cranberry smoothie recipes and go for a winter stroll. There are hundreds of free (or almost free) things you can literally do in your own backyard.<br />
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<b>3. Give less things. Spend more time.</b><br />
Does this one need an explanation?<br />
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<b>4. Do It Yourself.</b><br />
There are literally hundreds of gifts you can make yourself. A few ideas:<br />
<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2016/12/last-minute-diy-christmas-gift.html" target="_blank"><br /></a>
<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2016/12/last-minute-diy-christmas-gift.html" target="_blank">Homemade Cranberry Sauce</a> (this is one of my personal favourites)<br />
<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/09/diy-gifts-personal-journals.html" target="_blank">Personal Journals</a><br />
<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/01/3-diy-gift-ideas.html" target="_blank">Santa Six Pack</a><br />
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<b>5. Make your own gift baskets.</b><br />
Never, and I mean NEVER - buy a gift basket from a store. You can always make it cheaper yourself. I do this often. My baskets all come from The Salvation Army. Throughout the year, when I see the following items at excellent prices I pick some up for in my gift cupboard:<br />
-quality cookbooks<br />
-candles<br />
-napkins<br />
-wraps/throws<br />
-lotions/soaps<br />
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You can quickly put any combination of the above together with some coffee, tea, hot chocolate or homemade goodies and you will have a very impressive basket. This is probably one of my favourite gifts to assemble.<br />
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<b>6. Shop the Charity Shops</b><br />
There has not been a single visit to the Salvation Army where I have not left with something that is brand new. Often you can find unused items there. Recently, I picked up several books (including a brand new cookbook as well as some brand new board books for children) and a photo album that were brand new and still had the price tag on them. Make sure you go when you have time to look around carefully (ie. when your young kid are not with you!).<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_yzDpKSattyyq_iFdH9bxeGGib9IWH5Yxtk7ssUKRP5Ge981eJCqHC0W-J0hRBiGbyP7HT-eZSn9Nzf5CcqnWwBn45NFhK_ieiHll1mCOeP1ZR2nNYzyuSSM_yjXTe1A4tJ4Zj6ufNc/s1600/IMG_20171019_085641.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_yzDpKSattyyq_iFdH9bxeGGib9IWH5Yxtk7ssUKRP5Ge981eJCqHC0W-J0hRBiGbyP7HT-eZSn9Nzf5CcqnWwBn45NFhK_ieiHll1mCOeP1ZR2nNYzyuSSM_yjXTe1A4tJ4Zj6ufNc/s320/IMG_20171019_085641.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Recently acquired, brand new, Joy of Cooking from The Salvation Army</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7sTyNv4SKA6Yck_6789sOL0ShNVwHYPEivKKo8LsXNWojCMaH2cPMuAUv4JVkX0ehQy8yXNH0pw35vAZ39uoG_VpVPWN19z2ubri1FtGeigzJUGSsuNpIlHYm17rzdZJ1RV5MiSYQUzc/s1600/IMG_20171018_112534.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7sTyNv4SKA6Yck_6789sOL0ShNVwHYPEivKKo8LsXNWojCMaH2cPMuAUv4JVkX0ehQy8yXNH0pw35vAZ39uoG_VpVPWN19z2ubri1FtGeigzJUGSsuNpIlHYm17rzdZJ1RV5MiSYQUzc/s320/IMG_20171018_112534.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brand New (still had price tag from MasterMind Toys on the back)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbzhYfovFNyyOTGq04gcR9wgCsDMY-cm0Sy3Qd2VnZrc_ToPHg6-Nbv3JWCjYdknkVuszKc1h4oVI5LbpAUHPxZYt5n9sc3iln4ewLgCrg6kXHMLp59y7o04JQO6EN86hmhMGxLMF9no/s1600/IMG_20171019_085812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGbzhYfovFNyyOTGq04gcR9wgCsDMY-cm0Sy3Qd2VnZrc_ToPHg6-Nbv3JWCjYdknkVuszKc1h4oVI5LbpAUHPxZYt5n9sc3iln4ewLgCrg6kXHMLp59y7o04JQO6EN86hmhMGxLMF9no/s320/IMG_20171019_085812.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A beautiful gift basket that I used to make a wedding/house warming gift basket</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLZJCqqPUijm1isMnHa_cbzjhkliDmqcc4FDp7DQKs0vTXVBT4cqp-6HLGse9IWMwdbC9AcKKLsBCY70GvZWGP4ldqkCj42s-ruJpG5QHZqQChVyhBXwFluHu0LcW2PK6jwQsFYVHeerc/s1600/IMG_20171019_085802.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLZJCqqPUijm1isMnHa_cbzjhkliDmqcc4FDp7DQKs0vTXVBT4cqp-6HLGse9IWMwdbC9AcKKLsBCY70GvZWGP4ldqkCj42s-ruJpG5QHZqQChVyhBXwFluHu0LcW2PK6jwQsFYVHeerc/s320/IMG_20171019_085802.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More, brand new books from The Salvation Army</td></tr>
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<b>7. Acts of Kindness</b><br />
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Do you feel bombarded with requests for money for charities? I do. I try to give when I can and when I feel appropriate - but the truth is that there are many, many things we can do to help those in need even if we are not flush with cash. If we are honest, we all know someone who could use a helping hand. Why not do something for them? Do you know someone who could use a home cooked meal? Could you shovel someone's driveway? Could you give a senior citizen or someone with mobility issues a ride somewhere? Could you have someone over for tea who might not have anyone to socialize with? </div>
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I have a Christmas memory from growing up that is very special. It is one of the only memories I have that involves both my parents, before their divorce. There was a boy in my grade 2 class who lived with his mom and three brothers. I am not sure exactly what their financial or life situation was, but I know they were poor. Very poor. My mom got wind of this and she and my dad schemed up something. She kept asking me all these questions about "Sam" (not his real name) my classmate and what he liked. Then she somehow gathered up other details about his brothers and their mom. Then - armed with my dad's chequebook - off to the malls she went. They literally (with the help of a few friends) put together a Santa's bag full of things for this family and on Christmas Eve, my dad, dressed in a Santa Suit - delivered it to them while my mom and I hid in the car down the road. I am not sure why they trusted me with this secret. I never told. Years later, the boy told me that he knew it had been my dad in the suit. He said it was the biggest Christmas surprise of his childhood. Now, obviously this particular act <i>did</i> involve my parents spending money - but I tell this story because we all know someone in need. Most of the time it means more for someone to know that you are thinking of them, than the material thing itself. Sometimes those who need kindness the most do not appear to be in need at all.</div>
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<b>8. Free activities</b></div>
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Have you ever taken your child to a Home Depot kids workshop? They are great. Is there a special holiday storytime at your local library? A Christmas Carol sing? Why not organize one yourself? I remember as a kid going Christmas caroling at seniors homes and hospitals. It was so much fun.</div>
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<b>9. Stop running around.</b></div>
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Do you really need to be out every night of the week? Do you really need five more things for in the stocking? I struggle with this. I am a person who takes on crazy projects. Now I try to focus and ask myself the following questions: Can I simplify this and still get what I want or need? Do I really need this or need to do this? </div>
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<b>10. Use every loyalty point you can.</b></div>
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I try to save up all my points from all programs for the holiday season. It just helps stretch any cash that much further - whether it is for gifts, groceries, or services.</div>
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Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-81233865531187413942017-10-22T14:55:00.003-07:002017-10-22T14:55:54.750-07:00What if this is the last...With the first baby it seemed like everything was a blur. I always thought I would have 4 kids, or more, but after two difficult (but not life threatening) pregnancies I find myself wondering if this might be our last baby. Other health concerns have come along, and now I am unsure as to whether or not there will be a Baby #3. We are very blessed with two beautiful, healthy, wild boys. But now, as my second maternity leave comes to an end - I find myself thinking - what if this will be the last maternity leave I have? My last fall at home with the boys? What if this is my last snuggle in bed with a baby? What if this is the last time my little boy will crawl on top of me and rest his head on my chest, free of any worries, lost in a peaceful sleep?<br />
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The days go by so quickly. Yes, I am exhausted. Yes, my body has taken a bit of a beating. Yes, I would enjoy a night of uninterrupted sleep. But really - what I really, truly want - is more time. More snuggles. More kisses. More baby noises.<br />
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Soon this will be over - and they will grow into a new phase. We will make new memories. But this is a special time. Slow down. Slow. Down. Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-55711472645718255882017-10-14T04:31:00.001-07:002017-10-14T04:31:48.035-07:00DIY Gifts: Letter Art<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Our basement has been home to my DIY Gift Workshop this year. Now that I have finished the <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/09/diy-gifts-personal-journals.html" target="_blank">personal journals</a>, we have moved on to canvas art. Note: You do <b>not</b> need to be an artist to do canvas art.</div>
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Some Thoughts:</div>
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Let me get this out of the way first - I am very careful about giving people gifts that need to on display. We all have different tastes. Even people who might think they know my taste could always give me some art I would never use (although I would totally appreciate their thoughtfulness). Someone might even give me something I love, but simply have nowhere to put or no use for. With that in mind, if I am giving any art/craft type pieces I like to keep them small in size and seasonal. In other words, nobody is getting a 8 foot by 10 foot abstract multimedia collage from me (also because I would not know how to make it!).</div>
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A few different pieces came about in my workshop - with different recipients in mind and different methods used. Let's take a walk through them.</div>
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<b>1. The Butterfly Project</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4av5eIC8F4Zo4zyfeB4vyJpUJYmb-A2Y886llZofhyHyNJcKEwz8d_MaKMPDXTv3SBhFfpJcVVZB9QJws6vmuWsP6RxkPXeIAfDf3PV16QN-AGDifHNxa7CcoJpZhh-GFrbwb8mWoN0/s1600/IMG_20170913_190757.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4av5eIC8F4Zo4zyfeB4vyJpUJYmb-A2Y886llZofhyHyNJcKEwz8d_MaKMPDXTv3SBhFfpJcVVZB9QJws6vmuWsP6RxkPXeIAfDf3PV16QN-AGDifHNxa7CcoJpZhh-GFrbwb8mWoN0/s320/IMG_20170913_190757.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
MATERIALS:<br />
-canvas<br />
-stencil<br />
-Sharpie (blue and black)<br />
-Mod Podge<br />
-Tissue Paper<br />
-ruler<br />
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METHOD:<br />
The Butterfly Project is going in with a gift for a young girl. I used an 8x10 canvas (bought in a bulk pack on sale at Michael's). I used the butterfly stencil from Dollorama to stencil on these two butterflies using Blue and Black Sharpies. Sharpies will bleed (just a tiny bit) on to the canvas, so I always retrace after removing the stencil to get rid of any rough edges.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqlCqECZjpQ1g36GTujICiXTkzAKkQXv23oJO2JeJmLsItIkpeGvD73tkfjWaCrBYjkO9r1-WlqLBd3RQiw_hFcUoCcoilT0fFL31CPrJ_839K7FAWQlLJtdSdB4mOsK-YEOHqWGqljM/s1600/IMG_20170913_191809.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYqlCqECZjpQ1g36GTujICiXTkzAKkQXv23oJO2JeJmLsItIkpeGvD73tkfjWaCrBYjkO9r1-WlqLBd3RQiw_hFcUoCcoilT0fFL31CPrJ_839K7FAWQlLJtdSdB4mOsK-YEOHqWGqljM/s320/IMG_20170913_191809.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
Next, I added this "filter" if you will, using blue tissue paper. I got this idea from <a href="http://www.rylandpeters.com/letter-art" target="_blank">Letter Art</a>, by Clare Youngs, where she uses tissue paper to make actual letter art. This is obviously not the same thing, but I really liked how her projects looked and thought I would channel some of that into this project. I had a few different colours of tissue paper that I tried, but I preferred the blue filter for this piece. I cut the tissue paper (almost) to size.<br />
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After this, I put a thin layer of Mod Podge on the canver and began pressing the tissue paper down on top. I used a ruler while doing this to remove as many air bubbles as possible. I did this in sections - be careful because you need to make sure the entire canvas has Mod Podge on it or you will get bubbles in it. Avoid using excessive amounts of Mod Podge because tissue paper is quite thin, and if it gets too wet it will tear.<br />
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Once the Mod Podge underneath dried, I then trimmed the tissue paper even closer to the edges of the canvas, and then added 3 layers of Mod Podge over top. Wait 20 minutes (at least) between each layer. Again, go easy on the Mod Podge because you do not want to soak through the tissue paper.<br />
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I also have an easel ($2.50 at Dollorama) that will hold the canvas to avoid any holes in the wall.<br />
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And....voilà! A simple butterfly canvas for a sweet little girl this Christmas.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_IEfZpCB2-BHNp_-Ux4ruhtU853XuAaYoyVAJ_1YbNc6jLl0cVByfPgrzi1wFUXtGCL0l31ly3rQvwaJVDpFIKu_mLvjCzPIO5FGPL4lm-_lGllMzLOHyUXEtmRv3M06bCbIyaQoKPg/s1600/IMG_20170918_161208.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_IEfZpCB2-BHNp_-Ux4ruhtU853XuAaYoyVAJ_1YbNc6jLl0cVByfPgrzi1wFUXtGCL0l31ly3rQvwaJVDpFIKu_mLvjCzPIO5FGPL4lm-_lGllMzLOHyUXEtmRv3M06bCbIyaQoKPg/s320/IMG_20170918_161208.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<b>2. O Holy Night </b><br />
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For this canvas I wanted to do a simple excerpt from O Holy Night lyrics. I used a silver metallic Sharpie. Since the script was going to be thin (not wide) I did not do a pencil underlay first. Instead, I drafted multiple ideas and layouts on scrap paper until I found the arrangement I liked. I then copied it (very slowly and very carefully unto the canvas). I covered it with 3 thin layers of Mod Podge.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi98CsikOptw_JMedLHoOU_NAmcSSY9gxqDRnoVYW_b_KXPw9-_6ZISXvbsomTfiSVv3joDYJn81XNt86a3TjW0cj_j1-uWGK04G8O8Wglyzx8ADbl1TsSqMN78MgHxhm-kGq33KyQz6Zg/s1600/IMG_20171009_095302.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi98CsikOptw_JMedLHoOU_NAmcSSY9gxqDRnoVYW_b_KXPw9-_6ZISXvbsomTfiSVv3joDYJn81XNt86a3TjW0cj_j1-uWGK04G8O8Wglyzx8ADbl1TsSqMN78MgHxhm-kGq33KyQz6Zg/s320/IMG_20171009_095302.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<b>3. Christmas Carol Mash-Up</b><br />
Once I decided what I wanted the central words for this collage style canvas to be (Peace and Joy), I added them to the canvas. Then, slowly and carefully, I added all of the other lyrics from various carols that I wanted to include. Some of them had to be traced over several times. I did not do pencil underneath, again because if you are not doing a bold text it can be hard to cover it up. I did a few coats of Mod Podge over the top because I wanted a glossy finish and also to protect the canvas.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoWU8lCDe_FMmbV3o2SACz4Zy74Vq0T_MezBzeCpG7bHWK8lC7_F6wKCkFE0vif7KdFDyoIAAMuru8-fhTDKlhaB0bTPcgIw0wub1hY-fwB6iL2lu9QQiaJAWq5rKAtST4SdzVxZLDVGw/s1600/IMG_20171009_095256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoWU8lCDe_FMmbV3o2SACz4Zy74Vq0T_MezBzeCpG7bHWK8lC7_F6wKCkFE0vif7KdFDyoIAAMuru8-fhTDKlhaB0bTPcgIw0wub1hY-fwB6iL2lu9QQiaJAWq5rKAtST4SdzVxZLDVGw/s320/IMG_20171009_095256.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<b>4. Merry and Bright</b><br />
This canvas did not go exactly as planned. WARNING: Mod Podge will make gold metallic Sharpie run and fade. It did not do this with any other Sharpies, but for some reason it did with the Gold Metallic. The original plan was just for the nice bright gold MERRY AND BRIGHT canvas. When you are doing bold letters with the Sharpie, instead of tracing outlines and colouring them in, you need to write a "thin" letter and then go over it repeatedly as you work to make it bigger and stop any bleeding edges. I used almost an entire Gold Metallic Sharpie to make this canvas. After going over it with a few layers of Mod Podge, the text started to blur and smudge. This made me sad. In the end, I could not salvage it so I decided to do a gold tissue paper overlay using the same technique as I did for the butterfly. I will be using this to make a Christmas display which I will share at a later date.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU2njhWFg1eD08CgQP2cfWitmO0e6v-SkHcGsPbe1yLydQUA_98u8Nz4zWLZWNKa8TyuXHgc8gab7nDPz0yfkT_0qk-MzJaA_1GVHTMvzDX100fDdaI31M_gYPExJpy9AfgV9fpHt51Hc/s1600/IMG_20171009_095311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU2njhWFg1eD08CgQP2cfWitmO0e6v-SkHcGsPbe1yLydQUA_98u8Nz4zWLZWNKa8TyuXHgc8gab7nDPz0yfkT_0qk-MzJaA_1GVHTMvzDX100fDdaI31M_gYPExJpy9AfgV9fpHt51Hc/s320/IMG_20171009_095311.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDiYNUaz6aTUgc5PXU7lTYuvW9eBuvUB0FpMz2Iaid2CqCRENcJwMk6EwBSQTWXjrrm9o37CxNeR1F0qpONlmayyVPe7MLARazuvCmEEDWBY8HZZ4fKptGyU1-KAajE7YQp5QK83e686s/s1600/IMG_20171013_132111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDiYNUaz6aTUgc5PXU7lTYuvW9eBuvUB0FpMz2Iaid2CqCRENcJwMk6EwBSQTWXjrrm9o37CxNeR1F0qpONlmayyVPe7MLARazuvCmEEDWBY8HZZ4fKptGyU1-KAajE7YQp5QK83e686s/s320/IMG_20171013_132111.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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These canvases will take more time than you anticipate. As with the journals, the most time will be sketching out and drafting your ideas.<br />
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Enjoy!Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-63097385378282173112017-10-09T06:27:00.000-07:002017-10-12T05:38:42.503-07:00A Family Trip to the Laurentians (Voyage aux Laurentides)A few weeks ago we took our first family vacation (with a 3 year old and 11 month old) that did not involve visiting family. It was busy, chaotic, exhausting, and fantastic!!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Where did we go?</b></span><br />
We stayed in Sainte Agathe des Monts, a small town in the Laurentians. It is about 25 minutes South of Mont Tremblant. (Aside: I used to live in Québec - but not in this region - I always imagined I would marry someone from there because of the language....but alas.....I did not! Although my husband's mother is an American born to two Québécois).<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>How did we get there?</b></span><br />
Short answer: By car.<br />
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Long answer: We decided to take the "back roads" instead of going up the 401, this way we could avoid driving through Montreal traffic and it would only take us about 15 - 20 minutes longer. It is about a 6 to 6 1/2 hour drive from the Toronto region. So, we set off and took Highway 7 (traveling through Port Perry, Peterborough, Ottawa, etc.) and onward to the TransCanada Highway. This was a beautiful drive. Really beautiful. There are not a lot of places to stop on this highway - but there are some - and there are also some really beautiful picnic stops.<br />
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The day we left, it was unseasonably hot and almost 40C with the humidex. We stopped in <b>Havelock </b>- here there is a gas station, a Tim Horton's, a Subway, a Foodland, and a few other small restaurants. There are some nice picnic tables and parking set up along the railway tracks of the town. More importantly for us - across the road from the Tim Horton's and gas station there is a small park. In the park there are a few picnic tables, benches, bear-proof garbage bins and also of course, the playground equipment. It was boiling hot, but we were able to put our blanket down in the shade and eat our lunch. Our kids were able to stretch out for awhile on the play equipment before it was just too hot to handle and we had to get back in the car. Note: There is not parking at the playground, we had to park in the parking lot beside it (which is what everyone seemed to be doing).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqzhZDsLfX4AK7AHjEIomjPn6egTY-S-wh4IJMfkmPG-q9b-qMEYtXlWuLmH3d7HzEu0hm_2uh_XMZUnKBo1iFtiVhKELxsDTBQPv2d56_ETBRa_6psz3D-ga3VUXni0t9AVx3sNkeo0/s1600/DSC_0771.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqzhZDsLfX4AK7AHjEIomjPn6egTY-S-wh4IJMfkmPG-q9b-qMEYtXlWuLmH3d7HzEu0hm_2uh_XMZUnKBo1iFtiVhKELxsDTBQPv2d56_ETBRa_6psz3D-ga3VUXni0t9AVx3sNkeo0/s320/DSC_0771.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Park in Havelock</td></tr>
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Our next stop on the way was Perth, Ontario. Which isn't actually too far from Havelock (relatively speaking), but we needed to go to a Shopper's Drug Mart and pick up some supplies for our trip. In Perth there is quite a bit, Shoppers, a grocery store, Dairy Queen, McDonald's, and several other fast food outlets and chain stores.<br />
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We took the same route on our way home - but on the home route we stopped in Kanata (the Terry Fox Drive Exit), where we picked up a few groceries at Farm Boy, then we went to Walter Baker Park where our kids were able to play on the park equipment, run up and down the tobaggan hill and stretch out. We also used the washrooms that were conveniently located right next door inside the arena. The gazebo at the park was unfortunately freshly spraypainted with some anti-Semitic graffiti, but we did not allow our kids to play in it (it was also filthy). The rest of the park area was great.<br />
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Our final stop on the way home was in <a href="http://www.marmoraandlake.ca/" target="_blank">Marmora, Ontario</a> (East of Havelock). Marmora was quite a beautiful little town. For us, the best part was that they have a fantastic kids playground and park (including splash pad, but this was closed for the season). You cannot miss it if you are driving through town - you drive directly past it. There is also a Subway and Mac's plaza that you can walk to from the park without crossing a major roadway - and there are washrooms in the Mac's store. We let our son pick a little treat in the store (a small bag of Cheetos, which he only managed to eat a few of), used the washrooms, and got back on the road after a picnic and play session at the park.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Where did we stay?</b></span><br />
We stayed for 5 nights at the Super 8 Hotel in Sainte Agathe des Monts (Québec).<br />
<b>MONEY SAVING TIP:</b> We used points from our BMO World Elite MasterCard to pay for the hotel (entirely - for 2 rooms for 5 nights). We love this card and we have used it for many hotel stays, although beware that it does have a significant annual fee - but for us it is worth it.<br />
The reason we chose the Super 8 was because:<br />
a) the price was right<br />
b) it had a great indoor pool (the selling feature of this hotel for sure) with an 80 foot waterslide and waterfeatures. The pool was heated to a great, but not too warm, temperature. Be advised though - the pool is very shallow and is more of a playpool with the slide and water features. This was perfect for our kids - but may be not as desirable if you have older children.<br />
c) Breakfast is included. Super 8 is a budget motel - the breakfast provided was more than sufficient (yogurt, waffle makers, hard boiled eggs, oatmeal, breads and toast, muffins, tea, coffee, juice, some fruit), but I have to admit that I really missed the hot breakfast items (like eggs, sausage, etc.) that you get at some other (also more expensive) hotels. We actually ate several breakfasts of our own food.<br />
d) Location - This hotel is centrally located in Ste Agathe des Monts. It is easy to find and easy to get on the highway from their location. It is also located on the same street as a Maxi grocery store and a very large Giant Tiger. Nearby are many other stores and restaurants as well as access to cycling trails.<br />
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The hotel was great, mainly because of the pool. It was not the cleanest (but not dirty) and obviously not the most luxurious (it is a super discount motel), but it met all of needs, the pool was fantastic, and the staff at the hotel were all excellent, helpful, and very friendly.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What did we eat?</b></span><br />
Aside from the breakfasts at the hotel, we made a lot of food ourselves which we purchased at local grocery stores (IGA Extra, Metro, Costco in St Jérome). We also had takeout one night from St Hubert, we ate two meals at Verger LaCroix (more about that later) from their canteen, and we also got dinner one day from a Casse-Croute in Saint Donat. All of this allowed us to keep our food budget nice and low for the trip. We have never (literally never) eaten in a restaurant as a family. Part of it is budget, but way more of it is because it is not relaxing with an 11 month old and a 3 year old who love to run wild. Seriously. When the day comes that I can go out with my kids and relax and enjoy a good meal that I did not cook.............I will enjoy it. Whenever that is. Ha. When we travel we like to bring most of our food or shop locally and do picnics. We actually enjoy this and it is convenient <i>and </i>budget friendly.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What did we do?</b></span><br />
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<b>Place Lagny </b>- This is the waterfront park in Sainte Agathe des Monts on Rue Principale. It is very easy to find. There is a small trail on the waterfront, picnic tables, a dock, a children's play area (pirate themed), as well as a splash pad. In addition - there is a building with washrooms. Washrooms are key with kids!!!<br />
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<b>Croisères Mont Tremblant - </b>Sainte Agathe des Monts is about 25 minutes from Mont Tremblant (the village). We love this area. This was an unplanned activity. We were driving through the village on an incredibly hot day, when we saw the signs saying the cruise was departing in 40 minutes. We just decided to do it. It wasn't cheap - $26/adult and $8.50 for old 3 year old, the youngest was free. The cruise lasted one hour. The crew was kid friendly. An hour was more than long enough for our 3 year old and 11 month old to be contained on a boat. <a href="http://www.croisierestremblant.com/en/index.php" target="_blank">It was beautiful </a>and I am very glad we did it. Bonus: As we were heading back to shore, a very severe thunderstorm came over the mountains and we watched it roll in, including the lightning. Now, if the storm had unleashed while we were still on the water I would have undoubtedly been petrified, but thankfully it waited until we made the 5 minute walk back to our car (parked in the municipal park parking lot around the corner from the launching dock - where parking is free and there are also washrooms). It was a crazy storm and I am very glad we were off the water at that point!!<br />
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<b>Verger LaCroix</b><br />
I cannot recommend <a href="http://vergerlacroix.ca/fr/" target="_blank">this place </a>enough. St Joseph du Lac is a small town about an hour South of Sainte Agathe des Monts, it is sort of an outlier of Montreal. I am not sure what to compare it to - but it is essentially orchard row. It is stunningly beautiful, with mile, after mile, after mile of orchards. We visited Verger et Cidrerie LaCroix on a busy Thursday. It was hopping with school groups (if you want to go when it is not superbusy - most of the school groups are gone shortly after 1pm) and our kids loved it. What will you find at Verger LaCroix?<br />
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First, you will find a market stand full of amazing apple products. Walk through the market stand and you will find a large (very large) children's play area with play equipment (lots of it), hay based play centres, a small farm animal area/petting zoo, a picnic area, an interpretation centre for school groups, and all of this is of course backing onto a beautiful apple orchard. There is also a canteen with fresh made goodies at reasonable prices (in 2017 we ordered grilled cheese, grilled cheese with caramelized onions and apples, pulled pork burgers, etc. - all between $3.00 - $5.00). We ordered lunch from the canteen two days in a row (yes - it was so fun here for our kids we went back the next day). Bathrooms are on site.<br />
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On our second day here, we decided to pick some apples. The U Pick (Autocueillette) is very reasonably priced - if you are picking up to 40lbs of apples it is $1.00/lb regardless of variety. We picked a 20lb bag of Honeycrisp apples and they were simply amazing. In addition, I was able to capture some beautiful pictures of both our sons in the orchard. I am very happy about that.<br />
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In the shop, you can buy prepicked apples and many delicious goods. My favourite treat that I am obliged to mention is the Apple Oatmeal Cookies. THE BEST. Absolutely the best apple oatmeal cookies I've tasted anywhere. I could not eat enough of them. And they were reasonably priced.<br />
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There is one other thing I wanted to mention about this place: it is very clean. Both days we went there, immediately after all the school groups left, a crew of staff came out and started cleaning like crazy - making sure there was no garbage or food left anywhere, cleaning the bathrooms, etc. This does not go unnoticed by moms who like cleanliness!!!<br />
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If you are in the area, I highly recommend a stop here. It can cost as little or as much as you want. It is very family friendly.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvXUdOLWJ9a9stGDnBkcDTKQJkkjMcClLPA__NhSjzQ9vNYPf-J2x6hvmAdnzqs9UKiZrmoaLshMmxVknB69F2EH6wriI-y2kHLCpQGgtDUwMY-EiwdtGrjQYxrixrEGolfmwA_IE1QkY/s1600/DSC_0779.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvXUdOLWJ9a9stGDnBkcDTKQJkkjMcClLPA__NhSjzQ9vNYPf-J2x6hvmAdnzqs9UKiZrmoaLshMmxVknB69F2EH6wriI-y2kHLCpQGgtDUwMY-EiwdtGrjQYxrixrEGolfmwA_IE1QkY/s320/DSC_0779.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcLzWiPJpMs05kv1pdLzlMTpo_AhSWX3a7S7AXBaTjss8XJF46fZAXea0srNhBk9WbFcP5QXjKk-GeVE18xOQzzPeJkwYGsKj910nB42x6fVcjcM789bLrZPHTD8T6wBhkK0hMeHhx61k/s1600/DSC_0780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcLzWiPJpMs05kv1pdLzlMTpo_AhSWX3a7S7AXBaTjss8XJF46fZAXea0srNhBk9WbFcP5QXjKk-GeVE18xOQzzPeJkwYGsKj910nB42x6fVcjcM789bLrZPHTD8T6wBhkK0hMeHhx61k/s320/DSC_0780.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>Intermiel</b><br />
Also in Saint Joseph du Lac, we visited <a href="http://intermiel.com/en/" target="_blank">Intermiel</a> a large beekeeping company. There were also many activities here for kids, but when we arrived both my boys were asleep. We never wake sleeping kids!! So I ventured into their gift shop alone. Heaven!!! Honey everywhere. There is a large sampling station as they offer many products ranging from skin care to Mead, to wine, to of course many types of honey. I picked up a few gifts here - and a 3kg pot of honey fro $20.00 (and excellent price). It would have been great to spend more time exploring this place. Hopefully we will be able to visit again one day.<br />
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<b>Les Vergers LaFrance</b><br />
In St Joseph du Lac. A<a href="http://www.lesvergerslafrance.com/en/pages/cidrerie/" target="_blank"> beautiful orchard and cidrerie</a> (is there an English word for this??) Cider Mill? Here there is a restaurant as well as play equipment for children. The shop here largely focuses on their distilled products, jam, and apple donuts. We had to try the apple donuts. They were still warm when I purchased them, and very tasty (my husband loves donuts, I prefer cookies). Are you getting the good food theme of our trip? It must be Québec!!<br />
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<b>La Maison de Lavande</b><br />
This beautiful <a href="https://maisonlavande.ca/en/" target="_blank">lavender farm </a>is more geared for adults. Just walking inside their beauty gift shop is relaxing. A beautiful setting with beautiful products. I was able to pick up some items here that I wanted for some Christmas gifts I will be making. Just heavenly.<br />
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<b>Les fromages du verger</b><br />
<a href="http://www.lesfromagesduverger.com/en/" target="_blank">Les fromages du verger</a> is a small fromagerie located in St Joseph du Lac. It is a fromgerie with an orchard. The staff here are very friendly and I was able to sample several cheeses before deciding on the "Boheme" which we enjoyed for a picnic dinner. There is a play area for children and they invited us to visit their sheep in the barn which was greatly appreciated.<br />
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As I mentioned earlier, you could spend days (days!!) in the St Joseph du Lac area visiting all the different farms and orchards. It is beautiful and a delight especially if you enjoy the outdoors and good food.<br />
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<b>Costco</b><br />
Now for a complete change of venue, I have to mention that I made a large trip to Costco in St Jérome. I need to mention this because this one single trip alone more than paid for the cost of my Costco memberhsip. It is hard to get lots of French resources at reasonable prices in Ontario. I was able to pick up great resources for both personal and professional use (books, DVDs, French language toys, etc.). One dictionary (French language only) that I picked up was $20.00 <i>less</i> at Costco than I saw it listed for in other stores in the area. I would also be remiss if I did not mention how much cheaper beer is in Québec. Personally, I do not drink alcohol - but my family is from Belgium (of course they all drink beer and wine, except for me!) and my brother in law is Dutch so......we picked up some Christmas gifts that resulted in significant savings (my husband looked up everything and told me what to buy and it worked out to be about $100 in savings just for the beer). There are also great cheeses to be had....of course (it is Québec) as well as some bulk maple products. And of course, I picked up a pizza here for our supper that night.<br />
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<b>Saint Donat - Parc des Pionniers</b><br />
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Saint Donat is one of the region's <a href="http://www.st-donat.com/homeanglais.html" target="_blank">best kept secrets</a>. It is primarily a ski/snowmobile/cycling destination - but it is in a stunningly beautiful area (technically just outside the Laurentians). The drive alone is worth it. We love visiting this area. There is a beautiful main street with lots of shops, cafés, and restaurants. (Aside: also near the area is Lac Supérieur - which does not have much but does have a great kids park, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, if you need a place for your kids to get out and run around it is by the library - also seemingly in the middle of nowhere.)<br />
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We went to St Donat to take our kids to the Parc des Pionniers. Parc des Pionniers is a beautiful waterfront park. There are two large play areas for children, trails, picnic tables, benches, washrooms, and a stunning view. We easily spent a few hours here. There is also parking located across the street.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwoaROk3RJp2WxBJWkiul2sCSyEyazaFB23etXey-x6ZlVZlVSSz71cZE5XB9g_iNatlAeRuUPOTqJm5CC3CQh1aZqYoGktF-G1qdT9S-8xeRxGAHNLDQ8xPEmXeP4cL6JrtWhpmGVvbI/s1600/DSC_0819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwoaROk3RJp2WxBJWkiul2sCSyEyazaFB23etXey-x6ZlVZlVSSz71cZE5XB9g_iNatlAeRuUPOTqJm5CC3CQh1aZqYoGktF-G1qdT9S-8xeRxGAHNLDQ8xPEmXeP4cL6JrtWhpmGVvbI/s320/DSC_0819.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach at Parc des Pionniers</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTdjEafwaehIFnNkxtjlLu8l698qMVBzCnLIYvA0TOoz-nzQOQTek0uVfB1Dxd85qp_pj_EXSTiAsiqVpp-r0Q4_-r0_poTPqeERU1oB1we9THfHoV77NPjVlVN7doCSaztb7re50bPOk/s1600/DSC_0824.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1072" data-original-width="1600" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTdjEafwaehIFnNkxtjlLu8l698qMVBzCnLIYvA0TOoz-nzQOQTek0uVfB1Dxd85qp_pj_EXSTiAsiqVpp-r0Q4_-r0_poTPqeERU1oB1we9THfHoV77NPjVlVN7doCSaztb7re50bPOk/s320/DSC_0824.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>In a nutshell:</b></span><br />
The Laurentians are a fantastic area to visit (especially with kids) - the area is stunningly beautiful and there are many outdoor, free or low-cost activities that you can do as a family. In addition, there are plenty of well priced, affordable, delicious dining options in the area.<br />
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Bon voyage!!Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-84312298474681768072017-10-04T08:40:00.004-07:002017-10-12T05:37:48.640-07:00The Great Grocery Project: September Recap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
This month turned out to be quite busy!!!</div>
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There was lots of planning, and prepping, and getting ready for things to come - mainly my return to work in December. We also took a vacation, which is why I am a bit late posting, but I will get to that later.</div>
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This month we spent <b>$432.49 </b>on groceries. There was a lot of stocking up on things like cheese (on sale for $3.77), potatoes, carrots, onions, frozen pie shells, and two frozen turkeys. September was also the month I decided to make a change to the grocery shopping. The change is not in what we buy, but in methodology. I have been regularly reading the flyers for years, I actually really enjoy it. However, life is getting to the point where I do not have time to read the flyers weekly. We get a lot of them! If you read the flyers regularly, you know that the best sales essentially rotate among various stores in different (or sometimes the same) weeks. If you read this blog, you also know that I regularly shop at No Frills, and my local No Frills will price match with Metro and Walmart flyers. And so, I made the decision that I will no longer read the flyers weekly. Going forward, I will be reading only the No Frills, Walmart, and Metro flyers. This saves me time a fair amount of time and energy which is a big win in our house. In addition, I subscribe to <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2016/10/money-saving-tip-sale-whale.html" target="_blank">SaleWhale</a>, so if there is something specific I really need that I am desperate to have (unlikely) I can search for a sale quickly using Sale Whale.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What did we spend our money on?</b></span></div>
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Beverages = $2.99</div>
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Bread = $10.96</div>
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Dairy = $111.61 (I stocked up on cheese specifically when it was on sale for a great price).</div>
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Frozen Food = $35.00 (I stocked up on frozen pie crusts on sale for $2.49, frozen corn, and 4 frozen pizzas for emergency meals).</div>
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Meat = $33.57 (Two frozen turkeys, some Reduced for Quick Sale ground beef and chicken).</div>
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Pantry = $133.21 Prepping for a few tight months with no income before I go back to work.</div>
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Prepared Food = $10.99 Did you know it's Pumpkin Pie season at Costco? You literally cannot make a pie of the same size for what it costs to buy these. And they know it. There was actually an article devoted to this in the current issue of the Costco Members Magazine.</div>
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Produce = $70.06 There was lots of stocking up on root vegetables and potatoes at fantastic prices.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Recipe Share:</b></span></div>
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I made and froze a lot of beets this month. I also tried a few new beet recipes. Thanks to some readers at T<a href="http://www.theprudenthomemaker.com/" target="_blank">he Prudent Homemaker</a>, I decided to try a beet chocolate cake. <b>AMAZING.</b> Actually - it was so good.</div>
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<a href="https://www.iga.net/en/inspiring_recipes/recipes/chocolate-beet_cake" target="_blank">Click here for the recipe I used</a>. I used all purpose flour instead of cake flour (but had to increase the cooking time) and I did not grate the cooked beets because you end up pureeing them anyway. I also used a different (cream cheese) icing. This cake is sooooo good.</div>
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I also made a Beet Cranberry Chutney. This recipe is super easy to make and very yummy. You can use fresh or frozen cranberries as well as home roasted or boiled beets. It can also be frozen. It was delicious with crackers and goat's cheese. It would also pair well with cream cheese or brie, and poultry or pork. Or the vegetarian tourtière recipe that is suggested on the recipe link (I imagine, I haven't tried it with this myself).<br />
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For the French version of the recipe <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/recettes/1076-chutney-betteraves-et-canneberges" target="_blank">click here.</a><br />
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For the English version <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/1076-beet-and-cranberry-chutney" target="_blank">click here.</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE9qpLxaIfK19PPr0fDeOtUB0sSEnSSbAALPPFHc9RC-sV27XAoxDEMTBiYmuFbCX3Ao2rxqsoQVcudjWcY36bxVFBDaBBu7vRrkfrnMTLoB4Go-UsBJ1DCrBmzfqaQhARRE_90QD_wgA/s1600/IMG_20170923_094637.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE9qpLxaIfK19PPr0fDeOtUB0sSEnSSbAALPPFHc9RC-sV27XAoxDEMTBiYmuFbCX3Ao2rxqsoQVcudjWcY36bxVFBDaBBu7vRrkfrnMTLoB4Go-UsBJ1DCrBmzfqaQhARRE_90QD_wgA/s320/IMG_20170923_094637.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>How did we save money this month?</b></span><br />
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When I started going through my list, I realized I probably should have done an earlier post. Nonetheless, here we are. </div>
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1. Price matching - I continue to price match at No Frills.</div>
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2. Optimum Points Bonus Day and Survey - I love the Optimum rewards program through Shoppers Drug Mart. This month I made purchases on a day when I could earn bonus points. I also am a member of their consumer panel, and so I earn extra points by completing surveys they send. Finally, every Tuesday I receive a coupon with a special offer via text. I've never used one of these, until last week when we were on vacation and I realized I had forgotten to bring Little Swimmers <i>and</i> there were some other items I needed to pick up. I happened to get a great coupon that Tuesday - so I used it. Hurray for bonus points.</div>
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3. Ebates Cheque - I received an Ebates cheque for $11.77. </div>
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4. Costco Executive Membership Rebate Cheque - I received our rebate cheque which was for $75.00. I'm a bit blasée about this program. It covers the cost of the Executive Membership (but not the full membership) because we do not spend enough money at Costco. It's not a loss because we still save loads on some specific items at Costco that I can't get on sale other places (specialty cheeses!!), but it's hard to get excited about it.</div>
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5. House Photos - I will save most of the details for another post, but we were getting photos done of our house and I staged it myself and made my own flower arrangements with flowers from the grocery store.</div>
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6. Vacation - We went on our first non-family visiting vacation in five years. (Expect a future post about this). We traveled to the Laurentians and used points from our MasterCard so we did not pay a penny for our hotel. UPDATE: <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/10/a-family-trip-to-laurentians-voyage-aux.html" target="_blank">Trip details are now available here.</a></div>
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7. Clothing Discount - I have a list of things I need before returning to work - so I went to the Vaughan Mills outlet mall. I was about to pay at a store when I remembered that 3 years ago (the last time I was shopping for work clothes), this store offered a discount for members of my profession. There was no sign posted, but I asked if they still did this. Yes they do! $34.75 came off my bill. BIG SMILE.</div>
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8. DIY Christmas Gifts - I made <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/09/diy-gifts-personal-journals.html" target="_blank">personal journals</a> and also started working on some additional DIY Christmas gifts.</div>
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9. Make Ahead and Freeze - I am making ahead and freezing food for a party we are hosting in October.<br />
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10. I filled up at Costco when I noticed gas there was actually a lot cheaper (it isn't always) and this saved me $12.00.<br />
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I hope you all had a wonderful month!!</div>
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Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-91627162088688888752017-09-17T10:26:00.002-07:002017-09-17T10:29:45.282-07:00Sunday Reading: Build a Better Cheese PlatterHave I mentioned how much I love cheese? No gathering in our family is complete sans fromage.<br />
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Saveur has an excellent feature piece on cheese monger Lillith Spencer. If you love cheese and you love to entertain this <a href="http://www.saveur.com/build-a-better-cheese-plate?src=SOC&dom=tw#page-7" target="_blank">is well worth your time. </a> The photos alone are magnificent. True works of (edible) art. <br />
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Enjoy!Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-1407839100925992192017-09-14T19:21:00.000-07:002017-09-16T13:21:51.843-07:00DIY Gifts: Personal journals<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Christmas DIY has begun. I like to plan Christmas gifts for the adults on my list by theme. Last year's theme was Baskets of Plenty - I made gift baskets full of homemade and some store bought goodies. This year's theme is Read, Write, Relax. Of course nobody knows the theme except for me. I don't send out a message, "prepare yourselves for your Basket of Plenty." No. The theme is just a way for me to organize my thoughts and my spending. My first DIY share this season is for the Write part of Read, Write, Relax. </div>
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I wanted to make personal journals. The thing I love most about this craft is that it requires so few materials. </div>
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Necessary materials:</div>
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-journal</div>
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-permanent marker</div>
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-scrap paper</div>
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-pencil</div>
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Optional materials:</div>
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-stencil</div>
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-ruler, math set</div>
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The journals I used are from Dollorama and cost $3.50 each. They are textured on the surface. I used silver and gold metallic Sharpies from Michael's which cost $7.99. The butterfly stencil I used cost $1.25 at Dollorama. They do sell Sharpies at Dollorama but not the metallics.</div>
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What to do???</div>
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Even though letters are obviously involved, I do not consider this lettering. At all. Lettering is an art that takes loads of time and study. Nonetheless, you do need to prep for this. I sketched many ideas out on scrap paper before moving ahead with the "good copy" in permanent marker. </div>
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Because of the textured surface, the marker does run a bit. Keep this in mind because you do not want to be doing any fine print or intricate designs with a big Sharpie on this surface. In addition, you may need to trace around the edges after any stenciling in order to hide the bleeding (see butterfly below). </div>
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Once you have come up with and rehearsed your design you can move ahead to the final copy. DO NOT RUSH. Permanent marker is not forgiving. </div>
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This is an uncomplicated project - but you may be surprised by how long you spend formulating and practicing your design. Examples are posted below. </div>
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Enjoy!!</div>
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-90355352353038629362017-09-11T09:50:00.004-07:002017-09-11T10:00:52.273-07:00Recipe Share: A Tale of Two SquashIs there a more seasonal fall vegetable than squash? Squash is one of my favourite vegetables, and it is one of the reasons I look forward to fall every year. This weekend I had two butternut squash to use up, so I tried several new recipes and also revived some old favourites. If you are looking for some ideas on how to use up your squash.....look no further.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Squash and Lentil Curry</b></span><br />
This <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/6944-squash-and-lentil-curry" target="_blank">Squash and Lentil Curry</a> from Ricardo checks all the boxes. I had all the ingredients on hand in my pantry (except the squash, of course). This is so easy to make - just dump all the ingredients in the slow cooker, give it a stir and walk away for 6 hours. That's it!! It is quick to assemble, economical, and healthy - what more could you ask for in a meal?<br />
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The spices in this dish are very mild - you could easily add more for stronger flavouring. I used Perez Curry Spices (one of my favourite blends) and added a bit more than what the recipe called for and it was still quite mild. If you are not sure about Indian food - this is an excellent "gateway" dish. Serve it with naan bread or Basmati rice and enjoy!!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Curried Peanut and Butternut Soup</b></span><br />
The recipe can be found <a href="https://www.pressreader.com/canada/national-post-latest-edition/20071117/283253093557895" target="_blank">here</a>, just replace the Pumpkin with Butternut Squash. This recipe is from Bonnie Stern's <i>Friday Night Dinners, </i>the <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/01/friday-night-dinner-project-south.html" target="_blank">South African</a> menu.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">S<b>quash Coffee Cake</b></span><br />
<a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/7634-squash-coffee-cake" target="_blank">This recipe</a> is another gem from Ricardo. I made two of these and send one to work with my husband. This is a wonderful coffee cake recipe - I am sure the Butternut Squash could also be replaced with pumpkin and taste equally delicious. But there is something fun about telling people it is a Squash Coffee Cake. <br />
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Finally, if you have the cookbook <i>Friday Night Dinners, </i>I highly recommend the Roasted Carrot and Butternut Spread from the <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/02/friday-night-dinner-project.html" target="_blank">Thanksgiving Menu</a>. Unfortunately, I do not have a link for the recipe and I do not repost recipes without permission/copyright.<br />
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Happy cooking!!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blurry Curry, my 3 year old wanted to test his photography skills</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This Squash Coffee Cake freezes well</td></tr>
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Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-39059018398939919952017-09-03T05:03:00.000-07:002017-09-03T05:03:50.164-07:00Sunday Morning Read: Rabbi Sacks on Faith, Family and Community The title of the text is actually "Cultural Climate Change", but this is a extremely thoughtful and well laid out thesis and arguments on the importance of faith, family, and community in society - and how they are all interrelated. This text is lengthy, but it is worth taking the time to read every word - and you do not need to be Jewish to appreciate the thoughts and arguments laid out here.<br />
<br />
Rabbi Sacks was the Chief Rabbi when we lived in the UK. I never had the opportunity to meet him, but I have read a great deal of his work and he is very wise.<br />
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<a href="http://www.standpointmag.co.uk/node/6938/full" target="_blank">Click here to read the entire text.</a><br />
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Here are a few teasers from this text:<br />
<i><br /></i>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i>Now I simply want to ask: how does this affect us in the contemporary world? The answer lies in three dimensions. First, family. Second, community. Third, society. What happens to family, community, and society when the West loses its faith, its religious faith?</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i>....</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i>Having children or raising them involves enormous sacrifice of time, money, effort and energy. Religious people understand the concept of sacrifice. We live by it. It’s part of our lives. But people in a secular, consumerist, individualist culture find it much harder to live by sacrifice. Nothing in the culture says sacrifice, and throughout history that is the reason why when a culture begins to lose its faith, its birth rate starts to decline. This is not just happening now. It has happened throughout history.</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i>...</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i>It is that ability to come together as communities to help one another that is our apprenticeship in liberty. Today, this kind of community exists mainly in religion. Let me give you a dramatic example of this. In 2011, a British medical charity did a survey in Britain. It discovered that the average Brit between 18 and 30 has 237 Facebook friends. When asked how many of those you could rely on in an emergency, the average answer was “two”. A quarter replied one, and an eighth replied none.</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i>....</i></span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><i> But America, which received wave after wave of immigrants, had to work for this identity, this shared bond of society. You had a word for it and that word is a very interesting one. It’s a key word in American politics. That word is covenant.</i> </span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f0f0f0; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: justify;"><br /></span>
Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-11797223193443974882017-09-02T08:45:00.001-07:002017-09-03T04:54:38.307-07:00The Great Grocery Project - One Year RecapShazam! Just like that. One year is over. I started this project a year ago, knowing that we were heading into a period where my income would be reduced by 60% (also called Maternity Leave). Many unexpected things happened during this time - I became very ill and was largely incapacitated for about 8 weeks pre-birth of son #2, we had to do a massive unplanned renovation on our house, etc. But all is well. The kids are good. I've always used a rough budget amount - but this is the first time I have tracked exactly what the money is being spent on as opposed to just saying food in general. This has been very useful. <br />
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So let's get to it - between September 1 2016 and August 31 2017 we spent:<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>$5006.76 on groceries. </b>This works out to about $417.23 per month.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What does this mean?</b></span><br />
Well <a href="http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sum-som/l01/cst01/famil132g-eng.htm" target="_blank">Stats Canada </a>has lots of data that can put this amount in perspective. According to them, in 2015 the average family in Ontario spent <b>$8475 on food </b>(this includes eating out, which we rarely do)<b>.</b> In addition, <a href="http://globalnews.ca/news/3108159/average-canadian-family-to-spend-420-more-on-food-in-2017-report/" target="_blank">analysts were predicting </a>that in 2017 the average family in Canada would be spending an additional $420 on groceries - bringing the average family spend to <b>$8895.00. </b>A more recent article in the <a href="http://globalnews.ca/news/3437328/groceries-budget-canada/" target="_blank">National Post</a> suggests that Canadians spend $200 per person per month on food, even increasing to $240 per person per month depending where in the country you live. Given this data, I would say that we are coming in well below average. <br />
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A few notes: Our children are very young and don't eat much food, I know that when kids (especially boys) hit puberty and the teenage years they tend to eat quite a bit more. As an anecdote, a friend of mine has three sons. A few years ago they were all between 16-20 years old, living at home for the summer and working very physically demanding jobs in landscaping. She told me she was spending $1500 a month on groceries. Now, I think this probably could have been cut back, but I can see how someone could <i>easily</i> spend this much on groceries every month with three very hungry, physically active teenagers.<br />
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The other thing to remember is that I have been off work for essentially this entire year. I find it easier to have something small and quick for lunch when I am at home. When I am making lunches for work it requires more planning and strategy and food savvy.<br />
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Regarding the food categories - I include milk (which we drink) in Dairy not under beverages.<br />
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OK. Let's get to the good stuff.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What did we spend this money on????</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span>
<b style="font-size: x-large;">Produce - </b>$1296.64. This was hands down our biggest category. We eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. I also have a stand-up freezer that is FULL of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and grapes for the year ahead that I use in smoothies, baking, for snacks, etc. The cost of the "freezer fruit" for the year ahead is included in this total. The most expensive fruit I buy are grapes. If I were to cut out the grapes it would cut this amount back. We planted a blueberry patch at our house two summers ago, but at the moment we are working on growing the bushes as opposed to yielding fruit for them. My dream would be to grow more of our own fruit by adding a small orchard to our property - but dream is the key word here. It is something we are considering for the future.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Dairy - </b>$1089.08 </span>This amount is high, but not much higher than the Ontario average of $783.00. We are milk drinkers. We are also cheese eaters. It is a cultural thing for us (both of us are from French/European backgrounds). And you might be surprised to hear that I very much restricted the cheese we bought this year. Very much so. There were no such restrictions on milk in our house. If you are wanting some perspective on dairy prices in Canada - it is $4.27 to buy 4L of milk - and that is a good price. One 444g block of plain old cheddar cheese can be purchased for $4.44 or sometimes $3.97 <i>on sale.</i> Butter, on sale, is $3.50-$4.00 a pound. Canadians pay a lot for dairy <a href="http://nationalpost.com/opinion/mark-milke-the-cause-of-the-canada-u-s-price-gap-is-obvious-the-government" target="_blank">compared </a>to our American counterparts. If I had to significantly reduce our grocery spend, I would have to cut way back on milk and cheese. But I love milk. I really love milk. I also really love cheese and I have really missed lots of cheese this year. I digress...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Pantry - </b>$770.27 </span>This includes all pasta, baking supplies, peanut butter, etc. We make everything from scratch (almost) so I am not surprised at this amount.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Meat - </b>$387.25 </span>This is far below the average household spend of $1079.00. I knew that I could reduce our meat spend significantly by making a few changes. I always <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/09/money-saving-tips-behold-humble-frozen.html" target="_blank">stock up</a> on frozen turkeys when they are on sale and use them for many recipes. I bought almost no red meat this year, aside from ground beef on sale. I did not buy any fresh fish - instead I bought frozen fish from Costco. I only bought chicken two or three times. I bought large pork roasts on sale or from Costco <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/10/the-chalupa-dinner-bowl-one-recipe-ten.html?m=1" target="_blank">which last us for many meals</a>. We are more eggs than we normally would (egg salad, poached eggs, fried eggs, omelettes, lots of quiche). We did not purchase any lamb at all (normally we might have it a few times a year). I bought lots of meat Reduced for Quick Sale and immediately put it in the freezer to use up as needed. We ate more beans (which I included in the pantry budget). I only purchase meat when it is on sale (except for frozen fish). On a final note - although I love fresh fish - I really like the frozen trout from Costco because the fillets are individually wrapped inside the package. This stops them from getting freezer burn when you are opening and closing the bag. It is a really nice feature and I was more than impressed with this product. The frozen scallops at Costco are also great, but I did not purchase any this year.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Bread - </b>$297.09 </span>I thought I was spending more than most in this category, but it turns out I am about average (the average is $315). The bread issue I go back and forth on. My son loves toast. He also loves really healthy sourdough grain breads. I can get these at Costco in a 3 pack for $6.99. They immediately go in the freezer and are used for toast. The factory for Stonemill Bread is not far from where we live - I went there one day and even in their "outlet" the prices are not as good as at Costco. I am not willing to cut the bread budget when this is something healthy my son likes to eat for breakfast (but I would obviously if we had to). It is definitely cheaper to make your own bread if it is an All Purpose Flour using recipe, however the price of grains here are such that when you get into some other specialty type breads it is not much cheaper (if at all) to make your own. I do love making Challah. This coming year I want to try making my own Naan bread and Tortillas. <br />
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<b style="font-size: x-large;">Prepared Food - </b>$257.28. This amount is much more than I think we would typically spend on "prepared foods" at the grocery store. The big spend in this area was largely due to health issues at the end of my pregnancy. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Beverages - </b>$234.89 </span>When I look at my data, about 80% of this was spend between September and December, when I was ill and was on Doctor's orders to be drinking certain things like cranberry juice and tonic water (disgusting by the way). However I am not afraid to admit that I do really love the occasional Pure Leaf Iced Tea. I <i>really</i> love it and get it when it is on sale for $3.00/bottle.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Frozen Food - </b>$199.50. </span>This category for us typically consists of frozen vegetables, pie crusts (my vice), and emergency frozen pizzas. If you are wondering about the pie crusts - here are my thoughts: I love making my own pastry but it makes a big mess that I don't always have time to clean up (when I'm working, not so much right now...). I buy these when they are on sale for $3.00 or sometimes $2.49 for 2 crusts. Now, flour can be purchased pretty cheaply - butter not so much. I have done the calculations and most double pie crust recipes call for about $2.00 worth of butter alone. So it literally only costs about twenty to thirty cents more to buy the premade frozen crusts. Why do I buy these? Because when I am in a rush, or in a jam, or feeling lazy, or just life, I know that I can pull these out of the freezer and in 10 minutes of thawing they are ready to go which allows me to quickly whip up things like quiche, fruit pies, <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/02/friday-night-dinner-project-chocolate.html" target="_blank">Chocolate Cream Pies</a>, meat pies, etc. And - I do not have to make a huge mess on the counter. I like making messes when I cook - but I also like having time to do other things - especially when I am working. So there are my thoughts on the frozen pie crusts and that is why I buy them when they are on sale. Tenderflake can thank me for the spike in sales by sending free pie crusts. Do you hear me Tenderlfake? Hello???<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Minor notes - </b></span> I also spent $30.84 on dips and sauces (mostly hummous) and $8.37 on baby specific foods. There you have it.<br />
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<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">That is it. </span><br />
That is what I spent on groceries last year. Every penny. The only distinction I did not make in this data is that I did not spend all of this in cash. Some of it was in points redemptions but that was just getting too complicated given all the other tracking I was doing (I also tracked what I spent by store, and what I spent in each store by category but I will not bore you with all that data).<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>So where do we go from here?</b></span><br />
I am finishing this year with a freezer FULL of food and a well stocked pantry. The next few months will be very tight as I am finishing my mat leave and starting a one month infant care leave (which will mean zero income). Following that, I will be back at work in December and paying for preschool as well as childcare. I am extremely fortunate to have a wonderful job that also pays well, so yes, if you are wondering, even with the cost of childcare it is still worth me going to work - although that changes with every child we add to the tribe.<br />
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I am planning to run this particular series for one more year - because I know things will look a bit different when I go back to work. After that, I will not be tracking everything so precisely and will go back to my more general food budget.<br />
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Thank you so much for following along with us over the past year - I look forward to sharing more and learning from all of you in the year ahead. If you are looking for additional ideas or ways to save money on your food spending I highly recommend that you follow <a href="http://www.theprudenthomemaker.com/" target="_blank">The Prudent Homemaker</a>, here you will find a great community with loads of ideas on how to reduce your grocery spending.<br />
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Finally, I will leave you with a little recipe share, because I love recipe sharing. Earlier this week I purchased a 500g tub of Krema Lemon Balkan Style Yogurt, Reduced For Quick Sale for $0.99. These tubs are normally $5.99. I was going to use the yogurt for smoothies, but then I found this delicious recipes for Lemon Scones. I made two batches and gave half a dozen to my son's preschool provider. They are delicious - and you know what - I bet you could make these using plain greek yogurt as well because you would still get the lemon flavouring from the rind.<br />
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<a href="https://www.olympicdairy.com/recipe/olympic-recipes/lemon-yogurt-scones" target="_blank">Here is the recipe.</a> Smother them in strawberry or raspberry jam. You will not be disappointed.<br />
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Enjoy!<br />
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Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-45459536012529085542017-08-28T18:28:00.000-07:002017-08-28T18:28:15.959-07:00How have we saved money this month?I usually lump these in with The Great Grocery Project, but since my next post in that series will be a year-long recap, and the past few weeks have been crazy busy, I am giving the money savers their own post.<br />
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1. Not renting a car!! This will be our biggest save, although it is also paired with a big spend. My car is 6 years old and starting to get many small rust spots on the bottom due to stone chips and our climate/road conditions. We want to drive this vehicle for (we hope) another 5-6 years. Rust spreads like wildfire, so in order to maintain the body we sent it in for some body work. Not cheap but necessary. This left us without a vehicle, which we need for various reasons. It was going to cost between $500-800 to rent a car that would fit our car seats for a week and we just cannot spend that right now. After talking it over, my husband arranged to work from home for 3 days this week and I will drive him the other two days. His work is 70km away and involves driving across the city, so it is a huge inconvenience to do this with a baby and preschool runs for the preschooler, but I think it is definitely worth the savings.<br />
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2. Hotel Points - last weekend we traveled North to Ontario's Cottage Country for a family event. We could have done the trip in one day, but it would have meant a late, miserable drive home. We were able to redeem Mastercard points and stay at a hotel. This made the trip much more relaxing and "saved" us $400.00 (although we would not have spent that without the points).<br />
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3. Benefits Investigation - I recently changed to a new benefits plan through work. When I phoned to clarify some of the plan details I found out my old history had been wiped, and I was essentially starting as if I had no claims. Obviously this wasn't being advertised in order to avoid a flood of claims before the official start date. I immediately booked Optometrist appointments for myself and my husband and we were both able to get new glasses without paying anything out of pocket (aside from our benefit payments of course). Fantastic !!<br />
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4. Daytimer Refills - Daytimer has been my go to organizer for 20 years. I cannot give up the paper calendar!! I must write things to stay organized. Last week I reviewed all the available refill packages and changed my usual order in order to save $20.00. This change will have zero impact on my organization. <br />
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5. Stretching the Grocery Dollar - While trying to use up some items on hand and avoid a trip to the grocery store, I made a Crock-Pot full of The Pioneer Woman's Refried Beans. I substitute 4 cups of the water with chicken broth. I used this to make bean soup, refried beans as a side, refried beans and cheese dip, and beans with corn muffins. <br />
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6. Duck Dynasty Cookbook - Have I mentioned that I love Dollorama ? Have I mentioned that cookbooks are my vice? While picking up some hangers at Dollorama, I checked the book section (obligatory because they get ends from publishers and I have had many great finds here). There, waiting for me, was a copy of a Duck Dynasty cookbook for $3.00. I suspected it would be full of simple, uncomplicated, delicious, Southern recipes. It has not disappointed. I made cornmeal muffins and served them with bean soup, refried beans, with eggs, with homemade jam, and on their own as a snack. I love recipes and I need a hard copy because I like to make notes in my cookbooks.<br />
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I will stop here for now...but speaking of Crock Pots....if you are interested in the history of the Crock Pot, I highly recommend<a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/jewish-life-and-religion/242084/jewish-inventor-of-slow-cooker-irving-naxon" target="_blank"> this article from Tablet Magazine. </a><br />
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-14354173357006118572017-08-25T15:59:00.001-07:002017-08-25T15:59:15.060-07:00Martha Stewart Gets It DoneI always love<a href="https://www.thecut.com/2017/08/martha-stewart-interview-how-i-get-it-done.html" target="_blank"> these types of articles about </a>how busy, successful businesswomen (and men) plan their day. This one is no exception. Although I was thinking while reading it, yes, that is the secret - I could get so much more accomplished in a day if I had <i>three </i>personal assistants and a driver. Ha! I do enjoy Martha Stewart though.Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-34855766320360729362017-08-19T15:38:00.002-07:002017-08-19T15:38:19.772-07:00The Great Grocery Project - Mid August RecapWe are just a few weeks away now from the end of the Great Grocery Project's inaugural year. The next post in this series will be a major, and I mean MAJOR, recap of a full year of grocery spending in our house. Yikes.<br />
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So far in August, I have spent $464.56 on groceries. Just over $150.00 of this was entirely spent on produce (in particular blueberries) that were frozen for the year ahead. The Dairy category this month was also a big spend because I was completely out of butter - I picked up 6 lbs of butter at Costco for $3.65 a pound, which is about as cheap as you are going to find it in these parts, aside from the increasingly rare $2.99/lb sale.<br />
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Other things I picked up this month included Lean Ground Beef on sale at No Frills for $2.77/lb. I bought two large packages. One package was used to make a meatloaf and 10 frozen hamburger patties - currently thawing for tonight's dinner. Another package is in the freezer.<br />
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When I did my massive produce run to a local farm I picked up a dozen corn on the cob (which is actually cheaper at most grocery stores). I made Southern Style Creamy Corn, which I love and I find this stretches the corn more than just eating on the cob (which is also amazing). Creamy Corn is served as a side with fish, poultry, beef, pork - pretty much any protein including baked beans. I also serve it with Baked Beans and cornbread. My favourite is setting aside 3 cups of the Creamy Corn to make Corn Chowder which is very economical, delicious, and provides yet more meals derived from a dozen cobs of corn.<br />
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I was also (finally) able to pick up a 10kg bag of flour at Costco. They had been out of stock for quite some time as a result of the<a href="http://globalnews.ca/news/3559653/e-coli-flour-investigation-closed/" target="_blank"> E coli recall </a>that stretched across Canada. We tend not to think of flour as a raw agricultural product, but it is. This story received widespread coverage across Canada, in particular because a toddler became extremely ill after consuming raw flour. Now, all flour packages have a HUGE warning label on them warning you not to eat it raw. This is a bummer because what fun is making cookies and cakes if you cannot eat the dough??? Alas, I finally have a good supply of flour.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>How have we saved money this month?</b></span><br />
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<b>1. Vacation </b> - We have just been on a family holiday. Virtually no spend holidays this year mean keeping it simple. Nobody has complained about this. We went to stay with family for 6 days and we just relaxed (as much as you can with kids), visited with a few friends, and did lots of swimming. One day we picked up some treats for everyone at a grocery store (we got pizza, watermelon, raspberries, a cheese ball with crackers, some freshly baked goods, etc.) and we spent $40.00 on that. I went out for breakfast with friends one day and spend $7.00 including tax and tip. We allowed our son to pick out one book for himself to read (he can't read yet - but loves to look through books) on the way home, this cost $8.00. So - all in our 6 day vacation (not including gas) cost us $56.00. In case you are wondering - I did volunteer to bring groceries and cook - but our host - my mother-in-law did not want us to do that.<br />
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<b>2. Free Fruit Tray - </b>I went to visit some friends from university for lunch, and there was a fruit tray leftover. My friend and her husband were leaving that night to go on vacation, so she sent me home with the fruit tray. Great snacks for everyone!<br />
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<b>3. Garden Harvest - </b>It was looking doubtful, but I have finally been able to get a harvest from my garden. We have been enjoying zucchini bread, chocolate zucchini bread, green beans, yellow beans, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and soon we will have beets as well. Hurray!!! I found a new recipe for chocolate zucchini bread in the current issue of Ricardo that uses much less sugar than my current recipe, so I am looking forward to trying it.<br />
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<b>4. Cereal Clearance - </b>We (generally) do not eat cold cereal because it is not filling and very expensive. I do keep a box of Cheerios on hand for snacks when we go to the park, but this tends to last a loooong time. I was in Walmart one day and they had Maple Cheerios and Canada Day Fruit Loops (all special editions because of Canada's 150th birthday) on clearance for $1.00 a box. This is very, very cheap. Even on sale, these boxes would be typically $3.00 a box in Canada. I bought 3 boxes and we have been enjoying them as special treats and snacks. And this also reminded me how not filling cold cereal is. <br />
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<b>5. Ebates and Sephora - </b>I ordered foundation from Sephora via Ebates in order to earn cashback. I also ordered my 3 free samples - perfume samples and blush. I love high end perfumes - I have never bought a bottle in my life - the free samples keep me going!!<br />
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<b>6. Parks, parks, parks!!</b> We continue to hit up parks all around us. I have been trying to get my boys outside for 3-4 hours every day and it has been awesome. And FREE!!!!!! It is a bit of a hassle packing a picnic and loading/unloading the car most days, but it is so worth it. Outdoor play is like therapy. As long as it's not too hot!<br />
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<b>7. Anniversary - </b>We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. There is something I really want to get for my husband, but it is not in the budget right now. Instead I got a special treat from Amadeus Patisserie in Thornhill (the absolute best). It was a fraction of the price - and incredibly delicious. This is the <b>one</b> place where I would choose purchasing over making from scratch. Hello - St Honoré, Cheesecake, Pistachio Delight. Yes!! Wait.....these were for my husband.....not me.......<br />
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That is all I have time to write for now. I will be posting another update on our renovation s<strike>hortly</strike> as soon as I can.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flour Warning</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The best desserts. Ever.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Produce Haul</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tray freezing for bagging</td></tr>
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-28239490604590973182017-08-07T15:38:00.000-07:002017-08-07T15:38:02.580-07:00Ravings and Ramblings on a House Overhaul: Part 1Readers know, because I have been mentioning it on and off for literally the past year, that we have done a massive renovation on our house. There was no step by step follow along or regular updating on the endeavor, but now that it is (almost) completely finished I am going to share a bit about it. This will not be your typical DIY post - but if anything I can <strike>rant about </strike> share helps someone else with their project, that would be fantastic...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start...</span><br />
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A few years ago I wrote a small primer about our little house, which you can read <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/08/our-house.html" target="_blank">here</a> (Nutshell Recap: After searching high and low in the GTA we bought a house in 2012 which we managed to find for well under $500K, which if you live in this area you know is <i>very</i> hard to do). When we bought our house we were debating between it and one other option, which cost significantly more but was a larger house. In the end, we went with the lower priced house knowing that if we wanted to make improvements (or if we had to) we would be in a better financial position to do so. We have never regretted this decision. Not even for one second.<br />
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While living at this house we have done a few improvements (like renovating our<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/09/bathroom-renovation-part-1.html" target="_blank"> main bathroom</a> which was so poorly designed and small that we could barely walk through it without touching both sides of the wall in some spots). We also did a major exterior renovation (also known as landscaping!) which was the best money I think we spent on our house. It increased ourliving space, did wonders for the curb appeal of the house, and increased the amount of time we spent outside playing with our kids exponentially. The other work we did to our house was superficial, largely painting rooms and furnishing them. We redid <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/07/total-affordable-closet-overhaul.html" target="_blank">the closet</a> in our master bedroom. We turned one of the rooms into a <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/09/an-affordable-diy-guest-room.html" target="_blank">guest bedroom </a>and <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/10/upcycling-new-entertainment-unit.html" target="_blank">upcycled furniture</a> where we could. All of these projects were done a few years ago, and not part of our current renovation. Fast forward to 2016...<br />
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One day in August 2016 I walked down to our basement and discovered the floor was damp, but thankfully not flooded. Noooooo!! I knew, immediately, that if this was water coming in from the outside as opposed to a plumbing problem coming from upstairs we would be looking at a minimum $25,000.00 in repairs - and that would just be for interior weeping tile. I will spare you all the minute details - but yes - in the end we had water coming in from outside (this is a common problem in older houses in Ontario) and so we had to gut our entire basement, have an interior weeping tile installed and then restart from almost scratch. <br />
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This involved:<br />
-all new flooring, insulation, drywall<br />
- new cabinets and sink for the basement wet bar (also so it can easily be converted to a basement apartment for resale)<br />
-we completely rebuilt a basement bathroom. <br />
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We also had to replace our roof, the pump in our septic tank (not the source of the basement leak, but it died and needed to be replaced), and one of our sump pumps. And this is just for the basement.<br />
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This unwanted project fell into our lap when I was about 30 weeks pregnant with Baby #2. By the time I was 31 weeks pregnant I became very, very ill and was pretty much bedridden for the rest of my pregnancy. The baby arrived early, but not preterm, when our house was in complete shambles and our basement was gutted. While we were doing our renovation, we rented a storage cube which became infested with mice and the company refused to allow us to claim any damages. This was so infuriating and I don't want to write much more about it because I still get angry when I think about it. This meant we were out about $3000.00. Let me just say this: Never use Cube-It.<br />
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I wish that I could say this entire situation was handled with grace and ease...but no. It was very stressful and some days I was miserable (just ask my husband). Nonetheless, I was reminded of a few important lessons:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. Sometimes it doesn't matter how smart you are with money, life happens.</span><br />
We have been very careful not to take on any non-mortgage debt since we got married. We did take on a car payment after my husband was in a car accident (his car was a write-off but he was unhurt) and we had to suddenly replace a vehicle, but otherwise we have no "consumer" debt. Knowing that I was going to be on maternity leave, I saved up a significant sum to cover some major expenses we knew were coming up and some slush money. All of this went up in smoke when we had to do all this unplanned work to our house. We had to take on some debt. Now, it is "house debt" but it is still debt and you know what - <b>this is alright.</b> It is not ideal, it is not what we would have wanted - but this is life. Sometimes these things just happen and are beyond our control. I cannot allow myself to be constantly stressed because we had to stop water from creeping into our basement. We will get it paid off and life will move forward. <br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. Careful research is the key to saving money on a home renovation. Do not rush.</span><br />
What I found over and over again during this massive project, is that I was able to save significant amounts of money by carefully researching all of my options. Time and time again taking some extra time to investigate something, read up on something, or get an additional quote paid off. And that does not mean we always went with the cheapest option - we always went with what we thought was the best long term option.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now - where was I?</span><br />
Oh yes, in our basement...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Floorplan: </span>We made no changes to the footprint of the basement. This is the easiest way to save money. As soon as you start moving plumbing around.....big money!<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Flooring: </span>We went with carpet and professional grade plank vinyl. I would have done the whole basement in the vinyl but it was more cost effective to do the split. If you have not investigated vinyl flooring in years - I highly recommend it. It is highly water resistant, cost effective, resilient, and the look of it has come along well. I know many food based businesses who are using the professional luxury vinyl now as their main flooring.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Do what you can, not what you can't!</span><br />
We did all of the demo and removal of junk ourselves. For everything else we hired a contractor. Normally we would do all the painting ourselves (this is our first time hiring a painter), but because of my health issues during pregnancy it was not a possibility this time. Hiring a well-researched professional, especially for electrical and plumbing work is key. If you do not know how to do it - don't!!<br />
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These pictures are in the house's current state. In Part Two I will discuss the bathroom renovation (it needs its own post). In Part 3 I will talk about the upstairs/main floor of the house. In the final part I will show the final product in all of its glory.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luxury Vinyl Plank Flooring</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWjwvDukveb-ySqJaJAQlztuxLReWTL2SrtKFdvY1_zFWfN_nFLkgaDIPh9FE2-mpZ3e4Y656O26DN86pO1xXAy07u2SkSFWHIxFsYECMVPPignkfL8IVG1JsVuak4Tv-gmyogWIX4I4/s1600/IMG_20170807_175105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWjwvDukveb-ySqJaJAQlztuxLReWTL2SrtKFdvY1_zFWfN_nFLkgaDIPh9FE2-mpZ3e4Y656O26DN86pO1xXAy07u2SkSFWHIxFsYECMVPPignkfL8IVG1JsVuak4Tv-gmyogWIX4I4/s320/IMG_20170807_175105.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Luna Frost Countertop with Top mount sink</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Countertop:</span> Here is reason # 1 while I will probably never be featured on a DIY or reno blog. HGTV will never call me. <b>I like laminate countertops.</b> Don't get me wrong - I love the <i>look</i> of stone countertops (and we do have stone elsewhere in our house) - but I just do not understand spending thousands of dollars on a countertop. It is just a countertop. I am an avid cook and I have never said to myself, "Gee....you know what would make this food taste so much better? If it was cooked on an expensive slab of Carrara marble." Never! I have never, in the middle of a major canning session, said "Oh this Blueberry Maple Pecan Chutney would be so much easier to make if I had a gigantic quartz island." Friends, it just hasn't happened. And so, for our basement countertops I bought Luna Frost (1849) Laminate countertop made by Wilson Art. It cost $640 installed.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI1MTGLZObUjuTQ8XOGquGaGdZy-P_N1VaGGF67IeTAySlkplkrjEt5NYVa4nOZcnFqCSMKViewvEp1GOEEQNKa76xZrD30JZF3xhdlMYKBXtsQdtzrkrIHBM1Gxyz3jhDPpK2bkgpOnU/s1600/IMG_20170807_175127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI1MTGLZObUjuTQ8XOGquGaGdZy-P_N1VaGGF67IeTAySlkplkrjEt5NYVa4nOZcnFqCSMKViewvEp1GOEEQNKa76xZrD30JZF3xhdlMYKBXtsQdtzrkrIHBM1Gxyz3jhDPpK2bkgpOnU/s320/IMG_20170807_175127.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This guy likes the countertop</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidXy3O3duuk9x2Wzm5l7LkBEJIcBivdNMgXULJOFnWSPgtRHF-Tx0IoQW2bEpdjTDU3YDbobLAOX06_aj2QFZTil50OR359LJkQf4JjRxj1kUZOyTD6AfAMmSvAok1squeHzeezaQW1T0/s1600/IMG_20170807_175112.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidXy3O3duuk9x2Wzm5l7LkBEJIcBivdNMgXULJOFnWSPgtRHF-Tx0IoQW2bEpdjTDU3YDbobLAOX06_aj2QFZTil50OR359LJkQf4JjRxj1kUZOyTD6AfAMmSvAok1squeHzeezaQW1T0/s320/IMG_20170807_175112.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Solid Wood Open Shelving, just waiting to be staged...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQurpbH3fjYmcwi3n22p0UxYlITuZFjY-4-1uPZeBexsJ-vzfyo1OB56PmyQw8RITgUTxC1Ws1qA6bplsjBfd8vPllsktTq_x0fA8A__n2BZW-a4w5m4YB4EjjXbG2WgI2ObUv5BQU49I/s1600/IMG_20170807_175223.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQurpbH3fjYmcwi3n22p0UxYlITuZFjY-4-1uPZeBexsJ-vzfyo1OB56PmyQw8RITgUTxC1Ws1qA6bplsjBfd8vPllsktTq_x0fA8A__n2BZW-a4w5m4YB4EjjXbG2WgI2ObUv5BQU49I/s320/IMG_20170807_175223.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basement Wet Bar</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Cabinetry: </span>Due to the space we were filling, we knew we would be best suited to get custom cabinetry. We did get solid wood cabinets and shelves - but we may not have done this if we did not have a personal connection which enabled us to get them at wholesale prices. To save money we got open shelving for the uppers and no upper cabinets.<br />
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This is what we have so far. More to come soon...<br />
<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-52229552614248158382017-07-30T17:54:00.001-07:002017-07-30T18:36:10.534-07:00The Great Grocery Project: July RecapThis month we spent a total of $298.89 on groceries. Reasonable for these parts (the average monthly spend for a household of 4 in Ontario is $700).<br />
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What did we spend it on?<br />
Beverages - $2.97<br />
Bread - $22.29<br />
Dairy -<b> $104.57</b><br />
Frozen Foods - $5.94<br />
Meat - $16.99<br />
Pantry - $26.08<br />
Prepared Food - $27.00<br />
Produce - $73.56<br />
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We spent more on Prepared Foods than normal this month because we were without a kitchen for a period of time and I had to buy some prepared foods. <br />
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As usual, dairy and produce top our list of expenses. If you live in Canada, you know why. If we found ourselves in dire financial straits I would have to give up a cheese and milk. At the moment I do not need to do that, and I am not willing to do that. You may be surprised to hear that while I am on maternity leave and my income is reduced by over 50% I am actually spending <i>less</i> on dairy than we typically do. My husband and I both come from European/francophone backgrounds and well...CHEESE. We eat a lot of it - brie, swiss, goat's cheese, etc. It is a huge cultural thing for us - and also the main reason why we keep our Costco membership (these cheese are significantly cheaper at Costco than at other stores). We have not been buying very much of these cheese this year. I remember when we first moved back to Canada from Europe and we were going to a party - I volunteered to bring a cheese tray. HOLY SMOKES!!! I had completely forgotten the price of cheese here versus Europe. What would have cost us about 10-15GBP in the UK cost us over $60.00. I digress...<br />
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I did stock up on some produce stuff that I froze this month (mainly grapes when they were on sale for Canada Day). In August, I plan to buy and freeze blueberries (my favourite). I cannot get enough blueberries.<br />
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Next month will mark the end of my first year of tracking every single penny of the grocery spending. I've always had a food budget - but I have never really tracked exactly what and where it has been spent. So you can brace yourselves for some super detailed analytics coming up at the end of August. Is summer almost over? Say it isn't so...<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What did we do to save money this month?</b></span><br />
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If you missed my mid-way update you can<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/07/the-great-grocery-project-mid-july.html" target="_blank"> catch up here.</a><br />
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Otherwise....<br />
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<b>1. Rebate</b> - I got a rebate cheque for $40.00 which I had sent in for when I purchased contacts a few months ago. Hurray!<br />
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<b>2. Ebates</b> - I had to make a few small online purchases - I used Ebates for all of them to earn cashback.<br />
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<b>3. Price Match and Flyers</b> - I am still price matching at No Frills and finding it is definitely saving money every month.<br />
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<b>4. Not driving around to a bunch of stores - </b> I just pick one store for my shop every week and if I can't get it there - too bad. It would have to be a crazy good deal for me to make an extra trip for something. <br />
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<b>5. Not spending. </b> The wardrobe is getting pretty sketchy - but summer is almost over and I know that when the fall weather comes I will have more clothes I can fit back into. I have been wearing my US Army shirt....well....a lot......<br />
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<b>6. Asking the Key Questions </b> - We have been doing a major renovation on our house for almost one year now. I am happy to say it is pretty much done and will get its own post shortly. Every time we have done something I have asked - is there a way we can do this for less money that will still have the desired result without compromising value? Well - once again last week this type of questioning saved us several thousand dollars. Sort of. We didn't have the several thousand to spend - so we were looking into other options and found something that only cost about $150.00. Winning! <br />
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<b>7. Packing a lunch and snacks - </b>We have been using out Tupperware and Rubbermaid water bottles like crazy. I am packing picnics every day I leave the house with my kids. It usually isn't anything fancy - just fruit and peanut butter wraps (typically). Sometimes I make cookies to bring. But this totally stops me from getting stuck without food and spending money. Instead, I have been able to treat my oldest son to a snack size smoothie from McDonald's and he loves it. It is a fun and enjoyable little treat.<br />
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<b>8. Outdoor play - </b>Getting my kids outside for hours every day is helpful for us in so many ways. As long as weather permits we get out in the morning for a few hours. We go to the park, visit animal farms (FREE ones), bike on a little path, play with the rocks in our backyard, and hit the splash pad. If the weather is not cooperating (too hot or storming) we go to the mall (but not to shop!) and visit the activity time at The Disney Store, walk around, look at the window displays. There are also a few great (FREE) indoor playgrounds in our area that we visit. I especially love these because my youngest son is not walking yet but is very mobile and he loves crawling around on the indoor gym mats.<br />
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<b>9. Arts and Crafts and DIY Gifts -</b>My oldest enjoys colouring, painting, and making stuff. I always stock up on school supplies (crayons, pencil crayons, markers, glue, construction paper) in August and September and I have a little craft drawer in our house. I have been tapping into this drawer quite a bit lately and my son has been "drawing" on his sketch pad during hot afternoons and rainy periods. I also picked up a few things for myself (for DIY gifts) and I am going to be experimenting over the coming weeks with some project ideas I have for Christmas gifts.<br />
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<b>10. Revisting Old Recipes </b> - There is a cookbook I love Qu'est-ce qu'on mange? It is part of a series put out by a women's farming association in Québec. Somehow in one of our moves the book got lost. I can't tell you how many times I have thought about recipes from this book and wanted to make them. A few months ago my aunt emailed me out of the blue, also asking for a recipe from this book that I used to make (Crab Bisque - SO GOOD). What I love about this book is that the recipes are delicious, easy to follow, and most of them are very economical. Food is such a major part of French Canadian culture, and with long harsh winters and a short growing season les Québécoises are experts at making incredible meals with few supplies or on a budget. To make a long story sort of short - I ordered a new copy of this book a few months ago. Like most thing from Québec (sorry, Québec you know I love you and I miss living there so I am just going to say this), the ordering system was about 25 years behind and so I had to literally post a cheque with my order number on it and wait patiently for my book to arrive. The book is here!! I am so excited about this because I am rediscovering so many fantastic recipes (for example a salmon oatmeal loaf) that are healthy, budget friendly, and delicious. I am so looking forward to making and enjoying these dishes again.<br />
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I hope that all of you had a wonderful July - and that your August is filled with good reading, good food, and wonderful times with family and friends.Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-30124202686862427662017-07-24T16:51:00.000-07:002017-07-24T16:51:06.332-07:00Go Ahead: Hold your baby!!!<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">OK. I am just putting this out there for any new moms who might be feeling mom guilt (it's everywhere!)</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Before I had my first son I didn't think too much about the snuggles. After he was born, he needed lots of snuggles. And I wanted to hold him and snuggle and bond as much as possible. I felt guilty about this. People made me feel guilty about this (he is almost 4 now and he had no troubles adjusting to full time daycare or daycare naps at 13 months). </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">When I had my second son I felt physically and mentally compelled to continue the snuggles, although it is a bit different as all babies have their own needs. Again, I was feeling like this must be a problem. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Then, I had an epiphany. I was being so foolish. If I am lucky, I might live to see my babies reach 55 or 60. Of those 60 years, there will only be one....ONE where I can cuddle and snuggle my babies as much as I want to and as much as they want to. Why would I feel like I am doing something wrong by spending this special time with my baby? Have I ever said to myself, "gee, I wish I had alphabetized my cookbooks when Boy #1 was a baby instead of cuddling him". No!! Have I ever thought "wow I really hugged Boy #1 too much as an infant "? NO!!!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-369379/Lifelong-benefits-cuddling-baby.html" target="_blank">More</a> and <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/why-childhood-cuddles-are-so-important_uk_574ef0dbe4b026d1d87c519b" target="_blank">more </a>research is showing the benefits of lots of physical touch for infants. You cannot spoil an infant!!! (Although you can spoil a child - but not from cuddles!). I never wore either of my kids, but I feel like I sort of did for the first three months just from holding and cuddling them. It is hard to explain how I felt compelled to be close to them. It wasn't a philosophy I adopted - it just felt like it was what I needed and what they needed. I also - brace yourselves - rocked Boy #1 to sleep every night until he was just over a year old. He needed it. Boy #2 has not been rocked to sleep one single time. It's not his thing.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">It is sad that everyone tries to tell other moms what to do. New moms should feel confident. If it is working for you and your baby - embrace it! Love it! Don't listen to the sanctimommies. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Babies need our love and every mom(and dad) has their own way of bonding and communicating with their child. All that to say - new moms do not feel guilty about snuggling your wee ones. This opportunity will not come again.</span>Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-11808545347702596092017-07-17T07:34:00.003-07:002017-07-17T07:34:56.764-07:00The Great Grocery Project: Mid July UpdateWell, here we are in mid-July already. So far this month I have spent $190.00 on groceries. I do not plan on spending too much more, as I am fully stocked and just did a big shop for the coming weeks (except for milk and cheese). I still have a frozen turkey on hand, some cooked frozen meat in the freezer, ground beef in the freezer, some frozen fish, and lots of beans.<br />
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The Great Grocery Project started one year ago in September - so after next month I will be doing a monster recap and breakdown of our yearly spend. Of course, I plan to continue this project for a second year. Since I have been off work for almost the entire year I was tracking (first on medical leave after complication during pregnancy, then on maternity leave) I need to continue for a second year and see how being back at work impacts the numbers and where we can make improvements.<br />
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I tried a new product this month that I am really enjoying. <a href="http://www.oikos.ca/en/oikos-super-grains" target="_blank">Oikos Super Grain Greek Yogurts </a>(available in Canada). I am very fussy about my yogurts. I really enjoy these - especially the Peach Super Grains and the Berry Super Grains. I will be watching for sales on this product.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">How have we saved money so far this month?</span><br />
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By not doing anything!!! We have been enjoying simple days at the park, the splash pad, on the bike trails, and around our house. I picked up some "treats" on clearance at Walmart - sidewalk chalk and 1L of bubbles on clearance for $1.00 each. A $5.00 spend will provide us with hours of fun. I also allowed my son to pick out one thing at Walmart (within reason). He picked a box of Crayola pencil crayons on sale for $2.77. He has spent literally hours playing with them and drawing sweet nothings in his book. Did you know that pencil crayons can also double as Superheroes and Super Villains? Heroes in the right hand and villains in the left. One apparently can colour over the other with green goo (also known as Green Pencil Crayon). <br />
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I bought some cardstock on clearance at Walmart for $4.00. I plan to use it as I try to start making some of my DIY Christmas gifts. I am hoping to start working on these in August. <br />
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Someone handed down a box full of books and Brain Quest cards to us. Again, hours and hours of entertainment. We have read Curious George Gets a Pizza about ten times a day for the past week.<br />
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I ordered a 1L Tupperware water bottle for my husband as his bottle needed replacing. I also got a little treat for my son's Christmas or birthday gift (have not decided yet). A Donald Duck water bottle. It was on clearance for over 50% off.<br />
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This month I have done lots of reading (I am a prolific reader but find it hard to do with an infant). I have been "napping" with my son so we can snuggle before I have to return to work. Typically while he naps I am reading. I have read several books that I received as gifts, but I do lots of reading online. I love reading <a href="http://theprudenthomemaker.com/" target="_blank">The Prudent Homemaker</a> and <a href="http://www.tabletmag.com/" target="_blank">Tablet Magazine</a>.<br />
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Books I have read recently include:<br />
<a href="https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/the-undoing-project-a-friendship/9780393254594-item.html?&mkwid=sFcC4Sm1Z_dc&pcrid=170587836935&pkw=the%20undoing%20project&pmt=e&s_campaign=goo-Books+-+Bestsellers&gclid=Cj0KEQjwwLHLBRDEq9DQxK2I_p8BEiQA3UDVDnSt-N2q8K9cZejr-Qom4r36YHbD5Ok4AvsNsVnnQiIaAiLy8P8HAQ" target="_blank">The Undoing Project</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/behind-the-beautiful-forevers-life/9780812979329-item.html?mkwid=s_dc&pcrid=197537908517&pkw&pmt=b&s_campaign=goo-DSA+Books+Best+Sellers&gclid=Cj0KEQjwwLHLBRDEq9DQxK2I_p8BEiQA3UDVDqfn94RWPAEHMl2rHtaX82qo6bc6ai2jVjcncej7elcaAmlN8P8HAQ" target="_blank">Behind the Beautiful Forevers</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Wearing-Green-Beret-Canadian-Commandos/dp/0771068573" target="_blank">Wearing the Green Beret</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Nazis-Next-Door-America-Hitlers-ebook/dp/B00HK3LRKW" target="_blank">The Nazis Next Door</a><br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.ca/s/ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1?ie=UTF8&field-author=Ayaan+Hirsi+Ali&search-alias=books-ca" target="_blank">Infidel</a><br />
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All of these books were excellent reads (if you're wondering) and they all express many different viewpoints and life experiences. I didn't really care for some of the political slant to The Undoing Project (just didn't agree with it - but I still enjoyed reading the book) and my eyes kind of glazed over at some of the math stuff - but it is a fascinating biography and absolutely worth reading. It is by the same author who wrote <i>Moneyball</i>, Michael Lewis.<br />
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I have a pile of books just waiting for me to read them - but I am not sure when I will get to them next.<br />
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Well we will leave it at that for now. It is naptime, ie....reading time. Have a wonderful week!!<br />
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-83947848596479949292017-07-16T05:17:00.001-07:002017-07-16T05:17:42.104-07:00Popular Posts Round-UpAre you new to Life Freedom Family? Welcome, and thank you for stopping by. We appreciate our readers and love to hear from you.<br />
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Maybe you are sitting around on a rainy summer day and looking for some inspiration...<br />
here is a sampling of our most popular posts for your browsing pleasure:<br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/02/friday-night-dinner-project-chocolate.html" target="_blank">Chocolate Cream Pie</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/09/shoppers-drug-mart-optimum-vs-costco.html" target="_blank">Shopper's Drug Mart Optimum vs. Costco Executive Membership</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/09/an-affordable-diy-guest-room.html" target="_blank">An Affordable, DIY Guest Bedroom</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/07/total-affordable-closet-overhaul.html" target="_blank">Total (Affordable) Closet Overhaul</a><br />
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The Friday Night Dinner Project, <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/04/the-friday-night-dinner-project-midway.html" target="_blank">Midway Point</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/11/the-easiest-diy-headboard-for-real.html" target="_blank">The Easiest DIY Headboard (For Real)</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/10/upcycling-new-entertainment-unit.html" target="_blank">Entertainment Unit Upcycle</a><br />
<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/08/10-things-i-wish-i-knew-before-giving.html" target="_blank"><br /></a>
<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/08/10-things-i-wish-i-knew-before-giving.html" target="_blank">10 Things I Wish I Knew Before Giving Birth</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/10/a-note-husband-of-breastfeeding-mom.html" target="_blank">A Note for the Husband of a Breastfeeding Mom</a><br />
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<a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2014/11/friday-night-dinner-project-rosh.html" target="_blank">Rosh Hashanah Dinner Menu</a> (Friday Night Dinner Project)<br />
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So fix yourself a glass of <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2017/05/recipe-share-rhubarb-lemonade.html" target="_blank">Rhubarb Lemonade</a> and enjoy these posts! Feel free to share them with a friend....<br />
Thank you for stopping by!<br />
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-37006938942262475902017-07-08T07:17:00.001-07:002017-07-08T07:17:34.097-07:00Fantastic Advice from Supreme Court Justice John RobertsI have sat through many, many graduations and heard a lot of boring speeches. This one, given by Supreme Court Justice John Roberts at his son's graduation is worth reading. I especially love this part:<div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #202020; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"><i>Once a week, you should write a note to someone. Not an email. A note on a piece of paper. It will take you exactly 10 minutes. Talk to an adult, let them tell you what a stamp is. You can put the stamp on the envelope. Again, 10 minutes, once a week. I will help you, right now. I will dictate to you the first note you should write. It will say, ‘Dear [fill in the name of a teacher at Cardigan Mountain School].’ Say: ‘I have started at this new school. We are reading [blank] in English. Football or soccer practice is hard, but I’m enjoying it. Thank you for teaching me.’ Put it in an envelope, put a stamp on it and send it. It will mean a great deal to people who — for reasons most of us cannot contemplate — have dedicated themselves to teaching middle school boys. As I said, that will take you exactly 10 minutes a week. By the end of the school year, you will have sent notes to 40 people. Forty people will feel a little more special because you did, and they will think you are very special because of what you did. </i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #202020; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #202020; font-family: PT Serif, Georgia, serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://time.com/4845150/chief-justice-john-roberts-commencement-speech-transcript/" target="_blank">Read the whole thing here.</a></span></span></div>
Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-56798686990530840442017-07-01T04:53:00.001-07:002017-07-02T07:26:04.218-07:00The Great Grocery Project: June UpdateThis month I spend a whopping $<b>482.36</b> on groceries. Wow. That is a lot (but still less than the average $750/month that the Canadian household of 4 people spends). Why so much? Well, typically my biggest spend months of the year are June, July and October. Why? In the summer I am stocking up on Ontario grown produce for freezing and canning, and in October a lot of pantry and baking supplies are on sale. There are two main reasons for the big spike this month:<br />
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1. Produce - I spent $90.00 buying 3 flats of strawberries. This works out to about $2.50 a pound if you are wondering. I read about people getting strawberries for .99/lb in the States, but that just does not happen here. Even the Pick Your Own in the GTA is typically $2.25lb. We ate a great deal of fresh berries, but I also froze many to use in smoothies and baking. You can also use frozen berries to make jam at a later date. I am not sure how much canning I am going to do this year, although I typically do quite a bit.<br />
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I also bought about $15.00 worth of grapes to freeze because they were on sale for 0.88lb. That is the lowest price I have seen on grapes in years. It was a Canada Day special. Frozen grapes are great for smoothies, but they also make a nice snack on their own.<br />
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2. Essentials Stock up - I was just out of many things this month like flour, sugar, brown sugar, cheese, eggs, butter, milk, cream, etc. Those things add up pretty quickly.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What did we spend all that money on?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Produce - $205.91 </b>See note #1 above regarding the produce. After tracking every penny of our grocery spend for 10 months now, the emerging pattern is that produce and dairy are typically the biggest expenses. We are slowing expanding our garden in hopes of reducing this expense a bit more. We definitely do not live in a climate where we can produce year round produce at our house. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Dairy - $103.19</b> We were out of everything this month - cheese, milk, cream, eggs, butter. If you are reading this from another country and wondering why we spend so much on dairy here is an idea of what things cost in Ontario:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">Milk - Typically $4.97 is a good price for 4 Liters of milk. You used to be able to get milk many places for $3.97 for 3 liters but this is less common now, and not possible at all if you purchase fine filtered milk.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">Butter - The regular retail price of butter here is about $6.99/lb. I never pay this. Costco used to sell butter for $2.85/lb but I have not seen this price since before Christmas. Even at Costco butter is now $3.99/lb. Metro had butter on sale this week for $3.33/lb so I went to pick some up and it was completely sold out. Not a single pound of butter left in the store.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">Eggs - Shoppers Drug Mart used to regularly sell eggs for $1.88 or $1.77/dozen as a loss leader. The cheapest they sell them in our area now is $1.99/dozen. Sometimes I am able to get cartons of 18 eggs 2 for $5.00. That is a good price for eggs here.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: medium;">Cheese - A good sale price for cheese here is $3.97 or $4.44 for a 450g block. Any type of specialty cheese here is expensive.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">We could lower our grocery bill by cutting dairy, but it is not something I am willing to do. We drink milk and I cook everything from scratch so we keep a lot of these dairy staples in stock. This is just the cost of living in Canada where the dairy industry (and poultry, and other agricultural staples) is controlled by a quota system which makes the prices significantly higher.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Pantry - $91.64</b> This was just a restock of many baking essentials like flour, sugar, brown sugar, etc.</span><br />
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<b>Beverages - $22.35</b> This is more than my usual almost zero spend. The reason for this is I attended several social events where I was bringing the beverages. The good news is I was able to price match on Orange Juice for several brunches, saving about $15.00.<br />
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<b>Prepared Foods - $16.90</b><br />
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<b>Dips - $5.99</b> Sabra Hummous. I just have not found a hummous recipe that I like as much as this.<br />
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<b>Frozen Foods - $5.98</b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Going forward:</span></b><br />
Over the past few months, I have been collecting recipes for various bread items such as naan bread, croissants, specialty breads, etc. As time permits, I am going to start working through these recipes to see if we will be reducing any of our bread costs.<br />
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I have lots of food on hand as we start the month of July, so I am not expecting our spend this month to be even close to what I spent in June. <br />
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I continue to cook almost everything we eat from scratch (as always).<br />
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Some of the recipes we made this month included:<br />
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<a href="http://allears.net/din/recipes/rec-chch.htm" target="_blank">Gourmet Double Chocolate Chunk Cookies</a> from an old Cooking With Mickey cookbook. This is a delicious cookie recipe. The next time I make it I am going to sub in Herhey's Carmael Sea Salt Chipits for some of the chocolate chunks.<br />
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<a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/food-and-friends/how-to-make-slow-cooker-refried-beans/" target="_blank">Slow Cooker Refried Beans</a> from The Pioneer Woman. I have been trying various Refried Bean recipes in my CrockPot, and I really like this one. Refried beans are healthy and great to use for various meals - I served these to make Bean Burritos, Beans and Rice, and then as a side dish (dabbed with BBQ sauce) with Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes (see below) and mixed vegetables<br />
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<a href="http://theprudenthomemaker.com/museum-pasta-salad" target="_blank">Museum Pasta Salad</a> from The Prudent Homemaker. This is a refreshing salad for a hot day and it easily made with turkey. I did not have rice vinegar or sugar snap peas on hand - I substituted apple cider vinegar with a bit of sugar and frozen peas.<br />
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<a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/6061-slow-cooker-scalloped-potatoes" target="_blank">Slow Cooker Scalloped Potatoes</a> from Ricardo. Creamy and delicious - hands down the easiest scalloped potatoes recipe you will find anywhere. When I do not have evaporated milk on hand I just use Half and Half Cream instead.<br />
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<a href="http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/strawberry-oatmeal-bars/" target="_blank">Strawberry Oatmeal Bars</a> - from The Pioneer Woman. You could make these to use up any type of jam. I used blueberry. They were quick, easy, and yummy. <br />
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Naked Strawberries and Cream Cake - You need to purchase the current issue of Ricardo to get this recipe - <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/5714-strawberry-shortcake-the-ultimate-" target="_blank">you can find a similar one here</a> - but it is not the same recipe<br />
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I also made a Curried Pumpkin Apple Maple Soup - I could not find the exact recipe online and do not want to reprint without permission, but if you search it you will find many similar recipes.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What did we do to save money this month?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
1. Price Match - I price match when I shop at No Frills. It is simple and easy and saves me money relatively often. I also buy a lot of discounted bread (50% off) and throw it in the freezer as soon I get home.<br />
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2. Ebates Cheque - I got an Ebates cheque. I used half of it to buy groceries, and the other half to contribute towards a retirement gift for a colleague.<br />
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3. Snowsuit Purchase - My eldest son has been wearing his snowsuit for a few years. I stretch at the use as long as possible - but he is a preschooler - they grow!! At the end of the season I looked everywhere trying to find the same snowsuit on end of season clearance but with no luck. I was even phoning the outlets to see if it was coming in or if they had it in his size. No luck. I had almost given up, but then I had to travel to Vaughan to pick up something so I stopped in at Vaughan Mills. In June. Wouldn't you know they had just received a large shipment of the desired winter parka and snowpants in my son's size. This <b>saved</b> me about $170.00 before tax on both items and the snowsuit will hopefully last at least 2 seasons. Then, they get handed down to the next son. My tip is to get the downfilled snowsuits if you live in a very cold climate. They do cost more, but I find I can make them last for more seasons because they are not as bulky as other ones and allow extra room for layering when they are a bit big, but then are warm enough that you don't need the layers and they start to get a bit snug.<br />
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4. Careful Research - There were a few items I had to buy this month (which never feels like you're saving money), and I was able to save a few dollars by carefully researching my purchases. We had to buy a new carseat for my youngest son. Son #1 lasted in his bucket seat until 13 months. Son #2 is growing like a weed and only lasted 6 1/2 months in the bucket seat. Bummer. Carseats generally don't go on crazy sales because it is such a necessity that retailers don't need to steeply discount them. They are generally the same price everywhere. After carefully researching, I was able to find the seat we wanted (Diono Radian RXT) for $40.00 less on Amazon than anywhere else. <br />
We also had to get a mirror for our renovations. I checked some second hand places but could not find what I was looking for. We are on a deadline so I set myself a budget of $50.00. This is very little to buy a brand new, large, hanging mirror. I just kept looking until I found one. I finally found a mirror on clearance at The Bay (online). It was reduced by over 50% to $54.99. In addition to this, I had a coupon code for an extra 15% off (essentially no tax if you live in Canada), and it was 5% cashback from Ebates. Every little bit of savings helps.<br />
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5. Just say no! I really want to buy some clothes. I have been pregnant or breastfeeding, or both, for 4 years+ at this point. With both pregnancies I gained over 60lbs. I lost all the weight after my first pregnancy, and have about 10 pounds left to lose from pregnancy #2. Throughout all this I have purchased very few clothes because....weight up....weight down......massive swelling.......shoe size has changed......I'm a human marshmallow and then I am not. My face however seems to always look like marshmallow....I really hope this goes away once I stop breastfeeding and childbearing for good. Anyway - the end result is that I literally have not one single pair of summer shorts left that are not athletic wear. All my shirts are stretched out. I have some really cute sundresses I could wear - but they do not work while breastfeeding. I cannot bring myself to buy any new clothes when I know that in a few months I will be in a totally different size again. It is very tempting though. In the end, I bought myself a really cute, plain, versatile shirt dress from Old Navy for $15.00. Every time I have to go somewhere this summer I have worn this dress over a pair of capri leggings so that I can lift it up a bit to breastfeed without flashing everyone. It will work until the weather will accommodate me wearing jeans, which I do have several pairs that sort of fit. Anyway, I have decided that it is my priority to get a good haircut this summer (I have not had a <i>good</i> haircut for one year now) so I will be putting my money towards that.<br />
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And that is our little roundup for June. It was a busy, productive month with loads of rain.<br />
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I am looking forward to enjoying amazing Ontario fresh food during the month of July.<br />
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412329404004484907.post-11663243562965343202017-06-28T03:45:00.001-07:002017-06-28T03:45:25.075-07:00Three Ways to Save Money on Groceries Without Buying LessAre you looking to save money on groceries but not quite ready to become a total frugalista? Perhaps you recently decided to monitor your spending more closely, or you are interested in becoming more frugal but you are not quite ready to start making all your food from scratch and radically change your eating habits. That is ok. Sometimes becoming more frugal can require major lifestyle changes, but it can also come in small, simple changes to your regular habits. Consider the following tips a gateway on your journey to smarter spending.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Save Money Without Buying Less By:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. Price Matching</span><br />
If the idea of flipping through a zillion fliers and then holding up the line at the grocery store does not sound like your idea of fun, I do not blame you. Price matching does not have to be a burden. It can be easy and rewarding. Not only will it save you money on groceries, it will save you money on gas and time when you are not running from store to store trying to get the best price. Find a store where you can price match with a few other retailers. My local No Frills will price match with Metro and Walmart. Three flyers. That is doable. If it is not on sale at one of these three stores, I likely can wait to purchase it until it is. I circle everything in the fliers that I want to price match and put all these items on the counter first when I go to check out. Being organized makes the price matching go very quickly and it does not feel like a burden at all. Price Matching saves me, on average, about $10-$12 per week. A friend with a large family told me that she saves about $50.00 a week by price matching. This is a big savings without you having to change what you are buying or eating.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. Join a Rewards Program</span><br />
Does your supermarket offer a rewards program? Is it worth switching to get one? I try to get double rewards on all trips to the supermarket. Most of my grocery shopping is done at Costco (where I have an Executive Membership), No Frills (where I have PC Plus), or Shoppers Drug Mart (Optimum Rewards). You can read about Costco Rewards vs. Optimum rewards <a href="http://www.lifefreedomfamily.com/2015/09/shoppers-drug-mart-optimum-vs-costco.html" target="_blank">by clicking here.</a> In addition to this, I use my BMO World Elite MasterCard to earn points. Everything spent on groceries is tracked, and I pay off my MasterCard every two weeks to make sure that I never pay interest. Every year I redeem approximately $1000.00 in Optimum points. Many rewards programs also send specific coupons to you that are tailored to your shopping habits. This is the first year I started using PC Plus so I cannot say yet how satisfied I am with that rewards program, but I will update on that later. Most major food retailers in Canada offer some type of customer loyalty program - you should join one.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">3. Shop at a Discount Grocer</span><br />
Discount grocers carry many of the same products as non-discount grocers, but typically at a lower price. Think No Frills versus Loblaw, or Food Basics versus Metro, FreshCo. versus Sobeys. Buying the same things, but at a different retailer can save you money every time you go to the store. Every time. Without changing what you are actually buying. If you are a produce or meat snob (I can confess to sometimes being like this), you can always purchase these particular items at a different location. However, after trying out various locations I found a discount grocer with a fantastic produce section where I am more than happy with the quality and selection of produce <i>and </i>they price match produce sales at other stores.<br />
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How much money will all this save you? It is hard for me to give an accurate estimate for #3, but for #1 and #2 combined I know that I am saving roughly $1500.00 - $2000.00 annually. That is not included the reward points I get on my MasterCard which we use for travel.<br />
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So what are you waiting for? These three simple things, with no changes to what you buy, can start you on the path to saving thousands of dollars every year.<br />
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<br />Life Freedom Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10224392036687636258noreply@blogger.com0