Did you know that September is Hunger Action Month?
Recently I wrote about Porchlight Community Services. This month, they are offering a $5.00 discount on their weekly food share when you mention that you saw this article on my website!
The prices are very reasonable:
Seniors / Individual- $15
Family (Small)- $25
Family (6+)-$35
On average, you will go home with over $100 worth of food each week. And if you have food allergies or a special diet, just let them know and they will be happy to accommodate you as best they can!
In case you were curious, here is a sneak peek of just a few of the types of items they frequently have:
Cow’s milk, non-dairy milk, eggs, cheese, yogurt, lunch meats, juice, lemonade- WOW! And that is just a small sample, there are fruits, veggies, frozen food, shelf-stable/pantry items, baked goods… You Name It!
I love exploring nature with the kids. My dad took us on hikes a lot when we were kids and it was a great way to learn more about nature and the history of San Diego.
When THE NAT emailed me this morning to share their free, guided nature hikes, I knew I had to share it with my readers!
Canyoneers are citizen scientists and volunteers who have had comprehensive training by Museum scientists and local experts on the natural history of the region. Check out the full schedule of hikes between now and June 2020, and hit the trails with the Canyoneers! Look for the Canyoneer sign at the designated parking area. We are always hoping to see wildlife. Please leave dogs at home and come enjoy nature.
The Canyoneers offer free, guided hikes on trails throughout San Diego County from September through June. The new season kicks off this Saturday, September 8 with an easy, 1-mile hike on the Kumeyaay Lake Trail at Mission Trails Regional Park, perfect for children, seniors, and birdwatchers.
In total, the Canyoneers are offering 80 hikes. Most are offered on weekends—with a few midday hikes being offered on select dates—and cover diverse terrain, ranging from the coast to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and from the Tijuana Estuary to Palomar Mountain.
New hikes in Cleveland National Forest, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and several other locations including Gremlin Way Trailhead in Dictionary Hill Open Space Preserve.
Once a month, the Canyoneers will lead a mid-week hike to locations that are often crowded on weekends due to limited access. Examples include Equestrian Trail in Elfin Forest Recreational Reserve (November 13) and Luelf Pond Preserve in Ramona (May 12).
The desert hikes that are scheduled on consecutive days allow for camping opportunities, reducing the amount of driving necessary to get to both hikes. The desert at night is a special treat.
Some trails offer shorter hikes with little elevation change—good for younger hikers—and some very flat and paved hikes that are perfect for strollers and anyone with a disability. One example is the Batiquitos Lagoon Gabbiano Trailhead (September 14).
If the weather cooperates, there’s a chance to see waterfalls on Cibbets Flat to Kitchen Creek Falls hike (February 9) and the Green Valley Falls Loop (June 28). Green Valley Falls is an amazing hike and has pools of water that are fun to play in!
Hikes in some of the most interesting geological areas in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, including Fish Creek/Split Mountain (January 4) and Canyon Sin Nombre (February 8)—perfect for slot canyon fans.
And if you have kids, there is a special program for students and classes too!
“Kids are most inspired by nature when they get outside and experience it for themselves—seeing a Monarch butterfly or a coast live oak in person helps bring to life what they’re learning in the classroom,” said Judy Gradwohl, president and CEO of the San Diego Natural History Museum.
The program is made possible with support from Subaru of America, who is generously supporting the Canyoneer hiking program for the fourth year in a row.
The Museum aims to serve approximately 550 students this year through the program. Space is limited on the hikes. For more information or to book a hike, visit sdnat.org/schoolnaturehikesor call 619.255.0349.
If you are looking for books about hiking and exploring the many awesome trails and cool nature spots in San Diego County here are two books I completely recommend!
I found a cache of yummy, frugal family recipes, so I’ll be posting them over the next few weeks.
Most of these were formulated by my relatives to feed a hungry, hard-working family with kids. Everyone in my family is frugal, so these recipes won’t contain any expensive or strange ingredients in small quantities- There is nothing worse than trying a new recipe only to find you only need 2 Tablespoons of an ingredient that you’ve never used before, or worse yet, only comes in a HUGE container/package.
I will try to include the sides that we’ve traditionally served with the main dish to round out the meal.
Chicken Parm Meatloaf (serves 6)
Ingredients
1 lb ground chicken
1 egg
1/2 cup bread crumbs (I use Italian seasoned)
1 tablespoons Italian seasoning
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
1/4 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
3 Tablespoons onions, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh white mushrooms, stems removed, cleaned and chopped into bite-size pieces
In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients, except for pasta sauce. Mix well until all ingredients are well combined and mixture resembles a meaty paste (about 3-5 minutes of mixing)
Pour into a greased loaf pan, shape into a tidy loaf.
Pour pasta sauce over the top of the loaf.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until meat is cooked through. If you are using a meat thermometer, it should read 165 Degrees. I use this one.
COME OUT AND PLAY AT THE Y OPEN HOUSE IS SEPTEMBER 14
Sports, swim, gymnastics, camps, dance, martial arts, fitness — the Y is your No. 1 spot for active and healthy kids. Check out everything the Y has to offer at our Open House, Saturday, September 14, 2019.
All 18 YMCA locations will be open all day to the community, with special events from 9:00am to 12:00pm, including fun activities and program previews, with plenty of coaches and staff on hand to answer your questions.
As part of the 5-2-1-0 Childhood Obesity Initiative, the Y is here to ensure your children get 1 hour (or more!) of physical activity every day.
They are all about making it fun. Find your family’s next favorite activity at the Y! The kids and I go to our local Y 4-6 times a week. Exercise, swim, play at Open Gym- There are all so many different things to do included in your monthly membership!
AND IT GETS BETTER- THEY ARE WAIVING THE JOIN FEE!
New members pay no join fee on September 14 — save up to $60! All locations are free and open to the community all day!
I’m always on a mission to add more fruits and veggies into our diet. My pasta sauce recipe is full of veggies: Onions, peppers, carrots, zucchini, celery, fresh tomatoes.
And because I love meaty sauce, I can’t forget the 80/20 ground chuck!
I served it last night with both whole wheat pasta and Italian squash that I ran through the spiralizer (I have this one).
The kids aren’t too big on zoodles, but that’s ok. We paired our meal with a green salad (cucumber slices for the kids), and garlic bread (a family favorite).
Veggie Loaded Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
1.5 lbs ground chuck or your favorite ground beef (don’t use super lean beef)
2 T. olive oil
1 white onion, diced
1/2 c. each chopped or diced: carrots, celery, bell peppers (I used red)
Most communities in the US and Canada hold this event. It started in 1984 as a way to increase community awareness about police, safety, and anti-crime programs in communities.
Some communities use this night as a chance to have a festival, carnival, cook-out, or block party.
My local community is having one! Santee and Lakeside are co-hosting an event at Santee Trolley square. If you are looking for your local National Night Out event, check the National Night Out website here.
I’ll be taking the kids- They love events like this. Our local first responders have their vehicles open and the kids can explore the fire trucks, ambulances, and police vehicles. The last event we went to like this, The Big Kid got to check out the SWAT Vehicle and try on SWAT gear. I find that this kind of accessibility is great for little kids like Bitty, so she isn’t scared to approach a first responder if she is in need. It’s very useful for the Big Kid because some kids with ASD take things they are told literally. He would refuse to talk to a stranger if he needed help or was in danger because it’s drilled into kids heads at a young age. Meeting first responders and receiving reinforcement that they are NOT strangers, they are HELPERS gives him the reinsurance he needs that it’s ok to seek help in an emergency, especially if I am not around, or if I am the one who needs help.
This week has been slightly hellish. It’s hot, humid, and just so gross no one wants to move.
It’s too expensive for us to run our AC all the time (Thanks SDG&E!), and really, I don’t want to spend all day in the house, so here are my top 7 Frugal Tips to Beat the Heat in San Diego!
Visit Balboa Park for Free Tuesdays at various museums each week. Another free activity in Balboa Park is the Botanical Garden and Lily Pond. Right next door is the Spanish Art Village, which is fun to explore as well. Pack some snacks and make a day of it.
Check out your local indoor mall for fun family activities. In San Diego, we’ve got a couple- Plaza Bonita, Parkway Plaza, and Westfield North County (the mall formerly known as North County Fair). Each one has monthly fun activities for kids and families- just check your local mall’s website.
Have you seen the kinds of Groupons that are available lately? Uptown Jungle has 6 options! There are all kinds of fun activities from Axe throwing to waterparks, you’ll be having all sorts of frugal adventures in no time.
Get in the Water! Beach, lake, river, local pool… whatever. Heck, get in a kiddie pool and splash around. Don’t forget the SPF and snacks.
If you want to stay home, close up all the windows, draw the shades/curtains, turn on all your fans, set the AC to something comfy but not arctic (for us, that’s 80-82 degrees when it’s going to be over 100 outside). Once the house is chilled out, pop some popcorn and assemble some awesome snacks (We had this pumpkin/fuck it bucket because I received it in the mail to review), make a pillow fort and watch some fun movies. We did that the other day. We watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and Zootopia.
If you are looking for a way to cool down in your pillow fort, this little dude is pretty cool (haha, temperature pun!)
Talk Back: What are your favorite ways to beat the heat?
Chatting with a friend via Insta yesterday, we were lamenting the “OMG DO THEY EVER STOP EATING!!” of summer vacation.
I’ve never begrudged my kids snackies when they are hungry, but seriously, on days when we are at home, building Legos and watching movies- THEY EAT ALL DAY. I can’t let them rummage through the cupboard and eat whatever, so I started the snack box (for the pantry) and snack drawer (in the fridge).
We’ve had “The snack box” and the “snack drawer” in our kitchen for about 2 years now. In the cupboard, I’ve got a basket like this one. It’s full of various types of treats and snacks. Instead of buying individually bagged treats, I often buy a box of whatever (in the photo below it’s animal crackers) and divide the large box into snack-sized Ziploc bags). It just depends on what is available at Grocery Outlet and 99 Cents Only on my weekly shopping trip. Those are my go-to snack stores.
The Snack Drawer in the FridgePantry Snack Box- Refilled weekly
The Pantry Snack Box contains shelf-stable stuff: Juice boxes, crackers, chips, dried fruit, fruit snacks, individual Peanut/nut butter cups. I usually tuck a couple bags of microwave popcorn too. Sadly, we have none left. I was informed that I *must* rectify that matter tomorrow.
The Fridge Snack Drawer contains some of the following: Cheese sticks, yogurt, Ziploc bags of fruit or veggies (watermelon wedges, strawberries, grapes, carrots, celery, and jicama are just a few favorites), little cups of hummus, guac, ranch dip (homemade with greek yogurt and ranch dip mix).
The snacks vary by week, and I took these pics today- It’s midweek and they are pretty picked over- I did refill the Pantry Snack Box with stuff from the cupboard. That’s my secret- don’t put it all out at once. I stash the extras in the back of the pantry, where tiny arms can’t reach.
For those who read my blog regularly, you know that my weekly family grocery budget is $80. I spend about $25 of my weekly budget on stuff for the snack box/drawer. Sometimes more, sometimes less. During the school year, the function of these becomes for packing lunches in the morning. The Big Kid doesn’t really like sandwiches, and as he’s a vegetarian he gets most of his protein from nuts/seed butter and dairy sources.
I also keep Go-gurt style tube yogurts in the freezer- Those are mostly for Bitty, Big Kid doesn’t care for yogurt too often.
For the grown-ups, there is a basket in the pantry full of protein and fiber snack bars (Along with other more “grownup” snacks- which are sometimes new snacks that the kids veto after sampling). I get those at Grocery Outlet or 99 Cents Only. Grocery Outlet locations in my area always have a great variety of protein bars, snack bars, and protein cookie (Like these, which are also a hit with the Big Kid, so I have to dole them out) for a lot less than grocery or club stores.
Close-up of the Pantry Snack Box. There is a little bit of something for everyone!
This is how my family keeps everyone fed at home and on budget. I’d love to hear about your family’s ideas to solve this issue.
Ya’ll know my love of your local Y. This Thursday, July 4th, you can check out any San Diego County YMCA for FREE! Thursday, July 4 YMCA locations are open 7:00am-2:00pm (Holiday Hours). Childwatch times vary by location, so call ahead or check the branch locations before heading out.
The kids and I will be hitting up the Y to get our wiggles out before heading out to party with family Thursday afternoon!
And if you are looking for a job, many YMCA locations are hiring! Year-round and seasonal positions currently available. Learn more at www.ymca.org/careers
I frequently get skeptical looks, the side eye, or people thinking I’m starving my kids when I tell them that our grocery budget is $80/week.
It takes a lot of work, but it is doable. I cook a lot from scratch- it’s healthy, cheap, and I can control what goes into each dish (hidden veggies, fruit, less sugar, etc.). I can make a cheese pizza at home for less than $4, and that is enough pizza for the kids for two meals!
Here are a few of our family tactics to stay on budget:
CASH! Go to the bank/ATM and get your grocery money out of the bank every week. This is a great way to start. I get $80 out of the ATM each Saturday for the upcoming weeks’ groceries.
Inventory your Fridge, Freezer, and Pantry. Bonus- You’ll also find stuff that needs to be thrown out or donated. If you are looking for kitchen inventory printables, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.
Menu Plan. Start by using what you’ve got on-hand. Eat food that’s on sale or in season. We eat a lot of strawberries in the summer because they are cheap!
Make a grocery list. Stick to the list Don’t be afraid to substitute brands, or make changes based on what is on sale, or any in-store markdowns you find.
Don’t be afraid to go to more than one store. I’m not saying run all over town, but going to two stores is OK. In our area, there are a 99 Cents Only store and a Grocery Outlet in the same shopping Center. I hit up both each week. Then, on the way home, I stop at Food4Less and buy milk (cheapest in town!), eggs, and bread (if 99 Cents Only doesn’t have the high protein bread we like).
Eat Less Meat. Not only does it save money, but it’s better for the environment.
Take advantage of local resources. There are a few food co-ops in our area. Additionally, there are free produce distributions too. A couple of my friends and I split a co-op lot twice a month. It comes out to less than $20 per person, and we get all kinds of cool stuff. A quick google search can help you find both in your area. In the summer, we take advantage of Kid’s free lunches too.
Coupon and/or use money-saving apps. My complete list of apps can be found here. Right now my favorite apps are Fetch Rewards and Ibotta. I love that I can use Fetch at any store. It helps because I shop a lot of Grocery Outlet and 99 Cents Only.
Be Flexible. Some weeks you will go over budget. It happens. Sometimes you need to stock up on staples, or your family wants to eat something that isn’t on sale. Sometimes you really want to order a pizza and wings. That’s OK! Frugality is a journey, it’s not a punishment or a life of austerity and suffering. You can still live a fun, full life while being frugal.
Talk Back: Share a few of your families tips for staying on budget?
I found a cache of yummy, frugal family recipes, so I’ll be posting them over the next few weeks.
I served it last night with both whole wheat pasta and Italian squash that I ran through the spiralizer (I have 
Tomorrow, the first Tuesday in August is 
Hewes Family Fun 