One way I save money is by growing my own food.
When I started blogging and making YouTube videos, it wasn’t my job. I did it for years without making a single dime. Sharing my journey to health and healing with you was merely a way for me to connect, be held accountable for my own choices, and to maybe help someone else.
I was a single mom of three kids, and I was hardly making enough money to support my household. Actually, scratch that. I wasn’t making enough.
But even with no money in the bank and barely enough to keep the lights on, taking care of my family’s health remained a top priority. How could I do that on a limited budget? I couldn’t afford health insurance for myself, and I could hardly scrape together enough pennies to pay for over-the-counter medication or doctor co-pays for the kids. There was no room in the budget for getting sick.
What could I do to protect us from illness and financial strain?
I knew that proper nutrition was the answer. Truth be told, I had been focusing on feeding my kids clean food on a budget from the time they were babies. It started with extended breastfeeding and making my own baby food, and then turned into finding ways to shop smarter for healthy, organic options.
I didn’t have access to fancy grocery stores – not that I could afford to shop in them anyway. When I asked the manager at my local grocery if he would be willing to stock more organic and fresh options on his shelf, he told me, “People around here won’t be into stuff like that.” Stuff like that? Who wouldn’t “be into” clean food and fresher produce?
Not everyone is lucky enough to have a back yard, but I happened to have a small space that soon became a tiny garden. I grew organic tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, berries – the usual beginner backyard gardener fare. I was also able to do some container gardening, and eventually started composting in a bin and raising worms in a little worm farm in my kitchen.
with my younger son at our local CSA farm
I clipped coupons, joined a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farm, and only bought fruit and vegetables that were cheap and in-season. When produce went on sale, I bought in bulk, and froze it. At one point, my entire freezer was stuffed with cherry tomatoes from my local CSA – all we could pick and stuff in our bags because there was a boom on the farm!
I wasn’t always able to buy organic because of the cost, so I did my research on which foods were important to buy organic and which conventionally grown foods were safe to eat. You can find that info and watch my video here.
By the way, there are a ton of reasons to go organic (whenever you can). Here are 5 surprising reasons that you may have never heard of. Click on the image to see the whole list and click the Pin It button to share it with your friends!
It wasn’t easy, but I did it. I managed to feed my children amazing food on a budget and keep myself healthy and able to take care of my family.
Now I’m excited to be working with a company that is also dedicated to keeping families healthy by providing clean, healthy food without taking your whole paycheck. (We can all think of a place or two that’s guilty of that.)
I’ve been asked to be part of an exciting new campaign for ALDI, and award-winning supermarket that is now launching an affordable organic line and placing a huge focus on fresh produce.
my ALDIfresh kit that I got in the mail… I’m so excited!
ALDI does things differently so that you can save more and live better:
– At ALDI, you “rent” your shopping cart for a quarter, and then return the cart at the end of your shopping trip to get your quarter back. This keeps prices low because they don’t have to spend time retrieving carts from all over the parking lot.
– ALDI only accepts cash, debit cards, and EBT cards. This eliminates credit card processing fees, helping further to keep the price of their products down.
– ALDI asks that you use your own bags (you can also purchase reusable bags at checkout) – good for keeping costs down and protecting our environment.
– The ALDI supermarket chain is made up of smaller, energy-saving stores that embody the spirit of conservation through recycled bags and containers, lower electricity usage, and lower rents – saving the earth and your money.
– What gets me most excited is the ability to Switch & Save at ALDI. Their ALDI-exclusive brands and new Simply Nature natural and organic line allow you and I to buy the food we love for less – allowing you to save up to 50% off our regular grocery bill.
From fresh produce to natural and organic cereals, pastas, meals, snacks, and frozen foods, Simply Nature will provide you and your family will cleaner options that you can actually afford. And even if you’re not on a budget, why waste money on spending more for the same food somewhere else? I’d rather stuff my extra dollars into my unicorn bank for a family vacation.
Over the next couple weeks, I’m going to be documenting my shopping trips to ALDI and sharing all the amazing things I find there, including incredible buys for you and healthy snacks that kids will actually eat.
I’m also traveling to their test kitchen in Chicago (our friend, Sarah Dussault, will be there, too – read about her first trip to ALDI here) to share all the delicious stuff they’re cooking up with the high-quality, healthy ingredients sold in their stores. Got question for ALDI? Post them in the comments!
I found out from my Instagram and Facebook posts that a lot of you are already huge fans of ALDI. I hope that the rest of you will jump on board for this mini-journey with me to learn how you can be healthier, happier, and less broke, too. It’s going to be a blast!
Watch my Instagram account for pics of my ALDI grocery hauls. I’ve been making my list from their online ad circulars, and I’m getting so excited!
Now tell me, have you ever shopped at ALDI? What are your favorite products? I love hearing from you and I especially love your tips!
Stay blissed in! xx
