January 1st  – No Spending Day – We went for a lovely homemade Chinese food lunch at a friend’s house. Best Chinese food I’ve ever had!

January 2nd – No Spending Day

January 3rd - We all had a fabulous day, the children were treated to a day out by the person they thing hung the moon! I had a day to myself (first time) and had some physio plus homemade soup with a friend! Unfortunately, it would have been a no spending day, but we ended up being stuck outside in the evening so I needed to buy dinner for us all and be somewhere warm while we waited for friends. I ended up spending $37.56! Yikes!

January 4th – A work lunch I couldn’t get out of, but I opted not to go in with the lunch everyone else was having so instead of paying $10 I was able to get a small meal, share it with someone and only spend $6.

January 5th - No Spending Day

January 6th – No Spending Day

January 7th -  We did a grocery shop and spent $50.06! For that we got: bananas (8), kiwis (12), melons (2), onions, cucumbers, milk, bread, peanut butter, fish (2 meals), veggie ground round, toilet paper, conditioner, cat food, crushed tomatoes, chocolate chips and spaghetti. I meant to bring a calculator with me, but forgot. I thought the shop would come to $40 or so, so was a tad surprised to see it cross the $50 threshold, still I’m hopeful we’ll get some good meals this week, especially since we already have loads of veggies, beans/lentils, eggs and starch at home.  

BTW I plan to keep a running tally along the right hand side of the blog with our total monthly grocery spends for this year.

I also spent $15 on some alphabet shapes for my son!

So that was the weekly spending from January  1 – 7th. I’m not sure how I feel about whether the limit of $250 a month on food will be possible, I go between feeling hopeful and desperate !

Minor car accident + increased school costs + PA Day childcare costs + sick child + car battery dead + physiotherapy = budget not balancing at all. Pure joy I tell you, pure joy !

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about food costs, mostly because I’m trying to balance budgeting with making sure we eat healthy, local, fairtrade food as much as possible. I have never been inspired by bloggers who have drastically low food bills but shop at shops which are unethical, or have a diet which is sorely lacking in what our body needs. For my children, each day they enjoy 3 + fruits, 4 + veg, a variety of protein sources {fish, eggs, lentils, beans etc.}, dairy and plenty of water.  They have a glass of milk each day, (as well as cheese and/or yoghurt), but I limit their juice because when they have it they begin giving me more challenge about drinking water {prior to my adoption of them, they had never had a glass of water – one day I’ll tell you just how appalling their diet used to be!}.  Yesterday here is what they ate:

Breakfast: A slice of flax seed bread with organic peanut butter, a cut up apple, yoghurt, water
Lunch: Scrambled egg, 1/3rd an avocado, cherry tomatoes, carrot sticks, a banana, a cheesy baked potato, dried apricots, water
Dinner: Macaroni & Cheese, lima beans, cucumber slices, eggplant in plum sauce, cranberry oat biscuit, clementine, water, milk

When they first arrived my sole goal was to get them onto a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables and healthy proteins. As I’ve commented before, they changed before my eyes – colour entered their cheeks, they no longer had trouble going to the bathroom, they gained weight and their skin improved. My goal now is to continue feeding them a varied and healthy diet, while sticking to a $250 a month food budget {this includes pet supplies and cleaning products – mostly vinegar & baking soda!}. I plan to blog through it all and while I won’t do a daily food diary, I would like to do a monthly synopsis of the budget and admit how easy or challenging it was to stick to!

Are you trying to keep a tight rein on food costs? How do you balance that with making ethical choices?

2. How do I stop my children from running in our home? They are terribly coordinated after years of no exercise, so they slip and trip and it really isn’t safe {I give them loads of exercise in other ways, but running at home isn’t my preferred option!}

3. How on earth do I reign in the sibling rivalry? They do so well if each other is hurt, scared etc. {so loving and kind!} but they are used to being one of 30+ children, followed by being in different homes with much much needier children than they are, so I think are just trying to “establish” their place and are loving all the extra attention {or so they keep telling me}. They also have not lived together since babyhood, so are in the early stages of developing their relationship.  But. But. But. The constant tattle tailing, the lack of desire to listen to each other, the tears that erupt afterwards drives me NUTS - though I try to always be patient, explain things to them, give them a vocabulary for their feelings etc. 

I know there must be much wiser people than I am when it comes to these things. Thoughts? Solutions? Ideas to help keep me sane?

My children’s school charges for an enriched (non-optional) gym program and any extras, I suppose like many schools do. So far the extras offered: skiing, skating, gymnastics, dance and a ball based program, have come to a total cost of approximately $750 (approx 450 pounds) per child. Needless to say, my little ones haven’t participated in all those activities (they have done dance and are signed up for the ball skill program in January), though for almost all, they were the only children in the class not to do so. In truth, I would have signed them up for none and only relented with two options so there was something they were involved in with their class. You see, they are already in a much more appropriate dance program {is it just me who would rather her child dance to an Irish gig than Beyonce’s All The Single Ladies with some questionable moves I don’t think children that age should know?!} and I plan to do a family ball based program with them {a far more affordable one} through our local recreation centre. Honestly, I’d rather be there to watch and cheer them on, despite school trying to sell the programming to me by saying “but parents love it, it means they don’t have to find the time to do activities with their children at the weekends”. Oh no, dear School, that will never “sell” me. Added to this, one of my children has a physical special need which means certain movement must be restricted and I’m genuinely not convinced is gently being reminded {the pain only comes after, so it doesn’t stop actions in time}.

The assumptions don’t end there, there was a weekend camping trip, 55 hours at a cost of $500 for two (why on earth 5-8 years olds need 2.5 days away from their family I will never understand!) which I stood my ground on and explained there was no way, with all the transitions and families my children have had, that in these early days it is appropriate for my children to be away {and I even checked in with our adoption social worker who heartedly agreed and gave me the evidence to back up my argument,  attachment experts say children who are adopted should not be away for even one night for a minimum of a year}. I explained and was certainly made to feel like a naughty child. I held my ground despite hearing that “I was holding back on giving them essential life skills that will only be taught on this overnight trip with school”. I held my laughter as I wanted to explain “essential life skills” are that Mama loves you and is here for you for always and ever, and that this home is for FOREVER, not another one of the 8 {for my daughter} and 14 {for my son}…

Then there are the requests: by Friday your child must have a red hat, brown sunglasses, black dress pants, a grey shirt, $20 to donate to a present swap, a brand new notebook, a collection of french books yada yada.

All this comes to a grand assumption that this Mama has a spare $2140 lyng around over the last three months. I most certainly do not and even if I did, I can honestly say, I don’t think any of what they “sell” is in my particular children’s best interest.

Here’s the truth, I don’t like the assumption that everyone has money for the extras, not because we personally don’t, but because I think having a lot of extras lying around means that there was a cost somewhere else. How many people will never adopt a child because they think they can’t afford it because their life is so filled with luxury extras? How many children are left 11 hours a day at school each day, while their parents work corporate jobs to pay for extras they will never enjoy with their children because they don’t have time? How many schools/administrators/parents mix up needs and wants and don’t understand the skills we can get simply by playing a game together, or going on a nature walk, or just singing songs. I think, yet again, money makes what could be so simple, become something far more complicated than needed. And for as long as I possibly can, I will shield my children in the best way I know: simplicity, communication about our choices and love, in abundance.

My mother for years had one bank account, a couple of years ago I convinced her to add in a second, so she now has her chequing account and her savings account. She uses her chequing account for life & the saving for a mix of emergencies, short-term savings and long-term savings. What I find, is that she gets stressed when she has to pull out of her long-term savings for a mini emergency, like needed the washing machine fixed. I guess because it is tied into her main savings account she feels like it is taking away from her hard-earned savings.

Early on I knew that type of banking system wouldn’t work for me, I need to feel like I have everything covered and I don’t need the stress of seeing my savings plummet more than they need to .  It drives my mother crazy that I have more than 1-2 bank accounts, but I’ve found a system which works for me!

My accounts are as follows

• Chequing – my pay is deposited automatically, all my bills/rent/groceries come out of this account, as well as giving and smaller purchases which don’t require saving for. 
• Mini-Emergency Fund/Short Term Savings Account – My goal is to keep a balance of about $1000 minimum in here to deal with incidentals. I do also top it up to pay for short-term/larger bills
• Emergency Fund – My goal is to keep 6 months worth of income in this account, specifically for if I lost my job
• Pension Fund – As I mentioned I haven’t been able to contribute in a while, but it sits there waiting! I have a Pension Fund through Friend’s Provident, and unlike 401K’s and RRSP’s in the US and Canada respectively, we can not touch our pension money until we are 55/60, even if you fall on hard times it is 100% locked in there.

So far I have to say this banking system works for me! It doesn’t deplete my hope when little incidentals arise and I can manage my money/accounts as needed, while hopefully meeting my financial goals!

What banking system do you have in place? Does it help or hinder you when it comes to your financial goals?

Financial Goals

• Pay off all debt – done June 2011 {debt from moving here and no income for several months!}
• Sponsor a cot at Butterfly Children’s Hospices aka ChinaKidz – done, June 2011 the day I paid off my debt!
• Purchase {or be gifted, ha!} a pull out couch
• Purchase {or be gifted, double ha!} a frame for a single bed – I have the mattress but it either needs a box or a frame!
• Save $1000 into a mini-emergency fund for cavities, medications, new shoes or any little needs that arise!
• Save $1500 to supplement time off
• Save 6 months of income into an emergency fund
• Begin contributing to my retirement fund again - however small (I haven’t contributed in about two years!) 
• Save $10,000 for possible challenge #2 fees

It’s interesting, when I add up the total amount I need to save, it seems absolutely impossible, but when I break it up into tiny baby steps it seems like a piece of cake – well, not quite a piece of cake ;)

What are your short and long-term financial goals?

My budget for this month is lean but I feel like I need to pull the reigns in a tad and get used to a reduced budget. So for July, my goals are:

• Food $100/£60
• Pets $70/£40
• Entertainment $25/£15
• Incidentals $30/£20 {I need to post a few things!}
• Commuting Costs $80/£45

I also have a few important “possible challenge” trips, but I’ll be using air miles as much as possible, although honestly it feels like no matter how careful I am, I’m draining money!

What are your financial goals for July?

Everyone slept in this morning, only opening our eyes at 6:15 to the dulcet tones of Mary Ito on Fresh Air.  Sleeping in was a direct result of late night reading, a love so profound for this book I even skipped Richard. No book has as eloquently moved my inner core since I first read Fall On Your Knees and North and South, both of which, now along with The Help, are yearly reads.  Books about social justice and women fighting against the barriers others are so firmly held under, make for the most inspiring and beautiful read.

And since it was Sunday, I cooked a cooked breakfast for the furries which means they pass out for the rest of the day, unless I get out a broom then well, that’s a tale I’ll save for another day. And while they napped I enjoyed the Observer & New York times.

The rest of the day will be highly domesticated as I’m making homemade ginger & raspberry cordial, hand washing the floors, replying to emails, delivering lunch to the homeless and cooking something in the slow cooker, in addition to Church, Proverbs reading and participating in a study on Matthew. And if you look to the right of the blog, you’ll see a beautiful new child of the week, so today I’ll be praying for him too!

And a bit of Q & A…

1. If you could go anywhere in the world right now where would it be?

Home – Watergate Bay to be exact, followed by running through the waves on the Devon coast!

2. How do you socialize on such a strict budget?

This has to have its own post really, but the truth is, something I’ve really learned in the last five years is you need to redefine what a social life is and what normal is. I am constantly amazed at how people define a “rare treat with friends” when in truth it is a norm, it just looks different each weekend. I try not to do anything that is mindless or without intention and I bring that to my social life as well, not just budget wise but in who I spend time with.  Five years ago I would have said I don’t have time at the weekends to feed the homeless because I worked all week, yet I had time to meet up with friends, shop, go to the cinema, visit the theatre etc. and do at least two things each weekend. Now I would say on average, since November, I’ve met up with friends one weekend a month (one month it might be dinner, the next month a movie) although July will be busier as I’ve been invited to a BBQ’s and a good friend is now local, which means we have plans next month! I think my aim/ideal would be not more than two social things each month. In short I think as my faith grew stronger, my desire to live a purposeful life began to define my actions and those finally came in-line with what I believe, which meant the “need” to fill up on worldly stuff decreased to a point of almost not being needed at all, just something I enjoy. I do love time with good friends  and think it is important, but it needs to be balanced with volunteering, fellowship, serving, work, giving, homemaking, taking care of my responsibilities and praying. Over the last year the balance has begun to feel right for me. And the beautiful thing is, once you really examine your own choices/spending/balance, you’ll make the decisions which are best for you in your season of life!

3. If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?

Homesteader, wiper of tears, snuggler, boo boo kisser, milk maker, sheep herder, cow wrangler, dog walker, bee keeper, goat milker.

Happy Reclaimed Simple Sunday to you & yours!

• If you’re running out of breakfast food, then eat something else for breakfast – this morning I had cut up peppers dipped in pesto, almonds & blackberries. Healthy and frugal. Years ago I would have gone out and popped into any of the shops on the way to work & purchased a muffin.
• If you don’t have many dinner foods left, or are short on time, make breakfast for dinner. Pancakes, cut up fruit and some nuts or seeds on the side make a pretty good dinner in a pinch, so does scrambled egg on toast.
• Don’t think you need to cook a meal each evening – have sandwich night, leftover night, jacked potato (aka baked potato) salad bar night, or even just beans on toast with cut up fruit on the side.
• Make dinner something funny or something to look forward to. I have a friend who watches the Apprentice, she makes Apprentice soup one night a week. The title alone makes them excited about dinner
• Start a salad club at work – once or twice a week everyone brings 1 item and a massive salad is made and shared between everyone.
• Begin a coffee club at work – charge a small monthly fee and buy higher end coffee that you would normally stop and get on your way to work. Spending $3 a month on a kitty is a lot more frugal than spending $3 a day!
• When friends or family suggest going out to eat, suggest a pot luck instead – spending $5 on an item is a lot more reasonable than spending 5 or 6x that on a quick meal out plus tax & tip!
• Make a smoothie for breakfast!
• Combine foods you may not normally find combined. When I make macaroni & cheese I add broccoli & peas which means I eat less startch, get more essential vitamins and the meal stretches further.
• Cook food from different countries, chinese food is very easy to make & frugal too!
• Keep a few favourite recipes which you can make in less than 20 minutes written on the fridge, or even by the phone. It may prevent you from making that call to the take away!
• Find deals that are good and use those days as your days off from cooking. A local, fabulous restaurant near me does a cheap pizza night. For $6.99 you get a large pizza which you can combine with a homemade salad for an easy, frugal supper, with leftovers to boot!
• Figure out where you “go wrong” and make a plan that works for you. I know I usually lose the will to cook & clean by Thursday! So having an easier meal on Thurs means I stop myself from going out to eat. Tonight I had falafel with a salad and grilled zucchini (courgette). Total cooking time 12 minutes.

There are so many creative ways in the kitchen which save you money!

Do you have any tips to share?