I mentioned in the Weekly Meal Plan post yesterday that it’s going to be a hot one this week. Ugh.
That means lots of time swimming and lots of time at the YMCA enjoying their AC and doing fun activities- Big Kid just did the fitness orientation and he is excited to start exercising. Mostly he wants to take boxing classes with me on Saturdays.
All that activity requires good, healthy fuel, and I do not want to fire up the stove or oven when it’s over 90 outside.
Here are a few of my favorite recipes to serve when it’s hot outside!
Protein Shake Recipes! Big Kid has really taken to protein shakes in the morning, since he’s a vegetarian and doesn’t really do eggs either (It’s a texture thing). The trainer that did the orientation really drove home that he needs to fuel his body with protein on mornings when he works out- which I really appreciated because for some reason, he’ll listen when someone else tells him the EXACT THING his dad and I have been telling him. C’MON KID!!
As you can tell there are a lot of dessert recipes. Because, really, who doesn’t like dessert?
The past week has been crazy! Running around, having adventures, trying to beat the heat. This week I’m trying to finish up a couple pieces, get some new content researched, and get the house ready for out of town guests who arrive early next week. If you’ve got kids, you feel me on the “It takes a week to get your house ready” vibe.
I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done, so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.
You may notice a lot of plant-based meals- We are not vegetarian, but I am trying to get more veggies into our diet. I do a lot of cooking from scratch- I find it easier to get veggies and fruit into recipes that I can have 100% control over.
I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day:
Breakfast: Coffee with heavy cream for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids (they love the Kodiak Cakes Mix). I also keep sandwich Ziploc bags of other frozen fruit on hand to make the kids smoothies when they request them (a few times per week). Berries, peaches, and mangos are pretty popular.
Lunches are leftovers, salads, or soups for me. The kids will be enjoying free lunches all over the county with free activities and playtime before or after lunch.
For dinner, when we’ve got busy days (like Mondays), I’ll try and put something in the crockpot (I am picking up my new crockpot this week) in the morning, or pull something I’ve already prepped out that can be quickly cooked.
Monday: I won’t lie.. We went to Costco and had pizza and churros.
Tuesday: Leftover Night- There is leftover Spanish Rice, Beans, chicken breasts and salad lurking in the fridge.
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.
One of my favorite websites is the Sunday Coupon Review. It helps me plot out scenarios in advance and I can email friends to ask for coupons in advance. Remember if clipping coupons isn’t your thing, but saving money is, check out my list of Smartphone apps that can save you the big bucks! New offers are added on the Smartphone Savings Apps all the time!
Living in California, every day is avocado day! Everyone knows someone- a friend, neighbor, relative who has an avocado tree (or 4).
For everyone else, REJOICE!! Tomorrow, July 31st is National Avocado Day and here are a couple freebies and deals for you.
Head to Rubio’s tomorrow with this coupon, and score a free Guacamole and Chips with any order. We’ll be hitting up Rubio’s tomorrow. The kids received free kid’s meal coupons in their Summer Reading prize packs from the county library.
If you don’t have a Rubio’s nearby, grab your phone and pull up the Chipotle app! Tomorrow you can score free guacamole on any order placed via website or mobile app.
I’ll be donning my sweet ‘Cado socks and chowing down!
Talk Back: Are you looking forward to National Avocado Day?
Ok, so as much as I’ve been posting about summer fun and adventures, Back To School is lurking around the corner.
Here are some awesome deals and freebies:
Office Depot has a great selection of $10 backpacks, some of them (like the two above) come with pencil cases, lunch bags, and water bottles too!
Most office supply stores have great deals on markers, crayons, and markers right now too. Deals are changing weekly. If you don’t have time to chase deals, I’ve found a couple decent deals. Prices on Amazon change quickly, so I haven’t listed them, but you can click on each link and check them out.
If you are an East County Area Resident (San Diego County), check out this awesome offer from the Santee Mobilehome Owners Association, INC (SMOAC) is handing out backpacks full of supplies for kids Kindergarten and up. Each backpack has age/grade-appropriate supplies. This event takes place at the Santee Library from 10 AM until they run out. In addition, there will be free haircuts for girls and boys and many other surprises that day.
Talk Back: If you know of any free school supplies or deal, please share!
I just told the Boy Child and he was so excited about this “holiday”, he almost burst.
July 30th is National Cheesecake day and there are all kinds of awesome deals to help you enjoy:
Cheesecake Factory is celebrating by offering dine-in guests any slice of its more than 30 legendary flavors of cheesecake for half price at all of its restaurants nationwide. If you are in San Diego, stop by DZ Akin’s for $5.00 Cheesecake slices (and their slices are HUGE).
I personally am most excited about this deal. Their cheesecake is so good, and I will also grab some Matzo Ball Soup to go as well!
If you want to make your own at home but it’s too hot to turn on the oven, I love this Philadephia cheesecake filling in a graham cracker crust. You can top with your favorite fruits, or sprinkle chocolate shavings on top.
It also comes in Chocolate or Key Lime. Check your local grocery store.
If you are watching what you eat and still want to celebrate, I love the Cheesecake Jello Pudding mix. Make it as the directions indicate, or add 1-2 tablespoons of the powder to your favorite protein shake powder and blend with water, ice cubes, and fruit.
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.
I missed my usual Freebie Post on Friday, so let’s see what’s going on in the world of freebies this Tuesday afternoon.
Tomorrow, the first Tuesday in August is 
Living in California, every day is avocado day! Everyone knows someone- a friend, neighbor, relative who has an avocado tree (or 4).
I’ll be donning my sweet ‘Cado socks and chowing down!
Elmer’s All Purpose School Glue Sticks
Crayola Crayons Bulk, 24 Box Classpack, 24 Assorted Colors
I just told the Boy Child and he was so excited about this “holiday”, he almost burst.
If you are in San Diego, stop by DZ Akin’s for $5.00 Cheesecake slices (and their slices are HUGE).
If you are watching what you eat and still want to celebrate, I love the 
And I saw this while browsing Amazon, but I’ve never tried it. It’s 
