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Here's What's New  
Guest post from Cassie of Vegan Insanity I've been vegan for over a year now. When I first made the switch to a plant-based diet, I spent an enormous amount of money on vegetables. Since I have them with pretty much every meal, I was buying them in abundance, and my bank account was showing that. I started doing a bit of research and experiments to see if I could save a serious amount of money on my produce – and I did! In fact, last month I gave myself a budget of $30 per week for my produce purchases (at that point I was spending about $60), and came in under budget by $6! Here's what I did to save money on vegetables: 1. Check the discount rack. My local grocery store has a discounted produce rack, and every time I went shopping, I would check it out for veggies that I could use. I often walked away with peppers, eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes (among other things) for 50% off or more! Some vegetables had to be used right away, some would last a few days, and some of them I would stick in the freezer for later use. 2. Scour the farmer's markets. Farmer's markets were a lifesaver for me last month! I went every weekend, and I always scored a ton of great deals when I was there. I would usually show up about 30 minutes before closing time, and would ask the vendors for rock-bottom prices on their remaining vegetables. Most of them accepted! One of the best deals I scored at the farmer's market was a 10 pound box of bell peppers for just $5! I brought them home, washed them, cut them up, and popped them in the freezer. Now I have months’ worth of peppers in the freezer for soups, chili, and more! 3. Pick your own. If you don't have a farmer's market nearby, check to see if there are any farms in your area, and if they offer "pick your own" vegetables. Many farms allow you to pick your own potatoes, tomatoes, fruits and more – for a lot less cash than what you'd pay at a grocery store. Plus, a trip to the farm is a fun family outing! 4. Shop in season. One of the biggest things I did to lower my costs on veggies was to stop buying things I wanted, and instead only purchased the things that were in season. When produce is in season, it's not only much cheaper, but it also tastes way better. Visit Fruits & Veggies More Matters to learn all about in-season produce and when you buy your favorite vegetables (and fruit). These are the ways that I was able to cut my bill on veggies by 53%. Since this experiment was so successful, I've decided I'm going to continue doing what I've been doing. There are always ways to save on foods that make up a big part of your diet, no matter what they are! What are some ways that you've been able to save money on vegetables? I'm Cassie – vegan food lover, money-saver, and blogger. I live in Vaughan, Ontario, right near the big city of Toronto, with my husband, our 2 kids, 3 cats, and a dog that thinks he's a cat, too. I love to cook and share delicious vegan food with everyone I know.
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I had fully planned to stick it out through the end of the month with my Cutting Back on Caffeine commitment for October (cutting back from two cups of coffee per day to one cup per day), but it’s kind of really starting to stink. As in, it’s messing with my sleep patterns and habits. You see, ever since I went down to just 1 1/4 cups, I have fallen asleep at least an hour or two before I was planning to and then have had trouble getting up in the morning when I planned to do so. So, you might not think this is a big problem. Except it is, because I keep falling asleep before taking my contacts out, washing my face, or taking my pills before bed (I am currently on a few different medications because of some health issues + my usual vitamins)… and well, I keep waking up at 3 a.m. or so realizing that I accidentally fell asleep before doing my nightly routine. So then I have to get up and do my before bed routine and then that wakes me up so much that I have trouble falling back to sleep. Which, in turn, means I sleep in later than I was planning to and wake up feeling like I still need more sleep. Yes, I know these seem like such trivial problems to have, but I feel like cutting back on that one cup of coffee is kind of wreaking havoc on my life. And it’s just not worth it… especially while I’m in the middle of mothering, developing relationships in a new community, running a business, and writing a book. So, even though I’m not usually a quitter, I’m going to give myself grace and just say that this experiment has gone on long enough and I’m going back to my two cups of coffee per day. Stay tuned for November’s 12 Months to a Healthier You Challenge.  
I’m going to be out of town at a conference half of this week, so I’m keeping my goals short and sweet. Last week's goals: Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals 1. Finish reading Teddy's Button aloud to the kids at lunch time. {We made an executive to stop this book and instead Kathrynne begged if she could start reading Sir Bentley aloud to us. I was happy to oblige. She’s been reading this series and loving it so much that she wanted to share it with us.}
2. Have a movie night with Jesse. {Does watching the Royals game together count?} 3. Write a love note to Jesse.
4. Start a new sewing or handwork project. {I started knitting a scarf.}
Personal Goals 5. Work on reviewing and memorizing Romans 1 and Romans 2:1-3. 6. Finish reading I Thought It Was Just Me (But It Isn't), A Proper Pursuit, and a few other titles. {I made some good headway on my own book-reading this week, but I didn’t finish any books yet. Look for an update later this week, when I hopefully will have finished a few books and will have some short reviews to share. :)}
7. Run or exercise at least 5 times.
Business Goals 8. Continue to work on chapters 8 and 9 of my book manuscript.
9. Write answers to questions for an upcoming online interview.
10. Finish my first article for an upcoming magazine column.
This week's goals: Marriage/Mothering/Homemaking Goals 1. At least 3 days, read aloud with the kids and/or listen to Kathrynne read Sir Bentley. {My plan is for her to read while we fold laundry. We’ll see if that plan pans out.}
2. Write a love note to Jesse. Personal Goals 3. Work on reviewing and memorizing Romans 1 and Romans 2:1-3. 4. Finish at least two books.
5. Run or exercise at least 4 times. Business Goals 6. Finish chapters 8 and 9 of my book manuscript, start on chapter 10. How did you do on last week's goals? What are your goals for this week? I'd love to have you share your progress on last week's goals and your goals for this coming week in the comments. Of, if you've blogged about it, leave your direct link below. Let's cheer each other on to live purposeful and productive lives! You can download a free customizable weekly goal-planning sheet here.
Guest post from Courtney of CourtneyDeFeo.com The conversation starts so pure and with great intention. You are a fun mom, thank you very much! You want your kids to have fun – but you forgot one thing. When you ask your kids questions, you will get honest answers. For instance: "Kids! How would like to have some fun today? What would you like to do?" Child 1 – "Go to Disney?" Child 2 – "Go buy new clothes? Child 3 – "Go get ice cream?" Child 1 – "Okay, fine, how about Six Flags?" Child 2 – "Just a headband then?" Child 3 – "Can we make milkshakes?" And you just see dollar signs and exhaustion. Here are just a few simple ideas on how to have some family fun without spending money and or too much time. 1. Have Box, Will Create The next time a box comes in your house (or you see a giant moving box around a friend's house) – grab it! Save it! Challenge your family to make it into a sailboat, rocket ship, school bus or playhouse. You would be surprised what a family can create together – just need imagination and household supplies. 2. Raid The Closets Set the timer and tell the kids they have 1 minute to find their best outfit in mom and dad's closet – they will have two minutes to prepare a song or dance for the group. If they picked dad's outfit – they must sing or dance like him. If they picked mom's outfit – yep, they are impersonating mom. Respectfully, of course. 3. Hide That Treasure Our family started this tradition years ago and it's a winner. We had an old antique "pink lady" that I strongly disliked as a child. I wanted it out of my room. So my mom hung onto it and planted it in my home as an adult. I discovered it and giggled. Then, I hid it back in her house and then it became a game. Find an old treasure or trinket and keep moving it from house to house in your extended family. The hunt and thrill of the game becomes highly amusing among the cousins. Or, play the same game with your immediate family members: hide an item somewhere in the house and then see who finds it first. When they find it, they have to re-hide it. And so on and so forth. 4. Sneaky Giving There is something in your house that a neighbor would enjoy. As a family, make a surprise treat bag or donate a toy to a child. Go deliver to your neighbor's porch with an anonymous note. All the family has to sneak together. Don't get caught! Generosity is more fun when it's a surprise! 5. Kitchen Dance Party Our family loves all of the free stations on Pandora. Get dad to play DJ and just pick your nightly dance spot. Challenge each family member to their best moves – the sprinkler, the worm, anything goes. Remember, family fun doesn't have to cost a dime. Just pick a tradition and go for it. Don't forget to giggle! Courtney DeFeo is the creator of ABC Scripture Cards featured on "The View" and author of In This House, We Will Giggle. She is a graduate of Auburn University and has worked in marketing for Chick-fil-A. Courtney and her husband, Ron, are the parents of two children. To connect with Courtney, visit CourtneyDeFeo.com. 
Win a Copy of In This House, We Will Giggle! Need some fresh ideas and inspiration for making virtues, love, and laughter apart of your daily life as a family? Check out Courtney’s new book, In This House, We Will Giggle. I got my copy recently and can’t wait to read it soon! I’d love to give away a copy to three readers today. Just leave a comment telling us your favorite frugal family fun idea. I’ll choose three comments on Wednesday and will send you a free copy of Courtney’s book!
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