kids

8/9/2021 Weekly Meal Plan!

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpg9 days until school starts. I need to get on the stick and head over to JCP and get the kids some socks and scour the mark down sections. They both need shorts, and unfortunately, most stores already have cold weather clothes out. We won’t be ready for those for a few months.

Over the weekend I picked up half a share from Porchlight- My friend Brooke split a share with me, and it’s honestly the best month spent. We got all kinds of great food, definitely more than a weeks worth.

And I’ve been getting a lot of really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.

I also went out to the Hillcrest Farmers Market yesterday and met Farmer Donald from Yasukochi Family Farns. I picked up some amazing strawberries, watermelon, corn, green beans, and brocolli. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen my meal prep pics yesterday. If you are looking for an amzing deal on produce, check out their CSA box!

Veggies and fruit are delivered by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

I meal prepped a bunch of fruit, veggies, and rice yesterday. I also cleaned out the fridge and re-arranged the freezer. We are all set for the week. I chose easy to cook meals that don’t require the oven. We are expected to have temps in the 90’s for most of this week.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I have made my own and you can find them for sale here on my Etsy Store.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids. They are also into fruit and bagels for breakfast. The Ancient Grain bagels from Einstein Bros. are the current family favorite. I pikc them up on Mondays when a dozen is only $7. I slice them and freeze them to keep them from going bad too quickly.

Lunch: I have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. The kids are digging leftovers from dinner, or quesadillas.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Chicken Chili over rice, beans, veggies
  • Monday: Fritatta, watermelon, sourdough toast
  • Tuesday:  Pesto Ravioli, garlic bread, roasted veg
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night: Nuggets, crackers, cheese, fruit
  • Thursday: Waffles, eggs, fruit
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Leftovers, fruit

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

Fall and Halloween Crafts at Dollar Tree!

Abby H.

Fall is right around the corner, and that means it’s time for Fall and Halloween crafts!

If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen my post last week. Many of our local Dollar Tree stores are well stocked with Harvest, Halloween, and Dia de Los Muertos crafting supplies.

I love the paintable skulls, and the large wooden cutouts (I got a pumpkin).

If you are looking for some craft ideas, check out the Dollar Tree Blog. They have some cool ideas, I love their wreath ideas!

I’ll be posting pics when I get my wooden crafts painted. Make sure to check out my Instagram account for lots of crafts and other fun stuff!

 

 

 

Tea Collection: It’s the BIG one

Abby H.

** This post also contains affiliate links and I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links. 

Are you ready for Back to School? Do your kids need some more shorts and summer gear before fall and cooler weather take over? Here in CA, we have at least 2-3 months before the weather cools down and we can look forward to sweater weather (just in the early morning or late at night, it will still be in the low 80’s during the day until Christmas).

Here are a few of the sale pieces that my little bit has picked out for her Back to School wardrobe:

Tea Collection specializes in kids clothes in sizes Newborn to size 16.

What I love about Tea Collection is that they are very well made and hold up over years of wear, and that means hand me downs!

Price Point Category prices as marked on site. Offer valid from 8/6/2021 through 8/8/2021 at 11:59 PM PT. Discount taken will be pre-tax. Cannot be combined with other promotions. No adjustments on previous purchases. Not redeemable for cash. Cannot be used towards the purchase of gift cards. Limited to stock on hand.

 

Visible Unlimited Data (as low as $25/mo.) Powered by Verizon!

Abby H.

Are you looking for a more affordable cell phone plan? I learned about Visible powered by Verizon recently, and I had to share the details.

First off, and for my family, this is the most important-Unlimited data, as low as $25/mo.

Visible is powered by Verizon, 5G included.

Bring a friend and you both get a month of wireless for $5. That’s pretty sweet! This is a great deal for families or kids/teens!

Terms Apply.

8/1/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgWOO- 17 more days until school starts! Not that I’m counting, but the big kid yesterday was lamenting that it was *still* summer vacation and that we wanted to go back to school.

For the most part, summer lunch distribution is over, and we’re using up coupons and other freebies to stretch our end-of-summer frivolity.

There are a few events that we are going to this week, including this one.

I went to the grocery store on Friday and stocked up on snacks, and we also did a big Costco Trip to stock up on some staples that we were running low on (and a rotisserie chicken, because, YUM).

And I’ve been getting a lot of really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.

We are skipping our CSA box this week, we’ve still got a lot left from last week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

I meal prepped over the weekend and got lots of veggies roasted, rice for lunches, and the rotisserie chicken broken down. I may be making some soup this week too.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I have made my own and you can find them for sale here on my Etsy Store.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: I have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags. The kids are digging leftovers from dinner, or quesadillas.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Chef Salad (lettuce, spinach, bacon, hardboiled eggs, carrots, corn, leftover roasted veggies)
  • Monday: Chicken Arabiatta, chopped salad, garlic bread
  • Tuesday:  Breakfast for dinner (Pancakes, eggs, fruit)
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night: Nuggets, crackers, cheese, fruit
  • Thursday: Impossible Burger taco salad
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Leftovers, fruit

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

Free Food Resources for August 2021 (San Diego County)

Abby H.

A new month means that it’s time for the monthly update of free food resources in San Diego.

You can still find resources here for Central and East County, and Here for North County.

If you are located outside San Diego County, call 211. If you are not familiar with 211, here is their website and it can point you in the right direction.

San Diego Food Bank Distributions for August 2021 can be found here. Enter your address (or just your zip code) and the map will show you all of the distributions in your area or closest to you. You can filter by the days of the week to find food when you are available. If there is an income requirement/limit to participate, each location/listing will say such.

Neighbor distributions are intermixed with the San Diego Food Bank Distributions, however, they have no income requirements, and you come as you are. These Distributions are primarily fruits & veg, however, some locations may also distribute canned goods, dairy, and bread.

Super Pantry Locations can be found here (this listing is countywide). The San Diego Foodbank website also has resources for Diaper banks, free food resources for seniors, and more.

Here is my 2021 Free Summer Lunch for kids post. It’s got all sorts of great info on where and when to pick up free lunches for kids all summer long. Most kids start school within the next few weeks, so these distributions are coming to an end.  However, kids will be able to get free lunches at school throughout 2021/2022 school year without having to apply or reside in a low-income home.

If you know of other resources, please leave a comment! And feel free to share this post with anyone you may know in need.

Free School Lunches for ALL California Students 2021-2022 School Year!

Abby H.

I read about this last week, got busy, and forgot to share this!

The state of California is joining cities like Chicago and Boston in offering free school lunches and breakfasts to students.  Previously students families had to meet certain income requirements to qualify for discounted or free school meals.

I’m so glad that this is now available to everyone. There are a lot of people who didn’t qualify but are facing food insecurity.

For more information, The NPR acrticle here has some deets. Be on the look out for information coming from your school district in your email or as a flyer in your kids backpack the few day of school.

Santee School District sent out an email earlier this week.

 

Tryazon: Aerodynamic Football Party Opportunity

Abby H.

We’ve been participating in Tryazon events for three+ years. We’ve gotten to try all sorts of fun toys, games, and food.  You can learn more about Tryazon here.

Throw like a Pro with this Tryazon Featured Party opportunity, from Spin Master,  featuring the Aerobie Sonic Fin High Performance Football. Officially endorsed by Russell Wilson, the quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks, this aerodynamic football puts the power of a pro in your hands. Compete against your friends to see how far you can make the football go with the #sonicfinchallenge!

Tryazon has 250 hosting spots open for this opportunity! Those selected get to receive a party pack with this brand new football and another Aerobie product to share with friends and family! Learn more and apply here: https://www.tryazon.com/aerobie-football-air-it-out-party/

7/26/2021 Weekly Meal Plan

Abby H.

0a5e9dab796cea8a07eabe4eb4795b9e.jpgThis week we are planning some fun activities to get us out of the house: Going to the zoo, meeting up with some friends to play and have lunch.

The kids have been digging the free school lunches- It’s a great way to encourage them to try new foods. That’s great because the price of groceries has gone up exponentially over the past few months. We’ve been eating less meat to save money, and I’m leaning more on stores that have good deals like Grocery Outlet, and using my cashback apps like Fetch Rewards. I’ve been cashing out Fetch rewards for Target Gift Cards. I’ve been combining the Target Gift Cards with grocery sales and deals in the Target app, and picking up via curbside pick up. It’s a great option if you’ve got kids and you’ve got a busy summer.

And I’ve been getting a lot of really great freebies from Social Nature lately too. It’s fun to try new foods.

The CSA Box arrives in a few hours, but they send an email over a few days before with a sneak peek of what’s going into the box. This helps me meal plan for the week.

Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.

I cleaned out the fridge last night and that really helped me figure out what to plan for the week. I’m trying to use up what we’ve got. I need to make a small trip to the store to get more milk, bread, and a few other things for our snack bag.

For those of you that are new to meal planning, I’ve got an easy 101 style post here with super easy tips and steps. After you get that down, here is info about batch or freezer cooking.

I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I have made my own and you can find them for sale here on my Etsy Store.

I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.

Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2  for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids.  The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.

Lunch: We pick up free school lunches during the summer for the kids, I also have a plastic tote in the cupboard full of self-serve snacks. I buy treats and snacks in bulk and fill up snack-sized zip-top bags.

Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.

  • Sunday: Leftovers (We had so many random leftovers)
  • Monday: Pasta, Roasted Veggies, Salad
  • Tuesday:  Fritatta, Fruit Salad, Toast
  • Wednesday:  Nugget night: Nuggets, crackers, cheese, fruit
  • Thursday: Bean, Rice, and Cheese Burritos, Roasted veggies
  • Friday:  Takeout Night
  • Saturday: Leftovers, fruit, salad

Please stay safe you guys!

Talk Back: What are you cooking for dinner this week?

8/3/2021-8/5/2021 FREE Family End of Summer Palooza (La Mesa, CA)

Abby H.1 Comment

I’ve been looking for back-to-school freebies and backpack giveaways to post about, and I found this event, sponsored by Grossmont Healthcare District.

The event is FREE to attend and will include free back-to-school supplies, health activities, and fun prizes given away each day!

For more information and to RSVP, click here.

Each day during the event, there will be a Food drive To help local community members in need. They will be collecting canned foods to give back to the East County community.

Tuesday, August 3rd, 10AM-2PM: Get ready for back to school The park will be filled with community partners and a back to school giveaways! A DJ will get the fun time going all day long.

Wednesday, August 4th, 10AM-2PM: Get crafty The fun continues with take-home crafts in the park, face-painting activities, and a story-time led by some furry friends, including free books to those that join!

Thursday, August 5th, 10AM-2PM: Get active For a family activity, we’ll have a fun group exercise for all ages and levels of activity to get you moving outdoors! A fresh food giveaway will be this day, as well as the big prize- a $120 Gift Card!

 

Community Partners:

  • Herrick Health Library
  • YMCA
  • Family Health Centers of San Diego
  • Neighborhood Healthcare
  • La Maestra
  • San Diego Food Bank
  • El Cajon Valley High School Community Center
  • Love on a Leash
  • Aetna
  • Blue Shield
  • San Ysidro Health
  • Molina