If a person smokes just one pack of cigarettes each day for 20 years, the cost of the unhealthy habit will be at least $25,000.  Think of what you could do with $25,000!  The thing is, smoking just doesn’t cost you money for cigarettes, it also costs you money for other things such as higher premiums on health and life insurance.

Other reasons to quit smoking:

• decreased coughing and shortness of breath
• decreased risk of coronary heart disease
• decreased risk of stroke
• decreased risk of lung, mouth, throat, and other cancers
• decreased health risk from secondhand smoke
• more environmentally friendly

The American Cancer Society has support for those who are quitting.  Help is available 24 hours a day.

Have you thought of quitting?

image sxc.hu

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese, Bacon, and Balsamic-Fig Dressing

Roast Turkey with Onion and Cranberry Chutney

Wild Rice Pilaf with Sausage, Shiitake Mushrooms, and Celery

Brussels Sprouts with Currants and Pine Nuts

Gratin of Cauliflower with Gruyère

Bakery Dinner Rolls

Pear Pie with Streusel Topping and Caramel Sauce

photo by Becky Luigart-Stayner, courtesy of Cooking Light

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

What could be better than saving money, reducing landfill waste and at the same time making your home safer for you family?  Making your own simple cleaning products will accomplish all three of these and give you a sense of self sufficiency that is very powerful.  Who knows, it may start you down the same path that I took ten years ago to simplify my life by teaching myself to do things that I had previously relied on others to do for me. 

Maybe you have started on this journey already but haven’t had the confidence till now to defy the huge marketing machine that bombards us every day declaring that only their chemical laden products can make our house safely clean.  Take heart, with a few simple and safe ingredients you can make products to clean most of your home and make it much healthier.  And despite what the huge cleaning industry bosses say, you don’t need ten products to clean you home.  The following two creations will clean almost every surface that gets dirty.  Have fun!
The long list of complicated ingredients and supplies that will cost you lots of cash (not!):

Clean spray bottle (can be recycled but rinse well before use)
Glass or plastic wide mouthed jar (I use a pint canning jar)
Baking soda
Liquid castile soap (Dr. Bronner’s is good)
Rosemary, Peppermint or Lavender essential oil (can be mail ordered or found at health food stores)

Disinfectant Cleaning Spray
Fill a one quart spray bottle to within two inches of the top with warm tap water.  Add 2 tablespoons of liquid castile soap.  Add 1-2 teaspoons of your essential oil (EO) of choice.  All three of these have disinfectant properties so it is a matter of personal preference.  Adjust the amount of EO to lighten or strengthen the scent.  Shake to mix and shake before each use.  Label the bottle.

This cleaner will cost you about $.50 to make and can be used in so many ways.  Here are the things that I use it for.  Sinks, toilet (both inside and out), wood floors, tile floors, carpet stains, ceramic stove top (for non baked on stains) counters, bathtub and countertops, walls and anything else that gets dirty.  You can spray this directly on dirty little hands too. Just rinse with water to avoid the soap getting into the eyes.  This cleaner is completely natural and non toxic and cleans amazingly well.  Just spray it on, let it sit for a couple of minutes will you receive an aroma therapy session from the EO and then wash off.

Scrubbing Powder
Pour two cups of baking soda into a clean bowl.  Add about 4 tablespoons of liquid castile soap and 1-2 teaspoons

 of EO of choice.  Make sure you use pure castile soap and not liquid dish soap as the dish soap creates a bad chemical reaction with the baking soda.  Mix thoroughly and store in a plastic or glass wide mouth jar.  Label the jar. This will cost you about $.50.

I use this on stubborn sink stains, bathtub rings, and my ceramic stove top.  It also works great to scrub out pots and pans.  If you leave out the liquid soap, you can use it as a great refrigerator, cat box or garbage can deodorizer.

Mirror Cleaner
I know I said we’d talk about two cleaners, but I just had to throw this one in for the pure shock value.

Fill a quart spray bottle with water.  That’s it.  Plain water.  Spray it on and use a clean rag to wipe the mirror.  Switch to another clean, dry rag and wipe till it’s dry.  Amazing huh?  Who needs that stuff that’s dyed blue?  Some folks add a little vinegar but I haven’t found it to be any better.  Make sure you label the bottle as most liquids look alike.

Simple isn’t it?  And talk about saving money.  If you replace just these three cleaners with the expensive ones you are using now, you could save hundreds of dollars every year.  And think of the health benefits to you and your family and all of the bottles that won’t go from you house to the landfill every year.  Please give these recipes a try and you’ll be well on your way to frugal and healthy self sufficiency. 

Herbal Blessings, Theresa Lim

Theresa is an herb farmer and beekeeper in North Carolina.  I am very fond of her natural and therapeutic products.  You can find them at Honey Thyme Herb Farm.

image via Honey Thyme Herb Farm

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

Ingredients:

• chicken (I used 4 boneless breasts)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (I used the ones with green chilies)
• green salsa (such as the kind made by Herdez)
• minced garlic
• sliced onions
• sliced bell peppers
• salt and pepper (I used Goya Adobo seasoning, which is one of our faves!)
• 14 oz can of kernel corn, drained
• 15 oz can of black beans, drained and chopped or mashed

In a crock pot, put in your chicken, tomatoes, about 3/4-1 cup of green salsa, about 1 cup of sliced onions, some sliced bell peppers (if you wish), about 3 cloves minced garlic (I used the bottled minced) and salt and pepper (or Goya Adobo seasoning). Cook the chicken for about 3-4 hours, until tender.

Take the chicken out of the crock pot and set it on a plate or cutting board to let it cool some. Drain the juice out of the vegetables, reserving some of the liquid. Put the vegetables back into the crock pot. Add the can of drained corn and drained black beans. Cut up or shred the chicken and put it back into the crock pot. Add a little more of the green salsa (about 1/4 cup) and some of the liquid from the vegetables that you drained (about 1 cup). Stir all this together and allow it to cook for another 15-20 minutes.

Use the chicken in tacos, burritos, or quesadillas. Yummy!

We had enough of this chicken to feed our family of four and then some to freeze for another meal. I also served this recipe with Spanish rice. We topped our tacos with cheese and sour cream and a bit of fresh, homemade salsa (pico-de-gallo). Sorry, I wish I had a picture to share.

Enjoy!

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

We’re excited to announce that our third giveaway for this week is a new copy of Cooking Light Complete Cookbook:  A Fresh New Way to Cook.  This cookbook weighs a whopping 4 lbs and boasts 1,200+ recipes and 600+ photos.  The recipes come in a hardbound binder, which easily wipes clean.  The recipes are hole punched and organized neatly inside.  The book even comes with an interactive DVD!  For the environmentalist cook, there is information about seasonal produce and reducing your carbon footprint.

This cookbook is sitting in a convenient place in my kitchen so that I remember to use it.  Most of us could use some help in cooking more healthy for our families.  You can read my review of this cookbook, which includes photos and recipes.  Kelly has also written a review of this fabulous cookbook.

The Cooking Light Cookbook is valued at $34.95.

To enter this contest, all you need to do is leave a comment at this post between now and Friday, April 25th.  The winner will be contacted via email, so please be sure you leave a valid email address.  Please leave your email address in the box under your name instead of in the comment section.  Due to shipping costs, this giveaway is open to US and Canadian addresses only.

There are other giveaways this week at Thrifty Mommy.  We’re giving away a purse made from recycled plastic bags, some homemade skin products made from honey, and some other things will be posted soon. 

Please check out my other giveaways at A Healthy Balance and Little Fun; Little Learning.

Good luck!

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

I came across Busy Family Meals today.  It’s a new b5 Media blog in our Lifestyles Channel.  I’ll be sure to stop by because I need some ideas for quick and healthy meals. 

Welcome Busy Family Meals!

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

You will need:

• boneless chicken
• refried beans
• salsa
• taco seasoning
• Azteca taco shells (usually found in the refrigerated stuff, near the eggs)
• lettuce
• tomatoes
• sour cream
• shredded cheese

Set out your Azteca taco shells so that they can begin to soften.  Wash and cut up your lettuce and tomatoes; set aside.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 

Form your taco shells using the forms that are included in the Azteca kit.  Bake these on 350 until they’re browned.  This should take about 8-10 minutes.

Cut your chicken into bite size pieces.  Throw it in a skillet with some salsa and about 1 tablespoon of taco seasoning.  Cook until it’s done throughout.  Yep, it really is that simple.  If you want, you can sprinkle in some garlic and cumin.  If the chicken starts to dry out while it’s cooking or waiting to be eaten, just add a tablespoon of water and stir.

Cook your refried beans in a saucepan.  I just buy the ones in a can.  I have found that they’re really, really thick though, so I usually add a  little salsa and water to them to make them thinner.

Once your shells, chicken, and beans are done, you just layer your salad.  Here’s how I usually layer mine:  shell, beans, chicken, lettuce, tomato, sour cream, cheese, and salsa. 

If you’d like, you can also include some cooked Mexican rice or olives in your salad.

This is a very easy dinner and it won’t take you long at all to prepare it.  If you’d like to prepare a little in advance, you can already have your vegetables and chicken cut up.

I found the Azteca shells at Wal-Mart.  Some stores do not carry them.  They are a great tasting shell, as they are light and flaky.

Let me know how it turns out.  Enjoy!

Post from: Thrifty Mommy

2 small strawberry sugar free jello (boxes)
1 cup boiling water
4 cups unsweeted strawberries, sliced
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained
3 mashed bananas
1/3 cup pecans
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt

Mix jello and boiling water until dissolved.  Add fruit and mix. Add nuts.  Pour 1/2 mixture in 9×13 pan and reserve remaining mixture at room temperature.  Chill mixture in pan for 1 hour.  Spread yogurt on top of chilled mixture, then top with remaining mixture.  Chill until firm.

serves 12, 84 calories, 2 grams fiber, 2 grams fat

Post from: Thrifty Mommy