Pinching Pennies: Bag Lunches Go Cheap and Green

I am the resident lunch maker in our home, and although at first I hated it, now I've got a bit of a rhythm going on. My husband seems lost when it comes to making even his own lunch, but this is where my trailer park child hood starts to look like advanced education. Trailer park kids can make a meal out of anything, even when it doesn't look like there's much in the fridge. And so my lunch making duty is really kismet or fate or whatever you want to call it.

In September when school resumed, I found the amount of lunch trash we were throwing away everyday disturbing. It's not that expensive, but it's SO BAD for our earth. And millions of kids are doing it everyday in North America alone.

So I reformed our lunches: pay once, eat for years and save the earth. Here are the 5 steps that transformed our noon hour:

1) Purchase a sturdy, neutral coloured lunch kit. I will not even mention those who are still brown paper bagging it. Investing in a good quality lunch kit in a neutral colour or pattern ensures that not only will it last more than a year, but that your child won't outgrow the style. And once they outgrow packed lunches, you can still keep it around for when you need one. (Note: I have found several awesome lunch kits in pristine condition in our local second hand store.)

2) Sandwich Wraps. It's basically a piece of fabric on one side and food grade water resistant fabric on the other. You fold it around your sandwich and it fastens with string or velcro. This replaces cling wrap or sandwich bags. You can easily make one or purchase one online. I got ours at "All Things Being Eco" locally. Again, remember to go for quality and neutral patterns and colours to get the longest use out of your wraps. Here is a list of the top 5 wraps. (We got keep leaf)

3) Reusable fabric snack baggies. Again, these replace ziplock baggies. The internet provides many options: you can find plain cotton, water resistant, velcro, zip top - or you can find a pattern to make your own.

4) Glass or stainless steel containers in different sizes. I know those disposable ziplock containers are cheap and convenient, but they corrode if you put hot things in them or heat them up, and crack if they get banged when they are frozen. They just don't last and that means they are ending up in our landfills. We have some sturdy glass rectangular ones in four different sizes and they have lasted a very long time. They have plastic snap top lids and I can freeze them, microwave them and even stick them in the oven (with out lids of course).

5) A reusable water bottle. We have both stainless steel and plastic. Juice boxes are expensive, full of sugar your kidlets don't need, and create needless waste. I have found that a water bottle with a simple opening instead of a complex valve system is much easier to keep clean (and remember to purchase BPA free).

This isn't necessary, as a simple container or a clean baby food jar would do, but we found these awesome reusable squeeze pouches for apple sauce or yogurt. The kids love them, and I don't have to pay $1 every time for the disposable ones from the grocery store.

Lastly, once you've invested time or money (or both) in making or purchasing your reusable lunch items, don't forget to LABEL. Kids are so skilled at losing stuff. If your name is on it, you'll likely get it back.

Love,
Victoria

When Pinching Pennies Isn't Enough

Today I realized that I have not posted since February of last year: twenty whole months!! What could have kept me from you so long, dear readers? The short answer is that I got pregnant shortly after my last post. The morning sickness was intense. We sold our house and moved. Then we moved again. Then I got really sick. Then I gave birth. And since then, I have been adjusting to mothering three children and getting my strength back. I am looking forward to being able to post here again.

As the budget keeper and tracker of the house hold, over the years I have spent countless hours sweating over the simple excel spreadsheets that organize our incomings and outgoings. It's quite foolish, but I think I secretly believe that if I just organize it better or look at it the right way, the budget will magically iron smooth and there'll be all this extra money that I never saw before.

It's called DENIAL. My eyes were telling me something I was unwilling to see: there really wasn't enough money for us to live on, no matter how lean I cut the groceries. Unwilling to trust my own judgement, I showed our  finances to four seperate people in various money related jobs - bank managers, financial planners, etc. They all said the same thing: pinching pennies wasn't enough. We needed either to earn more income or move.

We wrestled with earning options, none of which were practically feasible, while struggling to keep out of debt.

And then, as we started looking at the work/school/pre-school schedule last year, we realized we were going to need a second car. It was the proverbial straw that broke the camels back. We were stretched so thin that there was no more give.

So we put our house on the market.

It was hard, but not as hard as I thought it would be. When it sold, I was just so relieved to have a chance to make a fresh (smart) start. And we did - in a modest, simple but well built home within walking distance of work and school. For the first year or two, there won't be that much of a difference in our finances - but after that we are going to see major payoffs.

I often have posted about ways to save a quarter here, two dollars there - but sometimes you need to look at the bigger picture. Step back and really assess without fear. Will saving $75 bucks a month make a difference - or do you need to trim hundreds from the budget? Because skimping on cleaning supplies and cuts of meat only goes so far. We knew deep down for a long time what we needed to do, but we were afraid. Afraid of all the hard work, uncertainty and letting go. But now that it's done - I am so grateful. It was a wise decision. I don't feel trapped in a corner anymore. And I no longer get upset tummy when I pull up the budget spreadsheets.

So often, we sort of... let our lives happen to us. We end up in a relationship... So we find a home. Then we need a bigger car so we go and trade in. Pants are on sale, so even though they don't really fit, we buy them. Financially, this passive way of living is a recipe for long term disaster. I know, because its how I often do things. Choosing to sell our first home was one of the first big life choices I made using something other than emotion (it's called my brain. Who knew?)

"If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail." - Benjamin Franklin

If pinching pennies isn't enough, maybe you need bigger change (haha - pun).